Titel: The cursed Pendant

Sprache: Englisch

Summary: Drei Hexen Schwestern brachen Maeve und Sindbads Hilfe. Hat Rumina etwas wieder ihre Finger im spiel?

Category: Crossover mit Charmed

Rating: ohne Altersbeschränkung

Status: nicht Fertig

“Piper, call Phoebe. She should have been up here minutes ago!” Prue said over her shoulder. She looked down at her younger sister by two years.

“Okay, okay, I’ll call her. Just be sure that you’ll keep your balance, and I’ll be right back.” Piper said, still holding tightly to the arm of the chair in which Prue was standing up. “Are you sure you’d be okay?” she asked. She was worried, for the distance between the floor and the arm of the chair was quite high.

“Yes, Mom, I’ll be fine.” Prue teased her. Sometimes Piper does act as though she was their mother.

Piper gently released her hold on the chair and stepped back. “Be right back.” She said before turning her back to her sister and rushing down to the second floor.

“Don’t worrrrrryyyyy!!!!” Prue was saying when she accidentally slipped and almost fell. She used her power to steady the chair. “Whew. I’m glad Piper wasn’t here to see that.” She thought, grabbing on to the top of the bookcase for support.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Pheebs, honey, time to get up.” Piper said, climbing up to her younger sister’s bed and gently waking her.

Phoebe grabbed a pillow and whammed it onto her face. “Just a couple more minutes, Piper. I’ll be up.” She said, her voice muffled due to the pillow.

Piper smiled as she snatched the pillow her sister was clutching. “Nope, you’d get no extension from me, Phoebe Halliwell.” She said.

Phoebe sat up, but her eyes were still half-closed. “Okay I’m up.” She said, rubbing her eyes with the palm of her hand.

“Good. Prue wants us to help her cleaning the… Phoebe!” she said suddenly. Piper was getting out of the bed when she saw that Phoebe had buried herself beneath her comforter. She grabbed the comforter and yanked it away, revealing her sister’s sleeping form. “Phoebe, I’m counting to ten. If you’re still not up, I’ll get Prue down here. And I’m very sure that you don’t want her to use her telekinesis on you again. I know I don’t.” she said quietly.

Phoebe opened her eyes, glaring at Piper. “I hate you.” she mumbled, getting up.

“I know.” Piper said to her, smiling.

“What do you want me to do?” Phoebe asked, stretching her muscles.

“Just grab that broom over there and get your butt up on the attic.” Piper said, walking out of Phoebe’s room.

“Okay.” Phoebe said, yawning. “Spoilsport.”

Piper poked her head back on the door. “I heard that!” she said.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“It’s about time you get in here.” Prue commented dryly when Phoebe appeared on the door of the attic.

“Sorry, Prue. Rough night.” Phoebe said, looking for a spot to start her cleaning. She decided to start on the place beside the windows. Broom tucked in one arm, she walked to it and started sweeping. She crouched, bending her body so that she could sweep the floor beneath a cabinet when she noticed something. Phoebe used the handle of the broom to move the object that she saw. When it came out, she saw that it was a rolled paper that was obviously very old. Phoebe opened it, and her eyes grew wide. “Wow.”

Piper sauntered inside, holding up a tray with some croissants and steaming black coffee. “Break.” She announced, putting it down on the table.

“Yum.” Prue said, dropping her rag and going to the table. She grabbed a tissue and used it to hold her croissant.

“Hey, Pheebs, grab something to eat.” Piper said, her coffee already at hand. When Phoebe didn’t respond, she looked up. “Phoebe?”

“Yo, guys, check what I found!” Phoebe said, her tone excited.

Prue and Piper looked at each other before putting down their food and walking to join their sister. They found her sprawled on the floor, looking at a family tree of some sort.

“What’s that?” Prue asked, her brows knitted together as she sat herself on the floor.

“Our family tree!” Phoebe answered. “And it didn’t start from Melinda Warren.” She said, pointing to the name that was placed somewhere in the middle. “It goes way beyond that!”

“Whoa, you mean to say we have an actual record of ancestors beyond Melinda Warren?” Piper asked, her eyes wide as well.

Phoebe nodded. “Look.” She said. “Melinda Warren was the daughter of Edison Warren and Charlotte Wells. They originated from Canada, and Melinda traveled alone to the Americas!” She looked up to her sisters. “If she didn’t, then we would have been living at Canada!”

“Hmm. Oh, look. Charlotte Wells was the daughter of Andrea and Jimmy Wells.” Prue said. She smiled to Piper and Phoebe. “I wonder what powers they have.”

Piper smiled back. “Yeah. It’ll be wonderful to find out.” She looked down on Phoebe. “What is it Phoebe?” She asked when she saw her frowning.

