Chapter 4

Leo orbed into Angel's office, just as Angel was putting away his phone.

'That was quicker than quick.' Angel noted. 'How is Dru?'

'She says she's fine, but, I think she's a bit shaken up.'

'She didn't say what happened?' Angel asked.

'No. Angel, I did some research and I am aware of Drusilla's past with Spike. And I agree with her. I think he's a bad influence and could interfere with her training.'

Angel bit his lip.

'Leo, I know Spike comes across as...well...he doesn't come off in the most positive light. But he has a soul and I've spent enough time with him to believe that he has changed. I don't think for Dru, this is so much about Spike interfering with her training, so much as her facing her feelings for him.'

'Either way, Angel, he's a distraction.' Leo insisted.

Spike threw open the doors and walked towards them. Leo rolled his eyes and looked at Angel.

'What's he doing here?' he asked him. Spike looked at the Whitelighter.

'I plan on coming with you all, to talk to that bloody bastard Belthazor! He's the one that needs to keep away from Dru, not me!'

Leo looked from Spike to Angel.

'What is he talking about? What does Cole have to do with any of this?'

Angel gave Spike a dirty look, then addressed Cole.

'Spike here saw them out on a date.'

Leo's eyes widened!

'When was this?!' he asked, alarmed. Angel did not take any comfort in Leo's tone. Spike watched the Whitelighter carefully.

'The other night.' Spike said matter-of-factly. 'they were dancing in some club. We'd be fools to think that his interest in her is anything but a ploy of some sort.'

'That coupled with Phoebe's animosity towards Dru...Belthazor has to be kept away from her.' Angel said.

'You know,' Spike began, 'something's just come to me: why was Dru here in the first place?'

Leo looked at him.

'What do you mean?'

'I mean, what was she doing in town here? I mean it is a free country and all...'

Leo began nodding! He looked at Angel.

'With all that happened between Dru and Paige, I forgot to tell you that part! Dru had some sort of flier...something about a contest to kill the Charmed Ones. There was some sort of prize and entry fee.'

Angel nodded slowly.

'So she was here for the contest. You know, Dru would be able to answer these questions better than any of us.'

Leo nodded again.

'Okay, she's back at the house. Paige is helping her with her orbing. Let's go.'

Angel touched Leo's arm, as did Spike. But Leo shook Spike off of him!

'I don't think it's a good idea if he comes.' Leo announced.

'Oh bollocks! I can help you give Belthazor a good talking to, that's what I can do!' Spike snapped.

Angel looked at Leo.

'I don't think it would hurt anything to let Belthazor know that we mean business here. But first we do need to talk to Dru.'

'And that's the problem. I don't want to bring you into the house.' Leo said in a tight voice.

Spike half-smiled at him.

'If I didn't know any better mate, I'd think you didn't like me.'

Angel got in between them. He then looked at Spike.

'I suggest you make your case, or else I'm not forcing Leo to orb you anywhere with us.' he said quietly. Spike gave Angel a hard look, before staring at Leo.

'Angel and Dru go way back. So do Dru and I. We have spent lifetimes together, looking out for one another...though it was mostly me looking out for her. The woman I saw in that gym today is going through something. And she's going through it alone. And you can surround her with all of the witches and whitelighters you want to, but she's still alone. Belthazor sees that and he's moving in on her. I think we all know with his power, and Dru's, what he could do. Let me help here.'

Leo took a deep breath. He didn't presume to understand this particular relationship. What was important was making Dru understand that there could be no more dates with Cole Turner!

Leo nodded.

'Fine. Let's go.' he said. Angel held onto one of Leo's arms. Spike the other. The three of them orbed out of Wolfram&Hart.

****

Drusilla watched as Paige orbed in and out of the room. Paige orbed back.

'Now, you try it.' Paige said.

Drusilla closed her eyes and tried to concentrate, but nothing happened. She shook her head.

'I don't know why I'm not getting the hang of this.' she said, a bit dejected. Paige touched her arm.

'You'll get it. You can't force it. I felt the same way, believe me. But, our powers are related to our emotions. You didn't stay very long at Angel's today.' she noted.

Drusilla gave her a small smile.

'Oh, well, Angel was called away. I'll go back tomorrow.'

'So Angel wasn't there?' Paige asked.

Drusilla shook her head.

'I don't mean to pry, Dru, but you seemed kind of upset. Something happened. And I think it's this something that's keeping you from being able to get the hang of this orbing thing.'

Drusilla was about to say something, when Leo, Angel and Spike orbed in. Paige eyed Spike with curiosity. Drusilla gave Angel a dirty look, but covered when Spike looked at her.

Paige walked up to Leo.

