Chapter 4: Just Harried
February 23, 2001 – Friday
Halliwell Manor
"Careful, Faith," Prue said as she, Grams and Phoebe watched as Faith moved a floral arch for Piper's wedding.
"Okay, that should do it," Phoebe said as Faith sat down the arch.
"I'm thinking more to the left," Grams said as Faith sighed. "Uh, is this the biggest arch you could get?"
"Without opening a fast food franchise, yeah," Prue said.
"Well, just remember, if love is the quest then marriage is the conquest," Grams said. "This place must be like victory."
"And here I thought weddings were supposed to be romantic," Phoebe said.
Grams shook her head. "Oh, my dear sweet child."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Faith wondered.
Prue smiled at her daughter. "It means that you could always calculate Grams' age by the number of rings on her fingers," she explained. "Alright, wedding arch is done. The next thing to do," she let out a yawn, "on the To Do list is..."
"Is sleep," Faith informed her mother. "You've been yawning all day, mom."
"Try all week," Prue said. "It's this reoccurring dream I keep having. It's keeping me awake."
"Really? What's in the dream?" Phoebe wondered.
"Well, uh, there was this biker guy and he's kind of cute and kind of dangerous."
"Sounds kind of yummy," Phoebe said as Piper walked into the room and looked around.
"Piper, sweetie, well, what do you think?" Grams asked motioning toward the arch.
"It's beautiful," Piper said excitedly.
"Yeah, and the best part about it is, it's finally happening," Phoebe added as she smiled at her middle sister.
"Flowers, bows, Faith and Grams," Piper said listing items off for her wedding. "The only thing missing is..."
"Mom," Prue said in understanding.
"Grams, are you sure that you can't do..." Piper said as she looked at her grandmother.
Grams shook her head. "No, nothing. I'm only here because you need a high priestess. They want me back by the witching hour tomorrow."
"I thought maybe this could help," Phoebe said as she held up a photo of Patty.
"You okay?" Prue asked her middle sister.
"Yeah, I just, I can't believe how close I came to sabotaging my own wedding," Piper admitted.
"What do you mean?" Faith wondered.
"Well, with the demons and the false start and 'them' I, you know, I told myself if one more thing went wrong then it just maybe wasn't meant to be," Piper explained.
"Oh, darling," Grams said sympathetically, "there's no need to think that way. I mean, you made it."
"Yeah, and I will personally butt kick any demon who tries to ruin it for you," Prue said.
"So, will I," Faith said as she watched her mother yawn. "But I think I might be doing it alone if mom doesn't get some sleep. Come on, I'm tucking you in."
"That's a change," Prue said with a laugh. "The daughter tucking the mother into bed."
"Sweet dreams. Bye," Piper said as Prue and Faith headed up the stairs.
Five minutes later Faith came back downstairs and headed for the front door.
"Patrol?" called Piper from the living room.
"Yeah," Faith said. "I promise, Aunt Piper, I won't stay out all night. I don't plan for your ring bearer slash third bridesmaid to miss your wedding."
"You better not," Piper said. "Don't forget if you need one of us to call for Leo."
"I will," Faith said.
The Wooden Nickel
Faith stood between two men as she played pool. "Four ball, corner pocket," she called out and took the shot sinking the ball. She had gone out on patrol just as she had told Piper, then after an hour of no activity she decided to unwind. She had found a bar that did not card her at the door. "The more I play, the luckier I get." She walked around the table and sank another ball. "So that would be, uh, twenty bucks that you owe me."
"I never agreed to a bet," one of the men said.
"Rules of the house say loser pays twenty bucks," said TJ as he walked up next to Faith. "Maybe you want me to take you out front and teach you those rules."
"Alright," the man said as he handed Faith a twenty.
"Thank you." Faith grinned as she tucked the twenty inside her bra. She looked to TJ. "Thanks for the help."
"No problem," TJ said as he walked toward a woman at the bar.
"I suppose that you want something for me asking you to help her," the woman asked TJ.
TJ smiled. "You could say that."
"Well, you'll have to win it," the woman said.
Faith finally got a look at the woman as TJ grabbed her. Her eyes widened as she recognized the woman as her mother, Prue. "Mom?" she said shocked. She rushed over to TJ and Prue. "Mom?"
"Mom?" TJ asked confused on why Faith would call Prue, mom.
Prue smiled. "Can you blame me for having a daughter?" she asked. She looked at Faith. "Having a good time, Faith?"
"Yeah," Faith answered. "Mom, what are you doing here? When I left the house, you were asleep."
"Having a good time, just like you," Prue answered cryptically. She turned back to TJ and kissed him. "Well I have to go." She started to walk off as Faith followed.
"No, I want you to stay," TJ said as he called after Prue.
"Yeah, I know. You know that I can't, alright, I have..." Prue started.
"Responsibilities, right," TJ finished. "That's what you say every night, then you cut out."
"You've been here before?" Faith asked with a raised eyebrow.
Prue looked at Faith and sighed. She looked back at TJ. "TJ, I would love to leave my responsible half behind but I can't."
"You can," he insisted. "What are you going to miss? Work? Blow it off. Your daughter, bring her along. There's a freedom that comes with making your own choices."
"Yeah, and I want to know what that's like but..." Prue said as she kissed TJ again. She and Faith walked out of the bar.
"Mom?" Faith said.
"Hey, you've got my money," said the man who had lost to Faith as she and Prue walked past him.
"Hey, you have a good memory," Faith countered.
"Yeah, yeah, maybe I'll just kick it out in trade, huh? Come here," the man said he grabbed for the Slayer. Faith spun around freeing herself and kicked him in the face knocking him back away from her.
Prue picked up a piece of wood and hit him in the stomach and he fell to the ground, unconscious. "No, I don't want to go," she said as she glanced toward Faith and then in a red flash she disappeared.
"Mom?" Faith said in clear surprise. She ran to her car and hoped in. "Why couldn't I have had a power like Buffy's?" She started the engine and raced home.
February 24, 2001 – Saturday
Halliwell Manor
Faith stood on the front porch of the Manor thinking back on the night before. She had debated whether or not to tell Piper or Phoebe what she had seen. In the end she decided to wait till after the wedding so that her aunt would have a happy day without the worry of what was happening to her eldest sister.
It was at that moment that Buffy walked around the corner of the house and toward the front door. "Hi, Faith," she said.
"Hey, B," Faith replied. "I thought you were coming down with you mom."
"She had some last-minute stuff to do for the gallery," Buffy said. "So, she let me flame here by myself."
"I thought you were supposed to be ungrounded by now," Faith remarked.
