//------------------------------// // Chapter 25 - At Her Request // Story: My Little Warcraft - New Friends // by Shin Guyviroth //------------------------------// "So where is he then?" A gathering of ponies awaited the arrival of Gai'vahros within the library. Fluttershy and Rarity stood by the far left bookshelves from the doorway, their gazes shifted from time to time to the entrance as they heard footsteps pass them by, hoping that the blood elf had returned. Twilight and Spike stood on the opposite side of their friends, idle by the window and desk just next to the stairwell. Applejack, Apple Bloom and Pinkie Pie waited just a few meters in front of the doorway, still disgruntled at what had happened the day before. "I'm… not entirely sure," responded Twilight to the impatient Applejack, confused as to why he was taking so long. "He was only meant to be there for an hour or so." "What time did he leave?" asked Applejack. "Eight. Eight-thirty. Something around that." "Twi, it's nearly four in the afternoon-- seven hours since he left." Fluttershy gasped in shock. "You don't think… something happened to him, do you…?" "Probably got himself stuck in a cloud again," Applejack joked. "Oh… I hope not…" Their conversation was cut short when the group's attention turned to the loud voices from outside the library. Yelling, laughter and other noises could be heard even through the six inch thick oak walls of Twilight's home. "Don't worry," assured Twilight as she made her way to the door, "I'll go see what's going on." The door swung open casually with a firm nudge of her hoof. She took a step outside and looked around, her head scanning from left to right before noticing three figures some distance from her. She now understood why it was so loud. "C'mon, Gai," exclaimed Rainbow Dash, "you know the best bit was when Spitfire was all like" -- her forelegs flung into the air -- "Whoosh! Double somersault for the win!" Gai'vahros tutted in response. "Oh please, that wasn't as awesome as Soarin's barrel roll through those charged storm clouds!" "I thought Rapidfire's loops through the rings were cool," intervened Scootaloo. "You guys remember when--" as Rainbow Dash' head turned to face the front, she caught the gaze of the idle Twilight coupled with a smug-looking expression. "O-oh! Hey, Twilight. I didn't think we'd be here so quick." Twilight giggled. "So I guess time really does fly by when you've got catching up to do. So what have you three been up to?" "It was awesome, Twi," Rainbow Dash yelled out in excitement, "but I'll let Gai tell ya." "Sure thing," responded Gai'vahros with a nod. "Well, when I arrived in Cloudsdale I bumped into the captain of The Wonderbolts. We got to talking and she gave me a couple of tickets for their performance for me and Lady Rainbow Dash. Some, uh" -- his eyes shifted from one side to the other -- "stuff happened and I gave both the tickets to her." "Both tickets?" Twilight questioned, confused. "Yup," Rainbow Dash responded. "He gave his one to Scootaloo. But, when we all go to the ticket booth, Spitfire gave Gai a third one. She's so awesome!" "So you guys are all friends now?" "Sure are," the three of them responded at the same time in perfect unison. "Good," said Twilight, giggling, turning back to the library's doorway, "because I have some ponies who'd like to talk to you, Gai." She headed off inside, letting the group follow in their own time. The elf gave a sudden gulp, anxiety starting to settle on his chest. "I guess I'd better face it sooner than later." "What's going on, Gai?" Rainbow Dash was concerned for him, sharing his pain. "I'll let your friends fill you in. Come on -- we'd best say "hi"." Without further pause, Gai'vahros followed Twilight with Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo just inches behind him. It didn't hit him until he had stepped fully inside the building that Applejack, Apple Bloom and Pinkie Pie were just a few meters in front of him, each one gazing upon him with negativity. Pinkie Pie and Applejack burned through his soul with eyes of frustration, while Apple Bloom looked upon him with sadness -- and that was what got to Gai'vahros. He understood and accepted that they would be angry with him, but he could not forgive himself for making Apple Bloom upset. It tore into him, lacerated his heartstrings. "Well, well," spoke Applejack, her nose turned up at the presence of the blood knight, "look what we have here -- the man of the hour showed up at last." Rainbow Dash stepped forwards, infuriated. "Hey! Why you gotta--" A gold gauntlet stopped her from continuing as Gai'vahros flashed his hand in front of her in gesture for her to halt. "It's okay, my Lady Rainbow Dash," he spoke in a quiet, sombre voice. "They have all the right to be angry with me." Batting his hand away, Rainbow Dash' gaze fixated upon the rest of the group, her eyes sweeping the library. "What about the rest of you guys? Why won't any of you stick up for him!?" "Because they know that it's got nothing to do with them. They understand that it's just between me and them, my Lady rainbow Dash." Gai'vahros turned to look upon the frustrated pegasus. "Please don't intervene on my behalf -- as a friend." "But… but it was me who was hurt. Why's everypony else mad at you?" "You