Connie tensed as she sat beside Jessica and Rat. It was New Year's Eve, yet despite the planned festivities Dr. Brock and Kira had called for a final meeting. They were to decide Col's punishment for the Stormbolt incident. There had been a lot of rumours going around, with some people believing Col's connections to the Universal would make him get off easy, while others were calling for him to be completely banned. Neither sat well with Connie. She'd explicitly asked not to be part of the judging panel, knowing the controversy it would stir, but she was also afraid Col would be punished too harshly.

Col sat in the front row with Mrs. Clamworthy, who was going to be his defendant. He looked miserable. Skylark remained with Firewings and Gard, kept back from the proceedings. Captain Graves, Kira, and Dr. Brock all sat at the main table, ready to begin the trial.

"Do you know what they're planning?" Jessica whispered.

Connie shook her head.

"They can't kick him out, can they?" Rat asked, chewing on his nails. "Not after you went through all that trouble to fix their companion bond."

"It's not up to me," Connie sighed. "We'll just have to wait and see."

As the last drifters took their seats, Dr. Brock stood up.

"Thank you all for attending again," he said. "As you know we have had quite an eventful run up to Christmas and the New Year. Thankfully, the threat of Stormbolt has been removed. The wild pegasi have returned to their homes, and have issued their apologies for the incident. However, before we can go and celebrate the New Year, we need to decide what to do with Colin Clamworthy, who played a key role in these events."

He took his seat, and Kira stood.

"As Trustee of the Two Fours, I will lead proceedings," she said. "Colin Clamworthy, you are charged with inciting creatures to war, neglect of your personal companion, and violent assault on Connie Lionheart. How do you plead?"

Col opened his mouth to speak, but Mrs. Clamworthy spoke first.

"Before Col denies or accepts the charges, I would like to add some context," she said.

Kira nodded.

"Perhaps a lesson we all can take from this," Mrs. Clamworthy went on. "Col suffered through a lot of grief prior to these events. I am his main guardian and carer, and he was left in severe shock when I had to be admitted to hospital. He also performed poorly in his Society exams and struggled with many family tensions as a result. As we learnt about Stormbolt, this negative emotion drew him out, and started the conflict. While I agree none of these excuse his behaviour, I do wonder if we put too much pressure on our younger companion members, and that this needs to be looked into to prevent such events happening again."

"Valid points, Lavinia," Dr. Brock said. "I will also add that there other factors also lead to this, including large gaps in our knowledge about the potentials harms humans have incited against mythical creatures before our Society was founded. Even with Kullervo gone, we still have a lot to answer for, and I feel this is an avenue we need to actively pursue to atone for our errors."

"Indeed," Captain Graves said. He stood up. "However, we must remain vigilant of the fact that a sixteen-year old boy almost brought our chapter to its knees, and the mistrust and anger many creatures now feel towards the pegasi can't be undone overnight. Col needs to understand the weight of his actions and that they have consequences."

Kira turned back to Col.

"So Col, how do you plead?"

"Guilty," Col said softly.

A murmur ran around the gathering.

"Then in my opinion, this leaves us with two choices," Kira said. "The first is to outright ban Col from the Society and forbid any further interaction with his companion creature."

Col's eyes widened.

"The second is to allow him to remain in the Society, but all his companion interactions are to be supervised for an indefinite period until he has proven stable," Kira went on. "During this time he will also not be allowed to participate in Society competitions or events, either. Please vote for whichever option you think is reasonable."

Connie glanced around as Dr. Brock called the vote. An awful lot of people seemed supportive of a ban. She raised her hand for the second option, as did Rat, Jessica and Mack.

"It appears to be a tie," Dr. Brock said. "We will need to elect a casting voter…"

"If I can say something, Dr. Brock?" Connie suddenly asked. Dr. Brock paused, but Kira nodded in approval. Captain Graves frowned, but he didn't say anything.

"Go ahead, Connie."

"I just think banning Col won't solve anything," Connie said. "He's already been through the pain of losing his bond once. Also, Skylark didn't do anything wrong, and this will hurt him as well." She took a breath. "It might be harder to enforce supervision, but I think it's fairer this way."

She fell silent again.

"Shall we retake the vote?" Kira offered.

The vote was taken again, and this time the second option won by a few more hands.

"Then this is our agreed punishment," Kira said. "Col will be allowed to meet with Skylark at a defined place and time under the supervision of Captain Graves and another appointed member, until such time he proves stable, and for a minimum of three years."

Col sank into his seat, as the meeting was closed. Everyone rushed to leave, eager to get going for the Society's New Year's celebrations that were going to take place in the cliffs. Connie ignored them, vaulting seats to sit beside him.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Col let out a shaky breath.

"I was expecting the worst," he admitted. "This was the best I could've hoped for. Thank you."

Mrs. Clamworthy gave him a hug.

"We will work through this, Col," she said. "It won't be easy but we are all here to help."

"I know." Col hugged his grandmother tightly.

"Guess this means our summer races are off for now?" Rat said, grabbing the seat behind them. "Don't worry. You'd only get sick of me winning all the time."

That got a small smile from Col, and he jabbed Rat's shoulder. Rat grinned.

"Well, we'd better head off," Mrs. Clamworthy said. "Don't want to miss the start of the New Year, and it's a little drive to our venue this time."

She rose to her feet and grabbed her stick.

"I'll give you a hand," Rat offered, coming beside her.

"Me too," Jessica added, winking at Connie.

"How sweet," Mrs. Clamworthy beamed. They headed outside, while Col and Connie remained. Eventually they were the only ones left. A brief silence fell, until Col sighed.

"I hope you can forgive me someday," he said. He was finding it hard to look at her. "I…I'll understand if you want to break up with me. I was so cruel to you. I'm just so sorry…"

"Col, I'm not the one you need to apologise to," Connie interrupted. "You've already apologised to Skylark, and he's forgiven you. He loves you." Her cheeks reddened. "Like I do."

"How can you say that after I almost tried to kill you?" Col shook his head. "After all those hurtful things I said, after everything I've done…"

"Because that wasn't the real you," Connie answered. "You had every opportunity to finish me off, both in the cavern and in the wood, but when it came to the crunch you couldn't. Even Stormbolt couldn't push you that far. That's how I know you feel the same."

Suddenly Col grabbed her into an embrace.

"I do," he murmured, as Connie wrapped her arms around him. "I love you, Connie. And I swear I'll never do anything to hurt you again."

He pulled away slightly and brushed his lips against hers. Connie stiffened, not expecting a kiss, but soon relaxed and leant into him. Finally, her Col was back.

"Hey, are you two love birds going to sit here all night?" Mack called from the barn door. Hastily Col and Connie broke apart, both blushing.

"Sorry." They stood up, and Connie took Col's hand.

She couldn't wait to see what the New Year would bring.

END