The Spotted Fawn Law Firm

Larth Redbinder looked up at the green sign with a golden illustration of a snow freckled deer and letters reading: “Spotted Fawn Law Firm”

It swayed slightly as the breeze pushed golden leaves past Larth’s boots. He had a feeling this place would be different than the others as he lifted the latch and pushed open the heavy oaken door. A brass bell rattled as he entered.

Inside was a spree of parchments and scrolls bulging on shelves with placards announcing the province each section pertained and a mounted scroll on either wall stating that they were free quick reference guides to the basic laws and ordinances followed by the offer: “Take one, it’s free knowledge.” Based on the considerable number of copies still stuffed into each cubby, Larth dared guess not many had taken up the offer.

A tall man with slender features and large glasses was sitting at the end of the room behind a desk that stood in front of a door to the back. He turned the page of his book without an upward glance, despite the acorn bell still ringing out.

Larth didn’t wait for the lawyer’s attention, he strode forward and said, “Excuse me.”

“Oh, hello, and what is your name?” The lawyer said, his eyes still scanning the page. 

“Larth Redbinder, my good fellow.”

“Oh, I do not believe my self to be a good fellow. Nor do I believe myself to be your possession to be deemed good or otherwise. You see, slavery has been outlawed in eleven out of fifteen of this Kingdom’s provinces, two of the remaining four are moving towards outlawing it, and the last two are on the verge of a civil war over the matter as they are harbor towns with 80% of the income a result of slave trade via ships. Now if I were to be in your employ, you would have grounds to refer to me as your my, but at the moment, I am simply a fellow versed in the knowledge of law practices who has been interrupted from a riveting trial account by the not-so-infamous and, in my opinion, highly underrated courtroom clerk Cogbarrow Spindleguard.”

He put a ribbon in the book to mark his place and finally looked up. “How may I help you?”

It took Larth a moment to process the words. He shook his head and said, “I need to see about changing a law.”

“Interesting.” The slender man took out a page and quill which he plunged into an inkwell. “What is the full name and infamy titles of the party wishing to petition for this change?”

“Me? Larth Redbinder, Master of War” He felt himself stand up straighter as he said it.

The man began scribbling on the paper, but paused to give him a once over and murmured, “I believe I know a squirrel in the magic forest who has better claim to that title.”

Larth deflated a little. “And what is your name?”

“Ophaon, Seeker of Regulation.” He murmured, as he reached for a code book. “Now to make a proper proposal, we will need some information.”

“Of course,” Larth said, trying to feel like he understood. “And what will all this cost?”

Ophaon smiled faintly, “That depends on the change.”

“I need to make it legal to buy basilisk gullets”

An eyebrow shot up as Ophaon squinted at him. “The sale and marketing of such is strictly prohibited in all fifteen provinces of this Kingdom as well the import of such from the surrounding countryside. In addition, it is also prohibited to market, sell, or otherwise import any part of a basilisk, including the hide, which would not be the case with other creatures such as kobolds and owl bears. Even hunting a basilisk is forbidden.”

“Yes, but can it be changed?” Larth planted his hands on the desk.

“Possibly.” He dabbed his quill and put it on the page. “A reason will need to be given. Why would you like this change?”

Larth pressed on, “A basilisk turned a good friend of mine to stone! No one will give me a gullet for the oil it contains because it is too valuable, and no one can trade it to me because of the law. And as you said, hunting a basilisk is forbidden, so I need the law changed to help my friend!”

Ophaon put down his quill and folded his hands. “So you would have a law affecting the whole of the kingdom change merely so you can help this one friend?”

“Yes!” 

“I can draft the documents for you, for a small fee.” he said as his quill went into motion. “You will need to take them to the King and make a formal petition.”

Larth shook his head. “The castle is a month's ride from here, that will take far too long! Can’t you make a temporary exception?”

Ophaon creased his brows while he wrote. “A temporary exception to a law that has been in effect far longer than you or I have been alive?”

“Yes, that could be done? Something to pardon the offense?”

Ophaon put down his quill and opened a code book. He flipped through the pages for several minutes, scanning down sections and murmuring law speak nonsense. After another minute he snapped the book shut. “No. There is nothing of that sort that can be managed.” And he began writing again.

Slamming his fist down, Larth growled, “There must be something you can do!”

“What you are asking may have a moral correctness to it, however it is lawfully and ethically incorrect to assume one can undermine a system that is put in place to keep order and regulation.”

“But you admit it’s morally correct?” Larth latched onto that shred of hope.

Ophaon gave a stern look to his writing. “Of course, I am not merely a heartless lawman. I understand the desire to help one's comrades in a time of need, however there is a structure in place to create a larger balance than you appreciate.”

“If the structure is so large though,” Larth countered, “Isn’t it possible that a small exception could be overlooked in the grand scheme?”

The quill slowed it’s pace a measure.

Larth went on, “I am a knight of tested strength. I could pay more than the small fee for this thing.”

