Cole begins to open his eyes, trying to get a clear focus on the blurred images surrounding him. "Paige." he whispers, his eyes finally focusing, and seeing that he is in Paige's room at the manor. Paige is sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a cool cloth to his head. Cole has one large bandage across one side of his forehead, and his face is riddled with small cuts and bruises.
"Hi." she says, smiling. "Welcome back. You had me kind of worried there for awhile."
"What happened?" Cole asks. He tries to sit up, and a sudden dizziness comes over him as he quickly lies back.
"Take it easy. You were out for quite some time." Paige says, touching his cheek gently.
"My whole body hurts so much. Why haven't I healed?" Cole asks.
"Oh, you poor baby." Paige says, kissing his forehead. "Your powers are gone thanks to your mother -- you're all human now. Leo did as much as he could, but something happened to him, and his powers are acting all screwy now. He was only able to heal you about halfway -- we were hoping it was enough that you could heal the rest of the way on your own. But don't you worry -- I'm gonna take extra-special care of you, okay?" Paige tells him. Phoebe enters the room.
"Hey -- how's our patient?" she asks.
"Doing much better." Paige replies. "Do you need anything, honey?" she asks Cole.
"My throat kind of hurts, too. I guess that's what happens when your mother tries to poison and strangle you." Cole remarks.
"I think I have just the thing for that. I'll be right back." Phoebe says, and she leaves.
"My mother -- she didn't hurt you, did she?" Cole asks.
"Cole -- we vanquished your mother. She's gone." Paige tells him. "I'm sorry."
"Why are you sorry?" Cole asks. "Paige, my own mother tried to kill me. If I hadn't cut the cord by now, I think that action would pretty much be a deal breaker. I'm glad she's dead."
"Yeah, well -- she may have been a psychotic she-demon from hell, but -- she did give me you. So I can't totally hate her. And besides -- she couldn't go through with it." Paige informs him.
"What?" Cole asks, surprised.
"Lilith wanted her to kill you. She couldn't do it. And after we vanquished her -- Lilith came and tried to finish you off herself."
"Lilith was here?"
"Yeah -- that's why Leo's whitelighter powers are on the fritz. Lilith tried to go after Piper, and she threatened the baby -- Leo just had a fit. He got all macho and overprotective and tried to fight her." Paige tells him.
"Probably not a smart move on his part." Cole says.
"I think he figured that out. He and Piper are trying to undo whatever it was that Lilith did. The elders aren't being much help, they're just giving a bunch of lectures about 'we warned you not to get emotionally involved with your charge, this is one of the things we were concerned about, blah, blah, blah' -- it's almost as if they're on Lilith's side."
"Well, I have a feeling a few of them have gone up against Lilith before, and things didn't always play out in their favor." Phoebe enters the room with a steaming hot cup.
"Here you go." she says, taking it over to Cole as Paige helps him sit up.
"What is it?" Cole asks.
"It's just a cup of tea with some special herbs -- it'll help with your healing. Here -- taste it." Phoebe says, handing it to him. Cole holds the cup, looking down at it and back up at Phoebe. "Cole, it's not poisoned."
"That's what I thought last time you offered me something to drink." Cole says.
"Cole, come on, it's me, Phoebe." Phoebe says.
"Prove it." Cole says.
"Prove it? How the hell am I supposed to prove it?" Phoebe asks.
"You taste it first." Cole suggests.
"Oh, for cryin' out loud." Phoebe says, and she takes a sip of the tea. "There. You happy now?" Cole takes a drink.
"Just making sure." Cole says.
"So is this what it's gonna be like now -- you're gonna be all paranoid that Lilith is going to show up at any given moment and torture you?" Phoebe asks.
"Come on Phoebe -- he has no powers now. He's an innocent who knows WAY more than he should about demons and witches and all that stuff -- plus he's still recovering from his injuries and that makes him extremely vulnerable. Give him a break." Paige tells her.
"What she said." Cole says, looking up at Phoebe. "And thanks for the tea."
"You're welcome." Phoebe says, hurt that Cole didn't trust her.
"Feeling better?" Paige asks.
"Yeah -- I'm just used to a more speedy recovery than this. But if getting waited on hand and foot by you two is one of the perks of a slow recovery, then maybe it's not so bad." Cole says, grinning a bit.
"Hey, I just brought you tea. Anything else is HER job, not mine." Phoebe says. "Speaking of jobs -- I need to go find out if I still HAVE one. Besides, I'm sure you two want to be alone." Phoebe leaves.
"Was it just me, or did you sense a little green-eyed monster in this room just now?" Cole asks.
"Cole, she still has feelings for you. They're not going away overnight. She says she's working on it." Paige says.
