Oh, God.
Phoebe, I didn't realize you were home. Are you okay?
-I'm sorry. Are you all right? -Yes. I'm fine!
-Feeling a little jumpy, are we? -Well...
Yeah, especially now that we know
the Evil Triad is behind all those attacks.
Yeah. I don't need a recap. But what I do need is some heat.
Is it freezing in here? Did you forget to pay the gas bill?
I thought that you were supposed to pay the gas bill.
I was gonna take care of the club, and you'd take care of the house.
Remember? When school started back up for me.
Oh, right. I'll call the gas company first thing.
I will be so glad when Piper gets back.
What if she doesn't?
That's my fax.
Doesn't what?
Well, what if she doesn't come back?
I mean, what if when her and Leo orbed out, it was for good?
-Phoebe, that is ridiculous. -No, Prue, it's not ridiculous.
Think about it. We have not heard from her in a month.
-That's not like her. -All right, look.
Piper is not just going to ditch us, okay? We're her sisters.
And neither is Leo. He's our whitelighter too.
Then why hasn't she contacted us?
She has to know that we're worried about her.
She also has to know she's left us
one sister short of the power of three.
So while she's up romping around in the clouds with Leo,
we've got our Wiccan butts flapping around in the wind here.
I mean, we are very lucky, Prue, that we haven't been attacked yet.
No, it has absolutely nothing to do with luck.
The Triad's up to something, we just don't know what yet.
That's exactly my point. Piper knows this. So where the hell is she?
That's why I've been studying the book.
Prue, studying the book is not gonna do it.
We're screwed without Piper, and you know this.
-Why aren't you worried? -I am worried.
I'm scared that you're right, that we're never gonna see her again.
And not because she doesn't wanna come back,
but because they won't let her because she broke one too many rules.
-Who's calling us at 2 in the morning? -Probably Darryl.
-Hello? -Did you get the fax I sent?
Yeah, I was just about to check it. Hold on.
-What's going on? -Darryl's tracking a murder suspect
who he thinks is in league with a demon.
-Based on what? -Based on the fact that the killer
carves a demonic symbol into its victim's forehead,
an inverted triangle.
That and the fact that he magically seems to be evading arrest.
Looks like a rune to me.
Yeah, I saw it in here somewhere.
Darryl, is he still at the Pier Street rave?
Yeah, but I think he's on the move.
I don't think he's spotted me yet.
He's headed out the back.
-There. -"An opening by which demons
known as 'the Guardians' steal an innocent soul."
-Stay away from him, Darryl. -And let him kill somebody else?
-I don't think so. -No, listen to me.
These Guardians protect their mortal killers in exchange for victims' souls.
You cannot stop him.
Listen, Prue, I can take care of myself.
I gotta call you back. I'm not sure where this guy is.
Darryl?
All right, we're only three minutes away.
-What do we do once we get there? -Save Darryl's life.
I mean about the Guardian. We don't know how to vanquish it.
The book says we kill it just like you would a vampire, with a stake.
Oh, okay. Piper, where are you?
Please don't hurt me!
Darryl...
Prue!
He's alive.
I think I found the Guardian.
Okay. Get rid of it.
Wait, didn't the book say they were just like vampires?
-I might've misread that part. -I'm sorry?
Okay. The rune. Aim for the rune!
Okay, if Piper ever comes back, I am going to kill her.
Poor girl.
-Do you feel dizzy at all? Nauseous? -No.
Trouble focusing? Headache?
I'm telling you, I'm fine. The only thing wounded is my pride.
-Is he fine? -Yeah, thanks to you guys.
What do you mean, thanks to us?
Well, you fought off the attacker, didn't you?
Isn't that what happened?
Yeah, you know, it wasn't really that big of a deal.
Well, you saved his life. I think that's a pretty big deal.
You're a lucky man, inspector.
-Take care. -Thanks.
Okay, can we go now?
No. You have to give witness statements.
-Darryl... -Prue, you're witnesses to a crime.
