History Recap / TriptychContinuumAMarkOfAppeal

* ADateWithRosiePalms: Never described, but more than implied to be one way in which the sisters are dealing with the aftereffects of being around Joyous. Celestia throws in teleport-based self-dunkings in a cold lake while Luna uses some of the benefits of being {{An Ice Person}}.

* RealityEnsues: Just because Joyous and her parents are ultimately cured (although the Doctors Bear want to see all three regularly in order to make sure everything's still normal) doesn't meant their lives are instantly perfect afterwards. Pleasant and Rapture have huge gaps in their memories from the years when the disease was effectively thinking for them, have to reconcile what happened to Joyous because of it, and Rapture's taken on some extra self-blame because she's the one who originally spotted the flowers. Joyous has all the issues listed for her above, plus she has to take make-up classes in order to finish school ''and'' has no idea what a pony whose talent is being sexy is supposed to do for a living. Luna makes a point of providing the name and address of a therapist before the family leaves the place, and it's safe to say there's going to be a ''lot'' of sessions in their future.
** The raid on the dealers' farm didn't exactly follow any level of legal procedure, which means a lot of the charges might wind up being dropped. Celestia has to resort to her WoundedGazelleGambit in order to put Choke Hold behind bars, and that's successful -- but it's possible that some of his employees could wind up walking away.
** Also, because Celestia and Luna couldn't tell Mazein exactly what they were up to during the national tour (used to give them a cover story for being present to investigate), they arouse suspicion from Referee Moonsault -- who ends the story realizing that she was lied to and, while the results of those lies seem to be positive, she doesn't know what the ''truth'' behind them is. She's less than happy about it, and relationships between Equestria and Mazein are going to be strained for a while.

* {{Demythtification}}: An InUniverse case happens in chapter 13, where, tired of having to keep her secrets from everybody, Celestia reveals that she was born as just another ordinary pony to Joyous, though she doesn't mention how she and Luna ascended to alicorndom.

* BiTheWay: Confirmed for Luna, although she notes that she's very seldom attracted to mares and has been both celibate and dateless since the Return, with too many things happening to even consider a relationship. In her own words, "Any attempt to reach out would not have been for attraction or connection, but latching onto a buoy to keep from drowning."
** It's unclear if Celestia is a lesbian, bisexual or even "straight but [[IfItsYouItsOkay swayed by Joyous' Talent]]". However, during her heart-to-heart in chapter 13, she mentions a nameless pegasus stallion, clearly very dear to her, who tried to help her learn to "appreciate the ''now''". Assuming this stallion was Celestia's FirstLove and not her father, that suggests Celestia is either bi or "straight but swayed".

*** The most popular fan theory is that this may have turned him into ''Sombra''.

** In chapter 15, it's reconfirmed that Starswirl [[Recap/TriptychContinuumTriptych created the Alicorn Amulet]] -- and then we find out that Celestia did something to him on his deathbed. (This turns out to be the incident she was talking about in [[Recap/TriptychContinuumBlessing Blessing]]. All we know about the working is that Luna describes it as an abomination, and that Celestia was in some way trying to ''call him back''.

** The most popular fan theory is that this may have turned him into ''Sombra''.

* LivingAphrodisiac: Joyous, [[SmellsSexy and the means by which her talent operates]]. Her magic detects and samples the natural pheromones coming off a sapient being, then produces the ''exact'' chemical required to induce sexual interest and arousal in the other party. When viewing through the proper filter, she appears to be surrounded by a multi-hued twisting cloud of mists, which changes color as new pheromones are brought into the mix. And while the analysis and creation process are at least partially magical, the ''results'' are perfectly normal chemicals -- which is why the effects she produces on others can't be directly magically countered. ([[WordOfGod Word Of Fanfic Author]] says using the Severance on her would temporarily shut down pheromone production, but wouldn't negate anything already in the air or which had targeted another being.)) As such, the attempts to stop or contain her talent wind up mixing magic and science.

