Trail II: Interpretation

Alain's authoritative strike of the gavel reverberated through the courtroom, instantly commanding the attention of all present. "For those in the gallery who may be unfamiliar with the proceedings of the Cour D'assises, allow me to elucidate. During the cross-examination of the record, Sophie, representing the defence, will identify potential inconsistencies, and François will address them. I won't inquire about your comprehension, as you are here as observers, not participants."

The murmur of the crowd ebbed, their conversations blending into an indistinct hum that failed to reach the ears of the judges.

"Unnecessary," Luc declared with audible disdain.

"You believe that using more than ten words in a sentence is superfluous," Isabelle retorted playfully, her tone light and teasing.

"True," Luc chuckled, unable to take offense at being called out in such a lighthearted manner.

"We, the three judges, each possess our own copies. The members of the jury have their individual copies, and both the defence and prosecution have theirs. Additional copies will be accessible at the library and online once this trial concludes, at which point the entirety of the case will become public knowledge, akin to practices in America," Alain elaborated, his voice clear and authoritative.

"Wow," a tourist in the gallery, his Irish accent unmistakable, expressed his surprise. "I had no idea about that."

"Silence, please, members of the audience. We will now turn our attention to Sophie. Madame Durand, the floor is yours," Alain announced, gesturing towards Sophie with a dignified sweep of his hand.

"Thank you, Your Honor," Sophie began, her gaze fixed on her copy of the record. "I'd like to address a matter a few pages in. According to this data, the victim's identity was confirmed via DNA from blood samples and fingerprint analysis. However, there are no other forms of confirmation mentioned anywhere within the record. What about her dental records or perhaps x-rays from any injuries that may have occurred during her 15 years of life?"

François chuckled dismissively. "Seriously?" he retorted with a hint of condescension. "We already have two forms of proven identity. The law stipulates that we need only one. Are you suggesting that the body is somehow a fake just because we didn't exhaust all possible avenues of identification?"

Sophie was taken aback. "Well, don't you think it's odd?"

"What, exactly, do you find peculiar, esteemed adversary?" François retorted mockingly.

"Stop venom!" Luc forewarned with a stern glare.

"If you are going to be concise, at least do it coherently," François added, his tone sharp with rebuke.

"Who's the judge?" Luc asked pointedly, his voice a subtle reminder of his authority.

"You are, but—" François began, only to be swiftly cut off by Luc's firm interjection.

"You don't control me," Luc stated firmly, causing François to gasp in surprise.

"My apologies, Your Honor," François conceded, averting his gaze from Luc's stern expression.

"This entire case is peculiar; it's built on a rather unusual foundation," Sophie stated once silence had descended upon the courtroom.

"I'm sorry, Madame Durand, but you'll need to clarify that," Alain interjected, his tone firm yet polite.

"As we all know, this crime was captured on camera, and I believe the prosecution has a copy of the footage," Sophie continued, her voice steady and composed.

"That's correct, but I haven't presented it to the court for two reasons. First, the news has already broadcast this footage extensively in the week leading up to today's trial. Second, there are children in the gallery today, and the footage contains a violent act committed by their favorite hero. I have no intention of causing unnecessary distress to the innocent if I can avoid it," François explained, his tone measured and composed, betraying no hint of his internal thoughts.

"The fact there is even footage and plenty of witnesses is what I find very suspicious indeed," Sophie added, her voice tinged with a hint of skepticism.

"What's so suspicious about it? Some criminals have been caught on tape without their knowledge," François added, a cocky smirk playing on his face. "I should know, I've convicted five criminals with surveillance footage."

"You've convicted fifty people, which means ten percent of your success is from particularly unintelligent individuals," Sophie retorted with a hint of passive aggression. This seemed to ruffle François's feathers.

"Madame Durand," Isabelle interjected, her voice calm and measured as she pulled out a small box containing string and beads. "You'd better make your point before I finish my daughter's next fashionable necklace." She began threading the beads onto the string with practiced ease.

"I, too, am growing impatient," Alain chimed in, his tone polite yet firm. "No more arguments until Sophie makes her point."

