Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

"No point.. " The police officer waved her hand, but took the tissue, rubbing her nose.. "Some prankster left a bag full of red dye in one of the bathrooms, that stuff gets everywhere, gives me the itchies.. anyway.. huh, is that an attorney badge? Alright then y-"

"Piss off! You're the one defending this murdering creep?" The man interjected, glaring at Dee, his breath clearly smelling of alcohol. "Why, I oughta..." He clenched his hand into a fist, though his eyes were glistening with a hint of tears. "Thats enough. You should take a walk, I got enouchhhh! .. enough to deal with without taking you in."

"Hmpgh... alright.. but listen up." He wagged a finger at Dee. "I got no clue why this is going on, but tomorrow I'll make it sure your client gets whats coming to her .. and no..*hic* officer.. dun worry. I'll just tell the truth, how that bitch stabbed him!" With that, the man stomped off, past Dee and the (once more camouflaging) Squid-girl.

"Haaah.. alright. Don't take this the wrong way, this young man is the lifeguard here, I guess he blames himself for what happened.. a lot, so excuse.. I mean.. damn, listen, you know I can't tell you anything. Sorry, you know the rules... well, I guess I can give you this, so you don't go crazy following a false trail. Some Rookie spilled some of it on the scene" She presented a plastic back, containing Awesome magic blood dye!

"On first glance it looks convincing, but it's too bright. real blood dries and turns more of a dark brown-reddish." She shrugged, turning and swiping a key-card through the door.

Spoiler

"Aha got it! Wonders of modern technical stuffs! I send you some information on the people we just met and meany mean guy. Perhaps it helps... .. geesh I could really go for some more icecream." Your assistant was apparently, quite bribable for doing an efficent job...

The crimescene is a public swimming pool, with a door locking mechanism, as described. There is a 1 and a 3 metre jumping board, though interestingly, there is a chalk outline on the ground, just besides the pool and 1 metre board. there are three numbers on the ground, one indicating the outline, one the outstretched right arm of the victim, one indicating a dark red smear, going towards the pool. Examining the surrounding area you do find the toilet, as described a splash of bright red on the ground, nearing it causing your companion to sneeze in a way that is first adorable, then, as her sneeze unleashes a splash of ink against a wall, slightly perturbing.

There is no bag, lickely it had been taken away for evidence. As you explore on, your companion suddenly disappears.. then peeks out from behind a bench, cheering: "Hah! Looksie? Creepy girl is totally guilty. One -can- hide here, just like she described. ..huh, and I got a good view on things here as well and.." She peeked over. "Tzz.. people should really know to throw away their trash. Look, someone left a piece here.. and here, just tossed under the bench.."

Crumpled pieces of paper found!

You play an impromptu game of puzzling for a moment, putting the pieces together until they read:

Spoiler

To A.

I know that this is out of the ordinary, but I can't lie about my feelings anymore and I know how you've been watching me. Let's meet infront of the pool after my workout this evening.

Jacob

When you have time, you can also review character files!:

Character File added: The Judge

Spoiler

Judge Arund V. Edwards is a veteran of the field and well respected. He used to be a police officer but withdrew from active duty to pursue a law degree. He is known for hearing out both sides of a case throughoutly. Whilest fair he also seems to demands dedication and conviction from those presenting their case.

Character File added: The Prosecution

Spoiler

Harold Maxim, Won cases: 14 Lost cases: 3
Son of the famous Matthews Maxim his win loss record indicates he is quite the prosecution talent, though some sharp tongues claim that this record is mainly due to his father setting him up with the right cases or against Rookie lawyers who he simply overwhelms with his brash personality.

Character File added: Officer Judith Black

Spoiler

A hard working up and coming police officer, up for promotion, it is said the only thing holding her back is an extensive list of unforgiving allergies. She works dilligently to deliver all decisive evidence to the prosecution and has a high rate of solved cases.

Character File added: Andrew Lion

Spoiler

Andrew is an athlete and lifeguard at the local swimming pool, were recently disastre struck. He also used to be a star-athlete at the sport himself, retiering for unknown reasons a few years ago. He is known as an easygoing and friendly person.

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

(Ok... So bringing around tissues is worth it in case I run into super allergic police women. They don't teach you these things in law school...) Sure she had passed all sorts of classes about contracts and criminal justice and everything, barely passing was still passing after all, but she was much better at interacting with people, and being at least slightly kind. She was going to respond and speak to the officer further, but then the drunk man got angry at her, and made her slightly worried that he might do something drastic.

"Everyone needs someone to defend them, buddy. So yes I am the one defending her. If she's actually guilty then it shouldn't be a problem for you and the prosecution to prove it to the court. But if she's innocent then I'll do everything in my power to prove it as well. So good luck, I'll be seeing you tomorrow then!" Dee had a solid amount of confidence in the legal system, as if both sides did their job properly, the defense attorney believing in their client to the bitter end and working with all the facts, and the prosecution working relentlessly to prove guilt and interpreting the evidence, then it was very rare that anyone would end up being falsely accused. Of course... there were times when things went wrong... Dee knew that more than most...

She'd watch the man storm off, keeping a hand on her squid assistant's head to once again reassure her that she'd be ok. It was partially instinctual, having found Mary to be rather adorable and wanting to protect her from anything that might harm her. "Awww... Alright I understand Ma'am. Don't wanna get you in trouble for helping the defense or anything... especially with how rude the prosecution is." (Normally I'd be worried about talking about someone behind their back... But really I kind of hope that jerk hears me.) "Thank you very much for the info on the dye, though!" She'd say cheerily, ready to move on to checking out the crime scene for real now that she had met the officer in charge and even knew just a little bit about the witness she was probably going to run into tomorrow in court.

"Heh... Tell you what, if we win tomorrow I'll buy you even more ice cream. Thanks for everything you're doing, this would take way much more time if not for you." She complimented... though if this was the way that Dee was going to keep her assistant working, that might be a strain on her wallet eventually. But if Mary continued being as good as she was, both in terms of enjoyable company and in terms of actual work, then she could spend some money on ice cream.

Dee would take a thorough look around the scene of the crime, not just looking for interesting things, but also making a mental diagram of the scene of the crime, putting some more things together in her head. (Looking at the actual diving board now... Xarkana's little story of running up to him and pushing him off seems even more ridiculous... Ah well, no use crying over spilled milk) Seeing things in person was far different than hearing about them, so she'd continue looking around, checking out the diving boards, looking closely at the body outline, even going so far as to thoroughly check the benches for anything that might have been dropped around that area. She'd look around the bathroom as well, chuckling to herself when she saw Mary sneeze... her eyes going wide when she saw the ink spray as well... realizing that she would need to mention that to the police woman.

"Just because she CAN hide there, doesn't mean that she actually did hide there... Heh... I felt like a prosecutor there for a second..." Dee would pat Mary on the head a few times before taking a look around the immediate area, before piecing the scraps of paper together to see what they could actually figure out from it. "Hrmmmm... interesting. Not enough just yet to come up with anything... but from the sounds of it... Hrrrmmm... Well it's definitely evidence, but how will it fit in with everything else..." (I figure this is going to come up at some point tomorrow, and every bit of evidence counts...) To ensure she didn't disturb the crime scene too much, she'd just take a picture of the note, figuring that the police would find it as well as they looked over the area.

