My Little Warcraft - New Friends

by Shin Guyviroth

Chapter 18 - Bread And Butter

The afternoon was still early within this part of Equestria. The sky still blanketed the land in its pale blue colours, interrupted only by the drifting of thick white clouds and the passing of many colourful birds. The atmosphere was set not only visibly but audibly as well. Every bird gave out a soft, sweet chorus of song upon the base line of the whistling winds. Even though it was in the afternoon, the entire scenery and atmosphere made it seem like it was in the early hours of the morning.

For Gai'vahros, that wasn't a bad thing at all. If there were two things he loved it was the sunrise and the sunset of the day, but he was definitely considering adding this feel to his list. What the blood elf enjoyed the most was being able to just relax, and that was probably what made the day feel so good. For years, all he ever did was fight, crusade, and kill. It hadn't crossed his mind even once to take a day off from it and enjoy the peaceful life. His only regret was not doing this years sooner.

"Yay! Crumpets!" a high-pitched cry erupted from Pinkie Pie, who was gazing down at a large plate of crumpets on the picnic blanket. "So the mail pony came after all!" she was obviously still oblivious to the fact that the whole 'in the mail' comment was only a gag.

"Uh, yes, dear," Rarity gave a rather uneasy chuckle as she watched her friend have, what could be described simply as, a staring contest with the plate of crumpets. "but, Gai'vahros, darling, you haven't even touched your food. Is there something wrong?"

"Haha, of course not, my Lady Rarity," Gai'vahros assured her that there was nothing the matter with her food; in fact, everything looked so good that he began to wonder why he hadn't taken a bite out of anything yet. Leaning forwards, he picked up a sandwich from a selection of plates. "It's just that I've never really done this kind of thing before. It's a lot to take in-- almost too much." though before anyone could respond, Gai'vahros took a small bite out of the sandwich he was holding. Everyone was more interested in his reaction than to ask more about himself, for the moment. "Oh, egg and tomato. This is good."

"I'm glad you like it, Gai'vahros," Fluttershy responded with a small hint of blush on her cheeks, although most of her mane hid it from the eyes of those present. "me and Rarity spent a lot of time making all of this food…" it was the way she said this that almost made Gai'vahros feel guilty for not eating any of it sooner, and even more so if he didn't help polish all of it off.

"Well, you two made an awful lot of food, y'know," Applejack said with a smile on her face while scanning over the entirety of the enormous blanket, spotting sandwiches, cakes, and scones, amongst a plethora of other concoctions. "but this'll definitely last us while we're all campin'."

"I'll say," Twilight was just as amazed; she had a plate with a few sandwiches, small cut fries and several biscuits, and the picnic still looked as though it hadn't been touched. "but this is a little too much for three days, right?"

"Hey, I just had a great idea," Rainbow Dash said as she hovered above the edge of the blanket with a carrot and lettuce sandwich in hoof. "why don't we keep camping until we run out of food? It'd be great to spend some extra time out here!"

"So about two days, judging from the amount of food that Spike's had so far." Twilight said sarcastically, looking down at her faithful assistant.

"I can't help it," Spike spoke, though his mouth was muffled by the mush of lightly chewed cupcakes. The little dragon looked back at Twilight, holding a cupcake in each hand while his plate consisted of a few more, some sandwiches, and some small precious gems that Rarity had put aside especially for him. "Rarity's food is so good, and these gems go so well with cupcakes."

"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself, Spikey," spoke Rarity in gratitude, "I made those cupcakes just for you." with a small smile, Rarity gave a wink at Spike. Her affection towards the young dragon caused his cheeks to swell with blush.

Fluttershy gave a little giggle as she noticed Spike's rosy red cheeks, but stopped as she looked down at her plate only to spot a baby squirrel nibbling at the crust of her bread slices. "Aw, poor little squirrel," spoke Fluttershy in a loving manner, "do you want me to share my food with you?" the little squirrel looked up with her and gave a very excited nod. Fluttershy gently peeled the crusts from the edges of the bread, leaving them in a little pile on the picnic blanket for her critter friend to eat.

Gai'vahros, too, began to remove the crust from his half-eaten sandwich before leaving them on the other side of the squirrel. At this point it looked as though the critter was sat between two towers of bread. "There you go," spoke Gai'vahros softly, "I'm not a fan of edges, anyway." the little squirrel looked back at Gai'vahros and then to the small pile of leftovers, giving a large smile and a squeak.

"Oh, he said "thanks"." said Fluttershy, turning her attention to Gai'vahros. "You're a really kind person, Gai'vahros, sharing your food with him."

