Hello there again! Thank you all for your fabulous reviews! I'm hoping to revamp my message boards at some point in the near future, so bare with me for review replies. Not got much to say for a change today! As always, reviews are appreciated! Enjoy:

Chapter 2 –

What the Halliwell?

Leo stood in the garden of the house he had come to call his own, staring wide-eyed at the spot in which his wife and her sisters had just vanished from. His heart felt heavy with guilt, made heavier still by worry. He had just witnessed the Charmed Ones begin a new chapter in their lives; one which would undoubtedly change their perceptive of everything they knew. Leo was one of the few with the knowledge of what lay ahead of the Halliwell sisters. It was not something he particularly wanted to know, or something he wished to explain, but he knew that as soon as he went inside and encountered Jason or Cole, the explanation would be inevitable.

Sometimes being a whitelighter was not something Leo enjoyed and now was one of those cases. "Good luck," He whispered to the empty air in front of him, and he slowly turned to the back door.

xxxxx

"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore." Paige spoke breathlessly as her panicked but enquiring eyes scanned her surroundings.

To her left, Piper was gasping for air. She could feel her oldest living sister physically shaking- whether in panic or rage (towards the Elders, of course) Paige did not know. Until mere seconds ago, panic thicker than blood had coursed through her own veins at a speed she had not even thought possible - But Piper was more inclined to be angry than scared. However, now, as they opened their eyes, neither panic nor rage was even in Paige or Piper's range of feeling. In fact, the landscape which surrounded them left confusion as the only prominent emotion:

Green.

It was the only word in Paige's surprisingly varied vocabulary that she could find to describe what surrounded her. Green. Green. Green. She assumed that with the aid of her glasses there would be slightly more to the vast expanse of grassy hills, but as it was, the convenience of glasses was a million miles away. In fact, to the youngest Charmed One, a mere sign of civilisation seemed a million miles away- more than a million. Other than her sisters- one of whose hand she still clutched tightly in her own- there was no sign of human life.

"Where the hell are we?"

"From what I can see," Phoebe answered as she shuffled slightly up the slope on which they had landed, "Somewhere with a hell of a lot of grass."

Of course, Phoebe had done what was called stating the obvious, but her statement left the sisters in silence as they each rose to their feet, not quite taking in what surrounded them. Even Paige, without the aid of her glasses, was awed by the unusual splendour (perhaps lessened by the fact the sisters did not want to be there) which radiated from the never-ending blanket of green grass.

The hill on which the Charmed Ones stood extended further into the misty sky than was comprehendible from only half way down. But it appeared to be one of the smaller of the vast number of slopes residing in the landscape. For miles on end- farther than the human eye could possibly see (especially in the dense mist that was rapidly descending)- hills of dark green stood strong; some small, some tall and some so far away the height they reached was not decipherable. Tremendous valleys, engulfed in the shadows of the looming clouds, created an almost magical feel to the place. And occasionally the extensive green was broken by fields of musty yellow or dirty brown- sometimes even aged purple heather littered the hillsides. But whatever the colour, there was no questioning the unusually melancholy beauty of the scene the Charmed Ones gazed at.

"Wow…" Phoebe's word broke the silence and confusion fell heavily on the sisters again. Splendour, magic and tremendous views did not quash the fact the Charmed Ones were completely and utterly lost without even a trace of knowledge about the situation they had landed in…

"Okay," Paige eventually spoke. Her desire to keep silence at a minimum was growing- when it settled on the sisters the quiet was almost always disconcerting. Of course, the whole situation was disconcerting, but standing in silence made her feel uneasy. "Do we have any idea what the hell is going on here!"

"Do we ever when the Elders are involved?" Piper's frustrated voice replied, as she clenched her fists tightly in her pockets.

"They must have left some sort of clue…" Phoebe suggested hopefully, though avoiding Piper's eyes. Looking around her, however, her statement seemed to contradict itself. If there was a clue residing in the landscape, it was not one she could see.

"They probably want us to figure it all out by ourselves so they have to put no effort into anything, as usual." Piper took a few quick paced steps up the hill. "Well are you coming or not?"

