She had walked by the small cells on the ground numerous times, but one kept her attention. How many days was it now? Two, three, maybe more. She took the bucket of water and started for her only to be stopped by one of the guards knocking the bucket on to the ground.
"She doesn't get any water."
"Says who? You? Get out of my way before I have you in one of these cells." She glared up at him almost challenging him to defy her. She knew he wouldn't for they all knew who she was. His sister, and to defy her was to defy him.
He watched his sister play into the prisoners will. He wanted to scold her but he couldn't. She was family.
Family, the words echoed into his mind. The women he held there all had family. How was that different?
He had heard it time and time again. It was 2003. The war was over. They had lost. But they were just words from desperate prisoners. He knew as his grandfather had, that his country had not let him be. Not forgotten him or forsaken him.
"Grandfather. What am I to do?" he asked as the older man stayed on the patio deck, watching and taking in everything around him that he could.
"You must continue our work. They will come when the time is right."
He turned to his grandfather. He was all he and his sister had left. A prisoner trying to escape killed his father not that long ago.
He watched as his sister gave her water. He felt his inner anger surface as he made his way down to the cells. He slapped her hand away from the bamboo sending the water flying across the dirt.
All she did was glare at him, "What are you doing?"
"No! What are YOU doing?! They are our enemy, not some case for you to save!"
She glared back at him and then up towards her grandfather. "He put you up to this. You can not rule by killing your prisoners. Some of them will take death before bowing to you. Let her go."
He held her gaze for a minute's maybe more. Neither one willing to budge. But finally he did, as he stepped away from her and motioned for his guards.
--- ----
Stiffness and pain was all she felt but she also felt the softness of the sheets around her. It reminded her of home and her sister. "Piper?"
She turned and looked over at her patient. Making her way forward she could see the agitation on her face and as she fought for consciences. "Ok you're safe now. Just relax."
"Piper?" She said again her heart wanting her sister.
"Is that your sister?" she asked as she made her way around the other side of the bed, attending to her injuries that were caused by her brother and his guards. She knew that soon she would heal and her brother and his men would have her again in their clutches. She had heard several stories of how the war was over and they had lost. She believed it deep down. At first she didn't, but how could so many tell the same lie? To the point she knew it was true and her country had forsaken them all.
She lost her again. Lost to the darkness that her brother had caused. She couldn't defy him, but she wanted to see what was out in the world.
"Prue I can't."
"Yes you can Phoebe, you are stronger then you think I know you can do it." Prue urged her little sister on. She had climbed the neighbour's tree further then she usually did and now was afraid of coming back down. "I thought you weren't afraid of anything?" Prue pushed.
"I'm afraid of something's?" Phoebe returned to her as a tear rolled down her face.
"Honey I'm right here if you slip I'll catch you I promise. I'm always going to be here to catch you when you fall no matter what it is." Prue stood at the trunk of the tree and waited for her sister to move. "Do you want me to come up and get you?" Prue wasn't as brave when it came to climbing trees like Phoebe was, but at 10 she was willing to put that aside and go up and get her baby sister.
Phoebe just looked down without saying anything and she watched as Prue started to climb the tree towards her. She held on to the trunk for dear life. She wasn't even sure how she got as far up as she had. It was only a matter of minutes before she was looking into Prue's ice blue eyes and saw the concern and love that was always there no matter what happened between them
"Ok come down with me Phoebs. We can do this together ok. I won't let you fall."
Prue guided each foot to the next branch and then each hand. And as they got lower to the ground to the places that her little sister was more familiar with she let her go on her own. Soon Prue was on the ground waiting for Phoebe to finish going down the last few branches. But her foot slipped and she fell the last bit towards the ground. Prue quickly reached out and grabbed her sister as she fell through the last branches. Catching her before she hit the ground.
Phoebe wrapped her arms around Prue as she cried from the banging she had taken and the fear she felt of falling and her sister not catching her.
"You caught me." She sobbed into her sisters' shoulder
Prue held her sister tight, glad she was there to catch her, "I told you I wouldn't let you fall."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be honey you were very brave to go up that high. You are the one that will be able to handle anything that people throw at you. It's just your spunk gets your spirit into trouble most time. Just don't go up there anytime soon ok. I didn't like having to go up that high to get you."
They walked back together towards the Manor and saw Piper running towards them.
"Phoebe are you ok? I saw you up in the tree." Piper squeezed her sister tight.
