Postscripts, Credits & Acknowlegements
Parade Coverage
Postscript #1
Not too long ago, there was a nation of humans ruled by a cruel despot. His subjects obeyed him, but out of fear instead of love. Humans by the thousands were sent into the earth to mine the minerals that made him rich, but he refused to share his riches with his people, and the humans who made him his fortune were locked away in hospitals to waste away, in hopes that everyone would eventually forget about them.
One day a human named Andrei, whose health and sanity had been destroyed in the mines, broke free of his confinement. To the humans he met, he preached a message, not of hatred for his captor, but of forgiveness and laughter, a philosophy he said he learned from an imaginary pink friend.
He was quite mad, you see.
The despot caught Andrei and executed him on live television, as an lesson to the others.
The populace responded to this “lesson” by rising up and overthrowing him.
In respect for Andrei, they did not execute their former leader, but instead tried and convicted him of his crimes and then “retired” him to the same generous retirement home where he had sent his miners. He ended up not lasting any longer than they did.
To posterity, these events became known as the “Pink Revolution”.
Postscript #2
With four days to spare before the cross-worlds portal would be reopened, Twilight Sparkle and Spike returned to Ponyville. Upon reaching the library tree, the exhausted dragon excused himself to go straight to bed.
Twilight used her magic to take a large steamer trunk downstairs where she could examine its contents without waking her assistant. After moving aside innumerable mementos of a largely friendless childhood, and delicately moving her Smartypants doll where she could watch the proceedings, she proceeded to dig out an ancient-looking blue scroll and carefully unroll it.
“‘Beyond forest, meadow and stream, beyond ocean, mountain and desert, lies the Swamp of Fomalhaut.’ So said the human Voltige as he sat at the hooves of the Princess.” Twilight read aloud.
This time, she vowed, she would not fail to uncover the lesson that Princess Celestia had once promised was tied to this story.
Credits & Acknowledgements
My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is the property of Hasbro, with the fourth generation interpretation of this property courtesy of Lauren Faust and the team she created at DHX. The characters of Princesses Celestia and Luna (and Nightmare Moon), Discord, Twilight Sparkle (and Spike and Smartypants), Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Fluttershy are all respectfully taken from that source, as are the locations of Canterlot, Hoofington and Ponyville (and Equestria itself, for that matter). All other characters (including the announcers) are my own creation, and are not meant to be representative of any actual Rose Parade announcers.
The Tournament of Roses Parade (usually referred to as simply the “Rose Parade”) is produced each year by the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association. The parade being depicted here was the one from 2010. I wish to express especial thanks to YouTube user Music213, who posted the performances of not only every band in the parade, but also every BandFest entry for that year as well.
America’s Got Talent is a television program on the American NBC network, produced by Simon Cowell alongside Britain’s Got Talent, Arabs Got Talent, Canada’s Got Talent, India’s Got Talent, Românii au talent, and dozens of other shows, all created as part of their sinister plot to take over the world with the atrocious grammar of the phrase “Got Talent”.
Natural Balance Pet Foods is, unsurprisingly, a pet food manufacturer headquartered in Pacoima, California—one of those city names that just begs to be pronounced with a Jerry Lewis voice. It was founded by actor Dick Van Patten. I swear that I did not make up Tillman the Snowboarding Bulldog—he actually was the star attraction of the Natural Balance float in 2010.
The Ohio University Marching 110 of Athens, Ohio, is under the direction of Dr. Richard Suk. The song “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” which I used was part of their program in the 2010 Bandfest, but in my opinion the particular performance I linked to from earlier in 2009 was superior. “Separate Ways” is a 1983 song by Journey.
The Western Haflinger Association is an appreciation society for the Haflinger breed of horse.
The Humboldt University of Berlin is a German state university, the successor of the Charíte mental institution where I put the portal between Earth and Equestria in “The Best of All Possible Worlds”.
“That’s What Friends Are For” is a 1982 song written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager. The version I remember was sung by a group led by Dionne Warwick.
