AUTHOR'S NOTE: Based on an idea by George Fletcher. With thanks to George, and as always to Suzanne and Seneca my proofreaders. Any feedback always appreciated

DISCLAIMER: Based on the Spelling Productions television show, Charmed, created by Constance M. Burge. All Charmed characters are the property of Spelling Productions, with the exception of Jonah, the Warlock, Frane and his gang whom I created. Copyright 2000 Andrew Nevill.

"I'll lock up if you'd like, Miss Halliwell," offered Jonah.

It was the end of another long night at P3. Piper was exhausted. The club was growing phenomenally successful and there'd been so many people in tonight that Piper had to leave the comfort of her office and help tend bar. Finally all the customers had left, as had the staff, and only the club's owner and the janitor were present in the building.

Piper studied her latest employee as she considered his offer. She liked Jonah. He was a hard worker and P3 had never been in better material shape. He was almost as good a handyman as Leo (maybe better, but Piper's rose-tinted vision would never let her admit it) except for one failing. Jonah seemed to be a total disaster area where anything electrical or electronic was concerned. His mere presence seemed to send any device haywire. The only problem with accepting his offer was that he'd only been working at the club for two weeks but Piper instinctively felt she could trust Jonah to make sure her baby was locked up securely.

"OK Jonah," she smiled, as she stifled a yawn. "As long as you don't jinx the alarm system." Laughing at her jibe, with which Jonah joined in, she finished, "You've got your keys, right?"

"Yeah Boss."

"Then I'm off home. See you tomorrow Jonah." With that Piper exited the club and a minute later Jonah heard the engine note of his employer's Jeep as it pulled away.

Going to the front doors, Jonah locked them from the inside; then going to the janitor's cupboard he opened it and took out a large rucksack. He returned to the club area and opened the bag, pulling out a sleeping bag, which he spread out on one of the long sofas in the chill out zone. Delving into his bag again, Jonah produced an alarm clock, which he placed on the table beside the sofa. Then opening a packet of batteries, he inserted one into the clock setting it for 8am, an hour before Piper would be in to write up the books for tonight. With any luck she'd never know what he'd done. Climbing into his sleeping bag Jonah drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"What the hell…?"

Jonah awoke to the angry stare of his boss. "Huh, But I set the alarm…" he said fuzzily.

"You must have used a flat battery," an irate Piper told her still half-asleep employee, "It's stopped."

"Not again," groaned Jonah. Sitting up he addressed his employer, "I'm sorry, Miss Halliwell. If you'll just let me explain."

"Make it fast and make it good," instructed Piper.

"I didn't know what else to do," began Jonah, "I was still on trial in my place which meant the owner could chuck me out instantly. And she did."

"What for?" asked Piper, calming down ever so slightly.

"Blew up the TV," shrugged Jonah. "I just hit the power button, the screen lit up and then there was an enormous bang and the screen shattered, the glass went everywhere. Five minutes later. I'm on the street. I'll look for another place today but I had nowhere to go last night." The janitor's voice was pleading, almost desperate as he continued, "It won't happen again. Please, I like working here, and it's the first job in ages I've been able to keep for more than a week."

Piper held up her hand bringing Jonah's liturgy to an end. "I'm not going to fire you. But you should have asked me before using P3 as a hotel. Tell you what, you go apartment hunting, and if you have no luck, there's a camp bed, that's not being used at my place."

"I couldn't…" began Jonah.

"Well, you're not sleeping here!" said Piper in a tone that brooked no argument. "So if you have any other ideas…"

Jonah didn't and reluctantly, although with a great deal of relief, accepted Piper's offer.

They drove over to the Manor. Phoebe was out but Prue was still at home. Seeing Piper come through the door, the eldest Halliwell called, "You're back early."

"Yeah I know," answered her sister. Entering the kitchen with Jonah on her heels, Piper performed the introductions. "Jonah, this is my sister Prue. Prue, this is Jonah. He's my janitor at P3 and he needs somewhere else to sleep besides my club. So I've offered him the camp bed."

Prue studied the newcomer. Jonah was about 5ft 8 and had curly sandy hair. His mouth curved into a gentle smile and he had the most amazing hazel eyes she'd ever seen. She extended her hand in welcome. "A pleasure to meet you."

Taking her hand, Jonah was surprised by the unexpectedly strong grip. He looked up; staring into Prue's determined face framed by her raven tresses and was instantly captivated by her intense grey eyes. They bored into him like lasers, but in her pupils danced a sparkling mischievous glint. "The pleasure is all mine," replied Jonah, holding her hand for a touch longer than was called for by convention.

