~*A/N: First off, I want to thank those of you that sent reviews for the last chapter; you made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, truly. I do love hearing from all of you! So, please review. Also, check my homepage from time to time. I post announcements, and I'll be throwing up some extra goodies in the future, too! Keep a lookout for that. L'anyhoodle, on with the show!*~

"To me, a witch is a woman that is capable of letting her intuition take hold of her actions, that communes with her environment, that isn't afraid of facing challenges." — Paulo Coelho

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Ivy slumped back in her chair, rubbing her eyes from the strain. It had been roughly three weeks since she'd sent her best friend though some kind of wormhole to Goddess knows where. During that time, she'd had to screen all the calls coming in on Kassia's phone from too many people, send an email from Kassia's email address saying that she needed time to herself, and just generally lie to the world about where Kassia Brighton really was. The whole situation was just far too much for her to handle.

"Come on, there's got to be something…" She flipped through the ancient text for the billionth time, staring at what was once considered English. She'd looked at the ancient tome ever since she was a small child, fascinated by the symbols she could barely recognize. Her mother had always disapproved, but her Gran was always so encouraging─

She sighed. She had wanted to do this on her own; to prove that she was worthy to carry her family's name, but she had finally reached the point where what she wanted really didn't matter anymore. Her friend could be anywhere, and she wanted her back.

Within the hour, she'd reaffirmed her decision to start up her old VW Beetle and drive two hours north to her grandmother's. While she was seeing Gran, she might as well pay her mother a visit, since she would certainly here of Ivy's arrival. Hell, she wouldn't have been surprised if the old woman already knew that her daughter was coming to visit.

As she pulled into the drive of the old Victorian, that idea was confirmed by the presence of her mother's slick, black BMW in front of the garage. Still, this didn't detract from the warm feeling the ancient blue-and-pink house gave her. Stepping out of the car, Ivy inhaled the sweet smell of her Gran's late summer garden, which was a mess of bright colors and scents. She'd always loved this place; the sense of security that the place provided was amazing, and even those outside of the family could attest to the positive waves emitting from the house.

Ivy pulled the rope by the front door, sounding the antique doorbell. She was pleasantly surprised when a tall, dark-haired man with a full beard opened the door instead of one of the two women she was expecting.

"Uncle Otto!" she cried, wrapping the man in a hug.

"Hey there, kiddo! They said you'd be coming." He let his niece go, looking at her with a slightly more serious expression. "They're in the kitchen."

"Oh God, what'd they say?"

"Oh, your mother's just a bit miffed that she hasn't seen you in a while; too long, for her tastes."

"Well, it's not like I enjoy making the drive from my house to the suburbs all the time; besides, her shifts are so unpredictable, why would I come up here if she wasn't going to be here? Seems silly to me."

She followed her uncle through the old hallways, looking at the familiar mass of decorative pieces. There were paintings and photographs of the family on every available surface; it was an old line, to be sure. The eclectic blend of Victorian flair and New Age charms and herbs would seem odd to anyone else, but to Ivy, this was her childhood.

Her journey was slowed considerably by the onslaught of her rather young cousins. The three rugrats – ranging from six to eleven – jumped her as soon as she passed the parlor. Brian, the oldest, grabbed her left arm, while Merla and Calista claimed her left and right legs respectively. She loved their energy, but it made walking so difficult when three small children were attached to her legs.

When she finally made her way to the kitchen, Otto and his wife June were both laughing at the sight from their position by the back door. The room wasn't large, but it wasn't a closet, either. 'Cozy', she supposed, was a good word. It reminded Ivy very much of her own home, with all the herbs and spices hanging from the ceiling.

Seated at the small kitchen table with a cup of tea in her hands was Cadence. Ivy did her best to not roll her eyes at the sight of her mother, which was thankfully aided by the attention of her cousins. Her mother's pale-skinned beauty was sure to have stayed with her, except she forever had a scowl on her face and furrowed eyebrows. Her gorgeous black locks were pulled into a tight ponytail, and she was constantly in her scrubs. Today, though, she was wearing the white cardigan that Ivy had made her several Christmases ago, so she couldn't find too much fault.

