This story is a sequel to Triptych

There are those who say that a mark is a portion of the soul made visible to the world. That the mark is destiny, and so cannot be denied. Equestria has existed under the influence of marks for all of its recorded history, allowing the ever-changing tide of icons to guide the way.

But it could also be said that every system contains the seed of its own destruction.

There is one who believes destiny is nothing more than a trap. And there is nothing she will not do to make the world free.

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

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This story is a direct sequel to Triptych. Do not read it unless you've finished the original.

Why do they keep coming back? Maybe it's wounded pride: they were humiliated once, and so they have to get one con over on Ponyville to heal their egos. Or a lot more than one, given all of the successive embarrassments. But either way, the brothers have returned to the scene of their crime(s) so often as to give Pinkie a tail twitch configuration just for their presence. Something which leads her and Twilight to a huge tent in the Everfree, one which has free drinks, slot machines, and happy ponies who haven't lost so much as a tenth-bit.

They can't lose.

As far as the latest con goes, that's just part of the setup.

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Cover art taken from an image created by DrXFizzle.

All of the girls speak directly to his face, and it feels like none of them listen to a single word which emerges from his mouth. They treat him as a prize: something which will say how special they were for being able to win him. There are boys in Hogwarts who would relish that shallow level of attention, and Bill Weasley isn't one of them. Sometimes it feels like there's no one in the world who understands.

But some say there are other worlds. And no one doesn't mean nopony.

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There's really no way to prevent it. No matter how careful you are, regardless of one's dedication to personal cleanliness, they're going to get in eventually. And for most ponies, it's a moment of deep gross-out, followed by scrubbing down their entire pantry, kicking out far too much of what's in it, and ending with a regretfully expensive shopping trip to replace what was lost.

But this is Rarity. The situation was unacceptable. And her intention was to take out the problem at the source.

Now if she can just find a way of explaining that to the jury...

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Rated C for Crackfic.

One of the many reasons the Cutie Mark Crusaders have their reputation is the group's tendency to ignore whatever the adults are saying -- or worse, to hear just enough to get them in trouble. So when Cheerilee finally covers pony sexuality on a warm, lazy, sleepy day, the trio come away with exactly enough notes to collectively believe the following:

Ponies going into heat is real.
They'll never be interested in sex at any other time.
They're going into heat once, for an hour and a half, and it's going to happen tomorrow.

This can only end well.

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(Rated C for Crackfic.)

There's nothing quite like a bad idea whose time has come. With ponies, all it can take is one charismatic idiot with an audience: for cattle, the 'charisma' part is optional. The young bulls among Applejack's tenants have gotten ahold of a truly bad idea, and all she wants to do is stop it before anyone really gets hurt.

Which means she's taking on the power of hormonal idiocy.

...it's probably time to bring in a friend.

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Roseluck is a pony who believes in Facts, and what she believes about them is that everypony saying something is true can only be the product of mass brainwashing. The free mind recognizes that Evidence is just a hoax with props. So if the government has asked ponies to temporarily wear masks in order to avoid spreading an illness? That can't be the real reason. Something is going on, and only the forces of Independent Thinking stand any chance of saving Ponyville from itself.

Of course, when it comes to the Flower Trio, Independent Thinking is also known as Fear-Addicted Paranoia. Everypony's been trying to tell them that for years...

Which proves the Conspiracy is just that widespread! To the soapboxes!

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Anyone seeking MLP-styled masks like the one in the cover image may want to start through Etsy.

No outdoor sports competition in Equestria has ever been rained out. Every parade takes place under clear skies. The weather is scheduled moons in advance, and those arrangements are enforced by government employees. So in theory, the mere existence of the Weather Bureau should keep ponies from having something to complain about.

In reality, the existence of the Bureau gives ponies an address they can write to.

And when you factor in Ponyville...

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Missions are dangerous, and sometimes the Bearers get hurt. But this time, treating Pinkie's injuries only took about an hour. No sealant to constantly reapply and lingering deep aches from the wound: just a simple, magical regrowing of her left forehoof's keratin. Really, it's a pity the procedure isn't available to the public yet.

And because it isn't available to the public yet, there's just one little thing which the inventing company's representative wants Pinkie to do. One little thing that leads into a full swarm of not-so-little things.

It's okay. It's for science!

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This story is a sequel to Hoofticuffs Day

The days after Hearth's Warming saw an especially hard hit in returns, and there won't be any real seasonal sales traffic for a while. When the Boutique's thermostat setting starts to move down, it's a sign that Rarity is expecting a hard winter. And after everything she's given to them, her friends see nothing wrong with trying to give something back. A few paid requests, here and there, to ease the burden.

But there's only so many dresses anypony truly needs.

And only so much one mare can stand.

(A stand-alone, no-prior-reading required part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group: new members and trope edits welcome. While this story is tagged as a sequel, it just takes place after the linked one: no knowledge of those events is required.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages. Cover art taken from an image created by Visfor Yoshi.