"Officially I am," Buffy admitted. "Technically not yet. She's kind of afraid of me flaming someplace on my own and getting lost or kidnapped or something. She wants me to get some more practice in learning control. I don't blame her of course. It has to be scary for her watching me practice these powers."
Just then they heard Piper scream from inside the house. Buffy and Faith turned and tore through the front door and found Piper standing on the stairs hiding behind the railing from Leo, who stood at the base of the stairs.
"It is bad luck to see the bride's dress before the wedding," Piper said.
Faith rolled her eyes. "Aunt Piper, you don't even have your dress on."
Piper glared at her niece. "The same rule applies to the bride's... curlers," she said before looking back at Leo. "Go away." She turned and headed upstairs just as Prue and Phoebe walked out of the kitchen and toward them through the dining room.
"Oh, good, you're here," Prue said.
"Yeah, I'm just looking for a place to change," Leo told them as they noticed him holding a robe.
"Uh, what's with the robe?" Buffy asked.
"Oh, it's my formal Whitelighter wear," Leo explained.
"Um, yeah, I—I hope you don't mind but we sort of decided that you should be a little bit more traditional, so we rented you a tux," Phoebe said as Victor walked in behind Faith and Buffy.
"Anybody home?" he asked even though he could see them standing in front of him.
"Daddy!" Phoebe shouted as she rushed over to Victor and hugged him. "Hi."
"Hi, baby," Victor said returning the embrace. "Leo."
"Victor," Leo replied.
Victor turned toward Faith. "Hey, Faith."
"Hi, grandpa," Faith said as everyone laughed. "What's so funny?"
"It's just you calling him grandpa," Buffy explained. "Just last week it was too soon."
"I know," Faith said. "But Grandpa Victor and I have had time to get to know each other. Right, Grandpa?"
"Right, Faith," Victor agreed as Prue walked over to them.
"Hey, dad," Prue said.
"Hey," Victor said as he kissed the top of Prue's head.
"Well, I know that you have a lot of joy and laughter to share so I'll just take you down... whoa," Prue said as she suddenly felt dizzy.
"Mom?" Faith said suddenly worried. The worry was echoed by Victor as he said, "What's the matter?"
"Uh, just a, uh, dizzy spell," Prue said as she sat down on the stairs. "I've been getting them ever since those dreams began."
"What dreams?" Leo asked.
"Oh, you know, those dreams... uh, you know, it's nothing," Prue said.
"You sure mom?" Faith said as she knelt down next to Prue.
"She's fine," Phoebe said trying to alleviate her niece's worries. "Certainly, nothing to worry about." She looked at Leo and Victor. "Okay, you two, follow me." She looked to Prue. "You just sit there and relax." She looked to Faith. "Why don't you show Buffy where she can get ready?" Faith nodded as she led Buffy up the stairs. Phoebe looked back at Prue. "I'll be right back." She turned and led Leo and Victor out of the room and towards the kitchen.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
"Do you think Aunt Phoebe is right?" Faith asked as they walked into her room.
"I don't know," Buffy said. "But something has you worried." Faith looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "I know that look, Faith. It's the same look you had on your face when I mentioned Kakitos."
Faith laughed slightly at Buffy's mispronunciation of Kakistos' name. "Your right as always," she said. "I went out on a patrol last night. Didn't find any vamps. After an hour of that I decided to unwind, so I found this bar that didn't card me. I found mom there. Before I left the Manor, she was asleep in bed. Then a couple hours later she was at that bar as well. Then the strangest thing happened. We were leaving and she just disappeared."
"Disappeared?" Buffy asked.
Faith sighed. "Yeah. When I got back here, she was asleep in bed."
"Tell you what," Buffy said. "I'll keep an eye on her. You wouldn't worry if it wasn't something major, right?"
"Right," Faith agreed.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
Downstairs Phoebe and Prue sat on the bottom stair. "Prue, okay, we've got everyone convinced that we have things under control," Phoebe was saying. "Now you have to convince me."
Prue sighed. "I can't do that."
"Oh, no," Phoebe said worried. "What are you feeling?"
"Tired all the time," Prue explained. "I mean, when I fall asleep my dreams are so real, they don't allow me any rest. It's like I'm awake twenty-four hours a day."
"Is the dream sorcerer back?" Phoebe wondered.
Prue shrugged. "I don't think so, but I'm not ruling anything out."
"Well, remember what Piper said," Phoebe said. "If one more thing goes wrong, she was going to call off the wedding."
"No, we can't let that happen," Prue said.
Phoebe smiled. "Okay, why don't you let me handle this almighty To Do list, and you go upstairs and get some rest. Don't sleep, just rest."
"Okay," Prue said as she and Phoebe stood up.
"Huh, wow, so you're relinquishing control to your little sister," Phoebe said. "You must really be tired."
Prue turned and started heading up the stairs. She stopped and looked back at her sister. "And Phoebe, don't tell Faith."
"I didn't plan to," Phoebe replied. "Faith has enough on her plate to deal with, with learning to use her powers, patrolling and being in this family."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
A few minutes later Prue stepped into her room and over to her bed and the moment she laid down she was fast asleep.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
In the hall Buffy stood just outside Prue's closed door. She thought on what Faith had said and had managed to get the address of the bar from Faith. She then disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.
The Wooden Nickel
Buffy appeared in the alleyway and hurried inside for a look around. She was about to give up when she spotted Prue walk past her and toward a pool table.
"Hey," TJ said as he grabbed Prue from behind.
"Hey," Prue replied with a smile on her lips.
"You shouldn't have come back," TJ said.
"What are you talking about?" Prue wondered.
"I spent the whole morning with the cops," TJ explained. "They think you and your daughter killed a guy, and that she took his money."
Prue shook her head. "No, we—we—we didn't kill anyone."
"Good 'cause that's what I told them," TJ explained.
"Prue?" Buffy said as she walked up to Prue.
"Who's this?" TJ wondered.
"Buffy, what are you doing here?" Prue asked shocked to see Buffy there.
"I got the address from Faith," Buffy said. "She's worried about you and for good reason it would seem." She looked to TJ. "So, the police are …"
"Looking for her and her daughter. Faith is it?" TJ asked as Buffy nodded. He looked to Prue. "I came to warn you. I didn't have your phone number and you never even gave me your name. Prue, hmm, nice."
"That is the sexiest thing a man's ever done for me," Prue said as she kissed TJ.
"Hey, you keep saying you want to live a life with no rules, no responsibilities," TJ said. "This is it. A chance. Come on, we can stop and get Faith along the way if you want."
Prue smiled as she and TJ headed outside. Buffy followed them out to a motorcycle just as a police car pulled up.
"Whoa, take it easy," an Inspector said as he stepped out of the car. They noticed another police car pull up beside his.
