A/N: You guys are great for staying with me. I don't really expect to get a lot of reviews anymore, since the Charmed part of fanfiction is HUGE. They're like a million stories getting added everyday, so it's really hard for a particular story to get read if the summary sucks and the review number does too. My summary pretty much sucks butt, but getting 1 or 2 reviews is like getting 20 for me. THANKS!

Summary: A/U fic. Starts around Season 4. Instead of going to the all the way to the alter to be intiated in as the Source, Cole sacrifices himself to save Phoebe from turning evil. He unfortunately dies in the process, and Phoebe with no choice and persuasion of the Seer, still becomes Queen of the Underworld with her baby still inside of her. Piper, Paige and Leo's failure to bring Phoebe back causes a huge impact in their lives, and they too also have no choice but to move on.

Disclaimer: I do not own Charmed or any of the characters, except for those in future chapters that are not recognized. I also don't own most of the dialogue in the first two chapters, because they were taken from the original script.

Part 1, New Beginnings: Chapter 3 - "On the Sidelines"

With a tiny little sip of the coffee cup, Prue Halliwell was sold for life.

"Oh wow.....Whoa. That is REALLY good....." said Prue, putting the cup down. Sitting down at a simple café table, she sat across from her very best friend, Kevin. Kevin smirked as Prue held a shocked and satisfied reaction on her face.

"It's called a Double White Mocha Cappuccino." said Kevin, sipping a cup of his own.

"Is that even a possible combination? Isn't Mocha and Cappuccino two different kinds of coffee? And what does the double stand for?" Prue asked, trying to make light conversation.

"Do I look like a coffee expert? I was a doctor before I died. I drank the stuff, but never made it. But it's really good, isn't it?"

Prue nodded but stared at him with bulging eyes. "Do you want someone to hear you? The last thing I want to do is start a scene."

Kevin merely shrugged. "Come on, Prue. It's Chicago. The city's too windy and busy for people to actually listen to other people's conversations. Not even the service around here listens to people's requests." he said jokingly. Prue gave in to his humor and playfully laughed.

"So what's up, boss? Why exactly did you take me all the way to Chicago for a cup of coffee. With you, there's always something bigger. I'm supposed to be looking after other people. " she said, taking another sip.

Kevin nodded and folded his hands on the table. He leaned in a little bit towards Prue, and Prue did the same assuming that he was about to talk about white lighter business. Kevin moved in close, and Prue noticed his blue eyes shining with the sunlight. Along with blonde spiky hair, Kevin was quite handsome for his middle aged appearance. Of course, Prue and Kevin only thought of each other as friends.

"Prue......I've been your advisor and your caretaker for.....about a year now. Am I right?"

"Yeah......" replied Prue, not sure on which direction the conversation was heading.

"The past year, you've learned the ropes, and you've become a great white lighter. Maybe it's the fact that you are a former charmed one.....I honestly have no idea. But you have a real gift in helping people. Every assignment you've had has been baby work.....and you've never failed once. I'm real proud of you....and you've been great, not only as my pupil, but also as my friend." Kevin said.

Prue's cheeks turned a light pink. "Aw, Kev, you really know how to flatter a girl."

"Well, I've had good practice." Kevin said, laughing. "Anyway.....what I'm trying to say is that, I convinced the Elders to give you a real assignment, and they've also decided that you no longer need me monitoring your work. You can be independent."

"No......NO!!!" Prue said, shocked. "No way!!!! That's awesome! They're turning me official???"

Kevin nodded as he finished up his cappuccino. Prue let out a joyful cry. "Oh man, this is so cool!!! For a year I've just been doing like......social worker stuff. Now I'm in for REAL excitement!!! What's my assignment? Do I get to help witches battle demons? Do I get to train witches in their powers??? Do I get to kick butt in this one???" exclaimed Prue, excited about her assignment.

"Um....." responded Kevin, afraid he might disappoint Prue. "Well.....not really. Actually, I'm not even sure what you're supposed to be doing with this guy......"

Prue lost all her excitement and pouted. "That doesn't sound very adventurous at all.....So who's the charge?"

"His name is Ryan Croft."

"Croft.....like....Tomb Raider Lara Croft? Ha ha ha ha!" said Prue, laughing at her charge's name. Kevin let out a smirk.

"He comes from a really powerful line of witches. It seems that he's a rebellious one. He's the most powerful of his family, and he has a strong load of powers. He's supposed to be one of the most powerful good witches of his time and he's supposed to be going on to do great things. But he turned his back on his magical side, and doesn't want anything to do with it because of the childhood death of his mother." Kevin explained.

