Takes place between S0404-S0405 - "Enter the Demon" and "Size Matters" (2001)
A Halliwell Halloween
Halloween at dusk was cool and windy, with gray clouds scuttling over the pale moon. The manor was aglow with soft candlelight, decorated with cobwebs, bats, ghosts and jack o'lanterns featuring the questionable carving skills of the three girls, Leo, and Cole. Leo had attacked the task with an almost child-like gusto, while Cole had tried to modify an energy ball into a laser beam to make the carving go more quickly. After several exploded pumpkins and somewhat derisive comments from Leo, he'd conceded defeat and carved a pumpkin in the same tried-and-true manner as the others. The results of their labor sat casting a orange glow over the front porch where Piper and Leo stood.
"Feels great out here, doesn't it?" said Leo idly, and Piper nodded, content.
"Leo, are we doing Paige any favors by leaving her with them?" She pointed inside the front door where a costumed Phoebe and Cole stood at the bottom of the stairs. Piper smirked and added, "Come to think about it, are we doing Cole and Phoebe any favors by leaving them with her?" She grinned in their direction. "They look great, don't they?"
Leo peered inside and smiled. Cole was dressed as a pirate and Phoebe as a sleek black cat.
"But seriously," Piper said, "I think maybe she gets irritated around them, the way they've been hanging all over each other lately. Or am I worried over nothing?"
"Honey," Leo said, "Paige is part of the family now, and I think she just needs to get used to us. Besides, she said she wanted to go to the party."
"You don't think maybe we should go with them to, uh…what's Phoebe's friend's name?"
"Charmaine?"
"Yeah, I think that's it - the girl that she used to hang around with in her psych class - should we go, too? Make sure she doesn't feel left out?"
"Piper, Paige makes herself at home wherever she goes. Besides, maybe I'm being selfish, but I really, really like the idea of spending a few hours alone with my wife. Spending time with her sister shouldn't be an ordeal. Although with Cole, I can almost see why you worry."
Piper lowered her head and shot him a look. Paige came from the kitchen, and Piper grabbed Leo's arm as if urging him to look. "Quite a costume," Piper said, raising an eyebrow. Leo turned to see Paige dressed in devil red complete with horns, tail, black hose and heels. He exchanged glances with Piper, missing Paige's brief, crest-fallen expression as she looked over at Phoebe and Cole.
Paige turned her back on them, feeling lonesome and strangely melancholy. Her last boyfriend, Shane, had written her off after a little adventure during which his body was taken over by the Source in an attempt to turn Paige into an evil witch. He didn't know exactly what had happened to him, but he sure as hell knew that it had involved Paige, which resulted in the big kiss-off of yours truly.
On top of that, as happy as she was that she'd found her sisters and as excited as she was by the thought of kicking some demon ass, she knew she had a long way to go before being fully accepted by them. Piper, especially, regarded her with suspicion -she wasn't ready to deal with her as a sister, and resented what she subconsciously saw as Paige "replacing" Prue. For her part, Paige resented being the token third witch, the one they needed but didn't necessarily want. Still … she'd never tell this to anyone, but she wanted to belong. For once in her life.
And damn it, even knowing full well that she was being impatient, things were not going to be strictly on their terms.
Earlier that afternoon, Phoebe had taken a nap, Cole lying beside her, watching her and thinking. The years had taught him to be guarded, never revealing more than needed, deflecting curiosity about himself with anger and arrogance or with humor when the occasion called for it. But Phoebe … a small smile crossed his lips. Phoebe had him, all of him, knew his wants and needs, knew his deepest desires and the rages he fought because of his demonic blood. Once she'd had decided they were meant to be together she'd never flinched from her conviction, convinced they could stand against anything or anyone.
He wished he could be that confident. Not that he doubted Phoebe or her feelings. He just doubted their ability to stay alive with the Source around.
Breaking into his reverie, Phoebe made a small moaning sound in her throat. She tossed restlessly. "Prue … no, no, I won't let you die this time. Get away from her!"