** Chapter 14: the flower behind the disease is recovered, but at the cost of Chocolate being exposed.

* CompleteMonster: This is the InUniverse attitude held towards Choke Hold, the minotaur druglord who created red-tinge, who forced innocent minotaurs to experiment with various wild zone plants until they died -- at which point they were replaced with more victims -- or they found a way to market the plant as a drug, and who decided lethal drugs, previously unknown in Mazein, were perfectly okay to pursue so long as a sufficient supply of new victims could be found: as far as he was concerned, everyone was either a sucker or a test subject -- and why did a sucker deserve to live? Averted in that they, however reluctantly, insist on giving him full legal rights and due process, even if it means he walks in the end.

* TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivarly: Very much present throughout. To some degree, Celestia and Luna are subconsciously trying to impress Joyous -- something Celestia realizes in Chapter 7 -- and it means that each occasionally tries to outdo the other. There's also a mention that each has the ''duty'' to occasionally take the other down a few pegs, as a reminder that in the end, they're both still just ponies.

* ArousedByTheirVoice: Even when Joyous conceals herself in a manure-scented burlap sack, her voice is enticing enough to bypass the royal guards and drive Luna to distraction.

** The refined, functional Hoovmat Suit that Luna and Celestia get created for Joyous. It actually ''works'', but the charcoal filters can only absorb so many pheromones before they become saturated, and while the revised creation no longer tears due to little things like normal pony movement, it can still be ripped. Overall, it can give her some freedom to go out amongst other beings, but it's not really a permanent solution.
* BadassBookworm: It turns out that Chocolate Bear's personal spell is to produce a virtual {{Laser Blade}} from his field, with literally surgically sharp edges: essentially, he comes with his own scalpel. In chapter 14, he brings a rampaging minotaur to a halt by sincerely threatening to kill him with it, despite being a doctor who's never had to fight before and who admits he really doesn't like the idea of taking life.

** It's unclear if Celestia is a lesbian, bisexual or even "straight but [[IfItsYouItsOkay swayed by Joyous' Talent]]". During her heart-to-heart in chapter 13, she mentions a nameless pegasus stallion, clearly very dear to her, who tried to help her learn to "appreciate the ''now''". Assuming this stallion was Celestia's FirstLove and not her father, that suggests Celestia is either bi or "straight but swayed".

* {{Brainwashed}}: It turns out the parents of Joyous Release have had their personalities all but consumed by their cutie marks.

* CompleteMonster: This is the InUniverse attitude held towards Choke Hold, the minotaur druglord who created red-tinge, who forced innocent minotaurs to experiment with various wild zone plants until they died -- at which point they were replaced with more victims -- or they found a way to market the plant as a drug, and who decided lethal drugs, previously unknown in Mazein, were perfectly okay to pursue so long as a sufficient supply of new victims could be found: as far as he was concerned, everyone was either a sucker or a test subject, and why did a sucker deserve to live. Averted in that they, however reluctantly, insist on giving him full legal rights and due process.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: Joyous Appeal and her parents are cured of their PowerIncontinence by the story's end. Joyous' Talent is still extremely powerful, and shows no sign of abating in strength, but she no longer has to worry about [[ThePornomancer inciting orgies wherever she goes]].

* FreudianSlipperySlope: Celestia keeps trying to write a letter to Joyous's parents, letting them know their daughter is safe. It [[WritersBlockMontage takes several tries]].

* GoodDoesNotMeanSoft: Invoked, discussed and zigzagged. In the final chapter, Celestia notes to Choke Hold that everyone thinks of her as being the "good" sister and, therefore, the "pushover" compared to her much blunter sibling Luna. However, she thoroughly averts this by admitting that, even if she is somewhat constrained by the rules, she's still a pragmatist at heart. Then she uses her WoundedGazelleGambit.
* GreenEyedMonster: In a reference to something revealed in ''[[Recap/TriptychContinuumTriptych Triptych]]'', it's discussed how Star Swirl betrayed the sisters out of envy over their ascending to alicorndom instead of him during chapter 15. It's furthered by implying he may have turned into ''Sombra'' as a result.

