Our six heroes decide to settle down for the night with a few bottles of their choice beverage and a few hands of poker.

The night was going so well until Rarity decided to wager her virginity.

Now she's desperate to get it back.

(Formerly known as Rarity Loses Her Virginity in a Poker Game. The author's artistic integrity was long gone by the time of writing this.)

Special thanks to Blue_Paladin42.

A Diamond Dog king, feeling bold after gathering an army of 100,000 dogs, decides the best way to flex his new muscles would be to invade Equestria for past perceived slights. As such, he sends a letter to Princess Celestia with a declaration of war.

It goes about as well as you'd expect.

Ponies? Yeah, you hear a lot about them growing up in the minotaur homelands, and it isn't all positive. Actually, almost none of it is positive. They're different. They've got those weird pictures on their flanks and those little prayers they mumble to their princesses. Ponies are gentle, passive. They're not like us.

See, a minotaur is supposed to act a certain way. You bulk up. You get aggressive. You don't let anyone else push you around, and you don't associate with ponies. I've heard the same thing my whole life, ever since I was young.

Featured on Equestria Daily!
Honorable Mention in the Equestria Daily Outside Insight Contest!
Art by BGN

It should have been a simple raid on the ponies’ livestock, but there was an ambush. There had to be some reason he had been spared, and whatever that reason was, he would probably need all his strength to face it.

"This is a really masterful piece, and what makes it stand out from the others in this contest is that nothing is explained. Far too often, writing an alien perspective involves a lot of “what is that? why are they doing that? I am doing this, and it is different from what they do”, but not here. Osvald, the griffon, just goes about his business as he normally would, and the ponies’ reactions are what tell us that it is unexpected. On top of that, this gives us a couple stories’ worth of redemption and a thrilling mystery, plus the perspective of a people with long memories in conflict with short ones. This is plain great."
—PresentPerfect, Equestria Daily pre-reader and Royal Canterlot Library curator.

Reading by AShadowOfCygnus.
Entry for Equestria Daily's Outside Insight Competition.
Cover image by Abcron
A massive thank you to wYvern for his editing help and all-round butt-kicking.
Additional thanks to Abcron for significant feedback as time ran out.

Princess Twilight sets up a war game for the Royal Canterlot and Crystal Empire guards. By kidnapping Luna and Cadance.

The guards thought she knew the rules. They thought she knew the guard manual backwards and forwards.

Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom re-write the manual... and conquer Equestria.

Edited by Noble Thought.

Cover art: Princess Predicament by radiantrealm

One hundred percent approved by Twilight's Library (also approved by Discord).

What sort of mare would turn down the chance to help a friend? Twilight's been there for me so many times in the past, but now she's a princess with all the new obligations and duties that come with that. The transition... hasn't been an entirely smooth one. Who better to lend her a helping hoof and show her how one deals with nobles, courts, and politics than moi?

I only hope it doesn't end up costing one of us our sanity along the way.

"Dear Princess Celestia, as your (former) most faithful student, I feel I have to warn you that this is probably a trap. Chrysalis cannot possibly be serious about this. Why would anyone, much less her, want to shoot a documentary on us?"

Chrysalis, queen of all the changeling hives and infinitely cunning architect of their plans to conquer Equestria, has a problem: She knows diddly-squat about ponies. But Chrysalis is cleverer than most—or all—changelings, and she's already devised a brilliant solution to this trifling issue: Make a movie about them.

Tenth place winner in Equestria Daily's Outside Insight contest.

A troubled Princess Celestia, wandering her School for Gifted Unicorns late one night, chances upon her young faithful student Twilight Sparkle, who has problems of her own:

She can't catch the Tooth Flutterpony.

What possible advice could Princess Celestia give to her upset young pupil, who is desperately trying to prove that an old ponies' tale is real?

Inspired by Skywriter's How to Remove a Unicorn Tooth (which is a much better story and you should probably go read it, if you already haven't); and, of course, Sir Terry Pratchett's Hogfather (which you should have already read, and even if you have, you should go read it again).

After finding her assistant missing again during her court duties, Twilight finds Spike with none other then Fluttershy and learns that the two have been a couple for a while. After overcoming her shock, she is told the story of how the two, unexpectedly, found comfort in each others embrace...

Twilight and Applejack get more than they bargained for when they agree to get Pinkie Pie out of Sugarcube Corner for the day. Pinkie's sudden obsession with the bakery's back door leads to an improbable adventure that sweeps Fluttershy up in its wake.

Now with a TVTropes page!