Paige and Phoebe exchanged glances- when Piper's temper began to heat there was no cooling it down, and though Phoebe remained silently grateful that her older sister's anger was now focused at the Elders, neither she nor Paige could help but think Piper was rushing headlong into a situation which was potentially dangerous.

"Piper, wait!" Paige expected her attempt to stop the eldest Charmed One's newfound warpath to fail, but Piper obliged to her sister's request. "How do you know we're not supposed to go downhill?"

"All that's down there is fields and plants, I don't think we're going to find whatever it is we're looking for down there…" She gave Paige a small but sympathetic smile and her eyes briefly glanced at her sister's hip. She knew this was not going to be easy for her sister. "But hey, Phoebe and me aren't going to leave you behind- don't worry about it."

"Why don't I just try orbing us home?" Paige mused warily- the idea of climbing that hill was not one she was particularly fond of.

"I doubt that'll work." Came the cynical reply, "But go ahead and try."

Clutching to her sisters' hands, Paige gave a hopeful grimace. She closed her eyes and focused her thoughts on the only house she had ever truly felt at home in. Anticipation of the magical tingling sensation which never failed to overwhelm Paige lasted a little too long. She waited and waited for what seemed like hours (though was, in actual fact, mere seconds), but the familiar and brilliant white lights never even began to engulf her.

"Come on." She urged herself, her face contorting in determination as her hands grasped Piper and Phoebe's a little too tightly. "Come on." Still nothing happened. "Damnit!"

"I told you it wouldn't work." Piper remarked before retracing her few steps up the hillside and giving a displeased grunt. "I'm willing to bet that none of our powers work. - Try calling for something."

"Piper's shoe." Paige's voice rang out like it always did when she activated her telekinetic orbing. Although her powers had progressed to the extent that she did not have to call for the object she wanted, it was a hard habit to grow out of. "Piper's shoe!" She demanded again, but not even a tingle escaped her fingertips. "What the hell?" Her mouth formed a tight knot. "No freaking way!"

"I guess we should know how the Elders work by now, huh?" Phoebe mused, not even attempting to activate her levitation power. She had the instinctive feeling that any attempt she did make would only result in her falling over.

"Well come on then!" Piper ordered.

"Wait for me at the top," Paige told her sisters, suppressing a groan. "There's no point in me holding you up."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, go ahead!"

And so they all started up the seemingly unrelenting slope.

xxxxx

Night was rapidly descending on San Francisco, bringing with it a dense and almost claustrophobic atmosphere. Fog was moving in from the ocean- crawling along narrow streets and creeping through murky alleyways- trapping the city in a foreboding shell of mist. A breeze was beginning to make itself present in the city too- and it was almost clear a storm lay on the horizon, but – for now – the residents of Prescott Street were unaware of the sudden change in weather.

Heavy but quick paced footsteps, belonging to a man who appeared to be walking without any sense of directional awareness, seemed to be the only sign of life on the darkening street. Of course, there were dim lights meekly shining from the windows of the Victorian Manors residing there, but only Iain Anderson remained out in the cold.

Immediately after storming out of the Halliwell Manor, the Nauctater had regretted doing so. He knew he had a tendency to overreact, but where his son was concerned a rush of powerful emotions was always going to be inevitable. Sometimes his anger was beyond his control- one of the unfortunate family traits that flowed in the Anderson blood (something which Iain had grown to know well after it had led to countless fist fights with his two brothers whilst growing up).

"Idiot!" He scalded himself, resisting the urge to take a swing at one of the many lampposts which were littering the street with faint orange spotlights.

His footsteps seemed to get quicker as he attempted to release his anger through vigorous movement, but instead- with every step he took- his frustration grew. His heart had never been such an unstable mix of emotions and his mind was bursting with tormented thoughts- the most prominent, of course, being Craig.

He paused on the street corner and found himself leaning backwards onto the lamppost of the streetlight which stood behind him. Iain pressed his eyes close and shook his head, enabling his hair to fall forwards onto his face. He was drowning in troubled thoughts, too deep into his dilemma to escape. The death of his baby brother seemed to have triggered a chain of terrible fortune in the life of Iain Anderson. Now- despite the mask of playful, flirtatious sarcasm, and the joy of spending time with his nieces and nephew- it seemed the only escape from his puzzled mind was dwelling on the past.

