Being alone during Valentine's Day is not the greatest.
Enjoy the read, people.
Love always, Kathangel
*************
DREADING 2-14
"Thank you, sis." Phoebe said, as her arms embraced her elder sister. "I know you had your doubts with Cole before. And I'm glad you finally saw the good man he really is."
"Your welcome." Prue took her youngest sister in her arms with a smile. "Being in love, especially during Valentine's Day is great, and I am happy for you both."
At the sight of her two sisters reconciling, Piper could not keep her excitement under raps. She rushes with arms wide open, squeezing her sisters tightly with a great big hug.
"And I, for one," Piper began, "am very glad that you are not fighting anymore. It makes it easier for all of us to celebrate Valentine's Day."
Phoebe agreed, but Prue untangled herself away from their grasps.
"If you don't mind, I'll think I'll let you both celebrate without me."
"What?" Piper asked. "I won't let you do that, Prue. We can't let her do that, Pheebs."
"I know, Prue." Phoebe stepped closer to her, "You should come with us."
"What for?" Prue said, distressed. "This is a time for couples, and I don't have a significant other like you two do. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I have plenty of things to keep myself occupied for the night. Besides, it's only one night, what could possibly go wrong?"
Piper and Phoebe exchanged glances, hoping that their eldest sister was right. They knew that convincing Prue would be hard, so they decided to go along with her request to back out on their Valentine's day plans at the last minute.
A glimmering white light shone beside Piper, forming a man that the Halliwell sisters knew too well.
"Hi, Leo." The sisters greeted in unison.
"Did they let you off for the night?" Piper inquired to her fiancé.
"Piper, I am never off for the night." Leo told her, kissing her forehead.
When a knocking on the door was heard, Phoebe immediately rushes to open it. A dashing man stood by the door after being opened with a bouquet of gorgeous red roses in his hands. Phoebe's eyes light up at the sight of it.
"Are we about ready to go?" Cole asked after handing the roses to the youngest Halliwell.
"Prue's not coming." Piper informed him.
"Why not?" Leo and Cole asked.
"Because I know you'll all have a better time if I'm not there." Prue simply stated, "Don't worry, guys. I'll be fine, seriously!"
***********
Two hours of watching the History Channel seemed to make Prue sleepy. They had a special marathon on Myths and Legends, featuring the Greek goddess, Aphrodite.
"Aphrodite was the goddess of love and beauty." The narrator explained, "The daughter of Zeus and the goddess Di o'ne, Aphrodite had the power to arouse the jealousy of the hearts of the men and gods. She was said to be always ready to help lovers who were wise enough to go to her. . ."
Prue was getting bored. Turning off the television, she rolled over to a more comfortable position in the couch. Silence occupied the space around her, and for a moment, it seemed deafening.
A silver-framed picture of her and Andy Williams, her first love, crossed her eyesight. She got up from the couch and walked towards it, eyes twinkling with tears. She picks it up and holds it close to her heart, where Andy's memory is still fresh. Though he is gone, she still loved him.
Suddenly, Prue's mind wanders off to Aphrodite. The Goddess of beauty and love, she envied the fact that the woman always had a man by her side. Whether it was her hideous husband, Hephaestus, or her other secret lovers, Prue was sure that Aphrodite would have no trouble getting a date on Valentine's Day. . . Unlike her.
How she wishes she can talk to Aphrodite. Maybe then, she can get a perspective on what to do with her love life, or lack thereof. Grabbing a pen and paper, Prue's mind reeled with a few lines that formed into a spell to be able to talk to Aphrodite.
"In this time of sacred love,
I call Aphrodite from up above;
To help this soul in dire need,
And listen to its solemn plead."
Prue spoke the words as if she were possessed to speak it. For a few moments, it was quiet, and Prue thought that it didn't work. The idea of conjuring a Greek Goddess to talk to her seemed silly at that point, especially when nothing was happening. Prue sat back on the couch and was about to reach for the remote control when a soft giggle captures her attention.
