"Do you have any idea where you're going?" Scod asked, trying to calm the jitters that formed in his stomach as Myf revved the engine.
"Ummm�" she hesitated, then turned the engine off again. "No, not really. Do you know where he is?"
Scod shook his head. "All I know is that he's on PlaySchool now."
She sniggered, then thought about it. "PlaySchool is filmed at the ABC Studios, which is in Sydney," she thoughtfully, then glanced at her watch. "It's after 5 anyway, so he won't be at the studio any more."
"But he will still be in Sydney," Scod reminded her.
"Some where." She frowned, her small face wrinkled in concentration.
"So how do we find him?" Scod asked eventually. Without answering, Myf climbed out of the car and rushed back inside. A few moments later she reappeared with a jar and a stone in her hands.
"Do you have a rock for everything?" Scod asked with a grin as she put them both in his lap on top of the book, before starting the car up again.
"Stones are the most powerful things in the world Scod," she replied with a smile as she pulled out of the driveway.
"They are?"
She nodded. "Every day they take and store a little bit of energy from all around them. Over time it builds up. Energy is what's used to make magic. The older a stone is, the more powerful it is."
"Oh." That made sense. He peered down at the stone in his lap. It looked just like a normal lump of black rock.
"So how olds this one?" he asked.
"Really old," Myf said with a grin. "It's a diamond, Scod."
"No it's not," he scoffed, picking it up. "It's black."
"That's just fossilised coal," she told him, making a sharp left turn that almost made him drop it. "The diamond is inside. If it actually looked like a diamond, people would try to steal it."
"Oh." He seemed to be saying that a lot lately. "So what are you going to do with it?"
"Create a tracking spell," Myf replied as she sped across a major intersection. With a squeal of brakes, she turned a sharp right then slammed on the hand brake, causing the car to spin around into a perfect parking space.
"Ta da," she said with a smug grin.
Scod opened his eyes and peered out the window. They were outside a high school.
"Where are we?" he asked.
"Gatesy's high school," Myf replied, as though it was obvious, taking the rock and jar from him and climbing out of the car. Scod got out too, cradling the giant spellbook in his arms.
"Why?"
"Cos we need to get a photo of him," Myf said patiently as she hopped the fence, beckoning for Scod to follow.
"Why? We already know what he looks like!"
"It doesn't work that way. The spell won't work unless we have a photo of the person we want to trace."
Scod hesitated. He was reluctant to break into a school, even if it was to steal a photo of his one time friend so he could unmake a wish, and change reality as it now was. He shook his head.
"Oh no, my life's not too weird," he muttered as he gave in and jumped the fence awkwardly, the heavy book throwing him off balance slightly.
He followed Myf as she made her way to what looked like the main office. They stopped outside and peered in. it was dark - everyone had gone home for the day.
Muttering a few words, Myf placed her hand on the window. The glass around her hand went white, and there was an audible click. She opened the now unlocked window.
"Neat trick," Scod commented as he put the book down and helped boost her through the window. He tossed the book in after her, then climbed in himself. Myf was already rifling through the huge file cabinets that were backed against the walls, tossing files over her shoulder. Scod helped join in the search.
After about 10 minutes, Scod gave a triumphant cry. "Found it!"
Myf wandered over as he placed it on the desk and opened it. They both sniggered at the photo, then Myf took it out and went to go get the jar and the diamond. Scod was tempted to read Gatesy's file, but decided to follow Myf. He wanted to see her work more magic.
She sat on the carpet, putting Gatesy's rather dorky photo in front of her. Opening the jar, she pulled out a tiny blue feather that Scod hadn't even noticed was in there. She placed it over Gatesy's right eye. Picking up the diamond, she began chanting, drawing an invisible pattern around the photo. Scod watched curiously.
