Charmed... the other way around Chapter 25:
Early Summer 2002

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Not everything was going well as we got closer to the wedding. About three months before the wedding weird stuff started to happen. I back then couldn't really explain what was so weird or freaky, not to speak about the reason why that stuff happened. One of the most terrifying nights during that time had been one night about two months before the wedding.

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Andy sat at his office, going through the file again. He needed more proof on Berman, though he was almost a hundred percent sure, he was the one they were searching for. Darryl leaned in behind him

"The man is in a wheelchair. He's got no motive and he's got an alibi. So tell me again why you think Berman is our suspect..." Darryl went around their desk, so he could look straight at Andy, who took a deep breath

"Dream leaping." He responded

"Dream leaping?" Darryl asked, a smile on his face, almost starting to break out laughing, form what Andy could tell, but he remained somewhat calm. Andy just nodded, confirming his own words in some kind of way

"That's what Berman's researching at the lab. Dream leaping. The ability to project himself into someone else's dreams."

"Into women's dreams and killing them? Now who's dreaming?" Darryl asked his partner, still pretty sceptical. He sat down on the edge of his own desk, still facing Andy

"Not just any women. Women who reject him. Just like Julie Derikson did. She broke up with him when they were driving somewhere. He got into an accident. That's why he's paralyzed." Darryl crinkled his forehead, not really getting where his partner had these information from

"It's in the police report." Andy told him, reading his mind, then got up and got his coat. "The day after he went back to work at the lab, Julie Derikson died suspiciously." Andy said, looking at him, while getting into his coat "Six months later, two more women died in their sleep. Crushed to death. Coincidence? You tell me."

"Love to. Can't. Let's go..." he answered and grabbed his own coat.

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I had settled myself on the couch to watch some TV. I intended on waiting for Andy with dinner like mostly. I remember how the phone rang just as the hero was about to finally kiss his new lover and that was when like, all hell broke loose.

My mood was already slipping by that fact and by him actually destroying this magical moment. I had waited months for this to happen and now someone dared calling!!

But it got worse. I mean... at this time it was whether Andy who called or someone calling something was wrong with Andy. If it was the first, he was calling to say he was going to be late. With a glance at the clock I sighed, seeing it was already almost past 8 and with that Andy was anyway already late.

When Andy's late, he always is close to solving a case and that meant a mix of loneliness and worry for me. A very nerve killing and unpleasant mix.

I let Andy suffer several more rings, before forcing a smile on my face and with that bracing myself for whatever he'd tell me.

"Hey there!" I said, the smile on my face forcing my voice to be somewhat cheery as well.

"Hey, how did you know?"

"Who else would be calling at this time of the day?"

"Hmmm... the hospital saying I'm shot?"

"Not funny, Andy!!!" I almost yelled into the phone, and then just hung up on him. I heard already a touch of remorse in his few words, knowing exactly where this was going and knowing exactly, I only made this worse for him. But I didn't really care at that moment of time. Andy knew exactly I hated this. And he knew I especially hated when he joked about this. His death just didn't really seem funny at all to me.

I ignored the phone and my ceil several minutes afterwards. I was somewhat glad when the persistent ringing finally stopped. A minuet later Julia knocked on the wall to the living

"Hey you" Julia greeted

"Hey, what's up?"

"Telephone for you..."

I narrowed my eyes and glanced at the hand I yet hadn't noticed. If Andy seriously had given up on calling me on one of the phone's here that only could mean this was him

"If it's Andy, tell him to leave me alone"

"I'M SORRY!!!" I heard a voice coming from the phone, which only could mean he yelled into it.

"What did he do?"

"Baaaaaaaaaaad joke!"

"How bad?"

"As bad as to make jokes about cops and hospitals"

"Ouch!"

"MOM!" Andy yelled into the phone again. I watched as Julia put the speaker back at her ear

"You really shouldn't have done that" she scolded. Afterwards there was a rather long break on the phone before Julia continued "she doesn't want to."

"Then hold the damn thing to her ear!" I heard Andy's low voice. Julia looked at me.

I sighed

"Hand him over"

"I'm sorry, okay?" he asked

"You'll be late..." I simply answered and heard him sighing at that and Julia motioned a bye. I waved back at her and followed her with my eyes, while listening to Andy

"Yeah... I just kinda... figured the final clue to a case and I really really gotta go and question this guy."

"What grade of late?"

"the kind of late where it could go way after midnight" his voice sounded nerved and I remembered one of our fights, where he told me, how much he hated each and every second he had to work longer and couldn't be with me instead.

"You gonna wake me when you come home?"

"I really don't know when that'll be, so... umm... I'll just see when I get home, kay?"

