Welcome to my new reviewer, Charmed225. I'm glad that you're enjoying how I write the sisters. To be honest, I wasn't quite sure how I would pull off the Piper/Phoebe/Paige interaction because I was such a big fan of the original sister trio, Prue/Piper/Phoebe. But it's good to hear from someone that they think I can do it, lol.

And on with the story

Chapter 5: Confessions

The charcoal walls in the dark Underworld cavern were lit by torches.

Gideon stood in the center of a circle created from small stones. These stones that lined the perimeter of the circular formation were not just any ordinary stones. Within these stones, enough dark magic was contained in order to unlock the box. A box Gideon now held in his hands. His eyes were closed, and he appeared to be immersed within a deep meditative state while he chanted something in Latin. However, he was released from his trance like state when he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. He opened his eyes without turning around to face the intruder.

"Is it done?" he demanded to know.

"Is what done?" a cocky female voice questioned in return.

At the sound of the unexpected voice, Gideon spun around only to come face to face with Lana. "What are you doing here?" he complained with hostility. "You're not supposed to be here! And how did you find me, I have this cavern magically sealed off from everyone."

Lana smirked in her usual haughty way. "Well, either my sensing capabilities are improving or yours are slipping Gideon," she mocked him. "Besides, I am part of the Triad which makes me part of the collective. Why are you surprised?"

Gideon didn't reply. A huge urge within only desired to blast her into oblivion because she was becoming more trouble than she was worth. He didn't trust her and if for one moment she thought she would be capable of a double cross anywhere in the near future then she had another thing coming. "My point is," he stressed, toning his agitation down, "that you belong working on Billie while I handle other matters. So why are you here?"

"The Billie situation is under control. In fact, I expect she and the sisters to be paying us a little visit very soon," Lana announced happily, feeling quite proud of herself. "So, we should be ready for them."

Gideon narrowed his eyes. "Why would they be doing that? Unless you've led them to me which in that case ..." he started to argue but was interrupted by Lana.

"Relax, Gideon. They don't know who you are. At least not yet anyway," she slipped in under her breath. "They'll be coming for Christy," she explained.

"Christy? Why?" he interrogated.

"Yes, Christy," she repeated. "Like I already told you, I have it all under control. Stop asking questions. But what I need to know is how things are coming on your end?" Her eyes narrowed.

"It's taking more time to recover the child than I had anticipated," he reported. "I had to get rid of the Nauscas tracking her down. The idiot got caught by one of the Charmed Ones. They summoned him back which almost led to my exposure, but I've sent another one out after her," Gideon detailed to Lana.

"And what about the other situation?" she inquired.

"The other situation should be taken care of as soon as I hear back from Dannon," replied Gideon. "Which I haven't yet so where the hell is that buffoon?" he shouted into the air. "That's the most important threat we need to eliminate."

"Dannon?" Lana snorted. "Didn't he screw up once and mistake a demon for a witch? Rumor has it there's been quite a bounty over his head for a while. Is that the idiot you thought was me?" she rolled her eyes. Then noticing the box in Gideon's hands, she became curious. "What is that?"

Gideon looked down to the box and back up again. "This, my dear Lana, will put an end to the Twice Blessed Generation as soon as we eliminate the threat of the Ultimate Power."

Lana's eyes narrowed. "I asked what it was, not what it would do!" her snide response followed.

Gideon smiled with arrogant satisfaction. Good, he thought. She questions his motives. She should because if there's any way to get rid of her after he was done using her, he would. He proceeded to answer her as he patted the top of the box with his hand. "This is Pandora's Box."

"Pandora's Box? I thought that was just myth. A legend?" remarked Lana.

"Well, it is. To most of the magical community." Gideon smirked. "However, as a former high ranking Elder, I was privy to many magical secrets. It was all about order and maintaining the balance of power. Some mystical objects, such as the Hollow, carry a concentration of too much power. They are meant to be locked away, never to be opened."

"But you plan to?" she sent him an odd look.

Suddenly, Gideon's features turned very dark as he reflected on a destiny that no longer belonged to him. A destiny that brought him to where he was now. He ignored her passing inquiry. "They just couldn't respect what I needed to do. Sometimes unnatural concentrations of power could be found in people and that needed to be stopped at all costs!"

