//------------------------------// // Ponies Suck at Social Studies // Story: My Twilight Facade // by axelsempai //------------------------------// I sat in silence, the only noise in the library being Spike flipping through pages of some sci-fi novel. I dunno, I think it was about body snatchers or something. Spike's interest in literature wasn't my primary concern. I was more busy trying to determine whether or not I should unveil myself. I haven't made all that much progress during the last two and a half months, so I was likely in for the long haul. I really wanted to tell someone about my secret identity, but there was a reason I haven't put much thought into it since I first arrived in Ponyville: it was risky. Twilight has a Goddess among her list of known acquaintances, who happened to be royalty as well. Right off the bat, I fear what could happen should she ever determine my true identity. Imprisonment? Likely. Exile? Also likely, but more favorable than life in prison, I must admit. Banishment to a celestial body? This varies in severity depending on destination. With my luck, she could probably banish me to an all-water planet and I would die there. Note to self: research water-breathing spells. And my personal favorite of possible consequences: outright execution. Yeah, no way in hell I'm going to let her know about this. But what of my friends? Could I trust them with this? I considered that I would have won them over by now with how often I've been helping them with their problems. I'd bet Rainbow was more accepting because of my support at the Young Fliers' Competition, Applejack and I were probably on good terms since I organized help for Applebuck Season, Rarity knows how far I'm willing to go for her because of the diamond dogs, Fluttershy and I get along well enough, and as for Pinkie... Well, I can't really say. Every time I try to imagine a hypothetical scenario involving her, imaginary Pinkie glares at me through the fourth wall and tells me to get real. So that's good, right? Isn't it? What was the worst they could do? Attack me? Yeah, that would be pretty heart breaking. No, they would tell Celestia on me, and then I'd die in short order. In short, revealing myself could quite literally get me killed in one of many ways. It's not hard to see why this was an intimidating prospect. On the other hand, I wouldn't have to deal with deceiving my friends any longer. I would be able to mingle and converse with them as myself, using my real name. No longer would I be called "Twilight Sparkle". No more false pretenses; just me and my friends living happy lives. That thought alone was tempting, but it was unrealistic, even as far as my life goes. I still need to find the real Twilight and let her return to her body. Once that happens, I doubt I'll be able to remain in Equestria. Twilight was probably stuck in my body or something, and we would have to switch out. That would mean a one-way trip back home, and that would be all for my friendships in Equestria. That's right, I had forgotten that I should distance myself from the others. Further developing my relationships with them would only hurt me in the end, as I would never see them again. It would be tragic if we become inseparable. The least painful option I have is to become more excluded from the group. I didn't really want to do that. I still had my friends in the present, and who cares about the future? So what if things might suck some day? I'm in the here-and-now, where I can still be with the five who matter most to me. That said, I don't want to spend the rest of our time together with a lie. Every time they speak "my" name, I hurt a little inside. They are unaware of who I really am and consider me another pony. I don't want them to live with that delusion. After hours of deliberation, I came to a decision. I don't want to lie to my friends. They have every right to know who they've been calling a friend for the past months. It was regrettable that I was lying to them for so long, so it's only fair that I come clean. By doing so, I'll have the support of five outstanding people who won't let me go through my struggles alone. I was going to tell them all who and what I was. I was confident in them. I had faith in our friendship, for it wasn't just my facade that won them over. I knew that they would stick with me, because our friendship meant more than kind words and warm smiles. I was so confident in our friendship, that I was willing to bet my very life on it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The sun was ready to