Charmed: Another Halliwell

by Brenna's Urbangirl Projects

Summary: Buffy Summers is the daughter of Joyce and Hank Summers. Joyce was born Patience Joyce Halliwell she was Prue, Piper and Phoebe's aunt. When Joyce dies Buffy is left in the care of her cousins. Pairings: Prue, Piper, and Phoebe (and later Paige) canon pairings. Buffy/Dawn (Yes, Forbidden Sibling Love). A/U Set during and after Charmed Season 1 and Buffy season 1.

36. Chapter 36: Ms Hellfire

Q/A: BeneathYouICrunch - I checked Piper's Molecular Combustion power doesn't come till season 3 and we're still in season 2.

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Chapter 36: Ms. Hellfire

February 13, 1998 – Friday

Halliwell Manor

Prue walked out of the kitchen holding a cordless phone in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. She stopped at one of the solarium tables where Phoebe and Buffy were eating bowls of cereal for breakfast. They both listened to Prue's hurried conversation curiously.

"All right, I can meet with the Curson Foundation at noon but then we'll have to move my 1:00 lunch regarding the Lowe Estate. That will affect my 2:30 slide presentation and my 4:30 meeting with the new printers," Prue listed off, mentally keeping track of her day. "Have you confirmed Mrs. Swanson yet?" she asked.

Buffy waved her hand at a flyer that Phoebe was reading over. "The last Tae Bo class is at seven," Buffy reminded Prue helpfully.

"Okay. I can meet with the printers at their office, walk to Royal Hotels afterwards for my 5:30 with Mrs. Swanson." Prue nodded to herself in satisfaction for her plan before addressing Buffy. "I just have enough time to make it to kick boxing class," she added cheerfully. She then frowned upon hearing the bad news Monique had. "Her plane doesn't arrive until six?" she repeated in disbelief.

"So much for Tae Bo," Buffy sighed. "Oh, that's your phone. I'll get it for you," she offered, running to Prue's purse.

"Thanks, it's probably Jack," Prue appreciated.

"You don't have time for Jack, literally," Phoebe pointed out.

Buffy answered Prue's cell. "Prue Halliwell's phone, Payson speaking…" she frowned slightly and covered the talking end of the cell. "It's Mr. Caldwell's office," she hissed to Prue.

Prue's eyes widened. "It's the new VP," she realized. "Monique, why is Mr. Caldwell calling me at my home? … What emergency staff meeting? … When this morning?" she demanded frantically.

"9:30. Be there or be fired," Buffy answered with false cheer.

"I'm on my way," Prue replied immediately and then hung up.

Buffy hung up Prue's cell. "Do you want me to flame you there?" she offered.

"Please," Prue pleaded.

Phoebe faked a yawn. "Well, now, I am very tired and need a nap," she joked.

Prue dropped her head into her hands. "Yeah, well, I need another me. I don't even have time to have fun anymore…"

There was a bang as the back door shut and Piper pranced in (rather cheerfully for her) from the kitchen.

Phoebe glanced at Piper teasingly. "Oh, look who it is," she announced as a way of greeting.

"Morning," Piper greeted, passing her Prue, Phoebe and Buffy without another word.

"Who is she?" Buffy questioned jokingly while Piper dropped her bag on the solarium table and turned to face them.

Prue shrugged. "She looks vaguely familiar. Kind of like a sister we used to have. What was her name?" She went along with the joke and feigned ignorance. "Pi… P."

"Pi… Pippy?" Phoebe guessed.

"Pipper?" Prue suggested.

Buffy shook her head hastily. "No, it was Pippen," she argued. Piper just rolled her eyes at their joke.

"Whatever happened to her?" Phoebe asked curiously.

"I don't know. She fell in lust with the next-door neighbor and started spending all her time over there," Prue answered with a pointed look at Piper.

Buffy decided to call it quits on the joke. "Did you sleep with him?" she demanded.

"No," Piper replied with a playful glare at Buffy before addressing Prue. "That's because she could, for the first time in months, her life was nice and calm and normal," she insisted, slowly walking forward to join them. "I don't even care that it's Friday…"

"Shh! Don't even say it," Phoebe interrupted seriously.

Piper smirked and continued anyway. "The 13th," she stopped dramatically and smiled wider when nothing happened. "See, I said it, and nothing happened," she exclaimed.

No sooner had the words left her mouth when bullets starting shooting through the windows and hitting anything in their way. Glass shattered, objects fell around them, and the sisters all screamed and made a run for the living room. Prue and Phoebe slid across the floor to duck behind the couch, Buffy flamed out as several bullets shot at her and flamed back in next to them, and Piper hid in the corner between the door and an antique cabinet.

"Who the hell is shooting at us?" Buffy demanded as bullets ricocheted off the walls around them.

Phoebe sat up just enough to glare at Piper. "I told you not to say it!"

"Oh, so this is my fault?" Piper snapped back.

"Run," Prue ordered, pointing to the spot next to her where Piper could just fit in with them.

Piper shook her head hastily. "No," she argued.

"I'll cover you, Piper," Buffy offered but Piper still shook her head.

Phoebe pointed harshly at the spot next to Prue. "You get your butt over here right…" she trailed off as another series of bullets shot through the windows and Prue and Buffy pulled her back down.

Piper waited until they had passed before dashing out of her safe zone. Halfway there more bullets shot up the vase right in front of her and continued to rocket at her. She screamed and flicked her wrists so that they froze. For a split second she was in a stunned silence before she ran the last few feet and slid in next to Prue. The silence lasted with no more bullets coming at them so all fourof them peeked over the back of the couch. The bullets started up again, causing them to scream and drop back down.

"Oh, like I need this today," Prue groaned as the bullets stopped again.

"Since when do demons use bullets?" Phoebe questioned.

"Maybe it's not a demon," Piper suggested.

Buffy's eyes flickered from one cousin to the next. "Anyone have any mortal grudges against us?" she wondered aloud.

"No, why would a mortal want to kill us?" Prue returned.

"Well, you know, you were a little sharp to the mailman yesterday. We all know how testy they can be," Phoebe pointed out half-jokingly.

"Should I flame us out now?" Buffy offered, taking Phoebe's hand next to her.

Prue shook her head slightly. "No, we need to see if we can get a face," she decided but she took Piper's and Phoebe's other hand just in case they needed a quick getaway. Buffy seemed to understand because she nodded.

They froze when something hit the front door and they each peeked around the couch. "Freeze," Piper started.

"Kick," Phoebe followed.

"Send flying," Prue added.

"Flame us out," Buffy finished.

Phoebe nodded in satisfaction. "Okay," she whispered, watching the door for any hint of someone coming through.

The front door never opened but instead a woman came in from the dining room, obviously having come through the back door. The four of them screamed in surprise as the woman fired her gun at them. Prue yanked her hand from Buffy and held her it out in front of them as if to shield them. The bullets changed directions, riddling the shooter's body with the bullets instead. The woman fell to the ground in their kitchen while they stared in stunned silence. Slowly, they stood up from behind their couch and ran to see the body. The shooter's blood pooled in the floor around her.

"Oh my god, she's not a demon," Prue whispered in horror.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Buffy dumped out the contents of the dead woman's purse on the dining room table and started shifting through objects with her cousins.

Piper picked up a handful of passports and opened each of them up to read the names. "Multiple aliases," she announced as each of the passports had different names in them. She looked over to where Phoebe had pulled out dollar bills from the woman's wallet. "Foreign currency," she added with a nod to the bills.

Buffy had picked up a small pouch that she opened and pulled out throwing stars. "Throwing stars," she offered with a slight frown on her face.

Prue rolled up the woman's lipstick to find it was really a knife in disguise. "Not exactly Avon calling," Prue stated sarcastically.

"This woman is about as hardcore as I am," Buffy exclaimed, appearing thoughtful.

Piper reached out for a card key to an apartment. "Sutro Heights Apartments," she read before meeting Prue, Piper and Buffy's gaze. "That's kinda scary. She didn't live too far from here," she admitted.

"Well, what's even scarier is that we've never been attacked by a mortal before," Phoebe added softly.

Prue's eyes invariably flickered back to the woman's body. "Yeah, I've never killed a mortal before either," she sighed.

"Prue, you had no choice," Phoebe pointed out.

"And it was self-defense. She was going to kill us," Buffy commented gently.

"Still doesn't make it any easier," Prue returned.

"You think everything with Angelus is easy for me?" Buffy reminded her cousin.

"No," Prue replied.

"So why would it be easy that…" Buffy started and then shrugged.

Piper glanced up from the woman's day planner. "Does it make it an easier if the mortal was a hit woman?" she asked hopefully.

Prue looked over Piper's shoulder to see what she was looking at. "A list of names. So?" she pressed.

"Yeah, look closer, we're on it or at least three of us are. 'P. Halliwell' and other than 'M. Steadwell' we're the only other names not crossed off," Piper elaborated for them.

Buffy looked a little put out. "P. Halliwell?" she groaned as that meant she was marked for execution or she was about to become an orphan again.

"It's going to be okay, Buffy," Phoebe said as she wrapped an arm around her cousin.

"Easy for you to say. One of you might not be the P. Halliwell that they want dead," Buffy retorted. "Or I might not be the one. Either way I am either dead or an orphan if they succeed."

"We need to figure out who hired this hit woman," Prue decided, taking the planner from Buffy. "It must have been someone who knew we had powers. I mean, look."

