Disclaimer: If I owned Charmed, I would give it back to the people. Nah, that's a lie. I'd sit on it and collect as many royalties as I could. What can I say? I like money.

Ch.35:

Piper removed the vase of flowers from the main hallway table as Phoebe gently set the head in the center. Meanwhile, Meredith was coming down the stairs.

"I tried to get Chris here, but he seems to be out of range." She said, joining the sisters.

Piper pursed her lips and Meredith sighed.

"I get it." She told Piper. "You don't like Chris, you don't trust him. You won't listen to me when I tell you that not trust him is stupid. Can you please just trust me and accept the fact that I know more than you and that I trust him?"

Piper sighed, but nodded.

"Besides the point is moot." Meredith continued. "I can't get a hold of him, so I can't talk to him anyway."

Phoebe finished settling the head by straightening his glasses.

"Okay." She said.

"You're very kind." The head said.

"Yeah." Phoebe replied slowly. "Can I just ask you one question? How are you still talking?"

"Yes, well, fair question." The head said. "Uh, fortunately, the rest of me is still at magic school. Otherwise, I'd be-"

"Wait a second." Meredith interrupted. "Did you say Magic School? You're from Magic School?"

"Yes." The head replied. "That's right."

"Wait, you know what Magic School is?" Piper asked the young woman.

"Of course I know what Magic School is!" Meredith said happily. "Chris, Me, Wyatt…we all went there! Chris and I were afraid of going there to use their library and messing up the time line more than we meant to, but now that you've found out about it, I get to use their time travel section! Halleluiah!"

The others stared at her as she clapped her hands happily.

"Anyway, as I was saying," the head said, "as long as my body remains on grounds, I can't, well, you know…die. It's all part of the magic, thankfully."

"Like the doorway in the middle of my stairway." Piper said dryly.

"Sorry." The head told her. "I didn't know where else to put it. It's the only way in or out of the school. I had to reach you somehow."

"Do you have a name?" Phoebe asked.

"Sigmund." The head replied. "But I'm afraid we don't have much time for pleasantries. I really need to get you back before he strikes again."

"The Headless Horseman?" Piper asked.

"Right." Sigmund replied.

"Fabulous." Piper muttered.

Paige and Leo appeared in a flash of orbs behind Sigmund.

"Where's Wyatt and Mer?" Piper asked her sister.

Phoebe motioned to the head, trying to draw Paige's attention as she answered.

"They're upstairs in the nursery." The youngest sister replied. "I thought I should bring Le-" she finally noticed the head, "-oh my god. Then, apparently, I was right."

The other two walked in front of the table.

"Leo!" Sigmund exclaimed. "Oh, so good to see you again."

"Sigmund, what happened?" Leo asked.

"Wait, you guys know each other?" Phoebe asked, surprised.

"Gideon sent me for your help." Sigmund told them. "All your help."

"Gideon?" Paige asked. "Who is Gideon? And who are you?"

"All right." Piper said. "All you people with legs, follow me."

She took the vase of flowers and stepped into the next room.

"You wait here." Phoebe told Sigmund as she and the others followed Piper.

"Hurry!" Sigmund called after them.

They all moved into the foyer.

"Leo, just so you know, this is what's keeping your son and Meredith from developing social skills." Piper told him.

"Hey!" Meredith protested. "My social skills are just fine, thank you very much."

"And me from helping Richard." Paige added over Meredith.

"And me from helping…me." Phoebe said.

"What?" Leo asked, confused.

"I'm talking about our lives." Piper said. "We can't just drop what we're doing every time somebody's head comes rolling down the stairs."

"I don't believe you're saying this." Leo said. "You don't understand. This isn't supposed to happen. Magic school is supposed to be protected from evil. It's the only way Gideon can teach magic to the next generation-Wyatt and Meredith's generation."

"I think Wyatt and Meredith are more concerned with nursery school right now, than magic school." Piper told him.

"Are you sure?" Leo asked. "Paige said he orbed back in front of the door. He was drawn to it."

"Mer was the one who shadow walked me, not the other way around." Meredith added.

Piper glared at her and Paige and they both shrugged.

"Okay." Phoebe interrupted. "You know what? I think we should help the magic school. Because we can't just keep that head on our foyer table. You know? What is it? A centerpiece?"

