Charmed by Love--by Episode--thru Pardon My Past

[Nite Owl]

So you got out the car and walked up to the door. You looked through a window and saw pretty little Melinda playing, having a tea party with her dolls. You opened your mouth to say the spell, but no words came out, instead tears rolled down your cheeks, just like they rolled down mine when you told me about it.

“You can't do it, can you?” Leo had unfroze and was now standing behind you.

You shook your head. “No. Our grandmother did it to us for protection.”<br>
“You don't have to bind her powers, Piper,” he told you gently. “We agreed that I'd take care of her and I will, I promise.”<br>
“I know you will.” Then you turned to look at him. “So we were together? Does that mean you clipped your wings for me?”<br>
He shook his head. “No. You wouldn't let me. We tried to make it work with our powers, and it didn't, and then all of this happened.”<br>
The tears fell faster down both your cheeks and mine. “Were we happy?” you asked, begging for the right answer. “Just for a little while, were we happy?”<br>
For the first time, he looked like the Leo you had left in 1999 as the angry lines faded into memories. Smiling, he answered softly, “Very.”<br>
Then, even as the tears continued to roll down your cheeks, you stood straight and tall and demanded, “Are you gonna try and stop us?”<br>
“I can't do that.”<br>
“I hope you understand why I have to do what I'm doing,” and he had to agree.

“What are we gonna do?” you asked, helplessly.

He smiled wryly. “What we always do.”<br>
And you smiled wryly back. “Talk about it later,” and you headed back to the car.

Well, you two managed to save me by not saving me, and thanks to that, we were sent back to our own time. That’s when we realized what we had done wrong -- tried to punish the guilty rather than protecting the innocent, and that wrong things done for the right reason is still the wrong thing.

After what had happened, Prue decided that there was no way she was going to the office, that she was going out with us. After all, we all had a lot of changes to make if we wanted to avoid ending up where we just came from, which we’ve obviously done, since the present we now live in is nothing like that one.

Although as you reminded Prue then, “That future wasn't all bad. You were like Miss Fortune-Five-Hundred, and I had a beautiful little girl.”<br>
That was when I wanted to know what had happened, and you smiled and said you’d give details later.

Prue nodded. “You know, we can still make the good things happen, Piper. We just have to make the right choices.”<br>
You smiled. “So maybe Leo and I will end up together.”<br>
That shocked me worse. “Wait, you and Leo?” as the doorbell rang.

You grinned. “Speak of the angel. I'll get that,” and you went to answer the door, while I followed behind. “Hey, stranger!“ you declared as you grabbed him and pulled him into the house, giving him another passionate kiss, while I silently applauded.

Leo grinned. “I would have settled for a nice hello.”<br>
You grinned back. “Didn't anyone tell you not to settle?”<br>
“That's a good lesson.”<br>
“I've been learning a lot of them lately.”<br>
He smiled. “So I've heard. Look, honestly, I didn't know you were gonna get sent to the future. I don't even know what happened when you got there. All I was told was apparently you had something to learn.”<br>
“So, that's why you're here?” you asked.

“No. That's why you're here. You were given a glimpse of your future to learn a valuable lesson. And I'm glad you learned it, because I know They wouldn't have brought you back if you didn't. Speaking of which, They're making me work tonight, so I can't really ...”<br>
“This is always gonna be a problem for us, isn't it?”<br>
“I'm willing to work on it.”<br>
“Good. Make sure you never forget you said that,” as you two both kissed tenderly, and, Piper, you don’t know how badly I wish you both had remembered that; how badly I wish I could believe that you still remember that! Because only a couple weeks later, your feelings started to change again, and thinking back now, I wonder how much the Elders, who don’t like the idea of whitelighters and witches being together, had to do with it

[Nite Owl]

Your new club, P3, had been around for a couple weeks, but most nights it was deader than a doornail. You kept insisting that it would pick up once word of mouth kicked in, but Prue and I wondered. .Prue had actually found someone willing to invest, who was willing to give us a no-interest loan, but we were hoping to figure a way to make the club profitable without doing that, since we didn’t want to chance losing the Manor. Besides, the guy wanted something a little more personal from Prue, something she wasn’t sure that she was willing to give.

Just about the time when we truly thought Prue would have to give in to this dirtbag, just to save the club and the Manor, you came running into the kitchen with great news. Just before you did Prue had just gotten off the phone and told me, “Well, it’s all set. Mr. Barker's gonna meet us at the club, hand over the check, and that'll be that.”<br>
I was worried, since I knew that meant you would agree to his invitation for dinner and other stuff in Paris. “We’re doing the right thing, aren’t we?” I asked, begging our big sister to convince me that we were.

“Well, we’re helping out our sister,” she replied. “That’s always the right thing, right?”<br>
Before I could answer, you came bouncing into the kitchen. “Guess what I did!” you cried, as happy and as excited as I’d ever seen you. “Guess what I did! All by myself!”<br>
“What?” I asked.

“You ready?” you teased.

“What?!” I demanded.

“Get this!” you cried, stretching it out. “Dishwalla! My club! Playing there! TONIGHT!!” and the last word, you screamed out in joy.

“What?!” cried Prue, unable to believe it.

You smiled, in pure delight, all your hard work finally validated. “I networked. Sent out feelers, sent off press releases and wouldn’t you know it; Dishwalla decided to put P3 on their schedule! How’s about that? P3 has officially been validated as the place to be! WE’RE ON THE MAP!!!” and you hugged Prue and me. “I couldn’t have done it without you, you patient,” as you kissed Prue, “most generous,” as you kissed me, “sisters in the whole wide world!” and Prue and I laughed, since we couldn’t disagree.

Just then the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it!” you declared, so off you floated, five feet off the floor (figuratively!), me close on your heels, but stopping at one of my favorite snoop spot--behind the conservatory door.

When you opened the door, I grinned. “LEO!” you cried in delight. “This day just keeping getting better! Hi!”<br>
He wasn’t quite as enthusiastic. “Hi, uh, Piper, we haveta talk.”<br>
You nodded, your enthusiasm slightly dampened. "Yeah...okay, uh... are you free tonight?” And your enthusiasm came back, as you shook your finger at him, grinning. “Better be, coz you’re my date! We have backstage passes, ALL ACCESS, BABY, to see DISHWALLA at P-THREE! I made it happen!”<br>
Leo shook his head, regretfully. “Uh, no, actually, I made it happen.”<br>
That made you fall back to Earth. Hard and fast! “WHAT?!” you demanded.

“Yeah, look,” Leo tried to explain. “I wanted to tell you sooner, but I didn’t have time. I had to move fast. There’s a demon involved.”<br>
“A demon?” you asked in total disbelief.

Leo nodded. “Yeah, he’ll be at your club, tonight.”<br>
You still refused to believe it. “But, no! Their manager, Jeff Carlton, came to me and...and booked them himself!”<br>
Leo nodded. “I know. I cast a spell on him.”<br>
Now you got mad: “You WHAT?!”<br>
Leo shrugged sheepishly, beginning to realize the sort of trouble he was in. “I sorta cribbed it from one of the other witches I look after. I suggested to Carlton that he get Dishwalla into your club.”<br>
Prue, who had heard and started walking towards you two, now pushed me, so we both walked into the foyer together.

“Why didn’t you just come to us?” she wanted to know.

“Because he knows I would have been pissed off!” you answered. Then you turned to him. “What are you doing?”<br>
“My job,” he declared.

“Your job?” you cried in disbelief. “What are we, like, Leo’s witches now? We’re supposed to kill a demon during a sold-out concert? ARE YOU NUTS?”<br>
I tried to settle you down, but you turned on me. “NO! Anywhere else but not there... not my place!”<br>
Leo was still trying to explain. “The band’s manager made a bargain with Masselin.”<br>
“That’s the demon?” Prue asked.

Leo nodded. “Yeah. In exchange for human sacrifice, Masselin will make Carlton rich and powerful by attracting successful bands to him.”<br>
I couldn’t believe it. “Are you telling me that Dishwalla is hooked up with a demon?”<br>
Leo shook his head. “No, they don’t know anything about the demon.”<br>
Prue, as always, was worried about the demon’s true victims. “So, these innocents ... what happens to them?”<br>
“They’re devoured by Masselin. Consumed for their souls.”<br>
I made a face in disgust. “EWWW!”<br>
“The more souls Masselin collects,” Leo continued. “the more successful Carlton becomes. You can’t destroy the demon without first freeing those trapped within him.”<br>
Prue and I were feeling for the innocents, but you were still concerned about your club, your club that finally had a chance to be successful. “All this freeing and destroying--is this in between sets or during the encore?”<br>
Leo turned to look at you, his eyes begging for understanding. “Look, I know you’re upset.”<br>
But you were in no mood to be understanding. “No. No! I skated past upset just after you came in the door. Right now, I’m at FURIOUS!”<br>
“We have to talk,” declared Leo, using you two’s favorite line.

You glared. “You bet your whitelighter a$$, we do!”<br>
But he didn’t have time to explain further as we heard that bell-tinkling sound again. “Later. I have to go,” and he orbed out.

There were a few seconds of silence, and then I tried to lighten the mood. “See, now this is exactly why you should never date a co-worker!” You turned to shoot that glare at me, at full-wattage. I backed up, putting up my hands in surrender. “Hey! It was a joke!” and then I hugged you. “Oh, honey, I’m sorry.”<br>
You buried your face in my shoulder. “How could he do this?”<br>
“Well,” Prue told you, “It sounds like he didn’t have a choice, and quite frankly, I don’t think we do either.”<br>
And we didn’t. While Prue went to check with the loan guy, you and I as always headed up the stairs to the attic to try to find our latest enemy in the Book of Shadows. You found Masselin first. Pointing at the page, you declared, “There’s Leo’s problem!”<br>
I shook my head. “It’s our problem.”<br>
You refused to be placated. “You want to know what the real problem is?”<br>
“Oh, do tell,” I said teasingly.

You glared. “Never mind,” and I thanked you, even though I knew what, or rather, who, the problem was, although I wished he wasn’t.

“So, how do we vanquish this creep?” you asked.

To myself, I wondered which creep you meant, but aloud I said, “Let’s find out. Shall we?”<br>
You glared at me again as you demanded, “And what is with that attitude?”<br>
“What attitude?” I asked, as innocently as I could.

And you finally admitted what was really making you mad. “Leo... it was like he was angry that I was angry. I have a right to be angry, don’t I?" Then you shook your head in frustration as you declared, " I don’t wanna talk about it!”<br>
I was getting frustrated with both you and Leo. “Then DON’T!” I demanded

But you were reading, not listening to me. “WHOA!” you cried in amazement and horror.

When I wanted to know what, you told me to look at the illustration in the Book. The illustration made me shudder as did the words: “Trapped within the demon. The unfortunate ones kept alive, their souls tortured for the pleasure he gets from their suffering." I looked at you. “We’ve got to get them out of there.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

With what?” you asked, sarcastically. “Demonic Ipecac?”<br>
“Actually, yeah,” I replied as you stare at me in disbelief. “That seems to be the idea,” and I read from the Book again: "The demons seeks willing, trusting souls, delivered by the one who sealed the pact."

“The manager,” you pointed out.

I nodded. “So we have to get close to Carlton.”<br>
“Well, I’m already close,” you reminded me. “And as far as we know, I’m a willing, trusting soul... a sucker. Someone who falls for a quick line from a pretty face.”<br>
I began getting frustrated with you again. “Will you please stop that?” I demanded.

“You’re right,” you admitted. “Fine. Leo is the least of my worries.”<br>
I smiled. “Right. We’ll worry about that tomorrow.”<br>
But you were still mad. “I don’t think I can wait that long.”<br>
I hugged you. “Sorry, sweetie, you’re gonna have to. Because tonight we have some major demon-a$$-kicking to do.”<br>
Later, you and I were in the kitchen, looking for something to help with the vanquish.

“How is this gonna work?” you asked.

I grinned as I grabbed a bottle. “We’re just slip Masselin a little extra-strength antacid. And if the Book of Shadows is right, he should disappear like a demonic gas bubble, freeing his victims, leaving them safe and sound!”<br>
“Phoebe, we can’t even give our cat a vitamin,” you reminded me. “How are we gonna get this down a demon’s throat?”<br>
I held up a balloon. “In this?” I asked.

When you wanted to know what it was, I replied the obvious, so you wanted to know where the spoonful of sugar big enough to hide the bottle. I told you you were looking at her and when you wanted a better explanation, I gave it. “Well, the only way to get to Masselin, is through Carlton, right? So all I’ll have to do is get close to Carlton, pretend I’m some choice tidbit. Then we get Masselin to swallow this.“<br>
“Right before he swallows you, Phoebe?!” you cried out and shook your head. “No, it’s too dangerous!”<br>
I shrugged. “Well, unless you have a better idea, it’s our only choice. You and Prue will back me up. I’ll be fine”.

You grabbed the blender and threw food into it. “I hate him!” you declared, as you threw more food into it.

I shrugged. “Of course you hate him. He’s a demon. Wait, we are talking about the demon, right?”<br>
You weren’t listening; you were too busy ranting, as you continued to throw food into the blender. “He didn’t even have the decency to ask me first. He at least could have discussed it with me.”<br>
“Oh, Leo?” I asked.

But you still weren’t listening. “I mean, can you believe him?" And you threw more food into the blender. " He acted as if we never had a relationship before! Like it was just business!” In a rage, you slammed on the blender. Food flew everywhere to your dismay.

I reached over and hit the off button, then hugged you. “Got to put the lid on, honey!”<br>
You lay your head on my shoulder. “And I saw the future, too, you know. Leo and I get married. A marriage in the future imply some sort of relationship in the present. The question is: where’s the relationship?”<br>
I patted your shoulder, asking, “Somewhere between confusing and complicated? Just talk to him, honey. It’ll be okay.”<br>
“I’d rather just freeze him and kick him in the--"

DING DONG! Just then the doorbell rang. I had to bite back my laugh, but it just made you more mad. “That better not be him!” you warned, your eyes blazing.

“In the shins?” I asked hopefully, as seriously as I could.

“Not exactly,” and you marched to the door, me stopping at my favorite spy-spot.

But it wasn’t Leo at the door; it was Dan. When he greeted you, you managed to smile and greet him back and when he asked if he could talk to you for a second, you let him in.

“What’s up?” you asked.

“Jenny,” he replied. And after an uncomfortable pause, he just came out and asked you. “Did you tell her she could go see Dishwalla tonight?”<br>
“No, no!!” you cried, thinking about both the laws against letting minors in bars and the demon. “She can’t go!”<br>
“She said you said it was all right.”<br>
And you must have given her that idea, because you replied, “Well, I didn’t exactly tell her it wasn’t. But the things were happening kinda fast.”<br>
“Well, she’s in her room right now, picking out her clothes.”<br>
“Oh God!” you cried in fear. “Okay. I’ll go talk to her.”<br>
You turned to open the door and there stood Leo. He greeted you and you greeted him back, but not as enthusiastically as usual and without your normal kiss.

