Patti sat at the kitchen table looking down into her cup of coffee. She looked up when she felt the hand rest on her shoulder and met the gaze of her mother.

"She'll be ok darling."

"I'm not thinking about Piper Mum. I was thinking about what Victor said last night."

"Oh don't be ridiculous. We both know that our binding spell worked on the girls."

She looked up at her mother, "What if it didn't completely work? What if there is some slim chance that a demon is causing Pipers nightmares?"

Penny Halliwell sat across from her only child, taking her hands in hers, "Honey when have you ever known our magic to let us down? I'll tell you. NEVER. The spell to bind the girl's powers worked. Piper had a bad dream, nothing more."

"But…"

"No buts." Penny reiterated.

"Mum she has been having nightmares for months now." Patti explained as she tried to figure out what was going on with her daughter.

"And when does she have them? When you and Victor argue. She is three yrs old Patti. When you fight she is confused and it is that that sets off her nightmares. Nothing demonic."

Patti leaned back in her chair casting a glance at her coffee mug. "I don't know what to do anymore. He seems so resentful about their magic, of what they will become."

"Its called jealousy dear." Penny stalked around the kitchen not wanting to discuss her son-in-laws faults regarding magic. "He is mortal he will never understand."

"Mother. Stop." Patti defended her husband the best she could, but deep down she knew her mother was right. She loved Victor more then anything but he would never understand. They had a separation not that long ago, before she got pregnant with Phoebe, but they worked it out. But now: all it seems they ever did was fight over magic and the destiny her, no their daughters, were bound to live

Victor walked in the kitchen carrying Piper on his back piggy back style, as Phoebe had her little arms wrapped around his neck, and Prue gripping his leg so he was dragging it beside him.

"Morning ladies." He made his way to the coffee not even acknowledging the extra baggage he had that morning.

"Victor what…?"

"Oh calm down Penny we're just having some fun." He looked down at Prue then up at Piper, "Aren't we girls."

"YAY!" two of the three chimed leaving Phoebe to just laugh at him and her sisters.

Victor handed Phoebe off to her mother as he then reached around and pulled Piper around by her side to his front hanging her upside down as he started to tickle her and was quickly joined by Prue.

"No STOOOPPPPP!" Piper laughed as he finally flipped her up right and gave her a big raspberry on her belly before setting her down.

Piper quickly ran to her grandmother and crawled up on her lap. Reaching across for a piece of toast she sat there content eating it as she watched her mother feed Phoebe.

Victor pulled Prue up on his lap and started to bounce her on his knee causing her laughs to echo through the old Victorian.

"Victor. You are going to spoil her breakfast."

Victor glared across at Penny and bounced Prue even harder and faster causing all three of his daughter to laugh harder.

"Victor." Patti looked over at her husband who only then slowed down Prue's 'pony' ride letting his oldest daughter catch her breath from laughing so hard.

Patti looked over at Piper who was leaning against her Grams, "Piper sweetie. Can you tell us what you saw that scared you last night?"

Piper looked at her mother and then her father. But her small eyes rested on her big sister. She could see Prue watching her as if she knew something was wrong, but didn't want to say. "I don't wemember none of it."

"Anything darling we just want to help you."

"I don't wemember." She was getting upset she already explained this why did they keep asking her?

"She doesn't remember. Leave her alone." Prue had gotten off her father's knee and made her way to Piper. Placing an arm protectively around her sister the two of them had made their way from the kitchen before any of them realize what had even happened.

Phoebe had been sitting in her mother's arms content to take in the bottle she was having. But the raised voices from her sisters caused her some alarm and she let everyone else know that she too was siding with Piper.

Patti lifted her baby girl over her shoulder, patting and rubbing her back to get what she thought was a burp out. But this was something between sisters. Piper was upset, Prue was mad and Phoebe screamed letting everyone else know she too was not happy.

Patti stood up and started bouncing Phoebe up and down to get her to calm down. But all she did was scream louder.

Penny reached and took her granddaughter from her daughter and did the same thing, bouncing as she held her to her shoulder and walked around the kitchen but all she got was the same result. There was no calming the youngest Halliwell sister.


Prue sat with Piper on her bed as her sister cried in her arms. "Ok Piper I got you, its ok now."

"No it's not. They don't beweive me." Piper sniffed back her tears

"I do honey and that it what matters."

Piper leaned with Prue against the headboard., "Phoebe sound really upset."

"Yeah." Prue looked towards the door wondering what she should do.

"Maybe one of us should go get her."

