Distribution: This story cannot in part or whole be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies may only be distributed with author's permission and must include all disclaimers.
Disclaimer: Cole Turner, Darryl Morris, Prue, Piper, Paige, and Phoebe Halliwell. Leo Wyatt, Jenna, and Andy Trudeau and all other characters that have appeared on the series "Charmed" as well as the concept of Charmed and all backstory are the copyright property of Aaron Spelling, E. Duke Vincent, and the WB Television Network. No copyright infringement was intended. All original characters as well as the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.
Darryl opened his eyes to find Dr. B already getting things ready to remove Cole's ET tube after she woke him up. He didn't have to look to the nurse's station to know that Cam had already left the room either; she never stayed for this part. He also knew that Simmons was behind him, he usually showed up right about now so that he could drive them all home.
"What's wrong Dr. B?" He had noticed that she was staring at Cole's chart and it didn't look as if she was liking what she was seeing.
"How was he?" She looked over to Darryl when he didn't answer her right away. His look said it all. "You know what I mean. I need to know what you were feeling from him, what he was thinking."
Darryl wasn't liking where her questions were taking him, not one little bit. "He watched the shooting and what happened afterwards. He's scared, more than usual but that has to do with seeing the Charmed Ones again. He didn't say anything for a long time either and he is weaker than normal as well." He tried to think if there was anything else that seemed different this time and was about to tell her that there wasn't when he remembered one more thing. "He asked me what was so funny when I had chuckled at something and before I had the chance to answer him he flared up the link and he didn't realize that he was doing it. Why?" Darryl asked moving to the fridge they kept in their room. As he looked back, after having grabbed the bottle of water he needed to fill Cole's mug, he knew that something was wrong. "Dr. B?"
"His readings are off a little that's all." She didn't have to turn to him to know the look she was getting. "His heart rate is a little elevated even with the sedation."
"He's not becoming immune to this one already is he? You've only been using it for two months and the others lasted for at least four months." Darryl didn't like the idea of putting his friend through the tests that would be needed if he had become immune, especially not with the Charmed Ones around.
"I wouldn't say that he is becoming immune, well not yet anyway it's just that … well how do I put this."
"He's slightly out of sync."
She looked at Darryl and was once again slightly awed by the type of connection that this man had with her Grandson. A little envious as well, not that she would ever let them know especially Cole, as it would only serve to upset him. Instead she consoled herself with the knowledge that she too had a special connection to Cole, one that ran deep through their common Dragon Blood. Once the Bond completed itself she hoped that the bond between herself and Cole would reopen fully. Cole had never realized the full extent of their connection, fear of those on the side of Good and Evil finding out who Cole really was made her conceal the Blood Bond they shared over the years so he never knew that it had closed itself when he had reached the first Bond level with his friend and Guardian Darryl. Soon though her own bond should once again be opened and for that she was thankful. She suddenly realized that she had been silent a little too long when Darryl's slightly worried voice snapped her back to the moment.
"Dr. B? We really need to wake him up now." Darryl had seen her look turn inward just as Cole's would at times but unlike with Cole he wasn't able to read behind the look. He knew her well enough to know that she was worried but he wasn't sure about what specifically. What he did know was that his friend needed to be woken up soon; he didn't like the idea of him spending too much time alone on the Dreamscape.
"Sorry. You're right so let's wake up sleeping beauty here." She had debated as to whether or not to tell Darryl about Slater now or wait and tell both boys at the same time, telling them together won out. They were going to need each other when they found out so she simply waited.
Carefully she went about her "Waking Up Cole" checklist as she thought of it. First she took the last loaded syringe off the shelf and injected its contents through Cole's IV shunt before disconnecting the main line leaving the shunt in place just in case. Next she removed the vent's main line from the ET tube, hovering close until Cole had taken at least five normal breaths himself before moving to the machine and turning it off. She then picked up the syringe she would use to deflate the cuff of the ET tube that kept it firmly in place in his trachea. She had barely made it back to the side of the bed when Darryl called out to her.
"Dr. B you'd better hurry because he's just about to wake up." Darryl told her as he placed the mug of fresh water he had just poured on the shelf above the bed. He knew Cole was going to need it so he always made sure that he had it ready for him.
"Remind me next time to do the tube before I do the IV please." She had just finished deflating the cuff when she saw Cole's eyelids begin to flutter open. Now was the hard part for her, as she had to stand back and let Darryl handle him. Waiting until he was calm and coherent enough to extubate was hard enough but knowing that only Darryl would be able to reach him hurt though she never let on.
Darryl moved into position, his right hand grabbing Cole's left one while he used his left hand to hold down Cole's right shoulder, he then simply waited. He knew that his friend wasn't going to be able to see and that the fear reaction was going to be immediate. He didn't need to see Cole's eyelids flutter to know that he was awake so he started to calmly speak his mantra like he always did.
"It's all right my friend. You're safe, I'm here and you're safe. You're all right now and you're safe. I'm here and you're safe. I know you can't see but you also know it's me and that you're safe. You know I wouldn't lie to you. Relax. You're safe." He would repeat his mantra for the next minute or so, until Cole was calm enough to help Dr. B to remove the tube.
Cole suddenly found himself back in what he thought was the waking world but when he opened his eyes there was only blackness. He started to panic, to try and move but something was holding him down and the more he struggled the more panicked he became. He couldn't breath right because there was something in his throat and he couldn't call out because there was something covering his mouth. He tried shaking his head, to get lose but he just couldn't. Suddenly he heard Darryl's voice telling him he was safe and that he wasn't alone. He used his friends voice as a focal point and tried to calm down. When he felt Darryl through the link he stopped struggling entirely and just tried to breathe without choking.
