Witch Trial Revisited (Part 2)

Witch Trial Revisited (Part 2)

The two riders were pushing their mount to the extreme, as they were following the dirt path only lighted by the full moon. Penelope still had to work on keeping up with Elliot Lawton; she wasn't used to ride this fast. And there was also the fact that she had much to be worried about…

Penelope kept half of her mind on the horse ride and her sister's friend while she was thinking of what she might really do once there. Helping them with magic was a possibility but she hadn't used her talents in years and for a good reason. Or so she thought it was.

The recent events had brought back all of her fear of magic to the surface, and frankly the idea of using it scared her even more. It was not so much for herself that she feared as she had had a good and full life. No she was more afraid of what might become of her daughters if people were to understand that they also could be the bearers of special gifts.

"But my poor sisters" she reflected, "what else can I do to help?"

They were more than halfway to the village of Oakridge now, and she knew that she would soon have to make a decision. She also thought of each of her daughters in turn with a dreadful sensation of finality. Somehow, she knew that this might be the end for her, and then what would happen to them if it were, she asked herself anxiously?

Prue was a reasonable girl but very stubborn, full of courage but also too eager in the face of danger. Phoebe was wild and sometimes even irresponsible, but she did have her sisters and at least, she thought, the others would help her, of that she was certain. At least she had been until Piper's new problem. Riding along, she couldn't help thinking that although she had always believed her to be the most stable of her daughters, she might have become a danger to herself, and even to them eventually. What if that man was not as nice and decent, as she believed he was she asked herself for the umpteenth time. But then Piper had asked her to trust in her judgement. "Should she?"

Again her mind returned to the problem at hand and with a sigh, once more she wondered if she would even be around to help them.

She looked at the stars and started to fear that maybe they wouldn't arrive in time. She then decided to keep her worries for later and concentrate on the ride. Penelope kicked the horse and held on tight. "Please let me get there in time," she finally thought.

Victor and the others were also riding as fast as they could, the horses breathed hard, but they were strong mounts, used to hard labor. They just weren't fast enough and Victor cursed under his breath more than once. Prue and her sisters were keeping silent ever since they had left the house. They all had a very bad feeling about their mother and no pain or fatigue would make them stop, as they also feared being too late. Leopold had taken his horse and ridden ahead of them. Piper was also worried about him. "What can he do all by himself?" She had wanted to ride with him but they had reasoned that they just didn't have enough horses and that 2 on the same mount would simply slow him down. Leopold assured her that he would catch up with her and stop her. She really hoped he did.

Penelope and Eliot arrived at the village just before dawn, and they stopped short of entering it. She still was debating what she should do when she noticed a crowd forming in the center of town. She didn't have the luxury of time anymore. She resolutely directed the horse toward the sheriff's office where she hoped she could intercede with him for her sisters.

On her way she couldn't help but see the stake already prepared for her sisters and she shuddered with renewed anguish. Inside the office, her and Eliot tried to get the attention of a deputy, as they couldn't find the sheriff.

Penelope:

"I'm sorry?" She said in as firm a voice as she could find, "could you tell me where I could find the sheriff?"

The deputy turned to her curiously:

"Why do you want to see him? It's rather early and besides we are really busy this morning."

Penelope:

"That is why I need to see him now, I want to talk to him about the ladies that you're holding prisoner."

The deputy:

"Not for much longer, thank god. I will feel much better when it's all over…"

Penelope's heart sank at the expression on the deputy's face. He looked so totally afraid of her sisters that she understood how it would be very difficult to convince anybody in this town that they shouldn't burn them. But she was not about to give up:

"I still need to talk to him, it's urgent."

The deputy:

"If it's that urgent you can find him at the church. Almost everybody is already there, praying for the souls of the witches."

Penelope signaled to her companion that she was ready to go and without another word to the deputy she left the office. The deputy just shrugged as if he thought she was just some kind of nuts. After all, who would want to even talk about those witches? They were a curse that should be destroyed he told himself and he forgot all about the woman.

His main concern being to stay as far away from the holding cells as he could.

Penelope was tempted to go around the office, to try and talk to her sisters but there was no time for it, and she just hoped that they would have the chance after she stopped this horrible event.

The deputy had been right, the church was packed, but rather than prayer, it looked more like a rally where people were made to hate the witches and what they represented more and more by the moment. The Pastor was inflaming them with a sermon that made Penelope shiver anew.

"We have been too complacent with witches in the past, not believing that their ways were evil, but today we know that it wasn't true. Evil gave them the powers that they possess and they are willing to use it against us, the righteous. We have to be the hand of God, and make sure that the sinners will be removed from our midst."

The sermon was continuing but Penelope had heard enough and when she spotted the sheriff she went to him immediately.

"Sheriff, I need to talk to you alone please."

The Sheriff looked at her in surprise:

"What is it that cannot wait until after the execution, I have enough to do right now?"

Penelope:

"I want to talk to you about the Warren sisters…"

The Sheriff:

"There isn't anything more to say about those evil doers. They will soon be purified and so will our village."

Penelope:
"Please come outside with me, just for a moment, please."

The Sheriff finally moved toward the door with her, albeit reluctantly.