Piper looked over at a different page of the planner that Prue was pointing at. "Prue: telekinesis, Piper: power to freeze, Buffy: teleportation…telekinetic teleportation…fireballs…Slayer, Phoebe: negligible," she read.

Phoebe's face fell at that and she moved to read it for herself. "What? Negligible?" she repeated sadly.

"Well, that explains why she drove us to the front door and tried to surprise us from behind," Piper realized.

Buffy crossed her arms across her chest. "That doesn't actually make sense. If she knew I could just flame us all out then why didn't she plan for that?" she wondered aloud. "And their information is incredibly up to date. I've only been flaming for three months."

"Maybe she was just hoping that the bullets would separate us so you wouldn't leave. There's not really much she could do if you decided to flame out except keep firing and hope she got you," Phoebe offered after slamming the day planner onto the table.

"Well, why would a demon hire a mortal to kill us at all? That doesn't make any sense either," Prue pointed out.

"I just wish we knew about that part of the equation before we called…" Piper trailed off as the front door opened and Darryl walked inside.

"Darryl," Prue said as she smiled at the man. "Thanks for coming."

"To tell you the truth, I'm not sure if I actually want to be here. Depends on whether or not you actually tell me the truth this time," Darryl replied. "So what happened?" he prompted.

"Someone tried to kill us," Phoebe answered.

"Did you see who it was?" Darryl questioned professionally.

Buffy pointed in the direction of the kitchen. "She's over there," she explained hesitantly.

"She?" Darryl repeated before walking past the Halliwells to see for himself. He froze at the sight of the woman's body on the floor.

"We were just sort of standing here talking when she started shooting up the place," Piper elaborated for him.

"Was there anything on her to identify who she is?" Darryl asked.

Phoebe shook her head slowly. "No, ID but we think she's a hit woman," she answered.

"Who obviously wanted us dead. We were on her list," Prue added.

"And that's why you're standing here alive and she's in here riddled with bullets," Darryl remarked suspiciously.

Buffy ran a hand through her hair. "Goddess, Darryl, you sound like you wish it was us," she mumbled, half-joking.

"Darryl, it was self-defense. You can check her gun if you don't believe us. The only fingerprints you are going to find are hers," Prue insisted, her voice rising slightly.

Darryl took several steps toward them. "Begs the same question. How come she's the one with the bullets in her body if you didn't fire the gun?" he demanded.

"Do you really wanna know, Darryl?" Phoebe questioned.

Darryl gave the faintest of nods. "Tell me," he ordered.

"We're witches," Phoebe stated. "We…" she trailed off and glanced at her sisters for help.

"We have powers," Buffy blurted out, earning a warning look from Prue.

"And we think there's a…" Piper stopped abruptly with a look at Prue. "How do I put this?" she asked, unable to think of an easy way to tell him.

Buffy rolled her eyes at their hesitance. "A demon," she supplied.

Piper narrowed her eyes slightly. "A demon behind this," she finished her previous thought.

"The only way for us to find out who it is-is if you can keep all of this quiet for as long as possible," Prue continued.

Darryl stared at them for a long moment before nodding at the planner. "Let me see the book," he told them.

"There was one other possible murder attempts listed," Buffy replied, reopening the planner.

"There are seven names crossed out. Besides us, there is only one other name not crossed out," Phoebe added as Darryl moved to look over the book.

Darryl pointed at one of the lines. "'Plastique: 10 am.' Plastic explosives. For all we know she's probably got some place already rigged to blow," he sighed.

"Someplace that will catch this M. Steadwell at 10 am," Prue guessed since the name was placed on the same page as the explosion note.

Phoebe turned Piper's wrist so she could read her watch. "Okay, it's after nine already," she pointed out hurriedly.

"I'll check DMV, see if we can get an address," Darryl decided. "See if I can get an address."

Phoebe pointed at Darryl. "I'm gonna go with you."

"Buffy, Prue and I are gonna go to her apartment and see if we can find anything there," Piper told them.

"After we make a quick pit stop at Bucklands," Prue added.

Piper stared at Prue in disbelief. "Are you kidding?" she asked.

"I can't lose my job," Prue argued.

"What do we do with the…" Buffy trailed off, pointing in the direction of the body.

"I can call in a favor and put the body on ice but it's not gonna buy you much time. One day, max," Darryl warned and then walked out the door.

Phoebe waved to Prue, Piper and Buffy and followed after him.

Bucklands Auction House

The meeting had already started by the time Prue, Piper, and Buffy made it outside the door to the office where the meeting was being held.

"As the new regional VP of Bucklands Auction houses, I'll be implementing a new course of action for the new millennium…" the new VP announced. As he turned his back, Prue quietly sneaked into the empty seat next to Jack while Buffy and Piper stayed in the doorway. "… The problem is I don't know any of you well enough to know who's worth keeping and who's not," he continued.

Jack spun his chair around so he could see Prue. "You're late, partner," he whispered teasingly.

Prue narrowed her eyes at him. "We are not partners," she snapped under her breath.

"Do you wanna bet?" Jack retorted.

Prue was about to counter attack when the VP's voice caught her attention. "You. Dark hair," he called, staring straight at Prue. Prue nervously glanced around her to make sure he was talking to her. "Yeah, the one who tried to sneak in late. What's your name?" the VP demanded.

Prue pointed to herself uncertainly. "My-my name?" she asked and he nodded impatiently. "Uh, Prue-Prue-Prue Halliwell," Prue answered.

The VP glanced down at his list of names and marked her off. "Yeah, right, okay, you'll be partnered with Sheridan there," he ordered with a point at Jack. Piper and Buffy glanced around the door to see what was going on after hearing Prue's name repeatedly. "Every employee in this room and their partner has until tomorrow night to scour the obits. Do whatever you have to do to raise $100,000 of auction material." Prue's eyes widened and she shot her hand in the air. "Yes," the VP prompted.

"By tomorrow?" Prue repeated in disbelief.

"If you want to keep your job," he replied seriously. "Welcome to the new Bucklands," the VP finished dramatically and then left the room. Everyone quickly began to file out. Prue was about to follow when Jack started talking to her.

"Whoa. I guess we better clear the decks, huh?" Jack asked rhetorically while swiveling his chair around to face Prue. "You know, Prue, we might even have to work over dinner," he added enthusiastically.

Prue stared at him but saw Piper stamped her feet impatiently at the door. "Dinner? No," she answered absently. She saw Piper grab onto Buffy's arm as she tried to make herself seen.

"Come on, we're in this together, aren't we?" Jack insisted.

"Yeah, but…" Prue trailed off as there was a flash of red and a copy of herself appeared next to Piper and Buffy while her real self froze with her eyes closed, still in the chair beside Jack.

Piper and Buffy jumped in surprise. "Prue?" they gasped. All three looked over at the comatose Prue beside Jack.

"Prue?" Jack prompted when he got no response. There was another red flash and the copy of Prue disappeared and the real Prue's eyes opened. "Prue, have you even heard a word I've said?"

Prue shook her head slowly, her thoughts in disarray. "No, I'm feeling a little… weird," she explained. "I'll be, uh…" she slowly stood up, clinging to the table for support before stumbling toward Piper and Buffy. "Ooh…" she mumbled.

Buffy wrapped a arm around her waist as Prue looked as if she was going to fall over while Piper spun on Prue. "What the hell just happened?" Piper questioned.

"I don't know. I think it was some sort of astral projection," Prue answered with a slight shrug.

"Astral projection?" Buffy repeated. "Well its about time one of you go another power. I was getting tired of being the only one with multiple powers here."

"Well, how did you do it?" Piper pressed curiously.

Prue shrugged again. "I don't know. I just felt this desperate need for there to be two of me and all of a sudden there was."

"Do you think Buffy's right and this is part of your power growing?" Piper asked.

"Maybe, I mean, if I can move things with my mind, why not my body?" Prue decided.

"Let's get out of here before it happens again," Buffy ordered. She dragged Prue toward the door with Piper trailing behind.

Streets of San Francisco

Darryl and Phoebe raced down the road in his patrol car with his lights and siren going at full speed. He swerved rather dangerously around another car and slammed his foot back on the gas.

Phoebe was looking at him as if in a new light from the passenger seat. "Hey, you know, you can ask me anything you want about being a witch," she prompted with a smile at him.

Darryl didn't cast her a glance. "No, thanks," he declined instantly.

Phoebe fell silent but only for a second before looking back at Darryl. "It's actually really cool. We have these books. Their called the Book of Shadows…"

"Too much information, Phoebe," Darryl interrupted.

Phoebe ignored him. "No, but its…"

"Nothing I wanna know about," Darryl insisted loudly. "I'm serious. I don't wanna know anything," he repeated as if to drill it into Phoebe's brain.

"Come on, you don't even wanna know if we can fly or anything like that?" Phoebe questioned with a soft laugh.

Darryl shook his head. "I don't even wanna know if you own a broom, a skillet, a cauldron, a dust buster. I don't give a damn."

Phoebe laughed, enjoying Darryl's reaction. Darryl took his car through a sharp turn that caused her to grab hold of the seat as she swayed. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," she exclaimed.

"Phoebe, I stare down death everyday but I'm trained to handle it and that's in this world. I don't know if I want to be dragged into another one," Darryl retorted.

