** Chapter 18: Broken **

by Lilian.

lilian413@yahoo.com

AN: Big battle ahead, so you might want to fasten your seatbelts before reading this. Oh, and it's okay to hate Phoebe after this... I know I did!

Tell me what you think!

*******


When Paige awoke, the first thing she noticed was that she wasn't in the Underworld anymore.

Gone was the suffocating scent of demons, and her whitelighter senses weren't going into overdrive anymore as they couldn't process all the demonic-stimuli coming at her from all five corners of her mind.

{Or is that four corners?}, she mused, half-awake and half-asleep. In the end, it didn't matter because the headache was still there, and no matter how hard she tried, her skull kept feeling like someone had used it as a punching bag.

And then she remembered they had. And the small whimper that escaped her throat was not even human as she crouched into a small ball and tried to go back to sleep. But her mind would have none of that, and instead took great pleasure in forcing her to relive the past few hours (although it had seemed like days to her) with painful clarity.

She had been wandering downtown when it had happened. One moment she was pressing her feverish forehead into the glass of a store display, and then someone was roughly jerking her aside and it was all lights and twirls and she was in the Underworld.

And she had been there, waiting for her it seemed.

She could still feel her mocking kiss on her cheek, where it had burned like poison. 'Lovely sister of mine', she had called her, 'it has been too long'. She whimpered again, remembering the thrust of the first blade into her body. It had hurt.

Gods, it had hurt so much!

But then there were a million others, and suddenly each stung a little less, and she felt herself detached, and she wasn't in her own body anymore as they took turns mocking her, each developing their torture skills with her... and they enjoyed it.

Had she eaten anything that day, she would've hurled her stomach contents right there and then. Since she hadn't (eaten, that is), she settled for heaving forcefully against the floor, clawing for breath as suddenly the room seemed so very small around her.

"Paige".

Her name was whispered next to her, but she barely registered it. They had disguised themselves as one of her family so many times, and every time she believed it. And her hopes had been crushed one time too many, and she was not falling for it anymore, oh no she wasn't.

"It's all right, you're home now".

Again, the voice was warm and caring, but then again, so had they been then. And in the end, just as her eyes had lit up at the prospect of being rescued, the face it front of her changed, and instead of looking into Piper's soft eyes or Cole's stormy ones, or even Leo's calm face, they had made her scream a little more.

She opened her eyes a crack, her headache multiplying a thousand fold as the light seared her pupils. As her hands flew to her face to cover her sensitive eyes, she realized for the first time she wasn't bound anymore. No more chains around her wrists, no more magical restraints holding them fast together.

And then she began crying.

Out of relief or pain or frustration she did not know, but maybe it was a combination of all of those. As her battered body was rocked by powerful sobs, she felt a tender hand caressing her hair and some whispered words of comfort. "It's okay, Paige. I've got you now. You're safe... I won't let them hurt you anymore".

She only hiccuped in response, too far gone to do otherwise. Through muffled ears, she heard the distant sounds of battle, and the stench of blood was all around her and suddenly she was back down there and they were doing those horrible things to her again and no, she couldn't go back no please, Piper SAVE ME!

Her shrill cry broke from her parched lips with a vengeance, and she clung to whoever was next to her like crazy, her broken fingernails digging into the soft skin of someone's arm.

"Shh. It's okay to cry".

She winced when her broken ribs protested as she shifted in the person's embrace, but she did not cry out. Instead, she opened her eyes slowly, afraid of what she might see. Her tired eyes took in Piper's worried face, her eyes brimming with unshed tears and she suddenly knew she was safe.

"Pi-- Piper", she said, her voice quivering. She had burned her throat raw from screaming, a removed place in her brain noted, but she forced the thought back down. Too fresh. The wounds were still too fresh.

"Yes honey, it's me. You're here, you're safe now", answered Piper, taking great care as to not flinch at the sight of Paige's bloodied form.

Paige's lips moved, but no sound came out. Piper leaned forward and listened closer: "Where?", rasped the younger woman, and her eyes fluttered close as exhaustion grabbed hold of her. Piper shook her, stopping her from falling into shock. "In the manor. Don't fall asleep on me, Paige. Just stay with me, come on, stay with me sis".