“Listen,” he said. “ I was hoping that we could,” but then he spot Dan and finished, “ uh... talk.”<br>
“Sure,” you replied, then began to introduce them. “ Leo, this is--”<br>
“--Dan Gordon!” cried Leo.

“Wait!” you cried in shock. “Tou know him?”<br>
“What? Are you kidding?” Leo wanted to know. “He used to play second base for the Mariners. He had an All-Star season going til he blew out his knee sliding into home.” He smiled at Dan. “I still think you were safe.”<br>
Dan grinned back. “So do I.”<br>
Leo stuck out his hand. “I’m Leo.”<br>
Dan shook Leo’s hand and grinned. “Nice meeting you.”<br>
“No, it’s not!” you declared, frustrated. You turned on Leo. “You follow baseball?”<br>
“Yeah!” he cried like any other American male who loves watching sports.

But that just made you angrier. “You have time for baseball, but you don’t have time to tell me
about you-know-what, before you-know-who shows up you-know-where?”<br>
All of those “you-know’s” made Dan uncomfortable. “Uh, listen,” he decided. “If you two need to talk or something, I can--” and he began to leave.

But you shook your head. “No, no, NO! We don’t need to talk. Leo stops by occasionally to fix things. Phoebe can show him around.” That was my cue, so I quickly walked to the door. Then you grabbed Dan by the arm. “C”mon! Let’s go talk to Jenny.”<br>
Dan looked back at Leo, “It was nice meeting you.”<br>
Leo agreed, but the tone of his voice told me, “Not really!” as you and Dan left.

I tried to comfort Leo. “She’s just a little upset.”<br>
He nodded. “Yeah. I don’t blame her,” and I knew he desperately wished he hadn’t put you and him into this situation, but also knew that he had to, in order for him and us to do our job, a problem that still continues to this day, a problem that I still wonder if the Elders exploit for their own agendas.

Later you told Prue and me about what happened up in Jenny's room. As Dan had told you, Jenny was busy picking out her clothes.

You tried to reason with her. “Jenny, the state can shut me down.”<br>
But that didn’t work very well. “How are they gonna find out? Are you gonna tell ’em? Coz I’m not gonna tell ’em. Do you like the red or denim?”<br>
“Jenny--,” Dan started.

She spun on him. “Yeah! Sure. Let’s hear from Uncle Dan. Who never in his life faked an I.D. or snuck into a bar. Who never did anything wrong. Ever.”<br>
“We’re talking about you,” he reminded her.

“No!” Jenny yelled back. “We’re talking about Piper, and she said I could go see the show.!

“I never said that,” you told her. “Jenny, I’m sorry, but I can’t let you in the club.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

“Your man and dad, they put me in charge,” Dan reminded her.

“Right. Everybody’s in charge. But not me. Not ever. Why is that?” and she ran out as she began to cry.

“I’m sorry,” Dan apologized. “She’s just feeling, you know, a little--.”<br>
You supplied the word for him. “Betrayed. It’s okay. I know the feeling,” and my heart ached for you when you told us.

Later, at P3, as we began trolling the dance floor, looking for the manager, Prue wanted to be sure that I had the poisin pill. When I told her I was armed and dangerous, she spot Mr. Carlton, the manager, and told us to take our places. You walked up to him, greeting him. When he wanted to know if the band was already there, you told him, “Yep. They came in the back way. They’re right over there. Everything’s ready.”<br>
“Better be,” he declared as he walked away. “I don’t want any problems.”<br>
I heard you mutter, “That’s too bad.”<br>
So did Leo. “Talking to yourself again?” he asked.

You spun and glared. “What are you doing here?”<br>
“I’m watching over things. It’s what I do, remember?”<br>
“I remember when it didn’t use to be a job,” you replied.

That hurt him. “Look! This isn’t easy for me either, Piper, you know.”<br>
“Leo, I really can’t talk about this right now. Excuse me,” and you walked away, while I exchanged a “Sorry!” look with him, just as I began to head for Mr. Carlton myself, to start the next part of our plan.. Unfortunately it didn’t work the way we wanted it to, and Masselin now knew there were witches after him.

You were hoping that we could take care of him before Dishwalla began to play, but no such luck. Just as they did, Leo appeared behind you again.

“I wish you’d quit doing that,” you complained.

"What’s happening?” Leo asked.

You sighed impatiently. “We’re on it, Leo. We’re just waiting for Carlton to do his thing.”<br>
But he was thinking about something else. “Look, you think I like this?” he asked.

You rolled your eyes. “Leo...”<br>
“Do you think I like not being with you?” he asked.

Now you spun on your heels, glaring at him. “Okay, can we cut the crap? I know what you have to do. I always have. The question is: What do you want? What do you wanna do? With me? With us? Do you ever think about that?”<br>
He smiled. “All the time.”<br>
“You ever want to discuss it with me?” you demanded.

“Yes!” he insisted. “It’s just the timing always seems--”.

As he spoke, you spot Andy’s old partner, Darryl Morris. You knew that wasn’t a good sign, since Prue had tried to head him off at the pass earlier. You sighed, as you finished Leo’s sentence.. “--seems to suck. Okay, hold that thought. Don’t let go. Just hold it,” and you ran to Prue.

Well, we somehow managed to vanquish the demon, free the girls (including Jenny, who got caught by Carlton and fed to the demon), and make a hero out of Darryl when he “caught the kidnapper”--Carlton.


Later, back at the Manor, Prue and I walked up to where you were sitting at your desk, typing on your computer. “Paying bills?” Prue asked.

You grinned. “Every last one. For this month, at least.”<br>
“Thanks to Leo,” I pointed out. You turned to give me your “evil eye”. I shrugged. “Well, technically if it wasn’t for him, you would’ve never landed Dishwalla.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

“I suppose,” you admitted, as the doorbell rang. “I got it,” as you went to answer it (with me following, of course) and it was Leo.

After you greeted each other, he tried thanking you for everything.

“Just doing my job,” you replied, an ironic smile on your face. “Do you wanna come in, sit down?”<br>
“I’d love to--.” he started.

And you finished. “--but you can’t. We got Jenny home safe. Dan doesn’t know she was at the club. But are you sure she won’t remember anything?”<br>
He grinned. “I took care of it with a little Hocus-Pocus.”<br>
But you weren’t impressed. “So you erase memories now?” you asked.

“No, I make pain go away. When I can.” Then he looked at you, his eyes begging for you to understand. “Sometimes, I can’t, no matter how hard I try.”<br>
You weren’t listening. “And Masselin’s other victims?”<br>
He smiled. “They’ll be fine. No memories of Masselin or Carlton,” and you smiled. Then he changed the subject. “Piper, did you mean what you said?”<br>
“When?” you asked.

“Couple of months ago, when I almost died and you saved my life. I left and you said... that you loved me,” he reminded you.

Yes, I thought, yes, you did! You still do! I know you do!

“I thought you were gone,” you explained with a shrug.

“Well, sometimes I linger,” he explained with a smile. Then he became serious, urgent. “Did you mean it?”<br>
You had to admit it. “Yeah, I meant it.... You... you linger? you asked.

But he didn’t hear that part, he was too interested in the other. “What about now?”<br>
“I still mean it--” you admitted.

But he heard what I heard. “But--” he prompted.

“But we can’t keep doing this!” you exclaimed. “I can’t keep doing this. I feel like all I do is wait around for you to show up and then when you do, it’s just not quite right.”<br>
“Well, I’m just,” he started. Then he stopped and tried again. “I’m doing what I thought you wanted me to do, Piper. You’re the one who didn’t want me to clip my wings,” he reminded you.

You nodded. On this point you were both in total agreement. “And you shouldn’t. Not for me. But that doesn’t make it any easier for us.”<br>
“What are we gonna do?” he asked, hopelessness in his voice, breaking my heart.

“I don’t know, Leo.” and that shattered my own heart, as I'm sure it shattered his. Just then we heard that whitelighter tinkle. “Go,” you told him. “It’s OK. I understand.”<br>
He kissed you, saying, “I’ll see you,” and he orbed out.

You sighed sadly. Before I could run to hug you, you walked out onto the porch to pick up the paper. When you came back in, you had a smile on your face, looking a whole lot different than you had while talking with Leo, more relaxed, more calm. You looked happy for the first time in a long time.

“What happened outside?” I had to ask.

“Dan," and your voice caressed his name. "He was also picking up his paper. He smiled at me, so I smiled back,” and you looked dreamily at me. “He’s a nice guy.”<br>
“Yes, he is,” I agreed, “But so is Leo,” but you weren’t listening; you were drifting up the stairs, and all I could do was think, OH, OH! We’re in trouble now! remembering the heartache Prue went through when she fell in love with Andy, a guy who couldn't accept our secret, the way Leo could.

[Nite Owl]

And I was right, as thing grew stronger and stronger between you and Dan, but you couldn’t find a way to tell him about our secret, something that kept popping up between the two of you.

This especially began to be true just a couple weeks later when we ran into a different sort of demon, a demon that used my premonition power to psychically connect with me, so for a short while, I actually thought that I was a murderer! I almost panicked when I remembered what I had done in the future. Had I somehow made the wrong decision yet again?

Neither you or Prue believed that. You thought that maybe my powers were growing; maybe I could get premonitions in my sleep now. Prue thought that maybe I was just psychically linked to the demon on its wavelength or something. But I was afraid that I might be the killer.

Prue shook that aside, still thinking along her lines. The only other thing connecting the victims was that they all went to the same dating service, Fine Romance, so Prue thought that I was psychically connected to the demon, maybe I went to the dating service, touch some of the tapes of the potential suspects and see if I’d can get a psychic flash. You thought it was worth a shot, while you’d stay home and search the Book of Shadows.

I thought you were both nuts. I had just told you two that maybe I was some kind of man-killing demon and you wanted me to go to the bachelor central?! But when Prue pointed out that we had to do something or otherwise someone else would die that night, I had to agree.

Once we got to Fine Romances and met Darla, the receptionist, we told her that Prue wanted to sign up, since that would keep her busy while I looked around. As I did, I ran into a guy, and as I did I had a premonition--this guy, Owen Grant, dying the same way the others had! I ran back to where Prue was trying to convince Darla that she did not have man troubles (although at that point, she most definitely did, totally confused whether she was giving guys the right signal) and told her we were out of there.

When we got back to the Manor, we saw you staring out the window. When I asked you whether you’d found anything in the Book, you had no idea what we were talking out,

“Or were you too busy looking at something else?” Prue wanted to know as we walked towards you and the window.

You blushed, but admittted that you were looking and we should see what you found. At that point, we joined you at the window. There was Dan washing his car, looking very sexy as he did so.

“Oh, I see what you found, all right!.” Prue declared, admiringly. “Great tan, nice body!” and I had to agree.

You glared at us then went back to the Book of Shadows, which was sitting on the table. You read from it, "When a witch renounces all human emotions and makes a pact with darkness to protect herself from heartbreak, she becomes a Succubus... a sexual predator."

“Let me see that,” as I joined you by the Book and read aloud. “She seeks out powerful men who become helpless against her magic, then feeds on their testosterone with her razor-sharp tongue." I looked at the two of you, “So, this monster is an evil sexually-charged witch?”<br>
“Yeah, but it’s not you, Phoebe,” Prue assured me. “Because you didn’t make a pact with Darkness, right?”<br>
“And as far as we know, you don’t have a razor-sharp tongue,” you pointed out, ”Here’s a spell to attract the Succubus and destroy it with fire.”<br>
I stared at you, still thinking of what we saw in the future. "A flaming death for yours truly? I don’t think so!”<br>
“Well, we have to catch this thing, right?” Prue pointed out. “So, what if I cast a spell to attract it, and if it turns out to be you who’s attracted to me, then Piper will freeze the room and we’ll go from there? Fair enough?” and I had to agreed.

So we ran up to the attic. Prue drew on the floor with chalk the symbol for male, while you and I set candles around it in the shape of a pentagram, then lit them. Prue sat in the middle of it with the Book Of Shadows and cast her spell:

"By the forces of heaven and hell,
Draw to us this woman fell,
Rend from her foul desire,
That she may perish as a moth of fire".

Fire shot straight into the air around the pentagram, but then it vanished as quickly as it had appeared, and both you and I still stood there. “See?” you asked. “I knew it wasn’t you.”<br>
I was ecstatic. “I didn’t burn! I’m OK!”<br>
But we heard a deep voice, saying, “I’m not!” and when we turned back to the pentagram, there stood Prue. But she no longer looked like herself--she looked just like a man, and remembering that deep voice, we knew we now had a new problem.

This became even more clear when you pointed out that there was no reversal spell, so it was apparent that Prue wouldn’t change back until she, I mean, he, I mean, well, you know what I mean, until Prue attracted the Succubus, an idea Prue didn’t like one bit! You thought our best way of capturing the Succubus was for Prue to sign up for the dating service like the rest of the guys. That convinced Prue more than ever that this was not a good idea. So you pointed out that Prue didn’t have to actually date anyone, just make herself, I mean, himself, I mean, well, you know, make whoever or whatever she now was available. Then I pointed out that the sooner we trapped the Succubus, the sooner Prue would become a woman again, and that convinced Prue to try.

Soon we were trying to teach Prue how to be more like a man.

“OK, confidence,” you instructed. “The walk, the talk, the handshake. It’s all about confidence.”<br>
“Sports,” I reminded. “Men like sports.”<br>
“And sincerity,” you added. “That’s the key.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

“But what really makes a man is the clothes he wears, the car he drives and the money he earns,” I added. Prue glared at me. “Well, that’s according to Cosmo!”<br>
Prue glared harder. “OK, helping, you’re supposed to be helping!”<br>
I shrugged. “OK. Let’s work on your walk.”<br>
You nodded. “All you have to do is visualize a man that you admire and then you emulate him. You know, the walk will follow.”<br>
Prue thought about that. “A man that I admire.” Prue thought about it a little longer, then nodded. “All right. I got that,” and Prue started to walk across the hall, doing OK until she, I mean, he, no, I really do mean she, because she did a girlie turn at the end..

You stared at her. “The man you admire is Richard Simmons?” you asked in shock and I had to laugh.

Just then the doorbell rang. “OK, I’ll get Morris’ files,” I said. “I’ll try to put together a list of attributes the Succubus is attracted to. You two get the door.”<br>
That shocked Prue. “WHAT?” she cried.

I nodded. “Well, think of it as a practice run for the dating service. Oh, oh, I know. Tom Hanks...Yeah, everybody loves Tom Hanks. Think of him.”<br>
Prue nodded. “Tom Hanks.”<br>
I nodded. “Everybody loves him,” as I headed towards the back door. But when I heard you cry, “DAN!”, I had to run back to my favorite snooping spot behind the conservatory door. Sure enough, it was Dan at the door.