weren't the only one hurt, my Lady Rainbow Dash. Understand that everyone felt hurt by my actions -- not physically, but emotionally. Everyone was upset for what happened. Now I have to fix this myself." His sage yet sombre words finally got to Rainbow Dash, her temper calming down as she stepped back behind him. "I'm sorry, Gai. I did all this…" "No. I did this. I didn't appreciate your loyalty when you were only trying to help, in the same way that I lashed out in frustration. My the Light have mercy on me…" Gai'vahros thought it would be easier the second time, but looking back at the faces of those before him only caused him as much pain as the first. His arms hung loose by his side and his head held high, not letting his negativity affect what he had to say. "You all have the right to be angry with me -- and I accept it. I upset all of you -- and I accept whatever consequences you have for me. I especially hurt you, little Apple Bloom, because you're only a child. You shouldn't have to see what you saw yesterday. Lady Applejack -- I know that Lady Rainbow Dash is a close friend to you, possibly closer than anyone else, and perhaps you were more hurt by what happened than she was. Pinkie Pie… I probably hurt you the most, because I made you cry, and that's what hurt me the most. I know what I did was wrong. I know what I did cannot be easily forgiven. And, with a heavy heart, I will accept if you don't." The tension only thickened with each word Gai'vahros spoke before and during his speech, and for each moment that remained silent thereafter. Time felt like it had stood still for the entirety of the library -- no one spoke, no one moved. Everyone except Applejack, Apple Bloom and Pinkie Pie looked around, their eyes shifting to and from one-another, expecting one of the others to say something. "We already have, Gai." Applejack stepped forwards, a half-smile on her face. "You know what ya did was wrong. It was hurtful to all of us, but we know that ya never meant to do that. We all know why ya did it even if it was goin' too far. You're a good guy, Gai, and everyone makes stupid decisions an' mistakes. Doesn't change who ya are, though." "I… I don't understand," Gai'vahros responded in befuddlement. "What do you mean, "we already have"? When did that happen?" "After I tucked Apple Bloom to bed I thought I'd best check up on Pinkie Pie. We got to talkin' and we understood why you did what ya did." "So… all this time, you--" "Yuppers!" Pinkie Pie cried out, jumping up and down. "I thought we'd deadpan you as a lil joke. Did we get ya good? I bet we got ya good! We totally got ya good!" 'Twice in one afternoon,' thought Gai'vahros. He groaned under his breath a little so that the others could not hear him, or at least so Applejack and Pinkie Pie couldn't hear him. They probably wouldn't hear him even if he was more audible with it -- they were too busy laughing at his expense. "So… does that mean…" "Yeah," responded Applejack, "we're all friends." "This calls for a group hug!" yelled Pinkie Pie. Before Gai'vahros -- or even Rainbow Dash -- could object to the notion, the entire room crowded around the soon-to-be-smothered blood elf, embracing in one, gigantic group hug. For a moment he tried to struggle, but accepted it as he felt the warmth not only from their bodies but from their hearts as well. It was all crazy to him, seeing such compassion from others, feeling such love from them, bathed in their charitable empathy. He hadn't felt this way in hundreds of years -- hundreds of years too long. "Hey, wait," Apple Bloom called out while clinging to Gai'vahros' lower leg. "What're we gonna do 'bout that death knight still runnin' around in the woods?" "Oh my gosh, you're right, Apple Bloom," responded Twilight in shocking realization that they had forgotten about the threat at hand, releasing Gai'vahros from her grasp, followed by everyone else. "Gai'vahros… I know after all that's happened that it feels cheeky to ask--" "You've no need to ask, my Lady Twilight," interrupted Gai'vahros. "I gave you -- all of you -- my word that I would protect you to the best of my abilities. I don't intend to go back on it." "Thank you. I appreciate it. We all appreciate it." Twilight turned to Spike. "Spike -- take a letter for me." "Sure thing, Twilight," the little dragon responded, taking out a parchment and quill pen. "'Dear Princess Celestia, I…'" pausing for a moment, Twilight tried to think of what to write. "Uh… actually, I don't really understand what's happening. Gai'vahros, could you author it for me? You know this threat better than all of us." "Oh, sure thing. 