As Canterlot grew larger Andy began to mentally prepare for his meeting. There were so many different ways this could turn out and really there was nothing he could do to control what happened, he would just have to hope that the princesses would know what to do and take pity on him. When the train pulled into Canterlot station, Jermaine was still sleeping soundly in his carrying case so Andy quietly slipped it onto his back and walked out into the city. This time is was easy to figure out where to go, the castle was the most prominent feature in the entire city and seem to glow in the sunlight. As he walked he heard subtle and not so subtle comments directed at him but he paid them no heed. Canterlot was after all notorious for being filled with arrogant ponies that only wanted to climb the social ladder, save for a rare few.
The walk towards Canterlot castle was a pleasant one. On both sides expensive looking cafes and up-scale boutiques filled with well dressed ponies. Unlike Ponyville the streets where all composed of flagstone and there wasn’t a speck of trash anywhere; really it reminded Andy of Disneyland with all of its spotlessness.
Canterlot Castle was far more magnificent then he expected. What he always assumed was white marble turned out to be crushed pearl and coral which gave the whole building and beautiful sheen to it. Gold and silver topped the roofs, onyx and diamond inlays around the doors and windows. It was truly a home fit for a princess. Walking through the castle grounds, Andy entered the castle’s sculpture garden. Each one had its own plaque describing who the pony was being depicted.
Magic Star the Victorious
Water Swirl the Brilliant
Starsong the Graceful
Heart Throb the Loving
Walking up to the castle entrance, Andy saw two pegasus guards standing guard at the gates, waving to them and blowing them a kiss he tried to walk pass them only to be stopped by their outstretched wings.
“Halt! Who goes there and what is your business?”
“Good question! I’m here to see the princesses if you don’t mind” said Andy looking at them.
“Princess Celestia has stopped seeing guests, come back tomorrow”
“That’s OK, I can wait”
Andy patiently stood on the castle drawbridge, not moving a muscle, not breathing hard, just staring right into the guard’s eyes and giving them a small smile. After ten minutes one of the guards stated.
“Move along the Princess will not see you right now”
“That’s OK I can wait, I’ve got nothing better to do with my time”
Another ten minutes passed.
“If you do not have an appointment, you must leave the grounds”
“Miss Twilight Sparkle did send a message ahead to the princess so she might be expecting me, I can’t know for sure”
“The Princess is not expecting you, leave the grounds”
“If you don’t mind I still feel like I can wait. As I understand it the sculpture guardian grounds are open to the public. The castle grounds do not officially start until I enter the castle so unless you have reason to believe me to be a threat to Canterlot; which since I have made no aggressive act is not likely, I am free to wait” said Andy in a calm voice.
The guard stared Andy down trying to force him to back away but were stopped by a heavenly sounding voice.
“What appears to be the problems sirs?”
Looking away from the guards, Andy eyes bulged out. There stood Princess Celestia and Andy had no problem at all at calling her very beautiful. Her coat was the most amazing colour of glistening white he had ever seen it looked to be softer then the softest of silks. Her mane and tail flowed back and forth as if dancing in a summer breeze and showed all the colours of the rainbow in perfect harmony. Her wings although folded on the sides still showed of every feather from the down around the edges to the flight feathers that made the bulk, each had a slight yellow tinge on the tips. But what really got you was her presence; you could just feel the loving transcendence coming off her and it wrapped around you like the warmest of hugs.
“Your majesty, this pony is trying to meet with you and even though I informed him you are busy he refuses to listen” stated one of the guards standing at attention.
Andy bowed as much as he could and smiled “It is an honor to meet with you your majesty, it is true that I came here to meet with you. As I informed your guards I am willing to wait until you have the time to talk with me” he said putting has much respect as he could into the words.
Celestia looked down at the bowing pony and saw several things that caught her attention. His hooves did not show any signs of wear or tear nor was he wearing any shoes, his horn had not been filed down and most oddly of he didn’t have a cutie mark on his flank. His bag seemed to be moving a little as if something was moving in it and his mannerisms where not native to Canterlot or even Equestria.
“You must be pony that Twilight wrote to me about. The pony that appeared in the forest” said Celestia with a smile.
“Yes your majesty, I came here seeking aid” said Andy looking up at Celestia.
“Well come to my chambers so we can talk. I must admit you have my curiosity peaked”
Smiling to the guards and thanking them, Andy followed Celestia into the castle. He didn’t get more then a few steps before he felt a tingling sensation around himself and saw they he was surrounded by a lime coloured glow. Looking around he saw a unicorn guard staring at him.
