Chapter Six

Prue gazed at the ancient artifact in awe. This piece had been created by a master artisan over two thousand years ago. It had outlived its creator; it had outlived all of the ancient Greeks. It had survived over two millennia of wars and plunderers, and now it stood proudly in her home office, awaiting her appraisal. Taking a deep breath, she put aside her scholarly reverence and looked at the piece critically. "The piece is an amphora," she said into her tape recorder, "likely dating to 500-400 B.C.E. It would have been used to store wine, olive oil, or grain. The design on the amphora shows a scene from Greek mythology." Prue thought back to a Hellenistic Art course she had taken in college as she remembered the story the vase depicted. "The scene is from Homer's Odyssey. Here Odysseus and his men are preparing to blind the cyclops Polyphemus, who has trapped them in his cave. The amphora is in good condition. On the bottom of the piece we see a--"

A loud knock on the door derailed her train of thought. Prue stopped her tape recorder before walking to the door and opening it. Standing in the doorway was Phoebe, looking very depressed. "Hey, Phoebs. Is there something wrong?"

"I had an awful day. I heard the most miserable stories from people." She sank onto a couch in Prue's office, lying down as if she were a patient and Prue were a psychiatrist.

"Well, Phoebs, you are a counselor in a grief center." Prue said. "Hearing miserable stories is part of your job description."

Phoebe picked up a pillow on the couch, and punched it as she spoke. "I know, and I knew when I took this job that I would see people at their worst. Still, I didn't expect that it would affect me so much. Back when I was working towards my psych degree, I imagined that I would be able to help so many people, but now it feels that, no matter what I do, it just isn't enough." She put the pillow back in its place. "Anyway, I decided to take myself out to dinner, then go over to Hot Spot. Maybe I can dance my troubles away. Do you want to come?"

Prue wished she could. She felt a little guilty that she hadn't spent much time with her sisters lately, but they were all so busy. "Sorry, I can't. I have a few more appraisals I need to finish before tomorrow, and I have a date tonight with Andy."

Phoebe didn't try to hide her disappointment. "Oh. Okay. I'll let you get back to work then." She stood up and walked toward the door.

"Phoebs, wait. Maybe Piper can go with you." Prue didn't think that Piper had any plans tonight. Hopefully she could cheer Phoebe up.

"Piper has a date tonight too," Phoebe said.

"Sorry. I didn't know." Nice going, Prue, she rebuked herself. Phoebe was already depressed because of work, and you just reminded her that she's the only one of us not dating someone right now.

"It's all right. Really. I don't mind going by myself. See you later." She walked out of the office and closed the door behind her.

I'm sorry, Phoebe, Prue thought. I'll make it up to you. We'll hang out sometime soon. She grabbed her tape recorder and went back to work.

Later that evening, after Prue had finished the necessary appraisals, she showered, changed into a black strapless gown, and put on her makeup for her date with Andy. She was waiting for him downstairs when Piper came home. "Hey, Piper, how was your day?"

"Well, Duane, one of the waiters, never showed up, and I had to call four people before I found someone who could take his shift. Plus, since Sara, my co-manager, quit, I've been basically working two jobs. Oh, and I stayed much later than I should have because Mike, one of the cooks, was sick and went home early. Other than that, it was fine." Piper paused to take a deep breath. "You look gorgeous, by the way. Another date with Andy?"

Prue nodded. "And you have another date with Dan?"

"He's taking me ballroom– oh, who's this?"

Prue turned around to see that Leo had entered the room. "This is our new handyman, Leo. Leo, this is my other sister, Piper."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Piper," Leo said. Something about Leo's facial expression made Prue suspect that he wasn't just saying this to be polite.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, too," Piper replied. Piper shook hands with him before turning back to Prue. "As I was saying, Dan's taking me ballroom--"

"Dan?" Leo repeated. "Dan Gordon?" Leo looked as if he had been punched in the stomach.

"Yes. Do you know him?" Piper asked.

"I met him once...years ago." Leo replied. Prue sensed that there was more to this than Leo was saying. "He's a ...great guy."

Piper beamed. "Yes he is. Well, I should go get ready. Nice to meet you, Leo." She raced up the stairs to her bedroom.

"So...are Piper and Dan...serious?" Leo asked Prue, confirming her suspicions that he was interested in her sister.

"They seem to be." Leo looked so distressed at her answer that she added, "But they're just dating. They're not married or anything."

"Oh. Well, anyway, I should get going. See you tomorrow." He gave Prue a forced smile and left.

Prue was feeling sorry for Leo when a few minutes later the doorbell rang. She opened the door to find her boyfriend, Andy Trudeau. "You look amazing," he gushed.

"Thank you, you look good yourself," Prue replied.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked.

"I'm ready." She put her hand in his and together they walked to his car.

Back inside the house, a rosy lamp grinned.

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