Home Again

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“I never expected griffons to be this lame,” sighed Smolder as she glided down toward the enormous skywood tree that was the city of Griffonstone. “I mean, seriously? Nothing you’ve told me about this ‘championship’ is actually cool!”

“You know what, Smolder?” Gallus grumbled beside her, trying to keep his feathers from knotting in annoyance. “You didn’t have to come!”

“Tell that to Dean Starlight!” Smolder shot back, doing a few loops until she was flying upside down below him and staring him in the eye. “Especially when she gets an order from the Princess Twilight about the importance of ‘the cultural and historical significance’ of this Featherheart Championship!”

She rolled her eyes at those last few words. Gallus couldn’t really blame her, but he still glared down at his friend, keeping his tired wings locked into a gliding position. “You’ve been complaining half the trip, Smolder.”

“And you’ve been complaining the other half, Gallus,” Smolder said with a smirk as she flipped over him and bopped him on the head. “Don’t act like you’re all innocent in this! You’re the one who refused to take the train!”

“It’s part of the tradition!” Gallus spat, flushing red. “Hey, listen! Everything else about this is weird, so I had to at least do the flight or else…”

Smolder groaned, smacking her hand against her face. “You have been trailing off like that for days! Do you have any idea how annoying that is? Why do you think I’m so bored? You won’t tell me anything good! By the Dragon Lord, you’ve barely told me anything at all!”

Gallus grunted and muttered under his breath. He hadn’t been able to talk Dean Starlight or Smolder out of this, so now his only chance was that the Griffonstone Guard wouldn’t let an outsider pass. Hopefully before they realized his invitation was a massive mistake.

As Griffonstone grew ever closer, Gallus took in just how many griffons seemed to be flocking toward the city this year. And still, he couldn’t help but think about his companion. Yeah, they’d all been there for the signing of the Great Alliance Treaty, forging most of the eastern world into true allies, but that didn’t mean dragons—or any other creature, for that matter—had any right to see one of the most private ceremonies they had!

Or at least had the right to see what would happen when he arrived and the truth came out.

Griffons still had their pride, after all. By the Nest, he shouldn’t actually be here! Even if this wasn’t some massive mistake, he hoped he’d just get turned around at the door. Mostly.

It would be the easiest solution. If not… necessarily the one he’d occasionally thought about. But everygriff thought about that. So… yeah.

Smolder continued to badger him as they descended into the city itself. Though it had been at least five years since he’d been home—he’d been so busy with grad studies after the Battle of Harmony—it seemed more like twenty years had passed for the city. The formerly desolate Griffonstone, once only a few steps away from being an abandoned ruin, now stood proud again against the mountainous backdrop. The skywood tree’s roots had grown thicker around the mountain base and were now a rich brown instead of a dull tan. There were even tufts of green and buds signaling the coming of new branches. The city itself had been rebuilt. No more ramshackle huts or homes, but now a true city to rival even Canterlot.

He almost couldn’t believe his eyes.

“Huh, this place isn’t the dump you said it would be,” Smolder commented. “I don’t know how I feel about that.”

Gallus couldn’t help himself. He grinned. The sight of Griffonstone restored to what the legends proclaimed it to be was enough to put some energy back into his wings. So, with a smirk at Smolder, he darted straight down.

“Hey!” cried Smolder as he left the dragon in the dust.

He came down with a crash, startling a few griffons as he landed on one knee with his fist against the ground. He flared his wings once and glanced over the street before standing and furling them back in. Only then did he adjust his brown flight jacket and canvas pants, loosening his backpack a little. He took a long drink from his canteen as he waited for Smolder to catch up. And for effect.

Damn, it felt good to feel the eyes of everygriff on him.

One or two griffons on the street actually smiled at him. A younger chick even whooped. Where had this city been when he’d been a chick?

Smolder came down and tried to copy his move, but ended up misjudging a little and sprawled into the street. A few griffons laughed, but Gallus kept his response to a snicker under his breath. Then, he reached down to haul his friend back up. She shoved him away, her cheeks burning.

“I’m fine!” she snapped, crossing her arms over her red and white t-shirt before she leaned over to dust off her jeans. “You just caught me by surprise with that little stunt!”

Gallus’s smirk just grew. “If you can’t keep up, you should probably head home.”

“Yeah, not happening,” Smolder said as she shoved him aside and started marching down the street, her thick tail—and thicker ass—swaying back and forth. She managed to get ten steps before she whirled around and glared at him again. “So, uh… where are we going?”

Gallus couldn’t help it. He burst out laughing and jogged to meet Smolder. “Don’t worry, the Featherheart Coliseum is off Champion Street. It’s just a block or two away.”

“Good, because my wings are killing me and they need a break,” Smolder said with a sigh as she rubbed her left wing. “How are you not aching all over?”

Gallus stretched his wings slightly as they passed through a small open-air bazaar. The scents and smells of home—once something he hated—now seemed oddly welcoming.

“Griffons and pegasi have similar wing structures, though griffon’s wings tend to be bigger. It makes it easier for us to glide than dragons or batponies. Dash did a lesson on it once.”

“Lucky you,” Smolder said with a little snort of smoke as she crossed her arms again, this time under her large tits.

Gallus eyed the street as they left the small marketplace behind. Smolder was catching more than a few glances, and more than a few of them were looking at her with obvious interest, instead of mistrust or outright hate.

He chuckled, despite himself. That, more, than anything else, showed just how much Griffonstone had changed. Once, they’d cared only for themselves. That had been the world he’d grown up in, orphaned and alone. Until a chance run-in with that excitable Gabby had ended up with a letter in his hands and a future on the horizon.

Now? Griffons saw beyond their own feathers. Hell, they’d even moved on enough to notice when a smoking—literally—hot dragon chick was sashaying through the streets.

Smolder, of course, didn’t even seem to notice. She was too lost in her own head.

She was doing that more and more these days. Sometimes that made him worry, though she insisted that everything was just fine and he should mind his own business.

So, just as they turned the corner onto Champion, Gallus slipped his right claw into Smolder’s jeans. She immediately stiffened, going stock still. He waited patiently, even as her wings twitched.

And then, her tail twitched, exactly what he’d been waiting for.

He gave that thick dragon ass a wonderful squeeze and the dragon it was attached let out a little stuttering moan.

“Not fair,” Smolder hissed under her breath. “You know I’m not going to do anything in the street!”

“I’m not asking you to,” he said with a chuckle. “I’m just enjoying my good friend’s company.”

He squeezed again, his claw tracing the underside of her tail. She spasmed in his grip and bit her lip hard to keep from screaming as a pair of griffon girls a couple of years older than Gallus sauntered by.

“I thought we were taking a break,” she whispered, her voice a little husky. “You were having fun with Ocellus.”

“Ocellus isn’t here,” Gallus whispered into one of her little tufted ears. “Anyway, Yona and Sandbar wanted to try to bring her in on their fun for a little while. She seemed really eager.”

“You know, the ponies would think the whole trading around thing is weird,” Smolder commented through gritted teeth as he squeezed again. “R-really weird…”

“Who cares?” Gallus laughed as he slipped his hand out. “As long as we’re all having fun, we’re not hurting anycreature. Silverstream is the only one who noped out.”

“Yeah, that’s just her. Hippogriffs are weird, too.”

Gallus felt a little of his lust for the dragon beside him cool. “She just wants to find somecreature to raise a family with. Is there something weird about that?”

He hated the weakness in his voice. He hated the questioning look Smolder gave him even more.

“No,” Smolder said slowly. “No, nothing wrong with that featherbrain wanting to have some cute hippogriffs chicks of her own.”

He raised an eyebrow at her.

She flushed, her eyes suddenly blazing with annoyance. “And don’t you dare tell anyone I said that!”

Gallus grinned. Even now, Smolder couldn’t get over her embarrassment over enjoying cute things. Coming out about it and being comfortable about it were two very different things.

“Hey, it’s not hurting anycreature,” Gallus said with a smirk.

“Except for you,” Smolder said with a narrow glare. “Because do you have any idea what I’m going to do to you later for that little stunt with my tail?”

Gallus tapped her on the nose with a claw. “Yeah, I do. And yeah, I’ll enjoy it. Just like last time.”

With that, he headed down the street, leaving Smolder to well… smolder. He almost got around the curve of the next building before she let out a loud hiss and stalked back to his side.

“You’d better be happy you can make me squeal,” Smolder muttered as she stepped aside for a small wagon of griffons and ponies.

“I can make anycreature squeal, I just like your squeals best,” Gallus countered.

Smolder’s reply was cut off by the rising sound of chaos ahead. The two shared a look, then, as one, jogged ahead.

Championship Lane had been built in a wide loop on the inner ring of the city, with the great skytree stretching high into the air above them. Over three hundred homes dotted the enormous branches of the skytree of Griffinstone, each built out of the wood of the tree itself. But nocreature else seemed to care as they rounded the bend. Everygriff in sight were focused on—or fighting to get into—the massive crowd milling around in the middle of the street, in front of a thick curved stone building that rose at five stories into the air.

The building looked ancient, with all sorts of grand-looking sandstone pillars along the front colonnade. Two enormous gates—easily thirty feet tall—stood closed against the crowd. There was a short courtyard between the street and the gate and within the courtyard stood a barrier that looked like it was almost besieged.

“What the feather…” Gallus muttered as he shared another concerned look with Smolder. “Why are they attacking the Featherheart Coliseum?”

She, of course, just shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I don’t get your crazy culture.”

Gallus rolled his eyes and charged into the fray, with Smolder at his heels. Everything seemed to be stemming from a series of tables set up at the front of the courtyard before tall gray building. Each of the tables had two griffons behind it and were draped with deep red fabric emblazoned with the Great Skytree Crest of Griffonstone. The poor griffons behind the table looked overwhelmed by the sheer amount of griffons on the other side, all of them shouting and yelling. However, as Gallus began to move griffons aside to get a closer look, the racket began to quiet down, only to replaced by whispers.

“Oh, by the Nest, it’s him!”

“He brought one of the others!”

“Could he actually be here to compete?”

“Forget the competition, he can just have me now!”

“Can you imagine him switching sides?”

Gallus flushed at some of the words but kept steadily moving forward through the crowd. In fact, he couldn’t decide which was stranger: the praise or the fact that nogriff challenged him as he cut in front of them. But he kept weaving his way through the crowd. Moments later, he didn’t have to. The crowd parted for him and Smolder, making a clear path to the front tables through the sea of griffons.

Standing in front of the tables with his arms crossed was easily the most impressive griffon he’d ever seen. The powerfully-built male standing at perfect military rest wore a ceremonial silver breastplate, black slacks and polished boots. His coat—what little could be seen—was a white-gray, while his feathers were either bright green or soft blue. He even wore a pair of short swords at either hip.

His sharp eyes seemed to pierce Gallus despite the fact that they were at least a hundred yards apart. For a moment, Gallus just stood there and stared back at him as if he were transfixed. Then, the other griffon looked away, his eyes scanning the crowd. Gallus blinked a few times and looked around, only to see almost every set of eyes looking right back at him.

Almost everygriff here was male, as was the tradition in the Featherheart Championship. While there were a few females in the crowd, he could see a lot of them were supportive mothers or sisters. Only a handful of them looked like they wanted to compete and all of them looked to be forty or older. For the males, almost every age group was represented, as well as the different griffon tribes with their numerous feather colors. In the past, this had been the one time the griffon people had really come together.

And yet, there was something a little off about the way the crowd moved. It felt like most of the griffons here were more spectators than actual competitors. In fact, there were some who actually carried signs denouncing the Featherheart Championship. How could anyone protest this? That was like… protesting being born a griffon!

Even stranger, most of these griffons were making way for some nogriff orphan raised in the northern slums of Griffonstone. It made him feel small, somehow. And more than a little confused. Some part of him felt like he should be gloating, but the whispers made that seem totally unnecessary.

“Uh, Gallus?” Smolder said from behind him.

“Hm?”

“Is she important?”

Gallus’s eyes snapped up to the end of the path and the registration tables. His heart leapt in his chest, then his blood turned to ice.

Queen Giselle the First stood at the end of the opening in the crowd, dressed in a simple white jacket, blouse and pants. The jacket had a furred white collar that accented her angular features. Her head was a dark, smoky gray, with a single splash of brilliant blue between her crystal golden eyes. Her two enormous wings—both nearly black—were draped behind her like a robe. However, even from here, he could see the Queen’s fog-grey coat. It matched everything he’d heard because she was supposed to move like smoke itself.

On her head, she wore not the crown of the ancient griffon kings, but a new crown made of precious metals from every race in the Grand Alliance. She had made a speech the day that treaty had been signed about the griffons joining their allies permanently. Apparently, she’d made a symbol out of that speech.

The queen had only that imposing griffon near her, and he was at least a couple yards away. It was a little weird, but it made her presence stand out all the more.

“I… don’t believe it,” Gallus muttered, frozen in place as he tried to process what it meant for her to be here right now.

She was the first queen the griffons had in over five hundred years. And she’d become queen simply by being the only one willing to take a step forward and lead their people. In her younger years, she’d been a professional flier, even landing a bronze in the Equestrian Games. However, that was a lifetime ago.

When she had taken power shortly before the Battle of Unity, her first act—requesting support of the other races in rebuilding Griffonstone—had changed the griffon people in a way nogriff had expected. They weren’t the greedy warmongers they once were, nor were they the dejected slumdwellers they’d been in recent years. They were something new. And while he’d heard rumors of old-fashioned griffons were protesting this change, most of the griffons seemed to embrace the new order. They needed something different. They needed fresh blood.

They needed Giselle as queen.

And now, she was waiting on Gallus with a serene, almost amused expression that reminded Gallus far too much of Princess Celestia.

He hurried forward in something close to a scurry—one did not fly to meet the Queen of the Griffons—and immediately dropped to one knee, but keeping his head high to meet her almost impassive gaze. He glanced over his shoulder to see Smolder… actually bowing? Okay, that wasn’t something he’d been ready for.

Queen Giselle looked at the pair and her beak tweaked in a small smirk. “We never the chance to speak during the treaty signing, Gallus of Griffonstone. Nor have I had the pleasure of knowing your companion, the dragoness Smolder. That is something I have regretted for some time, but now I have a chance to right that mistake.”

The crowd murmured all around them.

And a single booming voice shattered the moment.

“You’re better than that harlot, Gallus of Griffonstone!”

Most of the crowd gasped in shock. Gallus looked up to see a dark expression flash over Giselle’s face. Gallus rose from his kneeling position and turned around to find the source of the voice.

Above the path the crowd had left for them flew a battleworn griffon in full military uniform. It was impressive that he could fly with that many medals pinned to his chest. He was light gray with speckles of brown over his coat and feathers. And he flew with the confidence of a griffon who knew how to fight in the air. There was even a blade at his side, though it remained sheathed. His shoulders epaulets marked him as none other than the Grand Admiral of Griffonstone. He matched gazes with Gallus, his expression unreadable.

“You are too good to participate in this farce of forcing good griffons to give up who they are just to keep the hens in power!” the admiral bellowed, making sure everyone could hear it. “We survived once without the accursed Idol of Aventa! We do not need it any longer!”

“You’ve said your piece in my court, former Grand Admiral Gulhan Gass,” Giselle replied in a voice that matched the blustering officer’s volume—though Giselle’s voice was as cold as ice. “No need to make a public scene. These griffons are here of their own free will.”

“Only because you’ve duped them into thinking this is some glorious competition where you can’t lose!” Gass shot back. “Balderdash! If you lose here, you lose your right to being called a male! Forever! And if you think I’m letting you take one of our greatest heroes into your flock, you’ve got another thing coming.”

“You plan to challenge me for the throne then, gray-feather?” Giselle asked. She sounded amused. “I’d love to see you try it. You aren’t the first officer I’ve had to put in their place.”

“Let the boy speak!” Gass shouted. “What does he have to say? The great hero of the Battle of Unity, the point of the spear of Griffonstone, a pillar of Harmony for the world! What does Gallus of Griffonstone say?”

All eyes fell on him and he swallowed hard. There were hundreds of griffons here and he didn’t have a clue what was going on!

“I say… I… uh… I just got here, so I don’t have a clue what any of you are talking about!” he shouted. “I’m pretty sure my invitation was a mistake anyway!”

“Oh, it was no mistake, my young friend,” Giselle said with a faint chuckle.

Gallus turned and gaped at her. She couldn’t mean what he thought she meant…

Giselle glanced around, her little smirk growing just a fraction. Her eyes flicked back to Gallus and he swore he caught a hint of actual mischief in her eyes. He wasn’t sure what he thought of that.

“All here know of Gallus of Griffonstone’s role in the forging of the Grand Alliance,” she said to the crowd, raising her claws to pull their attention from the former admiral. “If not for him, we would not be prospering like never before within our reborn city, built through griffon talon, dragon claw and pony hoof. We would not have our booming economy that has given you the gold to put food on your table. He was cast from Griffonstone into pony hooves because he had no one to care for him. Now, he is beloved by his friends, honored by his allies and celebrated by his people!”

The entire crowd cheered with a deafening roar that made Gallus wince. However, he kept watching the Queen. While the Grand Alliance may be firm, there were always politics at play within Griffonstone and beyond. Gass had just proved that perfectly.

“However, I say this in public so there may be no question: Gallus of Griffonstone has no house or clan. For such a hero, that will not do. This is why the House of the Golden Branch will act as his official sponsor for the Featherheart Championship!”

There was a brief moment of shocked silence—echoed by the silence in Gallus’s brain—then another roar of applause, even louder than the first. Gallus thought he heard Gass shouting explicatives over the cheering.

As it settled down, he realized Smolder had slowly moved to stand beside him.

“What is going on here, featherbrain?” Smolder muttered.

“I have no idea,” Gallus replied, glancing over his shoulder at the glowering form of Gulhan Gass. “But it’s either really good or really, really bad.”

“So, just like old times?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Gallus of Griffonstone,” Queen Gisselle said, stretching out her unadorned claw to him. “I would have you join me in the Royal Box. Your companion is also welcome to join us, though we do have some… personal matters to discuss.”

“Sure!” Smolder said before Gallus could say a word. “I’d love to!”

Gallus gave her a glare, but there wasn’t much he could do right here and now. So instead, he nodded. “Of course, Your Highness.”

“Then come with me,” she said as she strode through a gap in the tables toward one of the entrances to the great gray edifice of the Featherheart Coliseum. In all the chaos, he’d almost forgotten his vain hope that he would just get turned away.

Instead, it seemed like he’d just been shoved into the middle of something he didn’t remotely understand.

Before he followed the queen, he turned back to see what had become of Grand Admiral Gass. The old griffon hadn’t moved but now stared at Gallus in a very particular way. Almost as if he were sizing up a new opponent on a battlefield.

Gallus turned away, then quickly strode forward, with Smolder on his heels. Maybe he could finally get some answers as to what the hell what going on around here.

And just what the Queen of the Griffons had planned for him.

The Offer

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As Gallus watched, Queen Giselle settled herself into a plush lounge chair in the Royal Box above the coliseum. He couldn’t see anything of the coliseum floor because of the thick velvet drapes that stretched across what he knew was a large balcony. There wasn’t much in the room save for a few other lounge chairs, a bowl of fruit and nuts and a couple lampstands.

Smolder didn’t seem impressed. Gallus knew better.

“Please, my friends, take a seat.”

Both of them did as instructed. It took effort for Gallus not to wrap his tail around a chair leg from nerves.

Giselle steepled her claws together as she considered Gallus and Smolder. It was just the three of them. The griffon queen still didn’t have a single guard, at least not one they could see. The big one had stayed outside the door.

If the rumors were true, that was because she simply didn’t need guards.

Time slowly ticked by with Smolder and Gallus sitting before the queen. Every second he spent under that gaze, Gallus’s feathers itched a little bit more. He shifted in his seat, his wings twitching despite himself.

Smolder just sat there with a smug little smile. That irked him nearly as much.

“If I may ask, Your Majesty…” Gallus said slowly, trying not to totally lose it under that piercing stare. “I’m… well, I’m kinda curious what this is all about.”

Giselle leaned forward and smiled at him as if she were awaiting that very question and he had won a prize for waiting this long to ask it. “Did you know, Gallus, that in this very coliseum, I became a matriarch of the House of the Golden Branch?”

Gallus’s beak dropped open in shock. The most powerful griffon in the world… she’d been a Featherheart?

“I can see from your expression that this surprises you,” Giselle continued, her smile turning into a grin. “It’s not exactly common knowledge.”

“If… I may ask…” Gallus began, unable to stop himself from asking the inevitable—if not exactly tactful—question.

