A typographical mistake leads Nightmare Moon's return to play out very differently. It still gets the job done, though.

A classical Equestrian fable, passed from mouth to mouth; from quill to page. The children of yore are the parents of today, and as they grow and change, so does the classic tale. Let us explore this tale as it may one day be known.

In the magical land of Equestria, three regal alicorn sisters rule for the good of their subjects, all the types of ponies, until one day, the shadow of jealousy comes upon one of them. How will the three sisters deal with this? Will harmony be lost forever?

Open the storybook, reader, and let us find out.

Massive thanks to Sagebrush for the beautiful art piece and for his help with the story, and many more thanks to Blue Thrush and Lysis for their wonderful prereading and editing.

After her sister's banishment, Celestia realized it was her failure that led to her sister's fall, and she vowed to build a better nation that her sister would have wanted. Here, Nightmare Moon is neither myth nor legend; everyone is taught about what truly happened to Princess Luna, and that the two are one and the same. Through her millennia of atonement, Celestia upholds her sister's visions for a better Equestria, reviving her lost legacy.

Now, at the 1000th summer sun celebration, the town of Ponyville is ready. Eager to witness the historic event, everyone's there to show their love and appreciation as they welcome the Princess of the Night's return. Would Nightmare Moon still seek retribution and bring nighttime eternal? Or would she reunite with her long-lost sister, graciously returning to her throne? It doesn't matter to Celestia. She just wants to see her sister once again.

This story is a sequel to Rainbooms and Royalty

An alternate universe re-imagining of "Friendship is Magic." Rainbow Dash is the personal protege of Celestia, ruler of all Equestria. Follow her through the events of the 1,000th Summer Sun Celebration and the return of Nightmare Moon! (A significant rewrite of the "Rainbooms and Royalty")

Cover art by InuHoshi-to-DarkPen

Most ponies believe there's only one route to the Elements: gather a team of six, have each member demonstrate a vital virtue, then find and activate the magic. As it turns out, there's actually two.

You can grind.
Or you can start spending money.
Decisions, decisions.

(Now with author Patreon page. Also, as of this posting, trying out Ko-fi tips for the first time. Does anyone know how to embed that button?)

Luna is through with Celestia making excuses for why ponies don't show her the love and admiration she deserves as co-ruler of all Equestria.

But when a towering monster appears and tells Luna that she can bring her sister to heel and be properly appreciated, Luna remains wary. She is no fool like Sombra, to fall prey to the darkness.

But this "Nightmare Moon" knows too much. Who is she? Why does she bear Luna's mark? And why is she so confident about the course the future will take?

There is now a Spanish translation of this story, courtesy of Spaniard Kiwi

Sequel: Left Behind: Sunny Disposition
Apparently it was scouted and is on EqD too

Nightmare Moon was meant to be released after a thousand years. A momentous occasion for her but terrifying for all the ponies on her day of freedom. She would get revenge on her sister and cover the world in darkness and shape everything to fit it.

That was the plan, at least. Instead, something went awry with the spell and she wasn't released when she was supposed to be. The mare-in-the-moon is brought into a world with stagnated technology, giant cities, and no sign of her sister or any of the other immortals. In fact, ponies don't seem terrified of her at all, and the stay within the core of her powers infused and changed the alicorn's body drastically.

The alicorn had no obstacles left! But...she was also a relic of the past. A past everyone seemed to have forgotten. A past she could no longer look upon.

Artwork by ElkaArt. Link in source.
Big thanks to Kryostase for helping spot errors I've missed.

Nightmare Moon always had a backup plan if she ever were defeated; she would slowly regenerate herself and regain her power. The problem is she never expected to come back as a defenseless filly, or to return directly in front of the princesses. As punishment for her past crimes, Luna has given her a sentence far worse than being sent to the moon again. Nightmare Moon must move in with Twilight and report to Luna on the magic of friendship. She's not very happy about it.

By the way I am not trying to rip off Past Sins in any way. Nyx is NOT in this story, this will go in a completely different direction.

The real Nightmare Moon has returned during Nightmare Night, and she plans to get revenge on Twilight Sparkle. However, she hasn't been aware of any events past her demise. Or the secret feelings a certain mare has that she's hated for over two years.

Nightmare Moon/Luna has been banished to the moon by her sister Celestia. However unknown to Celestia herself, Nightmare Moon/Luna had some extra baggage with her at the time....

Based off a picture post I saw floating around a site. I decided to write for 60 minutes to see what I could make. Here's the primary result.