Charmed by Love 1--The Beginning (Completed

[mcharmed21]

Author: Esmeralda

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters; they are all products of the WB and belong to them and Aaron Spelling Productions. This story was not written for profit, and is only to be read by visitors to thecharmedones.com's Charmed Cafe. Also, all plot points and most of the conversations come directly from episodes of the TV show Charmed, owned by the WB. Only Phoebe's thoughts come from my own imagination. Also some scenes are slightly changed to help the story go more smoothly.

(This takes place right after Oh, My Goddess!)

Piper! This is your sister Phoebe writing to you. I’ve been watching you the last couple of days, and I know there’s something wrong, something terribly wrong. You keep acting as if nothing’s wrong, as if everything is just great, but it’s not! Piper, Leo is gone! He’s really gone and this time, he’s not coming back! Ever! After having been guided by our Whitelighter for five years, he’s been snatched from us and made into an Elder, not only an Elder, but the Chief Elder!

Yes, Piper, you’re right--it is a great promotion, one we know he couldn’t turn down, and I know that you’re strong and that you’ll be able to raise young Wyatt as a single mother, especially because Wyatt has two doting aunties more than willing to help out, but I also know how very much you love Leo and how much you and Leo had to go through in order to become husband and wife and become parents of that adorable little boy.

And yet, Piper, you’ve been so very calm, so very serene. You’ve hardly mentioned Leo at all or even how much he helped us develop as the Charmed Ones, the most powerful good witches ever. It’s almost as if your pain has been taken away. I didn’t know who did that, but I also know that whoever did that did you no favor, because this isn’t your way, Piper--you fight! The way you fought when they tried to take Leo away from you before. The way you fought when our big sister Prue was taken from us. Now I’m afraid that the Elders have taken away that pain by taking away all of those memories of all those things that you and Leo have gone through. You must admit, Piper, that’s exactly the sort of thing the Elders would do; they fought your and Leo’s union from the start, because witches and Whitelighters aren’t supposed to get together like that.

And yet I know you would want to remember, to treasure what happened. I also know that you would want to save those memories, so you can later tell Wyatt all about his daddy and how very much he loves both him and his Mommy.

I was going to simply tell you all about this, but I don’t trust Chris, our new Whitelighter. Maybe it’s simply that he’s not Leo, but there’s something about him I just don’t trust. Besides, maybe the Elders are right; I remember your reaction when Prue was taken away from us and wouldn’t want you to go through that again. So instead I’ve decided to write out the full story and then put it where I know you’ll find it eventually. I just hope that you’ll find it when the time is right.

I guess our story starts when I first came back to San Francisco. No, it starts earlier than that. It starts when Grams died.

You, me and our big sister Prue were living in the Halliwell Manor, a large old house that always seemed to be falling on our head, with our Grams, who had been raising us ever since our mother died when we three sisters were very young, so young that I didn’t even remember her at all, while you did a little, and Prue, who remembered the most, chose to forget most of it to keep her from the pain of losing Mom.

[mcharmed21]

Remember, Piper? Grams had just gotten back from the hospital after having a heart attack and wanted to take a picture, just one picture of her three girls. She didn’t choose a very good time.

I’d just been caught shop-lifting (hey, they were the perfect pair of shoes and I had to have them!) Prue was getting ready to get married and moving out; and you were depressed about becoming stuck at the Manor for the rest of your life, doing nothing but taking care of me and Grams.

Shortly before that picture, you’d gone walking with Prue, and Prue had told you that she wanted you to be her maid of honor, because she and I didn’t get along--she was too goody-two-shoes for me, always doing what she was supposed to do, while I was too much of a free spirit for her, always doing what I wasn’t supposed to do. You were upset that you were going to be the maid of honor by default. While you were talking, you ran into a handsome young man, and you both shared a look--the first time you looked Leo Wyatt in the eyes. I wonder if even then Leo knew that we would become the Charmed Ones, that he would become our Whitelighter, and you two would share something special. I never got a chance to ask him, but it wouldn’t surprise me.

Anyway, Grams wanted her picture. We were standing on the steps outside the Manor, you between me & Prue, just like you always were. Grams wanted us to move just a little closer, and she wanted me to turn so she could get my good side, and you told her I didn’t have one that day.

You were right--I just wanted to get that picture over with. Prue wanted to know if I had plans and if it was anyone she knew, since she was still upset that I had called her fiance, Roger, the day before, just trying to be nice to the guy, considering he was going to be part of our family soon, when I wasn’t even sure I wanted to be part of our family, not then! Besides, I wanted to know, why would I want to spend my time on a wimp who had mother issues? That got Prue mad, as she wanted to know why she should believe me when I didn’t even know the difference between what belonged to me and what belonged to the shoe store.

I was all ready to stomp off, picture or no picture, when Grams suddenly gasped and grabbed her chest. We ran over to her, telling her to take shallow breaths and whether we should call a doctor and she told us, “No doctor. Just a picture. Is it too much for an old lady to ask her granddaughters to retract their claws, stand still and look at me long enough to take one lousy picture?"

So we stood on the steps, tried to smile, and Grams took the picture. It still sits on the table in the foyer, but we’re standing a lot closer than I remember standing when the picture was taken--proof of how close we’ve become as the Charmed Ones.

Well, that heart attack didn't take Grams that day, but another one took her the following one. A couple days later, after the funeral, we were in the living room. I wanted to know what we were doing about that thing that Grams was always concerned about--our future. The only reason we were still there together was because of her, and now Prue always had one foot out the door with her engagement and I knew you didn’t want to bunk with me any longer than you had to.

You didn’t want to discuss that right then, instead you suggested that we discuss it over dinner--you’d even make one of Grams’ favorite meals, since she always liked the idea of you being in the kitchen--but Prue was supposed to spend the night with Roger, and I’d decided that this was my perfect chance to leave. So I told you two that I was taking off, that I didn’t know what my future held, but it sure wasn’t in San Francisco. You both tried to talk me out of it, but I said we all knew that the only thing that I contributed to our threesome was trouble, so I was going to go see what New York thought of me. After all, Grams always said that we all had a purpose and maybe we’d have an easier time finding it out on our own.

[mcharmed21]

I knew that without Grams, the one who was always the glue who kept us together, that I couldn’t stand sticking around a sister who refused to believe that I’d done anything with her almost-husband--as if I ever would--not only was she my big sister, almost a mother-figure, who along with Grams had practically raised me, but I knew from the beginning that he was a creep who was only using Prue from the start. So I ran away to New York to try to find our father, Victor, who also left us when he left our mother. I know it wasn’t fair saddling you with the Manor, since Prue expected to be married to Roger soon, but what can I say? I was very young and very foolish and very self-centered and didn’t know better.

Within months, I did--I lost my job, was broke, was homeless, so I turned to you, Piper, the only person whom I felt I could trust. You told me that Prue was talking about finding a roommate to help share expenses, and after all, Grams had willed the Manor to all three of us. So I came home in the middle of a thunderstorm. Remember, Piper?

When I walked into the door, you and Prue were looking at something she found in the basement when she went looking for the fuse box to try to fix the entryway chandelier. It was our old spirit board that Mom had left us. We never knew what the inscription on the back meant:

“To my three beautiful girls.
May this give you the light to find the Shadows.
The Power of Three Shall Set You Free.
Love, Mom”<br>

Prue wasn’t thrilled about my coming home, but thanks to your loving mediation, I was allowed into the Manor, if not accepted.

Later, you and I were playing with the spirit board, asking typical questions like whether you’d get the chef job you’d be auditioning for the next day or whether Prue, who was no longer engaged to Roger, but still working for him, would have sex with anyone but herself that year. As always, you accused me of pushing the pointer, something I never did, since I was sure you were the one pushing it.

The news was on TV in the background, and there was a story about a serial killer, who was murdering young women, young women who all practiced Wicca--white witchcraft.

You pointed to the reporter, “That’s my boyfriend, Jeremy.”<br>
“Yummy, he’s hot! Are the roses on the table in the entryway from him?”<br>
“Yes, along with the bottle of port, the special ingredient for my audition recipe tomorrow.”<br>
“Now that’s what you call a thoughtful boyfriend. When did you meet him?”<br>
“In the hospital cafeteria the day Grams was admitted. He was working on a story and I was bawling over a bagel, so he handed me a napkin.”<br>
“Oh, how romantic!”<br>
“Yeah, it was. The napkin had his phone number on it,” and I laughed.

Then you glanced at the television again. “Hey, speaking of boyfriends, look at the inspector who’s talking with Jeremy--isn’t that Prue’s old boyfriend, Andy? I thought he was still in Portland. I wonder what he’s doing back in San Francisco and whether Prue knows he’s back.”<br>
I looked at Andy on the screen and drooled! I'd forgotten how gorgeous he was! Hey, as long as Prue was interested in dopey Roger, maybe I could get her ex interested in me!

Then you stood up. “I’m going to make us some popcorn. Why don’t you ask the board about Prue and sex again.”<br>
“Oh, yeah,” and as you walked toward the kitchen, for once, I really did try to push that pointer toward “Yes”, but it suddenly started moving all on its own! I was hardly touching it at all! It spelled AT!

