Now things are starting to come together. Soon to be introduced are the Rising Moon coven who are going to help Matt make up his mind about staying with Prue. Plus a few more clues on who is the traitor.

Thursday

The Hunter's lair

Early on thursday morning, Prue like the rest of her sisters, tried to start the day by sorting out what each sister was to do. This was mainly so that in case of another family emergency, everyone would know where everyone else was. Leading the news both on TV and the morning paper was the story covering the animal attacks and the panic that had gripped parts of the city during the night.

However most of this would have to wait as Inspector Cortez rang with the news about the Wolfen's attack on a group of people living in a fortified building, people with access to the Wolfsbane potion, silver weapons and that there were two survivors.

He offered them the chance to examine what must be the hunters base of operations, which included documents, weapons and what appeared to be the Wolfsbane potion and the ingredients used to make it. But they would have to move quickly as a variety of different law enforcement organisations also wanted in on the investigation. Inspector Cortez could use this interest to hide the Charmed Ones presence.

This time Leo refused to orb all three sisters and Cole into the building, as Paige had already shown that she could take passengers. It was time that the others learned to trust Paige's orbing ability as he was getting tired of being used as a taxi. That Sheila had come close to stabbing Paige to death in the process was tactfully ignored.

After a brief discussion, Prue with some trepidation, volunteered to let Paige take her. The other two sisters along with Leo and Cole orbed into the building to join Inspector Cortez in examining what the building could offer. A nervous Prue arrived safely with a proud Paige. Finally she had been allowed to take a passenger, after all she had successfully orbed Sheila away from the Wolfen back to the Manor.

Cortez had used his authority to temporarily stand down the patrols using the excuse that a group from another law enforcement agency had arrived to secretly examine the crime scene. Since all were aware that this was not yet a federal matter, the secrecy made some sense to the other officers and they co operated.

Smiling and enthusiastic, an elated Paige led the sisters around a corner, only to stop in horror as she entered a corridor were two of the hunters had been killed. While the bodies and body parts had been removed, the blood spatter still covered not only the floor but the walls and even part of the ceiling. While this was not the first time that any of them had seen blood, it had usually been their own and never in this quantity. The smell alone reached past the nose and entered the brain to induce a numbing horror and disgust.

So it was a grim and quiet group that went straight to the secure room to examine what had been roped off due to its toxic nature. Only to find that it was all gone, the silver weapons, all the potions, plant, animal, and other unknown material containers, nothing was left. It took only a minute for a furious Cortez to verify that a patrol had checked the room only thirty minutes before and everything had been undisturbed.

Next, Cortez was contacted by the leader of the SWAT team guarding the unhurt survivor with the news that he had disappeared under impossible circumstances. He had been kept in a secure cell under constant video surveillance as well as guards both inside and outside the cell. The two guards inside the cell, swore that they had been called outside however those in the corridor had heard nothing. Then both video feeds had failed at the same time. The officers outside the cell had reentered within seconds, only to find the suspect gone.

Suspecting demonic involvement in both disappearances, Leo promptly gained permission from Cortez to orb all the sisters and Cole to the hospital where the hurt female hunter was being treated. She would have to be the next target and they might already be too late. As before, Leo took Piper, Phoebe and Cole and Paige took Prue. Inspector Cortez remained behind as there was no way he could explain his absence.

Orbing into a vacant room on the same floor as the female hunter, Paige immediately sensed the presence of two demons waiting nearby. They were waiting for two doctors and three nurses to finish checking on the woman's condition before entering to transport her to the underworld and presumably her death. Both demons had already kidnapped the male survivor and were waiting with increasing impatience for the doctors and nurses to leave.

Not willing to risk a fight with two powerful demon's in the middle of a hospital, a quick planning discussion decided that Leo would orb in as soon as the medical personal left, and without hesitation, orb the wounded hunter to the manor. If the demons followed, the sisters and Cole would be ready and waiting. Paige orbed a suddenly nervous Piper and by now a trusting Prue back to the Manor to wait for Leo and then returned for an equally nervous Cole and Phoebe.

Ten minutes later, Leo arrived in the attic with an unconscious woman, heavily bandaged and with several drips still embedded in both arms. As he laid her gently down on a hastily constructed bed, Leo said "The demons flamed in just as I was orbing out, they saw me and almost certainly, they will follow. Are you ready ?".

