Rated T for being run over by a hypothetical trolley.

Everyone hates thought experiments. They're confusing, time consuming, and there's usually no way out without making you look like a jerk.

Today, Twilight tries to explain to her friends why letting them die is technically the correct choice.

After the whole "casting mind control magic on her friends" incident, Starlight spends a sleepless night staring out her bedroom window and wondering how she can ever manage to apologize to them. And to the rest of Equestria for everything else she's managed to foul up over the years, too, now that she thinks about it...

My entry in the October 2016 Writeoff, "The Darkest Hour," this story came in 10th place.

In the days following Starlight Glimmer's recent reformation to the ways of friendship, Spike figured he'd see her around more often. However, he didn't expect her to start going out of her way to spend as much time with him as possible.

Determined to get to the bottom of it, Spike decides to figure out what might be going on in Starlight's head.

Cover art is a screen grab from Season 6, Episode 1.

Featured on March 2!

After decades of war, the Crystal Empire is finally on the verge of defeat.

On the eve before marching upon King Sombra’s last stronghold, a lone night ranger stumbles upon a strange unicorn, a mare who claims to be the cause of all their pain and suffering.

Leave it to Twilight Sparkle to create the greatest spell of the past century – and then want to destroy it.

It's too dangerous to use, she says. It's too tempting. It can't help you the way you think it can.

Well, Starlight Glimmer knows a thing or three about temptation. She'll prove to Twilight that this spell – this magnificent book – is too important to destroy. That it can help ponies.

She just has to survive using it, first.

Second place in the May 2018 WriteOff.

Cover art is "Reformed" by Okaces.

"...we could be stuck doing this for all eternity!" Twilight said.
"That's fine with me!" Starlight responded.
Starlight never thought that Twilight was actually being serious.

What would have happened if Starlight hadn't turned herself over to Twilight? If she rejected friendship, even after being given a chance to come back?

Starlight Glimmer is strong. She always has been. She always will be.
But Twilight wants that to change.

Twilight knows Starlight Glimmer has been reformed under her guidance. Er, mostly—she’s still a work in progress, but there is no doubt Starlight is improving in her eyes.

However, there’s just one bad habit Twilight noticed that’s been nagging at her ever since she first saw it. But how would she converse about it? Should it be handled delicately? And when would she bring it up?

Today. Today, she would talk about it.

Her brilliant plan was ready to put into motion. All she had to do was get to the right place, then wait. How hard could that be? It wasn't like Twilight had any security measures of any kind.

Alone in the nothingness, a mare waits.

Edit: now available in Chinese!

The village had been perfect, free from the inequality and misery rampant throughout the rest of Equestria. Then Twilight Sparkle and her so-called friends arrived and ruined everything.

But all hope is not lost. Starlight Glimmer has a plan to restore her lost utopia on a much vaster scale.

After all, it's not like that purple princess was friends with anything worse.

Story contains spoilers for the Season 5 premiere, nonspecific allusions to torture, and nuts. Story does not contain Nikita Khruschev or shoes.