I yelled and both you and Prue came running. I explained what had happened, but neither of you would believe me, again accusing me of pushing it. When I tried to show you two, it stayed put until you both turned your backs. Prue walked away, but as you watched, it started moving again, and I wasn’t even touching it at all!

We yelled for Prue, who was still very cynical, especially when I showed her what it spelled: ATTIC. I was all set to run upstairs, but she told me that that was impossible--the door had been locked from the inside for as long as even she could remember.

[mcharmed21]

But I didn’t care. Nope, not impulsive, act-first/think-later Phoebe! I climbed up the steps and tried to open the door. I tried and tried, but couldn’t get it to open. Admitting that Prue was right, I started to walk away, when I heard something. I turned back and there was the door, wide open! Not only that, but a ray of light was shining on a trunk sitting near the window!

Yes, Piper, I should’ve gone and told you and Prue, but especially after the way she wouldn't believe me about the pointer, I decided otherwise. Besides, I was drawn to that chest, wanting to know what whoever was using the spirit board to communicate with us--Mom? Grams?--wanted us to find. I opened the chest to find a big, old dusty book. I picked it up and blew off the dust. On its leather cover was a strange symbol, three arches surrounded by a large circle. I opened the cover to read its title: The Book of Shadows. Flipping the title page, I found a page decorated with beautiful illustrations and words in an old, flowing ornate script. I read the words aloud:

“Hear now the words of the witches,
The secrets we hid in the night.
The oldest of gods are invoked here.
The great work of magic is sought.
In this night and in this hour,
I call upon the ancient power.
Bring your powers to we sisters three.
We want the power. Give us the power.”<br>
Power? What power? I’d always felt so powerless, to receive some power, something I could share with my sisters, sound wonderful. But wasn’t it just some crazy poem? I didn’t feel any different, nor was there any strange manifestations. But when I closed the book, that symbol had changed. Now all of those arcs intersected with each other and the outer circle was now inside the arcs, joining them. Yes! We would later discover that it was called a Triquetra, and it was our own special symbol, showing how even though we each had our own power, joined together, nothing could stand against us!

I ran downstairs, yelling to you two. You and Prue came running into the room, wondering what I was doing up there and what had I done. We met at the chandelier, that one that Prue couldn’t fix--now it was shaking and glowing with light! Now I knew for sure that the poem was a spell and it had worked! We were witches and we had powers! Great powers!

But once again you two refused to believe me. Prue was infuriated that I had included her in this and marched out.

You wanted to know if anything had happened when I said the incantation.

“Of course. My head spun around and I spat out split-pea soup. But the symbol on the book changed and you said the chandelier came on.” But you also shook your head and left, insisting that witches don’t exist and those things could be explained.

But now I knew better. I stayed up all night reading that Book, more fascinated by every page. It said that there were three main essentials for magic--timing, feelings, and the phases of the moon. Were we to receive our powers, the moment I spoke the incantation--the most powerful time of all--midnight of a full-moon--was the best time.

I then read about one of our ancestors, Melinda Warren, a powerful good witch who could move things with her mind, freeze time, and see into the future. Before she was burnt at the stake, she vowed that every generation of Warren witches would become more powerful and more powerful with the culmination of three sisters who would be the most powerful witches the world had ever known, with each one endowed with one of her three powers.

[mcharmed21]

When I told you about it the next morning as you prepared to leave for your audition, you admitted. “Hey, Phoebs, last night was pretty weird, but we aren’t witches and we don’t have powers. After all, Grams wasn’t a witch and neither was Mom, to our knowledge. So take that, Nancy Drew.”<br>
Even when I told you that we were the protector of the innocent and known as the Charmed Ones, you drove off.

But we are the Charmed Ones, and we do have powers. You found out about yours when your prospective boss entered the kitchen before you could add Jeremy’s port. He was all ready to take a bite, which would ruin your audition! You raised your arms in protest, and everything froze--your boss, the clock, even the bubbling of your sauce! Once you figured it out, you grabbed a turkey baster and added the port to the food on his fork just before he unfroze, and won the job.

While you were telling me about this on the phone, Jeremy came up behind you to offer his congratulations and ask you out for a celebration dinner and you agreed.

In my excitement, I jumped on my bike and began riding, wondering which power was mine, hoping I could move things with my mind--what a cool power that would be!--when suddenly something flashed in my mind, like a dream, but so much more real--a big, black car, slamming into two boys on skateboards. No sooner did the scene fade from my mind than I spot a black car coming up over a hill, heading full-speed toward an intersection! And over there were two boys on skateboards, heading toward the same intersection, doing tricks, not looking!

“NO! STOP!” I yelled as I skidded my bike in front of the boys, stopping them as the car swerved in front of us. But I conked my head and ended in a hospital with a mild concussion and scratches.

Prue came to get me. As she waited, she ran into her ex-boyfriend, Inspector Andy Trudeau, who was still working on that case, and bought her a “cup of rotten coffee.”<br>
Later, as Prue treated me to a cup of good coffee at a restaurant, she apologized to me about Roger--he’d shown himself to be the bastard I knew he was, and she was now unemployed.

She laughed, remembering how the fountain pen that he always waved at people to make his point, suddenly split in his shirt pocket, drenching his white pocket with blue ink.

“You did it!” I exclaimed. “You moved the cap and made the ink spatter his pocket! You can move things with your mind!”<br>
She firmly shook her head, saying, “You might think you can see into the future, but I do not have special powers. Now where’s that cream?”<br>
And the pitcher of cream moved, Piper, it moved all on its own to sit next to Prue’s cup! Oh, Piper, you should’ve seen the look on our unflappable big sister’s face as I told her, “Well, that looks pretty special to me!” and when the cream moved from the pitcher to her coffee, she had to agree.

Unfortunately, becoming witches had its drawbacks, as I explained to Prue on our way back to her car. “While I was looking through the Book of Shadows, I saw these pictures. All of these incarnations of evil battling three women, three witches.”<br>
“Evil battling evil. That’s a twist.”<br>
“Actually a witch can be either good or evil. Good witches follow the Wiccan reid: “And it harms none, do what you will.” A bad witch, a warlock, has but one goal, to kill good witches and obtain their powers.”<br>
At that exact moment, you were discovering just how true those words were as you ran into our first warlock--Jeremy! Your boyfriend was the one who killed all of those other women! As he raised an athame, a ceremonial knife, his face and his voice changed, and he told you, “I knew when the old witch died that you would come into your powers as soon as you were all united. So when Phoebe came home, I knew I could now claim them as mine!”<br>
Fortunately you first used your power to freeze time and then a board across his head to escape and hurry home. We used his roses and other ingredients to cast a spell to vanquish him, but when I picked up the bowl we were using, I had another flash--Jeremy, thorns sticking out of his body, but still alive, still coming after us! Only when Prue remembered the words on the back of the spirit board and we all joined hands and chanted those words, “The Power of Three shall set us free” over and over no matter what Jeremy threw at us was he finally truly vanquished.

That’s when we all finally accepted that we were not only witches, but witches who would have to stick together. As you put it, “That should be interesting.”<br>
And it was.

[mcharmed21]

We quickly discovered that the Book of Shadows, now activated by my incantation, was a magnet for evil beings, all who wanted its power--and ours--for themselves. But it also attracted very good beings. We didn’t know it at the time, but some very good beings (or so we would think when we first found out about them--now I’m not so sure!) were watching over us and had sent one very special being to be our guide and protector (and we can at least thank them for that, I guess!).

Do you remember the very first time we met Leo Wyatt, Piper? I sure do.

Some evil shape-shifters tore down the door to the attic, trying to get to the Book, so we decided to call for a handyman. Then we got so caught up with the shape-shifters that we never did, so when you announced that the handyman was here, I guess we each thought one of the other two had called. I expected some old guy, so I was very pleased when you led a very sexy, very handsome young man into our home, and I admit it, Piper, I drooled! Hey, how was I to know he’d end up with you----at that point, I just wanted him to end up with me, even if only very temporarily, since at this time I was a lot more interested in having fun than having a serious relationship--I’d decided to save that for you, who was always the romantic of the family, or Prue, who was starting to go out with Andy again (And, yes, I was a good girl--I never made a play for him once they did) But looking at those hands and imagining them all over me, WOW!

And when he mentioned that there weren’t very many houses left like our home and you told him it was falling apart and he replied, “The problem isn’t the Manor, but the manner in which it was treated!”, I think we were all three hooked over this guy who felt the same way about our home as we did!

And when he wanted to see more, I gladly led him up the steps toward the broken attic door, even when I could feel your glare. But don’t kill me, Piper--I didn’t keep his attention for long--I wonder if even then he remembered seeing you that day before Grams died and had already fallen for you!

I’ll admit that I continued to flirt with him, but I’ll also admit that I did it more to get your goat and to help you get over Jeremy, because I quickly realized that I didn’t even have a chance. And when Prue cast a truth-spell, that’s exactly what I told you.

But I wasn’t the only one to take advantage of the truth-spell, which forced anyone to answer any question truthfully--us included. You later told me and Prue that when Leo came into the kitchen, looking for a fresh cup of coffee after spilling his first cup on his shirt, you decided to find out whether he felt the same way toward you as you did about him, so you asked him if you could ask him a question.

