Twilight Sparkle is a happy pony. With the help of her friends she defeated Tirek. She has a shiny new castle, the kingdom is safe, and she knows the reason behind her ascension. What more could a young princess want?

She is happy, she tells herself as she digs through the ruins of her home. She is so happy she can barely smell the ashes any more.

But in those ashes she finds something unexpected: a small porcelain vase, and with it a decade's worth of unspoken questions. A mystery hiding beneath her hooves, waiting to be put to rest.

Winner of the November Writeoff event.

The Long Patrol is an extension of the crown. It brings the rule of law and the princess's banner to the far reaches of the kingdom, the places where harmony fades and the wild chaos of nature still reigns.

In times past, all the tribes took part in the patrol. Today, it is mostly pegasi and a few gryphons. The distances they travel are simply too vast for anyone without wings.

Like most gryphons who join, I wanted to get away from my kind. I dreamed of the adventures I would have and the friends I would make. I certainly got those.

I just wish the price weren't so high.

[My entry for the EqD Summer "Outsider Insight" contest.]

The legends told of their return.

For over a decade Equestria has been beset by the dragons. Every year more villages vanish in flames, and the lonely cities stand as our last redoubt. Winter has gripped the world, and our hope is fading.

But the legends tell of another, a light in the darkness. The Dragonborn, a mythic warrior reborn with the power of the Voice, the only one who can stand against the dragons.

But when she appeared, she was not what we were expecting...

You remember Canterlot. You remember the taste of victory. Across a thousand years and a hundred lives, it was the greatest joy you had ever felt.

And then, in a flash of heat and unbearable light, it ended.

Now you are alone. The rest of your kind are dead or scattered, and you cannot hear their thoughts.

There is a void inside you. A gnawing, endless hunger you cannot escape. It is killing you.

You need love to survive, but there is none of that here. Not for you. You can only steal it from them, these ponies for whom we are hungry.

[My entry in and winner of the "Most Dangerous Game" contest."]

The last time the Cutie Mark Crusaders worked on the school newspaper, they used gossip, rumors and innuendo to drive circulation through the roof. Their brief rise and rapid fall taught them a valuable lesson about truth and honesty in reporting. Apologies were made, hugs were exchanged, and everypony lived happily ever after.

For about three weeks, anyway. Now the Crusaders are back in the newspaper business, and it won't be lies that set the town on fire.

A short story about the triumph of enthusiasm over ability.

Written for the December Writeoff Event, Behind Closed Doors.

In the library of Twilight Sparkle's castle, there is a book where none should be. There is no record of it being entered into the collection. It is not in the card catalog. It has never been checked out. Before yesterday nopony knew it existed.

It is the only book she has ever tried to destroy.

Written as an entry in GaPJaxie's My Little Speed Writing Competition, which gives you 60 minutes to write a story based on a prompt chosen by the masses. Join us in the Discord if you're interested in improving your writing skills!

Paul Zagranski is the best negotiator on Earth. He has ended wars and brokered deals between nations. But now, as humans and ponies prepare to seal the greatest trade pact ever between their dimensions, all of humanity is relying on him. We are willing to offer all our technology, our weapons, our science, every book ever written, every song ever sung and every movie ever screened, all of it in order to have what only the ponies can give.

Ear scritches. Also mane brushing and braiding. And nose boops.

God speed, Paul. All of Earth is counting on you.

Every night, Princess Luna soars through the land of dreams, shepherding the minds of her subjects. It is lonely, thankless work, forgotten by the ponies she helps as soon as the sun rises.

Luna is not the only one who stalks in the night. Monsters, yes, predators that glide in the dark spaces between the stars. But there are other wanderers as well, spirits who step easily between the worlds. Sometimes she meets them.

And sometimes she comes back with them.

An homage to Luna and little siblings everywhere. Keep up the good fight.

It was supposed to be an easy delve. In, explore, and out.

Instead Daring Do finds herself wandering through an endless corridor, wishing for nothing more than to see the sky once more. And when she reaches the end of the maze, she discovers something waiting for her that hasn't felt the sun for a long, long time. Something very lonely.

And hungry.

Daring Do has never turned away from a challenge. But when she finds herself trapped beneath an ancient temple with a haunted artifact, she may end up wishing she'd stayed home instead.

First place story in the Equestria Daily 2013 Nightmare Night Contest!