Hearth's Warming draws near, and in this of all years we could do with a bit of heartwarming friendship fire to keep us going. Instead, you get me and a new FF150. It's been a little while since we had a one-word prompt, but with the festive season now upon us I'm hoping there'll be some entertainment to be had this time.

Here are the full rules.

After a bit of thought, I've decided to change the wording of the rules slightly this month. Please pay special attention to the new wording of Rules 7 and 8: stories must now take place in what you might call "mainstream G4" territory. In other words, Friendship is Magic, Equestria Girls, the 2017 movie and Rainbow Roadtrip are fair game. IDW comics and chapter books are not banned, but you're dancing on the edge as I haven't read all of them. Actual crossovers with Pony Life and other generations are now explicitly disallowed, though little bonus references of the "shoo be doo" type remain permitted. It may be that someone works out a way to subvert these new rules. If so... well, make sure you do it really well, eh?

Remember, there is no prize, as such, for this contest -- but if you win, you will be able to choose the prompt for the next contest. You'll also get a mention on the group's front page. I'm really not sure whether anyone much reads that, but then I'm really not sure whether anyone much reads this, either. Might be a good idea if you did this time, though, given the tweak to the rules!

Prompt: "Pranked!" (selected by last month's winner, TCC56)
Rating: E or T
Word limit: 150
Closing date: Monday 21st December 2020, 11:59 pm UK time (world clock)

Please reply to this post with your entry. This makes it easier for me to keep track. Please do not leave feedback until after the closing date.

Entries are now open! Have fun!

7382531

My sister Celestia was dull since we were fillies. Always duties, never fun.

That changed when I tried to prank her by pouring a love potion in her morning coffee. Obviously, I did not want to get caught in the calamities that were sure to follow, so I went to bed early.

A lick on my face awakens me. When I try to move my limbs, I can not. They are tied to the corners of my bed, leaving me utterly exposed.

“I know what you did.” The whisper in my ear is quickly followed by a love bite. “Starswirl the Bearded had told me that you were falling behind in your alchemy studies, but I had no idea you were this bad.” Tia boops me on the snout. “Consider this extra-curriculum hours. I shall teach you the difference between ‘love’ potion and ‘sweet love’ potion which you actually used.”

Edit: 09 - The Prank Has Been Doubled!

7382531
I wanted to write something cheery, honest I did! But my experiences with pranking weigh far more on the negative side of things, so that's what we're exploring this month.

True Tone grudgingly floats the binder back to me. "You're no fun, Octavia."

Expression tightly measuied, I warily receive it, cautious that their 'game' might resume. Once it is in my hooves, cradle it tightly. I will examine it closely multiple times later, alone, secure, checking for smudges or tears or missing pages.

They should know better than to take a musician's sheet. It is air to her lungs, the ensemble's soul distilled. The score could be replaced, but my cues and notes written in accompaniment... The binder and the pages within are worn because they are used, are loved, are essential.

All for a bit of fun between themselves. At my expense. At my humiliation and horror.

"You need to lighten up." High Bee shrugs it off, the rest murmuring assent. "Sorry and all that."

"Accepted," I say, level as always.

How dare they.

7382531

Sweetie Belle
She had grown tired of her sister indulging in ice cream.
It can't be good for her, if you know what I mean.
So when next she would pout
and pulled out the couch
Her sweet was now a different kind of bean.

(kill me)

7382531

"Gotcha!" Rainbow Dash chuckled at the shaking Applejack below. "Darn, that Nightmare Night zombie costume was worth every bit!"

Applejack gritted her teeth. "Dash... You got five seconds..."

"It's just a prank, bro! Anyway, see ya! Gotta get Rarity!"

Soon, a dramatic scream filled Carousel Boutique. "Rainbow, you skunk!"

"It's just a prank, bro! See ya!"

Pinkie was next, followed by the CMCs and Twilight.

"DASH!"

"It's a prank, bro!" Rainbow dashed away towards Fluttershy's cottage, grinning. Her friend was already asleep. "Perfect..." She opened the window and flew inside, then... "BRAINSSSS!"

"AIEEE!" Fluttershy fell off the bed with a high-pitch scream.

