It has been weeks since the defeat of the Dazzlings, and Sunset Shimmer's friendships have only gotten stronger. Whilst finally relaxing in the times of peace, Sunset discovers an old enemy: Sonata Dusk. Strangely alone and apparently homeless, Sonata's luck seems to be at its all time low.
Seeing a little of herself in the former siren, Sunset embarks on a mission to help Sonata find friendship.

(For anyone who liked the old cover art, here's a side-by-side comparison of the old and new: http://daniel-gleebits.deviantart.com/art/Go-Compare-Twiddles-moustache-581352606 )

TV Tropes page: Feel free to add whatever tropes you find
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Fanfic/TheEveningSonata

King Sombra came from an old age, a time where darkness and evil were prevalent across the land. The Princesse's power and influence were weaker in those days, for the land of Equestria was divided amongst many kingdoms of lesser Princesses and Princes. But out of all their ruling neighbors, The Four Shepherds held the most power of all, even threatening Celestia and Luna's kingdom. However, all of that changed when they vanished for a thousand years, ushering in a new era of peace and prosperity. Until that is, when the Crystal Kingdom reappeared, along with one of the Shepherds. King Sombra, however, was thankfully vanquished swiftly, but the following peace of his defeat would not last as long as anypony might think. A new force sets its eyes on the recently coronated Princess Twilight Sparkle, one that seeks to restore a lost heritage and remind the land of who is the true owner of the night. For when one evil is smitten, another appears in its place. And King Sombra was only the first in line.

Set before Season 4

Note: Dark tag is meant for Light Dark

Special thanks to my editor Ladrian for his diligent and superb work. I wish I had him when I first started this story because maybe then the early chapters would have been much better.

Special thanks to Stanku for revisions and prereading this story. It would be at a much worse state had it not been for his detailed opinions to each and every chapter, and letting me know where I can improve.

10/2/2014 : Woah... it's on the featured list... *cue squealing and fist pumping* THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

"I can face the whole world with one claw, as long as your hoof is holding the other." - A Dragon in Love -

Luna and Spike romantic feelgood thriller with a dash of political intrigue.

'...a great and glorious orchestration in romance...' - Wing, Non-Pareil Fiction
'You made me cry tears of sorrow and joy, cheer like a madman and truly be happy for the two characters I never even liked in the show.' - Eversquee
'This is the most I've laughed, cried, exclaimed and cheered in a long long time.' - Melancholy
'I usually don't like romances, but this one is awesome!' - Aguion12
'When the characters are happy, I'm happy. When they're not, I'm not. It's all so perfectly done..' - Drgnwolf

Synopsis

Greed strengthens a dragon. But what of the opposite? Spike feels a little bit of himself broken away with each passing day as Rarity flaunts her newfound love with another stallion. But that's the least of his troubles. A formal gala for which he is the guest of honour quickly approaches. With the relationship between the Council of Friendship and the nobles of Equestria at stake, he is certain this gala could only end in a big political disaster. Enter Princess Luna, cunningly disguised as the sweet elegant mare by his side, intent on turning him from a laughingstock into the star of the show. But jealousy and misfortune swiftly strike, leaving Luna permanently stuck in her disguise. Together they must maintain their cover until they somehow figure out how to fix everything. As the days pass, as the 'one more day's turn into a week, they slowly come to a startling realization - Perhaps there is nothing to fix?

Proudly brought to you by our hardworking editor dream team, Not A Hat and Brad The Brony

Story Art 1 - The Moon Rises!
Story Art 2 - Moonlight Sonata(Disguised Luna)'s cutie mark
Story Art 3 - The World Has Been Doubled!
Story Art 4 - Moon Walk
Story Art 5 - Raising the Moon

New Cover Art by this guy who's into candy-coloured little equines. Apparently calls himself Pen Mightier or something.

Old Cover art by the talented Yakovlev-Vad! Please be sure to give him a 'watch' on his DA as thanks!