Star Trek is the jealously-held property of Paramount Pictures, and don’t you forget it.
“Knights of the Round Table” is a song from Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975, directed by Terry Gilliam & Terry Jones).
The statue that Rarity comments on is a replica of “The Thinker”, by Auguste Rodan (1902). The museum itself is the Norton Simon, an art museum frequently appearing as a backdrop in Rose Parade telecasts.
The Living Museum of the Horse was originally founded as the greatest stable in France by order of Louis Henri, Duke of Bourbon and Prince of Condé, in 1719. He believed that when he died that he would be reincarnated as a horse, and wanted a location worthy of his new form. Coincidentally, the “Condé” name in America became “Conday”.
“Brush My Horsey” is meant to be this world’s equivalent of the original My Little Pony franchise (created by Bonnie Zacherle in 1981), but without a TV show tie-in.
Die Hard is a 1988 film directed by John McTiernan. It rocked.
Flickr is the property of Yahoo, Inc. YouTube is a subsidiary of Google LLC.
The actual 1976 bronze medal in team dressage was won by the American team, which included Edith Master and her horse Dahlwitz. The character of Edith Conday is in no way, shape or form meant to represent Edith Master.
The pooka is a creature of Irish folklore, and I’m surprised I haven’t seen more of them in FIMfiction. They are usually depicted as being more benevolent than the one I had Edie imagine.
The unnamed second band in Chapter 5 was the Millard West High School Wildcat Marching Band, from Omaha, Nebraska. Here is a link to their BandFest performance, which consisted of the pieces “Autumn”, “Stuck Part 1 and 2” and “Tribute to America”.
Rainbow Dash saying she’d go crazy if she was ever stuck in a bed was an obvious reference to the episode “Read It and Weep” written by Cindy Morrow, which since this story takes place right before the end of “The Return of Harmony Part 2” hasn’t strictly speaking happened yet. “The Return of Harmony” was written by M. A. Larson.
The word “okay,” commonly written as “OK,” is of uncertain origin, first becoming prominent in the American presidential election of 1840.
“The character of mercy” is a paraphrasing of “The quality of mercy” speech from the play The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare (1596).
The Roman Empire (27 BC - AD 476 in the west, 285 - 1453 in the east). May it rest in peace.
“The Yellow Rose of Texas” is a folk song first published in 1858. In the 2010 Rose Parade, it was performed by the Conroe Tiger Marching Band, under the direction of Bobby W. Heathcock.
Amdo and Kham are two of the varieties of the Tibetan spoken language.
Pay no attention to the snarky graduate student.
The planes flying overhead in the parade were Navy F-18 fighter jets, manned by pilots of the Fighting Redcocks of Strike Fighter Squadron 22, operating out of the Naval Air Station at Lemoore, California.
Finally, the story Twilight reads at the very end is “The Frog Princess of Fomalhaut”, from “The Best of All Possible Worlds”. The human Voltige is an alias of the philosopher Voltaire.
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Now we get to the good stuff.
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2450219 Without the light, there are no shadows.
I think that about summed up this entire line of story pretty well.
2450225 Also, damn. How do you work so fast when you post chapters? It takes me forever to write a chapter. I'm working on the second chapter for my story, and have been working on it since April 1st. Are you an ascended being, or do you just have it all written out before hand?
2450435
But this is the last chapter...
Well, knowing when to quit is an important character trait, I suppose.
What? Complete already!?
That was seriously fast. Like, cocaine-fast.
......... Are you James?
Headcanon accepted. Damn you, Cowell...
A fantastic story and a continuation of a fantastic story. I hope Twilight can recognize and accept the true tale beneath Fomalhaut, and I hope neither humanity nor equinity does something truly stupid.
Hmm. Past, present... all that remains is a future. A future of two worlds, two species, that meet one another... and what comes of it. Of course, you're under no obligation to write such a story, but if you do, I will eagerly read it. If not... well, I might consider where such a story might go, but I doubt I'd be able to match you.
So, now you can get back to 'Accelerando', right?