Prue's heart stopped, and realized her charge's story was a lot like hers. She could see why Croft turned his back on magic. Losing a parent to magic was torture.

"His family was a major contribution to good magic, but recently the last living member of his family passed away, and he's the only one left. With his family gone, you can say that there's been a rise in demonic activity here in Chicago. The Elders want you to work with him, and help him overcome his loss so he can accept his magical destiny and help mankind. The Elders are afraid that if he doesn't turn to his destiny, there could be a terrible imbalance in good and evil magic." Kevin continued.

"How.....exactly am I supposed to do that?" Prue asked, not having any ideas coming to mind.

Kevin shrugged. "I already said that I had no idea what you're supposed to do with this guy. In my point of view, if the guy hasn't excepted his destiny for over 17 years, he needs a LOT of talking to, to change his mind."

Prue rolled her eyes. "Great.....a talking assignment. I'm soooooo happy. " she said, sarcastically.

Kevin gave her a reassuring look. "Look Prue.....I know it's nothing like being a charmed one, and I know you miss the adventure in fighting demons and saving innocents, but this is all I can get you right now. Heck, maybe you'll encounter a few demons in spending time with this guy. Even though he doesn't fight evil, he's still a target to many demons."

"Even if I did, I wouldn't be able to do anything but stand on the sidelines and heal!!!" said Prue, angrily.

"Well........" Kevin said, slyly. Prue looked up at him.

"What.......you're hiding something from me, aren't you Kevin??? What are you hiding??"

"You can't.....SAY anything....."

"What is it??"

"If someone asks, then I didn't tell you anything alright....."

"COME ON!!!"

"Okay, okay!!" Kevin said, sighing. "The Elders mentioned that IF you did well with this assignment......they're thinking of giving you your telekinetic powers back.....since you were a charmed one and all and—"

"ARE YOU KIDDING!!!!!" Prue exclaimed. "THAT'S SO GREAT!!! I'VE MISSED MY POWERS SO MUCH!"

Prue quickly closed her mouth when she realized how loud she was. Kevin laughed out loud. "Now look who's making a scene....."

"I'm sorry, I'm just so excited." Prue said, smiling. "So hurry up and tell me where he is!! Give me my charge!!! Where is he? Where can I find him?"

"Well, you're in for a treat. He's right here."

Prue was a little confused at first, and looked around the café for possible men who would be Ryan. Kevin noticed and shook his head. "No, I don't mean like that." he said. He held up his coffee cup to Prue's face so she could notice the little emblem on it.

"Croft's Chicago Brew??? He OWNS this place??"

"Yep...."

"Well, at least the man has good taste in coffee."

"Every single day, he comes here and dedicates his life to the shop. As a matter of fact, he's standing right over there behind the cappuccino machine." Kevin said, pointing over to the cashier counter of the café.

Prue turned around to look at the counter. She had a hard time finding him through the bunches of people crowding around the place, but stopped breathing once she caught sight of him. Prue saw him, and thought he looked absolutely amazing. He couldn't be more than 30, had a light brown curly top and sparkling green eyes. He looked nice and muscular, and had a good height on. Despite the tacky red apron he had on, Prue fell in love with the smile he had on his face as he handed a customer a coffee cup.

"Whoa. Is he single??" Prue said, mesmerized. Kevin rolled his eyes, but Prue didn't notice because her eyes were still stuck on on, you've got more important stuff to worry about. But yea, he is."

Prue turned over to Kevin and gave a devious smile. "You're right, this will be exciting."

Kevin laughed once again, and got up from his seat. He held Prue's shoulder with his hand. "I trust you'll do the right thing. Good luck with this assignment. " he said. Kevin gave a playful wink at Prue and made her smile.

"Thanks Kev. You've done a lot for me. I owe you."

"Convince this guy to give me free coffee for a year, and we're even." he said, jokingly. He then grabbed his cup of coffee and walked out of the coffee shop.

Prue sighed and looked down at the emblem on her coffee cup. She then looked back up at gorgeous Ryan.

"Hm.....what to do now...." she whispered to herself. But all she could find herself doing, was staring at her charge behind the counter.

---

As he finished up cleaning the last of the tables in his shop, Ryan Croft finally took off his dark red apron, signaling the end of another day's work. The shop was empty, since it was already 10 o'clock, exactly an hour after the shop closed. He took one last look around the café, to check if everything was put away and if everything was clean. After he was satisfied with his work, he closed all the lights, locked the front door, and headed towards his office in the back of the shop.

There, he did his daily "end of the day" routine which included putting away his work clothes, locking up his safe and making sure everything that he needed was stored safely in his briefcase. He quickly put on his light jacket and grabbed his briefcase. He was about to exit through the back door of the shop, until he decided to take one last look at the shop.

