Charmed: The Faith Chronicles

by Brenna's Urbangirl Projects

Faith Lehane was born in Boston to a drunken mother and absentee father, or so she had believed for 17 years. Then she was called as the Slayer and things took a turn for the worse when she accidentally killed the Deputy Mayor. The Watcher's Council learns of the death and tries to return her to England. She manages to escape and in so doing finds out that she had been adopted

16. Chapter 15: Hell Hath No Fury

Chapter 15: Hell Hath No Fury

June 17, 2001 – Sunday

Embarcadero Center

In the day since Buffy and Faith had been turned into children Joyce had been trying to learn to control her new power, with Patty's help, so she could turn Buffy and Faith back into adults. Piper had, sometimes with Phoebe most of the time with Cole had started going after demons. Phoebe had begun to wonder what Piper was angry at. Was it because of everything the last few days with Faith or was she still grieving for Prue? Either way Phoebe, when not out with Piper, had been given the responsibility of watching little Buffy and little Faith.

"Oh, this is darling!" Phoebe grabbed a tiny shirt off the rack, smiling admiringly at the design on the front.

"Nice," Buffy commented, then turned back to staring at the kids shoe section just across from where they we're standing.

Phoebe grabbed another shirt from the overcrowded rack. "This would be perfect for Faith." She looked up and frowned. Her niece was nowhere to be seen. "Faith?"

A small head popped out from behind a pillar. "Yea?"

"Honey, please stay where I can see you." Little Faith just scowled at Phoebe and disappeared from sight. Phoebe let out a weary sigh and turned to her niece's fiancée, her eyes imploring.

"I'll get her," little Buffy volunteered before Phoebe could ask. Peeking around the pillar she smiled. "Faith? What's wrong?"

"Wearing this and being here brings up too many memories," little Faith admitted. She was wearing a bright pink shirt, with a fuzzy cloth lamb sniffing an equally fuzzy piglet stitched to the front, and a matching skirt.

"Oh, Faithy," little Buffy, who wore a baby blue shirt with a bright flower on the front and a plain pair of jeans, said sympathetically. They had gone shopping mostly because Joyce had only saved two of Buffy's old clothes from when she was four-years-old the first time. And apparently Grams hadn't saved Prue, Piper or Phoebe's clothes from that age either. And since they weren't sure how long it would take for Joyce to be able to reverse the spell, it had been decided they might do some clothes shopping.

Little Buffy wrapped her arms around her four-year-old fiancée.

"Buffy? Faith?" Phoebe called.

"Come on," little Buffy said as she pulled little Faith around the corner.

"Sorry, Auntie Phoebe," little Faith said.

"It's okay, Faith," Phoebe said. She had overheard the conversation between the two four-year-olds. "If I had known, I would have suggested you stay with Joyce. Why don't we head on home? I can come back later now that I know what sizes to get."

"Auntie Phoebe, wait," little Faith implored as she wrapped her tiny arms around her Phoebe, letting her head drop rest on her aunt's chest. "I'm sorry."

Phoebe faltered as she stared down at her niece. Faith looked up at her, eyes wide and lip jutting out just a tiny bit. "Okay." Phoebe said. "But I can't watch you while I'm shopping."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Little Faith stood stock still and eyes downcast as other children frolicked around her. She was in a ball pit. Phoebe had deposited her and little Buffy at the small childcare center with promises she'd be back in an hour to pick them up. It had only been ten minutes and since Faith had never learned to play with other children, she didn't know what to do.

"I haven't been in one of these in years," little Buffy twirled around with her arms outstretched, grinning as brightly colored balls scattered everywhere. Her smile faded when she turned back to face her fiancée. "Faithy?" she questioned.

"I…I don't know how, Buffy," little Faith reluctantly admitted. "That woman never did anything like this. I never had friends, remember, to play with. I don't know how."

Little Buffy nodded in understanding; her fiancée needed a little guidance. Hefting the ball, she had been playing with she drew back her arm, took aim, and threw. It ricocheted of Faith's head.

Little Faith froze. Slowly she looked at little Buffy again. Little Buffy stared back at her wide eyed, feigning innocent confusion. Little Faith hesitated for a moment. Almost immediately she felt another ball bounce off her. Whirling around, little Faith smirked. Little Buffy was poised mid-throw, still as a statue. Reaching down little Faith scooped up a few of the vibrant spheres, unable to hold back a mischievous grin as she advanced toward her fiancée. "Oh, it's on, baby."

Little Buffy chuckled as little Faith was pelted her repeatedly. Letting out a little scream she threw the ball she was holding and scrambled for cover.

Faith laughed as she scrambled after her target.

Park Chalet

After they had left the mall, Phoebe, little Faith and little Buffy had stopped at a restaurant she knew to be kid friend for lunch.

"Aunt Phoebe," little Faith said. "Will you feed me?"

Phoebe looked at her niece. "Faith, your four-years-old with memories of an eighteen-year-old. You can feed yourself."

"I know," little Faith said. "But the thing is, Aunt Phoebe. First, I was conditioned to act like I was a baby, remember? While I have gotten over that conditioning before I found you, mom and Aunt Piper. I would still like to have something I was denied when I was kidnapped. You missed so many firsts, Aunt Phoebe. Why don't we start making new ones? This could be a first for us."

Phoebe looked at her niece and then smiled. "Okay," she agreed as she moved closer to her niece.

"What other things were you denied by that woman?" little Buffy wondered looking at her fiancée.

"Sweets," little Faith said. "I was not allowed to walk in the house and if I did I was shocked so bad that I would fall to the floor and be forced to crawl. Feeding myself. I had no other toys other than Kiko. I experienced no holidays. I wore outfits not unlike this one."

"That's why you were hiding in the store wasn't it," Phoebe admitted looking at her niece.

"I've worn dresses and I'm slowly growing to like them. And I do intend to wear a wedding dress at my wedding," little Faith admitted. "But it has taken time to get past the revulsion because of what she did. I was never a girly girl."

"You don't have to wear a dress at our wedding, Faith," little Buffy said. "If you want to do your normal t-shirt and leather pants, I will be okay with that. I'm not marrying you because of the clothes you wear. I'm marrying you because you are the woman I am in love with. Whatever makes you happy."

"I know, Buffy," little Faith told her. "What makes me happy, is seeing your reaction when you see me in my dress."

"So, what else were you denied," Phoebe wondered.

"I couldn't go to the bathroom," little Faith admitted. "I was forced to wear a diaper to school, remember? And as a result, I hated going to the nurse. She had orders to change me in front of the whole school. Which was so embarrassing, especially when everyone teased me and called me…" She sighed. "The names were humiliating. Such as Baby Faith or Diaper Butt. I was told never to fight back, that I was only a baby and babies don't fight back. I wasn't even allowed to on the normal swings."

"You weren't allowed on the normal swings?" little Buffy asked.

"She wanted to keep me little forever," little Faith reminded her fiancée. "As punishment for getting him killed. The only swing I was ever in on was one that you would put a baby in." She sighed. "I hated when she changed the diaper. She barely wiped me and she mixed itching powder with the baby powder and it hurt so bad," she admitted as tears began to fall down her cheeks. "Stop crying," she whispered mostly to herself. "You are a Slayer and a witch. Stop showing weakness. If she were hear she would beat …"

"Patricia Andrea Halliwell," Phoebe said, using Faith's full birth name to get her niece's attention. "You are not weak."

"I am, Auntie Phoebe," little Faith countered. "What if Buffy's mom can't master her powers. What if she can't reverse the spell. Buffy and I will be stuck like this forever. We have big girl responsibilities, like protecting the Hellmouth. Helping you and Aunt Piper. And planning our wedding."

Phoebe sighed. "I wish we could ask that Whistler guy for help," she said.

Unseen by the other customers Whistler appeared before the three of them. "I am not a Whitelighter, you can't call me like that."

Little Buffy rolled her eyes. "And I believe I said I would wear your ribcage like a hat too. What we want isn't always what we get."

"Slayer?" Whistler said in surprise as he looked at little Buffy.

"The one and only," little Buffy said.

"Did you know that Buffy's mom was a witch?" Phoebe asked the balance demon.

"That's not the Powers jurisdiction," Whistler answered. "Why? Is she responsible for what happened to her daughter?"

Phoebe nodded. "We found out quite by accident yesterday that Joyce has the power of Projection. She accidentally…"

"She tapped into her power unknowingly and caused this to happen," Whistler said in understanding.

"As a result," Phoebe said. "While Buffy and Faith still have the memories of an eighteen-year-old and to a small degree the mind of one. They have at the same time regressed to the age of four. And as a result…"

"Faith is worrying about that Lehane woman," little Buffy interjected. "That she will come back."

Whistler knelt down next to Faith and wiped Faith's tears away. "She's not coming back. She failed the Source, not once but twice. And he can't abide failure. Torture wasn't enough for her this time. He sent her to the demonic wasteland. It's a place where all demons go when they are vanquished. She can't return from there. No demon can. She's gone, Faith, forever."

"Phoebe," little Buffy said as Whistler disappeared. "Maybe we can have another first that she was denied." She leaned in and whispered in Phoebe's ear.

"Good idea, Buffy," Phoebe agreed.