That was pretty quick, but seemingly open-ended. Should we expect more in a sequel?
...that's it?
Well, it was very good regardless. Is there another followup, or is this it?
2450535
I have it all written out beforehand.
Now before anybody accuses me of spreading out the posting of chapters for no other reason than to increase page views, I have found (both in regards to myself reading others' stories and other people reading mine) that readers get more engaged when they don't see the whole thing at once. You're forced to consider what you've read so far and try to predict what happens next.
On the negative side, if I write a good story with one bad chapter, I'll definitely get blowback on that chapter. On the positive side, now I know what I did wrong, as opposed to getting one generic "this story was good" or "this story was bad" comment posted on the last chapter.
2450765
That happens to be my first name, yes. I suppose I should mention that I am not, in fact, any good at languages, and I don't work for an eccentric linguist in Pasadena, but then, the translator of "The Best of All Possible Worlds" was never really me to begin with.
2451004
Are you kidding? That was less than a thousand words. The credit section for "The Best of All Possible Worlds" was six times that long!
2450926 2451374 2452697
This whole story was a quickie I threw out to fill a plot hole. The story I've been working for months on comes next. It will be set a year after the events of this story, or somewhere in Season 3. Of course, the intervening period will not be the same as canon with the existence of the portal in place.
2451068
These follow-ups (and "The Best of All Possible Worlds" before it) have been completely draining my time. Once I get that other story out, I'll finally finish up "Accelerando" and then start on to the sequel to that, which I think will be pretty interesting.
2453391 You could always make him the eventual translator of the Voltaire story.
2454261
He is the eventual translator of "The Best of All Possible Worlds". What I'm saying that although Translator McPoodle shares some traits in common with me, he's not really me. I mean, I'm the actual author of that story, and I'm not Twilight.
Metafiction gives me a headache.
2454275 Cool cameo then :D
That was a lot of fun, and I'm glad it prompted me to finally get around to reading "The Best of All Possible Worlds".
2494226
That makes sense, though I meant the comment more to what I felt was fear that the humans would react violently or in some way harm the six.
Darn you yet again for making me like stories with premises I should not possibly like. I think it has something to do with how "pony" even your human characters are; they all are just trying to make the world a better place doing what it is they do, drama and angst are not dwelt upon, but utilized and woven into the plot of the story itself.
Wait, a french speaking student that plays only a token cameo role in a story written by someone well versed in Voltaire? No, I think I SHALL pay much attention to this individual.
Pretty good. Very abrupt ending though. Not sure why you didn't take the time to develop it just a little more. I mean, it just seems a bit rushed. And even if it is rushed, you should have at least hidden it better. Wish I could've gotten to this sooner though. The Best of All Possible Worlds was an excellent story, and I've really wanted to read both this and the other sequel ever since you released them. But with my schedule being what it is...
Also it's a little depressing to remember that Voltaire is dead by now and thus we won't be seeing any more of him. I mean, I know that's a given, but he really was the heart and soul of TBoAPW, (terrible acronym, by the way). Not that I don't think you can write an excellent follow-up without him, but I just know that there are going to be a whole bunch of Voltaire references in the next story just like in this one, and every time they come along, I'll be just a little bit sadder for it.
2651024
"TBoAPW or not TBoAPW, thawt is duh questionne..."
I hadn't actually considered the ending to be that rushed until you pointed it out. That inspired an extremely vague idea for another chapter that could follow the last one. I'll sit on it for a few weeks, and if it successfully germinates in my head into something workable, I'll write it.
No promises, though. The long stalled state of "Accelerando" (and yes, I have noted the irony of the name of the story that's not going anywhere) is proof enough that my creative powers are not entirely at my command.
2655206
Jesus, do I ever know that feeling...
Wait, that's it? What language was Pinkie learning this entire time? Do any of your other stories discuss Pinkie's home life? If the human Pinkie was watching died in the hospital, how did Andrei have a "little pink friend"? They couldn't have been the same person; if someone was too weak to stand, I doubt they'd be strong enough to break out of a hospital, let alone preach a message to a big enough audience that it would work its way to the ears of their leader. What happened to Edie Conday after Luna left? What happened to Amy Peters' career?
