Night Witch

Chapter 4

The courtroom was a wide, spacious room with a tall thatched ceiling. A fine wooden desk flanked by two podiums stood at the front of the room and faced benches where all common Moracians sat.

"Get going, greenshoot," Hans hissed in her ear, prodding her back with a knife. She slowly walked forward, careful not to show any signs of weakness, and faced the desk where Duras sat.

"Well, well, the witch creature is facing judgement, eh?" Duras said from his lazy seat within the desk. He shook his head mournfully, his ponytail of blond hair bobbing behind his scrawny neck. He was rather like a chicken, Karina supposed. If only he would be as easy to kill as a chicken. Just a twist of the neck...

"Saying nothing? You're playing that game again? That's only going to get you killed more quickly. Especially since we have more evidence against you." He licked his lips. "Rosin?"

A stocky farmer slowly walked up to the podium on Duras's right. "I swear on my Ancestors to tell nothing but the truth," he said slowly before looking up at Duras. "May I testify, your honor?"

Duras lazily waved a hand. "Swear to the Ancestors first. And don't do that lazy thing with the improper words and motions, do it right this time."

"I solemnly swear to the Ancestors to tell the truth and nothing but the truth." He crossed his chest with his left hand as a sign to ward off evil, and Karina felt Lilith move in her dress pocket. I didn't sing the song to awaken her, why is she moving?

How is she moving?

Duras' voice sharply cut off her thoughts. "Honorable Moracian Rosin, explain the crop situation before and after last night."

Rosin shifted uncomfortably. "Before yesterday...er...the crops in season were firm and healthy with good stalks and developing as they should be. We used around...um... one half of the crops for the Feast. After the Feast the crops...er...were either burned, dying, or already dead with rotting fruits." He looked directly at Karina, his large hand stroking his brown beard. "I dunno why this is important."

Duras glared at the farmer, who fixed his crumpled green shirt carefully and made sure not to look Duras in the eye. "Because," Duras said calmly, "if Karina caused the crops to die, she will have caused us to die of starvation." He paused dramatically. "And I'm sure no one here would want that, would they? To die before their time?"

"Like my mother," Karina murmured coldly. "I mean," she said, standing taller, "like my mother. Vasilisa Hedge."

Laughter erupted from the crowd of Moracians, a single ring of a bell that quickly spread. "Vasilisa Hedge was obviously a yaga! Just like you." Helga stood up and walked to the other podium to stand behind it. "Vasilisa Hedge killed three people. They were found dead in her home with no sign of any bodily harm. If that doesn't say yaga, what does?"

"I am not my mother."

"No." Helga paused beatifically, taking a moment to study her nails. "She isn't an Ancestor of yours. Yagas and suicides aren't allowed to be Ancestors. Speaking of which, do you ever do Ancestor's prayers?"

"That law was only created after Olga said it must be. Eight years ago. It wasn't a command issued by the Ancestors."

"My mother is the Oracle of Moracia. She frequently convenes with the Ancestors. Do you do your Ancestor's prayers?"

Karina was silent.

"No. She does not." Helga looked at the Moracians, her hazel-eyed gaze keeping the room silent. "I lived with the scum for eight years. I know her habits. She does not do her Ancestor's prayers. She hasn't been speaking for eight years. She has a magickal doll that she talks to. And she has a birthmark on her face, and such birthmarks can only be given by a yaga to a yaga. Not to mention her crop-killing incident yesterday and her heritage. There is an overwhelming amount of evidence against her, and none for her. I think we should burn her."

"Hey! I don't really think burning is the solution. We can only burn a yaga every ten years, and only on Accusation Day. That's half a year away. We can't burn her. It would upset the Ancestors," Hans argued. Helga smiled deviously, glancing at Duras.

"Are you the son of a warlock, Hans?"

"I--I suppose. But I am different!"

"Are you trying to defend Karina Hedge?"

"No! I don't even know her." The words made Karina's hands sweat unnaturally, and she swiped them against her skirt. Why should she care? He had abandoned her long, long ago. They all had.

"Are you sure? Because we have witnesses who will testify that you were good friends with the yaga before the burning eight years ago."

"I was. Not now. Not ever now!" Karina resisted the urge to speak, to argue that he wasn't saying that last night, but she knew that he was trying to save himself...and she didn't want anyone else to die, did she?

"He's trying to defend her. You should kill him with the wench," Helga said to Duras, twisting a lock of gold hair about her pale finger. A coquettish smile played on her lips. "He has magickal blood as well, and magick is evil."

Vasilisa Hedge was not evil. Her tongue was frozen. She couldn't defend her mother, as it would only add more "evidence".

"Olga?" Duras asked lazily. "Your thoughts?"

The Oracle puckered her red lips. "I'll commune with the Ancestors about it after the trial and before the punishment for the witch creature occurs," Olga said, standing up from her seat in the audience. Her eyes seemed to glow, an eerie gleam of purple that made the hair on Karina's neck stand on end. "But in the meantime, I think that we should let the evidence speak for itself."

Karina cast a glance towards Hans. He looked frustrated; hands fisted, foot tapping faster than a rabbit's, a fierce expression on his face. "I think," she said slowly, "that the evidence does speak for itself. That he, at the very least, is--is innocent here." The last word caught in her throat. She closed her eyes, feeling the silence of the courtroom hang around her neck like a yoke.

At last, Helga spoke. "The evidence does speak for itself, yaga, but you're too stupid to understand it. Of course." Her lips curled into a sneer. "Your parents made you what you are: a yaga and a warlock. There's no escaping your fates."

Duras frowned. "There is too much evidence for both. But...we can't kill them because the Ancestors won't be pleased. We will banish them to the Forest of the Dead! That should finish them off quite nicely." He turned to Karina and Hans. "You each will be given a single last meal. Then we shall take an escort to bring you into the Forest of the Dead." Duras smiled, and the sight made Karina's pulse quicken. "Are you ready to die?"

Hello, amazing readers! Thank you so much for reading! If you enjoyed this chapter please hit that vote button and tell me what you liked! If you didn't enjoy, please tell me what I could do better.

What did you think of all the Helga action here? What did you think of their laws? Tell me in a comment!

Edited 3/20/16: No major changes. One line added to Duras's dialogue.

Edited 5/15/16: No major changes. A few lines describing Helga's actions were added to the story.

Edited 7/26/16: Added a whole section of dialogue to add to theme.

Closed for Wattpad Edits on 10/28/16