//------------------------------//
// The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone 
// Story: The Little Pony Legend: A Kingdom of Friendship 
// by MaggiesHeartLove 
//------------------------------//


*(~)*
John 4:14~
But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life. 
*(~)*

The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone


"La, la-la, la-la! La, la-la, la-la, la la-la la-la!" 
Pinkie Pie was as happy as can be, but then again, what else was new? She stirred and stirred the batter with such passion and energy she didn't even care her pink pony body, bouncy mane, or blank faced alligator pet Gummy, were all getting covered in the batter that flew out of the bowl due to her quick stirring. 
"This is gonna be so great, Gummy! We have absolutely nothing to do today except bake! I've been waiting for just the right time to finally try Granny Pie's super-special triple-chocolate, fifteen-layer marjolaine recipe! It's gonna be amazing!"
Gummy simply licked the batter off of his face, his expression creepily blank as always, while Pinkie went over the ingredients in separate bowls on the counter.
"Let's see. Nutty meringue, chocolate ganache, praline and nuts, cocoa-flavored buttercream…" But while Pinkie prepared the ingredients, she was completely oblivious to her cutie mark glowing.
"An hour per layer – that's fifteen hours of pure baking bliss!" she opened the oven and took out a tray of the first layer and placed it on the table. "Okay, Gummy, I think we're ready to start prepping the second layer!"
The door knocked and a certain firebender human walked in, smiling as he greeted her. "Hey, Pinkie Pie!"
"Hi, Mako!"
"Sorry to bother you, I was hoping I could borrow a spatula, I need it to cook dinner tonight. Bolin broke ours trying to swat a fly…don't ask.."
"No problem!"
The firebender then noticed something odd about his friend. "Um, why is your cutie mark beeping?"
She looked down at her flank, wiping away the batter with her tail, and too noticed the glowing. She gasped, "Oh, my gosh! My cutie mark! You know what this means?!" 
Mako arched an eyebrow as the short pony, somehow, managed to slide up near his face, and spoke in a dramatically hushed tone.
"The map!"
She looked around the place, twice, before lowering down. "You think there's trouble somewhere?" Mako asked.
"Only one way to find out! Oh, but wait!" Pinkie removed the chef hat she was wearing and placed it on the counter as she addressed to her pet, "Uh, Gummy? Could you take over for a bit? Hopefully this'll be quick." she dusted the measuring cup beside him, "I'll just measure the baking powder for you...and when the first layer cools, you can drizzle some of the ganache over it." using her bang, she gave him the egg beater, " And don't forget to beat the egg whites for the meringue!"
"Pinkie!" Mako pointed at her flank, her cutie mark still glowing. There was no time to mess around. 
The pony placed the egg beater into Gummy's mouth. "I know you can do this, Gummy! You're the best alligator baker I've ever met!" she kissed his nose before skipping out the door, "Come on, Mako!"
The firebender briefly looked at the emotionless alligator before joining his friend. Gummy was left alone…blinking.


(~)


Inside the large Rainbow Crystal castle, the chandelier made from the tree roots of the Golden Oak library shimmered and sparkled, its gems hanging down in a stunning way. The map on the table shimmered with both Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash's cutie marks spinning around a specific area. Twilight's violet eyes sparkled with glee. 
"This is so exciting. The map is summoning you to Griffonstone, the very heart of the griffon kingdom!" 
Inside the palace, Pinkie Pie, Mako and even Rainbow Dash were there. Korra walked in with a book in her hand and placed it on the table. Her bright blue eyes sparkling with such glee and excitement.
"I don't know if any of you have read "Bygone Griffons of Greatness", but griffons were known to be—"
"Rude, insensitive bullies?" Rainbow concluded while lying on her own throne, wearing a very disinterested and even scornful look on her face. 
"You mean Gilda?" Twilight asked, remembering Rainbow's former flying friend.
"Isn't she your grumpy next door neighbor?" Korra asked Mako.
"No, her name's Grimhilda." he corrected.
"No wonder she's so bitter."
Rainbow groaned loudly in annoyance, "Gilda use to be my old friend from Junior Speedsters flight camp."
"Wait, back up." Korra said after placing the book down, "You've mentioned Trixie, Discord, Sunset Shimmer, those two unicorn brothers who tried to run Sweet Apple Acres out of business. Twice! But nothing about this Gilda person."
"That's because she's not worth talking about!" 
"And Trixie was?!"
"When she came to Ponyville, she was a total jerk to all my friends, especially Pinkie Pie!"
"She was a bit of a party popper." said the pony, laying on her back on her throne like a puppy.
Rainbow Dash nodded her head in agreement, "Mm-hmm."
Twilight intervened, "So, Gilda was kinda rude." 
"Kinda?!"
"Okay, rude reincarnated. You still get to go to Griffonstone, and according to this book, it has a rich, fascinating history!" using her magic, she opened the book and read out loud as the others gazed at the stunning images. 
"In ancient times, griffons were known to be as greedy as dragons, always hoarding their bits and other treasures. But all that changed when King Grover found the mysterious golden Idol of Boreas. Legend says the Idol of Boreas was made from the dust of golden sunsets, blown across the mountains by the north winds. Possessing the Idol of Boreas filled the griffons' hearts with pride. It's said that that one great treasure is responsible for turning Griffonstone into the most majestic kingdom of all the land."
Rainbow Dash rudely slammed the book, "And why do you care so much about griffons anyway?"
"It was actually Gilda's visit that made me curious." said the princess, "So I picked up "Bygone Griffons of Greatness", and I've been hooked ever since!" 
Korra opened the book once more, her fingers softly caressing the fine images on the page. "The griffons are some of Equestria's most courageous and powerful creatures. They're legacy is rich with history and wonder." 
Twilight sighed dreamily as she gazed at the floating cutie marks around the city. "And now... Now you two get to see Griffonstone with your very own eyes."
Mako looked at the floating marks with curiosity, "Huh? Just Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash?"
"Not exactly." said Korra.
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.
The Avatar gazed at the images intensively, as if trying to figure something out. "The last time this happened, our cutie marks floated around the place we needed to go, but… I also felt something else, I wasn't completely sure at first but… I wonder…" 
With a wave of her hand, Korra sprinkled some snowflake-like dust over the cutie marks and, to her and everyone's amazement, a glowing red flame-like orb appeared as well, circling around Griffonstone alongside the two cutie marks. 
"Just as I suspected."
"What does this mean?" Twilight asked.
"The map may only show which pony where to go, since it originated in the land of ponies, but with my magic it can also reveal which human needs to go too! After all, we've got both humans and ponies on the team."
"So, does this mean Mako gets to come with us?" Pinkie asked excitedly.
Mako's eyes widened, "Wait, what?!"
"Hey, you can totally take my place if you want, Mako." Rainbow said before yawning and crawled in a ball to sleep, "I still have half a nap to finish."
Mako waved his hands in surrender, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, this is crazy. Korra, you and Twilight are the Princesses of Friendship. You're more suited for this."
Korra smiled at her boyfriend in reassurance. "Mako, the map called onto you for a reason. If anyone can fix this problem, it's you."
Mako was still a bit unsure. Everything he had learned about friendship he learned from Korra and his friends. If Korra believed in him, then maybe he should too.
"Why don't you just come with us?" Pinkie asked the princesses. 
"We wish we could." said Korra, "But, we're way behind on the progress reports I've been getting from Kuvira and Hou-Ting back in the earth kingdom." her eyes shifted to several tall, perfectly organized, stacks of envelops, some already open while others were still sealed. "Might take us a while."
Twilight's ears lowered in disappointment. She really, really, really wanted to see the kingdom but, if this trip was only meant for three, then she needed to accept that.  
"Yeah. Besides, if the map wanted me and Korra to go to the coolest kingdom in all of Equestria and tour the palace and see the actual idol that unites an entire species, which would be super amazing, I'm sure it would've said so."
There really was no hiding her real disappointment. But, Twilight non the less, accepted this with great maturity as she magically made the map disappear. "You three can handle whatever the issue is just fine. We'll stay here and do important princessy things. I guess."
Pinkie Pie couldn't be any more excited to go travel to a new land, "Well then, come on Mako, Dashie! We're going to Griffonstone!" 
Rainbow Dash sighed bitterly, "Fine…"
"That's the spirit!" Pinkie blew on a party horn.
Korra kissed Mako on the cheek. "You're going to be fine. I believe in you."
"Thanks. That's all I needed to hear." he smiled, "And I'll bring you both some souvenirs."
"I love you!" 