The air began to hum, and Myf's chanting grew louder. Suddenly there was a loud 'Pop!' and both Myf's chanting and the humming stopped. The photo and feather were gone. Instead there was a very small bright blue bird standing in the same spot. It looked up at Myf and chirped, then fluttered over to the windowsill and looked back expectantly.
"C'mon, we have to follow it," Myf told Scod as she climbed to her feet and headed over to the window. Scod looked around at the huge mess of files they had made in their search.
"Shouldn't we clean this up?"
Myf rolled her eyes. "Scod, we're going to go change reality. We never made the mess."
"Oh. Right." Grabbing the spellbook, he clambered out the window after her.

"And just what were you doing in there young miss?" Myf whirled around, startled by the strange voice. Scod jumped too. A policeman was standing behind her, arms folded across his chest and a stern expression on his face.
"Don't sneak up on me like that!" Myf scolded, placing a hand over her rapidly beating heart. The policeman's expression didn't change.
"Miss, unless you give me a damn good excuse as to why you're trespassing on school grounds, breaking and entering, and maybe even stealing," he added, eyeing her suspiciously, "I'm going to charge you and drag you down to the station quicker than you can blink."
Scod frowned, and wondered why the policeman hadn't threatened him as well. In fact, he wasn't even looking in his direction. Then he remembered - Myf had put an invisible spell on him! He almost slapped himself on the forehead for forgetting. Okay, he was invisible - great! He paused�so what? How could he help Myf by being invisible? Suddenly he noticed that Myf was trying to get his attention, trying not to be too obvious.
"I lost my keys," she said to the officer, gesturing to Scod, who tried to follow her movements, but couldn't understand what she was trying to tell him. "And I left my very important *book* inside." Scod stared at her blankly while he officer began to question her sanity.
"Your book?" he repeated, raising a skeptical eyebrow. She nodded, glancing at Scod, who still had no idea what she was on about.
"Yes - I really need my *book*," she looked meaningfully at Scod. "I never know when I might *use it*" Scod finally caught on.
"Oh right!" he exclaimed loudly. The officer whirled around, startled, trying to see who had spoken. Oops! Scod hastily hit him over the head with the huge spellbook in his hands. The officer's eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed on the ground.
"Oops!" Scod cried, nearly dropping the book. "I didn't mean to hit him so hard!" Myf sighed patiently, grabbing Scod by the arm and dragging him towards the car, stepping casually over the officer. The tiny little blue bird they had created flittered after them, and perched on Myf's shoulder.
"Don't worry about him," she said as she opened the car door. "He'll be fine when he wakes up." Scod cast an uncertain glance back at the police officer, who was still lying unconscious in the middle of the courtyard, but allowed himself to be pushed into the car. Myf climbed into the driver's seat and wound down the window, allowing the blue bird to fly out. Keeping her eye on the bird, Myf revved the engine and pulled out of their park.
"So where to now?" Scod asked finally after about ten minutes.
"We follow the bird," Myf said simply, her eyed darting between watching the bird and watching the road in front of her.
"It'll take us to Gatesy's place?" he asked.
"Depends on where Gatesy is," she replied. "The bird goes where he goes."
"That'll be in Sydney though, won't it?"
Myf nodded. Scod sighed and stared out the window.
"I hate long car trips," he muttered to himself gloomily. There was a long uncomfortable pause. Now that they weren't stealing files or casting spells, neither really had much to say. Scod knew basically nothing about Myf, other than that she was a Tripod fan and a witch, and Myf only knew Scod's onstage persona.
"So�" Myf said finally, breaking the uneasy silence. Scod thought she was going to say something else, but she didn't.
"So�" he repeated. "Um�how long have you been a witch?"
Myf smiled, shifting gears as they pulled out of Melbourne and onto the highway.
"Pretty much all my life," she replied. "My mother was a 'witch', and she passed it on to me."
"So it's genetic?" Scod asked. He wanted to know more about this strange ability she possessed. She took a moment to answer.
