Chapter 1: The Park

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in the park. Phoebe had asked Piper to join her for a picnic lunch in the park and since she hadn't any other plans, she happily agreed. The girls had finished eating and were basking in the afternoon sun.

"I wish Prue could have come with us. It's so gorgeous today." Phoebe commented. Prue had gotten called into work to meet a client that was only in San Francisco today. She said if she got done early that she would meet them at the park.

Piper looked around the park at all the couples enjoying the afternoon together and wondered what Leo was doing right then. He's probably saving some poor soul right now, she thought. Right then her thoughts were interrupted by her sister's hand waving in front of her face.

"Earth to Piper, anyone home?" Piper blinked. " I was afraid I lost you there for a minute."

Piper shook her head. "Sorry Phoebe, I was just thinking about Leo." She said as she stared off into the horizon once again.

Neither Phoebe nor Piper noticed the man in kaki pants and a black shirt sitting next to the tree next to them turn his head and start paying attention intensely.

"Ah, the conversation turns to the man subject. Piper, you guys really need to talk about what you are going to do. I realize that you two got married in the future we saw, but maybe we saw what we did for a reason. I know that you guys said you needed to discuss things and come up with some kind of plan, but honey this endless game of waiting is killing you. And it doesn't take a person with psychic powers to see that." Phoebe said while gentle touching Piper's face.

Piper took Phoebe hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I know Phoebe, but what am I supposed to do? I can't ask him to clip his wings. I would never forgive myself for that. He does what he does for a reason. How can love come in the way of a job so important as that? I maybe Charmed, but that doesn't make my needs more important than anyone else's. Maybe I should just tell Leo that we aren't meant to be after all." Piper told her sister as a tear came to her eye.

Phoebe moved closer so that she could put her arm around her older sister. It broke Phoebe's heart to see Piper cry. "Honey, you shouldn't make any kind of decision before you talk it over with Leo. See how he feels about things. I know that you love him. And you know how much he loves you."

Piper fought hard to keep back the tears forming in her eyes. She started thinking about a song: "Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough." She laughed at herself briefly. "Yep, but I want it all. And there's no way I can have it, so what is the point in trying? That'll teach me to fall in love with a White Lighter." She joked trying to lighten up the situation.

Phoebe hugged her again. "Do you know what you need? Something to take your mind off of everything. A single night, not to think or worry about anything. What do you say, we get Prue and the three of us go to the club tonight and forget about all our problems? We'll dance, drink, and just have fun." Phoebe suggested. "And we can drink all we want for free!"

Piper started laughing uncontrollably. "Phoebe that is just the kind of thing that I would expect to hear come out of your mouth. And sadly, it sounds simply wonderful. You know, I haven't had a night of mindless fun in ages. If Prue says yes, you're on."

Phoebe's face lit up. The idea of getting her sister drunk just seemed like a good idea. 'What could possibly go wrong?' she thought. "I'll be right back." Phoebe got up and headed for the nearest pay phone.

"So, the Charmed Ones are going to have some fun tonight. And the middle sister is in love with a White Lighter named Leo. This news could be extremely beneficial in my plans to destroy the Charmed Ones. I must go speak with my father and see if he knows how to trap a White Lighter." With that, Daniel Blackstone walked behind a tree and disappeared from sight.

Chapter 2: The Phone Call

Prue finished with her client and started gathering up her things in her office when the phone rang. "Buckland's Auction House, this is Prue." She answered.

"Prue, do you have any plans for tonight?" Phoebe asked excitedly.

Prue couldn't imagine what her sister was so enthusiastic about, so she spoke with caution in her voice. "No, I was just getting ready to take off and head home. Why? What did you have in mind or don't I want to know?"

"Well, Piper is really bummed about Leo, so I was thinking that we could all go to the club together and just forget about the rest of the world. Do you have any idea how long it has been since we've done that?"

Prue shook her head thinking about the last time. She still couldn't believe that she ended up dancing with Phoebe on the bar at Club Nitro. She was terrified to show her face there ever again. "Well, what does Piper have to say about all this?"

"Actually, she thinks it is a great idea, but she will only agree to it if we all go together. I suggested our club, that way the drinks are free." Phoebe had her fingers crossed hoping that her older sister wouldn't say no.

"I don't know Phoebe, the last time..." her voice trailed off as her sister interrupted.

"I promise, no bar dancing. You can even be the designated driver to ensure that you won't get too wild."

"As I recall, I wasn't the wild one, you were." Prue pointed out. "She's really bummed about Leo huh?"

