Miss B's Fan-fiction - 5/13- "Life after the Demon

[SimplyAretha]

posted by missb

Season 5.
EPISODE 13:
"Life after the demon"

Written by: Miss B.

Disclaimer: All existing Charmed characters in this fan-fiction are property of Spelling Productions, the writers and producers of Charmed. All the other characters were made by me. Please don't copy or distribute this text, or any parts of it, without my permission. Thank you.


HALLIWELL MANOR, AROUND 3pm

"Pheebs! Do you still want me to orb you there?", Paige said, storming into the living room and stopping on the stairs to call for her sister.

"Yeah, Paige...I'm just getting a couple of things ready here", Phoebe replied, putting her head out of her bedroom door.

"Ok, I'm waiting. I can wait..." , the younger Halliwell sister said, sitting on the couch and tapping her foot impatiently.

After a few minutes, Phoebe came down the stairs. She wasn't exactly happy, but her face didn't show sadness either. It was something that couldn't exactly be explained. In a way, it was relief, in the other, confusion.

"Ok...I guess I'm ready" , she said with a sigh, getting closer to Paige.

"What took you so long?", Paige asked, getting up and looking at her sister with eyebrows raised.

"I Just thought we should be prepared...just in case...you know...". And as she said that, she raised her hand to show Paige a little flask, with a pink liquid inside of it. Putting the flask into her purse, she looked at the ground for a while.1

"No, Phoebe...it's over. Cole's gone. For good. We don't need a vanquishing potion anymore", Paige said, stepping closer to her sister and laying a hand on her shoulder, for reassurance.

"Yes, I know...it's just that...going back there brings me bittersweet memories, you know. We had some of our best moments there. But also some of our worst. And I don't really want to tempt fate. Better be prepared...for anything", she replied, in a rather sad tone.

"Fine. So let's go, before Piper and Leo get back home from that baby shopping they decided to do" . Paige said, in a more cheerful tone, trying to get her sister back into a better mood. Since vanquishing Cole, she hadn't exactly been the happiest of the people. Actually, that cheerful Phoebe had been lost way before that.

And it seemed to work, at least slightly, as Phoebe managed to give Paige a shy smile. "Yes, let's go. I need to see if I left anything there..." , she paused and took a deep breath. "Something like my heart, perhaps?"

Paige smiled at her sympathetically. "Yes. You need to put this behind you", she said, holding on to her sister's hand. "Ready?", she asked one more time, receiving a quick confirmation nod. "Ok, so here we go...", she said, as they orbed to what was, up until a few days ago, Cole's penthouse.

======================================================================

SAME TIME, AT COLE'S PENTHOUSE

The mysterious black-haired, blue-eyed woman looked around, contemplating the mess that was now the penthouse.

"Oh Cole...I never thought you'd actually end up this way", she said, to herself, as she walked around to see the broken glasses on the windows, the destroyed balcony. It seemed like hell on Earth had happened in that place. And maybe not so far from the truth. "Let me see...if I'm going to live here from now on, something must be done", the beautiful woman said, with a smirk on her lips.

As she waved her hand, things started to automatically fix themselves. The broken glasses, the destroyed balcony...one by one, things were getting back to their places, as if nothing had happened there at all. "Good. Redecoration, let's call it?", she said with a grin.

She went to check the kitchen, when the two Charmed sisters orbed into the Penthouse's living room. "Ok, we're...". Paige started, pausing when she looked around. "...here? What the heck has happened in this place?", she asked Phoebe, who was astonished as well.

"I have no clue...maybe they got it fixed? I mean, it's been a couple of days since Cole disappeared...maybe they sold it to someone else and they got it fixed?", she replied.

"In like a week? No way...", Paige said, scratching her head slightly. "This is just too weird..."

"Right....but that's not why we're here. Remember? I need to get the things I left here", Phoebe said. Whatever had happened to Cole's penthouse, it wasn't the important thing at that moment. Maybe he fixed it before going crazy or whatever. She didn't care much about it.

"I'm sorry....may I help you?", the black-haired woman said, coming out from the kitchen as soon as she heard voices. "How did you manage to get in?", she asked, her British accent clear in her voice.

Paige looked at Phoebe embarrassed. What would they say? But Phoebe already had an answer. "Oh...I'm...so sorry, we had no idea there was someone else living here already...umm...I'm the ex-owner's ex-wife", she said. "Sounds weird, I know, but...I had to check if I left a couple of things here..."

