It was not going so well for Gallus and Smolder after a very heated argument with Summer Bloom and Bronze Box. It was very severe. Star Drop was just in her room placing some of her toys on top of Peter’s bed as Sun Snow burst into the room. He was really bitter when he busted the door open.
“Why did you leave the door open!?” he fiercely shrieked, making her turn to see his elder brother came in, together with his parents, Gallus and Smolder.
“What?” the young filly asked, with a slightly baffled look. “What’re you talking about?”
“You left the door wide open,” Gallus stated. “Didn’t you notice?”
“I did?”
“Well yeah. Did you not feel the cold air leaking into the house?” Smolder questioned. Star Drop didn’t know what to say, especially when her parents are already walking into the room.
“Star Drop, what do you have to say for yourself?” Summer Blossom questioned sternly.
“I don’t know what’s going on,” the filly stutteringly responded.
“How do you just leave a door wide open?” Sun Snow questioned.
“Stop it, we’re wasting time here,” Bronze Box said. “We’ll take care of Star’s punishment later.”
Sun Snow knew his dad was right and quickly flew out the door to find his pet bird. Bronze Box was about to follow him, but he had to check something first. Yes, just to see if Peter’s still there. He reached towards the door, cranked the doorknob, and opened the door. He looked in Sun Snow’s room but couldn’t see the young griffon in there.
“Peter?” he exclaimed, with a worried look. “Peter?” He then checked around the room to see if he’s still there. He peeked under the bed, and Peter was not there; and he then checked the closet, and it’s no use, he’s not there. His heart was already racing, knowing that he’s also run away just like Ricky. “Oh no.”
Gallus, Smolder, and Summer Blossom followed suit and saw that Peter was not in Sun Snow’s room as Bronze Box was really worried about his disappearance.
“Wait, did he vanish as well?” Gallus asked Smolder.
“He must’ve gone after Ricky,” Smolder guessed.
“Oh no!” Summer Blossom gasped, starting to feel panicked. “This is not good. First, Ricky, and now Peter!?”
“Okay, everyone,” Bronze Box said, as he walked out of the room, “please calm down, we’ll just split up and look around Cloudsdale,” he suggested.
“Or Ponyville,” Smolder added.
“Yeah, that as well. Let’s go.” He looked towards Star Drop, who was just peeking her head out of her room. “You! Stay in your room. We’ll talk about this later.” Star Drop and just sat down on her bed before her mother closed the door to keep her in there. She sighed as she felt very bad about what she just did. Gallus, Smolder, and the rest of the family, excluding Star Drop, quickly flew out of the house with their winter clothes on and searched for the missing griffon and cockatoo.
Gallus groaned in both anger and sadness, “This is all my fault. I shouldn’t have lost my temper like that.”
“Snap it out, Gallus. We’ll worry about that later,” Smolder stated. “Just keep an eye out for them.”
They two split up both heading downwards. Gallus decided to look through the area away from Ponyville, while Smolder headed into town.
The dragon landed on her feet and then started running to find Ricky. As she’s looking around for that bird, she asked some of the residents if they had seen any kind of griffon or a cockatoo flying by their path. Many of them pointed over to the Ponyville Cafe, so she knew instantly that Ricky headed towards that cafe. She finally arrived at the Ponyville Cafe, and she saw many customers had run out of the building as loud squawks could be heard from inside. Smolder went in quickly into the cafe and found Ricky flying around terrorizing the customers. Some of the customers were hiding under their tables to protect themselves.
“There you are,” the dragon cried. She walked over to the cockatoo which screeched at her and even tried to bite her. However, due to Smolder’s tough scales, he didn’t leave much of a mark. That didn’t stop Ricky from trying, he kept biting the dragon as she walked over to one of the employees of the cafe. “Excuse me, sir, do you have an extra towel so that I can wrap this little fella up?”
“Oh yes, madam, I think we have a spare,” the employee said.
“Perfect. I think I know a trick I could use with that.” The pony went to get Smolder the towel while Ricky was trying to bite through the scales. When the pony returned with a towel, Ricky stopped trying to bite Smolder and just went limp when he saw the towel.
“I’m sorry,” he squawked.
“Yeah, I bet you are.” Smolder looked outside and had a feeling that Ricky probably wouldn’t make it back giving the distance from the cafe to his home. “Hmm, I think I'm going to need an expert for this.” She looked to see a mare walking over to her.
“I can help you keep an eye on this bird,” the mare spoke. “My parents do have a parakeet at home that was acting like a little devil”
“Thanks. I just need to keep someone great at taking care of animals. Be right back.” Smolder handed the lost cockatoo to the mare and flew off towards the school to get an expert she knows about. Ricky tried to bite the mare but held up her hoof right to his face.
“No! Don’t do that. That’s rude.”