"That's it just relax, you're safe and I'm here so just relax." Darryl sensed when Cole had begun to understand him and to relax. After he was sure Cole was calm enough he carefully moved his left hand to the side of Cole's head. "All right just turn your head a little. That's it." As Cole obediently turned his head, Darryl quickly undid the Velcro holding the plastic mouth guard in place and called for Dr. B. "Dr. B now."
She moved forward quickly, knowing the longer the tube remained without the cuff inflated the more it would move and irritate his throat. Once she had a firm grip on the tube and the plate she said to him in a calm but firm voice, "Okay kitten now deep breath in and let it out fast." She always made sure that she used her old nickname for him when doing this so that he wouldn't become scared again when he felt her next to him. When he exhaled like she told him to she pulled the tube out at the same time and he immediately started to cough. She stood back, placing the tube and plate on top of the ventilator and simply waited again.
As soon as Darryl heard him start coughing he grabbed Cole around the shoulders and brought him to a sitting position, bringing his forehead to rest on his shoulder as he grabbed the mug of water for him. "Here you go partner." He carefully tried to place the mug in Cole's hands but they were shaking too much from the coughing so he simply held the mug to Cole's dry lips and helped him drink instead. The coughing relented after a few minutes and Cole simply sat there resting his head on Darryl's shoulder.
"Thanks." Cole said, as he stayed right where he was, taking comfort in Darryl's physical closeness. He and Darryl had both worked through their mutual dependency issues ages ago so he was in no hurry to withdraw from his friend. He simply needed a few minutes to center himself and he knew that Darryl wouldn't mind.
Darryl knew what Cole needed and he had no problems giving it to him as he simply continued to rub comforting circles on his friend's back. He could still feel more than the usual tension in Cole so he simply gave him the time he needed to settle down. Knowing that the tension was being caused more by the return of the Charmed Ones than by his temporary blindness he felt a momentary stab of guilt. He never should have let them get that close to Cole in the first place but because he hadn't acted quickly enough his friend had been hurt once again. As he felt Cole begin to move he quickly tried to bury the guilt but alas he wasn't fast enough this time.
"Hmmm and what is that I hear? Could that be guilt there my friend? I hope it is." Cole smiled as he raised his head from his friend's shoulder. He had felt the guilt rise up in Darryl and he simply wasn't going to let him feel that way. It wasn't Darryl's fault, none of it was and he wasn't about to let him blame himself for one second longer. He felt his Grams come up beside them, placing her hand on his forehead to make sure he didn't have a fever; his smile just got bigger as she ruffled his hair when she withdrew her hand.
"And why do you hope that little one?" She never could get into the habit of calling him Cole in private so she simply continued to address him as she always had either as 'little one' or 'kitten'. The twins had laughed the first time that they heard her call him that but when they had seen her kitten asleep in Darryl's arms for the first time they realized why she had nicknamed him that. Her Grandson's sleeping form was purring just like a kitten and after that they had begun to see the similarities between him and a cat, in the way they both moved, they way they both cocked their heads to one side when they were listening to something, and the way they both could viciously attack an enemy that was attempting to violate their territory. Of course when Julianna had accidentally scratched him behind the ear the first time she came across a very interesting side effect, he purred for her. Since then she had been scratching him behind the ears on a regular basis. Her Grandson's voice brought her back to the moment.
"Because today is Sunday and that means double down." Cole chuckled as his friend tried valiantly to get out of it.
"That wasn't guilt that was indigestion." He looked to his friend and then to Dr. B and the looks on their faces were identical. "I'm not going to win this one am I Dr. B?"
"No you are not." She snickered at their antics, just grateful that Cole was able to laugh again. So she simply stood back and enjoyed watching them for the moment.
"Now add to the tally lying." Cole began but never got to finish as Darryl decided to simply bite the bullet before he got in any deeper.
"All right, all right you win. I admit guilt to the charge of feeling guilty. I accept the sentence of Double Down to begin."
"As soon as I can see again." Cole's smiling face interrupted, his unseeing eyes unerringly finding Darryl's seeing ones.
"Objection. Sentence to being upon admission of guilt."
"Unless sentence cannot be fully appreciated by the winner, that being me. In such event the sentence will be delayed until the winner, that being me, can fully appreciate and enjoy said sentence." Cole continued to look directly at Darryl as he grinned.
Chuckling Darryl gave into the inevitable. "Objection overruled, sentence to being when the winner can appreciate and enjoy it. I again bow to your superior legalese."
"And so you should." All three laughed as some of the remaining tension drained away at Cole's words. "Now if you would just move your butt so I can get up, you can then get my clothes, get me dressed and we're outta here." He had barely begun to move when he felt his Grams' hand on his shoulder stopping him.
"First we had better remove these." She had turned off the heart monitor itself while the boys played verbal courtroom, as she called it, but the leads were still attached to his chest. She grabbed the edge of the first one and pulled quickly.
"Yewouch! Hey! Do you mind leaving some hair behind please?" As Cole's hand moved to rub the offended spot Darryl quickly grabbed the edges of the two leads on the left side of Cole's chest and yanked quickly. He couldn't help but snicker at the offended look on his friend's face. "Double Yewouch!! You know I can tell the two of you enjoying doing this to me when I can't see you coming. You know that don't you?" Cole continued to rub the offended spots as he waited for the inevitable, the last two leads.