"Who's there?" Prue's quavering voice echoed back to her. A soft scent of violets and fresh strawberries filled the room, almost hypnotizing her. Prue could not move, surprised that the spell worked.
Pleasant sounds of the harp surround her, and in glimmering gold dusts, a beautiful woman appeared in front of Prue. Long blonde hair is cascaded down past her hips, in beautiful waves. Her eyes were wide and blue, shimmering against a glowing skin. A sheer white hemlot covers her body, but exposes enough for the men to go wild.
"You called?" The image in front of Prue asked.
"Y-yes." Prue stammered, "Are you Aphrodite?"
"The one and only." Aphrodite slightly nodded, "What can I do for you?"
"Suddenly I forgot what to say."
Aphrodite let out a soft giggle. "Well, does it have something to do with you feeling lonely tonight?"
Prue nodded.
"And you want me to do something about that?"
"What can you do?" Prue inquired.
"Oh, honey, I can do anything I want to." Aphrodite flaunted, "And I can get anything and anyone I want."
Prue was speechless.
"Want to find out how?" The Greek Goddess smiled sweetly, "Then lend me your mortal body for a day and I will get you a man."
Aphrodite then holds out her palm, with golden sand collected in it. She blows into Prue's face and the next thing that Prue saw was darkness.
************
"Prue!" Piper called out, "We're home! Leo and Cole are still here! So don't come out naked!"
Phoebe giggled, happy to have Cole's arm around her.
Leo grabbed Piper by the waist and began tickling her. The two couples headed to the kitchen to get some coffee.
"Why is Prue not down yet?" Leo asked.
"Maybe she's just tired." Cole answered.
Phoebe walked to the foot of the stairs to call on Prue. When she said her name once again, a sing-songy voice responded:
"I'm he-ere! In my roo-oom!" Soft giggles followed.
Piper came up beside Phoebe, with Leo and Cole trailing her.
"What was that all about?"
The two couples rushed upstairs, to Prue's room, to see what was going on.
Even before they opened the door, the smell of fresh wildflowers greeted them. Not only that, the sound of a harp playing aroused all of their curiosity.
Gasps followed after Prue's bedroom door was opened. There, in the middle of her room, Prue lay down on her bed with four half-naked men feeding her grapes and fanning her with huge peacock tails. Flowers were all over the floor as well as on the walls and ceiling. Not a word was spoken, for the most shocking thing of all was Prue's appearance.
"Prue!" Phoebe broke the silence, "You're blond!"
"Yes, I know!" Prue answered.
"What the hell happened?" Piper squawked. "Why are there half-naked men here?"
"Oh, please." Prue rolled her eyes, "Prue needed a change. That's why she called on me."
"And who might you be?" Piper asked.
"Aphrodite." Prue simply answered. At that point, she claps her hands and the men around her carry her on their shoulders. "You're all boring me. I think I'm going to have some fun."
With that, golden dusts surround her and she vanishes into thin air.
**************
Almost an hour has gone by already and Prue was not back yet. Leo immediately went to his elders to find more about the situation the moment that Aphrodite left them in Prue's body. Meanwhile, Phoebe frantically searched the Book of Shadows but could not find anything helpful. They were in the living room of the Halliwell mansion, where they have fought many demons from before.
Piper walked back and forth, panicking.
"How can this happen?!"
"Calm down, Piper." Cole held her shoulders. "Just sit for a minute and let's see what we can do for now." He guided her slowly to the couch and when she sat down, she didn't realize that the remote was under her.
The television automatically turned on, showing the History Channel. The title, "Myths and Legends" caught Piper's eye. She took the remote to increase the volume so they can hear the narrator.
"The Goddess of Love, Aphrodite," The narrator began, "was crowned with violets with joy and beauty with her. When she moved on earth, flowers walked before her. Storms and clouds disappeared. The waves fell still as she glided over them. The Greeks said that she presided the whispers, smiles and tricks of girls and the sweet tenderness of love. . ."