set, bathing the fields around Fluttershy's cottage in it's grand orange glow. I knocked on the cottage door, and the shy mare soon answered its call. "Oh, hello Twilight. Thanks again for helping me with my modelling problem earlier." She said with a smile. "Any time, Fluttershy." I replied. "Actually, I'm here because I want to invite you to Sugarcube Corner tomorrow." "What's the occasion?" My face lowered into a solemn frown that Fluttershy found unsettling. "There's something I need to tell you and the others. It's important." Fluttershy shook at the severity of my tone. "Oh dear, this sounds ominous." I forced a chuckle to calm her down. "Don't worry about it, it's only ominous to me. You'll be perfectly fine." Fluttershy was still worried. "Will you be okay?" I nodded resolutely. "Yes, I will. Will you be there?" Fluttershy nodded unsurely. "Okay. Are you sure you will be alright?" "I'm absolutely sure that everything will turn out perfectly." --- Rarity answered the door to Carousel Boutique, and greeted me with a friendly smile. "Hello, Twilight. Is there something I can do for you?" "There is, actually. Can you meet me at Sugarcube Corner tomorrow? There's something important I need to tell you and the girls." Rarity raised an eyebrow with intrigue. "Oh? May I ask what could be so important that you need to tell all of us at once?" "I'd rather not say; not until I can answer all the questions at once." Rarity tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm, very well. I suppose I can meet with you tomorrow, though I'd rather you not be so cryptic." "I'm sorry, Rarity, but after tomorrow, all will be revealed." --- I entered Sugarcube Corner, which was still open despite the late hour. While they were going to close soon, I had enough time to speak with Pinkie before then. Speaking of which, the pink mare was standing right behind the counter. "Hiya, Twilight! Looking for a late afternoon snack?" "No. I'm actually here to tell you that the girls and I are going to be gathering here tomorrow. There's something I need to tell you all." Pinkie's eyes widened in anticipation. "You're going to reveal something shocking to your true friends, aren't you?" "That's exactly it. I knew you'd understand." Pinkie saluted me. "Don't you worry about a thing! I won't tell anypony that you're secretly a robotic disco warrior!" I stared at Pinkie for a moment of bemusement. "... See you tomorrow, Pinkie." --- I flew up to Rainbow Dash's cloud house with my Flight spell. The place was huge! It was as if someone carted an above-average mansion away from Cloudsdale and parked it near Ponyville. I knocked on the door, and the prismatic pegasus answered the door. "Hey Twilight. What's up?" "Are you available tomorrow? Because the girls and I will be at Sugarcube Corner. I plan on making an announcement that will shake the foundation of our friendships." Rainbow quirked an eyebrow. "Uh, that sounds pretty serious." "It is, but I have every reason to believe that everything will work out for the best." "If you say so." --- I walked up to Sweet Apple Acres, eventually finding Applejack in the barn unloading barrels. Applejack turned to speak with me when I greeted her. "Howdy, Twi. What can ah do for ya?" "AJ, do you have some free time tomorrow?" "Ah reckon ah do. What for?" "The girls and I will be at Sugarcube Corner. I'm going to reveal a startling truth, which will explain everything. I hope you'll be there, since you're the one who's bothered by my lies the most." Applejack's gaze went serious. "You mean to tell me that you're goin' to start tellin' the truth tomorrow?" "Yes, that's what I'm saying." "Then Ah've got all the time in the world." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The next morning, I discovered the most marvelous invention the ponies made since zeppelins: hay bacon. It's like bacon, but for herbivores! Ingenious! And to think that Spike didn't believe in bacon. So breakfast was especially yummy that morning, and therefore off to a great start. Spike went back to reading his novel after breakfast, and I had plans for Sugarcube Corner. I opened the front door and called back to Spike. "I'm going out to speak with my friends. I'll be back later." "Bye." Spike barely made the effort to look up from his book. Maybe he was getting really into it? I took a step out the door, but I froze and looked back at Spike. Come to think of it, Twilight is Spike's sister. I might have been acting like a brother to him, playing Arcane: The Maddening and reading comics with him and whatnot, but he's just