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.

Sunset Shimmer has always been a hot-headed, impetuous girl. She's always been prone to making snap decisions, and later finding herself regretting them. It was exactly this temperament that had brought her to the human world, penniless and alone. When the opportunity to get back on her feet presented itself in the form of a stranger's outstretched hand, she leaped at the chance.

This is the story of a woman who has made many bad choices, and the life those choices have made for her.

Tags, and even rating, may change as the story goes on.

Thanks as usual to Magello for the cover art!

Sunset Shimmer originally went to Freeport to escape Celestia's influence, and to make some progress towards becoming an alicorn princess. She's certainly done her share of good in the infamous city of rogues, but after almost two years away from Canterlot she doesn't feel any closer to achieving her big goals. At this point, any reasonable pony could wonder if they made a mistake...

Faced with the unpleasant prospect of possibly going back to Canterlot in order to advance her goals, Sunset finds herself with one last option to preserve her independence: the great dragon Argentium the Runescaled, far to the north, wants to meet with her. However, her journey becomes far more than a simple social call, and Sunset has no idea just how much danger she and her friends will face.

Or how much she'll have to sacrifice—not just for her dreams, but survival.

In an unremarkable city, in an unremarkable hospital, to two unremarkable ponies, a filly was born. A filly who was all too remarkable. A filly who radiated Destiny, and Adventure.

Her parents, however, liked their unremarkable life, in their unremarkable city, and wanted nothing more for their little filly than to have a nice, normal, unremarkable youth. So whenever Destiny or Adventure reared their heads, they made sure to nip it in the bud. Magical portals, foreign princes, time travellers and mysterious salesponies of magical musical instruments all got the same answer:

Nope.

Based on the Nope: The Anime joke (original posts) that went around on Tumblr some years ago. Expect silliness.

Covert art based on a picture by greyscale / Theponysketchguy, edited by me to change her hair and eye colour and make her look younger.

Spanish version:
Un poni llamado Nop on DeviantArt, translated by SPANIARD KIWI.

Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns is famous across Equestria as a center of academic excellence. Only the best and brightest unicorns are offered places, selected by their academic merit, magical ability and passion for study. To make the admissions process as fair and reliable as possible, all candidates are given three exams by different teams of examiners, who then meet in private to decide which students are most deserving of a place.

Winner of the December 2014 Writeoff competition: Behind Closed Doors.

On a dark night filled with even darker magics, an insane cult attempts to give Nightmare Moon a body and life of her own, utterly separate from Princess Luna. But, when the spell is interrupted by Celestia, something unexpected is created.

Now, a little black alicorn filly named Nyx finds herself living under the care of Twilight Sparkle, only to be haunted by memories and emotions from her past. Is she Nightmare Moon reborn or is she simply a doppelganger with a soul and mind of her own? Can Twilight Sparkle protect Nyx from those who refuse to see past her dragon eyes and black coat?

Or, will Nyx be forced to inherit the sins that may not even be hers and become the greatest evil Equestria has ever known?

Niamh, an introverted student of veterinary science, finds herself transported to a strange world inhabited by ponies. Of course, that means becoming one herself. Now she must prove to the other ponies that she is not the 'Nightmare Moon' they think she is, and earn their trust, while they must earn hers. Especially this 'Princess Luna' character.

But two questions stand out above the rest as being truly important: How did she get there, and why?

Featured 19/03/14 Didn't expect that.

Amazing cover art was done by the extremely talented MrFulp.

It has been more than one hundred years since Celestia banished Nightmare Moon. While Equestria has enjoyed a century of relative peace and prosperity, there are still lingering tensions between the three pony tribes.

Shadow Kicker, a proud warrior of Pegasopolis, must navigate the treacherous noble court of Canterlot and address the concerns and wounded pride of her own tribe in a desperate effort to prevent matters from coming to open warfare.

Sunbeam Sparkle is not a good pony. She might not be pure evil, but she is ruthless, ambitious, and so power-hungry that she would even aspire to usurp Celestia's throne. Worse, she succeeds in manipulating Celestia into not only surrendering rule over Equestria, but her immortality as well.

It is often said that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. In most cases that’s true. Many good ponies have begun with good intentions, but slowly lost their way. However, this is not always the case. A rare few virtuous ponies have the character and strength of will to resist temptation, and are never corrupted by their authority.

Even rarer, there comes a time when gaining power makes a pony better than they were before. This is one such story.

This story is a sequel to Freeport Venture: More Equal than Others

Sunset Shimmer had grand ambitions upon becoming Freeport's only magus, most importantly helping out the citizens of Freeport itself. When she hears of an outlying farming community in danger from a horde of undead, she knows she has to help them. Even if they can't pay her fees, it's the right thing to do.

However, this new challenge might be too much for her to handle. These zombies are unlike anything she's ever seen, and an old enemy is mixed up in the middle of all of this. Sunset has no idea what dark secrets the undead horde hides, or the danger posed by the necromancer behind it.