Amber trotted along at Comforting's side, eyes wandering over what the chaos spirit had done with the second floor. That section of the library looked better than ever, more inviting. The books had taken a lessened importance. They were still there, but easy to miss if one wasn't looking for them.

Instead, that space was all about things once could actually do, and who they could be doing it with. She saw plants all over the place, perfect for lounging around. There were tools, meeting rooms, and all manner of thing to occupy one's time with. One could even read a book, if one was in the mood, but there was so much more to offer.

Amber moved from one to the other as she brushed her hoof along one wall after another with a smile on her lips as she drew in a deep breath and sighed happily as she spotted several of the local ponies either lounging around or in groups engaged in activities that made them smile from hoof to hoof with looks of concentration on their faces even as they stopped occasionally to chat or laughed together at whatever it was they were doing.

She turned to Comforting. "You've really done a nice job. I'm impressed." She cantered in place. "The library's even better, thanks to you."

Comforting tapped Amber on the nose. "It's a team effort. Many ponies come for a good book, but we can offer more than that, so we do. Now, how's that ear treating you?"

Amber touched her head, covering her new, bat-like, ear. "Still getting used to it. It hears the world differently, and I wasn't really expecting that. The world just sounds, um, hollow? Empty? There's echoes in everything now."

Comforting hummed at that, a giggle forming. "You do get used to it. Besides, I have two different ears, and now you do too. They balance each other out, which is another thing to get used to. How's your head? Dizzy?"

Amber tilted her head, stretching out her neck a moment before shrugging helplessly as she shifted her hooves in place before nodding quickly. "Yes. Let me guess though, I'll get used to it?"

"Yup." Comforting ruffled the top of Amber's head. "If it helps, I think a bat ear's kinda cute on you."

Amber burst out laughing before gently flicking Comforting in the shoulder. "Cut that out. The spell will wear off, and I'll probably not do another bat ear for a bit. Still, thank you. This spell is only more interesting with time."

"Nothing wrong with having two different kinds of ears, like you said." Comforting folded her hands in front of herself with a grin on her lips as she gave Amber a gentle pat on the back. "Just something you have to have for a bit before you, dare I repeat, get used to it. I think any creature can get used to its own strange body. A rabbit doesn't bounce in its own view."

"And how does the universe look from your point of view?" Amber shot Comforting a serious look. "I mean, you are beyond a mortal pony, and being something beyond a pony must be different than just being a pony."

"Can't argue that." Comforting drifted away, floating along towards where many ponies were working on some strange object with wood. Bits of shavings were being littered on the ground as they sanded away at the thing they were making. "My ponies! How's the creation coming along?"

They answered with cries of excitement as they called out about how much they were getting done before leaping into excited conversation about how best to create the next sections of it or the color that they should be using for that section even as they seemed to brag about their abilities and the abilities of their fellows to bring their creation to life.

Comforting darted away with a content smile. "That's what I was going for." She gestured back at the many ponies working industriously. "They're together, learning, and working." She ruffled through Amber's mane as she hummed happily. "It's better than most of them doing nothing but watching videos all day."

Amber giggled gently at that statement before turning her attention to that group as she watched them work together for a moment longer. "You have a point there. Compared to watching Cloptrot, this is a big hop up." She reached up to pull Comforting closer. "Now, between us, how are you and Toots getting along? Still happy as can be with each other?"

"Of course we are!" Comforting pressed her cheeks together with a playful smile. "Wouldn't have married him if I wasn't going to be happy for as long as we were married." She paused, reconsidering those words. "Okay, some ponies don't make the best choices. Still, I love his little chubby everything! Thank you for checking on me, but I can report nothing but marital contentment."

Amber nodded at that with a grin as she nudged Comforting in the side. "Awesome! He's such a nice pony, and you two just deserve to be happy." She pointed back to the stairs. "I should keep an eye on the first floor. A librarian's job is never done!" Content with things, she trotted off, leaving Comforting to her interesting floor.

"See you!" Comforting waved Amber off before humming to herself as she wandered off to check on another group of ponies, keeping an eye on them as they practiced the new dance routine they had been learning to perform in hopes of one day making it big as dancers. "Looking good."

"What do you mean?!" Allura scowled at her rabbit assistant. "She helped you?!"

Twitch yammered and squeaked in little noises that Allura understand despite the lack of words. He explained how Comforting had assisted him, and even defended him.

"Why would she do that?" Allura sat up on her haunches. "She knows you're a little pain in the rump, doesn't she?" Twitch glared at her. "You know it's true. You don't get along with most creatures, myself excluded, What is she playing at?"

