AN: Hey guys… Thank you all for your reviews, have no time to respond to them today… So just read and enjoy.

Chapter 17

OoO Late Night Flames OoO

"Aren't you going to eat something?" Mar asked.

She came back down to the basement after she was gone for over two hours, and the clock on the lime green wall showed it was 10:30.

Piper shook her head no, feeling completely defeated.

"Why are you so afraid or your mother?" Piper asked.

Mar sat down on a chair by the couch Piper was flung on, and looked down at her feet.

"Well?" Piper demanded.

"Look, it's always been this way." Mar snapped.

"What way?" Piper insisted. She was going to get out of there, one way or the other.

"Our family. Mom would tell me what to do, and I did it. It always worked fine." She mumbled.

"No it didn't. Why do you keep doing what your mother says? You're way over age."

"This is really none of your business Piper."

"What did she do to make you like this…?"

"Shut up Piper." Mar whispered.

"What did she do Mar?"

"Shut up."

"Is she still doing it?" Piper continued, knowing it was hurting Mar, but seeing it as her only way out of this.

Mar's breathing was getting shaky.

"Did she abuse you Mar?"

"No!" Mar exclaimed, a bit louder.

Piper knew she found that weak spot.

"She hit you, didn't she?"

"Shut Up!!" Mar got to her feet, and pushed Piper off the couch with her hands on Piper's hip, letting her fall with a thud.

Mar's hands immediately flew to her mouth with shock.

"I'm so sorry! Oh my god…" The girl started panicking.

Piper, trying not to wince, looked up at her.

"Don't worry… It's ok… But Mar, honey, you have to let me go… And then I promise you; I'll help you with your mother, I know you can't be happy here…" Piper pleaded, tears escaping.

Mar just kept shaking her head.

"Look at me. Look at me!" Piper forced Mar's eyes to look down straight into Piper's. "I can help you Mar. I can make this better; you just have to let me… This is NOT ok, what your mother is doing is a crime upon a crime and so on. Don't become your mother Mar, stop this before it's too late."

Her words seemed to finally get through. Mar kneeled down and started untying Piper of various ropes.

Long minutes later, when she was free, Mar helped her to her feet.

Piper held Mar's hand tightly for a few seconds after she rose, waiting for some balance to take over.

When she seemed steady enough, she looked up at Mar's red and puffy eyes, and a great deal of sympathy took over.

Mar hadn't been much older then her sister Paige, and remembering the youngest Halliwell and her rebellion life Piper couldn't help but compare the two. Mar was just a miserable girl who never got the chance to make any decisions of her own, and it would take long before she'd be able to become a real woman.

She needed help, and Piper promised herself that whatever happens that night, she'd set Mar free of her mother, one way or another.

"Thank you." Piper said, giving a small but reassuring smile.

"Just don't let dad see you coming out of here."

"I won't, don't worry." Piper said.

She was about to take off when she decided to pull Mar into a small hug, which Mar accepted more then thankfully, pulling Piper even tighter.

After a few moments, Piper pulled away, nodded to Mar as in saying it will all be ok, and started her way up the stairs.

She was dizzy all the way up, always having one hand support her against a wall.

When she was out of the basement and in the kitchen, she looked around for any signs of Frank, yet there were none.

There was a back door only a few feet away from her, and Piper lunched for it like her life depended on it.

Her life; and maybe even Leo's. If it wasn't too late.

Once she was out of that house, she started running.

Somehow, it was helping her get her balance back, and she felt stronger with each step, yet weaker at the same time.

She knew exactly where she was heading to; Leo's house.

Minutes later, when she realized that the police station wasn't that far away, she thought that maybe alerting them would be much more useful then doing anything herself. If it wasn't too late.

She ran up to it, and started banging on the front doors, then the window, but no one was inside. Where the hell was everyone?

Giving up on that, Piper tried the Lustville motel which was the next building to the station, but no one was there either, which made sense since the Tuckers owned it and there was no reason to open it anyway.