"Yeah, I was even thinking, maybe we could invite Dan as a special surprise What do you think?"

Prue smiled to herself. Dan was such a nice guy and it wasn't like he hadn't gone out with Piper before. "Ok, Pheebs. You win. I'll be home in about 20 minutes."

Phoebe was ecstatic. "Ok, I'll tell Piper the good news. Will you talk to Dan? And make sure he knows it's a surprise."

"Will do."

Phoebe hung up the pay phone and headed back towards the blanket where Piper was packing up their picnic.

"Well, what did she say?"

Phoebe smiled. "She said that it sounds like a great idea."

Somehow Piper doubted those were her older sister's exact words. "Even after the bar dancing fiasco last time?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Don't you guys ever forget the bad stuff? We had fun that night."

"I remember having to tell about four different guys that you two were not strippers." Piper remarked.

"Well, Prue said she would be the driver tonight, so maybe it'll be you and me tonight."

Piper shook her head defiantly. "Absolutely not."

Phoebe's eyes sparkled in the late afternoon sun. "You never know." She said with an evil grin.

Chapter 3: The Darkside

Somewhere in another dimension, a hooded man stands over a green flamed fire in the center of a dark cavern. As he chants, a billow of smoke appears before him. He stops chanting and stands as the smoke solidifies into the form of Daniel Blackstone.

"Dax, how are you? It's been a while."

The hooded figure raises his hand to silence his visitor. Dax is a demon prophet, he knows what his son wants. He lowers his head back toward the fire and pulls a small pouch out from his shroud. He hands it to Daniel and reaches up to remove the hood from his head. His face is black with piercing yellow eyes. He has horns on his forehead and as he starts to speak, his fork tongue is revealed. "Thisss will kill the white lighter you ssseek. It wasss made with the ashesss of a dark lighter. If you want to find thisss man, threaten that which he lovesss. And he, will come to you."

Daniel reaches out to offer his hand to the demon, only to have Dax smack it away. "I will do no more regarding thisss. Never ssseek my help again if it involvesss the Charmed Ones." As he finishes speaking, he replaces his hood, kneels and returns to his chanting.

Daniel turns away from the fire and starts to walk away. "Some demons get so pissy about doing favors." He mumbles.

The chanting stops once more. Daniel turns back towards Dax. Dax looks up at Daniel. "That which you are about to do will invoke the wraith of the Charmed Ones. That issss a death sssentence for you. Believe otherwise or not, if you leave here, you'll perish."

Daniel shakes his head. "You elder demons have no faith in us youngsters. Thanks for the warning father. Maybe once I've destroyed them I'll return."

Dax shakes his head. "You'll never return."

Daniel laughs, "Then I'll see you in eternity old man." With his final sentiment, Daniel disappears in a billow of smoke.

Dax laughs maniacally. "Oh you will die my ssson. Hopefully, you kill Leo first. Hisss death will mean my freedom."

Chapter 4: Making Plans

Prue pulls into the driveway and sees Dan outside washing his truck. She heads over to see him and ask him about tonight. As she walks toward him, he turns off the hose. "Hey Prue, what's up?"

"Hi Dan. Uh, I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight? We were heading towards the club tonight to sort of cheer up Piper and we were thinking that if you weren't busy..."

Dan jumps to conclusions, "And you would like a designated driver for the night?"

Prue shakes her head, "No, no. Actually, we were hoping you could help us cheer Piper up."

Dan is extremely excited at the idea of spending time with Piper. "I would love to. I've been thinking about her a lot since the last time we went out. She just seems to be avoiding me."

Prue shakes her head. "It's not you she is avoiding. It's more like a bad situation she's trying to avoid."

Dan just blinks at Prue. "You mean I'm a problem?"

Again Prue shakes her head, "No, it's just she is kinda torn between two people and there is no easy decision to be made. That's all. She really likes you, but she was kind of involved in a long distance relationship with someone else. She can't decide what she should do, that's all."

Dan shakes his head, "Prue, I don't want to make anything harder on her, maybe it would be better if I just backed off until she has her problems figured out."

Prue puts her hand on Dan's shoulder, "I don't think that not seeing you is going to make anything any easier on Piper. She really likes you Dan, believe me. Please come to the club tonight."

Dan smiles back at Prue, "Alright, if I can get someone to sit with Jenny then I'll come."

Prue returns his smile with one of her own. "Great, hopefully I'll see you tonight, around 8."

"If I can swing it, I'll be there."

