I do not own Charmed or Bella. Hope you enjoy this chapter, please read and review xoxox.
Vanquishing a Ghost
"I think his brow should be a little more arched and his hair a little lighter." Phoebe said after looking at the screen. The sketch artist changed the picture. "Yeah, that's better. Uh...and his nose is bigger, wider."
"So, are we looking for a murder suspect?" the sketch artist asked Darryl.
"Just do me a favour. No questions." Was all that Darryl said.
"I still need to know what to do with him when I'm done with the sketch. Do I put it on the wire, put out on APD or ship it to the psychic network?" the sketch artist smirked at the last one and Phoebe rolled her eyes before looking back at the screen.
"Wait...that's him."
"Are you sure?" Darryl asked.
"Positive."
"Print us up a copy, run it through the data base, try to get us a name." Darryl said and the sketch artist stared at him for a while. "Just do it."
...
"Gilbert Van Lewen." Prue said imediately when the picture came out of her fax.
"You know him?" Phoebe asked down the phone.
"Well, I know the name. His family has a huge art collection, part of which they wanted to sell when his father mysteriously died last summer. Wait...I just read somewhere that his brother died a couple of days ago too."
"So it sounds like the ghost isn't just after baby Matthew. Hey, you wanna meet me and Morris down at the Van Lewen estate? Have a little chat with Gilbert?" Phoebe asked, not know Prue was watching Jack who was standing just outside her office. "It would help to have an active power there just in case the ghost shows up."
"Sure. Who wants to go to New York anyway?" Prue grumbled.
Phoebe frowned at the phone before shrugging. "Bye." She said, hanging up.
Prue forced a smile on her face when Jack came in, holding some take-away. "Lunch is served." He said.
...
When Prue pulled up at the Van Lewen estate, it was surrounded by police and paramedics. Prue pulled up her car and walked over to Phoebe and Darryl.
"Hey, what's going on?" she asked.
"Apparently Gilbert Van Lewen fell over the banister. I think the medical examiner is going to list the cause of death as accidental." Darryl explained grimly.
"Sure have been a lot of accidents around here lately." Phoebe muttered.
"Yeah, well, welcome to homicide."
Prue sighed. "Poor Matthew."
"We don't know for sure that Gilbert was his father." Darryl pointed out.
"Well, we have to find out for sure." Phoebe said, staring at the house and Darryl frowned at her.
"Whoa, hold it. Number one - this isn't my crime scene, number two - you ain't cops, remember?"
"Darryl, we cannot walk away from this."
Prue nodded in agreement. "We have to find out whether this is Matthews home or not."
Darryl sighed before leading them towards the house.
"They're with me." Darryl said when the cop at the door stared expectedly at the girls.
The cop suddenly smirked. "Let me guess. Your psychic friends?"
"Let me guess. You wanna be a metre man? Who called it in?"
"The victims mother - Martha Van Lewen. She's around the corner." The cop told him and Darryl turned his head to look at the sisters.
"I'll do all the talking to Mrs. Van Lewen. Are we clear?" he asked and they nodded.
"Perfectly."
He nodded as they walked further into the house and upto Martha.
"Mrs. Van Lewen, I'm Inspector Morris. I'm terriibly sorry for your loss." He said and she nodded.
"Thank you."
"I just have a couple of questions for you and your daughter in law."
Martha suddenly looked tense. "Well, Alexandra's off resting. She's in a great deal of pain."
"Of course. She's with the baby then?"
Martha eyes widened slightly. "No, my grandson's staying with his aunts. I'm sorry, Inspector. I really don't feel like talking."
Phoebe and Prue shared a glance before sneaking upstairs while everyone else was too busy to notice. They walked in through a room and was relieved to find it was a baby boy's bedroom.
Phoebe looked in the crib and smiled slightly when she saw a pillow with 'Matthew' embroided on it.
"Yep, no question about it." Phoebe said, showing Prue the pillow.
"They must've loved him dearly. I can't imagine how painful it must have been to let him go." Prue whispered as she looked around the room filled with pictures and toys.
"We probably shouldn't mention where the baby is incase Casper's still around."
