"Some people don't like telling the truth... And some people can't handle hearing it."
-Unknown
~One Month Ago...~
Applejack had earned herself a vacation.
It had seemed so easy when she and the rest of the girls had come up with their grand plan to save Equestria. They had ascended, becoming alicorns. They had bonded with their mutual abstracts, much as Twilight had only without falling into darkness. They had given the Princesses the gift of rest and begun to restructure the land so that the ponies could better enjoy their peace and harmony.
It had been a wonderful dream... one dreamed by those that had never attempted something so grand.
Somethings had gone perfectly to plan. Others hadn't, which had led to headaches and long hours and general worry. Applejack had found that being a queen, for her at least, wasn't about endless parties and social gatherings. The others might have been happy with having their little bands of followers that hung to their every word, but for the former farmer that simply wasn't enough. Her element had promised that it would help her bring about a new day in Equestria and she would not be satisfied until she did just that.
Still, as her grampy use to say, 'Ya have to take the time to sip some cider... otherwise why work so hard makin' it?'. So Applejack had spread her wings, bid the girls a fond farewell and made her way back home.
Letting her hooves settle on the oh-so-familar dirt path that led up to the house, Applejack took a breath of fresh air and felt the weight that had settled on her shoulders fade away, if only for a few days. She longed for the time when her work would be done and ponies would be able to manage keeping harmony alive by themselves, without the need for a queen. Then she would fade into the woodwork, returning to the farm and the chores she loved. She had taken the mantle of queen because it needed to be held... but it was her greatest hope that, someday, Equestria wouldn't need her and she could go back and enjoy the fruits of her laboring... while laboring to get fruit.
Applejack chuckled at her own joke, eyes set on the old farmhouse. The seasons would pass, princesses would come and go, but there would always be the Apple Family House.
"Howdy, big brother!" Applejack called out, her long legs eating up the last few yards that separated her from the house. She looked down at him, finding it so utterly weird to be not have to crane her neck up to look at him. Big Macintosh was the same as he ever was, chewing on a a piece of long grass, his yoke hanging on his thick, powerful neck, his eyes half lidded as he stared out over the farm. Some points might have thought him slow or stupid but Applejack knew her brother was brighter then a lot of the ponies in the fancy universities that so loved to look down their snouts at the farmers that provided them food. Her brother was smarter then them all and knew that a wise pony kept his mouth shut and listened, rather than spout off nonsense to prove himself great and special. He was smart enough to know when to show off his intelligence... and when to hide it.
"Hello AJ," Big Macintosh drawled out. Applejack threw her forelegs around him and gave him a hug and, after a beat, Mac returned the gesture.
"It is so good to be home!" Applejack ducked through the door, recommitting her childhood home to memory. "Ya miss me, Big Brother?"
"Eeeyup."
"I missed ya too... I can't wait to tell ya all about everything. It is just... I hate that old sayin', 'ain't no words to describe it', cuss for the most part ponies then attempt ta find words to describe it..." The blonde alicorn blinked before letting out a laugh. "Boy howdy, I am ramblin' on! Must have gotten use to makin' them grand speeches."
"Eeyup," Mac stated, trotting into the kitchen to check on the barley stew that was warming on the stove.
"Anyway, I can't wait to tell ya'll about it. Applebloom!" Applejack hurried up the stairs, her jeweled horseshoes clicking on the stairs. "Applebloom? Granny? Where ya'll hidin'?" She checked their rooms, only to find that neither of the ponies she was looking for were there. "Big Macintosh, have ya seen Applebloom and Granny?"
"Eeyup."
"Where are they?"
"Around."
Applejack scowled. "Can ya be a bit more specific?" She trotted down the stairs, watching as her brother ladled out some soup for both of them.
"Nope."
"What do ya mean, 'nope'?" Applejack stomped towards the table, not liking it in the slightest that her brother wasn't telling her everything. Keeping secrets was almost as bad as lying. "Do you know where they are or don't ya?"
"Eeyup."
"So tell me!"
"Nope." Big Mac settled down at the table, lowering his snout down to slurp his soup.
"And why not?" Applejack asked. When her brother took just a bit too long to answer, the orange alicorn slammed her hoof against the table. "I mean it, Big Mac, you-"
There were few things in the world that truly scared Applejack. She had lived all her life on the edge of the Everfree, listening to the howl of timberwolves and other creatures she didn't even want to picture. She had faced down the mad goddess Nightmare Moon and confronted her worst aspects with Discord. She was a mare of the land and the soil and this pressure had made her strong, with shoulders that could handle most burdens.
But the sight of her big brother enraged was enough to send the orange alicorn tumbling to the ground in a tangle of limbs.
"You threaten me like that and ya wonder why I told Granny to get Applebloom out of here?" He snorted and AJ knew if he were a dragon she would have been able to see if an alicorn could survive dragonfire. "There is no way I was gonna let our little sister see what you've become, let alone let her near ya!"
"What... what are ya..."
Big Mac slammed his hooves on either side of her and Applejack forgot that she was immortal. It was as if all her powers had been drained into the mighty stallion before her, leaving her a whimpering foal to stand against this great power.
"I wanted ya here, without them, so I could say my piece. If ya then wanna torture me or brainwash me like ya've done to most of this country, then so be it. But I am NOT gonna stop till I said what I need to! Ya hear me?"
"Yes Mac," Applejack whispered.