"You're Cole Turner's ex-wife?", the woman asked, approaching the two of them with a cup of coffee on her hand. "Maybe then you could explain why he disappeared?", she asked her.

Phoebe shook her head and sighed. "I...haven't heard from him in a while, you know, divorce and all that...", she smiled shyly. "I'm sorry to disturb you...", Phoebe said, pausing when she realized she didn't know the woman's name. "I'm sorry, I don't think we've been introduced? I'm Phoebe Halliwell, this is my sister Paige"

"Lara Sherington", the woman said, approaching the two of them with a smile. "And well, you aren't exactly disturbing, I was just surprised", she explained, placing the coffee cup on the side table.

"So, you just bought the place?", Paige asked, curiously.

Lara nodded. "Well, rented it, actually. I have been called to replace Cole Turner, since he's been nowhere to be found for the past few weeks. They also said that the penthouse was empty, so I decided it would be handy, since I didn't have a place to stay", she explained.

"And did you find it like this?", Paige asked again, getting a small nudge and a glare from Phoebe. "What? I'm just asking....", she said, in a low voice.

Lara smiled and nodded. "Yes...although I'm thinking of changing the furniture. It doesn't match my style"

So she was replacing Cole at the Law Firm...that meant that he really wasn't going there anymore. Could that possibly mean that he was really gone? Phoebe nodded and smiled. "Well, we really don't want to take your time, so...if you don't mind, could I just check on the bedroom, to see if I left anything here?"

Lara shook her head with a smile. "No, it's no problem at all. Do you want some coffee, maybe a cup of tea...a glass of juice?", she offered.

"No, no, thanks, we really don't want to take your time", Phoebe replied, looking at Paige. "We'll just check that and go"

Lara then nodded and smiled. "No problem. Feel free to check for anything that might belong to you. If you need any help, I'll be over here", she said.

"Sure, thank you", Phoebe said, going with Paige to the room that used to belong to Cole.

Meanwhile, in the living room, the mysterious woman now known as Lara Sherington grinned. "Two of the Halliwell sisters....could it be more perfect?", she said to herself, before grabbing her coffee cup and going back into the kitchen.

[SimplyAretha]

BACK AT THE HALLIWELL MANOR, around 4pm

"Right, did you have to buy that much stuff?", Leo said, frowning a bit as they entered the manor. He was carrying all the bags, after all.

"Well, it's our baby, and she needs clothes! And besides, you were the one that couldn't decide about which one to pick....I just decided to take them all", Piper said, with a wink, as Leo put the bags on the floor.

"Phoebe! Paige!", Piper called for her sisters. "We're home". But no one answered, so she tried again. "Phoebe? Paiiiige?".

"They're not home, Piper", Leo informed her.

"They're not home? They were home when we left, and they didn't tell us they were going anywhere", she said, frowning a bit. "Leo....tell me! Don't hide anything from me, where are they?"

Leo sighed. "At Cole's penthouse"

"No....no no no....not again!", Piper said, collapsing on the couch. "I thought that was over....done..."

"Don't worry, honey, they're fine...", he said, sitting down next to her. "And I'm sure they'll be back soon, then you can ask them why they went there. Ok?"

Piper nodded a bit reluctantly. "Ok, ok...I'll wait...what do you say we go unpacking?", she said with a smile.

====================================================================

BACK AT THE PENTHOUSE, around 4:30pm

"Sorry if we disturbed you. There were just a few items of clothing, nothing really important", Phoebe told Lara, as they met again with her in the living room. "We'll be going now"

Lara nodded and smiled. "You didn't disturb at all. And I'm sorry about your ex-husband", she said, sympathetically.

Phoebe sighed and nodded. "Oh well....such is life. We weren't exactly in our..best moment in our marriage, we had just divorced...kinda complicated to explain"

"Maybe you can explain it to me over lunch one day? You and your sister, perhaps?", she offered.

Paige smiled and looked at Phoebe. "Well, that's nice of you. Maybe we can introduce you to our other sister", she waited for Phoebe's confirmation, just to check if she hadn't screwed up by saying too much. But Phoebe's smile relieved her.

"Well, that would be nice. Maybe we can invite you over. You said you just came to replace Cole, right? By your accent, I take you're British", she said.

