Disclaimer: I don’t want to get in whatever trouble people can get into when using other people’s characters so - .The Legend of Zelda, Link, Zelda, Ganon, Hyrule and other related characters and settings belong to to that wonderous console company, Nintendo. No infringement intended.

Juliet A. Singleton (Scullys@bigfoot.com) & Kirsty Singleton (Indigo_Spacen@mail.com)

Chapter 8

"Let it be known, that Leigh Temple of Sosaria, stands accused of numerous crimes. These are: Insulting the heir of Hyrule, Princess Zelda. Stealing the property of one Mr. Edgar Hutz. Assaulting the heir of Hyrule, Princess Zelda, two castle guards, and the Molderan knight Sir Stobbart. Deserting the field of battle. Escaping from the prison cells of North Castle and taking heir of Hyrule, Princess Zelda as hostage. Making uncalled advances upon the King-to-be of Hyrule. The brutal murders of seven innocent people, including Lord Raymundo of Brynnel, and finally, consorting with the King of Evil, Ganondorf Dragmire," the guard finished. There were several gasps around the court, including one from Leigh. She couldn't believe it. She knew Zelda disliked her, even hated her, but this was ridiculous. Okay she had to admit to some of those things but desertion? Consorting with Ganondorf? And that thing about taking Zelda hostage had all been Zelda's idea. She opened her mouth to protest but decided against it. It probably wouldn't help her in the long run. The guard began to speak again. "For this trial, heir of Hyrule, Princess Zelda shall conduct the questioning, all hail Princess Zelda. We shall now hear the evidence against this heinous villain," said the guard. He sat down. Zelda stood up.

"For this trial, we shall address each crime one by one, calling up each witness as seen appropriate. We shall start with the least important, to the most important. Understood?" started Zelda. There were murmurs of agreement around the court. "First of all, the insulting of myself, ruler-to-be of Hyrule," said Zelda. Leigh rolled her eyes, this was going to take an age. "I call Joseph Toiel before the court to recount the events around this incident," announced Zelda. The guard who had led Leigh into the court room stood before Zelda. "Mr. Toiel, can you recall the exact words with which Leigh temple insulted myself and the kingdom with?" asked Zelda. The guard nodded.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I can. Her exact words were 'Curse you and all of Hyrule. May you all rot in the void,'" said the guard. Leigh's mouth hung open in disbelief.

"I never said anything of the sort!" she protested. Zelda shot her a sharp look.

"Silence in court or I hall have you charged for obstructing justice," warned Zelda menacingly. Zelda turned back to the guard. "Thank you Joseph. You may return to your seat. Now I call Anders Lansing before the court," said Zelda. Joseph bowed and sat down, then Anders stood up before Zelda. "Can you vouch for Joseph? Does he speak the truth?" asked Zelda. It was the other guard who had arrested Leigh. Anders nodded.

"Yes milady, that I can," he replied. Zelda turned to the jury.

"I also can agree with Joseph's statement," she said to the jury. They all nodded. Zelda motioned for Anders to return to his seat. "This woman has no respect for Hyrule or its inhabitants, surely she should be punished for such crimes," said Zelda. Leigh's blood boiled at the accusations. She heard people murmuring of her obvious guilt and gritted her teeth.

"Now, we move onto Ms. Temple's second crime. The stealing of Mr. Hutz's property, as well as assaulting him. I now call Mr. Edgar Hutz before the court, " she announced. "Mr. Hutz, could you tell me about the day when two of your finest stallions were stolen?" asked Zelda. The man nodded.

"Yes indeed milady. I was sitting in the stables, taking a break when a women walked into the stable and demanded two of my finest horses. She had a sword so I pointed out two horses and she grabbed one by the reins and mounted the other. She rode over to me and hit me in the face with the hilt of her sword. By the time I had come to, she had left," said Edgar. Zelda nodded.

"And can you see this women in this room?" she asked. Edgar nodded. "Would you be kind enough to point out the villain?" continued Zelda. Edgar pointed at Leigh. There were a few gasps and murmurs from the jury. Leigh shook her head in disbelief. She had stolen the horses, true enough, but she had not attacked Hutz. She hadn't even seen him. Zelda nodded. "Thank you Mr. Hutz. No more questions," said Zelda. Edgar nodded and returned to his seat. "Already, we are seeing that Ms. Temple is violent and cruel, and enjoys to see innocents to suffer," said Zelda. Whispers filled the court.

