Chapter 16:
T:T:T:T
The world seemed to slow down at that very moment, causing an entire heartbeat to take about a minute. Thoughts were spinning like wildfire through their heads. The one question everyone was asking themselves was 'Did she just say what I think she said?' No one knew for sure, not even Phoebe herself. She had still to come to terms with reality in the situation, and coping with three others trying to figure it all out would be too much for her to handle. Not that what was happening wasn't to much for her to get a handle on already.
"Wha-what?" Paige was the first to find her voice. Although she was very close to Piper, she was still too young to have full emotional development. One can only do so much by the age of twelve, after all. After her sister's question, and a small moment of being calmed down, Phoebe finally found the strength to stand. Straightening out her skirt, she sniffled. "I... I've been seeing Alexa in my dreams." Phoebe elaborated a bit. "Are you sure?" Prue asked automatically. She didn't feel like having another loved one hurt because of magic, even though she was still angered towards their friend due to their fight this morning. Much of the anger was directed towards her, the eldest Halliwell, so she had some different emotional scars than her sisters.
"Of course I'm sure, Prue! I had a premonition in the bathroom during history class, where, by the way, I found her crying." Phoebe defended, a bit offended by Prue's question. It had been a while since Prue had doubted the middle sister's powers, so she was a bit upset by the decline in their trust. "She was crying?" Leo asked, his expression immediately going both sympathetic and worried. "Yeah." Phoebe said.
"Wait..." Paige said, a little sparkle flaring up in her eyes. "What?" all three of the teens asked instantaneously. "Remember Friday night's dream, the night we found out about this whole thing?" Paige asked, looking around at the other three. Prue nodded. "Well, remember how you said that she was punished for lying to him? It was about friend's names! Friends that he threatened to kill!" While Paige was smiling and looking around expectantly at the older three, they were confused. They were not only confused, but they were completely and utterly befuddled, bewildered, and bemused.
"What the hell does that have to do with anything?" Prue asked, waiting impatiently for her sister to continue her train of thought. "He wanted her to break it off with her friends. That would be us! She didn't mean anything that she did this morning!" Paige exclaimed happily, bouncing up and down like a little bunny rabbit. The others' faces brightened up. "You're right! She's still our friend!" Phoebe said happily, and began joining her sister in her jumpingactivities.
Prue and Leo just watched the younger two bounce around like crazy people happily. Prue was ecstatic because it seemed as if her confidante, the one girl outside of the family that she trusted, wasn't a complete bitch. But, her reaction was nothing compared to Leo's. He felt as if he was floating. His stomach was doing summersaults, and his heart was screaming in happiness. He felt as if it were the best moment in his life. The love of his life didn't hate him. "Wait, where is she, anyway?" Leo asked Phoebe, wanting to run to his girlfriend as soon as possible. A soft voice came from the doorway. "I'm right here."
T:T:T
Prue, Phoebe, Paige, and Leo turned towards the voice, and found none other than Piper in the doorway. Her head was tilted downward, her hair covering her face. She was holding the blanket that Phoebe had placed on her around her top half, like a cape. Leo was by her side in an instant. He took some of her hair, and tucked it behind her ear. "I'm sorry." she whispered, looking away from where she knew Leo was standing. "It's okay, honey." Leo said, and wrapped his arms loosely around her petite frame. She leaned sideways into his chest, and faced the three Halliwell sisters. "I'm sorry for dragging you into my mess." she said, letting a lone tear slip down her cheek.
All three ran up in front of her, and Leo gently wiped away her tear. "Oh, honey, we WANTED to be dragged into this mess. We WANT to help you." Phoebe reassured. "No. I don't want your help." Piper said, and roughly pulled away from Leo's grasp. "I don't want to lose you, too." she added under her breath, but the others were still close enough to hear it.
"Who did you lose?" Prue asked. Piper's eyes widened. She hadn't really realized that she had said the last part out loud. "Oh, no one." Piper replied, a bit too hastily for the others' liking. "It was Ms. Waters, wasn't it?" Phoebe asked, recalling the name from one of her dreams. Piper whirled around at that. "How did you know that?" she asked quickly, not realizing that she had confirmed what they were asking. "Never mind that." Phoebe said, waving her arm. "She was your teacher, wasn't she?" she asked, and Piper's eyes began watering up.
"What happened?" Leo asked, taking Piper into him again. Although she felt comforted by his actions, a few more tears slid down her cheeks. "Um... how about we talk about this in the other room." Paige said, pointing to the conservatory. "Um... okay." Prue said, and they all went into the other room to sit down.
T:T:T
Prue, Phoebe, and Paige sat on one couch, and Piper and Leo sat on the one across from them. Piper was curled up in Leo's lap, her back not touching him, though. She turned her head towards the three sisters, ready to tell one of her many stories.
"My f-fourth grade teacher, Ms. Waters, found out about Daniel." Piper started. "Who's Daniel?" Paige asked. "My father." Piper stated, and moved on. "She saw bruises on my wrists one day, and asked me to see her after class. I didn't know what it was about, so I did. I didn't know what Daniel would do if anyone found out, and at nine, I knew that it was wrong what he was doing to me. So, when she asked questions about how I got my bruises, I answered them. I wanted to get away from him. She took me to her apartment that night. But, Daniel found us. H-he threw me against the wall, making me too hurt to stand. Then, he... killed her right in front of me. He stabbed her straight in the heart."
Bringing up old memories that had never really been dealt with, Piper began sobbing. Leo just held her, and the girls made their way over to the couch they were on. Prue stroked her hair, and Phoebe and Paige held her hands. They just comforted her while she cried for a loss that no child should ever bare.
After a while, she wiped the slowing tears from her eyes. "Tha-that's why I have to get out of here. He's going to find me, and he's going to kill you too." Piper said, suddenly pulling away from everyone. She hastily grabbed her shirt from the side of the couch, and headed towards the door. But, Prue quickly blocked her path.
"No, Alexa, you aren't going anywhere. You are staying with us, and we are going to help you, whether you like it or not." Prue grabbed on to Piper's wrist, and led her back towards the couch. "We can handle this." Prue reassured. "But-" Piper started, but was cut off. "No buts, Missy. You're staying with us, and that's final." Leo said, and sat Piper on his lap. "Yeah, and, after all, do you really think that your best friends can't handle one man? Get serious." Phoebe said.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that."
The five looked up towards the archway from the foyer into the room they were currently in. Standing directly in the middle was a man. And, not just any man. He was over 6 foot, he was muscular, he had Crisco hair, and he was waving a knife around in his hand. He was the man from Phoebe's dreams, and Piper's nightmares. He was Daniel.
T:T:T:T
AN: Teehee, evil cliffie! Yes, I did give you guys a little Christmas present, but I might not update for a while due to all the presents I'll deal with! Teehee! Please review!!!