Luna and the Dreamscape - Episode 4: Filthy Rich

[Hippo]

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Ask any pony in Canterlot and they would probably tell you that Princess Luna is one of the most wealthiest ponies in all of Equestria. Ask Luna, and she would hardly know how to answer. Maybe Celestia was wealthier than her, but who knew? Not even Luna. Ironic to the statements, a pony like Princess Luna who had one of the most secure occupations in all of Equestria also couldn't remember the last time she carried her own bag of bits. In fact, there were times where she was refused business because her money steward wasn't there to pay the bill. How embarrassing. It's difficult for someone who never deals with the concept of money on a personal basis and then to be considered one of the wealthiest. The underside of Luna's bed could be hoarding the most valuable diamonds in all of Equestria, and she would never know it was there.

Interestingly enough, Luna always was entertained by the motivation some ponies had when it came to money. How they pursued wealth and success and saw them as equals. Luna saw it differently. She felt if you brought enough success into the picture, it would distort the need for wealth, which is why she always admired the sports ponies for their admiration to their sport, versus the ones who only do it for their fame and fortune.

Tonight, Luna fell into dreamscape realm that for the moment seemed void of wealth and success. But no corner of the barren wasteland of the dreamscape should ever be ignored, so the Princess felt compelled to make a few patrols through the desolated land mass.

​

[Bellosh]

Filthy Rich didn’t know where he was, or how he got here. An empty featureless wasteland stretched out as far as his eyes could see, with nothing but jagged gravel to see in every direction. No sound existed in this desolation save that of a fell wind, the likes of which reminded the stallion of those couple of times as a colt when he and his friends sneaked into the Everfree Forest. Even though no rotten trees or hideous monsters were around, the sheer emptiness of the area gave Filthy an utter sense of dread.

Off in the distance, a sparkle of light beckoned in the distance. With nothing else around, Filthy Rich’s curiosity won out as he started his journey to investigate. The trek on over felt like a blur, except for the rocks that poked on the earth pony’s hooves. But in seemingly no time, Filthy found himself in front of a large pile of gold and jewels; a horde worthy of the most fiercest dragons in the realm.

But what caught Filthy’s eye was the horde’s owner, a small filly curled at the top of the gold pile. The stallion could have recognized this precious filly anyway. “Diamond Tiara!” he shouted; “Be a good girl and come to daddy!” Diamond failed to respond, still deep in a dragon-like slumber; “Come on now, time to get off the gold!” Still no answer.

Asserting his authority, Filthy started climbing up the pile of coins and gemstones himself, intent on dragging his daughter back down so he could keep an eye on her. Yet before he reached the summit, the stallion lost his footing and slipped back down. So he tried again to claim, and failed another time. And again. And again. With each successive failure, Filthy grew more desperate; “Sweetie, can you even hear me!!!?”

[Hippo]

Luna saw a glimmer in the distance, and when she approached, she cloaked herself to be invisible around what ended up being a pile of diamonds, with a pinkish filly sleeping on top of it, like she was a cave dragon. At the foot of this pile stood an earth pony who seemed to call out to the filly as her father. And when he tried to climb, he would slip and fall off the pile of diamonds over and over again just before getting to the top. What an interesting torturous dream, Luna thought to herself. It reminded her of some pony tales that talked of a place where all the bad ponies go, where when you fail to be a respectable pony who does their chores and obeys their parents, you end up being forced to pull a heavy wagon up a mountain only to have it ungirthed and roll back to the bottom of the mountain, where you restart the journey over and over again.

But was this hell? Not nearly. At least, not by what standards Luna had seen before. Many nightmares have been more scary and real than this one. And this one had diamonds in it. Who doesn't love diamonds? In an attempt to experiment with what Luna thought was an interesting diagram of a dream, Luna summoned a rope and two pairs of climbing boots at the bottom of the pile of diamonds. She wondered what the subject would do with it. Meanwhile, she looked at the filly, who was too busy taking a nap on diamonds to hear any of what was going on.