"How did you get your hands on it?" interrogated Lana. "And if it's as dangerous as you claim, what's going to happen to us when you open it?"

"I killed the Guardian, that's how I got it," sneered Gideon. "The box will be used to pull in the essences of the Twice Blessed Generation. It won't be used to let anything else out."

"But how do you know you won't?" argued Lana. "It's not what's going in that concerns me. It's what you could be letting out!"

Gideon just rolled his eyes. "Nothing will be released. Not with the right incantation. Not with the use of these stones. Unfortunately for the Guardian, she refused to be forthcoming with it so I was forced to scan her memory. If I hadn't been successful, she'd still be here." He smirked with an evil grin.

Lana didn't like it but she felt forced to go along with the plan for the time being, at least until the others resurrected and then maybe they could decimate such an asinine scheme. Or better yet, decimate him? "When will the others be back?" she demanded to know.

"In time," came Gideon's vague response. "Remember, the Triad has been vanquished before while you've been vanquished merely once. It will take them longer to regenerate. But, rest assured, they'll be back," he guaranteed.

Lana didn't say anything.

"They'll be back," he muttered to himself one last time.

X

Billie's eyes slowly fluttered open as a searing bright light made its way through causing her to flinch. She was regaining consciousness, but the brightness hurt her eyes. There was a cold compress being held against her head, she could feel it. As she attempted to sit upright, she was struck by a pounding sensation that coursed throughout her head.

"Ow," Billie wailed, slamming her body back against the mattress. She brought her hand up behind the back of her head.

Wait, mattress, she thought for a second. How did I get from the attic to the bed?

And that's when she heard the sound of a masculine voice.

"Hey, take it easy there. That's quite a nasty bump you took to the head," came the stern but concerned reply.

"Leo?" muttered Billie.

He helped her support her body weight against the headboard on the bed. As her eyesight came back into focus, she could definitely make out that she wasn't in the attic anymore. Where am I? What happened? The last thing she remembered was flying across the attic and then, boom, everything went black. Then it all hit her like a ton of bricks.

Billie bolted upright. "Christy?" she exclaimed loudly. "Oh my god, Christy! Where is she?"

"Billie, take it easy," answered Leo. "You had a head injury and you've been in and out of consciousness all night. Paige took care of the major damage, but you still need to be careful," he insisted.

He hoped he could keep her calm and distracted until Piper returned. Leo knew Billie's back story and how her sister had been kidnapped when they were still kids, but he didn't want to be the one to tell her that Christy was gone once again.

"Wait, I've been out all night? What time is it?" Billie started to panic, looking to the side of her for an alarm clock.

"It's just after nine," answered Leo.

"In the morning? But I don't see Christy! Where is she?" Billie pressed on.

"Billie, I think you should just rest and when the girls get back ..." Leo started but was interrupted by her.

"Just answer the question, Leo. Where's my sister?" she pleaded, as the brims of her eyes filled with tears.

Leo sighed and was about to explain when the bedroom door opened. Piper walked in carrying a tray of food. He was visibly relieved because he would let Piper take it from here.

"Hey, sunshine, you're awake!" Piper exclaimed. "We were worried. Paige healed you but you wouldn't come out of it."

She placed the breakfast she had made down on the nightstand beside the bed. Then, she sat down on the edge of the bed taking on that unique motherly quality that everyone associated with Piper. She reached forward to remove the cold compress from Billie's forehead and replaced it with a brand new one.

"Listen, Piper, not that I don't appreciate it but there's no way that I can eat right now. Not until I know that Christy's safe," she answered with determination.

"Billie, you need to take it easy. If Christy is in trouble, we'll find a way to get her back, but until then we need to be careful about all this," responded Piper.

Billie felt defensive. "What do you mean if she's in trouble? If you're telling me that demon took Christy last night than that means she's in big trouble and we have to get her back. Right now!" Billie shouted.

She slammed the cold compress onto the bed beside her and attempted to get up but was halted by Piper who put her hand up against her to block her path.

