//------------------------------//
// Chapter Seven: Pride 
// Story: The Bonds of Love 
// by Summer Script 
//------------------------------//

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

Gallus groaned angrily.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

“Go away, nogriff is home!” he groggily mumbled.

“Come on, Gallus!” Ocellus shouted through the door, returning to her incessant knocking. “It’s morning, and we need to go set up for the Fair!”

Gallus sat there in silence, allowing his half-asleep brain to churn those words over and determine a response. After concluding that he had no response to give, he simply rolled back over and snuggled into his blanket and pillow, savoring their soft warmth.

“Gallus, come on!” she yelled, banging against his door once more. “We need to go! You told me not to stay up too late; don’t tell me you did yourself!”

“Ocellus, if I look out the window and the sun is still halfway beneath the horizon…!” he warned, forcing himself to sit up and rub his eyes.

She was quiet for a moment then weakly said, “It’s— The sun is up. P-Promise!”

I can’t even be mad, Gallus thought, shaking his head in exasperation. He then stood up and opened the door, moaning, “You know, Ocellus, I was having a really good dream too.”

“S-Sorry. Did you have trouble sleeping?” she asked, noticing just how baggy his eyes were.

“I had a bit of a rough night, yeah,” he yawned, vaguely recalling a visit from a certain blue alicorn. “But whatever, I’m awake now. What are you up to?”

“I’m trying to wake my partner up so we can both get our project set up as early as possible.”

“The Fair doesn’t start until this afternoon!” he protested indignantly.

“Yes, but I’m certain the judges will appreciate our timeliness. It is of utmost importance for scientists to be so, after all,” she added, presuming that would validate her argument.

“So is sleep. Go get yourself some more of that, Ocellus,” Gallus suggested, closing his door.

She held it open and pleaded, “Come on, Gallus! We need—”

“To go back to bed?”

“Gallus, please! We need to impress the judges however we can; otherwise, they might think we’re lazy or aren’t as passionate as we should be!” she claimed hysterically.

Gallus closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I don’t want to be a scientist, Ocellus,” he finally admitted, not feeling guilty in the slightest. “I know you do, and more power to you. But I don’t. So, sorry if I’m coming across as ‘lazy’ or whatever, but? Yeah.”

“O-Oh. But I thought…” she muttered, scuffing the floor nervously. Ocellus then cleared her throat and meekly apologized, “I’m sorry, Gallus. You’re not lazy; I just didn’t know you didn’t want to be a scientist.”

Wow. That was…simple! I thought this would be a way more awkward problem to deal with. Guess not, he rejoiced gratefully. “Eh, no problem,” he assuaged.

“D-Does that mean you don’t want to help me with the Fair today…?” Ocellus timidly asked.

Gallus scoffed. “What? And leave my partner hanging? No way! We both worked hard, and I’m definitely not letting you take all the credit,” he declared jokingly.

“‘Take all the credit’!? I wouldn’t dare!”

“Yeah, I know. Don’t worry, Ocellus, I’ll be down in a bit.”

“Okay. Meet you in the main foyer then,” she said, turning to trot away. However, before she did so, Ocellus looked back and asked, “Gallus? Why don’t you want to be a scientist?”

And back to being complicated and awkward. “I don’t know,” he answered, shrugging. “I just don’t think it’s something that I’d be… That I’d want to do,” he corrected himself.

“Oh. Well, far be it for me to fault you for you that.”

“Yeah, well… ‘Professor Gallus’ doesn’t exactly click for me.”

“Shame. You’d make a good one,” Ocellus casually complimented. “Anyway, I’ll start getting everything sorted out while I wait for you. I’ll see you soon.”

“Yep. See ya,” he replied, shutting the door and gazing longingly at his bed.

…

…

…

“Curse you, Ocellus,” Gallus grumbled, deciding not to immediately collapse back into the comfy warmth of his mattress. Instead, he quickly completed his morning routine and paused to stare into the mirror Sandbar had given him.

A sky blue griffon stared back at him through tired, baggy eyes.

“Eh, I don’t look that bad,” he said, grinning as he combed a talon through his headcrest again. Soon his relaxed grin faded away, replaced by a nervous grimace.

“You’d make a good one.”

“I don’t want to be a scientist…right?” Gallus asked his reflection.

Silence.

“I mean, Ocellus isn’t wrong. I would be a great one; I’m pretty smart,” he murmured proudly. “But is that really what I want to do with my life?”

“—I’ve been thinking about what I want to do after we graduate. And I’ve always liked taking care of plants and animals, so I was wondering if I should take up a career where I can do those things, you know?” Sandbar had told him mere days ago.

“What do I want to do?” he asked himself, looking away from the mirror. “I’d be a good scientist, but what would I do? Just study and test all day long?” Gallus ran his mind back over the days he and Ocellus had done exactly that for their project. “That’s fun and all, but…? For the rest of my life?” he whispered, trying to imagine himself in forty years.

Gallus ultimately drew a blank, excepting for five specific individuals he knew he wanted to still be with. Although, one in particular stood out clearer than the rest.

—And then! You can all be noticed by talent scouts, reporters, and the like. Resulting in the creation of various connections and whatnot which will allow you all to carve forth a future career in the field of acting,” Rarity’s voice echoed back to him.

“Could I be an actor?” he wondered. “The play was a lot of fun. And everycreature seemed to really enjoy our performance…”

For a griffon… Gallus shook that thought out of his head and remembered the article had also said, “—Mr. Gallus gives a phenomenal performance of the second lead protagonist, expressing and selling every last moment of selflessness, heroism, and compassion.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I rocked that play!” he celebrated confidently.

A certain somegriff clearly disagrees with that.

“Yeah, well… If— If I don’t need to know he’s proud of me, then I don’t need to know he thinks I’d be a great actor either,” Gallus tried to tell himself, scowling angrily. “I could totally be an actor if I wanted to be! And I’d be a great one!”

…

“But do I want to be one is the question?” he acknowledged, groaning in frustration. “Why don’t I know what I want to do when I graduate!? Seriously, why is this even bothering me so much!?”

Perhaps you simply wish to know because you’ve seen Yona and Sandbar figure out their own aspirations? Gallus supposed one of his teachers would have answered.

Or perhaps it’s because it reminds you that you lack your own, he knew a certain psychopath would have suggested.

Gallus snorted at the latter, muttering, “Eh, I’ll figure it out. … I hope he shows up today,” he confided to his reflection. Taking a slow breath, he sternly decreed, “Okay! Gallus, it is too early to be dwelling on all of this junk. We can deal with this later; let’s go get some breakfast first,” he decided, leaving his bedroom and trotting down the hall. 

“Today is going to be a good day,” Gallus told himself, smiling.


***


A few hours later, the Science Fair was finally in full-swing.

Scattered around the school grounds were dozens of tables, all bearing various projects and displays that their creators would explain and demonstrate to anycreature that came their way.

A multitude of both fellow students and Ponyville residents flit between each of these tables, beaming excitedly whenever something interesting caught their eye. As a result, the air was filled with the sounds of wonder, anticipation, and the occasional explosion.

And in the thick of it all were Gallus and Ocellus…

“—Of course, the teleportation magic cost will be reduced by over eighty percent so long as the caster initiates the recycling effect within the third tier,” Ocellus recited as she paced fretfully. “Why, yes! Of course I can show you; if you could kindly look to item sixty-two on the board…”

While she continued to practice for the judges, Gallus sat and awaited the next set of ponies—and hopefully one particular griffon—to visit their table, listening to her ramble all the while. It didn’t take long before he had enough of it and turned to her, calling out, “Ocellus?”

“WHAT!?” she shrieked, facing him. “Are they here!? Are they coming!? Where are they!?”

Gallus shot a swift glance over the crowd, spotting the burgundy robes of the EEA councilors. “Looks like they’re checking out whatever Lighthoof did for the Fair,” he answered simply.

“O-Oh! Well, let me know when they’re coming then.”

“Ocellus,” Gallus continued gently before she could resume panicking.

“Y-Yes?”

“Everything will be fine. Remember? Say it with me, Ocellus. Everything. Will be. Fine.”

She took a deep breath and echoed, “Everything will be fine.”

“Say it again.”

“Everything will be fine.”

“One more time.”

“Everything will be fine!”

“There ya go!” Gallus laughed. “ Don’t worry, Ocellus, the spell is good to go, and we’ve got everything written down for when they ask about it. We’ve totally got this,” he assured, giving her a confident nod.

“I know, I know… But it’s easy to say that; it’s another thing entirely to believe it,” she mumbled.

“All you have to do is be confident in yourself, Ocellus.”

“I am confident in myself,” Ocellus claimed. “I’m just not confident I’ve done everything perfectly.”

“Well, so what if it’s not perfect? Flawlessness is way too much of an expectation anyway.”

“Is… Is that a line from Perfection: The Impossible Pursuit?”

Gallus blinked and asked, “That’s a book?” If so, I want to read it.

“Mhmm. Pretty enjoyable read to be honest.”

Yep, definitely want to read it. “Well, if you’ve read it, then why are you so concerned about everything being perfect?”

“You know why…” Ocellus answered dejectedly.

“Yeah, I do. And you know something, Ocellus?” he began comfortingly.

“What?”

“You’re perfect just the way you are,” Gallus acknowledged calmly. “You and I have both done a lot of work on this project, and like I said yesterday: If these judges want to ignore all that work, they’re either stupid or jealous. Neither of which would be your fault.”

Ocellus stared at him in complete befuddlement. Eventually, her horn glowed for a second, and she perked up, asking, “Y-You really think everything will be okay? You’re not worried at all!?”

Gallus thought about it for a minute, and after shooing away more thoughts about Grandpa Gruff, he admitted, “A little. But I’m more worried about you being okay than the Fair. Even if we don’t win, I know we’ve done well. … You do too, right?”

She blinked and looked away, whispering, “I do.”

“Then be confident, Ocellus. I’m confident in you, and you should be too. Both in yourself and for yourself,” he proclaimed wisely.

“Kindness Lesson Forty-eight. A simple lesson, but an important one,” she quoted, grinning knowingly.

“Indeed.”

Ocellus soon sighed and sat down beside him, resting her head in her hooves.

“That help?” Gallus asked tentatively.

“A little. … A lot, actually. Thanks, Gallus,” she said, giving him a grateful smile.

“Anytime.”

“…I’m confident in you too, you know.”

“I should hope so; I worked hard too!”

“Yes, you did. Yes, we did. We are ready!” she declared.

“That’s the spirit, Ocellus!”

“Yeah! The hard part is keeping that spirit up, I suppose,” Ocellus contemplated.

“Yeah… Unfortunately, that tends to be the case,” Gallus concurred, turning his gaze back upon the Fair and finding a familiar pink hippogriff trotting among the ponies. “Oh! Hey! Silver! Hey, over here!” he called out eagerly.

