Dead Birds

by Stray Dog Kane

Just a face in the crowd

The walk the pair had to town was a quiet one, if but for one question.

“Soooo, who’s paying for it?” Gilda’s line was classy, just classy. To be fair, she hoped it wasn’t coming out of her pockets---not that she had any.

Fluttershy was looking less angry, maybe even calm now despite that. But she still sighed like a champ at Gilda’s question.

Shy’s scarf and jacket kept her warm for the winter weather as they walked. While Gilda was going commando. Cold weather couldn't get the griffon down anyway as far as she was concerned.

The town about looked the same as the griffon had left it so long ago, only with the snow added. Even the locals were the same and painful to look at. All bright, cheery, then looking down their long noses at her.

As Fluttershy and Gilda walked down the main road this seemed to happen more and more, or at least enough to give the griffon that chill again. Everypony looked completely ticked at her.

“Is everyone this joyful when I’m around?” Gilda whispered to the yellow pegasus in a low voice, uneasily. “Or is it me?”

Shy let out another sigh. “She collapsed in the middle of town Gilda, they know what happened,” she whispered back as she continued to trot.

Gilda all but faceclawd as she grumbled. “Just great, that’s just great,” she muttered. Her eyes rolled as she could see most locals making a point to avoid her. She then was swatting a snowball one pony tossed out of the air. “Oh yeah?!” Gilda shouted back to the thrower. “Keep going pony boy, make me really mad! You like it when I’m angry, HUH?!” Her claws were up, as were her wings.

The smile she had gave her a enjoyable tingle as the offending pony ran into a door at full speed. Not through it, just into it with a heavy crash as he seemed to forget a step. She even felt a good laugh coming, at least until someone bit her wing.

“Yowch!” Gilda jolted up in pain.

“Come---on!” Fluttershy said, muffled with a wing in her mouth. The griffon pulled it free and returned to moving along with the pony. “You aren’t helping things, Gilda,” she added stoically. “Stop making it worse.”

“Why?” Gilda asked, folding her wing back after a few flaps. “It’s not like they’d care. They didn’t like me anyway.”

“Don’t make it worse for yourself,” was Shy’s unhappy answer back. “If it happens again, I’ll handle it.”

Like you would… Gilda thought to herself grimly.

As they went further into town, the weather just seemed to get worse. At first, it just looked clear but still cold. Now, after a long walk deeper into town, it was like the snowfall intensified quickly. It felt good for Gilda though. Soon the weather had most ponies indoors, so less problems for her to deal with.

After a tense walk, they now stood before what Gilda figured was a carpentry store.

“Just stay here, ok?” Fluttershy said, and before the griffon could say a word of whatever Shy drew a circle around her with a hoof in the snow. Gilda saw the circle around her as she looked on in confusion. “If you cross this line there won’t be dinner for you,” Shy added with a smile. Not exactly a cocky one, but getting there.

While Gilda was about to protest, Fluttershy beat her to it. “Don’t worry, I won’t take long,” she said with a raised hoof. “Just be patient and don’t cause anymore trouble. I’ll be right back.” With that she went inside, seeming to not hear the loud growl the griffon let out at the new rules she’d been given.

“Or there won’t be dinner for you…” Gilda said with a mock voice. “Now you be a good widdle gryphon, and stay in the-!” But a snowball hit her side, breaking her mockery of the flutter pony. A quick turnaround revealed a orange pegasus foal, just as unhappy as she was.

“What?” Gilda demanded as she was dusting off snow in annoyance and glaring back at the kid. “If you want to join the “Grrr, Gilda big meany club” get in line you little dork!” The kid continued giving her an angry look, all while scooping up more snow in her hooves.

The girl griffon weighed her options. Chase the kid off and lose dinner, or likely get pelted more waiting for Fluttershy? She grit her teeth on those choices with her rage building. She wasn’t going to lose her dinner to this crud.

Another thrown snowball was deflected with a quick claw, then another, then another.

“You’re just a big, mean bully!” Scootaloo yelled at the griffon. “You’re just jealous of how much cooler Dash is!”

Gilda let out a scoff, even giving a laugh to it. This felt rich.

“She sure does looks good flying through doors, that’s for sure!” she countered with a wise crack. “Now go buzz off kid, I ain’t in the mood.” Another ball was thrown at her and she was losing patience. “Buzz...’ she tried to say as she got hit by another. “Cut it out you twerp!” Gilda roared at the foal, but the kid still looked like she was enjoying this. “Or do you want me to teach you how to fly off REAL EASY?”

The griffon’s breathing was intense, but it was then she heard someone call the kid’s name. Not only did the filly pegasus run off, but she could hear some shouting from around the corner.

“Wha’er ya thinking?” a voice said loudly from out of view. “Don’t cha think she’s mad enough right now?”

