"Sain?"

The knight looked up sharply to find his liege and mistress looking at him with a concerned look. "Are you all right?" Lyn asked, her arms crossed.

"Milady," he said, nodding toward her. "I'm fine. Just going over the details one last time."

She nodded approvingly. "Good. I'm glad to see you taking this so seriously."

"The life of one of my best friends is on the line here, milady," Sain sighed. "You need not worry about how seriously I'm taking things."

"I hope you're right," she says. "Because we're about to begin."

As if on cue, one of the marshals stepped into the room. "We're ready, Sir Sain," he said. "Milady."

"All right," Lyn said. "Here we go."

Wil looked over at the two of them nervously as the marshal stepped up to him. "Sain…"

"Don't worry, Wil," Sain said, smiling at his friend. "I know you'd never have done something like this. We'll find a way to prove you innocent. I promise."

He wished he felt as confident as he sounded, but it seemed to do the trick. Wil returned his smile as the marshal led the young archer away.

Sain took a deep breath. This was his first time doing anything like this. But he couldn't let that stop him. Wil was in danger, and Sain was the only hope he had. The knight knew this wouldn't be easy, but he quite simply didn't have a choice. It was up to him, and it was now or never.

They stepped into the courtroom, taking their seats at the stand to the right of where the judge would be sitting. Across from them was the prosecutor, a local man whose name Sain hadn't had a chance to learn. He grinned maliciously at the two, letting them know without even speaking a word of how confident he was in his case.

Sain couldn't blame him. From what he'd heard, the case against Wil was airtight. It was his job to prove that wasn't so.

"All rise!"

Sain found himself standing almost before he realized the cry had gone out. The judge was making his way to his seat. He was an elderly man, with a lengthy beard and almost no hair on the other side of his head. Sain leaned over to Lyn. "What's the judge's name again?"

Lyn opened her mouth to answer, but soon closed it. "Actually," she said after a moment, "I'm not sure myself."

The judge sat, and so did the rest of the court, Sain quickly following suite. The judge peered at the papers in front of him. "Now, then, let's get this underway, shall we? Mr. Jwyner?"

Sain looked over at Lyn. "Jwyner?" he whispered.

"Hugh Jwyner, the prosecutor," she whispered back. "I thought you'd prepared for this, Sain!"

Sain couldn't retort, though, as he was too busy suppressing a laugh. Lyn just looked at him oddly before turning back to the court.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the court," Jwyner began, "We have been brought here today by the most unfortunate of circumstances. A foul murderer has torn away one of our own beloved townsfolk. The life of a dear, sweet girl brought to an end in one of the most heinous acts a man can commit! As a soldier in the service of Caelin, the accused is no stranger to killing, yet this time he's taken it too far, striking down a fair maiden in the prime of her youth. And so we are here for one reason, and one reason alone: Justice. Bringing justice to the man who cold-heartedly murdered the poor, defenseless girl he'd chosen to send to the afterlife.

He sat down. Many people in the court were murmuring their assent. "That was a good speech," Sain had to admit.

"I don't know," Lyn said. "As the daughter of the marquess, I've attended a few public trials before, and I'm pretty sure I've heard that same speech one or two times already."

"Thank you, Mr. Jwyner," the judge said. Sain was displeased to see that he, too, had been moved by the opening statement. "Now, as to the details of the case… What was the victim's name?"

To Sain's shock, Jwyner smiled directly at him. "Perhaps our newcomer defense attorney can provide that for us?"

The judge looked over at Sain, who suddenly found himself sweating a great deal more than he had before. "Hm? Ah, yes, Mr… Sain, was it?"

"Yes, your Honor."

"What is your last name, Sain?"

Sain blinked, confused. "…What's a 'last name,' sir?"

As the court began to murmer again, Lyn leaned toward Sain. "Please, tell me you know the answer to this question!"

"Well, I think I do. I mean, Linus and Lloyd were the sons of Brendan Reed, so I guess…"

"Not the last name question, Sain! The victim's name! You didn't know the prosecutor's, so please, at least tell me you know hers!"

Sain smiled reassuringly at her. "Not to worry, milady. I never come unprepared. …Well, not completely unprepared." He patted the documents he was holding. "This is just a test to make sure I know how to use the Court Record."

"The what now?"

"Never mind." He turned back to the court; the judge was signaling for silence. "Your honor, if I may respond to the prosecution's request," he began.

