Oak taverns
After an hour or so of walking, we finally reached Leafwood village. It’s a small village and was filled with humbled griffons, trying to make a living. All of the buildings were made of the oak wood from Leafwood forest. The streets were occupied with a couple of griffons and a few trading carts. "Oak Taverns" was in the center of the town, acting as the village’s place of social interaction and to gain outside news when travelers come by. It’s also an inn for travelers who wish to spend the night.
“Looks like a nice enough town.” Daniel said; probably glad to find rest from our trip.
“"Oak Taverns" is in the center of town…” I said. Informing my human companions,” we could head straight there, if you guys want.”
“I think that would be best.” Daniel said.
“Yeah, and my feet are killing me.” Taphy added.
Even though the trek didn’t take that long, the fight with the bandits really took a lot out of us. I’m sure the comforts of the tavern would be a nice change.
“Alright, I wanted to see a friend their anyway.” I ended, wishing to see Hans.
We then headed into town.
The town’s folk had given us many looks of curiosity. Even with the cloaks to hide their identity, their forms are still strange to the inhabitants. We were trying to reach the tavern as fast as possible, without attracting more attention to ourselves. Luckily we haven’t encountered any confrontations among the locals. When we made it to the tavern, it was already late in the afternoon, meaning that the tavern should be occupied. We entered to see the tavern to be occupied with many griffons. Many were too busy drinking and conversing to notice us and those who did paid no mind. The atmosphere was welcoming, as the sounds of the conversations and bard music filled the tavern.
“Could you guys sit over there while I go find my friend.” I asked, pointing at an empty table in the corner.
“Yeah sure, take the time you need.” Daniel said.
“Thanks.”
I went up towards the bar table and took a seat. Hans wasn’t around yet, probably tending to some customers. I begin to wonder what to say to him. A lot had happened from the monsters that attacked me, my new human companions, and the bandits that occupied the underpass. ‘Gilda, how are you going to explain this?’
“Sorry to keep you waiting…” I looked up to see Hans cleaning a couple of tankard cups,” what will it be.”
“Hello to you to Hans.” I said cheerfully.
He immediately stopped what he was doing and looked at me in surprise.
“Gilda, is that you?” he whispered.
Instead of answering him, I moved my hood enough for him to see me face.
“By my beak, if it isn’t my favorite run away…” he said cheerfully, as he continues to clean the cup,” if I knew you were coming, I would have given you a ‘Royal’ welcome.”
I chuckled a bit from his statement.
“You know how much I don’t like special treatments.” I said.
“Well it’s always good to be prepared.” He stated.
“So what will it be young las?” Hans asked.
“The usual, as always.” I answered.
“A cup of honey mead it is then.” He said, grabbing a clean cup to use for my order.
As he went off to get my drink, I grabbed the pouch of bits that we collected, and grabbed five bits, which is the usual cost for a drink.
“Here you go.” He said, sliding the drink towards me.
I gave him the five bits and thanked him. The sweet taste of honey begins to fill my taste buds, as I was drinking my mead.
“When did you get hurt, las?” Hans asked, with a hint of concern.
He probably had seen the bandages on my arm, when I was drinking.
“That’s what I wanted to talk about…” I said, taking another gulp,” I was traveling through Leafwood forest, when I was ambushed.”
“By what, bandits?” he asked, while I was talking more sips from my drink.
“No, to be honest, I don’t know what they are…” I said,” they were bipedal creatures, whose skin were as black as night, and had arms that could change into lancers.”
Hans looked at me with utter confusion, as I was describing my attackers.
“They were fast and had the ability to regenerate minor wounds.” I said, telling what I learned through my encounter.
“I’ve heard of many strange things in my time, but nothing as strange as this.” He exclaimed.
“We didn’t stand a chance. They easily took out my guard and I took a pretty bad beating…” I said, stopping to take another drink,” they were almost going to kill me, but I was saved.”
“By whom?” he asked, wanting to hear the rest of the story.
“I was saved by a group of humans.” I answered.
“Humans, but their only an old myth.” He said confusingly.
“Well, they’re real, and they saved my life…” I said reassuringly,” they patched up my wounds and gave me something to eat and drink.”
“Heh, I was wondering who were those strange fellows you came in with. Never would have guessed they were human…” he exclaimed, laughing a bit,” so, what happened after that?”
I told Hans that, because of my wounds, we made a two day trip to get to the village. I also told him about what I’ve learned from my human companions. I’d mentioned their kindness and hospitality towards me. I told him about the bandits we encountered at the underpass, and how we fought them off.