"Hello, mother."

"Ivy, it's great to see you."

"Hi Aunt June!"

"Hey baby girl, how've you been?"

Both the Merla and Calista looked very much like their mother, with their tanned skin and silky brown hair. Brian, on the other hand, very much favored his father, with a mess of black hair tousled across his head.

"We haven't seen you in ages, honey, how've you been?"

"I've been pretty good," Ivy slid into a chair across from her mother. "And you?"

"Busy; I've got to get to the hospital for my shift in a few hours."

"You know, Cadie, you could always take a day or two off; it's not a crime."

"Some of us have a work ethic, Otto."

The raven-haired man rolled his eyes at his older sister, putting Calista on his shoulders and running into the backyard with Merla right behind, and Brian choosing a much cooler walk. Ivy smiled at her family; she loved them. Well, except maybe her mother, but that was a debatable bit.

"What is all the racket about in here? Is my favorite grandchild here already?"

Ivy lit up at the voice, which belonged to the reason she'd come in the first place. She ignored her mother and leaped from her seat to give her grandmother a hug as she came through the back door, gardening tools in hand.

Adelaide Emerson did not look at all close to her sixty-seven years of age; Ivy would argue that she was one of the youngest and most elegant people she'd ever met. She was slim, in excellent shape for her age, and there was barely a wrinkle on her ivory skin. As Ivy was accustomed to, the matriarch of the family had her snow-white hair in a long braid, and was dressed in bright fabrics that moved with her. She had passed down her dark blue eyes to several members of the family, including Ivy, who was proud to share that similarity with her grandmother.

"How have you been, my precious girl?"

"I've been alright, Gran. How're you doing?"

"Never better; would you like tea?" She released Ivy from the embrace and, with a mumble, waved her hand at the stove, filling the kettle with water and moving it onto an open burner.

"Mother!"

"Oh hush, Cadence; I never understood what your aversion to magic was."

"It's a cheat, Mother, and you know it. People should have to work for things, not just wave their hands and say a few words to get what they want. And the children certainly don't need to be learning how to turn their classmates into ferrets or whatever."

"Oh poppycock! You never turned anyone into a ferret, and I've certainly never heard of Ivy here having such an instance; did you, dear?"

"No; I'm more of a fan of newts, though."

"Ivy Morgan Emerson!"

"I'm kidding, Mom."

Adelaide laughed, walking to the kitchen sink to wash the garden soil from her hands. She chatted on about her plants all the while, Cadence interjecting with her own opinions on things every so often.

"So tell me Ivy: what have you been troubled with? Spell got you down?"

The reason for her visit resurfaced, bringing Ivy's good mood down again. She sighed; time to face the music. "Well, yeah, a bit."

"And you wonder why I don't approve of magic. When you mess up, it's just a big disappointment."

"Oh, like your marriage with Dad?"

"Ivy, watch your tongue."

"And maybe I'd be better with my magic by now if you weren't forever trying to stifle me as a child."

"You needed a normal childhood, not one filled with spells."

"Oh, will both of you hush? Ivy, why don't you join me in the parlor, okay? Cadence, I'm not critiquing the way you my granddaughter, but really, give the girl some credit."

Cadence sighed, putting her cup of coffee in the sink. "I can see my visit's over. My pager's going to go crazy in a minute, anyway, so I might as well head out." She hugged her mother, and placed a kiss on her daughter's head. "It was good seeing you for a change, Ivy."

"You to, Mom; bye!"

After her mother had left, Ivy darted out to her car, grabbing the spell book and returning to the parlor, sitting next to her grandmother on one of the plush purple love seats. It was amazing how at home they both looked, considering the slightly odd combination of the furniture and their clothing.

