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

26. Chapter 25: Lost and Bound

Chapter 25: Lost and Bound

November 14, 2001 – Wednesday

Halliwell Manor

"Hey." Cole greeted as he entered their bedroom to find Phoebe sitting, cross-legged on the bed, folding laundry. "Guess what?" he urged excitedly.

Phoebe looked up at him. "You've come to help me fold the laundry."

"Uh…no," he corrected reaching into his pocket.

"What good is being a witch if I can't just twitch my nose and make the laundry fold itself?" she asked with a dejected sigh, staring at the basket full that she still had to fold.

"Uh...which witch can do that?" Cole asked, eyebrows raised curiously.

Phoebe smiled. "Samantha Stephens," she revealed and Cole stared at her blankly.

Upon hearing only silence Phoebe looked over at him, eyes widening at her puzzled expression, "From Bewitched?" Phoebe elaborated, her eyes widening at his still blank expression. "Oh, it's only, like, one of my favorite old television shows. You know, sometimes I forget that you've only been fully human for like, a month."

"And becoming more human by the day," Cole quipped. "What would you say if I became really human and…got a job?" he asked.

Phoebe took a deep breath. "If that's the criteria for being really human, then I am in big trouble," she chuckled bitterly.

"I'm serious." Cole smiled. "Paige said that a lawyer at Legal Aid quit, so she kind of…recommended me."

"She did?" Phoebe asked going back to folding the laundry.

Cole frowned then took a seat on the bed in front of her. "Of course, if you don't think I should, then—"

"No, no," Phoebe cut him off. "Um…actually I think that's a great idea," she encouraged him. "It'll keep you busy and…help you find your identity…" she gathered up the laundry in her arms then quickly said, "…while I lose mine." She then jumped off of the bed.

"Sorry?" Cole asked his frown deepening.

"Nothing." Phoebe shrugged.

"Tell me," he ordered kindly.

Phoebe placed the folded and stack laundry on the dresser and turned to him. "It's just…becoming a wife," she said simply. "I mean I like Samantha, but I never actually wanted to become her," she tried to explain, placing one hand on her hip and the other on the chair.

Cole looked at her blankly, shaking his head to tell her he didn't quite follow.

"See, Samantha…" Phoebe sat back down in front of him, "…she was married to a human, Darrin. Darrin completely repressed Samantha's magic. Completely denied who she was and, and it wasn't because he didn't love her. It was just…that's the way it had to be."

Cole frowned, looking skeptical, "And this was one of your favorite shows?"

Phoebe suppressed a laugh. "Well, not that part." She smirked and he smiled. "It's just, growing up, that was my only role model for a typical marriage. So that's all I knew." She shrugged. "And he was able to meet people and leave the house and go to work and build his career and she had to stay home. You know, and cook dinner and..." she gestured to the laundry basket, "...do the laundry. She went from being Samantha to being Mrs. Darrin Stephens overnight."

Cole smiled. "Well, that won't happen to you," he assured her.

"Won't it?" Phoebe countered.

Cole smirked. "You'll become Mrs. Cole Turner," he corrected her and Phoebe glared. "Phoebe come on," he said placing his hands on her. "Number 1: this is a different time, different world, obviously," he pointed out. "Number 2: we're hardly typical. I proposed to you under a hail of demon goo, and you accepted while I was bleeding to death. Remember?" he asked and she smiled a little, tilting her head. "Look, why don't we just…" he stood up and reached into his right pocket, "…do it again, start over," he suggested pulling out a beautiful white gold engagement ring and presenting it to her gallantly.

Phoebe grabbed his hand in her two and gazed down at it in awe. "Grams' ring," she gasped with a smile.

"Mmm-hmmm." Cole nodded watching her closely.

Phoebe looked up at him. "Where did you get that?"

"Faith and Piper gave it to me," he shared. "It was all very…" he shook himself, "I thought I was in trouble." He chuckled and Phoebe joined in. "They gave it to me so I could give it to you."

"Well, that's not exactly a good omen," Phoebe stated pointing to the ring. "She was married with that thing four times."

Cole laughed. "Well, she must have liked something about it, or she would have stopped at, like, two," he shot back and Phoebe giggled. "Right?" He smiled down at her then dropped down on one knee. "Miss Phoebe Halliwell, I come to you, a man, nothing more, nothing less, to ask…will you be my wife?" he asked, eyes full of love.

Phoebe looked at the ring pretending to think then looked back at him and smiled. "Yeah." She nodded. "I will," she agreed holding out her hand. "Again," she added as he slipped the ring on her finger.

"Good." He smiled, sighing inwardly in relief when it fit perfectly.

Phoebe smiled at him, took his face in her hands and kissed him then wrapped her arms around him and sighed happily, eyes closed so unfortunately, she failed to see the beautiful diamond ring that now adorned her finger glow.

Halliwell Manor

"C'mon, c'mon," Faith muttered from her place perched on the edge of the toilet seat as she glanced between her watch and the extremely daunting plastic stick by the sink. "God, since when has three god damn minutes lasted this freakin' long," she cursed shaking her head and glancing down at her watch one more time. "Oh, thank god," she cried as the seemingly endless three minutes finally came to an end.

Faith jumped up off the toilet seat and walked toward the sink, her hands gripping the edge tightly as she drew in deep, calming breaths. She bit down on her lip and slowly reached for the piece of plastic that could inevitably, change her life one way or the other. Her fingers had barely grazed the offending object before there was a sharp knock at the door and her heart stopped dead. "Oh!" she screamed the hand, instead, flying to her chest.

"Faith?" Buffy's voice came through the door. "You alright in there?"

Faith nodded her head, willing her heart to slow down again then realized there was a large wooden door between them. "Uh…yeah I'm fine."

"Are you done? Everyone's upstairs for breakfast," Buffy informed her.

Faith sighed. "Yeah uh…I'll, I'll be right up," she assured Buffy and waited to hear her walk away.

"Baby—"

"I promise, babe, I'm fine," Faith said. "I'll be up in a minute."

"Okay," Buffy said and Faith breathed a sigh of relief as she heard her footsteps become quieter.

"Okay," Faith breathed turning back towards the sink, she lifted the stick and brought it closer, her eyes snapping closed before she could see the answer. "Damn it," she cursed chewing on her lip relentlessly as she tried to coax herself into opening her eyes. "Okay, Faith, you're okay," she told herself calmly, gripping the stick until her knuckles turned white. "Just take a breath and open your eyes," she instructed and that's exactly what she did.

Faith's gaze landed on the little oval shaped window strip that would tell her 'yes' or 'no', 'baby' or 'no baby'. She stared at the strip blankly, reaching out to the left and snatching up the box to double check what one line meant and what two meant before throwing it back down and exhaling sharply.

Faith sank back down onto the toilet seat, test still in hand and breathed deeply until she realized that people would notice her absence if she prolonged it any further. She grabbed the cap for the end in which you pee and concealed it, then slid the test itself back into the paper wrapper and chucked it into the box, making sure to take it all with her as she left the bathroom.

There was no way in hell she was leaving a pregnancy test, no matter the result, in the waste paper basket for her aunts to find, not until she had a chance to talk to Buffy about it.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Piper and Leo sat on opposite sides of the dining table, a section of the newspaper each, their eyes fixed on the words, completely ignoring the others' presence as a barely wakened but fully clothed Paige came down the stairs.

Paige yawned loudly and stretched her arms. "The sun came up again," she said solemnly.

"Oh!" Phoebe chirped strolling back in from the kitchen, a very large pot of coffee in hand. She smiled broadly at Paige. "Good morning sunshine," she greeted snatching up an empty cup. "Let me pour you a cup of coffee," she said lifting both the pot and the mug up to eye level, moving her arms in a circular motion in front of Paige's face. "Notice anything different about me?" she asked making sure her left hand was in full view but Paige was still too tired to function properly.

"Engagement ring." Piper supplied helpfully. "Notice it or wear coffee," she warned and Phoebe giggled.

Paige's eyes lit up as they caught sight of the rock on her sisters' finger. "Nice ice!" she exclaimed taking the mug from Phoebe so she could inspect it further.

"Thank you very much!" Phoebe smiled, staring at it admiringly. "I can't stop looking at it," she informed her as she moved around the table and took a seat next to Piper.

"I was like that when I got my belly ring," Paige shared, rubbing her stomach wistfully. "Oh, you're right." She nodded catching the look her older sister was sending her. "A wedding ring is totally different."

Phoebe grabbed Piper's mug and re-filled it with coffee as Paige fell into the seat next to Leo.

"Morning," Buffy greeted as he too came from the kitchen.

Phoebe grabbed another mug and filled it then shoved it in Buffy's face using her left hand.

"Whoa!" Buffy cried in surprise. "What's with the aggression?" she asked and Phoebe smiled excitedly.

"Notice anything different?" Phoebe asked waving her hand in Buffy's face just like she did Paige.

Buffy noticed the ring but shook her head. "Nope." He shrugged taking the coffee from her and drinking from it.

Phoebe frowned and her shoulders sagged while Buffy smirked into her coffee mug. Phoebe narrowed her eyes at Buffy and then slapped the blonde Slayer's arm. "Hey!" she whined 'baby Phoebe' coming out to say hello. "That's mean," she pouted making her niece chuckle.

"I'm sorry," Buffy apologized wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her into a hug. "It's beautiful. A beautiful ring for a beautiful girl," she complimented and Phoebe blushed hugging back. "Congrats, Phoebe," she congratulated.

Phoebe grinned at Buffy, feeling like a little kid again. "Thanks."

Buffy nodded then took a seat next to Paige who passed her the bowl of mixed fruit with a 'good morning' and a smile.

Phoebe was about to go back to her own seat when Faith came from the kitchen and she pounced on her.

"Oh!" Faith yelped as Phoebe's arms locked around her neck. She looked at Piper quizzically who only chuckled having received the very same greeting minutes before. "Good…morning to you too, Aunt Phoebe."

Phoebe pulled back and grinned. "Thank you."

Faith frowned and Phoebe held up her left hand and she smiled. "You're very welcome, Aunt Phoebe." She pulled her aunt into a one-armed hug. "It suits you."

Phoebe nodded. "I think so too," she agreed tempted to jump up and down with excitement.