Piper immediately pressed mute at that point, having the look in her eyes as if she had just hit a jackpot.
"She must have been inspired to be like Aphrodite after watching this." She pointed out. "We need to get her back, Pheebs."
"We'll work on that." Phoebe reassured her sister.
Cole suddenly called on the Halliwell sisters. "Guys, look what I found."
He stretched out his arm and handed them a small piece of paper. After reading what was on it, Phoebe gasped in surprise.
"It's the spell to conjure Aphrodite." Piper thought aloud.
"And it's written by Prue." Phoebe added.
Leo appeared at this moment, with a valuable piece of information.
"Aphrodite is manipulative," He explained, "she must have tricked her into lending her Prue's body. If we don't get Aphrodite back now, she will realize that Prue is a Charmed Witch and she may enjoy her powers too much to go back."
"We can't let that happen." Cole said indignantly, "We have to find her."
"We've tried tracking her down using the crystal over the map," Phoebe began, "but since her soul is not in this plane, only her body, then it's hard."
"Do you think Aphrodite will take advantage of Prue's powers?" Piper was worried.
"Let's hope not." Leo answered her. "You have to understand that Aphrodite is not a bad Goddess. She's just a playful one. She gets tricky because she likes to play a lot of games. She doesn't know that mortal consequences in this world are a lot more serious and real than they are in her world."
"Wait!" Phoebe exclaimed, as if she stumbled upon something, "I have a plan. . ."
**********
The Halliwell sisters after revising Prue's spell to conjure Aphrodite manages to call on the Goddess of Love and Beauty once again.
Leo and Cole, dressed in togas, hold on to the silver platter of oysters.
Cole mumbles, "Let's hope this is worth it, I'm getting an itch."
Leo tries to swallow his laughter as the golden dusts of Aphrodite suddenly appear.
"This better be good." She yawns, "I was having the time of my life."
Phoebe signals Cole and Leo to approach her. "Aphrodite, this is an offering. Since you have taken our sister's body, it is just our pleasure to offer you with her favorite dish.
"Oooh, goody." Aphrodite slightly opens her mouth invitingly, so that Leo can feed her.
As he places the oyster on her mouth, Phoebe tries to hold Piper back. When it was Cole's turn to feed the seductress, Phoebe grits her teeth.
When the dish was finished, Aphrodite shimmers away again.
"Let's hope that one worked." Piper said.
"Well, Aphrodite is in Prue's body." Phoebe began, "With it comes all her strengths and weaknesses. Prue is allergic to oysters. Once the hives kick in, Aphrodite will not be the goddess of beauty anymore. She'll blow up like a bubble gum."
"I love it that you're so clever." Cole grabs Phoebe by the waist.
"And I love it that you and Leo actually wore togas for this." Phoebe pointed out as she tugs on the white costume.
**********
Without even an hour going by, Aphrodite appears. Red blotches cover her body and face and her eyes poured with tears.
"What is happening to me?" She screams, "I can't stop itching!"
"Give us back our sister's body and it will stop." Piper demanded.
"Never!"
"Then you will stay like that for a very long time." Phoebe stepped up.
Aphrodite, terrified at the thought, could only do what they had asked. She peacefully moves out of Prue's body, and as quickly as she came, she left their lives.
Prue still lay on the couch, red and weak. Her hair was back to normal but her smooth skin was invaded by red hives. Piper takes the injection that contained Prue's allergy medication.
Piper and Phoebe hugged one another. "Let's let her rest for now. . ."
**********
"I'm sorry," Prue apologized, "it was a weak moment."
"You did not have to spend Valentine's Day alone, Prue." Piper told her, "You could have came with us."
"Well, I was too proud to---"
"You shouldn't be like that anymore." Phoebe interrupted, "You are loved by so many people, and being single on Valentine's Day doesn't mean that no one loves you."
Prue smiled. "Now, I'm dreading the next Valentine's Day."
-The End-