“Green,” Giselle said, without the question ever actually being voiced. Her eyes danced. “In the ninth round.”

“The ninth? Why?” Gallus’s eyes bulged while he fought to keep his wings from flaring in shock. “You could have become a Gold, become—”

“I know what—and who—I would have become,” Giselle interrupted smoothly as she leaned forward again, her claws interlaced. “I have yet to live a day where I regret my decision. After all, look at my station now.”

Gallus sucked in a breath, trying to control his wings—and other parts of his body. He didn’t dare to show such things in front of the Queen of the Griffons. But he had to funnel that energy somewhere. It went into his voice.

“Why did you ask me here?” he demanded.

“You already know the answer to that question,” Giselle said with a wave of her claw and a shrug of her elegant shoulders. “The moment I told you I was a Green Featherheart, instead of a Red.”

“You can’t be serious,” Gallus said flatly, snapping his wings against his back. “I’m not that kind of griffon.”

“I didn’t think I was either at the time,” Giselle replied, looking around at the Royal Box. “But being in this place during this time has a way of… opening your eyes. It gives you a wider perspective on who you are. And we all know nearly every male griffon has that little secret. I know. I was one.”

“I’m not!” Gallus spat, trembling with the effort to hide the warmth boiling in his core. “Never been interested. Not even once!”

She raised an eyebrow at him, the mirth in her eyes driving him more than a little crazy. He could even feel Smolder staring at him.

“I see.” Giselle laughed softly to herself. “In that case, you should know that my sponsorship of you in the Featherheart Championship is valid no matter if you choose the Green, end up Red or rise to Gold.”

“Really?” Gallus couldn’t keep the note of desperation out of his voice. “I’d… I’d really have a…”

Giselle nodded. Then, she slid out of her chair and to her paws. She took a few steps forward, then knelt on one knee, raising Gallus’s chin. Before he could properly react, he was looking her square in the eye.

“You would have what anygriff in your situation would crave, but by becoming a Green, you could have so much more, Gallus. It’s an experience beyond compare. And there is much at stake. I am not going to stoop to offer you wealth, power and more. I do not think you will respond to such things. But you will help your people. But only if you ignore fools like former Grand Admiral Gass. The Patriarchs are a dying breed, and if our race is to survive, they must be allowed to die. Having you here and now… it could change many things for many griffons.”

“And… and if I decline the whole thing?” he whispered, barely able to say the words. “What if I don’t want to compete?”

“You came all the way here,” she pointed out, mischief in her eyes once more. “That being said, if you walk away, I’m still offering membership in my House. Though I confess, having part of the future Elements of Harmony as a member of the House of the Golden Branch would be a massive boon for us. I’m a Queen. I can’t afford to be entirely altruistic.”

Smolder let out a snort. Giselle gave her a glance and smirked, then turned back to Gallus.

“Either way… I think we both know you won’t be doing that.”

He swallowed hard as she patted his cheek, though he caught her eyes flickering downward and her beak curling into an even wider smile. Then, she stood up and smiled at the two of them as the quintessential diplomat.

“For the time being, the Royal Box is yours. You will not be disturbed. Take some time, think, converse with your friend, anything that will help you relax. Consider what I’m offering by becoming a Green Featherheart. Consider why you flew here by the traditional route instead of simply taking a train. I suspect it wasn’t real until now. I shall await you in the Hall of Champions when you’ve finished your deliberations.”

With that, she gave each of them a little bow and headed for the door.

Gallus couldn’t believe this was happening, but he still managed to mumble a thank you. She paused, turned to nod at him, then vanished through the door. It closed with a soft click.

“Okay, what was that about?” Smolder immediately demanded. “Were you trying to talk in some sort of weird griffon code?”

Gallus couldn’t answer. He was too busy unzipping his pants. He faced away from her, but he knew that wouldn’t do any good at all. She knew that sound all too well.

“Hey, what’s the…” she trailed off as she walked around to see him almost frantically jerking off.

Gallus’s cheeks were scarlet as he looked up at his gorgeous dragon friend. And even with her watching here and now, he couldn’t bring himself to stop.

She watched him for a moment before saying in a quiet voice, “I’ve… never seen you so big.”

“Beneath the coliseum is… the Idol of Aventa…” he whispered as he frantically tried to reach his climax. “It… does things to griffons and….”

Before he could react, Smolder dropped to her knees and carefully pulled his claws away. She leaned down, then used that talented dragon tongue to caress his head, eliciting a soft sigh from him. Then she straightened and smiled as both of her hands wrapped around his cock.

“Do you remember a year and a half ago when I—”

“You wouldn’t!” Gallus hissed—though even he could hear the pleading in his own voice. “You can’t!”

“You tell me what’s going on, you get to cum,” Smolder singsonged.

“No, I…”

She slowly ran her own claws over the soft surface of his dick. He shuddered, his eyes rolling into the back of his head.

“Griffons have an underpopulation problem!” Gallus cried as Smolder’s thumb began to work right under his head. “Too many males are born and too few females!”

“So?” Smolder asked, her lower hand gently stroking up and down. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“The Feather… Featherheart Championship is about… evening that. Everyone starts as an Orange. The male who takes Gold becomes the new Alpha griffon. The best house, their choice of mates, a magical blessing to make them like… the perfect griffon.”

“What, you’re not that already?” she cooed as her hands sped up.

“More… more so…” Gallus mumbled, unable to rise to the bait.

He hated how Smolder had discovered she could ‘interrogate’ him with a handjob. Well, ‘hated’ might be too strong of a word. After all, it was how Smolder joined their little student ‘poly-party,’ so not a total loss.

“Okay, that’s the males, but you said the females were the real problem…” She leaned down and breathed gently on the sensitive skin of his cock, making him shudder.

“Dammit, Smolder!” Gallus cried, clutching the armrests and trying not to bed. “That… that Idol. The Idol of Aventa! It… can change any male into a female!”

“And what about these Red Featherhearts?”

“The… we had two idols!” Gallus cried as his wings burst from his back. It was hard to teach a history lesson during a handjob! “The Idol of Boreas was lost… can’t remember what that did, but we still have the… Idol of Aventa. The Reds… well, it’s said they get introduced to do the Idol and…”

He shrugged, hoping it would be enough.

“You didn’t answer my question…” Smolder cooed as she began to loosen her grip. “Do you want this or not?”

“No! I mean… I mean yes!” Gallus knew Smolder would actually leave him right on the edge if he didn’t cave. “Red Featherhearts are the ones that lose four bouts! They… they…”

Smolder did… something with her claws, tweaking him in just the right way to make it impossible for him to cum while making his whole body shake. Ocellus had taught her the trick. One of these days he needed to find a way to get back at her.

“The Idol is used to reverse their gender so they can bear children! It usually makes them very eager to do just that!” Gallus nearly shouted. “Now, come on, let me… let me….”

“Not yet,” Smolder giggled. “What’s a Green?”

“I… I…” Gallus felt bits of his brain short-circuiting. “Reds are those who lose in honorable bouts, Greens willingly change on their own! During the… the… Championship, it's said anyone who wants to become a Green is given words of power by the Idol of Aventa… then they only have to say them and they’ll transform right then and there!”

As quick as a snake, Smolder wrapped her draconic lips around his trembling cock and then released the cock-ring-like hold she’d put on him. Instantly, Gallus let out a keening cry as he erupted into her mouth. Her tongue greeted his seed eagerly, tasting him and swallowing him for what felt like hours. In fact, so much time passed that time itself stopped having any meaning. He babbled incoherently as it felt like his whole brain came with him.

The next thing he knew, he was lying on the floor, a wing wrapped around a snoozing Smolder. They were both stark naked, though he had no memory of removing any clothes. Or moving out of the seat. He wondered just what had happened when the chamber door opened.

Gallus immediately yelped despite himself, yanking himself out from underneath Smolder and sending her rolling across the floor while he tried to cover up. He barely succeeded, because he’d already been admiring Smolder’s curves. That and the inherent fertility magic of the coliseum had already made him hard.

Once again, he found himself under the gaze of the incredibly well-built griffon he’d seen when he’d first arrived in Griffonstone. However, this time, he took in the large seal on the golden sash he wore over his chest. Specifically, the emblem of the branching tree hammered into the copper.

“Mister Gallus?” the griffon said, looking at them both without batting an eye at their current state. “Miss Smolder?”

“Uh… y-yes?” Gallus squeaked, then forced himself to repeat the words in a louder voice. “Yes?”

“I am Sky Captain Griswald, head of Her Majesty’s Guard.” He bowed to them both. “If you would get dressed, I would be happy to take you to your accommodations for this evening.”

“Is… is it here on the grounds?” Gallus asked, hoping beyond hope that he’d be able to get some sleep.

“Yes, Mister Gallus,” Griswald replied, still as strong and stern. “You’ll be staying in the Coliseum Aerie, usually reserved for the royal family. Queen Giselle wanted you to have the very best. I’ll be waiting outside for you to become properly attired.”

Then he marched out of the room, the perfect figure of a griffon soldier.

“Wow, and here I thought you were good looking,” Smolder laughed. “That one’s just outright hot.”

“That one probably was on the front lines last time the griffons and dragons fought,” Gallus pointed out as he scrambled for his boxers. “So you’re probably not his type. More importantly, why are we naked? I remember you giving me a handjob that turned into a blowjob!”

Smolder grinned wickedly. “Well, a lady has to get some cuddle satisfaction somehow, especially when her lover passed out.”

“I only passed out because you interrogated me!” he snapped as he fell over trying to put on his pants. “So you basically stripped us both, then curled up next to me using my wing as a blanket?”

Smolder threw on her top and buttoned it up quickly. “Yeah, that’s about it.”

“You’re impossible,” Gallus snapped as he pulled on his shirt and stomped toward the door.

“Oh, by the way…” Smolder said from behind him. “You weren’t hoping to have a place somewhere off-site so the effects of the coliseum and your precious Idol of Aventa wouldn’t throw you off tomorrow, where you?”

Gallus tried not to grind his beak. “Maybe.”

“Oh well, looks like you’ll be banging me most of the night,” Smolder cackled. “How miserable for you.”

Gallus slapped his face with his claw and went to meet Griswald. Maybe he could find better arrangements so he could actually compete with a clear head tomorrow. Or at the very least, some actual sleep.

Yeah, not likely.

Sign Here Please

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Gallus let out a mighty yawn as he wandered from the bedroom and into the… sitting room? He thought it was called a sitting room. Maybe a den. He could never remember fancy names for places like this. He tried to stretch, only to feel his wing twinge a little from Smolder’s attempt at in-flight sex sometime after two in the morning.

In reality, the festival that surrounded the Featherheart Championship wouldn’t begin for another couple of hours. The Championship itself wouldn’t begin until one in the afternoon. He could have slept longer, but Smolder had a tendency to snuggle her lovers right off the damn bed because she was practically a living space heater.

That and… well, he still having to deal with the Idol’s influence. He wasn’t sure why it was impacting him so badly, but since Smolder’s little stunt in the Royal Box yesterday, he found it almost impossible to keep himself down for more than twenty minutes. What’s worse, his body seemed to be always ready and willing. While he didn’t exactly know much about the effects of the Idol of Aventa, he’d never heard of a problem like this.

But it wasn’t like he could just waltz up to the queen and ask. And he didn’t trust anyone else enough to give him a straight answer.

Still, he had a little while before that became too much of a problem. So, even though the sun had just risen, he went to look for something to eat.

Queen Giselle had decided to put him up in a section of the Coliseum Aerie, an entire suite of rooms, something far larger than anything he’d ever stayed in before. It seemed like half the School of Friendship could fit in these chambers. There were rooms in here he couldn’t even guess the name of. Thankfully, he found the important ones relatively easily. And, at the moment, the most important was the kitchen.

Years among ponies had changed his diet and somehow Giselle had foreseen that. It wasn’t long until he was chomping down a few apples, trying to regain his strength from last night’s activities. He had just finished his fifth when he wandered into the entryway and froze.

A young griffoness a few years younger than him was just… there.

It looked like she’d just finished setting up some documents on a small desk toward the front of the room.

What’s more, he hadn’t exactly put on a robe or something. And the sight of the shapely deep brown and pink chick in her little black and white maid’s uniform drove his building arousal through the roof. He licked his beak and tried to swallow. His tail twitched despite himself.

For her part, the maid had also frozen the moment she’d seen him. Her eyes immediately went to the thick cock rising between his legs, then blushed profusely. She looked like she wanted to turn away, but couldn’t quite manage it.

“So… um… how about that… that Idol…?” Gallus stammered in a pathetic attempt to say hello.

“It’s… um…” she whispered in a low, breathy voice as she licked her own beak. “Really strong this year…”

“Yeah…” he mumbled. “You… you should have seen some of the things my dragon friend and I got up to last night…”

Part of him felt like an idiot for mentioning Smolder at all in front of this cute and sexy little griffoness maid. But the maid seemed to perk up at that. “So, it’s true? Not only are you… you’re a war hero, but you’ve actually fucked a… a dragon?”

Her eyes went wide as if she couldn’t believe she had just said that. However, someone intruded before either of them could respond.

“Oh yes,” Smolder’s voice purred from the far side of the room. “Yes, he has.”

Both Gallus and the maid whirled to see Smolder sitting in a high-backed chair at the other end of the entryway. She was stark naked, her gorgeous scaled tits on display as she nibbled on a large ruby. She waved at the two of them, her smile growing by the second.

“Uh… Smolder…?” Gallus asked, feeling himself get even harder.

“You should try him out,” Smolder continued as one of her claws went down to her pussy and started teasing it before both of them. “I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful experience.”

“I… uh…” Gallus said, his eyes swiveling to the maid.

The maid was staring at him again, bright red. “I’m… I’m Gemma…”

“And… I-I’m Gallus…”

She giggled softly. “I know.”

Gallus winced. “Of… of course you know.”

“The… um…” she pointed at the desk and the stack of papers she’d just placed there. “Those are for you to read and sign if… if you’re actually… um… going to compete…”

He didn’t even glance at them. He just kept staring at her even though he very much didn’t want to. He couldn’t remember the last time he saw a griffoness of his age. Well, except for Gabby, but she didn’t count. He wasn’t his type.

“How…” Gemma whispered. “How much of that is me?”

She was staring at his cock again. It wasn’t hard to figure out what she meant.

Gallus looked her over. The soft curve of her heavy breasts, the swell of her tailbone, the sweep of her wings, her adorable twitching tail with the neatly brushed poof at the end… She was the perfect griffoness-next-door, the kind he always got a terrible crush on before leaving Griffonstone. There was only one thing that would make her pretty much irresistible.

He took a step forward. “Well, that depends.”

She looked up at him with big green eyes. “On… on what?”

“Red, Green or Natural?” he whispered low enough so Smolder hopefully wouldn’t hear it.

Gemma went brilliant red and for a moment, Gallus was worried he’d pushed too far. Just because he had a bit of a fantasy—

“Red. Third round,” Gemma mumbled, her eyes dropping to the ground. She looked like a griffoness who was steeling herself for total rejection.

She didn’t get it. Instead, he felt pre leak a little out of him. Because of the direction she was staring, she caught it, too. Her eyes met his once again.

“And if you could do it again?” he asked, less than a foot away now.

“Green, before the first round even started,” she breathed, her claws clenching to fists on either side.

He swept in and kissed her hard, pulling her body in to crash against his. Her squeal of surprise turned into a moan of delight almost instantly. Her claws scrabbled through his back fur, rubbing that tender spot where his wings met his body. She obviously knew her way around a male and Gallus couldn’t wait to see how much she remembered.

He pulled back to see the panting Gemma flushed with need, her wings twitching with desire.

“Bedroom?” he offered, panting more than a little himself.

“No,” she mumbled as she reached around herself to pull down her panties, leaving her skirt on.

He gaped as she slid the panties down her furred legs, then kicked them off, sending them flying until they hit the door with a soft ‘whap.’ His eyes watched them travel the entire path. When they slid back to Gemma, she was no longer standing.

She was leaning over the desk and presenting herself to him, her glistening sex begging for his touch while her tail danced above her perfect ass. Somehow, he got even harder at the sight.

“You’re… you’re sure about this?” he managed to mumble in a remarkably controlled voice. “I mean…”

“Look, I had to make my boss cum three times before she let me take this shift in the hopes that I’d get to meet you!” she said all in a rush. “So what do you think?”

A surge of heat ran up Gallus’s body as his own wings burst with that little announcement. He leaned over her with an almost feral growl. She squeaked in delight as he grabbed her claws and pinned them over her head against the desk. She squeak began a wanton moan as she tried to wiggle backward in an attempt to get him inside of her. He didn’t make her wait long.

“Hopefully, I live up to your expectations…” he chuckled between pants as he slipped his head into her sopping wet sex.

“Oh, by the Winged Goddesses…” she moaned as she shuddered at his entry. “Already, yes!”

“Good,” he grunted as he slowly slid himself a little further in.

“More… more please…” she whimpered from beneath him. “Please, you have no idea how bad I need it…”

“I… have… some idea…” he grunted as he pushed into her tightness.

He began to slowly slid his cock into her, enjoying her tiny cries, not to mention her tight little pussy that spasmed with every inch. The chick’s entire body trembled with wanton need as he slid farther and farther into her, until he began to actively stretch her. He hesitated, only to have her struggle faintly against his grip—it was very obvious it wasn’t an attempt to escape.

“All the way,” she begged. “All the way, Gallus… stretch me until you hilt!”

Gallus blinked in surprise. He’d never had a female ask him to do that before. Then again, Gemma was the first griffoness he’d been with in a very long time. Who was he to argue?

With a grunt, he shoved his cock deeper into her folds. Her back arched as she let out a piercing squeal of joy. Her wings flapped in wild patterns as he finally slid his entire length into her.

“Breed me,” she whispered.

“What?” he yelped, startled. He almost pulled out of her right then and there from shock.

“If… you… want…” she said, panting out every word. “Please… fill me up. Make me yours… I’ve had the biggest crush on you since I first saw you… years ago…”

Gallus didn’t know what to do. Part of the Featherheart Championship was to help populate the griffon species, but that was an abstract thing. He hadn’t thought… he’d be part of it. Not like this. Not like anything.

He glanced up to Smolder, who looked like she had already gotten off at least twice.

“Up to you, but she’s asking real nice,” she opined. That’s all she gave him.

“You’re sure?” he asked.

“More sure than anything,” Gemma moaned, squirming on his cock.

“Well, o-okay…” he said. This probably wasn’t a good idea, but it had been so long since he’d been with another griffon…

Slowly, he began to slide in and out of her, reshaping her pussy to fit his cock better with every movement. He felt the familiar prickle of magic around the both of them. It seemed that the Idol of Aventa was interested in what they were doing. If her cries of passion were any indication, Gemma loved every single second of it. In fact, she began to slowly change beneath him. Her ass thickened just a little. Her tits grew by a single cup size. She became a little sleeker. It wasn’t anything huge, but with their bodies pounding together, Gallus noticed.

He also realized what that meant. Gemma really did want this. The Idol’s power was flowing into her, reshaping her to be an even more fertile lover than before.

And then, Gemma came. She came hard, clamping down on his cock with her pussy. The suddenness startled Gallus, so much that he himself came, at the exact moment he was fully hilted in her again. She screamed. He grunted. And he felt his balls empty their load into her eager and needy pussy. He could feel her body take his seed and drive it deeper into herself.

Then, he felt the flow of magic sweep through him, and a fresh burst of cum exploded from his still-buried cock. He let out a yowl of pleasure and pounded his hips into hers while Gemma’s claws made furrows in the desk from her grip.

Eventually, Gallus managed to stumble backward and land against the door, sliding down to the floor. He glanced between his legs, shocked to find that his cock was still almost fully hard. In fact, he felt like he could go again right now. Still, he lay like that for a time until steps caught his attention. Smolder and Gemma knelt down in front of him.

“Huh,” Smolder said, eyeing the cock curiously. “So that Idol thingy is what’s making him so ready?”

Gemma nodded, flushed and positively glowing as she rubbed her belly where Gallus’s seed now resided. “It’s said the Idol often chooses the Alphas and the Featherhearts before the competition. Some griffons are affected strongly by it… some not so much.”

“That why you asked him to knock you up?” Smolder said with a toothy grin and a sidelong smirk.

“I’ve wanted him to knock me up since his Griffonstone rally before we all saved Equestria,” Gemma said, blushing with shining eyes, her attention completely on him. “He was so determined and fiery. I knew I’d never get him to fall for me, but maybe, just maybe… he could mate with me.”

