//------------------------------// // The morning after // Story: Dead Birds // by Stray Dog Kane //------------------------------// 4 days remain until Ragnarok. Gilda’s eyes opened to find it was morning. The sun was shining in the window and she was up in the best mood she ever knew. Things looked good for once---great even. Even while getting up from the bed, she felt almost light as a feather, like she was walking on air. At first, maybe she felt it was from getting the first good night's sleep. But why did the sunlight seem much brighter to her? Not blinding, just better. Even the smell of the breakfast Fluttershy was making downstairs smelled heavenly. At least for a moment… As her mind wandered, past things came back to her. From Dash, to how other things turned out for real. Her quitting advanced flying classes in apathy, that lousy caravan job, that asylum. Gilda let out a sigh as her smile faded. Her lightness turned heavy, and she faceclawed for being so foolish. Life still bites and that was the end of it, no more joy. While she could muse it was good while it lasted, she didn’t feel like it. She just decided to go downstairs and deal with the rest of her day in misery. Fluttershy was there, as to be expected. From what Gilda could tell, there was a halibut on the kitchen counter. It was bigger than a sardine at least. Despite the the pony having her flank to the griffon, the Shy seemed to know the griffon was there. “Good morning Gilda!” Fluttershy said with a cheerful tone as she turned to face the awake griffon. “You must have slept well, this is lunch.” “Yeah, about that…” Gilda said as she scratched her head. “That pill thing?” she asked. “Is it supposed to make it look like the universe went crazy?” The pony looked at her with some concern, her jaw lowering. “Well, yeah ok---I looked. Got something out of it, but what the heck was that?” she pointed a talon as she spoke. “I only peeked....” Shy replied as she trotted over. “I know it can be scary, but you really shouldn't look. It has you dream that you are awake, so to help with the lucid dreaming. I think?” Even while she explained the pony looked unsure. “Lucid?” Gilda replied. That was a word she wasn’t expecting, as she continued scratching her head. “How’s that even work?” “You should eat first,” Shy dismissed the question, gesturing the griffon to the table. “Maybe I can tell you more about it during your session in a hour, ok?” Gilda sighed, but still nodded. The fish wasn’t seasoned well, but it was good. Heck, Gilda even had the salad with it without grumbling. Maybe she could find a way to talk the pony into roasting a chicken, then again maybe not. Fluttershy seemed the sort to be unhappy about cooking things with wings, if her duck herding was of any evidence. After the meal, and making a note to be sure the tea slurry she made the night before was disposed of, Gilda figured she’d just twiddle her claws for awhile. She could nap, but what will she see then? Especially with what she had seen? Cards were boring now, still no electronic games, and still no where to fly to. She looked over to the rabbit giving her a the dirty look. He sure wasn’t interested in doing much either. But, hey? Let’s ask. “So, you do pranks?” Gilda asked the bunny. “Like to other ponies? Or do you just not like people?” Angel looked at her with a “Are you kidding me?” look as she realized the exercise she was doing was futile. “Right….” Gilda groaned, putting a claw on her head as she sat back at the table. She decided to just wait there now. Finally, Fluttershy appeared and gestured for her to follow her. The pegasus opened a door that lead farther downstairs. The basement was lit with a few lights, with more than a few larger shadows in dark corners and a shelf full of boxes. In the light, however, was a few chairs, a couch and a desk. In those shadows, Gilda could see a few more things, including something ducking behind a crate in the corner, but she decided to give it no mind. Even if she figured she may well regret it it was clear it wasn’t the Snark. At least she hoped it wasn’t. “Please, take a seat,” Dr. Shy said, as she sat down in a chair behind the desk. Gilda blinked for a moment, as if to ponder. “I-I mean sit down, I know the joke you’re thinking off, Gilda,” she giggled. “Kill joy,” Gilda grumbled as she sat down on the couch. “First, in your own words, what brought you here,” Dr. Shy started, as she pulled out some papers from the desk. “Some ponies in armor,” was Gilda’s answer. Fluttershy rolled her eyes, but smiled at the humor of the answer. “Fine, after some stuff I got a job,” she summarized. “More stuff happened, and I was in a that asylum.” “Do you know why?” Shy asked, gesturing a hoof. “Nope,” Gilda said with a shrug. “Just know that job was scouting a new route somewhere. I know I got drunk, then I can remember a fight but that’s