Koret Children's Playground

"So, it's a draw then?" little Buffy asked breathlessly as she dug her heels into the dirt, bringing her swing to a stop. The pair had been swinging on a swing set for at least half an hour. They had made a small bet; it was both a grown-up bet and a children's bet and it had involved the swings they were currently on.

"I totally kicked your rear, baby," little Faith said as she stopped her swing too, twisting the seat around to face her fiancée.

"No, you didn't," little Buffy protested. "Phoebe, who won?"

"I think Faith did," Phoebe piped up from the bench she was sitting on.

"But…but," little Buffy's eyes widened and she shot a pleading look at Phoebe, who just shrugged, suddenly becoming very interested in the magazine she had been thumbing through. Looking back at Faith she scowled at her fiancée's smug expression.

"Hope it's a slimy demon you vanquish that explodes all over you," little Faith said teasingly, her eyes twinkling with amusement as she twisted her swing around a few more revolutions, the chains clinking and creaking in protest as they wound together. Lifting her feet off the ground she grinned as she spun around quickly before coming to a jerky stop.

Silence fell over the pair for a few minutes, little Faith repeatedly twisting up the chains of her swing, and then spinning around, and little Buffy staring at the ground, lost in thought. "We can still do this right? When we're back to normal?" little Buffy finally asked.

"Swinging?" little Faith asked distractedly as she came out of yet another spin, and prepared to repeat the process.

"Yeah," little Buffy answered.

"I'd like that," little Faith said as she smiled at her fiancée. "And Buffy, I think when we're back to being adults. I'm finally ready, completely ready to have a daughter with you. Someone we can do this with."

Halliwell Manor

"Patty," Victor said as he stepped into the attic. "How is it going?"

Patty sighed as she looked at her ex-husband. "Slow," she answered. "We've been having trouble finding the trigger for Joyce's powers."

Victor glanced at the Summers matriarch before looking back at Patty. "The girls can't stay this way, Patty."

"I know," Patty said. "Not only is Sunnydale unguarded. But with Buffy and Faith…Their minds are regressing. On top of that they don't have their powers."

"Didn't Buffy have a vision of Faith when she was that age though?" Victor asked confused.

"She did," Patty said.

"I know that your mother bound Faith's and later the Watcher's Council di as well. So, she doesn't have hers. But wouldn't Buffy still have hers since she had them at that age?" Victor asked.

"You need to understand, Projection is a rare power. The reason it's rare is because it's so powerful, it can literally bend reality." She turned and looked at Joyce. "Joyce, what exactly were you thinking when you enchanted the cookies."

Joyce thought back to the day before. "A lot of little things," she admitted. "How cute Buffy was when she was that age. How she's going to college in a couple months. How the Slayer side of her forced her to grow up way too fast. Then there was Faith and awful her childhood had been and how much I wanted to help her."

Patty nodded as she began to wonder if the trigger for Joyce's power was love.

They turned at the sound of footsteps and saw Phoebe leading little Buffy and little Faith into the attic. "Any luck, mom," Phoebe wondered.

"Not yet," Patty answered. "But I think I may have just may have made a breakthrough." She looked at Joyce. "We'll take a break first before we try what I was just thinking."

"Okay," Joyce agreed.

Patty turned back to her second youngest daughter. "So how did it go with the girls?"

"I think Faith might be regressing faster than Buffy," Phoebe admitted. "In the store she was hiding from me. From what I gathered later she didn't want anyone to see her wearing that outfit. She admitted later that was what she wore every day with that woman. And it's why she is more tomboyish in her appearance now. I decided to leave Faith and Buffy at a daycare in the mall and went back to shopping."

"I taught Faith how to play," little Buffy interjected. "The daycare lady was a little mean and she called faith anti-social because she didn't know what Faith had gone through."

"Buffy had to teach me," little Faith added. "Because I never got the chance to before."

"Faith," Patty said as she knelt down in front of her granddaughter. "You know I love you, right?" Little Faith nodded. "Then you know what I am about to say is not meant to be bad. But I just want to say that I wasn't happy with what you tried to do."

"What she tried to do?" Victor questioned in confusion.

"I tried to bring mommy back," little Faith admitted.

"What!" Victor asked in shock.

"Yes," Patty said looking up at her ex-husband. "She attempted a spell that every witch I ever knew of when I was alive and now swore to never do. Because Faith's spell was for personal gain. There would have been consequences. Prue might not have come back right. Or Faith might have had to pay the price. No one truly knows when it comes to resurrection spells what the costs are. That's why no one attempts them and why there isn't one in the book." She turned back to her granddaughter. "Which means no more personal gain, Faith. You need to remember that."

"Okay, Grandma Patty," Faith agreed.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"You know, in some ways I wish mom hadn't learned to control her powers," little Buffy said a few hours later, following little Faith toward the stairs. "I used to ice skate when I was little. If we had more time, I would have loved to gone skating with you."

"Well," little Faith said. "When we're big again you can take me to a rink." She smiled. "Show me what I missed from our childhood."

"Sounds like a plan," little Buffy grinned as they entered the attic, where Patty, Piper, Phoebe, Paige and Joyce waited.

Phoebe smiled. "I think you two might like to see this," she said as she held up a picture of little Buffy and little Faith sleeping.

"Mom!" little Buffy exclaimed obviously embarrassed.

"This one came out beautifully," Joyce said, ignoring her daughter and Faith's matching looks of horror as she held out the photo, she had taken of them. "I'm going to have copies made to give to Piper, Phoebe and Paige and then I am going to frame one for myself," she said, smiling fondly at it as she placed it down on the potion table.

"Are you ready, Joyce?" Patty asked the Summers matriarch.

"Wait," Joyce cut in as she knelt down, reaching out and pulling her daughter and future daughter-in-law forward into a crushing group hug. After nearly a minute she reluctantly pulled back, smiling tearfully at the two girls in front of her.

"You're still going to love me when I'm back to normal size right?" little Buffy asked doubtfully.

Joyce laughed. "Of course, honey… I just miss having my little girl around," she said wistfully, gently stroking some hair out of her daughter's face.

"I'll always be your little girl." Little Buffy smiled and leaned forward again, wrapping her small arms around her mother's shoulders. They were joined a second later by Faith, causing Joyce to be overcome by fresh tears.

Joyce closed her eyes and concentrated on the pair. "I wish for you both to be eighteen again," she whispered low enough only the Slayers heard.

There was a blinding flash of white light and when everyone could see again, Joyce was being hugged by Faith and Buffy, both of whom had returned to their original ages.

Yerba Buena Ice Skating & Bowling Center

Late that evening Faith stood at the edge of the rink as she watched Buffy skate round and round on the ice. She smiled as her fiancée moved gracefully, her hair blowing gently around her face.

Buffy spun into a tight pirouette and then sailed off again to the far end of the rink. She pivoted, skating backward, going faster. She launched into an airborne twist, and came down effortlessly.

'Magical,' Faith thought to herself. 'She looks magical.'

June 18, 2001 – Monday

Streets of San Francisco

Piper, Buffy, Faith, and Phoebe were sitting in Piper's jeep as Cole sped down the road. Piper was in the passenger seat, and Buffy, Faith and Phoebe were in the backseat. The car screeched around the corner as Piper gave Cole directions.

"Okay, turn left up here. And can you step on the gas a little?"

Cole screeched around the corner and nearly hit a taxi. Phoebe let out a yelp as the taxi driver honked his horn. "Off the gas!" she hurriedly patted Cole on the shoulder, "Off the gas!"

Cole scowled, "Does somebody else want to drive here?"

"Don't look at me," Buffy admitted. "I failed my drivers test once and mom wouldn't let me retake it."

"Diana tried actually to get me to learn to drive, but I never did," Faith added.

"Phoebe..." Piper turned to the backseat momentarily, "The demon is not waiting around for us to come and vanquish him."

"Okay, Aunt Piper..." Faith said as Cole narrowly missed another car, "We don't even know what the hell we're dealing with right now."

"We have no idea if we even have enough power to vanquish him without Paige here," Phoebe added. "Scrying for random evil tells us nothing."

"It tells us where the demons are and since we vanquished two already, I say it's working pretty well," Piper retorted.

"Yeah, thanks to Cole for saving our butts," Phoebe scoffed. "Four witches, two of them half-Slayer, and a demon does not the Power of Three make."

"So, what are we supposed to do?" Piper questioned. "Sit around and wait for them to pick us all off? If we weren't going after them, they'd be coming after us."

"They're coming after you anyway, Piper." Cole shook his head. "The Source is coming after you for multiple reasons."

"Yeah he wants you out of my life so he can turn me evil," Faith added.

"We should be spending our time training and teaching Paige so she knows how to use her powers." Phoebe stated. "But instead of doing that, and getting ready for the Source's next attack, we're out hunting for every Tom, Dick and Beelzebub in San Francisco."

"Speaking of..." Buffy motioned. "Do we have any kind of plan here or-"

Piper cut off the blonde Slayer. "The plan is to vanquish the demon."

"Great." Cole rolled his eyes. "Any chance you've mastered your powers or are you still freezing and exploding at random?"

"Random," Piper answered with a glare as Phoebe hit him lightly on the shoulder. "But you know what they say, there's nothing like field practice. Turn here!" Cole screeched around another corner and drove down an alley, "Stop!" He slammed on the breaks as a bald demon was in the middle of strangling a man and the four of them got out of the car, "Hey! Big scary demon!"