Cole brushed her hair gently away from her face. "Phoebe, honey, it's a dream. Wake up," he whispered in her ear.
Her eyes flew open, momentarily uncomprehending. "Cole?"
"Shh, it's okay now," he said, smiling at her. She stared at him a moment longer, then relaxed. "You're dreaming about Prue?" he questioned.
"I've been dreaming of her for weeks. Of her dying."
"Sweetheart, you know nothing can hurt her now," he said.
"I hope you're right. It's weird. It's like she's with a friend, but I've never seen him before. Something happens between them. It's all kind of vague, but it's like he has something to do with her death."
"She's with your mother and your grandmother now. Listen to me, you know that, don't you? As soon as she can she'll come to you, and you'll see that she's okay."
"Yeah, I know," she whispered, turning over. She touched his chest and smiled. "I'm all right. You're with me."
"Forever, if you'll let me be," he said.
"Oh, you're not going anywhere, mister," she replied. He ran his hand through her hair and tugged it lightly, pulling her closer for a kiss.
From within the car, Cole, Phoebe and Paige gazed up at the house where the party was being held. A sprawling mansion with large white columns was dimly lit, spread with glowing cobwebs and black spiders. Two lines of sidewalk lights brightened their path up to the verandah. "Your friend must be loaded," said Paige.
"She's not hurting, that's for sure," agreed Phoebe. "Come on, I want to introduce you two to Charmaine. She's a lot of fun." They stepped out, shutting the car doors. Looking up into the crowd just inside the house, Paige caught sight of a tall man with pale eyes staring at her an instant before the crowd blocked him from view. She couldn't find him again.
The threesome crowded into the doorway and were greeted enthusiastically by the hostess. Phoebe made introductions. "Charmaine, this is my little sister, Paige." A young woman dressed as Lillian Munster smiled at Paige, but her expression turned puzzled.
"Not to be rude, Pheebs, but I didn't realize you had a younger sister."
"It's a long story, Charmaine, I'll tell you later. And this is Cole, my boyfriend." Charmaine looked Cole up and down with great interest. Cole wiggled an eyebrow at her, and she giggled.
Oh my, Phoebe. Where do you shop, girl?"
Phoebe opened her mouth in pretended protest, looking pleased. Paige rolled her eyes and excused herself from the group, strolling off through the crowd of party-goers. She hesitated a second at the bar, then moved towards a window and looked outside.
"Hi," a male voice with a British accent greeted Paige. She turned and saw the tall man with icy blue-gray eyes she'd seen earlier looking down at her. He smiled politely. "I'm David. Sorry if I startled you."
"Oh, no," she said. "It's just—pleased to meet you. I'm Paige."
"Hi, Paige. How do you know Charmaine?"
"Oh, I don't, not really. She's a college friend of my … sister's, uh, Phoebe."
"Phoebe? I don't believe I know her, either. Oh well, the important thing is knowing you—or getting to know you, I hope?" David smiled a charming smile that warmed his pale, icy eyes.
Hell-o there, maybe tonight isn't going to be so bad after all. Paige eyed the good-looking guy in front of her. As if sensing her thoughts, he flashed another quick smile at her.
"You look beautiful, Paige. What made you decide to dress as a devil?"
He sounded almost mocking, his eyes narrowing. She hesitated, and the look was gone. She decided she'd imagined it. "Don't you like devils?" she said softly, leaning closer into him and lifting her face to his. His startling blue-gray eyes gazed into hers, focusing the whole of his being upon Paige, leaving her a little flustered. The room was crowded, yet she felt as though they were alone—not an unpleasant feeling. She felt warmth and an exhilaration so strongly that it startled her. Stop acting like an adolescent, she thought, and then suddenly his lips brushed hers, light and quick, so that she almost thought she imagined it. Her heart thudded in her chest. Amazed at his behavior and her response to him, she stepped back and stared in his eyes, no longer cold but knowing. I should turn around and leave, she thought.