In this case, the only witnesses.
No, Darryl, we can't be witnesses.
We used our powers to stop the killer.
-What are we supposed to say? -And he saw us use them too.
Nobody will believe anything that sleazeball says.
All you have to do is get your story straight.
You mean get our lies straight.
Phoebe, listen to me.
Without your testimony, Emilio walks.
What is he smiling at anyway?
It's not like he has his Guardian demon to protect him any more.
And, unfortunately, our guardian angel is nowhere to be found.
We could sure use some cosmic help right now.
What are we supposed to do? We've never been in this situation before.
You better decide fast. Here comes the ADA.
Ladies, my name's Cole Turner.
I'm the assistant district attorney assigned to this case.
I was wondering if either of you saw what happened?
I did.
We're in good shape except for...
What'd you call the murder weapon? An "athame"?
Athamay. It's a ceremonial knife used by...
...lots of different crazy people.
And you're sure you didn't see who took it?
No. We were there to check up on Darryl and...
Probably just some lunatic from the rave. Will it hurt the case?
The PD will try to focus on it, but this is just an arraignment.
Unless there's something I don't know about...
...we should have more than enough for the judge to hold him over for trial.
Don't worry. I'm good at what I do.
All rise.
Court is now in session.
Honorable Judge William Hamilton now presiding. Please be seated.
I'm nervous.
Oh, you know, witches and trials. It's that whole Salem thing.
No, I mean about lying. It just doesn't feel right, Prue.
Would it feel more right to just let him go?
Case number B-684400.
The State of California v. Emilio Smith.
One count of murder in the first degree.
One count attempted murder.
Assistant district attorney Cole Turner for the State.
Public defender Alan Sloan for the defense.
How does the defendant plead?
-Not guilty, Your Honor. -So noted.
Mr. Turner, I've read your brief. Have anything to add?
No, Your Honor. The State stands by the arrest report
and the eyewitness testimonies.
-Mr. Sloan? -Well, it seems to me, Your Honor,
you can't very well hold for a murder trial without a murder weapon.
The State has already stipulated that the alleged weapon was outstanding.
-We have two eyewitnesses who... -Saw what, exactly?
My client bent over the inspector?
That's how they justify their attack?
How did they know he didn't just happen across the scene
and was trying to revive the inspector?
Oh, please!
-Order! -Sorry.
And why, if they were able to so easily subdue him,
don't they know exactly what happened to the alleged weapon?
I mean, what, did it just...
-...magically disappear? -Objection.
Oh, God, he knows.
-The witnesses aren't on trial here. -Why?
-Isn't perjury illegal? -Objection, Your Honor!
Mr. Turner,
unless you have something else
or can produce the alleged murder weapon,
I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Sloan.
-You're what? -Do you or don't you have
any additional evidence?
Aside from the fact that he's the prime suspect in three other murders,
that no less than five people saw him leave the rave just before the attacks,
and that everything, other than the missing weapon,
makes this, in any other courtroom, a slam-dunk?
The charges are dropped. The defendant is released.
I don't believe this.
Clerk, next case.
Yeah, you keep smiling, punk. I'm not giving up until I see you fry.
Come on, Turner. This isn't gonna solve anything.
Let's go.
I'm so sorry. I wish that there was more that we could do.
If there's something you're not telling me, anything...
If you're afraid of him, we can protect you. I can refile.
We have to go. Sorry.
-We shouldn't have lied. -Phoebe.
We shouldn't have. We should've told the truth.
We should've done whatever we had to do to keep that jerk from walking.
Like what? Say what really happened to that knife?
-Tell the court that we're witches? -Why not, Prue?
Isn't it more important to keep a killer off the streets
than to protect our secret?
The judge would've thought we were nuts, and you know it.
Not if you proved it to him and showed him your power.
That wouldn't have put Emilio away. That would've put us away.
Then we'd never have the chance of catching him again.
And would that be before or after he kills somebody else?
I'm sorry. You know, I'm just... I'm really frustrated about all this.