I sighed. I just wanted to see him and cuddle some more with him, even if it had to be in the middle of the night

"Andy, please" I almost heard myself beg. The truth was, I just wanted to make sure he was okay when he returned. Not like the one time I found his face completely bruised when waking up the next morning and no one had cared for any of the wounds or had given him ice to cool coming swellings off.

"Okay..." he said sighing in defeat

"Don't say okay now, if you don't mean it..."

"I'm not... but you're right... I really, really gotta go."

"Sure. Just... be careful..."

"Always am. Love you" he said and with that he hung up.

I switched to MTV and turned the volume up, went into the kitchen and ate, afterwards leaving some left overs for Andy in the fridge. Done with all of that and kinda bored, I wrote some messages on post-its and stuck them to places I knew he'd go when he came home.

We did that a lot. Especially at this particular part of time where we were trying to not put our love life on hold because of our jobs and the wedding preparations. With those little notes the romance didn't necessarily go completely to hell and necessary and important messages mixed with loving comments and rain checks

Considering there really was nothing on TV and Andy said I shouldn't wait for him, I decided on going to bed. Once settled down in the big bed with no one else in it, it surprisingly didn't take me too long to fall asleep.

You now surely ask yourself, where the freaky stuff is on all of that. Well, it only started now. In the moment I fell asleep. The second I started dreaming. It was one of those usual dreams, where the scene slowly unfolded to you.

I felt like I had been somehow transported into a scene of some kind of movie. The middle of it. Maybe even the end. I absolutely didn't get what was going on. Confused I looked around and noticed I was standing on top of a huge building. Everything was black and white with a weird touch of red to it.

Taking in more of the scene, I noticed some kind of dinner table, pretty much in the middle of the building and as my eyes continued to scan the scene, I found this guy, holding a woman. They were both standing dangerously close to the edge.

"Do you like the dress, Danielle?" the guy asked the woman

"I've worn better..." she somewhat self-consciously answered. I noticed how that really got him to freak

"Really? Tell me, why can't you women just once be thankful, huh?" he asked her, grabbing the woman harshly at her long blonde hair.

"Oh my god!! Someone help me?!" the girl yelled as he dragged her even closer to the edge and I swallowed

"Hey! Leave her alone!" I yelled, scared he'd actually push her. The guy furiously turned around, threw the woman away and headed my way

"Who the hell are you and how did you get here?" he demanded, grabbing my hair harshly. I cried out as a huge pain shot through my body. "How dare you interfere?" he realized I wasn't gonna reply he continued "okay, then it's just gonna be two tonight..." he told me and dragged me over to the edge of the house as well, still holding my hair. I constantly snapped for air, but tried to fight him back.

"Why are you not paralyzed?!" He asked furiously "why don't I have control over your body and your thoughts?!" he yelled and held me close to the edge. I peeked down and started to panic, seeing how high it actually was.

"Mr. Berman!! Mr Berman, wake up!!" I heard Andy's voice. I narrowed my eyebrows in confusion. I could have sworn it was Andy

"Andy?!" I yelled, scared.

"Andy? Who's Andy?! What are you doing here?!" he demanded once more. I was too scared to answer him. I heard Andy's voice over and over again, but I couldn't see him anywhere, not even by glancing down at the ground the building was build on.

"Well, to be honest... I actually couldn't care less!" He told me and dragged me closer to the edge. I was crying lowly by then. "Let's just get this over with". I shut my eyes tightly, awaiting the pain which I would surely feel before I slipped away from this earth. It never came.

I felt his eyes on me. Though I still was scared to open my own, I could feel how he almost ripped off my clothes with his gazes.

"It really is a shame to waste such beauty" he said as he trailed with his free hand over my body. I closed my eyes tightly and remembered how warren used to do that with me. Warren... suddenly I felt anger rush through me. Suddenly my fear was like washed away. I felt a strength building up in me and actually felt like I was in a condition to defend myself again.

"Get your dirty hands off of me!!" I yelled, as I opened my eyes and without even touching him, he suddenly flew, like pushed by some kind of wind, down the building.

That's when I woke with a start. My breathing still was heavy by the immense adrenaline push I had just received. I felt like suffocating. This all felt so real. I tried to get my breath back to normal but found it simply impossible.

When I felt like I could breathe properly again I went for the bathroom and took a shower. This always calmed me down. While shampooing my hair, I felt stings at some places and when I later checked the places in the mirror, I saw there were spots where hair was missing. I completely freaked again. It was real. I almost was sure about this.

Over an hour later I was more or less calmly sitting in the kitchen, drinking some tea. The events of the dream running through my mind constantly. I just wasn't able to ban these images from my head and never will be able to forget these few minutes in my life.

