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The three of them watched as Phoebe slowly walked to the living room. Her body movements seemed rigid and uneven. "Phoebe, what happened? Who did this to you?" Piper was in a state of shock.
Paige grabbed the blanket that was draped over the sofa and covered Phoebe's legs. "Honey, what happened?" She asked as she sat on the arm of the sofa. Waiting to hear what she would say they all gathered around Phoebe as if she were a story teller.
"I'm not exactly sure where to begin. Um, some time ago, my powers started going kind of wonky on me." Phoebe shifted in her seat. She could sense Piper's nervousness. "I couldn't levitate and my premonitions were on the fritz again. I wasn't really sure what was happening. Until I…" Piper leaned in closer. "Well, demon activity has been light and we've always had the power of three… and the spells." The anxiety coming from the three of them had Phoebe stammering for words.
Leo watched as Phoebe spoke, she looked so small, so fragile. The sofa that Phoebe usually plopped onto seemed to swallow her whole. "Maybe I should try to heal you."
Paige and Piper watched as Leo placed his hands over her, a white –yellow light illuminated from his hands but nothing. "Yes, Leo heal her! Heal her." Piper said. Both sisters stared at Leo hoping he would have an explanation. "Do you know who did this to you?" Paige and Piper turned to see what Phoebe's response would be as Leo slowly moved his hands away.
Continuing her thoughts as if she had not heard Leo she looked up at her sisters "We always have potions and we were ok… I mean I had these weird dreams and no one could hear me. My body was changing." Phoebe started to shake. The trembling that began in her stomach threatened to surpass her heart. She had disappointed her sisters and what was worse she could feel their heartache.
Paige reached toward her sister "Are you cold sweetheart? You're shaking like a leaf." She lifted the blanket from Phoebe's legs and held it up higher to cover her arms. Phoebe shyly waived the blanket away. It was not the cold but her nerves and emotions that were in control now. She could feel everything her sisters and Leo were not saying.
"Phoebe, why didn't you come to me? We've talked about this before. I am your White-Lighter…"
Paige cut Leo off "Actually, Leo, Chris is our White-Lighter now"
"Not the best time Paige" Piper said through clenched teeth.
Leo sighed his healing hands were not getting the job done. Chris might be their White-Lighter but no one will know the Charmed Ones like I know them.
"Ok, slow down and start from the beginning. You said you were having dreams, well you've had premonitions in your dreams before" Piper folded her arms just to keep herself from overreacting.
"Yes, but a few days ago I woke from a re-occurring dream. Only this time I had the war wounds to prove it" She looked at Piper and waited for a scolding. Her sister's eyes said what she would not. Phoebe had turned old and feeble. Like the woman she saw in her dreams.
Anxiously Piper asked "What war wounds? Phoebe. What are you talking about?"
Leo always the voice of reason "Everybody just calm down, Phoebe, go on" but Phoebe knew as well as her sisters that even Leo was afraid. "Well, my hands aged and that was scary but they changed back so fast that I didn't know what to think. I really thought I was hallucinating."
Piper scoffed. "Why didn't you come to us? Phoebe?! I cannot believe with everything we have been through you still hesitated to come to us." she was half angry and half scared. She looked at Leo. He knew his wife and although she became the eldest sister after they lost Prue; she was still that middle child who preferred letting someone else take the lead.
"Maybe we should get the Book of Shadows? See if there is a spell or something to reverse the aging process?" Phoebe was ready for the glaring and judgment to stop.
"That's a good idea, Paige would you get the book?" Piper chimed in.
"Yeah, be right back" As she left the living room she mumbled to herself talk about needing a gallon of Retin-A.
"So, go on what else?" The three of them listened intently but were still at a loss for what to do as Phoebe continued telling them about her dreams.
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"Well, there has got to be a way to put her back in her body."
"Technically, she is in her body. Her body is just 40 years older."
"Not helping Paige" Piper snapped. "I don't understand, so this is Phoebe accelerated through time. Clearly this is Phoebe; she has all the same memories…" Piper was meandering around the kitchen while Paige continued mixing a potion. "She is still Phoebe, right?"
"As far as I can tell that's still our sister in there. If time continues to accelerate at the rate it is now… we can't just leave her there sleeping. What if she does not wake up?" Paige stopped when she realized what she had said.
A panicked Piper replied "No. No, she's not aging that fast." They both ran from the kitchen to check on their sister.
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Paige scrunched her face and stopped in her tracks. "Piper. Who's that?" Paige asked
Standing over Phoebe was a man cloaked in black. Holding his arms above Phoebe he looked as if he were pulling the life force out of her. His arms were almost gray in color and appeared to be worn like old leather. He held in one hand what looked like a bloodied piece of meat. "No! You stay away from her!" Piper flashed her hands to blow him up but her powers were useless.
He flashed his red eyes at the sisters, they lost their footing and fell to the floor.
"Phoebe, wake up!" Paige yelled across the room. Phoebe did not move. Piper feared that Paige might have been right.
They both watched Phoebe as the creature continued to violate her very essence.
"Phoebe! You wake up right now do you hear me?" Piper cried.
"Leo! Leo!" Paige called.
Loosing his concentration the creature dropped his arms and dematerialized.
Phoebe stirred and opened her eyes.
Leo appeared in a whirl of white light. The sisters jumped to their feet as quickly as they could and ran to Phoebe. Eyes open and the color of blood, skin dehydrated and wrinkled she sat sunken on the sofa.
"Phoebe?! Phoebe can you hear me?"
"Piper, I don't think that's Phoebe anymore."
"Piper I think Paige is right, that's not Phoebe."
"Get the book. Get the book. Get the book!" Piper was near hysteria.
Paige grabbed the book so fast it slid out of her hands and hit the floor. Reaching to pick it up again the book opened to a page that housed a picture of a demon. The demon looked exactly like the one that was just pursuing Phoebe. "Haruspex" Paige said with no emotion.
"Haruspex, what the heck is that?" Piper asked as she covered Phoebe with the blanket. Phoebe was still breathing but in a comatose state.
"I'm afraid that's what Phoebe is" Paige said shyly
"Let me see that." Piper said. The three of them gathered together across from Phoebe to read what was written in the Book of Shadows.