Big Mac's anger died down but not by much. "Ya've got yourself all twisted around and stuck up your own flank, Applejack. Ya've been around your friends too long, hearin' what ya want to hear, and now you can't see the truth!"
Applejack glared at her brother. "Truth? I am the bearer of-"
Big Macintosh pressed his face against hers. "Did...I say... ya could speak?" Applejack weakly shook her head. "I thought so." He pulled away, his eyes narrowed into near slits. "Ya'll queens had some mighty big ideas... but you've failed to see just how bad they are." Before Applejack could protest the red stallion pressed on. "You have wanted ta make harmony, but all I see is a bunch of mares becomin' dictators. Ya brainwash ponies that don't agree with ya... ya got armed guards paroling all over, scarin' ponies ta death... and the less said about Applebloom's friends, the better." He grit his teeth in outrage. "Were ya thinkin' of doing that to her, AJ?"
"I... I don't know," Applejack admitted. She had thought about it after Rarity and Rainbow Dash had used their magic on Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, and the girls had been pressing her to act... but she hadn't made her decision...
Big Macintosh shook his head in annoyance. "Don't ya see, AJ? Everything you are doin... it's a lie."
Applejack's magic crackled at the insult and it was a testament to Mac's will that he didn't cower at the sight of an angry alicorn. "How can ya say that, Big Brother? I am wiping out lies... every pony I work my magic on doesn't lie anymore... they embrace truth as the best policy! Just like Fluttershy is inspiring kindness and Dash is creating loyalty-"
"But it is still a lie," Mac stated, staring his sister down. "If it ain't done of their free will, then it is a lie. They don't want to be honest, your just makin' 'em. It's like when we tell Applebloom to clean her room... she ain't wantin' to do it, but she does it. But that don't mean she chose to do it on her own... she is doing it because she was forced. That's why we don't reward her after we tell her to stop whinin' and ta do it. We reward her when she puts in the hard work herself, without having to be asked. What do you call it when a pony does a hard job because they know it needs to be done?"
"An honest day's work."
"And would ya call it that if the pony cut corners?"
"Course not... that's like cheatin'!"
"You're cheatin' now! Ya'll are using that fancy magic of yours to skip steps and just bring about harmony now! If'n you were using those powers of yours ta show ponies WHY they should be honest, or was usin' it to reveal lies, I'd be behind ya. But what ya'll are doin' now is cheatin'."
Applejack blinked, convincing herself that it wasn't tears she felt gathering in her eyes. "Big Mac-"
"Ya'll are cheatin' those ponies out of bettering themselves. It is suppose to be hard to be a good pony... it is suppose ta be a struggle. That is the point of life... to struggle and fight and buck, because when you do make it ya find the victory all the much more sweeter. What ya'll are doin... it be like if you went to a rodeo and I just gave ya the blue ribbon before ya were out of the gate."
"I... I..."
"Look me in the eye and tell me you are ok with brainwashin' ponies. Tell me ya don't mind forcin' them to behave like you want them to. Tell me how what you and your friends are doin' is any different than that scum Discord and his mindgames!"
"It... it... it isn't." Applejack sniffed, dropping her head as fat tears rolled down her cheeks. Her body was consumed by light and Mac blinked in surprise as Applejack split into two. One pony was her, looking almost as she had before all the queen business. She was maybe a hair taller and she still had the horn and wings... but she was Applejack again. Her crown and jewelry and horseshoes fell to the ground with a clank, much to big for her now, and her mane and tail were lip as she cried. Big Macintosh sat down next to her and held her close as she cried, looking over her head at the second figure.
This pony could have easily been his twin, if not for the wings and the horn he sported. He too look stricken, staring off into space as if suffering from shock. His metallic coat gleamed in the dying sunlight that broke through the window, his shaggy mane hanging in his eyes. His great wings were made of the finest oak, though they looked anything but magnificence the way they were draped over his sides.
"AJ... who is your friend?"
Applejack looked at the newcomer carefully. "You're the voice that's been whisperin' in my ear, ain't ya? You're one of Faith's kin."
"Doubt," Honesty muttered, "and yes... I am an abstract. And after listening to your brother, it is clear I am also a fool."
"AJ, I thought you said that there Faith fella was no longer Doubt."
"I did,' Applejack said, narrowing her eyes. Her horn glowed and her old hat floated over to her settling on her head just behind her horn. It felt better than any of the jewels or garments she had been wearing the last few days. "And I want to know why I suddenly forgot everything that happened after the wedding... like how me and Twi came to an understanding. Or how I suddenly remember, what with you no longer bouncing around in my skull, that Doubt relearned his name and became Faith again... and was not a dark corrupter that was leading Equestria towards destruction. Tell me why the TRUTH was concealed from me."
A bit of his old spark returned to Honesty's eyes. "When it comes to my brother, we differ on our opinions. However, what matters-"
Applejack smacked Honesty across the back of his head with her hat.
"For somepony that believes so hard in honesty, you sure do like avoiding the truth." Honesty opened his mouth to speak but Applejack just smacked him again. "You and I are going to have a nice, long discussion about hiding from hard truths... and every time you open your mouth and try and say somethin' stupid, I'm gonna smack ya." big Macintosh nodded in agreement to Applejack's proclaim and went to go get another placesetting for supper.
Honesty, eldest of the Elements of Harmony... bowed his head under the scornful gaze of Applejack. It was not going to be a pleasant couple of days.