At first, it was nothing more than an indistinct, fuzzy glow. But after a moment, the image began to take shape. Stuart's eyes were drawn to it, whatever it was, as he could see nothing else in the darkness.

And then the image became sharp and clear. It was a small figurine of a boy and a girl embracing. And it was floating in mid-air, in the darkness.

What is this? Stuart thought. Where am I? I...I remember going to sleep with Phoebe. So...I must be dreaming.

The figurine split in two as the boy and girl separated. The girl figurine began to grow, began to become larger. Stuart was becoming frightened. But he couldn't remove his eyes from the girl figurine.

Larger and larger it grew. Until the girl figurine was life-size. And then, she ceased being a figurine...and came to life. She was some fifteen feet from Stuart yet he could see every detail of her face in the total darkness. He marveled that there was some kind of illumination, almost like a halo, around her body.

She appeared to be about Phoebe's age. Very fresh looking. And very pretty. He could see her blonde hair, even the beauty mark on her left ear lobe. Her lips, colored with a light, glossy lipstick, began to spread into a small smile.

And he could see her eyes, one green and the other brown. Eyes with two different colors? he thought. What kind of a dream is this?

And then he felt himself starting to float towards her. Slowly, very slowly, floating in the air. He tried to stop himself but he couldn't. He tried to turn, tried to grab onto something. Was that Phoebe his hand had touched? Was that the bed he was floating over? It couldn't be, he thought. He was dreaming...wasn't he?

And then he heard the girl's voice singing softly.

The look, of love
    Is in, your eyes
    A look, your smile, can't disguise
He was floating closer to the girl. He tried resisting her but he could not. He felt the strength of her green and brown eyes pulling him to her.

You've got the look of love
    It's on your face
    A look that time can't erase
Then his resistance began falling away. In a few seconds it was completely gone and he submitted to the girl's pull, willingly letting himself float towards her. And all the while he heard the girl's voice singing.

I can hardly wait to hold you
    Feel my arms around you -
    How long I have waited
    Waited just to love you
    Now that I have found you

And then he reached her. Her open arms went around him and pulled him to her in a tight embrace, her glossy lips now touching his.

Let this be just the start of
    So many nights like this
    Let's take a lovers vow
    And seal it with a kiss
And then there was a flash of light.

 

Prue stood at the counter, a coffee pot filled with freshly brewed coffee in her hand. Piper came into the kitchen, walked past Prue without saying a word, and went to the refrigerator. Opening it, Piper stared inside for a few seconds, then closed the door without taking anything out. She turned around, walked over to the table, sat down and, staring into nowhere, gently exhaled.

Prue poured the coffee into her mug, brought it over to the table and saw the glum look on Piper's face.

"What's wrong?" Prue asked, as she sat down.

"Leo," Piper said, flatly.

"Leo..." Prue said, motioning with her head, trying to get Piper to continue. "He...did something that upset you?

Piper exhaled.

"He spent the night here," Piper said.

"Oh," Prue said and Piper gave her a look.

"Uh...there's nothing wrong with that," Prue quickly added. "I mean, that..would not...have upset you."

"He wasn't here when I woke up," Piper said.

"He...must have been called away by The Elders during the night and orbed out," Prue said.

"He didn't tell me he was going," Piper said.

"He...probably didn't want to wake you," Prue said, attempting an excuse for Leo’s sake.

"He didn't leave me a note," Piper said.

"I'm sure he was in a hurry and didn't think of it," Prue said.

"He thought of it Sunday night," Piper said, "when The Elders called him."

"Sunday night," Prue repeated. "I mean...uh, he was here...I mean-"

"He's not answering me," Piper said, ignoring the foot Prue had so un-judiciously put into her mouth. "I've been calling him all morning." She paused. "Something's happened to him."

"That doesn't mean that anything's happened to Leo," Prue said. "Maybe he's just busy with whatever The Elders needed him for." Piper looked up at Prue and squinted at her.

"No, you're right," Prue admitted. "I don't believe that either."

"Good morning," Phoebe said cheerfully as she came into the kitchen. The combination of her tied-off red blouse and low-waist jeans left her midriff bare. She began sniffing the air but the look on her face showed that she wasn’t smelling whatever she had been expecting to smell.

"Uh...that’s my coffee you’re smelling," Prue asked. “Something wrong with it?

Phoebe walked over to the gas range, stopped and stared at the empty burners.

"Where are the pancakes?" she asked.

"What pancakes?" Prue asked.

"The pancakes Stuart was making for me," Phoebe answered. "He told me last night that he was going to make them for breakfast."

"Stuart hasn't come down yet," Prue said.

"He had to have come down," Phoebe said. "He wasn't in the bedroom when I woke up."

Prue looked at Piper then back at Phoebe.

"Leo is missing," Prue said. "And now, it seems, Stuart is missing, too."

"Leo's missing?" Phoebe asked.

Piper nodded her head.

"This can't be a co-incidence," Prue said. " Something’s happened to both of them.”

"We need The Elders' help," Phoebe said.

"Without Leo, we don't have a way of getting to them," Prue said.

"We need someone to help us," Phoebe said. "We don't know where to begin to look for them."

"Well," Prue said, "there is someone we could go to."

"Who?" Phoebe asked.

"Keir," Prue answered.

"That pompous, condescending, smug chauvinist?" Piper said. "No!"

"He doesn't normally work together with The Elders," Phoebe said, "so I doubt he'd be of much help, anyway. There has to be somebody else who can help us."

Ding-dong.

The girls looked at each other in disbelief. They realized the bell had rung on cue, just as it would have had this been a scene in a Charmed episode and the script had someone who could help them suddenly show up.

Piper squinted and half shook her head in disbelief. Then they all made a dash for the front door. Opening it, they saw a young woman standing on the doorstep. About twenty-one with dirty blonde hair and a bright face, her slim body was about four inches taller than Phoebe. She wore a light blue checked tailored blouse with her dark blue jeans. In her left hand was a small purple bag.

"Hi," she said. "Remember me?"

"Of course," Piper said. "Kelly Anderson."

"We wouldn't forget a fellow witch," Phoebe said. "Come in."

“I’m not sure I properly thanked you for saving my life,” Kelly said, as she came inside, “when that warlock Neville tried to kill me at Pier 23, last week.”

“Oh...we’re just glad we got there in time,” Phoebe said.

“You didn’t have to bother coming over just to thank us,” Piper said.

“That’s only part of the reason why I came,” Kelly said as they started walking towards the kitchen.

"Leo is my whitelighter and I know he's yours, too," Kelly said. "Leo is missing."

"We know," Prue said.

"I know where he is," Kelly said.

"You do?" Phoebe asked, stopping before the kitchen door..

"Where?" Piper quickly asked.

"In New York," Kelly said. "In Brooklyn."

"In Brooklyn?" Phoebe asked. "When did he go there?"

"And why did he go there?" Piper asked. "And why isn't he answering me when I call him?"

"He can't answer you," Kelly said, "because he can't hear you. And he can't hear you because he isn't there now."

"I don't understand," Prue said. "You just said that Leo is in Brooklyn."

"He is in Brooklyn," Kelly said. "But not today...not now. Leo is in Brooklyn...in 1955."

The four girls sat at the table in the kitchen. Prue had poured a cup of coffee for Kelly which she was slowly drinking.

"My father grew up in Brooklyn," Kelly said. "He was a big Brooklyn Dodgers fan, before the team moved to LA. In 1955 they won the National League pennant. The World Series that year was between the Dodgers and the New York Yankees."

"Uh, huh," Phoebe said, "that was the only World Series Brooklyn ever won."

Piper and Prue looked at Phoebe in surprise.

"I was born in Brooklyn," Phoebe said, shrugging her shoulders. "I know a little bit of its history from my father."

"My grandfather," Kelly continued, "had a friend who worked at Ebbets Field, the Dodgers' home ballpark. He was able to get my grandfather tickets for the fifth game of the World Series that was going to be played on Sunday afternoon. Box seats just past the Dodger dugout. It still cost my grandfather a lot of money but they were the best seats in the house. He took my father and my uncle with him to the game.

"My father was nine years old. This was a big thrill for him. They got to the ballpark early and went to their seats. The very first row, right at the infield, along the first base side.. They were watching the pre-game warm-ups and batting practice when Duke Snider, the Dodger center fielder, walked by. He was my father's favorite Dodger. My father even had a kid's Dodger uniform with Snider's number '4' sewn on to it. My grandfather called out to Snider and, to his surprise, Snider stopped and walked over to them.

"They chatted for a minute and Snider shook hands with each of them. They had brought along a camera and when my grandfather saw one of the Dodger coaches come out of the dugout, he asked him if he would take a picture of them. Snider posed shaking my father's hand again."

Kelly stopped and drank some more of her coffee.

"That was a great day for my father," she continued. "He met Duke Snider and then saw him hit two home runs in the game to beat the Yankees. He told me about it many times when I was growing up.

"That picture was my father's prized possession. He kept it framed on a shelf in his small study. I must have looked at that picture hundreds of times."

Kelly took a large drink of the coffee and exhaled.

"This morning I went to get something in his study," Kelly continued. "For some reason, I don't know why, I looked at the picture again."

