When Paige finally crawled out of bed the next morning, it was well past
ten-thirty. She had arrived back at the Manor at a little after eleven the
night before, and after a very tearful reunion with her sisters, she had
gone straight to bed. Her sleep had been completely uninterrupted, but even
after close to twelve hours of sleep, she was still exhausted. The time she
had spent in Twilight had drained her. Hiding a yawn behind her hand, she
headed downstairs, knowing full well that Piper and Phoebe were eager to
talk to her about what had happened over the past couple of days.
"Was she still asleep when you checked on her?" she heard Phoebe ask.
"Sound asleep and snoring," Piper answered with a sigh. "If she's not up by eleven, I'm going to wake her. I'm getting kind of worried."
Paige smiled and followed the voices into the kitchen. "No need to wake me," she said a little more cheerfully than she actually felt. She settled at the table and grinned a thank you as Piper set a cup of coffee in front of her. "Thanks for letting me sleep."
"You're welcome, sweetie," Phoebe said, returning Paige's smile. "How're you feeling?"
"Kind of dazed," she answered. She sipped her coffee, then set the mug down on the table and leaned back in her chair. "It feels sort of like I've been drugged and I'm just now coming out of it."
"Yeah, Leo warned us that you'd be a little out of it." Piper exchanged a glance with Phoebe, asking if now would be a good time to ask about what had happened in Twilight. Phoebe nodded with a smile, the glint in her eyes pretty much saying, if not now, then when? "So," Piper continued, clearing her throat, "we're practically dying of curiosity here . . ."
"You want to know all the details," Paige guess, giggling.
"Pretty much!" Phoebe exclaimed. "Spill."
Paige grinned and leaned forward over the table, telling them about her adventure in Twilight. She started with Celeste helping her hide from the search party and ended with sending Jonas and all his followers into the light. They listened intently as she spoke, completely drawn in by the story and Paige's lively way of telling it. She could tell just by the looks in their eyes, though, that they were bursting with questions. When she was finished, she sat back in the chair again and waited for them to start asking her the questions she knew they wanted to ask.
"How did you know Jonas would follow you to the light?" Piper asked, her eyes wide with amazement.
"I didn't," Paige had to admit. "I knew I couldn't leave him there to amass a new following, and I know he wouldn't go voluntarily. I had to trick him. My only hope was that he'd want to catch me so badly that he wouldn't realize what he was running to."
"And it worked!" Phoebe grinned. "Take that, Jonas Addams!"
"Addams?" Paige asked, clearly confused. "How do you know his last name?"
Phoebe blushed as if she'd given away a secret. Piper giggled, shaking her head, and turned to Paige. "When I checked on you earlier, you were mumbling in her sleep about Jonas. All it took was a quick Internet search to find this." She handed Paige some slips of paper with information from a city historical site. "Jonas Addams was a preacher who was convinced that the apocalypse would occur on January 1, 1900. He managed to convince a whole group of people of the same thing, and on December 31, 1899, he led them all on a ritual suicide, planning to end their lives without living through the apocalypse. Not even the children were spared."
"And he kept them together even after death," Paige said, letting out a low whistle as she quickly skimmed the papers. "And that was all well and good when they were here on Earth," Phoebe continued. "But once they got to Twilight, he needed a reason for them to stay there with him. Enter Mindy."
Paige nodded somewhat sadly as she set the papers down on the table and slid them back to Piper. Those poor people. He had essentially held them captive for over a hundred years and would have held them for all eternity had it not been for her, Mindy, and Celeste. Well, whoever Celeste really was. That was the one thing that was still bothering her. Why didn't Celeste want her to know who she was?
"How did you know they'd all follow Mindy?" Phoebe asked, gently bringing Paige back to reality.
"That was another educated guess," she answered, smiling. "I figured if Jonas was using her to keep people away from the light, their devotion to him wasn't as strong as their desire for what was waiting for them in the light. They were following Mindy at that point anyway, not him. She was the reason they were staying, so she was the one who could lead them out."
"How did you get away when he caught you?" Piper asked softly.
"I almost didn't. He was literally squeezing the life out of me, and all I wanted to do was give up. But Celeste told me I couldn't give up and that I had to fight, at least for you guys."
Piper stood up and wrapped Paige in a tight hug. "The next time you see Mindy, you have to tell her to thank Celeste for us. I was so afraid that I was never going to see you again, and the one thing that kept running through my mind was that I'd never told you this: I love you, Paige."
Tears jumped into Paige's eyes. Hearing Piper say that meant the world to her. She wanted to please Piper more than she had ever wanted to please anyone else, and hearing Piper say that she loved her was like a great weight off Paige's shoulders. It was like she no longer had to try to gain Piper's affections. Knowing that she already had them was such a relief. "I love you, too," she replied, hoping she didn't sound too choked up.
"Me too!" Phoebe exclaimed, joining the hug.
