A Friend in Need

Chapter 1: The Visit

Athena Cykes wet her lips and tried to feel more like an attorney and less like a nervous little girl. She'd crossed through the door of the detention center's visitation area many times. This was no different, even though she was by herself and not on a case. To anyone who saw, she had every right to be there.

"Excuse me, I'm here to visit—"

Why did it feel harder to do this than to face him in the courtroom?

She swallowed. "—Simon Blackquill."

The officers on duty in the detention center seemed surprised, and she winced. Maybe she should have called him Prosecutor Blackquill.

"It'll just be a minute." A guard left to fetch him, and another escorted her to the place where she would talk to him through a thick pane of glass.

Maybe that was why her stomach churned so much. At least in court, there wasn't a barrier to protect her from him. Just the handcuffs, and they could be ignored with enough effort. Old tears threatened to arise, but she forced them back. She'd save him. He wouldn't have to endure such treatment much longer.

She shifted in her seat and played with her earring. Maybe this was a bad idea. If his behavior in court was any indication, he might not even talk to her.

But he was still Simon. There was no reason to be nervous . . . except it was seven years since the last time they had a true conversation.

Except he barely acknowledged their past in court until the final day of Juniper's trial, despite a slight buzz of discord in his heart when he first spoke to her.

Except he'd changed so much, she wasn't sure she still knew him at all.

The click of the door and the clink of manacles signaled Simon's arrival. The guards escorted him to his seat as if they thought he might somehow make a break for it, and then retreated just a short distance to keep watch. Dangerous murderers, it seemed, were kept under close guard even when receiving a visitor.

Simon looked at her and said nothing.

It wouldn't do to let him see her nervousness and think she didn't trust him, so she injected enthusiasm into her voice. "Good morning-Prosecutor Blackquill." Her nerve failed her before she could use his first name.

"Cykes-dono."

She flinched in spite of her resolve. Discord surged through his voice. Even those few syllables contained an unspoken Go away so clear she couldn't ignore it. He wasn't happy to see her, and he had no desire to talk or reconnect.

And yet . . .

Something else hid beneath his dismissal.

She kept a bright smile on her face. "How are you doing?"

"An interesting question to ask a man confined to cell." His stare burned into her. The discord in his heart was even louder. "I see you have a sense of humor."

"I'm not joking. I care about you."

That had to get a response from him-a lie about how she shouldn't care about her mother's murderer, a dark crack about what it was like in the clink, a reference to their past, anything.

But he looked away. "This is not the time for a visit."

There it was. Pain. Worry.

Fear.

"Why?" she asked.

His expression darkened. "It is none of your concern."

"Please, Simon."

He gave her a sharp look.

She tried a slight smile and indicated Widget. "Don't make me give you a therapy session."

"Hmph. Am I an unruly witnessed, to be cajoled by such means?" He smirked.

Relief flooded her, which was surprising. That smirk was very much a mannerism of the so-called Twisted Samurai, not the Simon she remembered from seven years ago. It unsettled her when she first saw it in court, and reminded her of how much the years in prison changed him.

But she couldn't save a man in the past. She would save the man he'd become.

"If necessary," she said.

"I suppose I have no choice but to submit." He looked away. "Taka is ill." He slammed his fist down against the table. "And since I cannot go to him, I'm forced to rely on that idiot Fool Bright to see that he is cared for."

Of all things, she hadn't expected that. She reached out to comfort him, but the glass halted her progress. Her hand slid away, with Simon achingly out of reach. His expression was unreadable.

"How is he doing?" she asked.

"I don't know!" He scowled. "He got sick two weeks ago. Fool Bright just laughs and says he'll take care of everything and that everything is under control. Yet he refuses to bring Taka to me or escort me to the courthouse to see him . . . I haven't seen him since he fell ill." He slammed his fist down. "If that incompetent clown has taken Taka to some sort of wildlife center to be subjected to the whims of strangers, he will pay."

Little things like that proved he was still Simon, no matter how different he looked and acted. The coldhearted murderer he pretended to be wouldn't be so distressed over a bird. And with his barriers broken down, nothing stopped his heart from radiating his fear and worry.

When Taka first attacked them in court, Athena couldn't resist a burst of happiness despite the situation. The little hawk Simon adopted back when she was a child was still with him after everything that happened.

And Simon still loved Taka as much as he did back then.

She jumped to her feet and flashed him a peace sign. "Don't worry about a thing! I'll take care of it!"

#

Several questions and detours later, Athena entered the prosecutor's lobby of the courthouse. For all of Simon's worries, Detective Fulbright was on top of the situation, if his current position was any indication.

The white-uniformed detective stood with three police officers by the far wall. They stared up at the rafters. A tall ladder extended up to a high beam.

