//------------------------------// // Chapter 102: Gustave Le Surprise // Story: Griffon of Canterlot // by Electuroo //------------------------------// Griffon of Canterlot Chapter 102: Gustave Le Surprise Gustave Le Grand held a spatula in both talons rapidly shaking as his eyes were transfixed upon WHO not only walked into his restaurant but who was sitting at the table with Prince Gale, Princess Nightingale, Gilda and a black griffon. In all his life he'd never thought the first king of Griffina would be seated at Prince Gale's favourite table... A hoof tap his shoulder from Pound causing the griffish chief to squawk in alarm fumbling around with the spatula between his talons till he caught it with both of them. “Sacre bleu! Don't zcare me like that!” “Sorry boss, but you been stock in that spot for five minutes shaking like a tree kicked too hard by a farm pony.” Pound said to Gustave looking over at the table. “I heard from the guards that Princess Celestia's husband from over 800 years ago, King Grover. Is that why your so shaken?” Gustave Le Grand took a few shaky breaths. “Yes Pound that is the case, that is the first king of Griffina, the griffon that made Griffonstone grand back in it days and zat his throne on a castle built on the Griffina Grand Tree.” He closed the talons tight around the handle of the spatula. “Now he zits in my restaurant Gustave Icy Delights...” Pound walked around to stand in the way of the view of the former king looking into the eyes of his boss. “Boss, treat him like you treat the prince, the princess and the others, don't treat him more and I am sure you will be fine.” “H-” “Yes his the first king, but if what I heard from the guards are true, he no longer king and called Lord Grover now, which means treating him of what he was maybe a insult in itself.” Pound interrupted and calmly said to Gustave. “Now go serve him sir and I will go back downstairs to my post.” “Gustave Le Grand understands, thank you Pound!” He said with a smile form on his beak the nerves calming. “Le Lord and his family is waiting to be zerved!” He raised a claw up with gusto in his voice, walking up to the table. Shining Armor and Flash Sentry standing at the stairs keeping press ponies and griffons from going up stairs see Pound come down. “Manage to snap your boss out of it?” Shining asked. Pound nod. “I have, you two get these pests out of the restaurant and I can start getting paying customers going up again to Fliers Delight.” Flash saluted. “You can count on us Pound.” He turn to the press ponies and griffons that only want to bother the family. “Back up! Out you all go!” “You heard him out!” Shining Armor works with Flash and a few other guards to get the press ponies and griffons out of the restaurant. Pound adjusted his suit and tie, tap the ear piece to make sure it working. “Hopefully that this is the only drama today.” He whispered to himself as he prepared to let paying customers through again. Grover looked out the window giving him the view of Restaurant Row with the castle just to the left in the background. “This is where you come to often Gale?” He turn to see Gale putting his plush on the table. “Yes, Gustave Le Grand battered fish and chips best restaurant food!” Gale said with glee, he showed it on a card sitting on their table. “See! Say my name, with it! He asked if okay and I say yay! It best food and like all Griffon and Pegasus know it!” He said proudly to Grover. “Cool right dad?” Grover felt happy and odd each time Gale said it so candidly to him. “Yes it is Gale, the world I lived on for the last two years, I been to Canterlot and there was no restaurant in this spot.” Spyro agreed. “That is correct, also Gustave wasn't this successful that I know of, his know from the amazing eclairs he sells at events.” Spyro took a good look around. “I saw the downstairs and than there this upstairs for Pegasi, Griffons and any creature that can eat fish, it amazing!” The blackish grey griffon said. Gilda chuckled. “It been here for some time from what I heard, but mostly used by the Pegasi guard and since this cub came around, this place is booming and very busy during the evenings, during the day most are working so it a good time to come.” Gilda explained to them. “Nighty are you heading back to Griffonstone this weekend?” “I am, got a few things to go through with what I found here in Canterlot.” Nightingale answered. “I gather your going home?” “Yeah got to check up on how things holding up on my Scone sales and such, even working here as a lame awesome teacher, I still work on my cooking skills and show those lameos they got nothing on me.” Gilda grinned pointing to herself with pride. The mare came up to them in a waiters uniform holding a set of menus under one wing. “Welcome back Gale and Gilda, I see you brought others along today.” “Yep! Spirit Light I like meet Dad; he name Grover! My other big sister Nightingale! And big brother Spyro!” Gale said with glee presenting the other members of the family. Spirit looked right over to Grover. “As in the husband of Princess Celestia?” “Indeed I am, let's say time flowed