(~)


The three friends took the train ride to Griffonstone. Mako sat beside the window, reading a guidebook the princesses had given him and the girls.
"Once in Griffonstone proper, we go immediately to the palace and introduce ourselves to the king. "Bygone Griffons of Greatness" was written a long time ago, and it ends with the coronation of the fourteenth king of the griffons, King Guto. There's no mention on who's in charge now." he then noticed that Rainbow Dash was sleeping beside him and he poked her to wake her up.
"Rainbow!"
"Wha-hu? Are we there yet?"
"No, but instead of sleeping you should be reading."
"Whatcha reading, Mako?" Pinkie asked once the cater pony came in, pushing a cart of snacks. 
Rainbow sighed, "Twilight literally wrote a book on what we need to do in Griffonstone."
"You mean like a guide on how to figure out what problem we're supposed to fix?" Pinkie Pie asked while she started taking every cupcake, apple candy, and chocolate chip cookie on the tray.
"And then some. It's like Twilight herself in book form." Rainbow took the book itself from Mako and began imitating the purple alicorn, " "Always carry plenty of bits. The griffons are sure to help you as long as you share the wealth". "
Rainbow and Mako's eyes then widened when they saw Pinkie Pie give the cater pony a large bag-full of yellow bits before leaving. Pinkie chewed on what she was eating before swallowing it and chuckled nervously, "Uh, can I borrow some bits?"
Mako then roughly took the book away from Rainbow, "We're on a very important mission here, it would be nice if you took it more seriously. Besides, these griffons do sound pretty awesome. I can see why Twilight's so fascinated by em."
"Well, excuse me if I'm not all thrilled to see a city of superficial bird brains!"
"What's with you? What happened between you and Gilda that was so terrible?"
"I already told you, she treated my friends like garbage!"
"No, I think there's something else that you're not telling me."
The blue pegasus simply scoffed and turned away from him, "Look, Gilda and I were friends but we grew apart. It's as simple as that."
But somehow, Mako knew this wasn't the case. "Rainbow, I know it's not easy to talk about your past, but if you ever want--"
"There's nothing to talk about! Let's just get to that kingdom, fix whatever problem we need to fix and go home. The less time with Gilda, the better."
"You really have issues with her, don't you?" Pinkie asked.
Rainbow simply ignored her while Mako sadly returned to reading. However, it was hard for him to focus on the words, his mind continued to return to his pony friend.


(~)


