Who would think that an ordinary, unemployed unicorn like me, would ever have become the lover of a proud, beautiful griffin like Gilda?
It would never have happened if it were not for the Battle of Canterlot-so I suppose at least something good came out of the changeling invasion. I was scared and alone and running through the streets in fear of my life like almost everypony else. The City Guards were not much good-but then, all they normally did was go after petty criminals and harass homeless ponies into moving on. Wars after all are things of the distant past and even riots and public disorder rarely if ever happen here. Added to that, those insectoid...things could change into anypony they liked, so they could take the shape of ponies, get close to the guards and jump on them. One bite in the wrong place from their fangs could knock a pony out or worse. As I ran looking for a place to hide, I heard squawks of anger, and came across several changelings gathered around a griffin. And the first part of her that really got my attention, long before I knew about her mind and personality, was her feet.
Two powerful lion paws on her back feet, with retractable claws. Claws perfectly capable of ripping open the chitin of any changeling that got too close. An eviscerated changeling corpse lying in a pool of green blood proved that all too well. And two long claws at the front that were just as capable of dealing damage and death to any changeling that got too close. But a changeling was coming down on her from behind to fang her. He never got the chance. I targeted him and let loose with a bolt of magic from my horn at close range, sending him into a wall with a cracking sound. Two more changelings came for me, but the griffin pounced on one and bit it's neck with it's beak. I gripped one of the other one's translucent wings with my magic and ripped it, and the changeling squealed with pain, broke off the attack, and fluttered away with it's barely useable wing. A fourth changeling erupted in green flame and took griffin shape , and made a move towards the griffin I was defending, but I used my magic to grab onto it's lion tail, bringing it up short and allowing the real griffin to snap it's neck with it's claws. With a flash of flame it lost it's griffin shape as it died. There were three other changelings nearby, but they looked at us and flew off in search of easier prey.
"Thank you," she said in a sweet voice. "You fight well, for a pony. I'm Gilda. And you?"
"I'm Shining One."
"HONEY, I'M HOME!"
Silver Bar left his writing desk and opened the door, and was hugged and kissed on the forehead by Gilda. "Finally, I'm home, after more then eight hours on my feet. Could you rub them please? I love that." As Gilda flopped into a chair, Silver Bar began to rub them with his magic-magic that let him feel them as if he was rubbing them with his hooves. He rubbed the back paws first. The fur between the pads was surprisingly soft and silky to the top. considering that it was on her feet. He loved stroking it, and Gilda, after a long tiring day on foot patrol as part of the new enlarged Royal Guard, loved it too. The pads-they were different. These were hard and callused from all the walking Gilda did. He used his magic to gently rub them in a clockwise direction, and Gilda let out a deep sigh of pure pleasure. The best part of Gilda was of course, her mind and her personality, but the best physical part of Gilda from Silver Bar's point of view was her feet and her claws. Feet and claws that he loved to touch and caress, and that she loved to touch and caress him with too.
He moved on to rub her arms and then each of those eagle claws individually, encasing them in the silver glow of his magic and rubbing the ache out of them. Then he rubbed her back and massaged it-Gilda loved that, and preened her wings with great care, first her primaries and then her secondary flight feathers. Only then did he ask the highly contented Gilda in front of him "So how was your day?"
"Mostly boring. Two hours of paperwork. Two hours! No wonder the Royal Guards are not very good at their jobs. In the Griffin Police you have to sign the charge book with what they were brought in for, how long they are being held in custody for, and your signature.
That's reasonable. In the Royal Guards you have to write what you saw happening and fill in several other papers too, and if you don't do it correctly and dot your i's and cross your t's the prisoner walks free, even when they are most likely guilty. And you have to use minimum force as well in the Royal Guards, even when a criminal is being a real pain. After that, patrol time, on foot. And the night before the weather service had brought some rain to town to cool things down, which meant puddles. No flying allowed except in the emergency pursuit of a suspect. I brought in a unicorn shoplifter, a donkey pickpocket who made a bullcrap complaint of racism, and a couple of brawling earth ponies who swore at me. In the Guards, you just have to stand there and take the abuse. If you smack the perp over the head, you're suspended without pay at the very least. At least I have you to come back to. How was your day?"
"It was OK. I did the normal paperwork for Mayor Mare, a lot of it, and got home an hour ago to make sure I was here for you."
"Once I get my two weeks leave, I want to take a week of it to show you off to my parents back at home in Gryffindor. I'm a little worried about how they will feel about it, they are the old school type. The kind that think that griffins should only be with griffins, and look down on all other races. But don't worry, they won't hurt you. They respect their guests, it's a good Griffin trait. And when I tell them how great you are and how happy you make me feel, I hope that they will see you as part of the family. I can't promise that though, they are a very clannish lot."