"Ha, ha, gotch--" A hard blow to the head interrupted her, quickly followed by another and another. "F-flutter--" World turned to black...

"You beat up Rainbow with a baseball bat?!" Twilight said to Fluttershy. "What do you have to say in your defense?!"

"... it's just a prank, bro...?"

It's all Bad Dragon's fault

Darn, this one's proving more difficult than usual. I'm not sure I do prank stories...

7382531

Sodium

Sassaflash pulled her gaze from the newspaper, and scowled at the mug of coffee opposite.  Steamy coils framed Caramel's empty chair; Sassaflash sighed, then glanced at the counter before tilting the salt shaker over the mug.  Finally, her stomach unknotted.

It was one of those silly couple-y traditions.  The first time, Sassaflash had mistaken the salt for sugar, the second time she did it on purpose because she was mad at him.  Every anniversary of their first date—the same teahouse, the same prank.

Sassaflash swallowed, then reached towards the mug.  She had always wondered just how bad it tasted.  Nuzzling the fragile warmth, she closed her eyes and drank deep.

She gagged. Tears burned her eyes.  How could Caramel always laugh after drinking that?

Because he was perfect.

Perfect.

The taste faded.  The tears didn't.  Thankful she couldn't see, Sassaflash turned back to the marriage announcements in the paper.

7382531
Pranked, huh?

...I got an idea. A looping story where the reader clicks on a link at the end that'll send them back to the beginning of the story. A prank that keeps them in a loop until they realize they're in it!

All I need is for the readers to be open minded and accepting about clicking a link within a story.

........this is hopeless. Time for plan B.

Escaping through the warehouse with the masked assailant pursuing, she darts for the backdoor, only for folding blinds constructing before her.

Trapped with little hope, she turns to her chaser. The fuchsia aura emits like a flame from them, but she only grins.

She throws a can of manespray between the two of them and it sprays out a thick fog for her to escape in. She falls on her tail and it springs her over the blinds.

Out the door, she stretches her mane and flings herself outta there, but a giant maneclip pins her prehensile mane to the wall.

The mare makes a low giggle, watching her approaching captor seething their rage through heavy breathing and giving a killing gaze.

She struggles to hold in her chuckling, but goes into uncontrollable laughter as Radiance appears from the shadows, causing the moonlight to bounce off of her bare head.

7388502
Assuming I remember to (which isn't a good assumption), I'll be posting one a bit later. (As soon as/if I finish my Jinglemas story). It's a different take on it, and that's what I'd suggest. Subvert it in some way. Do something different from what everyone else will do.

Right, everyone:

Two and a bit days to go!

A slightly thinner entry so far than in some recent months, but I was rather expecting that given the time of year. But if you want to have a go, now would be a good time!

7382531
Unexpected

Celestia still remembered the terror of that day, when she had discovered her sister transformed beyond recognition.

"Bow to me!" the enemy had shouted, "I am your ruler now! I am Nightmare Moon!"

There had been no time to think. Instantly, Celestia had seized the Elements of Harmony from their resting place and banished her sister to the moon. For a thousand years she wondered: How could my beloved sister succumb to such evil?

And now, the dreaded day had come. The stars aided in her sister's escape. Nightmare Moon descended to the ground below.

The cursed mare looked about, her mouth hanging open. She locked eyes with Celestia and her expression grew fierce.

Celestia readied her magic in defense, but Nightmare Moon did not attack. Instead, she tossed her helmet on the ground and reverted to her original form.

"You banished me?!" She bellowed. "Geez, Tia! I was joking!"

7397164
Don't forget to mark your story as a reply to the OP.

7382531
Yay, I remembered.

The Silent Treatment

“Mornin’, Rarity,” Applejack says, wrestling her gardening gloves onto her hands.

“Good morning—”

“Do you remember…?”

“Remember what, darling?”

“When we were young, sometimes you’d try to prank me?”

“I wish you wouldn’t bring up that unladylike—”

“You’d pretend I wasn’t there, or just cut in about whatever and talk right past me.” Without raising her eyes, Applejack silently spends a good fifteen minutes at her work.

“Well, I apologize if you—”

“I dunno what made me think of that. Anyway, it’s a beautiful clear day, and… that always reminds me of you.” The weather’s turned a bit nippy, so it’s time for pansies and chrysanthemums.