Ryan sighed as he looked around his so called "accomplishment." He'd worked hard to start his own business and it's finally come to a point in his life where he could relax about everything and didn't really have any responsibilities to tend to. The problem was, the lifestyle wasn't working for him.

He missed the life of adventure and hard work, since it always worked as a distraction to get his mind off other things. Now he had no choice but to think.

Ryan looked around his coffee shop, and found it quiet. He was alone, not only in the shop, but in his life. He sighed, knowing that it was impossible for him to have relationships. One reason being was he was timid and shy, and no woman ever really got to see past his looks and to his heart since he never let them. The second reason was always because of magic.

You can't just tell regular mortal women about having powers on first dates. Or proposals.

Even with all his reasons, he always seemed to end up blaming himself for ending up lonely. His family was gone because he abandoned them, and he did "run away" to live on his own and to be independent. Still, he couldn't help wishing someone would come into his life and keep him company.

Another sigh escaped him, and he decided to make himself a cup of coffee for his walk home to his city apartment. As soon as he was done mixing it up, he left the shop through the back door.

The back door led out into an alley where dumps filled with garbage and other junk sat. He took a look around the alley, just in case there was some late night Chicago prowler out to try and steal his money, or a late night bounty hunter demon out to try and steal his powers. Anything was possible in the windy city. He held his coffee in his hand to keep warm as he walked out of the alley.

Just as he turned the corner, he thought he heard a noise behind him. He reacted by turning around, checking if there was anyone behind him. It turned out to be no one, and the street was deserted. He turned back around to start walking but was surprised as he suddenly walked into someone walking in front of him. The collision caused him to spill his coffee cup onto the person he bumped into.

Ryan took a minute to recover from the crash and realized the pedestrian he bumped into was a woman on the floor with coffee spilled all over herself. Ryan realized what an idiot he had been and quickly started to help her up.

"I am so sorry.....That was really stupid of me......And I got coffee all over you, I am just really—"

As he started to help the woman up and as he apologized, he suddenly stopped once he got a clear view of her face. The woman looked absolutely ravishing. She had long back hair and naturally tanned skin. Her eyes were green and looked beautiful as it shone with the moonlight. She couldn't be any older than he was, probably in her mid-thirties.

"It's okay......umm, you kind of got coffee all over my stuff too though...." she said, as she looked up at Ryan. Ryan flinched at the sound of her calm voice, and couldn't get over her beauty. She seemed a little shocked to see him, and he hoped to God that she had a little interest in him.

"Oh, gosh......I'm telling you, it's a curse of owning a coffee business. You're cursed with coffee accidents everywhere you go....." he said, trying to make their conversation humorous. The young woman responded with a small laugh, and Ryan felt relieved that she wasn't furious with him.

"You own a coffee business?" she suddenly asked, looking very interested.

Ryan smiled, and was hoping he could give off a good impression to the girl. "Yeah. It's actually the little shop on the corner behind me. Croft's Chicago Brew." he said, and he pointed to himself. "I'm the Croft."

"Well I've got to hand it to you Mr. Croft–"

"Ryan! You can call me Ryan...." said Ryan, interrupting. The young woman laughed at his reaction.

"Well, Ryan Croft. Even though it's not really a good look for my outfit, the coffee's actually keeping me warm in this windy weather. My name's Prue. Prue Halliwell." she said, smiling. Ryan was surprised at hearing her name.

'Halliwell....' he thought. 'Sounds vaguely familiar....but I don't think I've ever seen this chick before.'

"You know Prue.....my apartment's right down the block. I can get you cleaned up in a second, so you won't have to talk all the way home in those coffee-stained clothes of yours." he offered, still memorized in her smiled. Prue thought about it for a moment, and finally nodded.

"Sure.....that would be great." she replied. Ryan smiled and picked up his briefcase as the two started their way to the apartment building.

---

As she stood in Ryan Croft's bathroom, Prue had absolutely no idea what she was about to do next. She had managed to establish a "bump-in" with him, but just like all her assignments, she had no battle plan and did what she does best, which was winging it through. Although her other assignments had turned out quite nicely, Prue had never been this "undercover" with a charge before.

She closed the bathroom faucet, and gave up on trying to clean her stained clothes. She glanced into the mirror, disgusted with how badly she looked. She had never really expected to get dirty while bumping into him, and couldn't believe he invited her so openly to his apartment.

But Prue didn't mind. This charge was really hot.

She opened the door slowly, and walked out into the living room. For a simple Chicago apartment, Ryan's was very luxurious. It had a lot of room and it seemed like Ryan was pretty loaded with his own cash. This guy would have definitely made her dating lists when she was alive.