'Dear, uh, Princess Celestia, I must urgently inform you of terrible danger in Ponyville. An invader -- a humanoid knight of ebon armor -- has come from another world with likely hostile intentions towards your subjects. The subject is heavily armed and highly dangerous. Please bolster your defences should this threat ever find its way to...' Canterlot, right?" "Right." "'…Should this threat ever find its way to Canterlot'. I think that should be suffice, my Lady Twilight." "Okay. That should do, Spike." "No problem." Spike quickly rolled up the scroll and wrapped a seal bearing the Canterlot emblem upon it around the parchment, holding it up to his snout and breathing a small gout of green fire over it, causing it to disappear. "H-huh? He just incinerated it!" Gai'vahros cried out, pointing to Spike. "No, no, Gai'vahros," assured Twilight, "that's how he sends letters back to the Princess. She'll receive it instantly." The elf gave a heavy sigh of relief. "You nearly gave me a heart attack. So what now? Sit around for a reply?" "Pretty much." "And how long does that take?" "Well, the Princess doesn't normally take too long to respond to me." "Define "Too long"." "I don't know. A minute or two?" "And when it isn't normally a minute or two?" "A day. Or two." "… If you think I'm going to wait around for forty-eight hours for a letter then you--" A loud belch interrupted Gai'vahros in mid complaint, the noise coming from Spike as a puff of green flame and smoke erupted from his mouth and nose, creating the form of a rolled up sealed parchment like the one that they had just sent. "See," said a smug-looking Twilight, "told you it would only be a minute." With a soft nudge of her hoof, the parchment unrolled a foot across the wooden floorboards. "'Dear Twilight Sparkle'," she began to read aloud, "'Thank you for bringing to my attention the situation in Ponyville. I would like to speak with you and your friends further on this matter, so please hurry to Canterlot as soon as possible. I have also sent a force of guards to defend Ponyville from any attacks'. I guess we're heading out to Canterlot now." "She only called for you six," Gai'vahros interjected. "I will remain here to protect Ponyville." "But, Gai," spoke Applejack, "we need ya to come with us. You're the only one who knows what's goin' on -- you need to tell the Princess all you know. Besides that, a whole squad of guards will be here to take care o' things." "But your guards will be no match for a death knight! They'll be walking straight to their own deaths!" "Gai'vahros, please have some faith in our guards," Twilight pleaded with the elf. "They've seen a lot of fights and battles. They'll be able to take care of this." "But I…" Gai'vahros sighed. "You're right. I guess I'm just being overprotective of everything. I'll trust your guards to be able to protect Ponyville while I accompany you to Canterlot." "Thank you. We'd best be on our way -- the next train arrives in twenty minutes." "You said you needed to go to the library too, right?" reminded Rarity to Twilight. "You said you might be able to find a scroll to send Gai back to his own world." "Oh, yes, I almost forgot about that," responded Twilight as she grabbed her satchel from the hook on the wall. "We'd best make tracks. Let's go, everypony. And Gai'vahros." Steam and smoke wafted through the station from the coming and going steam locomotive that frequents this stop every half hour, pass through and by those who were still waiting for the train to arrive from Ponyville to Canterlot. Some of the passengers stood idly and patiently, while others sat upon benches nearby reading the newspaper or talking to their friends. Some of them were anxious and impatient, pacing up and down the platform, checking their watches and mumbling about how the train was late or how they had missed the previous one. "You'll like it in Canterlot, Gai'vahros," inspired Twilight, trying to ease the elf's visible anxiety. "A lot of the ponies there are very friendly to, uh, non-ponies. A lot of other creatures come to Canterlot from all over Equestria, so they're used to seeing other people." "But I'm not from this world, my Lady Twilight," replied Gai'vahros, sweeping his hand through his hair and across his brow. "I don't know anything about Canterlot or even the rest of your world besides Ponyville. How will I know what to do or say?" "Well they don't know that. And just be yourself -- it's done you a world of good so far, hasn't it?" "Yeah… yeah, you're right. I've got nothing to worry about. I'll just do what I usually do and I'll be just fine." "You might even get yaself a fancy, huh?" Applejack teased with a sly grin along her lips, nudging the now blushing elf with her elbow. "Haha! I knew you'd find yourself a nice girlfriend, Gai!" cried Pinkie Pie, hopping up and down around him. "N-no!" exclaimed Gai'vahros as he began to feel his face get hotter and hotter, knowing that he was breaking out into a cherry blush. "I'm not attracted to you ponies! I mean -- I'm not attracted to animals! I mean -- ugh, you know what I mean!" The elf couldn't help but feel embarrassed and shy, what with the group laughing at him. "Hey, Gai," said Apple Bloom, looking up at him, "have you ever had a girlfriend before?" "Hm? Oh, no," replied Gai'vahros after a moment to regain his composure, "I've never had courtship before. When you're an adventurer you don't really get the opportunity to spend time with people, don't get the time to get to know people -- that's why I said it's hard to make friends. Well, when you're adventuring with other people or getting to meet them over and over again during your adventures, then there's a better opportunity." "What about Emilia -- that mage you fought alongside with against the Lich King? Did ya not think about going out with her?" "… Once, perhaps. It was some years ago during the assault on Icecrown Citadel when me and Emilia sat at the central fountain of Dalaran. We were