* InsultOfEndearment: Luna likes to call Celestia "Sun-Butt", and this may be connected why the ambassadors/leaders of Mazein have permission to use the same nickname. The final chapter reveals Celestia has her own nickname for Luna: "Crater-Ass".

* LivingAphrodisiac: Joyous, [[SmellsSexy and the means by which her talent operates]]. Her magic detects and samples the natural pheromones coming off a sapient being, then produces the ''exact'' chemical required to induce sexual interest and arousal in the other party. When viewing through the proper filter, she appears to be surrounded by a multi-hued twisting cloud of mists, which changes color as new pheromones are brought into the mix. And while the analysis and creation process are at least partially magical, the ''results'' are perfectly normal chemicals -- which is why the effects she produces on others can't be directly magically countered.

* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: Suggested to be the case with some pony talents, with certain new ones only emerging when the time is right for them. (However, this may also just indicate that such talents aren't recognized until they reach the proper environment.) This led to one fan theory suggesting Joyous' existence means Equestria has reached the point of creating brothels; a combination of details from [[Recap/TriptychContinuumTwilightsEscortService Twilight's Escort Service]] and WordOfGod went on to establish that, yes, Equestria ''does'' have prostitution, although brothels are generally only found in the largest settled zones.

* RealityEnsues: Just because [[spoiler:Joyous and her parents get cured]] doesn't meant their lives are instantly perfect afterwards. There's going to be a ''lot'' of therapy in their future.
* ReplacementGoldfish: Luna's perception of Cadance. The two rather decidedly do ''not'' get along.

** Several ''very'' personal details about Celestia and Luna's origins are revealed in chapter 13; they were born to an ordinary pony couple during the Discordian era, as the third (Celestia) and fifth (Luna) of seven living foals (five fillies, two colts), they don't know their birthday due to there being no way of keeping track of days during Discord's era and the days that modern ponies ''think'' of as their birthdays are actually the closest-guess anniversaries of major fights against Discord, they buried at least one stillborn little sister, and their illustrious manes and tails are a side effect from carrying so much magic -- added to a potential minor case of [[StubbornHair wish fulfillment]].
** In chapter 15, it's implied that Starswirl not only created the Alicorn Amulet, but that something Celestia did to him afterwards ''turned him into Sombra''.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: The sisters, in large part because they can't trust many other ponies to get involved with the problem.

* SecretKeeper: Following the events of Chapter 9, the Doctors Bear are two of three living ponies to know the sisters and Cadance were not born as alicorns. (The third is Fancypants.)

** In chapter 12:

-->''USER ONE ACKNOWLE-DGE-DGED

* WoundedGazelleGambit: Invoked; Celestia uses the ability of a skilled unicorn to hide their telekinetic field to first release Choke Hold from his bindings and then [[PeoplePuppets manipulate him like a marionette]] into striking her whilst Mazein police watch through the one-way privacy mirror. Combined with its sound-blocking qualities, this means that Celestia has just put Choke Hold into a legal bind he ''cannot'' hope to wriggle his way out of.

* GoodDoesNotMeanSoft: Invoked, discussed and zigzagged. In the final chapter, Celestia notes to Choke Hold that everyone thinks of her as being the "good" sister and, therefor, the "pushover" compared to her much blunter sibling Luna. However, she thoroughly averts this by admitting that, even if she is somewhat constrained by the rules, she's still a pragmatist at heart. Then she uses her WoundedGazelleGambit.

** It's unclear if Celestia is a lesbian, bisexual or even "straight but [[IfItsYouItsOkay swayed by Joyous' Talent]]" so far.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Mr. Hoovmat, who has taken his great-grandfather's honest business and run it into the ground by producing the shoddiest, cheapest work he can and who is implied to use all manner of underhanded dealings to ensure his company retains a total monopoly over the hazard-suit industry. (Unfortunately, once the sisters reach Mazein, that monopoly is proven to be localized in ''Equestria'', and the drug growers have suits of their own.)

*** Given that the working was apparently used to get through the field-projecting interference of the Hoovmat suit, added to the slight color shift in Luna's field and a few things seen over in ''Triptych'' itself, all indications point to Luna having pulled out something learned from [[FaceHeelTurn Star Swirl]].

