Q/A (June 15, 2013): BeneathYouICrunch - Her firepower is growing.

Blacksword Zero - Some possibilities for further growth of her firepower I may keep in mind.

Chapter 30: That Old Black Magic

November 24, 1997 – Monday

Bucklands Auction House / Halliwell Manor

Prue hurried down the hallway of the auction house on her way to the room where 'What's It Worth?' was being recorded live. She had been chosen as the lucky appraiser to be on live television for the show. The only problem was Phoebe had decided to call her just before the recording.

"Phoebe, we are televising this live. Can't it wait?" Prue pleaded, more than a little stressed with the situation.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe ignored her plea as she felt what she was watching out the window was more important. "Prue, Dan's truck just pulled up outside," she explained in all seriousness. From the window she watched as Piper and Dan made out next to it.

"Dan's truck?" Prue echoed, not finding anything important about that. "So?" she pressed.

"So, Piper is with him and they're kissing. And I'm not talking about 'thanks for lunch' peck on the cheek kinda kiss. They mean business," Phoebe insisted. She turned away abruptly and let the curtain fall between her view as the kiss began to heat up. She didn't feel much like watching it at the moment.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Prue smiled slightly at Phoebe's overreaction. "Okay, what is the problem? They like each other. This is a good thing." Prue pointed out.

On the other end, Phoebe sighed in reluctant agreement. "No, I know, I'm just worried that she's moving too fast. Like she's too in a hurry to get involved with someone else," Phoebe admitted.

"Look, Piper's a big girl and really, I mean, it's none of our business. Right?" Prue prompted as she stopped at one of the tables with auction items on them. "Right?" she repeated when Phoebe didn't immediately agree.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe peeked back out the window. "Isn't it sorta our business? After all you made Angel your business after he and Buffy…"

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Prue shook her head slightly despite Phoebe being unable to see her. "Okay, Phoebe, Piper cannot just sit around for the rest of her life waiting for Leo. She's trying to move on," she explained gently. Her eyes caught sight of a wand on the auction table and she picked it up curiously for a better look. "Besides, Dan's a great guym" she added. "And Angel, well that's another story entirely, Phoebe, and you know it. Angel's a vampire. Do you really expect me to believe that you and Piper don't have some reservations."

"Of course I have reservations, Prue. Who wouldn't. But as long as Angel makes Buffy happy, who am I to stand in their way," Phoebe admitted.

"Okay, we're on in five, Ms. Halliwell." The director of the show interrupted Prue's conversation.

Prue appeared a little panicked. "Uh, gotta go, okay, bye." She hung up hastily to get in position, her gaze still traveling over the wand.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe groaned at being cut off and tossed the phone onto the couch. A swirl of orbs appeared before her and deposited Leo in front of her. She jumped slightly. "Whoa!" she exclaimed and then glared at Leo. "Leo, whatever happened to knocking?" she scolded.

"I'm sorry, Phoebe, but there's no time," he apologized. "Where's Buffy, Prue and Piper? We have to talk," Leo explained.

Phoebe took the moment to glance out the window to find Dan and Piper coming up the stairs. "Uh, you know, now's not really a good time. Okay, I know, how about you orb back in say an hour," she suggested, pushing Leo away from the door. "Okay, that would be great. Bye bye."

"I can't. The worst thing imaginable just happened." Leo argued. The conversation ended when bright flames filled the room. A second later Buffy appeared. "What the heck," he shouted in obvious shock.

"What?" Buffy wondered looking at Leo in confusion.

"How did you do that, it's a demonic power," Leo told the youngest Halliwell.

"Oh the flame teleport thing," Buffy said with a shrug. "Not sure. I just started doing it about a week ago. Must be an extension of the fire powers given to me by the Slayer side of me."

Before Leo could say anymore on Buffy being able to flame the front door opened and Piper and Dan walked in amidst laughter. Piper froze when she saw Leo, Buffy and Phoebe sighed as Leo's face fell. He attempted to cover it up by turning his attention to Phoebe and Buffy but the damage had already been done.

Piper drew Leo away from Dan and her sister. Buffy followed them into another room intending to get what she had come home for. "It's not that it isn't great to see you, Leo, because it is, but you can't just orb in whenever it's convenient," Piper berated as calmly as she could.

"It's never been a problem before," Leo pointed out stiffly.

"Yeah, well, things have changed," Piper returned.

Leo's gaze settled invariably on Dan. "I can see that," he agreed with a not-so-subtle nod in Dan's direction.

"Leo…" Piper sighed.

"Sorry, wasn't fair," Leo interrupted before changing the subject to the reason he was here to begin with. "Where's Prue?" he asked.

"At work," Piper answered simply. She glanced at Buffy. "Which reminds me, why aren't you in school?"

Leo rolled his eyes as he should have expected such a short answer. "Fine," he muttered under his breath.

"I forgot a book," Buffy admitted. "So I flamed home to get it." She saw the look on Piper's face and sighed. "I made sure no one was looking, Piper."

"Anyways we'll have to start without her and your friend, Dan, has to leave now," Leo said bringing the conversation back on the reason he came.

Piper narrowed her eyes at his attitude. "Oh, really? Why?" she demanded.

"Because you, Buffy and your sisters have a very big problem. A magical problem," he explained cryptically. "Look, this isn't personal. This is business."

Piper smiled at him humorlessly. "What else is new?"

"Looks like I'm going to be missing last period then," Buffy said with a sigh.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Dan, who was watching Piper and Leo through narrowed eyes, addressed Phoebe. "You know, that handyman guy sure does hang around here a lot," he remarked suspiciously.

"It's an old house," Phoebe snapped at him. Lots of things need fixing."

Dan chanced a glance over his shoulder at them. "Then why does Piper look so upset?" he questioned.

"Because there are some things he can't fix the way she wants it," Phoebe replied ambiguously.

Dan looked down at his watch and turned away from Piper and Leo. "You know, I'm late for a job. If you could just have her call me?" he suggested, walking toward the door.

Phoebe hastily ran after him. "Oh-Oh. Oops…" she stopped him and wiped lipstick off his face. "Lipstick," she explained.

"Thanks," he appreciated, opening the door. Dan paused before leaving. "Are Piper and Leo…?"

"You're late," Phoebe reminded him.

Piper came rushing into the foyer. "Dan, wait!" she called after him but Phoebe had already shut the door. She sighed and threw her hands in the air. "Well, I wouldn't know where to begin anyway," she admitted to herself.

Phoebe attempted to change the subject away from bad relationships. "Everything okay, sweetie?" she asked gently.

"Oh no," Piper stated. She sent a glare behind her at Leo as he and Buffy came in the room.

Leo sighed but otherwise ignored the cold treatment. "Come on. We gotta get going," he insisted.

Phoebe tilted her head in surprise. "Going? Where are we going?" she wondered.

"I'll explain on the way," Leo promised.

