The Numbers

by FellFour

#1.5 - Background + John's Funeral

#1.5 - Background + John's Funeral

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Some of you suggested that I take some time to explain my background, as well as John's. That seems fair enough because you guys don't know anything about me and, since John's name came up, It's also a good idea to tell you about him as well.

Now, before I begin, one of you complained that the last post was way too short. Well, to put it simply, it was meant to be that short. I'm not going to explain why. I had shit on my mind and I don't exactly...want to talk about it.

Anyway, this is basically going to be about my background and was well as John's background, since some of you have an interest in John and who he is. Now, I'm going to put each detail in different categories, you know like, what I like, what I hate, etc... So, without any further interruptions, let's get started.

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Me

Where I was born: I was born in Detroit, Michigan. Yeah, my parents were on vacation around the time I was born and they told me that I came out...a bit early. Not too early, but probably a few days early. They didn't think that it would be that soon. Well, I thought it wasn't that soon at all and I'm sure that you guys are thinking the same thing.
Anyway, what were they on vacation for, if that's what you are wondering. Well, they were actually a couple weeks into their honeymoon. They told me that, for their honeymoon, they wanted to travel across the country. However, after I was born, their plans pretty much went down the toilet because they had to take care of me, obviously. So, they went back to the state where they got married, which was Ohio, and they settled in Columbus. Of all places, why there? I have no idea. I never got any answer from them as to why Columbus. That's where I pretty much grew up. It wasn't too bad. I mean, that's where I met John and, if I didn't meet him, then I don't think I would be here in Equestria.
Oh and if you're wondering if I'm a brony, no I'm not and I'm just going to leave it at that.

When I was born: I was born on July 17th, 1992. It's not my birthday yet, though I really wish it was. Before I came here to Equestria, I didn't exactly get the best birthdays. I mean, don't get me wrong, they were good birthdays, it's just that my family is...poor. VERY poor, to be quite honest with you. So, that means that I would have to wait to get my birthday presents. I only got one present each year and, a lot of the times, it would either be clothes or stupid toys. I kept telling my parents that I don't want toys or clothes, but they didn't exactly listen to me. I mean, they understood that I didn't like toys, but they still got me clothes. Later on, I would begin to understand why they couldn't buy me anything expensive.

When I arrived to Equestria: Like I said before, I arrived two years ago, alongside with John. How we got here, is the secret that Celestia wanted us to keep to ourselves. However, you guys know that it's quite obvious on how I got here, so I'm not going to explain. So basically, John and I were a lot happier than we were on Earth and Celestia even noticed because John and I were pretty much miserable all the time when we were on Earth. The reason why is because, well, we were going through a lot together and the tough times in high school, like the bullies, not having that many friends of our own, and all that other shit.
I still thank Celestia everyday for bringing me here.

My parents:

1. Mom: My mom was a very nice lady. Her full name was Georiga L. Anderson. She didn't exactly...have the good life. She would always tell me stories about what she went through as a child and why. Her father was an alcoholic and he would always beat my grandma and,sometimes, my mom as well. It was mostly my grandma. She told that he died a few years later, after she graduated from high school. Her mother and her couldn't help but feel relieved that he was gone. I mean, she still misses him occasionally, but he still makes her pissed and afraid.
I almost forgot to mention a few more things about my mother. She always wanted to go college to be a doctor. I asked her why she wanted to be a doctor and she told me that doctors wanted to help people who are sick feel better and that's what my mom was good at; making people feel better. That's why I was a happy child through most of my childhood. She helped me out with a lot of shit and I still thank her for that.

