Okay, firstly, I want to say sorry for this taking so long. I hope the length of time between chapters hasn't put anyone off, but I've been having some MORE problems with my comp lately. I'm trying to overcome this, and hope to get them written and posted quicker in the future.

Secondly, I'd like to apologise for the state of the last chapter posted. I re-read it after posting, and was mortified at the amount of spelling mistakes, and the fact that I even referred to Xium as Dasmar at one point. I must have put the rough version up, instead of the corrected version. I'll make the effort not to make a simliar mistake in the future, as it was probably very confusing.

As for 'When Animals Invade,' (see chapter) I admit, I took inspiration from real life. A similiar programme was on tv when I wrote this, and I couldn't resist G.

And finally, to all UK Charmed fans that recieve the LivingTV channel.....season three is airing, at 8pm on Thursdays. Enjoy : )


*****
******
*******

The latest round of laughter at the Halliwell house died out slowly, smiles still remaining on the three relaxed faces that were gathered around the dinner table.

"That was lovely, Prue, Piper," Leo praised. "Thank you."

"Yeah, even I thought it was good, and I was under the impression that all of the culinary talents in this family had gone to Piper," Prue joked.

"Yeah, and since we know you can cook now, don't think you're gettin' out of doing it again at some point in the future," Piper warned, enjoying the way Prue's blue eyes seemed to brighten at the gentle teasing.

"Well, since you two lovely ladies slaved over a hot stove, I think I should be the one to do the dishes," Leo offered.

"I won't argue with that," his wife smiled. "And Prue, again....congratulations on your latest assignment. I hope it works out as well as you want."

"Me too," Prue agreed.

He could practically feel the relaxed vibes that were surrounding his two charges, and Leo glanced between the two, trying to decide whether or not to clue them in to his news from the Elders.

Soon, he promised himself.

"Well, I'd better get started on dish duty," he announced instead, sighing heavily as he stood to gather up the used plates.

"Yeah, have fun, honey," Piper grinned, linking arms with Prue as the two sisters moved in to the living room.

"Yeah, yeah," Leo grumbled, playing the situation for all it was worth.

"Try not to strain anything, Leo!" Prue called over her shoulder, laughing as the women disappeared from view.

Definitely later.

*****
******
*******

Shimmering into the same cemetery he'd met the Halliwell's in the other night, Cole looked around him. He'd continued to follow the routine he'd begun when he'd taken himself on the run. Randomly shimmering around, dimension to dimension, finally ending up in a graveyard, before walking cautiously to wherever he was staying.

Seeing no one around, he pulled his heavy coat around him, trying to keep in the heat that seemed to be intent on seeping from his body ever since his encounter with Dasmar, and went on his way. A quick stop at his place to clean up his wound,and then onto the Halliwell house. And as he began to walk, he found himself strangely anticipating the visit.

*****
******
*******

With exaggerated slowness, Xium drew the blade across his newest initiates hand, his teeth baring as the demons life blood welled up, before running across the palm and into the bowl held suspended underneath.

"So I have stated.....so it will be," he growled.

"So He has stated, so will it be," the initiate repeated dutifully
.
Drawing back slowly, the demon gave a nod to his master, before his body started smoking, his form becoming insubstantial, finally disappearing.

And as the demon left, Xium's frightening features stretched into a pleased expression. "So it will be," he rasped. "So it will."


*****
******
*******

~

"Wow, who knew monkeys could cause so much trouble," Phoebe mused idly.

"What?" Prue asked, Phoebe's comment distracting her from the magazine she was reading.

"Look," Phoebe instructed, pointing towards the television.

Giving up her reading for a moment, Prue obediently turned her attention to the television, frowning as she caught the slogan plastered onto the corner of the screen.

"'When Animals Invade'.... Phoebe, what on earth are you watching?"

"I think you just answered your own question there, Prue," Piper said quietly, smiling when Prue rolled her eyes.

"Alright, let me rephrase that slightly. Why are you watching this?"

"I'm not," Phoebe protested, defending her viewing taste. "I was channel surfing when I saw the monkey, and after our recent run in with said species, I was curious. Did you know they have all sorts of diseases?!"

