The Closing Chapter 2
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Piper had regained her positive attitude and had one again created an amazing meal. She stood at the dining table of the Halliwell manor organizing the table to be just perfect. She smiled as she looked at her hard work. She hoped that, despite the recurring nightmares and foreshadowing feeling of disaster she'd been having all morning, it would be a nice family brunch.
A trail of orbs descended down from the ceiling and revealed her four-year old son Wyatt dressed in his best Sunday clothes. Piper smiled and stroked his hair.
"You look great, sweetie, are you ready for the brunch?" she said with a smile.
"Yes." Wyatt said and tried to reach for a bagel on the table.
"No, no, no, honey, we have to wait for your aunts and uncles to get here." Piper said and she took his hand. "Come on, why don't you sit down?"
As she guided him to his chair Leo came downstairs holding little Chris on his shoulder. Both of them were dressed in their best clothes, just like Wyatt.
""How do you get them in those clothes, they never want to wear them when I put them on." Piper asked after giving her husband a kiss.
"It's a guy's thing, right Chris?" Leo said, causing Chris to smile.
"Well, alright, I'm going to get ready real quick. Don't let the boys eat yet, we have to wait for the others." Piper said.
"Don't worry. Go get ready." Leo said and placed Chris in his elevated seat.
Piper took one last look around before heading upstairs. Leo sat down next to Wyatt at the table.
"Daddy, I'm hungry." Wyatt said.
Leo smiled and picked up a bagel. After cutting it in half he gave one piece to Wyatt.
"Don't tell your mommy, okay. It will be our secret." Leo said and also gave a piece to Chris.
Both Halliwell boys smiled as they started eating quickly before Piper got back.
Meanwhile Phoebe and Coop arrived in front of the manor in Phoebe's car. They got out and headed up the stairs to the front door. Phoebe rang the doorbell and stood waiting.
"God, it feels so weird ringing the bell here." She said.
"Well, you still have a key, don't you?" Coop asked.
"Yes I do, but I don't live here anymore, you know. I can't just barge in here whenever I feel like it." Phoebe explained.
The front door opened and the couple was greeted by Wyatt running out the door and jumping in Phoebe's arms. Leo was right behind him.
"Aunt Phoebe!" Wyatt happily said.
"Hey there, big guy. I missed you. You are getting to heavy, you know that?" Phoebe said.
"Hey, guys. Come on in." Leo said.
Phoebe entered the manor with Wyatt still on her arm and gave Leo a hug. Coop walked in behind them and shook his hand. Leo closed the door and guided them to the dining room. Phoebe waved at little Chris and he laughed at her.
"So where is Piper?" Phoebe asked as she placed Wyatt down on the floor.
"She's upstairs getting ready. She should be down any minute." Leo said.
"So how have you been Leo, it's been a while." Coop asked.
"Oh, everything's been great. It took a while to get used to being back but now we couldn't be happier. Life is just perfectly normal. So how have you been?" Leo said.
"Oh, you know, charges keeping me busy, Phoebe as well." Coop said with a smile.
"Hey." Phoebe called out jokingly.
"You guys want something to drink?" Leo asked.
"No, we'll wait for Piper." Phoebe said as she sat down at the table. The guys followed her example and sat down as well.
"So shouldn't Paige and Henry be here by now?" Coop asked.
"Oh, Paige is always late." Phoebe said. "She'll be here."
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Meanwhile, upstairs, Piper was in her room combing her hair. She had just finished getting dressed and had sat down on her bed, looking in the full length mirror across the room. No matter how much she tried her mind kept going back to her dream. She knew it was connected to the bad feeling she'd been having this entire time but she didn't know what it meant. Christy was dead and Billie was out of their lives now. She should be happy and try to have a normal life. When she heard Phoebe and Coop arrived, Piper hurried up and finished her hair before heading down.
Just as Piper walked down the stairs, Paige orbed in the middle of the foyer with Henry.
"Hi, thanks for knocking." Piper said.
""Yeah, we figured we'd be late so we decided to orb." Paige said.
"Of course." Piper said sarcastically. "Hi Henry." She later added.
"Hey, Piper. Sorry we're late." Henry said.
"Never mind, you're not that late. Phoebe and Coop just arrived a few minutes go." Piper said and guided them to the dining room.
As they entered the dining room everyone happily greeted each other. After quickly catching up with each other, everyone sat down at their seats. Piper was at the head of the table with her sons at both sides. Leo sat next to Wyatt on the right with Paige and Henry beside him. On the other side of the table Phoebe was sitting next to Chris and Coop next to her. Everyone turned their attention to Piper as she raised her glass of orange juice.
"I would like to thank you all for coming." Piper began to speak. "I would like to make a small toast. The last eight years of our lives have been filled with both great and tragic things. So much has changed. We've lost our dear sister, Prue, and we have gained another beloved sister, Paige."
Piper gave Paige a smile, who smiled back at her.
"We have sacrificed a lot for our destiny but we have also gained so much in return." Piper continued. "Still, I am very glad to say that we have finally fulfilled our destiny, and that we can finally lead normal lives."