Faith chuckled. "Sit," she instructed nodding to the chair beside Piper and Phoebe bounced away. She turned to her wife and kissed Buffy.

"Here," Phoebe handed Faith a mug as she sat down next to her.

Piper looked up from her paper. "Phoebe?"

Phoebe turned toward her elder sister. "Yeah?"

"Will you pass me the milk?" Piper asked her eyes going back to the paper.

Phoebe frowned glancing at Faith who frowned also. "Uh…it's right next to Leo," she stated re-filling her own mug.

Leo looked over at them. "We're not talking to each other," he announced with a sigh.

"What?" Buffy asked, eyes wide.

Faith shook her head. "Still? Seriously?"

Phoebe frowned, reaching for the milk and using it herself then pouring some in Faith's mug before handing it to Piper. "Wait, shouldn't you wait till after you have kids to start fighting about them?" she asked suppressing a chuckle of amusement while Faith bit her lip to do the same.

"Well, what's the matter?" Paige asked looking between the couple. "Maybe we can help."

Leo, keeping his eyes on his paper, replied. "It's about a magical child in a non-magical world," he explained.

Buffy's eyes instantly cut to her wife's: they hadn't discussed anything about their daughter since she been turned into a man. They had agreed to wait to do that till they were sure that Faith was pregnant.

"Someone..." Piper spoke up, "I won't say who, has the insane notion of binding our child's powers," she snapped, all the while glaring daggers at her husband.

"Why is that insane?" Leo questioned, putting down his paper and looking over at his wife, "Grams bound your powers when you were a child," he correctly pointed out.

"Yes." Piper nodded. "And we spent twenty-odd years ignorant about our destiny. I look back on those normal days and I feel like I was a complete and total fraud!" she informed him, slamming down her own paper.

Leo sighed. "I'm not saying hide the truth," he corrected her. "It's just, growing up is hard enough without the extra burden of having powers."

Piper grabbed her paper leaning forward in her chair. "Magic is not a 'burden'…It is a gift." She glared then put her paper up in between them, blocking her face from his view.

"It's a lot for any child to deal with, plus ours will be doubly magical: half-Whitelighter, half-witch," Leo explained opting to remain calm in this current debate. Something Piper couldn't maintain.

"Hey that's like me," Paige piped up happily and Piper tore away her paper barrier and glared at her youngest sister/ "Oh." Paige's face became sympathetic. "You might have some trouble," she warned them and Phoebe smirked.

Piper's eyes narrowed suddenly and she rounded on her nieces. "Hey! You?" she called and Faith looked down. "Couple at the end who have been unusually quiet during this whole discussion."

Faith bit her lip her eyes staring intently at the table while Buffy stared at her food.

"What do you think?" Piper asked expectantly and Phoebe jumped around in her seat.

"Yeah…you two will have to make the very same decision at some point," Phoebe agreed eager for some more entertainment.

Paige popped a piece of melon in her mouth and nodded.

Faith glanced at Buffy who raised her head. "Uh…we have no comment," Buffy told them and Piper frowned.

"Why the hell not!" she exclaimed stomping her foot under the table.

"Because we—" Buffy gestured between herself and her wife, "—haven't even discussed it between ourselves yet so we're not about share our opinions with you before one another," she explained calmly and Piper sighed.

Leo nodded. "She's right," he said to his wife who glared.

"I've got to get to work," Paige cried jumping up then paused. "Wait, where's Cole?" she asked Phoebe.

"I'll get him." Phoebe smiled helpfully. "And Paige, thank you so much for getting him this job. Especially now, you know, that we're going to be married, and he's going to have to get used to bringing home the bacon," she mused with a smile.

"What?" Faith muttered as her aunt disappeared up the stairs.

Paige looked after Phoebe with a frown. "Since when does Phoebe care about bacon?"

"I'm sure she meant all breakfast meats," Leo suggested offhandedly and Buffy, Faith and Paige turned to him quizzically.

Paige rolled her eyes. "Bye," she said smiling at Buffy and then kissing Faith on the cheek before heading towards the door to wait on Cole.

"Piper, would you please pass me the milk?" Leo asked her voice strained as he stared at his wife.

Piper shook her head. "Nope."

Buffy came around the table to sit next to her wife. She and Faith looked between the couple carefully and then, when Buffy was sure Piper was too busy sulking to notice, she slowly and telekinetically moved the milk toward Leo, who smiled at her and mouthed, 'Thank you.'

Piper's hand shot out in Buffy's direction, pointing an accusatory finger at her. "I saw that."

Leo cringed and looked at his nieces, both of whom shrugged at him and laughed silently, glancing toward Piper.

"Oh honey, you look gorgeous!" Phoebe gushed with pride as Cole descended the stairs in a very nice suit. "Should I make you some breakfast?" she asked then raised her eyebrows. "You know, it's the most important meal of the day."

"Thanks, I'll just grab a coffee on the way," Cole assured her walking towards the door but Phoebe grabbed his arm.

"Are you sure?" Phoebe asked with wide eyes. "I could whip something up in a jiff."

Cole turned to her. "In a jiff? Really?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah." She smiled widely.

"Come on, dude," Paige called from the front door as she pulled on her coat. "Let's get paid."

"Have a great day," Phoebe told him with a smile. "I am so proud of you." She then kissed his lips quickly. "Oh, look at us. We're so bewitched," she observed happily.

"No, no, no, no. No, we're not," Cole countered shaking his head. "You feel free to use all the magic you want while I'm gone," he assured her and she nodded.

"Okay. Whatever makes you happy," Phoebe told him gazing down at her ring. "I wonder what I should make him for dinner?" she asked herself, head tilted to the side in thought.

South Bay Social Services

"So, this is your office." Paige informed Cole hurriedly, showing him into a relatively small room with limited space. "It's got a desk, a chair, a lamp. What more do you need?" Paige asked with a smile.

"Uh...oxygen," Cole replied looking around in dismay. "You know when I was a DA, I had an office eight times this size," he pointed to one of the four solid walls and chuckled. "Windows, an assistant," he added sitting down in the chair, which fell several inches under the unexpected weight. He dropped his briefcase by his side. "Plus, I could throw energy balls." He sighed wistfully.

Paige smirked. "Yeah, well, you're human now, so get used to being humble just like all the rest of us."

Cole sighed and shook his head standing up again and glaring at his chair.

"Cole Turner?" A brunette, middle-aged woman questioned as she entered the office with a stack of manila files in her hands. Cole looked up and nodded, the woman smiled. "Hi. I'm Cynthia Corn, director of the Legal Aid Office," she introduced herself, re-adjusting the folders to shake his hand.

Cole took her proffered hand with a pleasant smile. "Hi."

Cynthia looked toward Paige. "Paige has told me such wonderful things about you," she mused then turned back toward him. "I wish I had time to get to know you, but I don't so…jumping right in, if we could."

"I have to jump right out," Paige announced pointing to herself. "If anyone needs me, I'll be down the hall," she informed them as she slipped out the door, Cole following her a little helplessly before turning his full attention onto his boss.

Paige walked into the main area of the office, passing a young boy who was sitting on the uncomfortable plastic chairs. She regarded him with curious eyes and smiled, "Hi." She waved as she passed him and he offered her a tiny half-smile in return.

"Hey." Paige reached out and stopped her boss as he passed her. "What's with the kid?" she asked jerking her head in the blonde-haired boy's direction.

"Oh." Mr. Cowan glanced his way then addressed Paige, answering her question. "The police brought him in. Found him sleeping in an alley."

"Is he a runaway?" Paige asked, glancing at the boy and Mr. Cowan nodded.

"Looks like it. His name is Tyler but I'm having trouble getting more information from him," he admitted looking at the boy in concern.

Paige shrugged. "Sometimes those little video-game things help loosen them up," she shared then pointed behind her. "Billy's got one in the back. I'll go get it."

"Good." Mr. Cowan nodded then made his way over to Tyler, bottle of soda in hand, "Uh...here ya go Tyler." He said handing the bottle over, which Tyler happily took, "Thought you might be thirsty."

Tyler nodded and hastily unscrewed the top and took a long gulp.

"So…have you thought about giving us a phone number so we can call your parents?" Mr. Cowan asked casually. "Let them know you're okay."

Tyler swallowed his mouthful but remained silent, staring straight ahead.

Mr. Cowan sighed quietly then asked, "Do you want them to know you're okay?" But Tyler still remained quiet. He frowned, leaning closer. "Did they hurt you?"

"No," Tyler replied, shaking his head. "They didn't hurt me," he assured him.

Mr. Cowan nodded in relief. "Good, alright um…but something happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Tyler insisted firmly.

"Yeah, I know it's hard, Tyler, but talking is how we fix things," Mr. Cowan explained gently.

"I said I don't want to talk about it!" Tyler repeated harshly then clutched his head, rubbing his temples and the trash can in front of him burst into flames before Paige's eyes.

"Fire!" she yelled as no one else had noticed and Mr. Cowan left Tyler's side reluctantly to go deal with it.

Tyler, afraid of getting into trouble took the sudden distraction as an opportunity to split, unfortunately Paige watched him go and grabbed her coat and purse, running out after him.

"Hey," Paige greeted when she found him crouched behind a car.

Tyler looked at her in surprise them made to run.

"Hey, hey, don't go," Paige called, stopping him. "You don't have to be afraid," she assured him coming to a stop in front of the boy who turned and walked away. "I won't tell anyone I saw you start the fire," she promised following behind him.

Tyler stopped dead and turned to her with wide eyes. "You saw?"

Paige nodded. "Yeah, but nobody else did and I promise I won't tell," she repeated to ensure that he believed her. "I swear I won't."

"I didn't mean to do it," Tyler told her quietly.

"I know, Tyler. I know."

"Please don't make me go back to the clinic," he begged her. "I don't ever want to go back to my foster parents. They don't…understand me."

Paige smiled softly. "I know a place where I can take you where you'll be safe," she told him catching his eye. "But you got to trust me, okay?"

Tyler watched her carefully, thinking it over before he nodded slowly.

"Come, on." She smiled and guided him towards her car.

Halliwell Manor

"How's it goin'?" Piper asked as Paige joined them in the conservatory after having been with Tyler in the sitting room.

