Wil realized too late that his story was much less impressive without the illusions he usually used to perform it. It didn’t help that the tribunal interrupted him constantly to ask questions. Or throw accusations. After the first hour, it became a constant barrage against his battered self esteem.

“What do you think happened in those two days you lost in Faerie?” Grandmaster Yensin asked, stroking his long beard.

“As far as I know, nothing bad,” said Wil. The more he remembered, the more private the recollections became. “It was a bigger party than what humans typically throw, and I was a little occupied.”

“How do you know you weren’t compromised during that time? The fae are known for their ability to bewitch people!”

Wil swallowed. “No, I assure you, most of my time was spent either performing tricks, drinking, or…with my girlfriend Darlene.” A chuckle ran through the room.

The questions kept coming. “What on earth possessed you to gamble your life on a duel with an ogre? Or invite them to our world without any warning or preparations?” He answered them as best he could, but they rolled together until they started asking pointed questions about Hugo.

“According to your report, you freed his thralls and they turned on him at your command. When did you come up with this plan?” Speaker Keene demanded. “That is not something one does on a lark. That’s premeditated.”

Wil looked to Perce, who nodded. “His death wasn’t premeditated, but I figured out how to disrupt his connection with his thralls. I kept that knowledge in mind in case I ever needed it. And then I needed it when he went rogue.”

General Hakon wasn’t having it. “In case you needed to take out your superior. You wanted Mage Jefferson out of the way. You hated losing control of your illegal mission!”

“Hugo was unstable,” Wil snapped, guilt warring with frustration. “I didn’t want to kill him, but he gave me no choice. He threatened my friends and family.” President Bullworth’s words echoed in his head. “I should get a medal for preventing my town from being the staging ground for an unnecessary war, and you’re seriously trying to frame me as the bad guy? This is a load of shit.”

Wil surprised himself, but the lingering heat in his head and his shakiness told him he’d lost it. The spectators gasped, and Speaker Keene slammed her gavel down.

“Master McKenzie,” she warned again. “Watch yourself. Am I clear?”

He nodded, anger broiling further, but he knew better than to push his luck.

“I think a short recess is in order,” she said. “We’ll return in twenty minutes.” As one, the tribunal stood up and the rest of the court followed. They went out a back door, while Pierce gathered his notes and they left, back to his office.

“That was foolish, McKenzie,” Pierce grumbled. “I told you to not lose your cool. What do you call that?”

“Losing my cool,” Wil sighed. “I’m trying. This is so damn exhausting. I’m not so good at sitting and being a punching bag for people who clearly want me pilloried.”

“Only three of them want you pilloried,” said Isom. “The four quiet ones are mostly focused on how useful you could be. Though, that doesn’t mean they’re happy with you.”

Pierce’s jaw dropped. “What are you saying?”

“Dammit Isom, I told you not to read anyone’s minds without permission!” Wil rubbed his eyes with a groan. “We'd be in so much trouble if they knew.”

“I should say,” Pierce said, looking disturbed for the first time since Wil had met him. “Why didn’t you tell me your cat can read minds? These are not people who tolerate any slight or violation of their person or privacy. It might already be too late. I…I need to step outside and think.” He stumbled out of the office.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Wil turned to Isom. “Did any of them detect you in their minds?”

“Detect?” Isom scoffed. “All but one of them were screaming their thoughts, repeating the same things again and again. I had no choice but to hear it all!”

“And the one who wasn’t?”

Isom licked his paw and began cleaning himself. “It was more like a whisper. Like when your beefy friend gets lost in thought and mutters under his breath.”

“You know his name is Bram,” Wil said. He couldn’t be too annoyed at the wampus cat. As loathe as he was to admit it, knowing what the judges of the tribunal felt towards him gave him something to work with. “So you’re saying that the wizards are on my side, and the others aren’t?”

Isom laughed his awful mrowling laugh. “None of them are on your side. They couldn’t care less if you lived or died. The wizards would just prefer to gain knowledge from you before they feast on your remains.”

It all came back to that damned leyline. Wil poured himself some water and drained it. His entire body was tense and had been. It was exhausting. Right when he thought about laying his head on the desk and closing his eyes, there was a knock at the door. A second later Thomas stepped in.

“They’re really putting the squeeze on you, aren’t they?” He said, taking the seat next to Wil. “I know it's rough, but you’re handling yourself well up there.”

“I keep losing my cool,” said Wil, groaning and tugging at his hair.

“That’s the right move,” said Thomas, leaning forward. “You want to do that more often, I think.”

“No one asked you,” said Isom. He still hadn’t warmed up to Thomas, but Wil was past caring. They ignored him.

“I don’t know.” Wil frowned. “Speaker Keene and the others seem to want my head.”

Thomas shook his head. “It’s a dominance display. They want to keep you cowed and off balance. They’re always harder on wizards than they are others, because the council is often three or four wizards, depending on the case. Trust me, I’ve seen a few hearings like this, and you can’t let them intimidate you.

“If I were you, I’d go harder. Show more strength, more personality, and less remorse. You look and sound guilty and like you know it. Each time you defend yourself they bark and you give in. You need to go harder and make them look bad.”

That sounded wrong, but Wil couldn’t fully put his finger on why. He knew at least one reason. “Won’t making them look bad end with them trying to punish me?”

“If their judgment pisses off enough people, they could be pushed out of power before too long.”

Wil laughed. “Fat lot of good that’ll do me when I’m buried in the Junk Drawer for my efforts. They might do it to me anyway, if I don’t give up the secret to leylines.”

Thomas thought about it for nearly a minute. The clamor of people outside the office reminded Wil how little time remained in their break, and that Pierce hadn’t come back yet. Whatever advice Thomas had, it was likely the best Wil was going to get before they went back in.

“I don’t think you’re going to get out of this without sharing that secret,” he said. “So you might as well give it to them. But!” He held up a finger to forestall Wil’s indignant response. “You need to do it on your terms. If that’s what they want, make it clear you’ll give it to them, but add a condition or a cost to it. Make it clear you’re willing to play, but you will not be played. Make sense?”

Wil made a face. “After a fashion. So pound my chest and be loud about how right I am and then offer them up my secret to save my ass?”

“Yes.” Thomas smiled apologetically. “Might as well ask for rain in a desert, right?”

“I don’t know,” Wil admitted. “I don’t have any other strategies. The best I know is that the wizards on the council might be willing to vote in my favor when the time comes. So maybe I should do this. I don’t want to, but I don’t know how long I can hold out, or even if it’s worth it.”

“It would work,” Isom confirmed begrudgingly. “They’ve been thinking about it often.”

Thomas’ eyes slid over to the wampus cat. So far, his best way of getting along with the cat was pretending Isom wasn’t there and didn’t say anything. It had worked well enough, but now he was interested. “If they’re thinking about it and want it, you might be able to swing things in your favor. Be aggressive and be ready to jump on opportunity.”

The door opened again and Pierce stood in the doorway. He didn’t look happy. “We’re about to go back on. Are you going to be able to contain yourself and your pet?”

Wil and Thomas shared a look. “Yeah,” said Wil. “No more outbursts from me. I’ll behave and we’ll win them over.”

“Fine,” said Pierce. “Then let’s go. We might have hours yet to go.”

“Good luck,” Thomas said, slapping Wil’s back. He smiled slyly and slid past Pierce.

Wil stood up and joined Pierce. Part of him felt guilty over lying to a man who’d done nothing but try to help him, but Thomas was right. He wasn’t gaining anything by allowing himself to be on his back foot the entire time. It was time to give them what they wanted, ready or not.