The story just sort of stopped, with no insight into when Twilight woke up during Pinkie's story, what her reaction to what she heard was, or if the girls tried to have Pinkie talk to any humans for them. Like so many stories before it, Royalty swoops in, deus ex machina (deus ex plaustrum majus?) saving us from all but the barest minimum of further character development or interaction. There's so much potential here, but I feel like you rushed this out the door to move onto the next idea that came to you, which is a greater tragedy than the rather forced peek into Edie's childhood (another story element that recieved no resolution).
3371871
I'm gratified to see that I got such a strong response out of you from reading the story, although I'm sorry that it was so frustrating for you.
This is story is about a moment in time that changed Pony and Human history; I had no intention of following up on the majority of what happened. In this way it's rather like the televised parade when it is set: we viewers see hundreds if not thousands of high school marching band students living out their dreams on our screens, but are never told about what happened to the similarly hopeful students from last year--did they graduate? Are they attending college? Are they still playing in a band, or have they moved on to the sciences, arts or sports?
I can answer a few questions, however, that someone with way too much time on their hands might have been able to put together from the clues I left over several of my stories:
* At the end of Chapter 2 of "Parade Coverage", Celestia stated that the portal used by the first human visitor to Equestria was located "[n]ine hundred and eighty strides northwest of Hoofington’s city hall," in an area where crops can't grow. That portal is now closed, but as we saw with the portal of the second visitor (Voltaire) in the audience room of the palace, there's still a connection between worlds even with closed portals.
* My earlier fanfic "The Masterpiece" (Chapter 9) established that the Pie family farm was located about a thousand strides northwest of Hoofington. Now that story is set in a different continuity than "Parade Coverage", but I hope that it would be reasonable to assume that Pinkie Pie might have grown up in the same location regardless of what else might be different between the two stories. Which would put Pinkie Pie's bed on top of the portal to the first human.
* "The Best of All Possible Worlds" revealed the identity of that first human visitor to be the Roman poet Ovid. From the "Credits and Acknowledgements" section of that work, I stated that Ovid had been exiled to Tomis in modern-day Romania in AD 17 for unstated crimes against Emperor Augustus.
* The Earth end of that portal never moved, so it's still located in Tomis.
* Therefore, the language Pinkie learned was Romanian.
* Now as for the contradictions in Pinkie's story, you do know that she's the most unreliable narrator imaginable, and that she has a tendency to mix up her own feelings with those of others, right? So when she said that Andrei was turning grey, it was true that his health was fading as his hope in humanity was slipping, but also Pinkie herself was growing more and more despondent as it seemed that she could do nothing to help this man, and her own situation on the farm became more and more desperate. He wasn't too weak to stand, he simply had given up on life, and saw no reason to ever leave his bed. Then one day she came back to find the room had a new occupant, so of course she assumed that Andrei had died in the bed, when if fact she had managed to reach him that last time, when she had used all she had learned from the TV to put on the best comedy routine that a pre-Rainboomed Pinkamena could possibly do. I cut off the story before it got to this point, because I figured I couldn't cover that without covering her reaction to discovering Andrei's death, which was not a direction I wanted to go with this story.
In the end, your diagnosis is essentially correct: I only wrote this story to plug a plot hole in "Secret Histories", and I had no idea what to do with most of these characters after the point where I left them. Still don't, in fact.
That was an interesting statement about the "deus ex machina" though, because that moment marked the beginning of the character development for this setting's version of Princess Luna, something I definitely intend to pursue in my next story.
Agh! It's so short! This left me wanting more.
Wait wait wait.
What?!
Oh. Oh thank Celestia for that. I've been seriously enjoying your stories (of the two I've read so far.)
Hey McPoodle, I just thought of something...do you have a story about the Mane6 in this universe taking a vacation on Earth?
9842089
...Yay?