"What are you doing in here?" Prue and Phoebe turned to the new voice to see a young women with curly blonde hair.
"Hi...uh, sorry...Alexandra?" Phoebe asked.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Phoebe and this is my sister Prue and we're - "
"Grief councilors." Prue interupted quickly. "With the police department."
Alexandra sighed. "I don't need any counselling. I just need to be alone."
"We understand."
"More than you know." Phoebe hesitated before stepping closer to her. "We can help you, Alexandra."
"Oh, yeah? Can you bring back my husband?"
"No, but maybe someone else." Prue whispered, sharing a glance with Phoebe.
Alexandra bit her lip. "Please leave. Just go."
...
"Okay, isn't it anyone else's turn? I'm dying here." Piper said as she jiggled the crying Matthew later that night.
"Just a bit longer." Phoebe said, not looking up from her laptop. "I had no idea there was so much information about the Van Lewens on the internet."
"Yeah, and Jack's postponed the presentation which means I've got untill morning to salvage it." Prue said, nodding towards her work.
Piper sighed. "I don't understand why you didn't just come out and tell them we had Matthew."
"Because we could risk the ghost following us home and finding him."
"Alright, we have to figure out how to vanquish the ghost." Phoebe said.
"Yeah, in less than twenty four hours before Darryl comes and takes him away." Prue added.
"The thing with ghosts is they always haunt for a specific reason and it's always personal. So, I know the Van Lewen's know this ghost and I'm going to find him." Phoebe explained.
"Piper, I'll take him, you take a break." Bella said, coming into the kitchen in her pj's.
"Bella, you're meant to be sleeping. You have school in the morning." Prue scolded and Bella rolled her eyes.
"I'm hardly going to go to sleep with him crying, am I? Might aswell make myself usefull." Bella said simply, holding her arms out for Matthew.
Piper looked at Prue and when the eldest sister shrugged she gave the baby to Bella.
Usually, when Bella held Matthew he stopped fussing and looked up at her in amazement (though Bella could never understand why). This time Matthew held onto Bella tightly and continued crying.
"Why isn't he stopping?" Phoebe asked confused as Bella whispered softly to Matthew.
"Maybe it's a hungry cry?" Piper suggested.
"You've just fed him."
"Maybe it's a sleepy cry." Prue suggested.
Bella frowned. "If he's sleepy, wouldn't he just fall to sleep?"
"Maybe it's a burpy cry?" Phoebe suggested and Bella shrugged before patting Matthews back, cringing when Matthew threw up over Prue's presentation.
"Uh...Prue...I'm so sorry." Bella said as Matthew was still wailing.
Prue just sighed, putting her head in her hands.
"Something tells me this is going to be a long night."
...
"I thought babies sleep a lot." Prue said, when it was two in the morning and her time to hold Matthew.
"It's probably one of those lies they tell you to make you wanna get pregnant." Phoebe muttered and Bella smirked.
"So much for being a natural, right Pheebs?"
"Could say the same about you." Phoebe shot back, clearly remembering how eager Bella was for Phoebe to have her turn. "Besides, everyone has their limits. Anything in Doctor Spock?"
"Nothing we haven't already tried. How's the search going?" Piper asked.
Phoebe sighed. "Not so good. The Van Lewen's a seriously loaded. There could be hundred's of dead people that could be holding a grudge against them."
"Why don't you just focus on the time of Martha's husband's death. I mean, that was the first - " Prue was cut off by when Matthew started whimpering.
"What did you do?" Bella groaned.
"I didn't do anything!"
"Well, do something." Piper insisted when the cry's started getting louder.
Prue bit her lip before lying Prue down on a blanket and tipping her things out of her bag. Piper, Phoebe and Bella knelt down next to her, watching curiously, as Prue used her power to make her things float above him. Matthew's crying stopped and he looked up in amazement. The sisters smiled.
"Doesn't this falls under the personal gain category?" Piper asked.
"Who cares, he's not crying anymore." Bella said before turning to Prue. "Do you think you can do that untill he falls asleep?"
"Yeah, but knowing our luck, he'll probably stay away all night watching them." Prue said before her smile faded. "Or get bored."
"Or he needs his diaper changing." Phoebe pulled a face as the smell hit them.