'What's going on? And who's this?' she asked, eyeing Spike again. He looked like the guys she used to see at the goth clubs!

Spike smiled at her.

'Spike's the name. I work with Angel.' he said casually, before his eyes moved to Drusilla's.

'Hello, luv.' he said to her. Drusilla didn't answer him and folded her arms.

'What's going on here?' she asked. Angel and Leo walked over to her.

'Dru, we need to talk.' Angel said firmly. 'And I think that we need Piper and Phoebe in on this.'

Paige looked at everyone.

'Okay, Phoebe is at work. I'll go and get her. Leo, Piper is at P3 with Wyatt.'

Leo nodded.

'I'll go and get her. We'll be right back.' he said, as Leo and Paige orbed away, simultaneously.

'How's the orbing going?' Angel asked her.

'What's going on here? Why are you both here?' Drusilla asked again, sensing trouble.

Spike was walking around the house, picking up pictures and setting them down again. One of them he found quite amusing, because he snickered before setting it down again.

Angel broke the ice. 'Spike told Leo and I about your date with Belthazor.'

Drusilla looked around Angel at Spike, favoring him with a particularly murderous look! But she refrained from saying anything to him, and returned her focus to Angel.

'It was not a date, Angel. And he goes by the name of Cole. Cole Turner.'

'Right, I bet!' Angel said sarcastically.

'You know, I'm working on orbing, and learning spells, all so I can be of some help to you, Angel. But I didn't think that I had to run my personal life by you too.'

Angel walked up to her.

'Dru, Belthazor isn't some ordinary man here. You know it and so do I.'

'And,' Spike began, putting in his two cents, 'I resent like hell that you would be seen out with that bint, but you don't have two civil words for me!'

Drusilla's eyes tore away from Angel's and met Spike's.

'You have a lot of nerve! Spying on me and telling tales! I suppose this is the reason Leo and Paige had to go and get Phoebe and Piper, right? We're just going to have one big 'bash Drusilla' session!'

'Dru, we care about you. Belthazor now knows you're a Charmed One. It's no coincidence that he's showing all of this interest in you. You have to see that.' Angel said gently.

'I don't want to talk about this anymore. When Leo and Paige get back here, I want you both to leave. And I won't need any training from you, Angel. Cole has offered to help me...'

'Oh bloody hell!' Spike growled. 'If I didn't know any better, I would think that you were still as daft as ever! The man is using you!'

Drusilla walked up to Spike.

'I'm not daft. And I'm not a child. Now I'm going upstairs and I'm not coming back down until you're both gone.'

Drusilla turned and walked out of the room. Spike lurched after her, but Angel put a hand on his arm. Spike pulled it out of his grasp!

'What do you think you're doing, Angel?! She has to be made to understand that she can't run around training with Belthazor!'

Angel shook his head.

'We're handling this all wrong. We're used to being able to sweet talk the seemingly mindless, prattling, Dru. She's human now and...and...I don't know, more emotional or something. I think the fact that we've told her not to see Belthazor, is the reason she's doing it.'

Spike became quiet. Angel eyed him.

'What? Nothing to say? No insight on how to handle this? Or are you finally going to take my advice and lay off?'

Spike looked down.

'I don't know how to deal with this Dru. She's so cold and...I guess I just feel shut out. Angel, whatever we were before, hundreds of years ago, we were family. And you know what Dru's always meant to me. Even when I fell in love with Buffy, she had...has a special place in my dead heart here. I can't stay out of her life.'

Angel felt for him. In many ways, it was like how he would always feel about Buffy. And he knew Spike felt the same way about Buffy as well. Life was a bitch.

Suddenly, some sort of demon appeared in the room! Angel hurried over to confront it, taking a punch at it! But, it backhanded him, and he went flying back against the fireplace! Some of the mantle smashed and fell onto him!

Spike leaped at it as well, and got some of the same for his trouble, as he found himself propelled backwards into a large wall clock! It smashed to pieces against his weight.

Drusilla, who had heard the ruckus, came running downstairs and into the living room. The first thing she saw was the demon, coming up on Spike from behind, as he tried to pick himself up. The demon, carried a wooden stake.

'Spike!' she screamed, pointing towards it. 'Watch out for that stake!'

And with those words, the stake flew out of the demon's hand and into Drusilla's! Shocked, she stared at the weapon.

'Fling it Dru!' Angel yelled, gingerly getting up.

Drusilla flung the stake into the demon's chest! Spike moved backwards so that he was beside Dru, and together, they watched as the demon pulled the stake out of his chest and flung it aside!

Leo and Piper, orbed back in with baby Wyatt at that moment. Piper, quickly accessing the situation, handed Wyatt off to Leo, then moved her hands towards the demon, blowing him up!