Man, were Prue & I proud of you--our shy, introverted Piper willing to ask a guy such a thing??!!! And, man, did we laugh when you admitted, (remember--we were all still under that truth-spell!) that at first you chickened out and asked, “Do you need another shirt?” and he replied that he had another one in his truck.

But somehow you found the courage (probably from knowing that at 8 PM that night--24 hours after Prue cast her spell--Leo would forget what he’d say), so you told him that wasn’t the question that you wanted to ask and instead it was, “Do you ever think of me?” and when he admitted he did, you asked, “In what way? As a friend sort of way or--” but before you could finish, he said, “You have beautiful eyes.”<br>
Prue & I cheered, but you really surprised us when we asked you to continue, because you admitted that after he apologized for saying something totally inappropriate, you decided, “Oh, what the hell. Leo, how do you feel about women who make the first move?”<br>

[mcharmed21]

“You didn’t!” cried Prue and you blushed, admitting you had. We cheered, but then I had to ask, “So---what did he say?”<br>
Your face went redder remembering, but you still had to answer (that truth-spell thingie again). “He said he didn’t know because he was waiting for it to happen.”<br>
“What happened next!” I cried, knowing you’d have to spill.

Your face went even redder, but you blurted out, “What else could I do? I grabbed his face and kissed him for all I was worth!”<br>
Prue & I really celebrated that answer, high-fiving each other and hugging you, then Prue asked, “Well? How did he react?”

Now your embarrassment turned to pure joy. “Oh, Prue! He asked me how I felt about men who make the second move, so I told him I loved them and he kissed me even harder than I’d kissed him!” and now both Prue & I melted, going, “Ohhhh! How romantic!”<br>
Of course, as wonderful as this was, there was just one problem, well, actually two. First, shortly after 8, you ran into Leo at Quake, the restaurant where you had your audition and were now working, and he told you he had a very strong feeling that he’d done something that he should apologize to you for, but couldn’t remember what it was. You told him that there wasn’t, not at all and offered to buy him a drink. But that told you what we all feared--that now you knew how he felt about you, but he no longer knew how you felt about him, and once again you were afraid to tell him because of the other thing--something that Prue told us about.

The reason why Prue originally cast that spell was that she wanted to find out whether Andy would still want to date her even if he knew she was a good witch with powers and whose daughters would share that heritage. He didn’t think he could, so now you feared that our handyman might feel the same way, and you were too afraid to find out. Seeing how miserable Prue was, I didn’t blame you one bit.

The next time you saw Leo, he was under our counter, fixing our sink, while you and I admired the view he presented. We were discussing your job at Quake and happened to mention crab, so you asked Leo if he liked crab. So he asked if you wanted to know what he’d love.

Of course, we both wanted to know that that was.

“The, uh, ratchet extension. Could you hand it to me.”<br>
You agreed and looked in his toolbox, but was totally lost.

So I walked over and pulled out the ratchet extension, all set to hand it to him, but you grabbed it from me and handed it to Leo yourself, while I laughed. Frustrated with me, you tried to get me to leave, but no such luck. So you led me into the dining room, away from Leo.

“Stop it” you demanded.

“My sentiments exactly!” I replied. “Stop messing around and ask him out already. Give him some of your crabs.”<br>
“Don’t be disgusting!” you demanded.

So I demanded right back, “Don’t be so shy!”<br>
“What if he says no?” you asked, fear in your voice.

“Yeah,” I scoffed, “like that’ll happen.”<br>
“No,” you insisted, “I’m serious."

“So am I.”<br>
“I’m very serious.” Then you looked down at your feet, “I’ve never... you know...”<br>
“You are kidding, right?” I demanded.

You shook your head. “No.”<br>
I couldn’t believe it. “You’ve never asked a guy out before?”<br>
“Not on a real date, no.”<br>
“I don’t understand.” I grumbled. “Am I the only person in this family who's inherited the 'take a chance' gene?”<br>
“Probably. ‘Cause if I remember my biology correctly, it’s attached to the 'can’t mind my own business' gene.”

[mcharmed21]

I stuck my tongue out at you and then pushed you back into the kitchen, making sure that I left the door open far enough so I could watch. (Hey, if I’m going to play matchmaker, don’t I deserve the fun of seeing if it worked?!)

No sooner were you back in the kitchen than Leo came out from under the sink.

“Well, part of the pipe is stuck. I’m almost finished here.”<br>
“Terrific,” you replied, “Can I get you some tea?” as I silently cheered.

“Yeah, that’d be great.”<br>
So you got the pitcher of tea out of the fridge, just as I walked in asking what would be great. You replied “Nothing” just as I accidentally knocked the pitcher off the bench where you’d just set it down. Without even thinking, you quickly froze it before it fell on the floor. But after doing that, you were horrified that you had used your powers in front of a mortal. “Leo?” you asked.

I checked him out (in more ways than one!) “Frozen.” I replied, then raised my eyebrows at you. “Quick, have your way with him.”<br>
You raised your own eyes pleading for heavenly help. “Do you never stop?”<br>
I just laughed as you held a bucket under the still-frozen tea. “Looks like a Kodak moment to me.” as I pretended to take a few photos.

“Phoebe,” you sighed in frustration, “You’re such a big help.”<br>
I just laughed, telling you to smile as Leo and the tea unfroze.

Just then Prue walked in, warning us, “You guys, we have serious problems.”

But before she could let the witch's cat out of the magical bag, I pointed at Leo behind his back.

“Uh, hi, Leo.” Prue managed.

“Hey, Prue.” he replied with a smile.

Prue, still a little flustered, looked at you and me and said, “Hey, uh, sisters. Upstairs. Now.”

We followed Prue up to the attic where she told us about her morning.

While we were having fun trying to get you together with Leo, Prue’s new boss, Rex Buckland (who bought the auction house from Roger) brought a very old locket for Prue to catlogue. After he left and Prue opened the locket, a warlock dressed in 17th century clothes emerged from the locket. When Prue wanted to know who he was, he replied, “Matthew Tate, and if you freed me from that locket, you are descended from Melinda Warren.” and began walking towards her. So Prue used her power to make him fly across the room. But rather than being scared or angry, he was very pleased--by tricking Prue into using her power on him, he now had it himself! And then he used it to make a chair push her against the wall. He then disappeared and when she ran into the middle of the room, he appeared behind her--he could blink, a power he had stolen from another witch. He then grabbed her and wanted her to defend herself by stopping time. When Prue admitted that she couldn’t, he knew she was not alone, that there were others. Then he blinked so he was in front of her desk and lifted her nameplate. “And the family name is now Halliwell.”<br>
Just then Rex wanted to know if Prue was OK, so Matthew used Prue’s power to break the glass on the window before jumping out the window, floating down to the ground, landing on his feet and walking away.

Do you remember how scared we were when Prue told us about this, Piper? I was certain that our powers--and us--were truly goners this time!

But we knew we had to try to do something to stop this new evil, so we ran to the Book of Shadows. You asked Prue what did she say his name was, and she told us “Matthew Tate and somehow he knows that we’re related to Melinda Warren.”<br>
“The Book of Shadows Melinda?” I cried, shocked. “Our ancestor?”<br>
“The one who burned at stake and started this whole mess?” you asked.

Prue nodded, “Uh, he came out of the locket. And he has strong powers. Stronger than mine, I mean, he did the weirdest thing. One minute he was in front of me, the next he was behind me and then twelve stories down landed right on his feet.”<br>
I nodded. “If it walks like warlock, and talks like a warlock...”<br>
Prue shrugged that aside, “Yeah, well, he’s powerful and he means business. And he wants all three of our powers.”<br>
I asked if I could see the locket and Prue handed it to me. No longer did I open it than I gasped as a powerful premonition took over my mind. I could see a beautiful blonde woman, dressed in 17th century clothes, holding the locked and chanting, as a man that looked like the one Prue was talking about was sucked into the locket.

When I came back to myself and caught my breath, I told you two what I had seen, certain that the beautiful blonde I saw was Melinda Warren.

“You saw the past?” Prue asked as you cried out, “But you only see the future!"

I shrugged. “Not anymore.”<br>
Prue also shrugged. “We always knew that our powers would grow.”<br>
“Yes,” I replied wistfully, “But somehow I thought I was gonna get to fly,” and you two smiled.

[mcharmed21]

Later we found an old photo album. In it was the woman I had seen in my premonition, identified as Melinda Warren. I thought she was beautiful, while Prue thought she kind of looked like Mom. You had found another old book and now told us, “Listen to this: ‘And because the warlock had stolen her love, she cursed him into the pewter heart, where he could spend eternity knowing the sting of betrayal.’"

“That must be what I saw.” I cried.

“And I let him out early.” grumbled Prue. “Great.”<br>
“You’re not kidding.” you told her. “The legend says that the warlock must never be freed or he will destroy the Warren line. That’d be us.”<br>
“Yeah, well” I sighed resignedly, “he’ll have to take a number and get in line behind the others warlocks."

“We’ve never been up against anyone like him before.”<br>
“So, what do we do?” I asked, now getting scared.

You were scared, too. “I say we hide.”<br>
“No,” declared our big sister, always ready to fight rather than run. “We have to find out exactly what we’re up against. And we start with the locket and how it wound up on my desk.”<br>
We headed back to the coservatory where Prue was going to call Rex Buckland.