"Oh no, not again."
...
"Here, this might be something." Piper said as Prue washed Matthew. "The Van Lewen's chauffeur, Elias Lundy, disappeared suddenly before Martha's husband died."
"Disappeared doesn't mean dead. Maybe he just took off." Prue said as she wrapped Matthew in a blanket and placed him in his car seat.
"Well, if he did, he took off without anything he owned including his savings account and his car."
"We should definately ask Martha about that."
"If she'll talk to us."
"Well, if she wants to get her grandson back safe, she will." Prue said, looking down at the little boy.
"Okay, forget Doctor Spock, this is the only book we need." Phoebe said as she walked back into the kitchen with the book of shadows.
"The Book of Shadows? Phoebe, I know how tempting it is when you're this tired but we can't vanquish the baby." Bella said sleepily, making her sisters smile.
"No, that's not what I got it for. Mom wrote spells in it, right? Well, with four girls there must be something on how to look after a baby." Phoebe said as she flicked through the pages. "Oh, hear it is...'Sometimes a baby just had to cry'."
"Great help." Bella sighed sarcastically.
"I don't understand why this is so hard." Phoebe said as she sat down next to Bella. "We're women, this should be in our DNA."
Matthew started crying again. Piper quickly turned and froze him, making the sister sigh in relief. "I can't keep doing this all night."
...
Piper winced as she sat up and opened her eyes. She smiled at the first thing she saw.
"What?" Dan asked when he saw that she was awake. He jiggled Matthew in his arms slightly.
"Just wondering if you're too good to be true." Piper said quietly and he smiled.
"Maybe, some day, you'll find out from personal experience." He said as Piper got up - making sure Bella (who had been leaning on her) didn't fall sideways - and walked over to him. "I have to go to work." He said, handing the baby to her.
"Thanks for that." She said, holding Matthew close to her.
"It's my pleasure. He really is beautiful ... just like his cousin." Piper blushed as Dan kissed her. "Bye."
Piper stood staring at the back door for a few minutes before putting Matthew in his car seat.
"What time is it?" Piper turned to see her sisters getting up. Prue looked at the clock instead of waiting for an answer and her eyes widened. "Quarter to eight, I'm late." She said before rushing out of the room.
"Damn, I've missed my bus. Pheebs, can you give me a lift?" Bella said.
"Yeah sure, I've gotta go to Martha Van Lewen. Piper, are you coming?"
"Right behind you."
They all walked out of the kitchen, only for all of them (including Prue) to walk back when they remembered Matthew.
"I think we forgot something." Prue sighed.
"What are we going to do with him?" Piper asked.
"I can take him." Bella said immediately. "I'll just take a day off school."
Her sisters stared at her. "Thought you didn't want kids."
Bella blushed. "I don't."
"Then why so eager to take care of one?" Phoebe asked, a knowing smirk on her face.
"Look, Bells, I would usually take you up on this offer but you need to go to school." Prue said firmly. "How many days have you missed off school since we became witches?"
"Fine, I'll go and get dressed." Bella sighed before leaving.
The sisters shared a glance.
"Okay, what has changed since yesterday?" Phoebe asked after a while.
Piper bit her lip. "I...might have mentioned EJ."
"EJ? As in our sweet nephew EJ?" Prue asked frowning.
"Yes, I told her that Joey was his dad."
Prue sighed. "I thought she was getting used to the whole Joey stuff."
"I think she is, I don't think that was the problem." Phoebe said, looking down at Matthew sadly.
"What then?"
"Am I the only one who noticed Bella's eyes light up when EJ is mentioned?"
Piper and Prue still looked confused. "But...Bella doesn't want kids."
Phoebe rolled her eyes at them. "No, but she wanted EJ." She told them. "She's gotten used to the idea of having him in the future and even started getting excited about it. And now she knows he's never going to exist."
...
"Hey," Jack said as he walked into Prue's office, "are you ready to wow Cauldwell?"
Prue bit her lip. "Well...uh...actually - " she was cut off by a babies gurgle and Jack's smile faded. He frowned as he looked over Prue's desk to see Matthew next to her.
