The Truth About Billie
by Freaky Fan

She walked with a purpose, almost as if she was daring anyone to get in her way. Not that anyone would. This particular little corner of the underworld was practically a wasteland. Once it served as the main throne room for the Source and his minions but since his vanquish most avoided it as if his spirit would reach out from the wasteland to punish them for intruding. Only a few of the more desperate demons called it home.

“I’m telling you it’s too soon!”
“And I’m telling you to back off!!”

Then there were her and her boys. A grin played across her lips when she walked into the cavern to find them standing toe to toe.

“You’re trying to make this happen too fast. If you want the plan to work you need to…”
“I just told you what you needed to do. Now I suggest you get out of my face before I do something you’ll regret.”
“We both know you need me too much to follow up on that threat.”
“Wanna push me and find out?”

“Hey guys.” She strolled up to them casually, knowing someone needed to defuse the situation. “Are you two about through with your pissing contest? I’m on a schedule here.”

“Far be it for me to interrupt play time.” The older of the two pushed past her, saying, “Keep your boy toy on a shorter leash,” as he did.

She raised her eyebrows as he stormed out. “Wow. You really pissed him off this time.”
The younger man furrowed his brow. “What makes you think it was me?”
“Call it women’s intuition.” She tilted her head as she took in his appearance. “Nice threads.”
“What, these?” He gestured at the snug black leather pants and sleeveless vest he wore. “I decided if I’m going to be the next ruler of the underworld I needed to start dressing the part.”
“Don’t you mean co-ruler?”
“Ruler, co-ruler.” He put his arms around her. “You knew what I meant.”

She let herself melt against him, giving in to the passion she always felt when they were together.

“So…” She drew out the word as she looked up at him. “Did I hear him say something about the plan?”
“Yes.” He leaned down, capturing her mouth in a smoldering kiss. “You did.”
“You’ll have to tell me all about it.” She moved in for another round. “As soon as we finish what you started.”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” He let go of her.
“Why?”
“Because neither one of us is going to be able to concentrate if I do.”
“Fine.” She licked her bottom lip, savoring the taste he left behind. “But I’m listening under protest.”

He grinned at her from what he considered to be a safe distance. “All I did was tell him I thought we needed to get this thing over with once and for all. Now that the Triad is out of the picture there’s no one left to stand in our way as far as the power is concerned.”
“I didn’t hear a ‘for now’ anywhere in there. One of them is still around, you know. All he has to do is recruit a couple of cohorts and the Triad is back in business.”
“Which is all the more reason for us to strike now, while the iron is hot.”
“What do you mean by strike?”
“I mean get the power away from the witches so we can turn her.”

He waited for a response, continuing when none came. “I know we originally agreed that we needed more time to convince her, but we don’t have it. We were lucky the Triad didn’t catch on to what we’re doing. And you’re good but we can’t fool the witches forever. It’s only a matter of time before one of them realizes what’s going on.”
“OK, let’s say you’re right.” She played along to hear his explanation. “How are we supposed to get the power away from the witches?”
“Not we. You.”
“Me?!”

“Yes.” He nodded. “You’re on the inside now. All you have to do is get the power out of the Manor.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“But I am.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know.”

“I do.” He walked back over to her. “The power being in that house makes it impossible for us to get to her. It’s where the witches are the most powerful. But if she were to leave…” He spread his hands in a ‘who knows’ gesture.
“You still haven’t said how I’m supposed to get her out of the house.”
“Do I have to do everything?” He frowned. “Send her out for milk. Tell her to take a long walk off a short peer. Drag her out by the hair of the head. As long as she’s away from the witches we can take her.”

“Those are great suggestions.” Her voice dripped with sarcasm as she threw her hands in the air. “We’re this close to getting the power and you decide to send me in blind.”
“Blind? You make it sound like you’re in this alone.”
“Maybe that’s because I feel like I am. I don’t see you walking into a house full of witches.”
“They don’t know who you are.”
“Wasn’t it you who just pointed out it’s only a matter of time before they figure it out?!”

They glared at each other.

“Forget it.” She finally broke the silence. “I’ll do what you want. But don’t come running to me when we blow our chance to get the power.”
“Now you sound like him!” He pointed toward the doorway of the cavern.
“Did you ever stop to think that maybe he’s right?”
“He’s expendable!”
“We wouldn’t have made it this far without him and you know it!”
He moved lightning quick, grabbing her arm to pull her to him. “Well I’ve got news for you. As soon as you do your job and get the power out of the house, he’s dead. What do you think of that?”

She tried to pull out of his grasp. “I’m going.”
“Why?” He mocked her. “You just got here.”
“You’re lucky I’m going back at all.”
“You would never leave me and you know it!”

He crushed his lips against hers, holding on tight until she melted against him again.

“I won’t let you down.” She whispered the words against his mouth as their lips parted.
“I know.” He leaned his forehead against hers.

They stood like that for a while before she finally took a step back.

“I really should get going. It’s almost dawn up there.”
“But…” He reached for her again.
“One of them might notice I’m missing.”
“You’re right.” He let his hand drop, watching her every move. “I miss you already.”
“I’ll be back soon.” She looked at him over her shoulder when she reached the doorway. “With the power.”

She beat a hasty retreat, too caught up in what just happened to notice the older male demon lurking in the shadows of the corridor outside the cavern. He stepped into view as she disappeared around a bend.

“Expendable am I?” His voice was laced with fury. “We’ll just see about that.”

Billie watched her sister as she slept. It seemed like that was all she did lately… watch her sister. If she wasn’t trying to teach her all the things she missed out on growing up she was protecting her from some demon. But her life had been all about getting Christy back for so long that now that it finally happened she was afraid to let her out of her sight.

She sighed as she turned to look out the window. It didn’t take a Dr. Phil intervention to make her see she couldn’t keep obsessing over her sister. It wasn’t healthy for either one of them. She was too busy hovering to live her own life and Christy was never going to learn to function on her own if she was always there to act as her crutch. But she couldn’t bring herself to actually take a step back. Sure things had been quiet on the demon front since the sisters destroyed the Triad, but it had only been a couple of weeks. And there was still the Angel of Destiny’s warning to deal with. How was she supposed to strike a balance when she didn’t know what tomorrow would bring?

She wasn’t. That was the only answer she could come up. Her sister needed her and she was going to be there for her. If she had learned one thing from the Halliwells it was that family always stuck together.

The thought brought a half hearted grin to her face. That’s what it really boiled down to.
She had spent so much time with Piper, Phoebe and Paige that she wanted a little of what they had. And who could blame her? Sisterhood was a bond unlike anything else in the world. She got a taste of it when the sisters took her in and taught her what it meant to be a witch. But being their pseudo little sister just wasn’t enough. She wanted the real thing with Christy.

And she would have it. If it was the last thing she ever did she would have it.

She turned back to the bed, telling herself it wouldn’t hurt anything to go downstairs and get some breakfast. They were in the Manor after all. The sisters wouldn’t let anything happen to Christy anymore than she would.

The safety of the old Victorian wrapped around her like a comfortable blanket as she started down the stairs. She couldn’t explain it, but she felt so alive when she was there. So connected to the Halliwells and her sister and the craft she was slowly but surely learning to master. She would never be able to repay the sisters for all they had done for her. The funny thing was they would never ask her to. Offering their friendship and guidance came as naturally as breathing for them.

“Drop it, Paige.”
“I can’t do that, Piper.”

She hesitated just short of pushing open the swinging door leading into the kitchen when she heard the voices. Taking advantage of the sisters’ hospitality was one thing, but intruding on a private conversation was another. Especially when it was an argument. And from the tone of Piper’s voice the eldest Halliwell wasn’t too happy with her little sister.

“Well I don’t think she’s going to be very receptive to what you have to say.”

Piper’s voice followed her as she started back toward the living room.

“Yeah, well that doesn’t mean I can’t try. I care too much about Billie to just let this go.”

Paige’s words made her stop in her tracks. Was listening in on a conversation considered eavesdropping if the people involved were talking about you?

“I care about Billie too, Paige. But now really isn’t the time.”
“Then when would be?”
“I don’t know.” Piper sighed. “Look, she just got Christy back. Give her a chance to adjust to that before you go raining on her parade.”

Christy? Why were they talking about Christy?

“I don’t want to hurt her, Piper. But I can’t shake the feeling that something’s not right.”
“Of course something’s not right. Leo’s out there somewhere frozen, Phoebe moved out and we’ve got the key to some ultimate power staying in our house. Not to mention yet another knock down drag out fight with evil looming on the horizon. But what’s new where we’re concerned?”
“I’m being serious here.”
“So am I.”

Billie knew what she was doing was wrong but found herself creeping closer to the door.

“It’s all just a little too convenient for me.”
“Convenient?”
“Yeah. Isn’t it kind of strange that Christy showed up right after the angel of destiny warned us?”

Billie’s heart sank.

“It’s not like she just showed up. Billie leaned to use her new power to find her.”
“I know, but wasn’t it all a little too easy? I mean, if Christy really is the key to this ultimate power evil wants so badly, why didn’t they put up more of a fight to keep her?”

It was like Paige was saying everything she didn’t want to admit she had been thinking since her sister came back into her life.

“Hello?! Is the Triad not ringing any bells with you?”
“Yes. I just… I can’t get past this, Piper. Why haven’t any other demons tried to attack? Why aren’t the Elders telling us anything?”
“I think you’re looking a gift horse in the mouth not to mention jinxing us with all that no demons talk.”
“Maybe. But there’s just something about Christy I don’t trust.”

“I knew it.”

Billie almost jumped out of her skin when she heard the voice behind her.

“They don’t like me.”

She felt more than guilty as she turned to find her sister standing behind her. “Christy…”
“Why don’t they like me?” Tears filled Christy’s eyes as she interrupted her.

“Oh, sweetie.” Seeing her sister so upset was almost more than Billie could take. “They like you.” She put her arm around her, leading her into the living room.
“Then why was Paige saying those things about me?”

Billie couldn’t come up with an answer. Not when she was feeling so bad for thinking the same things herself.

Christy pulled away from her. “You don’t trust me either, do you?”
“Of course I do!”
“Then why didn’t you answer my question?” Christy asked as she flopped down on the couch.

She wanted to say she didn’t have an answer but knew that wouldn’t work. Christy had been in need of constant reassurance since escaping from the underworld. She didn’t want to jeopardize their still fragile relationship by letting her down.

“I think Paige said the things she did because she’s being cautious.” She dove right in, avoiding her sister’s last question.
“Of me?”
There was that super innocent look again. “Not of you, necessarily. Of the situation.”
Christy shook her head. “You’re not making any sense.”

Billie swallowed hard. She could practically feel Christy slipping away from her.

“Paige and her sisters are the charmed ones. The most powerful force of good in the world. It’s second nature for them to look at things from every possible angle.” She couldn’t tell who she was trying to persuade, herself or her sister. “Paige is just watching their backs.”
“By questioning why you saved me.”

“No.” Billie was quick to answer. “By questioning the situation. Even you have to admit me getting you out of the underworld so easily was weird. You’re the key to some power the Triad wanted in the worst way. You would think they would have done anything to keep me away from you.”
“I guess.” Christy shrugged. “But it still sounds like you’re all sorry I’m here.”

“That couldn’t be further from the truth.” Billie sat down next to her. “I would have done anything to get you back, Christy. Absolutely anything. I love you and can’t imagine my life without you in it. Please don’t ever doubt that.”
“I don’t.” Christy leaned her head against her sister’s shoulder. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

The honesty behind those words were like a knife to Billie’s heart. How could she have any doubts where her sister was concerned?

“I just don’t understand why Paige can’t be as happy as you are that I’m here.”

Billie clinched her jaw at her sister’s mumbled words, choosing to pull her closer rather than answer. She didn’t understand either but she would. Just as soon as she found someone who could explain it to her.

Billie sighed as she slowly made her way down the stairs. She could have been up in her room oohing and aahing over a fashion magazine with Christy but as much as she wanted to spend time with her sister she didn’t feel like being girly. Just like she could have gone to get groceries with Paige if she felt like admitting she eavesdropped the morning before and needed to talk to her about it. But all she wanted right now was a little time alone to think. To work through the seemingly endless stream of thoughts screaming through her head so maybe she would finally figure out what she should do. She didn’t want to lose Christy by admitting she agreed with Paige but she didn’t want to hurt Paige by laying into her for talking about Christy either.

The doorbell sounded as she reached the first floor, registering just enough to have instinct sending her to answer it.

“Billie. Just the girl I was looking for.”

Her head snapped up when she heard someone saying her name as she opened the door. “Clarence?”
“In the flesh.” A middle aged man smiled at her from the doorway.
“How…” Billie looked blown away. “How did you find me?”
“I stopped by your apartment building and one of your little friends was nice enough to point me in the right direction. She told me you dropped out of school.” The man craned his neck to get a better look at the interior of the house. “This is quite a place for a college dropout.”

“I’ll get it, Piper!”

Billie’s eyes got big when she heard Phoebe’s voice coming from somewhere in the general vicinity of the dining room. She put her hand on Clarence’s shoulder, pushing him back so she could step out on the porch and shut the door behind her.

