They were standing Up There, again surrounded by the Elders. Gnaius was pacing in front of them, citing all the things they'd done wrong.

"You knew Whitelighters were forbidden to be with each other, and you broke that rule, and when you conceived a child - a child who never should have existed - you hid her from us. That alone is grounds enough for expulsion. Plus, you specifically ignored my instructions to come back here with any vanquishing spell you were planning to use. What if it had backfired? Did you even think about that? Did you even consider that there were reasons behind the rules?"

Octavia stepped forward in their defense. "If I may, Gnaius," she said, glaring scornfully at her colleague, "If it weren't for this blessed child, whom you insist shouldn't have been born, we'd still be living under the threat of the most powerful evil being ever known. If the result of their rule-breaking is a beautiful baby girl with powers beyond comprehension - powers that she'll use for good, of course, her parents and aunts being what they are - then I don't think the reasons behind these rules you keep bringing up are quite good enough."

Everyone looked at her in amazement. Octavia was not only the youngest Elder, but the smallest and quietest. She rarely, if ever, spoke up until now. Blushing slightly, she stepped back.

Julius decided it was his turn to speak. "Gnaius, you can't possibly think of punishing them after all the good they've done, today included. I may be one of you, but I'll be the first to admit that some of our rules are just plain ridiculous, this one included. What are we trying to accomplish, by keeping Whitelighters from the people they love, and taking away their children? What good can possibly come of that? The only effect this rule has comes in the form of broken hearts-"

"Enough." Gnaius bellowed. "A rule is a rule, regardless of whether or not it's a good one." He continued on in Whitelighter-speak, clicking away for what seemed like hours. Finally, the Elders disappeared to deliberate over what, if any, punishment should be given.

A long time passed. They waited for the Elders in silence; they were all too scared to speak. At last, they orbed in.

Gnaius stepped forward, looking slightly defeated. Prue reached for Andy's hand, hoping this was a good sign.

"After much discussion," Gnaius began in his cold, formal way, "we've managed to come up with a suitable arrangement, given the circumstances. Granted, I don't think it's nearly severe enough, but it'll have to do." He coughed, and continued. "Prudence, Andrew, you will both be indefinately suspended as Whitelighters. Your wings will be clipped - not permanently, mind you - and you will live as mortals. I don't much care where or how. When we see fit, we will give you your powers back."

Andy and Prue looked at each other, assimilating this. Then it sank in: They were going back to Earth, to live with their family, and most importantly, to be with their daughter. No sooner had they processed this than they were enveloped in a group hug by Prue's sisters and brother-in-law. Even Julius and Octavia came over to share their joy.

"Enough." Gnaius said. "Come along, then, it's time to strip our powers."

Prue and Andy went to the belligerent Elder to have their wings clipped. They both felt a sadness over losign their powers, but it was nothing compared to the absolute joy at knowing they would be able to see their little girl, after all.

Prue handed Angelie over to Andy. Then, she ran over to Julius and gave him a kiss. "Thank you for... everything." she said, clasping his hands.

He pulled her into a warm embrace. "If you'll have me, I'll stop in as often as possible."

"You'd better." called Piper.

Prue smiled at him, and went back to her family. The six adults joined hands, and Paige and Leo orbed them back to the manor to rejoin the mortal world.

The End.

***************
A/N: That chapter could have been a lot better, but I'm just really glad I finished. What did you think? Do you want a sequel? I've already got an idea for the sequel in mind, but I'm not going to start it until I know there's a lot of interest, so please, review.
Thanks for reading my fic. Hope you liked it!
-Cateline