With only one minion to her name, Opaline finds herself in a bind when Misty falls ill. Cooking, cleaning, and infiltrating Maretime Bay for medicine become the least of Opaline's problems as she contemplates exactly what Misty means to her – or rather, as she tries to not contemplate it.

Self-doubt is unbecoming for a perfect alicorn, after all.

Russian translation: https://ponyfiction.org/story/17571/

Starlight struggles to come to terms with her past. How could somepony ever forgive her? Moreover, why is she receiving love and forgiveness when she doesn't deserve it? Why? In her mind, she deserves nothing but damnation and eternal hatred. So why does this magenta Alicorn continue to fight for her? Starlight is broken. And she does not want to be repaired. No, she doesn't deserve to be repaired. Love brings nothing but heartbreak, so why love at all?

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This short story explains what happened after the episode: The Cutie Remarking. It is directly related to my own universe, however, you do not need to read anything else to understand or enjoy this narrative.

Starlight writes her final farewell to Twilight.

She didn't expect this to be this hard.

But it's for the best.

She only hopes Twilight sees it this way too.

Inspired by Thought I'd Let You Know

Alone in the nothingness, a mare waits.

Edit: now available in Chinese!

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.

Life can be difficult, even downright depressing from time to time. There are times we let all that bottle up until it reaches a point of helplessness, which becomes our focus.

Sometimes, we can find solace in the most unlikely of places.

This short thing is in fact based off a dream and experience that I had just weeks ago that I decided to put into words. Logic would say the dream was just that, the creation of an overactive mind during slumber, the result of a pessimistic and frustrated attitude combined with the ever-churning thoughts of the continuation of my writings.

My heart begs to differ with that explanation...

This story is a sequel to The Cloudsdale Report

  Twilight’s got her nose stuck in a book. Sunset wants to go see the rest of their friends.

  Things snowball from there.

Highlighted in FimFiction's Feature Box from December 19 to December 22, 2016!
Featured on Equestria Daily on Christmas Eve of 2016!

Historian’s Note: Set in the Wavelengths Timeline where the Sonic Rainboom never happened, Tactics of Snowbound Unicorns is a stand-alone tale that occurs about six weeks after the events in the Applications Trilogy.

Cast: Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia, Moon Dancer, Minuette, Cheerilee, Coco Pommel & Coloratura
Co-Starring: Raven & Philomena

Stories set in the Wavelengths Timeline in chronological order:

Origins Arc
The Alchemy of Chemistry
Bards of the Badlands
Grading on a Bell Curve
Habits of the Equestrian Phoenix
How Not To Use Your Royal Prerogative

Applications Arc
The Application of Unified Harmony Magics
Princess Celestia: A Brief History
The Cloudsdale Report

Dreamers Arc
Tactics of Snowbound Unicorns
A Study in Chaos Theory
Teahouses of Saddle Arabia
As the Raven Flies

Cover Design by Amber Spark
Dark Snow Background by Grim-S-Morrison
Christmas Sunset Shimmer by MoHawgo
Double Diamond Cutie Mark by Pixelkitties
Sunset Shimmer Cutie Mark By Millennial Dan
Text, coloring, snowballs and snowball magic aura effects by Amber Spark

Beta Reader & Editor Credits
Ebon Quill - Quest Designer & Worldbuilding Writer on The Manehattan Project
Little Tinker - Master of Systems at Poniverse & Scripting Engineer on The Manehattan Project
Beltorn - Commenter-at-Large on FimFiction
Painted Heart

Special Thanks:
Quill Scratch & Beltorn - For a last-minute tweaks to the synopsis!

Word Count: 3,800 words
Version: 3.5

I have lived my entire life among the ice at the top of the world with my pod. I knew little of the world outside of the ways of We of the Sea, and as a filly, that suited me just fine. But one day, the steel whales came, and on their backs, they carried creatures not unlike myself, yet wholly different. For while I swam in the sea, they walked on the land and flew through the air. Yet they reminded me of my kind, so curious, so tragic, and so infinitely precious. Where they did not understand, they sought to learn with a foolish stubbornness. Where they wandered far from home, they extended their hooves in friendship.

Where they waged their wars, they fought with a violent savagery that was frightening to me.

As I held a dear friend close, the breath fleeing from his body, I only wanted to know one thing.

Why?

Cover art and inspiration by JhonnyRebel. Pre-reading provided by djthomp.

Featured on Equestria Daily!
And an awesome reading by Illya Leonov!
Another awesome reading by Scribbler!

Russian translation of this story can be found here, courtesy of NovemberDragon!

When your life is as dull a gray as the world that surrounds you, the mundanities can make it all seem meaningless. Sometimes all we need is a little color -- or six -- to reintroduce us to what truly makes life worth living.

*6-16-2017 Edit, added Rainbow Dash tag because it triggered knighty.*

Awake and alone, Applejack will find a way to survive.

And here's a TV Tropes page, if you're into that kind of thing.