As he fell asleep, his vision became all red, just like the night before as he found himself floating in the dark dreamscape again.

"You thought you could get rid of me?" Harold felt a chill run down his spine as he heard the dark entity's voice again.

"What are you doing here? I thought Luna blocked you!"

"Luna's spell couldn't block a measly mouse, let alone a powerful being like myself! Besides, she rudely interrupted us last time. I still have some more things to reveal to you."

"I don't want it! I don't need to s-"

"Order! Order in the court!"

He looked up to see a grey, elderly judge and that he was in a court room, sitting in the audience as the jury came back in from discussing the trial. He figured this must be the trial for his parents that Celestia put together, or ordered. He looked around for Princess Celestia and saw her sitting in the balcony, watching everything. The judge banged his mallet onto the table to get the audience to quiet down.

"Court will now resume. Our jury has deliberated, and the time had come to hear their verdict." He said. Everypony looked over at the jury, the room dead silent as they waited to hear what had been decided in the case.

One of the jurors stood up, holding a piece of paper. He cleared his throat before starting to speak.

"Your honor, we, members of the jury find the defendant, Thomas M. Nightgale…not guilty of first degree ponyslaughter. We do, however, find him guilty of robbery and use of illegal unicorn magic." He said before sitting down.

"Very well. For the charges you have been found guilty of, we will subject the defendant to 720 hours of community service. Court dismissed!" The judge said.

Instantly, the audience was in an uproar, outraged by the jury's decision and so was Harold. He looked up at the balcony where Celestia was and her face showed no emotion as she got up and started to walk out.

"What? She…She's just going to let him walk?! She saw him kill my dad and she's not going to say anything? She could override the verdict, or something!" He thought as he ran to the stairs, blocking the way, trying to stop her, but she walked through him. "Go back! Tell them what you saw! Make them change their verdict! Do something useful for once, you dumb, fat whorse!" He shouted at her, but his cries went unheard as she walked out of the building, presumably to go back to her castle and be pampered. His body was shaking with anger. He wanted to kick or destroy something. The doors to the courtroom opened and the murderer walked past, a smug grin on his face that felt like it mocking him. Harold tried to punch him and hurt him, but his ethereal hooves passed through the unicorn's body as he walked his way to freedom.

His vision turned all red again as the voice spoke to him again.

"You see the truth? Princess Celestia is no saint. None of the princesses are. Find me and free me, and we can serve them the justice that you yearn for." The dark entity said.

"N-No. I refuse. Even if what you showed me is real, I can't take my anger out on the Princess. You're just trying to fool me into becoming bitter with hate! Well, I'm not going to fall for it! Leave me alone, and go show your lies to somepony else!" He shouted.

"So foalish and naïve, but soon you'll see the full, undeniable truth." The dark entity responded.

Harold was shown more memories, even though he wanted them to stop. He saw he was sent to live with a foster family. For some reason, they thought having a unicorn family take care of him was a good idea. The family wasn't as caring as his mom and dad had been and their son picked on him and bullied him, since the colt now had a fear of unicorns. It affected his life, but as he grew up, he became more and more determined to find a way for Earth ponies to use unicorn magic. Being a scientist, he had everything at his disposal, except the support he needed. Others around him thought he was crazy or foolish, for wasting his time on it. To him, it was important. He felt if his family had the ability to use magic to defend themselves, they wouldn't have been killed. It led up to the events, where he used a dark spell to gain access to unicorn magic and killed his marefriend with it.

"S-Scarlet is…dead…? No, that can't be true!" Harold said, tears streaming down his face.

"It is the truth. Unlike others, I have told you no lies. Do not weep for her. The mare deserved it."

"No, she did not! You claim to have told no lies, yet you have just told me one!"

"Have I? When you killed her, I rooted around in the mare's head and found this."

He was suddenly surrounded by flowers and fauna, which he recognized as the Canterlot Garden. He would sometimes come here with Scarlet, just to relax and cuddle with her after a long, hard day of work. He walked around, wondering why he was being shown this, when he heard a slight giggle.