differently where I been and reunited with my daughter, my wife and now I got a bigger family and proud of each of them.” Grover said with pride. “I hope you and your team don't get too shaken up with my presence, just treat me like you treat Gale and Gilda okay?” Spirit bow her head slightly. “Of course si-Grover.” She rose her head up with a smile. “We always happy to serve our loyal customers and new customers, would you like to have a look through the menus or go with the Prince Gale's Favourite?” Grover took the card from the table to have a look at it. “Why not.” “Same.” Nightingale said. “Get something that my brother's fav? Sure I'd give it a try.” Spyro said coolily to Spirit. Gilda chuckled. “Look like it five and give us all your awesome Fizzy Apple Soda Surprise.” Spirit held the pad wrapped with a wing, using the pencil held in her mouth to write it down, she put the pencil into the pocket the pad under the wing. “I'll bring the drinks out and the food by up in about 10 to 15 minutes.” She bow her head once again. “As always you pay after your meal and hope you enjoy your time at Gustave's Icy Delights.” She smiled and walked away. Spyro noticed a picture hanging on the wall of Gale, Celestia and Shining Armor with another of Gale and Gilda drinking their sodas with a blue Macaw Griffon. “Is Gustave Le Grand using you to grow his business?” Gilda laughed. “Not a chance, that dweeb learned that being kind to other types of griffons and in turn word spread like wild fire, soon as work got out that he didn't treat Macaw Griffons like second fiddle ponies came from far and wide including my cousin that dropped by a once from Las Pegasus.” Gilda explained to Spyro. Grover looked at the photo at the blue griffon. “Macaw Griffon... If I remember correctly they they ones that whistle their words that sound like they say every word with a ssss in it.” “Yep, Doctor Trace random change from unicorn to macaw, than he get shiny crystal he wear and now change anytime he wish.” Gale said pointing to the photo. “That he as griffon, he work in hospital here in Canterlot, he wife Amber, she a Abyssinian.” Spyro gave a time out with his talons. “Time out, rewind, he a unicorn that become a griffon, how?” Gilda grinned. “He was Celestia's student 20 years ago, the dweeb has this strong magical ability to track and trace magic, he can somehow sense spells that cast on someone and Trace found the remains of a high level transfiguration spell from Gale, then he tried to recreate it and-” She push out of forelegs with claws spread out. “-BOOM!” Making some of them jump. “He randomly teleport and transfigured himself with partial pure magic into a Macaw Griffon.” Gustave approached the table. “Zomehow ztop whistling when he talks.” He bow his head to them slightly taking his chief hat off. “Bonjour and welcome to la Gustave's Icy Delight's, I Gustave Le Grand welcome you back Prince Gale, Griffoness Gilda.” He greeted them. “And welcome Princess Nightingale, the new young black griffon and Lord Grover to this restaurant for the firs time.” He said with gusto with a talon on his chest with his head raised slightly eyes closed, and putting the hat back on his head followed by raising the talon up to the air. Gilda rolled her eyes. “And a annoying dweeb as always.” “As you are rude as always Gilda.” He shot back, they gave them each other dirty looks before smiling and laughing a little. “Ahh it good to zee teaching not made you to zoft Gilda.” Gilda puffed her chest up. “As if you dork, and good to see the food is great as ever, keep up the good work you preach dweeb.” She closer her talon pulling it out to him. He closed his talon and bumped it against hers. “Who would of thought we be natural and not at each other throats as before?” “Who said we not?” Gilda grinned. “Ah so true.” He turn to Grover. “I heard from Pound that the local guard zpoke of la return, it quite the word that zpread around, I can easily zay I am in a bundle of nerves la former first king is at my restaurant zitting at this table no less.” Grover liked his forwardness. “I saw you shaking like a leaf over there, good to see that pony snapped you out of it and came to greet us.” He put a wing around Gale pulling him close. “My son says good things about this place and one thing I've been told he never lies, so I thought a family meal while Celestia is working through some of the backlogs of meets we come and eat here.” Gustave twistized his moustache. “Prince Gale is never wrong, la Gustave Le Grand will not pride in how this impossible moment is, but zay it a welcomed one to zerve a legend like yourself, even you do not wish of that. You are Lord Grover.” “That I am, the legacy will be part of me from this world to the one next door and so on, but what important is that I have a family and that is very important to me that I care and love.” He hugged Gale and reached over ruffling Nightingale's feathers including Spyro's getting push back from them. “I wish I could zpeak more, but business waits for no griffon.” Gustave bow to them and leaves. Nightingale watched the griffon head into the kitchen. “He