"Now, what happened, dear?"

"Oh, Gran, I've really stepped in it this time, and I don't know how to get out of this one."

"It's alright, dear, really; start at the beginning."

Ivy took a deep breath and told the tale of how she managed to send Kassia somewhere, and had no idea what to do about it anymore. Throughout the relatively short tale, Adelaide sipped from her teacup, keeping an even look on her face. When her granddaughter had finished, she gestured for her to open the ancient tome to the spell she'd used.

"I just don't understand what I could have done wrong," Ivy said sadly.

"Well that's what we're going to find out, dear. This one?"

"Yes."

She put her reading glasses on, reading the spell over. "All right, I want you to read this just as you did the night Kassia disappeared."

"But, I don't want to-"

"Don't worry, Ivy, this one requires too much for you to have to worry about casting it. Just read it, please."

Ivy did as she was told, her grandmother reading over her shoulder and listening to how the young witch said the ancient words. She smiled when she'd finished reading it through once, leaning back in her seat.

"Have you been practicing?"

"Every day; is it that bad? Did I get some of the words wrong? Oh, I knew I screwed up somewh-"

"Calm down, child; you're turning into your mother."

Ivy snapped her mouth shut.

"I only asked because you said it so beautifully; I'm very impressed with you."

"Thank you."

"But you don't believe me, do you."

Ivy thought for a moment, tracing her fingers along the book. "I'm always messing things up. I can do the smaller spells, no problem, but things like this I've just never been able to do. Maybe I'm the black sheep of the family."

"Is that what you think?"

"Calista's already started to make frogs tap-dance their way through the house, and I could barely slow a falling object by the time I was twelve. Let's face it, maybe I'm just not meant for this. I've doomed my best friend to Goddess knows what, and it's my fault for being the reject witch."

Adelaide gave a low, warm chuckle, setting her cup on the coffee table. "My precious girl, you are not a reject witch. You need to understand that. You just lack the confidence in your craft. Once you believe in yourself, you'll be better than fine. It has taken many members of our family years to properly pronounce the Old English text in that book. It was well after your mother was in diapers that my tongue finally chose to cooperate with it. Yet here you are, at twenty-two, without a mistake on your tongue. That's special, indeed."

"Really?"

"Would I lie to you?" She smiled and patted the blonde's hand. "Be confidant in your craft; you've got a better grip on it than you think. Your mother only tried to stifle it because your father left her so early in your life; I think she was trying to make up for that. But, enough about Paul. This is an Emerson family crisis, and we'll fix it together."

Ivy smiled. She loved knowing that her last name wasn't her father's, but had come down the line from her Gran. The family connection was so important, especially when it came to their family of magic users. While the rest of the world denied them, they had each other, and that was what mattered in the end.

The spell book was gently carried, and the two women headed upstairs to Adelaide's study. Ivy had only ever been inside a few times, and each visit was such a privilege for her. The walls were lined with shelves stuffed with books, scrolls, and loose papers, ranging from the recent to the relic. There were all kinds of charms and talismans draped across the desk, and a crystal ball sat at a side table, next to a piece of velvet that Ivy knew contained her grandmother's tarot deck. The room seeped magic, and she loved when she was allowed inside.

Ivy took a seat in front of the desk, while her grandmother sat behind it, one of her strange "I-know-something-you-don't" smiles toying at her lips.

"My dear, your spell wasn't wrong."

"Wait, what?"

"You did everything right. Nothing was mispronounced, you said you followed the directions precisely, and, well, there's just no way that you could have possibly gotten it wrong."

"I have no idea how that makes sense. I mean, I was trying to find her soul mate, not send her through the floorboards. Sure, I may not know exactly how that whole situation was supposed to play out, but I'm pretty sure that wasn't it. Maybe a choir of angels, or a knock on the door; hell, the TARDIS could have popped into my living room, and even that would have made more sense than my best friend just vanishing!"

