Editor's Note: Nanoman wishes to let all of you know that he had this planned from the beginning, and he regrets nothing. Please do not kill him and/or riot over the events of this chapter. ~Discord

~Home?~

January 31st
11:34 am
Outskirts of Ponyville, near Sweet Apple Acres
Ventus Stormwing

I could feel the excitement in my hooves. Just a few short miles and I'd be in my home again! I'd be able to see all my friends again, and most of all… I'd get to see Fluttershy again. I couldn't bear to be away from her for this long, and I knew she missed me too. I felt like breaking out into song… but I'd save it for when we did meet again. Rather, I asked Blitz, "So who in Ponyville is your friend?"

"His name's Appleseed." Blitz responded. "Now, I know nopony who lives in Ponyville is named that. But he's a member of the Apple family, as you could guess, and I'd chance that a member of that family here would know where to find him. Who knows? Maybe he's here, visiting his kin." The pegasus trotted past me quickly. I still had my suspicions, but the giddiness of almost seeing Fluttershy again made me forget it. I'd help out Blitz's friend, then go see her.

Soon, we made it to the entrance to the farm. Cherry Cake bounced along like Pinkie did, trying to grab an apple in her mouth as she passed a tree. Stitch simply tried to avoid getting too much dirt on his hooves. Up ahead, I could see an unfamiliar brown earth stallion. His mane was untidy and a shade of blond, and had a Stetson hat on top of it. By the seed on his flank, I'd hazard a guess that this was Appleseed.

"Hello there," I called, grabbing his attention. "Beautiful day, isn't it?"

"Enope." Came the reply. I glanced upwards, to a perfectly clear sky with nary a cloud.

"Let me guess," I turned to Blitz. "His thing was honesty, and now he lies everything he says?"

"That's pretty much it, Ventus." Blitz said.

"Then you don't know how easy this one is." I smirked with my reply. To get Applejack to lie back home, I'd do the simplest of things- tell a paradox or two. It'd stump her so much that she'd stumble, and according to Twilight, her brain would re-wire itself. If Appleseed's anything like the mare I know, he'd do the same. Grinning, I turned to the stallion, and simply said, "This sentence is false."

"Eyup… err, Enope… uh… what the hay?" he was shaking his head, a sure sign what I was doing was working. All of a sudden, his entire form dropped to the ground, and his eyes snapped shut. Blitz and his friends behind me gasped in shock, but I held up a hoof to calm them down. In a few minutes, Appleseed sprung back to life his coat color seeming fuller then before.

"Feeling better?" I asked. Appleseed nodded in his response, and everypony cheered for half a second.

"Well that was… faster than I expected…" Blitz said.

"Yeah!" Cherry Cake intervened, "It's almost as if the author wanted to get past this part of the story quickly to move on to something more important!" We all just stared at her for a few seconds. "What? It's just a hunch."

Shaking my head, I found my familiar giddiness building back up. I was home! "Appleseed," I said, turning to the farmpony, "Is Applejack home?"

"Applejack?" he asked me. "Hmm… Enope, no Applejack here. Ah don't reckon anypony in the family's named that." My eye twitched.

"But… this is her farm, Sweet Apple Acres… What about Big Macintosh?" I asked. Another shake of the head. "Applebloom? Granny Smith?" He shook his head.

"Enope. This here's mah farm. Has been since mah family came here." Panic set in. Without thinking, I flared my wings open, taking to the sky. Blitz shouted my name, but I didn't care. I soared to Ponyville as fast as I could, probably being able to give Dash a run for her bits. The town below me bustled with pony activity, but none of them even looked remotely familiar. However, my sights were set on a small clearing outside of town, where I knew a cottage would be.

When I touched down on the ground, and looked around, I spotted the cottage just as I left it. Grinning, I bolted over and burst through the door. "Fluttershy, I'm home!" I shouted. I expected the mare to run up and hug me, or something… but she didn't come. In fact, the home looked abandoned, and nopony, or any other life, seemed to be in it despite the busy town nearby. "But… where… Fluttershy?" I called out again.

"She's not here, Ventus." I heard from behind me. Blitz and his friends were in the doorway, and he walked in himself. "Nopony you know is here- well, perhaps one or two."

"And how do you know that, Blitz?" I snapped at him.

"I… can't tell you." He replied. Enraged, my magic unleashed itself, pinning him against the wall of the cottage.

"No. I'm tired of your secrets, Blitz!" I roared. "Tell me just what the buck is going on, and why the mare I love isn't here?" my eyes bore into his, demanding an answer. "I've helped you and your friends for a while now, and I demand to know what is going on!"

