Thank You

o all the different living souls that inhabited it, the Universal Library was a lot of different things. This metaphoric space served as the backdrop for communication between sentient beings, and, depending on who was present, it could look and feel very differently. For every lively, imaginative mind palace, though, there was a dozen transitional spaces, vast and barren, since no one paid them any mind. This area was one such space — a plain grey void, with skyscraper-sized concrete blocks towering up from the haze below. Between them, a sparse network of winding concrete paths was suspended right in the air, intertwined with a system of pneumatic tubes. The Library’s omnipresent bulky bookshelves were drifting through the void in straight lines, each filled with the most random assortment of titles imaginable. No souls lived in this space to bring it any sort of structure or meaning, so it just lingered like this, endless and empty. That day, two souls were passing through.

They both were human-shaped animals, choosing to look like most other souls they knew. Leading the way was a brown dog, a middle school age girl, stocky and chubby, with long floppy ears, dressed in a loose sweater and a long skirt. Her tame, timid appearance was only broken up somewhat by the skull-shaped hairclip holding up her curly bangs. She was quietly explaining something to the other soul, her paws holding onto each other nervously, only her wagging tail showing that she was also excited.

The other soul was lean and very tall, even despite his slouched walk. He wore a grey hoodie, hands fidgeting in the front pocket, hood pulled up over his head. The long, striped tail and the dark mask pattern around his eyes made it clear he was a raccoon. Squinting cautiously, he was listening to the dog.

“We’re almost there, it’s around this corner!” The dog gestured forward. “You weren’t lost at all, you just had to turn a little to the side. Come on!” Seeing the raccoon slow down, she stopped. “Second thoughts?..”

“I don’t know...”, her companion mumbled, looking at his feet.

“You’ll know it as soon as you see it!” With a restrained smile, the dog kept walking. “What you heard is true, Among the Stars really is that great! It’s always fun and lively, and they accept everyone, no matter who they are!”

“It’s just that I’ve never been to a place like this,” the raccoon said, voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t know how to behave, what if I say something wrong?”

“No one would judge you, they’ll understand!” The dog nodded, trying her best to appear friendly and inviting. “We’ve all been in your position once. This café was made for queer souls, I’m sure you’ll fit right in!”

“Queer?” The raccoon raised an eyebrow, and the dog scratched her head.

“You know... gay?” She spread her arms. “Don’t worry about words so much, you just have to feel it! You’ll love it there.” She stood up on her tiptoes and gave the raccoon a pat on the shoulder. That made him flinch, as if in pain, but she did not notice. “Isn’t that why you’ve come this far here? To see souls like you?”

“Those... queer souls?”, the raccoon asked, tugging at the laces of his hood. And then his eyes went wide.

Behind his guide’s back, the sky was a different color, a rich, deep blue. A million stars shone in all colors of the rainbow around one of the concrete pillars, where the floating paths converged. Atop it there was something like a movie set of a café, with only the back wall finished and the walls on the sides sloping down. There was no ceiling either, opening the view on the crowd of colorful animals in flashy outfits inside. The echoes of lively chatter and live singing were reaching out to the travelers. Metal pipes were winding through the brick structure, holding up the wide balcony overlooking the ground floor. A giant shiny factory pipe was peeking from behind the structure, but what caught the raccoon’s eye was the grandiose rainbow flag in front of the café, flowing majestically in the wind. Seeing the raccoon so mesmerized by the sight, the dog grinned to herself.

“There you are! Welcome to Among the Stars!”

The raspy voice from above made the two animals flinch — but what they saw made the raccoon shake. Another animal was descending from the starry sky; a pale yellow rabbit in a bronze-colored maid outfit, a frilly apron resting over the skirt made of solid metal, with four rocket thrusters embedded into it. Making a graceful twirl, the rabbit landed in front of the two, their hair swaying in the hot air.

“You must be Morgan, right? It’s a privilege to greet someone new myself; thanks for the heads-up, Stephanie!” She waved a paper airplane in her gloved hand

“It’s Stephie,” the dog noted, smiling awkwardly at being acknowledged. The raccoon shot a betrayed glare at her, befuddled that she would reveal a stranger’s name to someone he didn’t know or trust — but she just gave him another encouraging smile, probably thinking he was scared.

"I'm Astro the JetBun , the founder of Among the Stars! It's a privilege to greet you personally." The rocket maid did a curtsy, fingertips barely touching the edges of her skirt.

"How do you like the look?" She turned back towards the starlit pillar. "The creation of my will, shaped by all who come here. Among the Stars would be nothing without the community! We are a vegan café with a queer feminist bookstore, and we have something going on every day — there's a nonbinary hangout event planned later today, for example. We have game nights, movie screenings, a stand-up club... You'll find something for yourself! Or you can even organize something."

Morgan nodded, silently scanning the array of pins on Astro's apron, each looking to him like a maritime signal flag.

"So, Morgan, want to say anything about yourself?" The bunny started walking, beckoning them to follow. "Long journey here, I suppose?"

"I'm from... somewhere very different, yeah." The raccoon gulped. "I just thought I'd take a look, sorry if I'm intruding — this is my first time in a place like... this."

"No worries at all!" Astro turned momentarily to shoot a blinding smile at her new friend. "It won't be the last, you belong here! Everyone does."

Skipping along the concrete path, Astro kept listing all the exciting things happening under her tutelage, so light woth joy that it would take her a few moments to land each time. As Morgan |21| was listening, gaze fixed on his tattered sneakers, his gaze was only getting more hazy. Before long they were at the entrance: just an ornate metal arch, not even a glass door, the front wall was as short as a fence.

“Well, here’s to discovering yourself!” Astro turned on her heels, arms spread wide. “Want a hug, Morgan?”

The tall guy suddenly shivered, covering his head with his arms.

“Thank you, but... not now...”

“Okay~” Astro stepped back, still smiling just as bright. Squinting in worry, Stephie went to tap the newcomer at the shoulder, but the bunny glared at her in warning. Morgan pulled on the strings of his hood, closing it off.

“Nobody’s ever asked if they could touch me before... It sounds funny, but... you understand? How strange this all is... It’s just... too good to be true...” He glanced at the rainbow flag towering above them.