"I'm really sorry," he said. "I don't know quite why I did that—well, I know why, believe me—but it was unbelievably rude. I hope you'll accept my apology. I got caught up in … possibilities," he said, flashing that smile at her again. Surprising herself, Paige stumbled back a step, unnerved. He advanced upon her again, and as she tensed, a faint, bemused trace of a smile showed on his face. She stared at his generous, full-lipped mouth and then tore her eyes away.
For God's sake! Act like an adult! Aloud she said, "I ought to be angry with you, but—just slow down, all right? I don't know anything about you."
"If I have anything to say about it, you will know me," he said, "that is, if you want to."
Their eyes locked again, and then she turned, breaking contact. "Listen, I need to go to the restroom," she said, knowing it sounded like what it was—an excuse to step back.
He nodded. "And I need to make a phone call. After that, maybe we can start again. Is that all right?" He reached down to brush her dark hair from her shoulder.
"Sure, sure," she said, and stepped away from him. She took a few steps further and then halted, looking back over her shoulder. She sighed a huge sigh of relief and felt a pang of regret, all at the same time. Boy, this is confusing. She shrugged and headed towards the restroom. She felt light-headed, foolishly happy and suddenly, completely relaxed. She stopped short again. I feel like I've been drinking, she thought, and tensed immediately. As a recovering alcoholic, she knew how dangerous one drink could be to her sobriety, but of course, she was being ridiculous. She hadn't had anything.
She caught sight of Phoebe and Cole across the room and headed towards them, relieved. Maybe a few minutes spent with them would give her a reality check. Yeah right, nothing like spending a little time with a witch and a demon to get grounded.
"Hey, Paige," said Phoebe, giving her a warm smile and a pat on the back. "I'm sorry, I should have introduced you around instead of abandoning you. Oh yeah, that's right, you abandoned us first."
"Yeah, er-that's okay. I've already met a few interesting people."
"Well, you seem to be in a better mood, anyway. What have you—ah hah, you've met a guy!" Phoebe crowed.
Paige looked indignantly at her. "Don't be ridiculous, I don't need a man to put me in a better mood."
"Oh ho, I'm right!" laughed Phoebe. "So where's the lucky guy?"
Cole made a rude noise, and Paige raised a brow at him. "Well, he had to make a phone call, and he does seem nice, but I've only just met him."
Cole seemed amused. And why isn't he getting under my skin?
Lately, Cole had a way of looking at her that, depending on her mood, either made her nervous or pissed her off. It was a calculating look that seemed to evaluate her and find her lacking. Ever since she'd inadvertently cast the spell that caused her and Pheebs to switch bodies, she had the idea that he looked at her purely in terms of what she could do to help or hinder Phoebe, and that she definitely fell short in his book. As a result, she was forever saying obnoxious things whenever he was around.
The funny thing was that at this moment she could understand a little of what he felt. After all, she was new at being a witch, and God knows that he had no patience at all, but she didn't think it was anything personal. Cole was single-minded when it came to Phoebe. Surprising herself again, Paige smiled up at him.
"What a good mood we're in all of a sudden," Cole remarked, his mouth turning up quizzically to one side. Unbidden, the memory of their training session when she'd swapped bodies with Phoebe flashed through her mind. She saw his broad shoulders and chest, glistening with sweat, muscles flexed as he moved to strike. He was so poised, so serious. She remembered how he spoke sharply to her/Phoebe, urging her to keep strong, to keep trying, to even the odds against the Source.
Phoebe was saying something, but Paige wasn't paying attention. Far off, she heard her own thoughts. It should have alarmed her, but she didn't much care. She was happy. Free. She licked her lips. Uninhibited.
Phoebe grabbed her arms. "Paige, what is with you?" she yelled.
Paige blurted out, "Boy, it's hot in here," just as Cole's pirate shirt faded into white, luminescent points of shimmering light and reappeared almost instantly in her hands. Paige shrieked, startled, then burst into loud giggles.
