Allura had made it her business to know her way around every part of Maretime Bay. Not because she particularly liked it. It wasn't bad, but it was just not home. Just barely tolerable. A place to inhabit for the moment. That was why she had to know every nook and cranny. That the library had changed? That bothered her. It had two stories, coming up to eyes easily.

Now, three, a little over her.

That meant she needed a way in. Fortunately, she had more than one friend. She walked into the front doors with a smile. "Good morning!" She kept her voice chipper and friendly, or at least that's how it sounded. "Amber, could you please help me?"

The unicorn turned, regarding Allura with caution. "Yes? With what?"

Allura swept a hand upwards, at the third story. "I need a way up there."

Amber raised a brow, looking between the immense cat and the top floor of her library. "Unless you get smaller, that's going to be a challenge. We mostly teach pony magic up there anyway. What would you do with that?"

"Look for myself." Allura shook her head. "If I am to be a subject in your book, I deserve to be a part of the process."

"Fair enough. I suppose it would be best to write with you, not just about you." She rubbed her cheek. "But you don't need to get up there for that. Are you that curious about earth pony magic or how to fly? I imagine you're already pretty good at flying. You have wings."

Allura glanced back at her wings. "True, they are functional, but that does not mean there are not tricks pony magic could teach me." She regarded Amber carefully. "Besides, it would make a better book, would it not?"

"You're teasing now." Still, she mused on it. "Tell you what, I'll ask that the flying instructor include you. They often head outside anyway, and you can join them and see what they're up to. How's that sound?"

"That will suffice." Allura bowed her head slightly. "When does the class meet?"

"Every week day, early afternoon." Amber pointed. "We have flyers. Want one?" She trotted inside and returned with a slip of paper floating along in her magic. "Here you go."

Allura took the flyer from Amber, looking it over. "Thank you." She gave Amber a small grin. "See you tomorrow."

Amber waved. "See you tomorrow." She watched Allura walk away before turning back to her work. "Hope Zipp doesn't mind this little change of pace."

***

Zipp stood before the group, looking left and right over her trainees. "Today's a great day. Feel that breeze." She extended a wing out despite flapping to hold herself up, rustling in the soft winds of the morning. "This morning, we have a guest joining us. Welcome, Allura, to the beginner's class."

Allura dipped her head slightly, looking around. Other than herself and Zipp, there were only five other students present. Each of them was an adult, but none of them appeared to have mastered flight at all, based on their wobbling nature in the air. She pondered what could have caused an adult of the species to be so poor at the art. "Are you ill?"

Zipp floated in front of Allura with a nervous laugh. "They're not sick. Don't be harsh. Look, magic just came back to us. They lived most of their life not being able to fly, but now they can, and I'm happy to show them how." She nodded, wings stretching wide. "Some have better natural instincts, but all can learn with a good teacher."

Allura regarded Zipp a moment, then shrugged her wings up. "I wish to learn new tricks. Show me how ponies do this."

Zipp saluted. "Hang tight. I'm going to go over some basic drills with the cadets today. Pay attention, even if it's simple, you might see something." She turned and zipped back towards the group. "Alright, let's practice the basics, everypony!" Zipp demonstrated the movements for her trainees to copy.

Allura watched carefully. The way Zipp moved, the motions that meant the most, the ways the other pegasi failed. She could see the differences between pony movements and her own. Ponies moved as if they were small, which they were. Her motions were more suited for a larger being. Strength versus dexterity, baked into the very basics of how each took flight. Allura tried adjusting her flight to match more of how Zipp flew, and found herself staying steady far easier than normal. She grinned, and began experimenting further.

Zipp was not a professional instructor. She had been recruited just because she had been there and hadn't said no. "Keep those wings in sync!" She waved at a stallion that had the two flapping just a little out of sync. "It's easier once you get that down." She watched him correct and catch himself before drifting too far. "There, like that!" One wing to a mare who drifted low. "Don't flap so hard, you'll wear yourself out."

Zipp twirled in the air. "The idea is to do just what needs to be done. right now, that's hovering. If you're doing more than that, you're wasting energy. Overly strong flaps will ground you, huffing for breath. Flap too weak, and you'll drop. Now, let's see some of those wing positions! Remember, you can turn with just a twitch."

Allura watched, then tried to emulate. She knew how to hover and turn, but learning the pony way was, at the least, a welcome distraction. That the wind was refreshingly cool up there was another reason to be in no hurry to rush back to the ground.

Zipp continued to fly about, offering tips and corrections. She looked up at Allura. "See how it's done?"

Allura looked down, grinning slightly. "Indeed. I am quite impressed by the way your wings flutter so quickly." She reached to brush one of those flapping wings. "Your skill is quite ahead of the others. Did you 'regain your magic' sooner?"

Zipp shook her head quickly. "Nah, but I was an athletic sort, and used my wings even when I couldn't fly. These babies were making me even more mobile before I got up here, which was great! You can ask my sister, I used to jump everywhere all the time." She gestured at her trainees. "These ponies spent their lives on four legs, and that's the difference between them and me." She flew right up to one of her students. "Nothing wrong with that. You're all getting better!"

The stallion blushed and nodded. "Thank you, Zephyr."

Allura watched, her head tilting to the side. "You are kind to them." Her ears flattened slightly at that. "Do they owe you something?"