“I understand,” Astro nodded, taking yet another step back. “Want to sit at the terrace for a while? I’ll bring you some green tea, it calms the nerves...”

“You’re just too kind...” Morgan was hyperventilating, his thin legs shaking. “After all I’ve been through, this... this...”

Black smoke was brewing at the raccoon’s legs. Eyes wide, Astro grabbed Stephie by the elbow and dragged the dog behind her back.

“This is too much!!!”

As Morgan fell to his knees, the smoke spread out, engulfing his body completely. Frozen in shock, Stephie watched through the veil as a giant, spindly, unnatural silhouette unfurled out of the raccoon’s body. The nightmarish vision floated up, leaving Morgan face down on the concrete. As the smoke cleared, Stephie saw a disfigured creature, looking like a crab with a dozen long, thin legs, each with a razor sharp pincer, machine parts sticking out of its body. Immediately the abomination reached back for the soul that spawned it.

A bright laser beam made it jerk its claw back. Holding her breath, Stephie looked at Astro, who had shot the beam out of her eye.

“Bring him inside,” the bun told her, grabbing the unconscious raccoon by the elbows. Several colorful animals in maid uniforms ran out towards them; Astro turned to shout a command to her staff. “Ready the cannon! We have a Deconstructor at the door.”

“Sit this one out! What am I here for?”

Everybody flinched: suddenly there was another animal among them. A short purple goat in old-fashioned school uniform, with long, sturdy horns growing out of messy pink hair, pushed everyone aside and charged straight at the floating monster. Without slowing down she popped open a glass vial of bright green liquid — and got enveloped in a cloud of glittering brilliant green vapor. The Deconstructor slammed one of its long arms into the cloud — but just a second before the goat leapt up, flying higher than the flagpole. She was now wearing a short green dress, over her head — a hood with holes for horns. The ribbons tied around her strong legs were leaving a trail of sparkles in the air, making it clear that something very magical was going on.

“Go for it, Mila!”, Stephie shouted, all glowing.

“Do we... know her?” Animals in maid uniforms were anxiously glancing at each other. Shaking her head, Astro commanded a retreat to the café again.

Descending from her jump, the magical girl brought her hand forward, and a giant scalpel appeared, sharp as death and adorned with cutesy floral decorations. The crab creature let out a terrifying wail as she sliced two of its arms clean off.

“How dare you, Deconstructor!” The goat pointed her scalpel at the enemy, standing with her back to the café. “This guy was hoping all his life there was a life better than what he knew, and now that he’s so close to knowing it, you show up and try to drag him back? Unforgivable!” She turned back to see if anyone was watching.

“Don’t you worry, though.” She swiped through the air with her scalpel, sending droplets of brown blood through the air. “All the grief and doubt you embody have run into the greatest healer this Library has ever seen! The cure...”

She jumped again, sending a slight tremor through the concrete.

“Annihilation!”

Before the giant enemy crab could react, she pierced its skull right through. Stephie pumped her fist, being dragged by the elbow to safety. Her cheers stopped when the goat found her scalpel stuck in the shell. Grunting, she went to pull it out — but her hands somehow phased right through the weapon, making her lose her balance. The café patrons, all watching from behind the short front wall, murmured in confusion, as the girl seemed to disappear for a moment. None of them recognized her, but for some reason seeing her made them all feel safe — right until that point. The Deconstructor never lost sight of the goat, though, reaching for her with several of its thin arms at once.

“Tch!” The girl jumped in retreat, punching one of the arms on her way so hard that it got dislocated. She landed on a floating bookshelf, making several tomes slip down into the void. The crab lunged at her, activating rocket thrusters on its back. Gasping, the goat put her hands up, creating a magical shield. Three of the creature’s claws bumped against the green glass, but the fourth pierced through, shattering the shield and plunging right into the girl’s stomach. Coughing, she fall right into the other claw. Painfully squeezing its attacker, the Deconstructor turned towards the café again. Wincing, Stephie glanced at Morgan, who the maids put on a couch near the entrance. The raccoon was panting and sweating, unable to wake up from the terrible dream that was out to get him.

“That looks bad,” Astro muttered, sitting in the cockpit in a private room at the top of the café. “Time for adults to intervene, I guess.” At the press of a button, the pipe crowning the brick structure unfurled and turned towards the Deconstructor, revealing itself to be a giant cannon. Charging for a second, the weapon fired an energy beam... that got completely deflected by another magical shield.

“What?!” Astro stared through the crosshairs. The nameless goat was smiling through the pain, looking right at her.

“Thanks for the consideration,” she whispered, Astro reading her lips. “But I’m sick and tired of my victories being taken away! So you bet I’ll make you remember this one!!!”

With a bleat so loud it made the café’s foundation shake, the girl unleashed an energy blast, vaporizing the claw holding her. She landed on a huge film reel floating under the crab — and, leaping up again, punched right through its soft belly, launching blood and electric sparks everywhere. Her scalpel flew off too; the goat shot a ribbon out of her hand like a lasso and, never losing momentum, plunged back into the hole she’d made. Now armed, she hacked through the soft insides of the monster, doing away with it in seconds. The pieces of the Deconstructor floated lifelessly in the air like space crash debris; the girl emerged from the center, holding a tiny black crystal.

Cheers and applause rolled over the crowd. Astro loosened her grip on the cannon’s controls, still squinting through the crosshairs. The goat jumped down to the platform, walking unsteadily, towards the café, whispering to the crystal in her hands.

“It’s okay... You’re gonna be just fine. I know how shocking it can be to see a whole new world out there, I know how it hurts to see that everything is not quite how you wanted it, I know how scary it is to feel lost in a crowd... You’ll get over it, don’t you worry. After all, you’re... real...”

Healing magic was spreading like glittering fumes through her whispering, smelling like mint and chamomile. Stephie ran up to the goat to give her a shoulder to lean on. Astro frowned. Who the heck was this?!

Back at the café, bloody and dirty, the goat sat down beside Morgan. She pulled up his hoodie, exposing his nightmarishly thin torso, with a small keyhole right in the middle of his chest. Whispering some final words into a crystal that had turned pale lilac, she slid it into the hole. Gasping, Morgan jolted awake, eyes wide and red. His gaze immediately fixated on the rainbow flag above, still waving calmly, unbothered by everything that has happened.

