Leap of Faith
Punishment of house Winter, Canterlot.
As Bucky was about to mercilessly lay down the judgement his family so rightfully deserved, one mare cried out. “Please wait, lord Bitters! I will take any punishment you deem fit. But I ask, nay I beg of you. Please do not banish my son! He is no older than those filly’s of yours.” Buckminster was torn by the idea of banishing a foal but it needed to be done. He had to give swift judgement. Bucky kept an unrelenting aura about him, that is until he laid eyes upon the last foal of House Winter. Before Bucky stood a battered colt in a wheelchair. Healing magic obviously been used on the colt but by the looks of it the damage was far too extensive. He could see bumps lacerations and contusions. The colt looked malnourished and his horn was cracked and bent. With a second look at the colt. Bucky noticed that his horn was not bent. The boy was a lunar unicorn! The poor thing’s coat was a horrid blackish gray with what looks like a reddish tint and he kept his eyes closed. His cutie mark was the only flourishing thing on him and funnily enough it was a red scale that was dripping and weighed heavily on guilty. Or injustice in the boy’s case. “Justice has suffered enough from this chaos your wife started! The moment Ponies started rioting and beating or worse killing unicorns and I mean all unicorns, not just noblest. He took it upon himself to shelter not only the unicorns but their families in one of his properties he hid with enchantments.”
Bucky didn’t buy the sob story for a second and turned away while shaking his head. “Spare the boy!” All in the crowd roared with an exception of the remainder of house Winter. As Bucky was about to seal his horn, Cadence came to his rescue. “Bucky, stop! Justice has done charity work all around Equestria. His main focus was of course his home town of Harlem. But that doesn't change the fact that he's used his wealth and status to do good. In fact, he’s solely responsible for many the soup kitchens and homeless shelters. I’ve met him a few times and I can vouch, he’s got a heart of gold.” Bucky ceased his action. If Cadence vouched for him, then that was good enough for Bucky. Cadence walked down to the colt and took him from his mother who was a lunar pegasus. “He will be taken care of. I’ll do my best to make sure he keeps what is his. Aside from Bucky, Justice is the only one that’s earned it. Are you sure you don’t want to stay with him?”
The mother shook her head. “It’s time for Justice to walk his own path...so to speak. The doctors say he’ll never walk again and what’s worse…”
“Mother, enough!” The colt spoke with the voice. However his was raspy and extremely pained. Anyone who heard it could tell that merely speaking was causing him pain. Cadence gave Justice a warm pat on the head and cooed at him. Justice’s face twitched. “I appreciate the sentiment Cadence but please don’t coddle me. I’d like to maintain some dignity. The choice of what shall happen to me belongs to Buckminster and Buckminster alone. Whether he allows me to stay and keep my home or whether he banishes me to a location where I shall be meals on wheels is his choice. I don’t really care anymore, I won’t live that long anyway.” Justice Opened his eyes and bore his pain for all who would see. Even his “family” gasped. As if his wounds and inability to use magic weren’t enough, it was revealed that Justice was blind!
Bucky was at a loss for words. Everypony there seemed to be at the moment. Princess Luna approached Justice. “Allow me a better look into your eye’s, dear boy.” Justice did the only thing he could do, nod his head and open his eyes. “This is not natural blindness. Somepony hast bewitched you, my poor child. I would undo it if I could but the hatred behind it…”
“Is so strong that only the witch that did this to me can undo it. I am aware, princess. Buckminster know this. One member of our house has escaped and I swear to hunt her down even in the next life should I not find her in this one.” Luna asked Justice if he could feel her anywhere. “No, she’s gone dark. She won’t be found easily, hiding is her talent. Or to be more specific hiding from the likes of us, my mistress.” Luna smiled at the small amount of honey in Justice’s voice at the end.
Buckminster let this information weigh in his mind and had come to a decision. “Justice of House Winter. I shall pass no judgement on you. Your mother is correct, you have suffered enough.” Buckminster looked at the mother. “As for you, I do not know your name.”
“Nightstalker, milord. In thanks of your mercy, I await your punishment.” Nightstalker kept a humble air about her. She didn't look like your average noble and neither did Justice for that matter. He would have to learn more about them in the time to come.
“Nightstalker, your punishment is to forever be by his side. How you do so and to what capacity shall be up to Justice.” Justice had a small smile on his face at that. He had lost so much that life without his mother seems almost unbearable. Nightstalker gave a small hum and flew to her son’s side and grabbed the wheelchair. One mare was left in the group of soon to be exiles that was smiling. “Mother in law, thank you for taking us in and I hope that you can find peace where you go. I love you, Mayweather….Mother” Tears fell from the mare now known as Mayweather. She said not a word but nodded her head and continued to sob in silence.
Buckminster took one more look at Justice and noticed his mark had shifted a bit towards justice and was bleeding less on the justice end. “Am I seeing things or did his cutie mark just move?”