Kelly opened the small purple bag, took out a gold-framed black and white photograph and placed it on the table. A smiling man with a small mustache and a grey fedora hat stood in the middle behind the waist-high fence. On his left was a young boy wearing a blue baseball cap with a large, white 'B'. On the man's right was a younger boy with a big smile, his right hand extended in a handshake across the fence with the smiling ballplayer on his right. The number '4' on the ballplayer's uniform shirt was clearly visible just under the Dodgers script.

"Nice picture," Prue said.

"My father's on the right," Kelly said. "That's my uncle wearing the Dodger cap to the left of my grandfather. He was ten years old. Now look closely over my uncle's head. Look at the man seated behind him in the third row."

The three sisters stared at the picture for five seconds.

"Leo," Piper said, in disbelief.

"There's no mistaking him," Phoebe said.

"The date of that game was October 2, 1955," Kelly said.

"Uh...wait," Prue said. "Leo's been a whitelighter for a very long time. Maybe he just orbed in to that game back then. It was the World Series.”

"He wasn't in the picture before today," Kelly said.

"Are you sure?" Phoebe asked.

"I told you," Kelly said, "I've looked at that picture hundreds of times."

"Phew," Prue exhaled. "Who was in the picture?"

"The woman sitting next to Leo," Kelly said.

She seemed to the girls to be in her mid-thirties. Piper thought her dark hair and strong features gave her a classical glamorous appearance.

"By herself?" Phoebe asked.

"Yes," Kelly said. "The seat next to her, where Leo is sitting, was empty."

"It looks like they're together," Piper said.

"Before today, she was looking straight ahead at the camera," Kelly said. "Now, her head is turned slightly to her right towards Leo. And she has a small smile that wasn't there before, either."

"Oooo, that gives me goose bumps," Phoebe said. "Things that you knew didn't happen in the past suddenly changing like that in a timeline."

"Any idea who she is?" Prue asked.

"No," Kelly said. "I never paid much attention to her. She was just another Dodger fan to me."

"A woman coming to a ball game by herself would have been rather unusual back then," Piper said.

"It probably still is," Prue said.

"It never seemed that way to me," Kelly said. "Growing up with my father's stories about the Dodgers, I suppose had I been there I wouldn't have thought twice about going by myself, either."

"It was more than just going to the game," Piper said. "You said your father got there early because he was a big Dodger fan. This woman was there early too, so she had to be a big Dodger fan, as well."

"Our friend Stuart disappeared during the night, too," Prue said. "Their disappearances have to be connected."

"Maybe he's in the picture, too," Phoebe said, turning the picture slightly towards herself.

"Nothing else in the picture has changed," Kelly said. "Everyone else in it was there before."

"The question is how did Leo get back there," Prue said, "and why is he there."

"Do you think this girl had something to do with it?" Phoebe asked.

"She's with him at the game," Kelly said. "At the very least it’s a place for us to start. If we had a way to go back in time and be there."

"We do," Piper said. "I'll go up to the attic and find the spell in The Book of Shadows."

"The Book of Shadows? What's that?" Kelly asked.

"It's a book that tells us how to fight demons," Prue said. "It was written by many generations of witches in...uh...our family and handed down to us."

"And you've traveled through time with a spell from it before?" Kelly asked.

"Yes," Phoebe said, "more than once."

"Uh, before we do you should change into something else," Kelly said to Phoebe. "We shouldn't stand out. I like your blouse and low-waist jeans but they didn't wear them like that in the 50's."

"Good point," Prue said. "Let's all make sure we're wearing neutral clothes."

"That never seemed to be an issue when we did it on Charmed," Phoebe said quietly to Piper as they went up the stairs ahead of Kelly and Prue.

"Wardrobe always had us in just the right clothes at the beginning of the scene to save time so we didn't have to change." Piper said. "Now we have to think about what to wear."

 

After saying the spell, they found themselves standing inside a large, four-story high rotunda made of Italian marble. A twelve-armed chandelier resembling twelve baseball bats hung above them. A dozen ticket booths, with some people already lined up from the street beyond them waiting to buy their tickets, filled half of the rotunda's circle. The other side of the rotunda opened to staircases leading to the two decks of seats.

"Where do we go?" Piper asked.

But Kelly didn't respond. Her head was lifted upwards and she slowly turned wide-eyed, taking in everything surrounding them.

"My father spoke so much about this place," Kelly said, "and...here it really is."

Piper was about to say something to Kelly but Prue stopped her. Prue saw an excitement on Kelly's face, like a little girl who had been told about a special candy store and then magically found herself inside of it. There are certain moments in people's lives that are so simple yet so emotionally special to them, Prue thought. This one is Kelly's and I won't disturb her.

Kelly took a deep breath and exhaled.

"You really are here," Prue said, trying to help her believe what had happened...where she was.

"This meant so much to my father...it was the center of his childhood," Kelly said. "I never dreamed I'd ever really see this." She took another deep breath and exhaled. She looked around again then noticed Phoebe. That brought her mind back to why they were there.

"My father kept the stubs of his tickets," she said, "so I know which seats they had." She looked up at the sign above them. "It's...this way."

Kelly led them off to the right through Gate D, then up a walkway below the stands. Suddenly they were outside. The green field, bright in the mid-day sunlight, opened up before them. Kelly stopped and stared at the vista that lay beyond the stands.

Red, white and blue bunting hung from the railings of the upper and lower decks. Ballplayers were all over the field, tossing balls to each, while one player was at home plate taking batting practice.

"I'm...really here," Kelly said, disbelief and awe in her voice.

"Yes, you are," Prue said, taking Kelly's hand. "And so is Leo. We have to find him."

Kelly exhaled and nodded her head. She looked towards the field and the Dodger dugout below them to their right.

"Its this way," she said. She led them to the right and downward towards the playing field. Most of the seats were still empty but a few people here and there were seated, watching the players warm up.

Phoebe's concern was finding Leo and Stuart yet she couldn't help being impressed by where she was. Her trips to the past had not been to a place like this. A place that was so revered, a place that had been so important, to so many people. And still was to the young witch leading them through it.

They were about fifteen rows up, having walked down past the mostly still empty rows and were getting closer to the field. From that spot, the giant scoreboard in right field seemed a lot taller to Phoebe than its actual thirty-eight feet.

"Leo," Piper called out as they approached the row where he was sitting.

"Uh, yes?" Leo said, turning around to them. "Who are you?"

"Who are we?" Piper asked. "What do you mean, who are we?"

Prue saw a small smile cross the face of the woman sitting next to Leo. The same woman they had seen in Kelly's photograph.

"I'm sorry," Leo said, shaking his head slightly. "You know who I am but I have no idea who you are."

"Leo, you don't recognize me?" Kelly asked, in disbelief.

"No, I don't," Leo said. "Why should I?"

"Why indeed, Leo," the woman sitting with him said. "You have no reason to recognize them."

"You have every reason," Piper said, with a strident tone. "It's me, Piper."

"Piper?" Leo asked. "Piper who?"

"OK, what is going on here?" Prue asked. "What have you done to Leo?"

"Stella, who are these girls?" Leo asked the woman.

"Just some witches trying to make trouble," Stella said.

"You know who we are?" Phoebe asked.

"Of course I do," Stella said. "The Charmed Ones. And since this other little girl is with you she must be a witch, too."

"Are they as powerful as you?" Leo asked her.

"No, they aren't," Stella said. "Uh, would you excuse me honey and give me a moment with them?"

"Of course, my darling," Leo said.

"My darling?" Piper repeated, anger in her voice.

Leo sat down in his seat and looked out onto the playing field as Stella motioned to the girls to step up a row where he wouldn’t hear them.

"Who are you," Prue asked, "and what have you done to Leo?"

"I am who Leo is in love with," Stella said. "And I've seen to it that he stays in love with me."

"Leo is in love-" Piper started to say. Then she caught herself, realized that she shouldn't say what she was about to say and didn't say it.

"Leo is not in love with you," Piper said. "You've done something to him to make him not recognize us. Since you know who we are, you know that we can undo whatever you've done."

"You can't," Stella said, in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Our powers-" Phoebe began to say.

"Are useless against me," Stella said, interrupting her.

"Is that so," Phoebe said. "Just watch."

"Go ahead," Stella said. "Try using a spell on me."

"Phoebe..." Prue said, motioning with her head.

"Give me a minute to come up with one," Phoebe said.

"You can have all day," Stella said, "for all the good it will do you. I'm not going anywhere."

"But Leo is," Prue said. "We're taking him back with us."

"He has no memory of you," Stella said, "and he still won't have any if you take him back."

"When we get him away from your influence he'll remember us," Kelly said.

"You are a foolish, novice  little witch," Stella said to Kelly. "But let's save everyone's, and especially Leo's, time. When I brought Leo here, I removed his memory of you, of who you are, of where he came from and of what he is in the process. So he can't remember you."

"I'll remind him when I get him..." Piper started to say, "uh, that is, we'll remind him when we get him home."

"The only way he can get his memory back is if I send him back and reverse the process," Stella said. "And I will never do that. Leo is staying with me."

"I don't think so," Phoebe said.

  "Break the power of this one,” she began,

     "Who took our whitelighter back through time;  

   Release him from under her control        

       And restore his memory to its prime."