The train stopped at a very small, and a very old, poorly build shack that looked like it hadn't been modified in years. Rainbow adjusted her saddle bag and large luggage. Mako took out the book and read the words out loud, 
"Upon arriving in Griffon Gorge, be sure to pause and cast your eyes northerly, up the Hyperborean Mountains, taking in the breathtaking beauty of Griffonstone." 
He looked up and his eyes widened at the tall hill where the majestic griffon kingdom stood tall and proud. Mostly tall. 
"We've got a long way to go." he said as he adjusted his backpack and lead the way. 
The three walked up the mountain, or in Pinkie Pie's case, skipping. They were all now wearing rounded hats with a pointed golden top and fur lining around them. The friends scaled rocks and cliffs, heading up higher and higher towards the city. At long last, they finally reached the arch entrance to the kingdom. The arch was made out of pure gold with red feathers decorating around its corners, looking like wings. Mako took out the book one last time, reading out loud some last minute instructions. 
"Okay, once we meet the king, we let him know we were sent by the Princesses of Friendship, and If for some reason he can't help, we try and find information in the Griffonstone library." he then smiled with glee, "Oh! While we're at it, we should check out some of those griffon scones. They're supposed to be the best."
But even with that 'trilling' information, Rainbow was still far from thrilled. 
"Aw, Twilight and Korra should've come along!" said Pinkie Pie, feeling sorry for their friends, "Then they could see first-hoof that Griffonstone is…"
Their eyes widened at the sight before them, never had they seen anything like it before. The magical, glorious, most amazing and powerful kingdom in all of the lands was, without a doubt…
"…a total dump!"
This land was not what they had seen in the pictures back in Ponyville. Griffonstone had various trees all around, the ground surrounded with hay, making look almost like a large bird's nest. The once beautifully strong homes with golden hay on the roofs were now completely broken, the roofs torn, beaten down beyond repair. There was garbage, twigs, papers, old home items like chairs, pots and pants, all scattered around the place. It looked as if a storm had hit the place, destroying everything in its path. And what was more unbelievable was that the residents, the griffons, didn't seem to mind at all. They just went about their business, not speaking to one another and not caring at all that they were most likely walking on broken pieces of their homes. 
The trio walked into the kingdom, seeing tall trees that contained more homes on them, but the branches broke if even the smallest feather landed on them. There were griffons on the streets, gambling and taking whatever it was they wanted. Rainbow cringed at the sight. 
"Ugh. Maybe the map should've called Rarity instead of us."
Pinkie spotted a grown male griffon and tried to speak with him, "Excuse me, sir?" but he simply ignored her. She walked up to him blocking him from his path, "This is Griffonstone, right?"
The griffon took Pinkie's face with his claw and shoved her aside before continuing his merry way. 
"Well, that wasn't very nice."
"See? These griffons are exactly like I'd thought they'd be." said Rainbow Dash. 
Even Mako was beginning to believe she was right. Maybe she had a good reason to dislike Gilda after all. If she was as mean and horrible as these griffons, he would hate to cross paths with her.
"Maybe we should just find the palace so we can ask the king what's going on." said the firebender. 
"We don't have a king, losers."
The trio turned around to see a female griffon standing before them. Like all the others, she had the upper half of an eagle and the lower half of a lion, her eyes were amber and had pale purple markings around her eyes and the same color on the tips of the feathers on her head, giving the impression of bangs. She looked very athletic and rouged as well as tomboyish. Rainbow Dash immediately narrowed her eyes at the creature.
"Hello, Gilda."
"Dash."
"Pinkie!" the pony of laughter spontaneously said.
"Who's the two legger, here?" Gild asked, pointing her claw at the firebender.
Rainbow bitterly introduced them. "Mako, this is Gilda. Gilda, meet Mako.
"Nice to meet you." he said politely, though he really didn't mean it.
"Yeah, whatever!" the griffon scoffed, making Mako loose more and more respect for her by the minute. 
"What are you doing here?" Rainbow asked her former friend.
"Uh, I'm a griffon? What's your excuse, dweebs?"
Pinkie Pie stepped in in defense, "Hey! These 'dweebs' are here to help Griffonstone!"
"Help it what?"
"Well… we're not really sure! But it involves a map and our cutie marks and a problem, and—"
"Bored now!" 
Gild walked right by the pony, hoping if she ignored them they would all go away. However, today was just not her lucky day. 
"Well if you don't have a king, could you at least tell us where the Idol of Boreas is?" Mako asked.
Gilda turned around, laughing at him. "Ha-ha! Don't tell me you really believe in that thing."
"You'd better believe in it!" a raspy and old sounding voice was heard, followed by coughing and wheezing. An elderly griffon on the window of a beaten down home was seen. He wore a fez and was blind on his left eye, which was a scar on it, and his head was completely devoid of feathers, unlike the rest of his body. He fell from the window and was silent for a few seconds. Mako looked on with concern.
"Uh, should we call a paramedic?" 
The door opened and the old timer walked out, completely alive. "The Idol was the best thing to ever happen to us griffons!"
Gilda rolled her eyes, "Oh, great. Now you got Grampa Gruff started!"
Grampa Gruff walked up to the trio, still wheezing and coughing. "I'll tell you the whole tragic tale...for a couple of bits." he extended his yellow claw to the ponies. Mako dug into his pocket and pulled out a few bits, placing them into his palm. He had much experience with folks like this old half bird creature.
Gruff inspected the bit to make sure it was genuine. Once he was sure it was, he placed it under his hat. "Follow me, wiper snappers." 
The friends, and Gilda, complied and followed Gruff as he led them to the old abandoned palace, which was so destroyed it hardly looked like a place of royalty from long ago.
"The first griffon king, King Grover, united our kind like we've never been united before or since! And he did it all with that incredible Idol of Boreas." as he explained, Gilda mimicked his actions, but stopped once she saw him looking. Pinkie stiffly giggled.
"That idol brought pride to the heart of every griffon that saw it! From one king to the next, Griffonstone had our golden idol. We were the envy of all other species. It held us together – it gave us an identity – right up until the reign of King Guto. That's when Arimaspi came to steal our griffon treasure! King Guto tried to fight him off, but Arimaspi managed to get away with the idol! The guards tried to stop him, but a lightning storm intervened, destroying the stone bridge, making the horrible one-eyed monster fall down, along with our greatest treasure! They say when it fell into the Abysmal Abyss, our pride went with it. King Guto was the last king of Griffonstone, and we all lived miserably ever after. The end!"
Pinkie Pie started tearing up, "That was the saddest story ever!"
"Aw, well... Tough tailfeathers! No refunds!"
"No wonder Twilight's book ended with the coronation of King Guto." Mako said, "Who would want to record a history that sad?"
"It's not sad!" Gilda said defensively, "Do we look sad to you?"
Behind her, Grandpa Gruff struggled to fly and had to result to crawling out the window. Mako arched an eyebrow, "You really want me to answer that?"
"What would you know, anyway?"
Rainbow Dash walked up to the moldy old stump where the Idol once stood proudly for all to see, tapping her chin with the tip of her hoof as she pondered on this. It didn't take her long to realize what it was they needed to do. 
"Guys, I think I know why the map sent us here. We need to find the Idol of Boreas and bring glory and pride back to Griffonstone!"
Gilda simply laughed at the idea, "Ha-ha. Here we go – typical pony hero complex. None of us care about that dumb old idol. Don't you get it? We don't care about anything, and that's the way we like it!"
"I think Rainbow Dash is right!" Pinkie suddenly appeared on Gilda's back, who was already airborne, "The map sent us here to fix some sort of problem!"
"The only problem Griffonstone has is you!"
The female griffon angrily bucked the pink pony off of her back before flying out the window. Mako caught Pinkie from falling but both still looked on at Gilda as she flew away. Somehow, Mako couldn't help but feel sympathy for this creature. The way she behaved looked almost familiar to him in a way, but he just couldn't precisely place on why. 
Rainbow Dash crossed her front hooves, "Well, I don't care what she says. We're gonna find that treasure, make Griffonstone cool again, and get back to Ponyville! Come on!" she was just about to fly off when Pinkie stopped her.
"Wait, Rainbow Dash. What about Twilight's advice?"
"What, taking a bunch of pictures?"
"She mentioned finding answers at the library."
Rainbow rolled her eyes, "No offense Pinkie, but what good will that do? We already know just how to fix everything."
Mako pondered at this for a moment. "No, I think Pinkie's onto something. It somehow feels like we're missing a pretty big chunk of the story. I've read on this Arimaspi creature once before, and no where in the books did it say he stole anything from the griffon empire. In fact, none of the griffon books say that. At all."
"Then why did that grumpy old feather-head tell us he did?"
"Maybe the griffons got their history all wrong. Not to mention, just how powerful can an idol be for entire nation crumbled due to its disappearance? I say we follow Twilight's advice and check out the library, maybe figure out some way to debunk this theory of theirs."  
A thought came to Rainbow's mind, "You may have a point. And the story did say Arimaspi fell into the Abysmal Abyss with the idol, right? Tell you what, we split up. You two go and see what information you can find in the books while I go to the Abysmal Abyss and see if I can at least find some trace or clue as to what really happened to the idol and Arimaspi. If I can't I'll come back to you and you let me in on what you guys find. This way, we'll cover more ground."
"That's…actually, really good." Mako said, amazed he actually said those words.
"Well, I did learn from the best there is. I'll see you guys in an hour to see what you find." with that, she zipped away to do her part.


