"Damn," Paige grumbled, "Chris isn't coming when I call for him."
"Could be a magical block," Phoebe suggested. "We should've gone after him when we had the chance before."
Knowing it was made out of concern for the child rather than aimed specifically against him, Cole let the accusation pass while he remained standing behind the sisters. "If they're blocking him now, they were blocking him then."
"The Triavs're expecting us to rescue him," Phoebe sighed, acknowledging Cole's proper decision earlier. "Doesn't mean I have to like it."
"Well, I hate it," Piper muttered.
Cole restrained her a moment to warn, "We stick to the plan. Divide and conquer. Use your potion at the point of vanquish so their deaths can't attract reinforcements. And do it fast because those reinforcements will arrive in the blink of an eye."
"Mommy's coming," she whispered when she peeked from behind the curtain and watched Chris who was unhappily taped to one of the tabletops. She glanced at Phoebe and fumed, "Look what they did to my baby!"
"At least he's not screaming like he was before," she said before she turned to Cole, "I still only see the two from before. Maybe it won't -"
"Don't be fooled," he interrupted. "The third one is around somewhere. And be careful," he warned again, "Piper and Paige will have their hands full while you're going after the baby."
"No worries, I know you're here," she replied distractedly while she watched the two demons pacing around Chris's table. But when she heard Paige's gasp, she realized what she'd said and cleared her throat, "I mean we know you're keeping an eye out for the third Triav and will back us up."
"Right," Cole hesitantly agreed. He gazed at Phoebe and decided that the comment was unintentional and due to her still being in shock at his return. As soon as they'd get the baby home, she'd be telling him to leave again, using the same speech he'd heard too many times before. She's good, he's evil, she'll love him but can't be with him. 'What the hell kind of love is that? Damn Leo for bringing me back to this…'
"Enough," Piper decreed, "I want my son." Without waiting for responses, she whipped aside the curtain, stepped into the club, and blew up the Triav on the left.
The second demon immediately retaliated but Paige called for the fireball in mid-flight, sent it right back at him, and nodded in satisfaction when he exploded in a flurry of black ash.
The sisters then ran to the table but, the instant she reached for her son, Piper was shocked by a burst of blue electricity, thrown back a few feet, and collapsed to the floor.
Paige orbed to Piper's side while Phoebe began reciting spells to try and break the trap.
Dazed, Piper managed to stand with Paige's help, "Is Chris okay?"
"He's fine," Paige assured her just as a fireball went whizzing by their heads. With a cry of surprise, Paige orbed herself and Piper to safety on the other side of the bar. "We didn't use the potions, Piper! Replacements're already here!"
"Phoebe, get down!" Piper shouted as she darted behind a table, pushed it down on its side for cover, and managed to blow up one of the two new demons along the way. "How's he expect us to use the potions if we're under constant fire?"
"Cole!" Paige shouted. "You're supposed to be backing us up!"
Phoebe had ducked under Chris's table and spotted Cole firing at, and destroying, the second Triav. As Cole made his way to her sisters, admonishing them for again not using the potions, Phoebe crept out from under the table and concentrated on a spell to break Chris free,
"Electric blue sparks reign you in,
But now your freedom I will win."
Just as Cole reached them, Piper got to her feet and saw Phoebe clap excitedly and free her son from the tape. "She did it," Piper sighed in relief and grinned at Paige. "She's got him."
Cole turned, saw Phoebe holding the baby, and urged, "Let's go. Now."
"Look out!" Paige shoved Cole down while Piper dove again behind the table. The incoming fireballs blew up the tables behind them.
"Get Chris!" Piper ordered Paige while she and Cole fired back at the two approaching Triavs.
"Use the potion!" Cole reprimanded her as he fired again, striking one demon square in the chest. "Now!"
"Fine," Piper grumbled as she fumbled for it in her pocket, half-stood, and aimed the bottle at the same demon. She let the bottle fly and it shattered when it hit the Triav's right thigh. He was quickly enveloped in a thick haze of brown smoke before bursting apart in tiny pieces. Falling back on her butt from the explosion, she muttered, "One down, at least two to go…"
As soon as the firefight began, Phoebe ducked with Chris behind one of the tables. She kept her eyes on the passageway to the back office and wondered if she'd be safer with Chris in the back or if she'd be trapping herself if one of the Triavs found her there. Just as Paige orbed next to her, she shouted a warning, "Demon!"