Paige shook her head. "Not so good. He's barely making eye contact. Not really speaking." She shrugged. "He's just really afraid."

"Of what?" Leo asked.

"Himself, his powers," Paige replied simply. "He's just showing all the signs of a kid who's never received sustained affection," she explained sadly.

"Well, plus, being shuffled in and out of foster homes doesn't help either," Piper added shaking her head.

"No," Paige agreed. "And I get the sense that he's always felt like an outsider, and a bit of a freak and now he's found out that, in some ways, he kind of is."

Piper sighed and the two sisters glanced toward Tyler. "Buffy and Faith are on their way home from Sunnydale," she informed her youngest sister. "We don't exactly know what we're dealing with here so I figured it would be safer to have everyone around…" she shrugged, "…just in case you know?" she asked and Paige nodded.

"Which is why it could make sense for us to bind his powers," Leo suggested turning to his wife.

"Yeah, maybe we could just take off one of his legs at the same time," Piper retorted turning on her husband. "You know, because they're both part of him."

"It is not the same thing, Piper," Leo said calmly. "Tyler's powers could be a danger to himself and to others," he reasoned and Piper shook her head.

"Wha—no, you know what don't make our issues his issues." Piper glared. "Besides he has the same powers as Faith, is she a danger to herself as well?"

"She's learned to control them," Leo countered.

"And I think you need to give him a chance to learn how to control them like she has," Piper suggested with an angry shrug. "Maybe that's why we met him. To teach him, guide him."

"Feed him," Phoebe announced as she walked into the room looking very old time 1960.

"Wow, Phoebe, you went all out," Paige stated in regards to the plate full of cookies.

Phoebe shrugged. "Oh, well, you know me. Any excuse to spend a little extra time in the kitchen."

Piper nodded. "I do know you and that's just not true."

"Oh, but it is now that I'm going to be Sadie, Sadie married lady," Phoebe quipped and Piper's eyes narrowed further.

"Alright Sadie, how about I take the cookies to the kid?" Piper asked, holding out her hand for the plate and Phoebe smiled handing them over with pride. She turned to Paige. "Do you mind if I try talking to him?" she asked, knowing that kids in these sorts of troubled situations were kind of Paige's thing.

"No, actually, the sooner we get through to him, the better," Paige assured her. "Because the last time I checked, kidnapping is still illegal. I'm going to go back to work. You guys call me later."

Piper shook her head, "But—"

"If Buffy and Faith are going to be here then you should be fine on the power front," Paige interrupted knowing what she was objecting to. "And besides, going back to work will buy us more time. I mean, it'll look a little iffy if I go missing the same time that the kid runs off," she pointed out and Piper nodded. "Later."

"Stay reachable!" Piper yelled after her sister's retreating form.

"Eat them while they're hot," Phoebe piped up, nodding to the cookies.

"Hi," Piper greeted as she walked through the door that connected the conservatory to the sitting room, closing it behind her.

Tyler remained silent, his back to her as he played with the game boy Paige had given him.

"My uh…sister made some cookies. Do you want some?" she asked and once again was hit by silence, although Tyler did turn around at least. "Hmm I don't blame you. It could be kind of dicey," Piper stated placing them down on the table. "She's not really a great cook," she jibed pointing to them. "Why don't you try one so, you know, her feelings don't get hurt," she suggested sitting on one of the arm chairs.

Tyler tried to ignore her but the smell of the cookies made him realize how hungry he was so he put down the console and picked one up, hesitantly taking a small bite. "Can I have another?" he asked with a small smile and Phoebe, who was watching hopefully, smiled brightly before disappearing back into the kitchen.

"Help yourself." Piper nodded. "You now, it's probably hard to believe, but something amazing has happened to you," she informed him gently. "You've been given a gift. A magical gift…and as strange as it sounds, you're not alone," she assured him. "I know exactly what you're going through."

Tyler scoffed. "Yeah right. You start fire too?" he asked skeptically.

Piper smiled. "Me no, my niece does though." He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "She can create fire in the palm of her hand. Anyways I do know what it's like to possess a power that you can't control," she admitted. "And to want so desperately to be normal, but it's just not an option and because there aren't any options, you just…" she shrugged, "…sometimes get so angry that you want to—" Piper cut herself off with a flick of her wrist, obliterating a vase.

Tyler turned to it, jumping slightly but smiling. "Wow! What was that? What did you just do?"

"I proved that I know what you're going through," Piper answered with a smile.

"But…how did you do that?" Tyler asked curiously.

"Pretty much the same way you do," Piper explained. "I've just learned how to focus my emotions and control it."

Tyler sighed and sat down on the end on the coffee table. "I wish I could control mine," he said sadly. "Then I could be around people."

"Is that why you ran away?" Piper asked kindly. "Because you were afraid you were going to hurt someone."

"I was scared," Tyler answered honestly. "I set fire to the living room couch. I didn't mean to but my foster mom was yelling at me, that I was 'good-for-nothing' and it made me so mad I just…" Tyler trailed off as he clutched his head and one of the chairs caught fire.

"Whoa!" Piper exclaimed jumping out of her chair as Tyler shot up.

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Piper assured him. "In this house it's okay." She threw out one hand and froze the flames. "I can also freeze things."

Tyler grinned. "Now that's cool."

"Leo," Piper called on her husband. "Could you get some water?"

"Aunt Piper?" Faith yelled as she and Buffy appeared in a swirl of fiery flames in the foyer. "What's the 91…" she trailed as she and Buffy found Piper and Tyler standing together in the sitting room, "…1."

Buffy's eyes fell on the boy and she smiled. "Hi." She waved.

"What's—Oh!" Faith cried seeing the frozen flames. "Fire—"

"Starter," Piper finished for her tipping her head toward Tyler, who was watching Faith curiously. "Kind of like you."

"You mean he's…" Buffy started.

"He's kind of got a power like Faith's yes," Piper informed them.

Faith turned to Tyler with a genuine smile. "You got a name?" she asked, her voice friendly and kind.

"Tyler," he replied smiling back.

Faith nodded and stretched out her hand. "I'm Faith and this is my wife, Buffy," she introduced herself and Buffy as Tyler took her hand, shaking it firmly. "Nice to meet you Tyler." She smiled.

"You too," Tyler replied.

Buffy's her eyes lit up, "Ooh cookies!" she gushed happily picking one up and taking a bite, "Mmm, these are really good Piper," she praised looking at Piper. "Taste a little different though."

Piper nodded with a smirk. "That's because Phoebe made them," she informed her nieces.

Buffy froze, cookie half-way to her mouth. "Seriously?" she questioned with wide eyes and Piper nodded.

"Aunt Phoebe can't cook anything. Aunt Piper …" she pointed to herself, "…has been teaching me and I've gotten to the point where I can bake a little but Aunt Phoebe can't really do much more than that either so…" She shrugged trying to include him in the conversation, knowing he must feel a little out of place.

"Are you sure?" Buffy asked Piper who nodded with a shrug.

"Weird," Faith summarized and Tyler chuckled.

"Yeah and so is Phoebe," Piper informed them.

Buffy took another bite and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Just wait," Piper replied just as the doorbell sounded loudly.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe opened the oven door and breathed in deeply, inhaling the sweet smell of her homemade pie baking away before moving off to the island.

"Oh Leo!" She smiled as her brother-in-law entered the kitchen. "I'm so glad you came in. I have a very important question to ask you."

"Uh…what is it?" Leo asked as he filled a jug with water.

"Do you think that little boy will be staying for lunch?" Phoebe asked seriously.

Leo frowned. "I would imagine so uh…what's the important question?"

Phoebe paused and looked over at him. "That was it." She smiled.

Leo's eyebrows shot up. "Really?" he asked turning off the faucet and Phoebe nodded. He turned to face her, jug in hand. "Phoebe? Are you feeling alright?" he asked looking her over carefully.

Phoebe nodded. "Peachy keen. Oh!" She turned to the ringing phone. "I'll get it," she told him and Leo nodded, leaving the kitchen to attend to the small fire. "Hello?" she answered with a smile.

"You got to keep me from killing this slumlord," Cole's voice sounded down the line. "I got a meeting in like, ten minutes with a guy who's the biggest ass."

"Hold it," Phoebe cut in firmly. "Do not make me march down there and wash your mouth out with soap, mister."

"Huh?" came Cole's highly puzzled reply.

"Do you want me to twitch my nose and turn him into Mr. Nice?" Phoebe questioned as she once again admired the beautiful ring adorning her finger.

"No, I want to use an energy ball and send him where he belongs," Cole informed her seriously. "The jerk turned off the heat, causing an elderly tenant to get pneumonia, then he tried to evict her!"

"Okay, well just relax and try to get through it, and I will have a martini waiting for you when you get home," Phoebe assured him lovingly, her voice calm and soothing.

"Martini?" Cole echoed.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "And a steak. You really need some more red meat in your diet."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cole demanded incredulously.

"Oh! Company." Phoebe grinned at the sound of the doorbell. "I have to go," she chirped and hung up the phone. "I'll get it!" Phoebe called loudly as she raced to the door, stopping Piper in her tracks who shot Faith and Buffy a pointed look.

"Hello." Phoebe smiled at the couple on the other side of the door.

"Hi," The woman smiled back.

"Hi." The man nodded to her. "We're looking for our son, Tyler. Is he here, by any chance?"

"You betcha." Phoebe nodded. "Come on in," she invited and they did. "Can I make you anything? A sandwich, a Spanish omelet, perhaps?" she offered helpfully.

Piper shot her nieces a look and both Buffy and Faith nodded, silently moving back toward Tyler, subtly blocking him from view, telling him to stay quiet.

"Wait," Piper instructed turning back to the couple. "How did you know he was here?" she queried, eyes narrowing suspiciously.

The couple glanced at one another before the woman replied, "Maternal instinct." With an obviously fake smile and Piper's frown deepened right before the man smacked her across the face, sending her soaring backward into the sitting room.

"Piper!" Tyler yelled and Buffy and Faith instinctively pulled him behind them. Buffy threw up her hand sending the couple flying backwards as Piper jumped to her feet.

Tyler's eyes widened and he smiled. "Awesome," he muttered and Piper smiled briefly before turning her attention back to the two advancing demons.

