The Cruelty of the Writers (Previously 'Bleh to lazy to think of a catchy title)

Cj wrote:

"Wait," Vena said getting the ministry person's attention. He sighed but let her continue. Vena looked around the courtroom. "Alright," She said. "Now I know most of you probably don't believe a word Nicole has been saying. Which If you're judging who is right and who is wrong is probably a good thing. But what she did isn't actually why she's here. It's why she did it. She didn't because she could and because she wanted to. She was twelve when she kidnapped by Death Eaters. She didn't really have a choice. Or the only one she did have was do as Voldemort," She rolled her eyes at the gasps. "said or die. Now, you would probably say Death is better then helping him, maybe now she'd agree, maybe she wouldn't. But look into the mind of a twelve year old. Who would be scared out of their wits about what is going on and just want to get back to their family. At that stage, if someone says that doing what they say might allow them to get home. They'll do it." Vena looked around the room again and glanced at Nicole. "I think you need to take into consideration of the fact that she's young and young people don't always have control of how their lives turn out."

Nicole opened her eyes and looked at Vena, silently thanking her and hoping it was enough to change things. The guy called back the attention to him, and called for the vote of the verdict. This was when Nicole closed her eyes again, too afraid to look at the amount of hands for each option.

"Those in favur of releasing the accused of all charges," The Ministry dude said. Quite a few hands went up, Vena quickly counted them, it looked like about half. But whether it was more of less Vena wasn't that sure. She hoped that her speech kept Nicole out of Azkaban, it wouldn't be a pleasant place for anyone, let along children. "Those not in favour," Hands flew up. And Vena counted them. Her heart sank. She narrowed her eyes at the ministry guy.

The guy finished counting the hands and cleared his throat to announce the verdict. "In a vote of # to #, the Wizengamot finds the accused, Nicolette Malfoy, guilty." Nicole's eyes flew open and she looked right at the guy. "You can't be serious," she said, voice not shaking like it had been.

Vena frowned, there was nothing she could do now that Nicole had been deemed guilty. Ignoring the Ministry guy telling her to go and sit down she walked over to Nicole who looked scared out of her wits. She gave one of thegaurd who tried to grab her a very dark look and he took a step back. Muttering gruffly he said. "You have a few minutes." "Lovely,"

Nicole looked at Vena as she blinked back tears. "Vena," she said, voice almost to soft to be heard, "I can't..." She looked at the girl, knowing she could feel in the rest of the sentence for her. Nic surely wasn't able to say it. She just desperately wanted to hug Vena and then have everything be okey.
~
Lyssa watched from where she was sitting as the trial went on, asking herself where had things gone wrong? What error in her parenting had she made? And she knew what it was. It was the decision to ignore Voldemort, it was her deciding that she didn't want Nic to be faced with the sort of life she was. But, that's what had led them all to here. If she had just gone, then maybe Nic wouldn't be sitting in that chair, facing something horrible. But, then, Lyssa might be herself. It was lose-lose when you were a Malfoy, it seemed.

She watched as someone, a girl not much older than Nic, walked down from where she was sitting to where the blonde girl was. Lyssa saw how Nic looked at her, and thought that maybe she was someone important to her daughter.

Vena sighed looking at the girl, she was far too young to be sitting there, having to deal with her actions and the consequences that followed. Expecially when she hadn't really had a choice in those actions. "I'm sorry Nic," She said hesitating for a moment and then pulling the girl into a hug. Vena thought that maybe she should have done something, not then, but years earlier when the girl first found herself at Riddle House. Vena should have done something, gotten the girl home or something like that. She withdrew from the hug running a hand through her hair.

Nicole leaned slightly into the hug, needing the feeling of comfort that hugs tended to carry with them, wanting to hug Vena back, but being incapable. She was trying her hardest not to cry at the moment. That would just....make her look weaker than she already felt.

