Author's Note

Warning: The following Fiction contains dramatic and sexual themes which some viewers may find disturbing. I intend to treat this subject matter with as much respect as I can, but the Dark tag is there for a reason, folks. Reader discretion is advised.

Additional Note - All Case Files will be separated into two parts, due to their combined length so as to make reading easier. Each case file will GENERALLY be posted together. Some exceptions will be made for the purposes of drama.

Case #0001, Part 1 - Daisybloom

The following is a partial transcription of the first day of the Inquiry for your files, Twilight. I’ve also included Daisybloom’s testimony in its full, unedited form. I know this has been a difficult few weeks for you, but I assure you that we are doing everything we can for Fluttershy and Rarity. With the new information we have, I expect those responsible for this will be severely punished. If you require anything, Princess Cadence will be remaining in Canterlot for the next several months to assist me in the… cleanup. And please, I beg of you, do not hesitate to write if you need to speak to somepony. My heart is with you.
-Celestia

2:30pm, Monday, 23rd day of Summer’s Height, Canterlot High Courthouse.

Special Inquiry Case Session Transcript #1
Case: The Crown V. New Life Placement Agency
Charges: Forty-six counts of illegal use of magic, illicit trafficking in alchemical materials, illegal forced servitude, illegal pony trafficking and illegal use of mind-altering chemicals, two counts of magical assault on agents of the Crown.
Defendants: Quill Tip (Pegasi), Fizzy Pop (Unicorn), ‘Squeaky Bounce’ aka Golden Apple (Earth pony) and Lady Elegant (Unicorn)
Defense: Disaster Chaser, Atny at Law.
Prosecution: White Cravat, Dark Coffee, Black Quills (Not Present)
Official Court Reporter: Double Scoop, The Equestria Times
The Honorable Judge Hard Rock, Presiding

Double Scoop Notes: Quill Tip is a mint-green coated pegasi mare with black feather tips, and is wearing a severe suit. Fizzy Drink is a splotchy pink and red unicorn stallion, with a matte finish to his hooves. Lady Elegant is a white coated unicorn, wearing a very fashionable red dress. Golden Apple is an earth pony, with a shiny, rubber-like coat colored pure black and a similarly textured mane in bubblegum pink and no visible cutie-mark or obvious gender. All four of them seem varying degrees of nervous, though Lady Elegant looks to be the calmest. Oddly enough, Golden Apple’s nervousness seems mostly reserved for the Judge, who she eyes warily.

Bailiff - All Rise for the Honorable Judge Hard Rock, presiding.

DS Profile: The Courtroom rises for the judge. Judge Rock is a well respected member of the Legal profession in Equestria, but hasn’t been assigned to a high-profile case like this before. He usually runs the district courts in Manehatten, but was assigned to this case by the Princess herself. He’s a tall, grey-coated earth pony with a big white beard and a scruffy remnant of mane along the back of his balding head. Noted for being very even hoofed in his judgements, but not tolerating much nonsense in his court.

Judge Rock - Everypony be seated, thank you. This court is now in session.
{The judge smacks his gavel against the lectern firmly}

Judge Rock - Before we begin, this court would like to call attention to our special observers today. We welcome Princesses Celestia, Twilight Sparkle and Mi Amore Cadenza to our humble courtroom.

DSCN: Much muttering from the crowd as the three Princesses enter the balcony observation area. The direct intervention of the Princesses in this case is what’s been driving public attention to it far beyond the scandalous aspects. The Princess prefers to keep herself above the machinations of the law, but every so often some moron sticks their neck out a shade too far… Surprised to see Princess Twilight here. With the ponies involved, I would’ve thought she’d try to keep her head above the fray.

Princess Celestia - Thank you, Judge Rock. You may proceed.

Judge Rock - Thank you, Princess. For the record, this is not the official trial in the case of The Crown V. New Life Placement Agency. This is a special inquiry session requested by the Crown in order to more fully ascertain certain facts about the case without prejudicing the Jury either for or against the defendants.

