In the midst of a horrifying tragedy, Princess Celestia reflects on her life, on how she could have descended so low, and if recovery is even a possibility.

Written for the A Thousand Words contest, category: fluff.

Twilight Sparkle is returning to the Crystal Empire for the one-year anniversary of Sombra's defeat. The whole kingdom is preparing to celebrate.

But four crystal ponies are preparing a different celebration. The pieces are moving, and their plot is almost complete – Lord Sombra's last, most faithful servants will have their revenge. Twilight Sparkle and all her filthy kin will die.

Now, in the final hours of their plan, something has gone terribly wrong. One of the four is a traitor. Everything is in jeopardy. And once again, the fate of an empire will be decided at the Gate of Heavenly Peace.

A disaster at sea strands Caramel on an island with one other survivor: a human immigrant. They agree to work together, but Caramel's new friend may not be as benevolent as he seems.

Parody by Super Trampoline: The Cabbage Way.
Audiobook by Illya Leonov and Neighrator Pony.
Archived in the Pony Fiction Vault.
Reviews:
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The Royal Guard

On the day of the Friendship Games, the veil between two worlds is pierced. The magic of Equestria seeps through the barrier to permeate the world of humanity. Entities begin to come into existence. Lore and legend are gaining flesh, bone, and blood, yielding things both wondrous and horrible. Magic is powerful, but a limited resource. If the world at large discovers its existence, Equestria will become a target.

Thus, seven friends agree to keep the secret, but some things will not be hidden away.

Entry for the A Thousand Words Contest IV, Experimental Category. Received an Honorable Mention!

You wake up in the middle of the night. Something feels wrong. You check the front door and it's unlocked.

Twilight Sparkle never seemed to notice Lyra Heartstrings. She didn't even remember Lyra's name.

They were friends back in Canterlot and even went to school together. Yet Twilight didn't notice that Lyra just happened to move to Ponyville the same day she did. She didn't even notice when Lyra appeared at her welcoming party. Nor did she ever seem to spot her old classmate passing by in the background on any other day during her stay in Ponyville. Some days she could look right at Lyra and never realize that they knew each other.

Lyra isn't a very noticeable pony. She has put a lot of effort into that.

Set in late season 5, after Amending Fences.
Note: Lots of spoilers in the comments.

Guard
noun

1. a person who keeps watch, especially a soldier or other person assigned to protect a person or to control access to a place.

There is more to a Royal Guard than meets the eye. Capturing crooks, chasing ruffians, fighting monsters, stopping assassinations, and protecting the Princess with all their worth -- with a thousand years of peace time, they have become more and less. But the future is uncertain, and within the horizon, the dark storms are a brewing.

Aiming to become a Royal Guard had never been Twilight's first choice of career -- it certainly was not what Mom and Dad wanted her to be. Still, that didn't stop Twilight Sparkle to pursue that dream. Now that she was one, she had to deal with monsters, cultists, vengeful ghosts, prickly teammates, forgotten childhood friends, and a Sunset Shimmer. Not exactly what she had expected out of her military career in peaceful Equestria, but perhaps it wasn't far off from what she wanted.

Serious thanks to Sunglow for offering proofreading and commentaries.

Link to the Spacebattles Thread

In a yard, all alone, a pony whiles away the time caring for the lawn and the roses. Roseluck can understand that, to a point. And she's determined to help.

First-place winner in the /fic/ write-off "Lost in Translation."

Featured on Equestria Daily!

And now featured by the Royal Canterlot Library!

Reading by obabscribbler, Present Perfect, Goombasa, and Reverb Brony.

Princess Luna still feels alone, nineteen years after her return to Equestria . But when she finds a friend in an online game, everything seems better. She can be herself without worrying about what others think, and she can finally talk to another pony, even if he never knows who she really is.

Celestia is worried about her sister, especially right now. Upcoming peace talks with a powerful new nation mean that all the Princesses need to be completely ready. With her Luna so absorbed in a fantasy world, she wonders how she'll make it through the harrowing weeks to come.

Button Mash feels like a failure. He's still living at home, he still can't find work that can use his degree from the university, and he still feels alone. His friends are getting married, starting families, and thriving in their careers. On the plus side, he plays games regularly, and his best friend is a mare, even if she doesn't know his name. He hopes that his upcoming vacation to Canterlot might help his mindset.

But, unbeknownst to all of them, a sinister web within a dark plot threatens to ensnare Equestria... And Luna may be the only one able to stop it.

She may face it alone, or maybe she'll have some help from her knight in faded armor...

Cover art credit to yamashta. Link here.

Preread by -TGM- and Goldenwing

Edited by m1ntf4n, PheonixStarr, Wing, and the_Doc, and Swan Song, and Orion Caelum.

Follows canon up to about season 4 or so. I'm not sure when everything went off the rails, but it was originally as true as possible when initially written.

Link to the Discord chat HERE!

Most legends are born from a single small grain of truth, others are born from the pure imagination of a few ponies, but as Ponyville very well knows not all legends are that. When something saves Apple Bloom from a pack of Timberwolves will she be able to convince the others of what she saw or will she just have to find the truth herself?

The Supplement to this story is ready to be read. It's right here. Read it. I mean... if you want to. I'm not your boss.

I would like to give a big big thanks to Danupert for pre-reading chapters 4 through 12. Thank you so much.
Also want to thank Annoyed Changeling, Ratfinkdos, and Crystal Static for being willing to help with this story as pre-readers. Thank you very much.