Piper shook her head hastily. "No, Leo, you'll explain now. We're not going anywhere," she argued, crossing her arms across her chest for emphasis.

"Two hundred years ago, a good witch turned evil and started using her craft against evil. Fortunately, she was tricked into a cave and entombed, but unfortunately this morning she escaped," Leo explained a little reluctantly.

"Tuatha?" Buffy repeated with a smirk. "Who wouldn't go bad with a name like that?" she joked.

Piper glanced at Buffy impatiently before fixing Leo with her cold gaze. "So you want us to find her and vanquish her," she guessed. "What's the big deal?" she prompted.

"The big deal is you can't vanquish her. No witch can. She kills good witches," Leo answered.

"Leo, if we can't defeat her, than who can?" Piper questioned.

"You can't. There's only one person who can. He's known as the Chosen One," Leo explained.

"The Chosen One?" Buffy asked. "The Chosen One is always a girl. I should know. Slayers are referred to as the Chose One."

"Actually there is more than one kind of Chosen One," Leo corrected.

"So is he a witch?" Phoebe asked.

Leo shook his head slightly. "No, he's a normal person. Other than the fact that he was born to use Tuatha's wand against her."

"So what do you want from us? Why don't you just go get him?" Piper pressed.

"I need you to protect him from Tuatha until the wand comes to him. It shouldn't be long," Leo assured them. "Lore has it that once the witch is free, the wand will find him, but if she finds it first…" he trailed off pointedly.

"She'll kill him," Buffy finished grimly.

Leo nodded. "And then she'll come after you too," he added.

Bucklands Auction House

Prue was in the middle of her televised appraisal of the wand she had been looking at just before going on TV. The camera was currently zoomed in on the wand but as Prue spoke, it zoomed out to see her and her elder client clearly.

"… the design of inlaid garnets with pewter and ebony is distinctly eighteenth century European," Prue explained.

The elder woman looked surprised at the information. "Eighteenth century? I had no idea it was that old," she admitted.

Prue smiled and pointed at another interesting feature on the wand. "The facet cut amber headpiece surrounded by the symbolic snakes suggested that it was an ornamental staff or a ritual wand."

"And I bought it at a flea market for fifteen dollars," the client laughed.

"Betty, you'll be very pleased to hear that at auction you could easily get five thousand dollars," Prue announced while gently setting the wand down on the table in front of her.

Betty's eyes widened. "Good lord," she exclaimed.

One of the onlookers of the recording, suddenly cut in between Prue and Betty. "Of course, an item is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it," he pointed out, looking into the camera. He then turned to face a surprised Prue. "Isn't that right?" he pressed.

Prue glanced at the director to find him nodding for her to go along with the guy. She just looked at the third party. "I'm sorry, who are you?" she demanded.

He pulled a business card out of his pocket and allowed for the camera to get a good look at it. "Jack Sheridan from Sheridan Internet Auctions. If you own it, I can sell it," he answered before giving the card to Betty.

"Oh, okay, how nice for you, but this is my appraisal," Prue replied, her voice carefully controlled.

Jack nodded in agreement. "Oh and it's a very impressive one too," he complimented, "but can you guarantee this nice lady that someone will actually pay five thousand dollars for this at auction?" Jack questioned, moving to stand behind Betty.

Prue frowned slightly. "Well, there are no guarantees but…"

"Thirty seconds," the director whispered, interrupting Prue's train of thought.

"Betty, I'm willing to give you one thousand dollars cash today," Jack offered.

"Yeah, well, then you'd be robbing her of four thousand dollars," Prue pointed out stiffly.

Jack smirked. "But you said yourself that you can't guarantee that," he countered. His smile widened as Prue realized she was caught in a trap.

"Well, I suppose you just have a thousand dollars cash in your pocket," Prue retorted in disbelief.

"Would you like to find out yourself?" Jack allowed, an underlying insinuation clear in his voice.

Prue didn't bat an eye. "No need. I can tell there's not much there just by looking," she replied with a pointed glance down.

Jack laughed and there was more than one snicker that erupted around the set. "Betty, I can have one thousand dollars cash for you this afternoon. What do you say?" he asked after recovering the floor.

Betty slapped a hand against the table. "I say sold," she agreed, bending down to write her name and address on a piece of paper. Prue just rolled her eyes in frustration. "Here's my address and I'll see you there this afternoon," Betty suggested while passing him the paper.

"It's a deal," Jack promised as Betty snatched up her wand and left.

"Cut! That's a wrap," the director announced with a satisfied clap of his hands. "Excellent folks. Very entertaining," he admitted with a nod to Prue.

"Yeah, for you," Prue sulked before turning to face Sheridan with as much dignity as she could muster.

Jack was the first to speak. "Look, forgive me. I just wanted to be on the same stage as Prue Halliwell," Jack explained hopefully.

Prue narrowed her eyes dangerously. "Why?" she demanded shortly.

"Because it gives my start-up company instant credibility, that's why," Jack answered. He paused, regarding her with interest as Prue turned to leave without a word. "You know, if the other specialists at Bucklands have your expertise and talents…" he trailed off with another look over her that made her roll her eyes. "… I might reconsider their standing job offer. I turned them down last year," Jack added.

"You wouldn't like it here, Mr. Sheridan. We don't lie or cheat," Prue snapped.

Jack's smile widened again. "But I don't lie," he assured her before checking his watch. "You know what, I better get to the bank. I have a wand to buy," he stated, turning to leave.

"Wanna bet?" Prue whispered under her breath. She smirked and flicked a finger toward her and Betty's address flew out of Jack's pocket to land in her hand. She closed her hand around it and gave a satisfied nod to herself.

Gateway High School

Piper, Phoebe, Buffy, and Leo walked down the sidewalk that led to the front of the high school. "Why does it not surprise me that he goes to school with me," Buffy remarked.

"I don't know, an evil witch that gets her jolly's killing good witches? Maybe we should have waited for Prue to get home…" Piper admitted.

"There's no time," Leo shot down the idea before the words had even left Piper's mouth.

"I could try flaming her here," Buffy offered looking at Piper.

Piper shook her head, instantly against the idea of Buffy going to get Prue. "The first time you tried taking passengers you missed the Manor by about a mile and the second time you wound up in the girl's locker room with Giles instead of the library. Until you have a better hang on it, it's better you not try with passengers again for a while."

"Okay, please tell me we're here because the Chosen One is a big burly football coach," Phoebe pleaded while looking over the crowd of teenagers doubtfully.

"And please tell me its not Willow and Xander," Buffy added.

"No, to both," Leo answered, "but he is the seventh son of the seventh son," he offered. "We've been watching him since he was a young boy."

Piper turned her attention to the crowd of students. "Okay, so how old is he now?" Piper prompted.

Leo pointed to the steps where a teenager was just coming out of the building. "See, over there," he stated and Piper, Phoebe and Buffy all followed his point.

