A/N- the long awaited fourth chapter! I know- it's been so long since I updated this fic. I came across my notes on the fourth chapter a few days ago and figured that I should update this for those who want to read what happens.
Anyways, enjoy!
Water dripped into a young puddle formed by rainfall that had leaked through the roof and into a small dip in the ground. The water ran down a neighbouring boulder like a miniature river and added to the small pool.
A little mouse dipped his paws into the water and used it to cleanse himself, wiping away the debris his fur had collected from his hiding place.
He was startled by two sets of swirling blue and white lights that appeared before him, and scurried back to his home as the mass of lights faded and formed into three humans.
As the orbs dissipated, Cole dropped to the floor from Leo's grip. It had been a long time since he had been magically transported, let alone orbed, and he needed time to get used to it again.
Leo immediately helped Cole stand up again and moved him to the bolder that was about two feet away from where they had materialised. His bare foot landed in the puddle that resided before it and a jolt shot up his leg as a result of the water's unexpected coldness. However, he ignored it. He instead relished in the fact that Paige and Leo were willing to listen to his story, however grudgingly.
They could have left him to rot in the hospital- to spend the rest of his life under John Doe status and reliving the horrors of his life prior to his coma. He watched Paige as she spoke to Darryl on the phone, listening intently to the conversation. Although he knew that eavesdropping was not going to help his case, he was pleased to learn that Darryl was being kind enough to provide the hospital with his details and use his connections to find Cole a place to live in while he got back on his feet.
Knowing that he had a place to go gave Cole a huge sense of relief. He didn't doubt that the Halliwell sisters would keep him away from the Manor at all costs, and the thought of returning to the penthouse made him feel ill. He had too many bad memories associated with that horrific place. Cole was touched that Darryl was going through all of this for him, despite everything he had put him, Leo and the sisters through. It comforted him to know that there was still so much good in the world despite all that evil had done to destroy it.
Paige hung up and shoved her mobile phone in the pocket of her jeans. She stood in front of Cole with her hands on her hips,
"Okay, I've done the 'good person' thing and got Darryl to find you a place to stay. Now it's time for you to talk. How did you get here?"
You and Leo orbed me here? Cole responded in his head automatically. Paige scowled at him as though she had read his thoughts and he remembered that his relationship with Paige had gone far beyond friendly humour and sarcasm at this point. He blinked wearily,
"Like I said earlier, I don't know. The last thing I remember is Phoebe throwing the potion. The next thing I remember clearly is the hospital."
"You're lying." Paige spat at him. She was disgusted that he had the gall to lie to her face after she granted him the courtesy of not vanquishing his sorry ass the moment that she saw him.
"No, I'm not." Cole responded instantly, as though he knew that was what Paige was going to say to him, "I honestly do not remember anything that has happened since Phoebe vanquished me."
"You expect me to believe that?" Paige demanded angrily.
"Paige." Leo said, eager to prevent an argument from forming, "I know you're not Cole's biggest fan right now, but you may as well hear him out."
Paige looked at her brother-in-law for a moment, and then looked back at Cole. He looked so pleading: so hopeful that Paige would buy his story. She scoffed,
"Screw that." She closed her eyes for a second while she thought of an incantation. She opened her eyes and focussed her energy on Cole,
"I call upon the Powers that Be
To unseal mysteries from a distant memory
I wish to unlock secrets from a life so vast
Show us the truth of Cole Turner's recent past"
Paige winced inwardly at the poor construction of the incantation, but it seemed to work. A swirl of silver light appeared between herself and Leo and Cole, creating a portal. Within this portal, a scene played out: Cole's last living moments within the alternate reality he had created.
"I do hate long goodbyes." Paige said, smiling slightly, and prepared to throw the vanquishing potion in her hand.
"No!" Alternate Phoebe cried out and grabbed the potion from her sister's hand. Paige looked at her in disbelief,
"Phoebe, are you crazy? Throw it before he shimmers out."
Cole didn't shimmer out. Instead he watched Phoebe with the assurance that she still loved him and would not kill her husband.
"She's not going to throw it." He said to Paige, although he kept his eyes on Phoebe. He started to address his wife, "Are you?"
"Throw the potion!" Paige repeated in hopes that Phoebe would come to her senses and do what she should have done years ago.
