The King Returns

"Dear Twilight Sparkle,

My Most Faithful Student, I would like you and your friends to come to Canterlot as soon as you receive this letter. I will send one of the Royal chariots to get you. We will soon have a new visitor here in Equestria! Now, please keep in mind that he is not a pony, but I have observed him throughout the course of his life, and he does have feelings. Very.... strong feelings. He may be different, but please remember: sometimes it is great to be different.
I hope to see you and your friends here soon.

Princess Celestia"

I was very satisfied with the letter to Twilight. I did have to read it over, as to correct any mistakes. I know how she is about grammar. When I was satisfied with what I had written, I sent the letter, and turned back to my tea. I was quite surprised that Anthony's death had come as soon as it did. I hate that he had to come here under such horrible circumstances. I wish there was a way that I could have brought him here alive, but all I could do was wait for his time to come. It came sooner than I would have wanted, but all that matters is that he is here, and away from that forsaken place.

As I took a few sips of my tea, I began to wonder how Anthony would react to all of this. He could be calm and collected one moment, then he could become very angry if somepony messed with something he felt passionate about. Judging by the way he has acted throughout his life, I was confident he would become close friends with Twilight and her friends, it might have taken him a while with Rainbow Dash though. I also knew that he wouldn't blatantly get into fights, if he did, it would be for a good reason. Anthony certainly wouldn't hurt somepony just for fun.

Well, maybe if he was drunk.

My thoughts were interrupted by the throne room doors opening. My old friend, Lord Death entered, and right behind him was Anthony, looking around the room with a look of amazement on his face. He was 5 foot 7 inches tall, more or less, he was wearing a black pair of boots that resembled something that a stallion would wear in Appleloosa or Dodge Junction, a pair of "blue jeans" as he often called them, a dull green military jacket, most likely from the "Vietnam" era of his world - before I told Lord Death to watch for Anthony's death, I studied his species past and the way they lived - with a plain white shirt underneath. He had a mustache and a goatee that curled under his chin, but he kept the rest of it shaved to a neat stubble. His hair was dark brown, as were his eyes. Even though right now he is just a soul, any Alicorn would be able to see him. He also wore a hat that was similar to Applejack's hat, with the exception that it was a stained yellow color with a burned brown trim, and it was a slightly different shape.

He was still looking at the banners hanging in the throne room when he accidentally backed into me. He turned around and looked up at me with widened eyes. He was only a few inches shorter than me.

"Ah'm sorry, Ah didn't mean to bump into ya." he said with a sheepish smile. Before I could say anything, he walked to my right and started looking at me curiously. He walked all the way around me, then spoke again when he was in front of me again. "You mus' be Princess Celestia, judgin' by that tattoo on yer rear end."

"That is correct, Mr. Davis. Or would you prefer, Mudd, I think it was?" With that, Anthony took his hat off, knelt down to one knee, and bowed his head. His shoulder-length hair naturally grew towards the back of his head, much like the "Rick Grimes" character he watches.

"Yew can call me anythin' you want to, yer highness."

"You may stand, Mudd." He then stood back up and put his hat back on. "And I believe that the 'tattoo' you were referring to is my Cutie Mark. It represents my special talent, I raise and lower the Sun. My sister, Princess Luna, her Cutie Mark is that of a crescent Moon." I explained to him. He nodded in understanding. I could tell he could be a stallion of few words when he wanted to be. "Her special talent is that she raises and lowers the moon. Together, we rule Equestria."

"Fair and sovereign rulers, Ah hope." he chuckled softly, and even I giggled a little before I realized it.

"Very much so."

"So, yew raise and lower the sun?" Anthony asked as he looked out through the window, looking at the sun and squinting his eyes.

"That is correct." I said. He smiled softly and looked back to me.

"Yew know, back from where Ah'm from, we had a sayin'."

"Is that so?" I asked. "What might this saying be?"

