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Demon Attack

Phoebe was exhausted --- and it wasn't even because of classes!

Between campaigning for election, studying the Book of Shadows, organizing the Magic Users club and helping the new students out, it had been a very long and busy week for her. The weekend was going to be even longer as she would have to step up her campaigning all weekend. The election was on Monday...and she was running against people she both liked and admired. This was even tougher than the last time...and the last time had been hell!

		She wasn't paying attention to her surroundings, so the tackle took her by surprise. She felt herself about to face-plant into the asphalt of the road, and flipped so her head hit instead of her face. She shoved up against her assailant and rolled to her feet, looking at who had attacked her. There were two slowly advancing at her, and when she turned to run, there was another one at her back. The only place to go... ...was that alley. Swallowing the urge to scream, Phoebe started running down the alley, trying to dig out her cellphone to call for help. The burning sensation flared through her leg as she went down to the ground again. She turned, fear rapidly threatening to choke her to see the three men coming at her. "Hello...Phoebe Halliwell..."
		"That's definitely her. I recognize her from her posters," one of the figures, a stern-faced woman, not a man as Phoebe had first thought. "How nice of her to put them up so we could find her so easily. But I thought she'd be taller." A man with shaggy brown hair looked down at Phoebe. "Pathetic, not even a challenge, Klea," he complained. "Just do your job, Tarkin," the woman, Klea, ordered. "Kill her. Put her body somewhere public. Make an example of her." "Who are you?" Phoebe stammered, crawling backwards. The motion brought new agony to her leg, and through her panic she could smell charred flesh and clothing. A fireball? Were they demons? The third figure shifted his shape, turning into a reverse image of Cole's demon form, black-skinned with red markings. "Your worst nightmare, little girl," he growled. Phoebe screamed.
		Back at the dorms, Cole had a strange feeling something was wrong. Then he felt them. Three of his brethren, three members of the Brotherhood of the Thorn, were near. The members of the Brotherhood shared a bond of blood, and while that connection did not let him pinpoint their location, it did tell him they were in the vicinity. Had Raynor sent them to check up on him? Then he heard Phoebe's empathic cry and knew the reason why they were there.
		"Sykes, what have I told you about playing with your food?" Klea scolded. "She's being used to make a statement. Just kill her and be done with it and we can leave this place." A statement? An example? Phoebe tried to make sense of what was happening. The demons must have known she was a witch because of her outing herself, and now they were here to make a statement by killing her. And the election posters she'd worked so hard on had led them right to her. Summoning all her strength, she shot to her feet and tried to run past the demons. Her leg gave away under her, however, and the black and red demon seized her. He took a handful of her hair and spun her around, holding an athame to her throat. Tears stung her eyes, but she wouldn't beg. She wouldn't give them that pleasure. The demon raised the athame and drove it downward into her chest.
		No...not like this. Not like this. Phoebe looked into the eyes of the demon, and the uttered an ear-piercing shriek. The demon was surprised by her scream and his grip loosened...just enough. She dropped and yanked, tears filling her eyes as she felt hair tear away from her scalp. She kicked her uninjured leg back and then rolled out of his reach. She tried to run but the female demon flipped her hand and Phoebe felt something wrap around her throat and start pulling her towards her. Phoebe flipped over. letting out a cry as she landed on her wounded leg. "Stupid...stupid little girl," the female hissed as she kneeled on Phoebe's chest and wrapped a hand around her throat. "We were going to kill you quickly...leave him a present...but you had to try to fight...now we'll have to kill you...physically and magically. When we're through with you, there won't be enough of you for you to even make it to the afterlife." The female stared down into Phoebe's eyes and squeezed her throat. The demoness' eyes bulged out and sprouted teeth...then started moving towards Phoebe's eyes. As this started, Phoebe felt like claws were ripping into her mind. This time the scream that echoed in that alley was full of nothing but pain.
		"No!" Cole cried as he shimmered into the alley. A demon he recognized as Sykes turned toward him. Without even thinking, Cole threw a fireball, catching Sykes in the chest and slamming him into a wall and incinerating him. Klea resumed her human shape and stood beside Tarkin, watching Cole. He rushed to kneel Phoebe's side, pulling her into his arms. She was unconscious, but wounded badly. And he was quite familiar with Klea's own powers and the damage she could do to a human mind. He had to get her to the clinic, maybe they could help her. "Belthazor," Klea said, "this is a message from Raynor. Your girlfriend is distracting you from your duty, so we have removed the problem." They don't know who she is, that she's a Charmed One, Cole realized. They'd tried to kill her just because she was his girlfriend. He wasn't sure what to do. Part of him screamed out to attack Klea and Tarkin, but they were of the Brotherhood, like him. Sykes had been a junior member and Belthazor ranked higher than he. But Klea and Tarkin were his equals.
