CHAPTER 19
On their way to school the next morning, Cinderella asked Eric, "Did you get the note?"
"Yeah," Eric answered. "I just gotta deliver it and leave. There shouldn't be any problems."
"Does he know yet?" Aladdin asked.
"No," Eric said quietly. "He wasn't in the best of moods. I couldn't tell him."
Suddenly they heard shouting ahead of them. "What's going on?" Cinderella asked, curious.
Eric shook his head, puzzled. "I don't know. Let's go find out."
They ran toward the town square, where a crowd had gathered. Clayton was on a platform, motioning for quiet. Then he began to speak:
"For many years now, the forest has been an eyesore, a place of fear and superstition that no one will go near. It's time to put an end to this!" The crowd murmured in approval. "Now I've been in this forest. I walked through it just yesterday, looking to see if there was something worth saving. There isn't. Much of it has burned to the ground, and what little timber there is left is good, and can be put to good use for our town. It's time to move forward, and see what more our town can be!"
The crowd began to cheer. Aladdin shook his head in disbelief. Then Cinderella pushed her way through the crowd until she was standing next to Clayton.
"NO!" Cinderella yelled, catching everyone's attention. "What are you thinking? For years now, this forest has been a refuge for those in need."
"A hiding place for criminals, you mean," Clayton spoke up. The crowd began to grow restless again.
"No!" Cinderella yelled again. Everyone grew silent. "I don't mean criminals. I mean all the creatures that live in a forest. Creatures that could not survive in a city. The squirrels, the deer the wild honey bees, the birds that nest there in the summer. Where would they live if we took away their home? You would have to be responsible for them. You would have to care for them, because they could no longer take care of themselves. You would have to feed them and shelter them and make them feel like they belonged in a world where they don't. Do you really want that burden? Are you truly ready to take on that responsibility? Any creatures that you kill, their blood will be on your hands, for you allowed this to happen."
Many of the people in the crowd began to look very sheepish. Clayton took advantage of the silence to say, "They adapt. They will soon find new homes."
Cinderella glared at him. "So could any of us, but no one wants to be run off of their land, now do they?"
Clayton was having a hard time keeping his temper in check. "They're animals! They are here to do our will!"
Cinderella shook her head. "Simply because they are not humans does not give us the right to kill them whenever we want to."
"What about the strange creatures that haunt the forest?" Clayton pressed.
Cinderella raised her eyebrow. "What about them?"
"They are our enemies!" Clayton insisted. "They are demons, waiting for the chance to destroy us!"
"The thing that will destroy you is your own ignorance!" Aladdin snapped, stepping up beside Cinderella. "They are no demons! They live and breathe as you do. If you strike them, they will bleed. In many ways, they are much like you. They speak, they feel, they raise their families. They are more man than animal. If you would just talk to them, you would see this."
"How would you know this?" Clayton asked him, suspicious.
Eric stepped forward. "We know because we have seen them for many days now. We have spoken to them, and have seen how they live. The differences they have are not witchcraft and sorcery. They are gifts, and not one of them sees their gift as a curse. They see their differences, and they accept them. But not one of them uses their powers against us." He looked at Aladdin, and they shared a smile. "They are a family. One that I am proud to say I am now a part of."
"You're not afraid of them?" someone in the crowd called.
"Why should I be?" Eric replied. "They saved my life! It's only fair that I should try and save theirs."
Clayton smirked. "They only saved you so you would stand up for them."
"That's not true!" Aladdin yelled. "They are the kindest, gentlest people I have ever met, and I am proud to call them my family."
Cinderella took his hand in support. "So am I."
Clayton looked at them curiously. "And what were you all saved from, I wonder, that makes you stand up for them like this?"
"They were saved from the witch's evil power," a voice called out, and everyone looked, surprised to see Jim walking up to his friends. "As was I."
"You're supposed to be in jail," Clayton told him. "What are you doing here?"
Jim looked straight at the crowd. "Why was I arrested? Because I'm different? Or was it because you feared that evil wizard that you said watched me for one day when I was a child? Yes, he watched me, and yes, he turned me into what I am today. But I don't hate the gift that was given to me, and I will not give it up simply because I will be feared if I don't. These gifts are precious, however they come. And these creatures, as you call them, they helped me see that. They are not the ones you should have feared. You should have feared the one living among you, working her evil deeds all around. She held Eric here captive for eleven years, and yet none of you noticed, or even cared. You simply welcomed the wife of the wizard!"
The crowd began to yell, some saying one thing, some another. Clayton fumed. "SILENCE!" he screamed. The crowd grew quiet. "I see that this truly is a job for the courts. There will be a town meeting called in the courthouse this afternoon." He turned and glared at the four friends. "And you four better be there," he growled.
Clayton left in a huff, and the crowd began to disperse. Aladdin turned to Jim. "I thought we told you to stay in the forest."
Jim crossed his arms. "Aren't you glad I didn't?" he retorted.
Eric sighed. "Yes, you helped us, but you also put yourself in great danger. Now they know you're here!"
"But they also know the truth," Jim reminded them.
"He's right," Cinderella admitted. "Did you see their faces? They had no idea that the witch was living among them."
Aladdin shook his head. "I think they had no idea she was a witch."
Eric looked around and saw several people glaring at them. "Come on, let's get out of here."
...
Eric delivered his note to the school, then went straight to the courthouse. Cinderella, Aladdin and Jim, however, were forced to go to class. Throughout the day many students glared at them, while others avoided them like they had the plague.
As soon as the last bell rang, they ran to the courthouse as fast as they could. Eric was waiting for them.
Eric sighed in relief when he saw them. "Just in time. We start in ten minutes."
"So what's happening?" Aladdin gasped, trying to catch his breath.
"I'll be representing you three, and the forest," Eric informed them.
Jim raised an eyebrow. "You're no lawyer."
"Well, I am today," Eric informed him.
"Who's representing the contractors?" Aladdin asked.
Eric sighed. "My father."
They looked at him in shock. "What?" Cinderella asked hoping she had heard him wrong. But she knew from the look on his face that she had. "Why?"
Eric shook his head. "He never did like the forest. And I guess he figures that the best test of my skills will be against him." Aladdin shook his head in disbelief. "Plus," Eric added quietly, "I think he was in the crowd this morning. He's been looking at me very strange today."
Cinderella placed her hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "I'm sorry."
Eric shrugged, trying to act indifferent. "We never were close. But he's really good at what he does. We're gonna have to fight tooth and nail to beat him."
"Let's get to it then," Jim said confidently.
Eric smiled at his friend's eagerness, then frowned. "Jim," he admitted, "there is a chance that they might arrest you again."
Jim paled. "What?"
"If the judge wants to, don't fight them. It would just hurt our case," Eric told Jim.
Aladdin shook his head in disbelief. "So we just give in to everything they say?"
"Not everything," Eric assured them. "But we do have to be honest. If they ask, we have to tell them the truth."
Aladdin sighed in defeat. "Ok."
Eric looked at Jim. "Jim?"
Jim was angry and hurt. "So I have to sacrifice myself again?"
"I'm sorry," Eric said, the hurt reflected in his own eyes. "But we got you out before, and we can do it again. Legally this time. Trust me."
Jim clenched his fists in frustration. "Fine." Then he pointed his finger in Eric's face threateningly. "But if you double cross us again, I will kill you."
"Fair enough," Eric answered calmly. "But you don't have to worry about that. This is my fight as much as yours."
Jim took a deep breath to calm down and nodded. Eric looked at his friends. "We should head inside. It's about to start." They nodded. And with one final prayer, they walked through the doors.