Phoebe's smile fell a little and she fixed Darryl with a serious look. "You know, I think it's too late, Darryl. But we won't let anything happen to you, I promise," she assured him before glancing around at the building they were coming up on. "Are you sure this is the right address?" she asked.

"Better hope so. It's the only M. Steadwell registered," he answered. Darryl chanced a glance at the clock. "Damn, it's almost ten o'clock," he cursed.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

A woman stopped outside the building in question that was her shop and put the lock in the key. From her angle, she couldn't see the bomb rigged to blow as soon as the door opened.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Oh, is that her?" Phoebe demanded, her eyes on the woman.

Darryl pulled his police car up on the curb and jumped out. The woman didn't notice and she turned the door knob. "No, don't!" Darryl yelled, running up to her and tackling her safely away from the door.

Phoebe was just getting out of the car when the building exploded and debris flew everywhere from the blast. "Darryl!" she screamed, unable to see through the smoke and dust. She ran through it until she found Darryl and the woman on the sidewalk seemingly okay. "Oh my god, is everybody okay?" she questioned.

"Yeah," Darryl replied after taking a deep breath of relief. "Are you okay, Ms. Steadwell?" he inquired.

Ms. Steadwell was staring at her shop with a look of wonder. "It worked," she stated, earning a funny look from Phoebe. "I can't believe it worked!" Ms. Steadwell spun on Darryl. "I cast a protection spell and it actually worked! My first spell," she exclaimed and then fell into a fit of laughter.

Darryl stared at her as if she was crazy before looking over at Phoebe. "Don't tell me she's a witch too," he pleaded with a sigh in his voice. Phoebe just smiled sympathetically.

Sutro Heights Apartments

Prue, Piper, and Buffy walked inside the hit woman's apartment and the elevator closed behind them. There were several moments of silence as each inspected the lavish apartment.

"Look at this place. Lalique fixtures, silk woven rugs. I could get used to living here in a hurry," Prue admitted, obviously impressed.

"Yeah, you just have to know who to kill," Buffy pointed out.

"I'm gonna go check the kitchen," Piper offered before turning in that direction.

Buffy's eyes scanned over the perfect room. "Look for her real name and watch out for any traps. Given the fact she was gun happy with us, I wouldn't put it past her to have the place rigged in case someone else started going through her stuff," she warned.

"You've seen too many television shows," Prue stated with a shake of her head. "That said it's good advice, just ni case."

Buffy nodded as she started inspecting the drawers in the living room.

Prue smiled and turned for the bedroom. "Alright, I got the bedroom," she said to herself. Her eyes widened as soon as she set foot inside. "Wow…" she whispered. She spotted the open wardrobe and couldn't resist taking a peek. "Oh, oh! Oh my! Oh nice! Ooh…" she exclaimed upon seeing the fur coats and leather clothes. Her eyes landed on one dress in particular and she reached up to pull it out.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Piper opened the refrigerator and freezer in the kitchen to find that it was empty. She frowned and moved on to the cabinets to find they were empty as well.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Prue pulled open another wardrobe to find it laden with wigs and make-up and jewelry of all different colors and styles.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Buffy had just spotted the roses on the table next to the elevator when the apartment phone began to ring. She hesitated before changing directions to answer the call. She didn't speak into it at first but waited to see who was on the other end.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Piper looked inside the mail keep and searched through the envelopes but they were all labeled with 'current resident' instead of an actual name. She took them with her as she walked back out to the living room to find Buffy on the phone. Buffy saw her and silently pointed toward the roses before saying something into the phone. Piper watched her curiously for a moment but eventually went to check out the roses.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Prue smoothed out the leather dress that she was now wearing and pulled a leather jacket over her arms. She smiled into the full length mirror and then twirled to get a better look at herself in the clothing.

Buffy walked in at that moment but stopped in the doorway upon seeing Prue. She coughed to get Prue's attention while she leaned back against the wall, watching Prue.

Prue spun around in surprise but relaxed once she realized it was Buffy. "Oh my god, Buffy, look at these clothes!" she exclaimed and then struck a pose for her cousin.

"Believe me, I'm looking, Prue," Buffy assured her eldest cousin. "It's a good look for you but did you find anything that might suggest who she actually was?" she pressed as she continued to watch Prue check herself out in the mirror.

"Not really," Prue admitted, twirling in another circle again.

"Okay, guys, she must not have lived here long, all the mail is marked current resident," Piper announced as she joined them in the bedroom. She stared at Prue in surprise. "Were you twirling?" she asked.

Prue stopped again to face Piper and Buffy. "No, but, um, opportunity knocked and I did answer. Check out this wardrobe!" she insisted with a wave of her hand in the corresponding direction.

Buffy smiled. "Yeah I'm tempted to try on some myself," she admitted as Piper glanced her way. "Hey you know me and shopping. Anyways the front desk sent a automated call reminding the hit woman that her bill was coming up in a week," she added, mostly to Piper as Prue wasn't really paying much attention.

"Did they say a name?" Piper wondered.

Buffy shook her head. "They just said resident of apartment 312," she answered.

Piper nodded to Buffy before letting out a sigh. "Prue, honey, we need you to focus," she berated lightly.

"I can't. It's not just the clothes," Prue insisted, pulling open the wardrobe that contained the accessories. "Wigs, make-up kits, prosthetic enhancements."

"My kind of woman," Buffy chuckled.

"I wonder if anybody knew what she really looked like," Piper questioned aloud.

"I doubt it," Prue decided.

Piper turned her gaze away from the accessories and back to Buffy. "The roses did have a cover name," she offered.

Buffy started to ask what the name was but Prue beat him to speaking. "What roses?" Prue demanded instantly.

"They're in the living room addressed to Ms. Hellfire," Piper replied.

"Ms. Hellfire?" Buffy repeated.

Prue almost looked flattered as she pushed past her cousin and sister to get into the living room. "Really?" she asked under her breath.

Piper smirked at Prue's reaction. "Mmhmm…" She exchanged an amused glance with Buffy before Buffy trailed off after Prue and Piper continued to look through the bedroom in case the distracted Prue had missed something.

Prue picked up the card that was attached to the roses. "Until we meet at last, Bane," she read thoughtfully.

"It's a promising name," Buffy joked, but before Prue could respond there was a click of several guns.

"Don't move. Don't even flinch or you're dead," the leading man ordered. Buffy didn't move and Prue had frozen next to her so the three men continued forward. "That's it. Now slowly turn around. Watch their hands, not sure which one is Ms. Hellfire, but she can kill you with them in a second," the leading man told his underlings before looking at Buffy and Prue. "Which of you is Ms. Hellfire?"

"She is," Buffy told them. "I'm her protégé, you can call me Protégé."

"Protégé huh?" the leading man said with a smirk.

"You Bane?" Prue asked with a glance at Buffy as two of the men approached them on either side.

"I'm his right-hand man, DJ. Bane is very unhappy with you. He'd like to see you now," DJ answered.

Piper walked in after having froze the men. "Okay, sorry to disappoint you boys. Let's go, get outta here, come on," Piper prompted movement from Prue and Buffy.

Prue and Buffy hesitated but followed a few steps. "Thanks to Buffy, they think I'm Ms. Hellfire," Prue pointed out. "And that Buffy is my protégé."

"So?" Piper pressed.

"So maybe we should go with them," Buffy replied.

"Maybe the best way to find out who hired her is to pretend to be her," Prue argued agreeing with Buffy's idea.

Piper shook her head, not liking Prue or Buffy's plan. "Okay, that's very funny, let's go."

"Piper, you said yourself, nobody knows what she looks like, certainly not this Bane guy," Buffy explained.

"Somebody might know what she looks like," Piper added.

"Yeah, but I can protect myself. I mean, I have something that they don't have. Something that guns can't even compete with," Prue insisted.

Piper rolled her eyes. "Today may not be the best day to boast about your powers," she scolded.

"Piper," Buffy said as her middle cousin spun to look at her. "Did you think that maybe I had a plan when I told them I was Prue's protégé? Seriously if they believe I'm Ms. Hellfire's protégé I can go where Prue goes and flame her out if the situation arises."

"Also…" Prue glanced at Buffy and then back to Piper, "…if this hit woman was hired by a demon then it's only a matter of time before he finds out that P. Halliwell is still alive and send someone else. So we have to do something," she argued. She smirked slightly as she realized Piper was were reluctantly agreeing with her and Buffy. "I mean, if you have any better ideas then I'm certainly game," she continued for good measure, knowing that Piper didn't.

Buffy pulled out her wallet out of her back pocket. "It's a good thing I wasn't carrying my purse today," she said as she handed her wallet to Piper. "You ought to do the same, Prue. That way there is nothing tying us to who we actually are. We don't want to get caught," she suggested.

"Okay," Prue agreed and then skipped back to stand where she had been when the men had been frozen. Buffy joined her. "So unfreeze them."

Piper stared at Prue in concern. "Is it just me or are you two a little too eager to play these roles?" she asked.

Buffy and Prue shrugged and offered her a confident smile. "It's not a bad role to play," Prue returned.

"True. If you wanna get yourself…" Piper started.

"I'll make sure we get back in one piece," Buffy interrupted.

Piper grumbled but started back for the bedroom where she'd hide until everyone left.

A few seconds passed before the room unfroze and DJ continued as if nothing had happened. "Are you gonna make this easy or not?" he demanded.

