So again, all rights being to the BBC.

CHAPTER 19

"The trial of the Doctor and Rassilon will come to order. The Hon. Judge Marcus Moracus is presiding. You may all be seated." The bailiff resumed her post.

"Doctor and Rassilon." The judge spoke. "You are both charged with committing actions that endangered the welfare and lives of everyone on Gallifrey. How do you plead?"

The Doctor collectively had imagined all kinds of trumped up charges that the Master could have accused him of, but never in his wildest dreams did he think that the charges against him could be real! His actions during the Time War were finally catching up with him. The five faces looked at each other in resigned agreement. Twelve, as eldest, was the designated spokesman. "Guilty."

Rassilon looked at the Doctors as if they had three heads. "Not guilty!" He proclaimed. The Doctors had quite honestly forgotten that he was there. But what did he do? It's not like he had stolen The Moment with the intent of destroying the entire planet and actually believed that he had done so for several centuries! But then again, there was a reason that the Doctor had had to go to that extreme in the first place, and that had had everything to do with Rassilon.

"Very well. You may be seated." The judge commanded.

One by one, witnesses were called in to testify against the Doctor and Rassilon. The Doctors had had no idea that they were seen escaping with The Moment. He had been so careful! Of course, it was possible that he wasn't actually seen by them in the first place, but they were paid to lie under oath by the Master who relished seeing his most hated enemies suffer. Rassilon's creations of terrifying monsters to use in retaliation against the Daleks and his eagerness to destroy Time itself also came under fire, to the Doctor's relief. Certainly the Shadow Proclamation saw that he had had no other options! Besides, it's not like he had actually followed through with his plan. Granted, he thought he had, but the two eldest Doctors remembered going back and fixing it. Rassilon was hell bent on following through with his evil intent, plus he still saw nothing wrong with his actions! Surely, the Doctor would be cut a break!

But as the trial wore on, not a single person spoke in his defense. And when each of his faces were put on the stand, somehow he ended up looking even guiltier. None of them were sure how that had happened. Was there no one in the universe who would be able to come to his defense? Then he remembered: somewhere out there was a remote controlled TARDIS that had kidnapped his greatest allies. They were too far away to help him now.

"If there are no other witnesses that are willing to testify, then I have no choice but to announce that my verdict is..." The judge's verdict was cut off by a loud wheezing noise as a blue police box materialized in the middle of the room. Clara stuck her head out. "Sorry we're late. We were lost in the middle of the, what do you call it, Perochian Galaxy? It's almost as if someone didn't want us to be here or something." Here she looked pointedly at the faces of the Master who had been seated in the back of the court room the entire time. "But we have on board here no fewer than eleven persons who would like to speak in defense of the Doctor."

Clara was the first to testify as she was the one who had announced their presence. She told the story of how she, Ten, and Eleven had joined forces with the War Doctor and eventually all thirteen timelord Doctors to end the Time War, not by destroying Gallifrey, but by moving her into a pocket Universe instead. She made sure to emphasize how broken all the Doctors were after the war when they believed that they were the last of the time lords and how desperate even the War Doctor was to find any other alternative. She hoped that she earned the Doctor some sympathy points at least.

Danny was next. He couldn't say much other than the little bit he had witnessed while traveling in the merged TARDIS. The Doctor is a good man, he insisted. A mad man, maybe, but a very good man who truly cares about everyone he comes in contact with. He also added that he was amazed at how he can take ordinary people and make them do extraordinary things.

One by one, each of the companions came forward and testified to the heroic efforts of the Doctor and how many planets would be destroyed if it were not for his interference. River spoke of the Pandorica and how he cared for her even when she tried to kill him on multiple occasions. Rory spoke of the Silence, and how the Doctor remembered him after he was absorbed by the crack, even when Amy didn't. Amy talked about weeping angels, prisoner zero, and how on their first off world adventure, he took pity on a little girl who was crying silently. Donna talked about Racnoss, Adipose, Ood, and Vashta Nerada. Shaun's testimony echoed Danny's. Martha made a point to talk exclusively about the crimes of the Master since he was so conveniently present. Mickey spoke of clock work robots, Cybermen, and a show down with Davros and his Daleks in the Crucible. Jack talked of Nanogenes in World War II, an egg returned to Raxacoricofallapaptorious, and the Doctor's willingness to sacrifice his own life on the game station in order to rid the universe of Daleks forever. (Never mind that it didn't work).

Then it was Rose's turn. She introduced herself in her multiple forms, and all five took the stand together. Rose 12 sat in the chair as she was the designated spokesperson. Her younger selves stood in a line behind her as a show of solidarity. None of the Roses could dare make eye contact with any of the Doctors, because they were afraid of breaking down. The other companions' testimonies were good, but Rose collectively sensed that the judge was still not convinced. Therefore, it was all up to her.

Rose 12 cleared her throat and began to speak, her soft but strong voice captivating all who listened. "I have traveled with the Doctor for a very long time and have witnessed many acts of heroism and compassion as those who have spoken before me have testified. I could add to the list and talk to you forever about what this extraordinary man has done. But that's not why we're here today, is it? This is about the Time War, plain and simple. Clara has already testified to the true events of what happened that day. I can assure you that because of the atrocities committed by both the Daleks and the Time Lords during the war" Here she looked pointedly at Rassilon. "he had no other options. But you've heard that today as well. You seek to punish him today for these actions, and the punishment is death. Perhaps your honor may wish to reconsider such drastic action. Though each of my lives present here today have traveled with the Doctor, we haven't been as inseparable as we had desired to be. For several years, through a twist of fate, I was trapped in a parallel universe without him. In my attempts to be reunited with him, I crossed into several other parallel worlds without him in it as well. Let me be the first to tell you that a universe without the Doctor is not a universe that I wish to live in, and not just because I love him, either."

Her testimony continued with stories of parallel worlds full of death and destruction, horrors that could have been avoided if a certain mad man in a blue box would have only appeared. She had tried to do her part, but even though she was a time lady by this point, she didn't have the tools nor the knowledge that the Doctor possessed. Others fought back against the evils that invaded, but all that that resulted in was more death and destruction. Many of those universes were destroyed in the process, and she had only barely escaped with her life. To add credence to her testimony, she talked in great length about the pocket universe that Donna had inadvertently created and how all those disasters that all but destroyed the Earth were rectified in the prime universe because of the Doctor's direct involvement.

She concluded her testimony with one bold statement. "I ask you, your Honor, to have mercy. Certainly the goodness of this man far outweighs the evils that he has committed. It is true that his darkest moment is dark indeed, but if we all were put on trial for our darkest days, we should all be killed. Does one moment of wrongdoing negate all of the good?" With that, she concluded her testimony.

Each of the Doctors made eye contact with the Roses as they returned to their seats. It was all either of them could do to avoid tears at that moment. He telepathically told her thank you and how much he loved her and that he was so very proud of her. If the worst happened, she was not to blame herself, for she had literally done everything she could. She in turn gave his mind a squeeze of assurance, that if the worst happened, she'd do everything to get him out of there and safe. He said he didn't want that: this was the Shadow Proclamation after all. He'd always have a target on his back, and so would she. He didn't want that for her. She realized that he was giving up, and it tore her hearts to pieces.

The judge was ready with his verdict. "On the charges of committing actions that endangered the people of Gallifrey, I find the defendants to be... GUILTY. Court will convene tomorrow at the same time for sentencing."