The female quickly formed an energy ball just as a fireball appeared in Faith's hands. "Wow," Tyler said as he looked at Faith. "You can make fire like I do," he said in surprise.

Faith and the female demon threw the fireball and energy ball at the same time, both colliding in mid-air and exploding. Piper threw up her hands freezing the second oncoming attack.

Buffy directed the frozen ball away as Piper shuffled Tyler back so he was half hidden by a bookcase.

Leo came running into the room as the demon directed another energy ball towards Piper and he threw himself at his wife, knocking her to the ground, the energy ball striking the chair instead, blowing it apart and sending pieces in all directions.

"Bitch," Faith growled and threw out her arm sending a fireball at the woman who dove out of the way.

The male demon stepped forward and struck Faith and Buffy sending them backwards, past Tyler and into the living room.

"Leave them alone! " Tyler screamed angrily.

"Nobody is keeping us from collecting our bounty," the male growled as Leo pulled himself and Piper to their feet.

"No! Stop!" Tyler ordered.

"Shut up Tyler," the female snapped and Tyler clutched his head, rubbing his temples and the two demons caught on fire, burning until there was nothing left.

Piper and Leo turned to him in shock while Buffy and Faith limped into the room, their eyebrows raised in surprise.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Tyler was sitting, knees to his chest on the couch in the living room, the broken coffee table on which Buffy had landed, in front of him as he fought off frightened tears. "I didn't mean too," he told Piper quietly.

Piper glanced back at Buffy and Faith, who were perched on the arms on either side of her and Tyler before addressing him gently. "Tyler, you don't have to explain anything," she assured him with a kind smile. "We were there, we saw what happened."

"I thought I was going to hurt someone, and then I did," Tyler replied shaking his head.

"You did what you had to do," Leo insisted from the chair to the left of the young boy.

"I did a bad thing," Tyler informed him sadly.

"They were bad people Tyler," Buffy interjected.

"They were hurting us," Faith reminded him, she pointed from herself to Buffy and finally Piper to indicate who exactly she was talking about. "You were protecting us."

Piper nodded. "Faith's right Tyler." She smiled at him. "You saved us."

But Tyler shook his head and looked to the floor.

Piper sighed. "Tyler look at me," she ordered gently. "Look at me." And he did. "You didn't do a bad thing. Those were very bad people and they were going to kill us," she pointed to the coffee table. "They did hurt us," she pointed out. "You saved us," she repeated firmly, looking the young boy in the eyes. "Come on I want to show you something," she told him seriously. "Come on, it's okay," She assured him when he failed to move and gently pulled him to his feet and towards the stairs.

Faith pulled on Buffy's arm, stopping her wife and jerked her head toward the kitchen. "I'm going to go deal with Aunt Phoebe," she informed Buffy, who nodded before jogging up after Piper and Leo.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"A book?" Tyler turned to her, eyes skeptical and Piper smirked.

"Not just any book. It's a magical one," Piper told him lifting the Book of Shadows into her arms. "Can I trust you?" she asked tilting her head and Tyler nodded.

"Sure. Yeah," he assured her, his curiosity peeked.

Piper nodded. "Okay, let's find out who those people really were," she gestured to the couch and they took a seat.

"My foster parents?" Tyler queried.

"They weren't really your foster parents, Tyler," Leo told him from his place on a stool to their right as Buffy came through the attic door. "They were…"

"Demonic bounty hunters," Piper finished for him, her page flicking coming to a halt. "Driven by greed, these heartless low-level demons will stop at nothing to collect their bounty," she read aloud from the description on the page.

Tyler bit his lip in thought then looked at Piper questioningly. "So…if they're bad, does that mean I didn't do anything bad?" he asked and Piper nodded.

"That's right," Buffy replied as she sat on the couch beside Tyler and opposite Piper.

Tyler sighed in relief, turning back to Piper. "Is there anything about me in there?" he asked sounding both hopeful and fearful.

"Actually, I think there is," Piper replied and turned a few more pages. "Here it is. You read," she told him.

"The Firestarter: an extremely rare and coveted magical creature," Tyler paused and frowned. "What does 'coveted' mean?" he asked curiously.

Buffy racked her brain quickly then replied. "It means "highly desirable, wanted."

"I'm...wanted?" Tyler asked uncertainly and the doubt in his eyes broke Piper and Buffy's hearts.

"Very much so," Piper confirmed firmly and Tyler smiled. "Their power is linked to their emotions," she continued to read. "First manifests itself in adolescence. They're often trained to be the…bodyguards of the Source." She finished slowly, looking over at Buffy with wide fearful eyes.

"What's the Source?" Tyler asked looking between the two adults.

"A really, really, bad guy," Buffy replied, her eyes on Piper, as she closed the book.

"Which probably means he's resurfacing," Leo informed Piper and Buffy grimly. "If the bounty hunters are after Tyler."

"Which also means he could be after Faith again," Buffy added as Leo nodded.

Piper sighed unhappily and closed her eyes.

"So, Ludlow must be a bounty hunter too, then," Tyler stated, thinking aloud.

"Who is Ludlow?" Piper asked, opening her eyes and attempting to mask her growing fear.

Tyler shrugged not entirely sure. "Some guy who runs some sort of academy." He turned to Leo. "My demon parents were going to send me there."

"To train," Leo elaborated. "To serve the Source."

Tyler looked at first Piper and then Buffy pointedly. "So, then I am bad."

Buffy frowned. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, if I'm supposed to use my powers to protect somebody bad…"

Piper shook her head. "No, but that's not how powers work. They're not good or bad by themselves, it's how we use them," she explained gently.

"Tyler why don't you read a little more while I talk to Buffy and Piper," Leo suggested looking at his wife and niece seriously.

Buffy and Piper smiled at the boy as Buffy handed him the book before they moved off to the side with a concerned Leo.

Piper smirked at him. "See? With a little guidance, he's already on the road to acceptance and control."

"That's great." Leo nodded glancing toward the boy. "But I think we have another problem." He told Piper and Buffy and their eyes cut to his. "I figured out how the bounty hunters found out where Tyler is: they tracked his powers."

"You mean when he blew up the chair?" Piper asked hers and Buffy's eyes now on Tyler.

"Yeah so…when he vanquished them…" he trailed off looking first his wife and then Buffy in the eyes.

Buffy sighed. "So, there may be other bounty hunters on the way," she concluded and he nodded

Piper sighed. "Damn it. We got to tell Faith and Phoebe," she told them. "And call Paige," she added as an after-thought.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Faith walked into the kitchen to find her middle aunt, chopping vegetables and singing away to herself happily. "I'm making soup for Cole. He'll eat it in a bowl. I guess that's my new role just making soup for Cole."

"Okay," Faith droned frowning at her aunt as Phoebe dropped the peppers into the pot.

Phoebe turned to Faith and smiled. "Faith!" She grinned and Faith rolled her eyes.

"Aunt Phoebe, what is going on with you?" she wondered, her hands on her hips.

Phoebe's eyes widened innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Faith scoffed. "Right. Aunt Phoebe, this is not a time to play dumb," she instructed. "I know you. Have known you for nearly a year now and this…" she gestured toward Phoebe wildly, "…is not you. I mean seriously, Aunt Phoebe, you look like Martha Stewart."

Phoebe eyes lit up. "Really?" she asked hopefully and Faith threw her hands up in frustration just as a demon appeared behind her.

"Where's the Firestarter?" he demanded, his voice low and booming.

Phoebe shrieked and Faith spun around, her eyes on the large demon, as she slowly back away and toward Phoebe protectively.

"You nearly scared me half to death," Phoebe informed the demon, shaking her head at him.

"The boy, now!" he growled.

"I don't like your tone of voice, mister," Phoebe reprimanded, moving past Faith, one hand on her hip.

Faith stared her aunt incredulously and yanked her away from the demon and back behind her as he formed an energy ball which he then released in their direction.

Phoebe shrieked again and Faith pulled her down, the energy ball flying over their heads and exploding against the curtains which instantly caught fire.

Faith shot up and threw a fireball at him. He dove out of the way hitting the wall. He shot off another energy ball as Faith shot off another fireball, both of which collided in mid-air exploding.

Phoebe bounced up. "Hey!" she yelped pointing to the flaming curtains. "That wasn't very nice now was it?"

Faith glared at her aunt. "Stay down," she ordered sternly, pushing her aunt back down. She turned toward the demon only to be struck by his next attack: the energy ball hitting her stomach sending her to the ground.

Piper and Buffy came running around the corner as Faith hit the floor. Piper flicked her wrists at the demon and blew him up, Phoebe smirking as she stood up again.

Piper looked at Phoebe questioningly as Buffy ran to Faith's side, "Are you okay?" Buffy asked her wife, who shook her head, lifting her hands from her wound so Buffy and Piper could see.

Piper's eyes widened. "Oh my god," she cried as Buffy pressed her hands down on the wound. "Leo!" she yelled for her husband. "Leo!" she screamed louder as Faith's eyes slipped closed.

Leo came running around the corner, Tyler right behind him.

Buffy whipped her head around. "Heal, hurry!" she pleaded and he nodded his head, dropping down next to Faith and laying his hands over her wound, that familiar golden glow appearing.

Piper smiled at Tyler. "She'll be okay," she assured him. "Don't worry. Healing people is what Leo does." Then she turned on her sister. "What the hell Phoebe?" she snapped. "Were you hiding? Since when do you scream instead of fight?"

"Actually, I did consider scratching him," Phoebe countered, demonstrating with her right hand.

Piper shook her head incredulously then sighed. "Are you alright?" she asked looking her sister over.

Phoebe nodded. "No messy clean up," she enthused waving her hands to where the demon had previously stood and the spotless floor underneath. Her smile faded and she turned to their Faith. "Is she okay?"

Buffy nodded. "She will be," she assured Phoebe then looked at her uncle who's face expressed a mixture of relief, shock, happiness and fear and she frowned. "Leo?"

Leo turned to his other niece and tried to mask his feelings. After all what he had felt during the healing process was for Faith to reveal to Buffy herself. "She's fine," he assured Buffy as the glow disappeared and Faith's eyes fluttered open, distracting Buffy's suspicious eyes.