“Hi,” he greeted you two. “I didn’t mean to interrupt but my freezer broke and I wanted to see if I could get some ice from you,” he looked at Prue. “uh, you guys.”<br>
I bit my lip so I wouldn’t laugh, wondering how you guys would explain THIS one! You’re the one who tried. “Uh, oh, Dan, this is... this is... this is Manny. Manny Hanks. He’s my... uh... he’s my friend,” and I silently congratulated you.

Dan put out his hand towards “Manny”. “Well, it’s nice to meet you,” and shook “his” hand.

Suddenly I screamed. “Piper, come in here, quick!”<br>
“OK, coming,” you yelled to me, then turned to Dan. “I’ll be right back with that ice.”<br>
“Manny” grabbed you, “Oh, wait, no,” “he” whispered desperately, so you whispered back, “He’s a good man. Learn from him.”<br>
As you headed towards me, I heard Dan ask, “Have we met before? You look familiar,” and “Manny” shrugged. “So, have you known the sisters long?” Dan asked.

“I’m, uh, the brother they never had,” “Manny” replied, and I had to cheer through my fear.

“What happened?” you asked as you walked into the conservatory, blocking my view of the two “men”.

“Oh, I just... I had one of those hot flashes, the Succubus visions. Piper, I think I really am psychically connected to that thing. I see what she sees, feel what she feels. I felt excited.”<br>
“Excited happy or excited aroused?” you asked, as you walked into the kitchen, me following..

I sighed in frustration. “Piper, she’s in heat, OK? And so am I.” Just then I got another flash. “It just happened again! I saw egg sacs. Oh, my God! I think she’s pregnant or ready to hatch.”<br>
“You mean, there’s gonna be a whole brood of them killing men?” as you took ice from the freezer.

I nodded, “Unless we stop her, I think that’s exactly her plan,” and we headed back towards the foyer.

As we did, we heard Dan ask, “So, Piper isn’t seeing anyone?”<br>
“Manny” shook “his” head. “No, not really,” although I wished that wasn’t true.

“So Piper IS seeing someone?” Dan probed.

“No, not really,” “Manny” repeated. Then Prue came through. “God. I would just hate to see her with a guy who, oh, let’s say on the third date just runs away. Don’t you just hate men like that?”<br>
Dan stared at “him” in shock. “I don’t know any men like that.”<br>
You and I glanced at each other, daring each other not to laugh, wondering how “Manny” would get out of that one.

“Uh, how about those ‘Niners?” "he" asked, referring, of course, to San Francisco’s pro football team, the 49ers, and I silently both laughed and cheered.

I would’ve stayed in the hallway to watch Prue continue to squirm as Manny, but you walked right in and handed the ice towards Dan. He thanked you and then you told him, “Oh, you’re welcome. OK, bye. Take care. Tell Jenny we said "hi", OK?,” and he took the hint and left.

“So?” I asked “Manny.”<br>
“I tried copying Dan’s moves,” “he” told us.

“And so?” you asked.

“He” sighed. “We’re in big trouble--huge,” but when I told “him” what I had seen, we knew that “he” had no choice. So we went back to Fine Romance and “Manny” did “his” videotape. Jan, the salesperson helping “him” thought it was fantastic--that “he” was really in touch with “his” feminine side, and “Manny” could only mutter, “You have no idea.”<br>
Meanwhile, you and I were trying to get Darla the receptionist to help us find Owen Grant, whom we now learned was Dr. Owen Grant. Darla thought we should join for $3,500 and view his tape.

You thought otherwise as you froze the room. While I was getting Dr. Owen’s file, I noticed another one. Much as I wanted him out of your life, I couldn’t stop being curious. I held it up towards you. “I do not believe it.”<br>
“What?” you asked.

“Looks like neighbor Dan signed up, too. Interested?” and you smiled, so I handed you the file, while hanging onto Dr. Owen’s file myself. I looked at the tape in my hand, worried. “Do you think the Succubus already got Owen? I mean, what if we’re too late?”<br>
You were looking at the file in your own hands. “You would have had a psychic flash if we were and since you haven’t, we’re not.”<br>
Just then Dr. Owen walked out. “Oh!” I cried. “There he is. Hey, you know, maybe I should take him back to the Manor to keep him safe.”<br>
You looked at me as if I was nuts. “You and him? At the Manor? Alone?” remembering how excited my connection with the Succubus was making me.

I shrugged. “Well, I’m just gonna talk to him”<br>
“Well, we can just talk to him here,” you insisted. “I’m gonna go back to the video area and, uh, check up on Prue.”<br>
I nodded, so you walked in back, while I headed for Dr. Owen.

But you weren’t really looking for Prue, I mean, "Manny", I mean, Prue. No, you were looking for an empty video-viewing room. Later, when everything was OK again, you told Prue and me what you saw.

It started with Dan saying, “I’m sorry.. I-I-I just--I can’t do this”.

“Oh, come on,” you heard Jan, the same salesperson who helped “Manny” tell him. “Your sister paid for this, Mr. Gordon. You can do it,” and I decided Jenny’s mom must be a pretty cool person to do that for her brother.

But Dan didn’t think so. “Oh--this just isn’t me.”<br>
“Give it a try,” Jan cajoled. “Just speak from your heart. What are you looking for in a woman?”<br>
And you remembered what Dan said, word-for-word. “What do I look for? I don’t know. I’m old-fashioned, I guess. I look for the girl-next-door. Someone with a good heart, good personality, and looks to match. The kind of girl that ... when I leave for work in the morning... I wait just ... a little bit ... till she leaves for work too. Just to catch a glimpse of that long dark hair, that great smile, hoping that maybe, one day ... she’ll notice that I’m watching her. Then she’ll smile back at me,” and Prue and I couldn’t help smile, although I was just a little bit disappointed--I was hoping something in the tape would help you decide that he wasn’t the right guy for you, and you’d fix things with Leo.

[Nite Owl]

Yes, Piper, if things were different, if you weren’t a Charmed One, maybe he would’ve been perfect for you, but you are and he wasn’t! But the fact that he could’ve been the man for you came through even stronger when “Manny” took care of the problem of how to keep Dr. Owen safe at a mixer by getting in a fight with him, landing both of them in jail until Morris let you go, while keeping Dr. Owen in protective custody. That, knocking him out cold, was so opposite of the way either Dan or Leo would’ve handled it.

And then the next day, “Manny” told us, “All right, I got a plan. The dating service called. Turns out my video broke some kind of house record. 20 hits this morning. One of them might to be Succubus. So I lined up dates with all of them.”<br>
“What?” you asked, surprised.

“He” nodded. “Yep! At your club. Starting at 6.”<br>
You shook your had. “Oh, no, no, no, no. Not tonight. The Cranberries are coming in for a sound check before the benefit tomorrow. I can’t risk scaring them away.”<br>
“Manny” shrugged. “That’s no problem. I’ll just nail the Succubus before they get there.”<br>
That just got you mad. “Oh, you’re gonna nail her, are you? Oh, so this whole man thing, this sorta short-circuits the old ‘maybe I should consult my sisters’ wiring, now, doesn’t it? Just step right in and take over?”<br>
I nodded. “Didn’t start happening until she sucker-punched Dr. Owen.”<br>
“Manny” shrugged again. “You had a problem, I fixed it.”<br>
That got me mad. “Oh, you bet your butt, you did. You nearly broke his jaw!”<br>
And “he” shrugged again. “I saved his life.” “He” glared at me. “Look, you’re the one who told me I had to practice being a man, right? So I acted on instinct. And, to tell you the truth, the moment that I hit him, I felt powerful and strong. Like somehow that made me a man.”<br>
That got you mad. “You wanna know how to be a real man? Look at Dan. Honest, kind, good heart. The type of guy who would risk being late to work just to make you smile. Not some bully who walks around thinking one punch is gonna change anything,” and you marched out, and again I found myself thinking that, hey, Leo’s that type of guy, too. And, Piper, I’ll admit that I found myself wishing that if you decided that Dan was the guy for you that Leo would decide he was the guy for me--even though I knew that was impossible--he never looked at another girl the same way as he looked at you whenever you were in the room!

Later "Manny" found out that a guy who Prue had dated, but who hadn't called back, hadn't called back because he didn't like her, but because he did and was afraid she'd say no. So "Manny" passed on that advice to you, telling you. "You know, men are just as afraid of being rejected as women are. Trust me. That's probably why Dan hasn't asked you out. He's afraid you'll say no."

But you didn't believe "him". "Like you'd know." Then you thought about it for a moment and asked, "Do you?"

"I'm a guy, aren't I?" and you had to agree.

Well, we managed to vanquished the Succubus--who was actually Darla the receptionist and who almost killed "Manny" until I used my connection to the Succubus to convince "Manny" that "he" wasn't attracted to her, which is what finally led to that fiery death I thought was going to be mine. No sooner was she gone, than "Manny" turned back into Prue.


Later, at P3, you and I grinned as Prue walked in wearing a very sexy outfit.

"Oh--well, well," I complimented, grinning. "And I thought the heat wave was over."

"Yeah, Prue," you agreed. "You look hot."

Prue grinned. "I'm just grateful to be back in heels."

"Let me see you walk," I asked with another grin and she gladly did. "Oh, yeah. You definitely have that walk down."

She grinned. "Well, we'll see if Alan agrees with that."

"Alan?" I asked. "I thought you thought he wasn't interested."

"Yeah, I was wrong. Just a little gender confusion."

You grinned. "Looks like you learned a few things about being a woman by being a man."

Prue nodded as she became serious. "Actually, I did. I mean, we're different, and I'm glad about that. But we're also similar in many ways. You know, we all feel the same emotions. It's just that if we don't communicate honestly, then we read between the lines and tend to get everything screwed up."

You nodded. "And sometimes it's just up to us to open the door first...take a chance."

Just then Dan walked into P3, looking around.

Prue grinned. "Oh, you finally called him, huh?"

You grinned back. "I got some good advice from the brother I never had. Excuse me."

Prue grinned. "You're welcome."

As you walked towards Dan, Prue asked, "So, what about you, Phoebs?"

I grinned, as I noticed Dr. Owen walking in. "Me? I actually have an appointment with a Doctor I've been dying to see. I'm still running a little bit hot."

Prue grinned. "I see that. He winked at you."

So I went to greet Dr. Owen, just as the Cranberries started to play. As we began to dance, I directed us so we would be near you and Dan, just as you told him, "Glad you could make it."

"Are you kidding?" he asked. "I'm just glad you called. Truth is I've been waiting to call you for some time now."

"Really?" you asked. "I never would have guessed."

"Well, I?m glad you called, Piper. I have to admit. I didn't think you would."

"Well, I wasn't going to at first," you admitted. "But then I met this really nice guy who encouraged me to go ahead."

"Yeah?" Dan asked. "Who is he? I wanna thank him."

You smiled over at Prue, who was now dancing with Alan. "Oh, no. I'll thank him."

Dan asked you to dance, and soon all three of us were dancing with our new guys. And although again I found myself wishing that you were dancing with Leo, and knowing that we still had some rough waters ahead, I couldn’t help be glad that for a short time, we could all enjoy just being women!

[Nite Owl]

However, you began to enjoy just being a woman a little too much. The very next day, I did some snooping out the window and what I saw made me call Prue at Buckland’s.

She wasn’t happy with the interruption. “Phoebe, we are televising this auction live. Can't it wait?”<br>
“No,” I replied. “Prue, Dan's truck just pulled up outside.”<br>
“Dan's truck?” she asked impatiently. “So?”<br>
“So, Piper is with him and they're kissing. And I'm not talking about 'thanks for lunch' peck-on-the-cheek kinda kiss. They mean business,” and I turned away disgusted.

“OK, what is the problem?” Prue asked. “They like each other; this is a good thing.”<br>
“No, I know, I'm just worried that she's moving too fast. Like she's too in a hurry to get involved with someone else. That’s not a Piper-kinda thing to do!”<br>
“Look,” Prue insisted. “Piper's a big girl and really, I mean, it's none of our business. Right? Right!”<br>
I disagreed. “Isn't it sorta our business if it affects the Charmed Ones?”<br>
“OK, Phoebe, look,” cried Prue impatiently. “Piper can not just sit around for the rest of her life waiting for Leo. She's trying to move on. Besides, Dan's a great guy.”<br>
Just then I heard her director say, “OK, we're on in five, Miss Halliwell.”<br>
“Uh, gotta go,” Prue told me. “OK, bye,” and she hung up.

I hung up my own phone and then looked out the window and saw you and Dan walking towards the door.

I muttered to myself, “It's about freakin' time,” just as Leo orbed in, shocking the tar out of me. “Oh! Leo! Whatever happened to knocking?”<br>
“I'm sorry, Phoebe,” he apologized. “But there's no time. Where's Prue and Piper? We have to talk.”<br>
WHOOPS! “Uh, you know, now's not really a good time,” I tried to warn him. “OK, I know, how about you orb back in say an hour,OK? That would be great--bye, bye.”<br>
Leo shook his head. “I can't. The worst thing imaginable just happened.”<br>
At that moment, the door opened and you and Dan walked in, arm-in-arm, laughing. You guys spot Leo, and shock replaced the laughter, fast. Leo didn’t just look shocked; he looked like he now realized that he was wrong before--NOW the worst thing imaginable had just happened!

You marched Leo into the conservatory, while I was stuck with Dan. That was interesting, trying to talk with him, while also trying to listen to what you two were saying, but I managed. But so this won’t be as confusing for you as it was for me, I’ll first tell you what you and Leo said and then I’ll describe my conversation with Dan. I missed what you said at first, but then you said, “It's not that it isn't great to see you, Leo, because it is. But you can't just orb in whenever it's convenient.”<br>
I could hear the shrug in his voice. “It's never been a problem before.”<br>
“Yeah, well, things have changed.”<br>
“I can see that.”<br>
“Leo ...”<br>
“Sorry, wasn't fair. Where's Prue?”<br>
“At work.”<br>
“Fine. Then we'll have to start without her, and your friend Dan has to leave now.”<br>
“Oh, really? Why?”<br>
“Because you and your sisters have a very big problem. A magical problem. Look, this isn't personal, it's business.”<br>
“What else is new?”<br>
Meanwhile, Dan was asking me, “You know, that handyman guy sure does hang around here a lot.”<br>
My turn to shrug. “Well, it's an old house. Lots of things need fixing.”<br>
“Then why does Piper look so upset?” he wanted to know.

“Because there are some things he can't fix the way she wants it.”<br>
He looked at his watch. “You know, I'm late for a job. If you could just have her call me--”<br>
Then I noticed something. “Oh-oh, oops,” and I wiped lipstick off his face. “Lipstick,” I explained.

He smiled, thanked me and opened the door. He began to walk out, then looked back, “Are Piper and Leo--?

But I reminded him, “You're late,” and he left, just as you walked back in the foyer, calling out, “Dan, wait.” But seeing that he was already gone, you shrugged. “Well, I wouldn't know where to begin anyway.”<br>
“Everything OK, sweetie?” I asked.

You shook your head. “Oh, no,” just as Leo walked back into the foyer..

