Hey everyone.

I entered this into TS3 fan-fiction competition a few months ago and thought I'd share it with all you here at fan-fiction net. There were three rounds in the competition and this piece was entered for the second round. I'm happy with it because it got me to the third round and I accomplished taking first place (yay lol). I may or may not decide to continue with the third round piece, in the future, which was a season 3 continuation.

The writing challenge was to write a piece about Prue's reflections surrounding her own death. It is written from the first-person perspective of Prue (point-of-view) and I hope that those of you who decide to read this enjoy it.

Oh, and to those of you who may be waiting for me to continue with my other stories, I am starting to get myself back into writing again. Just bare with me. I've been away for a few months (due to the circumstances you know about) and need to get my muse back. I need to get over my writers block. :o)

Disclaimer: I do not own Charmed.

The Peaceful Ascension

Death.

It's amazing how that one, simple, little word, during my entire mortal existence, had managed to bring me so much heartache throughout the years and succeeded in shattering my world into millions of pieces time and time again.

My very first encounter with death came at an early age when I was barely eight years old. Death had stolen Mom away from me and, along with it, completely robbed me of all my childhood innocence. And then came Grams, the woman who had raised my sisters and I. And while I was a young woman at this point in my life, it didn't always feel that way. I still felt somewhat lost, like a child would be, when she left us. She had been such a strong guiding force in our lives for such a long time. But, finally, came that first heartbreak with the unexpected death of a man who could never be replaced by another.

Andy.

And it's true, I can now admit to it here in the afterlife. These particular events had shaped my perception and reinforced my need to strap on that emotional suit of armor that I blindly marched forward with each day. I didn't want to succumb to those feelings of guilt every time I thought of Andy or give into the anger each time I looked at a picture of Mom. But I was the oldest, a Charmed One, which meant I needed to remain strong and determined in order to stay one step ahead of death each time I saved an innocent or tried to keep one of my sisters safe. Even if that meant pretending sometimes. Inside of me waged an internal battle and I became obsessed with keeping death at bay. However, in my quest to defeat death, never once did I stop and prepare myself for the day that it would finally come to claim me.

My memory takes me back to that one fateful day.

My mind flashes to my first memory of the innocent, a doctor, and then it flashes back to Piper. Suddenly, her image shifts between the sweet-looking face I can clearly see standing before me to the broken and bleeding figure I can now see lying on a hospital stretcher. Desperation fills my senses. Because thinking back, I could remember feeling that desperate need to save Piper, my sister. She had to live, there had been no room to argue with me about it. The determination coursing through my veins had been accompanied by a huge jolt of anger. It passed through me during those final moments I stood by in that hospital room, my mind screaming at death for the unfairness of it all.

"No! You can't have her! Take me if you have to!"

Death had listened too. I had bartered and he had come. Because I can remember feeling and seeing that heavy gust of wind crashing through the front door only to knock me down. And my reaction had been almost instantaneous after witnessing the wind transform into the hideous creature who had suddenly appeared before us. I had lept up from that floor, intent on coming to the good doctor's aid. And then the very next thing my mind had registered was the feeling of an electrical shock and flying backwards through the air. Then nothing but blackness.

"Prue? Wake up!"

I don't know how long I had been out but I can remember suddenly hearing those desperate pleas somewhere in the recesses of my mind. However, as hard as I tried, I couldn't force my consciousness back into the awakening state that I so desperately sought to be in again. The pleas and cries had continued. They came louder, urgent, and more demanding.

"Prue, wake up! Don't you dare die on me, do you hear me? You can't die on me!

"Piper?" I had inquired through my thoughts, upon hearing the sound of my sister's desperate voice. But she didn't respond to my call. Could she hear me?

"Leo, why isn't it working? Heal her, dammit!

