Chapter 16: Death Takes a Halliwell Part 2
Cole arrived in the hallway of Davidson's office, where a flurry of activity was taking place. Paramedics were covering a dead woman; likely the partner Prue had been talking about. Other people were processing the crime scene. That mattered little to Cole—the man he had come for was in imminent danger. He could sense it. The seekers were coming.
Davidson came down the hall and Cole stepped in front of him. "Forget about the Halliwells, it's me you're after," he said lowly as Davidson jumped back in shock. "I'll tell you whatever you want to know, I promise." Well, everything that wasn't supernatural, anyway, which wasn't much. "Just not here, it's not safe."
Davidson thrust his hand off when Cole put it on his shoulder. "Don't touch me!" he shouted. "You're under arrest, Turner, and I will personally see to it."
Not if he was dead. "Wait," Cole hissed, as that feeling of approaching danger grew stronger.
"What do you mean, wait?" Davidson demanded.
Cole didn't answer, at least not verbally. Instead, he grabbed the man again—and shimmered. Two seconds later, they were once again in familiar surroundings—familiar to Cole, that is. He had, once again, chosen his father's resting place as a hideout spot.
Davidson jerked away from him.
"I'm sorry, it was our only chance," Cole apologized, not feeling sorry at all. He had just saved the man, after all. "They might be able to track me, but they'll have a hard time sensing me in a cemetery."
Their only chance? Tracking? Sensing? What the hell was Turner talking about. Reese panicked. "How did we get…What the hell's happening?" He looked around wildly at their dark and dreary surroundings. Good God, he was in a crypt! "What's happening to me?"
"Just breathe, try to calm down," Cole advised.
"Who are you?" Davidson demanded.
"Somebody who just saved your life." Cole took a step towards him, and Davidson hurriedly backed away. "Try to calm down, Inspector. If I were a murderer, I would have killed you by now."
"Just-just-just let me go, then," the inspector stammered. "I'll just walk away."
Fat chance, on either count. "But I can't do that," Cole protested calmly. "If the demons get to you, they'll find out the way to get to me is to kill Phoebe and I can't let that happen."
"You say demon."
Cole smirked to himself. If only the man knew, although it probably wouldn't be long before he did. "Only as a metaphor."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
Miles away at the Halliwell Manor, Buffy and Prue waited anxiously by the phone. How long had it been since they had called? Davidson wasn't answering any calls or any pages.
"Something must have happened to him," Prue told her daughter.
"Should I see about having Dawn portal me to his office and see what she and I can find out discreetly?" Buffy asked.
"Maybe," said Prue.
Phoebe at that moment came down the stairs. "Cole's gone," she announced.
"What do you mean, 'gone'?" Leo questioned.
"I mean, he's not here. I've looked everywhere," Phoebe sighed, realizing what must have happened. "He must have gone after Davidson alone, to protect us."
"Yeah, but if the seekers get to him first…" Piper trailed off.
Phoebe understood—they all did. Davidson and Cole would die, and so would they. They had to get Cole to bring him back to the manor, where everyone could protect them both. "The mausoleum," she said, and everyone looked at her. "He could've taken him to the mausoleum. That's where Cole stays."
"Is there any chance that's where you saw the Inspector die in your premonition?" Piper asked.
"Maybe," Phoebe admitted. It had definitely been a mausoleum; she just didn't know which one. Even more frightening was the fact that if the Inspector was dead, Cole might be, too—the seekers would only have been able to get to Davidson after going through Cole. She quickly dismissed the thought, not wanting to alarm herself further. "Let's go."
"Okay let me get a portal open," said Dawn.
"I should astral there first," Prue suggested. "Make sure they are there."
"What if the demon is already there or shows up before you astral back to get us?" Leo asked. "You can't vanquish them; you'll need the Power of Three spell."
"So, then I won't vanquish them," Prue stated. "I'll just protect Reese long enough to get him out of there."
Phoebe started, "Prue…"
Prue turned to her. "Phoebe, your premonition is not going to come true." Perhaps her knowing about it had already changed it. "I told you, this is one fight Death is not going to win."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
Cole was not having any luck in getting Inspector Reese Davidson to calm down. The man had just tried to escape for the umpteenth time, and Cole had pushed him back against the wall. He was vaguely aware that he was going about this 'calming down' thing all wrong; he just didn't know what else to do. And he didn't have a chance to correct himself for, just when he was about to try again, that was when the seekers chose to appear.