"Put that thing away before you hurt yourself," Prue snapped, her demeanor having changed immediately upon DJ unfreezing. She waved her hand for Buffy to follow her into the elevator but DJ stopped her.

"No, Bane only requested you," DJ explained harshly.

Prue chanced a glance toward Buffy, who had tensed at the confrontation. Prue just smiled and took a threatening step toward DJ. "She comes. I go nowhere without Protégé. Besides she's not just my protégé but my protection. Believe me she is more dangerous than she looks. The teenage girl act gets them every time," she retorted. DJ didn't look happy but he didn't protest as Buffy pushed her way into the elevator to stand next to Prue. Piper glanced around the corner to see the elevator close all five of them inside.

Reptile Room Bar

Bane was seated comfortably on a lush couch along the edge of a bar area. There were bodyguards on either side of him and one of his underlings was reporting.

"I swear to god, Bane. I tried to get the money for you but I… I messed up. I messed up," the underling admitted while wringing his hands nervously. Bane casually took a sip of his drink. "I was scared. I didn't know how you were gonna react," he continued.

"You lied to me," Bane stated emotionlessly.

The other guy looked terrified. "I didn't know, I didn't know," he started.

"You made a mistake and you're sorry for it, right?" Bane interrupted. He was hardly listening to anything after that as the door opened and Prue, Buffy, DJ, and the other two guards walked inside.

"Right. Yeah," the guy promised, more than a little surprised.

Bane didn't cast him another glance as his eyes were focused solely on Prue. "Well, lesson learned, alright? Just never lie to me again. Understood?" Bane pressed impatiently.

He nodded enthusiastically and started to back away. "Thank you," he gratified and then took off in case Bane changed his mind.

Bane stood up and met Prue halfway to the bar. "Wow, you are more beautiful than I imagined," he complimented, looking her over appreciatively. That was until he noticed Buffy that stopped at Prue's elbow. "Who're you?" Bane demanded.

"Protégé," Buffy answered.

"The name has of course double meaning," Prue added. "She literally is my protégé. That said she is also my protection as well. Believe me if I snap my fingers she can break your wrist in two seconds flat." She smiled at him and made a show of taking her jacket off and handing it Buffy.

"Did you like the roses?" Bane asked after deciding Buffy was okay.

Prue pretended to think about it for a moment. "I would have preferred orchids," she returned with a smirk.

"Beautiful and honest," Bane laughed and then held out his arm for her to take. "Let's take a walk," he suggested.

Prue took a step forward in silent agreement.

"You know what to bring," Bane said to DJ before leading Prue and Buffy toward the stairs. "Alone?"

"She goes with me," Prue interjected. "She goes where I go. How else can she learn what I do. That includes all facets of what I do."

"Very well," Bane reluctantly agreed. "So, what do I call you?"

"What you always call me," Prue insisted.

"Ms. Hellfire seems so cold in person. Unless your emails to me have been a tease," Bane admitted and then fixed Prue with a calculating look.

Prue smiled disarmingly. "I think you know me better than that," she stated, dropping into an offered seat at the top of the stairs.

Buffy took a place at Prue's shoulder just behind her.

"Do I?" Bane retorted before taking a seat across from her. "You didn't confirm the Halliwells this morning," he began, getting to the business.

"We didn't have a clean shot," Buffy lied.

Bane ran a hand through his hair. "That's disappointing," he admitted. "What about the last name on the list?" he pressed.

"Steadwell?" Bane nodded slightly. "It was a blast," Prue fabricated hopefully. She and Buffy were walking a thin line and they both knew it.

Bane nodded, seeming satisfied. "Like your style. Always have. The problem is you still got the Halliwells but you've only got until midnight to take them out," he pointed out while DJ opened the bottle of champagne.

"Um, don't worry about the Halliwells, we know their every move.," Prue promised.

"I'm getting a lot of pressure, you know," Bane reminded her.

"From who?" Buffy questioned before she could stop herself.

Bane glanced at Buffy suspiciously. "You know who," he told Prue, narrowing his eyes.

"Of course," Prue remedied with a feigned look of sympathy at him. "I just haven't passed that information to Protégé yet."

DJ started pouring two glasses of champagne when Prue's cell starting ringing from her jacket pocket. All eyes turned to Buffy before swiveling to Prue as if waiting for instructions from her. Prue was just going to ignore it. "Aren't you gonna answer that?" DJ inquired.

Prue sighed. "Yeah," she decided and then flipped the phone open that Buffy handed her. "Hello?" she answered.

"Hey, what happened to you this morning? You completely disappeared," Jack's voice sounded through the phone.

"I'm with a client," Prue replied through clenched teeth. She glanced nervously at Bane and then Buffy.

"Well, they'd better be a rich client. Time is money," Jack returned.

Bane offered Prue one of the glasses. "Champagne?" he asked.

Buffy stepped forward suddenly and took the glass from Bane. "She doesn't try anything until I have," she explained and took a quick sip before Prue could even react. Bane just looked annoyed but didn't say anything in case it offended Prue.

"Champagne?" Jack repeated in disbelief. "At this hour? Where are you?" he demanded.

"Me?" Prue questioned, desperately trying to keep up with everything that was going on.

Bane stared at Buffy, waiting for her to give Prue the glass. "Hey, you've tested it and it's fine. Give it back," Bane ordered impatiently.

Buffy reluctantly placed the glass in Prue's open hand. Then she stepped around the table. "Hand!" she ordered.

"Why?" Bane asked as Buffy grabbed his hand and squeezed. He grimaced at the strength of her grip as she added in a touch of her Slayer strength.

"Don't tell me what to do again," Buffy ordered as she released his hand. She moved back beside Prue.

Bane looked at Buffy with newfound respect. He understood now why Ms. Hellfire had taken her as her protégé. "Get her a glass also."

DJ nodded and poured a third glass and handed it to Buffy.

Bane then turned to Prue and clinked glasses with her. "To us," he toasted.

"Hey, Prue, you know me. I'm all for having a good time but we're under serious pressure here," Jack insisted.

Prue clenched her hand around her phone in frustration. "Yeah, I know…" she trailed off suddenly as her astral form appeared at her Bucklands office in a flash of red.

"Are you there?" Jack questioned, his irritation obvious.

"Oh god…" Prue whispered with wide eyes focused on Jack.

"Prue?" Jack called again. There was another flash of red and the astral Prue disappeared and the real Prue's eyes opened to find Bane, Buffy, and DJ staring at her.

"Astral projection?" Buffy mouthed.

"Are you alright? What happened?" Bane wondered.

"Prue, what the hell's going on?" Jack prompted an explanation for her weird behavior.

Prue took a few breaths to try and get over the weariness that astral projecting seemed to cause her. "I'll call you back," she promised Jack and then hung up. Bane exchanged a glance with DJ but DJ just shrugged in reply to the silent question. "Sorry," she apologized to Bane but her eyes flickered to look at Buffy with a subtle nod.

Bane took the glass of champagne from Prue. "Perhaps we had better hold off on this one. At least until the job is completed," he suggested, placing it on the table in front of them. Buffy set hers down as well.

"Guess we better get going," Prue decided while standing up from her seat.

Bane stepped forward to intercept her and grabbed her arm as Prue started for the stairs. "You're not going anywhere…Not without my driving ya," he told her. He waved his hand for Prue to go on ahead and they hesitantly left. Bane turned to DJ. "Tell him I'm on it," he ordered. Buffy glanced over at them thoughtfully before hurrying down the stairs after Prue.

DJ didn't look pleased with the order. "Hey, man, why me? I don't even know the guy," he protested.

"You will. Just go to my office and he'll show, okay?" Bane didn't wait for a reply but started after Prue and Buffy.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Buffy stopped next to Prue and passed her the jacket. As she reached for it, she inconspicuously whispered into her eldest cousin's ear. "The DJ guy is going to meet him. Probably who we're looking for."

"Okay," Prue whispered. "Follow DJ, but be careful."

"You ready?" Bane interrupted, watching them suspiciously.

Prue pulled her jacket from Buffy's hands. "Yeah," she replied to Bane. She faced Buffy. "Just make sure you get it done and don't get caught like your predecessor," she ordered coldly. Her way of saying 'be careful' in her current position.

Buffy watched as Bane led Prue away before spinning around to locate DJ. She saw him disappearing through a door up the stairs. She glanced around him and after deciding there was no one watching, followed. The quicker she got this done, the quicker she could meet back up with Prue.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Buffy followed DJ through the hallways, careful not to be seen by any passerbys that might alert DJ to her presence. DJ disappeared through another doorway that he closed behind him. Buffy carefully cracked the door just enough so she could see inside and be able to hear the conversation. DJ walked absently around the office and took a seat in front of the desk as he waited for the other guy to show.

Barbas smoked into the seat behind the desk, unnoticed by DJ as he had his back turned. Buffy's Slayer senses immediately began screaming at her and she attempted to get a better look.

"Looking for me?" Barbas asked.

Buffy frowned the voice sounded familiar.

DJ spun around in surprise. "Where the hell did you come from?" he demanded.

"You really don't want to know. Trust me," Barbas assured him casually. "Why aren't the witches dead?" he continued.

DJ looked confused. "Witches?" DJ repeated.

"Answer me," Barbas ordered impatiently.

"How did you know they weren't dead?" DJ questioned.