"Yes, I'm from London. But I've been living in the States for 3 years now, just not in San Francisco", Lara explained. "And that would be good, I could use some new friends"

"There you go", Paige said with a smile. "That's a deal, then"

"Yes, I suppose so", Lara said, reaching for a card and handing it to Phoebe. "My number's in there. You can call me whenever you have arranged something. I'll be very glad to have lunch with you"

Phoebe smiled, grabbing the card and nodding. "Sure. We'll call you as soon as we can arrange something", she replied. "We should get going now, before our other sister starts wondering where we've gone", she chuckled. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Lara"

"A pleasure as well, Phoebe, Paige", she replied. "I'll see you sometime soon", she said, as the sisters left the penthouse.

Once they were gone, Lara moved to sit on the couch and make herself comfortable. "It was actually easier than I thought. See Cole....", she said, to herself. "It wasn't difficult finding your witches. They found me", she said with a chuckle.

[SimplyAretha]

HALLIWELL MANOR, 6pm

"So, you're telling me that someone else is living at Cole's penthouse now? A woman?", Piper asked her sisters, raising her eyebrows. "That's....weird"

Paige nodded in agreement. "Well, the weirdest part wasn't the woman, she was actually quite nice, British accent, very classy..."

"But that's beyond the point", Phoebe said. "The whole place was clean and new...like she had just bought the penthouse or so. It was weird. I don't know, I don't think any repairement can be done so well in such a short period of time"

"So what are you trying to say, Pheebs?", Piper asked.

"I don't know...", Phoebe paused. "I don't know what to think anymore"

"Well, when it comes to Cole....he was able to do pretty much everything he wanted lately", Paige said, shrugging a bit. "He could have somehow fixed everything before he went crazy and disappeared. Couldn't he?"

Phoebe sighed. "Well, couldn't we just change subject for a change? I mean....", she said, looking into her glass of water. "It's over...right?"

Paige and Piper nodded, and sat closer to Phoebe, hugging her. "Yes, it's over, honey"

"Oh, Piper...by the way, we invited Lara to have lunch with us sometime. Is it ok with you?", Paige asked.

"Sure, why not? If she's so nice as you said, I want to meet her too!", she smiled. "Now, do you guys want to see the cute things Leo and I bought for the baby?"

"Yes!!!! the baby. Hi baby....", both sisters said, waving their hands at Piper's belly, while Piper shook her head and rolled her eyes.

[SimplyAretha]

LAW FIRM, the following day, around 10am


"Those are the cases left by him", the assistant said. "It's still very weird the way he just disappeared. But we're glad we've got a replacement"

"It's fine. I'll take some of those to read at home, while I play catch-up", Lara said. "I don't intend to spend much time in this office anyway. I hate offices. I work better from home"

"Ok, so if you need anything else, just call me", the assistant said, before leaving the room.

Lara just grabbed the briefcases with the cases left by Cole, and sighed. "Yes, walk, Lara...walk", she said, opening the door and leaving the office. But as soon as she was at the parking lot, she shimmered back to the penthouse.

=====================================================================

MEANWHILE, SOMEWHERE IN THE UNDERWORLD....

"Did you find a way to get to the witches?"

"Well, it shouldn't be difficult. There's one still very vulnerable"

"The one who was married to Belthazor....Phoebe, it is"

"Yes", the female voice said with a smile. "If I can get to her...I'll know exactly what to do. I'll get to her weakness...with the others", she paused for a while. "It'll be a while till I can figure out what their weaknesses really are"

The dark mage nodded. "I'll distract the others while you get to the weakest one", he said. "Then, it's only a matter of time till we get the other two as well"

The female demon grinned and nodded.

======================================================================

HALLIWELL MANOR, same day, around 1pm

"I'm glad you enjoyed lunch with us, Lara", Piper said. "My sisters were right, you're a very nice person"

Lara smiled and nodded. "It was great. I was feeling a bit lonely around here. The first days in a strange city aren't easy, even if I have so much work to do"

Lara had told them how she had gotten there, and how she had studied law in England, before coming to the States for a post-graduation course, and stayed there. And how she had been called to replace Cole once he disappeared.

Phoebe thought how nice it was for Lara not to know what really went on in that Penthouse. She'd probably want to move out, or she'd just not believe it anyway.

"Well, I should probably get going. I have a lot of documents to read", the British woman said, but as she stood up, she seemed to be caught up by something else. Something like a vibration, or a noise. The fact was that she just stood there, for a couple of seconds.

"I....I'll ...see you some other time, then", she said, hesitantly, almost if trying to pay attention to something else.