"Yes and no," she said slowly, keeping her eyes on the road. "You don't have to be born into the craft to be able to do it, but it certainly helps. It also gives you an experienced witch to help guide you - which is always a bonus."
"Do you have limits on what you can do?"
She nodded. "Everything has limits, Scod. Some are just more apparent then others."
"Ooohh - deep," he teased her. She laughed and another silence settled between them, although this one was far more comfortable. Scod watched the country side fly past, idle thoughts flitting though his mind. Myf concentrated on driving, apparently at ease with the lack of conversation. After a short period of time however, Scod couldn't stand it any more.
"So tell me about yourself," he said, shifting in his seat to give her hid full attention. "How old are you? Do you have a boyfriend? What do you do for a living? Do you have any brothers or sisters?"
Myf's gaze flickered to him for a moment than back to the road, as though uncertain as to why he was taking an interest in her.
"I'm just making conversation," Scod said defensively. She smiled slightly.
"I'll be 23 next month, no I don't have a boyfriend, I'm training to be a nurse, and I'm an only child. Any other questions?" she replied, an amused grin on her face.
"Just one," Scod hesitated to ask the question, but he wanted to know. "Why did you send me the wishing stone?"

Myf took a long time to answer, and Scod at first thought she hadn't heard him. He was about to repeat the question when she replied.
"I'm not entirely sure," she said finally. "There was just�something about you�" she broke off, not sure how to continue. Scod frowned.
"Something about me?" he repeated. She nodded.
"I know that doesn't make much sense, but that's the best I can describe it." Scod scratched his head.
"I'm afraid I don't follow you," he confessed.
"I saw it in your performances," Myf said slowly, trying to explain it so that he could understand. "There was something about the way you acted that made me think that maybe you didn't have everything you wanted. That something was making you�I don't know�incomplete." She shrugged. "I thought I'd give you the stone to help you out." She glanced at him, a wry smile on her face. "I didn't know that it was the actual band that was making you unhappy."
"It's not the band," Scod protested, not realising she was joking. "It was�" he broke off. He didn't know what it was. But it wasn't the band. "I love being in Tripod - it's the best thing that's ever happened to me. And even though Yon and Gatesy tease me a lot, they're my best mates. They tease everyone - especially each other." He paused again, not really knowing where he was leading with what he was saying.
"So why does what they say affect you so much more then everyone else?" Myf asked quietly. Scod sighed and rubbed his face.
"I don't know," he said wearily. "Maybe because what they're saying is true." Myf glanced sideways at him, then without warning swerved the car over to the side of the road. The van behind them blared it's horn angrily and the driver swore at Myf as he passed, but she ignored him. She turned her full attention to Scod.
"Scod, what did you wish for before you wished Tripod had never been formed?"
He shifted uncomfortably.
"Nothing�that I meant to anyway. I didn't know what it was!" he protested under her slightly reproachful gaze. Myf sighed and sat back in her seat. She studied Scod thoughtfully.
"When you were little, what did you want to be?" she asked finally. Scod blinked.
"Huh?"
"Well, you can't have always wanted to be a comedian. What did you used to want to be?" Scod paused for a moment.
"When I was 5, I wanted to be a fireman."
"Why?"
He hesitated. "Because I was a geek," he confessed. "I wanted to be strong so no one could pick on me anymore."
"And why didn't you become a fireman?"
He stared at her. "Because it was a stupid idea! It was just a child's dream - I could never be a fireman! I wasn't strong enough, fit enough, coordinated enough�" he broke off, frustrated. Myf was quiet for a moment, then she asked, "How about after you realised you couldn't be a fireman? What did you want to do?"
Scod sighed. He had no idea why he was telling her all this, or why she was asking. Maybe he just had to tell someone. It's not like it meant anything anyway.
"When I was about ten or eleven, my dad started putting a lot of pressure on me to become a surgeon, or a lawyer. Something that required a lot of brains, and paid well. He said I had the smarts to go all the way. By then though, I'd taken up the guitar and decided I wanted to be a rock star." He stared unseeingly at the dashboard, remembering the many fights he'd had with his father.
