The story starts 11 years in the future from where the show is at right now. Spike and Sweetie Belle are in their late teens, Twilight is in college, and the rest of the Mane Six have grown up quite a bit. With everypony occupied with their expanding personal lives, Spike and Sweetie Belle are left feeling isolated and forgotten by their friends and family. But their growing love for each other brings its own set of problems: When you're the only dragon for hundreds of miles, and you're in love with a pony, nothing is easy.

Two hundred years have passed since the Elements of Harmony were laid to rest. Now Celestia and Luna feel an upcoming threat on the horizon and have recruited one of the Royal Guards who is revealed to be the Element of Loyalty to find the remaining bearers along with the socially secluded insane descendant of Twilight Sparkle, Grimoire who is fittingly the Element of Magic. What kind of adventures lie in store for these two completely different ponies? And exactly how safe can one be when around the strongest magic user in Equestrian History with the mentality of a sociopath?

This story is a sequel to An Affliction of the Heart

Kuno and Warden are happily together now, but events are transpiring to force them from their happy life.

The reappearance of the Crystal Empire causes Kuno and Warden to give up their new-found home. And Kuno, ignoring the fact that they're two different species and completely incompatible, decides that she wants a baby.

In a freak accident from the Cloudsdale weather control team, Twilight is struck down by an errant lightning bolt. But the veil of death is relatively thin...

Big Macintosh finally finds the courage to pursue the mare of his dreams with a gentle nudge or two from some friends. But will the hustle and bustle of the Royal City be too much for the humble farm-pony? TwiMac.

Cover image by xXHazukiXx on deviantArt.

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!

Inspired by fanart from artist Banshee42ru. Set a few years after Season 2 (pending future edits), the story follows the relationship of Spike and Apple Bloom. Their young love takes a serious turn when she finds herself pregnant with a half-dragon, half-pony foal. How will their family and friends react, and what will this halfbreed child mean for them and Equestrian society as a whole?

NOTE: Updates and new chapters tend to take a rather long time, but unless I actually put it as 'On Hiatus' I actually am working on it. It's not abandoned, I just have a really slow writing process.
Also, a while back someone sent this to Equestria Daily without asking me. I appreciate the thought, but they work on a strike system and I really don't want to be locked out.

Edit: This is an old story, you have been warned.
Spawn 666, Nickname: Skid.
Just a regular one of the hive until he was blasted the farthest away from the hive mother and now has to think for himself for the first time in his life. He has to think on his feet and make a disguise for himself based on his imagination of a pony he crafted in haste. He now has one job: Infiltrate Ponyville for his Liege, his queen. But being away from the hive means he is going to develop a personality, and that is something someone in the hive should be without, except in smaller doses. Will his new life affect his job, or will he forsake the innocent ponies for the one he is supposed to serve?
[R] Means the chapter is entirely revised.
[SR] Means it had been slightly revised, but is not the final copy. This means there is likely plot holes and information missing.

Nursing a changeling is like nursing an animal: give it bandages, feed it, take care of it, and when it's better, let it go. Fluttershy knew that it was dangerous, knew that if she got caught, then her life was over. Off to the dungeons she would go. Yet, she couldn't help it, seeing the poor, mangled creature at her own front door. So she took him in, hid him from the watchful eyes of the other ponies. Eventually, what began as an effort to help another creature, blossoms into much, much more then simply a relationship of nurse and patient.

Love sought is good, love unsought is better. Or is it? Spike is going to find out the hard way just how bad love can be.