“Come on, we gotta get going.”<br>
“Going?” I asked. “Where are we going?”<br>
“I'll explain on the way.”<br>
You shook your head. “No, Leo, you'll explain now. We're not going anywhere.”<br>
So Leo explained about our latest problem. Do you remember Tuatha, Piper? I sure do! I felt like the Blair Witch Project had come to haunt us!! In case you don’t, here’s what I remember.

Two hundred years ago, a good witch turned evil, and started using her craft against innocents. Fortunately she was tricked in a cave and entombed. But unfortunately that very morning Tuatha escaped. Hearing that name, I knew why she’d gone bad. You didn’t think it was a big deal, because we’d just go find her and vanquish her. The problem is we couldn’t vanquish her, because she killed good witches. Instead, the only one who could was The Chosen One, a guy who was a normal person, except for the fact that he was born to use Tuatha's wand against her.

You wanted to know why Leo didn’t just go get him, but Leo said he needed us to protect him from Tuatha until the wand came to him, since lore had it that once the witch was free, the wand would find him. But if Tuatha found the wand first, she’d kill the Chosen One and then come after us for our power.

And wouldn’t you know it, at that exact moment, our big sister was in the midst of trying to buy that very same wand! Just as she told the owner that she’d be able to get five hundred dollars at auction for an item that cost only five dollars at a flee market, a cute guy walked up, saying, “Of course an item is only worth as much as some is willing to pay for it. Isn't that right?” He ended up being Jack Sheridan from Sheridan Internet auctions--”If you own it, we can sell it.”--who just wanted to be on the same stage as "the famouns Prue Halliwell of Buckland's". Well, he ended up giving Betty the owner one thousand dollars cash for the wand. But Prue wasn’t about to give up on a sale. She used her telekinesis to move the sheet of paper with Betty the seller’s number and got the wand herself!, but not before running into Tuatha herself!

Meanwhile, Leo helped us find this Chosen One, who ended up being a teenager named Kyle. We had a heckova time convincing him that he was truly someone special, someone meant to do great things. So since it didn’t seem like he was going to be able to get rid of Tuatha, we Charmed Ones decided we would. We checked the Book of Shadows, but there was nothing there about Tuatha or wands or Chosen Ones. But I did find a spell that did work--a scrying spell, the first time we used it. Scrying, of course, is what we witches use to magically find something or someone. And the crystal landed on the Lost Caves in Mura woods.

As we walked downstairs, we heard Leo still trying to teach Kyle how to use the wand, but Leo was being no Obiwan Kenobi to Kyle’s Luke Skywalker, as Kyle was quick to point out. As we walked into the room, I told him, “Leo, we found her.”<br>
“So, we’re gonna go pay her a little visit,” declared Prue.

“No!” cried Leo. “Wait! Don’t! Please!”<br>
You glared at him. “It’s nothing personal, Leo. It’s just business,” and we walked to the front door. Prue opened it and there stood a very cute blond guy.

Prue wasn’t impressed. “YOU!” she growled.

He grinned winningly. “ Ah, thrilled to see me, I see. You know, this is a really nice house, Prue. Buckland’s obviously pays better than I thought. I may accept their offer to join them after all.”<br>
“What do you want and how did you find me?” Prue asked, still mad.

He shrugged. “I followed your scent. That musk. Cartier, right? Now, that is a classy perfume, though I’m hardly surprised. Can I have my wand back please? See, Betty never called, and I couldn’t contact her because her address mysteriously fell out of my pocket somehow. You wouldn’t know anything about that, now would you?”<br>
Prue glared. “You’re blaming me for something that you lost? Isn’t that a little juvenile? I mean what’s next? A shoving match under the jungle gym or war over juice cups?”<br>
You poked her. “Prue, we really need to get going.!

“The wand is mine, Prue, and you know it! All is fair in love and war!”<br>
As if on cue, who should appear behind this stranger than Dan. “Piper?” he asked, glaring at the new guy. You greeted him, just as Leo walked into the foyer, begging you to wait.

[Nite Owl]

Now Dan glared at Leo. “Is he still here?”<br>
Leo shrugged, a devilish look on his angelic face. “Never left. actually,” he said, a bit smugly.

The cute blond guy hadn’t given up on Prue yet. “Prue, I’m kinda in a hurry here, so if I could just get my wand--”<br>
Despite both guys being cute (well, all three counting Leo), I’d had it with both of them, because we really had to try and find Tuatha. So Little Sister took over. “You know what? Dan, Piper will call you back later. You, whoever you are--sorry, no wand. Leo, keep working with Kyle, just in case. Us, out the back door, out the back door!” and we did just that.

But as we left, I heard Dan ask Leo, “Don’t you have some other house to repair?” and Leo reply, “No,” and I thought, man, are we in trouble now, if these two guys decide to get in a pissing contest over Piper!


Well, we found Tuatha in the caves, but weren’t able to vanquish her before she vanished in a most spectacular way, which I thought was pretty cool, even though you two didn’t.

When we got back to the Manor, Leo was still working with Kyle. Somehow something didn’t go right and one of the conservatory windows crashed just as we walked in.

“What was that crash?” I asked. “What happened in here?”<br>
Leo shrugged. “A little training, that’s all.”<br>
“That’s all?” Prue asked, getting mad. “Do you have any idea how much that’s gonna cost to fix?”<br>
You glared at him. “Well, I know who’s gonna be fixing it. Leo, what if somebody saw you?”<br>
Leo glared back. “Someone like neighbor Dan?” Then he noticed a cut on your forehead, either caused by the glass or Tuatha. “Hey, you’re bleeding!”<br>
You shrugged. “It’s nothing.”<br>
Well, we managed to help Kyle defeat Tuatha thanks to a courage potion that was really just water. But before he did, Tuatha attacked all of us, even Leo. Once Tuatha was gone you cried out his name and helped him to a chair saying, “You’re hurt.”<br>
He shook his head. “I’m OK.”<br>
Prue, who was attacked with a sleep spell and was still asleep on the floor, made some little noises and rolled over.

You didn’t even notice; you were still worried about Leo. “Let me get you some ice,” you offered..

He smiled, but shook his head again. “Really, I’m fine.”<br>
“Are you getting even?” you asked, a slight smile in your voice as you remembered your cut.

Once more he shook his head. “No, just finally getting it. What you deserve. A normal life, or at least as normal a life as you can get, which means a normal relationship, which I can’t give you.”<br>
He smiled wryly. “I guess we know now why witches and whitelighters aren’t supposed to fall in love, huh.?” and he orbed out, and I felt like I was going to cry. You looked a little upset, but not very, and that hurt me worse.

Later, at P3, we were walking down the steps. You were asking Prue, ”What are you going to tell that guy, what did you say his name was?”<br>
“Jack. Jack Sheridan.”<br>
“Well, what are you going to tell Jack about what happened to the poor lady who owned the wand?” since Tuatha had killed her before Prue could grab the wand.

“Well, what can I tell him?” Prue asked. “Look, I called him because I just wanna get rid of this thing, that’s all.” since the wand’s crystal broke once its purpose was fulfilled.

I grinned. “Are you sure it’s just not an excuse to see him again?”<br>
“Phoebe, don’t be ridiculous!” Prue declared. “This is business, it’s not personal.”<br>
“Where have I heard that before?” I muttered.

Just then you spot Dan. Grinning, you told us, :” Oh, got a date, gotta go!” and ran off to greet him..

“Well, for what it’s worth, I think Jack is pretty cute,” I told Prue.

“Yeah, well, he’s a jerk,” Prue declared. She spun in a circle. “How do I look?”<br>
“Fab.” I replied, because she looked dressed to kill!

She smiled, “Thanks,” then walked towards Jack who was at the bar. Although I was curious about how that conversation would go, I was more curious about what you’d say to Dan, so I drifted towards the booths, where you were leading him towards one that had a champagne dinner already set up. You looked absolutely beautiful and I could tell Dan thought so, too.

“Thanks for coming,” you told him as you both sat down. “I hope late, late dinner is OK with you.”<br>
“Look, I’m gonna make this easier for you,” he told you. “I know that you and that handyman, Leon…”

“Leo,” you corrected.

“Right, Leo. I know you guys were more than just friends. I’m not dumb. I mean, he’s always around the house. Around you.”<br>
You came right out and told him. “Dan, it’s over,” and Dan looked ready to cry. “Oh, no, I don’t mean you and me, I meant him and me. That’s why I wanted to see you tonight. I didn’t want there to be any more confusion.”<br>
“Are you sure?” he asked.

You smiled, as you leaned towards him, “Yeah, I’m sure,” and the kiss you two exchanged told me that you definitely were--it was both sweeter and hotter than the one you’d exchanged in his truck! I could only hope that he would be just as sure and his kiss just as hot and just as sweet once he knew that we were Charmed!

[Nite Owl]

Then, just a couple weeks later some very strange things started happening--not witchly stuff, but guy stuff, as we began to wonder if just maybe the two newest guys in our lives, Dan Gordon and Jack Sheridan, weren’t quite what we thought they were.

This is another one of those situations where I was kinda out of the loop through most of it, since I was volunteering at a convalescent home and running into a supernatural situation with a guy and his father who had information that demons wanted. But you and Prue told me all about it later on, so I’m going to tell it as if I did actually know what was going on--which you two should've told me right away!

It started in your bedroom, where you were putting clothes into an overnight bag. Suddenly Prue ran in, crying out, “Oh, oh, oh! Piper! I think Jack's a warlock!”<br>
“Who?” you asked.

“Jack,” she replied. “Uh, Jack Sheridan. The internet-auction guy I met, remember? I went to go get coffee--he was standing in front of me; and then I went straight to the newsstand and, WHAM! he was right there, reading a magazine!"

You stared at her in shock. “So he went from one place to another in a blink of an eye?! So, you think he blinked?!?”<br>
“Well, yeah, that's what warlocks do, right?” Prue demanded, then asked. “Where's Phoebe?”<br>
“She's volunteering at the convalescent hospital,” you reminded her.

“Great,” muttered Prue, since by now she had finally admitted that since I studied the Book more than you two did, I knew more about what was in it than you two. “Wait! You have to know if there's a warlock test."

“How would I know?” you asked in surprise.

Prue shrugged. “I mean, well, you are a warlock magnet.”<br>
You sighed in frustration. “Am I never gonna live Jeremy down? You know, you had that Rex and Hannah thing at work.”<br>
She shrugged again. “OK, fine. You get them in your love life; I've got them at the water cooler.”<br>
Then she noticed something. “What's up with the suitcase?”<br>
You smiled happily. “A little overnighter. Dan's friend is getting married in Tahowan. Dan invited me to come along.”<br>
Prue stared in shock. “In the same hotel-, in the same bed-type of thing?”<br>
Your turn to shrug as you said primly, “That is yet to be decided.”<br>
Prue looked into your bag. “Oh, so then this is just ...Tennis?” as she pulled a very sexy, very sheer nightgown out of your bag and waved it in front of you.

“Give it!” you cried, and she handed it back. “Thank you.”<br>
“I mean, you did test him though, right?” Prue asked. “You know that he's not a warlock?”<br>
You looked at her as if she’d lost her mind and told her firmly, “Dan is not a warlock. No cats have hissed at him; he has not blinked,;he has not tried to kill me or my sisters and steal our powers, which you know is a key indicator.”<br>
“I need the Book Of Shadows,” Prue decided as she grabbed your nightgown and ran out of your room, giggling. You cried out and began to run after her, but just then the doorbell rang, so you decided to go get it. It was Dan.

You smiled happily at Dan, “Hello, you.”<br>
He smiled back. “Hi, um, I was wondering if maybe we could get an early start. You know, miss traffic, get there quicker so we have enough time to ...”<br>
“Relax?” you suggested.

He grinned. “Relax is a good word,” and you both laughed. “Any chance you could be ready in an hour?”<br>
You smiled ecstatically. “Yes, every chance.”<br>
But just then Kit, our cat, walked by. She immediately growled and hissed at Dan. Dan looked at her strangely. “I wonder what her problem is?”<br>
You stared at both Kit and Dan in shock. “I gotta go now. Bye.” and you closed the door before running to the bottom of the stairs to yell up, “Prue, did you find that warlock test yet?”<br>
She called for you to come up to the attic. There, she looked up in frustration and told you, “Nineteen warlock-specific death spells and not one test.”<br>
Now you were getting scared. “What if it’s a conspiracy? Jack and Dan working together, sweet-talking us, and the whole time they’re figuring out how to kill us.”<br>
Prue shook her head. “OK, now you’re being paranoid.”<br>
“Well, how can we not?” you asked. “With warlocks and demons coming out of the woodwork all the time, it’s a wonder we trust anybody.”<br>
“We don’t,” Prue put in firmly as she turned the page. “Here it is!”<br>
You joined her at the Book. But it wasn’t a warlock test; it was a spell. “To Hear Secret Thoughts?” you asked in confusion.

Prue nodded. “Yeah, we can hear Jack and Dan’s thoughts just long enough to confirm or deny our suspicions.”<br>
You nodded. “No personal gain.”<br>
She also nodded in satisfaction. “Purely for protection,” so she found and lit two white candles. “OK.” and you both read the spell:

"As flame lights shadow,
As truth ends fear,
Open locked thoughts
To my mind’s willing ear,
May the smoke from this candle
Into everywhere creep,
Bring innermost voices
To my mind in speech."

And at that moment, Prue heard you think, *Hey, she’s wearing my lipstick!* so she stared at you in shock. “What? I can’t borrow your lipstick?”<br>
“I didn’t say that, Prue,” you cried. “I thought it.”<br>
At that moment, you heard her thoughts: *Whatever, just learn to share!* and you cried out, “I heard that! This could be dangerous.” And you were right!

Just then I ran into the attic, thinking about my own problems. *Stay calm, calm down. Book of Shadows, needles and warlocks, and Eric’s in trouble, find out who, find out what.*

“The hospital hottie?” you asked.

I looked at you in shock, “What?!”<br>
Prue quickly covered for you. “Uh, how’s Eric? Did you see him today?”<br>
Then I noticed something else. “Why are you guys looking at the Book of Shadows?”<br>
“Jack blinked,” Prue explained.

You nodded. “And Kit hissed at Dan.”<br>
Prue continued. “Right, and we think that they may be warlocks, so we were looking for a test so we could test them.”<br>
I shook my head. “Hello! Paranoid!”<br>
“We are not!” you cried, insulted.

And Prue finished your sentence. “Uh, able to find a spell in the Book of Shadows.”<br>
I shrugged. “Well, just prick him. Warlocks don’t bleed, so if there’s no blood you’ve got your answer.”<br>
So you thought at Prue, *Who knew?*

And she thought back, *Phoebe did. The spell, don’t tell her.*

So you asked, *Shouldn’t we reverse it?*

And she replied, *Not until we really…*

During all of this, I was watching the two of you as first your expression changed and then Prue’s did, back and forths. “Are you two OK?” I asked.