"Well, I'm not going up there, sir," one officer said. "That bird nearly clawed my eyes out once. I bet it's not even sick. It's a trap."

They certainly gave Taka credit for deviousness.

"Should Blackquill even be allowed to have a pet?" another asked. "I mean, he could be plotting his escape. I saw the hawk flying around with a bunch of papers once."

Fulbright turned to him. "When was this?"

"Last month, I think."

"We'll have to keep an eye on that." The detective let out a hearty laugh. "We can't have a prisoner sending out secret messages, after all."

Enough.

Athena marched toward them and cleared her throat.

Fulbright turned around and saluted. "In justice we trust! What can I help you with, Ms. Cykes?"

"In justice we trust!" She grinned. "Actually, I'm here to help you."

He threw his hands up. "You mean you've come to join my crusade of justice?"

"Uh . . . not quite."

"Then I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

She pointed toward the ceiling. "Prosecutor Blackquill is concerned about Taka. I'm here to get a full report so he'll stop bugging you."

"Why were you were talking to Prosecutor Blackquill?"

"Business." When she was ready to tell someone about her past with Simon-and argue about his innocence, because no one would believe her any more than they did when he was convicted-it wouldn't be Fulbright. "So, let me see Taka."

He sagged. "Well . . . we sort of have a problem."

"What do you mean?"

"Taka is up there." He pointed. "He attacks anyone who goes near him. All we've managed to do is get water to him. We're still trying to figure out what to do."

She stared at him. "You told Prosecutor Blackquill you had it under control! You lied! That's not justice!"

He drooped further. "He'd be upset if he knows the truth. I'll figure something out." He saluted. "So you can tell him everything is fine."

Simon was right to be suspicious. She couldn't go back to him with a report like this, and she couldn't lie to him, either. And she couldn't leave Taka in such dubious care. He meant too much to Simon, and Simon meant too much to her.

"I told you I came to help," she said, "and I'll help you with Taka."

Before any of them could protest, she climbed up the ladder. It was a long way up. At the top, she was close enough to grab the rafters. Three beams came together to form a wider platform. Grass and cloth covered it in a ragged nest. Taka sat hunched inside. He regarded her with a baleful, but bleary, stare.

She reached toward him.

His head darted forward and he pecked her hand.

"Ack." She withdrew her hand. Blood bubbled up from where he'd struck.

Still, even though it hurt, he didn't seem his usual self. His attack was slow, and he shifted in his nest. She wasn't an expert on birds, but he looked uncomfortable. Weak, even.

One more try.

One more bleeding hole in her hand.

She climbed back down the ladder.

"See?" said the police officer who'd complained earlier.

"We'll think of something," Fulbright said. He laughed. "He's waited two weeks. What harm could a little longer delay do?"

It could kill Taka, that's what it could do. "I'll be back."

She spun around and headed for the exit. Her thoughts were a blur. She didn't know how to help Taka any more than Fulbright did. She could climb up the ladder and risk the hawk's talons, but after that she'd be clueless.

Outside, she took a deep breath. She wouldn't give up. Simon and Taka needed her.

A man walked by with a bouquet of flowers. She followed him with her gaze. Flowers . . . Of course—Juniper Woods! Junie loved animals. She lived in the forest, and she always had stories about the wildlife there. Sometimes, she even mentioned helping an injured animal.

Athena pulled out her cell phone and died her friend's number.

Junie answered on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Hey, this is Athena."

"Thena? You sound upset. What's wrong?"

"Could you help me with something?"

"Of course, anything."

The whole truth might not be the best thing to reveal so soon. After her trial, Junie probably didn't have kind feelings toward Simon, although at least it would be easier to explain to her why Athena wanted to help out a "murderer" than it would to other people.

Partial truth, then. "There's a sick animal here. I don't know how to move him or what to do to help, and I can't call a wildlife rehabilitation center because—well, I can't."

"Oh . . ." Compassion and concern filled Junie's voice. "What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know. He looked tired and weak. He didn't want me anywhere near him, but I don't know if he'll be okay on his own."

"What kind of animal is he?"

"A bird."

Her tone and the voice of her heart softened even further. "A poor sick little birdie?"

Athena made a noncommittal sound and imagined how Simon's eyes would flash if he heard Taka described in such a way.

"Where are you?" Junie asked.

"By the courthouse."

"I'll be right there."

Author's note: Hey! Some of you might have read this story when I originally posted it on the PWKM, and yes, it's taken me a long time to get around to uploading it elsewhere. Here it is, though-I hope you enjoy it! As with my other recent stories, my friend Stein999 on deviantart created this lovely cover image.