​

[Bellosh]

In this surreal world, everything made perfect sense it a strictly nonsensical way. Hence, one wouldn’t question the sudden appearance of a rope and a pair of climbing boots. Taking notice of the objects, Filthy Rich strapped the boots onto his rear legs before making the accent again. First the stallion tossed the rope’s end as high as he could, successfully throwing it onto the top of the gold pile. Then Mr. Rich started the climb anew, this time being assisted by the stability granted by climbing boots.

Too bad the rope end up on top couldn’t stay in place. Without it tied to anything, it slipped off just as Filthy came tantalizingly close to the summit. The father’s fall was his greatest one yet, this time outright rolling down the mountain the gold. By the time he reached jagged ground again, the prone earth pony ended up covered in bruises and coins, but otherwise felt no pain. “Ugggh,” the fallen stallion groaned as he feebly tried getting back up on his hooves; “Can’t you just come down already, sweetheart?”

[Hippo]

Ouch. Luna felt bad for the stallion. He seemed in a state where he just wanted to help his daughter down. Luna couldn't initially draw any conclusions as to what the dream might mean, of course, a dream didn't have to always mean something. But as she witnessed the struggle, she could verify that it was obviously about failure, and reaching an impossible goal. But why was the goal his own daughter? And why was she unresponsive?

Luna flew down to the bottom of the pile, and walked around the pile until Filthy was in line of sight. "Dear pony, you look hurt. Your daughter doesn't seem to respond to you. Is she deaf?"

​

[Bellosh]

To add to the routinely bizarre occurrences of this dream-created construct, Filthy Rich saw to his great surprise Princess Luna. Princesses were the last ponies Filthy expected to hang around wastelands, and the stallion’s heart lifted knowing he now had assistance of the most royal kind to help him deal with Diamond Tiara’s newest shenanigans. It did not occur to the father yet that he actually dreamed almost everything he saw, with the Night Princess intruding on his subconscious visions.

So it didn’t feel off at all to provide Luna with a respectful bow. “Princess Luna,” Filthy Rich acknowledged the co-ruler of Equestria, doing his best to maintain composure; “You’re just the pony I wanted to see. I don’t mean to be an inconvenience, but would you be so kind as to give me a lift onto that gold pile. I... really don’t know what my daughter’s up to... “ At least Mr. Rich’s issues with climbing the gilded mountain were about to end.

[Hippo]

The pony didn't seem to know he was dreaming yet. And as he spotted Luna, she could at least take joy that he was cordial enough in front of royalty. Luna was always amazed at how ponies reacted. This one was much to her expectation, as elitist as that sounds. But Luna wasn't happy with his lack of acknowledgement of this arena. Should he continue to not be aware of his surroundings, he will never be able to comprehend his feelings. So Luna decided to unscrew the lid on the first mystery. "You do know you are dreaming, right?" Just then, a paper bill of legal tender that issued 500 bits in the name of Celestia flew by the two, sporting its own pair of wings.

​

[Bellosh]

“I’m... I’m dreaming?” Filthy Rich peered through his foggy memories, finally recalling that he was actually sleeping in a bed with his wife before materializing in this... baffling place. As if to confirm Luna’s claim, an alluring winged paper bill flew right next to the two ponies. Mr. Rich thought how swell it’d be to have the bill fly onto his hoof, and lo! Stretching out a foreleg, the stallion delighted to see the winged bill land exactly on his hoof as he desired. Guess this was his dreams after all!