“I’m sorry sir, but we have had a series of infiltrators attempting to enter the castle recently. Please remain still while you are scanned” said the guard leaving no room for debate.
“Of course kind sir, scan away. I wouldn’t want to cause a ruckus” said Andy.
Andy saw a sheet of light pass over his body, revealing his skeleton and Jermaine sleeping in his case.
“Are you aware there is something in your bags?” said the guards no stern no-nonsense voice.
“Yes that is my nephew, he’s sleeping right now so please don’t make to much noise” said Andy staring at the bulge in his bags.
After the security check, Andy was lead through the castle to the throne room. Each time Andy saw another pony he smiled and waved at them, a fact not missed by Celestia. When they arrived at the throne room Celestia sat on her throne and turned to look down at Andy.
“How can I help you little one?” said Celestia, her voice filled with concern.
“If it is alright with you your majesty, I was hoping to talk to you and your sister” replied Andy his voice filled with respect.
“Why?”
“I was hoping to get two perspectives on my problem, yours and princess Luna’s.”
“She is still sleeping right now”
“If it is alright with you, I can wait until she awakens. Now that I am here there is no real need to rush”
“She should be awakening before sunset you will have to wait until then”
“Thank you very much your majesty” said Andy bowing once again.
“I will have one of my aids escort you to a waiting room until sunset, remain there until called upon.
Andy bowed one last time and left the throne room. Outside a red unicorn was waiting for him.
She said “Please follow me sir” and walked down a hallway.
Andy followed the pony through a series of corridors and stairways until he arrived at his room. The red unicorn left and Andy went into his room. The room was unremarkable with a bookcase, a bed, a table and a window. Andy took off his bags and pulled Jermaine out of so he would be ready for the meeting with the princesses. Leaving Jermaine to play with his ball he went over to the bookcase to find something to read. Ignoring the fiction books Andy decided on ‘Magic Theory for Foals’. Putting it on the bed he opened to the table of contents and found the section on using your horn for levitation. Looking up every so often to check on Jermaine, Andy read through the entire section and tried to lift one of the pages. All he got was a big headache. So Andy flipped to the start of the book and started to read. After every chapter he tried to use his horn and still only got a headache. After three hours he finished the book and was no closer to being able to use his horn. Sighing a little he put the book back on the shelf and looked for something else on magic use. He picked out a biology book and flipped to the section on unicorns. Carefully studying the sections on unicorns and trying to apply it to himself he finally managed to channel magic into his horn and get it to glow a little, but still was unable to use it for any real purpose. He next took out a big thick history book. Skipping the legend of the Mare in the Moon, Andy started to read about what happened after Princess Luna was banished. He took special care to see how Equestria handled the discovery of new species. By the time the sun was touching the ground, Andy had read about several first contacts, griffins and dragons both resulted in wars, a result of pride and aggressive personalities, while zebras, mules and buffalo where meet with open hooves of friendship thanks to a willingness to talk. There were no records of anything that might be humans or even primates. Dreading having to explain what himself, Andy heard the door open and saw a guard standing in the frame.
“The princesses will see you now” the guard said in a flat voice
Andy and Jermaine followed the guard back to the throne room, then past it and up a set of stairs. Andy soon arrived at of set of door guarded by two large ponies in full armour. After another scan to confirm his identity and check for hidden weapons, the doors open to Andy and Jermaine to reveal the princesses sitting together of a raised platform. Princess Celestia sat on of a throne of gold inlaid with rubies while Princess Luna sat on a throne of silver inlaid with sapphires. Andy was once again taken aback by the princess. If Celestia was beautiful, Princess Luna was transcendent. Her coat was the most striking shade of blue he had ever seen. Her mane seemed to float as if it was underwater and looked to open up into the heavens themselves. She had a presence of her own looking at her gave you a feeling wonderment as if you were looking into the face of creation. The doors closed behind Andy and the two guards stood there watching him.
“GREETINGS STRANGE STALLION PONY. WE HAVE COME TOGETHER TO TALK TO THOU!” shouted Luna and gesturing to herself and her sister
Hearing the royal Canterlot voice caused Jermaine to start crying and Andy to cower and cover his ears. Once Luna had finished talking Andy quickly wrapped his hooves around Jermaine and tried to calm him down
“Careful sister, you are scaring both of them” consoled Celestia gently patting her sister.