It was true. Trying to get them off of him when he could see was a battle unto itself. This way he never saw them coming and they were able to get it done a lot quicker. Darryl and Dr. B looked at each other as the moved their hands over the last two leads and quickly yanked together.
"Yewouch!!!! Grams next time don't put it so close to such a sensitive spot please." As Cole gingerly rubbed the area around his left nipple, which was now hairless as well, he again moved towards the edge of the bed. This time it was Darryl who grabbed him around the shoulders and pulled him back. "Whoa. Thanks my friend."
"Vertigo little one?" Dr. B had already moved to the med shelf to prepare a syringe by the time he answered her. She began to prepare a second one when a moment later.
Cole let Darryl guide his head back to his pillow before answering his Grams; his stomach was beginning to rebel as well. "Yeah and my stomach too." Cole hated being sick, he hated the feeling but he knew it was a side effect of the sedative his Grams had to use to keep him asleep. If he had to chose between feeling the way he did at the moment and being awake and not able to move or breathe on his own he would pick feeling sick every time. As he shifted around a little, trying to find a more comfortable position he felt Darryl's hand begin to rub circles on his stomach and it helped as usual. "Thanks."
"Don't mench." Darryl knew Cole hated feeling this way so he did whatever he could to help alleviate his friend's discomfort, even rubbing his tummy if it helped while they waited for Dr. B and her helpful hypo's as they had come to call them. He looked very relieved when she finally moved back to them though, more suffering his friend did not need. He didn't have to voice his thanks; he could tell from her look that it was understood.
When she moved back to the bed she saw the look on Darryl's face and smiled back at him in response. It pained her as well that her Grandson had to suffer like this but she knew that he wouldn't be able to handle being awake and on the vent, the nightmares he still sometimes had about that night in the operating room was all the proof she needed. "All right then little one I have just what you need right here." She always announced herself before taking a gentle hold of his wrist, getting fried not being on her list of things to do today. Still she felt him tense a little as old fears unconsciously rose within him. She moved as fast as she could, injecting the contents of both syringes as quickly as she safely could. "There we go, now just give it a few minutes and those should help." Moving to toss the used syringes away she couldn't help but smile at the picture the boys made.
Cole was a strong boy but everyone needed someone and for Cole that someone was Darryl. Oh he had Julianna as well and he loved her with every fiber of his being but where she had helped complete his heart Darryl had completed his soul. Darryl was the older brother he never had, a confidant to a boy and a man who had never known unconditional trust and acceptance. The time he had spent with the Charmed Ones and their Whitelighter had showed Cole the beginnings of trust and friendship and love but he had quickly realized that all of these things were conditional where he was concerned yet he still protected them with his very life and, in the end he had paid with his very life. Raven knew that the girls had hurt him very badly when they simply turned their backs on him, killing him without even a second thought. She had even feared that the damage done would be irreversible, but then Darryl had entered his life again.
When her Grandson had returned from the Wasteland she had wanted to go to him physically but she knew that Good and Evil were still a danger to him so she simply watched as he realized that there would be no returning to the life he had so recently known, the very life he had strived to win by turning his back on the only other life he had ever known. He had found his heart and within it the ability to love, even after all that he had suffered in his life. When that love had turned it's back on him he still found it within himself to go on even if it meant being all alone. She watched as he moved through his new life but the joy wasn't there anymore, the Charmed Ones had taken it from him and she feared that he would never find it again. Then Darryl had come into his life.
She watched as her little one explained to Darryl what had really happened, all the while expecting to be told to leave, she could see it in his eyes and apparently so could Darryl. Once Darryl had told him that he could stay she had decided to keep a close eye on him just in case he was setting her Grandson up to be hurt again. Very quickly though she had seen the connection between them and she watched it grow and evolve. She saw it when Darryl had started to see her little one as friend and she had rejoiced in that. It hadn't been until the actual shooting though that she had come to fully accept that Darryl was to become her little one's Guardian. Darryl's actions during the days following the shooting were all the convincing she needed.
After the shooting she had been afraid that both boys would lose that connection. Her little one had become dependant on Darryl in a way he had never been before with anyone, and soon after Darryl had become dependant on him. The first demon attack on Darryl, a mere five days after the shooting while the boys had been in the hospital garden had shown Darryl that there were some bad things he couldn't fight on his own and demons after his head were now top on that list. Her little one had saved his life that day and she had seen that connection she feared disappearing strengthen instead. Two days later when the first Bond had been established, the very part of the Bond that had allowed each of the boys to actually live the life of the other in their mind's eye, she had seen them look at each other in a different way. It wasn't a bad way, in fact they now looked at each other with a new understanding and it was from that new understanding that they had finally laid there co-dependency issues to rest once and for all. They were like brother's who had finally found each other after years of separation; they no longer viewed it as dependency but as one family member watching out for another family member. They protected each other with a tenacity usually reserved only for family members and heaven help the one who tried to hurt either one of them. Darryl's voice brought her back to the moment.
Darryl had continued to rub his friend's tummy as he waited for the meds to take hold. Cole always had a tendency to look like a little boy when he didn't feel good and this time was no exception. After a few minutes he felt the tension beneath his hand begin to fade and he smiled. "Better?"
"Yeah. Thanks." Cole knew it wasn't necessary to say but he did anyway. Neither he nor Darryl ever intended to take their friendship for granted, it was too important to both of them.
"Shall we try again Partner?" Darryl always called Cole Partner when he was scared or nervous because it always made his friend feel just a little better and for Darryl that's all that mattered.
