Dead Giveaway

The Devil's in the Details

The recess was over far too fast. As convinced as Niel was that this would go off without a hitch, I was in no state of mind to face my aunt again.

Yet I was back on that stupid platform in what felt like a minute. Maybe less.

The judge called the court to order as Jones shuffled back into his position. He cleared his throat once, and then twice. Something had happened. There was no sign of the translator but a new woman was sitting with my aunt. My aunt looked pissed by this entire arrangement.

"We will now continue the custody case of Chara Dreemurr" the judge said shortly. "And I do believe that one side has a confession for us"

Jones stepped forward and cleared his throat yet again. "It has come to my knowledge that the translator Ms. Brodeur hired was lying to protect her. It is a long-term friend of Ms Brodeur who faked her credentials. I do apologize for this. I was unaware my client was participating in such a scheme"

The judge nodded solemnly. "Ms Brodeur has been given one of our translators to help with the language barrier. One whom we know she has not met and is impartial and honest. Ms Brodeur, I do hope you realize this has severely limited your chances of gaining custody of your niece"

My aunt bristled like a cat who had water thrown on them.

"The translator has confirmed to me that Miss Chara's statements about what her aunt said are correct. Her aunt was well aware of the abuse and believed she deserved it".

Neil grinned.

"Parks, you have one more person to question?"

"Yes your honour. Although he is more of a witness."

"The court calls Sans Serriff to the witness stand"

Sans stood up and Niel pointed me to a chair off the side of the platform. I stared blankly at him. I thought I always had to be on this platform. He urged me down more insistently. Sans and I switched places.

"You're Chara's...?"

"Stepdad." Sans said instantly.

"I see. Parks, you may continue."

Niel stood across from Sans. What I saw next can only be described as a signal in some kind of vicious attack plan. Niel set down the tablet he had been using and grinned. Sans braced his hands on the platform railing and grinned back.

Oh motherfucker they had PLANNED something!

"I've spoken to Sans in detail about Chara's upbringing" Niel clarified to the court. "Now, Sans. What differences have you noticed in Chara that a typical nine year old would not be dealing with?"

"Well, there's a lot. She cusses more than most of the royal guard. She knows what sex is, in vivid detail. She has PTSD flashbacks and has been in a mental hospital. She's deathly terrified of being remotely exposed due to being brutally raped. She has a serious attitude problem. Shall I continue?"

"No that's quite enough. You've discovered a collection of injuries on her. Would you elaborate more on those?"

Sans nodded. "I am training her in magic. During our first session she had an intense power surge that sent both of us flying backwards. I was able to get my balance, but being a beginner she could not. She hit the wall before I could stop her. I helped her up and noticed blood on her shoulder. I told her she was bleeding and she got very concerned about it. More than most kids would be over something like a scrape. She took her sweatshirt off and examined her shoulder, and that's when I noticed the scars. Jagged, pink scrapes across her right shoulder-blade. They'd been made with a steak knife. I asked her about them but she refused to explain. So I grabbed her by the other arm and tried to take her upstairs. But she yelped with such force that it startled me. I stopped and looked back at her and she was wincing and rubbing her arm. She begged me to just let her go upstairs. I looked down and... I can't even describe what I saw. Horrible, really. An extensive collection of lacerations. I was horrified by it. She was nearly shaking. I just knew that they were self-harm scars. I got her upstairs as fast as I could and treated her wounds. She told me her birth mother had tried to cut off her arm with a kitchen knife. And the scars on her arm were indeed her doing. I've caught her with fresh scars again twice since that incident."

Silence fell over the monsters. None of them knew the extent of my problem. I picked uncomfortably at my arm, only for my hand to be grabbed in a shield of soft blue magic. I snapped my head up, startled. Did he have eyes in the side of his head or something?

"Sans has emailed me photos of the damage to Chara's arm and shoulder." He took out two large prints. One of which I recognized as the picture Sans had taken a month earlier. The phone flash was harsh against my extremely pale skin but the jagged cuts were clearly visible in both photos. I cringed.

"And Chara has confirmed to you that her aunt is the cause of her self harm, you've said. Please, tell us about that night"

I tensed up. A lot. That was a rough night. I knew Sans wouldn't spare the details. The devil is in the details after all. This was torture. Having to listen to my own problems being recited and recorded.

"I woke up in the middle of the night for a drink. I heard noises from the other side of the house but didn't think much. I had three kids after all. But I realized that the noises were coming from the basement and there was a muffled scream. I ran down as fast as I could. And sure enough there was someone in the basement. I blindly threw them against the wall with my magic and demanded to know who they were. I turned on the light and realized it was Chara. Her knife was in her hand and her arm was bleeding. It didn't take much to put two and two together. I got the cuts wrapped and treated and we sat on the couch and talked" When he said that he nodded to Niel.

Niel went to his tablet and clicked on it for a minute. "Sans also emailed me this". He clicked a button and suddenly Sans's voice, along with my own, echoed through the courtroom.

<em>"C'mon up. I ain't gonna bite. ......So. Tell me about your aunt kiddo".

"Sans I'd rather not".

"I know. But it's keeping you up at night and causing you to relapse. So you gotta talk about it. ...Chariana...."

"Okay okay! Well she's racist, sexist, and an abuser. She got mad when I spoke English..."</em>

I listened in horror as the entirety of the talk Sans and I had played for everyone to hear. I glared holes into his head.

That fucker had recorded me.

"...But a woman with too much lipstick on sends you scrambling for your knife?"

"Yeah I know it makes no sense. I don't need a reminder of how broken I am"

The recorded finished and I looked for reactions. My aunt was flushed red. Caught.

The judge was raising his eyebrows.

Sans and Niel were both smirking.

I was humiliated.

"Thank you Mr. Serriff. I believe you've given us plenty."

Sans took his seat and Niel ushered me back into the platform. I stood quietly, glaring intensely at Sans. He just shrugged. I was gonna get him for that.

"Now something doesn't make sense here" Jones announced. "Chara's records say she was born in 1956. Not only that, they say she died in April of 1966. How on earth do you explain that?"

Niel turned to me. "My client requested that I let her answer that herself".

"And I'm more than willing to answer." I confirmed.

The judge was looking at me now too. "The floor is yours, Miss Chara".

Now it was my turn to smirk. I knew exactly how to prove to them that I was better off with the monsters. "The Dreemurrs are the reason I stopped wanting to die" I started.

Despite feeling myself shake I kept it up. I had to keep going. And I was damn well going to.