Paige caught sight of the demon and immediately orbed to Piper and Cole, out of the line of fire. She called for one of the liquor bottles from the bar and sent it flying at the Triav's head.
Phoebe scrambled out of the way just as the demon collapsed behind her. She heard Cole's warning to jump but, when she tried to run, she felt the demon grab her left ankle. Dazed as he was, she still couldn't break free from his grip while carrying Chris and, suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her lower back. She stumbled and, in order to shield Chris, twisted herself so that she took the brunt of the fall.
Paige watched in horror as her sister, stabbed in the back with an athame, crashed into one of the tables with the baby. Hearing Piper scream Phoebe's name snapped her from her shock and she sent her potion flying at the demon. "Cole!" As soon as the combined energy ball and potion vial destroyed the demon, Paige ran to her sister, "Phoebe!"
Still stunned from both the earlier trap and watching her sister and baby boy go down, Piper accepted Cole's help to stand so she could get to them. The fallen table was blocking her view and the silence from her sister and son across the club floor sent waves of fear running through her. "Phoebe!" And when she heard Phoebe's dazed reply, she automatically grabbed onto Cole in relief with one hand while her other hand covered her heart in an attempt to calm its rapid beating. "Oh, thank God…"
"'kay…give me a sec…" Chris was mewling and squirming in her arms but Phoebe didn't loosen her hold on him. The sight of blood on him frightened her, though, and it took a moment for her to move her fingers to examine him and realize that it was her blood staining his onesie. And that's when the pain hit. In her back, her head, even her left leg. But all that was nothing compared to the pain in her chest with every breath she took. She thought she heard her sisters calling her but she needed to close her eyes. She'd answer Piper in a moment.
Piper was moving too slowly and Cole couldn't wait. He shimmered directly to Phoebe and was shaken by what he saw. Apart from the blood covering the baby's side, Phoebe's eyes were closed, she was too pale, and wheezing with every shallow breath. Her left leg was horribly twisted beneath her and, to his horror, it looked as if a rib had broken and punctured her skin, soaking her side in blood. He tried to speak her name but his voice didn't come. He practically fell to his knees and, afraid that touching her would worsen her injuries, he merely brushed some hair from her eyes. He discovered a red welt from where she'd evidently hit the foot of the chair when she'd hit the floor. The baby's tiny fingers flailed at his hand and he stared at the baby with helplessness. Phoebe wasn't going to make it and his heart caught in his chest as he finally whispered her name.
Phoebe coughed painfully and opened her eyes to find herself staring into Cole's worried ones. "Chris's…okay," she gasped. She smiled in spite of the pain, "We did it…always made…good team…I'm…glad…"
Cole suddenly felt cold. Until he and Phoebe cleared the air and talked, really talked, she would never deliberately compliment him. Not unless she…"No," he whispered. "Dammit, Phoebe, don't you dare do this! Why the hell didn't you levitate?" He closed his eyes and cursed himself for yelling at her.
'Typical, I save an innocent, give a compliment, and get hurt, and I'm still yelled at for doing the wrong thing…' Phoebe laughed but, to her surprise, it came out as a strangled cry of pain and she was suddenly scared for herself. "Can't…" she replied in an attempt to push back the fear. 'Talk to him…' Chris kicked out and she jerked in pain, seeing stars before her eyes. "God, it…hurts like hell…"
"Don't try to talk," he warned, barely aware of Paige's soft cry when she joined them. And he refused to take his eyes off Phoebe when Paige dropped to her knees opposite him. "Call Leo," he growled.
Phoebe moaned and, recalling her many training sessions with Cole, reminded him, "Work through…pain…can do…it…" She had to focus on something else so she tried to explain about her inability to levitate. "Power gone…taken…didn't de..serve it…"
"I don't understand, the Triavs can't steal powers," he responded.
"Long story…" she weakly replied. Chris was suddenly pulled from her arms and she moaned in protest.