As they released hands, Prue noticed Piper staring at them with a thoughtful expression. Before she could comment, Piper said, "I'll just get the camp bed down from the attic. I'll set it up in the sunroom." With that Piper turned, and headed upstairs leaving Prue and Jonah to talk amongst themselves.

* * *

"…And then he said, I think we'd better go. It looks like he's got the job." Jonah delivered the punch line in an Irish brogue. Prue was laughing hysterically. Looking up, as she wiped a tear of laughter from her eye, she noticed Piper entering the kitchen, from the sunroom, where she'd set up the camp bed.

"Oh Piper, Jonah knows some brilliant jokes. I've never laughed so much."

"I heard," smiled the middle sister tolerantly. "You've been laughing non-stop for the twenty minutes it's taken me to make up Jonah's bed. Except for when you told Jonah the story about the cream bun. That's the type of joke I'd expect Phoebe to come out with. But you!"

Prue grinned like a Cheshire cat, "Maybe you don't know me as well as you thought."

Piper knew Prue better than her sister would ever know, and could think of only one other person who'd ever made Prue act this way. But she couldn't tell Prue that. "You're probably right," lied Piper.

Following a light lunch, Jonah left to go apartment hunting. It was a miserable day, the rain coming down in torrents. Jonah viewed several places, but either they were unsuitable or out of his budget. A cold, wet and dejected Jonah returned to the Manor, dripping water as he stood in the hallway.

"What are you standing there for?" questioned Prue, using the voice she used on her sisters when she was mothering them. "You'll catch your death. Go upstairs and get them off. I'll find you a change of clothes."

Obeying the eldest Halliwell, Jonah went upstairs to the bathroom, and removed his waterlogged garments. Meanwhile, Prue rummaged in Jonah's rucksack and found a shirt and pair of jeans. Passing him the dry clothes, Prue told Jonah to get changed quickly as dinner was almost ready.

Jonah came downstairs, entering the kitchen. Prue got up from her chair, immediately the attentive host, introducing their guest to Phoebe, pulling a chair out from the table for Jonah to sit on, and even crossing to the coffee machine, pouring a steaming mug of coffee from the pot to warm him up. Piper and Phoebe smiled at each other as Prue fussed around the new arrival.

Just then, the timer on the cooker buzzed. Piper got up and served dinner, a delicious Beef Casserole, the perfect meal for such an awful day. Consuming the meal, Jonah offered to help Phoebe do the dishes but Prue wouldn't hear of it. Insisting that Jonah was a guest, she dried the dishes while Piper got changed in preparation for another night at the club.

It was a quiet night at P3, the foul weather making most people stay indoors. Piper and Jonah arrived home to find Prue and Phoebe snuggled on the sofa watching videos. "Hiya guys," greeted Phoebe. "Care to join us for a late night movie?"

"Why not?" replied Piper. Grinning wickedly she suggested, "And before Prue proposes it, why don't we let Jonah pick the film?"

Prue favoured her sister with a Look, before replying, "Good idea."

Browsing through the videos, Jonah picked out Twilight Zone - The Movie. "I've always liked this. My favorite section is the one with the creature sabotaging the airliner." Jonah took the video out of its case and inserted it into the VCR. Suddenly, all the power went off, leaving Halliwell Manor in total darkness.

"I'll get a torch," said Prue. Rather than find her way in the pitch black, Prue decided to use her power to bring the torch in the kitchen to her. As it was dark Jonah wouldn't see. She gestured with her hand, but the torch didn't arrive in it. She tried once more, and still no torch. Reasoning that the torch must have been moved, Prue groped her way into the kitchen, locating the torch where she'd thought it was all along. Putting her power's failure down to the fact that she couldn't actually see the torch, Prue turned it on and went down into the basement to check the fuse box.

Returning five minutes later she told the assembled company, "Might as well go to bed. The power's off for the night. Every single fuse has blown. We'll need an electrician. And we can't get one until the morning."

"Looks like it's starting," sighed Jonah resignedly.

Phoebe smiled in the darkness, "Yeah, Piper mentioned your effect on technology." She continued reassuringly, "But I wouldn't put this down to you. This place is as old as them thar hills, and the wiring's shot to hell." With that the Halliwells and Jonah turned in for the night.

A week went by. Jonah, despite trawling through the property columns of all the newspapers and tramping all over the city, had no luck finding a place, and continued to stay at the Halliwells. All that week, erratic machines plagued the house. Light bulbs blew, the answering machine lost messages, and most disastrously, the timer on the cooker failed to go off, ruining a whole batch of Piper's famous brownies.

