Fic: Comes Out of Darkness, Morn (9/37)
Title: Comes Out of Darkness, Morn
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Summary: Pax's disappearance shattered Paige. Losing Prue, three years later, reopens old wounds that she thought she'd managed to close off, forever. But, through tragedy comes a sliver of light, and discovering that she's a witch is only the beginning...
*****
Three days later
"Printing!"
Paige hit save on the file that she was working on as she heard the ancient printer in the corner whir to life. She pushed her chair away from her desk, intending to get up, but she stopped at the sound of crinkling paper. Looking down, she saw a newspaper caught underneath her chair.
Reaching down, she pulled the paper out from under her chair and tossed it on her desk. Then, just as quickly, she grabbed the paper, again, staring in numb horror at the page it had fallen open to.
'Prue Halliwell … beloved sister … greatly missed-'
She skimmed the majority of the obituary, words jumping out at her as she tried to make sense of what she was reading.
"She can't be," she said, softly, slumping back in her chair as she stared at the paper in shock.
"What'd you say?" a voice asked over her shoulder, and Paige looked around to see Lila peering over the edge of her cubicle. "Oh, yeah," Lila went on, seeing the paper in Paige's hand, "Halliwell, that's the woman who was murdered a couple days ago."
"Murdered?" Paige echoed, incredulously, staring at her best friend in shock, and the other woman nodded.
"Yeah, it was in the news," Lila told her. "There was a break-in at her house, and she was shot, or something. Haven't you been watching the news?"
"I've been busy," Paige said, faintly, feeling Lila's words hit her like a sledgehammer. "I haven't really been watching much television, lately."
"Hey," Lila said, noticing the stricken look that had settled over Paige's face, "are you okay?"
"I knew her," Paige said, her voice shaky. "I knew Prue."
"Oh, honey," Lila said, sympathetically, and Paige closed her eyes as a wave of grief washed over her.
"We were friends," Paige went on, softly. "We've drifted apart, recently, but for a while, she was the closest thing I had to a sister."
"I'm so sorry," Lila told her, and Paige nodded, slowly. "Are you-" Lila started, but then one of their coworkers called her name from across the room.
"Go," Paige said, quietly. "I have to make a phone call, anyway."
Lila left, but Paige took a minute to herself. Dropping her head into her hands, she sighed, deeply. She sat there for a minute, just breathing and struggling to come to terms with what she'd just learned. Then, she picked up the phone and dialed a familiar number.
"Hello?" Henry answered, sounding distracted, and Paige's heart clenched at the thought of what she was about to tell him.
"Henry, it's me," she said, quietly.
"Hey, you," Henry greeted her, sounding much more cheerful than he had a few seconds earlier.
Paige knew that her news was going to break his heart as much as it had hers. Her aunt Julie had used to joke around, calling them the Three Musketeers, they'd been so close. Henry and Prue had seemed like two sides of the same coin, at times, and, even now, she couldn't understand how the three of them had drifted apart.
"Hey, is something wrong?" Henry asked, when she was silent for too long, and Paige took a deep breath to try and steady herself.
"Prue's dead, Henry," she said, and there was a stunned silence on the other end of the line.
"Are you sure?" Henry demanded, and Paige had to swallow hard against the lump that formed in her throat.
"It's her," she confirmed," her voice coming out rough. "Henry's she's gone."
Her voice hitched on a strangled sob, and she buried her face in her hands as she struggled to regain control of herself. On the other end of the line, Henry was silent, giving her the time she needed to compose herself. She took a few deep breaths, her shoulders shaking with minute tremors as she forced back the sobs that threatened to escape.
"Are you okay?" Henry asked, quietly, concern clear in his voice.
"I don't know," Paige admitted, her voice soft as she sank back in her chair. "According to the paper, her memorial is in about half an hour at a church across town. I'm going to take an early lunch."
"I'll meet you at the church," Henry told her, immediately. "We'll pay our respects, together."
