"What's wrong? Why did you want me to stop?" Piper turned toward Samantha
who still had the crystal she had taken from Paige in her hand. She
squeezed it so tightly, Piper could see her knuckles turn white.
"I--" Closing her eyes, Sam exhaled loudly before continuing. "I don't know if I want you to go through with this."
"I don't know if I want us to go through with it either," Paige added, moving closer to Sam and putting a reassuring arm around her shoulders.
Sighing, the relief Phoebe felt overwhelmed her. Raising a hand to her face, she was surprised to find it damp with tears--she hadn't even realized that she had been crying.
"But-- Why wouldn't you want us to go through with it, Sam?" Piper gestured to the force field and Cole's sprawled body. "I thought this was the reason you came here."
Sam shook her head in confusion. "I came here to save you and Dad and Paige- -not to kill someone. I want to change to future, but I don't want to do it the wrong way. I know that this might be a means to keeping you from dying, but something just doesn't feel right about it."
"I agree," Paige said quietly, pulling her arms closer to her body. "Doing that to him, even after everything he's done to us, just felt wrong."
"Well, what do you think, Phoebe?" Piper asked, turning toward her.
Phoebe could feel everyone's eyes on her, watching her as she stared at Cole's unmoving form. Her relief that Samantha had stopped her sisters from vanquishing Cole both shocked and disgusted her. For the sake of her family, if nothing else, she should be ready and able to vanquish him--what was holding her back?
"Phoebe?" With her concern evident in her voice, Piper gently touched Phoebe's arm, trying to pull her sister out of the trance into which she seemed to have entered.
"I don't think I can do it, Piper," Phoebe replied quietly, looking up at her sister. "At least, not before I tell him something."
Moving over to the force field, Phoebe picked up one of the crystals, causing the energy shield to dissipate. Kneeling next to Cole, she lifted his head onto her lap and stroked his hair back from his forehead, which was damp with sweat.
After a few moments, Cole's eyes fluttered open. "Phoebe?" He blinked, trying to focus on Phoebe's face, which appeared hazy and ethereal. "Am I dead?"
"No."
Smiling, Cole reached for Phoebe's hand that was resting lightly on his chest, clasping it warmly in his. "You couldn't do it, could you? I knew that you still loved me."
"Yes, I do still love you," Phoebe admitted softly. "And a part of me will probably always love you, but that doesn't change anything, Cole. We can't be together--I need you to know that."
Frowning, Cole released Phoebe's hand and sat up so that he was facing her. "Because you think I'm evil? I'm not--"
"No, not because of that. And not because of anything else I've told you since you came back." Glancing down, Phoebe played self-consciously with the sleeve of her shirt. "It's because I'm afraid of what I might do, what I might become if we were together. Last time, I became Queen of the Underworld--I risked the lives of my sisters, Leo, my niece. I can't do that to my family again, Cole. I won't." Blinking away the tears that had formed in her eyes, Phoebe breathed deeply. She felt as though the great weight that she had been carrying for the past six months had been lifted from her.
Taking her hand, Cole tried to meet her gaze. "But it won't be like that this time. I can be good. I know that I can and you know it too. You've seen it."
Shaking her head, Phoebe smiled sadly. "It's too late for that, Cole. And even if you were good, you wouldn't be doing it because you want to be good or because you realize that it's the right thing to do. You'd only be doing it to be with me. And while I understand the effort you would be making, I couldn't risk being with you--not if I want to keep my family safe."
Sighing, Cole smoothed the back of her hand with his thumb. "Then vanquish me, Phoebe. I don't want to keep living with the burden of these powers. Especially if I can't be with you."
Staring into Cole's eyes, Phoebe could see him pleading with her. After a few moments, she stood silently and moved away from him, replacing the crystal so the force field flared up again behind her.
When she neared Piper, her sister caught her hand. "You okay?" Phoebe nodded and Piper squeezed her hand tightly. "Thank you for saying that."
"So what do we do?" Paige asked. "I don't know if I can--"
"I know," Phoebe interrupted. "I can't vanquish him either. It would be like punishing him for my mistake." She glanced at Samantha. "While Cole may have been the one who threw the energy balls, I put you all in danger when I chose to go with him."
"So are you saying we let him go?" Piper asked skeptically.
"No," Phoebe said firmly. "I couldn't do that in good conscience either. We can't risk him attacking us again, trying to taunt us into vanquishing him."
"So...what do we do?" Paige repeated with a shake of her head.
Phoebe crossed her arms over her stomach determinedly. "Power stripping potion."
