A damp Natalya walked into her room, a towel draped around her neck and a half-eaten Sugarcube Corner donut from last night in her beak. After spending the morning with a round of odd jobs, coming back to the castle for a quick shower and bite was needed, especially since she had an appointment to keep later on. Sitting down on her bed, she began drying herself off while she also chewed on her impromptu snack, letting out a sigh of content now that she had a moment of respite.
“What are you still doing here?!” an indignant, all-too-familiar voice suddenly shouted from her window.
Natalya rolled her eyes. “I thought you were going to be busy at work today, Rainbow,” she remarked, continuing her business without even turning to her visitor.
“I am! Er, sort of… I had to get Twilight to look at and sign some stuff for the office really quick. I figured I would fly past your window and take a peek into your room on my way out.”
“That’s not creepy at all,” Natalya dryly commented before tilting her head back, dropping the rest of her donut into her mouth.
“Not the point! You’re supposed to be doing the show and tell with Scootaloo!”
“I still got time,” Natalya replied with her mouth still full. She hurriedly finished off her snack before continuing. “Look, I squeezed in several quick jobs earlier, so I had to come back to the castle for a quick shower. I don’t think things would go well if a dirty, sweaty griffon suddenly appeared at the schoolhouse.”
“But you…” Rainbow paused, her face scrunching up as if holding back a few choice words, before she let out a groan. “Okay, I guess that’s true, but seriously, Natalya, you should already be there.”
Natalya huffed with annoyance. “I just told you, I still have time. I’m supposed to get there near the end of her class. Between you showing me where her schoolhouse was yesterday and my speed, I can get there in a flash. If I leave now, I’m just gonna end up waiting around and being bored.”
“But what if you—”
“Of course, if a certain pegasus won’t stop pestering me, I’m not going to able to finish getting ready and then I’ll be late for sure,” Natalya warned, finally turning to Rainbow with a glare.
Other than a huff and a frown, Rainbow shut her mouth and kept quiet.
Natalya took only a few more minutes to towel herself off as well as getting her hairs and feathers in place. She was still slightly damp in a few spots, but a natural blow-dry from the flight over to the schoolhouse would take care of that. The important thing was that she looked, more or less, like her usual, dashing self again.
“You done yet?” Rainbow asked as soon as Natalya tossed the towel aside.
“Dunno. Are you done with your annoying nagging yet?”
“Well, I wouldn’t be nagging you if you would just hurry up!”
“How many times do I have to tell you? I’m not going to be late!” Natalya gave Rainbow another glare, this one more scathing than the last. “Rainbow, you’re really getting on my nerves. You got a problem with me? Oh wait, let me take a wild guess. You think that I’m going to try and ditch the show and tell, that I’m actually going out of my way to ruin a kid’s day.” She let out an angry scoff. “Gee, thanks for thinking so highly of me,”
Rainbow's eyes widened, the fight in them suddenly gone. “Wait, wait, wait, I’m not saying that at all!”
“Really now? So then why are you on my case more than usual today?”
“Well… Because it’s Scootaloo’s presentation and… It’s just…” Rainbow sighed, her gaze dropping to the floor. “Natalya, I’m sorry… I know that you wouldn’t leave Scootaloo hanging, and I’m sorry if I made it sound like you were. I guess… I guess that I’m just a bit antsy about this whole thing.”
“A bit?” Natalya repeated flatly.
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Okay, maybe a bunch, but can you blame me? I won’t be there to help smooth things over if something goes wrong, and no offense, but you’re not exactly, uh, kid-friendly, if you know what I mean.”
It was Natalya’s turn to roll her eyes. “Oh please. You act like as if I don’t know how to behave around kids. Look at Scootaloo. She seems to like me well enough.”
“Well, yeah, but you’re going in front of a whole classroom of fillies and colts.”
“I get along with kids just fine. In fact, there was the time when…” Natalya went silent as she quickly sifted through her memories. A few seconds, she switched to a deadpan face. “Okay, maybe you should be a bit worried,” she admitted, realizing that Scootaloo was the only child that she had any extended interaction with.