"Alright, I'll break it to y quickly, just put me down." Blitz said. Reluctantly, I did so, ending the spell I had started out of anger. "Ventus, the reason you can't see Fluttershy, Applejack, or any other one of your friends… is because you're dead, Ventus."

"That's a good joke, Blitz. I might have laughed if I wasn't pissed off." I threatened.

"I'm not joking, Ventus. This is the afterlife." I turned to his friends, my friends, and saw them nodding Even Appleseed, who apparently mirrored Applejack in the honesty department, was nodding in agreement. Hesitantly, I brushed my mane with my hoof, drawing out the creature I met in the fire temple. Even he showed his agreement when asked.

"But… Celestia's spell, it only amplified my teleportation spell… it didn't kill me…" I said.

"Yes, it did, Ventus. I wanted to keep you from knowing the truth to protect your innocence." Blitz said. "If I knew it would devastate you, I'd have-"

"You'd have what, Blitz?" I shouted. "Hid it from me more? Tell me I couldn't ever see Fluttershy again because I was dead? And you thought that was a good thing to hide form me? AND YOU BUCKING KNEW ABOUT IT THE WHOLE TIME?" I was enraged.

"Well… yes?" He said, sheepishly looking away. "Listen, Ventus, I was under oath-"

"I DON'T BUCKING CARE!" My scream echoed through the cottage and the surrounding area. "I trusted you, Blitz. I trusted you. And you were shitting on that trust behind my back the entire time."

"Ventus, I apologize, but-"

"No. I'm done, Blitz. I'm done following you around. Find somepony else to help you." I moved to go outside the cottage, but then stopped. "No, you know what? You leave. All of you. If Nopony's living, or rather, dying here, I will. Now get the buck out."

Blitz moved closer to me. "Ventus, please reconsider, this is more important-"

"What part of 'get out' don't you understand? You've ruined me, Blitz. If I'd had known from the beginning, maybe I wouldn't have as much hatred towards you. It would explain how I woke up at the minotaur camp. I might have even helped you anyway. But now? You've lied to me, hidden the truth, and expected me to follow your beck and call to 'help' you. I'm done with you."

Appleseed walked up to Blitz. "C'mon, sugarcube. Let's get on outta here. It's obvious Ventus needs some time alone."

"Yeah… sorry, Ventus…" Blitz said. His downtrodden form left the building, along with his friends. I slammed the door behind them, then looked around the cottage. So many memories of this place… good times with Fluttershy. I walked up the stairs to the small bedroom I slept in before. No bed here. The Afterlife must not be updated to match real life perfectly, I guess.

I couldn't bring myself to go to the room I knew Fluttershy slept in. I just couldn't. Instead, I went down to the couch downstairs, climbed on it, and did something no stallion would ever admit they did.

I cried.

~End of segment~

Editor's Note: Again, Nanoman apologizes for the amount of WTF he just pulled on you. Please don't burn him at the stake. Even though I'd enjoy it with cotton candy popcorn. ~Discord

~Honesty~

That Night

Applejack

Now, I'd had strange dreams before. But to be standing on a stained-glass platform, with a big picture of myself, smaller ones of my friends, and Sweet Apple Acres? That takes the cake there. Nothing else was here, even, save for a few scattered platforms in the distance. Then, a stallion appeared. "Dang it, this isn't going to be like one of Rarity's dreams, now is it?" I asked.

"Enope." The stallion said. "Mah name's Appleseed, and Ah presume you're Applejack?" he asked.

"Yeah, Ah reckon' Ah am. But Ah've never heard of your name in the family before." He walked around me.

"Ah know ya don't lie, Applejack. Ah'm much the same. Ah'm your ancestor, long-dead folk. Ah won't hide a secret from yourself." As much as I shouldn't have believed him, I did find myself doing so. "The proof's the hat on your head."

"How does mah daddy's Stetson prove anythin'?" I said, taking the article of clothing off. He did the same, and gestured to the inside seam. There, plain as day, was a small, embroidered apple, in the same spot as each other. "Well Ah'll be…"

Appleseed smiled, and just as I was about to ask a question, he vanished, leaving a small, orange chest on the ground. Upon opening it, I found a small key, the end of which had three apples on it.

"Ah promise Ah'll tell ya the whole truth when we meet!"

~End of Chapter~

A/N: Thanks for 10,000 views! you guys are awesome! ~Nano