In the far reaches of Canterlot Castle, high above in the towers lived the archmage. Everypony knew her, yet few had met her.

Twilight Sparkle sighed, having teleported away another noble seeking favors before reaching the top of the stairs for the second time today. They never learned. As the archmage, she already dealt with political squabbles far too often without inviting them into her home. Aside from personal favors for Celestia, she did what was required of her position and then returned to seclusion and research.

The nobility grumbled that no archmage should be a commoner, and Twilight’s disrespect toward them proved it. Each and every time they were forced to bow to her, they hated what they saw: the position, the status, the deference.

Was she not powerful? Was she not great?

Twilight, now reading through dusty scrolls and long forgotten tales, wrote in her notes — notes gathering dust of their own. A brief thought flashed through her mind.

Am I not powerful? Am I not great?

And then Twilight picked up The Tale of the Royal Pony Sisters.

Defunct side stories told in Across the Boundary. They can still provide a little context, but when in doubt, the main story here is canon.

Cover art provided by Lafiir

Twilight Sparkle took a nap after Season 9 ended, only to find herself back at the start of Season 1. Stuck going home the long way 'round, will she be able to keep the timeline she remembers intact, or will the butterfly effect bulldoze over everything she held dear before the reset?

Submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society, this is a story concept I originally was going to abandon until I got a mountain of positive feedback. Expect character tag changes as each chapter comes out. (And yes, the cover image is inspired by Groundhog Day.)

Here's an entirely optional guide to the canon of this story, which will be updated periodically to include new details.

Featured April 20th - 22nd, 2018.

Living in Equestria under a false name and racial identity is one thing. Finding out you're not the only one of your kind stranded here is another... especially when that someone and the element bearers are looking for you.

Being my first attempt at a first-person romantic comedy, this takes a slightly different approach to the concept of being a human stranded in Equestria.

Enjoy.

Big thanks to DVAN56 for editing. Go check out his work!

This story is a sequel to You Can Fight Fate

Time loops? The end of existence as we know it? Fate itself conspiring against you? Who has the energy to deal with that kind of thing?

Not Cloud Kicker, that's for sure. She's a mare who knows what she wants out of life. An easy job, a nice house, and an endless supply of potential banging partners. Then one day a simple little flower vendor moves in down the street and everything starts to change.

As a side story to the main Time Loop Trilogy, you can expect massive spoilers in the comments for both the original stories and unwritten chapters of this one.

Batsy Fluffentuft (not the most respected of the lunar guards, and in fact on super-probation from Princess Luna herself) manages to escape into the town of Canterlot and have herself an adventure.

Featured on Equestria Daily.

Based on this story:
The Great, the Powerful, and the Magnificent
Batsy Fluffentuft the Magnificent's Grand Shower Quest
Batsy Fluffentuft's Short Screwy Adventure
Batsy Fluffentuft the Magnificent Becomes an Alicorn
Batsy Fluffentuft the Magnificent gets out...again

Twilight Sparkle has always admired Princess Celestia. Her fortitude, her wisdom, her eternal grace and love for all her subjects. Twilight has often fantasized about what it would be like to be in Princess Celestia's horseshoes. She never imagined those fantasies would come true.

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Events take place a short time after the Crystal Empire's return (early S3).
Proofreading from chapter three-onward provided by Daemon of Decay.
Cover image used with permission from TexasUberAlles, thanks!
Inspiration for Sunny Skies from PhantomFox.

Twilight the Wise, Celestia the Bright, Luna the Dark, Cadance the Beloved, Chrysalis the Dreamwalker; the Princesses of Old vanished ages ago, and their power was taken with them. With their guidance gone society has fallen into disarray, and the absence of their magic is beginning to tear the world apart. Starlit Sky is a humble pony, doing what she can to provide for her daughter and live in peace. But fate would have other plans for her, as she is contacted by a mysterious stranger and tasked with bringing the old princesses home to their ancient seat of Canterlot so that they might bring peace and prosperity back to their kingdom.

Cover and Chapter Art credit to romus91 on DeviantArt

Jason's life has grown dull. While some may have thought that the weekly monster attacks might have kept him on his toes, he had grown to learn that as the norm around town. Now, after months of living in Ponyville, he can't shake the feeling that there is a void in his life. He follows his usual routine every day: breakfast, a quick shower, followed by a quick walk to the park to read the newspaper. One morning, he finds two parents playing with their filly in the playground. As he watches, an idea sparks within his mind: why not adopt a pony of his own?

Featured on Equestria Daily

For almost a thousand years, the immortal Nightmare Moon has reigned over Equestria as Empress. To the average pony, Nightmare Moon is an overarching enigma whose rule is absolute and whose wrath is terrible. But to Twilight Sparkle, who as an orphan has never known her parents, the Empress is something else entirely. When the young unicorn is brought under the royal wing as an apprentice, she learns a great deal more about the supposed tyrant than she ever knew. But as Twilight is introduced to life with her new mentor, she is thrust into a world of political intrigue, conspiracies and secrets. Secrets that were never meant to be revealed. As allies and enemies plot against the very peace of the nation, will Twilight fall prey to the perils of her new position? Or will she prosper and find in Nightmare Moon the mother she never had?

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My eternal gratitude to my editor, LordOfTheWrongs, without whom Night's Favoured Child would not be the story it is today.

Now with added TVtropes!

Twilight Sparkle was presumed to be dead. Destroyed without even a body to bury, the young victim of a deadly magical surge that claimed the lives of many others along side her. More than a decade later, reports of a violent murder by a pony bearing her name are brought to Celestia and Luna's attention. A trail of carnage leading directly towards Canterlot's doorstep, brought by a pony who strikes without mercy. As Twilight approaches, in service to an unknown master, the Alicorn Sisters desperately try to uncover what happened all those years ago.

Edited by Zintegy and The Pink Mugsy

Chapter Heading Art by KirillK
All Sketches and Artworks can be found HERE