//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Pinkie Pie's Secret // Story: Secrets Shine Brighter // by MemoryLane //------------------------------//         Twilight, Rarity, and Fluttershy stared in disbelief at the words that spread across the sky, like a lighthouse beacon. Twilight’s entire body twitched involuntarily as even more questions wracked her brain. “I...I...uhm...I…” She could not speak correctly, all that came out was jarbled nonsense. For a moment, Fluttershy could have sworn she saw smoke around the unicorn’s head, but then again that could have just been the fog messing with her.         “Twilight…? I thought you said you dealt with your… issue?” Rarity asked. In her initial shock, she had managed to lose her magical grip on her hairbrush. After looking through the fog for a moment, she gingerly picked it back up and continued to run in through her mane, which was looking better by the minute. Fluttershy turned to Twilight, but did not say anything.         “That… that doesn’t make any sense! I told my secret, and the words disappeared completely…” Twilight once again began to pace around Rarity and Fluttershy. She twitched nervously with every other step that she took. Her eyes darted from side to side, causing Fluttershy to tilt her head. It took a while before Twilight finally registered Rarity’s question. “I did deal with my ‘issue’! The words disappeared, and here it is -- twenty minutes later -- and they’re still on my library… for all the town to see…” Fluttershy bit the inside of her lip, and rested a hoof on her friends shoulder.         “Perhaps there’s something else to it?” Rarity guessed, poking her bush into the air. A slight realization made Rarity gasp. “Do you think mine will come back as well? Even after I explained everything?” Fluttershy stayed silent, not having an answer for her. Twilight, however, was not paying as much attention to Rarity as she should have. Although she did stop pacing to turn to her.         “Something else? I’m trying to think, but it’s not making a lick of sense!” Twilight stamped her hooves on the ground, childishly. Her mind was in overdrive trying to organize all the possible theories in her head. She let out a tough sigh. “Okay, let’s go over this again. I explained my secret entirely to Fluttershy, and the words disappeared. I’m a hundred percent sure that they were gone when we left.” Fluttershy brought a hoof to her mouth, as she did a little bit of thinking of her own. “We walked over here, where we talked to Rarity about her secret. After some ‘chatting’, we find that Rarity’s has disappeared, and mine have reappeared…”         “I’m sorry if I am jumping to conclusions, but by any chance were you lying about your secret?” Twilight’s pacing stopped on a dime, and Fluttershy gasped. Rarity instantly regretted letting her thoughts through her loud mouth. “I didn’t mean it to come out like that, but it’s a reasonable thought.” she added. Twilight was going to say something, but she simply sighed and nodded.         “Not a bad one, really. However that can easily be proven false. Let’s go back to the library, I need to clear a few things up with Spike. I’m sure that he got curious and saw the secret…” Another reluctant groan came from her, before she began to stomp back the way she came. Fluttershy and Rarity exchanged glances, before following the unicorn’s tail. ***         About fifteen minutes later, three ponies and one uncomfortable dragon stood outside of the library. They stared up at the words on the library’s branches and tree trunk. Spike had to actually hold up an arm just to keep from blinding himself. “So, that’s what was going on…” Spike said. He had remained obedient to Twilight’s request, and stayed inside the library the whole time, albeit a little worried. “Why haven’t you told me this before? You’re like a sister to me.” he frowned.         “Because you’re too young to know what that kind of stuff is.” Ding! Twilight shuddered as the letters grew even brighter. The three other bodies simultaneously raised a questioning eyebrow. “Ugh. Because I kept it a secret for a reason.” Apparently, the words on the library deemed that just vague enough to be truthful. Twilight was silently ecstatic about the lack of dinging, she really did not want to explain it further. She was already fairly sure she had scarred Spike for life.         Rarity was getting slightly restless. “Twilight, we came here for a reason, correct?” she asked. Twilight gave her a small nod.         “Right. Let me try another experiment.” she said, holding up a hoof before turning back to the words. She unnecessarily cleared her throat. She spoke loudly, just to make sure that there are no variables. “I have told the entire truth about my secret, and I have nothing else to share!” A half-second of anxiety passed by, before the group saw the letters visibly dim. “Aha!”         “So… you didn’t lie. It would have caught you if you did, right?” Spike asked. “What does this prove?”         “It proves that one, I am not lying or hiding anything, and therefore the letters recurring is most likely not my doing. I told my entire story, so it has no reason to start glowing again. Also, I just told two more souls about my secret. What was weird was that it didn’t brighten nor dim when I explained to you and Rarity my secret. Only when I made a true statement about the secret itself.” Twilight concluded. Spike was more that confused, at this point         “So… the letters react to when you tell the entire truth? But then why did it appear like that?” Rarity asked quizzically.  Twilight simply shook her head.         “I have no idea. There’s got to be some kind of answer to this.” Twilight replied. To everyone else’s silent disgust, Spike let out a semi-smug grin.         “Good thing I don’t have any secrets to tell.” he said, pridefully. A lightbulb went off inside of Twilight’s rattled skull. “At least I’ve got that going for me.”         “Wait!” she felt a few things in her mind finally piece together, thought it did not form anything much. “I never realized… Spike, you live here too.” Spike was going to reply with something witty at the way she had phrased that, but luckily nobody was very eager to hear it. “How come a secret of yours isn’t being shown?”         Spike shrugged his shoulders. “I dunno. Maybe whomever did this doesn’t have anything against me?” he replied. Twilight pondered the thought, but she sighed when she realized that he was right. No one in Ponyville had a problem with the baby dragon, as far as she could remember.         “To think that anypony could have anything against my little Spikey-wikey!” Rarity cooed, slightly nuzzling the dragon, who in turn blushed brightly.         “Maybe there’s a book inside on this. I doubt it, but it couldn’t hurt to look.” Twilight said, with another defeated sigh. Using her magic, she opened the door and patiently waited for the other three to wander inside, which she did soon after.         The library was tinted a sullen gray that almost seemed to ricochet off the walls. The fog had most certainly made its way inside of the tree, but it was just not at the same degree as it was outside. It was easy to see a pony on the other side of the room. Twilight mentally compared it to somepony filling the air with spray paint. Rarity sat down on the floor, being extra careful as to where she set her rump, while Fluttershy joined Twilight and Spike over by the books. “Twilight, do you really think there could be a book that talks about this?” Fluttershy whispered.         Twilight shook her head, as she began to levitate books off the shelves. “Probably not. But maybe this happened sometime ago also. I don’t recall reading about it, but if there is a record, then we may just be onto something.”         “Twilight, that’s a little ridiculous.” Spike completely missed the glare that Twilight had casted upon him. “We’ve been here for how many years, and Fluttershy and Rarity -- most of their lives! If whoever did this did it in the past, and these two haven’t seen it happen anywhere else,” Spike threw his arm over in Fluttershy and Rarity’s direction. “then that original pony may have passed on.”         “First of all, I don’t even know if it’s been done in the past. So calm yourself, bud.” Twilight let out a soft smile after regaining her composure. “Second, it could have easily happened somewhere else, and we could have just not heard about it. Think about it, would you be reporting to authority about your most darkest secret being written on your house, and risk them reading it and possibly going to jail? I’ve read a few of them outside that belong to other ponies, and most of them are more than harmful.” Twilight raised her hoof to prove her final point. “And three, who says this was even a pony?”         Fluttershy looked absolutely horrified. “N-Not a p-pony? Then w-who could have d-done it then?” Rarity scooted over so that she was sitting with the rest of her friends.         “Anything, and anyone. But we have to put in some thought.” Twilight continued to skim through books while she spoke, and Fluttershy eeped when she simultaneously pulled ten books off the shelves with her magic. “Someone must have been planning this for a while, watching each and every one of us for a good, long, time. Also, they must have some kind of magic that allows them to do that spell on the paint. Charming it, basically.” Spike gazed at Rarity, but she was not paying attention. “Also, how does one get enough paint to do this, and a better question is how did they do it overnight without anyone hearing anything?”         Her three friends shrugged, and Twilight’s brain was in overdrive.         “So many questions, and absolutely no leads whatsoever.” Twilight muttered under her breath. She considered sending a letter to the Princess about what was going on here, but like she said, attracting attention to every pony in town’s secrets would be less than beneficial. Also it was dangerous to fly through this kind of weather, assuming that she sent some kind of authority into town. “It’s like everything is so perfectly set up.…”         Fluttershy glanced up at the clock, and was somewhat surprised when it read quarter to ten. The fog had completely taken her sense of time away, with the sun not being around and all. However she kept her small observations to herself, and stayed quiet.         “I think we should go find the rest of the girls. I’m sure they’re suffering right about now.” Rarity chimed. Her mane and tail had been turned back to their original, gorgeous selves a while ago.         “But we’d have to read their s-secrets…”         “Fluttershy, we’re all going to have to read their secrets. I think it’s the only way we can solve this.” Fluttershy’s head dipped as she felt a newly found sorrow embrace her body. Twilight set her books back on the shelves after not finding a single thing. She had checked every single logical book that could have had the answer. Yet there was still nothing.         “Let’s go to Pinkie’s. Celestia knows how she’s doing right now…” she sighed. This is the most miserable day of my life... ***         It was a short while later when everyone, save for Spike, were walking through the fog towards the Sugarcube Corner. They had to take a small detour, however. The town was most certainly in pieces. Yelling and crying had been a common sound throughout the streets. They had even seen a few houses on fire from ponies who took the matters into their own hooves. No matter how much Fluttershy, Rarity, and Twilight wanted to help, they knew that there was nothing they could do to soothe those aching ponies troubled conscience.         “I never knew that ponies could resort to such drastic measures once everything was out into the open…” Twilight muttered. Rarity nodded lightly.         “Just goes to show what ponies will do to keep up self-made facades and charades.” Rarity chided. Her friends kept their mouth shut in an effort to spare her feelings. Unlike Fluttershy and Twilight, Rarity walked slowly and painfully. She was dreading talking to Pinkie. She knew what she was going to have to do once she saw her, and she tried to silently figure out how to say it without causing any kind of conflict in the end.         It had only taken a few minutes later for them to reach the Sugarcube Corner. It was also very easy to find. Given that they had also made this trip so many times that they could have each individually gotten there blindfolded, the rosy pink building stood out like a sore hoof.         Much to the three’s surprise, their puffy pink friend was bouncing around the front of the building with some kind of oblivious stupor. She was singing a song that none of her friends were able to pick up on, so they assumed that she had once again made something up on the spot.         “Pinkie!” Twilight shouted as the group wandered closer to her. Pinkie stopped almost mid-bounce, and practically toppled over.         “Oh, hey girls!” Pinkie shouted, waving a hoof in the air. “Can you believe this? This is so super-duper!” Fluttershy cocked her head, not entirely sure about how she should feel about her comment. Then again, she was not sure how she should feel about what was going on, either.         They approached the mare slowly, but carefully. Pinkie Pie had actually stood in the same spot waiting for them to approach. She had that same eternally apparent grin on her face. “Pinkie… what are you talking about…?” Rarity questioned. She could see the red letters in her peripheral vision, although her brain told her to fight her building curiosity.         “This town wide campfire somepony set up!” Somehow, Pinkie’s smile grew even wider. She actually had to close her eyes for a split second. “The smoke is a little bit much, but it feels like I’m in some kind of wonderland! Hehe!” Pinkie let out a laugh accompanied by various snorts and giggles. Twilight, Rarity, and Fluttershy all stared at each other, as if they were silently deciding who was going to be the one to tell her.         Rarity’s curiosity was the first to overcome. She could not resist the words that were stapled all over the Sugarcube Corner. There were actually three sentences: one on the roof, one on the front of the building, and another written in the windows. It was as if the entire establishment was covered in semi-dried blood. Rarity paid no attention to the other two. She knew who they belonged to, and would rather not know anything else about them. Their family was already fragile. Pinkie’s secret lied in the windows of Sugarcube Corner. I DON'T HAVE THE COURAGE TO SHOW EVERYPONY MY TRUE SELF         “Pinkie, haven’t you noticed that something… strange has been going on…?” Rarity asked, not taking her eyes off of Pinkie Pie’s secret. Twilight followed Rarity’s gaze, but her determined grin remained on her face. Fluttershy looked away entirely, squeaking as she resisted her inner temptations.         “Nope!” she chimed. Pinkie Pie said her words with a ridiculous sense of pride. Her head bobbed to some kind of inaudible tune inside of her head, and her mane shook with every word she uttered. Twilight resisted the urge to facehoof. There was a loud ding, as the sentence in the window grew just a little bit brighter.         “You haven’t noticed the words written all over ponies houses? All over Sugarcube Corner?” Twilight knew that Pinkie was rather unobservant at times, but she was more than suspicious. Pinkie shook her head happily. Twilight wondered if she actually heard the second ding.          “You mean you haven’t noticed your deep, dark secret written in the windows behind you? Or do you just refuse to admit it?” Twilight asked. Pinkie’s smile faded for a half second, but before any of the three could blink it was right back on her face. It was brighter and louder than ever.         “Eheh,” Pinkie turned her head briefly, before looking back at her dumbstruck friends a few milliseconds later. “Oh, that. I never noticed that there before. I’ve been enjoying the fires and cooking s’mores all morning!” Another raucous bout of giggling was heard, as well as another familiar sound:         Ding!         “Pinkie, we know you’re lying to us… that dinging tell us that, as well as the fact that your letters are getting brighter. I really don’t have time for this…” Rarity added. Twilight resisted the urge to shoot Rarity a nasty glare, until she realized what she said was technically true for her. Pinkie, on the other hoof, did not seem to hear the unicorn’s pleas.         “Does somepony need a party pony to cheer them u-”         “No!”         “Pinkie, your secret on the window explains everything. Acting oblivious is not going to make it go away.” Twilight argued.         “But… but I have no idea what it’s talking about!” Pinkie scoffed, and waved her hoof dismissively at the building behind her. “I’m Pinkie Pie, and I always have been!” Pinkie Pie audibly gulped when another ding was heard. Twilight stared hard at the mare, who was looking around nervously.         “Pinkie, please…” Fluttershy begged, stepping out from behind Twilight. She was somewhat surprised when Rarity stepped in front of her.         “Hey Pinkie, if I share my secret with you, will you explain yours?” Rarity asked. Fluttershy and Twilight went wide-eyed, the former actually backing away. Fluttershy knew that the time would be coming eventually, but she quietly wished that she did not have to be around to hear it. She wanted to disappear into the fog entirely.         “Sure!” Pinkie said. Rarity was slightly taken aback by the sheer amount of joy in her voice, but she did not expect anything less.         Rarity sighed, and mustered up everything inside of her. “I… I am addicted to terokain pills.” The smile on Pinkie’s face drooped until it was unexisting. “I take them so that they’ll help me fall asleep, even though I know that they’re bad for me. I couldn’t help myself. It’s the only way that I’ll be able to get the much needed sleep that I deserved…” Rarity paused to look her dear friend in the eyes. “Darling, I’m sorry about this, but… I stole most of your medication so that I could feed my addiction.”         