"Don't mention it, my Lady Fluttershy," replied Gai'vahros as he lightly raised a hand up, "there's no sense in letting food go to waste if someone wants it." Gai'vahros gently placed a finger on the head of the squirrel, who began to nuzzle the silk.

"Gai, are ya gonna tell us a story," asked Apple Bloom, looking up the blood elf from the other side of the blanket. "preferably one without war an' stuff?" the filly wanted to hear of a tale that was more peaceful and not as destructive as she believed Gai'vahros' world to be.

"Hah. Way to me on the spot, little Apple Bloom." chuckled Gai'vahros as he gave a smile, but it was difficult for the blood elf to think of anything that didn't involve him slicing something in half. For a moment, he gave pause before speaking. "Actually… I can't really think of anything," he responded with a soft sigh as he picked up a small cup of tea beside him, taking a sip of it. "but I do know of one person who tends to be involved in crazy things."

"Oh? Who's that?" asked Apple Bloom, visibly interested.

"An old friend of mine; Stavros Kazantzitis," replied Gai'vahros before starting to chuckle under his breath as he placed the teacup back on the saucer. "he's a priest of the Alliance as well as a good friend of the family, so to speak."

"But aren't you at war with the Alliance?" asked Twilight, questioning the relationship between Gai'vahros and Stavros.

"Not exactly," Gai'vahros corrected her, "the Horde is waging war against the Alliance while the Alliance fights back for two reasons; to protect Pandaria, where the war has escalated to, and to dethrone the Horde Warchief-- Garrosh Hellscream. Me and Stavros, as well as a lot of other adventurers, however, do not care about this fruitless war effort. We do what we do and fight the fights we think are worth fighting for. As far as I'm concerned, I'm not at war with the Alliance; I'm at war with Hellscream's "Horde"."

"You make it sound like your "Warchief" is an evil warmongering dictator."

"That's because he is. That is why the Alliance is against us. That is why, every day, hundreds of humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes, draenei-- including innocents-- lose their lives."

The tension thickened like resin. Everyone at the picnic looked upon Gai'vahros as if they were waiting for him to burst from the obvious resentment he had towards the Horde-Alliance war as well as his hatred towards this "Garrosh Hellscream". Gai'vahros just sat, legs crossed, with his fingers entwined together and his chin resting upon two extended thumbs. Even though he was staring blankly forwards, his eyes darted in Apple Bloom's direction, causing her to feel incredibly uneasy. However, before the filly could voice her concern, Gai'vahros looked up with a grin on his face.

"So, about Stavros," exclaimed Gai'vahros, causing everyone to jump a little as he suddenly switched back to his more cheerful demeanour. "he's always a good laugh to be around if only because his raging is so funny to watch. I remember when we got into an argument over who would get the lack of the cake only for the mage to teleport it to Dalaran. It took us nearly all day but we managed to find it. Unfortunately, it had already been eaten. He was in such a huff over it we couldn't help but burst out laughing."

"He sounds like a great person," Rarity spoke in admiration, "but what is his relation to your family?"

"He was the one who taught my father the ways of the Holy Light during the Second War," Gai'vahros replied, though he wasn't so cheerful when saying it. "back when the "blood elves" were still considered high elves; back when we were part of the Alliance. I was young then, but I remember him greatly, and fondly, too. He was like an uncle to me, looking after me whenever father went off to war. I guess it was because of my father and Stavros that I became a blood knight. God I haven't seen him in some time."

"This might not be a question answerable, but do you know what he thinks 'bout the war?" asked Applejack, hoping to get an answer that would bolster her interest, and enthusiasm, in Stavros.

"… I've no idea." replied the blood elf, shaking his head. "The last I heard of him was during our victory over the Destroyer-- Deathwing. After the fight, we parted; I went back to Silvermoon while he returned to Stormwind. I guess that, with the defection of Archbishop Benedictus, Stavros will become a candidate to take up the mantle of Archbishop to lead the Church of the Holy Light. He's more than likely hung up his mantle as an adventurer."

"But that's a good thing, right?" Sweetie Belle challenged Gai'vahros' notion that Stavros' new position, and retirement of his previous one, would somehow reduced him. "If he becomes an Archbishop, wouldn't he be able to help out a lot of people without having to fight? Wouldn't it be better for him to live a more quiet life?"

"Yeah, you're right," Gai'vahros gave a small smile as he turned to Sweetie Belle. In his heart, he knew that his old friend would be better off spending the rest of his time in retirement, what with him getting on in his elderly years. "I guess I'm just upset that everything we've all worked towards feels like it's all crumbling down around us."

