For a few days, I've been brainstorming, trying to come up with a good way of starting a band. Getting costumes and instruments, as well as learning the songs isn't enough. Ponies don't have YouTube or anything like that, so I can't simply record a video of us playing and expect a lot of ponies to see it. Once I have enough money, I will try to develop the internet, that's for sure. Though... I don't have much knowledge about the digital side of things. As in, I don't know anything about coding. I know that computers use a binary system to operate, and that's where my knowledge ends. Yeah, I can use the internet easily and even assemble a computer from existing parts, but creating one from scratch? Impossible.

Anyway, I trailed off from the main topic, which is creating a band and advertising it, I suppose. I should've done some serious research about creating a band while I was still on Earth... Well, what can I do? Hmm... Actually, I think I have an idea! I've already played for a band here, so I should ask them about this sort of thing. Nox Obscura got popular somehow, after all. Unless they started famous, as in they are a branch of another group... But in any case, they might give me some good answers. The only problem is contacting them. I should've found the address for sending letters... Nevermind, that thing is probably not efficient for what I want. I bet there's plenty of fan mail, and my letter might not get a reply in months.

Oh, I think I know! Luna was the one who brought me to Nox Obscura, and she can be the one to help me contact them again. Seems like a good idea.

...This is kind of ironic, though. I never liked the fact that you have to know someone to get famous. It's not always like this, of course, but it's often the case. I just got really lucky to have Luna as my friend, so... I have royalty on my side! That's the highest you can go to in Equestria, I believe. Princess Celestia is on the same level, and then there's Princess Cadance. Haven't really seen her do anything as of late, though. She seems... not as royal? Well, I've not seen her public appearance... ever. Luna also seems not to like publicity, but her sister sure likes to appear in a lot of things. She's a teacher at her own school, she appears in a number of public events. There's not a week that Princess Celestia doesn't use to partake in something. But she's a princess, what did I expect? A ruler needs to be close to their subjects to know what they want and what they don't want, after all. If a ruler doesn't do that... Well, we've seen multiple revolutions happen on Earth that threw away monarchy or loosened its grip on power. Revolutions happen for a reason, after all. If all were good, then why would people go out in the streets, grab weapons, and defend their beliefs and such?

Okay, so what I need to do is to ask Luna for help... again. This has become pretty ridiculous if you ask me. But hey, I can't just search up the answer on the internet, now can I? And I seriously doubt libraries have the books I need for that. So, help from Luna it is!

However, today is a special day. A court is taking place about Blueblood's parents, and I am asked to go and provide evidence. This is somewhat frightening, to be honest. I've never been to a court before, and, well... I don't really know how it will go. Not to mention that all the evidence I have comes from Blueblood's words. The only thing I've personally seen was when Blueblood was held back by his parents from going with me and my other friends. However, if anything I can do will help, then I'll do it without hesitation.

Speaking of stuff I do for friends and other close people... Night Breeze really needs my attention once I get back. She's been having... certain urges. First is the mix of, uh, cucumber and ice-cream. No, not ice-cream with cucumber flavor, even though that would be strange enough. I'm talking about slicing the cucumber and mixing it with vanilla ice-cream. Yeah... That's weird. And after that, she wants to have sex with me. I mean, I guess that's fine since she's already pregnant. Although, when the later stages come, I'm not sure I'd want to have sex with her. That would just be... weird. Eve though I'm pretty sure my dick won't touch the foal-

...

Why did I even think of that? I really should transform my brain into a computer so that I could delete stuff I never wanted to imagine in the first place. Bad Flame Metal. Bad. Don't think about things you shouldn't think about.

...

Phew. I think that thought is gone. Aaaand I'm pretty sure I'm not as horny anymore, at least for now. Weird thoughts tend to do that... Though, I wonder how many ponies get pregnant in their early teens. Probably not many, considering that what happened to Night Breeze is the result of Discord's chaos magic stuff (I'm still going to make sure he pays child support in one way or another), but still... I guess it's an, uh, interesting statistic?