"Do you get that through office supplies?" he joked.
"Okay, I had to bring him. There was nowhere else to put him and I really think we should talk to Cauldwell about a daycar centre. I mean, I'm not the only one with a child around here." Prue babbled.
"Prue, unless you have a really big surprise for me, you don't have a kid." Jack reminded her and she blushed.
"I know that, but I'm going to one day." She said as Matthew started whimpering. She leant down towards him and gave him her pinky finger. "He only likes this finger and it took me all night to figure it out. You should see me at diapering. I'm really good at it."
Jack stared at her as if he thought she'd lost her mind. "Okay...you know, this mothering instinct is really something to me but me, I've got my own inner child and right now he's thinking of New York."
Prue cringed. "Right...uh...Jack." She sighed. "I didn't really finish the presentation."
"You know, I figured you were probably still in your family crisis, especially after your tenth non answered call. So I hope you don't mind that I took the liberty of finishing the presentation myself." Jack said, flashing her a charming smile and Prue smiled back widely. "Anything to get you to New York. "
Prue practically ran around the desk and jumped into his arms.
"You are the best." She said before kissing him.
"He certainly is." A voice broke them up and they turned to the door to see Mr Cauldwell looking smug. "And since I need my best and brightest in New York, I'm taking you off the running, Halliwell."
Prue's smile faded and Jack frowned.
"Uh, Mr Cauldwell, I finished the presentation based on her file. She had a family emergency."
"She has a lot of those, doesn't she?" Mr Cauldwell said coldly. "You'll show your presentation to a client at noon, Sheridan."
Mr Cauldwell left and both of them turned to look at Matthew. Prue smiled despite what had just happened while Jack sighed.
"Yes?" Martha asked when she opened the door to see Phoebe and Piper.
"We need to talk to you." Phoebe said quietly as Martha lead them further into the house.
"Are you with the police?"
"No, not really."
"But we are here to help you." Piper insisted when she saw Martha's expression.
"I don't understand." Martha said honestly.
"Does the name Elias Lundy mean anything to you?" Phoebe asked and Alexandra walked around the corner, not looking at the sisters.
"Martha, the funeral home called and they wanted to know if - " she froze when she saw (and recognised) Phoebe. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm here because I really need to talk to you and I think you know what about."
"Who are you people? What do you want?" Martha asked causiously.
Phoebe just showed them the bit of cloth that had Matthew's embroided on it.
"Please tell me he's okay." Alexandra said quickly.
"Please come with us some place safe to talk." Piper said while Martha froze.
"Oh no." She said, just before the cloth floated out of Phoebe's hand and into Elias'. He looked at it for a second before turning to the four women.
"Where's the child?" he asked.
"No, please, don't tell him." Alexandra begged tearfully.
Elias sent electricitie out of him hands, sending it straight for them, but Piper froze it. Martha and Alexandra froze too but Elias didn't.
"He didn't freeze." Piper frowned. "Why didn't he freeze?"
Elias studied them. "What are you? Witches?"
"I've frozen ghosts before, haven't I?" Piper asked Phoebe, obviously annoyed.
"Okay, Piper, now's not the time. Just unfreeze them so we can get them out of here." Phoebe said and Piper sighed before doing as she was told. "DUCK!" Phoebe yelled before she and Piper pulled them down.
"Let's go." Piper said, after the electricity hit the wall behind them. They ran through Elias to get to the door but he spun around and zapped Martha, making her fall into the wall. He went to go outside to get to the other (who were standing just outside the front door) but brought his hand back in pain.
He stared at his hand for a second before glaring at Piper, Phoebe and Alexandra. "Bring me the child or she's dead!" He roared before slamming the door shut.
"Looks like I'm not the only one stuck here." Martha said quietly and Elias sent her a glare.
"You know, you'd be a lot comfortable at our place with your baby." Piper said as she handed Alexandra a cup of coffee over the bar of P4.
But Alexandra shook her head. "It's too much of a risk. As much as I am dying to see him and hold him, I just can't."
"I don't think the ghost can follow you or us. I mean, he couldn't chase us out of the house." Phoebe said softly. "I don't think he can leave the house."
