AN: Okay, we're about near the end. After this I will focus on my new fic "The Running Back" Generic title I know. Some of you may have already read the first chapter, if you haven't and you like the idea of Rachel on the football team then check it out. Other than that, hope you enjoy.

Quinn opened her spell book to the page that held the love spell she had cast. She handed it Shelby who then looked it over. Only after a second at glancing at the pages, her face turned grim. She slowly shook her head. "What?" Quinn asked, leaning forward in her seat. "What is it? What's wrong? You can fix it can't you?"

"No," Shelby answered solemnly. "I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?"

"I mean I can't," Shelby repeated. "This is a very powerful spell."

"But there has to be something that you can-"

"Quinn," Shelby interrupted, raising her voice slightly but not enough to startle Beth. Quinn closed her mouth, fully aware of what the woman in front of her was capable of. "You're familiar with fairy tales, right?" she asked, continuing on without waiting for Quinn's response. "And one thing that all fairy tales teach you is that love is the most powerful of all magic. There is nothing stronger than it."

"I don't understand." Quinn was on the verge of tears. "What are you trying to tell me? If love is so strong, shouldn't I be able to use it to break this spell."

"Normally yes, but this spell creates love and that makes things far more complicated." She closed the spell book and handed it back to Quinn with an apologetic expression on her face. "I'm sorry, but there's nothing that I can do. Just try to be good Quinn." She reached over to give Quinn's shoulder a comforting squeeze but Quinn shook her hand off.

"No." Quinn wasn't ready to give up. "There has to be something. Please Shelby, please."

"Quinn…"

"It's Rachel!" Quinn finally told her. "It's Rachel," she repeated. In an instant, she saw a fire in Shelby's eyes, literally. It might have just been in Quinn's mind, but from what she saw it was as though her eyes had just burst into flames. Her heart stopped, and she right then and there that she was going to die, but as long as Rachel would be okay it was a sacrifice that Quinn was willing to make.

"Rachel?!" Shelby didn't really want an answer. She got up from her seat and although she wasn't especially tall, Shelby seemed to tower over Quinn. Images flashed through Quinn's mind, hundreds upon hundreds of ways that Shelby could end her life. At the moment she wished that she had spent some time learning protective charms, but she guessed that even those wouldn't keep her safe for long. She began to cry. She closed her eyes to fight back her tears and to ready herself for what was to come. And then she heard Beth squeal.

Her eyes snapped open and flew over to her daughter. Shelby was looking at her too. She didn't say a word, but she glanced at Quinn and then exited the living room. Quinn exhaled deeply and then took in a few deep breaths. She went down to the floor and scooted over towards Beth. "Thanks Bethy, I think you just saved mommy." Beth looked up at her for a second and then a second later she was back to playing with her bear. Quinn took a moment to see if Shelby was coming back. She wasn't, so Quinn decided to take some time to watch her daughter. Just looking at her playing, she knew how Shelby must have felt.

The room was silent save for the baby sounds that Beth made. Quinn stayed on the floor, taking what joy she could at seeing her baby girl. It helped her forget, if only temporarily, her current problems. Her reprieve didn't last long though and Quinn soon heard Shelby return to the living room. She looked up her cautiously. Shelby still appeared upset, but at she didn't a murderous glint in her eye. Quinn got up from the floor and retook her seat on the couch.

"So you cast this spell on Rachel?" Shelby asked her, her tone flat. Quinn simply nodded. "And I take it that you've coming looking for me because there have been unwanted side-effects?" Again, Quinn nodded. "Has she been tending to your every whim? Does it seem like her only wish is to make you happy?" Quinn was dumbstruck. Rachel's behavior was exactly as Shelby had described it. Her mouth fell agape, which was enough answer for Shelby. "I see."

"What?" Quinn managed to squeak out. "What is it?"

"Rachel loved you before you used the spell."

"I-I know that," Quinn told her. The truth serum had confirmed as much. "But what does that-" Her mind played back the events of the past few days and then it hit her. Her heart fell and she felt sick. "Wait, wait, is that why… are you telling me that…" Her mind was reeling. She couldn't believe it. It couldn't be true. It couldn't, but it was.

"The spell makes love, Quinn, but it can't make something that's already there."

"And there's nothing you can do?" Quinn tried once more.

"Like I said, there's nothing stronger than love."

Everything grew quiet. Quinn pondered everything she that she had learned. Love was supposed to be stronger than anything. And normally, it would be true love's kiss that would break the spell. But she and Rachel had kissed many times, countless times. Nothing had changed, not once. And now that she better understood how the spell worked, Quinn couldn't figure out how true love's kiss was supposed to work for her.

"So she's going to be stuck like this?" She knew that she wouldn't like the answer, but she had to know if there was even the smallest glimmer of hope that everything would be okay. Shelby looked her straight in the eye. It was as though she were gazing deep into her soul right down to where all the guilt and pain that she was enduring was stored. Her gaze fell and she shook her head.

"I don't know," she admitted grimly, although it sounded more like a yes. "There aren't that many of us nowadays. I suppose that there might be someone out there that knows how to break this spell, but if there is I wouldn't know."

"Us?"