“Nothing. It’s just that…” She pointed to the uppermost part of the tree. “We were from Asia! From Persia, to be specific!”

“What?” Piper said.

“That’s fantastic!” Prue said. “Maybe that’s where we got our dark hair!”

“Maybe.” Phoebe said. She noted the two persons at the top. ‘Daevin and Isabelle.’ “No surnames.” She said aloud.

“You’re right.” Piper said, thoughtfully. “I wonder whose children they were.”

Phoebe touched the names and suddenly found herself having a vision. She closed her eyes as the scene unfolded.

“You can’t defeat me!” a dark-haired woman screamed.

“You’re wrong.” A red-haired one said. “You’re already defeated, Rumina. You can’t escape it.” She held out her hands. A bronze-haired guy grabbed it and looked at her. He nodded. And together they chanted:

“By the power vested in me by light,
I send you out into the night,
Into the locket I banish thee
Into the pendant forever you’ll be.”

The necklace the woman was wearing glowed a red light. The two continued the chant. A swirling wind surrounded the dark-haired woman and she screamed.

“NO!!!”

Phoebe came out of her trance and saw the worried look on her sisters’ faces.

“Are you alright Phoebe?” Prue asked.

Phoebe nodded.

“What did you see?” Piper asked.

“A red-haired woman and a guy, a really cute guy, vanquish this woman and trapped her in a locket.” Phoebe replied.

“A cute guy? That’s a first. You always see demons or warlocks in your premonitions.” Prue said with a laugh.

Piper chuckled at this, but turned her eyes to her sister. “Are you sure you’re okay? You’re a little pale.” She said, worried.

“Don’t worry about me. I’m just shaken up a little bit. It’s just that I’ve never seen someone vanquish someone before.” She shivered, rubbing her palms on her arms. “She’s powerful. Both of them are. The power was so intense. I can feel it.”

“And I can feel that if I don’t get to P3 my life would be ruined!” Piper exclaimed as she glanced at her watch. She stood up and brushed dust from her pants.

“I thought you said today was your free day?” Prue asked, suspicious.

“Yeah, but I just remembered that the Health organization would be visiting the club today. Can’t miss out that one.” Piper looked from one sister to another. “I’m sorry I won’t be able to help, guys. I promise I’ll make up for this.”

“Hey, no problem, Piper.” Phoebe said, then looked at Prue.

Prue nodded. “Don’t worry about us. We can handle everything from here.”

“Are you sure? You know, we can reschedule this cleaning for tomorrow, if you want. I’m available tomorrow.” Piper suggested.

Prue shook her head. “Nope. We should finish this today, because we already started it.”

“Okay.” Piper said, before walking to the door. “I’ll try to be back early.” She said before she went down the stairs.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Hey, Danny. Good afternoon.” Piper greeted her busboy after she had arrived at P3.

“Yo, Piper.” Danny acknowledged her with a grin.

Piper set her bag on the counter before she put on her apron. “Did anybody call?” she asked.

Danny shook his head. “Nope. Oh, I just remember, the Health Organization left out a note on the door. They said they couldn’t make it today. They’re rescheduling the check-up for Tuesday next week.”

Piper sat on one of the chairs. “Tuesday.” She repeated. “Great. Just great.” She looked down on her dress, a dress she specifically wore to make a good impression on the Board of Directors. Now it appears as though she abandoned her sisters and dressed up for nothing. She looked to the far side of the counter, and that was when she noticed a little gift-wrapped box with a cute pink bow. She got up and walked to that side. “Danny, what’s this?” She asked.

Danny looked at the box and shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t even noticed that box before. Sorry.” He said.

Piper saw a card and opened it. It read, ‘For the owner of P3, I hope you appreciate my token of appreciation. To be opened at the strike of twelve. Love, anonymous.’ She smiled. She knew Leo’s handwriting anywhere.

“He didn’t have to give me this!” she thought. “Leo, you’re just too sweet.” She got up, grabbed her bag and headed to the door. As she was about to go out, she turned and said to Danny, “Tell Henry to do a good job tonight, okay? I won’t be able to come.”

Danny just nodded, too bent on cleaning and wiping the tables.

And with a slam Piper left the club.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“I can’t believe we finished that all.” Phoebe said with a wipe of a sweat-covered brow. She grabbed a tissue from the holder and used it to wipe sweat off of her forehead and neck. She grimaced at the dirt collected in it. “Eww. This stuff is gross.” She crunched up the tissue and threw it on the garbage can. She looked at Prue. “That has got to be the cleanest attic in San Francisco.”

Prue smiled at her, before grabbing the coffee Piper had prepared earlier. She drank a bit, and then frowned. “And this has got to be the coldest coffee.”

