Chapter 10: The Demon of the Arrow

Paige woke up feeling like she had been hit by a truck. She looked over at the clock and it was almost 7:30. It was early. Much too early for her to be up. And it was a Saturday. Was she crazy? She had never woken up that early, even when she needed to. She knew what it was. Yesterday was emotionally draining. Even in all the years she had been a social worker, she had never been though so much. Watching Prue and Phoebe be so divided was more than she could handle. But, she knew she would have to handle it. She was a part of this now.

Paige slowly looked around and tried to figure out what she wanted to do today. She wasn't sure if she wanted a pedicure or if she wanted to just relax at home. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Paige answered the door and was surprised by who was there.

"Oh hey.", Paige stammered.

"Hi.", Prue replied, certain that she had caught her sister off guard.

"Is everything ok? Do you guys need the Power of Three to vanquish a demon?"

"Oh, no. I, um, I just came to see you."

Paige was shocked for some reason. She didn't really think that Prue or Phoebe really wanted to see her outside of the magic gig.

"Can I come in?"

"Of course. Sorry."

"You're fine."

Prue walked in and took in Paige's apartment. It was small, but quaint. It all seemed familiar, but she couldn't quite figure out why. It felt like a home, but a home for one.

"You have a really nice place here."

"Oh thanks. I know its nothing compared to the manor, but its home."

"No, its still your home. Whether its small or big, its yours. It actually reminds me of the place Piper and I had."

"You and Piper shared an apartment?"

"Yeah. After Grams died and Phoebe moved to New York, I ended up breaking up with my fiancée and moving in with Piper."

"Seems like those were a lot of changes happening at one time."

"It definitely was. But we got through it. Your place reminds me of our apartment. Even the way you decorate looks like something Piper would do. Simple, but enough to make it feel like home."

There was a brief moment of silence.

"It sounds like Piper was a really awesome person."

"She was. I think you would've liked her a lot. She was very motherly."

Paige motioned towards the chairs in the living room. She and Prue sat down.

"So what brings you to my side of town?", Paige asked.

"A couple of things really. I want to apologize to you."

"For what?", Paige asked, confused.

"For all the drama that's been going on. Its hard enough to find out that you have sisters, but I can't imagine having to go through all of the baggage that comes with them."

"Every family has baggage."

"Not like ours. I don't know if you can tell or not, but Phoebe and I haven't always gotten along. There was a period where we didn't even talk. I was so mad at her for something that turned out to not even be true."

"I could tell there was something, but I wasn't sure what it was."

"Yeah. We have a very…interesting history. Piper was always the one who grounded us."

"Like my parents."

"Really?"

"Yeah. My Dad and I had a relationship like you and Phoebe. Loving, but with a lot of baggage. My mom was really the one who tried to bring us to normal. But I didn't let her."

"What do you mean?", Prue asked.

"I was a bit of a wild child.", Paige giggled.

"You sound like someone else I know."

"Oh?"

"Yes. When Phoebe was younger, she was quite the handful. Grams had a hard time wrangling her in."

"Phoebe and I should get along well then."

Prue laughed. "One thing I learned was that our pasts don't define us. Its what we do now that defines who we are."

Paige looked very thoughtful and wasn't quite sure what to say next.

"Hey, what's on your mind?"

"Prue, I have a question. But I really don't want to overstep my bounds."

"You're my sister. Feel free to ask whatever you want."

"Do…do you really feel like Phoebe is responsible for what happened to Piper?"

Prue was visibly shocked and didn't know what to say. She was searching for the words to say and didn't know how to respond.

"Oh God. I'm so sorry. I really shouldn't have asked you that."

"No, you're fine. Please don't feel like you can't ask me questions. Its just that, that's a very loaded question. On one hand, I do feel that way. But I'm not willing to risk my relationship with Phoebe just because of that."

"I completely understand."

Prue looked down at her watch.

"I didn't even see what time it is! I have to get to work. I have a photoshoot today."

"I really hope I didn't scare you off."

"I promise you that's not the case. I just wanted to stop by before work and see you."

"Well, I'm really glad that you did."

"Oh, let me leave the number to the house and my cell number."

Prue waved her finger and levitated the pen and paper on the table over to her.

"And feel free to call anytime. Day or Night."

"I will. Here, I'll write my number down for you too."

The sisters exchanged numbers and Prue headed towards the door so that she could leave.

