Chapter 143: Love's A Witch
Floating about six feet off of the floor, Phoebe is trying to meditate as she sits legs crossed in lotus position, her eyes closed and wrists resting on her knees. "Ommmmm. Ommmmm." Six feet under her, Piper furiously vacuums the main hallway carpet. Phoebe tries to concentrate, but she can't seem to get there. "Piper, do you mind? I'm trying to meditate up here if you haven't noticed."
"Well, can't you block out the noise?" Piper asked.
"Yeah, the vacuum cleaner I can block out. Your nerves, I can't." Phoebe said.
Piper stops moving the vacuum and looks up at Phoebe. "My nerves? Surely your not talking about what happened with Dawn on Halloween." Then it dawns on Piper what she's talking about. "Oh, for god's sakes, woman!"
"I'm sorry. You're anxious, I'm anxious." Phoebe said.
"But it's my first date. It's not yours." Piper said as Buffy walked down the stairs.
Phoebe nodded, "But, unfortunately, it feels as though it's my first date."
"Well, can't you control it?" Piper asked.
"Can you two keep it down? I just got Celia to sleep." Buffy said.
"What do you think I'm doing up here, cleaning the chandelier?" Phoebe asked.
"Now, that would be helpful." Piper said.
Paige walks into the house and shuts the front door behind her. Although she doesn't say anything, from the look on her face she's quite upset.
The amount of emotion flowing from Paige hits Phoebe full force and she falls down to the floor landing on her butt. "Whoa! Ooh! Talk about your psychic hit."
Buffy goes and helps Phoebe up as they and Piper look at Paige.
Paige doesn't want to talk about it. "Hi. How's it going? Don't ask." She walks up to them and they all finally get a good look at her.
"Are you hurt? What happened?" Piper asked.
"It's nothing. I'm fine." Paige said.
"You're not fine, Paige." Phoebe countered. "You're scared to death. Why don't people in this family own their emotions?"
"Ok, this empath thing? It's very annoying." Paige leaves the room to head to the kitchen.
"Copy that." Piper follows Paige out of the room.
Buffy shook her head and she too follows Paige.
In the kitchen Paige wets a piece of cloth in the kitchen sink and holds it against her wound when Piper and Buffy walks into the kitchen.
"Paige?" Piper said worried.
Paige shook her head. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
"It doesn't look like "nothing" to either Piper or myself. Was that an energy ball?" Buffy said.
Paige sighed, "I don't know. I was playing pinochle. I didn't see." Piper and Buffy don't say anything obviously not sure of the relevance of what they heard. "I'm temping grandma. She's got some deep, dark secrets. I'll tell you what."
"Another temp job involving magic?" Piper asked.
Phoebe walks into the kitchen and stays a distance away from them, yet listening in on the conversation. She leans over the table.
Paige mutters. "Yeah, right. I'm never gonna get away."
"But you want to." Phoebe said.
Buffy, Piper and Paige turn around to look at Phoebe. Piper and Paiger are a little more than annoyed by the constant reading of their emotions. Buffy shakes her head she is fairly certain that Phoebe is getting nothing from her.
Little did Buffy know though Phoebe had started to feel her emotions as well. She just hadn't said anything yet about them. She was unsure what exactly she was feeling from her.
"Shush!" Piper said.
Phoebe holds up her hands in apology. "Sorry."
Buffy, Paige and Piper turn back to the sink. Buffy and Piper has their eyes on Paige's wound.
"Do you want me to get the Book?" Buffy asked.
"No, actually, I don't. I want to follow this one through all by myself." Paige said.
"Oh." Piper and Buffy said.
Phoebe whispers to Piper and Buffy. "She's feeling a little suppressed by us."
Paige turns around, puts her hands on her hips and glares at Phoebe.
"You are?" Piper said, surprised.
Phoebe shrugs her shoulders at Paige.
"You know, what I was talking about. The temp job thing, why I'm trying to find my own path just separate from –" Paige said.
"From us?" Buffy asked.
Chris bursts into the kitchen. "... So I checked the house, no sign of –"
Piper makes up her mind. She heads out of the kitchen past Phoebe. "I should cancel my date."
"What?! Why?" Buffy and Piper asked.
"Because we're having issues." Piper said.
Phoebe shook her head, "No, the issue is you're afraid to date, Piper. You can't let your fear stop you." She turns to look at Paige. "You, on the other hand, should." She looks at Buffy but says nothing.
"Gee, I wonder why I'm feeling suppressed." Paige said.
"Phoebe, this is ridiculous. It's just getting worse." Piper said.
Phoebe sighed, "I know. So what should I do? Should I just keep all your feelings to myself? Would that make you guys happy?"
Buffy, Piper and Paige answer together. "Yes!"
"Ok, then that's what I'll do." Phoebe said.