Cole smiled at Darryl's words trying to make his friend feel better himself, he could feel the worry seeping through the Bond and he knew that he was the object of that worry. "Yeah let's try it again. Grams can you take this out first though?" Cole still didn't like the shunt being in his hand and he still didn't know why. He figured he could just ask Darryl but he reasoned that if he didn't readily remember then there was a reason for that and that if and when he needed to remember he would; until then he would let sleeping memories lie.
"Not yet kitten. I know," she said seeing his look, "I know, but let's just leave it for now okay?" Knowing he wasn't liking her answer she leaned down and kissed his forehead, an apology and a need to be close to him.
Darryl could see the effect her words had on him and decided to get Cole moving before he could dwell on it for too long. "All right then the faster I get you dressed the faster we can get outta here so let's move there buddy. Come on." Darryl quickly got off the bed and pulled the covers off of Cole. "Come on let's go." The fact that Cole had not a stitch of clothing on made no impression on him whatsoever.
"Then can you please get my clothes?" Cole asked as he moved slowly into a sitting position, his feet dangling over the edge of the bed.
"Actually I have your clothes right here." Raven had moved to get the backpack with his clothes and now handed it to Darryl with a slightly ashamed look on her face. Her Grandson didn't need to see her face because he could apparently hear it in her voice.
"Another suit Grams? You know I'm going to start charging you for the replacements at this rate if you keep destroying my wardrobe." Cole said chuckling as he slipped on the boxer shorts that Darryl had handed him. "Are these going the right way Grams?" He asked as Darryl helped steady him as he stood up to slip them on.
"Once Dr. B. Just once I handed them to him backwards and I still haven't heard the end of it." Darryl easily complained as he smiled, knowing that his friend was feeling a little better since his sense of humor was returning.
"And you most likely never will knowing him." She too started to smile at her Grandson's antics and Darryl's put upon look he was giving him, a look that her Grandson responded too as well, the link telling her Grandson all he needed to know about Darryl even down to the look on his face.
"Hey don't look at me like that, in the end it's your own fault you know. You should have been paying more attention, and you call yourself an Inspector Sherlock." Cocking his head to the sound of his Grams' snickers he continued. "And you I'm also going to start charging an aggravation fee to go along with the cost of the replacement suits." A satisfied grin spread across his lips as she stopped her snickering.
"Aggravation fee? For what?" She wasn't sure where this was going but as long as it kept his mind off of the shunt still in his hand she was all for it.
"Do you have any idea how many hoops I have to go through to get him to go clothes shopping? Trust me there is definite aggravation there. Enough to demand a fee." Cole explained as he finished pulling on his jeans and started to button up his shirt. He had just started when Darryl slapped his hands away.
"Hey! No way am I going to listen to you complain about my letting you walk around with your shirt miss buttoned again, never mind what Julianna will say about it when we get home." Darryl's exasperated voice said as he undid the two miss done buttons and then finished buttoning up his friend's shirt correctly before moving on to the cuffs. He made sure when he did the cuffs he never touched the shunt though. "All right back on the bed." He gently pushed Cole back so he ended up sitting on the bed again and began to put his socks and sneakers on for him. Cole obediently raised his left foot first since they always started with the left foot. While he grabbed the first sock and moved to place it on the foot in front of him he saw Dr. B move to remove the shunt.
"All right little one I think it's safe to remove this now." She said as she carefully moved to take his right hand. Feeling him tense immediately she looked down to Darryl, making sure that he wasn't in danger of getting kick in the event her little one panicked. It had happened before as the old memories vied for place with the present, he never really remembered anything but he did feel acutely the fear that those unknown memories evoked within him. Once she was sure that Darryl knew what she was about to do she carefully peeled off the tape holding the somewhat large gauge needle in place. Once the tape was removed she grabbed a piece of sterile cotton and gently placed it over the extraction point. Making sure that he wasn't going to suddenly move on her she carefully, yet quickly removed the needle and pressed down to stop the small amount of bleeding that always happened. "There we go. All done." Knowing that his blood was thin from the sedative, yet one more side effect they had found out the hard way, she put a fresh bandage over the spot, the ointment on the bandage would help stem the bleeding so he wouldn't have to keep pressure on it as that only served to agitate him.
"All right then, we're almost ready to go then." Darryl tapped Cole's foot, letting him know he was finished. The tap wasn't really needed but the boys had, from the beginning, known that their Bond had to remain secret, as there were too many on both the sides of Good and Evil that would dearly love to find out about them. To this end they continued to do things and say things that were already understood by the other but would appear unusual to an outsider. It was a practice they used in both their public and private lives, only when they were safely in Raven Manor did they even begin to let their guard down. Darryl didn't mind and he knew Cole didn't mind because it was the little gestures and thoughtfulness that meant the world to his friend and for Darryl that's all that really mattered.
"Don't forget your jacket Darryl." Dr. B called to him before gathering up the two items she was going to have to give the boys before they left. It would mean telling them about Slater now but that couldn't be helped, they had to know before they left the building. She wasn't going to take a chance with either of the boys' lives.
"Thanks. And you stay." Darryl said unnecessarily as he moved to grab his jacket. The response he got simply made him smile again.
"Woof woof." Cole was feeling good just to be getting out of there and just couldn't help himself. The fact that his friend was still feeling some tension just helped him along. The laugh he got in response was music to his ears and very quickly Darryl joined in.
"Be nice or on goes the leather collar."
"Leather collar Darryl?" The inflection in Dr. B's voice said it all and simply demanded a response from him.
"Please Dr. B, after all we are talking show quality here are we not." He barely got it out with a straight face but somehow he managed.