Anyway, I should focus on something else, something that is immediate and much more important. So, early in the morning, Iridia, Moonshine, and I all went to the court building. Moonshine was obviously the most nervous out of the three of us, and so I walked close to her and gently nuzzled her from time to time. It seemed to relax her, which is, well, a good thing. Dang, I can't really form words today... In any case, all of us will provide evidence in a separate room. It was my condition since all of us are pretty nervous and I don't want to butcher my own words under the glare of Blueblood's parents or something. So, in fact, most of the court will happen without our presence. Blueblood Junior is staying at the Canterlot Castle, for now, doing... stuff. I don't actually know but I'm sure he's fine. Once the court is done, and I'm sure it will be done in his favor, he'll find a new family and hopefully, will live happily ever after. At least, that's the best thing that could happen to him.

However, I'm pretty sure his biological parents will try to do something to get him back. I have no idea what it might be but... they're rich and somewhat powerful. So, they have connections and money to use to get things done other legally... or illegally. Or semi-legally. Rich people often have the power to shape laws in such ways that benefit them. You know, making them vague and filled with loopholes that only people with connections or money can exploit. Just look at the tax code... When I was around seventeen, I took a look at it and, well... Putting it in words is difficult. But definitely not as difficult as figuring out things like tax returns and whatnot. Rich people have the money to hire lawyers that do all that job for them, but regular people? They can't do that.

Anyway, let's get back to the current thing. While I was thinking about all that stuff, the three of us finally reached the building. The Royal Courthouse... It's somewhat greek in style for some reason. A lot of columns, decorations on the triangular roof... I've not been to Greece but this sure reminds me of it. Canterlot really has everything... Some gothic buildings, some Victorian-era (or its equivalent, I have no idea how it's called here) houses, and some ~20th Century stuff. The castle reminds me of Orthodox churches a bit, too. Canterlot is a mix of a lot of different styles, and it somehow works together without problems. That's surprising but not unwelcome. And for some reason, I barely noticed it before. Interesting...

Once we entered the building, we were directed to the Witness Room №3. I wonder what the first two are... Probably reserved for more important cases and trials. So, we made our way to the right hall and almost to the very end of it. The door for our room was a plain wooden one with a golden plate at its top with its number. Before entering, Iridia, Moonshine, and I exchanged nervous glances. We all know we're doing it for Blueblood, but none of us has been to a court before.

Speaking of that, aren't we supposed to be with adults? Though... I'm technically an adult. Iridia also is. At least she should be. But, well, we can't exactly call our parents, now can we? Mine's are on Earth, which is inaccessible from here, from what I know. Same with Iridia's since, well, she's my clone. Moonshine's parents just... straight up abandoned her. It still makes me feel pretty bad... Not because I had anything to do with it but because, dang, that must've been a traumatic experience. I want no child to go through that. I suppose that's also the part of the reason I'm helping Blueblood right now. He's a good guy, he deserved to have good parents. Bad guys also usually have bad parents... So, to be honest, everyone deserves and needs good parents. Humanity probably wouldn't be nearly as messed up as it is if only we had more good parents that made good people.

And I will also try my best to be a good father myself. I'm having an unexpected child, and it's something I'm not too thrilled about, but... He or she doesn't deserve to be abandoned just because of that. Bad decisions like this may lead to even more bad decisions, and all of that often results in a catastrophe. So, I'm going to be a responsible and reasonable parent and make sure that the foal will be raised well under my... wing? I think that's how to say it.

...

Yeah, what hope do I have as a father if I can't even speak right sometimes? Heh...

Anyway, I finally opened the door and the three of us entered the room. To my surprise, the one to question us was Luna herself. It's not an unpleasant surprise, but... I expected someone else. Someone other than Luna, that's for sure.

"Good day, Flame Metal, Iridia, Moonshine," she greeted all of us in turn, a warm smile on her face, "You may take a seat."