Phoebe laughed. “What do you expect? That it’ll keep being hot after all this time?”

Prue rolled out her eyes. “You tend to exaggerate too much, Pheebs. We were just cleaning for fifteen minutes.”

Phoebe stuck out a finger on her. “And that’s the longest fifteen minutes of my life.”

They both heard the front door open. They looked at each other before silently creeping downwards. When they saw that it was only Piper who entered, they each gave out a breath of relief.

“I thought you’re at P3?” Phoebe asked.

Piper hung her jacket at the wall and was now bent on taking off her three-inch heels. “The Health Organization said they wouldn’t be able to come.” She looked up to her sisters and noticed that they were both literally covered with dust. “Finished already?” She asked.

Prue nodded. “Yup. I told you we’d be able to handle it.”

“So, Piper.” Phoebe began, smiling slyly while she sauntered towards her sister, “how are you going to repay us?”

Piper grinned, then placed her arm on Phoebe’s shoulder. She looked up at Prue who was still standing on the stairs. “I’ve thought of preparing a splendid dinner for my two very understanding sisters.” She said.

“And what will we be having for dinner?” Prue asked.

“Sautéed veil with mushroom sauce, carbonara grande, a special mixture of fruits and vegetables with a light dressing, and red wine.” She glanced at both her sisters. “How does that sound?”

“Delicious.” They both said in unison.

“So, I’ll see you later. Gotta prepare for the big night!” Piper said before retreating to the kitchen.

“Need help, Piper?” Prue asked.

“Nope. Thanks anyway. I can handle this.” Piper’s voice rang out from the kitchen.

Prue and Phoebe smiled at each other. “Now that’s our Piper.” Phoebe said.

“If you need any help from either of us, we’ll be upstairs, okay?” Prue said before going up to her room.

“Okay!”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Ahh.” Phoebe muttered, rubbing her stomach. “Now I’m really full.”

Prue drank her red wine before she spoke. “Great dinner, Piper. I really loved the carbonara.”

Piper smiled sweetly. “Thanks!” she responded. Then she glanced at the clock. “Oh, my god!” she said.

Prue frowned. “What? What is it Piper?”

Piper stood up and went out of the kitchen. Then, before either Prue or Phoebe could speak, she was back, the gift at hand.

“Awww!” Phoebe said, eyeing the gift. “How cute! Who gave it to you?”

Prue reached out for the box. Then, she opened the envelope and read the message inside. “Anonymous?’ she said, cocking an eyebrow.

Piper smiled and blushed slightly. “Yup, but I know it’s from Leo.”

“Leo?’ Phoebe said, smiling hugely.

“Leo?’ Prue said, before staring at the label once again. “How’d you know? It’s not indicated here.”

Piper waved a hand lightly. “I’d know his handwriting anywhere.”

Phoebe stood and grabbed the envelope from Prue’s hands. “To be opened at the strike of twelve.” She read. She looked at Piper. “Got to be something huge if he’s giving you instructions.”

“Yeah, well.” Piper said, taking the envelope from Phoebe. She looked at it, then at her watch. Five minutes to twelve.

Prue stood up and began to pick up her plate from the table. “We’ll do the dishes, Piper.” She said.

“Yeah.” Phoebe agreed. “Just be sure to show us that gift from that anonymous.” She grinned.

Piper tossed a paper napkin at her sister. “Of course.” She said before leaving.

Phoebe picked up her own plate and started to place the leftovers at the trash can Prue just got. “You know, Prue,” she began. “I’m a bit jealous of Piper.”

Prue lifted a stack of plates and deposited them at the dishwasher. “Jealous?’ she asked, her tone colored with incredulity, “You? Why?”

Phoebe shrugged as she brought the glasses to the dishwasher as well. She grabbed a rag and went to stand beside her sister. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because she has a guy who loves her very much and, may I mention, a very a successful job?’

Prue shook her head before looking at her sister. “Phoebe,” she said, laying a hand on her shoulder, “The guy of your dreams is just probably around the corner.” She said. “Just stop looking for he will come to you.”

Phoebe smirked, before folding her arms before her. “And how did you get to be so smart, Prue? If I remember correctly, you’re also guy less.”

“Yeah,” Prue admitted, “But if there is one for me, he will come. Besides, I’m not in any hurry.”

“But I am.” Phoebe said. “I don’t want to grow old alone.”

Prue just chuckled.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Piper was fidgeting with the gift. Two minutes till twelve. She was tempted to open the gift, and was about to, but then, she stopped short. Two minutes is not that long and hard to wait. Besides, it will just ruin the surprise, which as of now she was dying to know what. She looked up as she saw Prue and Phoebe going out.