"Huh? No." Zipp backed away to see them all more easily. "The class is free, don't get a single bit out of this, just get to see ponies enjoying flight more, and I like that." She gestured around them. "Don't I get to decide what I want to do?"

Allura tilted her head the other way. "I suppose. Do you enjoy this, then?"

"The work is work." Zipp waved over the line. "I like what happens because of it, but work is still work. So I can't say I 'enjoy' it, but knowing what it will lead to makes it worth it. I want more pegasi up in the sky with me, enjoying what their wings can do."

Allura gave a nod. "Reasonable." She tilted her head the other way. "My efforts are quite trying at times, but thinking of the reward at the end makes it worth it." She purred at the thought of her eventual return to home. "And so I keep going."

Zipp nodded. "Sometimes, that's all you can do." She waved her wing towards Allura. "Want to try flying with the class, see how you do at following instructions?"

Allura laughed at that. "I have already been following your directions." She did a quick turn in the air, the pegasus way. "Pegasi fly differently than I do, but perhaps more suited for tight turns and maneuverability. Perhaps, had I stayed home, I would have been shown some of these tricks."

Zipp nodded slowly. "You know, you've mentioned your home before, and you sound really homesick." She tilted her head, thinking a moment. "Is there something I can do?"

Allure resisted the urge to pounce on Zipp. "That depends, can you whisk me away to my home? Are you any good at portals? Tell me your powers, little instructor."

"I have no clue how to use portals." Zipp shrugged lightly. "Sorry, guess I can't be of much help there."

Allura nodded once. "Then, no."

"I can listen." Zipp floated closer. "Sometimes, talking about it helps."

Allura chuckled. "You ponies adore talking, and being talked at. Such a curious species."

Zipp grinned. "Oh, like you don't? I saw you purring earlier. Looked like you were imagining some fun times with friends and family. Got any?"

Allura rolled her eyes at Zipp. "Of course, I have friends and family. What sort of creature doesn't?"

Zipp chuckled. "I dunno, just curious." She shrugged lightly. "Alright, back to training, everyone! Allura, I'm sure you can keep up fine, just watch me and follow my lead. There's going to be some exercises you'll have to skip, but we'll figure those out." She soared, leading the class in some motions besides hovering and moving. "Time to do some banks!"

Allura did indeed keep up, though there were a few moments of difficulty where her large size was not properly suited for the exercise. Still, for the most part, she was able to keep up with the lesson with relative ease. By the time the class came for a landing, she was breathing a little hard. Not from the flying, directly, but the times she had to work to pull a tight move that her large flight didn't normally do.

***

It was late evening, and Misty was walking towards Tootsie and Comforting's shared apartment. When she knocked, the door opened almost immediately, and there was Toots.

Toots smiled warmly. "Hey! You're one of the librarian's at Comforting's library."

"Oh, um, hi." Misty waved at the larger stallion. "It's, uh, more of Amber's library, but the two are pretty close, so I doubt either would be that upset." She rubbed behind her head. "I mean, hello."

Toots chuckled softly. "Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Toots."

Misty nodded. "Cool to meet you, Toots. I met you once before, at the wedding. That was nice." She shuffled awkwardly in place. "Sorry, I'm not used to being around lots of ponies, and... um... yes." Her ears lowered, hiding behind her hair. "Is Comforting around?"

"Yes." And she was. "Misty, come on in. Have you had dinner yet? We've barely started cooking. You should join us, plenty to go around."

"Oh! Um, well..." She smiled timidly. "If you're alright with it? I don't want to get in the way of—"

"Get in here." Comforting threw an arm over Misty and drew her inside. "You remind me of my mom sometimes." She looked at the smaller unicorn a moment. "History doesn't repeat, but it loves to rhyme." She tapped Misty on the nose. "Welcome to our home. You're not in the way."

Misty smiled warmly. "Thank you, Comforting, and you too, Toots."

"Absolutely, you're always welcome." He trotted after the two mares to the kitchen. "I hear you're learning how to do all kinds of crazy unicorn magic." He waved a glowing green hoof. "I only know how to do earth pony magic, which is pretty neat, in a different kinda way."

Misty nodded quickly. "Yeah, Amber's teaching me everything I need to know. So, um, what are you cooking?"

Toots looked over towards a cookbook that he had propped up on a stand, open to the right page. He glanced over it. "It's a sort of stew, with some vegetables, and chicken." He gestured over to where a bowl was full of prepped ingredients.

Comforting clapped her mismatched hands, causing the bowl to suddenly transition from starting to ready. "No time for that when we have guests already over. Grab a bowl!"

Toots giggled at that. "Well, I suppose that works." He went over to cabinets, grabbing the bowls, silverware, and other eating implements for the three of them.

Misty looked around. "For being the home of, uh, you, Comforting, this looks normal."

Comforting snorted at that. "That's a habit I didn't pick up from my dad. I like having a normal place to return to. I can be wild during the day. Here, I just get to be me." She took the ladle from Toots and started filling Misty's bowl first. "But, there's still surprises." A shelf lifted itself and pushed forth a container of cookies, which opened to a sweet smell. "Some by me, and others by Toots. We keep each other guessing, half the fun."

Author's Note

Allura takes a flying lesson, and it isn't entirely worthless, to her surprise.

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