The demon turned around, allowing the man to escape from his grip and run away. The demon's eyes glowed bright red in anger directly aimed at Piper. She flicked her wrists. The demon's face turned red as his entire body bloated up.

"He's going to blow!" Cole shouted.

Faith, Buffy, Phoebe and Cole quickly jumped back into the car and shut the doors. The demon exploded and green goo splattered on the front windshield.

"Dang, Buffy," Faith chuckled as she remembered the bet she and Buffy made at the playground the day before. "Aunt Piper beat you to the slimy demon."

"There will be plenty more," Buffy said with a roll of her eyes.

Cole turned on the windshield wipers as Piper walked over to the car and opened the passenger door. She grinned as she hopped back into the car and sat down, "Next!"

Buffy and Faith as well as Phoebe and Cole all shared a look with one another. They all turned to Piper who continued to grin triumphantly.

South Bay Social Services

Paige was at her desk quietly reading a Witches and Witchcraft book. The page read:

'Throughout history, witches have been misunderstood, persecuted and destroyed. The public hanging, drowning, and burning of women suspected of witchcraft is a far more recent chapter of our history then most people realize.'

"Paige."

At the sound of Mr. Cowan's voice, Paige quickly put down the book and picked up a folder, "Yeah?"

"What's the hold up on the O'Brien application?"

"Well, at the moment, the only hold up is my boss, who's standing over me distracting me from my work." She smiled awkwardly at him.

"Nice teeth." He sighed and walked back to his office, "Have it on my desk by noon."

"Lila!" After he was out of earshot, Paige hurriedly whispered to an employee standing across the room, "What's the O'Brien application?"

"Adam O'Brien, the foster kid we're trying to get into the boarding school?"

Paige went stiff, "Oh my God."

"The scholarship application is due, like, today."

Paige groaned, "I am so lame." Billy, a young guy with bad acne, pushed the mail cart in front of Paige's desk before setting her mail down in front of her, "Aw, Billy, I thought I told you to throw anything from creditors in the trash."

He smiled shyly as another man, Donnie, approached them cockily.

"Hi, Pizza-face. Look, I understand how difficult it is to tear yourself away from the cleavage in this section." Donnie smirked at Paige who grimaced back in disgust, "But I'm going to need my mail sometime today. Okay?"

Billy frowned but nodded, "No problem."

"Go, go."

Billy hurriedly walked away as Donnie gave Paige a sleazy look and walked across the room.

Paige scoffed, "Nice rug."

Donnie's toupee then orbed off his head and into Paige's hand, revealing his bald spot. He gasped at the sudden loss, "What the hell?" He hurriedly looked around to see where it fell.

Paige, shocked at her accidental use of her powers, dropped the toupee in a trash can. Employees laughed and giggled at Donnie as he covered his head with a sheet of paper and hurried away. Paige quickly left her desk.

Halliwell Manor

Piper, Buffy, Faith, Phoebe and Cole were all gathered in the attic. Piper crossed out their latest demon, the Kevmay, with a sharpie as Phoebe grimaced.

"Piper." Phoebe shook her head. "Is it really necessary to disfigure the book?"

"Hmm, this one could incinerate human flesh with his eyes." Piper ignored Phoebe as she read about the demon. "That must sting."

"You think that's funny?" Cole scoffed as he walked over to Piper with an angry glare and towered over her/ "You could have gotten yourself killed. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, Cole," Piper's eyes pierced his with her own pain. "I understand killed very well."

"Then why would you want to keep risking your life and Buffy's and Faith's and Phoebe's, not to mention mine? There is a legion of Bounty Hunters on my ass. I'm supposed to be laying low but instead, I'm out protecting you guys."

"You know what, Cole?" Piper never wavered from his angry glare. "Next time, you can stay home."

"If you insist on taking these suicide missions, you force me to be there," Cole continued as the doorbell rang. "There's no way in hell I'm about to let Phoebe lose another sister."

"And I am not going to let Faith lose an aunt," Buffy added.

"Okay, I think we all just need to separate and take a deep breath," Faith intervened as she stepped between them and shuffled Cole back. "Seriously we're all just wound up." She met Cole's glare with her own. "Just unclench and relax."

As Cole glared between Faith and Piper, Phoebe walked over to him and touched his shoulder gently. "Why don't you go see who's at the door for us, okay?"

"Sure. If it's the Source, I'll just ask him to come back later." He turned from them to Phoebe pointedly. "We need to talk."

When he left the attic, Faith sighed at her aunt, "Aunt Piper, Cole's right. We can't just go around with no plan whatsoever, or worse, with no information."

"Faith is right," Buffy said siding with her fiancée. "And I've been doing this as long as you and Phoebe have, Piper. You told me and Faith when you started training us that you have a system for fighting demons. And obviously it's worked till now."

Piper's scowl returned, "Prue being killed counts as a pretty big glitch in the system."

Buffy wrapped an arm around Faith in comfort at the mention of Faith's mother. "That was a lowball, Piper. Or have you seriously forgotten what Prue's death means to Faith?"

"We all know that you're angry, Piper." Phoebe stepped in. "We're angry too—"

"Then why are you three fighting me on this?" Piper questioned. "What—what's the problem with getting a little proactive?"

"Because we're not ready to get proactive," Phoebe countered. "That's what's wrong with it."

"Aunt Piper, we're barely ready for anything right now," Faith added. "I mean, the four of us are struggling with our everyday normal lives right now, let alone our witchly ones."

"That is precisely the point," Piper retorted. "The faster we get rid of these demons, the faster we can get back to our everyday normal lives or at least what is left of them."

"Knock, knock." The attic door opened before Paige walked in. "I uh..." she faltered at Piper's slightly annoyed look but cleared her throat. "I'm sorry to just drop by without calling."

"Uh, it's okay." Phoebe gave Piper a worried look but managed to smile at Paige. "Don't worry about it."

"I don't know exactly why I'm here," Paige admitted. "I'm just kind of having a hard time being surrounded by people and..."

"And not being able to tell them that you can move things with your mind?" Buffy asked.

Paige chuckled, "It does not exactly roll off the tongue."

"I can relate," Buffy added.

"Says the person who revealed to her friends she was the Slayer the first very day she met them," Faith chuckled.

"I actually told neither Xander or Willow," Buffy replied with a chuckle of her own. "Xander overheard me and Giles talking. And Giles actually was the one to tell Willow after I saved her and Xander."

Phoebe smiled at Buffy and Faith's banter. She turned her attention back to her youngest sister. "With the exception of Buffy, being a witch is tough on friendships. That's why the whole family thing comes in so handy."

"Aunt Piper, we're not done." Faith sighed in irritation as she watched Piper pick up a map, a crystal and head toward the door. "What are you doing?"

"It's a little chatty up here," Piper answered. "So, I'm going to go scry for evil in my room."

Paige frowned. "Scry?"

"Yeah, uh..." Piper motioned to her sister, her niece and Buffy as she headed for the door. "The girls will explain. I'll see you later."

Buffy and Faith shook their heads as Piper left the attic.

"It's kind of like a, um..." Phoebe explained as she met Paige's eyes, "Supernatural LoJack."

"Well, why don't you use that big book? I mean..." Paige walked over to the book curiously. "It is a book of spells, right?"

"Oh, it's way more than a book of spells." Faith offered Paige smile before her beeping watch nearly had her cursing, "Buffy, we're going to be late for our appointment."

"What appointment?" Phoebe wondered.

"We have an appointment with our guidance counselor to enroll in our fall semester courses," Buffy answered as she wrapped an arm around Faith. "We'll see you guys later."

"Aunt Phoebe can tell you all about the book, Aunt Paige. Have fun," Faith added with a wave before she and Buffy disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.

Paige ran a hand over the book, "It looks so old."

"Yeah." Phoebe nodded, "It has survived a lot. Fortunately, it protects itself from evil."

"It protects itself... How?"

"Magic."

Paige motioned to it, "May I?"

"Yeah. I mean technically it's yours too." Phoebe sighed as she too made her way to the door, "I would walk you through it right now, but I have to go talk to Cole."

"Well, maybe I can just take it back to my office."

"Oh, no, no, no." Phoebe chuckled a little tensely, "It doesn't leave the house. But just feel free to thumb through it and then I'll be back in a few minutes."

When Phoebe left the attic, Paige flipped through the Book and stopped at an 'Instant Karma' Spell.

She pursed her lips as she read through the page, "This could solve a lot of problems."

She got out some Post-its and a pen and started writing down the spell.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe and Cole were waiting, the latter becoming more and more irritated, as Leo orbed in.

"What? What is it?" Leo looked between them hurriedly, "What's wrong?"

"You've got to talk to your wife," Cole stated.

"Okay, Cole..." Phoebe tried to reign him in. "Remember what I said about being gentle?"

Leo glared. "What about my wife?"

"She's out of control."

"Cole!" Phoebe admonished her boyfriend.

Leo scoffed. "What?"

"It's just..." Phoebe stepped forward and took over. "We're very worried about her. I mean, even Faith and Buffy are."

"What happened?" Leo wondered.

"She's just very, very angry." Phoebe answered.

"Well, of course she's angry. She's grieving."