It wasn't all bad though. Jonah was determined to repay his employer and her sisters for their kindness, doing numerous little jobs around the Manor, that Leo had never had time to do such as straightening a picture in Phoebe's room that she'd never managed to get to hang right, and fixing the squeak on Prue's bedroom door. Besides that the sisters actually liked having a house guest. It added some variety to their lives, which had been relatively warlock free for the last few weeks.

Jonah was naturally shy, but the Halliwells soon managed to chip away his barriers, revealing a sharp wit and quick tongue, that he'd only hinted at during his joke telling session with Prue. Phoebe, no slouch herself in the noble art of the one-liner loved to duel with Jonah trying to make a crack he couldn't top. It nearly always ended in a draw. But it was with Prue that Jonah let his barriers down the most, and she with him, revealing the warm personality, usually only accessible by her sisters, that lay behind her protective, driven facade.

The sisters and Jonah were in the sunroom taking it easy when the front door was flung violently off its hinges. Standing in the doorway was a man, dressed in a long black leather coat, his features shifted into that of a warlock. He thrust out his hand, and a fireball materialized, speeding towards the sisters.

Calmly Piper gestured with her hands. But instead of the fireball, the warlock and Jonah freezing-- it was Piper herself that froze, her hands still thrust out in front of her in freezing mode. Surprised and shocked, Prue and Phoebe stared at their frozen middle sister in disbelief, either completely forgetting or too stunned to do anything about the magical projectile rushing towards them.

Jonah had no idea what was going on, nor the time to think about it. On instinct, he dove in front of the sisters into the path of the flaming mass, which hurtled unstoppably toward him. The fireball struck Jonah, the energy arcing around him in an orange sphere. Then it seemed to collect, reforming itself into a fireball that hurtled back towards its originator, who could do nothing to stop it. The warlock screamed as the fireball smashed into him, incinerating his body,

Jonah stared at the pile of smoking ash in the Halliwells ruined doorway, which was all that remained of the strange attacker, then at the still frozen Piper, and finally at Prue and Phoebe. "What the hell just happened?"

"Funny," remarked Phoebe, her voice taking on a hard note Jonah hadn't heard before. "We were about to ask you that."

* * *

When Piper finally unfroze five minutes later, she found out first hand how those she used her power on felt like. Looking around disorientated, she asked, "Where's the warlock? What happened?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out," replied Prue cryptically. Seeing the puzzled look Piper threw at her, Prue explained, "Somehow when you tried to freeze the room, it backfired and froze you. We were so stunned that all we could do was stare at you, completely about forgetting the massive fireball was racing our way."

Glancing at her sister wryly, Phoebe took up the story, "That's when Jonah dived in front of us. Only instead of turning Jonah here into instant charcoal, the fireball spread out like a phaser beam hitting a force field in Star Trek. Then it turned back into a fireball and rebounded." Indicating the doorway, she finished as Piper followed her gaze, "Scratch one warlock."

Turning to the still bewildered Jonah, Prue said, "OK. Now that Piper is all right, we'd best work this out. But first I think Jonah could use a drink. And so could I."

The four went into the lounge. Jonah, Piper and Phoebe made themselves comfortable while Prue prepared the drinks, a pina colada for herself, a glass of Chardonnay for Piper, a bottle of Bud for Pheebs, and finally a Jack Daniels for their guest. After handing out the drinks Prue sat down and started the ball rolling, "There's no easy way to say this, Jonah. We're witches. And it looks like you are too."

After dropping that bombshell, the sisters explained to Jonah about their heritage and powers, and about demons and warlocks. There was a lot to tell. Three-quarters of an hour later, Jonah sat sipping the remains of his drink, "I can't really say I don't believe you," he said thoughtfully. "I mean I saw it with my own eyes. But you're saying I'm a witch too? Does that mean all this stuff that happens to me is some kind of power I have? Not just bad luck?"

"Well, rebounding that fireball was definitely magic," mused Piper. "But making things break. It happens too often for it to be just luck. But if it's a power it's an unusual one."

Prue glanced at Phoebe, who was deep in thought, "Pheebs is remembering something she's read in a certain book," she accused. "Come on Pheebs, spill."

Phoebe looked up, her concentration broken, "I remember seeing something. Come on; let's go up to the attic. Jonah knows most of our secrets. Let's show him the rest."

In the attic, Phoebe scanned through the Book of Shadows searching for a vaguely remembered page, while her sisters and Jonah stood and waited patiently. Eventually the youngest Halliwell announced, "Found it! Gremlin: A sprite or demon that causes failure in mechanical devices. That's all it says but there's a footnote signed by Gram's mom. Fuller explanation in Geddes Encyclopaedia of the Supernatural." Phoebe looked up from the book, "We've got that somewhere. It's in one of these trunks. I've seen it."