Sophie nodded, a hint of stress evident in her face and movements. "As everyone knows now, the defendant, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, is the masked vigilante known as 'Ladybug.' Both she and Cat Noir have stated on record that Ladybug wasn't supposed to be on patrol at the time of the crime, yet there she is on camera. Also, if she was going to kill Lila, why not do it in an alleyway? Why did she choose to do it beneath the Eiffel Tower? Furthermore, why was Lila even there in the first place? She had just left school, so why not head straight home? How did Ladybug know she'd be there? Was Ladybug following her? If she was, then Ladybug could have simply waited for Lila to be completely alone before taking her away to be killed in a secluded area. Additionally, the fact that the murder weapon was a lucky charm only replicable via a mold adds to the suspicious nature of the story. If Lila was killed elsewhere, away from the public eye, and found later with a wound that didn't match any weapon the police had on file, then the assumption would be that someone from overseas committed the crime or at least that the weapon wasn't in their catalog and was hidden elsewhere. I concede to the motive provided, as it shows up frequently in the discussions that Pierre had with others, and I concede with the means, but I can't concede to the opportunity. People would have recognized her, and she would have known that. She would have had the foresight to know that she would be recorded on camera if she committed any crime, and as has been proven by the existence of footage of her crime, this was especially true under the Eiffel Tower. In conclusion, the story, as it stands, is inherently contradictory."

Sophie paused to catch her breath, thinking she was making progress. However, when she glanced at François after taking a sip of water, she noticed a smirk on his face. He had anticipated this.

"Yes, but you've overlooked a major problem. I noticed the story too," François retorted smugly.

"But if you had, then why are charges still being pressed?" Isabelle queried, packing away her necklace-making kit.

"Madame Leroy, if you had read the record thoroughly, as you should have, you would have noticed that I enlisted an expert writer to interpret the story," François explained courteously, his tone calm and collected.

Isabelle skimmed through her copy of the record. "Ah yes, it mentions here that you sought the assistance of one Vance Lindon… wait… isn't that a foreign name?"

"British, I believe. Not that I delve into anything irrelevant to French law," François clarified, his tone polite yet dismissive.

Isabelle set down her copy of the record. "But why, I ask, did you choose a person not native to our lands to interpret Ladybug's actions?"

"Well, Vance recently completed a book in which the main antagonist triumphs over the heroes. Who better to decipher the complex actions of a villain than someone who wrote about a successful one? In fact, Mr. Lindon, note that I used the foreign honorific, had sent a copy to Gabriel Agreste, who might be sponsoring his future success. I, too, using my persuasive skills, managed to obtain the manuscript." François revealed a suitcase that had previously been hidden from view. He opened it to reveal a stack of papers, the top sheet bearing the title: 'The Reign of the King of Chaos.'

"Ah, yes," Alain interjected. "The record notes Vance as the 'Writer of The Reign of the King of Chaos,' but I think that title could use some work. A shorter title would be more appealing to readers."

"You possess persuasive skills?" Sophie countered. "You couldn't even convince a cat to fraternize with a dog, or vice versa."

"Watch your language," Luc admonished sternly.

"However, I must object to this Vance Lindon," Sophie continued, undeterred by Luc's warning. Luc appeared displeased that his warning went unacknowledged. "The individual who began writing this record, and the detective leading the investigation, Captain Pierre Leferve, noted that Vance seemed to be concealing something. Pierre inquired if Vance had any connection to this case, but Vance remained silent."

"Well, now you understand the connection. Vance is involved because I brought him into the case, and he didn't feel at liberty to disclose this," François explained courteously, his tone even and composed.

"It appears that this interpretation is significant," Alain interjected. "Prosecutor Moreau, would you mind elucidating it for us?"

François sighed wearily. "You could read it yourself, but since I have to make it public anyway, and because you asked, I will read the interpretation provided by Mr. Lindon."

Turning through the pages of the record, François finally located what he was searching for. "Here it is. 'Ladybug's actions and why they make sense. An essay by Vance Lindon.'"

"I hope it's short," Isabelle joked.

"No joking," Luc scolded.

"Don't be a spoiled sport; you are younger than I, remember that, Associate Judge Boucher," Isabelle added, her smile as sweet as an angel's.

"Would you mind regaining your decorum?" Alain asked politely. "All three of us are on the job and are expected to hold the highest standards."

Isabelle blushed in embarrassment, her cheeks flushing a delicate shade of pink.