Even outside she could still hear part of the sermon but she tried to ignore it and concentrated on the Sheriff:

"Sheriff, you have to stop this madness. I know that they are not guilty of the horrible crimes that you are accusing them of. I know them to be peaceful and loving. Not at all evil, on the contrary."

The Sheriff:

"You don't know what you are talking about woman, these are for sure the devil incarnate, they killed a little girl and who knows how many more that we do not know about?"

Penelope was now more and more desperate:

"You cannot believe that. Haven't you known them for years to be good people?"

The Sheriff:

"They were just good at hiding their evil, that's all. Thank God the Pastor saw through it. Now we will be free of this."

Penelope:

"NO! You cannot do that, you cannot mean that."

The Sheriff was now becoming angry:

"Go on your way woman, or maybe I'll have you interrogated by the Pastor."

Penelope took a step back at the obvious threat and right then she knew that nothing she could say would save her sisters. At least, not in the normal way.

She finally took the step that she dreaded and started concentrating intensely on the Sheriff, pushing a thought in his mind with all the strength that she could muster. After a moment as he was about to reenter the church, she saw him hesitate as if he was not certain of his intentions anymore. She pushed harder and he turned back to her.

She then told him in a very different voice:

"You will come with me and free the Warren sisters now."

He hesitated a little more and she repeated the command at least twice before he started toward his office. She followed him closely, fearful of losing the tenuous grip that she had on him. They were almost there when someone coming from the place, accosted him:

"Sheriff, we are ready."

The Sheriff didn't even acknowledge the man and continued on his way. But the man was not going to be ignored and he tried to grasp his arm. The Sheriff just shrugged him off and continued on his way as if he had not been there in the first place. The man now screamed at him irritated. This attracted the attention of other villagers and of a stranger that had been standing just at the edge of the circle formed by the onlookers. It was the same magical being who had been watching the proceeding the day before, and now he was approaching the spot where the commotion was coming from with a falsely casual interest. He saw the angry man first, than he noticed the Sheriff still moving toward the office with the man in tow and finally he noticed Penelope who was keeping her eyes firmly on the sheriff's back, speaking under her breath.

The tall man went straight to the little group and put himself between Penelope and the Sheriff. In a moment the Sheriff stopped, wondering what he was doing there, and turning toward the newcomer, he noticed that the woman was right behind him, but still didn't understand what was happening.

The dark man turned toward the witch and without hesitation he pointed at her, fixing her with his icy blue eyes:

"That's a witch too, she is trying to save her evil friends."

Immediately, the crowd started to assemble around them with fearful yet curious looks toward Penelope and her heart sank. She tried to tk some of them out of the way, but the tall man held on to her then more came and she couldn't do anything anymore.

Two deputies who were escorting her sisters out of the office in chains saw the crowd and one of them went toward it while the other brought the two witches to the stake, tying them up to it rapidly. The crowd started screaming:

"Witch, Witch!"

This brought the rest of the congregation out of the church and toward them.

Leopold had pushed his horse to the limit and he arrived to see the villagers ganging up on Piper's mother. He didn't lose any time and tried to get to her after dismounting. He pushed his way through and stood fast in front of her. Penelope looked at him in amazement wondering what he was doing there but now was not the time for explanations.

Leopold:

"What are you doing? Have you all gone mad? You're attacking an innocent woman."

This seemed to make them hesitate somewhat and the Pastor found his way to the center in turn.

"What is it?"

One of the villagers came to him:

"This woman, she used powers against us."

Leopold:

"What is this invention, she is just here to talk to you about her sisters."

Unfortunately, Leopold just put oil on the fire with this revelation and the Pastor approached them.

"What is it that the boy is saying? You are their sister?"

Penelope didn't dare say anything as she felt that this crowd was ready to pounce on them. But the Pastor insisted:

"Come on woman, talk."

Penelope took a deep breath and started:

"Yes they are my sisters and they are innocents of your accusations."

Pastor O'Reilly:

"Innocents you say? They killed a little girl with their powers, we all know that now."

Penelope:

"That is a lie, my sister would never hurt an innocent…

And how are they supposed to have done this horrible crime?"

Penelope almost immediately regretted her outburst but she was now getting very angry with all of them.

Pastor O'Reilly:

"And that comes from the sister of witches…"

Penelope knew then that her worst fears had come true. "Oh my girls what are you going to do?"

The Pastor decided to delay the execution to question this one personally, and Leopold saw that there was nothing that he could do to prevent this. He could no longer resent the poor woman for her rejection of him as he saw the suffering that was coming to her.

They moved her to the Sheriff's office where as they did to her sisters, the deputies put chains on her.

Meanwhile the tall man gave a satisfied look at the situation and discreetly left the place.

Victor and the girls were now desperate. Daylight had come almost an hour earlier and they dreaded what they would find in Oakridge. Try as they may they couldn't get there on time or at least that is what they thought. When they arrived at the edge of the village though, they could see that they still had a chance as their aunts were still alive and they could see their mother nowhere near the site.

Prue and her sisters were about to get off the carriage when their father stopped them.

Victor:

"Girls, I want you to stay back, just in case. You know what they will want to do to you if they understand what you are."