Atny Chaser - Your honor, I think my clients have a right to know what the point of this so-called ‘special inquiry’ actually is.

Judge Rock - So they do, Mr. Chaser. Several key witnesses and victims in this case have made a request of the crown to more fully explain the circumstances of your client’s alleged crimes. After much deliberation, the Crown has decided it is better to make absolutely certain that the appropriate charges have been filed in order to protect the rights of the defendants.

Atny Chaser - So this is some kind of fact-finding mission by the crown, disguised as some kind of vague platitude about protecting my client’s rights? What an incredibly obvious ploy by the Princess to-

Judge Rock - Mr. Chaser, you will not call the Princess’ credibility into question in my courtroom, or I shall hold you in contempt. Are we understood?

Atny Chaser - Yes, your Honor.

Judge Rock - Good. As to your implications, perhaps you have not noticed that the Prosecutorial team is not present for this Inquiry.

Atny Chaser - I will admit I had wondered about that, your Honor.

Judge Rock - As you ought to well know Mister Chaser, the High Prosecutor’s office was not the one to bring charges in this case. As such, since the subject of our Inquiry today is as to the relevance and number of the charges, all information gathered here today is intended only to inform the Crown as to which ones are most appropriate to levy in this case.

Double Scoop: Attorney Chaser nods to this, and raises his hoof for the judge to go on.

Judge Rock - Assuming there are no further objections, we would like to begin with the facts of this case. This court calls Prince Captain Shining Armor to the stand.

{Much muttering from the ponies present in the crowd as the Prince emerges from a side door and mounts the Witness stand. He is wearing his Crystal Empire guard armor, but no helmet.}

Judge Rock - Thank you for taking the time to join us today, Prince Armor. Would you please, for the record, repeat the essential facts of this case?

Prince Armor - Yes, your Honor. Ten months ago, I led a special raid on a crystal pony noble’s house who had been suspected of growing and selling ancient alchemical ingredients illegally to unknown ponies in Equestria. We suspected that this pony had been a producer of such things for King Sombra during his reign, and once freed had continued her side business in the area of illegal experimental alchemy and technology. That was, uh…

Princess Mi Amore Cadenza - That would have been The Crown V. Aurora case, your honor.

Prince Armor - Thanks, Cadey. We waited for an opportunity and descended upon her residence. There, we found a vast underground cave which she had been using as a greenhouse for her plants. All of our expert alchemists could not identify most of them, but the one that was instantly identifiable were Discordite Flowers.

Judge Rock - I’ve never heard of such things, myself.

Fizzy Pop - Ahem. If I may your honor? Discordite Flowers are an extremely rare variant of the Poison Joke plant, typically only found in places of strong magical resonance or during numerically significant days of the year. They are an incredibly potent alchemical substance which can best be described as Poison Joke’s bigger, nastier and more permanent older brother. Due to their rarity they have usually been exclusively used for high-level curatives intended for those stricken by genetic defects and it is very illegal for non crown-sanctioned alchemists to harvest and purchase them.

Judge Rock - Thank you, Mister Pop. Is this accurate, Prince Armor?

Prince Armor - Yes, your Honor. Our Royal Alchemists have been collectively losing their minds over the find, and carefully harvesting the leaves of the plant while trying to figure out how she kept them growing down there. The reason the finding of this plant was significant was that there was evidence that vast quantities of the stuff had been harvested, held and sold somewhere in Equestria.

Atny Chaser - And why is that significant, Prince Armor?

Prince Armor - My alchemists informed me that Discordite flowers could be used to permanently alter the physical characteristics of a pony without their consent, and in the wrong hooves might be used as a poison or alchemical warfare agent. Given how much we estimated had been sold, we believed acting quickly and decisively was the key.