Once she had all of that done, she'd make a note to read through the profiles and evidence before she wrapped everything up. But she had a few more things she needed to figure out, so she'd head back over to the police woman and ask to speak with her one last time. "I know you can't tell me much, but would you be able to tell me why the outline of the body is outside the pool? Is it just because you can't make an outline in the pool or is it something more?" She asked, figuring it was worth an ask just in case. "Oh... err... umm... By the way... the blood dye... eh... it's definitely good at making sneezes... There's a bit of a mess in the bathroom... Sorry... Ink got everywhere... Err... Not sure what else to do about that..." Her face was red with embarrassment at that one, being the rookie lawyer that had caused a small mess around a crime scene didn't exactly make her feel all that proud.

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

"More icecream? Pff. As if I'd be bribed so easily. I am a Squid with class and I will not let myself be manipulated by such things." She said, with just a hint of drool on her lips.

"Naturally I can't tell you anything at all, like the fact that... achoo!..

The fact that the outline marks the point where the victim hit the ground. And.. Ink.. oh bloody hell.. well, lucky for you I can confirm that it hadn't been there before, so your assistant clearly wasn't at the scene of the crime but... I have half a mind to charge you for tampering with evidence, do you even .. achooo! Know the amount of paperwork.. ugh.. just.. shooo. Shooo." She growled a bit.

"Eeep!" Mary was quick to let herself get shooed musing.. "Thinking about it, do you have some sorta offices.. ooh and a big law firm... anyway! You can show me tomorrow! I'm tired. I'ma nap at my pool." She nodded, whistling happily as she lead the way to.. an inflatable childrens swimming pool, before hopping in. "So comfy! Anyway! We can talk things through once you win the ice c.. trial. tomorrow! You better go prepare, it'll be day two before you know it."
.
.
.

Day two of the trial of Xarkana

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You find yourself standing on the defense stand with your assistant by your side. Maxim has, if at all possible, an even more smug grin on his face. Apparently he is certain he has something on his hands.. which is not good news for you. You also notice that, unlike last time, quite an audience has gathered for this trial, now that it's no longer a certain conviction but an actual show...

The judge slowly makes his way to the stand.

"Now then, we proceed with the second day of the trial of miss Xarkana, accused of murder. I assume that both the Defense and the prosecution are ready. Prosecution, please present the case as your research has revealed."

"Of course your honor, but first, let me say, that after finding both the murder weapon and a witness ... well, my amazing victory is shortly at hand."

"We now even have a motive for the murder.. jealousy! But let us get to that later. First of all, The Autopsy Report" indicates that the victim, exhausted after swimming practice had been attacked from behind with a knife. The first attack drove him to the ground and due an injury to his arm, he could not defend well either, however, he was not immediatly dead, but gravely injured and attempted to crawl away, towards the pool. Thats when the murderer struck again and again, killing the victim barely halfway sliding into the pool." The Prosecution nodded, then extended his arm.

"And this was the murder weapon!" Bloody Knife submitted to evidence!

Spoiler

This knife is covered in dark, dried blood

"It was found in a swimming bag, together with a blood-stained swimsuit, sloppily hidden at the scene... though sadly, the murderer had the presence of mind left to wipe off their fingerprints."

Sexy Swimsuit submitted to evidence!

Spoiler

A revealing swimsuit for someone with rather voluptous assets.

"I'm certain the defense will claim some nonsense like 'this isn't my clients clothes.. however, when she was taken into police custody.. she hadn't cleaned up properly!"

"Bwah?"

"A splatter of blood got on the attackers clothing as well as you see here HAH!"Xarkanas clothing submitted to evidence

Spoiler

A girls uniform for a small framed girl. It has a small, bright red splatter of blood on the back of it.

"However, not only does the prosecution have all this evidence.. stay your hand girly.. we also have a witness! The prosecution calls it's first Witness!"

"Very well, witness, state your name and occupation." "Yeah, and tell them what you saw that night!" "Order please. But yes, proceed."

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"Yes, alright, so.. My name is Andrew Lion, I work as a lifeguard at the local swimming pool.

Jacob was pushing himself after closing hours again. When I left he even scratched his arm on the jumping pole...

Either way, we wanted to meet at half past seven, .. and thats when I saw her!" He pointed at Xarkana

"That.. that bitch, just staring at his lifeless body after murdering him... she even had the guts to come out and admit it!"

"Well then, I believe that settles that. No need to rush the verdict of course judge, but.."

"No need indeed, the defense has the right to cross examine the witness after all."

"Hmpfh, the case could hardly be more clear than this... but by all means, condemn your little murderer more."

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

Dee would allow herself to be shooed away from the crime scene, still apologizing as the police woman had her leave. She had already gotten everything she figured she'd get anyway, so really she had no reason to stick around. (Nice one Dee... First investigation and not only do you make a huge mess of the crime scene, but you went and got the police woman mad at you...) "Well... I don't necessarily have an office, but I have something that works anyway..." She explained, partially chuckling to herself when Mary hopped into a kiddie pool, and partially worried about how smart of a place that was to actually live in. Still, there was little she could do about that just yet, especially when she had things to prepare for. "Alright then Mary, see you tomorrow for some of that ice cream!" She said confidently, wanting to put on a brave face that said she knew she was going to win tomorrow. Afterwards, she'd head right back to her 'office' and give everything a look over, double checking, then even triple checking her evidence and trying to think the crime through. Problem was, she had nothing to go off of, she knew Xarkana was innocent, but even with the evidence she had, very little was standing out to her. Hopefully more would come out in the trial, otherwise there may not be any ice cream tomorrow.

Dee would nod to indicate that she was ready to continue the trial, her heart racing a bit knowing how little she actually had. Though the major thing that got to her was how confident Maxim looked now, making her a little nervous but making her even more determined to wipe that smug look off of his stupid face!

And then the evidence just kept coming, piling one after the other to further make things look rather bad for her client. She was sweating bullets already, especially as she thought that the prosecution probably was holding even more evidence for later use, ready to bring even more up when things got bad for him. (God damn it... I really didn't think things would get this bad already... Plus we now have a crowd to watch me if I actually lose this thing... Welp... might as well dive head first...) "So... in reality there's no concrete proof that the weapon was used by my client?" Unfortunately, with the bloodied clothes there was at least a circumstantial evidence to link Xarkana to the murder weapon, so it was easier to assume that it was linked that that it wasn't.

Her nervous mood wasn't made any better by the witness testimony lined up by the prosecution... Though actually... it wasn't that detailed and very vague with everything considered. Besides, with a witness testimony to work with, she would have something to tear into and could actually get to work. (Alright then... time to put on the tough face and really get into this!)

"Need I remind the prosecution that the case 'could be hardly more clear' yesterday when Xarkana was confessing? Maybe you could wait until I cross examine the witness before trying to call for a verdict!" (Always cross-examine a testimony when you have a chance... Even if it's completely true without any contradictions in it, you could still gain quite a bit of information out of the witness. So there is a gain to be had.)

===Cross-Examination===

Jacob was pushing himself after closing hours again. When I left he even scratched his arm on the jumping pole...

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"So you met the victim before the crime? What time was that exactly? Also, you can confirm that the victim had scratched up their arm BEFORE the murder had occurred? Rather than during it?" (Either way, Xarkana should have known they were there...)

Either way, we wanted to meet at half past seven, .. and thats when I saw her!"

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"So you and the victim were set to meet one another after his training... What exactly were you two meeting about? Was there any specific reason to be called in at such a time? Also... How did you manage to get into the crime scene? Wasn't it supposed to be locked at the time?" It seems she had forgotten that he worked in the area, but was honestly more interested in the thought of WHY they needed to meet. In her mind she figured it'd have to be important if neither of them could put it off until one of them wasn't working and the other wasn't exhausted from training.

That.. that bitch, just staring at his lifeless body after murdering him... she even had the guts to come out and admit it!

