This story is an alternate version of events in the Episode "Appleloosa's Most Wanted"

Trouble Shoes has been living a miserable life as a clumsy oaf who can't land a job and is forced to trade his own possessions for basic necessities. But his entire life changed after taking a dip in an enchanted mirror pool that changed his cutie mark but swapped his gender. The Clydesdale hesitates to accept this new reality but quickly learns his new cutie marks him the luckiest pony in Equestria. Not only that, his dreams of becoming a Rodeo Star can now finally be achieved. However, there are unattended consequences to Trouble Shoes' new luck as he learns and will have to see how much he's willing to pay to keep this new life.

Cover Artist: Pridark

Sunset Shimmer always saw herself as the hero of her own story, her pride would settle for nothing less. Such views were challenged after spurning the controlling, demanding influence of her mentor, and finding herself an outcast. But never one to take life's hits without hitting back, she finds her way back to Canterlot Castle and via the relics hidden there, to a galaxy so much larger then she first thought.

Beyond the mirror portal, the colony ship Star Strider and its fleet has proudly wondered the galaxy for aeons, spreading Earth's many children among the stars and life to the barren worlds surrounding them. Planning on taking advantage of her new home, hitchhiking aboard the alien star ship far from Equestria, Sunset sets in motion plans to bringing technological and magical revolution to Equestria, intent on sating her lust for recognition and forwarding her uncertain path to alicorn ascension.

However it seems fate would derail her plans for the second time when she returns to Equestria, only to find it empty and pillaged. It is evident Earthlings are not the only creatures exploring the galaxy, and there are others that covet Equestria's bounty of magic with uncompassionate fever.

But Sunset is no pony who would see her ambitions crumble beneath poor circumstances, and knows that any calamity just another opportunity in disguise. Her victory will not come come through conquest, but with some good old fashioned heroics. After all, she has an unwitting rival to catch up to when it come to saving the world.

When Twilight’s invention winds up puncturing a hole between space into a different dimension, she’ll venture on through to discover a post-apocalypse world where life is unsustainable.

In this barren wasteland, exists a sole survivor.

Twilight will do whatever it take in gaining the girl’s trust, and perhaps something more. Hidden mysteries, old foes, and unusual amounts of corny shipping in motions.

Author Note

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Though claimed above of the original idea, this isn't a copy / paste of theirs' either.

Scootaloo races Formula One on Earth. How do you even drive a race car with hooves?

Recommendsday! LouderYay!

Inspired in equal parts by conversations with Raleigh, Viking ZX, Cereal-Killer, Mitch H, and TCC56 on the Discord, and by Admiral Biscuit's not-a-contest for Ponies with day jobs on Earth.

After and incident with Discord, Scootaloo find herself on the other side of the galaxy fighting a war she did not wish to be in.

After the decimation of the planet she'd been staying on, Scootaloo finds herself a friend in a newly instated Spartan-IV, Faolan Grant. When things don't go as planned, however, Scootaloo quickly finds a place in the ranks of Fireteam Raven as they fight Covenant Remnant forces and stand strong against even the wishes of ONI itself.

A.N.~ This takes place after Halo 3 but before Halo 4. The idea is that this is happening during the end of the first year after John-117 is reported M.I.A. and not all Covies have quite given up yet. There will be references to Infintiy and the other Spartan-IV's every now and again.

Credit for this idea goes to that picture too lol

It has been several years since Chrysalis’ defeat during the Canterlot invasion. Since then, the fortunes of her changelings and kingdom have rapidly declined. With mass starvation, ponies capturing more of her spies and love collectors every day, and her own powers diminished to the point of being a complete non-threat to her enemies, she fears that it may soon be over for both herself and her entire race.

As Chrysalis reminisces about past failures, a pony named Time Keeper crashes a large metal box into her bedchambers. He claims to not only be a time traveller but also to have accidentally killed Twilight Sparkle on the day she was supposed to go to Ponyville to defeat Nightmare Moon.

In an effort to avoid the prospect of the universe tearing itself apart at the seams from the ensuing paradox, Chrysalis agrees to go back in time and live out a facsimile of Twilight’s life herself, and if time allows, she'll work on her own little project: shaping the future more to her own liking.

While visiting Princess Celestia for the first time since they'd reconciled, Sunset Shimmer notices something amiss — the Crystal Mirror connecting the human world to Equestria has been quietly replaced by an entirely different mirror. Before she can question why, Sunset is sucked in and thrust into an entirely new world.

Now stranded in the world of Neopia, Sunset inadvertently frees a creature named Xandra from her stone prison, and forms an unlikely friendship — but the past, it seems, is not forgotten so easily.

A Neopets crossover.

Cover image done for my by the wonderful @honeyixi on Tumblr.

Shining Armor comes back home after the yearly Equestria Wargames Competition only to find his citizens panicking, his royal guard failing and his daughter on the throne with his wife nowhere to be found.

Or Cadence leaves her ten year old daughter in charge of the Empire and goes on vacation.

Written for the Cadence is a Terrible Mom Competition

Special Thank You to Skijarama for his reading of this story!

Special Thank You to Baineblade For Editing and putting up with my comma fetish and random capitalizations.

Original art by Its-Gloomy

Rainbow's home is a luxurious, big house seemingly separate from any particular town. Twilight finds out why as Rainbow explains what a Cloud Redoubt is and how you win one...in ritual combat. Despite getting her curiosity satisfied, Twilight almost wishes she hadn't.

After years spent as a statue in the garden of Princess Twilight Sparkle, Cozy Glow is rescued by a mysterious unicorn calling herself Sunset Shimmer, who intended to take her back to the mirror realm for rehabilitation. But something went wrong with the portal and they instead ended up in the realm of Everglow. A realm much like Equestria, but where ponykind has still to unite under one banner.

Making their home in the Unicorn Kingdom of Taralos, Sunset meets and befriends the griffin Silverwing while Cozy makes a friend in the royal court, the mysterious intelligence operative Cipher who, like Cozy, hides a dark secret.

When the horn of the son of the reigning monarch is stolen before his coronation, Cozy vows to find it in order to increase her standing with the royal family. The first step of her plan to one day take over as the reigning monarch, to rule Taralos as the Empress of Friendship. Will Cozy succeed in her ambitions? Or will Sunset's influence be enough to make her become the hero Taralos needs?

Inspired by the To Found an Empire Ponyfinder adventure path by David Silver for Pathfinder.