DISCLAIMER: All the usual. I don't own the characters, blah blah blah. Copyright blah blah blah. Any questions, comments, and concerns should be sent to me - click my name above.
"Prue! Let's go," Piper shouts as she walks down the stairs, putting on her jacket. Prue and Piper cross paths at the bottom of the stairs. Prue is looking very sharp, and overdressed, in a mauve business suit, and she is carrying her briefcase.
"Go where? I'm going to work. I have an auction on Tuesday to prepare for," Prue says.
"Prue, we promised Phoebe as her Christmas present we would volunteer at the homeless shelter with her," Piper reminds her older sister. "Anyway, it's Saturday. Buckland's can wait."
"I am way behind, Piper. I have to go in today to catch up," Prue argues, sounding a little irritated.
"Phoebe's going to be disappointed if you're not there," Piper says, trying to guilt Prue into going. Prue gives her the I-don't-have-time-for-this look. "Fine. Will you at least drop me off and then pick Phoebe and me up at seven?"
"Sure, whatever," Prue answers as she and Piper leave the house. As they walk out the door Prue says, "Tell Phoebe I'll make it up to her."
* * * Prue is hard at work going through some paperwork. She doesn't notice that the clock reads 7:15. She also doesn't notice that there is now someone else in the office with her.
"Prue," the person says. Prue is startled and looks up quickly to see who is in her office.
"Leo, you scared me," she says. "Why are you here? It seems like death doesn't even keep you out of our lives."
"No, not really," Leo replies. "Why are you at the office, Prue? You're supposed to be at the shelter."
"Not you, too. You're as bad as Piper," Prue says rolling her eyes. "Someone has to bring in the money. The club isn't quite turning a great profit yet, and Phoebe seems to be allergic to paying jobs. If I'm not prepared for Tuesday's auction I could lose my job."
"Yeah, whatever," Leo says dismissively. "That's not why I'm here anyway."
"So why are you here?"
"To warn you," Leo says grimly. "You'll be visited by three spirits very soon. They're going to help you assess your priorities because right now you're headed in the wrong direction."
"What are you talking about?" Prue asks. "Spirits?"
"Yes, so be ready for them," Leo says. "I have to go now. Oh, and shouldn't you be meeting someone?" With that he disappears. Prue looks at the clock, shakes her head, and then leaves to pick up Piper and Phoebe.
* * * Prue arrives at the shelter at 7:45. She decides not to mention Leo's visit. 'It would only upset Piper, and Phoebe can't keep a secret to save her life,' Prue thinks. She enters the shelter and immediately feels out of place in her business suit. Homeless people in old tattered clothes sit at tables eating, lie on cots, or converse with others. All the volunteers are wearing jeans, sweaters, and white aprons. Prue spots Piper and Phoebe talking to a little boy and his parents. She quickly walks over, wanting to leave as soon as possible.
"Hey, guys. Sorry I'm late," Prue says to her sisters.
"Oh, that's okay. We didn't even realize it was seven already," Phoebe replies. "Prue, this is Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell and their little boy, Timmy."
"It's nice to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell," Prue says, trying to sound pleasant.
"Please, call me Jack," the man says.
"And you can call me Nancy," his wife adds. Piper grabs Phoebe's arm.
"Well, we need to go put our aprons away and we'll be right back," Piper says as she and Phoebe leave. Timmy starts coughing and his mother leads him away.
"Is your son okay?" Prue asks.
"Timmy has a rare lung disease," Jack replies. "It's treatable, but when the company downsized I lost my job, and we couldn't afford to pay the medical bills. I just can't seem to find a job."
"What do you do?" Prue asks.
"I'm a CPA. For some reason there's no one out there hiring," Jack says. "Timmy just keeps getting worse. I don't know what to do."
They just stand there in an awkward silence. Piper and Phoebe return and Prue is grateful for that. "Ready?" she asks abruptly.
"Yeah," Phoebe replies. The three say goodbye to Jack and leave.
"So, how's the office, Prue," Phoebe says snidely.
"Phoebe!" Piper snaps, trying to forgo a fight.
"Pheebs, I said I'd make it up to you," Prue says defensively.