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"Are you aware that the defendant has retracted their confession after yesterday's debate in court? She apparently wanted to take credit for the crime for the sake of being more intimidating and 'cool' as she put it. Could you describe the scene in a bit more detail as you saw it at the time? What was the defendant like? Where was the body at the time? Did you notice anything in particular that seemed 'off' about all of it?"

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

"No, but neither is there anyone else that could have used the weapon, so...." he shrugged in response to Dee's question.

"Prolonging the inevitable and waste my precious time is all yuo can do, girly." He narrowed his eyes at the mention of yesterdays trial.

"Yes, he arrived in the afernoon to first warm up, doing some powerful stretches then train hard, as usual. I told him not to overdo it, but he had to push himself of course. As for the injury.. It must have been about when the place closed down as I left... err.. almost on time. Either way, I'd have seen anyone trying to rush in last minute on my way out, there were none."

"There you go."

"As the lifeguard I have an acess card that can bypass the locking mechanism at any time.. and before you ask, I have it on me, and the only backups isn't missing, so no winding out of this!" He narrowed his eyes, though he seemed more angry at Xarkana than Dee. "As for why we met, well just guy things, hanging out, maybe drink a beer.. you wouldn't understand." He cleared his throat, followed by Maxim interjecting again:

"Heh, makes perfect sense. So are you just randomly wasting more time? How about you suggest that the lifeguard was the actual killer, after all, he was the only other person with acess to the scene, .. normally I'd not give my opponent tips but seeing as you're both a girl and a rookie.. heh." Maxim interjected, winking at Dee.

"Confession retracted or not, who else could have done it! There was only me, him and... the weirdo left around! .. Ugh, you want details? fine.

I approached the door, looking inside. You can't see the whole pool, but by what I saw I at first though there had been an accident, so I rushed to open the door when.. when I saw Jay..." The witness exhaled deeply, biting his lip and closing his eyes. It seemed the memory was rather painful to him.

"When.. he was face down in the pool, his back all.. all bloody and.. the Defendant just stood over him and stared and.. I shouted at her what the fuck she had done and .. that creepy monster pointed at herself while wiggling her fingers at me.. I asked her if she had .. anyway! She admitted it right then and there, I don't care what legal nonsense you try to spin here!"

Spoiler

"Hey uhm.. mr.Swimmer guy. It's ok to be sad you lost your friend but please try to imagine our creepy, evil client wasn't guilty. Are you sure there's no one else that could have done it?"

"Please, witness, don't feel bullied into describing anything too painful to remembe about this gruesome scene by this rookie or her following. I believe we've heard all the facts."

"... I have nothing to add. Just bring Jacobs killer to justice.. please. It wont bring him back, but at least.." His hand squezed the witness stand, knuckles white.

"Uhmnn.. sorry. I used my best squid-powers.. I guess there'll be no ice cream.." You didn't know those were any squid-powers..

"Judge, unless the defense wants to try and accuse the lifeguard I move we end this farce now. The witness has answered any questions satisfactorily, even without fingerprints or a confession, I doubt theres anything left for you to say, is there girly? You wouldn't dare claim this honestly distraught witness was lying about what he saw, would you?" He grinned over to Dee.

"Well, what does the defense think? Was it possibly the lifeguard, is your client guilty after all, or do you see any other options to answer this case?"

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

Dee would listen carefully to the different answers that Adrian gave her... having a few different angles of attack for where to go next. Of course, once again she really wanted to just step over the defense bench and punch the prosecution in the face for his condescending attitudes. "Call me a rookie all you want, just remember who got the better of you in yesterday's proceedings every time you say those things..." She may not be the best defense attorney, but she wasn't going to just sit around and let him simultaneously hit on her and insult her like that. (Alright, let's see how we can try to turn this one around again... especially now that I know Xarkana is innocent. Let's do this.)

"Mr. Lion... I understand that this is extremely difficult for you. And I want to bring his killer to justice as well... But I don't think there would be any justice to convict the wrong person. If she is guilty then I will accept that, but right now I believe in her, and so I will do everything that I can to prove her innocence." She told him, knowing he wasn't going to like her for doing this, but she had a job to do, and she wanted justice as well. Then she'd pat Mary a little more, feeling bad for her, especially when she tried her very best to help. "Hey now, there might be some ice cream yet. We can still do this." (Maybe... Well... hopefully we can at least give one of us some real hope in this...)

"Hmmm... Well there are a few things that would still need to be discussed before we just decide that Ms. Xarkana is guilty of this crime."

"First of all, knowing that Mr. Lion had access to the scene of the crime, without an alibi he can't be completely ruled out as a potential suspect. Not only did he have access to the scene, he also knew MORE about the state of the body than even the defendant. Need I remind you that the defendant didn't know the man had scratches on his arm, AND that those scratches are now confirmed to have been on his arm BEFORE the crime was committed, meaning that the murderer would HAVE to know that the scratches existed. So, without the confession, I would actually have to say that Mr. Lion is just as suspicious as Xarkana." (That's not gonna go over well with the witness but it has to be said...) "And while I can't flat out prove that he's the murderer, I can at least prove that he's already been lying to us about something."

"As for why we met, well just guy things, hanging out, maybe drink a beer.. you wouldn't understand."

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PRESENT: Crumpled Pieces of Paper

"Mr. Lion, I wish to bring the true killer to justice just as much as you do, but if you want to really do that then you'll need to be completely honest in your testimony, even if it's about smaller things!"

"On the scene there was a bunch of scraps of paper that when pieced together, formed a note. The note seems to be from the victim and was asking for someone referred to as 'A' about wanting to discuss their true feelings with them right after his workout. Now, Andrew, is this the real reason you were meeting up with the victim? And furthermore, we'd need to know WHY these pieces were crumpled up in the first place. The witness is harming his own credibility by lying to the court, so Mr. Lion, would you be able to better explain things for us now?"

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

".. keep this up and I wont play nice with you anymore.." He simply growled in response.

"Why am I suddenly the murder? What is this nonsense!"

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"That.. that piece of paper, where did y-"

"OBJECTION!"

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"Enough of this NONSENSE. I have read the note too. And it is utter nonsense. Men love women, women love sexy men like me, thats all there is.. .. haah.." He exhaled, needing a moment to compose himself.

"Order.. Order in the court."

"Tzk tzk tzk.. ..

The prosecution would like to call a new Witness to the stand and dismiss this witness.. immediatly. The reason for this is that this new witness will, without a doubt, answer the defenses laughable line of questioning.

The reason the prosecution has not called upon this witness so far is to protect the poor girl from the emotional thrauma the defense indubitably intends to inflict on her.. but given no choice.. I shall now call miss Angelique Desiree to the stand!"

"Ange.. oh, I see, an A in the name. So the one the letter indicates the victim would have confessed his feelings to was.."

"Miss Angelique, of course."

"N.. no thats not true we really..." "What? Are you saying you are gay, witness? Tzk.. you are dismissed, begone, or you will be held in contempt of court!"

"That is still my decision. Do not attempt to push these proceedings, or I will have to penalize the prosecution." ".. apologies, sire.."

"That said, if there is another witness relevant to this case, she should be heard out."