"Please do, Mr. Sain," the judge replied, eyeing him. "Best to find out you don't know what you're doing now than an hour into the case."

Gee, thanks, Sain thought. He cleared his throat. "The victim's name was Nadya Luck. She was a local girl, a merchant who ran a small shop across from the inn."

"Indeed," Jwyner said. "She was working that very shop when she was killed."

More murmurings. Sain was beginning to suspect that this would get on his nerves before long.

"All right," the judge said. "Let's get this started. Mr. Jwyner, you may call your first witness."

"Thank you, your honor. The prosecution calls Sir Kent to the stand."

Within minutes, Sain's closest friend was standing at the witness stand. Kent looked about as happy about being there as a fish would be on a fisherman's (or, come to think of it, a fisherwoman's) hook. He was just as close to Wil as Sain, and the fact that he was going to contribute to the case against him must have been tearing him apart.

"Your name and occupation?" Jwyner asked.

"Sir Kent. I'm the commander of the Caelin knights."

"All right, witness," the judge said. "Testify about what you saw."

Kent looked over at the defense bench. Sain gave him an encouraging nod and thumbs-up; Lyn merely smiled, the way she smiled only at him. Seeing their approval, Kent took a breath and began his testimony.

"Some other knights and I were going shopping for gifts in town. I'd just left the others at a street vendor in front of the inn and was headed toward Nadya's shop across the street. I suddenly heard the snap of a bowstring behind me and to the right. Before I knew what was happening, Nadya keeled over, an arrow in her neck. I spun around, and saw a figure rush away from the window in one of the second-story rooms of the inn. The others and I ran inside and went up to the room in question. When we got there, the room was empty, but we found a bow and several arrows lying on the floor by the window."

"Thank you, Sir Kent," Jwyner said as the crowd resumed their murmurings. He held up something in his hands. "Your honor, these are the bow and arrows Sir Kent found at the scene of the crime."

"Very well. The court accepts them into evidence."

For some reason, Sain couldn't help but imagine a small jingle as Jwyner handed over the weapons.

"All right, Mr. Sain, you may begin your cross-examination."

"Thank you, your honor," Sain said enthusiastically. In reality, though, he couldn't see what could possibly be useful in Kent's testimony. If there was anything in there that would exonerate Wil, Kent would have mentioned it explicitly. That meant it was up to Sain to dig a little deeper.

"All right, Sir Kent," he said, looking through his documents. "Could you start from the beginning?"

"All right," Kent sighed. "I was at a street vendor in front of the inn with some other knights. When I finished there, I started for Nadya's shop across the street. Suddenly I heard the twang of a bowstring behind me and to the right, and-"

"HOLD IT!"

Everyone in the court was shocked by Sain's sudden cry. "Sain!" Lyn hissed. "There's no need to be that loud!"

"Sorry, milady," Sain muttered. He cleared his throat. "You just testified that you heard the arrow over your right shoulder?"

"That's correct."

"And when you turned, you saw a figure moving in one of the inn's windows. Tell me, which window was it?"

Kent frowned. "You know, that did bother me. See, from where I was standing, I could see two windows on the front of the inn. From what I heard, I thought the arrow was shot from the window to the left—since I heard it from the right when facing the other way. But I saw the figure moving in the left window. It was odd, but I figured I'd just misheard the shot."

"That's one possibility," Sain said. "But there is another…" He struck a pose and stuck out his finger in the most dramatic fashion he could before continuing. "The shot was not fired from that room!"

The crowd's murmuring was higher-pitched and more excited this time; the judge banged his gavel a few times to try and regain order.

"Good job, Sain!" Lyn whispered. "Finding contradictions in the witnesses' testimonies is the only way we're going to uncover the truth."

Sain was about to reply, but found himself cut off by a high-pitched "OBJECTION!" Jwyner glared over at him. "You really think that's a possibility, Mr. Sain? You're more of a rookie than I thought!"

"The witness's testimony clearly states that he heard the arrow over his right shoulder—meaning it came from the left room!"

"Or that he simply misheard it! After all, he saw the figure moving in the right window, and that's also where he and the other knights found the bow and arrows! How do you explain that?"

Sain opened his mouth to respond, but found he couldn't think of anything to say.

"That's what I thought," Jwyner said smugly. "Congratulations on finding that contradiction, Mr. Sain, but it's going to take more than that to pole a hole in my case.