The sisters gave a look of surprise to their father who had been denying their gift all of his life. But now, he was too upset about his wife and them to try denying the truth anymore.

"I will go myself and find out what is happening."

Prue was about to protest but he lifted a firm hand in front of her to silence her.

"No discussion, you stay away."

Prue obviously disagreed but she obeyed her father.

He had only gone a few feet from the carriage when he saw his wife coming out of the Sheriff's office. He could see the despair on her face and somehow knew that she was about to do something terrible.

It didn't take long for him to be proven right.

Penelope had been grilled for this whole hour but it was evident from the questions asked that she had already been condemned, so she had started forming a desperate plan. All during the questioning, she had tkd her chains ever so looser but not totally off of her. The moment that she was brought closer to her sisters, she shook the chains loose and tried to run, while at the same time attempting to tk her sisters' chains loose also. But she had not counted on the determination of the villagers and they encircled her under the horrified gaze of Victor, who started running toward them. As the villagers were pushing Penelope toward the stake, the Pastor signaled the executioner to start the fire, which he did immediately. Paula and Phyllis screamed of fright now as well as sorrow for their sister who had come to help, but now found herself in the same dire situation.

All this signaled to the Halliwell girls that things had gone terribly wrong and they didn't hesitate anymore.

Prue ran toward her aunts and she tkd the executioner away from them, and then she did the same with the chains, succeeding where her mother had failed since they had been practicing their craft regularly.

Phoebe froze most of the crowd immediately and stood ready to strike if necessary with her other power, although she was still unsure about this one. Prue on the other hand didn't hesitate to use hers as the fire was coming dangerously close to her aunts who were encircled by it and still couldn't escape. She used her ice power to extinguish the flames as fast as she could, then helped her aunts off the pyre.

Victor had already reached his wife but was still frozen right beside her. Phoebe came and unfroze him alone, and then they all ran to the carriage. But just then the villagers started unfreezing and some of them noticed the witches escaping. Many picked up their weapons and ran toward the carriage screaming invectives at them. Victor turned the horses around and started up the road followed by the crowd. When they saw that the witches were going to get away, some of them started to shoot in their direction. Leopold had just unfrozen himself and seeing what was happening, he mounted his horse and went after them, pushing some of the villagers with his feet along the way. Phoebe had managed to freeze most of the bullets and they were now too far to be hit so they began to relax.

But then Piper looked back and saw Leopold fall from the horse holding his chest and she screamed in anguish. She even tried to jump off the carriage but her sisters held fast to her.

It wasn't until they were at a few miles ahead of the crowd that they realized that someone else had been hit. Their mother had felt the bullet but at first she thought that she had simply hit the back seat because of their speedy retreat. Finally when the danger seemed past, she looked down at herself and let out a little scream when she realized that she was bleeding.

Prue turned toward her and also saw the blood. She immediately let go of Piper to come to her mother, putting her hand firmly where she presumed the bullet had caused the bleeding. Piper almost used that moment to jump but then she saw her mother bleeding as well and abandoned the idea. Phoebe noticed too and screamed.

"Oh my god!"

The now crowded carriage was slower than before and Victor although alerted by his daughter' scream didn't dare stop or look back. Prue and now Piper tried their best to tend to their mother in spite of the rolling.

Leopold had felt a sudden pain in his chest and then everything started to blur around him. He was dead before he hit the ground. Yet, he felt like someone was coming to him. It was a person yes, but made of an almost blinding white light. The apparition extended a hand toward him and he took it without hesitation. He felt himself being lifted from the ground and somehow found that they were flying. But when he looked back he saw his body still on the ground and he knew that he was dead. He almost let go of the apparition's hand to try and return, but suddenly the being of light turned to him:

"Your time on earth is not over but you have to come with me now, you have a greater destiny."

Leopold was now resigned and almost at peace but his thoughts turned to Piper and he also felt infinite regrets. The dual sensation was strange to him. The being of light smiled at him:

"Don't worry, the one you love will be safe and maybe one day you'll see her again."

Without knowing exactly why, he trusted his word implicitly and they suddenly moved rapidly away…

The tall man reappeared in a cave lighted with torches and he crossed a large arch entering an inner chamber. He was content with himself and showed it as he was nearing the center of the chamber, occupied by an elevated platform where stood a throne. Stone steps were leading up to it but he stood at the bottom, waiting.

The hooded man sitting on the throne talked without having even looked in his direction:
"Belthazor, you failed me…"

The demon looked surprised:

"No my lord, the witches are surely burning as we speak."

The figure turned on him and looked at him with glowing red eyes:

"No they most certainly are not. They escaped."

Belthazor:

"That's impossible, I saw the crowd bringing them to the stake myself and there even was another witch as a bonus."

The hooded man:

"You're arrogance will be your downfall. Three more came and freed the first ones. It is fortunate that I sent another observer. I might not have known of this otherwise."

Belthazor lowered his head in apparent sign of submission but it was mostly to hide the contempt in his expression.

The hooded man:

"I should kill you on the spot for your negligence." Belthazor was now worried. But then the hooded man spoke again:

"But I won't, by regard to your past success I will spare you. But do not expect that I will forgive another mistake."