This was why the picture of Craig, which had been the cause of his current residence on the streets of San Francisco, was now grasped between his thumb and his forefinger. When he opened his eyes to be greeted by the smiling face of his son, Iain's heart swelled. Life had been so easy then…

The drizzling rain which lingered in the greying sky failed to dampen the spirits of the small child who was staring out of the window of the small council house, busily trying to fasten the zip of his oversized raincoat. The coat in question was so large that it was almost tent-like compared to the young boy who wore it, but it only made his already endearing appearance cuter. Besides, this weather was normal for his hometown. And young Craig Anderson liked the rain- his father had always told him that whenever it rained, it meant his grandfather was saying hello. (Granted, living in Scotland this meant his Grandfather was in frequent contact, but at six years old, Craig had no time to spare for cynical thoughts like that).

"Daddy!" His excited voice echoed through the small, half decorated living room, "Grampie's sayin' hallo again!"

"Is he now?" Came the cheerful response from the doorway. "Are you going to say hello back?"

"Can I?" Craig asked enthusiastically.

"Go on!"

"Alright!" And with an eager wave of his hand towards the window, and a large smile, the young boy emitted a stream of crystal water from his fingertips, which lightly scattered themselves across the windowpane. "Hallo Grampie!" He boomed.

"'At's ma boy!"

With his mass of tousled red hair covering his glasses, it was difficult to see the boy's mesmerising blue eyes light up as he watched his father manoeuvre around various pieces of furniture, at the same time avoiding cardboard boxes and paint buckets and carefully walking around a ladder. The smile on Craig's face grew wider and wider as his dad approached, and when he came within a foot of his son, the boy let out an excited giggle and leapt forwards into the awaiting muscular arms of Iain Anderson.

Iain's grin, which – it was now particularly evident – his son had no doubt inherited, shone throughout the room, brightening the dullness of the non-painted walls. Moving house was a difficult task at the best of times, but this had been particularly hard for the redheaded Nauctater because it had meant leaving his son with 'Uncle Mark' and 'Uncle Doug' for the duration of the move. This trip to the swings in the rain was going to be the first quality time father and son had spent together all week!

"Daddy, lift me up high!" Craig requested, thrusting his short arms into the air with all the enthusiasm a six year old should have, "I'm gunna fly like Superman!"

"Superman?" Iain gasped, playing along with his son to his heart's content, "When I spoke to you at your Uncle's house you were a Power Ranger!"

"No, no, no," Craig shook his head and rolled his eyes in a manner Iain could only laugh at, "Superman!"

"Okay, Superman…" Iain grinned with a playful maliciousness and lifted Craig up above his head, giving a careful three-hundred-and-sixty degree turn, "I suggest you get flyin'," He placed his son on the floor and his smile grew, "Because Lex Luther's coming to get you!"

Craig gave an excited squeal and turned on his heal, running as fast as his small feet would carry him from the room- all the while laughing at his father- his hero; nobody was better than his dad.

Iain paused for a moment, his heart soaring. Fatherhood had done a lot of good for him, and every moment he spent with his son only seemed to make his life better. Which was why games like this one came so easily to the second born Anderson brother- Craig made him happier than he had ever been. "You won't get away that easily, Superman!" He boomed joyously, rocketing from the room so fast that he almost knocked over the decorating ladder as he ran underneath it.

After a confrontation between superman and his arch enemy, there had been another battle – with Craig's gloves, which appeared to be getting slightly too small for his growing hands and would not go on without a fight. But alas, another battle was won by the forces of good and finally Iain and Craig were ready to cross the road and play in the park.

"Catherine!" Iain's voice boomed through the small house's corridors, travelling into the kitchen where his then-wife had stood, unpacking utensils and crockery. "We're off to the play-park for a wee whiley!"

"Alright!" She replied cheerfully, peeking a head of black hair- tightly permed- around the doorframe. "A'll hae the tea ready when yer hame!"

"Bye Mummy!"

"Bye Craigy! Have fun!"

