The Mighty Belthazor

Phoebe was also getting things prepared for the Road Trip. She stopped every so often to look over at Cole and wish she could make him feel better about all of this shit that had been dumped on him from the potion.

Of course, she did prefer him being human than being dead.

She closed her bag and went over to put her arms around him.

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Having taken the red eye flight back, Cameron made it into Fandom early in the morning. Despite a definite lack of sleep, there was one visit he didn't feel much like postponing. Making a stop by his room just long enough to drop off his back, Cameron headed up to the fifth floor.

The whole thing where some people liked to sleep in was completely passing him by as he knocked on the door.

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Bel answered the door, figuring it was Jamie seeing if they were ready to go. He was surprised, of course, to find Cameron there instead. "Cameron?" he said, a little confused. "What's up?" He was still a little too sleepy to process why he might be there.

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"All set, sweetheart?" Cole said, putting his arms around her in turn.

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"Funny. That was pretty much what I was going to ask you," he motioned inside the room. "Can I come in?"

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Phoebe nodded, laying her head against him. "Yeah, I'm all set. Did Jaime say when we were leaving?"

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"Yeah, sure, come in," Bel said, waving his arm toward the room.

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Cameron moved inside the room, but he didn't go too far and made no sign of planning to sit down. Stuffing his hands in his pocket, he turned towards Bel and waited for him to close the door before he spoke up. "I heard what happened."

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"As soon as we can get organized this morning," Cole said, running his hands through Phoebe's hair. "We're gonna meet him at the causeway. I guess he's taking care of getting the car."

He sighed in frustration. "I wish I could just shimmer there and pick her up."

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Bel winced, leaning back against the closed door. Ah, yes, he should've known Veronica's boyfriend would have the story now. "What did you hear?" he asked.

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"Pretty much all of it," he replied. "I'd hate to think there's more. You had trouble controlling your demon half. Instead of getting help, you ended up killing a witch and now you're a mere mortal like the rest of us," he summarised, watching Bel to see if there really wasn't more.

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"I did get help!" Bel insisted. "I talked to Angel and Blair helped me meditate. I thought I had it under control but Raynor cast a spell on me or something! It wasn't my fault! I didn't just lose it for no reason."

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Phoebe hugged him, still feeling a little responsible for what had happened.

"I know you do, love, but that's not something you can change. So, we take a road trip with our friends and we bring her home."

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"Yeah, should be simple, right?" Cole said. "It's about a five or six hour drive, we get her, we bring her back, and we figure out how to get the school to protect her if her parents try to pull her out again."

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Cameron hesitated, absorbing the new information. "Who's Raynor?"

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Phoebe nodded. "Exactly. Her parents don't want to try to take her away against her will... not from Fandom."

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"He's a demon," Bel said wearily. "My mentor, my foster father. He raised me and trained me. He wanted me to kill the witch and when I wouldn't, he made me do it."

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"Still would be simplier if I could just shimmer and get her," Cole grumbled. "This just...sucks."

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Phoebe nodded and hugged him again. "I can only imagine, sweetheart."

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Veronica had said that Bel had been raised as a demon so that made sort of sense. "You're saying that you've been in contact with people from the Underworld again?"

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Bel nodded, turning a little red. This wasn't something he was proud of. "Yeah. The school sent out an invitation for Parents Weekend to Raynor. Kinda forgot to include them on the whole 'I'm dead' thing. He showed up, found out I was alive, and...started to make me do things for him again."

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"I've been a demon all my life, I don't know how to deal with not being one," Cole said, frustrated.

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Cameron briefly closed his eyes, cursing inwardly. "Exactly how many people offered to help you out if they ever got on to you?" he asked. "This guy-demon-whatever has you out killing witches and the two people you tell is someone who is across the country and a hippie who thinks you're going to kill him if you so much as raise your voice."

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"I wasn't killing witches, not until he forced me to!" Bel protested. "I was trying to figure a way out of it but he has my father's soul and if I didn't do what he told me, he was going to destroy him!"

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