Well like most people my only experience with a courtroom is network
television and my parents divorce. So don't slay me on the technicalities.
This is simply a quick description to get the trial out of the way. Was
going to prolong the analysis of Kenshin, but I thought it would be far
more fun to drag out the darkness sooner. Am going to throw in Kenshin's
story in the next chapter, going to have Kaoru reviewing her notes or
something.
The Sum Of Sin - Trials
~Chandra
**Hands on the bible, scared like a child. God holds you liable, for what you've done. Homicidal, stare down your idols, a pretty baby never born. You can't believe it, you didn't mean it, but they saw you do it and they know your name...**
He felt their eyes on him, accusing and cold with the surety that his blood would be her memorial. Inside his mind the voices whispered ~I told you so~ with quiet yellow-eyed psychosis. The wood of the court chair was cold and unrelenting beneath him, pushing up against the nausea that burned with bile in his throat.
"All rise, the honorable Judge Saitou presiding." The bailiff's voice yelled across the writhing silence of the courtroom. The judge sat, wolf's eyes settling upon him and in that moment Kenshin knew he had already lost. Justice didn't care if he had killed her; he had done enough already to earn its contempt. He wanted to scream, cry out against the unfairness of the situation, but all that came out was a heavy sigh as he was ordered to sit and court was pronounced in session.
**Hands on the bible, egomaniacal**
The prosecutor began, his opening statement painting the picture of a heartless murder. And with each new sentence Kenshin cringed, harsh words pushing hope and faith deep down inside. He was suffocating under their stares, ~God, Tomoe...why...why do things have to be like this...please.~ He was a monster that left destruction in his wake, why couldn't they see the good he had done. He had done it for them, fought and bled so that the horrors of his life would never scratch their sun-lit world. Lost everything to keep them safe, and in this instant they unknowingly turned on him. The world loves heroes, but they love even more to see heroes fall.
"The prosecution calls Karou Kamiya to the stand." Somewhere in all this he had missed the defenses statement, but it didn't matter, it seemed every one else had as well. Amethyst eyes watched her walk to the witness' stand and repeat words of age-old tradition to tell the truth. Despite the growing pain in his stomach he smiled, Truth. They didn't even know what the truth was.
**Everything you make come crawling back to you.**
"Ms. Kamiya, you have spent the past week evaluating the defendant, Mr. Himura. Is that true?" The prosecutor spoke slowly.
"Yes, I have." Kaoru's fingers tightened over the wooden armrests, nails pushing painfully against their polished surface. ~I don't want to do this, I don't want to do this~ her mind repeated over and over, as she spoke. The 'butterflies' in her stomach made her feel sick, they weren't butterflies at all; they were horrible dirty things that crawled around her insides.
"Would you say that you have a good understanding of the defendant?"
"I..." ~Deep breaths Karou~ "As much as can be formed in that time, Yes."
Amethyst eyes still watched her, pleading with their soft depths, from an emotionless face, haggard with personal torment.
**Rats in the attic, toys in the cellar. She's an addict, and he wants to learn. Hands on the bible, as you screw yourself into oblivion. Worn and faded, stoned and jaded. You'll have to face it on your own. **
~Please don't do this, don't make her do this.~ Some where inside that softness that leaked pleading out through his amethyst eyes broke, letting flecks of amber rise to the surface. Somewhere inside something stretched lazily and cat-like, taking its time to wake up. Somewhere inside the child that was Shinta curled, trembling in a dark corner as the monster under the bed escaped.
Oblivious Karou looked out over the courtroom, blue eyes distant as she answered the prosecution's questions about her evaluation. It didn't matter, she had slid into the numbness that convinced her mind this was nothing more than a dream. Each answer she knew condemned him further and further, but that was what she came here to do, wasn't it? She was supposed to stop him from doing something like this again, to get justice for her father. So why did each word tear a small piece out of her and feed it to the dirty things coiled in her stomach.
"Thank you for your help, Ms. Kamiya. Would you mind answering one more question for me? Do you believe that the defendant, Kenshin Himura murdered his wife?"
There was a pause, the silence driving the breath from her lungs as she met Kenshin's eyes for the first time. Pain laced itself up her side, cramping the muscles until it reached her lungs. Then the pain pushed the air out of her, until black spots danced behind her eyes. "I...I'm not able to make such a judgement...I...-"
"Just answer the question Ms. Kamiya." The harsh voice of the prosecutor cut through her jumbled words.
