A/N: This is just a merry little "filler" for my series, in honor of Christmas time. Well, actually, it's supposed to teach a bit of a lesson about the REAL Christmas, as well. (And no, I'm not Christian. Which is partially why I'm doing this little side story.....You'll see what I mean.) Enjoy! (P.S. Rebecca Lynn Howard isn't one of the biggest country stars, however she did have a huge hit with a song called "Forgive", but seeing as how this takes place in the future, I consider her a "late bloomer" in this timeline.) peanut2lb: A poppet is a ceremonial doll, used to represent a person or being. They used a poppet in the first episode of "Charmed", to represent Jeremy. It was how they were able to stick the thorns into him; they stuck the thorns into the poppet, chanted a spell, and then the thorns were transferred to the real Jeremy (but lifesize). To someone who looks at Wicca as "evil" and devil worshipping, they'd probably consider a poppet the same as a "voodoo doll". rjf2004: lol "i loved how blissfully ignorant Pandora is when she blabs about other peoples thoughts!" ---- So funny! Thanks for reviewing! (I love your crossover fic!) wyatt333: No offense taken. This little "sub-plot" focuses a lot on Persia, so I hope you like that. I'm sorry if it has been too "Pearl centered" for ya. I guess she's just my most developed character and everything, because I created her first. I know, it's weird, but I'm more "connected" to her then the rest. ::notices the strange looks from everyone else:: Hehe..yes..well, I'm just gonna go to the next reviewer.... Phyre: Oh yes, I'm sure they're all very happy to be back in their own bodies! As far as Prue and Paige accepting Cole....I dunno, I haven't gotten that far yet. (I like the tension.) As far as Andy, he will definitely be in this fic. You just have to read to find out what becomes of him. ;) Phyre will show up, butit won't be "soon". (Probably sometime after chapter 10.) Piper xox Leo, winter blaze, CharmedAli, & Chub: Thank you all for leaving your thoughts. I always love the reviews; they're so encouraging!

The Children Of Light
Chapter 5: Merry Solstice

Persia's brown eyes flickered open and small rays of sunlight caused the golden specks in her eyes to glimmer. Her nose twitched, as the smell of freshly baked ginger bread cookies tickled her senses. "Mmm..." She mumbled, as she scooted upright and rubbed her eyes, scanning the room that she shared with her baby sister. Pam's not here. She thought, as she noticed the door closed and nobody about. She stretched her sleek body and then carefully pulled the warm covers away from her body, allowing a frigid wave of air to wash over her. She immediately noticed bumps form along her epidermis. "Oh oh!" She muttered, as she planted her feet on the carpet and scurried over to the closet, plucking a floral pink robe and then slipping into it. She then slipped her feet into warm, fuzzy slippers and glanced in the mirror, smoothing her rich hair. "Okay." She breathed. "Time to go see what Aunt Piper is cooking." She made her way out of her room.

----

"Shake, shake, shake!" Paige sang, as she swayed her hips from side to side. "Shake your bootay!" She said, emphasizing the last word. A large swirl of orbs seemed to be shaking around above Paige's head, as she sang. A timer sprang to life, alerting the family that whatever was in the over, was finally done. Paige, continuing to sing, flicked her wrist and in a swirl of orbs, a perfectly cooked ham appeared on the cooling racks, that were stationed on the island.

Piper came rushing into the room. "Did someone get my ham?!"

"Shake, shake, shake...." Paige sang out, as she pointed to the ham.

"Thank goodness!" Piper exclaimed, as she made her way to her precious ham. She leaned over the ham, letting its aroma fill her nose. "Mmm..." She breathed. "What about the...."

Prue, who was standing by the sink, pointed to a batch of freshly baked ginger bread cookies.

"Oh, wonderful!" Piper exclaimed, as she walked over to the plate of ginger bread men and gently pressed her finger onto the stomach of one of the cookies, feeling it sink down slightly and then return, when she removed the weight. "They're perfect!"

"What's perfect?" Persia asked, from the doorway.

"Oh, Persia, you're up!" Piper exclaimed, merrily. "Did you have a good sleep?"

"Yeah." Persia said, as she brushed a strand of hair out of her face. This was when she noticed that her Aunt Paige was orbing something over her head and her Aunt Prue seemed to be washing vegetables with her telekinesis. "What's going on?" She asked, curiously. "And what's with the powers? I thought we had a 'personal gain' thing going on?"

