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// 17 - Father and Daughter 
// Story: Amber Starts, Comforting Endings 
// by David Silver 
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The head librarian of a local town's public library had been shoved by the most recent arrival, and then a tennis ball was on her horn. The ball did not stop the magic of a pony, but it certainly made a clear point that a pony had tried. "Sir. Sir." Amber clapped her hooves together. "Sir. If I remember correctly, tennis balling unicorns fell out of favor when the tribes reunified. Not a single instance of brain melting is on the record." She let her horn glow, as if for a point. "It is a rule at this library that you can't touch other ponies without their permission."

She inclined her head faintly, letting the tennis ball drop to the ground. "Is this the sort of message you want given to your foal?"

He started at that. "W-what? No! My little filly knows not to do that."

"Then she learned it from somepony else." Amber clopped a hoof down flat on the counter. "The book is safe for ponies of her age, or much any age that can read well enough. If she wants to, she can check it out, which she did. If she doesn't like it, she will return it. She may tell me about why she didn't like it. That hasn't happened often, but is allowed. A third pony's opinion, even their parent, doesn't factor into this."

"She is my daughter! I am the one that raises her!" He stomped and fumed, glaring hot anger at Amber as other librarian clients watched on with curiosity. "I will decide this."

"If it bothers you what she chooses to read." Amber brought her hooves together. "Have you tried talking to her about what she's reading, instead of picking up her book when she wasn't around and sifting through it on your own?" She didn't know for a fact that is what happened, but she was guessing, and she hoped it was the case.

That he shrank back, ears wilted, implied she wasn't that far off. "She's just a filly..." he weakly sputtered, tears brimming in his angry eyes.

"Then you know what she reads. Or, if you don't, you can ask her what she enjoyed. I can find other books like it, or better, that she would likely enjoy." Amber gave the saddest dad a soft smile. "I bet, if you came at her curiously, instead of ready to judge, she would gladly share all sorts of interesting things about her books. Or, let me put it another way." She leaned back a little. "If you stop her from reading it, she will get angry. That will make her want to read books like it even more. You'll teach her to be more careful how she reads and who sees what she reads. You'll be raising a more cautious daughter. Is that your goal, to raise a paranoid filly that is certain her caretaker is ready to take away what she likes?"

"No." The stallion collapsed with a sob. "I just don't want her to grow up thinking it's all like that. Two colts can't be together, or they shouldn't, anyway." He pressed his hooves against either side of his head. "The kissing!"

"Ponies kiss, sir." But Amber was smiling gently. "Sometimes they hug. Speaking of that, your daughter could use one of those. A hug, maybe a kiss? That is an arena I entirely defer to a parent to decide." She giggled at herself. "Even if I didn't, that would be your call." She spread her hooves out in front of her. "I'm just the head librarian that has to remind ponies that they cannot attack other ponies." She glanced  up at where the ball had been. "Is there anything else I can help with, sir?"

Comforting clutched her heart, tears stinging at her eyes. The test had been passed, with flying colors! She felt so proud she wanted to rush at Amber and tackle her to the ground, but the timing felt bad for that.  She wrenched her phone out instead and got to typing an email to Together. "I just ran my first test in what feels like forever, and she passed! Such a lovely little pony. She was scared at first and so confused, but she rebounded and it was just kinda perfect."

Comforting let out a happy sigh, watching as the test, that stallion, walked off with new things to think about. "You learned something too, didn't you?" She could but hope that father got something out of it. A happy ending with him and his daughter growing closer over books felt like a nice potential outcome.

She almost dropped her phone when it buzzed and jingled. Together had replied. "I'm very proud of you. Won't you visit? I'd like that. Trees don't talk, but they can like being visited."

"Visit?" Comforting frowned with thought. She didn't know that was an option! "Amber!" She rushed over, soaring just over the ground to Amber's side with a twitching tail. "Do you know a Together Tree?"

"Yeah?" Amber pointed outside. "It's that big tree. You can see it from outside. Why?"

"Be right back," called Comforting, voice dropping with her speed as she zoomed away. She burst through the doors of the library and twirled around. There, the biggest tree in view, by quite a few steps, considering most had to be happy existing alongside the edge of a street.

That one was in a little park, devoted entirely to it. "You were right there!" Comforting hit the ground to run, racing towards the treet. "Together!" She hit the tree with a great big hug, though the tree was even larger, only letting her hug some of it. "Hello there."

But it was a tree. It didn't reply to her eager greeting. "I didn't know this was you. I thought you were further away." Comforting nuzzled against the bark, snuffling the tree for all it was worth. "So happy to see you."