"Belthazor, I assume," the first seeker intoned.
Cole played dumb. "I'm sorry, who?"
"We sensed your shimmer." The seekers seemed to smirk a little. "You're losing your touch."
Cole abandoned his ploy. "Leave him out of this," he ordered; not that an order from him would carry meaning any longer.
"Why would we want him?" the seeker wanted to know. "Now that we have you."
"Unless the human knows something Belthazor doesn't want us to know," the second seeker added.
They didn't have the chance to find out. Prue astralled in, and Cole had never been more glad to see backup, no matter who that backup happened to be. "Hi. Need a little help?"
"What are you doing here?"
In response, Prue winked at him and Cole was thrown for a loop. Davidson just panicked even more and asked how she had gotten there.
The seekers looked between the demon and the witch, and smirked. "Well, well, well. The mighty Belthazor, in bed with a witch."
Cole would have laughed out loud, if the situation hadn't been so dire. Yes, he was in bed with a witch, but not that witch. Prue might be attractive, but he'd never betray Phoebe for her sister. And Prue would never have him, which she proved by wrinkling her nose and saying, "Don't make me sick."
Just then, Davidson tried to make another escape and the situation lost whatever humor it might have held. The seekers went after him, and Prue and Cole went after the seekers. She had just completed a vicious kick that had sent the second seeker into a cement statue when Cole heard her shout, "No!"
"Prue!" he called, sending the first seeker flying off of him. Less than a second later, the second seeker had taken his partner's place, and Cole was right back where he started. He was vaguely aware of Prue shouting at another person. When Cole looked, if he'd had the time, he would have stared in disbelief. Prue was fighting…air. Each blow was precise and yet it landed on nothing that Cole could see. He knew that Prue didn't really like him, but he couldn't believe that she was kicking and punching air while an ally fought off two enemies by himself.
It was then that a portal shimmered into being and out stepped Phoebe, Piper, Buffy, Dawn and Faith.
The seekers seeing that they were now outnumbered three to one decided that discretion was the better part of valor, for they faded from existence.
"Mom?" said Dawn. "Was death here?"
"Yes," answered Prue turning toward her daughter.
"Cole?" said Phoebe as she walked over to her boyfriend, relieved to see he was alright.
Cole didn't look at his girlfriend but at her eldest sister. "If not for Dawn portaling in with your sisters, Faith and Buffy. I could've used some help."
"I was busy saving Davidson," Prue shot back.
"No, that's what I was doing," Cole corrected her.
Dawn opened another portal and they went back to the Manor with the unconscious Davidson.
"So what happened?" asked Phoebe. "Is he okay?"
"He almost wasn't," Cole responded. "The seekers were at the courthouse waiting for him."
"And then they tracked Cole to the mausoleum," Prue added.
"Thankfully they left before Dawn brought us back," said Buffy. "So we shouldn't have to worry about them showing up here."
"They left?"
Prue tossed her head back proudly. "Yeah. I kicked ass."
Once again, Cole corrected her, "No, you kicked air."
Prue sighed, exasperated. "I was fighting the Angel of Death and I obviously won."
That made no sense. A person couldn't beat Death, no matter how hard they tried, Buffy knew that. She tried to point that out; Prue would have none of it. In Prue's mind, she had beaten Death, the greatest enemy in Life.
Right now, the Angel of Death didn't matter because there was nothing, they could do about it. What did matter was the fact that seekers would be even more determined to get to Davidson, as they now knew that he knew something that Belthazor didn't want them to know.
"If you had just worked with me," Cole started.
Prue glared at him. "You know, you're not exactly the poster boy for teamwork, Cole," she accused.
Piper backed her up. "Hey, you were supposed to stick with us, remember?"
"I was trying to protect you," he defended. "All of you."
"You know, the one thing you failed to consider, Cole, is no matter how dangerous Davidson is to us, you were more dangerous," Prue explained.
Cole protested, "Wait a minute, I think that I proved myself to you…"
"That's not what mom meant," said Buffy. "You're a part of our lives now. You know almost everything about us. Think for a second. What would be the best way to get at mom, right now."