All four sisters and Cole nodded in agreement as they prepared for the coming fight. Paige and Phoebe quickly placed the five crystals they had used to cage the Wolfen pup, around the woman. As the protective shield formed around her, two demons flamed into the Manor attic.

The first was hit by two potion vials thrown by Prue and Cole and the demon disappeared in a ball of flame before he could even scream. The second only had enough time to throw a fireball at the cage, where it detonated without hurting anyone, before Piper used her combustion power to explode him.

As everyone waited to see if any other demons would arrive, Phoebe removed one of the crystals so that Paige and Leo could enter and see what they could do for the woman. She then quickly replaced the crystal and joined Cole to see what would happen next.

As Leo carefully removed the drips and most of the bandages, a young asian woman was revealed, brutally wounded and burned. Given the injuries to her face, it was difficult to gain a clear idea of her appearance.

Examining her wounds, it was obvious that she had only just survived a determined attack by one of the Wolfen. Both her legs and arms showed bite marks as did her face. She was also covered almost completely down one side, from her face to her thigh by a series of deep burns that Leo, Prue and Piper recognised from their experiments with making the Wolfen potion.

Yet again, Leo channeled Paige's power as they combined to use their healing power on the woman. Paige grumbled "When will I be able to do this with out you channeling me?" as slowly but surely, the unknown woman's wounds healed. "One day" replied Leo, "all you need to do is find the trigger".

Since no more demons turned up, Cole decided that with luck, no other demons knew what had happened and that they now had the only survivor, safe for the time being at the Manor. Still that was not likely to last long and they needed to be vigilant.

Calling Inspector Cortez, they let him know that they had successfully rescued the female hunter and she was now safe at the Manor. Pleased, Cortez asked that Darryl be allowed to join them so when she woke, they could also hear what she had to say. No one had any problem with that, so Darryl made the short trip over to the Manor to join them, arriving just as Susie began to wake up.

As Susie slowly woke up, she found herself in highly unfamiliar surroundings. Lying on a clean blue sheet covered mattress, which was lying on the floor of what appeared to be an attic. Covering her was another blue sheet and several blankets. She was dressed in a hospital gown but clearly was not in any hospital that she had heard of. More worrying was the strange cage made of flowing white ropes that surrounded her.

As her memory returned and the Wolfen attack resurfaced, she couldn't help herself as she lifted her right arm, then her left, first to look for any injuries, which there were none and then to feel her face as she remembered the Wolfen trying to rip her face off. Finally she remembered the extreme pain as the Wolfsbane potion Harry had thrown, had hit her and caused the burns all down one side of her body. He hadn't any choice, as the potion had forced the Wolfen from her and it was the only reason she had survived. How long had she been unconscious, if her wounds had healed this well?.

"She's awake, Piper let the others know please" came a pleasant female voice from somewhere behind her. A woman's face appeared on one side and carefully looked through the cage at her. "Hi, you are safe now". Susie remained quiet, but carefully examined her surroundings for any idea of where she was and who she was with. Next Phoebe and Cole entered, followed closely by Piper, Leo and Darryl. Finally, a panting Paige who had been taking a quick nap in her bedroom to recover some of the energy she had expended in orbing everyone around and Susie's massive healing. She had been told not to orb so as not to scare the hunter and so had run up the stairs so that she wouldn't miss anything.

Ten minutes later, Susie, now wearing a large dressing gown over her hospital gown and with fluffy slippers on her feet, was escorted downstairs and sat on a chair next to the dining room table. There her worst fears were realised as she found out that she was the sole survivor of the unit. That even Harry who saved her life during the attack was now missing, presumed dead. Her grief however was short as she wanted nothing more than to continue hunting the Wolfen.

Both Phoebe and Paige had no problem feeling the hate that drove her. The Wolfen had done something highly traumatic to her long ago, and she only wanted to return to Chicago, where she could join another established team and carry on the hunt.

As they talked, it rapidly became apparent that Susie did not trust them as she released little information about what the Hunters were and what they did. She did tell them her name and admitted to being present in the building, but that was the limit to what she was prepared to say. Finally Prue decided that they had to put all their cards on the table.

Looking straight at Susie, Prue stated "Susie, we know you are a hunter, you hunt Wolfen and I respect you for that. But we need your help as we are also after them. We have killed four of them so far but they came very close to killing all of us. We need your help". When Prue mentioned that they had killed some of the Wolfen, Susie's manner changed and she started to look more carefully at the people who sat in front of her.

