[D8:MM] Truth will out (Open)

[Baelon Drakeson]

A message had gone out the previous evening, borne by Marsten messengers to Barthelds, Coldbrooks, and Dulvers;
to Kytleys, Longshores, and Tullisons;
even to Lord Jasper Wylde, Ser Eoric Tully, Lord and Lady Frey, the other surviving members of the group sent to observe the investigations.

In light of the arrest of Lady Gwyneth Drakeson by Master Yoren Longshore on the accusation of tampering with evidence, a gathering is requested to convene tomorrow morning for Master Yoren to present his evidence and for Lady Gwyneth to be questioned on the charges.

The meeting convenes in the same pavilion that held the treaty negotiations the previous day, but while the dry air had lent a certain comfort on that occasion, on this day a heavy rain made for a dreary feel, a clammy dampness think in the air and the field outside little more than a morass of mud.

Inside, three tables have been set up - one for the accuser, one for the accused and her husband, and one for the Marstens who would be presiding over the proceedings.
As before, a large number of chairs have been set up for other attendees to sit in a gallery.

Baelon sits in his appointed position dressed in clothes well suited to the weather - tight-knit wool leggings with high leather boots, and over a warm, high-necked shirt and leather jerkin he wears a half-cloak embroidered with the Drakeson sigil.

[OOC: Message coming from Corrine approved by her via PM]

[Yoren longshore]

[This would come after the people who wishes to be present is present, but given the time constraints I wish to get this moving]
Yoren meets up for what Baelon had set up, but he placed himself at one of the specator chairs.

"
What right do you have to take up all our time? We all know that this is nothing but a mock outrage from a man grasping at straws. He may put it however he wants, but the facts remains: His wife said that royal investigators needed no proof, needed no approval from others to abduct people."

Yoren pauses for a moment:
"
I readily admit fault, I thought that illustrating the ridiculous nature of her claims would be best done by showing her the consequences of such a precedent. When I realised that she was incapable of understanding the abstract nature of my argument, I readily allowed her to leave."

Looking in askance to the investigators present he adds: "
Don't you see the potential consequences of allowing that? The smallfolk may listen to the slander that the Drakesons put out, but I expect you to know better. This is done solely as a personal attack against my person. Gwyneth and Baelon has cynically used accusations of me being a torturer and what worse is for their own petty schemes."

Yoren looks angrily at the bench where Baelon and Gwyneth is seated as he ends his explanation.

[Intrigue time?]

[Baelon Drakeson]

[OOC: Intrigue against who?]

"
Admit fault? Of what, specifically? You were well within your rights as a Royal Investigator to arrest my wife."

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

"
I've made no accusations against you,"
Gwyn adds demurely. "
Your treatment of me while I was in your custody was not abusive, though I feel the threat to keep me shackled in the dungeon was perhaps a bit ham-handed. At all points I made every effort to cooperate with your lawful investigatory procedure...assuming at the time you had every reason for it."


"
In short, I understood very well what you were doing. The question is...did you?"

[Yoren longshore]

"
So Daveth is the gossipmonger then? That's good to know."

Yoren looks over at the rest of the assemby: "
So the discussion of the day is simply if a investigator needs to provide any information before abducting others? Isn't this a little late for that discussion?"


[I don't want to do another long debate thread like the treaty, I will allow both you and Gwyneth against me to avoid further prolonging of this...]

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

"
The discussion of the day is to allow you an opportunity to explain yourself and present any evidence you have, as well as give our fellows the chance to follow up,"
Gwyn says. "
I won't have any suspicion of wrongdoing hovering around me due to your actions. No challenge to your legal authority to arrest me is being made. However, having arrested me, you must now account for it. The fact that you released me without questions does not change that."


"
As for gossipmongering, you arrested me in full view of the public. You shouldn't be surprised if tongues wag over it."


(OOC - I don't think Baelon or I are really trying to intrigue Yoren here. If it goes that way, perhaps...but I don't really anticipate this being a long debate thread to be honest. The point of it will come up quickly, and should be resolvable quickly as well.)

[Yoren longshore]

"
The public somehow got hold of a low voiced conversation... I guess there was someone hidden under your skirts Lady Gwyneth."

