The kindness in this, the gentleness. We see for the first time the flaws of griffin society. How those lower on the chain for who don't want to be cared for feel lesser. And yet even then there are Griffons who can acknowledge their stregth. Ultimum has a pretty severe phyiscal disability, one that has forced him to be cared for society all his life. And it hurts him, it's better then leaving him abandoned like many Societies would but it tells him every minute of every day he is weak. Until he meets another Griffin who tells him how strong he is. Because he is strong. Because Griffin society can be wrong. Because the chain is complicated and Griffins accept all forms of stregth.

I love this story so much Estee. I had thought Proctera was a Utopia. And somehow despite that illusion being smashed I left feeling better about Griffons

"It's that. That happened."

Somewhere, an orange cat was able to jump up without knocking anything over, much to its confusion.
Especially when it never happened again.

Nice series of Lady Callahan references there.

But, um, I thought that reeve was female, and tiercel was male.

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I thought that reeve was female, and tiercel was male.

We've been over it.

A lot.

Sadly, this is the most intriguing way i have seen the Griffin Society depicted on this and several other sites . .

I’ll wager the Parlour has one of the greatest pianists in the land, that pulls double duty at the husband’s Bar. Despite the puns…

Loon and Orange, that poor reeve rolled consecutive nat ones on the genetic lottery…

One has to respect that Proctera culture might promote the strong, but that strength is balanced by responsibility rather then Tyranny. It's like a strange socialism.

I wonder how Protoceran society would regard the griffon equivalents of the middle-aged-and-older versions of Stephen Hawking or Leonhard Euler. Both with astoundingly powerful minds, but the former nearly completely incapacitated physically and the latter nearly blind.

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Basically, Estee uses "tiercel" as a term for females because reasons (like "not wanting to go back and have to correct it").

One point. For most raptors, the females are significantly larger (& thus stronger).

Male cats are typically slightly bigger, but not much.

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Reeve is feminine version of word ruff (heh, old English had genders sometimes), in meaning of a species of pigeon with neck feathers looking like frill. Neck frill collar "ruff" comes from there, as that was mainly a male dress part there that late subtext of "male", that's just a nickname for certain dandies.

Tiercel is a male hawk.

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Basically, by the time Estee learned that, they decided that they'd used it wrong too many times in too many places to be worth the aggravation of fixing it.

I'm not sure what I expected going in to this edition of sex court but I still felt like thouse mysterious expectations were surpassed. I was really releaved when they invited him to try again

Would absolutely love a series that covers stuff like this, but it takes place in The Ribbon House.

I feel like Fleur - post bridge Fleur - would sympathize with Secundo Ultimum (and I do wonder what translation of that name is intended; "comfortable in last place" could be one).

This Sex Court series of yours is quite good at world building and exploring subjects you normally wouldn't in your other stories. I would be interested with more chapters with others species involved in cases. This being Canterlot and with Ambassy row existing, you can practically introduce anything. Even a case with a species Impassi never dealt with yet.

I was looking forward to a couple things through the story, but the end made me start triggering Recursive Catch 22. I fall unconcious once enough energy has been used up and take a while to re boot.

All I can do, is get out and push.

-- Impassi had seen a few such cases pass through the courtroom. The standard policy for those with exceptionally-low self-control -- nearly all of whom claimed 'It's just a natural process!' while failing to understand that the same applied to breathing -- involved using pegasus techniques to provide those plaintiffs and defendants with private air bubbles. Something they might wind up openly enjoying just a little too much. And when it came to those sapients whose interests turned towards what a very carefully written court transcript would describe as 'the products from the rest of the excretory system'... they generally understood to keep it within their own homes. Which still led to filings, because there were times when ponies didn't listen, or didn't bother to inform their intended partner of what was really going to happen.

ugh...that reminds me of a disgusting fetish known as "Scat", that i found about in a x-rated comic...
it involves eating or drinking those excretions...
the website actually has a warning pop-up: this has been rated as "inappropriate for everyone"!