Rainbow groaned and planted a hoof in her face. “Just… Just be careful with what you say, alright? I don’t want to hear that you somehow started a brawl at the schoolhouse.”
“Well, there goes my whole presentation,” Natalya dryly remarked.
Rainbow’s hoof dragged down her face, revealing an unamused stare. “Natalya…”
“Sheesh, relax, dude. I’m kidding. I might not have much experience with kids, but I do have common sense.”
“That’s not so reassuring…”
Natalya shrugged. “Dunno what else to tell you. This presentation is gonna happen, so you’re just gonna have to suck it up and trust me.”
“I know, I know…” Rainbow took in a deep breath and let out the air slowly. “Natalya, really, I’m sorry for bothering you so much. It’s just that, you know that Scoots is like a sister to me, and I want the best for her. Tanking this presentation could really ruin her school-cred.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Natalya said with a sigh. “I know that I’m not getting any friendship awards or whatever anytime soon, but seriously, I got this. I don’t want to screw this up for Scootaloo either. Don’t go spreading it around, but I think she’s growing on me.”
Rainbow chuckled softly. “That’s obvious, but it does make me feel a whole lot better to actually hear you say that out loud. Guess I really don’t have anything to worry about.”
“Well, duh.” Natalya’s gaze drifted to the side and lingered on the clock on the wall. “Although, maybe you should kind of worry if you’re gonna continue keeping me here with your yammering.”
“What?” Rainbow glanced in the direction Natalya was looking at and then balked. “Oh shoot! I need to get back to the office! And you need to get going!”
Biting back the urge to make another sarcastic quip, Natalya merely nodded and flew out the window with Rainbow.
“Say hi to Scoots for me, and good luck!” Rainbow bade before the two of them shot off in different directions.
It did not take long before Natalya’s destination came into view, easily spotting it from a distance. The majority of Ponyville’s structures comprised of thatched roof buildings, but the schoolhouse’s red walls and white trimmings made it easy to distinguish. If that was not enough, there was also a small bell tower on the roof of the building as well as a red flag waving from the top of a flagpole near the entrance.
As Natalya landed on the path leading up to the school and began walking to the door, she noticed that the nearby playground was in a sorry state. To name a few, the swings of the swing sets were being held up by frayed ropes that looked like they would snap at the slightest movement, the merry-go-round was tilting onto its side with one handle jutting into the air, and one of the teeter-totters was snapped in half.
It looked as if some sort of monster had rampaged through the area a season or so ago. The idea was not actually not so farfetched since she recalled Twilight mentioning that Ponyville did in fact suffer the occasional monster attack.
Turning her attention away from the derelict playground, Natalya knocked on the schoolhouse door, and a moment later, it opened, revealing a mulberry earth pony mare.
“Oh, you must be Natalya,” the mare greeted with a welcoming smile. “You’re here for Scootaloo’s show and tell, right?”
Natalya nodded. “You’re the teacher?”
“Correct. My name is Cheerilee, and I must thank you for coming. This is going to be a wonderful opportunity to learn about griffon culture. I’m sure the students, as well as I, are going to enjoy what you have to say.”
“Wait, what I have to say? But isn’t this Scootaloo’s presentation?”
“Um, yes, that is true, but it’s not like she’s showing off a toy or an accessory. You’re able to speak as well and help teach the children.” Cheerilee’s smile faltered. “Were you expecting something different?”
“Scootaloo said that she was going to do most of the talking, and all I had to do was maybe answer a few questions.”
“Oh, well, um, I suppose that is fine then…” Cheerilee chuckled nervously, an uneasy smile on her face. “So, uh, should I prepare the class for the show and tell?”
Natalya shrugged. “I guess.”
Cheerilee stared at Natalya for a second before turning her head back toward the classroom. “Alright, class, we’re going to wrap up today with Scootaloo’s show and tell presentation,” she announced, her earlier trepidation replaced by a clear, confident voice. “Scootaloo, please come here and prepare with your guest. Everypony else, go ahead and take a break, but please keep the noise down.”