"Don't talk," Paige requested with tears in her eyes as she carefully lifted Chris from her sister's arms. "Chris's fine, I've got him. He's okay. You did it, Pheebs, you saved him." She couldn't speak any further and, instead, squeezed Chris tighter and nuzzled his cheek.
Piper finally made her way over and fell to her knees in shock next to Paige. "LEO!"
"Numb…" Phoebe uttered in confusion. "leg…cold…"
Cole exchanged a concerned glance with her sisters. Phoebe didn't seem to realize the severity of her injuries and he couldn't take it anymore. Without warning, he gathered Phoebe in his arms and wished she didn't feel so fragile.
At least she felt warm now. But he was shaking. Why was Cole shaking? She saw tears streaming down Piper's cheeks. "He's okay," Phoebe promised her older sister as Paige transferred the baby to his mother. "Blood…not his." Her forehead wrinkled as she frowned, "Don't...think…come out…sorry…"
"No worries," Piper fearfully whispered as she hugged her son. "Don't talk, Pheebs, 'til Leo gets here and heals you." She'd barely finished speaking when Phoebe fell into a coughing fit.
Paige immediately grabbed a white napkin that had fallen to the floor and handed it to Cole who tenderly wiped away the blood that Phoebe had coughed up. The stain on her side seemed to be spreading. "Phoebe…"
"Where the hell is Leo?" he snarled in return.
"Leo!" Paige cried out just as a new demon appeared in the center of the room. "Look out!"
Piper automatically crouched and shielded her son, "Third Triav!"
With Cole bent over Phoebe to protect her, Paige concentrated and, for the first time, managed to orb the demon back several feet away from them. Squeezing her eyes shut, she sent him further back, crashing him into some tables. Recovering quickly from the exertion, she demanded, "Quick, Cole, send an energy ball at him so I can throw Phoebe's potion!" But Cole hadn't taken his eyes off her sister and she didn't have the energy to send the Triav flying again so she tried her earlier trick of knocking out the demon with a liquor bottle. It worked but this one wasn't as dazed as the other had been. In fact, this one suddenly turned invisible. She sent another bottle flying to that spot but it sailed through the air until it smashed into the far wall. Getting up, she stalked to the center of the club and scanned the area. "Dammit, Cole, he's gone!"
Cole suddenly looked up and took in Paige's furious expression. Instinctively, he fired an energy ball in her direction.
Outraged that he'd dare attack her, Paige was slow to react and didn't immediately orb away from the energy ball. But, just as it was about to reach her, it exploded and the form of the Triav suddenly turned visible.
In that split second, Cole threw Phoebe's potion at the demon.
Stunned that Cole had just saved her life, Paige just stood there and watched the Triav, maybe only half-a-foot from her, as it was enveloped in a brown haze and exploded. "You saved me," she commented in disbelief.
But with Phoebe lying so still in his arms, Cole caressed her cheek and replied dismissively, "Returning the favor."
It took a moment for Paige to realize he was referring to when she shoved him to the floor during the earlier attack. She was about to insist that she hadn't planned to but Phoebe began gasping for breath.
Seeing the fear in her brown eyes, Cole tried to assure her with a smile but he couldn't quite manage it. "Don't try to talk," he cautioned when she attempted to speak. "Save your strength."
"Leo!" Piper called out, deathly afraid she was about to lose another sister.
She was so tired and could barely move. And it was a painful struggle to reach for Cole's hand but Phoebe managed it before suffering another coughing fit. She felt helpless as he gently wiped her mouth with a napkin but she had to tell him. Had to let him know what she felt. What she'd always felt. She called his name but blood bubbled from her lips again and she squeezed his hand in fear.
"It's okay," he soothed her as he wiped away the fresh blood. But he was dismayed by her limp grip and hissed to Piper, "Find Leo, now!" Phoebe clearly wanted to talk but he shook his head and placed his fingers to her lips, "You'll tell me later. After Leo heals you."
But Phoebe needed to tell him and tears of frustration stung her eyes when she couldn't form the words. In fact, it took just about all her strength to say only word that she hoped he'd believe, "…sorry…" But she couldn't see his reaction or hear his voice when everything dissolved into darkness.
