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// The ugly face of reality - part two 
// Story: The Elder Brother 
// by Yoni 
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        You finish your paperwork in record time before you go back into your room and slump on your bed. You felt exhausted. Not physically but emotionally, everything just seems so pointless and dull, nothing is the same anymore.

        And all of that because one little conversation you overheard.

        You stand up and move to your sink, splashing some cold water onto your face and looking up in the mirror, still looking exactly the same, not a single sign of your apparent demise.

        You walk back to your room and towards your dresser; inside you find a small golden crown, a gift from your father for your eighteenth birthday and a symbol of your future rule. Once you gazed upon the crown with joy and pride, but now it feels like a lie and a spit in the face, a symbol for something that'll never happen.

        You close the door and pace back and forth around your room, desperately trying to find anything that could lift this heavy cloud of uselessness. It wasn't until later that evening that something did happen.

        And as if your prayers are answered, there's a knock on the door followed by a sweet little voice.

        "Big bro, are you in there?" calls Lulu with innocence and cuteness laced into each of her words. A ghost of a smile appears on your features as you move towards the doors and open them wide, revealing the dark blue alicorn you love so much with her star themed light purple pajamas on.

        Lulu lets out a squeal of excitement as she pounces your chest, using her small wings for support. For the past few weeks Lulu tried to gain your attention, which you unintentionally ignored. The various workloads kept you occupied most of the days and the only time Lulu could actually see you was during dinner, which was usually spent talking about the country with your parents.

        Needless to say, Lulu was very happy to have that moment with you, and you couldn't help but smile broadly to see her happy.

        "I missed you, big bro…" she shoves her face into your chest and nuzzles you wholeheartedly, letting you know how much she loves you through this simple action.

        You return the gesture as you nuzzle the top of her head, mindful of her horn of course, and careful not to mess her mane too much.

        "And I missed you too, Lulu," you respond, taking your time by sitting on your bed and let Lulu settle on your lap. She pulls her head up and gazes upon you with big, sparkly eyes.

        "Why are you sad, big bro?"

        You blink a few times.

        "Me? Sad?"

        "Well… yeah…" she mumbles and tears her gaze away from you, looking to the side and pawing your leg with her hoof "You have some tears and you look… you know… sad…"

        Dammit! You probably weren't hiding your emotions as well as you thought. You wipe the stray tears away from your cheeks and give Lulu a bear hug, complete with blowing air into Lulu's ears, causing her to laugh profusely.

        Finally, she breaks from your hold and latches your neck, hanging from your back and nuzzling your cheek.

        "Promise me you'll never leave me, okay?"

        You stop immediately at the foal's words. You can feel a spike of coldness in your heart and a lump in your throat. You know Lulu is an alicorn, and so does Tia and your parents. They're immortals, they'll live forever. And apparently,

        You aren't.

        You grab Lulu and pull her to your chest, hugging her again.

        "Sure Lulu, I promise…"

        "Can we play a game?" she says suddenly.

        Well… that moment was short lived.

        "Err… Sure. What did you have in mind?"

        "Hmm… can we paint?"

        "Painting isn’t a game, silly."

        "Sure it is. It's fun; therefore, it's a game."

        You can't help but smile.

        "Fine, let's paint."

        Time seemed non-existent as the two of you drew paintings left and right. At some point you ordered a few waffles for you and Lulu to enjoy while fooling around. She even showed you how much she honed her magic abilities by controlling the brush with telekinesis and drawing a picture of Tia, .

        "Lulu? I don't believe Tia's mane have so many colors in it."

        "I know, but I ran out of pink."

        That lazy foal…

        Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and that includes you and Lulu's play-time. It was late at night and Lulu almost dozed off to sleep in your room, so, being to loving brother that you are, you lifted Lulu to your arms and carried her to her bedroom, which was located across Tia's bedroom, right next to yours.