Amidst the students’ chattering that started up from within, Natalya heard the sound of a piece of furniture sliding against wood, shortly followed by hurried hoofsteps. Less than a second later, Scootaloo appeared by Cheerilee’s side, looking up at the griffon with a broad smile.
“Hey, you made it!” Scootaloo chirped.
“Yeah, here I am…” Natalya replied, her enthusiasm only a fraction of Scootaloo’s. She cleared her throat. “Oh yeah, I saw Rainbow before I got here. She says hi and good luck and maybe some other junk like that.”
“Awesome!”
“You’re friends with, Rainbow?” Cheerilee asked.
“They sure are!” Scootaloo answered before Natalya could speak. “They do all sorts of awesome flying together!”
Cheerilee looked down at Scootaloo, one of her eyebrows slowly rising up. “Scootaloo, just curious, what are you going to talk about in your show and tell with Natalya?”
“About how awesome she is, her flying, and how she did in the Equestria Games, of course,” Scootaloo answered without hesitation.
Cheerilee shook her head. Despite the disappointed sigh she let out, she also wore a slightly amused smile. “I should’ve known… Well, that’s fine, Scootaloo, but if it’s not too much trouble, could you please try to at least spend a bit of time talking about griffon culture? It would give the class some new and exciting things to learn about.”
“Uh, sure, Miss Cheerilee. Whatever you say,” Scootaloo replied with less confidence.
“Well then, shall we get started?” Cheerilee asked. When she received nods from Natalya and Scootaloo, she led them back into the classroom.
Natalya heard a few gasps as soon as she stepped into the schoolhouse. They were followed by a flurry of whispers, but between her keen hearing and a few students failing to keep their voices quiet enough, she was able to pick out a few comments.
“Whoa, Scootaloo brought a griffon!”
“Isn’t that one of the griffons staying at Princess Twilight’s castle?”
“I think I saw that griffon hang out with Rainbow Dash a bunch.”
“But I saw that griffon painting something at Bon Bon’s shop once.”
“Like, really? Why would she bring that here?”
Natalya quickly zeroed in on the last speaker. It was a pink earth pony filly with a pampered, well-groomed mane of white and violet with a tiara resting upon it. The filly did not notice Natalya’s glare because she was talking in a haughty tone to a grey earth pony filly that was seated right next to her.
“Alright, everypony, settle down,” Cheerilee instructed, guiding Natalya and Scootaloo to stand front and center of the class. “As I said earlier, we’re going to finish off today with Scootaloo’s show and tell presentation, and she has brought in a special guest.” She waved a hoof at the griffon. “Class, this is Natalya. Please say hello.”
“Hello, Natalya,” a monotone chorus promptly greeted the griffon.
“Uh, sup.” Seeing the many eyes focused on her, Natalya’s heart skipped a beat when she realized that she was standing in front of a bunch of fillies and colts that were going to watch her every move and hang onto each word she uttered. Despite having plenty of experience in performing in front of others, somehow, this group of students was unnerving her more than the thousands of ponies at the Equestria Games.
“Please give Scootaloo and Natalya your full attention,” Cheerilee instructed as she sat down behind her desk that stood in front of the blackboard. “Scootaloo, you may start whenever you’re ready.”
“Alright, everypony, listen up!” Scootaloo announced loudly, raising a hoof in Natalya’s direction. “This is Natalya, the fastest griffon in Griffonstone and probably even the fastest griffon in Equestria!”
Natalya glanced at Scootaloo for a moment, pushing down the urge to smirk. She had never advertised the fastest griffon in Equestria part, but she was certainly not going to refute that probably-true claim.
“Natalya is a such a cool griffon! She knows how to play it cool, she’s a hard worker, and the best part is that she’s an awesome flyer, just like Rainbow Dash! In fact, she was in the—” Scootaloo paused when a colt that was noticeably smaller than everyone else in the class in the back raised his hoof. “Uh, yes, Pipsqueak?”
“Where’s Griffonstone?” Pipsqueak asked with an accent Natalya could only describe as ‘fancy’.