What about that public defender?
I mean, if Emilio really did tell that PD about us,
then why didn't he spill the magic beans?
Same reason as us, credibility.
What I'm curious about is, is he mortal or is he demon?
All I know is Cole is an angel.
He was awesome in that courtroom yesterday.
See something you like, sis?
Maybe. Or maybe it's just
nice to run into someone that's not a college boy.
-More years, less hormones. -Yeah, not a bad butt either.
We've been through this, Leo. I don't care what they are.
It's not right and it's not fair.
-I know that, but it's their rules. -Screw their rules. They're wrong.
-Piper? -Just a second.
Leo, you better do something about this, because this isn't acceptable.
Piper, come on.
I'm gonna go to the club. Do not tell him.
Hi, welcome home!
Okay, what was that all about? I didn't even get to bitch at her.
Yeah. Neither did I.
We have to talk about it.
-Leo, she left. -Yeah, so now I get to bitch at you.
Listen, the next time you take my sister someplace,
please call and let us know that you got there safely, okay?
I don't care if it's up there...
Leo...
Can you do me a favor and go find out
everything you can on Guardians?
They are demons. Okay. Thank you. Bye.
-Excuse me, but I have issues. -Yes, I know. So do I,
but Leo looked pretty beaten up already.
Yeah, you're right, which is why I'm now gonna go kick Piper's ass.
Okay, we have had this conversation.
You are not allowed to use your active power on me
until I have an active power to use on you, remember?
I know. I'm sorry, all right?
But if anybody's gonna talk to Piper, it should be me. Cooler heads and all.
Besides, shouldn't you be at class?
-Piper? -This is really weird.
My supplies are, like, gone. There's no booze, there's no mineral water,
and we're even out of pretzels.
Plus, the books are all messed up. How did this happen in one lousy day?
One day? You're kidding, right?
Piper, you have been gone for one month.
-What are you talking about? -Here.
-Check the date. -October?
It's October? How is this possible?
I guess time moves a little bit differently up there.
Yeah, well, it doesn't keep your head from being bitten off down here.
-Are you talking about demons? -Oh, no.
Something so much worse than demons.
Sisters. Especially Phoebe.
-We thought you had abandoned us. -That's ridiculous.
I would never abandon you guys.
If I had known I was gone this long, I would've called or orbed
or somehow let you know I was okay.
Okay, so why didn't Leo?
Leo was battling demons of his own.
Wait a minute, what's today? There's a band. The...
The Barenaked Ladies is playing here tomorrow.
-Did anybody bother to call them? -I don't really think that Phoebe knew.
You know what? Piper.
Can we just talk about what happened up there first?
Sure. Unfortunately, the longer I'm back, the fuzzier it all seems to get.
I think they do that on purpose. They're big on mystery.
Okay, do you remember anything?
Just feelings, mostly.
Good ones, peaceful and whole,
and then it all went to crap when they said
Leo and I had to stop seeing each other or else.
Or else what?
Or else they'd reassign him, and we'd never see each other again.
Just because it didn't work out with Mom and her whitelighter,
I don't understand why I'm being punished.
I'm sure that you guys will figure out a way around this.
Come here.
Leo would never let you go without a fight. You know that.
But what if he doesn't have a choice?
-Cole. -Hi. How's it going?
Wow, is this embarrassing.
-I'm... -It's okay. I'm okay.
Nice calf.
Thanks.
-Can I have it back? -Sure. Sure.
Okay.
-How did you find me? -Told you I was good at what I do.
Although you probably wouldn't think so after my performance in court.
No, I thought you were amazing.
It's just you were up against...
...an unfair judge.
"Free Willy," he's got that reputation.
Still, I know I didn't put on my best case.
That's why I'm here, to see if you can help me do a better job.
-How? -I don't know.
You tell me.
Look...
...Phoebe, I may not be the greatest prosecutor,
but I've got good instincts. I can sense things about people,
things they may not even want me to know.
And what do you sense about me?