Sain grimaced, but his face relaxed somewhat when he felt Lyn lay a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Don't let him get to you, Sain. It's a start. Think about it: if the shot wasn't fired from that room, what does it mean?"

Sain thought hard for a moment. "It means… the shot was actually fired from the other room… so the bow and arrows found in that room aren't the ones used to kill Nadya!"

Lyn smiled. "Exactly! We need to find out more about the weapon, then."

Sain stood tall. "Your honor! The defense requests testimony about the weapons found in the room!"

The judge looked down at him confusedly. "Um… I thought that only the prosecution could order testimony…"

Jwyner laughed, waving a hand dismissively at Sain. "Actually, your honor, that was exactly what I was going to ask the witness for next anyway. Sir Kent, if you please?"

Another reassuring smile from Lyn was all Kent needed to start talking again. "We found the bow and arrows under the window. We assumed the shooter dropped them as he or she fled. None of us recognized the bow, but the arrows… they were fletched with green feathers."

"And the green feathers are important because…?" Jwyner said, smiling evilly.

"Wil… Wil uses green feathers to fletch his arrows. It's a tribute to his fiancée, who has green hair." Kent lowered his eyes. "He's the only one in Caelin that uses green feathers specifically."

"Thank you, Sir Kent," Jwyner said. "That will be all."

Kent looked dejected. He'd just put another nail in Wil's coffin, after all. However, Sain was determined to use that nail to poke another hole in Jwyner's face. Case! He thought suddenly. I meant case!

As soon as the judge asked for his cross-examination, Sain went straight to the point. "You say that Sain is the only one in Caelin who uses green feathers to fletch his arrows, correct?"

"Yes."

"And does he keep this fact a secret?"

Kent actually laughed a little. "Of course not. I told you, it's a tribute to his fiancée. He tells almost everyone he meets about it. Often shows off the arrows themselves, too."

"So if someone wanted to, they could make their own green-fletched arrows with the intention of mimicking Wil's?"

"Absolutely."

Jwyner looked like he was about to loose another "OBJECTION!" on the courtroom, but Sain turned away before he could. "No further questions, your honor." There weren't any major contradictions in there, but he'd at least been able to find a reasonable alternative explanation for the green arrows.

"Hmph. Before we proceed, I'd like to point out that green-feathered birds are relatively rare in the Caelin area," Jwyner said, sounding more than a little petulant.

"Noted," the judge sighed. "Now, Mr. Jwyner, do you have another witness?"

"I do," the attorney replied, his cruel smile returning to his face. "There was someone who actually saw the killer fleeing the scene of the crime, moments before the knights arrived to investigate."

Uh-oh, Sain thought.

"The prosecution calls Mr. Nigel Vent to the stand!"

Silence.

Jwyner sighed. "The prosecution calls Mr. Nigel Vent and Mrs. Peepers to the stand."

Within a few moments, the witness stand was occupied by a shortish balding man. And a duck.

"This is Nigel Vent, the innkeeper of the inn where the killer fired his shot from," Jwyner said. "And… Mrs. Peepers, his pet duck."

"Aww, how cute!" the judge said, reaching out towards Mrs. Peepers. "Who's a pretty ducky? Who's a-"

The duck snapped angrily at him, quacking grouchily, as he quickly withdrew his hand. "Yikes! A bit temperamental, isn't she?"

"Sorry," Vent muttered. "She's been feeling some aches and pains lately. Poor Mrs. Peepers must be getting up there in years."

The judge looked over at Jwyner. "Is the duck strictly necessary?"

"Mr. Vent refused to testify without her," Jwyner said, shrugging.

"Very well. Let's hear this testimony that's worth bringing a duck into the courtroom for, then."

"I was working the counter at the inn, just like any other day," Vent began. "Suddenly, I heard a large commotion outside. That must have been when the poor girl was shot. I was craning my neck to see out the window—I couldn't just up and leave the counter, you see—when suddenly someone came dashing down the stairs and out the rear entrance to the inn. Just a moment later, the knights came in, asking if I'd seen anyone. I'd only caught a glimpse of him, but that was enough for both me and the knights to realize it was that boy, Wil."

"That's impossible!" Sain hissed. "How could he have seen Wil fleeing the scene of the crime? There's no way Wil could have committed the murder!"

"There are only two possibilities," Lyn replied. "Either Wil is lying, or Mr. Nigel Vent is."

"There's no way. Wil would never just kill a civilian like that."