"Sure....", Phoebe said, then shook her head, almost like trying to get rid of something. "Ok, did you hear a noise?", she asked the others. "I think I heard something coming from up there", she pointed to the second floor. "I'll go check it, ok?"

Piper and Paige looked at each other, with that familiar glance that something....magical was going on. But with a guest there, they couldn't exactly say it. "Well, Lara, if you wouldn't mind, we'll just check on Phoebe, but we really wanted you to come back some day, maybe for a coffee?", Piper suggested.

"But of course. I'll be glad to have you over for dinner too. I'm not the greatest cook in the world, but I can make my way through the kitchen", she said, standing up and heading towards the front door. "It was a lovely afternoon, thank you very much. I'll see you later", she said, leaving the Manor.

"Good....why do I have this weird feeling that something's just not right", Piper said, rushing to the second floor. "Phoebe! Where are you?", she shouted from the hallway, being followed by Paige.

But once the girls were already upstairs, Lara shimmered back into the Manor, and smiled. She slowly turned into a purple female demon. "Good, now you just decide to invade their houses like this? Interesting, Kia, that's not how you used to work. Maybe...let's say....you have some...help?", she asked, supposedly talking to the air...until a female figure showed up behind her.

"Rasnarak....long time no see....I thought you were dead"

A smirk and a chuckle were the answer to the sentence. "Well, you're really misinformed", the purple demoness told her. "I don't die...remember?"

The demoness known as Kia frowned. "Yes...but the rumors said that you were trapped. Magical prison, no escape..."

"And I bet you were all thrilled with the news", Rasnarak replied. "Now tell me, what are you doing here?", she asked. "And you know I won't ask twice", she said, a purple energy ball forming from her hands.

Kia frowned and sighed. "It's part of a plan...I'm here to get the weakest witch. The one that used to be married to your beloved Belthazor"

With a movement of her hand, the purple energy ball disappeared, but Kia felt her neck being pushed by some force, like invisible hands. "Remember...I don't like sarcasm...what plan...and who's behind it?"

The demoness struggled to breathe. "Hashuk....he's...trying...to get the witches' powers...tohimself", she managed to say, and as she did so, Rasnarak closed her fingers, cancelling the power she had applied on the other demoness.

"Hashuk...he never gives up, does he?", she asked, shaking her head, just in time for the three witches to get downstairs again.

"Oh, great. Two demons at once", Piper said. "This is really getting tiresome", she said, looking at her sisters. Phoebe looked weird, though....as if under some sort of mind control.

"Resisting is useless...I'll take her and all of you with me", Kia said, with a smile.

"Ooooh over my dead body, Ms", Piper said, throwing a fireball towards the demoness, who shimmered away from it. But as she did so, her influence over Phoebe disappeared, and the witch snapped out of her trance-like state.

Rasnarak meanwhile just smiled, and as Kia reappeared, she moved her hand again, and just crossed her arms, watching the scene unfold before her.

"Oh no, this isn't going to be like this", Kia said, and tried to aim a fireball towards Paige, but nothing happened. "My powers!", she shouted. "Where are my powers?"

"Oooh...this is just perfect!", Piper said, using her power to blow Kia up, while her powers were gone. The demoness screamed in pain, as her body went out in flames, right before the other witches...

But there was still the purple one to vanquish. And Piper didn't waste time, throwing another fireball at her. But although the power hit her, it seemed to have no effect on her whatsoever.

"Oh no....not again....not another one", she said, looking at her sisters. "We need the power of three. Fast".

But before they could say a spell, the purple demoness held up a hand. "Not necessary", she said. "I actually helped you. You should thank me. But it's fine. I can deal with ungratefulness. Oh, and by the way....I nullified Kia's powers. Just as a side note", she said, sarcastically. "And beware...another one might come after you", she said, before shimmering away again.

Paige raised her eyebrows and looked at her sisters. "Now....this was weird...", she told them. "Am I going crazy, or were we just saved by a demon?"

Phoebe nodded, but kept silent for a while. "And Piper's powers didn't work on her". It was almost like she was thinking out loud. "Familiar..."

"Girls...let's go upstairs and see if we can find anything on this Kia demoness...and this purple one....which we don't know the name", Piper told the other two. "IF she says there's another demon coming after us, then I think we should be prepared"

The three Charmed sisters then made their way up to the attic, to look for information in the Book of Shadows, as they usually did.

