Hey guys, sorry for the long wait, review responses are at the end of the chapter :)

The large italic bit is a memory/flashback.

CHAPTER EIGHT

THE SECRET ASSIGNMENT

Paige closed her eyes softly, waiting for some sign that magic had occurred, magic that would send her home and hopefully to a better future.

Nothing happened.

The raven haired witch frowned in concentration, assuming her mind must be blank for the magic to work, a calm demeanour was often necessary for complicated magic.

She was in the guest bedroom, sitting on the chair in front of the vanity, dressed in some comfortable, inexpensive clothes, not willing to cost her sisters money if the garments were damaged on the way back to her time.

Her mind started to shut down, allowing any potential magic to invade her senses without being repelled away.

Yet still nothing happened.

Okay Paige, don't panic, she told herself, chewing the end of her long plait in the hope of comforting herself.

Panicked thoughts swam around her exhausted mind, she had refused to let herself sleep or recover from the ordeal several hours earlier, not wanting to miss any chance for her to go back. She had merely picked at the food offered at dinner, and had forced herself to sit in the uncomfortable wooden chair to keep her from sleep.

Somewhere in the house, the clock struck midnight, causing Paige to tense in hesitation. Sure it maybe rather clichéd, but maybe the magic will end at midnight.

8, 9, 10, 11, 12…

Midnight had come and gone, the last bell sounding a couple of seconds earlier. She sighed in frustration, wondering if there was any magic that could help speed the process along, but she had already flipped through the Book of Shadows, several hours earlier and had found nothing useful.

She allowed her head to drop onto her shoulder, hoping that her thoughts would stop racing around in her head, she was developing a migraine.

She found herself drifting off into a needed slumber, despite her minds protests, and her headache's painful thumping.

…………………

"Paige, wake up." A voice called to her from near her sleeping form. Paige felt no desire to wake up, her headache had come and gone during the course of the night and she was feeling much more refreshed, yet she didn't want to open her eyes and find that she was still in the 'past' and had to spend her day finding a way out of the unfamiliar world.

Grumbling slightly, she opened her eyes, wincing as the harsh sunlight glared into her eyes.

Cole sat in front of her, his blue eyes coming to rest on her own chocolate ones.

"I take it you didn't get sent home." He said, smirking at her. She rolled her eyes in protest, and groaned slightly, carefully probing the crick in her neck.

That was the last time I sleep in anything but a bed, Paige vowed, standing up from the chair she had spent the night in.

She stretched her muscles out, ignoring their aching protests, and tried to move away from Cole's penetrating stare, it was making her uncomfortable, and strangely bare.

"The reason you are still here is because there is something left for you to do, a wrong to be righted." Cole said, standing up so he towered over her small form.

Paige tried to convince herself she was not intimidated by his presence, but she had a feeling he knew it anyway, even if she did not display it.

"Fair enough." Paige commented, backing away from the intimidating ex-demon. She was slightly amazed he still managed to appear so powerful and dangerous even when his humanity had been restored to the full.

Her back hit the wall, causing her nerves to jump in fear. Cole was closing in on her, his face blank, his eyes steeled in determination.

She barely stopped herself from shaking as the dark haired man rested a hand above her head, his body flushed with hers, only a few inches of air between them.

He wore only trousers and a t-shirt and his hair was tousled from sleep, or other night activities, Paige mused, but he was still able to appear the epitome of danger and rebellion.

"Why don't you trust me? Have I not proved myself worthy?" He questioned her, looking deep into her eyes with the piercing ice blue that she found oddly endearing.

She had not expected him to question her, in her mind's eye, she had half expected to be attacked or meet a similar dark fate, not to be questioned, with a trace of hurt in his voice.

Her breath caught in her throat as she tried to formulate a sentence, his presence was causing her mind to reel.

"Let's just say some things happened that I wish I could change." Paige murmured, her thoughts tied back to a memory.

Paige watched her sister, her breath coming in short shallow gasps, sweat cascading down her forehead, yet she didn't notice, her mind was entirely focused on Phoebe's dark brown eyes; eyes that held such contempt and hatred.

It was hard to think that her sister was looking upon the love of her life with such cruelty.

Paige blanched as she saw Phoebe throw the potion, her mouth agape with horror as the demon was incinerated in a ball of fire.

She realised that Phoebe had never loved Cole as much as she had claimed in the past, after all, who could murder their love? Regardless of circumstances.

Paige snapped back into the present and gazed back into Cole's eyes, hoping that he did not notice the lapse in her attention.

"Maybe that's why you are still here, your subconscious wants to change something that happened and you will not transport back until it is done."

The brunette considered his words, almost forgetting his company so close to her.

She admitted she had wanted to save Cole form his dark fate, but did that count giving him his true love? Was Phoebe his true love? In all honesty, Paige believed that Phoebe only thought she was in love with the ex-demon, but was in reality just infatuated by his presence.

That could be a problem, she mused, trying to think of ways to tell Cole that Phoebe's feelings were not as deep as once believed.

No, she decided resolutely, I have to be subtle, get them to realise their feelings, and maybe my own at the same time. For even she did not know why the thought of another being without love made her heart twinge in pity.

"Paige? Cole?" Both of them turned towards the door to the room, slightly surprised to see an incredulous Phoebe eyeing them both.

Maybe subtlety was not needed, Paige thought, as she watched Phoebe and Cole shout at each other.

……………………

Oh, I have so decided to take this story in a new direction. Lol, spontaneous I know. Well, I am going to turn this into a Cole/Paige romance. Don't hurt me! Let's face it, Phoebe and Cole just does not work, and as you may have guessed, saving Cole's soul is Paige's unfinished task, so, I hope you will like it, there will be a lot more chapters now….

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it, any comments/reviews/emails are more than welcome.

Thanks for the reviews:

charmed1s-halliwells- Oops, I hope you didn't cry, lol. Sorry for the long wait, but the extra long chapter was worth it? Right? Oh well, lol. Thanks for the review!

Nikki14u- Good point, but then again she is quite clumsy :P Thanks for the review.

Paige fan- you're gonna have to wait and see, lol. Thanks for the review.

Matt91- I'm glad you liked it, and sorry for the long wait. Thanks :)

Gryffindor620- Good point, but you just worked out the title of the story! Another chance, Paige gives Cole another chance… But will he take it? Lol. Thanks for the review.

CharmedAngelicAngel- I'm glad you liked it, thanks for the review!

WashedOut- Thanks.

future cop- You're the only one on here who seems to think smaller chapters are better, lol. Thanks for the review.

emelie172- Thanks for the review!

amythestpony- Thank you, I am glad you liked it.

Paige Halliwell- Lol, it is okay, I will beta for myself now, there is a lot of revisions I need to make in the previous chapters and it will be easier if I did that, thank you for the offer though, it is greatly appreciated. Thanks again :)

P3-CharmedForever- Oh, sorry for the long update time, I'm glad you like it so far :)

motormouth2005- Yeah I agree, drama is better, is this soon enough? Lol, sorry for the wait though. Thanks for the review.

'Til Next Time (which will be a shorter wait, I promise!)

M.P