I had recognized that second voice right away and identified it as Phoebe's. My baby sister. We really had come such a long way from our contemptuous relationship in the past to what our sisterly bond had now become but where the hell had she been during those few seconds ago when I had called for her? Boy had I planned on chewing her out as soon as I could shake myself from the strange sensation that was overtaking me. But the only problem with the plan? I was never able to break free from it. And that's when I heard the words.

"I can't heal the dead!" Leo's anguished response had filtered into my awareness.

A chill raced through me. Dead? No, it wasn't possible! Was it?

But that's when I had felt it. That sensation had reached out to pull at me with such force and I felt the tingling that had accompanied it. My body had stiffened and my spirit form projected outward until it felt like I was floating. It felt so surreal and I could see everything that was around me so clearly, even the forms of what appeared to be my grieving family members.

"Piper? Phoebe?" I had called out. "I'm okay," I desperately tried to reassure them.

However, I went completely unheard and when my eyes averted down to the disturbing sight sprawled out beneath me, my eyes had widened in shock. Because there lying on the ground was me. My broken and unconscious body with no apparent signs of life within it.

"No," my voice had released in a breathy whisper. And that's when I saw HIM!

Out of nowhere, the Angel of Death had suddenly appeared before me with that smug smirk of satisfaction I had become so accustomed to seeing every time I thought about him. His attire of black suited everything he always represented to me. A deep, dark void of pitch blackness and despair. He stared and I continued to stare back.

"No!" my voice hardened with determination, as I made sure he received the message loud and clear.

"It's time, Prue," he had stated simply, his hand outstretched before me.

"I won't leave!" I asserted. "They need me!" I stressed, making reference to my sisters who were only inches away from me in the manor.

However, I watched as the Angel of Death's appearance shifted into someone that my heart had ached to see again for such a long time now. There, standing only inches in front of me, appeared Andy with that wide, handsome grin I became so familiar with. One that made my heart melt a few short years ago when he had re-entered my life and during those high school years where I experienced first love. His love.

"Andy?" my voice had carried with emotion.

"Yes, Prue. It's time. I've missed you. Take my hand."

His hand remained outstretched, waiting for me to take hold of it. But something wasn't right and I had felt it. I resisted the urge to reach out and then run into his arms. While narrowing my eyes at him, I had begun to take steps backwards. The image shifted into someone new.

"Prue? Don't be afraid. Please take my hand."

The soft, coaxing voice traveled to my ears. I took in the beautiful, ethereal image of her and reflected on how breathtaking she looked in this particular moment.

"Mom?" I had called out the second time.

Quickly remembering that it was all just an illusion, I had closed my eyes and then shook my head, refusing to give into the deception. No! I had stubbornly concluded that right then and there. Death would not be getting its grimy hands on me no matter how hard he tried. I refused to allow it to happen.

I turned around, intent on running, until I heard the stern voice sound behind me.

"Prudence?"

As I looked, the image was now of Grams, with one of her scolding looks set firmly on her face. While I stared, I began to notice how our surroundings transformed from the manor until I was engulfed within a dark tunnel of sorts. I had spun my head around, noticing the bright light that appeared to be waiting at the end of this tunnel.

"I won't go with you!" I had continued to protest.

The Angel of Death transformed back into himself. "Stop fighting this. Stop fighting me," he countered very calmly. Too calm, I noted.

I made a quick dash past him deciding to make a run for it. There was only one other direction for me to go in, so I just kept running straight through the darkened tunnel without looking back. I had needed to get away from him as fast as I could and away from that blinding light appearing at the opposite end of the tunnel. Somewhere in my subconscious, I understood what all this meant but denial kept me grounded. Because I wasn't ready to say good-bye yet.

The clattering of voices came from all directions, hitting me hard and fast.

"In this night and in this hour, I call upon the ancient power. Bring back my sister, bring back the Power of Three."

"How dare you leave me! How could you go off and die and leave me here all alone?! Come back, I need you, please come back!"

The voice sounded extremely angry and sad. Tears formed in and around my eyes, for I had recognized her pleas right away. "I'm coming Piper! Hold on!"