"Oh, we do." Prue replied, as a tomato floated to a dry towel, to let the water run off of it. "But this isn't personal gain."

Persia looked dumbfounded. "I'm still confused." She walked over to the coffee pot and poured herself a large cup of steaming hot coffee. "Perhaps you could enlighten me, this early in the morning.." She placed the mug to her lips, letting the steaming liquid flow into her mouth.

Prue chuckled. "You're like Phoebe. Getting up at ten o' clock and then saying it's still too early."

Piper waved her elder sister's comment away. "What Prue means is, we are making several dinners for the homeless shelter. Since we aren't making this meal for us, it's to help someone less fortunate, we figure we can use our powers to help us get more done."

Persia nodded, knowingly. "Oh..That's cool! C-can I help?"

Piper smiled broadly. "Of course! What's your specialty?"

"My specialty?" Persia asked, skeptically.

"What would you like to do?"

Persia shrugged. "Whatever I can do help...Uh, what is there?"

Piper spread her arms out to the kitchen. "The kitchen is like a world within a world, you can do anything." Her eyes scanned the room. "How about...." Another timer blared, cutting Piper off and alerting her to the fact that the fruit she had put in the fridge was done chilling. "The pie!" She scurried over to the fridge and pulled out a bowl of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. "You can help me mold the crust for the pie and then help with making the filling."

Persia's eyes lit up. "Sounds wonderful. But I should probably get dressed first."

Paige waved her hand. "And you'll need one of these." An apron orbed off the back of a chair, right into Persia's hands.

"Uh..thanks, Aunt Paige."

"No problem." Paige replied.

Piper spun on her heel, sending her baby sister one of her 'looks'. "Are you, by any chance, done with that yet?" She motioned to the glob of swirling orbs above Paige's head.

"Oh, right!" Paige laughed. The orbs vanished, only to reform, filling her hand with a plastic cooking bag, full of spices. "I think I really did a good job, d'ya see how the bag is thoroughly coated with spices? Just like the recipe said."

Piper frowned and snatched the bag from Paige. "Go help Prue."

Paige rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." She grabbed an un-rinsed tomato.

"Don't give me that tone of voice, Missy!"

Paige raised an eyebrow. "Whatcha gonna do about it, sis?"

Without a word, Prue turned phasable, but Paige didn't notice.

Piper flicked her wrist and the tomato exploded all over Paige, then small bit of tomato and tomato juice flew through Prue, hitting the wall. Piper then grabbed a ceramic bowl, as her elder sister turned solid again. "And you can clean that up, Paige." Piper replied, as she made her way over to the kitchen table.

Paige opened her hands, letting the red pulp drip from her fingers and into a pile in the sink. "Errr!"

----1 Hour Later----

Persia had her hand placed on the mixer, as it buzzed around the bowl, without being plugged in. It was much safer, considering the amount of people in the room. "I think the filling for the pie is almost ready."

Piper brushed her hands across her apron and made her way over to her eldest niece. "Oh, very nice job!" She pulled a small plastic, pink spoon from her pocket.

"That looks like the Baskin Robin's spoon."

Piper blushed. "Well...you can never have enough of 'em, right?"

Persia raised an eyebrow.

"Don't worry, I left a rather....Substantial tip." Piper dipped her tiny spoon into the filling, as Persia stopped the flow of electricity from her hand to the mixer. She lifted it to her mouth and savored the taste. "This is amazing!" She complimented, after removing the tiny spoon from her mouth.

"Thanks."

"I think we can put it into the pie now." Piper said, as she pulled the pre-heated pie crust from across the table. "Pour it evenly."

"Okay." Persia replied. She turned to look at her other aunts. "How are you guys doing?"

"Peachy." Prue replied, as she waved one hand to chop carrots and waved her other hand to peel potatoes.

"Aunt Paige?"

"Fine." Paige grumbled, as she scrubbed the red stain from the wall; Piper had refused to let her use magic to correct the explosion's aftermath.

"O-okay." Persia returned, as she picked up the bowl and began to spread its contents into the pie crust.

"Well, I'm going to call Pheebs..."

"No need, we're home!" Phoebe replied, as she skipped into the kitchen, carrying her youngest niece.

Prissandra cooed, as she reached for Piper.

Piper scooped the tot into her arms and snuggled her. "Hey, baby."

Phoebe ruffled the child's hair. "My little Prissy girl was sooo good at the store!"