She knew of people with severe trauma who went to sleep and then never woke up. She knew she had to keep Paige awake. The black haired woman's eyes flew open as Piper shook her again, but the cloud of pain hovering inside them did not part.

"How?", she asked them, and Piper let loose a breath she didn't know she had been holding. At least she was conscious enough to be asking questions.

"It doesn't matter. You're here now".

Paige knew Piper was hiding something from her, but she was too tired to ask. Her eyelids were incredibly heavy, and a strange drowsiness was crawling up from her legs and up her head and it would just so easy to give in and close her eyes and---

"Paige!".

Piper's sharp tone made her start, but kept her from falling asleep. "Sorry", she mouthed up to her sister, and when Piper shook her head and tried to keep her from talking, she raised a hand and took Piper's own and squeezed. "No, let me. I'm sorry I ran away".

She felt something wet running down her cheeks, and only then did she realize she was still crying. Wherever the salty droplets touched, it hurt---open wounds stung, and she was suddenly admiring what was left of her nail polish, wondering just what possessed her in the first place to buy that weird looking pink anyway, and oh, this was all Kat's fault, she had talked her into buying it, 'it goes well with your skin tone' she had said, while the nice lady behind the counter patiently waited for them to make a decision and--- she realized Piper was talking, and forced herself to focus.

".... fault. I never blamed you for any of this, Paige. Never. Just--- rest. Please, don't waste any more energy talking. You'll need it to recover".

Paige wanted to ask where Leo was, and why couldn't he heal her when a deep, familiar voice interrupted her line of thought.

"She was a feisty one, Belthazor. I enjoyed breaking her".

A roar of anger followed, but none of it registered with Paige. Her eyes had opened wide at the sound of that voice, and her whole body had gone stiff in Piper's lap. She shook her head from side to side, needing the denial.

{I know that voice!}, screamed her brain, but no, no, she didn't, she didn't want to remember!

'You're tasty, little one. Did you know that?'

The treacherous whispers of her own mind became too much to bear, and she shrieked and clutched her head in her hands, trying to push the memories away.

"Ahh, she remembers me, then. I made sure she would never forget".

As the voice kept on talking, strong but trembling hands tried to keep her still as Paige trashed back and forth. Finally, drained of her last energy reserves she fell limp into Piper's lap, her eyes wide and unseeing as she looked up and found herself looking into those green eyes she hated so much.

He had done this to her... the most horrible things she could imagine. And yet, he had barely touched her... mental torture left hidden scars that can not be seen, he had said, and the smirk on his lips was like staring into the face of death for her.

For the first time, she took in what was happening around her. She and Piper lay on the destroyed remains of the living room, barely recognizable with all the scorch marks and debris littering it. To her right, Cole stood, blue eyes flashing with unconfined anger, electric bolt ready in his hand.

Paige noticed he was covered in wounds, and there was one nasty burn mark on his left leg. Across the room, facing him, stood the one she hated so. Shier, he had said his name was, amidst her screams as he cut her with the sharp blade of a ceremonial knife.

Back in the Underworld, he had seemed imposing, towering above her as she hung from the ceiling of the cavern, the sole of her feet barely dragging away at the floor. Now, in the full light of the Surface, he had lost some of his glamour, but still remained as the impersonation of all that was evil.

Handsome and proud and deadly and evil, that was what he was.

Craning her neck to the side, she was surprised to see there was someone else with them. Sitting atop a destroyed table, her feet dangling leisurely in front of her, was Phoebe. A small smile lit up her changed features, and her black eyes darted back and forth between Cole and Shier. And in those eyes, Paige found the same glint of greed one sees on the curator who examines the finest horse, determining genetic traits that will impregnate his own mares.

"You bastard", Cole all but spat then, breaking the deafening silence that had settled on the room. There was venom in his words, the silent promise of a long, painful death for what the other demon had done. Paige noticed his free hand was curled into a tight fist, and in his eyes she saw the struggle from within as Belthazor strained to break free.