		Sitting in the park, he could smell it. New evil...and more than one. Not normally one to go seek it out, there was something malevolent on the air and he'd made it abundantly clear to everyone that he was the ultimate evil here. Lazy, yes, but ultimate. Besides, if Lucifer caught wind of it, he'd never see the end of the burning. Stalking through town, tracking them on the wind, as he got closer he could hear the pain and terror from a familiar voice. That voice. She was his to torment. His to devour. Possessive rage filled him and his wings unfurled out the back of his manifested clothing. As he got closer he recognized the fireballs that the demon boy liked to play with...and he could smell the burning of flesh. It made his mouth water, but more than the hunger, it made him angry. MINE. At the end of the alley he looked down to see the witch on the ground with the boy at her side...and demons. Not weak, halfbreed ones either. He leaned forward, feeling more scales rising on his back. Deftly removing his glasses, his eyes blazed with anger. "Come now, who said you could rustle my cattle? You're in a spot of trouble, I dare sssay.
		Tarkin and Klea recognized a stronger power than they, and they both took a step back and bowed their heads in respect. "We are fulfilling the orders of the Source of All Evil," Klea said. "Phoebe Halliwell is to die. Then we will leave her remains and this place to you."
		"If you kill her, you'll take her place in my gut. You'll stew for a thousand centuries and every scream and pleading cry will be swallowed again." His suit fades to scales and his face begins to elongate. Teeth, already glistening and white grow longer and begin to drip. Hissing sibilants hurl toward the demons. Their show of respect only serves to anger him further. "Ssstupid demonsss. Ssshe's mine. Sssourcce? Ha. Here I sssay what goesss. That bitch is mine and ssshe'll die by my ssstrike and none other."
		Cole was transfixed, staring at Crowley as he transformed. Klea and Tarkin exchanged worried glances, then both summoned blue fireballs to their hand. "Then kill her now," Klea said. "As long as she's dead, it doesn't matter by whose hand."
		"You threaten me? On my ground? Ssstupid, insignificant whelpssss." With the final 'sss' his arms disappear and his legs become one. Before them, the Demon assumes his true form. Growing longer, his scales glimmering black in the low light, a catlike scream tears from his throat as his wings spread out to block the end of the alley. The winged snake grows longer yet, and slithers toward them on his tail, poised to strike. A wicked mouthful of fangs comes closer and closer until he's within striking distance. He could have dome so many other tings...banished them, melted them, turned them into skinks...but the pain and hatred of Lucifer's torture is still fresh in his mind, and biting into their flesh is so very tempting. Faster than lighting, he strikes at Klea, taking her head off with razor-sharp teeth. The fireball winks out, only to be replaced by a jet of flame. The demon's body reduced to ash with barely any sport at all, is disappointing to say the least. Slithering and undulating, he encircles Tarkin and looks him in the eyes, taking his time.
		Panicking, Tarkin struggled as the serpent slithered around him. He threw the fireball in his hand toward Crowley's head, then conjured another and another, desperately throwing them at any place he could reach. "She's yours!" he howled. "Let me go!"
		The first shouldn't have been unexpected, but it was. Scales smolder and sizzle while the Demon lets loose another hissing scream. Constricting tighter around the interloper, the second fizzes away in steam as the Great Corrupter lets the burning fires of Hell loose from his very bones. Wrapping tighter, the stench of burning flesh fills his slitted nostrils and he dips his head low to taste the torment of Tarkin before he explodes in flame and ash inside the coils. With the imminent threat to his dearly tormented gone, he slithers to where the boy holds the witch, slowly shrinking back and assuming his preferred form...the one he's most comfortable with. Standing over them in only a pair of well-worn jeans, he pulls his Zippo from the pocket and lights a cigarette that has appeared in his hand. "That was a spot of excitement, what?"
		No longer mesmerized by what was happening, Cole staggered to his feet, holding Phoebe in his arms. He took a few steps back. "She's not yours," he said in a low voice. "She never will be."
		"Pish...you're all mine. Everyone on the island. Don't be defensive now, boy. She's only alive because I don't want her dead." Taking a deep drag, he rubs his neck where a crisp, black scorch mark is slowly healing. Bending low, he sniffs Phoebe's limp form and then flicks his tongue out to taste the air around her. "But she will be soon, I dare say. Pity that, she's quite a cracker."
