The Lost Ones

Chapter Fourteen: Answer me

Cole stood there dumb founded he couldn't believe there he was in the middle of the Halliwell kitchen holding a hot mug of coffee. Not just any mug but a mug his sister had made for him. Suddenly the day's events had taken their toll on him and he felt exhausted needing to sit down he wearily moved to take the final stool left in the kitchen.

"Okay that's it ever since we've met you it's been one shock to another. I think it would be safe to say that you are a bearer of bad news."

Paige stated looking at Ellie.

Ellie choosing to ignore Paige put some cookie dough into the oven and set the timer. Looking at the sisters she said,

"The cookies should be ready in nine to eleven minutes."

Phoebe found it hard to find her voice sitting next to her was her ex-husband and father to her newly discovered son, she expected to feel the anger she had the first time she had seen him after the whole Source fiasco, but the man sittung in her kitchen looking as rattled as she felt wasn't the crazed, psychotic ex-husband but the cool, calm collected, ADA she had meet and fallen in love with give or take a few blood relatives.

After Ellie wiped her hands clean and coming around the counter launched herself into her older brother's arm.

The sisters seeing the brother and sister hug couldn't deny that they loved each other very much. What surprised them though where Ellie's tears theyknew that she had known all along that Cole had been in their house.

"Oh God Cole I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too baby girl."

Paige was perplexed by what she was seeing today was a day that was confusing her beliefs in demons and how they acted. Seeing how Cole and Ellie were treating each other didn't add up. Even her assumption of Cole didn't add up to the man who was now hugging his sister.

'Maybe this is the Cole Phoebe used to know. Maybe this is why they didn't want to believe me when I said he had turned evil?'

Paige couldn't help but notice that his wasn't the man who had tried to target her. This was someone she never got to know.

Leo and Piper were stunned what more could be used to describe it Cole who they thought was vanquished for the last time was now sitting at the kitchen counter.

Piper also had the same realization both her sisters had this wasn't the Cole after the Wasteland or the Cole after the events of the Hallow this was the Cole that had fought beside them. The same Cole who had been at her wedding, fallen in love with her sister, fought with Prue, and yet had still mourned her loss with the rest of them, maybe not for him but for what she had meant to them.

When Cole pushed his sister away from him, he carefully brushed the hair away from her face and said,

"El how? How am I here now…I…limbo was meant to be permanent how am I here?"

Chris listened to the confused quire and didn't know if he should answer it for her making it more plausible as the whiteligther to answer the question.

"I think I can explain that."

Chris said tryingto helping Ellie the last thing either one of them needed right now was to be tied together as co-conspirators, sure they may have come up with the plan to get the sisters help with Ben, and Aafareet who when he had corned Ellie in Chris's past had nearly destroyed her. And now the early return of Cole, Chris remembered Cole from his past quite well his great-uncle hadn't re-joined the world of the living until he himself was twenty.

"So what happened? How is it that I'm now here?"

"Ah…that's the thing you aren't really here well not for long any way…um…it's kind of sorta temporary …hmhm…what happened was your need to reach out to Ellie with her need to reach out to you is why your corporal right now. From what I understand the first time only lasts a couple of hours, the more practice you get at it the longer you will exist but technically you are still in between planes the guardians haven't been able to decide where to place you. Heaven or hell? So until they do…you don't exist here or in the afterworld which ever you belong to."

"So basically he doesn't belong anywhere."

Paige couldn't believed it she had always hated Cole but she had never guessed what life must be like for him not belonging. Even in his death he didn't belong to one world, too evil to be good, and too good too be evil.

"That sucks"

Paige said under her breath. She didn't understand it but for some reason she couldn't hate him any more.

Cole just nodded his head in understanding to what Chris had told him it was the story of his life.

"So I have a son... Can...can I see him?" Cole asked in uncertain voice almost afraid to hear the answer.

Phoebe couldn't help but wince at his unsure tone he had never been like that before he had meet her, she was the one to do that to him. But before she could answer him Ellie already had.

"Of course"

Ellie smiled through watery eyes, carefully tracing her older brother's features and in soft voice said,

"He is so like you, he's smart… and brave…and we love him so much. He has your eyes. He knows all about you…everyday…everyday we tell him about you…how much you loved him before he was born…and how much you would have loved him if you were still alive…oh…Cole…you've missed you so much…I love you..."

Hugging his sister close to him, Cole kissed the top of her head,

"I love you and God…I've missed you…seventy-five years Ellie…seventy-five…thank-you for…"

She nodded her head and pulled away and said,

"Come on you have a son to see"

With that she shimmered them out of the kitchen.

After they shimmered out of the room the remaining people turned their attention to Chris.

"I think it's convenient how you knew why Cole suddenly was here like that?"

Paige said narrowing her eyes at the whitelighter.

"What do you mean it's convenient?"

"Well how come you knew when Leo who happens to be an elder was just as dumb struck as we were and was also waiting on an explanation, answer me that."

"It's quite simple… me… Chris… whitelighter… future- boy."

Any further argument was put on hold when the ding on the timer went off, Ellie shimmered back into the kitchen cheeked the cookies and put them on the cooling rack.

"Cookies"

"No thanks I've got to go."

Chris said as he was getting ready to orb out he grabbed a cookie and left in a twinkling of white and blue orbs.

Paige was fuming he had avoid her questions and now and orbed off to good knows where. And she was really, really tired deciding that it might be best if she just cut her losses. Paige said a quick good-night and orbed into her room to try and get what sleep she could.

That left Ellie who had used the cookies as an excuse to leave Cole alone with her son, a very confused Leo, a perplexed and tired Piper, and Phoebe.

Phoebe looked at Ellie it was today had been a very strange day for her she had not thought of Cole in over a year and here she was in the kitchen with his baby sister and their son sleeping in her room, and not forgetting the brother who had left early that night. A thought then occurred to her here she was sitting in the kitchen stopping two people from having a much needed conversation. If the fight Leo and Ellie was any indication both mother and son had a few issues they needed to get out of the way. And there was the matter of her own issues and the added fact that both of them were in her bedroom. Taking a deep breath she said,

"Um…Piper you wouldn't mind coming with me for a second I can't remember where I put my address book will you come and help me find it."

Piper raised an eyebrow at her sister but thought that it would be the best for both Ellie and Leo to be alone, giving them more freedom to talk.

"Yeah…yeah…what are we if not our address book."

With that the two sisters smiled and left the room.

Both Leo and Ellie knew what just happened and couldn't help but smile.

"You did pick well Leonardo."

"Yeah I did."

The silence that followed was deafening.

"Mom what really happened... please... answer me."

To Be Continued……