It felt really nice for Eclipse to show Aura their space. It was where they felt most comfortable, and if they were going to be spending time together now, it was for the best.

So here the two of them were, laying on their floor.

“Which one do you want to hear about first? I’m obsessed with crystals.”

“I’d say…this one!”

Aura pointed at a small V-shaped formation, half pink and half purple. She also pointed at another similarly-shaped one.

“And that one too. They look like two different crystals just grew together and I think that’s really fascinating. How did that happen?”

Eclipse’s tail batted harshly against the floor as their mind raced with all the crystal facts they knew. They excitedly pointed at them as they spoke.

“They form like that when they grow near each other, like how the citrine and the amethyst made a mass!”

They picked up the crystal with their magic and brought it closer to her eyes so Aura could see them better.

“This one especially is called a twin formation, magically it balances male and female or opposing energies!”

“Ooh! That’s amazing!”

Aura’s eyes widened in awe at the shiny crystal before her eyes, as she egged them on for more information.

“How do these energies work in crystals exactly? I’ve heard they can have healing properties, right?”

Eclipse bit their lip and thought hard, for explaining to Aura how exactly things got their magical properties was going to be difficult.

“Well I er uh…I…”

They got up and started walking around their room, the line of questioning really getting under their skin.

“How do they work. How does magic work? How does anything work?”

Aura sat up, alert to the sudden change of mood. She was here to be Eclipse’s friend yet had accidentally set something off within the first couple hours. She wracked her brain for a way to diffuse it.

“I’m not sure but maybe it doesn’t really matter how it works, just that it serves the purpose it needs to. Like collecting crystals makes you happy and gives you purpose from what you’ve told me!”

Eclipse was totally not paying attention, at least not consciously. Their hooves tore through their rock collection as their mind raced at a mile a minute.

“Well yes but for what purpose? Is my meaning just rocks? Am I supposed to sit in my room for the rest of my life with my crystals? Is that what you’re here to tell me?”

They whipped around, looking genuinely terrified.

“No no! I’m not here to tell you anything!”

Aura raised her talons defensively.

“Of course your purpose isn’t just rocks. It can be whatever you want it to be. What I meant is that the things that make you happy can give you the sense of purpose that helps you do greater things-“

She paused, stopping herself from going on and sending them further into a tizzy.

“But we don’t need to think about the greater things right now. I came to just live in the moment, be your friend. If you want to be mine.”

Eclipse plopped down on their rear, blinking fast with their usual shallow breathing. Aura was trying to help them and they didn’t want to waste this opportunity, as much of a tail spin as it was turning out to be.

“Okay…I guess.”

They fiddled with their hooves for a minute as she went on, stopping at the end of her sentence.

“My friend? I would like that a lot.”

Aura grinned.

“Then friends is what we’ll be!”