It couldn’t be helped by the girls to notice that there was something different about Sandbar and Gallus the passing weeks after the New Year. Every Saturday, regardless of what needed to be accomplished, the young griffon and pony were starting to spend more time together. Their hangouts tend to be just the two of them doing something different around Ponyville from watching something new at the movie theater to grabbing some hot chocolate for breakfast.
Naturally, whenever the two of them are vacant from their dorm rooms, the girls tend to joke that they’re off to another date. Even so, they couldn’t help but notice that apart from the days where they all team up as a study group, none of them had got the chance to spend some time with either Sandbar or Gallus. So, on a cold late January day, they roped the two in for an afternoon of ice skating at the local pond.
The six creatures, after having the professors rent them skates, made their way towards the mirror-like sheet of ice where the surface was polished. As soon as that blades of their shoes touched the slick floor that it quickly became apparent which among them was the more experienced. Gallus and Yona circled around their friends who had trouble finding their balance before falling on their faces.
Ocellus at one point fell on her rump before the Yak skated over to her. “Changeling’s blades not be parallel. If standing still, Changeling will fall over. Try this.” She helped her friend up on her four hooves before using one of her skates to tap hers at an angle. “Point blades away from self. More stable this way.”
Sure enough, with the others watching, she along with Sandbar, Silverstream, and Smolder copied the technique to where they too were stable. They listened as Yona instructed how to move forward, turn and stop. It took several minutes and several tries for them to find their balance and gain the confidence to move – in fact, Sandbar when he was unable to stop, Gallus had to get a hold of him so that he didn’t slide right off the ice.
“How are you this good at skating?” the pony asked.
“I live in a place where it’s winter nine months out of the year,” Gallus told him. “There’s a reason why winter games are popular where I come from.”
“Okay, that makes sense and uh… you can let go of me now.”
The blue griffon blinked when he realized he hadn’t let go of his hoof since he caught him. Feeling embarrassed, he let go of his friend to give him a moment to find his balance.
At this point, Smolder, propelled by her wings, slowed herself down enough to make the comment. “Ya know you don’t have to be self-conscious about holding your coltfriend’s hoof in public.”
Gallus glared at her. “And you know perfectly well that he isn’t.”
“Could’ve fooled me.” She smirked. “Especially when you two disappear every Saturday.”
“I just wanna hang out with him.” Sandbar said. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Although, I guess it does make sense.” Ocellus chimed in, skating over to their direction. “Considering that you two are about to get married soon.”
“I wonder if there’s anything else you guys need to do before the wedding,” Silverstream asked as she flew over to them.
“What do you mean?” Sandbar questioned.
“Like…” The pink hippogriff thought for a moment before giving out her question. “Are the rules different for every creature before they get married?”
“You mean proposing?” Gallus wondered aloud.
“Hm… Yes and no. I mean are there certain customs between proposing and officially becoming spouses?”
“We don’t anything like that,” Smolder said. “Us Dragons don’t exactly have the same idea as marriage as you guys. Oh sure, there’s having a mate where you could just pretty much stay with as long as it’s not family or someone who’s younger than say… me. Besides that, we don’t care much about who you be mates with or how long you spend with them.”
“Yaks have tradition,” Yona spoke up, stopping in front of them. “Marriages aren’t formed by love, but by honor. In Yakyakistan, if a Yak wishes to wed another Yak, they bring a log from evergreen. Yak then gives reason to be together, mostly strengthen ties or help family out of bad situation. If other Yak accepts, they smash log! After that, Yaks are kept out of sight for one season. If they do, they bring great dishonor. But after season over, Yaks be wedded in wedding hut in middle of night where hut is brightly lit inside. Then once wedding is over, we smash wedding hut!”
Gallus deadpanned, “Somehow, I’m not that surprised by that.”
“What about you Ocellus?” Sandbar asked.
She skated over towards more solid ground before sitting on her haunches. “Well… traditionally, we Changelings preferred to attend other weddings then our own. It makes sense as events like that tend to have the most potent love. But when it comes to us, like Smolder, there isn’t any big ceremony. However, the closest thing we have is when one Changeling packs up all his things, goes over to the one they’re interested in and ask if they can move in. Simple as that.”
“Wow, that’s completely different from how we do things,” Silverstream said. “When I was growing up in Seaquestria, my parents told me of how they got married. Even before the Storm King came, marriages were arranged by families that are done depending on how close they were to the Queen, how respectable they are, and most importantly, if the spouses to be can get along. If all goes well, like my parents had, they then get a pure white pearl and the name of who they’re being betrothed to. After that, while they can see each other, they can’t really talk to one another until the wedding.”
“So pretty much straight forward from there.” Ocellus commented.
“Ah! But it wasn’t always like that!” The Hippogriff added. “There used to be a tradition the night before the wedding that pretty much died down after the Storm King invaded. My aunt said that before anyone because official spouses, both soon to be wife and husband are taken to a tent by the beach where their friends and family would have a party while watching a couple do a traditional dance involving clothing. However… since we moved under the sea, we lost the need for clothes and the dance itself is pretty much lost to time. Except, my aunt Novo might still remember how it’s done…” Her eyes went wide, and her wings pushed her off the ice. “Oh! Oh! I just had the best idea ever! Why not we have that party?”