"Oh please. Like you haven't done worse in your days". Shier waved a dismissive hand in Cole's direction, and brushed a strand of hair out of the way of his viridian eyes. Back in the Underworld, Paige had seen them shine with an inner light of their own and she had blamed it on the reflection of the torches around them. It seemed she had been wrong, because even here, even now, they glinted like emeralds under the sun.

She tried to speak, tried to warn Cole, but her throat closed up and she could not get the words out. Piper stilled her with a firm hand against her chest, and pushed her back into her lap. "Don't move. You'll re-open your wounds. He cauterized most of them but still---", she stopped when she realized she had said too much.

Fighting a loosing battle, Paige kept on struggling until she sapped her own strength and had to stop. Taking a deep breath, she tried to speak again. A murky noise that would have to do emerged from her lips: "Why haven't you...".

She couldn't continue, but made a suggestive hand motion. Piper sighed sadly, and shook her head. "It doesn't work. They don't freeze and he doesn't explode". Neither of the women commented on the change of pronoun Piper used, because it was obvious *why*.

Instead, they turned their attention back to the ongoing battle between the two male demons. Paige couldn't help but notice that Cole was favoring his left side, and that every time he moved, Shier was a little bit quicker, a little bit stronger. Phoebe did not move from her spot, and simply followed their movements closely, as if admiring a show rather than a battle to the death.

"What happened?", asked Paige, feeling as little by little, her energies returned, allowing her to speak once again, "and where are Prue and Leo?".

"They're safe. Leo orbed Prue away. Cole wanted to me go with them, but I stayed... I don't know why".

Piper's eyes followed the battle too, wincing with every step that Cole faltered, with every hit from Shier that managed to sneak in between the half-demon's crumbling defenses.

"He shimmered here with you a while ago", she continued, and Paige shivered at the thought of *him* carrying her, but said nothing, "and he and Phoebe started arguing. Something about letting her fight her own fights. He kept ribbing her about faulty technique or something, and she just---". Piper faltered at a loss of words, asking herself just *what* had happened between those two (Shier and Phoebe) for Phoebe to get *that* flustered.

"In the end, she demanded he show her how it was done, and sat there where she is now. And then he threw an energy bolt at me and Cole---", once again, Piper's voice wavered with pent-up emotion, as she recalled her scream of fear and the realization that she was going to die right there and then. And then Cole had---

"He took the blast himself", Paige finished for her, knowing it by having read it in Piper's eyes. Closing her eyes, she tried calling for something, anything... her powers did not work. Drained of her energy, her body refused to spend any of its strength on anything but healing, orbing to safety be damned.

"Yeah. It all happened so fast he didn't even have time to shimmer us out of danger. And they've been going at it ever since".

Such a Cole-thing to do, they both thought. To endanger his own life to save those he loved. But it was going to cost him this time, because his bruised body was no match for Shier's fresh, rested energy as he kept going and going and going, and Cole looked like he was going to fall faint at his feet any time now.

As Cole sent a desperate look their way, Paige was struck with the heart-stopping realization that the one thing that kept him going right now was the certainty that if *he* fell, both she and Piper wouldn't be able to defend themselves.

Something within her tore at that, and she closed her eyes. This was *not* a good time to be admiring his chiseled features and caring soul.

Instead, she sent a silent prayer to whomever was listening, asking for help.

And all along, Phoebe kept watch, not interfering in the ongoing brawl, but making sure neither Paige nor Piper moved anywhere. Piper had the burnt hair-ends to prove it, as her first (and only) attempt at crawling towards the kitchen (where her store of potions lay) had resulted in Phoebe sending her a silent, albeit extremely hot, warning to stay put.

"He's going to loose, Piper".

Paige's whisper was faint, but loud enough for Piper to hear. And it only confirmed what she knew, what she had known ever since Cole had been unable to dodge the first oncoming blast, that he would've otherwise sidestepped casually and easily. Whatever it was he had protected her from, it had taken a lot out of him, and now it was showing.

"And there's nothing we can do about it", said Paige, hopelessness creeping into her heart and freezing it under its cold, unyielding hand.