Gallus frowned and reached out to grab her claw. “Hey, one thing I’ve learned in Equestria is that everygriff’s got a chance to be anything they want. Stick around… who knows, I might pick you as a wife when I win Alpha.”

Gemma giggled softly, but still held his claw warmly.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing!” she replied. “Nothing at all.”

He shook his head. “I don’t think she believes me. Smolder… wanna help me convince our little maid here that everygriff deserves a chance to get what they want?”

Smolder laughed. “Gee, and I wonder how you intend to do that…”

Before Gallus could even make a suggestion, Smolder pushed Gemma up until her beak was right over his cock.

“Tell you what?” Smolder said as she adjusted herself. “Why don’t you get better acquainted with his dick and I’ll get nice and acquainted with your pussy?”

Before Gemma could say a word, Smolder had already dived in. With a yelp, Gemma dove down on his cock and Gallus let out a mighty groan.

It was a good thing that Idol increased stamina, otherwise, he’d never make it out of this room, let alone compete in the Championship this afternoon. Because at this point, he knew he would be signing that paperwork.

Still, he could think of better excuses than two beautiful girls who wanted nothing more than to play with him for as long as possible. While he didn’t think either of them would let him skip out on the Championship, there was no reason not to enjoy the moment.

And as he gripped Gemma’s head as she began to bob up and down on him, that’s exactly what he did.

The Sky Captain

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Gerad spun his stun-staff in a blur as Gallus tried to block blindly. He barely saw the other griffon’s strike. He definitely felt it when the staff slammed into his right ribs, his armor sizzling at it took the blow. A blow that sent Gallus spinning down into the mud five feet below. He landed hard on his back, a little dazed as he tried to figure out which of the three laughing Gerads were real.

“What kind of war hero are you, anyway?” jeered the enormous griffon. He was built more like a stone yak, really. Hulking muscles, granite-colored feathers and coat. The guy looked like the griffon version of that bodybuilder, Bulk Biceps.

It was totally unfair that this would end up being his last bout of the day. He wondered if Giselle had anything to do with that. Probably revenge for having a perfect day yesterday.

“Doesn’t matter,” he muttered to himself as he used his stun-staff to push himself out of the muck. “I’ve got a meathead to pound.”

He took a few moments to wipe the mud off of him, which may have been a mistake because it revealed this his Golden Branch armband had already shifted from the neutral orange toward a dangerous red. He needed to get his head in the game. He probably had one more shot at taking down this beast. If he took another hit like that, this would count against his four losses… and that meant a trip to the Red Chambers. And that wasn’t something he wanted to do.

Probably.

“Come on, pretty boy!” Gerad taunted. “Or are you ready to yield to being Red already? Most griffons at least try to put on a good show.”

Gallus rolled his eyes. He’d dealt with Smolder’s taunts for years. This idiot couldn’t even ruffle a feather on his ass.

He looked up at his opponent and grinned. “Just stretching. Want to make sure I’m nice and limber for when you’re put in the Red Chambers. After all, I saw you yesterday. Three bouts lost in one day? Ouch. But don’t worry. I’ll make sure to come by and say hello. Personally.”

Rage boiled in Gerad’s beady gray eyes. The entire griffon was little more than a gray hunk of a winged stone given life. But stones still hurt when they slammed into you.

Gerad dove straight for Gallus, using his stun-staff like a lance as he zeroed-in on Gallus’s chest. But Gallus had no intention of making it easy on the idiot. So, he shot straight upward, at just the right angle to miss the idiot’s charge while rocketing past him.

And the right angle for his own stun-staff to slam squarely into Gerad’s helmet with a sound so loud it reverberated throughout the Featherheart Coliseum.

Cheers sounded from somewhere nearby as Gerad, knocked nearly senseless by the impact, slammed headfirst into the ground. His stun-staff went flying to the other side of the combat arena.

Gallus hovered over his opponent, wincing as the other griffon slowly slumped into the mud. Then, to Gallus’s surprise, the giant griffon started to climb back up. When he wiped the mud off of his face, his eyes were crossed, but he looked like he was ready for another go.

Gallus had already been downed three times by this brute. He did not want to go another round with him. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t win a true face-to-face. So, it was time to finish this.

He swooped down and dodged Gerad’s clumsy swipe before coming in for a lightning-quick side-to-side strike. The impacts on the left and right sides of Gerad’s chest plate made the entire griffon rattle. It had the bonus of extracting a yelp of surprise and an almost feral growl, too.

“Trust me,” Gallus said as Gerad tried to recover. “You’re nowhere near as scary as Starlight before she’s had her morning coffee.”

He adjusted his position in midair, using his momentum to spin his stun-staff over his shoulder and cracked it on the other griffon’s helmet.

Gerad’s eyes rolled into the back of his head and his muddy armband—this one with the emblem of a sprouting plant—went from reddish-orange to a very clear Red. Gallus grinned, then with a single claw, lightly tapped him on the chest.

The giant griffon went over like a felled tree.

And just like that, the crowd around the arena went completely wild. Griffons, both males and females, hollered and cheered as the referees came out into the field to inspect Gallus’s handiwork. Numerous shouts came from all over, including more than a few from a pretty brown and white griffon female blushing in the front row. He winked at her and she giggled.

Above the cheering, he could hear the shouts and cries of the rest of the sparring griffons. Each arena was no bigger than half a buckball field, but there were at least twenty of them set up around the giant skytree sapling in center of the coliseum. Every few minutes, another cheer would come up as another griffon claimed victory.

He planted his staff in the ground and smiled to himself, only then yanking off his helmet and tucking it under his arm. He waved to his fans—there seemed to be even more than yesterday—and took a little bow. The crowd roared again as two referees came in to move Gerad onto a stretcher. The other griffon seemed to be coming around, because he yelled Gallus’s name a few times before Gallus wandered over.

Gerad lifted a giant meaty claw. Gallus hesitated a moment, then took Gerad’s claw with his own. The griffon was smiling though he obviously had trouble focusing on Gallus.

“No shame,” Gerad rumbled.

“Only honor,” Gallus said, finishing the traditional Featherheart salute. “Still, uh… sorry…”

“Nah,” Gerad mumbled. “Don’t be. Clan needs more mothers, and we all… we all serve in our own way. Glad I got to lose to you…”

With that, Gerad released Gallus’s claw and nodded to the referees. They began to fly him off toward the Red Gate on the side of the arena nearest the smaller skytree. Gallus pointed to Gerad and raised his claws into the air. The crowd took the hint and roared another cheer for the fallen Gerad.

Gallus still didn’t leave the arena until Gerad had vanished behind the gate, just like he’d done with all of his other defeated opponents.

As for him, he left through the Orange Gate, leading to the complex beneath the coliseum. Attendants took his armor and handed him a towel to wipe away some of the sweat, grime and mud off of him before he hit the showers. To his surprise, he was the only one there as he scrubbed his feathers clean. He had to work extra hard to get the mud was out of his coat. Too bad nogriff else was here. He’d had some fun with one of the female competitors yesterday, but it looked like that wasn’t going to happen today.

He just had to take care of his raging erection himself. Oh well.

About an hour later, he arrived in the suite the queen had provided for Smolder and him. However, to his surprise, he found Gemma chatting up Smolder in one of the sitting rooms that looked out over the coliseum. He hadn’t expected to see her ever again, despite his attempt to breed her. He couldn’t say he was upset, though. The sight of the curvy maid made him stiffen automatically, though she wasn’t in uniform. Instead, she wore a very girly—but very shapely—light blue sundress.

“—pretty much needs to be sated in the first hour. In fact, some say the longer somegriff goes without it, the more they’ll need it later for the rest of their life!”

“So, what you’re saying is after Gallus eventually slips up, we need to make sure he—I mean she—doesn’t get any for a while,” Smolder cackled, looking out at the last few active arenas through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows.

“Cute that you think I’m going to lose,” Gallus snarked as he leaned against the doorframe. “Not a lot of faith in here.”

Gemma spun around, but Smolder didn’t even flinch.

“Hey, anything to make you even hornier sounds awesome to me,” Smolder laughed.

“Seriously, you still haven’t had enough?” Gallus asked as he strode in, not bothering to hide the bulge in his pants. “I think the Idol’s messing with you, Smolder.”

“Nah,” Smolder shrugged and finally turned around, grinning. “I’m just naturally insatiable.”

“Sure, sure,” Gallus said as his eyes slid to Gemma who was blushing faintly. “Hey, you okay?”

She nodded and licked her beak. “Uh, I should warn you that Smolder… well, she invited me to stay the night.”

“And does that bother you?” Gallus asked with what he hoped was a comforting smile, feeling himself harden even more.

“As long as… it doesn’t bother… bother you…”

“You weren’t nearly as shy yesterday morning when you were doing your ‘chores,’” Gallus pointed out as he squatted down to study her blushing cheeks.

“Well, I’m not here to work… I’m here… as a guest and…”

He put a finger to her beak to silence her, then went in for a gentle kiss. She moaned into the kiss, her arms automatically wrapping around his shoulders.

“I’d think you two were mated or something the way you keep going at it,” Smolder said from somewhere, but Gallus was too busy enjoying the kiss.

His hands had just cupped Gemma’s beautiful breasts when a knock came at the door.

“Oh come on!” Gallus shouted after he broke the kiss. “We’re kinda busy!”

But the knock only came again more insistently.

“They don’t sound like they’re going away,” Smolder said helpfully.

He shot her a glare as he slowly disentangled himself from a still-blushing Gemma. He took a moment to adjust his clothes, shrugged helplessly at the cute maid, and stomped over to the door, intended to smack whoever was dumb enough to interrupt him right now. He’d been competing all day! Didn’t he deserve a break?

A much louder and stronger knock—enough to rattle the doorframe—sounded just as Gallus reached the door. Gallus swore and yanked it open.

“Look, whoever you are, I have plans tonight and they don’t involve… you…?” He trailed off when he had to crane his neck to look up from a silver breastplate and into the somewhat amused eyes of Griswald. Eyes or no, the rest of his face remained as impassive as ever.

Gallus swallowed hard.

“Oh shit,” he heard Smolder mutter from behind him.

“Mister Gallus,” he said in his calm, cool voice as if Gallus had not just been shouting at him. “Her Majesty has requested your presence in the West Hall at your earliest convenience.”

For just a heartbeat, Gallus thought about telling him his earliest convenience would be after he had about an hour—or three—in bed with Gemma. He discarded that thought instantly. It would not be a good idea to piss off Giselle.

“And… I’m assuming you are here to escort me?” Gallus hazarded.

“That’s correct, Mister Gallus,” he said with a nod. “Her Majesty was most insistent that you arrive without being distracted by other matters.”

Gallus didn’t have to think hard to know what the ‘other matters’ would be. He turned to glance over his shoulder at Gemma, but she was already shooing him onward. Even Smolder was just staring at him. Not even a quip.

He sighed and nodded at Griswald. “Then it would be best not to keep Her Majesty waiting.”

“I agree, sir,” Griswald replied as he stepped back and gestured for Gallus to join him in the hall.

After a halfhearted wave at Smolder and Gemma, he closed the door and fell into step beside Griswald. Their steps echoed through the quiet stone corridors. Aside from Gallus’s pounding heart, it was the only sound he could hear. And that sound quickly started to eat at him, until he did the only thing he could think of—and the last thing he wanted to do.

He struck up a conversation with the burly griffon.

“It’s… ah… been a while since I’ve been home,” Gallus said in a voice that hopefully wasn’t nearly as awkward as he thought it was. “What exactly is a Sky Captain, anyway?”

“It’s a unique rank awarded to members of Griffonstone special forces who have distinguished themselves through combat,” he replied, his voice still cool, but not unfriendly as his boots cracked against the stone. “Queen Giselle awarded me with the rank after I prevented an attempt on her life in her first month as Queen of the Griffons.”

Only his wings prevented Gallus from faceplanting on the stone. “Somegriff tried to kill Giselle?”

Sky Captain Griswald shrugged, as if it was no big deal. “The griffon in question was a vagrant from the lower city slums, hopped up on Equestrian, Zebra and Abyssian drugs. I believe he thought Her Majesty to be the ‘second coming of King Sombra.’ Or an escaped Queen Chrysalis. He did babble rather rapidly and it was difficult to keep up.”

“Still though…” Gallus said. “An assassination attempt? Really? There hadn’t been one of those in… centuries.”

“This one was a simple matter,” he said with another shrug. “After the arrow meant for Her Majesty buried itself in my shoulder, he were taken captive by the Guard. Per her orders, he was brought before the Queen to explain his actions, only to have him unexpectedly pull free from his captors and come at her with a hidden knife. I disarmed him, though the Queen herself knocked the poor fool out. After rehabilitation, I believe I got a job as a janitor at the skyport. Up for promotion next month, if my intelligence is correct.”

“You took… an arrow to the shoulder?” Gallus said, gaping at the report-like story. “And you still managed to take out his weapon?”

“I have served Griffonstone for a long time, Mister Gallus.” Griswald turned his head so he could raise an eyebrow at the younger griffon. “Perhaps not as spectacularly or publicly as you have, but I serve nonetheless. It’s an honor to be the head of Her Majesty’s Guard. Service runs in our family. It has for generations.”

Gallus narrowed his eyes at Griswald. “‘Our’?”

“Oh, I thought you knew. It’s common knowledge in the city. Her Majesty is my sister.”

Gallus thought he might fall over from shock. He couldn’t think of a thing to say.

All during this time, they’d been navigating the outside corridors toward the western end of the Featherheart Coliseum. He couldn’t think of any reason why the Queen would be here. There were no rooms save for armories and equipment storehouses for the various events. Well, except for the lower levels. That’s where—

“Sky Captain,” Gallus said, screeching to a halt. “Where are we going?”

Griswald kept walking. “No need to concern yourself, Mister Gallus. You are still very clearly an Orange competitor.”

The implied note of safety let Gallus relax a little, but not entirely. “You still didn’t answer my question.”

“No, I didn’t.”

Griswald turned toward a random wall scone. With a gentle tug, he pulled it down and a section of the wall slid away, revealing a surprisingly-modern-looking elevator cage. The Sky Captain gestured for Gallus to go first.

Gallus hesitated, but his curiosity nagged at him. The version of Gallus he’d been before he’d come to Equestria would have balked at this entire thing. But that Gallus was long gone. Just like the Griffonstone of only a few years ago was gone.

He stepped inside with Griswald on his heels. Griswald pulled a large lever on the side of the elevator and the entire thing shook once before slowly sliding down. The hidden door retracted on its own, leaving the elevator only lit by a single enchanted magelight.

“Why all the secrecy?” Gallus asked with a frown. “What’s going on here, Sky Captain?”

Griswald turned to face Gallus and Gallus was suddenly reminded of just how imposing the other griffon was. He was positive that when the Featherheart Championship had been held during his time, he had won the prize of Alpha, if he’d been allowed to compete. After all, it was custom to only let one member of each family become a contender. It wasn’t a custom everygriff honored, though.

Queen Giselle had said herself she’d competed. He could help but wonder if Griswald had defied that particular tradition and join himself. But if he’d reached the rank of Alpha, he wouldn’t be serving on his sister’s guard. He’d be too important for that.

Something else nagged at him, though. Despite himself, he wondered what it would be like to be a Green Featherheart with Griswald here. Gallus wasn’t by any means straight—as Sandbar would happily remind anycreature—but he did prefer females. It was rare for another male to catch his eye. Well, it was impossible for Griswald not to catch his eye. Especially in these close quarters. He swallowed hard.

During all of this very fast thinking, Griswald had remained silent, as if considering his response. Finally, he spoke.

“Giselle has spoken of how important it is for someone such as yourself to become a Green, as opposed to a Red. And she has more to say on the subject. I will not say her piece, but I will say mine.”

“And… what’s that?”

Griswalk slapped his claws behind his back in a perfect example of a military standing rest even as he twisted his beak in a grimace. “While most nations considered the Battle of Unity to be a turning point in the fate of our world, there are factions in every government who believe their leaders are becoming complacent. That there are more threats on the horizon and we cannot let down our guard.”

Gallus shrugged and leaned back against the metal wall of the elevator. “I mean, it’s possible. Look at how many monsters and baddies have attacked Equestria in the last ten years. It could happen to any of us.”

“That’s correct. Which is why we must be vigilant.” Griswald nodded in approval. “But not at the cost of our people. There are many hard-liners in the griffon military and most of those believe in the old ways of the Patriarchy.”

Gallus sputtered. “You’re joking. You have to be joking!”

“I am not.” Griswald somberly shook his head.

“You’re telling me that a bunch of generals and admirals actually believe in that bullshit that only males are fit to rule?” Gallus almost shouted. “That’s insane. Didn’t our entire race almost die out before those idiots were overthrown a few hundred years ago?”

“Yes,” Griswald replied, his stoic expression never wavering. “And the problem is there’s been a resurgence of such ideas. What’s worse, those who serve under the command of those griffons are beginning to believe as they do.”

That’s when Gallus put it together. “That’s what Grand Admiral Gass was yelling about when I first arrived, isn’t it? He was trying to convince me not to participate. To stay male to support his cause.”

“Former Grand Admiral,” Griswald corrected him, steel in his voice. “And yes. Gass is at the head of the movement within the city. If you were to become a Red or a Green, it would sway a great deal of public opinion away from the former Grand Admiral. Drop out or—worse—become a Gold, and you become a beacon for his movement. More will flock to him and those like him.”

Before Gallus could respond, the elevator suddenly came to a stop at an open doorway, where Queen Giselle was leaning against a wall, looking frustrated until she saw them.

“And that is why you’re truly here, Gallus,” Giselle said as she straightened. “One of two reasons, really. Attendance at the Featherheart Championship is at an all-time low. Despite the crowds you saw when you arrived, we had only a little over a hundred males sign up, with a clawful of females.”

“In times such as this, we need a symbol,” Griswald said as he stepped out of the elevator and gestured for Gallus to join them. “Something to show the Patriarchists that the best of us believe differently.”

“And you want me to be that symbol,” Gallus said as he stepped beside Giselle, looking down the cold stone corridor lit only by flickering blue magelights.

Both Griswald and Giselle nodded.

Gallus took a deep breath and Giselle put a claw on his shoulder.

“I’ll take him from here, Gris,” Giselle said. “Thanks.”

“Happy to serve, Selly,” Griswald said, then nodded to Gallus. “Mister Gallus. Please consider our request. We do not make it lightly.”

With that, he walked down the corridor in front of them. Despite the weighty matters flowing around them, Gallus couldn’t help but find himself drawn to the griffon’s backside.

However, he apparently wasn’t very subtle about it. Giselle laughed softly.

“He is still single, somehow,” she said in a sing-song voice.

Gallus went scarlet, and shot a glare at the queen. “I thought we had more important things to talk about!”

“We do,” she replied with another pat on the shoulder. “It’s time you learned the truth about the Idol of Aventa and what’s happening to the griffons. This isn’t just about the military. This is about our very culture. I’m sorry to drag you into this, Gallus. But by being a key player in the Battle for Unity, when you came home, you did so just to enter another war. One that could decide the fate of the entire griffon race.”

“Oh, so no pressure, then?” he quipped weakly.

“No pressure at all,” Giselle replied. “Come.”

She began to walk down the long corridor. Gallus just stood there for a moment before finally huffing and hurrying to catch up.

“How do I keep getting myself into these sort of things?” he muttered to himself. “I wonder if Elements get hazard pay…”

The Idol

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“Behold, the Idol of Aventa.”

Gallus stared at it… and wasn’t quite sure what to think.

Both Gallus and Giselle were in a large circular chamber directly beneath the roots of the smaller skytree that dominated the coliseum floor. All along the walls were vast murals of various Featherhearts over the years. If Gallus wasn’t miscounting, every single Green Featherheart had their name or portrait down here somewhere on the massive stone wall. Some very important ones even had busts placed in a circular stone ledge halfway between the Idol and the murals. Giselle was one of them, but that didn’t surprise Gallus in the slightest.

After they’d first entered and he’d studied the place, his eyes wandered all over the huge room, he zeroed in on the pedestal in the center. Atop it lay something he’d never thought he’d see in person.

The Idol of Aventa.

He’d seen pictures, of course, but those didn’t do the thing justice. The light coming from reflected sunlight—mirrors, he assumed—made the entire thing positively glow. A golden sculpture with a green orb in the very center, wing-like spirals moving around it. In truth, it looked almost identical to the Idol of Boreas, save for the orb. Just being in its presence made him feel light-headed. And that was enough for Gallus to keep his distance, even if he couldn’t deny a strange desire to get closer.