"Don't do it for me, TJ," Prue said. "You either, Buffy."
"You both don't want to be an accessory for murder," the Inspector agreed as he pulled out his handcuffs.
"My last name's Halliwell," Prue said to TJ. "Prue Halliwell."
"Put up your hands. Come on," the Inspector said as he handcuffed Prue. "Let's go."
Buffy watched as Prue was put into the police car and then disappear.
Buffy walked away around the back of the bar and disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.
Halliwell Manor
Prue sat straight up in bed and looked at her wrists. "Oh, no," she said. She looked at Phoebe and began to explain the dream she had just woken up from. "Faith and I were wanted for murder but this, this guy in my dream, he risked himself to save me. Sexy guy," she said.
"Prue, forget the guy," Phoebe told her sister. "What about the arrest?"
"She was put into the patrol car and disappeared right in front of me," came Buffy's voice.
Prue and Phoebe turned and looked at Buffy who stood in the door to Prue's room. "What?" Phoebe asked.
"It wasn't a dream," Buffy said. "You remember seeing me at the bar?"
"Yes," Prue answered.
"You were at a bar?" Phoebe asked confused looking between her eldest sister and the blonde Slayer. "What bar?"
"Last night Faith patrolled for an hour, or so she told me anyways," Buffy said. "Then after not finding a single vamp she went to a bar to unwind. A bar by the way that didn't card her. When I came down for the wedding, she told me what she had seen. She didn't want to worry you, Phoebe, or Piper, not with all that was going on. She was there playing pool when she spotted Prue and …"
"TJ," Prue supplied.
"TJ," Buffy echoed. "Anyways she followed you out and this guy tried to get the money Faith won from him and she kicked him away from her and you hit him with a board knocking him out. Then you proceeded to disappear right in front of Faith's eyes. When she told me what she had seen, she asked me to keep an eye on you, Prue. She was afraid…"
"Of what might happen if something happened to me," Prue sighed as she remembered everything that both Buffy and Faith had told her after they returned from saving Bo. Not just about what had happened in Sunnydale, but also what had happened with Faith's watcher. "And I was trying to protect her, so she wouldn't worry."
"She lets very few people in," Buffy said with a sigh. "If she is worrying about you, then you found the chink in her armor. Anyways, she gave me the address for the bar. I flamed over there and guess who I saw."
"Me," Prue said before she looked toward Phoebe. "And you know the rest."
"Okay, so now we know that while you are asleep that somehow you're in two places at once," Phoebe said. She looked over at Buffy. "Prue was here the entire time she was asleep, of that I'm sure." She looked back at her sister. "But the question is how. Could you be astral projecting?"
Prue shrugged. "I don't know, but I've never done it before while asleep. Why would I be doing it now? Maybe we should look in the Book of Shadows see if maybe there is an answer there," she suggested.
"I'll call Giles," Buffy said, "after I fill in Faith. And before you say anything you don't know her like I do. Telling is better than not."
"Okay," Prue agreed as they headed for her bedroom door.
"Wait, should we tell Piper?" Phoebe asked.
Prue shook her head. "No, I won't let this be the one thing that goes wrong today. I'll be okay as long as I stay awake, right? For Piper?"
"For Piper," Phoebe said with a glance at Buffy who didn't echo the sentiment. "Buffy, you are supposed to say for Piper also."
"I thought it was implied," Buffy suggested, then she smiled. "For Piper." She then looked at Prue pointedly. "By the way, can I make a suggestion. Till you guys figure out what's going on that you don't leave the house, Prue?"
"If the police are looking for me, that might be a good idea," Prue agreed. She then glanced at Phoebe. "Darryl is coming over for Piper's wedding, right?"
"Yeah," Phoebe said. "So, we'll see if we can get this figured out by then. Then you and Faith can get it straightened out with Darryl."
As they walked out of Prue's room Piper came out of hers. She noticed that Phoebe and Prue were heading for the attic and that Buffy was heading for Faith's room. Something was up. "Hold it right there," she said. "What's wrong?"
"Boy bands," Phoebe said trying to distract Piper long enough to forget where they were heading. "There's just too many of them, don't you think?"
"No," Piper said as she looked at Buffy, Phoebe and Prue. "What's wrong with you three?"
"Uh, nothing's wrong," Prue said.
Piper shook her head; she didn't believe that for a second. "I can see it in your faces," she told them. "We've been demon hunting for three years now. And Buffy …?" she didn't know how long Buffy had been the Slayer.
"Three years also," Buffy supplied.
"Anyways you're going to the attic, aren't you?" Piper asked before glancing at Buffy. "And you are going to get Faith and you two are going to join them, right?"
"Yes, we are," Buffy said. "We're going to find something that Faith can give as your wedding gift. Maybe something old …?"
"Something new..." Phoebe added catching on to where Buffy was going, before nudging her eldest sister.
"Uh, something, something borrowed, something blue," Prue finished. "Buffy told us that Faith felt bad about not getting you something. So, she was going to surprise you but now you caught us helping her."
"Oh," Piper said as a smile graced her lips.
"Yeah, I mean, look, I told you, you have nothing to worry about today, alright? It's going to be a demon-free day," Prue said as Cole shimmered in scaring Piper. "Hey!"
"Sorry I'm late," Cole said.
"You were saying?" Piper said with a glance at Prue.
Buffy glared at Cole as if to say I will be watching you. She then turned and walked into Faith's room and shut the door.
"Well?" Faith asked from where she sat on the bed.
"You were right to be worried," Buffy said. "What you saw was real. On top of that it happened again, whatever it is. I went to the bar and found your mom there. And I found out that both you and her are wanted for murder."
"What!" Faith shouted.
"I didn't catch the details," Buffy said. "Till we know more, I suggest you don't the leave the house."
"Might be a good idea," Faith agreed. "Don't have the Watcher's Council to sweep it under the rug this time."
"Phoebe and your mom are looking through their Book of Shadows," Buffy said. "We ran into Piper on the way and had to come up with a quick excuse on why we were heading upstairs. You need to head up, because Piper thinks your wedding gift will be something old, something borrowed and something blue."
"Ah," Faith said. "What are you going to do?"
"Call Giles and then join you, your mom and Phoebe in the attic."
As Faith left the room Buffy picked up the phone on Faith's desk and dialed.
"Hello," came Giles voice.
"Giles, it's Buffy," Buffy said. "I need your expertise. Faith's mom is somehow when she is asleep able to be in two places at once. We don't know how though."
"Sounds like astral projection," Giles replied.
"They thought of that already," Buffy said. "Prue has that power. But she said she has never done it while asleep."
"That could be the answer to your problem," Giles said. "Remember Billy, he was in a coma and he astral projected out of his body."