“Hey!” Clarence grunted. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to keep you from disturbing the people who own this house.”
“So you don’t live here?”
“No. I mean yes. I mean…” Billie closed her eyes, telling herself to get a grip. The last thing she needed right now was her past coming back to haunt her. “Look, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but you need to leave.”
“But…”
“There are no buts about it, Clarence! Like I told you last week when you managed to con my cell number out of someone else on campus, I’m not interested in talking to you.”
“Come on, Billie. I’ll only take a few minutes of your time.”
“No, you won’t.” Billie started toward him, forcing him to walk down the front steps backward. “Because you’re leaving.”

“Oh, I see how it is.” Clarence tried to stand his ground but found himself backing up even more when she took another step forward. “Last year when things weren’t so great for you I was fine to have around but now that things are obviously going better you’re giving me the bums rush.”
“I didn’t even know you were around last year, remember? And when I did I told you to get lost. Which is what I’m doing now.” Billie pointed toward the beat up sedan parked on the street in front of the house. “Get in your jalopy and get out of here.”
“But people want to know…”
“Go! And don’t bother tracking me down again because if you do I’m calling the cops and having you arrested for harassment.”
“Harassment?” Clarence frowned.
“Yes, harassment.” Billie held up a hand to silence him when he opened his mouth again. “And don’t try giving me that freedom of the press crap either. My official response is ‘no comment.’ Now get out of here.”

“Fine.” Clarence grumbled as he stormed toward his car. “A guy tries to do someone a favor and where does it get him?”

Billie made sure he started the car and drove away before turning back toward the house, only to find Phoebe waiting for her on the porch.

“Who was that?”
Billie resisted the urge to growl. Why did she continually find herself jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire lately? “No one. Just some guy with a wrong address.”
“So you walked him to his car and gave him directions?”
“Sure.” Billie shrugged. Why try to come up with an answer when someone else was providing one for her?

“Hey.” Phoebe caught her arm as she went to walk around her. “Are you all right?”

Billie was caught off guard. No one seemed to notice her anymore, let alone worry about her. Christy was oblivious, Piper was too wrapped up in trying to find Leo, Phoebe was always at her new place and Paige was doing the whole newlywed thing with Henry.

“Because it was pretty obvious from up here that you were telling that guy off.” Phoebe continued. “And you seem kind of down.”
“I’m fine.”
“And did I mention that you’re not a very good liar?”
“Phoebe…”
“All I’m saying is you can talk to me if you need to. You know that, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Good.” Phoebe gripped her hand. “Then tell me what’s going on.”

The tears came so unexpectedly she couldn’t stop them from spilling down her cheeks.

“That does it.” Phoebe tightened her grip, using her free hand to shut the door as she pulled her back into the house and straight to the living room. “Now you’re going to sit right here.” She sat her on the couch. “And talk to me.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Billie caught the disbelieving look on Phoebe’s face as she wiped at the tears on her face. “Really.”
“People don’t cry over nothing, Billie. Especially not people like you.”
“People like me?”
“Yeah, the strong, I can take on the world all by myself, no one needs to worry about me type.” Phoebe sat down on the coffee table facing her. “Prue used to be the same way.”
“But you’ve always told me she was pigheaded.”
“Exactly, honey. Sometimes if the shoe fits you can’t help but wear it.”

“I…” Billie knew Phoebe was trying to be nice and there was nothing she would rather do than talk everything out with someone, but she couldn’t dump on her. They were close but not that close. “I’m just being stupid.”
“Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?”
“I’m fine. Really.”
“See, there you go again. If Prue thought she could get out of talking by downplaying what was going on she would do it. But I’m not letting you off that couch until you tell me what’s eating at you. So you might as well start talking.”

Billie thought about pushing her luck a little further and getting up but knew Phoebe would just follow her. The middle Halliwell was like a dog with a bone once she got her teeth into something.

“All right. I’ll tell you.” She tried think of something lame in the hopes Phoebe would drop it and leave her alone but nothing came to mind. So she tried a half truth instead. “I overheard Piper and Paige talking in the kitchen yesterday morning.”
“OK.”
“About me.”
“And?”
“And nothing. That’s it.”
“Hmm.” Phoebe nodded. “Then I guess I’m gonna have to have a talk with my sisters.”
“What?” Billie frowned. “Why?”
“Because obviously one of them said something that upset you.”
“No they didn’t.”
“Billie, not five minutes ago you were crying.”
“I told you that was me being stupid.”
“And I told you I know you better than that. Just like I know Paige and Piper would want to know they upset you.” Phoebe started to get up. “I’ll start with Piper. She’s in the kitchen with the boys.”

“No!” Billie grabbed her arm. “You can’t.”
Phoebe quirked an eyebrow. “Why not?”
“Because…” She could have kicked herself for saying anything in the first place. All she was doing was digging a deeper and deeper hole. “Because I was eavesdropping.” That sounded good. “I don’t want them to think I go around listening in all the time.”
“They wouldn’t care if you were eavesdropping or not and you know it.” Phoebe sighed. “Why can’t you just tell me the truth?”

Great, now she was upsetting Phoebe.

“Fine, I overheard them talking about Christy. Paige has some doubts about how easily I got her out of the underworld and Piper was telling her to let me enjoy having Christy back for a while before she mentioned them.”
Phoebe sat back down. “And?”
“And I was thinking about how much I agreed with Paige when Christy walked up behind me.”
“Oh.” Phoebe flinched. “Did she…”
“Yeah. I’m not sure how much she heard but it was enough to make her think Paige and Piper don’t like her.”
“And that made you feel guilty.”
“Oh yeah.” Billie slumped against the back of the couch. “I mean, how can I agree with Paige? Getting Christy back is all I’ve been able to think about since I remembered her being taken. I should just be grateful I have her at all.”
“And you feel like you should say something to Paige because Christy was upset.”
Billie nodded. “But how can I? She was just speaking her mind in the privacy of her own kitchen. How was she supposed to know anyone was listening?”
“And no matter how hard you try, you still agree with what she said.”
Billie nodded again. “I’m between a rock and a hard place.”

“I don’t think this is as bad as it seems.” Phoebe joined her on the couch when she snorted. “Really, sweetie. You know as well as I do that Paige is glad you got Christy back. All you need to do is convince Christy of it.”
“How am I supposed to do that?”
“Sit the two of them down and talk it out. Paige can explain herself better and Christy can let her know how she feels.”
“Do you really think that will work?”
“Yes, I do. And maybe you’ll realize you don’t have to get in the middle all the time where Christy is concerned.”
“You noticed that, huh?”

“Yeah.” Phoebe tucked the girl’s hair behind her ear. “Do you feel better?”
“Yes. I do.” Billie gave her an appreciative look. “Thanks.”
“Anytime.” She patted her on the leg. “Now why don’t you go out in the solarium and read a magazine or something? Take a little time for yourself. I’ll check on Christy before I go back out to the kitchen.”
“Thanks again.”
“No thanks needed. I’ve told you a million times I think of you as family.”

Phoebe watched her stand and start out of the room. “Oh, and Billie.”
“Yeah?”
“If you want me to I’ll be there when you get them together. You know, for moral support.”

Billie didn’t say anything, just grinned before continuing into the solarium.

“Is everything all right in here?”

Phoebe turned when she heard Piper’s voice. “Yeah.”
“I came to see who was at the door and you two were deep in conversation. It seemed pretty serious.”
“Nah. Billie just needed some advice.”
“And you gave it to her.”
“Yep.”
“That’s our Phoebe.” Piper smiled. “Bringing her work home with her again.”
“What can I say?” Phoebe shrugged. “When you’re good, you’re good.”
“Yeah, well why don’t you get your good heinie back out in the kitchen? It’s hard giving Wyatt his first cookie making lesson when Chris keeps distracting him.”

“Geez, a woman’s work is never done.” Phoebe joked as she went to join her sister. She thought about asking her if she saw Prue in Billie too but stopped herself. Prue wasn’t a subject either one of them brought up very often anymore. And her sister would probably think she was crazy for thinking the way she did.

She glanced over her shoulder toward the solarium. That didn’t mean she couldn’t see her sister in their young friend, because she did. In more ways than one.

If someone happened to glance into Phoebe’s office they probably would have thought she was thinking about her column. Not that that wouldn’t have been a reasonable assumption considering she was sitting with her elbow on the desk, chin in hand, staring in the general direction of her computer screen. But they would have been wrong. It wasn’t writers block or contemplating someone else’s problem that had her in a funk. As a matter of fact she wouldn’t have been much good to anyone right about then. Not when it felt like the weight of the world was threatening to crash down on her shoulders.

Ever since she found the Book of Shadows and unleashed the powers she and her sisters were meant to inherit their lives had been a vicious cycle of good times and bad. Magic had brought them together and torn them apart but more often then not left them somewhere in between. Once upon a time the prospect of saving the world on a daily basis excited her. Who wouldn’t want their lot in life to be all about fighting the good fight to make a difference in the world?

But the blinders quickly came off when their lives were put in danger over and over again. There was nothing like constantly looking over your shoulder for demons to remind you just how crappy life could be. And right now it sucked.

Who knew where Leo was, literally frozen until they faced yet another powerful source of evil and the angel of destiny released him. Like they were contestants on some reality Wicca show and he was the prize they got if they won. They had faced potentially life threatening battles before but she couldn’t shake the feeling this one was different. That they were going to lose a lot more than Leo or even their own lives if they didn’t succeed.

Being away from the Manor didn’t help either. Not that she was afraid to be alone or anything. She could take care of herself. And having her own space and getting some much needed quality time with herself were the motivating forces behind the move in the first place. But her apartment seemed cavernous lately. And she couldn’t believe how much she missed seeing her sisters all the time. Not to mention how guilty she felt for letting everyone down by not being around. Especially Billie.

The poor kid looked so lost when they talked that morning. Piper was busy with the boys and Paige was with Henry and Christy… well Christy still wasn’t quite up to speed when it came to being back where she belonged, let alone having a heart to heart with her sister. That left Billie to try and cope by herself. Hardly fair considering she was trying to deal with what was going on in her life and their lives at the same time. But she was giving it her all when Phoebe finally managed to pry what was going on out of her. It reminded Phoebe a lot of someone else she knew.

“You really would have liked her.”

She used her finger to trace the face in the frame next to her computer as she spoke. It wasn’t something she left out all the time. Seeing it everyday would have been too painful. But sometimes she couldn’t stop herself from taking it out of the drawer and staring at it. Probably because the pain of what she lost was still so raw in her heart.

“Oh Prue.”

Tears blurred her vision as she continued to look at her eldest sister. The picture was a snapshot Leo managed to take at the club of her and Prue and Piper on the couch in the corner where they always sat. She was cuddled against Prue, who had an arm around each of her sisters as they enjoyed whatever band was playing. It was one of the last nights they spent together before Prue died.

This wasn’t what she had set out to do when she came to the paper. Her original plan was to get some work done so she could concentrate on helping Billie with the whole Paige and Christy situation at the house. But every time she thought about Billie she inevitably started thinking about Prue.

The two of them were so much alike it wasn’t even funny. And it went a lot deeper than them having similar powers. First there was the attitude. Not many people would have been able to throw a two hundred pound man across the room with the flick of a wrist without it going to their head. Then there was the almost obsessive determination to rid the world of evil. Not to mention keeping their loved ones safe. That was the biggest similarity as far as Phoebe was concerned. Their willingness to do anything for the people they loved.

“Look, we’re just not interested in hiring a writer of your caliber right now.”

Phoebe looked up when she heard Elise’s voice, recognizing that her boss wasn’t very happy with whoever she was talking to.

“But…”
“For the third time, we’re not interested.”
“I don’t think you realize what I could bring to your paper.”
“And I don’t think you understand that my even talking to you was an attempt at being nice. Now please don’t call me again because I’m certainly not going to call you.”

“Fine!” Phoebe jumped when the man yelled. “But you have no idea what you’re letting slip through your fingers!”
“Oh, but I do.” Elise walked past Phoebe’s office, throwing a, “You know your way out” over her shoulder as she went.

Curiosity got the better of Phoebe, making her climb to her feet and walk to her open doorway. Standing in the middle of the space outside her office was a frumpy looking, middle aged man. A very familiar frumpy, middle aged man.

“Hey.” Phoebe pointed at him. “Weren’t you the guy at my house earlier?”
The man turned toward her. “Excuse me?”
“Yeah.” Phoebe nodded as she walked toward him. “You were harassing Billie.”
“Billie?” The man frowned for a second before snapping his fingers. “You mean Billie Jenkins.” He gave Phoebe a once over. “You’re the hottie on the porch.”
“What?”
“I saw you this morning too.” He leered at her as he reached into the inside pocket of his rumbled suit jacket. “Here, let me give you one of my cards. Maybe we can, you know…” He waggled his eyebrows. “Hook up later.”

“OK, ew!” Phoebe looked disgusted. “I didn’t come over here for you to hit on me. I came to tell you to leave Billie alone.”
“Oh, is that how it is? Did she send you here?”
“No.” Phoebe furrowed her brow. “I work here. And from what I heard you want to work here too but it’s not going to happen.”
“Right.” The man nodded. “So you work here, huh. Do you think you could…”
“No. When Elise says no, she means no.”
“That’s what I figured.” He sighed. “Will you at least tell Billie to give me a call when she changes her mind? My number’s on the card.” He shoved a business card into her hand.