"He's a high school student?" Piper realized in disbelief.

As they watched, a group of students came up behind the Chosen One and pushed him around. Phoebe frowned sympathetically. "Oh and he's a nerd," she sighed.

"Hey, I didn't choose him. They did. If he can help save your lives, that's all I care about," Leo berated.

Buffy watched him for a long moment and then her eyes went wide. "I know him," she said as they all looked at her. "Well I got a class with him. His name's Kyle something or other."

"You guys need to get him to come with you," Leo interrupted impatiently.

Piper shook her head. "Leo, he's a teenager. How can we let him go up against Tuatha? She'll destroy him," she argued.

Buffy spun on her middle cousin. "Never underestimate a teenager, Piper. Remember I'm a teenager and can do things no normal teenager can do."

"Besides if he finds the wand and learns how to use it. Also, she knows he's the Chosen One. If we don't help him, she'll destroy him anyway," Leo retorted.

"Doesn't sound like we have much of a choice," Phoebe pointed out mildly. They watched as Kyle demonstrated a few magic tricks to a girl, who smiled and offered a few compliments.

Phoebe shrugged. "If we can't get her to leave then we'll just have to bring her with us," she decided, "Come on," Phoebe added while waving for her sisters to follow.

"This is wrong. He should be battling acne at his age, not evil witches," Piper grumbled with a sigh in her voice. She then looked at her cousin. "While we've accepted it, Buffy, that your Charmed and have a stake in all of what we are. You deserve a life away from it, you shouldn't have had to deal with it."

"I know, Piper," Buffy admitted. "But my point is. You and Phoebe are the Charmed Ones. To others who don't know. Do you look any different? Look me, I'm the Charmed Slayer. Do I look look any different from any other teenage girl? Don't judge him simply because he's my age."

Piper looked at Buffy knowing her cousin was right. She looked back at Kyle. "So his first name is Kyle?" she inquired, glancing over her shoulder at Leo.

Leo nodded. "Yes. Kyle Gwydien," he answered.

"Does he know?" Buffy questioned.

"No," Leo admitted sheepishly.

Piper rolled her eyes as if she should have expected no help from Leo and his superiors. "Any ideas on how we're supposed to get him to come with us?"

"I have an idea," Phoebe announced, "He likes magic, right? So let's show him ours," she suggested.

Piper, Phoebe, and Buffy ran along the sidewalk behind where Kyle was walking.

"Hey, Kyle," Buffy called after him.

Kyle tilted his head to the side trying to place her. "Buffy, right?" he asked. "We're in sixth period together aren't we?"

"That's me," Buffy admitted. "These are my cousins Piper and Phoebe. We have something we need to discuss with you."

"I think you might have me confused with someone else," Kyle stated.

Phoebe and Piper followed Kyle. "Nope, you're the one," Piper insisted.

"The Chosen One," Phoebe elaborated.

"That was real subtle, Pheebs." Buffy said.

"You heard what Leo said, clocks are ticking," Phoebe called over her shoulder before she faced Kyle. "Hey, Kyle, do you believe in magic? Real magic?" she inquired curiously.

Kyle stared at them as if they were crazy. "I gotta go," he decided, pushing past them.

Buffy looked around making sure no one was looking their way and then she was engulfed in bright flames. She reappeared the same way right in front of Kyle.

Kyle jumped away from Buffy. "How'd you do that?" he demanded.

"Magic. Wanna know more?" Phoebe wondered.

Betty's House

Betty carefully went about making tea for her guest that would arrive soon and placed the tea set on the table in the conservatory. The wand sat just on the other side of the table. While Betty prepared for Jack's arrival, a gentle breeze blew through her open window and Tuatha's snake faded in on the carpet. Betty had just sat down on her couch when she noticed the large boa on her floor. She jumped up in panic. "Oh! Oh! Help me! Somebody!" she screamed. Betty snatched up the wand, prepared to hit the snake with it if she had to. "Help me!" she screeched again while backing up against the wall.

There was a golden shimmer just next to the snake and Tuatha appeared. Betty looked stunned but Tuatha didn't offer her any attention. Tuatha glanced down at her snake. "Well done," she complimented. Her eyes then landed on the wand that Betty was holding. "That's my wand," Tuatha stated, holding her hand out. The wand flew from Betty's hand and into Tuatha's. The wand began to glow as soon as Tuatha's hand closed around it.

"My god, who are you?" Betty exclaimed.

Tuatha smirked and pointed her wand at Betty. "The last thing you will ever see," she stated. Betty let out a piercing scream.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Prue was walking casually down the hallway of the complex when she heard Betty's scream. "Betty," Prue whispered, immediately picking up the pace. She used her power to throw the door open and found Tuatha using her wand against the elderly woman. Prue waved her hand at Tuatha but she wasn't quick enough as Betty was vanquished just before Tuatha was thrown through a glass door and collapsed upon a table. Her wand slipped from her grasp. Prue hastily grabbed up the wand and took off after seeing the snake.

Tuatha jumped to her feet in time to see Prue leaving with her wand. She glanced at her snake as it let out a long hiss. "No, it's alright. We don't have to follow her," she assured, bending down and picking the snake up off the floor. "She's a good witch. She'll come back to us," Tuatha explained while wrapping the snake around her neck.

Halliwell Manor

"So you're witches?" Kyle repeated, staring across at Piper, Phoebe, Buffy, and Leo in disbelief.

"Right," Piper answered with a nod.

"And your part Slayer?" Kyle asked looking at Buffy.

"A Charmed Slayer," Buffy answered. "Because I'm also part witch."

"And you think I'm a Chosen One?" Kyle asked.

"Welcome to the club," Buffy said.

Kyle continued to look at them stunned. "And-and-and why exactly am I the Chosen One again?" he managed to stammer out the question.

"Because you're the only one who can defeat Tuatha," Leo explained.

"Leo a little tact, please." Buffy said. "Believe me it's easier to not drop it all on him at once. Trust me I know that from experience. I remember how bad I took it when I was told I was the Slayer."

Leo narrowed his eyes in frustration. "Look, I'm sorry but we don't have a lot of time here," he pointed out.

"Buffy is right. That's all the more reason not to freak Kyle out," Piper argued.

"Piper is right," Buffy agreed. "I remember when Merrick told me I was the Slayer. I blew him off. I went to cheerleading practice and everything like normal. You know what got my attention. Merrick threw a nice at my head. When I caught it, he was like only a Slayer could have done that. We don't wan to freak Kyle out, like I was."

Kyle dropped his head into his hands. "Too late," he muttered, his voice muffled by his hands. He suddenly stood up from his seat and paced around the room.

Phoebe slowly followed him after exchanging a glance with Buffy, Piper and Leo. "Look, Kyle, I know that this is a lot for you to take in and your first instinct is probably to resist it. I mean, I know that's how we felt when we first found out we were witches," Phoebe admitted soothingly. "And as Buffy just illustrated how she felt when she was the Slayer."