The four started searching through the trunks that took up a large portion of the attic. Twenty minutes later Piper whooped, "Jackpot." Opening the thick book, covered with at least fifty years of dust, she found the entry for gremlins and read:

"Gremlins. An imp or spirit responsible for breaking or sabotaging machines. Most notorious through the stories of World War II pilots who superstitiously blamed breakdowns and mechanical failures in their planes, on the creatures, together with the disappearance of objects. Many pilots reported seeing a small figure near to a vital system of their craft just prior to it developing a fault during flight. These reports were invariably dismissed as hallucinations due to pressure.

While almost certainly supernatural, opinions differ as to their magical abilities. Some authorities hold that gremlins have no powers, merely being saboteurs; their ability to survive the extreme conditions outside an aeroplane in flight, simply a feature of the creature's physiology. Other's argue that this ability is a magical power, and indeed that they use magic to achieve their depredations upon machinery.

Gremlins have also given their name to a type of witch, who primarily possesses the power to affect machinery in a similar manner. They are also known as anti-witches as the power invariably contains the additional effect of influencing magic in a negative fashion.

The ability is not truly a power. Rather it is an ambient energy field surrounding its possessor that has the effect of subverting any other type of energy that comes into contact with it. Thus mechanical equipment in the anti-witch's vicinity will be prone to seemingly strange and inexplicable failures. Spells and magical powers used in their presence will be subject to negation or will instead affect the caster.

The power is rare and most gremlins proceed through life unaware of their talent, putting their hopelessness with devices down to bad luck, or a little ironically, supernatural causes, never suspecting that they themselves are the cause of their own misfortune.

Those with knowledge of their ability can learn to successfully manipulate it, curtailing its effect upon machinery, unless they wish otherwise. Some are even able to suppress its tendency to affect magic, enabling themselves to be protected from its effects yet still allowing it to be employed by other magic users when in their company."

Piper closed the book. "Just typical," she exclaimed, but there was no animosity in her words. "Of all the house guests we could have, trust me to bring home the one who stops us using our powers."

"Yeah, sis," agreed Phoebe. "You sure know how to pick 'em. At least this time it's not you that's falling…" Phoebe words came to an abrupt stop as she saw Piper frantically making small motions with her head towards Prue, whose face was starting to cloud over with anger.

Piper quickly changed the subject, "So Jonah, it seems we've figured out the reason for all your woes."

"Yeah," he replied. "I don't know whether to feel relieved or scared. Now I know why stuff happens to me, and that book says I can learn to control it. But suddenly, I'm not in Kansas anymore. I've entered the Land of Oz, but I can't click my heels three times and go home like it never happened."

"I know," recollected Prue. "I found it difficult to accept. No let's be honest. I hated being a witch. My living hell of a life couldn't get any worse, and then it did. One moment I'm worrying about finding a new job, the next thing, objects move when I look at them and creatures I've never heard of are trying to kill me. You're taking it quite well, considering. In time it'll become easier. You'll even get Microwave Oven Syndrome." Seeing the puzzled looks thrown her way, Prue explained, "Remember when microwaves came out. People said stuff like; I don't want one of them. Food in five minutes. It'll be inedible."

The chef in Piper interrupted, "They had a point."

Prue ignored the interruption, "But once they used one, they loved the convenience and the speed. Now they couldn't cope without it. It's exactly like this power and me. No, the whole Charmed Ones set-up. It's part of me now. I'd be lost without it."

Piper and Phoebe looked at each other. Prue had never spoken at such length, even to them, about how she felt about being Charmed. Jonah somehow sensed it too. Every word had been spoken from her heart.

Phoebe finished for her sister, "What Prue's saying in a roundabout way is that we've been through this and we know what it's like. If you need any help, just ask. We'll try and help you get a grip on your powers but that's largely down to you and will probably come with time."

"There is one thing though," put in Piper, "We found a certain emotion triggered our powers. Maybe if you can find something similar it may help."

"I get the feeling that Jonah's power is passive like Phoebe's. The book said it was an ever present energy field or something," reasoned Prue. Addressing her youngest sister she continued, "And you know how little control you've got. And when you can voluntarily invoke it, it doesn't depend on an emotional trigger, it's all will power."

"Talking of will power," responded Phoebe, "I'm rapidly losing the power to will away my hunger. Come on guys; let's get something to eat. I'm starving."

The four exited the attic and went downstairs. Piper started to prepare a meal while Phoebe swept up the warlock, and Prue helped Jonah re-hang the front door. After enjoying a delicious repast of spaghetti bolognaise, Piper and Jonah prepared to leave for the club, while Prue and Phoebe got dressed up for a night on the town.