"Billie, stop!" exclaimed Piper. "What happened to being open minded and ready to handle this? Listen, we need to think this through. We can't just react on our emotions; it can get us killed. She can be anywhere inside the Underworld right now and we need to see if we can get a location first."

Leo quietly listened to the entire debate when he decided to put his sense into it. "Yeah, and besides, you're going to need Paige to orb you down there," he added. "And you really do need to come up with a plan first."

Piper tried to come across as empathetic as she could in the situation. Although, that's more Phoebe's department, she added as an afterthought. "Look, Billie, I highly doubt they've kept her alive this long just so they could kill her now," she reasoned.

"She's probably being used as a pawn to trap you into coming to rescue her right away," Leo interjected with his opinion for the second time. "Which is even more of a reason to take some time and think this through."

"Leo's right." Piper agreed. "We need to make sure this isn't a trap!"

Billie listened and then looked to the ceiling as the tears she fought to hold in began streaming down her cheeks. She brought her shirt sleeve to her face and wiped against the watery onslaught.

Piper felt herself soften. "I know this is hard, sweetie," she tried to soothe.

"No! You just don't get it!" came Billie's emotional response. Tears were still making their way down the sides of her face. "It's all my fault. All of it!"

Piper and Leo listened intently. Piper shook her head not grasping what Billie was getting at. "None of this is your fault. It's nobody's fault except the demon who did this."

Billie continued with her tearful declarations. "No. I mean, they never would have died if it wasn't for me. Christy never would have been taken. I'm the one they were really after!"

Piper and Billie had their differences in the past, but she felt her heart go out to the teenager who sat beside her. She moved herself closer to her and embraced her in a hug. Not surprisingly, Billie reached back out and accepted the comfort. The poor girl had been through so much in the past year between losing her parents and her sister that it only made sense she would break sooner or later.

Billie felt waves of emotion overtake her. Out of all the sisters, Piper was the last one she expected to be sitting next to pouring her heart out to. But here she was and now was as good a time as any to reveal the big secret. Although, she had planned to be having this conversation with Phoebe first. However, fate apparently had stepped in and made the decision for her. After calming down, she broke out of the hug and made an attempt to explain what she had been trying to during her emotional outburst.

Billie took a deep breath. "I don't think Christy and I are the Ultimate Power," came her confession. "And I don't think Christy is a witch."

Leo and Piper looked to each other and then back to Billie.

"What makes you think that?" asked Piper. She was curious to know how Billie had reached that conclusion.

"Because I think I'm adopted," came Billie's admission. "Which makes Christy and my parents' mortal!"

X

Paige inserted the key into the lock of her apartment yearning to get inside for a warm bath and some sleep. She had called out of work after the long night she had with her sisters. They had spent most of the night worrying about Billie, trying to ID the demon, and scrying for a location.

As she entered the apartment, she kicked off her shoes and sighed.

Finally, I can relax, she thought.

Then, she brought herself to an abrupt stop as she encountered Henry sitting at the kitchen table, a solemn expression on his face as he stared back at her. "Henry!" she exclaimed.

"Where have you been all night?" he asked. He sounded frustrated.

There goes that bath, she thought before responding.

"Uh, aren't you supposed to be at work?" she asked, as she approached the cabinet and grabbed a mug to pour herself some coffee that Henry had made.

"I can ask you the same thing," he countered. "And you still haven't answered my question," he continued as he stood up from the table and approached her.

After pouring the coffee and taking a giant gulp, Paige turned around to face her husband. "Look, I'm sorry I forgot to call, okay? I know it's the courteous thing to do. But I was stuck at the manor trying to figure out this huge problem we're having tracking down a demon." Paige walked around him and into their living room.

Henry followed her. "Well, how about taking some time to keep track of your marriage, Paige?"

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Paige snapped back, feeling offended by her husband's innuendo.

"What it means is that you can't keep running away from the marriage and using your witch status to do it!" he declared.

Paige felt her anger creep in. "Wait a second here. So, because I'm not ready to have a baby that means I'm running away from the marriage? For your information, a little girl's life may be at stake here. And another girl may have been taken by demons last night! Right out of the manor. So, excuse me if I take my witch status a little too seriously," she responded angrily. She reached into her side pocket to grab her cell phone and dialed a number.

