i tried my hardest to do Ponytober this year but it reallyyyy didn't work out. i got about 6 days in before i had to stop, but i may finish the remaining 5 sketches and upload them here eventually. sorry about my absence here, i've been insanely busy and i've only had time to draw maybe twice in the past few months. anyway, day 1's theme was to draw the "best pony," which i think refers to your favorite out of the mane 6, but i took it as an opportunity to draw my overall favorite character instead. some notes on Starlight Glimmer

- Starlight doesn't have the pink nose splotch, she just gets cold very easily and her entire face turns a deep red, starting with her cheeks, muzzle, ears, and sometimes it'll go all the way up to her horn!

- she had a brief relationship with Ember, the dragon lord, for about 2 years, and she doesn't like to be reminded of it. not because she hates Ember- it's quite the opposite, actually. despite her marriage to Sunset Shimmer, and her devotion to her daughter Luster Dawn, she still catches herself thinking about Ember sometimes.

- her redemption did not come easy. it was debated heavily which of the princesses should counsel her, and for a very short time the job landed on Luna. that didn't go well at all. their personalities clashed so extremely that she was returned to Twilight within a week, which seemed to make the most sense anyway. still, Luna assigned a Canterlot guard to track Starlight's every move to ensure she really was making progress, maybe because Starlight was an eerie reflection of her own mistakes.

- Starlight becomes extremely uncomfortable when meeting anyone who was a former member of her cult (this discomfort goes both ways, but Starlight's presents itself in nervous shaking and obsessive breathing). she has tried to make amends with everyone she's hurt, and she's on good terms with nearly everyone from Our Town, but those memories will always haunt her.

- Starlight's best friend is Twilight Sparkle. she probbbbably fell in love with Twi at some point, which she kept to herself because Tempest was in the picture by then. they do pretty much everything together though, and know how to cool each other down. Twilight also considers her one of the most exciting magical duel partners, since Starlight is one of very few unicorns able to keep up with her rapid fire spells!

- she bonded quickly with Sunset Shimmer over their shared past and commitment to recovery. Sunset actually moved back to Equestria to be with her. Starlight convinced herself they were soulmates, that they were perfect for each other, that they were meant to be. but if all of that were true, why can't she move on from Ember?

- Ember's love language was physical touch, despite being very touch-starved herself. she did well to hide that, since dragons are expected to be stoic and cold. her favorite form of affection was brushing through Starlight's mane, or braiding it with the helpful tool of claw fingers, and it'd put Starlight righttt to sleep. Ember loved it because Starlight's mane is so soft, no matter what she did to it. Sunset's love language is quality time, which Starlight doesn't mind, but sometimes she just wishes Sunset would lay down next to her on lazy Sundays or brush her hair the way Ember used to. Starlight is big on physical touch too, and she misses that type of affection.

- she's average unicorn height, very intelligent, and mildly fluffy. she grows a tuft on her chest in the winter, but that does nothing to help her shivering.