"They're at the Magic School," Piper said, finally letting Leo breathe. "Grams is with them, too."
Leo glanced over to Cole. "Umm...what's he doing here?"
"I'm your lawyer," Cole said. He jerked his thumb at Kevin. "His idea."
Kevin sighed. "Lawyer, supernatural knowledge, and...well, you'll see. I was trying to think outside the box when it came to your defense here. Can you guys just put aside your differences for an hour?"
"I didn't agree to defend the Charmed Ones against misuse of their powers and dereliction of duty and overall bad fashion," Cole said. Paige wrinkled her nose at Cole and bit back a retort.
"They kinda sprung that one on me, too," Kevin admitted. "I thought this was going to be about Leo, but I guess they went for a two for one deal. Or a four for one as the case may be." He looked at Cole. "Can you handle it?"
"I don't have much of a choice, do I?" he sighed. "And Ms. Halliwell, kindly get your hands off me."
Phoebe jumped as Cole looked at her over his shoulder. She'd tried to quietly steal behind him to put her hand on his back, trying to see if physical contact would give her a better read on his emotions. "I was just trying to see if you really were on our side," she snapped. "I don't trust you."
"And I don't care," he responded sharply. "And please don't delude yourself to think I'm doing this for you. I frankly don't care if you are stripped of your powers or not. In fact, while I think I can help Leo out, I don't know if there's any way I can argue your way out of this mess. After all, it's plainly clear that you have put your own selfish desires ahead of protecting innocents. When was the last one you saved? That you haven't complained about the inconvenience of it the entire time? Your latest date or media appearance is far more important to you than vanquishing a demon, isn't it?
Phoebe found herself almost at a loss for words, unprepared from the coldness that radiated from Cole. Even without her empathy, she could sense it. Declarations of love she'd dealt with from him, unwelcome stalking, too, but not this bitterness, and she found herself ill-prepared for it. "When did you become so cruel?" she said quietly.
"When you killed me," he said simply, then turned away from her.
Phoebe shook her head and sat down with her sisters. She glared at Kevin. "I hope you know what you're doing, because I think this is a very, very bad idea," she said.
"You're not the only one, dude," Paige agreed.
"I'm not happy with it either," Piper said, "but if it means helping Leo..." She squeezed her husband's hand. Even though they hadn't been officially remarried, it was easy to fall back into the comfort of thinking of him as "husband."
"Shhh," Kevin warned. "They're about to begin."
The Elder Serris stepped forward. "What you are about to see is pulled from the memories of the accused himself by the Circle of Truth. The authenticity cannot be disputed. Leo Wyatt, step forward."
"Not this again," Paige groaned.
"I'll be all right," Leo whispered to Piper, then did as requested, stepping into the circle of light that appeared in the center of the room. Next to him, an image appeared of Leo speaking to a man the sisters now recognized as the leader of the Avatars.
"We are...a power. One that offers a better way, a solution to this," the Avatar said. "You see, Leo, the future Chris failed to mention -- the death of all the people that you love, sometimes peaceful, sometimes painful, but always inevitable. And all well before their time."
"Death is a part of life," the image of Leo responded. Their conversation went on for several more minutes as the Avatar offered Leo a different life. Leo seemed dubious, but not entirely unconvinced about the promises to end a life of danger and strife.
The scene shifted. "We can save everyone, Leo, with your help," the Avatar stated. Leo nodded, and the Avatar held up his hand, sending a beam of light toward Leo. "So be it," he said. "Welcome to the fold."
"What do I do next?" Leo asked.
Another shift, and Leo confessed to Piper and Phoebe. "I'm an Avatar."
Piper stared at him in disbelief. "What! That's insane! What does that mean?"
"That means," Leo said slowly, "I believe in what they want. A world beyond good and evil."
"As you can see," Serris stated, "Leo quite willingly joined with the Avatars and worked with them to remaking the world, seduced by a promise of an easier life for him and his family. He put his own desires above the good of the world. He also convinced the Charmed Ones to assist in the destruction of the free will of the mortal realm."
A new image appeared. An angry Paige said, "I'm not just gonna sit around and wait for him to attack Kyle!"
"You want to protect him?" Leo responded. "Help the Avatars bring in Utopia so Zankou can't stop it."