Phoebe turns around and glances at Paige, although she's speaking to the room in general. "Someone's hiding something from me."
Paige raises her hands in surrender as if it's not her feelings that are being read at that moment.
Chris appears suddenly worried by the turn of the conversation and its implications. He makes a hasty exit out of the room. "Just let me know if anyone sees Leo, ok?" He backs up and leaves the room.
Phoebe turns to watch him go. She's still trying to find the source of the feelings.
"I gotta go back and check on grandma." Paige rubs at the bloodied wound.
Phoebe looks alarmed. "Wait, you're still going? Paige, you're scared to death. I can't believe you'd still go –"
Paige has had enough. She holds out her hand toward the fruit basket. "Apple."
The apple in the fruit basket orbs toward Paige. She pushes it toward Phoebe's mouth. The apple re-orbs in Phoebe's mouth stopping her from talking any more. Frustrated, Paige throws the bloody cloth on the table and walks past Phoebe. She grunts in frustration at her as she leaves. Buffy and Piper smiles quietly from the side.
"Well, that's one way to do it." Buffy said, amused.
Phoebe takes a bite of the apple and removes the rest of it from her mouth.
Piper watches her, then turns her head to hide her smile. She leaves the room as Phoebe chews on her apple, shakes her head and watches her go.
Phoebe turns to Buffy. "I think we should talk."
Buffy shook her head, "I'd appreciate it if we didn't."
"Buffy the thing is I get very little from you." Phoebe said. "Your cut off from your emotions."
"Drop it Pheebs." Buffy said and stormed out of the kitchen.
Later in the upstairs bathroom Piper is sitting on the counter as PHOEBE puts her lipstick on for her. Buffy watches from the doorway.
"Ok, go 'ahh'." Phoebe said.
"Ahh." Piper said.
"Good. All right. Take a look." Phoebe pulls back as Piper holds up the hand mirror to look at her reflection.
"Yeah, ok, think 'newly single mom', not 'two-bit hooker'." Piper said.
Buffy rolled her eyes.
"Ok, we try again." Phoebe said.
Piper wipes off the lipstick as Phoebe sighs as she starts to reapply Piper's
lipstick. "You're, uh, a little distracted."
"I know. I'm having a very hard time concentrating. I think this empath power is driving me crazy." Phoebe said before glancing at Buffy and thinking to herself. 'Plus it's not helping who I want it to help.'
"You?" Piper asked.
Phoebe nodded, "Well, you try having PMS for five sisters every month. It's a good thing no one in this family's having sex. I'd be feeling that, too."
"Yeah, ok, so let's skip the vamp red." Piper said.
"You know, if I can't ignore the bloating and the cramping and the mood swings, how am I supposed to ignore the fact that my sister is scared to death?" Phoebe said before glancing at Buffy again and thinking. 'Or my other sister is mostly closed herself off and even now a couple months later she still feels very little.'
"Phoebe." Buffy warns.
Phoebe sighed, "Right. Ok. I'm just gonna mind my own business."
Piper nodded. "All we have to do is respect what Paige wants. And clearly what she wants is not our help."
"You know, she thinks that's what she wants, but I know what she really wants, and what she really wants is our help." Phoebe said.
"That's it. I'm staying home." Piper said.
"What? Why?" Buffy asked.
Piper jumps down from the counter and walks out of the bathroom as Buffy and Phoebe hurries after her. "To make sure that Phoebe leaves Paige alone."
"No - Piper, no, you have to go out. You need to go out, and this is not me channeling, this is just me talking. Trust me. The sooner you get back on the dating horse, the easier it will be." Phoebe said.
Piper nodded, "No, I know you're right. You're absolutely right it's just the truth is I'm a little scared. I mean, I was married to an angel, for crying out loud. Who is gonna compare to that?"
"We know, but, Piper, you also dated a demon, a warlock, and a ghost. Mark was the best out of the three if you ask me." Buffy said.
"You know, that's what you should be scared of." Phoebe added.
"Super pep talk, sisters." Piper said as the front doorbell rings.
Phoebe gasps and puts her hands to her cheeks as she looks at Piper proudly. "You look beautiful."
"Hmm." Piper said as they make their way downstairs and she opens the door.
Seth, Piper's date, is standing out on the porch. "Hey."
"Hi." Piper said.
Seth smiled, "Wow, you look great. I'm not surprised, it's just that you normally–"
"Oh, yeah. No bottle, no binky." Piper said.
Seth nodded, "Yeah, no spit-up."
Piper smiled, "Yeah."
There's a small moment of awkward silence. Seth motions to the car behind him. "So, you ready? You wanna go?"
"Mm-hmm." Piper leans back a bit to look at Phoebe and Buffy standing just behind the door.
"Psst!" Phoebe started.
Piper moves her hand to stop Phoebe from talking. Seth sees Piper move backward and wonders who's standing behind the door.