Prissy giggled, as she twirled strands her mother's hair.

"Where's everyone else?" Piper asked.

"Wrapping gifts, so no going upstairs." Phoebe wagged her index finger at the people in the kitchen. "Or else!" Her nose twitched, as she sniffed the air. "It smells really good in here. What's cookin'?"

"A lot." Persia spoke up, as she set down the empty bowl and smiled at her perfectly filled pie.

"Oh, hey sweetie. You're up."

"Yeah, at ten." Prue smirked. "She's like you."

"At least she can cook." Piper quipped. "She musta inherited that from me."

Phoebe rolled her eyes and made her way to her daughter's side. "Whatcha makin'?"

"Triple Berry Cream Pie."

"Oh!" Phoebe's finger was instantly reaching for the pie.

Piper flicked her wrist, causing a small explosion in front of Phoebe, knocking her back a few feet; this left the pie unharmed.

"Ow!" Phoebe snapped, as she rubbed her bruised finger.

"That pie is for charity, you know that! No touchy!" Piper scolded.

Phoebe frowned. "Meanie." She frowned and exited the room.

Piper rolled her eyes. "Leo!"

Leo orbed into the room, kissing Piper's cheek as he materialized. "Yes?"

Piper handed her youngest to her husband. "Take Prissy upstairs. I'm trying to get this cooking done."

Leo nodded, as he tickled his daughter's stomach, and she giggled. "I love you."

"I love you too." Piper replied, followed by a kiss on his cheek.

Leo grinned and orbed out with his youngest child.

----5:30 P.M.----

Cole shimmered into P3, his arms covered with bags and his hands filled with plates. "Piper?" He yelled, as he stumbled to a nearby table and deposited the weight.

Piper emerged from the backroom. "Hi Cole." She greeted, merrily. She made her way over to the table. "Thanks for bringing these, but they go over there.." She pointed to a table across the room; it was much larger than the other tables and was filled with food.

Cole let out a heavy sigh. "Sure." He replied, as he picked the plates up again.

Piper grinned. "Thank you!" She let her eyes fall across the room. Just a few hours ago, it had been buzzing with people, preparing it for the Christmas Eve feast for the homeless. She had closed the club for business tonight, and agreed to open it for the homeless. She would have done her cooking here, but with people all around, she couldn't take the risk of potentially exposing magic. But she had cleared them out, using the excuse that she needed the space for her family to bring the food in, which was only partially false. In just about 30 minutes, the place would be filled with people who would be happily filling their stomachs. She had also hired one of the late blooming country super stars, Rebecca Lynn Howard, to play at P3.

----5:45 P.M.----

The Charmed Ones, The Blessed Ones, The Children Of Light, Leo, Cole, and Glenn had all seated themselves atop the stage. They were all admiring the glistening Christmas tree, that Piper had set up a week earlier.

"It's pretty, mom." Phiona complimented, as she leaned into her mother.

"Thanks, sweetheart." Piper said, as she wrapped an arm around her eldest daughter.

"Mommy.." Pam asked, as she laid her head on her mother's lap.

"Yes?" Phoebe inquired.

"Why do we celebrate Christmas, if it's a Christian holiday?"

Persia smiled. "Actually, it's not."

"What?" Pam asked, as she turned to face her sister.

"It's not a Christian holiday." Persia repeated. She brushed a strand of hair from her face and then proceeded to sit cross legged on the stage. "It's actually a Pagan holiday."

"Pagan?"

"Yeah, Pagan is what Wicca stemmed from. Pagan predates Christianity, that means it was around much longer than the Christian religion." Persia explained. She had seemed to attract the attention of her entire family. "'Christmas' was originally celebrated by the Pagans, in order to celebrate the ancient Winter Solstice. It was widely celebrated by the ancient Romans, in a celebration called Saturnalia, in honor of Saturn."

"Isn't Saturn a planet?" Pam asked, remembering something about the planets from school.

"Yes, but the planets were named after the Roman Goddesses and Gods, who were actually Greek Goddesses and Gods, but renamed and adopted by the Romans. In fact, some even thought that the stars were the Goddesses and Gods, looking over them."

"Keep explaining about how Christmas came about." Phiona probed.

"Well, when the Christians invaded Roam, they wanted to convert the Pagans to Christians. So they decided to put their Lord's birthday right in the middle of the Saturnalia celebration. This way when people celebrated, they would be celebrating in a socially acceptable way for the Christians. It would have been suicide if they had tried to ban this powerful religion, when they were just starting out."