"I know that giggle. That was Scarlet!" He followed the sounds of whispering voices before stumbling upon a secluded section. He heard the giggle again, much louder this time and heard a deeper voice accompanying it. He pulled the foliage back and immediate felt his heart drop into his stomach. He saw Scarlet, cuddling with one of the Pegasus guards. He thought that maybe she was being coerced into this situation by the stallion, but all excuses he was trying to come up with in his head were disintegrated when he clearly saw her pull the stallion in for a kiss. It was a small kiss either. It was deep, sexual and he could feel the strong emotion put behind it.

"No, no, why are you showing me lies? This has to be wrong! We were in love! She would never have…!"

"What, cheated on you? Look deep in your heart. You know it to be true. The nights she would mysteriously be working in the medical ward late; when she would suddenly cancel or change plans you two previously made and agreed on. Most of the time, she was going to meet with this stallion. Stop resisting the truth!"

"But…if it is true…if all of it is true…then everypony I've ever known has lied to me…" As it sank in, all of the deceit he had been exposed to, his mind started to bend and crack under the pressure. But the deceit that hurt the most was Scarlet's. He could feel his heart breaking as he looked at the scene playing out in front of him, and turned away from it.

"Is there anymore deceit I should know about? Why didn't I remember what actually happened to my parents? That is something that is bothering me."

"I have the answer to that as w-"

"Enough!" In a bright flash, Luna appeared in front of him. "I will not have you making a mockery of my sister, evil one!"

"Luna, such a pest…But, you're oblivious to what your sister does during the day, aren't you? This will be enlightening for you as well." The dark entity said, with a chuckle before the two of them were transported to one of the conference rooms in Canterlot Castle.

"What are you up to, evil spirit?" Luna asked.

"Showing you both the true nature of Celestia." The dark entity said.

"Look over there." Harold said, point to the far end of the table in the room. At the table sat Harold and Celestia. He noticed that the version of himself he was looking at had a beaker cutie mark.

"So, what can I do for you today?" Celestia asked.

"I was wondering if you could help me in my research." He said.

"What is it you have been researching?" She asked.

"Well, I've been studying unicorn magic and the essence of magic that exists in Earth ponies. I was wondering if you of a way Earth ponies could use unicorn magic?" He asked.

Celestia looked at him with a puzzled look. "I believe that is not possible in any realm of magic. May I ask why you are trying to discover a way to do the unimaginable?"

"I don't know if you remember, but do the names Mary and James Farnsworth, ring any bells?" He asked.

"Hmm…I cannot say with certainty they do. Who are they?"

"They're my parents. Or they were."

"Oh, I see. I am deeply sorry for your loss."

"You should be. They're dead because of you!"

"Because of me? What did I do?"

Harold stood on the table, visibly shaking with anger as he glared at Celestia. "More like what you didn't do! You were there the night they were killed and for the trial afterwards, but the killer got a minor punishment and you did nothing to give him the sentence he deserved!"

"Please, calm down. I-"

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down, you whorse!"

"I will not have you talk to me that way. I know you are upset over the death of your parents, and I give you my condolences, but I will not take the blame for something that was not my fault." Celestia said as she looked at him with a very stern look, but he seemed to not be intimidated by the princess sitting in front of him as he charged at Celestia menacingly. She grabbed him with her magic before he could land one blow. She put her horn to his head, and he slowly passed out. She set him down on the floor and after a few moments, Harold sat up, looking around dazed.

"Wh-What's going on? Where am I?" He asked.

"We were having a meeting and you suddenly passed out. Are you alright?" She asked.

"Yes, I think so. I'm sorry for passing out on you, Princess. What were we meeting about?"

"You were telling me about your research and I offered you a position as my magic advisor. You passed out before you could give me an answer, however. So, would you like the position?"

"I'd love to be your magic advisor! Wait, but why would want an Earth pony as your magic advisor? Wouldn't a unicorn be more fitting for that kind of position?"

"Normally, but you have insight into magic that most unicorns don't, so I think it will be very eye opening for the both of us."

"Well, thank you, Princess. I promise, I'll be the best magic advisor you've ever had!"

The vision then faded back to the all red surroundings that Harold was too familiar with.

"What you have shown must be false! Celestia would never mess with a pony's memories like that!" Luna said, angrily.

"No, I think it was real…" Harold said.

