“Who would like to see more of The Great and Powerful Trixie!?”

The crowd of ponies gathered in front of the stage began clopping their hooves together. Trixie held her head up high and took her time straightening her large-brimmed hat.

“Of course you want to see more,” Trixie said with a smile, trotting to the other side of the stage so that all the ponies could get a good look at her. “I am magnificent, after all.”

Snips and Snails walked onto stage, both of them buff, full-grown, toned stallions. They stood on either side of Trixie and bowed, kissing her hooves and muttering compliments. She allowed them nuzzle her hooves for a few moments before pulling away and motioning for them to carry her back to the center of the stage. They happily carried her, panting in desire.

Princess Luna watched the spectacle from on-high, hiding in the light of the moon. Trixie’s dreams were the same thing over and over again and it was starting to become cringe-worthy. However… Luna knew Trixie was still one of her subjects… she couldn’t give up on the dream half-way through because she didn’t care for it.

Twilight Sparkle slowly crawled up onto the stage, her tail between her legs and her ears down. Trixie smiled upon seeing her.

“Twilight Sparkle,” Trixie said with a laugh. “Look who has come crawling back.”

“I’m so sorry, Trixie… I was wrong. You are amazing.”

Trixie held her head even higher. “And?”

“And… and they should have made you an alicorn princess!”

Luna could barely take any more. Normally she stayed to help ponies through their nightmares but it was apparent to her now that Trixie needed to work through other things besides fear. Shrouding herself in darkness, Luna sailed down to the stage and concealed her presence. Most of the time she didn’t reveal herself to her subjects in their dreams. If they felt as though she was always solving their problems for them they would become dependent… so she hid her messages as much as possible.

Using her magic, Princess Luna caused the dream Snips and Snails to speak to Trixie for her.

“Trixie,” Snips started. “Sometimes a humble pony is the best pony.”

Snails nodded. “Yes. Assuming responsibility without demand for reward is the mark of a true honorable mare or stallion.”

Those weren't words Snips and Snails would say… but this was a dream. Trixie barely even realized they were acting weird. She did, however, turn to face them with an odd expression.

“You know, you boys are right…” Trixie turned back to Twilight with curled smile. “I should have more responsibility! I should be an alicorn princess! Me! The Great and Powerful Trixie!”

The dream took a turn for the weird when Twilight Sparkle lost her wings. Trixie jumped down from Snips and Snails and was suddenly engulfed in a flood of light. Luna blinked back the brightness and gawked at the now “alicorn” Trixie.

She had two sets of wings, an extra-long tail and a white mane that flowed with magic.

“I shall be the new princess!” Trixie declared. “Celestria raises the sun, Luna raises the moon, but now I will create a third time of day! I shall rise the… er… stlab! A new celestial body that will rise in between the moon and the sun! All hail your new princess! Your princess of the stlab!”

An orb of rainbow color rose up into the sky, larger and brighter than even the sun. Rays of kaleidoscope color washed over the ponies of Ponyville, the brilliance of the stlab more than some could bare. Even Luna had to shield her eyes whenever she turned her head in its direction. All of the ponies in the crowd cheered, some even throwing money and flowers. Trixie flew over them, showcasing her beautiful wings.

Princess Luna sighed. This wasn’t what she had expected. Using her magic again, she spoke through Snips and Snails.

“Responsibility made is a false burden. Its responsibility assumed that is the most admirable,” Snips said.

Trixie glared but it wasn’t long until she was struck with another idea. “You’re right… I shall become a protector of Equestria and earn the love of all the ponies within!” Trixie trotted over to Twilight and stroked her mane as one would stroke a pet. “I shall become the seventh element of harmony! The element of power! The most important element of them all!”

She jumped into the air and light swirled all around her. A crown, necklace and hoof ring appeared on her, all designed with Trixie’s cutie mark. The jewelry glowed with an intense power.

“As a matter of fact,” Trixie continued, “I’m so powerful I don’t even need the other elements! I’m stronger without them!”