Later on, she died right around the time I graduated from school. She was diagnosed with lung cancer. Yeah, she was a smoker. I kept telling her over and over again to quit, but she just wouldn't listen to me. My dad kept telling her to do the same, but she still didn't listen and getting lung cancer was her punishment, I guess. When she died, it felt like a part of me died inside. She was probably the closest thing I had, besides my dad. Oh yeah and she was smoking ever since she was a freshman in high school. She never told me how she got into it. My mom basically told me that she just wanted a good stress reliever and that was the only thing that could calm her down. She just...got into it, I guess. My mom didn't get peer pressured into it, as far as I know, and she didn't get into it by her parents. She told me that her parents weren't smokers at all and that they have never touched a cigarette in their life. So...yeah.

Let's move on with my dad.

2. Dad: My dad was a good man. He taught me everything I know now and I'm still grateful for his help over the years that I was growing up. He didn't have a good childhood at all, at least that's what he told me. He told me that he never knew his father and that his mother was pretty much fucking insane. His mother would always lock him in the basement and leave him there for at least six hours. She would also beat him with her belt and wouldn't stop until he passed out from the pain and I thought that was just flat-out terrible and abusive. I asked him why he didn't just call the cops and he told me that he didn't have any phones to contact the police by and that he lived way out in the country at the time, so he pretty much didn't get any help from anyone.
He also told me that he was bullied constantly when he was in elementary school. He would get beaten up everyday in the halls, bathrooms and outside of school. One time, he got beaten up while he was walking home and, basically, got knocked out. He told me that he woke up at night in the middle of the forest and had no idea where he was or how to get home. Not to mention, how to get help. So, he basically walked around, scared, trying to look for a way out of the forest. About an hour later, he finally came across a busy highway and that was where he was picked up by the police. I asked my dad if he ever told the police about what his mom was doing and he told that he did. He told the officer everything that went on in his house. My dad also told me that it was probably the worst night in his entire life. I asked him if anything else went on in the forest and he just...stopped talking about his life all together. I don't really know anything else about my dad, other than his childhood. For the rest of my teen years, my dad didn't really talk to me that much.

Now, after my mom passed, that's when my dad...changed. After a couple weeks after her funeral, he began...talking to himself and began to sleep walk almost every night. I would always hear him saying something about a very tall tree of some sort. This went on for another week or two. It got worse every day. However, that was only the beginning. Sometimes, I would wake up in the middle of the night with my dad watching me in the corner of my room. I would always ask what he was doing in my room and he would respond. He would just go back to his room and stay there for the rest of the night. It really started to scare me and I hated to see him like that. This was around the time he disappeared. I woke up in the middle of the night, again, and I see that my dad wasn't in the corner of my room this time. After some time I woke up, I just...got this feeling to check his room. That's what I did. I went to his room to check on him and...he wasn't there. There was a note on his bedside table. I still have it with me. It was bad written and it was a little difficult to read.

ChrIs,

If you are reAding this, then that means that I'm alreaDy gone. I don't have much time left, so here's I need to say this and I hope you still know this. I love you, son. Don't you ever forg et that. Remember all the things I taught you during high school and remember them well. I need to go. This is the only thing I can think of doing at this point. I'm doing this to protect you and John because, if I'm gone, then maybe he'll stop. I don't know what will happen to me, but all I know is that you and John will be safe. I love you, ChrIs.

That's where it ends. I don't know what happened to my dad, but I know it wasn't good. Was he going through the same shit that I'm going through right now? Who is 'him'?

Other Shit You Should Know: I've always been the kind of guy that can be a little shy when I'm around a certain amount of people. I don't really have that much of a problem with girls and I never have. Pretty much, all the girls that I have ever known really liked me because of how nice I can be and how much I respected them. That was probably the main reason why I was being bullied, it was because I actually knew how to talk to girls. I guess they were just...jealous, I guess.
I also have a big interest in electronics and computers. Since my dad was a genius with computers and what they were about, he taught me everything that he knew about computers and how to use them. He also taught me how to use certain editing programs.
However, after mom died, he started to loose interest in teaching me and I never got to learn how to use the translating program that I have on my computer from him. I learned how to use it on my own and it was actually pretty easy to use. I just had to take a lot of tutorials over it and it just started to make some sense to me... I'm still an idiot when it comes to decoding, though.