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



Piper kissing Cole. Cole kissing Piper.

Kissing. Groping, even.

But most of all, kissing. In that intimate, knowing way that is reserved for lovers and married couples.

Burned into his mind forever, even if he closed his eyes he could still see them, together, embracing, melting into each other like two halves of one whole.

{They kissed}, he thought for the umpteenth time, suddenly feeling dizzy. The wavering mist at his feet did not help any in placating the nausea that grabbed hold of him, and he held to the one solid thing he had near: Prue.

The small baby was settled snugly against his chest and was happily sucking on her thumb, unaware of the inner turmoil her uncle was going through. {Unaware that her father just cheated on her Mom, with her aunt nonetheless}, said a perfidious voice in the back of his head, and jealousy erupted in his heart like a maelstrom, threatening to consume him whole.

"You understand now, Leo Wyatt? Do you understand why we were against all of this?".

All of this? What was 'this'? Him marrying Piper? Phoebe and Cole being together? Prue? Too many questions, too many doubts, and a muffled sob left his lips as his heart began breaking. The robed figures spun around him like a kaleidoscope, and their forms blurred into one continuous gray circle surrounding him, closing in on him, preventing his escape...

"Give her up, Wyatt. Give her to us", they all spoke at once, their voices mingling in a cacophony of tones and words and orders that made his head hurt and all along, all he could see was Piper wrapped around Cole like a second skin.

"No", he muttered, some semblance of common sense making its way into his mind, like a ray of sunshine through the clouds of a storm. "No", he repeated, louder this time, making the figures around him stop spinning and settle into one place and one place alone.

Seven of them still, all robed, all cloaked in light so bright he could see their contours but nothing else.

"She had no part in it", he said, resolve strengthening, eyes narrowing.

And he knew what they wanted him to do. Exploiting on his human weaknesses they wanted him to react like most humans would: with anger and without thinking. To give up Prue to hurt Cole... oh, and how he wanted to. How he wanted him to suffer how he had suffered, how he was suffering now, watching the frozen image of him kissing his wife, the one woman he had given everything to and who had so balefully betrayed him.

{No. It wasn't her fault}, said a distant corner of his mind, a small part that had yet to be overtaken by jealousy. And then he realized he did not know whom he was thinking about: it wasn't Prue's fault that they had kissed? Or it wasn't Piper's fault? Or maybe it was no one's fault...

"You will not give her to us? Why do you keep holding on to a lie, Leo?".

Strangely, it was a female voice the one that spoke. Funny, he had never thought of the Elders as sexed beings...

Because it's the only thing I have left, he wanted to say. Because she means everything to me, and because I love him as a brother, he wanted to say. And because I cannot fathom the idea of them betraying me, added a small corner of his mind that went almost unheard as the kiss presented itself to him in different shapes and forms and colors and---

"I love them", he said, his eyes downcast. "Even if they--- whatever it is that happened, I love them".

He did not know that the Elders were mimicking what the Source had done to Phoebe; he didn't know he now verged on the same cliff she had tumbled down after witnessing the very same scene now displayed in front of him.

Maybe what the Elders expected of him was to react in the same fashion Phoebe had, to lash out in anger and betrayal and give them what they wanted. But what the Elders had not counted on was that Leo was not Phoebe. He was a different person, and as such, he reacted differently. Rather than letting anger consume him and pervert his heart, he let the weight of inevitability settle over him slowly... after all, all he wanted in life was to see Piper happy, and if that happiness lay within Cole's arms instead of his, well, he'd accept it.

Mourn her, yes. Break his heart, hell yeah. But he wouldn't blame it on them, because he knew as a whitelighter that there was no controlling the whims and whispers of the heart.

When small, chubby hands cupped his face and softly made him look up, Leo had a sudden flash of wise, old eyes looking back at him, eyes that had seen many lifetimes before the one she was living now. Prue smiled at him in that pure, innocent way that only babies can, and chased his shadows away.

"Leee-ee-o", she cooed, stretching his name until it was not one syllable but three. And before he knew it, he was smiling back at her, the happiness in her cobalt eyes contagious.

