Most of the time, Pinkie Pie is the happiest, most cheerful of ponies, but she often has a hard time coping with loss.

Today we see just how hard, as Pinkie says goodbye to a special friend.

Written for the "Keep Pretending" Writeoff.

"I Love to See You Smile" (cover art), by Zaid Val'Roa, was part of the art competition and served as the specific inspiration for this story.

Apple Bloom has always been taught to do what’s right; by her sister, her brother, and her granny. She works hard to complete her chores, does her school work, and goes crusading with her friends. Even when dealing with the taunting from the local bullies, she tries to keep her distance and avoid conflict; after all, it’s the right thing to do. But when she overhears a private moment by somepony she should by all rights despise, she learns that doing the right thing can be harder than it seems.

Anon-A-Miss, a mysterious internet user who corrupted Canterlot High School. Everyone have accused Sunset Shimmer of this betrayal, even her friends have abandoned her.
Now Sunset is alone, as she once was, and depends only on herself to start again, among shadows ... New faces, and not so new ones, will come to her life.
Will Sunset be happy again? Canterlot will ever know the truth? What will happen to the magic of friendship?

- "dark" label due to psychological conflicts and a certain degree of physical aggression -

- All chapters have been editing and correcting by icecreammac-

Sunset always knew that she was destined for greatness, but she never dreamed of how great she could become. Not until she had seen it – the mirror had shown her as an alicorn. Ignoring Celestia’s warnings, Sunset goes looking for answers.

When she learns that the mirror is also a portal to another world, well, what else was she supposed to do? But it seems that she hadn’t considered every possibility. She hadn’t, for example, considered that she might get herself trapped on the other side. Nor did she think she’d find herself transformed into a child again.

(Also available in print (temporarily out of stock), as an audiobook, and in Russian!)

A story set in the Who We Become series (earliest story, so a great starting point )

Many muches of thanks go out to ArchAngelsWings, Dessert, Mind Jack, Pasu-Chan,
CharCharChan, w_brown7, and eton975 for proofreading.
Additionally, thanks to Pasu-Chan for providing the glorious cover art

Leave it to Twilight Sparkle to create the greatest spell of the past century – and then want to destroy it.

It's too dangerous to use, she says. It's too tempting. It can't help you the way you think it can.

Well, Starlight Glimmer knows a thing or three about temptation. She'll prove to Twilight that this spell – this magnificent book – is too important to destroy. That it can help ponies.

She just has to survive using it, first.

Second place in the May 2018 WriteOff.

Cover art is "Reformed" by Okaces.