"Still do sometimes," Piper and Buffy added.

"But we've learned that you cannot fight your destiny. It's like fighting who you are, who you're meant to be," Phoebe insisted.

"And your destiny is to vanquish the evil witch, Tuatha," Leo stated.

Kyle was looking a bit green in the face. "I bet one of my brothers put you up to this, right? What, Sean? No, no, I bet, I bet it was Ian. Or Dillon? I'm always the butt of their jokes," he ranted, stalking off toward the front door.

"Kyle, listen," Buffy begged.

Kyle spun to look at Buffy. "No, you listen. This is a joke. I'm not a Chosen One. I'm no one. You made a mistake," he snapped.

"Kyle, wait," Leo called, hurriedly following the teenager.

Phoebe faced Piper and Buffy frantically. "What do we do? What do we do?" she demanded.

"Let me try. He needs someone who has been through exactly what he has," Buffy offered before she was engulfed in flames.

Buffy appeared amongst bright flames in front of Kyle, which effectively caused him to slide to an abrupt halt. "Listen, Kyle. I know how exactly you feel. You see I'm a Chosen One, too. That is what the Slayer is called, A Chosen One. You can walk out that door, none of us will stop you. Or you can satisfy your curiosity."

Kyle hesitated and very slowly, as if in slow motion, he slid his book bag off his shoulder and let it drop to the ground. A silent agreement to stay at least a little longer.

Before anything could be said, Prue walked through the front door. "Whoa, who are you?" she asked in surprise. The wand began to glow in her hand as it sensed Kyle was near. "It glowed…" she exclaimed, staring at the wand in confusion.

"That's the wand. It has to be. It recognizes you, Kyle," Leo insisted.

Prue spun around to face Leo with a confused look on her face. "Recognizes? What do you mean?" she questioned.

Piper narrowed her eyes at the wand in Prue's hand. "Where did you get that?" she inquired.

"From someone that I think I should tell you about in private," Prue answered,

"Somebody named Tuatha?" Phoebe asked.

Prue tilted her head to the side. "Tuatha?" she repeated.

Buffy seemed to realize that Prue didn't recognize the name. She waved her hand for Prue to forget about it. "Let Kyle hold the wand," she suggested.

Prue met everyone's gaze to make sure they were all fine with it before she held it out for Kyle. Kyle hesitated, shaking his head and refusing to even touch it.

"It's okay, Kyle," Buffy said as she wrapped an arm around him in comfort.

"It won't hurt you," Leo assured him.

Kyle frowned but reached out and took it from Prue. It immediately began to glow. "Oh!" Prue exclaimed, jerking her hand away.

"It found you, just like it's supposed to," Leo explained.

Prue still looked confused but decided the Book of Shadows was always her best bet. "Okay, time out. Attic anyone?" she suggested, already heading for the stairs. Buffy was right behind her.

Piper started to follow but paused to look back at Kyle. "Kyle, won't you go into the kitchen and help yourself to anything you want," she offered. "That is if you're staying."

"I'm staying," Kyle admitted. "I don't know for how long though."

Phoebe and Piper ran up the stairs. Leo backed after them. "I'll be right back," he promised before following up.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Leo, he's just a kid," Prue stated.

"Is that how you see me, Prue?" Buffy interjected. "I'm his age. And like him I was chosen."

Prue sighed as she looked at Buffy. She knew she had stuck her foot in it. "Buffy, you haven't seen Tuatha's power. I mean, she made a woman disappear literally," she argued against the current plan of using Kyle.

Leo rolled his eyes in frustration. "It's his destiny to defeat Tuatha, Prue," he countered. "Just as it was yours to become the Charmed Ones and Buffy's to become the Charmed Slayer."

"Then why did I get the wand?" Prue retorted.

"To make sure it got to him. It's part of the lore. If you guys were meant to defeat Tuatha, there would be a spell in either Book of Shadows and there's not," Leo insisted.

"He's right, we checked, both books," Buffy stated with a sigh in her voice.

Phoebe nodded in agreement. "Twice," she added.

"Which means we need to spend what little time we have teaching Kyle how to use the wand," Leo continued.

"Look, Leo," Prue interjected. "I know that you've never guided us down the wrong path before, but please at least let us try to defeat Tuatha. If we fail, then fine, we'll help you with Kyle."

"She'll kill you," Leo warned despite knowing it would do nothing to deter them.

"Don't bet on it," Prue returned. "Alright, we need to start by finding where Tuatha is before she finds us," she started. "Let's grab some potions downstairs and let's go," she decided, leading the way to the attic door with Phoebe with her. She paused at the doorway. "Are you two with us, Piper? Buffy?"

Piper's eyes flickered to find Leo staring at her almost pleadingly. "Yep," she assured them, hurriedly passing by Leo.

"Actually no. I think I'm needed here." Buffy replied as Prue, Piper and Phoebe looked at her in surprise. "I think this is my path. After all I've been through what he's going through. I think I'm destined to help him, one Chosen One to another."

Piper, Phoebe and Prue looked at each other and then Buffy and they nodded.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Kyle moved into the kitchen but still kept his eyes focused on the wand as he scanned over it curiously. He only looked up when the back door opened and Jenny walked in.

"Hey, it's me," Jenny announced before stopping upon seeing the unfamiliar teenager in front of her.

"Uh, hi," Kyle greeted awkwardly.

Jenny smiled at him. "Who are you?" she asked.

"Apparently, I'm the Chosen One," Kyle answered, partially joking with her while he waved his wand for her to see.

Jenny didn't immediately reply but regarded him with interest. "I haven't seen you around before. What's your name?" she inquired.

"Kyle," he replied.

"Jenny," she introduced herself, "Are you a friend of theirs?" Jenny wondered, hinting toward Prue, Piper, Phoebe and Buffy.

Kyle shook his head hastily. "No. I'm just helping them out with something… maybe. I don't know," he rambled with a shrug.

"Well, what's that?" Jenny asked, pointing at the wand.

Kyle smiled slyly. "It's magic."

Jenny looked at him disbelievingly. "I don't believe in magic," she told him, almost challenging him to prove it.

Kyle couldn't contain the smirk that crossed his face. "You're kidding. Everyone believes in magic," he argued lightly.

"Not me," Jenny insisted. In an effort to prove her wrong, Kyle put the wand on the tip of his finger and it started spinning of it's own accord. Jenny's eyes widened and she had to push her hair away from her face as the wand spun so fast that it struck up a slight breeze. "That is so cool. How are you doing that?" she demanded.

Kyle appeared just as surprised as Jenny. "I have no idea," he admitted.

Leo and Buffy walked into the kitchen at that moment to find Kyle showing his wand off to Jenny. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" Leo interrupted.