"He likes you. I can tell." Phoebe whispers.
Buffy shook her head.
Piper looks at Seth and sees him watching her ... them. She holds up a finger to give her a moment. "One second." She looks to Phoebe. "Leave Paige alone. I mean it. Buffy can you make sure she leaves Paige alone."
"I will. I will." Phoebe said.
Buffy nodded, "I will."
Piper grabs her bag and heads out the door. "Ok."
Phoebe closes the door behind them. "Have fun, have fun. I will leave Paige alone."
Phoebe shuts the door closed. "I can't. I can't."
"Phoebe," Buffy warns as Phoebe rushes through the foyer calling out to Chris.
"Chris!"
Chris orbs into the living room. His shirt is dirtied with splotches of mud. Wonder what he's been looking for. "Yeah?"
Phoebe and Buffy turns around and looks at Chris.
"Hey, Buffy and I need you to watch Celia and Wyatt for us." Phoebe said.
"Phoebe, No." Buffy said.
Chris shook his head, "What? No. No way."
Phoebe squints her eyes at Chris as she definitely is picking something up from him. "What's wrong? Why are you worried?"
"What's wrong? What's wrong is I don't do babies. One and under crowd, not my thing. Leo, however ..." Chris said as Leo orbs into the room. "... Great with kids. Especially his own and his niece." He looked to Leo. "You're not following me, are you?"
"Why? Should I be?" Leo asked suspicious of Chris.
The two men look at each other. Phoebe and Buffy look at each other knowing something is going on between those two.
"Oh, there's a lot of love in this room." Phoebe turns and looks at Leo. Chris waits for his moment to leave. "Ok, so there's a bottle in the fridge if Celia or Wyatt wakes up. And the diaper rash cream only if they need it, ok? We gotta keep that butt moist!" She followed by Buffy runs out of the room.
Chris chuckled. "Did you get that?" He orbs out leaving LEO stuck there with no way to leave.
Leo rushes after Phoebe and Buffy who are in the dining room. "Phoebe! Buffy! Wait, wait, wait." Phoebe and Buffy turns around to look at Leo. "I can't do this right now. I gotta follow ... up on some things."
"Well, Buffy and I have to check on Paige and make sure she's all right." Phoebe said.
"Against mine or Piper's objections." Buffy said.
"Where's Piper?" Leo asked. "Or Dawn?"
"Dawn's at school, Leo." Buffy said.
Busted, Phoebe finds herself cornered. "Piper is ..." Leo leans forward. "She's kind of ..."
Leo waits patiently for the answer.
Buffy shook her head, "Piper's on a date."
Phoebe grimaces at Leo.
Leo wipes his face clear of all reaction, trying to hide the hurt. "Oh. Well ..."
Phoebe sighed, "I'm so sorry. You're hurting. I'm here for you. I just can't be here for you right now. I'm gonna be in there for you, though, checking on Paige with Buffy." She turns and runs out of the dining room leaving Leo speechless and quietly disturbed.
Buffy looks at Leo for a moment and then follows Phoebe into the kitchen. Where she find Phoebe holding the bloodied cloth that Paige put down on the kitchen table earlier. Phoebe holds out the cloth indicating Buffy should take hold of it.
Buffy sighed and took hold of the cloth as Phoebe chants. "Lead us back from whence this came. Help us help our sister's pain."
Immediately, golden orbs swirl around Phoebe and Buffy and they disappears.
In the sitting room of the Montana Residence, Richard Montana walks up to Paige who is sitting on one of the seats and holding a cloth to her wound on her right shoulder which started to bleed again. "Hey." Paige looks up at Richard. "Here. Drink this." He holds out the glass of light-purple liquid.
Paige takes it and looks at it. "What is it?"
"It's a family recipe. It'll make you feel better, speed up the healing process." Richard said as Paige looks at him suspiciously. "I'm the one who shouldn't trust you, remember? Drink up."
Paige glances down at the liquid, then raises it to her lips. She drinks. She looks up and through the doorway sees Rosaline carrying a tray of vials with different color liquids in them. Risakube stops in the doorway. "Are those potions?"
Richard turns around and looks at his mother. "Yeah." Rosaline glances down at the tray. "I told you, we're witches." Rosaline continues down the hallway.
"Good ones or bad ones?" Paige asked.
"What do you think?" Richard asked.
"Well, I don't know. You did just try to fry an eighty-year-old grandma with an energy ball." Paige said.
Richard takes a seat across Paige. "We didn't do that. That was the Callaways. They made it look like it was us. It was a set-up."
"Ok, so they're the bad ones." Paige said.
Richard shook his head, "Well, no, they're not bad. They're just - they're bad to us." At that moment, Steve rushes into the room and picks up a tray of vials. He looks up and sees Paige. "See those scars? Years ago, the Callaways cast a plague on us." Steve takes the tray and backs out of the room. "Of course, in return we cursed them with boils. Or was it the boils and then the plague? I don't know, I can't remember. A feud this long, you start to lose track, you know?"