"We now move onto Ms. Temple's third crime, which is," Zelda consulted a scrap of paper, "Assault on four charges, I call Joseph Toiel and Anders Lansing before the court," finished Zelda. The two stood up for the second time. "Is it true, that both of you fine guards were attacked unnecessarily by Ms. Temple when you tried to arrest her?" asked Zelda.

"Yes," they both answered in unison.

"Could you elaborate?" asked Zelda. Anders spoke up first.

"First, when we tried to arrest her, she elbowed us in the chest, hit us in the face and tried to slit our throats with a concealed dagger. She then continued to hit yourself in the face twice," he said.

"That's the truth," agreed Joseph.

"No it isn't! It's a pack of lies!" protested Leigh.

"Silence," called Zelda. "You may return to your seats," said Zelda to the two guards. They did so. "I now call Sir Stobbart to witness before the court," said Zelda.

"You can't do that! He's on the jury!" protested Leigh. Zelda ignored her.

"Sir Stobbart, is it true that Ms. Temple attacked you for no particular reason?" asked Zelda. George nodded.

"Yes, I went down to her cell to inform her that the trial was set to be on this day and she flew at me, knocking me to the ground. She then kicked me in the chest while I was down, and called me several names that should never be repeated in front of a lady such as yourself," replied George. Zelda nodded.

"You may sit," she said. She turned to the court. "You have the word of myself, two loyal castle guards, and an honourable Molderan knight, that this woman is unpredictable and violent. Should she really be walking the streets of Hyrule, I think not," said Zelda. Murmurs filled the court. Zelda waited for silence before she spoke again.

"We shall now address the fourth crime on this long list, that being desertion on the field of battle," said Zelda. "Sir Drake, please stand before the court," said Zelda. Leigh watched in surprise. Surely the knight would not go along with this charade? "Sir Drake, speak when spoken too, and not at any other time. Now, Is it true that on a certain day during the war, you entered Ms. Temple's tent to find she had disappeared?" asked Zelda.

"Yes, but.." started Drake. Zelda cut in.

"And isn't it true that no note was left, nor did she return until quite a few days after?" continued Zelda.

"Yes, but…" tried Drake again.

"You may return to your seat," said Zelda. Drake tried to speak again, but when Zelda glared at him icily he gave up and sat back down.

"I'd been kidnapped!" said Leigh angrily.

"Silence, you will get your turn to speak later," snapped Zelda. Zelda turned to the jury. "You have the word of the honourable Sir Drake, what more proof do you need? She deserted the site of battle and did not return until a few days later, after she had found herself injured. We all know that people who desert are weaklings and cowards, and this is exactly what this woman is. Picking on peoples weaknesses and attacking them when they are off-guard is exactly her tendency," said Zelda. Leigh frowned, she could see how much Zelda was enjoying this, and Leigh had to admit that Zelda was good at it. Although most of it was lies, many people didn't know, and the evidence was really piling up against her.

"We now move onto crime number five, that being escaping from her cell and taking myself hostage. This itself is a jailable offence," said Zelda. "I call Joel Stone before the court." Joel stood up and Leigh recognised him as being her jailer. "Mr. Stone, could you kindly tell the court of the day Ms. Temple escaped?" asked Zelda.

"Yes ma'am. You had gone down to her cell, and I was waiting not so far away. Ms. Temple had somehow managed to pick the lock and retrieved a dagger from somewhere. She held it to your throat and dragged you down the corridor, threatening to harm you if anyone approached. I'm afraid I could do nothing about it," said Joel.

"Thank you Joel. You may be seated," said Zelda kindly. Joel bowed and returned to his seat. "I now call Harry Charles before the court," said Zelda. A burly man stood up and made his way to the front. "Like Mr. Stone, please tell the court and jury of the same day on which Ms. Temple escaped," said Zelda. Harry nodded.

"She must've stolen a horse from the stable and rode through the gate while it was open. We gave chase but could not shoot at her as she had you seated behind her, using you as a shield. That's how cowardly she is," said Harry.