Belthazor kept his head down and left the room slowly backing away.

Outside the room the look of contempt returned and he thought:

"Whoever you are witches, I will find you and get my revenge."

He shimmered away…

Victor had finally stopped the carriage in a clearing and he was now standing over his wife. The life was visibly draining out of her in spite of their efforts. The girls were crying inconsolably, and Piper thought that her sorrow would never end. In one day she had lost the love of her life and now she was going to lose her mother as well. It was almost too much to bear.

But Penelope found enough strength to talk to them at last.

"My girls, today you have seen the reason why I was so afraid for you, but it's only one of the reasons. I wish only that I could protect you against this. But it seems that my time in this world is coming to an end…"

Prue:

"No mother don't say that."

Penelope in a weak voice:

"Nothing can change that anymore, but I can still help protect you. You will go to my mother's house. Change your last name and promise me that you will not use magic. Only this way will you be safe."

Phoebe:

"But mother, we saved your sisters with magic."

Penelope turned a painful look at her younger daughter:

"The danger we were facing is nothing compared to what might come to you if you persist. Promise me, so that I can die in peace."

The girls cried anew at her words but they promised.

Penelope:

"Piper?" Her daughter came closer and took her hand.

"Yes mother" she said through her tears.

Penelope:
"I wronged you and I'm sorry. I should have trusted your judgement about Leopold, he was truly a good man. I'm so sorry my sweet."

Piper could barely contain her sobbing:

"Oh mother, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten angry with you."

Penelope managed a little smile:

"I'll gladly forgive you if you'll forgive me."

Piper:

"Of course mother, just don't die."

Penelope's head fell back, and she didn't have the strength to speak anymore. Shortly after she surrendered to death.

Victor took her in his arms and rocked her back and forth crying for the first time in front of his daughters. For a long time, no one said or did anything. Then they put their mother's body in the back of the carriage covering her respectfully and they started back toward the house of their birth.

Penelope' sisters promised the girls that they would take care of everything for them, and helped them prepare for the trip that would bring them far away from this place. The funerals were quickly arranged, as they feared that someone would find them. And that same evening, they put their belongings in the carriage and said good bye forever to the only home that they had ever known. Prue had gone to see Andrew that afternoon, and he swore to her that he would go to her soon. She made him promise never to reveal to anyone where they were going. Andrew was greatly pained by her departure, all the more so because Prue couldn't explain her reasons to him. She promised to wait for him and sadly left him behind after they had kissed passionately. The kiss had been full of promises and Andrew swore again that he would be with her soon.

Unfortunately, a week after they had left town, something happened that gave him doubts about the woman he loved. A posse from Oakridge came to town, looking for a group of witches, and it didn't take them long to find out that they had been part of the Halliwell's family. He never revealed their whereabouts, but he didn't go to her either. His family convinced him that he was better off this way. Who knows what they might have done to him, they would tell him. And even if it pained him greatly, he believed them…

Five years later, things had changed a lot for the now named Bennett sisters. They were living in the ancestral manor, and no one knew that they were witches where they were. They were said to have bought the house from the now defunct Halliwell's family. Their father had passed away not very long after their mother and their aunts had chosen to go live far away from the region. They had stayed only long enough to make sure that the girls would be provided for, thanks to an inheritance from their grand mother.

Piper had managed to get over Leopold's death after many months of grieving although, even now, the thought of him had the power to darken her days. But it happened less and less. Prue had resigned herself to never see Andrew again. She had no idea what kept him away from her for she didn't dare write to him and he never did. For the last five years, they had respected their mother's wish and regretfully put aside any practice of magic. The little city of Mapleville that they now were calling home was a pleasant enough place to live. They had gotten into a certain routine, although Prue always worried about Phoebe's philandering ways, who had not really changed much from the time she was seventeen. She had flourished into a beautiful young woman, but she used her many charms to collect conquests. Many men had been pulled into her charming trap, but she never gave her heart to any of them.

Piper was also more beautiful then ever, with a freshness about her that turned heads. But although a few suitors had tried to melt her heart, she had sworn not to fall in love again. And until now, she had kept her promise to herself. She never wanted to feel the sorrow that she had because of Leopold again.

So that, in spite of their youth and beauty, the three girls were still single by the time that Prue celebrated her 25th birthday. But that day, their lives were going to change forever…

At breakfast, Phoebe started on her big sister:

"Hey sis, you do know that you are officially becoming a spinster today?"

Prue:

"Keep that to yourself" she answered, but still amused. "Who needs a man after all?"

Phoebe:

"On that, I agree at least. They are only good to admire you and well…"

Piper:

"Oh Phoebe when are you going to grow up?"

Phoebe:

"That's rich from you, you have sworn them all out of your life for good…"

Piper:

"That's not true…"

Phoebe:

"Is so." But then she saw the pain returning to Piper's face and she regretted her comments:

"I'm sorry sister, I was insensitive."

Piper:

"No you were just yourself and I don't really want you to change. Sometimes it's good to have an unfettered perspective. Me and Prue haven't had much luck in men and that has made us really cynical."

Prue:

"Speak for yourself, I just think that I haven't found the right one that's all. Once upon a time, I thought that I had, but he proved to be less than I had hoped for that's all."