“Is this still a dream?..”, he whispered, touching his chest. “Wait, why are you undressing me?”

“Thank you, our hero!”

Everyone spread out to give way to Astro.

“It was so brave for you to step up to protect us all! How can we call you?”

The goat just sighed, sharing a pained look with the dog.

“Almost a year it’s been, and you still can’t remember even my name...”

---

Not even ten minutes later, the café was already back to normal, like there was not a psychological monstrosity right at the door just now. Stephie and her guest were sitting at a table right in the middle of the hall, nonchalant chatter and piano music washing over them — but they both were silent. Stephie was compulsively stirring her green tea, already lukewarm, Morgan was just staring at his. Finally the raccoon opened his mouth.

“Hey, so... that thing, that came out of me. Could you explain... that?..”

Stephie swallowed nervously, looking straight down. But then, not a moment too late as always, the goat girl appeared again, sitting at their table. She was in school uniform again, looking a little tired, but not even a little bit bloody and showing absolutely no signs of having just been stabbed in the stomach.

“I can do it if you want!” She grinned at Stephie, the dog all lit up from the inside as soon as she saw her. The goat stretched out her hand to the raccoon. “Hi, you’re welcome! I’m Vsemila, Mila for short.”

Morgan mumbled his name. The goat’s handshake was surprisingly weak, like she was made out of soft clay.

“So!” Mila leaned back, balancing her chair on two legs, “You know what Constructs are, right? Informational objects that living souls will into existence — this café, for example.” Morgan nodded, focusing as much on the goat waving around as on something that was bothering him about this girl.

"So, Constructs are something you make on purpose, and they usually serve their creators and do what you tell them to." Mila snorted sarcastically. "That thing was different. Sometimes, if it's under too much stress, a soul can eject the part of itself that's making it uncomfortable. To ease the pain, or because it thinks it would be better off without that part, or because the part itself feels foreigh — you know." Mila leaned forward again, propping up her chin on her hands. "That cast out part can become a Deconstructor. A sad, incomplete creature made of rejected parts. They don't know what to do with themselves, so they often are destructive. And they always are terrible uggos." Hearing Stephie snicker, Mila smiled. "But we have ways to pacify them and bring them back inside the soul that rejected them. That's where they belong: it's the soul's job to reconcile with all its parts, even the ugly ones."

"Mila's an expert at handling them!" Stephie grabbed the smaller goat by the shoulder. "She's a natural fighter, she can take on any Deconstructor alone!"

“I wouldn’t go as far as say that~” Blushing, the goat patted the dog’s handpaw with her own.

Morgan put a hand to his chest. The memories of the goat’s fight with the crab creature were replaying in his head, all the pain and anguish it had felt having been his own.

“So that thing you put inside me...”

“Part of you all along,” Mila nodded. “You got too overwhelmed, so you spawned a Deconstructor. But I made those feelings more manageable, so now it’s your job again to handle them. Think you’re up to the task?”

“I’m... really grateful for the help,” the raccoon replied, gulping nervously. Noticing the awkward silence, he scrambled to add something. “Sorry, can I say your horns are cool? They’re so big and sturdy...”

“Oh, really?” Mila blushed: the compliment clearly hit bull’s-eye. “Thanks! I use them when I fight, so they’re pretty worn down, but it’s cool you find them cool!”

Seeing Stephie smile at her interaction with the new guy, the goat grilled back at her. Noticing Mila’s eye twitch as she glanced past her, Stephie turned to see Astro the JetBun approaching, armed with a giant chocolate cake.

“Stevie, I didn’t know you had it in you!”, the rabbit sang, setting the cake down like she was dropping a bomb. “It was so brave of you to go against that Deconstructor all alone.”

Morgan shot a puzzled look at the two girls. Mila was part smiling, part scowling, her hands gripping each other. Stephie was giving her friend a guilty look.

“Hello?” Mila raised one hand. “I exist?”

“You...” Astro twitches and stared at the goat, like she’d just appeared in her field of view. For a moment her stare went blant, like she was lost deep in a memory — but then her usual smile appeared on her face again, and she whipped a notepad out of her apron pocket.

“Of course, silly me. It was you out there! May I ask what your name is?”\

“Mila,” the goat sighed loudly. “You’ve known me for a year now.”

Catching Morgan’s puzzled stare, she sat up straight. “Okay, gather round, kids, let’s hear my story one more time. First of all, I’m a Construct.” Seeing Morgan’s eyes widen, she sighed. “I’m a fictional character who my creators brought to life, okay?”

“Fictional...” The raccoon squinted. “Is that why I’m having a hard time... seeing you? Like you’re fading in and out?”

Mila shook her head, frowning. “It’s not that. My story... it’s not exactly finished, it’s barely a draft. I’m not fully formed like other Cinstructs, I’m barely an idea. Just incomplete.” She shrugged.

“Well... you still exist, I see.”

“I guess...” Mila raised her hand. :Kind of hard to believe that when everyone just forgets me as soon as they look away. I mean, what’s there to see really?” The goat chuckled nervously. “My creators must’ve thought this was enough for the purpose they summoned me, but...” Mila sighed. “Let’s just say I no longer have to do anything for anyone. So now I’m just here! Free to do my own thing.”

“And Mila’s thing is to be a defender and a hero!” Stephie interjected, forcing a wide smile, seeing Astro and Morgan’s expressions get a little complex.

“This cake is my favorite, by the way,” Mila glanced at the bun. “What, you decided to remember something about me, and it’s that?”

“You deserve so much more!” Stephie hugged the smaller goat. “Mila has protected us all from so much, it’s not enough to remember her, we have to treat her like the hero she is! Please promise you’ll remember her...” She grabbed Morgan’s shoulder, then gasped quietly and let go.

“I’ll... try to,” the raccoon nodded, clearly wishing to be anywhere but there.

“Alright!” Looking composed again., Astro clapped her hands. “I believe I promised you a tour of the café, Morgan? Want to start now?”

Being led away by the head maid, the raccoon looked back. The dog was still at the table, but he no longer saw the... goat? No, surely Stephie was sitting alone with him all this time.

