Author: Escargoat

Rating: FRM.

Part: (11/?)

Season: Season 8 AU

Disclaimer: I don't own. I'm making no money. Rights go to whole bunch of people such as the (now defunct) WB, TNT, the CW, Spelling Productions, and others. I'm not any of those people.

A/N: Okay, remember that FRM rating? That rating is applying to this chapter. Fair warning that there is sexual content in this chapter that while non-graphic in nature may be disturbing to some readers.

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Phoebe smiled pleasantly as Elise walked out of her office. Still smiling, Phoebe got out of her chair, strode confidently to the door of her office and slammed it shut. She then proceeded to tap her head against the doorframe repeatedly.

She thought that coming to work would give her a reprieve from the tumultuous emotions of her ex-husband. It had worked. At least, it had seemed to work. She had experienced a busy morning with various meetings and chitchat. It had been fairly productive.

The problem was that the instant she was alone, she started to feel a slight tickle in the back of her mind. At first she ignored it. After all, it could be anyone. She had only had her empathy back for a very short amount of time. She could not be expected to simply be able to have it under control instantly.

Then Phoebe's phone rang. Cole had been on the other end asking about how she was feeling and expressing concern about her decision to go to work after how terrible she had looked the night before. As he had spoken, the tickle at the back of Phoebe's head had quivered with concern and confusion. Then Elise had walked into the office, and Phoebe had an excuse to get off the phone. She brusquely told Cole that she would call him back, and then hung up on him. When she felt the stab of hurt, she knew that the tickle was not just a side effect of poorly controlled empathy. It was Cole.

Phoebe groaned as she massaged her temples. She should not be able to still feel him when he was so far away. Yet if she closed her eyes and concentrated just a little bit…

Her impression from Cole at the moment was one of pleasure? That seemed wrong. Maybe she did not have anything to worry about.

Resolutely, Phoebe walked over to her desk, picked up her phone and dialed home. As she heard the phone begin to ring, the feeling changed to one of irritation.

"Hello?" an annoyed Cole answered.

"You sound cranky," a now re-worried Phoebe stated.

"Phoebe? What are you calling about? Is something wrong?"

"I told you I'd call you back," Phoebe pointed out.

"Oh, that's right. I didn't really believe you. Look, do you mind if I go dry off first? I was sort of in the shower."

Phoebe swallowed. "The shower? What were you doing in there?"

A silence answered her. "I didn't get a chance to shower before I had to take the boys to daycare and preschool." Cole finally replied.

Phoebe felt acute embarrassment. She was not sure if it was hers or Cole's or both.

"Oh, well why don't you go finish off, uh, dry off and umm, I'll talk to you later?"

"Sure," Cole replied.

They awkwardly said goodbye and hung up, neither intended to call the other back.

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Two hours later, Phoebe still could not concentrate. If she blocked out Cole, she had troubles blocking out the rest of the office. If she blocked out the office, she could feel Cole. And she did not want to feel Cole. She wanted to ignore him. There was something very wrong with being able to sense him from so far away. The only people she had that sort of connection to were her sisters.

"Phoebe, you look awful," Elise stated as she popped her head into her star columnist's office.

"I'm fine I just…"

"Look terrible." Elise firmly finished Phoebe's sentence for her.

"It is just stress. I'll be fine."

"I think I liked it better when you were running off on family emergencies all the time. Being in the office all day obviously doesn't agree with you. Take the rest of the day off. If that is how you look, I can't imagine what your column is going to look like."

"Elise," Phoebe began.

"Phoebe, it may have escaped your notice, but I am still your boss. Go home."

Phoebe sighed and began shutting down her computer.

"I'll see you tomorrow," a satisfied Elise stated as she walked away to go pester another writer.

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Phoebe silently walked into the house. Quietly, she crept over to the key rack and put her car keys on it. Cole's were gone. She felt stupid. Of course Cole's keys were gone. He always got groceries on Tuesdays.

Relieved that she would not have to speak with him about her health for at least another hour, she walked into the kitchen to get a bottled water.

"Well, we're finally alone," a sultry voice commented as Phoebe entered the kitchen.

Phoebe spun around and saw a tall blonde woman perched on the edge of the counter.

Raising her fists in a defensive position, Phoebe readied herself for a fight.

"Oh, I don't want to fight with you little witch. I'm here for Belthazor."

"What do you want with Cole?" Phoebe asked.

"My, my how defensive of you. I was under the impression that you no longer cared for him in that manner."

"He's a friend, and you appear to be a demon."

"How very astute of you. All those years being a Charmed One hone your demon detecting abilities, or was it the tail?"

Phoebe ignored the insult. "What do you want with him?" she demanded again.

"I want him to father a child of course. What else would a demoness want him for?"

Phoebe felt the shock cover her face, and she hated that the demon in her kitchen could see it.