Cole's quizzical look turned disconcerted as he spread his arms out, peering at his own naked chest. He looked irritated and a second later, mildly amused. Phoebe's eyes grew huge and then darted around the room to look at the people all around them, drawn by Paige's loud exclamation and staring at the shirtless Cole. Cole looked taken aback at his audience, then smirked as he grabbed his shirt from Paige's hands.
"Uh … hey … what a trick, Paige," said Phoebe. "Instead of the pirate ravishing the maiden, we have the, uh, maiden ravishing the pirate! Uh, put your shirt back on, sweetie, joke's over, okay?" She said to Cole. She glared at Paige. "You have an explanation you want to give me?"
Paige found it hard to stop giggling but finally grinned shame-faced at Phoebe and flat-out lied. "I'm sorry, I was just thinking about David."
"David?"
"Yeah—the guy I just met? I guess I need to practice controlling my powers a little more, huh?"
Phoebe's look turned speculative and teasing. 'That's not all you need to work on controlling, but, yeah, work on that or you'll have the guy stripped naked before the end of the night. Uh, no, not—that didn't come out exactly right."
Paige giggled again. "I'll be careful to think pure thoughts, okay?" She winked at Phoebe. "And now I'm just gonna go look for, er, someone."
Cole said, "Just be careful. The Source is clever—this guy could be one of his henchmen for all you know."
Paige looked startled. "No, not David. He's just a guy I met, okay?"
She walked off in search of him, scanning the crowd casually, not wanting to seem obvious. When she bumped into him a few minutes later, she had the uneasy suspicion that he'd been watching her.
"Hello!" he said, smiling down at her and touching her arm. "Are you ready to take up where we left off?"
"Well not exactly where we left off."
He looked chagrined. "It's a warm night outside—would you like to join me?" He held out his arm.
She walked with him out to an elegant gazebo on the deserted back lawn. The air was balmy for this time of year, and the pale moon glowed coldly here and there through dark, swiftly-moving clouds far above. They sat down on a bench inside the gazebo, silent. David watched her with a friendly, open look. He reached out as though to hold her hand, then withdrew.
Impulsively, Paige touched his arm, and then he did grasp her hand in his own. He looked up at the moon. Paige looked at the way the dim light played over his face, highlighting his hair and eyes, and a shiver ran through her. What is it about this guy? I don't know him but I feel comfortable with him. I'm not being the least bit cautious.
Unbidden, a thought popped into her mind. You should.
She shivered, then pushed the thought aside. The truth was she just didn't care. She wasn't scared. She felt—liberated. "So we might as well start somewhere. What do you do for a living?"
He smiled at her and said, "I write books. Mysteries, some horror."
"Are you any good?" she asked him teasingly.
He leaned closer and said, "I'm tremendously good, ask any of the three people who've ever read my work and they'll say just that," and Paige laughed. He smiled back. "What do you do, Paige—?"
"Matthews."
"What do you do, Paige Matthews?"
"I'm a wanna be social worker, soon to be, hopefully," she said, adding mentally, and a neophyte practitioner of white magic.
He looked perplexed for a moment, almost as though he'd heard her thought. "Well, Paige Matthews, I'm David Stratford, I'm 28 years old, and I've been here in the States for about three years now, practicing my craft," to which she blanched before recovering. He raised a questioning eyebrow to her, then said, "Tell me more about yourself."
She found herself telling him all about having found her sisters and Prue's death, minus the magical details.
He listened attentively and said, "So you've suddenly got an extended family. That must be nice, after having felt alone for so long." She wanted to ask him how he knew that, but then he said, "I've been alone for quite some time now, and while I love it here in San Francisco, I miss my family. I get tired of having dinner alone and going to bed alone."
He ran a finger under her chin until she looked directly into his eyes. His lips touched hers and she leaned into him, kissing him back languorously. She hadn't been drinking, but it felt as if she had—his lips devoured hers, warm and wet. He kissed her she couldn't think, until all she knew for certain was that she wanted to be with him.