---

An hour later, Mila and Stephie were walking together along an endless flat plane, evenly gridded like a notebook sheet, chatting about music. It was time for Stephie to go home, and, trying to be a good friend, Mila would always see her off. Stephie was Mila’s only friend at the Library, being the only soul who consistently remembered her and even thought of Mila when she was out of sight. It bothered the goat that she seemed to be Stephie’s only friend as well — so she tried her hardest to show Stephie how much she really deserved.

“I wonder how Jade and Aimee are doing.”

Hearing Stephie utter this, Mila stopped. These were her two creators, the souls who made up the story with her as the main character for fun, abandoned it midway and then brought her to life one day, only to abandon her again. Her opinion on these two was not exactly favorable.

“You know Aimee better than me at this point,” she retorted. “Didn’t you see her last week?”

“Just briefly!” Stephie raised her paws, feeling that she’d struck a nerve. A moment later, she decided to press on anyway. “And Jade?..”

Mila gave her a tired look. “Busy as usual. Schoolwork, whatever fruitless creative bullspit they’re up to these days, you know.”

“I know schoolwork.” Stephie shrugged. “I’m kind of interested in their creative... endeavors!”

“You don’t even know them,” Mila sighed.

“I know you!” The dog gave Mila a pat oh the back. “You’re so cool, surely someone who created you must be just as cool?”

“You’d be surprised,” Mila mumbled, turning away. “Why now of all times?”

She abruptly stopped and looked back, twisting her neck at an angle that looked painful.

“You want to beg them to finish my story, don’t you?”

“I...” Stephie looked down.

“Listen,” Mila sighed, “that’s not gonna happen. I explained it to you like twice, didn’t I? These two split up, the story is shelved forever, and neither of them wants to touch it anymore. Bringing me here was a mistake in the first place, they both would rather just move on! And, frankly, I would too.”

“You’re not a mistake...” That was Stephie’s only objection; seeing Mila’s stern look, she just stopped and nodded. The goat took her handpaw.

“Thank you, for caring about me so much, for caring at all. But that won’t help. Finishing the story wouldn’t fix me anyway, I’m already here. And you’re here for me.”

Before they could notice, the scenery changed: they were now flanked by two rows of identical brick cottages, going off into infinity. Stephie started walking again, slouched.

“I don’t want to just accept it, you know,” the dog whispered. “You’re here, and you’re so strong, and kind, and fun — and noone can even remember you exist! It drives me mad sometimes, I just want to... change it...”

“Well, that's life.” Mila shrugged, looking at the sky. “We can never have what we want the most, right? But I'm glad I have someone special like you.”

“Special?..”

“You're the only one who remembers me!” Mila grabbed Stephie by the shoulder. “I don't know where I'd be without you.”

“Actually...” S started speaking with caution, carefully choosing her words. “I think I noticed some other souls are starting to remember you better. When I was talking about you at school this week, a couple girls actually remembered who you are, and they haven’t even seen you once. Even that cake Astro brought — you noticed it too, didn’t you?”

For a moment Mila hesitated, but then the goat just shook her head. “You’re just seeing what you want to see. I don’t think there is a way to save me from this, Stephie, it’s easier to admit it, believe me. But hey, I’m here so I can save you!”

“We all can count on you!” The god gave her a strained smile, stopping in front of her cottage. Mila smiled in turn, with as much cheer as she could muster.

“Well, give that homework a good fight for me.” The two animals hugged, Stephie’s arms phasing slightly inside Mila. “See you tomorrow?”

“Right after school!”

After a fist bump, Mila jumped up, soaring dozens of meters above the rows of brick houses repeating beyond the horizon. Jumping this high was a feat for her, especially with her breath so strained from holding back tears. She really did not deserve a friend who cared this much.

---

Several semantic shifts away, in another transitional space, the Library was comprised of endless uniform rows of thin bookshelves, as tall as towers. At their top was where Mila made her base. This plane was just as lonely as the one where ‘Among the Stars’ was hidden, which, as Mila told those who cared to ask, gave her ample space to watch out for threats on the horizon.

Between two of the thin shelves, a watchtower stuck out like a wild plant, a makeshift platform with a telescope in the middle. Right below, between the shelves, was where Mila lived. On a bunch of wooden planks propped over the abyss stood an arrangement of furniture roughly approximating a teenager’s bedroom, with toys and clothes scattered all over, a tea set on a small table, a mirror — just with no walls. Nobody in their right mind would have called such a place a home, at best they would use words like “outpost”. The bookshelves making up for two of the walls were covered in sketches, notes and printouts, right on top of the book spines: everything Mila’s creators had on ‘Nights at School’, the story they pulled Mila from into this uncaring world. Clashing with the innocently looking interior of the “room”, the arrangement gave the impression that the girl who lived there was a hopeless conspiracy crank. Mila herself was the finishing touch, laying face down on the bed. Thanks to magic, her wound had stopped bleeding long ago — but it took a lot of composure not to show anyone just how much it still hurt.

Mila’s face was firmly pressed into the pillow, but she still felt all the drawings on the walls look at her judgingly: a constant reminder of how little she knew about herself. They never even started the comic... It was supposed to be a rather heavy story about kids and ghosts and facing the ugly side of history — and Mila was the protagonist, a brave optimist who boldly led her friends forward, out of the darkness of their past. All the parts of the plot that existed were to Mila like recent past — the past that she was pulled out of a year ago to realize how laughingly incomplete her existence was. What was the reason to torment her this much? Who even cared at this point? She failed to do the one thing she was brought to this life for. The walls were a reminder of Mila’s inadequacy, but they carried the only identity she had. Mila tried her best to be just as cheerful and protective as her creators imagined her, to act like a leader, to be a good example. It was hard, though, when everyone kept forgetting she was there mid-conversation. Sometimes she would go back to her story, wishing to get lost there forever — but she would always find herself back at the Library for some reason.

Turning her head, Mila saw a plush cat staring in her face: Stephie’s gift. Groaning, she whacked the toy off her bed: being reminded of her friend in this state was just too painful. Seeing the toy land a little too close to the edge of the platform, she froze in fear — but the Library was merciful that day, so it stopped right at the edge, only the tail dangling over the void. The goat groaned, flailing on the bed.

“I’m so dumb...” Mila curled up, hugging her knees. “She just wanted to do something to help, why did I tell her off like that? Why does she even bother with me? She’s shy, but she’s so smart, and kind, and brave, and cute — what good am I for her? She would be better off with literally anybody else... anybody who’s actually real and not... this...”

