Fractured Mirth

part 25

"Are you sure this is going to work?"

Piper Halliwell quickly held out her hand, urging her half sister to take it, as she tightly shut her eyes, her expression moving itself into a frame of pure concentration, quietly clearing her throat. "It's all we have," she mumbled.

"We could scry for her," Paige Matthews volunteered. "I've done it before, and it's not completely-"

"Do I look like an amateur to you, Paige?"

"Was that a rhetorical question?" she deadpanned, shooting her a small grin.

"A spell is a hell of a lot safer than scrying," Piper pointed out, "and it saves us the trouble of allowing him to intercept our signal. If he does that, there is no Power of Three, and we all die, thereby subjecting ourselves to hours of endless torture in a very bad afterlife."

"Huh?"

"Nevermind. Look, did...did you write something up or not?"

"It's all up here," Paige assured her, tapping her free index finger to her forehead. "Though I'm not exactly sure it's one of my best."

"You've never written-"

"I know, but I mean, in high school, you know? I used to have to write poetry, and quite frankly- even though I seriously sucked at it, I almost still nearly believed I had some potential. Of course, there was that whole thing about me basically rebelling against high school, as well as all the smoking, but I digress."

"Smoking?"

"Uh, did I mention the rebel part?"

"You did," Piper agreed, shooting her a brief smirk, as she shut her eyes again, braced herself. "So. We good here?"

"I'm ready when you are," Paige offered. "You'll repeat after me, right?"

"Yep. And so help me, if we end up in ancient Greece or Rome, or anything even remotely resembling something ancient, I will personally see to it that you are never given this responsibility again."

She nearly laughed. "Gotcha."

"You're a good witch, Paige," she whispered. "But it takes practice to become better."

"Well, in any case, here goes nothing," she muttered. "Shadows cast across the stone, find us now, and lead us home. A troubled sister lies in wait, the evil draws near, don't make us too late."

"Pretty good," Piper mused. "Except I think you forgot to mention the fact that evil just happens to resemble a nasty fallen angel who's demanding his day in the sun, and oh yeah....wanted us dead."

"Yeah, well I kind of chose to leave that part out because it's all still entirely too creepy for me to process right now."

"My turn," she added, shrugging.

"For what it's worth," Paige added, "I think we've really kicked some major butt so far, so even if this doesn't work, it shouldn't have been completely useless on our part."

"Shadows cast across the stone, find us now, and lead us home. A troubled sister lies in wait, the evil draws near, don't make us too late."

"Think you needed a bit more punch," she replied, her eyes lighting up as she formed a slow grin.

"That spell was not full of punch," Piper argued. "More like a lack of punch."

"But you said-"

"And I meant it," she countered. "I just don't think we can click our heels three times and fly on outta here."

"The spell wasn't for clicking heels. It's helping us find our sister."

"But it was sure easy for Dorothy, wasn't it? She had all those munchkins and Toto to keep her company, and hell, she even had the tin man, the cowardly lion, and the scarecrow."

"So which one am I?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The Wizard of Oz. What are you talking about?"

"Toto."

"Excuse me?"

Piper softly chuckled to herself. "You'd be Toto."

"And I beg your pardon but I am not going to be compared to the likes of a tiny little dog in this thing. No way. I'd take the cowardly lion over Toto any day."

"Suit yourself. But considering how much of a coward he was, somehow I don't quite think he suits you."

"But Dorothy isn't open," Paige protested. "You can't expect me to try and compete with- ha, I know...The Wicked Witch Of the West."

"That's your choice? Your final choice?"

"At this point, it's the only choice."

"Yeah, except she was evil, Paige. She wanted to get Dorothy and her little dog, too."

"See, so when you honestly consider it, I never really had a shot at Toto, did I?"

"Are you telling me you want to start using your powers to benefit only yourself?"

"Personal gain? Heh. No way! I just always thought she was a wickedly cool character."

"And therefore that suddenly makes it okay. Yeah. Alright. I can buy that. As long as you never choose The Source, I think we got ya covered."

"As in Source of all evil?"