Yoren then continues annoyed: "
You fully well know that my objective was primarily to show that your ways would wreck havoc upon us all if allowed to grow. You abuse the time of all the people here to make your own meaningless points. Now, do you have anything useful to say or did I ride all the way here for nothing?"
Yoren asks harshly.

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

"
Well, I'm sorry to say not everyone believes that points of law are meaningless,"
Gwyn replies evenly. "
Whatever your intentions might have been, your actions have legal consequences. We're here to address that. NOT addressing it would 'wreak the havoc' you warn us of."


"
So. Am I to understand that you exercised your legal right to arrest me, simply to try to make some kind of point? And not because you actually suspected me of wrongdoing?"

[Baelon Drakeson]

"
Before we get too far into 'why's' and 'wherefores', I want to be entirely clear on one matter: Master Yoren, was your arrest legal? Or are you here, before these gathered dignitaries, confessing to having knowingly committed a crime?"

[Yoren longshore]

Looking around the room Yoren tells the gathered: "
It's clear to me that this is no more than politics. A powerplay if you wish. I made one comment. That one comment has been taken out of its context and is now being used for politics."

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

"
You arrested me, and are now trying to pass it off as if nothing happened,"
Gwyn counters. "
But it did happen. The question is therefore placed before you. You've brought charges against Lord Drakeson for the same action you yourself committed. Do you therefore concede he was acting in his rights, as we maintain you have? Or do you concede that you are subject to the same charges you are bringing against him?"

[Yoren longshore]

"
No, I hypothesised around me arresting you contemporary to us discussing the flaws of investigators being able to arrest each other. Far from the same thing."

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

Gwyn paused for a moment, thinking, then said, "
you, lady Gwyneth Drakeson, are my prisoner. You are held under suspicion of tampering with evidence."


She paused again, then said, "
Those were your words, I believe? Lord Coldbrook can correct me if I got something wrong. What exactly was hypothetical about them?"

[Yoren longshore]

"
You cook soup out of a nail I fear. If I had intended to arrest you why would I not have carried it out? You invited me to a consolidation talk, and when that did not work you throw baseless, senseless accusations around. Why do you keep us here?"


[Could you get to your point? You said you'd get to it shortly...]

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

"
It's not for me to speculate why you chose to release me from your custody without questioning me,"
Gwyn says. "
That's a good question for you, not me. Regardless, and again, when you arrested me you impugned my name and my honor. You cannot do that and simply walk away, shrugging as if nothing happened. You may prefer us to treat this as some sort of joke...but we are not children, Yoren. What we say has power, and power implies responsibility."


"
So we are taking this seriously, as we believe all of us should do. That you arrested me is not in question. We therefore call you to account for the apparent hypocrisy in your charges against Lord Baelon Drakeson, and to account for your motives in arresting me. This is our legal right, given your actions. We will not back away from them simply because you insist that it was all some kind of game."


(OOC - lol...dude, are you kidding me? We've been addressing the point for the last five posts. Edit - My apologies;
that sounded very insulting the way I phrased it. I didn't mean it to sound condescending. It just took me by surprise. )

[Yoren longshore]

"
I did not arrest you, it's impossible for me to do so. I believe we talked of the finder details of defining arrest yesterday. I see what you try to do, but you are at a loss. You cannot force this assembly to uphold your lies. If we start to take words out of context I could turn the treaty you wrote into a direct insult to the king. Intent and setting matters. Your say-so does not change facts."

[Gwyneth Drakeson]

"
You informed me I was your prisoner, and that I would be escorted to Warrior's Seat to await questioning,"
Gwyn replies evenly. "
In the dungeon, as I recall. It wasn't until Daveth decided to obtain some chaperons to protect my honor from insinuations that you appeared to change your mind and released me from your custody. At no point did you say you didn't mean it. At no point did you state that your intentions in arresting me were not sincere."


"
As far as I am aware, that is all that's required for your arrest of me to be legal and binding. For both of us."


She glances at Ironrod. "
Perhaps an informed legal opinion would help resolve this matter?"