Piper found herself getting drawn into the conversation. "Not all of them, surely. Besides, our little astral-magic monkeys didn't have any diseases....did they?"

"You mean besides the whole 'astral-magic' thing?" Prue muttered, as Phoebe shuddered dramatically. "Eugh, I hope not," the youngest sister said.

"I'm sure they didn't," Piper comforted. "And hey, our magic is not a disease.....it's a gift."

Prue looked at her suspiciously. "This coming from the woman who is never sure she even wants her magic....and who has thought about giving it up."

"Hey, just because I have issues with the whole 'take over every aspect of our lives,' part of magic, doesn't mean I don't appreciate what a gift it is....when the circumstances are right," she amended at Prue's skeptical look. The elder Halliwell opened her mouth, about to continue, but was stopped.

"Guys, back to the monkeys," Phoebe interrupted. "Wow, look at that one go!"

Piper and Prue turned to their sister, watching as she became engrossed in the television, soon forgetting that she had been channel hopping in the first place.

Prue found herself giving an irritated sigh. "Phoebe, don't you have anything better to do with your night than watch stupid things like this?"

"That depends. Do *you* have anything better to do than bug me?"

"Hey, I'm not the one wasting an hour of my life watching 'When Animals Attack.'"

"It's 'When Animals Invade,' and I'm not wasting an hour of my life, I'm enjoying myself. Something you should try every now and again."

As Prue geared up to answer Phoebe, Piper closed her eyes, wondering how a simple conversation had degenerated into an argument so fast. Though between Prue and Phoebe, it wasn't all that uncommon.

"Hey, I have a life! And just because it's not throwing myself at any guy with a pulse -- and probably a few without -- doesn't mean I don't have fun."

"Ha! That's rich, coming from you. Your taste in men is hardly the stuff of dreams."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Prue bit out, her blue eyes glittering dangerously.

"Er, well, I think it means that you have no right to judge what or who I like, and what
and --"

"Who you *do*?" her sister said snidely.

"I wasn't going to put it as crudely as you seem to have the talent for, but yeah, basically."

The two continued to bicker as Piper looked on, waiting for a break in insults. She finally had enough, and decided to intervene anyway.

"Right, that's enough, the pair of you!"

Seeing that she had their attention, she carried on. "Now, I have no idea how a *conversation* about television, turned into a *fight* about tastes in men and attitudes towards living, but it's going to stop, now! I mean, God! Sometimes I think you two deliberately bait each other, just for the fun of it."

"Piper --"

"No, Prue. I mean it. You two can't seem to go a week without an argument."

"Piper, to be fair, this type of thing is to be expected. I mean, we live practically in each others pockets. There's bound to be some fallout."

"Really? Then why aren't I down your throats, then?"

Prue and Phoebe just looked at each other, their expressions saying, 'Duh!'

"Because," Prue explained.

"'Because,' what?"

"'Cause you're you," Phoebe said.

Piper looked at them in confusion, which only grew as her two sisters took one more look at each other, and promptly started laughing.

Sometimes, Piper thought, I begin to wonder if I'll ever understand them.

"Whatever," was all she said out loud, reaching over past her baby sister and grabbing the remote. Ignoring Phoebe's indignant "Hey," she proceeded to switch channels. Phoebe didn't sulk for too long however, for soon she and Prue were involved in what appeared to be a deep discussion.

Yep, she decided. *Never* understand them.

~

"Piper?"

The sound of her name finally broke into her consciousness, and she turned to where her sister was perched on the couch next to her. "Sorry, what?"

"I said, what do you wanna watch?"

Piper shrugged. "I don't care. Let's just flick channels, see what jumps out and grabs us."

Prue smirked suddenly. "Hey, don't say stuff like that. Do I have to remind you about those movie characters who had the ability to actually do such a thing?"

Piper grimaced, vividly remembering their encounter with the demon of illusion. "Good point. Just....surf. With all these channels we're payin' for, there's got to be something on, right?"