"Uh-huh," Phoebe replies dismissively as she buckles her seatbelt. "Well, I don't know when that would possibly be. The shelter's running out of food. They've had more people come in this year than ever before. Peter thinks we won't be open for Christmas."
"All those people will have nowhere to go," Piper adds. "And poor Timmy."
Prue just drives without saying anything. They arrive at the manor and don't say a word as they go inside. Prue immediately heads up to her room to do some work she brought home with her while Phoebe and Piper go to the kitchen. Piper pours them both a cup of eggnog.
"Prue's little Miss Bah Humbug this year," Phoebe comments.
"Well, she's really busy..." Piper begins.
"Oh come on, Piper. Do you really think an auction is so important that she would blow off a promise to me?" Phoebe asks. "Prue's usually a woman of her word, especially with us. And did you see how she reacted when we said the shelter would be closed on Christmas?"
"What about it?"
"Cold as a fish," Phoebe says as she takes a drink of her eggnog. "Prue's turning into Ebinezer Scrooge."
* * * It's past midnight and Prue has fallen asleep on her bed with her work all around her. There's a shadow in the corner. It moves towards her.
"Prudence!" the person says. Prue doesn't move. "Prudence Halliwell, wake up."
Prue jerks awake and looks around to see who's in her room. 'And who's calling me Prudence?'
She turns to see her visitor standing at the foot of her bed.
"Grams?" Prue asks. "What do you want? Are you here to warn us about something?"
"I'm here to show you something, Prudence," Grams says. "I'm here to show you your Christmas past."
"Why?" Prue asks.
"You're changing, Prudence, and not necessarily for the better," Grams replies. "Now come with me."
"Where are we going? I'm in my pajamas."
"Oh, that doesn't matter, dear," Grams replies as she approaches Prue. "Nobody will see us." Grams puts her hand on Prue's should and suddenly they are in the living room. Except it's daytime and everything looks different.
Prue looks at the Christmas tree. There are ornaments on it that she hasn't seen for years. There's also a lot more presents under it than she remembers putting there. Suddenly, two little girls run into the room. It's Prue and Piper when they were little. Prue steps back and watches as her younger self and little Piper dig into their presents.
"Girls, I told you to wait for me," Prue hears someone say from the other room. Then, Patty walks in carrying baby Phoebe. "And your grandmother. You know the only reason she gives you presents is because she loves watching you open them."
"Mom," older Prue says.
"Oh, don't bother, dear," Penny says. "She can't hear or see you."
Prue approaches her mom and looks at Baby Phoebe. "I forgot how cute Phoebe was when she was little." Then Phoebe turns her head toward Prue. It looks as if she's looking right at Prue. Prue looks at Penny.
"Can she hear me?" Prue asks.
"I suppose she can. Remember, you three had powers before your mother died," Penny replies.
"Oh, Patty. Just let them open their presents already," the past Penny says. "Why do you make them wait for me?"
"Because this is family time, and you are a part of this family the last time I checked," Patty replies.
"Prudence, open a present," past Penny tells little Prue. Little Prue floats a present over with her power and opens it quickly to reveal a teddy bear. She laughs and jumps up to give Patty a hug.
"Thanks, mommy," little Prue says.
"So, Mr. Biggles was mine," old Prue says. "I could never remember who he belonged to."
"It really shocked me how much you girls loved that little teddy bear," spirit Penny says. "I think it was because this was the last Christmas you spent with your mother, and she gave you the bear."
Prue continues to watch as she and Piper tear through the presents. "Well, Prudence, we have to move on."
"Why did you show me this?" Prue asks. "What's the point?"
"You're a smart young woman. You'll figure it out," Penny says. She puts her hand on Prue's shoulder and they reappear in the living room. But it's changed again. This time an eight year old Piper and four year old Phoebe run into the living room. They start shaking presents when ten year-old Prue walks in.
"Hey, wait for Grams!" little Prue says. At the same time older Prue mouths those same words. "This is family time and Grams is family."
"You were always one for tradition," Penny says. Prue smiles. "Especially when it came to your mother's traditions. Well, that's all you needed to see here."
"Wait, that's it?" Prue protests.
"We have one more stop," Penny says. She places her hand on Prue's shoulder and they again reappear in the living room. It looks a lot more modern than their last stop. Prue realizes it's Christmas two years ago when she sees Piper and Jeremy sitting on the couch.