"Right, and if she were punching walls, I would happily call a repairman, but-"

Cole cut in, "The problem is she prefers to punch demons."

"Well..." Leo sighed worriedly, "I'll talk to her."

"She has no regard for her life or anyone else's." Cole said as he moved closer to Leo with a deeper glare, "She's Charles Bronson, cubed.

"I said I'd talk to her."

"Guys, guys." Phoebe stood in between the two to diffuse the tension but frowned. "Who is Charles Bronson?" Leo and Cole both gave her a look to which she waved off. "Just, never mind."

Leo sighed as he looked up, "Faith's calling." His eyes moved between Phoebe and Cole. "I'm assuming for the same reason as you two."

Phoebe nodded sadly as Cole stayed glaring at the Whitelighter. Leo rolled his eyes at him before orbing out.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Paige now had Post-its stuck all over the Book Of Shadows. When he ran out she frowned and looked around for another pad of sorts. Instead, an idea popped into her head. Closing the book she carried it over to the open window.

"Okay, Book." She dropped the book out and watched as it landed in the grass, "Protect yourself."

"Paige!" Phoebe's voice sounded from downstairs, "I'll be right up!"

Before she could come up, Paige hurried to the door. She came around the corner nearly bumping into Phoebe who was already near the top.

"Whoa!" Phoebe giggled, "Where's the fire?"

"Uh, you know, work." Phoebe followed her as they walked back downstairs, "Lunch break's over. Got to go."

"Well..." Phoebe frowned, "We didn't even get to talk."

"Uh, yeah, it's alright. Don't worry."

"Will you come by later?"

"Sure. Yeah. Absolutely." She waved to Phoebe as she hurried out the door, "Bye!

Phoebe looked from her retreating form and then back up the stairs suspiciously, "Bye..."

Summers Home

Buffy and Faith sat on the living room couch waiting as Leo orbed in. "Look, we don't have a lot of time before we have to get back to our meeting with the counselor at U.C. Sunnydale," Buffy said. "But Faith and I wanted to talk to you about—"

"Piper?" He let out a worried breath. "Yeah, I just talked to Phoebe and Cole."

"We're just worried about her, Uncle Leo." Faith nodded after a deep sigh. "She won't talk to anyone about what's really bothering her. Not that I expected her to talk to me or Buffy. But she's not even talking to Aunt Phoebe. I mean, she's acting nothing like herself."

"She seems to be obsessed with demon hunting right now," Buffy added. "And not in a good way. In a very, very angry and dangerous way."

"Not to mention she's completely dismissive of Aunt Paige, and we, I mean the whole family, still has to teach her about being a witch," Faith told him. "Aunt Phoebe, Buffy and I are just at a loss. We don't know what to do anymore."

"Strange isn't it?" Leo smiled sadly. "Just a few months ago you were the outsider looking in. And now…"

"It's Aunt Paige," Faith said. "And I want to help her like mom, Aunt Piper and Aunt Phoebe helped me."

Leo gave his niece and soon-to-be niece a warm smile that had their worries momentarily subsiding, "I'll talk to her, Faith, Buffy."

"Thanks, Leo," Buffy said as she and Faith stood up and hugged the Whitelighter. "But you might want to hurry. When we flamed here, she was already scrying."

Halliwell Manor

"Look, honey..." Leo sighed as he watched Piper scry for evil on their bed. "It isn't just that it's dangerous."

"Leo, Whitelighters are supposed to guide. Not judge." Piper dropped the crystal irritated as her voice rose with anger. "Just because I'm doing things a little bit differently doesn't mean that there is a problem."

"Piper, I'm your husband, not just you're Whitelighter. When you speak to me like that, there is a problem. I can't help you unless you talk to me."

"It hurts to talk, Leo. It hurts to breathe. So unless you have some idea of how to bring Prue back, I don't want to talk right now."

"Is that what you don't want to say?" Guilt and sadness filled Leo's face and voice. "Is that you still blame me for not being able to bring her back?"

"No, Leo. I don't blame you. I blame evil. Why—why do you think I'm doing all this? For kicks?"

"Honestly, I think you're doing it because it's easier than confronting what you're really feeling."

Without acknowledging his statement Piper started to scry again and the crystal pointed to an area on the map. "Demon."

"What?"

"I have work to do." Slipping past him she walked out of their room, "Buffy, Faith!"

"Buffy and Faith are in Sunnydale," Leo interjected as Piper looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Meeting with their guidance counselor to enroll for the fall semester."

"Cole, Phoebe! Let's go!" Piper finished.

South Bay Social Services

Paige was in the copy room trying to copy the pages of Book of Shadows, but everything was printing out blank.

Donnie walked in and blatantly checked out Paige's butt as he fixed his toupee, "Nothing like a copy room with a view." He poured himself some coffee as Paige sent him a glare and straightened up and as Billy walked in, "Hey Clearasil, what's popping?"

Donnie bellowed at a laugh as he left the room.

"Don't worry about him, Billy." Paige shook her head, "He's a jerk to everybody."

"Yeah, I know. That's why his mail gets lost... frequently."

Paige smiled as she turned back to the copy machine, "Is there something wrong with this copier?"

"The copier? I don't think so. I just ran off a whole bunch."

She frowned, "Everything keeps coming up blank."

He walked closer to her to get a better look, "Are you trying to copy a book?"

"Nah." She pushed the lid of the copier down as she tried to hide it from his view, "It's nothing. It's cool."

"Well, if you need me to do it for you..." He shrugged and sent her a shy smile, "Just say the word."

"Thanks. You're sweet."

He smiled shyly again as he blushed and poured himself some coffee. Studying him for a second, Paige bit her lip and turned over the Book of Shadows to read a Vanishing Spell.

"'Let the object of objection become but a dream, as I cause the seen to be unseen.'" Billy groaned as a magical light surrounded his face, "You okay, Billy?"

"Yeah. I just, uh..." He turned around to face Paige and she gaped in pleasant shock when she saw his acne cleared up to reveal quite a cute face, "Got a little head rush."

"Oh my God, it worked." She whispered to herself as she closed the Book, picked it up, and walked over to Billy, "Oh my god."

"Paige, is, uh..." He smiled and blushed under her amazed stare, "Is everything okay?"

She kissed him on the cheek before leaving, making him grin, "It will be from now on."

Streets of San Francisco

"Piper, Cole and I do not support you in this." Phoebe said as she, Piper, and Cole were all hurrying down the alley as Phoebe tried to talk some sense into her sister. "If you insist on doing it, you are going in alone."

"Okay." Piper answered, the ultimatum not phasing her the slightest, "I'll see you at home."

Phoebe turned to Cole with a scowl, "I told you that wouldn't work."

He shrugged, "It was worth a shot."

"Wait a minute..." Phoebe stopped them from walking further, "Do you smell smoke?"

Piper pointed to a large wooden door where smoke was rising out from under it, "It's in there."

"What is that? What is it?!" A man's panicked voice could be heard from inside, "Stop! Stop!" Cole walked over to the door as the man continued yelling, "Who is th- What are you?!"

"Get back, I'll blow it up." Piper commanded, "Go on."

Cole backed away from the door but when Piper used her power, instead of blowing the door up, she froze Cole and the smoke.

"Uh, Piper..."

"Yeah, yeah. Crap. Okay."

Piper took off her coat and threw it on the ground. She wiggled her arms to relax herself before using her power again. This time the door blew up, but the blast sent Cole flying across the alley and landing on a car before falling off onto the ground.

Phoebe gasped as she ran to his side, "Piper!"

"What?" Piper turned her satisfied smile into an apologetic grimace when she saw Cole, "Oh."

A man then bolted outside, knocking Piper over in his hurried escape. Three demon women ran out after him as Piper stood and Phoebe helped Cole up. They had three long talons as hands and dark tribal tattoos on their faces and arms.

"Piper!" Cole yelled as he saw she was ready to use her power, "Let them go!"

Instead of listening she used her power and missed. Instead of hitting them she blew up a car directly in front of them, stopping their chase. Angrily they turned to face her.

Her eyes widened, "Uh-oh." She raised her hands and tried to freeze them but, once again, only froze Cole, "They're- they're immune to my powers."

Phoebe readied herself for the fight that was about to come, "Unfortunately, Cole isn't!"

A fury attacked Piper but she dodged their hits as another went for Phoebe. Piper picked up a trash can lid and the fury slashed a hole in it with its talons. Phoebe levitated up and kicked two of the furies, knocking them to the ground.

"Piper, unfreeze him!"

Piper dodged another attack, "What if I blow him up?"

"You won't! Just do it!"

Cole unfroze just as a fury knocked down Piper and blew smoke into her mouth making her cough.

Worry sliced through Phoebe, "Cole!"

Cole threw an energy ball at the fury and she was quickly engulfed in flames. The other two furies growled at him before disappearing together as Piper continued to cough.

Halliwell Manor

Piper walked through the front door of the manor and tossed her jacket to the side, "I'm going to take out those chain-smoking bitches if it's the last thing I do."

Cole followed closely behind Phoebe and shut the door, "It might be the last thing you do."

"That's very supportive, Cole. Whose side are you on?"

"At the moment, I'm on Phoebe's side."