“It sounds like these past few days were quite eventful,” Hans said,” but I’m not surprised that these bandits decided to occupy themselves in the underpass. A small group of bandits tend to come here now and then to buy supplies or to get drunk.”
“Why hasn’t anyone report this to the guard?” I asked, surprised of how far the bandits had taken root in the area.
“Because they do not give us a reason to. They do tend to get a bit rowdy, but, as long as they don’t cause any trouble, we don’t pay mind to them. They buy what they want and they leave…” he said,” The guard would not bother themselves for just suspicious characters.”
“Well, I’m sure their establishment in the underpass will not be taken lightly.” I said, taking the last sips of my drink.
“I’m sure, they have shown restraint, but this incident in the underpass will bring great concern for this village; not to mention these other creatures.” He said.
Knowing that the bandit establishment here had spread so far, it had brought many questions to mind. ‘How long have they been taking root, right under our beaks?’
“Well enough worrying for now…” Hans said, trying to change the subject,” it is getting late, and I’m sure you and your company are in need of rest. There is an open room upstairs you can use; free of charge.”
His expression changed from seriousness back to his cheerful self.
“You know I would have argued with you about that, if I wasn’t so tired.” I said, sliding my empty cup towards him.
He grabbed it and placed it under the counter. He went towards one of the back cabinets, where he kept the keys of the rooms. He then came back with the key for the room he offered us.
“Before I give this to you, I wish to have a talk with one of your… companions; Daniel is It.” he said, before giving me the key.
“Sure, I’ll send him over.” I said, grabbing the key.
Hans’ story
We took a seat at a table near the corner of the tavern. Gilda went to see her friend Hans, who is the owner of this establishment. She’s probably going to tell him everything that happened so far, and to try to get us a room. ‘I just hope he’s the optimistic type.’
“How you guys holding up?” I asked my friends.
Thanks to our little scuffle at the underpass. Getting to the village took a lot more energy than intended.
“Alright I guess. I’m a bit tired though.” Jordan said
“Same here.” Taphy said.
“You know, other than the fact that we are surrounded by griffons, it feels like we’re in a ‘Back to the Future’ special: medieval times.” Jordan joked, making us laugh a bit.
What Jordan said was kind of true; it sort of does feel like we’re in the medieval ages. However, seeing that this is a forest based village, I’m guessing their trying to keep things traditional. What I remember from the show is that this world does have some sense of technology, but very far behind compared to ours. The one thing the show didn’t reveal much of; were the other races in the world.
When it comes to griffons, there have only been two in the whole show. Now, seeing all these griffons here gave me a better understanding of their appearance. Other than some being bulkier then others, their looks are quite generic. Their furs and feathers seem to come in colors of tan, black, white, and brown, with many shades of these colors. When they are on all fours, their height only reaches to my chest, but, if I had to guess, they could be two or three inches taller, if they stood on their hind legs. Seeing that no one is paying any attention to us, I decided to tell my friends what I know.
“Jordan, Taphy, I think there’s something you need to know.” I said, leaning in towards the table.
Taphy and Jordan did the same, waiting to hear what I had to say. I took another peek around, making sure no one’s ease dropping.
“I know this sounds crazy, but I believe we’re in a world of a kids show called ‘My Little Pony’. “ I whispered.
My friends were silent, giving me stone faces.
“Was that supposed to be a joke.” Jordan said sternly.
“No no, just hear me out.” I said.
I begin to explain how I came to my conclusion. When I first heard Gilda’s name, it sounded familiar to me. However, I brushed it off, thinking it was nothing. When Gilda was talking about her past, she mentioned a city called Cloudsdale. Then it hit me. Cloudsdale was a major city in the show, and Gilda was in one episode of the show. With these connections, I came to believe that it was more than just coincidence.
“Now, I don’t know how much of the show is true or if any of it is actually relevant.” I added.
“So, does this mean you know where we are or know anything about this place?” Taphy asked.
“Not exactly, the show took place in Equestria, and, from what I remember, we’re in Gryphonia…” I answered, “I know close to nothing about this country.”
“Where is Equestria anyway?” Jordan asked.
“I’m not sure. I’ll have to check the map.” I said.
“Do you think that’s where we’ll find our way home?” Taphy asked.
“Again, I don’t know, maybe. Listen let’s try to take things one step at a time. For all I know Equestria could be miles away, maybe even farther.” I ended.
