“A suit and a dress?” she exclaimed. “What are we, dancing monkeys?”
He sighed. “I guess we’re about to find out.” The sharp rapping at the door made him flinch. “Alright, let’s get to work.”
This scene was oddly familiar—standing in front of a dozen elders, their gazes cold and measured. No word had been spoken yet, but their judgement bore into him like a heavy, lead shroud.
This time, though, he was not some naive youth. In the last few years since the incident, he’d grown up. Come into his own. He would not show them any weakness. Wouldn’t flinch.
And even though she didn’t say anything, he had a feeling that Liora felt the same. Standing beside him, even wearing that ridiculous gold and white dress his mother had brought, she held her head high and back straight, her mouth set into a serious line.
He tugged at the high collar of the matching suit he wore. Of course there had been arguments that morning about wearing the outfits, but his mother’s more superior will and louder voice won. Besides, Liora had nothing else to wear except her usual garb of jeans and T-shirts. She may not be his favorite personright now, but even he wouldn’t let her walk into a meeting with the council dressed like that.
“Maldenis and Liora Chura,” Halcyonius, the leader of the council, began. “You are standing before us today because you have violated the sacred laws.”
“With all due respect, Elder,” Maldenis said. “We had no idea of the laws and did not mean to?—”
“Silence,” he interrupted, his voice booming across the cavernous room. “Ignorance of the law is not an excuse. And the spring does not differentiate between ignorance and intention. As Master Hiramus”—he gestured to the elder, who sat at the end of their table—“explained to you, the two of you are bound by the ancient laws for at least a year and a day.”
“But—”
Melora, who stood on the other side of Maldenis, nudged him with the end of her tail, signaling him to stay silent. “Elder, if I may speak…my son and Liora may have been ignorant of the laws, but now that they have been made aware, they are willing to make amends.”
Another elder to the left of Halcyonius, an older female with grayish-silvery hair pulled back into a severe bun, scoffed. “So, you speak for your son again, Melora? You ask for leniency once more? He does not have the excuse of immaturity this time.”
“Elder Karima,” Melora began. “It’s true that this is not the first time my son has faced the council. And yes, previously I pleaded for compassion and the majority of the council was generous enough to reduce his punishment. However, this time, his ‘crime’ was done because of lack of knowledge, not malice or lapse in judgement. These ancient laws are no longer taught in schools nor are they the subject of everyday discourse. And?—”
“What is your point, Melora?” Karima interrupted.
“I was about to get to it. Master Hiramus, as the leader of the Council of Wise, is it not your duty to preserve the culture of our ancestors.”
The elder nodded. “Yes.”
“And the ancient laws are part of this, correct?”
“Yes.”
“What have you done to preserve the knowledge of the laws? I mean, aside from taking care of the old scrolls, as they sit on dusty shelves locked away in our archives? Why are these laws not studied openly? Discussed among scholars and research published?”
“W-well, uh,” the old basilisk sputtered. “We were trying to prevent the Upperworld humans and Valefolk from learning about them. To protect us, and prevent them from using this knowledge against us.”
“And keeping them from the younger generation of basilisks at the same time?”
Hiramus opened his mouth, shut it again, then glanced over at Halcyonius.
“I see what you’re getting at,” Halcyonius said.
“As I mentioned, the two of them are willing to abide by the laws—now that they know. And they submit themselves to the council to redress their mistakes, starting with the public information campaign I proposed to you yesterday when I first sought you out. You must agree, it is a brilliant plan and will only serve to strengthen our society.”
A soft murmur buzzed among the elders before Halcyonius spoke up. “Before we put it to a vote, do we have any objections or counter arguments?”
The leader had barely finished asking before Karima spat out, “This is preposterous.” Her teeth gnashed with fury. “First you let this shunned one come to the council and make demands on us? And now you are once again letting her son—one with ahistory of delinquency and disregard for our culture—get away with his crimes?” Her poisonous gaze bore into Maldenis. “You are a disgrace to our entire race. The gods were merciful to cull your clutch before they could draw breath?—”
“Oh, why don’t you shut your mouth hole, you old witch!”
Maldenis’s head snapped toward Liora, his jaw dropping nearly to the floor at her words.
“How dare you speak to me that way,” Karima barked. “I am an elder of the council.”
“That doesn’t mean you can speak to Maldenis with such disrespect,” Liora countered. “I thought this was supposed to be a place of decorum, not some meeting place of the unhinged.”