And fun they had not failed to have. They had splashed in puddles and raced across the grass to see who could reach the swings first- naturally Iain had let his son win; They had kicked a football around until both had ended up on the floor after slipping on the wet grass and Iain had even been convinced to slide down the shoot so that it was dry for Craig to use. There had been a slight mishap when Craig had dropped his glove in a puddle and uttered a word which sounded remarkably like "bugger" – when Iain had discovered that Uncle Mark had been using this word he made a mental note to have words with his younger brother about his use of language.

The time in the park had ended with Craig sitting on one end of the seesaw, elevated into the air by the heavy body of a six foot five Nauctater, whose knees reached his chin and whose bum was only inches from slipping backwards off of the awkwardly small, plastic seat. Unlike his father, Craig was finding the situation highly entertaining.

"I'm the king o' the castle and you're the dirty rascal!" He sung playfully, waving his arms above his head fearlessly, unperturbed by the fact he could fall from his high perch.

"Oh really!" Iain smirked, "Well, King Craig-" Carefully he slipped his hand into his pocket and grasped onto the small camera he rarely parted with. "Say cheese!"

"Cheese!"

And that was the smiling face which greeted Iain now from his picture. Carefully, he placed it back in his pocket and gave a disgruntled sigh. His anxious blue eyes darted in all directions, double-checking that he was, in fact, alone, and he inhaled a steadying breath of the tense air. Before he knew it, his stomach was awash of tiny butterflies, aggressively flying into one another in a desperate bid to leap out of his throat, and a whirlwind or aerokinesis had engulfed him, transporting him from the street corner.

xxxxx

"Fat lot of use that was." If Piper had been near something she could blow up, its particles would have been hurtling their way through the atmosphere at that very moment. After almost half an hour of trudging uphill (all the while cursing at the Elders), upon reaching the top the journey had proved futile. Of course, the oldest Charmed One should have known to expect nothing less from the beings that had driven her into a wild rage more times than she could count. Nothing was ever as simple as a walk up a hill in the life of the three most powerful witches on earth.

Tired and in need of a drink, Phoebe soon emerged at the top of the hill too. The journey had divided the sisters- Piper's determined march putting her ahead of her sisters, whilst Paige's hip caused her to fall behind. Phoebe had initially been struggling to keep up with her big sister, but had soon decided the company of herself would aid in a much clearer head than she was getting from arguing with Piper. She spotted her sister sitting with her arms folded, resting on the stump of a tree- which was the only sign of plant life, other than grass, that they had encountered so far- and slowly made her way towards her. "Find anything?"

"Does it look like it, Phoebs?" Piper sighed, glaring through poisonous eyes.

"Nothing at all?"

"I just said no- do you really think I'd be kidding?"

"Actually you said- oh you know what, never mind. We'll just wait for Paige and then decide what the hell we're going to do."

"Okay…"

Neither was in the mood to laugh at the coincidentally synchronised sigh they had both given. Instead they rested against the tree stump in wait of their youngest sister. She came five minutes later, walking with a distinct limp. As much as she enjoyed the excuse for not having to walk with her quarrelling sisters, the pain in her hip sometimes made her feel incapable.

"Are you okay?" Piper and Phoebe asked at the same time.

"Would you guys quit asking me that- I'm fine!" Before they could continue fussing, Paige spoke again, "Did you find anything?"

"No." The blunt statement was, again, spoken in unison.

Paige knew the tension between them was being built upon by their frustration towards the situation, but she could not help but to be perturbed by the bickering- especially since she had no idea of what was causing it. So she gave a sigh and took a seat on the tree stump with her sisters, leaving all three to stare out aimlessly into the green distance. Even from the top of the hill, the view provided nothing but grass in all directions.

"What now?" Phoebe eventually asked.

"I have no idea," Paige shifted uncomfortably, "The Elders sent us here to learn a lesson about the Power of Three, and that's about all we know."

"Well so far I'm not seeing how landing us here on this stupid mountain is going to teach us anything other than how to be lost."

