From left to right: Spike, Oddity, Curio, Kniknak. Spike is a baby dragon and the three hairballs beside him are Bushwoolies.

Spike is Starwish Dreamer’s “pet”, though this title is more a joke then anything. Spike doesn’t argue because he can’t voice anything in plain English. He’s mute, instead communicating through sign language and charades. The little guy was raised from birth by a village of dogs, hence his canine mannerisms. He went out into the woods one day to play and got lost, and this eventually landed him at Starwish’s hooves. It’s easy for her to get annoyed with him because he’s so ornery and energetic, but he’s the truest friend she could ever hope for.

Like many dragons, Spike has fire magic, and it’s uncharacteristically strong for someone his age. He has the literal firepower necessary to burn down a village, but he’d never do that. At anything, he becomes so loyal to the ponies of Paradise Estates that as he grows up - and up and up and up - he becomes their arcane protector. His inability to speak is unusual for anyone of any species, but what can I say? He’s an unusual little guy, and his friends like him that way.

Oddity, Curio, and Kniknak are Bushwoolies, a reclusive race that neighbors the Estates. They don’t much care for interacting with creatures outside of their tightly knit community, but these three in particular are close friends with Whilderbee given how she seems to “get” them more then most. They’re wise creatures, but they’re also lazy and not easily motivated to help out.

All Bushwoolies are equipped with travel magic, which is a fancy way of saying they have the ability to teleport living creatures around. The bad news is that they’re limited in their chosen location to places they know exist, so they can’t just poof you to the spot of something undiscovered. The good news is that their wisdom and worldliness offers a lot of options for vacation destinations. The ugly news is it can be a pain getting them to cooperate.

Oddity (blue) is the oldest of this trio, and among the cleverest in his tribe. He’s got an ego to match his smarts, and he often takes himself far too seriously. He doesn’t particularly understand ponies and he’s heard horror stories of what happens if you’re standing too close to them when they get spooked, but he has a genuine affection for Beebee, so he warms up just a touch to her friends. Best to stay on his good side since he’s unforgiving of even the most minor mistakes.

Curio (red) is likely the most down-to-earth Bushwoolie in existence. His voice is practically unreadable - he speaks in an almost somber monotone - but his expressions are much clearer. He holds no ill will towards anybody, but he’s got eccentricities that can come across as convoluted, annoying, and intentionally unhelpful to those who aren’t familiar with his turns of phrase. If you want his advice, expect it in the form of a riddle.

Kniknak (green) is the youngest of the trio and at that age where she’s not a child but is too bright eyed and bushy-furred for most other adults to take her seriously. She has many of the same character flaws as her brethren (laziness, irresponsibility, lack of focus) but with much less of the unfriendliness. She tries to keep her pursuit of interspecies friendships a secret, but everyone knows she’s always trying to talk to other creatures when given the chance.

I’d originally planned for Spike to be larger and the Bushwoolies to be smaller, but I prefer the scaling idea I settled on. Ponies are pretty tiny, probably only 1/3rd or ¼th as big as your average horse, whereas dragons grow up to be skyscraper sized and most Bushwoolies are Curio’s size. Oddity is the second tallest in his tribe and Kniknak is the shortest adult Bushwoolie you’d ever see in universe.