"Yeah, as in the he's still currently plotting revenge against us because we save innocents...Source."

"Hey, I didn't start this whole thing, you did. Don't look at me."

"Hmm. Maybe I should, because I think it just worked."

"What? How? That story's only make believe-"

"The spell," Piper told her, smiling from ear to ear. "I think we did it."

"Get out," Paige breathed.

"No, look. We're-"

"We're in the woods," she quipped. "Wow. What an improvement, wouldn't you say? We just went from woods to more woods. Gee, I just feel so smart now, Piper." She sighed. "Yeah, way to go, Paige. You landed yourself in another rut. Give yourself a huge pat on the back for effort."

"A useful rut," Piper sided.

"Ruts can be useful?"

"This has to be where they are now," she stated. "Like it or not, we're on our own. But if I were the big bad, not to mention a bit overly satanic, I think I know where I'd go."

"A bar?"

"Camps," she explained, rolling her eyes in her sister's direction, as she lightly crossed her arms atop her chest. "There have to be some people out here this time of year, wouldn't you say? I mean, big wooded area, and no houses for miles?"

"Doesn't necessarily mean we've got campers though. Could just be a bunch of wild animals."

"We could try to scry if they're within distance, but it still might tip him off," she considered.

"Maybe it's just what we need."

"Paige, he's a madman. It doesn't constitute-"

"It constitutes a damn good distraction," she responded, hands planted firmly on her hips. "If you say we're here, we must be here. And far be it for me to pass by an opportunity to make it count."

"He got to us once. He's- you heard him back there. We both did. This isn't a guy you want to have down for Sunday dinner, much less use yourself as bait."

"And if you trust me just this once, we might just get to Phoebe in time."

"Paige."

"Piper, c'mon. We can do this. If anything, we owe it to Phoebe to keep trying. She needs us. I promise you- if I don't do anything that helps this cause, if I don't do anything that gives her a chance and buys her that time, I'll be held entirely at fault for it. Trust me. You're free to slap me with the Charmed One pink slip."

"We don't- we don't have one of those," Piper mused thoughtfully, her mouth drumming up half a smile. "But I'm sure we can work something out."

___________

"Okay, Bailey, you wanna tell me what the hell is going on?"

Bailey Malone quietly studied the unconscious form of Rachel Burke that now lay in a crumpled heap upon the floor, her hands outstretched, her eyes closed. The steady rise and fall of her slender form cut into the deadly silence that had sliced clean through the air like a sharp knife. He looked up, his expression entirely void of anything the human eye was capable of seeing, a hand tucked carefully away into the pocket of his slacks. "She isn't herself," he added simply, shrugging.

"Cole was just with her," John Grant countered, his hand bracing itself near his weapon, his eyes narrowing in clear disbelief. "How can you say she's not herself when even a demon could tell the difference?"

"You'd be wise to take my word for it, John."

"What good is your word, if she can't speak for-"

"She was going to attack you the second she got you alone. I couldn't have that happen."

"So, what? You're suddenly looking out for my well being, when only seconds ago you could've cared less about saving my ass?"

Bailey smiled, as he calmly offered a single step forward, a hand gesturing to the other man rather urgently. "You've got it all wrong, John."

"Do I? Do I, really?" He withdrew his automatic then, rapidly raising it in front of him, gripping it in the professional stance, as his mouth formed a tight line, his thumb experimentally fingering the trigger. "And if I were you, I wouldn't come any closer."

"What are you doing, John? You can't honestly think-"

"I don't know what to think," he cut him off. "But I know you. And right now, my gut is telling me you're probably full of crap, or pretty close to it. Your theory about Rachel is bogus, Bailey, and we both know it. She wouldn't desert this team, and she wouldn't be caught dead sticking her hand in the cookie jar when she knows the evil this thing is capable of."

"So you think I've turned on you, is that it?"

"It's all in the game, isn't it? The lecture, the self satisfied sense of- you didn't need me to confirm the fact that my heart was in this job. You didn't need my approval to convince you not to take me out. You played me good, I'll give you that. Unfortunately, it's not your best. Even mentor's fall short, and mine just took a giant leap onto the wrong side of the playing field. One down, John, what are you gonna do? One down, who's probably not what he seems. Gotta think fast, right?"