		Cole shifted Phoebe's weight in his arms and patted her face. "Wake up, love," he said. "You're safe. They're gone now." Her leg was badly burned, but he knew Klea had done something to her mind as well. "Phoebe!" He called her name pleadingly. He looked over to Crowley, torn between a desire to thank and a desire to get Phoebe as far away from him as possible. "I'll take her to the clinic," he said. "Dr. Wilson can help her."
		"Doctor Wilson couldn't poor piss out of a boot if the miracle cure was on the sole. She's been mucked with worse than men know how to handle it." Taking another drag, burning the cigarette down to nothing in one long ember, he lays his hand on her forehead. "Yep, mucked with, but good. Come on...we'll go to the Shop. I'll get you in since you can't get in any other way."
		"What can you do for her?" Cole said suspiciously. "Why should I trust you after what you said, that you'd be the one to kill her?"
		Rolling his eyes, he looks entirely exasperated with Belthazor. "Don't be a ninny. If I wanted her dead, she'd be dead. I don't. What possible use to me is she as a corpse? None. Ask yourselves these things, boy. You ought to know me well enough by now. You clearly have the distrust down pat...now, learn to hear the lies for what they are." Rubbing his hand against his burn, he winces. "Crikey, that stings." At the end of the alley, he turns toward the Shop and sniffs, turning his head slowly each direction. "Seems the angel's with the good doctor in any case. Two for the price of one and all that. Come on, boy."
		Cole held Phoebe gently but protectively. "Where are we going?" he asked, still not entirely sure he should trust Crowley. True, he had saved them, but what he had said about Phoebe....
		"To your bloody saviour, boy. The angel and the doctor are in the clinic. Come with me or shimmer away, I don't bloody care. If you're going to be rude and ungrateful, I'll let your witch fall by the way." He stops entirely and lights another cigarette...waiting for an apology, a thank you, a how's your father...any reaction really.
		Cole was silent for a moment. "I'll do whatever I need to to save her," he murmured. He managed to hide any distaste in the next words he spoke: "Thank you.
		"Shall we then?" Clearly pleased, he heads toward the clinic, his wings folding in and a fine suit enveloping his frame.
		Aziraphale is lying stretched out on the couch in the loft, arms wrapped around Wilson as they listen to a CD of slow jazz songs and watch the fire burn in the stove, when he realizes that there's trouble -- on the doorstep of the clinic. Sitting up with a gasp of surprise, he looks toward the door. "James -- there's something wrong. Crowley's here, and...Bel and Phoebe." He can't tell the young doctor more than that -- trouble, and who's involved, and that's all. But he expects that it's enough. Slipping off the couch, he heads for the door of the loft, knowing that Wilson will be right behind him.
		Wilson's feet hit the floor and he reached for his shoes before Phale got more than three steps away, though the angel certainly could move fast when he wanted to. "Right behind you." He said soberly as he yanked the cargo door closed behind him and called to Phale who was on the steps ahead of him. "Unlock the doors, if you haven't already."
		Cole didn't wait for the doors to be unlocked. He shimmered into the clinic with Phoebe. "She's hurt," he said brokenly to Wilson and Phale. "Her leg, it's burned, and a demon did something to her mind.... Please, help her!"
		As soon as he heard the words Please, help her Wilson blotted out most everything else and moved quickly to where Bel held Phoebe. In a voice that was kept calm, yet intense and focused, he spoke to Bel without trying to take Phoebe from the young man. "Bel, can you carry her to the back room for me? Let's take her into the surgery where I can get a good look at her." Dark eyes flicked quickly between Crowley and Aziraphale and then he was leading Bel towards the back of the clinic with Phoebe, expecting that divine and fallen would follow.
		The angel had begun to move toward the intruders as they appeared suddenly in the clinic, stopping himself when he realized who it was. Stepping aside, he cast a questioning look to Crowley as Wilson slipped past him. "What's happened?" he said softly, watching the doctor lead the way into the surgery room.
		"Some other demons thought they could come here and take the witch. Kill her...make an example of her. Doubt it'll be happening again..they're nothing but flame and dust now." His hand on his neck, he watches the doctor lead Belthazor and Phoebe to the back. "She'll need you, Aziraphale. The one got in her brain, twisted her around. She's dying, sure as I'm flash." he sniffs and clears his throat, then pulls out a cigarette, uncovering his neck, and turns. "I ought to be going then."
		"Wait," Aziraphale says, taking hold of Crowley's arm. "I'll look in on Phoebe in a moment, once James has finished. She'll need to be cared for physically first, or what good will the other do?" He steps around the demon to look him over. "You're hurt," he says finally, with a tone of surprise in his voice.
		"It's nothing. Caught off guard. Gone by morning most likely." He winces at the angel's touch, trying to pull back.
		"Crowley," he says sternly. "Caught of guard? When was the last time you were caught off guard and actually injured yourself?" Voice softening, the angel adds, "Let me see it. And tell me who those people were."
