Chapter 02: Royal Visitation…
The bell of Canterlot High School rang out through the building, signalling that the end of the day has come and students can go home or go to work.
The hallways got crowded with students, some staying behind to talk to friends, or for after school classes.
Jon sat behind his wooden oak desk, hunching over the small pile of papers that he collected from students, it’s the same thing he does every day.
And the students are getting smarter with every lesson he does, since he sometimes simplifies the terms and makes the instructions on the work easy for them to start figuring it out on their own without causing stress and frustration.
It’s how he was all those years ago when he was in high school…
Jon was snapped out of his own little world by a small screech from the top left Actuator, Stepha, who was watching the classroom window, which had a view of the colt statue outside of the school.
According to his older stepsister Celestia, that statue was a portal to the other world that Nightmare talked about on the night he found her hiding in his home.
She woke up in front of it in the rage she wore, until Jon went shopping for clothes that fit her.
He didn’t get embarrassed about women’s clothing, including undergarments...
He never dared to go near the magic because he didn’t want to risk his daughters, no matter how many times they nag at him…
He was slightly curious himself after all on what he would’ve looked like on the other side…
Jon made his way over to Stepha with the help of the bottom Actuators, Raven and Monica, since his body was sore, and can hardly move without his muscles aching in protest.
...He was actually getting worried that whatever’s happening to him is very serious and could cause problems in the future…
He looked out the window and saw a glow come from the statue portal, indicating that something, or someONE is coming through.
Stepping out of the portal was a woman with rainbow colored hair, wearing a alabaster white dress that hugged her body with shiny yellow gloves covering her hands that went up to her elbows.
Jon raised an eyebrow at the woman he knew was Celestia, but she looks more older, according to zooming in with Stepha’s lens, her eyes were older than the rest of her young body, like a Time Lord from Doctor Who.
Celestia, his step-sister, walked out the front doors of the school to greet her counterpart with a smile, there were words exchanged, but Jon couldn’t hear through the glass.
Only when there is nothing between him and the source of the noise he could find it with ease…
The two Celestias went inside the school, and Jon pulled back from the window, his expression a thoughtful one as he was maneuvered back to his desk, and sat down on his office chair.
------------------------------------
He was finishing the final grading on a student’s essay, when the door to the classroom opened, knocking their knuckles on the wood to show that someone is there.
Jon lifted his head and saw Celestia, both of them, standing in the doorway.
Jon groaned lightly as he lifted back his head to get the cricks out from hunching, a small satisfying crack rang out through the room.
He sighed in content as he felt more awake, since the time was about 5:30 pm that showed on the classroom clock.
He smiled at his older step-sister,
“ Hello Tia, what brings you here? I am sure that family dinner isn’t for another hour, don’t worry, I’ll be there.”
Principal Celestia smiled warmly, while Princess Celestia quirked an eyebrow, a small amount of intrigue showing in her older looking eyes as she observed the interaction between her counterpart and this stranger.
Principal--Let’s call her Tia, shook her head with fond exasperation.
“ No Jon, I know. I was just coming to visit you with my other self here. She seems curious to meet you.” She said, gesturing to the head taller woman next to her, who smiled benevolently.
“ It is a pleasure to finally meet the stallion that protected my counterpart multiple times.”
Jon smiled and slowly got up, his muscles aching in immense protest as he did so, causing Tia and Celestia to look at him in concern, even more so on Tia.
Susie and Monica came out from their hiding place behind him and lifted their father over the desk, the two women backing up to give the man room.
Tia had a warm smile on her face mixed with confusion and slight worry about her stepbrother not walking around his desk.
Princess Celestia on the other hand, had a look of surprise as she traced the sinuous metal carrying the stranger with ease, her cerulean eyes widened a little bit, and tilted her head as she eyed a third and fourth one joining their two siblings and watching the newcomer with their red lens.
“ Where are my manners? I forgot to introduce you to my daughters.” Jon said, a small smile forming on his lips as the Actuators wrapped the area around the Solar Diarch, their thoughts and screeches were curious of the identical twin of their father’s sibling.
Susie’s pincers were only inches from the Princess’s face, red lens staring with quiet curiosity as Celestia raised a hand and gently pressed her fingers against the metal body, the digits emanating a barely noticeable heat that was higher than a normal human’s body temperature.
It was as if she had an unknown source of heat coming from inside her, and it was leaking out into the real world…
After the examination and slight petting session, the Actuators went from Celestia to Tia, affectionately wrapping around their aunt as she giggled and petted their pincer-heads and bodies, sating their attention.
Jon chuckled, shaking his head with a warm smile on his face, grabbing the attention of the Solar Diarch, who was watching his Actuators interact with their ‘Auntie’.
“ I’ve noticed that they have sentience and high intelligence, yet they are attached to you. Are they being forced to obey your will, Mr. Whalen?” She seemed to say the last sentence in a stern tone, as if accusing him of doing something wrong.
Jon raised an eyebrow and shook his head, leaning back against his desk as he spoke the answer to the question she was gonna ask,
“ No, I don’t control them, they have free will, and I would never force them to kill anyone, unless there’s danger to me or to them, otherwise I let them explore.”
Celestia tapped a finger to her chin as Rosie wrapped around her body gently, as if a snake snaring it’s prey.
She didn’t even seem to be phased that she was trapped by something that could crush her body with relative ease…
Tia spoke up around the quiet shrieks of his Actuators,
“ She’s actually here to investigate a phenomenon that happened, she didn’t want to send her fellow Princess and bring risk to Twilight’s life.”
Jon nodded his head, but not taking his eyes off the Princess.
“ So, an unusual amount of magic was detected?” He said, his tone a thoughtful one, yet his eyes twinkled like stars with a knowing look.
Celestia caught that, and sent a Stern look at the man that could rival Fluttershy’s Stare.
“ Do you know the source, Mr. Whalen? What is it?”
Jon chuckled as he then felt his legs start to shake slightly in exhaustion, but ignored it as he answered the Sun Princess’s question,
“ I do know it’s not a WHAT...But a WHO…”