Crescent woke and stretched out, yawning widely. The sun was gone, and the moon had risen. "Well, back to life." She hopped up and padded out, heading towards Luna's chambers, where her mother might be. The door opened for her as she approached, allowing her free entry. "Does that mean you're awake?"

"I am." Luna looked to the side and down at her creation and foal. "You're not usually awake right now, something happen?" She waved her hoof around, and a small bowl of soup appeared, floating over towards Crescent. It was still piping hot.

Crescent trotted after the bowl, taking it and gently drinking. It was spicy, but delicious, just as she liked. Between sips, she mused. "I met a memory snake. Have you met one before?" She glanced at her mother, but the mare was already shaking her head, so she returned to her meal.

"I have never met one, nor heard of such," admitted Luna. "What is a memory snake?"

Crescent shrugged as she finished the last of her meal. "It is a snake." She paused, realizing that was not enough. "That eats memories. It doesn't hurt, it just takes some of the ones you aren't holding close."

Luna hummed thoughtfully as she considered that information, slowly rising to her hooves. "An interesting dream." She smiled down at her daughter, eyes twinkling softly in the dim lights of her room. "I believe it is time for me to patrol the dreams of my little ponies." She placed a hoof on Crescent's head. "Will you do me a favor? Patrol the halls for what might disturb the rest of any within the castle."

"Of course!" Crescent hopped up and dashed out of the room, leaving Luna to smile after her as the door closed.

***

Crescent wandered around, musing on her meeting with the memory snake. "I wonder if what she says is true." She thought back on her own memories, playing through them. She didn't find any missing, but then, would she even know?

Her thoughts came back to the present as she started to go past a door. The door was open, hanging ajar. It had no sign, and looked like most any other door in the castle. As she approached it, she smelled something utterly foul.

She leaned her head into the room, which was almost entirely bare. The walls were rough brickwork, as opposed to the smooth stone of most any other wall in the castle. There, on the other side of the room, a pony worked on some strange concoction that was putting out that foul odor. She was a pale green unicorn with a purple and green mane. She wore a smock over her back, splattered with various colorful chemicals.

"Um." Crescent waved a hoof. "Hello." She tried to keep from sounding too interested, not wanting to get associated with the smell. "Are you going to bother any of the ponies sleeping?"

The pony jumped, turning as the question came. "What? No! I'm just a painter, working up some new paints to work with." She reached into her sides and pulled out a great assortment of paint in tubes, each labeled with a different bright color. "I am glad they made this room without windows!" She grinned widely at that.

Crescent waved a hoof. "But it's putrid." She wrinkled her muzzle. "You're making a gross mess." She shook her head, trying to hold back her own giggles.

The pony smiled at the curious filly. "It smells bad when you make it, but it makes pretty pictures when you're done, and the smell goes away. It's worth it, to me. Oh! Do you like pretty pictures? I could show you a painting I did earlier today. It's a bit more complicated than what I'm doing right now."

Crescent tilted her head to the side as she thought about that. "You're sure you won't wake anypony up?"

"Promise." She ducked down, blowing out the flame that had been keeping it all hot. "This needs to simmer and cool anyway." Hopping to her feet, she trotted for the door where Crescent was. "Let me show you some less stinky art." She grinned down at Crescent. "I have some nice stuff."

"Sure." Crescent stepped back as the green mare approached with hoof outstretched, ready to hold the door for the little filly. "But remember: No waking up ponies!"

"Not a single one." The artist seemed more amused than anything as she guided Crescent down a hall and to the left before reaching a gallery room. "There's a lot of art in here. Not all of it is mine. In fact, most of it isn't, but I have some nice ones Celestia cared for and hung up."

Crescent stared around, eyes wide as she looked at the many fine paintings that had been hung up. "Do you ever make art about the moon?" She didn't even look back to the mare behind her, so intent on the paintings.

"Oh, one time, yes." She scurried to a painting to point at it with her snout. "It was back when there was still a mare up there. I imagined she watched over us. Look." There, in the picture, the mare in the moon had a sedate smile and a gentle hoof raised to wave as the ponies of the world slept. A single light shined down from her.