"Who are you?" she asked, looking at Prue. "We four are witches, my name is Prue, this is Piper, Phoebe and Paige" replied Prue as she indicated herself, and her sisters. She continued, introducing Leo, Cole and Darryl.

After a long pause, Susie looked at the four sisters, and then for the first time, at the damage to the Manor that was still visible from the Wolfen's attack, she said "We may have heard of you, you are called the Charmed Ones, aren't you ?". "Yes" replied Prue.

To put the hunter at ease and to gain her trust, Prue then covered the last weeks events, how they had learned of the Wolfen, the fight in the park and the Wolfen's retaliation. Their visit to the hunters base and what had happened there, which led to how they had rescued Susie from the hospital and healed her. "Anything you can tell us about the Wolfen and in particular the potion you use, would be greatly appreciated" finished Prue.

"In particular the potion, as we haven't been able to make it, assuming we have the correct ingredients" said Piper. Susie while clearly impressed, still refused to tell them much about the hunters, however the Wolfsbane potion was another story. As the Charmed Ones were the only group who could now deal with the Wolfen, Susie could see why they needed the it.

First however, she would need to contact another hunter group. Only after she had rung a backup contact number to report what had happened to her unit and how she had survived, did she start to trust those around her. Hanging up, she announced that she would be picked up early the next morning, but she had the rest of the day to help them.

Now that Susie had agreed to show Piper and Phoebe how to make the Wolfsbane potion, both Prue and Paige realised that finally they had a chance to catch up with their working lives. Prue still had just enough time if she hurried, to get to her latest photo shoot, involving an school athletic competition. While Paige headed for work, late but at least on her way.

Piper and Phoebe took Susie into the kitchen to gather the materials needed for the Wolfsbane potion. The complex recipe that Susie had memorised, revealed that the potion had a large number of exotic ingredients, most but not all had been on the CSI's list. The big difference was how they were mixed. Two potions were made and only mixed just before use.

Piper summed it up, "Of course, its a binary potion, but doesn't that make it hard to use".

"Yes" replied Susie, "but we have found ways around it. Glass tubes with thin walls hold one mixture and are sealed inside a jar filled with the other mixture. Throw the bottle, it breaks as do the tubes and the reaction mixes the two both potions. The potion degrades fairly quickly after mixing so this way it keeps longer. Even so, the Wolfsbane potion only lasts a week when refrigerated and a lot less at room temperature.

Thanks to the sisters considerable ingredient collection and the CSI's analysis, they had all the materials they needed. A small sample potion was quickly made, and tested by mixing very small amounts to test for an energetic reaction.

Susie after watching both Piper and Phoebe work, commented "I am impressed, thats a lot faster than either Alex or I could make the potion and thats a very good response for a first time". Phoebe smiled and replied "We have had a lot of practice over the last few years making potions, although this is one of the more difficult".

With a successful Wolfsbane potion now possible, Piper left with Leo to ready P3 for the rest of the week. Phoebe settled down with Susie for some quiet if sometimes intense bonding as Susie began to relax and tell more about the rather violent life of being a hunter. Something Phoebe could empathise with very easily given some of the demon attacks both her and her sisters had endured.

Later Phoebe and Prue would add the recipe and the method to the Book of Shadows along with everything else they had found out about the Wolfen.

Later in the afternoon Piper, Paige and Prue returned. Phoebe joined Piper in the kitchen while Prue, Cole and Paige attempted to scry for the Wolfen's presence. Even with Cole's knowledge and Paige's expertise, they had no luck. Where ever they were, the Wolfen could not be located.

As a familiar summons from the Elders came, Leo had just enough time to tell Piper before orbing up there.

In the meantime, Piper with Susie's and Phoebe's help, set about preparing a special sisters dinner to celebrate Paige's first year with the family. It was unfortunate that Matt could not attend as he too had a family problem to deal with. In this case, at least he was being honest as he visited his parents for the first time in three months to tell them about Prue.

Protecting the Rising Moon Coven (late thursday evening).

As the sisters, Cole and Susie gathered in the dining room for Dinner, Piper could not help but grouch about Leo's absence. "He orbed out several hours ago, apparently the Elders wanted him for something serious. I haven't heard from him since then".

Phoebe's comment "Something to do with the Wolfen, maybe ?", made a sleepy Susie sit up and take notice. "No idea" replied Piper, "although if he doesn't return soon, his dinner is going to be cold". "There's the microwave" pointed out Paige however Piper just looked at his place setting and added "There's also the fridge".