"Thank you Harry, sit," said Zelda. He bowed then did as instructed. Zelda turned back to the Jury. "Again, Ms. Temple is labelled as a coward. I found the whole experience very harrowing and I think myself very lucky to have escaped with my life," said Zelda. The court nodded sympathetically. Zelda turned back to the court.

"The next crime, crime number six I might add, is the advances that Ms. Temple made towards my very own husband! Link is not available for comment so I call Fayette of Sosaria before the court," Leigh glanced around the room. Yes, she'd thought someone had been missing. She turned her attention back to Zelda. What did Fayette have to do with this? "Fayette, could you please inform the court of what you saw not so many nights ago in the grounds of this very castle?" asked Zelda. Fayette nodded, her eyes shining with glee.

"I can recall it with crystal clarity. I was taking a late night stroll when I came upon two figures. Upon closer inspection I realised the two to be Ms. Temple and Link. Curious I watched the two for a while, and it seemed that Ms. Temple was hassling the young hero. The next moment she attempted to embrace him but he stepped away saying that it was not right. She got angry and began to shout at him when he walked away. After that I quickly left." Leigh couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"I have no more questions, many thanks Fayette," concluded Zelda. Fayette nodded and sat back down. "As you can see, Ms. Temple likes to get her way, and when she does not she reacts badly, could the rejection from my husband caused the violent reaction to her arrest? Perhaps so," said Zelda, she turned to Leigh and gave her a smug smile. No one else saw it.

"Crime number seven is perhaps the worst of them all. The murder of seven innocent people for absolutely no reason whatsoever. One of those was Raymundo of Brynnel. It is suspected that he also was one man to reject her advances, perhaps the reason for his murder? And then there were the six Ruto villagers who were senselessly killed in front of fellow villagers and family members. It was not necessary, but it sadly happened. I call Eric Smith before the jury," said Zelda. And young man stood up, he could be no older than seventeen. "Now Eric, I will keep this brief as I can see how upsetting it is. Could you point out the person who brutally took the lives of both of your parents as you helplessly watched?" asked Zelda. The young man nodded and pointed over to Leigh. His face then crumpled and he fled from the room. More gasps emerged from the jury. Leigh slumped against the stand. How could she protest? She couldn't prove she hadn't done it, and more than a handful of people had seen 'her' commit the crime. Zelda called forward a handful more of witnesses, all villagers of Ruto whom had seen Leigh kill their friends and loved ones. Each one pointed the accusing finger at her and she knew there was nothing she could do about it. She had never felt so terrible in her life. Just to think that people thought she was a cold-blooded murdered sent shudders through her body. When Zelda had finished with the villagers she called forward Fayette. "Fayette, I understand that your husband uttered a few words before he died. Could you tell the rest of the jury those words?" asked Zelda softly. Fayette nodded. She looked upset.

"Yes, he told me that Leigh, her, had done it," said Fayette, letting out a sob. She pointed the accusing finger towards Leigh.

"Thank you Fayette, you may sit down," said Zelda with a nod. Fayette sat down. "Now, I call Selina Rowen before the court," said Zelda. Selina stood up. Leigh perked up, there could be hope yet. "Now Selina, I understand that you treated Raye's wounds before he passed away?" asked Zelda. Selina nodded, looking a little confused.

"Well yes, but I…" agreed Selina.

"Could you describe the wounds?" asked Zelda.

"Yes, they were fatal, what more do you need to know?" answered Selina.

"Would you say they were designed to kill, yet slowly, making the victim suffer for longer?" asked Zelda.

"I suppose so," agreed Selina slowly.

"That is all, you may return to your seat," dismissed Zelda.

"But.." protested Selina.

"That is all. Return to your seat," ordered Zelda. Reluctantly, Selina sat back down. "So not only is Ms. Temple intent on taking lives, she wishes those to suffer as well. Ensuring that a man die slowly, and killing people before their loved ones eyes shows just how evil she is," summarised Zelda. "She obviously didn't count on Raymundo returning before he died and telling his wife who murdered him," added Zelda. The court erupted into excited whispers. Leigh wished she could sink down into the ground and disappear, never to return again.

"And finally, the last in this list of crimes that this contemptible woman has committed. Consorting with Ganondorf Dragmire!" announced Zelda. The entire court gasped.

"That's a lie and you know it!" yelled Leigh, unable to hold her tongue.