Prue says her good-byes and heads for the manor determined to get a hot shower in before her sisters get home.

Chapter 5: Getting Ready

Phoebe and Piper walk in the front door looking forward to the evening ahead of them. It's 6 o'clock. Piper calls out for Prue but doesn't get an answer. "I wonder where she is?"

Phoebe points to her purse sitting on the table. "She's here. Wait a minute, do I hear water running?"

Phoebe and Piper look at each other. "HOT WATER!!!" They both race upstairs to be the next in line for the shower.

It's now 7:30 and the girls are showered and dressed. Prue is wearing a pair of black pants and a red tank top. Phoebe is wearing a short, tight, red number that she found in Prue's closet. Piper is wearing a black dress with purple lace. "So, are we all set for tonight?" Phoebe asks looking at Prue, hinting towards whether or not she spoke with Dan. Prue smiles at her sister. "I think we've got everything taken care of." Piper walks out first and Phoebe turns to look at Prue. Prue gives her a wink and a nod and Phoebe smiles. 'Tonight is going to be a night we won't forget.' She thinks.

As the girls all pile into the Jeep, someone is peering out a window at them. Dan's aunt walks over and joins him at the window. "So which one is it?" Dan points towards Piper getting into the passenger seat. "My, she is very pretty Dan. I can see why you sounded so excited about going out tonight."

Dan smiles. "Well, she is very special. I just hope everything works out." Dan kisses her on the head. "Thanks so much for sitting with Jenny for the evening. I really appreciate it."

"It's my pleasure. You go and have a good time. Don't worry about us, we'll be fine."

Chapter 6: P^3

The girls head into the club, which is already starting to get busy. The poor bartenders are working their butts off. Piper decides that it will be easier for her to get the drinks then to try and get their attention. "So, what would you ladies like?"

"I'll take a shot of tequila, and a beer." Phoebe states.

"Glass of Chardonnay for me thanks." Prue adds.

"Coming right up." Piper gets the drinks and the girls head for a table in the corner. The DJ is playing some great dance music and as soon as the girls finish their drinks they are out on the dance floor.

While they are dancing, two men walk in the door. One of them is Dan, the other is Daniel. Dan heads straight for the bar, asking the bartender if he's seen the owners. This catches Daniel's attention. The bartender points to the dance floor. "God, Piper looks great." He mutters, thinking now one's listening. Dan takes his drink and heads off to surprise Piper.

Before he can get to the dance floor, Daniel accidentally slams into Dan causing him to spill his drink all over himself. "Oh my God, I am so sorry. Come on; let's go get something to clean you up with. Can't have you meeting the ladies looking like that." Daniel escorts Dan to the men's room.

Inside the men's room, Dan gets a paper towel and tries to start drying himself off. "I'm really sorry about this..." Dan finishes his sentence for him. "Dan, Dan Gordon. And it's not a problem. Accidents happen."

"Good name, mine's Daniel. Well, glad you aren't the violent type Dan. You could have hauled off and just hit me for what I did."

Dan turns to the sink. "What would that solve..." Before Dan can finish his statement, Daniel knocks him unconscious. "Well, it allows me to take over your identity to trap the Charmed Ones of course." Daniel snaps his fingers and Dan disappears from sight. As he looks in the mirror, his appearance slowly turns into that of Dan Gordon. He walks out of the men's room and heads out to the dance floor to find the Charmed Ones.

Daniel spots his girls and heads over to join them. Piper is the first to spot him. "Dan! What're you doing here?" Dan smiles. "Well, it's a beautiful night and I figured you would be working tonight so I thought I would come and visit. Didn't realize you would be taking the evening off as well." As he talks, he slides up next to Piper and starts dancing with her.

Phoebe starts fanning her. "Woah, time to get another drink. Dan needs one too, Prue I can't carry all these drinks myself." She hints towards Prue and they head toward the bar. A few seconds later the DJ plays a slow song and the two are dancing close.

"I'm so glad you're here. I'm sorry I didn't call, but I've been having a bad week." Piper admits.

"That's ok, we can make up for it right now." Daniel starts kissing Piper's neck and she is extremely surprised. She doesn't know how to react, so she just lets him continue. Finally the song ends and Piper suggests they go get a drink. They walk over to the table and join her sisters. Suddenly, Piper freezes the room.

"Why did you do that?" Prue asks.

"I don't know what's going on. Suddenly Dan wants to get busy with me and I'm not even sure if that's what I want. How do I tell him to back off with out hurting his feelings?" she pleads with her sisters to give her advice.