The four witches watched for a moment waiting for something to happen.

"Leo?" Piper asked, in expectation.

"Yes," he said, turning around to them. "Stella darling, should I join you?"

"No, Leo," Stella said, "you can keep watching the warm-ups. I'll be done in a minute."

"The spell didn't work," Prue said.

"So...we'll take another approach," Piper said. She raised her hand towards Stella.

"I suggest," Stella said, not frozen, "that you un-freeze Leo and the people around us before the people outside of the range of your power notice. You wouldn't want them asking questions about who and what you are."

"That didn't work, either," Prue said, frustrated. "Unfreeze them, Piper. Quickly."

Piper squinted at Stella as she raised her hand to un-freeze the people.

"We aren't done with you," Piper said.

"Oh, I think you are," Stella said.

"No," Kelly said, stepping closer to Stella. She grabbed Stella's hand and squeezed it in hers as she looked into Stella's eyes.

"Good-bye!" Stella said gruffly, pulling her hand forcefully away from Kelly. She turned around, stepped down to the row below them and took her seat next to Leo.

"What was that all about?" Prue asked.

Kelly turned away from them, and with her back towards Stella and the playing field, began to say something in a low voice. The girls watched but could not hear what she was saying.

After a moment Kelly turned back to them. She motioned with her head for them to follow her up the steps. When they reached the walkway that separated the box seats from the section above it Kelly stopped and turned around to them.

"We don't know who Stella is and what her powers are," Kelly said, "so I didn't want to chance talking anywhere near her where she might overhear me."

"What did you just do?" Phoebe asked.

"We're going to have to figure out how to get Leo back," Kelly said, "and it looks like that's going to take some time. We have to know where Stella will take Leo after the game but in this crowd we'll never be able to find her and follow them."

"And what you did will help us?" Piper asked.

"When I hold someone's hand," Kelly said, "and then say a spell right away before I say anything else, I can find that person afterwards."

"That's your power as a witch?" Phoebe asked.

"Yes," Kelly said, "it's one of my powers."

"It's like scrying," Phoebe said.

"Scrying doesn't always work but my power does," Kelly said. "But only for forty-eight hours after I say the spell."

"Then we have to figure out how to save Leo within the next two days," Prue said. "And for that we'll need the Book of Shadows. Let's get away from these people and say the spell to go back to The Manor. We'll go through the Book, find what we need and come back and get Leo."

"I can't," Kelly said. "If I go back to our time, I'll have gone more than forty-eight hours into the future. My power to find Stella may not work when I come back here."

"We can't risk it not working and not being able to find them," Phoebe said.

"No, we can't," Prue said. "Phoebe, go back to The Manor with Piper. Kelly and I will wait here for you."

"Going through the Book of Shadows will take some time," Phoebe said.

"Time is relative," Prue said. "Time in the future won't matter to us here. Regardless of how much time you take, you'll still come back to right now in this time of here so it will be like you were hardly gone at all."

"OK," Phoebe said to Piper. "Let's go."

 

"Ahhh," Phoebe said, stretching both her arms high above her head. "I need a break. We've been at this for over an hour and we've found nothing." She stood up from the sofa, pushed the coffee table back a bit and walked around it.

"We know," Piper said, "that looking through the Book of Shadows in real life takes much longer than it does on Charmed. We don't have a script where the writers have us find what we're looking for right away to save time. So we just have to keep at it until we do find it."

"I'm going to get a cold Snapple," Phoebe said. "Maybe that will help me." She left the living room and went into the kitchen.

Piper pushed her hair back with both her hands, pulled the Book of Shadows closer to her and turned the page.

"Hello," she said, "what's this?"

Piper stared at the top of the left page and started to read it. She was half-way through the opposite page when Phoebe came back in, the glass of Snapple juice in her right hand.

"I found something," Piper said.

"Great!" Phoebe said. She sat down on the sofa, took a drink of the juice and put the glass down on the coffee table.

"Maybe not so great," Piper said. "Take a look."

Phoebe looked at the large calligraphy word on the top of the left page.

"Siren?" she asked, reading the word.

"That seems to match what's happened to Leo," Piper said. "Read on."

"Sirens are sea nymphs who have the power of charming by their song all who hear them," Phoebe read out loud. "They are irresistible and once someone hears their song, becomes captivated and cannot withdraw from their presence." Phoebe stopped and looked at Piper.

"But Stella is not in the sea," Phoebe said.

"No," Piper said, "and not all sirens live in the sea. Look here." Piper pointed to the bottom of the page.

"There are sirens who live on land and who possess the same power," Phoebe continued reading aloud. "They have a limited ability to travel through time in another dimension using a cross-dimension figurine. They cannot truly exist in the normal dimension of the time they travel to but can momentarily become visible, attract and charm men with their song, and take the men back with them to the normal dimension of their own time."

Phoebe stopped and looked up at Piper.

"So Stella came here through a figurine in some other dimension," Phoebe said, "and took Leo back with her to 1955, in her own time."

"That would seem to be what's happened," Piper said. "Leo is definitely charmed by her. And we haven't come across any love demons. So a siren seems to be what we're up against."

"What about Stuart?" Phoebe asked. "We didn't see him with her."

"Maybe she's keeping him somewhere else," Piper said. "Maybe she doesn't want them to interfere with each other."

"I don't know," Phoebe said. "The way she was talking to Leo it didn't seem that she had a need for anyone else. But now that we found what she is, we can use the Book's spell to get them both back."

"That's the part that's not so great," Piper said. "There isn't any spell that will vanquish a siren. Nor any potion. Nor anything else. Our powers are useless against her. Look here." Piper pointed to the middle of the right page. "The only way to get back someone who has been charmed and taken by a siren," Piper read aloud, "is to find a way to force the siren to willingly give him up."

"What?!" Phoebe said. "That can't be!" She looked up at Piper. "How can we possibly force Stella without our powers?"

Piper exhaled.

"I don't know," she answered.

Phoebe turned back to The Book of Shadows and read what was on the rest of the page.

 

"Prue and Kelly should be right here," Phoebe said, after she and Piper said the spell and returned to Ebbets Field. "This is where we left them."

"Maybe they went back to keep an eye on Stella and Leo," Piper said. "Let's go down to-"

Piper stopped short as she saw four people come down the walkway on their right.

"Uh, oh!" Phoebe exclaimed as she saw them, too.

"That's us," Piper said. "Going down the walkway before to find Stella and Leo. We came back here at the wrong time. We’re too early."

"I used the time that we left here in the spell to bring us back here," Phoebe said. "It should have brought us back to right after we left. I'm sure it was the right time." Piper squinted at her.

"I think," Phoebe added.

"Let's get out of here before we run into ourselves and mess up the timeline," Piper said.

They said the spell and returned to The Manor. Phoebe made a new calculation, came up with a different time and they said the spell once again.

"Where have you been?" Prue asked.

"At The Manor," Phoebe said, slowly and innocently.

"It's almost an hour since you left," Prue said. "The ballpark is filling up. Lots of people could have seen you suddenly appear."

"We were having a small problem finding the right time to return to," Piper said, glancing at Phoebe.

"Did you find Stella in the Book of Shadows?" Prue asked.

"Yes," Piper said.

"And what to do with her?" Kelly asked.

"That's another story," Phoebe said.

"There's no spell that can vanquish her or do anything at all to her," Piper said. "We're going to need time to come up with our own ideas of what to do."

"We can't go back to The Manor to work on this," Phoebe said, "because Kelly's power to track Stella won't work when we come back here."

"And...because we have this small problem of setting the precise time to come back to," Piper added, glancing at Phoebe again. "We're going to have to stay here until we've figured out how to get Leo back."

"Finding a place to stay in the past without causing problems or raising questions won't be easy," Prue said.

"We could stay in a hotel," Phoebe said. "I have my credit card with me."

"We can't use a credit card," Prue said. "They didn't have credit cards in 1955."

"Oh...right," Phoebe said.

"Wait...I know where we can stay," Kelly said. "In my grandfather's cousins' house."

"Why there?" Prue asked.

"Because they aren't home," Kelly said. "They went away...to New Hampshire or Vermont."

"How do you know that?" Prue asked.

"Because my grandfather used to chide them on having chosen to go on vacation this week and missing the Dodgers' finally winning the World Series," Kelly said. "Their house was empty. Uh...is empty."

"Where is it?" Phoebe asked.

"Somewhere in Brooklyn," Kelly said.

"Somewhere in Brooklyn?" Piper asked. "Brooklyn is a big place. Just how do we find it?"

"You don't know the address?" Prue asked.

"No...not exactly," Kelly said. "But I know they lived two blocks from my grandfather. And I know where he lived. Uh, lives. Uh...my father used to tell me about the house and his growing up in it."

"That doesn't quite tell us how to find it," Prue said.

"Uh, let's get outside and find a telephone booth," Kelly said. "I think they still had phone books in them back then so I can look them up."

The girls went back to the rotunda, saw an exit and headed towards it. Everyone was coming in and they had some difficulty maneuvering their way outside. After making their way through the crowd, they saw a luncheonette off the corner opposite them. They crossed
Mc Keever Place, to the left of the rotunda entrance, made their way to the luncheonette and went inside.