"Yes but for show we use suede not leather." Cole added having the same trouble as Darryl in keeping a straight face.
Dr. B looked to her two boys and shook her head. "All right my juvenile delinquents, this way to the exit." She watched as they moved like a well-oiled team, complete with choreography.
Darryl moved to stand in front of Cole and slightly to the left while Cole's left hand automatically fell on Darryl's right shoulder. As one they started to move towards the door but stopped when Dr. B did.
"What's wrong?" Darryl knew immediately that something was wrong, the sudden serious look on her face telling him that much. He felt Cole move a little closer to him while they both waited for her answer. It wasn't a long wait.
Knowing that they didn't have a lot of time and that it would be better for her Grandson to just get it over with she jumped right in. "Okay here are your tags back Little One. And here is a set for you Darryl." It didn't take long.
"Grams why are there two tags now?" Cole asked as he felt the new set of dog tags she had just hung around his neck. The fact that Darryl also now had a set of his own wasn't helping him any in the keeping calm department; by his friend's words and feelings he knew he wasn't alone.
"Yeah, and why do I have a set as well?" Darryl was so not liking where this was going and he could feel Cole's agitation level increasing as well.
Dr. B stood there and looked from one face to the other, the blind stare she encountered when she looked to her Little One only served to make her heart ache just a little more. "Okay. There is no easy way to say this so I'm just going to say it. Slater escaped last night." The reaction was immediate and just as she had expected. She watched as Cole moved even closer to Darryl as Darryl did the same with Cole. Her Grandson's hand moved from his Guardians shoulder to his arm and Darryl just laid his hand over Cole's, the physical contact grounding both boys. She hated the fear she saw in Darryl's eyes and Cole's body language. Darryl however simply did what he does and that is protect.
"We need to set up security around the Manor and we need to run it in shifts. 24/7." Darryl had only begun to speak before Simmons cut him off. Dr. B mirrored the relief he felt at what Simmons had to say but the fear was simply pouring off of his friend at his side. The fact that Cole couldn't see right now was only serving to aggravate an already tense situation and he wasn't liking it one bit.
Simmons decided to step in before Darryl worked himself up into a fit. "Already taken care of. I coordinated everything myself. There will be three shifts at eight hours each and, thanks to some fancy footwork from yours truly, I will be permanently on the inside. I have already got everything cleared with the Captain and DA Stone so you are both all set there as well. I ix-naiad the use of cameras in the Manor proper so no demon worries there."
"Excellent work Simmons." Darryl smiled but he knew it was a weak one; his worry for his friend had taken away the ease of the moment as his need to protect rose up strongly. The fact that Cole was plastered to the side of him didn't help any either. Not knowing what else to say he simply joined them in their silence, a silence Cole broke himself a few moments later.
Cole was scared and he hated being scared, but he was worried as well. He knew that Darryl was his Guardian and would protect him but Slater was a human so the rules were different. The mere idea of his friend getting hurt by Slater because of him was running neck and neck with his fear of the darkness that was all around him for at least the next 72 hours. Needing to break the silence though he asked a question for which he was pretty sure he already knew the answer; but anything was better than this silence.
"I am assuming that Julianna and Anita are safely tucked away at the Manor already?" He knew Simmons wouldn't show his face to him or Darryl if he hadn't already made sure that their twins were safe. He had known Simmons for decades and stupid the half-blood wasn't.
"You assume correctly. Do I look suicidal to you?" Simmons had simply spoken but once the words had left his mouth he wished he could take them back again. His old friend couldn't see how he looked and he had no desire to hurt him anymore but he felt that he just had and carelessly ta boot. Cole, as usual, surprised them once again by smiling and taking the bull by the horns as it were.
"Okay," Cole began, knowing that someone had to get them moving and the longer they stayed like this the more his fear grew and that was unacceptable, especially knowing that his friend would easily be able to feel it through the Bond, "let's get outta here and head home. There is no point in the first shift spending all of its time watching the Manor when we aren't even in it. Besides the twins are going to be chomping at the bit if we don't get there soon." Just the thought of his Julianna helped and he could tell that the thought of Anita was having the same effect on Darryl. Both he and Darryl had finally found that completeness of heart that they had been searching for in the twins and just thinking about them helped ease some of the worry and made it easier for both of them to center themselves to the task at hand, namely getting home in one piece.
Darryl felt everything his charge was feeling through the Bond as Cole had opened it instinctively without even realizing what he was doing. This had helped Darryl on more than one occasion and was helping him again right now. He smiled as he felt his charge take back control of his raging emotions and he followed his charge's example. Uncontrolled fear would only serve to get them killed right now. Once they got to the Manor then they could relax, to a point, but here and now they needed to stay focused and once again Cole was showing them the way. Even with all he had been through in the past 8 hours he was still able to get it together and help the rest of them do the same.
"You heard the man. Let's move out people." Darryl moved forward leaving Dr. B and Simmons to bring up the rear. He knew they would be perfectly safe inside the hospital but his mind was already working on getting everyone home in one piece once they left the hospital. Since Slater had only escaped last night he reasoned that they had at least a little time to prepare and from what he was feeling his charge reasoned the same thing. Of course that didn't stop Darryl's mind from running scenarios for protecting the man next to him all the same.
Cole moved evenly with Darryl, his own mind working on ways to protect himself and Darryl. They were just about to turn the corner that would lead them to the elevator when he suddenly smelled something he hadn't in almost a year and half and he stopped dead in his tracks.