“You need not be afraid,” the queen said as she brushed her claw against the golden relic. “It cannot change the unwilling. And none can be changed save for those who know the words of power. They must speak it aloud while within a mile or two the Idol.”

“‘Words of power?’”

Giselle studied the Idol for a time before answering. “You know, even after all these years, that part confuses me. I experienced it myself, and it still confuses me. The band you wear around your arm does not signify you losing. It signifies your acceptance of a new fate. What few know is it is possible to refuse that fate. Very few refuse, but it is not unheard of. Either way, once that new fate is set, you somehow know the words—no matter if you’re Green or Red. They just appear in your mind. Speak them… and the change begins. It’s a most… pleasant experience.”

Gallus swallowed hard, trying to keep the sight of the Queen of the Griffons practically fondling the Idol of Aventa from turning him on even more than he already was. It was a losing battle.

“Why have you brought me here, Your Majesty?” Gallus asked in a desperate attempt to stay in control. “Your brother wasn’t exactly… uh… forthcoming.”

Giselle turned from the Idol and walked toward Gallus, her claws behind her back as she studied him.

“What I am about to say does not leave this room, Mister Gallus,” she said in a voice that made it very clear there would be dire consequences if the words did leave the room. “The truth is that the griffons are on the edge of fading away entirely. Not through force of arms or even history, but through simple numbers.”

Gallus blinked. The last thing he was expecting was anything about population statistics.

Giselle began to march around him, looking straight ahead at something he couldn’t see. “Before I won the bid for the throne, I was the Head of the Griffonstone Census Bureau, Mister Gallus.”

“The… what?” Gallus frowned. “I thought you were an athlete.”

She waved the comment away. “A natural outlet from my daily flight regiment I used to share with Griswald. A fun time, but after returning home from the Equestrian Games, I decided my House needed my mind more than it needed my wings.”

“Of… of course, ma’am. I still haven’t heard of that… bureau, though.”

“It’s not surprising. It’s a very minor agency in the bureaucracy of Griffonstone. While the throne may have been unoccupied, the griffon people still needed trade, an economy, services and other such things. The Bureau allowed us to help the griffons still survive even if the head of our government remained untended.” Giselle shook her head. “Pure insanity that some believe that griffons just decided they didn’t need a government after King Grover’s supposed disgrace.”

“If… if you say so…” Gallus blinked and tried not to stare at the Idol. It kept bringing up… ideas.

“What this all means is that I’ve seen the records, Mister Gallus. I’ve seen the trends. And here is the truth of the matter.”

She came to a stop between him and the Idol, her bright eyes boring into his.

“Every year, there are fewer and fewer females being born. Patriarchists, such as former Grand Admiral Gass and a great deal of the military old guard fill their soldiers' heads with nonsense about males being the ‘true warriors of the griffon race.’ With the struggles our people have gone through, our nation is believing we are constantly under threat. And statistically—”

“In the past,” Gallus interjected, remembering one of Princess Twilight’s lessons. “‘The belief of the griffons had a noticeable impact on the gender of children being born. During peacetime, more females are born. During times of conflict…’”

He trailed off when he realized where this was going.

“Children are born almost exclusively male,” she said with a nod. “We have the opposite problem from Equestrians: too many males instead of too many females. And when a race doesn’t have enough females… it’s a simple matter of statistics.”

“We can’t be that close,” Gallus insisted, stepping closer to Giselle. “Griffons would know!”

“Griffons have only just now decided to start caring about their national pride. The hundreds of clans scattered throughout griffon lands and beyond have existed for over a hundred and fifty years without Griffonstone, a king or a queen. The real reason I haven’t been challenged is nogriff cares about the skytree wood throne,” she hissed out the words in a cold fury. “My brother gave you the first part of the briefing. I’m here to give you the endgame.”

Gallus took a few steps back, his eyes going wide and his wings twitching in time with his tail.

“If we don’t find a way to change the griffon culture within two generations, there may be enough damage done to the way we think that there won’t be any females in the third generation.”

It felt like somegriff had poured a bucket of ice water over his head. “That close…”

“We need a symbol, Gallus,” Giselle said, taking a few steps forward and grabbing him by the shoulders. “Even the most staunch of Patriarchs would have a hard time refuting the importance and honor of the Featherhearts if one of the most revered and celebrated griffons of our era, an actual international war hero, chose to become a Green. You would become a living beacon to show our people that the Featherheart Championship is something that’s vital. Not to mention that you would be solidifying my claim to the throne so if one of those other clans challenged me, it would become so much harder for the Patriarchists. If you win the Championship, then the most famous griffon right now becomes a living avatar for everything the Patriarchs believe, even if you denounce them verbally.”

Gallus felt as if he were sitting on a cloud that was rapidly coming apart. “You’re… you’re putting a lot of pressure on me here, Your Majesty.”

“I know,” Giselle replied, her voice a little sad. “And it’s not fair. You’re caught in a political game that you weren’t ready for. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. But I’ve checked the numbers more times than I care to remember. We need a miracle. We need a symbol. And I believe that needs to be you.”

Gallus tried to come up with something to say. Something to do. It wasn’t that he was incredibly attached to being male, but to suddenly give it up? That… that was a big decision. And he knew how this worked. He would never be able to go back. The Idol of Aventa only transformed in one direction, save for the Alpha. It was said there was once a third Idol that could go the other way, but that was pure mythology.

“I… I have to…” Gallus swallowed again, wishing he had something to drink. “Can I think about this?”

Giselle nodded slowly. “Of course. You have until the end of the Championship, Gallus. But you’ll consider it?”

“I… I’ll consider it,” Gallus said slowly. “Consider.”

Giselle lifted a claw. “Understood. Just remember, Gallus, nearly every male griffon has a piece inside of them that is all-too-curious to know what it’s like on the other side. And while bearing a child isn’t always fun, being female has a lot of benefits. Ask your two companions.”

“I… um… I’m not sure if I’m ready for that conversation.”

“I think they may be more eager to talk about it than you know.” Giselle cracked a smile for the first time since they’d come down here. “Well, maybe. Miss Smolder might have a different opinion. I’ve never been able to get a read on dragons. Now, come… there’s one more piece of evidence I’d like to show you.”

“And what’s that?”

“I thought you might like the privilege of being the first Orange Contender in a few decades to actually get to experience something rather… special.”

Giselle laughed as she guided him away from the Idol of Aventa. Gallus couldn’t help but give it one last look. For a split second, he thought he saw the figure of a golden griffoness watching him curiously, but when he looked closer, it was gone.

“That’s assuming you want to see the Red Chambers,” Giselle called, making him hurry to catch up.

“You mean… the Bordello?” he gasped, then clapped his claw over his beak.

She laughed. “Don’t let them hear you call it that. While it’s impossible to force someone to speak the Words of Ascendance, I’ve heard stories of griffon girls who helped some males get far closer than they might have otherwise for being a little too mouthy…”

As Gallus fell into step beside her, he couldn’t decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

The Red Chambers

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The rug running the length of the central corridor of the Red Chambers was thick enough to swallow the sound of their paws completely. But that didn’t mean the place was silent.

Far from it.

In fact, the sounds Gallus heard were enough to build up a massive tent in his pants. He eyed Giselle and couldn’t help but notice that even she was affected by the sounds leaking from behind the doors. Thumping, banging, moaning, and squealing filled the air. All like some mad symphony created by spiking an entire town’s water supply with a lust potion.

To be here, now, was every young male griffon’s dream. To get to participate…

“You…” Giselle coughed a few times, blushing brightly as she struggled to get the huskiness out of her voice. “You know that the Red Chambers only hold those who’ve ‘lost’ in the Championship. The Greens dwell in a set of suites at the very top of the coliseum. The Idol affects them in very different ways…”

“You’re telling me all of this so you don’t have to focus on everything happening around you, right?” Gallus quipped with a little smirk.

“Is it that obvious?” Giselle huffed as they rounded a corner.

“They’re kind of hard to ignore…”

“No kidding.”

They strode through a three-story hallway, easily wide enough for five griffons to walk side-by-side. Thick tapestries of red and violet decorated most of the walls, each of them showing a griffoness in the grip of passion, the Idol of Aventa or a griffon surrounded by happy chicks. The doors were simple wooden affairs with dark iron bands holding them together. Light streamed in from somewhere up above, probably another set of mirrors reflecting the sun like they had in the Idol Chamber. The entire place had the sense of being nearly timeless, yet very well-maintained.

“We just taking a tour… or…?” Gallus prompted as he ran a claw around his collar.

“Of course not,” Giselle replied with a snort. “I have someone for you to meet. You’ve already met a Green and a Red who’s fully adapted to her new gender—I’m very glad you two have hit it off, by the way. Gemma is a sweet thing. Anyway, I thought you should meet a fresh Red. One you may already know.”

Gallus didn’t even bother questioning her about Gemma. It didn’t surprise him in the least that Giselle had orchestrated events to get Gemma, Gallus and maybe even Smolder in bed together.

Finally, Giselle came to a stop at a seemingly random door. Above the door was a set of runes Gallus couldn’t quite read. Giselle glanced at them, then knocked three times in quick succession. The two of them waited for almost a full minute, surrounded by the sounds of passion and lust, until the door finally opened.

The shape was different. A lot of things were different. But there was no mistaking that slate gray coat and feathers.

“Gerad?!” Gallus shouted, his eyes bulging out at the sight of his former opponent.

“It’s… um…” the petite griffon female giggled softly, wrapped only in a nearly transparent white shift. “It’s actually Gerie, now. Gerad doesn’t really… well, fit, you know?”

Gallus took a step back as he tried to process what he was seeing. The hulking brute that had nearly driven Gallus into losing his first bout of the Championship was now over half a foot shorter than Gallus. She had slim arms and legs, with a cute beak, shy gray eyes and delicate tassels hanging from her mane of feathers atop her head. To Gallus’s surprise, the new female wasn’t busty or shapely. In fact, she was pretty thin with a small bust, barely any hips and dainty feet.

“This… this is Gerad?” Gallus demanded, turning to Giselle. “That brute who almost planted me in the dirt?”

Gerie blushed and looked away while Giselle nodded. “The Idol doesn’t just change someone from male to female, Gallus. Some time ago, we had philosophers suggested that every griffon had a ‘perfect male self’ and a ‘perfect female self.’ Many griffons who undergo the change find themselves looking far different than they would if you were to slap breasts on their chests, pad their asses and swap out their equipment. Though… it doesn’t happen all at once.”

“So, what?” Gallus demanded, a little unnerved. “Is that the purpose of this? Just to show me that I can be any kind of female I want?”

“Of course not,” Giselle replied, nodding to Gerie. “It’s custom for new Reds to be permitted to request their first lover. Gerie requested that the one who vanquished her be the one to claim her.”

Gallus’s eyes swiveled to meet Gerie’s. This time, Gerie didn’t look away but instead bit her beak in a way that made her look like the perfect griffoness-next-door. He didn’t have any idea why he kept running into that type of griffoness here.

Gerie adjusted her shift, swallowed hard and tried to stand up straight.

“If… if you’re willing,” Gerie murmured. “I… it’s a tradition among my clan, the Cloudblades, that any griffon vanquished in the Featherheart Championship be claimed by the male who vanquished them.”

“Uh, I’m not okay with doing this just because it’s a tradition…” Gallus said, taking another step back and putting up his claws.

“No!” Gerie shook her head so quickly her tassels went flying around her head. “No, it’s… not that… I… look, you’re like, a national hero. I get to go home telling everyone I was defeated by the Gallus. And… well, I’ve sort of had a crush on you since… well, since before all of this… and… I’m babbling aren’t I?”

“Are you supposed to be acting so different?!” Gallus cried, his tail lashing in annoyance. “What’s with that? And why does everyone have a crush on me?!”

“It’s common for repressed personality aspects to come out after Aventa’s Touch,” Giselle provided, looking more than a little amused. “Anyway, you know that every new Red’s needs are heightened until they are taken.”

“Yeah… the Red Heat…” Gallus mumbled.

“As for the crush…” Giselle laughed. “Sooner or later, you’ll need to face the truth, Mister Gallus. You’re a celebrity.”

“I don’t have to like it.”

“But… I do.” Gerie nodded quickly and her blush burned brighter. “Look, it’s okay if you don’t want me or if it’s too weird. I really don’t mind! Really! It’s okay! Really okay!”

Gallus couldn’t take the look of disappointment in the petite griffon’s eyes—no matter what she might have claimed otherwise. She may have once been a hulking beast who’d tried to pound him into senselessness, but right now, she was a barely clothed griffoness who was all but begging to spend some intimate time with him.

Some very intimate time with him.

“I… I guess I can… see what I can do…” Gallus finally said, his own cheeks burning. “I mean—”

Before he could react, Gerie grabbed his arm and yanked him into her quarters. He managed to get one look at Giselle’s smirk before the queen closed the door.

Inside one of the infamous Red Chambers was… well, everything he’d expected. A massive bed against one wall, decked out in red silks complete with velvet curtains, a small glowing window that he suspected was fake—it was hiding behind more curtains—and a couple other doors, probably leading to closets and bathrooms. What he didn’t expect was the wading bath on the far side of the room. It was fed from a small running waterfall that filled the room with the sound of gentle splashing. Gerie had obviously used the bath recently if the wet paw prints and towels were any judge. The hot water filled the air with sweet-smelling steam that seemed to both relax him and arouse him at the same time.

“I can’t believe you actually said yes…” Gerie gushed, squealing just a little. “I… I just can’t believe this is happening.”

Gallus turned to stare at her. “You seem awfully happy about this. You lost all your… you know… male parts! Because of me!”

“Okay, that’s just cute.” Gerie laughed and rolled her eyes. “Being a female is so much better than being a male. The sensation of your breasts on your chest, the freedom between your legs, the feeling of your own curves… not to mention the orgasms! Not to mention that I was defeated three times by other males before you outsmarted me.”

Gallus sputtered out something totally incomprehensible.

“Look, Gallus.” Gerie stepped forward and put her hands up on his shoulders. Her eyes shone as she looked up at him. “The truth is, I would have been a first-round Green if it hadn’t been for my family. They’re Patriarchists, at least most of them. If I willingly went Green, they would have disowned me. But if I lost to the Gallus? No one can fault me! I’ve been waiting for this chance forever!”

“You… you have?”

To Gallus’s shock, Gerie stepped up on tiptoes to give him a peck on the beak.

“Every male has that little voice inside that craves being female,” Gerie said, her claws sliding down his arms and grasping his claws. “Every male wants it in some way. I know even you do. So much of griffon society is about ignoring that voice! Right here, right now, we don’t have to. We can give in! I’ve been waiting for this day for years. And I think you’ve been waiting for it, too!”

“I have not!” Gallus huffed, yanking his hands away so he could cross his arms. “I’m perfectly fine being male!”

“You’ve been living in Equestria, where all of the rulers are female and the saviors of the country are female. By the Winged Goddesses, the saviors of the world are female! How could you not want to be like them?”

“That… doesn’t matter!” Gallus opened his mouth to add more but found all the immediate answers to Gerie’s question to be trite and hollow. “Just because they’re female… I mean…”

“It’s okay,” Gerie said, cupping his cheek. “Right now, I don’t want you to think of me as Gerad anymore. Gerad was what his family demanded he be. Gerie is what I’ve always wanted to be. And Gerie would very much like to thank Gallus for defeating Gerad so Gerie can exist. What do you think?”

Gallus hesitated yet again. This felt like a mistake, but he felt a powerful pull toward Gerie, and not just because she was beautiful. He managed to nod just once.

“Oh, I’m so glad you agree…” Gerie whispered, coming out as a purr as she did something to her shift, allowing it to slip to the ground like a falling leaf. The sheer ease of the way she exposed herself to him took his breath away.

The simple motion left her stunningly and gloriously naked. Considering how she stood there, she knew how she must look to him. She was gray all over—coat and feathers—save for some beautiful brown patterns leading between her legs and under her breasts, as well as thick brown nipples that were already intensely hard. Combined with everything he’d noted before… it was all he could do not to jump her right here and now.

“Do I please you, my savior?” she whispered in a husky, submissive voice that did all sorts of things to Gallus.

“I… uh…”

She stepped forward again and locked beaks with him, her hands wandering over his still-clothed body as she rubbed her very naked body against him. She seemed to take great delight in rubbing her hips against his hardened cock. She pulled back and smiled at him, using a single claw to gently stroke his maleness.

“This’ll have to go, Gallus…”

A bolt of panic exploded through him, making his wings flare as if he needed to fly away. “Wait a second, I didn’t agree—”

Gerie burst into giggles and ignored his protests as her nimble claws undid the clasp on his pants. Only then did he figure out what she’d actually meant. He couldn’t voice it though. She had already slipped his pants down toward his ankles and was playing her tongue against the soft fabric of his straining boxers. He let out a low groan as her hand snaked inside his undergarments to release his hard and trembling maleness.

“Oh my…” she whispered. “You’re quite a bit bigger than I imagined.”

Her eyes flicked up to his. He couldn’t think of anything to say as a soft claw stroked him gently.

“I can’t wait to have it inside of me.”

Then, she lowered her head, wrapped her long tongue around his cock and slid the whole thing into her waiting beak.

Gallus immediately went even more rigid than before.

Oral sex was uncommon among griffons. Hard beaks could make mistakes costly. In fact, his first blowjob had been from Ocellus in her natural form when they’d been out on a date beneath the school’s waterfall. It had been incredible. But even Ocellus’s shapeshifting abilities—and insatiable sex drive—couldn’t compare with what Gerie was doing right now.

Gallus wanted to ask how in the world Gerie knew how to do this so well. But underneath that, he wanted to know more about her need to be female and what she expected to gain from it. After all, it couldn’t be that different, could it?

But questions would have to wait as he felt himself begin to stiffen even further as his balls churned.

“I… I’m a little… uh… pent up…” Gallus tried to warn her as his hips bucked. He hadn’t even gotten his shirt off yet.

The pretty young griffon female giggled softly around his cock, then used a combination of the soft insides of her beak and her talented tongue to do things Gallus would have previously thought was impossible. It was enough to drive him right over the edge.

Gallus erupted with bursts of white liquid. And Gerie caught every burst with an eagerness that made it impossible to think of her as Gerad. Actually, it made it impossible to think at all. Gallus staggered backward and landed with his butt just a few inches shy of the wading bath. The humidity of the room—plus the enormous orgasm—made his head spin.

Finally, his cock stopped exploding, though as expected, it only sagged a little. The Idol of Aventa didn’t just affect males to turn them into females, after all.

“How was that?” Gerie asked as she ran her tongue along her beak, catching a few droplets that had managed to escape.

“That was… that was amazing… how do you even know how to do that? Were you—?”

“Nope!” Gerie giggled again, cutting him off. “Completely straight before becoming a Red. The Idol of Aventa blesses all new females with some inherent skills, some more than others.”

“I’d say you got plenty…” Gallus said, his chest still heaving as a few drops of sweat ran down his face.

“Not even close,” she purred. “Not by a long shot. I definitely need more.”

She groaned softly and cupped her small breasts, then let out a peal of joy as her bust swelled by at least an inch or two. He could only watch in amazement as the slip of a griffoness suddenly grew some impressive curves. Moments later, her hips, thighs and ass swelled to even out her body, though she was left a little top heavy. It also left her bright red as she panted from the transformation.

“Oh, I’ve been waiting for that since the Touch…” she cooed as she rubbed herself all over, exploring all of her new assets. “They said it would happen… but just to happen like that… I wonder what’ll happen if I get more…”

Her eyes flipped up to his. It was at this point when he remembered why ponies once thought griffons to be nothing more than predators. Because sometimes, they were.

She attacked him with lightning speed, ripping off his shirt, his pants and his boxers and chucking them all in the corner. She wasn’t satisfied until he was completely naked. Then, she shoved herself against him once more. She rubbed her body against his, but this time, it had far more of an effect. He grabbed her and kissed her hard as she slid forward against his legs. He could feel her wetness sliding closer to her goal.

Only then, did she pause. She pulled away with an almost shy—yet aroused—expression. “Gallus… will you do something for me?”

Gallus gasped for breath. “Uh… probably?”

“I’ve… kinda had this fantasy about my first time with a male…” she whispered. “And… it has to do with the pool in here…”

Less then two minutes later, Gallus stood waist-deep in the wading bath, his cock pointing out of the steaming water as he clutched the trembling Gerie in his arms. Her wings kept her partially aloft, making it far easier for him to hold her. He’d had to use his own wings to keep from being pushed backward into the wall, even though he was pretty sure that’s how they would end up.

