A/N: Yay! We hit more than 10,000 views! That makes this my most viewed story to date. I guess that means you like it. ^-^ Thank you all so much! Remember that this story is rated M and we are getting into the trial, so some bits might be a bit descriptive, but I try to keep it tasteful. Enjoy!

Chapter 35

Quatre spent the next few days trying not to think about the upcoming trial. It didn't work very well.

Aside from having to meet with his state-appointed lawyer, he just couldn't stop worrying that Tony would find a way to convince everyone he was innocent. Hisa tried to keep him busy, especially after Heero told her about Quatre's worries, but it still wasn't enough. Sure, he could escape for a while when they baked cookies or when she took him shopping for new clothes. And he could manage an hour or two when he played his violin, but the trial and what might happen always managed to find its way back into his thoughts.

His friends tried to help as well. Once Quatre and Heero had their homework done, they would go to Duo's and swim or Trowa's to hang out in the hot tub. Unfortunately, due to his injuries, Quatre wasn't allowed to do more than put his feet in. With the potential for the cuts on his stomach to get infected, Dr. Noin had told him he had to wait a few more days before swimming, just to be on the safe side. But he watched as Duo introduced them to "Polar Bear Plunges." Duo would roll around in the snow and then jump into the hot tub. (Quatre decided Duo was insane.) They went to Rashid's a couple of times and Quatre was a little uncomfortable to note that Rashid and Abdul seemed to be watching him a little closer than in the past.

The night before the trial, Quatre had a nightmare so vivid and disturbing that he woke Heero with his sobs. Heero went to Quatre's room to investigate and spent the rest of the night with the trembling blonde clinging tightly to him. Neither boy slept the rest of the night. Quatre was too afraid and Heero didn't want to leave Quatre sitting up alone in the dark. While Quatre felt bad for keeping Heero up, he was grateful that he didn't have to be up alone.

Hisa was surprised to find the boys in Quatre's room, as he usually went into Heero's, but she chose not to comment. She would have been more surprised to find that Quatre had slept soundly through the night. He had become increasingly more worried over the last two days. She told them to get ready for the day and then called the school so Heero wouldn't be considered truant. She was surprised to be transferred directly to Principal Po.

"Good morning, Mrs. Lowe. What can I do for you today?"

"Oh, Ms. Po, I didn't mean to bother you. I was calling Heero out of school today."

"Is everything alright?"

"Yes. It's just…the trial is today."

"So soon?"

"Yes. It seems that Marshal Noventa pulled a few strings in order to get it done. He said something about not wanting to drag it out and keep Quatre worrying."

"Well, that was nice of him. What time is the trial?"

"It starts at 10."

Hisa could hear papers shuffling. "And will it be at the courthouse down on Tallgeese Way?"

"Yes."

"Well, be sure to leave yourselves plenty of travel time. That hill just before you get to the courthouse was iced over this morning. Some of my teachers said they almost didn't make it for our faculty meeting this morning because of it."

"Thank you for the information, Ms. Po."

"You're welcome, Mrs. Lowe. Good luck today."

Hisa thanked her again, hung up and set about making breakfast. She smiled at the boys as they came downstairs, dressed in suits.

"I know you're probably not hungry this morning, but I'd like you to at least try to eat something."

Quatre nodded, but just stared at the waffles on his plate. He felt like throwing up.

Heero ate a few bites before saying, "Quatre, at least drink your milk. You'll only be sick later if you don't have something on your stomach."

Quatre mechanically took a few sips of his milk. Surprisingly, it settled his stomach and he ate a few bites of waffle. Heero continued to eat his breakfast as he surreptitiously monitored the blonde's intake. He knew Quatre wouldn't eat much, but Heero wanted to make sure he ate something.

Before long, Hisa told them to get their coats. She wanted to leave early in case the road was still as bad as Principal had warned her it might be. As they waited for Hisa, Heero gave Quatre's shoulders a quick squeeze.

"Everything will be fine, Angel. And the guys are going to be there, too, so…just relax, okay?"

Quatre nodded, not sure if he could trust his voice this morning. He was dreading what would happen, but at the same time, he wanted it to be over with. They rode in silence to the court house. They were taking off their coats when Quatre yelped.

"Sorry, Quat," Duo said into Quatre's ear as he hugged Quatre from behind. "Didn't mean to scare ya. I just wanted to let you know that we're here for ya, buddy. We won't let him win." He gave the blonde a quick peck on the cheek and smirked at Heero, who rolled his eyes at the braided boy's antics.

"Reign it in, Duo. Quatre's stressed out enough as it is without you scaring him half to death."

Duo stood with his arm around Quatre's shoulders. "I said I was sorry."

"Duo, you need to be on your best behavior. It'll look bad for Quatre if you aren't," Trowa chided as he and Wufei walked up.

"Okay, I will," Duo promised giving Quatre's shoulders a light squeeze. "Don't let 'em rattle ya, Quat. We're here for ya."