Prue didn't answer, simply mirroring Piper's earlier shrug, and started flicking through the channels.
After a moment of silence, she suddenly spoke. "You know, I used to hate it when Phoebe did this. Flashing on station after station. It used to drive me nuts." She grew quiet once more, then faced her sister. "You were thinking about her, weren't you? When I asked you what you wanted to watch."

Piper nodded. "Yeah. I was remembering how the pair of you used to drive *me* nuts by arguing all the time."

Seeing the slight flash of pain on Prue's face, Piper hurried to correct herself. "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant the way you'd be talking one minute, arguing the next, then chatting again the one after that. I couldn't figure you guys out."

"Yeah, I....I think it was just our way of letting off steam. You know, our way of making sure we never had any really big blow-outs with one another. Do damage to something we couldn't repair. Didn't mean we didn't love each other."

"God, Prue, I know that. I know how much you two loved each other, 'cause I feel the same about you both. That'll never change."

"I know," Prue agreed softly. "Me too."

The next few minutes passed without comment, the only sound the movements of Leo in the kitchen, and the plastic buttons of the remote as Prue manipulated them. Just as Piper was about to ask if Prue was okay, the door-bell suddenly rang.

"I'll get it," Piper called for Leo's benefit as she stood, giving Prue a smile on her way. The smile froze on her face slightly as she saw who their visiter was. "Cole!" she greeted loudly, hoping that she'd given the others sufficient warning.

"Piper," he replied cautiously, a little confused by her tone.

"Erm...c'mon in," she invited. Alright, she coached herself. Be the good little hostess, you can do that.
"Can I take your coat?"

Cole didn't even consider, but stripped the heavy garment off to reveal his dark clothing. He had gone from being freezing cold on the way to his lodgings, to suddenly hot on the journey to the Halliwell's.
Probably a dose of good old human nerves, he decided....Another of the drawbacks to being half human.
He passed the coat to her, noticing how her eyes lingered on the bulge under the shoulder of his top. "Had a run in with a demon," he explained truthfully. He'd had to bandage the wound when he realised that it wasn't healing as fast as normal. Piper just nodded, hanging up the jacket and leading him into the living room.

Prue was still sitting on the couch, and Leo had joined her.

"Cole," Prue acknowledged.

He gave her and Leo a nod, not quite sure how to start. The slightly awkward silence stretched on, until Piper finally caved.

"Cole had a run in with a demon, " she blurted.

Although startled by the sudden outburst, Prue realised it was Piper's way of breaking the deadlock they seemed stuck in, and grasped the offer quickly.

"You did? Anyone we know?"

"No," Cole answered, staring at Prue seriously. "No one you *knew.*"
When the elder Halliwell returned his look, he knew she had understood the emphasis in his statement.
"But," he continued, "I have some information."

"What kind of information?" Piper asked, not missing the way both her sister and husband seemed to straighten up at Cole's words.

"The demon I told you I was tracking? The one who has been wiping out a local coven....I have a good idea where he'll be striking next."

"Wait, this is the case you said you'd already intervened in twice before?"

"Yes," Cole told Prue. "I've stopped him twice before....I set up a meeting with another demon, one who gave me information."

"And you could trust this demon?" Leo inquired softly.

Cole shrugged, moving wearily to a chair, and sitting down heavily. "You can never really trust anything a demon says," he informed them lightly, watching as his gentle teasing sank in, earning him a few amused looks. Maybe he was getting the hang of this interaction stuff, after all. "But his reasoning for telling me what he knew, was that he hoped I'd take out his competition for him....thus edging him ever closer to gaining the Source's favour."

Prue snorted. "How like a demon....the Source wants a big, bad, evil assassin....so what does the demon do? Get someone to do his dirty work while making himself look good."

Cole kept quiet, remembering back to the many others he had sent against the Halliwell's in an attempt to help bring about their downfall. But he'd been undercover, had to be covert. It was different....right?
Shaking off his self doubt, Cole returned to the matter at hand. "That's not the most confusing aspect, though. Dasmar -- the demon informant -- gave me the information, and then attacked me. I was forced to kill him to protect myself, but.....I don't know, it just doesn't make any sense. It was pointless, I had what I wanted, and he had what he wanted. It wasn't worth the risk"

"Do you think his information was correct?" the Halliwell Whitelighter asked. "That it wasn't just a ploy to distract you long enough to kill you."