“Thank you…” she whispered as she slid down him—the swell of her new breasts feeling amazing against his own chest—peppering his cheeks and neck with nips and kisses. “Thank you for being everything I wanted.”

Gallus could only nod helplessly as the wanton griffoness slid within half an inch of his straining cock, already more than eager to go again. Gerie looked him in the eyes and he saw real happiness there. This wasn’t some Red Heat caused by a magical artifact. This was real desire. What he held in his arms right now, was a fully female griffon who had been granted her greatest wish and wanted nothing more than to thank him for that gift with her very body.

Then, she slipped down upon him.

She was tight, almost uncomfortably so. But he couldn’t stop and neither could she. She sunk deeper and deeper onto him as they began to fiercely make out. Then, all too soon, he bottomed out inside of her. She stayed there for a time, obviously just enjoying the sensation of his cock within her pussy. Gallus really didn’t know how long they were like that. He didn’t really care either.

But it got even better when she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. Then, with a combination of wings, arms and legs, she began to slowly and methodically impale herself on him, over and over again. Gallus staggered back, the water not being enough to keep him fully upright, and stumbled back to where the wading bath met the wall. As soon as they had that to brace against, Gerie went mad, squealing and crying out like she was truly in some wild heat.

His first orgasm crashed over him and flooded her body with his seed, but Gerie didn’t even pause to take a breath. She only kissed him harder, making it all too clear that she was far from done with him. And through the gift of the Idol of Aventa, he was more than up to the challenge.

Somewhere after the third orgasm, the two soaking-wet griffons moved to the bed, but continued their impassioned, almost desperate, lovemaking. The bed creaked beneath them. Gallus grunted like a minotaur. Gerie squealed like some ancient bird-of-prey. They shifted again and again, moving in wild abandon.

Hours passed like that before Gerie finally gave out, collapsing into a pile of sweaty feathers and soaked fur. Gallus didn’t have the heart to leave her. He felt connected to her and the true purpose of the Featherheart Championship. He’d lost count of his orgasms, but if he looked at the griffon female just right, she seemed to have a bulge of his seed along her belly, though it could easily be just how she lying on the bed.

He reached out a claw and put it against her naked stomach, wondering if right now, the beginnings of a new flock were being created within Gerie’s womb.

He lay down beside her, his claw still touching her belly. Just before he drifted off to sleep, he wondered what that filled womb felt like.

Bullseye

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“What’s with you today, dude?”

“What?” Gallus looked up into the bright blue eyes of his dragon companion. “Sorry, what happened?”

“You, you happened, you featherbrain,” she said, putting her hands on her hips as she looked around at the archery competition, the second-to-last event before the final Golden Melee. “You’ve been weird ever since Griswald pulled you from our fun. And you seriously missed out on some crazy fun between Gemma and me the night before last. She let me do all sorts of wild things that don’t compare with last night…”

“I… was occupied,” Gallus muttered, staring off at twenty-odd remaining competitors. “Queen Giselle… and after… let’s just say I have a lot to think about.”

“That’s great,” Smolder said, poking him in the chest. “But unless you want to be breeding stock for your precious queen, I think you should get your head in the game. This isn’t the time for deep thought. This is the time to crush your foes!”

Gallus smirked at her, leaning back against the cool stone wall in his sleek black archery uniform. “That’s such a dragon thing to say.”

Smolder snorted a small bolt of flame out of her nostrils. “Doesn’t mean I’m wrong. Unless…”

Gallus suddenly found Smolder right up in his face, studying him from top to bottom.

“Hey, back off!” Gallus snapped, shoving her away.

“Unless you’re considering actually giving Giselle what she wants!” Smolder cried, her eyes wide and a disbelieving grin on her snout. “I can’t believe it, that’s it, isn’t it? What happened to you the other night?”

“It’s private!” Gallus snapped as he leapt to his paws and grabbed his bow and quiver. “Don’t worry about it! I’m not! My head’s too much in the game!”

Smolder didn’t look convinced as he jogged past her to take his place on the standby archery line. He made a show of adjusting his bow behind a lithe griffon wearing an armband with the crest of the House of the Stormstruck Mountain. It seemed familiar for some reason, but couldn’t place how he knew the symbol. His escape from Smolder turned out to be good timing, since two whistles blew at almost the same time, and two griffons stepped off the shooting line.

Gallus watched the two griffons. One had a bright red armband, while the other’s armband was dark orange. They both nodded at him as they passed, but the new Red didn’t look upset in the slightest that he would have to give up his maleness tonight.

“I tell you, buddy,” said one of the griffons—the one with the red armband—a handsome male in his early forties. “I just wanted to see how far I could get before I ended up Red. If I made it to the Gold Melee, I was gonna go Green anyway.”

“No kidding. I’m pretty much done anyway. Going to go take a shower before I go Green. I can already hear the whispers in the back of my head. I can’t wait to actually feel the changes! Maybe I’ll be lucky and the words will just come to…”

Their conversation faded in the sound of the coliseum as they walked away. Faded from all but Gallus’s head. He stumbled a little when he was called to step up to the primary line queue, the words of the two male griffons running through his head over and over again, mixed with the words of Giselle and Gerie.

He’d grown up an orphan, without clan or family. And back during his childhood, a griffon had to be tough to survive on the streets of Griffonstone. Today, things were better. Things were different. But now, he had to wonder. Had he ever wanted something else out of life? Is that why he was so drawn to griffons like Giselle, Gemma and Gerie? Because they represented something that—

“Hey, you in there?” shouted a female griffon in a judge uniform as she landed beside him. “I told you to take your position on the shooting line three times already!”

“Sorry!” Gallus sputtered as he quickly slung his quiver into the correct position. “I’m ready.”

“Nice of you to join us,” the judge said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Take position eight and fire when ready.”

Gallus nodded and stepped up to the marked position. He’d chosen the composite bow today, because it was something he’d been practicing on and off since he’d entered the School of Friendship, usually with Ocellus or Silverstream. Since only creatures with claws or other similar appendages could use it—unless you counted magic—he’d originally done it just to make himself look good. Eventually, it had turned into a fun way to blow off steam. At least until they’d all found… other ways to do that.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, mentally shutting out everything around him. The shouts of the crowd were banished. The twangs of the various bows beside him were erased. The impact of the arrows against the hexagonal targets became nothing. Ironically, it had been Professor Fluttershy who’d taught him the proper calmness technique to get him to a point where he managed to compete for a place in the Equestrian Games one year. He hadn’t made the cut, but he’d gotten close. He’d always been proud of that. The best part was it wasn’t too hard to slip back into that quiet place again when he needed to.

He opened his eyes and slotted an arrow with a practiced motion. Then, he sighted on his target and drew back the arrow as he took another deep breath. Finally, he released the string and let the arrow fly.

Gallus watched in satisfaction as the arrow flew straight and true, slamming dead center in the target he shared within positions seven and nine. He heard a cheer go up, but he didn’t let it go to his head. He stayed in the moment and slotted the next arrow. He sighted as position nine fired, only to land just a few inches shy of the gold ring. He drew back—and froze as a crack sounded through the arena.

He dropped the bow to his side and gaped. An arrow had actually split his own arrow in two. And it had come from position seven.

Gallus turned to his right, only to take a step backward as an all-too-familiar face leered at him from just a few feet away. He’d been so lost in his head he hadn’t even bothered to see who his fellow competitors were, only their Houses. That… that had been a terrible mistake.

“Hello, Gallus.”

“Grazin!” Gallus spat, his eyes narrowing while his hackles rose. “What in the name of the Egg are you doing here?”

“Making sure you end up begging for my cock before the sun sets tonight,” the lithe red-and-brown griffon shot back. “Or at least somegriff’s cock. I don’t want to deprive you of your life’s dream of being a little breeding whore forever!”

Gallus had to practically bite his tongue as he glared daggers at the other griffon. “Even if I was to lose, you’d never get me, Grazin. No matter how badly you want me.”

“Want you?” he scoffed as he leaned on his heavy recurve bow. “Wow, somegriff has a high opinion of themselves these days. You might be all big and important with some, but there are plenty of locals here who remember the runty little blue chick who we played ‘Wing the Cripple’ with.”

“Then why you so worried about my sleeping habits?” Gallus shot back, his claws clenching around his bow. “This the only way you figure you might actually get laid?”

Grazin snorted as he brushed his dark orange armband with the House of the Stormstruck Mountain crest on it. “Hardly. I’m here to make sure that idiot Giselle doesn’t completely ruin the griffons.”

“Positions Seven and Eight!” bellowed the referee from above. “Do we have a problem? You’re there to show us your archery skill, not your socializing skill!”

“What do you mean ‘make sure’?” Gallus demanded, ignoring the referee. Something about the way Grazin had said that made him nervous.

Grazin laughed as he returned to the proper shooting form. “Don’t worry, I’ve already decided you’re gonna be a little breeder. I’m gonna save those who are worth saving.”

He fired another arrow and this one landed a hairsbreadth await from the split arrow.

“What have you done?” Gallus growled, more than a little tempted to aim his bow at his old chickhood enemy.

“Position Eight!” the referee shouted again. “If you don’t continue firing, you’ll be disqualified and take an abandonment loss!”

“Can’t have that now, can you?” Grazin cackled as he fired again, landing his third bullseye in the outer gold ring. “I saw you choke in obstacle course yesterday, Gally-runt. You looked so distracted it was a miracle you didn’t knock yourself out on the first post! A failure like that combined with an abandonment loss? You’d be a Red whore after just one more loss.”

Gallus realized what the jerk had been trying to do and dove back into his mental shelter of calm, but it was cracked and broken. Abandonment losses were considered cowardly, and counted the same as losing two bouts. He couldn’t afford that.

He took his time to aim his shot, but he could feel the eyes of the referee on him. That and Grazin’s ongoing stream of snide comments ate at him… and when he fired, he found his shot only barely managed to catch the edge of the outer white ring for the target.

He swore under his breath and slotted his next arrow.

“You know, you could always just walk,” Grazin said idly as he scored an inner red ring. “If you’re so worried about being Giselle’s little bitch breeder and the disgrace you’ll get for losing… there’s no harm in walking away from a fight you can’t win. You should know. How many times did I have you flying away like your tail was on fire?”

“Shut it, Grazin,” Gallus snapped. He aimed again, but his quiet place was little more than rubble at this point. Even Professor Fluttershy’s advice couldn’t help him much. His next shot landed toward the inside of the blue ring—the middle position—but if he didn’t get his focus back, this would be a clear loss. “Anyway, it’s not a disgrace.”

While Gemma and Smolder had been there for his failure in the obstacle course yesterday, neither had spoken a word of it. He’d been grateful for that, especially since he’d manage to banish it from his mind for the rest of the day. All the questions presented by Giselle and Gerie had been a good distraction, but also what had made him lose that bout in the first place. He had to clear this last hurdle, or else he’d have no second-chances in the Gold Melee tomorrow.

Despite everything, he didn’t like the idea of losing.

“Not a disgrace? Yeah. Right. Keep telling yourself that,” Grazin said as he stepped back from the line and got a gulp of water. “What do you have the prove? You’re the big hero. Yeah, you’ll always be that sissy runt from the streets to me, but at least some of Griffonstone think you're the hottest thing since scones with baking powder. You don’t owe them anything.”

Gallus drew back as he breathed in and let loose. Inside of the red rings. He could do this.

“Then again…” Grazin mused. “If you’re—”

“Do you mind?!” Gallus snapped as he stepped back from the shooting line to take a drink—and to hiss at Grazin some more. They were starting to get glares from the other competitors. “What’s your game here, Grazin? You’re too stupid to be doing anything on your own. You’re working for someone.”

Grazin stepped up to him. The other griffon might be lithe, but he had at least a foot on Gallus. His opponent glowered down at the shorter griffon.

“Do you really want it, Gallus?” he whispered, his thick feathers falling over one of his dark green eyes. “Do you really want the sensation of some huge griffon’s cock sliding between your tits? Drilling into your wet pussy? Maybe even slamming into your ass? All while their claws fondle your big tits and thick butt? I always knew you were a runt, but I never figured you for a Featherheart. You survived the streets of Griffonstone. You made it out of the slums. These idiots around us? They have no idea what it’s like to survive what you’ve survived. We both know that griffonesses in the slums never made it there. They escaped early. Or… they found the jobs you’re signing up for.”

Gallus gaped at him while his old enemy’s words brought up the sensations he’d experienced with Gerie and Gemma. The words of Giselle and Griswald. The fact that most of the last day and a half, he’d wondered what it would be like to walk around with two heavy orbs on his chest.

“You’ll never make Gold, Gallus,” Grazin whispered. “Giselle might think she’s got something amazing planned, but she’s a newbie when it comes to the Admiral. He’s made sure you’ll never win. The best thing you can do is leave. You got a good thing in Equestria. You don’t owe Griffonstone shit. Head home. We’ll handle things from here. You don’t have to be some Red slut. And you’re too much a survivor to go Green.”

The referee dropped down behind both of them, but Grazin had already taken his position again and drawn another arrow.

Gallus looked between Grazin and the referee, then slowly picked up his bow. It felt a lot heavier than it had before. After all, who knew what Gerie actually thought? For all he knew, Aventa’s Touch brainwashed them into willing breeding machines. He had no idea what games Giselle might be playing.

“Seven and eight, enough. You will finish your round immediately.”

Would it be easier just to walk away from all of this? Tell Giselle to stuff it, apologize to Gemma and go home with Smolder?

He remembered the look in Gemma’s eyes when she’d come on her day off and swallowed hard.

Grazin seemed to be watching him, waiting to see what Gallus would do.

“Position Seven! Fire or be disqualified with an abandonment loss!”

Grazin jumped—and loosed. The arrow clipped the edge of the target and cracked against the fall wall.

Gallus almost dropped his bow as Grazin swore. He’d seen Grazin shoot before. The griffon almost never missed. And especially not because somegriff was yelling at him. There was only one reason for Grazin to shoot that badly.

He was nervous.

Gallus gritted his beak and took his position, drawing back and glancing at his opponent. “You were sent here to screw with my head, weren’t you?”

Grazin didn’t answer. He was too busy trying for his sixth shot.

Gallus growled and shook his head clear of the doubts Grazin had tried to plan. And in so doing, he seemed to settle a few things in his mind. There were still a few things up in the air, but why would he trust the logic of an old bully instead of griffons who had shown him nothing but kindness and passion since he arrived?

“You almost had me.”

“Position Eight, you—”

Gallus fired. The arrow sliced straight through the arrow that had split his first shot. He grinned.

“Dammit, you runt…” Grazin snarled.

Gallus turned to the referee and bowed his head. “Sorry about the delay. We’re old… friends and we got distracted.”

“Gallus, you don’t want to do this...” Grazin insisted. “This won’t end well for you.”

“Actually,” Gallus laughed. “I’m pretty sure it’s not going to end well for you.”

He drew again before Grazin managed to get his bow slotted. Gallus released and easily scored in the inner red ring. When Grazin finally got his sixth shot off, it landed in the outer blue ring.

“Forty-three to forty-two,” Gallus hummed to himself as he stretched his arms a little. “You used to be so good at this.”

“Gallus, this isn’t the way to go,” Grazin hissed. “Walk away now. It’s for your own good.”

“Or you could walk,” Gallus suggested idly. “But even if you don’t, I’m sure you’ll find some nice, friendly griffon to knock you up. I’m sure the Admiral would love to see his little spy waddling around full of more griffonesses.”

It was Grazin’s turn to try and block Gallus out. He failed miserably. Which was a bad thing to do on the seventh and final shot.

“Oooh, ouch.” Gallus winced. “Outer black? That’s probably going to put you real close to Red if you’re not there already.”

“You snarky little runt!” Grazin snarled.

“Oh, shut your beak. I need to make my final shot.”

He found his quiet place. It was exactly as it had been at the beginning. A moment later, his final arrow was singing through the air until it cracked against the board in the outer gold.

“Final score,” the referee announced, still sounding annoyed. “Position Eight, fifty-three. Position Seven, forty-five.”

Gallus’s eyes slipped over to Grazin’s armband and couldn’t help but grin as the color became just a few shades away from a full Red Featherheart. He raised his bow in salute, then sauntered off the shooting line. He almost made it back to the Orange Gate when a tight hand grabbed his arm and spun him around.

Grazin looked furious and moments away from throwing a punch. “You think you can just screw with us like that?”

“I’m sure I don’t know what you’re blabbing about,” Gallus said with a little yawn. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d very much like to take a shower—”

“That’s a great idea,” Grazin said, his eyes suddenly burning with something Gallus didn’t like. “Let’s go.”

Before Gallus could react, Grazin had pulled him through the Orange Gate… but not toward the shower. Instead, he was shoved down a dusty unused hallway. Gallus had half a mind to let him get all the way, but decided he was sick of the bully.

With a flap of his wings, he did a somersault over his former enemy, and slammed his feet on the other griffon’s back, sending him sprawling to the ground in a heap.

“Okay, we’re gonna do this the hard way!” Grazin yelled.

And just then, four doors opened in the hallway that Gallus hadn’t noticed in the dim light. Four burly griffons in black hoods and bodysuits stepped out. A couple of them had actual weapons in their claws.

“Oh… oh boy…” Gallus swallowed, taking a step backward. “This… is not what I had in mind.”

“That’s okay,” came a new voice from behind Gallus. “I got the feeling when he shoved you in here.”

Gallus glanced behind him to see Smolder causally wandering down the hallway, grinning at everygriff present. His heart leapt at the sight of her.

“Great timing.”

“I try.”

“No! This is not how it was supposed to go!” Grazin had gotten back up and shockingly, still had his bow. He pulled back and arrow. “Fucking dragons! Get out of our city!”

“Grazin, you can’t be that stupi—”

Grazin fired right for Smolder’s head. The arrow moved too fast for Gallus to react. Smolder didn’t seem to have that problem. She just blew out a little plume of fire that turned the arrow to ash before it ever reached her.

The bow clattered from Grazin’s claws. “Right…”

“Idiot,” Gallus muttered.

Despite the display, the four other griffons weren’t nearly as intimidated as Grazin. They cautiously approached. And then, another four appeared in those doorways.

“I didn’t realize I was this popular,” Gallus muttered as Smolder stopped at his side.

“Well, I did. Giselle mentioned something like this might happen. And she told me what to do. She said I should stay out of it, but I’ve never been good at that sort of thing. But I did follow some of her advice… like calling for backup when it all went down.”

From the opposite side of the dusty hallway, two double doors slammed open, revealing the gleaming silver breastplate of Sky Captain Griswald and a squad of twelve griffons in rock-colored scout armor. Six of them were armed with crossbows, while the other six had stun-staffs.

“Let’s make this easy,” Griswald growled, his eyes blazing with fury. “Stand down now, and I won’t have to break your wings off.”

One black-suited griffon decided not to take his advice. He charged Griswald with a club.

Griswald sighed, then backclawed the griffon into the nearby wall. The griffon hit so hard, dust rained down on them all from the ceiling. He slumped to the ground while his club rolled to Griswald’s paws.

“Any other takers?”

As one, the rest of the black-suited griffons held up their claws in surrender, all while Grazin’s curses echoed through the hallway.

“I owe you one,” Gallus said with a smile at Smolder.

“Yeah, I know.” Smolder grinned. “You owe him more. Even I couldn’t pull off a hit like that.”

Griswald stepped away from where his squad was taking the attackers into custody. He shook Gallus’s hand and actually cracked a smile.

“I didn’t want to use you as live bait,” Griswald said. “We didn’t know Grazin was in on this until this afternoon. He’s already made eight participants quit with his mindgames. I’m glad to see you’re made of sterner stuff.”

Gallus blushed hard under the praise. “He made a mistake when I realized he was waiting for me to break.”

“Great perception. That kind of skill would have been a major asset to my command.” Griswald nodded in approval. “Go take a shower and relax. I’ll come by this evening for a full debrief.”

“O-Of course…” Gallus said, swallowing hard as the Sky Captain walked back toward his team. He definitely was not staring at his ass.

“You’re thinking of a totally different kind of debrief, aren’t you?” Smolder said with a cackle.

“Shut up!” Gallus snapped.

Washing Away The Old

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With the archery competition finished—and him taking third place—nothing now stood between Gallus and the Gold Melee. Tomorrow, his fate would be decided, one way or another.

Those thoughts echoed through his head as he stepped into the Gold Contender’s showers, a public shower space exclusive to those who’d made it this far. There were private showers, too, off in the alcoves, but after the attempted mugging—or kidnapping—Gallus didn’t really feel like being in a small enclosed space. That meant a shower in the small forest of bronze pipes, knobs and showerheads. The entire place was gilded in gold and silver, with marble floors and ceilings. The overall splendor was simply mind-boggling. It looked like he had just stepped into Canterlot Castle.