Filthy’s stupid grin dissipated swiftly as another realization hit him; that Princess Luna was intruding on his dream. That thought fundamentally unnerved him, his bad experiences with a particular nightmarish thing last Nightmare Night left the stallion to fundamentally distrust anyone intruding on his mind, and those of his loved ones, ever again. And apparently, all those rumors of the Night Princess entering the dreams of ponies were true as well. “Wait, wait!” Mr. Rich panicked, scaring away the winged bill; “Wh- why? are you in my head Your Highness!” Oh, Luna didn’t discover any particularly embarrassing or disturbing secrets in his head, did she? Was she going to have him thrown in a dungeon for accidentally thinking ill of a princess for whatever reason? Filthy’s fear was clear for Luna to see, either by looking at his petrified face or the stormclouds gathering over their heads.

[Hippo]

All of a sudden, a splash of lightning started illuminating the horizons and golden coins started raining from the sky. It was an image to behold, even for a dream, but it was also apparently painful having metal mints fall on the ground at terminal velocity. The storm started as soon as Filthy's emotions started getting the best of him. Luna flew close to him and shielded him inside a protective bubble, in which the coins falling bounced clean off and away from them. "No no," Luna smiled briefly, "this is a matter much more important than what you've revealed to me inside your mind's eyes." Luna pointed at the top of the treasure hill. "In this projection of your mind, your daughter is at the top of an unclimbable hill of riches, and you can not get to her no matter what you do. Do you have any idea why that is?"

​

[Bellosh]

Princess Luna didn’t bother addressing Filthy Rich’s unimportant question, for she delved straight into the deepest matter of the stallion’s mind. Oblivious to the falling gold coins from the sky thanks to a protective bubble, Filthy did his best to answer the Princess’s question. “Who knows?” the father shrugged; “I got my degree in business; not in psychology. With all due respect Your Highness, I’d say that you are a better expert at interpreting dreams than I am.” Unless Luna asked deeper probing questions, there was little chance that Mr. Rich would reveal signs of his anxieties concerning how he well he was raising Diamond Tiara.

If nothing else though, the storm above the two adults ceased raging for the time being. That was always a good thing.

[Hippo]

It seemed that by Filthy Rich's responses to Luna's simple questions that were intended to challenge Flithy's own mind failed to get through. Of course, Luna could just tell Filthy everything that was wrong. But she had assumed that an adult as successful in gaining wealth would at least have the sensitivities to attempt to solve his own issues. Luna loved empowering her dreamers, and she did so by asking questions they should already know the answer to, and answering questions with another question to help them further along the path of enlightenment. Instead, Filthy was much more determined to be preached the facts. And Luna would if that's what he wanted. She just hoped that it would stick.

"Your daughter doesn't respond to riches the same way you do. Have you ever slept on top of a pile of diamonds? Or better yet, what were you like at this age, if you can remember?" Luna authentically couldn't answer that straight up. She only had select memories from Filthy that she could read. And since he was an older pony, it was much more difficult to change his mindset as his train of memory and interpretation would be subject to his stubbornness. "If you ask me, I think your daughter has a different perspective on wealth. Does she resent you?"

​

[Bellosh]

“Why would anypony ever sleep on a pile of diamonds?” Filthy Rich asked in complete bafflement; “Even those aristocrats in Canterlot would rather sleep on feather beds than jewels. Well, I guess dragons do like sleeping on hordes of treasure, but that’s only because of their immense greed... or uhhh so I heard anyway.” Unnoticed by Mr. Rich, the sleeping form of Diamond Tiara on the mountain of gold commenced a transformation into a small dragon in slumber. Mind you, small dragons were still about three times the height of the average pony, but that was still very short by dragon standards.

Oblivious, Filthy Rich kept on talking; “No, Your Highness. When I was my daughter’s age, I wasn’t hoarding treasure one bit. I was in the Foal Scouts you know; I got good grades, made plenty of friends, and gave back to the community whenever I could. My family was 100% proud of me! And I certainly did not wish at that age for a bed of diamonds, or gold coins, or whatever jewel.”

Luna’s last question made the grimacing father go on the defensive; “Of course she doesn’t resent me! Diamond Tiara and I have as perfect a father-daughter bond as anyone can ask for!” Meanwhile, the dragon behind Filthy awakened from its slumber, only to disgustingly turn its head away from Mr. Rich. Filthy was under no illusions concerning his ability to lead Diamond on a right path in life, but he’d never willingly paint his little angel in a negative light to everypony else; a princess like Luna most of all.