Spoiler

"Did you notice how quick he jumped in the way of that though? Either he's dumb or you are onto something here Dee.." Mary nodded.

~~~~~

"Heeeeey everyoneeeee!"

"Why hello there.. .. ahem. Please state your name and occupation."

Spoiler

"Meee? I'm a college girl, studying chemistry!"

"Hooh.. I studied the wrong thing. Anyway, please tell us all about what you saw occuring on the evening of the murder."

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"Why of course, that evening I was watching my darling swim all afternoon. He's so majestic, gliding through the waters.

However, he always kept his distance, I think it was because that creep kept stalking him!" She pointed at Xarkana, narrowing her eyes.

Spoiler

"But finally, my darling wrote a note and managed to deliver it to me. Once I read it, my heart was overjoyed!

However.. that creep saw the note. She read it, tore it apart, and threatened me.. I.. I'm so sorry.. I.. I just ran away in fear... It must have been a quarter before seven at the time." She nodded, then bit her lips, tears streaming down her eyes.

"I was so scared.. when I finally had the courage to return she.. she had already.. bwaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

"And there.. ladies and gentleman, you have the motive I promised you earlier.. I am sorry I had to put you through this pain, Angelique.. but it was necessary, for true justice. My justice." He clenched a fist.

"The victim confessed his love towards miss Angelique, but his wicked stalker, Xarkana, learned of it. Wanting no one else to have him, she tore the paper apart, the evidence for that is right in the files. She then procured a knife, easily attainable from a nearby store for example, and waited in hiding at the toilet, once the victim who she knew she could not physically overcome had exhausted himself and they were alone, she struck. What she did not expect and what ruined her flawless plan was the guys night out, the victim meeting with the lifeguard, else she would have easily removed the murder weapon from the scene and washed her clothing." He gave a generous wave at the audience, that mumbled to one another, until the judges hammer silenced everyone again.

"I guess you want to torture this poor, young woman with your despicable cross examination.. go ahead Rookie.. but know that once you lose this case.. you'll barely be fit to settle a neighbourhood dispute.. well.. thats what happens if you put a girl in the courtroom!"

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

(Pssh... I've seen exactly what you call 'nice' buddy. So I'm really not all that broken up over you not being 'nice' anymore...) Though she did actually smile when she saw that Andrew recognized the note and had some idea of what it was.

Of course, before she had a chance to even press the point further home, Maxim was objecting and stopping Andrew from going even further.

"Err... I could literally present MYSELF as evidence to counter that 'claim'. You need to be a little more open minded about a lot of things apparently." (Seriously... First of all you do nothing for me, buddy. Second of all, the heart wants what the heart wants... whether that be women or men.)

She was planning on pressing that point home further, but that was before the prosecution brought up another witness... And one that also had a first name that started with A?!

"NOOOOOO!" (ANOTHER witness with A in their name?! You've gotta be kidding me! There goes all the momentum I had...)

But she would have to regain her composure to deal with the new witness being brought forth... which was a blessing and a curse. As this meant she'd have new testimony to look through, but once again it meant she was pushed into a corner.

"For the record, Mr. Lion... I believe the note was meant for you, at least for now... And regardless of how rude the prosecution is towards you... If the both of you felt this way, then there's nothing wrong with any of it." (Alright Dee, you can get off the soap box for now... Let's not forget we still haven't completely ruled him out as the murderer. It's just hard not to give him some reassurance when someone's being as big of a jerk as the Prosecution is...) "Guess I was absolutely right in calling you 'Mr. Bully' yesterday." She'd say, getting one last dig in at the rude prosecution before answering Mary. "I was definitely on to something there... No one dismisses a witness that fast unless they don't want them to say anything further..."

(Oh geez... Alright Dee... Focus on the witness' face and nothing else... Keep the eyes on the face... Face...) Well, at least she was succeeding at the endeavor, but now was the point where she would need to work on yet another witness' testimony.

"Of course I plan on cross examining the witness! It's my job as a Defense Attorney to thoroughly examine any testimony. Now I'd appreciate it if you would at least let me do my job, rather than criticizing me for it."

===Cross-Examination===

that evening I was watching my darling swim all afternoon. He's so majestic, gliding through the waters.

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"Your 'darling'? Are you saying that you were already romantically involved with the victim BEFORE he wrote the note? Or are you just saying that now? Also, was there anyone else around while he was swimming? Aside from the defendant that is." (Xarkana said she had seen another man swimming with him. Honestly, I'm kind of glad that he brought the 'pink girl' forward himself... If I had tried to, he could have just claimed that Xarkana was lying about the people she saw there. Now we have yet another potential suspect...)

However, he always kept his distance, I think it was because that creep kept stalking him!"

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"Do you have anyone that could corroborate the claim that the defendant would 'stalk' the victim in question. Surely there'd be someone else that could confirm that, right? As when I spoke to the defendant in question, she stated that she wasn't... er... 'into bare male chest' or something of the sort. She seemed adamant that she wasn't attracted to that kind of thing." (And she also stated that you seemed far more interested in it than she did... but that's not something I can use just right now.)

"But finally, my darling wrote a note and managed to deliver it to me. Once I read it, my heart was overjoyed!

(

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"Is there anything that could specifically PROVE that note was meant for you? I mean, as it stands both you and Mr. Lion have the exact same connection to the letter. The both of you have a first name that starts with A, the both of you know the victim, both of you seem to have equal reason to react to the note... Is there anything more that can show this note is for you?" (I get the feeling they may BOTH have thought the message was for them at some point. The question is... who was it REALLY for?)

However.. that creep saw the note. She read it, tore it apart, and threatened me.. I.. I'm so sorry.. I.. I just ran away in fear... It must have been a quarter before seven at the time."

(

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"Was there no one else around at the time? Couldn't you go to someone else in the area to get her to stop? Also, how specifically did she threaten you?" (I'd ask about fingerprints on the paper... But it's honestly really hard to dust a piece of paper for fingerprints compared to most objects... At least, that's what I've heard anyway...)

"I was so scared.. when I finally had the courage to return she.. she had already.. bwaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

(

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"Are you saying you returned to the scene AFTER the murder had occurred? Do you have any idea what time that was? Did you actually SEE the crime scene in question? If so, could you please describe it in more detail? I don't wish to force you to relive such a traumatic experience, but we need to make sure we have all the facts of this case..."

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

It seemed complimenting Lion after accusing him of murder got only mixed results, together with the Prosecution shooing him out.

"I don't get it." He did really not seem to get Dees argument of presenting herself. Clearly she was into an awesome guy like him, just playing hard to get. and attorney. What a weird girly.

"Exactly.. an A in her name and a female, so obviously the letter was for her." Maxim smirked when he saw Dees confidence take a hit.

"Oh geez.. I'm a bit scared.. but I can do this cross-thingie!"
...

Spoiler

"Of course we were romantically involved.. I mean.. He hadn't admitted it yet, but the note proves it!
Anyone else around? Let's see, at first there were a bunch of people, but they left until only that evil murderer was left, yeah!"

Spoiler

"Corrobo who or what now? Listen, that girl is always creeping about somewhere. Plus, why else stay there so late if not to creep on him?"

"Of course the note was for me, because he loves me. I don't need to prove anything.. because I know in my heart its true." She touched her heart, giving a sweet smile.

"Awww.. how can you disagree with that?"

"I.. I was just so scared.. she threatened to hurt me like she hurt him! If I had stayed.. I had been the one murdered, without a doubt!" She gasped out loudly, tears welling up in her eyes again, the audience mumbling, to a lot Dee must look like the bully here..

"I made my way back deciding to find someone or to warn my beloved, just as you suggested, gathering all my courage. That's when I heard it! Screaming, from the swimming pooll my.. my darling was screaming for his life, and this evil thing was laughing! I was too scared to get closer, but luckily she was caught by Lion and the police took her away! "

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

Dee knew her reassurances were likely going to be taken strangely after accusing him of murder, but hearing the prosecution bully him made her want to do something to help.

(Apparently someone can't take a hint... Not much of a surprise there. Ah well... now's not really the time for me to start a debate on his personality. Maybe once the trial is over.) She thought to herself, wondering how Maxim was gonna upset her next... but it seems the real answer was he was just going to bring forth a new witness to cast quite a bit of doubt on her theory.

(Face... Face... Faaaaaaaceeee...) She internally reminded herself, partly wanting to remain professional, and partly wanting to prove to herself that she was better than the prosecution at times like this.

Dee was sweating bullets at the new testimony, a good deal of it getting the crowd on the witness' side. She'd need to do something soon, otherwise this whole thing was going to head downhill fast... While she couldn't exactly prove that the note wasn't meant for Angelique, there had to be some other way to poke a hole in the testimony... (Lies always beget more lies... All you have to do is find one, and I can't rule this witness out either... especially if she says she heard things that Xarkana didn't.) She would spend a few more moments thinking things through, eventually figuring out something that she could actually prove.