I picked up my pace.

"How are we suppose to go up against the Source without her? She was our big sister, she took the lead. I miss her so much!"

"Phoebe, I'm right here! I'm not going anywhere," my voice resonated into the enclosed space around me.

I had no perception of time as I continued to run and run. Strangely, not once did I feel my legs grow tired or did I need to stop for rest. But suddenly, out of nowhere, the light appeared before me. It was shining brightly from this end of the tunnel too. And it beckoned to me so strongly. I wanted to resist against its pull but the feeling of warmth that threatened to envelop me was too overwhelming. Suddenly, I found that my objective had shifted course.

What if Piper and Phoebe were waiting for me on the other side of that light?

I had to know. Had to keep running to find out so I could throw my arms around them and offer them all the reassurance they so desperately craved. To tell them I would always be there for them. After all, it only made sense to find them there and to put an end to the horrific cries of pain and suffering that had continued to assail my senses. Bringing my hands up to cover my ears, I had hoped to block out those mournful pleas that were too heartbreaking to withstand.

After drawing closer to my final destination, I had felt my own build-up of tears begin to flow freely down the sides of my face. I was almost there and this new-found knowledge took root in the essence of who I now was. The light would put an end to my own conflicting feelings, any suffering or uncertainty, and I discovered that I desperately sought out that peace. Because, in this moment, accepting the truth hit me full force. My quick strides finally brought me inside the light and into the waiting arms that immediately enveloped me.

I wouldn't be reuniting with my sisters after all. And I cried. Cried for what I now knew was lost forever to me.

"Shh," the soothing voice had consoled. "You know it's alright now, don't you?" he tried to assure me.

And his strong arms held onto me tightly and I allowed myself to cry into his shoulder. I never wanted to break away. But slowly, I did force myself to break apart from him and as I did, I had looked up into the welcoming face of the man I had loved for so long.

"I said I'd always be there for you, didn't I?" he reinforced.

"Andy? It's really you, right?" I was remembering my encounter with the Angel of Death.

"It's really me."

He took one finger and used it to gently wipe away the lone tear that had slid underneath my eye, remaining so very still there. He smiled at me.

I returned his warm smile with one of my own.

Suddenly, two other figures had emerged from within the light to reveal both Mom and Grams. As they stepped forward to embrace and welcome me, I had known for sure this time that I was standing within the presence of my departed loved ones.

"Welcome home!" Mom offered first, as she took me in her arms.

Grams smiled at me. "Every-thing's going to be fine," she had tried to comfort me, as she stepped forward next, to welcome me into the Halliwell fold.

I noticed women beginning to take form from different eras in time, no doubt, the many women who had descended from the Warren line. In the background, Melinda Warren stepped forward, a smile gracing her beautiful face as she too welcomed me. But before being able to move forward and merging with all my other ancestors, I couldn't resist the temptation to look back one last time. To look back in the direction from whence I had come. And there he stood.

"I told you," the Angel of Death tried to make me understand this final time. "I always get who I come for."

I had reached over and took ahold of Andy's hand as HE faded away before my eyes.

After fading away into the light with the others, I came to discover that time was of no merit in the afterlife. At first, I felt troubled by what I perceived as abandoning my sisters but in the long run I came to evolve and understand that's not what I had done at all. And in their own time and in their own way, they would come to understand it too. Because one day, when it was their time, they would cross back over into the afterlife, reuniting with me, Mom, and Grams.

See, in the beginning, I viewed death as the enemy. Something that needed to be conquered; however, in the end? In an ironic twist, death had actually reunited me with the very same people that I loved, still love, and had lost to it. I had found peace. And someday soon, it would also reunite me with two sisters who I loved more than life itself. And with a third sister, sadly who I never really had the honor of getting to know in my mortal life.

In the end, my death had done something I had never expected it to do.

It had freed me.