Still, he hesitated before going any further. Despite Smolder’s attempts, exhibitionism had never been a thing for him. The idea of stripping for the two dozen or so griffons scattered throughout the showers didn’t have much appeal.

Then, Gallus got over himself. Nogriffon was even looking at him. Most were too focused on trying to get the grit and grime from their feathers and coats with the provided washes, soaps and shampoos. Anyway, the School of Friendship’s bathhouse had been public. Why was he being shy now?

Smolder was watching the main door in case any more of Gass’s goons tried to take another stab at him. Griswald’s griffons were watching from all the other potential entries and exits. He knew he was safe.

Then why did he have to fight himself a little to strip off his top? Why did it feel strange to see nothing but his flat chest of fur and feathers? Why did it feel strange to see his equipment between his legs after taking off his pants?

He shook his head, stuffed the uniform into an empty locker in the entry and walked out into the showers. Most of the contenders were showering on the far side of the room and a few looked like they were starting to get friendly.

Gallus smiled and turned away. He cranked the water as hot as it would go, then picked up the provided soap and starting to scrub the dirt and grime from his chest. As he did so, he couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like to have something more than just his pecs there. Absently, he fondled a nipple and let out a tiny moan as it sent a surge of arousal through him. He blinked in surprise at the sheer intensity of it, then ripped his claw away. He had to focus. Not… think about going into the Red Chambers as a fresh female…

“Excuse me?” said a soft voice from behind him.

Gallus jumped in surprise and whirled, his wings flaring out as he prepared for another attack. But none came. Instead, all he saw the wings and backside of a slim, light green griffon standing beneath a showerhead. He must have come in right after Gallus. Gallus had been so lost in thought he hadn’t noticed him. So much for him keeping an eye out for danger.

It seemed okay though. This didn’t look like some tough hired to take him out. The griffon had the body of a marathon flier, all lean muscle with an impressive wingspan. His flight muscles bulged beneath his back, making the water stream down his coat in strange, almost hypnotic ways. The spell was broken when the left wing spasmed and the griffon let out a hiss of pain.

“Gust of wind slammed me against the inside the third pipe yesterday,” the griffon muttered as he used one claw to rub his left shoulder. “Look, I know this is a little weird, but could you help wash it? I haven’t been able to clean it right since and it's messing up my moves.”

Gallus stared at him, soap suds dripping from his claws. The other griffon turned to look over his shoulder and pierced him with bright blue eyes. His bangs were tinted a bright yellow, almost the same as Gallus’s own natural highlights.

“Uh, you okay, dude?”

“What? Yeah!” Gallus said, snapping out of that strange place he’d slipped into. “Yeah… uh…”

Somewhere to his right came the sounds of the two males going at it. He could feel the magic of the Idol of Aventa washing through the entire room, focusing heavily around his quickly hardening cock. All of this—plus the thrill of actually escaping Gass’s trap—made him crave physical contact with any griffon. Even if it was only something as easy as a quick preening.

“Yeah, sure,” Gallus said as he stepped out from under his showerhead and into the spray from the other griffon’s shower. The griffon moved toward the bronze trunk of his shower to make sure they both had room to enjoy the hot water. “Left one’s giving you trouble, right?”

“Yeah…” he muttered and Gallus caught a blush before the other griffon turned away. “Please?”

Gallus tried not to think about what he was doing—or why he was doing it—and used his claws to massage some life back into the wing. In moments, the other griffon was moaning softly in delight.

“By the way,” Gallus said, trying not to let himself get too hard or to think about how this griffon’s coat color looked almost the exact same as Sandbar, the first male he’d ever been with. “I’m Gallus.”

“Oh… uh… I know…” the other griffon laughed. “Everyone knows who you are. Still, I’m Gigi… I mean, Gino.”

“Which is it?” Gallus asked idly, working his way over the wing and to the real source of the problem: the flight muscles in the griffon’s back. “One sounds a lot like a griffoness’s name…”

“It’s… gonna…” the griffon sighed loudly as he wiggled under Gallus’s ministrations. “It’s gonna be Gigi in… in a minute or two…”

“Huh?” Gallus frowned, looking up at the shuddering griffon. “What are you talking about?”

Only he knew exactly what Gino was talking about. And yet, he couldn’t seem to pull his claws away from the quivering griffon.

“I…” Gino gasped again as he braced himself against the bronze trunk of the shower. “I can’t stop thinking about it…”

“Thinking about what?” he asked, his hands moving on automatic now while his mind spun in circles.

If this was really happening… he’d known it could happen. He’d been with Reds! But to actually see a Green get Touched by Aventa… Right here! In front of him!

“How it would feel to have two huge orbs on my chest,” Gino whispered, his voice barely audible over the sound of the falling water. The clouds of steam around them seemed to thicken. “How it would look to have a slim, feminine figure. What it would be like to have nothing between my legs except for a needy slit that existed only for breeding…”

Gallus froze in midstroke, though his body didn’t. All while Gino had been talking, his cock had been rising. And now, it rested comfortably between the other griffon’s ass cheeks.

“Oh right… and a big, thick ass,” Gino whispered, shivering from fringe to paw as something inside the griffon gave. “I got called to the Red Chambers on my second day, you know…”

“You… you did?” Gallus asked. Some part of him said he should back away. Another part said he should step forward to slip his cock a little deeper between Gino’s ass cheeks.

“Uh-huh…” Gino muttered as he bent over. “Friend of mine… asked me to be her first… She was spectacular. Never knew Guntar knew all that… then she whispered about how good it all felt. I haven’t been able to get her face out of my head the entire competition. She’s still my friend, but dude, she’s a total slut now. And she loves it.”

“Is that… that right?”

“Yeah…” Gino sighed and wrapped his arms around the bronze piping. “And you know what?”

“What?”

“Feeling your hands on my back? Helped me finally decide. I’m really going to enjoy being a total slut just like her.”

“Oh jeez…”

Then, Gino whispered something Gallus couldn’t quite make out.

Before Gallus could react, he felt the magic surge from deep within the coliseum. Gallus didn’t even get a chance to pull his claws away from Gino’s wings before the magic of the Idol of Aventa slammed into the lithe green griffon.

Gino squealed in shock and pleasure. His wings suddenly stretched wide as if all the knots in his flight muscles had just vanished.

“Yeah… just like this…”

Then, the griffon’s ass began to thicken.

“Uh… Gino… what just happened?”

In retrospect, it was a really dumb question.

Gino giggled. It definitely a giggle this time. “I just got Touched by Aventa as a Green, Gallus. Did you know that Greens get way more control over how their bodies change than Reds? I can’t wait to try it out. And I’d love to try it out with you. Especially, by you fucking me silly. By you fucking Gigi silly.”

Gino—Gigi—let out a lustful growled as her ass and hips swelled until they all but swallowed Gallus’s dick. He was too surprised to pull away. Or maybe he was too aroused. He wasn’t sure.

Gigi’s tail wrapped around his torso and tugged him closer.

“Mm… one last time up the ass would be nice…” Gigi whispered as she wiggled her butt. “I did love playing both sides. After you give me that memory, you can mount me proper, break me into a good slutty griffon breeder…”

Gallus tried not to think of just how erotic it sounded when Gigi said it like that, or how the falling water accentuated her growing curves or her healed wing or…

“Oh, fuck it,” Gallus spat. It was a good thing that Idol made any male’s stamina near endless. If it hadn’t, he’d probably be dead from exhaustion by now.

“Better solution,” Gigi whispered as she looked behind him through the falling water. “Fuck me.”

Gallus didn’t need any more requests. With a yowl, he rammed his maleness deep inside the changing griffon’s back entrance. Gigi clutched the bronze tower, jutting out her soaking wet ass and wiggling it for encouragement—as if he needed any. Gigi’s ass was changing even as he hilted inside of the transforming male. It felt almost like the griffoness had the lubrication of an actual pussy back there!

“This feels even better as a griffoness!” Gigi cried as she bucked, trying to get Gallus even deeper inside of her. “I’m… so close to cumming already!”

Gigi let out a howl as Gallus slowly slid out of the griffoness and thrust himself back in. She shuddered eagerly with every movement. Gallus was sure she’d cum at least twice already, but showed no signs of slowing down. Within minutes, they both got a perfect rhythm going as Gallus grabbed Gigi’s thick hips and used them to help him pound her over and over again. To his shock, Gigi’s ass thickened even more, almost to the point where he couldn’t hilt inside of her, but she stopped just short of preventing that. She was practically a caricature of a griffon—at least from behind. And something about that hit buttons Gallus didn’t even know he had.

“I… I’m close…”

“Mmm, do it!” Gigi begged, her wings flapping and sending water spraying everywhere. Violet highlights started to appear in her wings. “I was pretty horny as a male… apparently I really am a total slut as a female!”

That confession was enough to push Gallus over the edge and he blasted bolt after bolt of seed into her perfectly tight ass as she cried out with yet another orgasm of her own. She felt even better than Sandbar and he didn’t think any male—or part-male—could feel better than that.

The sheer energy of the orgasm made him stagger backward until he slammed back against the bronze trunk of his own shower, still pouring water from above. He found his entire front covered in running soapy water from his shortened attempt at cleaning.

Gigi, for her part, turned around in one smooth, sultry motion. She was sopping wet, coated with soap, licking her beak all while her eyes burned with lust. Her beak and head fringe had already changed to fully feminine shapes, while the rest of her remained male, including her rather impressive cock.

“More,” she growled, more a command than a request as she stalked toward him. “I… I need more…”

Then she stumbled. Gigi gasped as she clutched her front, then two very large and very wet furry breasts swelled into existence on her chest. In seconds, she had grown to nearly the side of Gemma. Lust burned even brighter in her eyes as she crept forward, her top and arms feminizing before his very eyes. In moments, her upper body had become an excellent specimen of the top part of the classic hourglass figure.

By the time she had reached him, there was almost nothing left of Gino save for the raging erection. Her tits were now the biggest he’d ever seen on a griffoness. Her hips were so wide, she could probably birth chicks without even noticing it.

And the sight of her transforming—not to mention transforming while soaking wet—was enough to drive his libido through the roof. Before he could react, though, she slowly slid to her knees. Seconds later, his cock was wrapped in her enormous pillowy breasts while hot water lubricated her fur.

“What… are…?”

“I’ve always loved titjobs,” Gigi confessed. “And now, I get to be the one to give them!”

Then, with startling skill and speed, she used her entire body to tease him, making him fully hard again within moments. Leftover soap streamed between her tits and into the valley she’d created just for him. He gaped at her as she stretched out her tongue and started lapping at the head of his cock with a shocking level of precision with every thrust Gallus made. She even added kisses to the very tip!

“Winged Goddesses, this is amazing…” whispered Gigi, her eyes practically rolling back into her head in delight. Her wings kept pomfing with every other thrust. “I’m… oh… wow… it’s like my body was made for this!”

She forced him to stop thrusting for a moment so she could make out with the tip of his cock for a full minute before she popped off and grinned at him. She used her claws to shover her tits together to make the wet, furry tunnel even tighter.

“I’m gonna… I’m gonna cum all over you if you keep doing that!” Gallus warned, his voice a little higher pitched than he would have liked.

Gigi smiled, staring up at him with hooded eyes. “Yummy.”

Gallus couldn’t believe it. He’d never seen anygriff act so slutty in his whole life. Hell, even the few times he’d been with the occasional mare, they hadn’t been nearly as needy and equestrian mares usually wanted at least three rounds before they let him go!

“Fuck my tits, Gallus!” Gigi begged. “Fuck them and unload all over me!”

“You were a guy just a few minutes ago!” Gallus cried.

Gigi laughed in delight. “The only thing male about me right now is the cock that’s gonna go off the moment I taste your cum!”

That sealed the deal.

With water pouring down both of them, he shoved his cock between her tits one last time and felt it start to twitch. Steam flowed around them, but not enough to hide the fact that they’d attracted quite the audience. But then those thoughts were obliterated when he felt the first jet of cum burst from his tip.

Gigi caught it in her beak and let out a loud squeal of satisfaction. She tried to get more, but soon, she couldn’t handle the sheer amount of cum his balls were pouring out. That left her tits to be painted by his seed. She moaned as she licked her lips, rubbing it into her fur even as the hot water mixed with it all.

“Everything feels so good…” she muttered. “So good…”

She flopped backward just in time to get his last jet of cum on her belly, though it was quickly washed away. And that revealed the one last piece of Gino. She groaned as her claw jerked her cock up and down, squirming on the soapy wet tile of the public shower.

“Oh yes… yes! Oh Goddesses, yes!”

Then, the griffoness cock exploded in thick jets of white cum, spraying across Gallus’s legs and the floor. But the hot water seemed to have an easier time washing all of this down the drains. Gigi didn’t have much, because with each spurt, her cock shrank. Within a half-dozen twitches, she was down to almost nothing.

Her eyes met his and she gasped.

“It’s… it’s happening!” she whispered. “Yes! Mmm… remake me in a little breeding slut!”

When he next looked at the griffoness’s crotch, all he saw was a sopping wet pussy begging to be filled by a thick cock. Instead, it was being filled by three of her delicate claws.

“Now… for the main event.”

Her claws slipped out of her pussy and she jerked upright, grinning at Gallus. Then, with a powerful thrust of her wings, she took to the air, sending water flying in every direction. Gallus yelped in surprise, only to be tackled to the floor by the lust-addled Gigi. She made sure he didn’t bang his head against the tile, but the moment he was settled, she wasted no time in impaling herself on his still-rigid cock.

“This is everything I’ve ever fantasized about! And it’s so much better!”

Gallus managed to hold onto her pounding hips as Gigi stretched her arms back behind her head and spread her wings, jutting out her massive breasts—still spotted with cum stains—and giving Gallus a perfect view of her perfectly sexed-up figure. She writhed on top of him, driving him into herself again and again. Her beak twisted in pleasure. She reached for the sky and the water, laughing in ecstasy as water poured all around them. Her huge tits bounced with every thrust, water droplets flying from her rock-hard nipples.

In that moment, Gallus couldn’t help but just gape. Gino had willingly transformed into this. He’d wanted this. And now he couldn’t stop squealing about how it was better than anything he’d ever imagined. And he’d become the living embodiment of what most griffon males dreamed of fucking silly. Gino had become like the ancients legends of Aventa herself, a creature of unparalleled sensual beauty.

Gigi had become a living goddess of griffon sexuality.

And as she began to cum yet again, he realized that she loved it.

She adjusted position to pin his hips a little better, then kissed him hard. The kiss turned out to be exactly what he needed to set off yet another orgasm inside of the stunning griffoness. She squealed and sat back up to hold her stomach, thrashing yet again as he unloaded his seed into her womb.

Even as he was still cumming, she looked at him and grinned. “I hope every chick I birth is female, just so they can feel like this someday…”

And Gallus couldn’t help himself. He’d been denying it and fighting it for so long. But the truth was… he wanted to know what it felt like. He wanted to experience the insane levels of pleasure Gigi was undergoing right now.

He didn’t know if he wanted it enough to actually act. But… as Gigi began to bounce once more, coaxing him into yet another round, he realized he’d slipped one step closer to making a decision he had never expected.

“Let’s see how many I can get out of you before you pass out,” Gigi giggled as she ran her tongue along his soaked chest.

“Uh…”

“Hey, if you’re going to be transformed by the very Idol that makes every male within a few miles able to go for hours and hours, might as well have a good time!”

Gigi burst out laughing.

And despite his best efforts, Gallus couldn’t find a flaw in Gigi’s logic.

The Heart of the Matter

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Gallus glanced at the magical clock on the nightstand just beyond the snoozing form of Smolder. It was nearly two in the morning. And exhausted as he was from the competitions and the three-hour sex marathon with Gigi—not to mention the bonus round with Smolder and Gemma—he still couldn’t sleep.

Smolder smiled in some dream as she snuggled closer to him, but for once, Gallus didn’t mind. A chill wind flowed through their chambers from the open window that led out onto the balcony looking out over the great coliseum. He shivered slightly despite the dragon’s warmth as he watched a shaft of moonlight play along all three sets of legs beneath the sheets.

His eyes drifted over to the naked and peaceful shape of Gemma. As usual, the blankets had fallen off her huge tits, but Gallus couldn’t find it in himself to cover her. Not because the view was a massive turn-on—though it totally was—but because he liked seeing her like this. Nude, beautiful and quiet. When she was awake, she was a blushing ball of energy.

Only a few days ago, she’d told him the truth. The pretty maid had once been a male griffon who’d competed in the Featherheart Championship. She’d lost in the third round and honored her oath by submitting and becoming a Red. Most griffons did. Those who didn’t faced exile, jail or worse for breaking the contracts they signed on entering the Championship.

But what mattered more—at least to him—was her second confession: she wished she’d done things differently. She wished she’d become a Green before the first round.

Gallus leaned over to give Gemma a little peck on the forehead. She smiled and let out a little coo of happiness. Since that first day, Gemma had all but moved in with Smolder and Gallus. And Gallus found himself increasingly fond of the griffoness, even if she was a few years older than him. He wondered if—

A faint sound from outside caught his attention. He twitched and whirled, only to see movement on the balcony.

“By the Nest, what now?” Gallus muttered.

He was not in the mood for another kidnapping attempt. Griswald had stationed extra security around their suite just in case, but Gallus had been through too much to think such things could be perfect.

Then again, he had one of his best friends, a fire-breathing dragon, lying next to him.

Maybe the lack of sleep was making him reckless. Or maybe he had just had enough of being a pawn in other griffon’s games.

He slowly extricated himself from the bed, grabbed a pair of jeans and slipped them on. Only then did he step out onto the moonlit balcony, bare-chested and wary. The coliseum beyond was lost in shadow. In fact, the only thing he could really see, aside from the stars and the moon, was the two tables, the two chairs and the small bench where a light gray elderly griffon sat, watching Gallus with his chin resting on one of his claws.

“I should have known you’d show up,” Gallus said with a shake of his head. “You’ve got some nerve.”

“You should know I did not authorize the use of any weapons during the operation yesterday afternoon,” former Grand Admiral Gulhan Gass said in his clipped militant tone. “The squad was overeager and overequipped. The attack on your dragon ally was a grave error.”

Gallus leaned against the doorway and raised an eyebrow at the old buzzard. “Really? That’s what you’re going to open with?”

Gass met his eyebrow with one of his own. The griffon wore his full military uniform, complete with a forest of medals. He did look impressive. He also looked like a griffon out of time.

“I’m not going to apologize for what I did to try and save this nation, son,” Gass informed him. “It’s unfortunate that you’ve fallen in with Giselle and her cohorts. You would have made an excellent ally.”

“So, why not try and recruit me?” Gallus demanded. “Why all the cloak and dagger bullshit?”

Gass didn’t respond to Gallus’s vulgarity. Instead, he leaned back on the bench and steepled his claws together. “And what would you have said if I had approached you? Told you that one of the most hallowed traditions of our people is a corrupt institution eating away at the might of the griffons?”

Gallus tapped his chin in thought for a moment as he seriously considered the question before answering it. “I would have called you a conspiracy theorist and a lunatic.”

“Yet you yourself defeated a young pegasus mare in her bid to banish all magic from Equestria, did you not?” Gass pointed out, his shrewd eyes narrowing. “Did anycreature believe you when you tried to stop her? Hm? The ponies themselves turned on you for a time. They thought you mad or evil. You were not. Simply misunderstood.”

“Oh, I don’t think you’re mad or evil, Gass,” Gallus said with a shrug. “I think you let your griffons go too far. If everything I’ve read about in Princess Twilight’s history classes is true, you’re too smart to try to outright kill me.”

“Then there is hope for the ponies after all.”

Gallus ignored the question and scratched his naked chest with a claw. “No, the real question is… why are you here now? You know whatever I decide won’t have anything to do with the Patriarchists. Unless you wanted to try and kidnap me again.”

“You might want to look at the roof, young Gallus,” Gass said, pointing a thumb upward.

Gallus looked up three stories… only to blink a few times when he saw Sky Captain Griswald and six griffons with stun-staffs watching the exchange very carefully from the roof. Griswald gave him a little salute. Gallus just nodded at him dumbly.

“He’s good,” Gallus muttered.

“He should be,” Gass replied, looking up at the imposing griffon. “My prized student, back when I served as Headmaster of Ironwing Academy. One of the best any of our academies has ever turned out, save for his views on the future of the griffon people.”

