~~~
'I sit on the train watching the lights go by. The sun is beginning
to set upon this dark and depressing world. I can't help but still
feel guilty, after all it is this guilt that paints the world black'
Piper sat quietly on the train watching the wasteland that was the city
go by. Melinda was sitting beside her, she now wore a
dark long trenchcoat the only coat that Piper could muster for her
only daughter.
Piper looked opposite her towards a women sitting with a little baby
tucked gently in her arms. The women sat there in old and
tattered clothes looking into a photo which she held in trembling hands.
She was crying quietly, but her sobs could be heard.
Melinda didn't look up but Piper continued to look until the women gave
Piper a harsh stare when she felt her eyes upon her.
Placing the photo down she glared, Piper felt that there was blame
in that gaze, her eyes, sentencing her.
"I'm, I'm sorry" Piper finally sat stammering, she began to shake again.
Melinda noticed her mother shaking and grabbed
Piper's hand but Piper pulled away. Melinda looked surprised as Piper
moved towards the women placed her hand near the
photo.
The woman cringed back as if burnt by a white hot flame. Piper nodded
and touched the baby gently on the head, brushing its
hair away, she slowly sat beside the woman now getting her trust and
looked at the photo carefully.
There was a man in it, he was young by the looks of it, not much younger
than this woman. Piper had a gut feeling that this was
the baby's father.
"Is this your baby's father?" Piper asked quietly, her nerves beginning
to calm down, her heart race slowing down to a relaxed
state. The woman was silent.
"Yes" she simply replied finally. Piper felt tears again.
She saw it again, Leo yelling, his muffled yells were only being blurred
out of her painful memory. The voices were getting
clearer though, Leo not being a violent man usual was so angered that
he threw a vase across the room, smashing Melinda's
trophies from the mantle piece.
"You sisters trusted you Piper, that you wouldn't abandon them!!!" Leo
yelled throwing another vase. Melinda cried histerically
in the corner and Piper looked towards the ground the same way she
had many times before.
Her eyes were darknened and red from crying long hours. She was skinny
and trembling slightly, something that she usually did
anyway.
"Piper, I can't believe you'd run away from this," Leo said giving up,
he walked towards Piper who had a blank look upon her
face. She quivered. "Piper, you aren't the same person I married" Leo
said quietly. She tried to hug him but he pulled away.
"What happened to your fighting spirit!!!!" Leo yelled again getting fustrated.
"I can't believe you would give this up, and let thousands of innocent
people die!!" Piper moved back at the word, and felt the
tears falling again silently.
"How could you do this" Leo asked again firmly. Piper just remained
stationary, and Melinda remained wailing. Leo
approached Piper.
"How could you do this Piper!!?" Leo said even louder now moving right
up in front of Piper, he forced her face upwards and
saw the tears but no expression.
"How could you do this Piper!!!!!" He yelled shaking Piper. Piper didn't
change her expression but more tears fell. Leo threw
her down onto the bed and looked over at Melinda who was crying loudly.
Melinda ran over to her mother who lay on the bed
now curled up in a fetal position.
Leo felt the guilt but also was still mad at Piper.
"I can't understand why won't you go back Piper?" Leo sat sitting on
the bed opposite her. He didn't look at Piper, to afraid on
what she thought of him now. "all these lives as strake and you won't
become the witch you were always meant to be Piper" he
added. Leo looked down to the ground.
Melinda hugged Piper hard but Piper didn't respond, the tears ceased falling.
"Why?" Leo asked placing his head in his hands. His voice was cracking up and his family was falling apart, as was Pipers.
The manor was silent.
"I can't say Leo" Piper whispered. Leo looked up and back towards Piper.
"I wish you could, I just wish I could help you" Leo said his voice
breaking up. His wife lay shaking on the bed. The doctor had
warned Leo not to do anything harsh to Piper to frighten her since
her nervous breakdown.
"Please I just want to help you Piper!!" Leo said reaching to touch
Piper. Piper pulled away, just like the woman did in the
train, she could see herself in that image.
"Please Leo just go!!" Piper said louder this time, she was still shaking.
With a shaky hand Leo reached out and brushed some
hair from Piper's face, she cringed away as if he had caused pain.
Leo felt his heart snap in two, but also knew he had to do something
about the innocents of the city, he and Piper had promised
that their love and work would not get in the way of one another.
Leo felt the tears but hid them from sight as he moved away from Piper
and slowly walked towards the door. Melinda bolt up
to Leo and hugged him tightly.
"Daddy don't go!!!" she said histerically. "please mummy and I need
you!" she screamed. Leo knelt down to Melinda's height
and brushed her hair from her eyes. Those beautiful brown eyes, so
innocent.
"I'm sorry sweetie" Leo said his voice cracking again. He kissed his
daughter on the forehead and got up and closed the door
behind him.
The door closing grabbed Piper's attention then the sound of Melinda wailing again.
"No Daddy, don't leave us!!!" she screamed. Piper could feel the walls
running, as if water had hit a damp painting, emotions
ran from the walls of the manor. Piper lay on the bed and drifted into
oblivion and back to the harsh reality of the present.
"I'm so sorry" Piper could only say to the woman. She lifted the womans
hand and kissed it gently. The woman looked
confused as did Melinda, Melinda helped Piper sit back down beside
her.
The night ahead was going to be long one.
~~~