"No, you mustn't trust anything he says!" Luna said.

"Why? Should I trust you, when you've already lied to me?" Harold asked. "Don't try and tell me you haven't. Those early nightmares were actually memories. I realize that now. Why'd you tell me they weren't?"

"It-It was for your own protection! I was only looking out for you, and your well-being!" Luna said.

"Sure you were. I can't trust anypony…" He said.

"Well, Twilight and her friends have not lied to you, have they?" She asked.

"No, though Rainbow Dash did almost get me killed. That doesn't really earn them any trust points."

"I assure you that Twilight and her friends would not do anything to harm you. I am sorry my sister and I have."

"It's a little late for that, but you do have a point. They haven't betrayed me yet."

"And they won't! I assure you, they are the most dependable ponies I know!"

"You really believe her? She's lied to you once. What's to keep her from doing it again?" The dark voice said.

Harold put his head in his hooves. "Look, I just want to wake up for now."

"I believe you understand enough to make the correct choice. You may awake." The dark entity said before the red dreamscape disappeared along with Luna as Harold woke up.

Harold groaned as the sunlight blinded him for a few seconds as he sat up. He felt even more drained than usual as he got up. Everything he had seen swirled around in head as well as the conflicting feelings that came with them. He didn't know what to think. Part of him wanted to forgive and forget for what happened in the past, but at the same time, he wanted to be bitter at Celestia and Luna, go find the medallion the dark entity was being kept in and destroy them both. He wanted to see the fear in their eyes as he crushed them underhoof. He cringed from the thought.

"I can't take my anger out on them! I have to remain strong and keep that dark entity from winning. He's just trying to get under my skin, figuratively and literally. I can't let that happen!" He thought.

He got up from the bed slowly, sighing softly, before he went to get breakfast like usual. As he walked closer and closer to the dining room, he could hear voices coming from inside the room. He peeked in and saw Twilight and her friends were all sitting at the table, chatting amongst themselves. Harold entered the room, closing the door behind him, getting their attention.

"Mornin', Harold!" Applejack said.

"Morning, everypony. I wasn't expecting to see you here today." Harold said.

"We're having pancakes for breakfast! Here you go!" Pinkie said, putting a large stack of pancakes in front of him, that was too tall for him to see over. "I made them myself!"

"They look good. Thank you, Pinkie. So, what brings all of you to Twilight's castle, other than breakfast?" He asked as he started to eat the food in front of him, finding the taste to be very satisfying, enjoying them.

"The Grand Galloping Gala is tomorrow night, so we've gotten together to try and plan what we are going to do for the night." Rarity said.

"Wait…The Gala is tomorrow?! Oh, I completely forgot that it was that soon! I don't have my suit with me!" Harold said.

"That's perfectly alright. I've finished the suit for Spike, and the other projects I was working on, so I have plenty of time to work on a suit for you. I normally don't do male attire, but if making this suit for you goes well, I may just have to consider adding a male line to my work." Rarity said.

"That would be great and I'll pay you whatever you'd like for it." He said.

"No charge necessary. You helped me with my project, so consider it a sign of gratitude for your generosity."

"I really appreciate that." He said.

"I'm so glad that you're attending the Gala. I'm sure Princess Celestia will be happy to see you, after being gone for so long." Twilight said.

"I certainly hope so, and that she won't be upset with me for not going back to Canterlot right away." He said.

"I'm sure she won't be upset. She's a very understanding pony." Twilight said.

"Yeah, I'm sure she is." Harold said, before continuing to eat his food.

Twilight and her friends looked at each other with a questioning look, as Harold suddenly seemed to have negative reaction to that.

"Why did you react like that?" Twilight asked.

"React like what?" He asked.

"You seemed, I don't know, upset, when I said that about Celestia." She replied

"Oh, did I? Sorry. I haven't been sleeping very well, as you know." He said.

"Still having nightmares?" She asked. Harold nodded.

"Nightmares? Somepony want to explain to the rest of us what in the hay you all are talking about?" Applejack asked.

"Don't worry about it. It's nothing." Harold said.

"You sure? It certainly doesn't seem like nothing." Rarity said.

