More than just a Feathered Friend

by MittenPatty

A new Lesson every Day

Author's Note:

Well, here it is! The second chapter. I know it's a lot shorter, but I worked harder on this one. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Rainbow Dash stormed into her home, slamming the door behind her. She flew up the stairs and into the guest bedroom, hoping to find her ex-friend. Gilda wasn't there. Outraged and with tears forming in her eyes, the Pegasus proceeded to rip the room apart. She tore down the curtains and threw them on the bed, all while screaming for her former friend. She didn't miss her. No, not at all. The cyan mare wanted everything about Gilda out of her life. But, if she hated the griffon so much, why was she searching under the bed, hoping to find her? Soon Dash gave up, and collapsed on the floor sobbing. She curled up in a ball rolling in her sorrow thinking of her friend.

When Rainbow finally stopped her crying, she wiped the tears from her face and began opening the dresser drawers. To her surprise, Gilda had left everything in them. She never bothered to come back. That struck the Pegasus as odd, considering how angry she'd been at the party. Wouldn't the griffon want her things back? Out of curiosity, Dash began rummaging through Gilda's stuff. She brought a jacket, some deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrush, nothing out of the ordinary. It wasn't until she had reached the bottom when she found something Gilda couldn't have forgotten. She must've left it there on purpose, for her to find. Holding back tears and clutching the photo close to her heart, Rainbow raced to the balcony. She took off, heading to the place she always went to when she needed advice.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Gilda struggled to stay air-born as rain hammered down on her back. She knew she couldn't keep this up much longer, and that she had to find shelter fast. Soaring above the clouds, the griffon got a break from the storm. She still needed rest, as the water in her feathers would weigh her down. Squinting, Gilda could make out the light of a window. Her prayers had been answered. Swooping down, The griffon landed on the doorstep. She rung the doorbell that was next to a sign reading, "Motel."

Eventually a light brown Earth pony answered the door. She looked about 10, and had a pretty copper-colored mane. Gilda guessed she had never seen a griffon before, as her eyes grew wide and her short legs started to tremble.

"C-can I help you?" she stammered. Gilda smiled, trying to look as friendly and presentable as possible.

"Hello," She greeted the small pony in a soft voice. "Um, do you, rent rooms?" The Earth pony stopped shaking and gave her a blank stare. Gild began to feel uncomfortable. After what seemed like hours, the tiny mare spoke.

"Well, DUH!" she said pointing at the sign. "Can you read?" The griffon was taken back by the Earth pony's sudden bravery. She looked like she was about to wet herself a couple moments ago!

"I- uh, well-" The older filly groaned and grabbed Gilda's chest feathers. With a sharp squawk she was yanked inside. The door slammed behind her, and a towel was thrown in her face.

"Dry yourself off." the small mare instructed her. Gilda began rubbing the cloth along her fur, when she realized she didn't even know the filly's name.

"Hey, kid," she called out. The Earth pony turned around.

"What." She replied, obviously bored.

"What's your name?" Gilda asked. The pony looked at her. She seemed really surprised, and looked down at her hooves.

"No one's ever asked me that before." She mumbled.

"Huh?" Gilda couldn't hear. She leaned in closer, trying to tune in to the light brown filly's words. The pony jumped up quickly, startling the griffon.

"Well, if you really must know, it's Rusty." she said proudly. Gilda blinked. Rusty. She thought about it, trying to get the name familiar on her tongue. It really suited her, with that copper hair. Gilda's thoughts were interrupted when she saw Rusty looking around her feet.

"Missing something?" the griffon joked. The small pony glanced up.

"No, you are." she shot back. Gilda was confused.

"Your luggage." Rusty explained with a roll of her eyes. Gilda suddenly remembered she left all of her stuff at Dash's place. There was no point of going back for it now, RD probably threw it all away. Or burned it.

"Don't got any." The griffon said with a shrug. Rusty smiled.

"Less work for me!" she said cheerfully. A voice from another room called out, taking Gilda by surprise.

"Rusty dear, who is it?" The brown filly turned to Gilda and looked her up and down.

"Its-" she called back. "I don't know, actually." a groan sounded from the other room. The sound of pots and pans clanging together was heard as a yellow Earth pony stomped in with a bowl in her mouth. Once she caught sight of Gilda, she screamed dropping the bowl, spilling the contents.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" the mare apologized as she pulled out a cloth and began cleaning up the mess. "I just never saw anything like you before, and-" she was cut short by a claw holding a towel wiping the floor with her. She looked up and smiled graciously, and Gilda smiled back.

As Gilda examined her temporary room, she thought about how different it was from Dash's guest bedroom. The curtains were brown and beaten, while Rainbow's were colored and new. The bed was scratched up and used, but RD's was neat and tidy. Gilda loved her room all the same, especially since it was free for the night.