She laid down on her back, looking at her hand, slowly fading in and out of existence, the drawings plastered over the walls smirking at her. Surely what Stephie said about other souls suddenly remembering her better was a fluke. But Mila noticed it herself too... Groaning, the goat grabbed her stomach: the wound felt like it was opening up again. Could Stephie be right? Was Mila just stupid for giving up? Was there hope for her yet?..

She looked up — but all she saw was the watchtower from below, obscuring the dull, empty sky. The goat turned over again, sprawling over the bedsheets.

“I’m just tired. I don’t care anymore. It’s been a year, and nothing is changing...” Mila was shivering, ready to cry. “I can’t keep suffering like this! Is that really too much to wish for?”

The magical vial in her pocket was pulsating with light, warning her — but Mila wasn’t even looking. “I’m sorry, Stephie, but I just can’t go on. One way or another, but this has to end!”

Lightning struck all around the room, and the source of it was Mila. As black smoke rose up, covering the outpost, she caught a glimpse of the toy cat sliding down the platform. Strands of smoke were coalescing into thin, skeletal fingers all around her.

“What a joke I am,” Mila thought as she closed her eyes. “Can’t even make a finished Deconstructor.”

he next day at “Among the Stars” would have been ordinary, were it not for a giant spherical object slowly approaching from the horizon. Standing at the edge of the platform, Astro the JetBun was squinting through a spyglass, and she did not like what she saw. It was a sphere of chunks of concrete, wood and metal, bunched up around what looked like a skeletal wireframe made out of bones. Small stones and bricks were twirling around the object in fast orbits, like rings. Then Astro shifted her focus to her staff, leaping over the floating bookshelves back toward the café.

"It's a Deconstructor!", one of the maids shouted at Astro as the scouts were returning to the cafe, jumping across vast voids between the suspended bookshelves. "And it's heading straight here. And I think there's somebody trapped inside, though we can't be sure..."

Squinting at the approaching planetoid, Astro felt an unpleasant sense of familiarity. Grazing the nearby concrete pillar, the Deconstructor skimmed a huge chunk of it with its intense gravitational pull, milling the debris into smaller chunks and building up its shell a little more.

Wincing, Astro waved her hand to her crew, and they went around the café to the backrooms.

Standing by the window, Morgan was staring at the approaching construct. Stephie found him like this, looking weirdly excited.

"It's a huge one, but I'm sure Mila will be here any minute now! Let's both cheer her on!"

"Who are you talking about?", Morgan asked, staring into the distance in discomfort. "Is this my fault again?.."

Stephie just stared at him for a second, but then shook her head and pulled out her flipphone.

"Mila should've been here already, I wonder what's holding her up..."

As the radio waves from her phone, visible in the atmosphere of the Library, spread out and concentrated very close by, her eyes widened.

The sound echoing outwards from the approaching Deconstructor was the ringing of Mila’s cellphone.

“Hey, are you okay?..” The raccoon tried to wave his paw in front of the dog, her stare suddenly getting blank. They both jolted as at the back of the café, the giant cannon unfurled once again, aiming straight at the planetoid. Stephie rushed upstairs, jumping straight over the barrier saying “Employees only”.

“You can’t just blast it, it’s got Mila!!!”

Astro and the staff all stared at the dog who’d just barged into the control room, their expressions suddenly blank in a way that Stephie was already accustomed to. Growling, she pulled a polaroid photo out of her pocket and shoved it right in Astro’s face, as the bun was just about to sit at the controls of the cannon.

"There's no time, though," one of the staff remarked. "The gravitational pull is just too strong, and we won't be able to pull anyone from the inside."

Sighing heavily, Astro looked at the approaching Deconstructor.

“There’s no time, Stephie. I think we should just blast this thing, and then you’ll reinstantiate your Construct.”

“She’s not mine...”, Stephie started, and then, realizing the implications, grabbed Astro, who already began turning away, by the elbow. “No! Her creators would never bring her to life again, we can’t destroy her!!!”

Astro turned back at the dog, surprise in her eyes. She looked down with a heavy expression, as if trying to recall a memory. Then she looked back up, forcing herself to smile at the teary-eyed dog.

“Fine, let’s try it your way.”

---

The stars above the café all shone brighter, and the blue starry sky expanded, covering up the grey void. On wooden legs, her body too stiff to breathe, Stephie stepped out of the café. Above her, the cannon charged up with an electrical screech and shot out a thin, concentrated beam. The front of the Deconstructor’s shell exploded, and everybody inside the café gasped at what they saw.

Her hair all messy, head down, a goat girl in a dress was standing in the middle of the structure, looking like she was both piloting it and chained to it. Stephie stepped back, clenching her sweaty palms. The Deconstructor that had captured Mila was Mila’s own.

"No", whispered Stephie. "No, Mila! What happened? Was it something I said?!" The dog stepped forward, forgetting about the danger for a moment. "Mila, please, snap out! This... who's going to save you now?!"

With a low-pitched hum, the Deconstructor was steadily advancing, the girl inside showing no signs of being awake.

"Mila, can you hear me?!", Stephie desperately shouted. "We'll save you, just please hold on!"

Passing dangerously close to a concrete pillar, the Deconstructor sliced off its whole top with its gravity, the chunks of concrete forming a ring around the planetoid. Not a moment later some of these chunks flew straight at the cafe. Seeing a huge boulder fly straight at her, Stephie gasped and ducked, not even thinking to jump away, so distraught she was. Just a few meters away from her the boulder was vaporized by a green beam.

"Back to the cafe, quickly!"

With a heavy blaster over her shoulder, the rocket maid ran up in front of Stephie. The thrusters on the rim of her dress all fired, and the bun set off into the air, aiming at the planetoid and firing precisely at the skeletal structure of the Deconstor, making bright red blood shoot outwards, droplets circling around the entity. With a screech so low in pitch it almost made Stephie's ears bleed, it flung several more pieces of debris straight at Astro. Masterfully maneuvering with the grace of a dragonfly, the bun avoided all of them.

