"I'm what?" Piper asked increduously.
"My mother. I know it sounds crazy, but... Look," Molly said, getting an idea. She reached under her sweater and pulled out a small gold locket. She took the chain off, and handed it to Piper.
Piper looked at the locket, turning it over in her hands. She recognised it immedeately. It used to belong to Piper's mother. She opened it carefully. Inside was a picture of herself with a seven-year-old version of Molly.
Piper looked up at Molly. "You're... you're my daughter?"
Molly nodded, then looked past her to Leo, Phoebe, and Paige. "Daddy!" she exclaimed. "And Aunt Phoebe, and Aunt Paige... you all came back."
"Back from where?" Paige asked.
Molly bit her lip. "Maybe we should go inside. Louis has to have left for work by now."
"Louis?" Piper asked. "Is he the guy you've been living with?"
Molly nodded. "How did you know?"
As they walked toward the house, Piper explained to her about the dreams, and then about the spell she'd cast that brought them here. "You do know about magic, right?" she asked. "I mean, we didn't keep that from you?"
"No," Molly answered. "you didn't. My powers were too strong to bind, so you taught me from an early age to control them." Molly opened the door and led them into a dark, small house. The outside was unkempt, but that was nothing compared to the interior - beer bottles, crumbs, and other garbage was everywhere.
"I let you live here?!?" Piper exclaimed.
"No, you didn't let me." Molly said. "Um, maybe you'd better sit down."
She cleared a place on the couch, and her parents and aunts sat, looking at her expectantly.
"Um, I'm not sure if I should be telling you this," she began nervously.
"It's okay, honey, go ahead." Leo assured her.
"Well, two years ago, a few days after my thirteenth birthday, a demon attacked us at the manor. He was working with a darklighter, and the darklighter shot Daddy with one of his arrows, and then got to Aunt Paige..." Molly paused, wiping tears from her cheek, and continued, looking to the floor as if she was talking to herself. "Mom tried to blow him up, but he disappeared, and the demon came up behind me, and Aunt Phoebe ran at him, but he threw an energy ball at her, and she hit the wall really hard. Mom was pleading with him to let me go, and he did, but then he threw her across the room, and she hit the old grandfather clock, and then I ran, and I called for help, but by that time it was too late, they said you'd... died."
Molly looked up at them. By now she was cryingso hard she was gasping for breath. Piper pulled her onto the couch with them, hugging her tightly. Phoebe, Paige, and Leo all tried to comfort her, and, after a while, she stopped crying.
"So you've been living here ever since?" Phoebe asked when the girl had calmed down.
Molly nodded.
"But why? Isn't there somewhere else you could go?" Paige asked.
"No. After you guys died, the balance between good and evil was tipped considerably in evil's favour. Without the Charmed Ones, there was nobody to fight the upper-level demons that came after the Source. It's gotten really bad, to the point of an apocolypse." Molly said.
"This guy you've been living with," Piper started, "how did you meet him?"
"I stumbled into this neighborhood one night, after I'd been living on the street a while, and he found me and said I could live with him if I agreed to cover for him when he went out selling drugs." she explained.
Piper looked at Leo. "We've got to stop this from happening."
Leo nodded. "I know, but how?"
"Wait a minute," Paige said, thinking out loud. "If all we're supposed to do is change her past - our future - wouldn't Molly have come to us? Maybe the reason we were sent here is to help her."
"Help her how?" Phoebe asked.
"The demon." Molly said suddenly. "He's still out there, I know he is. I think..." she paused, and took a breath. "I think he's coming back for me."
"What makes you think that?" Leo asked.
"I had a premontion." Molly said. "I saw him, he was throwing an athame at me."
"You've got the power of premonition?" Piper asked.
"I've got all three of Melinda Warren's powers. Yes, you told me about her." Molly said at Piper surprised look. "Many times. You also told me about Prue. Her astral projection was one of the first powers I learned to control."
"What other powers do you have?" Piper wanted to know.
"A lot." Molly replied. "I am the daughter of a whitelighter and a Charmed One. The main one I've got that you don't is telepathy. It's like how whitelighters can sense their charges' thoughts and emotions, only since I'm a witch, I have the power to let people sense my thoughts, too."
"Cool." Paige remarked.
"It is." Molly said, smiling. "It must be how you got those dreams, Mom, although I wasn't trying to send you any kind of message. Maybe... Maybe it's the amulet?" she suggested.
"What amulet?" Leo questioned.
Molly stared up the stairs, motioning for them to follow. She pulled the amulet out of it's storage box, and held it up for them to see.
"You made this for me for my thirteenth birthday. You said it would protect me."
"How is that possible? There's no such thing as a protection spell." Phoebe said.
"This isn't a spell." Molly told her. "It's more like a shield. I'm not sure exactly how you made it. You probably wrote it down in the Book of Shadows."
"Okay, so where's the book?" Piper asked.
Molly bit her lip. "It's still in the manor. I don't think anyone lives there, though. We could go get it."
"Allright, then, let's go." Paige urged her sisters.
"Are you sure there's no one there?" Phoebe asked apprehensively.
"No." Molly admitted.
"Well, it can't hurt to check it out." Piper said, already getting up. By unspoken consent, her family followed her downstairs, and they set out for the manor.