There was Leo watching TV. “Hey, Prue, your work’s on the news, check it out.”<br>
We listened to the reporter. “This morning witnesses claim they saw a man fall twelve stories. He got up and walked away unharmed.”<br>
Prue’s face got pale. “We gotta find him before he hurts somebody else, especially an innocent.”<br>
“Look,” you cried. “Andy’s on TV.” as the doorbell rang.

I looked out the window, now scared. “He’s here, too. I’ll get it.” I went to the door and opened it and stepped out, making sure to close it behind me. “Andy, what a surprise! How have you been?”<br>
“I need to talk with Prue, Phoebe.”<br>
“Prue, wow. How out of the loop am I? And here I thought you guys broke up.”<br>
“It’s not about that. It’s police business.”<br>
“Oh, well, uh, she’s not home. She’s at work.”<br>
“No, she’s not.”<br>
“Well, then, I don’t know where she is, but I’ll tell her that you stopped by, okay? Ciao!”<br>
I tried to slip back through the door, but Andy grabbed my arm. “Phoebe, a man fell out of Prue’s office window. Which is suspicious enough. But then a man matching the same description went and killed a lawyer down the street. A lawyer named Halliwell. Now I know she knows who he is. One more time, Phoebe, where’s your sister?”<br>
But Prue would later be proud of me, as I demanded, “Where’s your warrant?” as I stepped back through the door and slammed it shut.

That hadn’t made Prue feel any better. “Great,” she muttered. “So now I’m being hunted by a warlock and the San Francisco P.D.

I couldn’t help laughing. “Nobody ever said you led a boring life, Prue.”<br>
You suggested that maybe Andy could help, but Prue quickly squashed that suggestion. “Oh, yeah. You want to have that conversation with him? ‘Hey Andy, I hate to bother you but this seventeenth century warlock is trying to kill me and my sisters.’ Any thoughts?”<br>
You shrugged. “Okay, it was a bad idea. But the point is we need help.”<br>
Prue nodded. “Yeah, well, unfortunately more than Andy can give.”<br>
I had an idea. “What we need is someone who’s done this before, someone like Melinda Warren.”<br>

[mcharmed21]

Big Sister Prue couldn’t believe Little Sister Phoebe actually had a good idea. Very sarcastically she asked, “Okay, so what are we supposed to do? Reach back in time, grab her and tell her that we need her help?”<br>
I ignored her sarcasm and took her seriously. “Yes. And I know exactly how to do it. As long as you both don’t mind losing a little blood.”<br>
You see, Piper, during that first night when I was reading the Book of Shadows, I found a spell where blood could call for blood. Both Prue and I were ready and willing and able; you weren’t--the thought of slicing your finger with a dagger made you *very* nervous. I ended up sticking my finger first, wondering how much it could hurt, but it did!! And when I tried reminding you two about the summer that we made and oath to be friends forever and not just sisters, you remembered that your finger got infected and you couldn't go in the lake for a week! Then you admitted that you couldn’t stand the sight of blood, which we found funny after all the icky stuff we had seen as witches. Prue slit her finger and then I ended up sticking yours.

And it worked, Piper, it really truly worked!! Shortly after we dripped our blood into the locket before dropping it into a bowl and said the summoning spell, our beautiful ancestress stood before us!!!

Later, as we helped Melinda into a modern dress, Leo approached the doorway.

“Oh, sorry, I let myself in and it didn’t occur to me.”<br>
As always in Leo’s presence, you got flustered. “Leo, uh, it’s okay. This is, uh...”<br>
I came up with the right idea. “Our cousin, Melinda.”<br>
Leo smiled his beautiful smile. “Nice to meet you.”<br>
“Leo’s fixing our plumbing.” you explained, and when Melinda wanted to know what plumbing was, Prue quickly ushered us out.

But as Melinda passed Leo, she told him, “To work with one’s hands is a great gift.”<br>
Leo smiled. “Well, I am a true labourer. I earn to eat, get that I wear.”<br>
Melinda smiled back, “Owe no man hate, envy no man’s happiness.” and then together they cried out, “Shakespeare!”, which made Melinda giggle, sounding an awful lot like me!

Prue just shook her head nervously. “Isn’t that fun? Okay, let’s go now.” and now she did usher us out, as Leo walked into the attic. After he did, Melinda smiled at you, “He is a treasure, Piper!”<br>
You blushed. “Why you telling me?”<br>
Prue led us to the living room where she put the locket around Melinda’s neck.

“Once Matthew had what he wanted,” she told us, hatred burning in her voice, “he told the town council I was a witch and they arrested me. Then they burned me at the stake.”<br>
“Why didn’t you save yourself?” you asked as I asked, “Yeah, why didn’t you use your powers to escape?”<br>
Melinda smiled. “I had a daughter,” and she turned to smile at Prue. “Her name was Prudence. She meant everything to me. If I had used my powers, I would’ve proven Matthew’s charge and Prudence would’ve burned too. So I thought, I’ll accept this and pray some kind soul will take pity on my daughter and raise her in a safe home. Only then could the Warren line continue. And it must’ve worked because here you are.”<br>
Her story had brought tears to my eyes, thinking of our own mother. “Why do Warren witches lose their moms so early?”<br>
Melinda sadly smiled. “Phoebe, I can’t change the past but I think I can protect the future. We must put Matthew back in the locket.” And although it got very hairy, our ancestress helped us to do just that.

Afterwards, as we prepared to send her back to her own time, you were running down the stairs when you ran into Leo.

“Leo,” you exclaimed, nervously. “You’re here. Why are you here?”<br>
“I thought I’d work on the plumbing in the downstairs bathroom.” he replied

“Oh, now’s not really a good time. We’re getting our cousin Melinda ready to go away. Can you come back later? Like tomorrow?”<br>
He smiled his beautiful smile, “Sure,” before turning to leave.

But somehow learning about how short Melinda’s life had been, you decided to stop wasting yours. “Uh, Leo?” you asked. When he turned back, you quickly blurted it out. “Would you like to go out sometime? With me that is.”<br>
Again there was that smile. “I’d love to. Give me a call.”<br>
You agreed and turned to run back up the stairs, too intent on helping Melinda return to realize that we didn’t have Leo’s number.

A couple weeks later, Prue and I went clothes shopping, partially to help console her over her breakup with Andy. We tried to talk you into coming, but you had a mischievous look on your face and said you were busy. Prue and I thought maybe you had found a new boyfriend, since you hadn’t had heard from Leo at all. So Prue and I went out, arguing as always over what was proper attire and what wasn’t. When we got home, you were still grumbling about one of the outfits I’d help you buy. “That's what a new wardrobe's all about,” I explain. “Pushing the limit.”<br>
Prue looked up to heaven for guidance. “Yeah, and stretching the budget. Maybe I should just check with Piper.”<br>
But just as she was about to call your name, we could hear your laughter and suddenly you ran into the foyer, closely followed by Leo!!

You were so surprised to see us that you froze Leo and end up tripping over his leg and went sliding across the floor, stopping at our feet.

We helped you up, as I commented, “Of course, she may have other things on her mind like having her way with the handyman.”<br>
You blushed beet-red. “I thought you guys were supposed to be shopping.”<br>
“Obviously.” replied Prue.

Just then I noticed that your shirt was unbuttoned. I turned to Prue, “Oh, look, front clasp bra. She means business.”<br>
Prue nodded, “Serious business.”<br>
You went even redder. “Do you mind?”<br>
“No, are you kidding?” I asked, “I think it's great. As long as he's not still on the clock.”<br>
“That's what I mean. You guys have to get out of here before he unfreezes. I never know how long this things lasts.” Then she spot all of our shopping bags and paled instead. “How much did you guys spend?”<br>
“Lots.” I replied. “Prue's new look is perfect for an SHW.” Prue wanted to know what SHW meant, so I explained, “Single Hot Witch.

[mcharmed21]

“Prue, are you sure this isn't depression buying, you know, post-breakup?” you wanted to know.

So I reached in a certain bag and pulled out some red, sexy lingerie, asking, “Does this look like something a depressed woman would wear?” and Prue thought maybe you should borrow it!

That was enough for you. “Okay, time's up. You two gotta go.” and she pushed us into the living room. “Go, go in there and be quiet.”<br>I agreed, but only if she and Leo would! Of course, by now you know you have a very snoopy little sister. I had to peek and watch you as you walked over to Leo and stood where you were standing when we first came in. He unfroze and you two run up the stairs.

The next morning, I came down the stairs, dressed in a suit. Prue came down after me, wearing one of her new outfits. I spun around, modeling my own outfit.

“If you ran an Employment Agency, wouldn't you want me?”<br>
“Maybe,” Prue replied, “but I'd definitely want my suit back.

I shook my head. “No, this is part of your old wardrobe. I'm just recycling.”<br>
“Well, the environment thanks you.” she replied with a tone I knew too well.

I sighed heavily. “But, take it off, I know, I know.”<br>
Even as she agreed, you came bouncing down the stairs. “Hi. Bye.” as you headed for the door.

