I'll Protect You (Re-Edit #2, 2016)

Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Cimerian Speed-Walker of the Year

[a/n] i apologize for how ridiculously long this is

also, dedicated to InterestingMythology for the beautiful banner she made!

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I've been on this bench for a millennium and a half. Wars have raged. Chaos has brought down this world. The end is near. 

I'm kidding. 

Though, I have been sitting on this bench for far too long. My legs were starting to cramp and numb--you know things are bad when the girl with a sprained ankle wants to start walking to get the nerves back in her leg. 

 I was singing a song softly under my breath, my voice drifting down the vast Drageryian Hall. The sound wandered back to me, reverberating past the stainless arched windows carved on the sides of the building. The sunlight of the afternoon streamed through, the warmest sunlight Cimeria had had in two weeks, bringing a golden glow to the otherwise alabaster hall. 

My heel bounced off the white marble floor, the sound joining in with my song. I was beginning to crave some company, but unfortunately for me, I couldn't have any. Witnesses for a regius trial weren't permitted to speak to anybody the moment they entered the premises. 

Drageryian Hall contained thirteen different court rooms. Twelve of them were meant for plebeius trials--Latin for 'commoner.' These were the courts for the public, of regular trials presided over by ordinary judges and juries and prosecutors. The usual shebang. 

There was one large court at the very end of the building, its black doors engraved with depictions of the how Cimeria came to be. It was guarded at all times when Drageryian Hall was open, locked by a key that only the Head of the Court possessed. It was the regius atrium, reserved only for trials dealing with the twelve clans of Cimeria. The only trials that the official Court of Cimeria would preside over. 

The regius atrium was hardly ever in use. The doors would only open once in a blue moon.  The last time the atrium had been in use was for Archer's trial eight years ago, where he had been stripped of his princely title. Funnily enough, just two weeks ago, the doors had reopened for Archer, righting the wrongs of the past. 

Now, the doors had  opened for Abigail Blackewell. Right now, her trial was in session, where the Court and clans would weigh all of the information presented in order to decide her fate. Not that there was much to decide. Treason committed by a noble of Cimeria was a crime that could never earn forgiveness. 

As I sat in silence, admiring the marble statue of Dike, the Greek goddess of justice, I began wondering who the new Head of the Court was. After Abigail's one and only confession throughout her entire interrogation, the previous Head-- Robert Lakesyn (clearly that family has it out for me)--had been immediately dismissed. His replacement had come just in time for Archer's trial. I tried to ask my brother who it was, but he was too busy announcing himself as the once and future king of Cimeria returned at the top of his lungs to answer me. 

All I knew was that Robert Lakesyn, using his authority as the Head of the Court, had ignored the clans and ruled for Archer to be taken down. According to his confession at XYZ, he had been bribed to do so, but he wouldn't name the perpetrator, Naturally the blame fell to Abigail and Jonathan Fields was promptly tossed into jail, awaiting his own trial. 

Other than that, my knowledge was limited. Elijah, Archer, Flynn--none of them would say a word (then again, the only times Flynn did say anything was if the topic was about Alec's health). My own friends stayed silent. They'd vaguely mention a threat made by my grandmother before hurrying off, leaving me in the dark. I couldn't even tempt Logan to say anything, that rule-abiding twerp.