		Craning his neck so the angel can see the charred flesh, he steps back. "Don't touch it, you'll just make it worse. Demons sent to kill my poppet...and the boy was in no shape to defend her." He steps back again, "The last time I was caught off guard was the Rebellion. You know that. But I've had charring like this and worse...it'll heal. That's what makes Hellfire so...persuasive.
		As much as he wanted to help the demon, Aziraphale recognized that he was right. Nodding, he took a step backwards as well. At Belthazor's plea, he gave Crowley one more sympathetic nod, and turned his attention to Phoebe.
		Meanwhile, Cole had followed where the doctor indicated, then set Phoebe gently on a gurney. Her leg looked awful, flesh charred and bloody. But it was more the damage to the mind he was worried about. Klea's eyes could bore into your brain and create your worst nightmares until your mind shut down from terror. Phoebe could be lost to him forever. He held her hand. "I'm right here, sweetheart. Hang on. Don't leave me," he pleaded.
		...Phoebe whimpered, running and running. The path was full of thorns and her lungs hurt from screaming and fighting... Where was he? Why didn't he come? ...She dropped to her knees with a cry as her legs gave way. There was fire all around her. Demons...they were everywhere. A large snake creature angry and attacking...but he hadn't attacked her yet. There were others... A figure stepped out of the flames and she reached for him... "Cole!! COLE!!"
		As Phoebe called his name, Cole squeezed her hand. "I'm right here," he told her as she thrashed on the bed. "I'm right here, love. Come back to me."
		Wilson wasn’t even going to try to shift Bel out of the way. Instead he made the effort of working around the young man, quickly and easily setting up an IV drip that would help support Phoebe’s body against the effects of shock as well as counter the effects of dehydration from the burn. It would also give him a direct line to feed pain killers and other types of sedation. Running his mind forwards and back over what Bel had just said, Wilson shelved the mental trauma for the moment and instead focused on the physical. The burn was bad and he had to move quick to strip what clothing he could from the area and then set the injured leg into the antibiotic laden gels and liquids that would help keep the area moist and also fight off infection. That was going to be one of the biggest hurdles, physically at least, in Phoebe’s care, keeping the leg from becoming infected. Using a sulfasalazine based gel to start working on the infection Wilson began to inject local anesthetic around the wound site. He didn’t dare give her anything stronger until they knew what was happening with her mind but he needed to tone down the pain until he could stabilize the shock her body was suffering.
		She felt a hand close around hers, but at that moment, she was jerked away from that hand and she fell screaming into what felt like a dirt pit. The hands raked at her and claws drew flesh blood as she scrambled, trying to run. She saw people, outlines in front of her... ...the bottom half of her body was in pain and it was starting to blur things together. She started crawling, scrambling, doing anything she could to get away, to run for help...to escape. She heard another cry, and turned to see a large serpentine creature attacking one of the demons. She had to run, had to get away. She was crying, her throat hurt from screaming and her head felt like it was being torn apart by vicious claws...jagged knives tore into her soul. She managed to get to her feet but only managed to move a few steps when her leg collapsed under her again. She rolled onto her back and screamed when she saw those eyes with those fangs coming at her face...
		Cole let Wilson do his work, but leaned over Phoebe and took her face in his hands. "Phoebe, listen to me. You're safe! No one is going to hurt you anymore. Just...just follow my voice. Come back to me, love, please...." Phoebe whimpered and writhed. He looked uncharacteristically desperate as he looked around the room. His gaze fell on Crowley and Phale. "I don't think I can reach her. One of you has to be able to do something. Please...I'll do anything...."
		...it felt like the teeth were burrowing into her eyes and into her mind. It was a pain unlike anything Phoebe had ever felt before. She opened her mouth and screamed long and loud. Could anyone hear her screams? Didn't anyone know she was being hunted to death? Where was Cole...or Piper...or Grams?! Phoebe turned a corner and felt herself sliding down. She screamed again, raking at earth, trying to stop her fall. After she landed, she looked up with a cry and saw something she didn't understand. There were demons trying to converge on her, while at the same time, there were two fighting back. One looked like a snake and the other glowed...She started to climb, she wanted to go and help them...it was her duty, her calling...she was a Charmed One and even if it killed her, she had to help them fight. ...but something grabbed her ankle and she was dragged down the dirt again...
		Aziraphale turns at Bel's voice, moving quickly to stand next to Phoebe. With a quick glance at the young doctor to be certain he's not in anyone's way, the angel lays a hand on Phoebe's forehead. "Child," he says softly, "Listen to me. The danger is over. It's time for you to come back to us." Looking carefully at the young woman as he speaks to her, Aziraphale tries to determine what sort of damage has been done beyond the physical.