"But you're not positive. You don't know that for sure, do you?" Alexandra said sadly. "I've seen what he can do. I've watched him kill my husband. I won't watch him kill my son."
"What did your husband tell you about Elias Lundy?" Piper asked.
"He was their chauffeur but he was obsessed with Martha. Even carved his and Martha's initials on the largest oak. I've seen it. But one day, apparently his obsession got out of hand and Lundy attacked Martha. My father in law lured him out to that same tree and shot him in the back. Buried him on the grounds and covered it up."
"That would explain why he suddenly disappeared." Phoebe said quietly.
Alexandra sighed. "A week later, my father in law mysteriously died."
"At the house too."
"And then Gilberts brother, his uncle and then..." Alexandra trailed off. "They all just looked like accidents, you know, bad luck. Martha knew but she just couldn't convince anybody."
"I don't understand why you stayed in the house." Phoebe said with a frowned. "Why didn't Gilbert get you out of there."
"Until Gilbert's brother died, he didn't believe the story either. Martha tried to sell the house once but I guess Lundy wouldn't let her. He wants her to suffer for what her husband did to him. But he's not gonna quit until he gets Matthew too."
"Yeah, well, we won't quit until we get him. Now, do you have any idea where on the grounds Lundy's body was buried?"
"Supposedly by that tree. Underneath the initials."
"Whoa! Prue, don't touch that dial!" Jack said, running upto Prue as she waited for the elevator. "I just came back from Cauldwell's office and I told him I couldn't of finished the presentation without the work you did and I couldn't do the job to his level without my beautiful partner." He said with a smile, holding up two tickets. "Plane leaves in two hours. Sorry squirt, only got two."
Prue smirked. "Kids under two fly free."
Jack sighed. "Afraid you were going to say that. You know what? Whatever, I'm game."
"Jack, that's sweet. Thank you for sticking up for me but I can't. I gotta go home, sorry." Prue said softly. Jack's smile faded as he nodded.
"Yeah, me too." The elevator opened. Prue sent Jack a smile before walking in and Jack smiled as he watched Prue holding Matthew. "Hey, you two make a nice couple."
Prue chuckled. "Thanks."
"Prue's on her way home." Piper said as she walked into the kitchen, wincing at the spell coming from the potion. "Whoa! That stuff could melt your nostrils."
"And changing Matthew wouldn't?" Bella asked.
"You know, I could've sworn that I'd be good with this whole baby thing. I mean, I love kids, I'm giving, I'm a good person."
Piper and Bella smiled at her. "Phoebe, I don't think Matthew was rejecting you personally." Piper said softly. "Atleast no more than the rest of us."
"Then why do I feel like such a failure? Everytime I get close to the little guy, he either opens his mouth or his bowels. Call me kooky but that feels like rejection to me."
"Don't worry about it Pheebs. Yesterday, I thought he actually liked me, especially my hair...last night he tried to rip it out." Bella grimaced at the memory while Piper and Phoebe laughed.
"Yes, but it doesn't bother you." Phoebe pointed out.
"Ofcourse not, he's a baby. It's what babies do. But, personally, I prefer babies when they can't talk. More specifically, when they can't talk back."
Phoebe smiled. "You can joke about it now, Bells, but I think you would've be a good mom."
Bella just shrugged the comment off and turned the subject away from her. "Have either of you noticed how quiet it is?"
"I've missed that." Piper sighed before turning back to Phoebe and the potion. "Okay, let's focus."
"Okay, do you wanna get the shovels?" Phoebe asked, making Piper and Bella stare.
"Uh, shovels? I thought we were vanquishing Lundy with a potion. What do we need shovels for?"
Phoebe rolled her eyes at them. "Because it only works if you spread it over his bones which happen to be buried."
Bella pulled a face. "We have to dig him up?"
"I'm afraid so."
"Is that it? Or is there some other disgusting detail you're just waiting to spring on us?" Piper asked.
"No. The only other way to vanquish him is to destroy the object of the curse. Which is Martha and we're supposed to save Martha. So get the shovels."
Prue walked in with Matthew and the potion was forgotten. Piper, Bella and Phoebe rushed over to their sister and cooed over the baby. Prue looked bemused.