Henry sighed. "Look, Paige, I don't want to fight with you. I don't. And I know that what you do makes a big difference in the world. But these last six months you've been free from all that demon stuff and what was your excuse then? Piper made it work. And I'm sure that Phoebe plans to. What's holding us back? That's all I want to know."

Paige proceeded to ignore him as she made her call. "Hi. Mr. Brennan? Yeah, I'm sorry but it looks like I'll be making it to work today after all. Yup. Okay. See you in a bit." Paige made her way back into the kitchen to grab her purse and car keys. She slipped back into her shoes.

"Paige?" Henry called after her as he followed her into the kitchen. "Paige?"

She made her way to the door, opened it, and then turned back around. "And just for the record, I'm not Piper or Phoebe!" she exclaimed as she exited and then slammed the door.

Henry just let out a giant sigh and threw his hands up in the air. "Great," he muttered. "That went well. Again."

He made a face while walking away.

X

Dannon, the demonic assassin, slowly made his way back down the long corridor of the building until he reached apartment 733. He could have taken care of this last night had that dumb cop and his wife not interfered with his plans. They had passed by him in the long corridor, flashed him a smile, but were heading in the direction of the same apartment he was looking for. He knew he needed to get this taken care of quickly. Gideon would be expecting him to report back soon.

The demon made a quick inspection up and down the corridor. He made sure nobody was around and then he shimmered out of sight.

X

Marie stood at the kitchen sink rinsing the last of the dishes.

There was still so much unpacking to get done and she knew it would take time but that's not what was on her mind this morning. She kept thinking back to the night before and to the man named, Darryl, her husband's new boss. She couldn't get it out of her mind. There was an odd sense of familiarity she couldn't quite put her finger on. It was strange. She thought she felt a brief spark of recognition yet, at the same time, was certain they had never met before.

As she finished the dishes and placed them into the dishwasher, Michael walked around the corner adjusting the knot in his tie. It was too tight.

"Hey," he greeted her.

"Hey," she reciprocated in a rather melancholy tone but didn't bother to look over at him.

Michael sighed. Their marriage had been up and down like this for the past year. He was never quite sure what to expect. "Give any thought to what we talked about?" he broached the topic carefully. He was really hoping for a fresh start.

Marie huffed. It was obvious she was now annoyed. "Please don't start," she muttered as she moved to walk past him.

"Okay," he sighed, "that went well," he mumbled to himself, while turning around to follow her towards the living room area.

Marie knelt down, roughly grabbing for one of the boxes on the floor. Anything to distract herself.

"What about your photography?" he tried taking another approach.

"Yeah, what about it?" she asked in a distracted manner, opening boxes and beginning the task of unpacking.

Michael shrugged. "I thought it was something you're still into. Something you said you wanted to do. Maybe we can look around or get some ... " he started to suggest before being cut off.

"What I really want to do right now is get all this unpacking done," Marie cut in, voice firm. "It'll take weeks before we're anywhere near settled in."

"Right," he sighed, knowing full well she was blowing off any further discussion on the matter.

"And I know what you're doing," she threw in, shaking her head in disapproval.

"Yeah, and what am I doing?" he laughed, feeling annoyed.

She threw him her best glare.

"Fine," Michael relented. He knew it was pointless. "Get mad at me for encouraging you to have a life outside these four walls but you know how I feel," he insisted again. This wasn't the first time they had this discussion which quickly escalated into an argument. "You really need to talk to someone," he was firm in his opinion about that.

"What, you mean a shrink?" she laughed the suggestion off. "No, I don't think so. And I can't believe we're even having this conversation all over again."

"Well, you're clearly not speaking to me so maybe try talking about it to somebody else instead."

"Why?" Marie became snarky. "Because that's going to make you feel better or me?" she challenged.

"Okay, Marie, look. It's been over a year," he became defensive. "Obviously, we both know I can't help you or you won't let me help you." He was becoming increasingly frustrated with the direction their lives were heading in. "I mean, what do you plan on doing with the rest of your life," his voice rose, "turning another bedroom into a hopeless shrine. Staring at pictures all day long?"