"Hey, you! What do you have against us?!", she shouted at the approaching planetoid. Taking less than a second to aim, the rocket maid shot another beam — but the Deconstructor deflected it without even moving. The gravitational field captured the blaster shot, making it spin around the planetoid before dissipating. Clacking her tongue, Astro aimed again, but had to waste another shot to blast a concrete chunk flying at her from behind, like a comet returning towards its sun. While she was turned away, a metal beam hit her in the back.

"Mila, please!"

Astro turned towards the pleading yell, horrified to see that Stephie was still on the platform. More than that, the dog was running towards the edge, furiously flailing her handpaws around.

"Stop this! This isn't you, you would never attack Astro! Mila, wake up, I'm begging you!"

Seeing the cannon charge up again, Stephie felt her hair stand up, not from the air being electrified, but from fear.

But when the cannon fired, the gravitational field of the Deconstructor was so intense already that the beam, though it was aimed straight at the center of the structure where Mila stood, curved in all directions before hitting the target, splitting endlessly. The smaller beams shot out in all directions, hitting everything and blowing it up into pieces of concrete, wood and metal, which all started orbiting around the Deconstructor, quickly filling up its shell and closing it off. Stephie grabbed her head, feeling the ground under her feet shake and crack as the giant sphere of debris approached unrelentingly.

"Watch out!"

As the dog turned her head to see a piece of concrete fly horizontally straight at her, Astro vaporized it with her blaster again. Feeling hot sand rain on her face, Stephie barely noticed the Rocketbun yelp as one of her thrusters was hit. Twirling in the air and leaving a trail of smoke, the bunny maid crashlanded to the side. Grunting and coughing from the smoke coming out of the thruster, she glanced forwards and gasped.

The Deconstructor was at the gate already, its immense gravity slowly tearing apart at the edges of the pillar the cafe was standing upon. Stephie was standing right in front of the looming planetoid, fists clenched, looking straight at it. She might have been shouting something, but the sound of concrete breaking apart was too overwhelming. Suddenly the ground under the dog cracked too. Screaming and flailing, she was flung into the air and, making a circle around the Deconstructor, fell inside. Astro shouted something, barely able to get up, but immediately afterwards the shell was completely closed off with debris.

---

It was dark and oddly quiet inside, none of the chaos that the Deconstructor was wreaking with its gravitational field was even audible from within. With the light quickly fading from the shell closing off, Stephie was still able to discern the skeletal structure of the Deconstructor’s base. Mila was standing at the center of the sphere, her head still down, eyes closed. Out of the sleeves of her dress, instead of her hands, two thick bony structures were protruding, binding her to the structure. The whole Deconstructor looked like a giant circular ribcage, with Mila’s feet ingrown into the base and lots of thin, jointed like finger bones, meridians sprouting outwards, all joining at the top. The skeleton was perfectly still, only the debris shell was rustling quietly from the new pieces settling in, quietly entombing Mila and now Stephie too.

“Mila.”

Standing up, her legs unsteady, the dog grabbed onto the skeletal structure and began walking up to her friend that was propped up at the center of the Deconstructor.

“Snap out!” She grabbed onto the goat’s skirt. “Hey, you, Deconstructor! Let her go!”

“Why do you think I am separate from her?”

The voice echoing inside the planetoid was Mila’s, but it sounded completely lifeless. Stephie quietly growled, grabbing onto her friend’s dress even tighter.

“We are literally physically connected,” the voice continued with no discernible emotion. “I am one and the same with Mila, I am her.”

“Well...” Stephie gulped nervously, looking up at Mila’s face. “Well, this isn’t like you! You’re not behaving like yourself!”

“Like myself...” There was a laughing tone in the Deconstructor’s voice, but with absolutely no hint of fun or enjoyment. “You know, I’m getting tired of pretending there is a ‘self’ that I could be. All I have are fragments and faint hopes that someday I’d be recognized... These can only get you so far.”

“You have enough!” Stephie stomped her foot. “You’re amazing, actually! You’re so strong, and cool, and kind, and I love how much you care about the people around you... about me...” She let go of Mila, stepping on the debris in front of her.

“It just pains me to see you like this.”

“I’ve been like this for a long time on the inside, it seems,” the Deconstructor noted with no emotion. ?.. “All these things you say you like in me — they really are what you think you’re missing in yourself. And yet you have them, all of this. You’re so much more complete and self-sufficient than you think.”

Stephie took a step back, unsure of how to react.

“You just... you’re so timid that you don’t even notice how cool you are. And yes, you are cool: you always try your best at whatever you do, you always care so deeply for those close to you, and you do your best to make sure that everyone feels good. You think of yourself as my shadow, I know, but it’s the opposite actually. Even now, you’ve been brave enough to stand up to me when I’m like this, you even came all the way here. You’re so brave, you’re a real leader, you know... and a true friend.”

A long, uncomfortable pause followed.

“But friendship can’t save me anymore,” the Deconstructor spoke again. “Nothing can. I’m tired of this world, I’m tired of being hollow inside, I’m tired of... myself. No matter how much I try, it’s just never worth the suffering. I give up, Stephie. I’m sorry, you... You deserve much better friends than this.”

The structure suddenly shook, throwing Stephie off her feet; even Mila’s body swayed from the impact. A deafening electric crackle was heard from the outside: the Deconstructor made contact with the barrier surrounding ‘Among the Stars’. Tears in her eyes, gritting her teeth, Stephie raised her head at her lifeless friend again.

“What’s the plan, then?”

“Isn’t it obvious that I don’t have a plan?”, the Deconstructor retorted, still emotionless. “I am the manifestation of a year of pent up frustration and grief, I’m just flailing around in despair.”

“At this point they’ll just blast you,” the dog said quietly, standing up. “But that’s what you want, isn’t it?”

“Could be,” Mila’s voice echoed around her. “Stopping to exist would definitely be better than half-existing like this.”

“What about me, though?” Stephie raised her chin. “You’ll let them take me down too, huh?”

The debris under the dog’s feet rustled, and a second later a hole opened up as the Deconstructor ejected part of its shell. Strangely, Stephie was ready, jumping onto the skeletal scaffolding before she realized it. The Deconstructor tried to shake her off, but it was so heavy that it could barely turn.

“Oh, no, you don’t!”, the dog yelled, her eyes gleaming brightly from all the tears and determination. “You’re stuck here with me now, and you won’t get rid of me until I’ve rescued you!”

