Crossing Over

Prue groaned. Her head was pounding and her eyes felt like they were swollen shut. She tried to move her arms but found they were tied together behind her back. With all the strength she could muster she managed to open her eyes. Wherever she was it was damp and dark.

"Hello?" she called out. Her voice was raspy and it didn't sound like her at all.

She heard muffled noises coming from her left. She turned her head but that hurt too much. Footsteps echoed and soon she could tell she was not alone anymore.

"She's awake," a male sounding voice stated.

"Where am I?" Prue demanded, lifting her head as best she could. Her eyes were still adjusting to the darkness but she could make out two figures.

"Safe," a female voice answered. It sounded familiar somehow.

"That's not a good answer," the ten-year-old grumbled. One of the figures snickered softly and ignited a fireball in its palm. The light suddenly lit up the room. Prue's pupils contracted from the light but they seemed to adjust faster to the light. She could make out the two figures in grotesque details. The blue demon looked horribly familiar.

"You're in the Underworld, Prue," the red-skinned demon answered. Prue could feel her heart starting to beat faster.

"Let me go," she protested, wiggling in her restraints.

"I'm afraid we can't do that," the male demon sighed, bouncing the fireball in his hand.

"You can't do this!" she shouted and managed to send Ravus back a few paces.

"I thought you said her power came from her hands," he hissed at Janice.

"I assumed it did," Janice snapped back at him. Prue used the arguing to her advantage. She twisted her hands around, trying to undo the rope that bound her wrists. She got one knot undone when Ravus turned to face her. He through the fireball right above her head; causing her to press her body close to the floor to avoid being hit.

"You're going t cooperate, witch," he spat. Prue backed up until her back was to the cave wall.

"No. Leave me alone," she countered.

"You don't have to scare her," Janice simpered. This was going to require a woman's touch. How typical.

"We don't want to hurt you, Prue. We just want your help," she began and untied Prue's hands.

"But…he tried to kill Victor," Prue stammered.

"You don't like him much, do you?" Janice asked.

"Not when he tells me what to do," Prue admitted.

"So why don't you show him that you don't like it. Use your magic on him," she suggested.

"I can't," Prue answered shortly.

"Why not? It's your magic, isn't it?" the demon probed.

"I guess…but Leo said we can't use it for bad stuff…to hurt people," she explained.

"Well Leo's not here right now. And I think there is someone that you want to get even with," Janice whispered. Prue shook her head. She didn't want to be here.

"Leo!" she shouted.

"Leo can't hear you down here," Ravus sniggered.

Back at the Manor Piper was fixing a snack for Phoebe in the kitchen. Phoebe had taken a seat on the couch and was flipping through channels. Piper walked in with a bowl of trail mix and juice and set it on the table.

"Phoebe!" she groaned and snatched the remote from the five-year-old's hand.

"That's not fair. Give it back," Phoebe protested.

"You aren't supposed to watch TV until all your homework is done," Piper reminded her baby sister in a motherly tone.

"I don't got homework today," Phoebe answered and crossed her arms over her chest, sticking out her tongue.

"Give me your backpack," the eight-year-old ordered. Phoebe pouted but handed it over. Piper rooted through the bag and found a couple of unfinished papers.

"Here, do this first and then you can watch," the older of the two stated.

"Miss Peterson said we didn't have to finish those," the five-year-old insisted.

"Just do it," Piper said, shoving the paper at her sister and handing her a pencil.

"Meanie," Phoebe shot but continued practicing her alphabet.

Piper just rolled her eyes and pulled out her own homework. Might as well get it done now. Half an hour later Piper looked over at Phoebe who had finished the two worksheets and was once more watching television. She looked at the clock and did her best to read the hands. She knew that Prue should have been home by now. To occupy herself she took the empty bowl and cups back into the kitchen and put them in the sink. She was just about to turn around when she heard the front door open.

"Prue?" she called out, rushing towards the door. To her disappoint it was only Victor.

"Hi, sweetie," he greeted.

"I thought you might have been Prue," Piper muttered.

"Why?" Victor asked, hanging his coat up on the wall.

"I don't know," Piper lied. She didn't like having to lie to her father. In the next room Phoebe was breathing hard. Victor noticed how labored his youngest daughter's breathing was and took the few steps to sit next to her.

"Phoebe?" he called but she didn't respond. Her eyes were wide. She was having yet another premonition. This one was of Grams.

Penny was turning to face the demon and he gave her an evil grin and stuck his hand into her chest. Phoebe watched the color drain from her grandmother's face. She could feel her Grams' heart stop beating as if it were her own.

Phoebe clutched her chest, making sure her heart was still beating and that she was still alive. She couldn't hold back the tears. Victor cradled her to him and whispered comforting words in her ear.

"Grams," Phoebe sobbed.

"I know you miss her," Victor murmured.

"No…the demon…he killed her," Phoebe stated through a loud sniffle.

"What?" Victor gasped. That couldn't be right. She'd died of a heart attack. She had a heart condition.

"What did you see, Pheebs?" Piper asked. She had a feeling was going to ask that question a lot in the future.

"The demon put his hand inside Grams' chest and then he made her heart stop," Phoebe answered her voice soft. It was then that Victor noticed that Prue was nowhere to be seen. He would have thought she would have come running.