"Seriously?" she shot back, shaking her head.

Michael looked away from her. He had reached a decision quite early on not to live in the past over this because it wouldn't change anything. Knowing the details wouldn't make it any easier either so he didn't need to know.

"I guess we should all take your approach then, huh," her tone took on more of an edge. "Pretend like nothing ever happened. Everything is just perfectly normal, right, let's walk out the front door every day and lose ourselves in our work or smile and play nice with the new neighbors so they don't think we have anything to hide," her thoughts returning to the pariah-like treatment they had been subjected to in their former town.

"Marie?" he pleaded.

"Well, I am pretending," she cut back in. "See?" a fake smile was plastered across her face, and she intentionally flashed it at him. "Happy now," the smile dropped, and she turned away to rip open another box.

"Don't do that!" he demanded.

"Excuse me, but as you can see, I have work to do here!" she waved down at the box. "This stuff isn't going to unpack itself so ... " she let her voice trail off.

Marie was done; however, Michael wasn't finished. "You need to learn to accept the truth," he argued, and got another reaction from her.

"Which is what exactly?" she stood up to confront him.

Why did she have to be so stubborn about this, he thought but didn't say. He shook his head at her.

"Well, what truth?" she pushed when he didn't answer back right away. "That life is unfair and crappy stuff happens to good people?"

"You know what I mean."

"Apparently not," Marie refuted. "I mean, my life is so meaningless, right? Maybe I should join a coven or go explore the Amazon, would that meet with your approval?" she mocked.

"Okay, enough," Michael yelled. "Would you stop twisting around everything I say," he countered her.

"I'm not," she denied. "But maybe my way of coping isn't to run away to some new city or to bury myself in work like you do," she accused.

He was shaking his head in disappointment. She was going to make him say it.

"I'm not you!" she finished.

"Molly's not coming back," he blurted out, asserting it strongly. "She's gone! Okay, she's gone, so learn to deal with it," his voice rose higher. "I have."

Her eyes began to tear up.

"And waiting around, day after day, expecting her to come running through the door is insane," he made sure to get his point across as directly as possible. "It's a fantasy. Stop pretending it's any different," his voice lowered, "and please get some help," he sighed.

Marie shook head and then roughly wiped at her eyes. "Yup, got it," she refused to look at him now, kicking a box out of her way. "Thanks for the help," she mocked, swiping past him to leave the room.

Michael shut his eyes.

She retreated down the narrow hallway leading to their bedroom.

"Marie, wait," Michael called out, sounding exasperated. He followed only to hear the bedroom door being slammed shut. After reaching the door, he heard the lock click into place. "Right," he rolled his eyes from the other side, "the couch tonight it is," he told himself.

Marie stood with her back against the door. Not only was she fuming on the inside but when she got upset, she didn't care who it was, she hated letting anybody see her cry. She swallowed over the growing lump in her throat, took a few deep breaths, and forced herself to calm down.

Michael gave up and knew not to keep pushing the issue. "I need to head out. I'll call you later, pick up the phone?" he attempted one last time before leaving. "Love you," he put his pummeled fist against the door.

Marie sighed, rolling her eyes.

He lingered at the door a moment longer before making his way back down the hallway to grab his jacket.

X

Darryl was in the elevator heading back to the seventh floor.

He felt anxious but knew the confrontation was necessary, and he wanted to catch Michael before he got to the precinct. After his dinner with Shelia last night, the background check had revealed some pretty disturbing information. He had spent most of the night searching and discovered that detailed histories for both Michael and Marie Holloway went back no further than five years, almost making it seem like they had appeared out of nowhere. There was other background information, familial ties, that didn't quite pan out either; only leading to more dead ends. They had questionable history, no doubt.

The most disturbing piece of information he turned up had been the disappearance of the Holloway's three-year-old daughter, Molly Holloway, last year on Halloween. The little girl had vanished without a trace and the authorities had been unable to turn up any suspects or evidence of foul play. Without any leads, the focus of the investigation shifted to the parents.

