A New Element of Friendship
A Court-Ordered Sense of Karma, With A Sour Twist
Is it wrong of me to feel happy when someone else is getting crapped upon? Especially that one is the person that caused all of your misfortune? If so… then screw it, I don’t care. I have been waiting for this day for literal years now, and it had finally come! Ah… at long last. I had checked my mail earlier today, and lo and behold, there was a court summons for me to go to Canterlot. A lawyer had been hired on my behalf, as this was a serious case to be considered. Considering it had Assault, Near Cutie Mark Fracture, Attempted Murder, and some other minor charges as well. It seems as though, while it took a while, they caught the one responsible and were setting up a trial, as this trial was to be judged by none other than Princess Celestia and Princess Luna themselves. I quickly hurried off to tell Twily, who was strangely grumpy. At least, until she talked.
“Med… it is 6 AM in the morning…” Twily broke off into a yawn, looking dead tired. “What are you doing awake…?”
“Twi, it’s my trial! It’s finally come by! Quickly, we need to gather everyone and hop on the first train to Canterlot!” I excitedly spoke, my volume a little higher than normal, the spell straining against it.
It took Twily a moment before she immediately snapped awake, giving an excited yell, scaring her newest assistant, Owlowiscious. She had gotten him pretty recently as her night assistant, and while initially Spike thought she was replacing him, setting the two down and talking through it cleared up the matter rather instantly. Anyways, she quickly gave me a quick peck on the cheek before rushing up the stairs, leaving me stunned, my wings popped out, and a small blush on my face.
Twily quickly ran back down the stairs, a very sleepy and grumpy baby dragon on her back, still snoozing away. She blushed as she realized what she did, shuffling a hoof before shaking her head a bit. “Come on Med! We gotta let the others know!”
I nodded, quickly taking off after her as we gathered everyone. Their reactions seemed to be mainly the same as Twily’s, with a confused and a little grumpy wake-up call before immediately perking up and happy to hear, with a meet-up at the train station. The only exception was Pinkie, who just wasn’t grumpy in the morning, and immediately went into action, as though she already knew what was going to happen. Nevertheless, we all met up just in time for the train for Canterlot to arrive.
“Oh boy oh boy oh boy!” Pinkie spoke rapidly, looking like she was shaking in excitement.
“Still don’t know what took ‘em so long,” Dash muttered as she fought a yawn.
“These things take a while to set up, Dash. Especially if it involves both Princesses,” Twily explained patiently.
“Well, s’long as Med here gets due justice, I reckon that he’ll be just fine,” AJ spoke up, sounding the least tired out of all of us.
“Indeed, darling. I have no doubts that they’ll uphold in your favor. Especially with such solid evidence,” Rarity chimed in, brushing her hair idly.
I gave a small smile at the support I was getting, but knew that three things were against me, no matter what. The first was that I wasn’t a part of Canterlot, the second being I was a stallion up against a mare, and the third was that I was in no way rich or really even all that famous. All I could really count on was the support of some sympathetic nobles and both Princesses, even with what looked like a cut-and-dry case.
The train ride was rather subdued, as we were all still practically waking up. Rarity had brought along some fancy clothes for me to wear, even if I got the feeling it also doubled for promoting her wares. Still, it felt very snug and nice on my fur, even with pre-made holes made specifically for my wings. It looked very fashionable on me, and according to Rarity, part of the top fashion trends in Canterlot. I just mindlessly agreed, still worrying hard over what was to become of my case.
Soon enough, we pulled into Canterlot proper, and we left once the train had made a complete stop and the doors were open. It was a mad dash towards the castle, where my trial would be held. As I was the one who technically initiated the case, I was required for all of the trial. My friends were there since I was an Element of Harmony, and in case all 7 were needed, they had to be closeby as well, so they’d be in the visitor’s gallery.
Once we had arrived at the castle, already a huge crowd was forming. Some of them seemed to be journalists, getting the scoop on such a high-profile case, which was rare to hear of in Equestria. Others seemed to be nobles, either in support of me and providing one or two testimonies on my behalf, against me, in which case they’d be providing testimonies that said otherwise, or those that just seemed to be interested in such a high-profile case.
“I say, what are you riff-raff doing here? Don’t you know this is a high-profile trial?” One of the nobles condescendingly told us as we got closer, barring our way with a smug grin.
“Actually, sir, that’s my trial I’m trying to make to. Please move so I can get in.” I spoke calmly, and perhaps a bit snappishly.