I suddenly heard someone on the stairs and – fearing the worst – looked scared up. I let out a kind of relieved breath, as I saw Andy coming up the stairs

"Prue?" he asked and came closer to me. I guess he saw in what a condition I was, as he approached me first slowly but soon enough almost ran to me "hey, you okay?"

"I dunno..." I answered, hugging him immediately

"What's wrong?" he asked, his voice showing worry

"I... I had a nightmare Andy... but... this was so real... it didn't feel like a nightmare..."

I felt how Andy stiffened and somewhat tightened his arms around me

"What... what happened? Tell me about it..."

"I... I fell asleep and... I appeared in this... scene... I watched it. There was this guy... and a woman. He was making her compliments. He called her Danielle and when she didn't answer the way he wanted her to... he completely freaked... she called for help and so I yelled at him, to leave her alone..."

"What happened then?"

"He... he went for me and he yelled at me, who I was and why I interfered and... how it was, that he didn't have control over my body and thoughts... I was too scared to say something... he dragged me by my hair over to the edge of the building... we were on the top of a high building... that's when I started to... to hear your voice." I told him, still pretty upset, and shaking slightly, as I kinda relived the moment.

"You... shouted over and over again for a Mr Berman, and that he was supposed to wake up... over and over again you yelled it. I called out for you and that's when he freaked again, again demanding who Andy was... and I glanced down the building and I like... froze in fear... then he... he said he didn't care anyway... cause I'd go to hell now... and then... then he looked at me... and touched me... I got so angry, since... and I told him to leave his hands off of me... then he... somehow flew back from me... and fell down the building!! It was so real, Andy!!"

I felt like Andy's grip on me tightened even more and noticed how he inhaled sharply every now and then during my story.

"It's okay... it... it was just a dream, baby... it's okay... it's over you're awake now..." Andy's voice somehow crept me out, since I back then and up to today, don't think, he said it to me. He said it to himself.

"It wasn't a dream, Andy. I know it wasn't a dream. And... I'm so... so scared something will happen..." I told him completely rambling, dissolved into tears.

He kissed my head gently and just held me tight. I somehow had the feeling there was more to it. There was another reason why he held me so tight other than him, wanting to comfort me. I just couldn't put a finger on it and so I just continued to cling onto him. Scared, but having this feeling, that I was safe with him.

I don't know for how much longer we stood there, or lay on the couch together a little afterwards. I eventually fell asleep again, but when I woke the next morning, Andy was awake as well.

Andy is the kind of guy which can sleep the whole day and still, when you wake him can go right back to sleep. I looked at him and saw the bags under his eyes, which just confirmed my suspicion that he hadn't slept. Something was weird there

"Morning" he whispered and kissed me gently. This soft and caring voice, which normally always calmed me down, suddenly scared me even more... It was like he watched me sleeping on purpose. It was like Andy was worried.

I somehow remembered my dream again and somehow just KNEW it wasn't a dream. I knew Andy knew it. I knew Andy knew more than I did. I closed my eyes tightly. I was imagining things. Andy was right with what he said last night. It had been a dream. Nothing more. Why should there be more? But why would Andy act like that, if we both knew it was just a dream? Why didn't Andy sleep last night? I groaned slightly. I could feel a migraine setting on me.

"Morning" I finally mumbled

"You okay, baby?" he asked me. I looked at him for a brief second. I saw the fear in his eyes. He was panting slightly, like he was terrified by something.

"I... I think some... migraine's coming up..." I whispered back and tore myself away from his eyes. They scared me.

"You've got those a lot lately..." he told me lowly, rubbing circles on my back.

"It's probably just... the stress..." I answered, closing my eyes again and listening to his fast, yet regular heartbeat.

"How about we take a shower together..." he asked. I didn't answer. I just opened my eyes again and starred at the fabric of the blankets around us.

"Andy... what's wrong?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, I could tell he was somewhat nervous, by the way he immediately started to play with my hair and looked at his hand while doing so

"You... were weird last night and... you didn't sleep, didn't you?"

"I was just thinking about some things..."

"What things?"

"Just things..."

I sighed heavily, knowing he'd not tell me. But again, his silence and his behaviour just now frightened me even more

"Andy, you said... you were somewhere last night. What was the name of that 'guy' you talked about?"

I could see how Andy hesitated

"His... his name was Derikson" he told me. But only after the words were out finally looked at me. I knew he had lied to me. And somehow this feeling the dream I had last night wasn't just a dream determined in my head. If the dream was true and Andy knew it was true, then hearing Andy, was the reality as well...

