After his violent defeat, the former tyrant King Sombra has managed to claw his way back from the land of the dead and has returned to Equestria to seek revenge on Princess Celestia and the Elements of Harmony. However, the Emperor of Darkness is no fool. He knows that he cannot simply seek retribution on the Main Six or the Princess of Day, so he waits, gathering intel on his foes, learning of their weaknesses. When the time is right, he will strike. Can our heroes overcome King Sombra's plot for vengeance?

Sequel: The Return of the King

*Note: This story takes place in my official headcanon universe, not in the one for Shattering a Heart of Darkness

No important political meetings to attend? Check! No letters to answer? Check! A magical and child-safe gift for Flurry Heart that she's sure to love? Check!

Her schedule was clear. Shining and Cadence were off on vacation. She'd prepared all her materials. Twilight Sparkle was more than ready to spend a fun-filled weekend babysitting her favorite niece.

But she wasn't prepared for King Sombra's return. Nopony could prepare to be trapped with him inside a storybook of fairy tales.

And nopony's ever ready for an unhappy ending...

Proofread by: Alicornpriest

Winner of November 2017 NaPoWriMo: Goal of 50k smashed!

Now Featured on Equestria Daily - First hit the Featured Box on April 28th!

This story is a sequel to A New Friend

Ten thousand years have passed since the golden age of ponykind collapsed and the horror of Old Night fell across the galaxy. Equus itself is now but a shadow of the shining beacon it once was.

The rulers of that golden age are long vanished, and few believe them to be anything more than myth and legend if they existed at all.

But one mare means to change that. None know her name, but none can deny her prowess or ability to lead. All will one day call her by a simple title. The Empress.

In her heart though, the Empress, the mare once known as Twilight Sparkle, will carry that title even though she feels she does not deserve it.

This story is a sequel to The Assassination of Twilight Sparkle

A single life can affect so many others in such positive ways, but when it dies all are left to feel the aftermath. With the death of Princess Twilight Sparkle, assassinated at the hooves of both guards and nobles, a nation struggles to recover as the effects of her death are felt throughout Equestria.

The many lives that she had touched will never be the same. Each is their own story of their struggles, their sorrows, and their attempts to move on in the aftermath of tragedy.

(This story is complete!)

***

The one shot series sequel to The Assassination of Twilight Sparkle, that was inspired by the fanfic Ripples by BronyWriter.

Each chapter is about the other characters, outside of Celestia, who deal with the aftermath of Twilight's death in the first story. Some will be main characters, other minor, others OC. But all of them will be affected, all of them will mourn, and all will have to move on.

Feel free to add to the Assassination TV tropes page

Sunset Shimmer had everything. Personal protégé of the Sun Princess herself, top marks in the School for Gifted Unicorns, and the honor of being dubbed the greatest arcanist since Starswirl the Bearded.

Until she threw it all away.

In the last moments before leaving Equestria forever, her destiny is snatched away right before her eyes. Once upon a time the story of the lives of herself, Twilight Sparkle, and the path of Equestrian History went one way, a story that we all know well. But in every stand of woods there is a path untrotted, one with a different story and new experiences.

About the deleted comments.

Discussion of this and other works can be found on my Private Discord Server

New cover by DVixie. If someone knows how to contact them I'd be appreciative. It more accurately portrays the current evolution of the story.

Arc One, Filly Steps: Complete.
Arc Two, What Twilight Learned Today: In Progress.

Sunset Shimmer left Equestria through the Mirror Portal when she was ten years old in search of the destiny Celestia sought to deny her. But upon entering the world of Remnant as a Pony Faunus, instead of glory and power she found nothing but darkness, racism, and division. After a string of events caused her to open her eyes and realize the error of her ways, she decides to dedicate her life to protecting those who can't protect themselves, as a Huntress.

Twilight Sparkle wakes up in Remnant as a Pony Faunus after she completes Starswirl the Bearded's unfinished spell and... Honestly she doesn't remember anything after that. After meeting Sunset Shimmer, she discovers that the Mirror Portal Sunset used to get to Remnant won't open for quite some time. But after seeing the situation the people of this world are going through she decides to help them fight the darkness, Grimm and Human alike, and joins Sunset in becoming a Huntress.