"Did you ever regret not doing what your father asked of you?" Myf asked quietly.
Scod took a while to answer. "Sometimes. I look around and think, is this all I'm going to do with my life? I mean sure, I'm having a blast and I'd rather do this than anything�but how long will it last? The music industry is very fickle�" He sighed. "I guess I just want to know I'm not wasting my life."
A small smile tugged at the corner of Myf's mouth.
"Is that all?" she asked with a grin. Scod stared at her for a moment, then chuckled.
"Yeah, I guess it is," he replied. "Not that important when you come to think about it, is it?" She grinned.
"Nah - course not!" She rested her hand on his arm. "Scod, not matter what you do with your life, if it makes you happy then it wasn't a waste."
"Ohhh - deep," Scod teased again, before pausing to think about what she'd said. Finally he sighed.
"Yeah, I guess you're right," he admitted.
"Of course I'm right," Myf replied, a self-mocking grin on her face. Scod laughed.
"Don't get to used to it!" He ducked as she tried to hit him.
"Oh very funny," she pouted.
"I thought so too."
Myf poked her tongue out at him, then changed the subject. "So what would've you wished for, if you'd known what it was?"
Scod blinked.
"How bout a million dollars?" he said finally, a grin spreading across his face. Myf sighed and chuckled.
"And what would you do with it Scod?" she asked, an amused smile on her face. "Why don't you just wish for the stuff you would've bought with the money?"
Scod stared at her.
"Cos I didn't think of that," he admitted with a blush. He paused to think. What could he wish for? In this world, without Tripod, there was nothing he wanted besides to be back with them. Finally he smiled.
"I can't think of anything I want, except to reform the band."
Myf beamed at him and stuck the key in the ignition. "Just the answer I wanted to hear!" she cried as she revved the engine to life.

They drove the rest of the day, and on into the night. They decided not to stop for the night, and when one got tired the other drove, although Myf protested that at the speed Scod was going they'd never get there. Finally, at about 2 in the morning, they reached Sydney.
Scod, who was driving, gently nudged Myf awake. "We're there," he told her when she blinked blearily at him. She slowly sat up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.
"Good," she mumbled.
"Um�so now what?"
"Huh?" Myf was still half asleep.
"I said now what?" Scod repeated, keeping his eyes on the road. "We can't exactly storm his house in the middle of the night, and I haven't seen Bird for over an hour."
"Bird?" Myf grinned as Scod blushed. He'd become used to watching the tiny little blue bird flitting in front of the car, never seeming to tire. In fact, it seemed to have developed a game of seeing how close to the car it could get before swooping away. In his mind, Scod had affectionately named it Bird.
"Maybe we should stop somewhere?" Myf suggested, glancing around at the nearly deserted streets. Scod looked uncertain.
"Do you know of anywhere?"
"Well�no," Myf admitted, "But you're right - we can't jump Gatesy at 2 in the morning."
"It'd make it easier for us to grab him," Scod grinned. Myf laughed.
"We're not going to kidnap him Scod!"
"We're not? What're we going to do then?" he asked, slightly puzzled.
"Talk to him!" she exclaimed. "Tell him�" she broke off, realising how stupid it sounded.
"Tell him we need him to help change history?" Scod suggested, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Myf chuckled.
"Hmmm�good point," she acknowledged with a sigh. "So we kidnap him? Just like that?"
Scod shrugged. "I don't really see what else we can do. I'm not a very good liar." Myf glanced at her watch.
"Okay. Fine. It's quarter past two now�" she peered out the window, searching for Bird. She spotted him hovering under a traffic light at the upcoming intersection. "We'll follow Bird, kidnap Gatesy and then go back to Melbourne to the Prince Pat."
"Go back?"