"How come you don't have scars?" Paige asked.
"You can't curse people that don't practice magic. I don't do that anymore." Richard said.
"Why not?" Paige asked.
Richard pauses, then stands up. He moves toward the fireplace mantle as he explains. "Well, last time I did it, it brought me to a place I don't want to go again." He glances at the frame photograph of Olivia Callaway. Paige glances at the photograph. He notices her eyes move toward the picture. He turns to look at the photo also, then explains. "That's ... Olivia, my Fiancée. Olivia Callaway."
"Mm, sleeping with the enemy." Paige said.
"She was actually ... uh ... killed in the cross-fire last year." Richard said.
Paige sighed, "I'm - I'm really sorry."
Richard nodded, "It's all right. You didn't know. She'd be more upset than anybody that this truce ended. She - she wanted peace."
Paige shrugged. "Maybe that's why I'm here - to help."
Richard looks at Paige quietly and thinks about it. Suddenly he turns around at the sound of his father's cry. Paige gets up, alarmed. They both run toward the study. Richard opens the study doors and doesn't move. Rosaline and the others reach the study behind Richard.
Rosaline rushes into the study to check on her husband. "Oh, please, god, no! Oh, my god!"
Paige also walks into the study. She looks out at the broken window and sees the glass picture window of the house across the street. She also sees Phoebe and Buffy walk into view. She stares at them, her mouth falling open.
Phoebe looks back at Paige through the energy ball-sized hole in the window and waves back at her while Buffy shakes her head.
Paige glares angrily at Phoebe and Buffy.
Back at the Manor Paige walks angrily through the dining room. Phoebe and Buffy follows behind her.
"Paige, I said I'm sorry. What more do you want from me?" Phoebe said.
Paige shook her head, "Sorry doesn't begin to cover it. Especially when you dragged Buffy into it."
"Look, I was worried about you. I thought you were in trouble." Phoebe said as Dawn walked through the front door.
"If you were so worried, why were you two at the Callaway's?" Paige asked.
"The spell was supposed to take us to you, not them. How was I supposed to know you were across the street?" Phoebe said.
Dawn walks over to Buffy and whispers, "What's going on?"
"You weren't supposed to know because you weren't supposed to be involved." Paige said.
Buffy sighed and whispered, "Phoebe and her empathy powers butting in. Paige didn't want help on a magical problem and Phoebe had to go and butt in anyways. On top of that she dragged me in to it."
Chris and Piper orbs into the hallway.
"Well, it's a good thing I did get involved because obviously there's a war going on over there." Phoebe said.
"I can handle it." Paige said.
Phoebe looks at Paige's shoulder wound. "Oh, really?"
Piper whistles to get Phoebe and Paige's attention. Phoebe and Paige are both startled as they, Buffy and Dawn turn to look at her. "Hi. Hey. What is this about a war?"
"Ask Miss Buttinsky over there. She and Buffy, who she dragged with her, was with the Callaway's when they killed Richard's dad." Paige said.
"Paige, I'm telling you, they didn't kill anyone." Phoebe said.
"I was there." Paige said.
Buffy nodded, "Yeah, so were we."
Leo steps onto the stairs, a half-filled milk bottle in his hand. "Hey, can you guys keep it down? I just got Wyatt and Celia to sleep."
"What are you doing here?" Piper asked shocked to see Leo.
Leo rushes down the rest of the stairs to join them as Phoebe pulls Paige and ushers everyone into the next room.
"Ok, in the living room. In the living room. Let's go. Let's go." Phoebe said.
"Can I go now?" Chris asked.
"Nope." Leo grabs Chris and pushes him into the next room to join the others.
"Paige, Buffy and I are telling you the energy ball did not come from the Callaways." Phoebe said.
Piper takes her purse off her shoulders and settles down on the sofa. Dawn and Buffy both sit down next to her.
"I saw it come through the Callaways' window." Paige said.
"It couldn't have." Phoebe said.
"Oh, she's not only butting in, she's taking sides." Paige said.
Phoebe shook her head, "It's not only what Buffy and I saw, but it's what I felt. Don't you think if they just tried to kill someone, I would've felt some intense anger coming from them, but I didn't."
Paige glared at Phoebe. "I don't know. Are you sensing any intense anger coming at you right now?"
Phoebe's not going to take the bait. She sits down on the arm rest of the chair behind her. "No, but what I can sense is that maybe your attraction to this Richard guy is clouding your better judgment."
"I hate talking to an empath." Paige plops down in the seat nearby.
"You're not the only one." Buffy said as she glared at Phoebe.
"Wait a second. Hold it. Didn't they fire on the Callaway grandmother when you got hurt? Maybe this is just retribution." Piper said.