"Hey." Buffy smiled at Faith who grimaced back, pushing herself up and taking Buffy's proffered hand. "You good?" she asked giving her the once over and Faith nodded silently her eyes locked onto Leo's.

"That was another bounty hunter," Piper informed Faith, who pulled her eyes from her uncle.

"What?" Faith asked and Piper and Buffy nodded.

"Yeah and more are just going to keep coming until Ludlow gets Tyler," Buffy elaborated and Faith frowned.

"Whoa! What am I missing here?" Faith asked glancing from her wife to her aunt and uncle.

"Ludlow runs an academy which trains young Firestarters who then go on to be bodyguards for the Source," Piper explained stressing the important details.

Faith's eyes bulged, "The Source?" she echoed and Piper nodded. "Crap. Which means he is going to try and come after me again."

"Yeah," Piper agreed. "So, we need to get Ludlow first."

"Ew!" Phoebe interrupted, satisfied that her niece was fine. She had gone back to her cooking. "Dishpan hands," she grimaced showing them her hands.

Piper, Faith and Buffy dismissed her strange behavior in order to deal with protecting Tyler.

Piper nodded to her husband. "Leo, Buffy and I can pose as bounty hunters and say that we have Tyler."

Faith nodded. "That way you can gain access to Ludlow and vanquish him." She smiled then frowned. "But, Aunt Piper, this Ludlow guy has got to be powerful, you may need the Power of Three."

Piper nodded. "You should call Paige, tell her to get her butt back here now!"

Faith turned to Phoebe/ "What do you think, Aunt Phoebe?" she asked and Phoebe smiled.

"Sure. Just as long as their home for dinner," Phoebe chirped then went back to her cooking.

Piper turned to her niece and pointed at Phoebe. "I know." Faith nodded. "I'll deal with her," she promised. "You just worry about Tyler," she ordered turning to the boy who was staring at them in concern.

"You okay Tyler?" Buffy asked gently and he nodded.

"Are you okay?" he asked Faith smiled at him.

"I'm just fine," Faith assured him. "But it's sweet that you were concerned."

Tyler shrugged. "I like you guys but if you're going to keep getting hurt because of me…"

Piper shook her head. "Protecting and helping people like you is what we do Tyler," she explained putting her arm around his shoulders. "Now come on. You can play some more video games until Paige gets home," she said ushering him out the kitchen.

Leo watched Piper, Buffy and Tyler go with a smile then turned his full attention to his niece who shook her head and looked pointedly at Phoebe. He gestured to the dining room and Faith followed him out ordering over her shoulder, "Aunt Phoebe, call Aunt Paige!"

"Okey-dokey," Phoebe replied, putting down her whisk and picking up the phone.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Uncle Leo—" Faith began but Leo cut her off.

"How long have you known?" Leo demanded shortly, looking at her curiously and seeming almost angry.

Faith exhaled sharply at his question. "It's true then," she breathed falling back against the dining table.

Leo frowned. "You didn't know?" he asked panicking slightly.

Faith shook her head lightly. "I…I took a test this morning but, but I hadn't been to my doctor yet to confirm," she whispered.

Leo lifted his shoulders. "It does explain why you've been so ill," he pointed out. He placed his hands on her upper arms. "Faith, you're pregnant," he told her with a smile, the first to say the words out loud.

"I'm pregnant," Faith repeated swaying slightly and exhaling slowly.

Leo frowned, concern replacing the smile and he eased her down onto one of the chairs, crouching down in front of her. "You okay?" he asked slowly.

"Wait, are you—before your voice—are you mad at me?" Faith asked her voice rising an octave.

Leo cringed. "I was—before—but only because I thought that you knew and hadn't told me," he explained. "I'm not only your uncle, Faith, but your Whitelighter. If one of you is pregnant I need to know so I can keep both you and the baby safe. That's my job as the Whitelighter," he explained.

Faith looked at him, a smile spreading across her face. "Aw, Uncle Leo! That's so sweet!" she gushed. "But I thought your job is to guide." She smirked and he chuckled.

"I'm serious, Faith," he pressed. "Your life not only as the Slayer but as the daughter of a Charmed One is extremely dangerous. You need to take extra care and extra caution." He looked at her pointedly. "And you need to tell your aunts."

"I need to tell Buffy first," Faith countered and then she laughed sharply.

Leo smiled. "What?" he asked curiously.

Faith looked at him. "I'm pregnant," she said simply. "Grandma Patty said Buffy and I would have a daughter and now I'm pregnant with her!"

Leo nodded. "It's great," he said as her eyes became sad.

"I'm sorry," Faith apologized and he frowned. "I know how bad you and Aunt Piper want a baby and how you agreed to wait until after the Source was vanquished to have one."

Leo shook his head. "It'll happen for us but for now I'm going to make sure that you and my grandniece are okay, okay?" he asked and Faith nodded.

Faith smiled at him. "Aw, Uncle Leo!" She smiled and threw her arms around his neck. "Aunt Piper is so lucky to have you. Thank you," she said sincerely, releasing him and he shrugged. "I hate asking you to lie to Aunt Piper but I need Buffy to be the first one to find out. I don't think she should hear…"

"From anyone else other than you," Leo finished for her. He held up his hands. "Whitelighter/Charge confidentiality."

Faith smiled. "Thank you."

"Congratulations, Faith." Leo smirked and hugged her again. "And if you're worried about me and Piper then don't be, like I said it'll happen for us too when's it's meant to and until then she is going to be so happy for you and so excited to become an great aunt."

Faith smiled at him.

"Actually…" Leo continued, "I think it'll be better this way, for Piper I mean," he explained. "Seeing what will happen before it's actually happening to her will help her stay calm. You know how she hates change."

Faith cocked her head at him and pouted, "You know that makes me feel better about Aunt Piper but somehow I'm not all that comforted about the rest."

Leo smirked and squeezed her arm. "Everything's going to be okay, Faith," he told her gently. "You're going to be okay."

"Much better." Faith smirked and Leo rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to check on Tyler," He told her and she nodded knowing he was really giving her some space.

Faith took a deep breath and placed her hands on her stomach. "Hi little Prudence," she whispered. She then dropped her hands to her sides and took a breath before heading back into the kitchen as if her whole world, and that of her wife and aunts, hadn't just changed forever.

South Bay Social Services

"Oh god, I'll have everything done for you in once second, okay?" an extremely harried Paige assured the impatient man in front of her. "Two secs," she corrected herself picking up her chirping desk phone. "Paige Mathews," she greeted tersely.

"Serena? Sam," Phoebe's voice greeted her down the line.

Paige frowned. "Phoebe?" she questioned utterly confused by the greeting but having no time to deal with it. "Look, I'm in the middle of about a zillion things can I just, call you back?" she asked glancing at the man and smiling sweetly.

"Faith told me to call. Piper wants you home," Phoebe informed her. "And I want you to bring your appetite."

"Yeah, Phoebe, like I said, I'm in the middle of a zillion things," Paige repeated as someone was thrown out of an office.

Cole came stalking out, approaching the frightened man fiercely and Paige's mouth dropped.

"Back off," the slumlord ordered. "This is assault."

"Yeah well, it's better than what you do, which is close to murder!" Cole fumed.

"Stay away from me!"

"Oh...my god! You would not believe what Cole is doing!" Paige cried, her eyes wide and angry.

"Cole," Phoebe cooed. "How is my little sweetie?"

"Get up! You scum," Cole ordered hatefully.

"I'll see you in court," the slumlord shot back and Cole grabbed him by the lapels on his suit jacket.

"You'll see me every time you turn around buddy!"

"I don't believe this," Cynthia cried stopping next to Cole. "Let go of him. What are you doing?"

"I want that heat turned back on for those tenants today, do you hear me?" Cole growled.

"Hands off me!" the slumlord pushed him off.

"This is not the way we do things around here," Cynthia chided.

"Yeah, well, maybe you should," Cole replied. "Or maybe I should quit!" he yelled at the same time she told him he was fired.

Paige closed her eyes and sighed.

Halliwell Manor

"He looks so normal," Piper observed as she, Buffy and Leo stood watching Tyler as he played with the gameboy in the sitting room.

Leo frowned. "You sure we should let him play those games?" he asked as Piper and Buffy furrowed their brows in confusion. "Aren't they kind of violent?" he elaborated and they smirked at him.

"Darn it!" Tyler cursed, his anger boiling and he clenched his fist fighting for control and winning.

"Looks like he's learning to handle his power," Leo stated.

Piper smiled proudly. "He wouldn't have been given them if he couldn't."

Leo looked at his wife. "Is that what you think about you and your sisters?"

Piper breathed deeply. "I don't know. Maybe," she replied vaguely. "All I do know is that, when we finally got our powers back, it felt like we were scrambling to catch up," she explained quietly. "And I can't help but think if we'd had our powers from day one, we would have been more prepared. Things would have turned out different."

"Different how?" Buffy asked taking a step toward Piper.

Piper shrugged, "Oh, I don't know. Maybe Prue wouldn't have died, we would have vanquished Shax before we lost our innocent and Faith would be safe as the Source would be dead already," she listed in one long breath and then looked at Leo pointedly. "And we would be on our way to having a family as opposed to just talking about it."

Leo smiled as he glanced at Buffy, thinking of her and Faith and his words to Faith that he and Piper will have their little girl eventually before he smirked at Piper and replied, "And life…would be perfect."

"Not perfect." Piper smiled and clicked her tongue. "Just easier."

"Obviously when I recommended you for the job, I thought you were a former demon," Paige snapped as she and Cole barreled in the door.

Buffy, Piper and Leo glanced quickly at Tyler as they picked up their coats and headed to the door.

"You know, do me a favor, Paige and don't do me anymore favors," Cole replied his tone just as angry as hers.

"Good, Paige, you're home." Piper smiled at her as she, Buffy and Leo stopped in front of them, coats on.

"Yeah but not for long." Paige glared at Cole. "I have to get back to work unlike Cole here."

"The Legal Aid thing didn't work out for me," Cole informed them, hands in his pockets. "See I thought lawyers were supposed to seek out justice."

"Okay enough. We've got bigger problems." Piper looked at Paige. "The Source wants Tyler so, let's focus on the most pressing matter at hand."

"Lunch!" Phoebe announced coming in from the kitchen, followed by Faith.