"I'm looking forward to getting to know you Paige."

"Likewise!"

Paige was very excited to get to know her sisters and learn how to control her magic.

"Talk to you later."

"See you."

Paige was glad that Prue had come to see her. She knew that she had a lot to learn. One of them was how to be a sister. The fact that Prue was reaching out to her and making her feel included made her feel like this wouldn't be quite as difficult as she thought it would be. She knew it would take time though. And for the first time, she thought that maybe she was ready for the wait.

At the manor later that day, Cole and Phoebe were training for the battle that would inevitably come with the source. Cole was shirtless with loose sweats, while Phoebe opted for a fitted sports top with yoga pants. As they sparred, Cole noticed that Phoebe was distracted.

"Phoebe!", Cole shouted.

"What?! You don't have to yell, I'm standing right here."

"You may be standing right there, but your mind is obviously somewhere else. If you're going to be ready for when the Source attacks again…."

"Then I need to be focused and properly trained. I know. You've only said it about 1000 times."

"Phoebe what is wrong with you?"

"Did you have siblings?"

"What?"

"Did you have siblings growing up? And not those Brotherhood guys either. Like, actual brothers and sisters?"

"No, I didn't. I was an only child on both sides. As far as I know anyway."

"Then you couldn't possibly understand how I'm feeling right now."

Phoebe walked over to the steps in the basement and sat down. It was still odd to her to be in the basement for any reason, but she moved on from that. Cole came and sat down next to her.

"How ARE you feeling?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well. You're upset over this and I understand its because you're not close to Prue like you once were. But I feel like there's more to it than that."

"Cole. We've had this discussion. I don't blame you and I don't blame myself for what happened. The Source took advantage of the situation. He's a demon, that's what demons do. Its in their nature."

Cole was taken aback by her statement.

"You know what I mean."

"No, Phoebe, I don't. You make generalizations like that and act like I'm just supposed to move past them. I may not be evil anymore, but I'm still a demon."

Phoebe didn't know what to say. She knew that Cole had changed and knew that he wasn't like the demons they fought. But sometimes, it seemed like he was still connected to the underworld. It seemed to her that he was too afraid to let go of who he had been. Or maybe he didn't know how.

"Cole, I love you and I hope you know that I would never see you as Belthazar. I'm just frustrated. Piper is gone and I feel so lost without her. I think about how she used to mediate between me and Prue and how she was always there for us."

"And now on top of everything else, you have to be the middle sister. I can't imagine how hard that is for you."

"Wow. I hadn't even thought about that. I am in the middle now. I'm so used to being the baby. I've never had a little sister before."

"Well, you have one now. And you girls need to figure out your new dynamic because the Source is going to start ramping up his attacks against you."

"You're right. Come on, let's get back to training."

"No. I think we both need a break from training."

"Oh, what did you have in mind? Rawr.", Phoebe said as she pulled Cole close to her.

"Actually", he said as he pulled away, "I think you need to reach out to your sister."

"Cole, I already told you Prue and I will work this out, but I can't rush it."

"Um, no. Not that sister. Your other sister."

"Oh. Well, it would be good to talk to her one on one. Maybe clear the air with some of this Halliwell drama we've had going on. I think I have her number. I'll give her a call."

Phoebe went to the living room and went to the table with the phone to get the paper with Paige's number. Before she could pick it up, Paige was at the door of the manor.

"Paige. Hi!"

"Oh hey. Sorry, the door was open and I just wanted to….I think I'll just go."

"No, no. Please come in. I was actually just about to call you."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Wanted to have a little quality time with my new little sister."

Paige had never been anyone's little sister and it annoyed her a little that Phoebe had referred to her that way. But she would get used to it.

Phoebe and Paige sat down in the sun room.

"You guys really have a beautiful home."

"Thank you.", Phoebe replied. "Its been in our family for generations. A lot of the decorations came from Piper and Grams. Decorating was kind of their thing."

"Yeah, Prue told me about Piper decorating their apartment."

Phoebe had a flash of shock on her face. "Really? When did she tell you about that?"

"This morning. She stopped by before work. She just wanted to say hi."

"Oh. Well, that's Prue. Up before everyone else.", Phoebe said under her breath as she turned her head slightly.

"I'm sorry. I know you guys have some…stuff going on."

"No honey, its not your fault at all. Prue and I are the definition of a complicated relationship. It got better when we became witches, but it feels like we're right back to square one."

