Sunset's had enough. All the hate aimed at her on a daily bases for a crime she never even committed finally pushed her to the breaking point. When she finally decides to end the pain, a former victim of her cruelty becomes her savior. Now the battle to gather what little remains of Sunset's heart has begun, and with her new friends at her sides, will she be victorious or will Anon-a-miss finally break what's left of her?

There are good reasons why most unicorns want nothing to do with time magic: it's dangerous. One tiny slip-up could have far-flung consequences no one saw coming, something few understand better than Starlight Glimmer now that she's seen it for herself.

Which is why, after testing a temporal spell of her own creation results in her waking up in her old village with a nasty headache, she sets out to fix her mistake at any cost... only to find that destiny seems to have a different plan in mind for her, and a rather unlikely set of allies.

Cover designed by Novel-Idea!

Featured on Equestria Daily!

What Readers Are Saying...

"You make the waterworks happen," -Stardust_Scratch

"It has been like watching a gruesome car crash. You cannot look away from it, and it tears you apart, you are sure you are gonna have nightmares about it, but you just keep reading." -llDenkerll

"Have any of you ever accidentally’ed your way into a horror story, that was way darker than you thought it was going to be? ...I’m going to go scrub my brain down with a few hours of mindless pony fluff... I am enjoying the story I swear," -fargo11

"The ending of the last chapter left me with hope, with expectations, while the end of this chapter leaves me with sorrow, with emptiness, with hopelessness. I need more," -Anshlun

"I lack any words to describe how fucked this whole situation is. It hurts so much. Good job," -Hermaeus xerxes

"This story has some painful feels to it... I need time to think now," -Destiny Chaser

"Every time I read the witches' dialogue I feel genuinely scared... I don't have a clue of what's going to happen," -TheFaceofMercy

Starlight Glimmer had always been a difficult pony.

She's getting better, though! Really! Three years of living with the Princess of Friendship, one of the most beloved ponies in Equestria, is bound to rub off on a mare. Though Starlight continues to grapple with her insecurities and past mistakes, she never would have presumed she'd be free of the guilt - as it should be.

Yet over the years, she's come into her own as a devoted, passionate, and empathetic friend (despite a few bumps here and there).

But one day, like any other, a strange illness befalls Princess Twilight Sparkle. Starlight is driven to a foal's storybook for answers. Armed with her magic and faith, the ex-student follows a crumb trail leading to one reclusive group dwelling in the heart of an otherworldly bog. If there was any salvation for the pony who'd saved Starlight, it lay solely with them. Except when the time comes for payment to be collected, what's left behind is picked up by Twilight and her friends.

And Starlight doesn't want them to. For how can something so broken be put back together? She'd much rather save them all the trouble...

^{Canon divergence one year after 'The Movie,' post-season seven}

Rated-T for some disturbing imagery and heavy themes concerning depression

Artwork of the Witches by Hermaeus Xerxes: https://derpicdn.net/img/view/2019/9/22/2150483.png

Starlight's Theme: Above and Beyond by Paul Dinletir
Twilight's Theme: Homecoming by Jeff Marsh
The Broken Bond Theme: The Birth of a Soul by Fran Soto

Pre-reader/Editor: JD McGregor
Cover Artist: Calenita

Anon-a-miss, the mysterious gossiper, plagues CHS. Caught as the perfect scapegoat, Sunset finds herself more shunned than ever before. While determined to clear her name, Sunset decides that first she needs a break. From everything. Back in the place she used to call home.

But as soon as Sunset leaves, her friends at CHS realize the depth of their mistake. Not just in accusing Sunset, but also in forgetting Sunset is not like any other human. As they try with all their might to earn back their friend's trust, they quickly come to learn that they know very little about Sunset and the world she hails from.

And worse for the girls, as Sunset begins to pick up the shards of her old life in Equestria, she begins to wonder whether she really wants to stay at CHS at all.

After decades of war, the Crystal Empire is finally on the verge of defeat.

On the eve before marching upon King Sombra’s last stronghold, a lone night ranger stumbles upon a strange unicorn, a mare who claims to be the cause of all their pain and suffering.

Love Tap has to have ‘the talk’ with her teenage son. Except it’s not about the birds and the bees. It’s much worse and much, MUCH more uncomfortable.

Not quite "gore" but contains talk about eating questionable content.

Part of the Love Call of the Sirens storyline.

"Thanks" to Mitch H for a little tidbit about horses. You guys can thank Majin Syeekoh for not writing his own take on the idea like we discussed.

When Fluttershy went to bed, she was a normal mare. When she woke up, she could see numbers floating over everypony's heads. They were timers, each one counting down to some unknown event. Most ponies had timers that wouldn't end for years, some for many decades. But everypony had different numbers.

So why does Rainbow Dash's timer end in three hours?

Editing provided by TheMaskedFerret and SolidFire.
Cover art by HopefulSparks!
Spanish translation by SPANIARD KIWI!

The mirror to the world of CHS was not the only mirror portal. It was just one of many, including one to an alternate Equestria.

Celestia once made a trip in the interest of knowledge and learned something not quite what she thought she would.

And the cost was heartache.

Shipping: Celestia x Alternate Universe Sombra

A gift for Lotus Moon.

Hit popular stories 10/27/17

The Rainbooms and some of their friends talk about ‘boob pockets’, muse on the nature of interdimensional clothing, and take a vote regarding if a pair of pants should stay on or be taken off.

Inspired by a conversation with thegreatcat14 and perhaps a piece of her art or two...

Thanks to her and also Nova Quill and Tired Old Man for their input, edits, and help!

XCOM Record: Operation: Rising Star
11:52 am, 18th Febuary, 2016
Northwestern Territories, Canada.

Summary: Witness reports contact with extra-terrestrial creature. X-ray is unconcious and unresponsive. X-ray does not match description of previously observed species.

Response: Strike-One dispatched on high alert, orders are to recover X-ray alive. Alien Containment prepared for the new arrival.

***

The war ended. They were beaten back, their mothership destroyed, their command structure in ruins. Lost ships and soldiers continued in vain, but thanks to XCOM, humanity won, and the world was saved. The Volunteer saw to that - everything changed because of one man.

And then suddenly, everything changed again. Only this time, it's not a man's doing - it's a mare's.

Proofreading by the aweome Setokaiva, entirely without me asking!
Tagged Dark and rated Teen: Gore, because there is going to be some blood shed by the end of this.