[Hippo]

As Filthy spoke his mind, Luna saw the foal transform into a dragon, something that wasn't surprising, but still very astonishing. The rich pony spoke proudly with confidence that he was not leading his daughter a stray. And Luna would never suggest that. Luna started realizing the problem first-hoof. It wasn't so much that Filthy wasn't putting his daughter in the right direction, but perhaps he was unaware of how he may have neglected Diamond Tiara when it mattered most. Maybe there were times when Filthy was too busy to properly show Diamond Tiara the proper ways of being a Rich. "Well, stallion. It would appear your daughter has taken a whole new form." She pointed to the dragon. She wasn't sure if Filthy Rich would acknowledge the difference or not. It could be that because of his state of dreaming, he may react to it as a typical reality, and if he did act this way, it would be unclear if he was just aware of the strangeness of dreams or if he just simply ignored the issue of his daughter becoming a monster right before his eyes. Upon his reaction, Luna was sure she would know what to do next.

​

[Bellosh]

“WhaaaaWHHHHAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!” Filthy Rich saw that indeed, a dragon now rested in Diamond Tiara’s place. It even shared the same color scheme as Diamond’s coat, and it wore a sparkling tiara on top of its head, just like Filthy’s daughter. After pondering what happened, something very important dawned on the stallion. He and Princess Luna both occupied his personal dream world, and here, everything would reflect the earth pony’s private thoughts unless Luna chose to take control. Thus, while Filthy could stick up for Diamond all he wanted, the mind would rebel against providing misinformation.

Not willing to be outed as a liar, Filthy Rich sighed and prepared to reveal the truth, knowing full well how dragons tended to symbolize greed and apathy. “To be honest princess, everything hasn’t been going well.......... even though she’s got herself a cutie mark by now, I don’t get the sense that Diamond Tiara knows what to do with life. Nearly every time she tries a hobby out, she’ll inevitably get bored with it and move on to something else. I... don’t think she grasps how important it is to have drive and self-motivation. She’d rather be instantly gratified than work hard. And it feels more and more that every time I try teaching her the values of hard work, I get rebuffed. In fact, I’m… starting to wonder if I’ll ever get to her.”

While Filthy was busy confessing, the tiara-wearing dragon laid down on its back and started to casually toss gold and assorted other treasures at Princess Luna, for no apparent reason other than boredom.

[Hippo]

Filthy was finally able to realize his dream more. And with that realization, the beast that represented his daughter came more lively. As the dragon started throwing sharp jewels, Luna shielded herself and Filthy with a magical shield, her horn glowing effortlessly to carry the magic out. "Your daughter has become too dependent on you. And because she does not experience life without the luxury of dad's money and comfort, she has been unable to experience that adventure herself by choice. Sometimes, only when a pony is broken, does she find the means to put herself back together."

"Consider a rock." Luna used her magic to hold up a rock from the desert floor. It was ordinary, brown, and bumpy. "A rock is always going to start with jagged edges and a rough texture." The rock started spinning very fast on Luna's ability to contain it. "But, as a rock deals with typical wear and tear, eventually, the rock will have smoother edges and start to show a polish." The rock stopped spinning and it revealed it had a luster, the once rough rock now showing a rounder shape. "Your daughter needs to experience life with sharper edges, away from the absolute protection that keeps her reluctant to grow independently. And over a long time, maybe she can be the diamond you always felt she should be." Luna levitated a diamond that was randomly thrown at her, and placed it in front of Filthy. The diamond was without flaw and contained every color reflected imaginable.

