Crimson decided that it would be wise for him to visit the ponies he remembered from when he stayed in Ponyville last time. After grabbing his bag and putting the journal and tarot cards into it, he head out into town, Bleeding Heart following along behind him. Crimson had begun to accept Bleeding Heart's protective nature, but sometimes wished that he wouldn't make him seem so helpless. Regardless, Crimson discarded these thoughts, knowing it wouldn't help him to keep thinking such things. After a fairly long walk, Crimson arrived at Ponyville's library. He knocked on the door and a lavender unicorn answered it a few seconds later.

"Hi there Twilight. Remember me?" Crimson asked with a smile.

"Crimson? Crimson Breeze, is that you?" she looked rather shocked when he nodded in response. "You look so different. Its only been a couple of years. What brings you back here anyway? She had a load of questions for Crimson, but refrained from asking them all at once.

"I decided to move back here. Something happened down at the valley and I wanted to leave. I would have gone to Canterlot but I don't feel like I'm ready to." Crimson sighed.

"Well you should never do something you're not feeling up to, especially something that important. Just take your time." Twilight said in an attempt to comfort Crimson a little.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm just gonna enjoy life here in Ponyville until I'm ready. For now though, I'm gonna head out and see the others. I think they're probably gonna be happy to see me again." Crimson started to smile again, knowing he still had friends who cared about him.

"Mind if I join you? I just finished my studying and I was going to go and see Applejack for a little while." She already had her saddlebag on, so she assumed Crimson wouldn't say no.

"I don't see why not. It gives us a little time to catch up." Crimson started walking towards Sweet Apple Acres, with Twilight walking at his side.

Since they had a long distance to walk, Twilight thought it would be a good time to ask Crimson a few things. "So what happened at the valley that made you want to leave?"

Crimson was rather shocked when he heard her ask that. He didn't have a reason to hide anything anymore, but he didn't think she would believe him if he told her about the journal and the existence of Shadows. "Well I don't know if you will believe me, but I will tell you if you want me to."

"I'm pretty open-minded. Plus, I can't think of a reason why you would lie to me." Twilight said with a smile. She did trust Crimson. She was just worried that he didn't trust her.

"Well alright. The truth is that while I was living in the valley, I was using my journal to write down all my deepest secrets and hidden feelings. Eventually these feelings manifested themselves as a pony who looked almost exactly like me. He called himself a Shadow and he told me that he was the result of my magic and my emotions being poured into the pages of my journal. His intentions were to reveal the things I had been hiding to the other ponies living in town. Even though I managed to stop him after a little self-realisation, I eventually confessed on my own. Some accepted it. Others did not. So after a little time to reflect on it, I decided to move." Crimson looked at Twilight to see that she was very confused, which didn't suprise him in the slightest.

"That was a lot to take in, but I do believe you. Mind if I ask a few more questions about this? There are still some things I want to understand." She gave him a sincere smile, showing that she really did care about what he had to say. Crimson was happy to see that she understood him, which would make it easier to tell her everything she wanted to know.

"Go ahead Twilight. I have nothing to hide anymore." Crimson took his journal out of his bag, just in case Twilight wanted to see it.

"I assume thats your journal that the Shadow came out of." Twilight walked closer to him to try and get a look at it. Crimson opened it up and let Twilight look inside.

"Inside that journal, is everything I have been hiding from everypony for years." Crimson said as Twilight flicked through the pages, while still walking alongside him.

"You really feel this way sometimes? I had no idea. Crimson, why didn't you tell anypony?" Crimson was majorly suprised to hear her reaction, but he knew it was genuine. Since he didn't know what to say, he just stayed silent and looked down. "Everypony has a side to them like this. We all have things we don't want others to know. We even have things we hide from ourselves. You just need to remember that true friends will understand if you tell them the truth."

Crimson had nothing to say at this point. He knew everything Twilight said was true. He had learned it all first hand because of Bleeding Heart. To show that he understood her, Crimson faced Twilight, smiled and nodded. It wasn't much, but it said enough.

"I'm glad you understand Crimson. This journal answers most of my questions. Although I do have one other question for you. What happened to your Shadow?"

Crimson didn't say a word. He felt it was better if Bleeding Heart answered that question. Although he was no longer in flesh, Bleeding Heart could reveal himself to anyone he wished. Suddenly, Twilight saw a blood red pony standing next to Crimson, looking right at Twilight. "I am Bleeding Heart, Crimson's Shadow."

Twilight instantly jumped back. She wasn't scared, but he did catch her by suprise. "You were telling the truth all along. Now I'm just even more confused."

"Do not let the confusion get to you. Consider me a part of Crimson, since that is exactly what I am." Bleeding Heart did not want Twilight to get too involved in their endeavours. After all, anyone who got involved could end up in serious danger. Bleeding Heart knew there was something in that journal. He just didn't know what.

"If you say so. Just remember that you can always talk to me about problems like this. I am your friend after all." Twilight smiled as they approached the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres. Bleeding Heart vanished once more as they walked through the gate to go and find Applejack. Next Chapter: Bearing the Truth Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 11 Minutes