A week ago...
The morning sun was Agatha's favorite thing to wake up to, besides the sleeping face of her husband. Being in a mountain, waking up to the former was impossible, lest she slept out of the mountain. She stretched a bit, groaning as she turned, tucking her arms below her head and looking intently at her husband with heavy eyes. She closed her eyes, knowing that it was too early to do anything yet. As she felt herself falling asleep, she felt the light press of her husband's lips on her nose. Her eyelids fluttered open, something her husband, Rumil, had become accustomed to. She smiled at him, feeling like it was their first morning as a married couple again.
"Good morning, love." Rumil said, his accent thick as the beard that he decided to grow.
"Good morning." Agatha said, caressing his bearded chin on her soft palms. They stayed there for a while, eyes closed and an inner debate within them to either go back to sleep or go on with the day.
"Go back to sleep." Rumil said, rubbing the sides of her arms.
The next time Thorin saw that woman, that murderer, was on her trial date. He needed to be there, for this wasn't any ordinary murder. This was a murder of one from the race of men to a dwarf. When a dwarf would kill another dwarf, the punishments will either be parole, exile, or rot in one of the Black Cells. But this was another race, so this might just be the talk of the century.
"More like execution of the century," His youngest nephew said to him while on their way to the courtroom. "She will get no justice here, whether what she says is true or not."
"Does she have any family here?" Fili, who was beside his brother, asked.
"I don't know. But it's not the first time I've heard about this girl." Thorin said, opening the door to the courtroom. It was nothing much; benches for viewers to sit on, a seat for the judge, in this case, him, a small podium for the accused, seats for the other judges, a small balcony for even more viewers, whatnot. As he entered the courtroom, all stood up and bowed as he and the princes passed by and they went to stand in front of their respective seats. So they are to wait there until the accused, the murderer, comes in the courtroom. While they were seated there, Balin walked up to them to greet them with a small smile. Although it was a trial and a day for justice, the accused was still a woman.
"I don't s'ppose that any of you had any encounter with the accused, am I right?" Of course this will be brought up soon. In trials, none of the judges should know the accused or at least talked to her to avoid bias and such things. Unfortunately, the King had an encounter with her just a few weeks ago. But just one look at the king and he knew that he couldn't do it.
"Well, I will issue a replacement for you then. Lady Dis perhaps?" Balin suggested.
"Fili, you take my place. I'll have Lord Rundin replace you." Thorin said, and Fili just nodded. Although Rundin wasn't his best choice, he was still an advisor to the king. If he chose his sister, then everyone would think of it as a biased trial. At least Lord Rundin was neutral. Then, the doors opened and in walked the accused. The woman walked in, hands bound in chains that chaffed her soft skin and a dress covered in grime with ripped edges. Everyone started murmuring and whispering to each other as she walked by them, the words 'murderer' and 'whore' being among them. But she walked by them, her chin high and teeth obviously being gritted. What took Thorin by surprise was her facade.
She didn't even wear one.
Back in the Black Cells, she was confident and bragging, even, that she killed her husband. Now, he could see none of that. He saw her then as an out-casted woman, not as a mad woman. As she stood upon the podium, the guards chained her hands on the floor of it and left her. Thorin stood up, and so did everybody.
"I, Thorin, son of Thrain, King of Erebor, recuse myself from this trial, for I have spoken with the accused in the past. My heir, Fili Durinson, will take my place as judge, and with him my second heir, Kili Durinson and Lord Rundin, my advisor. If found guilty, may Aule punish the accused." Thorin said, turning to Fili who stood beside him. He leaned close enough so that only both of them can hear. "Remember that the accused is still a lady. No matter how heinous it is, there's still a matter of respect." He murmured, squeezing his eldest nephew's shoulder before descending the platform, stopping a bit in front of the accused, giving her a nod before leaving to watch from the sides.
Fili sat down on the chair that his uncle occupied earlier and everyone else sat down, except for the accused.
"Give her a chair," Fili said, a guard immediately showing up with a small wooden stool. The accused gave Fili a thankful look and he just nodded in return. "Please state your name." He said, remembering the words that he had heard so many times while watching a trial.
"Agatha, your majesty." She said, her hands on her lap as she fiddled with her chains.
"Your full name." Lord Rundin said.
"Agatha, daughter of Lokir of Rohan." She stated.
