"I..." Umbra trailed awkwardly, considering the fuzzy counselor. They were a pony, unicorn variety. Surely, being a pony had to count for some amount of negation of the negative parts of counselor, right? "I see someone who probably thinks they know me better than I do."
"That was quite defensive. Did I say something to offend?" Active sat up in her chair. "We've only just met."
"Yeah..." Umbra rubbed her cheek, eyes wandering the clean little room. "Hi."
"This isn't the Umbra I was told of."
Umbra perked at that. "What Umbra were you told about?"
Active smiled gently. "Exuberant, friendly, socially aggressive." She waved a hoof over Umbra as a whole. "A practicing shadow wizard and crystal craftspony, which is not a combination I would immediately put together. A good roleplayer of an abyssian kindness support character that gladly helps her team through tough straights."
Umbra frowned suddenly. "How do you know all that?!"
Active held up a hoof flat with Umbra. "I'm not spying on you, if that's what you're worried about. One of your fellow players is also a client of mine, and he speaks of you. Fondly, I will add." She brought up her hooves to bring them together quietly. "And that isn't a secret."
"Shining?!" Umbra colored as she said his name. "Fondly?"
"Quite so. But we're not here to discuss him. I hope we can have a session with the two of you, later, but that's not today."
Umbra deflated a little. "Right... Well, what you hear from me is a secret." She thrust a hoof at Active. "Just so we're clear."
"As crystal." She paused a brief moment. "I didn't mean that pun, but it works." Umbra's quirk of a smile agreed with that. "I hear you weren't a pony, to start."
"No..." Umbra worried her hooves together. "I was a human. Male, physically." She tapped herself on the chest. "Female, on the inside, and now the outside."
"You look happy about that." Active nodded, taking in Umbra's expression. "Being a mare is a lovely thing." She took another note. "There are perks to being a stallion too."
"Sure yeah..." Umbra sent a hoof rolling in the air. "But I don't miss them much."
"I've heard you want to be a pretty pony."
Umbra's ears jerked upright, pointing their radar dishes at Active directly. "Shouldn't a mare want to be presentable?"
"Certainly so," easily agreed Active, turning a hoof on herself. "I do my best to be presentable, but... that is not my specialty, nor especially my concern. How do I look?"
Umbra considered the mare, humming to herself. "Professional?"
"That's a great word." Active nodded with a smile. "Exactly what I go for. Neat, tidy, clean, but not 'pretty'. There is a difference."
"Is... pretty a bad thing?" Umbra fluffed at her mane. The curls were fading back to their natural straight curtain, the curls it had far more subdued than what the stylist had managed to tease out.
"Nothing wrong with being pretty." Active reached out slowly. When not stopped, she made contact with that hair, brushing a hoof along Umbra's mane. "You have nice hair. Now, if you would, explain how you do want to look?"
"I want to be pretty," admitted Umbra, failing to find better words for it. "I want people that--" She paused, noting Active taking more notes. "--What? Did I say something?"
Active inclined her head. "I'm listening, which means taking notes so I remember it all, and I know what to ask about later. You haven't done anything wrong."
Umbra pointed at the floating pad accusingly. "Yeah? What did you just write?"
"I don't normally share that." Her eyes darted to the pad. "But, since you're asking directly." She cleared her throat and began to read directly from it, "Self-Image is a powerful consideration. Internal or External? Ask later."
Umbra thumped down on the cushion of the sofa she was on. "Internal or external what?"
"This is why I don't usually share." Active smiled though, not at all bothered. "Just means we skip to this question. By that, I meant, are you more worried about how others see you, or are you trying to make yourself match some internal ideal. Both is possible, even common, but the way the two compete changes the dynamic quite a bit with which is taking dominance."
Umbra's teeth clenched a moment. She was being analyzed! That was, in theory, the point in part... "Being a woman means you can be pretty," she sighed out. "Now that I am entirely female, I want to be pretty. I want... to appeal."
"Are you trying to attract somepony?"
Umbra recoiled. "No! I mean... I'm not looking for a date..."
"But you want to appeal?"
"Yeah..." Her response felt flat. Umbra fidgeted in place. "You're making me doubt myself."
"That isn't the goal. Sorry. I want to learn more about this intriguing pony in front of me." Active's pen busily kept right on scribbling. "The others around you are just as interested. That's a good word, interesting. You have that down."
Umbra's ears flicked, no longer quite as dead locked. "Interesting?" A little smile appeared slowly. "That's not a bad thing."
"I would say it isn't." She inclined her head. "Far better than the opposite. Few want to be around boring ponies, I find."
"Yeah!" Umbra seemed to brighten. "Nobody wants to hang out with someone who's boring."
"You say 'someone' and 'anyone'. That's a 'human' thing, I assume?"
Umbra was caught there. "Um, yeah? Right... you guys say 'anypony' and stuff. What about not ponies? Isn't very fair to them."
"It isn't," agreed Active. "So you call them 'one' instead. Pony, dragon, or griffon, there's still only 'one' of them either way."
"Yeah! Exactly." She wobbled a hoof at Active. "What do ponies say to not-ponies anyway?"
