When Spike returns home early from a gathering he sees something that causes him to go running from their little home...the sight of Twilight and Caramel together.

Once Twilight finds him, shivering and cold, she decides to try to address his fears...by giving him The Talk.

But, to Twilight's surprise, it may not be a talk about basic biology that Spike needs...perhaps something far more important is on his mind.

"They take da' pain out, make it somethin' good, somethin' good. Wear yer' blues well, colt, you gonna earn every drop of em'. Yer' gonna be tangled up in blues," the old stallion told Blues, presenting him with the saxophone.

Blues himself tells us of his life after that day and as he explores what it means to be "painted blue"; to hope, to fear, to love, to lose. He tells us as he learns what really makes a stallion a stallion, what it's like to leave something you love behind, and what risks one must face in life or risk becoming nothing at all.

All of this, Blues tells us, takes place against the background of critical moments in his life and as he travels the scope of Equestria from Manehattan to Ponyville and Appleoosa. All the while the songs he learns from his pain mingle with the one his mentor, Moody Blues, revealed within him...something unbelievable the old pony did to bring it forth.

During a day at the fair Spike wins a prize at a carnival game! As he enjoys all that the fair offers his mind continues to return to the token...and what a fair marking the turning point between summer and autumn means for him and the ponies he loves.

Gathered here are a series of short Pony stories for your enjoyment, pondering, bemusement, and mortification.

The Singular Constant (Slice of Life)(Random) - Twilight and Spike's surrealist exploration of their relationship.

Apples to Apples (Slice of Life)(Shipping) - Applejack tells us all about apples! And, well... Apples.

If You Give a Changeling a Cupcake (Comedy) - Carrot Cake chases a changeling around Sugar Cube Corner� with a golf club. Based on a series of children's books.

First Day on the Job (Slice of Life)(Adventure) - After his first adventure helping the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, Spike has an epiphany.

Hello (Dark) - A draconiquis meets someone new.

By Shades (Slice of Life) - Celestia awaits the return of a loved one... and finds out why she arrived where she did.

How do you explain to someone that you want to be something else?

It's a motto Silver Standard lives by.

Money can't buy you happiness
But it can buy apathy and scotch

But as the head of Equestria's number one bank, a motto is all he can live by.

"My name is Rainbow Dash... and I am an egghead"

A/N: Boredom: Biggest cause of random fictions since I made up this statistic.

In the middle of Winter, three ponies are keeping warm together.

A/N: Written as part of the random polyamory game in the Intelligent Shipping Discussion group.
Cover art taken from the episode: Dragon Quest (Season 2, episode 21).

Twilight Sparkle struggles to find a meaningful gift for Princess Celestia.

It was supposed to be just a regular day for Applejack... until a peach farmer comes to town and challenges her to a rodeo competition. She doesn't know who this pony is, but he's out to beat her in whatever way he can. What did she do to tick him off? Does he really think he can beat Ponyville's best? There's only one way to find out.

Cover credit: atryl