“Open it, open it!” Phoebe urged her.

Piper looked at her watch. “Five, four, three, two, one!” she counted. She smiled as she began to unwrap the small gift. She gasps as she saw what was inside.

“Well, what is it?” Prue asked, eager to find out what it is.

Piper took out from the box a small, velvet pouch the color of deep crimson.

“Wow.” Phoebe and Prue said in unison.

“Wow is right.” Piper muttered, as she opened it. Her hands shook a bit when she saw what was inside. She took it out, for her sisters to see. It was a necklace, with a long, gold chain that held a heart-shaped pendant with a red ruby at the center. Diamonds were intricately placed around the ruby, making an effect of a greater value.

“Now that is what I call beautiful.” Prue said as she looked at it. “Wow,” she repeated. “You got it big time, Piper! This stuff is an antique!” she turned the pendant around and touched the words inscribed at the back. “Definitely an antique. With the looks of it, it came from the fifteen hundreds or so.”

Phoebe felt nothing but déjà vu as she looked at the necklace. She knew she saw it before, but she couldn’t remember where… “Must have took a lot of money to buy it.” She commented.

Piper felt a sting to her heart. Leo must have spent a fortune in giving her this. “He shouldn’t have.” She whispered, “Especially if there’s no occasion.”

Prue and Phoebe looked at each other before they shook their heads. Piper is just the kindest they could possibly know.

Piper took the necklace from Prue and then fastened it around her neck. The chain was still long enough for her to be able to turn around and see what was inscribed at its back. The words seemed blurred, but before her very eyes it became clearer and sharper. It read:

‘The light of good but beware of the curse
shown us the way that has been cast in time
to get rid of evil out of loath and of hate
of harm in one’s way of punishment of crime
behold the charm to you, beware
behold the seal wear this necklace with care
of the good that protects read this words, do not
the world from peril. To unleash the evil plot’

Piper looked at her sisters. “A spell.” She whispered.

Prue bit her lip. She turned to Phoebe when she heard the gust of wind. Then, her eyes widened as she saw that wind gather around Piper, who tried desperately to claw her way out of the invisible force that hold her in. she screamed, “Prue! Phoebe! Help me!”

Phoebe watched in terror as the necklace Piper was wearing glowed a red light. The light engulfed Piper, and was extinguished in a heartbeat. After the light faded, the wind also died.

Prue and Phoebe rushed to see if Piper was alright. “Piper, Piper!” Prue said, gently shaking her sister. Her heart was beating rapidly. She looked at her sister’s eyes, which were open, but seemed to be transfixed on something.

“Piper!” Phoebe said. She tried to help Prue by shaking her as well.

Then, Piper blinked. She gazed at Prue and Phoebe who was in front of her.

“Oh, thank god, Piper. I thought….” Prue was cut short when an invisible hand slammed her away from her sister. With a thud she landed a few feet away.

Phoebe looked at Prue, and then at Piper. Her eyes widened as she realized that it was Piper who did it. It was Piper’s doing that Prue got hurled away. And now, Piper was looking at her menacingly. “Piper…” too late. Phoebe never got the chance to say more because she too felt the power coming from her sister. She slammed against the wall, and landed at the floor.

“Piper!” Prue said, clutching her head that was bleeding lightly. “How did you…”

Piper suddenly laughed. A laughed that neither Prue nor Phoebe had heard of before. A laugh that sent chills running up and down their spines. A laugh that they knew was not Piper’s.

“Stupid, pathetic fools.” Piper said in a hard, cruel voice. “Don’t you know what you have just done?”

Phoebe placed her hand on her forehead, trying desperately to clear her blurring vision. “What… what do you mean?”

Piper laughed again. “But I should thank you.” she said, not directly answering Phoebe’s question. “I’ve been locked up inside that pendant in nearly five hundred years! And now I am free! Free at last!” she said. With a wave of a hand she disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

“Phoebe! Phoebe, are you okay?” Prue asked, helping her sister to stand up. Phoebe did manage to stand up, but she needed Prue’s support to stay upright. “Book of Shadows, now.” She said.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Now that was weird.” Prue said, while flipping through the pages of the book of shadows.

“Tell me about it.” Phoebe said, gently pressing an ice bag to her forehead. She flinched, then removed the ice bag. “It’s one thing to have one sister with telekinesis, but two sisters? I don’t think so.” She pressed the ice bag again.

“Yeah. But she isn’t really our sister. I mean, someone just got hold of our sister’s body!” Prue explained, flipping her hand for emphasis.

“I should have known. That pendant. That pendant was the one I saw in my premonition! And what did she say? She’d been inside of that thing for nearly five hundred years?” Phoebe let out a whoosh of breath. But then she noticed that Prue wasn’t listening to her. She was reading something. “Prue?”