Barbas smirked. "One develops a…" he trailed off sniffing the air. "… sixth sense about such things when you've been in purgatory for as long as I have. I made a deal. It gives me a twenty-four hour window to break free. But now you people, you gotta kill those witches if I'm going to be successful," he explained, waving a finger at DJ in a scolding manner.

"Who are you?" DJ managed to ask.

Barbas' smile fell. "A demon," he answered, standing up from his seat and crossing the room to stand in front of DJ. "A demon who has the power to turn the innermost fears of a mortal into reality and there's nothing you can do about it. Want to see?" Barbas asked. He didn't wait for an answer but waved his hand over DJ's face. "Your greatest fear is that your boss is being double-crossed and when he finds out, he's gonna kill you for not protecting him…"

Buffy jumped back as the door separating her from DJ and Barbas flew open to slam against the wall.

DJ didn't notice Buffy as he saw Bane having kicked the door open and point the gun he held at him. He screamed as bullets pierced his body and drove him to the floor. The Bane in front of DJ disappeared as suddenly as he came and Barbas passed DJ to get to the door.

Buffy saw him coming and flamed out just as Barbas would have seen her. As it was, Barbas caught the sight of flames disappearing before he turned back to face DJ. "Your fear may yet come true if you don't do something quickly," Barbas warned with a smirk over at the surprised and confused DJ.

Halliwell Manor

"I can have my crew install some temporary windows sometime by tonight," Dan offered. He glanced over his shoulder at Piper while he continued to measure the windows.

Piper paced around the room, hitting the phone against the palm of her hand nervously. "Great, thanks," she appreciated.

Dan stepped down off the step-stool and looked over Piper curiously. "Waiting for a call?" he guessed, nodding at the phone.

Piper stopped her pacing. "Yeah, I'm just a little worried about Prue and Buffy," she admitted cryptically.

"I don't blame you after what happened," Dan remarked with a sympathetic look at Piper. "What makes you think it was a drive-by?" he questioned.

Piper shrugged slightly. "Um, I don't know. A wild guess, I guess," she offered.

"Can I ask you something? Like a favor something?" Dan suddenly asked.

"Uh, sure," Piper agreed hesitantly.

"See, there's this friend of mine that's getting married in Tohowan in a month and I'd like to go but I'd be gone for two days and a night. Jenny can't miss school and I can't leave her by herself overnight…" Dan started.

Piper smiled, partially in relief. "You want to know if we would mind letting her stay here, right?"

Dan nodded sheepishly. "Guilty," he admitted.

"I don't see why it would be a problem," Piper assured him. "She's a sweet young lady," she complimented.

"She is," Dan agreed. He was silent as if inwardly debating. "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind coming with me? I mean, if you could get off work and all," he blurted out, apparently the real source of his nerves.

Piper looked surprised. "Me? With you? Overnight?" she repeated unable to stop herself in her surprise.

"Separate rooms, you know," Dan added hastily. "I just thought that since I've met your family and friends, you might want to see some of mine," Dan rambled.

"I don't know what to say," Piper admitted.

Dan nodded in understanding. "Say you'll think about it," he pleaded.

Phoebe and Marcy walked in at that moment. Marcy tapped Phoebe on the shoulder for her attention and pointed at Dan. "Oh, is he a wi…"

Piper flicked her wrists and froze the room before Marcy could finish her sentence. Marcy and Dan froze. "Who's she?" she asked, pointing at Marcy.

"Would you believe M. Steadwell?" Phoebe returned. "How's Dan?" She nodded in Dan's direction.

"Just asked me to go on an overnighter to see a friend's wedding," Piper answered. "Where's Morris?"

Phoebe's eyes widened at Piper's answer but it was clear she wasn't in the mood to talk about it. "Um, he's at the morgue putting the hit woman's body under Marcy's name. Where's Prue and Buffy?" Phoebe prompted and then smirked a little.

"They're pretending to be the hit woman and her protégé," Piper explained.

Phoebe's jaw dropped. "What?" she prompted. "Have you heard from them?"

Piper shook her head slightly. "No, I have not. They're way overdue," she stated. "Oh and guess what? Prue's got a new power. She can astral project now."

"Are you kidding me?" Phoebe exclaimed, stomping her foot on the ground.

"Nope," Piper assured her.

Phoebe sighed dramatically. "I hate her," she groaned.

"I know," Piper soothed. "Alright, I'm gonna send Dan home. You keep Marcy in the house until this is all over…" she ordered with a look at Phoebe.

Sutro Heights Apartments

The elevator doors opened allowing Prue and Bane into the apartment. "Well, thanks for the…" she trailed off as she saw orchids placed everywhere around the room. "…ride," she finished in surprise.

Bane smirked at her reaction. "You said you preferred orchids," he pointed out.

"I'm impressed," Prue admitted.

"I'm glad. Now close your eyes," he ordered. Prue stared at him hesitantly. "Trust me…" She took a quick breath to hide her nerves and allowed her eyes to flutter closed. Bane reached in his jacket pocket and pulled out a jewelry box. "Go ahead, open them," he allowed. Prue obeyed and found him holding two jewelry boxes out for her. "One is for you and the other is for Protégé. Open yours when I leave okay, and have her open hers when she returns?" He let Prue take the boxes before continuing.

"Now, remember, three Halliwells by midnight. On second thought, make it by ten. It gives me more time to take care of it myself in case you fail," he reminded her. Bane watched her for a few more seconds before leaning closer to her. Prue turned her head at the last second so that Bane kissed her cheek. He looked surprised and Prue forced him a dainty smile in the hopes that he'd take it as playful. It seemed to work as he smiled and flicked a lock of her hair away from her face before turning away for the elevator.

As soon as the elevator door had closed behind Bane, Buffy stepped out from the bedroom. "I really don't like that guy," she stated with a glare at the elevator.

Prue jumped, dropping the jewelry box in her fright as her hand flew to her heart. "Buffy, you about gave me a heart attack!" she exclaimed.

"Sorry," Buffy apologized sincerely as she kneeled down to pick up the boxes Prue had dropped. "But I don't think I could have stayed hidden any longer. Especially if he got any closer to you," she admitted. "You have to remember my fear, Prue. The one Barbas tried to use against me."

"Which means for you, you pretty much never stop worrying about me, Piper or Phoebe," Prue replied in complete understanding.

Buffy opened one of the boxes to find an expensive diamond necklace placed in it. Then she opened the other to find another expenseive diamond necklace. She didn't say anything but showed them both to Prue expectantly.

Prue didn't take it but just looked over it. Eventually she reached out and closed the box. "I like the one you gave me better," she replied to her silent question. "It's much simpler and just as pretty," she added with a small smile.

"You mean the one I got you for Christmas, the silver heart?" Buffy questioned.

"Yep," Prue answered.

Buffy nodded and wrapped an arm around Prue, and hugged her cousin. She then sat the jewelry boxes down on the table. "I wonder why he gave you two though? I heard him say one was for me…but…"

"Probably liked you," Prue said with a shrug. "Maybe you garnered some respect. I assume you added in some Slayer strength when you squeezed his hand?"

"Yep," Buffy replied.

"That's probably why," Prue said certaintly.

"Okay, come on, I think I know who the demon is. We have to warn Piper and Phoebe," Buffy decided.

"I think we should take the car, just in case someone is watching for me," Prue suggested.

"What car?" Buffy inquired curiously.

Prue held up a set of keys. "Would you like to try it out first?" Buffy grinned. "Assuming of course you have your learners permit." She watched as Buffy's grin fell. "You can drive it back. That said before we leave. You need to look the part. We got away with it this time. But I expect the next time we see Bane it may not fly as easily."

Buffy nodded as she headed into the bedroom.

Halliwell Manor

Phoebe sat with Marcy rambling on about something in front of her as she picked up anything within reach that could potentially be used in a 'spell.' Piper was off pacing, unable to get in touch with Prue or Buffy. Phoebe seemed to be on the verge of gouging her eyes out.

Streets of San Francisco

Despite Piper having Buffy's wallet, Prue had let her drive anyways. Prue relaxed in the passenger seat of the new car, watching Buffy out of the corner of her eye. Buffy looked very much like a child on Christmas day that thought they had just gotten the best toy ever. Buffy was currently messing with the stereo and driving, perhaps a little recklessly so that he could determine the capabilities of the car.

"Yep, it's perfect," Buffy finally announced after taking a sharp turn while flooring the gas.

Prue rolled her eyes, unable to understand how a car could be that interesting. "Sorry, Buffy, I don't think you can keep it. Insurance on this thing would be more than the house payment," she pointed out sympathetically.

Buffy nodded in understanding. "That's okay, I wouldn't keep this one anyway. I wouldn't want to bankrupt you with my first car. That said when I do pass my driving test…"

"We'll go car shopping, promise, Buffy," Prue agreed.

"I think I know who we're after," Buffy told her cousin. "Barbas."

Prue's eyes went wide in surprise. "But we vanquished him or put him back in the bottle or whatever. I guess he must have found a way around it."

"Piper is going to be ecstatic that Barbas is back," Prue warned.

"You mean more ecstatic than she was with our idea for you to impersonate Ms. Hellfire and me to be Protégé?" Buffy replied with a sigh.

"Well you may have a point there," Prue admitted.

Halliwell Manor

"Oh my stars!" Marcy exclaimed as she pulled the kitchen cabinets open to look at the potion ingredients.