“Changes her mind?” Phoebe hurried after him when he started to walk away. “What do you mean? Why would Billie have anything to do with someone like you?”
“Someone like me?” He stopped, turning to face her again. “What am I, mud on your shoe?”
“No. I just…” It was Phoebe’s turn to give him a once over. “You don’t strike me as the type of person she’d hang out with.”
“That’s probably because we didn’t exactly hang out.” He frowned. “You have no idea who I am, do you?”
“No.”
“Clarence Ferguson.” He offered her his hand. “I work for…”
“The San Francisco Sentinel.”

Phoebe finished for him, wondering why one of the sleeziest writers for the sleeziest rag magazine in the city knew Billie.

“My reputation proceeds me.” He grinned. “You have absolutely no idea what happened to her, do you?”
“Happened to who? Billie?” Phoebe couldn’t explain the feeling of dread that feel over her. “What are you talking about?”

“I can’t believe you don’t know.” He made a show of pacing away from her. “It was the talk of the town at the time.”
“Will you cut the showmanship and get on with it already?”
“All right.” He feigned a hurt look, hoping to get a reaction out of her. When she continued to frown at him he gave up. “A little over a year ago she was in an accident.”
“What kind of accident?”
“Car. She and three other girls were out celebrating the end of finals week. A drunk driver hit them head on going about eighty.”
“Oh my God.”
“Oh God is right. The other three girls and the drunk died.”
“And Billie?”
“Billie was a miracle.”

Phoebe’s frown deepened. “What?”
Clarence nodded. “That’s what her doctor called it. Her injuries should have killed her. Damn near did. Then, like that…” he snapped his fingers again, “she was on the road to wellville.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean one minute she was literally at death’s door and the next she was on the mend. There is no medical explanation for her recovery.”
Phoebe was blown away. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope, I’m serious as a heart attack. A nurse at the hospital leaked the story to one of our informants and we ran with it. I mean, can you imagine? A pretty little blond like that beating the odds and cheating death? The public ate it up with a spoon. That’s why I came looking for her. My editor thought maybe a follow-up story would generate more sales.”

Phoebe barely heard what he was saying. Billie couldn’t have been in an accident. She would have told them about something like that.

“So what do you think, can you get her to agree?” Clarence gave her a look when she didn’t answer. “Hello, earth to…” He realized he didn’t know her name. “The pretty lady.”

“What?” Phoebe snapped out of her thoughts. “Oh, uh.” She started back into her office. “Thanks.”
“Thanks?” He followed her. “That’s all I get.”
“I’m afraid so.” Phoebe grabbed her jacket and her purse, almost running him over as she rushed out again. “If you’ll excuse me.”

“Sure.” He stepped out of her way, watching as she practically ran out of the office. “But keep me in mind, huh?”

She didn’t even bother to answer. All she could think about was getting to Billie and getting some answers.

“Hey you.” Piper grinned as she walked into the living room, two steaming hot mugs of tea in her hands. “I thought we could indulge in a little pre dinner refreshment.” She carefully put the mugs on the coffee table. “And before you say anything, I know you don’t usually go for chamomile, but it’s better for you. I swear I’m going to make you realize there are other beverages in this world besides coffee and…”

Her voice trailed off when she realized the other occupant in the room wasn’t listening to her. “Billie?” She furrowed her brow when she still didn’t get a response. “Hello, earth to Billie.”

She walked the short distance to the window, coming to a stop behind the blond who was peering through the sheer curtains. “What’s so interesting out there?” Silence was her only answer. “I think I saw Bigfoot kissing the Loch Ness monster in the backyard if you’d rather go stare out the kitchen window.” She frowned when even a joke didn’t reach the girl. “Hey, are you…”

Billie turned away from the window just as Piper was reaching for her shoulder. “Piper!” She shrieked her name. “You almost gave me a heart attack!”
“Join the club.” Piper withdrew her outstretched hand, putting it on her chest to try and slow the now frantic beating of her heart. “Are you all right?”
Billie frowned. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You tell me. You were the one off in lala land just now.”
“No. I was just…” Billie fumbled for something to say.
“Completely oblivious to the fact I was in the room.” Piper finished for her. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing.” Billie scooted around her. “I was thinking, that’s all.”
“You’ve been doing a lot of that lately.” Piper followed her toward the couch. “That’s the same answer you gave me yesterday when you almost mowed me down in the hallway upstairs.”
“Did you say something about Paige and Henry kissing in the backyard?”
“Not hardly but it’s nice to know you weren’t completely ignoring me.” She touched Billie’s arm to stop her from walking away from her. “You’ve been wondering around here in a daze for two days now. I have sisters, sweetie. I recognize when someone has something on their mind. And I know you talked to Phoebe this morning, but you can talk to me too.”
Billie stiffened. “Phoebe told you what we talked about?”
“No.” Piper was quick to reassure her. “But I saw the two of you this morning and things looked pretty intense. Now why don’t you…”

“Billie?” The sound of Christy’s voice interrupted her. The older girl came into the room, smiling when she saw her sister. “There you are. I was wondering what happened to you when you didn’t come back upstairs.”
“I was down here.” Billie shrugged. “Talking to Piper.”
“Oh.” Christy eyed the oldest Halliwell. “I can go back up if…”
“No.” Billie grabbed her hand. “It wasn’t anything important.”

Piper sighed, determined not to give up. “Billie, I think…”

“Hello? Is anybody home?” This time it was Paige’s voice that sounded from the front door. “Is the gang all here yet?” She was all smiles as she came into the room with Henry in tow. “Cause we’re starving.”
“Paige…”

“Can you hold that thought, Piper?” Billie cut her off. “Because I think Paige, Christy and I need to talk.” She swallowed hard. “In private.”
Christy looked like a deer caught in the headlights. “Why?”
Paige was going to ask the same question until she saw the look on Billie’s face. It was obvious the girl had something she had to get off her chest. “All right. I’m sure Henry wouldn’t mind keeping Piper company in the kitchen for a while.” She nudged her husband with her elbow when he didn’t reply.
“Oh, yeah. No problem.” Henry grinned. “The kitchen has always been one of my favorite rooms.”
“But…” Piper started to protest, stopping when Paige raised her eyebrows at her. “Fine. Come on, Henry. You can be the official taste tester.”
“I knew I liked you for a reason.” Henry gave Paige a kiss on the cheek before following Piper out of the room.

“Thanks guys.” Billie hoped Piper wouldn’t be too mad at her for not including her in the conversation. But it was going to be hard enough with just Paige and Christy. She suddenly wished Phoebe was there.

“So.” Paige drew out the word.
“Why don’t you two sit down?” Billie knew it was a stall tactic, but she really hadn’t thought this through beyond getting the two of them in the same room. She watched as Paige sat on the couch and Christy perched on one of the chairs. “I…” She gestured toward her sister with her hand. “I mean we heard what you said yesterday morning.”
“What did I say yesterday?”
“In the kitchen.” Billie prompted her.
“Oh!” Paige was taken aback. “You did?”

“Yes, we did.” Billie started pacing. “And at first I thought I was going to be mad at you.” She looked at Paige. “But I’m not.”
Christy frowned. “You’re not?”
“No.” Billie turned her attention to her sister. “It’s like I told you before, Paige isn’t suspicious of you. She’s suspicious of the situation.”
“Actually,” Paige spoke up, “I’m suspicious of both.”
Billie was floored. “What?!”

“I’m sorry, Billie. But I have to be honest with you.” Paige nodded. “This whole thing has been a little too cut and dried for me. We don’t know anything about Christy.”
“We know she’s my sister.”
“Do we?”
Billie’s mouth fell open. “How can you say that?!”
“Because it’s how I feel.”
“See.” Christy sprang to her feet. “I told you they didn’t like me.”

“Billie?!”

They all three jumped when Phoebe’s voice rang through the Manor.

“Billie.” Phoebe made a beeline into the living room when she spotted her. “We have to talk.”
“It’s going to have to wait.” Billie glared at Paige. “Right now I’m…”
“It can’t.” Phoebe’s voice drowned hers out. “I have to know if what he said was true.”
“He who?”
“Clarence Ferguson.”
“He came to see you?!” Billie growled the words. “I told him to leave me alone!”

“No, it wasn’t like that.” Phoebe was quick to clarify. “He was badgering Elise about getting a job at the Mirror and we bumped into each other.”
“And you recognized him from this morning and just couldn’t resist the urge to ask him what he wanted.”
“No.” Phoebe shook her head, frowning.

“What the hell is going on in here?!” Piper chose that moment to come back in from the kitchen, Henry hot on her heels.

“We’re leaving, that’s what’s going on.” Billie grabbed her sister’s hand. “Come on, Christy.”
“What?” Piper stepped in front of them, blocking their path to the door. “You can’t leave. We have to protect Christy. Whatever she’s the key to could bring Leo back.”
“I realize that Piper, and I’m sorry. But we can’t stay here anymore. Not with Paige feeling the way she does about Christy and Phoebe prying into my past.”
“Prying into your past?” Piper looked at Phoebe. “What did you do?”
“That’s not important right now.” Billie drew Piper’s attention back to her. “Please move, Piper.”
“Billie.” Piper’s tone was pleading.
“I’m sorry, Piper. You know I’d do anything to help you get Leo back. When you figure out what’s going on you let me know and I’ll be there. But I can’t stay in this house.” She glanced at Paige and Phoebe as they came to stand by Piper. “Not now.”

“Billie…” Phoebe tried again when Billie started to move around Piper.
“I appreciate everything the three of you have done for me. I really do. But I don’t want to talk anymore right now, Phoebe.”
“But you can’t just leave.” Paige finally spoke again.

“She can and she is.” Christy glared at the three of them. “If you really care about her half as much as you say you do, you’ll let her go. Come on, Billie.” She tightened her grip on her sister’s hand and pushed past Piper.

Billie looked over her shoulder at the three of them when Christy opened the front door but didn’t say a word as they walked out.

“That’s just great!” Piper threw her hands in the air as soon as the door shut again. “NOW what are we supposed to do?”

No one answered her because no one knew.

Piper padded out of the kitchen, yawning as she made her way through the dining room. She had never been what you might call a night owl, but being this tired before ten o’clock was ridiculous. She was a club owner for crying out loud. What happened to the days when she could work the bar until the wee small hours of the morning and still have enough energy to work on the books before going home and crawling into bed?

She was a mother now, that’s what happened. Trying to keep up with Wyatt and take care of Chris at the same time would have worn anyone out. Especially when you were used to your husband shouldering his fair share of the workload.

Thinking of Leo no longer made her break down in tears, but it still brought an all too familiar ache to her chest. One that spoke of loss and mourning and wondering how she was supposed to move on with her life. She felt the same thing when her mother died without even realizing it. And when they lost Prue she almost chucked it all and became a fury. But this time it was different. She had her boys to think about. And there was that carrot of hope the angel of destiny had dangled over her head. Leo would be returned. All she and her sisters had to do was survive yet another catastrophic fight against evil.

She resisted the urge to chuckle as she went into the living room to turn off some lights she must have forgotten earlier. It was funny how easily they took news like that in stride. The prospect of saving the world and possibly losing their lives in the process had become commonplace for them. Once upon a time it terrified her. Now she shrugged it off and kept on going. Because if there was one thing she had learned since becoming a witch it was that she didn’t have control over what happened in her life. She was just along for the ride.

“Hey!”

She jumped a mile in the air when she heard the chorused protest. She quickly turned the lamp on the end stand back on, shocked to see her sisters sitting side by side on the couch. “What the hell are you two doing?!”

“Well, we were trying to watch the news before you came along, Ms. Energy Conscious.”
“Yeah.” Paige nodded her agreement. “And isn’t that normally the part you play?”
“Now that you mention it, yes it is.” Phoebe pursed her lips. “But it’s all right to leave a light on while you’re watching TV. Otherwise you could fry your eyes.”

“All right wisenheimers.” Piper cut them off before they could say anything else. “Not that I’m not glad to hear the mopey twins joking around again, but seriously. What are you two doing down here?”
“We told you,” Phoebe gestured at the TV, which was indeed on by turned down to the point it was almost muted. “We’re watching the news.”
“But don’t you have a condo to go home to?”
“Yes. But I didn’t feel like sleeping there tonight.”
Piper nodded. “So you came here to see if you could give me a heart attack?”
“It’s not our fault you didn’t see us.” Paige defended her sister. “You’re the one who walked right by on your way to the kitchen.”

“And you.” Piper turned her gaze on her youngest sister. “Don’t you have a husband upstairs?”
“Yes, I do.” Paige blushed at the newness of being married. “But Henry realizes there are going to be times that I need to be with one or both of you.”
“So you chose pouting with Phoebe over spending time with your man?”
“Hey.” Phoebe protested. “I’m not pouting. For the third time, I’m watching the news.”
“Yeah.” Paige put her two cents worth in. “Besides, Henry’s asleep.”

“That still doesn’t explain why you two are watching the news.” Piper gestured toward the TV. “I thought you both hated that kind of stuff.”
“We do.” Phoebe shrugged. “But that doesn’t mean you can be the only news watcher in the family.”
“Especially if seeing a little human suffering can remind us that things could be worse.” Paige flinched. “I didn’t just say that, did I?”