Paige frowned doubtfully. "But the last time I tried that, his powers just took on a shadow form and Barbas absorbed them. How do we get rid of his powers without giving them to another demon?"
"We'll say a spell to send the powers directly to the Wasteland while he drinks the potion."
"Phoebe, I don't know." Piper shook her head warily. "Cole was human and powerless once before and he still found a way to become the Source. How do we know he won't go find another way to become a demon again?"
"I was tricked into becoming the Source." The sisters looked over at their prisoner. "That wasn't something I sought out."
"What do you mean 'tricked'?" Paige asked cautiously.
"The Seer--she told me that the only way to stop the Source and to save all of you was to absorb the Hollow." Standing, Cole shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "What she failed to tell me was that once I absorbed the Source's powers they would stay inside me, even after the Hollow was extracted. Once I found out what had happened, the Source all ready had too strong of a hold for me to fight him."
"Why didn't you tell me, Cole?" Phoebe asked moving closer to him. "We might have been able to destroy the Source before he had taken you over completely."
"Because a part of me thought that I could have his powers and still be good," Cole admitted, casting his eyes downward. "I felt helpless as a mortal, so when the opportunity for me to regain powers presented itself, I took it. Power has always been my downfall."
As he spoke, Phoebe began to realize that she too craved power. She always had. Her love of power was what had attracted her to Cole in the first place. Even when she didn't know he was a demon, she could sense the power that lay just beneath the surface and it had intoxicated her. Power had always been her downfall as well--that's why she and Cole were so dangerous for each other.
"All the more reason why this might not be a good idea." Piper waved a hand emphatically. "He'll find a way to get his powers back eventually. Stripping him of them now is only postponing dealing with the problem."
"I can't vanquish him, Piper," Phoebe said slowly, her eyes soft. "I can't punish him for my crime." She held Piper's gaze for a few seconds before walking toward the kitchen.
"I'll just go help her," Paige said before heading after her.
Sighing, Piper turned to Samantha, who looked back at her sheepishly. She felt a hand on her shoulder and glanced over at Leo who had moved to her side. Leaning against him, she slid an arm around his waist. "I do not like this plan. At all."
"I'm sorry," Samantha tried to stammer out an apology, but her words failed her. "I just-- I couldn't--"
"It's okay," Piper assured her, placing a hand on her arm. "I just wish there was a solution we could all agree on that would make sure that he wouldn't try to hurt us again."
"I just wish I knew more so that I could help you, Mom--"
"'Mom'?" Cole interjected. "Did she just call you 'Mom'? Is she your daughter, Piper?"
Piper fixed Cole with a withering look. "Yes, she's my daughter--the one you tried to kill."
With a dismissive wave, Cole scoffed. "I wasn't trying to kill your baby, Piper. I was counting on Sam to--"
"Paige and Leo--two adults--barely survived that darklighter's attack. Do you really think that an unborn child could have survived the poison if that arrow hadn't been deflected?"
Cole opened his mouth slightly as if he were going to answer her, but after a few moments he closed it again and swallowed visibly.
"Apparently we're not going to vanquish you today, Cole. But if I ever see you near my child, I will kill you--demon or not, and I won't take the time to find out which one you happen to be."
Leaving her eyes on Cole for as long as she could, Piper turned and walked over to the love seat, settling down into it. Samantha hovered near her, uncertain of what she should do until Piper patted the cushion next to her and motioned for Sam to sit. Leo sat on the coffee table across from them and her mother gazed warily around him at Cole.
"Mom." Piper turned at Samantha's quiet murmur. "What's going to happen to me once this is all over?"
"Well, I'm not sure." She said, looking to Leo. "Probably we'll write a spell and send you back to your own time."
"Will I remember coming here?" Sam asked.
"I think so. We've always retained memories of our trips to the past and to the future."
Samantha shifted uncomfortably on the love seat. "But--what if I go back and you're all still... What if things are worse instead of better?"
Piper exhaled audibly as she searched for an answer. "I don't know, Sam, I guess you just have to trust that things will work out they way they were intended. Hopefully, that means things will be better."
Nodding slowly, Samantha stared down at her father's hands resting in his lap. Even though she knew that it was impossible, Sam wished that she could stay in this time. The thought of going back to an uncertain future frightened her. Snuggling close to Piper, she fit her body against the curve of her mother's side and rested her head on Piper's shoulder.
Piper pressed her cheek against the top of Samantha's head and breathed deeply, her doubts and fears pressing down on her. She wished somehow she could know everything would be okay. She hated the possibility that she might have to send her daughter to a future in which she was still vulnerable to Cole's attack. Vanquishing Cole seemed the only way to ensure that he could not hurt her, but a part of her agreed with her sisters. Piper barely managed to keep channeling the baby's powers before Samantha had stopped them from removing Cole's soul. Watching someone suffer through that ordeal, even someone she hated troubled her.