"Well, the last time I checked..." Piper coughed as Buffy appeared with Faith in a swirl of fiery flames. "Phoebe is still my sister so, technically, that puts her on my side."

"We got here as fast as we could. What happened?" Faith looked over at Piper worriedly. "Are you okay?"

"No, she's not." Phoebe interjected, "She needs to be checked out."

"I'm fine. I told them not to call you." Piper rolled her eyes as she turned and walked into the kitchen, the others close behind. "I'd be better if people would stop arguing with me."

"We're not arguing. We're discussing, Piper." Phoebe corrected, "You are arguing. And you aren't okay." She motioned as Piper had another coughing fit. "You're hurt."

Piper took out a water bottle from the fridge and sipped it, "I'm fine."

"Piper." Buffy crossed her arms as Piper had yet another coughing fit, "I don't even know what happened, but I can tell that you're not fine. You can't stop coughing."

"And your control of your powers seems to be getting worse, not better." Cole turned to Pacey, "She froze me twice and nearly blew me up."

"Okay, well..." Faith sighed as they all walked out of the kitchen, "All of our powers are tied to our emotions so that's not surprising. I've been struggling to form fireballs."

"And while Prue didn't mean as much to me as she did to Piper, Phoebe and Faith. Since she was only a good friend compared to a part of their family. I too having been trouble," Buffy added as Phoebe looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Faith's alarm was set an hour before our appointment not a few minutes like we let on. My flaming has been off as of late."

Phoebe nodded as she patted Buffy's arm in comfort. She then turned back to her boyfriend. "It's normal for them to be off right now."

"All the more reason to lay low." Cole told them. "These demons are dangerous."

"All the more reason to vanquish them, okay?" Piper interjected, "That is what we do. Eliminate evil."

"Regardless of the consequences." Cole scoffed as they all stopped at the stairs. "Now you sound like Prue."

"Okay, Cole." Piper whirled on him, "I'm going to vanquish the cancer girls with or without your help. So either tell me what you know or get out of the way."

Cole looked between Buffy, Faith and Phoebe all of whom shrugged their shoulders and rolled his eyes, "They're called Furies."

"Like from mythology?" Phoebe questioned.

"Their modern knockoffs." Cole shrugged. "Their M.O. is the same, though."

"You fought the Furies?" Faith said her eyes wide remembering her run-in with them.

"You know what Cole is talking about?" Buffy asked her fiancée.

"I ran into them," Faith admitted.

"Okay..." Phoebe nodded, "So they punish evildoers?"

"Exactly," Cole said.

"Wait." Phoebe frowned, "Wouldn't that make them good?"

"Well, these furies have no temperance. They'll go after a shoplifter as soon as a murderer, and they take great pleasure in the kill."

"Great." Piper grinned before turning to go up the stairs, "Then we'll take great pleasure in the vanquish."

Buffy and Phoebe stood in front of Faith and Cole so they couldn't follow Piper.

"What aren't you not telling us?" Phoebe asked her boyfriend and niece. Cole and Faith glanced at each other and sighed. Their guilty eyes told her and Buffy everything they needed to know. "So, they go after evildoers. Have they attacked you both before?"

"It was the same night that I accidentally killed Finch," Faith admitted. "But like Cole said they don't care. They saw me as being evil and so they went after me."

"When they focus their thoughts on you..." Cole added. "They force you to hear the cries of all your former victims."

"I was lucky," Faith said. "I only had one person on my conscience. If I had killed more and wasn't a Slayer, I probably be dead right now."

Buffy pulled her fiancée into her arms. "You're not that person anymore, Faith," she said as she planted a kiss on the brunette Slayer's lips.

Phoebe gingerly touched Cole's face. "And you're not the demon who did those things anymore."

They were interrupted by both Piper's screams from upstairs. They bolted up to the attic where Piper was standing in front of the empty Book of Shadows stand. Piper looked horrified; her mouth was open in shock.

"Evil got the Book of Shadows." Piper squeaked, "How did evil get the Book of Shadows?!"

Phoebe paled as her hands instinctively went to cover her face, "Oh, no."

"What do you know, Phoebe?" Buffy asked, she could see on Phoebe's face that she knew something.

"Okay, Piper, I need you to promise me you aren't going to over react," Phoebe said. "In fact, Faith, I need you to do the same."

"Why would I overreact?" Faith questioned.

"Is that even possible?" Piper questioned.

"I think that, uh, maybe..." Phoebe cleared her throat as she nervously looked around the room at all of them. "Well, it—it might be feasible that, uh, Paige borrowed the book."

"What?!" Faith said loudly with Piper, making Phoebe flinch, and shook her head at the idea. "That doesn't make any sense, Aunt Phoebe."

"Why would you even think that?" Buffy wondered.

"See?" Phoebe motioned. "Now this is what I meant about overreacting. It's just that-"

"Are you trying to tell us that you let Paige take the Book of Shadows out of the Manor?" Piper's eyes filled with anger as she put her hands on her hips and pierced her little sister with a glare. "Please tell me that's not what you're trying to say."

"Well, no!" Phoebe huffed. "I did not let her." She tried to explain hurriedly but was met with irritated looks from all three of them regardless, "It's just she left pretty quick, and..." She cleared her throat as she motioned to the open window behind Buffy and Faith. "It looks like she might have..."

Piper gaped even more. "Out of the window?"

"Oh my—" Buffy walked over to the window. "Are you serious?" She looked at Faith. "I remember that we were taught from day one that the book never leaves the house."

"Guys, I don't—" Phoebe started.

"Okay, I left all three of you up here with it. We barely know her." Piper scoffed, "Why the hell would you three leave her alone with it?"

"Faith and I had an appointment at U.C. Sunnydale to enroll in our classes," Buffy reminded the eldest Halliwell sister. "We had to flame to Sunnydale. We did leave Phoebe with Paige though."

Piper nodded as she redirected her glare at Phoebe exclusively as Faith and Buffy had a valid excuse for leaving.

"Well, because she's our sister," Phoebe defended herself. "And not only Faith's aunt but one of only a handful of people who is Faith's friend."

Piper laughed angrily. "She's not our sister or Faith's aunt for long!" She stormed out of the attic with Faith close behind. Phoebe frowned and hurriedly followed, but Cole and Buffy pulled up two chairs and sat down.

Phoebe ran back in, "Are you two coming?"

"To vanquish your sister?" Cole shook his head in dismissal, "I think Buffy and I'll sit this one out." He looked at the blonde Slayer. "Right?"

"Right," Buffy agreed. "No offense, Phoebe."

South Bay Social Services

Lila was studying Billy's face, "It's unbelievable."

"Maybe it was the light from the copy machine."

"God, this day is amazing" Lila gaped as they started to walk through the office with Billy pushing the mail cart, "I mean, you went and got cute-"

Billy smirked, "You think?"

"Totally. And then my car loan comes through, like, out of nowhere." They passed Paige's desk as she was on the phone smiling at them, "My credit is worse than Paige's. You know, I still can't believe all of this."

"It's amazing."

Paige continued her own conversation as the two of them walked out of the room, "Sir, I am taking full responsibility for being late with the application. I'm simply asking for a deadline extension."

"Well, I can't give you a deadline extension."

"Well I'm asking that you not punish Adam O'Brien who's already had a tough enough life for my mistake." She paused as she listened, "Sir, all I'm saying is..." Looking down she started to read off of the Book of Shadows that was resting on her lap, "'These words will travel through the minds of stubborn parties and unbind, the thoughts too rigid to be kind, a compromise they'll disentwine.'"

The man's tone immediately changed, "How does six o'clock on Friday sound?"

Paige grinned, "Six o'clock Friday is perfect. Thank you so much." She hung up happily just as Lila and Billy circled back around, "Victory!"

Lila's eyes widened, "You got the extension?"

"Yeah!"

"Unbelievable." Lila hurried over to Paige, "You're into all that witchy stuff, right?"

Paige's smile was immediately wiped off her face, "Excuse me?"

"Well, I'm just thinking there must be something in the stars today. I mean, Billy's face, my car, now this. Is there a full moon or something?"

"I don't know, but whatever it is..." She nervously smiled, "I'm going to call my student loan sharks and take full advantage of it.

"Ooh, good! Me too!"

Paige chuckled as she walked away. Immediately a disgusted frown was on her face as Donnie came up to stand behind her.

"You know, Paige?" He leaned over to talk closely in her ear, "As a lawyer, I can get those nasty creditors off your back so easily. And if you can't afford to pay me, we could always just take it out in trade."

Paige stiffened, "Or I could just sue your ass for sexual harassment and pay you with my big fat punitive settlement."

"The way you dress..." His eyes raked her body, "The judge would admire my restraint."

She scoffed angrily as he walked away, "That's it." Looking back down to the Book she flipped through it until she found the 'Instant Karma Spell' and smirked, "Perfect. I'll just change demon to dirtbag."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Faith, Piper and Phoebe hurried out of the car and walked toward Paige's building.

Piper glared. "I don't understand how someone can be that stupid."

"I don't understand why you haven't stopped ranting since we left the house," Phoebe said.

"You're right. You're right." Piper took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

"Yes, Paige made a mistake."

"A mistake?" Faith scoffed. "Aunt Phoebe, this is more than a mistake."

"She stole from us," Piper added.