Paige gently smiled and put her hand on Phoebe's,

"You're really easy to talk to. I don't mean to keep throwing all of this family drama on you. Its just that I feel like I'm in therapy or something when I talk to you."

"That's just my inner social worker.", Paige shyly giggled.

"Or maybe your inner whitelighter. Whitelighters are healers. Its in their nature to soothe and guide others. That's why I'm not too shocked that you're a social worker."

"It definitely wasn't an easy road."

"What do you mean?"

"When my parents died, I didn't know what I wanted to do. I just knew that I was by myself now and that I had no idea what to do next."

"That must've been hard for you. Being that young."

"Yeah, it was. My parents were both only children and we only have a few family members, but none of them were in a position to take me. So I ended up going with my mom's best friend. She helped me through so much. If it weren't for her, I'm not sure where I would be."

"You sound like you've been through a lot."

"It definitely has not been easy. I can say that."

"When we were kids, Prue and Piper would always talk about the things they remembered about mom. I'd listen to them talk about her and I'd get so sad because I didn't have those memories. I lost out on knowing her. One day, I was in my room crying looking at a photo album. Piper came in and just held me. She always knew how to make you feel safe and loved."

"I wish I could've met her."

"Well, in this family, I wouldn't rule anything out."

Paige could see how much Phoebe was hurting. But she knew how that empty feeling could change you. She was all too familiar with having to process deep pain.

Suddenly, a man appeared in front of them!

"Paige, look out!"

The demon threw a fireball that narrowly missed Paige's head. Phoebe levitated in the air and kicked him in the head, making him stumble and dazing him.

"Paige, blow him up!"

Paige looked at the demon and put her hands up in the air as she closed her eyes. No scream. "Don't they scream when they blow up?", she thought to herself.

"Honey, we're gonna need to teach you how to use your powers", Phoebe said.

Paige looked up and the demon was frozen in place. She knew it was going to be difficult getting the hang of switching between the powers.

"Ok, look at him and get angry. Think about how much you hate evil. Think about the fact that he could've killed you just now."

Paige looked at the demon and concentrated on blowing him up. She wanted that more than anything. She concentrated and put her hands up in the same way she had before. But this time, the demon was surrounded by orbs and exploded before her very eyes!

"God, that's going to get annoying."

"What is?"

"The orb thing when I blow stuff up. And didn't it sort of melt before when I did it?"

"Yeah, that was probably just because it was the first time you did it."

"I think its sloppy writing."

"What?"

"What?"

"You and Prue have to stop doing that. He's doing the best he can."

"Who?"

"Hm?"

"Who's doing the best they can?"

"Oh no one. I think we need to hit the book."

"Why do you say that?"

"I saw his arm. There was a strange tattoo. It looked kind of like an arrow or something. Usually, when there's a tattoo, that means there's a bigger demon behind him."

"Do we need to call Prue"

"Not yet. Let's head upstairs and look in the book. We'll only call her away from work if we need to."

The sisters headed up the stairs and into the attic. No sooner than Phoebe opened the book, did a demon appear out of nowhere and threw an energy ball at her. Paige noticed that this demon had the same tattoo Phoebe had described. Phoebe picked up a dagger that they had leftover from past vanquishes and threw it at the demon. The demon exploded in a burst of flames and screamed.

"Ok, now we call Prue.", Phoebe said anxiously. "Grab the book and lets head back downstairs."

Phoebe and Paige went downstairs to call Prue's cell phone. As Phoebe picked up the phone, she heard a ringing in her ears and found herself having a premonition.

In Phoebe's vision, she saw Prue at a photoshoot. Suddenly, a demon shimmers in behind Prue and stabs her in the back, killing her. The demon stands over Prue's dead body and smirks.

Phoebe comes out of her premonition.

"Are you ok?", Paige asked.

"No. I just had a premonition. I saw Prue being killed by a demon. And he had that same tattoo on his arm that the other guys had. Something's up, and I'm scared of what it may be."

"How much time do we have?"

"I have no idea. NATALIE! NATALIE!"

"What's Natalie going to do?"

"She's going to orb you to Prue."

"Me?"

"Yes. You're the only other one with an active power that can help Prue."

Natalie and Bo orbed into the room.

"You called?", Natalie asked.

"Yes. I need you to orb Paige to Prue. I had a premonition where a demon killed Prue at work. And we've been attacked twice within about 20 minutes. I need to stay here and figure out what demon is after us. But Paige needs to go help Prue."