"Okay, fine, but we can't take Wyatt and Mer." Piper said. "Sorry."

"All right." Leo agreed. "I'll get Chris to watch them."

"What?" Piper exclaimed. "After everything he's done? No. I don't think so."

"Piper!" Meredith growled.

"He was just trying to protect Wyatt." Leo said at the same time.

"Oh, please." Paige said.

"Aunt Paige!" Meredith exclaimed.

Everyone was surprised when Leo reached over and laid a hand on Meredith's arm, quieting her, including Leo and Meredith. The younger woman looked at him and nodded after a moment.

"I think his intentions are good." Leo told the sisters. "He deserves another chance. And if it makes you feel better, Meredith can help him."

"It's probably better that I do." Meredith agreed. "I'm becoming worried that my younger self has begun to think of the man I love as a father figure. I'd rather I didn't have to go through intense therapy for the rest of my future life."

The sisters nodded and Leo orbed him and Meredith out.

Leo, Meredith, and the kids appeared in P3.

"Chris?" Meredith called.

The young man came out of the back room, his shirt torn and dirty, with a bleeding cut on his face.

"Great." Meredith sighed, walking over to him. "You went to the Underworld without me, didn't you?"

"No." Chris said as she stared at him. "Okay, maybe a little bit."

"Chris!" she exclaimed.

"I need to find something out." He told her.

"Leo, heal him, would you?" Meredith said, sighing.

"Leo?" Chris said, finally looking around and spotting Leo, Wyatt, and Meredith. "What's going on?"

"I'll explain later." Meredith told him as she moved to take Wyatt and lead Mer into the back room. "Just let Leo heal you and get cleaned up."

Leo moved over to him and began to heal his cheek.

"What happened?" he asked the younger man.

"I got into an argument with a demon." Chris explained. "He didn't want to tell me what I wanted to know."

"I hope you at least won." Leo said as the wound closed and he lowered his hand.

"The demon's gone, but I didn't get the information I needed." Chris replied, stripping off his shirt.

Leo stared at three long scars on Chris' back.

"What happened to your back?" he demanded.

Chris ignored him and pulled on another shirt.

"We'll take care of Wyatt and Mer." He told Leo. "See you later."

He walked into the back room and closed the door, leaving Leo alone.

Inside, Meredith had set Wyatt and Mer up with some toys and was sitting on the bed, waiting for him.

"Leo saw your scars, didn't he?" she asked softly as he sat down. "What did you tell him?"

"What was I supposed to tell him?" Chris asked. "That his son decided I was encroaching on his girl, so he launched a curse that kept cutting my back until we could find the counter? Yeah, that'll go well."

Meredith looked over at the little boy playing with her younger self quite happily.

"It's hard to reconcile what he's going to do with who he is now, isn't it?" she asked softly.

They were both silent for a moment.

"We lead really weird lives." Meredith said suddenly.

"You're telling me." Chris replied with a sigh.

The door opened and Phoebe walked into Magic School. Piper walked in behind her and spotted Sigmund's body on the floor.

"Oh, yuck." She muttered.

She opened the mesh bag she was carrying and peered inside.

"Um, are you sure you can breathe in there all right?" she asked Sigmund's head.

"Yes, I-" Sigmund began, but was interrupted by the door slamming shut behind them. "We must move quickly."

"All right." Piper agreed.

She stepped around the body and moved down the hallway, her sisters and Leo following.

"Wow." Paige said, looking around. "Impressive."

In front of them was an endless hallway.

"How long is this hallway?" Piper asked.

"No one really knows." Sigmund replied. "It's endless."

"Great." Piper muttered.

They slowly made their way down the endless hallway.

"So, how are we going to find this dude, Gideon, anyway?" Paige asked.

"He's not a 'dude'." Leo told her. "He's an Elder. My old mentor, actually."

"Really?" Piper asked. "You've never mentioned him before."

"We met a long time ago, when I first became a Whitelighter." Leo replied. "He helped me out. Took me under his wing. He actually fought for us to get married. To break the rules."

"Really?" Piper asked, surprised.

A wolf appeared behind them and growled low in its throat as it followed them. Phoebe heard it and turned around to see it heading towards them.

"Okay." She said slowly. "I don't want to freak anybody out, but there is a wolf following us."

"What?" Paige yelped.

Everyone turned around and saw nothing.