You tried diversionary tactics. “So how’s Eric? Has he asked you out yet?”<br>
It worked. I shook my head, concerned again. “No, but he’s in trouble. I had a premonition today. A demon or warlock, maybe, with a needle thingy on his finger and he was sticking it into Eric’s head. So, I came home to see what we were up against. You guys go deal with Jack and Dan, and I’ll go look on the Internet. I’ll tell you if I find anything,” and I headed for my room and my laptop.

Meanwhile, Prue thought at you, *Great, we’re surrounded by warlocks.*

But you were busy thinking, *Yeah, next time get your own damn lipstick.*

“I heard that!” Prue cried out.

You grinned at her. “I love you!”<br>
And she glared back, thinking at you, *Bite me!* and again you grinned.

Well, Prue had a chance to check out Jack that afternoon. When she reached Buckland’s, she called and asked him to come right over. After giving him a bad time about the bright shirt he’d worn to work, she heard him think, *Feisty, feisty.* Then when she wanted to verify that he handled the verification of some of the bronzes in an internet auction, he thought, *Be careful, she suspects,* before saying out loud, “Yeah, of course.”<br>
Oh, oh, she thought--and we thought when she later told us--does he think I suspect that he's a demon? Aloud, she said, “Well, I need some bronzes checked out. “Who did your validation?”<br>
“Validation?” he asked, as if he had no idea what she was talking about.

Prue stared at him impatiently. “You do have people’s collections validated, don’t you?”<br>

[Nite Owl]

To her shock, she heard him think, *Mostly I put people in graves or incinerate them.* before he said aloud, “Oh, yeah. It was Walt Potarg at Berkley School and Design. He was the best,” before she again heard his thoughts: *If she finds out that I’m lying, she’s gonna die,” Then aloud he said, “Well, you know what? I’m a little late, gotta go. Good to see you again,” and off he went.

Prue glared at the closed door. “You’re dying first!”<br>

Meanwhile,back at the Manor, Dan had come back to the door. “You ready?” he asked you.

“Um, can you come in?” you asked. He shrugged, but followed you in and you closed the door behind him.

He immediately realized that something was wrong. “Where’s your suitcase?”<br>
“Upstairs,” you told him.

“I see,” he said, disappointed, but then you heard him think. *Uh-oh, cold feet; she’s backing out. It’s OK, don’t push it, don’t push it.*

“Look,” you told him, “Don’t move.” And to be sure he didn’t, you froze him. “OK, um, this is gonna hurt me a lot more than it gonna hurt you,” and you pricked his arm with a needle.

Just then I came running down the stairs. “Piper, we have to get to Eric.” Then I saw the shock on your face. “What’s the matter, honey?”<br>
You pointed at Dan. “He didn’t bleed! He’s not bleeding! There’s no blood! There’s nothing!”<br>
I looked at you, thinking, *Paranoid!* as I said aloud, “Yeah, of course, he’s not bleeding,” and at your look, I pointed out, “He’s frozen.”<br>
“Yeah, right. OK go back upstairs, so he doesn’t see you when he unfreezes.”<br>
I nodded and turned and ran back upstairs. No sooner was I back in my room than Dan must’ve unfroze, because I heard him yell “OW!” as his arm must’ve began bleeding. “What the hell was that?” and I grinned to myself, even though I'll now admit that part of me was hoping that just maybe Dan would turn out to be a demon, since then we would’ve had to vanquish him, opening the way for you to get back together with Leo. But I couldn't help being happy for you that Dan wasn't.

But that wasn’t going to be, at least not quite yet. Later you told me that you exclaimed, “You’re bleeding!” both happily and sympathetically as you touched his hand.

He smiled at you. “Just a little bit,” as he thought, *Love her touch. If she doesn’t wanna go, it’s OK; don’t force it.”<br>
You smiled at him. “Dan, I really wanna go.”<br>
He looked at you confused. “But…” just as I came running back down the stairs.

You looked at me, smiling ecstatically. “He’s bleeding!”<br>
“He’s lucky,” I muttered, then louder, I continued. “Hi, listen, Dan, I have to borrow Piper for just a little while, but I’ll have her back soon, OK,” as I said this, I was walking passed him, admiring the view.

You must’ve heard me think, *Nice butt.* because you cried, “Hey!” at me, before catching yourself, as you turned towards Dan. “Hey, you hang in there, and I’ll be back in time.”<br>
He nodded, “Yeah, I hope so,” as you opened the door. Kit was back on the porch growling, but this time Dan figured it out. “Oh, that’s what’s scaring your cat. You got hornets. That’s probably what stung me, too."

You nodded, trying to smile. “Yeah, um, probably. OK, gotta go, don’t leave without me,” and he smiled back and he left, as I told you we had to go, now.

Well, when we reached Eric’s apartment, we found our latest threat going after him. You froze them and we brought him back to the Manor. We tried to convince him that we were the good guys, but he refused to believe and was about to leave, so I grabbed his arm and flipped him, so he landed on his back on the floor. Just as I sat on top of him, Prue walked in. When she saw Eric and me, she raised her eyebrows and commented, “Entertaining guests. I see.”<br>
I greeted her as Eric tried to get up. I muttered, “Piper, could you help me out a little?” and she froze Eric.

“Who’s the cute boy?” Prue asked.

“He’s Eric, from the hospital,” I explained. "Two warlocks called Collectors wants what’s in his brain. The location of the Akashic Records...” as I got off of Eric.

Before I could explain, you thought at her, *The lost text that predicts all future events. Collectors get it, the world’s a goner.* and when I started to explain, she interrupted, “It’s a lost text that predicts all future events. The Collectors get it, the world’s a goner. I know.”<br>
I stared at her, knowing fully well that she should not have known that. “OK, does someone wanna tell me what’s going on here?”<br>
And you thought at Prue, *Have to tell her now.*

Prue nodded. “OK, um, Phoebe. See, Piper and I didn’t really know about the whole pricking thing to expose a warlock. So, we sorta cast a little hearing-thoughts spell, just to find things out.”<br>
I stared at you two, a bit shocked, a bit angry. “Oh, a hearing-thoughts spell, huh?”<br>
Meanwhile, you thought at Prue, *Dan’s clean, by the way.*

Prue smiled. *Glad to hear it. Jack’s not.*

This time I caught on and it was my turn to be paranoid. “Wait, are you guys thinking something about me right now?”<br>
Prue shook her head. “No. Does Eric know about witches and warlocks?”<br>
I shook my head. “No, he thinks it’s a government conspiracy.”<br>
You were still staring at Prue. Aloud you asked, “How do you know Jack’s a warlock?” and I stared at both of you in shock. Jack was a warlock??!!

“I heard his thoughts and they are bad, really bad,” Prue told us. “You know graves, dead people, burnt bodies.”<br>
“Did you prick him?” I asked.

She shook her head. “No, that’s why I need Piper. Freeze him, prick him and then vanquish him if necessary.”<br>
Just then you spot a dagger on the table. “Where’d you get that?” you asked.

“Oh, remember the troubled priest with the warlock brothers?” she asked (and if you don’t remember about them, Piper, well, never mind.) “Well, they left this behind, and I’ve sorta hung on to it just in case we needed it for future warlock use.”<br>
“WOW!,” I cried. “It’s been a while, but it seems like they’re everywhere,” and you nodded. “OK, you two go to it; I’ll stay here.”<br>
“What if the Collectors show up?” you asked.

I shrugged as I sat back down on Eric. “Well, just get back before they do. Don’t lose that dagger!” and Prue thought, *We have to go kill a warlock while she gets to sit on some guys…*

*Hey, hey, hey!” I cried

Prue stared at me in shock. “You heard that?”<br>
I gave her a “Give me a break!” look. “Yeah, like I need a hearing-thoughts spell to know what you’re thinking!”<br>
Just then Eric unfroze. “Now, are you gonna behave?” I asked him.

“Do I have a choice?” he asked and I shook my head.

So you two went to Buckland’s and Prue’s office. As you later told me, she sat behind her desk, while you hid behing her door. You called Jack and shortly afterwards, he arrived. You froze him and Prue poked him with the dagger. It was her turn to stare at the results. “He’s not bleeding!”<br>
And your turn to look smug. “He’s frozen.” and Prue nodded.

Prue nodded. “Uh, yeah. OK, OK, OK. Wait a minute” and you kept your hands up while she hid the dagger back in the drawer. She nodded at you, “OK.”<br>
But before you could unfreeze him, the door opened and another Jack, dressed in another wild shirt similar to the one he was wearing before walked into the room!

You froze that Jack, too, wondering if you had twin warlocks on your hands, while Prue just wondered if they were just twins. When you unfroze them, you found out that that was the case. It seemed that the Sheridan twins had done that as kids. As Jeff Sheridan put it, “Yeah, so, you know, when one of us would take an interest in someone…”

“So, you’d send the other one to check out the merchandise?” you asked. “sorta kick the tires?”<br>
Jeff smiled. “Crude but accurate.”<br>
But that still didn’t explain why Jeff wanted to kill Prue, but it did when Jeff told you what he did for a living--he owned a chain of mortuaries! That explained. “Put ‘em in graves, set ‘em on fire.”<br>
Then Prue turned her attention to the Sheridan twins. “You know, you two should be ashamed of yourselves.” And she walked up to Jack and slapped him across the face. “That’s for thinking you could get away with it!” That made Jeff laugh, so Prue slapped him too. “And that’s for thinking you wouldn’t get slapped!” She smiled at you, asking, “Piper?”<br>
You nodded and you both left, but not before you heard Jeff say, “I approve,” and Prue growled, just like Kit.

So you two came back to the Manor, telling me that Jack wasn’t a warlock, just a jerk. Well, we managed to save both Eric and his father from the Collectors by turning their powers on each other, and thanks to the Collectors’ having drained some of their brain before we could, neither remembered a thing about it.

But before we did, Dan came back over and you had to try to deal with him.

“You ready to go?” he asked, but he must’ve seen something in your face, as he thought, *Oh
man, she’s not coming.*

“Dan, look,” you tried to explain. “I wanna go; I really do. I’m just not quite ready yet!”<br>
Just then I walked in, asking, “Piper, any word from the--” then I spot Dan. “pizza guy? Hi Dan! We ordered pizza; would you like to stay for pizza?”<br>
And Dan sadly thought, *No, I wanna go with her. But what’s the point?*

“OK, OK,” you told him, "I know what you’re thinking…”

*Piper!* I thought at you in shock.

“--but I can be ready on time.” you finished.

He nodded. “”OK, well, I have to leave in an hour or I’m gonna be late for the wedding rehearsals, so the car’s gonna leave the driveway at six. Hope to see you then.”<br>
You nodded as you closed the door, but you could still hear his thoughts. *Someday, someway, somehow, I’m gonna make it through that damn door.*

Later, after we vanquished the Collectors, you and Prue were running down the stairs, you carrying your bag.

[Nite Owl]

“OK, what am I thinking?” Prue asked.

“That Dan’s gonna leave without me,” as you ran faster.

“Nope,” replied Prue happily. “Good, the spell’s reversed.”<br>
You nodded as you two walked into the foyer. “What a relief! I think we’ve proven beyond a shadow of a doubt, that man, and especially woman, aren’t meant to hear each other’s thoughts,” as you put on your coat.

Prue nodded. “Definitely. Too much knowledge whether it comes from the Akashic Records or other people’s heads is just dangerous stuff.”<br>
You nodded, then got curious. “So, what were you thinking?”<br>
“I was thinking what a shame it was that Phoebe finally met a nice guy, and she’s not even gonna remember it.” because the Collectors had used their finger-thingies on me, too.

Just then I walked in the front door, carrying a bunch of flowers.

After I greeted you two, Prue said, “Hi. Ah, they’re gorgeous.”<br>
I handed them towards her. “They’re for you. The florist left them on the porch, but there’s no card, just a note that says, ‘For Prue’.”<br>
She stared at them. “They’re huge.”<br>
“They’re expensive!” you put in as we heard a phone ring.

“And they’re ringing!” Looking in the flowers, she found a cellphone. “Hello?” she answered as she walked into the living room.

Suddenly you cried out, “Dan! He’s leaving without me!”<br>
“Well, don’t just stand there!” I demanded, wondering what you two would do without me. “Freeze him!”<br>
“Oh, right,” as you reached out and froze the car. “I gotta go,” and you ran out the door.

I grinned as I walked into the living room. “That’s such a nifty little power.”<br>
Prue was sitting on the couch, trying to answer the phone with no success. Again I wondered what you two would do without me. I sat down next to her, “Oh, honey,” and I took the phone from her and flipped it open. Prue laughed before asking, “Hello?”<br>
Snoopy Phoebe put my ear up against the phone as well and tried to listen, Prue grinning at me.

“At last,” Jack declared. “I’ve been calling you every twenty minutes for the last hour. Do you like the flowers?”<br>
“Jack, what do you want?” Prue asked.

“You know,” Jack pointed out, “You are a very suspicious woman.”<br>
“No,” replied Prue primly. “I just like to think of it as careful,” and I nodded.

“Oh, c’mon, Prue. Are you saying you’ve been totally honest with me?”<br>
She stared at me with a “What do I do?” look, so I grinned and began making crackling noises into the phone. Prue grinned at me gratefully before saying, “Jack, I can’t hear you. The phone’s breaking up.”<br>
“I just, I wanted to apologize.” he yelled over the “static”. “Can I take you to dinner?”<br>
I shook my head, so she said, “I don’t think so.”<br>
“C’mon,” he insisted. “Let me buy you a drink.”<br>
Grinning, I again shook my head, and she grinned back. “I don’t think so,” she repeated.

“Well, can I at least get my phone back?” he asked.

We looked at each other, both grinned, and again she said, “I don’t think so,” and she hung up as we both cracked up.

“Ooh, I like it,” I declared as I took the phone and started dialing a number.

“What are you doing?” Prue asked.

I grinned. “I’m calling Tokyo on Jack’s dime! Konnichi wa?” and she laughed.

[Nite Owl]

But not much later, Prue was no longer laughing. You’d gotten an important message, so you called her on the cell she still had. We all liked it so much, that now we each had one of our own. You were holding yours as you walked into my room. “That’s strange.”<br>
“What’s strange?” I asked.

“Prue. I was talking with her, and I'd almost forgotten. She should’ve been home from that estate sale already and some guy called from Buckland’s. I wanted to make sure she and my car are OK.”<br>
“And they’re not?” I asked, standing up, becoming worried.

“Well, she says she is, she says it was just traffic, but, Phoebs, she just doesn’t sound all right--there was something different in her voice.”<br>
"Did you ask her about it?”<br>
“I was about to when my phone beeped, signalling an incoming call."

“Dan, right?” I asked, and sheepishly you nodded. “You know, he does live like twenty feet away,” I pointed out. “You guys could get walkie talkies; two cans, a string.”<br>
But rather than laughing, you frowned. “Prue said just about the same thing. And when I told her, ‘Point taken, Mom,’ she made a strange, almost-strangling sound."

I shrugged. "I'm not surprised. You know she doesn't like being compared to Mom."