The sound of tiny hooves coming up the stairs were heard. Gilda opened the door to see Rusty.

"Dinner is ready." she informed the griffon. Gilda drooled. She hadn't had a proper meal in hours. She followed Rusty down the stairs and into the kitchen, where everyone was already sitting. Gilda had introduced herself a while ago, so she just waved shyly and sat down. There was Coppertone, Rusty's mother and Glazing Clay, her Pegasus father. Rusty and Clay were clearly related, as they had the same color fur, mane, green eyes. Coppertone on the other hoof, was a bit different. Her fur was light yellow, and she had a wavy blond and mango mane. She was a kind mare, with her gentle blue eyes.

Gilda took a seat in an chair next to Rusty. The little rascal had begun to grow on her, and she called her, "Gene" once and a while.
Coppertone placed a plate in front of the griffon, and her eyes widened. There was fruit salad, a piece of bread, and her favorite, fish. Gilda noticed no one else had the delicious seafood, so they must've caught it just for her. The griffon waited for everyone to sit down, then dug in. the salad tasted sweet and fresh, and each berry seemed to have a better flavor. The bread was crisp and warm. The griffon could tell it had just come out of the oven. And the fish, was amazing. The meat was packed with juice that filled her mouth with each bite. It was better than anything she ever tasted. Her mom was never a really good cook, and her father always ordered take-out.

Gilda seemed to inhale her meal, as everyone else was still eating. She blushed, and asked to be excused.

Losing a friend is like losing a finger. You don't know what you have until it's gone.

Gilda lay on her side, thinking about Dash. She remembered the time they got in trouble during camp for putting a tack on their counselor's chair. She grinned, recalling the harsh words her mother had said to her. But her smile faded as she remembered she and Rainbow weren't friends any longer. The cruel words she had said to her still lingered in the back of her head.

"Cool one minute and lame the next," How could she say that? Gilda truly missed Dash more than ever now. She wanted to run up to her and tell her she was sorry, that she didn't mean any of the things she said. Salty tears began to roll down the griffon's cheeks as she thought. Maybe she would forgive me, forget everything I'd done. But that wouldn't happen. Gilda knew she would never hold the Pegasus in her arms, lost in her warm embrace. She would never feel her luscious tongue against hers, as they-. She stopped for a moment to slap herself. Why do I keep thinking like that!? I'm not lesbian, am I? Confused, Gilda just tried to fall asleep, the moon shining on her face.

___________________________________________________________________

"Twilight, you have to do SOMETHING!" Rainbow Dash paced in the purple unicorn's library. Twilight sighed.

"Look, Rainbow." she cooed softly, trying to calm her friend. "There's nothing I can do." the Pegasus looked at the unicorn, her eyes a mix of worry and anger.

"Nothing!?" she raised her voice. "Gilda and I have been best friends since I was a filly." Twilight stared back at her, like a bullfighter and a raging mule. Or in this case pony.

"I understand that but-"

"Do you?" Dash lashed out at her, beginning to cry. "You didn't have any friends before you came to Ponyville, so you shouldn't know!" That made Twilight tear up a bit. Having her own friend say that hit her hard. RD realized her mistake and sighed, wiping her face of tears.

"Twi, I'm sorry. I just-" The unicorn put a hoof up to silence her.

"I forgive you," she assured the cyan mare. "And I'm sorry too. I didn't understand the pain you were going through, and I do now." RD brightened up a bit.

"So, you'll help me?" she asked hopefully. Twilight smiled.

"Yes, but I'll need something of importance to Gilda in order for this location spell to work." She explained. Dash looked down at her hooves, which were still clutching the picture frame. Slowly, she handed the photo of herself over to Twilight.

"Perfect." The unicorn said as her horn began to glow.

___________________________________________________________________

Gilda was soaring through clouds, flying in the sky. She was happy for some reason, but she didn't care. She just glided along with the wind. A cyan pelt was caught out of the corner of her eye. As Rainbow Dash pulled up next to the griffon, she smiled and gave her a peck on the cheek. Gilda was astonished.

"D-Dash?!" She stammered. "Did you just kiss me?!" Rainbow looked ahead.

"Maybe." she said in a flirty tone. Gilda was extremely confused. After a long time of awkward silence, she had no other option than to ask the question. She swallowed, and turned to the Pegasus.

"Dash?" She choked. "Do you, love me?" Rainbow sighed and stared at the griffon, not blinking. Gilda felt as if her rose colored eyes would burn straight through her. Finally, RD spoke.

"Depends, do you love me?" she repeated the question. The griffon looked down.

