This story is a sequel to A War of Words - The Opening of the Guard

For centuries, the stallions of the Royal Guard have protected Equestria from every danger imaginable.
Now they face a new threat to their position that will not be so easy to defeat.

Mares.

The story of four mares who answer the call to guard Princess Luna, and the troubles they go through to gain acceptance and respect in their new jobs. Or it could be considered to be the story of four interlopers into a traditionally male role and the underhanded tricks used to secure their position despite their obvious unsuitability for the job. Pick one.

Cover photo credit to the fantastic MuffinExplosion at DeviantArt.

Thanks to my editors: Peter, MSPiper, Featherprop, Seether00, GameKnut and Tek

Author's notes on the development of the story and characters may be found here.
This is a sequel to A War of Words - The Opening of the Guard which is featured on Equestria Daily

The history of war may be written by the winner, but the Royal Historian is the one who provides the notes and background to the writer. The recent events that some have called ‘Mare Wars’ or ‘The Invasion of the Barracks’ are no exception. The Royal Historian has painstakingly compiled this folder of notes and background material on what should more accurately be called, ‘The Opening of the Guard.’

Please remember to return the folder back to the Royal Historian when you have completed reading, in the event we gather more material that needs to be included.

Musty Pages, Royal Historian

Source for inside photo
Featured on Equestria Daily and the Royal Canterlot Library
With sequel, The Night Guard - Night Mares
And an interview by Benman

During an attack on Ponyville in the middle of the Summer Sun Festival, Princess Twilight Sparkle evacuates the town by teleporting the entire population to safety in Manehattan. It turns out that her idea of safety needs some work. As well as her aim. And spelling.

Meanwhile, on a hot summer day outside of Manhattan, Kansas, Jonagold Bruener had a fairly successful life with few complications. Until while out mowing hay, he had a very strange visitor fall from the sky. And then another. And another. And another....

Editors: Tek, TheMaskedFerret, Peter, BluePaladin42, Edward Becerra

Picture credit: Manhattan Water Tower

The Equestria Education Association requires all schools to adhere to a specific set of guidelines, and any school that fails to do so will be deemed unaccredited. Chancellor Neighsay has shut down only a hoofful of schools in the past, and his magical seals ensure that nopony can enter the school again.

Of course, powerful magic like that doesn't go unnoticed, especially to the Sorcerer Supreme. So when the seal around Twilight's School of Friendship is broken, the good Doctor decides to pay a visit to the magical land of Equestria.

Takes place during "School Daze - Part 2" .

Edit: This was written before the S8 finale was released, and is now null and void. I still think it's pretty funny.

Contains Movie Spoilers

Derpy arrived home after yet another long, grueling day at the post office, wanting nothing more than to unwind with a nice cup of tea and some muffins.

She never would have expected Twilight Sparkle to interrupt her rest, nor did she expect the events to follow when the Princess of Friendship wanted to talk about a deed that had gone unnoticed.

Cover art by FluffyXai and used with permission.

Top featured on 12/8/17

Everypony is telling us, “It’s so amazing you two got Princess Luna to be the Mare of Honor at your wedding! And Princess Celestia as a guest!”

Everypony is meaning, “How in Tartarus did you, two middle-class mathematicians of no apparent social connections, achieve the social coup of the decade, upstaging all of the Canterlot aristocracy and peerage?”

The short answer is, “We made friends with somepony lonely and hurting who needed a friend.”

The long answer? Well, Princess Luna has given me permission to tell you the story. The entire story. Even the dark bits, from her foalhood. Which, I warn you before you begin, are dark. But I promise the ending is happy—after all, look at our wedding pictures! Have you ever seen a picture of Luna with such a big smile on her face?

Sequel to A day in Canterlot Juvenile Court, but can be read independently.

Story inspired by a comment by Veylon at the prequel. Thanks!

Pardon me, sir or madam, but do you have a moment or two to discuss the benefits of sharing love with your neighborhood representative of the Changeling Empire?

I blame Vdrake77 and his server for enabling this.

Now with a reading by Illya Leonov! Thanks both to him for the full reading and supplying Silver Spinner's voice, and to Goombasa for serving as a wonderful Diplurida!

Three months have come and gone since her freedom from the Nightmare, and in that time, she has done much learning. Learning of the new world around her, and what wonders a far more modern Equestria brings. With all light comes darkness; she of all knows this well. The texts she spends time flipping through often do tell of dark, unpleasant things, but all have seemed to be in the past.

Venturing into the world around her, spending nights high in the skies over cities and walking down long town roads, she is quick to discover the present holds its own secrets. In the shadows of accomplishment hides a beast which she is determined to slay.

Great thanks to those who have helped make this story possible:
Matthewl419
Empty Shelf
Ice Star
kalash93

It's the oldest chocolate shop in Equestria, the very first -- and on this night, it's also out of business. The final treats have been sold, the vultures have already begun to circle the equipment, and the proprietor polishes the remains out of pure habit while wondering what to do with her life. But that question will have to wait, as she has one more customer to take care of.

The very first.

(A stand-alone, no-prior-reading necessary part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.
Cover art by Pikamander2.

My name is Lottie.

When my Grandpa died, I never expected any more really drastic changes in my life. Maybe I would've been more prepared.

Clues and whispers aren't going to be enough on their own. Sometimes you just have to get your hands dirty, set things in motion yourself, no matter how weird they get.

And boy, do things get weird.

And on a completely unrelated note, word on the street in Ponyville is that there's something in the woods.

Takes place between seasons 3 and 4. I starting writing this a long time ago.

fanart by Apex-Jerico (spoilers for Ch. 3)

Featured: 01/01/19 (thanks)

Spoilers in the comments, you've been warned