Paige sat at her work desk handling papers and trying to concentrate on work. It had only been a month since getting married and she felt like a completely different person. She knew—that at the end of the day—she wanted to be Henry's wife and the mother of his children. What she didn't know was if that was more important than what she wanted for herself.

Enlightenment had never seemed to be an issue with her. Paige had always known who she was…up until now. The pieces didn't seem to fit anymore, despite her recent attempts to unite her past and present, and she struggled everyday with the questions that ran through her mind. Was being a wife more important than her calling? Did her magical destiny over ride her mortal wishes?

Living with Henry before had shown her that marriage wasn't so different, yet knowing that there was a legal contract keeping her tied down was causing her to spook like a wild horse. It had been hard enough splitting her focus when she first found out about her powers and somehow she was managing to juggle being a witch with work, but in the weeks since she had taken the plunge Paige had felt fatigued at all the running around. Independence had always been Paige's safety blanket and now she felt as if it had been ripped away from her clutching hands.

Just then, Paige's boss appeared with a young teen aged girl. "Paige, I would like you to meet your newest charge," he said and handed her a thick file. "This is her information. You can go over it as you speak and get to know her." Mr. Cowen excused himself and the girl walked in while avoiding eye contact; sitting in the only other chair in the tight cubicle.

"I'm Paige Mitchell," she said almost choking on her married named. "And you must be," she said taking a moment to look in the file, "Billie Jenkins?"

Paige ushered the girl into her apartment. Throwing the keys down on a small table, she checked the answering machine to see if Henry had left any messages. Billie threw down her backpack and duffle bag, falling onto the couch and putting her feet up on the coffee table.

"Um, Billie. You do understand the weight of this situation, right? Your parents didn't seemed please with your intentions."

"They don't really care," Billie said with a blank look and a sad shrug of her shoulders. "They haven't cared in a long time." She got up and started checking out the apartment. "Do you have any soda?"

"Cans are in the fridge," Paige told her. "Why do you think your parents don't care? They seemed upset at your request for a social worker and your legal proceedings for emancipation; they wouldn't have been so sad if they weren't upset."

"Sure, they're upset that they're losing another daughter. They're just not upset about it being me," she said snagging a cola and popping the top.

"What do you mean, 'another daughter'," Paige asked digging out the case file.

Billie was caught off guard, not realizing either what she had said or the fact that Paige had picked up on it. "It's nothing."

"It's not 'nothing'," Paige said. "You had an older sister; a Christy Jenkins," she read off a sheet. "She disappeared when you were a little girl. Is that where you think the neglect stems from?"

"They were never the same after that," a fifteen year old Billie said.

Just then Henry walked in, carrying two pizza boxes and a bottle of root beer. Billie clammed up; standing, she reached for her bags. "Where's the spare?"

"First door on the right," Paige said and walked up to her husband, kissing him.

"Everything okay? I picked up pizza for you guys."

"Everythings' gonna be fine," Paige said and leaned into him. "But I think I have some work to do with that one."

"So you want to take her in," Henry asked later that night as the couple lay side by side.

"She's not going to be able to be emancipated. Her parents provide a safe home environment and everything she could possibly ever want. Besides which, Billie doesn't have a job; has no savings, or any confirmed living arrangements. What I could do is ask that she be placed in our care, and that her parents be granted visitation rights and progress reports on her well being."

"Is neglect the only reason why she was given a social worker? Without proof they may be able to reverse her standing in the system and she might very well end back at home with them," Henry told her.

"Billie has some small time infringements stemming from truancy, shoplifting and vandals over the past year. I think if I sit down with the parents and we discuss it there's a possibility of agreeing to an arrangement that works in everyone's favor—"

Billie yelled from the guest room and a loud thud vibrated through the apartment. Henry reached for his gun and Paige yelled at him to stay put. Running to the fifteen year old, Paige opened the door and saw Billie throw a demon clear across the room before he shimmered out.

"Paige," Billie said scared that her secret was out.

"You're a witch," a stunned Paige exclaimed.

Paige orbed back into the apartment where Henry was asleep on the couch. She had been taken by Leo to go see the elders, whom had informed Paige that Billie was her new charge and that she could expect future charges to appear through her job. It was their way of decreasing the demands on Paige as well as making it easier for her to be more had been given little information and the elders wanted her to gain Billie's trust and learn the truth about her past. Still, that meant having to confront Billie's parents which would require meeting outside of social services to avoid exposure. It was about one in the morning and as Paige orbed her husband to bed, she felt as if maybe the pieces were finally starting to come together.