"So Christmas isn't actually Jesus' birthday?" Phiona asked, curiously.

"Nope. In fact, Jesus was probably born sometime in the late spring or early summer." Persia answered.

Pandora wrinkled her nose. "That seems pretty mean, to steal somebody's holiday like that."

Persia nodded, as she pulled her cousin into her lap. "Yeah, I think so too. But as long as we celebrate Christmas the way it was intended and we keep the true meaning of Christmas circulating, we can keep it alive."

"I'm gonna tell all my kids this story too." Pandora said, proudly.

Persia grinned, as she ruffled the little girl's dark hair. "I'm sure you will."

"But if we want to celebrate it the true way, then don't have have to get rid of Christmas trees and stuff?" Pam asked.

Persia shook her head. "Nope."

"Why?"

"Because, almost everything in modern Christmas stems from Pagan traditions. Christmas trees were originally related to Pagans because they represented ever lasting life; they were the only trees that didn't 'die' during winter and people decorated the branches of the evergreen trees to symbolize that life. Kissing under the mistletoe was a symbol of the Goddess of Fertility and burning a Yule Log was sort of a gift to the Goddesses and Gods to make sure that the sun would rise the next morning, giving them another day to live. Holly was used by Pagans was associated with a Goddess of Love, Frigga. The Church banned the use of holly and instead chose to use poinsettias. Poinsettias were a native flower of Mexico, receiving their name from Joel R. Poinsett, who the was person to introduce the flower to the United States. In fact, even gift giving originated with the Roman celebration of Saturnalia."

"Wow." Phoebe breathed. "How'd you find this all out?"

"Extensive research. It was the same time I was researching my powers, after I discovered them." Persia replied.

"And some people still have the nerve to say that Christmas is a purely Christian holiday." Paige spouted.

"Or that even though it may have been a Pagan holiday, it is purely Christian now." Persia spoke up. "I met someone who told me that."

Glenn raised an eyebrow. "Sure." He smirked, sarcastically. "If you wanted to get rid of everything that you associate with Christmas, except for Nativity scenes and churches."

"The same goes for Easter." Persia replied.

"Easter?" Prue asked, surprised.

"Yep, it was also a Pagan holiday, taken over by Christians."

"I'd love to hear what you have to say about Easter." Leo said, as he wrapped his arm around Piper.

"I'd love to tell you." Persia said, then she pointed to the clock on the wall. "But it's two to six."

Prue frowned. "I guess we'll save that for another day, huh?"

"Guess so." Persia said, as Pandora jumped from Persia's lap, landing in front of the stage.

There was a knock at the door and Piper looked up, seeing Rebecca's face, and two of her body guards. "Oh, I got it!" Piper said, as she slid off the stage. "Places everyone!" She made her way to the door and opened it, letting in her guest of honor. "Hell, Ms. Howard!"

Rebecca grinned and shook Piper's hand. "Hello, Mrs. Wyatt. It's so good to meet you!"

"You too." Piper grinned, as she shut the door, stopping the flow of icy air. "The stage is right over there, so you can set up your equipment."

"Thanks." Rebecca replied, as she made her way over to the stage, exchanging greetings with the rest of the family.

The clock struck 6:00 P.M. and Piper glanced out the door, to see a large group of people heading towards P3. "Looks like they're here!" She called, as she smoothed her red dress and then opened the door to an elderly man, greeting him with a cheerful smile. "Hello, sir."

The elderly man smiled thankfully at Piper. "Thank you." He said, as he made his way into the warm club.

"The food is right over there." Piper said, as she pointed to the large table. "Take a seat anywhere and once everything is situated, we have a special guest to perform for you all." She greeted each person who walked through the door, all of which looked all too happy to be there.

"Brandon!" Pearl squealed, as she saw her best friend and his parents walk in, behind the large group.

"Pearl!" Brandon grinned, as she ran into his arms and he gave her a long hug.

Piper chuckled at the scene. "It's good to see you again, Mr. and Mrs. Fargo."

"Gabrielle and Avery, please." Mrs. Fargo replied. She held out a large dish. "We brought casserole."

"Oh, thank you so much!" Piper said. She gratefully took the casserole. "I'll go put this with the rest of the food." She said, since there didn't seem to be anyone else coming at this particular moment.

Brandon and Pearl made their way over to the bar and took seats atop the bar stools, to wait for Rebecca to sing.