Prue looked up, fear evident in her ice-blue eyes. “I think I may have found the culprit.” She pointed to a page.

Phoebe scanned the page. “Rumina.” It read at the top. She looked up at Prue. “I also heard that other woman call this woman by this name.”

Prue pointed to a figure. “The necklace.” She said. She turned away from the book, disgusted. But then she returned. “What did it say?”

“That five hundred years ago this Rumina woman was cursed to remain inside the pendant by two people, a man and a woman.” She glanced up at Prue. “Possibly the two persons in my premonition as well.”

Prue nodded. “Go on.”

“Well, the only way for her to get out was to read the spell that was inscribed outside of the pendant by a person who came from our bloodline.”

Prue threw up her hands. “But how could Piper read it? I saw the letters, Phoebe. It was inscribed in Latin!”

Phoebe shook her head. “Beats me, Prue, but somehow she did.”

Prue placed a hand on her forehead. “How do we vanquish her?’

Phoebe looked at her again. “We can’t.”

Prue stared at her. “What?”

Phoebe pointed at a phrase in the book. “It says here that the only persons who could vanquish her were the persons who put her inside the locket. Obviously, they are not us.”

“So what, then? We just let Piper run around with a spirit of a vengeful witch trapped inside of her?”

“I don’t know, Prue. I seriously don’t know.”

“Okay, okay. We have to think of something. There’s got to be a way!” Prue said, her voice taking up a notch.

“Prue, you’re not helping anyone by panicking!” Phoebe said. “Just help me, okay?” she turned her attention back to the book. She was flipping through the pages when an idea struck her. “Prue, what if we could call on that two persons?”

Prue looked at her strangely at first. “What do you mean….?”

“You know, we call for them and tell them to vanquish her again.”

Prue nodded, getting her sister’s point. “Let’s. Anyway, anything is better than standing here and doing nothing!”

Phoebe found the spell that could help them. “Let’s join hands. Repeat after me, Prue.”

Phoebe began chanting, and after a while Prue followed.

“We call on you, ancient ones
We need your help today
A spell, a chant, to summon you
To pull you from yesterday
To free a loved one from a spirit
That enslaves her from within
Do come, oh our great ancestors
So goodness may prevail and win.”

Another swirling wind appeared, this time, it surrounded both sisters. Their eyes flew open, and they saw sparks coming from the book and from their joined hands. Then, the sparks moved out of the wind and into one side of the room. The sparks swirled and swirled until it formed two figures. The swirling wind and the sparks disappeared together.

Prue and Phoebe stared at the two figures. They were one male and one female, both very tall. The male has bronze tresses and it was a bit long. He wore black pants, a white shirt and black vest. His shirt was a bit open, exposing a part of his chest.

Phoebe nudged Prue. “I told you he was hot.” She whispered. Prue nodded, then turned to Phoebe. “Check out the girl.”

The woman was every bit as beautiful as the man, with her long, curly red hair. She was wearing a short dress, a long-sleeved white shirt with a brown vest and skirt.

Prue and Phoebe stood there with their mouths agape. With the loudness of their voice, it was obvious that the two were fighting.

“I told you to go back to the ship! I can handle her on my own!” the woman screeched, her hands crossed in front of her.

The man shook his head. “Yeah, right! Admit it. Without my help you would be defeated!”

The woman planted her hands on her hips. “I would not! How many times do I have to tell you, I don’t need your help!”

Prue and Phoebe looked at each other before Prue cleared her throat. That got the attention of the two persons. As Phoebe was about to speak, she saw that both had drawn out their swords.

Prue held her hands in front of them. “Wait! We won’t harm you!”

The man looked at them with his blue eyes filled with coldness. “Who are you?” he asked, his voice betraying not one hint of emotion.

The woman glared at them. “Answer us!” she shouted.

Prue gulped, looked at Phoebe, and then spoke. “My name is Prue Halliwell. This is my sister, Phoebe. Please, drop your weapons. We won’t harm you.”

“Harm us?” The woman said, before she laughed. “You don’t know what you are saying, woman.” She threatened.

The man regarded both of them before he dropped his sword. He reached out and took the sword out of the woman’s grasp.

“Hey! What…”

“They look harmless enough.” The man said, before re-sheathing his sword. He gave the woman’s sword back to the woman. “Keep your sword away, Maeve.”

The woman glared at the man before she did re-sheath her sword.

Prue and Phoebe gave out a sigh of relief.

The man took a step towards the sisters. “It seems as though we are lost. Who are you? and where are we?”