the only griffon I ever seen with a moustache on a beak, I wonder how he got it grow.” “Seriously? That what bothering you?” Gilda frowned. “Have you seen another male griffon with one?” Gilda open her beak and close it thinking about hard. “No I haven't.” Gilda now grew a bit curious about it. “Now you got me wondering about it dweeb!” Gale tilt his head. “I confused.” “As am I...” Grover and Spyro said together showing their added confusion as Gilda and Nightingale talk among themselves about Gustave's moustache. Alpha stood on a roof of one of the restaurants at Restaurant Row watching Gale and the others from behind one of the slatted roofs. “Good to see the family outing going well.” He said to himself keeping a eye on the young prince. “Being the ever so watchful guardian?” Alpha's ears twitch to the female voice. Without turning he respond to the source. “Amber... The SCUAS agent, I was wondering when we would meet.” Alpha finally turn around to the anthropomorphic feline raising a paw hand to her. Amber took it with a firm shake before letting go. “Alpha the wolf from the imaginative mind of Gale, my husband did a check up on you and speak of how perfect you are in physical and internally.” Alpha recalled that check over. “Trace is a good unicorn, he did a very thoroughly check up on me.” Alpha turn to the restaurant seeing the drinks being served up. “So why is the big strong wolf hanging out here and not inside?” Amber stepped up to his side taking a look at the griffon family. “There are guards all around and inside, and there is Pound.” Amber smirked. “True.” Amber watched Gilda talking to Nightingale and they laughing a little afterwards. “Good to see Kitty look happy.” Alpha watched the scene too. “It too early for me to make judgement on Lord Gale's happiness since Lord Spyro has became his brother.” “Talking about those from the Equestria next door, Trace been going through the medical and psychological records of those poor 25 griffons from Equis 14, even though one of them is a clockwork mechanical griffon.” Alpha's eye shift to Amber. “A world gone by the power of a dying sun so far away.” His eye shift to the blue sky. “Never I would of thought that those stars sparkling in the night sky where many many suns far away from our own.” Amber looked up too. “It a wondrous and scary thought isn't it?” “Yes it is.” Alpha lower his head and eye back to Amber as she did too. “There is to be a service tonight at a place called the Mausoleum of Worlds for Earth, Equis 14 and the Inverse Equis.” Amber put her paw hand on his shoulder. “Trace and I will be there, we might been directly involved in some of the craziness that been going on of lates, but we are still in the loop.” “Lord Gale will like that Amber.” He put his paw hand on her shoulder in turn, they bow their heads slightly before letting go. Amber walk to the edge of the roof. “Well I got to get going, it was nice chatting with a fellow anthropomorphic.” She turn around doing a backflip off to land on her feet paws on the ground below, she give a wink and salute before walking away through the startled group of ponies down Restaurant Row. Alpha smiled. “She different to Tigress and interesting feline.” Alpha went back to keeping a eye on the griffon family at Gustave's Icy Delights. Gale cut into the battered cooked fish and picked it up with the folk with a few chips, he dunked it in ketchup and happily pull them off the folk with his closed beak, chewing happily. Grover watched his foster son enjoying his meal, Gilda and Nightingale also eating their meals happily, Spyro cut a piece of battered fish, holding it up to his beak took a sniff of the cooked battered fish smell. “Smells nice.” He took a bite of a bit, chewing his eyes lit up and swallowed. “Wh-what the? This is amazing! How could I never have anything like this before!?” Spyro took the rest off the folk happily munching on it. Grover did the same and took a small bite of the cooked battered fish, he chewed and swallowed it. “Hmm I never even thought you could cook fish like that, it pretty good.” Gilda swallowed her food and grinned at the former first king. “So your telling me being in that tower and in his universe for two years you never ate fish like this?” Spyro finished off another piece with some chips. “Not that I know of, I'll report this amazing fete in food to my Queen, it even taste like it made out of love.” He hummed with a flutter of the wings. “Or is it my griffon taste buds? I have zero idea! And I just enjoying this so much!” “Could be the connection you have with Gale having some influence in it.” Nightingale suggested. “It could be.” Spyro tap the folk against his beak lightly before going back to eating. Nightingale watched Gale eating his fast. “You got a bottomless pit or something?” Gale swallowed licking his beak. “No I don't think so, just feel I eat fast always.” Gilda laughed. “Dweeb hehehe this colt always eat as if some griffon going to steal it.” “From the way his eating it I say that could be the case.” Grover teased. Gale just shrugged. “I eat fast, I enjoy.” Gale went back to eating