Gathering herself again, Piper headed back to her original destination; Leo's house.

Harriet surely has already got there hours ago, but Piper had strong hope that she might make it on time.

Twenty minutes passed before Piper could see Leo's house up the street.

There were no signs of fire, but when she got a bit closer she saw that the front door was wide open.

She squinted her eyes and could see her own home in the dark not too far away, but her legs led her through that open door of Leo's house.

It was dark inside, and Piper knew that upstairs; were both Leo and Maggie, probably sound asleep.

As she walked slowly through the dark room feeling for various objects which she couldn't see, she suddenly heard something shifting.

Looking to her side, she could make out a figure lying on a couch.

Could that be Harriet?

Guessing that whoever it was; was in fact asleep, Piper made her way closer.

She was able to make out the woman's features, and realized it wasn't who she thought it was. It was Keren.

Happy to had find someone that wasn't a danger, Piper was about to wake the woman, when she heard a small thud from upstairs, just hardly audible.

Was that Harriet?

Not wanting to take the risk of being heard, Piper decided to leave Keren to sleep, and she herself headed towards the stairs.

She climbed them slowly and silently, and as she was getting closer to the top step, the muffled voices that Piper still couldn't make out were getting clearer.

By the time she set her foot on the second floor,she had identified the noises to be a woman's crying, and Piper had a feeling she knew who it was.

They came from Leo's room. Oh God. OH GOD!

She hurried to it, but stopped when she saw what she did.

The bed in Leo's room wasn't touched or slept in. Next to it, on the floor, set none other but Harriet. The small night light was the only thing that let Piper make out her figure.

Harriet's cheeks were stuck in tears, and her whole face was completely red.

Next to her, lay a bottle of bear, some of it poured on the beige rug.

But that wasn't what was scaring Piper; what made her shiver were the matches, thrown all over the floor. Harriet was trying to light one, but withough success.

What Piper could also see, that the box was still half full with matches.

Harriet, who still didn't seem to notice Piper's presents, threw the match she had just broken against the box with desperation, and hurried to take out another one, swinging it back and forth against the box, trying to light it up.

Suddenly a familiar smell reached Piper's nose, and she looked down to her feet.

She was standing in a puddle of liquid, and she couldn't see the end of it.

Piper knew very well what it was.

Fuel.

Without meaning to, Piper gasped, and at the same moment heard fire lighting up.

She quickly looked up, and saw Harriet, holding a match with fire burning on it's tip.

"Put it out!" Piper screamed.

"NO!!! You bitch! I'll kill him!" Harriet yelled back.

"He's not here Harriet; he's not in the house! Put it out!" Piper screamed even louder.

"What the hell is this?!" Keren exclaimed from behind her.

Piper turned around, and was about to explain, but Keren had already seemed to understand the situation, seeing as she was lstaring at Harriet withshocked eyes.

"Harriet?" She asked her friend.

But Harriet was too caught up with herself.

"Oh god…" Keren mumbled, and Piper took a step back.

Seconds later, bright light flashed in front of the two, one which quickly turned into hot flames.

"Get out of here!" Piper shouted to Keren, who shook her head frantically.

"I can't! Maggie is sleeping in the end of the hall!"

Piper's heart skipped a beat.

Maggie; she completely forgot about her.

"I'll get her! You go!" Piper yelled, already starting to move towards the end of the corridor, very well aware that she was walking on fuel that will be burning in no time.

"No!" Keren screamed, starting to move forward as well, until the fire from Leo's room came out and blocked her way.

"Don't worry, I'll get her!" Piper said, taking her jacket off, ready to cover Maggie with it.

She could still hear Keren screaming in frustration, but she herself tried to forget that there would be no way back from Maggie's room.

Piper was already coughing from the acid that her lungs were starting to inhale, when she saw Maggie's slender figure in her bed.

She ran up to the girl, and started shaking her.

"Wake up honey, you need to wake up!" Piper panicked.