“Piper,” asked Prue. “Didn't you have to go in early this morning?”<br>
You nodded. “Right, that was the plan. I'm running a little late. Um, just took a little longer to get out of bed this morning than I planned. Okay, bye.” Again you tried to sneak out the door, but no such luck as your older and younger sisters ran and blocked the door.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I cried out. “You, Leo, last night, dish.”<br>
You went red again. “Um, well, it was nice. It was... well, it was wonderful. We just had a few problems.” When we asked what those were, you admitted, “Well, it's been a while since, you know, I-I was a little nervous, and I kinda kept freezing him.”<br>
“Piper, you didn't?” cried a shocked big sister, while Little Sister cracked up.

“I didn't mean to... “ you wailed. “The first time.”<br>
“Okay,” asked Prue. “So, um, at what point exactly in the process exactly did you freeze him?” but you refused to answer.

“Hello?” I asked. “Earth calling Piper!”<br>
“I gotta go” you demanded and walked around us, still trying to get to the door.

We ran after you and again held you back, crying out, “No, no Piper, we're only teasing you.”<br>
“Yeah,” I added. “The truth is we're just jealous.”<br>
Prue nodded. “Yeah, seriously, we're just happy to see you with a great guy finally.”<br>
“I mean, between you and Leo, and Prue, the new Hot Wicca Woman, and me, soon to be employed, things are looking up.”<br>
“Don't say that!” you pleaded. “The moment someone says that, everything always goes south.”<br>
“Unless you freeze him!” You glared at me, as I added, “Oh, I couldn't help it. It was so good.” and you still glared.

Just then Leo came down the stairs. “Good morning.”<br>
“Yeah, we heard.” as I wiggled my eyebrows at him, making you laugh nervously.

Prue and I grabbed our coats as we exhorted you two to have a magical day as we walked out the door. Prue kept going, but Snoopy (me) had to stay by the door.

“Um, what does she mean by that?” Leo asked.

I couldn’t wait to hear your answer, but I was disappointed:. “Who knows. I’m late for work, bye” I heard a kissing sound, so I snooped in the window. You were turning to leave, but Leo grabbed you around the waist, pulled you back and planted a big, fat, wet one right on your lips! YES! Then as you two said your good-byes, I quickly ran for the bus stop, not wanting you to see me..

Unfortunately, you were right about everything going south. No sooner was Prue at Bucklands than Prue was accused by her new boss, Rex Buckland, of stealing a priceless tiara from the auction house! The next day, as she explained it to us, the doorbell rang--it was Andy and his partner Detective Morris, wanting to search for the tiara and they had a warrant. And they kept almost finding the tiara, but you’d quickly freeze them and we’d move it before they could find it.

After they left, as we tried to figure out what to do, knowing that some warlock was trying to set Prue up, Leo walked in, wanting to know what the police were doing at our house. You put him off, then he asked if he could go upstairs and fix the bathroom sink I told him to knock himself out, but then after he was gone, I asked you two, “Did anyone ever think that maybe he’s a warlock?”<br>
You sighed impatiently. “Why is it always someone I’m dating that gets accused of that?” Then you quickly added, “Don’t answer that!” and as the phone rang, you added, “Answer that. It’s safer.”<br>

[mcharmed21]

But it wasn’t. It was Rex, wanting to know about the tiara. Prue managed to put him off while you ran upstairs, hoping to look in the Book of Shadows and find the warlock who was setting up Prue. Later you told us that you were very surprised to find Leo in the attic, not far from the Book!

“Leo!” you cried out, “What are you doing? I thought you were going to fix the sink!"

It was his turn to look embarrassed, like the kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Yeah, I was, I-I mean, I am. I just, uh, I need to fix a light downstairs and I was hoping there’d be some old fixtures up here that I could cannibalize. Listen uh, there’s something I need to tell you. Something I don’t think you’re gonna like. Uh, I might have to leave here soon. I might have to go back home.”<br>
You were shocked and hurt, but you managed to ask, “Is home far away?”<br>
He nodded. “Yeah, it’s pretty far. I mean, I don’t know for sure yet, but, uh, you know, I wanted you know, just in case.” You thanked him, then he decided that he better get back to work.

Later, after we helped the police catch the true thief--Prue’s boss, Rex Buckland, who wasn’t really Rex Buckland at all, but a warlock, thanks to a spell that we found the Book opened to, you came running down the stairs, tears in your eyes.

When we asked what was wrong, you told us that you were up in the attic, trying to figure out how the Book had been opened to that page. Suddenly your heard a familiar voice say, “Knock knock.” When you turned, saying Leo’s name, he told you, “The front door was open. I hope it’s all right. I left my tool box.”<br>
“That’s funny.” you replied. “I don’t remember that being there last night.” and he replied, “Yeah, well, you know what Freud always said about leaving things.”<br>
We all smiled at that saying, “That you secretly wanted to come back for it.” and you nodded, saying that he said that he was guilty.

“Oh, don’t use that word.” grumbled Prue and you apologized and I asked you to continue.”<br>
The tears started flooding your cheeks again. “I asked him if he was leaving and he said he was afraid so,”<br>
“No!” we cried as we surrounded you and hugged you.
You nodded. “I asked him if he really had to go and he replied that he’d fixed everything he came here to fix. But he said he’d be back, promise, that nothing could keep him away from me Then he grabbed his toolbox and left.”<br>
“Huh?” I asked. “I’ve been here in the foyer all morning. I never saw him come down the steps? How did he get away?”<br>
“I don’t know,” you replied. “But, at least he wasn’t a warlock.”<br>
“Hey,” I cried as inspiration hit me. “You don’t suppose Leo was the one who opened the Book to the right spell?” Prue looked at me as if I were crazy. “No, I guess not.” and as we hugged you tighter, you agreed. No way could Leo be any one but a very nice guy, right?

[mcharmed21]

Well, a lot of time went by and we didn’t see Leo. Once again we were certain that he was out of our lives--specifically yours--for good. You were very sad about this, but tried to make the most of it.

Then one day, I was in the kitchen, trying to help you whip up some potions, when we heard Prue yelling. “Piper! Phoebe! Get in here!”<br>
You looked at me, “That sounds like it came from the attic!”<br>
“Demon alert!” I cried. “They must be after the Book!” and you were already running, with me close at your heels.

When we ran into the attic, we were both surprised and relieved to see Prue sitting alone at Mom’s spirit board.

“What is it?” I asked. She pointed to the spirit board and I sighed.

“Oh, no,” you cried out. “Not again.”<br>
“What’s it saying?” I wanted to know.

Prue showed us her notebook and read it, “Help Max.”<br>
“Max?” you asked. “Who’s Max?” and Prue just shrugged.

“Well, maybe Max is a ghost. I mean, after all, that is a spirit board.”<br>
As usual, Prue wasn’t too excited about my idea. “A ghost who needs our help? I don’t think so.”<br>
I sighed impatiently, demanding, “Well, it wouldn’t be the first time.”<br>
Prue shook her head, still disagreeing with me. “What if it’s just someone in trouble crying out?”<br>
“Well, it would have to be someone with powers,” I insisted. “That’s not exactly AT&T.”<br>
Again she ignored me. " 'Help Max.' That’s not a lot to go on.”<br>
I had to agree this time. “Yeah. I mean there’s nothing really you can do unless he sends another message. Are you on hold or something?”<br>
“No. Look, we wouldn’t have gotten the message if it wasn’t important.”<br>
Again I agreed, “OK. So what do you wanna do?”<br>
Prue shrugged, “Maybe go see Andy. See if he knows anything about a Max needing help.”<br>
“Can you say long shot?” I asked and she glared at me. “All right. You’re obsessed. I accept that. I’ll thumb through the Book of Shadows. See if there’s anything in there about spirit board SOS’s.”<br>
“And maybe Piper can…”

But you couldn’t do anything right then. While we were talking, your cell rang and you’d been busy talking to your new cook at Quake, well, talking’s not quite the right word--try yelling! but now you turned off your cell. “The jerk hung up on me.” and you slammed the cell on the table, making the pointer jump, and me and Prue jump, too. “OK. How can I help you two?”<br>
“I think we got it under control.” Prue told you.

“OK.” you agreed. “Then I’m going to Quake before that new cook does any more damage.”<br>
As you ran out the door, I happened to glance out the window. What I saw made me giggle. Prue gave me a “What?” look. I giggled harder, then motioned her to quickly follow me down to the landing, where we could see you, but you couldn’t see us.

You were busy finding your coat and purse and just getting ready to leave when we reached the landing. You opened the door to find LEO there! He actually blushed, and Prue and I had to bite our tongues not to give ourselves away.

“Ha.” said Leo, nervously. “Ding-dong.” and you both giggled a little.

“Leo!” you cried in shock. “You’re back. Come in.” and he did, hugging you tightly. “It’s so good to see you. How are you?”<br>

[mcharmed21]

Leo smiled, “Better now.” and Prue and I silently low-fived. Then Leo let you go, asking, “How are you, Piper?”<br>
“Uh, I’m better now too,” you replied.

I couldn’t help it, I grabbed Prue’s hand and led her downstairs. She couldn’t protest without letting you know, although she tried to, because she was carrying the spirit board, not wanting to be away from it, in case we had another message, but not wanting to explain it to a mortal.

“Leo!” I now cried out.

“Hey, stranger,” greeted Prue. “Good to see you.”<br>
“Yeah,” I agreed. “What brings you back?”<br>
“Phoebe!” Prue muttered under her breath..