Prue looks stunned. This is not the kind of thing that she would expect from Dan. Phoebe touches his frozen hand as she starts to answer Piper's question. "Piper..." Suddenly Phoebe has a premonition of Dan in an alley unconscious. "Uh, something is going to happen to Dan. I just saw him unconscious in the alley out back."

Piper looks concerned. Prue tries to reassure her. "We'll just have to make sure that he stays with us, that's all. We'll keep a close eye on him." Just then, time unfreezes.

Daniel picks up his drink and 10 seconds later puts down the empty glass. "I'm ready for another one."

Piper looks shocked. "Another drink?"

Daniel shakes his head, "No, another dance. Come on."

Piper and Daniel return to the dance floor while Prue and Phoebe look on. "Something's not right here Prue. But I have no idea what it is." Phoebe points out. Suddenly, there is a man standing over them. "Well, that would be because that's not Dan Gordon."

"Leo, what're you doing here?" Prue asks.

"I wanted to surprise Piper, and then I saw Dan. I was just going to leave until I noticed that his aura wasn't right. He's evil."

"Leo, are you sure that you're not just jealous of Dan?" Prue questions.

Leo shakes his head. "This isn't about me, it's about the safety of your sister. Fine. If you don't believe me, then I'll solve the problem myself." Leo heads towards the dance floor.

Phoebe looks at Prue. "Maybe we should go check out the alley?" Prue nods in agreement and they head for the back of the club.

"Can I cut in?" He asks unassumingly. "Leo? What are you doing here?" Piper asks.

Daniel steps back. "Sure, I think I need another drink." He says and heads towards the bar.

Leo and Piper start to dance. Leo informs Piper of the bad news. "Piper, that's not Dan. It's a demon." Piper is furious. "You walk into my club, interrupt me dancing with a friend and then you have the nerve to tell me he's a demon? Dan hasn't been anything less than sweet to me and he's always been there. Can you say the same thing?"

Leo sighs. "Piper, I know we need to talk, but this is not the time."

"It's never the time. And you know what? I'm sick of it Leo. I love you, but it's always going to be like this. I can't take it anymore. I'm sorry." She states firmly and heads towards their table.

Leo stands on the dance floor looking lost and confused. He heads towards the bar and Daniel.

Chapter 7: The Alley

Prue and Phoebe emerge from the back door of the club to the seemingly empty alley. "Phoebe, do you remember exactly where he was?" Phoebe starts looking around trying to remember things from her premonition. She sees an empty beer bottle and her premonition is recalled. She points to the beer bottle next to the trash cans. Prue sees a foot sticking out from under the piles of trash. Prue uses her powers to move the trash to uncover Dan, with blood streaming down his head. Prue bends down to check to see if he's ok. "He's alive, but we've got to get him out of here."

Phoebe shakes her head, "But Piper's inside with a demon!"

Prue takes her sisters hands in her own. "You stay here with him, I'll go inside and call 911, then go get Piper and Leo and get out of here." Phoebe nods her head and Prue runs back inside the club.

Prue runs up to the bar and calls for an ambulance. She tells the operator that a drunk passed out and hit his head. She said someone saw him in the alley and came in and told us. Prue said that one of the owners was out there with him waiting for the ambulance.

Prue hangs up the phone and heads towards Piper sitting at the table. "Piper, we're in trouble. Where are Dan and Leo? I have no idea where Leo is. Dan went to the bar."

Prue shook her head. "That's not Dan. " "What?" "Dan's out back in the alley unconscious. He got hit on the head with something." "Is he ok?" "We don't know. I called an ambulance."

Piper started looking around feverishly for Leo. "I can't find Leo Prue! This is a complete and total disaster." Piper threw up her arms and the room froze again.

Prue searched the bar and found them. "There they are." She pointed towards the two of them standing next to each other at the bar. The girls ran up behind them as time unfroze.

Prue looked at the bartender. "Get security and have this man removed." She said pointing at Dan. Dan looked shocked. "What did I do?" He asked. "You attacked my sister." The bartender wasted no time and motioned for security.

Daniel sighed. 'Time to cut my losses.' He took the potion out of his pocket and threw it at Leo. Piper wasn't expecting it and didn't freeze time until Leo was already wincing in pain. Prue motioned with her hand and made the remaining dust fall to the floor. Then she turned and with a backhand motion, threw Dan against the wall.

As time unfroze, security had Dan and dragged him outside. But when they got outside, Dan turned towards them and blew in their eyes, temporarily blinding them. While they couldn't see, he disappeared.