Phoebe glanced at the woman, and thinking that she would be better if she talked to the man, began talking. “I am Phoebe, and this is my older sister, Prue. We summoned you because we need your help.” She said.

“Summoned us?” the woman repeated blankly.

Before Phoebe could speak, Prue did it. “Would you tell us your names, first?”

“My name is Sinbad. And she is my wife, Maeve.” He said.

“Sinbad?” Phoebe echoed. “As in, the sailor? In the Arabian nights?”

Sinbad looked at her, confused. “I don’t know what you mean… yes, I am a sailor, but the Arabian nights? What is that?”

Prue waved her hand. “Never mind. Listen. Do you have children?”

“Yes, and if you harm them, I will kill you.” Maeve said.

Phoebe looked at the woman before she turned to the man. “Are their names Daevin and Isabelle, by any chance?”

Sinbad nodded. “Yes. How did you know that?”

Prue was the one who explained. “You are in the year 2001. we are your descendants five hundred years after your time.”

Maeve snorted. “Are we supposed to believe that lie?”

Sinbad turned to her. “Maeve, just listen to them for a change!”

Maeve glared at him. “Have you forgotten? That’s your style, Sinbad, not mine.” She said, sarcastically.

“Please, believe us.” Phoebe begged. “We need your help.” Tears formed in her eyes.

Maeve seemed to have melted from the tears in Phoebe’s eyes. “Our help?” she asked, her tone softening.

“Yes. Our sister, Piper, she got possessed by that witch, Rumina.” Prue said.

“Impossible. we just defeated her!” Sinbad said.

“We know. It’s just that our sister accidentally freed her from the locket that you’ve imprisoned her into.” Phoebe said.

Sinbad glanced at his wife. “Didn’t you tell me she could only be free if…”

“If one of our descendants read the inscription,” Maeve continued. “By the gods, you are telling the truth.”

Sinbad turned to the sisters. “We will help you.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“So you’re also sorceresses?” Maeve asked Prue and Phoebe. The three women were seated in the sofa, and Sinbad was standing up.

Prue glanced at Phoebe. “Yeah, in a way. But we like to use the term witches.”

“Witches?” Maeve repeated. She shook her head. “In our time it is very unusual to call one’s self a witch, unless you are very evil, like Rumina.” She said.

“So what happened anyway? With your sister, I mean.” Sinbad asked.

“Well, she received this gift from her boyfriend, and….” Phoebe stopped when she heard the phone ring.

Maeve stood up, and both she and Sinbad drawn out their swords.

“What noise is that?” Sinbad asked, alarmed.

Prue stood up and grabbed the telephone. She talked to it for a few seconds before she hang up.

“Who are you talking to, Prue?” Maeve asked.

“There was someone on the phone. They called and they were asking about the club. Nothing important.” Prue said.

“Someone on the phone?’ Sinbad gazed critically at the thing. “I think it’s a little to small for a person to fit into.” He said.

Prue and Phoebe almost burst out laughing but managed to keep a straight face. “Never mind that.” Phoebe said.

“As I was saying, Piper received this gift from her boyfriend. She was told not to open it till midnight, and when she did, out came the witch and she possessed her.” She continued.

“Midnight.” Maeve echoed. “I should have known.”

“What is it, Maeve?” Sinbad asked, placing a hand on her hand. He looked down tenderly at his wife.

Maeve looked up. “When we cast the spell, I had in my mind that she could only be free if she the inscription would be read after midnight, or until the full moon is shining.” She looked at Prue, then at Phoebe. “But how did she read the inscription? I made sure that it was written in a language only I could understand.”

“Wait a minute.” Prue said, holding up her hand. “A language only you can understand? So it was not Latin?”

Maeve shook her head. “No, it’s not… Latin, as you call it, it was a language that only Celtic people understood.”

“But Maeve,” Sinbad interrupted, “Isabelle understood your language.”

“I know.” She said. “Though I don’t understand why. I didn’t teach her.”

“It must be in our blood.” Phoebe concluded. “Or in this case, Piper’s blood.”

“Maybe your right. Hey, remember what Grams told us? That we only have two colors for our eyes?”

“Yeah. Blue and Brown.” Phoebe said. She looked at Maeve, then at Sinbad. “It must be from you guys.”

Maeve and Sinbad looked at each other. “Must be.” Maeve said.

“Would you like some Iced Tea?” Prue said, going to the kitchen. She motioned for Phoebe to go along with her.

“Iced tea? What is that?” Sinbad asked.

Prue and Phoebe didn’t even bothered to answer. They went to the kitchen.

Maeve and Sinbad were left on the living room. Maeve stood up, and went around the room. “So this is what the future looks like.” She said. She smiled almost dreamily. “I’ve always wondered what the future holds for us.” She looked at Sinbad, who was by then admiring a photograph.