"Thanks, Duo," Quatre answered quietly. He was nervous and they hadn't even started yet.

"Come on boys, it's time to go in."

The five boys looked at Hisa, who was standing a little ways away with Mrs. Chang.

"We're coming, Mom," Heero answered. He turned back to Quatre and pulled him into a hug. "Like Duo said, we're here for you. Just remember that and no matter what happens in there, we'll always love you."

Quatre nodded and held Heero tightly. He wished this was over with already. Heero let him go and he stepped back. Taking a deep breath, Quatre said, "Let's get this over with."

Heero smiled at his boyfriend and the four teens escorted their friend into the court room.

Heero, Duo, Wufei and Trowa sat in the first row behind the divider. Quatre was glad that his friends were so close, especially when his attackers, the responding officer, Mr. Chang and Tony were escorted in by an officer. The eight men were wearing orange jumpsuits and had their ankles shackled so they couldn't run. Quatre hid behind his lawyer, peeking around him. The dirty look Tony shot him was enough to make him quit peeking.

If Tony got off, Quatre wasn't sure he would live to see the end of the day.

The bailiff came out and said, "All rise. This court is now in session. Judge Meiran Long presiding."

The judge came out and sat at the magistrate's bench.

"Thank you, Bailiff." Judge Long looked at the court room. "As this is the first time in court for some of you I'm going to explain a few things. All cell phones will be turned off. There will be no speaking out of turn. If I have not given you permission or you are not on the witness stand, you do not speak." She gave the audience a serious look then turned her attention to the lawyers and their charges. "Now, as this is a sensitive case involving a juvenile this will be conducted as a bench trial. That means that there is no jury. All verdicts will be made by me and I will also pass sentence. Understood?"

Quatre nodded and glanced at Tony, who also nodded, as did all the other men in orange jumpsuits.

"Counsel, present your opening statements."

Quatre's lawyer stood. "On December 24th the plaintiff was physically and sexually assaulted by five men in the defendant's home. It is the goal of this counsel to find the defendant guilty of child abuse, neglect and extortion and remove my client to a safer environment."

Tony's lawyer rolled his eyes. "The defendant brought an instructor to his home to teach the plaintiff about homosexual culture, which the plaintiff informed the defendant he was curious about. I intend to prove that not only was there no malice in the education, but what happened was consensual and the plaintiff enjoyed what was happening."

Quatre shot a look of disbelief and terror at Heero. Heero, Duo, Trowa and Wufei were seething. Duo started to say something, but Heero quickly covered his mouth. Duo glared at Heero, who shook his head. Duo grunted and Heero let the braided boy's mouth go.

Judge Long raised an eyebrow but only said, "Counsel for the Plaintiff, please call your first witness."

Quatre's lawyer stood and called Trowa to the stand.

The tall teen moved up to the stand and was sworn in.

"Trowa, would you please tell the court how long you've known Quatre Winner?"

"I met him the day before school started, so just over four months, I guess."

"How did you meet him?"

"We needed a fifth to play a full game of basketball and since he was wandering through the park, we asked him to join us."

"And what was your impression of him at that time?"

"Quiet, shy…not very good at basketball."

There was a general chuckle from the audience and Quatre blushed.

"How long was it before Quatre confided his home situation to you?"

"Well, we kind of found out by accident the second week of school. And a few days after that, Quatre told us everything."

"Do you think he was telling the truth?"

"Yes."

"Would you please tell us what happened on the morning of December the twenty-fifth?"

"We went to pick up Quatre just after ten a.m. because we were supposed to go sledding."

"Can you clarify who 'we' is?"

"Wufei Chang, Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy and me."

"Thank you. What happened when you got to the Winner residence?"

"Well, Wufei and I waited in the car while Duo and Heero went up to the house to get Quatre. After a minute, Wufei and I saw Duo trying to get our attention. We got out of the car to find out what he wanted and Heero said he thought something was wrong and he wanted to go in and find out. When we got inside, we found Quatre unconscious, bloody and naked on the floor. Then I went out and alerted the authorities and I didn't go back in until they got there."

"Thank you, Trowa. No further questions at this time."

Tony's lawyer got up. "You say that the Plaintiff told you about his home life. What did he tell you?"

"That his father hits him and starves him."

"Why didn't you call the police?"

"Quatre said that every time someone found out, they moved. We wanted to help him, but we didn't want to make him move again."

"Is it possible he told you that but that his father doesn't really treat him that way?"

"No."

"But how can you know for sure?"

Trowa glowered at the lawyer. "Because at the time Quatre was skin and bones and covered with bruises."

"But you never saw his father hit him?"

"No."

"How do you know it didn't happen some other way? Football practice perhaps?"

"Quatre doesn't play football," Trowa spat out, unable to disguise the disgust in his voice.

"But you never saw his father actually lay a hand to him?"

"No."

"No further questions."