"Right now," said Cole as he looked at Buffy and Dawn. "Going after the two of you would be the best way to get at Prue."
"Exactly," said Dawn. "And as a result…"
"The seekers could use what I know to destroy all of you," he finished. Almost inaudibly, voice pitched so that only Phoebe and the two Slayers could hear him, he added, "I'm sorry."
Phoebe smiled. "I know."
"I better check with the Elders, this is getting complicated," Leo said. They watched as he disappeared in a swirl of bright lights. Naturally, Davidson woke up just in time to see another magical movement.
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
"Sitting in a car for 8 hours is just as bad as waiting for a vamp to rise," Buffy had told her sister. Everyone had been taking turns keeping an eye on Davidson. Currently it was Dawn and Buffy's shift and currently they were observing the funeral of Davidson's partner, which Davidson himself was attending. Everyone had been unable to stop him from leaving the manor without leaving a few of their own morals behind. Besides, people would have come looking for him. Letting him go had made everyone nervous, but they figured he wouldn't tell anyone about his experiences—yet—because he figured no one would believe him.
Right now, Dawn was on the phone with Piper, who was telling her about Prue's prolonged absence. Prue had left right after they had, and she should have been back by now.
"Any sign of the demons?" asked Piper.
"No, not yet, Aunt Piper," answered Dawn. "Though Davidson is currently attending his partner's funeral."
"Well yours and Buffy's shift is almost up," said Piper. "Faith, Phoebe and I will be waiting for your portal in an hour."
"Okay, Aunt Piper. See you then." Dawn hung up.
"Dawn," said Buffy as she suddenly pointed and they watched the two seekers walk up to the helpless man. Climbing out of the Buffy's car, they watched as Davidson remained dignified and followed the two murderers away from the funeral. He had to know that he was walking to his own execution; he must have wanted to spare everyone else the agony.
Moving quickly, Buffy and Dawn followed the trio to a church. When they tried to get in, they couldn't. The door was jammed. They worked on the door.
Dawn tried portaling inside and found for some reason she was unable to open a portal. She tried opening one to the Manor and found there she had no problem. She got Faith, Piper and Phoebe.
Faith and Buffy worked on the door as gunshots rang out inside while Davidson opened fire on his attackers. The bullets passed harmlessly through one of the seekers. The two seekers approached him, looking like hunters closing in on their hapless prey. There was nothing they could do.
At least, that was what they thought until Prue materialized on the other side of the door without warning. The scene in the church played out exactly as Phoebe had seen in her vision. The seeker sank his fangs into the Davidson's brain stem, killing him instantly, and Prue turned away, unable to watch. Just like Phoebe had seen, her sister did nothing to stop the murder that occurred right in front of her.
Satisfied, the seekers disappeared, and Prue did nothing to stop them.
At that moment, the object that was blocking their entry finally gave way. Buffy and Faith rushed in. Davidson's prone form was lying on the floor, never to rise again. And Prue…Prue was just standing there, looking sorrowful and defeated.
"Are you okay?" Faith asked.
Prue wouldn't look at either Buffy or Faith. "I don't know."
"Did the demons do something to you?" Buffy wondered.
"No."
"How did you get in there?" Phoebe asked. It hadn't looked like she had astralled in.
"Death brought me."
"I'm sorry," Phoebe said quietly. She knew how much Prue hated Death.
"You know, I don't completely understand it myself," Prue began. And she didn't. She didn't understand why, after having watched an innocent man die, she…wasn't as angry at Death as she had been over the last 23 years.
"Prue, how can you stand there and let him die?" Piper wanted to know, slightly aghast.
"Because it was his time, alright," Prue snapped. "I wanted to save him but I couldn't."
"You didn't even try," Piper accused.
"Okay, Aunt Piper, Aunt Phoebe," said Dawn as she watched as her mother knelt down beside the fallen man and began to cry. "Enough."
"I'm sorry," Prue whispered, tears dripping down her face. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Buffy and Dawn glanced at each other and stepped forward and pulled their mother away from the body and the crime scene. They couldn't be spotted here; there was nothing they could do, so they needed to go home.