"What's he doing here?" Prue asks angrily.
"Remember, you don't know about your powers or him, yet," Penny says.
Prue from 2 years ago walks in. "Should we start?"
"There's someone missing from this picture," Penny says.
"Yeah, you," Prue says. "This is our first Christmas after you died."
"That's not who I was talking about," Penny says.
"I wish Phoebe was here," Piper says. Neither Prue says anything.
"Who's Phoebe?" Jeremy asks.
"Phoebe is our younger sister that Prue doesn't like to talk about," Piper says. Past Prue shoves a present in Piper's lap.
"Well, it's not my fault she's not here. This one's from Jeremy," past Prue says.
"Yes, it is your fault," Prue mumbles.
"What happened to family time, Prudence?" Penny asks.
"What does this matter?" Prue asks Penny. "Phoebe's back and it's not like this anymore."
"Are you so sure about that?" Penny asks. Prue looks at her hands. "I don't think so. The spirit of Christmas present will make you see. He'll visit you soon."
With that Prue wakes up in bed. There are papers scattered around her. She looks at the clock. It reads 8 a.m. "Weird dream."
"Prue," Phoebe says as she knocks on Prue's door. She slowly pushes it open. "Are you coming to the shelter?"
"I have to finish some things up at the office," Prue says.
"It's Christmas Eve!" Phoebe exclaims.
"Exactly why I have to go to the office. So I can spend time with my sisters on Christmas day."
"Yeah, whatever," Phoebe says as she leaves. "We're going."
Prue hears Phoebe and Piper leaving as she heads for the shower. She quickly showers, dresses and leaves for the office.
Around noon Prue realizes someone else is in the office with her. She looks up.
"Andy," she says quietly.
"Hi, Prue," Andy says. "I'm here to show you Christmas present."
"This is really weird."
"I know," Andy says. "Let's go."
They reappear in the homeless shelter. Prue sees Piper and Phoebe serving food to people. A very worried looking man motions for them to follow him into the kitchen.
"Follow them," Andy says. Prue follows the three into the kitchen.
"There has to be something, Peter," Phoebe says.
"There isn't. This shelter will be closed on Christmas," Peter says as he leaves the kitchen.
"All those people without a place to stay on Christmas, Prue," Andy says.
Prue says nothing and continues to listen to Piper and Phoebe.
"I wish Prue was here," Phoebe says to Piper. Piper nods her head.
"I'm here, Pheebs," Prue says. Phoebe looks around curiously.
"What's wrong?" Piper asks.
"I thought I heard something," Phoebe says as she and Piper walk out of the kitchen. "I guess it was nothing."
"Did you hear that Prue? Nothing," Andy says. "Follow me."
Andy leads Prue out to Timmy who is sleeping on a cot. Nancy looks at Jack worriedly. "He keeps getting worse Jack."
"I don't know what to do, honey," Jack says. "I can't even take care of my own son."
"Yes, I know about them, Andy. What am I supposed to do about it?"
"I'll let you figure that out," Andy says. "That's all I had to show you. Be ready. The spirit of Christmas future will be here soon."
Prue is suddenly back in her office. "What the hell is going on here?"
She continues to work till late that night. She ends up falling asleep at her desk. She wakes up when someone taps her on the shoulder. She turns to see someone in a dark hooded cloak. She can't see their face.
"Can I help you?" Prue asks nervously. The person says nothing. "Oh, so you're here about Christmas future, I'm guessing." Nothing. "Well, enlighten me."
Suddenly, they are in the attic. Piper and Phoebe walk in discussing something.
"Are you sure we should do this?" Phoebe asks.
"We have to," Piper answers. "It's the only way to preserve the Power of Three."
"Okay. Should it be me or you?"
"You should do it, Pheebs," Piper says. "You've always wanted an active power."
Phoebe opens the BOS and looks down at the pages. "Okay. Here we go." Phoebe reads the spell. "We've lost a link to this chain. The circle has been broken. Bring the lost power to me. Restore the circle. Hear the words I've spoken."
Phoebe looks at herself as if some visible change should have taken place. She looks at Piper and then at the BOS. Phoebe extends her hands, palm up and lifts the BOS with her mind. She closes it in mid-air and then sets it back on its podium. "It worked."