As usual Phoebe decided none of her dresses were suitable and went to borrow one of Prue's. Knocking on her sister's bedroom door she entered, to find Prue sitting at the mirror applying her makeup. "Can I borrow that red DKNY dress tonight, pleassseeee," begged Phoebe.

Looking at Phoebe via her reflection, Prue smiled, "Sure. No problem."

"Thanks a million sis. You're wonderful." Taking the dress from the closet, Phoebe turned to leave then turned back, "By the way, sorry I almost let the cat of the bag. You know I could never keep a secret."

"Cat?" smiled Prue, "What has Kit done now?" she asked innocently.

"You know what I mean," Phoebe told her eldest sister. "You like Jonah don't you?"

Turning around on the stool, Prue faced her sister, "Yeah, I like him a lot. But he's shy and I don't want to scare him off. Just let him take things at his own pace. He'll make a move when he's ready." Without animosity she continued, "Which is why you almost blurting it out did not exactly fill me with joy."

"Yeah, I guessed," admitted Phoebe. "So apology accepted?"

"Apology accepted," nodded Prue. Looking down she noticed a run in Phoebe's hose. Reaching into her drawer she extracted an unopened pack of stockings and threw them to her sister, "You've got a run, here ya go!"

"You are just the greatest sister right now! I love you in love!” grinned Phoebe as she exited the room.

* * *

Three days rolled past. Already Jonah seemed to be gaining some control of his power. The incidences of machinery mayhem decreased dramatically. Somehow, just knowing about his power gave him some command over it. The walls, which he'd built up over the years as a defense against rejection due to his supposed misfortune, started falling even faster, and with it his self-confidence grew.

Arriving late for dinner, Jonah bustled into the kitchen with a massive grin on his face. "Sorry I'm late," he apologized, "But I got into a bit of a negotiating session at the apartment on 5th Street I was looking at. The agency wanted $150 a week, which would barely leave me eating money. Eventually I told them Lacy's had a better place for $130, except for the location and what'd you know they dropped the price to $120." Pausing his grin became if possible even wider, "And then when the air con unit broke, while she was showing it me, she halved the deposit from two weeks rent to one, so I wouldn't walk out on the deal. I had it on me. I've got a place!"

"Yeehaa!" yelled Phoebe, "Way to go Jonah!"

"Did we mention about the personal gain?" asked Prue.

"You did. Believe me, I didn't intend for it to happen. But it's the first time this thing's worked FOR me." He laughed, "That's something I could get used to."

Piper had gotten up from the table, and now returned with glasses and a bottle of sparkling wine. Setting out the glasses, she opened the bottle and poured a glass each, "It may not be Dom Perignon, but it'll do to celebrate." Raising her glass, she proposed a toast, "Jonah, A Gremlin on 5th Street."

After the toast, Prue wandered upstairs to gather the work she had brought home with her. Nothing much, just a couple of work contacts she felt it'd be worth entering into her own computer's address book. Retrieving her laptop from Phoebe's room where her younger sister had been using it to surf the net, she turned it on. Instead of loading normally, it stalled and an image of a grinning Spike, from the Gremlins movie appeared on the screen. She tried pressing every key but nothing happened. The reset key sequence had no effect. She turned off the computer and then turned it back on only to be greeted by the grinning gremlin. "Phoebe!" she shouted.

Hearing her sister's furious voice, Phoebe decided she needed some backup. Surely Prue wouldn't kill her for whatever she'd done if there were witnesses present. Entering the room accompanied by Piper and Jonah she asked meekly, "What?"

"You've downloaded a virus, that's what," raged Prue. "How many times have I told you to virus check any downloaded files? What sites were you looking for anyway?"

"Something that might help Jonah," said Phoebe. "But all I got was dumb Gremlins movie sites."

"And you didn't think that some humorous person with a Gremlins site might try and inflict one on you?"

Jonah interrupted Prue's tirade. "Let me have a look at it. I might be able to do something."

Making every effort to restrain her temper, Prue responded, "Thanks for the offer Jonah, but you haven't mastered your power yet. You admitted the A/C unit was a fluke. And besides your power is to break things. I don't want this made worse." Scowling at Phoebe she added, "Not that it could be."

"Well, if it can't be any worse," pointed out Piper. "What harm can Jonah do?"

"I suppose you're right," growled Prue, reluctantly getting up from her chair and allowing Jonah to sit at the laptop.

