Griffon of Canterlot
Chapter 85 – The Midnight Dilemma
After the shocking reveal from Greystorm, Nightingale suggested to talk about this in a more private setting, they agreed to have it at the private waiting room while Gemery was tended to by the doctors and nurses. Gilda the last one into the room put her talon on the door pushing it closed, she stood up on the hind paws resting her back against the door.
Crossing her forelegs Gilda turn to Greystorm joined with his wife Octicovix. “Now we alone, explain how you are brothers with a griffon THAT had no family other than Gallus?” Gilda leaped right into it and want a answer to that very question all of them had.
Greystorm looked her directly in the eyes. “Geremy and I are twins, we were separated by our parents at a very young age during a feud by the Skyclaws and the Longclaws, you most likely know of this and how the Skyclaws were exiled from Griffonstone and the territories of Griffina, in fact I am still exiled from those lands to this day, if I was to board a train and head to Griffonstone I be imprisoned with imminent effect for LIFE.”
“Oh my gosh! You must of went with your dad and Geremy with his mum!” Gabby gasped. “I know about the feud from stories Grandpa Gruff told me! The Longclaws had sway with the Council!” Gabby recalled.
Gale blinked. “Skyclaws banished?”
Greystorm held his talon with Octicovix's talon tightly. “Yes the Skyclaws are and no the Longclaws didn't sway the Council, long story short... The two families took control after the fall of Guto the Betrayer, the last king of Griffina and to sit at the throne at Griffonstone, they spilt the territories of Griffina equally, but within a few short years the feud started, over the next 150 years it cost the two families more and more.”
Gilda raise a talon up slightly. “Whoa whoa hold it Grey! How do you know this and no griffon in Griffonstone does!? Not even Gruff mentioned this!”
“Gruff was never always around Griffonstone during that time, he was in any out of it while in a relationship with Maple, in fact he with her right this moment in Manehatten celebrating their 100th anniversary of being married.”
The bombshell dropped. “WHAT!?” Every single one of them screamed out at once part from Octicovix.
Nightingale remembered the freebe Gruff gave her before slamming the door in the face. “Oh sweet Griffax! When Gruff told me where to find Gale, Gallus and Gabby, Maple must have been inside his house! No wonder he was so willing to get rid of me so fast!”
Gallus waved his talons. “Hold on a second! Who is this Maple and HOW old is Grandpa Gruff!?”
“Well over 200 years old dweeb and Maple is a Finch Griffon who also just as old, but doesn't look it.” Gilda responded rubbing the bridge of her beak. “Gale you got a drawing of her right?”
Gale shook his head out of shock and nodded. “Yes in bag!” He searched for it.
Gilda turn to Greystorm. “Grey, continue about the feud, we talk about Maple and Gruff later, what really matters is that griffon being tended to at the moment.”
“Very well...” Greystorm looked at her directly. “To stop the collapse of the two families at their deist, they agreed on an arranged marriage after months of negotiations, that is where our mum and dad came into the frame about 50 years ago, the Skyclaw family decided to create a back up encase things go very south.”
Octicovix continued for him as he stopped talking for a moment. “After they were married things seem to be good for the families, but soon the old rivalry for power started to return, yet for Greystorm's parents they still loved each other and didn't give a damn about it.” She look to him. “The Skyclaws bought up land on the coast of Griffina and bid to join Equestria while this was happening, it went through and the land was no longer part of Griffina territories but Equestria's.”
Gilda knew that land in a instant. “Your talking about Griffshore Harbour on the west coast, the main shipping port for all of Griffina, the only pocket of land that is Equestrian jurisdiction, where all trade goes through for a good value of money for transit...”
“Exactly, so when the feud hit it peak, the Skyclaw family self-exiled themselves from Griffina, took everything they have and had to the harbour that was being built at the time, but in turn losing the feud with the Longclaws also meant they did exactly what they planned, they completely financially ruined the Longclaws to the point the family was dissolved over time, they destroyed all records of themselves to the point only the feud was known and no clear answer of why it happened.” Octicovix explained.
“Which lead to my father and mother breaking apart while we were less than a year old cubs, father told me this nine years ago, all of this.” Greystorm sighed. “I tried to contact him over and over for many years, till two years ago when I was told he was dead and to stop contacting the address period.” Greystorm sighed once again staring at the ground.
Gallus was conflicted by this. “Soooo... A feud lead to my gran being parted from my grandpa, which lead to my dad, which is your brother being married and having me, which lead to them never telling you or anyone else outside Griffonstone, and to top it all off you discovering I am related to you because of that Inverse Reality double of my dad...” He looked around the room. “Am I missing anything here?”
“That pretty much sums it up...” Nightingale said.
Gale pulled out the drawing. “My head hurts, feud, family, confusing...” He gave the drawing to Gallus.
Gilda shook her head. “It sure is Gale... I am getting a headache from all this too...”
Greystorm turn to Gale. “I never knew your dad, never knew he had a family, or how he past... I do not even know where we go from here cub... I really do not know...”
“It Gallus, and your right... I don't know what to do either... This just... Well... Is stupid finding out you have family like this! I mean seriously! What is the stupid chance of this even happening?”
Gabby blurted out the chances. “1 in 6,302,012.”
Nightingale stared. “I have no idea how you can come up with such odds like that, but it feels like it pretty actuate...” She looked around. “All we need now is mum popping in cause she didn't fully listen to Aunty Luna.”
Gilda's eyes widen. “You dweeb! Now it going to-” A bright flash caught their attentions and Celestia appeared before them all without her regal gear on. “Night!” She growled at Nightingale, the princess covered her head with the wings.
