//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Outsider // by Raugos //------------------------------// “Stupid, stupid, stupid featherbrain!” he muttered just before collapsing under a shady tree off the road outside of Ponyville. His little jaunt to Equestria was a disaster. He wanted nothing more than to go home, where people knew their manners and a griffon didn’t have to worry about acting like a griffon. Once his heart stopped beating like mad, he’d go looking for Gilda. But as he lay down in the shade to catch his breath, a little voice at the back of his mind told him that no griffon would give up so easily, even if that task involved socialising with silly ponies. And after all that enthusiasm Audri had shown in setting up this little excursion for him, he had no intention of disappointing her without trying his hardest. Lenny shut his eyes and sighed, imagining the tension leaving him in a puff of noxious breath. He then tucked his head under a wing to shut out the world. Listening to his heartbeat and breathing in the darkness always soothed him, and after a few minutes he felt sufficiently calm to consider trying again. He just needed to be a little more careful in his approach, though what exactly that entailed, he hadn’t much of a clue. The ponies were just too… unsettling. Most of them had neither feline grace nor avian nobility, but they all possessed a down-to-earth solidarity that appealed to a tiny part of him. Equine’s the word. He sat on his haunches with his back to Ponyville, mulling it over. However, he soon ended up paying more attention to his surroundings than the task underwing. Ponies aside, he liked the cool grass, refreshing breeze and the babble of the river. The greenery pleased him, more so than the rugged scrublands of Griffonia. A rustle of grass and leaves from behind alerted him. Lenny tensed, but kept still and waited. A moment later, he heard some rustling far too loud for the breath of wind that happened to accompany it. Too heavy for a critter, either. “I can hear you,” he growled without turning around. “What do you want?” Something small and light purple pranced into his field of vision – a juvenile unicorn, probably school-aged. She had pale golden hair and yellow eyes, a pair of satchels hanging on each side of her body, and the biggest, most enthusiastic grin he’d seen all day. Cute, too. For a non-griffon, anyway. “You heard me? But I was so quiet!” she squeaked, plopping onto her haunches a good three or four strides away from him. “Are you like a superhero? Do you have super-hearing or something? Because usually nopony can hear me coming. Mom says so.” Nice. At least she knows how to respect personal space. He shook his head. “No, I’m not a hero. Not by anyone’s reckoning, anyway. I’m jus—” “I’ve never seen you around before. You’re not from around here, are you?” She then gasped and flattened her ears a little. “Oh, I just interrupted you. Sorry. Err, could you continue, please?” “I’m just visiting. It’s my first time in Equestria.” Her eyes widened. “Really? Umm, okay. What’s your name? I’m Dinky Doo.” “Lenny.” She nodded eagerly. “And? Is that your whole name?” He frowned a little. Family names were seldom given to strangers, lest a rival discover and seek potential mates in the family, but he supposed that there wouldn’t be any harm in revealing that to Dinky. She probably wouldn’t know what to do with that information anyway. Besides, maybe ponies considered it impolite to withhold full names from one another, and he’d made enough blunders in equine company for one day already. “I’m Lenny Redtail of Clan Skarhold.” “Wow, that’s so cool. Just like in Daring Do and the Griffon’s Goblet. I read that last year; it was the best story ever!” she gushed, bouncing on her rump like she could barely contain her excitement. And then she paused in mid-bounce, a frown forming on her face. “But, wait... Isn’t that a griffon’s name? Why do you have a griffon’s name?” He felt his tail twitch at the unspoken implication, but he kept his expression neutral and his voice even. “Because I’m a griffon?” She tilted her head away to cast a sidelong glance at him, narrowing her eyes as she scrutinised him from crest to tail-tip. Then, one of her eyebrows shot up as she drawled, “Riiight. Are you sure about that?” Here we go again. Lenny took in a deep breath and let out a long sigh. “I grew up in the Starling Scarps, Western Griffonia. I’ve completed the Hunter’s Rite, I earn my keep in Clan Skarhold, and I’m the son of Kella Redtail and brother to Audri Redtail.” He held his chin up and spread his wings. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m a griffon.” “But, but you’re a pegasus,” she insisted. He hissed. “Doesn’t make a difference. I’m still Lenny Redtail of Skarhold, and the last one to try to convince me otherwise got a cracked beak for his trouble.” Dinky blinked. “Ooh, so you’re adopted. How did that come about?” He shrugged. “Don’t know. And so long as I’ve got a clan and a home in Griffonia, I don’t need to know or care.” “But don’t you want to know your real parents?” she asked. “Not really. My real mother is the one who raised me.” Dinky tapped her chin. “Hmm, okay. I guess that explains why you act so weird. You really gave Mister Bloomer a fright back there, you know.” “Hey, I’m not weird,” he protested. “You only think so because you’ve never seen a griffon before.” She grinned and shook