(~)


She found a store where they sold climbing gear and flew in. "I'm with the Republic City Police department, and I need to climb down the abysmal abyss to find the missing idol and save Griffonstone!" 
However, just like the rest of the town, the store was in very, very bad shape. The owner was a female griffon, wearing a street-hat and a very bored expression on her face. 
"Uh, I'll need some rope, a grappling hook, and a guide to take me down to the Abysmal Abyss."
"And I'll need some bits." the storekeeper extended her claw and Rainbow rolled her eyes. This was not going to be an easy mission.


(~)


Mako and Pinkie traveled through the town, trying to ask anybody for directions to the library. Mako tried to address to a female griffon who walked on by. "Excuse me, we're looking for the libra…" he lowered his shoulders when she ignored him. "...never mind."
Pinkie then spotted a certain griffon pulling a cart. "Hey, there's Gilda! Maybe she can help!"
Mako tried to tell her it was a bad idea, but Pinkie was already skipping along. He hesitantly followed her. Pinkie greeted a very bitter Gilda, who would have liked nothing more than to see the pony take a hike.  
"Hey, Gilda! Word on the street is that Griffonstone has an amazing library chock-full of answers!"
"Word on what street?" she replied bitterly. 
"Okay, maybe not this street, but on other streets, your library is the talk of the town."
All Gilda really wanted was to get rid of the pony. Helping others was not something griffons were known for, and neither was she. However, she figured if she complied this one time then she would leave her be. With her large eagle claw, she pointed in the other direction. 
"The library's right there, so why don't you go inside and leave me alone?!"
The griffon walked away, pulling her cart. Mako crossed his arms as he glared at the hybrid creature. She certainly was like Rainbow had depicted. A rude, insensitive bully. 
He and Pinkie Pie headed to the direction Gilda had told them to go, and their eyes widened at the sight. The library itself was't even a building, in fact there was hardly a building. All of the shelves, books and statues were scattered all over the place, even some of the pages were missing.
"Inside? There isn't even a door! Or a roof." Mako stated as he and Pinkie sadly looked on at the sight.
Pinkie Pie gasped when she spotted the terribly mistreated books, "Maybe it's good that Twilight didn't come…" 
"Yeah, this would break her heart." he kneeled down and pinked up one of the books, reading their covers to see if he could find anything that could be of use to them. 
Pinkie spotted the statue of King Grover, a book rested over his eyes, and Pinkie climbed up to remove it. "It's sad what happened to your town, King, but Rainbow and Mako can't be right. This can't all be because of a missing hunk of gold." she started playing with the loose mouth of the statue and began playing with it, imitating a male's voice, "You are right, Pinkie! And you've got amazing hair! " she changed back to her normal voice, "Aw, King Grover, you old charmer!"
"Pinkie, quit playing around and help me look!" Mako said as he continued looking for more books. Pinkie leaped out of the statue and started helping him. 
However, most of the books didn't serve of much help. There was nothing to be found about Arimaspi or the Idol that was stolen. Only one book mentioned the tale Grandpa Gruff told them, but it did not change at all. The information on the idol as very basic as well, nothing much to go on. To Mako, it just didn't seem that different from any other valuable piece of gold. It wasn't magical, it was just shinny. Then why did it cause so much trouble for the griffons?
He angrily slammed the last book he had, "Sure hope Rainbow's having better luck than we are. There isn't anything else on that Idol or what happened to it. All I found on the Arimaspi was that he held great treasures of his own, but no recorded past encounters he might have had with the griffons."
"What are you trying to say, Mako?" Pinkie asked.
"I'm thinking maybe Arimaspi's sudden interest in the Idol was a bit too sudden. Also, there's a lot of info stating that King Guto was the most protective of the idol, hardly ever leaving it out of his sight. More so than any other king."
Pinkie then gasped, "You think Guto had something to do with the missing idol?!"
"I'm not saying for sure, but so far, the theories point in that direction." 
Pinkie sat down, her ears lowered in sadness. "Poor griffons. Without the Idol, they've lost all of their pride."
Mako noticed two griffons walk on by, so fixated with their own golden bits they didn't notice each other and bumped heads. They walked by each other, not even bothering to say 'sorry' or 'excuse' me. Mako arched an eyebrow. 
"Yeah, I don't think they've lost any of that."
Pinkie walked over to Gilda, who was very close by, and gasped in realization, "I know what Griffonstone needs!"
"Fewer ponies?" Gilda said bitterly as she placed a few bland, stone hard pastries on display on her cart.
"A song! I've got a super song about smiling that sure to make even the most grumpy griffon grin!" he inhaled a huge portion of air, but Gilda covered her mouth.
"Can't sing here!" her claw pointed to a picture of a griffon singing, and a red circle with a slash on it, indicating no singing. 
"But how do you break into uplifting musical numbers with no singing?"
