The trial was held on a Tuesday. Erza was representing Natsu in court but the prosecutor Kagura Mikazuchi a straw feminist who had never lost a single case. She would no doubt prove to be a great challenge. The Judge was Makarov Dreyar, one of the most respected and honorable justices that had ever been known in the court system. While he found all crimes to be unacceptable, abuse was one that he found to be especially heinous and wouldn't be too lenient on. If Natsu was found guilty he would be screwed.

"Tell us Mr. Dragneel have you ever raised a hand to your wife before the incident?" Erza asked Natsu when he was on the stand.

"No." Natsu answered.

"Has she ever raised a hand to you or physically harmed you?"

He hesitated before answering.

"Yes she has."

"And would you mind telling the court what reasons your wife had for physically harming you?"

"Sometimes she would do it when I made plans with my friends without her permission, sometimes when I gave our daughter a gift or treat when my wife didn't think she deserved it, but it was mostly when she thought I was cheating on her."

"And during all those times she was beating you, you never once fought back?"

"Not until she went after our daughter."

"Thank you Mr. Dragneel."

Erza sat down, allowing Kagura to rise up and ask her questions.

"You say that before that night you never once raised a hand to your wife? Is that correct?"

"Yes."

"Then how do you explain these." Kagura pulled out photographs of scars on Touka's back and legs.

"Objection!" Erza cried. "Those were from the accident. Not admissible."

"No your honor. I had a specialist examine her body, these were made years before the accident."

"I'll allow it." Makarov said.

"So Mr. Dragneel if you never raised a hand to your wife before that night where did these come from?"

Natsu looked at the photographs. Horror and disgust filled his eyes along with disbelief and shock.

"I didn't do this." He said. "I swear I didn't. When did you take these?"

"Yes or no is all I want. Did you do anything to her that would have left these scars?"

"No! This is crazy! What reason would I have for hurting my wife besides defending my child?!"

"What other reason? Interesting you mentioned that because that brings up our next question. Mr. Dragneel is it true that before you married your wife you were in a relationship with another woman? A Lucy Heartfilia?"

"Objection! What does this have do with anything?" Erza cried.

"Indeed Miss Mikazuchi." Makarov said. "How does this relate to the case at hand?"

"Believe me your honor, it plays a big part in motive." Kagura answered.

"What?" Natsu said.

"Mr. Dragneel is it true that you've been spending some time with your ex girlfriend?"

"Yes but I don't-"

"Why is that?"

"Well we were friends before we started dating. Now that we had gotten past our negative feelings for each other, we decided to renew our friendship."

"Friendship? Is that what they're calling it nowadays?"

"I hope this is going somewhere Miss Mikazuchi." Makarov said losing his patients.

"It is your honor." She turned to Natsu. "Mr. Dragneel do you recall what you did October 5th of last year?"

"Yes I was at an Oktoberfest with my friend Gray."

"Do you recall what you said that night?"

"No not really. I was drunk."

"Well I've heard from not only your wife but witnesses from that festival who claim that you said you missed and still loved your ex girlfriend Lucy Heartfilia. That your wife made you miserable and that you wished that you could just be rid of her."

Lucy happened to be there and when she heard this she was shocked. As was Erza because this would definitely make the case way more diffcult. Touka just sat there with a smug look on her face. As if she already knew that she was going to win this case.

"Do you recall saying those words?" Kagura asked.

"I was drunk. I didn't know what I was saying!" Natsu argued.

"Do you recall saying those words?"

Natsu looked down at hands in shame.

"Yes." He admitted without looking up to face her.

"Be honest Mr. Dragneel you never did get over Miss Heartfilia did you?"

"Objection!" Erza cried again.

"Sustained." Makarov said.

"Withdrawn your honor." Kagura said. "I have reason to believe that Mr. Dragneel's motive for the abuse he inflicted upon his wife was so that he could drive her away and reunite with his old girlfriend."

"Ridiculous!" Erza said.

"Order!" Makarov said. "Mr. Dragneel you may leave the bench, court is adjourned, counselors meet me in my office."

When everyone left the courthouse the two attorneys met with the judge in his office.

"Your honor this motive she's come up with is ludicrous." Erza said. "What basis does she have besides the fact that my client said some words under the influence of too much alcohol?"

"How about the fact that his daughter is currently living with his ex girlfriend?" Kagura said.

"Is that true Miss Scarlet?" Makarov asked.

"Yes your honor but it wasn't my client who left the child in her care. He left his daughter in the care of his best friend Gray Fullbuster and his wife but they turned her over to Miss Heartfilia because Mrs. Fullbuster had a baby and they're now in a legal case of their own."

"How do they know Miss Heartfilia?"

"Miss Heartfilia was Mrs. Fullbuster's friend long before she even met Mr. Dragneel. It had nothing to do with their past relationship."

"Can they testify for that?"

"Yes your honor."

"Alright. Call them in to testify tomorrow and I want the child brought in as well."

"Your honor Mrs. Dragneel doesn't want her daughter to be put through the pressure of a trial." Kagura said. "Surely you can understand how cruel that is."

"Perhaps but I know of an act much crueler than that. Leaving her in the care of a parent who would abuse her to death. Both of your clients claim that the other party tried to physically harm their child. Now either one of them is telling the truth or they're both lying but there's only one witness who can tell us for sure. "

"But your honor-"

"I will not allow child abuse to take place if I can prevent it and if putting that little girl on the stand keeps her from being a punching bag for one of her parents then so be it. I expect her to be brought in tomorrow at eight."

He then dismissed them from his office.

"You know Kagura I've always respected you and your work but putting my client's personal feelings on display on that. That was low." Erza said to Kagura as they were leaving the courthouse.

"I'm just doing whatever it takes to put a wife beater away." Kagura said. "I can't believe you're actually defending this guy."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You counsel battered women and yet you would defend a man who beats his wife?"

"If I believed that he was a wife beater I wouldn't be representing him."

"Your client is scum."

"And yours is out of her damn mind."

"You saw the scars Erza."

"And you should see the ones on my client. They're way worse than what that psycho has."

"Do you honestly believe that he never once hit her before that night?"

"I believe it with every fiber of my being. I may not know where those scars came from now but I will find out before tomorrow." Erza declared. "I'm not going to hold any ill will toward you for this Kagura because you're only doing your job and you still have my deepest respects."

"Same to you Erza."

"See you tomorrow?"

"Of course."

The two attorneys then parted ways.