"Yeah - we have to be in the same place as where you made the wish, remember?"
"Damn." Scod didn't really feel like driving all the way back to Melbourne again, especially with one of his best friends tied up in the backseat. Speaking of which�
"Hey, what are we going to use to tie him up?" he asked.
Myf opened her mouth to answer, but was cut short when a police siren wailed right behind them. Red and blue lights flashed. Scod glanced at Myf.
"Pull over or make a break for it?"
"Let's see what they want," she replied thoughtfully. Scod looked uncertain, but did as he was told. Pulling over to the side of the road, he rolled down his window and watched as the police car pulled up behind them and an officer got out. He swaggered up to their car and peered in through the window.
"Is there a problem officer?" Myf asked, looking as innocent as the day she was born.
"Yes there's a problem," the cop replied, his voice slightly nasty. "You're on the wrong side of the car!"
"Huh?" Scod and Myf chorused at the same time. The officer narrowed his eyes.
"To drive a car, you're meant to sit here," he pointed to where Scod was sitting, his finger coming within an inch of Scod's�*ahem* leg.
Myf and Scod exchanged a confused glance, then they both remembered. Scod still had that invisible spell on him!
"I apoligise officer," Myf replied politely. "I shall remember that in future."
"I'm afraid I can't accept that," the officer replied, his tone hard. He opened the door. "I'm going to have to book you."
"Book me?" Myf repeated incredulously. "For not driving?"
"For reckless endangerment," the officer replied coldly, stepping back from the car to allow her to get out. Scod seized the opportunity to quickly scramble out of the car. Myf followed him out then headed over to the police car, the officer right behind her. Scod was just wondering frantically what to do, when Myf suddenly whirled around and punched the officer square in the face. As he staggered backwards, she quickly grabbed the huge spell book through the back window and smacked him again. This time he stayed down.
"Try to book me will you?" she muttered grumpily. Scod stared at her, his mouth hanging open.
"What?" she protested. He just shook his head - although he did take the book away from her.
"C'mon, we're wasting time," she told him, bending down beside the officer.
"What are you doing?" Scod asked.
"We need a few things," she replied, rummaging through the officer's clothes. She pulled out a pair of handcuffs, the keys, a baton, and a gun.
"What do you need the gun for?" Scod asked warily. She shrugged.
"Just in case." She ignored his dubious expression and headed over to the police car. "Grab the things from the car -we'll take this one."
"Why?" Scod asked, even as he did as he was told. Myf climbed into the car and stuck the keys into the ignition.
"Because this way we won't get pulled over, and no one will think twice if we have someone handcuffed in the backseat."
"Oh." Scod climbed in beside her as she started the engine and took off down the street.

Scod looked at Myf uncertainly as they sped through the Sydney streets, trying to ignore his gut informing him that she would crash and kill them both.
"How exactly are we going to do this?" he asked.
"It's a good thing we have Bird, or we'd be totally lost by now," Myf muttered, apparently not hearing him. "Stupid city."
Scod cleared his throat and tried again.
"How exactly are we going to kidnap Gatesy?" he repeated. Myf glanced at him.
"What do you mean? We just�break in and�grab him."
"That's it?"
She shrugged. "We have handcuffs and stuff. He won't put up too much of a fight." Scod didn't look convinced, but he let it drop. He began going through the glove compartment to take his mind off the matter, focusing his attention on the fact that he'd never been in a police car before.
Bird led them out into the suburbs and finally settled on a letterbox in a back street. As Myf pulled up alongside, Bird cheeped once, then disappeared. The two stared up at the house.
"Nice place," Scod commented, his eyes roaming over the neat looking appartment. Myf nodded slightly, then took a deep breath.
"Alright. We can do this," she said firmly. Scod wasn't sure who she was trying to convince - him, or herself. Grabbing the handcuffs off the dashboard and the baton she'd put in between the seats, Myf climbed out of the car. Scod hesitated, then grabbed something out of the glove compartment before following her.
