CHAPTER 3:

"Annabel come back here right now young lady!", Dronan grumbled as he ran after the 5 year-old. She had his glasses in her hand as she ran up the stairs. Dronan – half-blind – followed the noise and bumped with his foot against the steps. "Ouch", he said as he looked down at his hurting foot. His sight was blurry and he couldn't see the damage so he quickly grabbed the rail of the stairs and followed Annabel upstairs.

He found her playing in her room like nothing had happened. Dronan bend down and looked at the girl. "Anna", he started "Where did you leave my glasses?" She shrugged but Dronan didn't see it. After a short silence he sighed and gave up. She wouldn't tell him. He stood up and sighed once more. "Gwen!", he shouted through the house. "Can you give me a hand here?"

Gwendolyn immediately responded to his call and walked in the room. "Hi Anna", she said with a smile to the little girl, before turning her attention to Dronan. "What's wrong honey?", she asked concerned as she saw the look on his face.

"Anna won't tell me where she left my glasses", he said indignant.

Gwen burst out in laughter. "You should see yourself", she said chuckling. "You look like a little child." She bent down in front of Anna and softly asked "Did you hide uncle Dronan's glasses?"

The girl nodded and stood up. She took her teddy bear from underneath the blankets in her bed and Gwen saw what was on the stuffed animal's nose: the lost glasses. "Thanks sweetie", Gwen said as she ruffled with her hand through the girl's hair and took the glasses from her. She reached it to Dronan and said smiling "Now be a good boy and don't pout anymore."

Grumbling Dronan took the glasses form Gwen's hand and put it on his noise. "Calling an elder a pouting little child", he grumbled on.

"What did you say?", Gwen asked, very well knowing what Dronan just said.

"Nothing."

"It's been 19 years Dronan. Nineteen years without you doing anything Elder like, than visiting the Havens every now and then. Why can't you just let it go", Gwen asked worried.

"I don't know", Dronan replied as he shook his head. Uncomfortably shoving his hand in his trousers. There were some things he hadn't told her about, the rumors that floated around about the new source and the Halliwells. And that fact he was going to the Haven's on a more frequent basis again.

Gwen noticed the sudden change in Dronan, in the way he looked and acted. But she didn't ask further, she didn't want to know what it was about, because she had a feeling it meant more trouble. More than there already was.

So both of them kept their secrets and walked out of the room, leaving Anna alone with her teddy bear.

Walking downstairs Dronan suddenly felt an enormous urge to go to the others, he glanced at Gwen from the corner of his eyes and saw her heading towards the kitchen to prepare a meal for the children. Knowing she could handle this on her own and he didn't had any excuse to go he just orbed to the Havens, without even saying a goodbye. He'd think of an excuse later on, right now he knew there was something going on he couldn't miss out on.

When orbed into the havens he saw Elders walking all around them, almost running. Hasty as they never were. He picked one that walked by and stopped him. "What's going on?", he asked when he saw the worried look on the guy's face.

"It is activated". the guy whispered in return. "I have to go... meeting." With that he quickly made himself loose from Dronan's arm and walked further, into the direction all other hasty elders seem to go.

Curious as he was about what was going on, Dronan walked thereto also. He saw tens of Elders gathered in the room, one that was empty except for the people that stood in there, awaiting for the meeting to start. Not long after Dronan walked in it did. He hide himself at the back of the crowd and listened to one of the elders. That one was explaining it was the source's watch that had been reactivated, the one that kept him into contact with the higher men. Just like the demons, also the elders knew how dangerous these demons were. And that recruiting the higher men again, especially in the state they were in nowadays, could only mean one thing: the source was after the Halliwells.

Suddenly it hit Dronan. The Halliwells. That also meant Joey, or P.J. as her name was nowadays. He was the one to get her safe before, he was the one to get her to Gwen who brought her up, and he knew what Joey, or P.J., meant to Gwen. He walked forward to tell them he would help them, that he needed to help them.

At the same time the elder that spoke to the crowd pointed towards Dronan. "Now", he said. "I knew he'd be interested in this and he would show up. Dronan here is the only one among use who has been able to defeat a small group of these demons at once. And I brought him here for everyone to tell us all he knows about these demons. Every little thing that can might help us, because all we know it that they haven't been beaten by anyone than him and the Charmed ones." He turned to Dronan and asked: "What do you say about it? One more time for old time's sake?"

"Of course", Dronan replied. 'Everything for Gwen & P.J.', he silently thought.