"Thanks," Paige said, gratefully, and then, after saying good-bye, she hung up the phone.
Crossing the room, she grabbed her copies from the printer and headed for Cowan's office. She knocked perfunctorily on the door frame, entering when Cowan waved her into his office.
"Mr. Cowan," she started, as she handed him the completed Mason file, "I need to take an early lunch. Now, preferably."
"Something wrong?" Cowan asked, when he heard the tone in her voice.
"I found out that an old friend died a couple of days ago," Paige told him. "Her memorial is in about half an hour - I won't be gone very long."
"Go," Cowan told her, and Paige shot him a grateful look. "And, Paige? I'm sorry for your loss."
"Thanks," Paige told him, softly, leaving his office.
She clocked out for lunch and headed to her car. The radio blared to life as she started the ignition, but she flicked if off, plunging the car into total silence. And she drove across town soaking in the quiet that gave her time to think.
She pulled up in front of the church almost fifteen minutes later, parking on the opposite side of the street. She recognized Henry's beat up old car pulling in down the street a few seconds later, and she gave him a tiny wave as she started towards him.
"Are you okay?" Henry asked, immediately, wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug.
"I can't believe she's gone," Paige mumbled into his shoulder. "I just - I keep expecting to hear that it's just some huge mistake."
"I know what you mean," Henry told her. Pulling back, he shot her a concerned look. "Are you sure you're okay to go in there?"
Paige nodded, determinedly. "I want to say good-bye," she said, quietly. "Prue and I may have fallen out of touch, lately, but she was my best friend, and I owe her that much."
Henry nodded, wrapping an arm loosely around her waist as they started across the street toward the church. Entering the building, they moved into the sanctuary, staying at the back of the room. Leaning against the wall, they watched the other mourners file slowly into the room.
"I feel underdressed," Henry muttered, sheepishly, glancing down at the tee-shirt and worn-out jeans that he was wearing.
"We didn't exactly know that we'd be going to a funeral, this morning," Paige pointed out, quietly, gesturing to her blouse and denim mini-skirt. "Hey," she added, softer, nodding at the front of the church, "I think that's Prue's family up there."
"Did you ever meet them?" Henry asked, quietly, following her gaze to where she was looking at a pair of women in dark dresses sitting at the front of the church.
"Once or twice," Paige replied. "Prue has-" She paused, a fist clenching over her heart at the subtle reminder. "She had two younger sisters. Piper, and Phoebe is the youngest. Piper owns that nightclub downtown, P3."
"I've been there a couple times," Henry said. "I don't think I've ever run into Prue, though."
"She was there last week," Paige said, softly. "I was there with Shane, and I saw Prue on the other side of the room. I told myself I was too busy to go over and say hello," she added, a bitter tone in her voice. "It was the last time I saw her."
Henry reached out and twined his fingers with hers, squeezing her hand in silently sympathy. A few minutes later, the service started. It was beautiful, if a bit unusual, and Paige found herself blinking back quiet tears. Beside her, Henry was surreptitiously rubbing at his eyes, and she saw the glint of tears on his cheeks when he glanced at her.
As the service drew to a close, they joined the long line of people that shuffled slowly up the aisle to where Prue's family was gathered, to pay their respects. They crept forward as the other mourners spoke to Prue's sisters, and then, it was their turn. Paige stood in front of a young woman wearing a black blouse and a paisley-patterned jacket.
"I'm so sorry for your loss," she murmured, a sentiment echoed by Henry, standing at her shoulder.
"Thank you," the woman, Paige thought she might have been Phoebe, replied. "How - how did you know Prue? From work?"
"No, just from around, you know?" Paige told her. "I haven't spoken to Prue in while. Anyway," she added, "our condolences."
She shook Phoebe's hand one more time, her eyes widening in alarm when the other woman's hand tightened painfully in her grip, and she started to shake. She looked like she was having a seizure.