She turned at his beckoning and swiftly darted over. “Hey, Gallus! Hey, Ocellus!” she greeted, smiling brightly. “I was looking for you two all over; how are you doing today?”

“Good. You?”

“I’m good too. Sorry I missed you at breakfast. I was going to wish you both good luck, but I didn’t see either of you…”

“Eh, we wanted to get an early start to today,” he explained, giving his partner a sly grin.

“Probably for the best to be honest,” Silver agreed, looking out into the huge crowd. “I’ve been looking for your booth for the past ten minutes.”

“We didn’t pick this spot for our project,” Ocellus clarified. “We got stuck with it because Professor Applejack was adamant we all have our own specific spots as opposed to choosing our own. … Which makes no sense!” she barked angrily.

“She wanted to have the center-most table,” Gallus elaborated to the confused Silverstream.

“Oh! Makes sense,” she said, nodding. “I’m pretty sure Neighsay stopped at that table first.”

“Chancellor Neighsay is here!?” he asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, I was surprised too! He was really busy talking to November about his project though, so I didn’t say anything.”

“November got the center table!?” Ocellus inquired, frowning indignantly. “Augh, come on!”

“Sorry, Ocellus,” Gallus and Silver said. They then giggled at having spoken simultaneously.

“Hey!” the latter began cheerfully. “Look at it this way: If you two are the last ones the judges check out, that means they were saving the best for last.”

“Yeah, I guess you could say they wanted to end the Fair with a bang,” Gallus added, smirking teasingly.

“Really?” Ocellus deadpanned. “You’re still doing the firework jokes?”

“Oh come on! There was no way I was going to pass that one up!”

She sighed exasperatedly and asked, “Anyway! What are you up to, Silverstream? How are you enjoying the Fair?”

“It’s amazing!” she sang happily. “I can’t find Yona anywhere for the life of me, but I did see what Lighthoof made for the Fair. And you need to see what November did! … Hey, wait a minute! Have either of you two seen the other projects yet?”

“Sadly, no,” Gallus bemoaned. “We’ve been stuck here waiting for the judges to show.”

“In that case, I don’t want to spoil anything for you.”

“You might as well. Something tells me neither of us are going to get a chance to see any of the other projects,” he ended, disappointed.

Ocellus appeared ready to agree; however, she noticed Silver look at her pleadingly and was unable to resist. “If you want to go check out the other projects, you can, Gallus,” she conceded.

“Wait, what?”

“If you want to go hang out with Silver around the Fair, you can go ahead and do so,” she reiterated, smiling confidently. “I can hold down the fort until the judges show.”

He blinked for a moment, processing her offer. Grover knows! I do want to hang out with Silver, but… “Are you sure, Ocellus? I don’t want to just leave you here by yourself.”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ve got this, right?”

Gallus looked to Silver and was met with a dazzling smile. He then turned back around and gave Ocellus a tight hug, saying, “Thank you!”

“No need for thanks,” she said, hugging him back. Once he let go, she assured, “I’ll be fine. You two go have fun, but just so you know? I will come and get you the moment they show up, got it?” she warned.

“Aye, aye, Captain Firework,” he said, standing and trotting to Silver’s side.

“Now that one was forced!” Ocellus reprimanded hotly. “And terrible!”

“Don’t care. Now then, milady? Shall we?” Gallus asked, offering Silverstream a talon.

“Hee-hee-hee!” she laughed, taking hold of his claw. “Lead the way, milord. Thanks, Ocellus!”

“No problem.” After they disappeared into the crowd, Ocellus sighed and leaned her head against her hoof, muttering, “Those two really are good for each other, aren’t they?” She quickly ended her musings upon the arrival of another group of ponies.


***


“Thanks for saving me from Ocellus,” Gallus said once the pair had walked out of earshot.

“No problem,” Silver said. “I’m just glad she let you go. After what you told me last night, I was a little scared she wouldn’t let you out of her sight.”

“Well, she did bang on my door first thing in the morning…”

“Is that what that noise was?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. “ I thought I was just dreaming that.”

“Nope. That was Ocellus waking me up so we could prepare as early as possible.”

“Oh geez! Not again… Sorry, Gallus. Do you think we should talk to one of our professors?”

“Nah, I think I got through to her earlier, so she should be good.”

“That’s a relief. There’s been enough worrying going on lately…”

“Yeah. Yeah…” Gallus thought for a moment before slowly saying, “I, uh, also finally told her I didn’t want to be a professor like she does.”

Silver held his gaze, softly inquiring, “And what did she say?”

“She was…surprised. I’m pretty sure she thought I actually did want to be one.”

“…Was she okay with you not wanting be?”

“Oh, yeah. I thought telling her would be a lot harder to be honest, but she just accepted it and moved on. Guess I was just overthinking things, huh?” he supposed, rubbing the back of his neck.

“‘It’s not the examination that freezes your blood and shivers your spine; it’s the anticipation leading up to it,’” Silverstream quoted wisely.

“Ha! Nice advice; where’d you get it from?”

“Yona. Although, she got it from Spike.”

“Heh-heh. Yeah, that figures. … She also said I would be a great scientist if I did want to be one,” he added hesitantly.

“That’s because you would be!” she wasted no time assuring.

“Aww, thanks, Silver!”

“No need to thank me. Just stating a fact,” she said, giving him a smug grin.

“Well, it’s a very nice fact,” he replied, nodding happily. “Ocellus would certainly approve.”

“Hee-hee. Speaking of which? How come you never told her you didn’t want to be a professor before?” Silver asked neutrally.

Gallus hesitated for a moment before muttering, “I was scared I’d hurt her feelings…”

“Awww, you’re so sweet! It’s so nice of you to care about her feelings like that, Gallus.”

“Yeah. But it probably would have been better if I had just told her a long time ago. You know? Instead of sitting on it for weeks,” he ended bitterly.

“I hear that…” she agreed, looking away sorrowfully.

“Yeah, I’ve really got to get a handle on that.” After some time, Gallus grinned and began, “Still? That’s a problem for another time. For now? I’ve got my awesome girlfriend by my side, and we’re surrounded by a bunch of cool science stuff,” he said, giving her cheek a quick nuzzle. “What say we enjoy our time at the Fair instead of dwelling on a bunch of problems?”

She giggled, joyfully returning the nuzzle and answering, “Definitely. And I know just where to start! Let’s go!”

Berry Bliss and Citrine Spark had decided to fiddle around with various different food spells in an attempt to—in the former’s words—concoct the ultimate candy.

As silly as it was, the result ended up being one humongous hunk of mouth-watering blueberry rock candy, and Gallus could never be unhappy with the existence of more blueberry rock candy. Nor could Silver for that matter, considering he had to hold her back from devouring the whole thing.

Soaring Virtue’s project was on methods of flight, from the anatomy of bird wings to the physics of hot air balloons. She had even gone so far as to draw diagrams displaying the differences between pegasus, griffon, changeling, and hippogriff wing structures.

Gallus found it mildly interesting, but Silver absolutely adored it. So much so, that by the time her curiosity was fully sated, two other couples had shown up, checked out the project, and left. Still, Silverstream’s excitement was so adorable that Gallus couldn’t bring himself to interrupt her.

Lighthoof had constructed a giant kinetic sculpture. It was satisfyingly psychedelic, but nothing Gallus found too spectacular. The fact that Silver had to physically drag him away from the item was absolutely not indicative of just how mesmerizing he truly found it.

Slate Sentiments, with the help of Maud Pie, created a model of the planet’s interior with each individual layer of crust sectioned off and explained in rigorous detail.

This time, Gallus was the one gushing over the display while Silver watched on in amusement. Luckily, he managed to keep his enthusiasm contained to fifteen minutes, and soon, they made their way to the center-most table.

Upon arriving at said destination, Gallus discovered that November Rain did indeed have one peck of an amazing project.

His table was laden with dozens of bottles, each containing their own miniature weather effect from blizzards and tornadoes, to volcanic lightning and tablecloth clouds. Gallus was utterly stunned at how well November had done, especially since he had done it all without the help of a single pegasus.

“So this is the kind of competition Ocellus and I face, eh, September Tempest?” Gallus quipped.

“Ughhh!” November moaned into his hooves. “You’re never going to forget that, are you?”

“Nope. But all jokes aside, this is awesome, November!”

“Thanks, Gallus,” he said, reacquiring his proud smile. “I was a bit worried my project wasn’t really as interesting as I thought it’d be, but if you of all creatures thinks it’s cool…? Thanks.”

Gallus was momentarily astonished by the sincerity of that comment, but he appreciated it nonetheless. “Yeah, well? I call things like I see them. And this? Is cool.”

“See? I knew you would love it!” Silverstream cheered.

“I never said I wouldn’t,” he chuckled. “So, where to next?”

“I’m not sure. These were all the different projects I saw before I found you and Ocellus. Sooo? I guess wherever we go next will be a surprise for the both of us!” she sang excitedly.

“Sweet! … So, uh, do you have any ideas?”

“Nope. Do you?”

“Hmm? I know! Hey, November? Did you know where Sandbar set his project up?”

“Yep,” he answered. “I’m pretty sure his table was four down from Smolder’s.”

His voice hitched for a second, but Gallus quickly recovered and said, “I forgot Smolder had a project too…”

“Well, she does,” November confirmed, noticing the pair’s newfound discomfort. “Not sure what it was, but I hope she finished it. She’s missed the past few Science Club meetings,” he revealed worriedly.

“She has?” Gallus asked as Silver fidgeted uncomfortably. “How come?”

“I don’t know. Shimmy says she’s fine, but Smolder’s seemed kind of down all month to be honest… Hey! You guys know her better than I do; do either of you know what’s up with her?”

After sharing an anxious glance with Silver, Gallus carefully answered, “Maybe. It’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to Smolder about for a while.”

“Phew!” November sighed in relief. “That’s good to hear. The last time I saw her, she looked more stressed-out than Vellum normally does. But if you guys know what’s going on then I know you’ll get it all sorted out.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry, November. I’ll talk to her the next time I see her,” Gallus resolved, catching Silver’s fearful stare.

“Thanks, Gallus. And thanks again for stopping by too; I’m glad you guys liked my project.”

“No problem. And like I said, you did a good job, dude! You might even be able to snag second place. Right behind me and Ocellus, of course,” he teased smugly.

“Unless I get first place,” November challenged.

Gallus chuckled lightly as he and Silver trotted away. That laughter soon died out, and he turned to Silver only to find that she appeared on the verge of throwing-up.

“Silverstream?” he began softly. “Are you—”

“You’re going to talk to Smolder, aren’t you?” she interrupted.

Gallus was quiet for a moment then murmured, “I was thinking about it… But, Silver? Before I do anything, I want to know something.”

“Mhmm?” she hummed, barely meeting his eye.