it,” she figured she could lay back for a bit, this couch felt comfy. “Ooook,” Dr. Shy seemed to wonder what to ask next. “How about things you felt after you left Ponyville?” “Like, what?” Gilda asked, now not so comfortable. She knew she wasn’t going to like this part. Despite laying back, she was not relaxed now. “How did you feel back then?” Fluttershy asked, putting on a pair of glasses. A pair of simple half frames. Now Gilda knew she really wasn’t going to like this, so she added how she felt on things. “Like you dumb ponies are the most stupid, over glorified, self important bunch of losers I’ve ever seen!” Gilda said with anger. It was as loud as it was cathartic. It even got her out of the slouch she was in, now standing herself upright again. “And you don’t give a damn about anyone, so you just make yourselves awesome by calling yourself that. Just so us non ponies can never be as “cool” as you are! You losers don’t even…” Gilda paused for breath. “Who even said you guys have adventures beyond some stupid books?” By the end of it, she was up and pointing an angry tallon at the pegasus. It felt good for her to say it, but even so, Dr. Fluttershy wasn’t cowed over. The pony looked unfazed, so Gilda let out a sigh as she went back to her slouch. Ending with letting out a grumble as the griffon felt like just looking at the ceiling. The pony endured the flurry of insults, and at most, she blinked as she wrote a few things down. “I’m sorry to hear that,” Dr. Shy said, trying to sound impartial. “But how many friends do you have other than Rainbow Dash? Do you know anyone else from Jr Speedsters?” “Nope,” was Gilda’s short answer. Not even looking at the pony, now more concerned to keep looking at the ceiling above. “Is it because of Dash?” Fluttershy continued, but Gilda didn’t answer. “How important was she to you? Did you two have…?” while Dr. Shy asked this innocently, the griffon knew the question and she knew the answer. “Why do you ponies keep thinking I wanted Dash that way?” Gilda grumbled in a low voice and a tired sigh. “Like, really?” she looked to Shy with a look of annoyance. “Just because some ponies are like that doesn’t mean I am. I don’t chase mares, alright?” “So why were you so focused on her?” Fluttershy asked, looking back to her. She crossed her hooves under her head as she leaned on her desk. “Why was it just her with you?” “You wouldn't even get it,” Gilda replied back as she closed her eyes, and laid back again. “I could try, talk to me,” Shy pleaded. “Help me understand. It could help...” Dr. Shy continued to try to get an answer, but she wasn’t going to get one. Gilda let out a annoyed huff. “Just go to the next stupid question,” she said. “Is if due to something in your childhood?” Dr. Shy asked a new question, but the same answer still. “Next,” Gilda dismissed again. “Ok…” Fluttershy now sounded a bit more uncertain. “Do you have any non pony friends?” “Define “friend”,” Gilda asked finally, opening her eyes and now with attention. “I know you ponies are more…” she paused to think on how to describe it. “Cuddle happy than us griffons are.” “Someone you bonded with, like a person you trust or can rely on when things go wrong,” was Dr Shy’s long answer. “People you “hang out” with maybe?” Now she was doing the air quotes. Gilda sighed, rubbing her face. “Had a guy called Edward,” was her answer. “He was a dork, and even his dad called him a giant chicken. He’s pretty much a loser anyway.” “Did you know anyone else?” Shy kept prodding, and looked happy now. It seemed they were now making some kind of progress. Gilda hesitated for a moment, tapping her beak. “Some too dumb to live dog named Sunshine,” she said with a shrug. “But, I guess he just wanted to be one. I think he’s some kind of weirdo or a nut.” “How much did you know about them?” Fluttershy asked with a bit of hope. “I mean, if they were-” “Meh,” Gilda answered back with disinterest, those details didn’t matter much to her. “Who cares? Not like it mattered how much I knew them about them.” “Well…” Dr. Shy said with some near smugness. “How much did you know about your old best friend?” The pegasus treaded on thin ice there. Gilda was up now, looking the pony in the eye. It was now silent anger vs someone trying to pry. Still, even with an unhappy griffon staring her down the Shy was still looking like she was trying to get some magic answer to fix something. “If these were the people you hung out with, even if it was for awhile, why did you once talk about her so fondly?” Dr. Fluttershy added as she adjusted her glasses. Gilda just said one word that didn’t matter much to her at this point. That memory was too long ago for her now to remember it fondly anymore. “...Rainboom,” she simply replied. If Doctor Fluttershy was going to ask for more, she wasn’t getting more than that. Judging by the meek look she got from the