Jonah studied the computer for a moment then sighed, "Here goes nothing." Placing his fingers on the Ctrl, Alt and Delete keys, the standard reset sequence; he closed his eyes and pressed the keys. Almost immediately a message appeared across the image, "Code Error: Line 5421 B: Variable Not Found." Then resetting itself the laptop rebooted loading up as normal. Running the virus checker that was activated on start up, the computer found and disinfected the Gremlin23 virus.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Phoebe turned to Jonah, "Thanks for saving my skin. Prue was not a happy bunny."

"No she wasn't," agreed Piper. "Prue was a bunny armed with a bazooka. Aimed at your head."

The comic banter had its intended effect of cooling Prue down. Laughing at the mental image of herself as a rabbit with a Laws rocket, she joined in, "Oh yeah, I was definitely not the Duracell bunny." She continued thoughtfully, "It would appear we've discovered another facet of your power. You can break specific parts of things."

"I got the feeling that it was slightly different," replied Jonah. "In my mind's eye I saw the virus as a separate device that was affecting your computer. I tried to just break the virus."

"So you could break a machine planted in another, like…." Piper searched an example.

"A phone tap," suggested Phoebe.

"You watch too many spy movies," accused Prue. "Neat trick. You can break things that are breaking things. So in certain circumstances you can use your powers to repair things, rather than just break them." Patting her expensive computer she finished, "My laptop and I thank you."

Forgetting her resolve to let Jonah make the moves, Prue showed him her gratitude by kissing him full on the lips. But Jonah had changed over the last couple of days and whereas before her actions would have made him run a mile, now he kissed her back, sliding his arms around her neck. Then breaking the kiss, he finally asked the question all the sisters, especially Prue, had been waiting for, "If I don't do this now, I don't think I ever will. Prue, I like you a lot. Would you go out with me?"

Prue gazed into Jonah's startling hazel eyes and smiled, "I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

The date was a huge success. Jonah took Prue to a restaurant that put on cabaret acts for its patrons, and remembering what had happened when they first met; Jonah made sure they went on Comedy Night where the entertainment consisted of performances by stand-up comedians. The pair enjoyed a wonderful evening of delicious food, fine wine and much hilarity.

The weeks passed becoming a month since Jonah had discovered his power. After two weeks with the Halliwells, Jonah had moved into his new place, and happily, with the control he'd managed to gain so far, which was increasing all the time, no mechanical tantrums occurred to threaten his tenancy. Although his control was by no means complete. Prue had been mostly right about the passive nature of the power but Jonah did discover that it was affected by his mood. One morning he'd gone into P3 with a foul temper caused by the hangover he'd gotten from having a little too much fun with the eldest Halliwell sister the previous night. The alarm system went crazy, refusing to recognize Piper's reset code, resulting in an embarrassing visit by the SFPD. Piper had Jonah in her office and the usually quiet middle sister let off some steam about her janitor's errant power, which Jonah had to admit he deserved.

One month soon turned into two and the police visited the club again. However, this time it was for something much more serious than a wayward burglar alarm. An armed gang had been targeting the local nightspots. The gang's M.O. was vicious, but highly effective. They hit the clubs when they were packed out with clubbers, holding them at gunpoint. The staff couldn't risk any harm coming to their customers and so had little choice, except to hand over the night's takings. It had been Inspector Darryl Morris who'd told Piper of the situation. The gang had already hit Inferno and Club Maximus and the detective warned Piper to be extra vigilant about security.

It was a busy night at P3. Phoebe had a job at the club, tending bar, in order to earn some extra cash and Prue, who was waiting for Jonah to finish work had been roped in to help Piper run the floor. Her two younger sisters saw no reason why their elder sibling should sit at the bar nursing a drink, while they worked their butts off.

Suddenly there was a detonation, as someone fired a shotgun into the air, the noise reverberating and echoing in the packed club. There were screams and a voice shouted, "Everyone quiet. Do exactly as we say." Standing by the dance floor were three men, one armed with a wicked looking sawn-off shotgun, which he was in the process of reloading, and the other two with large automatic pistols.

One of the automatic toters, a tall stocky handsome man with neatly trimmed short black hair, dressed in a well cut suit was the leader. "I want all the customers on the dance floor in two minutes. At the same time I want all the staff in the building by the main bar. Put it on the PA but do not mention or try to give any clues what is happening. If you do, my colleague will dust the dance floor with two rounds of .32 buckshot. The same goes for anyone playing hero."

As Phoebe made the required announcement, the clientele filed onto the dance floor and the employees lined up by the bar. All the time the shotgun carrier, a massive shaven headed male, dressed in a black shirt and jeans with high-heeled boots, covered the dance floor, and the guy with the second automatic covered the bar while the leader kept a general watch.

