I do not own Charmed in any way, shape, or form but I own the demons and the story.

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Chapter 5

An Ordinary Day At Last?

Phoebe sat at her desk, reading the letter for the millionth time. She still couldn't get how similar the girl -Dawn- was to her. Dawn was 15 years old and she lived un Sunnydale, California. That was close to L.A. She had an older sister who was 23 years old, whom she had written about. She hadn't named her sister, but had gone on to say her mother died a few years ago, leaving her and her sister alone. They had a large group of friends that they always hung out with, But Dawn's sister mostly had to fend for both or them. Dawn wrote that she knew that her older sister was only trying to take care of her, but she felt that her sister was being suppressive. Dawn felt that her sister was trying too hard to be like their mother. She wanted her (big) sister- someone to laugh with, stay up late and watch movies with; most of all, she just wanted to hang out with her sister on those late nights whenever she went out, but she always said no and put her to bed at a "reasonable" hour.

Phoebe had gone through all that with Prue when they had lost their mother and then their Grams, and Piper when they lost Prue. Phoebe wrote back a long personal letter telling Dawn all about herself (well, not all, considering) and how she went through similar circumstances and gave some advice. She decided to post a short reply in her column. Checking her watch, she realized work was over for the day. She stood up and stretched, yawning, and left for home.



As Phoebe walked into the manor, a delicious aroma was in the air. She inhaled deeply. Mmm. Dinner. One could never resist Piper's cooking. Shedding her coat and purse, she dropped then on the couch and walked into the dining room. Not long after, she was followed by Paige and Leo. The table was set, and a few savory dishes were already on the table. The two sisters and Leo sat down eagerly.

"I want some of those vegetables. They're a Chinese dish, right?" said Paige.

"Ooh! Yummy! Shrimp and tofu!" Phoebe spooned some onto her plate.

"Pass the noodles!" said Leo, reaching over and grabbing the plate of noodles, sticking his arm in Phoebe's face. Giggling, Phoebe playfully slapped Leo's arm. Leo sat back down, wincing like it hurt.

"You guys weren't supposed to start eating. And hands off my husband." Piper stood in the doorway, holding a steaming dish in her hands, grinning. She loved cooking for her husband and sisters, loved how they enjoyed it with unsuppressed zeal.

"What's the main dish?" asked Leo, eyeing the dish in Piper's hands.

"Peking Duck. But wait until I get it on the table, you pig." Leo hastily retracted his hand. They kept up a conversation through dinner.

"Why's everything all Chinese today?" asked Phoebe, munching on a duck wing. "There's even chopsticks." She waved the pair in her hand.

"Oh, sudden inspiration. I wanted to go Chinese for a day and I wanted to try that Peking Duck recipe Mark gave me. Plus I know you like shrimp and tofu." said Piper.

Looking over, Leo saw that Paige was having a little trouble with her chopsticks.

"Don't do it like that. Here, hold then like this. Yep, that's right."

"Thanks, Leo. Wait- don't tell me- Chinese witch charge?" Leo nodded. "I guess you speak fluent Chinese too."

"Yeah, but only the main dialect. There's like a hundred different dialects."

"Just how many languages do you know?" as Leo opened his mouth to reply, Piper continued. "Wait, don't tell me. I don't want to know. It adds that little bit of mystery. And I like that." Piper looked at Leo with a mischievous glint in her eye. Leo leaned in and kissed her.

"Gross! We're eating here!" Phoebe yelled. Piper and Leo broke apart, laughing.

After they finished eating, Leo offered to wash the dishes, which wasn't a problem for Piper at all. Phoebe stayed behind to help Leo clean up, and Piper and Paige both headed upstairs. Paige turned into her room, but piper walked right past her room. She went to the attic instead. She'd been trying to memorize the Possession Demon vanquishing spell, and she wanted to be sure she had it right. Piper puffed up the stairs and paused at the top. Was it just her, or were the stairs in this house getting steeper? This pregnancy was really slowing her down. She sighed and headed towards the Book.

Seconds later, a bloodcurdling scream came from the attic.

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I'm really pissing you guys off with these cliffies, huh? Anyways, now you see what I was getting at with the apologies for hinting at Buffy. As I said, I have a crossover fic written that takes place directly after this one and the hints are necessary to tie them in.