pony at the low, growling, and clearly unhappy voice Gilda had used the pony understood that and moved on. “Have you ever thought that maybe you haven’t tried to be…” Fluttershy looked like the was pondering for a moment, rubbing her muzzle and looking for the right thing to say. ”Approachable?” She could see the look Gilda was still giving her, but kept going despite it. “Even ponies can step down, er, I-I mean try to compare themselves to weaker., um people,” Shy said as she looked like she might be stumbling at the griffon’s stare. “J-just because s-somepony or someone isn’t, er, a-awesome, doesn’t mean you can’t relate to them, Gilda.” The griffon sighed as the pony kept going, losing her anger to the sight of weakness. The pegasus seemed to relax as well. “If you only made friends with others who were exactly like you were, would it really be all that nice?” Fluttershy asked with new confidence. “And how am I supposed to relate?” Gilda asked with annoyance at the question. “I hate ponies that are full of hot air. So far that’s all of em.” “I, um, don’t know?” Dr. Shy answered. “It’s hard to...” Finally, Gilda leap up from her couch. The griffon has had enough of these circles things were now flying in. “Wait, just sit...” Fluttershy was now up, flying up to Gilda. “I can understand what you might be going through,” she added with hooves out. “Please, I want to help you.” “How?” Gilda yelled at the small pony in front of her. “It’s not like you got a magic undo button for all this. So why should I care about this?!” “Well, who’s to say a undo will fix anything?” Fluttershy countered in a serious tone, even despite the griffon roaring in her face. “What if you don’t learn something because of it?” She was now trying to push Gilda back onto the couch with her head. It was as sad and futile as it sounds to see a yellow pegasus try to push a big, unpleasant griffon who now stood there with an aside glance. The griffon couldn't believe how stupid things had gotten. “This head game stuff is stupid and going nowhere, bumble fly,” was Gilda’s bitter retort. “So don’t try to say you got all the answers!” “What if someone really wants to be your friend?” Fluttershy asked with a bit of strain, still trying to push. “Have you ever considered that? What if it was you?” “I-I don’t know,” Gilda said, now sounding a bit more down. Her anger lost it’s air. She hardly thought much on that for awhile now, but that old memory was kicking in, trying to return a portion of her bitterness. “What’s this stuff even worth anyway? It just ticks me off in the end. So just-” That last bit must have got the griffon’s spirit down, or at least her feet got off balance which was all Fluttershy needed, or more than that as her next push was enough to knock them both onto the couch with the pegasus on top of the griffon. It was a shock for them. Both sides were staring at the other, then one of them started to blush. “Um,” Fluttershy sounded awkward, and her blush didn’t help matters. “I didn’t…” “Off!” was Gilda’s opinion on the matter as she pushed the pony off of her. “Like I need more of this stuff being asked about me!” After getting back on her hooves, the Shy backed away, trotting back to her desk. The blush was still there for a moment. Only then did Dr. Shy notice Gilda still had the glasses on her chest. “S-sorry. I-I mean, well…” Dr. Shy nervously muttered and let out a cough. “I think we made some progress today,” Gilda put a claw to her face and sighed. The whole thing felt ridiculous, but the pony still kept being hopeful on it. “But, maybe if you could open up a bit more?” Fluttershy added. “I’d like to know why things got as bad for you as they did, but that can wait until later.” She got up from her desk and Gilda figured she’d get up as well. Warily, handing the glasses back. It was quiet as they headed back up the stairs. “So, you got anything better for me to do here?” Gilda asked when they were back on the main floor, still feeling tired of all the waiting around. “Like flying, or someplace fun to go to?” “Maybe…” Fluttershy replied, as she closed the basement door. “I had the idea of you helping me with the animals later, but not just yet,” she dug her hoof as she spoke, but giggled softly a bit. “You might scare them off right now.” After getting back to the living room the pony snapped her hoof---somehow. Gilda was aware of snapping one’s claws, but a hoof? Maybe she was cracking again? “Just, um, hang around upstairs,” Fluttershy said with enthusiasm. “Maybe I can think of a nice, er, surprise for you.” Gilda shrugged and went to the second floor. The unsubtle hints she was given told her that duck pony was going to try bonding her to that short rabbit again, at least she hoped that was the idea. The alternative was bonding with the blushing pegasus. The last thing she needed was being part of some kind of pony ride.