The three sisters looked at each other. They didn't dare use their powers, they didn't care about blowing their secret but they'd have to take the whole gang out in one go otherwise innocent people could get hurt. It wouldn't be easy. That tall black haired cuss might fancy his looks but he still gave every impression of having vicious capabilities. Everything would have been fine, apart from Piper losing a night's earnings, had not one of the thieves suffered from increased testosterone levels.

The third gang member who was supposed to be keeping an eye on the bar was more interested in eyeing up Prue. The short rat-faced unshaven man dressed in a faded blue T-shirt with a now unreadable rock band emblem and washed out blue jeans walked towards her. Despite his boss's instructions to stay sober, he'd consumed a decent portion of P3's stock of Jose Cuervo. "You're pretty," he slurred drunkenly, his alcohol soaked breath making Prue gag. "I'm gonna get me a kiss."

The feisty eldest Halliwell was not the sort to let drunks take liberties. As the drunken thief leaned in to collect his kiss, Prue brought off a vicious snap kick to his shin. The gunman went backwards but still retained his weapon. Landing on the floor he spat out a string of profanities ending with "You whore!" Raising his gun he fired, hitting the eldest Charmed One in the chest. She went backwards into the bar, sliding to the floor as a red stain crept slowly over her dress.

"Prue," screamed her sisters in horror, rushing to their unconscious sister's side.

The leader turned. "You idiot," he barracked his cohort, "Didn't I tell you to stay off the booze?"

Just as the third gang member shot Prue, the rest of the staff entered the room, including Jonah. Seeing the stricken Halliwell go down, his face fell. Walking over to the bar he stood next to Piper, who was kneeling at her sister's side.

"Which one of you is the owner?" barked the well-dressed man.

Piper looked up, "Me."

"Right, I want you to send one member of staff around the club, taking all the cash drawers out of the tills, and then place them on the main bar." Indicating a young female bartender he commanded, "Her."

Piper looked at her employee, "Do as he says Helen."

The black haired man continued, "Next I want you to go into your office and open the safe and take out the admissions takings."

"I can't," said Piper, wishing desperately that she could freeze time. It would at least give them some breathing space, time to think. But with Jonah in the room she didn't even have that luxury. "It's on a time lock. I can't open it for half an hour, which is when it's opened so we can put some more change in the tills." The patrons tended to pay with notes, often of large denominations that meant lots of change was given out so about halfway through the night all the tills were given a new cash float.

"Then we'll wait."

"Then let me call an ambulance. In half an hour my sister'll be dead."

The sharp dressed dandy shook his head, before responding coldly, "Then you'd better hope her life insurance is paid up."

Jonah looked down at Piper and Phoebe, meeting their eyes. "We're in a jam," he said quietly, a slight emphasis on the final word. The sisters looked at each other briefly, then down at Prue and finally back up at Jonah, staring into his hazel eyes, their thoughts the same. Did Jonah have that much control? Could they bet their sister's life and the lives of these innocents upon it? His steady eyes stared back at their own, holding their twin gazes without flinching. The two Halliwells nodded briefly.

Slowly Phoebe stood up from where she'd been kneeling. Making it completely to her feet, she employed her martial arts skills to leap over the bar, landing on the other side of it, by the alarm button that was connected to the local station house. As she jumped the two automatic toters raised their guns and squeezed the triggers, as did the one covering the dance floor with his shotgun.

The guns never fired. Both the leader's automatic and the shotgun jammed, rendering them at least temporarily inoperable. The gun held by Prue's drunken attacker exploded in his hand, leaving the limb a useless wreck that would never again wield a gun. He screamed in agony as his hand was blown off, putting him out of commission.

As soon as Phoebe moved, Piper, making full use of the time gained by Jonah, charged the snappily dressed leader, who'd ejected the magazine and was trying to clear his weapon's jam. Piper crashed into him, making him drop the clip, the bullets spilling out over the floor. The sheer impact of her arrival sent both of them to the ground. Piper got the best of the fall, landing on top of him. Furiously she pummeled and kicked this heartless brute who'd tried to rob her, threaten her customers, and was happy to let her sister die.

After using his power, Jonah rushed to take on the shotgun wielder, who dropped his useless weapon as he prepared to take it on the hoof, out through the emergency exit on the other side of the dance floor. Pausing briefly to scoop up the gun, Jonah chased the villain, whose progress was impeded by his footwear, the high heels being unsuitable for running in. Closing on the black-clad giant, Jonah swung the shotgun around catching him a ringing blow on the head, knocking him on to the hard wooden floor. There was a thud as he hit the ground, whereupon he lost all further interest in the proceedings.