“Did you want to spend the rest of the day together? Finish exploring the Fair and everything?”

Silver blinked in surprise and stammered, “Y-You… Wait! You want to…? But I thought…? I figured you’d want to talk to Smolder now!?”

“Well? We both know it’s not good to let problems bottle up, and I like to think I finally got that lesson drilled into my head,” he sardonically confessed. “But? Our last pseudo-date got ruined too, so?”

“I don’t care about that; I care about you and what you want to do!” she argued.

“And I care about you and what you want to do,” Gallus countered smartly. “So if you want to finish our pseudo-date, we will. I can talk to Smolder later, but I want to know what you think first?”

After mulling it over, Silverstream let out a weak chuckle. “Heh-heh. I think it’s really sweet of you to care about my thoughts like that…”

“Yeah, well? I try.”

“And you succeed brilliantly,” Silver praised. “But you’re right. I… I think…” She fell silent, recalling her conversation with the dragon last night.

“Are you okay, Silverstream?”

Silver looked about ready to snap, but she let out a long, forlorn sigh instead. “I will be,” she answered unnervingly. “But to answer your question? No. I think you should go talk to Smolder.”

Gallus silently stared at her before confidently nodding. “Okay. Then I will. Are you going to be okay while I do that?”

“…Yeah,” she lied. “I’ll just go find Sandbar’s table and wait for you. Are you going to be okay?”

“I will be when I know both my friend and my girlfriend are alright,” he stated, winking playfully and drawing forth a blush.

“Yep!” she chirped. “Definitely succeeding brilliantly!”

“Good to know.”

“Hee-hee-hee. … Gallus? One thing before you go?”

“Yeah?”

“I… I…” Silver looked away, clearly debating whether to tell him something or not. She then hung her head and muttered, “It’s nothing. I just wish I could help, but…”

“Don’t worry, Silver, you don’t need to help. I’ve got this,” he promised.

“I really hope you do.”

“…Did you want to come with me and talk to her too?”

“No!” she yelped resolutely. “No… I don’t think she wants to talk to me right now.”

Gallus already suspected something had happened that Silver wasn’t telling him, and that practically confirmed it. Nonetheless, he trusted her and asked, “Well? Shall I?” one last time.

“You go ahead,” Silver said timidly. “I’ll see you later.”

“And I’ll see you later,” he said, giving her one final nuzzle before departing into the crowd.


***


After splitting up, Silverstream continued forward in search of Sandbar’s table. Luckily, it didn’t take too long before she finally found him, and to her surprise, Yona.

“Oh! Hey, Silverstream!” the latter called out happily. “Yona and Sandbar over here!”

Figures I would find Yona after something bad happened again, she lamented, hiding her frown. Silver then approached, greeting, “Hi, Yona, hi, Sandbar. How are you two doing?”

“I’m swell,” Sandbar answered casually. “I’ve had a lot of ponies stop by today to check out my project,” he ended, gesturing to the dozen potted plants resting along his table.

“And Yona has been helping Sandbar,” she added cheerfully. “How about Silverstream? Is friend doing alright too?”

“I’m…fine,” she reflexively responded, turning her attention to Sandbar’s display. “So, Sandbar? You did something with plants, huh?”

“Yep. Specifically, a study on the stimulation of plant growth,” he explained. “Each one had something different added to help it grow, and I tried to see which method was best.”

“That sounds neat,” she said, brightening slightly. “So, which one was it?”

“This one,” Sandbar answered, gesturing to the leftmost flower. “I used a plant growth potion I got from Zecora, and it bloomed literally overnight! However,” he continued, pointing to the rightmost sapling. “If you were looking for a non-magical solution, I asked for a sample of the fertilizer the Apple family uses. It may not have blossomed entirely yet, but it certainly grew the second fastest.”

“That’s pretty cool. Did you learn anything else interesting?”

“Yeah. Turns out if you ask Granny Smith for a sample of her fertilizer, you’re gonna have to sentence yourself to a week of apple-bucking before she’ll give it to you.”

“She didn’t just let you pay for it?”

“I offered, but Ms. Smith was pretty insistent,” Sandbar said, shrugging. “Gallus helped me out though, so it wasn’t too bad. Plus, I got to hear a few stories from her too,” he ended conspiratorially.

“Ooh! What kind of stories?” Silverstream asked, happy to have something mundane to focus on.

“Eh, a little of this; a little of that,” he said vaguely. “The story about her first ever date…”

Yona then nudged him and admonished, “Sandbar not supposed to talk about that!”

“I told you!”

“That because there no secrets between us!” she boasted proudly.

“Yeah, but she asked!”

“Well, Sandbar shouldn’t have given Silver reason to ask!”

“Okay, fair enough,” he conceded as his girlfriend grinned victoriously.

Silver’s smile became considerably more strained as she wistfully mumbled, “You both really love each other, don’t you?”

“Yep!” they both confirmed joyously.

“Aww, I’m so happy for you two!” she commented honestly, hoping her jealousy didn’t register in her voice. I bet their dates never get interrupted all the time…

“Thanks, Silverstream,” Sandbar said softly. “Say? What about you and Gallus? Were you looking for him and Ocellus?”

“No, I already found them. Ocellus even let Gallus go so we could explore the Fair together! Of course, that didn’t end well. … As usual, apparently,” she groused, frowning miserably.

Sandbar and Yona shared a concerned glance, and after a nod from Yona, Sandbar stood up and proclaimed, “You know? We’re kinda slow right now, and it’s already lunchtime… I think I’ll go get some grub. Either of you want anything?”

Thank you for the situational awareness, Sandbar. “I’ll just have some water if that’s not too much trouble,” Silver muttered.

“Yona would like same thing.”

“Got it. … Do you girls want that water soon, or…?”

“Sandbar can take time,” Yona assured, giving him a knowing look.

Translation: This will be a while, Silver realized, feeling a mixture of shame and frustration.

“Gotcha. See you in a bit.”

And with that, Sandbar was off, leaving the two girls alone to chat. Silver opened her beak to speak, but no words came out, so she simply groaned and laid her head against the table, crestfallen.

That motion was what triggered Yona to make the next move. After stepping around the table and consolingly patting her back, Yona requested, “Okay, Silverstream, tell Yona what happened.”

“I’m not even sure where to start,” she said, pulling her face up from the table to give Yona a tired stare. “There’s so many different problems, and I don’t know how to fix any of them!”

“Well, try telling Yona one at a time,” she suggested soothingly. “Yona will listen.”

Silver hesitated for just a bit longer before admitting, “I got into a fight with Smolder.”

“Oh,” Yona yelped, caught completely off-guard. “Wow. Something definitely wrong if Silverstream get in fight with friend.”

“W-Well, we didn’t get in a fight fight!” she weakly protested. “It was just, er, a little, uh, misunderstanding? … Kind of?”

Yona cocked an eyebrow and asked, “What was misunderstood?”

“…You know how Smolder has been angry at Gallus ever since I told you all what happened?” Yona nodded. “Well, Headmare Starlight said that there is a reason why she’s so mad.”

“That make more sense than there being no reason. Does Silver know what reason is?”

“No. I asked, but Starlight didn’t think Smolder was ready to talk about it yet.”

“But Silverstream try talking to Smolder about it anyway?” Yona guessed.

“Uh-huh. Can you blame me? All this time I thought Smolder was just being a jerk to Gallus for no reason! I was angry at her!” she confessed regretfully. “I didn’t like being angry at her…”

“Yona not like being angry at friends either,” she agreed wholeheartedly. “So Yona understand.”

“Yeah, but then Smolder showed up when we had that movie night, so I thought that maybe she was getting over whatever was going on! That… That everything was going back to normal. A-And I didn’t want to keep being angry at her, so I tried to talk to her. I just wanted to talk,” she repeated, her voice weary. “I wasn’t sure what I was going to say, but…”

“Hey!” Yona blurted out, looking Silver directly in the eye. “Silver did the right thing!”

“But I haven’t finished—”

“Yona not care! Silver try to make up with Smolder and not stay angry at friend! That not a bad thing!”

“I know that, Yona, but… But I freaked her out!”

Yona tilted her head in confusion and asked, “Silver freak Smolder out? How?”

“I don’t know!” she bemoaned, hiding her eyes behind her talons. “It all happened so fast, and…! We got to talking about some ‘friend’ she has in the Dragon Lands, and then she asked if Gallus was better and if we were happy, and then she started freaking out because I admitted I was paranoid…!” she rambled off, tearing up. “And then…! And then…!”

“Shh, it’s okay, Silver,” Yona whispered reassuringly. She gently pulled Silver’s talons away and asked, “And then what?”

Silver quivered as she shakily answered, “Smolder— Yona, she looked— She looked like Gallus did when I found him in Cozy’s room.”

“…Oh.”

“I…” Silver continued, pulling her talons away from Yona and clutching them at her heart. “I didn’t know what to do, Yona! Smolder seemed so scared, but… But I didn’t know what to do! I wanted to help, but she just asked me to leave, and I… I did! I shouldn’t have left, but…! I didn’t know what to do!” she shrieked, cursing her ignorance.

“Silverstream, it will be—”

“I don’t understand, Yona! What’s happening to us; why is nothing okay anymore!?” Silver whimpered, choking up. “I-I just wanted to m-make up with my friend! I— I just want all my friends to be happy! B-But we’re all— We’re all— Everything is messed up and—”

Yona pulled her friend into a soft hug that Silverstream immediately leaned into, wrapping her wings around her friend and falling silent. She cried into Yona’s fur for a few minutes before Yona pulled away and raised Silver’s chin up.

“Yona sorry Silverstream going through so much. And Yona promise to help friend any way Yona can!” she swore confidently. “But…? Yona think first thing Silver should do is…”

“Stay optimistic?” Silver guessed sarcastically.

Yona nodded quietly.

“Yeah, yeah… I know. And I want to be optimistic, Yona; I really do! But it’s just so hard to be that when practically every day something new happens that ruins everything! Friends and Family Day, Discord, Scoop at the gallery, and now this!? Gallus and I were supposed to be having fun today, not dealing with—” She sighed and grumbled, “It’s just really hard to be hopeful lately…”

“Yona understand,” she promised, keeping a comforting hoof on Silver’s shoulder. “Silver not wrong to be afraid, but Silver must also remember to not let fear become paranoia again.”

“I know, and I’m not paranoid! I’m just…” Silverstream tried to search for anything to say that perfectly described her current feelings. She didn’t, so she settled for saying, “I just want everything to go back to normal. Is that wrong?”

“No. That not wrong at all.”

Silver sniffled and wiped her eyes dry. Once that was accomplished, she smiled faintly and said, “Thanks, Yona. You’re… You’re right. I’m tired of being worried all the time, and that’s okay. … It’s okay that I don’t want to be worried,” she declared more to herself than Yona. “So…? Even if there is some horrible catastrophe on the horizon?” Silver gave Yona an appreciative smile and said, “I’m going to hope for the best and trust everything will be okay.”

