~~~
Piper awoke the next morning feeling slightly better. Melinda was up and in the kitchen with Morris. Piper entered the small room to find them eating some stale bread from a dumpster just outside.
"Good morning Piper" Morris said with a warm smile. Piper grinned and sat down at the table. She sighed and slumped onto the table top. Morris shrugged then looked over to Melinda.
"Could you pass me some water?" he asked politely. Melinda nodded and using her powers she transported the glass across to Morris. Piper looked up all of a sudden then looked sternly into Melinda's eyes.
"Melinda please don't use your powers," Piper said. "they'll only ruin your life later on" she added. Melinda blinked for a second then continued to eat her food. Piper placed her head on her hand leaning heavily on the table.
"Piper," Morris said. Piper looked up at him. "Prue still lives at the manor," he began. "I haven't seen her for a long time but she's been keeping the fort whilst Phoebe and you had been missing"
"Where's Phoebe?" Piper asked alarmed that her younger sister had gone missing too.
"We don't know" Morris said. Piper's face only reflected dissappointment, then felt guilty anyway because it was her fault that the three sisters had broken up anyway.
"We'll go there today" Morris said. Piper nodded quietly.
"Are you sure you don't want anything mum?" Melinda asked offering some of her bread. Piper shook her head.
Melinda deserved better than this. Piper thought to herself.
The manor wasn't to far from Morris' shelter. When they first arrived Piper stood out front of the house and looked in shock.
The old house was falling apart, the once strong pink paint job outside the house was now a dark brown colour with the faded pinks. The wood was splintering and windows were shattered. There were burn marks around the house, probably from demonic attacks since she had left. Piper gulped and walked towards the front door.
She reached the old door to find some of the glass broken in the splintering door. Piper couldn't believe that this once beautiful house was now a monstrocity.
Piper breathed in deeply closing her eyes and knocked on the door seeing
the doorbell was not working. She stood back and
waited. There was a long silence. Melinda moved closer to Piper and
hugged her tightly for support. Morris watched from behind.
Suddenly Piper saw a figure just behind the door, messy, twisted, dark hair and frail hands shakilly opened the door. Piper looked up as did the person behind the door, the two met eye to eye and saw a mirror image of themselves.
"Piper?" the voice cracked.
"Prue?" Piper replied in a shaky voice. The two stood there for a moment, then anger replaced Prue's warm eyes.
"You think you could just return, look at this place, since you had us Piper, Phoebe left and I have had to protect the Book of Shadows all by myself!!!" Prue said angrilly. Piper looked down to the ground.
"I'm so sorry Prue" Piper said quietly. Prue looked over at Melinda
who stood behind her mother, Prue saw Leo's eyes in
Melinda and it broke Prue's heart to see her like that.
"I'm sorry Piper" Prue said in reply. "come in" she said moving aside. Piper looked up and slowly walked inside with Melinda holding her hand, Morris entered behind them.
The manor was dark inside, light entered the windows in some spots but
it was mostly gloomy. Furniture was badly damaged
and chared from fire and lightning. Claw marks lined the walls of the
manor and most of all the stairs were damaged because of demons wanted
the Book of Shadows.
"Please sit down" Prue said leading Piper, Melinda and Morris into the kitchen. The bench was no more and the instruments of the kitchen lay on the floor. The bench around the edges of the large room were burnt away and green with mould. Piper, Morris and Melinda sat at the kitchen table which was just still standing.
"You want something to drink, or eat?" Prue offered. Piper nodded quietly. Morris said yes, so Prue stood up and got what she could muster up. Food was rare now. Prue kept looking at Piper for a while. The same darkened face looked at her the same shadow she saw years ago laying in her bed upstairs.
It had been horrible. Prue had been the middle of the sisters pain, Phoebe had left home with her daughter and Cole. Who knew where Phoebe was now, and where she burried her dead daughter.
Little Nicole, her eyes were as green as her fathers, and brown curls like her mothers.
"Where have you been all this time?" Prue asked in a soft voice. Piper didn't look up but replied;
"Wandering I guess, from place to place," Piper took a deep breath then silence followed. "I guess I wanted to face upto my past now, and find out if my place is as a witch and a sister, or as the murderer I am"
Piper suddenly saw the events play before her eyes again. The day was
clear now, Piper had thought there was a demon
behind her, and Phoebe had warned Nicole to stay in her room with Melinda,
whilst the sisters searched for the stray demon outside their house.
Piper turned and the little girl cried out her mothers name. It was the first time Piper had ever been violent and it had cost the life of a little girl.
Piper felt the tears rolling again, they hit the table, and Piper got up and walked towards the window. Prue approached Piper from behind and placed her hand gently on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry Piper" Prue said quietly.
"Why should you be, I was the one who killed Nicole Prue" Piper said towards the window. It was a cloudy day outside and on the verge of raining again.
"Piper, we all have our burden to carry, but we have to learn not to run away from them," Prue began. "if they break us apart, they can only make us stronger as sisters" Prue said with tears. She walked away and picked up a picture of the three of them, taken by Grams all those years ago.
Piper turned around and walked up to Prue and looked at the picture. Phoebe was missing from it.
"We have to make this right Piper" Prue said with tears slipping down her cheeks.
"We will" Piper said under her breath.
~~~