That you're struggling with the truth.
You're a good person who wants to do the right thing,
but for whatever reason, can't.
How am I doing so far?
Hung jury.
Mistrial.
If you think of anything...
...please call me.
Home number's on the back.
Bye.
Oh, no.
I have got to get a cell phone.
Prue, I had a premonition
of Emilio carving that rune into Cole's forehead.
-Did you see where it happens? -No, just some parking lot.
Who's Cole? What did you do to your hair?
-I'm sorry, do I know you? -Phoebe, now is not the time.
-Are you sure? -Positive.
Now that I think about it, it does seem weird.
-We vanquished the Guardian. -Well, maybe he got another one.
What's a Guardian, you ask?
Well, if you'd been around at all, then you'd probably know, huh?
All right, we'll fill you in on the phone.
Leo's checking on them, so you should get together with him
-and find out everything. -And no orbing.
I need another Guardian.
What you need is to be more careful. I won't protect you again.
I won't get caught again.
I can take care of the witches, judge.
No, you can't. You're a mortal.
But you can take care of the prosecutor.
I don't want him to find out about you...
...or me, understand?
I wish I could help, Turner, but I've told you everything.
Call me Cole. After all, we're on the same side, aren't we?
As often as cops and DAs are, I guess.
Look, inspector, I'm just trying to do my job, okay?
I let a murderer go free today, and that doesn't sit well with me.
Me neither.
Then help me do something about it.
Help me find out what it is that I'm missing here.
What you're missing is a suspect.
And if you let me do my job, maybe I can help you find him again.
Now, if you'll excuse me.
Why did you call the Halliwells last night?
-What? -While you were on stakeout
at 2:17 a.m., according to the phone company.
-You checked up on me? -Standard procedure, inspector.
Gee, and here I thought we were on the same side.
I called because the sisters own a club.
I thought they'd be interested in checking out the rave.
That was very nice of you.
-I'm a nice guy. -Yeah.
-Turner. -It's Phoebe Halliwell.
-Speak of the devil. -Should I take a message?
No, please put her through.
-Phoebe? -Cole, I've been trying to reach you.
Sorry, I was in a meeting with Inspector Morris.
-You wanna say hello? -No.
-He's at the police station. -Ten, 15 minutes at least.
Listen, Cole, I need to talk to you. It's really, really important.
-Say again? I didn't catch that. -Cole?
Just stay where you are, and I'll meet you there, okay?
We've got a bad line. I'm running late for court.
I'll call you from my car.
Cole?
Damn it.
An active power.
Not that active. Prue!
Hey, catch!
Cole? Cole?
Phoebe?
What are you doing here? What happened?
I think I'm gonna plead the Fifth on that one.
I look at you, and I think how lucky I am.
I mean, I can't stop looking at you.
You're my dream come true.
You're my raison d'être.
Every time I see you, I love you even more.
You're so beautiful.
You're so special.
I can't imagine my life without you.
-Piper. -Leo?
-Who are you talking to? -Me?
Nobody. Just myself, you know.
Yourself? You were telling yourself how much you loved you?
No, of course not. I mean, it's...
It's not like that at all.
Let's go downstairs, and I'll explain.
Actually, no, we don't have time.
Did you find out anything about the Guardians?
-No, I forgot. -You forgot?
What's the matter? Why are you acting so weird?
-Can we go downstairs, please? -No. Why?
Okay, fine.
Here's good.
I've been thinking a lot, actually, about our situation.
-Leo... -Just... Now, let me finish.
I think I've come up with a solution.
A way for us to be together no matter what they say.
Okay.
Will you marry me?
-Piper! -This is so not happening.
Listen to me, Piper. I told you, I thought this whole thing through.
Is that why you asked me to marry you in a toilet?
I tried to get you downstairs.
Well, I'm downstairs now, and I still don't believe you're serious.
I am serious, Piper. Dead serious.
Right. Dead is exactly what we're gonna be if they ever find out.
Piper, would you...?