[SimplyAretha]

PENTHOUSE, evening

"Well, this job is going to be fun", Lara said, as she walked around the house. "See, Cole...I'm actually protecting your beloved witch. When I bring you back....you'll run straight into her arms again, and she'll probably reject you. But that's where I'll come", she said.

"But before...I have a certain mage to visit", she grinned, shimmering away again.

=====================================================================

UNDERWORLD, outside time and space.


The mage paced back and forth, wondering what the next step would be. Kia had just been blown up, his connection to the Charmed Ones was lost. That stupid demoness, he thought. She wasn't even able to distract the witches, but something was wrong there.

And in the exact moment he thought that, the reason of his first defeat appeared behind him, in her human form. "Hashuk. Long time no see", Lara said, with a grin.

The dark mage got startled, but tried his best not to show her. "Indeed, Rasnarak. I wonder what brings you here", Hashuk asked.

"You know, since you were condamned to spend your eternity here, you haven't changed much", she said, looking around. "Tell me, Hashuk...have you been trying to escape lately?"

The Dark Mage would have paled, if his face weren't pale enough already. "Why do you say that, my dear Rasnarak? Do I look like I've been trying to escape"

"Don't try to fool me, Hashuk", Lara said, angrily. "I've watched the witches destroying the demoness that was trying to help you", she told him. "Don't you think I don't know what your plan is? You want the Charmed Ones's powers so you can escape the Underworld. Isn't it?"

Hashuk didn't respond. She had been just right. He wanted the witches's powers, so he could finally make his way out of the Underworld. She had understood it, but he should have imagined she would. There was a reason why every demon had heard of her, and why they all feared her.

"Here's the deal, Hashuk", she told him, after his silence. "I'll help you get the Charmed Ones...But I want something from it"

The mage's eyes were wide open now. It was an opportunity! Teaming up with Rasnarak would be the perfect combination. Nobody, nothing would be able to stop them. "What is it?", he asked her.

"I want the powers to myself once you made your way out", she smirked.

"But...", the mage started, but was soon interrupted by Lara.

"There is no bargaining, Hashuk. Without me, you can't finish your plan. And you'll get what you want. your way out. I'll be your ticket back to the normal world, but I get the witches's powers"

Hashuk sighed, and pondered for a while. It wasn't the best offer he could get, but he didn't have much of a choice. He knew that he wasn't strong enough to deal with the Charmed Ones by himself, but with Rasnarak..."Fine...we have a deal. You help me, I get out of here, then transfer the powers to you. I just don't understand why you want more powers...", he said, a bit frustrated.
7
"One can never have too much powers, my dear Hashuk. One day maybe you'll learn that", she told him with a smile, extending her hand to him. "Now...I'll bring you up to the mortal world. I know you already have the spells written. Make sure you have them with you", she explained. "I'll deal with the witches, while you transfer their powers to yourself. Then, once you have them and you have the power of three, you'll finish the spell that will allow you to stay up in the mortal world. And then, you'll transfer the powers to me", she explained. "Did you understand that?"

The dark mage nodded with a smile. "Yes. Your plan seems flawless"

"It IS flawless", she corrected him. "Now, let's put it into practice, shall we?", she told him, shimmering out of the Underworld with him.

====================================================================

[SimplyAretha]

HALLIWELL MANOR, evening

"So, did we manage to find anything about this Kia?", Piper asked her sisters.

Paige nodded. "Yep...lower level demon, generally attachs herself to more powerful evil creatures. Basically just a pawn", she told her older sister. "But the purple one...no clue. She's not in the Book of Shadows", Paige sighed.

"Leo!!!", Piper called her husband, as she always did in times like this. Almost immediately, he orbed into the room.

"Did you manage to find anything?", Piper asked him.

The Whitelighter shook his head with a sigh. "No, nothing at all. The weird thing was that I kinda felt that the Elders knew something, but didn't want to tell me"

Piper frowned. "Yes. Like they always do", she said, annoyed a bit. It was nothing new, she never really liked the Elders that much. The whole thing between Leo and herself, then what happened with Paige...sometimes she wondered why they behaved like that.

"So we're on our own. Again", Phoebe said. When Cole was alive and helping them, he was a good way of finding out about demons. And there he was, inhabiting Phoebe's thoughts again, and she closed her eyes as she realized that once more, she had Cole on her mind.

"Ok....", Piper said. "So I think all we have to do is wait to see if we'll be attacked again", she told the others.

"Nothing in the Book of Shadows, nothing from the Elders....I wonder how they want us to save innocents and help out when we have absolutely no clue of what's going on", Paige said, a bit frustrated.