commemorating that year's 'Love is in the Air' festival -- a time of love and friendship. I always used to spend my time in Dalaran those weeks. It was the only time of the year where the Horde and Alliance could just… put their differences aside, at least in Dalaran. But for us two it wasn't about love for each other or our friendships -- it was love for our people and our world and for the friendships of those that we had met during our travels. I think… I think it was the thought that Icecrown could possibly be our last fight together that got us to kiss each other. I had never been so alive that moment, nor had my resolve ever been bolstered like it was before. The thought of losing everything inspired me, gave me the strength I needed." Like how he was given inspiration during those dark times, Gai'vahros' words gave his friends around him the strength, inspiration and repose to face this threat in the same way that Gai'vahros was when he joined the crusade against the death god. "What happened after, Gai?" Sweetie Belle asked. "We never saw each other for some months after. She went back to Dalaran to continue her studies with the Kirin Tor while I returned to Silvermoon to rejoin the rest of the blood knights. That was when I met Lady Liadrin again. I hadn't seen her since… well, since the cleansing of the Sunwell two years earlier. She was always on my mind since we had both arrived in Shattrath, pledging our might to the Shattered Sun Offensive." "Sounds like you have a crush on her," Rainbow Dash teased. "… Probably. Maybe something more." Everyone looked at Gai'vahros in ambivalence, feeling shocked yet happy for him. "Emilia was a good friend but I hadn't really thought of her in that way. We never had much in common, we valued different things, and we never saw much of each other. But me and Lady Liadrin shared a lot together, especially during the creation of the blood knights and the reclamation of the Isle of Quel'Danas. I think the ordeal brought the two of us close together, but I haven't seen her since our victory over the Lich King, and that was… three years ago, I think." "… did you ever tell her?" asked Twilight. Gai'vahros shook his head slowly. "… No. It was the best opportunity, too, but I got cold feet at the last minute. I remember we went back to the Sunwell together to pray to the Light. We both used to be followers of the Church of the Holy Light, as had a lot of us blood elves back before the Scourge Invasion. We both prayed for hours in hopes that the Light could forgive us for forsaking it as we believed it had forsaken us those years ago. I always felt secure when I was with her. Such a strong woman, she is. She could lead a band of elves bare footed across hot coals, shattered glass and barbed wire had she commanded it. But now with another war going on against Dalaran as well as the Thunder King, I doubt I'll get another opportunity for a long while." "You'll get the chance again, sugar cube," Applejack assured him, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "Ya already had two chances, so a third's a charm." "Why of course, darling," joined Rarity. "A handsome, charming and noble elf such as you would have no problem proposing courtship to a lady of her stature." "Totally," Rainbow Dash praised. "You're awesome! You're a hero! You're, like, the role model of toughness and championship!" "Thanks, girls. You're all such great friends to me." The sound of heavy locomotion could be heard off in the distance, chugging and chooing as it made its way from the horizon to the station on steel tracks. "Ah. There's our train," said Twilight as it drew closer to the platform. It began to slow down gradually, gradually coming to a complete stop as a final jet of steam escaped from the smokestack. "All aboard for Canterlot!" the train conductor called as the carriage door slid open. A sheet of steam covered the platform as it escaped the pistons that opened the door, revealing a number of large, white stallions in gold armor. One at a time they departed from the train and onto the station's platform, one of them looking towards Twilight. "Lady Twilight," the guard spoke. His armor had light accents of silver around the edges of his chest plate and helmet, signifying his position as commander of this particular group. "We are here at the request of the Princess. We've heard that there is some sort of danger at Ponyville." "Yes," she responded. "There's a dark knight somewhere around the outskirts of Ponyville whom we suspect may be dangerous." "I see…" The guard couldn't help but shift his gaze to the idle blood elf. "And you must be that clumsy hedgehog that Cloudsdale reported on. Try not to vandalise Canterlot on your visit there, would you? You'll probably be banished to the moon if you do." The guard chuckled before gesturing his men to move out. "What did he mean by Cloudsdale reporting you?" Twilight turned to Gai'vahros, an eyebrow raised. "And what did you vandalise?" "Nothing! Just that, apparently, a witness saw me fall through Cloudsdale when I got here. And I kinda got stuck in a building earlier and had some kind pegasi lend me a hand to get me out, which made a hole in the wall. You know -- silly stuff." "I just hope you don't make holes in Canterlot or fall through the royal court."