"She borrowed." Phoebe corrected hurriedly, "Borrowed."

"She—she—" Piper angered all over again but it came out as a stiff laugh. "She threw our family heritage out of the window!"

"Well, that's because we never took the time to explain its significance. It was just a book to her."

"Okay, Phoebe, it is not just a book. It's like, it—it's like a part of our family."

"Paige is not a killer." Phoebe put her arms around both of her sister and her niece as Piper started coughing again. "She didn't kill anyone. And she's not a demon that we're on our way to vanquish."

"We understand that," Faith admitted.

"Do you? Because neither of you are acting like it." Phoebe frowned as Piper coughed even harder. "You alright?"

"Hey!" They were interrupted by Donnie running out of the building with a crowd of women following him, "Hey!" He panicked as they all surrounded him, "Get away from me! It's not funny!"

"Um..." Faith's eyes widened as she watched in confusion but her eyes narrowed in on the man. "What the hell is happening?"

"Come on." Lila cooed at him, "Give Mama some sugar!"

He sank to the ground and they all fell all over him. Paige then hurried out of the building holding her bag so it covered her chest. Once the girls spotted her, they intercepted her escape.

"You!" Piper pointed her finger at Paige angrily. "Are so..." She trailed off as the three of them noticed something was off and moved Paige's hands to reveal she now had extremely large breasts. "Busted?"

Phoebe's eyes widened in shock, "Hello!"

"Aunt Paige!" Faith said with a small chuckle. "You stole the book so you could give yourself a magical boob job? Why didn't I think of that?" Piper and Phoebe glared at her. "Well don't you wish there was some part of you could change?"

"No," Piper and Phoebe said before returning their attention to Paige.

"Faith, I didn't do this on purpose? My body was perfectly fine just as it was!" Paige scoffed. "Thank you very much."

"I mean it!" Donnie screamed again, irritating Piper further, "Get away from me!"

Irritated, Piper flicked her hands over the crowd and froze them. The action had both of Phoebe and Faith reeling.

"Aunt Piper!"

"You could have just blown up a dozen innocent people."

"I took a chance," Piper admitted.

"Okay, seriously." Faith forced her eldest aunt to meet her eyes, "Do you even hear yourself?"

Ignoring her, Piper motioned to Paige. "What happened?"

"I don't know. They just..." Paige frowned, "Grew."

"Oh, right." Piper rolled her eyes. "And you had nothing to do with that."

"Alright, Aunt Piper, enough." Faith huffed before turning back to a frowning Paige. "Aunt Paige, how many spells did you cast?"

"One." Phoebe and Faith each gave her a look, "Five."

Piper reeled, "Five?!"

"Okay, okay." Phoebe patted Piper before taking over, "What did you do just before you turned into Betty Boop?"

"Well... I cast a spell on this slimeball I work with so I could give him a taste of his own medicine."

"Uh-huh." Phoebe motioned to Donnie, "That the slimeball?"

Paige looked back at Donnie and nodded earning a sigh from Faith who motioned to her boobs once more. "And that's the backfire," Faith admitted.

Paige frowned, "Backfire?"

"You misused magic to make him the object of ogling." Phoebe explained, "The spell backfired and did the same thing to you."

"Which you would have learned if you had bothered to ask," Piper interjected angrily. "But now instead of vanquishing demons, we're going to have to spend the afternoon fixing your mess."

"Piper, you call for either Buffy or Leo and get them to take him back to the manor," Faith quickly intercepted Piper's angry rant with instructions. "We got to protect him until we can reverse the spell." She then looked at Phoebe and Paige. "And we will grab the book." She looked back at her eldest aunt. "We'll meet you at home."

Piper gave one last disappointed look at Paige before shaking her head and walking away. Faith and Phoebe sighed at the look but Piper stormed off too fast for either of them to say anything. Paige frowned again before grimacing down at her large breasts.

Faith sighed as she walked toward Donnie. "Buffy," she called out.

Halliwell Manor

Phoebe, Faith and Paige were driving along the road in Paige's car. Paige was driving with Phoebe sitting in the passenger seat and Faith in the back looking through the Book of Shadows.

"Are my boobs going to stay this way forever?"

Faith flipped through the pages. "Not if we can find the spell."

"What about Piper?" Paige grimaced when Faith's eyes pierced hers with a warning look in the rearview mirror. "Is she going to stay mad at me forever?"

"No. It's just, um..." Phoebe took a breath as she tried to explain, "She hasn't really been herself lately. A lot of ups and downs since Prue, you know, like all of us."

"The last thing I wanted to do was add to your guys stress. I just wanted to get back at Donnie."

"Yeah, and I understand the temptation, Paige." Phoebe motioned to the backseat. "I mean we both do, really, but I told you the book does not leave the house."

"Right. Sorry." Paige nodded apologetically before trying to change into third gear but struggling. "My boobs are in the way. Can you put it into third for me?"

"Alright. Ready? Here we go." Phoebe moved the gear stick into third and the tires screeched momentarily. "Okay."

Paige grimaced into the rearview to look at Faith. "Did you find the spell yet?"

"No, but I found the demons you fought, Aunt Phoebe..." Faith tensed as she read about the Furies and leaned forward to show Phoebe. "We've got a problem."

Phoebe paled as she read the page. "Oh my God."

"What?" Paige tensed, "You can't say 'demons' followed by 'we've got a problem' and 'oh my god'. I'm new at this. I'm likely to panic."

"Okay, uh..." Phoebe motioned as she tried to explain. "Fury smoke kills bad guys, right? But in good people, it looks for a portal of unexpressed fury."

"And?"

"It builds until it consumes your humanity and it turns you into a fury. Um, we fought the furies today. Piper got smoked."

"Wait. Are you saying that Piper's turning into a demon?"

"Yes," Phoebe answered as she leaned forward. "Step on it and hit the clutch. I'm going to put it into fourth on three. One, two, three."

Halliwell Manor

Donnie landed roughly on the couch after being pushed by Piper.

Buffy frowned. "Easy, Piper."

"What?" Piper whirled around on the blonde Slayer. "Are you protecting him?"

"Wh—what the hell is going on? And what's with the chicks?" Donnie whimpered as he looked between them with wide fearful eyes. "They've gone crazy."

Piper towered over him. "This chick just saved your ass, you sniveling ingrate."

Donnie stumbled to his feet as he looked at Leo, who stood next to Buffy. "Do you see what I mean?"

Piper aggressively pushed Donnie over the back of the couch. "Who said you could get up?"

"What's the matter with you?" Leo hurriedly intervened before Piper could be any more aggressive toward the cowering man. "Okay, honey, look. I don't know what's going on, but we really need to talk."

"Leo's right," Buffy agreed siding with the Whitelighter. "This isn't like you, Piper. You should talk…"

"You know what?" Piper said as she glared at the Slayer and her husband. "I'm sick of talking." She lifted her hands to blow them up but Leo orbed out with Buffy just in time. As they orbed back into the room she was stomping towards Donnie.

"Now we really need to talk. Piper, you do not use your powers on a mortal." Leo said as he and Buffy came up to stand behind Piper. "Do you hear me?"

"Back away slowly, Leo, Buffy." Cole stood at the doorway watching Piper closely, "She's becoming a fury." As he spoke, Piper grew large black talon like fingernails. "There's no reasoning with her now."

"Piper, you're a good witch." Buffy said as she and Leo moved to stand in front of Piper so the eldest Halliwell sister would look at them.

"Do you hear us?" Leo added. "Fight this."

Piper gingerly touched Leo's face before rearing back and throwing him over the couch. She then turned on Buffy who disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.

"Oh God!" Donnie screamed as Piper turned on him. "Help!"

"Piper," Buffy warned as she reappeared behind her friend and future aunt when she finally married Faith.

Piper ignored Buffy as she reared back again. Buffy flicked her wrist and Piper flew across the room away from Donnie. Piper turned on her future niece. She stormed toward Buffy and threw the Slayer over the couch. She then turned back to Donnie and slashed at Donnie with her talons. From the other side of the room Cole readied an energy ball. He watched Piper pick Donnie up and blow smoke into his mouth before he threw it at her. The force from it made her drop Donnie and stumble back slightly. Faith, Phoebe and Paige rushed through the door just in time to see him throw it.

Phoebe glared at her boyfriend. "Cole!"

"I..." Cole shrugged as he gave Phoebe a sheepish look. "Well..."

"That wasn't very nice," Piper glared once more at Cole before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

"Buffy!" Faith said spotting her fiancée lying on the floor next to Leo. She raced over to the blonde Slayer.

"She's strong and fast," Buffy admitted looking up into Faith's concerned eyes.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Buffy sat next to Faith, her hand on her fiancée's shoulder as Faith flipped through the Book of Shadows. Phoebe sat on the other side of Faith as Leo was knelt beside a passed-out Donnie to heal him.

"Cole hit her with an energy ball," Leo said.

"Leo, it was a low voltage." Phoebe tried to amend exasperatedly, "Would you prefer he'd let her kill an innocent?"

"I'd prefer that he wouldn't use his demonic powers on my wife." Leo scoffed as he gave her his best 'have you lost your mind' look, "I can't believe that you let him go look for her."

"Uncle Leo, just take a deep breath okay?" Faith huffed at him, momentarily looking up from the book. "Cole will be fine. He didn't try to kill her. He just stopped her from killing an innocent."