Piper and Phoebe ran in to see what was wrong. "What is it? What's wrong?" Piper demanded, her eyes scanning the room for anything dangerous.

Marcy pulled out two bags of ingredients and faced the three other women. "You can't keep wolfsbane and holy thistle on the same shelf. Their harmonics are in complete opposition. I mean, I don't want to second guess a sister witch but this is all wrong. I don't see how you can cast a spell that's worth a darn," she explained seriously as she began pulling out all their ingredients.

"Now wait just a minute, Missy," Piper started but trailed off at the sound of a car door closing.

Phoebe ran to look out the window and her jaw dropped. "Oh my god, Prue and Buffy's home… I think," she announced.

"That's Prue and Buffy alright," Piper admitted. She led the way to the foyer.

"Wow," Phoebe allowed as soon as Prue and Buffy had walked in the door.

Prue and Buffy stopped in front of them and Phoebe moved around them to check out their clothing while Piper smiled in greeting. "Gee, Prue, Buffy, it looks like being hired killers agree with you both," she complimented.

"I didn't want to run the risk of anyone seeing me out of uniform," Prue explained. "It's also why I had Buffy change when we got back to the apartment."

"We've been worried about you two," Piper said with a stern look at Prue and Buffy.

"We didn't want to jeopardize my cover," Prue apologized.

Phoebe nodded approvingly. "Nice cover," she remarked. "And nice Porchse."

Piper smirked. "A gift from Bane?" she guessed.

"No, Bane prefers…nevermind. Look, Buffy and I need to get back before they get suspicious. We just came by to tell you guys what Buffy thinks," Prue interrupted, ignoring all the questions about the car.

"Barbas," Buffy told her cousins. "I'm not sadly one hundred percent certain about that though. Is there any evidence or have you found something different?" she questioned.

Phoebe shrugged slightly. "Well, it is Friday the 13th and every person on the list that we know of is either a witch or a witch practitioner," she offered.

"M. Steadwell was?" Prue inquired.

"Yeah, a hyperactive witch practitioner," Piper grumbled.

"Does anybody remember how many names were on the list?" Buffy asked to the room.

"Eleven but if you count P. Halliwell three times, thirteen," Phoebe replied.

Prue and Buffy glanced at each other, it seemed Buffy's guess was right on. "The deadline is midnight tonight as well," Prue added.

"Sounds like Barbas to me," Phoebe remarked, earning a nod from Piper, Prue and Buffy. "But the problem is we eighty-sixed him already," she pointed out.

"Maybe he made a deal or something," Buffy suggested with a shrug. "I think there's enough evidence to suggest that Barbas is behind it." She looked at Prue. "If we're gonna meet Bane again then we need to start moving," she reminded her eldest cousin.

Prue nodded to Buffy before facing her sisters. "Buffy's right, we need to get back and see if we can flush Barbas out," she agreed, turning away from them.

Piper grabbed Prue and Buffy's arms to stop them. "Prue, Buffy, you two can't go back there," she insisted.

"Piper, it's almost eight. We have got to get to Barbas fast, otherwise, Bane's gonna want to see four bodies, our bodies," Prue argued.

Phoebe smirked slightly. "Have fun," she wished.

Prue hesitated leaving and fixed Phoebe with a funny look. "Phoebe, Buffy and I are working," she stated.

Phoebe rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "More like you both are working it," she laughed.

"Just make sure you stay with Buffy," Piper cut in and then glanced over at her cousin. "You hear that, Buffy? Don't leave Prue somewhere with Barbas by herself," she called.

"I'd never dream of it," Buffy returned.

Piper was shaking her head emphatically. "No, you guys are nuts, this is dangerous," she snapped.

"Buffy and I can handle it," Prue promised.

"No, Barbas can paralyze you and use your greatest fear against you," Piper reminded.

"How? I've already conquered my fear of drowning. What else can he do?" Prue pressed.

Phoebe looked thoughtful for a moment. "Maybe tap into another fear," she offered.

"Buffy hasn't conquered hers though," Piper added.

"We'll be fine. We'll call you guys and check in-in an hour," Prue promised and then left with Buffy.

Reptile Room Bar

Prue and Buffy stopped outside the door, giving them a few moments to get their Ms. Hellfire and Protégé act together. "So how do I look?" Prue asked, a little nervously though she'd never admit it.

"Hot," Buffy replied. "What about me?"

"Just as hot," Prue complimented. She threw the doors open for a dramatic entrance.

Bane met Prue and Buffy halfway across the crowded bar and took Prue and Buffy's hands, pulling them toward him. "You both look like you're ready to celebrate. Are the Halliwells dead?" he questioned.

Prue slid her long fur jacket off, allowing her tight leather pants and small, revealing leather top to show even more. Buffy slid off her own jacket to reveal a black dress. "The night's young. We have a little bit of business to discuss," Buffy replied, laying her jacket down on the bar as Prue laid hers down as well.

"What? All work and no play?" Bane joked with feigned disappointment in his voice.

"Oh, we'll play. Right after Protégé and I get our money," Prue retorted.

Bane nodded and backed away a step. "Well, like you said, Protégé, the night's young," he repeated her earlier words and then pulled both Prue and Buffy toward the dance floor. They found themselves surrounded by other dancers, though apparently Bane was the only one with two dance partners.

DJ suddenly came up from behind them and tapped Bane on the shoulder. Prue and Buffy were more than a little relieved as Bane backed away a step but forced themselves into a disappointed stance. "DJ, what's your problem?" Bane demanded, obviously irked at missing his chance again.

"I need to talk to you," DJ replied seriously.

"Better be life or death," Bane muttered under his breath before smiling apologetically at Prue and Buffy. "Excuse me," he wished, kissing the back of first Prue's hand and then Buffy's before following DJ off the dance floor.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Can you hear them?" Prue questioned looking at Buffy.

"Barely," Buffy answered. "Slayer hearing is only so good and the music is drowning them out somewhat."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Make it fast," Bane ordered.

"I just came from the morgue," DJ started.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"DJ has been to the morgue," Buffy told Prue.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Bane smirked and took a sip of a drink that the bartender handed him. "Looking for a date?" he joked.

"No, checking on yours. She's a fraud," DJ explained.

Bane tore his gaze away from Prue and Buffy to glance at DJ. "What are you talking about?" he questioned unamused.

DJ grabbed Bane's arm. "Marcy Steadwell isn't in the morgue and I think the real Ms. Hellfire is," DJ insisted. "Which if I am right that means her little protégé there is likely a fraud as well."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"We've been made," Buffy said as a frown creased her face. "He know's Ms. Hellfire is in the morgue."

"Be ready to flame," Prue ordered her cousin. "Even if you have to leave without me. We can't have them thinking your part of this, Buffy. You can…"

"I'm not doing that, Prue," Buffy interrupted as she glared at her cousin. "I am not leaving you to sacrifice yourself to Barbas. No way, no how. We flame out together or we don't flame out at all."

Prue looked at her cousin and instantly saw the fear in Buffy's eyes. She reluctantly nodded in agreement.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Bane's gaze flickered back to Prue and Buffy. "I don't believe it," he whispered but his uncertainty was clear in his voice.

"Barbas believes it," DJ pressed his point.

Bane strolled through the crowd and quickly took Prue and Buffy's hands and started to pull them toward the back entrance of the club.

"Hey, where're we going?" Prue asked in surprise.

"Well, you said you wanted to see Barbas. Now's the best time," Bane explained.

Prue and Buffy flashed a quick glance at each other.

Halliwell Manor

Piper dialed first Prue's cell and then Buffy's for the third time since they had left to only receive no answer.

Marcy ran around the room with a smoking piece of sage and Phoebe ran after her. "Marcy, please," Phoebe pleaded but Marcy kept skipping along.

"Favor us Sister Moon with your protective beams," Marcy sang while waving the smoking sage around the room.

Piper stuck a finger in the ear that wasn't listening into the phone to block some of Marcy's sound. "Oh, please, stop," she muttered under her breath.

"Give who dwell within this spell, safe days and sweet dreams," Marcy finished in her sing-song voice.

Piper irritably dropped the phone and flicked her wrists, freezing Marcy. "Okay, that's all folks," she announced.

"I think I like her better this way," Phoebe remarked casually. "Who knew perky could be so annoying?"

"How long do you think I can keep her like this?" Piper asked, tilting her head to the side in a calculating manner.

"Your power, your call," Phoebe replied with a shrug. "Hey, did you reach Prue or Buffy?" she questioned, turning to face Piper.

Piper shook her head. "No, still not answering their cells. They really should have checked in by now," she worried.

The two women turned to the foyer when the doorbell rang. "Ooh, maybe that's them," Phoebe suggested.

"Ringing the bell?" Piper countered unconvinced.

Phoebe shrugged. "Well, maybe they lost their keys," she offered.

Piper laughed softly. "Both of them?" she retorted, earning a playful glare from Phoebe.

"I bet Marcy would agree with me. Right, Marcy?" Phoebe asked the frozen practitioner while Piper went to answer the door.

Piper opened the door to find Dan on the other side with a large piece of plywood board. "Dan," she greeted as cheerfully as she could muster.

"Hey, Piper," Dan returned, maneuvering the large piece of wood through the doorway.

"Uh, Dan, wait," Piper called, lightly grabbing his arm.