Without missing a beat, Prue pointed at the hovering mirror in front of them and Leo suddenly felt her smile wasn't as brilliant anymore. Leo refused to look where her small finger indicated, and taking her tiny hand in his much larger one, kissed her knuckles and shook her head.

"No, honey. I've seen enough".

Frustrated, Prue insisted, making 'Dada' sounds every so often. The circle of robed figures had gone silent around them, as if intently watching the exchange between the baby and the whitelighter. And it was that oppressive silence that made him turn and face the Mirror of Time.

As if on queue, the image unfroze and continued and Leo suppressed the jealousy with control born out of a lifetime of hard decisions and tough calls and forced himself to watch. Displaced, he noticed that Prue's eyes were locked on the images before them as well, almost as if making sure he would not look away.

And this time, when the frozen image began running again, Leo was there to see how Piper called for him, and smiled.

And with that, a crack appeared on the glassy surface, stemming from Cole's chest and running up and down and right and left--- with a crash, the mirror exploded from the inside, and before the shards could harm either Leo or Prue, they vanished into tiny specks of light and landed on them both softly, almost lovingly.

And wherever they touched, Leo felt his weariness leaving him, and Prue outright giggled as she tried to catch the little fireflies with her hands. When his eyes rose to meet the shinning robes of the figures in front of him, they were strong and determined, having just exorcised a few demons of his own.

There were still a million and one questions running through his head, but neither Piper nor Cole was there to answer them. But he could wait. That's what he did, after all. Wait.

Taking a deep breath, he faced the Circle of Judgment, his voice gaining strength with every word: "We came here not by volition but by force. You dragged us up here like luggage and then you demand I hand Prue over to you. We were fleeing battle, and still you did not give us asylum but treated us as traitors. The Council of Elders I know does not impose on people. Maybe I did the right thing turning my back on you".

He ignored the indignant squeaks coming from all seven figures, and instead continued with his tirade: "You pretend to know what happened in that room, and how can you? When you're nothing but light and lack of feeling. You have messed with us enough! Piper loves me and I love her, and Cole is a part of our family whether you want it or NOT!".

With that last word, his voice rose to a pitch and a keen wail resounded around them, making Prue wiggle uncomfortably in his arms. One by one, the robes fell to the floor as whatever kept them animated disappeared, and remained hidden under the eternal mists of Heaven. The seven figures fell one by one, in an almost domino effect, and Leo was left alone, alone with Prue and the earsplitting beating of his own heart.

As little Prue began sobbing softly, totally at a loss as to what was going on, Leo caressed her cheek and tried to calm her down: "It's okay, Prue. Those mean people won't do anything to you. Not while I'm here".

Closing his eyes and concentrating, he willed himself to the Surface, to the Manor, to Piper...

When a few seconds went by, and nothing happened, Leo's eyes opened and there was fear in them. Because he was still unable to orb, unable to get down there and help his family as they fought the most important battle of their lives.

He felt rather than saw the coils of magic making their way from his feet up, almost like vines growing steadily upon a wall.

{Piper}, was his last thought before an irresistible somnolence grabbed hold of him and his legs buckled from under him. The last thing he remembered was cushioning their fall with his body to avoid Prue getting hurt.

The baby's tearful lament fell on deaf ears.


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


"This is what you feared so, Phax? He barely puts up a challenge".

Phax snorted as she jumped off her spot on the destroyed dinner table and walked up to Shier. "Only because I softened him for you first. He would've killed you in a heartbeat at full strength".

Across the room, Cole leaned into the wall behind him for support, trying to block out the sneers directed his way, his whole attention focused on Piper and Paige, making sure they were still all right.

Paige had stopped talking a while ago, and that had him worried sick: with the extent of her injuries, shock was not a distant possibility, and the light of hope in Piper's eyes had decreased until he could not see it anymore.

Where the hell was Leo and why wasn't he getting his ass back here and healing her? The thought of Paige hurting, of the young woman he thought as a little sister of dying--- he shook his head. She wouldn't die. She *wouldn't*.