"Phoebe!" Cole's eyes widened in surprise, his fiancé looking and sounding nothing like herself.

"Darling! What a pleasant surprise." Phoebe grinned and kissed his cheek.

"You feeling okay?" Cole asked frowning.

"Oh yeah!" Phoebe assured him, flashing to black and white then back to color. "Happy as a clam. Why?" she asked then did it again.

"What was that?" Piper asked watching Phoebe closely.

"What was what?" Phoebe asked turning to her.

"You saw it too?" Faith asked, coming to a stop next to Buffy as Piper nodded.

"Saw what?" Phoebe asked again.

"Me three." Paige joined in, raising her hand.

"Me four," Buffy added.

"You just flashed," Cole informed his fiancé. "Black and white."

"Oh, don't be silly!" Phoebe laughed.

"Oh, he's not being silly," Buffy promised her. "We all saw it."

Faith shook her head and turned to Piper, Leo and Buffy. "Okay I will deal with this, you three need to get to Ludlow before the Source does," she reminded them. "Aunt Paige, Cole and I will fix Aunt Phoebe," she assured them.

"Uh…how?" Paige questioned uncertainly.

Faith turned to her, "I don't—I'm not exactly sure yet but we will."

"What about bounty hunters?" Leo asked looking at Faith and glancing down pointedly.

Faith glared at him. "I'm still the Source's heir. If he is resurfacing, they're not going to want to attack me."

"They did earlier," Buffy reminded her wife.

"Buffy is right," Piper agreed. "Their concern is their bounty."

Faith sighed. "I will handle it besides, Aunt Paige is here now so I've got back up," she assured them.

"We're going to need some proof for Ludlow that we actually have Tyler," Leo told Piper and Buffy heading to the door after them.

A ding could be heard and Phoebe clapped. "Biscuits are ready," she announced happily and scurried off towards the kitchen.

Piper gestured to the jacket in her hands. "We're going to take his jacket," she said answering his previous question.

"Why can't I come with you?" Tyler asked coming out of the TV room.

"Because it's too dangerous," Buffy answered.

"But I can protect myself," Tyler pressed. "Besides I helped you out before, didn't I?"

"This is different," Piper answered after a short pause.

"Okay, everyone, be ready, be prepared," Leo advised them. "No surprises." Then he took hold of Piper and Buffy and began to orb out.

Tyler saw the opportunity and ran forward jumping on Leo's back as they disappeared.

"No!" Faith yelled trying to grab him but it was too late. "Shit," she swore shaking her head. She then turned to Cole and Paige, "Alright we need to fix Phoebe cause she needs to write a Power of Three spell."

"Why?" Paige questioned tilting her head.

"In case Aunt Piper, Uncle Leo and Buffy have no choice but to lure Ludlow back here," Faith explained and Paige nodded, "Okay."

Demonic Academy

Buffy, Piper and Leo orbed in front of a large, castle type building, with a steel metal gate at the front, their extra passenger jumping off of Leo and stumbling from the feeling out a first-time orb.

"Hey!" Buffy chided upon seeing him.

"What happened?" Piper demanded.

"He jumped the orb!" Leo exclaimed.

"Dude." Piper walked toward Tyler. "You are so going back right now," she ordered as several demons in black shimmered in around them.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" one of the demons demanded.

"Uh…we got lost," Leo replied uneasily.

"The academy is protected by charms, which means you can't find the place unless you're looking for it. Kill them."

The other two demons formed energy balls and Tyler flinched away.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Piper exclaimed holding up her hands and they all froze.

"Let's get out of here," Leo suggested forcefully.

"I'm not going," Tyler informed them as Piper and Buffy blanched.

"You want to bet?" Buffy retorted and Tyler ran toward the gate, "Hey! I said no." She grabbed him and turned Tyler to face her and Piper.

"Look, just listen to me," Tyler pleaded, "They don't know I'm a Firestarter yet. Once they do, they'll take us right to Ludlow. Isn't that what we want?" he asked knowingly.

"No! Not at your expense, and we're not going to let you go in there," Piper replied sternly.

"And I don't want to spend the rest of my life with bad guys chasing me," Tyler shot back and both Buffy and Piper sighed.

"He's right. Wherever we take him, they will eventually find him," Leo agreed reluctantly.

"Yeah but if something happens to him—" Buffy started.

"They won't hurt me," Tyler interrupted. "Remember? I'm coveted."

"If he tags along, it might double your chances of getting Ludlow and not having to go home," Leo reasoned.

"I'd like to do something good for once," Tyler told her honestly as Buffy and Piper glanced at each other.

"Alright," Piper relented as Buffy nodded in agreement. "But you stay next to me and Buffy and if anything goes wrong, we're out of there." She laid down the law and Tyler nodded vehemently.

Buffy exhaled sharply and pointed at Leo. "This better work," she threatened as Piper unfroze the guards and Leo moved to his wife's side.

Their energy balls hit the gate and the three of them ducked.

"Hi," Piper called and they turned to them.

"How'd you—?"

"We're bounty hunters. We need to see Ludlow," Buffy informed them sternly.

"Who's the kid?" he asked nodding at Tyler.

"I'm not a kid," Tyler corrected. "I'm a Firestarter."

"So, are you going to let us in or not?" Leo asked from Piper's side.

"What's the password?" the demon asked and Buffy and Piper glanced at each other as they felt their panic rise.

"The password?" Leo repeated slowly, "It's…uh…" he turned to Piper and Buffy. Piper nodded and flicked her wrist, vanquishing him.

"That was it," the blond one informed them. "You're in." And waved his hand at the gate, opening it and then he led them through.

Halliwell Manor

"Oh, hi honey," Phoebe smiled as Cole entered the bathroom to find her neck deep in bubbles and water, shower cap on her head.

Cole shook his head at her. "What are you doing?" he demanded coming into the bathroom completely. "This is no time to be taking a bath," he scolded with a frown. "Piper and Buffy might be home any minute and they're counting on you to write a spell."

"Oh, I tried," Phoebe told him with wide eyes. "And I only got as far as 'hey demon' and then my mind went blank," she explained then blew bubbles at his face with a giggle.

"Look, I don't know what's happening to you," Cole told her lifting a towel. "It might be some backfired spell or curse or something but you got to…snap out of it! There's work to be done."

"Yeah." Phoebe nodded her brow creasing. "Hey, why aren't you at the office?"

"Because I quit my job," Cole replied.

"You what?" Phoebe gasped.

Cole shook his head. "I don't think I'm cut out for that whole 9-to-5 life."

"Oh honey, what will you do?" Phoebe cried throwing out her hands.

"I don't know." Cole shrugged. "I'm still searching for who I am. But we know who you are, which is a demon-fighting, ass-kicking witch who never lets her sisters or her nieces down. So get out of that bathtub and show me what you're made of!" he ordered enthusiastically.

Phoebe wriggled around then stood right up and flashed black and white again. "Better?"

"Hey Cole, how's your progress going—? Oh god!" Paige shrieked as she and Faith entered the bathroom to find a naked Phoebe staring Cole. "Full-frontal Phoebe," she stated the obvious turning away. "Sorry."

Faith closed her eyes and sighed. "Oh, Aunt Phoebe."

"She just—she just flashed," Cole informed them pointing to his naked fiancé, his mouth dry.

Faith nodded. "Yeah, we got that."

"No, I mean she just flashed black and white," Cole elaborated still staring at Phoebe appreciatively.

"Again?" Paige questioned staring resolutely at Cole's back. "She's like an old TV that's on the blink or something."

Faith looked at Cole and clicked her tongue unimpressed before marching forward and pushing him aside. "Give me that." She snatched the towel out his hands. "Honestly." She turned to Phoebe who grinned at her. "Hi." She smiled then held up the towel. "Here." Phoebe lifted her arms and Faith wrapped it around her. "Step," she instructed and Phoebe jumped out of the tub.

"Hey maybe that's the connection," Cole suggested. "The TV show Bewitched, is that in black and white or color?" he asked walking toward Paige.

"Originally black and white," Paige replied.

"Brrrrr! I'm very chilly," Phoebe informed them from her place next to Faith who started rubbing Phoebe's shoulders and Phoebe smiled at her, inching closer.

"Why are you asking me about Bewitched?" Paige asked Cole puzzled.

"Because Phoebe was worried about becoming an old-fashioned housewife like Samantha," Cole replied. "And that might be fine for some people, but for Phoebe that could be kind of dangerous."

Faith pulled Phoebe closer when she shivered again, "Hey?" she turned toward Cole and Paige. "Aunt Phoebe started acting weird after you gave her Grams' ring," she realized and Cole nodded. She looked at Paige. "Okay, Cole, you try and fix Phoebe and, Aunt Paige, you go write the Power of Three spell."

Paige's eyes widened. "What? I've never done that before."

Faith nodded. "I know, but neither of I. But since you're a Charmed One…" Paige sighed.

Cole turned to his future niece. "What are you going to do?" he asked and Faith gave him a tight smile.

"I…" Faith started pushing Phoebe toward him. "I am going to throw up," she informed them with a grimace and they both looked at her as if waiting for the real answer. Faith raised her eyebrows. "I'm serious," she told them. "I'm going to throw up, Phoebe's bath salt things or whatever it has made me nauseous and now I'm going to hurl so please…" She pushed them out the door and slammed it shut.

Paige frowned at the door, grimacing when she heard the sounds of retching coming from inside. "Not good," she muttered then turned on her heel and went in search of a pad and paper.

"You think she's okay?" Cole called after her and Paige shrugged.

"If she wasn't, she'd tell us," Paige replied before she disappeared around the corner.

Cole looked at Phoebe who was shaking her head. "She is wrong. Faith wouldn't tell us until this was over and even then…" Phoebe shrugged her shoulders smiling and flashed again.

"Okay, let's get you fixed," Cole suggested leading Phoebe toward their bedroom. "Then maybe, you'll be able to worry about your niece."

Demonic Academy

Leo, Buffy, Piper and Tyler followed the blond-haired demon down corridor after corridor, Leo at the front and Tyler between Piper and Buffy.

"So, we're going to try to take him out, right?" Tyler asked in a whisper as they continued to follow.

"Yes," Piper whispered back. "Buffy and I will go in first."