Meanwhile, back inside, Leo was screaming in pain. "Leo, what is it?" Piper cried.

"It's eating me alive. It feels like the touch of a dark lighter."

"Leo, what can we do?" Prue asked.

"Get me away from here." He wheezed.

Chapter 8: Loses

Phoebe finished getting Dan taken care of and headed back into the club. As she touched the door, she had a premonition and saw and heard everything that had happened to her sisters at the bar. She knew that her sisters would take Leo to the manor and the Book of Shadows. She ran out of the alley and hailed a cab.

Prue pulled into the driveway as Leo screamed in pain. "Piper go open the door." Prue used her power to lift Leo out of the car, into the house, and up the stairs into the attic. She set him down on the couch they had in the attic. Piper took Leo's hand. "This is all my fault." She told him.

Leo shook his head. "No, I had to protect you." Piper cried. She kissed him on the forehead as his breathing got raspier

Prue was tearing through the Book of Shadows looking for an explanation about the deadly dust that was killing their guardian angel.

"Leo, is their anything you can tell me about that dust?" Prue begged Leo.

"Dark lighter." He hissed.

Prue fought a page on dark lighters and skimmed it. She found what she was looking for, but didn't like the looks of it. "The ashes of a dark lighter are the most powerful killing powder known. The slightest inhale will induce death in the victim. There is no known cure." Prue barely could read the last words.

Piper screamed. "NO! This can't be happening. Leo, I saw the future. We get married. We were supposed to have a beautiful daughter together. You can't leave me! Not now, not like this." She pleaded.

Phoebe arrived and ran up the stairs. "What's happening?" She asked.

Prue walked over to her. "He's dying, Phoebe." Prue and Phoebe hugged and watched as their sister said good-bye.

"Piper, I've loved you since I first saw you. I never meant to hurt you. Know that I'll always love you and someday, we'll meet again. You have to believe that." Leo told her as his eyes grew heavier and his breathing slower.

"Leo, don't you leave me. I need you. We need you. Please, I love you." Piper's voice cracked.

Leo looked up at her and put his hand on her cheek and wiped the tears away with his last bit of energy. "Sometimes love isn't enough Piper. Forgive me. I'll wait for you... just believe..." he said as his eyes closed for the last time. Piper put her head on his chest and cried.

After a few minutes, Prue and Phoebe walked over to their sobbing sister, each kneeling on one side of her. There they stayed as Leo's body was turned into magical orbs and simply faded away.

Chapter 9: Showdown

The sisters' mourning was suddenly interrupted when they heard the front door crash to the floor. As they all looked around startled, they heard a voice from downstairs. "I've killed your guardian angel Charmed Ones. You're next!"

Prue looked at Piper. She knew that her sister was not ready to deal with a demon right now. "Piper, you stay here. Phoebe and I will go downstairs and face whoever or whatever is down there."

Piper shook her head. "No, he KILLED Leo. He's not going to kill the two of you as well. We face him together."

Prue turned her head to Phoebe, looking for some backup, but got none. "Piper's right. We have to do this, for ourselves and for Leo." There was no more discussion. The girls stood up and walked downstairs.

As they got to the bottom landing, they faced their attacker. Prue was the first to recognize. "Daniel! I don't believe it."

Daniel laughed at her. "Yes Prue. I used you. I used your former boyfriend. Oh I hear he's dead, sorry I didn't have anything to do with it. He was an incompetent idiot. You didn't even try to save him, did you?"

Prue was furious. She lashed out with her power and sent Daniel flying into the wall. Phoebe recognized his plan immediately and explained it to her sisters. "Can't you see what he is doing? He's using your doubt against you."

Daniel stood up and produced a small diamond from his pocket. "Why would I do that Phoebe? Oh wait, you're the incompetent Charmed One. No job, no future, no power to defend your sisters, what can you do? You're worthless."

Once again, Prue flung him against the wall. Phoebe ran downstairs and kicked him in the chest. Daniel reached up and grabbed her ankle. When he touched her, she had a premonition. She saw herself standing in the attic with the Book of Shadows opened to the Power Switching Spell. Phoebe backed away and Daniel stood up. "You fools. I thank you so much for making this so simple for me. Come on Piper, why not freeze me and let your sister pummel me some more?"

Piper was set to do exactly that when she heard a voice say, "Don't use your powers." Piper looked around. "Leo?"

"Leo is dead; so are your mother and grandmother. What do you have left to live for Piper?"