Piper:

"I'm sure too that one day, it will work out with someone but I'm really not ready for this."

Phoebe now smiling again:

"Well, girls, when you are ready to move on, come to me and I'll give you pointers on the best bachelors in town."

Prue:

"As if we would want your leftovers." She replied with a grin.

Piper added with a smile:

"And if we don't want that to happen, we better make a decision soon or it will be too late for that." She mocked.

Phoebe couldn't help but laugh at this even as she protested:

"Oh you two!"

They all laughed bringing back a lighter atmosphere to the day.

That afternoon, Phoebe was reflecting on the best gift for her sister's birthday. "For once" she thought, "I would like it to be significant."

She had been thinking of shopping for some garment or other, but it all seemed so ordinary and not suited for this particular birthday. Then she began to think of their mother for some reason. At first she rejected the thought as it still held serious pain. But she reasoned that five years had passed and that now maybe would be a good time to remember her. The house they were now living in was a three story house with the principal amenities on the first floor, their bedrooms on the second floor and the attic which none of them had visited since they had come to live there. The reason for it had been the very fact that the girls were not ready to be reminded of their mother. The day they had moved to this house, their aunts had stored most of her effects in there. And none of them had wanted to see these things again. It was too painful to even think about.

Phoebe surprised herself with the new thought that came to her. She was the one who had been the most adamant in locking the room forever, but now she felt an impulse that even she couldn't explain. She slowly started up the stairs, now decided to confront her own demons.

Prue had, for her part, decided to indulge herself on this day and she was on her way to shop in a French clothing store reputed for the beautiful yet daring style that she loved to wear. She had decided on a walk rather than using the carriage as it was a beautiful spring day and she knew that the dress she intended to buy would need adjustment and could be delivered. She was almost at the boutique when a loud scream attracted her attention, coming from an alley adjacent to the street. She hesitated only an instant then directed her steps toward the noise. There she found an ugly spectacle that made her gasp. A tall man with strange features was towering over a lady in peasant clothing. At first, she thought that she was one of those ladies of poor morality and that he was her unhappy client. She almost turned around when the strange man pulled a knife, one as she had never seen before, and prepared to strike the poor girl. At this, and for the first time in five years, Prue didn't hesitate and tkd the man away from the girl. He immediately reacted by standing up again and coming toward her instead, still brandishing the knife. Now that she could have a good look at him, she got really scared. He had larger eyes than normal and they were black as night with no white at all. His ears were somewhat smaller than normal also and his skin had a grayish color to it with what she thought were spots of a darker gray. He was very tall and muscular. All of this she took in an instant and reacted by tking him backward, than she ran to the girl. She saw that he wouldn't give up, when he then threw a fireball at her. She dodged the fireball by very little, and then she used her most powerful power on him, freezing him solid. She took the girl's hand and they ran out of the alley as fast as they could.

The fear gave her a real motivation. Although she was quiet convinced that he was dead now, she pulled the girl all the way to their house barely looking back a few times to make sure that she wasn't mistaken in her assumption, no matter how illogical it may have seemed. There was also the fact that killing that man had been a terrible thing for her to do.

There she invited the still shaking girl inside and, after offering her a cup of tea, she proceeded to interrogate her gently but firmly on the attack.

"Who was that man, or thing?"

The girls smiled weakly:

"Don't you know about demons?"

Prue was a bit disconcerted:

"Demons? I know of the bible's demons but I never heard of one coming to attack us on this earth."

The girl:

"That is strange, as I could see that you are also a witch, how could you not know?"

Prue frowned and it suddenly brought back to her the memory of her mother's warning the day she died. She had told them that what they had seen was nothing compared to the dangers that they might face were they to assume their gift.

Meanwhile, Piper was preparing their evening meals. She was putting great care in this, although she knew that she had a definitive talent for it any other day. A few minutes earlier, she had heard the door open and close, but since no one but them entered the manor unannounced, she just assume that Prue had come back early from her shopping. Still, now she was surprised that she had not come to sneak up on her cooking, as she would usually do. She then decided to go ask her if everything was all right.

She was at least a little surprised to find her with company, as they had not been expecting any visitors, and this one seemed somewhat unkempt, not the kind of friends that they usually entertained these days.

"Prue? Who is this?" She asked with a little smile.

Prue:

"I think you might want to hear what she has to say too."

Piper frowned at the serious expression of her sister:

The girl:

"I forgot to introduce myself with all that happened," she said looking at both of them. "My name is Rebecca Steeler, and I came from a far away village, in the hope of escaping the witch hunt but only to fall in the hands of a demon."

Piper:

"Demon? What are you talking about?"

Prue gave her a knowing look as she herself was trying to make sense of what she was hearing. Although the witch hunt did strike a nerve with her:

"You're saying that they are still after witches back there?"

Rebecca:

"More than ever. There is a Pastor that has devoted his life now to find and try witches. His name is…"

Prue filled in the blank:

"Pastor O'Reilly?"

Rebecca:

"Oh so you know of him?"

A cloud of pain washed over the sisters' faces:

"We had an unfortunate encounter with him and his followers a few years back yes."