Piper was doing well, but it couldn't last. Her opponent was stronger and heavier and eventually managed to roll over gaining the upper position and the upper hand. He hit the middle sister hard across the jaw, and brought his hand back for another. It never landed. Coming round from the bar, where she'd phoned the paramedics after hitting the alarm, Phoebe arrived at her sister's side and with surprising strength hauled Piper's adversary bodily off her sister. Then pulling him around to face her she stared at him coldly, her usually mischievous brown eyes, granite hard, "What's your name?" she demanded.

"John Frane."

Phoebe indicated her wounded sister, "That's my sister. Her name's Prue Halliwell, and you will never forget it." She smiled humorlessly, "You'd better hope your medical assurance is paid up." Then in an awesome display of her kick boxing prowess, Phoebe proceeded to give Frane the thrashing of his life. Frane tried to fight back, but Phoebe either dodged or countered all of his attacks. Mercilessly she kicked him, threw him, and punched him all around the room. Piper, Jonah and most of the clientele watched in amazement as Phoebe administered the beating, vindictively concentrated on the handsome face which was soon bruised and bloody, as Phoebe showered it with jabs, crosses and high roundhouse kicks.

Then Morris rushed in, with a contingent of cops. He took in the scene with one all encompassing glance and snapped, "Get her off him, unless you want your sister charged with Murder in the Second."

Piper knew there were no words that would stop Phoebe. Forgetting Jonah was there she instinctively thrust out her hands. The club froze, except for Piper, Jonah, Phoebe and the unmoving Prue. Frane froze in mid air, having been on his way to the floor, courtesy of yet another murderous leaping kick. Seeing her static opponent, Phoebe turned, breathing hard, to face her sister. "I thought you said our powers didn't work when he was around."

The middle sister glanced at the now one-handed robber who'd shot Prue, and then at the battered wreck of John Frane. For the first time since the robbery started, Piper smiled, "Jonah's gotten really good. So have you. But Prue would tell you that Frane here isn't worth 20 years mandatory. When I unfreeze everything, let him stay down."

Phoebe nodded her agreement. Waiting for her sister to retake her fighting stance, Piper gestured with her hands and events resumed. Frane's body hit the floor and Phoebe turned around contemptuously, walking back to the bar to see how her eldest sister was faring.

Minutes later, the paramedics arrived. Luckily the bullet had missed the vital organs but Prue had still lost a lot of blood. "It'll be close," the paramedic told the Halliwells. "In cases like these 50% of it depends on the patient's will to live. If she has that she'll probably make it."

A defiant Piper responded on Prue's behalf. "Then she'll be just fine."

Two days later Piper was proved correct, when Prue was moved out of Intensive Care onto a regular ward. The major advantage of this was she was now allowed as many visitors as she felt she could cope with. Piper, Phoebe and Jonah surrounded the eldest sister's bed. Asking what had happened after she'd been shot, Piper told Prue the full story. Upon hearing about the sound thrashing that Phoebe had administered to Frane, Prue looked at her little sister, and smiling weakly said, "Hey, I thought I was the mean tempered vindictive one. You're supposed to be Little Miss Sunshine. Phoebe means bright, remember?"

"Well Prue, usually you're angry enough for both of us so I don't need to be. I felt I owed you one." Then showing a sense of tact more commonly associated with her other sister she continued, "Anyway Jonah needs a word so Piper and I will go grab some more coffees from the vending machine." With that Prue's sisters exited the room leaving Jonah alone at Prue's bedside.

He seemed suddenly as shy as he'd been when he first met the sisters. The gremlin took a deep breath then spoke, "When I saw you shot, I felt everything all in one second, despair, fear, anger and something else. Love. That's when I realized. Those fifteen minutes were the worse of my life. I know it's only been two months so I'm not asking you to marry me, but I'd like to, this is so high school, go steady. To see if we can work, and if we do then maybe we'll think about going further. If you'd like to, that is. "

Prue struggled into a sitting position, gazing once more into Jonah's beautiful hazel eyes, losing herself in them, but not caring at all. "I love you too Jonah. Yes. I will go steady with you."

The sisters returned loaded with coffee to find Prue and Jonah holding hands. Seeing their questioning glances, Prue explained, "Jonah asked me to go steady. I said yes."

Phoebe smiled wickedly, "Ah well then you'll have to be sure to learn the three rules about gremlins."

If Prue had been 100% well she'd never have been caught out but she was operating at less than peak efficiency, "What rules are they?"

Going along with her sister's joke Piper started, the pair alternating lines, trying desperately to sound serious without cracking up, delivering the finish in chorus and fits of laughter

"Keep him away from bright lights, and don't let him go out in direct sunlight"

"Don't let your gremlin near water."

"And whatever you do."

"No matter how much he begs."

"Never ever feed him after midnight!"