Most of the table booths were empty, though two or three had men with young boys, wearing Dodger caps, still sitting at them. Phoebe pointed to a phone booth in the rear and they hurried to it. Kelly pulled out the telephone book and started turning its pages.

"Anderson, Anderson," she said, moving her finger down the list of Andersons on the page. "Here it is. Edward M. Anderson. 462 East 4th Street." Piper pulled out a pen and a small piece of paper and wrote down the name and address.

"Now that I know that address, I should be able to find my grandfather's cousins, the Karmons," Kelly said. She flipped the pages until she came to the K's, then carefully looked at the names.

"Charles Karmon," Kelly said. "Oh...there are two of them. Wait...this address on East 5th Street. Sounds like that's close to my grandfather's house. This must be the one. Let's go."

"Uh," Piper said, "you're sure you’ll be able to find Stella and Leo."

Kelly stared ahead, her eyes not moving as she concentrated.

"Yes," Kelly said, "it's working. I can tell where they are."

"How do we get there?" Phoebe asked.

"They have taxis in Brooklyn, don't they?" Piper asked.

"Yes, they do," Kelly said, "but I don't have much money with me."

"I have a little," Piper said.

"I have a little too," Prue said, "but we'd better conserve what we have. We’ll need it for things we’ll have to have while we're here.”

"Uh, like food," Phoebe said, eyeing the family eating in one of the table booths.

"Then we'll take the train," Kelly said. "It's only a dime."

"That much," Piper said, and smiled.

"I think we can afford it," Phoebe said, as they headed out to the street.

 

The train rocked gently from side to side as it made its way underground. Piper and Kelly sat next to each other on the rattan, two-person seat that was along the wall of the car. Phoebe, sitting next to Prue on the three-seater that was perpendicular to it, was looking all around the car.

Culver Line read the sign above Piper's seat. Via Tunnel was illuminated just above it. Phoebe watched the conductor move across the car as the train pulled into the station. He pulled out his  long key, inserted it into the panel between the two center doors, pushed a few buttons and the train's doors opened.

Phoebe watched two women get up and leave the train. The doors closed and the trained pulled out of the station.

"Fascinating," Kelly said.

"Your father told you about the trains, too?" Piper asked.

"Yes," Kelly said. "There wasn't much parking near Ebbets Field so this is how they went to the ball games."

As the train came out into sunlight Kelly turned her head around to look out the window. The train went through a railroad yard, stopped in a station, then climbed and continued its journey on elevated track. Prue switched places with Kelly to let have a better view of the streets below them. Kelly's eyes were glued to the houses and factories passing by.

"This is our stop," Kelly said, as the train came into a station. "Ditmas Avenue."

The girls got off then followed Kelly towards the stairs at the back end of the platform. Getting down to the street, they turned the corner and starting walking up Cortelyou Road.

"Hey, that looks familiar," Phoebe said as an electric bus passed them by. "Just like in San Francisco."

"Yes," Kelly said, "they had them in Brooklyn back then. My father use to tell me how ours reminded him of the ones in his neighborhood."

They reached East 5th Street, turned the corner and found the address. It was a blue clapboard house, with a well kept front porch behind a small garden. The right roof and corner of the second floor was semi-rounded in the shape of a modified turret.

Prue approached the door, waived her hand at the lock and the bolt slid back.

"After you," she said to Kelly and they all went inside.

 

Phoebe was feeling the strain of the long day. She really needed sleep but it was only eight o’clock, too early to go to bed so she decided to try to unwind, even for just a little while.

There was a mahogany cabinet standing against the wall opposite the sofa. She walked over to the cabinet and opened its doors. She was surprised at the small screen on the TV set she found behind them. She looked at the knobs for a moment, then turned one. She heard a small hum, sat down on the sofa and yawned. After a moment a black and white picture appeared on the screen.

It was a man in a grey suit with an expressionless face, standing stiffly with his arms folded across his chest.

"Tonight," the man said, "we have a really great shue."

"Hmm...that funny pronunciation of show," Phoebe said to herself, and yawned again. "Uh...I know who that is...it’s Ed Sullivan. Everybody who was anybody..." she yawned again, "was on his show. Uh, shue."

“We will have on stage,” Sullivan said, “the great star of the Metropolitan Opera Roberta Peters, the fabulous Señor Wences and Johnny, and the always funny comedian Alan King. And of course the wonderful June Taylor Dancers.

“But first we have a real treat," Sullivan continued. "An up and coming young star whom we welcome into our living rooms every Thursday night. The most famous witch on television - Alyssa Milano!"

Alyssa walked out on to the stage to loud applause from the audience

"Thank you," she said to the audience. "Thank you. And thank you Ed for that kind introduction."

“Charmed is a big hit,” Sullivan said, “because of you, of course. But also because it is so different from other TV shues. Tell the audience, Alyssa...what's it like to be a witch?”

"Lot's of hard work," Alyssa said. "Every week there’s another demon or warlock to defeat. And having to come up with all of those spells, and making them rhyme too, can be tough. In fact, I'm stuck right now on an important spell that I’m trying to make up."

"Alyssa, you have writers who do that for you," Sullivan said. "And here is the producer and the foremost writer of Charmed - Brad Kern."

Sullivan and the audience applauded as Brad walked out on stage.

"Brad," Alyssa said, as Brad smiled at the audience and came over to join her, "I need you. I need a spell to save Leo and Stuart. Write one for me, Brad. Write a spell for me, now. Write a script with a spell -"

"Phoebe, Phoebe, wake up," Prue said, shaking her.

"Brad...a spell," Phoebe said as she started to open her eyes.

"Phoebe, you fell asleep in front of the television," Prue said.

"Uh...I was so exhausted," Phoebe said. "Brad," she said. "Where's Brad? He was going to write a spell to save Leo."

"You were dreaming," Prue said.

"Dreaming," Phoebe said, not fully awake. "We need Brad to help us. We need a script where everything works OK out at the end.”

"No scripts, and no Brad," Prue said, putting her arm around Phoebe. "This isn’t Charmed. We have to do it ourselves."

Phoebe blinked and shook her head until she was completely awake.

"Without a spell, how are we going to save Leo and Stuart?” Phoebe asked.

"I don't know," Prue said, softly. "I don't know."

 

I was high and mighty
    How I laughed at love
    And the stars above
Piper had tried thinking of ideas of how to force Stella to return Leo but nothing came to her. So she had turned on the radio, hoping that the music would help her think better.

Then you came like a gentle flame
    And helped me to find my way
You have helped me to find my way, Leo, she thought. As more and more I’ve completely become  Piper Halliwell. In my thoughts...and in my heart.

I was high and mighty
I’ve become a real Charmed witch, she thought. But I’m not feeling like a high and mighty witch now. I don’t know how to get you back, Leo. She sighed.

Piper stretched out her hand, felt the large cream-colored knob on the maroon radio next to her bed and turned it off. The music hadn't helped her think of anything. Go to sleep, she thought. Maybe Prue will come up with something in the morning.

It was almost noon the next day when the girls came down the block to the light-colored brick house just as Stella was walking down the house’s brown front stoop to the street.

"We're going to turn your house upside down," Prue said as they hurried up to her.

"We're going to use a spell to make it unliveable," Kelly said. "You won't be able to stay in it for a minute."

"The electricity won't work," Piper said, "the gas will blow out, and -"

"And none of that will happen," Stella said, cutting Piper short. "Didn't you learn that yesterday?"

"That spell was on you," Phoebe said, "but this isn't you. It's your house."

The four girls held hands and began the spell.

  “Hear us now this spell we cast

       Upon this house let havoc reign,

    Let all fuel cease and objects fly

       Until no one in the house can remain.”

They looked up at the house and through an open venetian blind could see inside. And they saw a lamp on a table shining. The electricity was still working. And nothing else happening. No upheaval, no things flying all around the room.

"It didn't work," Phoebe said.

"It's my house," Stella said, "and whatever belongs to me is under my protection. I am stronger than you. Your powers are no match for me. You're just weak and helpless girls in my presence."

Prue exhaled then turned to Stella.

"Why are you doing this?" Prue asked.

"Because I need to have someone who can love me," Stella said.

"We all need that," Prue said.

"You don't need Leo for that," Piper said. "There's plenty of men out there for you to meet and charm."

"To meet, to charm," Stella said, "but not to truly have. Men who will go with a girl until they find out she is different. That she's not mortal. That she has powers. And they can't handle that. They can't deal with it.

"Again and again I've been through that," Stella continued. "Not finding anyone who could understand. And who it wouldn't bother. That's something you should relate to."

"Uh, yes...we do," Prue said. "But we don't go around stealing people to solve our love life problems."

"Until, in my journeys," Stella said, "I came across Leo. He's not bothered by it at all. I knew he would accept me as I am. And he did."

"We know what you are," Phoebe said. "With your power you can attract any man you want and force him to stay with you."

"Not force," Stella said. "Enchant. And it is a thrill to have that power over men."

Stella paused.

"But a thrill is not fulfilling," she said. "Not when it's a forced relationship. When the man resists accepting me as I am."

"You're forcing Leo to love you," Piper said. "And to forget who he is."

