After receiving a request from Braeburn, Big Macintosh makes his way to Appleloosa to help his cousin in his time of need. The visit is shadowed, however, by Big Mac's lingering resentment over an issue Braeburn doesn't see quite the same way. Underneath the blazing desert heat, they air their differences, and discover what the idea of 'family' really means.

How did Fluttershy acquire her "Freaky knowledge ah' sewin'!" as Applejack called it? The answer is simple, Rarity taught her! Yet a winter full of struggle takes its toll on the two and brings their friendship to the breaking point.

Big Mac helps Braeburn bring better gardening to Appleloosa, and a spark of romance springs to life in the most unlikely places. We also learn a lot more about the Apple family in general. This was written for a fic contest, in a single weekend. It looks like I went over it afterwards to clean it up, but this is actually what went into the contest- no changes made after the fact.Thanks to the rigors of competition, we got ourselves some M/M romance right here in Appleloosa! (I consider Braeburn and Big Macintosh to be essentially unrelated, mind you- some ponies might not see 'em that way)

Sometimes, getting your cutie mark doesn't mean you have all the answers.

After being dumped by the latest in a long line of marefriends, Pokey Pierce is starting to wonder if he'll ever find the right mare for him. He never even considered that he shouldn't have been looking for a mare at all...

In this tribute to the horror stories of the late, great HP Lovecraft, we are taken to a small, dank street in Canterlot. A young unicorn, studying magic in the royal city, hears strange music from the apartment above his own: Melodies and notes unlike anything he has ever heard. Ivestigating, he discovers a cello-playing mare in the room above his own. A quiet young mare known as Octavia.

Cover art by Sbshouseofpancakes.

Pony Joe awakens before the dawn each morning, readies himself for his day, and then walks through Canterlot's cold and silent streets to his doughnut shop.

Life has become pretty mundane for Joe, but as he serves his customers and chats with his regulars he realizes that he has come to rely on that repetition...he relies on it to keep from remembering.

As a casual utterance by a new customer sends Joe into a spiral of haunting memories we learn about his life...and what he must give up if he wishes to move beyond his past.

A short trip to Canterlot with Rainbow Dash and Applejack is the perfect opportunity for Twilight to test out her new long-distance Teleportation spell. But a nasty cold dashes the hopes of a quick trip, and makes the spell disappear in smoke: instead of arriving in Canterlot, the three find themselves in the nearby Everfree Forest, and discover that their location is not the only thing that went wrong.

While Rainbow has exchanged her wings and tail for a straw blond tail, Applejack has acquired a rainbow tail as well as a pair of strong, blue wings.

While Twilight attempts to find a spell to return the body parts to their rightful owners, the others must attempt to deal with this situation... and with their changing feelings.

After a full day in Canterlot, Twilight and Rarity decide to explore the palace garden's legendary hedge maze. Their attempts to unravel the mysteries of the labyrinth yield some interesting and unexpected results.