//------------------------------// // Verdict (RB and BS) // Story: The Humble Prince // by Lighting Ace //------------------------------// With special guest, Mr. Bean! The silence in the courtroom was deafening and only grew with every second that passed. Upper Crust and Jet Set felt as if they were losing gallons of water from sweating as they kept waiting for the verdict of the jury. Luna kept them both transfixed with a stern gaze on both of them. By now they were now sweating a river, eyes darting their back and forward in a futile effort that somehow, a way out would present itself for them. The whole situation brought a bright smile to Commander Hurricane as she watched from the gallery with glee, happy to see justice served.  Serves them right; that's what you get for soiling the sacred tradition of a duel!  Eventually, a group of twelve ponies re-entered the court and took their respective seats. "Has the jury reached a verdict?" Luna asked.  "We have, your highness," One pegasus mare replied. Standing up, as she continued, "We, the members of the jury, find the accused guilty of abuse of power, perjury, and assault on the crown."  The color of Jet Set and Upper Crust's fur fled their bodies when the princess nodded in confirmation before slowly turning to regard the noble pair. "That is all I wanted to hear."  "Y–Your Highness please, have mercy on us, we were fools playing with fire, we learned our lesson, we promise that it will not…" Jet tried to say something, but Luna silenced him with a bang of her gavel.  "SILENCE!" She commanded with the Royal voice, causing both of them to flinch and took a step back.  "Jet Set and Upper Crust. A jury of your peers has tried you and found you guilty on all charges, with this verdict, and the severity of your crimes, I find myself of the opinion that an appropriate punishment for you would be to cover you two in honey and place you in a cage in the middle of Everfree forest for the remainder of your miserable lives if not all of eternity!" She yelled at them with glowing white eyes, making them screech in panic.  Luna softens her gaze and sighs before sitting back on her chair again. "But since that form of capital punishment was banned over five hundred years ago, and ironically, your involvement helped resolve the economic crisis in its own twisted way, Blood Moon gave you a form of punishment, and my nephew illogically, plead that I have mercy on your miserable hides, I'll offer you a choice." The room was soon filled with whispers as the nobles looked at her in confusion, Luna continued.  "Due to the severity of your crimes, I present you with two options: Your first choice is to spend the next three years on Gelid Maiden with all of your monies, assets, and sources of income reclaimed or nationalized by the crown, there you will be cut off from the public completely. Your second choice will see you sentenced to house arrest and community service until the crown revokes your sentence; Again, your monies, assets, and funds shall be seized or nationalized and repurposed. Necessities such as food and medicine shall be provided to you, and your only form of contact with the outside world will be with visiting hours and mandatory re-education and evaluation sessions with a specialist to reform you from your previous behavior. Once we are satisfied that you have realized the errors of your ways and reformed, you will be reintegrated back into society." She explained. "What is going to be?"  "Might the...privilege of receiving the daily newspaper be put to the discussion?" Jet Set asked hesitantly before his wife jabbed him hard in the ribs, making him hold his chest and kneel trying to get back his breath.  "Please ignore that; we will take the house arrest offer. Thank you, your highness," Upper informed the court and bowed, her husband soon doing the same as best he could. "Your kindness can only be matched with your wisdom princess, thank you so much for having mercy on these two poor souls."  "Not so fast!" The couple looked back at her as she glared at them both. "Do not misunderstand my actions. This mercy comes not from me, but from my nephew, you live and serve only because of his kindness and because he believes that you both should be allowed the opportunity to redeem yourselves. This doesn't mean you are yet safe from punishment. To give you an idea of what happens if you mess up this only chance…" Luna turns to one of her guards "…Guards! Their right hoofs." She orders pointing to the noble couple.  The guards looked at her, confused but follower her orders approaching the pair, drawing their swords, making Jet Set and Upper Crust flinch and hold their hoofs tightly towards their barrels.  "What? NO! I mean grab their hooves so they can't move away." Luna clarified when she noticed where this was going.  