"And being in a coma is like being asleep," Buffy said as she remembered Billy. "Right."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
Faith walked into the attic and over to her mother as Prue closed the Book of Shadows. "Anything," she asked.
Prue sighed and shook her head. "Nothing."
"So, what are we going to do?" Faith asked as Prue looked at her. "I'm worried okay. And you know me it has to be something major to make me worry."
"Well I think for right now we need to get ready for Piper's wedding," Prue suggested. "Get through that first and then deal with the rest after."
"I have some information," Buffy said as she stepped into the attic. "You have the power to make yourself be in two places at once, right?" Prue nodded. "In Sunnydale, we encountered a boy who could do what you do. But he was doing it while he was in a coma, he of course had the added effect because of the Hellmouth of bringing the nightmare world with him. So, it might be possible that is what is happening here, you are …"
"Projecting myself out of my body while I am asleep," Prue said. "That would explain why I feel so tired all of the time. I'm not really asleep when I am projecting myself out. But that doesn't solve the problem of why."
"Mom," Faith said, "I would highly suggest that you don't sleep till after we deal with the cops and the arrest warrants, that way we can try and find out what is going on without worry."
"Good idea, Faith," Prue agreed.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
In Piper's room, Piper was getting ready as she put on her earrings and looked in the mirror just as her mother, Patty, appeared behind her.
"Oh, you're so beautiful," Patty said as a smile graced her lips.
"Mom?" Piper said as she looked at her mother's reflection in the mirror.
"Don't be afraid," Patty offered.
"Oh, my god," Piper said as she turned to face Patty. "But... it can't be 'cause, um, ghosts…ghosts' glow. You're not glowing."
Patty smiled. "I'm not a ghost. Well, not today. Today I am simply your mother."
"But, uh, how?" Piper asked confused.
"After all the Elders put you and Leo through," Patty explained, "they wanted to give you something back, so, so they sent me down, just for your wedding day. You know, I think I wore my hair like this for my wedding day."
Piper smiled as she thought about her mother's wedding album. "You did. Uh, I kept your wedding album after you died and..." she said as Patty licked a finger and pushed a strand of her hair in place. "And I looked at the pictures every night like a bedtime story."
"I always thought you'd be the first to get married," Patty said. She thought about Faith. She had even thought that Piper would be the first to have a child, but it seemed destiny had other ideas. "You're the heart of this family, Piper."
"I'm not dreaming, am I?" Piper asked as she touched Patty's hand to confirm her mother was actually standing there before her.
Patty shook her head. "No, sweetie, you're not."
"Mom," Piper said as she hugged Patty.
"Mom?" echoed another voice and they turned to see it was Phoebe alongside Prue, Faith and Buffy.
"It's true," Piper said. "She's real. They sent her to us for today."
Patty moved away from Piper and over to Prue. "Oh, Prue. It's been so hard on you, unfair."
"Yeah... no, it doesn't matter," Prue said. "I just wanted to make you proud."
"You protected this family better than I could. I'm so proud of you," Patty said. She then glanced at Faith. "And that prepared you for the day …"
Prue looked at Faith and smiled. "For when Faith, would come home." She looked back at her mother. "Thank you."
"And you, my baby, you feel it all, don't you?" Patty said as she looked toward Phoebe. "I was never there to comfort you. I died before you even knew me."
"Some nights I just wanted you to hold me," Phoebe said.
"Your road's been the longest, Phoebe," Patty said. "But I was never worried about you. You know why? Because I had a premonition the day you were born."
"You did?" Faith asked. She looked at her mother. "I thought that Grandma Patty's power was the same power Aunt Piper had."
"It was," Prue said.
"Phoebe gave it to me," Patty explained, "as she was being born."
"What did you see?" Piper wondered.
"Oh, I saw this. I saw this moment right now, my three daughters and my granddaughter standing before me as beautiful young women and I knew that everything would be okay," Patty said.
"What did you see next?" Phoebe wondered.
"I held you," Patty said as she folded Phoebe into her arms as Prue and Piper joined them. She looked at Faith and held out an arm and Faith hesitantly stepped into the group embrace. As she held them she looked at Buffy and smiled. She did not tell them, but she had another premonition a few months earlier. This one of Faith with only Buffy. And she smiled at the blonde Slayer knowing that her granddaughter was on the road to overcoming everything.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
Moments later Leo, Grams, Phoebe, Prue, Buffy, Cole and Victor waited for Faith, Patty and Piper to come down the stairs.
"Places, places everyone," Grams said as the doorbell rang.
"Don't answer that," Prue told everyone.
"Can somebody answer that?" Piper called from upstairs.
"Ooh, I'll get it," Prue said as she walked over to the door and upon opening it she found Darryl there. "Hey, you're late. Where were you?"
"Out saving your ass," Darryl said.
"Oh, the arrest warrant," Prue said.
"Yeah, you and the girl that was here when you were saving Tom Peters are wanted for murder. They have yet to find her but said you fled custody this morning," Darryl explained. "They don't have yours or her names yet but it's only a matter of time."
"Prue!" Grams called from the other room.
"Alright, let's just stay cool and we'll get downtown and straighten this out later. But we have to get through the wedding first, okay? For Piper?" Prue said, when Darryl said nothing, she gave him a look. "You're supposed to say 'For Piper.'"
"Alright, it better be a quick wedding," Darryl said as he and Prue joined the others.
"Everything looks perfect except Victor, could you move a little to your left," Grams said.
"Sure, why?" Victor said as he moved a little to his left.
"Well, to make room for..." Grams said as she motioned toward Patty who came up beside Victor.
"Patty," Victor said surprised.
"Hello, Victor, how are you?" Patty asked.
"Good. I mean, I was good," Victor said slightly flabbergasted. "Alright, who brought my ex-wife back from the dead?"
"Not now, Victor," Grams said. "I know you two have issues but that's what the reception is for." She motioned toward the CD player which began to play the wedding music.
Faith walked with Piper down the stairs, Piper's arm was looped through her own. As they came to the bottom, Victor held out his arm as Faith stepped aside and Piper looped her arm through her father's. Victor walked Piper, followed by Faith, over to Leo.
All the while that was happening Darryl noticed that the girl that had been here during the Tom Peters incident and was now wanted for murder was still here and that Prue, Piper and Phoebe must know her otherwise she wouldn't have been invited to a wedding where a ghost presided over the ceremony.
"We did it. It's really happening," Phoebe said excitedly.
Suddenly there was a crash of the front door being shattered as TJ rode his motorcycle through it. He knocked over the flowers and then knocked over the table as all the glassware smashed to the floor. He stopped in front of the table the cake was sitting on.
"Prue!" TJ called out.