"Okay, I'm home too." She pouted. "Okay, guys, are we ready?"
"Yes, we're ready. Um, I think someone should stay here with Matthew." Phoebe said.
"I'll stay!" All of the sisters said quickly before smiling at each other.
"Looks like we all fell for the same guy." Prue said amused, just before the doorbell rang.
The sisters walked into the hall and Phoebe opened the door to let Darryl in.
"Time's up, ladies. Social services called. They wanna know where the baby is."
"Tell them he's with us." Phoebe said simply.
"Four witches and a baby. I don't think that's going to fly."
"Darryl, we're literally going to vanquish the ghost right now." Bella said and Darryl sighed.
"I don't wanna hear another ghost story. In the real world that baby was abandoned which means if I don't account for him, I could loose my shield."
"Not if you can offer a plausable explanation, right? I mean, what if he was kidnapped and then abandoned. You would be a would be the one reuniting him with his mum." Prue said quietly and Darryl considered it. "Look, just hold off for a few hours, okay. If we're not back then do what you have to do." She handed Matthew to Darryl and looked at him sadly.
"And don't wave things in his face because he doesn't like it." Phoebe told the cop.
"But he does like the jiggle. Do you know the jiggle?" Piper asked and Darryl frowned at her.
"Of course I know the jiggle, I'm a father."
"And if he starts to cry, just hold him really close because it comforts him." Bella said quietly.
They were all about to walk out of the house when Phoebe suddenly turned to Prue. "You're not going to wear that are you?" she asked. Prue looked down at her clothes, which were light and stylish, not something you would wear to dig up a dead body. "Didn't think so. We'll meet you in the car, alright?"
Prue went upstairs while the other three went outside. Darryl just looked down at the baby in his arms and let out a small laugh.
"Did she say where the oak tree was?" Bella asked as they got out of the car with the shovels and potion.
"I assume around the back." Phoebe replied.
"Okay, you three dig him up and I'll protect Martha for as long as I can." Piper said, looking up at the Van Lewen estate.
"Alright."
Piper walked into the house while the other three went round the back.
"Does anyone else think that something is going to go wrong with our plan?" Bella asked after a few minutes of silence.
"Shhh." Prue hissed. "Don't jinx it!"
"Sorry. It's just, everyone movie that I have seen usually goes with a flaw in the good guys plan." Bella pointed out.
Phoebe shook her head. "Don't keep thinking like that. Movies also has witches as the bad guys."
"Good point, I'll shut up."
"Over here." Phoebe whispered, pointing her light at the initials. "This has got to be it. Okay, hold this." She handed the torch to Bella and started digging.
"Pheebs, I have a much quicker way of doing that." Prue said and Phoebe paused.
"Oh, yeah, you do don't you. Okay." Phoebe said with a laugh as she moved out of the way.
Prue uses her power to lift Elias' bones out of the ground. "Hello Elias." Prue said as the three of them looked down at the bones. Prue lifted up the shovel and hit Elias' skull. She keeps doing this for a while before turning back to her sisters.
"Alright, here it goes." Bella said, taking the lid off the potion. Before she could pour it over the bones, Elias appeared at a window and tried to zap them. It missed them by inches and they let out a scream.
"Can't vanquish me without my bones, can you?" Elias yelled angrily.
"Oops, busted." Phoebe muttered.
"Run!" Prue ordered, grabbing both Phoebe and Bella's hands before running around to the front of the house.
"Piper, where are you?" Phoebe yelled as the ran through the front door.
"Upstairs!" Piper yelled back and the ran upto her and Martha.
"Have you seen him?" Bella asked and Piper's eyes widened.
"What do you mean? Didn't you vanquish him?"
"Uh...no, and it doesn't look like we'll be able too either." Phoebe said grimly. "He's hidden his bones some place that we'll never be able to find them."
Martha sighed. "Then you have to get out of here, now."
"No, we're not going anywhere." Piper said firmly.
"You haven't got a choice when theres no other way to stop him." Martha said, making the sisters look at each other.
"It's not an option." Bella said, sounding just as firm as Piper had.
"Agreed." Prue said quietly as Martha looked between them confused.
