Chapter 9

"Should we begin?" the mayor/former immigration lawyer asked his clients. "If so, this is your free consultation," he went on half-jokingly. "In any case, what I've learned so far is that they've trumped up a few additional accusations in addition to the ones they already had."

"What charges?" demanded all three Titans simultaneously.

"My colleagues told me that Starfire is accused of aiding the escape of a prisoner, in addition to the original charges of resisting arrest and illegal entry to the nation. It seems that while she was being taken to her jail cell, she either argued with or pleaded for mercy from the guards; this occurred as the guards dragged her past the special cell of Plasmus. Her shouting woke up the monster and resulted in $1.3 million of damage to the jail facility and the wounding of four guards.

"I'm also informed that during the investigation of Raven, a background check was performed and her illegal immigration status was discovered.

"In a short time your friends will receive immigration hearings before a judge. Our job now is to find a legal ground for them to stay in the United States. If we succeed, then they will stand trial for their crimes. If we fail, your friends will be deported to their home planets.

"There are some ways to justify an illegal presence in the United States," the mayor continued. "One of them would be to request asylum, but only victims of persecution by their home countries can do that. If the parents of your friends were American, they might qualify for an American citizenship. There's also—" "Brrriiing! Brriiing!" the phone rang. "Excuse me," said the mayor as he picked up the phone.

When he put down the phone his tone was somber. "Your friends' trials just started five minutes ago. We have to get to the courtroom now!"

The Titans and the mayor dashed for the door, tripping all over each other in the process. Only Robin was agile enough to evade being toppled and managed to somersault over the three bodies stuck in the doorway, landing on his feet in the hall. He helped the others up and they proceeded at the fastest possible pace to the parked T-car.

Raven and Starfire were brought handcuffed into the courtroom. The judge sat behind the large counter at the front of the room, with a clerk and bailiff on one side of the room. Every audience seat was occupied, and a crowd stood all along the sides and back of the room, leaving only the center aisle open. Starfire looked around, completely baffled. Camera flashes went off at the rate of three to four per second and videocameras were lined up against the walls all the way up to the front of the room.

With Cyborg driving, the T-car rushed out of the City Hall's underground parking lot and turned onto the main street—only to be snarled up in traffic. The Titans yelled at other drivers and sounded off the T-car's horn repeatedly, to no effect. There was simply not enough space on the road to provide them a clear path.

Although Raven understood less than half of what the prosecutors spoke, she knew that it would be up to her to respond, since Starfire was obviously lost in the proceedings. The judge at the front of the courtroom seemed to be paying not the slightest attention to the debate; instead, he leaned back in his armchair, kicked off his shoes under the bench, placed both his feet (complete with black Batman socks) on the counter, and dozed off. Within minutes, the distinct sound of snoring from the front of the room disrupted Raven's speech. The media all around the room captured Raven's frustration for the entire country to see. The sympathetic audience struggled to suppress laughs.

"This isn't working," declared Robin. "Let's just get out and walk to court." It was true, the T-car had only advanced four feet in four green lights. The Titans and their lawyer stepped out of the car and cut through the stationary traffic to the sidewalk. Behind them, angry drivers honked at them for leaving the T-car in their way. The Titans reached the sidewalk and sprinted off.

Seeing that the judge was sound asleep, the clerk rose from his seat on the side and timidly stepped up to the center of the room, gently shaking the judge by his shoulder. "Your Honor, wake up! There's a trial going on!" she whispered into his ear. The judge moaned and gradually opened his eyes. The prosecuting lawyers were taking their turn to speak. When the judge heard the voices he jerked awake. At last the audience became unable to restrain their laughter. "SILENCE!!!!!" yelled the clerk, grabbing the gavel and slamming it down on the counter. The laughter died down in less than a second.

The prosecutors alternated speaking. Although much of the audience failed to understand much, the judge was all ears. It was at this moment that the door in the back of the chamber burst open, knocking down the standing crowd along the walls like a row of dominoes. The mayor dashed through the center aisle to help Raven as camcorders and tripods toppled to the ground along three walls and reporters unwillingly dropped expensive cameras. Fortunately, Raven caught all the cameras and camcorders with black magic, righting the tripods and gently lowering the cameras to the floor.

As the mayor spoke to represent Raven and Starfire, the noise of the judge's snoring once again reverberated through the courthouse.

End Chapter.

I'm going to reveal pairings in the next chapter, so this is your last chance to tell me what pairings you want!!!