Cornadopia - Thanks pal! Glad it lived up to your expectations. You can have Simon back now. I actually had a dream last night where he was in it. I got Mab'd. Mercutio's reaction will be in...the chapter after next, I think?
All right! Back to the court scene. I can't but feel the scene with Simon overshadowed this a bit. So anyway, what will happen to Anthony? There's more spotlight for Tybalt than Portia in this chapter, since Tybalt is a main character and I wanted to show how far he'd come when dealing with the Montagues. Once again, I don't know what happens in a court case, so I have just fudged it.
Portia was running out of ideas. She'd keep Shylock talking for as long as she could, as was the plan. The Montagues still weren't here yet, with their final offer for Shylock. The judge looked stressed. Portia could tell that the judge felt sympathy for both sides, knowing that Anthony was wrong to discriminate against Shylock, but that Shylock was also in the wrong to ask for the pound of flesh. She herself felt the same way, to an extent.
The doors barged open.
"One second! Just one minute!" cried Romeo Montague, running down to the witness box.
"What is the meaning of this?" grumbled Shylock, as the rest of the Montague family rushed in.
"We will offer you" panted Romeo "Six thousand Euros. Double the original loan"
"Yay, it's my Woo woo! Look, it's my Woo woo, everybody! We've missed you, sexy!" called Mercutio.
"Absolutely not!" exclaimed Anthony "I can't ask you to pay..."
"Yes, you can!" hooted Romeo "We're family. So, Shylock, six thousand Euros. What do you say to that?"
"I'll have my bond, and nothing else" growled Shylock.
Romeo's face fell.
"Nine thousand Euros!" shouted Lord Montague.
"I said, I'll have my bond, and nothing else!" Shylock growled again "If you offered me that sum, nine times over, I'd still want my bond. My bond, and nothing else!"
"Portia, what do you have to say to this?" asked the judge.
"I would advise Mr. Shylock to be merciful and take the sum of money" said Portia.
"What do you Christians know about mercy?" spat Shylock.
"Fine" said Portia "You asked for it. Before Mr. Shylock takes his bond, I would like to invite Mr. Montague's financial advisor, Mr. Capulet, to take the stand"
"Him?" laughed Shylock "I knew his dad. If anything, he probably isn't much smarter"
Tybalt narrowed his catlike grey eyes, and stormed into the stand. The Montagues took their places behind Benvolio and Hermia.
"What's been going on? We tried to get here as soon as possible, but the traffic was terrible" whispered Paulina.
"Portia's been keeping Shylock talking for as long as possible. Apparently, she and Tybalt have a plan" Benvolio whispered back "I have no idea what it is, though. It's been horrible, it's been like one great big Jew-Christian slanging match"
"God" muttered Paulina. She turned to her husband "Claudio, did you know of this...rivalry?"
"Yes, but that was all it was, a rivalry" Claudio stuttered "Just two boys being stupid. That was all I heard"
"Well, he's giving the rest of us, dare I say it, real Christians a bad name, acting like that" Paulina scowled.
"I couldn't have said it better myself" Claudio replied.
Benvolio bit his lip, as the room fell silent again, and the attention was on Tybalt.
Tybalt took a deep breath "I am well aware that in a modern day society, a repayment or a forfeit of debt can be something other than a monetary asset. After all, I did help Mr. Montague's daughter reclaim two hundred Euros from her ex boyfriend, and score the highest in the class in the first unit test"
"Is this a valid point?" asked the judge.
"Yes. I'm onto something" Tybalt turned back to the courtroom "Although, what we have seen so far simply shows how Mr. Shylock is entitled to his pound of flesh, I cannot help but feel that there are flaws in the bond created, and as well as that, questionable legality"
"Continue, Mr. Capulet" said Portia.
"To begin with, Mr. Montague here is bankrupt, meaning that he has limited capacity to enter a contract. Whilst I am aware he was not bankrupt at the time the contract was drawn up, that brings me onto my next point, which is that the one who wants to enter the contract must do so on his genuine consent. I am aware that yes, Mr. Montague did sign the contract and give consent, although I also feel that some emotional blackmail was in place. My third point is about the questionable legality in this case. I doubt this bizarre bond is even legal anyway, but, let's presume it is"
"So do I get my bond?" demanded Shylock.
"One moment" said Tybalt firmly "Show me the contract"
Portia took it from Shylock and handed it to Tybalt.
Tybalt read it slowly "Well, it says here, very clearly, one pound of flesh"
"Yes" grumbled Shylock "Do I get it now? I've waited years for this moment"
"Oh, you'll get your pound of flesh" Tybalt started to smile.
"What is he doing?" whispered Paulina "Is he just giving into him? Is he going to let that man hurt Anthony?"
"I don't know. Why would he do that?" asked Claudio.
"Because we're Montagues?" suggested Romeo.
"The feud is finished, pillock!" Hermia whispered back, shoving her ring under is nose.
"Maybe it's delayed revenge. Maybe he waited until we were vulnerable so he could get us" Romeo went on.
"This contract" Tybalt declared loudly "Entitles you to one pound of flesh. However, if you draw blood, then that is bodily harm. And that is not in this contract. Take your pound of flesh, but without drawing blood. And while you're at it, try doing this as well. Try and estimate exactly one pound of flesh. It's difficult, isn't it? How can you know how much it weighs until you've taken it? And if you take more, then that's not in your contract, and you have no right to it. And once again, it's bodily harm. As well as that, blood loss would also likely kill Mr. Montague. I'm no stranger to the law – I've been on the wrong side of it many times. What you are attempting to do is attempted murder. You can be charged for that, and then face a great many years in jail. I suggest you ask the judge for mercy"
The doors were closed off by two policemen. Shylock looked around. There was no escape.
"I'll take the money" he said quickly "I didn't really mean it"
"You had plenty of chances to pull out" Portia replied "We gave you many chances. Benvolio attempted to reason with you one evening. Gabriel asked us to give you the opportunity to do so, and he also tried to give you the opportunity to do so this morning by talking to you. I have given you many chances today by keeping you talking, and offering you ways of leaving with both your party and Mr. Montague's party satisfied. You heard Mr. Capulet. Ask the judge for mercy"
"It was all an act" Shylock tried to continue "A joke! I just meant to scare him! It was a psycho scare prank!"
"Arrest him" said the judge simply.
The policemen marched forwards, and seized Shylock.
"I am charging you on attempted murder..." began the policeman.
"And as for you, Mr. Montague" said the judge as Shylock was taken away "You heard your financial advisor. As you are bankrupt, you had limited capacity to enter a contract. You can void the contract and keep your...pound of flesh. But, as a suggestion on a personal level, you should never treat anyone like that, ever again. Go back to high school and take some Religious Education lessons"