“I suppose turnabout is fair play, if you feel a need to avenge old—”

“Thanks for listenin’.” The flowers arranged just so, she deposits her gloves and trowel in her toolbox before bowing her head toward the cold stone. Then she leaves for home.

7397521
Thanks, I've edited it now

Nine and a bit hours to go, folks!

7382531

Another last-minute entry by me, as I am busy with long-format writing. And I don't even have a full idea yet..... Here goes.....

Discord, the Trickster, and Aura, the Apprentice

'Twas the night of Hearth's Warming Eve. Aura, known in Ponyville as the chaos filly, stood in front of the bright, sparkling tree in the friendship school lobby. Her eyes sparkled just like the tree did. But from mischief, not festive warmth.
Bits of a conversation repeated themselves in Aura's head.
"Pleased to meet you, Aura. You seem like a filly who is very lovely to have around," the voice of Discord resounded.
Among the usual decorations, there were apples and bananas on the tree, the latter a request by foreign kirin students. A grin grew on Aura's face and she clapped her forehooves together. The fruits gleamed purple, before taking on natural colors again.
Aura turned and skipped out of the lobby. Seconds later, a kirin came out of a room and peeled off a banana.
"Hey, why does this taste like apples?" she shouted after taking a bite.

.
.
It worked! And it was completely spontaneous writing, too! I guess I'm ending my first year of flashfics on a high note.

7382872 7385656 7386418 7386892 7390676 7391297 7396450 7397164 7397522 7398058

Time's up, everyone! No more edits to your stories, please.

Thanks to Fluttercheer's last-minute entry, we did in fact hit double figures once again, with 10 entries -- all eligible as far as I can see. Thank you to everyone who took part! Especially nice to see both newcomers and old hands taking part this month.

Given the season, I will avoid trying to rush things. I'll aim to announce the winner on Sunday 27th December. Please throw things at me (virtually!) if I forget.

Feedback is now open!

7386892

"... it's just a prank, bro...?"

At first, I thought it was just RDs go-to phrase. But then Fluttershy used it without hearing RD use it. It makes me think there's a loophole in the law and everypony, Fluttershy included, knows about it and takes advantage of it on a regular basis to break any rule in existence.

7397164

"You banished me?!" She bellowed. "Geez, Tia! I was joking!"

It's just a prank, bro

7398078

Please throw things at me

*Prepares a snowball*

(virtually!)

Aww.

if I forget.

...I'm gonna regardless.

Yay, feedback time.

Yay.

7382872
Is... is this an incest fic? I don't know how to take it. Love-potion switcheroos are a staple of pranks, and the setup here is funny. Just a suggestion of the delivery, though. The whole thing is told in the same past tense, so there's not division of where Luna is in the time frame. It's always a little harder for a story to be engaging when instead of showing the event as they happen, instead there's a summary of it. It's clear early on this will be a summary story, but then there is a little dialogue later on. That's were the tense confused me a bit. If Luna had been summarizing to that point to catch me up to the present, then once she wakes up, we are seeing events as they happen, then I would have expected the tense to change there. Or if even the dialogue is her summarizing it all to someone after it's all happened, then that sets her up as knowing she has an audience, and I don't know who that is or why she's telling them. It's subtle, but things like that can have a pretty big effect on how the story is perceived.

7385656
I'm guessing the title is a play on sforzando? With the few other typos, it may just be another, though. So these other two are playing keep-away with her music? This creates a nice mood. This is just my preference for story over scene, but I would have liked to see some conclusion drawn from it. At the beginning, she's mad at them for taking her music, At the end, she's mad at them for taking her music. Nothing's changed. What I do like is the bit of detail about exactly why this particular sheet music is meaningful to her. Many authors just have the narrator say it is without ever really justifying it. It does provide a stark snapshot in time of this mood.

7386418
This looks like a limerick, but it doesn't have the meter of one and the rhymes are a little off, so I'm not sure if that was the intent. To the plot, I like the idea of Sweetie Belle pranking Rarity's fainting couch, but I don't understand exactly what she did. "Another kind of bean" might suggest the original one Sweetie Belle is referring to is a vanilla bean, hence the ice cream, but I have no idea what other kind of bean she might have replaced it with. Maybe just something to make Rarity gassy?

