Thank you very much for all those nice words, and for the criticism as well :3
I think I should say, that those 2 pieces were the first time I ever tried this style. I know about most of the perspective issues, especially for the head- and neck parts. I'm still learning how to shade those parts properly, it's kind of weird sometimes, especially the muzzle and mouth, and, as you said, the part right below Auroyas head. I'm not quite sure yet how to increase the contrast in that area, but I'll keep trying.
Also, I didn't really plan anything for those 2. The hair-shine-effects just happened, and as you can see, the first part of her hair I colored (the blue front part of her mane) does only have slight shine effects, because I was mostly experimenting to get a proper hair style done.
Next one might be more exciting then, we'll see ^-^