Gabrielle and Avery also made their way over to mingle with Paige and Glenn.

----20 Minutes Later----

"Darryl!" Persia exclaimed, as she saw the family friend roaming the crowded room.

"Persia." Darryl smiled, happily. He gave her a hug.

"Where's Sheila and Darryl Jr.?"

"Looking for Piper." Darryl replied. "What about the rest of the Halliwell clan?"

Persia laughed. "Scattered. But I think Aunt Piper is in the back, talking to Ms. Howard."

"Rebecca Lynn Howard?" Darryl asked.

Persia nodded, enthusiastically. "Yep. I'm sure it's gonna be a great show!"

"Well, I'm going to go try and find Piper."

"Okay. It was good seeing you, Darryl." Persia said, as she waved her hand at the slowly graying African American man.

"Likewise." Darryl replied, as he headed for the backroom.

----

"Could you pass me the paper plates, Leo?" Prue asked, as she placed a stack of napkins on the table. Prue felt the small hairs on her neck curl, as a warm hand embraced her. A warm feeling filled her stomach and the feeling of safety enveloped her. She closed her eyes, as someone placed a handful of plates into her left hand. "Thank you.."

"Any time." A warming, familiar voice replied, before planting a soft kiss on Prue's lips.

Prue set the plates on the table and slowly turned around, opening her eyes. "Andy."

Andy grinned and pulled Prue close to his chest. "I've missed you."

"Mmm..." Prue whispered. "Not as much as I've missed you." She breathed, as she took in his subtle scent. She caressed his face and kissed him again. "I love you."

"I love you too." Andy replied, as he looped his arm around Prue's waist. "Where's our daughter?"

"Playing with Prissandra, in the backroom with Piper." Prue replied. She lightly tugged her lover's arm. "Come with me."

"I'd love to." Andy grinned, his blue eyes sparkling.

"How'd you get here?" Prue asked.

"It's Christmas Eve and you've been a good girl." Andy laughed. "Old Kris talked The Elders into letting me come down as an early Christmas present."

"Kris?"

"Kris Kringle."

"Santa!" Prue grinned, remembering her trip to the North Pole to save Christmas from Santa's evil sister, Santanna. "How long do you get to stay?"

"Until Midnight, on Christmas." Andy replied, as they entered the back room.

Pandora, instantly picking up her father's thoughts, spun her head. "Daddy!" She squealed with delight. She jumped up and ran into her father's arms.

Andy, in turn, spun her around and then planted a kiss on her forehead. "Hey sweetheart, how are you?"

Pandora wrapped her arms around Andy's neck, as if she'd never let go. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too!" Andy replied, as he rubbed his daughter's back. "I brought you a present."

"Really?" Pandora asked, eagerly.

"Mhmm. It's at the Manor."

"Cool! What is it?"

Andy wagged his index finger at the child. "Ah ah, you have to wait until tomorrow."

Pandora formed a pout and then used her telepathy to peek into her father's mind. "Hey, why can't I find out?"

Andy smirked. "Santa made me forget what it was, just in case you tried to telepathically find out."

Pandora rolled her baby blue eyes, but before she could protest, Darryl made his way into the room.

"Andy?" Darryl asked, stopping in his tracks.

"Hey partner!" Andy grinned, as he shook Darryl's hand. "Long time, no see. How's the family?"

"The family's good." Sheila replied, as she walked in behind her husband. "It's good to see you again, Andy."

Andy set Pandora down and exchanged hugs with Sheila. "You too, Sheila."

A little boy burst through the door.

"Darryl Jr.?" Andy asked.

Sheila nodded.

"He's big."

Sheila nodded. "They grow up too fast."

Andy glanced at his daughter. "Yes, yes they do."

Piper approached the group. "Andy?"

Andy exchanged hugs with Piper. "You still look good."

Piper grinned. "Thanks, Andy."

Andy rolled his blue eyes. "Anytime."

"Sheila! Darryl!" Piper exclaimed, sharing hugs with the couple. She waved to Darryl Jr., who waved back.

"Hi, Mrs. Wyatt."

"What are you all doing here?"

Andy raised his hand. "Christmas present."

"We brought food." Darryl Jr. replied.

"And we brought some people we wanted you to meet." Darryl said.

"Where are your sisters?" Sheila asked.

"Scattered." Piper said. "Hold on, I'll get them." She walked over to the doorway and flung up her hands, freezing the entire room, including Darryl Jr., who didn't know their secret yet.