"Yup. Prue helped me. Just like she said she would.
"I always will sweetie. Now, what do you say we go get some ice cream." Prue took Phoebe hand as Piper took her other one. The youngest always in the middle, protected by her two older sisters.
She looked up at the barren ceiling. Her thoughts drifted to Piper and Paige; her sisters. Then her thoughts drifted to the one she had felt on many occasions the last few days. She always said she would be here for me, she thought to herself. And now is no different.
"Prue I can't go through this again. I can't go on without seeing Piper or Paige. You have to help me." She heard the door swing open and the same woman enter. She looked at her injuries and wrote something down.
She looked over at her and looked deep into her eyes. There was something there. Something that almost scared her. But it was something she had seen before. In the eyes of her own mother once, before she died in the fields.
Her memory flashed back to when she was child and her mother was aloud to see her once in awhile.
"Mikao my sweet girl. One day you will do great things. You have to just listen to your heart."
"How mummy?"
"When the time is right you will know. But for now just hold to the knowledge that you are more powerful then your father will ever imagine." She held her daughter to her knee and wrapped her arms around her tight. "The blood you get from me comes from a strong line of powerful women, and you will be the one to continue that. Just remember that. But tell me one thing sweetie."
Mikao looked up into her mother deep brown eyes, "Yes Mummy?"
"Do you believe in magic sweetie."
"Yes."
"You remember the stories I told you. The one about the witches and how they fought the bad men?"
"Yes mummy."
"Always remember those stories sweetie. For one day those stories will become your guide to a world you could only imagine about." She said as she held her daughter tight as the door was flung open and the guards took her away. As she ran towards the door after her, her brother pulled her back. But as the shot rang out she saw the body lying slumped into the dirt. She cried out in pain almost as if it had happened to her.
As she looked now into Phoebes eyes she saw in them the same warmth she had seen in her mothers. And the stories of witches came back to her. She had never told her brother or her father about that last conversation she had with her mother. But suddenly it made sense to her. Her mother was a witch. And she was telling that inside, deep down she was too. And as she looked at Phoebe she stepped away realizing that she too was a witch.
--- ----
He was walking towards the small hospital they had. He wanted to speak with his sister and get his prisoner back. He knew she was not as bad as she had been. It was over a week now, but when he saw his little sister running from the hut he quickened his step and motioned for two guards to come with him.
Slamming open the door he glared at her as she spun around to glare back at him.
"Why are you doing this?" She questioned
"Because it's war." He said coldly.
"The war is over. You lost! Let it go! You can't keep people like this."
She saw his hand move to strike her but she blocked his move. They held their gaze a moment longer when he went to strike out again. Soon the blows where coming faster by each one of them as the guards let them be. They knew if he got into any trouble what to do. They also knew that this particular prisoner had more then earned what she was to get.
Phoebe flew threw the open door and landed on the balcony around the building. But she soon found herself rolling down the stairs to the mud below.
The rain had started and was falling harder with each moment. Giving both fighters an advantage over the other, as they became wetter in the mud and rain.
Phoebe faced off with him once again and could hear the sudden sound of the others cheering her own. With each shot she got in the cheer grew louder. As she stood over him ready to strike again. But it would not come as she watched him look past her and she felt two hands grab her from either side.
She spit at him as he approached her, "Fight your own fight you coward."
The sting of his hand across her face felt as if her head was going to come clean off, as she tasted the metallic taste in her mouth of her own blood.
"You will see who the coward is when one of your fellow prisoners suffers because of what you have done." He motioned them to take her away.
They dragged her once again to the familiar place of the small cells in the open. From there she could see everything and her heart skipped a beat as they shoved her inside and from the larger cells she watched helplessly as they pulled Julia out from the crowd.
"LET HER GO!!" she screamed as her friend went out of her sight and as the rains started down harder. The guard banging his rifle through the slits, striking her.
She didn't care about the hits she was taking she just called for her friend. But the louder she screamed the more that other prisoners where taken from their dry cell and placed on pillars in the rain. Each one with a guard holding a whip behind them, and with each snap of the whips she felt as if it was her being hit.
It was then her world spun and she watched everything happen before her. The bodies lying in the rain in the mud. Some beaten beyond recognition and others still whimpering as they lay in the mud. It was her first premonition since she had woken up a month ago and it was over powering. Over powering enough that her world stopped spinning and she lost consciousness