Twitch took a moment to collect himself before hopping off and rooting around in the bags they had collected on their travels. He finally emerged with a notepad he had been keeping notes on things in for the past few days. He carefully flipped through it before settling on a page and offering it up to Allura with his little rabbit paws.

Allura frowned as she took it from him, turning it right side up. There was a picture, drawn crudely, of Comforting hugging Twitch with a little heart off to the side. "You like her?" She dropped the notepad as if it were some foul thing. "Really?"

Twitch hopped up and caught it before it could hit the ground before he glanced up at Allura with an annoyed expression on his face as he wrapped it in a bag, tucking it away. He nodded at that question before jabbing his paw at Allura as if daring her to question him.

She rose to the bait with an angry flick of her tail. "She was just being nice, Twitch. She's probably forgotten you exist. She's just like that, helping where she can. I have no idea why you would expect anything more than friendship." She spat out that last word as if it were a curse. "Like I need another creature pretending to be my friend."

Twitch scowled at her with building intensity. He hopped away from her, muttering unkind things under his breath that very few creatures could understand.

Allura leaped forward and grabbed him by the tail with a fierce growl. "You are not going anywhere. Not until you get your head on straight and get over her. She's not interested."

He threw up his paws as he ranted and raved in his incomprehensible language about how much she did love him very much, and he would prove it!

She huffed, drawing her paw back. "Some things you can only learn the hard way. Fine, go look for her, and when she breaks your heart into little pieces, then you can come back. But until then, I'm not talking to you!" She raised her paw up higher and brought it down on him with a strike that knocked him into the floor with a thump and groan of pain.

Twitch staggered to his feet, paws over his stinging cheek. Fighting tears, he fled from Allura's hideout with a single sniffle.

Allura slumped against the floor with a heavy sigh as she dragged her claws along the ground and glared at Twitch as he left. "You will learn not to trust other creatures." She hissed under her breath before easing herself up onto her paws and shaking herself off even as she ran a paw over the same spot on her own cheek. "They'll always hurt you."

She looked around for something else to do and spied a blackboard. She smacked it out of spite, sending dust flying off of it and the chalk raining down to the floor. With an irritated grunt, she trotted off to another part of her hideout to look for something more fun.

Twitch hopped into the city, darting from cover to cover. The ponies were large, all eager to get somewhere, and sometimes driving loud vehicles around. They had no room for a tiny hare and his issues, so he ignored them in kind. They were secondary to finding the creature he cared about.

He moved across the sidewalk to the next bush, taking his time as he worked out where he was going to go next.

A sound caught his attention and he perked his ears up as he bounced in place to listen to it more closely even as he spotted the source. There was Izzy, a pony he knew. The unicorn was humming to herself cheerfully as she got to making something of unknown intent.

As annoying as Izzy could be, she was also the source of occasionally just the right thing. Twitch considered his options with little musing noises. Pestering Izzy for what he wanted wasn't exactly easy, but it could be rewarding.

Izzy darted around happily as she painted away at some elaborate project she had been working on recently with a bright smile on her lips. That song came from her all the while.

Twitch watched her go for a moment before letting out a faint chuckle before creeping away from his hiding spot with an amused expression on his face as he made his way to where Izzy was hopping around so that he could have a chance to make himself known.

Unfortunately for him, the first Izzy knew of him was when she came down on him, and both crashed to the ground. Her paintbrush splattered wetly on the earth beside her. "Oof! Little bunnycorn, you should—" She realized she hadn't stepped on a bunnycorn, but a specific hare. "Oh, Twitch. We meet again!" She reached out to dust Twitch off. "What're you up to?"

Twitch leapt back, shaking off the hoof from his fur with a disgusted snort before letting out a little growl at that question before diving into Izzy's bags to start digging around in them even as he ignored Izzy herself as he searched for anything he could use to locate Comforting.

At least until everything glowed around himself. Izzy pulled him out with her magic. "Woah! You wanna build something? You just had to ask. I don't mind sharing some supplies!"

He screamed as he was pulled out of the bag and waved his arms in frustration as he struggled to get free of her magic even as he snapped at her hooves, snarling as he continued to try and get back into her bags. But his strength was nowhere near enough, especially with nothing to push off of.

Izzy laughed gently. "Wow, you sure are grumpy today. Hold on." She collected her dropped paint brush. "Let's go talk to a pony that can help me understand what you need. Hitch is great with critters! And you're one of those, I think?"

Twitch bit at the air with frustration before giving up with an annoyed groan as he hung limply from Izzy's magic as he cursed her under his breath with vicious fury for doing this to him before pointing back in the direction he came from with a look of indignation on his face. Unfortunately, it seemed Izzy just wasn't paying that much attention to his communication.

Author's Note

Twitch is an interesting character at times, I vote.

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