After a thorough investigation, we determined that the vast bulk of this substance had been sold to a distributor somewhere in Canterlot. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived at his warehouse, the pony himself had long since gone missing. Over the course of the next year, we chased what few leads we had all over Equestria until we finally hit a breakthrough. A witness who had been turned into… Into…

DS Notes- At this moment, Prince Armor looks at Golden Apple. I’ve been working the press for a long time, but I’ve never seen a pony quite like this one. The way Prince Armor swallows nervously is an understandable one. It’s almost vaguely terrifying to have her present, given the condition she’s in, but I suppose she needs to be. I wonder what dark road led her here...

Some kind of strange, shiny-coated pony came to Canterlot Castle begging for help. She told us about this mysterious ‘Placement Agency’ where she had gone for unspecified reasons, and been transformed into her new body. The Princess immediately took her in and soon joined our investigation as to what had gone on.

We followed our witness’ instruction to the New Life Placement Agency, and commenced an official Guard raid upon the property. Within, we found extensive alchemical equipment and production facilites and approximately a third of the remaining Discordite Flower petals dried and carefully stored for later use. We proceeded to investigate the remainder of the building and-

Atny Chaser - And this is the part where I say the ‘facts’ of the case come to an end, and the ‘alleged’ crimes of my clients begin, your Honor. Everything that comes after this remains speculation and hearsay in the eyes of the law, and I will not have it trotted out before an audience before I have my day in court. Whatever point you’re driving at, your Honor, please get to it.

Judge Rock - While I am not fond of your tone, Mr. Chaser, I must agree with the spirit of your statement. Thank you for your time, Prince Armor. This Court would like to ask you to remain in case we require a specific point of the case clarified.

Prince Armor - Of course, your Honor.

Judge Rock - This court now calls Miss Daisybloom to the stand.

Double Scoop Profile - Miss Daisybloom enters the court. She is an earth pony with a shiny ‘coat’ of some unknown material colored pastel yellow that goes all the way up to her neck. She also has no visible cutie mark, similar to Golden Apple. Unlike Golden Apple, though, she is very clearly not happy to be here. The way she moves, and looks around resembles a deeply frightened individual.

Judge Rock - Miss Daisybloom, according to court records you were the pony who first reported the activities of the New Life Placement Center to Equestrian authorities. Is this correct?

Daisybloom - Y-yes, your honor.

Judge Rock - According to further records, you have asked to recant certain parts of your initial testimony?

Daisybloom - It’s m-more accurate to say that I wish t-to… Clarify some things, your Honor. My mind was…

Scoop Note - Daisybloom shivers in the stand, clutching at herself as though cold. A bailiff offers his jacket, but is refused with a smile from the witness. She seems to draw some strength from the show of kindness.

Daisybloom - Thank you, I’m alright. My mind was in a very bad place when I first came to Canterlot Castle seeking help. I want to make sure that all the circumstances of my involvement with the Agency are understood.

Judge Rock - Very well. Mr. Chaser, do you have any objections?

Atny Chaser - None at this time, your Honor.

Judge Rock - Miss Daisybloom, you may proceed.

Daisybloom - Thank you, your Honor. The most important thing to understand is that my involvement with the Agency goes back a fair distance. In fact, as I understand it, I was actually their very first… customer, so to speak, rather than somepony they offered services to for free. My time with the company lasted for nearly three years, broken up into twenty or so contracts.

Judge Rock - Contracts? Would you please specify for the court what sort of contracts?

Atny Chaser - Objection! Your honor, these are facts pertaining to the case-

Judge Rock - Overruled. I have already made it clear the intent of this Inquiry, Mr. Chaser, and for that we must have the facts of every aspect of this case. Answer the question, Miss Daisybloom.

Daisybloom - They were, ah… Social contracts, I guess? They were kind of worded like work contracts, but it was fairly well described that we weren’t required to do anything. At least, that’s what I was told it said.

Judge Rock - That seems awfully vague, Miss Daisybloom.

Daisybloom - Well, at the time I wasn’t terribly concerned with the content of the contract. And given how events… altered my perceptions so badly, I suppose I never gave much thought as to what I was signing, only that what I was signing for was good.

Judge Rock - Do you have these contracts, still?