Paige shook her head, "No, Richard said his family didn't fire on them. I believe him."
"Then where did the energy ball come from?" Dawn asked. "You two are convinced there was one and they don't just materialize."
"Maybe they do." Piper said.
"What do you mean?" Leo asked.
Chris rolls his eyes at Leo.
"Well, if Richard says it was no one in his family, maybe it was somebody else. Maybe a third party." Piper said.
Leo nodded, "If so, the two families need to know before this escalates any further."
"You've been in both houses." Piper said to Paige. "Do you think you can get them to come here?"
"What do you mean, like, peace talks?" Paige asked.
Piper nodded, "Yeah. Why not?"
"You've got an Elder right here. Who better to mediate?" Chris slaps Leo's back. "Good luck." He orbs out of the room as Leo glances frustratedly at the space beside him.
"I think this could work." Buffy said.
Paige shook her head, "I don't know. This feud's been going back for generations. I don't even think they know how it started."
"Still, it's worth a shot." Piper said.
Paige considers it.
Later Leo walks out of the utility room into the kitchen carrying the bloodied cloth in his hand. He holds it up and shows it to Piper, Buffy and Dawn. "This it?"
"That's it." Buffy said.
"Drop it in." Piper added.
"What are you looking for?" Dawn asked as Leo puts the piece of bloodied cloth into the heating pot.
"I want to see if Paige was actually hit by an energy ball after all." Piper said.
"What else could it be?" Leo asked.
"Let's see." Piper said.
As PIPER stirs the pot, Leo takes a deep breath and turns the conversation to other matters. He walks around Piper, Buffy and Dawn.
"So, um ... how was your date?" Leo asked Piper.
"Short." Piper asked.
"Oh, really? Sorry." Leo said. "Short. You mean like ... leprechaun short?"
Buffy rolled her eyes. "No, Leo, he wasn't short."
Piper nodded, "The date was cut short by this."
Leo sighs with understanding. "Oh, right. Sorry." He again moves to around the table and clears his throat. "So, uh ... don't you think you should use protection?"
Piper, Buffy and Dawn looks up from they cooking pot, their eyes opening wide and jaw dropping at the turn of the question.
Leo motions with his hands, pointing to the pot in front of them. "I mean for your hands, the soup?"
"Ok." Piper, Buffy and Dawn said together.
"Look, I know this is awkward me being here and all." Leo said.
Buffy looks at Dawn as they both wonder if they should leave Leo and Piper alone.
Piper glances at the pot. "It's just as I suspected."
"What does that mean?" Leo asked as Buffy and Dawn glance at the pot.
"Not you, the pan. Keep up, will ya? Her shirt, it's getting lighter. Which means Paige was not hit by an energy ball. She was hit by a plasma ball." Piper said.
"Plasma?" Leo asked.
"And plasma only occurs on the spiritual plane." Dawn said. "Right?"
"Right, Dawnie." Piper said as they all quiet and think about the implications of this new piece of information.
Phoebe walks into the kitchen. "Ok! They're all here, and these people are in major need of peace talks."
"Actually, what they need is a séance." Piper puts her tongs aside and heads upstairs as Leo, Buffy and Dawn follow her.
Moments later in the attic James Callaway questions Piper who is holding a couple of thick red candles in her hands. "You think a ghost is trying to break the truce?"
Piper nodded, "An angry relative, maybe? You know, someone who's still tethered to the feud, someone who can't or won't let go." She walks away and heads for the table.
Paige whispers to Piper. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"
"No time, sorry." Piper said.
"This is ridiculous. It's just another one of their tricks." Steve turns away.
Richard tries to calm him down. "No, it's not. I asked them to come. Just let it play out, all right?"
Piper turns everyone's attention back to the matter at hand. She lights the candles on the table. "By summoning the spirit, we bring them into our plane, so be careful not to break the circle until we've helped it move on ... or else we're gonna have some angry spirits running amuck. Everybody ready?"
Everyone slowly gathers around the table. Off to the side, Phoebe has her fingertips pressed against her forehead and temple as she chants loudly.
"Phoebe?" Dawn asked.
"Ohh. Sorry." Phoebe heads for the center table also. "It's just this - everybody's like - whoo." She takes her position between Dawn and Paige. Richard slowly stands in the position between Paige and Buffy, their hands clasped together.
The rest of the group steps forward to form a circle. James holds his hand out for Rosaline who takes it. They glance apprehensively at each other.
Once the circle is formed, Piper cues Paige. "Paige?"
"Unknown spirit, we call to thee. Those who wish to set you free. Cross on over, so we may help. Come to us. Reveal yourself." Paige chants.
A strong gust of wind blows outward from the center of the circle. It startles everyone, but Piper reminds them to keep the circle closed. "Hold on."