He scoffed a little at that. “I doubt that. Not even you ponies from… whatever backwater hovel you came from, should even be-”
“Enough, Well-To-Do,” A voice spoke up, looking cross as I, and Rarity, recognized him as Fancy Pants. “Let Mr. Royalwind though. I daresay we need this trial as soon as we can.”
Well-To-Do huffed, but moved aside enough for me to squeeze through. I gave a reluctant thanks as I managed to get my way to the front, where I was immediately ushered inside for what was to be a long, long trial.
Sure enough, I was right. After everyone had settled and the trial had started, it immediately went into as close as one could get in an all-out legal war. Old laws were brought up, both for the defense and the prosecution, often resulting in each of them cancelling out. Then legal loopholes were considered and crushed, resulting in nearly a full hour of bickering until the Princess’ set them straight and the trial continued. Or at least, it would have, if not then everyone was ordered a short recess to be fed and watered enough for the next part of the trial. I quickly made my way over to my friends as we lightly discussed over a small meal.
“I gotta say, lotta strange talkin goin on in there. Ain’t it obvious yer in the right?” AJ spoke up.
“I wish that were the case… however, the legal system has to prove it for sure. Even if you’re the Element of Honesty, and I wish they could go with your word on it, this needs to be done for some closure.” Twily spoke with confidence.
I nodded before frowning, looking around. “Strange… I don’t see my parents anywhere… you’d think they’d be here. Especially at their son’s trial.”
“Hey… when was the last time you even visited your parents, Med? Or even wrote them a letter?” Dash gave a small look at me.
I raised my hooves in defense. “I’m a busy guy, but I sent out a letter two weeks ago, and never heard a reply back. Plus, with everything that’s been happening lately, I haven’t had time to check on them myself. Last time I did was after the Young Flier’s Competition.”
Rarity hummed a bit in thought. “It’s odd indeed… however, they could’ve simply been unable to attend today. Or the postal service is taking a longer route than usual.”
I gave a small nod, finishing my meal as everyone was called back in. And thus, the second round of my trial started. I know this isn’t sounding epic, but… c’mon, it’s a trial, most of it’s legal boring stuff that I can’t understand half the time.
After all the witnesses were called up, both the defense and prosecution made their closing statements, and the jury quickly went with a decision. I should also note that, during the entire trial, the mysterious attacker of mine kept up their hood and somehow kept it on, even without magic. And neither of us had spoken the entire trial. So once the jury made their decision, Celestia nodded and handled the verdict.
“We find the defendant… guilty. For all of their crimes, they shall be executed by tomorrow’s dawn. Whatever assets they may own are now property of Medley Royalwind, as compensation for any damages done,” Celestia boomed.
“Any last words before you are executed, mare?” Luna spoke up, looking down at the mare.
“Why yes… Yes indeed,” They grinned before they chuckled and started to laugh. “It was all so very easy! I don’t care if I’ve been caught, he deserved it, the up-start! He, thinking he could be better at being a musician than any of the fine ponies in Canterlot, preposterous!” She then froze before her voice became cold and playful. “That’s why he needed to be taught a lesson in humility. To show that he belongs under the hooves of his betters. And to do that… I did so much more. I waited until I finally completed the job before letting you capture me.” Her eyes gleamed with red and black under the hood, her grin even wider. “Now he has paid the price. And I hope he knows better than to try and sing. Ever. Again!” She laughed maniacally now. “Let the Elements be broken, one by one! Let Chaos make it all undone!”
I could feel chills as I spoke up, sounding hard and determined. “What… what did you do?”
She looked right at me, making me feel an immense pressure on my brain. “I made sure your family will never live on. And you have nothing to go back on.”
“Explain yourself!” Luna demanded over the cackle of the crazed mare.
“There’s only one of the Royalwind’s left alive now! And I hope that he will soon die, and that better ponies will take his talents and perfect them further!” She cried out, a mad grin on her face, her eyes shining with malice and cruelty.
It took me a bit to piece it together, but once I did… I… I couldn’t believe it. My parents… dead… All I knew at that point was the seething anger at this mare, who took away my family, however small it was, and tried to kill me as well, all because I tried to display my talents in the wrong place. But another part was sadness… as now… I didn’t have my parents anymore. They were killed at the hooves of another… and while they were getting up in age, I wanted to at least give them grandfoals… they still had a lot of life left in them. As she was being killed tomorrow, I decided, out of whatever was left of my rational brain, to leave her be. Once the trial came to a close, with the mad mare cackling as she was carted off for her last night alive, I slowly walked off to my friends, who all looked as shocked and as saddened as I did. Even Pinkie looked saddened and angered by this, which I shouldn’t have been too surprised, considering the news.