"I don't think we can-"

"Natalie.", Phoebe said with a slight stammer. "Please don't let me lose another sister today."

"Ok. But Bo will stay here with you just in case something happens."

"Fine. Just save my sister."

Natalie and Paige orb out of the room hoping they make it in time.

At Prue's photo shoot, she was taking pictures of a famous actress, Jennifer Anders. Prue didn't really care for her because she acted like a spoiled brat. Prue should've been used to it because of Phoebe's past behavior, but it didn't stop her from being annoying.

"Oh, um Drew.", Jennifer said as she pointed at Prue.

"It's Prue.", she said with a sarcastic smile.

"Yes, I'm sure. Anyway, make sure you're getting my good side."

"Oh you have one?, Prue uttered under breath.

"What was that?"

"Oh nothing. Nothing at all."

Prue absolutely hated putting up with this. Usually, she would turn down the assignment and move on to the next one. But she couldn't do that this time. The club was still closed and she knew she couldn't run it and still work full time. She had to keep things going, but she wasn't sure how much longer she could take this. It was taking everything in her not to throw this woman into the next state over.

"Um, Lou, I think its time to take a break."

"Its Prue, and we still have about 30 more frames."

Jennifer walked up to Prue with a smug look on her face.

"Look. I don't know what sort of dusty old clientele you're used to, but I'm of a higher caliber. When I say that I'm tired and want to take a break, that's what I'm going to do."

Prue was stunned and she just couldn't help herself. As Jennifer walked away, she used her telekinesis to make Jennifer drop her cell phone over and over. It was small, but she had to do something.

As Prue stood and smirked at her small victory, a demon with an arrow tattoo shimmered in behind Prue. Right as he was about to conjure a fireball, the room froze.

Prue was in shock and turned around to see the demon as rigid as a statue behind her. She looked over and saw Prue and Natalie.

"Um, what- what the hell is going on here? Who is that?", Prue asked.

"That's a demon. And he has the same tattoo as another demon that attacked Phoebe and I at the manor.", Paige explained.

"Oh no, are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Phoebe's at the manor trying to find out any information about the demon now."

"Oh. Good. So, um. We need to get rid of him."

"Why don't you use your new telekinesis?"

"Well, it hasn't really been working. I've tried using it and its not explosive like it was in the attic."

"Hmm.", Natalie said as she became thoughtful. "It may be that it manifested because your emotions were so heightened. It's still there, but it may need strong emotion to activate."

"Ok, so Paige, its up to you. Do you think you can blow him up?"

"I can try."

Paige closed her eyes and focused as she put her hands up. She made a hand gesture and the demon blew up before her eyes!

"Good job! Seems like someone's been practicing."

"Yeah, but I think he forgot how it was supposed to work."

"Don't worry, I think he forgot my power advanced too. He does that all that time."

Natalie was confused by the sisters' exchange.

"Um. Who is "he"?, Natalie inquired.

"What?"

"What?"

"Oh God. I guess you two are going to start bonding and braiding each other's hair."

Prue and Paige smiled at each other. Prue didn't know if her heart could take getting close to anyone after losing Piper. But Paige wasn't just anyone. She was Prue's sister. And Paige was warming up to the idea of having sisters. Paige could see why Prue was the unofficial leader.

"Ok, Natalie, you take Paige back to the manor so you guys can help Phoebe find the demon. Paige, did you get a good look at his tattoo?"

"Yeah. It was a weird arrow that looked like it was bent or something."

"Good. I'll finish up here at work and get back to the manor as soon as possible."

"Ok, see you then."

Natalie and Paige orbed back to the manor.

Prue went to tell her boss that she was going to leave. She just hoped everything would be alright.

At the manor, Natalie and Paige orbed into the living room. Cole and Phoebe were looking in the Book to see if they could find the demon.

"Anything?", Paige asked.

"No. Nothing. And Cole had never seen the mark before. Where's Prue?"

"She's finishing up at work and she's heading here afterwards."

"Of course. We wouldn't want to bother her with our trivial demonic enemies.", Phoebe quipped.

"Isn't she the only one with an income right now though?"

Phoebe was shocked and stared at Paige in disbelief. Working in social work, Paige was used to calling out people, even when it made her look like a jerk.

"Prue is the only one with a job, but Phoebe is just as important as her.", Cole said as he stood up and looked at Paige.

