With lunch done, and map made, Misty approached Floraugh while he put together his copy of the original document that would eventually be carried by future griffon explorers. "Floraugh? Would you mind talking for a bit?" She tilted her head. "Tell us about growing up around here?"

Floraugh tucked his paws against his chest, then sprawled on his side with his tail curled up at the end. "That came out of nowhere!" He rolled upwards with a little smile. "Seriously. Never had to talk about myself before."

Amber joined them, laying on the other side of Misty. "Floraugh, you probably have stories to tell, especially considering how remote this is compared to even Bridlewood, let alone Zephyr Heights." She was excited about meeting these new people, so hearing about what they'd been up to sounded like something she wanted to get involved in.

"Well..." He rubbed his chin with a clawed hand. "I remember catching bugs in the garden, hunting for beetles, chasing dragonflies." His voice fell to a whisper. "Learning how to catch them without smashing them. Harder than it looks."

Misty giggled at the mental image. "That wounds adorable, but I think we were wondering about what childhood was like, besides the fun hobby you had. Nice hobby, but besides that."

Floraugh's tail twitched slowly back and forth. "Childhood. Hm. I was kind of a rotten chick. Didn't listen to my parents. Kept getting in trouble because of it, of course."

Amber put a hoof over her mouth. "But you seem so nice now!"

Floraugh scrunched his beak in annoyance. "Don't sound too surprised, please. I worked hard to be good. Just didn't start out that way." He closed his eyes, remembering. "Once, I tried to fly beyond our town's limits, wanted to see if there was anything else out there in the wide world. Almost got eaten for it. My folks had to chase off a hungry monster and bring me home. Dad told me to never scare Mom like that again. Said I had nothing to prove."

Amber cocked an ear at Floraugh, eyes slightly narrowed. "Well, I think anycreature that can grow up from that to the lovely creature we've learned about has done a nice job for themselves. Besides, you weren't hurt. Probably worth it."

"Yeah, yeah." Floraugh waved away Amber's comment, his feathers fluffing up. "I was such a rebellious little griffon." He leaned in. "You had those two kinds of chicks, the good ones, and the bad ones. Take her." He pointed up to a griffon hen watching them from her window. "She's a good one."

"Hello!" The other griffon waved, seeming to notice she was being spoken about. "Um, is something happening?"

Misty shook her head and smiled up at the stranger. "Just having a nice chat." She waved at the female griffon before turning her gaze back on Floraugh. "So she listened to her folks. And you didn't. What was your mom like? Did she look like you?"

"Not quite like me." He trailed the patterns of color on his face. "Different patterns, but same colors. She listened to her folks, and all the other authorities. If they made a rule, she'd follow it, unlike me at the time. The good chicks protected the bad chicks like me. She was the one that squealed on me when I took off, and that's why my parents got there in time before I got eaten." He laughed tensely with a blush. "So I owe her."

"Do you keep in contact with your mother?" asked Amber.

"Of course! I send letters. She lives just outside the village." He smirked at the ponies. "You can't meet my mom today. She doesn't take new things very well, and I'd have to warn her at least a day in advance. Even then, I wouldn't give odds she'd agree to meet."

Amber huffed. "Someday then. When we next meet your mother, we shall pay our respects. Can we hear more about your younger self? Come on. No shame in that. Everycreature starts somewhere. We were children before. Were you smaller, rounder?"

Floraugh burst into fresh laughter. "Was I smaller? Pretty sure all creatures start smaller, and most rounder too. I don't have any pictures though, so, sorry." He paused, turning in place a moment. "Ah, there!" He pointed sharply. "There's a little chick."

They turned to follow his gesture. A young griffon was wandering in the shadows underfoot, shuffling around with tiny feet. The ponies grinned at the sight. The baby had rounded edges instead of harsh angles, but his feathers and fur were already starting to gain their natural hues.

"He's adorable. And small." Misty darted closer to investigate the cub. The chicks' parent did not approve, the mother shooing Misty away with quite the irritated squawk.

"Okay, okay! Sorry!" Misty trotted quickly away from the pair of griffons. "Didn't realize I was intruding on something personal."

The chick hid behind her mother, peering nervously around her at the group.

Floraugh waved Misty closer. "They're not mad, but griffons can be awful territorial about their chicks, especially when they're that small. You can't just rush up to them like that, unless they're already super close friends." He kept an eye on the mother and child. "You guys did well at breakfast with that kid, so I assumed you knew what you were doing. Don't worry, I know now that's not the case."

Amber rubbed her hooves nervously. "Sorry, we just wanted to say hello. But did you just say you know now we don't know what we're doing? That isn't very nice."

Floraugh huffed softly. "I meant I know you two weren't trying to cause any trouble. So what else do you want to know about?"

"What's a normal day like around here?" Amber spread her arms to indicate the buildings around them, drawing her hooves over the ground. "What do your days look like?"

Floraugh inclined his head sharply. "You've seen a lot of it. We talk, hunt, grow food. Some of us practice crafts." He hiked a thumb at himself. "I like drawing. Lots of paper lying around, you can make it from bark." He chuckled. "You'd be surprised."

Amber chuckled. "Oh, I have to see this now. In Maretime Bay, everything is manufactured. The lack of factories suggests this isn't true for you. Show us how you make the paper?"

He shrugged lightly. "Why not. Come on." Floraugh turned to head deeper into the village.

Floraugh brought them to a structure that seemed identical to the others around them, save for the sharp smells and rough scraping sounds emerging from it. "This is where griffons come if they want to make paper. Also where you go if you have bark you want to get rid of. They can never have enough."