"I-I don't know." she answered weakly. The Pegasus looked forward again.

"Well when you do, tell me." With that Rainbow disappeared into a cloud of mist, leaving Gilda alone.

"Wait!" she cried out for the cyan mare, clawing at the cloud. The sky around her began to run, like water on wet paint as she searched frantically for her friend. Soon everything was black. The griffon stopped calling out and looked around. She couldn't see anything. Suddenly a voice sounded from above her.

"Make a choice, Gilda." It said. Around her, little voices began chanting,

"She loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, she loves me not." the voices started getting louder and louder, until the griffon thought her head would explode.

"STOP!" she screeched.

Gilda woke up in a sweat. She looked around, glad to be back in the motel. She rubbed her eyes and slowly got out of bed. That was the second Rainbow Dash dream she had that week! She flew downstairs and saw Rusty helping her mother cook breakfast. The filly turned around.

"Good morning, Gene!" she greeted her. Gilda smiled and walked over.

"Hey, kiddo." she said while giving the pony a noogie. Rusty squealed and pushed her off. The griffon turned to Coppertone, who seemed busy on the stove.

"What's cooking?" she asked, peeking over her shoulder. The yellow mare looked up.

"Pancakes and eggs." she replied. Gilda licked her lips, or beak. She felt bad about eating this family's food, but she couldn't help herself. I'll leave after breakfast.

"When everything was finished, Coppertone called everyone over. Glazing Clay looked up from his newspaper and grunted. He sat up and came over to join the family. Gilda began eating, savoring the rich eggs and fluffy pancakes. When she finished, the griffon placed her dishes in the sink and rinsed them. She then walked upstairs to make her bed.

As Gilda was changing her sheets, Rusty bounded in.

"Hi!" she chirped. The griffon smiled.

"Hey," she answered the filly's greeting. "Need something?" Rusty grinned at her, eyes full of mischief. She reached out her hoof and tapped Gilda's beak.

"You've got a crush." she whispered. Gilda frowned.

"No I don't." she replied, continuing her chore. Rusty giggled.

"Yes you do," she argued. "I heard you talk in your sleep. His name was Rainbow Dash or something." Gilda blushed. I talk in my sleep? Well, maybe I DO have a crush on her. Is that why I keep having those dreams? Why I so desperately want to see her again?

"You DO like him!" the filly squealed, pointing at her pink cheeks. Gilda watched as Rusty danced around her, chanting,

"Gilda and Rainbow Dash, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" The griffon smiled. Yeah, I love her don't I. Gilda stood up. She took a deep breath,

"I love Rainbow Dash." She said out loud, taking Rusty by surprise. Turning around, the griffon grabbed the filly, giving her a huge hug.

"Thank you." She whispered. Then she ran down the stairs and out the door, calling to the back the astonished adults.

"Good bye! Thanks for everything!" Gilda spread her wings and took off, heading for Ponyville with a certain mare in mind. Dash, I'm coming for you. And I've got something to say.

_________________________________________________________________________

Coppertone stood doing dishes as her husband read the newspaper. Gilda had a kind personality. We didn't get any bits, but things sure were interesting with her around. Suddenly, a purple flash of light came from outside their door. Another one? Without warning a purple unicorn barged in, looking around frantically.

"Gilda?" She called. "GILDA?!" Rusty came downstairs in a hurry.

"What's wrong?" she asked the distraught mare. The unicorn looked at her.

"Have you seen a griffon around here lately?" she asked. "They're half lion, half eagle." Rusty narrowed her eyes.

"You mean Gene? She left over two hours ago." she replied to the suspicious mare, then giggled. "She probably went to see her crush." The purple unicorn looked really confused.

"What CRUSH?" she began to look more and more frantic.

"It's Rainbow Dash, If I can remember correctly." Rusty rubbed her chin as she thought. "Weird name for a stallion, don't you think?" But the purple mare had stopped listening altogether and stared straight ahead, not blinking.

"Are you alright?" Coppertone reached out to her.

"Oh, no," the unicorn muttered. Her horn began to glow, and in flash she was gone once more.

Comments

[One Lucky Gamer]

I am enjoying this story, keep up the good work :D

[Skunkiss]

Wow, this is so much better than I expected!

What is up with all those downvotes???

I really loved this chapter, it has been a long time since i saw some interesting and well-portrayed OCs.
Maybe the pacing is a little too fast and this chapter could have been a little longer, but whatever. Keep them coming, I literally cannot wait for the next chapter!

[MittenPatty]

>>Skunkiss Thank you! I'm excited for chap 3 too!

[The Real McCoy]

4272176

What is up with all those downvotes???

Your profile pic is perfect for that part of your comment!