Flash Sentry had his life torn apart twice; once when he was five when the Grimm slaughtered his family. The second when the White Fang nearly murdered him for trying to be a hero. They even went so far as to take away his wings and break his spine. Barely surviving and being put back together using experimental technology, he began training himself to fight and become a Huntsman.

Logan Timbers is a Wolf Faunus, a lonely orphan wandering across Remnant looking for his family. This journey has led him across several continents and through several villages that had been ravaged by Grimm. After saving a young girl, an orphan like himself, Logan decides to become a Huntsman so that nobody else has to lose their family. And maybe find his own while he's at it.

All of their paths cross at Beacon Academy in Vale, and together they and two other teams are thrust onto the first part of arguably the greatest adventure they could ever imagine. A journey that shall bring them face to face with darkness the likes of which they have never encountered.

Hopefully they'll survive it.

I do not own My Little Pony or RWBY.

My Little Pony is owned by Hasbro.

RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth.

"What is your favorite Fairy Tale?"

This is the story of Sunset shimmer, the story of magic and fairy tales, of fate and destiny. This is a story of love, heroism, and adventure.

Set in an alternate timeline before the Friendship Games, before ever meeting Sci-Twi, Sunset Shimmer ponders what has become of her princess friend in a world that has long since frogotten magic. With her final days of school approaching, she ponders what lies beyond the little school that she has come to love and protect.

What comes next for her, is a world of sorcery and souls, eternally retold.

A crossover with Mario, RWBY, and the world of Starfleet Humans. And one other, but that is a spoiler.

A year ago, no pony thought there was much to celebrate on Hearth's Warming. They were under the rule of a dicatator, under times of war, and their savior was dead. Now, times have changed on the small planet of equines: the war is over, freedom is restored, and Twilight Sparkle is alive once more.

Hearth's Warming is here again, and the Equestrians can celebrate it with good friends, family, and a song in their hearts. However, there are still some souls that could need help, and what is Hearth's Warming, but a time to help those in need?

Starlight Glimmer's attempts to stop the Rainboom pulled Twilight Sparkle into many possible timestreams.

In one, Rarity and Rainbow Dash survived Nightmare Moon's victory over the forces of light, eventually attaining positions of prominence and comfort in the Nightmare's service. But when the unexpected visit of an Alicorn and Dragon sheds light on a growing conspiracy against the wicked mistress of the night, Rarity and Rainbow Dash may yet be inspired to risk what they have gained to join the fight for a better world.

Yet darkness lingers even in the hearts of some who would oppose the Nightmare, and not all agree on what a better world would look like...

This story would not have been possible without the indescribably vast help and unwavering support of Moosetasm, the pre-reading assistance of I-A-M and Waxworks, as well as the editing prowess of OnionPie and Pascoite! Cover by Novel Idea, using Rarity by miracle32 and background by Drakizora! Featured on Equestria Daily 17Jul.2016! Featured on FimFiction 2Feb.2017 and many times thereafter!

A different take on alicorn ascension. Sixteen years after arriving in Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle is excited to have invented a brand-new kind of spell, but it will come with consequences she cannot possibly anticipate. Meanwhile, threats in shadows around the world conspire to overthrow the Solar Throne. With her world turned upside down, she will have to come to terms with the role that fate has dealt her while straining to keep Celestia in power.

Now with a TVTropes page! Please show it some love! Also check out the official side stories, Designing Intrigue, and Love and Barriers! (With even more in my stories page!)

(Please Note: This story was started before any season three information was available. All episodes in season three and later are non-canon for this story, which also means there's no Crystal Empire in this one. In addition, the promotional map released close to the beginning of season three was also not available and is not compatible with this story. While the OC tag is active because there are OCs in the story, they're really just supporting characters. The focus is on Twilight.)

Also be sure to check out the Rites of Ascension Expanded Universe Group! We're working to develop the resources needed for other authors to try their hand at writing stories set in the Rites Universe!

The Book Two cover art was created by the amazing Silfoe! The original cover art can still be found at Violet Squiggle's deviantArt page.

Author's Notes, including proofreader's credits, can be found here!

"This is 100% Approved by Twilight's Library!"