"Piper." It was a name that he hadn't used a lot in the past year as Darryl had learned everything about him when they reached first level Bond. Instead they had simply been referred to as 'the girls' or 'The Charmed Ones'. It still hurt even after all this time but he also suddenly realized that he was worried about her. She was here and she was alone, his heightened senses told him so and he knew that if the others were there he would know it.
It didn't occur to him to question how she got in because he suddenly picked up her soft crying. Moving on instinct he moved forward, alone. He heard Darryl start to move towards him but then he heard the chimes that told him that his sister had arrived. Prue must have brought her. No one else could have gotten through Grams' defenses he thought to himself. Suddenly he was on his own, moving carefully around the corner where he heard the soft sobbing coming from. He never questioned that Darryl would be there if he needed him so he allowed himself to concentrate on the woman in front of him.
"Piper. I know you are there; you are wearing the perfume I gave you as a thank you for giving me your Grams' engagement ring. I'm happy that you still like it." He stopped to listen again, trying to pinpoint her location. Her sobbing was echoing to a degree and his own emotions were rising making it a little more difficult to know where she was. Suddenly he heard her move back and he couldn't hold his own tears back any longer as he called to her again.
"Piper, please stop. You don't have to be afraid of me. I'm not going to hurt you. Please." He started to move forward again, afraid that if she got to far away from him he would lose her and wouldn't be able to follow her. "Piper please say something, anything. Yell at me, scream at me but please don't cry, please." He couldn't stand to hear her crying when he knew he was the cause of her tears. She was afraid and she was alone. When he moved forward through the hallway again his foot caught on the leg of a chair he couldn't see and with his balance practically nonexistent he fell forward, landing heavily on his hands and knees. He felt Darryl start to move towards him and he couldn't hear Piper anymore as his own sobs were now drowning out hers. Assuming that she had left he crawled to where he thought the wall should be. Once there he sat against it with his knees drawn up to his chest and resting his forehead on his knees he continued to cry. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
Darryl had wanted to go to Cole immediately but Prue's hand had stayed him. When he turned to her and was going to demand to know what she was doing he saw something in her eyes that stopped him, he saw tears. It was then that he heard Piper crying down the hall. There was a security mirror positioned against the ceiling and he used it to watch his friend. He used the link to make sure that Cole was all right otherwise. He knew this day was going to happen sooner or later he just wished it hadn't happened what his friend was at such a disadvantage. He knew that Dr. B and Simmons wouldn't to anything either so long as he remained calm; they knew he was the best judge because he could feel what Cole was feeling and they trusted him to protect his charge.
It took everything he had not to run to Cole to catch him when he fell. He suddenly realized that he was fighting his Guardian instincts and he wasn't liking the feeling one little bit. He tensed even more when he saw Piper moving towards his fallen and crying friend. The link told him that Cole thought Piper had left and as much as he wanted to go to his friend he also knew that this had to happen. If Cole was ever going to be able to heal some of the wounds inflicted on him by the Charmed Ones then this had to happen, it didn't mean that he had to like it though.
Piper hadn't known what her sister had had in mind when she said it was time but seeing Cole right now was not tops on her list of things to do, not now. She needed more time, time to think about what she was going to say to him, how she was going to apologize to him and ask him for his forgiveness for the horrid way that they had treated him over the years. She knew that she didn't deserve his forgiveness, that was something that she was going to have to earn from him and she knew that that would take time. However her sister had something else in mind and after the orb finished she found herself in the linen closet across the hall from Cole's hospital room. There was a window in the door that she could watch through and she could hear everything as well. Not understanding she turned to her sister but stopped before uttering a word. Prue still had her hand on her arm and her eyes were closed in concentration, quickly she realized that Prue was somehow making it possible for her to hear what was going on.
"Listen Piper. Just watch and listen." Prue continued to concentrate, using the spell she and Jenna had created for this very purpose. She had hoped that Piper would be able to watch Cole and Darryl without them knowing about it as she knew that Cole would be uneasy with her sister at first and that Piper might interpret that uneasiness the wrong way. She hadn't wanted this to happen but one of the first things she had learned from her brother was to take advantage of even bad situations. Of course, this isn't exactly what he had meant but he needed to heal and she was going to make damn sure that he got the chance.
Piper watched and listened and cried. Her line of sight gave her an unobstructed view of Cole and the look of fear on his face when he woke up nearly broke her heart. As she watched Darryl calm Cole down she felt her guilt rise once again. That guilt grew as Darryl held the cup for Cole to drink from, as Darryl rubbed Cole's tummy to make him feel better, as Darryl dressed Cole, and as they fooled around with each other. The look of fear on Cole's face as he moved closer to Darryl when they heard about Slater simply made her tears fall faster. Just as she saw them heading through the door Prue orbed them out, she thought back to the Manor but when she looked around she found herself in the corridor instead.
"Prue?" She wasn't ready for this.
"No Piper, now is the time." Was all she said before orbing out. Prue didn't go far though; she went to Darryl just as Cole moved towards her sister. She had to make sure that Darryl understood that Piper wasn't a threat to his charge.
Piper didn't know what to do. She felt she wasn't ready to face him yet and when she heard him call her name she just started to cry harder. His words echoed through the corridor as he moved closer and she found herself backing away. When she heard him tell her that he wouldn't hurt her she almost laughed. No you wouldn't would you? Even after all I have done to you over the years you still wouldn't hurt me. But will I hurt you by staying? She thought to herself as he rounded the corner and started towards her again. Looking at him as he moved forward, his hands out in front of him as he felt his way along she moved back once again without even realizing it. When she heard him tell her to yell at him, or scream at him but to please not cry she brought her hand to her mouth trying to quiet herself, the sight of the tears falling from his unseeing eyes though made it impossible. Just when she thought she wouldn't be able to take any more she saw his foot connect with the leg of a chair he hadn't seen, couldn't see. She watched as he fell heavily onto his hands and knees, his sobs growing louder. As she watched him crawl to the wall and simply sit there with his legs pulled up, his forehead resting on his knees as he kept saying 'I'm sorry' over and over she decided.