"If I could track her, I would have gone," Buffy interjected. "But I can only sense when someone calls for me. Which I've wondered why that even is."

"Probably a result of your being a Slayer," Leo answered. "Slayers used to be considered future Whitelighters. Of course, that was before either you and Faith also. So, no one knows if that is still true. But some future Whitelighters due sometimes, though it's rare, get Whitelighter powers."

"Oh, this all my fault." Paige groaned, "I shouldn't have stolen the Book of Shadows."

Leo reeled again and stopped healing Donnie. "You stole the Book of Shadows?!"

"Leo, Leo. Concentrate please." Phoebe hurriedly motioned to Donnie so Leo took a calming breath and healed his scratches/ "I just hope he finds her fast because if this is anything like the time I turned into a Banshee, she's going to be hungry for a kill."

"I'm sorry." Paige's eye widened at Phoebe as Leo stood. "A Banshee?"

"Yeah." Phoebe waved her off as she studied the pages Faith was flipping through, "Demonic screamer, kind of trampy, feeds on pain."

"That was when Prue was turned into a dog, wasn't it," Buffy said.

"That's the one," Phoebe said.

Paige paled and stumbled over to the couch to sit next to Donnie. "I think I need to sit down."

A few moments later Donnie woke up with a groan. He sat up and was eye level with Paige's breasts. "Whoa."

Paige glared and in the next second punched him in the face, knocking him out cold.

Leo scoffed. "Paige!"

"What?" Paige stood back up to get away from Donnie. "You only said I couldn't use magic to punish him."

"She has a point," Buffy admitted. "After all the only person I would want looking at me like that is Faith."

"Don't give me any ideas, Buffy," Faith chuckled. "Or you and I might have to head up to our room right now and…"

Phoebe coughed trying to distract herself from the mental image that Faith and Buffy put into her head. "Okay, Leo, you orb Donnie back to his office and heal him there," she instructed as she stood. "Then make sure he doesn't narc us out for being witches."

"How?" Leo asked.

"Get creative," Faith said looking at her uncle. "I know you want to help bring Aunt Piper back but you've got your own job to do. Let us do ours."

"We'll get your wife back," Buffy added. "We promise."

With a frown Leo placed his hand on Donnie's arm and orbed him out.

"Um, I hate to ask, but..." Paige frowned as they all gathered to sit on the couch. "How are we going to get his wife back? I mean, she's kind of a... full-on demon."

"No, she's not full-on," Faith answered. "She doesn't have the big talon claws yet."

"Probably comes with the first kill." Phoebe shrugged. "Besides, if we were able to save Piper when she turned into a Wendigo..."

Paige gaped again. "A Wendi-what?"

"It's kind of like a werewolf," Faith interjected as she flipped to the Instant Karma Spell in the book, "But if the werewolf was meaner and had rabies." She pointed to the spell. "This the spell?"

"Uh-huh." Paige looked between them as Phoebe grabbed a notepad and pen. "Is there some sort of spell I could do, you know, in advance so I could, uh, not become maybe a Banshee or..."

"You do remember the last couple days right," Buffy reminded the youngest Halliwell sister. "When Faith and I were turned into children?"

"Right," Paige sighed.

Phoebe frowned. "What word did you sub demon with?" she asked her sister.

"Dirtbag."

"Dirtbag?" Faith raised a brow at Paige as Phoebe scribbled on her paper. "Creative..."

"Okay." Phoebe scrunched the paper up as she stood. "Hand." She handed the paper over to Faith before clasping hers and Paige's hand in her own, leaving Faith to burn the tip of the paper with a lit candle. "'Guided spirits, hear our plea, annul this magic, let it be.'"

Paige shut her eyes tightly. "Please let it be." Just then her breasts returned to their normal size, but when she looked down, she groaned in disappointment, "Do you think it worked a little too well?"

Streets of San Francisco

A man aggressively pushed another man against the wall as he held a knife to his throat.

The innocent man held his hands up in defeat, "Anything you want."

"Shut up."

Just then, two Furies appeared behind him and one scratched his back with her tallon. He spun around, allowing the innocent to run away. In the next second the man's head was filled with pained screaming. He dropped his knife before dropping to his knees. The fury blew smoke in his mouth causing him to choke before he was engulfed by flames and disappeared. Piper then appeared in a puff of smoke behind them. The two other Furys turned around and made purring-like noises at her.

Piper looked between them, "I've been looking for you."

Halliwell Manor

Buffy, Faith, Paige and Phoebe were all gathered in the dining room as the latter scryed for Piper.

"Damn it."

"It's not going to work," Faith shook her head. "Aunt Piper isn't a witch anymore."

Paige frowned. "Can't you just scry for evil then?"

Buffy chuckled. "Do you have any idea how much evil is running around not just San Francisco, but California?" Buffy huffed. "We live about five hours from our very own Hellmouth."

"Hellmouth?" Paige questioned.

"Later, Aunt Paige," Faith said.

Phoebe stopped scrying, "Damn it, Piper." Just then, Cole shimmered in but he was covered in bruises and scratches, "Cole!" She ran to hug him. "Thank God."

"Don't thank him yet."

Faith frowned. "You couldn't find any sign of her?"

"I didn't get a chance to look. Every time I used my sensing powers, a bounty hunter sensed me. I fought off three of them." Cole sat down at the table in defeat. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's—it's okay. I mean, somehow everything's going to be okay." As Phoebe grasped for reassurance her resolve broke. "I don't have even a little idea of how everything's going to be okay."

Paige shifted as an idea came to mind, "Guys-"

"You know why? Because nothing is okay."

"Guys."

"My sister is a Fury, my boyfriend is a demon..." Phoebe knelt down next to Cole worriedly,. "Oh, baby, you're bleeding."

"Guys!" Paige said for the third time. Phoebe, Buffy and Faith turned to her. "You guys said you found me because Piper cast a spell to find a lost witch?"

"Yes." Faith cocked her brow. "But that won't work this time because Aunt Piper's not a witch anymore."

"Yes, but if I can substitute the word 'dirtbag' for 'demon', why can't we substitute the word 'sister' for 'witch'?"

Cole looked at Phoebe. "Would that work?"

"Well, no." Phoebe shook her head. "Not if she's already looking for a kill. The call won't be strong enough."

Paige frowned. "Why not?"

"Because of the pull of evil," Faith answered with a glance at Buffy.

"Faith's right," Phoebe added. "When I was possessed by the Woogie, the blood lust was so strong..."

This time Cole frowned. "Woogie?"

Paige sighed heavily. "Don't ask."

"The point Phoebe's trying to make is..." Buffy let out a defeated breath. "Piper won't answer the call."

A long stretch of silence overtook them before Paige broke it. "Then we'll add bait." She glanced at Cole, then looked back at Buffy, Faith and Phoebe.

Phoebe tensed as she made eye contact with Cole, who looked like he was already on board. "No. No! Are you kidding me? No."

Paige leveled with Phoebe. "The furies go after evildoers, right?"

"Paige, we are not using the love of my life as bait."

"Oh, yes we are." Cole countered as he stood up and walked closer to Paige, "It's perfect."

"Cole, Aunt Phoebe's right..." Faith crossed her arms, "You've racked up a lot of victims, more than me. And you aren't a Slayer but a demon, who's lived for over century. The pain of their cries alone could kill you."

"Yes, but like Phoebe said, I'm not the demon that did those things anymore. And if facing my crimes helps save your aunt and her sister..."

Phoebe looked pained. "Cole, I..."

"Phoebe..." Cole sat back down next to her. "I would do almost anything for you, you know that. But I will not be a coward for you. Please don't ask me to be."

Phoebe studied him for a few seconds as she touched his face before conceding. "We'll need some of your blood."

Cole nodded. "Right."

Paige held out her hand. "Knife." A knife orbed from the table into her hand before she held it out in front of Cole.

"Phoebe," Buffy said. "I'll guard Cole. You, Faith and Paige just worry about Piper."

"Thank you, Buffy," Phoebe said as she smiled at the blonde Slayer.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe and Paige were standing at the table as Phoebe held the knife above a lit candle. They recited the spell together. "'Power of the sisters rise, course unseen across the skies, come to us who call you near...'"

Streets of San Francisco

Piper, who was now wearing different clothes and sporting the same markings on her face, stood in front of the Furies as they caressed her hair. She looked up at the sky upon hearing Phoebe and Paige chanting.

"'Come to us and settle here. Blood to blood, I summon thee, blood to blood, return to me.'"

"I know where evil dwells."

Halliwell Manor

Phoebe watched Cole closely as he paced. "Are you sure about this?"

"I'm good at a lot of things. Waiting is not one of them."

Paige earned their attention as she made a noise while throwing her arms down.

"Uh, Aunt Paige?" Faith frowned. "What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to do that orb thingy. I can't seem to get the hang of it, though." Cole calmly walked over to her before belting in her face causing her to orb in and out again in fear. "What happened?"

Buffy smirked, "You orbed."

"I did?"

"It's a fear response. Mine was like that in the beginning too." Buffy explained. "So, until you learn how to control it, you just got to—"

"Get scared?"

"Bingo."

"Alright, well..." Paige shrugged. "That shouldn't be too difficult."