"Okay, Faith," said Buffy as she handed her girlfriend her car keys, "drive my car home. Dawn, a portal if you please. We need to get back to the Manor quick, Cole is going to be in trouble."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
The seekers appeared right in front of Cole, who quirked an eyebrow. "Ever hear of a doorbell?"
The first seeker quipped, "We thought we'd surprise you." And then they jumped him.
Cole barely even noticed it when the fight moved into the living room. Not caring what Piper would think, he smashed an antique lamp over one of the seekers' heads, sending the demon crashing into a table. The other seeker, however, was still up and running—right at Cole, who threw him off when the seeker's fangs got a little too close for comfort. The energy ball he fired went astray, and destroyed a fixture instead. Undaunted, the seeker once again lunged at his prey. This time, they were the ones who crashed into a table. Cole heard, rather than felt, his head hitting the wood, and the world around him went black.
Those moments he spent fighting would have been his last moments on Earth if his saviors hadn't stepped out of Dawn's portal. Buffy and Prue leapt into the fray while Dawn, Phoebe and Piper went to Cole. Thankfully, his loss of consciousness was only momentary, Phoebe and Piper began pulling the dazed man to his feet.
"Okay, come on, come on," Piper urged, and Cole slowly gained his feet and watched the scene before him.
"Cole," Phoebe breathed.
"I'm fine," he assured her. Reassured, Phoebe went to stand beside Piper. Realizing what they were about to do, Cole turned towards mother and daughter, who were still beating the hell out of their opponents. "Prue, Buffy," he called as they looked at him. He gestured to her Piper and Phoebe. "Don't."
Prue needed no other encouragement. She joined her sisters as Buffy joined Dawn.
Phoebe pulled out the spell, and the Charmed Ones gathered close, chanting, "Knowledge gained by murderous means, is wisdom's bitter enemy. The mind that burns with stolen fire, will now become your funeral pyre!"
All six watched in relief and grim satisfaction as their enemy was engulfed in flames. Once they had fully disappeared, Phoebe wasted no time in going back over to Cole. She drew his face down to hers and kissed him soundly. Cole gladly and fervently returned the gesture. They were safe. She was safe, and that was all that mattered to him.
Prue surveyed the burn marks on the floor, and looked back at Phoebe and Cole. "Well, at least we saved one," she commented softly.
Astounded and overjoyed, Phoebe pulled back slightly. Cole looked at her, equally shocked and a little bit proud of himself. "Wow, did you hear that?" Phoebe breathed. "You just reached innocent status."
'Not quite,' Cole thought. He had done too many evil things in his life to ever be one of their innocents. But it was close enough. Cole knew he had hit an important milestone, in bridging the gap between himself and his lover's oldest sister and in joining her family. For that, he was happy.
They didn't kiss again, but the couple did not separate even when Leo arrived and explained why he had not been able to help them and why Dawn had not been able to portal inside the church. Prue had needed to learn the lesson by herself, he revealed. And she had learned it. The hard way.
Prue excused herself, likely to think about everything that had just happened.
March 26, 2002
Late the next morning, Prue crept into the house, not wanting to disturb anyone. Piper and Buffy's cars were gone but Dawn, Faith, Phoebe or Leo or even Cole might be there. The day after a tough vanquish was usually spent catching up on z's, and she wanted to begrudge no one that particular gift. Prue, herself, though, had not partaken in it. She had spent her morning at the beach, a place she had once hated, talking to a being she had once hated. Death was not evil, she knew that now, she just…didn't know what to think. He had finally made her do what no one else had ever done: cry over her mother's death. It had not felt good. But Prue knew she had needed it. Now she needed a glass of water before she moved on to her other plans for the day.
"Morning, Mom."
Prue jumped as she entered the kitchen. Buffy and Dawn were there, and they appeared to be alone.
"Hey," she returned awkwardly. "Um, how's Cole?"
"No idea," said Dawn. "He and Aunt Phoebe aren't home. It's just the three of us."
"Hey are you two doing anything today?" asked Prue.
"I was thinking about doing something today," said Buffy. "But I think I might need my mom and my sister's opinion on it."
"And what is that?" asked Prue.
"Proposing to Faith," said Buffy as she smiled. "I was going to go get the ring, if you two would like to join me in picking it out."