"Silence! I will not tell you again!" commanded Zelda. Leigh yanked her cuffs hard, breaking the pole they had been attached to. The court gasped and two guards stood, drawing their swords. Leigh was shaking with fury.

"I've sat here, for God knows how long, listening to your crap and I've tried to keep my mouth shut. But half of it is untrue and you know it. This court is full of liars and frauds and I'm sure that your Triforce would agree!" yelled Leigh, trying to regain control of her anger. She noticed she'd been clutching to the stand so hard that her knuckles had turned white. She released her grip. "I've never killed anyone good or innocent. I didn't kill those people, it was Ganondorf. He can change his shape? Surely? If he's some great sorcerer he's bound to be able to do so. I don't know why he did it, God knows how his mind works, but I'm telling you it wasn't me!" protested Leigh. She stopped. Looking round the court she noticed it was silent. She could tell what they were thinking. She caught Zelda's eye and noticed the princess had a slight, smug smile on her face. Leigh slammed her fist against the stand then slumped down. It was as good as over.

"You know, it might be an idea to ask the Triforce," said Drake, speaking up. Zelda shot him an icy stare.

"The Triforce should not be used for such trivial matters," said Zelda coldly. Leigh stood up.

"Trivial? I'm up for mass murder and she calls it trivial? Doesn't that strike you as odd. Perhaps because she knows that the reason why I'm really up here is trivial," said Leigh trying to salvage the situation. She noticed the icy stares directed at her from the jury. She sighed.

"Given the weight of the evidence seems overwhelming, perhaps we should spare the defendant from further embarrassment," suggested Zelda.

"Meaning?" asked Leigh.

"That we adjourn now and allow the jury to make a decision. I don't believe anything you could say could change the mind of the jury," said Zelda.

"No, I'm going to have may say, whether you like it or not," said Leigh angrily. Zelda nodded and turned to the jury.

"I have called my last witness, and have presented the proof that Ms. Temple is guilty of the things which she is charged," said Zelda. The guard who had stood at the start stood again. "Let us bring this session of the trial to an end. We shall recess until tomorrow and then return at twelve p.m. to hear Leigh's defence, thank you," said the guard. Two guards walked to the stand and grabbed Leigh roughly by the shoulders. The rest of the court and jury filed out whilst she was dragged back down to her cell. She had to admit things didn't look too good.

 

********

Leigh sat up from her bunk. She felt awful. Rubbing her temples she stood up and walked over to the cell door. She couldn't believe the mess she'd managed to get herself into. She supposed after yesterdays little incident there was no way anything she could say would redeem herself. Well, she had to try. She stared up at the low ceiling, wondering why this was happening to her. It'd all started when she'd been accidentally told about British's little affair. She'd then told someone else, after they had asked her if it had been true, and then she'd been exiled. It was hardly a reason. Not after what she'd done for Sosaria, she reckoned that she deserved a little gratitude for her deeds. However, her supposed friend British hadn't seen it that way. She slammed her fist against the wall. Hard. Cursing she walked back over to her bed, wondering if she'd broken any bones. Zelda had been right when she'd suggested the trial end right there. She was just going to embarrass herself even further than she already had done. At that moment, she heard heavy footfalls coming down the passage. Was it midday already? She'd already noticed the days meal at the door, but she hadn't touched it. For some reason she didn't have much of an appetite. She stood back up and walked over to the door. Two guards appeared and one unlocked the door. Leigh held out her hands, ready to be cuffed. One guard stepped inside the cell and did so. "You think it's bad now, you just wait 'til the sentencin'," said the guard. He wasn't sympathetic. Leigh said nothing and waited to be led from the cell. "Ooh, cat got your tongue? You certainly had a lot to say yesterday," mocked the other guard. Leigh felt like breaking his neck but she knew it wouldn't help her cause. It also worried her that she was beginning to think like that. She didn't normally get so angry. She was dragged rather unceremoniously up to the court room. Like the day before the place was packed, and again she was put into the small stand. She noticed the wooden pole had vanished and been replaced with an iron one. She was cuffed to it then left.