Kyle jumped and his wand stopped spinning and slipped off his finger. He had to grab at it to stop it from hitting the floor. "I-I was just…"

"Jenny, maybe you should go back home," Buffy suggested to her neighbor. "We'll see you later, okay?"

"Sure, Payson," Jenny replied. "Would you tell Piper that my Uncle Dan needs to talk to her?" she pleaded as Buffy nodded. She turned and headed for the back door. "Bye," she called over her shoulder.

"Payson?" Kyle asked when the back door had closed. .

"It's my name," Buffy answered. "Payson Patricia Halliwell" She shrugged. "It's kind of a long story. But you can call me Buffy if you like all my friends do."

"So, you still think you're not a Chosen One?" Leo asked.

Tuatha's Cave

Tuatha shifted the rubble, that had once been the wall that entombed her, around until she uncovered a large worn grimoire. "There you are," she said to herself while wiping the dust off the front cover of the book. She opened it and flipped through several pages until she found one titled 'To Disempower a Witch.' "A fresh human heart," Tuatha read, trailing off thoughtfully.

Halliwell Manor

Phoebe allowed the crystal to swing over the map until it dropped down at a certain point on the map. "Okay, we found her. Lost Caves, Mura woods," Phoebe announced. "Let's go," she ordered, leading the way to the foyer.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Kyle, Leo, and Buffy had moved back to the solarium where Buffy was resting comfortably on the couch watching Kyle. Leo stood beside Kyle, watching and critiquing. Kyle was attempting to make the wand spin on his finger again, but it kept slipping off and falling. One particular attempt sent the wand crashing into the floor with a loud clang.

"Yeah, I can't make it do it again," Kyle admitted, not even bothering to reach down and pick it back up.

Leo picked it up for Kyle and held it out for him. "You did it before," Leo reminded him.

Kyle shrugged and refused to take the wand again. "I don't know how. I mean, I was just trying to impress Jenny, that's all."

Buffy smiled. "Well that's probably how. For me and my cousins our powers are tied to our emotions. What you did came from inside you from the emotion of that moment." She swung around and stood up from the couch before joining Leo and Kyle. She took the wand from Leo and pushed it into Kyle's hand. "Pretend Jenny's still here and remember what you were feeling."

Kyle sighed and allowed the wand to rest on his finger. His face drew up in concentration and the wand balanced but didn't spin. After a few moments, it dropped and Kyle just barely managed to catch it. "See?" he snapped.

"That was better," Buffy encouraged.

"It works because you willed it to so put more into it," Leo suggested, earning a glare from Jana.

"So what? I'm supposed to will some evil witch dead? Why me? You know, I don't understand, out of all people," Kyle ranted in frustration.

Leo clapped Kyle on the shoulder. "Don't sell yourself short, Kyle. You saw what you did before. Now that was you. All you have to do is believe in yourself. Now try it again," Leo ordered.

Before Kyle could attempt it again, Prue, Piper and Phoebe walked in. "Leo…Buffy, we found her," Phoebe explained to them quickly.

"So we're gonna go pay her a little visit," Prue added.

Leo shook his head. "No, wait, don't, please," he pleaded.

"It's nothing personal, Leo. It's just business," Piper assured him, albeit rather coldly.

"Be careful." Buffy says.

The sisters looked to their cousin and nodded. "We will," they said in unison. They were heading for the door when the doorbell rang.

Prue pulled the door open. "You," she said in an accusatory voice.

"Ah, thrilled to see me, I see," Jack stated sarcastically. His eyes scanned over the front of the house, ignoring the looks Piper and Phoebe were exchanging in regards to him. "You know, this is a really nice house, Prue. Bucklands obviously pays better than I thought," he complimented.

Prue crossed her arms and stepped in front of her sisters. "What do you want and how did you find me?" she demanded.

"I followed your scent…" Jack started. Prue rolled her eyes and glanced behind her at her Piper, Phoebe, both of whom had an unimpressed look on their faces. "… That musk. The Cartier, right?" he guessed. "Now that is a classy perfume though I'm hardly surprised. Can I have my wand back, please?" he asked suddenly. Prue didn't answer so he continued. "See, Betty never called and I couldn't contact her because her address mysteriously fell out of my pocket somehow. You wouldn't know anything about that would you?" Jack pressed.

Prue laughed and shifted so that she was leaning against the doorframe. "So you're blaming me for something that you lost. Isn't that a little juvenile? I mean, what's next? A shoving match under the jungle gym or war over juice cups?"

Piper rolled her eyes at the exchange. "Prue, we really need to get going," she reminded. Phoebe just looked interested in the conversation as it began to heat up.

"The wand is mine, Prue, and you know it. All's fair in love and war," Jack insisted as Leo and Buffy came up behind the sisters to see what was going on.

"Piper?" Dan called from behind Jack.

Piper forced a smile while Phoebe cast a nervous glance behind them at Leo and Buffy. "Hi, Dan," she greeted.

"Oh yeah, Piper," Buffy said as her middle cousin looked at her. "Jenny came over and said Dan was wanting to talk to you."

"Piper, wait," Leo pleaded, stopping once he saw Dan in the doorway.

Dan's smile became suddenly forced. "Is he still here?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"Never left actually," Leo gloated. His smile didn't have to be forced.

"Prue, I'm kinda in a hurry here so if I could just get my wand," Jack prompted for quicker action.

Phoebe jumped in as another smart-ass match was about to begin. "You know what, Dan, Piper will call you back later …" Phoebe shoved Dan out the front door before spinning on Jack. "… You, whoever you are, sorry, no wand, Leo…Buffy, keep working with Kyle just in case, us, out the back door, out the back door," she ordered and then pushed her sisters toward the kitchen.

Buffy noticed Leo and Dan having a glaring contest. Jack just looked stunned at being left the way he was.

"Don't you have some other house to repair?" Dan asked shortly.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "It's an old house, Dan. Requires frequent fixes. We hired Leo to be on call 24/7 in case something breaks down. That's why he's here a lot," she told him as Leo gave Dan a smug smile.

The Lost Caves

Phoebe led the way down to the cave entrance with Piper and Prue right behind her. She scanned the area. "We should be getting close. Hey, there it is!" she announced upon seeing the cave.

"Kinda creepy in there and dark," Piper commented.

"Alright, well, I will go in first since she only knows about me. You guys wait a couple of seconds and then follow," Prue ordered. She waited until her sisters nodded before she descended inside.

Prue flipped a flashlight on so she could see just as a hoard of bats flew around her and out the cave. Prue yelped in surprise at the bats' screeching. Her flashlight landed on a skeleton. She continued forward with slow wary steps. "Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay," she whispered encouragingly under her breath. She came upon where Tuatha had been entombed. She scanned over the rubble.

Tuatha stepped out behind her. "Thank you for not keeping me waiting long," she appreciated.

