Author's Note: Hey! I'm finally back with a new one-shot story! Yay! Thank you to all of my awesome reviewers from my other stories! I hope you like this one!
Set after walking out of The Bay Mirror in the changed reality – Episode "The Bare Witch Project"
"A World of Difference"
By: Piper Chris Melinda Halliwell
"I don't know, Phoebe," Piper whispered as the three walked the nearly silent streets. "Maybe you should go home."
"Are you crazy? He said our children, Piper! I – I can't just show up, not when I don't have any clue how to act or speak in this world," Phoebe claimed as they turned the corner into an alley.
"Not to mention you don't even know what you look like," Paige agreed. "But isn't that what you want, Phoebe, that little girl? Who knows, maybe you have her after all."
"Yeah, but I don't even know where I live! How the hell am I supposed to find that out? Walk back in and say: 'Hey, Leslie, uh I can't remember our address could you write it down for me?' It's not gonna –" She stopped in mid-sentence, hearing laughter.
"Ow," Paige exclaimed as Phoebe smacked her on the back of her head. "What was that for?"
"You. You think this is funny, Paige? I'm married to a guy I barely know, we have kids and you two are asking me to go see what that life is like? How is that funny," she fumed.
"So, how come I'm the only one who got hit?"
Piper put her arm between her bickering sisters. "Okay, okay you two. That's enough," Piper said.
"How can you say that? You were the one who suggested -"
"I know, but maybe you owe it to yourself to see what our lives are like here."
"What lives," Paige asked. "Women barely have rights here. We can't speak in public. The clothes we're supposed to wear look like they're from a nun's convent."
"What about magic? What about us," Phoebe asked. "If nothing else, I – I have to find that out. I'm going."
"Phoebe, like you said, you don't even know where you –" Piper started.
"No, I don't. But I know someone who does. Come on," Phoebe said as they ran out of the alley and to the front of the Manor. "Come on. Come inside with me," she said as they stopped cold on the steps.
"Phoebe, we can't go inside with you," Paige reasoned. "We're who knows where here. We might not even –"
"Stop Paige, don't…even – even think," Phoebe stuttered as she stepped down towards her sisters.
"It's your call, Pheebs. You wanted to know if magi still existed, well here's your chance to find out," Piper said.
"But what if she's right? What if it is only me?"
"What if she's wrong and the two of us still live there and are happily fighting demon on our off time," Piper countered.
"Happily," Paige asked skeptically.
"You know what I mean."
Phoebe nodded, carefully scaling the cement steps. Taking a deep breath, she knocked.
From inside the house came a familiar voice. "Leo, did you forget your house keys again," Piper asked slightly annoyed as she opened the door.
"Hi Piper."
"Phoebe, you never come around here anymore. I thought Leslie banned this place."
"He – he did? Oh, I mean uh, yeah, but I had some time off work, so –" she saw Piper's eyes narrow as if she knew something wasn't right. "Y – you know I'm your sister, don't you?"
"Yeah, I figured that much – with your attire and all. Why are you here?"
"I had to see this life for myself – with my own eyes. I'm sorry if I came at a bad time."
"Well, that's new. My sister apologizing before anything even happens. Come on in."
"Uh, okay," Phoebe said, stepping inside.
She looked around. The Manor didn't look much different. Apparently Leo didn't have Piper on strict rules. Then again, they'd only been outside, so they had no clue as to how life inside a home would be.
"Wh – what happened to the door," Phoebe asked, stunned.
"Oh, they shut down Magic School. Claimed it was too dangerous to have kids run amuck with powers 'used for destruction' as the heading in the paper put it."
Piper closed the door and sat on the couch. Phoebe followed. "This is different. I expected more rules like the ones on the streets. And what happened to all the color that used to be in this house?"
Piper sighed, placing a hand on Phoebe's wrist. "Women don't have much of a say around here anymore, Phoebe."
A thought came to her. "You said they shut down Magic School, right? Whose 'they'? I thought Paige had it under control with Leo being the Headmaster."
Piper stood, wringing her hands with a painful look. "Phoebe, I can't tell you why. All I can say is you've got to fix this. You and your sisters must do something."
"Why can't you tell me? From a different world or not, we're still sisters…aren't we," Phoebe nearly pleaded, grabbing Piper's wrist.
"Yes, but Phoebe…" Piper sat down beside her again, biting her bottom lip in hesitation. "What I'm about to tell you, you can't tell them until after you fix this mess? Promise?"
"Okay, I promise. Where are you going," Phoebe asked as Piper stood and walked into the kitchen.
"Stay there," she heard Piper call.
Piper walked back out about five minutes later, a crumpled up newspaper article in her hand.
"What's this," Phoebe asked as Piper handed it to her.