"I said I'm fine!" Harold shouted, causing a dead silence to fill the room. He sighed deeply before taking another bite of his food and getting up from the table.

"Where are you going?" Twilight asked.

"Going to Rarity's boutique to wait for her there." He said, leaving the room before anypony could protest. The others sat there, in confusion and shock. Spike came in, walking up to the table and sitting down where Harold had been.

"What's wrong with Harold? I said, good morning to him and he didn't respond." Spike said.

"We don't know. He said he hasn't been sleeping well. Maybe that's why he's so grumpy." Twilight said.

"I can speak from experience that not gettin' a good night's rest can really make you crazier than a group of cows stuck in a pig pen at a week-long rodeo." Applejack said.

"I can relate. I know I get cranky when I don't get my seven-hour nap in the middle of the day." Spike said.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. Like he said, it's nothing. If it was something to be worried about, he would have told us." Rainbow said.

"Yeah. He doesn't seem like the type to keep in his feelings." Fluttershy said.

"I agree. Now, let's eat before the pancakes get cold!" Pinkie said before taking a huge bite out of the stack of pancakes in front of her. The others laughed, before eating their breakfast as well.

Harold paced back and forth outside of Rarity's boutique. He wondered what was taking her so long, when he heard hoofsteps coming towards him. He looked up, seeing Rarity walk over to him.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting." She said, as she took her key out and went into the boutique, before holding the door for him.

"It's alright. Have a good breakfast?" He asked.

"I did. Now, let's take your measurements so I know how the suit should fit." She said.

He nodded and followed her directions as she took a measuring tape to measure his chest, collar, the length of his back, the radius of his legs, and a few others. Once she had them all, she went over to the rack with different fabrics on it.

"Are you looking for a sturdier feel to the suit, or you want something that breathes?" She asked. "I want to make sure you're comfortable while wearing it, of course."

"I think something that breathes would be nice." He said.

She nodded and took a roll of fabric off the rack before putting it into a rack holder next to her workbench. She continued to ask him about what he wanted for the design, color, and the gems she would use on it. He didn't choose too many gems since he didn't want to draw too much attention to himself at the gala. After his memories coming back to him, he wasn't too thrilled about attending another.

Rarity had put some loose parts of the suit together and had him wear them so she could adjust them accordingly. She noticed he was fidgeting a bit as she pinned some of the fabric in place.

"Dear, I'm going to need you to stop moving. It would be terrible if I didn't pin the right spot." She said.

"Sorry. I'm not really a fan of formal attire." He said.

"Really? How? I thought all Canterlot ponies fancied formal attire. Some even wear it on a daily basis." She said.

"Ever since I was young, I never have. Having to wear restrictive, stuffy clothing and a tie around your neck; it's just not my taste, is all." He said.

"I see. Well, to each their own, I suppose." She said. "That's one of the reasons I wish I could live in Canterlot. I could wear my dresses all the time, upping business just from showing off my amazing, captivating designs and sense of fashion."

"That's…great…" He said. He noticed that a few of Twilight's friends tended to brag about themselves a lot. While he was happy about their accomplishments, it was getting a bit annoying that they felt the need to remind him about it whenever he was alone in their presence.

"That's why I'm so glad I have a boutique there now, and that it gets such great business!"

"Ok, I get it! Can you just continue to work on my suit, please?" He asked, with an annoyed expression on his face.

"I'm sorry…I didn't mean to upset you." She said.

She continued to work on his suit and once the pieces were pinned with the correct color coded pin. She removed them and started to sew them together.

"It will take me the rest of the day to finish it. If I need you for anything, I will let you know." Rarity said.

He nodded and walked out of the establishment. He decided to go for a walk through the town, looking around. He looked at all of the ponies passing by him. All of them had smiles on their faces, like everything was fine with the world, but inside his head, it was a whirlwind of conflicting thoughts and feelings.

"How can any of them walk around like everything in the universe was fine? They're being ruled by a tyrant, who does as she pleases…messing with ponies' memories and way of life, just to keep her rule as clean as possible…No, she probably just didn't want me to suffer anymore and that's why she got rid of them and didn't tell me…But if that is all it was, why did Luna try to hide from me that the memories were real? It just doesn't make sense!" He thought as he walked. He noticed that his surroundings had become dark. "Huh? What's going on? It's too early to be nighttime."