'We’re taken on an adventure, and if I dare say, we aren’t just told the damn story. We’re allowed to experience it. Spike has a moment, and I feel warmth. Luna tosses off the royal baggage, and I feel the feels. This is a great and glorious orchestration in romance...' - Wing

'Bravo! Bravo! ...I'm not into Romance stories because I don't really like them at all but this story here...This is my favorite!' - PlatinumPony

'I don't think I can accurately express how much I truly enjoy this story, right now. When the characters are happy, I'm happy. When they're not, I'm not. It's all so perfectly done that it's like I'm living the story instead of merely just reading it off a page. This already wins first place for most adorable story I have ever read...' - Drgnwolf

'Oh my Gods the feels! I smiled, laughed, got very angry and very sad all in one chapter! Please oh please complete this awesome tale soon! The suspense is killing me!' - Wiriamuzu

'I always wait until a story is finished before thinking about adding it to my favorites. Always. I have never added a story to my favorites before it's finished. This story is the one exception.' - Jomp

'Yeah. You just made a grown-ass man make a 'squee' sound.' - HoneyBadgerr

'Of all the stories I've read I can safely say that this is the one that best combines the written word with sound and music, there are plenty that have tried the same and not even come close to what you achive here.' - Lore

'This is the greatest story I have ever read. This is also now my favorite story. If you don't upload another chapter soon I will wait patiently until you do. I will climb mountains for this story. I will go to Disney Channel.com without my parents permission for this story. If i don't finish this story, i will write down in my will for someone to finish it for me. You, ascended pony writer from a land where the pigeons poop gold, are the greatest person in history.' - Blooming Cherries

'I am loving this story so far. The storytelling, the drama... oh it is so magnificent. A well crafted story by a well deserving author. I tip my hat to you sir. I can see some form of "Beauty and the Beast" in here. But what also surprises me is the way it is written. I've even had some moments of portraying Spike as Holden Caulfield from the famous story, The Catcher in the Rye. Just the way he speaks sort of reminds me of the way that poor man was, and the bits of Spike not wanting to detach from Rarity felt similar in the regards of Holden not wanting to grow up. Again, Pen Mightier, you have done a great job. Keep up the great work!' - XxEpsilonxX

'My cheeks hurt because I been smiling all the way down the chapter. Princess Luna really is the best pony.' - Allen Vth

There's only so much failure a changeling can tolerate. For Shade, once was enough. Years of training and preparation in the hopes of achieving a new life for himself and his colony wasted because of the negligence of their leader. It's time to try a different approach; if force won't work, then maybe peace and diplomacy will. What could go wrong?

A chance encounter in a creepy forest; A tree filled to the brim with books; A brief and sudden rain shower. These are all things that will change Shade's life forever.

This story is a sequel to Queen No More

Twilight Sparkle made the most foolish and selfless decision possible. She saved the life of Queen Chrysalis. The dynamics of Twilight's relationships begin to change as Chrysalis introduces the changeling hivemind to her pony caretaker. Chrysalis' only hope was to relieve her loneliness, but events begin to unfold that will change Equestria forever.

Nothing is stronger than the power of redemption...

NOTES
1. This is the sequel to Queen No More but there is a time jump between its end and Hive Alive's beginning.
2. This is Alternate universe due to the fact that this story will run off of a disparate timeline. Events forward of season 2 may be similar OR significantly altered.
3. There is mention in Chapter 3 of an old changeling tale titled As a Star. A version of this has been written by Farseer.

NO MORE UPDATES: The story is complete. A sequel has been made: Queen of Equestria.

FULL TIMELINE SUMMARY OF STORY AND CHAPTERS

2014 ANNIVERSARY AND HOLIDAY UPDATE
Updated outer cover, inner cover, and description!
2 new HD wallpapers!
Hive Alive 2013
Hive Alive 2014
New extras collection, Hive Alive Moments, including...
Too Hot
Perfect Marriage
The Hive Before Halloween
Take Two
Shy My Heart

Featured May 24th, 2014 and on every chapter release since then.

Art by BlackWater (that's me)

A failed experiment.

Not exactly new for Twilight. But when the outcome brings forth its own science, the likes of which her nation hadn't even yet dared to hope for, the ponies of Equestria slowly realize that they're in for the adventure of a lifetime.

The problem is, they might just not be ready for the revolutions that technological advancement always brings.

And they're about to get hundreds of years of human science and advancements all at once.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As a forewarning, updates will likely be erratic. I have every intention of finishing this story, it's just that my life has been rather crazy lately as I'm sure many of you can imagine.

Also, if you are going to leave a thumbs down, please leave a comment detailing why. Thumbs downs don't tell me much, and I can't make the story better until people tell me what's wrong with it.
Thank you for your time.

WARNING: There may be spoilers in the comments. Read at your own peril.

Covert Art brought to you by the amazing powers of photoshop with an artist's permission.