"Oh, no. I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to offend. I'm just saying that both of you are stressed right now and she may be using work as a way to channel her feelings."

Everyone in the room felt awkward. The silence was deafening.

"Paige, Phoebe?", Prue said as she entered the manor.

"Prue? How'd you get here so fast?", Phoebe asked.

"What do you mean?"

"They just got here and said you were heading here."

"Oh, he's at it again."

"Prue, we just made that joke.", Paige said as she giggled.

"Hey, blame him, not me. So anything on the demon?"

"No, nothing at all. At this point, I don't know what to do."

Prue got an idea, but didn't know if it would help.

"Cole, do you think you can go to the Underworld and see what you can find out?"

"You want me to go where there's a bounty on my head?

"If it'll help save all of us, yes."

"Cole, honey. I think Prue is right. Maybe you can ask around and see what you can find."

"For you, I guess I will. But if I don't come back, just know that a bounty hunter got their bounty."

Cole shimmered out of the room. Paige could feel the tension between Cole and Phoebe. Plus, Phoebe looked like a puppy that had lost its bone. She may have to be a sister sooner than she thought.

"Natalie, can you talk with the Elders and see if they've found anything? Where's Bo?"

"Bo said that the Elders gave him another charge. So he went to check on them."

"She's right. They assigned them yesterday. But I'll go ahead and check with the Elders. Call if you need anything. Natalie orbed out of the room.

"Ok. We need to come up with a plan. Two demons have attacked us individually. So, I'm sure another one will come."

"What makes you think that?"

"Well. One attacked me at work and the demon that attacked at the manor probably thought Phoebe was home alone. So it seems that they're trying to get all of us. I'm thinking that another one will attack trying to come after Paige. So, let's set a trap and get ready for our friend."

Paige marveled at how quickly Prue came up with a plan and deduced what the demon may have been doing. She hoped she could bring something to the team like her sister did.

A few hours later, the sisters were waiting in the attic for the demon to attack. Phoebe looked distracted as she held her potion to stun the demon when he arrived. Prue walked over to her and sat next to her.

"Hey, you ok?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?"

"Well, I've only known you your whole life and I think I know when you're upset. You worried about Cole?"

"Yes. Prue, he hasn't come back for hours. What if-"

"Don't go there. He's ok. He knows he has you to come home to."

Paige watched her sisters talk and was glad that they were communicating. Suddenly, a demon appeared next to them while they were distracted.

"Prue, Phoebe, look out!"

As Prue and Phoebe turned their heads, the demon shot an energy beam at them. They fell over and Paige feared the worst.

"NATALIE!", Paige called.

Natalie orbed into the room and was shocked to see the demon standing there. The demon was caught off guard, and tried to strike Paige with the same energy beam, but Natalie jumped in front of Paige!

"No!" Paige shouted.

Natalie fell to the floor as Paige stood in disbelief. She focused all of her energy into her hands and motioned towards the demon, which blew him up instantly. She checked Natalie, and then Prue and Phoebe. They still had pulses, so that was good. But how did he knock them out? Paige wasn't sure. What she did know was that Cole wasn't back and there was no way to contact Bo. They had been trying to call for him, but he wasn't answering for some reason.

Paige scoured the Book for answers, but didn't find anything. As if flipping by themselves, the pages of the book flipped to a specific spell. Paige thought maybe it was the wind, but she couldn't be sure. She flipped the pages again and they flipped right back to the same spell. Phoebe had told her about this. Sometimes, the Book did that. Sometimes, it was the sisters' grandmother. But she knew that someone wanted her to cast this spell.

"Ok, I get it. Even though it doesn't make sense, I'll do it."

Paige followed the directions and placed a circle of candles. She took a deep breath and prepared herself for whatever was about to happen.

"Hear these words, hear my cry, spirit from the other side. Come to me, I summon thee. Cross now, the great divide."

A small wind blew through Paige's hair. The wind was chilled and she inhaled as she prepared to see who would appear before her.

A woman arrived into the room, circled by white lights. Paige looked in disbelief and couldn't believe her eyes. She recognized the woman from pictures littered throughout the manor. She was told that magic had a way of revealing things, but she didn't expect this.

Her gaze didn't leave the woman's face as she crossed the room to get a closer look. There was no doubt. It was her. She didn't know what to say, but she could only muster the woman's name.

"Piper."