They had spent nearly three hours trying to figure out what it was that had frightened the gargoyle. Nothing seemed to make any sense. The flowers in the vase had all ready begun to die. The vase itself was one they had inherited from grams. It was old but it wasn't magical and didn't appear to have any unusual properties to it. The table and wastebasket were the normal type someone could buy from any department store. And the mirror was only about four inches square and completely ordinary.
They had even checked the wallpaper on the wall behind the table. It appeared to be nothing more than ordinary wallpaper. Leo had checked with the Elders but they could offer no explanation either. None of the items were magical and posed no substantial threat to either Toushell or the gargoyle.
"I just don't get it," said Paige. "There's nothing here that should have caused that gargoyle to suddenly become afraid. This is all just normal stuff."
"Maybe it's afraid of its own reflection," joked Piper, looking at the mirror. "It is one ugly beast."
"Afraid of its reflection?" questioned Leo. "That hardly seems likely. "Besides, as small as that mirror is and as far away as the gargoyle was it wouldn't have been able to see its reflection. That couldn't have frightened it."
"Well," said Phoebe, "we're all agreed that the gargoyle was afraid before it shimmered away with Toushell. And like Piper said, I don't even have an offensive power. Besides, it wasn't afraid of me at the church. There's no reason it should be afraid of me here."
"We're running out of time," said Leo. "The gargoyle is going to have to feed soon. Toushell admitted that much. It won't be worried about keeping itself hidden. And the Elders told me that there haven't been any public sightings of it yet."
"That's going to change soon," said Piper. "Once it starts to feed it probably won't stop any time soon. And unless we find a way to defeat this thing every innocent in the city is going to be at its mercy."
"Not to mention it will probably come back to finish us off," said Paige. "Right now all we can do is orb away when it shows up so that none of us ends up dead."
"Leo," said Phoebe thoughtfully, looking at the mirror, "what exactly can you tell us about how the gargoyles were created?"
"Well," said Leo, "a lot of what we know is only conjecture. We do know that several high level demons instilled them with part of their essence. That's what makes them so powerful and so dangerous. A single vanquishing potion can't harm them since they are a hybrid of sorts of many demons."
"How did they do that?" Phoebe asked. "I mean, exactly how were they able to instill their essence in the gargoyles?"
"That part is conjecture," said Leo. "The only thing the Elders were able to figure out was that the demons set up two mirrors facing each other. Then they cast their magic into one mirror, which was reflected onto the other one. They don't know how but somehow this was the catalyst in creating the first gargoyles."
"Two mirrors?" questioned Phoebe thoughtfully. "Maybe it was the mirror that frightened the gargoyle. Or maybe it wasn't fear. Maybe we just thought it was fear."
"What are you getting at?" Piper asked.
"I have a crazy idea," said Phoebe. "It's a risk and it might not work. Leo, you need to check with the Elders. See if Toushell and the gargoyle are still at that church. Then I need you to get me two mirrors. Large ones. The kind they use in dressing rooms and such."
"Two mirrors?" questioned Leo.
"Yes," said Phoebe. "I don't have time to explain right now. Just check with the Elders and get me the mirrors. Piper, we need to come up with a new potion. Something a little different from what you normal concoct. But it shouldn't take long and we should be ready by the time Leo gets back."
"Okay," said Piper. "In the mean time you can explain what this crazy idea of yours is."
"That's exactly what I had in mind," said Phoebe. "Paige, would you get Leo's toolbox from underneath the sink? We're going to need it for my plan to work."
"Okay," said Paige. "But if you want me to fix something I have to warn you I'm not really very good at anything like that."
"No," said Phoebe, "I don't want you to fix anything. Let's get started. We have a lot to do and not a lot of time to get it done in."
Leo orbed out of the manor to check with the Elders. As Piper and Phoebe began to get the ingredients for the new potion, Paige went to the sink in the kitchen to retrieve Leo's toolbox. As Phoebe explained her plan to her sisters she could tell that neither was totally convinced. But with nothing better to go on there really wasn't much else they could do.