Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed. Some dialogue is taken directly from the show.

Surprising Saviors

Surviving

"Phoebe?" Piper Halliwell dropped to her knees next to her unmoving sister. She removed debris from the woman's body. Around the two, their family's manor was in ruins. The broken stairwell led nowhere. Most of the walls were torn down. There were small fires burning pieces of furniture and possessions into ashes. "Phoebe, come on. Wake up. Wake up."

When she received no response, tears began to run down Piper's soiled face. Pulling the younger brunette into her lap, she brushed the hair from Phoebe's face. "Come on. It's ok. Look at me. Look at me. Breathe, Sweetie. Come on, Kiddo. Wake up," she desperately cried. "No," she rocked her little sister back and forth, cradling her form to her chest. She'd already lost Prue, not to mention her mother and Grams, along with one of her babies from a now changed future; she couldn't handle losing any more of her family. "No!"

A sphere of white light interrupted her grieving as an Angel of Destiny appeared before Piper, Leo materializing beside her. Speechless, Piper stared at her husband. After months of wishing for the moment when he would be freed from his icy prison, Leo finally stood before her. But at what cost?

Leo took in his surroundings. He rushed to Piper's side, calling her name as he saw the still figure she was holding. With a shake of her head, Piper confirmed that the middle Charmed One was indeed dead. Leo's eyes also began to water as he held his wife, letting her sob.

"The battle is over," the Angel stated with a sad shake of her head, "though not as I expected."

As the woman vanished, a rustle was heard amidst the wreckage.

Piper's head shot up. Had her other sister survived? "Paige?"

Gently shoving Phoebe into Leo's arms telling him to hold on to her, Piper rushed to the area the noise was coming from. A groan was heard.

"Paige?" Piper moved bits of wood as fast as her injured body would allow, hopeful that perhaps her baby sibling was still alive. But, as the last board was removed, it was a head of blonde hair that was visible.

"Billie," Piper managed to utter. The malice in her voice was enough to make Leo turn his head. Forgetting the pain of her injuries, Piper leapt onto the young witch. After a swift punch to her face, Billie's neck was surrounded by a pair of hands. They pushed into her, effectively cutting off oxygen to the girl's lungs.

"Piper!" shouted Leo, stunned. He laid down Phoebe and ran to Piper. "What are you doing? Stop!"

Piper ignored him. This girl had become a part of their family. She and her sisters had protected her, taught her the craft. But, Billie had betrayed them. She'd listened to her evil sister and caused the end of the Charmed Ones. She'd killed Piper's sisters. And she wasn't going to get away with it.

"What's the matter with you? You're gonna kill her!" Piper was ripped from Billie.

"No. Let go of me," she struggled against Leo's grip. Billie was gasping for air. She got to her feet and Piper threw out her hands, meaning to blow the girl up. She missed as Leo grabbed her arms.

"Stop. You don't understand. Stop!" Leo didn't know what he was doing. He didn't know Billie had turned against them. Piper didn't have time to explain, though. Billie was going to get away. Breaking free of his grip, Piper's hands once again started the gesture that could potentially end the now-fleeing Billie's life. But, once again, Leo intercepted. She hit a doorframe as Billie looked back at one of her former mentors.

"Christy!" Billie shrieked. She turned to run. She had to find Christy. She'd only recently retrieved her from the demons that had taken her in their childhood. She couldn't lose her again. She had to stay with her sister at all costs.

Piper blasted in her direction again, but Leo's restraining touch prevented her. Billie ran from Halliwell manor.

"Why did you do that?" Piper turned hysterically to her husband. "You let her get away.

"We need to get out of here, OK? There's nothing left for us here, ok? You understand me?

"No!" Piper swerved away from his reaching hand. "I have to find Paige! She could still be alive?"

"Piper."

"Paige! Paige, Sweetie? I'll find you. You'll be OK." Frantically, Piper rushed from pile to pile of damaged goods, throwing the pieces out of her way.

Leo glanced around for his other sister-in-law. He noticed a patch of brown hair and a creamy white shoulder buried several feet from where Phoebe lay. "Piper," he called, motioning with his hand for her to follow him.

"Paige?" Piper asked, seeing him uncover a battered young woman. "Is she breathing? God, Leo, tell me she's breathing."

Checking the prone body of Paige Matthews, Leo looked at his trembling wife and gently placed Paige back on the ground. Shaking his head and wiping tears from his eyes, he gathered a sobbing Piper in his arms as they both grieved.

