Celestia leaves to deal with a foreign crisis, giving her sister a chance to rule alone and become more attached to the modern world. She calls on Twilight Sparkle to advise Luna, hoping her student will be able to draw Luna out of her shell. With two major threats to Equestria already defeated in the past year, it seems like the perfect time to let Luna gain some confidence and experience in the modern world. After all, what are the chances of a third disaster occurring?

Now comes with complimentary tropes.

Play this song first!

Twilight Sparkle has always been looking forward to her 21st birthday. It's the day that she's finally recognized as an adult mare, but also the day she's finally able to learn magic on the highest level. What should have been a great day though, turns out to be the most horrific day in her life. She finds a prophesy talking about the next great evil in Equestria, and it's HER! Now she's falling, slowly becoming the very evil she swore to fight against, and not even her closest friends can pick her up in time. In the end, she may even...

Apple Bloom is tired of being the last in her class to not have her Cutie Mark, but her friends Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo aren't going in the right direction to get their Cutie Marks, and she knows it. In order to get her Cutie Mark the right way, Apple Bloom begins to have thoughts of separating from her friends, and getting her Cutie Mark on her own. But her search for her Cutie Mark opens up to a major mystery in Equestria, and Apple Bloom will discover much more than just her special talent...

friends become enemies...

destinies are revealed...

light fades into the darkness...

and through it all, a hero is born...

This is the first main story in the series.

New cover art by my friend The Spectralist.

Link to the TV Tropes page!

Nightmare Moon won. She defeated Celestia, broke the Elements, banished the sun. This all happened a very long time ago. So long ago, that she has had plenty of time to change her mind.

Of course, fixing our mistakes is never so simple, and never without consequences. Even with particularly potent help.

"If you came to conquer, you'll be king for a day. / But you too will deteriorate and quickly fade away."
— "No Control" by Bad Religion

A big thanks to Craine, Sorren, and Idylia for prereading and editing. If you enjoyed the story, don't forget to check out their pages.

Equestria Daily
Royal Canterlot Library (FIMfic version)
Russian translation by Doof
Chinese translation by Dreams Set Free

Kitsune Heart has done a dramatic reading of this story! Find it over here.
ObabScribbler has done a dramatic reading of this story! It includes a full cast of voice actors. Find it over here.

Comments contain spoilers.

Three hundred years after Luna's banishment, Equestria is at a shaky peace, its borders protected by the Equestrian Armed Forces from several hostile races, from raiding Diamond Dogs to the increasingly aggressive Gryphons. Incidents are many, and tensions rise as the newly unified Gryphon Empire sets its sights on the lands and riches of its pony neighbors.

In this troubled time, a young pegasus orphan named Firefly comes of age. A born warrior, her name will one day be known as not just the founder of the Wonderbolts, but as one of Equestria's greatest heroes...

Set in the same universe as the Turnabout Storm novelization but taking place seven hundred years before, this is the story of Rainbow Dash's ancestor, the origin of the Wonderbolts, and the coming of the Great Pony/Gryphon War. Also referenced by multiple stories in the Gentlemanverse.

• Rated MUST READ by the Pleasant Commentator and Review Group - October 2, 2016 (8/10 stars).
• Rated RECOMMEND by the Reviewer's Cafe - April 13, 2017 (8/10 stars).
• Rated 4/5 Stars by Personal Review of xTSGx December 6, 2017.
• Rated WHY HAVEN'T YOU READ THIS YET? by Personal Review of PaulAsaran March 30, 2018.
• Rated 9.6/10 by Firefoxino of My Little Reviews and Feedback Group April 17, 2018.

Writers: Leo Archon and Firesight
Prereaders: AJ_Aficionado, SilentWoodFire, JamesCyberlink, Denim_Blue

Cover Art by Equestria Prevails, classified as creative-commons/share-alike: http://equestria-prevails.deviantart.com/art/Firefly-351657539

Idol Hooves holds a special place in Equestria. He's probably the only exiled changeling to serve in the Royal Guard, or at least, that's what he expects, as exiles don't really broadcast that fact. However, it's well known that Princess Celestia loves all of her little ponies, and her guards perhaps more so, and that makes it one of the best ways for a changeling to discreetly feed.