The sounds of angry howls made him look up and jump a bit. It was dark, and cold, which wasn't helping ease his nerves. Just when he felt like the darkness of the forest was going to swallow him whole, he came to an open space in the forest. In front of him was an old, rickety bridge that didn't seem safe to walk on. He probably wouldn't have considered doing so if it wasn't for what he saw in the distance. In the distance, just beyond the bridge, was a small castle. It was worn down, so he could tell nopony lived there anymore, but despite that, he could feel something summoning him to that place. He tentatively crossed the bridge, glad that it didn't break as he crossed it, but jumped as he heard a snapping sound behind him. He turned around and saw that the loose vines that had barely been holding the bridge together snapped and the wooden planks plummeted into the dark abyss below.

"Well, there's definitely no turning back now." He thought as he made his way to the castle. He pushed open the entrance and immediately noticed the decorations inside. There were depictions of the sun and moon everyone inside the main hall on banners that hung on the walls. He realized that this castle most likely belonged to Celestia and Luna at some point. He wondered why he had been brought there. He walked through the halls, seeing old fashioned, clunky armor lining the walls before coming to what looked like the old throne room. He saw two thrones, one large one and a smaller one next to it. He knew which one was which but Luna's was so small, it felt insignificant compared to the grander one that Celestia must have sat in.

"Insignificant…just like you are to Twilight…"

He heard the voice of the dark entity, but instead of being in his head, he heard from somewhere inside the room. He looked around for the source, but couldn't see anypony else in the vicinity, but he could definitely feel a presence. It felt like the one that had beckoned him here in the first place.

"Show yourself!" Harold shouted as he continued to look around cautiously.

"I would, but alas, I'm locked away, and only you can help me, Harold. But becoming friends, even with the Princess of Friendship, won't help you achieve your destiny. I know what your true destiny is. It's with me! Find me and I'll give you the greatest destiny you could ever dream of!"

"Stop messing with my head! Haven't you done enough? I want absolutely nothing to do with you!" Harold shouted.

"Are you sure about that? Don't you recall the fun times we had before we were torn apart from one another?" The voice asked, before laughing evilly.

Harold cringed and covered his ears, trying to block out the voice. "Shut up! Get out of my head!"

"You're the one who let me in. I may be locked away in this medallion, but the moment you completed that potion, you gave yourself to me: body, mind and soul. You know we're meant to be one again. Find me, Harold. I'll show you how much Princess Twilight Sparkle doesn't care about you or your well-being. How it's all an act. She is a princess, after all. They're all self-centered egomaniacs. You said it yourself."

"I know I did, but you made me! I don't think that about any of the princesses! Especially not about Twilight! Just, leave me alone!" He shouted, before turning to run from the castle.

As he ran, he accidentally tripped and tumbled into one of the old fashioned suits of armor lining the wall. When he hit it, the wall flipped around, sending him down a long slide. He dug his hooves into the slide as he tried to stop himself as it sloped dangerously before he was deposited in a room. He slid across the room, slamming into a wall. He stood up, thankfully unharmed, but saw he was under the castle in a dimly lit room. He grabbed the torch on the wall and ventured through the room as he tried to find a way back to the surface. He felt a mysterious energy coming from nearby, the energy drawing him to it. He walked into the hallway, but didn't see another doorway anywhere. He stopped in front of a part of the wall where the energy he was sensing became almost overwhelmingly strong. He felt along the wall before pulling down on a brick that was sticking out, causing a door to open in the wall. As he peered into the room, he could see a faint red glow. Under other circumstances, he would have turned back, ran from the place and never looked back, but the energy continued to pull him in. He walked into another room and put the torch in the holder, next to the doorway. He heard the torch holder move before the room filled with light as many other torches were lit. He noticed a box at the far end of the room. With each step he took towards the mysterious box. He grabbed the box and tried to open it, but found it was locked. He didn't see a key, or anyway to open it, and noticed that the keyhole wasn't a regular one. It had some elaborate design, and he felt that a spell would open it. He decided to take it with him, thinking that Twilight would be able to find a way to open it.