"Corrobo who or what now? Listen, that girl is always creeping about somewhere. Plus, why else stay there so late if not to creep on him?"

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PRESENT: Awesome magic blood dye!

"Actually, Ms. Desiree, there IS a reason for the defendant to be on the scene of the crime, and it has nothing to do with any 'stalking' intent!"

"At the scene of the crime, there was a spilled bag of blood red dye, which a rather allergic police woman can confirm was in the toilets. Now, the main question here, is exactly who this red dye would belong to. Well, we all know that the defendant is indeed a bit of a troublemaker, and when speaking to her yesterday she had told me that her intent was to put this dye in the pool once everyone had left as a 'prank' and turn it blood red. The defense proposes that THIS was the real reason the defense was staying around the pool area so late, not for the intent of stalking the victim!" That was when she pieced something else together in her head, and she smiled, having a line of logic to follow a little further here.

"And before the prosecution asks, I actually DO have evidence to show that the red dye belonged to my client!"

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PRESENT: Xarkana's clothing!

"Let's look at what the prosecution ASSUMED was a blood stain on these clothes..."

"The supposed blood stain was bothering me from the moment the prosecution presented these clothes. Now, when blood dries it becomes a very dark reddish-black color, one needs only look at the bloody knife to confirm that. However, on this set of clothing, the 'blood stain' is a bright red color, not indicative of blood in the slightest. So, what could cause something to look like blood yet dry bright red rather than a real blood stain color. The answer is the red dye that the defendant was planning to use on the pool! Some must have gotten on to her clothing at some point, but this confirms that the clothes are not stained with blood, and that the defendant was handling the blood dye!"

"So, not only does this destroy the only piece of evidence ACTUALLY linking the defendant to the murder, but it also proves that Xarkana was NOT at the crime scene for any 'stalking' like the witness is claiming! She was there for the sole purpose of mischief, not stalking the victim like the witness wishes us to believe! What do you have to say to that Ms. Desiree?!"

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

"A reason? and what'd that be? .. whats that stuff? Red dye?"
...

"What do you mean?"

"Wh.. whats this nonsense about a dye.. ugh.. it was found at the scene... we.. well that just proves she is guilty!"

The Judge shook his head.

"Guilty for a minor misdemeanour, for which she'll be tried at the low court, likely netting her quite a bit of community service hours.

That said, there is no other reason for this dye to be there and to confess to a crime, even a minor one other than what the defense claimed. Xarkana is a known troublemaker..."

"Objection!"

Spoiler

"Oh yeah? So you think she wouldn't go further. Well she already has! That creepy, stalker girl.. not only did she dye the pool blood red, with my poor honeys blood! But she was also propably responsible for him hurting his arm too! She propably wanted him to have that accident and.. and she stabbed him, theres no doubt! She's an evil stalker, that society needs to be protected from!" Angelique hesitated, her smile widening.

Spoiler

"Consider this, she could have wanted to use the red dye to cover up her deed after making the body disappear, making everyone think it was just the dye, not actual blood. An easy way to hide her tracks, if she hadnt been caught, don't you think so, Mr.Prosecutor?" Angelique nodded, tugging her hair into place a few times, smiling cutely at the prosecution.

The prosecution hesitated, considering Desirees words."Well.. if you put it like that. .. that theroy..

Makes quite a lot of sense to the great Harold Maxim, of course it does. Also, heres the problem defense.." He cleared his throat. "After all.. hah! Yeah, after all, I still don't see anyone else comitting the murder. We can argue about stalking or not all day long. So the witness has no proof of stalking, what does it matter?

Y-Yeah. You forget the basics of this case. Locking door. The victim left alone with your client. Those are the facts of this case! You can't deny that!" The audience seemed a bit less against Dee as the prosecutions reasoning slowed down, he didn't seem to be the type to deal with attacks well, as he demanded Dees acknowledgement, exhaling again, chuckling, raising his hands. "I'll commend you for delivering the details of your clients acts to us in such additional detail, perhaps you'd make for an alright assistant with a bit more training."

"False blood dye to disguise the presence of actual blood? Thats quite the cunning evil scheme." The judge rubbed his beard, considering this.

Spoiler

Your squidding advisor meanwhile leaned over to whisper: "He seems on the defensive finally. Which means icecream for squiddey, yey! But.. humnhh.. Dee, did you notice what she said there too?"

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

Dee couldn't help but smile triumphantly as she saw that the prosecution wasn't prepared for the things that she had revealed. (Now I know I'm on the right track! Though... too bad my client it still gonna get community service for the things she did, but she WAS trying to cause trouble so there's not much I can do there...)

Though she would go quiet and listen to the theory that the witness had, not having the same issues now that she actually suspected that she could be the murderer as well. Being suspicious of someone tended to make her no longer attracted to them, so Dee could easily focus on the witness' face. And her words... the words that had a sort of logic behind them that made her worried all over again. But she knew she needed to keep going otherwise she would risk losing all of her momentum.

"Did I notice what she said? Err... O-Of course I did!" (What's she even talking about? Was there really something she just said that doesn't make any sense? Think Dee... Think! You can do this!) She'd consider what was just said for a few moments, thinking through what the witness just said AND what she already knew. (Oh wait! Wow! There's... a few things that are kind of fishy with what she said...)

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"Sorry, but while that theory seems to make sense when you think about it, I have a few problems with what the witness has just said. To get the most trivial one out of the way first, Mr. Lion has already testified that the wound on the victim's arm came during his practicing and NOT from anything that the defendant did. And I would also like to remind the court that the defendant had no knowledge of that arm wound, despite it being inflicted BEFORE the crime in question. But this leads into my major problem with what the witness is saying. To put it simply, she knows far too many details of the crime scene!"

"What was it you said, Mr. Maxim? That I was 'forgetting the basics of the case'? So let's go over them again to make sure I really have them down. 'Locking door. The victim left alone with your client.' Assuming those are all completely true... Then there's a whole host of other problems. In particular, she said that the defendant dyed the pool red with the victim's blood, AND that she had to have been the one to stab him." (I might've also tried to get her on knowing about the arm wound, but that one is easier to explain away.)

"We've said NEITHER of those things while the witness was in the court room! Now, the stabbing comment is explainable, obviously because I made mention of a 'bloody knife'. So it's not a HUGE stretch to assume the murder was a stabbing. Though the confidence she said it with is suspicious, especially when she knew ANOTHER detail of the crime that she should have no knowledge of. We've not even spoken about the body being in the pool when we found it, so how would she know that? The murder occurred AFTER the door was locked, meaning the only people with access to the scene were my client, the victim, and Mr. Lion. So the only people that could know the body was in the pool at that time were those three. After Xarkana was apprehended, the police sealed off the crime scene, meaning that no one could get in to the pool after the crime. And even if they HAD managed to sneak into the crime scene, the body outline was made outside the pool. There was nothing to indicate that the body was in the pool whatsoever! So, if my client was the only one on the scene when the murder occurred, then what the witness knows should be impossible..."

"IF my client was the only one on the scene, that is! After all, there's only one explanation as to how the witness could possibly know these things..."

"She would've needed to be at the scene of the crime DURING the murder!"

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

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"..."

"What do you mean with details?" Maxim growled, slamming his hand on the table.

"W-wait What do you mean? But.. ob.. object.. damn it I can't think of.. err.. Witness, how come you knew these things?" He waved his hand over at the witness, as if expecting her to help him out here.

Spoiler

"Obviously I knew these details from hearing about.. It was in the press report! The press mentioned he was dead in the pool, hah! Plus, I never said I was certain.. I just guessed the rest of it. Yes."

"Objection!"

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Spoiler

"Even -if- you read up on all of this and guessed the other half, the injury on the victims arm remained a mystery until an earlier witnesses testimony, just before yours. So how come you too know it was an accident?"

"Gnnn...gnnn..." She raised her hands, waving them desperately infront of her. "I was. .. I was.. I'm not the accused here... I.." Crack

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Spoiler

"..."

"So what exactly you BITCH? Are you saying I would kill my love, my sweet, my one and all? SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"

"Eeep" Camouflaging Squidgirl ensues! It was lucky Dee wasn't wearing a skirt, else Mary would most definitly be hiding below it at this point in time.

"I didn't kill him. Most certainly not. We were ment for each other."

"I admit it. I lied a little. It was not this little creep thats the stalker, but me. But what was I to do? I'm the only one he'd be happy with, he just hadn't realized that yet." The audience was a bit .. silenced the girls odd shift in tone.