"Whatever the hell reasons the Elders sent us here for; I just want to get out of here as soon as possible." Phoebe's shoulders visibly slumped. "Jason's leaving for Hong Kong tomorrow and I want to be able to say goodb…" Phoebe cut herself off and – for reasons unknown to Paige- shuffled slightly away from Piper, wearing a face guiltier than MJ's when she had spilled tomato soup over her mother's Gucci dress. When she noticed Paige's glance, however, Phoebe changed her posture and finished her sentence, "Goodbye- I wanted to be able to say goodbye."

"Well…" Paige ignored her own suspicion as her thoughts turned to home. Suddenly a lurch had made itself present in her stomach. As it was, the Charmed Ones were going nowhere fast- who knew how long they would take to figure out this… this lesson. And Paige did not want to leave her children for any longer than she had to. "You know what? Let's just keep on looking..."

"The only problem is we have no idea what we're looking for."

"Well, we have to start somewhere, Phoebe." Paige, who was trying with all her might to keep a level head, stood and took a step forward. The clouds in the already grey sky had grown denser, causing the youngest Charmed One to give a chilled shudder. "If we're supposed to be learning a lesson about the Power of Three, then I'm guessing what we're looking for has something to do with the Power of three."

"I suppose that makes sense…" Phoebe stood as she spoke and offered her hand to her youngest sister. "A spell?"

"Fine," Piper stood too, also grasping her sister's hand. "But I'm nominating Paige to come up with it." She glanced sideways towards the witch-whitelighter. "You're the best at that sort of thing."

"Okay, uhm…" As she began to concentrate, Paige found her bottom lip compressed between her teeth; her eyes rolled upwards, looking to the sky for some sort of inspiration; and her brown knitted. "The Power of Three is lost with no clue… point us towards what we have to do…?"

"That was the best you could come up with!"

"Well I'm sorry, but thinking of these things on the spot is not exactly ea- whoa." As Paige turned to face her sisters her jaw dropped. And she found that she could only utter three words before the gift of speech momentarily left her: "Oh." She stumbled backwards a few steps. "My." Her brown eyes grew unbelievably wide. "God."

The expression of sheer shock on their sister's face led Piper and Phoebe to turn round as fast as their bodies could manage. Their reactions mirrored Paige's, and Piper managed to utter in a shocked whisper, "Well I guess it worked…"

The grass; the endless expanse of fields and mountains; the very hill they had just climbed had disappeared. Gone - with no trace of it ever being there. And in its place: trees. The Charmed Ones were standing on the edge of a deep, fertile, mysterious and frightfully dark forest. Trees of all breeds, in all shapes and sizes, surrounded them, ranging from large, grey trunks with flourishing violet leaves, to tall, thin redwoods- with tiny green needles- which stood firmly, towering threateningly over the witches. Some clung to one another, gripping tightly, but lovingly, to the branches of their neighbours- almost as if in fear of separation. Some stood alone- secluded to the point of despair, where even weeds refused to grow near. The contrast in shapes and sizes created a perplexing beauty- an unsolvable mystery in the trees. Oaks, elms, chilli pines, and birches stood in clusters like a peculiar family; bushes, shrubs, moss and various toadstools graced both the earth and the trunks; dirt laden stones, animal nests and even clusters of herbs were present- everything was visible from the mouth of the unusually enchanting forest. As peculiar as its sudden appearance was, the forest was almost as spectacular to look at as the hillside.

Proudly standing to the left of the Charmed Ones, a protective shadow was cast over the sisters – not by the clouds as they had so thought - but by an enormous oak tree. The trunk of the tree was wider than all three Halliwell women standing side by side, and in a deformed beauty it twisted towards the darkness of the mysterious forest. Contours in the bark carved intricate and elaborate patterns- some resembling letters or numbers, others creating the illusion of people and other life forms residing in the trunk. It was almost as if a sculptor had spent hours slaving to create such a peculiar puzzle; or perhaps a riddle had been placed in the wood by Mother Nature. The foot of the tree was laden with moss and a curious assortment of toadstools and shrubs. These, of course, thinned as the trunk grew upwards in a physical splendour unlike any they had ever seen- even in the trees of Golden Gate Park. The branches- some of which were as wide as the base of a few of the other trees- appeared to stretch, twisting and turning graciously, forever. They intertwined with branches belonging to their mother, and branches belonging to trees not even of the same species- reaching eternally into the heavens. The knots of the tree seemed to stare, through judgmental eyes, down at the sisters, but the leaves gave a comforting shelter.