Meanwhile, Gallus searched through the forest (not Everfree) calling out for the missing griffon and cockatoo. “Peter? Peter! Where are you, little fella?” Gallus cried. He kept looking around until he saw something rather big on one of the tree branches. It was Peter. He was just sitting at a sturdy branch on a hollow tree, with his claw on his forehead gesturing that he’s searching for something. Gallus then flew slowly towards Peter, without him noticing. Peter, at the same time, heard the rustling of the leaves.
“Ricky, are you in there?” Peter questioned. Gallus flew up to him from behind and tapped his shoulder making the young griffon jump in shock. “Oh, hi Gallus.”
“Hey, buddy. I’m glad I found you. I’m actually kind of surprised that you’re talking so much.”
“Well, I wanted to help them find Ricky.”
“I know. You’re a good kid for doing that. Let’s get back home before your parents freak out anymore.” Gallus reached for Peter’s talon, but the younger griffon pulled back.
“I… I don’t think I can go back home any longer.”
Gallus felt shocked when he said that. “Why not?” he asked.
He then noticed that Peter started to tear up, and sob a little. “...Why does she hate me?”
“...You mean your new sister?” Peter just nodded before sniffing. Gallus then sat beside him, with his arm wrapped around his body. “Listen, from what I’ve learned, there are some creatures out there who are complete jerks like her. However, they… they just act like that because of their cowards. They feel threatened and putting others down is a way to make themselves feel safe.”
“Is that what Star’s like?”
Gallus then thought about it for a while. “I guess so. She probably can’t handle not being in the center of attention. She’ll learn one way or another. Whether she likes it or not, you’re staying there.”
“But… I don’t want her to hate me. Most griffons hate me as well.”
“I know bud. I really know what it’s like being you.” This really caught his attention. He then looked back to face Gallus. “Growing up, I didn’t have a home either. The closest thing I have is the School of Friendship and my friends who are always close to me. You don’t have to have that same rotten luck. Mr. Box and Mrs. Summer both love you and want to give you a great life. You’re in a good school, you have a home that I’m kind of jealous of. You’ve got the potential for a great life, don’t let one kid ruin it for you.”
Peter thought for a moment. He then sighed. “You’re right. Thanks for the advice.” He soon started flapping and started getting airborne. “Can you lead me home?”
Gallus smiled. “Of course, little buddy.” Holding his talon, Gallus and Peter flew back to Cloudsdale.
Along the way back, they could see Smolder flying back along with another pegasus beside her. It turned out to be Fluttershy, who was carrying Ricky, wrapped in a soft white blanket. “Now, Ricky, that was a very foolish thing to do,” the mare spoke to the cockatoo. Ricky looked like he was regretting his actions.
“I thought you would get Fluttershy to help,” Gallus commented.
“Well, I didn’t really have a good way to keep him warm and calm at the same time,” Smolder commented. Peter flew over to the wrapped up cockatoo. Ricky allowed the young griffon to pet him.
“Oh, you must be Peter,” Fluttershy commented.
“Yes, that’s me,” he replied softly. The young griffon felt a little shy around Fluttershy but wanted to stay brave around the cockatoo. “It’s okay, Ricky. I’m not going to hurt you.”
“I think it’s Ricky you should be more scared of,” Gallus commented.
Eventually, they all made it back to Peter’s home. They all went inside, and then up the stairs to Sun Snow’s room and reached towards the cage. Fluttershy gently unwraps the blanket and let the cockatoo fly inside the cage. She then closed it afterward.
“Thanks for your help, Professor Fluttershy,” Smolder said, feeling appreciated for her help.
“No problem,” she replied, “I’m just happy to help.”
“Hey, Smolder. We should go find Sun Snow and his parents so we could announce that we found them already.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Let’s go.”
“Oh, and could you keep an eye on them again, so there won’t be another chase?” Fluttershy nodded yes. “Thanks.” Smolder and Gallus then went out again to find Summer Blossom, Bronze Box, and Sun Snow, while Fluttershy stayed to watch Peter and Ricky.
“How’re feeling with your new home, Peter?” Fluttershy asked kindly.
“… Very lucky,” he replied softly.
After a while of searching, they finally found them and told them that they found Peter and Ricky already. They felt relieved after they said it. Gallus and Smolder then brought the family back home. When they finally arrived, they saw Peter coming down the stairs with Fluttershy, and Summer Blossom immediately flew over to her adopted son to hug him. “I’m so glad that you’re okay.” she wept. “Don’t you ever scare us like that!”
“Yes, mom. I’m sorry,” Peter apologized.
“Well, he does talk,” Smolder chuckled. Though she said this to herself.
“Dude, I’m happy that you tried to find Ricky, but please warn us next time,” Sun Snow requested. Peter nodded as the family looked over to Fluttershy to promptly introduce herself to the family.
“Miss Fluttershy, I suppose,” Bronze Box said to the yellow pegasus.
“Yes sir,” she replied, giving him a handshake. “Nice to see you.”
“You too. I thanked you for your help in eyeing our son. Now, I think we just have one more thing to take care of,” Bronze Box stated. He and his wife then walked up the stairs to Star Drop’s room, where the door was still closed.
