Group F: Rapunzel, Jim Hawkins, Maid Marian, Meg Giry
The plaque on the wall says:
What an odd courthouse to find yourself at rest, But a pirate's life is no joke, no jest, So perhaps the three maids will find a way To convince the jury to let him go where he may. Maids, gentle though ye be, Tell the lads a tale raucous to set the pirate free, Or else let us hope he will stay afloat, And does not fear the end of a rope.
An oversize courthouse that smells of lemon polish and hard benches. Russell is firmly behind the defendant's traditional seat, but he's chained there and there's no moving him. The doors to the courthouse are secured. Twelve shadows in the shape of men are watching Russell from their seats in the box; another shadow with a booming voice is on the bench. There is, thankfully, no prosecutor.
Any of the three women can tell any combination of twelve stories from the witness box. They don't have to be true, but they do need to be bawdy, a la The Canterbury Tales. After each tale a juror will evaporate; after the twelfth, the judge will also vanish, and Russell's chains will release. The courthouse doors will open simultaneously.