Griffon of Canterlot
Chapter 57 – Flame of a New Week
Gilda entered the greenhouse after her recap talk with Celestia after returning to Canterlot. “Feels like a jungle in here.” Her golden yellow eyes glancing around as she walked down the stone path, her thoughts drew towards Cadance in the throne room. “Candy beats me fair and square but why has my terms of defeat have to be THAT of all things!?” Gilda growls under her breath cursing for making that bet.
Gilda sighs rubbing a talon over the feathers on her head. “What done is done, no need to be a complete dweeb over it.” Gilda continue her track to finally find Gale sitting just on the outside of a golden gazebo, before him posing was the red and orange phoenix. “That must be Celestia's pet phoenix Philomena, she got good taste in pets.” Gilda chuckled lightly.
She stood just behind Gale watching over his shoulder seeing the drawing of Philomena come to life, the phoenix noticed her but didn't move to ruin the pose Gale was happily drawing away. “Done pretty bird!” He turn it around to show it to her, the phoenix squawks happily. “Yay!”
“Not bad at all cub.”
Gale drop the sketch book and pencil on the ground as he leaps with a turn around to face her. “GILDA!” He rocketed into her giving a happy hello hug to her. “Happy you here!”
Gilda chuckled rubbing his feathered head with her free talon. “Happy to see you too Gale, can I have my other foreleg back?”
Gale release his hug gabbing her talon with both of his pulling Gilda to the golden nest. “See egg!”
Gilda pulled over to the nest, Philomena flew up and land by the next in the nest. “That really a black phoenix egg?” Both Gale and Philomena nod in response, she lean over putting a talon over it. “That some egg...”
Philomena squawks placing a feather under the talon against the egg. “Okay, whatever.” Gilda shook her head holding up the feather. “I just going to roll with it.” She turn to the waterfall in view. “Hmm... How do you feel about having your morning lessons here?”
“Yes please!” Gale liked that idea.
Gilda turn to Philomena. “That cool with ya?” She nods. “Thanks Feathers.” Gilda walk out of the gazebo. “Come on Gale.” She walk to the waterfall, Gale following.
After a few minutes had past Philomena checked on the egg making sure it keep warm, she using her fire over the egg with a flap of the wings, afterwards with a short flap out of the nest she notice Gale left his art book, pencil and bag behind, with a shake of her head the phoenix using her talons to pick up the stuff putting them into the bag, picking up the bag to fly it over to Gale at the waterfall.
Gale arrived at the waterfall putting a talon out to the water splashing against it, the cool spray of water from the impact against his feathered face and beak. “Got to admit, this place pretty sweet even it feels a bit stuffy.” Gilda said putting her bag down taking a good look around from where they were, she noticed a few ponies tending to some of the flowers. “Cub get your book out so we begin.”
Gale reach for his bag to find it missing. “Ba-Squawk!” Gale instantly squawks in shock as the bag lands before his talons causing him to fly back into the waterfall falling into the pool of water, Gale surfaces wiping the water from his eyes to see Philomena covering her face with a wing as Gilda explodes into laughter.
“Hahaha, sorry hahaa that just hahaha just awesome.” Gilda laughing still came up to Gale putting her talon out to him. “Here let m-ack!” Gale grabs and pulls with both paws pressing on the pool rocky side, causing her to flip over into the water, she surfaces shaking her head seeing Gale laughing back at her. “I sooo should of saw that coming.” She chuckled swimming over to the edge climbing out this time Gale taking her talon to climb out himself. “Nice one cub.”
They fist bump each other and shake the water out of the feathers and fur, Philomena squawks as the water slash over her, she looked a bit unimpressed till using her heat to vaporise the water off the feathers with a slam smirk. “Cool!”
“That is a very neat trick Feathers.” Gilda chuckled lightly. “Alright now we had our little fun, ready?”
“Yes!” Gale went over to his bag pulling out the book with a ink well and the phoenix feather. “Thanks pretty bird for bag!” Philomena squawk with a smile on her beak and flies off back to the nest.
Gilda take out of stuff. “Right Gale, we continue to improve your writing and your speech, but I do have some books from Griffonstone for you to read too, a way to compare our history what of it to Equestria's own.” Gilda pull out the books. “They not well kept so don't worry if they are torn here and there.” Gilda look at them in her talons. “I am sooo coming a lame egghead here...” She turn to Gale. “Your fault.”
Gale shrugs. “Not forcing.”
“Nah your not, I just got a soft spot for you dweeb.” Gilda put the books down walking up to him taking the quill from him. “Now watch and repeat as usually okay?”
“Okay!”
Time goes by as Gale works on his writing repeating what Gilda wrote under each of her lines, she going through his homework she gave him to do with practicing his writing during the weekend. “Not bad at all.” She flip through the pages. “At the rate he is going I wouldn't be surprised he get the claw writing down to my level.” Gilda said glancing over her shoulder to see the phoenix was back looking over it at the writing. “What do you think you dorking phoenix?”
She frowns and squawks a few times. “Don't like the way I speak to you? Tough luck.” Gilda said to the phoenix to get a few flaps of the wings and a set of different tone squawks. “Your really one weird bird.” The phoenix bows and squawks showing a smirk before flying up a branch sitting on it. “Did you ju-” Gilda rubs her talon at the bridge her her beak. “You just trolled me didn't ya?”
The phoenix bows again with a wing across her chest, Philomena laughing afterwards. “She like mum!”
“Yeah the dweeb is.” Gilda chuckled. “Gale.” He stop writing in the book looking over to Gilda. “Philomena, Phi-lo-me-na.” She says the name normally than slowly afterwards, she repeats again to him.