"Enchanting him," Stella reminded her. "And with Leo I'm not forcing his acceptance of me and my powers. That's within him. He's comfortable with my not being mortal. It's perfectly natural to him. And that's what I need. Someone with whom I can have a more relaxed, a more natural, relationship."

"Then why did you take Stuart, too," Prue said.

"I didn't," Stella said. "Laurie did."

"Who's Laurie?" Kelly asked. "Another siren?"

"Yes," Stella said. "She has the same need I do. To have someone who her not being mortal doesn't frighten. I came across Stuart at the same time I came across Leo. They were both in the same house. Both happily being together with witches. So I told Laurie about him. A pure mortal who has no problem accepting and loving a witch. So I'm sure she's quite happy."

"What - you don't get together to talk about your successes?" Phoebe asked.

"Laurie is in a different time," Stella said. "We can communicate but we don't really 'get together'."

"When - and where - is she!" Phoebe demanded.

"Hah!" Stella exclaimed. "You can't get your boyfriend back from her any more than you can get Leo back from me."

"Tell me!" Phoebe repeated.

"Why?" Stella asked. "So that you can annoy her? Just as you're annoying me?"

A green Checker taxi came down the block and pulled up at the curb just past them.

"Now it's time to go to Yankee Stadium and see my beloved Dodgers win the World Series," Stella said. "Goodbye." She turned and walked to the taxi.

"Not today," Kelly said. "Today's only Game Six. The Yankees win today's game."

But Leo had opened the door for Stella from the jump seat inside the cab and, getting in, she hadn't heard what Kelly had said. And the four girls, feeling as weak and helpless as Stella had said they were, watched as the taxi pulled away.

 

"Well," Piper said the next morning, a miserable expression on her face, "I think we've run out of ideas. And out of time. Once today’s game starts Kelly's forty-eight hours will be up. Not only will we not have Leo back but we won't even be able to find him."

"All we'll be able to do," Phoebe said, dejected, "is watch them play the game."

Prue turned to say something, then stopped and stared at Phoebe for a few seconds.

"That's it!" Prue said. "That's the answer. Watch them play the game."

Piper looked at Prue with a squint.

"Uh...what did I miss?" Piper asked. "How is watching the baseball game going to help us save Leo?"

"Kelly," Prue said, "your father told you about what happened at Game Five, the game that he went to. What about today's game, Game Seven. The game the Dodgers won that gave them the World Series. Even though he didn't go to it did he tell you about it?"

"Many times," Kelly said. "That was the greatest day in Brooklyn's history. He listened to some of the game because one of the boys brought a radio to school. The teacher let them listen to parts of the game during class. He said the teacher was a big Yankee fan and as soon as the game ended and the Dodgers won he immediately turned the radio off.

"But my father read every newspaper story he could find the next day. He knew everything that had happened."

"And you remember what he told you about it?" Prue asked.

Kelly hesitated.

"Not everything," she said. "Not the way he knew it. But I do remember the important plays."

"Good," Prue said. "And the game is being played at Yankee Stadium. Right?"

"Yes," Kelly said, "they took turns. The Yankees are the home team for the last two games."

"OK." Prue said. "Then let's go out to the ball game."

 

The sun was shining brightly over Yankee Stadium. The temperature hovered in the upper 60s and there was a slight breeze, a beautiful early fall day. A day that seemed more like a renewal of springtime than the denouement of fall.

The ticket lines were already long by the time the four girls got there. After buying their tickets, the girls stood near one of the ramps that lead to the stands.

"Where are Leo and Stella?" Prue asked.

Kelly closed her eyes, blocked out the tumult around her and concentrated on Stella.

"She's in left field," Kelly said. "She's way down near the corner, right at the foul line, but she has good seats in the second row."

"We need seats next to her," Prue said.

"How do we do that?" Piper asked. "I doubt our tickets are anywhere near them."

"Give me your tickets," Kelly said. As they gave her their tickets she held two in each hand then closed her eyes. She stayed that way for ten seconds, opened her eyes and slowly looked down at the tickets. After a few seconds more a little puff of smoke came from each of her hands.

"There," she said, opening her hands, "they're switched."

"Another power?" Phoebe asked.

"Yes," Kelly said. "I can switch what's written on something I'm holding with what's written on something else, as long as I know what’s written on that other one.”

"And you know which seats need to be on our tickets," Phoebe said.

"Yes," Kelly said, "because I know where Stella and Leo are sitting. So I know what was written on the tickets we needed and could switch it with what was written on ours.”

"Then let's go see a ball game," Prue said.

 

"Hello," Prue said, as she and Kelly took the two seats next to Stella on her left.

Stella turned around in surprise and stared at them.

"What are you doing here?" Stella asked, unhappy to see them.

"It's a beautiful day for a ball game," Prue replied.

"And we're here to see the Dodgers win," Phoebe said, as she and Piper took their seats directly behind Prue and Kelly. Stella turned around to them, frowned, then turned back to look at the field.

"Maybe win," Prue said, in an enigmatic tone.

"Darling," Leo said, "aren't they those witches who were bothering you at Ebbets Field?"

"Don''t pay them any heed," Stella said. "Just watch the game."

"Yes," Prue said, "let's all watch the game. It should be quite interesting."

 

Three innings had been completed and there was no score in the game as the Dodgers came to bat in the fourth inning.

"You know," Prue said, turning around to Stella, "we're from the future. So we know what's going to happen in the game."

Stella ignored Prue and didn't look at her.

"We know what the players are going to do," Prue said.

Stella continued to ignore her.

"Like...right now," Prue said.

Stella, annoyed, could not control herself any longer and turned to Prue.

"No, I doubt that you know anything that will happen here," Stella said. "You may be witches from the future but you are not baseball fans."

"Don't be so sure," Prue said.

"You wouldn't know the difference between a catcher behind home plate and a Catcher in the Rye," Stella said.

"Funny line," Piper said, with sarcasm. "Did you know that J. D. Salinger played baseball before he became a writer and wrote Catcher," she added whimsically.

The Dodger batter stood at the plate, his bat poised above his shoulder, waiting for the next pitch.

Prue turned to Kelly and nodded her head at her.

"He's going to hit the ball right here," Kelly said to Stella, understanding Prue's signal. "For a double."

There was a crack of the bat and the ball lifted upwards and came sailing in their direction, landing on the field in the corner just in front of them. The Yankee left fielder hurried to the ball and threw it back as the Dodger came safely into second base.

"Told you," Prue said matter-of-factly to Stella.

Stella kept her head straight and her eyes on the field.

"Lucky guess," she said to Prue without looking at her.

The next batter grounded out as the Dodger runner went to third base.

"Lucky, huh," Prue said and motioned again to Kelly.

"That's Gil Hodges coming up," Kelly said. "He drives in the Dodger run with a single."

After a few pitches, there was another crack of the bat and the ball went into short left field. The Dodger runner came home and the Dodgers lead 1-0.

"Well, we must really be lucky," Prue said. "What do you think Leo? Do you think we're that lucky?"

"Ignore them, Leo," Stella said.

"But you can't ignore us," Prue said. She turned away from Stella and looked out onto the field. "Not if you want the Dodgers to win."

The inning ended and the Dodgers took the field, throwing the ball around in warm-up. Prue leaned over towards Stella.

"The Dodgers win today," Prue said to her in a whisper, then waited a few seconds.

"Unless I change it," Prue said, "and make them lose."

That got a reaction from Stella and she turned to face Prue, just as the center fielder threw a warm-up toss to the left fielder standing in front of them.

"Watch," Prue said, as she moved her head in the direction of the ball. Instead of landing in the left fielder's glove, as it was about to, the ball suddenly went flying past him.

"Hey - what happened there?" a man in a grey suit who was sitting a few seats further down from them asked the man next to him. "Did you see what that ball just did?"

"Yes," Prue said to Stella. "Did you see what I just did?"

Stella started to say something but changed her mind.

"Think about it," Piper said. "You're a Dodger fan. You've waited all these years for the Dodgers to finally win the World Series. And they will."

"Unless I change it," Prue added.

"You wouldn't," Stella said.

"I would," Prue said. "And I will. Unless you send Leo back to us. And tell us where Laurie has taken Stuart."

"The bottom of the sixth inning has the critical play of the game," Kelly said. "If the fly ball is caught the Dodgers win. Sandy Amoros is going to be brought in to play left field. He is going to make a spectacular, game-saving catch for the Dodgers. Right in front of us."

"But if I make the ball move away from him just a little bit," Prue said, putting her thumb and forefinger together, "he won't make the catch. And the Dodgers will lose."

"If...if the Dodgers really won," Stella said, "then...you'll be changing the timeline to make them lose. You're a good witch so you wouldn't do that."

"The timeline is already changed by you're bringing and keeping Leo here, instead of him being where and when he should be," Phoebe said. "So it doesn't matter that much what other changes we make."

Stella said nothing. But Prue could tell from her expression that she was worried.

Another inning went by and Stella still said nothing more.

"Top of the sixth inning," Kelly said. "The Dodgers will get one more run."

"You don't know that," Stella said. But Kelly detected Stella's voice had less conviction in it than before.

The Dodgers loaded the bases and Gil Hodges came up again.

"He drives in the run," Kelly said to Stella, "with a fly to center field."