“You know,” I told him, ignoring her, “the chandelier in the living room keeps flickering.”<br>
“Yeah?” he asked. “Well, I’ll get my tools.”<br>
“Oh no. No! Take your time,” I insisted.

Prue started nudging me towards the stairs. “Uh, attic. Remember? You have some reading to do.”<br>
I glared, but I knew she was right, and ran up the stairs. But you know your snoopy sister, Piper! No way I was going to go all the way to the attic--I stopped at the landing!

I was glad I did, because Leo asked Prue, “Is that a spirit board?”<br>
“Uh, this?” she asked and I had to bite my tongue again as our big sister tried to wiggle her way out of that one. “Yeah it is. Um, I’m just taking it to the auction house to have it appraised.”<br>
Good job, Prue, I silently cheered, as she grabbed her coat, telling you, “So, I’ll call if I hear anything,” and out the door she went. Not Snoopy Phoebe--I stayed right where I was! I wasn’t about to miss this reunion for anything!

“I’ll be at the restaurant,” you said, and I began to pout.

“Do you have to go now?” YES! Good job, Leo! Now, Piper, stay put!

But not my too-loyal-to-her-job sister. “Uh, yeah,” you told him. “Sort of, but I’ll be back soon. I promise. Uh, can you wait?”<br>
“Uh, sure,” he agreed as he kissed you again..

“Ooh." you sighed. "So glad you’re back.” YES! He smiled, kissed you one more time, then sent you on your way.

But I’ll bet you were wishing you were a little more like me when you got to Quake--Harry, the new cook, actually called you Pippy and said your voice didn’t do you justice, that you were actually attractive! That got on your nerves, but so did a lot of other things about him. You were so mad that you knew you had to settle yourself down, so you called home.

I was still in the attic, still trying to find something about Max in the Book of Shadows. But I had my cell with me and let you vent. “Yeah,” I said when you finally finished. “He sounds like a real piece of work. He has a nice voice though. What’s he look like?”<br>
“A complete and total jerk,” you insisted. “Is Leo still around?”<br>
I smiled at that, and since I was using my cell phone, I began walking down the stairs towards the foyer, thinking I’d give the cell to him and you could talk with him.

“Yeah,” I told you. “He’s working away. He wants to know when you’re gonna get back though.”<br>
“Uh, I think it might be a while,” you replied. “Maybe I should talk to Leo.”<br>
YES! I thought, as I replied, “Sure. Hold on a second.”<br>
I turned the corner of the living room and there was Leo FLOATING next to the chandelier, a light bulb glowing in his hands! “OH, MY GOD!” I exclaimed.

"What? What?" you asked, worried silly.

At my voice, Leo turned his head to look right at me. “Phoebe!” he cried as he fell.

“I'm OK," I told you. "Let me call you back,” as I quickly disconnected it, then turned it around, ready to use it as a weapon, pointing it at Leo as he stood up with the light bulb still glowing and came towards me.

“Phoebe, wait!” he begged. “I can explain.”<br>
Yeah, sure he could! I started backing away from him, him following me, while I tried to decide what to do next. I decided to confront him. “You’re a warlock, aren’t you?”

[mcharmed21]

Leo shook his head, “No, Phoebe! Of course not!” But I kept backing up. “Wait, Phoebe! Wait! Let me explain!” He tried to grab the phone while he was saying this, but I quickly pulled it away from him. “Think about it,” he reasoned. “If I were a warlock and I wanted to hurt you, don’t you think I would have done it the last time I was here?”<br>
“OK,” I admitted, but not convinced.. “Good point, but still most, normal handymen use ladders to fix chandeliers” I stuck the phone under his chin. “Are you a witch?”<br>
He shook his head. “No.”<br>
‘Then what are you exactly?”<br>
He started answering, then stopped, then tried again. As he did, he accidentally waved the light bulb, still glowing, in front of me. My eyes followed the light bulb, still startled by his power.

Suddenly it stopped glowing and he gave me a goofy smile. “I guess I’ll just tell you. I’m not a bad person; I’m a very good person. I’m a whitelighter.”<br>
“A what?”<br>
“A whitelighter."

“Yeah right. I mean up until today, I thought you were a handyman, and now I find out that you’re a…<br>
“Whitelighter,” he repeated.

“A whitelighter.” I repeated, still confused, since there was no mention of whitelighters in the Book. “What exactly is a whitelighter?”<br>
“Well, we’re really just messengers. Guides.” I must have still looked confused, because he kept trying to explain. “Think of us as guardian angels for good witches. Your tea is cold.”<br>
“Tea?” I turned to where he was pointing. There was a cup of tea sitting on the foyer table. There was no saying how long it had been sitting there. Leo walked over to it and waved his hand. Immediately the tea began to steam.

“Wow!” I cried. “Well, you are handy!” and he smiled a litle at that. “So, all this time, you knew who we really were?”<br>
He nodded. “Yeah. I was sent to watch over you and your sisters when you first came into your powers. You know, help out wherever I could.”<br>
“Sent by who?” I wanted to know.

“Whom,” he corrected, and I stuck my tongue out at him--he sounded too much like Prue! “They’re a group of elder whitelighters. They’re just known as the Elders. You were never supposed to find out. I screwed up and got caught.”<br>
“So, what?” I asked. “You’re here again to help us out with something else?”<br>
“Uh, actually I’m here to help a boy named Max.”<br>
“MAX? Wait. That’s the…the…”

He nodded. “The spirit board. I know. See, Max is a budding good witch new to his powers. But he’s very young and vulnerable. And he’s in serious trouble. Someone wants to take advantage of his gift.”<br>
“So why don’t you help him?” I wanted to know.

“I did,” he explained. “I made sure Prue received his cry for help. That’s why I was sent here. That’s all I’m supposed to do for now. The rest is up to Prue.”<br>
“Yeah, but Prue doesn’t know anything about him. She doesn’t even know that he’s a little boy.”<br>

[mcharmed21]

“Well, she will. In the meantime, you must help me keep my secret or I could get into trouble.” and I smiled, glad I wasn’t the only one who got in trouble with my elders! “No, I’m serious, Phoebe. Piper and Prue can never know what I really am.”

“Me?” I asked. “Keep a secret? Hello! Wrong Halliwell! But you have to tell Piper, Leo, because if I know her, she’s gonna think that…”

“I know. I know. And that’s where I need your help. See, whitelighters and witches aren’t allowed to fall in love. It’s like humans and angels aren’t. But I did. I fell in love with Piper.”<br>
“And I know how much she cares about you.”<br>
He sighed unhappily. “It isn’t fair to keep her in the dark…but I have to keep this secret. So somehow I have to tell Piper that I can never see her again and I can’t tell her why.”<br>
I shook my head. “You don’t need my help. Leo. You need a miracle!” and he could only sigh again.

Well, we talked about it and talked about it and finally came up with a plan. We headed for Quake to try to put our plan into action.

I went into the kitchen to try to tell you that Leo was out there and wanted to talk with you, but you were on the phone. “What? You had another message and Max is just a boy and he’s been kidnapped?! Don’t you think you should call the police?” Prue must’ve told you that Andy already knew, because you then asked, “So everything is under control?”<br>
Just then, Harry, the new cook, came marching in without even noticing me. “Uh, no. Everything’s not under control,” and tossed the phone into the sink. “I need more crab for my ravioli because somebody threw it all away and I just got 5 more orders, Pepper.”<br>
“That’s PIPER!” you yelled out, but he was already going back out the door. I glared at him as he walked passed, then went in.

“Does Prue need our help?”<br>
“Doesn’t sound like it. She’ll call if she does.”<br>
“OK. In the meantime, Leo’s outside. He wants to talk with you.”<br>
“OK. As soon as I find some more crab for that crab of a cook!”<br>
I returned to Leo, who was sitting at a table. We talked for awhile, then I cranked because my water glass was empty and our waitress never came back to refill it. So Leo put his hand over the glass, and it immediately filled up with water. I thanked him, just as you came out.

“Hi,” you said sheepishly. “I know you guys have been waiting a long time…”

Just then we could hear a crash in the kitchen.

“Hey" I asked, before you could return to the kitchen, "have you heard anything else from Prue?”<br>
“Uh, no. So she, uh, must have everything under control. No news is good news, right? Uh, I’ll be right back.” and she hurried back to the kitchen.

I turned to Leo. “OK. It’s actually good that we have a few more minutes. We can go over your plan. You know. What you’re gonna tell Piper.”<br>
“Oh, well. I thought that I’d tell her that, uh, as much as I love her and as much as I’d like to stay in San Francisco I can’t. A-and I don’t know how long my work will keep me away.”<br>
I shook my head. “No. No. What you just said is as much as you’d like to stay and have sex with her, you’ve got a wife and kids in another part of the country. Try again.”<br>
He thought for a moment or two then tried again. “Uh, Piper, um, you know how much you mean to me, and more than anything, I wish things could work out, but they can’t, and no one is more sorry then I am.”<br>
I shook my head. “Translation-I found someone I like even better.”<br>
Leo also shook his head. “I’m completely confused.”<br>
“Uh, look Leo, it’s not that complicated. OK. Um, just avoid the following. We can still hang out. I don’t deserve you yet. I need more "me time" before we can have "we time". And my personal favorite, "It’s not you. It’s me." And whatever you do, do not start a conversation with "we need to talk". Other then that, you’ll do fine,” as I took a sip of water, as you returned from the kitchen

Seeing you, I got up and headed for the ladies’ room, or so you two thought. Naturally, I just ducked out of the way, where I could still watch and listen without you guys seeing me. Not that you would’ve anyway--you only had eyes for each other.