"Then you need to find the chink in Vent's armor, and tear it down."

The judge called for Sain to begin his cross-examination, and the knight immediately went to work. "Mr. Vent, you seem confident in your ability to recognize the defendant. Do you know him?"

"Not personally, no. But Mrs. Peepers and I have seen him pretty often about town. He'd often visit Nadya's store, right across from my inn."

"Nadya? So you were on a first-name basis with the victim?"

"Darn right I was! She and I were close as… as… as two really close things! I loved her even more than I love Mrs. Peepers here!"

The duck quacked at him angrily.

"Oh, quiet. You know it's true."

Sain couldn't help but notice how agitated he was getting. Perhaps he was close to the victim… but surely if they were in a relationship, it would have been mentioned earlier?

"Was Nadya aware of your feelings, Mr. Vent?"

"Of course she was!" he snapped, clutching the duck so hard it quacked and wriggled in distress. "That's why when that little driphead of an archer came after her, she sent him packing!"

"Little driphead… wait… you can't mean Wil?"

"Course I do! That's probably why he killed her."

"Mr. Vent!" the judge exclaimed, shocked. "Are you saying you know the killer's motive?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying! Jealousy! Or envy, as you might put it!"

"That's odd," Lyn whispered to Sain as the courtroom started murmuring again. "This is the first I've heard of anything between Wil and the victim."

"Yeah," Sain replied. "And judging from the reactions of the townsfolk, it's the first they've heard of it, too…"

"And there you have it!" Jwyner said smugly. "We now know the killer's motive; he was angry the victim had spurned his affections!"

"Affection? More like OBJECTION!"

Again, the entire courtroom seemed to reel at Sain's cry.

"I would remind the court of Sir Kent's testimony earlier! The reason Wil's arrows are so distinctive is because he fletches them with green arrows—as a tribute to his fiancée's green hair!"

"So he was unfaithful to his fiancée. He wouldn't be the first man."

"Do you really think that a man who cares for a woman enough to ensure his arrows match her hair would simply fall for another woman like that? Especially after all the two had been through together!"

"You can't know what was going on inside his head, Sir Sain! Or should I call you, Sir In-Sain?"

Silence.

"All right, all right," Jwyner sighed.

"What was that?" the judge cried. "That was the worst joke I've ever heard!"

"It was in pretty poor taste," Vent agreed.

"Despicable," Lyn added.

I didn't think it was that bad, Sain thought to himself.

"In any case," the judge said, "It would be difficult to prove that the defendant really was loyal to his fiancée without more concrete proof. I'm afraid you'll need to look elsewhere, Sir Sain."

Yeah, but I'm running out of 'elsewheres' to look! I know this Vent guy is lying, but how can I prove it?

"There's got to be something more we can do!" Lyn hissed.

"Only if the prosecution calls another witness," Sain sighed. "I can't see anything in the testimonies and evidence so far that we can use to prove Wil's innocence." He glared over at Vent, the short man's head barely able to see over the witness stand. "Where's your chink? How can I find it?"

"I have no more witnesses, your honor," Jwyner said, smiling in a less-than-subtle manner at the defense bench. "The prosecution rests."

"Then I see no more reason to continue these proceedings," the judge said. "The defense has failed to prove the defendant's innocence."

"Whatever happened to 'innocent until proven guilty,' huh?" Sain whined.

"Not in this legal system," Lyn said sadly.

"I have no choice but to find the defendant, Wil… uh… what's his last name?"

"Doesn't have one, your honor."

"Sheesh, what's with all the last-name-less people running around today? Anyway, I hereby find the defendant…"

"HOLD IT!"

The call came not from either bench, but from the entrance. The entire courtroom turned to see Kent's broad frame silhouetted in the courtroom door.

"What's going on?" Sain said, confused.

Lyn smiled. "We're getting our second wind."

"Sir Kent!" the judge cried, surprised. "This is most irregular!"

"But necessary, your honor," Kent said, striding forward. "You see, the proceedings earlier reminded me of the odd disparity in where I heard the shot come from, and where I saw the shooter. So I investigated the other second-story room, and sure enough, I found… THIS!"

"TAKE THAT!"

Kent glared over at his partner. "Sain, as the one presenting the evidence, I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to say that."

"Sorry," Sain muttered with a blush.

Kent thrust the thing he was carrying skyward with a flourish. "Your honor, the room I heard the shot coming from… contained A SECOND BOW!"