"Okay," Paige said as she and Phoebe reentered the room from the kitchen. "Potion's ready."
"And the spell?" Piper asked.
Phoebe held up a piece of paper. "Finished."
"Okay, then let's do this." Reluctantly, Piper rose from the love seat. She disliked losing the feeling of her daughter pressed against her, the warmth of her body mingling with Piper's own warmth.
The sisters moved over to the crystal cage, and, kneeling, Paige removed one of the crystals from the circle, causing the shield to fall away.
"Here," Phoebe said handing Cole the potion. "You drink this while we say a spell and your powers will be gone for good."
Raising an eyebrow almost skeptically, Cole wordlessly accepted the vial and uncorked it. He stared at it pensively for a few moments then glanced up at Phoebe, whose expression confirmed that this was his only option-- they weren't going to vanquish him.
As he put the vial to his lips and tilted back his head to drink the potion, the sisters began reciting the spell. When they finished, Cole grunted in pain and fell to the floor twitching as a black cloud rose from his body. The cloud hovered for a few moments then exploded, its particles quickly dissipating.
"Cole?" Phoebe said tentatively, taking a step towards him. "Cole, are you okay?"
Sighing, Cole managed to sit up and pressed his face into his hands.
"Did it work? Are your powers gone?" Phoebe knelt beside him.
Cole became lost in concentration and after a short while replied, "Yeah, they're gone." Meeting Phoebe's gaze, the corner of his mouth twitched in a smile. "I'm just a mortal again."
Phoebe could hear in the inflection of his voice and see in his eyes that Cole had still not let go of the possibility that they might be together. She looked up at her sisters and Leo who stood nearby. "Guys, could you give us a minute? And then, Leo, could you take Cole back to his home?"
Nodding, Leo placed a hand on Piper's back as Paige and Samantha shuffled toward the living room. Piper hesitated, staring meaningfully at Cole for a few seconds before Leo's hand on her back urged her forward.
Before any of them could reach the next room, a tall demon clothed completely in gray materialized in front of them and hurled an athame, which sunk deep into Leo's chest. Stumbling backwards with a gasp, Leo looked from the knife to the demon before crumpling on the floor.
"I--" Closing her eyes, Sam exhaled loudly before continuing. "I don't know if I want you to go through with this."
"I don't know if I want us to go through with it either," Paige added, moving closer to Sam and putting a reassuring arm around her shoulders.
Sighing, the relief Phoebe felt overwhelmed her. Raising a hand to her face, she was surprised to find it damp with tears--she hadn't even realized that she had been crying.
"But-- Why wouldn't you want us to go through with it, Sam?" Piper gestured to the force field and Cole's sprawled body. "I thought this was the reason you came here."
Sam shook her head in confusion. "I came here to save you and Dad and Paige- -not to kill someone. I want to change to future, but I don't want to do it the wrong way. I know that this might be a means to keeping you from dying, but something just doesn't feel right about it."
"I agree," Paige said quietly, pulling her arms closer to her body. "Doing that to him, even after everything he's done to us, just felt wrong."
"Well, what do you think, Phoebe?" Piper asked, turning toward her.
Phoebe could feel everyone's eyes on her, watching her as she stared at Cole's unmoving form. Her relief that Samantha had stopped her sisters from vanquishing Cole both shocked and disgusted her. For the sake of her family, if nothing else, she should be ready and able to vanquish him--what was holding her back?
"Phoebe?" With her concern evident in her voice, Piper gently touched Phoebe's arm, trying to pull her sister out of the trance into which she seemed to have entered.
"I don't think I can do it, Piper," Phoebe replied quietly, looking up at her sister. "At least, not before I tell him something."
Moving over to the force field, Phoebe picked up one of the crystals, causing the energy shield to dissipate. Kneeling next to Cole, she lifted his head onto her lap and stroked his hair back from his forehead, which was damp with sweat.
After a few moments, Cole's eyes fluttered open. "Phoebe?" He blinked, trying to focus on Phoebe's face, which appeared hazy and ethereal. "Am I dead?"
"No."
Smiling, Cole reached for Phoebe's hand that was resting lightly on his chest, clasping it warmly in his. "You couldn't do it, could you? I knew that you still loved me."
"Yes, I do still love you," Phoebe admitted softly. "And a part of me will probably always love you, but that doesn't change anything, Cole. We can't be together--I need you to know that."