Susie couldn't help herself as she jumped out of her seat when Leo orbed in with a serious look on his face. "We have another problem, one that only you can deal with" he said. "OK, can it wait until we have had something to eat, at least so it doesn't get cold" said Piper.

"A coven near here has been attacked and two witches killed, the Elders want you to rescue the rest before any more are lost".

"What about the Wolfen?" asked Susie.

"Until we have learned more about them, like where they are or will be, there is not much we can do" pointed out Leo.

Phoebe added "Still this is something of a coincidence, this happening just as the Wolfen arrived, they could be related". Cole agreed "I have been thinking about this, I think one of the demonic factions that are seeking to challenge the Source, brought or invited the Wolfen here as part of a plot against him. If he can't or doesn't deal with them, then he will lose many of his allies. It would also explain the disappearances from this morning".

Leo continued "I agreed but the Coven needs your protection, demons will be looking for the rest of the coven and apparently they have human allies in the form of a street gang".

"Why are demons suddenly attacking this coven, they must know we would come to their aid?" asked Prue.

"This coven is more powerful than most and they decided to take a more active role by attacking some demons who were part of the local crime syndicate. They vanquished four demons using potions and fought off several others." replied Leo.

"Ok, so we need to locate and bring the survivors here" Prue stated, "Leo, do you know where we can find them?". "No, after two of their members were killed, the rest hid, as I am not their Whitelighter, I can't find them".

"Ok, what about their Whitelighters, can't they find them" demanded Phoebe.

With an embarrassed look on his face, Leo had to admit "They broke with the two Whitelighters who were assigned to them. Apparently because the Whitelighters tried to stop them taking such an active role against the demons, rightly so given what has happened".

As Prue looked around the Dining room, at Piper's face and the meal she had put so much effort into, she made a choice. "Right, dinner first, we won't be any good if we end up doing magic on an empty stomach, and it will give us a chance to plan our strategy. Yes Leo, I know, the coven needs our help. But we have had one hell of a week, we need some time together".

As the rest of the group sat down, even Leo could see that everyone agreed with Prue. And after he joined them, he had to agree that after all that had happened recently, the deaths and near tragedies, the simple task of eating together, also brought them all together. Starting with a toast to Paige, they settled in to enjoy a first class meal.

As they ate, Leo filled them in on what he did know. The Coven had eleven members, most with powers although none powerful enough to threaten most demons. Like most covens, their power was when they combined together. Spells and potions made by the whole coven were its primary weapons, one they had used to attack base level demons who inhabited their neighborhood.

However such aggression had brought retaliation from more powerful demons who wanted revenge for those the coven had vanquished. As a result, two of the coven had been killed and the rest were now being hunted. That was the limit to Leo's knowledge as the coven had severed it relationship with their Whitelighters.

Since the coven had been inspired by the Charmed Ones successes, all the sisters felt a responsibility for what had happened although both Prue and Piper made it plain that they had enough problems without others adding to them.

Over dessert, they discussed possible ways to locate the remaining coven members, with only two methods, at least for the moment, looking promising enough to work. As Susie and Cole gathered the last of the dishes before cleaning up, Cole began to ask her about what had happened on the night her unit had been massacred. Both his demonic and lawyer side thought that there were several things about her story that did not add up.

That left Phoebe's premonition power as the one that was most likely to find the witches however she would need something of their's to focus on. As it was now late and over Leo's protests, Prue decided that everyone should get an early night, to be followed by a very early morning. This would allow them to start the search fresh and hopefully when any demonic activity was unlikely.

All went to bed, with Susie sleeping on the spare bed in Paige's room. Paige did not get a good night's sleep as she was woken several times by Susie's nightmares. This and the impressions she got from Susie's mind of a desperate struggle and of overwhelming loss that involved the Wolfen, proved very difficult to block out. Only when Phoebe entered Paige's room to sit beside Susie and reach out to comfort her, did either of them get any sleep. This she and Phoebe would tell the others the next morning, that the quiet woman they had rescued, had a highly traumatic past and one that the Wolfen were responsible for.

Both Piper and Prue slept well, however as Susie's nightmares spread to those sensitive to these things, an unhappy Leo orbed out to try and see what he could find out about locating the coven witches. Cole, woken by Phoebe leaving their bed to check on Susie, only fell asleep after several unpleasant possibilities crowded his mind as the holes in Susie's story occurred to him.