The attack, whatever it was, ended a few seconds after it had begun when the other woman pulled her hand out of Paige's with a pained cry and fell to the floor. Even as Paige instinctively stepped forward to help her, the rest of Prue's family had swarmed around the woman, blocking her from view. Henry gently pulled Paige backward, steering her back down the aisle.
"Looks like they've got things in hand," he muttered under his breath. "And I think we should get out of here."
"Why?" Paige asked, confused, and then realization struck. "You think I electrocuted her?"
"Didn't you?" Henry countered, quietly, as they stepped outside the church. "Paige, you can't control your powers when you're emotional. And you've zapped people, before."
"Once," Paige countered, immediately. "I zapped you, once. And I did not electrocute that woman."
"Are you sure?" Henry asked, and Paige's shoulders slumped.
"No," she admitted, sheepishly. "Which means that I need to take a walk to cool down before I go back to work. It would be bad if I lost control and shorted out the office."
"You want some company?" Henry offered, and Paige nodded.
"Sure," she said, leaning into his embrace as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
They walked in silence for about fifteen minutes before Henry mentioned something about having to go back to work. Back at his car, Henry pulled Paige into a quick hug.
"P3, tonight, ten o'clock," he said, as they pulled apart. "How about it? We'll say goodbye to Prue."
"Sounds good," Paige told him.
"And," Henry suggested, a too-casual tone in his voice, "maybe I could meet this Shane guy you've been seeing."
"Ah, no," Paige decided, after a moment. "You scare the hell out of the guys I date."
"Then, maybe you should start dating some tougher guys," Henry countered, cheerfully.
"The last one ran into burning buildings for a living," Paige shot back. "You scared the crap out of a guy who's not even afraid of fire."
Henry didn't even bother to look abashed at that comment. If anything, he looked a little smug, and Paige just sighed in exasperation.
"You're incorrigible," she scolded him. "Go back to work. I'll see you at the club, tonight."
"See you later," Henry told her, and then she watched him drive away, before she walked back to her own car and began the drive across town back to her own job.
Continued here
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Summary: Pax's disappearance shattered Paige. Losing Prue, three years later, reopens old wounds that she thought she'd managed to close off, forever. But, through tragedy comes a sliver of light, and discovering that she's a witch is only the beginning...
*****
Three days later
"Printing!"
Paige hit save on the file that she was working on as she heard the ancient printer in the corner whir to life. She pushed her chair away from her desk, intending to get up, but she stopped at the sound of crinkling paper. Looking down, she saw a newspaper caught underneath her chair.
Reaching down, she pulled the paper out from under her chair and tossed it on her desk. Then, just as quickly, she grabbed the paper, again, staring in numb horror at the page it had fallen open to.
'Prue Halliwell … beloved sister … greatly missed-'
She skimmed the majority of the obituary, words jumping out at her as she tried to make sense of what she was reading.
"She can't be," she said, softly, slumping back in her chair as she stared at the paper in shock.
"What'd you say?" a voice asked over her shoulder, and Paige looked around to see Lila peering over the edge of her cubicle. "Oh, yeah," Lila went on, seeing the paper in Paige's hand, "Halliwell, that's the woman who was murdered a couple days ago."
"Murdered?" Paige echoed, incredulously, staring at her best friend in shock, and the other woman nodded.
"Yeah, it was in the news," Lila told her. "There was a break-in at her house, and she was shot, or something. Haven't you been watching the news?"
"I've been busy," Paige said, faintly, feeling Lila's words hit her like a sledgehammer. "I haven't really been watching much television, lately."
"Hey," Lila said, noticing the stricken look that had settled over Paige's face, "are you okay?"
"I knew her," Paige said, her voice shaky. "I knew Prue."
"Oh, honey," Lila said, sympathetically, and Paige closed her eyes as a wave of grief washed over her.
"We were friends," Paige went on, softly. "We've drifted apart, recently, but for a while, she was the closest thing I had to a sister."
