6.
Paige walks into the South Bay Social Services building where she once worked. Before she could do anything else an enthusiastic exclamation and bear hug greets her. "Paige! So good to see you again!"
Taken aback by the animated welcome, Paige lifts her arm slightly within the confines of the hug and gave her boss a pat on the back. "Good to see you too Mr. Cowan."
"Come on into my office and I'll give you a run down on what's going on." Mr. Cowan said as he ushers Paige down the hall towards his office. "It's been crazy around here. So many cases and limited man power. You know how it is; most people don't stick around for too long, the pay isn't exactly good. A lot of people see it as a stepping stone for bigger things. But there's something about you Paige, I've always felt you had a special knack for connecting with and guiding people. Social work, it's really more a calling than a lucrative career."
"Right." Paige laughs nervously at Mr. Cowan's eerie choice of words.
----
An hour later, Paige had made the rounds and been introduced to all the volunteers and workers in the office. Mr. Cowan had given her a stack of cases to work on; confident she can jump right in.
Reading as she walks, Paige makes her way down another dimly lit hallway towards a room where the subject of her first case is currently residing. A John Doe who had came into the homeless shelter next door the night before who wouldn't or couldn't give any information to the social service, not even his name. With her eyes still focused on her reading, Paige blindly grabs for the handle to open the door and was about to introduce herself to the man inside when a familiar voice stops her dead in her tracks.
"Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, you had to walk into mine."
"Cole. I didn't know you're a movies fan." Was all Paige could think of to say at the moment.
Ignoring her comment, Cole walks pass her and casually said "Thanks for opening the door. I'll be leaving now."
"Door!" Paige said with a wave of her hand. Before Cole can take another step, the door to the room slams shut in his face. Turning around Cole folds his arms around his chest and said through clenched teeth "What do you want?" The slight muscle twitch at his jaw indicating his irritation.
"I just want to talk."
"Whatever I have to say is in the file in your hands. I already told the guy who was here earlier. I went into the shelter last night for some food and a place to sleep. Nothing more. I don't need social services' help and I certainly don't need the third degree. Least of all from you."
"Dammit Cole, that's not what I meant and you know it!" Paige throws her case files onto the small table situated in the middle of the room in exasperation.
"I have nothing to say about that either."
"If you don't want to talk, fine. But you'll at least listen. You and I don't exactly have a cordial relationship, but this concerns Phoebe and her well being. And I'll do whatever I can to help her. Awhile ago, she had a premonition..."
"I don't care what Phoebe had a premonition of!" Cole cuts her off. A thought strikes him then. "Is that why you and your sisters brought me back? Because of Phoebe's premonition? I'm not some damn demon encyclopaedia you can summon to ask questions! I'm through helping you all."
"Okay, how can a statement be technically 100 correct yet completely off base?"
"You can stand there and ponder that philosophical question if you want. But I'm out of here." With that Cole wrests the door open and walks out.
"Argh! What I wouldn't give to have Piper's freezing power."
----
Cole walks down the street away from the social services building. Suddenly two men walk up beside him and drag him off into an alley. With a forceful push, one of the men has Cole up against the wall of an old abandon building with a forearm across his neck. "Belthazor."
Cole looks at the man who called him by his demonic name. "I know you. You were at the shelter last night."
With a mirthless laugh the demon explains: "That's right. It's a great place to recruit troubled souls. But I never thought I'd run into the most wanted demon traitor in history." Pushing his forearm into Cole's neck more vigorously cutting off his air supply, the demon continues: "Most in the Underworld believe you dead. Vanquished by the witch whom you sold out for. But some of us had our doubts. Imagine my reward and place in history when I bring your head as irrefutable proof that I have killed the witch-loving traitor. Why, they may make me the new Source."
----
Paige steps out in front of the social services building looking left and right, hoping to catch a glimpse of Cole in the street full of people. Off in the distance she can just make out the form of him and two other men as they turn off into an alley. Years of demon-fighting experience has taught Paige that deserted alleys are never good. Taking off at a run, she curses the fact that she can't orb for fear of exposure.
Paige arrives at the alley just in time to see the demon holding Cole against the wall form an energy ball in the palm of his hand. Looking around for anything she can use as a weapon, she saw some construction material protruding out of a garbage container. "Wood beams!" Paige waves her arm. Two large lumber orb out of the bin and fly toward the demons. Looking over at the sound, the demon holding Cole and his minion saw the material heading their way but had no time to react. With screams of anguish as the beams trust into their body, the two demons disappear with clouds of dark smoke. With no forearm holding him up, Cole slumps to the ground grasping for breath.
"Why didn't you use your powers to fight back?" Paige asks as she helped him get up.
"I would have if I had any."
"Wait, you don't have any powers? You're not magical? Well I guess that explains why we couldn't scry for you last night."
"So now you know. I guess I owe you a thank you." Heading back towards the street Cole stops momentarily and turns his head "So thanks. And please just let me be."
"Whoa! I just saved your sorry ass and that's all you have to say? You know what? I'm done talking, you're coming with me." Without waiting for his response, Paige grabs a hold of Cole's arm and orbs out with him.
----
Piper was sitting in the living room looking through the book of shadows when she heard the familiar jingling that indicates someone was orbing in. She looks up in time to see Paige materialize along with Cole.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?.!" Cole angrily glares at Paige when they were solid once again. "I asked you to let me be. Which part of that do you not understand?"
Cole turns around to see Piper staring at them. Looking past her he begins to walk towards the front door. "Piper, freeze him."
"Wha...?"
"Piper! Freeze now, ask later."
"Okay." Piper flicks her hands at the man intending to escape. "Paige, where did you find him?"
"Social services. Seems after he left here last night he went to a homeless shelter. He was my first case this morning. Talk about kismet."
"Well, he didn't sound too happy to be back here."
"No, he walked out on me at the office too. He was corralled by a couple of demons in a deserted alleyway. Interesting side note, it seems he's no longer magical. Anyway, after I vanquished the demons he was about to leave again, so I just grabbed hold of him and orbed him home."
"Well Paige, we can't keep him frozen forever if he doesn't want anything to do with us."
"I know but I figure at least now we have him here maybe it'll give Phoebe a chance to talk to him."
"Yeah, you're right. But I don't want her coming downstairs and seeing him like this. It'll be another shock to her system. We better go up and talk to Phoebe and prepare her for this."
As if on cue, the subject of their conversation walks down the stairs. "Prepare me for what?"
"Phoebe!" Both Piper and Paige jump at her voice. "Ah… nothing." The two of them standing in front of Cole, trying but failing miserably in their attempt to conceal his 6'3" frame with their 5'4" ones.
Echoing her utterance the night before when she had first lay eyes on him after so long she simply said his name once more. "Cole."
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Disclaimer: No I don't own "Casablanca" either. I'm just borrowing a line. And it's not even an exact quote. So don't sue!
A/N: Well, my longest chapter yet. Next one, the confrontation!