Paige burst into giggles. "Yes, of course, you too."
Piper let her go and smiled as she sat back down. "Oh, I know what else I have to tell you. Mindy's mom called earlier. She cut back on her hours so she could spend more time with Mindy, in general and to properly teach her about her powers. Mindy's doing perfectly fine. It's like nothing ever happened."
"That's great!" Paige exclaimed. "Are they still going to allow her to go to the park?"
Piper nodded, her smile growing wider. "And she told me to tell you are invited to their house whenever you want."
Paige grinned, then hid another yawn behind her hand. "Okay, how come Mindy's doing fine and I feel like I pulled three all-nighters in a row?"
"It's probably because of the nature of her powers," Phoebe said, shrugging. "She's more equipped to handle the, uh . . ." She trailed off, looking for the right words. "Environmental changes?"
Paige giggled, nodding. That seemed to make some sense. Mindy's power was very specific in that it let her communicate with the dead, so it stood to reason that she'd handle a few days in Twilight better than someone whose sole purpose isn't to counsel ghosts.
"Paige, did you ever find out who Celeste was when she was alive?" Phoebe asked.
"I don't even know if Celeste is her real name," she muttered under her breath as she shook her head no. Looking up, she realized that they both had heard her. Sighing, she tried to explain. "It was just so weird. Mindy asked her what her real name was, and she wouldn't tell her in front of me. I mean, I was completely comfortable with her, she felt almost familiar. She even saved my life, for crying out loud. I never felt threatened when I was with her, but I just don't know who she is. It was so dark that I couldn't see her face, and now, I don't even know what her real name is. She knew all about me, though. She even knew about you guys."
"Well, honey, we met Mindy, too," Piper gently reminded her. "Celeste was probably standing right there when you introduced us to her."
"But--" That was when it hit her. Celeste has known about Prue. At the very least, she had known that Piper and Phoebe had lost a sister. Paige had never mentioned Prue to Mindy, so how could Celeste have known about her? Unless . . . no, that was crazy. Wasn't it? "Piper, do witches go to a different place than mortals when they die?"
Piper raised her eyebrows in surprise. The question had seemingly come from nowhere. "I-I don't know, honey. Why?"
"No reason," she answered, shaking her head and shrugging. But now she was starting to wonder. Why had Celeste been so vehemently opposed to crossing over when Mindy tried to get her to? Maybe it was because she wasn't supposed to. Perhaps she was more of a guardian angel than Mindy realized. Is it possible that Celeste was a witch who had died and was sent to protect Mindy? What else would explain how Celeste had known that it was okay to trust Paige or that Piper and Phoebe had lost a sister? Paige smiled to herself, excited by the thought that maybe, just maybe, she had met her oldest sister after all.
"Was she still asleep when you checked on her?" she heard Phoebe ask.
"Sound asleep and snoring," Piper answered with a sigh. "If she's not up by eleven, I'm going to wake her. I'm getting kind of worried."
Paige smiled and followed the voices into the kitchen. "No need to wake me," she said a little more cheerfully than she actually felt. She settled at the table and grinned a thank you as Piper set a cup of coffee in front of her. "Thanks for letting me sleep."
"You're welcome, sweetie," Phoebe said, returning Paige's smile. "How're you feeling?"
"Kind of dazed," she answered. She sipped her coffee, then set the mug down on the table and leaned back in her chair. "It feels sort of like I've been drugged and I'm just now coming out of it."
"Yeah, Leo warned us that you'd be a little out of it." Piper exchanged a glance with Phoebe, asking if now would be a good time to ask about what had happened in Twilight. Phoebe nodded with a smile, the glint in her eyes pretty much saying, if not now, then when? "So," Piper continued, clearing her throat, "we're practically dying of curiosity here . . ."
"You want to know all the details," Paige guess, giggling.
"Pretty much!" Phoebe exclaimed. "Spill."
Paige grinned and leaned forward over the table, telling them about her adventure in Twilight. She started with Celeste helping her hide from the search party and ended with sending Jonas and all his followers into the light. They listened intently as she spoke, completely drawn in by the story and Paige's lively way of telling it. She could tell just by the looks in their eyes, though, that they were bursting with questions. When she was finished, she sat back in the chair again and waited for them to start asking her the questions she knew they wanted to ask.
"How did you know Jonas would follow you to the light?" Piper asked, her eyes wide with amazement.
"I didn't," Paige had to admit. "I knew I couldn't leave him there to amass a new following, and I know he wouldn't go voluntarily. I had to trick him. My only hope was that he'd want to catch me so badly that he wouldn't realize what he was running to."
"And it worked!" Phoebe grinned. "Take that, Jonas Addams!"
"Addams?" Paige asked, clearly confused. "How do you know his last name?"