"Is that?" Phoebe said with a glance at Buffy and Faith.
Buffy nodded. "TJ."
"Oh, oh, oh no," Prue said as she fainted.
"Prue?" Phoebe said just as Prue's astral form appeared.
"TJ," Astral Prue said as she ran over to him. "You came." She got on the back of the motorcycle.
"Had to beat the cops," TJ said. "I won't let them take you."
Prue looked at Faith. "Come on!"
"No," Faith said. "Sorry, mom."
"Mom?" Darryl whispered to himself as he glanced between Faith and Prue.
"Prue, what the hell is going on?" Piper shouted.
"Prue, you get your astral ass back here!" Phoebe said as TJ rode off, knocking over the cake table and knocking the cake to the floor. "Honey..."
"Alright, that's it! The wedding is off!" Piper said as she threw her veil to the floor. She tried to walk out the door but found Phoebe standing on the train of her dress. "Phoebe!"
"Sorry! Sorry!" Phoebe said as Piper walked away. "Piper, Piper, wait, think about this." She watched her sister grab a sweater and began to put it on. "Piper, Piper, you cannot just leave."
"Yes, I can," Piper said over her shoulder. "A demon I could have handled, but my big sister ruining my wedding, I cannot handle that."
"Okay, just listen to me for one second," Phoebe argued. "All we have to do is find a way."
Piper shook her head. "No, no, I don't want to find a way to get married on my wedding day. It's—it's too hard. There must be a reason."
"Piper..." Leo said as he and Faith both walked over to Piper and Phoebe.
Piper sighed. "Leo, I'm sorry, but this is just the final straw. It's just not meant to be," she said as she walked out the front door.
"I'll go ..." Faith started to say.
"No," Darryl said as he walked up to them. "You and Prue are wanted for murder. And I'm afraid you will have to come down to the precinct with me, Ms."
"Halliwell," Faith answered. "Faith Halliwell."
Darryl looked towards Phoebe and Leo.
"She's Prue and Andy's daughter," Phoebe explained. "Prue had her back in high school. Grams gave her up for adoption and then cast a spell on us and Andy and his family erasing the knowledge that Prue had ever been pregnant. Faith somehow got ahold of her real birth certificate and came looking for Prue."
Darryl nodded as he looked at Faith. "Of course, I will have to check that out," he said as Phoebe and Leo walked back into the living room as he and Faith followed. "But if it is true, I am glad to have met Andy's daughter. But that said you need to give me the name currently that would be in the system."
"Lehane," Faith said with a sigh. "Faith Lehane."
They watched as Victor laid Prue on the couch. "I've never seen Piper so defeated," Phoebe said as Leo sat on the other couch. "Prue, come on, wake up. Prue, come on."
"Honey, you won't get her back that way," Patty said. "A part of Prue wanted to escape and it used her astral self to do it."
"How though?" Buffy wondered. "Giles, he used to be my Watcher before the Council fired him. Anyways he said you normally have to be awake."
"She is awake," Patty said. "We're all awake in reality twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. When we sleep our subconscious is awake, how else do we dream?"
"If the wedding's off, I have to go. I'm only here to conduct the ceremony. I'm sorry," Grams said as she disappeared in orbing lights.
"Maybe Piper's right," Victor said. "Maybe the wedding just wasn't meant to be."
"Victor," Patty said with a sigh.
"All I'm saying is maybe the gods are just trying to spare them the pain that we went through," Victor suggested.
"I don't believe that for a second," Faith said. "While what you two went through was bad, I agree there. I also know that what Aunt Piper and Leo have is real. I've seen it, they're meant to be together."
"Faith's right," Leo said in agreement. "All I need is what's inside of me to know that Piper and I are meant to be together. What happened here today..."
"Piper and Leo's love have touched us all, not just Faith," Phoebe said. "We have to fix this."
"I got to go fend of the posse," Darryl said as his pager went off.
"What posse?" Victor asked.
"Mom and I are wanted for murder," Faith said.
"I'll stay in touch by cell phone," Darryl said as he motioned for Faith to follow him.
"Murder?" Patty said as Darryl and Faith left.
"You knew about this?" Leo asked with a glance at Phoebe.
"Actually, I found out," Buffy said as Leo glanced at her. "Faith had some worries about Prue. She asked me to keep an eye on her mother while I was here today. I did, I got the address for a bar that Faith went to last night from Faith. Found Prue there when she was supposed to be asleep here. The cops showed up. Apparently both Faith and Prue are wanted for a murder that supposedly happened last night."
"Regardless it's obviously a mistake," Phoebe said. "I mean, Prue and Faith wouldn't murder anybody." Buffy coughed as she glanced at the blonde Slayer. "You told Prue that was an accident."
"It was," Buffy said with a sigh.
"What was an accident?" Victor asked.
"We were out on patrol in Sunnydale," Buffy said. "The Deputy Mayor came out of nowhere. Faith stabbed him, thinking he was a vampire. The Watcher's Council has connections, got the case closed."
"Alright, alright, you guys find Piper, bring her back here somehow," Leo said. "Phoebe, Buffy, Book of Shadows, see if there's a spell to bring astral Prue back. Cole, you and me are going to do a little investigating of our own. Alright, come on you guys. We've got a wedding to save."
Golden Gate Park
"I've just got to know," TJ said as he laid in the grass. He looked over at Astral Prue as she sat beside him. "How'd you get away from the cops?"
"You know, I don't really want to talk about that. I mean, I'm here now, that's all that really matters, right?" Astral Prue said as she smiled at him.
"Yeah, but for how long?" TJ asked.
"Do you care?" Astral Prue wondered.
TJ shrugged. "Well, I did crash your sister's wedding. Plus, you did leave your daughter behind."
"Yes, you did," astral Prue agreed. "And yes, I did."
"And I am harboring you from the cops," TJ added.
Astral Prue smiled. "And I appreciate that," she said appreciatively.
"I may definitely pass for a state behavior –" TJ said with a shake of his head.
"So then why are you still talking?" Astral Prue asked.
"Prue, I don't need much, but I need to know one thing," TJ said as he sat up and looked at Astral Prue. He was sure he already knew the answer. "Are you going to take off from me again tonight?"
"You know, I hadn't really thought about it," Astral Prue said with a shrug. "I mean, for the first time in my life I'm free, so I'm sort of just living moment to moment. Is that okay?"
TJ nodded. "I'm cool with that."
"Cool with that," astral Prue said as they leaned into each other and kissed, suddenly she felt like she was being pulled as if her body wanted her back like it like it did when she woke up. "Oh, not now."
"What's wrong?" TJ asked as astral Prue jumped up and ran off. "Prue? Prue, where are you going?"