"Hey now, don't go an' bring the mood down, Gai," Applejack scalded the rather pessimistic elf. Before continuing, she took a bite out of an apple that rested in her hoof. "friendships and bonds aren't easily broken, y'know. I bet, if you went and saw him, he'd give ya a big hug and a howdy-do!"

"He probably would, but with my allegiance to Silvermoon and, thus, the Horde, I've no chance in being able to meet up with him or any other of my companions that reside within the Alliance territories. I can't even send him a letter."

"Well how 'bout you go an' send a neutral party to deliver the letter, instead?"

"Because I don't know anyone neutral." Gai'vahros sighed, picking up his cup of tea and taking another sip. As he stared into the amber honey-sweetened brew, a spark went off in his mind. "Oh, actually I do know of one person. The only problem is that he doesn't frequent the Alliance territories all that often. Perhaps I can ask him as a favour; he owes me a few favours from all the things I've done for him."

"Then it's settled; when you get back to ya own world, you can give a letter to that friend o' yours and he can deliver it to Stavros for ya."

"Oh yeah? Do you propose that this third party plays messenger all day long?" with a smirk, Gai'vahros looked back at Applejack before chuckling under his breath. Applejack was speechless at this point, having no viable response to Gai'vahros' challenge. He, on the other hand, didn't expect one. "Ah, it doesn't matter. At some point, Stavros will find his way towards this conflict if it means defending Stormwind. That will probably be the day we cross paths again."

While most of the group were getting more and more into Gai'vahros' personal life, Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo sat beside each other with Rainbow Dash sharing a tale with her little companion. "Y'know, kid, I remember when I was your age and I got to see The Wonderbolts perform in Cloudsdale. It was so awesome watchin' them pull off awesome moves, like the "Chandelle", the "Inside Loop", and the "Lazy Eight". I remember when everyone shouted out "do a Barrel Roll"! It was a good day."

"You're so lucky, Rainbow Dash," squealed Scootaloo in both admiration and envy, wishing that she could have seen their performance, or any of their performances for that matter. "being able to see The Wonderbolts live. Do you think, if I get really good at flying, that I'll be able to get to meet them?"

"Sure thing. In fact, the next time I get tickets to see them, I'll grab one for you, too."

"Really!? You're the best, Rainbow Dash!"

Gai'vahros couldn't help but turn his attention to the two of them although not showing it visibly. At first, his ears picked up on their conversation before Scootaloo's outcry of excitement, at which point the blood elf turned to show his interest. "These "Wonderbolts" sounds pretty interesting," spoke Gai'vahros finally as he placed a finger and thumb on his chin. "are they acquaintances of yours, my Lady Rainbow Dash?"

"I wish," scoffed Rainbow Dash though not to show any disrespect towards Gai'vahros nor her idols, "they're, like, the most famous ponies in Cloudsdale. No, scratch that, they're probably the most famous ponies in the whole of Equestria! Uh, royalty not included, obviously."

"I see. So these pegasi-- I assume that they're pegasi-- are a troupe of aerobats? What makes them so famous?"

"… Dude! I can't believe you just said that! I mean--" Rainbow Dash was on the urge of exploding at this point. She was so dumbstruck, so speechless, by Gai'vahros' words that she didn't even know how to reply appropriately. "--come ON! They're just totally amazing by all means!"

"I'll take it from here, Rainbow Dash." Twilight spoke up as she watched her friend lose her patience with the blood elf. "You see, Gai'vahros, The Wonderbolts are also a demonstration team and professional flyers. Also, they have an academy where potential new recruits are trained. They're highly respected for what they do-- and they do a lot-- as pegasi."

"So what else do they do? I don't see their aerobatics as "a lot"."

"I guess your world doesn't behave like ours where pegasi are concerned. Pegasi in Equestria have a lot of tasks that need to be done on a daily basis. Things like the weather-- making rainbows, crafting snowflakes, and even moving around storm clouds-- are all done by pegasus ponies. The Wonderbolts not only take part in this but also direct and coordinate other groups under them, namely the new workers."

"I think I'm beginning to understand, although your world is very… eccentric when it comes to the workings of meteorology. Nonetheless, I can't argue that they, and other pegasi, have very important roles in Equestrian society."

"Now you're getting' it," Rainbow Dash spoke with a smirk, having a chance to calm down while Twilight educated the unknowledgeable blood elf. "but perhaps it would be better if you went and saw them in person than just hearing about them. I guess that's three tickets I'll be getting next time."

"I'm more interested in this "academy" you spoke about; the one for new recruits." Gai'vahros couldn't help but entertain the thought of undergoing The Wonderbolts' trials. "I assume anyone able to fly can enrol in it?"