But how does a changeling even get there, let alone get exiled in the first place? For that matter, why would it ever go to Canterlot? Set a number of years before the series proper, before Luna’s redemption, Idol details how he was exiled, the ponies he’s met, and the series of misadventures that led him to joining the Royal Guard, and should continue a good ways into the series, as something of an alternate perspective.

Soon, he’ll have to deal with a boisterous new princess to serve and a royal wedding in the works bringing a third to power. Will his old instincts bring this new life crashing down around him? What precipitates Chrysalis’s ill-fated assault on Canterlot? Is it really so wrong for a changeling to enjoy good craftsmanship to an obsessive degree?

New cover art provided by the fantastic Carnifex

And a TVTropes page here.

And an Ask Blog of questionable canonity!
Out of Idol Curiosity

Fanart by Norad2! Major thanks! Short For a Royal Guard

Art by Egophiliac of Idol and his Daring Duckie Please don't tell him what that brush is meant for.

Rating updated to (T), it's a bit darker than (E)
Comedy Tag added as well
And changed the character tags a bit.

King Sombra survived his defeat, but just. By the time he returned to form, Twilight became the newest princess of Equestria and the Crystal Empire was restored to its former glory.

He cannot take over Equestria the same way he tried before, but he has a card up his sleeve. Twilight won't see it coming, and Sombra might gain a powerful ally in the process.

And it will all begin...with a book.

Edits on Chapter 1 done with the help of TempesttheDragnix.

Major props to InuHoshi-to-DarkPen for letting me use this. That artist is really good.

Rainbow Dash, best pony, fastest flier in Equestria, all around awesome mare, was called upon to help with the wedding of her friend's big brother. And hey, she never leaves her friends hanging! Of course, when it turned out some kind of bug thing had replaced the bride, Rainbow was more then ready to fight. Heck, even after it seemed all hope was lost, the pegasus refused to give up.

So when she saw Shining Armor charge up a final spell, she smirked.

But when that spell reached her and flung her against the wall, her smirk devolved into shock...

Cover art is a combination of Deception is Magic vector by Helios and Sonic Rainboom Version One by SkyRings.

This story is a sequel to Princess Celestia: The Changeling Queen

This story is a direct sequel to Princess Celestia: The Changeling Queen. Reading that first is necessary to understand any part of this story.

Co-authored by vren55 and Zervziel

Alternia, sister to Chrysalis, ruled Equestria for a thousand years, disguised as Princess Celestia, while the alicorn slumbered in a healing sleep. Now revealed, Alternia prepares to become Equestria’s first changeling princess, and prove herself to the ponies she loves at the side of her co-rulers Luna and the newly-returned Celestia.

But even as the crown descends onto Alternia’s head, something is stirring in the depths of the Eastern Sea, something that will turn the surface world onto its head. Some power that could destroy Alternia, and all that she loves, before she can even regain the approval of her own ponies.

Will Alternia restore the trust her ponies once placed with her? Will she found a hive? Will she find love?

All that is certain is that Equestria, and the world, will never be the same again.

Now with a TV Tropes page.

Empress Tethys and the Kelpies Created by Zervziel

That Fantastic Cover art is by Plainoasis

Pre-read and edited by:
Blankscape,
FinalFan,
Courage Fire
Cosmic Cowboy

Twilight is invited to Canterlot to compete with some of the greatest magicians in the world for the Moonstone Cup, a prestigious award for the most powerful and skillful magicians, unicorn and otherwise. Can she win? What sort of competition will she face?

Awesome cover image was taken from NoOneBahtim

Scootaloo's life hasn't been the easiest. Being orphaned at a young age and brought up in the foster system came with its own set of challenges, not the least of which was a lack of older pegasi around to teach her how to fly. Fortunately, Rainbow Dash can help with that. With her honorary big sister taking a more active role in her life, Scootaloo learns much more about herself than just how to fly.

A story about love, family, and growing up.

Editing by Formerly Committed and Shellsh0cker.