He stepped inside, pulling the door open and leaving it ajar to permit the others entry. Inside were more tools and tables, vats of clear water and thick sludge, both standing apart from each other and being mixed into muddy slurry, eventually ending up pressed into sheets left drying on racks. The ponies gazed with wonder at the whole process being done manually by the griffons inside.

"Whoa." Misty stood staring around herself. "Everything is handmade here, isn't it?"

Floraugh shrugged casually, smirking. "Nothing but handmade. Griffon culture!"

Amber watched closely how the pulpy substance was mixed and spread between the griffons going about the business of producing something from nearly nothing. "Seems complicated. Though, we are impressed. All of this coming from wood?" She frowned with sudden realization. "I don't know how ponies make paper, come to think."

Floraugh edged through the factory to the far side. "From logs, barks, other tough parts of plants. We break it down, shred it until it's tiny bits, add water, press out the mess and let it dry. There's some stuff we add, to make it all ready, but that's the basics of it." He waved to a small pile of ready paper. "And here's what they made!"

Another griffon landed besides Floraugh. "We just finished with that lot." That male griffon sounded quite proud of his work. "You come looking for more paper to draw on?" He gestured towards the fresh stack, inviting Floraugh to take it for himself.

He reached out to grab several pieces. "Yes please. Have a nice day!" Floraugh left the paper maker behind.

Misty waved at the new griffon with a smile. "Nice to meet you! This is very nice paper, um, sir. Thank you for making it."

The paper maker chuckled pleasantly, seeming quite pleased with the praise. "Anything for a friend of Floraugh. See ya later! Maybe we'll see you here again, someday."

They headed back into the fresh air outside, away from the strange chemicals that went into paper production. The rest of the afternoon was spent exploring the other buildings in the village, Floraugh serving as tour guide and telling them about what went into the construction efforts and maintenance of a griffon town.

Though not as advanced as Maretime Bay, it was clear the griffons were no primitives, clever and industrious in their own, different, ways.

Amber nodded with approval. "All fascinating. Fl—" She didn't get to finish, becoming the perch of an entire flock of griffon chicks suddenly, covering her back with talons and pinions, playful cheeping filling the air around her. "Ack! Help, help!" Her words were accompanied by laughs at the sensation. She felt dozens of small pinpricks across her hide where the little ones had landed.

Floraugh laughed at the sight. "Oh, guess you didn't cause trouble afterall. Looks like they like you!"

"Thank goodness." Misty swatted gently at the baby birds with a hoof. "Go on! Off! Back to your nests with you all. Shoo, shoo!"

The grifflets hopped away one at a time, fluttering off with annoyed trills to head back to their waiting parents, who had been close by and watching the entire exchange like the hawks most of them were in part. With a little bow in apology to the visitors, they too rose into the skies to ferry their children off.

Comforting strode past, seemingly appearing out of thin air, patting Amber lightly on the back. "Who knew you were such a chick magnet. I was starting to get suspicious, but this confirmed it. Congratulations." She cackled softly and started walking off. "No rush on returning. Just try to keep it down."

Amber flushed a shade of pink. "You're phrasing that with implications that are entirely unwarranted, and I know you're doing it on purpose."

Misty trotted quickly in Comfy's wake. "I thought we weren't taking much longer? When did you plan on heading back?"

Comforting considered that. "Well, no rush. If you're having fun, keep having fun."

Amber shook her head. "Oh no. We need to return sometime tonight."

Comforting blinked. "How's tomorrow night sound? Give them more time to study us."

Amber shuffled from hoof to hoof. "As long as I'm home soon... The library shouldn't be without its head librarian for too long. At most, three days."

Comforting bowed her head low to the ground. "As you wish. Tomorrow night it will be then." She began to walk off.

Misty sighed, hoofing at the ground. "Comfy. I feel like I barely have a grasp on things. Two more days of research might not cut it. And there's not exactly a public internet around here either."

Amber circled on Misty. "They have the map to get to us. They can fly. Hopefully, we'll see some griffons around closer to home and we can invite them over to share dinner with us for a change. We'll get more chances to learn about them, and them about us. I think it will work out wonderfully."

***

It was late at night when the three mares finally returned to the nest that they were borrowing. Floraugh and the other griffons bid them pleasant dreams before splitting off to head to their own respective quarters.

Amber settled onto the bed while Misty laid down beside her. She grabbed Misty and drew them close. "Thank you, for keeping me company. I don't think coming here alone would have been nearly as fun, even counting Comforting."

Misty nuzzled into Amber's embrace. "Thank you for coming up with the idea in the first place." She bumped her snout against the top of Amber's neck.

Amber coiled her neck around Misty's, seeking warmth and comfort. The two snuggled together. Amber idly kicked off the blankets from under herself and tossed it over herself instead. "I don't think I'd ever have met a griffon otherwise." She gave a slight toss of her head, which wasn't much, given how tangled her neck already was.

Misty rubbed the side of her snout against Ambers. "It's been a blast! Hasn't been since the breezies that I met a new creature before, and it's just as exciting." Her horn lit up with dim, green energy that flowed across them both, sliding underneath their hides, passing along the softness of their hides to the smoothness of muscle and tendon within.

Amber stretched and sighed, flopping in place. "When did you get a massage spell! My magic buddy's been keeping a secret from me. Unfair." That last part sounded more sleepy than angry, fading under the influence of that spell working her over.

"Learned it recently, actually." Misty cast the spell until Amber relaxed into unconsciousness. "Glad you liked it." She shut her own eyes and leaned in to close the last hair's width between herself and Amber, falling asleep soon afterwards.

Author's Note

Well, that felt comfy. Exploring a new people without being rude about it, the ponies eagerly poke their snouts about and make more friends.

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