"There was a wolf following us, I swear." Phoebe told them.

"Not everyone sees the same things here, Phoebe." Sigmund told her. "Only what they're meant to see."

"Who you got in there?" Phoebe demanded. "Confucius?"

A side door opened and they turned to see a young woman reading a book as she levitated from one side of the hall to the other, going through another door and leaving them staring after her.

"Okay." Phoebe said. "You all saw that, right?"

"Eleventh grade levitation." Sigmund told them. "She's late." He cleared his throat. "We should keep moving. The Great Hall is just ahead."

They continued on until they reached a pair of tall wooden doors. The doors opened to reveal a large room, which they moved to the center of as they looked around.

"Leo!" a voice called. "Good. Thanks for coming. Although I do wish it was under better circumstances."

"Gideon." Leo replied.

"And the Charmed Ones." The voice continued.

They looked over to where it was coming from and saw nothing.

"Lovely to see you again, although you probably don't remember meeting me." The voice continued cheerfully. "You were just little girls."

Frustrated, Phoebe stomped her foot and clapped while Piper handed the bag with Sigmund's head to Leo.

"Leo." She said, glaring.

"Gideon," Leo called, stepping forward, "I believe your invisibility shield is still up."

Gideon appeared as he lowered his hood.

"I'm sorry." He told them. "I'm just – a little distracted with everything that's been going on around here."

"Yes, we heard." Piper said.

Gideon's attention was caught by Leo setting Sigmund's head on a nearby table top.

"Sigmund, oh, I'm so sorry." He told the other man.

"It's all right, sir." Sigmund replied. "Didn't stop me from delivering the message now, did it?"

"Okay, would somebody please tell me what's going on here?" Phoebe demanded.

"You always were the restless one." Gideon said. "Just like your Grams. Well, it all started innocently enough, actually. Pranks, really. Setting the rats loose from the Pied Piper. Turning the north dorm into a gingerbread house. Kids…"

"And then…?" Leo prompted when he trailed off.

"And then someone cast a spell that brought forth the darkness." Gideon said. "And days became nights, nights became terror. And the Headless Horseman has roamed the campus ever since, targeting teachers."

"Forgive me, sir." Sigmund called. "Perhaps you'd like to orb me over to the other heads?"

"Right." Gideon agreed, stepping towards him. "Good thinking."

"Nice to meet you." Sigmund told the sisters.

"You too, dude." Phoebe said.

With a wave Gideon's hand, Sigmund's head orbed out.

"Did you guys figure it out yet?" a new voice asked.

They all turned to find Meredith walking out of the shadows.

"Can I use the library yet?" she continued.

"I thought you were watching the kids." Piper said.

"Chris has got it under control." Meredith replied, waving her hand. "Come on, it's been years since I had access to the Magic School library!"

"You must be Meredith St. James." Gideon said, stepping forward. "The Elders have great hopes for your younger self."

Meredith looked him over and opened her mouth, but stopped when Piper held up a hand.

"Think about whatever is about to come out your mouth." She ordered.

Meredith glared at her but shut her mouth.

"So, somebody's trying to shut down the school by cutting off teachers' heads?" Paige asked. "Is that what we're getting at?"

"What else could it be?" Gideon replied. "What better way for evil to gain an upper hand than to thwart the next generation?"

"Isn't it as simple as finding who conjured the Horseman, and reversing the magic?" Piper asked.

"No Magic School student would possess that level of magic." Meredith scoffed. "Well, at least until Wyatt and I get here. Between the two of us, and a couple of other kids, we once summoned a Mongolian Hoard by accident. It took the Professors three days to get rid of them all. And no matter what Chris says, we didn't do it to get out of an exam. That would be an abuse of our powers."

The others stared at her.

"What?" she asked. "Why are we staring? What?"

"Why is it every time you tell one of these charming little stories, I feel the need to build a bomb shelter in the basement?" Piper asked dryly.

"She is right, though." Gideon said, bringing them back on topic. "No student should possess that level of magic, at least they're not supposed to. That's why I believe that a demon from the outside has somehow corrupted one of them into doing his bidding."

"So, you find the student, you find the evil, right?" Paige asked.

"True." Gideon agreed. "Except that you'll find much more than that here, Paige. The answers that you each seek can be found within these grounds. You merely have to be open to them. Teaching will help you find the student in question, but it will also remind you of what you fear you have lost."

