More name pronunciation fun!:

Exiptus = Eh-hip-toos

Tripdor = Trib-door

Same verse, same as the first. Enjoy.

                                                           

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Piper wanted to cry now, obviously not a possibility given her current state of being, which wasn't really being at all.  Now, this was an unfamiliar part of the death process for her.  She had always had a body to go back to, but now, she was just ashes.  And worst of all, her soul had turned to ash as well, she didn't quiet understand what it was that had happened to her, just that it couldn't possibly be normal. 

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Prue looked at Paige intensely and said, "When I died, an Elder by the name of Exiptus stripped me of my powers.  She said I had no use for them anymore and that they were needed for someone else.  I didn't understand at first, and then she told me about you.  I figured that The Elders were going to give them to you, but they never really gave me a straight answer."

"So, you think I'm dead and this Exiptus lady has stripped me of my powers.  And not only was I stripped of my powers, but they are the powers that used to belong to you."

"Well, no, not exactly. No, one is able to use their powers up here, remember? So, you could still be dead, but something must have happened—"

"Do you think this Exiptus lady might know something? Is she the enemy?"

"No, uh, Paige, she can't possibly be.  Exiptus disappeared, where to, no one knows, but we have been trying to locate her."

"Well, maybe she didn't disappear and she's just biding her time in a closet somewhere."

"No, that would be impossible to do here. Triptor, would be able to sense her if she was up here."

"Triptor? Another Elder, I assume."

"You know what they say about assuming, don't you Paige?"

"Hey, lady, I'm just trying to learn here. If, you have a problem, I would prefer that you just have out with it so that we can get it out of the way."

"You're right, I'm sorry. Triptor is actually a three-headed hound, used to help find the location of Elders.  You, see, sometimes the Elders have to operate on different planes, and Triptor is used to locate them when the other Elders need to meet with them. Triptor can even locate an Elder on this plane as well, but usually isn't needed to. I'm inclined to believe that something not of the ordinary happened to Exiptus."

"Well, hmm. Who's assuming now?"

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 Well, if I can think in this state, maybe I can function here. How that might work, I don't know. If this is really what it's like to be dead, then I don't wanna be dead anymore.  Leo! Leo! That's right I have Leo, Phoebe, and Paige. I have a family and a home. Prue, P-prue, she's dead. Maybe I can contact her somehow.  Piper was still letting all of the thoughts of her loved ones continue to flood in, the thoughts she should have been having even before she got herself into this mess.  How could I have forgotten about my family? How could I have just let them go? And as she had a thought for every ash, she did not feel all of them start to float up.  She really had no way of feeling or knowing of the monster's return.  Her ashes started to float up and disperse into the eyes of the monster.

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"That is not amusing, Paige," but even as she said this, she couldn't help but give a hint of a smile.

Hmm, more progress, I could get used to this.  "No, but seriously Prue, we need to find out what happened to this Exiptus woman, or at least find out what it was she was up to before she fell off of Tripod's radar."

"It's Triptor, and you are right.  Follow me to the offices."  Paige and Prue made their way silently through the clouds. Paige looked around and noticed all of the robed and faceless wanderers.  She wondered why Prue wasn't wearing one of the standard issue robes.  And then she broke the silence, "Prue, why aren't you wearing one of those robe thing-ys.  And what's with the black outfit?"

"Well, I'm not into the robe thing and I happen to like this outfit.  I could where a robe, but I'm not really like everybody else up here.  It's complicated. Let's just get to the offices and I'll explain more there. What I have to tell you is difficult for some of them to hear."  Paige didn't really understand what could be so difficult, just out with it. Paige interrupted Paige's thoughts, "And we have reached our destination. Just enter through these doors."  Prue made a point to stare directly at one of the wooden knobs before actually turning it. Paige thought such concentration was odd to do one of the simplest of tasks. But a call came from behind them, "Prue! I have something important to tell you," and soon it was somewhat apparent as to what the concentration was for.

"What is it Leo?!" Prue turned her head slightly, forgetting about the knob and Paige watched in disbelief or horror, she wasn't sure if there was a word for it yet.  Prue's hand became completely translucent, like a ghost, and was no longer able to make contact with the knob.

"Prue—"

"Just a minute, Paige, I need to hear what it is Leo has to say."  Prue walked towards Leo to speak with him. What. The. Hell? What just happened here?

Before Paige could wander over to Leo herself, Prue was all ready heading back to the doors.  "Ok, these doors lead to the offices. Go inside and ask for the location of Exiptus's old office, they will walk you to it."  Paige was a little confused. On the outside the building looked easy enough to get through. It was smaller than the Manor and had no frills.  It was a little more humble than she expected, being made of splintered wood and all. Paige placed her hand on the wooden knob and turned to look at her sister?, "Prue, why aren't you coming with me? You said—you said that you were going to explain things. Besides, I thought Leo wasn't allowed to help." 

 "Paige, go. I will join you, but first I need to take care of some business with Leo. And he's not helping, just trust me on this ok? And just be glad you're not dead." Paige was confused by that statement and followed Prue's intense staring to her hand still solidly placed on the door knob. As Paige stared at her hand there trying to figure out what the deal with Prue was, the elder Halliwell had already started on her way back into the clouds.  But Paige didn't want to wait for answers, so she began to run after Prue.  As soon as she got in close enough, Paige reached to touch Prue's shoulder.  But something strange happened. Even though Prue gave the illusion of being corporeal, she wasn't really corporeal at all, for Paige's hand went right through her, and Prue didn't even flinch, or notice, she just kept walking.  Paige stood there, dumbfounded, until her mouth allowed the words she was thinking to come through, what she wanted to say all along, but it was only a whisper, not the shout she had intended, "What the Hell is going on? Is this normal?"