Her phone chimed. Comforting considered ignoring it, but she fished it out and was glad she did. It was from Together. "You remain quite silly, Comforting. I am a tree. I can't talk that way, but I am happy that you're so excited to see me, and to be visited by you. You work in a library. You could read a book under me. That would be nice."

Comforting trembled with a whimper. "That would be adorable." She flopped to her bottom beneath Together, tail brushing her arboreal partner. "I love you a lot, just so you know. You may not talk, but I know you can hear me."

A text arrived. "You are such a gentle force of chaos."

"Are we just meeting?" She leaned back, head resting against Together. "I am the Comforting change. The growth you wanted to reach for. The change you didn't expect, but are glad to see. I am the helping hand you didn't know was coming." She snickered softly. "I am sounding like a bad reference." She tapped her chin with new thoughts. "What can I get as a treat for my tree buddy?"

"Nothing," replied a text. "I only need gentle sun, not too much or too little, and water, and rich soil. The city gives me two of those. The sun is no longer something ponies control. It has been kind to me so far."

"Maybe something for the ponies around you." Comforting hummed softly at that. "They wouldn't believe my stories if I just bought a huge statue to place among you." She ran a finger across the phone's screen, but received no answer. "But you like company, and you like ponies."

"They placed benches here." In Comforting's eyes only, arrows appears, pointing at those metal benches. "They can read or just relax, safe under my branches. This pleases me."

Comforting frowned at the benches and reached out, her hand passing right through the bench as if it wasn't there. "Together, I love you, but am I seeing what you want instead of what's there?" The benches vanished, along with the arrows. Togther had a ring of stones, but no benches. "Well, that settles that." She crossed her arms. "I'm getting you some benches, so ponies can hang out with you."

"That is not necessary, but it is lovely of you to offer."

Comforting grinned with glee at Together. "What do you want as a gift then?"

"You."

Comforting colored even as she burst into fresh giggles. "You got me, you always will, for as long as either of us are haunting the place." She spread her arms out. "But, besides me, some benches. Yep, you're getting some, and you'll like it, for when I'm not around, and even when I am, I can sit on those benches too."

"Whatever you wish to do is perfectly fine, but I won't make use of them. I'm a tree. I will say, however, that my ponies do enjoy resting near me. Sometimes they like to eat nearby, and think their thoughts, large and small."

Comforting clapped her hands with growing excitement. "Now I'm not even sure if you're arguing or just trying to be slick about how you ask for something. Stop that! Just ask. I'd reach up and flip the sun upside down for you, and you know it."

"Which is why I try not to request things."

Comforting raised a brow at that text. "I'm not my dad. Trust me to show a little restraint." She glanced up at the sun. "It's doing a fine job on its own, looks like." She put her hands on her hips. "Now, I have the power of compounding interest on my side. Some benches shouldn't be hard." But one problem came to her mind. "Is that allowed? Do they have rules about where you can just put a bench down?"

Fortunately for her, she knew just a pony to ask about that. She walked with purpose to Hitch's office with a big smile. "I need legal advice from the most law-adjacent pony I know! Is he in?" She peeked in the door to see Hitch seated at his desk, studying a series of papers in front of him. "Awesome."

She breezed in, pulling a chair to the other side of his desk and flopping into it. "Hey!" She saw Sparky playing on that desk and waggled her fingers at  him. "Aw, look who's being adorable as usual. Hitch?"

Hitch blinked a few times before looking up at her, then he chuckled. "Hey there." He pushed back from the desk, looking at her. "What sort of trouble are you making this time?"

"Me?!" Comforting gestured with both hands. "You haven't had to write me a ticket even once. Is this a chaos spirit stereotype?"

"A little." Hitch gave Comforting a little hug. "Seriously, how can I help? Officer Hitch is on duty."

"Do you know the code for putting a bench anywhere that isn't part of the sidewalk?" Comforting pointed back over her shoulder. "I know a lot of places put in trees, so they have to have a spot for benches. I want to put one of those in a little spot I know, but I have to get permission from the city, or something."

Hitch headed outside so he could see what tree Comforting was pointing at. "That's a nice idea. So long as the benches don't get in the way of traffic, it shouldn't be a problem. Thanks for checking though. A lot of ponies would just get an idea and I'd have to yell at them afterwards." He went back in, looking at Comforting. "Was that it?"

Comforting waved a hand with a snicker. "It was, but thanks for making sure." She stood up and leaned over the desk to give Hitch a warm hug. Being so close, she took the chance to ruffle Sparky's top and nuzzle the little dragon. "Have you met Spike?"

Sparky babbled nonsenically, but looked happy enough.

"Right?" Comforting nodded with a chuckle. "All the dragons I know are pretty great creatures." She pointed outside. "Time for me to buy a bench or three!" With determination burning in her eyes, a bit literally, she began her trek to make Together's day a little happier.