"Good." Phoebe nodded as she looked between Paige, Buffy and Faith. "Then we will orb, we will throw fireballs, we will levitate and we will telekinetically juggle knives if we have to, just to keep the furies distracted from Cole."

"Okay, but what I don't get is how we un-demon Piper when she gets here."

Faith answered, "The book says we need to close the portal of unexpressed fury."

"Unexpressed?" Cole scoffed. "I think she's been raging for days."

"Yeah." Buffy glared at him slightly. "Because she's suppressing something."

Paige frowned. "Which is?"

"I think I have an idea..." Phoebe said as Cole yelled out in pain and dropped to his knees as pained screaming voices filled his head. "Cole!"

Buffy quickly knelt beside him. "They're close," she said as Faith and Phoebe readied themselves for a fight and

"Paige?" Phoebe said as Paige, who was scared, orbed out again.

Paige orbed back seconds later, "I did it again."

"I'm sorry!" Cole cried, "I'm so sorry!"

A fury then barged in through the front door. Phoebe levitated and kicked her, knocking her down. When she got back up to attack, Faith intercepted and blocked her before flinging her into the next room. The two of them spun around just as Piper and the other fury appeared behind them near Cole and Buffy.

"Cole, come on," Buffy said as she stood up from beside Cole who was lying on the floor. She moved between Cole and Piper and the fury.

"Nice decoy, Piper. Two points." Phoebe levitated and kicked them both, knocking them down. She and Faith rushed over to Buffy and Cole as Buffy tried to get him standing as the Furies surround them, "Come on."

"Lamp!" Paige orbed the lamp out and it flew across the room, hitting a fury, and causing them all to turn around. "Sorry." She backed up in fear as they advanced on her. "Really sorry."

Faith threw a fireball at the two Furies vanquishing them. Enraged, Piper tossed Buffy, Faith and Phoebe aside to attack Cole and scratch him in the chest.

"Cole is not your problem, Aunt Piper, and you know it," Faith told her eldest aunt.

When the girls stood up to intercept her, Piper attacked them but they were able to block her hits.

"Book!" Paige orbed the Book of Shadows to her and started flipping through it hurriedly. "Please let there be something in here."

"Aunt Piper!" Faith kicked Piper, knowing her down as Buffy sent the eldest Halliwell telekinetically sliding several feet away, "Please fight this! I'm your niece! Aunt Phoebe and Aunt Paige are your sisters!"

"And I am your friend," Buffy added. "And future niece. You don't want to kill us!"

When Cole got an energy ball ready Phoebe burst into action. "Cole, don't!" He stopped the energy ball as she made eye contact with Piper. "I know what you aren't dealing with Piper. You think I abandoned you." Faith frowned at that. "You think it's my fault that Prue died. You blame me. You should just admit it."

Piper angrily sent Phoebe flying straight into a cabinet, smashing it. She easily fought through Faith and Buffy before going straight for Paige.

"You don't want to kill me, Piper, you don't even know me." Paige said as Cole hurried over to Phoebe. "It's not about me. It's not about Pacey or Phoebe, is it?"

"Buffy!" Faith said as she looked at her fiancée. One of the two people she knew could help them.

Piper tried to scratch Paige, who orbed out just in time. Paige orbed back in behind her causing her to spin around.

"Phoebe's not the sister who abandoned you. It's Prue, isn't it?" Paige said.

Panic filled Faith and Phoebe when Piper grabbed Paige by the neck. "Buffy, do something," Faith told her fiancée.

Buffy grabbed Piper and Paige and they disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.

Cole frowned, "Where'd she take them?"

Phoebe and Faith looked at each other. "To what Piper's really angry at," Phoebe answered.

Memorial Cemetery

Buffy flamed in with Piper and Paige, but Piper staggered away when she saw Prue's plaque.

"Tell her, Piper. It's alright to hate her." Paige pressed further as Piper tried to get out through the locked doors. " You should hate her. When my parents died, I hated them for it. I was alone, and I hated them. It is okay to hate Prue."

Piper's eyes snapped to Paige. "How dare you!" She bolted over to Prue's plaque and banged on it with her hands. "How dare you leave me! How could you go and die and leave me here all alone?! Please come back. I need you." She sobbed loudly in grief. "Please come back." She screamed and sank down on the ground to sob in complete grief. At the same time she changed back to normal and Buffy, who was also crying, went to kneel beside her.

"It's okay. It's okay, Piper," the Slayer told her friend.

"It's not okay. She risked her life every day and she never thought about what would happen to me, Faith and Phoebe if she was gone." Paige started to cry with them for the sister she would never know, "How could she think that I could live without her?"

Buffy hugged her tightly as Paige looked to Prue's plaque with tear filled eyes.

June 19, 2001 – Tuesday

Halliwell Manor

Piper was in the kitchen pouring four cups of coffee as Buffy, Faith and Phoebe walked in to join her. As they sat on the stools, Piper handed them each a cup of coffee.

Phoebe studied her sister. "Did you sleep?"

"Yeah, actually, better than I have in a while."

"It's really quiet right?" Faith's saddened eyes studied the kitchen, "It's just really, really quiet now."

"Prue was always the first one up, and the last one down." A sad smile hinted at Pipers lips. "It's strange, the things that you miss." When a sad silence stretched between them, she broke it. "So, how scary was I?

Buffy, Faith and Phoebe laughed as Piper came to sit with them. "Heck, I've seen worse," Phoebe admitted. "

Faith shook her head after taking a sip of coffee. "I think we've all been worse."

Phoebe nodded in agreement before looking back at Piper. "Paige..."

"She completely freaked?" Piper finished for her sister.

"No," Buffy countered. "She handled everything..."

"Better than we expected her too. Better than most people would, I think," Phoebe added. "She saved your life. She definitely is a Halliwell, last name or no."

"I know I haven't been the most welcoming. I just..." Sadness once again filled Piper's face. "I miss Prue so much. It's hard to imagine opening up to someone else. With everything that happens in our lives, love just feels like an invitation for more pain."

"So," Faith said as she reached for her eldest aunt's hand. "Maybe you don't start with love. Maybe you just start with thanks."

South Bay Social Services

Faith followed Piper, who held a basket of muffins. She had wanted to be there to support both of her aunts. Who were both her friends.

When Piper spotted Paige at her desk, she and Faith walked over to her. Piper put the basket down in front of her.

Paige looked up in surprise before peeking into the basket. "Muffins." She grinned up at Piper and Faith. "Thanks."

"Aunt Piper is the best in the kitchen," Faith smiled at her youngest aunt.

"Prue was the one that liked to, uh, chase demons," Piper added.

Paige looked over to see Donnie. "Man, he's like a whole new Donnie." She gave Piper and Faith a curious look. "What did Leo say to him?"

"Um... I don't know." Piper said as she and Faith looked over at Donnie, who smiled as he walked past them. "He's a miracle worker, that husband of mine."

Paige nodded before studying her sister and niece. "How are you? Both of you?"

Faith and Piper glanced at each other. While Faith had begun to move past Prue's death before Piper. She had still been grieving to a degree even up till the day before when Piper had almost turned into a fury.

"It's been hard," Faith admitted.

"And I've… I've had, uh... bad hours." Piper answered as she and Faith took a seat in front of Paige's desk. "And hours that aren't quite so bad. I guess you know how it is."

"Yeah. When my parents died, there were some days I didn't think I'd survive the sadness. It'll never be okay that she's gone. But I promise, it will get better."

"You know..." Piper motioned to the scratches on Paige's neck. "Leo could fix that for you."

"It's my first war wound." She grinned proudly. "I think I'll wear it with pride."

"Unfortunately, in our family, it will not be the last," Faith told her youngest aunt. "And only Buffy and I have accelerated healing due to the Slayer side of us."

"Well, every family has its pros and it's cons. A couple of demon battles in exchange for the power to clear up my friend's skin?" Paige shrugged. "I'd say it's worth it."

Piper frowned. "The power to what?"

Paige motioned over to where Lila and Billy were chatting across the room. Lila was laying on the flirt, making Billy blush. "He's cute, isn't he?" She chuckled. "Well, you should have seen him yesterday."

"Okay, uh, you saved my life, so I guess we're even on the Book of Shadows swipe, but, um, Paige..." Piper looked at her seriously. "There are rules to being a witch…"

"Aunt Piper, let it rest," Faith told her eldest aunt. "It's not like our family is known for following the rules. You after all married our Whitelighter. I'm engaged to my fellow Slayer and Aunt Phoebe is dating a demon."

Piper smirked. "Okay."

"My, my, my." Mr. Cowan earned their attention as he came to a stop at Paige's desk, "That pile looks about the same size as it did about an hour ago."

"Oh, that was our fault." Piper answered as she and Faith stood up, "We distracted her with muffins."

"And who do you have with you, Faith?" Mr. Cowan asked the young woman he knew to be Paige's friend.

Faith looked from Mr. Cowan to Piper and Paige and then back to Mr. Cowan with a small smile. "I have with me; my Aunt Piper is who Aunt Paige's sister."

Mr. Cowan looked surprised. "Aunt?"

"We only found out recently," Faith answered as she and Piper gave Paige another smile before leaving the office. Paige smiled a little to herself as she watched them walk away.