Young Equestria Young Tension

As we walked in the castle of the royal pony sisters, I looked at Millie. "How'd you learn to teleport like that?"

"I did it back when I was around a year old. Back then, it was so easy to do. But now, unless there's a lot of magic in a small area, I can't."

"Few unicorns perfect that kind of magic. All I know who would've done it with no trouble would be Star Swirl, Celestia and Luna." I turned around ahead again to see the two thrones in the background, only to be stopped by the guards.

"Who goes there?"

Suddenly, Luna came in and signaled the guards to fold their wings once more. "You are free to pass my subjects." We all smiled and entered the throne room following Luna. "So what brings you all here today?"

"We've come here because of the ongoing behavior of my daughter's father. Even more so, he was the particular reason that Medium stayed home from school the other day as well as me and Polly Spot replacing Medium's bed with a sleeping bag."

"So is this father of yours also the reason why you have your hoof bandaged?" I nodded.

"He's left oiznic bottles everywhere and I stepped on one, causing it to break under the hoof." Luna cringed at the thought of what I said implied to her.

"Rarely anyone drinks such a beverage. Only on special occasions is oiznic, of all drinks, available."

"Wait, what?!?" Life Seal got shocked again. "If that's so, then how'd he get so many of them?!?"

"I know. Oiznic and cider bottles pile up quickly at my house because of Dad."

"Perhaps this was the cause of this unacceptable behavior of this pony's. What's his name?"

"Min Praise. In fact, I have a picture of the three of us, including him, in this here picture." Mom took out that same photo I once looked at in between Daddy's departure and Mom's arrival the day I stayed home. Luna levitated it out of Mom's hoof.

"Say, when was this picture taken? This filly looks a lot younger in this."

"About five years ago."

"Long before this all started," I added.

"Luna!"

Everyone looked up, including me, at the guard who entered with Daddy behind him.

"What is it?"

"We have had a report from Dr. Front Aid."

"And..."

"Wait a minute! I was just with Dr. Aid."

"What'd he report?"

"He examined the shards he removed from Medium Praise. The shards belonged to a broken oiznic bottle that was left in the Praise family home. And we examined the saliva from it, which belonged to Min Praise."

"Exactly what I've heard from these pegasi over here. Do you suppose we should run a session?"

"It's the only option. We've filed Min for buying a drink only legally sold in bars: half a bottle at a time."

"Then we shall run it tomorrow morning."

"Very well."

The pounding of a gavel from a unicorn judge signaled guards to close all doors to the room. "The Sisters' Royal Court is now in session for the trial of Min Praise. Would the prosecution make its opening statement?"

The earth pony to the right of the judge stood up straight. "No problem. On Wednesday, June 4, Medium Praise was sent to the hospital by her father, Min Praise. What Dr. Front Aid had found on Medium's hoof were cuts too deep to just be bandaged, because not only was Medium bleeding normally after stepping on a bottle empty of oiznic, but she was shedding magic. This phenomenon has never occurred before; it's a mystery of how shedding magic works. But we do know that this broken bottle we examined at the Praise family home had saliva at the tip of it that matched that of Min Praise, which brings us here."

"My word! I surely hope Medium Praise is alright now."

I nodded. "I am now."

"We've gathered here a few witnesses in the audience. First witness is Millie Beginnings." Millie came to the witness' seat and sat down. "So Millie, tell us any information you know about from last night that you heard about or witnessed. Then there could be questions from the defense, so make sure to answer them."

"No problem. It all started on Monday, the day that Medium was absent; at that point, I figured something was up, but I didn't know what. Then, I figured it out the next day; Medium's father was still clung to his pre-windigo belief that his kind is better than the other two. I don't see anything wrong with that alone, but I do if it gets in the way of the love of his own filly. So, let's go over the list, shall we? Medium told me that: she was hit into the wall on the scalp, then her wing got slapped so hard that she's been grounded for three days now, then she had her tail yanked. To top it off, Medium accidentally stepped on an illegally bought bottle of oiznic nearly destroying her hoof. Now, I have a yes or no question for Medium; did he call you any names throughout this time?"

"Yes."

"That covers all four types of abuse. The first one is Medium's scalp hit into the wall along with her wing being slapped, physical abuse. The second one, which shall not be named, is when Medium's tail was yanked. The third type is name calling, emotional abuse. Finally, the fourth type is when Medium stepped on the oiznic bottle that was clearly in the way, neglect."

The defense spoke up with this. "How bad was Medium's hoof hurt?"

"It was so badly wounded, she was shedding magic."

"Did it have to be stitched, and was it?"

"Yes and yes. It had to be stitched, which it was."

The judge pounded his gavel one more time. "Mr. Ridge, this information had so quickly come together, and this is the first witness of a mere three. Are you sure about this Mr. Beginnings?" Millie nodded. "How'd you know about all this, much less remember every single detail?"

"I just said what Medium herself, the victim of this case, had told me."

The judge shook his head. "Hm... a victim of abuse may not be that reliable though."

"But judge, what Millie said was the honest truth; I didn't just tell him, I experienced them!"

"Are you sure?"

Mom stood up. "Of course she is! Millie and I saw the aftermath of the procedure!"

Another pound of the gavel silenced Mom. "Ms. Seal! You're to remain seated unless called upon the witness' seat!"

"Objection. No need to. I call Life Seal to the witness' seat. Continue your claims, Life Seal." The prosecutor pointed to the stand, which Mom proceeded to walk to.

"Thank you. Continuing on. I've seen the damages that Min made, and this is what happened to my daughter. She's experienced nearly the same trauma as I have with the Pegasus Khurbn alongside so many other pegasi. But one thing I do agree with is that it was only half the trauma that was by Min; the other half was Medium herself, putting on a facade that nearly tore her apart, that could've killed her! I don't want my daughter to ever be hurt like that again! If someone does something to true that fear, then they'll be sorry they did. Would you affect the whole town just because you're love for your own daughter was blocked off by your own ludicrous beliefs, or would you let that victim of abuse stay somewhere she is safe? If home isn't safe, nowhere is."

Everyone teared up at the speech, especially me. Mom proceeded to walk over to me, leaving the defense with nothing to say. This was my Mom, right? A tomboy?

"Well, I guess that solidifies everything. I think I can reach my verdict. Mr. Ridge, you won't anymore witnesses to testify."

"Quite alright. Those were all the witnesses I intended to bring to the chair."

"This court finds the defendant, Min Praise, guilty. Any word before I give my sentence."

I raise my hoof. "Do you know whether or not my father took me to the hospital or not?"

"No, I don't know. Did he?"

"Yes."

"Well, that won't sway my sentence then."

"But you don't understand. If he'd not bring me to the hospital there'd be no court case like this."

"Well, that does make sense. But that still doesn't sway my sentence."

"I understand. I'm ready for whatever sentence you give him."