"I have to get angry for my power to work, don't I?" Tyler asked hesitantly.

"So?" Buffy asked slowly.

"So, what if I'm just scared instead? What if it doesn't work?" Tyler asked as they reached the top of a winding staircase.

They all fell silent as the demon stopped at the top of the stair case and pointed to a large wooden door with no handle. "Just walk through that door."

"Through the door?" Leo repeated, seeking confirmation.

"Yes. Through the door."

"Relax," Piper instructed Tyler and then they all walked through the wood, one by one.

"Where is he?" Leo asked, glancing around the empty room as Piper and Buffy pulled a straying Tyler back to their side.

"Ludlow?" Piper called sharply and they turned back toward the door as a lightning bolt hit the chair behind the large desk. They turned back around in time to see Ludlow appear.

"So…you brought the alleged Firestarter," Ludlow stated his eyes resting on Tyler. "You've given us quite the run-around, haven't you boy?"

Tyler glanced quickly at Piper and Buffy for reassurance, fear creeping up on him.

"I said, haven't you, boy?" Ludlow repeated the question.

"Yes," Tyler replied looking at the floor.

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, sir," Tyler amended himself and Ludlow smiled.

"No-one teaches manners anymore," Ludlow addressed Piper, Buffy and Leo as Leo nodded in agreement while Piper and Buffy forced a smile.

"About our…payment," Piper ventured. "See, we don't want any surprises," she said casually throwing up her hands in an attempt to freeze him which failed.

"Yeah, because we hate surprises," Buffy added as she flicked her wrist in an attempt to telekinetically throw him into a wall. Once again nothing happened.

Ludlow frowned. "What are you two doing?" he asked rising up out his seat. "Oh, you're afraid I'll grab the boy and…stiff you?" He smirked. "If the child is a Firestarter, you'll get your reward. If he's not…you'll all die."

"Well, Tyler is a Firestarter so that won't be an issue," Leo affirmed with a confident nod.

"Prove it," Ludlow commanded.

Piper turned to Tyler with a hidden smirk. "Go ahead. Give him everything you've got," she hinted subtly.

Tyler nodded and turned to Ludlow, concentrating hard. He clutched his head and rubbed his temples focusing everything on Ludlow but nothing happened.

"What? Not even a flicker?" Ludlow taunted.

"Okay, he's just a little scared," Buffy defended Tyler.

"Oh, that's ridiculous," Ludlow dismissed walking around the desk. "Don't be scared boy. You're closing in on the most important moment of your life. Prove what you are, and you'll meet the Source, the most powerful evil that exists in the universe."

"Yeah, okay, see that's not helping," Piper snapped.

"Do it."

"He's just a kid," Buffy spat.

"Do it, boy!"

"We mean it, lay off of him!" Piper told him.

"Insolent!" Ludlow snapped. "How dare you!"

"No!" Tyler cried his protectiveness of Piper and Buffy sparking his trigger and he clutched his head, rubbing his temples and Ludlow caught on fire.

Buffy and Piper jumped and Leo pulled them backwards, away from the flames.

Tyler stared at Ludlow in shock as the flames disappeared and he was still standing.

"Excellent!" Ludlow exclaimed. "Well done!" He then shot some powerful air toward Tyler and Tyler fell unconscious onto a chair.

Piper jumped in shock. "What did you do to him?" she demanded.

"Just a precaution," Ludlow shrugged. "Till the Source arrives to kill him and steal his power."

"But—" Buffy shook her head.

"Your bounty's outside," Ludlow informed them, nodding toward the door then threw out his arm sending them soaring backward out of the door.

They reappeared outside on the concrete, the gates locking them out.

Leo jumped up and pulled Piper and Buffy up too.

"Buffy…Leo, either of you hurry. Go get him," Piper ordered as Leo disappeared in a flurry of lights only to bounce back off the gate and land on the ground.

Buffy then tried as she disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames only to bounce back off the gate and land on the ground as well.

Piper flicked her wrists over and over again, determined to blast through the gate, refusing to face the fact that Tyler was trapped. "It's a force field. I can't blast through it."

"I'll go get your Faith, Paige and Phoebe," Buffy told her as she disappeared in a swirl of fiery flames.

"Buffy," she called after her nieces departing flames. "Hurry!"

Halliwell Manor

Paige was seated in the attic, on the couch with the Book of Shadows in front of her while Cole stared helplessly at Phoebe who continued to flash, only now she stayed black and white for longer.

Buffy flamed into the attic, "It's a disaster there. Ludlow has Tyler," she announced fearing for the boy's safety.

"It's a disaster down here too," Cole pointed at Phoebe which said it all.

"Piper needs Paige, Phoebe and Faith immediately," Buffy shot back.

"Oh, I'll be right with you," Phoebe assured her niece. "As soon as I finish this sleeve," she added looking pointedly at her knitting, now completely black and white all the time.

"A child is in danger, Phoebe. We need you now," Buffy begged.

"Phoebe?" Phoebe questioned. "Who's Phoebe?"

"She can't go with you," Paige pointed out. "She doesn't even know who she is anymore."

"I beg your pardon," Phoebe cut in. "I know exactly who I am." She gazed up at Cole. "I…am Mrs. Cole Turner."

Buffy sighed heavily and looked around. "Where is Faith?"

Paige looked up again. "Uh…last I checked she was throwing up in the toilet," she said with fake cheer. "I swear to god, whatever she's got, she better get rid of it soon or the entire family will be sick for the Source to come and kill."

"Ha. Ha." Faith glared, her voice deadpanned as she entered the attic popping a mint in her mouth. She came to a stop beside Buffy and gasped. "Oh…my god she's officially black and white."

Cole shook his head, pointing at Phoebe. "This is all wrong. Ever since I put that ring on your finger you've been acting strange."

Phoebe smiled up at him. "You mean I've been acting normal?"

"Which is strange for you, you know, I got to be honest." He sighed. "If this is what being married to you is going to be like, you can take that ring off now."

Phoebe shot to her feet. "I will not!" she cried in outrage. "This ring is a symbol of our love."

"Oh!" Faith exclaimed suddenly. "That's it," she announced and they frowned. "What did I say before I kicked you all out of the bathroom?" she asked then answered her own question. "I said that Phoebe started acting differently after you gave her the ring. Grams' ring, you know, the woman with the worst luck with men in the history of the world and absolutely hates all men and the thought of marriage because of it."

Paige stood up. "It's the ring!".

Faith nodded. "It's the ring." Then looked to the heavens and glared. "Really Grams?" she asked, hands on hips. "Cursing the ring? Seriously?" Then she turned back to Phoebe and held out her hand. "Give it to me," she ordered firmly but Phoebe clutched it to her chest and shook her head defiantly.

Faith turned to Paige who smirked and held out her own hand. "Grams' ring please," Paige called and the ring orbed to her.

Phoebe looked down at her bare finger. "No," she whined as she began flickering back to color.

"Listen to this inscription," Paige commanded. "To gain another is to lose yourself," she read as Phoebe eased down on the chair again.

Buffy looked to the heavens. "Seriously!" she fumed.

Cole looked to Phoebe who was once again normal and rushed to her side. "Are you feeling better?"

"I feel a little faint," Phoebe admitted shakily.

Faith rolled her eyes. "Join the fracking club," she muttered darkly and Buffy tilted her head at her.

"Can you hold it together?" Paige asked hopefully. "We got to go."

"I don't know," Phoebe sighed looking around. "I'm still a little confused."

"Well, nothing will remind you of who you are better than saving an innocent," Cole pointed out. "Now go to work."

Demonic Academy

Buffy flamed orbed in with Paige, Phoebe and Faith, Piper and Leo turning to them instantly and striding over. "I can't get in!" Piper said.

"Oh my god!" Faith gasped clutching both Buffy and Leo's arms as she doubled over.

Phoebe's eyes widened. "Whoa!"

Piper frowned. "You okay?"

Faith remained bent over. "Dizzy…Lightheaded…Faint…Nauseous…World…Spinning," she replied one word at a time then added quickly for her concerned wife. "I'll be fine."

Piper frowned deeper but turned to Phoebe. "You got to write a spell."

"Are you up to it?" Paige asked.

Phoebe nodded. "I think so uh…Door unlock, no magic block."

"That's it?" Piper asked skeptically.

"Come here," Phoebe ordered pulling Piper toward.

"Door unlock, no magic block," Piper, Phoebe and Paige said together and the gate glowed and Piper sprang forward grabbing the bars but received a shock in return.

Phoebe walked after her. "Honey, maybe we should go back and check the Book of Shadows again."

"I can't leave Tyler here," Piper refused.

"Neither will I," Buffy agreed.

"It doesn't look like either of you have much of a choice," Paige pointed out gently.

"No!" Tyler yelled from inside as Buffy and Piper froze. "No please don't hurt me?"

"Stand back," Piper ordered and then blasted the gate but it had no affect so she tried again but still nothing, "Damn it," she cursed, hearing Tyler yell again. "Shit."

Faith stepped in beside Piper. "Try again," she said as Piper turned to her with tear-filled, desperate eyes. She held up her hand which held a fireball.

Piper took a deep breath and flicked her wrist just as Faith threw her fireball. The combined attacks coupled with Piper's already boiling rage, the gate was blasted to smithereens.

Piper smirked and cut her eyes to Faith. "Thank you." She then strode forward: a woman on a mission.

Phoebe ran up to Faith and asked, "What was that?"

"Piper is pissed," Buffy stated as they all ran after Piper.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"All the pain…is over," Ludlow mused as he waved his hands over a frozen solid Tyler, "Soon…you will serve…the Source." He finished just as the door to his office was blasted open and Piper walked through it, her sister and nieces behind her.

"I'm back!" Piper smiled.

"I paid you your bounty," Ludlow cried in insult.

"Yeah that's not what we're after," Buffy spat.

"Do you recognize me?" Faith asked as she walked in front of her aunt and wife.

"Yes, Heir," Ludlow answered.

"Then you should know my aunts," Faith said with a smirk. "Aunt Paige, did you finish the Power of Three spell?"

"I did," Paige said timidly as Piper and Phoebe looked at her in surprise. She unfolded a piece of paper and handed it to Piper who was in the middle as Ludlow clambered to his feet.