Rebecca:

"Well now he has enlisted many more men of the cloth, and a crowd of witches haters. They are relentless and already have caused the death of many of our sisters."

Prue and Piper grimaced at this generalization since they barely felt any connection to other witches.

Prue:

"Now could you explain to us what you meant by demon please?"

Rebecca was about to do just that when Phoebe, returning from the attic, interrupted:

"I think I know…"

The others turned to her in surprise.

Earlier, Phoebe had been entering the attic with dread; afraid of the painful memories of her parents that it would bring. It never came to her mind that she would find anything remotely related to witchcraft there. When she had finally found the courage to confront her fears, she entered to find only an ensemble of bric-a-brac that had belonged to her family and didn't really made her feel as bad as she had feared. She gingerly moved toward those and started sampling one object after another, searching for the perfect memento to offer Prue.

After a while she had come to her mother's dresser. One she remembered, her mother had forbidden the access even to their father. She had said that it was her only little private space and wanted to keep it that way. Phoebe, recalling this, still hesitated some more. It was difficult to forget years of warning from her mother. But now she reasoned, she would certainly not mind me looking into it. So, she went and tried to open the drawer but it was still locked. In frustration, she set out to try and find the key to open it. But the moment that she had turned away from the dresser, a noise made her look back and to her amazement she saw the drawer open on its own. She hesitated for a while, frightened as she was by this unseemly event. But curiosity won in her and she went back to it. Inside the drawer she saw an assortment of strange objects and bottles. But what caught her attention was the ancient book with the even stranger carving. She took it cautiously, careful not to break it, and also still wondering about the unnatural way the drawer had opened. Then she found her mother's rocking chair and went to sit. She flipped through the pages of the book, amazed at the pictures and the odd writing. She could see that this tome was filled with some kind of chants, and she wondered about her mother now. She had always suspected that their gifts must have come through her but Penelope had always denied it, or at least she had until that faithful day. Still, even then she had not admitted being a witch herself. The proof was right there in her hands now, undeniable. She was about to close the book when it started flipping rapidly on its own and stopped suddenly on a page where she thought the entries looked much more recent then the rest. The first one had obviously been written to her mother and confirmed her suspicions but the second one made her jump:

"To my grand daughters, if you read those words, it will mean that your mother has finally come to her senses. You are special my girls. I've always known it, even before you were born. You have a great destiny, one that might spell danger to you all, but one that you owe yourselves to fulfil. You are witches, this I know that you all are aware of, no matter what your mother did to hide it. But you are so much more. You have been born to be the greatest force for good that ever lived. You have a duty to become what you were meant to. I'm asking you to consider this as everyone is counting on you, even if they do not know it. Your fight will not be with the people of this world, but with the evil of another, which is always trying to destroy this one. Always remember your destiny."

She had barely finished reading the page when the book started flipping pages again and fell on a small but significant chant:

"The power of three will set us free!"

And that is when she had returned to the living room with the book in hand and great excitement in her heart.

Prue:

"What do you mean you know what this is?"

Phoebe:

"I'm not sure about the demon part, but I now know that we were meant to fight it, together."

Her sisters looked at her in astonishment:

Prue:

"And what gave you such a revelation?"

Phoebe gave her the book and opened it for her at the page of her grand mother's entry.

Prue read it and Phoebe saw that she also understood the implication.

Piper read it also over her shoulder, but she reacted very differently, still trying to deny her own part in this.

"These are only words. They do not mean that we should break our promise to mother."

Prue:

"I'm afraid that I already broke it today."

Piper looked at her with reproach:

"I thought that you had accepted to drop magic for good?"

Prue:

"The situation made it impossible to avoid. I have to admit, what I was facing looked nothing like a normal man…"

Rebecca:

"As I was saying, it was a demon. One of many who have been trying to destroy the forces of good since the dawn of time. And you haven't destroyed it yet." She added this with a significant look toward the city, her expression still one of a frightened woman.

Rebecca:

"He will try to find me again. Demons do not give up easily on their prey and now that you helped me, you have become a target too."

Prue:

"How can you say that? I froze him solid. He surely is dead by now."

Rebecca looked at her incredulous:

"How can you be witches and what's more from what you're saying, powerful ones and not know nothing at all about the danger that we face everyday?"

Phoebe:

"It's a little complicated, and we still have to figure out what caused our mother to hide things from us, but if you could at least enlighten us on this particular demon…"

Rebecca:

"His name is Gregor, and he is a minor demon in his own world, but still powerful enough to be a great danger to witches."

Phoebe gasped in amazement and a little fear. But her instincts were awaken right away. She had always been ready to face danger fully just like Prue, and if something was coming their way, she intended to be ready for it. So did Prue but she still asked:

"And what makes you think that he isn't dead?"

Rebecca:

"Only a specific spell or the powers of very strong witches could defeat him. He will simply melt and come after me again, and you."

Prue, true to form replied:

"Well we will be waiting for him." She had an air of determination on her face now, one that was shared only by Phoebe. Piper still tried to convince them otherwise:

"My sisters, don't you remember our promise. We were supposed to forget about magic forever…"

Prue:

"I'm afraid that magic had not forgotten us."