"You said it yourself," Bailey continued. "You don't believe in magic, and as far as-"

"But this guy can be whoever he wants to be, right? We know this."

"I was with you the whole time," he protested, holding out both hands now, as he cautiously took another step forward, "and I meant every word I said. You were in no condition to fight with what you went through, and that's not assumption, John, it's fact."

"And there wasn't anything in Rachel that led you to believe-"

"As I'm sure there was nothing in Darryl Morris that would have given us any indication that he wasn't really who he said he was when he interrogated Duane against our orders. He slipped right by us, and you know damn well nobody could have stopped him. Not before he would have attempted to take us all out, given a clean opportunity."

"But she hasn't done anything, Bailey. And Cole wouldn't have saved her life, if he believed that thing was going after some demon who's got it in for some demented view of Paradise Regained."

"Give me the gun, John."

"I'd advise you to step away, before I decide to use this."

"And you'd regret that decision more than life itself when you were finished."

"That's for me to decide," he added fondly, an edge creeping in to frame his tone, his handsome face a massive void. "And maybe I'm not beyond a little force to let me know who's still on my side."

"You're a good cop, John, but sometimes you forget the rules and your-"

"My feelings for Rachel have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I'd love to blow your head clean off right about now, you self-righteous son of a bitch. Do you really think you can get away with this, when you've got more than one person hot on your trail?"

"My only mission in all of this was to solve this case," Bailey retorted. "The VCTF had been pursuing Duane for far too long to deny the fact that it probably led to something much deeper. And that just turned out to be a big break for us when you were attacked. What happened afterwards only led us closer to the heart-"

"Of a cold blooded killer," he hissed. "Of someone who couldn't give one shred of remorse about any life he shed, because he clearly believes he's got the whole world lying dormant in the palm of his hand."

"Which is why you need to stop this, and listen to what I have to say."

"I didn't exactly hear you trying to defend yourself after you knocked her on the floor."

"You didn't give me a chance!" he shouted.

"The hell I didn't. Now I suggest you back away from her, before I-"

"John, he's telling the truth. Leave him alone." A deep voice was heard clear across the room, as Cole emerged from the restroom, hands stuck in the back pockets of his jeans, as he calmly rocked back upon the heels of his feet, a careful smile strewn bout his beautiful countenance, his blue eyes going as cold as ice, as he studied the room a moment. Many of the kids had found a vacant corner to curl themselves up in, huddled together as tight as they could possibly manage, their faces not bothering to mask the terror that had spread clean across them, their bodies fumbling and shaking.

"Cole, he's not one of-"

"I'm sensing someone isn't," Cole continued, his tone surprisingly low now, his hands coming out to rest at his sides, his fingers stretching themselves in and out, as his gaze roamed the room again, sweeping it a second time in a rather lazy approach. A brow cocked itself in curiosity, as he slowly tilted his head. "Think my skills must be getting rusty, because I probably should have picked up on it the minute I walked in here."

"You're a good demon, Coleridge. But much to my dismay, you're not nearly good enough." The familiar figure stepped out from behind him, the blonde hair and green eyes seated atop a young face still clad in the camp's only uniform, hands clasped appropriately behind his back. Laughing to himself, he professed a large smile, admiring Rachel's body on the ground below, as the briefest of shadows crept beneath his lids.

"Shielding yourself again," Cole mused. "Clever."

"What was clever, although given the outcome, rather miscalculated on my part, was sending you one of my friends in the kindest regard possible. Too bad he didn't get to give you an equally warm welcome."

"The counselor," John whispered. "The whole time...the bastard was right under our Goddamn noses the whole time."

"It's time for those who have grown weary, to be punished for their crimes of betrayal. And if you're still thinking about taking me out with a round, you might want to rethink that motive, Agent Grant. I surely haven't provoked you in any way, and I can't possibly be held responsible for your own lack of judgement."