~~~

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"Here is what actually happened."

"I was watching my beloved, as always, until I got that letter. Overjoyed in excitement I tore it apart and ran off. I couldn't believe he finally acknowledged my feelings.

However, rather than going far, I watched my beloved. Like always. Theres an easily climbable tree from which you can look into the pool unnoticed.

Hmnn the water gushing over his majestic body.. I couldn't wait for him to finally ravage me as he desired.

But thats when I saw everything, how your client stabbed him, how he fell into the pool.." She described, without a hint of emotion.

"She took what was mine and for that she deserves to suffer. But anyway. We know your client was there. I have no motive because I loved him so very, very much. but more importantly..

You have nothing that links me to the murder, do you? Mr.Prosecutor-cutie"

"I.. err.. yes.. well this would explain how the witness knows all these details. Uh.. and yes, unless you find someone else that is guilty your client is guilty by default, yeah!"

"No. There is no such thing as guilty by default.. However, with opportunity to do the deed, no alibi and being overall a troublemaker, at this point in time, Xarkana is still the most likely culprit. Unless the defence has any evidence to the contrary?"

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

(Geez... It's really hard to stay professional when I just want to stick my tongue out at the jerk... How's it feel when the girl brings out the big guns and knocks YOU down a peg or two!) Though at that point the witness had an actually plausible explanation for why she could know those details... Luckily for Dee, her little Squid assistant had an answer of her own for that one. (Well that settles it... Mary, you can have as much ice cream as you want after this... my treat...) And right after that, the young woman seemed to snap... making Dee's whole 'keep an eye on her face' thing a lot easier as she wasn't into crazy...

(I feel like Xarkana might have a new role model in the whole 'creepy' department... At least I've got a much more concrete suspect on my hands now. Plus I doubt the crowd is really gonna be on the witness' side anymore...) For a moment she worried that things would spiral out of control, however as long as she kept pushing she could drive this one home and maybe even prove her client's innocence. She'd listen to the new testimony, a little annoyed that the suspicion on her client wasn't completely overturned yet. But that was the way things worked, and Xarkana was still the most likely suspect for now.

"Hmmmm... The Defense does have some evidence that relates to what the witness has just said." (Hmmm... Which route should I go to first? Should I bring up a theory about the motive, or tie her to this crime a little more? Well, the knife in the bag can be explained away as Xarkana hiding it... So maybe I'll come back to that later, for now let's go for motive!)

She took what was mine and for that she deserves to suffer. But anyway. We know your client was there. I have no motive because I loved him so very, very much.

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PRESENT: Crumpled pieces of paper!

"The defense DOES actually have some evidence to show your motive for the crime, Ms. Desiree!"

"Actually, Ms. Desiree... YOU yourself brought this motive up in the first place, so it's certainly something believable. You accused my client as being a stalker, and that because of this, she was enraged when she read the note addressing the victim's feelings for another. And because she was a stalker obsessed with the victim... she murdered him in a fit of rage over the knowledge that the victim loved another... But there's just one problem in all of that, Xarkana isn't the stalker... YOU are! The defense once again proposes that this letter is actually intended for Andrew Lion! You even admitted that it was you who ripped up the letter, and to be honest I highly doubt that an obsessed stalker would rip up a letter that let them know that their object of obsession had feelings for them as well. A crazed stalker would be overjoyed, yes, but would more likely SAVE the letter out of their own feelings. Yet you tore it up, just as you accused Xarkana of doing. You knew the letter was for Andrew Lion, and not yourself, which only served to enrage you further, just as you accused Xarkana of doing. And knowing that he would never truly love you, you murdered the victim in a fit of pure rage... just as you accused Xarkana of doing!"

"Sometimes we're our own worst enemies, Ms. Desiree, and right now YOU'VE provided the entire motive for why YOU murdered the victim!" (Hopefully the fact that I'm essentially using the witness' own words will help put some weight behind my claims...) Though if that wasn't enough to keep going, she did still have the knife and swimsuit ready... having put together a few things in her head, and finally feeling like she had just a little bit of control over the situation in the courtroom, rather than before where she felt like things were spiraling out of control no matter what she did.

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

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"Errr.. Objection!

With just a first letter of the name, we can not know who A really stands for." Maxim growled "You can't prove that it was the witness for.. whom this letter errr was not intended!"

"That said, the defense has a point." "Ugh..."
"The course of action Miss Desire described make perfect sense to me as to what the murderer would be doing. The attack on the victim is a crime of passion, judging by its brutality, but the more I hear of this the less I believe that miss Xarkana is.. so passionate about the victim. However, both of these witnesses are theoretically involved. That said, this witnesses changed testimony directly incriminates Xarkana, that means either she really saw the deed, or she knew these details because she was directly involved."

"O.. objection! The witness testimony is inapplicable then because she.. err.. incriminated herself and.."

"Overruled. The right to remain silent can not be invoked retroactively."

"Ugh.. but that means.." Maxim looked at Desiree, seeming disbelieving, but even he was getting it now.

"The witness will testify to this court as to why she would rip up the letter."

"Gnnn.. I ripped it up in .. shock, I was so overjoyed that...

Why are you all looking at me like that? I did not kill him? I would not kill him, ever!"

".. all of you.. oh well. So be it. I didn't kill my sweet."

"I just made sure he'd spent the rest of his life with me. Not my fault he chose it to be so short."

"Geesh, this gal is creepy."

"What really happened is..."

....

"Sorry Angel, I can't meet with you again today, I have a .. a guys thing out.. listen, after tonight you'll understand ok?"

"Ok my sweetie!"

...

"Huh? whats that in Lions back. Thats my honeys handwriting, I'd recognize it anywh....
..
...
Y.. YOU! You turned him against me, didn't you? I'll kill you. But first.. I'll spend all the time I can with my beloved."