Yes." She whispered, not knowing the word had been said. Then she was relearning how to breathe as she was lead down from the stand. Whispers followed her down the steps, rising until she thought they would overwhelm her and carry her away. A single tear slid down her cheek falling heavily on to her blouse as she left the courtroom. "I'm so sorry Kenshin..." She whispered as the heavy wood doors slid shut behind her.
"The Court will recess until one o'clock for lunch. When we return we will hear the final statements from both the Prosecution and the Defense." The wolf's eyes watched him and him alone, challenging him from across the room. Something hid in their depths, buried below the arrogance and contempt was something more dangerous than an obsession with Justice.
Amethyst eyes widened, air filling his lungs and mind with knowledge in a surprised gasp. For Saitou this was personal. He was just another little bit of evil to be removed from the world. Nothing he could ever do would change that, but below that knowledge was something colder, Saitou knew who he was. Then eye contact was broken, and Kenshin was left watching after the robed figure as it retreated from sight.
***
The two-hour break slid by uneventfully, marked only by his attorney's attempts to win an already lost battle. Somewhere in the middle of it all the amethyst slid from his eyes and a dangerous growl of razors and glass slid through the small room where they waited. "Shut up." It was a simple command that left the bustling attorney's face drained of blood and his hands shaking. Behind him Kenshin felt the guards shift, their hands resting close to their weapons, this made him smile. His lips slid up into a feral grin that fit something with fangs and sharp teeth better than his almost beautiful face as he spent his remaining moments comfortable in their nervous silence.
He remembered walking into the courtroom, the smell of too many people cutting his breaths short. He remembered the prosecution going on and on about the evil that was he. Somewhere in the back of his mind he wondered what would happen if he simply let it all go, freedom found in the heavy lead of their bullets. Then it was time to hear their verdict, but he already knew it. He had been guilty from the moment he had stepped through those doors; part of his just refused to listen to that logic.
"Kenshin Himura," Saitou's voice cut through the court, singling him out as his future was decided.
Easily he met the man's eyes, disappointed that the judge didn't finch at the promises lying with in molten amber.
"You have been found guilty of murder in the first degree."
The room went black and Kenshin saw no more, through the darkness men yelled and sharp noises broke into his thoughts. But that didn't matter, it was far away from him, and he was safe in the warm darkness of his mind.
**Smashed on the pavement, stunned in amazement. Everything you make comes crawling back to you. You can't believe it; you didn't mean it. But they saw you do it and they know your name.**
The Sum Of Sin - Trials
~Chandra
**Hands on the bible, scared like a child. God holds you liable, for what you've done. Homicidal, stare down your idols, a pretty baby never born. You can't believe it, you didn't mean it, but they saw you do it and they know your name...**
He felt their eyes on him, accusing and cold with the surety that his blood would be her memorial. Inside his mind the voices whispered ~I told you so~ with quiet yellow-eyed psychosis. The wood of the court chair was cold and unrelenting beneath him, pushing up against the nausea that burned with bile in his throat.
"All rise, the honorable Judge Saitou presiding." The bailiff's voice yelled across the writhing silence of the courtroom. The judge sat, wolf's eyes settling upon him and in that moment Kenshin knew he had already lost. Justice didn't care if he had killed her; he had done enough already to earn its contempt. He wanted to scream, cry out against the unfairness of the situation, but all that came out was a heavy sigh as he was ordered to sit and court was pronounced in session.
**Hands on the bible, egomaniacal**
The prosecutor began, his opening statement painting the picture of a heartless murder. And with each new sentence Kenshin cringed, harsh words pushing hope and faith deep down inside. He was suffocating under their stares, ~God, Tomoe...why...why do things have to be like this...please.~ He was a monster that left destruction in his wake, why couldn't they see the good he had done. He had done it for them, fought and bled so that the horrors of his life would never scratch their sun-lit world. Lost everything to keep them safe, and in this instant they unknowingly turned on him. The world loves heroes, but they love even more to see heroes fall.
"The prosecution calls Karou Kamiya to the stand." Somewhere in all this he had missed the defenses statement, but it didn't matter, it seemed every one else had as well. Amethyst eyes watched her walk to the witness' stand and repeat words of age-old tradition to tell the truth. Despite the growing pain in his stomach he smiled, Truth. They didn't even know what the truth was.
**Everything you make come crawling back to you.**
"Ms. Kamiya, you have spent the past week evaluating the defendant, Mr. Himura. Is that true?" The prosecutor spoke slowly.
