Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 March 2014
We define the notion of ${\it\varepsilon}$-flexible periodic point: it is a periodic point with stable index equal to two whose dynamics restricted to the stable direction admits
${\it\varepsilon}$-perturbations both to a homothety and a saddle having an eigenvalue equal to one. We show that an
${\it\varepsilon}$-perturbation to an
${\it\varepsilon}$-flexible point allows us to change it to a stable index one periodic point whose (one-dimensional) stable manifold is an arbitrarily chosen
$C^{1}$-curve. We also show that the existence of flexible points is a general phenomenon among systems with a robustly non-hyperbolic two-dimensional center-stable bundle.