"Yeah, that's Griffonstone's biggest problem – lack of uplifting musical numbers." the female griffon said sarcastically as she continued arranging the pastries. 
"Well if I can't sing, how about a party? If there's one thing these griffons need, it's a good cheer! Where's your party store?"
Gilda only glared at her, without saying a word.
"No party store? Uh, how about cake? Nothing cheers folks up like cake! Where's a bakery?"
"Ugh."
Pinkie Pie could not believe what she was hearing…or, not hearing. "No singing, no party store, no bakery?! What is this place?!"
"You're welcome to leave at any time!" Gilda's scream was enough to literally blow Pinkie Pie away and hit a wall, leaving a Pinkie shaped hole and she slid down to the ground.
"Hey!" Mako stood up and scowled at the griffon, "Look, I don't blame you for being bitter but there's no reason for you to take it out on my friend!"
Gilde opened up her large wings and flew up, now face to face with the human. "Well maybe if your friend would take a hint and leave, we wouldn't be having any problems!"
"No, my only problem right now is your attitude! You may live in a dump of a kingdom but that's still no excuse to push people away who are only trying to help you!"
"And how would you know about living in a dump?"
"I would know because I've lived in one almost my entire life!"
"Yeah, right! You humans have it easy, with your fancy mobile machines, indoor water systems and cement houses!"
"Oh, really? What if I told you my parents died when I was only eight-years-old, ate food from a garbage dump every night, and had to do things I never wanted to do just so me and my brother wouldn't die of hunger! So don't tell me I don't know what it's like living in ruins because, sweetheart, I've been there!"
The griffon, for the first time, was at a loss for words. She slowly lowered down, her expression shocked and even hurt. Nobody had ever said anything like that to her before. She thought she was the only one who understood what it was like living a hard and un-compassionate lifestyle. But this human had proven her wrong. 
Mako realized the way he had just reacted and turned his gaze away, "Sorry. I shouldn't have yelled."
"Yeah, ya shouldn't have!" Gilda replied bitterly.
She was making it very hard for Mako to remain civil. He then caught sight of the so called 'pastries' on display. "What are these?" he asked.
"Griffon scones. That's my specialty."
Pinkie Pie sprung back into action, "I'll buy one!"
Gilda took a scone from her cart, which looked more like a bland rock with sticks coming out of it. Pinkie readied to eat it but ended up chomping nothing but air when Gilda pulled it away and extended her free claw. 
"Bits first!"
Pinkie pulled on her mane and a bit bounced off, Gilda caught it and shoved the scone into Pinkie's mouth. The poor pony tried to chew on it, but the scone was far too hard and flavorless. It tasted like dirt, rocks and twigs. She winced as she chewed hard on it but it was torture on her jaw. 
"Well?" Gilda awaited to hear her thoughts on the treat. "What, you like it? That's my Grampa Gruff's secret recipe."
Mako winced when he heard something break in Pinkie's mouth, "Ow! I think I broke a tooth!" she said.
"Well, whatever. No refunds. I don't even care anyway. I just want to sell enough of these so that I can leave this lousy town."
Pinkie spit out the remains of the scone, and a few of her teeth, "I can help you with that!" she smiled, revealing her broken teeth. "Mako, wanna help me help Gilda make the best tasting scones Griffinstone's ever tasted?"
The firebender honestly did not understand how baking scones was going to help. But, since he stroked out on his end with the lack of solid information from the destroyed library, maybe Rainbow Dash was having better luck. Maybe helping make some scones wouldn't be so bad. There was no way they could solve this issue on an empty stomach.


(~)


Rainbow Dash, now wearing the proper climbing gear, along with the storekeeper griffon, stood before the abyss. The winds were incredible strong, far too strong for any normal airbender to be able to fully control. They would need an entire group of them to do so. 
"Uh, you think you could tighten the strap on my helmet?" the pegasus asked, "Sometimes I forget I can't morph when in this world."
"Can you give me more bits?" the griffon asked, rather demandingly. This lady nearly had Rainbow out of cash. She asked bits for everything, for the equipment, for the jacket, for the grabbling hook, the rope, helmet, even for information on how powerful the winds were. These griffons really were greedy. Rainbow sighed and instead used her wing to tighten the strap. 
"Never mind, I got it." she looked down at the bottomless pit bellow, and felt a slight pit in her stomach. It was so pitch black down there. "So how deep is this abyss?"
"How deep are your pockets?" the griffon asked, working up Rainbow's last nerve. 
"Don't you griffons ever talk about anything but bits?"
"Gimme some bits and I'll answer."
"No wonder Gilda's such a delight." Rainbow said to herself bitterly, "Never mind. I've got another way of figuring it out." she created a flame on her hoof and, with all of her might, hurled it into the abyss. She watched as the flame kept on going down, before being vaporized in the powerful wind, hardly reaching halfway down.
"Yeah, I'm gonna go with, really, really deep."