"P-Piper?" Maggie's voice came as she sat up.

"Come on, we need to get out of here…" Piper said, wrapping her jacket aroundMaggie so that it was covering her entire head.

"Is there a fire?" Maggie panicked.

"We'll get through it, trust me hon… come on."

And so she started leading the girl out of that room.

They both had their arms around each other, and Piper had Maggie's head hidden close to Piper's rib cage.

Piper was alermed by Maggie's coughing with no end, and started walking faster down the corridor, trying to ignore her now horrible aching head and watery eyes and the lack of oxygen.

They reached the point where the fire was blocking the way.

"Maggie, we'll have to jump!" Piper yelled, trying to top the loud flames.

"No!" Maggie cried out, tearing up.

"We have to get out of here honey… Keepthe jacket covering your face, and just jump. You'll make it, I promise you will…" Piper tried to reassure the girl.

"I'm afraid Piper!" Maggie cried.

"I'll give you a push… We have to hurry; the fire will only get larger!" Piper tried.

She felt Maggie squeeze Piper a last hug, before parting her arms away from her and standing to face the fire.

"Ready? On three," Piper instructed. "One… Two… Go!" Piper picked the girl by her waist, and gave all the strength she could master into practically throwing Maggie as far as she could.

Maggie landed on her knees and palms, and Piper's mind started racing.

"Maggie!! Are you ok?!" Piper screamed.

"I'm fine!" Maggie coughed, and Piper saw her getting up to her feet. Thank god.

Ok. Now all she has to do is get to the other side herself. Then down the stairs, and through the house and out the door…

Oh god, we'll never make it…

--OoO--

Leo was walking down by the river, his flashlight in front of him. It's been hours since they've started looking, and Piper wasn't even close to being found yet.

His hopes were raised high when he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket.

"Yes??" Leo hurried.

"Leo," Rob's voice came, "Get over to your place, FAST!"

"Why? She's there?"

"Your house is on fire… Maggie is inside."

Those words struck him so hard he almost fell backwards.

Without even giving it any thought, Leo raced to his car and shot off back to his house.

It seemed like half of Lustville were gathered around there, and when he saw his house going in flames he pushed sharp on the break, opened the door and ran out.

"Leo!" Rob yelled to him, and ran up to his friend.

"I'm going in!" Leo called back, and continued his run.

"I tried, it's impossible, the fire is everywhere, all the entrances are blocked!"

Leo had to stop when he got closer. About ten other man were trying to find a way to break in, but no one seemed to be able to. The rest if them were trying to put the fire out.

"LEO!" Keren's voice came, and she appeared behind him.

"What the fuck happened?!" Leo yelled.

His mother looked hysterical, the way he'd never seen her before. But at the moment all he could think about is his daughter's life, which was in great danger and he felt useless more then ever.

"Maggie! Leo, she's trapped in there! I don't know if she'll be able to get her out!" Keren was crying.

"Who's she?!" Leo asked back, trying to hear his mother and himself in all the noise.

"Piper! I tried to get past the hallway, but it was too late! Leo you have to do something, they won't be able to get through there! The top floor is all on fire!" Keren cried.

Piper? What… And Maggie… "Stay here!" Leo said to his mother and no one in particular, and ran towards the house.

While still running, he took his jacket off and put it in front of him.

The last thing he heard was various people screaming his name, but the next thing he knew he was running on burning fire, and only stopping when he felt that there was no fire within a few feet around him.

"MAGGIE!! PIPER!!"

To Be Continued…

AN: Like I've said, next chapter will be the last… I'm not giving anything away. Don't forget to review people! This is almost your last chance to do that for this fiction. I've already started writing a new one which will be out with the last chapter (yes, it's a Charmed one. Yes, It's PiperLeo one. No, there is no magic. Lol). I have a question… do you guys prefer that I write one fic like I do now and only start a new one when I'm done (therefore updating it quickly), or having two fictions going on at the same time, but updating each at a time? Let me know.