The Dark Truth

by David Silver

3 - Echo

Izzy wandered. She had no destination, but her steps were taking her closer towards the Brighthouse with every waving circle. She just had to talk to them.

It was so simple.

It felt impossible.

She was darkened. She wasn't smiling or feeling cheerful. She was not the Izzy they had fallen in love with.

They'd hate her, or they'd want to fix her. Either way was about as bad.

She kicked a stone that was on the side of the road. "It's not fair..."

Izzy scuffed her hooves, anxiety swirling within her. Did her friends actually know the real her at all? She thought back to all the times they'd praised her upbeat songs or giggled at her cheeriest jokes.

They loved when she played the smiling entertainer...but what about the pony underneath? The one who felt weighed down by sadness so often?

Izzy shook her head, mane swaying limply. No, she couldn't hide these feelings forever. Continuing that exhausting facade would only breed more loneliness and despair.

As terrifying as opening up felt, things had to change. Living a lie would erode her soul until nothing remained. She had to know if unconditional love and comfort awaited on the other side of truth.

Drawing a shaky breath, Izzy lifted her gaze towards the fading sunset. Long shadows stretched before her. Tomorrow she'd share her authentic self, however difficult. If her friends rejected the pony within...she would finally know where she stood.

Trembling, Izzy turned towards home as the first stars peeked out overhead. It was time to end the masks once and for all.

She took a firm step towards the glittering light of the brighthouse. Was she welcome in such a bright place, so dark? She was ready to find out.

"Izzy!" Zipp landed in front of her, coming in for a sharp landing. "We've been looking for you all day! Are you alright?"

There it was, a chance... "No."

Zipp perked an ear. "Um... You said... no, but you sound... okay?"

Izzy smiled a little. "That sounds right. I'm not alright, but I'm okay."

"Huh..." Zipp turned towards their home. "Well, come on. They're all worried about you!"

Izzy followed Zipp on leaden hooves up to the shining doors of the lighthouse. Its bright glow almost made Izzy shrivel back into the shadows. Was there still a place here for one so dimmed?

As they entered, the others swarmed around in a blur of fluttering wings and rapid questions.

"Where have you been all day?"

"Why didn't you tell anypony?"

"What's WRONG, Izzy?" Sunny asked, face etched with worry. "Please, talk to us!"

Izzy's throat tightened, words trapped within. She desperately wanted to confess it all - the fakeness, the isolation, the despair throttling her true self! But under their blaze of concern, her courage faltered.

"I...I talked to Orchid more today," Izzy finally managed. "We talked about...not fitting in. Not mattering."

Her friends went still, faces now dripping with dismay.

"Oh Izzy," Sunny whispered, stepping forward to hug her. "Of course you matter..."

The dam broke then, Izzy sobbing into Sunny's shoulder.

Pipp tucked her phone away. It hardly felt like the right time to take a few shots. "Who's this Orchid pony you mentioned?"

Izzy sniffled loudly, rubbing her messy snout. "She's a really sweet unicorn I ran into... A little... rough... But so nice, inside..." She snorted all the louder. "We talked..."

Sunny squeezed her distressed friend. "What did you talk about? You can tell us. We want to help."

A keyword. Izzy tensed. "I... Look..." She pulled away from Sunny, shivering. "I've been lying."

Hitch waved a hoof dismissively. "You, lie? I have a hard time imagining that."

"Because I've been lying the whole time." Izzy sank onto a couch, as if she could sink into its softness and be lost from sight. "I'm not happy! I'm kinda... Look... All the unicorns were super... super sad... I'm a unicorn. What... did you think I was? Did you think I was just... that special?"

Izzy's words hung over the group like a storm cloud, her friends stunned into silence. As the truth sank in, they lowered their heads shamefully. Had they truly not seen past that vibrant facade?

Sunny stepped towards Izzy hesitantly. "We're so sorry...we should have realized you were struggling too." She blinked back tears. "But that doesn't mean we don't know the real you!"

Izzy pulled her knees in tighter, shrinking away. "Yes it does...You only know the bouncing, smiling pony I pretended to be. Not this." She gestured at her dimmed self in disdain.

"The jokes, the songs...that was never ME. Just a clown to entertain you all..." Izzy's face crumbled as she confessed the painful truth out loud at last.

Sunny shook her head fiercely. "No Izzy! We care about more than that..." She took a deep, steadying breath. "We love YOU. Not just what you do for us. Please, let us truly know you. The real you."

Sunny extended a hoof, eyes shimmering with empathy and affection. The others nodded behind her supportively.

Izzy hesitated...could she trust them with her authentic, flawed self?

Pipp laughed awkwardly. "If we're being, like, honest right now? The constant chipper thing can get a little trying at times. If you want to tone that down, I'm alright with that."