Zelda rose from her seat and stood before Leigh. She turned to the jury. "Ms. Temple, who is representing herself, shall now present the facts to defend herself," said Zelda. She then turned back to Leigh. "Leigh you may call upon any person present in this court, and may ask any pertinent questions to this case," she informed the heroine. Leigh nodded slowly, scanning the court. She thought all night long of who to question, and the fact was, there weren't many she could question. She desperately didn't want to drag Link into this case, but it looked like she would have no choice. The night before, a guard had come to her cell, asking her if there was anyone she would like to be present for questioning. To her surprise, everyone she had requested to be there, was. "Whom would you like to call before the court?" asked Zelda, somewhat impatiently. Leigh looked around nervously, she let out a small sigh. It was now or never.

"Concerning the accusation of me insulting yourself, I would like to call Joseph Toiel before the jury," said Leigh. The guard stood up, facing Leigh. Leigh rested her arms casually upon the stand, watching Joseph casually. "Mr. Toiel, is it safe to assume you have a wife?" asked Leigh.

"Well yes but," replied the guard uneasily.

"That is not relevant," said Zelda suddenly.

"I would guess you love her very much," continued Leigh, ignoring Zelda.

"These questions are not relevant," cried Zelda angrily. Joseph nodded, looking across to Zelda nervously.

"So would it not be reasonable for me to ask you to swear on your wife's life, that what you told the court yesterday was entirely true?" asked Leigh. Joseph swallowed and looked over to the jury who were watching with interest. Leigh noticed that Zelda was beginning to look a little worried.

"Uh…" stuttered the soldier.

"Could you please tell us again, Mr. Toiel, my exact words on that day that I insulted your princess?" asked Leigh. Joseph swallowed again, wringing his hands.

"Uh, well to be honest, I can't exactly remember your exact words," replied the guard slowly, he was still watching Zelda nervously.

"So in other words, yesterday, you weren't telling the entire truth?" pressed Leigh.

"The words were similar!" protested Joseph, glancing over at the jury.

"But not what you said yesterday?" continued Leigh. Joseph said nothing. "Thank you Mr. Toiel, no further questions," said Leigh. He nodded and sat down. Leigh turned to face the jury. "So you see, although I do admit to insulting Zelda, the words I came out with weren't nearly as bad as some people made them out to be," explained Leigh, glancing over at Zelda meaningfully. The jury nodded and began to whisper amongst themselves. Leigh smiled with satisfaction, perhaps this wasn't going to be so bad after all. She turned back to Zelda.

"For my second witness, concerning the accusation of theft, I would like to call before the court a Mr. Edgar Hutz," said Leigh.

"Mr. Hutz," called Zelda, whose face had turned a considerable shade of crimson. The man stood before Leigh, looking considerably nervous.

"Mr. Hutz, yesterday you told this court that I had assaulted you, is that true?" asked Leigh. Edgar looked down at his feet, trying to avoid eye contact with the Avatar.

"Yes," he said, his voice muffled.

"Now, Mr. Hutz, the way I remember it, I went into the stable, yes I took the horses even, but I can't recall even seeing you. Also, is it not true that a few days after the event your horses were returned, along with a small, anonymous payment?" asked Leigh.

"Yes," said Edgar, his voice even more muffled.

"Could you repeat that Mr. Hutz, some of us may not have heard," asked Leigh politely. Edgar looked up.

"Okay, yes. I didn't see you, and the horses were returned, so okay I didn't tell the whole truth, but you still stole them horses!" said Edgar angrily. There were a few gasps around the court.

"In other words Mr. Hutz you lied to the jury. That's obstruction of justice you know. My, my what a corrupt little court we do have here," observed Leigh. "No further questions," she added. Edgar grunted and returned to his seat. Zelda was looking less than happy, although she wasn't quite the same shade as she had been a few minutes ago. Leigh turned to the jury. "Yes, I took those horses. But only upon the instruction of a certain princess whom I had supposedly taken hostage, but that's another story," said Leigh.

"Accusation number 3, assault, on three counts I see. I call princess Tamara of the faeries before the court," said Leigh, consulting a piece of parchment. Sprite appeared, seemingly from nowhere and hovered before Leigh. "I have brought you before the court to question you about a night prior to my 'assault' on Princess Zelda and Mr. Toiel and Mr. Lansing. Is it true that you saw Princess Zelda in fact assault me?" asked Leigh. Sprite smiled wickedly and nodded her head.

"I saw it all, she pushed you over and slapped you for absolutely no reason at all!" claimed Sprite. The court gasped.