​

[Bellosh]

Princess Luna’s latest words gave Filthy Rich some serious thinking to do. Could it truly be possible that by showering Diamond Tiara with all the comforts that money could buy, the stallion did more harm than good? But wasn’t it his responsibility to ensure that his child didn’t have to fight the same struggles that the father did, so that the daughter enjoyed more opportunities to achieve even greater success?

All the while, Princess Luna used her magic to sharpen a lumpy rock into what Filthy Rich had to describe as the most beautiful diamond he ever saw, real or imaginary. Taking it into his hoof, the stallion marvelled at how the gem contained every color of the rainbow inside. But Filthy quickly pulled his head up to address Luna again, not quite sure how to follow her advice. “Perhaps... I’ve spoiled Diamond Tiara too much. But if remaking her requires, as you uhhh put it, breaking her first, how am I supposed to do that without being needlessly cruel to her? She’s still only a young filly; I don’t think she could withstand another event like what happened during... well, last year’s Nightmare Night.”

Even as Filthy Rich remembered the last changeling invasion of Ponyville, slimy cocoons sprouted from the ground around he and the Lunar Princess. And as a sudden darkness descended upon their surroundings, the eerie glow of illusionary changeling eyes stared at the two ponies with great hunger.

[Hippo]

Luna blinked in slight doubt. "In truth, Filthy Rich, I do not envy you. Even a Princess is not one to choose to deal with such a difficult scenario. But know that there will be a time when all ponies speak for themselves when they are older. Yours is not there just yet. And until then, she is your responsibility. I'm sure you already knew this, however."

Suddenly, the ground started sprouting cocoons from changeling influence, as Filthy started imagining his memory of a nightmare experience in his past, and one he shared with his daughter. "It would appear you have struck a memory. A bad one. One you don't wish to repeat. And as you say, this would be an example of what you're afraid will endanger Diamond Tiara. Let us have a look then, hm?" Luna started walking away from the jewel pile and closer to what looked like the source of Filthy's changeling projection. Luna tugged Filthy with her used the magic shield that surrounded both of them, protecting them from imaginary projectiles that were casually thrown by the dragon and now the changelings. "Fearsome, aren't they?" Luna noted, almost with a smirk, as if this was some kind of joke to her.

And once they got closer to the source of the changeling dreamscape invasion, it appeared to be a larger changeling, this one wielding magic to the other changelings, like it was giving them power. And then, the source shot a magic beam at the dragon, and put it in a large cocoon. And the dragon inside got larger and larger and larger. Luna never flinched. "This is definitely a helpless situation. Do you see the problem though?" Luna was curious to see if Filthy could solve what looked to be a cruel riddle, but she was not counting on it.

​

[Bellosh]

How easy it was for Princess Luna to scoff at the changelings. She knew not what it felt like to be encased in a cocoon, or tricked into getting suckered into a nightmarish false reality conjured by some twisted mind. The snarling bug ponies didn’t pose a real threat, but that fact didn’t stop Filthy Rich from reflexively flinching at their sight. But the stallion was getting better at disguising his fearful body language as he followed the night princess.

This new changeling up ahead looked like nothing Mr. Rich recalled ever seeing. In the back of his mind, that gave him a subtle clue that it wasn’t his mind bringing that imaginary being to life. In a strange turn of events, the boss changeling fired magic at the dragon, trapping it in a slimy cocoon. And yet, the reptilian beast standing in for Diamond Tiara only grew more in size... and more and more...

Evidently, Luna intended all of this to mean something significant, but what? Diamond was the dragon, no room for argument there. But everything else? Filthy needed to think things through. “That changeling leader,” the father showed signs of hesitation as he laid bare his guesswork; “Is trying to trap my daughter, represented by the dragon, into that cocoon. But the dragon in response only grows bigger, and I’m assuming more powerful too. I’m betting,” here, Filthy’s voice grew distant; “That it’ll grow so large that it’s going to bring right out of that shell. And when it does... let’s just say I don’t wanna’ be that changeling.”