Piper grimaced and tried again:

"Don't you see the danger. Don't you remember what happened to mother because of magic? And Rebecca here, confirms that the danger most certainly hasn't passed."

Phoebe:

"If it is our destiny Piper, then we owe it to ourselves to at least consider it. I have felt unfulfilled ever since I gave up on my powers. And no matter what you say, I know that you have too."

Piper bit her lower lip. She had tried very hard not to think about it for a long time, but she couldn't deny that deep inside she also missed it. The only powers she had developed, was the one of premonition but she knew that most probably she also, like her sisters, was liable to get more powers if she practiced with them. And she started to wonder in spite of herself what those powers could be…

Prue:

"There might be something that I could do to verify your story, Rebecca. I also have the power of projecting myself at great distances. But I haven't used it in years. I hope it will work." Then she started concentrating on the alley they had been in earlier. With a greater effort than she remembered needing in the past, she finally managed to project there. The moment she materialized in the alley, she knew that Rebecca had been right. She had half expected to find the demon or whatever that was, lying on the ground there. But instead she saw him ready to move as he had completely melted. He looked very angry and when he saw her immediately pounced. She rapidly dematerialized and turned eyes full of fear toward her sisters:

"Rebecca was right, he is alive and very angry."

Piper:

"Do you think that he knows where we are?"

Prue:

"I don't think so but I'm sure that he will be waiting for us."

Phoebe:

"Then maybe we should try and find a way to defeat him first."

Piper:

"And how are we supposed to do that?"

Phoebe:

"This book contains more than just our grand mother's message. It also contains strange pictures and chants that seemed to me like some sort of spells."

Rebecca:

"Yes it must be your book of shadows…"

Prue:

"Pardon me?"

Rebecca:

"Every witch has one, but some are more powerful than others. In it you will find not only description of demons and warlocks alike but also often the way to defeat them just as your sister guessed."

Phoebe didn't wait anymore and took the book back from Prue's lap. After a few minutes of research she happily told them that she had found an entry for the demon Rebecca described.

Prue came to her immediately, reading with her:

"Gregor is a vile demon, with the power of throwing fireballs, to morph and shimmer. He is immune to the time freezing power. He can only be defeated with the following spell."

She read the spell to herself but understood that in order to use it they would have to be in front of him.

Phoebe was a little discouraged by his immunity to her most useful power but still thought it encouraging that he could be defeated at all.

Rebecca burst their enthusiasm:

"I must tell you that this spell, I tried myself and it had no effect on him. Maybe there is another reason. I, myself, have only one power, one of deflection, which is why he attacked me with the knife instead. And maybe I am not powerful enough to use the spell."

Prue:

"If what Grams wrote in the book is true, maybe we are."

Phoebe:

" But first, she began looking directly at Piper, we have to figure out where he is."

Piper:

"Wait a minute you two, you're not suggesting that we went after him now are you?"

Prue:

"I think that it's a better idea than to wait for him to find us and kill us."

Piper:

"This is insane. And I don't want to participate in this madness."

Phoebe:

"Grams was very clear in her writing, Piper. We need the power of three to succeed, I'm convinced of this."

Piper:

"And what makes you so sure of this?"

Phoebe then found the entry that she was referring to and handed the book still open to her.

Piper:

"That still doesn't mean that we should go and look for trouble."

Prue:

"But if it is our destiny?"

Piper:

"It doesn't make sense. If we truly were destined to do this, then why did mother try to hide it from us?"

Prue:

"She had her own reasons, I'm sure. But think what you want, for my part I've always known inside that there was much more that we should be doing."

Phoebe:

"I have always felt this too."

Piper sighed:

"And what am I supposed to do?"

Phoebe:

"I was thinking that maybe you could try and have a premonition…"

Piper:

"I only had one of those in almost 10 years, what makes you think that I could now?"

Phoebe:

"But you never really tried. If you did, I'm convinced that it still might happen."

Piper was still torn by the thought of her promise to Penelope. But at the same time her sisters' insistence were wearing her down. "What if…?" she thought to herself.

Then after a moment she turned back to them and they could see that she was almost ready to embark with them:

"If I want to do this, I will still need an object or something to give me the premonition. Do we have something of his?"

Prue:

"Not really, but I was thinking that we could all go back to the alley and you could try to find something there."

Piper frowned but had to agree even if reluctantly.

Prue took another look-see in the alley before they got on their way and assured them that he had left.

Once there they still entered cautiously, unsure if he wasn't just simply watching for them, but he didn't show up, so Piper started walking slowly around it. She concentrated as much as she could but after ten minutes of this she had yet to get a premonition. Prue was also looking around, careful though, not to get in her way. She got to the wall where she had tkd him earlier and said:

"Eureka!"

Phoebe:

"What do you mean?"

Prue:

"Look here, there is a piece of clothing, most probably his." She took it and brought it to Piper who immediately got the vision they were trying for:

"In a bar, a tall man with blond hair and almost black eyes was sitting, sipping a drink while watching every new arrival carefully, then he got up and she could see him on the street still looking around, obviously searching for something or someone."

