//------------------------------// // Birds Of A Feather // Story: Pony Tails // by Bluecatcinema //------------------------------// Over in Griffonstone, Gilda was stretched out on her nest, enjoying some sun. "Ahhh..." She sighed, enjoying her moment of relaxation. 'Spreadin' friendship around here sure is hard work. And as good as it feels, sometimes a Griffon needs her downtime, and I'm pretty sure I've earned some. Just me and the sun, with no interruptions...' "Hey, Gilda!" '...Except one.' Gilda groaned, sitting up. The intruder on Gilda's moment of relaxation turned out to be the young Griffon Gabriella, or Gabby, as she preferred to be known. "I'm back!" Gabby smiled her usual wide smile. "Yeah, I can see that." Gilda rolled her eyes. There was a time when Gilda, like most Griffons, was utterly repulsed by Gabby's cheerful, overly-helpful attitude. She would have sooner turned her back and flown away than engage her in conversation. But Gilda had recently gone through a major change, thanks to her pony friends. And now, she was perfectly willing to tolerate Gabby being around her (though her extreme enthusiasm could still be unnerving). Hence why she called upon Gabby to deliver her letter to Rainbow Dash. "It's good to be home again." Gabby smiled. "And it's good to see you too, Gilda." "Had a feeling you'd say that." Gilda grinned. "I'm also guessing you delivered my letter to Dash." "Yep!" Gabby nodded. "I delivered it right to her! And she said she'll be sending a letter for you real soon!" "Great." Gilda smiled. "Nice job, Gabby." "Happy to help." Gabby beamed. "You always are." Gilda snorted. At that moment, a thought occurred to Gilda. "...Wait, if you delivered it right to her, then why did it take so long for you to get back?" She pondered. "I know how quick you can be. This should have been an easy back-and-forth for you. Whaddaya, run into traffic or something?" "Oh, about that." Gabby smiled weakly. "I had a bit of a side-trip going on." "A side-trip?" Gilda asked, a little miffed that Gabby had decided to take a detour of her volition. "Yeah, funny story." Gabby shrugged. "See, the reason I agreed to deliver the letter to Ponyville was so I could learn about Cutie Marks while I was there, and maybe even get one of my own. So I asked around town, and they told me about these fillies called the Cutie Mark Crusaders who help ponies with their Cutie Marks-" Gilda suddenly clamped Gabby's beak shut between two talons. "How about you try that again?" She suggested. "And go a little slower this time, okay?" "Mmkay." Gabby nodded. "Good." Gilda smiled, releasing Gabby's beak. "Now, what's this about Crusaders?" "Well, like I said, I was asking around, and the townsfolk told me how the Cutie Mark Crusaders helped other ponies with their Cutie Marks." Gabby declared. "And why would that matter to you?" Gilda frowned. "You're a Griffon. Our kind don't have those weird little magic tattoos." Gilda had of course been aware of Cutie Marks for quite some time, as a consequence of her childhood friendship with Rainbow Dash, but never really put much stock into them. Even in the present, when she possessed a far more open mind, it wasn't exactly a subject that fascinated her. "I know, I know." Gabby nodded. "But I was really hoping I could somehow get one, so I went to the Crusaders for help. I thought they could just give me a Cutie Mark, right then and there." "Lemme guess... it didn't work out that way?" Gilda smirked. "Well, no." Gabby frowned. "Turns out Cutie Marks don't work that way. A pony needs to discover their special talent in order to get their Cutie Mark, so the Crusaders came up with a bunch of stuff for me to try. I turned out to be pretty good at all that stuff, but still... no Cutie Mark." "Wow, shocker." Gilda rolled her eyes, beginning to regret calling on Gabby for the delivery. "Oh... in case you were wondering, I delivered your letter before I did all that." Gabby assured her. "No way would I forget why I was there in the first place." "Good to know." Gilda nodded, slightly mollified. "Hate to think I gave that letter to a mail Griffon who couldn't do her job..." "...So anyway, I took not getting a Cutie Mark pretty hard by then." Gabby sighed. "But I felt worse for the Cutie Mark Crusaders." "You did?" Gilda frowned. "Why?" "Because they tried so hard to help me, all for nothing." Gabby answered. "I just felt so bad for them." "That's... one way of looking at it." Gilda admitted. "Sure not the way I'd have chosen..." "I even pretended to have gotten a Cutie Mark, just to make them feel better." Gabby admitted. "Make them feel better?" Gilda snorted. "Only you, kid..." "But they caught me out just when I was about to leave." Gabby continued. "Boy, did I feel like an idiot..." "I'm guessing