A/N: I don't own Charmed or any of its characters... Thanks so much to Jba008, Ashley (), BelovedSlayer, HalliwellMB, and Marie Nomad for reviewing :D
Jba008: I also hated the way they got rid of Cole, just because Julian McMahon had to leave the show... He deserved more!
Ashley (): Cole actually calls his plane "a nasty limbo", and since Piper's soul went there after being attacked by the Thorn Demons, I don't see it as being a plane only for demons... Besides, from what we know, vanquished demons go to the Wasteland, and then to some realm of hell... And while Piper said that he was there to pay penance for his evil sins, he never actually tried to use Phoebe's love for him to turn her evil (he was possessed remember?)... I know that Limbo in 'Enter the Demon' was a lot different, but even in 'The Courtship of Wyatt's Father' the ghostly plane they were on seemed to be another limbo... So there seems to be many interpretations... That's probably where the confusion is... That's why my opinion is that Cole is in Limbo, but that's just how I feel... I really wish Charmed had developed Cole's storyline better, even if it was just for a few episodes of season 7 or 8!
BelovedSlayer, HalliwellMB, and Marie Nomad: I am trying to keep the story as canon as possible, so I will be writing Cole's character as close to my interpretation of him from the show... There is still a way to go in this story, so don't hate me yet!
As her sisters began firing questions at her, Phoebe locked eyes with Coop. He looked so miserable, and her revelation hadn't helped him at all. She would have to tell him later about the many times she and her sisters had been possessed by evil beings. They had done much worse before being saved than he had. He hadn't caused any trouble yet, apart from upsetting her a few times, and she was determined to save him. Coop was the love of her life, and no one, not even Cole would ruin her future.
"Phoebe?" Piper's voice broke through her reverie. Phoebe turned to see everyone staring at her questioningly.
"Sorry, I spaced out a little," she apologised. "What did you say?"
"We asked how that was possible. How could Cole possess Coop?" Paige explained.
"Well think about it guys. He's always found a way to come back into my life, and he's always been really powerful. He killed the Triad when he was still Belthazor. He even escaped the Wasteland, coming back stronger than ever. Just because we haven't heard from him in a while doesn't mean he wasn't trying to find a way to get out!" Phoebe shook as she spoke, hardly believing it herself, that her former lover was plaguing her again.
"But Phoebe, he helped me last year," Piper said confusedly. "Why would he do that? If he wanted to hurt us he would have let me die, and let Leo go Up There to be an Elder again."
"Maybe he wanted to get you out of Limbo quickly, Piper. Maybe you were interrupting his plan." Paige agreed with Phoebe. In her experience, whenever there was something really evil going on, Cole was never far behind. "How do we know that he wasn't working with Dumain to turn Billie against us? Doesn't it seem awfully convenient that Coop has only been acting weird now? Maybe the Ultimate Power was just a distraction, so we wouldn't notice when he escaped from Limbo!"
"Paige could be right!" Phoebe exclaimed. "All the pieces are falling into place now!"
"Look guys," Piper tried reasoning, "I know Cole has done some pretty evil stuff before. And I know that he has kept reappearing when we least expect it but…" realising what she was saying she conceded. "Okay, so maybe he is back."
"Piper? I'm home!" called a voice from upstairs. All four occupants of the living room turned their heads to see Leo walking down the stairs. "Magic School was crazy! Billie and Christy really did a number on it. I started reorganising it but… Oh hi everyone," Leo smiled, noticing their visitors. "What's going on?"
"Cole's back, Leo," Piper said grimly. "He's trying to possess Coop."
"What? Are you sure?" Leo looked around anxiously, as if Cole was going to pop out from behind a couch and start attacking them.
"It definitely looks that way," Piper said.
"Did you tell them about last year? How he helped us?" Leo asked. Piper had told him about their unexpected assistance, and for that he was eternally grateful to Cole. 'That wouldn't stop me from protecting the girls from Cole's evil plans though,' Leo thought to himself.
"Yes she did. Thanks for sharing by the way," Paige glared at Leo, who held his hands up in surrender. "But Coop's been having these weird memories, and there doesn't seem to be any other explanation. The question is what do we do now?"
"Well we have the vanquishing potion ready," Phoebe said getting up. "All we need is some of his flesh, which I will be happy to slice up. Now that we know his plan, he'll be making an appearance anytime now. We have to be ready."
Piper got up too, "I'm going to get the crystals. Who knows what kind of power he has now. It can't hurt to be prepared. We still remember the spell we used against the Source right?"
"Yes," Paige nodded while standing up. "And I have some extra potions I've been working on in case of an emergency." Looking at her sisters with a weak grin, she said, "I think this counts."
"Leo, I think you should take the boys to Magic School," said Piper, with worry. "I don't want them around here if it comes down to a fight. And you should stay up there too. Remember, I only just got you back, I can't afford to lose you again."
"Piper..." Leo protested, but Piper was having none of it.
"Leo, I'm serious. We don't know what Cole is capable of. You won't be helping, and I can't be worried about you getting hurt, we all need to be at the top of our game."
Nodding in surrender, Leo kissed Piper, and whispered "I love you," in her ear. He then headed back upstairs to get Wyatt and Chris, before leaving for Magic School.
The sisters split up to prepare their arsenal for the impending battle. As Phoebe was about to exit the living room, she noticed Coop still rooted to his place. He really hadn't said anything since she announced her theory.
"Coop?" she called. As there was no response, she walked over to him and knelt in front of him. "Coop? Are you okay?" she asked cautiously, looking up at him.
"Phoebe," he whispered hoarsely, "I'm so sorry. What have I done?"
"It's not your fault. You couldn't have stopped it. You couldn't have stopped him. Believe me."
"But Phoebe, I should have known, I should have sensed something was wrong. I should have told you about it before. You could have got seriously hurt. You still can get hurt, and your sisters too."
"Coop, my sisters and I have all been possessed before. Demons, ghosts, you name it. None of us could control any of them, and we never blamed each other. This is not your fault. It's an occupational hazard of being around us. I should be apologising to you. I mean it is my ex-husband from hell who's trying to possess you." Phoebe looked away sadly, before she turned to Coop with determination in her eyes. "It doesn't matter anyway. Nothing's going to happen to us, and nothing is going to happen to you. We will stop Cole, and nothing, not even he, can keep us apart."
I know that not too much happened in this chapter, it was more about the levels of emotions of each of the sisters... But the next one is a big one! Unfortunately I may not update it for a week since I am going to Malaysia tomorrow night, and I won't have internet access :( If I can I will try to put it up tomorrow night, but I can't make any promises...