Berry noticed the shift in the mark as well as did Derpy. Neverbefore had there been a shiting cutie mark The mere notion of such a thing had fascinated Bucky. “Princesses, consider my estate a shelter for the time being. I open all wings but the southern for you to use as you see fit to aid the city of Canterlot. My charities as well as my estate are well stocked in terms of food and drink. There is also a working hospice in western ward I would like it to be opened immediately. There are ponies that need medical attention. My paid servants shall remain to assist you until you have this under control.” Nightstalker didn’t miss the cue and waved all around. Justice turned his head to Buckminster. “Mother...Nightstalker and Freeze are all the help I shall require while I recuperate. I love this city but right now, it only brings me horrible memories. Buckminster would you mind allowing me lodging in your home I can’t do much in the form of help but should you require legal console, I can assist you with that.”
Twilight and celestia nodded their heads. And to cement that a dragonic pony presented Buckminster with proof of Justice being a Bar certified lawyer. To be certified at that age, the boy must be an absolute genius. The half dragon that Buckminster assumed was none other than Freeze also showed him Justice’s Magical aptitude papers. Buckminster’s eyes shot wide. “Type 5? I must be misreading this.” Justice and his entourage sunk their heads down in sorrow. Buckminster realized what Justice had said earlier. “You said you don’t have long. What do you mean by that?” Justice looked to Freeze and she explained that he was under severe mana poisoning. His high mana levels were going to be the end of him. Justice was building up mana and was unable to discharge any of it. His horn was far too damaged. Buckminster suggested a prosthetic horn like his own but Freeze went on to explain that Justice would not survive the attempt. He had one option and that was to ride it out and die a slow and painful death. Buckminster showed the papers to his wives and they gasped. Berry on the other hand vomited. She was solely responsible for absolutely destroying any vestige of a future Justice had. As soon as she stopped vomiting, she fled from the crowd crying.
Bucky looked at Derpy and thistle and they silently agreed. “The three of you may stay in our home while you recover...if you recover. We will do all we can to assist you in recovering from your ailments. Perhaps being in a loving environment will aid you.” Buckminster no longer saw himself as a member of house winter but Justice on the other hand did. Perhaps Justice can fix the wrong their house has caused. However, that would take time. Time that he did not know if Justice had. He would have to work on ways to prolong Justice’s life if not rid him of his problem all together. He and his family survived the Isles together, he knew in his heart that he could do something to help this poor boy regain his lost potential.
Bucky sighed on the inside. He had faced the wolves and their master on the Isles but poor Justice had faced wolves of another kind here in Canterlot! It was sad how life threw them to similar crucibles and the results could be so catastrophically different. Bucky left the Isles mangled, but alive and stronger for it. In the time that he had met his wives parts of him had died for the better. However he feared that it might be the opposite for Justice. He had been brutalized by the very people he sought to help. His crucible saw him a broken mess that was mostly dead on the inside. From the ten minutes he has known him, it was apparent that his compassion for those in need and love for the city remained but one look in his cold, dead, useless eyes showed that his faith in ponies had died with the rest of his nerve endings. He would most likely be jaded and angry with the world in general and rightfully so. Bucky and his herd would have their work cut out for them if they were to try to mend this damaged foal. The word foal didn’t seem right here. His innocence was clearly gone. Hints of rage could be seen from within him. But was he mad at the world or at something else entirely? The boy’s soul had been through worse pain that Bucky could ever imagine. The wounds on him were but physical but Justice’s were also mental and spiritual.
The words that came out of Justice’s mouth cemented Bucky’s fear. “I don’t want nor do I need you pity, Buckminster. Do not look at me as a charity case. You want to save me? Stop holding your breath! If I survive this, what comes out won’t be some cute little foal. Those days are long gone.” Justice rubbed the back of his head to his mother’s hands. “Should I live, I may very well be a monster. But it shall be a monster this rotten world so needs!” Blood spewed from his mouth. Justice ceased speaking after that.
Ponyville, One Month Later
Justice and his entourage adapted to the more rural nature of Ponyville quite easily. Or at the very least, they never complained. Bucky noticed early that Justice didn’t leave the house or take an interest in anything short of the den. Justice seemed to enjoy spending time with Barley and Bucky heard him call him uncle at times. Since speaking too much tended to hurt Justice, it was mostly just Barley speaking and Justice animatedly listening. When Justice first met Barley, he immediately respected his booming personality. It was Barely that got Justice to do more than to just lay there listening to books on tape and the news. Justice also spoke to Sentinel mostly about his writings. He seemed to take a liking to Thistle and was fascinated to hear more of kelpies. He only went out of his way to avoid one pony in particular…Berry.
Every time she tried to engage in conversation, Justice would either zone out or plain out leave the room. More accurately Freeze or Nightstalker would wheel him away before a word could be said. Pina had noticed this behaviour and did not like it at all. Not only was Berry her sister but she was a mistress of this household to which Justice was a guest! To make things worse Justice wasn’t seen as a guest but as family and he made a point in socializing with everypony but Berry. Pina was going to put an end to that atrocious behaviour as soon as she possibly could! Freeze was working in the distillery and Nightstalker was out cold on the couch. It was now or never.