---

A huge gondola was floating away from the café, filled with animals of all colors and shapes, with a giant solar panel spread out above it like a sail. Sitting all stiff and hunched down at its back, Morgan glanced back, where Astro the JetBun was flying around the approaching sphere of junk. The rocket maid was shooting lasers out of her eyes, all of which the Deconstructor deflected with its gravity, flinging meteors at her in turn, at such speeds now that the bunny had significant trouble evading them. Memories of his own bad dream from yesterday overcame Morgan, so the raccoon lowered his head again.

In his hand he found a photo. Was it the one that dog gave him? The scene from yesterday at the café: himself, her and... a goat. The goat that saved him from that Destructor, of course.

The goat that was now suffering just like he was.

“I think it’s time to use the cannon,” someone said just in front of him. “That thing is almost at the barrier, and the barrier won’t hold for long.”

“Why is Astro even trying so hard?”, someone else asked. “That Construct that’s inside, who even is she? If we blast her, is anybody going to complain?”

Gritting his teeth, Morgan suddenly jumped up. Everybody glanced at the tall lanky boy, who was shocked by his own actions, it seemed. But Morgan gulped and lifted up the photo in his hand. Behind his back, a projection of the picture appeared in the air, following his will.

“Hey, stop it! It’s Mila, you know. You know her?!”

All the chatter at the gondola suddenly stopped, making Morgan grow red. He wanted to stop and sit down and never lift his head again, but for some reason he was still standing, pointing at the face of the goat that was overlaid in front of the giant Deconstructor.

“She...” Morgan stuttered, but still went on, feeling the weight of the world on his shoulders. “She’s been protecting this place for a year, didn’t she say so herself? Sure, you keep forgetting her because of her... condition... but how long can this possibly go on? Don’t you owe her at least some gratitude?”

The silence was deafening, the sounds of the gravitational maelstrom in the background only accentuating it. Then someone in the front of the gondola raised their voice.

“Hey, it’s that girl that always hangs around the café. Wasn’t she the one who stopped those data thieves?..”

“Mila,” someone closer to Morgan said. “She saved me from my ex! How could I have forgotten who it was?!”

“That Deconstructor at the General Catalogue...” Another animal put both their hands to their forehead. “It was Mila who stopped it!”

More and more animals were now in shock, remembering once again. And then the attention was on the raccoon boy once again.

“We absolutely have to help Mila,” one of the café staff said, stepping forward. “But how? What can we do to stop... this?”

“I might have a hunch,” Morgan said, taking off his hood. The sight of what was underneath made some animals hem, he even heard an appreciative whistle. Lowering his eyes, with no idea about where this courage came from, he turned to face the horrifying planet, its gravity tearing up the rainbow flags at the entrance to the café. “But we have to do it together.”

he screeching inside the Deconstructor was deafening. The planetoid was slamming against the magical barrier around “Among the Stars”, the final line of defense, sending white sparks everywhere — and the horrible sound was amplified tenfold on the inside by the echoes. Stephie was hanging onto Mila’s unmoving body for dear life as everything around them was shaking.

“Mila, I’m begging you!”, the dog was shouting, tears flying out of her eyes. “Please, just have hope! It’s only right, this... this should not be happening!!!”

Stephie had run out of ideas for what to say long ago. In hindsight, the thought that she could save Mila with just her words was so stupid. She wasn’t strong enough to protect the girl she loved, she didn’t even notice when things got too out of control... and now she would perish together with her. An appropriate punishment for her sin... Stephie should have been feeling relieved that at least Mila was with her, but actually nothing felt good about this situation at all.

“Stop for me, at least!..”, she screamed again, coughing from straining her throat.

“Let me go and I’ll eject you,” was the answer again, the Deconstructor’s voice barely louder than the echoing sound of the barrier being steadily ground down.

“Never!”, Mila yelled, barely louder than a whisper. “I can’t... abandon...”

She stopped mid-phrase, breathing heavily as the panic was setting in. It was then when she heard a distant cry. Somewhere outside, someone was shouting... Mila’s name?

Holding her breath, Stephie raised her head. Even through the terrible noise, she heard it again, and this time it sounded like several voices in unison. Given the Deconstructor’s voice had gotten quiet too, Mila was sure it was hearing that as well: an unsteady chorus, all calling out to Mila. Who could that possibly be? Some other characters from “Nights at School”? Someone from construct afterlife???

"Are you hearing it too?.."

Gasping, Stephie looked at Mila. For a moment she thought she saw the goat's mouth move. With a silent ripple, a pool of light appeared projected onto the wall of debris between them, quickly stabilizing into a projection of the outside, facilitated by a gravitational lens.

Stephie held her breath. The Deconstructor also stopped advancing, as if stepping back in shock. Six or so animals stood right in front of the cafe, all looking at the Deconstructor, all calling out to Mila. Right in the middle was Morgan — and Morgan had taken off his hood. Stephie couldn't help but smile a little when she saw the raccoon had two small, sharp horns sticking out between his messy hair.

"That's why he liked mine so much...", the Deconstructor echoed. Holding her breath, Stephie watched Mila raised her head, eyes fluttering, as if she was slowly waking up.

“Mila, don’t give up!”, Morgan yelled, eyes wide from fear, but still furiously waving his hand.

“Mila, thank you!”, someone else shouted.

“We’re sorry we forgot you!”, another animal yelled out. “We won’t ever do that again!!!”

“I know all of them...”, the Deconstructor whispered, its voice getting coarse. “I helped all of these souls. They all... remembered it? How?”

Stephie was afraid to say anything — not that she was sure what to say. What was happening was beyond her wildest expectations. She did not need to say anything anyway. Mila was looking straight at the gravitational lens, her gaze clear, her eyes watering.

“You were right after all...”

These words came out of the goat’s mouth this time. Looking down at Stephie, Mila smiled awkwardly.

“You were right! Stephie, this... is some kind of freaking miracle!”

“You’re back...”, the dog whispered.

“Damn right I am!” Mila tried to move, but she was still tethered to the Deconstructor. “And it looks like I have a hell of a mess to clean up... Break me out, would you?”

“Yes, mam!”