Daisybloom - No, your Honor. All of them were held by the Agency for their record-keeping purposes.

Judge Rock - I see. {A few moments of shuffling papers} Prince Armor, would you be so kind as to bring some of these contracts into court from the evidence so that this court might have a more clear understanding of their nature?

Prince Armor - Of course, your Honor. I’ll send word to our investigators, though it might be a few days to have them bagged and tagged for you.

Judge Rock - Thank you. In the meantime, Miss Daisybloom, this court would like you to testify as to the events which led you to your first exposure to the Agency and, more specifically, what events followed your initial exposure to the illicit alchemical substances they allegedly used on you.

Daisybloom - Yes, your Honor. That is part of what I’m here to discuss. As to how things started, well… It all started three years ago, around the start of spring.

I couldn’t believe my luck when I found the flyer that morning at breakfast. There was a hoof full of them scattered all over the central square near the food carts, and most of them had ended up in the trash. Normally, I would’ve put them there myself, but after breaking up with Sweet Strings the day before I was done trying to date in the ‘traditional’ manner. Sweet Strings had been like all of the rest, he didn’t want a real, deeply emotional relationship like I did. I wanted somepony who I could love with all of my heart, and would care for me like his precious treasure. I wanted a mate, somepony I would gladly bear the children of.

The flyer seemed innocuous enough, of course. Just another brightly colored advert describing a new business that specialized in helping ponies find new direction in their lives. Hence, the ‘New Life Placement Agency’. They claimed they handled everything from targeted relationship assistance to job placement without even a hint of the usual skeeviness of such things.

Even better, the flyer offered a discount to first-time customers and I was ready to try something else. Anything else. I’ve never had fantastic luck with the colts, you see. I seemed to have this knack for attracting stallions who are really only interested in somepony to get their rocks off with instead of somepony who wanted to spend their lives with me. I’d tried just about everything and everywhere you can think of: Clubs, artistic events, social groups, bars, you name it. Heck, I even joined the Canterlot Amateur Choir at one point, which is what ultimately led to Sweet Strings and…

It can be hard sometimes to realize that I walked into this with my eyes wide open, you see. But there was absolutely nothing to warn me about what was going to happen. The Agency itself had taken up shop in the crafting district, which was odd but I didn’t pay it much mind. The rent in that district is the lowest of all of Canterlot, so perhaps they were just trying to scrimp bits. When I went in, that was the first time I met Quill Tip.

She seemed so nice, so understanding. She walked me through their ‘process’ and how I could back out at any time. I was warned that they made no guarantees as to satisfaction, and that they promised only to provide good opportunities. It was my job to make the most of them. To be honest, it was kind of a relief that they were so up front about things. I think if they’d gone on and on about guarantees, I would’ve walked out of the place.

The next thing I knew, she was setting up an ‘appointment’ with their chief counselor, Lady Elegant.

Judge Rock - Could you clarify what she means by Chief Counselor, defendant?

Lady Elegant - The ‘counselor’ part is easy, as it was my job in the agency to provide advice as to what services our customers might wish to draw upon. I would interview them for a period of hours, asking questions as to what desires they wished to have fulfilled and then provide them with a list of opportunities we had available. As to the ‘chief’ part, I can only say that I had lofty ambitions for my business.

Judge Rock - Thank you, defendant. Please continue, Miss Daisybloom.

Daisybloom - It took about a week to get the appointment, and I won’t deny that the delay actually made me a bit more confident about things. It was obvious that they were busy already, despite being such a young business. I had been asked to prepare myself to best convey what I wanted, and so I made lists. Lots of lists. Then I destroyed most of them, since, well… most of them were useless.