Jordan leaned back and sighed in exhaustion. Taphy just put his hands over his face, trying to come to grips from what he heard. Now I felt horrible.
“look, I’m sorry guys…” I said apologetically,” I didn’t mean for things to-“
“No, it’s alright…” Jordan said, interrupting me,” there was no way you could have known that we were going to another dimension.”
Jordan’s understanding was well appreciated, lifting my spirits up a bit.
“At least we have something to go with, right.” Taphy added.
“Yeah… but let’s try to keep this information to ourselves. I don’t think we want people to think we’re crazy, telling them their whole lives are a television show.” I suggested.
They both nodded in agreement.
“Hey guys, I got us a room.” I turn to see Gilda, making her way towards us.
“Great, I’m beat.” I said, getting up from my seat.
“Oh and Daniel, my friend would like to talk to you.” Gilda added.
“Sure, why not…” I said, “You guys go on ahead. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
Gilda went to Jordan and gave him a key, probably to our room.
“The rooms are in the second floor. You can take the stairs over there…” she said, pointing at a corner where the
stairs are,” we’re in room four.”
Jordan thanked her and took the keys, but he paused to look at me. I nodded at him, expressing that I’ll be fine. He nodded back and went off with Taphy. I then followed Gilda to the taverns bar table. Behind it was a griffon, with a grey coat and white feathers.
“This is him?” he asked, cleaning a tankard cup.
He was examining me with stern eyes, probably guessing my appearance.
“You must be the friend Gilda keeps mentioning…” I said, lifting my hand up for a shake,” the names Daniel.”
“Hans…” he said, returning the shake,” Gilda told me a lot about ya.”
I’m glad to know that some greetings are still relevant, or else this would have been quite awkward.
“Sadly, I can’t say the same.” I said.
“Don’t worry about it. It can easily be fixed…” he said, waving his claw with reassurement,” Gilda, I would like to have a one-on-one talk with him, and don’t worry. I’ll send him up when I’m done.”
“Oh… alright. Don’t go scaring him off.” She said, leaving us to talk.
“Please, have a seat.” He requested.
I respectfully complied and sat down on the stool.
“So, how much has Gilda told you about me?” I asked.
“Enough to bring my attention.” He replied.
“So, you already know?” after I said that, his expression became quite serious.
He didn’t answer me, but I already knew the answer. He placed his cup down and leaned in towards me.
“I don’t know what your motives are, but I promise you. If you ever hurt Gilda in any way, I would hunt you down, rip your limbs off, and feed you to a manticore…” he whispered, meaning every word,” I recommend you heed my warning.”
His change in attitude and tone took me by surprise. I took a deep breath before I responded.
“Noted.”
He then backed away and grabbed another cup to clean.
“If I’m not mistaken, you must really care about her.” I said.
“Yes, I do. I’ve known her when she was a young las…” he said, giving a comforting expression,” she’s a tough
girl, but she still has much to learn.”
Seeing his change in expression, I know his feelings for her runs deep. His words almost sound like what a mentor would say.
“So how did you two meet?” I asked.
He kept cleaning the cup, probably thinking whether or not to tell me.
“I’d say you’ve earned your right to know.” He finally said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hans
Flashback
“That should be it.” said the griffon merchant.
My order of drinks and food were piled in crates behind the tavern.
“When will my next shipment come in?” I asked, while paying him the bits I owed.
“In the next five months, if I don’t run into trouble along the way.” The merchant said.
I gave him the rest of the bits, and then he left in his carriage. I began taking the crates one by one into the storage room.
It’s been two years since I retired from the ‘Black Talons’. I was able to establish a business in Leafwood Village as a tavern owner. When I first brought this building, it was quite a fixer upper. After four weeks of repairs, I was able to get this business going. Thanks to location and the small community, the tavern became quite a hit, becoming the town’s place for social interaction. Being close to Highfeather, I was able to make decent shipment plans. Life as a tavern owner isn’t as exciting as a life of a soldier, but it still feels good to finally settle down. Not to mention, hearing interesting stories and news from travelers near and far. Interesting things happen now and then in this town.
“Why won’t you guys just buzz off!”
‘And here comes one now.’
I looked over to the other side of the road to see a group of griffons, ganging up on one.
“Oh, come on girl. We just want to have a bit of fun.” Said one griffon.
I could tell he was drunk, based on the vibe of his voice.
“I swear, if you dweebs don’t get out of my way, I’ll throttle you!” said a griffon with a cloak.
‘That griffon sounded like a female.’