“I think I should get back to Ponyville,” Fluttershy said. “I think I’ve still got another class to teach.” She left as the parents walked over to Star Drop’s bedroom. Once they had entered, they closed the door behind them. Smolder and the boys all stayed in the living room until they heard the bedroom door open up. The mother, father, and daughter all walked downstairs and over to Peter.
“Alright, Star, what do you have to say for yourself?” Bronze Box asked.
The young filly looked at her new brother with her ears drooped. “I’m sorry,” she sighed.
Gallus leaned closer to Smolder. “Do you buy that ‘apology’?” he whispered. The dragon just shook her head.
“Alright now, Star Drop,” Summer Blossom said. “Back to your room.” Holding her daughter’s hoof, she took the filly back to her room.
“So, how long is she being grounded for?” Smolder asked Bronze Box.
“Only for a week,” Bronze Box said. “No toys, no racing, all of her favorite activities are off-limits.”
“Sounds good to me,” Gallus commented. “You going to be okay, Peter?” The young griffon looked up and flew towards Star’s room. “Peter?”
He flew up towards the door, opened it, and walked inside. Star Drop was sulking on her bed feeling sorrowful when her new brother walked in. “Leave me alone, Peter,” the filly sighed and turned to the opposite position. The griffon didn’t listen, instead, he flew up and hugged his sister. “What?”
“I forgive you,” Peter said.
“...What?”
“Gallus said he knew what it was like to be hated. I don’t want you to hate me.”
“So, you don’t hate me?” Peter just shook his head and he sat next to his sister. “Okay, I really thought that my parents wouldn’t pay any more attention to me. Now they are.”
“Can you try again?”
Star looked at her new brother, who looked much more cheerful than he did when the day started. “Will you let me.” Peter nodded before giving his sister another hug. The filly looked like she was finally warming up to him. She smiled and wrapped her arms around him.
Gallus and Smolder smiled while they watched from the doorway. The griffon’s beak and dragon’s spines started glowing, grabbing their attention. “Welp, our job’s done,” Gallus commented, and gave Smolder a high five.
Summer Blossom was very surprised by what was happening. “Is Peter going to do that?” she asked.
“I doubt it,” Smolder responded. “It’s probably something only we can do. Besides, we can’t control it anyway.”
“What does it mean though?”
“It means our job is done,” Gallus answered. “We should probably get out of your manes now.”
“Well, be sure to visit if you have the chance.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Oh, and please forgive me for throwing my tantrum to you, I should’ve not done that in the first place.”
“That’s okay, Gallus. At least everything’s already settled.”
Gallus looked towards Peter, who was just listening to their conversation. “We need to get going now. We can still visit each other when we’re free. Maybe the first weekend after you start school?” Peter smiled at this remark and quickly hugged the bigger griffon. “Yeah, I’ll miss you too buddy.”
After their hug, the guests got out of the door and said goodbye to the family before they flew back to the school. “I’m gonna say, you were kind of like a big brother to Peter,” Smolder commented.
Gallus was a little surprised by his friend’s comment. “You really think so?”
“It seems like it. You’re a good role model for him. I think if you were both being adopted, you’d get along great.”
“...That’s good to hear. Thanks, Smolder.”
The two soon made it back to the school just as classes were being dismissed. This pleased them as they walked in narrowly avoiding a stampede of students being set free. They soon found their friends and many griffons walked over to them.
“Hey, guys,” Sandbar said. “Welcome back.”
“Thanks,” Gallus replied with a smile. “It’s another success.”
“Nice to hear that. By the way, how was that new griffon going?”
“Peter was pretty nice. We had to help his family more than just with their relationship.”
“Were they giving him meat?” Gus asked.
“Now they are,” Smolder responded. “That family even had a pet cockatoo.”
“A cockatoo?” Silverstream and Yona questioned.
“It’s a type of bird who enjoys intimidating others.”
“Anyways, they should be okay now,” Gallus said. “And also, there’s a chance he’ll drop by here on the weekend.”
“Ooh, really?” Grace asked. Gallus nodded. This really made the griffons feel very excited. “Oh boy, I can’t wait to see him!”
“Yeah, me too. Maybe we could teach him a couple of flying tricks as well,” Garry commented. He and Geena shared a fist bump.
“I’m not just jealous you got to see him,” Gus said, “You got to skip all of school.”
“Don’t they still have school work?” Gregoria questioned. “As you said, it’s been a whole day already.”
“Let them have this.” Gus pushed the blonde griffon back as Gallus and Smolder took off their winter clothes and walked deeper into the warm school.
“So, is there anything left from lunch?” Smolder asked. “I think we skipped it while trying to find Ricky.”
“Who?” Ocellus questioned.
“He was the cockatoo Peter tried to find,” Gallus answered.
“Hey, maybe you could try fishing again,” Gus suggested. “As long as I don’t freeze my paws off, I’ll join you.” Gallus chuckled as he started thinking about the supplies they would need to get fish.
“Yeah, we can.”