[NOBLE] Trials

[The Semblance of Unity]

This was mostly what Silk had already gone over, and the fetches... she needed to talk to Hart, although she hadn't seen the girl around much. The new description of the nobles was something Temperance was far more comfortable with than the all-reaching scope and power they had before. It felt more tightly controlled and more importantly, infinitely more useful to this Ashdown. She sighed a little, glancing at Rabbit. She doubted he was going to abdicate, but she wondered about those who were forced into their positions via kidnapping. Temperance had also noticed Alexis was not present, as well as several other nobles.

She almost volunteered, then remembered that Rabbit was Ezra's tithe and therefore, she was ineligible. The pool was small and growing smaller, she thought. Shiloh spoke up and she glanced at him, a small frown crossing her face. He put too much on himself; she knew that, but who else was there, really? Temperance knew Chief Mercer was Ezra's tithe directly, Rabbit... Julian was Lady's tithe, who was the Spinel Lady's, so that could have been a possibility.

"Can the prosecution's advocate be from among his tithes? If so, I volunteer. If not-" she shrugged. Temperance wanted, more than anything, for this to be a fair trail. No random assault or killing, please. Please. And she knew Shiloh would be fair to the best of his ability. It was just... a lot. And he still struggled with the abuse at the hands of the Spinel Lady and... She rubbed her chin thoughtfully.  

[Smerdle]

Rabbit stepped up last—for now at least, until Hux stopped brooding—scrawling Bennett Vaughn where indicated. Where he had once shied away from his given name, it meant something here. It was a reminder of who he had become, of his duty to this half of the world, and to try to be better than he was. He would need a lot of time to think over the job he'd just promised to take on, but as he'd already decided, he wasn't going to give it up because it was difficult. With a defined set of goals, he might even be able to get something significant done around here in time.

But not today. He almost visibly sighed with relief at being deemed out of the running to represent Father, and he didn't volunteer to stand for the other side either. For another case he would have made the attempt, but not this one.  

[azuredreams]

It was no surprise that those tied to Ezra could not take stance as defense. There was too much there, too much- Jeremiah would not think about it. Instead he glanced towards Algie, as one of the few that were not tied to him in such a manner, and then towards Shiloh who had already offered.

As the others signed their names, he looked towards Temperance (somehow not surprised that she would offer). "I would volunteer for prosecution as well, if we are capable."

There was a need, of course, to get to the truth of the matter and see things through. One that was not at all different than his being an officer of the law- Except this was on a different side. Not that he too wasn't glancing between Shiloh and Algie briefly, though he did not truly expect that Algie would volunteer as defense. Too close to the matter at hand by proxy of being his husband.

In the end, it was merely a formality and making sure that a fair trial was achieved and all parties were impartial was what would be best.  

[shibrogane]

"Then you will be Lord Ezra's advocate," said Silk, pulling out another ******** book and making a note. What the hell was in your jacket, Silk? Hammerbra of holding?? "Thank you, Noble Beaumont. Let me know when you would like to meet with your... client."

She looked between Temperance and Jeremiah, and said, "While Lord Ezra's tithes are permitted to be the advocate for his victims, I do not believe you to be impartial, Noble Mercer. Noble Clark, you'll be the prosecution's advocate. I doubt you'll be strictly impartial either, as I know Lord Ezra has attacked you as well... but I feel you are more likely to try.

"Strictly speaking, Court cases will be brought by you, the nobles, once a moonwalker has contained a threat or a warg has perceived one. So, usually the role of the defense is the one which will need to be filled by a meeting similar to this. As it is, the threat went unknown until it was almost too late..." Everyone in the room got a hard-eyed look. "It will not happen again."

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The Semblance of Unity

Smerdle

azuredreams

iloveyouDIE

Melancholies

cibarium

 

[Melancholies]

Outwardly, Shiloh looked fine. Inwardly he sort of wanted to die, because he had no idea how to play lawyer, and he sure as ******** wasn't sure how compliant the Burning Man was going to be in this whole ordeal. Not to mention, of everyone present, he was the youngest, and he could already taste the disapproval, people not taking him seriously because of his age, ******** adults—

"It won't happen again." He sounded very resolute when he said it. "We ******** up and it won't happen again."

Don't throw up on your shoes in front of Silk. Don't do it.

He swallowed kinda hard.

"We're setting a standard here too. It won't be messed up. I'll speak with him as soon as you can let me." And then he went quiet again...

Had his anxiety not been skyrocketing, he probably would've snrked at the quiet jab to Jeremiah, but as it was he was glad to have Temperance on the other side. They sure didn't see eye to eye, but that was a good thing. Shiloh didn't want to let a guilty man go free, but he didn't want to condemn a man who'd suffered for thousands of years without hearing him out either.

 

[azuredreams]

Jeremiah inclined his head, expecting that as a response and easily accepting it. In the end, he would likely pursue it as a man possessed. Better to leave it be but it needed to be said, to be offered, for his own closure on the subject.