"Piper, where is Prue?" he asked sternly. Piper couldn't meet his gaze. She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.

"Piper," he stated.

"She got in trouble at school. But it wasn't her fault. A boy hit Phoebe on the bus. She had to do detention. She was walking home," Piper answered.

"She should have called me and I would have picked her up. She shouldn't be walking home," Victor railed.

"I told her not to but she didn't want to listen," Piper offered. Victor stood up and began to pace.

"How long was her detention?" he demanded to know.

"A half hour," Piper supplied.

"She should have been home by now. I swear if something has happened to her…" he trailed, a thought occurring to him.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," he grumbled to himself.

"Leo!" he called out. The living room was filled with blue and white orbs, depositing Leo.

"Victor…is everything ok?" Leo asked, looking a little surprised to be there.

"Prue was walking home from school and we can't find her," Victor said. Leo nodded and closed his eyes, trying to sense her. A worried look washed over his young face.

"I can't sense her…" he trailed off.

"What does that mean?" Victor shouted.

"It means it's not good. The girls are vulnerable until midnight tonight. There was a forty-eight hour window agreed upon eons ago between good an evil where a witch could be swayed to either side," the whitelighter explained.

"So you're telling me…some…demon could have my daughter?" Victor asked.

"Yes, that is what I'm saying. And if whoever has her convinces her to use her powers to harm an innocent…then there's nothing we can do," Leo said sadly.

"Nothing we can do? That doesn't fly for me, pal. If it's your job to guide them and protect them, then find her and protect her," Victor ground out and stormed into the kitchen.

"Is Prue going to be ok?" Phoebe asked.

"I don't know," Leo answered. It broke his heart that he couldn't tell her that her big sister would be alright.

Back in the Underworld Prue was trying to ignore Janice. She had her hands over he ears and her eyes squeezed shut. She didn't want to be here, and she didn't want to help them.

"Prue…you know you want to get back at that boy who hurt Phoebe," Janice prodded.

"He's just a stupid third grader. He had to do detention too," Prue answered.

"But it's not fair. You didn't do anything wrong. He was the one who hurt your sister," Janice goaded.

Suddenly there was a shimmer and Ravus appeared, holding a very frightened Justin by the nape of his neck. Prue's eyes widened. This was very wrong. He shouldn't be here. Leo had told them not to tell anyone about magic.

"W-where am I?" Justin babbled.

"Where bad boys go," Ravus whispered, shoving him towards Prue.

"Go on, Prue. Teach him the lesson you really wanted to teach him for picking on Phoebe," Janice hissed in Prue's ear. Prue stared at the eight-year-old boy before. She did want to trip him…or hit him even. She looked over her shoulder at Janice who nodded her head. Prue squinted her eyes and Justin stumbled back a few inches.

"How…how'd you do that?" he gasped.

"Come on, Prue. You can do better than that. He hurt your sister. He had no right to do that," Janice taunted. Prue figured she did have a point. Even though it was just a pinch, he had meant to hurt her. No one hurt her sisters.

"No one hurts my sisters," Prue shot and sent Justin flying into a wall, knocking him out cold, a small trickle of blood slithering down from his nose. Suddenly Prue glowed with a black aura.

"I feel funny," Prue muttered, turning to face Ravus and Janice.

"It will pass in a few minutes, I promise," Janice said, laying a hand on Prue's shoulder. Prue smiled up at her. Janice sent Ravus a smirk. They had succeeded. They had turned the Charmed Ones. Even the Source couldn't deny them that.

"Is he dead?" Prue asked, glancing over at Justin.

"No," Ravus answered.

"Good," Prue sighed. She didn't like thee kid but she didn't want him dead.

"Stay here. We have to go take care of something. We'll be right over here," Janice informed the ten-year-old. Prue nodded and sat down on a flat rock, her elbows propped on her knees. In the adjoining cave Ravus and Janice were whispering in low tones.

"Did you get the darklighter?" Janice asked.

"I believe I have one who we can trust to get the job done. And with the Charmed Ones on our side now, they won't be worrying about their injured whitelighter," Ravus replied with a smirk.

"Good. Once we send Prue back to the Manor, we'll send the darklighter after the whitelighter. The father will have figured out she's missing by now and will have called him to help," Janice explained.

"Prue," Janice called, entering the cave. Prue looked up.

"Aren't you worried?" the demon asked.

"Worried about what?" the girl questioned.

"Well...Victor of course. I mean…he's all alone in the Manor with your sisters. You're not there to protect them from him," the demon answered.

"He likes Piper and Phoebe…especially Phoebe. Why would he hurt them?" Prue inquired.

"Well…he is only nice to them when you're around. He's a mortal…and he doesn't like magic. He wants to make your sisters stop using their magic. We can't let that happen, now can we?" Janice fabricated.

"No…I'll….I'll kill him," Prue shouted and stood up.

"I hope so," Janice muttered under her breath.

"Now…all you have to do is think of where you want to go, and you'll be there," she instructed the ten-year-old.

Prue closed her eyes, focusing on the Manor. In the blink of an eye she was out of the Underworld and standing in the front hall of the Manor. She opened her eyes to see her father, sisters and Leo staring at her.