Inside of his Limbo, several planes of existence away from his former in-laws, Cole Turner also felt tears run down his face. He'd heard news of a major battle rising between good and evil, between the Charmed Ones and the Ultimate Power, from demons passing through his solitary plane. But, he'd miscalculated when he'd assumed that his ex-wife and her sisters, the most powerful good witches of their time, could overcome this threat as they had all others. He knew how strong that Power was rumored to be. He'd worked for the Triad as they'd trained a teenage Christy who was the Key.

He should've offered his help to Piper. They'd had a silent forgiveness agreement between them when they'd last met. Unlike Phoebe and Paige, she probably wouldn't have minded his services, especially if he could've helped her get Leo back. He still had some powers left over from when he was vanquished, although he wasn't fully aware which ones or how strong they were since he rarely used them in his afterlife. And he could materialize in other planes for short amounts of time. Maybe he could've helped.

But, Phoebe hated him. She didn't care that, as far as she knew, he didn't exist at all anymore. She was in love with a Cupid now. And Cole was still in love with her. He really didn't want to go to her plane. And since he didn't believe it was necessary anyway, he didn't look in on the preparations or strategizing.

He didn't check in on the battle either, not until just minutes before. Because the part of Phoebe that had once loved him could still sense him. More than a year prior, when he'd guided Piper in Limbo, he could've sworn Phoebe had heard him talking about her. He didn't want her distracted in the fight against Billie and Christy.

When he did peek though, it was seconds before a grand explosion of power was emitted from each set of sisters. It was seconds before Phoebe had been killed.

Cole looked past Piper and Leo, holding each other tight, sobs racking their bodies. He looked past Paige, covered in open wounds that were no longer seeping blood. He looked at Phoebe, her eyes closed, never again to open. And more tears came to his deep blue eyes.

"What kind of a demon cries?"

Cole whipped around at the stern voice. Behind him stood a dark-haired woman, imposing despite her diminutive size. But her blue eyes were clouded over and there were traces of teardrops running down her cheeks.

"Dumain? Where are you?" Billie called out to the demon she'd previously thought was nothing more than her childhood imaginary friend. "Dumain?"

"Billie? Where is your sister?"

Billie cried, "She's dead."

Dumain looked slightly surprised. "What about the Charmed Ones? How did they fare?"

"Phoebe and Paige are dead, too. But, oh, Christy's dead. I have to get her back. Please, please tell me there's a way to resurrect her or go back in time or something!"

"There is a spell. But, I have no way of getting to it. It's in an ancient book, sort of like the Book of Shadows. It's called the Grimoire. There's a spell to use dark magic and bring the dead back to life, namely demons, though I'm sure with your power it could bring back Christy. Unfortunately, the Charmed Ones hid it quite a few years ago. No one has ever been able to find it."

"What does it look like?" Billie demanded. "Tell me. I'll project it to me."

An evil gleam entered the demon's eyes, unnoticed by Billie. "Very well."

"Prue?" Cole couldn't believe his eyes. "How, or why really, are you here?"

"Saving my family. Why else would I willingly come near you?" Prue looked at what was left of her old home. She avoided looking at the dead bodies of her two youngest sisters, one of whom she'd never got a chance to meet before her own death only several days before Paige entered Phoebe and Piper's lives. She could hear Piper's heart wrenching sobs and wished she could comfort her as Leo was doing. But, if her plan worked, Piper wouldn't need to be consoled.

Prue faced Cole again. While alive, she'd never really liked the half-demon. Apart from being a total pain, she'd always distrusted him because of his evil past. But, being dead gave a new perspective to things. She'd watched from "up there" as his relationship with Phoebe fell apart. She knew both parts of the couple were to blame. Each could have done things differently. She'd seen Phoebe's pain, but she'd also seen Cole's, something her living sisters had apparently missed.

Thinking that caused a shudder to pass through her body and Prue couldn't prevent her eyes from drifting to Paige and Phoebe. Those sisters were no longer living. She had to save them.

Cole followed her gaze. "Can't think of anything. But, what do you think I can do now?" he asked bitterly. "She's dead."

"We're going to fix that."

Running a hand through his brown hair, Cole looked at the dead witch. He and Prue had never really gotten along, but she seemed to have lost her mind in death. He could relate, having gone insane himself before his final vanquish, so he decided to humor her. Besides, it kept him from looking at the lifeless Phoebe. "And how do you propose we do that?"