Astral Prue ran into the bushes and grabbed hold of a tree. "No, I'm free. I'm not going back," she said moments before she disappeared.
San Francisco Police Department
"Faith Lehane," the Inspector said as he looked over Faith's files. When Darryl got Faith to the precinct, he put her into an interrogation room and then left. It had only been a few minutes before the Inspector had come in and sat down. "Interesting file you have. Abusive parents, placed in foster care after the death of your father by an unknown individual and your mother was incarcerated for child abuse. Adoptive parent killed again by an unknown individual. Then there was an incident of indecent exposure where police officers found a priest, of all people, hugging you while you were naked. Lastly there was the death of the Deputy Mayor in Sunnydale, and you along with another young woman were prime suspects before the case was closed citing no evidence."
Faith shrugged. "Sounds like me. But the thing is those people in Boston that you called my parents, weren't. My mom lives here in San Francisco her name is Prue Halliwell."
The Inspector looked over his file and shook his head. "According to this your birth mother has no parental rights."
"That's not true," came a voice from the door. They turned and saw Darryl standing there. He walked over to the Inspector and laid a file in front of him. "When I found out that Ms. Halliwell believed Prue Halliwell was her mother, I did some checking. Sixteen years ago, Ms. Halliwell was kidnapped, by individuals unknown. The case was never solved. The birth parents, Prue Halliwell and Inspector Andy Trudeau—yes that Andy—were minors at the time. Penelope Halliwell, was the legal guardian of Prue Halliwell and her sisters. She reported her great granddaughter missing."
Faith looked at Darryl wondering if Darryl had fabricated all of that. Grams after all had said she had been given her up for adoption.
"That means," Darryl continued, "that Prue Halliwell is Ms. Halliwell's legal mother as she did not give up her parental rights."
"That may be," the Inspector said. "But Prue Halliwell is also wanted for the same murder." He looked at Faith. "Which means she can't…"
"Actually, Prue Halliwell has every right to either be in here for the questioning of her daughter or to make sure that an attorney is present," Darryl interrupted. He smiled at the Inspector as he sat next to Faith. "I'm not an attorney, but Phoebe Halliwell, Prue Halliwell's youngest sister has allowed me to be here in the absence of her sister to advise Ms. Halliwell till such time as their attorney or Prue Halliwell can be found and brought in."
Halliwell Manor
Astral Prue looked around the living room of the Manor before seeing Phoebe.
"Nice spell, huh?" Phoebe said as she slammed the Book of Shadows closed.
"How dare you," Astral Prue snapped.
"How dare you," Phoebe countered. "You destroyed Piper's wedding along with Piper. Now, Prue, I don't know what's going on with you but you have got to pull yourself together."
"I'm out of here," Astral Prue said as she headed for the front door. She came to an abrupt stop as Buffy appeared before her in a swirl of fiery flames.
"I think not," Buffy said. "And don't think about trying to flip me or something to get past me. I'm a Slayer, remember?"
"You cannot stop me, alright," Astral Prue said. "I am never going back. I'm not going..." Buffy grabbed her by the arm and pulled her reluctantly toward the couch on which laid Prue's body. "Alright, you know what? I am sick of this. She is all about duty and obligation, well not me. Alright, I want to be free, I want to find love, I want to have a life."
"Well, Prue, you have responsibilities whether you like it or not," Phoebe said.
"Don't talk to me about being responsible, Phoebe," Astral Prue scoffed. "Alright, you were not very responsible when you went and fell in love with a demon. And Buffy, Faith said you fell in love with a vampire, you are not anymore responsible either."
"Oh, please, you have got to let this whole Cole thing go, okay?" Phoebe said with a sigh. "You can't stay mad at me forever. And you can be mad at Buffy either."
"I'm not mad at either of you, Phoebe, I never was," Astral Prue said. "Alright, she was." She pointed toward her body. "Well at least you, Phoebe. Regardless I was rooting for you both."
"Is it only me she's scaring?" Buffy asked confused.
"No," Phoebe agreed with a shake of her head.
"You both risked everything for love, just like Piper and Leo," Astral Prue explained.
"You do know what happened on my seventeenth birthday, right?" Buffy questioned.
"I do," Astral Prue stated. "That doesn't change anything though, Buffy. I still dream of having that kind of freedom but instead I get stuck watching my sisters and you live my dream."
Buffy wasn't sure she was living the dream anymore. While she would always love Angel, she was slowly beginning to realize she was no longer in love with the vampire but with someone else.
"Wait a minute," Phoebe said as she realized something, "you astraled out in a dream when your subconscious takes over."
"What are you getting at?" Buffy wondered.
"So, I just studied this in psych 101," Phoebe explained. "Freud." She looked at Astral Prue. "You're the ID. Prue's inner desires." She motioned toward Prue's body. "Which means that she is the ego, the control factor."
Astral Prue nodded in agreement at the analogy that sprang to mind. "Yeah, well, she is one big remote control and she's always got me on pause."
"I think I understand," Phoebe said. "The sacrifices that you've made for us over the years. The sacrifices you now make to be a good parent for Faith. They made you suppress your inner desires."
"Yeah, well, don't tell me, tell her," Astral Prue said as she sat next to Phoebe.
"Uhm aren't they both two halves to a whole?" Buffy asked confused.
"They are," Phoebe answered as she kept her gaze on Astral Prue. "Prue, I'm telling you because you are Prue. I mean, you are both two sides of my sister. Prue, you have to stop devoting your entire self to the Charmed Ones and to Faith. It'll tear you apart. Literally."
"Is Piper very mad at me?" Astral Prue wondered.
"She'll get over it. And you know why?" Phoebe said. "Because we're okay now, Piper and me. We've both got passion and purpose in our lives and you gave us that. And Faith she's okay, well except for being arrested for murder, but she is here now with us, her family. And now it's time to take care of you." She smiled as Astral Prue looked at her body as she disappeared and Prue woke up. "Welcome back."
"Thanks. For everything, both of you," Prue said. She stood and walked into the conservatory and saw the mess TJ had made. "Oh. I cannot believe I wrecked Piper's wedding."
"Only a part of you did," Phoebe said.
"Is it too late to fix it?" Prue wondered.
"I don't think so," Buffy said. "But you might think about Faith, first. She is after all in jail."
"Right," Prue said as she walked into the foyer, grabbed her purse and walked out the front door.
The Wooden Nickel
Cole waited for Leo and Darryl as he watched the person his demonic senses told him was a killer. "Faith's been booked for murder," Leo said as he and Darryl walked up next to the demon. "And the moment Prue walked into the precinct she was as well. We're running out of time."