(~)


Mako spit out the scone he tasted, which really was worse than Pinkie led out to be. Pinkie licked the outer exterior. "Grampa Gruff's recipe is good, but it's missing one important ingredient."
"Don't tell me. "Friendship"?" Gilda said sarcastically while waving her claws in a sarcastic jazz hands manner. 
The pony arched an eyebrow, "Uh, no. Baking powder. Lucky for you, I never leave home without it!" Pinkie puled out the baking powder and used it to prepare the scones. "Now, all they need is a tasty toping!"
Mako rummaged into his pockets and pulled out a few acorns, "What about these?"
"Where did you find those?" Gilda asked.
"A couple of griffons threw them at me when I asked what time it was." he said, not even bothering to hide the bitterness of the act itself. He placed the acorns on top of the scones and Pinkie Pie placed them into the oven. 
"Now just pop those in the oven, and you'll have griffon scones worth their weight in gold!"
The sweet smelling smoke of the scones made its way up into the air, and  a pretty female griffon wearing a grey blue scarf with a lunar broach took a whiff. Another griffon flew by and knocked her down for being in his path. The poor female fell to the ground, in front of Gilda, Pinkie and Mako.
"Greta!" Gilda quickly helped her stand up, but Greta angrily removed her arm and walked away, not even saying a thank you to the act of kindness. 
Mako arched an eyebrow and smirked, "What was that?"
"What was what?"
"That! You just helped out your friend when she got knocked down."
"Aha!" Pinkie exclaimed, "You may act like a gruff, grumbling griffon, but inside you're gracious and great!" she poked Gilda's beak, only to have her swat the hoof away from her. 
"What, her? Greta's just some griffon I know. We don't have friends here!" Gilda sighed, her expression slowly softening to one of sadness, "I did have a friend once, but you saw how that turned out."
Mako immediately placed the pieces together, "You mean, Rainbow Dash?" 
"Yeah. But it doesn't matter. She ditched me a long time ago to be with them…ponies! One of the rules here in Griffonstone; every griffon for themselves. That way…no one takes your treasure." 
The way she said the last part of the sentence sounded as if she knew first hand what it was like loosing a most precious treasure. Then, it was like the stars alined, when at that very moment Mako and Pinkie Pie both came to the exact same conclusion. 
"Oh, my gosh, we gotta go find Rainbow Dash!" they both exclaimed.
"I'll go get her!" said Pinkie, "You stay and help Gilda with the scones!" she galloped away, ignoring Gilda's call.
"Wait! Take him with you!" she groaned bitterly and turned away from Mako.
Maybe now he could finally get through to her.


(~)


The winds somehow managed to become stronger. Rainbow's mane bellowed in the wind, while the griffon beside her couldn't care less. 
"You sure we can't just fly down?" Rainbow said while yelling, the wind nearly canceled out the sound. She flapped her wings and attempted to fly down the abyss, but once she did the winds pushed her back up and she fell onto the ledge with a thumb. "Whoa! Never mind, totally got my answer there."
The griffon held the rope as Rainbow scaled down the cliff. "Just gotta find that golden idol and get out of this place." but as she went in deeper, the rope was suddenly cut by a sharp rock, causing Rainbow to fall. She flapped her wings but the wind currents blew her roughly and she lost altitude. She crashed landed onto a ledge, and winced in pain. 
"Ow, ooh! My hoof! Help! Throw me another rope!"
"You got bits?" the griffon asked. Rainbow Dash sadly shook her head, she was sucked dry out of money. The greedy griffon shrugged and left the injured pony alone in the abyss, taking the rope with her. 
"Wait! Heeeeeelp...! "  her scream faded into the distance as her only helper left her alone in the dangerous cavern. If Rainbow could, she would have punched that no good griffon in the face. She was so fumed that she would abandon her like that, knowing she was injured and would most likely perished if she did not get the proper help.
Rainbow managed to wrap her leg in bandages, but when she attempted to fly the raved winds only kept her down. If only she had a few airbenders to help her. She screamed at the top of her lungs, hoping somebody would hear her. Then, it seemed as if her prayers had been answered. 
"There you are!" a voice was heard from up above. Rainbow recognized it from anywhere. She couldn't see her clearly, she did see her outline perfectly. 
"Forget about finding the idol! I figured out how to solve Griffonstone's real problem – scones!"
"Pinkie Pie, you get back here!"
"Yeah?"
"Can you throw down a rope or something?"
"Lemme look!" Pinkie shouted from above, "Sorry, no rope! But don't worry, I'll airbend down there and get you!"
She created herself and air scooted and attempted to travel down, but the winds then countered her powers and she was forced up again, landing on the ground. 
"Let me try again!"
Pinkie attempted to try and manipulate the winds one more, this time with more strength, but even that proved to be in vain. Like before, Pinkie was flung back up, not even a bit close to getting her friend back.
"It's no use!" she shouted from above, "The winds are too strong for one airbender! We need help. Don't go anywhere!" Pinkie quickly galloped away to seek assistance.
Rainbow Dash sighed, "Where does she think I'm gonna go?" the rock underneath her crumbled and fell, causing her to yelp in panic and back up against the tone wall. "I hope I don't go anywhere!"


(~)


Mako had just taken the scones out of the oven and took a bite out of one. He smiled in satisfaction and handed one to Gilda. "Here, try one."
The griffon snatched the scone away from him and chewed on it. She too smiled with satisfaction. "Wow, better than how I make em."
Mako placed the scones on display and removed his oven mittens. He then looked upon Gilda and once again he felt sympathy for her. "Hey, you mind if I ask you something?"
"I already told you, I don't know anything about that stupid idol!"
"That's not what I was going to ask. I'm just curious…what exactly happened between you and Rainbow Dash?"
"Hasn't she already told you? I didn't exactly 'fit in' with her new pals."
"Think maybe it was that you just didn't give them a chance? You were pretty nasty to everypony."
Gilda only scoffed, "Look stretch, I didn't ask to be interrogated, alright? And why do you even care anyway?"
Mako casually shrugged, "I don't know. I guess…I just see a bit of myself in you."
Gilda's eyes widened, "We're nothing alike! You really think you know what it's like to work your back off just to make a living in a town that doesn't care?"
Mako laughed, his head jerking back, "That's my childhood in a nutshell!"
But Gilda was not buying this. "Sure, you can laugh at it now. You got off easy. You started out on the streets and now you got a squeaky clean perfect life. I bet one day the universe just woke up and said; "Hey, this guy's alright! Let me give him something great just because!" Well, not everyone's as lucky as you, ya know!"
But the firebender did not flinch or get annoyed. He knew this song all too well. "You were lucky too, Gilda. You found a friend in Rainbow Dash."
"She used to be my friend." Gilda said, her voice lowering.
"Can't you remember when she was?"
Gilda didn't look at him, but rather at the sky, as the memories replayed in her mind. "Yeah. Of course. It was my first day at Junior Speedsters Flight camp. Back then, I was a shy fledgling, since in Griffinstone I didn't have any friends, I didn't expect it to be different there. Right on that day, a few bullies started calling me names…that's when Dash first showed up. Unlike the others, she treated me like I was part of the team. Since then, we were the fastest duo in the skies!…" 

…………….

