After her face and body are permanently scarred, Rarity seals herself off in her room with the lights off and drapes drawn, too disgusted by her own appearance to be seen. The only comfort she has comes in the form of daily visits from Spike, though she keeps the room dark to hide her deformities from the baby dragon. Can he convince her that she has nothing to fear; that her beauty is not limited to what she looks like?

My entry for the Feature Box Crusaders' Contest due on March 20th.

Thanks to BubblepipeWrangler for the initial story idea, and the help writing and editing it.

Additional thanks to: Twi-Guy and Featherprop for their help with the editing.

Derpy Hooves is secretly a changeling.

Nopony particularly notices, or cares.

(New 9/15/19: Spanish translation by Spaniard Kiwi! Thank you!)

In a desperate attempt to thwart the plans of a power-hungry sorceror, Twilight Sparkle ends up displaced in time.

She finds herself in a world untouched by catastrophe of any kind. Everything turned out well in her absence, and her friends, who have missed her dearly for the last decade, are overjoyed to have her back.

Now she has a decision to make. Go to fight the foe she left behind, restoring time as it should have been, or stay and leave him be. All is well that ends well, after all. Right?

Much gratitude goes out to Sagebrush, who helped me untangle some of my messes!

After a wonderful whirlwind of a ball, five friends share a moment of worrying about what will come the next morning. The sixth best friend returns, reassuring them that there's no need to worry at all. Friends stay together, and that's not going to change.

"Twilight…please, help. They're coming for me."

Trixie collapses on Twilight Sparkle's doorstep with nothing but these words, a monster in pursuit, and a whole lot of questions that need answering.

But the nearer Twilight gets to the truth, the nearer she gets to a dark conspiracy...

Can the shadows be stopped?

Featured on Equestria Daily -- July 5, 2014

She noticed the pony for the first time when she was young, not long after she'd received her cutie mark. He became her oldest friend.

Note: comments contain spoilers; please don't read them first!

Cover art by DaisyAzuras • Featured in the Royal Canterlot Library

Reading by Neighrator Pony • Spanish translation by Spaniard Kiwi

For most of Applejack's life, she didn't know what she was. True, she understood who she was well enough.
But ponies don't change shapes, nor do they get strength from love.
Applejack never thought too hard on it... until the events of a certain wedding brought about some harsh realizations.
Now, with Equestria still reeling from the surprise attack, will Applejack manage to come to terms with what she is? Will she even be able to keep her secret safe?
For if the royal guards don't get her first, the conspirators in the shadows just might...

Image provided by Heilos -

Pincer is a changeling, a proud soldier of Queen Chrysalis. After the failed invasion of Canterlot, he finds himself trapped and at the mercy of Princess Celestia's Royal Guard. Believing that Celestia sees his species as nothing but soulless monsters, he prepares himself for the worst. The weeks crawl by, marked by an endless series of questions he will not answer for fear of endangering his friends and family at The Hive. As his nerves wear down and his interrogators learn just how ruthless he thinks they are, they have nothing to report but his belief that they will kill and destroy his kind without mercy.

Celestia steps in to prove him wrong, and what Pincer learns leaves him questioning everything he has ever known — but also gives him hope for what he'd never thought possible.

Cover art commissioned from http://www.demonkings.com.

Now with a TVTropes page.

There's nothing worse than feeling alone during the holidays, something that Scootaloo is all to familiar with. She knows that she has no family to celebrate with, save for a mother so drunk off cider she doesn't realize her daughter's heartbreak.

This is the filly's reality- the harsh card fate has dealt her. But this Hearth's Warming Eve, as she treks home through the brisk air all by herself, a certain rainbow-maned pegasus will show her the true meaning of family.

Cover image by Mickeymonster on DA: Mickeymonster/

Edited by DJ GarV the Expert

This story is a sequel to Past Sins

Hearth's Warming is a time for friends and family to come together, celebrate harmony, and welcome the new year. Nyx is looking forward to just this as she rides the train to Canterlot with Spike and Twilight. She's going to meet her extended family for the first time and wants nothing more than to make a good impression. Yet, the sheen of the holidays can't hide the trouble caused by meddling grandparents, relentless reporters, and a paranoid uncle.