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Some of you were wondering who John was. Well, it would be unfair to not tell you who he was since I never told you guys that much recently. So, let's get to it.

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John

Who Is John? John was my best friend. We grew up together, we went through everything together, and we basically had a lot in common. We both had a big interest in electronics, mostly computers, and we loved going on adventures. My dad didn't let us go into the forest, but he did let us go through the nature trail, which leads to the park. So, basically, we did a lot together and I know a lot more about him than anybody else, including the princesses themselves.

When We Arrived: We arrived in Equestria two years ago. Like I said before, Celestia didn't want us to tell anypony on how we got here, but it's pretty obvious on how we got here anyway, so it's not that big of a secret anyway. When we got to Equestria, we didn't really know what to do, actually. We met the ponies here in Canterlot and we also wanted the Mane 6 that she was talking about at the time, but she didn't want us to go to Ponyville. I asked her why and she said that we should get used to being here, I guess. The way she said it made us wonder if there was something else going on. At the time, we just shrugged it off and just went with it.

How We Met/How He Knows Me: We met in the 6th grade while we were at recess. I was getting pushed around when John came up to the group of bullies and basically told them to fuck off and he sounded very serious when he said it. They at first gave John a hateful look, then they just walked away. After that, we basically hung out a lot and got to know each other a little bit. Then, as time went on, we started hanging out with each other outside of school and the rest is basically history.

What Happened to John? I really don't want to exactly...talk about this, but I guess if you guys really want to know what happened to him, I'll tell you.
So, about a couple months after we got to Equestria, John's behavior started to change. He had this journal that he would write in because his doctor wants him to write down his thoughts. Oh yeah, something I failed to mention, John had to spend a year in the mental hospital. He never told me why.
Anyway, he would write stuff down in his journal. However, it didn't look like he was writing at all. It looked like he was drawing. What he was drawing, I don't know. As time went on, he began to act more and more strange. At some points, I would catch him sleep walking, and/or standing in front of his window in the middle of the night. I would call out his name, but it wouldn't work. So, I would have to shake him awake and then I would have to listen to him freaking out for about a few minutes. Afterwards, he would pass out on his bed. Then, the next morning, I would get up, get dressed, and go check on him. He wouldn't even be there. Instead, he's in the closet. I would wake him up and ask him why he was in the closet. He would always say that he doesn't know and that he doesn't remember anything. If you think that him sleep walking and the fact that he couldn't remember any of that was bad, well, guess what? It was only the beginning and the ending is not pretty.
As time went on, he began to avoid me. I don't why he was doing this. He normally doesn't do that, at all. Trust me, whenever he had something on his mind, he would come to me and tell me everything. This is where it started to get a whole lot worse.
It was late at night and I was about ready to go to bed when a thought struck in my mind. It was John. Something was telling me to go to his room. That's what I did. I went to his room and...he was gone. I figured that he was sleep walking again, so I look around the hallway for him and I couldn't find him. This is where I start to get worried. I call out his name multiple times and I never got a response from John anywhere in the halls or in the castle. I tell some of the royal guards about the situation and we look for John everywhere in the garden and in the streets of Canterlot. We never found him. John was officially missing. Celestia took notice of the situation and she wanted the royal guards to go on a man hunt for John. They looked for two months and still couldn't find him. It doesn't end there.
Just when Celestia was about to call off the search, and basically give up, one of the royal guards announce that they have found John...dead. When I heard the news, I felt like the other half of me died inside. I was seriously at the point of crying. John was like a brother to me. He was my best friend and he's dead. I thought to myself, how much more can I lose in this short of amount of time. I lost my mother, then my father, and now John.

