This story is a sequel to A Confederacy Of Dunce Caps

He's supposed to go on. There's a foal to care for, employees constitute another level of responsibility... in theory, he has so many reasons just to get up on the morning after her death. And the next, and the next, until he meets the lost in the shadowlands once again. When his part of the contract comes due, and he can finally feel whole again.

But he can't seem to remember having gotten up. Going to work. There's snippets, but... just that. Because if he pays attention, he has to live, and living means he has to remember, and if he remembers...

Mr. Rich knows he's supposed to go on alone. He just doesn't know how.

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. (New members and trope edits welcome.) This story takes place years before the one linked, and no knowledge of the other is required for reading.)

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"The first thing new students of the Great Ponyville Homecoming Holiday Riot may wish to fix upon their minds is that ultimately, Mr. Rich's intentions were good and thus it could be said that in some ways, what happened was not truly his fault."

Black Friday comes to Equestria.

Once.

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Filthy Rich has a problem. His daughter, Diamond Tiara, keeps breaking her promises to treat her classmates with more respect. In fact, she doesn't even seem to really understand what a promise is. Since punishing her does not seem to have much effect, Mr Rich is forced to consider a more creative parenting method. But how can he make such a spoiled, materialistic little filly as Diamond Tiara see the value of a promise?

With money, of course!

Now has a dramatic reading on Youtube! Kudos to DRWolf.

Something has gone terribly, terribly wrong with the Equestrian economy.

And it's all Discord's fault.

This story is a sequel to Cart-ography

Every Barnyard Bargains comes with its own set of paperwork: this includes business licensing, sales tax certificates, and employee records. And every franchise separately files and renews the appropriate documents in their own jurisdiction, as needed -- until this year, when some unknown genius decided it would be more efficient to have just about everything done in one place. Mr. Rich, who would never ask anypony to go through something he wouldn't deal with himself, will need to hang onto several things in order to get this accomplished.

His documents.
His identification.
And, as much as it can be hoped for, his sanity.

(While this story takes place after Barnyard Barge-Ins and Cart-ography, no knowledge of those events is necessary: it can be read as a stand-alone.)

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Retail tends to run a little ahead of the actual calendar: Nightmare Night stock is put out in summer, and Hearth's Warming merchandise is slammed onto the shelves at the instant that's gone. So Invoice, who's temporarily running Barnyard Bargains while Mr. Rich is on vacation, sees absolutely nothing wrong with announcing the first Back To School Sale less than one week into summer.

The kids of Ponyville have a different opinion. And it comes with picket signs.

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This story is a sequel to Barnyard Barge-Ins

Shopping carts cost money. Nopony outside the staff at Barnyard Bargains seems to understand that. Carts are taken deep into Ponyville, repurposed for any number of activities, never seen again... and Mr. Rich is sick of buying replacements. So it couldn't hurt to use a few new magical and mundane methods of keeping them around, could it? No harm whatsoever possible?

The two-word answer: 'It's Ponyville.'

(While this story takes place after Barnyard Barge-Ins, it can be read as a stand-alone: no knowledge of those events is required.)

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Spoiled Rotten knows her best years are behind her. The time of flowers, whirlwind romances, and the luxury of rejecting suitors has passed. Now is the time for husbands and cradles, and she still has neither. With the clock ticking and a string of failed relationships trailing behind her, she fears it will stay that way.

So when one of the rare earth pony elite appears at a Canterlot party, despondent, alone, and (possibly) single, it’s an opportunity too good to pass up. And it’s been so long since Spoiled’s met a stallion she genuinely likes.

History says it won’t last. Common sense warns it won’t work. It’s a one-in-a-million chance, and luck’s never been on her side before. But Spoiled has to try. She can’t afford not to.

(In continuity with The Silver Standard, though reading is not required.)

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Diamond Tiara loves winter. The cold weather means even ponies in Ponyville wear clothes. With clothes, she can proudly display how much better she is than other ponies. For this reason, her annual pre-winter shopping trip is of key importance. On its successful conclusion will hinge much of her enjoyment of the coming winter.

Filthy Rich is a busy pony. The needs of his store chain occupy his time, leaving little for anything else, including his daughter. When a cancelled meeting leaves him with a free day, he takes advantage of the opportunity to go shopping with his little girl.

There's a certain risk in sending this particular class of students on field trips, and Ponyville's school board is tired of seeing all of the disaster odds come through. So if the kids want to visit the Autarky Magic Center, then they're going to provide the security deposit. And that money can only come from one source: the classic school fundraiser. The corporate adults providing the 'chocolate' even promised a personal reward for selling lots of the stuff!

Cheerilee is putting Diamond in charge of the sales brigade.

The adults are going to regret that.

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