Sure enough, Kent's hand was enclosed around another bow, identical in construction to the first.

"OBJECTION!" Jwyner shouted nervously. "Y-you can't bring in new evidence now! The judge was about to declare his verdict!"

"Yeah!" Vent shouted. "Coming in here, yelling like that… you're upsetting poor Mrs. Peepers!"

Sain had to say, though, that it looked like Vent was the one upsetting the duck. In fact, he seemed to be pretty upset himself by this latest development…

"Quite to the contrary, Mr. Jwyner," Kent said smugly. "As a knight of Caelin, it is my duty to investigate this case to the best of my abilities, and bring in all evidence I find, no matter when I find it." He held the bow aloft. "This is definitely the bow used to kill Mrs. Luck. And now that we know that, I believe there's something else that needs to be addressed…"

"Indeed," Lyn replied. "It's been bothering me as well, ever since the first bow was introduced."

"What do you mean?" Sain asked.

"Look at the bows," Lyn replied. "See if you can't tell for yourself."

"…Why don't you just tell me? Wil's life is on the line!"

Lyn shrugged. "You'll never be a great defense attorney if you don't learn to do things on your own."

"Besides, it's more fun this way," Kent added.

Lyn nodded. "That too."

Sain thought hard. "There's something wrong with the bows…" he said.

"Really?" the judge asked. "What?"

"They're the wrong color!" Sain shouted. "If they were really Wil's, they'd be green like his arrows!"

The entire courtroom fell silent.

"…Sain, Wil doesn't use green bows anyway," Lyn growled.

"Right, I knew that. What I meant to say was they're…" It suddenly came to him. "They're too short!"

The judge was taken aback. "They're too… short?"

"Indeed! Look at Wil; he's a fairly tall fellow. The way those bows are shaped, he wouldn't be able to properly string them, and while he might be able to fire such a bow, he wouldn't be able to aim for a target as small as the victim's neck!"

It took a moment for what he just said to sink in. "The neck! Your honor, Wil's an experienced archer. He'd know better than to aim for the neck, when the heart is both an easier target and a surer kill!"

It was not without a bit of pride that Sain noticed the fact that the courtroom was growing more and more intense in their murmurings. Clearly, he was getting to them—and they weren't the only ones.

"You know, I hadn't thought of that," the judge said. "And evidently, neither had you, eh, Mr. Jwyner?"

To the surprise of everyone there, though, it was Vent who spoke up. "Shut up!" he yelled angrily. "These darn knights are trying to screw up the case! They're trying to confuse us, that's all! Don't listen to them, you old git!"

"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?" the judge roared.

The entire courtroom was taken aback by this, but Vent continued on unperturbed. "I saw him leaving the inn! I saw him flirting with her! He did it, I tell you! Convict him and be done with it! I need to get home to feed Mrs. Peepers!"

"Care to vent a little, mister Vent?" Sain asked.

"W-what are you talking about?"

"I think you know," Sain continued, smiling. "After all, if Wil didn't do it, then you must be lying about having seen him. And there's only one reason you'd do that…"

"Y-you can't mean…?"

"You've testified that you cared greatly for the victim, and that you saw the defendant talking to her. Also, I can't help but notice that you're much shorter than Wil—short enough to use one of the bows found in your inn, perhaps…"

"Hey! I-I'd never have killed her! I told you, I loved her!"

"Right! Which is why when you saw Wil at her shop, you immediately assumed the worst! What was it you said, earlier? The killer's motive was jealousy—envy! It's right in your name, Nigel Vent—or should I say, N.V.!"

"Sh-shut up!" Vent was trembling now; the duck was struggling to get away. "You haven't proven he didn't do it! The arrows! The green arrows!"

"As we've established, Wil's usage of green-feathered arrows was common knowledge. It wouldn't be that hard for someone else to replicate them."

"Yeah, but where would they get the feathers?"

"I think we know exactly where," Sain said smugly.

Lyn gave him an odd look. "…We do?"

"Yes, we do," Sain said. "Milady, your honor… what color would you use to describe Mrs. Peepers's feathers?"

"Why, they're gree—AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The judge sat up straight in his chair.

Kent stepped forward. "Mr. Nigel Vent! I must ask that you surrender your duck this instant!"

"Now there's something I never thought I'd hear leave his mouth," Lyn muttered.

"No!" Vent cried. "Mrs. Peepers! Fly for it!"

