This is my very first fan fiction. All constructive criticism will be welcomed with open arms.

Disclaimer:

None of these characters are mine. I offer any apologies to Joss Whedon (BtVS/Angel) and Aaron Spelling (Charmed) for any misuse which is purely unintentional.

Summary:

AU – Phoebe finds that Cole is back ... again, but he's not alone – he has a new witch in his life.

Author's Note:

The prologue to this story takes place around the same time of Angel's final climactic battle. At this time, Wyatt is 2 and Chris is just a twinkle in his mother's eye. In my universe, Leo doesn't die and is still a white lighter.

Prologue, Part Two

Buffy was feeling around in the portal desperately for whatever was blocking it from being closed. She didn't know what to expect when she found it, but she was certainly shocked to find herself clasping a very human set of hands. What? No human can survive a hell dimension – what is going on? Realizing that time was getting very, very short – she took a firm grip and made a huge tug backwards.

"Oomph!" she grunted as she fell over backwards with a very human body collapsed on top of hers. She looked up into a pair of very cool blue eyes. As they looked at her, the corners of the eyes twinkled and the very human man smiled engagingly.

The man was a little ragged with a weeks' long growth of scrabble on his face, but still very tall, very dark, and very handsome. He shoved himself up on his arms and looked around. He looked down at Buffy and smiled again. "Thanks for the helping hand. The name's Cole, Cole Turner."

He then looked up and frowned. He was staring at the still ajar portal, turning quickly he looked at Willow in her pentagram. "Damn! Some of the abominations are following me through! Close it! NOW!"

Then, he crouched into an attack posture and made as if to throw something. "Hey, dude..." Xander began when he gasped as a large ball of some kind of energy appeared in the stranger's hand. He threw it forward at the demons that were appearing out of the portal. They erupted in a large explosion.

Willow shuddered at the emanations of pure dark power coming off of the stranger. She could feel his magic as if it was a living thing. It was vibrant, forceful, and very, very sensual. Willow found it hard to take a breath. He may have been a very handsome man visually, but magically he was incredibly desirable and sensual. When he threw the energy ball, she had to stop herself from moaning out loud. Huh? What was she doing? I have a girlfriend. That's when she realized the stranger was speaking to her urgently.

"Witch!" he exclaimed at her. "You need to close this portal yesterday!"

He was still throwing energy balls as Buffy was fighting some of the demons that were coming from the caves, obviously attracted by the ether of pure evil coming from the portal. Why doesn't that witch act? Cole thought to himself. Damn! I just don't have the energy to keep this up. I need to conserve energy after my time in that dimension. That's when the breath was nearly knocked out of him. It was the witch! Great Mother, she was powerful! The power came out of her, concentrated by the ancient power of the pentagram. He just stared at her, his eyes growing dark as the darkness in him recognized and desired the darkness in her. He growled subconsciously as he thought of her reaching for him in the grip of a great passion.

Willow was feeling a little spent, having finally the portal to the hell dimension. Then she heard him growl. She let out a low moan in response to his call. She could feel herself becoming aroused by the sound of his low guttural growl. It was like she was responding to the call of her mate. What was she doing? She had to get control, soon.

Cole started moving towards the witch. He felt alive, oh so very alive. The low moan she sent out sent chills down his spine and, at the same time, re-energized him. Looking into her eyes, he could tell she didn't really know what was happening to her. Hell! Neither do I! But as far as they were concerned, no one else existed in the whole world. He approached her slowly as a spider to his more powerful partner. He knew instinctively that this witch had more than enough power to vanquish him. He laughed inwardly when he thought of that. One witch with more power than Phoebe and her sisters! Wouldn't they be surprised to find one witch with more power than the infamous Power of Three! Laughing softly, he edged closer to the witch.

She was slim with an almost elfin or faerie-like face. Her hair was red, not garish as Paige's, but more the color of burnished copper or a fine sunset. Her eyes had been green, but now they were black with the dark passion crackling between them. He was within an arm's length of her now. Now was the most dangerous time. The witch may not realize what this was, but Cole did. When a demon engages a dark witch like this one, the most dangerous time is the foreplay. Cole couldn't even count how many demons were destroyed trying to mate with a dark witch. Cole had already been vanquished twice, he didn't want to go for three.

Buffy and Xander, quite forgotten in the charged atmosphere in the midst of Cole and Willow's feelings, didn't know what to think. Willow was never this forward. Especially in front of others. Buffy wasn't sure who (or what) this stranger was. But she seemed to think she should do something, although she didn't want to antagonize this man. If that's what he was. The stranger was approaching Willow as if he didn't want to spook her, almost as if he thought she could be a danger to him. But, still...

Cole had almost reached out to the witch when suddenly he was tackled from behind. It was the mortal boy! What a fool, Cole thought. I could kill the boy without a second thought. He could feel the demon within him snarling to get free. It would be so quick, so easy...

"Xander!" Buffy and Willow yelled at the same time.

"Do you want to get yourself killed?" Buffy continued in exasperation. "We don't know what he... it... is capable of?"

Cole heard the desperation and worry in the witch's voice. She cared for this puppy. He sighed audibly and tamped down the rage and violence within. He looked up at the boy and smiled placatingly. He raised his arms in a sign of peace and submission. "I'm sorry, really I am. I'm probably not the most social after spending all that time in that hell dimension. Really, if you want to know, Hell is actually a much more social place than any of these hell dimensions. Could I get up?"

Buffy instantly pulled Xander off of the stranger. The tone of his voice made if awfully tempting to believe he was sincere, but one could never tell. She took an offensive posture as he carefully stood up. "What are you?" she demanded.

He chuckled. "I told you, my name is Cole Turner. I'm an attorney."

"Yeah, right. Who for? Wolfram & Hart?"

Cole raised an eyebrow. Not many people knew about them. They were an extension of the Order of the Black Thorn, the Brotherhood that Cole had been a member of for so many decades. "No, not exactly. Although, I have worked for the Senior Partners."

An audible gasp came rifling through the cave. Buffy pulled out a large dagger. Cole watched her carefully. She was obviously a skilled warrior and he didn't want to be killed so soon. "Calm down, calm down. I haven't really been a member of good standing for some years."

"You're more than just a lawyer," Willow interjected. "You're a sorceror or a warlock or ..."

"Oh, please. Please give me some credit. I don't think I've been this insulted in a very long time." Cole snapped, visibly insulted. Stepping towards her, he took her had gently. "You can feel the magic and the darkness within me. You know I'm no common warlock."

Willow giggled. He was very arrogant, and now that she had a little perspective, she could see he was also very weak and in pain. She stepped forward carefully and took him by the arm. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Please come over here and sit down. You need to rest."

"Will!" Xander and Buffy screamed.

"Oh, calm down guys! He's in no shape to take on a Slayer," she chided in exasperation. Looking at Cole, she smiled and said, "They're such worrywarts. Ever since I met the demon Moloch in a chat room."

"Moloch, huh?" Cole said intrigued. "I'd heard that he'd been bound in a book."

"It's a long story. By the way, I'm Willow." She grabbed a backpack by the wall and started to rummage around inside. Her hand came out with a chocolate candy bar. "Here, it's all I have. You really need some food."

Cole took the candy bar quietly and started to eat. He'd forgotten the last time he ate. "Thanks, Willow. So, tell me, you doing anything tomorrow night?"