At least Prue was safe. She was out of Phoebe's reach, and that pained him to the extent it was hard to breathe. Because how many times had he imagined their reunion? How many times had he daydreamed about this, about Phoebe seeing Prue and realizing her mistake, seeing Prue and her face lighting up in happiness, and the Source's hold on her broken, the taint upon her soul erased?

Too many to count.

And they had all been destroyed with one blow, one precisely delivered blow. Phoebe had seen Prue, had recognized her even--- and it had done nothing. The shadow of darkness was still all around her, still enveloping her like a protective cocoon of evil and damn it, he couldn't reach her while she was in there!

He grunted when he tried to straighten up and his collarbone protested. It was probably broken...

Few times in his adult life had he sported *these* kind of injuries-- usually, things were the other way around. He was doing the beating, he was the one doing the butt kicking. But now... he was on the receiving end of it, and things were looking more than grim.

They were positively dismal.

Taking that hit for Piper had hurt him bad: the amount of power behind it had been huge and it had slowed him down just enough for that cocky bastard to get a few precise hits in, more than enough for him to loose whatever advantage of age he might've had.

Because it was obvious that this--- this son of a bitch was young, not a year older than eighty. Almost an entire generation behind him, and still, he was making Cole look like he had just stepped out of the nest.

Gods, it hurt! Everything hurt. But most of all, his heart. And it broke a little more when he watched with wide eyes as Phoebe tilted her head and settled it on Shier's shoulder. His possessive arm around her waist was expected, but still, it was like someone had pulled his heart out and was using it for target practice.

"No", he whispered despite himself, and looked away. He couldn't stand the sight of Phoebe with someone else, especially with that derisive, smug little bastard that had all but beaten him into next week and was now grinning confidently at Cole, safe and aware of his victory over him.

"Look. He mourns you, Phax. He cannot take the sight of us together".

The contempt in Shier's voice ignited a fire of anger inside Cole's chest, and his head snapped back, eyes ablaze. That was why he was able to see clearly and without any preamble the passionate kiss they shared.

He did not how long it lasted, and he didn't care: to him, it felt like an eternity, an eternity of torment and of watching helplessly as those filthy hands that had defeated him now danced in lazy circles around the body of the woman he loved.

When Phoebe moaned deep in her throat and arched her body against Shier's, it was suddenly too much for him and with a roar of fury he attacked them. As one perfectly oiled machine, Phoebe disentangled herself from Shier and sidestepped Cole, letting Shier take the offensive. Rage made Cole careless and his electric bolt went much too wide and exploded harmlessly against the wall to their right. Without missing a beat, Shier planted a widespread palm against Cole's chest, and as time slowed down, he leaned forward and whispered in his ear, loud enough for him to hear: "You have great taste in women, Belthazor, I'll grant you that. I'll be sure to send your regards to the one I have yet to taste".

Power erupted from Shier's palm and pushed Cole backward at amazing speed. As he slammed against one of the last remaining standing walls of the living room, his eyes never once wavered from Shier's mocking grin and hatred took a hold of his mind.

Shier would *not* lay a finger upon Piper. Not while he was alive. Not while there was anything he could do about it. That simple thought of sweet, caring Piper even *near* him made a primitive part of him, the territorial instinct of old, come to life.

Belthazor bellowed inside of him, and pushed for release...

His head hit the ground, hard, and he lost consciousness. Unable to exert any type of control over his body, Belthazor retreated into the dark corners of his mind.

He never heard Piper scream his name.


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


"COLE!".

Piper tried to run to him, but the extent of her injuries and the dead weight of a fainted Paige on her lap stopped her. She could only watch with teary eyes as the man she knew as a brother fell, unconscious, leaving them all doomed to die.

{No! Not him too!}.

The desperate thought ran through her mind a thousand times before it lost its meaning to her, and still, it did not stop, like an endless merry-go-round going round and round and round...

Shier turned to look at her (at *them*, but Paige was too far gone to notice), and Piper blanched at the sight of his pointed canines shinning under the light as he smiled. Suddenly she had a glimpse of what he had done to Paige and it took a great deal of effort not to look away and hide somewhere really, really dark.