Her determination set, Myf didn't look at all out of place as she went straight past the front door and walked purposefully around the side, her sneakers making no sound on the cement. Scod followed, feeling slightly more self-conscious. Using the same trick as the one at the school, Myf placed her hand on one of the windows and used magic to unlock it.
Sliding the window up silently, she scrambled inside, Scod close behind her. They waited a few moments for their eyes to adjust to the darkness, then took a look around. They were in a sort of living room - a very dirty one. Streamers, plastic cups, beer bottles and tinnies littered the floor. Someone had obviously decided to have a party. Myf started to head over to the door on the opposite side of the room, which looked like it headed into a hallway, but Scod stopped her. She opened her mouth to ask him why, but he shook his head and brought a finger up to his lips, motioning for her to be silent. Slowly he pointed to their feet.
Myf looked down, and was astonished to see a man, who looked to be no more than twenty five, passed out on the carpet. Looking around, she spotted more bodies amoungst all the mess and could even hear the light snores. She glanced at Scod who shrugged.
"Guess some of them didn't make it home after the party," he whispered, a bit nervously. Myf chewed her lip, trying to see a way of dealing with this new obstacle. It sure was going to make kidnapping that little bit harder. Suddenly she had an idea, and a rather good one too. A grin spread across her face and she beckoned Scod to follow her as she picked her way over the mess and drunken men.
Following the hallway, they tried door after door, but Gatesy wasn't in any of the rooms they passed. They reached the end of the hallway, and found themselves in the kitchen. Bingo. Slumped over the kitchen table, panadol in hand, was Gatesy.
Myf whispered a few words, then handed what looked like a ball to Scod. "If he gets agitated, throw this at his feet," she whispered. Scod nodded, even though he had no idea what it was.
It was then that Gatesy spotted them.
"Who are you?" he asked, his voice slightly slurred. Myf smiled and walked over to him.
"We're the beer fairy police, Steven," she told him, her voice cheerful. Scod looked at her weirdly, but followed her lead.
"The what?" Gatesy asked, his tone suspicious. Myf rolled her eyes as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"The beer fairy police. Your subconscious decided that during the party, in one of the many beers you drank there was a beer fairy. You drank the beer, thus killing the fairy. We've come to arrest you."
"My subconscious? You mean I'm dreaming?" Gatesy asked, a trifle confused.
"Yep," Myf nodded.
"Oh. Wait a sec - how do I know I'm dreaming?" he asked warily. Myf grinned.
"Cos if you weren't, I wouldn't be able to do this," she replied. Swirling her hands together, a bunch of tiny light began to shine from the air in front of her. They grew in intensity until there were several different coloured balls floating, their patterns changing as though they were liquid fire.
"Cool!" Gatesy cried as Myf made them disappear one by one. "Can I do that too?" Myf shook her head.
"It's not that kind of dream. Now that you believe us, do you mind if we pick up where we left off?"
"Oh, right. Sure thing."
"Thank you." Myf cleared her throat. "Steven Gates, you are hereby arrested in the name of the Beer Fairy Police, charged with murder. What is your plea?"
"Don't I get to call a lawyer?" Gatesy asked, standing up so Myf could put the handcuffs on him.
"Not til you get down to the station," Scod informed him solemnly. Gatesy started, seeing him for the first time. But putting it down as another aspect of the dream, he relaxed again.
"Damn. Well, in that case, I plead guilty," he replied cheerfully.
"Cool. Score one for the beer fairies," Myf said with a grin, high-fiving Scod. They led Gatesy through the house, careful not to wake any of Gatesy's drunk mates. They stuck him in the back seat, so that the wire cage was between them and him, where he promptly fell asleep.
"That was easy!" Scod exclaimed.
"Now it's back to Melbourne we go!" Myf said, beaming. She revved up the engine quietly - so as not to disturb Gatesy - and took off down the street.