"Hey there, I'm Rainbow Dash! And you are…?"
"Uh… G-G-G-G-Gilda."
"Stick with me, Gilda, and those guys won't give you any more guff."
How the two flew into the skies together was like a performance every time for the fillies. 
"Whoa! You're awesome!"
"You too, Rainbow Dash!"
"Well, Gilda, let's show these guys how it's done!" |
From that day on, the two were the best of friends, and nobody ever dared to mess with this daring duo.
"Junior Speedsters are our lives,"
"Skybound soars and daring dives,"
"Junior Speedsters, it's our quest to someday be the very best!"

…………

Gilda couldn't help but smile and tear up at the memory, but once she remembered she had company, she wiped it off. "But, then she made new friends and forgot all about me."
"That's not how Pinkie described it."
"Hu?"
"Rainbow wouldn't talk about it, but Pinkie cleared things up for me. When you came to Ponyville, you wanted Rainbow all to yourself so you tried to keep her other friends away. But, you didn't realize all they really wanted was to make you a part of their group too." as he spoke, Gilda hung her head, "You were so lucky to have a whole bunch of new friends to make, but you let your own jealousy and pride get in the way of that."
"How would you know?!" she asked bitterly.
"Because I've been there. You're right, I was lucky to have found some amazing friends. But one mistake nearly made me loose all of that. All because I was too proud and stubborn to listen to anybody besides myself. My girlfriend learned that exact same lesson long before I did, I eventually figured it out too but if I hadn't I would have lost everything. You could have had more friends, but you're too stuck on your past to see that, and now you're all alone."
Gilda's claws dug into the ground before she spun around, her wings spread open and her irises shrunk in anger. "You don't know what you're talking about! We griffons are a proud race!"
"I know…and that's your biggest problem." 
"You don't get it! She abandoned me!"
"Gilda, you can spend your whole life blaming people, the universe, circumstances, and those are things we can't control, but we can control how we respond to them. Sometimes, the one who is most to blame for your problems…is yourself."
Gilda was stumped. She didn't know what else to say. Could he be right? Rainbow did try to make an effort to welcome her into her group back in Ponyville, but Gilda didn't think she could. She was always taught to never let anyone take what was hers, and her friendship with Rainbow Dash was her greatest treasure. One she believed was taken from her. But, maybe it wasn't really taken, maybe she had been too proud to realize she was the one who caused it to break apart.
"Mako! Gilda!"
The two heard Pinkie's voice call out to her. She galloped towards them, panting once she stopped. "Rainbow Dash is stuck on a ledge in the Abysmal Abyss, and I need your help to save her!"
Gilda gasped, Rainbow was in danger! Should she help? Would Rainbow allow her to? What would this make her is she complied? No, this was not the time for this. Pride needed to be pushed aside. Even if for just this once. 
"Fine. I'll help her. But that doesn't make me her friend." she stated to the pink pony, who simply smiled.
"Duly noted." once Gilda took the lead, Pinkie smiled at Mako, "Except it does!"


(~)


Rainbow backed up as farthest as she could, but the ledge she was standing on was slowly giving way. It would soon crumble and she would struggle to fly back up again. She felt terrible, she couldn't find the idol and she wasn't any closer to solving whatever it was the map wanted her to solve. Maybe this was the end for her. 
"Hang on, loser! I'm coming!"
Rainbow's eyes sparkled with glee when she saw the female griffon scale downwards to get her. The rope was tied around her waist while Mako held onto it, tying it on the strongest rock there was. 
"What took you so long, doofus?!" Rainbow shouted up, jokingly. In reality, she was as happy as could be.
The winds soon caught Gilda and she was forced to hang onto the ledge with her strong talons. The rock underneath Rainbow finally crumbled completely and she fell, screaming as she did.
"Rainbow Dash! I'm coming for you!" Pinkie Pie leaped forward to get her friend. 
"Pinkie, no!" Mako tried to reach out for her, but the pony was already falling down towards the falling Rainbow Dash. Without wings, there was nothing to push Pinkie back up. 
Gilda's rope then gave way, being broken just like Rainbow's. Mako hurried to grab the remaining rope but it was too late. Gilda fell downwards as well. Thinking quickly, she hurled the rope like a lasso, grabbing Pinkie Pie's waist and the earth pony finally caught the pegasus. 
"Gotcha!"
Gilda caught onto a ledge, having the two ponies dangling down. "Hold on, you two!" Gilda grunted as she tried to climb up. She gasped at the sight she saw before her. It was a gigantic skeleton head of a one eyed, two horned monster, the head itself was ten times the size bigger than her or any other creature. It was the head of Arimaspi. But that wasn't all. On the second ledge, only a few feet away from hers, stood another skeleton…
One of a griffon wearing a crown, and holding something in its claws. Something gold and shinning in the light. Gilda couldn't believe her own eyes.
"The Idol of Boreas!" her eyes shifted once more to the bony remains of the griffon wearing the crown. "It was true." 
This was her chance. A chance to restore pride and beauty to her kingdom. She needed to get the Idol. She stretched out her claw and was only a few inches away from getting it, but the winds were getting stronger and Pinkie couldn't hold on for much longer. 
"I'm slipping!" Rainbow exclaimed.
The Idol then slipped from the skeleton's grasp, and was now dangling onto the ledge. If it fell, it would be lost forever this time, never to be seen again. Rainbow Dash hung on for her life, both her and Pinkie Pie screaming. She was so close to getting the Idol…but at what cost?
Before she could fall, Rainbow and Pinkie felt the rope pull upwards. Gilda managed to get onto her ledge and pull the two ponies to safety. But once she did, the golden treasure gave weight and fell down into the dark abyss, now becoming truly lost for all time.
"The idol!" Rainbow's spirits fell. Their one and only chance to save Griffinstone was now gone. But, Gilda was not regrettable in the slightest of her decision. 
"You're more important to me than some dumb chunk of gold."
Rainbow's eyes shimmered as if tears were threatening to fall out. "Gilda…I can't believe you did that, after everything that--"
"I guess I didn't want to lose my greatest treasure again."
Now the tears really did come out. Rainbow did not hesitate to hug the griffon for the first time in years. Even Pinkie PIe joined in the embrace…until the rock beneath them began to crack. These stones were very sensitive to weight, apparently.
"Hugging later, climbing now!" Pinkie tied the rope around Rainbow Dash and the three quickly climbed out of the abyss.
Mako could not even begin to describe the happiness and relief he felt when the girls came back up, completely unharmed, aside from Rainbow's hoof. The two ponies ran up to the young man, who welcomed them in the tightest embrace he could give them. They may be Korra's bonded ponies, but his bond with them was just as strong as any other.
"I'm so happy you're okay!" he said, not even caring that tears were coming out of his eyes. He thought he had lost them.
"Yeah, we are." Rainbow said, "Thanks to Gilda."
The griffon blushed, "Okay, lets not get all sappy about it." she was taken by surprise when Mako hugged her. "I never pegged you for the hugging type."
"Don't ruin it."