"I'm so sorry," Lila told her, and Paige nodded, slowly. "Are you-" Lila started, but then one of their coworkers called her name from across the room.
"Go," Paige said, quietly. "I have to make a phone call, anyway."
Lila left, but Paige took a minute to herself. Dropping her head into her hands, she sighed, deeply. She sat there for a minute, just breathing and struggling to come to terms with what she'd just learned. Then, she picked up the phone and dialed a familiar number.
"Hello?" Henry answered, sounding distracted, and Paige's heart clenched at the thought of what she was about to tell him.
"Henry, it's me," she said, quietly.
"Hey, you," Henry greeted her, sounding much more cheerful than he had a few seconds earlier.
Paige knew that her news was going to break his heart as much as it had hers. Her aunt Julie had used to joke around, calling them the Three Musketeers, they'd been so close. Henry and Prue had seemed like two sides of the same coin, at times, and, even now, she couldn't understand how the three of them had drifted apart.
"Hey, is something wrong?" Henry asked, when she was silent for too long, and Paige took a deep breath to try and steady herself.
"Prue's dead, Henry," she said, and there was a stunned silence on the other end of the line.
"Are you sure?" Henry demanded, and Paige had to swallow hard against the lump that formed in her throat.
"It's her," she confirmed," her voice coming out rough. "Henry's she's gone."
Her voice hitched on a strangled sob, and she buried her face in her hands as she struggled to regain control of herself. On the other end of the line, Henry was silent, giving her the time she needed to compose herself. She took a few deep breaths, her shoulders shaking with minute tremors as she forced back the sobs that threatened to escape.
"Are you okay?" Henry asked, quietly, concern clear in his voice.
"I don't know," Paige admitted, her voice soft as she sank back in her chair. "According to the paper, her memorial is in about half an hour at a church across town. I'm going to take an early lunch."
"I'll meet you at the church," Henry told her, immediately. "We'll pay our respects, together."
"Thanks," Paige said, gratefully, and then, after saying good-bye, she hung up the phone.
Crossing the room, she grabbed her copies from the printer and headed for Cowan's office. She knocked perfunctorily on the door frame, entering when Cowan waved her into his office.
"Mr. Cowan," she started, as she handed him the completed Mason file, "I need to take an early lunch. Now, preferably."
"Something wrong?" Cowan asked, when he heard the tone in her voice.
"I found out that an old friend died a couple of days ago," Paige told him. "Her memorial is in about half an hour - I won't be gone very long."
"Go," Cowan told her, and Paige shot him a grateful look. "And, Paige? I'm sorry for your loss."
"Thanks," Paige told him, softly, leaving his office.
She clocked out for lunch and headed to her car. The radio blared to life as she started the ignition, but she flicked if off, plunging the car into total silence. And she drove across town soaking in the quiet that gave her time to think.
She pulled up in front of the church almost fifteen minutes later, parking on the opposite side of the street. She recognized Henry's beat up old car pulling in down the street a few seconds later, and she gave him a tiny wave as she started towards him.
"Are you okay?" Henry asked, immediately, wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug.
"I can't believe she's gone," Paige mumbled into his shoulder. "I just - I keep expecting to hear that it's just some huge mistake."
"I know what you mean," Henry told her. Pulling back, he shot her a concerned look. "Are you sure you're okay to go in there?"
Paige nodded, determinedly. "I want to say good-bye," she said, quietly. "Prue and I may have fallen out of touch, lately, but she was my best friend, and I owe her that much."
Henry nodded, wrapping an arm loosely around her waist as they started across the street toward the church. Entering the building, they moved into the sanctuary, staying at the back of the room. Leaning against the wall, they watched the other mourners file slowly into the room.
"I feel underdressed," Henry muttered, sheepishly, glancing down at the tee-shirt and worn-out jeans that he was wearing.