"Come now, you don't think that you're the only one to ever want such a thing from him do you? Wait, I forget, you never wanted his spawn to grow inside of you. In fact, if rumor is true, you never really wanted him, never wanted the bond of matrimony."

"That is none of your business, and what you want from Cole is none of my business. I'm sure he can tell you no all by himself."

"Oh, he has. Well, he hasn't told me no in the past decade or so, but he'll say no. He always does," the demoness pouted.

"Then I guess that you should just leave before I vanquish you," Phoebe stated assertively.

"But I wouldn't get what I want if I did that. But with your help, I will."

"In case you didn't get the memo, I don't help demons. And, even if I did, what makes you think that I could help you?" Phoebe asked as she edged towards the cabinet where she kept the generic vanquishing potions.

"Well, Belthazor always says no to everybody. Everybody but you," the demon said with a pointed glance towards Phoebe's bosom.

Phoebe felt her skin crawl. "Whatever sick thing you want me to do, the answer is definitely 'no.'"

"I figured as much. Still it is the only way. I cannot obtain what I need by other means."

"I don't think you got the 'no' part," Phoebe said as she began to crack the door to the cupboard open behind her.

"Actually, I did. But, you see, there is a reason that I approached you instead of Belthazor."

"Really? What reason would that be?" Phoebe asked in the interest of distracting her foe.

"Belthazor is difficult to possess. They say that the Source himself had difficulties. You, on the other hand, have a rather good history of being taken over by magical lust."

Phoebe's hand grabbed the first vial it touched.

She was not fast enough.

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Phoebe hated being possessed by magical forces. The feeling of having something else override your influence over your body was not a pleasant one. She watched horrified as the demon stripped her out of her clothes and covered her body in only a sheer robe.

Phoebe gave the equivalent of a mental shove and was rewarded when her body jerked its left hand.

Her captor looked in the nearest mirror. Phoebe's own face contorted into a smirk.

"Your control is improving. Still, it won't help you. Don't worry. I'm sure he'll be gentle with his beloved Phoebe. That reminds me. I can't have him impregnating you, now can I?"

Phoebe tried to stop her body as it strode out of her bedroom and back down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Oh, quit projecting the disgust. You're killing the mood," her own voice whined.

"Ah, this is where I put them. It isn't the best, but it will have to do," the demoness chortled as she produced a box of condoms.

Phoebe summoned her power together and focused on her feeling of repulsion at what her possessor was attempting to do. She was rewarded with her body feeling sick to its stomach.

"You're cleverer than they say you are. Still, if being queasy was a problem for me, I'd have never been able to slaughter entire covens. All that blood, you know?" Phoebe's voice rang in her ears. "Now be a good girl. It looks like Daddy is home."

Phoebe could see Cole's car parked outside. As covertly as she could, she tried to touch the spot in the back of her mind that had bothered her so much earlier in the day. She was rewarded with the feeling of concentration and slight tiredness. Her captor seemed not to notice, so Phoebe attempted to push back against the feeling. Perhaps she could use enough of her empathy to alert Cole that there was something wrong. It did not work. His emotions did not change as he walked into the house.

She new the instant he saw her. The mind numbing shock was very evident.

"Phoebe?" his voice croaked.

"Hey, Baby," she heard her own voice respond even as her body sashayed towards his.

Phoebe practically cheered when the shock was overwritten by suspicion.

"Why are you wearing that?" he asked.

"I kind of thought that was obvious," her voice purred as her body pushed itself against Cole's.

He dropped the groceries on the floor and gently grabbed her shoulders. Pushing her back a bit, he looked into her eyes. "What spell did you do that backfired?"

"One to reveal my inner desires," she replied in a throaty voice as her hand began to rub against his chest. She stood up on her tiptoes and placed her mouth next to his ear, "I don't think it backfired."

Phoebe cursed Cole when she felt lust start to overwhelm his emotions. She struggled desperately as the demon slid one hand into Cole's hair and began to pull him down for a kiss. She could feel his breath against her lips.

"I can't," he whispered.

Phoebe was unsure of who was more shocked: her captor or her.

"What?"

"I promised your father that I wouldn't," Cole clarified as he backed out of the embrace.

Phoebe did not know whether to be thankful that her father had asked for such a promise, or annoyed that Victor had apparently thought that she could not handle Cole on her own. Given the current situation, she supposed she should be grateful.

"I think I'm a big enough girl to make that decision for myself. Don't you?" Phoebe heard her voice say.

"Phoebe, I promised, and I don't think you're yourself right now anyway," Cole replied although his tone was uncertain.

"Well, why don't you give me a chance to change your mind?"

The speed at which the demon moved was fast. Phoebe could feel Cole's surprise when her lips touched his. She felt his desire build as his mouth opened to accept the kiss. Then she felt it all replaced by absolute horror. Her backside hit the floor hard. She was obviously going to have to deal with a bruise when she got control back.