Prue gasped and spun around to meet the evil witch again. "How did you know that…"

"You witches are always so predictable," Tuatha answered.

Prue glared at Tuatha and waved her hand to send the other witch flying backward but nothing happened. She stared down at her hand in surprise.

Tuatha's smile widened at her. "Like I said, I cast a spell to remove your powers. Obviously, you didn't count on that, witch," she taunted.

"And obviously you didn't count on their sister witches," Phoebe retorted as she and Piper hastily joined up with Prue.

Tuatha's smile disappeared and she grabbed at a potion on her belt which she threw at their feet.

Prue dove out of the way but Piper and Phoebe were sent flying back against the cave wall to slam into the ground. "Are you guys okay?" she demanded as she ran over to them.

"Three witches," Tuatha realized, backing up a step. She pulled out a pinch of her magic dust. "I'll be ready for that next time," she warned them before throwing the dust over herself. There was a golden shimmer and she was gone.

Phoebe smiled at the display. "Cool," she stated as Piper cast her a weird look. "Well, it was," she insisted.

Halliwell Manor

Kyle held his wand out against Leo with one hand while his other balanced him out. "Both hands. You have to use both hands," Leo berated, causing Kyle to lose his concentration and fall out of position.

"But I didn't need both hands to make it spin before," Kyle pointed out in confusion.

Buffy rolled her eyes and snatched the wand from Kyle before he could even react. "And that's why you need both hands. Tuatha doesn't need physical abilities to do what I did. She can summon the wand from your hands. You need to hold on to it with both hands to make sure she doesn't get it from you."

"Also if she gets the wand from you, she becomes invincible and you will not be able to vanquish her," Leo added. He took Kyle's hand and wrapped his fingers around the wand just below his other hand. "Now, just do as I say. Pretend I'm evil, alright, you connect to your destiny by connecting to yourself. Will me away," he ordered.

Kyle held his wand out at Leo and concentrated but after several moments of nothing happening, he dropped his stance in frustration. "Look, give it up Obi Wan, alright, you got the wrong guy," he insisted.

"No, I don't. Alright, you are not just the seventh son, you are the seventh generation of Chosen Ones. It's in your blood. You just have to believe," Leo snapped through clenched teeth.

"It can take time to get control, Kyle," Buffy told him. "Prue, Piper, Phoebe and I didn't have control over our powers right away. It took practice."

"Believe in what? Myself? Forget it," Kyle retorted. He shoved the wand into Leo's hands and stalked off toward the front door.

Leo spun around to watch Kyle depart. "Innocent people are going to die, are you willing to live with that?"

Buffy paused at Leo's words as she saw Kyle spin back around. "Way to lay that on him, Leo. Guilting him into it won't work," she said.

"No, no, don't you lay that crap on me?" Kyle yelled across the room.

Leo smirked and advanced back on Kyle. "Oh, does that make you mad? Huh? Good. At least that means finally you're being a real you," he taunted.

"Screw you," Kyle cursed.

"That's right. Get pissed at me. Show me your anger. Maybe you'll figure out what you're really angry about, huh," Leo stated, tossing the wand at Kyle, who easily caught it. "You don't think you're the Chosen One. You think you're the Forgotten One. Sick and tired of it too, aren't you? Aren't you?" he mocked.

Kyle held his wand out in front of him and it began glow. Leo was suddenly sent flying through the solarium windows and out into the yard. The glow died and Kyle looked horrified at what he had done. "Leo?" he called softly.

"He's fine," Buffy assured him hastily. "He'll be right back."

Leo orbed in behind Kyle. "Not bad," he admitted with an approving nod to Kyle.

Buffy approached the broken windows. "Leo, I hope you're going to fix those before Prue gets back…"

"What was that crash?" Phoebe's voice sounded from the foyer and she came running into the solarium with her sisters right behind her. She froze at the damage. "What happened in here?" she demanded.

"A little training, that's all," Leo explained with a shrug.

Prue's eyes widened as she took in the damage. "That's all? Do you have any idea how much that's gonna cost to fix?" she exclaimed, waving her hand at the windows.

"Told you," Buffy muttered under her breath to Leo.

"Well, I know who's going to be fixing it," Piper added with a pointed look at Leo. "Leo, what if somebody saw you?" she lectured.

"Someone like neighbor Dan?" Leo guessed coldly. Just then he saw Piper was bleeding from a cut on her forehead. "Hey, you're bleeding," he realized in a much softer voice.

"It's nothing," Piper insisted, waving a strand of her hair away from the cut.

"It better be," Buffy said with of concern.

"It's nothing, Buffy," Piper said as she walked toward the young woman and put an arm around her.

Kyle looked at the sisters hopefully. "So did you guys like kick some butt or what?" he wondered.

"Or what," Phoebe repeated.

Buffy's eyes narrowed at the lack of gloating from each of her cousins. "What's that supposed to mean?" she questioned, fairly certain she wasn't going to like the answer.

Prue sighed and met Buffy's gaze. "Tuatha was ready for us, or at least for me. She stripped away my powers," she admitted.

Buffy didn't appear happy with that answer. "So how'd you get away?" she inquired.

"Well, she literally disappeared before I had the chance to freeze her. And it's a good thing she wasn't expecting all three of us otherwise we wouldn't have gotten out of there," Piper answered with a slight shrug of her shoulders.

"You're lucky you did. Now will you help me and Buffy with Kyle?" Leo questioned, his voice slightly exasperated.

Prue glanced over at Kyle to find him turning kind of green at the thought of Tuatha. "Why are you so ready to send a teenager up against an evil that we can't even defeat?" Prue countered.

Buffy sighed. "Do I need to remind you of my other destiny, Prue? I was in the same boat he was before I met you guys."

"Because he can. At least with the wand and he's getting better at it too," Leo insisted.

"He is," Buffy agreed.

Kyle shook his head hastily. "Uh uh, I'm outta here," he declined.

"Kyle, wait," Leo tried.

"No, what the hell is the matter with you? They're even scared of her," Kyle argued with a wave of his hand at the three sisters. "I told you, you've made a huge mistake. I can't do this," he continued, tossing the wand on the couch and leaving.

Leo started to follow him but Piper grabbed his arm. "Leo, you can't make him stay. Even if it is his destiny," Piper pointed out.

Buffy watched the place where Kyle had left for several minutes trying to decide if it would be worth following him or not.

"I hope he doesn't tell anyone we're witches," Phoebe stated.

"Won't matter much if we're dead," Prue stated. "Okay, nobody knows the Book of Shadows better than you. So, if black magic can strip away powers, then surely white magic can do the same, right?" she said earning a nod from Phoebe. "Let's go."

Prue and Phoebe ran up to the attic while Piper hesitated but eventually followed them.

"I'll go keep an eye on him, Leo," Buffy said as she disappeared in bright flames.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Piper soaked a towel under the downstairs bathroom sink and began dabbing gently at the cut on her forehead when Leo stopped in the doorway.