"We've been through so much together, haven't we?" Cole continued as though Paige hadn't said a word. He hoped that appealing to the part of Phoebe that loved him would cause her to discard the potion. "Our love's so strong, nothing can destroy it. Not even this. We're meant to be together."
Phoebe watched him with a smile playing on her lips. Cole stared into her eyes and he could see that her love for him was fighting the resentment that she had developed in this reality. Her eyes suddenly hardened, and Cole realised what was about to happen. In that moment, his heart broke.
"I don't think so." Phoebe declared as she threw the potion. It hit Cole square in the chest, attacking his already aggrieved heart. The flames engulfed his body, subjecting him to excruciating pain… although nothing compared to his emotional state.
"NO!" he screamed as tears streamed from his eyes. As he exploded, his last thought was that the love of his life hated him.
A couple of seconds after the explosion, Paige disappeared in a swirl of light. Phoebe stared at the pile of ash that remained of her husband for a few seconds before crouching beside Alternate Piper and Alternate Leo to see if they were okay.
The scene suddenly changed to Cole's apartment at night. The penthouse was still a mess from Paige's failed attempt to vanquish Cole the night before. Two male figures stood among the debris of the broken window.
"The correct reality has been restored." The first man stated as he stared out onto the city, "Which means we will be able to continue towards our goal."
"What it means is that Cole is dead, Alpha." The second man responded, "And that we have lost a very powerful ally."
"No, we haven't." Alpha smiled, "When Cole assumed the identity of Belthazor in his reality, he did not become him in the full sense. He needed to retain the power to maintain or reverse the spell, so he was still an Avatar. That potion would not have dented him."
"But he was vanquished." The other man frowned, not quite following Alpha's reasoning.
"No. He disappeared because I undid his spell. If Paige had seen that he was alive, she may have found another way to kill him while he was still weak."
"So where is he?"
"My intervention required me to rip Cole out of his reality while he was in a state of great pain. Physically and emotionally. It hurt him quite badly. Give it time. He will be ready to join us soon."
Before the second man had a chance to reply, a ringing sound echoed through the penthouse, telling the two men that someone was arriving via the lift. They transported out of the room as the lift doors opened, revealing Paige, Phoebe and Piper.
The portal closed and the silver light faded away, leaving Paige, Leo and Cole in a state of surprise. Leo turned to Cole,
"Do you know who those men are?" he asked. Cole nodded somewhat shamefully,
"They're the Avatars of Power. They lured me into their fold with the promise that I would not be tempted by evil. They did advise me against that spell… I wish I had listened to them."
"What, so they're a neutral power?" Paige asked with a rather sceptical tone of voice.
"I don't know." Cole replied. "All I know that they must have been waiting for me all this time. But I think I am human again, so I would be of no use to them now."
"You expect us to believe you? How do I know that you're not going to summon them here now and kill us? And if either of you point out that Leo cannot die, I swear to God-"
"Paige." Leo said gently. Paige whipped her head around and looked at him,
"What?"
Cole shakily stood up, finally removing his foot from the puddle. The sudden blast of air that met his skin was a lot colder than the water itself, so he slipped his toes back to where they were before. The water was pleasantly warm now. He leant on the boulder for support,
"Paige, I know that I haven't given you any reason to trust me, but I need you to believe that I'm telling the truth." Cole shifted so that he was standing in front of Paige,
"Look into my eyes. Then tell me if you still think I'm being less than truthful with you."
Paige reluctantly looked up into Cole's ice blue eyes, expecting to see soulless pits that reflected those of an evil demon who was ready to set a darklighter on her and Leo at any moment. However, instead of seeing a heinous monster, she saw the man she saw two years ago.
All the resentment that Cole apparently held for her was gone, and she saw a century's worth of pain and guilt. She saw his pride over the good he did before the Source took over him and the hope that he would be able to have another chance in this world. She also saw that his sadness about Phoebe was still gnawing at his heart, but she could tell that he had a grim determination to not let it destroy him like it had before.
He wasn't Belthazor, he wasn't the Source and he wasn't a crazed demonic human.
He was Cole Turner.
She decided at that point that she was going to give him one more chance to prove himself. Cole, realising what Paige's decision was, smiled broadly at her and Leo. Although they all felt a sense of dread when they realised that they would need to tell Piper and Phoebe about him.
It wasn't going to be pretty.
