Hi everyone...so I know that Tuesday has come and gone, and that I've broken my goal of updating every week at the same time. However, I've been swamped with holiday stuff, family obligations, work, and writers block. Add the whole not letting me upload the chapter right away thing...and before you know it it's Wednesday. So here is my peace offering; I hope you like it.
Shoutouts: Big thank yous to everyone who reviewed; getting a review alert when I check my email is like Christmas morning all over again :)
Unicorn Blood and Alkanet
(Same as last scene. Just as Elizabeth shimmers out, Cole breaks Piper's freeze.)
Cole: No!
(Several fireballs hit the place Elizabeth was standing. In his playpen, little Henry starts howling. Henry goes to pick him up. Piper raises her hands and Cole goes into slow motion once more)
Piper: Okay. Prue, why isn't he freezing properly?
Prue: (Not looking up from the parchment) Cole killed a coalition of demons who came after Warren when he was a month old. He took their powers.
Piper: So?
Prue: So, one of those demons had been part witch. He's not totally immune to freezing, but it doesn't affect him as strongly or for as long. You'll have to use crystals to restrain him.
Phoebe: Crystals like the ones my son just turned to dust? Great idea, Prue.
(Cole breaks out of the freeze)
Cole: (To everyone) Fools. Utter fools. Why the hell did you do that?
Paige: (Eyes narrowed) Oh, I don't know Cole, maybe so we could have a chance of saving all of our kids before they turn evil?
Cole: You can't trust her!
Prue: She gave us the right antidote, Cole.
Cole: Then she has something else up her sleeve. You—
Phoebe: Cole! (She steps forward, grabs him by the shoulders) Listen to me. We are going to get him back. She will not keep him. No one else is going to keep him from me. I am not loosing him again. Do you understand?
(Cole stares at her for a moment. Camera pans to the faces of the other adults, who wait, tense)
Cole: (Closes his eyes briefly) Fine. (He opens his eyes, fixes Phoebe with a fierce glare. He speaks slowly, dangerously, his voice full of venom) But you had better be right.
Phoebe: I am. (She releases her hold on his shoulders and turns to Prue) What do we need to do?
Prue: Phoebe, I—
Phoebe: (Steely voice) I'll focus on being furious at you when my children and nieces and nephews are safe. Now. What do we need to do?
Prue: (Holds out the parchment) We need to collect all of these ingredients. Quickly
Leo: (Takes the list and scans it, sighs in relief) I can get most of these from magic school...crap.
Piper: Crap? You are not allowed to say crap...(Snatches parchment, reads. Her face turns scarlet) Seven hours! We have to let this damned thing stew for seven hours?
Coop: How long do we have?
(Baby Henry, who's calmed down, makes a noise and points over his father's shoulder. The adults turn to look; the children are enveloped in purples orbs again, darker than last time)
Henry: I'm guessing not seven hours.
(Cole throws another fireball at the wall in frustration)
Prue: It's okay. We don't need the seven hours. The spell was written before the Power of Three was even prophesized, so that'll be a huge power boost. And if we add an ingredient, we can probably reduce brewing time to half an hour.
Paige: Great. What's the ingredient?
Prue: Unicorn.
Phoebe: That's nothing. We saved plenty of shavings from the horn and pieces of the tail from that one the elders sent as Wyatt's baby gift.
Prue: Unicorn blood.
Henry: Um, I've read Harry Potter; isn't killing a unicorn a huge sin? How's that going to help our kids get their moral centers shifted back onto the side of good.
Prue: Killing a unicorn, yes. But it's possible to convince them to give it willingly.
Leo: Possible, but unlikely! Prue, it took the elders at least a month to track down that unicorn. They don't just approach people, and if you factor in all the plane-shifting it'll take to—
Cole: Plane-shifting? I'm good at that. I'll go.
Leo: Wouldn't do you any good. You have too many demonic powers; they wouldn't let you get near them.
Coop: I'll do it. They won't run from love, will they?
(Cole rolls his eyes, snorts. Coop's jaw clenches, but he otherwise ignores him)
Leo: Still won't work. It'll take months before they'll approach a strange adult willingly.
Paige: Well then how are we supposed to get one, Leo? You know, in way less than seven hours?
Leo: We need someone as innocent as possible. Someone that hasn't been tainted by evil, magic or otherwise.
Henry: Jr.
Paige: Excuse me?
Henry: The baby. He didn't eat any of the cookies; how much more innocent can you get?
Paige: (To Leo) Would it be dangerous to take him to that plane?
Leo: Safe enough, if there's someone there to protect him. That plane does have some more dangerous creatures.
Paige: (Bites lip) I don't want him involved any more than he has to be....
Cole: And there really isn't any other option...
Piper: (Glares at him, turns to Paige & Henry) Unfortunately he's right. Would you guys be all right with it?
(Henry and Paige exchange a long look)
Paige: Fine. I'll take him—
Prue: Let me.
Phoebe: What?
Prue: I'm the perfect person to take him; I can switch between planes easily, and there's really not much that could hurt me. Besides, I've been there before.
Phoebe: Oh, perfect Prue.
Prue: (Cheeks redden slightly, but she continues speaking to Paige & Henry) Please, I know we got off on the wrong foot. But I promise you, I will keep him safe. And you need to stay here anyway, to gather the rest of the supplies; I can't really go out in public....
Piper: (Pushes the hair away from her face) Okay. So here's the plan: Prue takes little Henry to find the unicorn. Paige, Cole, and Coop, you go and get the ingredients that Leo doesn't have in magic school. Leo and Henry, get the stuff from magic school. Phoebe, you stay with me and scry for Warren. I'll watch the kids and get started on the potion with what we already have in the house. (To Cole, who begins to protest) The sooner we get the ingredients together and the potion started the sooner we can focus all of our attention on getting Warren back. (To everyone else) Are we good?
(One by one, they each nod)
Piper: Okay. Let's get to it.
(Paige takes little Henry from her husband and kisses the baby on the cheek)
Paige: Okay honey. This nice lady is your Auntie Prue (Prue smiles and holds out her arms as she takes the baby, who looks at her skeptically)
Prue: (Brightly) Who wants to go find a unicorn? A unicorn! (She spins in a circle, and little Henry laughs. Prue shoots Paige and Henry a questioning look. Paige nods)
Paige: Hurry, while he's still distracted.
(Prue and the baby disappear in a swirl of smoke)
Leo: Ready Henry?
Henry: Sure.
(They start up the stairs. Cole takes the parchment from Piper and looks it over)
Cole: (Businesslike) I'll get the alkanet and asafetida. (He hands the to Paige and shimmers out)
Paige: And thank you for consulting with the rest of us! (To Coop) What do you want to get?
Coop: It'll be easiest for me to pick up the copal and vetivert.
Paige: Good. Because I have no idea what those are. I'll take the hyssop and Iris, then.
(They orb/heart out. Phoebe and Piper are alone)
Piper: (Hugs Phoebe) We'll get him back. (Phoebe says nothing, just hugs her back) Stay here with the kids while I go get some supplies?
(Phoebe nods, and Piper goes upstairs. Phoebe turns and goes to where Elizabeth had been standing. She scoops up the dust where the crystals used to be, watches it run through her fingers.)
Phoebe: We are going to get him back. And when he's safe, there'll be hell to pay.
Thanks for reading!