He released his grip on the duck; agitated as it was, the poor bird was in the air in a moment, flapping frantically around the courtroom—but not getting very much air. Still, as much as it was moving about, the duck proved difficult to grab.

"Somebody catch that duck! It's important evidence!" Kent shouted.

"And, again…" Lyn sighed.

Suddenly, there was the twang of a bowstring, and the duck fell to the ground, a padded arrow next to it. Again, everyone turned to the entrance to see a figure framed in the doorway, bow held triumphantly in the air.

Lyn, Sain, Kent, and Wil all gave a start. "Rebecca!" they shouted together.

The young archer lowered her bow, smiling. "It figures that even here, Wil needs my help."

"Rebecca!" Wil cried. "I thought you were in Pherae!"

"I was, but I came as soon as I heard. Do you really think I'd miss my fiancée's trial? Unlike some people I could name, I actually care about the people I care about."

Wil blushed.

"Wait," Lyn said, confused, "Wil's here?"

"Yeah, he's been sitting back there the entire time. Didn't you notice?"

"Yeah, but… this is his trial. If he was there, why didn't he speak up? At all? The entire time?"

"It'd be a breach of protocol."

"And you and Jwyner shouting objections at each other the whole time isn't?"

"Oh, come on! You're ruining Rebecca's 'save the day' moment!"

"Fine, fine," Lyn sighed. "Whatever."

"Sir Kent," Rebecca said. "I'd have brought some of Wil's arrows for comparison, but as his fiancée, there's a pretty clear conflict of interest."

"Not to worry, Milady," Kent said, smiling and bowing to her. "I took the liberty of procuring some from the castle myself." He produced the arrows in his left hand, holding the arrows found at the inn—including the one used to kill Nadya—in the other.

"Excellent," Rebecca said as she went over to Mrs. Peeper's limp form and picked it up. "Sorry I had to shoot you down, widdle ducky," she said, stroking the duck.

Mrs. Peepers gave a dazed but appreciative quack.

Rebecca examined the duck closely. "Oh, you poor dear!" she exclaimed sympathetically. "You've had your pinion feathers removed!"

"Hm. That explains why it didn't just fly away, and why it was so grouchy earlier." Kent held out the arrows to the judge. "If you would do the honors, your… uh… honor, I believe I have a witness to apprehend."

Vent had started to sneak away from the witness stand; Kent's piercing gaze made him stop, breathing a dejected sigh.

The court took in a collective breath and held it as the judge examined the arrows and the duck's feathers. After what seemed like an eternity, he looked up. "The feathers on Wil's arrows are a very different type—goose feathers, if I'm not mistaken," he said. "The arrows that killed Nadya Luck are fletched with duck feathers—the very pinion feathers that were removed from Mrs. Peepers here!"

The court exploded. Sain let out a huge sigh of relief, not seeing the broad smiles from Kent and Rebecca, hearing the cry of joy from Wil, or feeling Lyn's hand patting him on the back. At last, the banging of the judge's gavel rose above all. "Order!" he shouted. "Order in the court!"

After a few minutes, the judge and the marshals had gotten everyone to quiet down. Kent took hold of Vent, who was near tears. "I'm sorry," he managed to croak. "When I saw them together, the way she smiled at him… I just wanted to scare her, to let him know to stay away from him! I figured, if I shot at her and pegged it on him, she'd stay away… but the shot… I'm no archer… I aimed for the space next to her… the shot went wild… and… and…"

He was sobbing as Kent led him away. Sain couldn't help but feel sorry for the man.

At last, the time came for the judge to declare his verdict. "The facts are very clear," he said. "Not only has the defense managed to prove Wil did not kill the victim, they've identified the real killer and even gotten a confession from him. I see no room for error. This court finds the defendant, Wil No-Last-Name…"

NOT GUILTY.

The words seem to hang in the air in front of Sain as the crowd started cheering. He let himself relax for the first time in days.

"That is all. This court is adjourned!"

"One thing I don't understand," Lyn said, "Is if Vent shot the arrow from the left window, who was it you saw in the right window, Kent?"

"I looked into that as well," Kent explained. "Vent runs the inn himself, but he hires a maid from outside to clean the rooms. I happened to run in with her, and she confirmed that she was cleaning in that room around the time of the murder; she must have left the room seconds before we got there. She probably thought the bow and arrows were left there by a previous tenant, and didn't think much on it."

