Once upon a time, Spike went for a walk.

While on his walk, he was judged by an ancient alicorn, lodged with griffons, parlayed with air pirates, charmed a maiden of a mystical race, and dealt with the scourges of hate, fear, and racism while deliberately drawing the armies of myriad nations to the brink of global war.

Once upon a time, Spike went for a walk, and did all of this so that he could keep a promise to the one that meant the most to him... Twilight Sparkle.

In the first of three books, Pillars of the Sun (Chapters 1-15), Spike is devastated by Twilight's fate and grows more and more despondent as he attempts to understand what has happened to his dearest friend. A gentle nudge from a pony he trusts sends him looking for answers. When that nudge becomes a push he unravels ancient secrets... and risks losing himself before his attempt to rescue Twilight can even begin.

When Spike asked Twilight to help him create The Noble Dragon Code, he hoped a lot of things would happen.

Getting worshipped as a god by legions of theologically-inclined dragons wasn't really one of them but, hey, whattcha gonna do? Them's the breaks, kiddo.

A young Twilight Sparkle can't sleep. And why should she? It's Hearthswarming Day tomorrow! And so, she stays up in the night, eyeing her gifts, just waiting to open them. But Santa won't come if she stays awake. Perhaps an early Hearthswarming present will help her rest easy?

Yes. It will. And it will do much more than that...

Filly Twilight Sprite by mini-deus

Written for the The Great Shipping Collab.

Few ponies know that Daring Do is a real pony, her adventures only rarely bring her back to Equestria. But any time they do, she's drawn to a hut inside a gnarled tree in the Everfree Forest, where the zebra she loves waits for her. This time, Daring offers Zecora a choice, to send Daring off on another dangerous adventure, or keep her safe at home. To find the answer, Zecora will have to weigh heart against soul, and love against desire.

Based on a pairing randomly generated by Garbo802, preread by Garbo802, DbzOrDie, Jackie and First_Down.

If I were a pegasus... I would relive those days of glory. I would relive those days of my foalhood. I would take more chances. I would take more risks. If I were a pegasus, I wouldn't be here right now. I'd be scraping my wings against the sky, beating them against the air with purpose. I would be chasing a dream, a dream of someone near and dear. If I were a pegasus... I would have you.

SkyFy by unitoone

It's Sisterhooves Social time again. This year, Dash catches wind of two new competitors and gets Spike to bet on the race. When her team is revealed to be a rather famous set of siblings, it looks like poor Spike will be her slave for a week! However, due to a team of masseurs, a minor invasion, unfortunate addictions, and dubious barrel components, victory might not be as near as she thinks...

Let's be serious here. We all love our ponies. We all love our stories as well. But sometimes I think that we forget ourselves. There are so many stories here of tragedy and loss. There are so many stories here that involve quirky and surreal situations. And so, to rekindle a sort of forgotten flame, here is The Great Equestrian Picturebook, so that we can more so remember the kid inside of us.

This is pretty much a drawfriend with words.

And absolutely nothing happens. At all.

Contains adult themes. But it's not like that's going to stop anybody, so whatever.

Cover art by balister, and editing credits go to my sexy cop in a nurse outfit, Future

"I want to see the sunset," Twilight said to Applejack, whose face beset with freckles glowed radiantly in the afternoon sun. "Can you lead us there?"

Cover art by artsaus

Every Saturday morning, Joe tunes in to watch a show originally intended for little girls. Why does he do it? What does he stand to gain from it? One could say that it brings him joy. One could say that it brings him inspiration.

One could say that it brings him hope.

Cover Image titled Artificial Stars by zungzwang