“Sorry. Small mutiny in the kitchen,” you explained as you sat down. “Where were we?”<br>
“Piper,” Leo started, “there’s something I need to tell you,” and I shook my head in defeat. Not a good start!

“Yeah?” you asked. “What’s that?” but I could already see tears beginning to well in your eyes.

“Uh, look. Forgive me, but I could be summoned at any moment, so I have to tell you this now. I can’t…I can’t, uh…I can’t believe how much I missed you.”<br>
“Well Leo, I missed you too, but what do you mean "summoned"? Summoned where?”<br>
Just then some giggly teenaged girls walked passed me on their own way to the ladies room, blocking my view of you, and they chattered so loudly that I couldn’t hear what Leo answered. When I could see again, you were standing up, very angry. “OK. That’s it. I’m ending this NOW!” and you started to marched towards the kitchen.

I ran after you. “Oh my gosh. You know.”<br>
“Of course, I know.” you groused, as you turned back to look at both me and Leo.

“The whole restaurant knows. Didn’t you hear him scream across the room?”<br>
He WHAT??!! I turned to Leo, confused. “I thought it was a secret.”<br>
“Phoebe…” he said warningly.

You were still very angry. “I wish. It will probably be in the newspaper tomorrow.”<br>
HUH??!! “No. It can’t be. Look, Piper, he never meant to hurt you.”<br>
“Phoebe, please. You haven’t even meet the manic yet. What’s gotten into you?” and shaking your head, you marched into the kitchen.

I looked questioningly at Leo. He shrugged. “She’s talking about the new chef. He just came out and yelled at her.”<br>
“Oh, right. So does that mean she took your news well?”<br>
He sighed again. “That means she doesn’t know. I can’t tell her, Phoebe. I can’t stand to think about it, much less, talk about it.”<br>
“Well, here’s something else you might not want to think about. Piper said that Prue had everything under control. Well, I can’t find her. She won’t answer her cell.”<br>
“Have you tried calling her inspector friend?”<br>
“Andy? No, I haven’t.” But it was a good idea, so I took out my cell. "Hey, Andy. It’s Phoebe. Have you seen Prue since this morning?”<br>
“No. As a matter of fact, I was about to ask you the same question.”<br>
“Really? Why?”<br>
“Because I think she knows something about a boy named Max. Do you?”<br>
Whoops! How was I supposed to answer that? So I didn’t. “Oh. That’s my call waiting. Gotta go. Could be Prue. Bye.” I hung up and then looked at Leo. “Uh,…anything?”<br>
He shook his head. “No. I can’t reach either Max or Prue telepathically.”<br>
“Does that mean they’re in trouble?” I asked.

[mcharmed21]

“Who’s in trouble?”<br>
WHOOPS! Oh, oh, you'd come back without me realizing it! I thought quick. “Oh. The 49ers. No secondary. They need a really good draft pick next year. Well I’m gonna go back to the Manor and see if I can get in touch with Prue.” I turned back towards Leo with a significant look in my eyes. “Carry on...”<br>
He nodded, and I turned to leave. But by now I’m sure you can guess that I just hid behind a corner.

“Alone,” you sighed. “Finally. Don’t have to worry about any more interruptions from Harry. He, uh, quit.” You went to stand behind him and tried to hug him, but he shrugged you away. “OK. Not the enthusiastic response I was hoping for.”<br>
“Look, uh, Piper, I’ve been searching all day for an easy way to tell you this,”<br>
“Oh. Uh.” and you froze him. “Phoebe. Phoebe, I know you didn’t leave.”<br>
So I went back, saying, “That is so weird. I was just on my way back. I forgot my purse.”<br>
You gave me a “Yeah, right” look, but had something more important to ask. “Is Leo about to tell me he doesn’t want to see me anymore?”<br>
I turned to look at Leo. “You’ll have to ask him,” and I got up to leave, hiding in a less-conspicuous spot than the last time.

Just as I did, time unfroze and Leo continued as if he’d never stopped. “And that’s the problem. I fell in love with you and I shouldn’t have.”<br>
“You’re married.” you cried in despair.

He shook his head. “No.”<br>
“Engaged?” you ventured.

Again he shook his head. “ Um…I’m involved. But it’s not…the way you think. The truth is that I led you on and made you believe that I was coming back.”<br>
“Leo, you are back.” you pointed out.

“Yeah, but I…I have to leave again. Now, and…and it’s not because I want to, though. It’s because I have to. I’m sorry.”<br>
You sighed heavily, not understanding, but figuring you wanted to help make it easier on him. “That’s OK.”<br>
“It is?” he asked, shocked and disappointed, thinking that you didn’t feel the same way about him as he felt about you.

You nodded. “Yeah. I mean Leo, you’re a nice guy and I like you a lot, but let’s face it. You’re, uh, geographically undesirable. I mean, you said you live really far away right?”<br>
He nodded. “Yeah. Pretty far.”<br>
“Well I try never to get involved with guys I can’t see regularly. So, don’t feel bad. I mean, I understand. Really, I do.”<br>
You kissed him, then got up and went back into the kitchen.

I ran back to the table. “So how do you think she took it?”<br>
“Not bad.” Just then we heard a tinkling, like chimes. “Oh. Um. Excuse me, but I have to go.” He grabbed his coat and headed towards the door.

“Leo!” I cried. “What—wh—where you going?"

He stopped at the doorway. “I uh, have to leave. NOW!" and off he went, leaving me with the check!

[mcharmed21]

Only much later did we find out why Leo had to leave so fast. Prue had found Max and his father, but the bad guys had shot his dad! That’s why Leo had to get to him, FAST!

When Max’s dad thought Leo was Max’s mom, Leo told him, "It’s not time to be with your wife, Gordon. It’s time to be with your son.” Just like I would’ve, Max’s dad didn’t get it, so Leo simply put his hand over Max’s Dad’s wound, his hands turned golden, the wound turned golden and sealed itself up--not even a scar, as we would eventually find out!

Later, after Prue helped the police save Max from the bad guys, I heard something up in the attic. Going up there, I saw a toy train going across the floor. I picked it up, trying to figure out where it came from.

“Can you believe that?” she asked me. “It’s Dad’s old train.”<br>
Just then you walked in with a box of old toys. “ I can’t believe you,” you scolded her. “You get mad at me for chasing monsters on my own.”<br>
Prue shrugged. “Well, I figured I could handle it when I realized they weren’t demons, but I probably should have asked for help.”<br>
Yep, that sounded like our big sister. “Even though that killed you,” I commented, then pointed out, “and it almost did.”<br>
Again Prue shrugged, “Live and learn, I guess.”<br>
You nodded. “Yeah, you didn’t even get to say good-bye to Leo.”<br>
I looked at you. “What is that supposed to mean?”<br>
Your turn to shrug. “I don’t know. It’s just weird. I felt like…he was holding something back from me.”<br>
“Holding something back?” Prue asked. “What do you mean?”<br>
Again you shrugged, but there was a very sad, disappointed look in your eyes.

“Who knows? It just seems like he wasn’t telling me the whole story. Like…he had some secret he was afraid I couldn’t handle.”<br>
“Well,” I replied. “That’s his call…”

You two turned to give me “WHAT?” looks. WHOOPS! Phoebe sticks her foot in her mouth again! I warned Leo that I wasn’t any good at keeping secrets!! But I still tried to protect him. “…uh, assuming that he had a secret. Might not have.”<br>
You marched over toward me, no longer hurt, but mad. “What are you talking about?” you demanded.

I sighed. “OK. OK. You don’t have to beat it out of me. Leo is a whitelighter. They’re sort of guardian angels for witches. And they’re not supposed to get involved with witches. But Leo couldn’t help it. He fell in love with you, and that broke all the rules and got him in all sorts of trouble. And even though he’ll love you forever, you will probably never see him again.”<br>
Both of you broke out laughing! “WHAT?!” you cried out. “Phoebe, that’s…that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Oh, God. Don’t be so silly.

I joined in their laughter--sorta. “Yeah,” I said. “That’s me. Silly.”<br>
“I gotta go get some more tea,” you decided, and I thought about how Leo could’ve heated it for you as you walked out the door.

“Yeah,” agreed Prue. “You know, Phoebs. With an imagination like that, you should be writing children’s books or something.”<br>
“No!” I cried. “But I didn’t…I didn’t…” Oh, what the heck! “...even think of that. That’s a really good idea, Prue. Yeah, good idea,” and I was glad I had kept Leo’s secret, even if I hadn’t!


Well, more time passed and again we didn’t see Leo. Again, you truly believed that he had left you behind forever. Again you were sad, but not quite as sad as before, maybe because you had a chance to hear him say he loved you and you had a chance to say good-bye. You were just glad that you hadn’t admitted how much you cared for him, making it easier on him to leave. During this time, Prue finally let Andy know about her being a witch. He didn’t think he could get involved with one, but he wanted to remain her friend. That was disappointing for Prue, but like you since Leo left, she was making the most of it.