The swirl of wind gets stronger and stronger. Finally, the ghostly apparition Olivia Callaway appears in the center. She looks down at her family.
"Olivia." James said.
"Hello, daddy. Miss me?" Olivia turns around and sets her gaze on Richard. She smiles at him. "Richard."
Richard doesn't say anything.
"I don't understand. You attacked us. Why?" James said.
Olivia whirls around to face her father. "Because you didn't avenge my death, that's why."
"But you were hit by one of your own." Rosaline said.
"Or so you were led to think, but that's not exactly true ..." Olivia whirls around to look at Steve. "Is it, Steve?"
Steve doesn't say anything. Richard glances at Steve who turns and look over at James. "It was an accident."
"We were set up." Craig said.
James turns to look at Rosaline who can't meet his gaze. Suddenly James holds up their hands, his grip firm on Rosaline.
"Ok. Don't break the chain." Paige warns.
Olivia whirls accusingly at Paige. "No, we wouldn't want that now, would we, Paige?"
Phoebe leans over toward Piper. "Ok. We have to move this along now, because-whoo."
Richard shakes his head in denial. "This can't be right. That can't be you."
Olivia turns around to look at Richard. "I was wrong about the feud, Richard. It can never end. I know that now ... but that doesn't mean we can't still be together ... once I have my revenge!"
In a swirls of white smoke, Olivia disappears and sends a force out from within. The force wave catches everyone off guard and pushes them back, breaking the chain and blowing out the candles. Rosaline falls back against the table behind her. Everyone looks around at each other.
"Your son killed my daughter." James said to Rosaline.
"And your daughter killed my husband." Rosaline said.
James has had enough. He motions to his sons, turns and heads for the doorway. "Come on."
The Callaway clan walks out of the attic.
Rosaline looks quietly at Richard who turns to look at Paige. She walks out of the room. Steve glances up at Richard, then follows her out. Richard, too, backs away from them, and turns to leave the room.
"Richard, don't go." Paige said as Richard ignores her and walks out of the attic with his family. She angrily turns and looks at Phoebe. "Ok, next time I tell you to butt out, butt out." She leaves the attic to chase after Richard. "Richard, wait!"
Phoebe, Buffy, Dawn and Piper stay behind as Leo watches the sisters.
Later in the kitchen Piper has the Charmed Book of Shadows open in the kitchen. She glances at it and turns toward the counter as Phoebe, Buffy and Dawn walks into the kitchen.
"Hey. What are you doing? Making soup?" Phoebe takes a seat at the table.
Piper turns around back to her pot. "Um, not exactly."
Dawn, Phoebe and Buffy glances at the book and reads the potion for 'Banishing A Ghost'.
"'Banishing a ghost.'" Phoebe said. "Wait a minute. I thought we weren't going to try and help Paige anymore."
"We're not. We're 'assisting'." Piper said.
"Just as long as it's not the ghost to ghost one. I'm not dying a fifth time." Buffy said.
Phoebe glances at Buffy and frown as she sense something. This time she is sure of it. It's grief. But it lasts only for a second and then its gone. She's not even sure if Buffy even actually registered the emotion or knew she was even feeling it. "Oh, we're 'assisting'."
Piper nodded, "Mm-hmm. We're just giving her a little ammo should she need it. You know, that was one really pissed-off ghost."
"That was also one very pissed-off sister." Dawn said.
Piper nodded, "Which is why we are not helping her, not directly. We're just giving her an option."
Phoebe turns back to face Piper as Piper stops and looks back at her. "You're worried."
"So?" Piper asked.
"So, you can actually worry and, really, you're just worried. Whereas if I worry, people think that I'm psychically intruding." Phoebe said before thinking to herself. 'In the case of Buffy I am intruding. I think I need to talk to Paige, Dawn and Piper after this thing with Paige is over.'
"Precisely." Piper said. "Now, I need to call Leo so he can baby-sit." She turns to leave the room.
"I can call him if you want me to." Phoebe offered as Piper stops and looks at her, then continues to head out of the room. "I know you want me to, though."
Buffy shook her head, "Pheebs that's the point. She would rather you waited till she asked then you vocalizing what she is feeling. The same goes for me, if I wanted to talk about what I'm feeling or not feeling I would say something." She turns and walks out of the room following Piper.
Phoebe sighed and looked at Dawn, "What about you?"
"They do have a point." Dawn said. "But I understand it's difficult to control this new power. So I give you a little leeway at least when it comes to me."
Phoebe nodded, "Ok. Which makes this slightly easier and harder."
"What does?" Dawn asked.
"I need to talk to you, Piper and Paige about Buffy. More importantly what I'm sensing from her. And before you say anything I'm worried about her. Genuinely worried." Phoebe said as she gets up as and Dawn follow Piper and Buffy out.