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In the solarium, Piper stood back and watched Leo and Paige attempt to heal Phoebe. She couldn't control a shiver of fear as she realized that if Cole hadn't shimmered to the house with Phoebe at that moment, they might not've found Leo in time. She squeezed her eyes shut when the image of Leo unconscious flashed in her mind. He'd been bathing Wyatt and…all that water sloshing around him… Wyatt still clung to her leg and hadn't let go from the moment she'd pulled him from the tub. She couldn't even worry about the fact that he hadn't uttered even a syllable since. She barely felt Chris's soft cheek nuzzle her neck in discomfort from rubbing against her damp shirt. She couldn't think of anything other than the fact that she was about to lose Phoebe. Cole's demand to heal Phoebe nearly made her jump and she unconsciously tightened her grip on Chris.
Paige heard the tone in Cole's voice and realized he was scared, scared of losing Phoebe, and the part of her that realized his concern could understand and forgive the outburst. Because she was scared too. Sure, she'd lost Prue but she'd never had a real connection to her eldest sister. Phoebe, though, was a different story. Phoebe was the first to welcome her into the family and the first to express a desire to know her. No matter how much they each screwed up, they were there for each other. And no argument about Kyle or Cole could take away the love they felt for each other. "I need you," she whispered to her sister. "You can't leave me when I've just found you."
"She won't," Cole stated. Phoebe was too strong to let it all end now. Hell, he'd shimmer away in a split second and never return if only she'd open her eyes and demand it.
But Paige wasn't so sure. It was taking them too long and healing wasn't one of her stronger abilities and if Leo couldn't do it… 'What the hell happened to him? I thought he was an Avatar…' She glanced at him and wished he wasn't so pale and that his hands weren't trembling beneath hers. "Leo …"
Leo felt the wane in energy and urged, in a tone weaker than he'd realized, "Concentrate, Paige, clear your mind. I can't do this alone."
Piper observed Cole who stood closer to her, away from the others. He was absolutely still but for the clenching and unclenching of his fists. Leo promised them that Cole was stable but what if something happened to Phoebe? Would that send him over the edge again? Especially if there was so much left unsaid between him and her sister? 'No,' she decided, 'nothing's gonna happen to Cole because Phoebe's gonna be fine. Leo'll heal her and she'll be good as new.' But when she glanced at her husband and noticed the beads of sweat trickling down the sides and back of his neck, she bit back a sob. He wasn't in any condition right now to heal even minor injuries, much less the grievous wounds on her sister, while Paige barely had any healing ability. Piper waved her hands in a desperate bid to freeze Phoebe and buy Leo some time to rest.
"It won't work," Cole informed her in a low tone. He'd caught the motion of her hands and knew what she'd intended. "You can't freeze witches, certainly not your sister."
"Leo needs time to recover," she pleaded. "Isn't there anything?"
"Unless you know another Whitelighter," he grimly said, "it's up to him and Paige."
Paige was startled when the glow from his hands started to dim, "Leo?"
Leo shook his head and sat back on his heels, "I've done all I can, Paige. The rest is up to Phoebe."
"So, what," Cole angrily marched over to them, "that's it? You're giving up?"
"I've done all I can," Leo repeated in a tired voice. "I've healed her injuries," he assured Piper, "but she still needs time to recover. She's going to be sore and weak, maybe even a little dazed. She needs to rest."
Catching Leo's elbow when he staggered after standing, Paige commented, "And so do you." With a quick nod to her older sister, she announced, "I'll orb him to your room."
Sighing in relief, Piper slowly approached her sister who seemed to be sleeping peacefully. She looked down at Wyatt and assured him, "Auntie Phoebe's napping. She's only taking a nap." Wyatt gave Phoebe a quizzical look before burying his face in Piper's leg and she ran her fingers through his hair, "It's okay, sweetie, Mommy's here." Moving to brush a few strands of hair from Phoebe's eyes, she spoke to Cole, "I presume you remember where her room is."
Cole simply nodded before bending down to lift Phoebe into his arms. He tried to keep in mind the circumstances of their situation and ignore all the familiar sensations her body was causing him by being in his arms again. "Dammit," he whispered as he shimmered out.
"He's got that right," Piper told her sons in a quiet voice.
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Cole was still staring out Phoebe's window when he heard her call his name. He quickly went to her side and sat on the bed as she stirred and opened her eyes.
