No important political meetings to attend? Check! No letters to answer? Check! A magical and child-safe gift for Flurry Heart that she's sure to love? Check!

Her schedule was clear. Shining and Cadence were off on vacation. She'd prepared all her materials. Twilight Sparkle was more than ready to spend a fun-filled weekend babysitting her favorite niece.

But she wasn't prepared for King Sombra's return. Nopony could prepare to be trapped with him inside a storybook of fairy tales.

And nopony's ever ready for an unhappy ending...

Proofread by: Alicornpriest

Winner of November 2017 NaPoWriMo: Goal of 50k smashed!

Now Featured on Equestria Daily - First hit the Featured Box on April 28th!

Sombra was not always the heartless ruler that ruled the Crystal empire with an iron hoof. He once had friends, a home, a lover...
But his thirst for knowledge and power led him down a dangerous road.

By chance or the powers that be, Sombra is deemed worthy of a second chance to correct a thousand year old mistake. History ignores intentions however, only recording actions. Can Sombra find a way to bring peace to his heart and those he cares for, or will the darkness from his past consume him?

Image, story idea and OC used with permission.
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Inspired by StasySolitude's animation. (Watch to provide a bit of clarity/backstory!)
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Art by StasySolitude for this fic;
Chapter 8 Picture:
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Twilight had reached her peak, she was at the happiest point in her young life. The day of her coronation as Equestria's newest princess had finally arrived. Then the unthinkable happened, Sombra appears in the throne room alive and well demanding his chance to be reformed by pony society. The unthinkable happens again, when his wish is granted, spearheaded by none other than Princess Twilight herself. Will Sombra's nefarious plans bring her to ruin, or will she succeed against all odds? Only time can tell as it reminds them both that plans have a way of changing all on their own.

Most ponies assume that something is wrong with Ditzy Do's eyes. Theories range from a head injury to a genetic disorder to muscle damage behind her eye. The crueler folk suggest she's just retarded. Nicer ponies say it's just a party trick she never got tired of.

They're all wrong. They're all very, very wrong.

I discovered the truth one day in conversation with her. One eye would always look at me, and the other would wander. At least, I thought it was wandering. So while we were talking, I followed it. Goddess in heaven I wish I had not. Never follow the other eye. Ever. Because Ditzy Do's eyes work fine.

She's just watching something. That... thing that's always in the corner of our eyes. And if she looks at you with both eyes?

Goddess save you.

----

Preread by BrastaAAura17, Chase Cosmicwing and dreamingnoctis. Cover art also by dreamingnoctis. Guy's a bro.

She is as beautiful and graceful as the moon, and just as hard to reach. He is a young artist with much to learn about the world. When he accepts her challenge to create an artistic masterpiece, will he win her heart, or learn a terrible lesson in the nature of beauty and love?

This story is a sequel to No Longer Displaced

Sass, science, and surviving shipping! Postage paid! The gruff captain put a certain pegasus professor to the test and learned that she just couldn’t quit. Now come the hard parts: an actual relationship and maybe a villain or two.

There’s also still a lot to prove. A crafty princess may have guided Tail and Magic Barrier together for basic training, but the stallion has more lessons in mind for the inquisitive academic. Meanwhile, other currents hold sway over the tides. Old friends will play new parts, and new characters are set to step onto the stage. The chess pieces are settling into place, and the queen has her eyes on one state secret. 

Perhaps when they find resolve in the shadows, the physicist thriving in the world of guard service and the captain rediscovering happiness in the modern age will see that they’re no longer alone.

Folks, I know this has been a long time coming. Some of you have been poking me for almost four years, wondering when Sober and I (Wing) would get around to writing NLD’s sequel. I hope it doesn’t disappoint. 

Cover art by the amazing dream--chan, and special thanks to some old friends and a new editor who joined the fray. Max Redbridge, welcome to the circle of crazy! Neon/Fate, thank you for your squees, deaths, and fuck yeahs! And Amby!!! Alticron, for giving us Bonecrusher. Tea, you can't have Trigger without you! Thanks to Danger Noodle for the adorable Moon Glow. Word Worthy is sneaking around in the doc, too. We also got some Latin help from everyone's favorite Brasta, and what is an NL story without floof from Dr. Batsy?

Wing’s magical comments about the continuities and timelines can still be found here. The gist remains that NLD and NLA remain in a separate continuity from APD & Co. If you find any typos, please PM them to Wing. It keeps the comment section cleaner. Don’t forget to like, share, comment, and subscribe lol. And finally, reading No Longer Displaced is strongly recommended if you want to have any idea what the hell is actually happening.

For a thousand years, there was just Celestia. Then Cadance appeared, Luna returned -- and now Twilight has ascended. There are ponies who are very curious about just what happened, why -- and how. Especially the how. Twilight herself is on that list, a freshly-minted princess with far more questions than answers, about to face a brand new one: what truly makes an alicorn?

And what happens if it goes wrong?

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.

Cover art by Harwick.

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.*

Trying to patrol the dreams of every pony in Equestria can be stressful. To ease her burden, Luna retools the Tantabus to turn nightmares into good dreams instead of vice versa. Aware of her mistakes from last time, she tests it out thoroughly, making sure there are no unexpected behaviors. And as far as she can tell, there are none.

Except that it's started calling her "Mom".

Faced with the prospect of possibly creating life, Luna seeks out Twilight's advice and assistance. With a little luck, they can get this all sorted out before the sun rises.

A different take on alicorn ascension. Sixteen years after arriving in Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle is excited to have invented a brand-new kind of spell, but it will come with consequences she cannot possibly anticipate. Meanwhile, threats in shadows around the world conspire to overthrow the Solar Throne. With her world turned upside down, she will have to come to terms with the role that fate has dealt her while straining to keep Celestia in power.

Now with a TVTropes page! Please show it some love! Also check out the official side stories, Designing Intrigue, and Love and Barriers! (With even more in my stories page!)

(Please Note: This story was started before any season three information was available. All episodes in season three and later are non-canon for this story, which also means there's no Crystal Empire in this one. In addition, the promotional map released close to the beginning of season three was also not available and is not compatible with this story. While the OC tag is active because there are OCs in the story, they're really just supporting characters. The focus is on Twilight.)

Also be sure to check out the Rites of Ascension Expanded Universe Group! We're working to develop the resources needed for other authors to try their hand at writing stories set in the Rites Universe!

The Book Two cover art was created by the amazing Silfoe! The original cover art can still be found at Violet Squiggle's deviantArt page.

Author's Notes, including proofreader's credits, can be found here!

"This is 100% Approved by Twilight's Library!"