Later outside the Montana residence Phoebe pulls into the driveway. From outside, she, Buffy, Piper and Dwn can see the lights flashing inside the house. They look at the house and know the battle that's going on inside. Their jaws drop.
"Oh!" Piper said.
Phoebe unbuckles her seat belt. "Think she needs help now?"
They look up and see the front door open as they get out of the car and make their way inside.
Inside Richard reaches for vial after vial from the tray and hurls it at the intruders inside his house. The vials break and explode sending a Callaway son up and against the wall behind him. He falls to the floor.
James gets to his feet as he turns and looks at Richard. Behind Richard, Rosaline walks out of the room and into the hallway to help Steve who is on the floor. James powers up a energy ball and pulls back to throw it. He hurls the ball and hits unsuspecting Rosaline in the chest. She falls down to the hallway floor.
"Mom!" Steve screamed.
Richard turns around and sees his mom face down and unmoving on the hallway floor. He turns back and looks at James. He holds out his hand and forms an energy ball in his palm. With as much anger and force as he can muster, he hurls the energy ball at James.
Mid-way flight, the energy ball explodes. Standing down the hallway, Piper has stopped the energy ball from hitting James. Richard looks from Piper to James. James also realizes at the same moment that Richard is defenseless. He powers up his own energy ball and throws it point blank at Richard hitting him square in the chest.
Richard flies backward upon impact and hits the wall behind him. He slumps to the floor with a thud. Piper covers her mouth in horror at what just happened. Behind them, Rosaline regains consciousness and gets up.
Paige runs out of the study and into the hallway. She kneels down next to Richard. "Richard?" She rolls Richard over on his back and exposes the burn on his chest. He is out cold. "Richard, please wake up." She looks down at Richard who still doesn't move. "Richard, please wake up. It's me. It's Olivia."
Buffy, Dawn, Phoebe and Piper gasp as they realize what's really going on.
"Oh, no." Dawn said.
Rosaline sees Richard unconscious on the floor. "Oh!"
Paige looks up at Piper, Buffy, Dawn and Phoebe. "If I can't have him in life, then I have him in death." She orbs herself and Richard out of the room.
Piper, Buffy, Dawn, Phoebe and James stare stare at the empty spot where Paige and Richard were.
"Oh! Oh, Richard!" Rosaline cries. "Richard!"
The next morning in the attic Leo paces the attic floor as Phoebe leans over the table and map, a crystal dangling from a chain from her fingers as she scrys for Paige.
Piper and Dawn stands in front of both Book of Shadows as they look for a spell to help them find Paige.
"Blood to blood, I summon thee, Blood to blood, return to me." Dawn chanted as Phoebe looks up at her and Piper hopefully, but nothing happens.
Piper puts her hands down on the Charmed Book. "It's not working."
"Neither is scrying." Phoebe said as Buffy walked into the attic. "I knew I should've followed my instincts. I knew that she was in over her head."
Piper turns and heads for the attic window. "Phoebe."
Phoebe sighed, "What? I know I'm driving everyone crazy with my power, but it doesn't mean I'm not right."
"We're all understandably tense, but that's not gonna help us get Paige back any faster." Leo said.
"Well, what is? It's like she doesn't even exist anymore." Phoebe said.
"Well, that's because Olivia's energy is suppressing hers." Leo said.
"So maybe we should be scrying for Olivia, only we'd need something of hers to scry with." Dawn said.
And with that, the doorbell rings.
"I'll get it." Buffy said and she heads downstairs. She opens the front door and finds James and Rosaline on the doorstep.
"We think we know where they are." James said.
Rosaline nodded, "We want to help end this before we lose anyone else."
Buffy motions for them to enter. "Come on in." She turns to the stairs as Rosaline and James walk into the house. "Piper, Phoebe, Dawn!"
Later at the Callaway Mausoleum. Olivia's crypt explodes as pieces of concrete and rubble fall to the floor. Once it's cleared, Leo steps forward to check the inside of the crypt. He sees Paige and Richard lying side-by-side.
Paige's body glows white as Olivia's ghostly figure rises out and leaves Paige. She flies quickly past Piper, Buffy, Dawn and Phoebe and materializes in her apparition form high above them. "You're too late." Olivia said smugly.
"No, we're not." Buffy said.
Olivia's eyes widen as she sees Paige get up from the crypt.
Leo turns around to help Paige out. "Paige?"
"I'm ok." Paige stands up and with Leo's assistance, she climbs out of the crypt.
Olivia powers up a plasma ball in the palm of her hand as Piper waves her hand and blows up the plasma ball before she can even throw it.
"Buffy, the potion." Piper said.
"You don't need to banish her." Paige steps forward toward Olivia. "No. You felt her anger, but I felt her pain." She looks up at Olivia. "I know how much you loved him, how much it hurts to have lost him, but you have to let him live. It's the only way for you to move on and get out of limbo. Olivia, please, come away from vengeance and come back to forgiveness, back to who you were. Just let the feud end with life and not with death."