"Leo says you've found the killer," Darryl said. When Prue had arrived, he had managed despite the fact that Prue was wanted for the same murder as well to get her in the same interrogation room so that Faith would have a legal guardian available. He hadn't had time to tell Prue what he had found out when Leo had come to get him.
"Found a killer," Cole said.
"Oh, great, you mean you don't know?" Darryl asked. "What are you going to do? Ask him?"
They watched as the biker walked past them and out the door.
"That's a good idea. Why don't you meet me out front in five?" Cole suggested. He followed the biker outside and watched as the man lit a cigarette. "Is that the spot where they found the body?"
"Who are you?" the biker wondered.
"I'm here to find out what you know about the murder that took place here last night," Cole said.
"Show me your badge."
Cole laughed. "Oh, no, I'm not a cop. I'm a fortune teller and I predict you're going to give me a confession."
"You're a funny man, huh?" the biker told Cole. "Excuse me, huh?" He started to walk away but ole grabbed him. He pushed Cole into his motorcycle as he pulled out a knife.
As Cole got back up the biker swung the knife at him and he quickly dodged it. "I guess that's the knife you used on the victim when you found him unconscious, right?" he asked.
"You want a closer look at it, huh?" the biker wondered as he tried to stab Cole.
Cole grabbed the biker's wrist. "One more chance. Confess now and talk to the police," he said.
"Or what?" the biker wondered.
Cole smirked as he changed into his demonic form of Belthazor. "Or deal with me.," he said as Darryl and Leo walk out the door. Darryl saw Cole and got out his gun. He turned to Darryl. "I think he's ready to talk."
San Francisco Police Department
Darryl walked next to Prue as they followed Faith toward the front door of the Precinct. "Prue," he said. He handed her a copy of the investigation file he had found on Faith. "You should read this."
"Why what's in it?" Prue wondered as she and Darryl came to a stop.
"Phoebe told me that your Grams gave Faith up for adoption, she didn't. According to the report I found, Faith was kidnapped," Darryl said.
Prue looked toward Faith who had stopped by the doors and was looking back at them. "Kidnapped, are you sure?" she asked.
Darryl nodded. "Positive. The report was filed by your Grams, by Penelope Halliwell, when Faith was only two years old."
Prue frowned as she wondered why Grams had lied about giving Faith up for adoption.
"That's not all, Prue," Darryl said. "The people that I suspect took her, abused her. Well the woman anyways. The man, well he died under mysterious circumstances five years before Faith was pulled from the home by Protective Services. She was then adopted by a woman and then about a year ago, she died under mysterious circumstances."
"I know about Diana," Prue said with a sigh. "Faith told me about her. I didn't know about the Lehanes though." She looked at her daughter wondering how much more Faith had gone through before finally returning to her.
Halliwell Manor
Patty put the bride and groom figurine back onto the cake.
"I don't get it," Leo said. "Prue and Faith should be back by now; the police have the killer."
"They might have held Prue over for escaping custody," Cole said.
Just then Grams appeared before them. "I'm sorry, Patty," she said looking at her daughter. "They sent me to take you back."
"No, it's not midnight yet, we still have five more minutes," Phoebe objected.
Victor sighed. "I should have said something more to convince Piper."
"But you said everything, you were wonderful," Patty said as she smiled at her ex.
Just then Prue, Darryl and Faith came through the front door.
"Sorry we're late," Darryl said.
"What, not who you were expecting?" Prue asked as Piper walked up behind them.
"So, okay, what are we waiting for?" Piper asked as she took off her sweater. She looked to Leo and smiled. "Don't look so shocked."
"Girls, it's show time," Grams called out.
"Little help here," Piper said as Prue put on her veil.
"I noticed you don't have a best man," Victor said. "If you like, I could, uh..."
Leo smiled. "I'd be honored."
"Buffy," Prue said as she motioned for the blonde Slayer to stand beside her, Phoebe and Faith.
"Are you sure?" Buffy asked as she glanced at Piper.
Piper looked at her eldest sister and could see something had happened and she nodded. "Yeah," she said. "You are part of this family too, now."
Buffy nodded as she moved beside Faith.
Grams motioned toward the CD player and it began to play. She cleared her throat. "We are gathered here today to unite two souls as one. Do you, Leo Wyatt, and Piper Halliwell, join us here of your own free will to acknowledge the eternal bond shared by both of you."
"I do," Leo and Piper said.
"You may face each other, join hands," Grams said as Piper and Leo complied. "Uh, Leo, you may recite your vows."
Leo smiled as he looked into Piper's eyes. "Piper, through all the tears and struggles, I always knew in my heart that we'd make it here. I promise to love and respect you from this point forward as your husband, as my wife, my lover, my friend, and my soul mate. All I am is yours."
"Piper..." Grams said.
"Leo, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me," Piper said with love evident in her voice as she returned Leo's gaze. "I was afraid that you were too good to be true, that maybe I didn't deserve someone so pure and beautiful and loving as you are. But here we are surrounded by the people that I love the most and I feel so proud, and so blessed to be your wife. Leo, I was born to love you and I always will."
"Here before witnesses, Leo and Piper have sworn their vows towards each other," Grams said as Faith took the cord she held and wrapped it loosely around Leo and Piper's hands. "With this cord, I bind them to those vows."
"Heart to thee, body to thee, always and forever, so mote it be," Leo and Piper said simultaneously.
"So, mote it be," Grams said as everyone else echoed.
Just then the clock began to chime telling them all it was midnight.
"Kiss her fast," Grams said as Piper and Leo kissed. As everyone clapped Patty moved over to Grams knowing it was time to go.
"Before you go Grams," Prue said. "I have to ask why you lied about Faith?"
"Lied?" Patty asked as she looked at her mother.
"What are you talking about," Grams said.
"While I was checking out Faith's claim about being Prue and Andy's daughter. I came across an investigation report dated sixteen years ago. You filed it," Darryl said. "Stating your great granddaughter had been kidnapped."
Grams sighed. "I was ashamed," she said. "I protected you girls from all the demons and warlocks, but I couldn't protect Faith from those men. They came in the middle of the night, somehow snuck past me and got at your bassinet, Faith. I think they may have cast a spell to hide themselves from me, I don't know."
"So," Faith said. "I was never given up for adoption?"
"No," Darryl said. "You were kidnapped by the Lehanes."
"Giving what we know," Piper said. "That sounds possible."
"I tried to find you, Faith," Grams said. "But in the end, I had to give up. The trail had gone cold and so I cast the spell that erased you from Prue, Piper and Phoebe's memories and from those of Andy's family. I am sorry, I should have looked harder."
"Fucking shit," Faith growled.
"Language, Faith," Grams scolded.
