A/N: okay, not really much of a chapter. More like Intro. Part two. Anyway, here you go. I think I might have made London a little too serious, but she's going through a lot at the moment. Please R&R!

Chapter 1: Secrets and Phone Calls

"Holy Crap! I cannot believe we're actually in the Tipton Hotel!" Phoebe exclaimed. She'd been screeching something to that effect the entire car ride/plane ride/taxi ride there. Phoebe had seen the Tipton a few times from her days of living on the east coast, but she'd never actually been inside. Well, once maybe, although it had been with a boyfriend under circumstances of questionable legality. Now she could be here, and not worry about being thrown out.

Piper rolled her eyes. The high life definitely suited Phoebe, even if she didn't always have the money for it. Paige on the other hand was doing her best to look sophisticated (not easy when you're jetlagged & sucking on a lollipop). Piper just hoped she didn't orb out of nervous habit.

"Alright, let's get settled, and then Phoebe, you can show us the sights."

"I don't know Piper. I might not know my way around Boston like I used to. It's been a few years."

Paige rubbed her temples. "Can't we get settled today, and sight-see tomorrow?I'm still a little hiccup air-sick."

"What?" Piper almost giggled.

"Are you serious?" Phoebe added. "You orb around the world all the time, and a little plane ride got to you?"

Paige glared. "San Francisco to Massachusetts isn't exactly a little plane-ride." In the midst of her witty remark, Piage nearly toppled over onto her sisters, who scrambled to help her up.

"Whoa, okay point taken. Phoebe you go get Paige some antacids at that candy counter, I'll go check us in, and Paige you… sit down and watch our luggage." Paige complied, and plopped down onto one of the armchairs with a groan.

While Piper went to check-in, Phoebe went straight to the candy counter. There was no line, and it was occupied by a seemingly bored teenage girl with frizzy blonde hair. "Hi there, my sister's feeling a little jetlagged. Do you have anything for that?"

The girl instantly straightened, and began busying herself. "Sure we've got some Tums right…" her jaw dropped when she saw who she was talking to. "You're… you're… You're Phoebe Halliwell from 'Ask Phoebe'!"

Phoebe was taken aback. Her column was popular, but she never dreamed she'd be known this far east. "Uh… yeah, I am. How did you know, I didn't know my column reached this far."

"Oh it doesn't. But I wish it did. I heard you on the radio once."

"Oh." Phoebe chuckled. "Yeah, my boss Elise had me do that, I wasn't into it so much."

The girl's smile widened. "No I'm glad you did. You have no idea how important it is when the media focuses on powerful women; especially for girls my age."

"Well thanks for your support… uh…"

"Maddie." the girl replied. "Maddie Fitzpatrick."

"Good to meet you Maddie. Now could I just get the…"

"Oh of course." Maddie remembered herself, and handed Phoebe the Tums. "Thanks again. And if you need anything, I'm here five days a week right after school."

"Thanks Maddie." Phoebe adored fans, especially the younger ones. Moments like that always reminded her just how important her job was. With the Tums in hand, she began to make her way back to Paige when someone slammed into her. "Hey!" she cried. "Watch where you're…going." That's when she saw who it was. It was one of the boys from her premonition. A stocky boy with shaggy blonde hair, dressed in a flame-patterned, button down shirt over a T-shirt. For awhile, the two stared at each other, until he spoke.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to. Why don't you let me make it up to you. Tonight, at dinner, eight o'clock."

Phoebe guffawed at his comment. "No offense kid, but I wouldn't want to keep you past your bedtime… Don't you have a twin?"

"Hey, I don't go to bed till… yeah, how'd you know?"

"Phoebe swallowed hard at her slip. "I… think I saw him… earlier… when I got here. So what's your name?" she added, trying to cover up her suspicious behavior.

"Zack. And the other one's Cody. We're exactly alike, except I'm funnier, better-looking, and chicks dig me."

Phoebe couldn't fight the giggle that burst from her mouth, despite her disapproval at his use of the word 'chicks'. "Well Zack, How long are you staying here?"

"We live here. Our Mom's the Cabaret singer. I can get you into her show for free… that is, if you went with me."

"Boy, you don't give up do you?" She shook her head. "Well, I'm going up to my Suite with my sisters now, so I guess I'll see you around." Phoebe brushed past him to rejoin Paige.

"Count on it, Sweet Thang."

……

"It's Halliwell, with an H. I booked it a week ago." Piper practicall snarled at the manager.

"I'm sorry Ms. Halliwell, but I don't have any record of you making a reservation." He replied in his dignified accent.

Piper smiled coldly. "Alright listen…" she peered at the desk-plate, "Marion. I'm a business mansager too, and I know how crazy things can get, and how demanding customers can be." Without warning she grabbed the poor man by his tie, and pulled him close enough to speak directly into his ear. "But I'm also a mom. One that hasn't had a vacation in a really, really long time, and one that didn't fly all the way here from San Fransisco to be told that my reservation has been lost. Now I have the potential to make your life a living nightmare if you don't get my sisters and I a suite tonight! "

In all Marion Moseby's years, he had never met someone quite as frightening as this woman. His voice was reduced to a shrill whisper. "I'll see if anything opens up."

"Thank you." She huffed, releasing him. She rejoined her sisters to break the news.