as unaware of Twilight's true location as I am. "Hey Spike, I think you should come with me." I said. With the same glare one would usually associate with a child being torn away from a good book, Spike asked, "Why? I thought you'd want to spend some time with your friends, not me." I frowned sympathetically. Maybe Spike wasn't catching on to me. Considering that question, his recent anger towards me could have been based on the perception of neglect. I had to rectify this as soon as possible. "This is important for all of us. You especially." Spike glared into my eyes, and let out a sigh. He closed the book and put it aside, hopping off the chair to follow me. "Fine. Let's just go, already." We closed the library, and walked down the street towards my destination. I didn't envy Spike's position. I wondered how devastated he would be once he learned the news. Whether or not he takes it well, I was going to find out soon. Well, we would have gotten there sooner, but the silence around us was making us nervous. You know what they say about quiet, right? It's the kind of silence that makes one really anxious about getting suddenly attacked. The silence was understandable. After all, who in Ponyville would make any noise if there wasn't anyone in Ponyville? The streets were empty. "Where is everybody?" I asked, admiring the desolate town. "Maybe you ate them." Spike quietly grumbled. I glared down at him. "Is that a fat joke?" Spike momentarily looked like he was dreading a verbal lashing before I added, "Because I swear I'm working on it!" We continued down the road, thinking that it was just quiet around the library, except that the market was abandoned as well. Multiple ideas about what happened came to mind, none of which were admittedly realistic even given the circumstances. Perhaps there was a Left Behind kind of deal, where Spike and I were among the few trapped on the planet to survive. Oh God, please don't let this be anything like Alone in the Dark... Oh wait, there was a foal smiling at the doorstep of a house. As smiley as she was, I doubted there was anything major happening. Except a mare pulled her inside and slammed the door shut, so maybe she wasn't a great indicator of the situation's severity. Maybe it isn't anything like Left Behind, but more like a zombie movie in the making? Hopefully it's Zombie Strippers, because at least that would be funny. "Psst! Twilight! Over here!" Sugarcube Corner was within sight, but I was too distracted to notice it until I heard Pinkie calling for me in a whisper. When I acknowledged her, she frantically beckoned me. "Come here! Come! Here! Hurry! Before she gets you!" I took that to mean that something scary was going down, so I ran over and hopped into the store. Once safely inside, I levitated Spike inside and the door to the bakery slammed shut. It was completely dark, even though it was bright as hell outside. "Who are we hiding from and where are our friends?" I asked. "Actually, we're all here." I heard Rarity announce. Rainbow slightly opened the blinds to the front window, letting in enough light to see all of my friends. Plus Apple Bloom, for some reason. "The rest of you I get, but what are you doing here?" I asked Apple Bloom. "What? Ah wanted a milkshake." She expertly answered. "Ah, gotcha. But the question remains, who are we hiding from?" "We're all hiding from her." Rainbow said, pointing out the window. We all crowded around the window, peering out to see the cloaked figure of an equine. She stood alone in the center of the plaza, digging a tiny hole in the ground with one hoof. I could only get a good look at the leg she was using to dig, which had an assortment of gold jewelry on it. Her leg was a light grey with many darker grey stripes tracking down her leg. The figure scanned the area around her, and my friends cowered out of sight when her gaze drifted towards us. I looked at them all with a bit of confusion. After all, I didn't find her to be that scary. Though I had to admit that the glowing yellow eyes were a nice touch. I figured she must have been one evil bitch to get my friends this scared, but I decided to ask my friends about her, just so I have some context before I went out there to kick some ass. "Who is this chick, anyway?" "Her name's Zecora." Apple Bloom answered easily. "Apple Bloom! I told you to never say that name!" Applejack chided. "Geez, is her name poisonous to our mortal tongues, or something?" I criticized. "Ah dunno, maybe!" Applejack defensively answered. "Uh huh. In any case, she scares you all for some