After accidentally turning herself into a stallion from a backfired spell, Twilight 'Dusk Shine' Sparkle frantically seeks the help of Princess Celestia. In Canterlot, Dusk Shine fails to find his mentor, but does find solace from those closest to him.

* Takes place prior to S3

Twilight's friends may not be immortal like her, but she's not going to let a stupid little thing like death get in the way of friendship. Now the ruler of Equestria, Princess Twilight Sparkle discovers the truth of life after death: More life. Armed with this new knowledge, Twilight ventures from Canterlot Castle to find and befriend the reincarnations of her oldest friends, whether they like it or not.

Image used with permission of Heavens and Asteri

Feature box story of December 27, 2013. Thanks, everyone!

The year is 1109. Long under the rule of the royal sisters, Equestria is in the midst of an economic boom. New breakthroughs in magic and steam technology give rise to elaborate machinery, resulting in an exodus as adventurers scramble to chart the unknown lands outside the Equestrian Valley. Spearheading the movement are the airships Celestia and Luna, the pride and joy of Equestrian air travel.

After failing the final exam of Wonderbolt Academy, Rainbow Dash's dreams of serving aboard an airship seem crushed. But when a mysterious stranger offers assistance, she is given a second chance to make those dreams come true. Together with a calculating pilot, a stubborn engineer, an eccentric inventor, a genius record-keeper, a timid strategist and a child cartographer, Rainbow Dash will face down the unknown in a foreign land as she is thrust into an adventure beyond her imagination.

(Inspired by the "Mares of Tomorrow" drawings by LionheartCartoon, who has green-lighted the use of his universe. Featured on Equestria Daily as of 11/2/13)

This story is a sequel to Ascend

Congratulations, Twilight. With Celestia and Luna on their constitutionally mandated vacation, you're in charge of Equestria. The position of Regent is an honored and hallowed one. But maybe it's a bit early to congratulate you. After all, whether it's a nobility jealous of your ascension, or a military unhappy with Celestia's decisions; one thing's certain: your reign will be anything but peaceful.

Celestia has become emotionally withdrawn and disconnected from her little ponies. The imprisonment of Luna compounded with the constant loss of any who got close to her, she has forgotten how to connect with another pony. Until a small, injured filly who is equally distant after the loss of her parents stumbles into Celestia's life. Now, both ponies will help the other heal and rediscover once more what it truly means to be a pony.

A 'Mommylestia' story, the concept of which has been in my head for some months. I will be sticking rather close to canon for events, the major differences are that Twilight's parents are dead, and Shining Armor is a few years older and already dating Cadance at the time of this incident. I plan to keep mostly everything else the same.

A few months after the events of Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000, Applejack decides to officially integrate the others into her family with an Apple tradition: a long night of cider drinking.

The next morning Applejack wakes up...in Twilight's bed...with a gold band on her hoof...and a legally binding document on the bedside table...

Cover art by ThePristineEye

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And check out About Last Night: A Deleted Scene, by EquesTRON.

Celestia wants Twilight and her friends to loosen up a little bit around her. Luna just wants to try the hard cider. During a surprise visit to Sweet Apple Acres at the tail end of cider season, Princess Luna has just a bit too much to drink, and when she makes a rather inappropriate joke, Twilight comes to the very uncomfortable realization that she has never seen Celestia excuse herself to use the restroom.

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!"

Big Macintosh goes on strike when he sees he's the one doing all the heavy lifting and harder work at Sweet Apple Acres while his sisters frolic. His idea catches fire throughout Ponyville, and soon every stallion is up in arms! Sexism explodes in the tiny town, it's Stallions on Strike!

Twilight is beyond the title protege. Prodigies are merely brilliant. Twilight has surpassed most of the greatest mages in history before the age of thirty. Twilight's research has changed the landscape itself. She is a living legend who some whisper may be the greatest user of magic to ever exist... perhaps even an equal one day to the semi-divine princesses.

But Twilight's knowledge is not infinite. She has one final lesson to learn. Twilight must learn the Final Law of Magic.