“Yona certainly think that good idea,” she agreed, nodding encouragingly. “Yona also think it good idea for Silver to tell Yona what else wrong so Yona can help friend figure problems out.”

Silver took a deep breath and let out a significantly calmer sigh. “Right! Well, Gallus said he fixed the issue with Ocellus, so that’s not a problem anymore,” she remembered. “So, not counting Smolder? I think the first issue we need to solve has to do with Grandpa Gruff,” she decided.

“Okay. What problem with Grandpa Gruff?” Yona asked neutrally.

“I’m not sure if you knew about this, but Gallus wanted him to be there to see our play,” Silver disclosed quietly. “Gallus even sent Gruff letters asking him to come, but he didn’t.”

“Yona know. Gallus also wanted Gruff here today too.”

“Wait, what!?”

“Mhmm. Sandbar told Yona that Gallus even ask Gabby to ask him personally to be here for Fair.”

Gallus didn’t tell me that part, Silver thought uncomfortably. “In that case, what exactly should we do about that?”

“Hmm,” Yona hummed thoughtfully. “Yona not sure. Gallus want Grandpa Gruff to be proud of him; that why he want him to be here. Yona know that, but… If Grandpa Gruff here today, Yona not see him,” she mumbled morosely. “Has Silverstream?”

Silver racked her brain for even the slightest glimpse of the elderly griffon; unfortunately, she drew a blank and shook her head, answering, “I haven’t seen any other griffons here. Not Gilda, not Gabby; not Gruff… Do you think something happened, or…?”

Yona just frowned.

“Oh… Do you think we could make it to Griffonstone, convince Gruff to come back with us, and make it back in time before the Fair ends?” Silver suggested weakly.

“Yona not think that good plan,” she said bluntly.

“Yeah. Maybe in a different timeline,” she remarked dryly. After a brief stretch of silence, Silver considered, “Well, Gallus hasn’t said anything to me about Gruff today, so… Maybe he’s okay with Gruff not being here, after all?”

“Or Gallus simply not know?” Yona countered, wincing upon seeing Silver’s dejection. “O-Or maybe Silverstream simply distract Gallus from that fact!” she hurriedly proposed.

“That doesn’t really help, Yona…”

“No! That not what Yona mean!” she protested adamantly. “Yona mean Gallus enjoy Silver’s company so much that Gruff not being here not matter to him!”

Silverstream blinked, feeling her cheeks flush. She then grinned and bashfully asked, “You think that’s a possibility? Or do you really think Gallus simply doesn’t know Gruff isn’t here?”

“Yona not know. Maybe both, but if that true, Yona certainly know which one more important.”

Silver blushed even more. “W-Well, even if that’s the case, I guess now we need to figure out what to do about Smolder. She said she was fine, and I want to trust that she is, but…”

Yona nodded firmly and said, “Tell Yona everything from beginning.”

“Okay. So, when I finally worked up the courage to go and talk to her—”

“Hey, girls?” Sandbar’s voice suddenly interrupted them.

Of course, Silver sneered, slumping in defeat. Yona, meanwhile, scowled at her boyfriend and scolded, “Sandbar! Yona ask for time alone with Silver!”

“I-I know, and I’m sorry,” he said, flinching under her angry gaze. “It’s just… I’m not sure if you noticed, but the judges look like they’re wrapping up, and—”

That was all the provocation Silver needed to unfurl her wings and race back to where Ocellus and Gallus had set their project up. Yona and Sandbar didn’t even hesitate before giving chase.


***


Grover, help me! I don’t know what I’m doing! Gallus panicked as he slowly trotted forward through the crowd, searching for his friend.

“What am I even supposed to say? ‘Hey, Smolder, long time, no see! So, I heard from November that you’ve been upset lately? Are you okay?’ … Ugh! No, that’s a terrible idea!” Gallus rebuked, face-clawing appropriately. “C’mon, Gallus, think! What would my professors suggest I do?” After some consideration, he knowingly answered, “Talk to her, probably. Can’t exactly say that isn’t good advice though. Let’s just hope she talks to me too…”

It didn’t take much longer before he finally stumbled upon Smolder; although, he certainly wasn’t expecting to see her facing away from the crowd with her snout buried in a book.

Upon hearing him approach, she growled, “Just read the sign and be on your merry way!” without turning around.

“‘It’s just a cup of dirt; deal with it,’” he read, staring down at what was indeed a cup of dirt.

Smolder fell out of her chair, dropping her book in the process. She then quickly stood back up and shrieked, “Gallus!? I, uh, didn’t see you there!”

Here we go… “You were turned around and reading,” he assuaged warmly. “Trust me, I know what it’s like to get sucked into a good book. Sorry for scaring you.”

“D-Don’t be sorry! It’s totally fine!” Smolder argued, waving her claws dismissively. “I just need to pay more attention, heh-heh-heh…”

“No, no. You’re good, Smolder.”

…

…

…

“Sooo, how’ve you been?” Gallus asked cordially.

“I’m great! Just a bit busy!” she yelped, straining to keep her smile. “How about you?”

“Eh, I’m hanging in there.” For some reason, that response seemed to make Smolder bite her lip nervously, so he added, “I’ve been a little busy myself.”

“Oh, y-yeah? What’s been going on? What’s wrong?”

“Uh, nothing’s wrong,” Gallus clarified, trying not to worry any more than he already was.

“O-Oh. Sorry,” Smolder murmured. “Sorry, I-I didn’t mean to assume… It’s just… I’ve, uh, I’ve been really distracted today,” she went with. “Sorry.”

So that’s what that feels like, he contemplated, taking note of the repeated apologies. “You don’t have to apologize, Smolder; you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Well, uh… Thanks, I guess,” she said, blinking in confusion.

“Of course. So, anyway,” Gallus resumed. “I wanted to thank you for watching our play the other night. I meant to say that earlier, but I, er, forgot.”

Smolder froze as she processed the radical change in subject. Eventually, she affirmed, “You don’t need to thank me, Gallus.”

“I know. But I wanted to say it anyway. So, thank you, Smolder, for taking the time to watch us be awesome.”

Cheering up slightly, she said, “Well, it was totally worth it; you guys were awesome!”

“I know,” he acknowledged smugly.

“Yeah, you and the others looked like you had a lot of fun too.”

“You bet we did; it was great!” Except for the part where Gruff didn’t show, but that’s a problem for another time. “Although, getting swarmed by reporters afterward wasn’t so hot.”

“You got swarmed by reporters?” Smolder asked, letting out a dry chuckle.

“Yeah. Took Starlight and Twilight an hour to get through ‘em all. Of course, Vellum absolutely adored the attention, so it wasn’t all bad.”

“…Vellum’s the guy that made November quit, right?” she asked tentatively.

“Yep.”

“And… You have to hang around that guy all the time, don’t you?”

Okay, I know where this is going. “Mhmm. He’s actually pretty cool once you get to know him,” Gallus defended. “Although, he’s ridiculously stress-prone, so you gotta be careful about that.”

“Wait, what? From how November and Shimmy talked about him, I thought…” she trailed off.

“I’m not really sure how he was like with November. I’ve heard horror stories, but the guy has seriously mellowed out from what the others have said. Plus, he’s been seeing Starlight lately too, so that’s reassuring.”

“Oh.” Smolder twiddled her claws sheepishly, continuing, “So, he’s not upset— I mean! So, he’s not making you want to quit Drama Club too, right? Not like November?”

“Not really.”

“So, you are having fun in Drama Club then? Nothing going wrong, or anything…? Just good, old-fashioned fun?” she inquired carefully.

“I’m not sure how fun can be ‘old-fashioned,’ but yeah,” he said, relieved to see Smolder smile slightly. She hasn’t been worried about what I think she’s been worried about, has she?

“That’s good.” Smolder then frowned and slowly requested, “May I ask you something?”

“Sure!” he answered enthusiastically.

“Have you…always wanted to be an actor?”

Oh peck! Not this! “Actually…? No. I never have before, and to be honest? I still don’t,” he elaborated, holding back a bitter grimace.

“Really? But I thought…? Because you said it was really fun…?” Smolder then flinched and hurriedly promised, “I-I mean! I totally understand; I’m not judging you or anything!”

“Don’t worry about it, Smolder,” he placated calmly. “Seriously, I’m fine! I promise.”

Smolder’s fearful expression melted away into somberness as she muttered, “I believe you.”

I really hope you do… “Thanks, Smolder.”

“So, um, why didn’t you want to be an actor? I-If you don’t mind me asking.”

“I don’t mind,” Gallus assured. “But I can’t really give you an answer. I just don’t want to.”

“But you’re crazy good at it! You know that…right?”

Not good enough for Gruff apparently. “You bet I do,” he answered, winking. “And I do have a lot fun doing it. It’s just not something I see myself spending the next forty years of my life doing. If that makes any sense,” he ended with a timid shrug.

Gallus swore he saw Smolder breathe a sigh of relief before she said, “Oh. Yeah, don’t worry, it does. I’m just glad you do have fun acting,” she added, smiling properly for once.

“Thanks. I’m glad I’m having fun too.” After some deliberation, he asked, “But what about you? Have you been having fun in Science Club with your cup of dirt?”

“Blegh!” she moaned, shooting the item a disgusted look. “No, I hate that thing! I wanted to do an actual project, but I kinda…ran out of time,” she lamented, rubbing her shoulder nervously.

“Sorry, Smolder. What happened?”

“I, uh, got distracted with something else,” Smolder answered, shooting a worried glance at her psychology book. “I-It’s nothing important or anything! And I… I think I’ve got everything sorted out now…hopefully,” she ended, looking at him strangely.

Okay, seriously! What has been going on with her; what have I missed!? Gallus didn’t exclaim, choosing to instead say, “That’s great. Good to know everything’s okay, right?”

“…Yeah. Yeah, it is,” Smolder agreed quietly.

“Sorry again about your project though.”

“Don’t be sorry; it’s not your fault! I should have practiced better time management.”

“Well, don’t beat yourself over it. If it helps? Bringing in a cup of dirt was going to be my backup plan for the science project if I hadn’t teamed up with Ocellus,” he whispered conspiratorially.

She snorted and asked, “Really?”

“Same. Exact. Plan,” Gallus confirmed with a nod. “Although? I was also planning to hide from the teachers in the bathroom.”

“I got caught by Professor Rarity,” she explained grumpily.

“Ah. How badly did she rip into you?”

“Enough that if I hear the word darling again today, I’m going to break something.”

“Sorry to hear that, darling,” Gallus couldn’t resist saying.

Smolder just glared at him, deadpanning, “Okay, I know I set myself up for that, but you didn’t have to take the opportunity!”