"My mother. I know it sounds crazy, but... Look," Molly said, getting an idea. She reached under her sweater and pulled out a small gold locket. She took the chain off, and handed it to Piper.
Piper looked at the locket, turning it over in her hands. She recognised it immedeately. It used to belong to Piper's mother. She opened it carefully. Inside was a picture of herself with a seven-year-old version of Molly.
Piper looked up at Molly. "You're... you're my daughter?"
Molly nodded, then looked past her to Leo, Phoebe, and Paige. "Daddy!" she exclaimed. "And Aunt Phoebe, and Aunt Paige... you all came back."
"Back from where?" Paige asked.
Molly bit her lip. "Maybe we should go inside. Louis has to have left for work by now."
"Louis?" Piper asked. "Is he the guy you've been living with?"
Molly nodded. "How did you know?"
As they walked toward the house, Piper explained to her about the dreams, and then about the spell she'd cast that brought them here. "You do know about magic, right?" she asked. "I mean, we didn't keep that from you?"
"No," Molly answered. "you didn't. My powers were too strong to bind, so you taught me from an early age to control them." Molly opened the door and led them into a dark, small house. The outside was unkempt, but that was nothing compared to the interior - beer bottles, crumbs, and other garbage was everywhere.
"I let you live here?!?" Piper exclaimed.
"No, you didn't let me." Molly said. "Um, maybe you'd better sit down."
She cleared a place on the couch, and her parents and aunts sat, looking at her expectantly.
"Um, I'm not sure if I should be telling you this," she began nervously.
"It's okay, honey, go ahead." Leo assured her.
"Well, two years ago, a few days after my thirteenth birthday, a demon attacked us at the manor. He was working with a darklighter, and the darklighter shot Daddy with one of his arrows, and then got to Aunt Paige..." Molly paused, wiping tears from her cheek, and continued, looking to the floor as if she was talking to herself. "Mom tried to blow him up, but he disappeared, and the demon came up behind me, and Aunt Phoebe ran at him, but he threw an energy ball at her, and she hit the wall really hard. Mom was pleading with him to let me go, and he did, but then he threw her across the room, and she hit the old grandfather clock, and then I ran, and I called for help, but by that time it was too late, they said you'd... died."
Molly looked up at them. By now she was cryingso hard she was gasping for breath. Piper pulled her onto the couch with them, hugging her tightly. Phoebe, Paige, and Leo all tried to comfort her, and, after a while, she stopped crying.
"So you've been living here ever since?" Phoebe asked when the girl had calmed down.
Molly nodded.
"But why? Isn't there somewhere else you could go?" Paige asked.
"No. After you guys died, the balance between good and evil was tipped considerably in evil's favour. Without the Charmed Ones, there was nobody to fight the upper-level demons that came after the Source. It's gotten really bad, to the point of an apocolypse." Molly said.
"This guy you've been living with," Piper started, "how did you meet him?"
"I stumbled into this neighborhood one night, after I'd been living on the street a while, and he found me and said I could live with him if I agreed to cover for him when he went out selling drugs." she explained.
Piper looked at Leo. "We've got to stop this from happening."
Leo nodded. "I know, but how?"
"Wait a minute," Paige said, thinking out loud. "If all we're supposed to do is change her past - our future - wouldn't Molly have come to us? Maybe the reason we were sent here is to help her."
"Help her how?" Phoebe asked.
"The demon." Molly said suddenly. "He's still out there, I know he is. I think..." she paused, and took a breath. "I think he's coming back for me."
"What makes you think that?" Leo asked.
"I had a premontion." Molly said. "I saw him, he was throwing an athame at me."
"You've got the power of premonition?" Piper asked.
"I've got all three of Melinda Warren's powers. Yes, you told me about her." Molly said at Piper surprised look. "Many times. You also told me about Prue. Her astral projection was one of the first powers I learned to control."
"What other powers do you have?" Piper wanted to know.
"A lot." Molly replied. "I am the daughter of a whitelighter and a Charmed One. The main one I've got that you don't is telepathy. It's like how whitelighters can sense their charges' thoughts and emotions, only since I'm a witch, I have the power to let people sense my thoughts, too."
"Cool." Paige remarked.
"It is." Molly said, smiling. "It must be how you got those dreams, Mom, although I wasn't trying to send you any kind of message. Maybe... Maybe it's the amulet?" she suggested.
"What amulet?" Leo questioned.
Molly stared up the stairs, motioning for them to follow. She pulled the amulet out of it's storage box, and held it up for them to see.
"You made this for me for my thirteenth birthday. You said it would protect me."
"How is that possible? There's no such thing as a protection spell." Phoebe said.
"This isn't a spell." Molly told her. "It's more like a shield. I'm not sure exactly how you made it. You probably wrote it down in the Book of Shadows."
"Okay, so where's the book?" Piper asked.
Molly bit her lip. "It's still in the manor. I don't think anyone lives there, though. We could go get it."
"Allright, then, let's go." Paige urged her sisters.
"Are you sure there's no one there?" Phoebe asked apprehensively.
"No." Molly admitted.
"Well, it can't hurt to check it out." Piper said, already getting up. By unspoken consent, her family followed her downstairs, and they set out for the manor.