Adelaide laughed at Ivy's confusion. "I'm sorry, dear, let me explain. This particular spell is worded for your friend to find her soul mate, not the other way around."

"Okay, hold the phone. So, what you're telling me is that I've sent my friend to her true love?"

"Yes."

"So I didn't screw up?"

"Not at all, dear; you cast the spell the way it should be; no mistakes."

"Well, I'll be go to Hell."

Adelaide laughed at the heavy southern tone Ivy had adopted. "I think you've been out at that cottage of yours for far too long, dear."

"Gran, right now, I'm trying to figure out what to do about my friend. I have no idea where she is. I mean, she could be on some island somewhere, where no one speaks English. This could end awfully."

While Ivy was stressing out, her grandmother had picked up her tarot cards and brought them to the desk. The blonde shuffled them, thinking of where her friend could possibly be. She handed the cards back to her grandmother, who began placing them on the table.

The formation was almost a mass of all the cards in a spiral; Ivy had never been able to keep up with the way her Gran read cards, but she was always dead on. Always. She watched intently, trying to see how it went, but before she knew it, all the cards were down, and the old woman had her elbows on the table, her hands folded in front of her mouth.

"I've met this friend of yours, right?"

"Yeah, Gran; Kassia? The one with the crazy music career? We've known each other since junior high."

"Ah, I remember now." Another smile tugged at her lips. "Oh my girl, my girl, my precious girl, what are we to do?"

"Gran, that's a line from a Murray Gold song, stop being cryptic, please."

"And ruin the dramatic build? Never." She leaned back in her chair. "Congratulations, Ivy, you have become one of the few witches to cause time travel."

Ivy's face had no emotion. "Come again?"

"You've sent Miss Kassia Brighton back in time; really, you should be proud of yourself."

"This really isn't funny, I hope you know."

"You're right, it isn't; you're getting more like your mother every day, you know. Oh, don't look at me like that. Here, let's see if we can spy on her, shall we?"

The pair moved to the table in the corner around the crystal ball. Ivy remembered the last time she was at one of these, and that was the night Kassia disappeared. However, her Gran was far better at operating something like that than any Renaissance Fair sideshow act.

Adelaide positioned her hands over the orb, taking a deep breath in and out. The sphere started to glow, much to Ivy's amazement. She'd never seen her Gran use this, so it was quite a treat. The light faded a bit, revealing shadows that finally became clear images. Ivy's eyes almost popped out of her head as she stared at her friend, dressed in medieval royal finery, and feasting with people of similar dress.

"What the…?"

"Kassia is roughly fifteen-hundred years in the past; oh, and you managed to get her to England. It would seem," Adelaide peered at the scene, "that she's posing as a woman of nobility."

"Probably a princess; figures."

"Let's see if we can see whose court she's in, shall we?"

The crystal then showed the scene of Kassia's debut in the court, when she was still injured. Adelaide moved her hands slightly, closing in on the king's face. Her eyes narrowed slightly, making sure that she saw correctly.

"How much do you know about the Arthurian legends, Ivy?"

"Nowhere near as much as Kass, I know that much. But, I think I have a decent grip on it; why?"

"Because that, my dear, is Uther Pendragon; King Arthur's father."

"What? That's not possible. It's a piece of fiction." She looked at her grandmother. "Isn't it?"

Adelaide sighed. "My dear, there are many things that you still need to learn. Confidence in yourself being one, and your magical history being another. I'm not going to be around to help you forever, you know."

"Don't say that, Gran."

"I've got a lot of time left, but you need to know that. The average life span for our family within the last few generations has been roughly one-hundred-thirty-five, but you never know…" She refocused on the orb. "I digress. The point is, Camelot did exist, Ivy. Terrible things happened to it, and now no one knows where to find remains, rendering it a piece of fiction. The story was twisted like mad, too. So many things have changed since those days."