"It's possible it was just a plot to corner me," Cole conceded. "But....I don't know, what he told me makes sense. He said that the other members of the coven would be gathering -- a rememberence ceremony, or something. And that the one responsible for the recent attacks on the witches would most likely strike."

"When and where?" said Prue, getting straight down to business.

"Tomorrow, possibly the next day, at a park not far from where the covens members came together."

"How many witches?" Piper asked, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Four....two of which I helped in previous attempts. And Dasmar seemed to think that whoever is responsible has done this before....wiping out other covens."

"Then we really have to stop him," Prue said.

"Right. Now, he only strikes at night. So, we should be on the alert tomorrow, and the next night in case he's biding his time, and doesn't strike right away. I have some things to prepare.....so I'll leave you to....whatever it is you do to get ready for this kind of stuff."
Cole stood, wavering suddenly as a wave of dizziness passed through him.

"Cole?" Prue said, her voice reflecting the concern that she realised she was feeling.

"Erm....it's nothing," he smiled. "Just....tired, I guess. Even us half human demons need to sleep, and I seem to have been rather busy these last few days."

"Well....if you're sure," she allowed, knowing he wasn't being entirely truthful with them, but deciding it would be best to not call him on it right now.

"I am. I'll see you all tomorrow." He made as if to shimmer, but stopped when Piper called him back.

"Wait....do you have any specifics on this guy? You know, anything we can use to get a match on him in the Book of Shadows, so we can vanquish his ass fast."

"Um....the only things I know about this guy are he's strong...powerful. Only strikes at night, when his victims are alone....isolated. Kills them with an Athame, no energy bolts, no fire balls. No demonic powers at all. But, I don't know whether this is because he can't be seen to be around and risk discovery, or if it's just his weird preferences."

Leo narrowed his eyes. "It's also possible that he's following some kind of code, or ritual. Demons are kind of into that thing, if you hadn't noticed."

Cole half-smiled ruefully. "I had noticed, thank you."

"Right, well," Prue sighed. "We'll just have to come up with a standard vanquish.....maybe throw in a few other things. Hope this guy doesn't need the Power of Three."

"Hey, hasn't Cole managed to get around that, though?" Piper asked.

The half demon nodded. "Right.....I still have a few markers to call, I'll see what I can come up with."
Then he gave them one last nod, and shimmered away.

After a moment of prolonged silence, Prue spoke up. "Well, looks like we've got our work cut out for us.....Piper, can you put on the coffee, I'll get the book from my room. Leo, you can help by going and asking the Elders --"

"Wait, Prue," Leo suddenly interrupted. "There's something I need to tell you two."

The two sisters stopped, turning to him. "What?"

"The other night, when I was called up by the Elders.....they told me about a new threat."

"What?" Prue asked. "You didn't think this was important enough to tell us before?"

"No," Leo answered honestly. "So far, all we have are rumours. A new order is supposed to have sprung up, one that could become a threat. Their goal is to rid the world of good."

"Erm, forgive my asking, but isn't that pretty much *every* evil things goal?" Piper put in.

"Yes.....but they're going about it in a different way. They are rumoured to have a line on a magic, that predates human kind.....one that the forces of good, may not be able to fight against."

"Why are you letting us know now?" Prue said quietly.

"Because.....because I think that whoever it is that Cole's after......he's connected to this. I have a bad feeling."

He found himself locked in a stare with Prue, that was broken when the witch spoke. "Okay....well, we'll just have to focus on this. Go on with the plan, check the book, and hope we can up with something. We can talk about the appropriate times to share information given by the Elders, another time."

Leo nodded, watching as Prue then turned and headed to the stairs, Piper following, but not before his wife sent one more look her husband's way. Leo couldn't figure out quite what the look meant, but he thought that he may have just pissed Piper off.


*****
******
*******