There was a very awkward pause that rang throughout the four of them. Nothing was heard, nothing was said -- and most importantly -- nothing was felt. Pinkie just stared at the unicorn dumbly. For once in her life, Pinkie Pie had nothing to say.         That was until she exploded into another fit of giggles.         “Teehee! That’s okay, Rarity!” Pinkie Pie trotted up to Rarity beaming, and wrapped a hoof around her. Rarity had to force herself to keep her tears at bay, though Pinkie’s demeanor only egged it on. “It’s okay to share, sometimes! All you gotta do is ask! Sure, if I don’t take the pills I get all-” Pinkie paused to wobble around with a silly face just to prove her point. “But I don’t mind, because it makes me feel silly inside!”         Twilight’s brain almost short circuited. She mouth was agape as she tried to mentally process Pinkie Pie’s train of thought. However, she had zero to no luck. Pinkie Pie teetered back to her spot in front of the Sugarcube Corner. “Uhm… so Pinkie…” Fluttershy spoke up, seeing that nopony else was rightly able to. “Do you mind sharing with us what your secret is all about… uh, if you want to, that is…”         Pinkie Pie stood happily on the other side of the group, her toothy grin yet again showing itself. She stayed absolutely still, like a marble statue. Her eyes were closed, as usual when she smiled. It was as if somepony had simply pressed pause. “P-Pinkie…?” Rarity asked. However, no amount of prompting causing Pinkie Pie to move. Fluttershy had almost assumed that she was stuck.         Pinkie Pie did not open her mouth. She simply stayed put, causing the other three to look at each other confusedly. Only until the tears started pouring out of the mare’s closed eyes did the three of them let out a relieved sigh.         It was a picturesque moment as they watched on. Her body and face revealed nothing but pure bliss and elation, but the tears running down her face showed otherwise. Some of the tears landed on Pinkie’s muzzle and still-grinning lips. It was as if she refused to let her smile go away. “Pinkie! Are you okay?” Twilight had finally put Pinkie’s comment earlier behind her, and had finally managed to regain her focus.         “H-Hahaha!” The mare sniffled continuously. “O-Of course I-I’m fine! W-Why wouldn’t I-I be? Hah-haha!” Her ears were pinned against the back of her head passively. Twilight knew exactly what was going on now, and she felt that both of them could be at ease as she said those few fateful words.         “Pinkie, quit smiling.”         As soon as Pinkie Pie opened her eyes, and saw the frown on Twilight and Rarity’s face, she gave up. She dropped to the ground into a bawling, heaping mess. She cried loudly into the dirt, covering her face with her hooves. She did not care about her coat being covered in soil. She did not care about what he friends thought of her. All she wanted was to have that moment.         “I-I’m so t-tired…” she cried and sniffled so much that her friends were just barely able to understand what she said. The three of them exchanged nods, and went to comfort their friend, who was trying to speak. Pinkie kept choking on her words.         “There, there…” Rarity cooed, softly calling to her. Rarity’s comforting talents came from her mother, who would always calm her when she needed it. Rarity picked up on it, but this time, she was the mother, and Pinkie was her baby. “Let it all out…”         “I h-have s-s-so many ponies w-who look up to me. I… I just w-want t-to sit d-down f-for a while. I-I want to rest, b-but I can’t a-anymore. I-I’ve dug myself t-too deep, a-and n-now it’s e-expected f-f-from me…” The three of them nodded, but Twilight was the only one with a response.         “Pinkie, only a few things matter in life, and personality is not one of them.” She bent down towards to sobbing mare. “What does matter, is who they are, and what they can accomplish.”         Twilight stood back up when she noticed Pinkie vigorously shaking her head. Her entire face was stained with newly acquired tears, thought the mare in question did not seem to care. Twilight was curious. She looked back to the words in the Sugarcube Corner windows, only to notice that they are all gone. Twilight did not smile. “What is this all about, anyways…?” She swiftly turned around, and sighed when she saw a very familiar phrase peek through the fog: MY LIFESTYLE MAKES IT HARD TO RELAX, SO I LET THE PILLS DO IT FOR ME         “...Wait a minute…”