Orphaned from birth, with only the memories of a soft touch and gentle voice to remember her by, Twilight yearns for her mother. What pony wouldn't want to know why they were abandoned, why they were left to be found by the Princess of the Sun herself.

That was nearly two decades ago though. Twilight was older now, and hopefully wiser. She is happy with her two best friends, Cadance and Shining Armor. They are like family to her, the brother and sister she never could have. Though dreams still haunt the young mare, dreams of lullabies and tender kisses, she has moved on.

The personal servant to the Princess of Helios, the land of the Sun, Twilight enjoyed both rank, and knowledge. But it also means that when Princess Luna comes to visit her old friend, Twilight is given the task of tending her. The Princess has come in search of marriage, at the behest of her ruling Council. They demand an heir to ward off the potentially catastrophic attacks of the neighboring dragons.

Soon, Twilight will be tested and tried. She will be given the a choice between the life she has known, and the duty she is sworn to. But never, not once, will she forget.

For who can stop loving their mother.

Princess Luna's Lunar Stallions kidnap Twilight Sparkle when they see how lonely Luna is, and give her to the Princess as a gift. Nightmare Moon emerges from Princess Luna's psyche during the sleepover. The dark goddess would love nothing more than to have the beautiful mare all to herself, and the resulting chaos forces Celestia to call a psychologist to sort out Luna's multiple personalities.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders have always lived in the now, getting what they think needs to be done as a soon as possible, executing their plans just so they can move on to the next one right away, not thinking about the consequences till they’re right there in their faces. But when an attempt to earn their cutie marks goes too far, Sweetie Belle and her friends must face a horrible reality that sends their world into darkness and fear. How will the truth be uncovered and what will be sacrificed to undo this nightmare?

Twilight Sparkle finds a book in the library.

Twilight Sparkle reads aforementioned book.

Twilight Sparkle's life is thrown upside down, her view of her teacher shattered, and her friends pitted against each other.

Everything will return to normal.

One of these statements is false.

Celestia and Luna have been sisters for more than a millennium. If only that made things easier!

Will poor housekeeping lead to the destruction of Equestria?

Will Spike ever find true love while wearing cupcake shaped hats?

Will Twilight Sparkle ever learn to play the banjo?

(No banjos were harmed in the making of this fiction. If you want to find out the answers to those last two questions, you'll probably have to go read something else.)

Cover art commissioned from Akasashi (http://akashasi.deviantart.com)

Spanish translation by SPANIARD-KIWI

This story is a sequel to Past Sins

Side-story to Past Sins - Spike almost lost Twilight to a hangmare's noose, but now Twilight is safe and Nyx is a filly again. Normal life is returning. Still, Spike can't ignore the fact that Nyx just isn't the same as he remembers her. Her temper is more volatile, and, when she gets angry, all he can see is the rage-driven Nightmare Moon of legend.

And thus Spike has to wonder: Is Nyx truly reformed, or is she one bad tantrum away from calling herself Nightmare Moon again?

For almost a thousand years, the immortal Nightmare Moon has reigned over Equestria as Empress. To the average pony, Nightmare Moon is an overarching enigma whose rule is absolute and whose wrath is terrible. But to Twilight Sparkle, who as an orphan has never known her parents, the Empress is something else entirely. When the young unicorn is brought under the royal wing as an apprentice, she learns a great deal more about the supposed tyrant than she ever knew. But as Twilight is introduced to life with her new mentor, she is thrust into a world of political intrigue, conspiracies and secrets. Secrets that were never meant to be revealed. As allies and enemies plot against the very peace of the nation, will Twilight fall prey to the perils of her new position? Or will she prosper and find in Nightmare Moon the mother she never had?

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My eternal gratitude to my editor, LordOfTheWrongs, without whom Night's Favoured Child would not be the story it is today.

Now with added TVtropes!

What started as a normal friendly visit ends up taking two ponies on a trip down memory lane that leads them both to realize their friendship began even before Rainbow Dash's first sonic rainboom.

This story is a sequel to Oldnew Luna

Twilight and Luna have now been living together for two years. Luna regains her powers over the night sky and the pair must move to Canterlot for Luna to once more take up her duties.

A terrible new day rises when a tragedy, foreseen only by Celestia but preventable by none, occurs right in the middle of Canterlot, turning Twilight Sparkle's world upside-down. Now, all of Equestria is looking to her to hold the broken nation together, all while she tries to pick up the pieces of her shattered life.

Coverart used with permission from: metalpandora

Old coverart may be found here.

A/N: Yes, the title was based of the Dragonforce song of the same name, you may stop postulating about it now.