Hey, I hope I haven't lost all of my readers here. I'm trying to update as often as possible and I have no intention of leaving it unfinished. Thanks to those of you who have written positive reviews. I love getting feedback because then I know people are reading and enjoying my writing. Anywho, enough rambling. On with the story!!
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Piper yawned and stretched out in Prue's bed. She couldn't remember sleeping so well in quite some time. Something about Prue's room made Piper feel safe and loved. She squeezed Prue's pillow and inhaled the scent of her shampoo before getting out of bed.
Phoebe ran through the manor, racing for the phone. She grabbed it just as it rang for the fourth time. She answered it breathlessly and flopped onto one of the bottom steps of the staircase.
"Hey, you," she said happily to the caller. "What's up?"
"Hey," Paige replied. "My friend Glen was supposed to come to the beach with me, but he cancelled last minute. My stuff is already packed and I kinda still want to hit the beach. Are you in the mood to soak up some sun?"
Phoebe gladly accepted the offer. She figured it would be a great opportunity for Paige and Piper to get to know each other and she was due for a trip to the beach. She said goodbye to Paige and replaced the phone in its cradle.
She had agreed to meet with Paige in just over an hour, so she immediately ran to find Piper. She couldn't find her in her bedroom or in the attic. The only place left to look was the kitchen.
She stopped short when she reached the kitchen. There was no one around. As she wandered further into the kitchen, she noticed the basement door wide open. She and Piper always left the door to the basement closed after being attacked by the Woogyman, so her immediate thought was that Piper had gone downstairs. A sense of fear rushed through her mind as she pictured Piper falling down the stairs as her legs gave out beneath her. She slowly approached the stairs, dreading what she might find at the foot of the staircase. She closed her eyes and gripped the railing before peering into the basement. She breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't see Piper on the floor.
"What are you looking for?" Piper asked from behind her. Phoebe jumped and turned around to see her sister standing in front of her. She wrapped her arms around Piper and squeezed her tightly.
"You're smashing me," Piper gasped breathlessly.
"I'm sorry," said Phoebe. She released her grip on Piper and stepped back. "I've made plans for us. Go get packed, we are heading to the beach."
The smile faded from Piper's face and she stood speechlessly, staring at Phoebe. "Phoebe, I can't. I'm a complete mess and none of my bathing suits are going to cover it up."
"It's not that bad," said Phoebe. She'd briefly seen the state of Piper's back following the accident. After the lacerations caused by the accident and the multiple surgeries on her spine, Piper's back was horribly scarred. "But if it bothers you, you can borrow one of mine if you want."
Piper looked at Phoebe skeptically. There was no way that one of Phoebe's bathing suits was less revealing than one of her own. Phoebe smiled and pulled Piper toward the staircase. "We'll find you something," she assured Piper.
--
Piper stood in front of her bedroom mirror wearing her bathrobe. She stared blankly at her reflection, building up the courage to remove her robe. Taking a deep breath, Piper turned her back to the mirror and let her robe slide off of her shoulders, exposing her back. She stared back at the mirror, analyzing the multitude of large scars along her back. One ran from the base of her neck along her spine to the small of her back. Another smaller scar was situated next to the large scar from her second spinal surgery. A few more scars were scattered across her back from protruding bones and glass from the accident.
The more she stared at her back, the more self-conscious she felt. There was no way she was ever going to go in public wearing a bathing suit or any other articles of clothing that would reveal her scars.
She pulled her robe back over her shoulders and tied it closed around her waist just as Leo orbed into the room. Leo walked toward her and wrapped his arms around her. She tilted her head back onto his shoulder and rested her hands on his arms, gently stroking the muscles of his forearms.
"Are you going out?" Leo asked. He looked over at the bed he and Piper shared. One of Piper's bags was set on the edge of the bed surrounded by scattered beach apparel and accessories.
"I don't know," Piper sighed. "Phoebe wants me to go to the beach with her and Paige, but I really don't want to go."
"Yes, you do. You love the beach." Leo interjected. "You should go. Your physiotherapist said swimming would be a good way for you to strengthen your legs."
Piper rolled her eyes and breathed deeply. It was taking way too long for her body to feel like her old body again. She wasn't even comfortable during intimate moments with Leo anymore. She couldn't stand having Leo look at her anymore and she was adamant about keeping her shirt on, ignoring Leo's protests.
"Piper, it's not that bad," said Leo. He knew exactly what was bothering her. He'd caught her looking at her scars a few times, but never mentioned it to her.
"Yes, it is," Piper answered back. "I thought they were going to fade a little, but they still look so bad."
"Is that why you haven't wanted to leave the house?" Leo asked.
Piper nodded. "Leo, my back looks like a road map and I walk funny. I really don't feel like going out in public like this."