Paige glanced up from the other side of the room. "Piper, is there a demon?"

"No, Darryl wants us to meet someone, so you and Phoebe get back here." Piper called, from the doorway.

Phoebe, who was a few feet away from Paige, nodded. "Okay."

Piper flicked her wrists again, unfreezing the room.

"I'm sorry, I have to go to the backroom for a moment, will you excuse me?" Paige asked the man that she was talking to.

"Of course not." The man replied. "You've done more than enough for me tonight."

Paige nodded. "I'll be right back." She met up with Phoebe and they made their way to the backroom. "What's so urgent?"

Darryl nudged his wife, who motioned to a small group of people just outside the doorway.

"Come on, they're all here." Sheila replied.

4 girls, a woman, and a man made their way into the backroom.

"Oh my gosh!" Prue gasped, as past images filled her head.

----Flashbacks----

There was a swirl of glimmering white lights, then the five women appeared on the sidewalk, by a coffee shop.

"Hey, I go to this place a lot." Paige said, as she pointed to the shop.

Patty walked to the side of the coffee shop and then into an ally.

Prue, Piper, Phoebe, and Paige exchanged glances then followed their mother.

The 5 women stopped in their tracks.

"What are we suppose to see here?" Phoebe asked, in confusion.

"You'll see." Patty answered.

There was some rustling of papers then a girl poked her head out from behind a dumpster.

"Kally, did you find anything?" Asked a slightly smaller girl She looked about 7-years-old. She had long, dirty blonde hair, and a very dirty and torn dress; her eyes were light blue. She was curled up under some papers, by a wall.

"No Kathy, I didn't." Replied the first girl, as she crawled out from behind the dumpster. She looked about 9-years-old. She had short, light brown hair. Her eyes were also light brown. She didn't have any shoes on, only a very dirty dress with many holes.

Another dirty little head popped up from behind Kathy. She appeared to have shoulder length, medium brown hair and hazel colored eyes. She looked about 4-years-old. "But Kal, my tummy wants some food..." The little girl said, with a pleading look. She shivered and snuggled closer to Kathy.

"Krissy, I looked, but I coouldn't find any...." Kally replied. She looked around. "Where's Katy?" She asked.

"Sleeping.." Kathy replied, as she pointed to a small bundle next to her, covered with some newspaper.

The bundle had dark hair and looked about 3-years-old. She began a little coughing fit, in her sleep, then moments late it ended.

"Why can't we go find mommy?" Krissy asked.

"Because, mommy isn't here anymore and she isn't coming back." Kally answered. She turned away again and dug though another pile of trash, this time pulling out a small bag of chips, with a few crushed pieces inside. She handed them to Krissy. "Here, you and Kathy split them, okay?" She said, making it sound like more of a statement.

Krissy nodded and took a few bites of the crumbs. "Thanks Kal..." She whispered. She smiled. "I love you." She added.

"Me too." Kathy replied. She took a few crumbs from the bag. "Merry Christmas Eve, Kal." Kathy whispered.

Kally scooted over to her sisters, putting her arm around Kathy and Katy. "I love you all, too. Merry Christmas Eve." She whispered.

----Flashback----

Salty droplets slithered from Paige's eyes, as she stared at the four girls. "Th-they...." She turned to Darryl. "How'd you find them?"

"Your old boss, Mr. Cowen, called me. He wanted to bring them to you himself, but he was busy working on trying to place a three month old, in time for Christmas. He knew that I was close to the family, so he asked me to do it for him."

The woman stepped forward, extending her hand to Piper. "I'm Samantha Perkins, this is my husband Arnold."

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Perkins." Piper said.

"I wanted to thank you, for bringing these four beautiful girls into our lives." Samantha said, with tears in her eyes.

"Thank you for taking them in." Paige said. She knelt down before the girls, who looked nothing like they were when they had first met them. "It's good to see you all, again!"

The youngest, Katy, wrapped her arms around Paige. "I missed you! You were so nice to us!" She sobbed, into Paige's shoulder.

Paige embraced the child, thinking of how much Katy reminded her of herself at 9-years-old. "You're welcome."

"We really wanted to thank you." Kally said, taking charge. She was now a teenager; 15-years-old.

Prue pulled Kally into a hug. "You're very welcome. I'm so glad you came to see us!"

"Me too." Kally whispered, feeling safe in Prue's arms, for the second time in her life.