reason. Can someone explain it to me?" "She's mysterious." Fluttershy said. "So is the mystery of how soap scum is a pain in the ass. What else you got?" I asked. "Twilight! There are children in the room!" Rarity scoffed. "Uh, remember how the scary chick outside that scares the..." I held myself back before I could swear again. "...heck out of you? I think we have more important things to worry about, here." "Well, she's also sinister." Rainbow claimed. "And spooky!" Pinkie added. I deadpanned. "Yeah, I get what your opinions are. I'm asking for your justification." "Because she's evil!" Pinkie explained. "She's so evil, I wrote a song about her!" "Here we go." Rainbow groaned. I glanced at Rainbow in confusion, momentarily forgetting Pinkie's habit of random song, as Pinkie hopped around and "sang". She's an evil enchantress she does evil dances! And if you look deep in her eyes she puts you in trances! And what would she do? She'll mix up an evil brew, and gobble you up in a big tasty stew! Soooo, Pinkie' final hop launched her onto a table, where she wildly shook her tail and stood up on her hind legs, posing like a ghost. Watch out! Meanwhile, I was watching and listening dumbly, believing that this would be the most informative explanation about Zecora as I would get. "... So, wait. How long has Zecora been around here?" "A-about two years, ah reckon." Applejack shakily replied. I gaped in shock. "You mean to tell me that Zecora has been coming to Ponyville for the past two years, abducting ponies and cannibalizing them? Why isn't the royal guard getting involved? This is the kind of thing they deal with!" "We've called the royal guard before, but they didn't do anything because there technically weren't any damages." Rarity explained. "MY ASS, THERE WERE NO DAMAGES!" I yelled indignantly. "WHAT ABOUT THE PONIES WHO WERE KILLED!?" Rainbow rubbed the back of her head nervously. "Well... technically, nopony was abducted." "Then who was abducted?" "As I said, nopony." My eyes widened in growing frustration. "If no pony was abducted, then who was?" "No one." Rainbow muttered. I sat there in silence for a few seconds of rising confusion and frustration. When I next spoke, my voice was low and dripping with condescending wrath. "You're all hiding from someone who didn't even do anything to you?" "We have a reason to to think she's up to no good!" Applejack argued. "Have you even gotten a good look at her?" She pointed out the window again, obviously wanting me to look at Zecora again. I rolled my eyes, figuring I might as well do so, just in case Zecora wore pony bones or some other similar trophy of villainy. I pulled back the blinds to get a better view of Zecora. I watched her pull back the hood of her cloak, revealing her rather impressive black and white striped mohawk. She turned her head, at which point I saw her striped face. It became apparent what she was. "That's a zebra." I stated flatly. "A what?" Everyone asked. "A zebra." I repeated. Geez, am I the only one who read Social Studies' Book of Culture? "They live in savannah plains far away from Equestria. They don't even have magic beyond their affinity with creating chemical compounds." "But she lives in the Everfree Forest!" Rainbow protested. By now, I was done with all this gallivanting about. With gritted teeth, I said, "Okay, I'm only going to ask one last time. What, exactly, did Zecora do to hurt anyone in Ponyville?" "Nuthin'." Applejack said with relief. "We knew as soon as we saw her that she was trouble, so we steered clear." I stood still, letting all the pieces of the puzzle click around my head. At last, they connected. Oh no. I sat heavily onto the ground, shocked to my core. I couldn't believe it, but everything I heard confirmed my every fear. My God, I was a fool. I brushed a hoof over my head in disbelief. Their fear of Zecora was based on appearance alone. Just one look at a zebra, a non-pony, was enough for them to make every judgement imaginable against her. Zecora did nothing wrong, but she was hated anyways. If Zecora was so easily judged, then what chance did I stand? I almost revealed my secret to the ones I care about. If I hadn't learned of Zecora, they would have gotten me killed. Evidently believing that I succumbed to fear, Fluttershy patted my shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, Twilight. We're safe in here." I glared up at Fluttershy, who shrank back at my gaze. How dare she? I just learned that my friends were prejudiced, and now they try to act all supportive? I wouldn't be fooled again. They