"I promise, the walking will get better," said Leo. "Let me see if I can help with this." He gently pulled Piper's robe off of her shoulders and let it fall to her feet. Before she could protest, he held his hand over her back and waited for it to begin to glow. Piper's scars began to fade until they were no longer visible.
"Did it work?" Piper asked softly. Leo pulled Piper's robe over her shoulders and kissed the side of her head. He nodded and smiled at her. "The Elders let you heal me?"
"I guess they figured you've been through enough," Leo suggested. "And you can't fight evil if you're not comfortable leaving the manor."
Piper walked over to the mirror and dropped her robe to admire her back. Her skin now looked flawless, with no sign of ever having been injured. Piper smiled and wrapped her arms around Leo's neck.
"Thank you," she said, before engaging him in a passionate kiss. Leo smiled and pulled her close.
They were interrupted by the sound of Phoebe calling to Piper from the main floor. Piper let her head fall back as she groaned. Leo smiled and let her finish packing. Scanning the bed, he picked up Piper's black bikini.
"You should wear this one," he suggested with a grin. Piper smiled and snatched the bikini from him.
Downstairs, Paige and Phoebe were waiting at the foot of the stairs for Piper. Leo threw Piper's bag over his shoulder and lifted Piper into his arms. When they reached the foot of the stairs, Leo gently placed Piper on her feet and placed her bag on the floor.
"You girls have fun," said Leo. He lifted Piper's chin and kissed her before heading to the kitchen and orbing out of the manor.
"Shall we?" Paige asked with a smile. Phoebe and Piper grabbed their bags and followed Paige to the door. As the walked into the entryway, Piper dropped her bag and grabbed hold of one of the door frames. Phoebe and Paige both jumped to keep her from falling.
As the three girls came into contact, the room lit up with swirling lights. The connection between the three girls was enough to recreate the connection between the Charmed Ones. Paige hesitated, not wanting to drop Piper, but freaked out by the strange events occurring in the Halliwell manor.
"What was that?" she gasped. The two girls helped Piper steady herself before releasing their hold on her. Piper looked over at Phoebe questioningly. Phoebe smiled nervously. She was horrible at keeping secrets and she felt like she was going to explode if she didn't tell both of her sisters what she knew.
"Maybe you two should sit down," Phoebe replied. Still holding on to Piper, she led the two girls into the parlor and sat across from them. Both Piper and Paige stared at her, awaiting an explanation.
She watched Piper's expression as she explained that Paige was their half-sister from their mother's relationship with her whitelighter. Piper sat in shock, staring at Phoebe before looking over at Paige. Paige smiled awkwardly at Piper and shrugged.
"How long have you known?" Piper managed to ask once the initial shock had subsided.
"A few weeks after you were admitted to the hospital," replied Phoebe. "I didn't want to tell you right away. I wanted to give you some time to grieve first." Piper was speechless. She kept looking from Phoebe to Paige, not knowing what to do or what to say.
"That's not all," Phoebe continued. "Paige… you're a witch. We're all witches, with magic powers."
Paige laughed, not realizing that Phoebe was serious. As the two girls stared at her, her smile vanished and she stood up off of the sofa.
"Is that what that light thing in there was?" Paige asked in disbelief. "What the hell have you done to me?"
"Paige, it's ok," Phoebe said quickly as she jumped from where she was sitting. "We didn't do anything. You were born a witch. It's nothing to be afraid of, I promise. Come on, we're sisters. You can trust me."
"What does this mean?" Paige panicked. "Are we devil worshipers? Do we cast spells on people? Do I have to ride a broomstick?"
"No," Phoebe chuckled. "It's not like that at all. We're good witches. We can't use our magic to punish or for personal gain."
"Well, that kind of takes all the fun out of it," said Paige. "So, what is my power? What is your power? Are there other people with powers?"
"You have a lot to learn," said Phoebe. She wrapped her arm around Paige's shoulder and squeezed her affectionately. "But first, let's go to the beach shall we?"
"You still want to go to the beach?" Piper asked in disbelief. "You drop a bombshell like that on Paige and I and you want to go to the beach?"
"We need to bond as sisters and Paige needs to know everything about being a Charmed One."
Piper looked up Phoebe and Paige and sighed. "All right. Let's go." Phoebe and Paige ran to help Piper to her feet but she quickly protested. "I can do it! I'm not an invalid!" Phoebe ran and quickly grabbed Piper's wheelchair. As Piper steadied herself by holding on to the arm of the couch, Phoebe pushed the wheelchair into the room.
Piper looked at Phoebe and raised her eyebrows. "If you think I'm sitting in that thing, you are sadly mistaken." Phoebe leaned on the chair and looked at Piper. "Don't look at me like that," said Piper. "No means no."
Phoebe pushed the chair aside and rolled her eyes. "You're a real pain in the ass sometimes, you know," Phoebe sighed as they walked out the door toward Paige's car.
"I know," Piper replied with a smile. "What can you do?"