Just one week out from her demonic transformation and subsequent rainbow friendship blast to the face, Sunset Shimmer needs a new leather jacket, as her old one (seen here) was destroyed. Reluctantly, she goes to the closest clothier to her home: the infamously uptight Carousel Boutique. Making matters tougher, she must deal face to face with a girl she badly hurt. Can friendship take root even after three years of hatred and distrust?

This is the prequel story for Sunset's Recovery Arc.

Jacket art generously provided by Bootsy Slickmane.

For a Crystal Empire tradition, Rarity helps Twilight learn The Winter Wind Waltz. Yet, as the pair dance together, Rarity begins feeling something new. Is this the beginning of the fairy tale Rarity has always dreamed of?

Jinglemas 2018 story that was written for Monochromatic, an unstoppable juggernaut of RariTwi shipping.

"All my life, I've wanted to fly
But I don't have the wings, and I wonder why
I can't break away..."
Most pegasi figure out flying easily enough. Heck, most of them figure out how to do it before they even get their cutie marks.

But not me. I couldn’t do it, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn’t even hover. Not for more than a few seconds, anyway. And not even Rainbow Dash, the greatest flier in Equestria, could seem to help me. We tried everything, and I failed every time. Day after day, I tried – and day after day, I failed, until finally I was ready to just give up. I’d never be able to do it. Nopony would ever be able to help me to fly...

...until one day, somepony did.

In quite a few of my favorite stories on this site, I've seen that the 'plot/conspiracy to overthrow Celestia' pltline utilized, either as the primary threat or just something in the background. I decided to do my own take on it, taking a page out of "Winning, and the pitfalls therein" by RandomPC, found here

With Twilight away in Canterlot, Spike is left to his own devices. But Ponyville isn't the busiest of towns and before long, boredom begins to creep.

So to cheer himself up he decides to go spend time with his friends. Five stalwart companions whom he has known through thick and thin.

But Spike soon begins to realise that really, those are Twilight's friends. Not his.

In fact he starts to wonder whether, since he moved to Ponyville, he's actually made any friends at all...

(*2nd edition. Based on feedback, the final chapter and epilogue have been added-to to better reflect the contributions of the CMC.)

The Pony of Shadows. For generations, this creature of myth has terrified every pony who heard about it, and it became known as the source of all the darkness, cruelty and wickedness in the world, the wellspring from which evil flowed. Twilight, who has led her friends against many foes in the past, seeks out this ancient enemy of her people, to vanquish it once and for all.

But when she finds it, she and her friends instead discover a different story. One the young Princess would never have expected.

Twilight had planned to visit Sunset Shimmer and her friends over in the other world for a nice, quiet weekend, away from all the worries and problems associated with being a Princess of Equestria. Unfortunately, things rarely go as planned.

After an accident cuts her off from Equestria, Twilight finds herself stuck in the human world until the gateway between the two worlds can be fixed. Which wouldn't normally be a problem...

...If she wasn't still a pony.

Now with TvTropes page!

Cover art
Proofread by Dusty Old Qrow, RQK, Dusty Tomes (Ch. 2), Emtu, and Doctor Candor.

Sunset Shimmer had no idea why everyone was taking to this new girl so quickly. What does she have that she doesn't? Besides friends? And an endearing personality? And a cute butt.

There was a question... and Spike wanted the answer. The curiosity of it was gnawing at his little dragon brain like gerbils in a vat of candy corn. In desperation, he turns to Cadence for help, and she's more than happy to assist.

After all, it's just a simple question. What's the worst that could happen?

(Takes place prior to Season 1. Rated for scattered innuendo.)

After putting on the Element of Magic, Sunset Shimmer was shown just how much of a monster she really is. But that wasn't all the Elements did to her.

Sunset has now been forced to serve penance by answering any question truthfully and by doing anything asked of her, whether she wants to or not.

And she really doesn't want to.

Until all of the hatred in her heart is gone, Sunset is at the whim of her peers, unbeknownst to them of course. Can her new "friends" help her down the road to redemption?

If not, there's always that other Twilight Sparkle she keeps running into.

Current editor: Nomad_Sigma
Guest editors: Cerulean Voice, Flint Sparks, Starlight Nova, and Sholan
Extra thanks to Icarus_Gizmo, JustAnotherTimeLord, and HenryAnthonyCourtler

Cover art customized by Amber Spark!

Now with it's own TV Tropes page!
Posted on EQD June 25, 2014
Wanna read it in French?
Or, read the E-Pub version here or the online version here
Now available in print format!