getting a laugh from everyone. Nightingale drunk a bit of her drink before asking Grover a question. “Dad, you do know I am going to continue my research and dive into your past on trying to find me right?” “I expected you may, go ahead, my past is your past, it will show how much time and effort I made in trying to find you.” He lean over to Nightingale rubbing under her beak with a claw. “In a way because of my search for you I saved your brother without even realising it at the time, so indirectly even because of that blasted Zebra we get to sit together here today.” “Don't forget that crazy rabbit.” Gilda added. “Oh we can't forget that crazy rodent even we try.” Nightingale stated. “She and that Zebra would make a good couple...” Gale thought about it seeing them together. “Yes can see that possible.” Spyro shuddered. “I hate to think what kind of monstrous team up they could of done if she wasn't all alone for the power act.” Gilda raise a glass. “Then lets toast to never knowing.” “Aye.” Grover raised his glass too and so did the others before going back to eating their meals. A unicorn standing at the counter dividing the kitchen to the restaurant floor watched wiping the same spot over and over again. “Zhally! Get your flank cleaning the WHOLE counter and not the zame zpot!” The white unicorn with blackish grey mane and tail wearing a waiters uniform blinked. “Huh? Sorry boss... I was zoned out.” “It look it, sacre bleu... Now get! Le Gustave isn't paying you to ztand around!” He walk off back to cooking for some more hunger pegasi that just ordered their meals. Shally gets back to work but stop for a second looking over at the five griffons with malice in her eyes for a moment, Gale noticed it glancing over to her to shift her gaze away quickly, the cub curiously tilted his head looking at the white unicorn. “Something the matter cub?” Gale looked over to Gilda. “Not sure, got weird look for unicorn.” “Yeah well not all ponies like griffons so they will give you a dirty look or something, it the same with griffons and any other creature, each may not like the other kind, it just something that ins't perfect and trust me.” Gilda tap the tip of his beak. “Perfect isn't good.” Gale nod. “Yes, nothing truly perfect and understand!” Gale went back to finishing his meal and drinking his drink getting a roll of the eyes from Gilda after he burped. Inside a large circular chamber with two ways in on either side, a large dome room above held up by massive curved eight marble beams with purple blue lighting over it, oval pod like objects sticking out of the wall ten up and twelve across on each of the two curved walls between the door ways light by white blue light. In the middle a large machine with eight arms spread out glowing and projecting three large holographic planets in mid air. Arbiter watched the holographic projection of the two Equis and Earth flicker for a moment to overlapping each other. “Are you two certain this will be fixed before they arrive this evening? I rather not have our Creator, his family and the griffons of Equis 14 walk in onto a malfunctioning holographic projector...” A light orange furry creature with dark orange stripes on the massive ears, arms and tail emerge from under the machine holding a ratchet wearing a blue jeans orange and blue top, brown boot and gloves and googles look slightly upside down at him. “I said I'll get this fixed in time and I keep my word, so keep your pants on will ya?” Arbiter frowned. “I wear armour, not pants.” “Yeah I can see...” He rolled his green eyes at the sangheili. A anthropomorphic tiger wearing jeans and a sleeveless red top with gold flower pattens spoke up from one of the pods sitting on it with a open panel behind her. “My husband knows what his doing, you wouldn't of called us other wise.” Arbiter looked up at her with a annoying quiver to his mandibles before responding. “Indeed Tigress...” He turn to walk away heading out of the Mausoleum of Worlds. “Our creator will be in for a surprise.” “What is that suppose to mean?” Tigress called out getting no response. “Do you get what Arbiter talking about?” She looked down at the much confused husband of hers. He waved the ratchet back and forwards as he responded. “After 4000 years and getting to meet the very being that you came out of his nogging.” He tap the side of the head with the ratchet. “I bet we all in for a surprise.” He toss it in the air spinning around to catch it. “Well we better get back to work Tigress.” “Sometimes I wonder why we been married for 2999 years Ratchet.” “And that question will never be solved.” They both smirked at each other and went back to work fixing the holographic systems. Gustave Le Grand sit back on his chair in the office soon after Grover and the others left, he stared at the polaroid photo held in his talon, it showed them with him outside the restaurant taken together. “Is this what it truly means to be a proud griffon of the past? What is this feeling la Gustave have within my chest? It feels amazing, it feels good... am Gustave Le Grand changing to be more than one self? Sacre bleu...”