“Oh yes, sorry sister, we forgot” said Luna dropping her head.
With Jermaine calmed down, and snuggling against Andy, Andy looked up “It’s alright your majesty, no lasting harm done.” Then bowing as deeply as he could Andy said “Your majesties I humbly beg for your mercy. My nephew and I are new to your nation. We have nothing to our names, even the bags I came here with were borrowed from one of your subjects. I am not sure what the proper term for what I need is called but I believe it is humanitarian parole”
The princesses stared at the pony standing before them, they had seen a lot of desperate pleas for help in their time given with a lot of inflection, but this was the first case they ever had of a pony requesting humanitarian parole.
“Who are you?” said Luna looking down at Andy
“My name is Andy Burson, this is my nephew Jermaine Walterson” said Andy pointing to himself and Jermaine in turn.
“I’ve never heard either of those names before, and I’ve lived a very long time” said Celestia with a stern look
“I come from a far away place, a very far away place” said Andy standing up and looking at Celestia.
“And where exactly do you come from Mr.Burson?” said Luna
“I am afraid that is a secret I am only comfortable sharing with you and your sister your majesty. Your guards will have to leave” said Andy looking down.
The guards tensed and stepped closer “We must protect the princesses, we are not going anywhere”
“Really? Do you honesty think that either of you could make any difference what so ever if either princess were attacked? Or that I, a single unicorn who can’t even use magic and my baby nephew could do anything to harm them, you have scanned me you know I have nothing” said Andy turning to the guards.
“There is no need to worry, our guards can be trusted” said Celestia looking down at Andy
“Secrets are like herpes your majesty; once they escape they spread from pony to pony, often with crippling effects. Better to take precautions now rather then be forced to establish quarantines later” said Andy making sure he sounded absolutely serious.
Everyponies eyes bulged out at Andy’s statement and both the princesses wings popped up from the shock. The guards gasped and tensed up looking at Andy with anger. Jermaine giggled and walked behind the throne room.
“Mr.Burson is your secret really that important?”
“I believe so your majesty” said Andy with a nod.
With a gesture from Celestia both the guards turned and left the room. A glow appeared around the door and windows sealing the room off.
Once the guards had left, Andy turned to the princesses “I come from another universe that is populated by only one sentient species. This species are mostly hairless bipeds known as humans. There are no unicorns, pegasi, griffons, dragons or magic in my home universe. I have no idea how I got here or how to get back”
“This is no time for joking Mr.Burson” said Celestia her eyes narrowing.
“I assure you I am not joking in any way, until today I did not even know it was possible to enter this universe”
Luna looked Andy right in the eyes, they saw no deceit of any kind, as amazing as his claims were; they appeared to be true. It would explain the oddities that Celestia mentioned to her before the meeting and why he was so insistent on a private meeting.
“If you’re not from this world how could you know so much about us?” asked Luna.
“I was afraid you would ask that. On my world there are devices known as televisions. They allow you to see shows from the comfort of your own home. Think of them like plays you can rewatch without needed the call the actors back. Sometimes the creators do even use real life actors; they draw pictures and show them so fast that to the viewer the pictures appear to be moving. One of these picture shows portrays a world that is very similar to this world. I do not know how the creators were able to do it, but it is because of this show that I am aware of this world.” Said Andy trying to sound as believable as possible.
“Are you trying to claim that we are creations of these people” asked Celestia raising an eyebrow.
“Not at all your majesty, I have already notice subtle differences from this world and the fictional world I saw before I came here. I honesty have no idea how the show was so close”
“We are not real” said Luna her body drooping slightly.
“There was a wise man from my world who once said ‘I think therefore I am’. It means that the very fact there you are questioning your existence proves that you exist” replied Andy in an effort to console.
‘That seems very profound” said Luna looking up.
“Thank you your majesty” said Andy with a bow.
“Please Mr.Buron do not call us majesty, it is so rare we have an opportunity to speak with someone that does see us as royals” said Celestia stepping of her throne and walking towards Andy, Luna following her.
“Only if you will call me Andy, Celestia” said Andy
As they walked closer to Andy Celestia asked “Tell us more of this your world” kneeling down on the castle floor near Andy
“Well, to be honest it’s not a very pleasant place. Mankind rose to power by crushing all those that opposed it. Several species die out every year and world pollution is reaching critical levels. While there is great good such as destroying deadly diseases there is also great evil like mass murder. It is a harsh place to grow up but it is my home and has my family and I would like to go back” said Andy sadly.