“I think he’s just fine the way he is.”

“Of course you do.” Gass leaned forward and sighed. “No, I do not intend to use force, Mister Gallus. A good admiral knows when he must change tactics. I was hoping your loss a few days ago would be enough to discourage you. You have the pride of a proper griffon.”

Gallus rolled his eyes. “Don’t tell me you were behind that.”

“The incident in the obstacle course?” Gass scoffed. “I may have moved the roster around to put you with some griffons who were paid handsomely to get you to humiliate yourself on the course, but you failed long that before they could even act.”

Gallus bristled a little, trying to ignore the barb. “And when that didn’t work?”

“The Championship is not long. I had to act swiftly.” He shook his head. “I had hoped you would venture out into the city at some point, but apparently you had other things to occupy your time.”

“And my bed.” Gallus smirked.

It was Gass’s turn to ignore the barb. “So, when that didn’t happen, I had to play my last card. Grazin was an arrogant fool. Doubly-so for breaking his Featherheart contract and fleeing. He was supposed to make you doubt, but when he failed, my griffons were to quietly take you out, secure you in a safe location within the city until the Championship ended, then release you unharmed.”

“Thankfully, I make friends with dragons.”

“Indeed.”

Silence descended upon them for a good minute before Gallus spoke up again. He stopped leaning against the doorway, stood up straight and studied at the old admiral. “You didn’t answer my question.”

“No, I suppose I didn’t,” he said with a shrug. A few of his medals jangled “I am here to beg you to walk away. In so doing, you do not endorse either side. Both Giselle and I must stand on our own. Let our people decide, instead of having them follow the griffon hero of the Battle of Unity.”

Gallus nodded to himself. He’d wondered what Gass’s last move would be. It didn’t surprise him that the former admiral’s last gambit might be a simple appeal to harmony. But Gallus didn’t sense anything harmonious about the griffon before him.

“I’m sure you know Giselle’s done her homework about griffon population growth,” Gallus said as he stepped out onto the balcony, then leaned against the railing to look out over the darkened coliseum. “And I happen to believe her.”

“It’s not as simple as she’d led you to believe,” Gass insisted.

“Oh? Why don’t you enlighten me?”

“The Idol of Boreas.”

Gallus blinked and glanced over his shoulder. “What?”

Gass got to his paws, folded his claws behind his back and stepped to the railing. “The Idol of Boreas and the Idol of Aventa were a pair, Mister Gallus. The attack of the Arimaspi didn’t only ruin Griffonstone, it broke the griffon people. When we had both, the balance of the genders leaned in the male direction, but there were more than enough females. King Guto himself was a staunch Patricharist.”

“The griffon who lost the Idol of Boreas was one of your order?” Gallus scoffed. “That’s not a big point in your favor.”

“The point is that the balance was maintained by having both,” Gass insisted as he leaned forward on the table, his medals jingling. “The Featherheart Championship used to be a time for when either side could switch to the gender they wanted. A minor tweak to the balance, nothing more. Indeed, it was the day before a Championship when the Arimaspi attacked, as the Idol of Boreas was on display. Back then, the Championship was little more than a fertility festival. Most used it as an incentive to bear chicks.”

“That Idol is gone,” Gallus snapped. “What does this have to do with anything?”

“Before the Idols were found, our population was always in danger of being too male or female dominated. It swung wildly from generation to generation. Patricharists acted when they were too out of balance through the use of zebra medicines, ancient alchemy and more. The discovery of the Idols changed everything… until one was lost. After that, the goal of the Patricharists changed. They were never meant to ensure there was a king on the throne. Their goal was to eventually mount a full expedition to recover the Idol of Boreas and return balance to our people. Giselle has no interest in such an endeavor.”

“That’s because it’s suicide!” Gallus shouted, his wings flaring with anger. “How many griffons have died trying to get that dumb idol back?”

“Too many,” Gass readily admitted as he stood and approached Gallus. At least he had the decency to look sad. “But with the power of the Grand Alliance, we could finally—”

“Just… just stop,” Gallus spat, waving his claws in the air. “I don’t know if you’re spinning this all out to try to convince me to join or walk or whatever. I didn’t fly to Griffonstone from Equestria to get caught up in these squabbles! We’re supposed to be better now!”

Gass grabbed his shoulders and shook him slightly. Gass and Gallus were about the same height, and Gass used this to stare Gallus square in the eye. Moonlight glinted off of his cold gaze.

“Boy, you became the crux of these squabbles the moment you decided to fly here. You’re going to have to choose a side. The Patriarchists intend to reinstate a different form of the Featherheart Championship in about ten years. But now is not the time.” Gass took a deep breath before he plunged on. “The Battle of Unity may have saved the ponies. It did not save the griffons. We still have threats. Rogue dragons. The Arimaspi. The new Storm Prince in the south. We are race of warriors, Mister Gallus. We need warriors to protect our people from these threats. And males are better warriors. They are stronger, faster and have a better mind for combat. The Patriarchists are here to ensure we have a future, no matter what foe comes to strike us down. We need our chicks to grow up male and strong. Otherwise, one day, we will die as a people.”

Gallus waited a full minute to make sure the old griffon had finished speaking before he raised an eyebrow. “You done, now?”

Gass released the younger griffon. “You know the truth now. I simply hope you are wise enough to see reason.”

“I am,” Gallus said. “I’ve made my choice.”

“And am I to know what the choice is?”

“I could make you wait, but why bother?” Gallus smirked at him. “You made a mistake, former Grand Admiral, when you said that males were just better at combat. For years, I’ve studied under the heroes of Equestria, ones who’ve fought the Storm King’s armies, dark changeling invasions, mad unicorns, monsters of shadows and so much more. And you know what? Never once did they ever claim they succeeded because they were mares.”

“You don’t—”

“I’ve fought beside Silverstream, Ocellus, Yona and Smolder. Four females, a hippogriff, a new changeling, a yak and a dragon. They never once lorded over us that they were better because they were female. And Sandbar? He never claimed he was better because he was male.”

“Boy, you need to—”

“Every female I have ever cared about? They never went on and on about how they were better. It was always the males. Makes you think, huh? Makes you realize… maybe one group is compensating for something.”

“Now, see here—”

Gallus shoved himself up into Gass’s face, his eyes slits while his hands were clenched claws on either side of his body.

“And if being male requires you to compensate that much? You know what? I’d be honored to join the female ranks.”

“You can’t be serious!” Gass sputtered.

“I should thank you, Gass,” he spat, refusing to give the old griffon his former title any longer. “You helped me decide just what I’m going to do before the Golden Melee. I doubt you’ll like it.”

“Okay, now you need to sit down and actually listen to me now—”

“No, I’m pretty sure I don’t.”

Gallus waved as Griswald, who dropped down like a stone, landing in a perfect crouch. He stood like an unfolding stone monolith as he loomed over his former teacher.

“Something I can help you with, Mister Gallus?”

“I think it’s time for me to get some rest,” Gallus said, staring at Gass. “Would it be too much trouble to ask you to see Mister Gass out of the coliseum. Since he’s not competing, I don’t think he’s supposed to be here.”

“That won’t be a problem,” Griswald rumbled with a smile. “Come along, Gulhan. You’ve had your say.”

“You’ll regret this, Mister Gallus!” Gass shouted as Griswald began to drag him toward the door on the opposite side of the balcony. “If you go Red or Green, you’ll rip out the very core of our people!”

“Good. Then we’ll get a chance to put something better there,” Gallus huffed as he turned and sauntered back into the bedroom.

He wasn’t fooled for a second by the two ‘sleeping’ girls in the bedroom. He smirked as he removed his pants and flew up above the bed, only to flop back down, bouncing the entire bed in the process.

“Took you long enough,” Smolder muttered. “I was going to go roast him just for being a windbag.”

Gallus snorted, then turned over to look into Gemma’s eyes. They were almost glowing in the moonlight.

“Gemma?”

“Yeah, Gallus?” She said, snuggling close to him after he slipped under the covers.

“Is it worth it?”

Gemma stared up at him and smiled. “I couldn’t be happier.”

Gallus nodded and returned the smile. “That’s all I needed to hear.”

Gemma moved beneath him, then he moved within her. Smolder turned to watch, but for once, was totally silent. Maybe she knew that this was something different. Something special.

When Gemma cried out as Gallus climaxed, they held one another tight. Smolder joined, but only to hold them. Kisses were exchanged all around, and the three fell asleep like that, with Gallus still hard and thick inside of Gemma.

When the sun finally woke them, Gemma greeted Gallus not with ‘good morning,’ but ‘thank you’ as she held her belly.

He kissed her and replied with a thank you of his own.

And all the while, Smolder smiled a very pleased and proud smile.

The Golden Melee

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Gallus stood with his claws behind his back in the balcony of the Royal Box. As Queen Giselle prepared for her speech that would kick off the Golden Melee, he surveyed the scene before him.

The floor of the Featherheart Coliseum had been cleared of the various equipment used to divide the great arena into smaller sections for the events. The only thing left was the one thing that couldn’t be removed: the sapling skytree that dominated the center of the coliseum. Fifteen balconies jutted out over the hard-packed dirt, placed to create a perfect ring around the circumference of the coliseum. On each of these balconies stood a male griffon, tall and proud and fully in the colors of their House or Clan.

Gallus himself wore a padded armor suit in the colors of brown and gold, signifying his new allegiance to the House of the Golden Branch.

The cheering and screaming crowd that filled the stands seemed little more than background noise to him as the sun shone through the branches of the great skytree looking over the city, and the sapling standing over the coliseum.

“Bit for your thoughts?” Gemma asked quietly beside him.

He’d been only a little surprised to find her already in the Royal Box in a Golden Branch Attendant uniform when Smolder and he had arrived about an hour ago.

Gallus’s eyes flicked up to the clock. It was about twenty minutes before noon, Giselle’s speech and the beginning of the Golden Melee.

“I was just wondering if this is the best way,” Gallus said quietly, feeling strangely old. “I helped put the griffons into this Grand Alliance and it grows every year. Did you know Zebrica signed on about a month ago? Between pony magic and zebra alchemy, I can’t help but wonder if… I don’t know… there isn’t a better way to make sure we survive.”

Gemma shrugged but looked a little concerned. “I… I don’t know. The Featherheart Championship has been many things over the centuries. In a hundred years, maybe it’ll be something else.”

“I plan to make it obsolete by the end of my reign,” Queen Giselle said as she stepped onto the balcony, Sky Captain Griswald at her side.

“Your Majesty?” Gallus gaped at her. “Are you serious?”

“Nogriffon knows where the Idols came from, Mister Gallus.” Queen Giselle replied, her eyes scanning the coliseum. “King Grover never was one for good documentation. So, their true origin is a mystery lost to time. And magical mysteries can be dangerous, especially when one is banking the fate of a nation on them.”

“Despite what Gass thinks,” Sky Captain Griswald rumbled. “We take his concerns very seriously. We even agree with them, to a point. But the solution isn’t the recovery of the Idol of Boreas. The Abysmal Abyss has claimed too many.”

Giselle nodded, her gray beak glinting in the sunlight. “It’s finding a better solution entirely. We’re not there yet, though. But my administration will find a way. And unlike King Guto and his line, we are not so prideful that we will refuse outside help.”

“So one day… all of this will be gone?” Gallus asked, gesturing out to the coliseum. He didn’t know how he felt about that.

Giselle laughed lightly and shook her head.

“No. For some, coming to the Featherheart Championship is a sacred rite. For others, it is the culmination of a lifelong dream.” She reached over to squeeze Gemma’s shoulder. “I want this to become a time where griffons come together and become who they want to be. Who they were meant to be.”

With that, Giselle turned to Gallus. Gallus bowed his head, though Giselle reached out to lift it again. Then she put a claw on Gallus’s shoulder and looked him square in the eye.

“I release you of my earlier request,” Giselle said in a voice of utter certainty. “You may remain a member of the House of the Golden Branch, if you so desire. But you have no obligation to it from this day forth. And I will have no objection if choose to start your own House. I can’t think of anygriff with a better claim.”

Gallus stared at her, his beak hanging open. “You’re… you’re serious?”

“Griswald told me what transpired last night,” Giselle said. “Between you and me, he seems rather protective over you.”

“I am right here,” Griswald said. He almost sounded embarrassed.

“And it’s hard for it to be ‘between you and her’ when Gemma and I are here, too,” Smolder pointed out, still leaning out over the balcony and amusing herself with little bolts of flame. She’d been oddly quiet this morning.

Gallus just stared at Giselle. He didn’t dare look at Griswald. “I… um…”

“I have not forced you, but I have put you in a difficult situation,” Giselle continued, her wings twitching slightly. “And I am not some manipulative king of ages past. I aim to be a better kind of leader for our people. So, I release you.”

Even though the shouts of the crowd were loud, silence seemed to fill Gallus’s world.

Like last night, every word spoken to him since he’d arrived in Griffonstone seemed to flood back to him. Gemma’s passion, wishing she’d become a Green before the first round. Giselle’s easy admittance that she’d become a Green for the betterment of her House, becoming a matriarch in the process. Gigi transforming before his eyes, practically crying in joy and pleasure as he took her. Gerie’s pleading for him to claim her as a prize after defeating the male version of her. Even Gass’s rants from last night.

Then, out of nowhere, Smolder stepped up beside Gallus and actually kissed him on the cheek. His claw flew to the spot and he stared at her.

“Smolder, by the Nest, what was that for?”

Smolder’s eyes danced.

“After the Tree of Harmony tested us, Ocellus told me that she’d always suspected I wasn’t as hard on the inside as I pretended to be,” Smolder said, smiling a very honest and very un-Smolder-like smile. “She knew what was inside of me. At least, she guessed. I’ve pretty much known how this was going to turn out since the first night.”

“It’s not… weird?”

“Everything you griffons do is weird,” Smolder replied, her regular smirk returning with a shrug. “But that doesn’t make it wrong.”

Gallus couldn’t help but grin back at her.

As if realizing what was happening without Gallus saying a word, Gemma leapt into the air and plowed into him with a hug.

“I’d like you no matter what you look like,” she gushed.

“Why does everyone suddenly realize what’s about to happen?!” Gallus shouted, thought there was a hint of laughter to his cry. “Come on!”

“As your Princess Twilight would say,” Giselle commented. “‘Because they’re your friends.’”

“And that sounds like something Princess Celestia would say.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Gallus turned to the most silent member of their little group, wondering what he might say or do. But one question had to be answered first.

“You were a Gold, weren’t you?” he asked, point-blank.

Griswald’s wings shifted uncomfortably. “Not… by choice.”

That hadn’t been the answer Gallus had expected.

“When it was Giselle and my turn to enter the Featherheart Championship,” Griswald continued shuffling slightly, as if uncomfortable with his words, “our homeland was under threat by a band of rogue dragons called the Blacktalons.”

Smolder let out a growl of annoyance. “Pirates and cowards. Dragon Lord Ember’s been trying to hunt down the whole clutch down for years now.”

Griswald nodded. “Our family… they were Patriarchists. They were willing to give up one of our kind, but not both. Our Matriarch ordered me to win the Championship by any means necessary, as my skills in combat—which were already formidable—would be needed to fight the Blacktalons.”

“It was a long time ago, Griswald,” Giselle said, sounding pained. “You can’t—”

“I did things during that Championship,” Griswald said, running right over his sister. The honorable soldier looked smaller with every word. “Seduced, tricked, betrayed and sabotaged. All for the good of the House of the Golden Branch. All to be made Alpha. All to follow orders.”

His head hung in shame.

Giselle looked between Gallus and Griswald before sighing. “Our Matriarch died of natural causes before we returned. Griswald already had sired several chicks, but he couldn’t bear to stay in the home of the Alpha. He found good homes for each of his chicks and returned to his House.”

“After the Matriarch died, her views on how our House should be run died,” Griswald growled. “I had not been the only one who believed we were being fools. And I swore I would keep my family and the griffons safe from that day on. Especially from zealots who force their beliefs on others.”

“You tried to make up for your mistake,” Gallus whispered. “And what would you have done if you had had a choice?”

Giselle stepped over to wrap a wing around Griswald’s broad back. She was just tall enough to pull it off. He let her and patted her on the side before turning back to Gallus.

“I would have gone for the position of Alpha, but done it with honor,” Griswald said, standing tall again. “If I lost, I would have gone to the Red Chambers willingly. I would have accepted my place as a proper contender within the Championship.”

“I was just teasing you earlier, Gallus,” Giselle said, for the first time, dropping the ‘Mister’ before his name. “I know full well why Griswald is single.”

“I can’t bear the shame of having chicks after what I did to win in my Featherheart Championship.”

The way he admitted that so blatantly took his breath away. And it gave him the strength to ask another question.

“And if you were me?” Gallus asked, realizing he needed the opinion of the only trustworthy male he’d met since he’d come here. “What would you do?”

This time, the handsome griffon smiled while Giselle retracted her wing.

“I would choose what makes you happy.”

Gallus nodded slowly and smiled in return. “Thanks.”

“Anytime.”

Since he woke up this morning, after pondering matters during every free second the last few days, there had been something in the back of his mind. Like a quiet, warm wind tickling his feathers.

He’d known what it was almost instantly. Still, he’d ignored it, because a few final questions had to be answered. And now that he had his answers, there seemed only one thing to do.

Smolder and Gemma stood on his right. Griswald and Giselle stood on his left. For a moment, he wished he had the rest of his friends here and now. He wished Sandbar was here, especially.

His claws wrapped around the railing overlooking the coliseum and he took a long, deep breath. No one on the balcony said a word, as if they sensed what was about to happen.

Then, the words were clear in his mind, as if somegriff had just whispered them into his ear. He looked down at the floor of the coliseum and he could actually see the Idol of Aventa through the earth, glowing softly in the reflected sunlight.

And in a moment, that was where he was, transported from his place on the balcony to the Idol Chamber.

Before his eyes, the Idol itself was replaced by the figure of a beautiful griffoness with a glowing gold and iridescent white coat. She had plumage of the purest silver. She smiled warmly at him. Gallus had never known his mother, but this being felt like what he thought mothers should be like.

“You are unique among those who seek my blessing, my child,” the Avatar of Aventa whispered as she stepped forward and stroked his feathery cheek. “You have known the blessing of Harmony. You have become champion to your people. You have learned to care about those around you in a way so few griffons understand. And yet, your passion and strength are undeniable.”

“Is this… really the right path for me?” Gallus asked in a quiet, reverent tone. “I… I have some doubts.”

“That means you are more ready than you know. Throughout this Championship, I have seen the conception of many chicks. I had seen the wild passions and lustful needs of many griffonesses. And I celebrate every moment of that. But I have sought something else. What you call the Battle for Unity changed the shape of the world and the shape of your people. I would like to walk among them once more, as I once did, long, long ago.”

“I don’t understand,” Gallus whispered, flustered and flummoxed in equal measure.

The Avatar reached out and placed her claw on his chest. “I offer you not only the blessing you seek, but a boon, young Gallus. The Boon of Aventa. My power will reshape you, not only into the form you desire, but a form strong enough to house my essence. I offer to help you guide your people as Prime Featherheart. Your Queen shall need all the allies she can get if she is to truly change Griffonstone, the Clans and the Houses.”

“And… you want to ally with her? Through… through me?”

The Avatar nodded, leaning forward to kiss him on the cheek, which left a warm spot long after her beak had left him.

“It is but an offer. I can still give you the Touch of Aventa, if that is your desire. But the Boon is much more. You will remain in control. You will remain you, though it will be you as a griffoness. You will simply have my aid at any time. And I will grant you something no griffon has had in nearly two thousand years. My name.”

“I… I wasn’t ready for this,” Gallus squeaked. “I’m not ready at all.”

“We never are ready for such things.”

Gallus finally looked up into the golden orbs that were her eyes. “Who are you? What are you?”

The Avatar of Aventa laughed in delight, a sound like bells on a warm spring day.

“I am no griffon, young one. I am something else. Something from before. And something from after. Words cannot convey the rest. But with my lover sleeping in what you call the Abysmal Abyss, I think it is time to enjoy the world once more, if you’ll let me.”

Gallus had a million questions. And yet, he had one answer. He wasn’t entirely sure why it was his answer, but he knew this was important. Not just to him, but to all griffons. He was doing it for them.

He was also doing it for himself.

“Yes.”

“Then speak the words, young one. You already know them.”

Then, Gallus was once more on the balcony. It seemed as if less than a second had passed. He closed his eyes, stood up straight and whispered the words that every Green instinctually knew when it was their time.

With a few modifications, of course.