“Playing hard to get, I see. I like that.” The griffon said, walking toward the one with the cloak.
Before he could do anything else, she quickly threw a punch at his face, making him stumble back.
“Looks like we are going to have to teach you some respect.” He said angrily.
The two other griffons that were with him began to gang up on her. ‘I better get in there before things get out of claw.’
“I’m warning you!” she yelled, as they closed in on her.
“Hey, I suggest you do as she says; if I were you!” I yelled, stopping the griffons in their tracks.
“I suggest you stay out of this gramps.” The griffon said, annoyed by my intrusion.
“This is your last warning lad; turn around and walk away.” I said, giving him a stern look.
“No griffon tells me what to do, especially an old geezer like you!” he yelled, charging at me with blind fury.
I stood my ground, annoyed by his aggressive foolishness. When he threw a punch at me, I quickly leaned to the side and countered him, giving him a heavy punch to the face. He was sent flying back toward the rest of his group. The other two griffons stood there in shock, seeing that he was knocked out unconscious. I decided to take the opportunity.
“You two want to join him.” I said with all seriousness.
They frantically shock their heads no in response.
“Then take your friend and walk away.” With that said, they quickly took their friend, and, instead of walking, they hauled it out of here.
Once I knew they were long gone, I went to check on the clocked griffon.
“You alright las?” I asked.
“I’m fine.” She blurted out.
Her words were harsh, but, within those words, I could also sense a hint of sorrow. She didn’t look at me, but I heard her sniff a bit, trying to hold her tough exterior.
“You should go home las. It is not safe for a cub to be wondering about at night.” I said sternly.
She immediately looked at me in pure anger.
“I am not a cub! I could have easily taken on those jerks without your help…” she yelled, while tears were building up in her eyes, “I don’t need anyone’s help.”
Before I could say anything, I heard the sound of thunder in the distance, telling me it’s going to rain soon.
“Looks like theirs a storm coming. I own the tavern over there. You can stay inside till the rain is done, unless
you don’t mind getting soaked by the rain.” I said, walking back to the tavern.
She was hesitant at first, but she came around.
The storm came by a lot faster than I expected, bringing with it a blanket of heavy rain. However, I was able to bring in the rest of the boxes before it did. I left the girl at the bar table, and I gave her something to eat and drink. She didn’t want to admit it but she looked exhausted. While I was organizing the supplies in the back, I began to think. ‘She looks familiar; have I met her before.’ I thought, remembering back when I seen her face. ‘Her attitude reminds me of someone, but could she really be her. I guess there is only one way to find out.’ After I finished organizing, I decided to confront her.
“I see that you enjoyed your meal.” I said, seeing an empty plate and cup.
“Yeah… thanks.” She said half heartedly.
“So, you didn’t tell me why you don’t want to go home.” I said, cleaning her plate.
“Why do you care?” she retorted.
“(sigh) Alright then, tell me why I shouldn’t bring you back to the castle princess Gilda.” I said, inspecting her reaction.
She instantly looked at me in surprise.
“H-how did you know?” she asked.
“I didn’t. I just had a hunch…” I said, grabbing her cup to refill,” but thanks for clearing that up for me.”
She only sat there, putting her head down for revealing her identity so easily. After I refilled the cup, I placed it in front of her ad stood there with my arms crossed.
“Well princess?” I asked.
She looked at me for a moment before she sighed in defeat.
“You promise me you won’t take me back?” she asked.
“You have my word.” I said assuring her.
She began to tell me how much she hated her life of being royalty. That it forces others to respect her just because her father is the king, even though she didn’t earn it. She told me that she used to live in Cloudsdale when she was younger. When she attended school there, only the staff knew of her origins. The students were oblivious, seeing her just as regular griffon. She told me that she made a good friend there. She never told her friend about her status and she wanted to keep it that way. She said that she actually felt normal for once in her life. She told me that, almost a month ago; she went to Equestria with her father for royal business. During that time, she decided to go to a town called Ponyville to see her friend again. She said things were going alright at first, but then her friend had other friends, that she didn’t know. Therefore, she couldn’t hang out with her friend as much as she wanted to. She was very jealous of these other friends for taking her friend’s time away from her. She decided to try to push these other friends away; so she could have her friend all to herself. However, doing so also pushed her friend away as well. They eventually had a fight, which then ended their friendship. When she left, she was angry at those other friends for taking her friend away from her, at her friend for rejecting her, and at herself for losing the only normal friend she ever had. After that, she said that she had enough of it all and ran away.