"That is what happened to Magic School, Phoebe. They couldn't do anything about it. Magic had been exposed in the most inappropriate way and they to shut it down. It's a shame really. Who knows what happened to those kids…"
That night…
Phoebe sat at the kitchen table, tears running in torrents as she read the article repeatedly:
Police were called to a domestic disturbance claim somewhere in the vicinity of the Halliwell residence. Upon further inspection, it was found that creatures no one thought existed, listed as demons, killed several young students and one staff member in what that instructors called Magic School, a facility that teaches young witches how to use their powers properly. The Headmaster, Leo Wyatt, shall be taken in for questioning this following week. The estimated number of casualties is unknown at the moment…
"You're up late," Piper said walking into the kitchen.
"I couldn't sleep," Phoebe claimed as another yawn overtook her shaking form.
"What are you reading," Piper asked sitting beside her
"Oh, it's…nothing, don't worry about it," Phoebe said as she folded it up, stuffing it into her pants pocket.
"Phoebe," Piper said, grabbing her wrist. "You've been crying. What's wrong?"
Phoebe wiped her eyes and noticed the concern in Piper's voice. "You know, keep talking like that, you'll end up sounding like Prue," Phoebe tried to joke it off, but realized she couldn't. What had happened in that time might have happened here, and Phoebe, she would've known about it and not have been able to do anything.
The last words the alternate version of her sister told her came to mind: "Tell me Phoebe. Let me read it. Together we can handle it, but in the long run, it's better if Paige doesn't know."
"Phoebe, come on, Pheebs, say something! Anything," Piper pleaded, but all Phoebe did was stare at her with a blank, desolate, hopeless expression. "Come on, what did I tell you when you were here," a different tactic might ease her fears.
"P – aige ca – can't kn – know. I pr – promised," Phoebe chocked out through tears.
"Okay, sweetie, Paige won't know, but I need to know," Piper said as Phoebe rested her head on her shoulder.
"Accident." It seemed, to Piper, that Phoebe was so shaken up she couldn't even form sentences, but maybe it was better that way.
"Okay, tell me what happened? Where was the accident," she asked stroking her short hair.
"Magic School."
"Who caused it," although, did she really need to ask?
"Demons. Piper, students were killed."
Okay, if Piper wasn't aware how serious the conversation was between her alternate self and Phoebe before, she knew it was now. "But Phoebe, it's Magic School, how can people die?"
"Don't know. They just were."
"What else? Why were you so insistent that Paige doesn't know," Now, Piper could feel Phoebe shaking.
She pulled the article out of her pocket and handed it to Piper. Scanning it quickly, she found that yes, demons had attacked and students were killed along with one instructor. "I – instructor? Ph – Phoebe, please tell me they never identified the body…" she could feel tears flowing freely as she saw the name Paige Matthews circled in red pen as one of the casualties.
"Th – there's no Power of Three to protect anyone. No one could protect her," Phoebe said finding her voice soft from crying. "You know, with that many students gone, I'm thinking they tried to protect her." She laid her head on Piper's shoulder again. Piper ripped the news article into tiny pieces and dumped it on the table as Phoebe sat in her lap.
"I am too. Which means she taught them well. T – to th – the best of her abilities and – and –" Her voice broke as Phoebe buried her face in her neck. "No, not again," was all she could manage as they both broke down.
"It – it was s – so hard to see h – her after I read it, Piper." Phoebe whispered.
"I know, I know. Just the thought of that, it's – I can't even…" Piper couldn't finish her sentence. She stood and walked out of the room.
"Piper?"
"Hm," she asked looking down at Phoebe with red eyes that matched hers.
"Why are you carrying me? I can walk."
"I know, but just let me have this," Piper said stopping at the stairs. "With what I just found out, I need someone to hold onto. So if you don't like it," a smirk graced her features, "you'll just have to get revenge later." She scaled the stairs quietly so as not to wake her sons and arrived at Paige's door where she sat Phoebe on her feet.
Piper turned the doorknob, opening the door and she and Phoebe slipped in. It closed nearly soundlessly.
They found her sleeping hard as they sat on either side of her. A movement of the mattress awoke the young witch with a start as she bolted upright.
"What? Where? Who?"
"Shh, calm down, Paige. It's just us," Piper whispered rubbing her arm.
She let out a yawn. "Oh, don't tell me it's another midnight demon hunt. Honestly, don't these demons know the difference between night and day," she asked rubbing her eyes.
"No, nothing like that. We just wanted to know if you were safe," Phoebe said snuggling up against her.
"Well I am. Jeez, Phoebe, what is with you today? You've been acting so strange after that whole ordeal. Did I do or say something?"
"No, everything's fine. Just how it should be," Phoebe said yawning.
"Are you planning on letting me breathe anytime soon," Paige asked.
"Oh yeah, sorry," Phoebe apologized as she loosened her grip.
"So are you two staying in here tonight? Is that what this means? 'Cause if it is, I just wanna get some sleep," Paige said yawning.
"I'm not letting you go," Phoebe whined.
Paige sighed, pulling the covers over the three of them as Piper laid beside her.
"What the heck happened to her," Paige whispered in Piper's ear.
"Trust me, Paige, you don't want to know."
The End