"What! That's a lie!" protested Zelda.

"See how you like it," snarled Leigh quietly to Zelda, so that no others could hear.

"I swear, I saw it, I swear on the Triforce," continued Sprite excitedly. The court gasped again.

"She's lying!" insisted Zelda.

"Don't make me call Link up here," threatened Leigh quietly. Zelda stepped backwards, keeping silent. "Thank you, no further questions," said Leigh, smiling at the faerie. Although it'd been her who'd practically caused this whole event, Leigh felt that the faerie had redeemed herself a little bit at least.

"My pleasure," said Sprite with a curtsey before vanishing. Leigh turned to the jury once again.

"I admit, I did hit those guards, as well as Zelda. It was wrong of me, but with your own ruler-to-be setting such an example, is it any surprise I lost my temper?" asked Leigh. The jury burst into excited whispers, discussing this possibility. Zelda watched on, frowning, she hadn't expected Leigh to be so cool and collected about the trial.

"Concerning the third assault, I'd like to call Mr. Stobbart before the court," said Leigh. George stood, smug smile firmly planted on face. "About this assault Mr. Stobbart, why don't you tell the jury the real reason about why you came down to my cell?" asked Leigh, smiling.

"As I told the court yesterday, to inform you of the trial," said Stobbart confidently.

"No, the real reason," insisted Leigh, leaning forward.

"That was the only reason," said Stobbart.

"You weren't supposed to be down there in the first place were you Mr. Stobbart? You bribed the guard into letting you down there didn't you," said Leigh, pressing. There were a couple of gasps.

"Nonsense, you can ask Zelda. She asked me to tell you, I was given permission," said Stobbart, smirking at Leigh. Leigh stood up straight, glaring down at Stobbart.

"You paid that guard a lot of money. You wanted repaying," went on Leigh. Stobbart let out a short chuckle.

"I really don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"You didn't want money though. You wanted something else, didn't you?" pressed Leigh, hoping he would crack. Stobbart swallowed nervously, looking around the court, hoping no-one noticed he was beginning to break out into a sweat. He tugged at his collar uncomfortably. There was a short pause before he spoke up again.

"I don't have to listen to this," he announced defiantly.

"If you don't tell them I will Mr. Stobbart," said Leigh, her gaze piercing his. He ran a hand through his blonde hair, wondering if she would say anything. "Mr. Stobbart is not going to tell the court what he really wanted, but I can certainly tell you. I'm sure you can see from his nervous stance, sweating, shifty eyes that he is guilty of what I am implying. Some of the jury members nodded thoughtfully. "What Mr. Stobbart wanted from me was to fulfil his sexual desires, he wanted me to repay him be using my body for his satisfaction. Now I ask you, was I to stand by and let him do this? I attacked him, no, pushed him away from myself in an effort to stop him. I admit to kicking him while he was down, but only because his actions disgusted me. Should a knight act in this way? I think not, who was the real criminal here? Me, for defending myself? I hardly think so," concluded Leigh. People all around the room gasped with disgust and surprise. Although some people, like Drake, had a gut feeling that Leigh was speaking the truth. He certainly wouldn't put such a deed past the Molderan knight.

"I don't have to listen to these false accusations!" spat Stobbart angrily. And with that he stormed from the room. Hastily Drake followed him, he wanted the knight to know that such actions would not be tolerated here in North Castle. As Leigh watched Drake chase the Molderan knight she silently cursed, she had been counting on Drake to help her with the next accusation.

"Now that that is out of the way, let me address crime number five. Desertion. There are at least one witnesses I will call before the jury, but first I want to tell my side of the story. I never deserted, I was kidnapped, there was even a ransom note for goodness sake. This accusation was a waste of the courts time. True, the ransom note did bear Zelda's name, but when Sir Drake received it, he knew Zelda was safe. So is it not safe to think that I was mistaken for Zelda, what with our similar figures and hair, as well as use of magic. An easy mistake for a Tanolian to make, do you not think?" said Leigh. There were a few murmurs of agreement around the court. "I call Balayna of the Gerudo before the court," announced Leigh. The Gerudo stood up, waiting patiently. "Balayna, I thank you for travelling to be with us today. Can you vouch for my story?" asked Leigh. The Gerudo nodded.

