A Measure of History

James Volker stared dumbly at the cup of hot, steaming tea before him, his mind inert, yet feeling much like it was being dragged along by a stock car. Silently, he licked his parched lips, feeling their cracked, dry surface. James dared not make a sound, and his eyes burned as he strained to keep them open in an attempt to hide his anxiety and tension.

Sip.

James’ eyes flicked upwards, glancing at the monarch before him. She drank from her own cup, regal in nature and character, her sips like a metronome. The scent of lilac and strawberries mingled with the pleasant aroma of the herbal tea, pleasing James’ nose. The royal pony’s gaze pierced into James, and he averted his eyes, pursing his lips.

Sip.

As he looked outside, James swore he could see the silhouettes of several equine figures gathered outside the window, their low whispers almost inaudible. They seemed worried, though their words were hushed and muted. James acknowledged that while he had done nothing to garner their care, the ponies that had tended to him simply seemed to be the sort to help those in need.

“So, Twilight tells me that your name is James Volker,” the voice of the princess interrupted James’ thoughts, and he slowly turned to face the royal equine, her violet eyes judicious in nature. “And that you are, indeed, a sentient creature. Is this true?”

He unwittingly straightened his back. “Yes, ma’am, that is my name.”

“And you call yourself a human? Am I correct?” The princess asked, her lips pursing.

James nodded his head, unsure of where she was headed with her questions. “I am a human, yes.”

Gingerly, Princess Celestia placed the cup of tea down on the table, the golden aura of magic around it dissipating as the china gave a high-pitched clink. Celestia’s eyes narrowed, and the princess leaned closer to James from across the table.

“I will get straight to the matter at hoof, Mister Volker,” she said, her tone threatening. “Why are you here? And how did a human like you arrive in Equestria?”

Uncertain of how exactly to respond, James gave a half-hearted shrug, his mouth curling into a confused frown. “I’m… not quite sure myself, your… majesty,” he said, the last word rolling awkwardly out of his mouth. “One second I was… falling, I guess, and the next, I was here, in a fountain.”

His answer was clearly not what the princess was looking for, and her eyes continued to narrow, betraying her displeasure. “Tell me the truth, human,” Celestia spat vehemently. “I know your kind—you always have some ulterior motive. Who sent you here, and for what?” The princess’s horn began to glow, an intimidating gold emanating from it. “If you’re lying to me, I guarantee you won’t like the results.”

James’ eyes widened as he leaned back, alarm setting in. Genuine confusion filled his expression. “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about, ma’am, I’m just a teacher! I wasn’t sent by anyone!” he exclaimed, holding his hands up in an effort to present innocence. Fear welled up inside him, and James readied himself to scramble away, in case Celestia rejected his answer.

The princess gauged him with her piercing eyes, her gaze judicious and adjudicative. For what seemed like an eternity the two faced off, the human terrified beyond his wits as he stared down the point of Celestia’s sharp horn. Finally, however, the glow around the princess’s horn dissipated with a low hiss, the winged unicorn sitting back as her visage lost some of its menacing nature.

“Alright,” Celestia began, a small huff escaping her lips. “I can tell you’re not lying.”

James exhaled a sigh of relief, moving a hand to his chest in an effort to soothe his frantically beating heart and his straining lungs. “That’s good. Thought you were going to blast me for a second there—“

“But the question still stands,” the diarch interrupted James, her magic once again encapsulating her teacup. “As to how you arrived here. Tell me everything.”

Realizing that he still wasn’t in the clear, James gulped, before embarking upon his story.

“Well, it all started at the school I teach at, around midday…”

As James finished his tale, he could not help but notice that the princess’s eyes had ceased their glares, her violet irises still hard yet betraying the caring nature beneath them. Her mouth had creased into a small frown and, overall, her expression was that of intense focus and thought.

“So, I swam up to the light, certain that I was going to drown in the river bay, but…” James said, his hands placed evenly on the table. “When I surfaced, I was in a fountain, surrounded by these… ponies.”

Celestia nodded, seemingly in understanding. “Hm,” she hummed. “This is… most peculiar. And I can tell that you’re telling the truth.”

“I am—at least, I think I am. Honestly, Princess, I’m not quite sure if I’m dead, or if I’m still hallucinating. This is all really surreal to me.”

“I assure you James,” Celestia raised her hooves in front of her, gesturing towards James. “That this is all very real. But, it still begs the question, how did you arrive in Equestria?”

James shrugged in response, completely at a loss. The two fell into silence, one deep in deliberation and contemplation, and the other trying his best to keep his abject terror under wraps.

What was he to do, then? James was, for all intents and purposes, stuck, stranded, a castaway in a world that he would have never believed existed—a world of technicolor equines and cartoonish figures. He had no idea what had sent him into this… realm of existence, and though he welcomed the escape from death, he did not, at all, welcome the utter sense of isolation and confusion that came with his dimension-jump.

Then, an idea came to him, and James cleared his throat, looking up at Princess Celestia. “Ma’am, if I may, I have a question, or two.”

“Yes?” Celestia prompted, an eyebrow raised. “Go on.”