[Hippo]

Luna nodded with Filthy's well considered analysis. For a pony in his dreams, he was very cognitive. Successful ponies never had a problem envisioning things. But their dreams were always cluttered with horrible things they could not control. Their biggest fear, that no amount of money or luck or political standing, could prevent horrible unspeakable things from happening to them. Luna knew that Filthy had to deal with two things. That it was very possible for him to fail in this problem. But that also, even if he is destined to fail, it does not mean he is a failure, nor does it mean he should quit. But instead of showing him the odds, she decided to show him the example's truth. With a bright flash from her horn, she shot the large changelings with powerful magic. The face of the changeling started melting away until all that was left was a smokey silhouette of a pony. And when the smoke cleared, Filthy's head was projected where the large changeling's face was. Figuratively, he was feed the dragon. He was making her larger and larger. And if he is truly honest about not wanting to be that changeling when the dragon, now hundreds of times larger than before cuts out of its cocoon, then he would be forced to re-evaluate his situation. But before he could say anything, Luna made a quick stomp with her hoof, and everything disappeared.

Another stomp, and the two found themselves in front of Ponyville's Town Center, in a seemingly beatiful sunny day. "Let's take a walk inside shall we?"

​

[Bellosh]

Filthy Rich failed to resist the urge to grimace as the changeling’s face melted away, revealing a doppelganger of himself entrapping the dragon. But something didn’t make sense about Luna’s scenario. If the interpretation of his vision was literal, it was Filthy’s move to restrict Diamond Tiara’s freedom that would cause issues. But despite all that he comprehended, vague symbolism could only go so far in helping Mr. Rich understand the point.

And then Princess Luna changed the setting completely, replacing the wasteland with the exterior of Ponyville Town Hall. Everything looked like it ought to be, it was almost like the two ponies were right there. Not sure what the night alicorn had in mind, Filthy blankly nodded as he followed Luna inside, not sure what would be waiting for him inside the picturesque structure.....

[RarityDash]

Inside the Town Hall was Diamond Tiara, or at least some image of her. She was older than she was in waking life, and bigger. She wore many diamonds and jewels as well as a shimmering dress and a sash identifying her as the "beautiful queen of all Ponyville". She was idlely lounging on a luxurious sofa, a content smile on her face. All around her in the open hall there were images of ponies with familiar faces, dressed in maid uniforms and scurrying about at various tasks. At either side of the sofa there were ponies fanning her with great fans; one looked much like her friend Silver Spoon, the other looked suspiciously like her teacher Cheerilee. Eventually one of the pony maids, a pale yellow filly with a red mane, approached her with a tiny tray on which there was a cup of tea. Diamond grabbed a cup and sipped at it. Her face bunched up then and she threw the cup and all down on the floor.

"If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times. I require exactly two and a half teaspoons of sugar! Anymore and it isn't perfect, and you know how I feel about things that aren't perfect!" Diamond shouted bitterly at the filly. "Now, I expect you to clean up your mess and then bring me another one!" She snarled as she shot the filly a deathly glare. "Fail me again, and you will be punished."

The filly nodded several times silently and then left with a jump to find her cleaning supplies. Diamond went back to just lying there enjoying the feel of the fans until soon she was approached by another of the maids, this one looking rather like the mayor of Ponyville.

"Queen Diamond, the town's food storage is dwindling. Unless you do something about it, ponies might starve this winter," she said gravely.

Diamond scoffed and then yawned. "Please, do not bore me. You know I simply don't have time for such things," Diamond said in a haughty tone. "Now, run along and make sure everything in order to roll out the new tax You know we need the money to build that monument to my greatness in the town square."

"Of course, your majesty," the mare replied with resignation as she backed up.

It was then that Diamond looked toward the doors of the hall and saw her father there. She got up finally from her sofa and stepped toward him. "Oh, hello, Daddy. It's great to see you again," she said in a sugared voice. "Did you bring me a present this time?" she asked, fluttering her eyes. "You know that I do love you, so ever much."