Kathy stepped forward, smiling brightly at Piper. "I'm really happy to see you guys again. Kally, Krissy, Katy, and I put together a large bag of clothes that we can't wear anymore and we wanted to donate them....Do you think you could find a place for them? I mean, since you are having this thing at your club tonight?"

Piper smiled gratefully at the young teen. "Of course! Pearl, Phiona, and I had made up a few boxes of old clothes for people to take if they needed them too."

"Pearl? And Phiona?" Krissy asked, suddenly intrigued. "I remember them!"

"What do you say that we go find them?" Phoebe asked, as she took Krissy's hand.

"Let's do." Paige said, as she motioned to the remaining girls.

"We'll see you later." Kathy said, as she waved to Piper and Prue.

"See ya." Prue said, as she waved to the girls.

"You've done a fantastic job with them." Prue said, to Samantha and Arnold.

"No, they were fantastic all on their own." Arnold said. "And we feel so blessed to have them." He wrapped his arm around his wife's waist. "We can't have children of our own, so when we heard about the four sisters whose mother had died...."

"We just had to take them in." Samantha finished.

"I'm so glad." Prue said, as she dabbed her eyes with her sleeve. "Will you guys be staying all night?"

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Arnold asked.

"Here? With the food?" Piper asked.

"Of course! We've been doing anything we can for homeless organizations, since we leaned the backgrounds of our daughters." Samantha replied.

"Uh.." Piper nodded. "Sure. I mean, there's a lot to do." She looked around. "How do you feel about cooking?"

Samantha laughed.

"She owns a small restaurant, down town." Arnold replied.

"You're a chef?"

Samantha nodded.

"Looks like we have something in common." Piper grinned. "So am I. Maybe you could help me with making some more potato salad?"

"That sounds great." Samantha replied.

"I'm sure Prue could help Arnold find Leo and Glenn, then they could find something for you to do."

"Sure." Arnold said.

Within minutes, the group had dispersed.

----7:00 P.M.----

Piper stood atop P3's stage, with the microphone in hand. "Hello ladies and gentlemen, I'm so glad to have you all here tonight and I'd like to wish each and everyone one of you, Happy Holidays."

The crowd grew silent.

"I'd like to welcome our special guest, the country superstar, Rebecca Lynn Howard!"

Rebecca made her way onto the stage and the crowd cheered. She took the microphone, that Piper had extended to her. "It's really good to be here, tonight. Happy Holidays, everyone and special thanks to Piper and her family for inviting me."

"The pleasure is all mine." Piper grinned. She nodded. "Well, I'll let you take the stage." She descended the stairs and made her way over to her family, the Morris and Perkins families were also there.

I'd like my first song tonight to be, 'Like Had Other Plans', from my of my very early albums titled, 'Forgive'."

The crowd cheered, as Rebecca began.

"Once upon a lonely time, I could barely make it through the night, It always seemed the sky was falling, Down on me, But life's funny you don't own it, Things can change in a single moment, That's what happened to me!"

Phoebe wrapped her arms around Cole, as images of her lonely New York life filled her mind.

----Flashback----

A 19-year-old, 6 month pregnant Phoebe stood staring out the window of a dilapidated apartment, staring through a film covered window. Tears were dripping from her lashes, as she broguth her trembling hand to her face, revealing a picture of her and her older sisters on the day that Piper graduated; it was the last picture that they'd taken together, willingly, because it was Piper's day. "If only I could change things.." She whispered, as she placed a hand over her swollen belly.

----Flashback----

"Every time a promise fell through, Every time my heart broke in two, And it was always too dark to see the horizon, When I thought I had it right in my hand, It would slip right through like sand, I didn't know why but I now see, That life had other plans for me!"

Prue leans her head into Andy's chest, as little salty tears drip from her blue eyes. This brings back so many memories. Prue thought, as images of her and Andy's past filled her mind.

----Flashback----

Prue, Piper, Phoebe, and Darryl are at the cemetery; they're all standing around Andy's coffin. Prue walks over to the coffin and gently lays a rose atop the coffin.

----Flashback----

"I was doing my best, giving my all, Kept hittin' my head up against the wall, Missin' the mark when I thought my, Aim was true, I didn't know just what it meant, But now I see that it was heaven sent, 'Cause that's when I met you!"

Paige wiped a few tears from her eyes, as she remembered the day that she met her sisters.