		Wilson was aware of Phale in his peripheral vision and of course by the slight tingle of simple awareness that tended to run through him whenever the angel was around but his concentration was still tightly focused on stabilizing the leg and from there stabilizing Phoebe's vitals. He moved around Bel and around Phale as he did this, his expression calm and a little neutral, showing no real indication about what he thought of her physical wounds.
		...warmth and then pain. She heard someone calling her name, saying she was safe...he sounded like an Angel...Phale? Why would Phale be here in this hell? She tried to reach for him and when she thought she was going to reach him, it felt like razors were slicing into her brain. "COLE!! COLE!!" She screamed again. "Cole, where are you?"
		Cole held Phoebe's hand between his. "Phoebe, I'm here, come back to me," he pleaded. "Open your eyes, love. Open your eyes."
		She'd obviously been hurt more than just physically, as Crowley had mentioned. Aziraphale concentrated on sending a warm flow of healing energy into her, focused not on her body but on her mind and spirit. "Keep talking to her, Belthazor," he said softly. "Try to keep your voice calm but firm."
		Cole nodded at Aziraphale. "Listen to my voice, sweetheart," he said, squeezing Phoebe's hand, trying to keep the fear from his voice. "I'm right here. You're not alone. Just open your eyes and you'll see I'm right here."
		...she heard voices as she fought with those that were trying to keep her there... Phoebe opened her eyes, and whomever saw them would see that her pupils are so wide that all you see in her eyes is black. "They're going to kill me...and Cole will never know..." she whispered before she tumbled back into the nightmare.
		"They're not going to kill you, love," Cole said soothingly. "I'm right here, and I'll protect you. Just come back to me."
		While they worked with Phoebe's mind, Wilson worked on the physical wound. It was not easy, getting the burn wound cleaned. Being quick but at the same time precise, careful not to further the damage but meticulous to get every last bit of stray and foreign material out of the wound least it cause infection was nerve wracking work. Wilson was only partially aware of the drama unfolding up near Phoebe's head as he completed his part of the healing with her leg.
		Aziraphale nodded approvingly at Belthazor's gentle tones, noticing the effect they had on Phoebe. She still seemed caught in her nightmare, but at least she was responding to them. He decided to try a different tactic, and spoke very softly, pitching his voice so only Phoebe could hear him. "Child, there's no one here who wants to hurt you. You're safe. Come out of the nightmare, or let me in to see."
		...Phoebe heard the voice, the soft voice...it wasn't her soulmate, but it was someone she knew...didn't she? She struggled to get back...tried to get to the two voices who were trying to help her. It just seemed that the more she tried, the more she got pulled back into the claws and the fangs and the chasing. She found herself cornered by the demons again and she heard that voice... "...let me in to see..." She looked around trying to find a place to run. When she couldn't see an escape, she did the only thing she could do. She reached out for the light she kept seeing and pulled towards her. "Help me, please!"
		There was a sensation of being pulled -- one that was somewhat familiar to the angel -- and then he found himself gazing at the landscape of Phoebe's nightmare. The air was heavy and distorted, and he could see the shape of the young woman's soul-self, torn at by claws and teeth that seemed to be part of the atmosphere itself. He moved quickly to join her, holding out his hand to show that he was friend, not foe. As he neared, he realized there was another attacker as well, something more corporeal than the others, and it was this being that posed the greatest danger. Reaching out to touch Phoebe, Aziraphale spread his wings behind him, in a challenge to the demon.
		...to her surprise, she did pull someone into her nightmare with her and when she saw it was Aziraphale, shame filled her. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she whispered. "Now they'll get you, too." Seeing Phale's hand come down and touch her she looked at him. "Mr. Aziraphale? You shouldn't be here." There was very real concern for him even as her face was filled with terror. He was her friend and she had to get him away before he got hurt, too.
		"You can fight them, Phoebe. I'll help you, but you can fight them. And then we'll leave together." Aziraphale took Phoebe's hand, willing a flow of energy into her, offering her the strength to either stand and fight or pull away from the nightmare and return to the world. A soft voice, sounding as though it was coming from far away even though it originated from the figure standing next to him, spoke to Bel. "Call her."
		"Phoebe," Cole called out. "You're safe now...you can come back. I'm right here, waiting for you. Just come back to me, please? You're strong, you can do it, I know you can." His own hands were shaking as he clasped hers between them. "Come back to me, Bright One," he said.