“Look at this.” he said, holding a photo for her to see. Maeve took it from him. “What sort of trickery is this?” she asked.

Sinbad shook his head. “I have no idea. But don’t you see? That is Prue and Phoebe. There’s someone else standing on the middle, and that must be Piper.” He said.

Maeve traced a finger over the photo, though she has no idea what it is. “They are all beautiful.” She said. She glanced at Sinbad and noticed that he was staring at her. She blushed lightly and looked away.

Sinbad smiled. Nearly five years of marriage and he still has this impact on her. “Must have been in their blood. After all, beauty runs in the family.” He said, drawing close to Maeve. He placed a finger at her cheek and let it run softly against it.

Maeve leaned against the finger. She closed her eyes, momentarily enjoying the sensation that his fingers bring. Then she stepped away from him. “Let’s not get distracted, Sinbad. They need our help.” She said, glancing away.

Sinbad dropped his finger and stifled a groan. Then he grinned. “Well, I do believe that that would be hard, because I could always be distracted by my beautiful wife.”

Maeve smacked him in the arm.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“What is it, Prue?” Phoebe asked, once they were inside the kitchen.

Prue shook her head. “I don’t know. It’s just that I find it so weird that they… I mean, Sinbad, the sailor, our ancestor? Come on.”

Phoebe grinned. “Yeah. Cool, huh? Just think. He really did exist! Hey, maybe I could do a thesis about him!” she joked. Then, she peered closer at Prue. “Prue…”

“I’m really worried about Piper, Pheebs.” She looked at Phoebe. “You know how it was when she became the Wendigo. And at that time, she still has a little control of her life and her powers. But now…”

Phoebe reached out to her sister. Her right hand found itself on Prue’s shoulder, the other on the counter. Suddenly, as she touched the remote for the television, she had a vision…

Piper, laughing as she watched a house burn. She swayed her hand and some trees fell to the ground. People screaming, begging her to spare them. Piper ignored them, and she raised her hand…

Phoebe came out of her trance-like state.

“What did you see?” Prue asked, alarmed.

“Piper, she’s….” she met Prue’s gaze. “She’s killing.”

“What?” Prue said.

Phoebe grabbed Prue’s hand and they burst out of the kitchen. They found Maeve and Sinbad standing there. Maeve frowned when she saw their expressions.

“What is it, Prue, Phoebe?” she asked.

“We have to stop her.” Prue answered. She grabbed her coat, which hung at the door.

“What should we do?” Sinbad asked.

Phoebe looked at Prue, and then at the two of them. “I think you should stay here.”

“What?” Both Maeve and Prue asked. “I thought you summoned us to help you?” Maeve continued.

“Pheebs, we might need their help. They are the only ones who could defeat her!” Prue added.

“I know that,” Phoebe said. “But Prue, do you think it might help if Rumina knew that they are here? I think it would be better to give her something she does not expect. We should formulate a plan first before doing something irrational.” She looked at the three of them. “And that’s why I think it’s best if we all stay here first.”

“Good idea.” Sinbad said.

Prue nodded, understanding her sister’s point. “So what’s the plan?”

“We’d have to get Rumina into a place where the two of you could vanquish her again.” Phoebe said. “That’s the outline.”

“Wait a minute. But what about your sister, Piper?” Maeve asked. “I’m afraid if we vanquish Rumina inside Piper’s body, we might vanquish Piper as well.”

“Then we have to separate Rumina’s spirit from Piper’s body. Only it would prove to be very difficult.” Sinbad said.

“Difficult, but not impossible.” Maeve said, her eyes bright. “I have a plan.”

“Let’s hear it out.” Prue said.

“Okay then.” Maeve glanced at her husband. “You have a role in this, Sinbad.” She warned.

“Somehow I sense what you are thinking.” Sinbad said, grimacing.

“Well, to give you both a brief background, this Rumina witch is… how am I going to say this… obsessed with Sinbad. She practically will do anything or give anything just to have him, body and soul.” Maeve said.

“I think I’m beginning to have a migraine,” Sinbad commented.

Maeve glared at her husband, before she continued. “My plan is this, we could trap Rumina by using Sinbad as a bait.”

“Okay, I see your point Maeve. But my question is, how are we going to separate Piper from Rumina?” Phoebe asked.

“Well,” Maeve said, biting her lip. “We could just let Sinbad work his… ehem… charm on Rumina.”

“So you want me to seduce Rumina out of Piper’s body, is that it?” Sinbad asked dryly.

Maeve’s face brightened. “Exactly!”

“But what about after we separate Rumina from Piper? I mean, how can we prevent her from possessing it again?” Prue asked.