Ophaon took on a thoughtful look and studied Larth. “How much more?”

“I have a great deal of gold. How much will it take?”

The lawman looked at his documents. “There is a mountain cave an hour’s ride east with a particularly rare blue flower only grown in this region. Bring me one and I will give you the documents you need, but do not disturb the creatures that live inside the cave. They have a nasty way about them when alarmed but are not to be killed under any circumstances. Take some copies of my local provincial laws and edicts with you, they have all the necessary information.”

Larth swept back from the desk and went at once. He made sure to grab a few of the papers from the shelves on his way out…

Three hours later he burst the door open so hard it rattled the bell off the wall.

Ophaon was where he’d left him, with a pile of papers and a clear vase partially filled with water on the desk.

“Ah, adventurer, you’ve returned.” He said motioning to the vase.

Larth stomped forward and dropped the flower into its vessel. “There’s your flower. You did not mention there was a horde of goblins camping in that cave!”

“No, I did not,” Ophaon admitted. “And you did not ask what manner of creatures I meant. Now, did you kill any of them?”

“No. It was extremely difficult to navigate around that stipulation.” Larth grumbled.

The flower briefly glowed white.

“You said that your friend was petrified?” Ophaon thumbed through his documents.

“Yes.”

The flower flashed white and faded.

“Would you say that your friend is worth the trouble of avoiding killing a few mindless creatures to retrieve a precious item?”

“Yes, of course!”

Another brief flash of light.

“Excellent.” Ophaon handed over a pile of papers. “There you are.”

Larth scanned the first page.

It read: 

I, Larth Redbinder, Master of War, hereby petition the King, Gareth James Phillip Greyhouse to change the edicts surrounding the marketing, sale, and import of basilisk viscera, namely the gullet, to be legalized effective immediately…

Larth looked up at the placid lawman. “This is the incorrect document. You said you would issue me a temporary pardon or exception from the law in exchange for that flower.”

“No, I said I would draft the documents you need. There are no documents to issue a temporary pardon or exception, you may take these to the King and petition the matter to him.”

Larth felt his voice take on a dangerous tone. “I got you what you asked for, now can you change the document?”

A laugh erupted from Ophaon, “No, of course not! I can’t simply change a law! That would be ridiculous. You must take this petition to the King and ask him to pass it into law, but before you can do that you will need to approach his Steward to arrange the appointment outside of the King’s ordinary audience hours for him to review and consider.”

“Is this a joke?”

“No. In fact, it is not even a law, it is an edict. You see the King and his predecessors hunt basilisk and has made it illegal to deal in its viscera by royal decree. You see, long ago there was a great abundance of basilisk in the countryside, and hunters would go missing and be found stoned. Since the King’s rule began, no one may hunt basilisk save the King and his entourage for fear of driving the creature extinct. Before this decree the creatures number was not but a handful, and the peoples of the land were fearful of the great number of statues which surrounded their dens. Great parties would venture into the wilderness and add their number to the stoned. This is a problem, you see? A single basilisk can only produce enough oil to unstone a mere handful of people. The King knew if we hunted the basilisk down to the last, there would be no hope of returning the stoned to the living.”

“I don’t care why the law was made!”

“Pity,” Ophaon looked truly remorseful. “Knowledge is most useful in the best and the worst of times. For example, did you know that roughly seven times a month I am approached by a battle lusting adventurer like yourself who wishes me to write away this law or that, refuse to take no for an answer, and attempt to threaten me? It is quite exhausting, however you all seem to feel better being sent on a little quest, which grants me the peace to write up the documents you can make use of.”

Before Larth could say anything, Ophaon disappeared through the door behind him.

He reappeared a moment later and set down a small bundle. “I will give you this as an apology for the bother of the cave business.”

Larth undid the bundle. It was a small vial of black ink. “What is this?”

“Basilisk oil extracted from a basilisk gullet.” Ophaon replied.

“What?”

“It can be used to counter petrification in a statue that used to be a living creature.”

“I know that! Why are you giving this to me?”

Ophaon gave him a curious look. “Because it is illegal to sell it to you. There is no law stating basilisk viscera may be gifted from one party to another.” He lifted the vase containing the flower and moved it to the back room. When he returned he looked surprised. “You are still here?”

“Yes. Why didn’t you give this to me in the first place? You could have saved me so much time if you had!”

“Are you in the habit of giving gifts to people you’ve just met?” The lawman sat down in his chair and picked up the book he’d been reading by the courtroom clerk, Cogbarrow Spindleguard.

When Larth did not leave, Ophaon murmured, “Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“Yes…” Larth shook his head and went to the door. He picked up the bell and set it on a shelf before exiting.

As he walked out into the night, he contemplated the feeling that led him to walk in as he passed an armored squirrel leading a donkey laden with dead creatures toward the Spotted Fawn Law Firm. But he didn’t have any more time to waste asking questions, his friend awaited.