Dan stopped and faced Piper. "I wanted to bring this over and leave it for my crew. They're having trouble finding enough plywood," he explained and then offered a wave to Phoebe as the younger Halliwell walked into the foyer. "Hey, Phoebe," he offered.

"Hey, Dan," Phoebe echoed. "Piper, don't forget about the…" she trailed off with an incoherent mumble.

Piper understood and nodded enthusiastically. "Mmhmm."

Dan watched the exchange curiously. "Is this not a good time?" he asked.

"Never," Piper admitted before she actually thought about what she was saying. "I mean, always," she corrected with a wide smile at Dan. "Come on back. Here, let me help you," Piper wished, lifting up the board as much as she could. Her purpose to keep it up so that it blocked Dan's view of the frozen Marcy.

"No, I got it," Dan promised her but Piper didn't let go. He slowly worked his way toward the solarium. "Piper, I got it. Piper!" Dan protested as they made their way along.

Phoebe walked back into the conservatory where the frozen Marcy was. She slowly pulled off the blanket that she had thrown over Marcy in case Dan managed to get a peek inside the room. "What am I going to do with you while he's here, Missy?" she asked rhetorically she then pushed Marcy slightly so that she unfroze.

"For those who dwell underneath this roof," Marcy started singing as if she hadn't been interrupted.

"Okay, you know, Marcy, there's lots of rooms that need protecting upstairs," Phoebe insisted, breaking Marcy's 'spell.'

Marcy looked at her and then looked confused as she noticed Piper was missing. "Wait a minute, where did Piper go?" she inquired.

"Oh, she just cast a little spell of her own," Phoebe lied.

Marcy's eyes widened in realization. "Ohhh!"

Phoebe waved her toward the stairs. "Yes, lots of rooms upstairs, honey. Quietly, quietly," she pleaded. She hastily followed after the departing Marcy.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Piper and Dan finally made it safely to the solarium and sat the board down on the floor. "So how you doing?" Dan questioned.

"Fine, it wasn't that heavy," Piper feigned ignorance at what he was really talking about.

"No, I'm talking about everything," Dan corrected in concern.

Piper nodded and offered him a small smile. "Oh, I'm fine with that too. I'm just actually a little stressed but everything's gonna be okay," she assured him.

"So have you thought anymore about my offer?" Dan asked. Piper hesitated and he immediately continued. "Hey, you know what? I don't wanna push you," he admitted.

"I know. It's just that today's been so crazy, I just haven't really been able to think about much," Piper hastily explained.

"Hey, you just let me know when you're ready," Dan allowed. Piper gave him the faintest of nods before he pulled her closer to him and drew her into a kiss. His arms wrapped around her, holding her tight until they eventually pulled apart. Dan smiled, kissed the top of Piper's head, and then moved around her to leave her with her thoughts.

Sutro Heights Apartments

Bane held the door open for Prue and Buffy to walk ahead of him into the bedroom. They complied with forced confidence and tried to figure out why they had to ride in a car when the apartment had been only a block away.

"You know, it's not midnight yet. We still have time. Lots of time," Prue assured him, mostly just to break the silence.

Bane closed the door behind him and pressed Prue against the wall. "Did you two think you could fool me? Get away with it?" he demanded, dropping his act. "You two killed the woman I loved," he accused.

"What are you talking about?" Buffy returned.

"You two killed Hellfire," Bane stated.

Prue tensed and met his gaze evenly. "I am Hellfire," she insisted.

"She is Hellfire," Buffy added.

"Liars!" Bane yelled, shoving Prue and Buffy backwards.

Barbas smoked in behind Prue and Buffy and caught them before they actually hit the wall. They spun around and gasped softly at his sudden appearance. "So very nice to see you again, Ms. Halliwell and Ms. Halliwell," Barbas greeted. He waved his hand past Prue's face.

Bane looked stunned as he stared at Prue. "Halliwell? From the list?" he questioned.

Barbas ignored Bane and smiled down at Prue. "Well, well, well. Can't say I'm surprised. Your greatest fear is that someone will kill your family," he read. Then he waved his hand past Buffy's face. "Ah and I get two for the price of one. Your greatest fear is also that someone will you're your family."

"No," Prue and Buffy whispered, trying to move away.

Barbas grabbed them and held the back of his hands against their heads and they froze. "Oh, yes. The demons are after them. Even as we speak. They have assumed your the identities of the rest of your family in order to kill them. But you must kill the imposters first, by midnight," he explained to her.

"Kill the imposters," Prue and Buffy repeated almost robotically.

"Yes," Barbas replied.

"Then I get to deal with them," Bane ordered. Barbas glared at him but didn't respond. He let Prue and Buffy go, satisfied that they would do as they were told.

Halliwell Manor

Phoebe ran to the door upon hearing the doorbell and opened it to see Darryl. "Hey, Darryl," she greeted quickly.

"Phoebe," Darryl returned with a slight nod.

"Come on in," Phoebe offered, shutting the door behind him. "Thanks for coming so fast. We need you to babysit," she explained.

Darryl frowned slightly. "Is this one breathing?" he asked suspiciously.

Phoebe couldn't resist a small smile. "Yes, this one is breathing," she assured him.

Darryl nodded, obviously relieved. "Good, where you heading?" he wondered curiously.

"To find Prue and Buffy," Phoebe answered.

Darryl didn't look happy with that reply. "Are they missing?" he questioned.

"Well, you know, Prue was impersonating the hit woman and Buffy was shadowing her. But they were supposed to check in by now," Phoebe relayed.

Darryl shook his head in disbelief. "I'm going with you," he decided.

"No, no, you can't. We appreciate it but you can't come with us," Phoebe denied his help.

"You don't have to hide anything from me anymore," Darryl retorted in irritation.

Phoebe nodded soothingly. "I know that, Darryl, but believe me, you don't want to be anywhere near us right now. We would never forgive ourselves if anything happened to you," she explained.

Darryl reluctantly nodded.

Sutro Heights Apartments

"Are you sure that was the Porsche parked out front?" Phoebe asled as she and Piper stepped out of the elevator.

"Positive," Piper confirmed. "Prue and Buffy are here somewhere."

"Let's just hope they're alone," Phoebe hoped as Buffy and Prue walked in to the room. "Prue. Buffy. Thank god, are you both alright?" she demanded, running toward them.

Prue threw her hand out at Phoebe. "Imposter!" she snapped and Phoebe was thrown backwards in surprise.

Piper ran forward to stand between the fallen Phoebe and her very upset sister and cousin. "Prue, what the hell are you doing?" she questioned harshly.

Buffy stared at Piper with a deep frown as her eyes met Piper's. "We won't let you hurt them," she stated as a fireball formed in her hand. She threw it at Piper who dove out of the way.

Phoebe was back on her feet and pulled Piper to hers. "You alright?" she questioned.

"No, I'm not. Are you?" Piper replied as Phoebe shook her head as they hurried into the hallway. "What is going on?"

"I think you need to freeze them fast." Phoebe suggested.

"Good witches don't freeze, remember," Piper reminded her sister.

"They don't look so good right now," Phoebe retorted as Buffy and Prue walked into the hallway. "Who are we trying to hurt? Buffy? Prue?"

"My sisters," Prue answered.

"My cousins," Buffy answered. "You won't hurt them!"

Prue flicked a finger at a decorative plate and sent it spinning at Phoebe who dove out of the way as it smashed against the wall.

A fireball formed in Buffy's hand and she flung it at Piper who dove next to Phoebe.

"They've gone crazy or something," Piper decided with narrowed eyes.

Phoebe pushed Piper down the hallway. "To the patio, fast," she ordered. She and Piper spun in circles for a place to hide before she pointed frantically at a plant lattice. They both squeezed behind it just as Prue and Buffy stalked out after them. "Oh no, oh no, oh no," she whispered, feeling a sneeze come on.

"Don't you dare," Piper snapped under her breath just as Phoebe released a loud sneeze that turned Prue and Buffy back in their direction. "Okay, so what do we know?"

"That they don't know we're their sisters," Phoebe answered immediately.

"Or cousin in Buffy's case," Piper interjected.

"Do you really want to nitpick right now?" Phoebe questioned.

"Alright, okay, we need to convince them we are…" Piper decided.

Phoebe shifted nervously as Prue and Buffy closed the distance between them. "How do we do that?" she inquired.

" We've gotta try and convince Prue to astral project. Make her want to be in two places at once. Then convince her and once she's convinced then…I don't know maybe have her astral project into Buffy and force her to see the truth?" Piper suggested. "You ready?"

"Yeah," Phoebe said.

Piper ran out one side of the lattice while Phoebe ran out the other.

Prue and Buffy hesitated, looking between them. "Hi!" Phoebe greeted for no other reason than to keep their attention on her while Piper got a little further away.

"Hey, Prue! You can't catch me," Piper taunted.

"Uh, no, it's me you want, over here!" Phoebe insisted, backing away.

"Come on, Prudence!" Piper yelled.

"No, me!" Phoebe argued.

"It's a trick," Buffy said looking between Piper and Phoebe.

Prue glanced between one of her sisters to the other before she astral projected over to Piper in a red flash. Her real form's eyes closed but otherwise didn't move. Astral Prue advanced on Piper.

"Phoebe…Phoebe, we need to hurry before she becomes one again," Piper called out as she spun and ran up the stairs to the top deck.