No wonder they moved, concluded Darryl.

Darryl knew that to the rest of the world the Holloways were perfectly reasonable suspects in the absence of any evidence leading to an intruder. However, the rest of the world had not experienced the previous seven years like he had, knowing about powerful witches who dealt with demons and various otherworldly folk. If he had been able to piece together Michael and Marie's identities within a few short days, what of the demons? Were they somehow led straight to the Holloways? Did they have anything to do with the child's disappearance?

His own past experiences with the magical world led him to reflect on the strange man who was walking the corridor the other night. At first glance he had appeared normal but when he and Shelia were leaving the building, the man's odd behavior alerted Darryl to something seeming off. He had been loitering. Finally, he had left after drawing some unwanted attention.

Darryl naturally became suspicious. What if he was a demon? All those years helping to cover for the Halliwell sisters hadn't been wasted on nothing. It was a certain look the man held in the eyes. He needed to share with them what he knew because it was very likely they were in danger but didn't even realize it. Also, it might be the only lead in finding out what could have really happened to their daughter.

As Darryl approached the door preparing to knock, he heard a loud crashing sound from the other side. He immediately grabbed for his gun and kicked the door in.

X

Marie was lying on the bed, eyes closed, hand covering her forehead. Having just popped two aspirins, she was trying to ward off an oncoming headache.

She contemplated about overreacting. She didn't want to give up and really resented Michael trying to make her forget like he was so obviously trying to do. Molly was alive, she knew it, felt it, and she wasn't going to let anybody tell her differently. Not until she saw it herself.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash.

What the hell?

Her instinctive reaction had her flinging herself off the bed and grabbing for the bedroom doorknob. She ran down the small hallway, turning to see Michael crouching on the floor, in pain, on top of a pile of boxes. The strange man standing before him was dressed in black and his hand held a flaming fireball.

Marie's eyes widened at the sight. "Hey!" she shouted out at the strange man with the fiery thing in his hand.

He turned his gaze to her and then she silently admonished herself for being so stupid.

Michael looked over after hearing her. He was still on the floor, holding onto his side. "No, don't, get out of here!" he clenched his teeth in pain.

The strange man dressed in black immediately approached in her direction with a sneer set in place. In a flash, his appearance shifted from a normal looking man into a disfigured monstrosity. A long-inflamed scar ran across his face diagonally, maggots festering through the opening.

Marie made a face. "Oh, oh, gross," she panicked.

"Witch!" he hissed.

"Hey, scar face, name calling isn't very nice," the sass just flew out. Why? She had no idea why she just said that when her life was on the line. Taunting your assailant probably wasn't the smartest move.

He was now flashing her his charred and broken teeth.

"Ok, I think I might throw up," she closed her eyes, making a gagging reflex sound.

"Tic toc, tic toc," he waved his finger in the air. "Looks like your time is finally up," he advanced on her.

Marie took steps away. "Back off!" she ordered.

The demon laughed at her. "Try and stop me if you can," he mocked. "A shame you don't have your powers anymore; I think I may have actually enjoyed the challenge."

"Dude, you're insane," Marie was feeling startled and confused. "Just leave us alone."

He pointed back at her. "First you. Then your sisters," he issued a threat.

"Yeah, well, I don't have any sisters, buddy," she quickly refuted his insane rantings. "Sorry, but you must have gotten your signals crossed on the crazy train out here." He was almost face to face with her.

The demon let out a low hiss. "You're right, you won't for much longer," the man-thing practically breathed on her, a putrid stench leaving his mouth.

Marie waved her hand in front of her face. "Ew, ever heard of mouthwash?"

His eyes narrowed.

Okay, so in the back of her mind, Marie knew it was definitely not the time to be a smart ass. She watched as a wide sinister smile broke out across the face of this beast. She didn't know what else to call him, it at this point, would probably have to suffice. Though, he was clearly enjoying all this, whatever this was. Quickly, her eyes scanned her closest proximity for anything she could potentially use in her defense.

"Marie?" Michael called out. "What are you doing?"

Marie shot Michael a look.