Spoiler

"It'll be so close and intimate..."

~~~

"Haah. Even in screaming in agony his voice was so beautiful, like an angels. Anyway." She looked over to Lion, pure hatred in her eyes, that suddenly shifted into a smile, as she pulled something cylindrical from under her table.

"I wanted to kill you really painfully later, but I guess this will have to do." She smilled, pulling a safety pin. "Don't bother running, this explosive is strong enough to kill us all an-"

"Objection!"

"That evidence is unrelated to this crime, you can't use it in this case." "Ahaha? Are you crazy? I'm going to kill you all, your objections don't mea-"

"Just you watch me. Objecpfuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh!"

And thus, Squidgirl unleashed a torrent of Ink against Desiree, the black liquid splashing the explosive, a moment of silence, a fizzing noise in the explosive and.. nothing happened. Other than Desiree, and the defenses robes covered in black ink. "Ewwww....."

"My ink messes up electronic stuff. I know ever since I sneezed on my cellphone." Squidgirl posed confidently, the panic in the ranks of the trials audience dying down before it could fully begin.

"Restrain the witness. ... Considering the light of this new testimony... and the need of the defense to clean his pants, I shall come to the judgement swiftly."

"B.. but I didn't get ink on my.."

"I know. Interesting, it has been a while since I seen a Rookie defense not just win their first case, but also find the real perpetrator.

I find the defendant, Miss.. Xarkana the Vile..


Not Guilty

"Yay!""Yey." *Uncertain cheering from the audience. Some were still contemplating to flee after all.. and some had gotten ink-splatters on them..*

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

Dee stood with a smile on her face as the Judge seemed to agree with her deductions on the matter, with how passionate the crime was, as stabbings this brutal usually were, Xarkana had no major connection aside from just being on the scene. (She definitely did it... Now let's just see if we can get a little more proof out of her with this next bit of testimony... You're almost there Dee! You can actually win this one!) With victory in her sight, she steeled herself for whatever was about to come next.

Though what came next was the witness losing it completely, abandoning any semblance of innocence and essentially admitting that she was the real murderer behind all of this. (Geesh... Even managed to creep out Xarkana... If I wasn't so creeped out myself I might be a little impressed...)

"Wait WHAAAAAT?!" She shouted out in surprise as she saw Angel pull out a bomb, planning on killing them all in the explosion. Dee had half a mind to run right then and there... but she couldn't bring herself to abandon her client and this case like that. Plus she doubted that running would do her any good now, as the explosion could very well bring the entire building down before she even managed to get out.

When Mary spoke up, Dee was close to just trying to tackle her and shield her from the explosion to keep her safe, plus hopefully have a chance at persuading the woman to think twice on something like this. Then the stream of ink shot out and Dee jumped in surprise once again as it coated the witness... (Woah! I didn't even know she could do something like that! Way to go Mary! I think I owe you a whole lot of ice cream after that!) She calmed herself down a little bit before she listened to the Judge officially hand down his verdict, smiling brightly as he even complimented her!

"Heh Heh... Th-Thank you, Your Honor. I was just doing my job, and I'm glad I could help find the truth... I look forward to trying to do something like this a few more times here..." (Though hopefully that'll come with a little bit more preparation next time... Maybe being able to at least meet my client first would help...) She'd smile even more once she got the official 'Not Guilty' verdict, incredibly relieved to have won her first case and help an innocent person come out of the court room without any major sentencing lying ahead of them.

Once they got out of the courtroom, Dee would immediately hug Mary tightly in thanks. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You saved my case AND my life in there Mary! You're the absolute best! We can get you loads of ice cream tonight for that! I can't believe I won my very first case!" She'd laugh and compliment her squid assistant a little more before looking around to try and find Andrew Lion... needing to talk to him for a little bit. Once she did, she'd put on a more serious face, understanding that he was likely still broken up about all of this. "Errrrrr... Mr. Lion, I'm so sorry to have accused you of this crime... I understand if you're upset with me... For what it's worth I'm very sorry for your loss... I hope that knowing his real killer is going to be punished can give you a little solace... I'm so sorry."

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

"All the icecream!.. gotta refill my ink-glands too." Mary cheered, before making a slight squished "Can barely breathe though.." remark.

"It wont bring him back though, will it." The man sighed, then shook his head. "Its just fair. I went and accused your client based on just seeing her there too. Thinking about it, she is creepy but didn't seem well.. err.. violent. Plus, in hindsight, I have seen Angelique sneak about, I just figured she was like a childhood friend, with how close she acted. Anyway."

"Icecream." "Uhm, what?" "Icecream time, now. Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!"

And with a short goodbye, Dee found herself dragged off to feed a young squidgirl with an amazing talent for destroying copious amounts of icecream. On the plus side, there was some of press around the young, blossoming star of defense attorneys winning an unlikely case, on the downside, somehow, your assistant managed to eat away half of your cases' earnings that night. Well, you can still pay rent for the tiny office space that currently, has two boxes serving as your chair and a table thats still wrapped up in foil from moving it there. (you bought it for cheap!)

Not only that, but the day after, Squidgirl decides to move in, so now where theres a fax machine and printer in a smaller sideroom, now there also a squid and her little kiddie-pool. On the plus side, you don't think you'll run out of ink soon.

However, the mysterious aura surrounding your case has its downsides too. The creepy defendant and actual criminal, and your entry into the law-scene make it hard for you to get 'ordinary' cases. Xarkana is independently sentenced to 90 hours of community service.

~~~~~

A few days later, you find your squiddie rescuer taking you to the sea-life museum of the neighbouring town. You got nothing more to do, and you still owe her a smile or two you decide, so you agree, entering the (rather expensive!) sealife museum at about 15:00. You are certain nothing bad is going to happen.

"Oooh .. this is amazing. Let us look at the turtles!" She cheers, for some unknowable reason. This afternoon the place is moderatly full, and before you can respond, you are approached by a fish with a cheerful smile. No, a mascot-fish.

"Welcome at the Silverp... wait.."

Spoiler

"Oh hello. Dee and Mary right? .. I'm here working off.. 47 hours, 12 minutes and 10.. 9.. 8.. seconds of community service. It is hell." She nodded.

"Here is your map. And because you are friends, a tip.. Don't bother with the 'great last Silver Shark' or whatever. It's a boring, fat fish, thats been doing nothing but swimming forth and back lazily. Anyway, you are at the main entrance right now. If you have any questions just ask away.. though I'll get back in costume, before I'm caught being 'Un-jolly' stupid mascots. I couldn't at least be a scary shark or Joe the Diver.. That one has a fully functioning harpoon. Pew Pew! Mwahaha!"

"Alright.. we need to go left here.." Squidgirl nodded, pointing at the left set of stairs. "Theres only two stairways, and the other leads past that scary shark! Brrr.. Sharks eat squids. I wanna go nowhere near it, rare or not!" She insisted, pointing on the map, looking at Dee.

Spoiler

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

After her first trial, Dee was eager to get some rest and calm down after such a hectic and stressful case. She was actually really glad to have Mary sticking around with her, as the little squid had proven herself to be really helpful, and Dee really did like having her around. Even if it meant that a good deal of her payment went towards ice cream instead of something else. But money wasn't the main reason she got into this job, she wanted to make sure that nothing like THAT ever happened again, and so as long as she could pay the rent on her office and pay for food then she'd be fine. So she was more than happy to buy Mary her ice cream and spend some time to reward her for doing a good job, though she would've liked to work to make her office look a LITTLE more professional.

====================

As they stepped into the aquarium, Mary would hear Dee singing a song to herself, in Japanese of all things, as they looked around the place...
Nanatsu no umi o daibōken
Nijiiro sango ni gotsugotsu dōkutsu
Umi no soko e mo hitomoguri
Daikōkai no hajimari saa"

(

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Couldn't help myself... )

She actually really liked aquariums, so it wouldn't have taken any convincing to get her to take Mary to a place like this. The only major issue was that getting into the place wasn't exactly cheap, so she'd have to make note to keep track of how much she spends over the next few days. Dee would smile a bit as Mary definitely seemed excited about all the things around them, her enthusiasm making this worth it at least.