"I know, but this was different somehow, but then she told me to go talk to my boy and she’d be here soon. Like I said, that sound bothered me, but--“<br>
I nodded. “But you were too interested in talking with Dan to worry about it too much. I remember too well.”<br>
I still remember, Piper. As you and Dan talked, you ran down the stairs and came into the kitcher, where I was reading the paper. You sat down at the table and poured cereal into a bowl. “Pouring,” you told Dan. He must’ve told you what he was eating--which I later found out was Froot Loops, because you told him, “I can't believe you eat that stuff.

I made a face. “You guys are killing me with cuteness over here.”<br>
You glared at me. “Don't you have somewhere to be, somewhere very far away?

I grinned and moved closer, now close enough to hear Dan. “What do you say tomorrow, when Jenny's at school, we have breakfast for real?”<br>
You grinned. “I'll take what I can get.”<br>
I made a worse face, “Nausea.” You glared at me, so I finally went back upstairs, where you found me after Dan left.

Now, as we walked back down the stairs after talking with you, Prue walked in through the door, her face pale. “Prue,” I asked, walking towards her in concern. “What’s wrong?

“OK,” Prue told us. “I saw something or someone drown, and it was anything but natural.”<br>
“On the freeway?” You asked the same thing I was wondering.

“No, up at the lake.”<br>
I stared at her. “Oh, wait a minute. The lake as in the lake where Mom was killed?”<br>
“You said you were stuck in traffic,” you reminded her.

“Yeah, I was, after the lake. I just go there sometimes to think.”<br>
“You never told us that,” I said, as we walked through the conservatory, into the foyer and up the
stairs.

“Because I didn’t want you to make a big deal about it. Anyway, this isn’t about Mom, all right? I saw someone get pulled under. I tried to help him, but this man stopped me and said ‘It’s already taken him’. He probably saved my life.”<br>
“Do you think he knows what happened?” you asked.

“Could,” she agreed as we walked into Prue’s room. “Which means I need to get to Buckland’s to drop stuff off--that’s what they wanted--and get back to that lake.”<br>
“Wait a minute, Prue,” I cried. “Aren’t you kinda missing the point? How can you think that whatever you saw didn't have something to do with how Mom died?

“Look, we need to stop worrying about the past and start dealing with the present. They’re re-opening camp.”<br>
“I thought they closed it the summer that Mom--" I cried.

“--Exactly," she interrupted. "And no one has been allowed in the lake since, and if there’s something in it, killing, then the last thing we need is a lake full of kids.”<br>
“Well, how do we find the guy that stopped you?” I asked.

“What about the woman who used to run the camp?” you suggested, as you searched your memory for her name. “Mrs. J., uh, Johnson. If she’s still up there, she’ll probably know who he is.”<br>
Prue nodded. “She’s still there, same cabin.”<br>
“I guess you go up there to think a lot,” I muttered, but she ignored me.

“I’ll meet you guys up at the lake,” she told us. “I should be there in an hour,” and she left.

I turned to you. “Do you really think the things she saw has nothing to do with how Mom died?”<br>
You shook your head. “Nope. You?”<br>
“Not a chance.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

Later, you and I were in Mrs. Johnson’s cabin, looking at a photo while Mrs. Johnson brought in some of her famous cookies that you and Prue had told me so much about.

“Well, I’m finding it hard to believe enough time’s gone by for you to have grown up so much. Here,” and she handed you the plate of cookies.

I was having fun looking at the picture. “Aww, look at little Prue!" Then I added. "Nice pigtails, Piper!” as I laughed.

You grabbed the picture from me. “Not fair.”<br>
I shook my head. “No, what’s not fair is that I never got to go to camp with you guys,” as I grabbed the plate and tried one of the cookies, which was even better than advertised.

“Um, Mrs. J.,” you started. “We heard you were thinking of opening up the camp again.”<br>
She nodded. “Oh, was. I thought it was over, and then today another drowning. I can’t ask the campers to go swimming in the lake when…”

You nodded. “Um, we were wondering if you might help us with something. Prue was up here the other day, and she mentioned a man, um, older, a bit off.”<br>
“I think the word that she used was crazy,” I put in.

“We were wondering if you might know who he is,” you finished.

She nodded. “Oh, Sam. Only one it could be. The man’s not wired together properly. He showed up when the drownings started. He just stayed here, no friends, no life of his own. You know, with someone like that, you have to wonder what he’s capable of,” and we stared at each other, wondering if we’d found ourselves a demon or a murderer or both.

Just then we heard the sound of your car pulling up. We walked out and saw Prue standing next to your car, staring at the lake, so we walked up to her.

“Mrs. J.,” you introduced. “you remember my sister, Prue?”<br>
“Oh, Prue, of course I do! It’s good to see you,” and they hugged. Then she stared at Prue. “Wow! You’re looking more and more like your mother everyday."

Prue shook her head firmly, “No, I don't. Actually it’s Piper who resembles her the most.”<br>
That led to an awkward silence, that I tried to break up. “People see a little of her in each of us, I think.”<br>
Mrs. Johnson smiled at me. “Of course. Will you come see me again? The old broad gets lonely up here. I love to see my campers.”<br>
You smiled, “Sure,” and as she went back towards her cabin, we waved our good-byes and our thanks.

“Mrs. J's not opening the camp, Prue,” you told her.

“Really?” Prue asked. “So that means it’s just between us and whatever’s hiding in that lake. Any word on that crazy guy?”<br>
I nodded. “His name is Sam and he lives right… “<br>
Just then Prue’s phone rang. She answered it, and it was Jack Sheridan, being typical Jack Sheridan the jerk.

When she hung up, she muttered, “I just can not figure out what this guy’s deal is.”<br>
“That’s funny,” you told her. “We were just gonna ask you the same thing.”<br>
“Excuse me?” you asked.

“Every time someone compares you to Mom. you flinch,” I pointed out. “It’s a compliment, not a curse.”<br>
“Is it?” she asked, “Because every single day, I feel like I’m becoming more and more like her and every day it terrifies me.”<br>
“Prue,” you said comfortingly.

“I mean, don’t you guys see it? Look at what happened to her, and then look what’s happening to me. No successful relationship with guys; being responsible for a family, now because of being this charmed thing, the very real possibility of dying young. It’s like history is repeating itself.”<br>
“Prue,” you pointed out. “That's all just...”<br>
“Coincidence?” she asked. “I thought that we had figured out that nothing is a coincidence in our lives. Like me being here when that thing attacked--it’s like I was meant to be here.”<br>
“Well, you’re not exactly meant to be here when you’re here every week,” you pointed out, still pissed that she had lied to you.

“All right, look, I just wanna find this Sam guy, see what he knows about the demon, vanquish it and get on with our lives,” and we agreed..

So we found Sam’s place. We knocked on the door and when no one answered, we snuck in. I exaggerated my stance, up on my tiptoes, my finger near my lips. “Be vewy, vewy quiet,” I said in my best Elmer Fudd imitation, “We’re hunting demons!” and Prue glared at me.

You looked around. “I guess he’s not home.”<br>
Prue was looking through some sheets of paper, and suddenly she cried out, “Oh, my--”<br>
“What?” you cried. “What is it?” as we both ran to her.

Prue was holding an old photograph of Mom. “What is he doing with a picture of her?” she demanded.

“Who is this guy?” you asked.

I shuddered. “Or what?”<br>
At that point, Prue found some newspapers. “OK, he has articles on every single drowning at the lake.”<br>
At the same moment, you found a certificate. “New York Teacher of the Year, Sam Wylder," you read. Then you stared at us. “In 1872?”<br>
I stared at both of you. “OK, so this guy is either 127 years old or---”<br>
“A demon,” you declared..

“Named Sam?” Prue asked. “A demon named Sam? I mean, can’t it be his grandfather’s certificate? After all, he did save me.”<br>
Just then you opened a drawer and found some letters. “What are these?” You looked up at us. “I found--” Just then Leo orbed in, scaring the tar out of you. “Whoa! Leo! Hi! What are you doing here?”<br>
“C’mon, we gotta get outta here. Sam could be back at any minute.”<br>
“Wait!” cried Prue. “You know Sam?”<br>
Leo still insisted, “C’mon, we gotta--”<br>
Prue interrupted him, that stubborn look on her face. “We are not going anywhere until you tell us what you know. Who is Sam?”<br>
He sighed, not wanting to tell us, but knowing he’d have to. “Sam was your Mom’s whitelighter,” and he shooed us out to the lake, near the dock.

We were still in shock. You finally managed to ask, “Sam was Mom’s whitelighter?”<br>
He nodded. “Emphasis on ‘was’. When your Mom died, Sam clipped his wings. He’s mortal now, but once, yeah, he was a whitelighter. He looked after your mother.”<br>
That made me mad. “Then he lost our Mom!”<br>
Leo nodded. “To the same demon you’re fighting now.”<br>
“And you knew?” you accused. “This whole time he’s been living up here while…”

“I couldn’t tell you,” Leo tried to explain. “They wouldn’t let me. And what would it change? It would only distract you, maybe even gotten you killed. I mean, you guys were gonna have to face this thing sooner or later. And I’m here to make sure you do it with a clear head. Emotions will get the best of you if you let them.”<br>
“Well, can you really blame us?” you asked.

“Leo, he let our mother die!” I cried.

But Prue saw it differently. “Leo’s right. This isn’t about Mom, and it’s not about Sam for that matter. It’s about a demon who’s waiting until tomorrow for brunch to be served.”<br>
“Mrs. J’s not opening the camp,” you pointed out.

“That doesn’t end it,” Prue pointed out. “It just stalls it.”<br>
“You guys are behind and need to catch up,” Leo pointed out. “Book of Shadows--get a working knowledge of this demon before you face him.”<br>
I glared at him, for the first time seeing what had made you so angry. “Hmmm, said like an unfeeling professional. This is personal for us, Leo.”<br>
And very bitterly, you added. “Leo doesn’t do personal anymore; he just does his job.”<br>
He looked at you, pain in his eyes, but nodded. “Now that I’ve done it, I guess there’s no reason for me to hang around,” and he orbed out.

I turned towards Prue. “OK, he’s gone. Now you can explain.”<br>
“Explain what?” she asked.

“Why you’re acting like all of this doesn’t faze you, Prue. We are talking about how our mother was killed.”<br>
But before she could reply, we heard someone screaming for help.

“Is that Mrs. J.?” you asked.

“She’s in the water!” I cried, as I spot her, and we ran out onto the dock. Prue remained standing on the edge.

When we reached the edge of the dock, we knelt down. I reached out my hand. “Your hand!” I cried. “Give me your hand! Prue, what are you doing? We need you!” but Prue just stood there staring.

Just then a guy came running. “Get off the dock! It’s her! It’s taken her over!” as Mrs. J. went under the water for good.

“Oh, my God!” I cried.

“Get off the dock now!” cried the man, who must be Sam. Just then water squirted up in a huge spray, reaching for us on the dock. Screaming, we ran off the dock to where Sam stood next to Prue. “Why didn’t you listen to me?” he demanded. “I told you to stay away from the lake. It only kills in the water. Why didn’t you listen to me? Nobody ever listens.”<br>
Prue stared at him. “We know who you are.”<br>
He shook his head. “You shouldn’t listen to people in town. They’ll just tell you I’m crazy, but I’m not.”<br>
“We know you worked with our mother,” you told him.

“And lost her.” I pointed out.

“I knew you’d come,” he said it. “I knew it. And then when I saw you,” and he turned towards Prue. “It’s in your eyes, your mother. So I knew who you were.”<br>
I glared at him. “You have no right talking about her. You lost that right when you lost her. Why are we dealing with him?” I asked you two.

“Because we need to know what he knows,” you pointed out, unconsciously sounding a lot like Leo. “Sam, you have to tell us about the demon.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

Sam shook his head. “No, no, you can’t fight this thing. It’s under water but it has a … it, it thinks. You never know where it’s gonna be, who it’s gonna be. Sometimes it takes over its victim’s bodies to lure you to the water, like it just did. Sometimes it doesn’t. Leave now, please! Forget you ever came here. Forget you ever knew.”<br>
“How can we do that?” Prue asked. “I mean, it’s out there killing. We can’t just walk away.”<br>
“You really wanna know what I know?” he asked. “I know you’re not strong enough or well versed enough in your powers to take this thing on.” He turned towards you. “I know that you have the same power as your mother. The power to freeze.” He turned towards Prue. “And you know what happened when she tried to use it.” And Prue did, because unlike you and me, Prue was there on the dock when they put Mom in a bodybag. Then to all of us, he finished, “And I know you'll let your emotions get in the way, you'll lose focus and you’ll lose your life. That’s what I know.”<br>
“Well, you obviously don’t know us that well,” Prue snarled. “Because we’re not leaving."

“Strong. Willful. Just like Patty.”<br>
“I’m nothing like my mother!” Prue cried.

“But you’re here,” he pointed out. “Just like she was.”<br>
“But we’ll beat it,” Prue declared. “Now, you have two choices," she warned. "You can either get on board or get the hell out of the way!”<br>
He looked at the three of us. “The Power of Three. OK, she told me about that. OK. If you’re gonna do this, then you’re gonna need me to help you.”<br>
“All right, enough of this,” I declared. “How do we kill it?”<br>
“You don’t,” and only much later did we find out that he blew magical dust at us, telling us to go home, go directly to bed and totally forget about coming to the lake, discovering the demon or meeting him, because he couldn’t let it happen again. If it wasn’t for you suddenly itching everywhere, just like Prue when she had poisin ivy--which she got at camp...

But before we could do a thing about it, the doorbell rang, and it was Dan, standing there holding a tray with bowls of cereal on it. He stared at you. “You don’t look hungry; you look confused, and you’re contagious.”<br>
“Dan,” you asked. “What are you…?”<br>
“Breakfast,” he reminded you. “Me, you, here, remember?”<br>
You shook your head. “Uh, everything’s a little hazy this morning.”<br>
“Well, is there anything I can do?” he asked, just as Leo orbed in behind the door. You glared at him, then looked back at Dan. "You can hold that thought,” and you froze him as you closed the door.

“What are you doing here?” Leo cried out in horror and fear.

You blew off some steam in frustration. “What are you doing here? I live here. What, are you checking up on me and Dan? I thought we talked about this.”<br>
“It has nothing to do with him. Why aren’t you up at the lake?” as Prue and I walked into the foyer.

“What lake?” I asked.

“Look,” he told us in agitation. “Nobody has shut down the camp, so the kids are on their way there now!”<br>
We all stared at him in confusion, not having a single idea what he was talking about.

Leo sighed. “He did it, didn’t he?”<br>
“Did what?” Prue asked.

“Who did what?” I asked, totally confused. “Who is he?”<br>
“Sam. He used a powder, sorta like a supernatural mickey. He must’ve gotten it from--”<br>
“Mom,” Prue finished, agony in her voice.