“Oh, well, um… It’s, uh…” After being quiet for a few seconds, Scootaloo looked up at Natalya with an apologetic, pleading face.
“Griffonstone is far to the east,” Natalya answered.
“How far?” Pipsqueak queried.
“Uh… Really far?” Natalya wanted to kick herself for such a lame answer, but it was honestly all that she knew. She might have traveled around a bunch, but they were all for some form of competition, which meant that she paid little attention to anything else, such as the lay of the land.
Fortunately, Cheerilee promptly added, “Your old hometown of Trottingham is pretty much on the eastern border of our nation, Pipsqueak. The griffon kingdom and Griffonstone is just beyond that.”
“Whoa, that is really far,” Pipsqueak commented, his eyes wide with awe.
Natalya breathed a small sigh of relief for Cheerilee’s rescue. It was barely a minute into the presentation and she had already almost blundered the first question asked. She had assured Rainbow that she would not mess up the presentation, and she certainly did not want to disappoint Scootaloo. She was going to have to be more careful if she was going to keep both pegasi happy.
“As I was saying,” said Scootaloo, restarting her presentation. “Natalya was in the Equestria Games. She flew in the aerial relay race with her team and even got a medal!”
“Well, yeah, but, like, only third place,” the haughty filly from before added. “Would’ve been interesting if she actually got first.”
Natalya was starting to dislike that filly.
“Diamond Tiara, that is not a nice thing to say,” Cheerilee scolded. “Please apologize.”
“Sorry,” Diamond replied in an unapologetic, bored voice.
Cheerilee sighed and then waved at Scootaloo and Natalya to continue.
“Natalya might have came in third, Diamond Tiara, but it still doesn’t change the fact that she’s an awesome flyer!” Scootaloo declared, undeterred by Diamond’s earlier put-down and focusing her explanation toward the filly. “During her part of the race, she started behind a bunch of ponies, but not only did she take first place, she beat Soarin, one of the Wonderbolts! You should’ve seen her!”
Natalya allowed herself a small smirk. Even though she did not win the race, it was still nice to hear that others had noticed her obviously superior flying skills.
“Uh, duh, I did see it,” Diamond stated in a deadpan tone. “My daddy got me front row seats.”
That was when Natalya decided that she did not dislike Diamond Tiara. She detested the filly. She could now see that Diamond was just one of those rich kids who liked to flaunt their wealth. Granted, Natalya knew that she was guilty of doing the same thing with her own money at times, but at least she earned those bits herself, not like this spoiled brat who hid behind her daddy and likely never lifted a hoof to do anything in her entire life.
“Yeah, so what?” Scootaloo retorted. “I got to actually be on the field as Ponyville’s flag carrier! That’s even better!”
“Pfft, whatever. Who cares about that?”
“Sure looked like you did when you spent a week sulking over how my friends and I beat your lame performance!”
“Ahem…” Cheerilee uttered, instantly causing the two fillies to clam up and swiftly look at the teacher. “Scootaloo, Diamond, this is not how you’re supposed to settle a dispute. You should be talking to each other in a calm, civilized manner. Furthermore, this is supposed to be show and tell time, and the both of you are being discourteous of Natalya’s time.”
“Sorry, Miss Cheerilee,” the fillies apologized, their heads bowed.
“Thank you, girls. Now, Scootaloo, please continue.”
“Right. So, anyway, Natalya came here from Griffonstone with another griffon named Gilda, who just so happens to be an old friend of Rainbow Dash as well. While Gilda is learning about friendship from Princess Twilight and baking stuff from Pinkie Pie, Natalya here became quick friends with Rainbow because they’re both so awesome! They now hang out a bunch, doing flying tricks, pulling pranks, and other fun stuff. Best of all, Natalya is even training with Rainbow Dash to do her own Sonic Rainboom!”
Natalya flinched when Scootaloo mentioned her Sonic Rainboom training. She did not think to ask the filly to skip that piece of information. While it was not meant to be some sort of big secret, Natalya still would rather keep her attempts at the Sonic Rainboom under wraps until she got something significant to show.
