Hearts and Hooves Day is a fun holiday for most. Candy, heartfelt gifts, what's there for a pony not to love?

However, when a young filly named Cinnamon Bun doesn't get so much as a card from anypony in her class, it's up to Ebony Stars, her batpony friend, to cheer her up.

But, as the years go by for the two, what started off as an anonymous love letter he sent to her in the guise of a secret admirer may develop into something much deeper.

Commissioned by Anonymous.
Cover art by DLowell.

Idol Hooves holds a special place in Equestria. He's probably the only exiled changeling to serve in the Royal Guard, or at least, that's what he expects, as exiles don't really broadcast that fact. However, it's well known that Princess Celestia loves all of her little ponies, and her guards perhaps more so, and that makes it one of the best ways for a changeling to discreetly feed.

But how does a changeling even get there, let alone get exiled in the first place? For that matter, why would it ever go to Canterlot? Set a number of years before the series proper, before Luna’s redemption, Idol details how he was exiled, the ponies he’s met, and the series of misadventures that led him to joining the Royal Guard, and should continue a good ways into the series, as something of an alternate perspective.

Soon, he’ll have to deal with a boisterous new princess to serve and a royal wedding in the works bringing a third to power. Will his old instincts bring this new life crashing down around him? What precipitates Chrysalis’s ill-fated assault on Canterlot? Is it really so wrong for a changeling to enjoy good craftsmanship to an obsessive degree?

New cover art provided by the fantastic Carnifex

And a TVTropes page here.

And an Ask Blog of questionable canonity!
Out of Idol Curiosity

Fanart by Norad2! Major thanks! Short For a Royal Guard

Art by Egophiliac of Idol and his Daring Duckie Please don't tell him what that brush is meant for.

Rating updated to (T), it's a bit darker than (E)
Comedy Tag added as well
And changed the character tags a bit.

Changeling Twilight Sparkle and her number-one assistant, Sunset Shimmer, try to study magic without learning any wholesome lessons of friendship. They fail.

Ponyville: Seven.

Crystal Empire: Four.

Canterlot: Two.

Thirteen loyal, and herself, against all of Equestria, and her own traitorous brood.

Chrysalis can work with that.

Three days have passed since the Great Change. Ironically, King Thorax is about to be the last bug in the Hive to learn an important truth.

The secret is something obvious he overlooked in his zeal for sharing love. It bears consequences for the entire Hive... and hard facts about who Thorax truly is.

Once upon a time, Silver Spoon's life made sense. She had the right friends, the right house, and the right school for a young lady coming up in the world. Once upon a time, Silver Spoon lived amongst proud towers in a vibrant, bustling city that never slept.

Now she lives in Ponyville. Not so terrible once one gets used to it. Silver's learned to appreciate some ponies, harbor grudges for others, and tolerate the rest. But sometimes, she wonders if one pony in particular is as popular as she thought.

Preread and edited by Autumn Wind, Cthuluigi, and SaddlesoapOpera

Chinese translation by hehelover

"A good teacher is like a candle— It consumes itself to light the way for others."

Fresh out of college and ready to tackle her career with all of her might, Cheerilee is what some ponies would call perfect for teaching in Ponyville's schoolhouse. It's her first day on the job, and she's ready to start doing her part to help the town's foals grow to be happy, healthy adults.

Of course, there are some things that college simply can't teach. When one of her pupils begins to show signs of trouble, Cheerilee will be forced to learn a very important lesson.

Teaching is about a lot more than writing on a chalkboard.

Concept gifted to me by my good friend, Blue Flame

Concept Development, Prereading, and other assistance by KillerShadow 15

Edited by
Lord-Commander (Chapters 1-11)
Xhoral1865 (Chapter 12)
Kestrel (Chapters 12- )
MissytheAngle (Chapters 13- )

Cover art commissioned from Sayer09

Thanks go out to everyone else who has helped me along the way, and to you readers for taking the time to read my writings. Enjoy the story!

Featured on Equestria Daily! 9/30/2015

Reviewed by Blunt Reviews!

Silly stories about Twilight and Pinkie.

Florina Harshwhinny's life story told through hotel reviews.

Loosely inspired by Rick Moody's novel 'Hotels of North America.'

This is a gathering spot for Georg's entries in the Writeoff.me contests, as well as the behind the scenes story of why I wrote the way I did. It is a compilation, with each chapter being one of the writeoff contest entries or notes on an entry I turned into a full story and posted on FimFiction.net