Frowning, Cole released Phoebe's hand and sat up so that he was facing her. "Because you think I'm evil? I'm not--"
"No, not because of that. And not because of anything else I've told you since you came back." Glancing down, Phoebe played self-consciously with the sleeve of her shirt. "It's because I'm afraid of what I might do, what I might become if we were together. Last time, I became Queen of the Underworld--I risked the lives of my sisters, Leo, my niece. I can't do that to my family again, Cole. I won't." Blinking away the tears that had formed in her eyes, Phoebe breathed deeply. She felt as though the great weight that she had been carrying for the past six months had been lifted from her.
Taking her hand, Cole tried to meet her gaze. "But it won't be like that this time. I can be good. I know that I can and you know it too. You've seen it."
Shaking her head, Phoebe smiled sadly. "It's too late for that, Cole. And even if you were good, you wouldn't be doing it because you want to be good or because you realize that it's the right thing to do. You'd only be doing it to be with me. And while I understand the effort you would be making, I couldn't risk being with you--not if I want to keep my family safe."
Sighing, Cole smoothed the back of her hand with his thumb. "Then vanquish me, Phoebe. I don't want to keep living with the burden of these powers. Especially if I can't be with you."
Staring into Cole's eyes, Phoebe could see him pleading with her. After a few moments, she stood silently and moved away from him, replacing the crystal so the force field flared up again behind her.
When she neared Piper, her sister caught her hand. "You okay?" Phoebe nodded and Piper squeezed her hand tightly. "Thank you for saying that."
"So what do we do?" Paige asked. "I don't know if I can--"
"I know," Phoebe interrupted. "I can't vanquish him either. It would be like punishing him for my mistake." She glanced at Samantha. "While Cole may have been the one who threw the energy balls, I put you all in danger when I chose to go with him."
"So are you saying we let him go?" Piper asked skeptically.
"No," Phoebe said firmly. "I couldn't do that in good conscience either. We can't risk him attacking us again, trying to taunt us into vanquishing him."
"So...what do we do?" Paige repeated with a shake of her head.
Phoebe crossed her arms over her stomach determinedly. "Power stripping potion."
Paige frowned doubtfully. "But the last time I tried that, his powers just took on a shadow form and Barbas absorbed them. How do we get rid of his powers without giving them to another demon?"
"We'll say a spell to send the powers directly to the Wasteland while he drinks the potion."
"Phoebe, I don't know." Piper shook her head warily. "Cole was human and powerless once before and he still found a way to become the Source. How do we know he won't go find another way to become a demon again?"
"I was tricked into becoming the Source." The sisters looked over at their prisoner. "That wasn't something I sought out."
"What do you mean 'tricked'?" Paige asked cautiously.
"The Seer--she told me that the only way to stop the Source and to save all of you was to absorb the Hollow." Standing, Cole shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "What she failed to tell me was that once I absorbed the Source's powers they would stay inside me, even after the Hollow was extracted. Once I found out what had happened, the Source all ready had too strong of a hold for me to fight him."
"Why didn't you tell me, Cole?" Phoebe asked moving closer to him. "We might have been able to destroy the Source before he had taken you over completely."
"Because a part of me thought that I could have his powers and still be good," Cole admitted, casting his eyes downward. "I felt helpless as a mortal, so when the opportunity for me to regain powers presented itself, I took it. Power has always been my downfall."
As he spoke, Phoebe began to realize that she too craved power. She always had. Her love of power was what had attracted her to Cole in the first place. Even when she didn't know he was a demon, she could sense the power that lay just beneath the surface and it had intoxicated her. Power had always been her downfall as well--that's why she and Cole were so dangerous for each other.
"All the more reason why this might not be a good idea." Piper waved a hand emphatically. "He'll find a way to get his powers back eventually. Stripping him of them now is only postponing dealing with the problem."
"I can't vanquish him, Piper," Phoebe said slowly, her eyes soft. "I can't punish him for my crime." She held Piper's gaze for a few seconds before walking toward the kitchen.
"I'll just go help her," Paige said before heading after her.
Sighing, Piper turned to Samantha, who looked back at her sheepishly. She felt a hand on her shoulder and glanced over at Leo who had moved to her side. Leaning against him, she slid an arm around his waist. "I do not like this plan. At all."
"I'm sorry," Samantha tried to stammer out an apology, but her words failed her. "I just-- I couldn't--"
"It's okay," Piper assured her, placing a hand on her arm. "I just wish there was a solution we could all agree on that would make sure that he wouldn't try to hurt us again."