Moseby just shook his head and returned to his work when the phone rang. "Tipton Hotel, how may I help you? Oh Mr. Tipton… yes, she's fine. Still angry about your business venture though. I'll say that put quite a strain on all of us. Oh… so it's serious now. Yes I'll tell her… No I won't tell the staff. But with all do respect, Sir we can't take this lightly… Well of course not. There is no way to tell that many people they'll soon be out of a job… Of course Sir. Yes, goodbye. " Moseby hung up the phone, utterly dismayed, when he was suddenly ripped from his thoughts by London slamming her palms on the desk.

"Moseby! If Daddy calls today, I don't care what he says. He's not selling this hotel!"

Moseby quickly placed a hand over her mouth. "Miss Tipton, will you kindly keep it down. I don't want anyone finding out prematurely.

London looked like someone had just told her that her pomeranian had just been run over. "So he was serious?"

Moseby seemed to share her feeling for the situation. "As a matter of fact, that was him. And he said that Mr. Carlisle was giving him a very generous offer."

"But this is my home." London pouted.

"Your father wanted me to remind you that he has several more locations around the world that would be suitable for you."

"But it won't be this one. It's not right. I took my first steps on this lobby floor. I met my best friends here. That couch is where I got the idea to start my own store. Does any of that matter?" Knowing she had already lost the argument, London stormed away. Moseby had never seen her so distraught, certainly never this serious. Normally she was so carefree and, even though he didn't like to bring it up, a little air-headed. But ever since she had learned this hotel's fate, she had become angry and depressed.

All he could do was shake his head and whisper. "I know. I know." He returned to his work, completely unaware of the little blonde boy hiding behind a nearby shrub, who had heard everything.

Cody ran to the candy-counter and pulled his brother into the elevator before he could protest. "Zack, you're never going to believe this."

……

Cody stormed through the living room of his Suite in a rage. Their mother wasn't home from grocery shopping yet, and he was dreading telling her the news. He stomped into his room, and nearly slammed the door in his brother's face.

"Whoa!" Zack exclaimed, catching the door before it swung into his nose. "What is the matter with you?"

"How can you even ask that? You heard Moseby! Mr. Tipton is selling this hotel! We'll be out of a home, Mom will be out of a job, and we might never see anyone again!" Cody clenched his fists until his fingernails were digging into his palms.

"I know, but what can we do? We're just kids." Zack tried to comfort his brother. He remembered the last time Cody had been like this. It had been when their parents had divorced. And they had been just as powerless then.

"That's your answer for everything! You're always perfectly content to just go with the flow! Well I'm not letting this slip by us! We have to FIGHT THIS!!!"

Whoosh! The second Cody's rage boiled over, there was a rush of air, and a glint of metal. One of the trophies on their dresser had flown off his shelf, straight for Zack, who let out a squeal of panic, and threw up his hands to protect himself.

Then the trophy was caught in midair, and engulfed in flames. It fell to the floor with a mundane clang, scorched, and no longer resembling its original shape in the slightest.

"What was that?" They whispered in unison. They stared at eachother with their eyes bulging out of their sockets. After awhile of standing in silence, Cody moved to pick up the trophy.

"Oh no!" Cody breathed

"What?"

"This was my Spelling Bee trophy."

Zack sighed and shook his head. "Do you think…"

"I don't know." Cody replied.

"Should we try it again?" He asked.

Cody thought for a moment, then looked back at their row of trophies. He squinted at Zack's basketball trophy. He tried to get angry again, and with a twitch of his chin, it flew off the shelf towards Zack.

"Hey!" He cried, but it was too late. Zack threw up his hands to stop the renegade trophy, and it was swallowed in the fire that shot from his hands. This time the flames stayed to dance on his palms. He flipped them up to look. "Hey." he grinned, then he began tossing the flames back & forth between his hands. "Now this is cool."

"Not cool." Cody grabbed his wrist. "You're going to burn our room down."

Zack frowned, and clenched his fists, extinguishing the flames.

"Didn't that burn you?" Cody gasped.

"No." Zack replied, matter-of-factly. "It just feels warm."

The two sat there for awhile, not sure where to go from here. After several minutes, Cody broke the silence.

"Do you think we should tell Mom?"

"Tell her what?" Zack huffed. "That we just turned our room into a war zone with some freaky powers we just discovered? That'll go over real well."

Cody thought for a moment. Then something struck him. Something he didn't like. "What if she knows about this?"

"What?" Zack said doubtingly. "Mom would've warned us about something like this."

"Well think about it. This couldn't have just come from nowhere. And we know we're not adopted. That home-movie we watched proved that." They both shuddered.

"But why…" Zack began, but Cody cut him off.

"Shh." Their mother's voice was drifting from the living room through their bedroom door. They hadn't heard her come home. She in turn mustn't have heard their scuffle, otherwise she wouldn't be arguing as openly as she was now.

"It thought we both agreed you wouldn't do anything until I said they were old enough." The twins poked their head through the door a crack. Their mother, Carey Martin was on the phone. "Well isn't that convenient." She replied o whoever she was arguing with. "This isn't a question of trust Natalia! I am their mother, and you overstepped your bounds." She sighed. "Of course I'm grateful, but you were supposed to wait for my decision before you unbound their powers."

The twins looked at each other, both equally stunned. Their mother had known.