Leo smiled. “Good, it’s fading. Now, concentrate. It’s sorta like remembering a dream. OK, the lake, the kids, the demon, Sam.”<br>
“Sam?” you asked. “Why would he do this to us?”<br>
“To keep history from repeating itself.”<br>
Just then you remembered something, or rather, someone. “Oh, just a sec, you guys scoot." And you waved at all three of us. "Go, go, go!”<br>
Leo and Prue walked into the living room, but, of course, I stood near the door. I watched as you opened the door just in time to see Dan unfreeze.

“Dan,” you told him. “I know we were supposed to do this, this morning, but I’m really not feeling up to it.”<br>
He grinned. “Well, I’ll cook while you scratch.”<br>
You smiled sadly. “I can’t, there’s just some stuff, family stuff going on.”<br>
He smiled back. “Say no more. I completely understand.”<br>
You smiled. “I’d kiss you, but--”<br>
“But you’re contagious,” he agreed. “Tomorrow. I’m just glad you can tell me things.”<br>
You sighed. “Well, I feel like I can tell you anything,” as he left. You closed the door and sighed. “Except that there’s a demon.”<br>
“And that you’re a witch,” Leo pointed out. You looked at him. “Sorry, that was--”<br>
You smiled sadly and finished his sentence. “--the truth.”<br>
Just then Prue and I walked back in.

“We should go get dressed,” you declared.

Prue shook her head. “The only place you will be going, contagious girl, is back to bed.”<br>
“But--” you cried.

“But nothing,” declared Big Sister Prue, never sounding more like Mom (or Grams) than when she was in that mode. “Leo was right before. You just look in the Book of Shadows for this thing’s Achilles’ heel.”<br>
“But what if there isn’t one?”<br>
I answered that one. “Then we’re screwed.”<br>
Prue nodded. "But we aren’t yet!”<br>
Later Prue and I pulled up to the lake in your car. As we got out, I asked, “How are we doing in the plan part?”<br>
“I think that I just got one.” she replied.

I grinned. “I love when you take charge.”<br>
She glared, but continued, “OK, you know that powder that Sam used on us? Maybe we should use it on the kids. Make them temporarily forget that they want to go in the water.”<br>
I nodded. “And that’ll keep them safe until we find out how to dehydrate this bastard.”<br>
Prue nodded. “Perfect.”<br>
Suddenly I spot something that scared the tar out of me. There were kids playing near the water! The kids were already here! “Oh!” I cried. “Pre-pubescent demon food!”<br>
Prue took over again. “OK, go keep them out of the water. Tell them anything. I’ll deal with Sam.”<br>
So as I ran towards the kids, Prue went back to Sam’s place. She later told you and me what happened. When she walked in, Sam was sharpening an axe. He looked at her. “I knew I should’ve given you a stronger dose.”<br>
Prue marched up to him. “Not only did you put my sisters and me in danger, but you risked innocent lives. How could you?” she accused.

He shrugged, not in the least bit penitent. “I did what I had to do to protect you and your sisters.”<br>
“Not that,” Prue told him, still angry. “This. All these years. How could you just sit here and watch them die? People that you were meant to protect.”<br>
“Well, in case you didn’t get the memo, I’m not one of the good guys anymore.”<br>
“Part of you is. Part of you always will be.”<br>
“I’ve done nothing but make your life difficult. What makes you so sure?”<br>
“Because you saved me. You still have whitelighter instincts, Sam. You may have clipped your wings, but this still gets you; it matters.

He turned away. “What matters most was taken from me twenty years ago.”<br>
Prue nodded. “Then we have something in common.”<br>
Now he turned back at her. “You think I choose to stay here, to watch? That, that I get my kicks this way? I’ve been waiting for you.”<br>
“Why?” Prue wanted to know.

“I knew you'd come, and I had to be here to stop you. To, to save you.”<br>
Prue nodded, smiling sadly. “Because you couldn’t save Mom. Sam, I need the powder, and then I’m gonna need for you to tell me how Mom was gonna vanquish this thing. If you’re gonna defeat your demon, Sam, then you’re gonna have to help us defeat the one out there. We need your help.”<br>
He stared at her for the longest time, then sighed. He crossed the room and opened a drawer, taking out the jar of powder. He turned back towards Prue. “I’ll try to face mine. The question is can you face yours?” and Prue didn’t tell us how she responded as we just reached over and hugged her.

Meanwhile, Piper, you were still back at the Manor, looking through the Book. When you couldn’t find anything, Leo tried. Later, after Prue told us about her and Sam, you told us about you and Leo, tears in your eyes before you even started.

Leo sat at the kitchen table, which held the Book and put his hands above the Book. His hands turned golden, and the pages began flipping by themselves. But they flipped all the way, the cover finally closing shut. He tried it again, but the same thing happened. He sighed in frustration, as he told you, “I can’t find anything.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

You shrugged. “Well, then you don’t have to stay with me. Looks of sympathy are not part of your job description.”<br>
“No,” he admitted.

Then you got curious about something. “Um, why didn’t your healing touch work? I mean, what, you can save a life but you can’t cure poison ivy?”<br>
He shrugged. “It’s not really up to me. I can only heal when They allow me to, when I’m meant to.”<br>
That got you mad. “Well, why weren’t you meant to help me? Why wouldn’t I be meant to help my sisters?”<br>
Again he shrugged. “There’s always a reason. Maybe you’re meant to be here.”<br>
While he was talking, you were lazily looking through some of the papers that we had brought back with us. Suddenly you cried out in surprise. “Dear Sam? Leo!”<br>
“What is it?” He asked.

“Letters that my Mom wrote to Sam. I must’ve forgotten about them because of the powder. Leo, listen to this," and you read the letter: "Dear Sam, Where are you? It’s been two weeks since you were last here, and I wonder are you all right. Do they have you off guiding someone? And I wonder when they will send you back to San Francisco. To me.” and when you told us, both Prue and I sighed at the romanticism.

“Are these---?”<br>
You nodded. “Love letters,” as we all realized that you were even more like Mom than we originally thought.

Without realizing what you were doing, you and Leo brought the letters into the conservatory, sitting on the cane chairs in the sunlight and began reading them. Somehow you each chose the right things to read.

You remembered one specific letter that Leo found and read to you: “What I wouldn’t do for what other people consider ordinary. A conversation that gets finished; a night spent uninterrupted. A night with you.” and again both Prue and I sighed, thinking that you or Leo could’ve written the same thing.

Then you remembered another letter that you read back to Leo: “Sam, yes, you were clear. My eyes were open to the difficulties, the risks, but my answer is the same as it was when you were still here with me. No one understands me the way you do; no one can.” Then you looked up at Leo. “It’s like I could’ve written these.”<br>
He smiled. “I wish you had.”<br>
“What would it have changed?” you asked, fatalistically.

Then you noticed a different letter. “Leo, looks like this one is about our water demon! Listen to this: ‘You can’t be with me up at the lake. This demon is too strong, and I can’t risk losing you, not for myself or the others you protect. They must as always come first. You know I’d never face this demon if I didn’t think I’d be home in time for dinner to see my girls, to see you’.” You looked up, tears in your eyes. “She never came home. When did this happen? Where was Dad?”<br>
“It was after your father left. It’s not why he left, Piper,” and you nodded, understanding. “Your sisters need to know about Sam, your Mom, Piper.”<br>
You nodded. “And if this demon is as strong as she thought, then they’re going to need me, need the Power of Three. But how do we get there in time to--” and then you thought of something. “Can you? Can you take me there? I mean, is that breaking the rules?”<br>
He shrugged with a sad smile. “What rules haven’t we already broken? I’ll have to hold you.”<br>
So you two stood up, held onto each other and he orbed you both out.


Meanwhile, I’d used the powder to keep the kids out of the lake, by telling the kids to go to bed, thinking, “Land, good! Water, bad! Land, good! Water, bad!”, but we were still trying to figure out how to vanquish the demon.

When Sam came out to join us, Prue looked at him. “It’s time, Sam. We need to know. How was Mom gonna vanquish it?"

“I don’t know!” he cried out. “I failed! I lost her! Isn’t that enough?”<br>
Just then you two orbed in. You looked very pale. “Whoa, that felt really…all right, oh, lying down now,” and we helped you sit down on a beachchair.

“What are you doing here?” Prue asked.

“He loved her,” you said, staring at Sam.

“What?” I cried. “Who loved who? What is she talking about?”<br>
“Sam,” said Leo. Then he turned and looked at Sam. “We found the letters, Sam.”<br>
“Patty and I…”

You finished, looking at Leo, not Sam, “--fell in love.”<br>
“In the letters she told you to stay away,” Leo was still looking at Sam. “Not to go to the lake.”<br>
“But I did,” Sam told us. “I wouldn’t have for anyone else. But I should’ve followed the rules, not fallen in love. I never would’ve been there. I never would’ve distracted her, and she never would’ve died,” and there were tears in his eyes.

For the first time, I felt some sympathy for this man who lost our mother. “You loved her,” I said softly, “and you blame yourself.”<br>
“Don’t you blame me?!” he yelled. “Every day I wake up, and for just a second, just a second, I think maybe it didn’t happen! Yes, I blame myself!”<br>
Prue smiled at Leo. “We have to see passed our emotions to deal with this, Sam. So do you.”<br>
“Even so, it doesn’t change the fact that I didn’t see it happen. I tried to warn her and she froze me.”<br>
“Why?” asked Leo.

But you already knew, as you continue to smile sadly at Leo. “Because she was trying to protect him.”<br>
That got Sam mad. “Protecting was supposed to be my job! I couldn’t help her; I don’t know how I can help you; I didn’t see what happened!"

Prue took a deep breath. “I know somebody who can see anything," and she looked straight at me!

“Oh, no!” I cried, as I realized Prue’s intent. “Wait a minute! You tiptoe around the subject of Mom; you deny looking like her; you can’t even go to the end of that dock because you’re afraid to walk in her footsteps, and now you want me to relive her last moments? How is that fair?”<br>
“It’s not,” Prue said softly. “None of this is. Mom’s death; Sam’s guilt. But I’m asking you to help me end it.”<br>
We stared at each other for a long time before I finally walked over to Sam and held out my hands. He took them and immediately I was hit by a premonition, but more like a retrocognition, since I was seeing the past.

I saw Mom kneeling on the dock. She was grabbing something. Suddenly Sam came running towards her.

“Patty!” he cried. “Look out!”<br>
I watched as Mom turned and froze him. As she did, the water demon rose up, pouring water all over Mom, then actually into Mom. I could feel the thing drowning me--drowning Mom! So I forced myself out of it, still coughing hard, as I relived Mom’s death.

You guys managed to help me catch my breath back, then you asked. “Did you see her?”<br>
I nodded, tears in my eyes. “It entered her, and it drowned her from the inside.”<br>
That made all of us shudder, but somehow Prue managed to keep her emotions under control. “Phoebe, in your vision, what was Mom doing?”<br>
I tried to remember. “She was using something on the dock. Some... a wire?”<br>
“Power cable?” Leo asked.

You nodded. “Makes sense. Electricity is the only thing that separates water particles.”<br>
“So, what do we do differently?” I asked.

“Maybe nothing,” Prue suggested. She turned towards Sam. “Sam, would Mom’s plan have worked if she had finished it?”<br>
Sam nodded. “Absolutely.”<br>
You looked at him, confused. “But you said her power, my power, doesn't work against this demon.”<br>
“So that’s it,” as it struck me. “We use Mom’s plan with one difference. The witch at the end of the dock is not gonna be the one with the power to freeze.”<br>
Prue nodded. “It’s gonna be me.”<br>
We discussed for a bit how you would do it, then you asked, “Are you ready?”<br>
She nodded. “Yeah.”<br>
“You don’t have to do this,” Sam told you.

Prue shook her head. “Yes, I do.”<br>
“Just focus on the demon,” I suggested. “Not what this is about.”<br>
She looked at me. “Yeah, right”.

Sam grinned at Leo. “Forgot how good this feels,” as Prue began walking towards the dock.

“Really?” How’s it feel to be mortal?”<br>
Sam looked at him curiously, as you did, too. “Why would you want to know?”<br>
Then Sam saw that Prue was still standing at the start of the dock, staring at the water, unable to step on the dock and walk in Mom’s footsteps. Sam somehow realized that she couldn’t do it without help. So he walked up to her and took her hand. “Let’s go face our demons,” he said, and she nodded, so they walked onto the dock. Halfway down, Prue knelt down and picked up the power cables, then stood up, walking towards the end of the dock.

“OK, you in the water,” she called out, as she walked. “I know that you’ve been waiting for this. For me. Well, here I am, so come and get me! You took what matters most to me and as long as I live, you will never kill again!”<br>
The water started bubbling. but on the other side of the dock.

“Prue! Behind you!!” you cried as you began running towards that side of the dock.

“Piper!” Leo cried out, terror in his voice. “Wait!” so you spun and froze Leo, before continuing to run, me now at your heels.

[Nite Owl]

Just then the water demon rose up from under the water and began spraying Prue!

“No!” cried Sam, as he shoved Prue out of the way. “Not her! Take me!” and the water swept over Sam like a wave. “Stay back!” he warned. ‘It’s in me!”<br>
Although the demon tried to make Sam jump off the dock, he grabbed for the cable instead, so Prue tossed them to him. Then he smiled at Prue and yelled, “NOW!” and Prue used her power to trip the on-switch.

We screamed as electricity lit up Sam’s body, making him shiver and shake and jump as he screamed in agony, finally dropping to the dock, his eyes closed, obviously in great pain.

“NO!” cried Prue, as she ran to him. “No, Sam!”<br>
You and I ran up to him just as Leo unfroze, still calling to you to stop.

Sam managed to open his eyes. Very weakly, he told us, “It’s gone. We did it. It’s gone.”<br>
“Leo!” I cried. “Do something!”<br>
So Leo ran up, knelt down next to Sam and put his hands over him. His hands turned golden, but no part of Sam turned golden.

“What?” cried Prue, shocked and scared. ”Why isn’t anything happening?”<br>
And you gave Leo a sad look. “Because it’s not meant to,” and he returned it.

“It’s OK,” Sam told us. “It’s time to go.”<br>
“No!” cried Prue, refusing to admit that.

“I did what I’ve been waiting to do,” he told us proudly. “I kept it from happening again. I saved Patty’s daughters. History won’t repeat itself.”<br>
“But you’re going,” I cried, tears rolling down my face.

Sam smiled. “I’m gonna see Patty again!” Then he turned to Leo. “Don’t lose her.”<br>
Suddenly he looked off in the distance and a glow came onto his face. “Patty? PATTY!” and when we looked off, we could also see Mom’s ghost floating above the lake, smiling at all of us, proudly, lovingly.

“Say hi for me,” Prue said with a smile, then looked at you and me. “For us,” and we nodded.

But before he could answer, we watched Sam’s eyes close and his chest stop moving. Before we could start to cry, we rejoiced, because we could now see Sam’s spirit standing next to Mom’s, ecstatically happy smiles on both of their faces. He took her hand, then they both waved at us before they disappeared.