"We didn't exactly know that we'd be going to a funeral, this morning," Paige pointed out, quietly, gesturing to her blouse and denim mini-skirt. "Hey," she added, softer, nodding at the front of the church, "I think that's Prue's family up there."
"Did you ever meet them?" Henry asked, quietly, following her gaze to where she was looking at a pair of women in dark dresses sitting at the front of the church.
"Once or twice," Paige replied. "Prue has-" She paused, a fist clenching over her heart at the subtle reminder. "She had two younger sisters. Piper, and Phoebe is the youngest. Piper owns that nightclub downtown, P3."
"I've been there a couple times," Henry said. "I don't think I've ever run into Prue, though."
"She was there last week," Paige said, softly. "I was there with Shane, and I saw Prue on the other side of the room. I told myself I was too busy to go over and say hello," she added, a bitter tone in her voice. "It was the last time I saw her."
Henry reached out and twined his fingers with hers, squeezing her hand in silently sympathy. A few minutes later, the service started. It was beautiful, if a bit unusual, and Paige found herself blinking back quiet tears. Beside her, Henry was surreptitiously rubbing at his eyes, and she saw the glint of tears on his cheeks when he glanced at her.
As the service drew to a close, they joined the long line of people that shuffled slowly up the aisle to where Prue's family was gathered, to pay their respects. They crept forward as the other mourners spoke to Prue's sisters, and then, it was their turn. Paige stood in front of a young woman wearing a black blouse and a paisley-patterned jacket.
"I'm so sorry for your loss," she murmured, a sentiment echoed by Henry, standing at her shoulder.
"Thank you," the woman, Paige thought she might have been Phoebe, replied. "How - how did you know Prue? From work?"
"No, just from around, you know?" Paige told her. "I haven't spoken to Prue in while. Anyway," she added, "our condolences."
She shook Phoebe's hand one more time, her eyes widening in alarm when the other woman's hand tightened painfully in her grip, and she started to shake. She looked like she was having a seizure.
The attack, whatever it was, ended a few seconds after it had begun when the other woman pulled her hand out of Paige's with a pained cry and fell to the floor. Even as Paige instinctively stepped forward to help her, the rest of Prue's family had swarmed around the woman, blocking her from view. Henry gently pulled Paige backward, steering her back down the aisle.
"Looks like they've got things in hand," he muttered under his breath. "And I think we should get out of here."
"Why?" Paige asked, confused, and then realization struck. "You think I electrocuted her?"
"Didn't you?" Henry countered, quietly, as they stepped outside the church. "Paige, you can't control your powers when you're emotional. And you've zapped people, before."
"Once," Paige countered, immediately. "I zapped you, once. And I did not electrocute that woman."
"Are you sure?" Henry asked, and Paige's shoulders slumped.
"No," she admitted, sheepishly. "Which means that I need to take a walk to cool down before I go back to work. It would be bad if I lost control and shorted out the office."
"You want some company?" Henry offered, and Paige nodded.
"Sure," she said, leaning into his embrace as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
They walked in silence for about fifteen minutes before Henry mentioned something about having to go back to work. Back at his car, Henry pulled Paige into a quick hug.
"P3, tonight, ten o'clock," he said, as they pulled apart. "How about it? We'll say goodbye to Prue."
"Sounds good," Paige told him.
"And," Henry suggested, a too-casual tone in his voice, "maybe I could meet this Shane guy you've been seeing."
"Ah, no," Paige decided, after a moment. "You scare the hell out of the guys I date."
"Then, maybe you should start dating some tougher guys," Henry countered, cheerfully.
"The last one ran into burning buildings for a living," Paige shot back. "You scared the crap out of a guy who's not even afraid of fire."
Henry didn't even bother to look abashed at that comment. If anything, he looked a little smug, and Paige just sighed in exasperation.
"You're incorrigible," she scolded him. "Go back to work. I'll see you at the club, tonight."
"See you later," Henry told her, and then she watched him drive away, before she walked back to her own car and began the drive across town back to her own job.
Continued here