"I didn't know I was that tough to get over." Cole says.
"Don't get all egotistical on me, Cole Turner. I know for a FACT a part of you is still in love with Phoebe, you told me that yourself."
"Yeah, but there's a big difference. I have a beautiful wife, and a baby on the way." Cole says, pulling her into a kiss. "What does Phoebe have to focus on? Both of her sisters are married and pregnant, and she's pretty much alone. I just don't want her being vulnerable to Lilith again."
"What do you suggest, that we find her a date?" Paige asks.
"Might not be a bad idea." Cole suggests.
"Why do people think that the solution to every woman's problem is to find a MAN? Honestly, you know, I think that Lilith might be right in some ways, rejecting the attitude that all women need a man or we'll die."
"Don't you EVER say you agree with Lilith. About anything. Even if you do -- I don't want you doing anything to make yourself or the baby vulnerable to her. Do you understand?" Cole says pointedly.
"Okay, okay, sorry. The man is king, the man rules -- you happy now?" Paige says sarcastically, rolling her eyes. Cole starts to laugh.
"Come here, woman." Cole teases, pulling Paige close and kissing her on the lips.
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The next scene begins several days later . . . . .
Paige is in the kitchen attempting to make a potion. "Dammit, where did I put that herb? Oh -- here it is." Paige says to herself, and mixes the ingredients together. The mixture in the pot explodes, splattering all over the counters.
"What are you doing to my kitchen?" Piper asks, walking into the kitchen surveying the mess that Paige has managed to make. Pots and pans are scattered everywhere -- botched potion remnants are strewn among all of the counter tops.
"Trying to come up with a potion to vanquish Lilith." Paige says.
"Paige -- I couldn't even freeze her, she had enough strength to single-handedly almost kill Cole without so much as blinking an eye, and she was able to take a good chunk of Leo's powers from him. I don't see how vanquishing is even possible."
"So what are we supposed to do, let her terrorize us?" Paige asks.
"According to Leo, the amulets will protect us. We just need to get more and place them all over the house. Luckily Leo can still orb, but it's just taking him longer than usual now. That's where he's been since yesterday, trying to gather up as many of the amulets as possible for us. And there are also some inscriptions we can write in the nursery on the walls to keep her away." Piper informs her.
"How charming. Instead of teddy bears on the walls, our kids get demon-deterring graffiti." Paige says, not impressed.
"Paige -- you think I'm thrilled about this?" Piper asks, and she sighs. "Hey -- Leo and I are gonna start decorating the nursery soon, and since you'll be sharing it, I though you might want to help pick out some patterns. We figure it might be a good distraction for us."
"Why would I be sharing your nursery?" Paige asks.
"What, you and Cole want the baby in your room?" Piper asks.
"We want the baby in our own HOUSE -- Piper, as soon as Cole is feeling better, we're going house-hunting. We want our own place." Paige tells her.
"You're leaving Halliwell Manor? This is Cole's idea, isn't it?" Piper asks.
"No -- this is OUR idea. We want our own place." Paige says.
"Paige -- Cole is human now and you have minimal powers. How will you protect yourselves if you're not living here?" Piper asks.
"We'll manage." Cole says, entering the kitchen. His face is stubble-ridden, his head still bandaged with slightly smaller bandage, some of the cuts from the shards of glass still visible.
"What are you doing out of bed?" Paige asks in an angry tone, marching over to Cole.
"I got bored. I can only watch so much of daytime television without wanting to fling the remote at the TV." he says, rummaging through the kitchen to find something to eat, and finally finding some muffins hidden amongst Paige's mess. "Seriously, have you ever watched any of that stuff? I'd bet money there are demons involved in high-up executive positions on those networks." he says, his mouth half full. "You been trying to cook again?" he asks Paige, eyeing the mess in the kitchen. Paige makes a face at him.
"Very funny. Now go back to bed! I'll bring you something to eat." Paige says.
"And I'll make sure I cook it." Piper chimes in.
"Well, let me do something to help -- here, I can at least do the dishes." Cole suggests. He turns on the water -- Paige comes up from behind him, reaching over him and turning it off. He turns around and faces her, as she leans into him.
"Do I need to handcuff you to the bed to keep you there?" she asks.
"Hmmm . . . that could be fun." Cole suggests, grinning, and he pulls her into a kiss.
"Oh, please take your bizarro relationship and quirky banter OUT of my kitchen before I hurl!" Piper tells them.
"Aw, come on Piper, can't you stand to see two people in love?" Cole asks.
"Two people? Yeah. YOU two people? Not so much." Piper replies.
"And what is so 'bizarro' about our relationship?" Paige asks.
