Liaran Sedai
Liaran did not see the point of asking for the input of those outside the Hall, and wondered why the Asha'man had invited it, when her guilt for what she had done was so obvious. She sat forward in her seat as Haeden was called upon to speak, hoping the trial had not been too difficult for him and wishing he'd had the sense to stay away. Her eyes were drawn to him as he spoke, and though she also wished he hadn't felt it necessary to explain that he had been the one with her, she knew that that decision was not hers to make. Still, she was worried about the impact her trial had had on him, and the last point he made proved to Liaran that she had good reason to be concerned for him.
It hit her like a physical blow, and the Aes Sedai shifted herself slightly backwards in her seat. Her wide, dark eyes fixed on Haeden, though the Gaidin was no longer looking up. No. NO! Not the most convincing argument ever, but those were the words in Liaran's mind. Both hands wrapped around the blue fringe of her shawl. How does he still not understand what he did for me? How can he possibly believe that he should die in my place? She had thought she'd made herself clear when she'd spoken to him not long ago, but it appeared that that was not so. Would she have another chance to see him before her execution? Liaran had no idea, and was powerless to do anything except hope that she would.
She did her best to cling to that small hope as others spoke up in her defense, each one a new shock to her. Liaran had known as soon as the Asha'man spoke that Haeden would speak for her, but had truly thought the Gaidin would be alone in doing so. It particularly surprised her to hear Tia, a Green Liaran hardly knew, say that the trial should be dismissed, and even more so that Tia was not the only person to say such a thing. She had come here expecting condemnation, not support, and the reactions of those who spoke to defend her were not at all what Liaran thought she deserved.
The greatest shock of all came from the last speaker, Micara Sedai, one of the former White Tower sisters who had spoken earlier of having seen her during the war. The woman, sounding almost angry, claimed that what had been done to her by the White Tower had been unlawful, that she should have been given a trial for the charge the White Tower had accused her of, and that for those reasons, the woman Liaran had killed should have been punished for her actions. It was nothing that had ever occurred to Liaran, and by the time Micara Sedai had finished speaking, she felt so overwhelmed that she could hardly think.
The Hall met after that, and Liaran remained where she was. She looked towards Haeden again, wondering if her execution would bring the man any sort of peace. She had to hope that it would, since there was little else she could hope for. Only a short time passed before the Hall returned, the Grey Asha'man calling her to stand to hear the verdict.
Liaran obeyed, releasing the edges of her shawl as she stood. The Aes Sedai straightened her back, forcing herself to look directly at the Sitter as he began to read. "Liaran din Chelai Morning Star, Aes Sedai. The Hall of the Tower declares that you are innocent of this charge against you. You are free to go."
She remained where she was, certain she had not heard correctly, for that could not be right. Liaran looked around her, waiting for someone to come and tie her hands, to take her to a cell to await her death, but instead, the crowd was filing out of the Hall, as were the Sitters, and it slowly began to sink in. Innocent. For whatever reason, and she did not understand what that could be, the Hall had found her innocent. Liaran blinked, then slowly turned to depart the Hall, hardly able to believe that she would not die, but live.