'Okay, Prue....focus on the charge.....geez, he is just so hot.' thought Prue.

She walked into the kitchen, and saw him fixing a pot of coffee.

"Is that a famous blend of yours?" she asked. Ryan suddenly turned around, and seemed startled that she was there. But he seemed to be glad that she was.

"Actually.....it's just decaff. I hope you don't mind. " he said, pouring them both a cup. Prue walked towards him and sat down on the kitchen table.

"I really appreciate you helping me clean up and everything." she said, trying to make light conversation

'Just get to know him a little bit.....make him like you, make him trust you......' Prue thought, desperate to accomplish some kind of relationship between the two of them.

"Oh, it's really no problem. It was my fault you had to get cleaned up anyway.....Again, I really wasn't paying attention to where I was going. I'm such a klutz sometimes." he said, shaking his head as if he were ashamed of himself.

Prue laughed and stroked her hair nervously. Usually her people skills were great, but for some reason this guy was making her really nervous. There was an awkward silence between them as Prue searched for her words. Fortunately for her, Ryan continued the conversation.

"So....where in Chicago are you from? I usually know the faces of everyone in this neighborhood, and I don't think I've seen you around....." he said. Prue looked into his eyes and smiled. She had practiced her cover over and over in her head.

"Um.....yeah, there's a reason why you've never seen me around. It's cause I'm not really around here. I'm from......out of town, and........" said Prue, as she was starting to blank out. "Um......and I was supposed to stay with a friend of mine who lived around here, but coincidently, they're out of town too, so I'm stuck with no place to go. I was trying to look for a hotel around here, but I'm not having a lot of luck."

Ryan's eyebrows rose, and he looked really interested in Prue. His look made Prue blush, and she couldn't figure out why she was falling apart in front of her charge.

"Oh wow, you should have just said so. I know a couple great hotels in downtown Chicago, which is not too far from here. I know a couple people at the Drake who can give you discount on a suite. And you're really not going to get there by walking, so I'll just call you cab." he offered.

Prue really wanted to slap herself for blushing so much. She couldn't believe how nice Ryan was to her. How was he SO PERFECT AND NICE!!!

"I couldn't ask you to do that....."

"Of course you could."

"I really have to thank you so much, nobody's ever really been this kind to me." she said.

"Well, that's hard to believe.....you're too pretty to be ignored." he replied, chuckling.

Prue's heart fluttered and blushed a bright red. She knew it was wrong, but she was falling head over heels with the charge.

---

After a huge talk, the taxi that Ryan had called finally arrived at the apartment. Ryan couldn't stop staring at Prue as he walked her to the door. They didn't really have a "Get to know you" talk, but they talked more about things around the city. Ryan still couldn't get over how perfect she looked, and how "down-to-earth" she was.

He opened the door, and let Prue walk out. She turned around to face. His breath was taken away he saw her eyes again.

"Thanks for everything, Ryan. It was really nice to have ONE friend in the city, since all mine are out of town." she said, winking. She seemed really flushed and Ryan prayed to God that she was at least a little interested in him.

"Hey, it was the least I could do." he said, nervously smiling.

"Well, I'll be seeing you around, I guess.....Bye, and thanks." she said, smiling and turning away. She started to walk down the stairs.

Ryan was completely frozen. Something was telling him to go after her, since this could be the last chance he had to see her.

'Make a move. MAKE A MOVE RYAN!' he urged himself.

"WAIT! PRUE!" he called out. Prue abruptly turned around and looked startled.

"Did I forget something??" she asked, walking back up the stairs. Ryan paused for a minute.

"Uhh...." he replied. "No.....ummm."

There was a beat of silence, and Ryan noticed that she too, wouldn't pull away from his eyes. "I was wondering.....can I take you out to dinner tomorrow?? Around 4 or 5 maybe? IF you're.....not doing anything?" he asked, with a bit of confidence.

Prue laughed and she seemed relieved. She quickly nodded. "I would love that.....but aren't you going to be at the shop?"

Ryan shrugged. "Hell, I'm the owner. I'll close early!" he said, laughing. Prue giggled and nodded.

"Call me at the hotel." she said, as she started her way back down the stairs. Ryan was left in shock, and he had an enormous grin on his face. He closed the door and leaned against the wall. This girl was different for some reason, and he wanted to find out what he was.

Prue had left his absolutely starstruck, and all he could think about was their date for the next night.

To be continued...........Stay tuned for Chapter 4 of Part 1.

A/N: I hope I didn't really bore you with this chapter. But....I hope that you liked Prue is involved in my story!!!