As if on cue, Hodges immediately hits the ball to center field. The Yankee outfielder catches it and the Dodger runner on third base races home.

"We know what's supposed to happen," Prue said. "And I will make it not happen."

"You're a real dyed-in-the-wool Brooklyn Dodgers fan," Piper said. "Do you really want to see the Dodgers lose?"

"And you'll know that you were the cause of it," Kelly said. "You, Stella, will have to live with knowing that you made the Dodgers lose the World Series."

"They won't win another World Series," Phoebe said. "Its either today or never."

The Dodgers are retired without scoring again and the Yankees came to bat in their half of the inning.

"This is it," Prue said, as Stella saw Sandy Amoros sent in as a replacement Dodger left fielder. "Send Leo back to us and tell us how to find Stuart or I will ruin the Dodgers win."

"The first two Yankees get on base," Kelly said. "The third batter will hit the ball right beneath us. Amoros will catch it."

"But not if I send it flying away from him," Prue said.

"No!" Stella said. "I've waited too long for my Dodgers to win. So many times they came so close and lost. You can't do this!"

"Watch me," Prue said. She grabbed Stella's face and turned it towards her. "Watch me do it. Right in front of you. The Dodgers will lose the only chance they'll ever have to win the World Series."

"It will be 'wait till next year' again," Kelly said, using the phrase Dodger fans had used every year when their team lost the Series. "Only there never will be a next year. They will never win another World Series. It's today or never."

By now, the first two Yankees had gotten on base.

"Two Yankee runners," Kelly said. "Just as I told you."

"Now!" Prue said, grabbing Stella by her shoulders. "Send Leo back now and your Dodgers will still win."

Stella closed her eyes and began breathing heavily. Then she opened her eyes and turned to Leo, stared at him, then pulled him closer to her and kissed him.

"Darling," Leo said, "I love your kisses. But why now?"

"Because..." Stella started to say but her voice trailed off. As she turned around to look at Prue, Kelly saw tears in Stella's eyes.

"Laurie...Spencer took Stuart with her to New York," Stella said. "The middle of September, 1967. She's at Foote, Cone and Belding."

Stella turned back to Leo and gave him one more kiss. Then slowly she held her hands up together and a small boy figurine appeared in them. She placed the figurine on Leo, gave him a slight push and he disappeared.

Just as there was a crack of the bat and the ball came sailing to the left field corner. Sandy Amoros came running at full speed, stuck out his right hand and just caught the ball in his glove, right in front of them.

 

Would you like to ride in my beautiful balloon
    Would you like to ride in my beautiful balloon
    We could float among the stars together, you and I
    For we can fly...we can fly-y-y
Headsets sat on the five young women's heads as each stood before her microphone. Four of the women were in a semi-circle behind the fifth woman who stood in the forefront. Each heard the instrumental cut of the song through her headset as they sang the lyrics.

If you'll hold my hand we'll chase your dream across the sky
    For we can fly...we can fly-y-y
    Up, up and away My beautiful, my beautiful
    Balloon...
    Up, up, and away.....T-W-A...up, up and away...T-W-A...
    Up, up, and away.....T-W-A....up, up and away...T-W-A
A man behind the glass gave a signal and the girls stopped singing. He turned towards the engineer who gave him a 'thumbs up'. Then he looked over to a man in a blue, pin-striped suit and relayed the 'thumbs up' to him. The man in the blue suit nodded, straightened his red, tear drop tie and opened the door that separated their recording studio booth from the singers.

"That was great," the man said as he walked through the opening. He was tall and lean but not too thin, in his late forties. He had a strong, handsome face with just a hint of grey in his black, wavy hair.

"You sound as good as the Fifth Dimension do on their original hit recording of that song," he said to them.

"Thanks," the girls in the back said as they took off their headsets and walked towards the door.

The girl at the front microphone didn't leave. She slowly took off her headset and straightened out her blonde hair. The man smiled as he looked into her one green and one brown eyes.

"And you, Laurie, were magnificent," he said. "There's just something about your singing..." He stopped, seemingly at a loss for words, and shook his head.

"Well, whatever it is, your voice makes the difference," he said.

"Thank you, Walter," Laurie said, smiling at him.

"You," Walter said in a hushed tone, "are the one who made the group sound like it really was the Fifth Dimension singing. The client is going to love it.

"And," Walter continued, "because of that, this is going to be your big break. Once this ad campaign takes off for TWA - and it will - your career will take off with it. And you won't have to be just an ad agency analyst anymore." He paused for a second.

"Ah, that pun was unintended...the airline's ad campaign taking off," he said and gave a shrug of his shoulders. "Well, Foote, Cone and Belding will be proud of you and your success. And proud that you came from our agency."

"Thank you, Walter," Laurie said, again. "You know how much I appreciate your giving me this chance. And all of your help for my career." Walter sensed a controlled confidence in her eyes...and in her voice.

"I didn't have much choice," Walter said, chuckling. "There's something about your voice that...that just compels me to want to help you."

"It's just my innocence that enchants you," Laurie said.

"Speaking of enchanting," Walter said, "it looks like you've done a pretty good job of enchanting your new boy friend." He motioned to a man sitting in a chair behind the glass.

"I believe, indeed, that I have," Laurie said. "And now we're going out for dinner and a movie."

"Celebrating the recording session," Walter said. "Believe me, you have what to celebrate - your career that's about to blossom."

"Oh, and I guess your boyfriend, too," he added.

"Yes," Laurie said. "I think a celebration is in order...for my having found Stuart."

 

The four witches looked up at the grey nondescript building that stood on the north side of
54th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues in New York's Midtown.

"So we're just going to go in and ask for her?" Piper asked.

"We don't know anything about her," Prue said. "We don't even know what she looks like. All we know is that she works for the advertising agency Foote, Cone and Belding and that their office is in this building. That's all we have to start with."

"Then we shouldn't all go in together," Phoebe said. "She took Stuart from my bedroom so she'll recognize me and assume that whoever is with me is a witch, too."

"But not Kelly," Piper said. "She won't know her."

"Then let's keep you away," Prue said to Kelly, "at least for now. Go around the corner and wait there away from us. Phoebe, wait here outside. We don't want to put her on her guard by seeing you."

"And we'll go up together," Piper said to Prue, as Kelly walked away.

"No," Prue said, "you wait here, too. She may have come into your room to look in on Leo when she came to The Manor. And she would have seen you, too."

"But...you can go up because she wouldn't have seen you," Piper said. "She wouldn't have come into your bedroom to take someone because there wasn't anyone with you for her to take. Ooh...sorry Prue. I didn't mean..."

"It's OK," Prue said, and gave a small sigh. "I've become used to it. Whether I'm Prue on Charmed or Prue in real life I don't get to have anyone to be with."

Prue went over to the entrance, pressed the 'open' button on the power door handle, and walked into the lobby.

"Ugh..." It was more of a grunt than a word. And it matched the unhappy expression on Prue's face.

"I don't know how people drank this in the 60's," she said, staring into her cup. "Coffee in 2000 tastes so much more...like coffee."

"Well, the Coca-Cola tastes the same," Piper said, as she put down her now empty glass. "At least the same as Coke Classic."

"So Laurie wasn't there," Phoebe said.

"No," Prue said, "and neither was the secretary for her department. She just quit and the temp that was supposed to come never showed up. In fact, they thought I was her."

"Which doesn't help us," Phoebe said.

"Yes it does," Prue said. "Kelly, can you type?"

"Uh, yes, I can type," she answered. "Why -"

"And you can answer telephones, too," Prue said, not asking. "Congratulations on your new job. It's only temporary, of course."

"Job..." Kelly said.

"This siren Laurie Spencer will have taken Stuart's memory just as Stella did," Prue said, "so we can't just take Stuart back with us. And she'll be immune to our powers just as Stella was. So we need to learn all we can about her. And quickly. Being her department secretary is the best way we have to do that. I can't take the job because I was already up there. And Laurie will recognize Phoebe and Piper. So that leaves you, Kelly."

"Uh...I guess so..." Kelly said, "but...posing as an experienced secretary. I wouldn't know how to act like one. It's not as if I'm an actress."

"Uh...no, you're not an actress," Phoebe said, glancing at Piper. "But...you don't need a SAG card for this. Trust me, you'll be a star in this role."

"You sound like you've had experience acting," Kelly said.

"Some," Phoebe said, with an enigmatic smile.

Kelly looked at Phoebe and Piper, then exhaled.

"OK," Kelly said, "I'll give it a try. Uh, anyone know how a secretary makes coffee in 1967?"

 

The two vertical rows of large dark buttons on Kelly's camel brown coat-dress were aligned perfectly, and the bottom of the A-line dress fell two inches above her knees. Kelly was rather pleased with how she looked.

Having gone to The Manor to check that Leo was all right after Stella sent him back, they brought lots of cash with them when they went back in time to 1967. So they could afford to pay for their two mid-town hotel rooms as well as for Kelly’s in-fashion new clothes.

Her neutral 2000 clothes had not been neutral enough for 1967. Or at least not appropriate business attire. She had gotten a few odd looks when she had shown up the previous afternoon. Not wanting to raise any questions about herself, she had gone to Alexander's Department Store after work and bought the coat-dress.