"Now you have Prue's power. We still have the Power of Three."
Prue watches in shock and terror as her sisters casually leave the attic. She turns to the spirit. "Why would Phoebe take my power? What is going on here? This is the future you wanted to show me, a future where my sisters betray me and steal my powers."
"No one has betrayed you but yourself," the spirit whispers. Instantly they are in a cemetery. Prue is standing at the foot of a grave she looks at the tombstone and gasps when she sees her own name.
"Died December 24, 2003," Prue reads. She looks at the spirit. "So soon? What happened to me? Was it a demon or warlock? How did I die?"
The spirit pushes back the hood to reveal her face. It is Prue, dead Prue. Her skin is thin and pale, her eyes dark and unfeeling, and her lips blue. "Suicide," dead Prue says as she lifts her arms to show the cuts across both her wrists.
"No. I couldn't. Why? I would never get that desperate," Prue says defiantly.
"Oh, but you would," dead Prue says as she starts to disappear.
"No. Wait. I won't kill myself," Prue says desperately. She falls to her knees and buries her face in her hands, sobbing, "I won't. I won't. I won't," Prue says repeatedly. She wakes up at her desk saying it. She wipes away her tears and looks around. "I'm alive. I can change that." She looks at the clock. 8 a.m. It's Christmas morning. Prue grabs her coat and rushes out of the office.
* * * Piper and Phoebe are trying to explain to the people that the shelter is closed, but they won't listen. Suddenly, Prue comes out from the inside of the shelter. She yells for everyone to be quiet.
"Everyone, Merry Christmas. We will be open soon. We're not quite ready for you yet. Please be patient," Prue explains. Piper and Phoebe stare at her in shock as Prue drags them inside.
"Prue, what are you doing? We have no food," Phoebe says. Then Peter approaches Prue.
"Prue, I can't thank you enough for what you've done. Now, all those people can enjoy their Christmas."
Prue smiles as Peter walks away. That's when Piper and Phoebe see the tables full of food. Their jaws drop.
"How?" is all Phoebe can manage.
"Buckland Auction House was more than happy to make a generous, tax-deductible donation when they heard about the shelter's problem."
"This is amazing," Piper says, staring at all the food. "How did you manage this on Christmas day?"
"I got lucky," Prue replies. She sees the people start to file in. "We better get our aprons on. They look hungry."
The sisters get behind the tables and start helping to serve the food. They chat with everybody and wish them a happy holiday. When everyone is served, Prue goes out to her car and comes in with a large bag of gifts. She goes over to Jack and his family. She sits down and pulls out a teddy bear for Timmy.
"His name is Mr. Biggles, but you can change it if you want to," Prue says.
"Thanks," Timmy says with a smile.
Piper and Phoebe are watching from the side of the room. Phoebe leans over to Piper. "I thought Mr. Biggles lost his eyes."
"It looks like Prue fixed him up," Piper says.
"I have something for you, too," Prue says to Jack. She hands him an envelope.
"You didn't have to do this," he says as he opens the envelope.
"I know. I wanted to," Prue says.
Jacks eyes widen as he looks at the slip of paper in his hands. "What is this?"
"It's a cash advance from your new employer," Prue replies. "If you want the job."
"What job?" Jack asks. "I don't understand."
"I work at Buckland Auction House. I checked around and found out there's an opening in accounting," Prue explains. "I told them about you and they agreed you'd be perfect for the job."
"But you hardly know me," Jack says.
"Oh, and Timmy has an appointment with a very good pediatrician on Friday," Prue ads. "It's covered by the company health plan."
"I don't know what to say," Jack says. His eyes are tearing up.
"Say, 'I'll see you next Monday,' and that's all I need to hear," Prue replies.
"I'll see you next Monday," Jack says. He gives Prue a hug. "Thank you."
"Merry Christmas," Prue says. She grabs her bag of gifts and joins her sisters.
"Well, you've definitely made it up to me, Prue," Phoebe says. "This is unbelievable."
"Oh, this isn't my present to you. I have something else," Prue says. She whips out two gifts for her sisters. They smile and accept the gifts.
"What's gotten into you, Prue?" Piper asks.
"I guess I just needed a visit from some Christmas spirits."
