Twilight Sparkle had been looking forward to a quiet, relaxing day with a friend, and at first it seemed that Fluttershy could provide just that. But when Twilight makes a rather unsettling discovery about the pegasus – and her unusually sanguine appetite – the knowledge proves to be anything but relaxing...

Between when the girls flew up in a ball of rainbow magic to defeat Tirek and when they landed back in Ponyville at Twilight's new castle, Discord and Spike were just left on the sidelines at the Harmony Tree and didn't show up again until they popped out from behind Celestia, Luna and Cadance later back in Ponyville. This story explores what might have happened during that time gap, and especially how Discord's first contact with the princesses following his betrayal might have gone (spoiler: it's a teeny bit tense ).

Also explored is one random potential theory for Discord's unexpected compulsion to give Celestia flowers and wink at her in the middle of a throne room full of onlooking ponies. This theory happens to involve Cadance and demonstrates once and for all that the magic of love is not to be taken lightly.

Please enjoy my randomness

Only a few hours after she learned of the Griffon Empire's invasion, Princess Celestia surrendered herself to the griffon army and asked for an audience with the Griffon Emperor.

The Emperor thinks she's here to negotiate Equestria's surrender.

He's wrong.

Spanish Translation
Polish Translation

Sombra never realized this would happen.
Usually a villain is suppose to be defeated, right?
So, why did he, well...win?
Even he was shocked to see the crystal heart in his hooves. Never in a thousand or so years did he think he would pull this off; that he would actually...win.
So, what will he do now? Just rule over everyone and enslave all of pony kind? Or Perhaps kill the princess and mind control that purple unicorn and her friends? Or maybe have some common sense and figure out just how he will deal with all of this in the long run? With all these questions, he knows one thing for sure.
This is going to be very awkward.

Failing once in her attempt to take Canterlot and failing again in her attempt to take down Twilight, one would think Chrysalis would have cut her losses and let things be, but the queen has once again appeared, this time in broad daylight with no disguise and no army. Her weapon of choice? Diplomacy.

Now Twilight is having to deal with the changeling queen, but surely putting up with her antics will be worth the knowledge she's willing to provide about her mysterious race and the potential undiscovered agents still within their midst...right?

Takes place before Magical Mystery Cure and diverges from there.

With thanks to MisterGunpowder for proofreading and editing.

Revision History:

05/09/2015: Chapter 1 updated with millions of little corrections.
05/20/2015: Chapter 2 revised and edited with another million small and large corrections.
06/12/2015: Chapter 3 given a thorough editing and revision.
06/23/2015: Chapter 4 taken to the gutter and edited twice to be sure.
07/14/2015: Chapter 5 thoroughly brutalized with the editing stick.
08/03/2016: Chapter 6 finally edited. Yes, I'm still alive, dammit.
09/29/2016: Chapter 7 fell out of the editing tree and hit every editing branch on the way down.
10/26/2016: Chapter 8 has emerged from the editing emergency room.
11/17/2016: Chapter 9 found and edited. No casualties reported.
11/30/2016: Chapter 10 treated for whiplash after lightning fast editing.
12/22/2016: Chapter 11 edited. Chrysalis shot first.
01/17/2017: Epilogue edited. Time to hit the cider.

In the aftermath of her battle against Tirek, Twilight Sparkle is unwell. She wants more. She needs more. And she is afraid of what others might think of her.

But even in the midst of her growing despair that she has betrayed everything she stood for, she learns something about friendship and what it means to be an alicorn.

There was only one explanation. For all of it. All of the strange, erratic behavior. Her irrational fear of the sun. Her nocturnal habits of locking herself in in the dark and closing all the blinds. Wearing her sunglasses everywhere, even inside! It was time to invest in some silver, garlic, and a wooden stake.

Princess Celestia went out for a stroll to a coffee shop. The next morning, she is single-hoofedly destroying the coffee industry.

How?

No really, how?

Many years after sending her beloved protege to Ponyville, unease sits heavily on Princess Celestia's heart as her relationship with Twilight Sparkle seems to have cooled despite all they've accomplished together. On the advice of her sister, Celestia sets out to investigate and resolve the lost connection with her most faithful student. What does it mean to be a Faithful Student...or a Princess of the Sun?

Earned a six-star rating on Equestria Daily and featured on its very own TVTropes page!.

It's springtime in Equestria and Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia find themselves out of sorts despite the gorgeous weather. Luna and Rarity both think they know the reason behind their moodiness and set out to make sure that true love blossoms - but will an unfortunate misunderstanding keep the two star-crossed lovers apart forever?

Illustration courtesy of nightmaremoonluna, adapted from a sketch by bri-sta.