0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0
That evening Buffy rushed into P3, her eyes darting back and forth through the tables searching for Faith. 'I can't believe I'm late. Goddess, where is she?' she thought. Spotting Prue and Piper getting up from the table in the owner's alcove she finally spotted Faith. She smiled, walking over to Faith and sitting down at the table. "Sorry I'm late, baby. The meeting at the Gallery ran later then I thought it would." Buffy said leaning in and kissing Faith softly on the lips.
"Ms. Buffy, can I get you anything?"
Buffy turned and saw one of Piper's waitresses standing there.
"Whatever Faith's having." Buffy said while never breaking eye contact with the beautiful brunette.
The waitress walked away mumbling something about being right back with her drink. Neither girl noticed, they were to wrapped up in each other.
Five minutes later they were both jolted out of their thoughts. "Ladies and gentlemen," Piper said from the stage. "I'm sorry to interrupt you all, but tonight's is a very special one. Two of my employees are celebrating their sixth year together." Piper walked over to the two women, who blush profoundly as people began to clap. "And as a special gift to every tonight, my niece—Buffy—has agreed to bless us with a song. Buffy?" She reached her hand out as Buffy stood and walked over to her aunt. Handing over the microphone, Piper stepped off the stage, taking a seat at the bar.
"I would like to," Buffy said, "dedicate this song to my beautiful girlfriend Faith Lehane, who I love more than words themselves." She finished looking into Faith's eyes.
The music started up slowly. Buffy started to sing.
For all those times you stood by me,
For all the truth that you made me see.
For all the joy you brought to my life,
For all the wrong that you made right,
For every dream you made come true,
For all the love I found in you.
I'll be forever thankful baby,
You're the one who held me up,
Never let me fall,
You're the one who saw me through it all.
Faith looked at Buffy surprised. She sat there in awe of how beautiful her girlfriend's voice really was.
You were my strength when I was weak,
You were my voice when I couldn't speak,
You were my eyes when I couldn't see,
You saw the best there was in me.
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach,
You gave me faith because you believed,
I'm everything I am,
Because you loved me.
Buffy moving off the stage, walked through the crowd slowly, never taking her eyes off Faith.
You gave me wings and made me fly,
You touched my hand I could touch the sky,
I lost my faith; you gave it back to me.
You said no star was out of reach,
You stood by me and I stood tall,
I had your love I had it all.
Im grateful for each day you gave me,
Maybe I dont know that much,
But I know this much is true,
I was blessed because I was loved by you.
Reaching Faith, Buffy knelt before her, kissing Faith's fingers.
You were my strength when I was weak,
You were my voice when I couldn't speak.
You were my eyes when I couldn't see,
You saw the best there was in me,
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach,
You gave me faith coz you believed.
I'm everything I am,
Because you loved me,
You were always there for me,
The tender wind that carried me.
A light in the dark shining your love into my life,
Youve been my inspiration,
Through the lies you were the truth,
My world is a better place because of you.
"I love you." Buffy mouthed to Faith, giving her the biggest smile, she could muster.
You were my strength when I was weak,
You were my voice when I couldn't speak,
You were my eyes when I couldn't see,
You saw the best there was in me.
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach,
You gave me faith coz you believed,
I'm everything I am,
Because you loved me.
Buffy gently urged Faith to stand up with her, taking Faith's hands in her own.
You were my strength when I was weak,
You were my voice when I couldn't speak,
You were my eyes when I couldn't see,
You saw the best there was in me.
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach,
You gave me faith coz you believed,
I'm everything I am,
Because you loved me.
Buffy lightly brushed her lips against Faith's.
I'm everything I am,
Because you loved me.
Finishing the song strong, Buffy stood right in front of Faith. 'It's now or never,' Buffy thought getting down on one knee and pulling the ring out of her pocket.
"Faith, my love, my light, my soul," Buffy stopped, looking straight into Faith's eyes. "Will you marry me?" She asked holding the ring out to Faith, waiting for an answer.
The whole club was quiet, waiting for Faith's answer.
Looking deep into Buffy's eyes, "Yes," Faith answered.
The club erupted in cheers, none louder than that of Piper, Phoebe, Prue, Cole, Leo and Dawn, as Buffy kissed Faith passionately. Breaking apart, Buffy slipped the ring onto Faith's finger, then kissed her again.