If this one seems familiar to any of you, it's because I posted it several years ago. I've found my way back to it and so it will continue but not without some re-writing (both to tweak the story a bit and because there were some sentences that even I couldn't figure out...and that's bad...)

So here it is again, only new and improved, and this time to be finished :-)

DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies of this story may be in fanfic archives for general distribution only with the author's permission, and must include all disclaimers and copyright notices.

DISCLAIMER: Prue, Piper, Phoebe and Paige, Leo Wyatt, Cole Turner, the Seer, the Source and all other characters that have appeared in the series "Charmed" together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of Aaron Spelling, E. Duke Vincent, and the Warner Brothers Television Network. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this fan fiction. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.

Title: Another Chance

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Cole finds himself in the past, before Belthazor was vanquished and things went downhill. But can Cole change the outcome, or is history doomed to repeat itself? Picks up with Cole immediately after the end of 'Centennial Charmed' and ignores every episode that happened after :-)

Cole screamed as the flames consumed him. Worse than the flames, though, was the pain of seeing Phoebe throw the potion at him…and vanquishing him…again… Then it all went dark, and Cole had a sensation of falling…and then of being cold. It was so cold, and damp, and…

He opened his eyes and saw that he was standing on the balcony of the penthouse. It was nighttime, and the fog was beginning to roll in. "No doubt they'll be here soon," he said, and after closing the French doors he went to sit on the sofa. Wait…weren't those doors broken when he sent Paige through them after her insipid attempt to destroy him. What does it matter? he though. Seeing how miserable Phoebe had been, ending up forced to stay with him to protect Piper…he shook his head. How could he have become like that? He and Phoebe had lovers? He was working with the Seer to get her pregnant with his heir? No…no, that was all wrong. Maybe he hadn't changed the past, but instead had gone to an alternate reality, one where Paige had died and the Power of Three had died with her and Prue.

But if that was the case, what reality was he in now? Why was he even here? He was supposed to be dead and vanquished. Isn't the third time supposed to be a charm? Cole laughed out loud at the thought and went over to pick up the picture of him and Phoebe. How did we get here, Phoebe? How did our love go so wrong, and in such a short time? I love you so much…and without you I've gone insane. I can't live without you, Phoebe.

There was the familiar sound of someone orbing in, and Cole closed his eyes and clutched the picture to his chest. No doubt Paige had orbed there with her sisters, to kill him once again. He only hoped that this time they would succeed. Death had become a welcome alternative to stumbling through each day in a haze of pain.

"Cole, what are you doing here?"

"Leo?" Cole asked, turning around. Leo was the last person he had been expecting to see.

"I don't care what you're doing here. Just come with me, please. Phoebe needs you."

"Phoebe needs me?" Cole almost laughed as he said it. "Needs me dead maybe," he added under his breath.

"Cole, what the hell is wrong with you?" Leo asked, this time rather angrily. "Prue's funeral is tomorrow afternoon, and…" Then Leo paled, and the anger disappeared from his tone. "Cole, you don't blame yourself for Prue's death, do you?"

"Prue's funeral is…tomorrow?" Cole held his head in his hands. I have finally lost all touch with reality…welcome to the world of the insane…

"You aren't okay, are you?" Leo sat on the couch next to Cole, clearly unsure what to do. "Why don't you come back to the Manor with me. It'll help Phoebe to know that you're safe."

Cole laughed again. Safe. Safe was such a relative term. Safe from what? Certainly not from himself…

"I'll meet you back at the Manor?" Leo asked, and Cole nodded. After the whitelighter orbed out, Cole put his head back in his hands.

"What the hell is going on?" he cried out, his voice breaking.

"I told you there would be consequences."

Cole saw one of the Avatars standing before him. The one who had given him his power, and had then appeared in the altered reality to warn him to change things back before it was too late. "Guess it's too late, huh?" Cole said. "You here to gloat or what?"

"I'm here to explain what happened."

"I changed the past, and made things worse instead of better, I was vanquished, and now I'm back here…wherever this is."

"First, you weren't vanquished. Then again, that's rather obvious, isn't it? You see, you can't really change the past. What you did was to create a universe where Paige had died, and the Power of Three was unable to be reconstituted after Prue died. How the Paige from your original universe got there along with you is a long story. The important part is that when Phoebe threw the potion at you, she vanquished your existence from that Universe…and sent you to this Universe because it is at the very point in time where everything changed from the Universe you knew to the Universe you created."

"I don't understand."

"The path that you and the Charmed Ones were on was changed when Paige wasn't alive to see Prue's obituary in the paper. That is the moment that set the wheels in motion. Paige came to the funeral, Phoebe touched her and had the premonition, and the rest is…or will be…history."

"Will be?"

"This is your reality now. Tomorrow, Paige will come to Prue's funeral, and it will all begin again. Except that this time, you know where it all went wrong and perhaps you can fix it, but you cannot tell anyone else of the future. After all, the future may be entirely different here."

"I don't see how. It all went wrong when I worked with the Seer and ended up possessed by the Source, but if I hadn't done that then the Source would have killed Phoebe and her sisters."

"You're wrong Cole. That's not when it all went wrong. I should leave you now."

"Wait...if I'm here, what happened to Paige? Was she returned to the right reality?"

The Avatar smiled. "She is exactly where she needs to be."

"What does that mean? And what did you mean about consequences?" Cole asked, but he got no answer. The Avatar disappeared without another word, replaced by Leo who orbed in looking more concerned than before.

"Cole, you coming?"

"Yeah. I'm right behind you Leo." Cole took a moment to get used to having Belthazor back. His evil side, although not nearly as evil as the Source had been…Cole shuddered at the memory and then shimmered to the Manor.

"Look who I found," Leo announced as Cole walked into the living room.

"Cole," Phoebe said, rushing over to wrap her arms around him. "I'm so glad you're here."

Feeling Phoebe's arms around him, her heart beating against his chest, convinced Cole that he was going to find a way to make things different this time around. "I love you," he said as kissed the top of her head. I won't lose your love this time, Phoebe.