I couldn't explain the feeling back then. But I knew there was more about this. And definitely more than Andy was telling me. Andy avoided me afterwards and in the evening he again came home late. I just had wished he'd talked to me. I didn't get why Andy just wouldn't tell me the truth. I just didn't realize, he was freaking out more than I did and he just didn't want me to worry any more. Yet all of this, made me sleep even worse than I had the past weeks.

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"Hey, Trudeau, where's that report for the Berman case?"

"I... haven't finished it yet, chief"

"Well then you better get going..."

"Yes sir" Andy sighed and looked at his desk, when Morris entered their office as well

"Hey, Darryl, it was you who went through the locker of Berman, wasn't it?"

"Ya, I did, why?"

"Did you find anything new? Any new names?"

"There was something about a Danielle Richards"

Andy froze. Danielle. That was the name Prue had told him

"I... gotta... go... I'm back in a few hours..." Andy told Darryl and grabbed his jacket, fleeing from the office. He went to the next best telephone boot and looked the woman up.

After finding her address, he drove there and talked to Danielle. Afterwards, he drove back to the station and went in a bee-line for his father's office. He entered without knocking

"Dad, I gotta talk to you..."

"Andy, what's wrong?"

"Did you hear about the case Darryl and I worked on lately?"

"Yeah... what's with it? I thought you guys solved that..."

"We did... but... there are some facts which are freaking me out."

"Andy... you're freaking... calm down..." Richard told him

"I can't!! I mean... we found out this Dr. Berman was... dream-leaping. And we went there but he was already sleeping. I knew he'd kill again, I just didn't know who... but... this time it was him who was killed. With the same signals that the other had died."

"Okay... so now what's so wrong with all of that?"

"When I got home, Prue told me about a nightmare of hers. She suddenly was on a very high building and a guy wanted to throw a woman called Danielle down that building. She said she stepped up to him and stopped him. She said he threatened her and got angry at her. And she said, she heard my voice yelling out that a Mr. Berman shall wake up. She said I did it over and over again. She said the guy in her dream started touching her then and she got angry and somehow he was sent down the top of the building, without her even moving.

Dad, I did yell out for Berman at the dream lab. I never talked to her about it. She couldn't have known about that guy. And... Darryl went through the stuff of Berman and he said there was a Danielle Richards mentioned in some of his stuff. I went to her, dad. She told me the exact same story Prue did. She only let me see her, because I told her boyfriend my name. Andrew Trudeau. She asked me if my nickname was Andy.

I dunno what I am supposed to think. I'm freaking out about this. It's not only the thought of... Prue might being killed last night it's everything. How did she get into that dream, dad? How... Danielle said, she didn't have a choice... it was just like waking up and he was already there... all over her. But he was surprised Prue was there. He asked her who she was and what she was doing there. How she got there. I... I dunno what to write in that report, dad... I... this is... as weird as it sounds, but I believe Prue, when she says this wasn't a dream... cause I know she's right. She couldn't have known about all of this. How come Danielle knew my voice and me... and described Prue perfectly fine, even though I'm sure I never saw that woman before in my life! Prue... she... she was the one... in some kind of way killing Berman..."

"Hey, hey, hey... calm down..."

"I can't... this is freaking me out, dad and the chief wants of me to write a report. And I still don't know what to write."

"Write about Berman"

"What about Prue and Danielle?"

"Don't go there Andy. This just could have been a weird coincidence..."

"Dad, the guy killed in his dreams. Prue and Danielle both dreamed about him. And about me yelling out to him without being there!"

"Okay, okay... I got it. It's weird. But... weird things happen in our job. There are lost of sick people out there..."

"Are you saying my fiancée's sick?"

"No, naturally not, all I'm saying is, there is lots of freaky stuff out there. And maybe this was just a really, really weird coincidence. I'm sure the three dreams and your being at the dream lap has nothing to do with one another..."

"Are you now saying I am insane?"

"Stop putting things in my mouth. All I'm saying is, that there happens a lot of weird stuff out there and as a cop we are confronted with those weird stuff more than normal people, but, sometimes we just have to know what's the right thing to do and what's not. What to ignore or not. I know this freaks you out, it kinda freaks me out, too, but this is one of those things, were you just shouldn't care. Prue's okay. You're okay. That Danielle's okay. And our killer is... out of the way. Who cares how?"

"What am I supposed to tell Prue? I could tell she didn't believe me saying I was fine."

"She's your fiancée. It's your choice what to tell her." Andy nodded unconsciously

"Thanks dad"

"I think... you have a report to write now..."

"Seems so..." he answered, but just continued to sit on the free chair of his dad's office, trying his best, to just put everything off. Weird things happened, his father really was right about that. But did such kind of weird things really happen? Was such a high degree of weird really true?