Willingness to actually work against the Burning Man as opposed to forever looking for some reason that would explain his ultimate machinations as if he was someone to be saved and understood. Never mind that he thought Temperance could handle it and would be more impartial than most would be capable of. Shiloh as defense would certainly be interesting as well but he had no doubts that he would serve well.

"Part of the reason that this went unknown was due to the geas placed upon those he gathered consent from," he said after Shiloh spoke. The pain that would come from speaking of it. "Though with the wargs, working as seers, would be able to detect something if it created enough of a disturbance." So he assumed. "However: does the Noble geas still stand?"

They could easily be swayed away if the geas was still in effect by anyone who knew it in the course of a case if it still was. No, they would not let something like this happen again - it would be horrifying - but if they could still be compelled then other things could occur and problems could still arise.  

[The Semblance of Unity]

Did Silk have a library inside her jacket? Temperance released a long, slow breath. Well, now she'd gone and volunteered. "I think, beyond Shiloh, you'd be hard-pressed to find a noble willing that Lord Ezra hasn't interfered with." She didn't think Lady nor Julian had their fingerprints taken. Melany, either, though she was a judge.

"Chief Mercer, later on, when you have a moment, could you provide me a list of all those who have been on the original charter? I figured you must have had the most up-to-date version." She had most of the names, but not quite all. Temperance sat down and produced a notebook of her own, jotting down a few things to remember.

"Is there a trial date, Silk?"  

[shibrogane]

"Noble Spektor is not eligible to serve as Lord Ezra's advocate," said Silk. "They were his tithe, for a time, as well as the Spinel Lady's. They served nine and a half objective years in the Court, though I believe subjectively the time passed more quickly, hence their apparent youth. For that reason, Noble Spektor and Noble Fitzpatrick do not qualify as his advocates; Noble Beaumont and Noble Mercer--" she nodded at Algernon "--were the only options available."

Lady grimaced.

"I believe you," said Silk gently to Shiloh. "And I'll make him available to you at your leisure."

She closed her eyes for a moment. Then she opened them again. "The failure belongs to all of you," she said. "To we fetches as well, though we were incapable of going against the word of a noble in any way or form." She was judging pretty much everyone. That was what Silk did: judged people. "It does not stand any longer. There is a geas which is applied as a subpoena. But this doesn't mean that there are no other geases which may be used."

To Temperance, she said, "The first meeting with the Judge will be in several days, once the Judge has been selected."

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The Semblance of Unity

Smerdle

azuredreams

iloveyouDIE

Melancholies

cibarium

 

[iloveyouDIE]

Algie could feel eyes on him as Silk explained how the representation would work. He met Shiloh's gaze unflinchingly before glancing back at Jeremiah as he spoke up.

The Professor made no move to speak. No move to volunteer. It had been all of his own personal mettle not to call for The Burning Man's death at the destruction and re-creation of the charter. He certainly wouldn't be putting himself forward to defend him.

He was too close to it, regardless of not being a tithe.

The fact that Jeremiah volunteered to help the prosecution, though turned away, would have also made him in a defense position impossible. Still he was secretly glad that Jeremiah wouldn't be. Alg knew how it would get to him and this defendant struck too close to home.

Let others pass judgement without bias.. their home was too full of it.  

[azuredreams]

Hearing Noble Spektor had Jeremiah doing a mental double-take before he realized what Tate had done. Whatever question that brought to mind, he pushed aside. Jeremiah merely nodded in agreement about the failure being with them all, that he did not doubt in the slightest.

There was more they could've done- they had been investigating Ezra Fitzpatrick too little, too late. Without the geas in place, however, he was less worried about Temperance running into issues with the geas.

After Silk was done speaking, he looked to Temperance. "Once this meeting is adjourned, Noble Clark, I will be returning back to work, but I can make myself available after work here at Court and give you the information you are asking for."  

[shibrogane]

"That is everything I needed to cover today," said Silk, snapping her book shut. "As nobles, it would behoove you to arrange a meeting between yourselves and the other differentiated classes. You will be working quite closely for the foreseeable future, after all." She tucked the book back into her jacket. "I have further appointments, so I will be taking my leave. Feel free to send me a letter or speak to Felt if you need anything."

Without waiting further, she departed. Probably to go to her other appointments.

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The Semblance of Unity

Smerdle

azuredreams

iloveyouDIE

Melancholies

cibarium

 

[Smerdle]

It was all well and good to want to follow Silk's suggestion and meet up with other differentiated, but Rabbit had always mostly kept to himself in this town, so such things were easy enough to agree to and harder to pull off. That didn't mean he wouldn't try, just not right now. Now he had to get home. He turned to Temperance before he left.

"Text me if you need to, um, question me." He hesitated, then added, "That goes for everyone. Not the questioning, but just... if you want to talk about anything." The thought that anyone might need him for something felt weird, but hey, he was trying to be more responsible these days.

With a final, all-encompassing nod, Rabbit left the meeting through the same door as the fetch.

The Semblance of Unity