7386892
One typo there in "Applejack gritting her teeth." Turnabout is fair play, huh? It can be hard to buy Fluttershy being that violent, but you get more leeway when you're going for wacky comedy. I am a little surprised she'd be willing to prank Fluttershy, given how Pinkie had always drilled into her that Fluttershy was off limits. Cute story, and I'm always for Dash getting a comeuppance.

7390676
This is rather good. I think the end means that Caramel eventually broke up with her and he's marrying someone else? There are many explanations of why she might be sad, but that's the only one that occurs to me where her reading wedding announcements would be relevant. Unless he's died and she's torturing herself by imagining their own wedding announcement being there? That's a bit of a stretch to assume a reader will deduce, so I think the former is far more likely. I don't begrudge you the apparently sad ending, but the interesting thing is that it works either way. That does make me wonder something, though. Without having a strong sense of what the ending actually meant, then I'm not deriving any sort of message from the story related to the sad aspect specifically. The story would have been just as enjoyable if it had ended with Caramel returning from the restroom, say, so I don't know the sad ending adds anything. It didn't carry a different "moral" for me that way, so what additional message did you want that part to carry? You took a pretty similar direction I did in my own story, I see: the prank that's not a prank anymore.

7391297
At its core, this is a shaved head prank, but a lot of it leaves me confused. The setting of a warehouse is a nice bit of misdirection as to what's going on, but after it's revealed, it no longer makes sense to me that they'd be in a warehouse. Red herrings work best when they still make sense after they're debunked. You never say who the main character is, and with her having a bouncy tail and prehensile mane, I took it as Pinkie. But then I don't know who Radiance is. Unless... is this Power Ponies story? Then I do know who Radiance is, the warehouse makes more sense... but I'm still left thinking the main character is Pinkie—er, Fillysecond. So they're not battling a bad guy, and it's Fillysecond pranking Radiance rather than Pinkie pranking Rarity (we have no basis to know whether the Power Ponies that they took the place of actually have personalities similar to them). All that is to say the prank setup was fine, but it does make me wonder what Fillysecond's motivation is. That's a pretty mean prank to play without it being revenge for something. Unless it's because these actually are Pinkie and Rarity back in the comic, so that Pinkie knows Rarity's hair will be restored as soon as they get back out.

7396450
Ah, the old pressed ham. Nice setup for it, and just when I thought Luna's punnery was wearing out its welcome, Twilight also being involved was a funny touch. Treating the prompt as an actual prank and thus writing a comedy is the easier way to do it, but among those, this story was the one I found the funniest. It's just the right length, too.

7397164
This was also pretty funny. Adding to the more type of ridiculous humor is that Luna isn't furious, more annoyed, which keeps this in the realm of comedy. A bit different take on the prompt as well, where the prank went by without the victim realizing it was one, leading to a switch in who the victim is. It picks just the right time to do that tonal shift as well. Given the prompt, I'm expecting it to be comedy, so outside the realm of this thread, I wouldn't have been waiting for the other horseshoe to drop. That's not your fault.

7398716
Yup, it's a mood piece and not an arc story. The title is correct: "diminshing/extinguishing, at the same [tempo]"...though I did goof 'measured' on my idiosyncratic mobile keyboard and it went unnoticed through several passes.

Also fairly sure it's not Fillysecond, but Mane-iac.

7398716
Thanks for taking the time to feed back. Thoughts and critiques are always welcome.

I think the end means that Caramel eventually broke up with her and he's marrying someone else?

Yeah, that's pretty much it in a nutshell; at the very least I'm glad that showed through.

You took a pretty similar direction I did in my own story, I see: the prank that's not a prank anymore.

Indeed, and that's kind of all I wanted to get from this particular story really. I'm not sure I had a message or integral theme other than, "Here's a scenario that involves a prank, but I don't want to go down the humourous route, so where else could this scene be taken? Though with a little more breathing room I might have gone into something on the power and trappings of relationship traditions; there was a reasonable amount of that underpinning my thoughts when writing the story out.