"I just wish I knew more so that I could help you, Mom--"
"'Mom'?" Cole interjected. "Did she just call you 'Mom'? Is she your daughter, Piper?"
Piper fixed Cole with a withering look. "Yes, she's my daughter--the one you tried to kill."
With a dismissive wave, Cole scoffed. "I wasn't trying to kill your baby, Piper. I was counting on Sam to--"
"Paige and Leo--two adults--barely survived that darklighter's attack. Do you really think that an unborn child could have survived the poison if that arrow hadn't been deflected?"
Cole opened his mouth slightly as if he were going to answer her, but after a few moments he closed it again and swallowed visibly.
"Apparently we're not going to vanquish you today, Cole. But if I ever see you near my child, I will kill you--demon or not, and I won't take the time to find out which one you happen to be."
Leaving her eyes on Cole for as long as she could, Piper turned and walked over to the love seat, settling down into it. Samantha hovered near her, uncertain of what she should do until Piper patted the cushion next to her and motioned for Sam to sit. Leo sat on the coffee table across from them and her mother gazed warily around him at Cole.
"Mom." Piper turned at Samantha's quiet murmur. "What's going to happen to me once this is all over?"
"Well, I'm not sure." She said, looking to Leo. "Probably we'll write a spell and send you back to your own time."
"Will I remember coming here?" Sam asked.
"I think so. We've always retained memories of our trips to the past and to the future."
Samantha shifted uncomfortably on the love seat. "But--what if I go back and you're all still... What if things are worse instead of better?"
Piper exhaled audibly as she searched for an answer. "I don't know, Sam, I guess you just have to trust that things will work out they way they were intended. Hopefully, that means things will be better."
Nodding slowly, Samantha stared down at her father's hands resting in his lap. Even though she knew that it was impossible, Sam wished that she could stay in this time. The thought of going back to an uncertain future frightened her. Snuggling close to Piper, she fit her body against the curve of her mother's side and rested her head on Piper's shoulder.
Piper pressed her cheek against the top of Samantha's head and breathed deeply, her doubts and fears pressing down on her. She wished somehow she could know everything would be okay. She hated the possibility that she might have to send her daughter to a future in which she was still vulnerable to Cole's attack. Vanquishing Cole seemed the only way to ensure that he could not hurt her, but a part of her agreed with her sisters. Piper barely managed to keep channeling the baby's powers before Samantha had stopped them from removing Cole's soul. Watching someone suffer through that ordeal, even someone she hated troubled her.
"Okay," Paige said as she and Phoebe reentered the room from the kitchen. "Potion's ready."
"And the spell?" Piper asked.
Phoebe held up a piece of paper. "Finished."
"Okay, then let's do this." Reluctantly, Piper rose from the love seat. She disliked losing the feeling of her daughter pressed against her, the warmth of her body mingling with Piper's own warmth.
The sisters moved over to the crystal cage, and, kneeling, Paige removed one of the crystals from the circle, causing the shield to fall away.
"Here," Phoebe said handing Cole the potion. "You drink this while we say a spell and your powers will be gone for good."
Raising an eyebrow almost skeptically, Cole wordlessly accepted the vial and uncorked it. He stared at it pensively for a few moments then glanced up at Phoebe, whose expression confirmed that this was his only option-- they weren't going to vanquish him.
As he put the vial to his lips and tilted back his head to drink the potion, the sisters began reciting the spell. When they finished, Cole grunted in pain and fell to the floor twitching as a black cloud rose from his body. The cloud hovered for a few moments then exploded, its particles quickly dissipating.
"Cole?" Phoebe said tentatively, taking a step towards him. "Cole, are you okay?"
Sighing, Cole managed to sit up and pressed his face into his hands.
"Did it work? Are your powers gone?" Phoebe knelt beside him.
Cole became lost in concentration and after a short while replied, "Yeah, they're gone." Meeting Phoebe's gaze, the corner of his mouth twitched in a smile. "I'm just a mortal again."
Phoebe could hear in the inflection of his voice and see in his eyes that Cole had still not let go of the possibility that they might be together. She looked up at her sisters and Leo who stood nearby. "Guys, could you give us a minute? And then, Leo, could you take Cole back to his home?"
Nodding, Leo placed a hand on Piper's back as Paige and Samantha shuffled toward the living room. Piper hesitated, staring meaningfully at Cole for a few seconds before Leo's hand on her back urged her forward.
Before any of them could reach the next room, a tall demon clothed completely in gray materialized in front of them and hurled an athame, which sunk deep into Leo's chest. Stumbling backwards with a gasp, Leo looked from the knife to the demon before crumpling on the floor.