"I'll toast to that." Phoebe said, causing the others to laugh.
"Yes, thanks Pheebs." Piper said. "What I would like to say is that, no matter what our destiny is now, we will always a family and that we will always be there for each other. So therefore, I would like to toast to family."
Everyone raised their glass. "To family."
"Okay, let's get started then, shall we?" Piper said with a smile as she sat down.
Piper watched her family getting started on brunch. Everything seemed perfect and so normal, all the bad feelings she had been having just flushed away and made room for happiness. She felt as if nothing could ruin this moment, or the rest of their lives.
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Billie stood out on Prescott street across from the manor. It had been months since she'd been here. It looked the same, but felt completely different. The manor had been the place that she had made the best of friends but also fought the most horrible battle. She wondered if the sisters would ever be able to forgive her.
A deep feeling of fear filled Billie when she realized what she had to do, she had to go in the manor and face the sisters. She wondered how they would react. Piper would be the worst, she had taken her betrayal the hardest, especially when she had found out Billie and Christy had stripped Wyatt's powers. Phoebe had always seemed more understanding and more forgiving and she had no idea how Paige would react. She used to be her whitelighter, but Billie had grown closer to the other sisters, since Paige was often busy with other charges or Henry.
Billie wanted to turn back, pretend that Christy had just been her imagination, but she knew it wasn't true. She didn't have a choice. The sisters just had to know Christy was... alive, dead? Billie didn't even know what she was, but she still had to tell them. They had to be warned before Christy could have her revenge and catch the sisters off guard. She took a deep breath, gathered her courage and walked up to the manor.
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"Oh, I couldn't possibly eat anymore." Paige called out when Piper came back from the kitchen holding a plate of freshly baked buns.
"Don't worry, honey, I'll just take yours then." Henry said with a smile.
"What would I do without you?" Paige remarked skeptically.
"Be careful though, they are still hot." Piper said as she placed the plate on the table.
Henry picked up a bun and instantly dropped it, waving his hand to cool it down.
"Man, those are really hot." He said.
Wyatt and Chris both started giggling.
"Hey, that's not funny." Henry said, causing the boys to giggle even harder.
"Oh, don't be such a baby." Paige said and gave him a little smile.
Meanwhile on the other side of the table, Phoebe let out a sigh as she leaned forward and placed a hand on her stomach.
"Phoebe, are you okay?" Coop asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little nausea." Phoebe said. "It's okay, it usually goes away after a few minutes. I think I just ate to much or something."
Upon hearing the word usually, Piper and Paige exchanged looks and a smile.
"Why don't you take a bun, Phoebe, they're fresh from the oven." Paige said.
"No, thanks." Phoebe said, not noticing the pun.
Suddenly the doorbell rang.
"Who could that be?" Piper said and got up.
Piper walked to the front door and opened it. Upon seeing who was standing in front of her she froze. She instantly knew why she'd been having that bad feeling the entire morning. A sudden rage she hadn't felt in months suddenly reached its boiling point.
"What the hell are you doing here!" she called out to Billie.
"Piper, I am sorry for coming here like this. But I really need to talk to you guys." Billie said quickly in an apologizing manner.
As soon as they heard Piper yell, Phoebe and Paige had jumped up and joined Piper at the front door. They too were shocked to see Billie standing in the door opening.
"Billie, what are you doing here?" Phoebe asked.
"Phoebe, I need to talk to you…" Billie repeated but before she could continue, she was interrupted.
"We have nothing to talk about, Billie!" Piper angrily said. "How dare you come here after everything you did?"
"I wouldn't have come if it wasn't important." Billie said.
"What is so important?" Paige asked.
"It's…" Billie started but couldn't find the right words.
"Well, what is it?" Piper asked impatiently.
"Piper, let her finish." Phoebe said.
"Well, I'm sorry, but I am not going to listen to this." Piper said and tried to walk away.
"Piper!" Phoebe called out.
"No, Phoebe. That girl tried to kill us. She betrayed us after we took her in and trusted her." Piper said while pointing at Billie. She then turned to Billie herself. "How could you do that, Billie? After everything we have done for you?"
"Piper…" Billie softly whispered as she started to cry.
Billie fell apart. She didn't know how to handle this, it was too hard. Being confronted with her mistakes was overwhelming. Piper's hatred was killing her. She couldn't find the words to warn the sisters about Christy.
"I'm sorry, I can't do this now." Billie softy said and ran away.
"Billie, wait!" Paige yelled after her.
"Piper, how could you do that?" Phoebe asked.
"Excuse me?" Piper asked angry. "How can I do that? Phoebe, what did you expect me to do? Welcome her back? She betrayed us and tries to kill us. How can you even defend her?"
"She is in pain, Piper, she had nobody left." Phoebe said. "She made mistakes and she knows it. She will have to live with those mistakes the rest of her life."
"I don't care, as long as she lives her life somewhere else. I cannot forgive her, I just can't." Piper said and walked away.
Phoebe watches as Piper stormed upstairs and then grabbed her coat.