The princesses were shocked at how easily Andy was able to speak of such things and felt his sadness so they changed the subject. “Tell us more of the show” said Luna
“The show is known as My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. It chronicles the lives of Twilight Sparkle and her friends in Ponyville starting from when they met each other during the second reign of Nightmare Moon. A show usually consists of Twilight or one of her friends having a problem and then finding a way to solve it. The show creators use to teach a moral such as “do not judge or it is OK to ask for help”
“Humans need to be taught this?” asked Luna kneeling beside her sister.
“Well officially the show was designed for young girls, but it is also popular with grown up humans as well. No one is quite sure why though” said Andy trying not to blush.
Jermaine appeared and began to walk over to the princesses. Andy watched in fear and Jermaine began to play with their manes, but neither seemed to mind.
“How are we depicted?” asked Celestia look down at Jermaine with a small smile.
“Weelll that depends on if you’re talking in the show or by the fans” said Andy looking up.
“What do you mean?” asked Luna looking to Andy.
“Well with the focus of the show being Twilight and her friends, the royal sisters are not often seen, and with such a diverse fan base, this can lead to a lot of speculation. In the show Celestia is shown to be very wise and kind while Luna is seen as a little sad at times but is just as beloved as her sister”
Both Princesses were happy that they were shown to be as loving as they really were.
“You mentioned speculation. What kind of speculation?” said Celestia turning back to Andy.
Andy blushed “That is a very big question, like I said there are a lot of fans so speculation is all over the place, but if we were to go with the most popular depictions…Are sure you want to know, not all of them are very pleasant” said Andy looking down.
“Don’t not worry, just tell us” said Celestia putting her hoof on Andy shoulder.
“OK Celestia, your out of canon depictions tend to fall into one of four categories, the first is a violent and angry alicorn who kills, maims, tortures and rules her empire by fear. This is a Celestia who is hated and feared by all, who killed her sister and sends ponies to there death for fun, we call her Tyrant Celestia. The second is considerably less cruel; this Celestia seeks to amuse herself by play mean practical jokes on everyone, be it putting hot sauce in cereal, sending two tickets to a pony when she has five friends or tricking nervous servers into spilling tea, Trollestia likes to laugh but really means no harm. The third Celestia shows wishes to spread love as much as possible, and by love I mean she molests everything that moves, and some things that don’t. Princess Molestia is feared by all for a quite a different reason. The last is seen far less frequently, This Princess Celestia is pink, loves her wings and is a total airhead. All she knows it how to talk about how pretty she is and wanting to have fun with you, we call her Pink Celestia” said Andy trying sound as business like as possible.
Celestia eyes grew bigger and bigger as each depiction was explained to her. She had never even considered any of these things let alone been accused of them, ok maybe a few pranks but nothing mean “What kind of creatures are you? Violent torture, cruel pranks, molesting everything? Why would you think such hateful things?”
“Like I said it’s a big fan group and you are an interesting character to pick apart. I think it’s because you are so perfect that they need to give you some kind of flaw so they can relative to you” said Andy with a shrug “In Luna’s case the violence and lust are somewhat less pronounced. She is usually seen as very lonely and trying as hard as she can to find herself after being thrust thousand years out of time. Picture a lot of starlight talks and trying to adjust to the modern world. Her loneliness lets fans relate to her so they feel less need to make up flaws for her”
“So the fans of this show just make up stories about us?” said Luna, since Celesta was still deeply shocked by the revelation
‘Not just you, Twilight, Pinkie, Big Mac, all the ponies in Ponyville get the treatment in one way or another. Sometimes they turn a pony very dark and twisted, other times they write an uplifting story to triumph and still other times they just want to write about a day in the life of a pony they like. No matter what your taste, a fan has created something to show it” said Andy with a small smile “and that doesn’t even getting into the shipping”
“You make stories about the moving packages?” asked Luna showing confusion
Andy laughed “No Luna, shipping in this case means writing about relationships, and just like the depiction of pony personalities there is vast field of different relationship choices. You see the show does not show many romantic relationships, so fans try to figure out who should end up with whom. Naturally this means everypony gets coupled with somebody eventually.”