"Yes. Ganondorf gloated of how they had kidnapped the princess, but when he discovered it was you he was extremely angry. Even more so when you managed to escape, he ordered for us to find you, recapture you, but of course we didn't," said Balayna.

"You also saw me returning to the battle site as well?" continued Leigh.

"Yes, you were injured while falling from the back of that dragon. I believe that was when you were returning to the site of battle," agreed Balayna.

"Thank you Balayna, no more questions," thanked Leigh. Balayna nodded and returned to her seat. "Next, I call Sal the Dragon before the court," said Leigh. Sal, who had been shrunk down to size for the purpose of the case ambled over to Leigh from a corner in the room.

"Yes, you were kidnapped and I took you back. You wanted to go back, you'd been kidnapped," said Sal, boredly, wanting to get it over with as soon as possible. Leigh turned to the jury, eyebrows raised. They nodded back to her, as in that particular piece of evidence would do.

"Uh, thank you Sal, I think," said Leigh turning back to the dragon.

"Oh, and so we can save time later, when I saw her and Zelda, it certainly didn't look like a hostage situation to me. Apparently it was Zelda's idea so that she could get Leigh away from the castle so that they could find and question me so that Zelda would know if Leigh had killed those people or not, and, relating to that, she was with me when those people in Ruto were killed, as well as Lord Raymundo. She didn't go anywhere so she couldn't of done it, I know she's innocent too," said the dragon. Leigh rolled her eyes. Although she was grateful to the dragon, she would've preferred to question Sal, just to make sure. Sal bowed her head in respect, then wandered back across to her corner, where she settled down and watched the rest of the trial. Leigh cleared her throat and turned back to the jury.

"Well, that kind of moves us on from Desertion, and onto my escape and keeping Zelda hostage. Sal was my first witness for that particular accusation so my next is Link," said Leigh.

Link stood up, feeling a little nervous. He couldn't say too much without ensuring that Zelda would never talk to him again, but this was court and he couldn't obstruct the course of justice. "Link, when you met up with me and Zelda, would you say I was keeping her hostage?" asked Leigh, hoping it wouldn't cause Link too much trouble.

"Uh, not really," replied Link, watching Zelda. She simply glared at him.

"And when we all returned to the castle, was I not cleared of the whole escaping/hostage/murder situation?" asked Leigh. Link nodded.

"I suppose so," said Link vaguely.

"And this was because I had a suitable alibi?" continued Leigh.

"Uh-hm," agreed Link.

"That's all, for this particular accusation. You may return to your seat. We have another matter to clear up," said Leigh. She then turned to the jury. "I'm going to admit now that I did kiss Link. Once, on the day I met him. I didn't know he was married, but I found him very attractive. Looking back, I know it was a pretty damn stupid thing to do, but the whole thing has been blown out of proportion. We haven't had any clandestine little meetings, or anything like that. We are just friends, and as for the tale told by Miss. Fayette yesterday, well what can I say? She lied, don't ask me why, ask her," said Leigh, turning to Fayette. The rest of the court did so, watching the woman carefully.

"I never lie. She's the liar!" insisted Fayette.

"But Fayette, surely you of all people would understand why felt it necessary to take action about my feelings for this man. At the time I found him very attractive, I could hardly resist. Now, I know him in a different light and do not wish to pursue him in any way, but you are after all, hardly known for your subtle manner when it comes to men," said Leigh scathingly. The rest of the court gasped.

"Well any good Sosarian knows all about you and your little affairs!" screeched Fayette.

"Why don't we ask Queen Fenella? After all, she is a notably impressive Sosarian, don't you agree?" said Leigh slyly, turning to Fenella. Fenella smiled and let out a nervous laugh.

"Is this really necessary?" asked the Queen, not wanting to de-name her daughter, but at the same time not wanting to defy the Avatar. Leigh nodded. "Well, I'm not really up to date on the matters of Sosaria, so I really wouldn't know whether Fayette is speaking the truth or not. She usually does though," said Fenella, trying to stay neutral. Leigh shrugged.

"The question is, many of you do not know me, but you do know Link. You know him as good, honest and courageous, well I'm sure nothing has changed," said Leigh truthfully.