"Crimes of betrayal," Cole echoed, pursing his lips. "Interesting, when you take the time to think about it. Because I think the only thing those children died from, was failing to expect the obvious from a man they'd already grown to trust. Just as you're doing now. Playing their savior, the one who expels them from all sin and banishment, when in reality, you're the only monster they'll ever know."

"Children are a funny thing. Because you see, they refuse to except the fact that they can sin, Coleridge. You of all people should know all too well what it's like to be a bad little boy. Much too naughty, in fact, that even your own mother thought there was no hope for you."

"My mother was a woman who prided herself on betraying my father and killing him where he stood. I don't give a damn about her anymore, and I'm a better man for it."

"But not the best man, because what you are isn't even a man, Coleridge. You're a mere speck of a man with a demon raging inside you. The thirst for human blood clouds even your love for that filthy little witch you chose to bed in an act of constant weakness. I think that demon wants out. Been so long since Belthazor had his day, isn't it?"

"I'm still going to put you the hell back where you came from, so it looks like all bets are off."

"Pity," he mused, his lips uttering a slight pout. " I really would have loved to go awhile with the demon who was once the pride and joy of our beloved Source. He could've been the father you never had."

"And maybe the father I never wanted," Cole added nonchalantly, shrugging. "It's all in the past now."

"Are you nuts?" John breathed. "You can't take this any-"

"I know what I'm doing," Cole mouthed, his eyes still trained on the other man, a hue of piercing blue. "A wolf in sheep's clothing yet, hmm? Why don't you show us what you really are? Save me the trouble, and make me savor this for all it's going to be worth. If I'm going to have blood on my hands, I want it to be yours."

"I'm sure Miss Burke knows all about trouble, don't you think? I'll admit, Cole. The first and only thing I would have desired from her was her blood, pure and simple. It would have been an awfully clean kill, and she never would have seen it coming. But then I thought- well, I thought and thought about it....actually, and I got to thinking that she may just prove herself a Godsend to my cause. But you'll have to excuse the pun, because I don't believe I've ever had a God who was even remotely capable of saving me and giving me the redemption my quest is so noted for. Agent Malone thought he was protecting her, when in reality, you've all made it so much easier to get what it was I came for. Salvation exists in the rarest of forms."

"You never wanted them," John started. "You did at first, but not....you knew. They were just helpless victims to you, a distraction to your-"

"Always the smart one," he dryly responded.

"You need life, and only she can give it to you. Which, I guess in the long run, is just too damn bad, isn't it?"

"You mortals never cease to amaze me. Always think you know me better than I know myself. It's charming, really. But let's cut to the chase, shall we?"

"You really want to die that soon?" John pressed.

"Where's the witch?"

"What witch?" Cole returned rather smuggly.

"I'll have that bitch's head on a platter long before I deal with you."

"She's no threat to you when you want-"

"What I want, Coleridge, is your little pride and joy, so I can literally break her into a million pieces while you watch me. Is that reason enough for you, or shall I elaborate on just how many pieces will be scattered in this room without a much needed sense of exagerration?"

Below them, Rachel stirred briefly, a hand falling over her face, as she slowly pushed a few loose strands of red hair out of her eyes, a sharp thread of pain coursing through the bare bones in her back. She sought to regain her sense of balance, her composure still a little fuzzy, as she struggled to recognize what was going on around her, her vision a bit blurred. She quickly shook her head, trying hard to clear her mind, as she continued to fight to lift herself off the ground with every ounce of strength she had left.

"Lay a hand on Phoebe, and Belthazor might just get another shot at fame," Cole whispered. "I never said he wasn't willing and able, I'd just prefer we didn't use him. On the other hand, if you're willing to chance it, so am I. All's fair in the cause of love and war, right?"

"Now that's the demon I used to know and respect."

"Fortunately for me, God is on my side. Then again, so is the Fallen Order, which goes to show you that you can somehow make the best of friends in the strangest of places. They should be showing up any second now, so while you're at it, you might want to say those few prayers you never knew you had in you. For old times sake, Lucifer, hmm?"

"Then for old times sake, don't let me stop you."

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