Prue tries to slam Daniel against the wall once more, but nothing happens. "My power?" Prue asks as she looks down at her hand.

"Your power is now mine. I have two of the three powers. Soon I will have them all." He held up the diamond, and pointed at Prue. Prue felt as if someone pushed her from behind. She went flying down the stairs, landing in a heap at the bottom, unconscious.

Phoebe stepped over Prue, ran up the stairs, and grabbed Piper. "Come on. We gotta hurry." The two of them ran up to the attic.

"It's only a matter of time Charmed Ones." Daniel taunted.

Chapter 10: The Plan

Piper was confused. "What're you doing?" Phoebe began reciting the power-switching spell. "What's mine is yours, what's yours is mine. Let our powers cross the line. I offer up my gift to share, switch our powers through the air."

"Phoebe, why did you do that?" Piper questioned her sister. "Prue's going to die!"

"We can still finish this. I just need to find something in the Book of Shadows to vanquish him. Our powers are trapped in that diamond. I think if we destroy it, we will get our powers back. He thinks that you are the one with the last power, so he's going to come after you. Pretend to freeze him and then lead him up here. Hopefully, I will have found a spell to stop him." Phoebe finished rambling off her explanation to her actions.

Piper shrugs her shoulders. "That's your plan? Oh God Phoebe, you better be right." Piper runs out of the attic door.

Phoebe starts flipping through the book. She comes across the Diamond of Avatar. She reads. "The diamond can be used to trap and harness a good witches power once it has been used against it. In order to get the power back, one must gain control of the diamond." She talks to herself. "So I freeze him and grab the diamond, but how do I get rid of him?" The book responds to her plea and opens to another page. Phoebe begins reading. "Demon of Doubt. The demon can be destroyed as soon as the witches under siege renounce their doubts in themselves that he has raised. Once his control of their doubts is gone, recite this incantation. Ok, we can do this. As long as I can get Piper's power to work." Phoebe shakes her head violently. "No DOUBTS. Not now."

Meanwhile, Piper has made her way back downstairs. Daniel is standing over Prue, getting ready to crush her chest when Piper screamed. "NO!! Stop. Haven't you done enough damage for one day?"

Daniel looked up and smiled. "No Piper. Your worthless powers couldn't save the man you love and they can't save you sister either."

Prue was lying there when she suddenly heard a voice in her head. "You've got to wake up Prue. Your sisters need you. You can't let Piper down." Prue opened her eyes and saw Daniel standing over her. She swung her leg up and kicked Daniel in the groin with all the force she could muster. As she did, Piper threw her hands up. "Oh no." Daniel thought she froze time. He laughed. "Now I have all the powers!!" As he was relishing in his victory, Prue ran up to her sister. "What do we do now?" Piper grabbed her arm and yelled, "RUN!"

Prue and Piper ran into the attic. Piper closes and locks the door behind them Phoebe can see a nasty cut bleeding above Prue's left eye. She looks like a truck hit her. "Are you guys alright?" She asks.

Piper nods. "We're ok, but you better have found something in the book to save our necks. He'll be heading up the stairs an a minute or two."

Phoebe starts explaining things. "All we have to do is renounce our doubts in ourselves, freeze him, steal the diamond to get our powers back, and then recite an incantation to destroy him."

Prue shakes her head. "Oh that's all? And I thought this would be hard." She states sarcastically. "Piper used her power on him already. We don't have any powers left!"

Phoebe corrects her sister. "No, when we came upstairs, Piper and I switched powers. Daniel only thinks he has all three powers. We just have to get over the doubts in ourselves."

Piper looks confused. "Which ones?"

"Whatever ones he's brought up!" Phoebe yells frantically.

"That certainly narrows it down." Prue adds.

"You're not helping." Piper points out with a raised eyebrow.

"Anyway! He tried to make me doubt my worth." Phoebe states.

"He tried to make me doubt my power." Prue says.

"He made me doubt my reason to live." Piper points out with a tear in her eye.

Suddenly, the door to the attic busts open. Daniel comes marching in proudly. "Shall I just throw all three of you out the window and watch you die together? Or perhaps I should kill you one at a time and make the others watch?"

"Nobody is going to die tonight Daniel." Prue informs him.

"Oh, but someone already has Prue. Remember Leo? Piper, everyone close to you dies, shouldn't you be begging me for mercy?"

"I have my reasons. I have my sisters. That's more than enough reason to fight you."

Daniel curses himself. He's lost one. But there are still two more. "Phoebe can't fight me. She doesn't have the guts for it. I'm surprised she's not running away as we speak."