"Ok, ok, girls, we'll make it. We always do", Phoebe said, reassuringly. "We've been doing this for years now, and we always manage to find a solution, ok? So let's just be patient"

It was just as Phoebe finished her sentence that a purple shimmer light appeared right behind them.

"Oh....perfect...all the witches together. I won't even have to go through the trouble of getting the three of you together", Hashuk said, with a laughter, looking at the purple demoness by his side.

"Riiight....what did you say about being patient, Pheebs?", Piper asked her sister, before trying to blow the two of them up with her powers. But somehow, they weren't working. She then tried freezing them, with no luck either.

"Ok...why aren't my powers working? Why??", she asked, and Paige decided to try hers. "Umm...ok...let me see...dagger!", she called, trying to use her powers, but nothing happened either. "Right...my powers aren't working either"

"Neither are mine", Phoebe said. "I just tried to levitate..."

Hashuk laughed loudly. "Of course not, you stupid witches! My friend here is blocking your powers", he said, pointing to Rasnarak. "Now, once I get your powers to myself, I'll be able to escape the Underworld forever"

Rasnarak seemed almost like a statue. Not moving a muscle, just a tiny grin on her lips. Just slowly, she became the British lawyer the girls had had lunch with just a few hours ago.

"Lara...", Phoebe said, in disappointment. The other two sisters frowned. "Darn!", Paige said, angrily.

"How didn't we notice?", Piper asked Lara. "All this time, you were just trying to harm us"

Hashuk then started saying a few words in a very strange language, and one by one, the witches's powers left them and joined together into a bright ball, in the middle of the attic. And with one final word, the ball started flowing towards him. But before it reached his body, Lara raised her arm, and with a movement of her hand, the power ball changed directions, and entered her body.

Hashuk raised his eyebrows. "That wasn't part of the deal! You betrayed me!", he said, angrily.

"I don't make deals with people like you", Lara replied, sending a purple fireball towards the mage. "Have a nice stay in the Wasteland", she said, before aiming the fireball at him. The dark mage screamed in pain, before disappearing in a smoke cloud.

Lara then took a deep breath and swallowed hard, noticing the look on each of the sister's eyes. She closed her eyes and raised her hand, and three bright energy balls left, each one aimed at one of the Halliwell sisters. They were now getting their powers back.

"I never intended to betray you", Lara explained, finally, once she returned the powers to the sisters. "I just couldn't let him think that I was actually trying to help you"

"Who are you?", Piper asked her, feeling that her powers were back into her. The other sisters looked at Piper, before nodding at Lara.

"I'm Lara Sherington...half-witch, half-demon", she explained. "My story is rather long, maybe one day I can tell you", she paused for a while. "But all you need to know is that I'm here to make sure Cole never harms any of you again"

When she mentioned Cole, Phoebe's expression changed suddenly. "Never harms us again? But isn't he...."

"Dead?", Lara completed Phoebe's question. "Doubtful. When you vanquished him in the alternate reality he created, you didn't get rid of him. He's still...around, I can feel it", she told them, but focusing on Phoebe. "And that's why I was sent here"

"Sent by who?", Piper asked. "And why?"

"I can't tell you who sent me", Lara explained. "But the reason is because I'm the only one who can stop him". And that would be as far as she would tell them.

"It's time for me to go now", she said, and before she left, she looked at Phoebe for a while, then offered her a smile. "He truly loved you. With all the madness and lack of control, the only certain thing for him was that he loved you", she said, pausing a bit and closing her eyes. "I wish he had loved me the way he loved you...back when we were together".

And with that sentence, Lara shimmered away.

Phoebe closed her eyes, and just collapsed into a chair. "It's not over. It'll never be over", she said, in a very quiet tone.

Paige and Piper walked towards her to comfort their sister. "It will. You saw her, she actually helped us twice. I'm not saying we should trust her, but...she seemed sincere to me", Piper said.

"Besides", Paige smiled, touching Piper's belly lightly. "We have the baby", she smiled. "The invincible baby!"

Phoebe finally managed to smile. "Yes...the baby! Hi, baby...hello...how are you? Your aunt Phoebe loves you very very very much", she said, in a silly, childlike voice.

"Oh there they go again....", Piper said, rolling her eyes, then looking at her husband, who was standing right beside her with a smile. She just leaned her head on his chest, feeling peaceful again, with her sisters, her family.

At least until the next challenge....

<END>