Slowly she moved towards his huddled and crying figure. He looks so small and fragile. And you helped make him that way aren't we proud of ourselves now. She angrily thought to herself as her own tears continued to flow down her cheeks. When she finally reached him he had started rocking slightly back and forth and she could still hear his broken voice saying 'I'm sorry. I'm sorry' over and over. Carefully she kneeled down in front of him, wiping at her own tears as she tried to compose herself enough to speak.
"Cole?" She hadn't meant to startle him but he jumped when she said his name, hitting his head against the wall. "I'm sorry. I … I didn't mean to…" her voice trailed off as she read fear flash across his features. Quickly though the fear was replaced with a look she could only think of as disbelief. You're afraid of me. I've made you afraid of me. Piper felt her own self-loathing rising again but she couldn't let it, not now. Now she needed to be strong, she needed to see if it wasn't to late to make things right with this man that she had turned her back on time and again since he had entered not only her life but her family as well.
When Cole had heard Piper's voice right in front of him his first reaction was to run. Yes he had wanted her to stay but he hadn't heard her as she had approached him so he simply reacted, jumping back and hitting his head on the wall behind him. He had barely felt it though as his fear turned to startled disbelief. She hadn't runaway like he thought she had, she had stayed.
"Piper? You… you stayed?" He wasn't quite sure what to do or say so he said the first thing that came into his head. "I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you, any of you. I'm… I'm sorry." He suddenly felt ashamed for asking her to stay figuring she was just staying because she was still afraid of him and that hurt. He couldn't face her so he lowered his forehead to once again rest on his knees as he let his tears fall.
This time though Piper took exception to his words, not liking the idea that he was apologizing to her.
"Cole you have nothing to apologize for." When he simply left his head down and continued to say 'I'm sorry' she slowly and carefully placed her fingers under his chin and raised his head so she could look into his eyes. She knew he couldn't see her but she had to see his face, she had to look at him while she said what needed to be said. She had to make sure that he was hearing her. It was hard though when his unseeing seemed to look right through her but she was suddenly very determined to continue.
"No Cole I am the one who is sorry. No please just listen." She said as she placed the fingers of her other hand over his lips when she saw him begin to open his mouth. "You have nothing to be sorry for. You were not in control, it wasn't you. You were being used, we all were but you paid the highest price and for that I am sorry. I am the oldest, I'm supposed to be protecting my family, all of my family, but somehow I forgot about you. Even after all you had done and sacrificed for us, the Charmed Ones and all you have done and sacrificed for me I never even tried to help you. I simply listened to everyone else, even when what they were saying made no sense to me. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't do anything to help you and before you say it we have broken the rules before. We could have damn well tried to save you instead of just…" she found the word sticking in her throat but she knew she had to say it so she forced it out, "vanquishing you."
"Piper."
He tried to speak but she stopped him again. There was still more she needed to say and she had to say it now. "I'm not done so shush. I'm also sorry that I never let you in despite all of the preaching to Paige. I never let you into my life and there is no excuse for that. You were trying so hard and still I never helped you, not once. I never gave you the chance that I said I did. You only wanted to be a part of our family and to help us and I ignored you. I'm so sorry. I let you down and I wasn't there for you when I should have been. I said you were a part of the family but when you needed me the most I failed you and I am so very sorry Cole. Please." She couldn't hold the tears back any longer and she started to sob in earnest again.
Cole reacted instinctively to Piper's tears even as he viciously silenced the little voice in the back of his mind that was enjoying them. He shoved the voice back into the shadows, hid it away along with the emotions he had hidden from himself for a year, emotions he didn't feel he had the right to have much less act on. Instead he tried to say something, anything but he found that he couldn't, his emotions were running too to high and he was finding it more and more difficult to concentrate. The blackness surrounding him seemed to become darker and thicker, heavier and he began to shrink back inside of himself seeking the safety that was there, the Bond link. Just as he was about to call out for Darryl he found a pair of arms wrapping themselves around his neck. It took him a moment to realize that it was Piper who was now crying into his neck, but once he calmed down a little he wrapped his arms around her, guiding her to sit in his lap after he straightening his legs out.
The sound of her sobs hurt him because he knew that he was the cause, he never could stand the sound of any of the girls crying, it had always unnerved him and this time it was even worse because he couldn't see her face to read her. So with nothing more to go on he simply held her close and let her cry. The fact that his own tears were still falling was not lost on him. He still cared enough to cry for her and from that knowledge came the hope that maybe it wasn't too late for their friendship to be mended. Oh it would take time for him to feel completely safe with her as he did with his sister Prue but just the possibility made him more content. For the moment though simply sitting here and holding onto each other as they both cried was just fine with him. He needed some time re-center himself anyway.
As he sat there with Piper still in his arms, swaying a little back and forth, he flared up the link with Darryl and took comfort from it, using it to help calm himself down some. Darryl was his anchor, in more was than one and he thanked the Goddess every day for him. He knew that he and Piper still had a long way to go but for just a few minutes he was happy to stay the way they were.