7398716

At its core, this is a shaved head prank, but a lot of it leaves me confused. The setting of a warehouse is a nice bit of misdirection as to what's going on, but after it's revealed, it no longer makes sense to me that they'd be in a warehouse. Red herrings work best when they still make sense after they're debunked. You never say who the main character is, and with her having a bouncy tail and prehensile mane, I took it as Pinkie. But then I don't know who Radiance is. Unless... is this Power Ponies story?

Uh-huh, keep going.

Then I do know who Radiance is, the warehouse makes more sense... but I'm still left thinking the main character is Pinkie—er, Fillysecond.

Naw, you're getting colder.

So they're not battling a bad guy,

Yes! YES!

and it's Fillysecond pranking Radiance

Argh you dropped it.

The prank was directed at someone's mane.
She used manespray as a smoke bomb.
She struggled to hold back her uncontrolled laughter.

There's only one pony in the Power Ponies' world that has all this along with the prehensile mane as her most identifiable trait.

7399126
Pinkie has been shown to have a prehensile mane, too, and since she'd easily be associated with Fillysecond... well, I can't imagine Maneiac wanted to prank Radiance. Do her outright harm, yes, but not prank. Plus she was bouncing around much like Pinkie's antics. Then you agreed with my conclusion they weren't battling a bad guy, but... isn't Maneiac a bad guy? Now I'm even more confused.

7399127

Pinkie has been shown to have a prehensile mane, too,

If memory serves, the first time she's shown to have a prehensile mane was in 'Bats' (the next episode that follows Power Ponies).

I can't imagine Maneiac wanted to prank Radiance. Do her outright harm, yes, but not prank.

I took a little bit of liberty with Mane-iac. Her appearance, her laughing, her name (pun or association); they're all things that come across as inspirations of DC's Joker. Joker's pranks can range from practical jokes to death traps in the form of something simple that a jokester would use (Hand Buzzer, Chattering Teeth, Whoopie Cushion, ect.), so Mane-iac should do something similar with hair/mane products. Doing something to a conditioner where the mane falls off seems like a practical choice for Mane-iac to pull. It doesn't really harm them, but it'll take months to grow back, something that could be stressful to deal with.

Then you agreed with my conclusion they weren't battling a bad guy, but... isn't Maneiac a bad guy? Now I'm even more confused.

I was doing a reversal thing. The main character that we thought was a good guy running from a threatening force, was actually the bad guy running from being caught by the good guy. It's my way off pranking the reader.

7382872 7385656 7386418 7386892 7390676 7391297 7396450 7397164 7397522 7398058

Results time!

Quite an impressive variety of approaches to this prompt, which made reading more interesting but judging more complicated!

Hon mensh: paperhearts -- A tale of love and loss in 150 words, which is impressive in itself. As Pascoite said in his feedback, it is quite an open ending, but I got the same message you (judging by your own comment) intended it, and I thought that was effective. You seem to remember my weakness for Sassaflash stories, too!

Winner: Pascoite -- I found your different take on the prompt refreshing, and once the realisation hit me as to what was happening (which I confess took me a few moments) I thought it was very much something I could see Applejack doing. At least these days, as you'd only do that to a friend you knew very well, as AJ knows Rarity very well by now. That was another point in its favour: this is a fic that probably wouldn't have convinced with the S1 versions of these characters.

Congratulations, Pascoite! You know how it goes, so please let me (and everyone else) your choice for the January 2021 prompt. To everyone else, thank you for your stories -- as usual, I enjoyed all of them -- and I hope you've got something out of them as well.

Please feel free to continue with your feedback!

7402191
There's something I wondered if you picked up on. I agree, S1 versions of the characters wouldn't have this closeness, but there's a somewhat subtle use of "hand" in the first paragraph that places these as the EqG versions, and the human girls are very much closer. The writers basically admitted to shipping them, which is pretty apparent by "Rollercoaster of Friendship."

I very much enjoyed paperhearts' story as well, and it was my favorite of the bunch.

For January's prompt, I choose "Poetic Justice." I think it provides a number of different angles. Easy mode, use the idiom. Medium mode, write a poem. Hard mode, write a poem incorporating the idiom. Or, as usual, come up with some unexpected interpretation of it.