He looked back out the window a moment. "They say that the reason you'll go blind from lookin' at the sun to long is 'cause it's so beautiful." He turned back to me with a grin and said, "That's also why Ah ain't looked at ya fer too long."

"My, rather confident, are we?" I asked, I was quite stunned by his compliment. He still swears to this day that my cheeks were as red as an apple. Even though I knew he was joking, it still caught me off-guard.

"Ah'm just the type of man that speaks whats on his mind, is all. Well then, back to business. Ah understand that yew invited me to yer world ta give me a second chance. Words cain't describe how grateful Ah am."

"It is quite alright, Mudd. I brought you here because I saw the Six Elements of Harmony within you and your everyday actions. This is why I wanted you to come here. That, and because I saw your home world. It was a terrible place, if I may say so."

He smiled a little and said, "Yeah, my world has some good in it, but it was still sinful and corrupt. It ain't a place Ah would want ta start a family." His smile faded the moment he said that. "Not that Ah can now."

"I believe I might be of help with that 'Tia." My dear sister said through our mental connection. She walked past me and spoke to Anthony. "Hello, human. I am the Princess of the Night, Luna. What is your name?" She spoke in a softer tone than I expected her to.

"Mah name's Anthony Davis, but most jus' call me Mudd. Oh, Ah mean, uh..." he said frantically as he took his hat off and kneeled.

My sister giggled at him, a giggle that I had not heard in a long time. One that she shared with only one pony, from a very long time ago.

"Please Mudd, stand. When Twilight Sparkle gets here, please tell her that I will be in contact with her tonight."

"Yes Ma'am."

"My, such manners. It amazes me that a heart as pure as your own could come from a place like your world." Luna said, trying her best to compliment him.

He smiled, "Well yer Highness, some of us were jus' raised right." then he let out a troubled sigh. "But Ah'm gonna tell ya right now, Ah'm far from being a good man. There's things Ah've done that would make even Cerberus whimper if he saw me."

"How do you know of Cerberus?" I asked the young human. he turned to me with a confused look on his face.

"Cerberus is a three headed dog that guards the gates of hell, so the souls of the damned ain't able to escape, or somethin' like that." he said. "Why?"

"Maybe in your world, but here, Cerberus guards the gates of Tartarus, where anypony of evil is imprisoned. But, let us get to a more joyful topic. Mudd, are you ready to breath again?" I asked him.

"Ah'm ready when ya'll two's ready, Ah guess. Wait a minute, Tartarus? Ah've heard that name before. Yeah, In Greek Mythology Class. Seems our worlds hold some similarities."

"Indeed. Now, hold still." I said as Luna and I enveloped him in our magic and proceeded to grant him life once more.

It took about an hour to do it, but we were able to bring him back to a physical state of living. It also took quite a bit of magic, leaving Luna and I a bit exhausted. Luna, Anthony, and I casually talked for a good fifteen minutes before the throne room doors opened again. This time though, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie walked in.

"Good morning Twilight. Was the trip here comfortable enough?" I asked happily.

"Of course Princess!" She stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of Anthony. "Is this the stallion we are here to meet?" she asked.

"Yes, that's right-" I was interrupted by something touching my left shoulder. When I looked, I saw Anthony's hand there. His hand was shaking, ever so slightly. "-Is there something wrong, Mudd?" I whispered to him.

"Ah didn't, uh, think that Ah was gonna be meetin' so many peop- uh, ponies at one time, is all." he whispered back. I could see now that he had a shy side when meeting new ponies. Though he was very good at hiding his shyness when he met Luna and myself. But now, it was making itself known. It also seems that when he might be in a state of nervousness, he uses physical contact as a way to let himself know that he doesn't have to face it alone.

"If you would like, you can meet them one at a time. And if it helps, you can keep your hand on my shoulder." I reassured him. He withdrew his hand slightly when I said that, like he didn't even know that it was there. But he quickly put it back when he looked at the others. He simply nodded to me, then I gestured for the girls to follow us to a small meeting room.