Love's Intervention
Chapter Three: At the Manor

Note: Just to clarify a few things, as to when this story takes place for Phoebe. For Phoebe, Leo is an Elder, but still hangs around the family. Phoebe and Paige both know about Chris' secret, but his parents don't. As to where Phoebe is now...you'll just have to see for yourself!

Phoebe stood on the porch of the Manor, waiting nervously for somebody to answer the door. She had tried calling for both Leo and Chris as soon as Ames had left, to no avail. She was on her own—unless her sisters could help her. Last night, I slept in this house, she thought. Now, I have to ring the doorbell to be let in. She waited, her impatience and apprehension mounting as no one opened the door. She had checked the mailbox; still read "Halliwell", in small print on the bottom. Was Piper out at the club, then? How about Paige? If they weren't at home, where would she go now? Ames had left a minute ago. Her wallet told her she had a driver's license but not a car: she had surmised that much from Ames' teasing comments.

The door opened suddenly, awaking Phoebe out of her thoughts. There stood Piper staring back at her, looking very, very surprised.

"Phoebe," Piper said in a soft tone. It was a more of a question than a statement, and Phoebe answered as such.

"Yes. I mean, yes, it's me," replied Phoebe, stumbling over her words. The situation wasn't only just awkward, it was a bit disturbing. They were best friends, not...strangers. "Um, can I come in?"

Piper opened the door wider, looking even more bewildered. "OK, sure, go ahead..."

Phoebe stepped in, feeling like an intruder in her own home. She looked around. The manor was still basically the same, except it seemed to be all Piper's, with some masculine features. None of Phoebe's touches, obviously, since she didn't seem to live here, but none of Paige's, either.

I guess she lives here with Leo then¸ Phoebe thought to herself. She was starting to get used to all these weird surprises. Apparently here, Leo didn't turn into an Elder, and they lived together. Yet the more she thought about the situation as a whole, the more incredibly confusing it became. Did that mean that Piper and Paige weren't living together? Was the Power of Three not activated at all, or something? And also, a little voice in her head nagged, Leo hates boxing. So what is with all this Mike Tyson stuff doing around here?

Phoebe wandered a bit until she got to a picture of her, Piper, and Prue. "Strange, isn't it?" Piper said gently over her shoulder. "Remember how Grams—God rest her soul—tried to get us to stand for that one single picture?" Phoebe nodded. "Our dysfunctional family," Piper continued, half bitterly and half mockingly. "Our father, who walked away from us, and our mother, who ran off with some guy before—you know." Phoebe nodded again, unsure of what to say. The picture was somehow different from what she remembered...

"So, Phoebe, what brings you here?" Piper asked. They stood in the hall near the staircase leading up to the second floor.

"Uh, well," Phoebe started in a chipper voice while thinking furiously. If the Power of Three isn't activated, then they don't know...she decided to stick with a general response. "Can't a girl want to see her sisters after all this time? Where is Paige, anyways?"

"What, you haven't seen us in so long that you've forgotten my name?" asked a new voice with a slightly accusatory tone to it.

They both turned. Piper and Phoebe were so caught up in their exchange that they had not noticed when the front door had opened quietly to admit another person. Phoebe was the first to react.

"Prue," she gasped, her hand rising up to cover her mouth in disbelief. "Oh..." she ran up to her and touched her cheek, and then drew her into an embrace, hugging her tightly but not too strongly, as though her body could break if too much pressure was applied to it. She wasn't slightly transparent and glowing, she was solid and feeling very much alive. "Oh, Prue," she breathed, as she felt tears coming to her eyes. "How is this possible?"

Prue kind of patted her on the back and drew away from her, feeling uncomfortable with the way that Phoebe was treating her. She looked over at Piper, who looked about as clueless as she was. "Well, at least you remember me," said Prue, turning back to Phoebe, her voice a bit gruff, but gentle nonetheless. Phoebe smiled gently back at her, taking in all the little details of her oldest sister. The way a small wisp of hair always draped across her forehead, the fact that she was wearing yet another one of her infamous shirts-with-two-ties-in-the-back.

Suddenly, Prue took two steps back and gave Phoebe a crisp, almost impersonal look. "So, what are you here for?" she asked, her voice sharp. "Do you need money or something?"

Phoebe looked at her, appalled. "Money? I don't need money."

"So why are you here, then?"