“Look,” Piper sat down in one of the chairs, choosing to ignore Paige’s last comment. “I know you two miss Billie, but aren’t you taking it to the extreme? She’s been gone what, less than two days? Give her some time to cool off and she’ll come back around.”

“This from the woman who called her cell last night.” Paige’s eyes got big when she saw Piper’s shocked reaction. “I’m right! It WAS Billie you were talking to!”
“What?!” Disbelief was written all over Phoebe’s face. “You talked to Billie? When were you going to tell us?!”
“Yeah!” Paige jumped on the band wagon. “When were you going to tell us?”

“Oh calm down.” Piper frowned. “I only called to check on her.”
“And?” Phoebe prompted her.
“And she and Christy are fine. They went back to Billie’s apartment. Billie cast a protection spell when they got there.”
“And?” It was Paige’s turn.
“And she called her parents to let them know she found Christy. They were coming into town today.”
It was Phoebe’s turn again. “And?”
“And she was still upset about what happened the other day and said she needs more time to work things out for herself before she comes to see us.”
“But she said she would come see us?” Paige sounded hopeful.

“Yes.” Piper was quick to answer. “But you two need to back off and give her some time. She strikes me as the ‘push me too far and you’ll never see me again’ type. So leave her alone for a little while.”
Phoebe sighed. “Maybe spending some time with her parents will help.”
“I don’t think so.” Paige swallowed hard as she pointed at the TV. “Look.”
Phoebe frowned. “That’s Billie’s parents.”
“Turn it up!” Piper gestured impatiently at her sisters.

“In breaking news, a fire in a campus area apartment complex has claimed the lives of an as of yet unidentified man and woman. Their bodies were discovered earlier this evening after neighbors reported a disturbance. When police arrived to investigate they found the apartment in flames. The fire department discovered the bodies after getting the blaze under control. Security cameras at the complex captured images of this couple entering the building shortly before 3 PM. It is not clear if they played a part in the incident but they are wanted for questioning in connection with the case. If you have any information about either of them, please contact SFPD immediately.”

Phoebe muted the TV before the newscaster could launch into another story. “Damn.”
“Exactly.” Paige sank against the back of the couch. “Poor Billie.”
“What do you mean poor Billie?” Phoebe looked at her. “Are you sensing something you aren’t telling us?”
“Of course not.” Paige frowned.

“OK, let’s stay calm.” Piper tucked her hair behind her ear. “Maybe she and Christy weren’t even involved.”
“Or maybe it was demons and they set the place on fire before taking Billie and her family.”
“Phoebe!” Paige nudged her with her elbow. “Stop overreacting.”
“I can’t help it!” Phoebe sprang to her feet. “I knew we never should have let her leave!”
“Don’t you mean they?”
“They. Her.” Phoebe growled at Paige. “You knew what I meant.”

“Don’t start.” Piper pointed at them. “Go get dressed, Paige.”
Paige frowned. “You’re thinking of my pajamas at a time like this?”
“No.” Piper’s answer was impatient. “I was thinking that you and Phoebe need to get over there and see what you can find out. The place is probably crawling with cops and you’d look a little funny standing around in your pajamas.”
“Oh, right.” Paige hurried out of the room.

“What are we gonna do, Piper?”
Piper frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I mean what if evil has Billie and Christy? What if they… What if she…” Tears swam in Phoebe’s eyes. “I don’t think I can handle losing someone else close to us right now.”
“We’re not going to lose anyone.” Piper took Paige’s place on the couch, pulling her sister to her.
“I hope you’re right.”
“Me too, Phoebe.” Piper held her close. “Me too.”

“Where are we?”
“A utility closet outside Billie’s apartment.”
“That would explain why I’m standing in a bucket.”
“I figured this was as good a place as any. I mean, we don’t want to raise anyone’s suspicions, right?” Paige shrugged. “Besides, maybe things will have quieted down for the night and we can take a look around.”
“Maybe.”

Paige clinched her jaw when she heard her sister’s dejected tone. The scene at the Manor hadn’t been lost on her. A person would have had to be blind to miss Phoebe’s red, puffy eyes and Piper’s trying not to be panicky, practically dripping with worry routine. But she didn’t say anything. She just accepted Piper’s warnings to be careful and gripped Phoebe’s hand and orbed.

Four years and she still felt like a total outsider sometimes. Not that it was Phoebe or Piper’s fault. They had moved past the awkward phase of their relationship a long time ago. But sometimes it bothered her that she wasn’t more like her sisters. They both opened up to Billie and became buddy buddy with her right away. Especially Phoebe. And it wasn’t like she didn’t feel close to Billie. She was the girl’s Whitelighter for crying out loud. That gave them a connection unlike any she had shared with anyone else in her life. But they had never gone shopping or to the movies or sat around the Manor doing nothing together. It was almost as if their relationship was all business. If it wasn’t magical they couldn’t spend time together.

Well that was going to change. The thought of Billie being in trouble made her realize how much she wanted to get to know the girl. Really know her. After all, Billie was part of their family now.

“I don’t hear anything.”

The sound of Phoebe’s voice pulled her from her thoughts.

“I’m going to see if the coast is clear.”
“No! Wait!!”

She reached for Phoebe’s arm, almost grabbing her sleeve before she could open the closet door and slip out. But almost was too late. All she could do was follow her sister and hope there wasn’t a hall full of cops waiting for them.

Her breath caught in her throat as she stepped out of the closet and saw what was left of the door to Billie’s apartment. So much for her and Christy not being involved. She started after Phoebe, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that her sister was inside.

Her steps faltered when she walked into the apartment. She had always liked Billie’s place. It was one room with an open, airy layout that made it perfect for studying or hanging out with your friends, whatever the occasion called for. And Billie had an eclectic side much like her own, collecting whatever caught her eye even if it didn’t match anything else she had. But all that was gone now. Even in the dark she could tell the place was in ruins.

“Phoebe?”

She called for her sister, needing to know she was close by. The silence from the devastation surrounding them was creeping her out. Not to mention the smell.

“No.”
She turned when she heard the whispered word. “Phoebe?” She hurried in the direction it had come from, almost running her sister over. “Phoebe?” Instinct had her ducking as Phoebe turned on her.

“NO!!”
“Shhh!” Paige somehow managed to grip her sister’s shoulders without getting hit by one of her wild swings. “Phoebe, stop! It’s me!”

It took a second but eventually Phoebe stopped thrashing.

“Paige?”
“Yeah.” She answered, breathless from their struggle.
“What happened?”
“I was hoping you could tell me. One minute I was following you out of the closet and the next you were getting all Bruce Lee on me.”
“I was there.”
Paige frowned at her sister’s words. “You were where?”
“Here. With Billie. It’s like I was seeing everything through her eyes.”
“What happened?”
“Something attacked.”
“A demon?”
“I’m not sure. Something grabbed her from behind. And then…”
Paige tightened her grip when her sister shivered. “Phoebe?”
“They burst into flames, Paige. Billie’s parents. All she could do was watch as they burned.”
“Oh God.”
“She tried to get away, but it didn’t do any good. Whatever it was was too strong. The last thing I sensed was her passing out.”
“What about Christy?”
“I didn’t see Christy.”
Paige sighed. “That probably means they were both taken.”
Phoebe grabbed her hand. “It means we don’t have time to waste. We have to get home, fill Piper in and start scrying. We’re not going to let anything happen to Billie. We can’t.”

Paige knew she didn’t have to voice her agreement. All she had to do was orb.

*************

Billie’s eyes fluttered open, drawing a groan from the back of her throat.

“Look. Our guest of honor finally decided to wake up.”

She frowned as her pounding head tried to register the words. The strain started to pull her back into nothingness.

“Oh no you don’t.”

Someone slapped her, bringing tears to her eyes.

“We can’t wait around all day for you. We’ve gotta get this show on the road.”

She knew the voice but her vision was too blurry to make out the face peering into her own. She blinked in an effort to clear things up.

“That’s more like it.”

The person turned away from her and started pacing.

“You had me worried there for a minute. I thought you were never going to wake up. Then the guys would have told me I was too rough with you.”

The speaker was a woman, Billie could tell from the slightness of her build. That and she knew she was in some kind of cavern.

“They’re already going to be pissed about your parents.”

A sick feeling washed over her a split second before images of what had happened to her mom and dad flitted through her head. She closed her eyes, wishing the images away but only making them more vivid.

“I would say I’m sorry, but I’m not. As a matter of fact, it felt kind of good. They wouldn’t have bought the charade anyway. I’m surprised your friends, the Charmed Ones, did.”

She frowned, trying to make sense of what the woman was talking about as her emotions over her parents ran rampant. “Wha…” Her voice was gravelly. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh come on? You mean to tell me you haven’t figured it out yet? I thought you were smarter than that.”

The woman turned back to her, the shadows of the cavern obscuring her features.

A thought suddenly struck Billie. “Where’s my sister?” She strained weakly against the shackles holding her to the wall behind her. “Where’s Christy?!”
“You want to see Christy?”
“Yes.”
“Really want to see her?”
“Yes!”
“Then take a good look.”

Billie’s shocked gasp echoed off the cavern walls as her sister stepped out of the shadows.

“Because I’m right here.”

Numb. That was the only word her mind could come up with. How else were you supposed to describe how you felt when someone reached into the very core of your being and ripped out your soul?

“What’s the matter sister?”

She tried to ignore the words. They weren’t important anyway. Nothing was.

“Not so glad you found me anymore?”

Her parents were dead. Gone forever. And Christy… Her poor, sweet sister Christy.

“Look at me when I’m talking to you!”

She felt a hand grip her chin and found herself staring into bottomless pits of hatred and contempt. Had those emotions always been there? Were the love and kindness and vulnerability she had come to expect from those eyes all just an illusion?

“I know what you’re thinking.”

She tried to pull away but the woman tightened her grip.

“You think I’m not really her. And you’re right, I’m not.”

She wanted to believe it was true. That her sister was out there somewhere just waiting for her to find her. But she knew it wasn’t.

“My name is Canliss. I’m a shapeshifter. But that doesn’t mean your bitch of a sister is alive. You see, I killed her two years ago. Right here in this very cavern.”

And there it was. The proverbial other shoe. It landed with a thud, taking with it the last member of her family.

“It was my father who hired that overgrown buffoon to kidnap her. They both worked for the Triad at the time. When Balthazor took out the original three father kept your sister around. Why waste a potential source of power?”

Billie wished she would shut up. She was completely alone in the world now. Why did she have to hear all the gory details of how she got that way?

“I took care of her while we waited for her powers to manifest themselves. Of course your family just had to be one of those ones where the powers don’t appear until you’re older. It wasn’t easy, let me tell you. You sister was whiny. And she cried all the time. I was this close,” the woman held her thumb and index finger so they were almost touching, “to giving up and getting rid of her with or without my father’s consent when she freaked out one day and started a fire. We kept her around for a while longer. You know, to get a better handle on her powers. I mean, it’s not every day you meet a pyrokinetic. Then, fittingly enough, I got the honors of killing her with her own power.”

Tears filled Billie’s eyes.

“Aw. If it makes you feel any better I made it quick and relatively painless.” The woman smiled, finally letting go of Billie’s chin. “Kind of like I did with your parents today.”

Billie swallowed hard, determined not to give the woman the pleasure of watching her fall apart.

“I barely had a chance to play around with her power before the new Triad formed. Father let them believe they still had a chance at getting her powers. Had me take on her identity and everything. Then you came into the picture and he saw a golden opportunity.”

Billie flinched as the woman ran her hand almost lovingly down her cheek. “See, you’re a special one, Billie. Very special. And we have big plans for you.”

“Toying with the animals again, Canliss?”

The woman turned when she heard the voice but Billie barely glanced at the man who strolled into the cavern. She really didn’t care who he was as long as he distracted the woman for even just a few seconds. Anything to give her a break.

Canliss smiled. “And what if I am?”
The man returned her smile. “Then I would have to call you a naughty girl.”
“And punish me?”
“But of course.”

Billie turned her head when the two of them met each other halfway across the cavern in a passionate kiss. Distractions were one thing. Watching a couple of demons play tonsil hockey was another.

“Don’t tell me our guest is modest?”
“Who, Billie?” Canliss looked at their prisoner, one arm still around the man’s neck. “Not a chance. She’s probably just jealous she can’t have you for herself.”
The man raised an eyebrow. “After your father does his thing maybe she can.”
“Hey!” Canliss used her free hand to smack him on the stomach.
“You know it was a joke, baby.”

Canliss looked at Billie again. “This is Darander, future ruler of the underworld.”
“Co-ruler.” Darander nibbled on her ear.
“OK.” Canliss closed her eyes and sighed. “Co-ruler.”

Darander pulled away from her and went to get a closer look at Billie. “I have to say I’ve been impressed with you. That whole power of projection thing.,” he made a whistling sound, “what a rush.”
“Yeah, it was pretty cool.” Canliss joined him. “Oh, did I forget to mention that visit you got from your parents a few weeks back wasn’t really them?”

Billie watched in horror as the two of them morphed into her parents.