"You aren't Phoebe," Cole's voice was low and menacing as he loomed over her body.

Phoebe expected to hear protestations escape out of her mouth. She was surprised when a sardonic laugh escaped.

"You haven't lost your touch Belthazor."

"Who are you?" he demanded angrily.

"I'm somebody that needs something from you, and I intend to get it," the demon replied as she threw a potion at him.

It connected with a crash, and Phoebe could feel a haze settle over him.

"Cole, Baby, are you okay?" the tone spewing forth out of her mouth was concerned.

"Phoebe?" he replied in a disoriented tone.

"Poor Baby, why don't I help you to the couch?"

"I think that might be a good idea," Cole conceded as they moved towards the living room.

He sat down on the couch. Phoebe's body practically crawled into his lap. He did not resist the kisses this time, and Phoebe felt her captor's glee as Cole's hands began to roam.

"Not on the couch," he gasped when his mouth was free. Without waiting for a response, he stood and shimmered them into Phoebe's bedroom. Dropping her on the bed, he divested himself of all but his boxers.

He paused and looked at her for a long while, and Phoebe could feel confusion start to seep back into his mind. Mentally, she tried to cheer him on to fight whatever spell the demon had put on him.

"Come here," her voice commanded.

The confusion was pushed back in his mind as he crawled onto the bed next to her. He gently framed her face with her hands.

"I love you so much," he whispered before starting to kiss her again.

Phoebe just about felt her heart break. This was going to kill Cole when the spell wore off. She heard him moan as he pushed himself away from her.

"I need to hear you say it," he said as he looked into her eyes.

Phoebe felt her captor's annoyance at another interruption.

"Say what Baby?"

Cole's face fell just a little. "You really don't love me anymore do you?"

"Of course I love you. I will always love you. I just didn't know what you were asking for. You know that I'm not always the fastest on the uptake."

Phoebe felt her anger spike at the words. Unfortunately, all she could do was continue to observe.

Cole looked uncertain about the response, and Phoebe felt his confusion start to push through the fog again.

"Do you remember that time with the Zen master? When Paige was learning about potions?" he asked suddenly.

"Of course," the demon lied.

"If I'm wrong about this, when you're done being mad at me, remember that I was right then," Cole stated as he pulled his arm backwards and knocked her unconscious.

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Phoebe awoke to a terrible throbbing in her temple. Gingerly, she touched her fingertips to it. Then she looked at her hand. She had touched her own temple. Her eyes snapped fully open. Cole was sitting cross legged on the end of her bed. Wordlessly he pointed to a scorch mark on the floor.

"I hope you made it painful," she commented.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked in an odd tone.

"Very."

He pointed to a severed tail on the other side of the room.

"Did you have a hard time switching back?"

"I didn't turn into Belthazor. I didn't need to. I guess that Prue and Paige were right. I'm still a demon, no matter what I do."

"Cole, she tried to rape us."

"And that makes what I did right?"

"She was a demon!"

"And she deserved to be vanquished, but I didn't have to take her tail off first," Cole said miserably.

"You listen to me. If you weren't a good person, if I didn't think you could do the right thing, I'd never have brought you back. She was a demon, and she deserved to die. Did you enjoy maiming her?"

"No, I just. I was so angry. She…"

"I know what she did Cole. I was there. What I'm concerned about is your self loathing. You aren't the person who hunted and killed witches anymore. You aren't the crazy man that killed a human threatening to expose me. If you were, you would never have stopped me from going after the Hollow yesterday."

"Stopping you from going after the Hollow doesn't mean I'm good Phoebe. It was guarded by both good and evil, remember?"

"Evil can't love. Do you remember telling me that?"

"Phoebe…"

"No, you listen to me. You are a good person, and you are not going to drive yourself crazy again over this."

"Your sisters would disagree with you about that."

"Well, my sisters aren't here to talk me out of it."

Cole looked surprised at her words. They sat in silence for a long time.

"How did you know it wasn't me? The second time I mean," Phoebe finally queried.

"I should get you some ice for your head. I wouldn't want the boys to have to see the nice bruise I gave you when they get back from Victors. I, I had him pick them up today. I told him that there was some magical business that they didn't need to be involved in," Cole evaded her question as he got up from the bed.

"You didn't answer my question," Phoebe pointed out.

"Yes, I know. That was an attempt to get you to drop the subject."

"You hit me hard enough to knock me out. I think I deserve an answer."

"It was what she said. You would have known what I wanted. If I wanted to indulge in lust with your body, I could find a shapeshifter somewhere. I know that you don't want me to feel that way about you. I'm sorry," he said quietly as he walked out the door.

Phoebe watched him go. Closing her eyes and resting her head on her drawn up knees, she cried for both of them.