And she had, in fact, received compliments on it when she came to the office that morning. I really like the way this looks on me, she thought. Even though its the ‘60s style, maybe I’ll even wear this when we go back home to 2000 and start a new fashion trend.

"Hello," Laurie said. She was wearing a light green tailored shirt, beige pants and black wedges, her blond hair tied back behind her head. She had come through the door into the office and stopped at the front desk. "Who are you?"

"I'm Kelly, the new secretary. Uh, temporary secretary, that is."

"Oh, a real-life Kelly Girl," Laurie said, and smiled. "Sorry - couldn't help the joke. Welcome to Foote, Cone and Belding. I'm Laurie Spencer. I sit over there at the desk in the corner."

"Ah," Kelly said, "so you're Laurie Spencer."

"You...know about me?" Laurie asked, her suspicions aroused.

"I know that you're very popular," Kelly said. "I've had three messages for you already this morning."

"Oh," Laurie said and smiled.

"One from Mr. Silverstone, one from Walter and one from Dennis Mc Millan at the William Morris Agency. He said it was about representing you in your record negotiations."

"William Morris," Laurie repeated, pleasantly surprised. "That's the top talent agency. Walter really has put the word out for me."

"Excuse me for asking," Kelly said, "but are you a singer making a record?"

"Not yet," Laurie said, "but I hope that will be coming soon. I just recorded the song for TWA's new ad campaign. The agency is going to use it in all of TWA's radio and TV commercials. It will become the airline's theme song."

"Wow," Kelly said, "you're going to be a singing star."

"Walter is confident that I will be," Laurie said. "And so am I."

"So these TWA commercials are important to both the airline and you," Kelly said.

"Yes, they are," Laurie said, a little suspicion in her voice again.

"Uh, then...can I have your autograph," Kelly said, trying to deflect her suspicion with a naive, innocent look. "Then I can show people that I knew you before you were famous."

"Oh...you're sweet," Laurie said, discarding her suspicions. "Sure, why not."

Laurie took a page from the notepad on Kelly's desk, wrote something on it and handed it to her. Kelly held it up and read it.

     To Kelly

     The best secretary on Madison Avenue.

     From Laurie Spencer.

"Wow!" Kelly said, feigning excitement. "Thanks for the compliment."

"I'm sure it's deserved," Laurie said. "Now I've got to get to work." She went to her desk in the far corner and Kelly went back to playing her role as a secretary.

It was an hour later when the door opened and a man walked in.

"Can I help -" Kelly started to say but he kept on going past her, walked halfway to Laurie's desk then stopped.

"Where's Laurie?" he asked, looking at her empty chair.

"She's in a meeting," Kelly said. "Can I help you?"

"How much longer will she be?" he asked. "We're having lunch together."

"About another half-hour," Kelly said.

"Tell her I'll be back promptly at 12:15," he said, looking at his watch.

"Your name?" Kelly asked.

"Stuart," he said, as he headed for the door.

"Stuart," Kelly repeated slowly, giving him a long look. "Uh...I'll be sure to tell her when she gets out."

"Thanks," Stuart said, and left.

 

"A singer," Phoebe repeated

"Yes, that's what's really important to her," Kelly said. "That, and Stuart."

They were sitting on the sofa and chairs in the hotel room Prue and Piper were sharing. Moon River was playing on the radio that was on the night table.

"Did you hold Stuart’s hand and say your spell so that we can find him?" Phoebe asked.

"I didn't have to," Kelly said. "I know where to find Stuart. In the office. He's always there. Besides coming back for lunch, he dropped in to have a coffee break with her around three o'clock and then came back just as I was leaving. I told him she was working on a spot report - that's a report on local TV commercials using ARB data, showing their TV home penetration and the cost per thousand viewers. They mix that in with advertising data from the Broadcast Advertisers -"

"You learned all of that today?" Piper asked, cutting in.

"Uh...yeah," Kelly said. "Once I'm trying to learn something and picking up information I find it hard to stop."

"And you were worried if you could pick up on how to play the role of a secretary," Phoebe said, tilting her head.

"Let's get back to Stuart," Prue said.

"Well," Kelly said, “when I told him Laurie would be working on the spot report for a while he said that was OK. He would just wait for her to go home together. So that's four times in one day that he was there! We'll have no trouble finding him."

Kelly saw a jealous look cross Phoebe's face.

"What's our next step?" Kelly asked.

"I have an idea," Prue said. "We'll need a trip to a supply store. But first, let's plant the seeds. Phoebe, it's time for you to meet Laurie Spencer."

 

 The bell rang on the tenth floor, the 'up' light lit up and the black elevator doors opened.

"- all so exciting, Walter," Laurie was saying, as they got off the elevator.

"Mc Millan knows that neither we nor TWA would go with talent that wasn't special," Walter said. "So when I -"

"Hello, Laurie," Phoebe said in a cold, steely voice. She stood absolutely straight, her face devoid of any emotion and stared straight at the siren.

"Huh," Laurie said, taken aback at the greeting. "Do I..." She stopped as recognition set in.

"Know you?" Phoebe said. "Is that what you were going to ask? You can't have forgotten me."

"Who are you?" Walter demanded.

"Why don't you ask Laurie," Phoebe said. "She knows who I am."

"Laurie...who is she?" Walter asked.

"I...I don't know her," Laurie said.

"Don't know? You mean don't want to know," Phoebe said. "You don't want to know anyone who knows the truth about your stealing Stuart."

"Stealing Stuart?" Walter asked. "Laurie...what is she talking about?"

"I'm talking about how you stole Stuart from me," Phoebe said, her face still hard and cold. "From our relationship."

"I...I...don't know what she's talking about," Laurie stammered.

"You used a strong type of hypnotism, known only in the Far East, on Stuart," Phoebe said. "And drugs, too. But you can't have him." Phoebe took a step closer to Laurie.

"He belongs with me," Phoebe said in a flat and steely tone, her cold eyes piercing through Laurie. "And I will have him back."

The bell rang and the elevator doors opened. Keeping her eyes straight ahead, Phoebe walked passed Laurie and Walter, got onto the elevator and turned around. They saw the cold, steely look on her face as the elevator doors closed.

"Laurie," Walter asked, "who was that? What did she mean about stealing Stuart?"

"I...I don't what she was talking about," Laurie said. "Stuart and I met and he...fell for me."

"Laurie, is there anything I should know?" he asked again.

"Uh...no," Laurie said. "There's...nothing."

But her face, betraying that she was shaken, said otherwise. And Walter was looking closely at her face.

 

The placard was held high in the air.

'TWA USES A HOME BREAKING SINGER' it read.

'TWA DOESN'T RESPECT RELATIONSHIPS' read another.

'DON'T LET YOUR BOYFRIEND FLY ALONE ON TWA' read a third.

Phoebe, Prue and Piper, each carrying one of the placards, marched in a circle in front of TWA's Rockefeller Center ticket office on Fifth Avenue. The lunchtime throng, enjoying the lovely September day, looked on curiously as they tried to make their way around the picketing girls on the crowded sidewalk.

"What is that all about?" Hilda, the lead reservation agent, asked from behind her ticket counter inside the TWA office.

"I don't know," the other reservation agent said, "but it can't be good for TWA."

 

"This is terrible for TWA," Walter said to Laurie in his office, his voice getting louder. "Do you know what kind of a PR disaster this could be? Erickson at TWA was yelling at me so loud I didn't need the telephone to hear him."

"Walter...these are some troublemakers," Laurie said. "They're out...to hurt me."

"Who they're hurting is the client," Walter said, "not to mention the agency. We're going to get to the bottom of this as soon as they get here."

"You're bringing them here?" Laurie asked.

"I could have had them arrested but that would have meant the press would have picked it up," Walter said. "So I sent Prescott over to made a deal with them. Stop picketing and they can come here and tell me their story."

"Their story?!" Laurie asked. "Walter...don't tell me you believe them."

"What I believe," Walter said, "is that I have to protect the client. And you'd better believe that you have to, too."

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Walter said.

The door opened and a man escorted Prue, Piper and Phoebe into Walter's office.

"Thank you, Prescott," Walter said, and motioned for the girls to be seated.

"I'm Walter Barkley, Senior Vice-President," Walter said. "I agreed to listen to what you have to say. Who are you and what is this all about?"

"I'm Phoebe Halliwell and these are my sisters Prue and Piper. This is about Laurie Spencer and her cold, calculating plan to steal my boyfriend, Stuart."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Laurie said.

"I take it you're in love with him," Walter said.

"Very much so," Phoebe said.

"Love is a funny thing," Walter said. "Feelings change. We don't have a lock on anyone's feelings..."

"Feelings are natural," Phoebe said. "But she is controlling Stuart's and manipulating him."

"Walter, this is -" Laurie started to say.

"I said I would listen to them in return for their leaving our client alone," Walter said to Laurie. "And I will."

"Stuart is in love with me," Phoebe said, "and I want him back."

"Stuart doesn't even know you," Laurie said.

"He's been made to forget me," Phoebe said.

Walter picked up his telephone.

"Kelly, Laurie's friend Stuart is sitting by her desk," Walter said. "Bring him to my office."

They sat silently. Prue and Piper looked at Laurie but Phoebe was looking straight into Walter’s eyes, locking his on hers. In a moment, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Walter said. Kelly opened the door and let Stuart in.