Later you and I were sitting in the living room. You were sitting on the couch, putting calomine lotion on your poisin ivy, while I was sitting lotus-style on the floor next to the coffee-table, sticking Mom’s letters into a photo album.

I looked up after putting one in the book to smile at you. “At least fighting this demon came with a consolation prize. I mean, it didn’t bring Mom back, but these brought her closer.”<br>
You smiled. “It’s a good idea, Phoebs. Making a journal out of Mom’s letters.”<br>
“Yeah, not as good as the real thing though.”<br>
You smiled sadly. “Nothing ever is.” Just then you looked towards the kitchen with a strange look on your face. “Um, tea. You want some tea? I’m gonna go get some.”<br>
“Sure,” I replied, wondering what was happening. So I waited until you left, then followed you, stopping at the kitchen door. Leo must’ve orbed in and motioned you to come, because he said, “I don’t want to interrupt.”<br>
You replied, “I think I can steep and talk at the same time. Do you want any?”<br>
“It’s just this, this whole situation you know, Sam, your Mom, those letters. He loved her. Like I love you,” and my heart ached for him.

You sighed impatiently. “Leo, we’ve been through this before. We both know how we feel, but there are things, people, involved now.”<br>
So Leo came right out and asked, “Can you tell Dan the truth, Piper?” and I wondered, too.

But you didn’t answer either of us. “That’s between him and me. You and I have a job to do, and I thought that we agreed to try and put that first.”<br>
“So did Sam and your Mom. Look at the outcome,” he pointed out. “I thought I was going to have to watch you die. Like Sam, I couldn’t stand to see that happen.”<br>
Oh, no, I thought, as you spoke my thoughts out loud. “You’re leaving, aren’t you? For good this time?"

“I don’t know. But I do know we have to stop working together, because I can’t stop loving you. Which means I can’t do my job.”<br>
You nodded. “And I can’t do mine. I don’t know how to say goodbye.”<br>
He smiled, “Then don’t,” and he orbed out.

Tears began to form in your eyes when there was a knock at the back door. You opened it and there was Dan, holding a tray with two bowls of cereal on it.

“Dan, what are you doing at the back door?” you asked.

“Well, when I knock on the front door I never seem to make it over the threshhold. Hungry?” Then he saw the look on your face. “Are you OK?”<br>
“I am just…I’m fine,” you replied, although your voice said otherwise.

“Are you sure?” he asked. “I mean, you can tell me,” unconsciously reflecting Leo’s words, as I thought, “No, you can’t.”<br>
But you smiled at him. “I know, I’m just not very hungry.”<br>
“C’mon,” he cajoled. “Give it a try,” as he ate a Froot Loop and lifted one towards your mouth..

You smiled at him, “OK, I’ll give it a try,” and as you let him into the kitchen, I knew you didn’t just mean the Froot Loop.

[Nite Owl]

And with Leo gone, perhaps permanently, or so we thought, Dan definitely made his move. A couple weeks after the Froot Loop experience, you and I were sitting at the table, eating breakfast, planning our day, when you walked in, carrying a bag, an ecstatic smile on your face.

“Oh, look who it is,” I cried, pretending to be surprised.

“Morning,” you repled, dreamily.

I told you hi, then turned to Prue. “Do you recognize that person?”<br>
Prue shook her head, going along with the joke. “I don’t know, she looks vaguely familiar. Kinda like a sister we used to have. What was her name? Pi…P…<br>“<br>“Pi…,” I repeated, pretending to think, “Pippy?”<br>
“Pipper?” she asked.

I scratched my head. “Whatever happened to her?”<br>
Prue shrugged. “I don’t know. She fell in lust with the next-door neighbor, started spending all her time there.”<br>
And we could tell how happy you were because nothing we said even fazed you. You just smiled, “That’s because she could, because for the first time in months, her life has been nice and calm and normal. I don’t even care that it’s Friday--”<br>
““Shh!” I interrupted. “Don’t even say it!

But you did. “The 13th,” you finished, then smiled. “See, I said it and nothing happened.”<br>
And it didn’t for about fifteen seconds, because suddenly someone started shooting through the windows of the house! We screamed and ran passed the dining room, into the living room. Prue and I dove behind the couch, while you stayed on the other side of the room.

I shook my finget at you. “I told you not to say it!”<br>
“Oh, so this is my fault?” you groused.

“Run!” Prue cried

“No!” you protested.

So I yelled, “Get your a$$ over here right right now!”<br>
Prue looked at me respectfully as you rans passed the table and froze the bullets and glass that were coming towards you. You dove behind the couch next to us. No sooner did you than the shooting stopped, so we peeked over the top of the couch, but the shooting stated again, so we ducked behind the couch again, and the shooting stopped again.

“Since when do demons use bullets?” I wondered.

“Maybe it’s not a demon,” you suggested.

“Who else would want to kill us?” Prue wanted to know.

“Well, you know,” I told her, “You were a little sharp to the mailman yesterday; we all know how testy they can be.”<br>
She was about to retort, when we heard the door knob on the front door rattling.

“I’ll freeze,” you declared.

I nodded, “I’ll kick.”<br>
Prue nodded, “And I’ll send flying,” and you and I nodded.

We waited for the door to open, but then a woman came up behind us, coming out of the dining room, carrying a gun. She fired at us, but you spun around and froze the bullets, and then Prue used her power to make them fly back at the woman, hitting her in the chest, and down she went. We ran over to her, starting at the blood pouring out of the wound.

“Oh, my God!” cried Prue in shock and horror. “She’s not a demon!” She checked her pulse. "And she's dead!"

You grabbed her purse and dumped it out on the table. There were a number of wallets. I checked them and told you guys, “Multiple aliases and foreign currency.”<br>
You nodded. “Throwing stars.”<br>
Prue wound up the lipstick and a blade popped up. “Not exactly Avon calling.”<br>
You picked up a key with a tag on it. “ ‘Sutro Heights Apartments.’ " you read. “That’s a little scary. She didn’t live too far from here.”<br>
“What’s even scarier,” I put in, “Is that we’ve never been attacked by a mortal before.”<br>
Prue still look shooked-up. “Yeah, I’ve never killed a mortal before either.”<br>
I put my arm around her. “Prue, you had no choice.”<br>
She shrugged. “Still doesn’t make it any easier.”<br>
You’d been looking through the woman’s planner and now asked, “Does it make it easier if the mortal was a hit woman?”<br>
Prue looked to see what you had found. “A list of names. So?”<br>
“Yeah, look closer,” you told her. “We’re on it. Or at least one of us is. ‘P. Halliwell’, and other than a "M. Steadwell", we’re the only other name not crossed off.”<br>
“A hit woman,” Prue said, trying to assimilate it. “Someone obviously hired her.”<br>
You’d still been flipping through the book. Now you nodded. “Worse than that, someone who knew we have powers. I mean, look!” and you handed her the book..

Prue read, “Prue – Telekinesis, Piper – Power to freeze, Phoebe – Negligible.”<br>
“What?” I cried, insulted on behalf of my beloved premonitions. “Negligible?!”<br>
You nodded. “Well, that explains why she drove us to the front door and surprised us from behind.”<br>
But Prue was still confused. “So, why would a demon hire a mortal to kill us. It doesn’t make sense.”<br>
We couldn’t make any sense out of it either, but we soon would.

Later, I was coming in through the kitchen, when I heard noises. With me was our latest innocent, Marcy Steadwell, the M. Steadwell on the hit woman’s list. She was a witch-wanna be, who was very excited to find some real ones. I now motioned her to stay put. Sneaking around the corner, I saw Dan looking at the broken window. You were standing close by, holding the phone.

“I can have my crew install some temporary windows some time by tonight,” he told you.

You smiled, “Great, thanks.”<br>
“You waiting for a call?” he asked, and I wondered, too.

You nodded. “Yeah, I'm just a little worried about Prue.”<br>
He smiled. “I wouldn’t blame you after what happened. What makes you think it was a drive-by?”<br>
You shrugged. “Um, I don’t know. A wild guess, I guess.”<br>
Then he turned towards you. “I want you to move in with me.”<br>
“Huh?” you asked, surprised and confused, and I had to bite my tongue not to cry out in surprise.

He nodded. “At least until the permanent windows are installed. If it’s your sisters you’re worried about, they can move in too. Since Jenny moved back with her folks. there’s just plenty of room.”<br>
But you weren’t so sure. “Uh, I don’t know if that’s such a great idea. Some of us don’t wear pajamas.” Pajamas? What were they, I wondered.

“I’m serious. Because if things worked out, maybe you could stay permanently. If you wanted to.”<br>

[Nite Owl]

“What about me?” Marcy asked, scared.

“Who’s that?” you called.

Rats! I wanted to hear your answer! But shrugging, I called out, “Piper?”<br>
“In here!” you called, before telling Dan, “I don’t know what to say,” and he replied, “Say you’ll think about it,” just as Marcy and I walked in.

“Oh,” cried Marcy. “Is he a war--” But before she could finish, you froze both her and Dan.”<br>
“Who’s she?” you asked.

“Would you believe M. Steadwell. How’s Dan?”<br>
You shrugged. “Just asked me to move in. Where’s Morris?”<br>
“Uh, he’s at the morgue putting the hit woman’s body under Marcy’s name. Where’s Prue?”<br>
“Way overdue. She’s assuming the identity of the hit woman.”<br>
I was shocked. “She’s what?!”<br>
You nodded. “Yeah, and guess what. She’s got a new power; she can astral-project now.”<br>
“Are you kidding me?” I cried.

“Nope.”<br>
“Are you kidding me?” I asked, wanting to be sure.

But you still insisted. “Nope.”<br>
“I hate her!” I cried, seething with jealousy that she got a new active power and I didn’t have one, only one that was counted as neglible.

“I know,” you said, sympathetically. “All right, I’m gonna send Dan home; you keep Marcy in the house until this is all over.”<br>
“Yeah, all right,” I agreed. “Then we’ll talk,” and you agreed.

But even when you came back from P3, Prue wasn’t back yet, and we were starting to get seriously worried. Marcy wasn’t helping matters any, dancing around the Manor, singing strange songs that was supposed to be giving the Manor protection, but was only driving my ears nutty. What else didn’t help us was that Prue had found out that all three of us were on the list, and that after we were dead, that would fulfill Ms. Hellfire's contract--13 dead witches by midnight Friday the 13th!

Marcy finally crossed the line when she ran through the Manor waving a smoking cigar-shaped object, singing,:

“Save your sisters, moon,
With your protective beans.
Give all who dwell within this spell,
Sweet days and sweet dreams.”<br>
“Okay,” you declared, “That's all, folks,” and you froze Marcy.

I sighed with relief. “Who knew perky could be so annoying?”<br>
“How long do you think we can keep her like this?” you wanted to know.

I shrugged. “Your power, your call.” Then I wanted to know, “Hey, did you reach Prue?”<br>
You shook your head. “No, she's still not answering her cell. She really should've checked in by now.”<br>
Just then the doorbell rang. “Ooh,” I cried. “Maybe that's her.”<br>
You gave me a “Yeah, right” look before asking, “Ringing the bell?”<br>
I shrugged. “Well, maybe she lost her keys. Right, Marcy?” since that--casting a spell to find lost objects--was another spell she’d tried, but of course, the frozen witch-wannabe couldn’t answer.

Meanwhile you opened the door. There stood Dan, holding a long plank.

“Dan,” you cried.

He grinned, “Hey, Piper,” as he walked inside.

“Uh, Dan,” you cried. “Wait.”<br>
He shook his head. “I wanted to bring this over, than leave it with my crew. I'm having trouble finding enough plywood,” as I walked into the foyer. “Hey, Phoebe,” he greeted.

“Hey, Dan,” I replied before coming close to you as I said, “Piper, don't forget about the” and I mumbled “almost-unfrozen Marcy.”<br>
You nodded, so Dan asked, “Is this not a good time?”<br>
“Never!” you cried, but quickly corrected yourself. “I mean, always. Why don't you come in? Here, let me help you,” as you took the plank.

“No,” he cried, “I got it,” but you carried it into the living room. “Piper!” he cried. “I got it. Piper!”<br>
I giggled as I walked back into the conservatory where a frozen Marcy was standing, covered by the blanket. I took off the blanket and waited for her to unfreeze.

No sooner did she than she began singing again, “Put those who dwell underneath this room.”<br>
“Okay, you know, Marcy,” I told her, “There's lots of rooms that need protecting upstairs.”<br>
But Marcy wasn’t quite the ditz I thought she was. “Wait a minute, where did Piper go?”<br>
Thinking quick, I told her, “Oh, she just cast a little spell of her own,” and she cried out in delight, as I led her towards the foyer and the stairs. “Yes, lots of rooms upstairs, honey. Quietly, quietly.”<br>
And as she floated up the stairs, I went near the the living room.

“So, how you doing?” Dan wanted to know.

“Fine.” you replied. “It wasn't that heavy."

“No,” he replied. “I'm talking about everything.”<br>
“Oh, I'm fine with that too. I'm just actually a little stressed. But everything's gonna be okay.”<br>
“So have you thought anymore about my offer?” and the silence told me that you didn’t know what to say. “Hey, you know what?” he said gently. “ I don't wanna push you.”<br>
“I know. It's just every time I think I have something figured out, things tend to shift.”<br>
“What things?” he wanted to know. “Hey, you just let me know when you're ready.” and I heard you two kiss, before sending him on his way..

Well, it was a bit dicier than usual, since the demon, Barbas, the demon of fear whom we had vanquished before but had somehow come back, figured out that Prue was fibbing about being Ms. Hellfire. Since Prue had conquered her fear of drowning like Mom the last time we ran into Barbas and since he now knew her greatest fear was losing a sister, he cast a spell on her to think that demons were after you and me, and they’d disguised themselves as us!! She almost actually killed us, but we managed to convince her that we were truly her sister before we had the supreme pleasure of vanquishing Barbas’ a$$ again and seeing Darryl Morris arrest his accomplice, a gorgeous guy named Bane, who’d obviously made an impression on Prue.

Later, you and I were cleaning the windows.

“Dan did a really good job with these windows.” I said, before teasingly looking at you. “He is obviously very good with his hands.”<br>
You grinned back. “Hey, hands off those hands!”<br>
“So, did you decide whether or not you're gonna move in with him?” I wanted to know.

You smiled. “I have to admit it's very tempting.”<br>
I also shrugged, trying to look happy for you. “Yeah, well, you gotta do what you gotta do. And you deserve to be happy. And don't worry about us, we'll be fine,” then I perked up. “Especially if I get your room.”<br>
You smiled. “Yes, you could have my room,” and I looked at you in amazement. You were going to do it! Then you added with a grin, "That is if I was moving out.”<br>
“Oh, you're not gonna move out?” and I sighed with relief as I hugged you. “Oh, that is so good, because you need to be with your sisters just a little while longer!”<br>
You smiled. “I adore Dan, but it's just way too soon for me to move in with him. There's just a few things I need to figure out first. Are you happy now?”<br>
I smiled back, “I'm delirious. Thank you.”<br>