Gilda continued to try to keep her tough exterior, but tears already began dripping down her face. ‘Hans, what have you gotten yourself into this time?’
“It's alright young las.” I said, as gently as possible.
“It's just not fair.” She said.
I took a deep breath and placed my claw on her head.
“Life isn’t fair. It will try its best to bring us down, but we mustn’t just give up because life isn’t treating us the way we want it to…” I said, lifting her head up to me with my claw,” tell you what, if you promise to go back home, I promise to be here for you whenever you need me.”
“Really?” she asked.
“You have my word.” I answered.
I was able to see a faint smile on her face, making me smile in return.
“O-ok.” She finally said.
The rain was dying down, but it was still late. I decided to let Gilda stay for the night. I lend her one of the rooms in the tavern so she could rest. Feeling a bit tired, I decided to lock up shop and get some shut eye. In the morning I gave Gilda some breakfast and prepared her for her trip back home.
“Well that should do it…” I said, giving her a small amount of supplies,” you should hurry along. I’m sure the king will be greatly worried.”
“Yeah yeah, I’m going.” She said.
Before she took off, she turns towards me with a smile on her face.
“Thanks.” she said.
“Until we meet again.” I said with a nod.
She then flew straight to the clouds towards the direction of Highfeather.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Present
I told Daniel my story, leaving out details of Gilda being a princess.
“That was quite a story…” Daniel said, rubbing the back his head,” I can see why you’re so concerned for her.”
“Well I told you my story. It’s time for you to repay the favor.” I said.
He stayed silent for a bit, tapping on the table as he was thinking it through.
“Fair enough…” he finally said, leaning in to speck,” before we met Gilda we were just doing some traveling. We heard rumors about strange activity happening in a well known forest, and, being close to that said forest, we decided to check it out. We encountered the strange phenomenon and then we got lost. After we got attacked by wolves, we ran into some sort of castle. We went through a couple more obstacles, and then we found this.”
Daniel reached within his cloak to pull out what looks like a golden medallion, with a very odd symbol on it.
“There were enough for each one of us, but once we took it we were transported here into this world. We then came out of a cave in Leafwood forest, and that’s when we met Gilda. I think you already know the rest of that story.” He then put the medallion back into his cloak and returned to his regular position.
“So, what do you plan to do now?” I asked.
“With all honesty, where’re just trying to find our way home.” He said.
I had to go see to some customers, so I told Daniel to stay put. Doing so gave me some time to think. His plans were vague, but he wasn’t lying. These humans don’t seem so bad. After all, they did save Gilda’s life. The day is running late, and I’m sure the human would wish to get some rest.
“Well Daniel, it has seems you have gained my trust…” I said, as I walked back to him,” and I am thankful that you saved Gilda.”
“Well I’m glad we were able to do some good in this whole mess…” Daniel said, getting up from his seat,” may I go now?”
I nodded in approval.
“If it means anything, I hope you find your way home.” I said before he left.
He looked at me and nodded. He then went to join the rest of his group.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Daniel
I gave a few knocks to the door of the room we were given. I could hear footsteps coming to the door.
“Who is it?” asked a voice behind the door.
“Jordan, it’s me.” I answered.
“I’m sorry, I don’t know who me is, care to elaborate.” Jordan said jokingly.
“Jordan, open the door. I’m too tired for this.” I said with annoyance.
Jordan instantly opened the door giving me a disappointed face.
“You’re no fun.” He said.
I walked in to see a room with four individual beds and one bathroom in the corner. ‘Well this is convenient.’ In the other end of the room, I could see two windows, showing the view of the town. Jordan, Taphy, and Gilda already chose their beds, leaving the bed in the right corner near the window. I took off my cloak, boots, and shirt, and placed my bag in the corner. As I laid my back on the bed, I could feel my exhaustion taking over my body.
“So how’d it go, he didn’t scare you did he?” I lifted my head to see Gilda, looking at me on her bed in the opposite side on me.
“No, he was just concerned is all…” I said, laying my head back down,” we were able to get things straighten out.”
“Oh, well that’s good. I’m glad he’s cool with it…” she said,” so what you guys going to do tomorrow?”
“The plan hasn’t changed. We’ll gather supplies and information. After that, it only depends on the information.” I answered.
“Oh, ok then.” She didn’t say anything after that.
As I lay there, I took a glance outside, seeing the bright moon in the night sky. ‘What a beautiful night.’ With that thought, I began to drift off to sleep.