The Other Lightwood. (Jace Herondale.)

#11

It was time for the trial.

Rose sat in the front, watching Magnus.

"Will I survive if I touch it?" Magnus asked the inquisitor.

"If you tell the truth." She replied.

"By the power of this sword, do you swear to defend your client with integrity and honesty?" A Silent Brother asked him, as he cautiously put his hands on the Soul Sword.

"No argument from me on that." Magnus said, before taking his hands off.

"Make your case, warlock." The inquisitor told him.

"My case is simple. It is true that Rosalie Lightwood acted against the orders of the Clave by trying to free that Seelie, Meliorn. But she did not act against the interests of the Clave. Preventing the forced questioning and possible death of a Seelie may have saved the Accords."

"We're not here to speculate what might have happened if the defendant hadn't interfered." The inquisitor said.

"You mean what might have happened if she hadn't stopped the Silent Brothers from torturing a Seelie?"

"I await a valid argument. Do you have one?"

"What you really want is the Mortal Cup. My client doesn't have it. Since this whole proceeding isn't about what it's really about, I move to have this case dismissed."

"You're out of order."

"No. This whole thing is out of order. It's not Rosalie's fault. It's the Cup! Put the Cup in trial!"

And with that, Magnus came back over and sat beside Rosalie.

Rosalie was soon called up.

She took a seat, and then Lydia got up.

"You have led us to believe that you alone carried out this operation. But Clary Fairchild was seen near the City of Bones that night." Lydia started

"Maybe she was out for a walk."

"And you expect us to believe that you distracted the guards, and escaped with the prisoner on your own?"

"Pretty slick, right?" Rosalie said, looking to the Inquisitor.

"I suggest you think about how slick it would be when Valentine uses the Mortal Cup to raise an army of rogue Shadowhunters." The Inquisitor said.

"I don't want Valentine to succeed." Rose told her.

"Well, that's the first same thing I've heard from you."

"You know what's insane? Thinking we have the right to treat a Downworlder's life as worthless."

"Rosalie, I should warn you that everything you say here will be considered in the verdict." Lydia told her.

"Good. Consider this." Rose stood up, having enough of this.

"Valentine didn't come out of nowhere. We use our angel blood to justify everything we do, just like him. Like him, we forget that we are not only angels. We are part mundane. We can be afraid. And fear makes us cruel. And we turn our fear to Downworlders just as Valentine did. And just as he did... we will end up turning on each other."

"You think we're doing that to you?" The Inquisitor asked her.

"You have to answer that for yourself... Madam Inquisitor." Rosalie just said.

She then walked back over and sat by Magnus.

Magnus got up.

"I'd like to call Lydia Branwell to the stand." He said.