“What do you mean by that” said Celestia who had finally come out of her shock
“I’ll try to explain, Luna here likes the night as does Twilight Sparkle, thus fans decide that the two should enter into a romantic relationship, other fans think that Luna would do better with Fluttershy so they write a story about that, still other fans think that Luna should end up with Pipsqueak so they write a story about that. In your case Celestia, Twilight really admires you so they make that relationship blossom into something romantic, other think you would do better with Discord so..”
“DISCORD?!” shouted Celestia in shock causing Jermaine to cry
‘Yah, one thing you’ll learn when looking at the fan base, it that there is no bottom. I have seriously read a story where you were shipped with the door you lock the elements behind” said Andy stroking Jermaine to calm him
Luna laughed “A door, how could that possible work?”
Andy smiled “She has to stick her long glowing horn, into the doors small key hole, how do you think it would work? And I wouldn’t laugh Luna; you have been shipped with an abacus.”
Both the princesses chucked “You human are a very odd bunch you know that?
“Yes I know, but really all this is because those fans adore you so much that they fill then need to express it, some just do it in very odd ways”
At the both Luna and Celestia gave out a hearty laugh. Jermaine in the mean time had climbed up and nuzzled himself into Celestia back.
“So how do you know of Discord?” asked Celestia her voice back to seriousness.
“The fight between Discord and the Elements of Harmony was shown as one of the episodes of the show, from his escape, to his tainting the elements, to his defeat. The most recent show showed the wedding between Shining Armour and Princess Cadence and the subsequent changing invasion”
“You know of that? It only happened last month?” asked Luna.
“Yes I do, the fans are currently awaiting for more shows so they can go back to admiring all of the ponies they love so much”
“And so they can write more stories about us” said Luna.
“Well they don’t need more episodes to write more stories, just to get more ideas to write about, and technically they tend to write about Twilight and her friends since they are the focus of the show.” Said Andy with a slight nod.
“So what is it that you want?” asked Celestia bringing the conversation back to its purpose.
“I was hoping you could send me and my nephew home, but if that is not possible what I really need is help settling into Equestria. I may have seen the show a lot, but I have no idea how to live here or how closely the show shows this world. Without your help I couldn’t even prove I legally exist, that would mean I couldn’t live in Equestria and would have to live like an animal in the Everfree, which I really don’t want to do. Also I now have a nephew to raise, and I’ve never had to take of a child for an extended period of time before.
“We could take him and put…”
“You can stop right there your majesty, there is no way I am giving up on him that easily. If I try to raise him and I completely fall apart maybe then he should be put in a home, but until I have tried by best and exhausted every other possible alternative, I am going to keep him with me, your majesty” speaking as resolutely as possible.
“We can’t send you back Andy, we have no idea how. What do you want us to do?” said Luna as both she and Celestia stood up, Celestia gently levitating Jermaine on to the floor.
“What I would like is citizenship in your nation, so that I can get a job and try to survive here with my nephew. I will most likely need to stay with somepony for the first little while, so that I can be taught, both on how to live in there land and how to care for a child. If you could do that for me, there are no words for how grateful I would be, so I ask you, no I beg you, please, PLEASE, help me” said Andy throwing himself at the princesses hooves and crying “I need to your help, if not for me then for Jermaine”
As he cried, he felt a gentle warmness on his cheek then on his other, he opened his eyes to see the princesses placing there hooves on his head and lifting him up.
“Stand” said Celestia her voice full of regalness
Andy stood and saw Princess Luna lower her horn and touch his forehead; he felt a tingling then a headache before Luna raised her head and whispered to her sister. A glow appeared around Jermaine’s sleeping head.
“ANDY BURSON, THOU HAVE REQUESTED AID AND BEEN FOUND IN NEED, SINCE THOU HAVE BEEN EXAMINED AND FOUND BOTH INNOCENT OF ANY WRONG DOING AND WILLING TO SUBMIT TO OUR LAWS, WE SHALL ALLOW THEE LIVE WITHIN THE BORDERS OF EQUESTRIA” said both Luna and Celestia in a commanding voice which somehow did not awaken Jermaine.
“Now spend to night here in the castle as our guest. Tomorrow we shall have the paperwork ready for you to sign, however your names will not be appropriate here, do you have any preferences?” said Luna in a more comforting voice.
Andy thought a long time then nodded “I think I will take the name Bright Baker while Jermaine can be Bright Light. That will give us a family name and it seems like it would work fine here”
Celestia nodded “Those will be fine”