Gale mouths it as first and attempts it. “Ph-Ph...”
“Watch the beak and slowly follow each word I say okay?” He nods. “Phi...”
“Ph-Ph-Phi...”
“Lo...”
“Lo...
“Me...”
“Me...”
“Na...”
“Na...” Gale repeats Gilda's words and slowly take a deep breath in. “Phi... lo... me... na... Philo-Philome...na... Philomena... Philomena! Yay! Philomena! Said it said it!” He happily punch the air. “You Philomena!”
She squawks happily in response.
“Yay! Gilda happy!”
“Yep good job cub.” She gives a thumbs up to him. “You really catching on quickly Gale, not only a month ago you was mute as anything, just squawks, coos and such like Feathers here.” She hints to Philomena.
The phoenix squawks angrily at her.
Gilda just rolled her eyes at the response from Philomena. “We all got beaks you dweeb.” She afterwards squawks at Philomena with a few tweets followed by it. “Going to be continue being anger with me?” She crossed her forelegs with her own narrowed equally annoyed look upon the phoenix.
“We half bird, we with beak!” Gale tap his beak with a talon, doing some squawks. “We roar too!” He roars followed by laughter. “We funny! We roar squawk!” He continued to laugh.
Gilda had a curve in her beak showing as she tried to not laugh but fails as she laughs. “Haha good haha one haha Cub hahah!” Philomena squawks in laughter too, after a moment past Gilda pat Gale on the back. “Your a good griffon Gale, way better then me by a mile.”
Gale smiled. “Happy you happy!”
“Hehe yep happy.” She ruffled his feathered head. “Another hour of praticing your writing we work on your speaking a bit more, cool?”
“Cool!” Gale gave her a hug and goes back to his writing.
Gilda sits down against a tree opening Gale's homework book up. “That cub...”
“Indeed Prince Gale is such a unique griffon.” A majestic female voice rings out in Gilda's mind, Gilda quickly look around and looked eyes on the slightly glowing yellow eyes of Philomena, she grinning and hinting to Gilda's talon.
The griffon look down at the feather held in her talon glowing slightly. “Your so like Celestia, you troll.” The feather stop glowing and the phoenix squawks with laughter before flying off back to her nest at the gazebo. “Bucking phoenix... Your awesome and got me good, I'll get you back.” Gilda whispered under her breath.
Gale continue to copy the writing under each line on the book completely unaware what just happened.
Rainbow Dash doing her last rounds knocking out clouds out of the sky as the sun almost set, she finishing off her duties with the weather of the day. “That should do it, now to go back and practice for the Young Flyers Contest.” Rainbow Dash speeds off over Ponyville to the lake just outside of town.
While zooming over she noticed something in the corner of her right eye, instantly coming to a stop Rainbow Dash saw a sky chariot land near the spare, sitting on it was a pink pony princess she haven't seen before. “Why would a princess travel all the way from Canterlot to a dumb Spa? I bet Twilight would know who she is!”
Rainbow Dash decided to fly to the Golden Oak Library to ask Twilight, as she flew away Gilda lands next to the chariot with Gale and Sunbeam. “This is gonna be sooooo lame... I do not do girly stuff!”
“Well we made a deal and this is my terms.” Cadance smugly responded. “Also Gale tagged along with Aunties blessing.”
“Of course he would come, he doesn't know how lame Spas like this is!” Gilda said raising both talons at the Spa building. “Can we just go in, get this over with please! Sooner this is done and the sooner we can get the heck out of Ponyville! I rather not have Dash see me go in a place like this!”
Gale tilt his head. “Spas fun?”
Cadance smiled. “Oh they are.”
“No they not, you will see what I mean.” Gilda instantly responded walking to the door pushing it open and walked inside.
Sunbeam stood by the door to the Ponyville Spa. “I bet at the end of it Gilda will like it.”
Cadance shook her head. “Not taking that bet on Private Sunbeam, I know she will like it.” Cadance walks inside.
Gale walk up to the door. “Spas?” He turn his head to Sunbeam wondering if she be joining them at the Spa.
“No Prince Gale, I have to stay here, have fun.” Sunbeam salutes to him.
“Okay!” Gale nods understanding she was on duty and walk inside closing the door behind him.
Sunbeam and the fellow guard are a few seconds later blinded by a sudden flash from a teleportation spell, soon as they could see again, standing before them Twilight stood with Spike holding onto her back with a dazed look. “Is Cadance really inside!?”
“Yes Princess Cadance is in there and I can not allow you inside, this is a private spa session.” Sunbeam put a hoof up to Twilight.
“I am Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia's former student and Cadance was my foalsitter back in Canterlot when I was younger, can I with Spike go in and see her?”
Sunbeam glance to the other guards they nodding. “Very well you two may go inside.”
“Thank you!” She hugged Sunbeam and rushes inside.
Spike fell on the ground. “Ouch...” He rubbed his base of the tail. “Wait for me Twilight!” He runs inside and Sunbeam closes the door.
Sunbeam stood attention to see Rainbow Dash come flying towards them at incredible speeds to come to a dead stop hovering before her. “Did Twilight come this way?”
“Yes and no you can not go in.” Sunbeam stood firm with a wing out inside of the door.
Rainbow Dash nods her head. “That good enough for me, no way I am going in that lame place! This awesome pony got some training to do!” Rainbow Dash zooms off into the sky.
Sunbeam closed her wing up blinking a few times. “Ooookay...”