He turned to Piper.

"Investigating our nursery school will help you with your worries over Wyatt and little Meredith." He told her.

He now turned to Phoebe and Meredith.

"And if you two follow the Wolf, she will lead you where you want to go." He told them.

"Koko." Meredith whispered.

"Ah, you know our Shaman." Gideon said, smiling.

"She taught me everything I know about being a Shaman." Meredith said softly. "She wasn't able to finish my training, though."

"Well, maybe now she can." He told her kindly. "But be careful, all of you. The deeper you look, the more you will discover. And the better chance you will have of saving all this."

Gideon turned around and walked away, vanishing as he went, leaving the others staring at each other.

A teacher's aide showed Paige to her class.

"Who does he think he is, Obi-Wan Kenobi?" Paige ranted as they walked. "How can I be afraid of losing something if I don't' know what I have lost?"

"Maybe that's why he wants you to take over Sigmund's class, so you can remember." The aide told her.

"Remember what?" Paige demanded.

"Your gift, perhaps." The aide suggested.

They stopped in front of a door.

"Now…" the other woman told Paige. "Whatever you do, be strong. Don't let them intimidate you. This may be advanced magic, but they're still just kids."

She reached behind Paige and opened the door, pushing Paige backwards into the room. The youngest Halliwell sister turned around to find herself facing an out of control classroom. A group of students were laughing as another student hung in mid air by the collar of his shirt and jacket.

"Help!" he was shouting. "Stop it!"

Paige closed the door and the laughter stopped.

"Oh, my god." She exclaimed.

Paige stepped forward as the boy dropped to the ground, rushing to help him up.

"You okay?" she asked.

He pushed her hands away and got to his feet, heading for his chair.

"I'm fine." He muttered.

"Telepathy isn't the coolest power now, is it, Zack?" a boy in a red hoodie said, laughing.

"No." Zack muttered.

"Did you do that?" Paige demanded.

The boy in the hoodie glanced at her before looking away.

"Excuse me, I'm talking to you." Paige said. "Did you do that?"

"Yeah, so what if I did?" the boy replied.

"What's your name?" Paige demanded.

"Quentin." He replied.

The class started to giggle as Zack rolled his eyes.

"What's o funny?" Paige asked. "What?"

The door opened and another Quentin ran in to find the other staring at him.

"What?" he demanded.

He spotted the other version of himself and sighed.

"Thanks a lot, Slick." He said. "Get me in trouble, why don't you?"

Quentin took his seat as Slick morphed into his true form and Paige stared at him.

"What's the matter, teach?" he asked. "You seem a little out of sorts."

"Me?" Paige replied, holding out her hands. "No, I'm perfectly fine."

A bright red apple appeared in one of her hands as the boy next to Slick waved his hand. She looked at it and smiled at him.

"Thank you." She told him. "You're a conjurer."

"Yeah." Slick scoffed. "And I'd watch your pretty little neck if I was you."

Paige stared at him in shock, the threat taking her by surprise.

Phoebe cautiously made her way through the endless hallway, Meredith following behind her with a smile.

"Here, wolfie, wolfie, wolfie, wolfie." Phoebe called, whistling and making kissing sounds as Meredith chuckled. "Come on. I know you're here somewhere. Here, wolfie, wolfie, wolfie, wolfie. You know, instead of laughing to yourself, you could help. You're supposed to know her."

She glared at Meredith, who just smiled brighter.

"Koko will find us when the time is right." She told her aunt.

They heard a growling sound and turned to look behind them. It began to bark, and they turned back around to find it in front of them.

"Oh, hi." Phoebe said nervously. "Hi, sweet wolfie. Okay, you don't have to attack me, 'cause Gideon sent me."

The wolf studied her for a moment before turning to Meredith. The younger girl stepped forward and kneeled down so she was the same level as the wolf before bowing her head.

"I am Meredith St. James of the Cayuga Nation." She told the wolf. "I seek your guidance."

The wolf studied her a moment longer before bowing its head and turning to trot down the endless hallway.

"Where are you going?" Phoebe demanded as Meredith got to her feet. "Come on."

They both followed after the wolf as it disappeared.

"Come on!" Phoebe exclaimed in frustration.