"Nu-uh," Buffy shook her head and held out her hand. "You can't get up yet." She informed him and he hit the ground, face down.

"The brittle winter, gives way to flowers of spring. Ludlow is vanquished." The three sisters chanted together, Piper and Phoebe exchanging looks as they read, Phoebe snatching the paper from their hands at the end and turning it over looking for more.

Ludlow jerked on the ground and clutched his stomach before he blew apart.

"What the hell was that?" Phoebe demanded as they raced towards Tyler.

"It's a haiku," Paige answered. "I couldn't do the rhyming thing."

"Leo, he's frozen!" Piper cried but her husband's hands were already hovering above the boy, healing him slowly.

"I got him," Leo assured her, his eyes on Tyler.

"His hand is starting to warm up," Buffy announced suddenly and seconds later Tyler was alert and gasping for breath, completely defrosted.

"He's going to make it," Leo assured them. "Let's get back to the gate and orb home."

Faith cringed. "Urgh! Do we have to?" she whined as Leo lifted Tyler into his arms.

Buffy turned to her wife with raised eyebrows.

"If we do, I'm going to throw up," Faith informed Buffy, who cringed.

"If you want to walk…" Paige shrugged and Faith sighed shivering at the thought.

Halliwell Manor

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Piper asked Tyler, holding the glass with a couple inches full of blue liquid to her chest. "It's completely up to you."

"Yeah, I'm sure." Tyler nodded.

Piper bit her lip. "It's an awful lot to give up."

"No, it's not," Tyler disagreed. "Not for me."

Piper sighed, glanced at Leo. "Alright, here you go." She then held out the glass. "It uh…will bind your powers. It won't strip them but it'll bind them," she explained and Tyler downed the liquid quickly and burped.

"Say 'excuse me,'" Piper ordered and Leo laughed.

"Excuse me," Tyler said obediently.

"Ludlow's right, nobody teaches manners anymore," Piper quipped as she put the glass in the sink.

"Do you think it worked?" Tyler asked Leo hopefully.

"Try it." Leo shrugged. "Look at something and get mad. Just think of Ludlow."

Tyler focused on the kitchen table and concentrated hard but nothing happened. "I didn't hurt it!" he cried happily. "I'm normal!"

"Whatever that means," Piper teased and he smiled. "Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" she called as he made a dash for the kitchen door. "Where you going?"

"To play video games." Tyler grinned then ran off in the TV room.

Leo smirked at his wife. "Still want to have a baby?" he asked going to the cupboard for a glass.

Piper nodded. "Uh-huh. I'm just not ready for an adolescent yet."

"Well, Paige said she found a pretty good family, not too far from here," Leo informed her with a smile, pouring himself some juice.

"I'm glad because I want visitation rights," Piper quipped only half-joking. "Plus, you know, I have to be in touch, in case he ever wants his powers back," she added wrapping her arms around herself.

"You think he will?" Leo asked, closing the fridge again.

Piper shrugged, "I don't know. He's a surprising kid."

"Yeah." Leo nodded. "Like the piggyback orb."

Piper smirked. "I was so focused on how I was going to guide him…then he ended up guiding me," she admitted quietly.

"How?" Leo asked, putting down his glass as he approached his wife.

"Well, you know, how I was upset with Grams for binding our powers…" she looked up at him as he ran his hands up and down her arms, "…leaving us unprepared for our magical future?"

"You mentioned it once or twice," Leo teased and Piper scoffed.

"Well, now, I see the wisdom in her decision," Piper admitted looking up into his eyes. "I mean, she realized, someday, we were going to have to battle demons but she also realized that children shouldn't live in fear." She paused as tears stung at her eyes and a lump formed in her throat. "They need to feel safe," she whispered then cleared her throat sharply. "To explore and learn and grow," she continued then smirked slowly. "I still think magic is a gift…but Grams gave us the greatest gift of all: a normal childhood," she choked out, swallowing the lump as her eyes filled up with tears, over what she wasn't really sure, maybe it was thanks and gratitude for her grandmother.

Piper sniffled as Leo's hand cupped her cheek. "The gift of innocence." She smiled at him and he smiled back before pulling her against his chest as a few tears slipped out. She clutched onto him and closed her eyes with a small sigh.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Phoebe squealed loudly, covering her face with her hands as she cried, "Okay, okay, stop splashing! I'll say it," she relented wriggling against Cole's body, the water swishing up the sides of the bath as she did so. "Cole Turner, is the greatest lawyer in all of the world." She giggled and Cole kissed the top of her head.

"The greatest unemployed lawyer in all of the world," Cole corrected her and Phoebe laughed loudly. "Although Mr. Yates did respond to my…" he paused, searching for an alternative word for 'threat', "…persuasive argument—" he chuckled and Phoebe laughed silently, her shoulders shaking, "—and got the tenants' heat back on," he pointed out positively.

Phoebe's eyebrows rose. "And he's not going to press charges?" she asked brightly.

"Nope," Cole replied happily. "His lawyer thought the case would raise more issues than it closed," he explained kissing her head again.

Phoebe grinned. "I am so proud of you," she gushed tilting her head to kiss his lips.

"Now, that was colorful," he teased and Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"Okay, now, I think I figured out what Grams did to this ring here," she informed him reaching for the ring which was resting on one of the unlit candles.

"Did you, now?" Cole asked pulling her closer to him.

Phoebe nodded as she held it up in front of them. "I think to keep her from making a fifth mistake, she put a hex on the ring. So that if she ever got engaged again, the ring would remind her of what she hated about marriage."

Cole nodded knowingly. "Hmmm…the loss of identity, the subjugation to a man, the focus on housework," he listed of quickly and Phoebe nodded.

"All those things that I was afraid of." Phoebe sighed, shaking her head at the ring.

"But Grams was from a different era," Cole pointed out wisely. "That's not going to happen to us. Sitting and knitting is not the woman you are, just like sitting and typing is not the man I am."

Phoebe smirked and a loud giggle escaped her lips. "No." She shook her head. "I can't picture you doing that."

Cole chuckled along with her but his eyes held a deeper question, "But…can you picture us together, or are you so freaked out by marriage that you don't—"

"No," Phoebe interrupted sternly. "I want to marry you," she assured him with a smile. "We just have to work extra hard to make sure neither one of us loses our identity." She looked up at her fiancé and he kissed her forehead, repeatedly.

Phoebe smiled then turned her focus back on the ring. "And as for Grams and her notion of marriage…" She pushed herself up and yanked out the plughole, the water draining slowly. She turned her head as Cole slid up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "We can watch that go down the drain." She grinned mischievously and then dropped it down the drain.

Cole chuckled, pulling her tight against him and kissing her slowly.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Hey," Buffy greeted quietly as she slipped into the bedroom, clicking the door closed behind her.

Faith, who had previously been staring off into space, her legs crossed, sitting in the middle of their bed started slightly, and angled her body toward her wife, plastering a genuine smile on her face. "Hey. Did they bind Tyler's powers?"

"Yes," Buffy answered, "He's now playing video games. It still surprises me that she did it though since she was against it."

"I know," Faith agreed. "But he's old enough to understand the risks and responsibilities, therefore old enough to make the decision himself…and he chose to have a normal life since he actually has that option. Unlike our daughter."

"You think she'll be powerful?" Buffy asked although it was more of a statement than a query.

Faith nodded slowly. "And sought after, for she is not only the daughter of two Slayers, granddaughter of a Charmed One, granddaughter of a Spellman. But also, the daughter of the Source's heir."

"And we'll protect her," Buffy insisted.

"I know." Faith nodded. "Anyways I really need to talk to you…it's important."

Buffy looked at Faith intently, giving her full attention.

Faith took a breath. "I need to know where you stand on the whole bind or no bind deal when it comes to our daughter's powers," she told Buffy in one long breath.

"I'm against it," Buffy said honestly and Faith blinked once, the surprise more than evident in her features.

"Excuse me?" Faith said, narrowing her eyes in disbelief. "Did I hear you correctly?"

"Yes," Buffy answered. "Do I wish that I could have had a normal teenage life, yes. But I look at the fact that I am a Spellman witch whose powers had been bound and I'm like if I had my powers I would have been better prepared for when I became a Slayer. What about you? Do you want to bind her powers?"

Faith shook her head. "No. I actually feel the same way," she informed Buffy. "There's something else," she informed her wife quietly, her tone even more serious than before.

Buffy's eyes narrowed and she pushed herself upright. "What happened?"

Faith bit her lip and grabbed her wife's hand in hers tightly. She took a deep breath and just blurted it out. "I'm pregnant," she revealed and silence engulfed the room.

Buffy lifted her eyebrows questioningly to which Faith nodded her head in confirmation. Buffy's eyes lit up with an overwhelming array of emotions as a large grin threatened to split her face in two. "We're finally going to have her?" she whispered as if it were some fragile secret and the reality would shatter it if she said it too loudly, eyes dancing merrily.

Faith nodded her head mutely, managing a small, "Uh-huh," in reply.

"We're having a baby?" Buffy exclaimed almost too loudly and Faith slapped her hand over her mouth silencing Buffy.

"Shh!" Faith ordered harshly. "I haven't told Aunt Piper, Aunt Paige or Aunt Phoebe yet. Uncle Leo is the only one who knows.

Buffy stared at Faith. "How did Leo find out exactly?"

Faith's eyes widened innocently and she reluctantly answered. "When he healed me. He confirmed it. I hadn't even gotten to the doctor yet and I'd only taken the test this morning so…" She shrugged and gazed into Buffy's eyes. "Sorry he knew before you did," she apologized.

Buffy shook her head and looked at Faith, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "I'm too happy right now to give a shit." She swiftly leaned over and pushed her lips on Faith's, excitement and joy and love all pressed into the one kiss and Faith felt her head spin and she hoped to god it was the kiss and not nausea.

Buffy released her lips briefly, looking deep into Faith's eyes. "I love you so much," she told Faith.

Faith smiled at Buffy, her eyes wet and blurry, Buffy's happiness making her deliriously so. "I love you too," she whispered back.

Buffy pulled Faith's head toward her and crashed her lips onto Faith's hungrily, fully intending on celebrating the most magical words she'd heard from Faith's lips since, 'I do.'