“Fair point. But I wanted to, so I did.”

“You’re lucky you’re my friend; otherwise, I would totally throw my book at you,” Smolder joked. She then realized what she said and made to backtrack, but Gallus spoke up first.

“Aww! Thanks, Smolder, I’m happy I’m your friend.”

She blinked hard then casually replied, “And I’m happy you’re mine.”

A somewhat serene silence fell between them as they reflected on each other’s declarations. Soon, Gallus broke it by wondering, “So, what was your original project about?”

Smolder’s eyes sparkled excitedly as she replied, “I was going to talk about the stars!”

“Really?”

“Yeah! I… I’ve always really liked stars,” she bashfully revealed. “And there’s so much stuff about them that half the school probably doesn’t even know.”

“I didn’t know you had a thing for big balls of flaming space gas,” he said, smirking.

“Well, I do. On clear nights back home, you could see the stars better than even here in Ponyville,” Smolder recounted blissfully. “I always wanted to know what they were like when I was a kid.”

“And I just told you! They’re big balls of flaming space gas.”

“Oh, shut up,” she playfully ordered. “Don’t tell me you never wondered what it was like up there in space. How it all worked or how everything looked like from up there…”

“Can’t say that I did. Griffonstone isn’t exactly the kind of place that encourages you to stargaze.” Or at all.

“Neither is the Dragon Lands to be honest,” she reluctantly concurred. “I love my home, but strength and competition tend to matter more than beauty and grace. … Kinda makes me glad that Dragon Lord Ember sent me here,” Smolder said slowly. “Things may have been simpler back home, but at least here, I don’t have to worry about being sneered at for liking tea parties and dresses.”

“Wait! You? Afraid of being sneered at for liking something? Get outta here!”

“Hey! I’d whoop their tails in a heartbeat if anyone did that!” she proclaimed hotly. She then looked down and continued, “But… It wouldn’t really feel nice if they did sneer at me like that.”

“Yeah. I can understand that…”

“I’m sorry about Griffonstone, Gallus,” Smolder suddenly mumbled.

His first instinct was to tell her not to be, but after a quick round of rumination, Gallus smiled and said, “Thanks, Smolder. Sorry about the Dragon Lands.”

“Don’t be sorry; the Dragon Lands is awesome! It’s just that some parts of it are more awesome than others,” she acknowledged, shrugging weakly.

“A lot of places are like that.” Can’t say the same for Griffonstone though, Gallus thought spitefully. That place is pure misery through-and-through; no way can Gilda and Gabby fix it.

Smolder stared at him for a moment before smiling peacefully and adding, “Plus, if Ember hadn’t dragged me out here, I wouldn’t have gotten to meet you and everycreature else.”

“I’m glad to have met you too, Smolder,” he celebrated.

Smolder just rolled her eyes and laughed softly.

Yes, yes, yes! Gallus rejoiced in the following silence. Smolder and I are still friends, and—aside from a few lingering issues—everything is normal between us again! Eventually, he slowly said, “You know, Smolder? I never you knew you liked astronomy so much.”

“And I never knew you liked opening wormholes in space-time,” she fired back.

“That’s a glorious over-simplification.”

“But is it wrong?”

“…Not entirely. But still, I really had no clue you wanted to be the first dragon in space.”

She snickered, protesting, “Oh, stop it, Gallus! I don’t want to go to space!”

“You sure? ‘Smolder: Dragon Space-Adventurer Extraordinaire’ has a nice ring to it,” he teased.

“Yeah, yeah,” she grumbled, chortling heartily. “But I can’t go to space even if I wanted to.”

“You sure about that? Pretty sure the Tree of Harmony could hook us up with some rainbow lasers. That’d get you to the moon pretty quickly.”

“And how would I get back down?”

“You could borrow some of Trixie’s fireworks?”

“Ohhh no! Never again!” Smolder declared, shaking her head firmly. “Seeing the world from up there is not worth that! No! It! Isn’t!”

“Fair enough. Thankfully, if you wanted to see what our planet looks like, we do have pictures.”

“Yeah, and most of them are just artists’ depictions, not the real deal,” she countered. “…Can you imagine that, Gallus? Seeing our planet from up there? What would it even look like?”

“Probably like a giant blue sphere with splotches of green. Although, it would certainly be something,” he agreed, feeling a slight sense of wonder himself.

“‘Something’ wouldn’t even begin to describe it! I bet it’d be so beautiful, you’d never be able to forget what it looked like! … I’d never forget what it’d look like,” she mumbled, downcast.

Gallus took notice of her sudden change in mood and quietly asked, “Hey, are you okay?”

“Huh! Oh! Uh, yeah! Yeah, I’m fine,” she claimed. “I’m just…” Smolder gulped and hesitantly confided, “I’m just kinda sad that I’ll never really get to see our world that way.”

“You never know, Smolder,” he said, hoping to lift her spirits back up. “Now that Princess Twilight is the ruler of Equestria, maybe she’ll figure out a way to visit space without the need for supercharged banishment spells?”

“Maybe… But I doubt it’ll happen in my lifetime.”

“Says the dragon with a life expectancy in the quadruple digits,” he joked.

Smolder’s entire expression blanked as she wordlessly scraped her claws against the table, leaving deep gouges in its surface.

That wasn’t the right thing to say! Gallus realized fearfully. “Uh, Smolder? Are you okay?”

“…Yeah,” she answered airily, not looking at him. Before he could say anything more, she shook her head, coming back to her senses. “O-Oh, yeah! Don’t worry, I’m fine.”

“But—”

“I’m fine!” she shouted, wincing afterward. “Really… I’m fine, Gallus.”

Please don’t tell me that one stupid wisecrack just screwed everything up again!? Gallus dreaded as he slowly said, “I’m sorry if I upset you, Smolder; I didn’t mean anything by the joke…”

“Y-You didn’t upset me, Gallus!” she yelled as her eyes widened in worry. “Promise!”

Drop it! Drop the subject now! “Okay, I believe you. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“And I am okay; I’m totally fine!” Smolder swore, laughing nervously. “I’m just, uh… I’m just mad that I ran out of time for my project. That’s all. I really did want to talk about the stars…”

Seizing the chance, Gallus suggested, “Well, I’m right here. If you still want to regale me with the wonders of giant, flaming balls of space gas, I’m listening.”

She opened her maw, clearly about to do exactly that. However, she slowly closed it and sighed, “Thanks, but nah. I’d go on for hours if I did, and don’t you need to get back to Ocellus soon?”

No! I’m not getting pushed away this time! Gallus vowed, arguing, “Ocellus said she’d come and get me if the judges showed up, and even if she didn’t, I trust her to explain our project to them. Besides, I really do want to hear you talk about the stars,” he ended encouragingly.

Smolder looked completely dumbstruck by that request, and soon, she softly asked, “Really?”

“Sure! If you like talking about them, then go ahead. I like listening to you.”

“W-Well…” Smolder took in just how eager he seemed and smiled herself. “I guess I can talk to you for a little bit longer… I mean? It’s not as if anycreature else is going to show up,” she acknowledged, angrily knocking over her cup of dirt.

“Heh-heh. Probably. The only creature who would show up is Ocellus, but she’s probably—”	

Just then, a large ring of turquoise fire erupted beside them, revealing a panting Ocellus who immediately sprinted over to them in a panic.

“Right. There. Because of course she is…” Gallus growled, face-clawing.

“Gallus, there you are!” she announced, stopping at their table and catching her breath. “Where have you been!? I’ve been looking for you all over the place! The judges are on their way, and Silver, Sandbar, and Yona have already shown up, and… Oh, hello, Smolder,” she said, blinking in surprise.

“Hey, Ocellus,” she replied with a weak, little wave. “Let me guess? Come to collect your partner for the judges?”

“Uh, yeah. Pretty much. … Was I interrupting something?”

“Well, Smolder was just about to tell me all about her awesome project,” Gallus said, not bothering to hide his annoyance.

Ocellus stole a glance at the cup of dirt, raised an eyebrow at the awkwardly shrugging Smolder, and finally turned back to Gallus, asking, “Do you want me to talk to the judges without you?”

“No!” Smolder answered for him. “No, Gallus can totally go with you, Ocellus. Don’t let me keep you,” she ended timidly.

“But—”

“Don’t worry, I’ll just talk to you later.” Seeing that Gallus wasn’t nearly satisfied with that response, she added, “Seriously, go with Ocellus. I’ll be fine.”

Starting to wonder if Silver is right about the world really wanting everything stay screwed up, he fumed. “Alright. But I’ll hold you to that.”

“Heh. Understood. Now, you guys go and show those judges how smart you two are!” Smolder commanded happily.

Light-bulb! “Better yet! Did you want to come and see our project too?” Gallus asked hopefully.

“Uh?” One moment of indecision later, she nodded and answered, “You know what? Sure!”

Yes! Oh thank Grover! “Alright then. You ready, Ocellus?”

“I’ve been ready for the past thirty seconds, let’s go!” she beckoned, igniting her horn and summoning another circle of magical flames.


***


“—And that is absolutely everything,” Ocellus concluded, barely keeping up her nervous smile.

The judges exchanged short glances with each other, and a short, elderly stallion declared, “Well, I think we’ve seen everything we needed to.” He then made a note on his clipboard and said, “Thank you for your time, Mr. Gallus and Ms. Ocellus.”

“No problem, sir,” Gallus replied, giving Ocellus a wary glance from behind his confident grin. “We’re just glad you liked it.”

“Hmm. That we did,” he assured, nodding firmly. “Now, come along, everypony. It’s been a long day, and we still need to determine the victors.”

“Oh, hush!” one of his fellows jokingly rebuked. “It hasn’t been that long of a day; you just want to go home and relax.”

“You’re darn tootin’ I do! I’m planning to retire soon, all this travel and judging ain’t good for my old bones!”

“‘Old bones’? Seriously? Old-timer, I’ve seen you dance for two hours straight!”

“When!?”

“Remember Princess Cadence’s wedding all those years back? Luna and you tore up the dance floor the second that Pinkie Pie mare started playing Disco music.”

“No, no, no! You’re thinking of somepony else, my boy!”

“I was there! I saw you! I even caught a picture of you!”

“…No, you didn’t.”

The ponies continued to bicker as they trotted away; however, one judge in particular remained behind and gave the pair an encouraging smile.

“I just wanted to once again congratulate both of you for a job well done,” the white-coated stallion said. “I must confess that I did not expect you two could have such a comprehensive understanding of how our magic works…”

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Gallus conciliated. “I wouldn’t expect me to know the first thing about magic either,” he said, combing a talon through his headcrest.

“Yes, well…? I still feel it was wrong of me to presume such a fact. Not possessing a horn does not necessarily mean you lack the knowledge of those who do. And for that I am sorry.”