"What?" she asked. "What is it? I think I have a right to know."
"There's only one other way to vanquish a ghost. And that is to destroy the object of it's wrath." Phoebe explained and Martha frowned.
"Meaning me? Are you saying that if I die, he dies too?"
"No. Our job is to protect the innocent and that would be you." Bella told her but Martha shook her head.
"No, it isn't. It's wasn't my husband who shot my husband in the back. It was me, I did it. He wanted me for himself. He said he was going to kill my husband."
"Yet I did, didn't I?" The five women turned towards Elias who had just appeared in the doorway. "How could you, Martha? I loved you."
"I didn't love you." Martha spat as she stood up.
"They can't protect you forever."
"You're absolutely right. But I can protect Matthew." Martha said firmly, running through Elias and threw herself over the barister.
"No!" Elias cried as Martha's spirt floated out of her body, upto face Elias. "Martha, what have you done?"
"Killed us both." Martha said coldly. "Go to hell, Elias."
Elias screamed as he began to burn and was pulled into a hole in the floor. As soon as he was gone the whole disappeared.
"What do we do?" Phoebe asked quietly.
"Don't do anything. This is where I belong. This is the only way to save him grandson. Thank you for protecting him." Martha gave the girls a smile before she disappeared too.
The sisters, minus Bella who Prue had ordered to school, arrived at the police station the next day to give Matthew back to Alexandra.
Alexandra was smiling widely as she walked over to them and took her son out of Phoebe's arms.
"Here, we wanted you to have this but we couldn't get all of the throw up out of it." Piper said, handing over the small blue bear.
Alexandra laughed. "It's okay. You're all so sweet. How can I thank you?"
"Just let us babysit every once in a while." Phoebe said, smiling at Matthew.
"Take good care of him." Prue whispered as they all kissed Matthew goodbye and left.
"So how many kids do you think I'm going to have one day?" Phoebe asked, later that night while they were in P4.
"I'd say five." Prue suggested.
Piper shook her head. "More. At least six."
"Ow. What makes you say that?"
"Pheebs, you were born to be a mum." Bella smiled at her older sister.
Prue nodded in agreement. "No doubt about it."
"Yeah, you think? I miss that little guy already. Although being a surrogate mum for the last twenty-four hours has taught me I have a long way to go before I'm ready for it full time. I gotta get my life together first."
"Yeah, find a guy maybe?" Prue said and Phoebe laughed.
"That might help, huh? Unlike Piper's guy who is like Mr. Mom." Phoebe said, making Piper blush.
"Yeah, Dan was really great with Matthew wasn't he?"
"More like a godsend."
Piper sighed. "Yeah, I think that's what scares me. He's like, flawless. He's great at everything. He's great looking, fun, he's great with babies."
"But..."
"But I don't know. He's just a little too perfect. I feel a little imperfect around him."
"Well, maybe that's why you were uncomfortable with Matthew. Maybe because of Dan you were resisting your own maternal instincts." Prue, Bella and Piper looked at Phoebe in surprise.
"Where did that come from?" Bella asked with a smile.
Phoebe just shrugged. "Cosmo, where else? Look over there, there's Jack."
"Jack?" Prue looked around quickly and smiled when she saw Jack standing a few feet away.
"Yeah, Jack."
"Jack who?" Piper asked teasingly. Prue rolled her eyes and walked over to her boyfriend, trying to ignore the kissing noises her sisters were making.
"Why aren't you in New York?"
Jack smiled down at her. "I didn't wanna go without my partner. I don't want you to think this gesture of mine is in any way of a sign of you involving maturity, in case having your cousin Matthew around given you any ideas."
"No, the only idea I have is that one day, maybe sooner, maybe later, I'm gonna make a great mum. And you know, hopefully I'll find the right guy." Prue said na dJack smiled sadly.
"Well, I think you should know that being as I'm still a kid myself, I don't think I'd be doing anyone any favours by pretending to be the right guy."
"Well, I didn't say I was looking for the right guy tonight. You'll do. Let's dance." Prue said happily, pulling Jack onto the dance floor.
The reason why EJ is being mentioned so much will be explained later in the story.
R&R :)