Amidst the excited chatter Scootaloo’s news had sparked, a pegasus colt with a light-gray coat and a darker-gray, slick mane quickly raised his hoof. Not waiting to be called upon, he asked, “Natalya, is it really true that you’re trying to do the Sonic Rainboom?”
Natalya nodded. “Yep.”
“Do you think you can do it?” a thin, lanky pegasus colt asked. “Um, not trying to be mean or anything, but Rainbow is the only pony in Equestria who has ever pulled it off.”
Natalya sighed. “You know, you’re not the first pony to bring those stuff up. Yes, I know all those things, but remember that I’m the fastest griffon. I think I got a decent chance of pulling it off.”
“So, uh, doth that mean the training ith going well?” a filly with a lisp inquired.
“Not exactly…” Natalya glanced away and scratched the side of her head with a talon while she formulated a good explanation. “I admit that progress has been slow, but if it was going to be easy, Rainbow wouldn’t still be the only pony who has done it.”
Before another student could ask a question, Cheerilee rapped her forehoof on her desk. When the room went quiet, she said, “Alright, class, perhaps we should give Natalya a break from this line of questions. Scootaloo, we’re starting to run low on time. Maybe we could let your classmates ask Natalya a few things about griffons?”
“Uh, sure, alright.” Scootaloo turned to the rest of her class as a few hooves went up in the air. She pointed at one of the students, a chubby colt sitting in the back. “Snips?”
“Is it true that griffons eat meat?” Snips asked.
“Yep,” Natalya replied, causing a few of the other students to utter ‘Eww’.
“Class, be polite,” Cheerilee immediately chastised the disgusted students. “Just because ponies don’t eat meat, doesn’t mean that you should frown upon others that do. Be respectful of other ponies’, or in this case, griffons’, culture and way of life.”
After a few mumbled apologies from the students, a lanky colt next to Snips asked, “So if griffons eat meat, does that mean they also eat ponies?”
Natalya’s eyebrow rose in amusement.
Cheerilee was not as amused. “Snails!” she cried out aghast. “Griffons certainly do not eat ponies! Apologize to Natalya right now!”
“Sorry, Miss Natalya,” a sheepish Snails mumbled, slumping into his seat.
Natalya snickered, not at all offended. “It’s alright, and just to confirm, no griffons don’t eat ponies.”
“So what’s Griffonstone like?” Pipsqueak asked.
Natalya had to take a pause to formulate the right words to describe her hometown. It did not take long for her to come up with the perfect answer.
“It’s a total dump,” Natalya uttered nonchalantly. She watched as many of the students’ eyes widened, and murmurs filled the classroom. Turning her head slightly, she saw that Cheerilee had a similar look like her students, and a glance down to her side revealed Scootaloo looking up at her with her brow furrowed in confusion and concern.
“Um, what do you mean by that, if you don’t mind me asking?” asked a filly that Natalya recognized as Sweetie Belle, one of Scootaloo’s friends.
“Well, compared to Ponyville, it really does look like a dump.” Seeing the inquisitive stares of all the students, silently pressing her for more, Natalya sighed. “It’s… it’s just really run down. Many buildings are dingy shacks with barely any room, and there’s dirt and dead plants everywhere. We have almost no stores and even then, they don’t have much. In fact, Gilda was the only one who had any decent grub around the whole place. Trust me, Ponyville isn’t as spectacular as say the Crystal Empire, but it’s still loads better than Griffonstone.”
“So was Griffonstone always, uh, a dump?”
“As far as I can remember.” Natalya paused for a second, glancing up at the ceiling in thought. “Actually, no, I heard things were different before. A really long time ago, there was a griffon king who united the griffons because he had some sort of really cool idol. That idol became Griffonstone’s most valuable treasure and it was passed down from king to king.
“During that whole time, Griffonstone was doing really well, but fast forward a bunch of generations and then it was invaded by some sort of monster.”
Natalya’s gaze returned to the class when she heard a few gasps. She was greeted by the sight of all of the students leaning forward, literally on the edge of their seats, and staring at her with rapt attention.