		...Phoebe was taking Phale's hand when she heard Cole's voice. She looked at Phale, trying to see if it was Cole she was hearing. "Come back to me, Bright One..." "Beloved...?" As she took Phale's hand, she was attacked again, but this time, she didn't run. She stayed standing next to Phale, trying to stop herself from fleeing. She looked around, needing a weapon. Her eyes fell on an Athame that she knew hadn't been there before. She wasn't sure she wanted to let go of Phale until she saw the eyes of teeth going to try to attack Aziraphale. ...that...that would not do. They weren't allowed to attack her friend. Before the thought was even fully formed, the Athame was in her hand and she forced herself to stand between Phale and the attacking demon. "You will NOT HARM HIM!"
		Aziraphale's first instinct was to protect, to step between Phoebe and the demon, rather than the other way around. But he restrained himself, acknowledging that this was her battle to fight. A gentle touch to her shoulder instead then, a reminder that he was there and would support her, encouragement that she was strong enough.
		Phoebe stepped forward slightly. She could feel Aziraphale behind her, and she had an idea that he wanted to protect her, but she couldn't allow it. He was her friend, probably one of her best friends and he wasn't going to get hurt because something was after her. She was feeling a sudden warmth and tingling from her hand and she looked down at the promise ring from Cole. ...forever and that's a promise... She looked back at Aziraphale. "I need to...but don't leave me...please?" She swallowed. "If I lose...take care of Cole."
		"I won't leave you, my dear. And I promise to watch out for him, if you're not able." Aziraphale had no intention of that becoming the case, but it was an easy promise to make, and he meant it. Phoebe needed to fight this battle herself, but if she fell...then he would pick up where she left off, if necessary. As strongly as Crowley felt that this island was his territory, the angel felt the same. These were his friends, and outside threats to them would not be tolerated. The look he gave to the demon said as much.
		It was the soft, distanced tone to the angel's voice that caught the young doctor's attention immediately and he turned frowning gently at his lover's shoulders. Something had changed, something big. Wilson remembered that tone from the night in the woods with Krissy and it made him tense because he knew the angel had engaged something at a level far beyond him. Casting a quick glance towards Cole, Wilson gave the young man a supportive nod to encourage him to continue to call to Phoebe and for himself, he stretched out one long leg until his ankle rested up against the inside of the angel's ankle. His hands full with attending to the leg, it was the only way he could silently offer his own support, his own tie back to the 'mortal' consciousness.
		She was scared, terrified, but at this moment she was trying to focus on the demon with the sharp teeth that was trying to get at Aziraphale. She shook her head and stepped forward, pushing the demon back, trying not to flinch at the snapping teeth that came too close to her face. "You're already dead and don't even know it, little witch," the demon said as she stared into Phoebe's eyes, trying to find a way to tear deeper into her mind. "...not dead yet..." Phoebe forced herself to say. One of the eyes lunged at her and she dropped, slamming herself into the legs of the demon and carrying them away from Aziraphale. Phoebe slashed at the demon, who snarled out. "You should have just let you finish us off so you wouldn't be a danger to Belthazor." Phoebe faltered. "...Cole?" The demon sensed he had hit a weak spot, so he exploited it. "Yes. If you live, you're going to cause hunters to be sent after Belthazor," the demon said. "If you die...he's safe." Phoebe was even more torn now.
		Phoebe murmured his name; encouraged, Cole continued to talk to her. "I'm here, sweetheart," he said, touching one of his hands to her face, still tightly gripping her own hand with the other. "I'm right here," he repeated.
		Aziraphale heard the demon's words, recognized easily the trick it was trying to play. In a calm, reassuring voice, he spoke to Phoebe. "You can protect him much better if you live, my dear. Listen to your heart, not to the demons."
		One of the demon's teetheyes turned in Aziraphale's direction and to Phoebe it looked like he was going to try to attack Aziraphale. "...NO!" she screamed, slicing with the athame and cutting off the tentacle that the eyeball full of teeth was attached to. She stared in horror as the blood splashed onto her and the tentacle dropped to the ground.
		"Phoebe!" Cole called as she spasmed. "Wake up, love...please...."
		"Good, child," Aziraphale said softly, laying a reassuring hand on Phoebe's shoulder. "You're stronger than it is, and now it knows. This is your battle now, to end however you choose. But choose, child, and let us return to the world."
		Phoebe nodded at Aziraphale and when the demon swung towards her to attack, the shoved the athame into its throat. She heard the scream in her mind... ...and woke up on the table herself with a scream of pain.
		Cole bent over Phoebe, letting her see that he was there. "It's all right, sweetheart," he said, "you're safe now. Let the doctor help you. You're going to be fine."
