To Lyger 0: That's a very good question…
Jogging down the streets of Luanda, her miraculous boots echoing off the walls of the buildings lining the street on either side, Rugindo Leoa glanced to the side at Zumbida, who was running full-out to keep up with her. She gritted her teeth, breathing heavily, her eyes narrowed in concentration; a wince passed across her face as she stepped, landing wrong on one ankle, and stumbled slightly. Letting out a breath, Rugindo Leoa slowed down to a walking pace to let Zumbida catch up with her. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I'm so used to doing this with miraculous users, I can forget that you do not have the same speed and endurance naturally that I do with my miraculous."
Zumbida shook her head, slowing down as she reached Rugindo Leoa, and reached up to wipe the back of her hand across her brow. Sucking in a deep breath, she stretched her back and shoulders, pushing out the small of her back. "No – I'm okay." She let out a heavy sigh, looking away from Rugindo Leoa. "The exertion helps to get my mind off of… recent events."
Rugindo Leoa pursed her lips, nodding in understanding. Hesitantly, she raised a hand to place on Zumbida's shoulder, though she hesitated for a moment, waiting for the teen to give her assent. The poor girl had been so badly violated – twice – that it had taken three weeks before Zumbida would even allow any physical contact, even with her new family at the temple. And even then, every few days, Zumbida would still fall into a depression, vacillating between anger and numbness after the horrible ordeal that she had suffered.
The trial for Pitra Jambo had just ended yesterday, after dragging out for a full month as it worked through the court system. The question of the charges against Jambo had taken close to a week, with the defense attorney insisting that the murder charge be removed while the prosecutor pleaded for it to remain. And that had only been the first hurdle. After Zumbida had given her testimony, the defense attorney had kept her on the stand for three days straight, grilling her mercilessly about her relationship with Jambo, about all of their previous interactions. Next, he had questioned every friendship Zumbida had ever had with a boy or a man. Zumbida had almost buried the courthouse in hornets on the second day of the cross-examination, when the attorney had started asking about her father; only Nguruwe's intervention from outside the courthouse had prevented a worse incident, though the horrendous buzzing reverberating through the courthouse had led to a long recess. After the proceedings had resumed, the defense attorney had stepped much more lightly. Once Zumbida's testimony had been over, Rugindo Leoa had spirited her out of the courtroom – had she been present while the defense attorney suggested that she had "led him on," no amount of Cop-pig could have saved Jambo and his attorney from Zumbida's fury. In the end, Jambo had been convicted of attempted murder, though the rape and murder charges had both been dismissed. According to the judge, there had been "insufficient evidence" to prove that Zumbida was not a willing participant in the act.
It had taken every gram of her restraint for Rugindo Leoa not to introduce both the judge and the attorney to her short sword. How much "evidence" would they need to determine whether they had been "willing participants"? She made a face, remembering Zumbida's face when they had announced that verdict. The girl had been raped, murdered, and buried in a shallow grave before being brought back to life to seek vengeance. How much more evidence did the court need to prove what had happened to her?
Although in fairness to the judge, Rugindo Leoa supposed it was difficult to convict a man of murder when the victim was sitting in the courtroom, alive.
Glancing up at Rugindo Leoa's hand, still hovering above her shoulder, Zumbida shrugged and gave a nod, though without much force behind it. Cautiously, Rugindo Leoa placed her hand on the girl's shoulder, rubbing it gently with her thumb. Zumbida sighed, her shoulders slumping, and sniffled, leaning the slightest bit toward Rugindo Leoa. She swallowed, shaking her head. "It's just… it's not fair."
Rugindo Leoa nodded sympathetically. "No, it isn't," she agreed. "He hurt you so badly, but he might only be in jail for ten years. Meanwhile, you lost something – a couple things – that just cannot be replaced. And he and his 'attorney' said so many horrible things…"
Zumbida looked away. Her shoulders tensed. "I almost wish I had killed him," she confessed. "It's no more than he deserved."
Rugindo Leoa raised an eyebrow. "It is. But this is one of the hardest lessons we have to learn if we are going to be heroes, if we are going to use the powers and abilities we have. We have these powers, and we can do so much with them – for good or for ill. If you chose to, you could absolutely kill Jambo for revenge; prison walls need not constrain you. But then, where would it end? Would you just kill that one man who had hurt you? Or would you keep going, kill every rapist and murderer?"
"They would deserve it," Zumbida grumbled, glaring down at the ground.
Rugindo Leoa hummed. "I can't disagree there," she acknowledged, grinding her teeth. "But when would it be enough for you? Would you stop just at the rapists and murderers, or would more criminals face your 'justice'? For that matter, you are just one person; is it even your place to execute these criminals? Believe me: sometimes I really wish I could just take all the criminals in Luanda and kill them. But if I start acting just because I can, would I be able to stop?" She sighed. "As much as we don't like it, as much as we want to just punish the bad guys whenever we can, we can't let ourselves fall into that trap. Whenever it's possible, we need to let the legal system do what it's supposed to do. And hopefully, it will work out." She shook her head bitterly. "He may not be in jail forever, but at least he is facing justice."
Zumbida let out a breath. "At least his life is miserable now… Even if mine isn't much better."
Rugindo Leoa nodded. "I'm sorry we pulled you away from your family and away from your school," she began. "I… know what it's like, leaving everything behind like that."
Zumbida scoffed. "Honestly, I'm not sure if I'm sorry about that… My parents weren't exactly… understanding about what happened to me. They…" She gritted her teeth. "They blamed me." She blinked away tears. "They blamed me for what he did to me! Do you believe that?"
Rugindo Leoa gave her a firm look, placing both hands on Zumbida's shoulders and staring hard into her eyes. "Listen to me: it doesn't matter what your parents think or say or do. They aren't always right, and they are not right here. But it's okay: you have us. We will protect you. We will always support you. Period."