She resumed making kissing noises and stepped through an open door, Meredith following her. Inside the door was a cave. Phoebe paused and looked back at Meredith, who smiled. They moved further in and the door slammed shut behind them. Around a bend, they heard the wolf growl. In front of them, the wolf stood in a circular area near a fire. There was a bang and a cloud of white smoke, and where the wolf once stood sat a young woman.

"Neat trick." Phoebe said, moving further inside. "Can you shape shift into the Headless Horseman as well?"

"I'm a shaman, like your niece…" the young woman told her, "not a shapeshifter."

"I never finished my training." Meredith said, bowing her head in deference to the other woman. "I've never been able to call my spirit animal."

"And yet I see it in you." The woman told her, taking a pinch of herbs from the bowl next to her and adding it to the cauldron over the fire. "And the wolf is merely a projection of your quest. A symbol."

"Fascinating." Phoebe said. "You didn't answer my question."

"Your companion trusts me, Phoebe, why do you doubt her?" the woman asked.

"I don't." Phoebe said. "I just don't trust people I don't know."

"Do you really think I lured you out here just to kill you, Phoebe?" the woman asked. "You have the power of premonition…but it's unreliable…especially lately. I can help you see your future more clearly…if you're willing to take…the risk. And you, young shaman…you know your powers, what you are capable of, what your European side has gifted you…but the power of your mother's people is still a mystery to you…I can lead you the rest of the way…if you are willing to let go of all that holds you back…of your pain and rage…let go, and embrace what is left."

Phoebe and Meredith exchanged a look.

"I don't know what the hell Gideon was talking about, 'cause this is certainly not what I'm looking for." Piper told Leo.

They stood in the nursery school, staring at the children. Some of them were floating on air; others were making their toys float.

"Still," Leo said, "Wyatt and Meredith wouldn't have to hide their powers. Plus, they won't be all alone."

"No, they'll be surrounded by all the other freaks." Piper replied.

"They're not freaks." Leo told her, frowning.

"You know what I mean." Piper said. "I just want Wyatt to have a normal upbringing, at least as normal as possible. And little Meredith, you know, magic has already put her through so much. First her parents being killed, and then her demonic foster parents. I just want her to have as normal an upbringing as I can give her. Is that too much to ask for?"

"I don't know." Leo replied. "Maybe."

Piper sighed.

"Well, we're not shopping for preschools." Piper replied. "We're shopping for headhunters, so where is-"

The door to the room opened and the teacher, accompanying a little girl, walked into the room.

"Sorry." She told them. "Little emergency." She looked down at the girl. "Go ahead."

The little girl ran off to play and the teacher returned her attention to Piper and Leo.

"Now, where were we?" she asked.

"You were telling us about your near-miss with the headless-" Piper said and the teacher shushed her.

"Shh." She said. "I don't want to scare the little ones. They may have powers, but they're still innocent."

"How did you get away?" Leo asked.

"I astral projected." The teacher replied. "Confused him, I guess, by creating two of me, thank god."

"Um, are you suggesting that one of these kids might be…" Piper asked.

"Involved?" the other woman finished. "Oh, dear, no. No. Never."

"Why would you be a target?" Leo asked.

"These children are the cradle of good magic, its entire future." The teacher told them. "Without proper guidance, nurturing, they could easily be turned."

"Demons tried to turn my ward." Piper said. "We understand the risk, believe me."

An alarm began to blare and Leo looked around.

"What's that?" he asked.

Leo and Piper ran out into the Great Hall, only to find teachers and students scrambling for cover.

"Anybody hurt?" Leo asked when they found Gideon.

"Not yet." The Elder replied.

Paige ran into the hall and joined them.

"You guys okay?" she asked.

"Paige, you're a teacher now." Gideon told her. "You need to be careful."

Leo grabbed Paige arm and pulled her back into the endless hallway.

"Come on, I'll take you back." He told her.

"Wait!" Piper called. "Don't leave-"

Behind her, the Horseman materialized.

"Piper!" Paige yelled.

The eldest Halliwell turned and gasped when she saw the rearing horse. The Horseman swung his long sword and sliced Piper's head clean off her neck. It hit the floor with a thud and rolled towards them. As it stopped, the Horseman disappeared.

They all stared at Piper's head.

"Great." She muttered. "Ju-u-ust great."

A/N: What'd you guys think? Let me know. Review!

Abbey