Stephie jumped back, so easily, like she was a goat too. With a smile from ear to ear, the dog made goat horns signs with her fingers — and, with electric quitar riffs suddenly echoing all across the Deconstructor, black lightning streamed out of her fingers, drilling into the bony structure and making it break apart. With a low-pitched screech, the Deconstructor lost its gravitational field, the shell of debris falling down. In the suddenly bright starlight, among chunks of concrete, the two girls fell down, both teary-eyed, laughing maniacally from relief and the still mounting stress.

The light of the outside blinded them for a moment. Mila quickly caught her breath, shouting the magic word and transforming right mid-air. The grey bony mass shattered, revealing her hands and hooves again, and she caught Stephie right before they both fell. The goat managed to land somewhat on her feet, but it was still pretty painful.

“Mila!”

The small group of animals surrounded them; to the starry-eyed goat they were looking like a crowd. She just smiled, not knowing what to say — and then, following their horrified gazes, turned back at her Deconstructor. Having shed its shell, the monster unfurled its spindly, bony meridians and now looked like a skeletal hand with way too many fingers — and it continued its advance. Feeling like she could move mountains, Mila stepped forward, pointing her scalpel at her own rejected emotions.

“I know how you’re feeling and I know you can’t go on,” she shouted boldly. “But everything Stephie said was true! There is a place for me in this world after all, and I do have a future! And no matter how many times I’ll want to give up, no matter how hard this life will be... things will still keep getting better, thanks to my own effort and to my friends!”

The Deconstructor still advanced, its fingers slowly closing in around Mila and the other animals, growing more terrified by the second. The goat got ready for a jump, aiming to finish off her worries in a single strike.

“So don’t you dare stand in front of my future!”, she yelled out. “I’ve made my resolution, and your time ends-”

Before she could even finish the sentence, Astro blew the Deconstructor apart with her cannon. With an exquisite explosion of bright red blood, chunks of the spindly hand dropped all around them onto the terrace, twitching and bleeding out.

“The kernel...” Mila looked around in confusion. “Where the hell is it?”

“It’s still inside you!”, Astro yelled, jumping down. Mila looked down, then back at Astro and nodded. Everybody gasped as she stabbed herself in the stomach, bright red blood gushing out, the same as the Deconstructor’s. | With a grunt the goat pulled the weapon out of herself, forcing a smile at the horrified Stephie. A tiny glass cube floated out of the wound, just a wireframe with no sides or nothing on the inside. Compelled by something, Stephie stepped forward as Mila took the cube in her hand.

"Mila...", she said and then immediately stuttered, not knowing how to continue. The goat just smiled at her.

"You were right, Stephie. Sorry I brought you so much trouble..."

"No, no!" Stephie lurched at her friend and hugged her tight, forcing a yelp of pain out of her. "Thank, you, Mila! Thank you for always being here for me... and thank you for not giving up on yourself!"

"Well, that kind of did happen...", Mila laughed weakly. "I didn't listen to you, it was... hard..."

"I understand," Stephie let her go. “It’s okay, Mila. I’m here for you. I’m glad you realized it.”

She touched one of the edges of the cube, and it lit up crimson, the glass changing color from her touch. Mila smiled at her friend, then looked up at Morgan, who cautiously came forward too.

“Uh, Mila... Thank you for saving me,” the tall raccoon nodded. “I don’t... want to forget that. It was scary, but it’s always more scary for you, I understand. So... I won’t forget, I promise.”

He touched another edge of the cube too, and it lit up pink. The other animals followed suit, each telling something with various degrees of awkwardness and lingering fear. Funally, Astro made a cautious step forward, the busted engines in her skirt dripping oil onto the concrete.

“Mila...”, she started, eyes to the floor. “I’m sorry. I’m trying my best to have this space here, and to make it a safe space, and now I see that we’ve actually had someone like you all this time, who’s been protecting us all along with no recognition, and... we have had this conversation before, haven’t we?”

Mila just nodded, struggling to say something.

“Mila, I’m...” Astro touched the cube too. “I’m sorry. I’ll be better, I promise. We all failed you, and we’ll do our best so that won’t happen again.”

The final corner of the cube lit up too, shining bright yellow. Mila raised her hand to her forehead.

“I’ll... trust you all. Thank you all, really... for being here at my lowest and for believing in me. I’m glad I saw that...”

The cube shone in all colors of the rainbow, different colors traveling across the structure — and then the goat absorbed it into her forehead. Smiling serenely, Mila closed her eyes and collapsed into Stephie and Morgan’s arms, her magical costume disappearing in a flurry of green sparks and turning back into her school dress. The blood flowing from her wound turned a normal shade of red. All around them, the Deconstructor’s pieces twitched in pain one last time and dissipated into sand.

With an awkward thud, the gondola landed back at the terrace; colorful animals streamed out, gathering around Mila and almost obstructing the way for two of the café staff running out with a stretcher. Yelling at everyone to make way, they put Mila on the stretcher and ran back to the café, Stephie right behind them.

“She needs a plasma infusion!”

“Come on, ready the semantic injector, now!”

Astro was lost in her own world, flipping through her notepad. Her eyes were growing wider and wider with horror as she was finding Mila’s name on every third page.

“We have to remember,” she half-whispered to the staff, her voice too coarse from the shock. “We can’t just keep forgetting her, this has to stop! We must figure something out, right now.”

“Keep forgetting who?”, someone asked.

“Mi... Mila,” Astro replied, suddenly lost in thought. The situation around her was positively catastrophic, her café almost got wrecked. How could she just stand here and lose herself in memories? They were lucky nobody got injured too seriously.

Nobody?..

Astro looked around. For a moment she thought she saw a whole puddle of blood, but she saw nothing when she looked. Right... there wasn’t anybody injured in the vicinity.

---

The small infirmary in one of the backrooms was surprisingly well-equipped. Mila was laying down on the firm bed as somebody was stitching up her wound. Stephie was there, holding her hand and crying quietly.

“Sorry,” the goat whispered. “I’m okay, I won’t do something like this again.”

“Mi-i-ila-a-a...” Stephie suddenly lunged at her friend, hugging her right as she was being operated on. Even though she was in so much pain, even though there was no real reason to think anything was going to change... as the goat looked up at the starry sky, she couldn’t help but smile through the pain. For some reason, she was feeling better than she had ever been since being brought into this Library.