Phoebe shakes her head. "Actually, it's my plan that's going to destroy you. Maybe I'm not as worthless as you thought?"

Daniel is now worried. Maybe they do know how to destroy him? But what can they do with no powers? "And how are you going to fight me without any powers Prue? Can't save your sisters now can you?"

Prue smiles. "Knowledge is power. You'll do well to remember that in hell. Now Phoebe." Phoebe raises her hands and freezes Daniel. Piper runs over and grabs the diamond. The Charmed Ones begin reciting the incantation together. "Light as day, dark as night, rid all doubts from our sight. Gone from our midst be this fright, banish him to hell to make all right." As the sisters finish reading the incantation, Daniel unfreezes and starts to scream. "Where is my diamond? You had no powers! How can this be?"

"Well, you know what they say Daniel, it's magick!" Piper tells him as she tosses his diamond in her hand.

Daniel's blood starts to bubble under his skin. One by one the bubbles pop and flames shoot out. Slowly, the fire engulfs him. He screams in agony. "Curse you father!" Those are the last words Daniel mutters before his body is turned to ashes.

Chapter 11: Faith

"I doubt he saw that coming." Prue remarks.

Piper and Phoebe shake their heads. Leave it to their sister to make the worst joke of the evening. "You know, it's weird. After Phoebe kicked him, I heard Leo tell me not to use my powers." Piper explains.

Prue looks at her sister curiously. "That's strange. When I was lying there under Daniel, Andy told me to get up. He said that you guys needed me." Suddenly, a soft white glow forms in the corner of the attic. Slowly, the light materializes to reveal Leo and Andy standing side by side.

Andy walks over to his girlfriend and they lovingly look into each other's eyes. "I couldn't let anything happen to you." Andy tells Prue. "I've been watching over you. Now I have some company." Andy looks over towards Leo. Leo takes Piper's hand. "This is how things were meant to be Piper. You can't control destiny. Fate always gets its own way. A wise woman told me that." Leo looks over towards the Book of Shadows as Grams materializes. "Well I must say, you three certainly have quite a fan club on my side."

Phoebe eyes grew wider. "How is this possible? You're all..."

"Well my dear, I've told you before that anything is possible; especially if you believe in it. Actually, we only get this one chance. You see, Daniel was an extremely harmful demon and had killed many good witches in his time. They were all so thankful that his reign of terror had ended that they sort of chipped in so that we could all be here with you right now." Grams explained.

Andy placed a gentle hand on Prue's cheek. "You know, I would have given anything to have one last night with you. My prayers were answered." Prue intervened. "Andy, I..." Andy placed a finger on her lips to silence her. "We don't have much time. I want you to know that I've always loved you. I watch from the other side wishing it were me spending time with you. I also want you to know that seeing you happy makes me happy. And know that someday we'll be together, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't fall in love again. I forbid you not to. Live your life, and when the time comes, we will be together. You have to believe that." Prue cried as Andy held her. Those were the words that she so desperately needed to hear. Prue cried all the tears she had left for Andy as he gently rocked her.

Leo sat Piper on the couch. The moment she had seen him, she started crying. "Piper, please don't be sad. This is how it has to be. I came into your life for a purpose. I fulfilled that purpose. I was never supposed to fall in love with you. But I did, and I don't regret that for a single minute." Piper shook all over. "You died because you were trying to protect me." She tells him. "I died because I was trying to protect good from evil. It was the same risk I took everyday for hundreds of people. It's killing me to think that you're in pain right now and I can't make it go away." Piper sighed. "We would have had a beautiful daughter together Leo." Leo smiled. "Maybe you are meant to have that daughter with someone else. Who knows? Maybe it's a former baseball player that I admire." Piper hugged Leo. "Thank you." She said. Leo smiled. "For what?" Piper took a deep breath. "For caring so much to hold on and loving me enough to let go." Piper took his face in her hands and kissed him, until they didn't even know anyone else was in the room.

Phoebe walked over to her grandmother. "I guess I should be thankful that I don't say good-bye to anyone." Grams looked sad. She knew what the future had in store for Phoebe, but couldn't tell her. "You just remember that the only thing that matters is what you do right now. Live for today, not tomorrow. No one knows what the future holds, but you've always got today." Grams stroked her hair, wishing she could protect her youngest grandchild from the things the future had in store for her. "It's time for us to go Phoebe." Phoebe hugged her grandmother tightly; not wanting to ever let go. Grams smiled at her. "It's time my darlings." She gave Phoebe a kiss on the forehead and walked toward the center of the room.