In any other situation, Piper, Phoebe and Paige may have spent longer trying to decipher some of nature's grandest work. But the appearance of the forest baffled them to the extent that they had little appreciation for the tree just yet.

"Where the hell did this come from?" As it had been with the hills, it was Piper who took the first step into the forest. It was only one step though, as when her foot landed on the forest floor the crunch of the twig laden ground beneath her, though only small in sound, echoed through the mystifying woodland.

Her voice, accompanied by the noise of her step, seemed to awaken the forest. Suddenly the trees sprang to life. A breeze wisped, meandering along its own winding path; turning corners that didn't exists and at the same time tracing the map of the forest floor, causing the leaves of the colourful foliage to rustle- singing their own peculiar tune. The smaller of the trees swayed ever so slightly in the wind, trying to break free of the constricting grip their roots had on the mossy floor. The distant calls of birds could only just be heard over the noise of the woods- chirping starlings, singing sparrows and even the harsh cackles of crows. It was not something the Charmed Ones were used to with living in seagull infested San Francisco.

But even when alive, there was a certain sense of foreboding about the forest. The sisters gazed into the distance, which grew darker as their eyes travelled deeper into the trees. It did not look harmful, or in any way evil, but the Charmed Ones found themselves with the feeling that something bad was going to happen if they stepped further towards the shadows.

"You go first," Like a child, Paige shoved Piper forwards. "You're the oldest."

"Okay…" Apprehensively, Piper took a step. "But if something eats me, I'm gunna make sure as hell that you're desert."

"At least that gives me time to run while it eats Phoebe for its main course." Paige pursed her lips. Her tendency to use humour in a tense situation, for once had the right effect. Piper and Paige shared a small laugh. They both turned in curiosity when Phoebe made no noise.

The witch in question had her gaze firmly settled on the large oak tree on their left. The new life of the forest had aroused Phoebe's curiosity with this tree. Her dark eyes were full of inquisitiveness and were squinted, trying to decipher the puzzle the tree created. Until now, she had not even taken the tree into recognition, but as her sisters had started speaking the unusual lure of the tree's underlying mystery had gained her interest. Apparently, her enticement with the tree had caught her sister's attention and they too had begun staring at it in wonder.

"…What are you looking at?" Paige asked. As intriguing at the ancient oak was, the youngest witch present could not quite understand why Phoebe was so captivated by it.

Uh… Phoebs?" When no reply came from her sister, Piper began to wave her hand in front of Phoebe's face. "Phoebe!"

"Wh-what? Sorry…" Phoebe snapped out of her daze (even though she still remained staring at the tree). "I have no idea why," she said slowly, "But something is telling me to look at that tree."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Paige asked cautiously.

"No," came the answer, "But I'm going to do it anyway." And so she did. Her sisters followed warily behind her. The tree resided only ten feet from where they stood so the journey took no time at all- not even with the cautious and shuffled steps of the Charmed Ones. And as soon as they reached it, the middle sister's hands outstretched and came to rest on the engraved bark. Less than a second later, Phoebe's body went stiff. An ice cold chill shot down her spine with tremendous force as it had done on so many occasions, and the brown of her eyes disappeared as they lolled back into her skull and a premonition engulfed her sight.

"Phoebe!" The panicked gasps of her sisters echoed in shock through the forest as their arms flew out just in time to catch Phoebe's stiff body as it fell backwards. They knew she was having a premonition, but they did not enjoy being unaware of what their sister was encountering in Technicolor before her very eyes.

"What did you see?" Was Paige's immediate question when Phoebe's eyes flickered open. "Are you okay?"

"I saw…," She paused as she steadied herself. Her chest suddenly felt constricted and a searing pain had made itself present in her head. She began to form gentle circles on her temples in a bid to soothe the ache but it was proving ineffective. She had seen many things in her time as a witch, but somehow that had been the most disturbing vision she had ever experienced. "I saw… nothing."

This chapter was actually supposed to be longer, but I cut it because it was too long P I hope you enjoyed that! I'll see you all in Chapter 3!