Well done, everyone, particularly for finding time to write something in one of the busiest of months. Congratulations, Pascoite; I enjoyed your story! Not 100% sure I fancy dusting off the poetry part of the brain, but I'll see what inspires me.

7402399

There's something I wondered if you picked up on.

I did the first time I read it, since being the first line it was hard to miss. Then I kind of put it to the back of my mind as it didn't really seem that the story as a whole was affected by it. With the proviso that we're not talking about early-series versions of the characters, I still think that. I'm not really the kind of person who always spots every little detail, I'm afraid -- good job I'm not a professional editor or proofreader, as I would not be the best!

Thanks for the prompt! Seems good to me, so I'll stick that up on New Year's Day. Now, I am remembering to make the edits to the front page of this group this month, so there's something.

(As an aside, not to do with your story, I'm not that keen on Fimfiction's new way of showing quotes. I don't think it's nearly as clear as the old one.)

Long-overdue feedback!

7385656
I like how Octy says a mild "Accepted" when her actual emotion is much stronger. That sounds like the Octy way of doing things, keeping up decorum.

7386418
I like the idea of doing one of these as a limerick (or some other form of poetry). It adds another layer of challenge. =)

7386892
I like the idea that Fluttershy is a scaredy-cat, so you wouldn't expect her to fight back, but at the same time it's because she's a scaredy-cat that she retaliates, because she thinks it's real =P

7390676
This one's my favorite. You really manage to say a lot with just a few words. Well done. =)

7391297
I think the characters should have names. Why is it just "she" running from "the masked assailant"? I think past tense would have worked better too. Still, nice to hear something from the Power Ponies. =)

7397522

I'm not entirely sure what's going on here. It looks like AJ is giving Rarity the silent treatment as part of a long-awaited payback. The trouble is, the Silent Treatment involves not talking to the other person, not acknowledging them in any way, and yet AJ does acknowledge Rarity with "Thanks for listenin'". Am I missing something?

7398058
Congrats on spontaneous writing =)

7407183
Rarity is silent. Applejack is just imagining her voice as she tends to the flowers around her grave.

7407194
Oh wow. I did not catch that. I missed the significance of the words "bowing her head towards the cold stone".

7407183
Oh, thank you very much for the kind words. I enjoyed writing it.

7398106

Hmm, good point. Then again, knowing Dashie, she probably used that phrase even before Nightmare Night, and after Flutrteshy beat the crap out of her, she probably heard others saying that.

That said, if I ever decide to make a full-length one-shot out of that, I will remember to modify it a little to show how Fluttershy knew .

7398716

One typo there in "Applejack gritting her teeth." [...]

Ups... Fixed, thanks

[...] It can be hard to buy Fluttershy being that violent, but you get more leeway when you're going for wacky comedy.

The idea was that it was an involuntary reaction on her part. She woke up to see a monster, so she grabbed the first thing near and began smashing and bashing in desperation. It would not happen if she was awake.

Sure it is over the top, but not completely unrealistic (I think...) .

I am a little surprised she'd be willing to prank Fluttershy, given how Pinkie had always drilled into her that Fluttershy was off limits.

Yes, Pinkie told her, but then this happened:

I don't think Dash ever learned her lesson about pranking; I doubt she ever will

Cute story, and I'm always for Dash getting a comeuppance.

Thank you, I may try turning that into a full-fledged one-shot someday. I will keep your remarks in mind.

7407183

I like the idea that Fluttershy is a scaredy-cat, so you wouldn't expect her to fight back, but at the same time it's because she's a scaredy-cat that she retaliates, because she thinks it's real =P

It was more due to fear - she goes into autopilot and grabs the first thing nearby and began smashing to save herself. If that happened when she was awake, she would probably freeze, but since she was asleep and it was so sudden, she began swinging in desperation.

I don't think it's as unrealistic as it may seem. Panic is a powerful emotion.

7407471
"I don't think it's as unrealistic as it may seem."

I didn't say it was unrealistic. I think it is realistic. That was my point; Fluttershy is a scaredy-cat, so it makes sense that she'd have an overblown panic response.

7407477

Ah, apologies for misunderstanding then