By the day of the appointment, I was quite nervous. I wanted to make sure everything was going to go over well, and I’d drawn some bits out of my savings account to make certain I would have enough to pay for the services right away. Quill Tip was nothing but smiles and reassurance as she sent me upstairs to Lady Elegant’s office. The room itself, if you’ve never seen it, was lavishly appointed. The furniture was all high quality, hoofcrafted woodwork with plenty of age to it. There were soothing pieces of art on the wall, and somewhere there was music playing even though I couldn’t see a gramophone or stereo system. The music was also sort of faint, and it sounded a bit off, but…

{The witness winces at this time, a hoof coming up to her head and rubbing at her temple. For a few moments, she appears to mutter something before shaking it off.}

Sorry. I get these headaches and… and… impulses whenever I think about that music. Anyway, I had my appointment with her. She asked me all sorts of questions, which I’ve already gone over in my previous testimony. The questions really weren’t important though, as was what came after them. I remember very distinctly that she looked quite happy after I broke down, unable to be formal anymore, and just…

I said, “I want somepony to love me for who I am! To want me and care for me and rut me properly and-”

I said a lot of other things. I told her everything, right down to how little I’d felt appreciated and desired. How much I wanted a mate, how much I wanted children... I blushed so bad in the office as I went into the explicit stuff, and Lady Elegant was all soothing voice and gentleness. “It’s quite alright, darling,” she said to me. “I perfectly understand the need for that. Don’t worry, little one. I’ve got just the solution for you, and it won’t cost you very much at all.” You can’t imagine how relieved I was to hear that. I was ecstatic, thinking I’d finally found the solution to my problems.

A few days later, I was introduced to Doctor Pop.

~~~~Court House Records Room~~~~

Shining Armor rubbed at his forehead as he leafed through the documents scattered across the desk. He hated paperwork like any properly trained Guard officer, but he knew the importance of being able to understand the bloody stuff. "Are we as bad off as I think we are?" He muttered, eyeballing the box upon box of similar documents stacked against the wall. Each and every one of which with a different name tag and color coded for the severity of the crime.

Princess Luna snorted. "Tis not as labyrinthine as contracts used to be, but they are still going to be the very devil to decipher." She flipped one more page before letting it go in disgust. "However, should I be reading these clauses correct we may have a very difficult time proving the crimes of these blackguards were in violation of Equestrian law. The law allows a great deal of leeway when it comes to personal contracts, even in direct violation of other Equestrian laws. My sister has not been vigilant in closing said loopholes over the centuries. Likely to keep the nobility in line." She sighed, rubbing at her own temple in a motion that made Shining Armor wince in sympathy.

He did not at that one though. "Yeah, contracts tend to have a way of over-riding things unless the pony is smart enough to have a half-decent lawyer look over them first. We've been able to introduce more protections in recent years, but I think we need to have some experts look at these things." He grabbed a bundle of the contracts and tied a tight red ribbon around them to carry upstairs to the judge. "Did you have somepony in mind?" It was an off-hoof question, but Luna's involvement in this case so far had been pretty spare. Had Celestia been saving her for just this sort of emergency?

Luna smirked. "I will be reviewing them myself, and presuming the worst laws are in apply here. It shall take me several weeks to truly pore through them, however. I shall be recruiting several enforcers of the Crown Law to assist me." Then she paused, as though she had more to say. "Prince Armor, I worry for the health of your sister. She has not yet been to see Dame Rarity and Fluttershy for longer than a few moments."

Shining Armor nearly banged his head on the door at that news. Twily hadn't gone to see them for long? That was news. Bad news, too. "She... She's told me how guilty she feels about all this." He began, hesitating to bring this personal matter up with the Princess. Still. If anyone might be able to help. "She blames herself, Princess. She thinks that somehow she's at fault for what happened to them." There. Now it was out in the open, and Shining Armor would just have to hope his Sister wouldn't murder him for it.

Princess Luna nodded slowly. "A feeling I understand all too well. I shall try to convince my sister to help me find the right speech for her. Until then, we shall all work harder to support her during this trying time." She sighed and gathered up the documents, stacking boxes onto a cart. "I shall get to work on these right away. Please inform my Sister that I wish the help of some modern experts to ensure I do not miss anything."

Shining Armor nodded, then hurried up the steps. He didn't want to miss any of this testimony.