Prue ran her fingers through Pipers hair before leaning down and placing a kiss on the top of her sister head. "I'll be right back sweetie."

Prue made her way off the bed and out of her room stepping cautiously into the kitchen she could see her baby sisters tears running down her face and there was nothing her Grams could do to make it all better.

She walked up to her Grams and tugged at her apron, "Give her to me Grams."

Penny looked from her granddaughter to her own daughter who only nodded in approvement. Bending down Penny handed Phoebe over to her oldest granddaughter. And she, as well as Patti and Victor were surprised as Phoebe almost instantly quieted. Almost, as she was still taking in sobbed heaves of air.

Neither adult in the room said anything as Prue exited the room taking with her the now quiet child in her arms.


November 1977:

Victor lifted Phoebe up in the air and tossed her up slightly getting the giggles from her that he loved to hear so much.

"Daddy me!!!" Piper cried out as she laughed at her baby sister.

"You? YOU!!!!" he quickly placed Phoebe on the ground and scooped Piper up from the couch. Tossing her in the air over and over till she was laughing so hard it hurt.

"Stop. STOP!"

He tossed her one more time before cradling her against his hip, "You want me to stop? That isn't like my girl."

"Well like her or not we have to get going." Patti came in from behind and scooped Phoebe up in her one arm and grabbed Piper with the other.

"You going to be gone long?" he asked as she walked with her down the Manor steps and helped settle the two laughing children into their car seats.

"A couple hours. I've given Prue her medicine, she was still awake when I left her. She may want her Daddy to read her a story." Patti leaned up and gave him a quick kiss. "I'll see you later."

Victor watched as his wife drove off with his two daughters. But he was staying home for a reason. Prue was sick and she needed him.

Piper looked out the window and watched her father walk back up the steps into the house she lived in. Why hadn't he come? Why didn't he want to spend time with her and Phoebe?

Later that day Patti walked in the Manor with Phoebe in her arms sleeping soundly and Piper dragging her tired feet along side her mother. But what she heard sent Patti Halliwell in motion.

Taking Piper towards the stairs. "Lets get you and your sleeping sister to bed for a nap shall we?"
"Mummy, why is Grams yelling at Daddy?"
"I don't know honey, come on now." They rounded the first landing on the stairs and made their way to Pipers room that she now shared with her baby sister.

Placing Phoebe in her crib and tucking Piper into her bed, she quickly checked in on Prue before going back down stairs.

"What is going on here?" she glared at her mother and then her husband
"Victor nearly lost Prudence to a demon." Penny stated matter of factly.

Patti turned to her husband, "WHAT! What happened?"
"She fell asleep when I was reading to her, I was right here reading my book. Somehow she got outside and we both ended up inside some ice cream truck."
"Excuse me?" Patti looked at her mother confused. "An Ice Cream truck?"
"Yes. Look I protected her, she's fine. Nothing happened."

Penny stepped forward, "That isn't good enough Victor, she, they have a destiny to fulfil one day. And you nearly lost her to a DEMON."
"That's it isn't it? I'm not good enough for your granddaughters, I'm not magical so I can't naturally protect them like you could." He was fuming everything to them was about their magic the girls magical destiny.

Patti moved between her mother and Victor, "Victor you knew when you married me my family heritage, you knew the chance. And with every little girl we had we both realized the possibilities of the girls being the Charmed Ones. And when Phoebe came we knew."

The argument continued as Piper got off her bed and stood at the top of the stairs listening yet again to another argument with her Mother and Father and this time Grams. She turned and ran back to her room and buried herself under the covers hoping to stop the raised voices downstairs.

Prue clutched her teddy bear in her hand and had taken Pipers place at the top of the stairs. But she slowly made her way down and watched as her father opened the door and walked out of it.

Patti closed her eyes and felt the hand on her shoulder, "Its probably better this way darling."
"Better! The girls need their father in their lives mother."
"Patti look what happened, that thing could have taken Prudence. He should have been watching more carefully. What if next time it was something else?"

Patti looked at the door before making her way up the stairs to check on the girls. Her relationship with Victor had been more then rocky the last few years. They had reconciled twice already. Two years ago and the end result was Phoebe and then again during her pregnancy. But she knew this was it. Maybe this was for the better.

As she made her way up the stairs she saw Prue standing there, a lone tear running down her cheek.
"Sweetie you should be in bed." She lifted Prue up in her arms feeling the temperature that still ran its course through her little body.
"Where did Daddy go?" she had seen her father walk through the front door like that one other time after he fought with her Mummy and Grams but this time it felt different. She knew he wasn't coming back.