“We were going to take you then.” Darander shrugged. “Make it look like you went off to make up with your mom and dad so the Charmed Ones wouldn’t come looking for you.”
Canliss nodded. “But your power kind of snuck up on us. Especially where that touchy feely conversation we had about your sister was concerned.” She made a face. “I almost hurled. Too bad we didn’t actually kill anyone.”
“Not necessarily.” Darander gave her a look. “You killed two somebodies this time and now we have to rush the process.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault her parents knew I wasn’t their daughter.” Canliss was quick to defend herself. “I did what had to be done to keep this one from getting away.”
“By torching them?”
“What did you want me to do, invite them here for tea and crumpets?”
“No, I just think there were other alternatives.”
“I got her didn’t I? What more do you want?!”
“I want you to start thinking a little Canliss! We can’t be sloppy when we’re ruling the underworld.”
“Sloppy?!” Canliss growled the world. “I’ll show you…”

“No, I’m afraid you won’t.”

Billie had been so wrapped up in watching the warped version of her parents before her that she didn’t realize there was anyone else in the cavern.

“Father.” Canliss morphed back into Christy.
“Kendrick.” Darander followed suit. “We didn’t hear you come in.”
“Not surprising considering you were being loud enough to wake the dead.” The older man turned his gaze on Billie. “And this is her?”
“Yes.” Canliss practically squealed. “Billie, I’d like you to meet my father, Kendrick.”

The older man approached, making Billie feel like a side of beef under his scrutiny.

“Yes.” He nodded. “You’ll do nicely.” His smile came, slow and easy. “You and I are going to make history, my dear.”

“Don’t you mean we’re going to make history?”
Kendrick turned on Darander. “No. I mean she and I.”
Canliss frowned. “But what about us?”
“The two of you, as you so aptly put it before Darander, have served your purpose.”
Canliss’ frown deepened. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t play stupid with me dear, it doesn’t become you.” He glared at the two of them. “I know your plans for me.” He leaned in close to his daughter. “Here’s a tip. When you’re planning to kill someone you might want to make sure they’re not listening at the door.”

“Now wait a second.” Darander gestured with one hand. “That was just a misunderstanding.”
Kendrick squared his shoulders. “I don’t think so.”

It all happened so fast Billie didn’t even see what happened. One second the two of them were squaring off and the next Darander burst into flames.

“What…” He looked at the flames in awe as they started to consume him. “No!” He turned his gaze on Canliss. “How could you do this?!”
“It was fun while it lasted.” Canliss shrugged. “But he’s my father.”

A shrieked “You bitch” echoed off the walls as Darander exploded.

“I would say thank you.” Kendrick looked at her, an energy ball in his hand. “But you don’t deserve it.”
Canliss eyed the orb. “Father, what are you doing?”
“What needs to be done.”
“But I’m your daughter!”
“I’m afraid that’s too little too late.”

Billie flinched as he threw the energy ball, instantly obliterating the woman. Seeing the image of her sister getting destroyed probably should have bothered her, but she had a sinking feeling that she had just gone out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Kendrick turned toward her, his smile back. “And now for you.”

“It’s no use.” Phoebe let the chain slip from her hand, the crystal weighing down its end thumping quietly against the map beneath it.
Piper looked up when she heard the sound. “Well you can’t just give up. I don’t know what the hell I’m doing with this thing.” She gestured at the laptop on the table in front of her. “But you don’t see me stopping just because I’m frustrated.”
“What’s the point? We’ve been scrying and trying spells all night.” Phoebe sighed. “I don’t know what made us think this would work when Paige can’t even pick her up on her radar.”
“It’s not like I’m an expert at the whole Whitelighter thing, you know.” Paige didn’t bother to look up from the spell book she was reading.
“Whatever.” Phoebe flopped down in a chair. “I’m taking a break.”

Piper frowned at her. It had been almost eight hours since her sisters came back from Billie’s apartment. Eight hours filled with trying every way known to man and witch to find their friend. At first Phoebe acted more like her old self, all gung ho to get Billie back. But as the hours passed and nothing happened she slipped back into the depression she’d been wallowing in since Billie walked out the front door with Christy.

“Piper is right, Phoebe. You can’t give up.”

They all three jumped when an all too familiar voice filled the room.

“Mom?” Phoebe was on her feet in an instant.
“Yes, honey.” Patty appeared in the middle of the attic. “It’s me.”
“What…” Piper abandoned the computer to join her sister. “What are you doing here?”
“Not that we’re not glad to see you or anything.” Paige got up to be with them.
“I know.” Patty looked at them gravely. “But I have to talk to you.”

“All right, girls.” Another voice sounded before she could continue. “We’ve got a lot of work to do and…” Her words faded away when she saw who was there with them. “Patty?”
“Mother?”
Their voices merged on the question, “What are you doing here?”

Penny shook her head. “Are you trying to get yourself in trouble?”
“No.” Patty shook her head. “I’m trying to tell my girls the truth.”
“I told you I would take care of it.”
“And I told you they would take it better from me.”

“Hey!” Piper had to yell to make herself heard. “What the hell is going on here?”
“Ask her.” Penny pointed at Patty.
Patty sighed. “Mother, don’t start.”
“Would the two of you cut it out already?” Piper looked back and forth between them. “Now which of you is going to tell us what’s going on?”

“I will.” Patty was quick to answer.
“Well you better make it quick.” Penny grumbled. “The Elders are bound to notice both of us being gone.”
“The Elders?” Phoebe frowned. “What, are They setting time limits on your visits now?”
Penny pursed her lips. “Not exactly.”
“Don’t be evasive, Mother.” Patty chastised her. “We both came here to tell them the truth.”
“Then would one of you please get on with it already?” Piper threw her hands in the air.

“We’re not supposed to be here at all.”
“Why?” Paige frowned at their mother. “Did we do something to make the Elders angry?”
“Not you three.” Penny paused dramatically. “Prudence.”

Her words plunged the attic into silence.

“What about Prue?” It was Phoebe who finally spoke.
“Yeah.” Piper backed up her sister. “She’s ‘up there’ for crying out loud. What could she have done?”
“It wasn’t what she did, per se.” Penny fielded the question. “It was more what she didn’t do.”

“The Elders gave her a choice.” Patty blurted out the words, drawing everyone’s attention back to her. “She could either be reincarnated or become a Whitelighter.”
Phoebe swallowed hard. “And you came here to tell us her decision?”
“Not exactly.” Penny made a pained face.
“Would you stop saying that?” Piper snapped at her grandmother. “Mom, just tell us what happened.”

“Prue put off making a decision for so long that the Elders started to pressure her.” Patty complied with her daughter’s request. “But she was understandably torn with her choices. If she was reincarnated she could come back as anyone, anywhere. And if she became a Whitelighter she wasn’t allowed to have anything to do with you.”
“With us?” Piper sounded astonished.
“Why?” Paige decided to speak up. “There aren’t stipulations like that on other Whitelighters, are there?”
“No.” Penny answered. “But other Whitelighters weren’t a Charmed One when they were alive.”
“What’s that got to do with anything?” Phoebe frowned.
“Everything, honey.” Patty’s voice was sad. “All Prue has ever wanted to do since she joined as was come to see you three.”

“Then why didn’t she?” Piper shook her head. “It’s not like we didn’t want to see her.”
“Yes, darling. But she couldn’t.” Penny furrowed her brow. “When she died the Elders decided to keep her from you and Phoebe to make moving on and accepting Paige easier.”
“But we did that.” Paige gestured with her hand. “Well, I mean Piper and Phoebe did. Piper went so far as to almost became a fury. And it might sound harsh, but I never knew Prue. Sure I would have loved to, but it’s hard to miss something you never had.”
“Well one of you must have held on.” Penny spoke matter of factly, looking at Piper the whole time.
Piper frowned. “It wasn’t me!”

“No, it was me.” Phoebe barely whispered the words. “I did this.”
Paige put her hand on her sister’s shoulder. “What?”
“I kept Prue from us.” Phoebe’s voice got louder as she looked around at her family, tears glistening in her eyes. “Knowing she was up there somewhere, watching over us, was what kept me going after the funeral. And every time we vanquished a demon or saved an innocent I looked for her to show up. I held on, like Grams said, and now we’ll never see Prue again!”
“That’s not true, Phoebe.” Piper put her arm around her little sister’s waist.
“Actually yes, it is.” Penny shrugged. “You will never see Prudence again.”

“Mother!” Patty looked at her in disbelief.
“Is she right?” Paige spoke the question she knew her sisters were begging to have answered. “Can we see Prue?”
Patty hesitated, looking at her daughters for what seemed like an eternity. “No.”

“I told you!” Phoebe pulled away from her sisters. “She’s gone and it’s all my fault! Again!”
“Phoebe, we’ve been over this a million times.” Piper chose to reason with her sister rather than think about what her mother had just said. “You had nothing to do with Prue’s death.”
“Didn’t I, Piper? Who went to the underworld to try and save Cole? Who wasn’t here when Shax attacked? Who wasn’t here when she died?!”
“I wasn’t here either.” Paige joined in.
“You didn’t even know about us!” Phoebe sniffled. “What happened to her?” She turned back to their mother. “What happened to Prue? Was she reincarnated? Is she a Whitelighter?”

“No.” Patty’s voice was gentle.
“What do you mean no?” Piper had tears in her eyes too. “Those were the only choices she had.”
“That’s true, but it doesn’t mean she had to choose either of them.”
Paige looked confused. “Can you explain that?”

“As I said,” Patty looked at her daughters, “Prue was torn about her decision. She was convinced if she stonewalled the Elders they would let her see you, especially after they started pushing her for a decision. But the Elders wouldn’t bend. They finally told her to make up her mind or a decision would be made for her.”
“What happened?” Phoebe was a bit calmer.
“She gave her essence to save another.”
“What?!” Piper closed her eyes. “I’m totally confused. How can she go from being given an ultimatum to giving her essence to save someone?”

“Prudence kept up with what was happening with you.” Penny spoke before her daughter could. “She knew that someone was about to come into your lives. Someone very important. When that someone almost died, Prudence stepped in and saved her.”
“Who?” Paige narrowed her eyes. “Who did Prue save?”

“Billie.” Phoebe locked eyes with her grandmother.
“Yes, darling.” Penny nodded. “It was Billie.”

Billie watched Kendrick as he muttered to himself. He’d been doing that ever since he got rid of his daughter and the other demon. Standing across the cavern messing with vials of who knew what, mumbling to himself and completely ignoring her. At first she told herself that was fine by her. The less attention he paid to her the better. But then she got to thinking about the last thing he said to her and just knew whatever he was doing was meant for her. So as the seconds dragged by she was getting more and more creeped out.

“Why are you doing this?”

The sound of her voice startled her but didn’t seem to bother Kendrick in the least.

“I mean, if you’re hoping to lure the Charmed Ones here you might as well forget about it. We weren’t exactly on the best of terms when your daughter snatched me out of my apartment.”

Kendrick looked at her over his shoulder, forcing her to swallow hard. Why had she mentioned the sisters? They didn’t even know what was going on. And they didn’t need to. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if something happened to one of them.

“We’re really not that close anyway.” Her skin crawled when he continued to stare at her. “Look, just do whatever you’re going to do and get it over with.”

“You have no idea who you are, do you?”
Billie frowned at his question. “Of course I know who I am.”
“No.” Kendrick shook his head as he walked toward her. “You don’t.” He stopped in front of her. “But I can help you out with that.” He reached for her forehead. “Just try and relax and enjoy the show.”

She tensed as his palm made contact with her flesh.

*************

“Wait, wait, wait.” Piper pointed at no one in particular. “What do you mean it was Billie?”
Penny gave her a look. “It’s perfectly self explanatory, dear.”
“Not even close.” Paige piped in. “One minute you’re saying Prue gave her essence to save someone else and the next you’re saying it was Billie.”
“It was.” Penny shrugged.
“But that’s not possible.” Piper pointed again. “Billie would have told us about something like that.”
“It happened before you met her.”
“Wouldn’t I have sensed it?” Paige tried another route. “I AM her Whitelighter.”
“Are you?” Penny narrowed her eyes. “Or were you drawn to her because of Prudence?”
“Will you stop beating around the bush already?!” Piper was on the verge of going off the deep end. “Just tell us what happened!!”

“It was an accident.”
Piper turned when she heard Phoebe’s voice. “What?”
“Billie,” Phoebe knew it was a rhetorical question but answered it anyway. “She was in a car accident a little over a year ago.”
“You knew?” Piper clinched her jaw. “You knew and you didn’t say anything?!”
“No.” Even bracing herself for Piper’s anger hadn’t prepared her for the intensity of her sister’s words. “I mean yes. I knew about the accident but…”
“But?!” Piper growled. “But nothing, Phoebe!”
“You should have told us.” Paige sided with Piper.
“I just found out. The day Billie left to be exact. That’s why she was so mad at me.”
“That’s what you two talked about, isn’t it?” Piper’s tone was accusing. “Earlier in the day she told you and you didn’t say a word!”

“No.” Phoebe shook her head, feeling defeated. “I didn’t find out about the accident from her. I found out from a reporter. He covered the accident for the Sentinel and came sniffing around for a follow-up story. Billie told him to get lost, but when I saw him at the Mirror later I thought I would add my two cents worth. He told me what he wanted and like an idiot I came back here to yell at Billie for not telling us. Afterwards I didn’t say anything because I wanted to talk to her first. To make it up to her. She lost three friends that night.”