Then, a couple months later, we were all very excited. After almost-a-full year warlock-vanquishing and demon-a$$-kicking, we were going to go on vacation!!!

One of Prue’s co-worker had a condo on Cobo Island and was letting us have it for the weekend! None of us could wait! We were just getting ready to go and I was glaring at Prue. “I can not believe you're going to wear your bikini on the plane."

Prue gave me her mischievous look. “Time saver. We have all of forty-eight hours on Cabo. The minute we land I'm on the beach getting all golden-brown.”<br>
“I know, but you're making me look frumpy; it's like the sign of the apocalypse.”<br>
“Phoebs, I practically had to beg the guy in accounting to lend us his condo. There are no warlocks in sight, Andy finally found out our big secret, I'm going to get crazy.”<br>
“It's about time,” I agreed. “How long have I been after you to find some new male blood? Preferably tan and buff.”<br>
“And limited verbal skills.” she added, grinning.

I nodded. “And ...”<br>
We both laughed, then both declared, “No strings attached!”<br>
“Stella,” I added. “We are getting our groove back!” We tried high-fiving but missed, and that made us both laugh. When we settled down, I asked, "Okay, so, speaking of which, where is Piper?"

[mcharmed21]

“I think Piper's gonna be in a groove-free kinda mood for a while.”<br>
I couldn’t believe it! Not after all these months. “She's not seriously ...”<br>
“Taking a vacation from men, yep. Afraid of falling in love again I think.”<br>
“So, while we're partying all weekend, what is she gonna be doing?”<br>
“I don't know. The last time I checked she was in the attic looking for a suitcase she could put her books in.”<br>
“Books?” I asked. “What kind of books?”<br>
“Kind they make into Kevin Costner movies.”<br>
“Oh, we've got to stop the insanity!”<br>
“Maybe we should let her be, I mean we're not the ones who fell in love with a warlock, a ghost, a geographically undesirable handyman, and a very dorky grad student,” and I refuse to go into the story of the ghost and the very dorky grad student, Piper--this is yours & Leo’s story, not all of your almost-stories! If you don’t remember those earlier ones, fine, because I sure don’t want to!

Anyway, I suggested, “Maybe she's just gone in a slump.” Prue glared at me. “All right, it happens to Piper a lot, but celibacy is not the answer.”<br>
“A couple of dates not picking up the check, that's a slump; this is more of a sucking void.”<br>
Just then we heard a thump and then a little scream.

“The attic!” I cried as we heard your voice call, “Prue! Prue, Phoebe!” and we ran up those stairs as fast as we could. As we ran into the attic, we froze in shock.

There was Leo Wyatt, lying on the floor, grimacing in pain, an arrow stuck in his shoulder!

Once we could move again, Prue ran downstairs to the bathroom to fetch bandages and antiseptic and other stuff. You and I helped Leo to a chair.

“Be careful!” you warned.

“I am being careful!” I insisted, even as Leo groaned.

Prue came running back in. “How did you get up here with that thing in you without us hearing you come in the door or go up the stairs?” she demanded.

“There was a bright white light,” you told her, “and then a bunch of golden sparkles, and suddenly he was right there, lying on the floor!”<br>
“But how?” Prue still demanded.

I knew I’d have to tell you two. “I told you the truth before. He really is a whitelighter--our guide, sent here to help us.”<br>
You stared at me. “I can't believe you knew, and the fact that our handyman--the man I was dating--was supernatural just happened to slip your mind?”<br>
“There was no slipping, okay? I told you but you didn't want to believe me.”<br>
“Piper,” Leo managed, as we set him on the chair. “ I wanted to.”<br>
“But you didn't.”<br>
“Forget about that for now,” I insisted, “It’s not important. C’mon, we gotta, we gotta get his legs up.”<br>
“Don't worry about me,” Leo insisted. “There's someone..." but he had to stop as he cried out in pain.

“We have to get the arrow out,” Prue declared.

“No, don't touch it!” he cried out. “It's tipped with poison.”<br>
“So how are we suppose to get it out if we can't touch it?” you wondered.

Leo turned to look at Prue. “Can you?”<br>
Prue grinned. “You came to the right girl. You ready?” He nodded, gritting his teeth. Prue used her telekinesis to push the arrow out as Leo screamed in agony. “Okay,” she told him. “I brought everything that I could find; I just didn't know what to use on a ...” She turned to look at me. "What is he again?”<br>
“A whitelighter,” you replied, speaking the word for the first time.

I nodded. “Yeah, they're sorta like, you know how Peter Pan has Tinkerbell? They're sorta like that minus the tutu and the wings. He guides witches.”<br>
“Future whitelighters,” Leo clarified. “That's why I came to you.”<br>
You were still in shock, as you turned to me. “You should’ve told me.”<br>
Leo shook his head. “I should’ve told you.”<br>
You grabbed a bandage and pushed it down hard on his wound, making him scream. “Oh, did that hurt? Good!”<br>
Fortunately for you, Leo’s not the vengeful kind. He was still thinking of his charges. “There's a woman. Daisy. You have to protect her from the darklighter."

“The darklighter?” Prue asked. “Is that what shot you?”<br>
He nodded. “Yeah, they seduce innocent women. Their goal is to create evil through reproduction.”<br>

[mcharmed21]

“Great,” I declared. “Generation 666.”<br>
“He broke the rules” Leo explained. “He fell in love with one of his victims, a human. And she loved him back.”<br>
“Until she found out who he really was, right?” you asked, accusingly.

He turned to look at you. “Piper, you have every right to be mad at me.”<br>
“Thanks for the permission. I'll get some more gauze.” and you marched out of the attic.

“Please,” he begged, looking at Prue and me. “You have to find Daisy before he does. Otherwise she won't be able to do the good that she's destined to do. She won't be able to become a whitelighter.”<br>
“Okay,” Prue agreed. “Where is she?”<br>
“I don't know. I can’t sense her with the darklighter poison in me. The last time I saw her she was at a mini-mart, heading for a rental car. If he finds her first, he'll never let her go. Ever.”<br>
“Any tips on how to vanquish a darklighter in case we run into him?” I asked.

“Just don't let him touch you,” he warned. “His power is in his hands, and when he chooses you, he has the touch of death.”<br>
“And we have the Power of Three,” Prue reminded him. Then she turned to me and began giving orders. “All right, call the airline; cancel our tickets. I'll call Andy--see if he can help me locate her, and Piper should ...”<br>
“I'll talk to her,” I told her. “Somebody's gotta stay with Leo.”<br>

Later, after performing my two tasks, I made some soup and brought it back to the attic. “ Leo, I brought you some food in case you're ... “ Then I thought about it and had to ask, “You do eat, right?”<br>
“Yes, Phoebe, I eat, but I’m not hungry. How's Piper?”<br>
“Oh, you know, she's dealing. I mean, it's not every day that you find out that the guy you're seeing isn't human. Although, in Piper's case...”<br>
“I wish she didn't have to find out about me like this. Being with her broke the rules, but not being with her breaks my heart.”<br>
“You know, Leo, it's not like we rushed to tell you we were witches. I think Piper understands about those little secrets that we have to keep.”<br>
“Any word on Daisy?”<br>
“Yes and no. Prue called. Andy thinks he found out where Daisy's staying. They're on their way now.” Then I pulled off his bandage. “Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.”<br>
“It's okay; I know it's bad.”<br>
“I guess I need to work on my poker face a little bit, huh? You know, Leo, didn't you tell me that whitelighters have the ability to heal? Why can't you just ...”<br>
He shook his head. “No, my powers are for others; I can't use it on myself,” then he broke into a coughing spell.

“Ah, you know, we just gotta get you better. Then you and Piper will have lots of time to talk about stuff when you're well.”<br>
Leo looked at me. “Phoebe, I'm not going to get better.”<br>
“That's ridiculous, Leo, of course you will; we're just gonna have to find something in the Book of Shadows.”<br>
“No, the darklighter's poison can't be reversed. It's used to kill whitelighters. That's what it's doing; it's working its way through my system. It's just a matter of time.”<br>
I stared at him in shock, then had to ask, “How much time?”<br>
“Not much. I'm gonna die and there's nothing you can do about it. My powers are ebbing. With it, my ability to cloak Daisy from him.”<br>
“We're gonna save you both, Leo,” I insisted. “I swear it. Now just hang on!” and I ran downstairs where you were looking through the Book of Shadows.

As I walked into the conservatory, you slammed the Book shut hard. “I have looked everywhere in this damn book for something, anything to help Leo, and I can't find anything! Not one damned thing!” Then you looked at me, your face growing very pale. “What's that face? What's the matter?”<br>
“Leo's in pretty bad shape, Piper. And he's getting worse.”<br>
“I know; that's why I need to find an ointment or a cure or something.”<br>
I knelt down next to you and held your hand, forcing you to look at me. “You need to listen. This is really hard to say, but you really need to hear it. I think that you need to learn the possibility that maybe we're not suppose to save Leo. Maybe he's not our innocent. Maybe we're only meant to save Daisy."

You firmly shook your head. “We have to save him whether we're meant to or not.”