"Yes, I have." Kaoru's fingers tightened over the wooden armrests, nails pushing painfully against their polished surface. ~I don't want to do this, I don't want to do this~ her mind repeated over and over, as she spoke. The 'butterflies' in her stomach made her feel sick, they weren't butterflies at all; they were horrible dirty things that crawled around her insides.
"Would you say that you have a good understanding of the defendant?"
"I..." ~Deep breaths Karou~ "As much as can be formed in that time, Yes."
Amethyst eyes still watched her, pleading with their soft depths, from an emotionless face, haggard with personal torment.
**Rats in the attic, toys in the cellar. She's an addict, and he wants to learn. Hands on the bible, as you screw yourself into oblivion. Worn and faded, stoned and jaded. You'll have to face it on your own. **
~Please don't do this, don't make her do this.~ Some where inside that softness that leaked pleading out through his amethyst eyes broke, letting flecks of amber rise to the surface. Somewhere inside something stretched lazily and cat-like, taking its time to wake up. Somewhere inside the child that was Shinta curled, trembling in a dark corner as the monster under the bed escaped.
Oblivious Karou looked out over the courtroom, blue eyes distant as she answered the prosecution's questions about her evaluation. It didn't matter, she had slid into the numbness that convinced her mind this was nothing more than a dream. Each answer she knew condemned him further and further, but that was what she came here to do, wasn't it? She was supposed to stop him from doing something like this again, to get justice for her father. So why did each word tear a small piece out of her and feed it to the dirty things coiled in her stomach.
"Thank you for your help, Ms. Kamiya. Would you mind answering one more question for me? Do you believe that the defendant, Kenshin Himura murdered his wife?"
There was a pause, the silence driving the breath from her lungs as she met Kenshin's eyes for the first time. Pain laced itself up her side, cramping the muscles until it reached her lungs. Then the pain pushed the air out of her, until black spots danced behind her eyes. "I...I'm not able to make such a judgement...I...-"
"Just answer the question Ms. Kamiya." The harsh voice of the prosecutor cut through her jumbled words.
Yes." She whispered, not knowing the word had been said. Then she was relearning how to breathe as she was lead down from the stand. Whispers followed her down the steps, rising until she thought they would overwhelm her and carry her away. A single tear slid down her cheek falling heavily on to her blouse as she left the courtroom. "I'm so sorry Kenshin..." She whispered as the heavy wood doors slid shut behind her.
"The Court will recess until one o'clock for lunch. When we return we will hear the final statements from both the Prosecution and the Defense." The wolf's eyes watched him and him alone, challenging him from across the room. Something hid in their depths, buried below the arrogance and contempt was something more dangerous than an obsession with Justice.
Amethyst eyes widened, air filling his lungs and mind with knowledge in a surprised gasp. For Saitou this was personal. He was just another little bit of evil to be removed from the world. Nothing he could ever do would change that, but below that knowledge was something colder, Saitou knew who he was. Then eye contact was broken, and Kenshin was left watching after the robed figure as it retreated from sight.
***
The two-hour break slid by uneventfully, marked only by his attorney's attempts to win an already lost battle. Somewhere in the middle of it all the amethyst slid from his eyes and a dangerous growl of razors and glass slid through the small room where they waited. "Shut up." It was a simple command that left the bustling attorney's face drained of blood and his hands shaking. Behind him Kenshin felt the guards shift, their hands resting close to their weapons, this made him smile. His lips slid up into a feral grin that fit something with fangs and sharp teeth better than his almost beautiful face as he spent his remaining moments comfortable in their nervous silence.
He remembered walking into the courtroom, the smell of too many people cutting his breaths short. He remembered the prosecution going on and on about the evil that was he. Somewhere in the back of his mind he wondered what would happen if he simply let it all go, freedom found in the heavy lead of their bullets. Then it was time to hear their verdict, but he already knew it. He had been guilty from the moment he had stepped through those doors; part of his just refused to listen to that logic.
"Kenshin Himura," Saitou's voice cut through the court, singling him out as his future was decided.
Easily he met the man's eyes, disappointed that the judge didn't finch at the promises lying with in molten amber.
"You have been found guilty of murder in the first degree."
The room went black and Kenshin saw no more, through the darkness men yelled and sharp noises broke into his thoughts. But that didn't matter, it was far away from him, and he was safe in the warm darkness of his mind.
**Smashed on the pavement, stunned in amazement. Everything you make comes crawling back to you. You can't believe it; you didn't mean it. But they saw you do it and they know your name.**