something happened to turn things around." Gilda mused. "Or you wouldn't have been so peppy when you showed up back here." "Oh yeah, there was a definite turn-around." Gabby grinned. "The Crusaders told me that my special talent was helping others." "That makes sense." Gilda admitted. "You're always tryin' to hep Griffons around here. Whether they want your help or not..." "And while they couldn't get me a Cutie Mark, they did the next best thing." Gabby added. "Yeah?" Gilda asked. "And what's that?" "Why, these babies, of course!" Gabby turned to the side, then turned again, showing off the ornamental Cutie Marks the Crusaders had given her, proudly attached to her mail bags. "They may not be the real thing, but I'm not complaining!" "Heh, not bad." Gilda appraised the new additions. "Those Crusaders must have really put some work into those things." "That's not even the best part!" Gabby grinned. "Do you wanna know the best part? Do ya? Do ya?" "I got a feeling you're gonna tell me anyway." Gilda smirked. "They made me an official Cutie Mark Crusader!" Gabby said proudly. "The first Griffon Crusader! I couldn't believe it! They made me, a Griffon, a Cutie Mark Crusader! I just... I was just bowled over! I heard they were a great bunch, but I didn't think they were that great!" "Yeah, those ponies are really something else." Gilda smiled. "You're telling me." Gabby grinned. "They even threw me a big party after I got these Cutie Marks. All the ponies I helped showed up. It was a really great experience. They accepted me so much, I almost felt like I was a pony myself." "You may as well be right now, with those fancy Marks." Gilda snorted. "What, you're gonna grow hooves next? Or maybe a horn?" "Well, I don't know about that..." Gabby grinned. "It would be kinda cool, though. A Griffon with a magic horn. Even more unique than a Griffon with Cutie Marks." "Yeah, I think you're unique enough, kid." Gilda smiled. "You really mean that?" Gabby smiled. "Sure." Gilda nodded. "You're the only Griffon I know who's always been decent. You've never been mean or rotten, like the rest of us. I'd say that makes you pretty special." "Aw, thanks." Gabby smiled. "But you gotta admit, if it weren't for my pony friends, I wouldn't know just how special I really am." "You're not the only Griffon around here who owes those ponies one." Gilda grinned. "They changed my life too." "Yeah, I remember." Gabby noted. "No offense, but you used to be as gruff and grumpy as every other Griffon. But now, you're really nice and friendly. By Griffon standards, at least." "I try." Gilda shrugged. "You do more than 'try', if you ask me." Gabby assured her. "You really do a good job of spreading friendship around here. Thanks to you, some Griffons actually smile when I bring them their mail! That's a really great feat, if you think about it... Hey, maybe you've got a special talent too... spreading friendship!" "You know, you kinda remind me of a certain pony I know..." Gilda declared, thinking of the similarly hyperactive Pinkie Pie. "I used to think she was kinda annoying too. But not anymore." "Thanks... I think." Gabby shrugged. "And maybe you're right." Gilda admitted. "Maybe ponies aren't the only ones with special talents. We Griffons can have them too. We just don't wear them on our sides." "Except for me, of course." Gabby pointed out her own Cutie Marks. "Of course." Gilda chuckled. "I'm betting you're a little tired after such a long trip." "Maybe a little." Gabby admitted. "Why don't come over to my nest and catch some rays with me?" Gilda offered. "It's the least I can do after you delivered my letter." "That'd be great!" Gabby smiled. "After the excitement of the last few days, I could really use some relaxation time! I mean, really, all the asking around, searching for my special talent, and the partying really wore me out-" "Just one condition, though." Gilda interrupted. "Try to lay off the talking, 'kay? I wanna relax my whole body... including my ears." "Okay." Gabby chuckled. "I guess I can talk a little too much..." "Yeah, maybe a 'little'." Gilda rolled her eyes. "Well then, consider me mute." Gabby declared. They returned to Gilda's nest, laying down on their backs, taking in the warm sunlight. "Wow, the sun's nice and warm today." Gabby smiled. "I mean, really nice and warm. If I ever meet Celestia in person, I might just thank her for-" "Gabby." Gilda interrupted. "Ooh, sorry." Gabby cringed. "Zipping it." She mimed zipping her beak shut. Rolling her eyes once more, Gilda laid back down and finally got down to relaxing. She glanced to her side, and saw Gabby peeking at her new Cutie Marks. 'A Griffon made friends with ponies all by herself.' She smiled. 'If only more Griffons were like her. Well, except maybe for all the talking...'