"Wow," Lyn said, impressed. "He may have been a fool, but he certainly timed things well, firing that shot just as she was leaving so that neither of them would be suspected."

"Indeed." Kent looked over at his partner. "How are you doing, Sain?"

"How am I feeling? Why don't you ask the guy who was being threatened with the death sentence."

"I will, once they release him," Kent replied, smiling. "But this was your first time in court. It can't have been easy."

"Indeed," Lyn said. "You did a good job in there."

Sain couldn't help but smile. "Thank you."

"And here they are!" Kent said, pointing. Lyn and Sain turned to see Wil and Rebecca approaching them, arm-in-arm. "Good job, Wil!"

"Thanks," Wil sighed, smiling at them all. "But Sain did all the work."

"Yes he did," Rebecca agreed.

Wil blushed. "Do you have to be that way?"

"No," she replied. "But it's more fun this way."

A chuckle passed around the group.

"That was pretty close, though," Lyn said. "I didn't even there were any green-feathered types of geese."

"Actually, there aren't," Wil replied. "At least, not any that I'm aware of."

"What? Then how…"

"They're just white goose feathers I dyed green."

"Oh. …That's too bad. I mean, your hair is naturally green, right, Rebecca?

Sain couldn't help but feel there was something very wrong with that sentence.

"Oh, I don't mind," Rebecca said, smiling. "I hunt enough to know how rare green-feathered birds are. I don't blame him. Besides, it's sweet enough that he dyes his arrows to match my hair."

"If you say so," Kent said, casting a sidelong glance at Sain. He had to agree; the two of them really did make an excellent couple.

"Of course I've known for a while. Wil doesn't keep stuff like that secret from me. Anymore."

Wil rolled his eyes. "Seriously? You're doing that again?"

"Of course I am. I still owe you for not making contact with me for several years, remember?"

"I remember," he sighed. "I'll make it up to you yet, somehow."

"Speaking of making things up to her," Sain said, "I get the feeling Mr. Vent wasn't lying when he said he saw the victim smiling at you."

Wil turned red. "Sain!"

"What? I'm just saying. I have a sense for male-female-interactions, remember?"

Rebecca had her arms crossed and an eyebrow arched at her fiancée. "Well? Care to explain?"

"Actually, I do." Wil looked over at the others. "Sir Kent, you visited Nadya's shop from time to time as well, right? What sorts of wares did she carry?"

"Jewelry," Kent answered simply. Then: "Oh!"

Rebecca's eyes widened. "You didn't!"

"I did. Nadya couldn't help but smile when I told her about the occasion, and recommended this right away." He produced a polished ruby hairpin. "It's a little early, but… happy anniversary, Rebecca."

She tackled him immediately. The others looked away politely as they embraced.

Lyn lifted an eyebrow at Kent. "So, what were you shopping for at this jewelry vendor?"

Kent coughed softly, looking around the lobby. "Oh, look! There's Mrs. Peepers!"

Sure enough, the duck was waddling by, quacking indignantly and nursing the spot where Rebecca's blunted arrow had struck it.

"So… what's going to happen to her?" Lyn asked.

"Well, until the investigation against Vent is complete, she's going to be taken into evidence," Kent said. "But after that…"

"We're going to adopt her!" Rebecca said enthusiastically.

"We're going to what now?" Wil asked, alarmed.

"She and I really bonded in the courtroom."

"How? You held her for less than a minute!"

"Come on," Kent said before an argument could ensue. "Let's go out to eat to celebrate Wil's acquittal, and Sain's first successful case."

"First?" Sain asked, surprised. "Hey, I just did this as a favor to Wil, since there was nobody else available to defend him. I'm not planning on making a career out of this or anything."

"Well, you have a natural talent for it," Kent said. "And, after all, with Lyn abdicating rule of Caelin soon, it might be time to consider other careers."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Lyn said, a twinge of sadness in her voice. "For now, Sain, you did a good job. And if you decide to continue on this path, I hope you learned that the key to being a defense lawyer is believing in your client."

"Really? From that case, it seems like the key to being a defense lawyer is doing your best to stall until someone bursts in the door at the last minute with some life-saving evidence."

She couldn't help but laugh a little. "Well, that too."

Author's Note: I wanted to do something nice for FEMM, since she's hosted this Secret Santa exchange for two years in a row. What better way than to cross over her two favorite game series? Merry Christmas, MewMew!