Phoebe ran past Buffy and the frozen real Prue and took the stairs after Piper and Astral Prue. "Prue, Barbas has brainwashed you and Buffy!" Phoebe blurted out as soon as she reached the top.

Astral Prue turned back to Phoebe. "You're going to hurt them," she stated as Buffy started toward the stairs.

"Prue, we're your sisters… Listen to me. You gave me the chickpox. Remember?" Piper insisted.

"I taught you how to French kiss," Phoebe followed, hurrying around Prue to join Piper, she noticed that Buffy was starting up the stairs. "We have to hurry, Buffy is on her way up." They quickly moved to put a wall between them and Prue and Buffy.

"You broke your ankle when you were seven. Come on, Prue. We went to Duran Duran together. You stretched out my leg warmers," Piper continued hopefully.

Phoebe nodded eagerly. "And then you gave them to me," she added.

Astral Prue was hesitating just a few steps away from them. "How do you know all this?" she demanded.

"Because we're your sisters, Prue," Phoebe promised.

Astral Prue looked confused. "Sisters…" she whispered.

Piper and Phoebe slowly moved away from their protective wall and toward Prue. When she didn't attack them they pulled her into a hug. A second later, there was a red flash and Astral Prue disappeared, nearly causing Piper to fall over with nothing supporting her anymore.

Prue stumbled backwards at the sudden weariness. "Are you with us, Prue?" Phoebe asked hopeful.

"I want Barbas," Prue answered.

Piper and Phoebe smiled as Buffy continued to advance. "Prue, we have problem," Piper called out. "Buffy's still brainwashed."

Prue astral projected over between Buffy and Piper and Phoebe in a red flash. Her real form's eyes closed but otherwise didn't move. "Buffy, stop."

"Prue, they are going to kill Piper and Phoebe." Buffy told her eldest cousin. .

"Buffy, think for a second." Astral Prue pleaded. "Tell her something like you did me," she called over her shoulder

"Buffy when the Order of Taraka was after you, you ran because you were scared of dying," Piper reminded her cousin. And then she smiled when she remembered the picture of Buffy figure skating she had seen in one of Buffy's photo albums. "Oh and you were so adorable in your Dorothy Hamill phase."

"Buffy, after we came back from 1975 you got a letter from your mom," Phoebe said going next. "She said she wanted to name you Payson not Buffy. But your adopted father wouldn't let her."

"Buffy, what did Melinda see?" Astral Prue questioned.

"That you, Piper, Phoebe, and I would have many more generations of her beautiful daughters and that I would be the longest living Slayer." Buffy answered.

Piper and Phoebe stepped up to flank Astral Prue, who wrapped her arms around their waists. "Buffy, that vision is about to end if you don't think for a second," she told her cousin. "Your about to end that vision here and now. You are about to kill two of your cousins."

Buffy looked at Phoebe and Piper who stepped forward out of Prue's embrace. "Piper? Phoebe?" she asked hopeful.

Piper and Phoebe smiled as they said in unison. "Yes, Buffy," They wrapped their arms around their cousin.

There was a red flash and Astral Prue disappeared. When she was back in her body, Prue, rushed up the stairs and wrapped her arms around Buffy from behind.

"I'm sorry," Buffy whispered to the three of them.

"It's alright Buffy," Piper said. "So now all we have to do is lay low until midnight and then he'll disappear and go back to wherever the hell it is he came from," she pointed out.

"No, he's back early. Who knows what rules apply or don't. I don't wanna take any chances. Let's go show him what his greatest fear is," Buffy retorted.

Phoebe smirked and nodded in agreement. "Yep, that's Buffy…" she admitted to Piper.

Reptile Room Bar

Barbas watched as the minute hand of the clock moved to 11:57. He frowned and faced Bane, who was leaning against the wall of the apartment. "If they're not back in one minute then I'm going to spend my last two minutes killing you," Barbas warned.

Bane rolled his eyes at the threat. "Hey, I didn't come to you. You came to me, remember?" he countered.

"That's right," Barbas agreed. "If you hadn't been blinded by your passion then I would be minutes away from freedom right now," he retorted. His head snapped around to the door as Prue and Buffy strolled in. "Are they dead?" he questioned.

"They're right where they belong," Prue replied. Phoebe and Piper walked through the open door to stand on either side of her and Buffy.

"Kill them," Barbas ordered, pushing Bane forward.

Bane pulled his gun out against the four of them and Piper hastily threw a hand out so that the room froze. Phoebe smiled and walked around Bane. "Ooh, I'm beginning to see your attraction to the dark side," she joked.

Prue turned slightly to face Piper. "Do you think you can just unfreeze him?" she asked with a nod at Bane.

Piper appeared thoughtful before shrugging slightly. "I don't know, I've never tried," she admitted. She waited for Phoebe to take the gun out of Bane's hand and then walked a few steps forward. A flick of her wrist and Bane unfroze. He looked confused that he now had no gun.

"Looking for this?" Phoebe questioned with a smirk while holding the gun up for him to see. She then tossed it to Buffy.

Buffy smirked as she bent the barrel before tossing it aside. "Now its no use to anyone."

Bane looked at Prue and Buffy. "What's going on?" he inquired.

"Witchcraft at it's best," Prue answered.

Buffy smiled as she looked at Prue. "I never tried it with a live person. Do you think I could telekinetic flame him?"

Prue chuckled at the suggestion. "Try it," she told her cousin.

"Bane!" Buffy said as she thrust out her hand and Bane flamed out and when he flamed back in he was sent crashing into the wall.

Prue high-fived Buffy beside her. "Nice," she complimented.

The clock chimed midnight and Barbas unfroze. "No! No. Nooo!" Barbas yelled as he spun in a fast circle until he was engulfed in flames and disappeared.

"I never get tired of kicking his butt," Buffy admitted.

"Here, here!" Phoebe agreed.

Prue and Buffy approached Bane who was still on the floor. "Just a little something to think about in jail," Prue told him.

Bane's gaze flickered up to meet theirs. "It won't be the only thing I think about, I promise," he returned.

"That had better not be a threat," Buffy warned, as she made a squeezing motion with her fist to remind him how strong she was.

"A compliment," Bane corrected. "On you both."

Buffy snorted. "You do know I'm underage," she told him.

February 14, 1998 – Saturday

Halliwell Manor

Phoebe and Piper laughed as they made funny faces at each other through the newly fixed windows that they were cleaning. "Dan did a really good job with these windows. He is obviously very good with his hands," Phoebe insinuated with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

"Hey, hands off those hands," Piper warned with a mock glare. She walked around the sliding door and dropped into one of the seats in the solarium.

"So did you decide whether you were gonna go with him or not?" Phoebe asked curiously.

Piper shrugged slightly. "Mmm… I think I will. It's just an overnighter, right? And separate bedrooms," she admitted.

"Yeah, right, no one goes on an overnighter with separate bedrooms. You got different plans," Phoebe teased.

Piper waved a finger at Phoebe in a scolding manner as Buffy came up beside her. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

"There is no amount of I'm sorry I can say to make up for trying to kill you," Buffy admitted with a glance at the floor. She let out a sigh before looking up at Piper and Phoebe. "But otherwise I'm okay."

"Well, just tell Marcy that she can sell the ring and use the money to rebuild the bookstore," Prue said into the Phone as she came into the room. "Tell her it's a thank you for protecting us. No Darryl, the ring is not hot. I'll talk to you later."

"So, what else did Hellfire and Protégé get from Bane?" Piper wondered.

"Diamond necklaces, bracelets, a Hockney, a Salvador Dali," Prue listed.

"You can't really keep all that stuff, can you?" Piper asked, already knowing the answer.

"No," Prue answered. "It wouldn't really be right but maybe I can figure out a way to use it for some good and save my job. And if not, I can always astral project and job-hunt twice as fast."

"And I think I have the perfect charity for it to go to," Buffy admitted as Prue, Piper and Phoebe looked at her.

"Sure, just rub it in. I would love to be in two places at once." Phoebe joked.

"As long as one of those places is fun, I'll be happy," Prue admitted. "I think I may have learned a few things from Ms. Hellfire," she told them as the doorbell rang. "You know, change my routine, shake things up a little bit." Buffy, Phoebe and Piper laughed as she headed for the door. She was surprised at who she found on the other side. "Jack."

"You know, Prue," Jack said glaring at the woman, "it is bad enough that you don't answer your phone, come into the office or otherwise appear to be doing your job but now you're gonna take me down with you. What have you got to say for yourself?"

"$275,000." Prue answered as Buffy walked up next to her.

"Excuse me?" Jack said in confusion.

"It's the market value of the anonymous estate donation Buffy and I were out acquiring," Prue explained.

"They had one request that all proceeds go to Stop the Violence Foundation," Buffy suggested.

Prue looked at Buffy and smiled at her cousin's suggestion. She looked back at Jack. "Not bad for a day's worth of work, now, is it?" she wondered.

Jack looked at the two of them and then shook his head. "No, it certainly isn't. And you know, I never doubted you for a moment, partner."

Prue snorted. "Liar," she told him. "Let's go celebrate, partner."

"Okay." Jack agreed.

"Come on, Buffy, my treat," Prue said as she wrapped an arm around her cousin.

Jack looked at the youngest Halliwell and the nodded. "Sure why not," he agreed as they walked down the sidewalk toward Jack's car. "You helped Prue and I keep our jobs after all."