Crescent gently tapped the image of the moon's mare with one hoof. The paint was firm and dry, so all she touched was canvas. "She looked nice." Her voice carried a hint of wistful sorrow. "But that was when mom." She swallowed heavily, thinking of it. "It's a nice picture." She turned away, unable to keep looking at it. It just hurt too much. "Why would you make such a nice picture?"

The painter shrugged gently. "It came to me, in a vision. I had to draw it." She leaned in closer to the filly. "And it came true."

Crescent hopped at that. "It did? How?"

"Isn't it obvious?" The painted threw a hoof wide, ears trained on Crescent. "Luna's such a nice princess, and she keeps our dreams safe. She's just as nice as I saw her, up there in the moon. I'm quite glad she's down here now. I like this new ending better."

Crescent turned back to the image, considering it quietly a few moments before letting out a sigh. "It is nice." She turned to the painter, considering them. "You have talent, real talent. May I see another?"

"Oh, I would love that, but, my dear little one." She pointed at Crescent's flank. "I can see you're tied to the moon, just as I was for that brief time I was called to draw that. So, tell me true. Tell me it's awful if it really is. I want the truth."

"I like it," admitted Crescent with a tiny shrug. "It is a really beautiful painting, and I don't know what else to say about it." She rubbed behind her head. "It makes me sad, thinking of mom, trapped and alone, but also happy, knowing she's not there anymore. It makes me happy, knowing ponies already knew she'd be nice. It makes me feel a lot of things, but none are bad."

The painter nodded at that. "I understand." She moved over and wrapped Crescent in a hug. "The best art can leave a pony in a confused place, with a lot of emotions swirling around. You're not a bad little filly for being touched by art. Just means you're sensitive to feelings, and can see them. Some ponies can't, you know? Poor things."

"I'm glad I can." Crescent snuggled up against the painter. "I like this." She nuzzled and nestled in close, enjoying the companionable warmth the painted was providing. "I still want to see your other paintings," she got out muffedly.

The painter picked her up and carried her towards the other side of the room, holding Crescent in the crook of one of her forelegs as she used the other to point. "Right there. A nice sunny day with ponies enjoying a little shower that they don't mind at all. A happy day in my life, captured with hoof and brush. I love that one." She pointed at the painting she had mentioned. "What do you think of that?"

"It looks nice." Crescent nuzzled into the painter's fur, getting a few splotches in it, though neither of them seemed to mind. "It's a little funny, the ponies getting wet but so happy about it. You don't see many ponies that happy to be soaked." She giggled softly at that mental image.

The painted nodded sedately. "That's the magic of it. They're just so in the moment, with their friends, that they just can't be unhappy. They know the rain's coming down, but they don't mind being part of that. The sun's shining on them too, so the rain feels nice." She gestured with her free hoof at the happy, smiling ponies in the painting, all of them gathered around, and each with an expression of ecstatic joy. "The moment will pass, they'll laugh and shake the water off and rush home. But, we can hope, they won't forget this magic moment I captured with paint."

Crescent closed her eyes and let out a content sigh, imagining the world as she wanted it, the ponies just so happy to be together in the sun and rain, with the water. "That would be nice. Sun and moon, both are good." She sat up, eyes open. "And you got both really well. You should do one with both! I bet you could do it."

"Well, I could, but." She pointed at her earlier work, of the moon and the mare who lived there, watching over sleeping ponies. "I need to find a theme, something that echoes deep inside, that I have to dig out. That's how I paint. But, still, inspiration." She gently hugged Crescent close. "You've offered some. So, I'll keep thinking about that." She gently set the little filly down on her hooves and looked into her eyes. "Thank you, little one."

Crescent danced from hoof to hoof in a little dance, a whicker escaping her. "Glad to help! I have to patrol and make sure nothing bothers sleeping ponies." She smiled up at the artist. "But it was really great to meet you! What's your name?"

Her horn glowed, drawing out her paint brush. "Ink." She tapped it against Crescent, leaving a dab of paint on their snout. "Splash."

"I'm Crescent!" She stuck out her tongue, the only part she could reach to clean herself. The paint didn't taste terribly good, so she abandoned that effort in favor of pawing at her snout helplessly. "Nice to meet you," she got out muffedly.

The painter waved Crescent on. "Goodbye, little filly!" Ink called as Crescent trotted out of the gallery room, back to her patrols.

Author's Note

Capturing raw emotions like that. I hope at times my words can do that, but I don't know. I just keep trying.

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