entangle (levi x reader)

96. charoite

"Sorry I took this long," Isabel stood next to the bed Levi was resting in while I hung back near the door with Farlan.

im glad she decided to come

"We found something!" She grinned, "they're saying that the trial is a done deal now- so you don't have to worry about it."

well hopefully

it doesn't seem like they stand much of a chance

levi's decision to switch out the poisons did a lot of the work

and the document we found-

well it makes it difficult for them to try and pin the blame on me

"Should we leave?" Farlan nodded over at Isabel who was now deep in conversation with Levi, "I think she's fine."

"Alright-" I stared at Isabel for a second longer, "but we shouldn't go too far- just in case something happens."

there's a lot happening at once

"There are only two days remaining until the trial," Farlan said cooly as the door swung shut behind us. "Are you ready?"

"Of course not."

but im sure my bestest friend ever is going to be super helpful

"I feel safer now though-" I glanced back the way we came, "and Hanji should be here soon- if they've found her."

i don't think they would give up until they did

the just need to get here quickly

i don't know what the rest of us will do if the trial ends and levi is still asleep

help him obviously but-

the list of things we still have to do is definitely pushing us forward

"You should be fine."

"It's likely that they'll try to drag it out right? Keep any decisions delayed until Levi wakes up?"

"Or try to get it dismissed entirely," Farlan nodded.

yeah

"We'll be fine," I shot Farlan a smile. "The evidence is on our side."

"I hope you're right," he nodded grimly.

The next two days passed quickly, in a haze of preparation.

still no news about hanji-

hopefully-

hopefully she's here soon-

"This is nonsense!" A loud shout shook me out of my thoughts.

ouch

"Are you alright?" Farlan leaned down to ask me, eyes still focused on the trial actively happening in front of us.

"Yeah I'm fine."

"They're making a mockery of nobility! We all know that Levi Ackerman has far too much to gain by framing me for his poisoning."

someone isn't doing too well

The thing about trials among the upper nobility is that- they don't exactly follow the same rules of an organized courtroom.

it has far more to do with convincing enough members of the audience of your innocence

a popularity contest basically

but the evidence we've gathered should be enough

"Then who poisoned Lord Ackerman?" A member of the crowd spoke up, all attention was laser focused on Marquess Forster.

"That same day Marchioness L/N was at my estate! The two of them likely colluded to frame me-"

as expected

"I was in the garden having tea with your fiance," I scoffed, staring down at him, "the two of you were already having your meeting before I got there."

no one knows about petra

"You easily could have paid off a member of my staff to poison the tea!" He fired back, murmurs spread throughout the crowd.

"Marchioness L/N? Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Another one of the gathered nobles spoke up, "it does seem unlikely that the Marquess would harm Lord Ackerman."

does it really?

"Did we not hear the same testimony? His own fiance found the poison and testified to having heard him planning to poison Levi."

besides-

"Do I have anything to gain by poisoning Levi?"

a few weeks ago all of you were gossiping about our relationship

"You're in a relationship with him! You could have easily been convinced to help him get rid of Marquess Forster, they're from opposing factions."

sure- i mean they're kinda right- that is sorta what happened

"All of you seem to believe that I care extremely little about my position as the Marchioness."

all of them seem to have very little faith in me in general

"What do you mean?" Floch glared over at me, "we all know about your relationship with Lord Ackerman-"

"Sure," I nodded, "but you all know how we used to be."

i made it extremely apparent how little i liked him

"People change."

"True, but even when I hated him I never did anything to jeopardize the neutral status of the marquisate."

that remains important to me

it's the way that i will protect my people

it's the way that i'll fight against you now

"I'm not interested in jeopardizing that position of neutrality- not now not ever."

the amount of time that i have spent listening to everyone in this room against my will

"And I think you know that- isn't that right?" I stared down Floch. "You know that I wouldn't give up on neutrality- that I would never agree to relinquish control over the forest."

which is exactly what you want from me

"What do you mean by that?"

"Documents about the development of the forest were found in Floch Forster's office- how convenient is it that he's placing the blame on Lord Ackerman and I for the poisoning." The crowd was slowly turning to our side, "Floch obviously poisoned Levi, he's utilizing this trial to shift the blame onto me so that he can demand compensation."

likely territory

"Is that true?" Gasps spread throughout the crowd.

"The documents speak for themselves don't they?" The room descended into chaos, voices shouting over each other, the attention completely turned away from me and back onto Floch who was at a loss for words.

i think we succeeded?

Farlan glanced around the room, heaving a sigh of relief.

good job

______________________

i leave for japan sooo soon im super nervous

- ami