“I think we should be the ones to work on that part, Prue. Come on.” And so the sisters went up to the attic to consult their Book of Shadows.

Prue and Phoebe dashed up to the stairs two steps at a time. Prue managed to get to the book first, and with her powers she opened the book to the spell she thinks might help them. She looked up at Phoebe. “Here it is. I spotted this a couple of days ago. We might be able to use it against that witch.”

Phoebe looked at the spell. She grabbed a pen and paper and then copied it. “There! Now let’s help Sinbad out.” They were on their way down when Leo orbed in.

“Leo!” Prue gasped when he had fully materialized.

“And I guess you knew what happened to Piper. Nice move, Leo.” Phoebe said sarcastically. “You could have given her a more pleasant gift, like a knife so she could stab herself through the heart!”

Leo shook his head. “It’s not what you think, Phoebe.”

“Oh?” Prue said coolly, as she folded her arms before her. “Enlighten us, if you could.”

“I was not the one who gave her that necklace.” Leo said.

Both sisters looked at him in surprise. “What?” Prue said.

“But Piper said it was your handwriting she found on the outside of the box!” Phoebe defended.

“Look, Prue, Phoebe, anyone could have copied my writing style and used it to fool Piper. And she was indeed fooled when she opened that cursed pendant.” Leo explained.

“Well, Piper only opened it because she thought it was from you!” Phoebe said.

“Okay, enough of these. I came here for one reason only. That is, to warn you.” Leo said.

“Warn us? What do you mean?” Prue asked.

“They told me that if the witch Rumina had not been vanquished by tonight,” Leo looked at both sisters sadly before continuing on, “they will be forced to eliminate her.”

“Eliminate her? You mean…” Phoebe said.

“I mean they are willing to take the risk of killing Piper just to kill the witch inside of her.” Leo confirmed.

“But Leo, they can’t do that! I mean, we are the Charmed Ones. Our link would not be complete without Piper! They just can’t kill her like that!” Prue said.

“I know that, Prue. Do you think I’m ecstatic about the idea of them killing her? The elders are very determined to get rid of Rumina in the shortest span of time possible, because who knows what harm she could bring and how many lives she can destroy in a day!” Leo said.

“Okay. The warning just sank in. Now do you have any idea how we could vanquish her?” Phoebe asked.

“You have to separate Piper’s body from Rumina’s soul, and then, together with your ancestors, the Charmed Ones should cast Rumina again into the pendant. That is the only way you could defeat her.” Leo said.

“Wait. I thought only the original casters could do that?” she asked, looking at Phoebe.

Phoebe shrugged. “Don’t look at me, that was what I read in the Book of Shadows.”

Leo spoke. “They could, but the powers that bind would be doubled if you guys helped them.” He looked away as he heard a sound. “I’ve got to go. They need me. I’ll come back, and I’ll try to find more information.” Then he vanished.

“We have to hurry! We only have at least five hours before midnight!” Prue said. Then she and Phoebe went down to the living room.

Maeve whirled around when she heard them enter the room. “Did you find anything?” she asked.

Phoebe held up the paper where she copied the spell. “Here.” She said.

Sinbad nodded. “Good. Now we go.”

“But what’s the plan?” Prue asked as they went out. “I mean, I know we would use Sinbad as a bait, but how are we going to execute him?”

Maeve smiled at Prue. “Let Sinbad handle that himself.” She said. “Like what my mentor told me, despite his looks, he is quite intelligent.” Maeve chuckled when Sinbad glared at her behind Phoebe’s back.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Where now?” Sinbad asked, looking around.

“Phoebe, are you sure this was the place you saw in your premonition?” Prue asked, glancing around as well.

Phoebe nodded. “I’m positive, Prue. Don’t you have some faith in your little sister?” She asked.

Prue was supposed to answer when suddenly, Maeve exclaimed, “Look!” , pointing her index finger to the right.

They all looked, and sure enough there stood Piper. “Now feel my wrath you pathetic mortals! Scream! Beg for mercy!” they heard her say.

“I’m beginning to see why they were so determined in stopping her in any way possible.” Phoebe said.

“Yeah, me too.” Prue said.

Maeve nudged Sinbad. “Now!” she said to him.

Sinbad expelled a loud sigh before he walked to where Rumina was.

“Sinbad!” Phoebe called after him.

Sinbad turned around.

“Just remember, you’re not supposed to reveal your true identity! We must not let her know that you guys are here, in our time!”

“What? But what am I supposed to say to distract her?” Sinbad asked.

“I don’t know! Ask her for directions or something. Just do everything you could to distract her!” Maeve told him.

Sinbad glared at his wife before walking towards Piper. “You owe me big time, Maeve.” He muttered low.