Celestia blinked a few times shaking her head a little, the teleportation left a bit of ringing in the ears to slight blurriness from teleporting from the Ascended Plains. “Mum!” Gale dive hugged her against the chest. “Happy see you, everyone!”
“Gale your okay!” She hugged him back with a foreleg around his back, Celestia saw Nightingale too. “Oh thank goodness! Your okay too!”
Nightingale still sitting at her seat shook her head in a disappionted manner. “Just like the griffon version of you mum, you jumped to conclusions before someone finished talking, specially when it came to me and in this case, Gale.” Celestia slowly looked around seeing she was in a waiting room. “If you listen to EVERYTHING that Aunty Luna had to say, you wouldn't have blindly teleported here thinking the worst about us.”
Celestia hummed. “I... Well... This is embarrassing...”
“You think?” Gilda rolled her eyes. “Since your here you dweeb, here is the summary! A griffon from the Inverse Reality survived Zerra's purge, that said griffon is project leader to some egghead magic artefact shield prototype that worked for your daughter, it did more than save him, it saved that wishy world Griffonstone which sits in the middle of empty blackness around it. And for the kicker of him getting here he not only the counter part of Gallus' father but also the twin brother of this town's beloved mayor!”
Celestia blinked a few times. “Also mum, he happened to have a broken foreleg, hindleg and wing, which is why we here.” Nightingale added. “If you allow Aunty Luna to finish what she was saying, you would of knew this too.”
Celestia looked over to the annoyed blue griffon teenager. “I see... Well it seem this week has been a interesting one for sure...”
“Interesting my bucking tail!” Gilda growled. “First my birthday with wish magic, than we ended up in the Inverse Reality with all kind of crazy that stupid zebra created, which adding to your horn being blasted apart, two days later RS show up and with some crazy golden energy stunt restore your horn.” Gilda open one claw at a time on one talon, while using the other talon claw finger to press on each and thumb claw.
Gale didn't pay attention to any of this just happy to see them all again, he had been worried sick and refused to leave the room till their return, his focus was keeping a physical contact with his mum at the moment.
“During that Gale has a recall spell in his mind activate that takes up to Leela a small bird, and that annoying raccoon.” She growled a little in annoyance. “He won my friendship being annoying. Next Gale decided to sneak on board the train with Nightingale following to look after him in Griffonstone, which I do not approve of another visit PERIOD, that lead to King Grover having some secerts that are revealed and boom we come full circle to the next crazy which is this with the griffon Geremy”
Celestia nodded. “I give you that one Gilda, it has been beyond crazy, I never had so many strange things happen in such a short time for a very very long time...” Celestia still looking at Gallus. “So your Gallus I gather?”
Gallus shrugged. “Yeah I am, never thought I see the ruler of Equestria of all placed, but with the way things been going this weekend... It doesn't seem surprising now...” He raise the drawing up he held. “And now I know my guardian is over 200 years old and married to this griffon Maple.”
“Yet you seen very anger.”
“Oh course I am! Everything been turned upside down in the space of two weeks! All because of that feather brain avian.”
“Would this avian be bluish white?”
“You seen her!?”
“Matter of fact I have, she redirected my teleport to her to talk, even it was brief.” Celestia answered. “But it seem we all connected in one shape or the other...”
Gabby spoke up. “It sure does! I never knew any of what I do now, and it is CRAZY to even understand anything is up or even down!”
Greystorm nodded. “It has, I am usually three steps ahead, but I never saw any of this coming, no possible way of being prepared...” He got up walking up to Gallus placing his talon on the upper foreleg looking into the blue eyes. “Gallus, I'll do my up most t-”
“I don't want charity and I don't want to crawl to a uncle I never knew I had too, I rather talk this out with Grandpa Gruff, help Nightingale found out more about her father and just have time to think this through.” He push off the talon. “No offence Greystorm, but I rather not have found out about this like this at all...”
“Nor do I Gallus...” Greystorm glance at the door. “But if you ever want to visit at least, write ahead and I can arrange some days between work.”
Gallus shrugged. “Whatever...”
Gilda looked at the time from the clock on the wall. “You dweebs better think of something fast to go see him or not, he being born and lived from that reality, wouldn't that mean Geremy might vanish at midnight?”
They all turn part from Gale to the clock seeing the time was ten to midnight.
Gabby tilted her head with confusion, raising a claw up. “Where did all the time go?”
The door opened and the griffish light brown doctor was surprised to see them. “Prince Gale we haven't seen them still, we sti-Your back?”
“Back?” Gabby asked.
“There was a blinding flash and when the nurse came to see what it was, you all weren't in here part from Prince Gale, we been looking for all of you for the last four hours.” The doctor explained and still surprised to see them.
Celestia realised what happened. “I believe that would be my fault...” Celestia look down at Gale now knowing also why he still hugged her tightly with pure joy.
The doctor quickly turn to Celestia. “Pr-princess!” He bowed to her. “I didn't-”
“Call off the search and if we could, can we go see the griffon Geremy?”
“He been awake for about a hour now, you can and I will let them know right away! A nurse will take you all to Room Nine!” He quickly leaves to tell the guards to call off the search.
“Mum?” Gale was highly confused looking up at her. “Where you and all go?”
“Gale I don't understand.”
“You teleport in, than everyone vanish, I stay, I worried, I hoped return, you return happy!” Gale nuzzled into her chest with the side of his head.
Celestia fully came to the conclusion what might had happened. “I am so sorry for worrying you Gale... It was unintentional, purely accidentally.” Celestia turn around to all eyes on her too. “I believe my interaction with Avatar may had a unsuspecting side effect to my teleportation spell that I wasn't counting on...”
“No buck Gherlock!” Gilda snarled.