"You want the whole list or just the top ten? You're part whitelighter and he's -- well, he WAS a demon. Who is the spawn of a daughter of THE queen of the demons, was the source of all evil and best of all, he was married to your SISTER. What the hell am I living in, some kind of magical soap opera?" Piper asks.
"Actually, I discovered that there is one on NBC -- our life is nothing like it, trust me." Cole remarks. "And Piper, if you're worried about me coming after you next -- don't. I mean, I like you but -- you're not my type." Cole says, teasing Piper.
"Doesn't he have the cutest sense of humor?" Paige says.
"Yeah. Adorable." Piper says sarcastically, not amused.
"Geez, Piper -- hormonal much?" Paige says.
"I just don't understand how you two can be so casual about everything with this situation our whole family is in." Piper tells them.
"Like I said, we're in love. Sue us." Cole says, wrapping his arms around Paige.
"You really should get back to bed, sweetie. Come on -- I'll go upstairs with you." Paige says, taking his hand.
"Yeah, that's right -- go on upstairs, keep avoiding reality. Just go enjoy your happy little life together and leave me to deal with cleaning up the mess. Big shock there." Piper says, clearly upset. Cole turns and looks at Paige.
"You're right -- I need to go back to bed. And I think you need to have a private talk with your sister." Cole says. He kisses her and heads upstairs.
"Hey -- Piper don't worry, I was gonna come back down once I got Cole settled back in bed and clean this place up." Paige tells her.
"That's not the mess I'm talking about." Piper says. She sits down at table, buries her head in her hands, and begins to cry. "I can't be the strong, 'holding the family together' big sister anymore, I'm just not cut out for it." Paige sits down next to Piper and gives her a hug, as Phoebe enters the kitchen.
"Hey -- what's going on?" Phoebe asks.
"We're kind of in the middle of a little meltdown here." Paige says.
"I am NOT having a meltdown!" Piper screams, waving her hands in the air. Suddenly all of the pots and pans strewn about the kitchen explode into particles and disappear.
"Well, that's one way to clean up the kitchen. See -- you just did half of the work for us." Paige jokes, trying to calm Piper down. Phoebe sits down on the other side of her.
"Come on, sweetie. Everything's gonna be okay." Phoebe tells her.
"No it's not. My husband has basically shut himself off from me the last few days. He's in total denial about his whitelighter powers weakening and refuses to talk about it further. Every day I sit here looking over my shoulder, just waiting for Lilith to show up. And all the amulets and incantations in the world can't convince me that she can't get to my little girl. Phoebe, she turned you into a demon, Paige, her psycho daughter almost killed you, and she took all of Cole's powers and a huge chunk of Leo's -- the only one in this house she hasn't come after yet in some way is me. And I'm scared. And I want Prue. Because I don't want to be the big sister anymore." Piper starts to cry again.
"Oh, honey -- you know how much I would love for Prue to be here right now. But she's not." Phoebe says. "Hey -- why don't you let me take over the 'big sister' duties for awhile? You just relax and be pregnant. Come on -- I'm the one with the least amount of worries here. What do you say?" Phoebe asks.
"You'd do that for me?" Piper asks.
"Of course." Phoebe says, and she hugs her.
"Hey -- I've got an idea. Why don't we go maternity clothes shopping tomorrow? Because I'm figuring that by the time my little niece is born, I'll be needing those clothes myself. So we can pick them out together." Paige suggests.
"Yeah, and I'll come along for the ride and give you both advice, since my fashion sense is FAR better than either of yours." Phoebe jokes. "It'll be a sister's day out -- no husbands, no demons -- just us."
"I love you guys." Piper says, pulling them both into a hug. Suddenly, Piper reaches down and puts her hand on her belly. "Oh my god." she says.
"Piper -- what's wrong?" Phoebe asks worriedly.
"Nothing -- she kicked me. She's never done that before -- here, feel it." Piper says, taking each of their hands and putting them against her belly. Both Paige and Phoebe smile.
"I guess she had to get the last word in." Phoebe says jokingly.
"I just wish Leo were here." Piper says. Just then, the doorbell rings.
"I'll get that." Paige says, and she leaves to go answer the door.
"So -- are you doing okay with Paige and Cole being together?" Piper asks Phoebe.
"Well -- they seem happy. And that's all I want for both of them. Besides, I have big sister duties now -- that won't leave me with much time to brood over my ex-husband and my sister being together. And that's probably a good thing." Phoebe says.
"Look who's here." Paige says, as Leo enters the kitchen.
"Hey -- sorry it took so long to get back." Leo says, giving Piper a hug. "I tried to orb into the house and I didn't quite make it -- I had a walk about a mile to get here. You know, I don't even have a key to the front door." Piper gives him a kiss.