Would you just stop running away from me for one minute
and let me explain?
If we got married...
Look, will you just hear me out, please?
If we got married, it would be a holy union.
Something I don't even think my bosses could break apart.
-I don't understand. -It's really hard to explain.
I don't really understand how it all works myself.
But I know that there are different levels up there. A hierarchy.
What I'm trying to say is that I think a holy union goes above their heads.
It'd be like running an end run to my boss' bosses.
An end run?
Yeah, the only catch is that we'd have to get married in secret.
I think the only way they could hurt us is if they found out before.
So we just have to keep it quiet.
-Elope? -Right.
-So that they don't find out. -Exactly.
You hate the idea.
Well...
...it's not exactly Cinderella, is it?
Look, how do we know they don't know already?
How do we know they're not listening right now?
They're not, believe me. They don't do that.
So then why does it have to be a secret?
Because if they ever did find out...
Leo...
...this isn't supposed to be this way.
Marriage shouldn't be a solution to a problem or a Band-Aid.
It's supposed to be about love
and about two people who love each other so much
they wanna spend the rest of their lives together.
That's what I want.
But that's not where this is coming from.
It's a fix-it, I guess, but it's not about us or love,
or whether or not we're even ready to be married.
I came up with this whole idea because we love each other.
It's all about our love.
You know, we're meant to be together, Piper. You know that.
You went to the future, and you saw that we were married in it.
That means that somehow they didn't stop us.
Somehow, we found a way to be together,
and I think this is the way.
I don't know.
Leo...
...I love you and I know I don't ever wanna be without you...
...but this just doesn't feel right.
I mean, getting married in secret...
It doesn't feel like a holy union to me.
I'm sorry.
Piper? Leo?
Hey, Leo, good. Did you find out anything about the Guardian?
Not yet.
Not yet? What do you mean, not yet?
Piper?
I'll go see what I can find out.
-You get anything out of him? -Nope. He's not talking.
Yeah? Seems to be an epidemic.
Don't do anything stupid, Turner.
You don't wanna compromise your case.
What case?
He's already gotten away with murder.
You really think they're gonna nail him for hitting me over the head?
How's it going?
I'm gonna make you a deal, Emilio.
One that, if you're smart, you'll jump at.
Obviously, whoever's protecting you
isn't gonna keep doing it much longer.
Especially since you keep screwing up and getting caught.
So you might wanna pay attention.
I want you to get a message to...
...your friend.
Tell him I know he sent you after me, and because of that...
...I'm gonna personally bring him down.
You don't scare me.
No?
You have no idea who you're dealing with.
What the hell are you doing? Let him go!
See you in court.
Hey!
-Do you wanna be alone? -No.
But it looks like I'm gonna be.
Leo asked me to marry him.
-That's great. -Yeah, except that I can't do it.
What do you mean, you can't do it, Piper? You love him.
Of course I do, with all my heart. But...
Why does it gotta be so complicated? Why can't I just be a normal person
in love with a normal guy?
Does Leo think that getting married is the only way around them?
Yeah. But he's not even sure it's gonna work.
Yeah, but it might work.
Piper, you and Leo are destined to be together.
You guys have the kind of love that girls dream about.
I know I dream about it. How about you?
All the time.
And I understand the risks, but if you don't go for it,
isn't it an even bigger risk?
That was fast.
-A little too fast. -Sorry.
They were very interested when I told them about the Guardians.
Apparently, Guardians help mortal criminals spread evil.
Yeah, we already know that. Skip ahead.
Well, they think that you've stumbled across
some evil conspiracy in that courtroom,
one where an upper-level demon somehow assigns Guardians
to the criminals who are set free.
Well, that makes sense. It explains why Emilio has two.
Yeah, the question is, who's the demon?
Didn't you say the public defender seemed suspicious?
Yeah, but he's not exactly in the best position to be setting criminals free.
-Yeah, but Free Willy is. -Who?
The judge. I mean, that would explain why
he's got the highest release rate of anyone on the bench.