Helplessly, Michael watched the backside of the man advance on his wife and attempted to get up but couldn't. He groaned in pain and fell back to the floor as he could feel the full impact of what it was like to have broken ribs.

At the sight of the mighty Prue Halliwell cowering away from him, the demon roared with more laughter. "Ready to die?" he seethed inches from her face.

"No, how about you first," she grabbed for the picture frame off the wall, slamming it on top of his head. It smashed, broken pieces falling to the floor, but having had very little effect. Crap. Okay, think, think, Marie told herself, looking around for something else and realizing her options were pretty limited at this point.

The demon grabbed for her neck and then lifted her off the floor. "Not so tough now are you," he sneered. "If only your sisters could see you now. Any last words," he spat, "I'll be sure to give the message before sending them to meet you."

"Go to hell!" she got out.

He tightened his grip on her neck and Marie struggled against him to get loose and catch her breath. She watched as he brought up his free hand giving her a clear view of the flaming fire ball he brought to life. He turned his attention back to Michael on the floor.

"Wait, no," she begged. "It's me you want, remember?" It was the truth; she didn't know how she knew that, but she did.

"Tell the Elders, I got to you first," he mocked, still eyeing Michael.

Marie's thoughts were racing everywhere. Witch? Elders? Sisters? She was entering panic mode because she sensed exactly what this monster intended to do: release that fire ball thingy at her husband and probably her next. She didn't know what to do, didn't know how to stop this. He was holding fire in his hand, and it wasn't burning him.

"The pathetic mortal dies," the demon laughed, his full attention with the man lying on the floor. "Now."

Marie began to shake. "Stop!" she barely got out, but it was enough to distract him.

The demon shot his attention back to her. "Speak up a little louder, I can't hear you," he taunted, as the grip on her neck went even tighter. She gasped and couldn't get another word out. "Aw, what's the matter?" he mocked some more. "Tongue-tied?" He laughed. "Too bad about the kid," he whispered near her ear. "Wish I could have taken care of her too."

Marie's eyes went wide.

He was clearly enjoying the fact that he was taking his time to undermine her in some way and now wanted to push her buttons with her daughter. How did he even know about her? Had he taken her? Was he involved? She had no idea what was going on, no idea of anything this monster was talking about, but the one thing she was certain about was they were running out of time.

"Time to end this little charade," the demon was getting bored, turning his attention to Michael. "Bye bye."

"Screw you!" Michael spat out, accepting his inevitable fate. He was barely conscious and passed out.

"Don't!" Marie got out one final time.

"Sorry, I don't do requests," the demon antagonized.

The fire ball was aimed at her husband and just seconds before it left the man's hand, Marie felt a burst of energy so strong building up from the pit of her stomach. It was begging to be released and without realizing how she knew what to do, she squinted her eyes which caused the man to go flying backwards. His grip was instantly released, and she dropped to the floor, holding her neck, and gasping for air.

"What the hell?" the demon grinded out, in shock.

Marie and the demon got up from the floor at the same time, never taking eyes off each other. He clearly hadn't been anticipating her move against him. He made direct eye contact with her as they stared each other down.

The demon growled. "You shouldn't be able to do that! How did you do that?" he demanded to know.

"Oh, sorry, but I don't do requests," she deliberately mocked him in return, using his own words spoken seconds ago. Marie brought up her arm, she didn't know why but it felt almost natural and with one quick wave, she sent both the man, and his newly conjured fireball, catapulting backwards and smashing into a pile of boxes.

The demon got up again.

She stepped forward flinging her arm for the second time sending the man flying into the air, the wall breaking his fall. At that very same instant, her door was kicked in. Darryl Morris stepped inside with his gun positioned. He witnessed the demon go flying through the air before hitting the wall. The demon quickly glanced between both him and the woman before finally shimmering out.

Completely spent, Marie dropped back down to the floor on her knees.

Darryl watched in amazement, while slowly bringing his gun back down. "Okay," he drew out. "Now I definitely know you're Prue."

To Be Continued: Well, I hope that you liked it. I'm slowly moving forward to reuniting the 4 sisters, but I think that's going to come after Billie and the sisters find out her origins. Not sure yet, but it's coming soon.