A/N: I haven't forgotten about this fic, but I had forgotten about the chapter or two I hadn't uploaded yet. Review, and more will come. :D
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Piper stood at the sidewalk, looking up at the broken-down, unkempt mess that used to be her beloved family home. From the looks of it, nobody had lived there in well over a decade. The grass was up to her waist, the wood on the porch was rotting, the shutters were falling off the windows. Piper shivered, wondering how it could have gotten this bad.
Molly and Leo stood on either side of her, and, next to them, Phoebe and Paige stared at the manor in their own state of shock and disbelief.
"Come on," Molly said, urging them inside. She ran up the steps, and tried the door. Locked, but not a problem. With one swift kick, the lock gave and the door swung open.
"When did you learn to do that?" Piper demanded, mouth open in surprise.
"You don't want to know," Molly said, grimancing. Taking her mother's hand, she led them inside.
If the outside was the epitome of shabby and neglected, the inside was a museum. Piper was shocked at her familiar surroundings; aside from multiple layers of dust and pieces of plywood covering the windows, the manor really hadn't changed much.
Paige, the last to enter the house, closed the door behind them. Suddenly, it was pitch-black, the only light coming from cracks in the boards covering up the windows. They stood still, waiting for their eyes to adjust. Then, Phoebe went into the kitchen. It only took her a minute to find what she was looking for; candles, in the same drawer where they had always kept them. She quickly located the matches, and returned to the foyer where they rest of her family was standing.
Armed with these lights, they proceeded upstairs. Piper was the first to reach the attic. It took her a while, but she finally managed to twist the stuck doornob, and open the door.
"Why is it sealed so tightly?" she asked.
Molly shrugged. "Nobody's been able to get in here since... well, you know. They tried everything, even chopping the door down, but it still held. Uncle Darryl finally convinced the other cops to give up."
Paige went over to the Book of Shadows. Surprisingly, the book was clean. Unlike the rest of the house, it was untouched by dust or grime. "So, what are we looking for?" she asked.
As if in answer to her question, the book started flipping pages on its own. It stopped on a page featuring an all-to-familiar spell.
"How is that in the Book of Shadows?" Piper asked. "I just wrote that this morning, how did that get in the Book of Shadows?"
"Your 'this morning' was fifteen years ago," Molly reminded her.
Piper sighed. Time-travel always gave her a headache. "Okay, well then, why did the book stop on that page? We need to kill the demon, not go even farther into the future." She looked inquiringly at her sisters, who in turn looked to Leo.
Leo shrugged helplessly, then looked ot his daughter. "Can I go to the Elders?" he asked.
"You can try," Molly said, "But I doubt it would do much good."
"It's worth a shot," Leo said, "Especially since we don't know why we're here, exactly."
Piper nodded. He kissed her good-bye, and orbed out.
"So what do we do now?" Paige asked.
"We should probably get out of here." Molly cautioned. "There's nothing to do around here anymore except throw rocks at abandoned houses, and things tend to come flying through the windows."
Phoebe raised her eyebrows. "Can't they go to the arcade or something?"
Molly shook her head. "The economy was in a recession around the time when... Anyway, it never got better."
"And all of this is because of us?" Paige gasped.
"Like I said, the balance was tipped." Molly repeated. She stood up, motioning for her mother and aunts to follow her. Piper grabbed the Book on their way out.
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Piper stood at the sidewalk, looking up at the broken-down, unkempt mess that used to be her beloved family home. From the looks of it, nobody had lived there in well over a decade. The grass was up to her waist, the wood on the porch was rotting, the shutters were falling off the windows. Piper shivered, wondering how it could have gotten this bad.
Molly and Leo stood on either side of her, and, next to them, Phoebe and Paige stared at the manor in their own state of shock and disbelief.
"Come on," Molly said, urging them inside. She ran up the steps, and tried the door. Locked, but not a problem. With one swift kick, the lock gave and the door swung open.
"When did you learn to do that?" Piper demanded, mouth open in surprise.
"You don't want to know," Molly said, grimancing. Taking her mother's hand, she led them inside.
If the outside was the epitome of shabby and neglected, the inside was a museum. Piper was shocked at her familiar surroundings; aside from multiple layers of dust and pieces of plywood covering the windows, the manor really hadn't changed much.
Paige, the last to enter the house, closed the door behind them. Suddenly, it was pitch-black, the only light coming from cracks in the boards covering up the windows. They stood still, waiting for their eyes to adjust. Then, Phoebe went into the kitchen. It only took her a minute to find what she was looking for; candles, in the same drawer where they had always kept them. She quickly located the matches, and returned to the foyer where they rest of her family was standing.
Armed with these lights, they proceeded upstairs. Piper was the first to reach the attic. It took her a while, but she finally managed to twist the stuck doornob, and open the door.
"Why is it sealed so tightly?" she asked.
Molly shrugged. "Nobody's been able to get in here since... well, you know. They tried everything, even chopping the door down, but it still held. Uncle Darryl finally convinced the other cops to give up."
Paige went over to the Book of Shadows. Surprisingly, the book was clean. Unlike the rest of the house, it was untouched by dust or grime. "So, what are we looking for?" she asked.
As if in answer to her question, the book started flipping pages on its own. It stopped on a page featuring an all-to-familiar spell.
"How is that in the Book of Shadows?" Piper asked. "I just wrote that this morning, how did that get in the Book of Shadows?"
"Your 'this morning' was fifteen years ago," Molly reminded her.
Piper sighed. Time-travel always gave her a headache. "Okay, well then, why did the book stop on that page? We need to kill the demon, not go even farther into the future." She looked inquiringly at her sisters, who in turn looked to Leo.
Leo shrugged helplessly, then looked ot his daughter. "Can I go to the Elders?" he asked.
"You can try," Molly said, "But I doubt it would do much good."
"It's worth a shot," Leo said, "Especially since we don't know why we're here, exactly."
Piper nodded. He kissed her good-bye, and orbed out.
"So what do we do now?" Paige asked.
"We should probably get out of here." Molly cautioned. "There's nothing to do around here anymore except throw rocks at abandoned houses, and things tend to come flying through the windows."
Phoebe raised her eyebrows. "Can't they go to the arcade or something?"
Molly shook her head. "The economy was in a recession around the time when... Anyway, it never got better."
"And all of this is because of us?" Paige gasped.
"Like I said, the balance was tipped." Molly repeated. She stood up, motioning for her mother and aunts to follow her. Piper grabbed the Book on their way out.