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The Funeral

Celestia ordered a funeral for John and when the day came, as it turns out, everypony in Canterlot was in tears. It was the worst day I've ever had being here in Equestria. Luna was crying as well. She was heartbroken and she had to step out of the funeral. Celestia had to step out of the funeral as well so that she could calm Luna down.
Celestia was supposed to give a speech on behalf of John's death. However, since she knew that I knew more about John then she did, Celestia wanted me to give the speech. At first, I was a little hesitant. Then the moment came and I had to think of what to say. I then thought of what my mother said to me a long time ago, when I was young.

"Remember Chris. Don't be nervous. Don't think of what to say. Just...spit it out and get it out of the open."

As I stand beside John's coffin, looking at the ponies of Canterlot, I couldn't help but feel nervous. I look up and I see Celestia and Luna, looking down from the castle balcony. They both smile at me and that gave enough encouragement to say what I need to say.

Here's the speech I gave to Canterlot.

The Speech

"Hello everypony." I began. "We are all gathered here on this tragic day for the lose of a life. Not just any life, but the life of somebody greatly important to me and all of you. I'm talking about my best friend John L. Marshal. John was...a person that was greatly important to me. We were...always there for each other. He stood up for me and I stood up for him as well. We went through a lot together and we spent every waking moment together before we came here. He was...like a brother to me. He was the brother that I never had."

I began to tear up at this point. What I was about to say is something that I have failed to mention to you guys.

"What this man had to go through was, not only traumatizing, but heartbreaking. John was...abused. By both of his parents. Whenever I had to go home, he would cry because he knew that he had to return to where he lived. That was when he told me. I was devastated and I couldn't help but feel sorry for what he was going through at the time. Do you know what I did that he thanked me for, even to this day? I took him and my father didn't mind at all. My dad even knew where John was coming from and, since he liked John, him and my mom went to the authorities and they basically took custody over John and, let me tell you, he was so happy. However, that still didn't mean he recovered from the abuse. My dad noticed this and it was obvious what he had to do. John had to be put in a mental institution. At the time, I thought that the abuse that he went through was the only reason he had to be admitted, but there was a second reason and, even to this day, I still don't know the second reason.
So, basically, John has went through a lot in his life. It still didn't mean that he couldn't be a nice person. John was a great guy and everyone pretty much loved him. He did a lot for my community after he got out of the institution and I couldn't help but smile that he was...happy again. Every time we hung out, we forgot what was going on with our lives and we were just...happy."

I take a moment to calm down because I was in the verge of crying. After I was calm enough, I continued with my speech.

"John may have been through a lot during his childhood, but there were still good memories between him and I. Memories that I will cherish for as long as I live. So, I want everypony, that is here today, to pay their respects to John. We shall never forget who he was nor should we forget what he possibly done to our live, how he influenced us all."

"...I thank all of you being here today. Thank you for listening to me..." I concluded.

As soon as I was done, I was on the verge of crying again. I began to hear cheering from everypony in Canterlot. It was pretty loud. I didn't care, though. It really did mean a lot to me. It actually made me feel a lot better to know that a lot of ponies will miss John.

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How Long has it Been? It's been over a year now since John's death. I still miss that guy. I moved on, though. I know that he's finally resting in peace. I still feel terrible for what happened. He was literally all the family I had left. Now, I'm the only human here in Equestria.

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I hope this answered some of your questions. I still have very few answers.

So, after I post this, I'm going to see Luna for help. I want to know what these nightmares mean. I know the answer might not be pretty, but I have no other choice.

When I'm done talking to her, I'll type up the conversation. Oh, before I forget, after I'm done talking with Luna, I might either head out to the Everfree Forest or just wait til tomorrow. I'm still not sure yet.

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Comments

[Galen Clove]

The walking garden-encyclopedia is pleased with this explanation of things...and the word count
keep up the good work

[FellFour]

2767665

Thanks.

[EuroGamer21]

Your dad was a coward to play with? Heh heh play with, I'm so immature.

[Insane psycho]

Was there a hidden massage in his dad's letter
I juzt picked out the random capital letters and got
"iadi"

[Insane psycho]

6411774 yes
Yes you are