[Davain Bartheld]

Davain was starting to grow impatient. He had a lovely wife and a household to manage that he has been taken away from to listen to petty squables. Rising to address the parties in hope of ending this.

"
I fail to see why we are here. Is it to hear about how upset you two are at Yoren's accusations or is there a purpose? If, for arguments sake, Yoren did arrest you than it also seems that Yoren has dropped the charges. Take this as a slight against your honor as you may, but there was no crime committed. You were arrested on the charges of tampering with the evidence and your reward for being innocent is being set free. If instead the charges are that Yoren's arrest of Lady Gwyneth was unlawful because he does not have jurisdiction to do so, than Lord Baelon is just as guilty and should be punished in the same manner as Yoren. So here we are, we can waste time and punish two individuals over petty slights of honor, or you two can agree to just go separate ways."

[Septon Arlyn]

ye gods, if Ser Raynald Dulver were here then we would have that man stating that this should be solved by death duel. And with the way these charges are being presented it would seem like he was being reasonable one of this group. Septon Arlyn shifts his weight, relieving the pressure on his lower back slightly but causing the chair to squeak in protest. Then Lord Davian speaks, finally someone with sense. Hopefully they will listen to him and these charges will be dropped. I thought Ser Raynald was the crazy one.

Septon Arlyn listens to the patter of rain against the walls of the pavilion. The Septon closes his eyes slightly and let's his mind wander.

by the seven I am tired. I must have slept only what? A few hours before that page woke me?

Septon Arlyn struggles to stifle a yawn.

I sure am glad that Ser Jorah convinced prince Aemond to leave. Gods only know what other mischief he would have convinced Ser Theomore to get into. Septon's Arlyn's thoughts turn dark. not that you have much room to speak. You sentenced 4 men to die by the pike. A more torturous way must only be by the maw of a dragon.

Septon Arlyn remembers his dream.

Perhaps it was the gods trying to warn me of what's to come? Now that is a disturbing thought.

With that Septon's mind turns back towards the trial.

I shouldn't have gotten out of bed

[Baelon Drakeson]

"
Lord Davain, I apologize for this - unpleasantness. This meeting was called as a matter of proper procedure, for Master Yoren to present his case and for Lady Gwyneth to be questioned by all of the investigating houses. That Master Yoren decided after the fact that his words and actions for some reason do not mean what they would coming from any of the rest of us, well, that is what is making this a farce."

[Davain Bartheld]

"
Call it what you may, but if Yoren has no charges to bring than it will seem that the charges have been dropped and we are all allowed to go on our marry way."
Turning his attention to Yoren. "
So Yoren, do you have any charges that you will like to bring on the Lord and Lady Drakeson?"

[Baelon Drakeson]

"
The issue that remains, Lord Davain, is whether or not 'I didn't really mean it' is a viable legal defense. If so, I'm sure Ser Steffon 'didn't really mean it' when ordering the Blackwood assassination. Clearly that cannot be right."


He smirks.

"
Either both Master Yoren and I committed a crime - myself unknowingly with good intent, him knowingly to play legal games - or neither of committed a crime;
whether that be because we do have the right to arrest, or because neither of us 'really meant it'."


He turns to his accuser.

"
So, Master Yoren, which is it? Are we both guilty, or both innocent? You cannot have it both ways."

[Yoren longshore]

"
You take my words out of context. I call it entrapment what you do. I call it a mockery of justice, and I call it preying on a calm chat under which I assumed was friendly circumstances. You drag words out of context, and ensure that two of you were present, so as to prove your evidence. I will not answer a question put forth on a false premise."

[Terren Dulver]

Terren will snap back to reality, clearly annoyed that this is still going on.
I'm fed up with this ridiculous accusation, time to end this farce.
“So let me get this straight, you are trying to have Yoren punished, because he used the words, “You are under arrest” to show how ridiculous it is to have someone from an investigating house imprisoned, without having to receive permission or even show any evidence whatsoever."

Terren will pause for a few seconds and then add
"
Really?
Terren will take a slight pause once more and then add : "
Did he force you to do anything, Lady Gwyneth, did he even physically impair you in any way?”

[Yoren longshore]

Yoren looks thankfully at Terren, but he has little to add.

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