Spike could hear Dru's heart racing a mile a minute! She was still staring at the spot the demon had been obliterated in.

'Is everyone alright?' Leo asked, just as Paige orbed in with Phoebe. Phoebe saw the condition of the fireplace, and that Angel was hurt, and immediately hurried over to him.

'Oh my God! Are you alright? Did you get a good look at the demon?' she asked, gingerly touching a cut over Angel's brow.

'Uh, yeah, but I'm fine, really. I heal quickly.'

'Well, let's help your healing along, okay?' Phoebe said, taking his hand. Angel smiled at her and allowed her to lead him off into the kitchen.

Piper looked at Leo and Wyatt.

'Let's get him upstairs and activate his shield.' she said, unnerved at what she had brought her son home to.

Leo nodded and the three of them headed towards the stairs. Paige looked at Drusilla and Spike.

'I'm going upstairs to the attic and bring the Book Of Shadows down. Maybe we can find out what kind of demon that was and figure out how to stop him.' she said, eyeing Drusilla.

'Are you alright?' she asked. Dru nodded silently. Spike walked up behind Dru and rested his hands on her shoulders.

'She's a bit shaken up is all. She'll be fine in a bit.' he answered for her. Paige nodded, but would have preferred if Drusilla had answered her. She then turned and hurried up the stairs as well.

'Thank you for saving my life, luv. I think that...'

Dru flung his hands off of her shoulders and turned to face him.

'I need some air. I can't stay here and I don't want to look that demon up in some encyclopedia or whatever!' she said, stressed beyond belief! She was disgusted that she had become such a ninny, now that she was human again. But Good God! Was this what she would have to expect?! Creatures of all sorts just'popping' into the house to kill them?!

Drusilla turned and began to walk out of the livingroom, but Spike grabbed her around the waist and her turned her back around.

'I know that was a might scary, luv, but you are going to have pull yourself together! And what you did with the stake there, it will be one thing to be able to take a weapon from your enemy, but you can't just stand there and gape at it! If Angel hadn't told you to throw it, you could've been killed!'

Drusilla tried to remove his hands from her waist, but they would not budge.

'No, Spike! We would've been killed if Piper hadn't come in here just now! Let go of me! I'm not ready for all of this yet! I need some air!'

'There is no ready, Dru! You're a Charmed One now! Someone knows there's four of you instead of three! Running away from this isn't going to help you or your relations here, who are counting on you to back them up! You won't be any help to Angel either!'

'Spike, I said let go of me!'

'And running away from your feelings for me, isn't going to help you learn your craft any faster either!'

Drusilla was finally able to wrench away from him, although she suspected he finally just let her go. Paige returned with the Book of Shadows. Her eyes moved from Spike to Drusilla.

Drusilla, sensing Paige suspected there was more to the two of them that met the eye, covered.

'So, let's get a look at this book. Maybe one of us will recognize the demon.' Dru said with forced enthusiasm. She was trapped now, now that Spike had kept her from making a clean getaway!

'I'm going to go and see how Angel is doing.' Spike said, and he backed out of the room. He ran into Leo in the hallway.

'We need to get over to Belthazor's apartment now.'

Leo looked around.

'Okay, let's just get Angel.' But Spike shook his head.

'No. Leave him be. Orb me over to the bint's flat. I'll give him a talking to.'

Leo was about to say something, but decided against it. He looked up the stairs. Piper was still with Wyatt.

'Alright. Let's go.' he said. Spike then touched his arm, and they orbed out of the house.

****

A CAVERN OF HELL

Cole watched through a crystal ball, as Spike and Leo orbed away. Fiathna, the seer, looked up at him.

'They are coming to you.' she warned.

Cole rolled his eyes and shrugged.

'Let them! The hardest part of all, will be the great restraint that I will be forced to practice, as I struggle to keep from killing them.'

Cole then turned to towards the seer's father, Raagon.

'My plan is proceeding well,' Cole said, struggling to keep a trace of humility in his tone. The three of them knew how powerful he had become. He could've easily killed them both.

Not that Raagon was any slouch. A former Triad elder, he had been working, beneath the radar, to cultivate a new powerful covenant of demons. One that could replace the kind of leadership that lay formerly with the previous Source's....a.k.a. Cole.

Raagon, clothed in a black cloak, joined his daughter and Cole near the crystal ball.

'I didn't expect to lose one of my men.' Raagon said.

Cole rubbed his hands together.

'He knew the cost of facing a Charmed One. Now you see that I was telling the truth. There is another.'

'Yes...although I still do not know why you have come to me, Belthazor. I would've found out this information on my own, in due time.'

Cole smiled at Raagon, bowing slightly.

'I know what you are trying to build here...'