“Well,” James began, “you’re the ruler of this land, yes? There’s no king, queen, or otherwise?”

Celestia nodded her head. “Indeed, I am, along with my sister, Princess Luna. Where are you going with this?”

James held up a hand. “Just a second, ma’am. I, uh, assume that you and your sister would be the most powerful users of… magic? In Equestria?”

“Yes, we are. Why, pray tell, are you asking me this, James?”

“Then, by all rights... could you, and your sister, send me back? Using your fancy magic? Back to where I came from?” James finally asked, a small measure of hope glimmering from within him.

“And where, exactly, did you come from?” Celestia questioned in turn.

At her question, confusion wrought James—how would she have known about humans, if she did not know where they came from? Despite that, James pressed on. “Well, if you’re talking about my… world, I guess I come from a planet we call Earth. In the Milky Way Galaxy.”

Celestia frowned in response, bemusement in her eyes. “Those words and names are foreign to me. Besides,” she took another sip of her tea before continuing. “I couldn’t send you back. Not now, at least.”

James’ hopes fell, and gloom began to set within him. “Why’s that? Couldn’t you just, I don’t know, teleport me back to Earth, or something?” he asked.

The princess shook her head, setting her teacup down. “Because, James, without proper knowledge on the destination, there’s no telling where you’d end up if we were to send you back. A spell to return you to this, what, Earth, in one piece, would require months, if not years, of research. This also does not account for the shifts in the magical winds, the displacement of dimensions, or other such matters.”

 Despite James’ plummeting hopes, another question came to  him, and he raised an unsteady finger. “How do you know about humans, anyhow? If you don’t know what Earth is?”

Celestia shook her head in response, apparently unwilling to answer. “That’s a question that I’m loathe to answer, James. All you need to know is that Equestria has not had the most…pleasurable, of encounters with humanity.”

James’ mouth began to hang open, utter befuddlement welling up inside him. How? How would this cartoon-land have had contact with humans? Did humans exist outside of Earth? And what did Celestia mean by not pleasurable?

The princess began to rise from her seat, her movements graceful. James made to stand as well, but a gesture from Celestia stopped him. “Stay, James. But, I have one more question for you.”

“Yeah?”

Celestia cleared her throat, a small, mischievous smile beginning to creep its way up her mouth. “You said you were a teacher back on Earth?”

“Yes, I was. High-school history, in fact.”

Celestia nodded her head, humming a small tune. She walked slowly to the door of the cottage. Stopping before it, her horn lit with gold-colored magic, and with a low creak, the door swung open, revealing Twilight and her friends.

“Twilight Sparkle!” Celestia exclaimed, her smile returning in force as she gazed down upon her pupil. “Have you been eavesdropping?”

The unicorn’s eyes widened and she shook her head vigorously, a nervous smile upon her face. “N-no, princess! Not at all!”

Celestia giggled, stepping to the side. “Why don’t you and your friends come in? James and I have had our talk.”

After a brief moment of hesitation, Twilight nodded her head. She stepped into the cottage, her eyes meeting James’ as she grinned happily at him. When the rest of her friends had followed her in, Twilight looked back up at the princess, a questioning look on her face.

“So, princess? Have you found out how James got here?”

“I have a few ideas,” Celestia replied, briefly closing her eyes in thought. “But, my dear Twilight Sparkle, I think I have another task for you. Think of it as… a project. Hm?”

Twilight’s mouth fell open, panic beginning to set in as she chuckled nervously. “A-a project? What would that be? I’m afraid I’m not very prepared, princess!”

Celestia shook her head, her gentle smile widening. “I don’t expect you would have been, Twilight. But, it involves James here.”

James looked up, his attention piqued. Celestia continued, “I want you to take James in, and teach him all about Equestria, and introduce him to all of your friends in Ponyville. In return, I want you to learn as much as you can from James about his own species and world. He was a teacher, after all.” The princess giggled as Twilight’s eyes widened, a swirling combination of excitement and dismay evident in her figure. “Yes, Twilight, James Volker does indeed come from an entirely different world. But, can you do that for me?”

Twilight nodded energetically, a wide smile spreading across her mouth. “Yes, Princess Celestia! I can do that! When do we begin?”

Visibly gladdened by Twilight’s enthusiasm, Celestia chuckled. “Whenever possible—preferably tomorrow, since you’ll need time for James to settle in, first.”

James attempted to raise a hand, wanting to proclaim his lack of input on the matter, but Twilight interrupted him, her voice rising in pitch ever so steadily. “Okay! Yes ma’am, we can do that! I won’t disappoint you, princess!”

The princess nodded her head, turning around to leave through the door. “Now, I’m afraid I have to take my leave.” She cupped a hoof around her mouth, as if sharing some secret. “Duty calls, and I’m afraid Luna will be quite displeased if I’m not back by the time she raises the moon. Goodbye, everypony!”

Twilight and her friends bowed down, watching silently. Princess Celestia boarded her carriage, and with a powerful gust of wind, her two guards took off, carrying the princess away as they returned to Canterlot. After a moment of silence, James cleared his throat, gingerly raising a hand.

“I… I didn’t agree to this.”