Zipp clopped a hoof against her head. "Bluntly said... Look, Izzy. We like you for you. If that you is changing, then we get to know the new you. As if none of us ever changed before. Friends don't abandon friends like that."

Hitch threw an arm around Izzy, drawing her into a hug from the side. "We've all had bad days before. Um, shoot, look at me any time I lose track of Sparky." He laughed nervously. "I break down into a mess... Um, where is Sparky?" He looked around furtively, only relaxing when he spotted the baby dragon playing. "There you are..."

Sunny dared a gentle smile. "Exactly. Izzy, you are our friend. We love you. We'll keep on doing that..." She raised a hoof, bouncing some of Izzy's limp mane gently. "And if you feel down today, well, so what? Tell us about it. We'll gladly chat about it... Want to do something? Want to just relax with us? Let us know."

Izzy felt herself thawing slightly in her friends' encircling warmth. They seemed genuinely unfazed by the dropping of her upbeat pretense. She dared allow a tiny sprout of hope.

Yet doubt still gnawed within. Would this acceptance last if she exposed the full extent of her inner turmoil? Or would they flinch away, longing for the ever-positive pony they expected?

Izzy worried her lip. "You...you say that now. But what if tomorrow I'm feeling too low to get out of bed? What if I snap and get angry sometimes? What if I'm just...not fun anymore?" Her breaths hastened, baring her deepest insecurities.

"Will you still want me around then? The real me who isn't always cheerful or nice to be around?" Izzy stared at the floor as she voiced her greatest fear - that her friends required her smiles as a condition of their affection.

Sunny embraced Izzy once more. "Of course, sweetie...moods and all. You never, ever have to pretend or earn your place here." She stroked Izzy's mane soothingly. "We love you, not your smile...though we certainly love that too," she added with a playful nudge.

Hitch squeezed Izzy firmly from the side. "Yeah! If you don't want to get out of bed, then I'm going to bring you breakfast while you're in it!"

Izzy smiled awkwardly. "Probably better than what I make half the time..."

Pipp waved that away. "Girl, like I'm good at that? Please. If Hitch is making you breakfast, I want some too, please?"

Hitch burst into laughter at that. "Alright, alright. Breakfast for everypony tomorrow!"

Izzy felt the burning embers within her. But her mane was still dark and gloomy. She gently brushed at it. "Thanks... everypony. I appreciate it, really, I do... But I still feel..."

Sunny leaned in, touching nose to nose. "This isn't a race. You can't win it, and you can't lose it. You feel what you're feeling, and we'll be right here, as your friends."

Later, Izzy wandered up to the other big part of her journey.

Izzy took a deep, centering breath before pushing open the doors to the Ruby Room. Familiar shadows and muted voices washed over her. She strode with purpose towards the back corner table, where Orchid was unwinding after a long day over a colorful drink.

"Hey stranger," Izzy greeted warmly.

Orchid glanced up, the hints of a smile playing at her lips. "Well, well...look who's back. How'd things go with the smile squad?"

Izzy chuckled softly, taking a seat across from her new friend. "It was...difficult honestly sharing everything I felt inside. But they listened and supported me."

She went on to fill Orchid in on her friends' reactions, the comfort they'd offered. She confessed there were still challenging days where the gloom persisted.

Yet as Izzy spoke, holding Orchid's gently understanding gaze, her own small smile grew. However long the road, she didn't walk it alone anymore. And that made all the difference.

"Huh, you did better than I would have guessed." Orchid pushed her colorful drink towards Izzy. "Want a sip? You could use it."

Izzy snorted, but didn't turn it away, or leave any behind after an impressive gulp. "Mmm, still good."

"I don't know how you could tell." Orchid leaned foward on the table. "The way you drink that, how do you taste it?" The two shared a soft bit of laughter. "You're looking a bit up from the last time I saw you."

"I feel it..." She brushed at her mane. "I understand this now, a bit... but when does it go away? Will I ever get my bouncy mane back?"

Orchid rolled her eyes. "I thought you were digging our style... Whatever. It'll come when it comes." She brushed a hoof through her own straight mane. "I have to work to get this right. You're lucky, getting it naturally. Show off... Get to know yourself and then you can look however you want."

She leaned back as a fresh glass arrived filled with her bright drink. "In the end... Look, gonna admit, I think you look just fine this way."

Izzy dared a smile. "Really?"

"I don't usually BS people." Orchid sipped from her drink, savoring each pull. "So keep it, or don't. Your friends are already okay with it. It's your choice."

It was her choice. Such a simple statement, but it filled her with a power she didn't even know what to do with.

She just had to figure out what it is she wanted.