"What are you doing?" Paige asked.
"I am going after her, Paige, she needs me now." Phoebe said.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Paige asked.
"No I'm not, but I have to try. I know what she is going through. I have made mistakes as well." Phoebe said.
"That's not the same, Phoebe." Paige said, knowing her sister was referring to her short stint as queen of the underworld.
"Isn't it?" Phoebe asked. "Look you don't have to agree with me, this is just something that I feel I need to do."
"I won't stop you." Paige said. "You're right, she does need someone. But just because you are ready to let her back in, doesn't mean that Piper and I are."
"I know that, and nobody is asking you to. I have to go, before I lose her." Phoebe said and ran out the front door, leaving Paige standing there alone.
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Paige closed the door and turned around. Leo, Coop and Henry came walking into the foyer.
"What that Billie?" Leo asked.
"Yes, it was." Paige said.
"What was she doing here?" Leo asked.
"I don't know. She said she wanted to talk to us, but she run off before she could tell us about what, thanks to Piper." Paige said.
"Where is Piper?" Leo asked.
"She went upstairs. I think you need to go talk to her, calm her down." Paige said.
"Right, I'll go find her. Look after the boys, will you?" Leo said.
"Sure." Paige said.
Leo headed upstairs while Paige, Coop and Henry moved back to the diner room to keep an eye on Wyatt and Chris. The boys apparently hadn't noticed what was going on as they were playing with their food as if nothing was going on.
"Did Phoebe go after Billie?" Coop asked.
"Yes, she wanted to help her." Paige said.
"Good, she really needs it." Coop said.
"What do you mean?" Paige asked.
"I'm a cupid, remember?" Coop said. "I have the power of empathy and I could sense Billie was filled with pain. I could sense it in the other room, it was unbearable."
"I know she must be in pain, but I don't know if it's up to us to help her. I really don't know if I can after everything." Paige said.
"But Paige, aren't you still her whitelighter?" Henry asked.
"I was her whitelighter." Paige said.
"You still are, I figured that being a whitelighter was like being a parole officer." Henry said. "You don't give up on your charges, even if they make mistakes. Billie made a huge mistake, and she hurt you, I know that, but she still needs you."
"Well yeah, but…" Paige started, but didn't finish her sentence.
Paige realized that she was still Billie's whitelighter, no matter what. She also knew that she had failed as a whitelighter. The last year she had been spreading herself too thin, unable to balance her different roles as a witch, whitelighter and wife. While she had been obsessed with finding personal enlightenment, Billie had fallen through the cracks. If she had paid more attention to Billie, or had been more involved with finding Christy, maybe things would have gone different.
"You're right, Henry." Paige said. "Thank you." She added with a smile.
Suddenly, three columns of orbs descended down from the ceiling. They each took shape of a figure dressed in a white and golden robe. The Elders. One stepped forward, Paige recognized him instantly. Odin, the Elder that tried to take Leo from his family.
"Who would have guessed that a whitelighter needed a mortal to tell her how to do her job?" Odin remarked in a disapproving tone.
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Piper was standing in the middle of the Halliwell manor attic. Her eyes were red from tears and her fists were trembling from the shock and anger. She didn't know why she came up to the attic, since she hadn't been here in weeks. It was probably to be as far away from that little witch as possible. But then she realized there was another reason.
This had been the spot where she and her sisters had learned the true extend of Billie and Christy's scheming. This was where the Charmed Ones were not only betrayed by the Ultimate power, but were also deserted by the entire Magical community, after Billie and Christy had ruined their reputation. After an encounter that nearly cost them their lives, the sisters were forced to flee to the underworld, as everyone thought they were the bad guys. But the worst of all was that this was also the spot where they had used the Hollow to take her sons power and put his life at risk. She had willingly endangered Wyatt in order to get enough power to kill Piper and her sisters. Out of all the things Billie had done, this was the one thing that Piper could never forgive.
The more she thought about, the more hurt she felt. She had took Billie in, treated her and Christy like family, but still Billie had turned on them. All because she believed the sisters were evil for having normal human desires, like wanting Leo back. It didn't even make any sense.
"Piper." Leo's voice sounded behind her.
Piper turned around and faced her husband, who took her in a tight embrace. Thank God she had him back. Piper laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes. She could instantly feel the anger and pain slip away.
"I can't do it, Leo." Piper softly said. "I can't allow her back in my life."
"I understand." Leo said.
They stood there for a while, neither of them spoke, because they didn't need to. Piper never wanted to let go, the fear of losing him again would probably never be completely gone. Leo was about to say something, but Piper already knew what he was going to say.
"You think I need to talk to her, don't you?" Piper asked.
"You don't have to forgive her, Piper, or let her back in. But you need to hear her out." Leo said.
"Fine. I'll hear her out. But I can't promise I won't blow her up." Piper said with a smirk.
"Just try not to, okay honey?" Leo said with a smile.
"Piper! You'd better get down here!" Paige's voice sounded from downstairs.
"That doesn't sound good, does it?" Piper remarked. "Why did I ever think we could just have a normal family brunch?"
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