		"Cole?" she whispered when she heard his voice. "Cole...you're okay?"
		"I'm fine," Cole said, squeezing her hand reassuringly. "You just lie still. Your leg is burned but Dr. Wilson can help you."
		"My head hurts..." She tried to sit up. "Demons! Demons were trying to kill me..."
		Cole gently pressed her back down on the bed. "Just relax, love," he said. "You're safe. There were demons but they're gone now. Me and Crowley killed them."
		Every reflex he owned twitched to respond to Phoebe's scream but Wilson held himself still, a decision made easier when Phale's hand dropped to his shoulder for a brief moment, that unspoken communication passing between them in the blink of an eye. Nodding to the angel, Wilson waited for Cole to sooth Phoebe, knowing the young demon's presence would do more to help ground Phoebe than his own and he only moved forward to help Cole coax the young woman back onto the bed. "Phoebe? Bel's right." Wilson pitched his voice so that it was a little lower than Cole's tones. "I need you to lay back for a moment and let me help you. You're safe here."
		Phoebe heard Wilson's voice and Cole's, and let them both coax her back into laying down. Cole had brought her to Wilson and Phale and Crowley. They would help her, they wouldn't let her die. Phoebe tried to relax, glad Cole had brought her to Wilson. She trusted Wilson and he always managed to keep her calm any time she had to be treated for anything. She squeezed Cole's hand. Everything hurt so much. "Cole..." she whispered. "Cole, please, call Maia. Tell her to take all of those campaign posters down. Please. Tell her that I'll tell her everything. I want Paige and Piper there, too.
		"Posters? What are you talking about, sweetheart?" Cole said, confused
		"Student Council. I'm dropping out of the race."
		"Because demons attacked you?" Cole said, then realization started to dawn on him. Phoebe thought the demons had attacked her because she had outed herself as a witch during the last student council elections, when in reality they had attacked her because she was his girlfriend. He thought about telling her the truth, but decided not to. He didn't want to scare her about the new danger being his girlfriend could bring. "I understand," he said. "But I think you should just keep it quiet. Don't make a big show of it. You don't want to draw anymore attention to yourself, do you? Just take down the posters and say you're withdrawing for personal reasons."
		Phoebe closed her eyes as pain shot through her. "Have Maia take down the posters. Then, please have Maia, Piper and Paige come here. They at least need to know what happened and why. Then we can talk about what I'll say. Please, Cole?"
		"You want me to do that right now?" Cole said. "I don't want to leave you, but I can call them.
		"Don't leave me."
		"I'm right here, love, I'm not going anywhere."
		While Phoebe and Cole talked, Wilson checked on her vitals, generally pleased with what he was finding. When there appeared to be a pause in the conversation, he gave both young people a gentle look. "Phoebe, I'd like you to stay here, in the Clinic at least for the next forty-eight hours. I imagine your leg hurts, let me explain what's happened with it." He didn't go too deep into the technical, just enough to let her know what had happened, assure her of the steps he'd taken and of what she could expect over the next few days. "So, I'd like to give you something that will help with the discomfort and also help you sleep for a bit. Bel can stay right here, I promise."
		Phoebe nodded slowly at what he was saying. She squeezed Cole's hand tightly and then looked fearfully at Dr. Wilson. "What...what if they come back?"
		Wilson didn't even need to look over his shoulder for cough obvious reasons when he answered readily. "Bel will be here and Aziraphale will be here as well." Wilson assured her with a serene and confident sort of smile as if he himself was completely secure in the security provided by those two sources. Over his shoulder, the angel nodded in confirmation of the young doctor's statement.
		Phoebe nodded slightly. "Okay...as long as I'm not alone..."
		Chuckling, a soft rumble of a sound, Wilson looked over at Cole and then back to Phoebe. "I don't think a couple sticks of T.N.T would move this young man from your side and Aziraphale and I will be right up stairs if you need us." Giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze, Wilson smiled. "So, how about it. A little something to help ease the discomfort and something to help you sleep for a bit?"
		Phoebe nodded and relaxed some more. "Alright." She looked at Cole. "Can you call my sisters? I'd like them here, please?"
		"I'll give them a call as soon as you're asleep, sweetheart," Cole promised.
		Giving Phoebe's shoulder one last gentle touch, Wilson walked over to the counter and drew out the medications he was going to add to her IV. Coming back, he gave Cole smile as he pulled the caps off the syringes. "These will work pretty quick, going IV like this. If you can, stay in the chairs, I tried to make them as comfortable as possible but if you absolutely have to crawl into the bed with her, do not get near that leg." He knew there was a good chance Cole would end up in the large hospital bed with his young lady and rather than pretend he might follow orders, it was just easier to compromise.