"Now, on a more serious note, we move to the accusations of murder. I call Princess Tamara back to the stand," said Leigh, her expression grave. "Many people saw a person who had an uncanny resemblance to myself kill six innocent people. And the seventh victim said that I was the one who caused him to die. I cannot deny that, but I do deny that that person was not me. I do deny that I brutally and sadistically killed those people. I'm not saying that those who saw this person, who looked like me, are lying, so many people could not lie, but I repeat it was not me," started Leigh. She turned to Sprite. "Is it not true that Ganondorf Dragmire possessed the magical abilities to shape shift?" asked Leigh. Sprite nodded.

"Yes, even a small faerie can do it, although it would drain much of their energy. If Ganondorf were to do it, it would not cause him much fatigue, so he would have no problems with doing it," said Sprite.

"Thank you," thanked Leigh. She turned to the Jury. "My evidence may seem flimsy, but it is all I can present you with. But let me give you one more reason for you to think me innocent. Back in Sosaria I am known for saving lives, not taking them. Killing off whatever threatens the people of Sosaria, before it can claim any lives. Would it make sense for me to turn now? Kill these people with absolutely no motives? And as for the claim that I made advances on Lord Raymundo, well I can tell you it is not true. I don't think I ever really met him properly," said Leigh earnestly. Link suddenly stood up.

"If I may, I would like to say something," said Link. Leigh shrugged and nodded. "When I was battling Ganondorf for the final time, he had me cornered, my back to a gaping hole. He boasted of how he had murdered those people, making us believe that you had done it Leigh. He thanked me for my ignorance, as he said that while we had been bothering about what to do about the matter it had given him a long enough delay to prepare his plans and execute them as he wished. He told me himself he had killed those people, he thought I would be the last person to know," said Link, speaking from the heart. The court gasped. Leigh smiled at Link in appreciation, feeling as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She turned back to the jury.

"Surely you can believe the saviour of this country? Why would Ganondorf seek to frame me if I were consorting with him?" asked Leigh, feeling more and more positive by the minute.

"Are you finished?" asked Zelda. Leigh nodded, smirking slightly at Zelda.

"I believe I am," she said. A guard stood up.

"Both sides have stated their facts, and called their witnesses. Let it not be said there is no justice in Hyrule," declared the guard.

"Take the defendant back to her cell. We shall find out the verdict as soon as it is decided," said Zelda. Leigh was uncuffed from the pole and led back to her cell, wondering who long the jury would take to decide.

As Leigh sat in her cell, she heard footsteps down the passage. She stood up nervously, wondering if the verdict had been decided. In the torchlight she noticed that it was not her jailer but Drake. He unlocked the door and stepped inside the cell, closing it again, but not locking it. "Has it been decided?" asked Leigh, locking her hands together.

"No, not yet, but don't worry. I'm sure after today, there's no doubt in anyone's mind that you're innocent," said Drake, sitting down. Leigh sat down on her bunk, just opposite, still wringing her hands.

"What if they don't? I mean Fayette's on the jury," said Leigh, her voice shaking slightly. Drake placed one hand on her shoulder, rubbing it comfortingly. She smiled at him, thankful for him company. "So, why'd you come all the way down here?" asked Leigh.

"Thought you could do with the company. I also wanted to tell you that Stobbart is safely behind bars," replied Drake.

"Really?" asked Leigh in surprise.

"He can't get away with things like that, and I'm sure when you're proved innocent I can persuade the King that that bastard needs teaching a lesson," said Drake, his expression turning angry for a moment. Leigh covered Drake's hand with her own and smiled at him thankfully.

"Thank you. You don't know how much better that makes me feel," said Leigh.

"All part of the service," said Drake with a grin. For a moment they just sat there, in a comfortable silence just smiling at each other. Leigh wasn't sure, but there was something about being with this man that made her feel good about herself again. Drake dropped Leigh's hand and stood up. Leigh stood up with him.

"I'm not supposed to be down here that long, just wanted to see how you were," said Drake. As he turned to leave, Leigh caught Drake's hand, forcing him to turn back to her. She leaned forward, placing a small kiss upon his cheek. She stepped away, dropping his hand.

"Thank you, thank you for believing. Most wouldn't," she said softly. Drake smiled at her kindly.

"You won't be down here for much longer, don't you worry," he reassured. He then turned and left, locking the cell behind him. Leigh smiled to herself then sat back down on her bunk. Maybe life wasn't so bad after all.

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