Darryl had felt Cole begin to retreat into himself and again started towards him but before he made it two steps he stopped. He heard the little voice in Cole's head and he felt him push the voice back. He knew all about the emotions that his friend had been hiding from himself since his death and he knew that those emotions were going to have to be dealt with and soon. The fact that he had his own set of emotions where the Charmed Ones and Leo were concerned would simply have to wait. Cole's healing was more important to him.
"Darryl?" Dr. B had watched her Grandson fall to the ground and it took everything she had not to go directly to him. She could see the struggle it was for Darryl as well. With his Guardian instincts already active this must be killing him, she thought to herself. Of course he had already been very protective of her little one even before the first Bond awakened his Guardian instincts. It was his gaze that stayed her. She may not have had a link with him but she could read the look in his eyes. "It's time isn't it?" It was time to let her little one start to heal the wounds that the Charmed Ones had inflicted on him.
"Yes."
She could hear the sadness in his voice and she understood it. Even with all the time in the world there were still going to be some very deep scars left after all was said and done. Her little one had been hurt beyond the power to heal completely, he would always bear some scars form his time with the Charmed Ones. The acceptance and love he has been given from Darryl and their twins showed him the truth and that truth had hurt him deeply. Her little one had finally learned that he could be loved and accepted unconditionally by people. His relationship with her had always been separate and unique to him; for him she was simply and always his Grams who was always there in his head and always loved him without question. Even as he thrust his athame into the heart of his target he knew that she would always be with him, always love him. It was when Darryl had opened his heart and soul to her little one, even before they knew of their destiny that showed him that he didn't have to be alone in his life. Oh yes there would some very deep scars left but at least they would be just that, scars and not still bleeding wounds. No matter what her little one had said they all knew that those wounds still bled but now he would have the chance to heal them as best he could and for that she was grateful.
She knew that Darryl was grateful as well but that didn't mean that it wasn't still hard on him all the same. The fact was he had some anger himself towards the girls for their treatment of his friend, anger that only grew when the first Bond link had been formed and he had lived her little one's life in his mind's eye. Livid hadn't even begun to describe his reaction when he woke up and it had taken her a good couple of hours, hours that her little had remained asleep thank the Goddess, to get him calmed down. It had taken quick action on her part that day to replace the table and the two lamps that he had broken in his fit of rage so that her little one wouldn't know what had happened. More guilt he did not need, on that point she and Darryl both agreed readily. Darryl had learned some very harsh truths himself that day, truths that still bothered him to this day. Truths that she knew were going to come out soon.
"We have to let this happen guys. I know it's hurting you but he needs this and so does Piper." Prue knew that Darryl was hurting but she also knew that she had to do it, she had to bring Piper here. The look Darryl sent her way told her that he was angry with her for not telling him what she had planned. "I'm sorry Darryl but there just wasn't time. I'm sorry."
Darryl could tell that Prue hadn't meant any harm but sought only to help her brother. Yes he was mad but it was mostly at her sisters and the past. "I know you didn't mean any harm and I know that he needs this it's just very bad timing. I mean he can't see, Slater is on the loose, and we still have the three backlash attacks to look forward to, which he isn't even remembering are coming at the moment."
Darryl ran his hand over his face, a habit he had subconsciously picked up from Cole during the past year, before he checked the security mirror one more time. He didn't need to check the link since Cole still had it flared up between them. Once he was sure that both Cole and Piper were all right for the moment he ushered everyone to the chairs that also lines the corridor that they were in. "All right people let's just take a seat and wait. He needs a little time here and from the looks of things so does Piper." He noticed the funny look Prue was giving him. "Of the four of them she is the only one I don't hate. Sorry Prue. What I mean is, when he was living with them she was the only one who showed him any real kindness. And before you mention her just don't." Darryl found that even though it had been Phoebe that Cole and Belthazor had fallen in love with she never really loved him because she never really saw him; not Cole the whole person, the man who was his friend. No, Phoebe hadn't even bothered to look at him, to see him and that angered him more than words could say.
All of them simply sat and waited for Darryl to tell them it was time to leave. Prue however found her mind wondering.
Prue knew what Darryl had meant and she found that as much as she loved her sister Darryl was right. Phoebe had never truly looked at the man she claimed to love, she never really knew him if she had she never would have believed that it was him that became the Source and threatened her family, that he would choose to become the Source and make her his Queen. No, Darryl was right, of all of them it was Phoebe that had hurt him the most, she had said that she loved him yet time and again she had hurt him both with word and deed. She had done it without a thought or care and she never, even for a second, considered his feelings. Oh she knew that she had not been the kindest to him when she had been alive but as she watched them from Above she saw her brother's love for her sister and her family grow but she also saw the way he was treated and she didn't like it. She couldn't believe that even after they had killed Belthazor, which she couldn't believe her sister had done in the first place, they still never let him near the Book of Shadows. They never even shared the holidays with him. When she had looked for him on Christmas Day, expecting to find him at the Manor she instead found him all alone in the Mausoleum. As she watched her sisters and Leo celebrate happily without a thought or care for their missing family member she had cried. She had then spent the rest of that Christmas Day watching Cole as he sat on the dusty floor holding a glowing orb. As he talked to the orb she realized that it was his father's trapped soul and she had cried even harder. Oh yes she could fully understand Darryl's feelings towards her family, just the thought of that day raised her anger level. She could only hope that her brother was going to finally find some peace with Piper, he needed to find some peace before the final transformation which is why she and Jenna had come up with their plan, one that they quickly had put into action when this opportunity had presented itself. She could only hope that it worked.