her head. “Yes I have, and she wasn’t weird because she was a griffon. But you aren’t, and it’s funny to see you act like one.” He rubbed his temples and groaned. “Do we really need to keep coming back to that? Anyway, what’s so weird about what I do?” “Hee! Are you kidding? Let’s start with this: why do you keep moving your head like this?” So saying, she began bobbing her head back and forth in a most ridiculous manner. “You look like a pigeon.” Dinky was lucky she was a cute juvenile, otherwise Lenny would’ve tackled her there and then. “I’m not a pigeon. We don’t move like that!” he snapped. She giggled. “Yes you do. A little. And you sometimes click and chirp like a cricket or a bird when you talk, which makes sense, I guess, since griffons are part eagle. Except that it doesn’t for you, because you’re really a pegasus.” Do I do that? He’d never really thought about it. But then again, maybe that’s why ponies sounded a little off to him. They didn’t give the right verbal cues that he’d come to expect from normal folk. Too smooth and too drawn-out, especially when combined with their ponderous body language. Dinky had a point; she just didn’t know that ponies sounded and acted weird to him, too. But arguing with a child seemed like a pointless exercise when the only reward was to sooth his bruised ego at the cost of hers, so he decided to leave well enough alone. “And you’re a guy. Why are you wearing makeup?” He blinked. “What makeup?” She made a circular gesture around her eye. “Then what’s that? It doesn’t look like part of your coat.” Her eyes then darted over to one of his wings, and she pointed to it as well, saying, “And I think you put something on your feathers too.” Lenny raised his wing and clicked his tongue when he saw the reddened tips of his bluish-grey feathers. “Oh, these aren’t makeup. They’re clan markings.” “Do all griffons get them? All in that colour?” “Well, most of us. The ones who aren’t outcast.” He pointed at the paint around his eyes. “We’re supposed to get them when we turn fifteen. Skarhold’s markings are red around the eyes and wing tips. The other clans have different patterns and colours. Eyrie’s colour is black and paints only the crest and tail, for example.” Dinky nodded. “Cool. Ponies do that too, you know. I’ve seen some ponies dyeing their mane every week, and sometimes some of the grown-ups even paint over their cutie marks. Which is just silly, if you ask me.” “What’s a cutie mark?” Lenny realised he must’ve said something incredibly inappropriate, because Dinky stared at him for a full second before gasping and covering her mouth with both forelegs. “Oh my gosh, how could you not know?” she cried. “It’s only, like, the most important thing in your life, ever!” She then leaned to the side, as if trying to look at something behind him, then scooted closer to flatten a tuft of grass in order to peer at his flank. Specifically, at what Audri liked to call his ‘magic butt tattoo’: a pair of primary feathers crossed over a hunter’s spearhead. Wait. “That’s a cutie mark?” “Yup!” Lenny nearly gagged. No griffon would ever be caught dead calling a tattoo that. He could already imagine the others laughing their tails off if they ever found out. He’d never hear the end of it. “So what does it mean?” Dinky’s eyes were practically glued to his flank. “What’s your special talent?” So, ponies get their talents magically illustrated on their flanks whether they like it or not? He’d never asked for his magical tattoo, and he could think of a few guys who’d probably die of embarrassment if griffons were cursed with such a trait. Lucky for him then, that he had talents worth showing. “I’m a hunter. I guess that’s what the spear represents.” “Nice! That sounds…” Dinky blinked and looked at him in confusion. “Wait, you mean you actually hunt animals? Like in Daring Do?” Lenny had no idea if these so called Daring Do books had painted an apt picture of his people for Dinky, but she had proven herself reasonably level-headed so far, and she’d displayed enough courage in approaching him when other ponies had stopped at fear or distrust. He owed her some respect, and she could probably stomach the truth. Cubs sheltered with lies and half-truths seldom became worthy griffons, anyway. “Well, we do have to eat, you know. Our food just happens to run away from us.” Dinky’s gaze gradually sank towards the ground until she was staring at grass. Lenny allowed her to wrestle with her thoughts in silence and took the opportunity to enjoy the peaceful countryside instead. He could get used to this. After a minute, Dinky finally looked up and shrugged. “So long as you don’t hurt them too much, I suppose that’s okay, then.” Lenny’s stomach rumbled in agreement, and because the stars had somehow aligned that day, Dinky’s belly saw fit to make some noise at the same time. They stared at each other for a moment before he cracked a smile. That got a nervous giggle out of Dinky. “You might want to work on that smile,” she said. “You look like you’re going to eat somepony.” That might explain the female’s reaction earlier... He shrugged. “It never bothered anyone back home.” “I’m hungry,” she declared as she unslung her bags and began rummaging through them. “I think Mom packed extra today, so would you like anything? I can share. Mom says it’s good to share with your friends.” Lenny blinked. I have a friend, now? Just like that? It took him a moment to