Paige swallowed hard, knowing all too well what it was like to lose someone in a car accident. “She did?”
“Yeah.” Phoebe nodded. “I thought maybe I could give her a shoulder to cry on and then the two of us could tell both of you. But I swear I didn’t know anything about the whole Prue thing.”
“She’s telling the truth.” Patty tried to come to her daughter’s rescue. “She didn’t know. Billie doesn’t even know.”

“Let’s try something new here.” Piper had tears spilling down her cheek. “Why doesn’t someone who DOES know the whole story finally spell it out for those of us who don’t? Because getting it in bits and pieces like this is killing me.”

“I know honey, and I’m sorry.” Patty looked at her sadly. “This isn’t how I meant for it to be. I wanted to…”
“Patty.” Penny interrupted her.
Patty frowned. “Mother, I’m trying to…”
“Drag this on into infinity? You apologized, darling. Get on with it.”

Patty hesitated, obviously wanting to say more but knowing in her heart her mother was right. She took a deep breath and continued.

“As your grandmother already told you, Prue kept up with the three of you. She always said knowing what was going on in your lives was a poor substitute for actually being a part of them, but it was all she had. When she overheard an Elder talking about Billie coming into your lives to help with the demon load, she was genuinely glad. She thought her constant raving about you leading more normal lives was falling on deaf ears.”

“She went to bat for us with the Elders?” Paige was impressed.
“Oh yes.” Penny beamed. “And in true Warren style too.”
Phoebe chortled. “That sounds like Prue.”
“Yes.” The corner of Penny’s mouth turned up in a smirk. “She tried to look out for you up there like she did when she was here.”
“Let me guess.” Paige looked at her grandmother. “That included keeping an eye on Billie?”
“Well of course. She couldn’t have just anyone getting so involved in her sisters’ lives.” Penny scowled. “But she wasn’t the only one watching Billie?”
“What do you mean?” Phoebe frowned.

“She means evil knew about Billie too.” Patty picked up her narrative. “No one knows how, but they did. And they obviously didn’t like the idea of another witch teaming up with the Charmed Ones. The man driving the car that hit Billie and her friends was possessed.”
“Possessed?!” Phoebe interrupted her. “That sleazy reporter told me it was a case of drunk driving.”
“For all intents and purposes it was.” Patty was quick to clarify. “The man had been drinking and shouldn’t have been driving, but it was the demon who possessed him that made him hit Billie’s friend’s car.”

“And those jackasses were going to let the girl die.”
“Mother!” Patty frowned at her mother’s outburst.
“What?” Penny frowned right back. “They were. They said obviously Billie wasn’t meant to be a part of the girls’ lives after all or she would have been able to survive on her own. I, for one, am glad Prudence stood up to Them.”
“What…” Piper swallowed hard, still battling with the tears in her eyes. “What did Prue do?”

“Just what your grandmother said.” Patty’s voice was gentle. “She went against the Elders wishes and saved Billie’s life.”
Paige asked, “But how?”
“She met Billie as she started to cross over. We’re not quite sure how their essences meshed, but they did.” Patty had tears in her eyes too. “The last thing Prue said to me before she left was that if she succeeded she would get to be with the three of you again.”

The attic grew quiet, everyone overcome by the emotions they were feeling.

“I can’t believe it.” Piper’s voice cracked on a sob. “We’re never going to get to see her again.”
“Come here, sweetie.” Phoebe pulled her into a hug.
“It’s not like she’s gone.” Paige rubbed her oldest sister’s back. “She’s just a part of Billie now.”
“Yeah.” Phoebe agreed through her own tears.
“But I should have known.”
Paige furrowed her brow. “How were you supposed to know?”
“There were the powers and how easily we all accepted her and how having her around felt so right.” Piper sighed. “I just should have known.”

“Her powers.” Paige frowned, mumbling the words to herself as she turned toward her mother and grandmother. “Does Billie have Prue’s powers?”
“Who knows?” Penny gestured with her hands. “She was starting to develop abilities of her own before Prudence stepped in. But from how quickly they manifested and how powerful she is I would say yes, she has Prue’s powers.”
“Then for all intents and purposes Prue’s part of the original power of three still exists.”
Paige nodded as if she were encouraging herself. “You didn’t just come here to tell us about Prue saving Billie, did you? You came to tell us that Billie is the ultimate power.”

“What?!” Piper pulled away from Phoebe.
“No way!” Phoebe’s disbelieving expression matched her sister’s.

“Think about it.” Paige raised the index finger of her right hand to silence them. “The Angel of Destiny warned us this would be a battle we wouldn’t expect. One we wouldn’t see coming, right? Then evil starts trying to get their hands on what they called the ultimate power. We assumed it was Christy because Billie had just found her, but maybe it wasn’t. If evil knew about Billie coming into our lives in the first place they probably knew that Prue saved Billie’s life by becoming a part of her too. If Prue’s powers still exist then so does her connection to us.”

“And what better way to get rid of the Charmed Ones then to turn them evil?” Phoebe finished her thought for her. “Is she right, Mom?”
“Yes, she is.” Patty nodded. “If you don’t find Billie before whatever demon took her has a chance to try and turn her evil….”
Paige swallowed hard. “We could turn evil too.”

Piper closed her eyes. “We’re screwed.”

*************

The scene in the attic faded as soon as he removed his hand, but Billie’s eyes stayed shut, her mind reeling from what she had just heard. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t be. Dead people didn’t just give their essences to other people. She survived the accident by luck and nothing more.

Then why did the whole thing make so much sense? Why was she closer to the sisters than her own family? And why had they welcomed her with open arms, letting her into their lives and their hearts?

“See.” Kendrick chuckled. “I told you you didn’t know who you were.” He walked back across the cavern to pick up a vial of liquid. “With your connection to the Charmed Ones turning you evil will influence them, turning them evil too. That’s why you’re the ultimate power. By converting one little witch I’ll turn the greatest force of good in the world evil. And I’ll become a god among demons.”

She struggled against the shackles holding her to the wall.

“Don’t strain yourself. Canliss gave you a little something to inhibit your powers until we were through. I, on the other hand, am going to need all the help I can get planting enough thoughts in your head to turn you.” He toasted her with the vial. “So what’s say I drink this little power boosting concoction so we can get started?”

Billie swallowed hard. Piper was right. They were screwed.

Kendrick’s frustrated sigh bounced off the cavern walls as he broke his connection with the girl. He frowned when she groaned, her body slack against the chains holding her to the wall. Torturing a witch was always a pleasure but this was getting ridiculous. He had been at it for hours, throwing everything at her but the kitchen sink and she was still as wholesome as the day was long. She should have turned by now. Yes there was a Charmed One in there somewhere but…

He narrowed his eyes at the thought. The Charmed One. Maybe that was the problem. The girl was strong, but even sharing images of the day Canliss killed her sister didn’t generate enough emotion to get a rise out of her. The Charmed One being in charge would explain that. So maybe if he concentrated on the Charmed One instead of the girl he would start getting somewhere.

New energy surged through his body at the concept. Turning a Charmed One was easy. Anyone who paid even the slightest bit of attention knew they were all about being sisters. If he planted images of the three living sisters being destroyed the essence of the one inside the girl would be livid. And if he went a step further and had them replaced by look-alikes too she would be out for blood. Charmed Ones’ blood to be more exact.

His original intent was to turn all four witches. After all, who wouldn’t want to brag about taking the ultimate force of good and making it evil? Let alone the prospect of having them at your beck and call to do your bidding. But if turning the girl was any indication of how hard it would be to keep all four of them in line it was a headache he didn’t need. Besides, it was every demon’s dream to see the witches dead. And he couldn’t have come up with a better way of sealing the girl’s fate as a demon if he tried.

“Yes.” A smile touched his lips as he looked at her again. “I’ll get to you yet.”

With that he reestablished his connection.

*************

“Do you really think this will work?” Paige stared at the vial of liquid in her hand. “I mean, I don’t see how hitting Billie with a warm fuzzy potion will do much good if whoever has her succeeds in turning her.”
“It will do more than give her a feeling.” Patty was standing next to her daughter. “It will remind her what it’s like to be a good witch. What it’s like to be a Warren.”
Penny mumbled. “And will more than likely get us in even more trouble with the Elders.”

“All right.” Piper closed the book in her hand with a snap. “That does it.” She pushed herself into a standing position. “What’s the deal?”
Penny looked at her innocently. “Whatever do you mean, darling?”
“She means the way you keep mentioning the Elders like they’re going to punish you for something.” Phoebe spoke from where she still sat on the couch. “Did you do something bad Grams?” She grinned as she shared a look with Piper. “Are They going to send you to your room without supper?”
“Not necessarily.” Penny shrugged. “They’ll probably just never let us see the three of you again.”

“What?!” Paige almost dropped the bottle.
“Easy kiddo.” Patty reached out as if to steady her daughter. “That’s precious.”
Paige frowned. “But it was easy to make. I could just…”
“No you can’t.” Penny pointed at her. “It can only be made once in a generation.”

“Hold it.” Piper shook her head as she looked at her grandmother. “What do you mean the Elders probably won’t let you see us again?”
“Yeah.” Phoebe stood up next to her. “And what’s this about only being able to make the potion once every generation?”
Piper looked back and forth between her grandmother and mother when no one answered. “We’re waiting!”

“Calm down, girls.” Patty gave them a motherly look. “What your grandmother meant was...”
“I meant what I said.” Penny interrupted her. “The Elders were outraged by what Prudence did. They forbid your mother and I from coming here to explain things to you. They said Prudence made her decision and all of you were going to have to live with it.”
Paige frowned. “But that doesn’t make any sense. We’re the most powerful force for good they have to offer. If we turned evil…”
“Oh, They would never let you turn evil, darling.” Penny shook her head. “They would destroy Billie first.”
“Destroy Billie?” Paige paled.
“Yes.” Penny’s voice was grave. “Killing her would destroy the link you share.”
“That’s why we told you about the potion.” Patty spoke up again. “It’s very powerful magic. Our family hasn’t had to use it in centuries. It’s not even in the book of shadows.”

“So let me get this straight.” Piper started pacing. “The Elders are pissed at Prue for saving Billie and coming back into our lives after They told her she couldn’t, so in Their infinite wisdom They’re willing to risk all of us turning evil just so They can destroy her by killing the girl she saved?”
Phoebe chortled. “That just sucks.”
Piper nodded. “And we’re not going to let it happen.” She motioned at Paige. “Give me the potion.”
Paige frowned again. “Why?”
“Because I’m the oldest and I said so.” Piper waited half a second to glare at her sister. “I said GIVE ME THE POTION!!”

Paige swallowed hard as her sisters started to advance on her. “What’s going on?”
“It’s happening.” Penny answered. “Whoever has Billie must be succeeding.”
“You mean…”
“Yes, honey.” Patty stayed at her daughter’s side. “They’re turning too.”
“Well that’s just great!” Paige took a step back as her sisters got closer. “What am I supposed to do now?”

Silence was her only answer.

*************

Kendrick broke his connection again, leaning heavily against the cavern wall to keep from falling down. It worked. It took almost everything he had but he could practically feel the anger seething off of the girl. Now all he had to do was play his part and everything else would fall into place.

“Where…”

The sound of her voice drew him from his thoughts.

“Where am I?” Billie caught sight of him. “Who are you?!”
“I’m an Elder.” The lie slipped easily from his lips. “And I’m here to free you. But we have to hurry. The demons will be back soon.”
“Demons?” Billie furrowed her brow. “What demons?”
“The ones who killed the Charmed Ones.”

The look on the girl’s face was priceless. He could almost see the images playing through her mind. Being attacked at the Manor. The Charmed Ones dying one by one. The demons responsible bringing her to the underworld.

“Oh, I’m sorry, dear.” Kenrick almost chocked on the endearment. “You didn’t remember what happened.”
“No, it’s…” Billie swallowed hard. “It’s all right.”
“I have no idea why they didn’t kill you too.” He freed her arms. “Maybe they’re hoping to turn you so they can use your powers. Whatever the reason, everyone up there is glad you’re still around.”

He spoke as he freed her ankles, hoping she was buying what he was saying. She couldn’t know he was a demon yet. Not until she was completely evil. Then he could reveal himself and hopefully persuade her to join him without having to plant more thoughts in her head.

“We feared the end of the world was upon us.”
Billie frowned. “End of the world?”
“Yes.” His energy was returning quickly, allowing him to pace away from her as she tried to rub the feeling back into her wrists. “The Charmed Ones are gone but you were trained by them. You can rally the forces of good to continue the fight against evil.”
“And I’ll start by taking care of the demons who killed my sisters. Friends…” Billie corrected herself. “My friends.”

Kendrick fought hard not to smile. So he had been right. The eldest Charmed Ones was the one he had to turn.

“Do you know where they went?”
He looked up when he heard her question, wanting to encourage her but knowing he couldn’t. Not without ruining everything he was trying to accomplish. “I don’t think…”
“Look.” Billie gestured impatiently with her hand. “Just tell me where they are.”

He hesitated like he was trying to make up his mind.