Prue chastised him, "Don't look at me like that. My senses are perfectly intact. I know what I'm talking about. I know you can travel across planes, including visiting the living one. I'm going to need you to take me there."

"Do the Elders know you're here?" The thought had just struck him. The only reason she'd need him to transport her was if the paragons of good had forbidden her to do so herself, in ghostly form.

"What does that matter? It's not like my family's really big on them anyway. I can disobey."

"I'll take that as a no."

"Obviously. They don't want me to interfere. Wouldn't let me help with the battle either. But, forget the prophecy of three; I'm sure the Power of Four would've prevented the Hollow from being needed and prevented my sisters' deaths. They have such ridiculous rules. Not letting me see them for years because, according to them, none of us will be able to handle the separation again. Not letting me save them now. But, if you take me to Piper, I don't think they'll do anything. It's not like they know you can resurrect Phoebe and Paige. Thankfully, they don't know you're an Avatar or you wouldn't have been sent to Limbo and then I'd never have been able to get to you."

"Wait, hold it. I'm not an Avatar, not anymore. I have none of their powers. I can only use a few of the things I picked up from the Wasteland- blurring, fireballs, and maybe a few others, I don't know; I haven't tried. But I can't resurrect anyone. Believe me, if I could, I would've gone out there and healed her immediately, Paige, too, for her sake."

"You can resurrect. I've done the research." Prue told him confidently.

"But I wasn't an Avatar when I died. I was Belthazor. The realities switched back immediately after and I regained my invincibility persona for a few minutes before most of that was stripped away. Then I came straight here."

"Exactly. The realities switched back before your sentence was carried out so you became an Avatar again, too."

"Avatars can't die except with that special potion. And I'm definitely dead, by other means."

""But you died when you were still Belthazor."

"What?"

"You were already dead when the Avatar powers went back into you. I don't think the other Avatars realize it, though. If they did, they would've brought you back to strengthen the collective after my sisters chased them away. Look, just don't think about it; it's too confusing. Anyway, the point is you are still an Avatar and you can resurrect."

"How do you know this, but not the Elders?"

Prue shrugged, "After both sides got together to sentence you, seconds after your death in the alternate world, they didn't bother to pay attention to you anymore."

"But, you did? I find it hard to believe you'd care in the slightest what happened to me after death. I'm sure you were ecstatic the Charmed Ones had finally killed me."

Prue didn't answer right away. "Cole, as annoying as you are, and as irritating as it is that you won't just believe what I'm saying without wasting all this time with explanations, I don't hold the past against you. Everyone makes mistakes. And you love Phoebe. I can see now that you really do and that you never wanted to break her heart." She grinned, "So, that kind of moved you down on my most hated list. You're below Shax at number two now. Maybe if you help me with this you can get below Barbas, too. I was thinking of moving him as it is. Such an aggravating guy, especially with that head tilt thing he does. And I think he came back to life more times than you. I keep watching him pop back up into my sisters' lives."

"Why does everyone act like I have this thing about not staying dead? I only came back to life once."

"Really? It seems like so much more."

Cole rolled his eyes, "You never told me why you looked, though."

"I had a feeling I may need your help someday. Call it intuition."

"I call it being used by the Halliwells even in death."

"Funny. Now, will you just listen to my plan?"

Billie smiled as the Grimoire appeared in her hands. It was almost as thick as the Halliwell's Book of Shadows. It looked foreboding, but if it could bring back Christy, Billie had no problem using it. She looked up at Dumain, who stood over her. "I did it."

He grinned evilly. The girl had been able to get it. Perfect. "Good. Now, find the spell in there."

Billie flipped through the pages for a few minutes before exclaiming, "Here it is! It says I've got to read it three times, having the person I wish to resurrect in my mind."

"OK, so take a deep breath. As you read the spell focus on Christy," Dumain instructed. Billie recited the words. "Keep reading. Focus on bringing back your sister." As the third time came around, Dumain slightly altered his sentence, "Focus on the Triad."

Billie stopped reading and jumped to her feet, "What did you just say?"

"Focus on Christy."

Billie backed up in disbelief, "No, you want me to bring back the Triad. You don't care about my sister!"

"No, that's not-"

"That's Ok," Billie told him evenly, gaining control of the situation. "I'll get her back myself."

Before he had a chance to even think of shimmering out, Dumain was destroyed.

"Piper."

Leo felt the woman in his arms stop crying at the sound of her name. She pulled away and looked behind him. That's when Piper froze. And gasped, suddenly finding it hard to breathe.