'Is what you failed to accomplish.' Raagon said drily. Cole knew that was a dig at his failure as the Source. He swallowed the insult, for now.

'I do know that you will never succeed, as long as the Charmed Ones continue to live. I also know that with four of them, instead of three, your chances for failure are higher than ever.' Cole pointed out.

'And what is it you propose you can do to stop them? Marry one of them again?' Raagon said with disdain. He turned from Cole and sat on a stone throne that was near by. Fiathna watched Cole.

'Yes.' Cole answered simply.

Raagon, who had lowered his head in boredom, now gave Cole his full attention.

'What? You dare to come down here with such an insipid proposal?! To marry one of the witches?! I suppose it would be that one you had before? That worked so well for you, Belthazor! Get out of my sight!'

Cole raised a brow.

'No, Raagon, it would not be the same one. I am over her. And I would say that my plan is a damned sight better than that stupid one you had. You know, putting out fliers for a contest to kill the Charmed Ones?'

'He lies. He still loves his witch.' Fiathna said. Cole turned and gave the girl a dirty look.

'Your daughter is mistaken.'

'My daughter is a seer! She is never wrong!' Raagon thundered.

Cole snorted! 'Your daughter is a 'half-assed' seer! You know what that means? It means that she sees things AFTER they happen! Who the hell has ever heard of such a thing?! That fight we saw in the crystal ball probably happened a half an hour ago!'

Raagon flinched! Yes, his only daughter Fiathna had problems! She still lived with him, because no other demons wanted her for their seer! Her visions came to her late, thus not helping anyone! He didn't know what was the matter with her! But, she was still his little girl.

Fiathna, for her part, scowled.

'I cannot warn anyone, no...'

'And that's a problem, sweetheart!' Cole snapped, returning his attention back to Raagon.

'My plan is this: Drusilla is an outsider. She is not considered family by the other witches, nor is she especially schooled in her craft. Think about it! A Dark Charmed One. With REAL powers of sight and the ability to move things with her mind. Combined with my abilities, we would be a force to be reckoned with.'

Raagon smirked.

'Yes, you would. If you could school her as to how to use her powers for evil. Tell me how this benefits me?'

'Raagon, it would weaken the Charmed Ones to have to fight one of their own. Yet, I know them. They would try and give Drusilla every chance, before they finally realized that she was not one of them. And it would be while they were giving her the benefit of the doubt, that I would move in and make sure that the Charmed Ones, were no more.'

Raagon seemed to be thinking.

'I think you still love the other witch. So, you destroy the Charmed Ones? While that benefits me, of course, what would you want, Belthazor?'

'Only to rule by your side, of course....and the Vanquishing Parchments.' Cole said in a sweet sounding voice.

Both Raagon and Fiathna looked at one another. The Vanquishing Parchments? What use would Belthazor have for those?

The Vanquishing Parchments, was a written record of every demon that had ever been vanquished by the Charmed Ones. It was almost like the obituary of the demonic world, started by Raagon. There were even demons in there that had been vanquished by the mother and grandmother of the witches. It was a way for Raagon to be aware of the numerous ways demons could die at the hands of the Charmed Ones.

Raagon asked Belthazor, 'Why should I allow you to take the parchments with you?'

Cole could see that Raagon was suspicious. If his daughter had one whit of talent for seeing, she would be able to tell her father what he was up to! But, alas, it would be too late before they learned the truth.

'Drusilla will have access to the Book Of Shadows. Once I turn her to my side, she will get the spells used to vanquish our lost brothers from the book. From there, with her power, she could conceivably conjure up a spell to reverse the vanquishes.'

'A past demon attempted that once before and failed.' Fiathna pointed out. 'I believe he's mentioned in the parchments.'

Cole ignored her. His plan was not like that of the one of that past demon. With Dru's help, he planned to unleash them ALL at the same time. Piper, Paige and Phoebe...his beloved Phoebe, would not be able to ward off all of them at once. And they would work under him...not Raagon.

'But you haven't turned the witch yet. And you may not succeed. You have no use for them now.' Raagon said stubbornly.

Fiathna seconded her father.

'And if the vampires have anything to say about it, you won't.' she said slyly.

Raagon also decided to let Belthazor think that he believed his line of crap, about wanting to 'rule by his side'! He would use him to get rid of the Charmed Ones. Who could pass that up? But when the time came, he planned to have Belthazor killed. And for now, the parchments would stay with him.

Raagon smiled thinly at him.

'Turn the witch and then you may have the parchments.' he said,

Cole bowed and almost shimmered away, when Raagon called out to him. Cole looked back at him.

'What of the vampires?' he asked.

'Hardly worth mentioning.' Cole answered, before shimmering away.