wouldn't accept me; their kindness was a trap for the foolish. As much as it pained me to say, I wouldn't fall for that same trap again. I stomped to the door out of Sugarcube Corner and pulled it open. Rainbow quickly shut it and blocked the door. "Wait a minute, where are you going?" Rainbow demanded with worry. "She's still out there!" With a growl as her only warning, I shoved her out of the way with surprising strength. I swung open the door once again, and glared back at my friends. They were wide-eyed with shock at my sudden anger. "I'm ashamed of you." I hissed at them. They paled at my words, but I took it all in with a grunt of anger and I stormed out of the building, slamming the door shut behind me. I lowered my head to shake out the bad feelings that still lingered. It was hardly any use; my eyes still stung and my vision blurred with barely restrained tears. --- Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Spike, and a miffed Rainbow Dash all watched in morbid curiosity as Twilight cleared the distance to Zecora. This was the same Twilight who valiantly kicked a manticore in its groin. This was the same Twilight who picked a fight against a ferocious griffin. Indeed, this was also the same Twilight who defied all sense of self-preservation and restraint by stabbing a dragon in its ass scales. There was no doubt in anyone in the room that what was about to happen would either be the most glorious thing they would ever see, or the most viciously insane. Either way, this was a spectacle that none of them were willing to miss. But the whole thing was soured by Twilight's irate exit. "I don't get it. Why did she push me like that?" Rainbow grumbled. "She does seem upset." Rarity observed. "She probably just thinks we're all bein' cowardly." Applejack guessed. "I don't know about that." Fluttershy quietly objected. "She looked a tiny bit betrayed." "Betrayed? I doubt that, Fluttershy." Rarity said. "What did we do to her?" Twilight was closing in on Zecora, and everyone watched with bated breath as the confrontation was set to begin. Spike quietly watched with anticipation. It was monster vs. monster, a true win-win situation. He didn't fully understand why he was brought to Sugarcube Corner in the first place, but he was glad he came along. Their anticipation of the coming battle was gone with Applejack's startled yell. "Wait, where's Apple Bloom?" --- I cleared my mind of the distracting feelings in my mind. Now was not the time for me to let my sour attitude affect me. There was a zebra in need of some friendship, and the task fell to me! I walked up to her, and she turned to face me. Mustering all the calm charisma I had, I greeted her. "'Sup." Smooth, as always. "Welcome to Ponyville, Equestria's largest wildlife preserve of pussies." I almost got a chuckle out of her bewildered face. "And to you I say 'hello'. What makes you insult your town so?" She had a strange speaking pattern. Was that to justify that rhyme? Did she even mean to rhyme? So many questions from a single exchange. I dropped all of them to reply to her question. "I only say that because everyone in this town is a bunch of-" I turned away from Zecora and yelled with all my might. "COWARDS!" I turned back to her as calm as I could be. "I think I'm the only one with any sense." Zecora didn't seem very pleased with my answer. "Your reply makes me frown. I thought Ponyville was a ghost town." I shrugged. "Sorry, but I don't know what to tell you. These ponies are dumb." I looked around, noticing that a few ponies were peeking out of their doors to get a closer look at what we were doing. I had a thought. So They wanted to see what Zecora wanted to do in Ponyville? Then let's give them a show. "Anyway, can I help you with anything? Ponyville is apparently my home, so I should be able to help." Zecora smiled at the offer of assistance. "Honored is the mare from whom help is led. I seek a flower of deepest red." What was that, a fucking riddle? "...Could you give me another hint? I'm pretty sure there are lots of red flowers." "Of course, honored horse." Hold on, wasn't that some kind of slur? Maybe I was looking to deep into it. "Those who are adored are showered from above, by these red blossoms of love." Ah goddammit, it was a riddle. I hate riddles! They're the reason I hate the Riddler! I thought of the answer for a bit, hoping that the spirit of Batman would help me figure this out. Let's see, a flower that symbolizes love that those who are adored are showered with. I guess "those who are adored" could mean celebrities, right? And