“Of course!” Twilight nodded along. “It all makes sense now! That’s why I could never defeat you! You were the strongest pony all along and I should have known! I’m so blind! How can you ever forgive me, Trixie? I was so terrible to you!” Twilight fell to the stage in a fit of uncontrolled sobbing. Suddenly, Prince Blueblood, Shining Armor, Fancy Pants and Big Mac all jumped onto the stage and began throwing flowers and wedding rings, each starry-eyed with desire.

Luna was at a complete loss for what to do. Everything she had tried had failed and the dream was just getting weirder. She could just rearrange the dream to fit her purposes but… she decided against it. She would allow Trixie her delusional fantasies for the time being. Perhaps another night she would attempt to teach Trixie the value of being humble.

Taking to the sky, while avoiding the giant rainbow orb, Luna happily left the dreamscape behind.

---

Without waking, Luna descended upon another dream. She was the Princess of the Night, and she took her duty seriously. Each night she would slip from dream to dream, checking on her subjects and helping them with her wisdom when she could.

Some dreams she merely watched and observed. Some dreams she would simply offer advice, like Trixie’s, but other dreams… Some dreams she felt she was needed to personally handle them. Either stop the dream or personally help the pony deal with an issue that could potentially become a much larger problem if neglected.

Luna flew into a dream that felt very similar to the last. There was a crowd of ponies gathered outside a stage. Luna immediately recognized the event as a fashion show.

“Spike! It’s almost time!”

“Yes, Rarity!”

A long runway was built out so that the crowd of ponies could gather around and inspect the clothing on display. Luna again hid her presence, wondering what would happen. She was familiar with Rarity’s dreams; any of the ruling ponies of Ponyville, really. These dreams didn’t usually need Luna’s intervention, but occasionally…

“It’s time!” Rarity shouted, throwing back to the curtain and wandering out onto the runway. She wore a striking gown with elaborate ties and stitching. It was beautiful without being gaudy, and done in a white and blue theme. Rarity walked the line, proud of her accomplishment.

The second dress that came out behind her was a ratty, half-dress, half-shirt, also done in a blue and white theme. It was nowhere near as detailed and beautiful and Luna would have gone so far as to say it was very gaudy. Diamonds and sapphires were covering every inch of it… the dress didn’t look comfortable at all.

Suddenly the crowd of ponies went wild with excitement. Rarity held her head high and dismissively waved away their excitement. “Oh, don’t worry, darlings. You’ll be able to see this gown again at the Grand Galloping Gala.”

Much to her dismay, the ponies all began pointing and admiring the second dress.

“What a beautiful dress! I love diamonds!”

“I agree! So many sapphires!”

“I love it! I must have it! Who created it!? I must know! They’re a genius!”

Rarity balked at their excitement for the second dress. “B-but that dress is… is… awful! And it’s a clearly a terrible copy of my own!”

Nopony listened to her. They all flocked to the lesser dress and lavished it with praise.

“But mine took work and… and… skill,” Rarity continued to try and explain the merits of her dress but the crowd of ponies only became annoyed.

“You’re just jealous!”

“You wish you were as talented as this fashion designer!”

“I like sapphires!”

Luna watched from the sidelines, concerned with how Rarity would react. These types of dreams were common… fear of being rejected, unseen, forgotten and unappreciated. These were dreams Luna had experienced herself… they had filled her with a bitterness that still linger to this day, and it worried her.

Rarity took a deep breath and held back tears. Spike, her dragon suitor, ran to her side. “Rarity? Are you okay?”

“Spike… I need to go back to the drawing board.”

“But that dress took you weeks to finish!”

“I need to try harder,” Rarity firmly stated as she hoped off the stage and wandered away from the crowd. “Clearly my hoof isn’t on the beating pulse of fashion and that cannot be.”

“Aren’t you upset?” Spike asked, trailing after her.

“I’m happy with my own work, Spike… but that’s not good enough. If I want to be a famous pony in Canterlot I need to appeal to the masses. We will try again and return another day.”