"Honey," Leo said worriedly. He turned to see what she was staring at and his mouth fell open in surprise.

"Prue!" Piper whispered when she found her voice. Her big sister stood only several feet away. "Am I dreaming?"

Prue shook her head as she stepped closer. "Piper."

And the latter unfroze. She reached for Prue, enveloping her in a crushing hug. More tears fell down her face, a mixture of happiness and grief. "Oh, Prue! Prue! I love you! I can't believe they finally let you visit. Phoebe would be so... happy," she stumbled over the words. "And, Paige... Paige would've been... thrilled to meet you. But, they can't Prue! They can't. Why did I have to lose all of you?"

"I love you, too. Don't worry about the rest, Sweetie. We're going to fix it. I swear. We'll get them back."

"Oh, Prue," Piper cried miserably. "I miss you so much. And, if you'd been here, I know you could have protected them."

"Piper, you did a great job taking care of this family. I'm so proud of you. And, I told you, we'll get them back. And, then, we'll finish off that evil."

"How? How can we get them back?"

"Well, see, I ran into that old friend of yours in Limbo and he agreed to help."

"What?" Piper asked, pulling back. Then she saw him. "Cole?"

"In the flesh."

"I don't get it. How can you bring them back?"

"Apparently, I still have Avatar powers."

"You were an Avatar?" Leo asked, and there was no mistaking the hostility in his voice. It wasn't directed at Cole, but at the Avatars. Since Piper had told him of her trip to Limbo, Leo had decided to forgive Cole.

"Yeah," Cole confirmed, annoyed at the anger seemingly aimed at him. "So were you."

"They just wanted power and to control the world. When I found that out and their methods for it, I turned on them," Leo said.

"I knew that from the beginning. That's why I told them no. But they came after me for weeks until, when I wanted to create that reality, I decided to give in. Prue just informed me I kept the powers after death."

"Wait," Piper interrupted. "So, you can resurrect them?"

"Yeah, he can," Prue smiled. "Then he's gonna help us go after Billie, and that sister of hers if she finds a way to bring her back, too. I think four witches and a half-demon Avatar with demonic powers will be enough to defeat the Ultimate Power, don't you?"

Piper nodded slowly, "So, what are you waiting for, Cole?"

He turned to the two women lying on the floor in front of him. Wincing when he saw Phoebe, Cole held his arms out in their direction. White light shot from his fingertips, covering the sisters. Several minutes later, they began to stir, and Cole stepped back, letting his hands drop to his sides.

Piper looked at him with a grateful smile, while Prue mouthed the word 'thanks'.

Paige was the first to wake. She sat up groggily, bringing a hand to her head. "Ughh. What happened?"

"Paige!" Piper rushed to her side, pulling her to her. "Sweetie, don't you ever do that to me again. I love you and you're not getting away that easily."

"What did I miss?"

Piper let Paige go as she ran to Phoebe, "I love you, too. So, get used to staying here."

"Did we die or something?" Paige asked as she stood up and then stopped as she saw Prue. "You're..."

"Prue Halliwell. Great to meet you, Paige," Prue pulled the younger woman into a hug.

Phoebe jerked away from Piper. "Prue!" Leaping to her feet she grabbed Prue, "You're here."

"Course, Pheebs." Prue returned the hug, smiling.

Police sirens sounded in the distance.

"I hate to interrupt this little reunion. But, if we stay much longer, the cops are going to ask a lot of questions that we don't have time to answer. We need to find that Billie girl."

Phoebe's heart skipped a beat when she heard his voice. She spun in surprise, coming face to face with her dead-ex who stood only a couple feet away. "Wha..."

"You guys were dead, Pheebs. Cole brought you back to life. He's an Avatar."

"What!" Paige yelled, preventing Phoebe from replying.

"No need for a thank you," Cole told her sarcastically.

"We can explain later," Leo said. "Right now, Cole's right. We have to leave."

"Let's go to Dad's. I want to check on the boys. We can discuss what we're going to do there." Piper suggested. "I'll put a spell on the place so Billie can't track us or anything."

"But-"

"Paige, later. How about you take me and Leo, and Cole can take Phoebe and Prue." Piper turned to the demon, "You can still materialize in different places, right?"

Cole shook his head in a gesture of yes. Paige threw him a disgusted look before orbing out with her group. Prue touched Cole's arm while he held out his hand for Phoebe to take. She ignored the shiver that went down her spine as he wrapped his strong fingers around her small hand. With a blur, they were gone. The police pulled up seconds later.