When Quatre's lawyer had no more questions for Trowa, Judge Long dismissed him and Duo was called next. Quatre's lawyer had decided that he would not call Quatre to the stand unless absolutely necessary. Quatre was perfectly okay with that.

"Duo, would you please tell the court what happened on the morning of December 25th?"

"Well, like Trowa said, we went to Quatre's to pick him up. I think it was just a little after ten in the morning because we were supposed to be there at ten and Heero was annoyed at me because I made everyone late. Anyway, when we got there, 'Ro and I went up to the door to get Quat. In the past when we'd gone to get Quatre, he'd asked us not to wake up his dad because his dad gets mad at him when he gets woken up, so I made sure to knock really lightly. When I knocked, the door swung open. I guess it hadn't been shut all the way by whoever went out of it last. So, since the door was open, Heero called inside for Quatre and there wasn't any answer. Heero thought that something was wrong and we needed to check it out, so I got Trowa and Wufei's attention and when they got up to the porch, we explained what happened when we knocked. Wufei suggested that we call the cops, but Heero said that if Tony found out we'd called the cops, he'd move and take Quatre with him. Besides that, Heero was real concerned that something was wrong and didn't think it was a good idea to wait.

"So he goes in and the rest of us follow. Of course, we're all thinkin' that 'Ro's just overreacting but…but then we saw Quatre. He was on his stomach on the floor in the living room. He was naked and covered in bruises and blood and…and…" Duo swallowed. "And what looked like semen." Duo nervously cleared his throat before continuing. "Heero told Trowa to go out and call an ambulance and Wufei found a camera on the kitchen counter and started taking pictures. Heero told me to go upstairs and see if I could find Tony anywhere because we didn't want him to come downstairs and yell at us or something. So I crept upstairs and checked each room, starting with Quatre's and saving Tony's for last. I knew which room was which because I'd been there a couple of times before hanging out with Quatre.

"Anyway, there wasn't really much to see, except that Quatre's inhaler was in a couple of pieces on the floor of his room and the computer was on in the office. When I got to Tony's room, he was passed out on his bed and there were a bunch of Heineken bottles on the floor. The joint smelled like a brewery. I was careful to be real quiet because I didn't want Tony to find out we were there until the cops got there. He's got a gun under his bed and I didn't want him to use it on us.

"After I found out where Tony was, I went back downstairs and waited with Heero and Quatre for the authorities to show up."

"Had Quatre regained consciousness yet?"

"Naw. Heero was trying to wake him up, though."

"No further questions."

Tony's lawyer stood.

"Can you tell me what happened the night of homecoming?"

"Huh? Um…yeah. We all went to the game and then after the game I took Quat home because he didn't feel like goin' to the dance."

"Interesting. According to what the Defendant told me, the Plaintiff was supposed to be at the dance with someone. As you've sworn to tell the truth, I am going to assume that you aren't lying. Why would the Plaintiff lie about having a date?"

"Maybe because his old man beats the shit out of him for being gay."

Tony's lawyer narrowed his eyes. "Did you ever see my client hit the Plaintiff?"

"No. But I know he left Quat stuck up in a tree for more than a day."

"Did you see my client put the Plaintiff in the tree?"

"No, but—"

"Did you see my client force the Plaintiff to stay in the tree?"

"No, he was at work, but—"

"Then how do you know that my client was responsible for that particular incident?"

"Because Quat said Tony forced him into the tree and then pulled the ladder away so he couldn't get down."

"And you believe him?"

"Yes."

"Even though you know that he lies regularly to his father?"

Duo glared at the lawyer. "I've lied to him, too. He doesn't want to hear the truth so Quatre tells him what he wants to hear. It's the only protection he has."

"How do you know he isn't telling you lies to make you feel sorry for him?"

Duo's eyes narrowed. "Because he ain't a lawyer."

Heero covered his eyes with a hand. This was no time for Duo to be slinging mud. Unfortunately, the lawyer was pissing off the braided teen and Duo wasn't going to take anyone picking on Quatre lightly.

Heero caught Duo's eye and shook his head. Duo rolled his eyes and turned back to the lawyer.

"I know Quatre isn't lying to me because he wouldn't be so scared of his father otherwise. Everything Quat does is overshadowed by terror that his old man is going to show up out of nowhere and beat him to death."

Quatre looked down at the table in front of him. He hadn't realized that Duo was so perceptive. He'd thought that no one had noticed how he checked everyone who came within view when they were out in public so he could hide in case Tony showed up.

"So, you're saying that in your opinion the Plaintiff is telling the truth."

"No." Duo's voice had gone soft and dangerous sounding. "I'm saying that Quatre is telling me the truth and lying out of necessity to his father."

Tony's lawyer smirked at Duo. "No further questions."

Duo left the stand, sticking his tongue out at the evil lawyer's back as he went back to the Defendant's table. Heero shook his head at his friend, who simply smirked, shrugged and took his seat next to Trowa.