“What kind of monster was it?” one of the students asked.
“Um, hold on.” Natalya racked her mind to try and remember the details. “I think it was, yeah, it was kind of like a minotaur, but also kind of like a goat. It also had one big eye, and it stood taller than a house.”
“So what did the monster do?” somepony else asked amidst the excited chatter from the other students.
“It broke into the place where the idol was kept, beat up the king and his guards, and then ran off with the idol. A bunch of griffons chased down the monster, but it ended up falling, along with the idol, into the Abysmal Abyss, a huge gorge not too far from Griffonstone.
“That was the last anyone ever saw the idol. The Abysmal Abyss is said to be bottomless, and along with the treacherous winds that always run through it, searching for the idol was impossible.
“When the idol disappeared, so did the unity of all the griffons. The king at the time just gave up, and no one stepped up to replace him once he was gone. Things just fell apart, and that’s how Griffonstone became a dump.”
A few moments after Natalya finished the mini-history lesson, she noticed that the classroom was silent.
“Uh, not much of a happy ending, huh?” Natalya remarked, letting out a nervous chuckle as she saw the disappointed looks on some of the students’ faces. When a filly eventually raised their hoof, she leapt at the opportunity to break the uneasy silence. Recognizing the filly, Natalya hastily pointed at her and called out, “Apple Bloom?”
“So, uh, why doesn’t anypony do somethin’ to fix things now?” Apple Bloom asked.
Natalya mentally cursed as she was thrown up against another hard question. “Because… Because griffons just aren’t like that. Unlike you ponies, we’re not nice and don’t play well with others. Getting us to work together on something is a real hassle. In other words, most griffons just care about themselves.”
Again, an uncomfortable silence descended upon the classroom, and Natalya was beginning to calculate the repercussions of suddenly fleeing the scene.
“But that Gilda griffon is not like that, right?” a pink unicorn filly piped up. “She was nice and even gave me a few cookies that she made when I visited Sugarcube Corner over the weekend.”
“Uh, yeah, I guess she’s one of the exceptions.”
“There’s also Gustav,” a chubby, gray colt pointed out. “He’s a famous dessert chef that travels around Equestria, and he’s also known to be pretty nice.”
“Well, I guess that’s why he lives in Equestria instead. Some griffons just don’t fit in Griffonstone so they decide to move out.”
“Class, this is actually an important life lesson,” said Cheerilee. “You don’t judge somepony or somegriffon based on where they came from or their species. You have to get to know them first. While Natalya says that Griffonstone has many not-so-pleasant griffons, that doesn’t mean there’s no nice griffons either.”
“Are you one of the nice griffons too, Natalya?” Snails asked.
Natalya blinked. “Um…”
“Of course she is!” Scootaloo promptly leapt to Natalya’s defense. “She’s fun to hang out with, she shared her candy with me, and she encourages me when I have trouble with my fl—” She stopped to let out a single cough. “My, um, uh, flower… picking…” She let out another cough. “Point is, I wouldn’t have brought her in if she wasn’t nice and cool!”
Despite thinking that ‘nice’ was exactly the right word to describe herself, Natalya did appreciate Scootaloo’s vouching for her.
“Okay, everypony, I think that will be it for Scootaloo and Natalya’s presentation. Class, please thank Natalya for taking the time to visit us.”
“Thank you, Natalya,” the class parroted back. There was a bit less monotony in their voices from when they first greeted the griffon.
“And that also brings us to the end of today,” Cheerilee added. As soon as those words left her mouth, the sound of paper rustling and bags being opened filled the air as all of the children immediately began packing their belongings.
“Now don’t forget to finish your reading before the next lesson,” Cheerilee instructed, even as a couple students had already gotten out of their seats. “Have a nice day, everypony!”
Natalya had to jump out of the way as all the fillies and colts stampeded for the door, almost trampling her in the process. When the dust settled, only her, Scootaloo, and Cheerilee were left.
As Scootaloo went back to her desk to hastily pack her stuff, Natalya decided to wait for Scootaloo outside and headed for the door.
