Storytelling Week 14

"I call to the stand-- Old Blacke"

The once virile calf was now an old bull, and although he once was known for having hair as black as collyrium, it was now peppered with gray patches. The bull's bones creaked all the way to the front of the room. He finally stopped and gave a loud "muff" sound that signaled he was prepared to speak.

The prosecutor began again, "Good morning Old Blacke. I have prepared a list of questions for you regarding the payment of a certain caravan owner on a scorching day years ago. As I understand, you were once shortchanged by this man, and demanded proper pay even though you were an animal working for a man. How do you rationalize asking for such pay? The work must not have been too tumultuous for a bull of your caliber?"

The bull bellowed out a low droning, "Fool, do you not know who I was taking care of at the time?" The bull cleared his throat once more, "At the time of this incidence, I was caring for a lady who once was the only one who would care for me. The late Miriam was one of the bestest women I have ever met in my brief life. She took me in as a personal burden to her, and I felt the only way I could ever repay her would be to make a bull's wage pulling carts."

The prosecutor interjected, "Aha! But why would you attempt to make a wage for her instead of working for her yourself?! Clearly there was another motive."

The bull scoffed, "The loving Miriam made sure I would never have to work for her, and she never wanted to sell me because of the happiness I brought to the children of the town. In fact, I see some of those children today in the jury."

The bull wiped his face, an amazing feat for any quadruped and continued, "I only agreed to work for a wage whenever that scoundrel caravan owner attempted to steal me for his own. I even made a proper negotiation agreement with him that he eventually broke. I can understand one's apprehension in paying an animal for its work, but I believe that once you enter negotiations with an animal, you cede over those beliefs and you therefore must maintain your agreement. Additionally, the carts he needed to move numbered in the hundreds, yet he barely had enough oxen to move ten. This caravan owner was not only sinister in his motives to not pay me a previously agreed sum, he was also negligent in possibly endangering the health of his own herd. It was only once I came along that we were able to move all of the carts, and it was afterward that he attempted to short-change me. Let me ask you: Who is the one who should be on trial here?"

...

The bailiff  called out, "The judge will now read the jury's verdict in this case."

The judge unwrapped the parcel and began to speak with a slight smirk on his face, "The jury has ruled that the defendant in this case, Mr. Blacke, is completely innocent. And just let me tell you, Mr. Prosecutor, I don't think I've ever met a human that seemed as noble as this great bull. This court is dismissed."

Author's note:
This story was in reference to the story from Jataka's Fairy Tales located here. I thought the weakest part of my story was why the case was happening so much later than the original incident. I would like the reader to assume this was likely because of the inherent flaws in expediency of the court in this world.