"And finally," Serris said, "Leo is responsible for the murder of one of our own." Leo visibly winced as the image was pulled from his memories.
"Where is he, damn it?" Leo demanded.
"Wait!" Zola protested. "Listen to me, Leo. Don't do this!"
His face twisted in rage, Leo raised his arms and made an inarticulate sound of fury as he unleashed his powers upon Zola. The Elder screamed as he was slammed against the bridge. His lips moved to beg for mercy, but Leo gave him none, not stopping the blast until Zola had exploded and vanished in a cloud of smoke and flames.
"Why am I not surprised the Elders leave out pertinent details?" Cole said in response to the accusations when the image had faded. "Is it because you want to see the world in black and white? Good and evil?"
"Careful, demon," Esttai warned. "Watch your words."
"Stay where you are, Leo," Cole said. "I think the judges need to be shown more -- the circumstances around these decisions you made."
Leo closed his eyes as if unwilling to watch as another image of himself appeared. Two strange disembodied heads swirled madly around him. "Let go of all you know. Don't resist us," they commanded.
"Why are you doing this to me?" Leo yelled, backing away from them in fear and panic. "What do you want?"
Now the leader of the Avatars appeared. "I want you to see the truth, Leo. I want you to see the real future." He pointed to a tombstone engraved with the names of the Charmed Ones and Wyatt and Chris.
"And most importantly," Cole said as the final image appeared, showing what the other Elders had already displayed, only the entire scene this time: Piper and Phoebe, dead at Leo's feet, and the Avatars offering him the power to save their lives. "Under those circumstances, one can hardly blame Leo for his decision. He had no choice. He acted to save the lives of his loved ones by agreeing to become an Avatar. His duty for years, after all, had been protecting the lives of his charges, and you cannot expect him to abandon that task so easily. He would sacrifice anything to protect the Charmed Ones, the most powerful force for good in the world."
"That does not mean he had to agree to follow the wishes of the Avatars in remaking the world," the Elder George argued. "Saving the lives of the Charmed Ones is one thing. Robbing the world of free will is another."
"The accused was not in his right mind," Cole said calmly. "Allow me to demonstrate."
An image now appeared of the head Avatar speaking to a dark-skinned woman. "Leo is being drawn back to his family, back to good," the woman said.
"But he's not there yet. We must drive him away, make them afraid of him if we're to succeed."
"I object!" Serris said. "Leo was not witness to this conversation. We cannot ascertain its accuracy." Leo looked puzzled as well.
Cole nodded in agreement. "Yes, he was not witness. However, Avatars have access to their collective powers...and their collective memories. Leo never knew this, but I do."
Serris opened his mouth to protest again, but now Briel spoke. "The images are valid. Let him proceed."
"Thank you," Cole said. He looked to the frozen images of the Avatars, which now shifted to the likenesses of the leader of the Avatars and another male Avatar. "Perhaps we've pushed him too far," the second Avatar said.
"We have no choice. He must join us willingly, but first must see there is no other option," his leader said.
"The Avatars," Cole said, drawing attention back to himself, "are masters of manipulation. It is undisputed that the Elder Gideon attempted to murder Leo's son Wyatt and did kill his second child, Chris." The judges nodded. "This act opened a doorway for the Avatars. They are drawn to power, and they able to seize upon any perceived weakness and exploit it. In Leo's case, it was protecting his family. They appeared to him as phantom images until he was unbalanced and thus more susceptible to their machinations."
"No Elder should be so vulnerable," Serris scoffed. "This does not prove that the Avatars are these so-called masters of manipulation. It only proves that Leo's mind is weak."
"This is not the first time they have done this." Cole looked at the judges. "If I may, I would like to establish a pattern of emotional manipulation by the Avatars." The judges nodded, but Cole hesitated before continuing. "I would further request the Charmed Ones be removed from this court."
The three judges exchanged glances. "No," Esttai said.
"But..." Cole protested.
"You will proceed," Darban ordered.
Cole looked decidedly displeased with this decision as he motioned Leo to rejoin the Charmed Ones. As he sat down, Piper whispered, "Why does he want us to go? What's going on?"
"I have no idea," Leo said, looking to Kevin.
"I think you're about to find out just why I got him to be your lawyer," Kevin said. "Just watch and listen."