Luna slipped back into the shadows, contemplating what she had just witnessed. Rarity was a much different pony than she was. An artist’s ability to put up with the unappreciative had always confused Luna. So much hard work… wasted. And why? Because the masses were blind to real beauty. All they want is what they know… just like how they prefer the sun over the glorious moon…

Unsettled by her thoughts, Luna decided to leave this dream earlier than normal and slip into yet another dreamscape…

---

The next dream she slipped into was confusing. Luna looked around and realized she was in a building. It was a building used for theater... another dream with a stage. I’m beginning to see a theme with tonight’s dreams, she thought to herself.

Silence.

It was rare for Luna to experience a dream with no sound. She studied the contents and soon found herself at a peculiar scene. Pinkie Pie, another ruler of Ponyville, was busy focusing her attention on a wall of drying paint. Twilight Sparkle was standing over her, her facial expression blank, but somehow intense. Watching every single breath Pinkie Pie took… her eyes wide and her pupils constricted.

The minutes were painfully long and Luna found herself becoming ever more confused. What was happening here? Pinkie Pie stared at the wall as though her life depended on it and Twilight watched her like a hawk hungry for pray.

“Ah-choo!” Pinkie Pie sneezed, breaking her eye-contact with the wall. “Wait!” she immediately shouted. “Please don’t send me away! I didn’t mean to! I swear! Please don’t send me away! I can’t live without you!”

Without mercy or hesitation Twilight Sparkle blasted Pinkie Pie with a stream of powerful magic. It caused Pinkie Pie to swell up and implode, transforming her into a sprite of magic and whisking her away from the theater.

Luna followed the sprite of magic all the way into the Everfree Forest. Pinkie Pie was teleported to an underground cave and her body locked inside the Mirror Pool. The surface of the pool was like a glass window and below was nothing but water.

Within moments Pinkie Pie began to drown. She slammed her hooves against the glass but it was no use. The glass didn’t even crack. Panicking, she tried to swim to the other side, but the entire surface was unbreakable. At the edge she attempted to dig her way out, but nothing worked. Water was filling her mouth and her face was becoming blue… Would this dream ever end?

Much to Luna’s horror, Pinkie Pie’s dream continued. She struggled with breathing, obviously gulping down water. Several minutes had gone by and Luna had seen enough. She stepped out of hiding and smashed the dream glass open, releasing Pinkie Pie from its imprisonment.

Pinkie Pie gasped for air and coughed, momentarily confused. When she finally got her strength she slowly pulled herself up into a slouched sitting position. When she looked up at Luna her mane was flat and the color of her coat dull. “P-Princess Luna?” she whispered before coughing again. Water spilled from her mouth by the bucket-full.

“Yes, child,” Luna answered, bowing slightly. Pinkie Pie had been one of the ponies to save her from Nightmare Moon, after all.

“You saved me…?”

“I am your friend. Is that not what friends do?”

“I…” Pinkie Pie hung her head, water dripping from every inch of her. “My friends… My friends don’t want me anymore… They… they think I’m annoying. They said if I look away from the paint… they’ll send me away. They hate me, Princess Luna… I don’t know how to make them happy and… they hate me…”

Her dire tone shook Luna. “Fear not, child. ’Twas a dream.”

Pinkie Pie looked up at her with wide eyes. They were glassed over with water, nearly on the verge of crying. “W-what did you say?”

“Your friends do not hate you. This is a dream.” Luna placed a hoof gently on Pinkie Pie’s shoulder and attempted to give her a warm smile.

“Why didn’t you say so sooner!? I’ve always wanted to know I was dreaming!” Pinkie Pie cheered, her mane bursting back to its crazy-curly self. Before Luna could get her bearings, Pinkie Pie suddenly transformed into a colossal-sized pink dragon. She flew out of the cave, breaking the walls as though they were wet paper, and sailed into the sky, confetti trailing behind her. When she got to Ponyville she breathed cotton candy down on the ponies as if it were a fire breath.

“I am candy! I am cheer!” Pinkie roared to the dream citizens.

Luna shook her head, happy that this crazy nightmare was finally over. Just in time, she thought to herself. It’s almost time for the sun to rise… She flew out of the dreamscape; happy she helped but conscious of the fact that not a single thanks was given for her endless task...