Victor marched toward the ghost; anger prevalent on his face. "Penny, I have a bone to pick with you. Why wasn't I told that I had a granddaughter? I could have helped you find her."
"Your asking the wrong person," Grams said as she looked at her eldest granddaughter.
"I didn't want him knowing?" Prue questioned as Grams nodded.
"Yes, dear," Grams replied. "And if you think about it you will know why."
Prue sighed as she looked at her father. "I hated you. And given how absent you were in my life. I probably felt this would be just another thing that kept daddy away. That you would have hated Faith."
"Exactly, dear," Grams said looking at Victor. "Despite our differences, Victor. This is entirely on you. She didn't want to tell you, for fear you would hurt Faith just like you hurt Prue."
"What's wrong, Faith?' Buffy questioned her fellow Slayer. She could see that something was definitely wrong with her friend.
Faith looked up at Buffy and then looked toward her mother. "I was abused," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I was always told I was a bad girl, forced to eat… I was treated like dirt." She looked at her grandfather. "Now I see history repeats itself." She turned and stormed up the stairs to her bedroom.
A second later everyone heard Faith's bedroom door slam shut.
Buffy let out a sigh as she looked at Victor and then disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
"Are you okay, Faith?" Buffy asked when she appeared in the other Slayer's room. It was then that she saw Faith was packing. "Faith, talk to me. Please?"
Faith looked up at Buffy, tears in her eyes. She sighed as she sat down on her bed. "It's hard, Buffy. I wanted so much to have what you and your mom have. A family who loves me. But…"
"Your afraid they will…" Buffy started as she sat next to her sister Slayer.
"That they will be just like the Lehanes," Faith finished for the blonde.
"What the Lehanes did was wrong, Faith," Buffy told her. "From what I've seen in the time I've been coming here to train with you to be a witch. They love you."
"I don't know, Buffy," Faith admitted looking at her fellow Slayer, who in the time since she had learned that the Lehanes weren't her biological parents had become a friend.
"There is only one way to find out, Faith," Buffy said. "Tell them. If they love you, truly love you. What happened with the Lehanes won't push them away."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
"Are you okay, Faith?" Prue asked as Buffy and Faith came down the stairs. She could tell her daughter had been crying.
Faith looked at her mother and sighed. "I don't know yet, mom. But I guess I have to tell you what happened to me. Right?"
"Whenever you are ready," Piper instructed Faith. "We're not going to push you."
Faith glanced at Buffy, who wrapped an arm around her in support. She sighed as she looked back at her family. Her great-grandmother, her grandparents, her mother, her aunts, her new Uncle and Cole. "It happened on my third birthday," she started. "I remember my cake was double fudge chocolate. I've always had more energy than any other kid my age. After my party was over and I was cleaned up and put to bed, it started to rain. For some reason I was scared, so I peeked out of the window of my room and saw a man in a cloak getting soaked out there and I remember Mr. Lehane always used to say if someone needed help, I was to help them. So, I went to the front door. The Lehanes were asleep on the couch. I opened the door and told the person to come in as Mr. Lehane woke up. Mr. Lehane told me, no. But it was too late the man was in the house and Mr. Lehane walk Mrs. Lehane and told her to protect me."
Faith took a breath as she glanced at the other Slayer. She felt Buffy's hand rubbing small circles on her back. She wondered if Buffy's mom did that for Buffy and that her fellow Slayer had picked up the gesture. "While Mrs. Lehane was protecting me, Mr. Lehane cast a spell that burnt the man was wearing. I saw his feet, they looked like hooves. The man grabbed Mr. Lehane around the neck and twisted. I could hear the breaking of bones as the man broke his neck, killing Mr. Lehane."
"As the man left, I began crying. Mrs. Lehane was angry and blamed me for his death. She took me too my room and she spanked me. She then strapped me down in bed and said because I got Mr. Lehane killed that I would remain there all night." Faith stopped as she realized that she had seen the man's face. "Oh, no, no, no, no." She looked at Buffy. "It was Kakistos. It's all my fault, Buffy. I really am a screw up I got them both killed."
"Both who?" Phoebe questioned.
Buffy sighed in understanding. "Mr. Lehane and Diana, Faith's Watcher, were apparently killed by the same vampire."
Faith nodded as she tried to remember more about what had happened after that. "I also remember Mrs. Lehane talking to someone in a mirror."
Prue glanced at her sisters as all three of them remembered the last time someone talked to someone in a mirror. "Kali," she said.
"If it was during Faith's childhood then it would be before we faced her," Piper agreed.
"I don't know who that is," Faith admitted. "But the voice I heard belonged to a man. Of course, I was a kid at the time but it sounded to me like she was making a pact with him. I think she was wanting to be powerful…"
"Likely to try and bring back her husband," Buffy said as Faith nodded.
"Did she say the man's name?" Cole questioned.
Faith nodded. "Yes, she called him, The Source," she answered. "After that she gave me a bottle of the blackest milk I ever saw and forced me to drink it."
Cole, Grams, Patty and Leo looked at one other, looking extremely pale. "Leo, what is it?" Piper questioned her new husband.
"Faith what you drank wasn't milk," Cole interjected before anyone else could answer. "What you drank is the Source's essence."
"What would that do to her?" Prue questioned.
"It would make it hard for Faith to resist evil," Grams informed her granddaughter. "Much harder than it is for her friend here."
"Not entirely true," Buffy admitted. "Just a few weeks ago I did turn evil."
"That was a result of the spell Dantalian had cast on Prue," Leo reminded the blonde Slayer. "That spell turned Prue evil, which spread from her to Piper and Phoebe, to the Book of Shadows then to Faith and then from Faith through the Slayer line to you. You turned evil because of the original spell."
"Since you drank the essence, Faith," Cole continued. "You became the Source's heir. Which means any demon will likely leave you alone or risk the Source's wrath for attacking his heir."
"Of course," Patty said as she looked at her daughters. "You three of course fair game. Remove you from Faith's life…"
"And ensure Faith's conversion," Phoebe finished for her mother.
"So, what happens before then?" Faith asked. "After all I'm going to help my family."
"The demon will remove you from the fight," Cole answered. "Either he will take you straight to the Source or you will simply be sent elsewhere up here."
"So, what happened next, Faith?" Piper wondered.
"The abuse and the humiliation started," Faith told them. "She got a whip and began whipping me. I was forced to wear diapers, and I was treated like I was a baby again."
"Meaning?" Patty and Victor questioned.
"The moment I would get home from school, she would put a shock collar on me. She would tell me too crawl like a baby. If I didn't do as she ordered she would shock me." She sighed. "I love you guys, but admitting this much…"
"It's alright, Faith," Prue said as she moved next to her daughter. "What she did is over. And we'll find a way to reverse what she did to you."