"Don't worry, we'll get one made for you." Piper tells him.
"Well, I gathered up as many of the amulets as I could -- hopefully that will make the place safer." Leo says.
"Let's not talk about amulets or Lilith right now. Leo -- the baby kicked for the first time today." Piper tells him.
"Really? Oh honey, I'm so sorry I wasn't here." he says.
"It's okay -- I'm just glad you're home now." Piper says. She puts her arm around him and they leave the kitchen together.
"Well -- it looks like they're gonna be okay now. How's Cole?" Phoebe asks.
"Bored, frustrated, and not understanding that humans actually need to get alot of REST to heal from a serious injury. Plus he's becoming addicted to cable by just sitting around all day watching television." Paige tells her.
"Yeah, the last time Cole was all human he really had a hard time with it. I'm sure his recovery time has just made that adjustment all the more difficult for him." Phoebe says.
"Yeah, well fortunately, this too shall pass. I better go check on him. I was working on some vanquishing potions for Lilith, but I haven't had much luck. Maybe you'll do a better job. My notes are all on the counter -- maybe you should see what you can figure out." Paige says.
"That's what big sisters are for, right? You go take care of Cole -- I'll take care of this." Phoebe says. Paige leaves the kitchen, and Phoebe starts to rifle through Paige's notes. "Alright, you she-demon bitch -- be prepared for some ass-kicking vanquishing, Phoebe Halliwell style." Phoebe says to herself, as she starts to intensely read over Paige's writings.
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Dressed for bed, Paige steps out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. The television is on, and Cole is asleep, the remote still in his hand. Paige just shakes her head, and climbs into bed. She prys the remote from his hand and turns off the television, and Cole awakens. "Hey -- I was watching that." he says groggily.
"Oh, you were NOT." Paige says. "I swear, if you turn into a couch potato after this whole ordeal, I am NOT going to be pleased. If I ever come home and see you parked in front of the TV on a recliner with a beer in one hand and the remote in another, be prepared to see me lose it." Paige tells him.
"Hey -- I would never do that. I mean, come on -- a beer? Please -- it would be a nice imported glass of cabernet." Cole tells her. Paige picks up a pillow and smacks him on the shoulder with it. "Ow, ow, hey, careful -- injured man here, remember?"
"Oh, I'm sorry honey." Paige says, and she fluffs his pillows for him a bit and kisses him on the forehead. "Is that better?"
"A little." Cole says, pouting. "But it still hurts here." Cole says, pointing to his cheek, and Paige giggles a bit as she kisses it. "And here too." he says, putting his lips on hers and kissing her intensely. He starts to peel the shoulder back from her nightgown, kissing her on her neck and moving toward her breast.
"Hey -- enough." Paige says, stopping him. "I don't want you to have a relapse." Cole leans back and sighs.
"You're killing me Paige, I hope you know that." he tells her.
"Don't say that -- not even jokingly." Paige tells him. "I almost lost you -- okay, so maybe I am being a little bit smothering and overly-cautious, but -- I think I have a right to be."
"Okay -- you're right. I'll be the perfect patient from now on -- smother away." Cole tells her. Paige kisses him on the cheek.
"I love you." she says, cuddling up close to him.
"I love you, too." Cole says. Paige sighs.
"Piper's baby kicked for the first time today." she tells Cole.
"Really? Well, that's good news, right?"
"Yeah -- but it just got me thinking. About our baby. What about the first time our baby kicks. And if it's going to --"
"Hey -- stop it. I told you -- our baby was conceived in love. And he or she is NOT going to kill you, or anyone else. Okay?"
"He." Paige says.
"What?" Cole replies.
"It's a boy. I can sense it." Paige tells him.
"A boy? You're sure?" Cole asks.
"Yeah -- I've been suspecting for a few days, but -- now I'm pretty much convinced." Paige tells him. Cole sits up, and leans over Paige's belly, and starts talking to it.
"Hey -- this is your father, young man. Now you need to listen to me. You need to do something to convince your mother that you love her, and that you're not going to hurt her. You got that?" Cole says, and he kisses Paige on the belly, then lies back down. "See -- you just have to be firm these days with kids, lay down the law from day one or they'll run all over you." Paige doesn't say a word, but just curls up once again into Cole's arms and sighs.
"I wish it were that simple." Paige says.
"It is, Paige -- it has to be. Because I can't lose YOU, either." Cole tells her. "We both have to believe that this baby has inherited the good in both of us -- and none of the evil. Please tell me you'll try your best to believe that."
"Okay -- I'll try." Paige says, and she and Cole drift off to sleep in each other's arms . . . . .