(~)


The group of friends made it back safely at Griffonstone, where Gilda explained what she had seen.
"So, King Guto was the one who stole the Idol to begin with?" Mako asked, still amazed by this new information.
"Yeah. My great-great-great-great-great grandfather use to be one of the guards of his castle. Out of all the kings, Guto was the greediest, wanting to have the idol for himself, but even that didn't satisfy him. He began stealing from Arimaspi, taking all of his treasures."
"Which led to him stealing idol as payback." he stated. "And once Guto found it, he held onto it to his last breath."
"Most griffons didn't believe it, so they fabricated that other story. Even Grandpa Gruff got himself to believe it. You were right before, Mako. A griffon's pride isn't our greatest strength. It was our weakness." she hung her head in shame, "I'm really sorry about how I treated you all."
Rainbow, who needed to fly in order to keep her injured hoof elevated, smiled in reassurance, "Maybe I should have tried harder to keep our friendship. I guess I didn't think you wanted it anymore. I'm sorry."
"So…friends again?"
Rainbow smiled and rose her hoof up, "Junior Speedsters are our lives,"
Gilda smiled as well and flew up, "Skybound soars and daring dives," they finished the last part together.
"Junior Speedsters, it's our quest to someday be the very best!"
Mako and Pinkie Pie smiled at the beautiful reunion. Gilda had found her lost treasure once more. 
"And I'm just sorry we didn't get your idol back." said Rainbow Dash, "Now we'll never be able to solve Griffonstone's problem."
"Don't be so hard on yourself, R.D." Mako said happily.
"He's right!" Pinkie Pie jumped up, "The map didn't send us here to find the lost Idol of Boreas. It sent us here to replace it with something better!"
"Nothing's better than gold to a griffon." Gilda said. 
"That's because you don't have friendship! If you can learn to care about each other again, Griffonstone could be a mightier kingdom than it ever was before! And you don't need some golden idol to do that. You just need each other."
Rainbow Dash smiled, "Whoa, Pinkie. That was... really sappy." she said with a frown. 
"Eh, what can I say? That's how I roll." 
They then spotted the female griffon from before, Greta, walk on by. Mako placed a hand on Gilda's shoulder. "Go on, Gilda. Go make a friend."
But the now humble griffon wasn't so sure if she could do it. Was she really ready for this? Would she be good enough to make new friends? 
Rainbow placed the tray of scones onto her claws and Pinkie pushed her forward to take the first step. Mako winked at her and she then gulped before heading towards the other griffon. 
"I don't know, Pinkie." said Rainbow, "You really think these griffons are up for this? We aren't exactly in Ponyville, you know."
Mako chuckled, "This coming from one of the ponies who saved two worlds with nothing but friendship? I have a feeling Griffonstone is going to be just fine."
The three watched as Gilda tried to make friends with Greta. At first, she shook her head until Gilda offered her a scone. Rainbow was still a tad worried, but Pinkie and Mako were more than confident in her. Gilda then returned, already beaming with happiness. 
"Okay, so she was really weirded out until I gave her the scone. Then she tried it and said it tasted good! That's the first nice thing anygriffon's ever said to me!"
Mako then noticed the ponies cutie marks glowing and ringing, "Guys, look!"
"Whoa! I guess that really was the problem we needed to solve." said Rainbow Dash. 
"With a little help from Pinkie's baking skills." said the firebender.
Pinkie Pie then suddenly appeared in an old film reel quality with the baking powder next to her. "Baking powder makes baked goods and friendships fluffy and delicious!" *squee*
"Well, we'd better be heading home."
Gilda flinched, "What? Y-Y-You want me to spread friendship here by myself?! How am I supposed to do that?! I haven't even made one single friend yet!"
"No, you haven't." said Mako…right before smiling, "You've made three."
Pinkie started to tear up, "Hugging! Hugging now!" the ponies, griffon and human all welcomed each other in a loving embrace. Never had Gilda felt more at home, or whole, in her entire life. Her amber eyes shimmered with hope, while Pinkie still clung onto her. 
"But you'll come back and visit, right?"
"Just try and stop us!" Rainbow said proudly.
Pinkie finally released Gilda who then handed Mako a bag, "Here. Take some scones for the trip back."
"Thanks Gilda."
"I think I'm the one who should be thanking you. Two birds of a feather--"
"--Always stick together." the firebender gave her one finally farewell hug and Gilda went off to eat more scones with her new friend. They knew she would be okay.
"I gotta say Mako, you make a pretty good teacher." said Rainbow Dash.
"Well, I did learn from the best there is."
Pinkie Pie looked back at the old statue of the first griffon king. "See ya later, you old charmer."
"Uh, Pinkie? Who are you talking to?"
"Nobody! Come on, let's go home and see how Gummy did with Granny Pie's marjolaine recipe!"


(~)


Back at Sugar Cube Corner, Gummy was still on the counter surrounded by all of the baking ingredients when a knock at the door was heard and Bolin walked in.
"Hey, Gummy! Is Pinkie home?" he received no answer whatsoever from the alligator, but he didn't seem fazed at all. "Okay, I'll come back latter. Have fun baking!" he walked out, leaving Gummy alone…
Still blinking…


*(~)*

Matthew 6:19-21~
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

*(~)*