"Want me to heal that for you?" he offered.

Piper dropped the towel and shook her head slightly. "I'm fine," she promised.

Leo started to approach anyway. "Come on," he insisted lightly.

"No," Piper returned, a stern note in her voice that caused Leo pause. "It gets all confusing when we're close and when you touch me. I don't want to be confused anymore," she explained.

"Hey…" Leo began.

"Look, Leo, you just do your job and I'll do mine, okay?" Piper interrupted, still not turning to face him.

Leo stopped next to her and held his hand out over her cut. "This is my job, Piper," he pointed out. A golden glow lit from his hand and the cut healed over.

"Thanks," Piper whispered, tossing the now-useless towel onto the counter. Their eyes met but Piper hastily broke away and walked away from him.

Leo turned to watch her. "He'll never understand you, you know. Your secret, what you're all about. Not like I can."

Piper paused and turned back to face him with a sad look on her face. "Maybe not, but at least I can count on him to be there for me when I need him," she countered. She forced herself to turn away from Leo and search for her sisters.

Streets of San Francisco

Kyle walked by himself down the sidewalk in the direction of his house when Buffy appeared in bright flames.

"Hey, Kyle," she said for his attention. "So, where you heading?"

Kyle shrugged, only offering her a short glance. "Just outta here," he admitted.

"You want to know something?" Buffy inquired.

"Sure," Kyle answered.

"When I became the Slayer. I fought it tooth and nail," Buffy stated casually. "I didn't want it. Sometimes I still don't. Like you I'm a Chosen One, chosen to fight. And a lot of times I wish I wasn't."

Kyle didn't immediately say anything. "How do you continue doing what your doing then?" he asked stopping and looking at her, seeing in her a kindred spirit.

Buffy regarded him. "Well I have of course family that supports me and helps me. That's always a plus. But in the end I know what I do. Well let's just put it this way I help people and that feeling makes up for having this destiny thrust on me."

Kyle nodded and looked back the way he came. "If given the chance after everything you've seen and done. Would you give it all up to be normal again?"

Buffy took her time to answer. Sometimes the answer would be yes. But she knew that part of her was in a minority because it would have meant having never being reunited with Prue, Piper or Phoebe. "No," she finally answered. "And you want to know something else. While I may never have known you much before today. I would like to think were friends, now. You are someone, Kyle, don't let anyone tell you any different."

Kyle nodded slightly at the end of her speech. "Thanks," he said gratefully. "Do you think you can take me back to your house?"

Buffy chuckled. "I can walk you there," she admitted. "I'm still a little shaky with passengers."

"Good enough," Kyle said as they turned and started back toward the manor.

Halliwell Manor

Piper was waiting in the conservatory when Prue and Phoebe walked in to join them. "Any luck?" she asked hopefully.

"Well, we did find one spell but it requires a human heart and unfortunately, we're all still using ours," Phoebe answered with a sigh in her voice.

"Well, take mine. All it does it get me in trouble anyway," Piper offered. "Anyone seen Buffy since Kyle left?"

Prue and Phoebe shook their heads. "She may have gone to keep watch on Kyle," Prue suggested as Tuatha's snake appeared on the floor behind Piper but went unnoticed.

Leo joined them and saw the snake almost immediately. "Snake!" he yelled in warning.

Piper stared up at him, obviously offended. "Oh, I'm the snake but you're the one who…"

"No, snake!" Leo interrupted, pointing at her feet.

Piper looked down and screamed at the sight before running to the other side of the conservatory and into Phoebe's arms. Phoebe jumped backwards as the snake followed them.

Prue ran over to the fireplace and grabbed the stake. She ran up behind the snake and cut it in half with the stake. The two halves formed into separate snakes that turned toward Prue.

"Look out!" Piper screeched.

"Freeze them, freeze them," Prue snapped at Piper.

"I'm trying, it's not working," Piper retorted, flicking her wrists repeatedly to no avail.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Kyle and Buffy stopped at the front door when they heard Piper's frantic voice saying "Prue, what should we do?"

Buffy paled visibly, afraid that Tuatha had come against them, she pushed open the door. She rushed in followed immediately by Kyle.

"Buffy!" Prue yelled motioning toward the snakes.

A fireball formed in Buffy's hands and she threw it at the snakes. The fireball hit the snakes and they instantly saw that it no effect.

Piper spun on Leo and pointed at the snakes in their floor. "Leo, do something," she snapped.

Leo and Buffy noticed the wand lying on the couch where Kyle had left. As Leo ran for it, Buffy called out, "Wand!" The wand appeared in her hands in bright flames. She hurriedly handed it to Kyle. "You can do it," she told him.

Using both hands, Kyle pointed it at the snakes and shouted, "Die!" The wand glowed and the snakes disappeared in a puff of smoke and sparks. The glow faded away and left Kyle staring at the place where the snakes had been in disbelief.

Prue nodded to Kyle approvingly. "Nice job," she admitted, still holding her stake in both hands.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe waved her hand at the dining room table where there were several potions lined up on the table. "Okay, this is a potion to induce sleep, this one is to repel an evil threat, and that one puts out a fire," she explained helpfully.

"What kind of potion does that?" Buffy asked, picking up the 'fire put-outer' potion.

"None, that's water," Phoebe admitted sheepishly. Prue, Piper, and Buffy narrowed their eyes slightly at her. "I didn't have a lot of time, it was the best I could do, okay," she grumbled.

"So we have two potions, water, one wand wielder, and four people with no powers," Piper listed, showing the overwhelming odds against them.

"Well, technically, I should still have powers," Buffy corrected. "Even if she managed to neutralize my witch powers. I am still a Slayer."

"So what about that potion to give Kyle more courage?" Piper inquired with a glance at Phoebe.

Phoebe frowned apologetically. "I remembered wrong. There isn't one."

"Well, that's disappointing," Piper mumbled, turning away to begin her customary pacing.

Phoebe nodded before her gaze shifted to the potions in front of her. "You guys, I'm scared. And not just for him but for us. I don't like feeling this powerless," she announced.

Piper paused in her pacing. "Maybe that's our lesson for today. Not to take our powers for granted," she offered.

Buffy sighed as she looked each of her cousins in the eye. "We're gonna get your powers back," she told them. "Then we're gonna have to help Kyle defeat Tuatha. And we're just gonna have to find a way to make Kyle feel more courageous without magic, that's all," she remarked, reaching out and grabbing the potion bottle with water in it. "Come on," she called. She led the way to the conservatory where Leo and Kyle were doing some last minute practice. "How's it going?" she asked them.

"Good. I think Kyle's ready," Leo replied.

"Kyle, how are you feeling?" Buffy questioned gently.

Kyle smiled nervously at her. "I'm ready. I'm as ready as I can be," he replied, hesitating before deciding to continue. He let out a strained laugh. "You know, it's funny, uh, I always wanted to be somebody special. You should be careful what you wish for."