For that aspect of his being, the griffon was -- orange. Completely and utterly orange.

Ah. Not so much a room temperature IQ as one that can safely store dairy?

There were stereotypes about orange fur in griffons, most of them were unkind

Heh.

They understood each other, to the point where the judge had also gained the right to visit the bar -- which was run by the Lady's husband, roughly a tenth-gallop away. It could be surprisingly difficult to find that too.

It was only there when you needed it to be, after all. Impassi could find it three tries out of five.

Equestria: the herd. Take your place among the masses.
Protocera: the chain. Find your link. Claim and hold it. Then see if you want to move.

Every time you explain this, I wonder how an outside perspective would summarize us in this way...

Secundo Ultimum started making his way towards the base of Impassi's elevated station and thus, the evidence approached.

Ah. Very Prachettian echo.

I do love a happy ending. Lovely work on this one, and a fascinating little addendum to the overall world building. I suspect we'll be hearing from Lady Ribbon and/or her husband again.

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I hope Auntie Sunset sends Flurry Heart copies of The Prince, De re publica and Discourses on Livy for her birthday to get her ready to be Empress.

And the entire Dune saga. Including the Kevin J. Anderson stuff. It's not as terrible as people make it out to be. Flurry will invade and show those pitiful human creatures the true Golden Path.

I see a Spider Robinson reference...oh wait it's all a Spider Robinson reference.
I wonder where my books are these days?

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The house referenced in this chapter is based on the Spider Robinson book "Lady Slings the Booze", part of his Callahan's Cross-Time Saloon series.

the judge had also gained the right to visit the bar -- which was run by the Lady's husband, roughly a tenth-gallop away. It could be surprisingly difficult to find that too.

Time travelers strictly cash.

How twistful! An interesting set of characters. I had thought this was the griffon who tried to open the butcher shop in Canterlot from Naked Lunch since he also was on a "lower link" in Protoceran society but it's some other guy

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For that aspect of his being, the griffon was -- orange. Completely and utterly orange.

Ah. Not so much a room temperature IQ as one that can safely store dairy?

Unsure if a lack of IQ is his issue... his issue predominantly seems to be a totally non-existent ego... suspect it has been killed off by his physical form and his innate clumsiness.

"...Should you personally come to that decision, freely and of your own will. Today, that is your strength."

Judge Heartstopper's grasp of the situation and The Chain is excellent... to give the lowest a hint of control of their status...

The briefest surge of fear, being expressed by a griffon on a near-terminal link who'd just been told to take responsibility for his next decision.

The black head went down.

Then it came up.

"...yes," Secundo said. "I'll... drop the charges. I... can see how it would have happened now. I just... I was just waiting for it all to go wrong, to be weak again, and as soon as something did..."

The escort abruptly laughed.

It was sharp. Fully spontaneous, and completely fierce.

"Weak?"

It also wasn't the least bit unkind.

Fera is a true Griffon who understands her position on The Chain and the responsibilities it entails... she may even see herself now in the role of Guardian for Secundo after he has shown that he does have a modicum of courage deep down which has not been completely buried.

They understood each other, to the point where the judge had also gained the right to visit the bar -- which was run by the Lady's husband, roughly a tenth-gallop away. It could be surprisingly difficult to find that too.

*squints*
Pony-Callahan's?

It was a place known for wonderful parties, sparkling conversations, and far too many puns. The puns were universally acknowledged to be the worst part, especially since the proximity of Embassy Row meant that many of them were multi-lingual.

It IS! Which makes the the Lady, well, the Lady.
...
Lovely story all around.

D'awwww!

This chapter gave me warm fuzzy feelings so much I've read it three times since it came out.

Well, that was more heartwarming than I've expected from this story. Good stuff.

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Judging by Anchor Foal and this, they'd generally be respected once their skills are established and proven. Power is in physical aptitude, sure, but it's also in your ability to control the conversation, will to take care of and defend what's yours, efficient command of whatever resources you have, and sheer stubbornness.

The only question is whether an individual griffon is willing to look.