“Told you!” Silverstream not-so-subtly exclaimed. Yona then shushed her, so she ducked her head and whispered, “Sorry.”

“Heh-heh,” the stallion laughed. “Also? Ms. Ocellus, I’d like to applaud you as well. Not just for your knowledge, but also for your impeccable spellwork. Truly, I find myself most impressed by how you accounted for differences between unicorn and changeling magics. Not many do.”

“O-Oh! Oh, no-no-no! That wasn’t that important; I could have created the model with purely changeling magic, no problem,” she stressed worriedly.

“I’ve no doubt. Still? It is deserving of the utmost praise. Why…! I haven’t seen such fine magic crafting in years! Keep it up, and I daresay you’ll surpass even Princess Twilight herself.”

Ocellus let out a little squeak and blushed vibrantly. “Th-Th-Thank you!”

“You need not thank me; I am merely expressing my pride in you. Both of you,” he added, giving Gallus that same kind smile. “I look forward to seeing what else you two do in the future.”

They shared a knowing glance, and Gallus answered, “So are we.”

“Hey! Neighsay!” beckoned one of the other ponies. “We need your input on something!”

“You need not be so impatient,” he retorted curtly.

“Tell that to the old guy!”

Neighsay sighed and said, “It appears I am needed elsewhere for now. It was nice seeing all of you again. I hope you all have a great rest of your day. Oh, and now that I have the chance? Congratulations on your theatrical performance, Mr. Gallus, Ms. Silverstream, and Ms. Yona. You all did marvelously,” he praised. He then gave the group a short bow before trotting away too.

…

…

…

Ocellus and Gallus both let out long sighs of relief. The former then proceeded to steady her breathing while the latter rubbed his temples, lamenting, “Why, Ocellus!? Why did they ask about the maximum passenger capacity!?”

“I knew it! I knew they were going to ask it! I even told you they were going to ask it!”

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry about freezing up on you when they asked about the shield modification…”

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I handled that part myself, so I don’t blame you for not knowing the answers to their questions,” she comforted. “I’m sorry I hadn’t gone over it with you just in case.”

“No problem, Ocellus. … We did good though, right?” he murmured, knowing full-well that they had but asking anyway.

“You did amazing!” Silverstream squealed, immediately grabbing him in a warm hug.

“Yona agree with Silverstream!” she said, scooping the three into her own, gentler-than-usual embrace. “Friends do just fine explaining their project!”

“Yeah!” Sandbar joined in. “For once, even I was actually able to keep up with what you were saying. Well? At least until the magic-conversion thing came up, and then I got completely lost.”

“Should I explain it to him, or you?” Gallus asked his partner.

“We’ll explain it later,” Ocellus decided, yawning widely. “Contrary to that one judge’s opinion, it has been a long day. I can’t wait for them to announce the winners and go to bed…”

“I hear that,” Smolder spoke up. She then shrank back a little once all of their attention was on her. “Uh… What? It’s been a long day, and I had a rough night!”

“Were you nervous about the Fair?” Sandbar asked normally. “I was up all night worrying too.”

“Y-Yeah. I’ve been worried about the Fair…” Smolder decided to say. “How about all of you though? I’ve, er, been a bit busy lately, so how has everything been going with you guys?”

“Yona and friends been doing well,” she promised on everyone’s behalf. “How about Smolder? Has Smolder been doing okay too?” Yona inquired, shooting a half-second glance at Silver.

“Just busy,” she repeated, kicking a stray pebble away. “Lots of reading, and…stuff.”

“For your science project?” Sandbar guessed.

Oh, Sandbar, why do say things? Gallus pondered, barely not face-clawing.

“Eh, a little of this and that,” she deflected.

“And… How’s that going, Smolder?” Silver asked timidly.

Smolder gave the hippogriff a worried look before answering, “Better than it was last night, that’s for sure. How about you?”

Silverstream briefly paused before smiling brightly and saying, “I’m doing fine too. Also, better than last night,” she added softly.

Okay, seriously, what the peck did I miss!? Gallus wanted to ask the duo. From the look on Sandbar’s face, the pony wanted to ask something similar, but he was luckily stopped by Yona. Unluckily, he decided to ask something different instead.

“By the way, Smolder? How’d your project go?”

Gallus couldn’t hold back the face-claw that time, earning a confused stare from the others.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Smolder grumbled, angrily folding her claws against her chest.

“Oh. Okay.”

“Yeah, thanks. … So, uh? Who do you think is going to win?” she asked, a note of excitement in her voice.

“Oh, Smolder! I think we all know who’s going to win,” Silver tittered, giving Gallus and Ocellus a wink. “A better question is who else is going to win?”

“November,” Gallus stated plainly. “Definitely November.”

“Speaking of which, what was his project on and why did he get the center table!?” Ocellus demanded indignantly.

“Oh, you should have seen it, Ocellus!” he started. “Okay, so you guys remember how November had this giant collection of bottles, right?”

For the second time in recent weeks, the group of friends chatted away happily without a care in the world. Silverstream’s cheerful smile was on full display, and even Smolder joked and laughed with the rest of them again. And as the sun began to finally set on the horizon, Gallus sighed in contentment, feeling happier than he had in a long time.

Everything is finally back to normal.

His thoughts and their conversation were then abruptly interrupted by a sudden turquoise flash illuminating the sky.

“Attention, everycreature!” roared Starlight Glimmer’s magically amplified voice. “The judges have made their decisions! Please convene in the western courtyard, thank you!”

“Whelp, we better get going,” Gallus said, standing up and draping a soft wing around his girlfriend. The action earned both a giggle and a blush.

“Yep. Time to see you two outdo literally everycreature else.”

“Technically, we’re not sure if we will win, Smolder,” Ocellus bluntly corrected.

“Wanna bet?”

“No. But thank you for the confidence, I really appreciate it,” she acknowledged.

“No problem. Not like it’s hard to be confident when it’s you two, after all,” she said without the slightest hesitation, unknowingly making Gallus smile even more.

“Hey,” Silver whispered as they gathered in the aforementioned courtyard. “You look happy.”

“That’s ‘cause I am,” he explained, giving her cheek a small kiss.

Her entire face burned crimson as she fought off a round of jubilant laughter. Fortunately for the both of them, it was at that point Starlight began her speech.

“Thank you, one and all, for participating in this year’s Science Fair!” she proclaimed, her voice still amplified. “As always, I am proud of each and every one you for all you did for today. Whether you spent months working tirelessly on your projects or simply stopped by to check them all out. Thank you. If it were up to me, everyone would receive one of these medals, but even though only three of these will be awarded, just know that all of you are victors in my book!” she ended, innocently oblivious to how corny she sounded.

Heh. I’d pay to see Gilda’s reaction to that last line, Gallus thought. His smile fell somewhat as he cast a quick look around, finally remembering a rather unfortunate fact. Oh. Right…

“So! Without further ado,” Starlight resumed, reading the results of the judges. “In third place…! For her excellent, and stunningly thorough research into the science and methods of flight, we award Soaring Virtue the bronze medal!”

The mare in question jumped into the air, squealing excitedly as she zipped over to her Headmare, receiving her award to the sound of booming applause.

“In second place…! For his outstanding work in unicorn-based weather manipulation, we award November Rain the silver medal!”

The members of Drama Club cheered the loudest as the awestruck stallion stumbled his way up to the front, clearly unsure if he had heard right. Of course, once the medal was placed around him, his uncertainty vanished and he practically broke down into joyful tears then and there.

“And lastly…!”

Despite his confidence, Gallus still gulped as Starlight paused dramatically. Moment of truth…

“And lastly!” Starlight loudly declared as as her eyes locked onto him and Ocellus. “In first place…! For their fantastic work in creating a brand new teleportation spell, we are pleased to award the gold medal to Gallus and Ocellus!” she ended, beaming proudly.

“I told you!” Smolder shouted happily as she and the rest of their friends cheered the duo on while they went onstage to claim their prize. A quick flash of Starlight’s magic later, and they both wore identical golden medals.

Gallus looked down at his own, shared a disbelieving-yet-elated smile with his partner, then turned out to the crowd as Starlight announced, “And with that, I present to you: The winners of this year’s Science Fair! Thank you for coming; now let’s give them a big round of applause, everycreature!”

The entire crowd stamped, shouted, whistled, and clapped.

Soaring Virtue merrily waved to her own friend group.

November tearfully hugged Patty, Scoop, and Shimmy as Vellum and End Zone congratulated him on his long-deserved victory.

Ocellus stood by his side, waving at no one in particular as their friends cheered in celebration.

Gallus scanned the crowd eagerly, keeping his smile up as he prayed with all his heart that maybe—just maybe—he’d have been wrong all along. Unfortunately, he inevitably conceded defeat.

Gruff wasn’t there.

His smile faltered for only a second before he put it back on, suddenly wanting nothing more to do with the Science Fair or the medal dangling around his neck.

So caught up in maintaining his forced smile, Gallus failed to notice the worried look Ocellus gave him or the faint glow around her horn.


***


Several hours had passed by the time the Fair, at long last, came to an end. And after one final round of celebration over the winners’ victory, almost everycreature had tucked in for the night.

Except Gallus.

The griffon lied against his soft bed, silently scowling at the golden disk he had been awarded.

“First place!” was inscribed upon the front of the medal. A proud proclamation of his victory, and an unapologetic acknowledgment of his work to achieve it. And yet, Gallus only sneered at it.

First place… he thought bitterly. I won. I did the best that I could do, and it wasn’t enough. Ocellus and I won, and it still wasn’t enough for him!

“Oh, and now that I have the chance? Congratulations on your theatrical performance, Mr. Gallus, Ms. Silverstream, and Ms. Yona. You all did marvelously,” a certain pony had said only hours prior.

“Even Chancellor Neighsay is prouder of me than him!” Gallus growled quietly. With a grunt, he deftly tossed the medal into his garbage can, rolling over and pulling his blanket over him.

“Guess I’m really not cut out for it after all,” he whispered, closing his eyes.

…

…

…

Knock! Knock! Knock!

His eyes shot open and stared at the door. “Uh…? Yes?” he called out.

“Gallus? It’s Ocellus,” she announced. “I-I know it’s late, but may I come in?”

“S-Sure! Just give me a second,” Gallus said, swiftly retrieving the medal and depositing it on his desk. Afterward, he opened his door and stepped aside, greeting, “Hey.”

“Hey,” she replied, entering calmly. “How are you doing?”

“Good. You?”

“I’m fine.”

A sense of awkwardness filled the air as Ocellus simply stood there, staring at him.

“So, uh, what are you up to?” Gallus asked, trying to relieve the tension. “I thought you wanted to go pass out now that the Fair is over?”

“W-Well, I did think about it, but I decided I needed to talk to you about something first.”

“Let me guess: Another science project?” he suspected, dreading the prospect.