Inside the mansion, Phoebe was talking with Charmaine while Cole sat on a couch nearby, mumbling at himself, bored to tears. "Hi, I'm Cole, a 142 year-old demon and this is my witch girlfriend and her sister witches. We blew up one bad guy before breakfast and burned up another one before lunch—what's that? You failed your calculus test? Well, I can certainly relate to that." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Phoebe gasp and drop her glass, falling suddenly to her knees.
Phoebe had been listening to Charmaine gush about a new clothing store and thinking about how she'd like to check it out when suddenly the world dimmed out, the dream with Prue replacing everything before her.
Prue was with—was it Andy? Phoebe's heart pounded. She bent over and grabbed her head.
"Oh God, what's he doing, he's hurting her—stop it!" Phoebe cried, and fell to her knees.
Charmaine knelt beside her, saying, "Phoebe, are you okay?" Cole rushed to Phoebe's side.
"I'm sorry, I—I'll be okay, Charmaine." She reached blindly for Cole, leaned close and whispered frantically into his ear. "Cole, it was Prue—he killed her, and I couldn't stop it." Her voice broke.
Cole cradled her in his arms. "Phoebe, listen to me carefully. Is this a premonition?"
"It's about Prue, how can it be?" Phoebe said. She wiped her eyes and stood up. Looking up at the people who were again watching herself and Cole, she attempted a weak smile, but she couldn't stop the dream playing over in her head again and wondering if Prue were somehow being hurt. She didn't know what to do, didn't know how she could even find out if Prue was in some sort of danger in the afterlife. And then as if in answer she saw Prue standing in front of her, as clear as if she were still alive.
She reached for Prue, but her sister stopped her, speaking in an urgent tone. "No time, Pheebs. I'm okay, I promise, but it's not about me, all right? It's—" and then she was gone, simply vanished, her connection to her sister suddenly cut off.
Phoebe's heart lurched in her chest, and suddenly she knew.
"It's Paige," Phoebe said tightly. She jumped from Cole's arms and ran down the hall, searching.
With each kiss, Paige felt herself sinking deeper. His lips worked over hers and then trailed down her neck. He scraped his teeth over her skin, then bit down lightly. She moaned, pushing herself closer to him.
David drew back to look at her, eyes gleaming, breath ragged. He smiled at her and whispered, "It's okay. I feel the same way. I know it's corny—even ridiculous—no, I mean—God, I'm sorry. I mean I've never met anyone who's made me feel this way."
Paige looked into his eyes, puzzled. Something strange was happening, was changing between them even as David spoke. It was if they'd been under a spell. His smile faded. A long, silent moment passed as David watched her, unsmiling, and Paige realized she was holding her breath.
It's not him anymore. She tried to shake it off, feeling ridiculous, but the tension inside her grew worse. I'm in danger. She couldn't move. She stared at him, trapped, as warm eyes turned cold, pale, and deadly.
"Did you think, even for one second, that tonight would be the night you'd meet your fate?" He pressed his lips against hers softly, then trailed down over her throat, biting at the join of shoulder and throat. It hurt. The hand that had touched her so gently tightened around her neck.
She had known something. She'd felt something. The instant attraction, the fact that she'd ignored the warning signs. Played with fire. Now it was time to get burned.
She tried moving again. She had no control over her body. Astonished, she felt tears slide down her face. She felt so vulnerable and helpless, completely under his control, and she hated it.
He pulled back, startled, and she saw a look of puzzlement flash across his face. He touched his cheek to hers again, deliberately, fingers rising to rub the wetness from her face. His breath slowed, and he put his forehead against hers. "I'm so damned sorry. I shouldn't have even—I'm sorry, Paige."
The back door opened and the warm glow of the house shone through the open door for an instant as Cole and Phoebe barreled out of the house and ran toward the gazebo.
"Let her go, you bastard!" shouted Phoebe.
Cole, who had started out the back door before Phoebe and was slightly in the lead, yelled, "Get away from her now!" He unleashed a fireball that sailed by Paige past where David had been, exploding in a burst of light over the lawn.
But David had disappeared.