“Yeah, and she’s only getting madder too,” said another. Gilda could then hear them quickly trot away.

One strained groan, and shaking bits of snow off later, Gilda was now sick of this standing around business. So was the weather apparently, the snow was now blowing with even more snow falling too.

“Piff, madder?” Gilda muttered as she struck her claw into the snow. “That’s a stupid word for it.” Her tallon tapped the snow covered ground. “I deserve crab meat for this crud! Now where the heck is that stupid door? Are they making her one or what?” Gilda said angrily.

“And yet he still cried, my belly was still not full,” That voice had her eyes now darting around. “Up here!” the voice shouted, and looking up the griffon had a whole three words prepared.

“Not you again,” she strained in displeasure. “I’m not in the mood, alright?”

“Hey G!” the Snark said, hanging upside down from the roof by his legs somehow. His little smile was filled with enjoyment and fangs, messy and blue. His muzzle was still wet with red, smeared across the white pony’s muzzle as usual. “So, how’s it feel to you little bird?” he asked.

“Wha?” Gilda’s brow razed. “How’s what feel?”

“These ponies disappointing you, of course,” the Snark laughed back to her. “All that anger, that rage, justifying of old prejudices without thinking,” he listed them off his misshapen hoof, now slivers of jagged claws as he licked his lips. “I just want you word on it, from genuine concern and courtesy you know my dear.”

Despite his slick looking tongue, and the fact the red was still there, she had to wonder why it never dripped off. Still the griffon sunk her head still, none of it really mattered anyway. Whatever that freak was, he was right.

“It sucks,” was Gilda’s two words on the matter with her head down sadly.

“Sucks what?” the Snark asked annoyingly with playful curiosity, his tone getting more grating to the griffon. “What does it suck? Suck is a matter of using one's mouth to draw, or suck as you may, a substance from a location. Like juice from a straw, crab from a shell, poison from a wound. Fun things suck!”

“Just buzz off, alright?!” Gilda yelled at the white pony, getting her head back up in anger. His brand of humor was getting to her, but his bright off blue eyes lit up more as she glared in rage.

“Oh, oh!” the Snark began to swing with a cackle. “Make me! Make me! Boy oh boy!” His laughter was causing Gilda to dig her claws into the ground, digging beyond the snow to the dirt beneath.

Window shutters slammed from side to side, as the griffon glared at the white weirdo. The wind growing in intensity, and the snow looking like a swirling wild mist around her. The scene was perfect for some kind of showdown, and beat down---if only that door didn’t open.

It ruined it, it ruined everything.

“Gilda, door, help!” Fluttershy cried out with some effort, as her little legs trembled under the weight of things on her back. She was holding two big bits of wood on her back in the building's doorway.

Things had so abruptly shifted, Gilda could only blink for a moment. She just stood there as one of the wood bits fell off the pony’s back, it being the top of a door.

“Two door?” Gilda said without moving, even kind of dumbstruck.

The griffon then looked back up to find that “The Snark” freak had left his roost, not even leaving a sign he had ever been there. Even the storm’s fury seemed to become absent, beyond a slight cold breeze and sleet. The weather had changed a quickly as the mood.

“They’re haves,” Shy’s voice and legs still were still a bit shaky. “Help me, Gilda. Please?” she said with a groan.

“Alright, alright!” Gilda moved to action, losing the shock and taking the fallen door half to her back. Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief seeing her help out. “Please tell me were heading back. This town’s getting to me now,” Gilda added nervously.

The pony nodded, and they were off.

Though Gilda still had to wonder where that white freak went off to, she really didn’t want to think about it. With the weather calmed down ponies were coming out again, and soon there were crowds again in the streets. Simply put, she was going to have other problems to deal with anyway.

For one, the ring from before was buried in snow. Then again, Fluttershy never brought it up. She didn’t mention it once on the way back.

As the pair walked back past the market square though, Gilda saw another surprise. It was another griffon with a brown sock cap covering his head in the market crowd. He had the same looks and color as Gilda was like a mirror image except for his green eyes.

“Ed?” Gilda said, if mostly to herself.

Either he heard her, or just happened to look in her direction, but he saw her for a moment. The look of shock mirrored that pony from a while back as the other griffon flew off like someone was after him. She just watched as the dimwit flew away, only noting how lucky he was the wind stopped blowing.

Fluttershy seemed to notice the spectacle with curiosity. “Did you know that griffon Gilda?” she asked.

“I’m having a really, really bad history with old friends right now,” Gilda muttered as she just walked on. “So can you just not ask?”

“He’s Edward, isn’t he?” Shy continued, looking happy as if she figured something out. The girl griffon replied with an angry look to the pegasus, cutting off any further conversation on that matter. Shy looked a bit unnerved, but still kept the smile.