"You've got the spunkiest sisters, Phax. Did you know that?", he asked, never once looking away from Piper. Her arms cradled Paige's body closer, trying to keep her from harm's way. Shier's sharp eyes followed her moves with a leer, and she suddenly felt much too exposed by the flimsy blouse she wore. It was torn into shreds, and did little to cover her--- and through it all, she held her chin high and did not look away.

"And they're very beautiful, to boot", he continued, and moved closer to her. Piper couldn't help but compare him with Cole, because there were too many similarities between them to not do so: Cole moved like a panther, lithe and graceful and taut, ready to take anything sent his way. Shier moved like a tiger, leisurely, arrogant, confident in his own ability and charm. And yet they both had that aura of power around them. They carried it around wherever they went, like a veil upon their bodies. Maybe it was the demon in them--- maybe it was simply that they were both strong, passionate men, who would stop at nothing to get what they wanted.

Pity that Shier wanted *her*, she mused, frightened.

"Stay away from us", she spat at him, her arms raising and ready to fire. He did stop, but amusement colored his features and as he looked down at them, Piper felt her heartbeat quickening. "Or what? I think we already established that doesn't work on me", he said, motioning for her trembling hands.

And indeed, her powers did not work on him, by whatever spell that was protecting him. And desperation clawed at Piper, and she gritted her teeth in frustration: "Maybe not on you. But the house is all around you, Shier. And I have pretty damn good aim".

That halted him. They fought a silent contest of wills as Piper sent her best glare his way, and all along her mind screamed: {Move AWAY! Move away, PLEASE!}

By whatever Gods were watching, Shier broke off contact and shrugged. "Pity. I would've showed you Heaven, little Witch". As he turned on his heel and approached Phoebe, who was kneeling besides Cole, he never heard Piper's answer: "My husband already took me there".

"Did I kill him?", Shier asked nonchalantly as he stopped by Phax, crossing his arms and looking down at the fainted half-demon. Phax looked up at him, and grabbed a fistful of Cole's hair, pulling his head up. Cole did not wake. Releasing it, Phax stood up, her black eyes fixed on the crimson staining her hand. "No. But you hurt him pretty bad".

Across the room, their keen ears listened to the whispers of comfort Piper sent to Paige, and the blabber meant to soothe both their hearts. Casting a glance to the couple, Phax brushed her hand against her magenta leather pants and Cole's blood mixed quite harmoniously with the purple-red tint of her clothes.

"Well, I think our work here is done".

Shier raised an eyebrow at that but Phax's finger on his lips silenced his protests: "Death is too easy for them. Why not extend their torment for a while?".

As Phax's finger came down slowly, Shier took that hand with his own and kissed the inside of her wrist in an intimate caress. "I love the way you think, woman". She only smiled at that and winked at him.

Letting him embrace her, Phax rested against his powerful chest with ease, taking in the destruction and chaos they had left in their wake. As he nuzzled her throat, her eyes landed again on Piper, as the older woman bent over to check Paige's pulse.

How beautiful this all was... finally, her revenge was taking shape before her. The witch broken and bloodied, mourning for the young Witch with teary eyes and desperate pleas. And Belthazor--- well, it went without saying that watching him and Shier have a go at it was the single most arousing sight she had ever had the pleasure of enjoying.

Curling around Shier like a cat, she let him play with the hem of her shirt as it rode dangerously high on her belly and licked her lips in anticipation. Oh yes, so many, many things she could do to them.

Gaining Piper's attention, she spoke slowly, marking her words: "Know this, sister: this was only the beginning. We can come back whenever we want to, and we *will*. Rest assured we will. Enjoy your truce while it lasts... when we return, we'll be taking souls with us".

With each word her eyes drilled into Piper's, almost gleeful. Piper did not answer, and just concentrated on breathing. That monotonous, endless task kept her from snapping, kept her sane as her sister and her newfound lover bid their farewells and promised to return.

With a last wave and a laugh worthy of the stereotypical witches from fairy tales and such, the couple shimmered away. And their last words rang in the air of the destroyed manor, and Piper felt like throwing up as they began what looked like a sick, twisted version of foreplay.