Phoebe blushed as if she'd given away a secret. Piper giggled, shaking her head, and turned to Paige. "When I checked on you earlier, you were mumbling in her sleep about Jonas. All it took was a quick Internet search to find this." She handed Paige some slips of paper with information from a city historical site. "Jonas Addams was a preacher who was convinced that the apocalypse would occur on January 1, 1900. He managed to convince a whole group of people of the same thing, and on December 31, 1899, he led them all on a ritual suicide, planning to end their lives without living through the apocalypse. Not even the children were spared."
"And he kept them together even after death," Paige said, letting out a low whistle as she quickly skimmed the papers. "And that was all well and good when they were here on Earth," Phoebe continued. "But once they got to Twilight, he needed a reason for them to stay there with him. Enter Mindy."
Paige nodded somewhat sadly as she set the papers down on the table and slid them back to Piper. Those poor people. He had essentially held them captive for over a hundred years and would have held them for all eternity had it not been for her, Mindy, and Celeste. Well, whoever Celeste really was. That was the one thing that was still bothering her. Why didn't Celeste want her to know who she was?
"How did you know they'd all follow Mindy?" Phoebe asked, gently bringing Paige back to reality.
"That was another educated guess," she answered, smiling. "I figured if Jonas was using her to keep people away from the light, their devotion to him wasn't as strong as their desire for what was waiting for them in the light. They were following Mindy at that point anyway, not him. She was the reason they were staying, so she was the one who could lead them out."
"How did you get away when he caught you?" Piper asked softly.
"I almost didn't. He was literally squeezing the life out of me, and all I wanted to do was give up. But Celeste told me I couldn't give up and that I had to fight, at least for you guys."
Piper stood up and wrapped Paige in a tight hug. "The next time you see Mindy, you have to tell her to thank Celeste for us. I was so afraid that I was never going to see you again, and the one thing that kept running through my mind was that I'd never told you this: I love you, Paige."
Tears jumped into Paige's eyes. Hearing Piper say that meant the world to her. She wanted to please Piper more than she had ever wanted to please anyone else, and hearing Piper say that she loved her was like a great weight off Paige's shoulders. It was like she no longer had to try to gain Piper's affections. Knowing that she already had them was such a relief. "I love you, too," she replied, hoping she didn't sound too choked up.
"Me too!" Phoebe exclaimed, joining the hug.
Paige burst into giggles. "Yes, of course, you too."
Piper let her go and smiled as she sat back down. "Oh, I know what else I have to tell you. Mindy's mom called earlier. She cut back on her hours so she could spend more time with Mindy, in general and to properly teach her about her powers. Mindy's doing perfectly fine. It's like nothing ever happened."
"That's great!" Paige exclaimed. "Are they still going to allow her to go to the park?"
Piper nodded, her smile growing wider. "And she told me to tell you are invited to their house whenever you want."
Paige grinned, then hid another yawn behind her hand. "Okay, how come Mindy's doing fine and I feel like I pulled three all-nighters in a row?"
"It's probably because of the nature of her powers," Phoebe said, shrugging. "She's more equipped to handle the, uh . . ." She trailed off, looking for the right words. "Environmental changes?"
Paige giggled, nodding. That seemed to make some sense. Mindy's power was very specific in that it let her communicate with the dead, so it stood to reason that she'd handle a few days in Twilight better than someone whose sole purpose isn't to counsel ghosts.
"Paige, did you ever find out who Celeste was when she was alive?" Phoebe asked.
"I don't even know if Celeste is her real name," she muttered under her breath as she shook her head no. Looking up, she realized that they both had heard her. Sighing, she tried to explain. "It was just so weird. Mindy asked her what her real name was, and she wouldn't tell her in front of me. I mean, I was completely comfortable with her, she felt almost familiar. She even saved my life, for crying out loud. I never felt threatened when I was with her, but I just don't know who she is. It was so dark that I couldn't see her face, and now, I don't even know what her real name is. She knew all about me, though. She even knew about you guys."
"Well, honey, we met Mindy, too," Piper gently reminded her. "Celeste was probably standing right there when you introduced us to her."
"But--" That was when it hit her. Celeste has known about Prue. At the very least, she had known that Piper and Phoebe had lost a sister. Paige had never mentioned Prue to Mindy, so how could Celeste have known about her? Unless . . . no, that was crazy. Wasn't it? "Piper, do witches go to a different place than mortals when they die?"
Piper raised her eyebrows in surprise. The question had seemingly come from nowhere. "I-I don't know, honey. Why?"
"No reason," she answered, shaking her head and shrugging. But now she was starting to wonder. Why had Celeste been so vehemently opposed to crossing over when Mindy tried to get her to? Maybe it was because she wasn't supposed to. Perhaps she was more of a guardian angel than Mindy realized. Is it possible that Celeste was a witch who had died and was sent to protect Mindy? What else would explain how Celeste had known that it was okay to trust Paige or that Piper and Phoebe had lost a sister? Paige smiled to herself, excited by the thought that maybe, just maybe, she had met her oldest sister after all.