As for Luc, he remained quiet as usual, his expression serious and contemplative. He thought he did nothing wrong; he was still being professional and concise, speaking only when spoken to or when he felt his interjection was necessary. Nobody could discern why he behaved in such a manner, and as far as they were concerned, Luc remained an enigma throughout the trial.

"Now that that is dealt with, Monsieur Moreau, please read the essay," Alain requested, his tone firm yet polite.

"Very well. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you may read along if you wish, but know that all you need is in front of you, and I will not be reading this again," François added, gesturing towards the six jurors. He turned to face forward and began to read. "'I was asked to provide an interpretation of the strange actions undertaken by the superheroine entity known as Ladybug. On camera, she was seen murdering one Lila Rossi, which was no surprise to me. I knew she was a liar when I first met her at the Agreste mansion, and no doubt that led her to trouble, seeing she is now gone, trouble had found her. As for the story, it is rather questionable. Why, on camera, did Ladybug murder Lila Rossi under the Eiffel Tower in plain view of what must have been around or over 100 people? Well, what if that was the question she wanted us to ask? Allow me to explain further by stating that this all began with Monarch's obtainment of all but two miraculous. Not to mention that the heroes reclaimed a miraculous, but we'll skip that. All of Paris witnessed what he could do with them all when he made that shielded message. He must have been using at least two miraculous to do it, the power of the turtle and the power of the fox. Due to that, it could be assumed that when Ladybug killed Lila Rossi, that it was Monarch setting up some complex dilemma for Ladybug, and since Lila didn't vanish upon contact, that infers further that no illusion was present, but nobody would ever believe Ladybug would do it, so thus they concluded that some set-up was still ongoing, that some way or another it must be connected back to Monarch. Ladybug, being the one who gave out the miraculous, would know how they are used and what combinations could make such a thing appear to be real, and she also believed that her supporters, the people of Paris, would deduce that Monarch's new abilities would enable him to frame Ladybug. That's right, when she lost the miraculous to Monarch, she saw the perfect opportunity to kill Lila and make everyone believe she had nothing to do with it and in order to do so, she had to make the event as public as possible, so she must have been monitoring Lila for days until one day luck smiled on her like it usually does and she saw Lila walk underneath the symbol of Paris on a day where there were plenty of witnesses to see what happened next. That's when she killed Lila. In conclusion: Ladybug killed Lila publicly after losing the miraculous to Monarch because she knew that at that point in time nobody would ever believe that she did it and she'd avoid all consequences.' Well, that's all there is. Are you all satisfied with that?" François concluded with a bow, though his pink handkerchief, previously unsecured, tumbled out of his left breast pocket. François picked it up, folded it, and carefully placed it back where it belonged, ensuring it wouldn't budge this time.

The courtroom erupted into an uproar of conversation, some individuals reaching their breaking point. It took two minutes for the three judges to restore order, their authoritative presence gradually calming the crowd.

"Just to confirm," Alain announced once the volume had reduced to mere whispers. "Vance believes that Ladybug acted intentionally because nobody would believe it was true."

"Yes, your honor," François affirmed.

"And you yourself believe that his interpretation is correct?" Alain inquired further.

"I wouldn't have allowed it to stay in the record if I didn't," François confirmed confidently.

"Objection!" Sophie rebutted. "Why didn't Ladybug commit the crime earlier? According to her and Cat Noir in the record, she became guardian a few months back and had access to all the miraculous and Monarch had access to none. She could have done it then too."

François shook his head incredulously. "Why do you still object? The opportunity has been explained quite thoroughly. I can think of two reasons from the top of my head why she didn't. First, as you stated, she once had access to all miraculous but the peacock and the butterfly; now she only has access to two, three if Bunnix returns. If she had committed the crime then, how would Paris attribute it to Monarch? Secondly, the record has copies of the pages of the grimoire for the hero jewels, and it says wielding too many may cause insanity in the wielder. Now, if you ask me, I don't see the defendant acting like a loon over in her seat; other than what she is wearing now, she seems like a quiet and coherent young lady."

Sophie was stunned. François's reasoning was difficult to refute, if not impossible. She searched for a counterargument but found herself coming up short. It seemed that François had won this battle, leaving Sophie determined to ensure she won the war.