find his voice again. “Thanks.” “Hmm?” Dinky’s muffled voice rose out of the bag covering most of her face. “I mean, thanks for the offer, but I’ll be okay. I brought my own food,” he said as he pulled out a strip of jerky. A good whiff of the meat set his belly rumbling again, and he began chewing without further ceremony, savouring the rich, salty flavour. He heard a soft thump and found Dinky staring at him again. She’d apparently dropped her bag. “Yeh?” he mumbled through his mouthful. “What are you doing? Why are you eating meat?” she cried, throwing her forelegs up in the air. He quickly swallowed and raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t we establish that already? I’m a hunter. I eat what I catch.” “I thought you just hunted for your griffon family or something. I didn’t think you’d put that gross stuff in your mouth! You’ll get sick. I know because Mom’s worked in a hospital before.” He shook his head stuffed the rest of the strip into his mouth. “Well, now you know otherwise. I won’t get sick so long as I eat enough grass daily to go with it. Also, it’s not gross; it’s delicious.” He licked his lips and patted his belly in emphasis. “I don’t know how you ponies do without it.” “Because we have plenty of stuff that’s actually delicious,” she scoffed. “Like… like apples!” Lenny felt his stomach churn as the word brought suppressed memories to his attention. He shuddered. “I tried apples once. They’re bitter, sticky, and they make your mouth drier than sand. How can you even think of eating them?” Dinky frowned. “Apples aren’t bitter. What kind of apples have you been eating?” She reached into one of her bags and pulled out a bright red, shiny fruit. He tilted his head. “That’s not an apple.” They were supposed to be yellow-green and often had lumpy blisters on their skin. “Well, I don’t know about Griffonland, but over here, this is an apple,” she asserted with an undertone of finality. She then offered it to him. “You should try it.” “Umm…” His eyes warred with his memories over the supposed palatability of the fruit before him. Its lustrous redness made his mouth water. “Come on, it’s nice!” she insisted. “Don’t be a chicken.” Oh, so that’s your game, huh? Well, two can play at that. He grinned. “Okay, let’s trade, then. I’ll eat an apple if you try some meat.” Dinky’s mouth twisted into a grimace. “But I—” “Don’t be a chicken.” Her eyes narrowed for a moment before she held up the apple. “You first.” Lenny took the apple and sniffed at it. Slightly waxy with a hint of sweetness beneath. He took one bite, and instantly froze. Nothing could have prepared him for the crunchy, watery-sweet explosion of flavour in his mouth. It took his brain a while to straighten out and get back on track, but he eventually chewed, and the firm flesh yielded another burst of juicy goodness. After swallowing, he licked his lips and eagerly chomped on it again. It was all he could do to suppress a moan. By the great Sky Mother, why aren’t we growing these in Griffonia? Whoever named those local abominations ‘apples’ was an idiot. Either that, or someone must have placed a curse on our trees. “Yes!” Dinky pumped one foreleg into the air and went prancing in circles around him. “Didn’t I tell you it was good? I was right, wasn’t I?” “Yeah, yeah, you weren’t kidding,” he said after swallowing the last bite. He then wiped away juice that had dribbled out of his mouth and retrieved another strip of jerky from his bag. “Now it’s your turn.” “Aww, do I have to?” Lenny chirped and held it out to her in response. He could tell from the tension in her breathing and intent gaze that, in spite of her earlier protests, a part of her wanted to try the forbidden. She’s got spirit; that much is evident. Had she been born a griffon, she could’ve been the little sister he always wished he had. Dinky inched forward like a wary snake and opened her mouth. Ever so slowly, she manoeuvred until she had positioned the dark red strip between her upper and lower teeth, separated only by a little air. She scrunched her eyes shut and moved her jaw, but didn’t come quite close enough to making contact. Her tongue had retreated as far as it could into her mouth as well. Lenny sniggered. “Just chow down and be done with it.” “Nggh!” she replied, waving at him to forestall any further encouragement. But after another three or four false starts, she withdrew and shook her head. “I can’t do it. It just smells so yucky and there’s too much of it.” Lenny scratched his head. Maybe he could help with that. Audri had gotten him to assist her with some of the village cubs before; sometimes they just needed their food in a form that they could more easily digest. He thumped on his belly and worked his throat muscles back and forth, until he managed to bring a lump of apple and jerky back up. A little sour, now, but certainly a lot easier for a youngster to keep down. He then pushed it to the tip of his tongue and stuck it out in offering. When she made no move to accept, he motioned for her to open her mouth again and waggled his tongue. Dinky’s face momentarily contorted into a mixture of horror, disgust, confusion and mirth. Her mouth somehow managed to curl up and down at the same time, revealing teeth that were pressed together in a grimace. Her snout had wrinkled up. One eye half-squinted whilst the other remained wide open, and one of her eyebrows must have disappeared into her