Phoebe sighed, rubbing her abdomen to calm her son's activity. The past six months had not been kind and she had learned during that time that the path to heaven ran through miles of clouded hell. This was not the life she should be leading. Her marriage was not supposed to end with her being widowed-albeit by her own hands- only months after getting married. Cole was not supposed to be taken over by the Source of all Evil and her child was going to have two loving parents, not a single mother. Phoebe's son was not supposed to be burdened by a demonic heritage. What the Angel offered was so tempting. A chance to be normal; to avoid anymore heartache, yet somehow the third born Halliwell knew in her heart that there would be more losses for her family along the way. Would there be more good days to make it worth it?

Staring out her window, Phoebe thought about her own childhood. Her powers had been bound and if truth be told she was grateful for that. Maybe she would have been more mindful of her future if she knew what was to come, but knowing herself as only she did, the middle sister knew she would have only used her powers to find more trouble. There had always been a chip on her shoulder; that yearning for a mother that died before she even had any memories of her and a father who had walked out on them and hadn't returned for twenty years. She could give her son a normal childhood and the chance of being raised by a mother who wasn't in constant danger. In her heart she had already cast her vote.

Paige hadn't known where to go. Piper had gone to the one place in the house that had always been her territory; the kitchen. Phoebe was upstairs, either in her room or nursery; Paige hadn't even tried to sense her to be sure. All Paige knew was that she hadn't been raised here. Everything she learned about the inner workings of the house had come from her sisters and as such there was no special hideaway the youngest could retreat ended up at the one place she had always subconsciously avoided; the intersection where her parents car had collided with another vehicle, leaving her an orphan for the second time in her life. Sitting on a nearby bench, a vision of that day played out in her head as if it were happening right in front of her.

There was a reason for magic and Paige wouldn't deny that. It would be easy to agree with Phoebe. To say that if magic didn't exist that they would have all grown up together; Paige would have known Prue and been raised by her biological parents. How could Paige buy into that without wishing away her adoptive parents? It might be too late to take back the horrible things she had said and done to them, but she would never erase their presence from her life if only in daydreams.

Walking through the doors, Paige found her sisters in the conservatory. Awkward silence followed until Paige threw herself down in a chair and dropped her purse on the floor. "I don't suppose either one of you is uncertain of what your choice is," she said.

"I know what I want," Phoebe said. "How about you? Any second thoughts?"

Paige shook her head and turned to Piper. "What do you think?"

"I think, if we all know what it is we have decided, that we should call the Angel back here and let him know. I don't suppose it's the kind of issue that can be left open ended."

"How do we call him," Phoebe asked.

"Don't worry," a voice spooked the sisters as it caught them off guard. The Angel stepped closer and took a few seconds to look from one sister to the next. "It seems you are decided; just remember that the majority rules," he cautioned.

"I vote we wipe the slate clean," Phoebe said. "I could use a fresh start."

"Well I'm not ready to give up my magic," Paige said. "I vote we keep it."

"And what about you, Piper?"

Piper looked at her sisters. "I understand why you each feel the way you do. Magic has done some pretty amazing things for us, but it's also taken so much," she said pressing a hand to her barren womb. "But I wouldn't have Leo if it weren't for magic and as much as you hurt right now Phoebe, I don't think you could ever regret Cole. So I vote we keep our powers. I hope you can forgive me for that later."

Looking away, Phoebe avoided staring into her sister's pleading eyes and the Angel smiled. "Very well. You three shall remain Charmed. I must say, I'm very pleased. This will make your future and your children's destinies much easier to handle. You never needed to worry about the magnitude of their powers but rather how you all will shape their potential to lead and be of service. Especially you, Piper," he said before disappearing.

"Oh, my God," Phoebe said and Paige registered what he said.

"Don't you get it Piper? You're pregnant," Paige said.

"What? I'm pregnant?"

"You're pregnant," Paige squealed and rushed to her sister's side.

"And my water just broke," Phoebe expanded on her previous statement.