"Oh! Hey Xarkana, definitely didn't expect to see you here... But hey, just look at it this way, it was either community service for
a few days, OR doing stuff like this forever and actually being made to ENJOY it..." She figured she knew enough about how the woman saw things to give her a better way of looking at it. Dee was almost certain that Xarkana wouldn't want to be made to do this kind of stuff forever, without ever being able to do evil again. "Thanks for the map though, and I'll keep that advice in mind. Just hang in there, you're almost halfway done all this community service before you can get to... err... 'terrorizing the world' all over again."

Dee would look carefully at the map, nodding as she heard Mary talking to her about where she wanted to go. Inwardly she breathed a sigh of relief when Mary didn't want to go to near the sharks, as Dee wasn't entirely comfortable with them either. "Got it... We'll avoid the big shark thing and go up those other stairs..." And then while reading the map, she'd proceed... to start walking the entirely wrong way... Before turning around and walking... once again the wrong way... "Stupid map... what does... err... Where... Hrrrmmmmmmmmm..." Turns out that Dee was very bad at reading maps... dreadfully bad at it actually... but thankfully before long she'd pull the map down and just head the way that Mary had indicated, walking towards the actual correct set of stairs to get to the second floor while avoiding the shark exhibit.

 

[Pervy]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

You can't go up the right stairs anyway, its closed for maintenance at the moment.. The goldfish-Xarkana informed. And, truthfully, there was a small line leading up the left stairs...
"I hate lineees" Squidgirl complained, though it wasn't too bad, and soon, you made your way upstairs, towards the tortoise aquarium, left to which was the

Spoiler

Mermaid Aquarium. The right side was sadly blocked off, if only by a simple 'do not cross, cleaning/maintenance in progress band. Beyond it you can see another mermaid tank in the distance.

However, what draws immediate attention is.. this voice. "Oh yeah.. I love the m.. wait"

"The hell are you coming here, ruining my mermaid-viewing pleasure.. one is blocked off for this stupid maintenance.. why i ought to.." "Eeep!" Squidgirl squirmed as the well dressed but short tempered lawyer shook his head at you, dashing a bit to the left, only to run into:

Spoiler

A man in a friendly whale costume, which set the poor Squidgirl in an inexplainable panick, well, until one realized that some whales eat squids. Not content hiding behind you anymore, the poor girl ran, tentacles flailing behind her, past the do not cross barricade. The security guard stationed there too shocked to react, but not shocked to stop you and the annoying prosecutor from pursuing as the poor, panicked squid thing fled. About a minute or two passed and then

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Once people rushed to the scene there was.. an impressive sight to behold. There was two fishtanks, the Mermaid fishtank in the back, but in the front, the rare, exotic shark tank.. with a shark that was currently penetrated with a very real looking harpoon. By the side stood a maskot, obviously the owner of the harpoon.. which was currently in Squidgirls hands, just being pulled out of the shark, which was bleeding profously, and slowly sinking to the ground of the aquarium...

Spoiler

~~~~~

"So, let me get this straight. You arrived here with the accused monstergirl, she ran off in a panick, then, the next time you saw her, she had the murderweapon in her hand I see.. Well, achooo.. sorry, allergic to seafood.. I mean.. I remember you being an attorney, so she might need you right now, as for the prosecution.."

"Oh, don't you worry.. I shall handle that." "Achoo.. wonderful, well, this case seems crystal clear.. achoo.. Trial will begin tomorrow then, unless the prosecution has any problem with that.." "Oh ho ho ho no problem at all.. I'll be busy for a while then..."

Oh no! Squidgirl is accused of murder! You can do a few things before the trial though.. but be wary of time running out if you dawdle too long at the wrong place!
~Investigate the surroundings
~Talk to the Prosecution
~Talk to Squidgirl, your new defendant!

 

[shotgungunshot]

Re: Impropable Pudding (Shotgun/Pervy)

"Thanks again for the help Xarkana! Keep at it and I'm sure that you'll be done with all this community service stuff in no time." Dee would inform her, figuring that there were far worse things that she could be doing than helping out at a local aquarium. For her own part, the rookie attorney didn't really mind having to wait in line, sure it was boring but it gave her time to think about things, and still feel proud that she had won her very first case.

She'd take in the view around her for a few moments right up until she heard a familiar voice... a voice that she had hoped she wouldn't have to hear again for a long time. "Hey, we're just here to enjoy our day. You're the one that seems to be so upset by the fact that you lost to a ROOKIE that you can't be happy just leaving us alone! If we bug you so much then just ignore us." Dee would criticize, figuring that she would've been able to ignore him had he not suddenly decided to get upset at them. But instead of the two of them going there separate ways and ignoring each other, the arrogant jerk just couldn't handle his ego being a little wounded after yesterday. Or at least... that was the narrative that Dee had built in her head since she already didn't like the guy.

"Wait, Mary NO!" Dee would immediately rush after her friend, not wanting her to be set off into a panic and get herself hurt or something. There wasn't any hesitation, as she wanted to protect the squidgirl... unfortunately she was stopped by a security guard, which would just make her struggle a bit, barely even thinking about the problems she was causing when her friend could be in some sort of trouble. "Hey! Let go of me already! My friend could be in danger right now!" This was a place full of sharks and other things that could hurt someone, as well as ledges you could fall off and other things that might harm a poor squidgirl, so she was trying her very best to get to Mary and actually calm her down...

That was right up until she made it and saw the scene of some sort of terrible incident, with a dangerous, bloody weapon in Mary's hand that essentially would make her the number one suspect... While the actual scene was terrible, Dee was still more worried about what would happen to her squid girl assistant. She was a friend, and that meant the Dee never wanted bad things to happen to her, especially with how much of a nice person that Mary had been so far.

~~~~~

Once again Dee would offer the detective a tissue, figuring that it could never hurt to offer. "Yeah, that about sums the whole thing up rather well... I suppose she really does need an attorney now. I'll see about finding her a good one. But I'm not certain that I'm taking this one. I'd prefer getting someone more experienced to defend someone that I care about." (She needs someone better than me... I mean, I know she's innocent... But I'm not gonna put a friend at risk just because I think I might be able to do it. Even if I have to take out a huge loan and throw myself into debt... I'll get her someone good...) Dee didn't want to take chances, not with a friend. If anyone should defend Mary, it should be someone that knew the legal world inside and out. So it meant that she'd need to search as soon as possible, unless some other fact came up that meant she'd need to do that sort of thing on her own.

"Hold on! The girl doesn't even have an official lawyer yet! We can't just have the trial tomorrow... not before she has SOMEONE!" Dee would try to protest, ignoring the smarmy prosecutor for now since there were way more important things to focus on. If the trial was tomorrow no matter what, then Dee was almost certain that she wouldn't be able to find a proper defense attorney in that time. She didn't want to be the defense attorney, but if that was how it had to be then she'd be far less happy with this case than the last one. If the last one had been a disaster, then this one was a disaster times 10!

Whether she would be able to look for another attorney, or have to defend the squid girl herself, Dee would need to get official confirmation from her client before she'd be able to even do anything. As currently she was just a regular bystander, so she'd need to see Mary herself. With that in mind she'd rush off to talk to her defendant, wanting to not only get some information from her, but also to comfort her and make sure that she was ok. (I really hope she's holding up ok... The poor girl has already been through a lot... and now she has to deal with having a complete rookie for an attorney. How am I supposed to break THAT news to her?)