Pina took a deep calming breath, now was not the time for being nervous. Pina took hold of Justice’s wheelchair. The sudden disturbance startled him a bit, but not enough to yelp. “You and I are going to go on a stroll and have a nice, long chat.” Justice had a questioning look on his face. “It’s really important that I talk to you alone, okay.” Justice gave Pina a quick ‘Aight’ in the new yorker accent he had become comfortable using around everypony. The two went down the ramp and roughly rolled to the lake where Thistle dwelled. For some reason Thistle seemed to get an emotional response from Justice and Pina would take advantage of that. She’d have to strike quickly to deny Justice the time to spin his brain and work his lawyer mojo. Said mojo that was helping Bucky and Mr. Rich make the necessary revisions to what was happening in the town. The three of them together were a terrifying force of forensic accounting, business management and legal matters. They were three sharks that smelled the blood of the corrupt and they were hungry for it!
Pina shook her head to refocus herself. She wasn’t here to talk about the good he was doing for Ponyville. She was here to confront him on his harshness towards her precious sister/mama. She looked at his cutie mark which was still heavily weighed on injustice but noticed there was less blood on justice than when he arrived. “Look, I get that you’re doing good work here. That’s not why we’re here. I want to know what your problem is with my sister and before you get cute with your yorker ways, I mean Berry.”
Justice sighed, this was going to be a long conversation. Good thing Pina thought ahead and brought water. She put thermos up to Justice’s mouth to keep his throat moist. “I don’t have a problem with her.” Pina raised a brow but realized that Justice wouldn’t see that. “For real though, I ain’t got no problem with Berry. She did what she did and I suffered for it, I can’t change that. Do I look like I’m having a pity party to you? If you think I’m avoiding her, I ain’t. Nightstalker and Freeze are so they don’t kill her. Being around me keeps em calm. I realize that I coulda gone to celestia’s fancy ass school or even the one Buckminster and Twilight are trying to make now and pushed my magic to its very limits. But it’s gone and soon enough, I will be too. I defy you to give me one damn reason I should sit on my ass, no pun intended and cry. My time is limited and it’s better’ spent using my legal practice for a better’ tomorrow. When I’m gone, dis shit is still gon be here and dat’s somethin I just cain’t take.” Pina gave him another chug of water.
Thinking about it, he had a point. Not once had he had a single moment of sorrow. Instead his cocktail of hope, rage, and relentlessness continued to flow within him. “That’s all good and well but Berry thinks you hate her berry much. Do me a favor and spend some time with her and let her know you bear no ill will towards her. She needs to move on and she can’t do that if she feels like you hate her for effectively destroying your life.”
“Don’t get it twisted, Pina. I forgave her for the chain reaction she started. That don’t mean I’m gonna forget anything. I experienced unbearable pain and mutilation issued by my own kind because of her. Compared to Buckminster’s condition he’s a flu and I’m the plague! I’ll let her know I forgive her but in my mind she’s always gonna be the one that started the shitstorm that is me and there will always be a small level of not hatred or disgust for her but self contempt that I was so stupidly naive whenever I’m near her. The one I truly despise is somewhere in Equestria, hidden from my and Luna’s view. An entire coven of thestrals could not find her, she is gone. Either dead or just gone but either way, I will never seen again.”
Pina was pained and relieved at the same time. The true subject of his rage was somepony whose name he only gave to princess Luna and made her swear silence. Who would curse somepony as kind as Justice to eternal blindness? Pina understood Justice’s rage. In fact, she found herself wanting to strangle the fecking whore herself! And Pina was by no means one for violence. It was a good thing Thistle was deep in the lake at the moment. Otherwise she would’ve heard their conversation and seen the anger on both of them. She had done what she had sought out to do and was happy for it. Justice is painfully honest so Pina had no worries about Berry. However he had a tendency to move at his own pace. She hoped he wouldn’t do that in this case since Berry was bordering on manic depression and this was exactly what she needed.
Home, Two Hours Later
After a long overdue conversation, Berry understood that Justice didn’t hate her at all. “So you’re saying Buckminster, one of the lewdest and crudest ponies I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. Used to be an awkward neurotic mess that knew little to nothing of mares? Wow.” Justice turned his head to Buckminster’s general location. It had been bugging the hay out of her.
“How in the hay are you doing that anyway, Justice. You always know where somepony is in a room or at the very least, their general vicinity.” Three ponies in the room already knew the answer. In short it was echolocation. Everypony carries themselves differently. From their breath to their gait. Even the ticks of their heartbeat and once you had that down, it was a cake walk. Everypony (short of Nightstalker and Freeze) was glad that Justice was talking to Berry. But the distance was still visible on Berry’s side. She still felt bad. Not for what she did, but ill effect it had on the life of Justice. It took a few weeks for Justice to trust others but it happened. Bon Bon was discussing the benefits of getting Justice to leave the safety of house and explore Ponyville beyond City Hall. When she thought about it, she realized that Bon Bon was right. Justice can never truly heal until he starts to let others in. She had to come up with a way of ridding him of his pistanthrophobia. But that would be easier said than done. It took him a month to let Berry in and half as long to befriend Pina and Dinky. Berry was even sure how to get him to agree but it had to be done. Berry Punch was going to try her damndest to help Justice trust the outside world again come hell or high water!