"People who can do magic," Shelby explained. "It's a gift, or a curse, depending on how you look at it. Magic is a great thing, but as you've learned it can be dangerous even if it doesn't appear to be." Quinn could do nothing but agree. She nodded her head as she fought back tears. So much for being a good witch. Like everything else in her life, Quinn had gone and messed this up as well.

"Is that why you gave up the book?" Quinn asked.

"No." Shelby's answer surprised her. Quinn glanced at her with confused eyes. "I've learned everything I could from this spell book," Shelby explained. "Traditionally, I'd pass it on to an apprentice or a child and teach them what I know, but I've never taken on an apprentice and as far as a child goes well…" She didn't need to elaborate further. "Had I known that you were capable of magic, I may have kept it."

"Why? Are you saying that…"

"Yes, Beth here might grow up to be a witch." Quinn turned to her child. Such innocence and yet she might have also held such great power. "It's not a sure thing of course. The possibility is a lot higher if both parents can do magic, but even then it's not a sure thing." She paused then and started to think. She was quiet and so was Quinn. Quinn waited anxiously, still hoping that Shelby would remember something. She shifted in her seat and looked back at Beth, sighing. "Take care of her," Shelby suddenly said. Quinn's eyes jolted to her. "Take care of Rachel," was her request. "I might not have been there for her, but I'm still her mother. Can you just make sure that she's safe and happy?"

"That's all I've ever wanted to do."

And with that the two of them parted ways. Quinn said goodbye to Beth and then went home. She felt broken. She wanted someone to hold her. She wanted Rachel to hold her. Being in Rachel's arms felt warm and good and it made her happy. She wanted that feeling again, but didn't really think that she deserved it. She curled up into a ball on her bed and willed herself to not cry.

But she did. A stream of tears poured from her eyes. Quinn sobbed and wailed, fully grateful that her mother wasn't home yet. But even if she was that probably wouldn't have stopped Quinn from crying. Quinn stayed there for a long time, maybe hours or longer. It was hard to keep track. By the end of it all, her pillow was soaking through. Her body was still shaking and so she slowly got herself into a sitting position. She wrapped her arms around herself as the last tears fell from her eyes.

And then she heard a gasp from her bedroom door. She looked up to find Rachel. She had a hand over her mouth and worried expression on her face. She raced over to Quinn and hugged her tightly. "Oh, Quinn. What's wrong?" She squeezed her and began rubbing comforting circles on her back. It felt nice but Quinn just started crying once more. "Shh, it's okay Quinn. I'm here, everything's okay," she told her again and again.

Quinn knew otherwise though, and she told Rachel just that. "It's not. Nothing's okay."

"It is, it is," Rachel insisted.

"No, please-"

"Quinn, please-"

"No," Quinn said the word with such finality that she was able to get Rachel to stop her fussing if only briefly. Rachel looked apprehensive but she didn't appear to have any intention of arguing. She hugged Quinn once more before pulling back and allowing her to explain. Quinn took a deep breath. She took hold of Rachel's hands. They were soft and warm, and gave Quinn the courage to say what she needed to. "You know I love you right?" Rachel nodded slowly and sincerely. "And I know you love me back, but for the longest time I didn't think you did. I didn't think that you could ever feel the same way about me. And I was so afraid that I could never have you."

"Quinn, I-"

"Rachel, don't. Please, just let me talk." Rachel nodded and allowed her to continue. "I wanted you to love me so much that I did something stupid." Rachel's brows furrowed in confusion. "I found this spell book in this bookstore that I go to. I didn't think that there was any harm in it; it was just fun and games. That was all it was supposed to be, but It was real. If it was real I wouldn't have done it, I swear."

"Quinn what are you talking about?"

"I cast a love spell on you."

"Oh Quinn, you're being silly. There's no such thing. You shouldn't feel bad about that. It wasn't real."

"No, but it was," Quinn cried. "It was real. I can prove it to you." Without waiting for Rachel to respond, Quinn darted out of the room and grabbed a water bottle from the kitchen. She went back upstairs and found a place to set it. "Watch the bottle," she instructed, her eyes pleading with Rachel. Rachel sighed and nodded her head. Quinn closed her eyes and focused her power. It wasn't too difficult the first time, so she knew that she'd be able to perform the spell a second time.

She concentrated, imagining the bottle freezing in her mind. Then she heard Rachel intake a harsh gasp of air. Her eyes opened. The bottle was frozen. Rachel was shocked. Brown eyes looked up at her. There was something familiar in them. Fear, Quinn initially thought. She inched over to try to calm her but Rachel backed away, muttering, "No, you wouldn't." No, it wasn't fear in her eyes. It was hurt. "You wouldn't do this to me."

"Rachel, wait."

"You wouldn't," Rachel repeated, getting up from the bed and heading out towards the door. "You said you loved me."

"Rachel, please." Quinn tried to stop her, but Rachel outmaneuvered her. She was able to slip by but Quinn gave chase. Rachel darted down the stairs and out the front door. Quinn ran after as fast as she could, calling out Rachel's name at the top of her lungs. But Rachel kept running. She just kept going. "Rachel, please! I'm sorry." They went on for a couple of blocks but eventually Rachel gave out. She fell to her knees and cried. Quinn came up to her and hugged her from behind, kneeling down on the sidewalk. "I'm sorry Rachel. I didn't mean for this to happen. I love you, okay? I really do love you."

"I love you too, Quinn."