The ministry guy looked at the two of them. "Alright, time up." Vena frowned at him, but bit back what she wanted to say. Which was something along the lines of how they were heartless cruel jerks sending a child to Azkaban with a mix of various unpleasant things mixed in as well.

"No," Nic said quickly, looking straight at the guy, sort of hoping she looked at pathetic as she thought and felt like she did. Her hands tightened to fists, and she had to consciously think about making sure she was breathing at the moment.

The Ministry man made a face. And said. "You will stay in the holding cell for another day, you will leave for Azkaban tomorrow. If you wish to talk to a few people before you leave this would be the time." The chains on her wrists undid themselves and the ministry guy grabbed her arm.

Nicole really wanted to cry now. She had another whole day. Granted, that wasn't too long, but it was still something. She flinched ever so slightly as a ministry person grabbed a hold of her arm. Then they started to lead her off the way she had come before. Nic looked at Vena, hoping she was going to follow.

Vena followed Nicole and The Ministry guy out of the room and towards the holding cell. (Is Lyssa following too? Cause she'd want to talk to Nic wouldn't she?) The Ministry guy half shoved her into the room and then stood gaurd at the door. Vena rolled her eyes at him, someone took their job far too seriously.

Once in the room/cell, Nicole found it even harder not to cry, since now there weren't a ton of strangers around. Although, maybe if she had cried in front of them their minds may have changed. But it was too late to think that now...

Vena leaned against a wall in the cell room thing, unsure of what exactly to say. She wasn't good at the whole comforting people thing.

Nicole just stood there for a moment, before she turned to Vena, giving her the biggest manageable hug she could, which probably startled Vena some, but Nicole didn't really care at the moment.

Vena was slightly surprised at the hug but she hugged the girl back, though gentler then Nicole was hugging her. Vena realised she'd miss Nicole, she had gotten so used to the girl over the past five years that it would be strange to be without her.

When Vena hugged her back was when Nicole finally started crying. She moved back from the hug and wiped furiously at her eyes, which didn't really help any at all, except to make her eyes sore.

Vena frowned at the girl's crying, she really wasn't good with the whole comforting thing. She helped the girl sit down and despite the fact that she herself wasn't that comfortable with hugging she hugged the girl again.

Nicole really appreciated the hug, because she knew Vena wasn't the most comforting person in the world. She looked at the person who had probably become closest to her in the last few years, although she looked blurry through the still falling tears. "I'm scared," she all but whimpered. "Like out of my fucking mind scared."

Vena rana hand through her hair, she really was unsure of what exactly to say. The little compassion she'd managed had really disapeared. "If I could do something I would," She said softly. "But there's nothing I can do."

"I know," Nicole replied, forcing herself to calm down enough to talk without blubbering like an idiot. "And you already tried anyway. That speech probably made it a closer vote than it would have been to begin with. Just wasn't good enough I suppose..."

Nic feel asleep some time later, but Vena stayed in the room. Not wanting to disapear and leave the girl on her own.

Nic wasn't sure when she fell asleep or how long she slept but she woke up to someone running their fingers through her hair. She opened her eyes blearily to see the outline of her mum. It reminded her of when she was younger and her mum would do that whenever she got scared. Some ways passed her mum, Nicole could see that Vena was still around too. Neither of the two seemed to realize she was awake yet.
~
Lyssa had shown up not too long before to find Nicole asleep and the girl from at the trial (she still doesn't know Vena) was there too. "Not to sound rude," Lyssa had said look at the girl as she walked over to where Nicole was sleeping, "but who are you?"

Vena looked at the girl's mum. "Vena Riddle," She said wondering if saying her last name really was a good idea.

Lyssa didn't make any reaction to Vena's last name at all. It wasn't something that seemed important at the moment. She just continued to stroke her fingers through Nicole's hair. "I'm going to guess you're an important person to her," she said to Vena. Might as well talk, rather than leave the room in an awkward silence.