I'll Protect You (Original Version)

Trading secrets in Drageryian Hall.

One Week Later

"Park Mai Elizabeth Sparrow," the old man standing in the doorway barked. On and on as the hours went, his voice had gone from bored to absolutely bitter. But, hey, I'd be bitter too if I had spent almost four hours in Drageryian Hall, walking back and forth to fetch witnesses for Abigail's trial.

Imagine the largest football stadium in the entire world (what's it called....I never pay attention to these things when sports are associated). Do you have it pictured?
That's how large Drageryian Hall is. Well, I may be exaggerating, but it was a massive hall. It was a very long walk between the north and south end. Unfortunately for him, that's where his destinations were: the north entrance to the southern hall, where Alexandra's Court was located.

I stood up quickly and ran after the old man, who was already beginning to walk down the cavernous hall. I fell in pace behind him as we strolled down the black road in the middle of the cream-marbled floor.

As we walked, I took the time to admire the flawless architecture of Drageryian Hall. My father used to let me come with him to the halls back when I was young. Since every trial required at least a member from six noble clans to attend, he was required to come here often. He'd bring me and let me wander around the halls with a bodyguard so I could study the architecture.
I had forgotten how much detail had been put into everything, even down to the last nook and cranny. High above, there were crystal chandeliers streaming bright light that allowed no such things as shadow to exist in the corners of the hall. There were arched windows almost twenty feel tall on the side, allowing the golden rays of the sun to filter through.

I remembered running down these marble floors, a textbook in my hand as I studied every chapter of Cimerian architecture and the layout of Drageryian Hall.

There wasn't a single soul in the hall besides the old man and me. Everyone that would've been working here was either piled into Alexandra's Court, eagerly watching Abigail Van Hasting's trial or at home, enjoying a day off.

A few minutes later, the old man stopped in front of a set of large, oak double doors. Carved on the surface were two trees the height of the doors. Both of them seemed like evergreens, with pines flaring out until it reached the edge of the doors.
He placed his hands on the golden handles and pulled on them. The doors opened and he stepped aside. My eyes nearly bugged out as I saw how many were crowded into the pews and sidelines. Every single head turned to gawk at me.

There was a sudden increase of pressure on my shoulders. For a moment, I felt as though my knees were about to buckle, and I couldn't breathe. There were way too many people here. I wanted to run away, shake off all the pressure and stress that had decided to cling to me.
Then, I took a deep breath and began to walk forward. My head was held high, my posture was perfectly straight, and I looked ahead of me with a cool and steady gaze, just like my mother had taught me. The strides I took were even with each step, and I didn't wobble, either (thank the gods I had elected to wear black flats instead of heels--imagine the disaster that would've lead to).

I walked down towards the empty clearing up front. Well, empty except for one person.
Seated in a chair that was drilled into the middle of the empty space in the rather colossal court hall was Abigail Van Hastings. I wonder what she felt right now. Angry? Fearful? Shamed?

I entered the empty "stage" and stood still, waiting for someone to walk up to me with the oath that I must swear by if I was to bear witness to the case.
I repressed the urge to shiver. Drageryian Hall was a very cold place, and Alexandra's Court was even colder.

There was a second floor to the court. Guarded by marble bannisters sat the Cimerian Court and the twelve noble clans.
Right in the middle sat the Head of the Court. This person was responsible for delivering the final judgement. They would bring the two sides together and discuss whether the degree of the punishment.

I tilted my head to get a better look at the person sitting in the chair. From what I could tell, the person was a female with brilliant orange hair. Ginny Weasley, is that you?
"Step forward," she commanded. Ah. So that's what her voice was like: sharp, detached, and very icy. It was very different from the last Head that

I took a step and stood with my feet together. I knew the drill: left arm behind back, right fist on the heart. If I was a soldier or agent, then my feet would be shoulder-width apart. Today, I presented myself as a member of the twelve noble clans.
Someone came up to me with a scroll in their hands. It was Cranky! His lips were set in the same frown he wore every time he came to the waiting room to fetch a witness. He unrolled the scroll and held it out in front of him.

"I, Park Mai Elizabeth Sparrow, daughter of William and Giselle, of the Sparrow clan, swear, on my life and country, that whatever I say from here on forth will be the truth and nothing but the truth. If discovered that I have lied, then I will accept whatever punishment delivered."

The old man pulled away, rolling up the parchment as he strode off to the side. I relaxed and stood with my hands crossed behind my back. I waited patiently for the Head to get settled.

After a few minutes, she spoke again. "My name is Emilia Lakesyn, the Head of the Cimerian Court. Today, I will be giving the final judgement on Abigail Van Hasting's punishment. We have had eight witnesses in total today that have testified. Our final witness is the sole victim of treacherous actions. Abigail Van Hastings, do you recognize the witness who stands behind you?"

She didn't stand up. At least not right away. After half a minute, Abigail stood up and turned around. She looked really horrible, in my completely honest opinion. Gone was her perfect hair always up in an elegant bun. She was wearing black in a form of clothing that reminded me of hospital scrubs. All of her make-up was off, as were the color on her nails, the heels on her feet, and the pearls on her neck. But still, the moment her eyes set on me, a cold sneer graced her face.

"Why, yes I do," she answered. "Princess Park. I'm so glad to see you made it out of the fire alive."
I'm so sad to you standing there, Abigail, I thought. I was hoping you'd be somewhere else, like, you know, a grave.

I said nothing out loud, though.
"Park Sparrow, you are a victim of the actions of Abigail Van Hastings, correct?"
Damn straight, I am. "Yes," I answered.

"Abigail has been accused of the following: kidnapping, arson, and attempted assassination. Do you recognize such actions?"
"I do, Your Honor," I replied.
"Will you now provide evidence as to how you recognize these actions?"

I took a moment to recollect all my bad memories and put them piece by piece, organizing them into a timeline as neatly and quickly as I could. There were so many and I wasn't sure if all of them were connected to her. Surely they couldn't be. If they were, then that's a lot of failed kidnappings and assassinations on her part.

Where did I start? Archer? No, no, that was private information for the moment. Actually, none of the world knew that he had his title stripped. The Court had respected our family's wishes to keep the information very private.
When did this really begin with me specifically....

"My first kidnapping that was executed by Abigail was when I was thirteen. My father and I were on our way back to Cimeria and one of our flight stops was in New York. I was taken at the terminal and were planning to take me even farther away. When I had asked if there was anything behind the kidnapping, they replied it was orders from, 'Her."
"When I was fourteen, my friend, Zen Li, and I were kidnapped. Again, when asked why, our kidnappers told us they had orders from, 'Her.'"
"I was also kidnapped at fifteen and sixteen. I have had--" I stopped talking and began counting on my fingers for a few seconds-- "almost ten attempts on my life per year since I turned fourteen. Most of them are from far away, so I don't know if they should be tied in with Abigail unless she confirms that it was her. Several, however, were ordered by her, since the assassinations were first-person encounters."

There were murmurings and hushed conversations buzzing around the room like an angry swarm of bees approaching from far off. I diverted my attention to the Head, who I could see was turning papers quickly. Court members and noble representatives were scribbling something down on their papers.
After a while, she cleared her throat and the room fell silent. "Abigail Van Hastings, do you agree with her statements?"