“No, not really.” Ocellus chewed her lip but ultimately decided to get to the point. “Gallus, I know you were upset when we won,” she stated neutrally.

On reflex, Gallus closed his door, never once breaking his friend’s gaze. Half a dozen panicked thoughts flitted through his mind before he let out a quiet chuckle. “Am I that transparent?”

“Uh? Um, no?” she answered, mildly confused by the question. “N-No, Gallus.”

“Then how did you know I was… You know?”

Ocellus flinched, looking seriously uncomfortable about something. “It’s complicated…”

“So is teleportation, and I kept up with that pretty well,” he argued, smirking hollowly. Though not well enough apparently…

Gulping, Ocellus nervously mumbled, “D-Do you know how you guys always joke that since I’m a changeling, I-I can…” She gulped again and ended, “Th-That I can sense emotions?”

It wasn’t hard to figure out exactly where Ocellus was going with that, but Gallus still slowly murmured, “And then you always say that’s not how it works…?”

“That’s not how it’s supposed to work,” she corrected. “But…”

Gallus sat down on his bed with a loud creak. Wordlessly, Ocellus sat beside him, timidly staring at the floor and waiting for him to continue the conversation.

“Well, uh, you were right,” he said, keeping his tone neutral. “That is pretty complicated. And kinda creepy…”

“‘C-Creepy’?” she asked, reeling back in shock.

“What else do you call your friend reading your mind for Grover knows how long?” he wondered, flicking his tail angrily.

Ocellus chose her next words carefully, eventually stating, “I’m sorry, Gallus. I didn’t… I don’t mean to make you feel that way. But I promise it isn’t mind-reading, and I certainly haven’t been able to do it for very long,” she swore firmly.

Sensing only sincerity in her voice, Gallus faced her and tiredly groaned, “Okay, you just dumped this on me completely out-of-nowhere, so… Explanation? Please?”

“A changeling’s magic can only effect love, no other emotion. At least, not naturally,” Ocellus elaborated. “But I…found a way to do it.”

Considering how much other junk I’ve seen her figure out, I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised, Gallus admitted to himself. Good thing she knows she wants to be a professor; she’ll be fantastic.

“Long story short,” she continued, ducking her head ashamedly. “King Thorax told me to never complete the spell proper, nor use it, nor tell anycreature about it. It’s not hard to see why…”

“Because it sounds creepy as peck and comes off like you’ve known our every thought and feeling since the day we met?”

Ocellus nodded quietly, concluding, “Which is why I listened to him and never truly completed the spell. … Until recently, that is.”

“Like that suddenly makes it better!” Gallus snapped. After taking a moment to calm down, he slowly asked, “Why did you complete the spell then?”

“…I crafted it the night we found out what happened to you…”

“—what I am worried about is that if any of this ever does start happening again… That if you start feeling afraid, alone, or sad again… I’m worried I won’t see it.”

Oh peck…! Gallus cursed as a pit formed in his stomach. “You created this spell so you could tell when I was upset?”

Nervously tapping her hooves, Ocellus nodded once again.

A whole cavalcade of emotions rushed through Gallus, but the biggest of them all was heartbreak. “Heh,” he softly laughed. “So you really didn’t trust me after all…?”

“No!” she protested resolutely. “I. Always. Trusted you, Gallus. … What I didn’t trust was myself,” Ocellus explained, frowning. “I had already failed you once as a friend; I didn’t want to do it again! B-Besides, I already had a prototype build of the spell. All I really needed to do was get my old notes out, iron out the bugs, and finish it.”

“Don’t you dare tell me you’ve been blaming yourself for what happened to me!” he panicked. “It’s been months, Ocellus! Months! You can’t have been blaming yourself all this time!”

“I haven’t,” she said truthfully. “Remember what we talked about that day? We both agreed that blaming ourselves for what happened wasn’t healthy. What was important was moving on…”

“And in case you haven’t noticed, I have moved on,” Gallus proclaimed proudly. “I haven’t even thought about my parents for weeks.” Unless you count Gruff, but he’s not— He doesn’t want—

“I know you’ve moved on,” Ocellus said before he could dwell on that thought any longer. “I trust you. I didn’t need to use my spell to know you were doing better,” she ended, smiling happily.

Gallus smiled back, but he soon turned his gaze away, still unsure of what his thoughts were on everything she had just revealed. Eventually, he asked, “Why exactly are you telling me all of this?”

“Because I didn’t want to lie to you anymore. Honestly, I was already planning to confess all of this to you guys eventually anyway.”

“Surprising, considering how helpful knowing when I was upset must have been.”

“It wasn’t,” she deadpanned, looking back at him morosely. “My spell would only ever tell me what you were feeling when I used it. Never why…”

“Oh, pardon me! I’m sorry that you, the great and powerful Ocellus, couldn’t figure out how to read my mind fully,” he grumbled sardonically.

Ocellus winced.

“…Sorry.”

“No, don’t be sorry,” she pleaded. “I should have known better than to use magic to try to solve a friendship problem. In the end, it did nothing.”

Gallus remembered how whenever she rambled on about becoming a professor, Ocellus never seemed to notice how upset he became every time. “I never asked you to do something like that, Ocellus…”

“You never had to. I just wanted you to be okay.”

Sighing, he muttered, “I know. Thanks.”

“You really shouldn’t be thanking me…”

“Maybe. But I can thank you for caring about me. In that regard at least, you’re better than others,” he whispered, glancing at his medal.

Ocellus followed his gaze and tilted her head in confusion upon beholding the item. She then turned back to him and quietly stated, “I still don’t understand, Gallus. Why were you upset earlier? You and Silverstream had a fun time, and you and Smolder patched things up, right?” Ocellus said optimistically. “Plus, you were right. We won. So… Why weren’t you happy we did?”

I was wondering when she would ask about this… Might as well get it over with, Gallus decided, hanging his head in defeat and whimpering, “I wanted Gramps to be here today.”

Her eyes widened in realization. “Y-You wanted Grandpa Gruff to visit you today?”

“What? Sandbar didn’t tell you? I half-expected he would…”

“Yona is the one Sandbar tells everything to, not me,” she clarified sheepishly. “I… I’m sorry, Gallus. I didn’t know you wanted him here.”

“Well, I did. And he wasn’t.” His eyes narrowed in anger as he added, “I wanted him here today. I wanted him there in Canterlot the other week! And I wanted him there on that stupid holiday!”

“Gallus, I’m so sorry.”

“No! No, it’s not your fault. I’m the one who shouldn’t get so worked up over somegriff that doesn’t care about me,” Gallus reminded himself. Even though I really want him to.

“It’s okay, Gallus,” Ocellus assuaged, placing a consoling hoof on his shoulder. “It’s okay if you’re upset; you can speak your feelings,” she said kindly. “I’m listening.”

“You want me to speak my feelings?” Gallus laughed coldly. “Well, I can’t! Because I don’t know what I feel, Ocellus! I wanted him here! I wanted him to actually care about me for once—I wanted him to be proud of me!” he finally confessed. “But… But he’s…” Gallus stopped talking.

“Don’t worry, I understand,” she promised.

“That spell of yours sure is something then,” he jokingly praised. “I’m not sure I even understand anything about this…”

“I don’t need magic to know what you’re going through; I already know a thing or two about unrequited love.” Noticing Gallus stiffen, Ocellus swiftly added, “Chrysalis.”

Somehow, that is both better and worse than what I had been thinking. “You… You never talk about her. Or what it was like,” he addressed neutrally.

“That’s because I don’t want to,” she elaborated, grimacing. “She was a monster who would hoard every last drop of love she could get her grubby hooves on!” Ocellus snarled. Her expression softened somewhat as she added, “And yet? We all still wanted her to love us back.”

Gallus hesitated before allowing himself to ask, “Did she?”

Ocellus looked away thoughtfully before ruefully concluding, “It doesn’t matter. By now, we’ve all accepted that her love wasn’t real. And if it were once, it stopped being real a long time ago.”

“So, you… You don’t know?”

“No, I don’t.”

“…Do you want to?”

She breathed deeply and answered, “No.”

For a brief moment, both of them were content to say nothing more, but Ocellus soon found the courage to guess, “But you do want to know, don’t you?”

Beak quivering, Gallus asked, “How could I not?” She remained silent, so he continued, “How could I not want to know if he cares about me? He gave me a home! H-He taught me everything I know! He— He r-raised me and saved me from— From— From that place! So why doesn’t he care about me!?”

“Don’t say that, Gallus,” Ocellus urged. “I’m sure he cares about you. He sends you letters, doesn’t he?”

“Yeah, but what does that prove!?” Gallus asked, his anger building. “That he’s obligated to make sure I’m not dead? That all he ever did for me back there was because he had to or else he would be the one in trouble!?”

“Most creatures don’t do something because they’re ‘obligated’ to, Gallus. And if they do, it’s because they chose that obligation,” she stated wisely.

“Well, he sure chose not to come today even though I asked him to,” he countered, angrily clenching his bedsheets. “He sure chose to not come to our performance even though I asked him to! And he sure chose to send me away no matter how much I practically begged him not to!”

“Gallus—” Ocellus tried to begin but was unfortunately cut off.

“I’m still not even sure why I care,” he moaned weakly. “I mean, what do I care if he doesn’t care about me? He never has, and he never will…! So what!? So what if he doesn’t care about me!? I don’t need him to care about me!” Gallus declared as his eyes watered.

“Gallus, stop,” she said gently.

“What do I care if he thinks I rocked that play!?” Gallus continued on anyway. “What do I care if he thinks I’d make a good professor!? What do I care if he’s proud of me!? He isn’t, so I should just accept that, right!? I should just move on and accept that I’m just not good enough for—”

“Gallus! Stop!” Ocellus commanded, planting her hoof squarely against his beak.

They both sat there, staring into each other’s eyes until Gallus blinked. Ocellus slowly retracted her hoof away while he took several shaky breaths, wiping at the wetness around his eyes.

The silence stretched on long enough for the moon to finish rising into the sky, chasing away the final flickers of the sunset. Eventually, it was Gallus who ended it.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, Gallus,” Ocellus replied assertively. “You have nothing to apologize for.”

“It sure doesn’t feel like it,” he whimpered.

“What, Gallus? What do you have to be sorry for?” she asked, frowning in pity. “It’s not your fault Grandpa Gruff didn’t show up.”

“Then why didn’t he? I asked him so many times, Ocellus,” Gallus said, trying not to break down again. “And nothing I said got him to show up. Not even Gabby got him to come!”

“Maybe he does care about you. … And maybe he doesn’t,” she acknowledged reluctantly. “Maybe he wanted to show up but couldn’t. Or maybe he really never wanted to.”

Gallus fell back across the bed and placed his pillow over his head, desperately trying to drown out the world and his problems.