Still, you can't go vanquishing a judge
without knowing for sure he's demonic.
Well, we better come up with a plan because Emilio gets arraigned
in night court in, oh, an hour.
I've got an idea.
Can't we just come up with a spell or something?
-No, a spell could backfire on us. -So could this.
No, the worst that could happen is that it just doesn't work.
But we have to flush the demon out somehow.
And since you can selectively freeze things, why not just the innocents?
-Because I've never done it before. -Well, I've never levitated before.
-You never what? -Look, Piper,
just focus all of your energy on freezing the innocents, okay?
Okay. So why'd you do that to your hair?
Because I wanted to change my luck. Scoot!
How many times is the prosecution gonna keep harassing my client?
As far as I'm concerned, this is turning into nothing but a witch-hunt.
If it may please the court, could I have a minute to confer with the witnesses?
It's late, Mr. Turner. Either you have a case or you don't.
Very well. Why would the defendant attack me
if he was innocent of the prior charges?
-There's no proof he's responsible. -Now, Piper.
What was he doing in the police parking lot?
Why did myself and two eyewitnesses...?
The same two eyewitnesses that were here before.
-Piper. -All right!
And what were they doing there?
How is it that they just happened to magically be at every crime scene?
-Try again. -I'm trying.
Objection, Your...!
-It worked. -Overruled.
-It's the judge. -I move for this case to be dismissed.
And the PD.
It's everybody.
Kill them.
What do we do?
Okay, does anybody have any brilliant ideas?
-Can you just freeze them? -No. Once they're immune to it,
they stay that way. It's called immunity.
Great.
-This was all your idea, you know. -Okay, well, so sue me.
Stand back!
Any mass vanquishing spells?
-You're the one studying the book. -Why are you picking on me?
Because I'm scared, and we're outnumbered.
We can't stay in this room for the rest of our lives.
The best defense is a good offense.
-Are you ready? -No.
-Yeah, you're ready. On three. -No.
One, two... Don't hold my hand.
One, two, three.
-Hey, nicely done. -You too.
Wait a minute. If they're demons, where are their powers?
Come to me!
Guardians. They're not demons.
They're just protected by them. Come on.
-What the hell? -Thanks. I'll take it from here.
-Okay, how did that happen? -Good question, but we're not alone.
We better get back before Cole unfreezes.
How are we gonna explain all this to him?
I am so sorry.
Cole? Cole?
Are you okay?
Yeah. I think so.
What happened?
Aren't you getting tired of asking me that?
Well, Emilio went nuts, and he tried to escape.
And then all the courtroom people tried to help him.
Yeah, thank God for Darryl.
Yep, saved the day.
-What? -Something good happened.
Can't you just accept that?
It's not in my nature.
You've been gone for two days, and you get the Barenaked Ladies? How?
Oh, actually, I just made a couple phone calls.
And I can't even get Barry Manilow on the phone.
-I'm sorry I screwed up your club. -Don't. I owe you guys an apology.
-And thanks for covering my butt. -Not a problem.
I didn't even really notice that you were gone, actually.
Liar.
Yeah, I've been doing a lot of that lately.
Unfortunately, especially to Cole.
But hopefully I won't have to lie to him any more.
Yeah, well, something tells me he's not going anywhere anytime soon.
-No complaints here. -One over here.
Hottie that he is,
he is an assistant DA, which makes him somewhat of a threat to us.
Yeah, but at least he's one of the good guys.
Speaking of the good guys...
-So have you had a change of heart? -Actually, no.
-Hi. -Hi.
-Piper, maybe it was a mistake... -Wait, Leo. Me first.
I've been thinking a lot about our situation and you asking me,
and I didn't wanna just dismiss it without thinking it through.
Last night in the courtroom, I was actually scared.
For a minute there, I thought I wasn't gonna make it,
that that was it.
And that's when I realized...
...that I don't wanna die without ever having been married to you.
The answer is yes, Leo. I'd love to marry you.
-Yeah? -Yeah.