Piper took a deep breath; the vision had been draining. But she looked askance toward the others before telling them what she had seen:

"I saw a man, not a demon. He was blond with very dark eyes. He looked like he was searching…"

Rebecca:

"As you read in the book of shadows, he can morph and actually so can most demons. That is how they move unseen in the human world…"

And just now, the three sisters understood what their parents had been so afraid of all those years. It made all the sense in the world now.

They looked at each other, knowing that they all thought of the same thing:

Prue:

"Why didn't she tell us?"

But none of them had a clear answer to that one and in fact, it was only a rhetorical question on her part.

Rebecca:

"But at least now you know what he looks like in his human form, that will make it easier for you."

Piper:

"Easier said than done!"

Prue:

"Come on we need you to tell us if you recognize him."

They started walking toward the center of town where Piper was convinced that he still was.

On the way, they were discussing the implications of what they were about to do. The girls were very unsure about the killing part, which they preferred to call vanquishing in the same manner that Rebecca was using. But it still meant taking a life and that's something none of them had ever envisioned to do. Rebecca convinced them that demons were ruthless murderers and that it was their duty to vanquish them to protect the innocents.

But no matter all her assurances, they still felt very badly about it.

Piper finally spotted the man from her vision on the street, he seemed to be still looking for someone and she assumed that must have been them. The girls went cautiously closer, unwilling to confront him in front of a crowd. The last thing that they wanted was to trigger a witch-hunt in their own town. So Prue devised a plan that would bring him in a deserted part of town. She made sure of where he was and they moved toward an abandoned quarter with decrepit housing. From there she astral projected in an alley she knew to be unfrequented and stepped out making sure he would see her. That didn't take long and he immediately went after her. But in the same manner as the witches, he seemed unwilling to attract attention to himself and that made for a slow pursuit, which suited Prue just fine. It wasn't until they were out of sight that he accelerated, trying to catch up with her, then he simply threw one of his fireballs toward her and Prue dematerialized before it hit her. That enraged the demon and he growled. But then she reappeared and he decided to follow her anyway. Prue was thinking that he wasn't very smart when, looking back, she saw that he had disappeared. She felt something pulling her back and she returned to her body. The others looked very scared and she understood why immediately. The demon in his ugly form now, had caught Rebecca by the throat and was ready to stab her. But he was keeping her in front of him for protection. Prue didn't hesitate and astral projected again behind him, kicking him hard. It almost didn't work as he was holding tight to his prey, but he turned toward the new threat and Prue hit him again as hard as she could. He finally loosened his grip on Rebecca who ran away. The demon gripped her and she disappeared again. Now the girls understood that they should act rapidly if they wanted to get through this alive and they stopped worrying about the moral thing. The sisters huddled together instinctively as if they knew that their combined powers was infinitely more than their individual powers.

Then they recited not the vanquishing spell, but the simple phrase that they somehow understood held more power.

"The power of three will set us free"

They repeated the phrase a few times and the effect was impressive. The demon started distorting in front of them as if being pulled apart. He growled in pain and the girls felt disgusted. Then he positively exploded in front of them.

They looked at the spot now vacant where the demon had stood in amazement. They had expected a lot of things but not that.

Rebecca came toward them with surprise on her face.

"Could it be?"

Phoebe, at last turned to her questioning:

"What could be?"

Rebecca:

"There is a legend among witches. It talks of three witches with powers rivaled only by the most powerful among demons. They are supposedly destined to be the ultimate protectors of the innocents."

Prue:

"That can be us, we didn't even know about those things until today," she says indicating the spot where the demon was vanquished.

Rebecca:
"I can't be sure of course, but it would fit. You three are sisters, deeply connected to each other. That may be the source of this enormous power that was announced."

Piper:

"I'm not sure that this isn't all nonsense. But what we saw today, I never imagined that it existed…"

Phoebe:

"How are we supposed to defend all the innocents?"

Rebecca:

"I can't tell you that, but now that you have come in the open, I would be very careful. It's possible that the forces of darkness may have noticed what just happened."

That scared them. They headed back home with very disturbing thoughts on their mind.

The next day, when nothing else had happened, Rebecca took her leave of the sisters after again expressing her gratitude to them. She only said that she was going to move away from this part of the country, and the girls could understand her eagerness to go away from all this.

In the underworld, a trio of hooded men, if you could call them men, had received some disturbing news.

"Gregor has disappeared. He was sent to destroy the witch with deflection powers. It should have been a simple task. What happened?"

A stunted man with a round face and bulging eyes answered them from the center of the circle that they were forming:

"I don't know how, but he was destroyed."

One of the hooded men:

"If she did this, we cannot let this pass, you will go and finish her."

The stunted man:

"As you order." And he shimmered out. He arrived in the town where they had last heard of the demon Gregor, and started his search for the witch. It didn't take him long to spot her as she was preparing to leave town with the next coach. He waited until she was out of town and shimmered directly beside her in the coach, killing her instantly.

When this was done, he was left with the impression that it had been way too easy, considering that she was supposed to have killed Gregor. But he simply decided to rely what had happened, and not worry about this anymore, as he was more of a soldier than a thinker.

But his news had caught the attention of one demon with a grudge. One that reasoned that there had to be a better explanation for what had happened, and he set out to find out what that could be…