"Gran, please don't tell me that you're that old."

"No, I'm not," she laughed, "don't be silly, dear. But I'm aware of our roots, which go back that far. And that's how far back your friend is."

"So, if she's there, is she going to screw things up? Butterfly effect and all of that?"

"What a silly theory. Unless she's killed someone important, I'm sure things are just fine-"

She looked as the picture shifted to one of Kassia with Arthur, the moment when she'd been teaching him to waltz. Adelaide's brow furrowed a bit.

"That, however…"

"Who's that?"

"Arthur Pendragon."

"What? He's gorgeous," Ivy whined. "Damnit, Kass better be taking advantage of that."

"Not too far, I hope."

"Why do you say that?"

The two women locked eyes, the older of the two far more serious than the younger had seen in years. "Because if they go too far, then things will be altered."

Ivy pondered. "Wait a second, first you say that I've sent her to find her soul mate, and then you say that she's going to ruin everything? I mean, if that's who she's supposed to be with, shouldn't she be doing the right thing, then?"

"In theory, yes, but your friend's destiny is a bit more complicated than just 'boy-meets-girl'. For her, she's got 'girl-anachronism-meets-Once-and-Future-King', and I'd like to see you explain Arthur and Kassia instead of Arthur and Guinevere."

The phone started ringing, and Adelaide moved to answer, still keeping the projection going. Ivy stared at it, amazed at how happy her friend looked dancing with the gorgeous blonde would-be king. The whole situation was blowing her mind. She tuned into part of her Gran's phone conversation, having no idea what was going on.

"Is it? … Oh, I see. … Yes, yes, I understand. … Well, you don't have to phrase it like that, you know. … Then you come over and take care of it. … Great, I'll see you soon. … Don't give me that sass, I'm paying you, in case you forgot! … That's what I thought; goodbye!"

She set the antique phone back in the cradle, returning to her granddaughter.

"What was that all about?"

"Oh, that? Nothing, don't worry about it."

"Gran…"

"Just someone who's been helping me around the house, nothing for you to trouble yourself over. I've been helping him with classes at university; herbs and the occult and whatnot."

"Sounds like you found a kindred spirit."

"I do what I can. Now, back to the situation at hand." She let her hold on the crystal go, and the scene dissolved.

"Yeah, so, if she's ruining everything, then how am I supposed to get her back?"

"Darling, I don't know everything offhand anymore, you know. Why don't we both do some research, yes? It could be fun."

"I've never seen the fun in research."

"Do I need to rephrase that?"

"No, I understand. I just…"

"Just what, dear?"

"I wish that this hadn't happened, you know? It's all my fault, this situation. She didn't even want me to cast the stupid spell, but did I listen? Of course not."

Adelaide walked with her granddaughter to the front door, giving her a list of places to look that might be helpful. Ivy was so confused. She couldn't handle the amount of information that she'd been handed. She wasn't Kassia, who would have taken it all and asked about anything else she needed to know. But her best friend wasn't there, so she had to do this on her own.

She gave her Gran one last tight hug, then loaded the car back up with the book and a box of herbs and cookies that she always seemed to leave with. She had to take a minute in the car to pull her emotions together, because she didn't want to break down crying during the drive home; it just didn't sound safe.

As she pulled out, a red car that she didn't recognize pulled in. She guessed it was the kid her Gran had been talking to on the phone, because no one really visited her that was around her age. He wore more black than most people she knew, but that wasn't a major concern for her. At least Gran had someone helping her out around the house, and someone who was interested in what came so naturally to their family.

On the drive home, Ivy thought about how in the Hell she would even begin to try and get her friend home. There had to be a million different variables, and she was sure that Kassia would kill her for the whole situation if she got back. But at least she'd have her friend back.

Then again, she had to think about the other part of the equation, and that was Kassia herself. She'd always loved that era, and if she had indeed found her soul mate, what was there to guarantee that she would even want to come back at all?

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