** Confirmed for Luna in [[TriptychContinuumBlessing Blessing]].

* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: Suggested to be the case with some pony talents, with certain new ones only emerging when the time is right for them. (However, this may also just indicate that such talents aren't recognized until they reach the proper environment.) This has led to one fan theory suggesting Joyous' existence means Equestria has reached the point of creating brothels.
** However, since [[Recap/TriptychContinuumTwilightsEscortService Twilight's Escort Service]] established paid sexual companionship as being legal in Equestria, it's likely that such facilities already exist.
*** Confirmed by [[WordOfGod Word Of Fanfic Author]], but they're generally only found in the largest settled zones.

** Several ''very'' personal details about Celestia and Luna's origins are revealed in chapter 13; they were born to an ordinary pony couple (pegasus father, unknown mother) during the Discordian era, as the third (Celestia) and fifth (Luna) of seven living foals (five fillies, two colts), they don't know their birthday due to there being no way of keeping track of days during Discord's era and the days that modern ponies ''think'' of as their birthdays are actually the closest-guess anniversaries of major fights against Discord, they buried at least one stillborn little sister, and their illustrious manes and tails are a side effect from carrying so much magic -- added to a potential minor case of [[StubbornHair wish fulfillment]].

** Several ''very'' personal details about Celestia and Luna's origins are revealed in chapter 13; they were born to an ordinary pony couple during the Discordian era, as the third (Celestia) and fifth (Luna) of seven living foals (five fillies, two colts), they don't know their birthday due to there being no way of keeping track of days during Discord's era and the days that modern ponies ''think'' of as their birthdays are actually the closest-guess anniversaries of major fights against Discord, they buried at least one stillborn little sister, and their illustrious manes and tails are a side effect from carrying so much magic -- added to a potential minor case of [[StubbornHair wish fulfillment]].

** After learning that Joyous' problems stem from a rare magical plant that just generally causes an exposed victim's magic to grow incessantly until they can't consciously control it anymore, Chocolate and Vanilla both contemplate the idea of ''exposing themselves'' in hopes that the subsequent boost to their own medical talent-magic will ultimately give them the "push" they need to make a rapid breakthrough.

** Several ''very'' personal details about Celestia and Luna's origins are revealed in chapter 13; they were born to an ordinary pony couple during the Discordian era, as the third (Celestia) and fifth (Luna) of seven living foals (five fillies, two colts), they don't know their birthday due to there being no way of keeping track of days during Discord's era and the days that modern ponies ''think'' of as their birthdays are actually the closest-guess anniversaries of major fights against Discord, their father was a pegasus, they buried at least one stillborn little sister, and their illustrious manes and tails are actually magical illusions.

* SinsOfOurFathers: Invoked, discussed and averted in chapter 13, when Celestia confirms to an indignant Chocolate that there was indeed a war fought where the enemy physically cut off Cutie Marks to try and nullify the inherent magic of captured ponies, then firmly tells him to forget it, as those who committed the acts are generations past being dead and dust. She kindly decides not to illuminate him that the war was fought ''between'' ponies, and that those self-same ponies were more than willing to hack off ''horns and wings'' from their captives as well as flaying off their Marks.

* BadassBookworm: It turns out that Chocolate Bear's personal spell is to produce a virtual {{Laser Blade}}s from his field, with literally surgically sharp edges. In chapter 14, he brings a rampaging minotaur to a halt by sincerely threatening to kill him with it, despite being a doctor who's never had to fight before and who admits he really doesn't like the idea of taking life.

* BadassBookworm: It turns out that Chocolate Bear's special Talent is to produce {{Laser Blade}}s from his field, with literally surgically sharp edges. In chapter 14, he brings a rampaging minotaur to a halt by sincerely threatening to kill him with it, despite being a doctor who's never had to fight before and who admits he really doesn't like the idea of taking life.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Mr. Hoovmat, who has taken his father's honest business and run it into the ground by producing the shoddiest, cheapest work he can and who is implied to use all manner of underhanded dealings to ensure his company retains a total monopoly over the hazard-suit industry.