“Natalya, could I speak to you for a few moments before you leave?” Cheerilee asked, making the griffon turn right back around.
Natalya shrugged. “Sure, I guess.”
“Is it about our presentation?” Scootaloo asked.
“Yes,” Cheerilee admitted. She smiled at the filly. “But don’t worry, Scootaloo. While it was a bit different, you did just fine. I just wanted to talk to Natalya about something in private, if you don’t mind.”
“Oh, uh, sure, Miss Cheerilee. I’ll wait for you outside then, Natalya,” Scootaloo stated before rushing out the door.
“Let me guess, you actually thought the presentation was awful,” Natalya remarked as soon as Scootaloo left.
“Oh, no, no, no.” Cheerilee swiftly shook her head. “Like I said, it was different.”
Natalya rolled her eyes. “You can stop trying to sugarcoat it. Just give it to me straight.”
“Well, the first thing I want to say is that I’m sorry for the rude behavior of some of my students. It’s likely that this is their first time meeting a griffon up close, but that doesn’t excuse them from asking such untactful questions.”
“Yeah, well, kids are kids, and it’s not like a few weird questions are going to bother me. Besides, those were nothing compared to some of the stuff you hear in Griffonstone.”
“I’ll, um, take your word for it. I’m glad to hear that you’re not offended,” Cheerilee said, putting on a weak smile before it disappeared a few moments later. “Anyway, um, about the presentation… I will admit that it was quite unorthodox and actually perhaps a bit much for the children.”
Natalya groaned softly. “Great…”
Cheerilee swiftly added, “But I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I’ve had to teach them about difficult subjects more than a few times. Sometimes, you have to nudge them out of their comfort zone to broaden their minds.”
“I guess… So what I’m hearing is, I didn’t mess up… Or at least not too badly.”
Cheerilee laughed softly. “No, Natalya, you did not mess up at all.” She took a breath. “So, was that story about the idol true?”
“More or less. A couple of old geezers back in Griffonstone like to talk a lot about the ‘good old days’,” she explained, drawing air quotes with her talons. “Whether you want to or not, you’re going to hear things, including that story. I don’t remember all of the details, but I think I hit all of the major points.”
“And the state of Griffonstone?”
Natalya merely nodded.
“Oh dear… I heard a few things from Pinkie, but I thought that she was exaggerating.”
“Yeah, it’s not exactly someplace you want to go for a vacation.” Natalya shrugged. “But what can you do? You get used to it, especially when you grow up with it.”
“Isn’t your friend Gilda trying to change that by spreading friendship in Griffonstone?”
“She sure can try, but it’s going to be really tough. A lot of griffons only know how to take care of themselves. You can’t even get one to give you the time of day, that is, unless you pay them for it.”
“Ah, yes, Pinkie also mentioned the griffons' obsession with their bits. And it’s true that changing a pony or griffon can be a daunting task, let alone a whole town of them. Still, if Gilda can make even a few griffons to become more like you and her, you would be surprised to see how much a small group of friends can accomplish.”
Natalya was about to ask Cheerilee what she meant by ‘more like her’, but she stopped when she put some more thought into it. She had come to Ponyville to trounce Rainbow in a race. Instead, she had eventually became friends with her former nemesis, even becoming best friends with the pegasus. Since then, her words became less harsh, and she had even started doing things for the sake of others, such as apologizing or giving up her time to show up as a show and tell project for a filly.
Ponyville, or more specifically, Rainbow, had changed her.
“Natalya?” Cheerilee spoke, breaking the griffon out of her musing. “Are you alright? You suddenly went quiet.”
Natalya shook her head. “It’s nothing. Just got lost in thought. Listen, I gotta head out now.”
Cheerilee nodded. “Alright then. Thank you again for coming. I’m sure the students had a great time with you, and they will remember your presentation for a long time.”
After exchanging goodbyes with Cheerilee, Natalya exited the school house. She took a quick look around the immediate area, seeing a few kids that were still hanging around but no sign of Scootaloo. Figuring that she should at least check in with Scootaloo before leaving, Natalya took to the air in search the filly.