"Stuart, do you know this woman?" Walter asked, pointing to Phoebe.

"No, I don't," Stuart said. "I don't know her nor the other two women."

"And none of you really know Stuart," Laurie said.

"Stuart has a beauty mark on top of his left shoulder," Phoebe said, "and another one high up on the inside of his thigh."

"Is that true?" Walter asked.

"Uh...yes, I do have them," Stuart said.

"There isn't any way I could know that unless I had a relationship with him," Phoebe said.

"A relationship that Stuart knows nothing about," the siren said.

"His memory is blocked," Piper said.

"Blocked?!" Laurie said. "That's ridiculous.

"Is it?" Phoebe asked. "Tell me, Stuart, what is your birthday."

"November 17th," he said.

"What year?" Phoebe asked.

"Year?" Stuart repeated. "Uh...uh..." He paused. "Uh...I don't know."

"You don't know when you were born?" Phoebe asked. "You can't remember your own birthday?" She glanced at Walter who was visibly surprised.

"Just because Stuart doesn't remember -" Laurie said. But Walter held up his hand to her.

"Go ahead Miss Halliwell," Walter said.

"How long have you and Laurie been together?" Phoebe asked Stuart. "Four days, five days?"

"Oh, it's been a little over a week," Stuart said. "The best week I've ever had."

"And what did you and Laurie do yesterday?" Phoebe asked.

"We took a walk in the park," Stuart said, "and then bought some take-out for dinner."

"And two days ago?" Phoebe asked.

"We went out for dinner and went to a movie," he said.

"And a week ago, when you say you first met Laurie?" she asked.

"We had some drinks and got to know each other," he said.

"And the day before that?" Phoebe asked. "What did you do the day before you met Laurie?"

"The day before," Stuart said, "I...I...I can't seem to remember."

Walter straightened up in his chair and stared at Stuart.

"What about the week before that," Phoebe asked, "and the week before that?"

Stuart seemed confused. He said nothing but slowly shook his head.

"It's the middle of September," Phoebe said. "Tell me anything that you did the past four months since the middle of May.

"I...I...must have done something," Stuart said. "But I can't remember what?"

“You remember everything you’ve done, precisely, since you’ve been with Laurie,” Phoebe said. “Yet you can’t remember a thing that happened before that.”

"Lots of people forget things sometimes," Laurie said. "He just has a mental block. I know about it. But I don't care."

"No, you don't care," Prue said. "Because you caused it."

"How can I make someone forget?" she asked. "Walter this is ridiculous."

"There is an experimental drug at one of the major drug companies," Piper said, "called a benzodiazepine derivative. One of its side affects is amnesia. Given a daily dose the affects can become long lasting.

"Combined with a powerful form of hypnosis practiced in the Far East," Phoebe said, "that gives an extremely strong power of suggestion to the hypnotist, all memories before a certain time can be blocked."

Laurie burst out laughing.

"Walter, do you hear what she's saying," Laurie said. "This is some kind of science fiction that came out of some cheap fantasy novel."

"Fantasy?" Phoebe repeated. "It's all quite real."

Prue took out a paper from her jacket pocket and handed it to Walter.

"It's a note thanking someone for placing a hypnotic spell on a man," Prue said. "It says it is a complete success and the rest of the payment, in cash, in enclosed. It's signed by Laurie Spencer."

"What?! Laurie exclaimed. "Let me see that." She grabbed the paper out of Walter's hand.

"This...this is a forgery," she said.

Walter leaned over and took it from Laurie.

"It's in your handwriting," he said.

"It...I don't care," Laurie said, "it's still a forgery."

"We stopped picketing TWA to explain this to you," Phoebe said. "But we will go right back to picketing, and keep doing it, until I get Stuart back."

Walter was silent for a moment. He looked at Phoebe, then exhaled.

"I don't understand how this came about," Walter said, "but I will not allow our client to be hurt by this. Whatever you have to do, Laurie, do it. And give Stuart back to Miss Halliwell."

"What? No!" Laurie exclaimed. "I love Stuart and he loves me. I won't."

"Then I won't use you in the commercials," Walter said. "I'll re-cut it with someone else. And if I do, your singing career will have ended before it even begins."

"Walter! You wouldn't!" she said.

"I will," Walter said. "I will not lose our client. Nor will I let the agency be tarnished."

He stood up and turned to Laurie.

"It's your choice," he said to her. He looked at the girls, then walked through their seats, left the office and closed the door behind him.

Laurie turned to Phoebe and stared at her with eyes full of hatred.

"Stuart is the only one who's ever willingly accepted me as I am," Laurie said, "and what I am. I'm not giving him up to you, witch." With that Laurie rushed at Phoebe and hit her across her chin.

Phoebe fell back from the punch, both she and her chair toppling over.

"Hey!" Prue shouted and waived her hand at Laurie, sending her across the room.

"That's one witch's power that does work on you," Prue said.

"Hey, you leave Laurie alone," Stuart said. He tackled Prue, knocking her down before Piper raised her hand.

"This has gone far enough," Piper said, as Prue got up from underneath a frozen Stuart.

"Phoebe are you all right?" Prue asked.

"Yeah...I'm OK," she answered, as she stood up and rubbed her chin.

Laurie pulled herself past the fallen chair and sat herself up on the floor, leaning against the wall.

"You send Stuart back now, with his memory restored," Piper said, "or we will see to it that your singing career, and your advertising career, will both be ruined."

Laurie stared at Piper, then slowly picked herself up. She went over to Stuart and kneeled down on her knees beside him.

She ran her hand through his hair, placed a kiss on his frozen lips then put her lips to his ear.

"I'll have you again, my darling," she said. "You'll see."

She put her hands together and a small male figurine appeared in them. She placed the figurine on Stuart, gave him a push and he disappeared.

The door opened slightly.

"Can I come in?" Kelly asked, sticking her head inside.

"No!" Laurie said.

"Yes," Prue said.

"Good," Kelly said, coming inside and shutting the door behind her.

"I don't trust her," Phoebe said. "She could have sent Stuart anywhere."

Kelly closed her eyes and concentrated.

"Stuart's at The Manor, in 2000," Kelly said.

"How do you know that," Phoebe said.

"As I escorted Stuart in here," Kelly said, "I held his hand for a second. Then I said my spell."

"But he's more than forty-eight hours into the future," Phoebe said.

"Yes, but I'm not," Kelly said. "And it's my time that matters."

"You...you're a witch, too?" Laurie asked, in surprise.

"Yes," Kelly said. "I'm not really a Kelly Girl, after all."

"Ready?" Prue asked as she took out the paper with the time spell.

"Ready," the three girls said.

"Oh...just a minute," Kelly said. She pulled a desk key out of her camel brown coat-dress pocket and dropped it on the floor in front of the still kneeling siren.

"I quit," Kelly said.

 

“Since we couldn’t explain to Walter that Laurie’s powers made Stuart forget,” Piper said, back in The Manor's living room, “I think that hypnosis and drug story we came up with was pretty good.”

"Writing that note to the hypnotist, then using your power to switch it onto the paper with Laurie's autograph so that it would be in her handwriting over her real signature was an added touch," Prue said.

"That was one smart secretary who got that autograph," Phoebe said.

"I really was a pretty good secretary," Kelly said. "You were right, Phoebe. This acting wasn't so hard, after all. Maybe I should try out for a TV role."

"Whoa," Piper said, "it's not really this easy, either. You have to train, put in a lot of time practicing, compete against hundreds of others to try to get some small parts, hope you'll get noticed and -" Piper saw Prue shaking her head at her and stopped in mid-sentence.

"You know about acting, too," Kelly said, "just like Phoebe."

"Uh...it's what I've read," Piper said, trying to cover up.

"It really sounds like first-hand knowledge," Kelly said.

"Let's just say," Prue said, "that we haven't led conventional witches lives and leave it at that.”

Kelly looked at the three sisters. Then she took Piper's hand and held it for a second.

"OK," she said, with what looked to Piper as a knowing smile. "I understand."

Piper gave Kelly a quizzical look as she picked up the framed picture from Ebbets Field and put it back in the purple bag. She glanced at Prue as they all walked Kelly to the door.

"Tomorrow night eight o'clock at P3," Piper reminded her.

"Thanks," Kelly said. "See you then."

"I wonder what she meant when she said she 'understands' and then smiled," Piper said, after Phoebe closed the door.

"Probably being polite and respecting our privacy," Phoebe said.

A worried look crossed Prue's face.

"I know that look," Piper said. "What's wrong?"

"Uh...Leo told me about another power Kelly has," Prue said. "He said it doesn't always work but sometimes, when she holds someone's hand, she can think the same thoughts that the person is thinking."

"She held my hand for a second," Piper said.

"Leo said it works only sometimes," Prue said, "that Kelly can't make it work. Just like your premonition power, Phoebe."

"Which works often enough," Phoebe said. "You don't think that she knows..."

There was silence for a second.

"No!" they all said in unison, and then looked at each other. There was far less assurance on their faces than there had been in their voices.

"I hope," Piper added.

 

"I love this 60's song," Stuart said, as the instrumental part of the Moon River CD started playing. He and Phoebe were holdin