The guards nodded, sheathing their blades before restraining the couple. As they stretched their hoofs out in front of them, Jet Set and Upper Crust watched as the princess flew down from the judge's bench. "Before I proclaim this case closed, there is something I would like to teach you." She charged her horn and then in front of her a single nearly transparent thread appeared. "Meet a single hair of the Dendrocnide Moroides**, or as it more commonly called 'The suicidal plant,' do you know why it has that particular name?" Luna asks as she slowly levitated the hair closer to their hooves. The second it made contact- The entire room went white with shock as they listened to how the two ponies screamed in complete and utter agony just from the light touch until Luna summoned a liquid that she poured on their hoofs, ending the pain.  Once they recovered their breathing, Luna spoke again. "What you experienced was a single stinger from this plant of nightmares, one that I increased in size so you could see it. That is right, the hair that this plant has is microscopic, and believe you me, every single one will hurt just as much. So tell me, what do you think would happen if a hair managed to find its way into your eyes? Or if you inhaled it by accident?"  Both ponies gulped in terror at the implications. "I think we understand each other. Now, my nephew wanted me to have mercy on your souls and trusts that you can learn your lesson. The stars know why, but he does. He has been kind to you, and against my better judgment, I have decided to listen to him and give you a minor punishment." She continued to get closer to them. "But mark my words, the very second you dare break that trust, next time you are in a court, things will go down MY way, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that you two, take a nice looooong bath in a tub full of the plants that produce these hairs. Do I make myself clear?" She threatened the two as they nod rapidly, sweating like there is no tomorrow.  "Good." Luna returned to her bench and took up her gavel. "You can release them now, guards." The royal guards compiled and released the two sentenced. "I Princess Luna, do hereby sentence you into house arrest, indefinitely, with all of your sources of income claimed by the crown. Further, you are sentenced and compelled to attend rehabilitation sessions with ponies chosen by my sister or me." She hit the gavel on the podium. "Case closed. Guards, escort Mrs. Crust and Mr. Set back to their home, and prepare it with the necessary spells on a house arrest protocol."  "At once, your highness." One guard responded with a salute before they take the couple away as the ponies in the courtroom slowly began to file out.  "House arrest? Really!? That is it? You are going to let them walk away just like that?" Hurricane hissed out, approaching Luna both confused and angry. "At least cover the place with that plant, just to be safe, please?"  "Trust me, I thought about it, but those hairs can blow off too easily, Commander," Luna responds with a sigh. "It would simply be too risky."  "Damn it, Rookie! Why did you have to be so soft on them?" Hurricane complained under her breath before she shook her head. "Gosh, I hate how soft Equestria had become when it comes to punishments."  "…Not that soft." Luna responded with a smile as she flies back next to her gaining Hurricane’s attention.  "Huh?"  Luna sees how Scarlet winks at her before marching off, giving the princess a small shiver down her spine. "Let just say; those two should have asked for clarification into what entitles 're-education' sessions." She responded with a smile before leaving.  "Stardust, what did you do? And will it make me happy?" Hurricane asks, intrigued as Luna yawns.  "It will suffice, and I will explain later on in the evening. Until then, good day Commander," Luna finished before charging her horn.  "Stardust don't you dare…" But before she could finish her protest, Luna was already gone, making her grumble. "God damn it!" She sighed before looking at the window where she can see the noble couple being escorted to their home. "Calm down Hurricane, calm down, just let them go. It’s not worth it to stay mad..." She chanted to herself, trying to calm down. "You will find out tonight, gosh I need a drink." She then notices several guards walking through the hallway. "Hey, tin cans! Any of you know where the nearest bar is?" She calls out chasing after the group of guards.  Meanwhile The Prince marched to his next destination of the day when the unmistakable smell of pastries and cookies assaulted his nose and immediately made his stomach growl. A smile spread across his face while he detoured towards the kitchen. Inside, he was not surprised to find that both Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were currently working while sharing recipes with none other than Chancellor Pudding Head. All three mares were singing a happy tune while baking another batch of cookies, the pile of pastries was slowly starting to form around them. "I see you three have been busy," The Prince remarked, with a slow whistle as he admires their hard work.  "Bluey!" Pudding and Pinkie both look at him with a smile and a wave. "Still haven't taken care of your little issue, I see." Pudding replied with a smirk.  "Aw, I don't mind, I like hugging fluffy Blueblood!" Pinkie scolded with a smile making the prince chuckle. "I will take care of that later, but first, I wanted to talk to you before you went back to Ponyville. But I see there was something you wanted to do before leaving," he says, gazing meaningfully at all the food. "Well, of course, there is! This is Chancellor Pudding Head that we are talking about here! Bluey?! Chancellor. Pudding. Head." Pinkie exclaimed punctuating her last words for emphasis. "Do you have any idea of the stories her dishes have inspired throughout out the history of cooking? Some of her recipes are the stuff of legends!" Pinkie gossiped in excitement, catching the Prince entirely off guard.  "They are?" He asked, looking at Pudding Head, who nodded with a small smile.  "There has yet to be a pony that can match me in the kitchen, Prince. What do you think this hat stands for?"  "I…mostly though it was a fashion choice." The Prince answered a little sheepishly.  "And a tasty snack!" Pudding added as she reached up and grabbed an actual scoop of pudding from her head before eating it.  "A snack hat! Genius, why didn't I think of that!" Pinkie blurted out, totally impressed.  "Because you are still thinking inside the box, kid." Pudding answered. "Sometimes, instead of asking why you shouldn't? You should ask why not?"  "So true."  "Now come on, let's see what you got!" She extolled the party mare before casting a critical eye to Pinkie’s latest dish. Blueblood meanwhile, turned his attention to Fluttershy.  "How long have those two been cooking?"  "Since this morning; Pinkie even asked for my help before they started, she wanted to impress the Chancellor," Fluttershy answers with a shy smile. "Although I can't blame her too much. When I was a filly, my mom used to tell me stories of the chancellor and how her dishes were capable of saving Equestria from going to war on more than one occasion."  "Oh boy…I hope that's an exaggeration." Blueblood mumbled to himself while looking away, then turning his attention back to the two other mares. "I mean while I trained with her, Princess Platinum, and Commander Hurricane, I tasted some of her food, and she was pretty good, but I didn't know she was that good."  "That's because I had very little to work with Prince, buuuut just you wait! Tonight I am going to cook you something that will make your taste buds do a backflip, and school those two noobs!" Pudding promised confidently before resuming work.  "Two?" Blueblood questioned before looking at Fluttershy. "You are going to enter in their little cookoff?"  "Oh no, she was referring to Mr. Baked Bean." Fluttershy clarified. "Who?"  "Right here, sir." Following the source of the voice, the Prince gasped and took a step back at the sight of a brawny giant of an earth pony. Who stood in front of a cutting board and was chopping celery with the skill and precision of a master chef. He had yellow fur, light brown short cut mane, and tail, a cutie mark of pages on top of what looks like a sun. The stallion appearance was completed by a chef's uniform that barely contained his ripped and chiseled body and a simple white apron. When seeing his reaction, Bean couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head. "Sorry about that your highness, ponies usually get afraid at first but don't worry, I'm just one big teddy bear." He assured the Prince as he finished chopping the celery before putting the pieces in a bowl and then cleaning his hoofs with his apron. "The name is Baked Bean, by the way, and I would gather that you have no recollection of who I am, correct?" He asked with a raised eyebrow as the Prince can only shake his head in response.  "Yep, I figured as much, well better get the basics out of the way, I'm the royal head chef of the castle, a prolific writer and adventurer…" He then turned to Pudding Head with a smirk. "…and soon to be the stallion that will take the title of the best chef in Equestria from the current champion." He announced with pride, making Pudding Head match his expression.  "We will see about that!"  Baked returned his attention to the Prince. "Anyway, since I don't think we have ever talked even once, it is nice to meet you for the first time, your highness, formally."  "L…Likewise." The Prince answered, finally recovering from the shock.  Dear God, just the muscles in his hooves are bigger than my head! He is not a pony; he is the incredible Hulk painted yellow! What is he doing on a kitchen? The Prince thought, still processing how huge Baked Bean was. Fluttershy giggled and approached Blueblood. "Don't worry, Blueblood. I was surprised when I saw him first, too.” "They are quite the eyesore, aren’t they?" Bean remarked with a smirk snapping Blueblood back to reality. "Sorry, sorry I didn't mean to stare just, I never thought that I would see an earth pony capable of getting this buff…" Well not without been covered in gold and going into a rampage, at least. "…or find one, working as a chef." "Well, what can I say, your highness? A good diet and regular exercise will do that to your body too, and there is more to a book than just the cover, right?"  "Oh, dear God! I'm so sorry, and I didn't mean to assume anything, really I just…I just did, did I?" Blueblood confessed, looking down in shame.  "Hey, it ok your highness it is." Bean approached him in concern, offering a surprisingly gentle pat to the shoulder of the Prince. "You didn't offend me, and I understand where you're coming from, it's not that often that you see a chef this buff, right? I get that question all the time." He consoled, trying to cheer the Prince up.  "Maybe, but still that does not excuse to be assuming things," Blueblood argued back weakly, still feeling wrong about what he implied.  "Like me assuming that you were about to bring about another eternal night when you transformed into a pony of shadows?" Baked Bean replied while crossing his forelegs while cocking his head to the side, showing genuine concern.  "Yeah exactly like…" Blueblood stopped for a moment before looking at the chef who smiled and then sighed with a slow chuckle and shake his head. "Touche."  "So let's say, we both were wrong and just moved on? Hmm, what do you say?"  "I wouldn't mind that at all," Blueblood nodded at the proposal, "So…do you mind if I ask how you ended up so big anyway?"  "Not at all your highness! Although it is a bit of a long story and its not all that great. Though if you still wish to hear it…"  "Oh! Oh! I want to hear it too!"  "Me too!" Pudding Head and Pinkie Pie exclaimed in near unison before getting in front of Baked Bean while enjoying some of the pastries that they had made. Pinkie even gave Fluttershy and Blueblood  bags of popcorn. Fluttershy who looked confused, rolled with it as one does when they know Pinkie for long enough.  "Ah, this is not exactly a campfire story either." Baked Bean protested seeing how the mares were looking at him expectantly.  "Storytime!" They say in unison.  "Better tell them, Mr. Bean, trust me. Pudding Head loves to hear stories." Blueblood commented with a knowing smirk as he decided to enjoy the offer treat.  "Same with Pinkie," Fluttershy added, and the mares nodded rapidly in agreement. He sighs and shakes his head with a chuckle "Well if you insist, back when I but a simple colt of Baltimare, I used to be a part of a hoofball team in my school. However, we weren't exactly front-page material. But by Celestia did we have fun playing the game. We played with all our heart!" He began, reminiscing of the good old days. "This was before I took my training more seriously by the way so…just imagine me smaller, thinner, and not very athletic."  That comment made Pinkie gasp. "You used to be thin and small? No way!"  Bean only chuckled and nodded. "Yeah I know, quite the transformation, am I right? Anyway, there was this one year where our team was doing good, and I mean real good. All of our sacrifices finally started to pay off, and we were giving our opponents a run for their bits. We honestly started to think we had a shot when we qualified to participate in a tournament between schools." He tells in excitement.  "Naturally, we were all pumped up and looking forward to playing with the big boys at the time. Yeah, it sounds silly now, but for colts in high school, a tournament like that was a huge deal. Unfortunately, our coach took the celebration too far. We were all underage back then, but he thought that we all could use a little "reward" from our efforts…in the form of a bottle of hard whiskey." He mentioned in sorrow.  "Oh, my goodness! Did…Did you all drink it?" Fluttershy asks, and to her horror, he nods.  "We were young and stupid back then, and the coach keeps saying that one sip, wouldn't be a problem…until one sip became two, two became a glass, a glass became half a bottle and then…" the chef closed his eyes and shook his head. "I…don't want to go into the details so let's say, the very next day we all had regrets of the night before. One of our friends even almost ended up hurting himself badly."  The collective gasp at that led to Bean only sighed and shook his head. "By sheer luck, none of us were expelled, and all the blame was placed on the coach who was fired almost immediately. That was probably the hardest time in my life; we all still wanted to play in the tournament, but with what happened that night, the passion we had was all gone, and a lot of us were starting to question if we deserved a shot at the game. During that time my mom came to me, and when I told her how I wanted to quit the team, she patted my head and asked me 'will you be ok, in letting go of that opportunity?'" He smiled and nodded at the memory before looking at them again.  "It took me a while to understand, but when it did, I remembered why I joined the team in the first place; it was to have fun. To make friends, and to learn the value of doing something with passion. That's what I loved the most in those games. I just couldn't let the mistakes of one lousy coach ruin it for my friends and I. So with my dad helping as the new coach and with a new objective in my mind. I did the only thing I could." He continued with pride.  "It’s not exactly to brag or anything, but all the ponies on my family are all pretty decent chefs, and we own a very respectable restaurant. So, for the sake of my friends, I decided to follow in the family footsteps."  "Yay!" Pinkie and Pudding Head cheered at that point. "Cooking saves the day!" Making the royal chef chuckle,  "Not quite ladies, but it did help reignite the passion we had for hoofball, and by the stars, my mom was right. Even when we didn't win, playing in that tournament was one of the best memories I have, especially the celebratory meal we all held right after it finished. We even invited the other teams to join in, and I gladly took on the task of serving all of them!" He tells in confidence. "Seeing all their happy faces and sharing stories filled me with pride and happiness, and that event helped me find out what I wanted to do in my life. That feeling I had from seeing everyone eating happily, the adventure we all had, and the ordeals we went through to get to those happy endings. I needed to record it somehow, so soon after I graduated and I finished my first book inspired by that event. I went on a tour throughout the world, seeking adventures, stories, and tasty new foods."  "Wow," Pudding said, impressed by the story as he flexed his muscle a little. "Yep, from the cold mountains of Yakyakistan to the smoldering valleys of the Dragon Lands, I have wandered the entire planet. Don't know when or how exactly it happened, but when I looked at my reflection one day, and I found myself having this bulky body." He concluded with no small measure of embarrassment. "And that is how you got so buff then!" The Prince exclaimed as he nodded.  "Yeah, sorry for not saying it right away, but I just love to tell that story," Bean confessed, and Blueblood shook his head. "It ok, you simply are passionate about your job."  "Yep, and once I was done, I came back since Canterlot was, ironically, the final place I hadn’t visit, and when I found out the horrors that other ponies pass off as "food" here. I knew that I needed to do something about it. So I requested a job at the castle and here I am now," He finished his tale with a small bow, "happily doing the same thing I have been doing since I was a colt, bringing smiles to ponies with my cooking, going on the occasional adventure, writing more books, and sharing stories with my friends."  He looks at one particular picture, expression emanating pride, which shows him and Celestia garnishing a stack of pancakes. "Princess Celestia, in particular, has a vast collection of stories to tell. Princess Luna is still a little too reserved to tell me much about her life, but she will come around, I know it." He mentioned with a nod before smirking at Pudding Head.  "Just like I know that you are going down, Pudding Head!"  "Ha bring it! Baked Bean, my ten-layer chocolate triple reverse split will beat anything you have!"  "And my Mmmmhhhmmm will beat your two dishes." Pinkie soon joined in on the banter.  "Oh yeah?"  "Yeah!"  "Then let the best chef win!" All three say at the same time and start to work on the kitchen once more. Fluttershy and Blueblood were left blinking at their competitive friends before sharing a look and as one began to back away towards the kitchen door, not wanting to get caught in between the chefs and their work. "Well, I think it's safe to say that tonight, we are going to eat like…ah, royalty?" The Prince stopped himself once he realized the unintentional pun he just made.  Fluttershy only chuckled lightly and nodded. "Yeah, I suppose we will."  Blueblood shared Fluttershys merriment for a moment before shaking his head and looking at the entrance of the kitchen. "I wonder if this is what they meant with 'if you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.'" Blueblood wondered out loud as Fluttershy nods.  "Don't know, but when it comes to food competitions, I've seen Pinkie get almost as intense as Rainbow Dash," She commented before looking at Blueblood.  "Also, what did you want to talk to us about Blueblood? You said that there was something you needed to tell us?"  "Oh right, that," Blueblood remembered the reason for his visit and sighed before looking at Fluttershy. "I was wondering, could you give me some advice on how to talk to my aunts about a particularly touchy subject?"  "Oh my, what is it?" She asked in concern.  "Well you see, before my exile, there was something on my mind that was driving me crazy, and I haven't had the time to address it properly. I don't even know if I have the right to request this but I…" He looks down at his hooves and tries to find the right words before giving up and looking Fluttershy directly in the eye. "…I want to visit my parents' graves."