“Forget it.” Billie growled. “I’ll find them myself.”
“The Manor.” He gave her the answer as she started to stalk out of the cavern. “They’re at the Manor. I can send you there, but…”
She looked at him over her shoulder. “But what?”
“I felt I should warn you. They took on the appearance of the Charmed Ones. We fear they’re going to lure other good witches and magical beings to the house to either kill them or try to turn them too.”
“Oh really?” Billie clinched her jaw. “Well they won’t fool me, will they?”
He said, “I hope not,” more to himself than to her as he raised his hand in her direction, palm out so he could channel his energy to send her back to the Manor. “Good luck.”

A smile spread across her face as she disappeared. “Good luck indeed.”

“Come on guys.” Paige continued to back across the attic, knowing she was going to run out of room sooner rather than later. “You know you don’t really want to hurt me.”
Piper rolled her eyes. “Just give me the potion.”
“Yeah. Just give her…” Phoebe frowned. “Wait, why do you get the potion?”
“Because I’m the oldest.”
“So?”
“So I’m in charge.”
“Says who?”
Piper shrugged. “Nature?”
“Nature?” Phoebe echoed her words. “Is that the best you can do?”

Paige started inching to her left, knowing if her sisters stayed distracted for even a few more seconds she could make it to the door and out of the attic.

“Hey!”

Piper’s shout made her stop in her tracks.

“I’m getting the potion! Deal with it!”
“Oh yeah?” Phoebe narrowed her eyes. “We’ll just see about that.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“Consider yourself threatened.”
Piper grinned. “Bring it on sister.”

“Go on, darling.” Penny made a shooing motion at Paige. “They won’t even notice you’re gone.”
“But…” Paige flinched as Phoebe shoved Piper. “Shouldn’t I stay and try to help them?”
“You keeping that potion safe is helping them.” Patty swallowed hard as she watched her daughters arguing. “It may be the only hope we have left.”
“No pressure there.” Paige mumbled as Piper grabbed a handful of Phoebe’s hair. “Shouldn’t I be turning too?”
“Piper and Phoebe’s connection to Prudence is stronger than yours. That’s why they’re feeling the effects more quickly, but eventually it will get to you too.” Penny gave her a look. “Well don’t just stand there, get out of here.”
Paige furrowed her brow. “Will distance help?”
“No, but I’ve seen them fight like this before.” Penny sidestepped her granddaughters as their struggles took them in her direction. “And it’s not pretty. Now get out of here before they drag you into it and break the potion.”

Paige started backing out of the room, not wanting to lose sight of her sisters until she was safely through the door.

“Going somewhere?”

She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard an all too familiar voice coming from the open doorway behind her. “Billie.” She tried to sound chipper as she turned to face the girl. “Imagine meeting you here.”
“Don’t even try it.”
“Try what?” Paige frowned.
“I know who you are.” Billie’s green eyes flashed with hatred. “This is for the real Paige!”

Paige didn’t have a chance to react before an invisible force slammed into her stomach, propelling her across the room and into a pile of junk. The potion slid out of her hand and started to roll across the floor. Right toward Piper and Phoebe as they continued to fight.

“No.” She tried to stand but couldn’t find her footing. “Piper, don’t step on the…” Her heart broke when she heard the crunching of glass. “Potion.”

“Look at you.” Billie’s words dripped with contempt. “The least you could do is act more like the sisters if you’re going to impersonate them!”
“Billie.” Phoebe smiled. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
“I just bet you have.” Billie pointed at her, sending her crashing into the podium holding the book of shadows.
“Hey!” Piper frowned. “She was being serious. We…”
“Shut up!” Billie threw Piper into the still downed Phoebe. “You demons make me sick. Always taking something pure and destroying it. Well I’ve had enough!” She narrowed her eyes. “It’s time for you to pay!”

*************

Kendrick, who was watching the whole thing in his mind, rubbed his hands together in anticipation. A few more minutes and the Charmed Ones would be dead.

*************

Paige suddenly found it very hard to breathe. She wondered what was going on until she saw the look of concentration on Billie’s face. She was using her power of projection to suck the air out of the room.

“Paige!” Patty yelled at her daughter. “Hit her with the potion!”
“I…” Paige gasped, trying to answer.
“With your powers, Paige.” Penny urged her. “Use your powers!”
Paige reached toward the broken vial and somehow managed to croak out, “Potion.”

The liquid leapt off the ground almost as if it were alive, splashing over Billie’s face and down the front of her shirt. At first it only angered her more, making it even harder for the girls to breathe. But then she stumbled, trying to wipe it off her skin for a moment before sinking to her knees, her face twisted in agony.

************

“No.” Kendrick frowned. “This can’t be happening.” He felt his influence over the girl slowly but surely being eaten away. “I won’t let this happen!!”

He shimmered.

*************

With Billie’s focus elsewhere air rushed back into the room, allowing Paige to fill her lungs again. It still took a few seconds before she could speak. “What…” She cleared her parched throat. “What’s happening to her?”
“It’s the potion.” Patty watched Billie with wide eyes as she fell to her side, writhing in pain. “Mother?”
“It’s all right, Patty. The potion is countering the anger in her system.” Penny had her eyes glued to Billie too. “Let’s just hope it’s enough.”

“Ow.” Piper spoke as she picked herself up off the floor. “What the HELL is going on around here?”
“I second that.” Phoebe took her sister’s proffered hand, rubbing her head with her free hand as she stood. “How did we get…” Her voice trailed off when she spotted Billie. “What happened? Is she all right?!”

“It’s working.” Patty smiled. “The girls are back to normal.”
“For now.” Penny was quick to answer. “They could just as easily be at it again in a second if the potion doesn’t work.”
“At it?” Piper looked at her grandmother. “What do you mean at it?”
“What did we do?” Phoebe was quick to join in.
“It’ll work.” Paige ignored their questions. “It has to.”

An eerie silence fell over the room when Billie suddenly stopped moving. When she stayed still everyone started edging toward her.

“Is she…” Piper couldn’t bring herself to finish the question.
“No.” Penny reassured her. “The potion won’t kill her.”
“Are you sure?” Phoebe gripped Piper’s hand. “She looks awfully pale.”
“She’s right mother.” Patty was still at Paige’s side. “She does.”
Penny sighed. “She’s…”

“A failure.”

They all jumped as Kendrick shimmered into existence next to Billie.

“You should have been my greatest achievement.” His looked down at her sadly. “Instead you’ve been my worst disappointment. But I’m not giving up on you. You could still be a very impressive feather in my cap.” He knelt next to her. “All I have to do is take care of the Charmed Ones myself and make you think it was you.” He ran his hand over her hair. “A few more carefully placed thoughts in that easily influenced mortal mind of yours and you could still be mine.”

“Don’t touch her.” Piper growled the words.
Phoebe nodded. “And don’t think she’ll fall for your crap either.”
“Yeah, because she knows she could never hurt us.” Paige added her two cents worth.

“How impressive.” Kendrick stood, switching his gaze to the sisters. “She tries to kill you and you still defend her.” He scrutinized them with a stare. “So you’re the legendary Charmed Ones. Somehow I thought you’d be bigger.”

“Kiss it.” Phoebe growled at him. “Now get away from Billie before we kick your sorry ass.”
“Oh, now I’m scared.” Kendrick chuckled. “Let’s see how you do against a few of my more powerful friends.” He snapped his fingers, making at least a dozen demons appear throughout the room. He shrugged as the sisters took in the danger around them. “You didn’t seriously think the next ruler of the underworld wouldn’t have followers, did you?”

“OK.” Paige scooted closer to her sisters. “What do we do?”
“Um.” Piper quirked an eyebrow.
“We don’t let him take Billie.” Phoebe supplied the voice of reason. “That’s what we do. No matter what, we keep her safe.”

“That’s touching, really.” Kendrick’s tone was smug. “But you’re not going to live long enough to help yourselves, let alone her.” He addressed the demons as a whole. “Leave the youngest one. She’s mine. But the Charmed Ones are fair game.”

With that all hell broke loose.

“Look, I know you’re tired.”

Tired? That was the understatement of the century. She was completely wrecked. Even pulling three all nighters in a row during finals week hadn’t left her this drained. Of course those didn’t involve watching her parents die or learning the big sister she worked so hard to find had been replaced by a demon. Who knew having your life ripped to shreds could take so much out of you?

“You have no idea how sorry I am for all you’ve been through, but you have to listen to me.”

No she didn’t. Being in oblivion had its perks. She didn’t have to do anything she didn’t want.

“But you’re not in oblivion. You’re not even really unconscious. You’re… How do I put this so you’ll understand? You’re like a computer waiting for its hard drive to reboot. All you have to do is open your eyes.”

She willed the voice to shut up. It seemed like everyone and their brother had been messing with her head lately, trying to influence what she said and what she thought and what she did. Well she was sick of it. Being manipulated by Canliss and brainwashed by Kendrick was more than enough for her. She wasn’t about to be suckered in by some pesky voice in the back of her head.

“First of all, I’m not pesky. Secondly, you know I’m not trying to sucker you into anything. I’m just trying to be a voice of reason. Phoebe, Piper and Paige need you right now.”

Hearing the sisters’ names got her attention.

“You know who I am, Billie. Kendrick showed you the truth.”

She might have overheard what went on between Penny, Patty and the sisters in the attic but it wasn’t like she’d had a chance to process any of it. Knowing you had someone else in your head was one thing, accepting it was another. Especially when it was the oldest Charmed One you were talking about.

“And I know it’s not something either one of us can just gloss over, but we don’t have time for that now. The Elders are angry with me and They’re more than willing to let my sisters face the consequences of my actions. What They don’t understand is that I did what I had to do. You’re meant to do some amazing things in your life, Billie. I couldn’t just let you die. Yes my decision was partly selfish as far as being with my sisters again was concerned, but can you blame me? You of all people know what it’s like to not be with your family.”

Did she ever. For the longest time she was so angry with her parents over what may or may not have happened to Christy that she didn’t want anything to do with them. It had to be a thousand times worse for Prue, being able to watch her sisters but knowing she would never get to be with them again.

“My sisters love you. They considered you a member of the family long before they knew anything about what I had done. Please don’t turn your back on them now. Not when they need you so much.”

Prue was right. She loved the sisters and couldn’t just lay there and do nothing when they were in danger. But she was alone. Would she be able to do enough to save them?

“You’re not alone Billie. I’m always going to be here for you, and so will they. We can do this.”

She latched on to the strength and determination in those words and opened her eyes to the chaos of the attic. She could hear fighting around her, but the first thing she saw was Kendrick towering over her, an energy ball clutched in his hand. Instinct made her flinch before she realized he was frozen.

“Phoebe!”

Paige’s shout startled her, forcing her to look up just in time to see Phoebe flying through the air. She landed in a heap near the door.

“Damn it!” Piper blew up one of the demons heading for Phoebe.
“I’ll…” Paige was cut off as a demon tackled her.
“Paige?” Piper watched as her sister wrestled with her attacker, trying to get a clear shot at him.
“Don’t worry about me.” Paige squirmed, taking a punch to the shoulder rather than the face. “Go make sure Phoebe’s OK.”
Piper frowned. “Are you…” She was suddenly grabbed from behind by a darklighter. “Hey!” She struggled to get free. “Let go of me!!”

“Billie.”

She listened as Prue’s voice blended with her thoughts, letting her know what she needed to do. She took a deep breath and concentrated on the demons.

Patty watched her. “What is she doing?”
“I’m not sure.” Penny frowned.

“I said…” Piper’s voice trailed off as the darklighter let go. She turned, shocked to see him engulfed in flames. “What the hell?” Her frown deepened when she realized another demon had taken him out. She turned to her mother and grandmother. “What’s going on?”
Patty shrugged. “I have no idea.”
“It’s Billie.” Penny pointed at the girl.
“Billie?” Paige, whose attacker was now wrestling with another demon, stood next to Piper. “But how?”
“Her power of projection.” Phoebe answered as she walked over to join them. “She must be using it to make the demons see each other as the enemy.”
Piper cocked an eyebrow. “I had no idea she could do something like that.”
“Me either.” Paige nodded.
“Well obviously she can, because she is.” Penny commented as all of the demons who weren’t already occupied turned toward Kendrick. “What are they doing now?”
Paige furrowed her brow. “I have no idea.”

The first fireball broke through Piper’s freeze, bringing Kendrick out of his magical stupor. The second one hit him in the shoulder, making him hiss in pain.

“What?” He sidestepped an energy ball. “What do you think you’re doing?” He ducked a darklighter’s arrow. “You’re supposed to be destroying the witches!”

Penny grinned. “I like this girl’s style.”
“Mother.”
“Oh, don’t ‘mother’ me.” Penny waved Patty off. “All I’m saying is she’s got spunk. What’s so wrong with that?”

Kendrick overheard them as he defended himself the best he could, following Penny’s gaze to Billie. “You!” He spat the word as another fireball hit him in the side. “I knew I never should have used a witch.” He grunted in pain as an athame buried itself deep in his left thigh. “I won’t let you get away with this!” He threw an energy ball as a veritable demonic arsenal rained down on him. He was vanquished long before he saw if the orb hit its mark.

Piper opened her mouth to warn Billie but it was already too late. All she could do was watch as the energy ball slammed into the girl’s side.