hair. “Eww, I’m not eating your puke, I’m not a seagull! Ew ew ew!” she squealed as she averted her eyes and blocked him from view with a foreleg. Lenny brought his tongue back in, gulped down the offending lump and facepawed. Okay, so ponies don’t regurgitate food for their young. Good to know. It would make a good prank, though, if he ever got that far with pony relations. “Sorry.” Dinky coughed politely and nodded. “That’s okay.” She then covered her mouth and giggled. “See? You are a little weird. Sorry I didn’t try your food, though. It was just too much.” Well, there’s always a next time for adventurous stuff. He smiled. “That’s all right. I still think you’re the most interesting pony in town.” “Yay!” She bounced around for a few seconds before continuing, “Say, I think need to go home now. Mom might be getting worried. Would you like to meet her? Maybe you could have dinner with us later. Since you said you’ve never been here before, there are so many things I want to show you!” Lenny hesitated. He still had the market debacle fresh in his mind. But if he had Dinky around to make sure he didn’t make any more social blunders, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Even if it didn’t work out, at the very least he’d be able to tell Audri that he tried to connect with ponies. “Lead the way,” he said. “Okie dokie, let’s go!” Dinky spun round and sauntered off, but not before plucking another apple out of her bag to munch along the way. As they crossed the bridge back into Ponyville, movement in the river caught his eye. He leaned over the edge, wondering what sort of fish dwelled there and whether they were worth catching, when he saw his reflection in a stagnant portion of the river close to the bank. Bluish-grey coat, tan hair that he’d groomed into the closest possible resemblance of a feathered crest, and light blue eyes around which he’d painted the red streaks of his clan markings. Frowning, he turned his gaze back in Dinky’s direction and felt an upwelling of longing from deep down. He saw a part himself in the little pony, in her cheerful gait, in the way she confidently went about her business with the utmost assurance that she belonged without the need to constantly prove herself. And she’d done him the honour of calling him a friend. He growled to himself. What was I thinking? He had already connected with a pony. Failure to acknowledge that would be terribly ungrateful of him, and quite possibly grounds for an honour battle if her mother had been a griffon. He looked back at his reflection and sighed. And maybe the same could be said of denying the similarities between him and Dinky. Between him and the inhabitants of Ponyville. He might be a griffon, but that didn’t mean he had to be an outsider to his equine heritage. No one said he couldn’t be part of a clan and herd at the same time. I suppose I could stay in Ponyville for a few days. I could use the education. His steps felt considerably lighter as he followed her back into town. “Oh, I almost forgot to ask!” Dinky whirled round with a huge grin on her face. “Has Pinkie Pie thrown you a welcome party yet?” Lenny paused as something nudged him from the back of his mind. “Did… did you say Pinkie Pie?” He heard a distant, whistling noise that rapidly grew into a thunderous whoosh. Before he could even finish turning his head in its general direction, a wall of wind slammed into him and nearly sent him sprawling onto the ground. “Hi! Did somepony say my name?” Lenny squawked and leaped back when he found himself nose to nose with a shockingly pink female earth pony. Where’d she come from? She giggle-snorted. “Oh, sorry about that. Didn’t mean to startle you. I just—” After a fleeting pause, she gasped for a full three seconds, hovering in the air despite her lack of wings, before she settled back on the ground and began staring at him. Then, slowly, a great big toothy grin formed on her face as her pupils twinkled and dilated to impossible proportions. “Oh my gosh, I knew that there was somepony new in town today!” she gushed. He blinked, and then squawked again when she appeared right by his side without any evidence of having crossed the space between there and her original position. “You need to give me a moment; I’ve got to send out the invitations. We’ve got to get your welcome party ready!” In the next split second, she had somehow moved to his other side and said, “Don’t you worry, it’ll be the best welcome party you’ve ever had, ever!” He took a step back from her. Whereas most ponies had ponderous mannerisms compared to the snappier movement of griffons, this pony went so far in the other direction that she’d overtaken his people by several miles. It bordered on hysteria. Scratch that; even manic insanity would barely fit the task of describing her nature. And her eyes… an entire village could drown in their depths. Maybe it was a good thing that Equestria was so nice, for if ponies ever decided to turn individuals like her to war, nothing would stand in their way. He tried turning to Dinky for help, but she only gave him an eager nod, a smile and an encouraging gesture with her foreleg. And in that moment, Gilda’s words came back to him with utter clarity. “Avoid the pink one. You’ll know why when you see it.” Lenny turned back to the smiling pink menace and gulped. He might have just begun learning what it meant to be part of a herd, but now he knew what it meant to be prey.