----Flashback----

The Manor door is open and Paige is standing there as Piper, Phoebe, and Leo come down the stairs.

"I, the door was open. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be here." Paige turns to leave.

Phoebe stops her. "No, no, no. No, no. We were just coming to look for you."

"You were?" Paige asked, shocked.

"Yep. Come on in. Welcome. I'm Phoebe. And this is...." Phoebe hooks her arm onto Paige's and leads her over to Piper and Leo.

"Piper. I know. I've been to your club. Pretty great." Paige cut in.

"Thank you. And you are?" Piper asked.

"Paige. My name is Paige." Paige replied.

"Hmm. Another 'P'. Imagine that." Phoebe added.

"It's nice to meet you." Piper said. She holds out her hand, shaking Paige's hand. Suddenly a bright blue light glows down over the three sisters, forming the next set of Charmed Ones.

----Flashback----

"Every time a promise fell through, Every time my heart broke in two, And it was always too dark to see the horizon, When I thought I had it right in my hand, It would slip right through like sand, I didn't know why but I now see, That life had other plans for me!"

Glenn pulled Paige and Pearl a little closer to himself, as he remembered the day that he'd learned that Paige was pregnant; it was a day that had changed his life forever.

----Flashback----

Glenn gently placed his hand on Paige's shoulder. "What's that saying that goes around your family? 'Everything happens for a reason.' Obviously, there is a reason for this." Glenn said. Glenn smiled. "Honestly, I wouldn't have purposly had this happen, this early, but I'm happy we'll be having a baby! Paige, I love you and I already love our child!" Glenn said, as he gently kissed Paige.

Paige smiled, brightly. "So..so you're okay with this?" Paige asked, in a hopeful tone. She could feel tears of joy, spilling down her face.

Glenn nodded, slowly. "Of course! I guess...we have about five months and three weeks to prepare." Glenn said, as he hugged Paige tightly. "I love you so much...." Glenn whispered, into Paige's ear.

Paige buried her face in Glenn's shoulder, smelling his cologne. "I love you so much more..." Paige whispered back.

Glenn smiled. "Yeah, but I love you the mostest!" Glenn whispered, as he ended their, I Love You, game. They had started that when they were in high school and it stuck with them.

----Flashback----

"When I was at my worst, And I couldn't see the light, Somehow I knew it would, Be alright, cause...."

Leo ran his strong hand through Piper's silky brown hair, gently leaning his face into the crook of her neck, and remembering the day that she'd finally admitted her love for him.

----Flashback----

Piper is in the attic, crying over Leo's body, because she thinks that he's dead. "I love you, Leo." A tear drops onto her hand and her hand starts glowing. "I found it. Leo, I love you!" She holds her glowing hand over Leo and heals him. "Can you hear me? I love you, Leo, please wake up!"

Leo's eyes open. "Piper.." He wraps his arms around her, hugging her.

"Oh, thank God! I tried so hard so hard and I couldn't make it work before. Why didn't you tell me?"

"That love was the trigger?" Leo asked. "You had to find that out on your own. Why couldn't you tell me?"

"I don't know. I was afraid, I was afraid that if I admitted how I really felt it would hurt me more if I lost you. I'm so sorry, I should of said it before." Piper admitted.

Leo smiled. "It's better late then never."

----Flashback----

"Every time a promise fell through, Every time my heart broke in two, And it was always too dark to see the horizon, When I thought I had it right in my hand, It would slip right through like sand, I didn't know why but I now see, That life had other plans for me!"

Prue closed her eyes, remebering the day that started it all.

----Flashback----

The door to the attic exploded, revealing Jeremy. Prue, Piper, and Phoebe let out screams.

"Come on, we'll face him together!" Prue spoke. "Do you remember the spirit board?"

"The inscription on the back!" Piper exclaimed.

"'The power of three will set us free.'" Prue said, remembering the inscription. Suddenly a circle of fire surrounds the three sisters.

"The power of three will set us free! The power of three will set us free! The power of three will set us free!" Prue, Piper, and Phoebe chant. A powerful wind begins to encircle them.

"I'm not the only one! I'm one of millions! In places you can't even imagine. In forms you would never believe! We are hell on Earth!" Jeremy screams and then he explodes into nothingness.

"The power of three." Prue repeated.

----Flashback----

Rebecca smiles out over the smiling crowd, as she readies herself to sing her last line. "Life had other plans for me!"

TO BE CONTINUED....