When Connor and Duncan pulled up to the parking lot of the gallery Richie was waiting there for them."Hey, Mac," the kid said with a grin. "Did you like your play date with Connor?"
"Ouch," he said and put his hand to his head where Connor had just hit him. "What was that for?"
"That's for being a brat," Connor replied. "Now can we go see this new painting or do you want to go at it like a couple of obnoxious teenage girls?"
They walked the rest of the way in silence and were shocked at what they saw in the gallery. "You brought them!" Duncan was still avoiding the witches. It was too much to deal with, what with his startling dreams that felt more like memories. He didn't want to burden them with that and he also was trying to convince himself that there wasn't anything going on. Well, within reason.
The Halliwell sisters were there and so was Billy. Their husbands and children weren't in attendance. Piper saw him first and smiled. Walking to her friend, Piper hugged him. "We were so worried about you!"
"Ouch! What was that for?" Duncan was cupping the ear that Piper had just boxed.
"A week! One week of having to worry about you and whether or not you've done something stupid, like getting yourself killed. You couldn't pick up a phone?"
"He's an immortal," Connor said. "He's got a one up on Death," he told the witch he hadn't yet been introduced to.
"And who are you," Paige asked before her sister had the chance.
"Connor MacLeod of the clan MacLeod," he bowed and glanced up at the sisters with mischief in his eyes. "It's nice to meet you."
Connor kissed each of their hands and Duncan elbowed him in the ribs."They're all married," he told his cousin. "Shall we get this over with and go look at the painting?"
The group agreed and entered the gallery. It was an ethereal scene, with mood lighting that was soft and allowed little bursts of light just over the work. Like sunlight could break through a cracked door in one strong angular stream with dust floating like dandelion fluff, the lights seemed to draw people in. Wine and champagne were ushered around by waiters and soft music played in the background.
"These are truly beautiful," Connor told Duncan. "I understand what you meant earlier when you said you felt as if you belonged in the scene. It's almost hypnotizing or magical."
"This was the first painting I saw," Duncan said. "Let's go find the new one, eh?" The men looked for the newest portrait while the sisters took their time analyzing them. They had yet to actually see the paintings and it was an emotional time for them.
"Well," Piper said laying a hand on her belly, "Prue definitely made these. It reminds me of the art projects she showed in high school."
"I thought Prue was only into photography," Paige said.
"Don't start comparing yourself," Phoebe told her. "You're just as good as she is," she told her little sister and rubbed her shoulder. "You just have different styles."
"All of the women look like her," Piper half-whispered, "but each face is different in some small way. If you look at the clothes they're wearing they seem to be from different times." The sisters drifted towards different portraits and compared them. "Do you think that they're all past lives Prue lived?"
"And what? She's remembering them," Phoebe asked. "How would she know about them? We're only allowed glimpses at our pasts in order to learn from them."
"But somehow she knows," Paige interjected. "And we know that she still has magic. What if we can send her a message, like 'we know you're alive...please come home'?"
"We still don't know why she's stayed away," Billy told the sisters. "What if she ignores the message? What would we do next?"
"All I know is that no one is going to be decapitating my sister," Piper said and wandered off to find the men.
"This is it," Richie said.
"It reminds me of Heather," Connor said wistfully.
The portrait was of a forest, where a tall and muscular man seemed to be running. In the background was a woman hiding behind a tree, and a deer running across the forest. "What the hell is the she-devil trying to tell me," Duncan said frustrated by not being able to figure it out. "I'm tired of it all," he went on. "I want it all to stop; the portraits, the dreams-"
"What dreams," he heard Piper ask from behind him.
The group reconvened the next day with Piper preparing brunch for them all. Paige put the girls down for a nap in their pack and play and joined everyone in the sun room. Phoebe had brought down the Book of Shadows and other family heirlooms so that they could enjoy the nice weather instead of sitting up in the attic.
The men had been standing around and Duncan had introduced Connor to Leo. It was interesting for them to think of Leo's life since it was so similar to their own. A traumatic death had been the beginning of his immortality; still, Leo was special. He had been giving the choice not only to become an immortal, but he had the choice to become human again. One thing that Duncan would always be envious of was the man's ability to father children.
Wyatt and Chris were keeping themselves busy playing with toys and Duncan wondered what it would have been like to father children of his own. Wyatt was a little timid at first but once he became familiar with the men was eager to talk to them while Chris paid attention to everything and had no problem talking to everyone. The boys seemed to get along; a similar bond to the one Duncan shared with Connor and Richie. He wondered how things would change when Piper's daughter arrived.
Everyone's attention turned to Piper as the last member joined them and they took their seats. "So, we all know why we're here," she began.
""Cause you're cooking for us," Paige said with a smart alec look and Henry nodded in the background.
"I think she's referring to your long lost sister," Coop told his sister-in law.
"Anyway," Piper drawled, "Duncan has been experiencing dreams that he didn't tell us about," she said pointedly. "Would you like to share?"
"I've been having dreams," Mac started, "of different times and different places. Different people," he said, "but I knew who it was supposed to be; me and her. We're speaking different languages and there's magic in everyone. The one that keeps coming back is one where we're in Scotland. I can hear hounds in the background, and I'm in the woods. She's calling to me to find her and then that's it. I wake up."
"She's calling to you to find her," Phoebe asked. "Clearly, that's exactly what we need to do. For all we know Prue is being held against her will, was there anything at all that might have given you a clue as to how to find her?"
"May I," Leo asked. The girls nodded and Leo hunched forward in his seat. "The past lives are the clue. This is more than needing to find Prue. Clearly, she and Duncan meant a lot to each other in their past lives. That's what we should be focusing on. When Phoebe and Paige had similar experiences it was to learn something."
"That we evolved," Phoebe interrupted him. "That we had the opportunity to change and grow."
"Maybe what we need to know in order to help Duncan and Prue, is what happened in their past lives," Leo continued.
"And how are we supposed to do that," Connor asked.
Paige groaned. "Does this mean I have to go up there," she said and glared at the ceiling."I'll be right back," Paige orbed.
"Well, while we wait for her we can get started on brunch," Piper said. "Phoebe, why don't you talk to Connor and Duncan about what Dad told us?"