“Billie!!” Phoebe rushed forward, somehow managing to catch her before she had a chance to fall. She lowered her gently to the floor, cradling her in her arms. “Come on sweetie. Open your eyes.” She tapped her on the cheek. “Open your eyes, Billie.” She looked up at her sisters. “Paige?”

“I’m on it.” Paige knelt next to them, holding her hands over Billie’s side. She frowned when nothing happened.
“What is it?” Piper looked down at them. “What’s the matter?”
“It’s…” Paige shook her head. “I don’t know.” She pulled her hand back. “It’s not working.”
“Maybe you’re not concentrating hard enough.” Phoebe reasoned with her. “Try again.”

Patty swallowed hard. “Phoebe…”
“Not now Mom.” Phoebe cut her off.
“Phoebe, you should listen to what your mother has to say.”
“I don’t have time, Grams.” Phoebe looked at Paige with imploring brown eyes. “Please, try again.”
“I don’t think it’s going to work, Phoebe.” Piper had tears in her eyes.
“Yes it will.” Phoebe gestured at Paige. “Try again.”
“Phoebe…” Paige’s voice was barely more than a whisper.
“You’re still new to this whole being able to heal people thing, Paige.” Phoebe clinched her jaw. “Now try again!”
“It…”
“Stay out of this, Grams!”
“She can’t heal the dead, Phoebe!!”

Penny’s words were like a slap to the face.

“She’s not dead.” Phoebe said it more to herself than anyone else. “Are you, sweetie?” She brushed a stray lock of hair off of Billie’s forehead. “She’s just hurt, that’s all.” Tears ran down her cheeks. “But she’s going to be fine. She’s…”
“She’s gone, darling.” Penny supplied the answer no one wanted to hear.

“No.” Phoebe chocked on a sob. “NO!!”

Piper joined her sisters, putting an arm around each of them as they all three grieved.

“This isn’t right.” Tears streamed down Patty’s cheeks as she watched her daughters.
Penny sighed. “I know, darling.”
“No you don’t. You weren’t with Prue when she found out Billie had been in that accident and the Elders were going to let her die. She was so passionate about saving her. This was her second chance, Mother. A second chance for BOTH of them. Prue was in her sisters’ lives again and Billie finally had a place she could call home.” Patty shook her head. “It’s so unfair.”
“Yes, it is.” Penny tried to console her. “But it’s at times like these that we have to remember that everything happens for a reason.”

“Bull.”

Penny frowned when she heard the barely audible word. “Excuse me?”
“I said that’s bull.” Piper glared through red, puffy eyes as she growled her reply. “And you know it.”
It was Patty’s turn to frown. “Piper?”
“Not now, Mom.” Piper was quick to silence her.
Penny huffed, “Don’t talk to your mother that way.”
“This really isn’t about you either, Grams.” Piper dismissed her too. “So be quiet.”

Piper left her sisters and Billie to pace the attic. “It’s that stupid saying. I mean, how can you stand there and say this happened for a reason and honestly believe it?”
“Because it did.” Penny shrugged. “Everything always does.”
“No it doesn’t!” Piper erupted. “What reason could there possibly be for someone as young as Billie to die?! What reason is there for us to find out our sister made a huge sacrifice to come back to us only to have her ripped away again?! What great reason lies behind the fact that we’re constantly putting our asses on the line in the name of good only to have our friends and loved ones taken away?!!”

She waited for someone to say something but no one did. “I’m tired of it! Ever since we found out we were witches all our lives have been in one close call and tragedy after another. And I can’t take it anymore. I thought losing Leo was the final straw but…” More tears spilled from her eyes as she watched Phoebe gently rocking Billie. “I’m done.” Her voice cracked. “The Elders don’t give a damn about us so I’m done giving a damn about Them and what They want. As far as I’m concerned They can take Their ‘everything happens for a reason’ attitude and stick it where the sun doesn’t shine.”

“Come here, sweetie.” Paige went to her sister, wrapping her arms around her as she finally gave in to her emotions and broke down.

Penny looked at each of the girls and Patty expectantly. “Well if no one else is going to reply to that, I will.”
“Leave her alone, Mother.” Patty sounded tired. “She’s more than entitled to have her own opinion. Especially today.”
“Having an opinion and blowing up at everyone are two entirely different things.”
”Not necessarily.” Paige interjected. “And she wasn’t blowing up at everyone. She was just saying what we’re all feeling.”
“Are you saying you agree with her?”
“Completely.” Paige nodded. “Being a witch really sucks when no one appreciates what you’re doing.”
“The Elders appreciate you!”
“They have a really strange way of showing it!!” Phoebe finally spoke, looking up at her grandmother with a mix of anguish and anger.

“You’re right.” The angel of destiny appeared in a swirl of light. “They do.” Her eyes sparkled with regret as she looked at the girls. “I’m truly sorry. This isn’t how I expected things to be when the battle was over.”
“Gee, thanks.” Phoebe’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “That makes everything all better.”

“You just said the battle was over, right?” Paige spoke up before her sister could say anything more.
“Yes.” The angel nodded.
Paige narrowed her eyes. “Then where’s Leo?”

“Right here.”

Piper turned when she heard the voice, shocked to find her husband standing in the attic doorway. “Leo?”
“Piper.”
She ran to him, throwing herself into his waiting arms. “It’s you. It’s really you.”
“Yeah.” Leo held her close. “It’s me.”
“Everything has been such a mess since you went away. We found out Prue saved Billie and the Elders were…”
Leo put his finger over her lips. “I know. I could see everything from where I was.” He tightened his grip on her. “And everything’s going to be all right.”
“No it won’t.” Piper’s reply was muffled as she buried her head in Leo’s chest.

“Oh, but it will.” The angel knelt down next to Phoebe, who promptly pulled Billie closer to her.
“Don’t touch her!”
“I’m not going to hurt her.” The angel gently cupped Billie’s cheek. A soft blue light was barely visible under her hand for a moment before Billie sat up, drawing in a deep breath.
“What the…” Phoebe looked at the girl in amazement. “Billie?”
Billie frowned. “Phoebe?”
“Billie!!” Phoebe pulled her into a crushing hug.

“I don’t understand.” Paige frowned.
“Neither do I.” Penny frowned too.

“What’s the catch?”
The angel turned to Piper, who was still safely nestled against Leo’s side. “Catch?”
“There’s always a catch with something like this. I mean, look at what happened when you took Leo. You saved him from Death, but we almost turned evil trying to get him back.” Piper tucked her hair behind her ear, suddenly all business. “So what’s it going to take for us to be able to keep Billie? Because whatever you throw at us, we’ll handle it. We’re not about to lose her again.”

“Lose me?” Billie echoed Piper’s words. “What’s she talking about?”

“She’s my gift to you.” The angel spoke matter-of-factly as she stood. “You Halliwells have always been a powerful ally. Your family has saved more innocents than anyone else in the magical community. I thought it was about time someone showed you how much you are valued.”

Penny shook her head. “The Elders aren’t going to be very happy about this.”
The angel shrugged. “Ask me if I care.” She looked at each of the girls. “You have a very special bond. Don’t take it for granted.” She smiled at Billie. “And enjoy your time, little one. Make every moment count.”

“What do you….” Billie’s voice trailed off as the angel disappeared in another swirl of lights. “OK, that was a pretty cool exit, but now one of you is gonna have to tell me what’s going on.”
Phoebe put her hand on the girl’s shoulder as she started to stand. “Maybe you shouldn’t get up just yet.”
Billie frowned. “Why not?”
“Because.” Phoebe sighed when Billie continued to move despite her warning. She was quick to stand with her, keeping her arm around the girl’s waist to steady her. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Billie gave her a look. “Why do you keep asking me that?”

“Probably because just a minute ago you were dead.” Paige walked toward them.
“Dead?” Billie’s frown deepened.
Paige grinned in relief and amusement as she pulled Billie into a hug. “Welcome back.”
“Wait, put it in reverse for a second. Was I really dead?”
“As a doornail.” Piper joined them, Leo’s hand gripped tightly in her own. “But all that can wait until later. All you need to know right now is that you’re with us and everything is fine.” She pulled her into a one armed hug, tears swimming in her eyes. “And we’re never going to let you go again.”
“Truer words have never been spoken.” Phoebe joined the hug.
Paige nodded as she threw her arms around all three of them. “Amen to that.”

Billie looked at Leo over Piper’s shoulder. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Likewise.” Leo studied her face. “Are you sure you’re really all right?”
“What is it with people and that question?” Billie rolled her eyes. “And are they ever going to let go?”
“I doubt it.” Leo grinned as he found himself being pulled into the embrace. “Just go with it. I learned a long time ago it’s easier that way.”

Laughter drifted through the Manor.

“Oh yeah.” Piper grinned. “That was definitely one of our more bizarre encounters with a demon.”
“I’m sure it was.” Paige nodded. “It’s not every day you get chased through the house by, what did you call her, Piper? A pasty faced hag?” She raised her eyebrows, her voice anything but sincere. “I’m real sorry I missed that one.”
“Hey, it wasn’t all bad.” Phoebe chuckled. “I got to kiss the first guy I ever had a crush on.”
“More like the first guy you ever lusted after.” Billie chimed in. “I’ll never forget the look on your face when I busted into the attic and caught you two in a lip lock. I thought you were gonna kill me before that guy with the ax had a chance.” Her eyes got big when she realized she was talking like Prue’s memories were her own. “I…” She swallowed hard. “I’m sorry.”

The sisters looked at each other, hoping one would be able to give the others some guidance. But they were all at a lose. Billie’s dilemma was uncharted territory even for them.

“Damn it.” Billie sighed. “Why do I keep doing that?”
“How do you keep doing it? That’s what I want to know.” Paige put her hand over her mouth. “Did I just say that out loud?”
“Yes.” Phoebe gave her an ‘I can’t believe you’ look.
“I didn’t mean it. I mean not the way it sounded. Unless it didn’t sound as bad as I think it did. But I’m sure it did. So I’ll just stick with I didn’t mean it.” Paige rolled her eyes. “And babbling is making everything so much better.”

“It’s all right, Paige.” Billie reassured her. “After everything we’ve been through you can ask me anything you’d like.”
“Then,” Paige wrinkled her nose. “What’s it like? You know, to have Prue…” She pointed at her head.
“I don’t know how to describe it.” Billie shrugged. “It’s not like I feel any different. There are just thoughts and memories floating around in there that aren’t mine. Obviously I don’t know they’re not mine because they keep spewing out of my mouth.”
“We get what you’re saying, sweetie.” Phoebe patted her on the leg.
“And you don’t have to apologize.” Piper was quick to add.
Billie frowned. “But don’t you think it’s creepy?” She gestured with her hands. “One minute I’m me and the next I’m talking about things I wasn’t even around for.”
“You’re still who you always were, Billie.” Phoebe tilted her head. “And personally I find the snippets of Prue comforting.”
“Me too.” Piper nodded. “Prue was always so wrapped up in work or being a witch or watching out for us that she didn’t share her thoughts very often. It’s nice to hear them now. Even if it is inadvertently.”
Billie looked doubtful. “Really?”


“Really.” Phoebe answered. “I wasted a lot of time in my life where Prue was concerned. I never appreciated our relationship until I moved back here from New York. And even then I assumed we would have the rest of our lives to make up for lost time.” She shook her head sadly. “But I was wrong.”
“It’s all right, Pheebs.” Billie groaned, closing her eyes. “I’m sorry. I know that’s what your sisters call you. What Prue called you.”
“It’s fine.” Phoebe interrupted her before she could say anything else. “I’ve always wished more people would use that nickname.”
“Riiiight.” Billie grinned. “But thanks for saying it.”

“I did the same thing.” Piper furrowed her brow. “I never really stopped to think about it until just now when I was listening to you, Phoebe. But I took Prue for granted too.”
Billie looked confused. “What? I thought you and Prue were really close.”
“We were.” Piper nodded. “Maybe too close.”
Paige frowned. “Is there such a thing?”
“Of course there is. I mean, think about it. Prue was my rock. I leaned on her, knowing that no matter what went wrong in my life she would be there to try and make it right again. And I never said thank you.” She wiped at a lone tear as it streaked down her cheek. “But maybe I can return the favor now.”
“You’re off to a good start so far.” Billie gripped her hand.

“I’m just glad I’m finally going to get the chance to now my other sister. Well, kind of.” Paige sighed. “You know what I mean.”
“Yeah.” Billie nodded. “I do.”
“And you too.” Paige locked eyes with her. “I’m sorry I never really took the time to get to know you before, Billie.”
“No worries.” Billie grinned again. “We have plenty of time now.”

“Speaking of which,” Piper looked at her watch. “We better be turning in if we want to be up and moving around in time for that flight in the morning.”
“Too true.” Paige pushed herself into a standing position. “We all know what Phoebe’s like if she doesn’t get enough sleep.”
“Me?” Phoebe gave her a playful nudge with her foot. “I’m not the one who stumbles to the table and tries to fall asleep in her fruit loops.”
“No, but you’re the one who wakes up with morning breath that could drop an elephant and spends half an hour brushing her teeth to get rid of it.” Piper came to Paige’s defense.

“Maybe you shouldn’t go.”

They all three stopped when they heard Billie’s words.

“I can handle it alone.”
Paige frowned. “But…”
Billie raised a