Ocellus flinched slightly but with a greater conviction, stated, “I don’t know what Gruff thinks of you, Gallus. But whatever he does think doesn’t matter.”

“It matters to me, Ocellus!” he growled into his pillow.

“I know. And that. Is. Okay.”

Slowly, Gallus pulled the pillow away from his face and looked up at her in confusion. “It… It is?” he asked, looking almost hopeful.

“Yes,” she confirmed, nodding ever-so slightly.

He sat back up and stared at his medal, trying to sort through his own thoughts. It wasn’t long before he put one of them to words, saying, “B-But it’s not okay. I’m… I’m supposed to move on. I am moving on,” he added, entirely certain of that. “A-And clinging to some stupid hope that he’s proud of me… That isn’t moving on! It’s part of why I had a breakdown in the first place!”

“Wanting someone to love and be proud of you?”

“…Yeah.”

“Gallus? It’s okay; the others and I—”

“I know, Ocellus,” he cut her off. “I know you guys love me, and I love you all too! And I know I should love and be proud of myself, and I-I am… But I want him to love me too,” Gallus admitted, clutching his pillow to his chest. “I wanted him to show up, look me in the eye and say… ‘I’m proud of you, Gallus,’” he explained sadly. “I know love doesn’t need to be earned, but… Why do I need to earn his? Why am I never good enough?”

“Gallus…” Ocellus bit her lip, carefully considering her response. “You are good enough for him,” she promised.

“Then why does nothing I do ever matter to him?”

“…I don’t know,” she mumbled. “What I do know is that, no matter what happens, you’ll always be more than good enough for us.”

“But I want to be good enough for him too.”

“And you are, Gallus. You’ve always been good enough,” Ocellus reminded Gallus, levitating his medal over to him.

Gallus took the item into his talons and rolled it over to the front where the congratulatory inscription remained unmarred. The congratulations that he earned—that he deserved. Soon, he looked over to the mirror Sandbar had given him and stared at his exhausted reflection.

“I think you are a brave, caring, clever griffon. A hero to Equestria. An inspiration to Griffonstone. And a loved one to your family,” recounted the memory of a certain alicorn princess.

“Ocellus?”

“Yes, Gallus?”

“Thank you,” Gallus muttered, bringing her into a gentle hug.

Ocellus was quick to embrace the hug, replying, “Of course.”

…

…

…

They soon split apart, and Gallus mumbled, “I really wish I stopped forgetting how good I really am. It’s starting to get boring,” he joked dryly.

Ocellus tittered quietly, commenting, “At least you know that no matter how many times you forget, we’ll always be here to remind you.”

“Grover’s Treasure, I don’t deserve any of you.”

“Yes, you do,” she countered curtly.

“Heh. Yeah, I do.”

“I’m glad. … And I’m sorry,” she added, looking down. “I should never have used that spell, especially without your perm—”

Gallus silenced her with a talon to her muzzle. Smiling, he said, “Don’t apologize. I’m grateful you cared about me enough to do it. But unless you absolutely need to, please don’t do it again.”

“Cross my heart, hope to fly; stick a cupcake in my eye,” she Pinkie Promised, performing the motions perfectly and giggling along with Gallus afterward.

“Do you really think it’s okay I still want Gruff to be proud of me?” he soon inquired.

She hesitated for a moment before slowly answering, “Yes. I… I do think that you don’t ‘need’ him to be proud of you, but if you want him to be? That’s perfectly okay.”

“Okay, I am definitely going to need to remember that going forward,” he accepted, rubbing his neck awkwardly. “Thanks again, Ocellus. You’re a surprisingly good therapist.”

“Whoa-whoa-whoa!” she exclaimed, waving her hooves frantically. “I am not a therapist! Not even close! … But I did pick up a few things from the Feelings Forum,” she conceded shyly.

“Then clearly you’re a great learner,” Gallus praised.

Ocellus blushed and said, “Thank you, Gallus. That’s really sweet of you.”

“Now that I definitely know,” he said, smiling dreamily. “So, uh, what now?”

“Well? Do you want me to sit with you for a little while longer? … I did have a few other future research project ideas,” she suggested gleefully.

“Ha! Nice try, Ocellus, but I helped you out with the last one, and I think I deserve a break. And so do you.”

“Yeah, I suppose that’s true,” Ocellus said, clearly disappointed. “If I ever hope to be a professor one day, I can’t put myself at risk of burning out. Especially since if I do, you’ll just make a bad firework pun,” she grumbled playfully.

“You know it. … Hey, Ocellus?” he began. “Why do you want to be a professor?”

“Because I love learning, duh!” she answered as if it were obvious. “There’s so much to learn about our world, and I want to learn everything I possible can! Maybe I can even discover something new! Something groundbreaking!” Ocellus suggested with a twinkle in her eyes.

“You sound like Smolder,” he pointed out.

“I do?”

“Yeah. I asked what her project was on earlier, and she just lit up,” Gallus said, cheering up at the memory. “She was going to talk about the stars, but she ran out of time apparently.”

“Really? But Vice Headstallion Sunburst said…” Ocellus fell silent. However, before Gallus could inquire further, she mumbled, “You know? Without even using my spell, I can tell she’s been really upset lately too…”

“Yeah, I, uh, I figured,” he replied, staring at his wall and in the direction of the dragon’s room.

“…She seemed better today though,” Ocellus said hopefully. “I know I interrupted you two, but she really looked happy again when I showed up.”

Gallus breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. “I guess everything finally is back to normal then? Or at least, as close it’s going to get?”

“Were our lives ever normal?” she joked.

“Not really, no.”

They laughed again.

Eventually, Ocellus quieted down and meekly requested, “Gallus? May I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“I know you didn’t want to be a scientist, so what did you want to be then?”

His smiled disappeared as he lamented, “I don’t know.”

“You don’t? What about acting? Isn’t that why you and the others went to Canterlot?”

“Acting is fun, but…” Gallus shook his head sadly and muttered, “I don’t think it’s something I want for my future.”

“Oh. That’s fair,” Ocellus said. “So, what do you want for your future then?”

He flinched and confessed, “No idea. Every time I think about it, I just…can’t think of anything. The only thing I do want is for all of you to be there with me, but that’s it.”

“Oh…”

“Yeah. ‘Oh.’”

“I-I’m sorry, Gallus,” she apologized, wincing. “I didn’t mean to sound judgmental.”

“Don’t worry, you didn’t,” he consoled, grinning hollowly. “I just wish I did know what I want to be. But, of course, I don’t.”

“…It’s hard to imagine a future when you think you don’t have one,” Ocellus suddenly whispered, hugging herself. “I know that feeling. She made sure we all did…”

Gallus draped a comforting wing around her and supported, “Hey? You know what you want to be now at least. And something tells me she’ll never be able to take that away from you.”

She grinned warmly, saying, “No, she won’t. Thanks, Gallus. I just wish I could help you figure these things out,” Ocellus groaned, rubbing her eyes. “Be it Gruff, or your future, or…anything!”

“Forget it, Ocellus. Gramps is Gramps; maybe he cares about me, or maybe he doesn’t…” Grover! I wish I knew! “Eh, whatever. And as for my future career…?”

“Don’t worry too much about the future, Gallus. We’ll figure it out together,” he remembered Silverstream saying to him last night.

Together…

“That’s a puzzle I can solve another time,” Gallus assured optimistically.

“Maybe, but I’d still like to help!” she declared. “If… If you want me to, that is?”

Gallus blinked and smiled, saying, “Yeah. Yeah, I’d like that Ocellus.”

“Alright! I’ll help you out as best as I can!” she promised passionately.

“Well, duh. You’re you, Ocellus. You do everything as best as you can!” he complimented.

Ocellus blushed, muttering, “Thank you.”

…

…

…

“This has been a really weird conversation,” Gallus acknowledged bluntly.

“It has; it really has,” Ocellus agreed, nodding shyly. “Sorry again about… Everything. I know this probably could have waited until tomorrow or something, but I didn’t like the thought of leaving you upset all night,” she said, rubbing her shoulder anxiously.

“Well, I’m definitely not as upset as I was before, so thank you for that,” he said, chuckling weakly. “You really do make a surprisingly good impromptu therapist, Ocellus.”

“I told you I’m not a therapist!”

“And I’m not a scientist.”

“And that’s still a shame; you really would make a good one.”

“And you, a good therapist.”

“Ughhh! Is this going to be like the dumb firework jokes? Because those were never funny.”

“Nah, that time I was being serious. For as ‘inherently unreliable’ as you believe psychology to be, you’re pretty good at it.”

“Yeah, well… Maybe if I actually refreshed myself on the subject, I would enjoy it more,” she supposed, shaking her head wistfully. Ocellus then scowled, growling, “Of course? To do that, I’d have to find out who rented out half the Psychology section and ask for those books back.”

“Yeah, who did that?” Gallus asked, genuinely curious. “I heard that section has been missing since before we went to Canterlot?” He then blinked, remembering the book Smolder had been reading earlier and the hoard of books he glimpsed in her room. It wasn’t…? Nah! No way it was her. “Has anyone determined the culprit yet?”

“No. But I will! And when I do, I am going to give them such a lecture!”

Gallus chortled at her declaration and begged, “Please make sure to let me know ahead of time. I’m going to need popcorn for the show.”

Ocellus glared at him, but it only made him laugh harder. After Gallus quieted down, she softly asked, “Gallus? You are okay, right?”

“Yeah,” he answered honestly. “I’m okay.”

“That’s good,” she sighed in relief. Ocellus then glanced out his window, noticing how dark it had gotten outside. “It’s getting pretty late… Sorry I kept you up for so long.”

“Don’t worry, Ocellus. I’m always grateful for a pseudo-therapy session,” he said, winking.

“Still not a therapist…!” she groaned.

“Neither is Headmare Starlight, but she does a pretty good job too.”

“Not all the time,” Ocellus argued, thinking back to the last time she had sought out her advice.

“Says you.”

“Yeah, yeah… Did you need anything before I go?” she asked, rising from the bed.

“I’ll be fine,” Gallus said confidently. “You go get some sleep, Ocellus; you deserve it.”

“Fine, but you get some sleep too, okay?”

“Already plan on it,” he assured, realizing how tired he was himself. “Thanks again, Ocellus.”

Ocellus then gave him another a quick hug and promised, “Always. … Goodnight, Gallus. Sweet dreams,” she wished, stepping into the hall and returning to her own room.

“Goodnight, Ocellus,” he replied, quietly closing his door and collapsing back into his bed with a groan. He then shot one last glance at his medal, feeling a warmth blossom in his chest at the sight of it.

“Yeah. We did do the best we could,” Gallus accepted, smiling proudly. “And that is good enough! … Goodnight, Gramps,” he whispered, settling beneath his blanket and snuggling into his warm bed. “I wish you were here.”