Chapter 21: Reign
Disclaimer: I'll own Charmed the day that Shannen Doherty gives the paparazzi an agenda of her daily activities.
A/N: Okay, so just about no one reviewed the last chapter. (Thank you so much to the people who did, including fanmania. I'm forever grateful.) Understandable, don't get me wrong. After a fic hasn't been updated for a while people stop checking it, it's not like it's uncommon. But just to let everyone know, the Things of the Past train is back up and running. So go and tell all your friends kiddies! Lily needs a new pair of shoes and reviews are just what can buy those shoes, dearies! By the way, any guesses on what Cole's mother's name is? Let's have a contest to see who can get the closest. Whoever wins get an, uhh…..cyber hug?
"What the hell d'ya think's taking them so long?" Bane asked as he squirmed a bit uncomfortably in his seat.
This was the first thing to be said in over 20 minutes. Andy and Bane both resented the girls for leaving them alone together, thinking that they'd rather be anyplace than in the driver and passenger seats of Prue's Beamer sitting across from each other at this very moment. Or any moment for that matter.
They sat outside a deserted lot on the outskirts of town—far from anywhere that would even be considered a remotely safe place to be at any time. There were rocky cliffs encasing the landscape and dust billowing every which way. Just by the looks of things, both men would swear that they were in New Mexico.
Andy eyed Bane disdainfully; having much rather liked it if Bane would've stayed quiet. The last thing he wanted to do was carry on a conversation with the one man he couldn't trust Prue with, but the same worry that Bane was holding on to resided in his mind as well.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Andy said a bit warily, "I think we should go in and look for them."
"Are you sure that's such a good idea?" Bane asked skeptically, "In case you've forgotten, we're kind of powerless here, Andy. I mean, what are we gonna do? Jump in there and just start swinging? Besides, the girls asked us to stay here. And I trust their judgment."
"What, are you trying to say I don't?" Andy said, rounding on the face he'd so desperately been wanting to hit for a good time going now, "All I'm saying is, not even the girls are infallible. They were in a bit of a rush when they scryed for the place----maybe they're just walking around in circles. Or maybe worse. I don't know about you but I'm not going to just wait idly by while they could be seriously hurt."
"All right man," Bane said, raising his hands in defeat and shrugging a little, "Do what you want. But if Prue—"
"Don't say her name!" Andy warned, "You don't get to say her name!" He screamed; his eyes lit with a fury unlike any other he had ever felt before.
He had his eyes borne steely into Bane's, had a heart that was too hurt for reminders of how close it had come to breaking only days ago. No matter how much he could psychoanalyze the situation to make Piper feel better, or hell, even lie to himself and say that he wasn't mad at Prue, he couldn't ignore the way his eyes tiered slightly when he thought about Bane and Prue together, and saw images of them 5 years ago---so happy even though only moments ago Prue hadn't even trusted Bane. They were so happy, and Andy knew it could happen again---all over again.
Andy couldn't stop the way every bone in his body held back his fist from slamming it squarely into Bane's jaw whenever a word was exchanged between the two of them.
He would never be able to stop the way his blood boiled when he saw the slight glint in her eyes when she spoke to him….that one they thought he never saw. That secret smile they shared when they thought he wasn't looking. But he was always looking. Always looking, always watching----for Prue.
Bane looked incredibly taken aback by this statement, yet slightly amused. But he quickly shook off any delight he had felt in seeing Andy so riled up against him, knowing how hard it must be for Andy to have him there. He simply turned his head away and opened his car door.
"Okay, I'm all for your plan," Bane said cautiously, "Let's go."
Bane and Andy started at each other for a moment before Andy broke the gaze and got out of the car himself.
They started down a slight dirt road to the small cave they had seen the sisters climb in over half an hour ago.
Pam, Prue, and Piper heard the slow drawl of an unfamiliar woman's voice coming from not far away.
"I told you I had the right place," Prue said in whispers to Piper more than Pam. There was no triumph in her voice, only a slight pleading tone.
"Well, congratulations," Piper said in a gruff mumble that Prue didn't hear. Pam, however, did, and gave a confused look to Piper that Piper didn't acknowledge.
"It's coming from straight along here," Pam informed as they continued to move along the wall.
The three of them kept walking a little ways before coming to the entrance of the room that held Phoebe and Cole's mother.
They entered and Piper, being in the lead, ran to Phoebe as soon as she spotted her.
Cole's mother stopped Piper mid-run, employing the same means of entrapment on Piper as she had on Phoebe. Piper clutched her obviously constricted throat and fell to the ground a little over from Phoebe.
"Piper!" Pam yelled as she began to run to her.
"No!" Prue stopped her, guessing that even though this woman was out of hands she had other ways of stopping Pam from reaching her sisters.
Pam stopped dead in her tracks and a wide grin spread across Cole's mother's face.
"I see you fancy yourself as quick-witted like your idiot of a sister over here," she said as she spoke to Prue and motioned towards Phoebe.
"I always thought there'd be more to it," Cole's mother continued, "Killing you, that is. All this talk of the infamous 'Power of Four' I hear going around!" She sounded as if she was discussing a rather popular new band rather than killing four young women.
"It certainly took you long enough to figure out what's happening," She went on with glee, "If I'm not mistaken, that brusque mortal man was the one who finally came to it."
"His name's Bane," Pam said defiantly, "And if you ask me, you talk a lot for someone who's done nothing more than get someone else to do a kidnapping for them. Oh, unless you count that showy little trick you just did to what, trip Piper? I must say, that was impressive."
Piper and Phoebe looked warningly at Pam, Piper because what she was experiencing was much more that being tripped and Phoebe because she'd known Cole's mother long enough to know that she wasn't going to take very kindly to snide remarks from a witch.
Cole's mother narrowed her eyes slightly, but not wanting to give too much away, shook off the gaze and proceeded with her plan.
She made sure however, that she paid Pam back for that remark before continuing.
Cole's mother dropped both of her hands, loosening the unseen grips on both Piper and Phoebe's throats. Piper began to slowly inch towards Phoebe, only to be stopped again by Cole's mother.
"If you move another muscle you'll beg for me to simply choke you again," She said airily. She waited for Piper to stop completely before turning back to Pam.
"It's hard to believe," She said as she waved her hand, sending Pam flying straight back at a wall full force, "That this is what vanquished the Source. This is what brought down a great demon like Barbas."
Cole's mother bowed her head slightly, allowing her eyes to focus on the ground.
"Pam!" Prue said, running to her, not caring what this woman might do to her.
Cole's mother kept her eyes down as she continued to speak.
"No matter," she said dryly, keeping her eyes down as she waved another hand, sending Prue flying a short distance into the wall beside her, making the blow all that much more painful, "They were fools. Now is the time for a new reign." She said, raising her head so that she was staring straight into Phoebe's eyes. "My reign."
She gave a wildly evil grin before a look as if to say she's forgotten something crossed her malicious features.
"I'm sorry dear," Cole's mother said quietly as she raised her right hand and snapped.
Cole appeared next to her, now in rather clean garments that matched the color and style of his mother's.
"I meant our reign."
A/N: Hope you liked it. A bit short, I know. And nothing terribly exiting happened. Or much of anything. I don't know about you guys, but I very much liked that Andy and Bane bit. Anywho, questions and/or comments are more than welcome. As are flames. And reviews….ahh reviews are simply WONDERFUL.