"Creature. Anycreature, somecreature, that sort of thing."
Umbra hiked a brow at that. "What does creature mean around here?"
"Are you turning my techniques against me?" Active was smiling though. "A good question. A creature is any animal that talks." She pointed at Umbra. "You are one, and so am I." She curled the hoof on herself. "All ponies are creatures, but not every creature is a pony. What does creature mean where you're from?"
The tables turned! But Umbra could think of no good way to deny the very question she had just asked. "A 'creature' is usually a non-sapient animal. The kind that does not talk. Where I'm from, there's only one animal that talks."
"How lonely, but comforting." She tapped her hooves lightly. "It must be easier to be peaceful if you're all--"
Active didn't get to finish with Umbra's gales of laughter. The shadow wizard flopped off the couch entirely, beating the floor as she howled. "No! Nooooooo. No... That... wow..." She flopped over to her side, then her back. "Wow, no."
"So what were they fighting about?" prompted Active gently.
"Oh... Jesus... We were pretty good at coming up with reasons." She climbed back up onto her couch. "You have something I want being a really popular one. If the next kingdom over has something you want badly enough, time to fight! If you want money badly enough, take it from someone. You don't like how someone's dressed? You could beat them up!"
"That is a very hostile fashion environment."
Umbra smirked at that. "That's barely the start. Look, here." She waved a hoof in a wide circle. "You hear about a stallion that wants to be a mare, and the response has been, fairly universally, 'Aw, sorry about that, how can we help?' That is not the response you get back where I'm from."
Active considered briefly. "Is violence the answer?"
"Violence was almost always the answer," sighed out Umbra, hoof over her face. "Violent words if you weren't up to physical violence. We're pretty good at... You know what, no. No!" She sliced the air flat with a hoof. "I need to stop doing that!"
"Stop doing what?" Active leaned forward a little. "What do you see?"
"I see me identifying with my past too much." Umbra tapped her chest. "I am a pony. A nice shadow pony. I don't want to hurt anything. I'm not a human anymore, and that's fine. They can suck an egg, if they don't smash it before they get the chance."
"Your past is part of you, Umbra." Active smiled gently. "I wasn't always a counselor, you know. The name, you think I was born to this, don't you?"
Umbra blinked with fresh confusion. "Wait, you weren't?! What were you before?"
Active smiled gently. "You are looking at Active Listening, an audio equipment engineer. I decided I wanted to listen to ponies, live, instead of letting the equipment be in the way. But I don't begrudge my past. I was that, and became something else, but I still was that. It's a part of me. If you need help putting together a stereo system, I'm your mare."
Umbra opened her mouth, just to close it again. "Get out!" she suddenly yelped. "That's awesome! Also, stereos are a thing here?"
"More commonly seen in more metropolitan cities, like Manehattan, but yes, they exist. Your response tells me they do too where you're from. It's nice to meet somepony else who knows what they are. I don't even bother to bring it up around my other clients."
Umbra hopped down to get over to Active, setting a hoof on her. "Hey, that's awesome. I'd love to have a stereo. Is there even a plug around here to get it going?"
"I don't think there is." Active glanced around, but no plugs were in sight. "This palace is thousands of moons old... However, where electricity is lacking, magic can make up the difference, for a price." She nudged Umbra back. "We can talk about that, later. Right now, I am a counselor, and I want to get your wires connected properly. But I can't do it without your help and cooperation. Let a mare in? I promise I'll be careful."
Umbra giggled at the mental imagery summoned. "What if I like my wires where they are?"
"Then let me have a look? I promise, won't move a single one without your permission. As a fan, I love seeing a quality set's configuration." New notes were made. "If you're happy with how they're set up, then I am too."
Umbra squinted with obvious suspicion, seated on her haunches on the ground, having not returned to her couch. "If that was true, we wouldn't have much to talk about. Why bother me if you don't want to play with the wires?"
"Because I want to know them." Active nodded softly. "There are others who are considering how well theirs can match yours. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but you find both Shining Armor and Cadance to be attractive ponies."
Umbra colored deeply. "W-what? I didn't say that!"
"They did. Cadance, specifically, if you want somepony to blame. She cast that spell on you."
Umbra hopped to her hooves. "That was very uncool!"
"How did it make you feel?"
"In that second?" asked Umbra, brows raising together. "Or afterwards?"
"Start from the start."
"Ugh..." Umbra shared what she felt, that moment of intense obsession of her link to Shining. "He hits the right marks, sure, but he was also an idiot."
"That's our Shining," agreed Active without resistance. "What about Cadance?"
Umbra's ears twitched. "She's a big pretty pink princess. She's also super straight."
Active inclined her head. "She seems about as curved as one expects of a pony."
"Not that kind of straight," laughed Umbra at the idea. "She's a girl who wants a boy. Not another girl. She has no interest in me."
"Ah, yes." New notes were made. "But what about you?"
Umbra tried her best to stop being so colored, with very limited success. "If she was up for it... They're a great couple. I don't want to ruin that!"
"I'm only asking for your feelings, not theirs."