TWO

"Paige," said Leo, "Prue is dead. She died in the underworld at
the hands of the Source. She was buried. We were all there, even
you. She couldn't be walking around the street. Maybe it was just
someone who looked like her."

"Contrary to what you see in the movies," said Paige, "no two
people look so much alike. There would be noticeable differences. It
was her, I'm sure of it. She was wearing a dark businesslike suit.
And she was wearing this heart shaped locket."

"She was buried in that suit," said Leo. "And the locket was
her grandmother's. Piper thought it should be buried with her since
she was the closest to their grandmother."

"Listen," said Paige, "there has to be a way find out if it was
her. Some way to find out if she's come back from the grave."

"I'll orb to the mausoleum," said Leo. "I can check to see if
her body is still there. If it is, then it has to be someone who just
looks like her."

"And if her body isn't there?" asked Paige.

"We'll deal with that when, and if, it happens," said Leo. "Let
me just check it out first. Then we can decide how to proceed. In
the mean time, not a word of this to Piper or Phoebe. I don't want
them upset unless we have to."

"Didn't I just say that?" asked Paige.

Leo just smiled, then orbed out. Paige went downstairs and
found Piper in the kitchen, making a pot of coffee.

"Hey," said Piper, as Paige came into the kitchen. "So, did you
get everything cleared up with Leo?"

"Yeah," said Paige. "He had to orb out for a minute. He said
he'd be right back."

"That's strange," said Piper. "He didn't say anything about
getting called."

"I guess it just happened," lied Paige. "Where's Phoebe?"

"She'll be home in a little bit," said Piper.

"Good," said Paige. "Well, I think I'll go upstairs and put
away the things I bought today."

"Okay," said Piper. "You did say you had a lot to do today."

"Yes," said Paige, "yes, I did, didn't I?"

Paige went upstairs and took her packages into her room. She
was hoping she was wrong about Prue. Piper and Phoebe had gone
through hell when Prue had died. Paige had no wish to put them
through any more. All she could do is wait for Leo to return and,
hopefully, tell her that Prue's body was still in the crypt.

Leo orbed back in several minutes later. The look on his face
told her he didn't have good news. He had a worried look on his face
that Paige had never seen before.

"Well," said Paige, "what did you find?"

"Now, don't go getting all excited," said Leo, "but the crypt
was empty. There could be any number of explanations for it."

"Like what?" asked Paige.

Leo didn't have an answer for her. He knew there were no
logical explanations. Once the crypt had been sealed, it should never
have been opened again. But there was no sign that it had been
disturbed. If Prue had somehow come back to life, there should have
been some evidence of her breaking out of the crypt.

"I don't know," said Leo. "But it doesn't mean that Prue has
come back to life. Maybe there's another explanation we just haven't
thought of."

"You can sense people, can't you?" asked Paige.

"Yes, I can," said Leo. "As long as they aren't in the
underworld or up there, I can usually get a sense of where they are."

"Then try to sense her," said Paige. "Then we'll know for
sure."

Leo closed his eyes and concentrated. It would be a simple
matter. If Prue was anywhere on the Earth, he'd know it.

"I'm not sensing her," said Leo. "Which means she couldn't be
alive. If she was, I'd be able to sense her. So, I guess that
settles that. It was just someone who looked like Prue. Accept it."

"Okay," said Paige. "Maybe you're right. But what about Prue's
body? Why is it missing? Who took it and what did they do with it?"

"Who knows," said Leo. "Maybe there was a problem with the
coffin or something. I'm sure it will be put back soon. After all,
she's been gone all this time. What could they possibly want with her
body now? I'll wait a few days, and then I'll check again. It will
probably be right back where it's supposed to be."

"What about Piper and Phoebe?" asked Paige. "What do we tell
them?"

"Nothing," said Leo. "There's no sense in upsetting them. They
never have to know about this. They've finally accepted Prue's death
and this will only cause them grief which they don't need."

"Okay," said Paige. "I guess you're right. God knows we have
enough to upset us as it is. No sense in causing them more grief."

"Good," said Leo. "Now, I'd better get downstairs before Piper
starts to get suspicious."

"I told her you were called away," said Paige. "So she wouldn't
get suspicious about your leaving."

"Good," said Leo. "I'll make up something to tell her. She's
in a pretty good mood so she won't ask too many questions. Now, just
forget about this. Prue's dead and that's that."

"Okay," said Paige. "Thanks for listening to me. And taking me
seriously. Some times Piper and Phoebe don't."

"They're just not use to having a new sister, that's all," said
Leo. "Don't worry, they'll come around. Especially after our
encounter with the Collector. They didn't take you seriously then,
either, but I think they're beginning to. You'll see."

"I guess so," said Paige. "I guess I can't expect them to just
take me in out of the blue. I guess we have to learn to trust each
other. That's going to take time."

Leo just smiled. Then he orbed out of the room. Paige went
back to putting her things away. Something in the back of her mind
nagged at her. As she had told Leo, no two people looked that much
alike. And she was sure it was Prue. But since Leo couldn't sense
her, she couldn't be alive. It was a mysterious that she decided
would never be solved.