​

[Hippo]

Luna knew what this world was that she brought Filthy to. It was a world in which events occurred in such a way that brought Filthy's daughter to a level of power that was previously joked about with her peers, and by loudmouth ponies who gossiped about Filthy's little girl. Luna knew that Diamond Tiara had much experience in the category of reprobate conduct, but the reality in this current instance of the dreamscape would be far more catastrophic of a social situation, should Filthy not succeed in his parenthood. Luna hoped that in this context, Filthy might eventually realize that the problems he has with his daughter now are near trivial to the issues that could occur, should he give in to his daughters demands and doubt his power as a father of a mischievous foal.

"Filthy, this is your daughter, Queen Diamond of Ponyville." Luna gestured lightly, making sure he was aware of the ponies at play in this particular surreal scene in the dreamscape. "She is ruler over the Equestrian Valley and it's outskirts. Are you proud?" Luna didn't speak with too much conviction, not yet anyway. She would not dare miss an opportunity to prod the feelings of the rich stallion, should it help guide him to reveal how he really felt about his daughter in a situation like this, and more importantly, how he felt about his daughter in the waking world.

​

[Bellosh]

What Filthy Rich saw inside Town Hall defied all belief. An older Diamond Tiara was not only just ordering ponies around, but was a Queen to boot. Everything felt so... repulsive. Diamond was brought up better than this! She knew how to properly treat other ponies, instead of lording over them like a queen- and how could anypony for that matter become a queen?

Mr. Rich suppressed his grimace when the nightmare daughter took notice of her. “Wha-what’s going on here Diamond Tiara?” the father attempted to sound as neutral as possible; “What’s the school teacher doing here? And how on earth are you a Queen? Equestria hasn’t had one since, well, ever.” Of course, this was all just an illusion probably devised by Luna to make a point, but it boggled the stallion’s mind how one pony could believably obtain such a high throne.

[RarityDash]

“Wha-what’s going on here Diamond Tiara? What’s the school teacher doing here? And how on earth are you a Queen? Equestria hasn’t had one since, well, ever.”

Queen Diamond laughed a coy laugh. "Oh, come now, Daddy, don't you remember anything?" she said, smiling impishly. "It was all because of the present you gave me!"

She continued to grin as she thought back on her great rise to power. "It was after you gave me my very own store here in Ponyville. Through my aggressive business practices, I was able to have my business grow and grow and grow until eventually I had so much success that I was able to buy you out of the company, but it didn't stop there! I decided to use my amazing success and the gigantic pile of bits I had made to capture the hearts of Ponyville and get elected as mayor. Of course, once I was elected, I decided to change juuust a few things. Queen of Ponyville just had such a prettier ring to it, don't you think?"

The filly giggled mischievously a moment. "And, since I have more money than everypony else in Ponyville combined, nopony can even dream of challenging me. I can do absolutely everything I want! Isn't that great?" she said, grinning madly. "But I'm, of course, always charitable enough to let my very favorite ponies stay right here close to me and work for me. You didn't want to start working here too, did you? Wouldn't that just be wonderful?"

​

[Hippo]

"Charming." Luna said as she stared at Diamond with Filthy. Despite the dream being a simple projection of the world of hypotheticals, Luna cringed at the thought of such a pony coming to power. And in a way, Filthy was right. It would be almost impossible to get to this level of power in Ponyville, let alone a large portion of Equestria. But even Diamond's projection wasn't even in the know. For it wasn't the gifting of the store that brought Ponyville to the filly's hooves, but rather, Filthys decision to give up trying to raise his daughter. "You see, Filthy Rich, the store you gifted her was actually your own. You decided you would rather give up your business in hopes that Diamond would see herself to true maturity, than to continue attempting to raise her as you are now. You must never give up." Luna started trotting around the newly made palace. She decided she would stay here for a few minutes extra, in order to allow Filthy to realize his biggest fear, something far worst than dragons or changelings.

​