"Leo", she cried out, Paige's body growing colder by the minute in her lap.

"Leo!", she tried again, softly placing Paige's head on the floor and crawling towards Cole, who had not moved since passing out. She didn't like the small pool of blood forming by his head. Upon reaching him, she frantically searched for a pulse and screamed when she found none.

"LEO!".

Her harsh cry broke the heavy silence that settled around her, as she suddenly realized that from this distance she couldn't hear Paige's breathing anymore, just her own desperate, clawing heave as her lungs refused to take in any air and she was suffocating and madness' talons assaulted her senses and--- "LEOOOO!".

Breaking into a fit of sobs, her battered form fell on top of Cole and she let grief take her.

Leo never came.

She never knew how long she stayed there, crying: at some point, she had run out of tears and had been left with rocking, sharp intakes of breath as she fought for control, but it couldn't have been more than a few minutes.

{Have to pull it together, must do it, for their sakes, Paige, please be alive, Cole, breathe, damn it!}.

Her small fist slammed against Cole's chest and he grunted as air was forced into his lungs. And her eyes widened and her heart soared as he slowly began breathing again, her sudden smack bringing him back to life.

She didn't know how, but she made her way to the phone. And somehow, some small, distant part of her brain remembered Darryl's number and her fingers found it in themselves to dial, and she mumbled something incoherent when he picked up on the other end.

And when she was sure Darryl was on his way over, she slumped against the wall and cried.



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


TBC....




Acknowledgements and thank you's:

To Snoopy: aahh, shucks. You made me blush. Cole and Paige are my fav characters to write about, so I'm glad you liked my portrayal of them! Hope you enjoy this next chapter.

To Kismet: *sigh* I wish Prue would've made Phoebe come back too, but this characters have a life of their own and she was quite loud about it. Besides, if she did shake off the Source's influence, then we'd have no more story, right?

To Evil Angel: Don't you worry. Little Prue's about to kick some Elder butt. Or at least, given them a run for their money.

To gemini UK: thank you for sticking with me this far... I'm blessed to have such loyal readers. This chapter is quite strong (at least I think so), so I hope I can meet up to your expectations.

To Hjordis: I know people keep reading this--- it's just that you've spoiled me! But thank you for the encouragement... I'll be sure to update quicker!

To Mimi: Je. My Muse saw your review and smiled devilishly. Don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing *lol*. And we all love to hate the Elders, because they pretend to be Good and they're not. At least the Source is all evil, all the time.

To Jaki: just in case you've finished unpacking, here's another chapter for the sake of clothing. And my mind works in dark ways, so there's always a way back from things... as much as certain writers from certain show which shall not be named want us to believe otherwise.

To Reflectionoflife: Believe me, I've wanted to write *myself* into the story at times. My hands itch to swap Phax over the head and lock her and Cole in a closet for a while till they make up and probably give Prue a brother or sister. But alas, we can't have that... not yet anyway.

To Cindy: your faith in Leo is not misplaced. Read on and find out how I, ahem, kept him sane. And as for your question, well, I see the Elders as this eternal beings who lost their ability to trust a long time ago. And like so, they kill what they cannot understand and forbid that which they cannot kill. Cole is a headache to then, and so is Prue--- maybe they're the reflection of the WB writers!

To Nibor13: updated, just as you asked!

To Michelle and CFan2005: *gasp* Five hours? Damn, hadn't realized this thing had gotten so long. But it is a good read, isn't it? (notice my humility? :o) Hope you like this chapter!

To Grace: thank you! Keeping track of all my plot twists has been hard... thank God I have a trusty notepad nearbyor I'd be lost!

To jessica: don't worry, honey. I know Phoebe and Cole are soulmates, and no matter what I do, I'd never pair up Cole with anyone else. Maybe me, but that's a whole another story *wink*.

To Tiian: aahh, yes. Guilt-ride should be coming up for Piper and Cole... who said the past never comes to bite you in the butt?

To ****: Next chapter done! Hope you like!