every time they get showered with flowers, they are usually... seriously? The answer was roses? Lame riddle, man. Just to be sure, I asked for clarification. "You want to find some roses?" "Those are the flowers to collect, you are indeed correct." Ugh, this was going to be a long day. "Alright, I know where we can buy some. The vendor lives down this way." I walked in the direction of the vendor's home, and Zecora stepped beside me to follow. "Wait!" The cry of a tiny voice stopped us before we began. We turned to find Apple Bloom racing down to meet us. She skid to a halt. "Can ah come with ya?" She asked. "I guess so." I said. I looked to Zecora, who nodded her agreement. "Alright, let me introduce you. This is Apple Bloom." Apple Bloom smiled a greeting. But to have a proper introduction, I pretended not to know Zecora's name. "I'm sorry, but may I know your name miss..." "Zecora is my name. Could I ask the same?" "Cool! She rhymed!" Apple Bloom chimed. Great, now I was rhyming. "My name is Twilight Sparkle. It is a pleasure to meet you, Zecora." I held out a hoof for a "hoof shake" as it's called here. Zecora stared at my extended hoof in confusion. I lowered it. That's right, I forgot there's no hoof shake ritual where Zecora is from. Immediately as my awkward blunder ended, Apple Bloom fired off a plethora of questions to Zecora. Among the highlights were "Where did ya come from?", "Do ya have a cutie mark?", "What do you like doing for fun?", and "Do zebras have magic powers?" We began our walk across the town, Zecora answering the cheerful inquiries quite readily. From what I gathered from the conversation that (mostly) involved the two of them, it sounded like Zecora was a storyteller who did alchemy on the side. I guess. It's kind of hard for me to figure it all out, since rhyming couplets sound like riddles. Apple Bloom wasn't having any trouble listening to her, so I guess it was just me. It's interesting how easily the ponies in Ponyville get over their fears when they see two others relaxing and having a good time. Zecora would share an anecdote that Apple Bloom thought was funny, and I would pretend to laugh out of politeness more than anything. Cause you know, I'm no riddle king. The sight of us laughing was enough for many ponies to leave their homes to at least observe us, and a few even followed out of intrigue. By the time we got to Roseluck's house and bought the roses Zecora needed, there was a crowd of ponies watching us. Zecora looked out at them with great discomfort. I sympathized, so I huddled close to her and whispered conspiratorically. "Hey, you want me to deal with this? I'm pretty good at manipulating crowds." "Of large crowds I'm no fan, please do what you can." She whispered back. With a dedicated nod, I stepped out to meet the ponies. "Ponies of Ponyville, congratulations." I announced. "For a race dedicated to love and harmony, you sure are racist." The gathered ponies looked amongst themselves to gauge exactly how offended they should be. "It took a forgettable librarian and a child to finally welcome our new friend, Zecora, into Ponyville. And where were the rest of you? Hiding from her like... well, I was going to say children, but even children show better consideration for others than you all." The crowd glared at me. Uh oh, I've been laying on the Heel heat too thick. Time to turn Babyface. "The fact of the matter is that you've been neglecting your honored traditions of love and tolerance because Zecora likes to wear cloaks and has stripes. You put aside every empathic instict you had to shun another being. I think we all need to take a little time to consider that the true value of a person is based not on their appearance, but by their love and virtue towards others. And for that, Ponyville has come up short for once. Let us swear that one day, we show that we are the most loving and accepting community in Equestria!" I swear I didn't mean for this to happen, but they actually cheered my speech. It is times like these that make me think I'd make for a damn good politician. Though I felt a little foolish for buying roses, now that we were being showered with them. Wait, does this mean I'm an adored celebrity now? I sure hope not. I like being in the background! Just to keep up appearances, I bowed and smiled to the cheering crowd. Hey, I might as well. Just play off a sudden and unexpected turn of events and make off like a smooth criminal. Works every time. I dropped my smile when I saw a particular group of five ponies plus a dragon. They clapped their hooves in appreciation of my speech as well, except for a bewildered Spike. They were my friends, of course, but I didn't want to deal with them right then. I turned to Zecora. "Will you be able to take care of things from here?" Zecora smiled gratefully. "I believe so." "Great. Have a nice day, 'cause I need to get going." I nodded and waved, making my way through the crowd. I passed by my friends, and I gave them a strained smile before speeding up. With one last turn, I raised my arms like a champion, and the cheers grew in power. Cheering became laughter when I fell on my ass, at which point I hastily trotted back home. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I stood in the center of the library, heaving a heavy sigh. Now that nothing was distracting me, I was completely free to mull over my feelings over recent events. I really didn't want to do that. I scanned the bookshelves for something, anything, to keep my mind off my friends. With my hurry to find a distraction, I figured Nature Watch's Creature Compendium would have to do. I sat in a chair facing away from the library entrance and settled in for a nice read on wildlife. It took only a few minutes for that to become pointless, as the six figures I was dreading entered the library. "That was amazing!" Pinkie cheered. "How did you know Zecora was good all along?" "Because she didn't do anything wrong." I said. "Wow, who knew?" I gritted my teeth. They didn't catch on to my irritation, as evidenced by Rainbow asking, "So what was this announcement that would 'shake the foundations of out friendship'? You never got to tell us." I put the book down with a subtle sigh and forced a smile back at them. "Heh heh, I forgot." They all glared incredulously. "Come again?" Applejack asked. "I forgot what I was going to tell you." I lied. "I'll let you know if I can remember." "Ah, that's a load of apples, and you know it. You said you were goin' to start tellin' the truth, and you follow that up with more lyin'?" She demanded. "Yeah, pretty much." Applejack scoffed in outrage. "You gotta be kiddin'! You got no reason to be lyin' to us now that we know you're lyin'!" "That's where you're wrong, Applejack. I've got every reason to hide the truth, and I have my friends to thank for that." I said bitterly. "WHAT!? Ah've been tellin' you how wrong it is to lie! You couldn't spin that to mean lyin' was good; you're just tryin' to trick us again!" She accused. I spun to face her and got to my hooves, staring her down. I wasn't about to let Applejack accuse me of manipulating my friends for fiendish purposes. "How dare you! You think I'm some kind of puppeteer? You think I want to lie to my friends everyday? I don't! Nothing would please me more than to be open with the five people in this town I give a damn about, but I can't do that!" "Ponyfeathers! Tellin' the truth is easy! Just quit lyin'!" "Well, you must have one hell of a fairytale life, don't you? It must be nice living your 'happily ever after' while the rest of us still have conflicts! Some of us have no choice but to hide in the shadows and envy people like you! You won't lose your friends if they learn one of your secrets, but that's not the case for me!" "We won't stop being your friends just because you did something shady." Rarity interjected. "We're friends, and we can be quite accommodating." I leveled a glare on Rarity, from which she shrunk back. "Zecora would argue about that. So you, and every one of my friends, just proved that they are not as accepting as I had hoped." "T-that was different!" Applejack weakly countered. I sat back in my chair, no longer facing my friends. "It's one thing to bluster on about honesty, but I won't listen to your hypocrisy. Lecture me about honesty whenever you want, but don't follow that up by lying yourself." "Is your secret really that bad?" Rarity asked. I was silent for a moment, thinking about how to answer that. "... It is. And I'm not willing to risk our friendship over it." "So you never forgot what your secret was." Applejack observed. "Did you ever really consider tellin' us?" "I would have told you this morning, but you all fucked it up. I can no longer trust you with something this important." The library was quiet for many moments, no one sure how to respond. I spoke up. "Could you all leave for now? I want to be alone." I heard nothing for few moments longer. The front door opened and closed soon after. I looked back to see the empty room. I was alone. I slumped forward onto the table, burying my head into my arm. I was back to living the lie.