"Believe me, we can relate," Buffy admitted.

As soon as the words had left Buffy's mouth, a golden shimmer lit up the room and Tuatha appeared in front of them. She focused on the first sister she saw which happened to be Prue and tossed a potion at Prue's feet. A blast erupted from the impact and knocked Prue back into a side table that collapsed under her.

"Prue!" Piper, Phoebe, and Buffy all screamed.

Prue groaned softly and rolled away from the debris. Buffy grabbed the sleeping potion from Phoebe and tossed at Tuatha's feet.

Tuatha faked a yawn as the fumes of the sleeping potion surrounded her. She smirked at their surprised faces. "So young, so new to the craft. Now this is a sleeping potion." Tuatha pulled out her own potion bottle and threw it at Phoebe's feet. The fumes engulfed Phoebe, who collapsed to the ground.

Leo rushed for Phoebe and as soon as he stepped foot near the fumes of the sleeping potion, he fell to the ground unconscious and knocked his head heavily against a chair.

Tuatha threw another potion at Prue, Buffy and Piper's feet that left them stuck to the floor. "Hey, what the…?" Piper trailed off as she nearly fell over but Buffy and Prue steadied her.

Buffy tried to flame out but found she was rooted to the spot. "I can't flame!"

Tuatha finally turned to face Kyle now that his protectors had all been incapacitated. "Now, the wand if you please," she ordered. She held her hand out and the wand floated out of Kyle's hands and toward her. The wand began to glow in her hand. "Not much of a Chosen One, are you? At least the last one was able to entomb me and I will now entomb you," Tuatha taunted.

Piper gave Buffy a slight nod indicating the water in Buffy's hand. Buffy tossed the water at Kyle's feet. "The courage potion," Piper exclaimed, right on time.

Tuatha laughed at them. "What? There is no courage potion," she stated.

"No? Now look who's teaching who," Prue snapped.

"Come on, Kyle, get the wand. You can do it, " Buffy encouraged as she concentrated her augmentation power on Kyle.

Kyle took a deep breath and held his hands out. "I wish for the wand," he called for it. The wand left Tuatha's hands and started floating to Kyle.

"My wand!" Tuatha screeched, holding her hands out for it. The wand stopped moving toward Kyle and began to hover between its two wielders. Very slowly it began to head back to Tuatha.

"Don't give up, Kyle, believe," Buffy cheered him on.

Kyle redoubled his efforts and the wand started floating toward Kyle. He finally managed to grab it while Tuatha appeared stunned. "I wish you gone forever," Kyle shouted.

"No!" Tuatha screamed in denial as she blew up and was vanquished. The glow of the wand died and Piper, Prue and Buffy were unstuck from the floor.

Piper took one look at them before bolting over to Leo, who was moving a little. "Leo," she whispered, helping him to his feet. "You're hurt," she stated, gently touching around it.

"I'm okay," Leo promised.

"Let me get you some ice," Piper offered.

Leo caught her arm before she could leave. "Really, I'm fine," he insisted softly.

Piper smiled down at him. "Are you getting even?" she joked.

"Just finally getting it. What you want. What you deserve. A normal life or at least as normal a life as you can get, which means a normal relationship which I can't give you," Leo admitted with a sad smile up at Piper. "I guess we know why witches and Whitelighters aren't supposed to fall in love, huh?" He didn't wait for a response but orbed out before it became harder to do so.

Buffy saw Kyle looking over the wand which she could see was broken. She slowly walked up beside him.

"It's broken," Kyle whispered as he heard her approach.

"It served its purpose," Buffy pointed out gently.

Kyle nodded and smiled slightly. "Yeah, thanks to your magical boost of courage," he agreed.

"Kyle, Tuatha was right. There was no courage potion. We made it up," Buffy admitted. "You defeated her all by yourself," she continued. "Well you and me anyways. A little augmentation to help you get the wand, one of my many powers."

Kyle shrugged. "Well, it still doesn't change anything. No one would believe me even if I told them what I did," he replied almost sadly.

"Oh there are a couple people who would," Buffy told him. "Still as long as you keep believing that you can make a difference, you can change what ever you want. Who knows what you're still destined for. Till then you can hang with me and my friends any time you want. They all know I'm a witch and the Slayer. And they won't tell a soul."

P4

Prue, Piper, Phoebe, and Buffy walked down the stairs of the busy club, Prue holding the wand in her hand.

"What are you going to tell him about what happened to the poor lady who owned the wand?" Piper wondered aloud.

"Well, what can I tell him?" Prue countered with a shrug of her shoulders. "Look, I called him because I just wanna get rid of this thing, that's all," she explained.

Phoebe smile and she pushed through so that she was between Prue and Piper. "Are you sure it's just not an excuse to see him again?" she asked jokingly.

"Phoebe, don't be ridiculous. This is business, it's not personal," Prue replied, lightly pushing Phoebe into Piper for even suggesting she was interested in Jack.

"Where have we heard that before?" Buffy teased.

Piper met Dan's eyes across the bar. "Oh, gotta date, gotta go," she excused herself and crossed toward Dan.

Phoebe waved and then turned back to Prue. "Well, for what it's worth, I think Jack is pretty cute."

"A little old for me but he is kind of cute," Buffy agreed.

"Says the girl in love with a vampire," Phoebe teased.

Buffy smiled as she spotted said vampire across the room. "Well at least Angel looks younger than he actually is," she told her. "Speaking of Angel. I'll see you guys later." She hurried across the club toward the vampire.

"Well, how do I look now?" Prue asked, striking a pose.

"Fab," Phoebe answered.

Prue slipped past Phoebe to meet Jack where he was seated at the bar. "Hey, um, I thought you might want to have this back. I mean, after all, it is rightfully yours," she offered, holding the wand out to him. She turned away as Jack took it from her.

"Uh, hold it. What's wrong with this picture?" Jack questioned sarcastically and with a pointed glance at the broken wand.

Prue smirked and turned back to face him. "It looks like it broke," she admitted with an innocent smile.

Jack nodded in agreement while staring at her in disbelief. "Keen eye, Prue," he joked. "It kinda lowers the value of the wand, don't you think?" Jack added.

"Bright side, at least it's worth what you were going to buy it for now," Prue retorted lightly.

Jack laughed in silent agreement. "Come on. Have a drink. You can brag to me about how you out-smarted me with the wand. I do like to learn from the best," he suggested hopefully.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Angel met Buffy inside the alcove that let them have a little privacy. "Hi," she greeted, standing up to meet him.

"Hi," Angel returned and then waved his hand at the seat. "After you," he offered. Buffy sat down and he followed beside her.

"What can I get you, Miss Payson?" said a waitress as she approached.

"Nothing right now," Buffy answered her eyes never leaving Angel's.