With some hesitation, all of us sat in front of Luna, and the only thing separating us from her was a table. She changed her usual royal attire to a dark-blue plain gown, and small reading glasses were on her muzzle. Her mane was flat, its ethereal flow gone. Instead of how she had it usually, this time it was tied behind her head in a ponytail. Uh, do ponies call that style ponytail? Or do they have a different name for that? That doesn't really matter, but... Still, small facts are interesting.

"So, I'm going to ask all of you to provide me with everything you know about Blueblood Junior and his family situation," she told us, "And while I am your friend and sympathize with you, don't forget — I am first and foremost the ruler of Equestria. If I am to judge someone, I judge them based on objective facts and not on my feelings."

"I understand," I nodded in response. Yeah, it'd probably be legally problematic for all of us if Luna judged in our favor just because we're her friends.

And so, we proceeded to tell her of what we've seen and heard from Blueblood. Luna nodded to our words, writing it all down swiftly with the use of a pen. That's surprising, considering that most ponies still use quills. The paper also seems different from a glance... Are ponies technologically advancing? Huh. That's good, maybe someone will be able to come up with the Internet before I do! I mean, it'd be nice if I were the one to give the idea, but hey, the original idea is not mine, so... I'd probably feel bad for taking it. I don't know.

"Alright, thank you," Luna said after she wrote everything down, "One last thing, however... Do you swear on your memory that everything you have told me is correct?"

"What does that mean?" I asked in confusion and interest. I've heard about swearing to God, swearing on the Bible, swearing to a person by looking them in the eye and saying 'yeah', but this... This is new.

"If the defender denies the accusations, you will have to provide proof regarding your words," the princess explained, "So, in that scenario, you will have to let me view your memories directly. Everything outside of those specific memories needed for the trial will be safe under the Privacy Act number thirty-one."

"Well, if I knew what that Privacy Act is..."

"It says that no one has the right to view the memories you have outside of those deemed necessary for the legal procedures," Luna gave an explanation, "So, everything regarding your private life is still with you and cannot be accessed without your explicit willing permission."

Honestly? Sounds like a decent way to go about this mind stuff. Well, and law in general. I'm pretty sure this mind-reading legal procedure is the thing that keeps crime to the minimum. If you are caught, I'm pretty sure you will face punishment regardless of anything. Your brain can't lie to yourself, after all. Well, not without a brain trauma or something, but let's not think about that.

"And what if our words are accurate? Does the defender have to provide their memories as well?" I asked with interest.

"Depends on the case. If your evidence is enough, their memories aren't accessed. If what you have is vague or uncertain, they do. And if there are no witnesses, they have to provide their memories as well."

"Doesn't it break the principle of 'innocent until proven guilty'?" I asked probably one of the most important questions.

"The accuser will have to compensate for the lost time and money if the accusations are proven to be false," Luna replied, "It's been an established practice for centuries. It has put more real criminals behind bars and is one hundred percent efficient. With this practice, it is impossible to put innocents behind bars. And usually, multiple Mind Judges-" what a ridiculous name "-are summoned to provide their own expertise, and they may not communicate with each other until the trial is over. This anonymity makes sure that there is next to zero corruption at play. We've not had corrupt Mind Judges for almost a thousand years now, and all of them are extensively trained in what they do."

This answer satisfies me, and so I nodded. I think it's pretty complicated but who am I to argue if it works? Legal stuff is never easy.

"Alright, then, you may go," Luna told us, "I will notify you about the results of the court, but I'm pretty sure it will be ruled out in the favor of young Blueblood and you."

All of us nodded in response and got up. Once we left the room, we headed out of the building. When we got into the main hall, we saw what we really didn't want to see — the Blueblood family. The father glared at me as if I am the devil himself but didn't say anything, passing by with his wife, another son (Blueblood Senior), and another pony who I assume is the lawyer. As much as I'd like to see the trial and those guys getting demolished by Luna, I'd rather not spend another moment under that murderous glare. I see that Moonshine isn't fond of it either, judging by her folded ears and her gaze aimed at the floor. So yeah, it's better that we go outside and wait for the trial to end.

I have a good feeling about it!