        You tuck the little filly in bed and bid her good night. You barely make it out of her room before she falls asleep. You smile one last time and close the door as quietly as you can. But instead of going back to your room, you take a small detour across the gardens.

      Listen to this while reading the rest

        There, under the blue moon's glow, you sit down under a weeping willow near mom's favorite pond and muse over recent events.

        A soft thud behind you snaps you out of your thoughts, but you don't turn around. After all, eighteen years is a long time, enough to know exactly who's behind you.

        "Evening mom, is everything alright?"

        "I can't say it is," she says as she takes a sit next to you.

        You raise an eyebrow.

        "Oh? And why is that?" you ask with closed eyes as your head rests against the tree bark.

        "I'm worried about you sweetie, you seemed… distant this morning, like you weren't actually there."

        You heave a small sigh.

        "You know me too well, mom."

        She doesn't say anything but rather extends her wing and wraps it around your body, bringing you closer to her chest. The slow rhythm of her heart beat combined with the continuous rise and fall of her chest proves to be the most soothing sensation you've ever felt. Not to mention the super soft feathers of her wing, covering you like a warm blanket.

        You feel secure.

        You feel content.

        "What's bothering you?" she brings her muzzle closer to your face and looks straight into your, now fully open, eyes.

        You hesitate, and it didn't go unnoticed by your mom.

        "You can tell me, you know you can." She urges you.

        Finally, you open your mouth and say,

        "I… I heard your conversation with dad last night."

        For a moment, mom stops breathing. The wind stops as well. All the critters that usually play their songs at this hour also quiet down. The only thing that increases its tempo is mom's heart beat.

        "How… How much did you hear?" she almost choke over her words.

        "Enough to know something's wrong with me." You answer, but before mom could say another word, you speak again "I want to know mom, I want to know what dad said and I quote 'his very existence is killing him'."

        "I… I…"

        You can feel something moistening your hair, and when you look up, you see mom's teary eyes.

        "I want to know the truth." You insist.

        Mom takes a long inhale before releasing it; her breath smells lightly of pine trees with a faint hint of mint.

        "What do you know about magic, sweetie?"

        You cock your head to the side, confused. But you answer nonetheless.

        "It's the moving force of the world, every living being draws from the natural magic in the environment and releases it in different ways. Magic helps pegasi fly, walk on clouds and manipulate the weather. Unicorns use magic in its raw form. And earth ponies use it to farm the land. But I don't understand where you’re going with this."

        "Sweetie, every creature draws from this magic, even… even you. But, unlike other creatures that are native to this land, you have no conceivable way of releasing it. You're just going to absorb more and more magic until… until… until it rips you apart."

        Mom barely finishes her sentence before she starts sobbing again.

        "It's not fair…" you whisper, tears of your own drop down from your cheeks "I did everything for this country. I lived my life as best I could, despite knowing I'm hated."

        "Sweetie-"

        "Almost everypony hates me for being me, and now… now I know that's it's not only them but also this entire BUCKING WORLD!" you all but scream the last part. Tears of sadness and fury stream down your face.

        You bring both of your arms to rest on your knees and curl down into a ball. Mom brings you closer to her barrel as she cries as well, not noticing the white teen filly, looking at you with a horrified expression.

        "You're going to die?" Tia's voice reaches your ears barely as a whisper.

        You look up to see Tia standing in front of you with misty eyes and trembling hooves.

        "Tia, how long have you stood there?" you whisper back.

        "Long enough…" she replies, a single tear drop from her eye.

        "Tia I-"

        "No! You're not dying, it's just some sick joke right? Mom?" Tia turns her attention to mom "It's not true right? Tell me this isn't true."

        Mom doesn't respond. Instead, she simply looks away as more tears mat her coat.

Tia looks between the two of you, tears now spill freely from her eyes. She doesn't say anything as she collapses to the ground and crys openly.

None of you dare to move.

None of you can.

For the pain, is too much.