"Agatha daughter of Lokir," Fili stated, authority lacing his voice. "You are accused of murdering your husband, Rumil Longbeard, a citizen of Erebor, in his own house. Is it true that you did it?" Fili asked. Everybody waited in silence for her answer, but she just sat there, playing with her chains.
"Speak up, woman! Or do you know not how to speak?" Lord Rundin said, and there were murmuring and giggling within the courtroom. Fili held his hand up and gave the audience a disapproving look. Meanwhile, as Thorin watched from the side, he knew that he should not have brought in Rundin as a judge.
"Yes, I am accused, but no, I am not guilty of my crime. Not in the slightest." She said, looking at the old dwarf with piercing eyes.
"How do you think he died?" Fili asked.
"I don't know. Probably killed himself from guilt." She said nonchalantly.
"So you are saying that he committed suicide?" Lord Rundin asked and Agatha looked at him as if she were a crone who had a bad eyesight.
"No, the knife grew legs and embedded itself on my husband's chest! What do you think?" She exclaimed and there was laughter in the court, although some disapproving looks. At the sides, Thorin just smirked. Fili raised his hand again to silence the courtroom.
"Lady Agatha, I'm afraid if you keep up with this attitude, you'll be seeing the Black Cells again in no time." Fili said and Agatha sighed.
"What's the point?" Agatha mumbled, but Fili didn't hear it.
"Excuse me?" Fili asked.
"I said what's the point?!" Agatha exclaimed.
"We are having a trial, here! Whether to determine if you are guilty or not!" Lord Rundin said.
"Oh, but I've always been guilty!" Agatha exclaimed, and there were murmuring in the court.
"Silence!" Fili shouted, just having enough of it. The whole courtroom fell silent. "So you do plead guilty for murdering your husband?"
"No, for that, I am not guilty. I am afraid that I am guilty of a far more heinous crime all my life, your majesty. I am guilty for being from the race of men!" Agatha hissed at them.
"My dear, you are not here for being from the race of men." Lord Rundin said, smirking and looking at her as if she were stupid. At the sides where Thorin was watching, Dwalin stood beside him with his arms crossed and a frown on his face.
"You should not have placed Rundin there," He told Thorin. "Rundin was the uncle of the dwarf that that Agatha killed." Dwalin explained and Thorin sighed.
"I have been in trial from all my life ever since I've arrived here in Erebor and married my husband!" Agatha said, glaring at Lord Rundin.
"I discouraged you of this! Warned you, even, of what the consequences will be if you married my nephew!" Lord Rundin exclaimed, standing up. Fili looked at his uncle, who was thinking of the same thing, and they both nodded in agreement. Fili stood up and everyone fell silent.
"Lord Rundin, I dismiss you from the courtroom for showing a biased attitude towards the victim of the accused," Fili said, and Rundin can be seen with smoke coming out of his ears. "Lady Agatha, please, make it clear: Did you or did you not kill your husband, Rumil?"
"Oh, aye, I killed him! Though I do not feel a drop of guilt for doing it! In fact it should've been him in a trial, not me!" She exclaimed and Fili raised his brow.
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, did you not know m'lord? My dear husband was bedding another dwarrowdam!" She exclaimed and there were exclamations among the audience, saying that it's preposterous and that she was lying.
"Silence!" Fili shouted, but the crowd would not cease. "Lady Agatha, your testimony will be further investigated and another trial will be held. Guards, escort her back to her cell." He said and the guards flanked her. Thorin watched from the side and saw that Agatha was looking at him. For a while, the strong and snarky facade fell and he saw the heartbreak in her eyes before she was dragged away by the guards. He approached his nephews as the crowd began to disperse.
"Well, this is an exciting turn of events." Kili said and Thorin sent him a glare.
"Kili, this is no form of entertainment. If you find it as one, then you will be no different than those dwarves watching, not caring weather our decision will take a life or not." He warned and Kili bowed his head.
"Sorry, uncle." He said and Thorin nodded.
"I will try to investigate the dwarf Rumil," Thorin said and Fili just nodded. "I'll probably try to ask Agatha, too," He looked at Fili and smiled at his nephew. "You did great today. You are starting to prove yourself worthy for the throne."
"Thank you, uncle." He said and Thorin nodded before turning to leave.