Andy and Leo each gave their respective loves a final kiss. Andy looked at Prue and offered one final thought, "Morris is a good man. He'll understand." Andy looked at Leo. Leo turned to tell Piper the same thing. "Same goes for Dan." Grams spread her arms wide and gave her traditional farewell. "I love you my darlings." Leo added, "We'll be watching." And Andy nodded, "Together." With that, the three spirits turned into shimmering white light and disappeared from the attic.

The sisters all sat in silence for several minutes. Each was still in the same spot where they had met their spirit. Phoebe was the first to speak. "Never a dull moment, is there?"

Prue shook her head. "Grams is right. We can't dwell on the past or worry about the future, if we do we'll miss what's right in front of us today."

Piper sniffled. "Doesn't make it any easier though, but I guess it's for the best. Besides, we've always got each other, right?" "Right." Her sisters agreed. The three sisters walked towards each other and hugged.

Chapter 12: Facing the Future

Phoebe woke up early and decided that everything that Grams had said last night was true. She did need to live for the day. She picked up the phone and called Brent. "Hello?" "Brent, it's Phoebe."

"Hi, I've been thinking about you the past couple of weeks. How've you been? Hope those monsters aren't getting you down."

"Actually, sometimes they can be very educational. I was wondering, do you have any plans for this afternoon?"

Brent seemed interested. "Why no, I don't. Did you have something in mind?"

"Could I interest you in some lunch? Quake at noon?"

Brent's grin widened. "I'll be there at 11:30 waiting."

They exchanged their farewells and Phoebe hung up the phone. 'I think I need to start living for the present after all.' She thought. She headed upstairs to determine what she should steal from Prue's closet for her date with Brent.

Piper walked into the hospital room trying to figure out what to tell Dan. She walked in and saw him wrapped in bandages. "Oh my God, does it hurt?"

Dan smiled. He was so happy to see Piper. "Only when I think about bad things."

"Dan, I don't know what happened last night, but I do know that I am going to start taking much better care of you. Even if it means not letting you out of my sight, even to go to the bathroom." Piper said as she winked at him trying to ease the tension.

Dan laughed. "Hopefully, it doesn't come to that. I guess I didn't help your evening very much, did I? Listen Piper, Prue told me about the other relationship. If you need time or space to make up your mind or anything, just tell me."

Piper sat down on Dan's bed. She gently pushed one of the hairs out of his eyes. And smiled lovingly. "I made my decision. There won't be any more confusion. I promise. We do need to discuss some things, but they can wait till your home feeling better." She bent down and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

Darryl stopped over at the Halliwell manor to see Prue. He walked up the stairs and rang the doorbell. He couldn't justify to himself why he was so nervous. It wasn't like he hadn't been to see her a hundred times before. Prue came down in a bathrobe and answered the door. "Darryl, what're you doing here?"

Darryl wiped his hands on his pants and shook his head. "Uh, you called 911 for Dan Gordon. I was wondering if you knew anything about what happened to him? I talked to him already and he said some guy hit him over the head, but the bartender at P^3 said you had him thrown out. Care to explain this to me?"

Prue smiled thinking about what Andy had said to her. "Morris, are you willing to forget anything else and trust me?"

Morris nodded his head. "You've never led me wrong before, why would I think that you would start now?"

"Ok, then know this. There are forces in this world that defy description. Powers that work, despite the fact that we can't see them. I didn't believe that for a very long time. Now I do. As soon as you do, you'll understand everything you need to know."

Darryl stood there very confused, yet enlightened at the same time. "So I take it that everything with Dan has been taken care of?" Prue nodded. "Good, then I will be going." Morris started walking towards the door, he stopped as Prue interjected. "Darryl, do you believe in magick?" Darryl shook his head. "I'm not sure what I believe in anymore." He turned towards the door. "Let me get that for you." She raised her arm towards the door and it opened. Morris looked back at Prue, who was standing 10 feet from the door. "Andy always said you were something special." He smiled at her and then walked out the door. Prue waved and pointed at the door. The door slowly closed as she watched Morris leave.

Epilogue

In another dimension, Dax is chanting over his fire. Suddenly, a cloud forms overhead. As the thunder and lightning pound, the dark cloud slowly opens to reveal a beautiful park in San Francisco. "My doorway to freedom hasss come at last. Leo must be dead. Thank you my ssson. Perhaps I will avenge your death, and destroy the Charmed Ones." Dax spreads his arms and starts floating toward the park.