All of her friends looked at one another. “Uh, how?” Yona questioned. “Hippogriff said dance was extinct.”
“Maybe I can ask my aunt to find someone who could do that dance. I mean, there has to be someone that knows how to dance involving clothes. Oh! Maybe I should ask if she could find that couple where one is a pony and the other a griffon. Even if us Hippogriffs had forgotten the dance, perhaps they could use what my aunt remembers and try to recreate it.”
“I think we have something similar in Equestria.” Sandbar told her. “I think it’s called a… bachelor’s party. Only I don’t quite know what goes on in these parties, but hey, if you wanna throw one for us, I guess it could be fun.”
“So what about you two?” Silverstream inquired the colts.
Both of them glanced at one another before the griffon shared, “We have only a few traditions where I come from. There’s no engagement ring or pearls where I come from as anything made out of gold is extremely valuable over there. So the only thing that I guess comes close to a proposal would be to exchange one of your primary feathers. After that, they set a time and place where the wedding should take place. And before the ceremony itself, we Griffons have something called, ‘The Capture,’ something that’s only for the groom. It’s when his friends basically foalnap him to drag him into a bachelor party. And since I’m still considered a kid over there, I have no clue what happens there either. However, I do know that at the wedding itself, there is a ceremonial piercing.”
“Wait- what?” Sandbar questioned, completely off guard by what he heard.
Gallus nodded. “Yeah, the couple gets their ears pierced, says a promise that they’ll at least tolerate each other, and like that, they’re married.”
“How come you didn’t bring this up before?”
He shrugged. “I dunno… I’d figured that since I’m not technically an adult in Griffonstone, that the traditions over there wouldn’t apply us as if I remember correctly, we’re doing this the pony way.”
“Yeah, but even still, you are still a Griffon, from Griffonstone. If I’m gonna free you, it has to be done in a way that they know that this is serious.”
“But we don’t have to get ear ears pierced.”
“Pony is right.” All eyes were turned to Yona.
The young griffon was taken aback. “Excuse me?”
“Sandbar has point. If griffon is to be freed, he must do it by griffon ways. Having ear pierced show proof that Gallus has wedded.” Her friend continued to stare at her. “What? Yona has opinions too.”
“It actually does make the most sense.” Ocellus nodded. “If someone from Griffonstone were to hear about you two got married, they probably would want solid evidence to say that you have indeed done just that. Otherwise, they will call you a liar at best and illegitimate at worst.”
Gallus groaned but glanced over to Sandbar. “Every piercing at every wedding I’ve seen tend to hurt. A lot. I didn’t want to bring it up because the last thing I wanted to do is to have anyone inflict pain on him.”
Sandbar wrapped a foreleg around him but taking care of the blade of his skate not to touch him. “Gallus, I think you’re underestimating me on this. When I said that I’ll do what I can to set you free, I meant it. If it means marrying you, I would do it. If it means to endure a moment of pain just so that you can escape Griffonstone, I’ll still do it. No matter what it takes, I’m not gonna give up on you that easily.”
The Griffon was stunned into silence. His claw reached up to his chest over where his heart was. He felt it thump against his ribcage, pulsing something both icy and warm at the same time. What was happening that made him ignore the chill around them? However, he was still aware that all eyes were on him, expecting to make a reply. “But you don’t have to.”
“I know. All I’m saying is that for your sake, I still do it for you.”
Gallus pushed the foreleg off of him, part of him wanted to flee from this alien sensation that was swimming through his veins. He wanted to fly somewhere away from where he could at least let whatever this was subside. But… there was another part that was convincing his wings to stay at the frozen pond. Although he kept his mouth shut as he skated a short distance from the group, he knew perfectly why he didn’t leave.
Sandbar cares for him.
Sandbar will endure anything, even pain, for him.
“Dude,” he heard the young stallion skate up to him, “are you okay?”
“I…” He took in a deep breath. “Yeah. Just needed a moment is all.”
“So…” the pony went skated around until he was at his side, “since I think I got the hang of it, you wanna race?”
After thinking for a moment, the griffon eyed a log where half of it was encased in the ice. “See that?” He pointed, “First one to touch that wins.”
“And don’t use your wings.” Sandbar quickly said. “I don’t want you to cheat.”
‘As if I would around you?’ That thought went through Gallus’s head, catching himself in surprise of what popped up in his mind. After shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he replied: “Fine. Ready?”
Sandbar crouched his front half low as if he was about to pounce. “Ready.”
Gallus did the same before yelling “GO!” where they took off.
Meanwhile, the girls looked over to Ocellus.
“So, what’s the verdict?” Smolder asked.
The Changeling watched as the colts skated their way across the pond. “I’m afraid that the jury is still out on this one.”