Paige sat on the couch at the Halliwell manor, sipping hot tea that Piper had insisted she drink and wishing for a massive swig of alcohol. She was dazed and not at all sure of just what the hell had happened earlier. Phoebe and Piper sat on either side of her, questioning her. She was tired and groggy, but still it was sweet being fussed over this way. It was a new experience and one that she may not have tolerated, actually, before now. But tonight had twisted her up inside, leaving her confused and vulnerable, and she hated those feelings.
Where was her control, her strength, her ability to think on her feet? She had lost herself out there on the gazebo with David.
Phoebe was saying, "I know we said that you're not one of us until you've dated a demon, but this is ridiculous! First of all, that wasn't even a date, unless that's what you call a couple of hot hours with a guy—okay, maybe it was. What the heck was he, anyway - a demon, a warlock, a guy with a bad attitude?"
Paige opened her mouth to reply, but Phoebe rushed on, talking to Piper this time. "Listen, okay, I know I should have told you about this before—" Phoebe sneaked a look at Piper. Paige rolled her eyes and sipped her tea.
"Can we just focus a little? Paige was in danger tonight—" Piper gave Phoebe a second look, frowning. "I thought you told me no more secrets after the Cole business."
"I know, but Piper, I didn't want to upset you, okay? I've been having dreams about Prue. I think she sent me the dream and hoped I would see it for what it was—a warning. But I didn't, I thought it was just something my subconscious had to work out. Tonight I finally understood in time for Cole to stop David, or whoever, whatever, he was."
"What makes you think that Prue did this? I've had dreams about her, too."
"Cole asked me if it was a premonition because I was awake when it happened this time. Even then I didn't understand the warning because I thought it was about Prue, and I didn't know how I could help her. I was taking it too literally."
"So what are you saying?" Piper asked, her voice quiet.
"Prue came to me tonight against their wishes." She pointed heavenwards. "Because it was important. Paige was in trouble." She tried to smile. "You know how stubborn Prue is, Piper. She appeared before me, just for a moment, and then she disappeared. But it was long enough."
Piper's eyes watered. "That's our sister. Still trying to take care of us." Her voice wavered. "And now you too, Paige." She smiled at her youngest sister. "If that's not a seal of approval, I don't know what is."
"Paige, I have to ask you this," Phoebe said. "When I saw you, it didn't look like you were fighting him. Why didn't you at least try to kick his ass, or orb out—something?"
"I did try," Paige said indignantly. "I just—it didn't help. I couldn't move. This is going to sound weird, but hey, we're the queens of weird, right? Right after I met him, I began to feel like I was drunk, or high—just, uh, kind of carefree, liberated. Something."
"Horny," Phoebe supplied, nodding.
"Do you mind?" Paige slapped Phoebe's shoulder.
"Ouch!" Phoebe leaned away.
"It wasn't like that. It's—it's like he was there, and then he changed. I don't know." But it's true you didn't want to leave him. You ignored every warning your instincts gave you. That was something she couldn't make herself tell them. Not tonight. "But just before you two got to me," Paige said, nodding toward Phoebe, "he'd threatened me, told me that I wouldn't live to see tomorrow, basically. He held me by the throat and he looked at me, and I—he seemed to come out of it, somehow, to go back to being … normal, I guess. He said he was sorry."
"Sorry. Just great," Piper scoffed.
"He said something else, too."
"Well?" Phoebe looked impatient.
"He said, 'Be careful, Paige. I don't think I can stop myself from seeing you again.' And then he was gone."
"He was gone? What does that mean—did he explode, burn up, what? I mean, Cole hit him with a fireball, right?" Piper asked.
Paige shrugged. "He vanished. I know I should know what happened, I was there, but I was pretty out of it. Everything was like a dream. But there are two things I'm very clear on. One, and I don't know how I know this, but I do—he left on his own power, somehow. Cole didn't even touch him with the fireball. Two—" Paige swallowed.
Piper and Phoebe exchanged looks.
"He's coming back for me." Paige made eye contact with both her sisters. "And I don't even begin to know how to fight him. Or if I can."