The rest of the walk was quiet as usual.

When they got back to the outskirts, away from town, Gilda felt like a weight was off of her. Or something, it was almost hard to pin down for her. Either way, she felt glad to be gone from Ponyville for now. She felt like she could relax again.

Even the weather had completely cleared up, with the snow having stopped as they reached the house.

Now at the front door of Fluttershy’s home, the desk still wedged in it, she finally spoke up. “First we need to-” But the griffon knew what it was.

“Take what’s left off the hinges, get the new door on those hinges, and then get the desk out,” Gilda said, rubbing her talons with some confidence. “Maybe not in that order, but yeah. So where is-”

Have no fear, Angel is here. Pushing a tool box twice his size---somehow. Gilda tilted her head for a moment, as to contemplate how such things could be. Maybe it’s what duck pony feeds him or something was her guess.

“Okay…” Gilda added with a nervous smile. “Let’s just get this over with.”

She undid the door hinge as Fluttershy and Angel went inside via the back door. As she was putting in the lower half, the desk was pulled out from the doorway. How Shy did that would just have to be a mystery. The good news was the pegasus could now help hold the upper half in place.

With the task completed, and with a new psychoanalyst desk in the living room, they took a break. Angel got his wish of dinner first, now eating some decidedly different carrots and some other plants. While Gilda just sat at the table, trying to relax after a job well done.

“Least it all worked out,” she said offhandedly with a smile. “Huh?”

Fluttershy didn’t respond, only digging in the fridge quietly. Likely for the griffon’s dinner, hopefully. The pulling out of what Gilda figured may be salmon or at least chunks of one was a good answer.

Still that silence she was being given was getting to the griffon.

“Uh…” Gilda rose a talon, about to say something, but the pegasus turned to give her a smile. A bit a creepy one, and a look that just seemed to dominate the room.

“Why don’t you help me with dinner, Gilda?” Shy said with a glint in her eye. The smile, the eye twinkle like some kind of evil---thing could be felt by the griffon. Gilda figured she was in for some fun now. “After all, maybe we could talk as we cook?” she added in a friendly voice.

Gilda sighed despite that creepy stare she was being given. She really wasn’t in the mood for this.

“Now you’re more mental than I am, great...” she replied as she looked to the side, tapping her claw on the table. “Do you hear those voices too? Maybe ya see some kind of shadows beyond the screaming nightmare, huh?” Fluttershy dropped the scary look routine and went back to sad looking. “I’ve seen enough of this horror stuff, ok? Geeze…”

“You hurt a friend of mine, Gilda.” Fluttershy sighed back, returning to her task somberly. “I know she was pushing you, but all you’ve done is making it worse.”

“I stayed in that dumb circle,” Gilda replied answered in defense, with some humor. Hearing Shy groan slowly made it clear that was the wrong answer. “Fiiiine….” she groaned back. “I’m ticked that it seems no one taking my side on this, alright? Sure, Dash didn’t---maybe deserve that but…” Then she realized something. “Wait, how bad was it anyway?” she asked.

She wasn’t sure if it was concern, or just curiosity. Still, the pegasus was eager to tell her about it.

“4 bone fractures, but nothing too bad,” Fluttershy answered, she even sounded less upset at least. “I think she was too proud to check her injuries at first, and she also got a bad cold while she outside.” As she gave the story, she was putting the salmon patties in the oven. “She’s going to be fine in a few days.”

“Uh huh,” Gilda said with some interest. “So, you’re still taking her side on this then? Seeing as she’s all beat up?”

“I’m not taking sides with this, Gilda.” Fluttershy turned to give the griffon a unhappy look. While Gilda let out a pifft, Shy continued. “Neither of you were right to do what you did.”

“Whatever,” Gilda replied with a grumble. “So, you still want me to help or what?”

“Not really,” Fluttershy replied with a weak smile, causing the griffon’s brow to raise. “But, thanks for asking.” She went to work on that fish, briefly turning it. “After all, we’re talking right now.”

While the pony’s back was turned, Gilda looked to Angel.

“She always like this?” she whispered to the rabbit.

The look Angel game more or less said “Yep.”. And then seeing the sigh forming in Gilda’s look added with a humored shrug. “You get used to it.” It might have said.

“Awww, man” Gilda lowered her beak in agony, well kind off to that answer. This Hearth’s Warming was going to be fun in a bad way.

At least the meal was quiet, for the most part. Putting things at ease for once, even the fish was seasoned better at least.

“And one more thing,” Fluttershy added with a raised hoof, just as Gilda was about finished with her eating. “Get my desk back downstairs when you are done.”

The griffon let out another groan, that thing’s heavy.

Comments

[Qussar]

You are magnificent for writing all of this without feedback and encouragement, and just 8 upvotes.