[OOC: Preplayed in advance with admin approval for the attack in town.]

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Cole sat by Phoebe and held her hand until she drifted into sleep, then stepped outside the room to make a few phone calls.

[ooc: Quick plot point detailed out here (http://www.livejournal.com/community/fandomtownies/529519.html). The clinic is no longer accessible through any means except the front door.]

((does that mean Paige can't orb in? Will she have to wait for the door to be answered?))

[ooc: *Nods* Yes, she'll have to wait for the door to be answered]

Paige tried to orb staight into the clinic, she didn;t intend on wasting any time walking there, unfortunately there was some kind of force round the building and she pretty much bounced of it landing on the floor just outside it.

She rubbed her head, "Damn it!" then knocked frantically on the door, "BEL!!!! YOU IN THERE? IT'S PAIGE," she called

Bel hurried to the door and opened it. "Why didn't you just orb in?" he said. "She's over there. She's sleeping."

"I tried, something stopped me," she told him looking over to Phoebe and lowering her voice, "what the hell happened?"

"Hold on, let me let Maia and Piper in, I see them coming," Bel said. "Go over to Phoebe's room and I'll meet you there."

She nodded and walked towards the room her mind racing, the sooner she started the self defense lessons with Pip the happier she'd be.

Maia went to the front door of the clinic. She was worried sick. "Oh come on and open up." Maia said her heart pounding in her ears.

Bel had just let Paige in when he saw Maia. He opened up the door. "She's over there," he said. "She's sleeping."

Maia nodded and hurried past Bel to Phoebe.

As soon as Piper got the phone call from Belthazor about Phoebe, she ran to the clinic as fast as she could. She knocked on the door frantically. She was very worried about her sister.

After Maia came Piper, and Bel let her in as well. "Her room is over there," he said. "She's sleeping but she's going to be okay."

Shhh, she's sleeping....

Maia stood next to Phoebe's bed. "Phoebe." She breathed looked down at her. "God Phoebe." Maia whispered as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Dr. Wilson sedated her," Bel said. "Her leg...it's burned. But she's going to be okay."

Maia looked down in the direction of Phoebe's leg and swallowed hard. "How bad is it? Is it going to scar?" Tears spilled over as she thought of Phoebe's leg, marked for life, the flesh never being the same.

Paige looks at Maia then Bel, "What happened?" she didn't think FH was this dangerous. It was frightening

"Demons," Bel said quietly. "Phoebe said they knew who she was. Not a Charmed One, but a witch. She thinks because she outted herself as a witch, they attacked her."

"My posters led them right to me," she said groggily. "I should have thought first."

Maia swallowed hard. "I took them down baby." She whispered "Every last one of them."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry..."

"SSShhhh baby, don't talk ok. Its ok. Don't even worry. I took them all down, not even a trace of them anywhere. Its ok."

"Piper...Paige...they here, too?"

"Yes sweetie Paige is right here. She's right here."

She swallows hard, her and Tonks had been attacked too, not here in town but still the trend was worrying. Her head was spinning, she could barely take this in.

"It's gonna be like this always isn't it?" she asks Bel before turning to Phoebe and forcing a reassuring smile, "You're gonna be okay Pheebes" yep there's Paige's unwavering optimism

Phoebe started crying. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I didn't think."

Piper sat beside her sister, trying to comfort her. "Phoebe, you didn't do anything wrong."

"Is Cole still here?"

"I'm right here, sweetheart," Cole said, stepping into her view. "I thought I'd give you some time with your sisters and friend. But don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." He was lying a little, he had just shimmered to the office for a last minute weekend pass home so he could get to the bottom of this attack.

"None of us are going anywhere," Piper added.

"We'll stay right here ok Phoebe?" Maia said still keeping her voice very low. Her eyes looked over Phoebe's body again. "Is that the only place that hurts? Your leg? Can Paige do something for it?"

Paige nodded to what Piper had just said, "Yeah I guess we'd better get more chairs huh? Looks like we're staying the night."

Then she heard Maia, "I guyess I could try for nothing." she says, she's not convinced it'll work right now but she'd try.

"Phale and Dr. Wilson would rather no one did. They're monitoring." She swallowed. "Cole...tell them what they did?"

"The demons?" Cole said, his voice tense. "They shimmered around her, near as I can tell. Herded her into an alley. If I hadn't sensed them...." He let that thought die. "One hit her in the leg with a fireball. One of them tried to get inside her head and make her nightmares kill her. But Aziraphale was able to help her. Dr. Wilson, too. She's going to be okay."

"Paige and Mais should go back to the school," Phoebe said, her words slurring. "If people ask..."

"We'll tell them you're just not feeling well okay? No mention of demons don't worry." Paige replies "You should go back to sleep Pheebes, let Bel look after you."

She heads for the door to leave Maia close beside her.

"I'll orb us back," she says simply

"Piper...stay?"

Piper held Phoebe's hand and smiled at her. "I'm right here."

"My posters made it easy for them to find me, Piper."

"My posters made it easy for them to find me, Piper."

"Phoebe, stop blaming yourself," Piper said, continuing to hold her hand.

"Piper...they said it themselves. The only reason they knew who I was was because of my posters."

"Phoebe, demons would have found out about us anyway. I haven't exactly hidden that I'm a witch either."

After the Perk closes, he walks back to the Clinic, certain everyone must be asleep, or otherwise occupied. He opens the door without bother, and after scenting the air for just a moment, closes it behind him, waving his hand across it. Just to be sure.

Walking back to where she lies, he can tell from here the angel and the doctor did their work. She's resting peacefully. He leans against the doorjamb for a long time, just watching the rise and fall of her chest and the faint pulse of her flesh as her heart beats.

He tells himself repeatedly he only did it becasue she's his. No one can destroy her but him. As the hours drag on, he holds his vigil and repeats the mantra...he certainly didn't do it because he cares, or because...bugger. No. Only because she signed the paper in blood. Right.

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Demon Attack

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Phoebe's Room

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