"Hey, baby," she murmured sleepily, "come back to bed…cold without you…"
Cole's heart pounded with uncertainty. Clearly, she was dreaming or, as Leo warned, still dazed. Either way, she didn't know what she was saying because he was positive she would never say such things if she was fully cognizant of the situation. He stood and was about to step back from the bed when her arm snaked out from under the covers and grabbed his sleeve.
Unsure why he was acting so strangely, Phoebe tried to prop herself onto her elbows but couldn't manage it. She shook her head but everything still seemed so fuzzy, something more than from just being tired. "Cole? What's wrong with me?" But speaking took so much energy and she fell back against her pillow. "Baby?"
"You were hurt," he told her in a raspy voice, wishing he didn't see the love in her eyes, not when she didn't truly mean it. 'I need to get out of here!'
Oblivious to his turmoil, Phoebe closed her eyes and frowned, "Just wish…so fuzzy…"
"Leo healed you," he assured her, "but you still need to rest and get your strength back."
Too tired to press the issue, she nodded weakly and tried to draw the blanket to her chin but gave up when it required more energy than she had.
Against his will, Cole helped her with the blanket but he stiffened when she smiled and managed to brush her lips against his hand before he could pull away in time. "Sleep, Phoebe," he whispered before he shimmered from the room.
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"So what exactly is it that bothers you more," Kyle asked Paige as they sat together at the kitchen table, "the fact that he's back or the fact that you saved him?"
She abruptly stood and strode to the counter to that morning's basket of leftover mini-blueberry muffins. She picked one up and had to stop herself from squishing it when she thought of Cole. He was back and there was nothing she could do. Well, she did have the vanquishing potion but could she use it if he didn't do anything to warrant it? Was she stuck waiting for him to hurt her first? And what if he didn't? What if Leo was right and he was "cured" from his insanity? She shook her head in wonder. To think she'd, once upon a time, actually liked the guy. But what he'd done to her…she couldn't let go. Why the hell did she save him?
"Paige?"
She dropped the muffin back into the basket, "I don't know." She turned spun to face him, "I don't know why I did it. I saw the demon attack and just pushed him down. I didn't think about it, I just…Dammit, why'd Leo bring him back?"
"Leo?" Kyle stood and joined her by the counter. "You said the Avatars brought Cole back, that he was the only one who could help you find Chris and fight Zankou."
Realizing her mistake, she rubbed her temples, "Look, Kyle, it's late and with both Phoebe and Leo resting, maybe you should go. I'll try to come by in a couple of hours."
But he grabbed her arms, "You know the Avatars killed my parents. I thought we were on the same side, Paige."
She wriggled free from his grip and insisted, "We are. I don't trust the Avatars or what they're offering. Utopia? It sounds too good to be true. But right now Zankou's a bigger threat and we're gonna need to be at full-fighting strength to go up against him. Please, Kyle, let us handle it."
"What about Leo?" he pointedly asked.
Paige hesitated a moment before looking him in the eyes, "Leo's an Avatar, has been for a couple of weeks now."
"And you didn't think I had a right to know?"
"Why?" she frowned. "What're you gonna do to Leo?"
"He's not gonna do anything to Leo," Piper replied instead when she entered the kitchen, "at least not while I'm around to stop him."
"I didn't mean to but it slipped out," Paige apologized.
"It's okay," Piper said before focusing on Kyle, "Leo's my husband. He's the same man he was before he became an Avatar and I'm not about to let you or anyone else harm him."
"Maybe he is," Kyle conceded. "But maybe he hasn't been one long enough to have been changed. Avatars have one agenda and -"
"That's rich," Cole interrupted when he shimmered into the room, "coming from a demon with an agenda of his own."
"What're you talking about?" Paige complained.
"The irony in the fact that you don't trust me enough to want my help," he told her, "but you trust this demon, practically a stranger, who has both the power and desire to destroy Leo."
"I'm not a demon," Kyle stated defensively as he took a step towards Cole, "and I'm not out to hurt Leo."
"You're out of your mind," Paige retorted, taking a step closer to Kyle.
"No he's not," Leo announced in a tired voice when he entered the room, "because Kyle is a demon."
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