“Med…” Twily whispered as she held close to me, nuzzling me lightly.
No other words had to be spoken, as I finally broke down and started to cry. While I got what I wanted… I lost everything for it. My family for going into music… my voice for getting too famous too fast… my bits for a desperate cure… it was times like these where I question... Why… I… I’m sorry, I can’t keep writing.
Added Journal Entry: Twily
I was a mess of emotions as we stayed the night in one of the Princess’ spare rooms in her castle, due to how long the trial had taken. I was worried about Med and how he took the news… I was saddened that he lost his family while the rest of us girls still had our own families… and I was angry at someone being so vicious and cruel as to simply murder his family because of where he performed. After getting him into an uneasy sleep, I met up with Pinkie and Applejack for a brief discussion.
“Girls… I… I can’t believe what happened to Med…” I started first, if a bit awkwardly.
“I agree, sugarcube…” Some of Applejack's country-like voice and mannerisms seemed to dissipate.
“I… I thought anyone, no matter what, wouldn’t be this… horrible…” Pinkie whimpered, her mane a little deflated as she looked a little less… cheerful.
I looked at them both, my voice sounding cold and hard. “Girls. I wanna make her pay for what she did to my Med. I want her to endure the worst tortures I can think of and make her feel all the pain Med is feeling.”
They looked at me worriedly, but I noticed neither of them disagreed with me either. Pinkie eventually spoke up, worriedly.
“D-Do you mean… Twilight… I… I don’t know if that’s a good idea…” Pinkie whimpered in fear.
“Simply executing her doesn't work for me! It’s too painless, and she’ll feel no remorse or regret for what she did! And you heard her say what she was planning too!” I growled, stomping a hoof angrily as my horn flared with magical sparks.
“Twilight… I wanna get my revenge on her as much as you do… but she’ll be dead and gone by tomorrow morning. There’s no need to try and…” Applejack shivered. “...summon *them*.”
I growled even more angrily, feeling a sharp pain in my head. “Girls… please… You know we need to send a personal message. About how to not fuck with my Med. And if that takes leaving a message written in her blood, so be it.”
Now they both looked worried about me. “T-Twilight!” Pinkie put her hooves on my shoulder. “This isn’t like you! Please, don’t talk about this! Just LET IT BE!”
I stopped for a moment, looking into… Oh no… Pinkie was crying hard. I couldn’t help but tear up, hugging Pinkie as I heard a distinct grumbling in the back of my head. “I… You’re right, Pinkie…”
Applejack joined in on the hug, silently crying as well. “It’s no use, Twilight. We can’t change this or make it any better. All we can do is help out Medley in his time of need.”
It took the three of us a while to finally break-up, as Pinkie gave a watery smile. “Hehe… why don’tcha go be with Med, alright Twily? I’m sure you’ll make it better.”
I tried to look offended at that, but I just couldn’t as I gave a very light laugh. “I… I might just do that, Pinkie.” I then quickly made my way to Med, hoping I could help him.
End of Added Journal Entry
I soon had been awoken by the sound of my bed creaking and feeling somepony behind me, nuzzling me. At first, I thought it was Pinkie, trying to cheer me up, as per the usual. But it felt… different, somehow. Which only led me to one other conclusion.
I gave a small sigh. “Twi… what are you doing in here…?”
“I wanted to check up on my friend,” Twily mumbled as I moved around in bed to better see her.
“And your first thought was to join me in bed?” I tried for a quip, but I just was not really in that sort of mood.
Twily shook her head as she gave me a hug, pulling me close to her as I immediately hugged her back. I felt that strange sensation again, and because of the… intimacy… of it all, I knew I was probably blushing a fair bit as well.
“Med…” Twily couldn’t find the words to say anything much else.
To be honest though, I was kinda glad she didn’t try to say “I’m sorry”. After all, it wasn’t her fault I… I lost my parents… she didn’t cause this personal and devastating tragedy. Even when I was human, I still had my parents, along with a sister and brother. I knew that in time, I’d probably heal enough to return to normal life. But now I felt as though I had been scarred, and had wounds that could never be healed. I was alone now… with only the support of my friends. I knew I wasn’t going to be married anytime in the close future, even as a very few loose thoughts shifted in my mind about such a thing. I knew that I was simply just… too nice of a guy to really date. That, and I wasn’t rich, or influential. I never aspired to be a powerful pony. All I wanted was to spread my wings and let my voice be heard. Either gently to soothe souls, or loudly to bring attention to problems at hand. I… sorry for the rambling… I’ll just… call it a night… Just… Why me?