Piper interrupted. "Prue..." she said softly. "It's 2001. Just about four years since you saw your sister last. Can't you give her a break?" At this, Phoebe suddenly realized two things; the year, for one, and that Piper wasn't at all surprised by Prue turning up at the manor. That meant that here, Prue never died...even though by October 2001, she was supposed to.

Phoebe turned away from both of her sisters, her head absolutely spinning in confusion. In doing so, her eyes fell upon a large picture above the mantle in the living room, which she could clearly see from her perspective. It was a wedding photo, framed beautifully and blown up, so Phoebe had no problem recognizing the bride—Piper, in a resplendent white gown—and the groom, with his brown hair and cleft chin—Dan Gordon.

She tried her hardest not to sink to her knees in defeat. "Oh, Leo," she murmured to herself. "Oh, Chris." An alternate universe, with a huge emphasis on the alternate part. What was next?

"Phoebe?" Piper's voice sounded gentle. "You don't look that great. Do you want me to go and make you a cup of tea or coffee?"

Phoebe smiled gratefully at her, glad that some things never change no matter where she goes. The same may be applied to Prue, of course, but it has been a while since Phoebe generated such animosity from her. Phoebe wondered what could've caused Prue to act this way while she responded to Piper.

"That'll be really great, thank you, Piper. I just need to ask you—can I go look up in the attic for a while?"

Piper looked puzzled but nodded. "Sure, I guess, why not?" Piper turned to Prue with a significant look on her face. "So, how long are you staying, do you have work today?" She turned toward the kitchen, and Prue followed her.

Phoebe knew that they had gone to go talk about her, but that was the least of her worries now. She ran up the stairs to the attic and opened the door.

It looked...like a nice, normal attic. A little bit dusty, and not very well organized. No bookstand in the middle of the room, and more importantly, no book. Phoebe glanced around a second until she found the ritual chest, and opened it. A few of their old dresses from when they were young, one of Grams' old shirts, even a Barbie. No candles, no incense, no big, heavy green book with the triquetra in the middle.

She started to panic as she went through the next chest, the one that they kept for crystals and other miscellaneous witchy stuff. An old makeup set, what seemed to be a rejected wedding present—no Book of Shadows. What was even worse was that there was no evidence of anything that they've used in connection to Wicca, not even any remnants from Grams.

After looking through most of the attic, Phoebe walked over to a small clearing in the middle of the room, took a deep breath, and launched herself upwards toward the ceiling. Just as she was about to fold in her legs beneath her into a levitation stance, she felt the pull of gravity and came crashing down on the floor.

"Oww." She stayed on the floor as she rubbed her now bruised hip. That, however, seemed to be the least of her worries. Here, the Book of Shadows is missing. Who knows what could happen with this book gone from the Halliwell family, in the hands of evil...was this her purpose? To find the Book of Shadows?

But is it? Phoebe thought to what she had found—or actually, not found, in the attic. Nothing that would even suggest witchcraft. Was it possible?...Yes, it was possible, anything was possible. Yet, she couldn't help asking herself again...

Phoebe wobbled down the stairs, still hurting a bit from her fall in the attic. Chris would come in real handy now, she thought. Not that she'd ever find him in this universe. He was a product of Leo and Piper—and there was no Leo-and-Piper. Actually, where would Leo fit in these circumstances? How about Paige? Not to mention Prue. And of course, what the hell was she doing here? Was it some work of a demon, trying to separate the Power of Three in her world? And how exactly are Piper and Paige going to bring her back? Phoebe grumbled to herself. Can't even freaking think without going off on tangents that just complicate the whole damn thing.

Just as she reached the bottom landing, the doorbell rang. "I got it!" she called automatically. She walked over to the door, her limp mostly gone as the pain faded away. She opened the door—

In any other circumstances (or, more specifically, if she were back in her own world), the sight before her eyes would have generated many different responses. She would have yelled for her sisters at the top of her voice, she would have promptly closed the door in haste and shock, or, if she were feeling particularly nasty, she would have not hesitated to connect her fist with the person's face. Now, however, all she could do was stand there and gape at the man in front of her.

The man smiled politely at her, his eyes open and welcoming. He was about to open his mouth to speak when Phoebe beat him to it, without her even realizing it.

"Cole," she whispered.

His brows furrowed slightly and he gave her a slightly scrutinizing look. "Do I know you from somewhere?" Phoebe had no chance to respond, or even react to what he said, because his first sentence was quickly followed by another one. "Oh, hey," he said, only to somebody behind her.

Phoebe turned around to see who he was referring to just as he leaned over her and gave Prue a kiss on the cheek.