Richard takes a deep breath and slowly regains consciousness. He opens his eyes and sees Olivia floating high above.
"I'm scared." Olivia said.
Paige nodded, "I know."
Olivia looks longingly, lovingly at Richard. "Forgive me." With a final glance at him, she turns her eyes upward and closes them. She immediately blurs, glows white and rises upward through the ceiling and out of the mausoleum.
Everyone stands there quietly for a moment, looking at Paige who takes a deep breath and turns around.
Later back at the Manor Phoebe has locked herself in the attic. Outside the attic Piper, Paige, Buffy and Dawn are trying to get in.
"Come on, Phoebe. You can't stay in there forever." Paige said.
"Yes, I can." Phoebe called from the otherside of the door.
"Phoebe, this is nuts. Open the door!" Piper said.
"No." Phoebe said flatly.
"Phoebe, come on. Open the door!" Buffy said as they start pounding on the door but to no avail.
"It's not working! I can still feel your frustration. I don't know what else to do." Phoebe said as Paige, Piper and Chris orb inside the attic. Buffy flames in with Dawn also. "I've tried everything."
"Hi!" Dawn said
Phoebe is startled and turns around to find them standing in the middle of the attic. "Oh! You know, people lock doors for a reason."
Chris calmly walks away from the group and sits down on the couch in the back.
"Yes, well, I figure if you can use your powers to intrude on my life, then I can use mine to intrude on yours." Paige said.
"Come on, Phoebe, none of us like this new power of yours any more than you do, but it's pointless to isolate yourself." Piper said.
"Well, if I can't read you, I can't hurt you." Phoebe said.
"Well, how about instead of trying to control your power, maybe you try to, I don't know, control yourself?" Paige said.
Phoebe sighed, "Because, Paige, I can't, and I can sense how annoyed you are right now, and that's hurting me."
"Well, what's annoying is that I discovered that I had this Magical Destiny and I can't trust you to leave me alone for me to even follow it." Paige said.
"What do you think I'm trying to do up here?" Phoebe asked.
"Ok, let's look at the bright side." Dawn said. "We settled a family feud, we set free a tortured soul. Maybe your new power and Paige's new solo path away from the sisterhood is some kind of synergy, that it's all working together kind of divine way."
Paige, Buffy, Piper and Phoebe shook their heads as they said in unison, "Nah."
Chris stands up. "I don't get it. Leo didn't give you the empathy blocking potion?"
"What potion?" Buffy asked.
"Wha –" Phoebe started.
"Leo!" Piper called out as Leo orbs into the attic. "Where is it?"
"Gimme, gimme! Gimme, gimme! Gimme! Faster!" Phoebe said.
"Come on, come on, come on!" Buffy said.
"They're really anxious about that potion you got for them." Chris said.
Leo looks at Phoebe. "Yeah. Only I think you should wait to take it. Phoebe was given her power for a reason."
"Forget that!" Phoebe said.
Piper glares at Leo and motions for him to hand over the potion and he hands the potion to her. She uncaps it as Chris glances over at Leo who angrily glares back at him. She drinks the potion and then hands it to Paige who also drinks the potion. Paige hands it to Dawn who drinks it and hands it Buffy who finishes off the potion.
Phoebe looks at them as they look back at her. She smiles, "Nothing. Nada. Zilch!" She raises her arms high in triumph.
Paige looks heavenward. "Yes."
"Hallelujah." Piper said.
"Thank goddess." Buffy said.
Chris looks extremely relieved that the potion worked.
Paige, Buffy and Dawn heads out of the attic.
"Well, I have to go finish a game of pinochle with Grandma Callaway." Paige said.
"Maybe you'll run into Richard." Phoebe said.
"I'm sorry?" Paige asked.
"That was a sister thing, not an empath thing." Phoebe stands up and pulls Paige toward the attic door. "Come on."
Leo doesn't say anything as he looks at Chris.
Chris turns and questions Piper. "So, it worked, right? I mean, no nausea, no queasiness? Nothing like that?"
Piper shook her head, "Nope. Nothing." She leaves the attic.
Later that evening Piper, Phoebe, Dawn and Paige sit in Piper's bedroom.
"What was so pressing you wanted to discuss Phoebe?" Piper asked.
"Before I took the potion I kept sensing from Buffy a total lack of emotions like she was feeling nothing. There was only brief times she felt anything and those times I'm sure she didn't even acknowledge the emotion. The last time I sensed anything from her it registered as grief." Phoebe said.
"Grief?" Dawn asked. "What could she be grieving about?"
Piper and Paige look at each other and in this instance their not going to mention anything about Phoebe intruding. This time they were all worried what this meant.
Author's Note: Once More With Feeling is next. Which is one of my top ten favorite BTVS episodes.