"It's not that easy, Gai. First, you gotta send a letter of interest to their head office. After that, you gotta wait for a reply, which could either say you're in or to take a hike. But, it would be pretty interesting to see if you get in or not; there's never been a non-pony in the academy before."

"Perhaps I can humour the notion of being the first non-pony Wonderbolt by applying." joked Gai'vahros as he swept one of his locks from the front of his face, still wearing a grin on his face. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"So you want me to put in a good word for ya?" asked Rainbow Dash as she gave a smirk, enjoying the prospect of Gai'vahros aiming to join The Wonderbolts. "Don't forget, though, that I'll also be applying at the academy! Don't think you can outdo me at what I do best!"

"Hah, "outdoing" you would be an understatement. You'll be wiping the dust from your face after I'm done with you." Gai'vahros laughed as he spoke, taunting and challenging the pegasus. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, didn't find it as an insult as much as she found it a boast.

"Chyeah, right. I guess you're gonna tell me that you did so much better than me when we were flying around yesterday?" the pegasus took this as a humoured debate, taking it in her stride. She turned to Scootaloo, nudging her shoulder with her elbow. "Yesterday, me and Gai got into a lil "competition" over who could pull off the more awesome stunts. Naturally I was the better pony."

"You were the only pony doing it." Gai'vahros quipped, pointing out that he wasn't a pony. "But I concede, though, that you pulled off some pretty amazing stunts. I'm quite surprised that you yourself are not a member of these Wonderbolts. They must be deaf, dumb and blind to not notice your talents yet."

"H-hey, I ain't that great," stuttered Rainbow Dash as her cheeks began to blush. Her eyes kept shifting from one side to another, looking to the left, then around to the right before shifting back again. "and besides, if I was so great, they would have asked me to join the academy by now, right?"

"A friend of mine told me, once; "Sometimes people come to us to seek their fame. Sometimes it's the famous who come to us"." replied Gai'vahros, showing off a bit of philosophical teaching. "Basically, people don't have to be told that they are great or extraordinary. People can be overlooked or just not noticed. You just got to go out there and show them that you're great and extraordinary."

"You really think so?"

"I know so, my Lady Rainbow Dash."

The picnic went on for quite some time as the sun began to withdraw from the sky, allowing the night to take its place. The sky began to shift from its clear blue shade to a tone mixed between orange and violet. The clouds drifted upon calm currents of winds, bringing more life and more depth to the horizon.

Twilight and the rest of the group began to tidy away the picnic before it got too dark. While Twilight and Spike were wrapping up the food, Applejack and Apple Bloom folded the blanket as the food was being removed. Rarity and Sweetie Belle started placing all the wrapped up food back on a small cart that they and Fluttershy had brought along with them. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie sat upon the grass, discussing about their camping location to which Fluttershy didn't seem fond of-- the "scary woods" south of their location. Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo laid upon the grass, opposite of Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, looking up at the sky.

"Y'know what really relaxes me, Scootaloo?" Rainbow Dash started, turning to her companion. "Getting to lay back and look at the sky. Always helps clear my mind, y'know?"

"Oh," Scootaloo replied as she turned to Rainbow Dash. Turning back to the sky above, she began to let her eyes relax and her mind wander. "I've never really thought of it like that before." the young pegasus began to watch as the clouds drifted overhead. The shine of the dawning sun refracted through openings in them, leaving a trail of glistening light.

Suddenly, their sights were blocked by a soft and thick covering of silk. "Guess who?" a voice called out to the two of them. Gai'vahros stood behind them, placing a hand over each of the ponies' eyes.

"Hah! Hey, Gai," Rainbow Dash replied, pushing the elf's hand from her face, as did Scootaloo. "you gonna come and join us?"

"Nah, Miss Bossy-Boots says we've got to head to the camp site," Gai'vahros pointed over his shoulder with a thumb, his naming directed to Twilight. "so when you two are ready, we'll be heading off. Don't be too long."

Comments

[Zepher2]

yes was waitinga long time for this chapter great read

[Shin Guyviroth]

2380642 Sorry to keep ya waiting bro

[Airoe]

Skytim reference detected. Thumbs up protocol initiated.

[AdmiralPopeyesBeard]

"Nah, Miss Bossy-Boots says we've got to head to the camp site," Gai'vahros pointed over his shoulder with a thumb, his naming directed to Twilight. "so when you two are ready, we'll be heading off. Don't be too long."

'Miss Bossy-Boots'. Too darn funny.

Loving this fanfic by the way!

[insania exitium]