“Aventa, grant me your Boon. I welcome your Blessing, your Touch and your Help. Let it reshape me so I may serve my people. Let it reshape me into who and what I wish to be. Thank you.”

A beam of pure golden light suddenly exploded from the balcony beneath Gallus’s paws. Everyone else on the balcony staggered backward, then took to the air just as Gallus was swept up into the light. He let it wash over his body, slipping under his uniform and caressing both coat and feathers. He let out a soft cry as he began to spin in midair, his wings unfurling to their full length. In moments, he was glowing from the inside out.

Then, as if he were watching from outside—perhaps from some strange force the didn’t fully understand—he could see the stares and dropped beaks of the entire coliseum. Gemma’s eyes were full of tears of joy. Smolder even looked like she might cry. Giselle smiled like the mother of a chick who had just flown for the first time. Griswald looked so proud he might burst.

And then, he was brought back into himself as the light flowing over his body began to flow into his body.

“It is time,” the Avatar of Aventa—or maybe just Aventa herself—whispered in Gallus’s mind.

Gallus nodded and surrendered to the light.

It began with his claws. Gallus had always had large claws, but no longer. They slimmed down, losing none of their strength, but now presenting an air of grace. His arms were next, his muscles changing from bulky to lean. His somewhat broad shoulders shrank next, becoming petite and feminine. Then his torso, slimming down a little, though he felt something shift and he knew he was somehow softer. He thought it a little odd that the light hadn’t granted him the most obvious of female attributes, but that thought was banished when the light flowed into his waist. While his stomach went in, his hips went out, quickly growing to an impressive span only to develop thick thighs to go with his new hips. Again, the most obvious change was skipped, only for the light to slowly sculpt his legs. They grew smooth, the fur finer and more delicate. Even his paws were changed into something almost dainty.

The light paused for a moment as he continued to spin in place. Then, it surged back into motion, sweeping over his head in one great surge. His feathers grew a little, the yellow highlights stretching back farther along his fringe. His skull and face reshaped, becoming more shapely and beautiful. He had to screw his eyes shut as a brief bolt of pain blasted through him as the transformation of his face was complete with the changing of his beak.

By now, the constant changes had made him rock hard, and his cock was making a massive tent in his uniform. He knew he was on display for the entire coliseum, but couldn’t find it in himself to care. This felt too right to worry about such silly things as embarrassment.

He had another moment to breathe before the light filled him again. This time, he let out a coo of pleasure of his rear began to bubble outward. He wanted to grab it, but he was locked in the light’s embrace. Still, the light seemed to understand his needs and somehow ran bands of solid color along his growing ass as the light moved into his tail, stretching it and growing his tuft at the end. His new tail thrashed wildly as he tried to contain the mounting pleasure.

Moments later, the light filled his wings, reshaping them gently into a softer, more feminine appearance with longer feathers and a slightly smaller wingspan.

“Do you wish to be granted the passion of your peers, young one?” the Avatar’s voice whispered in his head. “I can make you skilled in the art of feminine sexuality.”

Gallus could only nod as he realized he would very soon no longer be Gallus. This thought strangely excited him. He gasped as the light flowed into his chest.

“We will feed so many…” the Avatar whispered.

Then, Gallus’s breasts began to come in. The sensation of the fabric against his growing chest was almost too much to bear. His eyes flew wide as his new tits swelled against the uniform. Everything was so sensitive! He couldn’t… couldn’t take… take…

Then, a familiar long tongue was wrapped around his cock. He managed to look down to see that Smolder had unzipped him and was now eagerly bobbing on his cock. In moments, Gemma had been overcome by lust and quickly flew up to begin licking him too.

“You have passionate mates,” the Avatar said. “I believe they are deserving of their own blessing…”

To Gallus’s shock, Smolder’s tits and hips suddenly swelled. This seemed to drive the dragon wild as her blowjob became even more frantic. Gemma all but burst out of her clothes at her new size. Soon, the two girls were making out fiercely over his cock. That, and the sensation of his uniform finally bursting at the seams like a party cannon of fabric, was enough to drive him over the edge for one of the last times as a male.

Both girls eagerly drank from him before collapsing to the ground in a handsy, needy pile of limbs and passion. Their attention now focused on each other, Gallus managed to stretch his claws out to grab his new chest as the rest of his padded armor fell to the balcony in tatters. He immediately let out a moan of satisfaction. They were huge. Easily as big as any griffoness he’d ever seen. Probably even bigger than Professor Fluttershy or even Professor Pinkie Pie’s!

“Are you ready to leave your old self behind?” the Avatar asked. “Ready to accept the full Boon of Aventa?”

Gallus didn’t hesitate, though he couldn’t be sure if that was because of lust or belief.

“Yes.”

Hands of light wrapped around his cock, which grew to an impressive size for a moment before letting out a last burst onto the still-entangled girls beneath him. Then, they began to gently fold his thickness back inside of him. His balls were slipped up inside of his body, remade into the fundamental female parts he knew he would be using all too soon.

His cock shrank, inch-by-inch, until his body reacted in a final shuddering orgasm that released nothing. And then…

He felt a glowing presence fill his body and his mind as he…no, as she was reshaped into a vessel worthy of hosting something akin to a Goddess. Her pussy now complete, the griffoness had her first orgasm right there floating in a beam of golden light above the balcony. She felt arms wrap around her spirit from the inside, guiding her into her new home within herself. She eagerly flew into the embrace.

“Speak your new name, my love,” said the sweeter part of her soul.

“Gaventa,” she whispered.

Then, she was reformed in light, her colors of blue, yellow and white replaced with divine silver, gold and white. She cried out, feeling the final changes wash over her as her mind was adjusted into her new form. She welcomed the changes, eager to have Aventa’s perspective and passion.

Then, she absorbed the light flowing around her. In less than a minute, the light show was over, save for the faintly glowing griffoness that had been its center.

Gaventa slowly fell toward the ground. With Gemma and Smolder now locked in a fierce licking war, Griswald stepped forward and caught her.

As Gaventa settled into Griswald’s strong arms, she snuggled against him, happy to finally let her feminine side out for the first time in the arms of the most honorable male in Griffonstone. Her eyes fluttered open as she looked up at him. She could see her own eyes were glowing gold in the reflection of his gaze.

“You…” she said in her new breathy voice. “You said you weren’t worthy to sire chicks.”

“Y-yes…” Griswald said, apparently at a loss for words at the sight of the faintly glowing naked griffoness in his arms.

Gaventa didn’t blame him. It wasn’t something that happened every day.

She ran a finger along his chest. “You are the best male I’ve met here. You’ve protected me. You’ve trusted me. And you truly want what’s best for all griffons.”

“I… I don’t know what to say,” Griswald stammered. He looked completely out of his element.

Meanwhile, Giselle giggled off to the side.

“I want nothing more than to lay beneath you as you make me a true griffoness… and your mate.” Gaventa said, both parts of her in full agreement. “If you’ll have me.”

“I… I…” For the first time, he looked more than a little panicked.

Giselle pushed him lightly. “It’s rude to keep a lady waiting.”

Gaventa giggled, then leaned up to whisper in Griswald’s ear. “I am Gallus as a griffoness with the love of Aventa… and both of us crave your seed. Please? Mount me and make me a good breeder? I want to have your chicks, more than anything.”

Then, she swept around and kissed him. He froze for a moment, then took charge of the kiss, just like she wanted.

Everything she had said was completely true. While the piece of her that was Aventa—once one of the great fertility goddesses of the East—had plunged their body into her deliciously needy heat, they both really did want this male. Gaventa—the piece of her that had been Gallus—had repressed her desire for him. But when one had become the living spirit of griffon passion… it was impossible to repress such things anymore.

“Go on, you two,” Giselle said with a smirk as they broke apart. “I already set aside the Northern Green Chamber for today. No sense in letting it go to waste.”

Gaventa giggled as Giselle lightly kicked Gemma and Smolder out of their passion—though both still had their new and improved bodies. “Go make sure those two make it upstairs and don’t end up rutting on some carpet somewhere.”

With that, Griswald took to the air and quickly flew out of the room as Giselle stepped forward to begin her speech to begin the Golden Melee.

Gaventa smiled. She was still who she had been, but a better version of herself. There were parts of her—the parts that had always craved: family, love and passion—that she could finally embrace. As Gemma and Smolder flew behind Griswald—Gaventa still safe in his arms—she could feel another competitor bow before the final Melee even started. The words slipped out of her and she could feel the griffon join the ranks of those that would ensure the future of the griffon people.

Just as she would soon.

It had been centuries since Aventa had enjoyed the carnal pleasures of creating the next generation. And Gaventa found herself thinking of all the stories and tales.

Both couldn’t wait to see what Griswald did to them.

And both suspected they would not be disappointed in the slightest.

Ecstasy of a Goddess

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When Gaventa first laid eyes on the place where the Greens were taken, she couldn’t believe it. While the Red Chambers had been lush, this was something more opulent than anything she’d ever seen in her life. The walls were done up in golden reliefs showing all manner of griffons in positions of passion and need, each of them celebrating the key part of a griffoness’s place in the endless circle of life.

The rugs were all emerald green and so thick their paws didn’t make a sound as they walked around the gently turning corridor. There were gorgeous life-sized statues in bronze, silver and copper here, along with fresh flowers set into cubbies in the wall.

And yet all of this was like background noise as Gaventa’s eyes returned to her new lover. Her arms remained wrapped around him as his strong arms held her without any apparent effort. Behind them, she caught a glimpse of Gemma and Smolder sauntering behind them, both still very naked, and both still occasionally copping a feel of the other. Gaventa giggled under her breath and idly wondered if there had even been a griffon/dragon hybrid. Granted, there would need to be some magic to add a male part in. Still, there probably had never been such a thing, if there was, they’d probably be cute.

Gaventa shook her head, startled and she realized just how much her thoughts had changed. The stand-offishness of Gallus had melted into Aventa’s all-encompassing love. She was still in control, but Gallus as a griffoness saw the world very differently than Gallus the male. And all of that with Aventa within her as well? In fact, it was a little hard to figure out where one of them ended and the other began. It probably didn’t matter anymore, though. It’s not like she ever wanted to go back to being just Gallus…

“Here we are,” Griswald announced as we arrived at a massive double-door in ornately carved wood, showing a stylized depiction of the Aventa herself. He looked down at Gaventa. Gaventa looked up at him. And to Gaventa’s pleasure and amusement, he blushed and turned to look at their attendants.

To no one’s surprise, they hadn’t been paying any attention to Griswald and Gaventa. They’d been too busy getting one another riled up. Griswald coughed loudly to get their attention, then pointed to a door on the far side of the large hallway.

“In there is one of the Aide’s Chambers. You two are more than welcome to enjoy yourselves in there.”

“Thanks!” Smolder shouted, then yanked the giggling Gemma toward the door.

“Try not to break the bed,” Griswald called after them.

They ignored him.

Gaventa wondered if the magic she’d bestowed on them had been a bit too strong. But by the time that thought had crossed through her head, they were already gone with the door shut behind them. Griswald exchanged looks with Gaventa.

“They were just to ensure we didn’t start rutting in the hallway.”

He let out a guffaw, then used his wings to open the doors to their new suite. Only after carrying her over the threshold—just like that ancient wedding custom—did he put her down and let her see the place she would call home for a time.

While there was an enormous bed draped in green silks, stands of chilled fruits and wines, and more beautiful reliefs—not to mention a mirrored ceiling above the bed and an open shower in a corner, one thing above all grabbed her attention.

The floor.

Beneath their paws was a pure emerald crystal, translucent enough so that they could both see the Golden Melee beneath them as it finally began.

“Oh my…” Gaventa whispered, awestruck by the opulence. “And all Greens get this privilege?”

“Only those who last until the Golden Melee get to see the Melee itself, but yes,” Griswald said as he closed and locked the door behind him.

Even now, Gaventa could see the competitors rush out in a desperate bid to claim the title of Alpha and the color of Gold. However, before she could see what happened next, she felt the strength of the male behind her take position.

“I admit I’m still surprised you wanted me of all griffons…” Griswald said as Gaventa used her wings to float up to a standing position. “I am but a humble soldier.”

“You are a decorated officer, you’ve protected me since I came here, and more than anything, you’re a good griffon,” Gaventa replied plainly as she began to undo his breastplate and his jerkin. “As I said, you claim you were not worthy to sire chicks for what you did when you were a Featherheart. I am Prime Featherheart, Griswald. The living spirit of it.”

His breastplate clanked to the floor. His jerkin followed moments later, revealing a thick, muscled chest interlaced with small scars and big scars.

“And?” Griswald asked, his voice thick.

“The living avatar of the Featherheart Champion is not just asking you to sire chicks. She’s asking you to sire her chicks,” Gaventa smiled as she began to unbutton his pants. “Just below this place is my Idol. Would you deny her in her place of power?”

He looked down at her, his eyes wide as his trousers fell to the ground, leaving him only in his undershorts.

“You really are her, aren’t you? Her and Gallus?”

“Gallus is the stronger, but I am the blended form of both,” she sighed as she rubbed his strong hips, as she knelt before her new lover. “We have merged willingly and perfectly. It’s what we both wanted. And what I want… is you. Gallus had quite the hard-on for you, though he’d never admit it. And Aventa honors those who try and be just.”

She began to play with the edge of his undershorts, licking her beak.

“Are… you sure?” Griswald asked.

Gaventa now held the innate magic of the ancient fertility goddess. She could drive Griswald into a rut that would keep her screaming for hours. Instead, she reached out and felt his worry, his concern that he still wasn’t good enough. He needed confidence. And most males found confidence in the need of their mates.

“Griswald, I am sure. And as of now, I submit to you for a time. My new body craves seed. Please… do not leave me waiting. I have been in control for so long. Please, be in control for me?” she whispered.

Just then, below them, a contender became a Red. She could feel him succumb. And, to her surprise, the new Red spoke the words almost immediately. Even though her conquerer still stood above her. Gaventa could feel the new griffoness’s body reshape, her breasts swell, her body reform, her face reshape, a pussy replace the cock that had been there. Overwhelmed by the transformation, the new griffoness looked over her shoulder at the griffon who had defeated her, lifted her ass and begged. They were mating moments later, the griffon ramming his cock into the new female’s sex.

Gaventa felt every pulse of that cock like it was inside of her. She shuddered in delight as the personality of the new Red settled into an eager, submissive breeder, just as her mother had been, and her mother before that.

“What’s wrong?” Griswald asked

“I… can feel when a griffon changes below…” Gaventa whispered. “It’s… overwhelming… leaking…”

Gaventa moaned as she suddenly grabbed her chest, her eyes wide as they grew a cup size for her mate.

At that point, she could take no more. She yanked down his undershorts and revealed the thick red cock beneath. She let out a happy coo. Then, she leaned forward and enveloped him in her tits. He instantly let out a cry of pleasure that swept through Gaventa’s mind and into her sex.

The smell of his fur and feathers roiled her blood and made her craving almost impossible to ignore. Finally, she positioned herself in the right place to taste the thick red cock on her tongue. Aventa being a goddess of fertility, she knew plenty about the giving and receiving of pleasure. And there was nogriff better at a griffon blowjob.

“Oh my… by the Nest…” he moaned as his hands went to her head. “You’re… you’re…”

“I know,” Gaventa cooed glibly as the cock slipped away from her and into her tits again. She enjoyed the sensation of it sliding over her fur for a few more strokes before she leaned down again to flick the head of the cock with her tongue.

Then she swallowed him once more and let out a happy hum, exploring every part of that cock with her talented tongue. Gaventa found herself impressed at just how long the male lasted. Though he didn’t last much longer.

With a great shout, he grabbed her head and shoved his cock deep within her beak, only then releasing his load down her throat. She squealed and hummed in delight, tasting only bits of the cum as most of it skipped her tongue entirely. Instead, she just focused on swallowing as much as possible, grabbing his hips and enjoying the sensation of everything.

It had been such a long time for both Gallus and Aventa. To finally have that need quenched was deliriously wonderful.

Eventually, Griswald slipped his still-hard cock from her beak, then staggered backward, just barely avoiding falling over. He stared at Gaventa in astonishment. Gaventa just smiled, flapped her wings to take to the air, then soared over to the bed. She settled down like a butterfly and crossed her legs teasingly, smiling at her impressive lover.

“Enjoy yourself?” she giggled, watching the faint bobbing of his cock as he stood there on the crystal floor over the Golden Melee.

“How… I knew that Featherhearts were granted some skills when they changed, but I’d never heard about anything like that…” Griswald panted as he finally got his paws under him properly and stalked forward.

“Silly, Grizzy,” Gaventa giggled. “You keep forgetting just who I am now.”

“I… am I really about to breed a goddess?” Griswald asked. He was less than a foot away now and Gaventa trembled when she caught a whiff of his so-very-masculine scent.

“No, silly!” Gaventa said as she unfolded her legs and spread them, revealing her glistening sex for him. “You’re about to breed the avatar of a goddess and the first griffon war hero in years.”

“Oh, that makes all the difference,” he growled as something lit up in his eyes, a fire that she couldn’t help but fan.

With her wings, she managed to scoot herself back in the center of the bed. She still sat up, naked, letting him drink in the sight of her. She could feel just how excited he was. Not just because of what was about to happen, but because Gaventa was a griffoness who knew his past and still desperately wanted him.

Acceptance was a potent aphrodisiac. Griswald seemed to think so.

He leapt into the air and glided the few feet that separated them. Then, he floated above her as she stretched out for him, luxuriating in the feel of her breasts in the air, her ass and hips against the silken sheets.

And just then, she felt a bond as a griffon in the Melee below became a full Green in surge of nearly mindless pleasure. And then, the new female named Geya, had another competitor atop her. Geya kissed him hard, their beaks all but clacking together as they rolled in the dirt beneath one of the roots of the skytree, ending up with her on top. She flared her wings, throwing off the dirt and dust, then hopped a very calculated way to impale herself directly onto her new lover’s cock.

Gaventa came with the new Green just as Griswald descended on her with a smile.

He positioned himself over her, on his hands and knees, and grinned as her flushing, whimpering face.

“You’re connected with them, aren’t you?”

Gaventa nodded, biting the bottom of her beak.

“Every one of them?”

She nodded again, moaning as Geya’s pussy was pounded by that thick demanding cock.

“It must be overwhelming at times.”

She nodded a third and final time just as Geya had her second female orgasm.

That’s when she felt her own lover’s cock parted her lower lips, coating the cock with her sweet-smelling juices. She let out an animalistic cry as she looked up at him, now so much closer, so much tighter. She trembled beneath him… then spread her legs as far as they could go.

Their eyes met and he obviously saw something there, because he didn’t ask any more questions. He didn’t hesitate. He simply began to drive his own thick cock into her. Every inch that filled her felt like a mind-shattering orgasm in miniature. She squeezed down on the shaft, mewling as her claws wrapped around his shoulders. Again, their eyes met and she was sure the lust that burned in his eyes matched her own.

She spread her wings against the silky fabric as Griswald adjusted his position, then with one suddenly surge, he rammed his cock home inside of her, hilting her so fully she could feel his balls resting against her entrance. She couldn’t help but scream his name and he smiled down at her before kissing her hard.

As they kissed, Gaventa reached out to her beloved new Reds and Greens, the ones who had become members of her flock in this last competition. She allowed her lust to overflow into them and in so doing, their thoughts and experiences came back into her. She could feel their eagerness to be bred and while some had decided to be aggressive about it, most were very eager submissives.

When Aventa had dwelled in the idol, she had been separated from such physical concerns. No longer. Instead, now she conformed to the needs and desires of her flock.

As for the part of them that had been just Gallus, Gallus had been used to being both dominant and submissive, though he usually played the dominant one in their playtimes with his fellow former students. However, he’d secretly loved any time he was with Yona or Smolder, because they tended to dominate him.

The result was the same. And when she next opened her eyes and met the gaze of her mate, she felt such a strong feeling of submissiveness that she came again.

“My Alpha,” she whispered, her voice laced with so much need and lust, he didn’t pull back. He did hesitate briefly, though.

“Y-yes?”

“May I bless you into an even stronger specimen of griffon masculinity, as I changed Gemma and Smolder into their more feminine selves?”

He hesitated again, only to have her buck her sweat-coated hips against him. Her tail wrapped around his leg. Her eyes begged for more.

“I… suppose…”

Gaventa squealed in glee and yanked him down for a kiss. And through that kiss, she blessed her mate, knowing that they were always meant for one another.

Griswald grunted as he yanked back and his pace sped up. Gaventa watched with lusty eyes as the handsome griffon filled out even more, becoming even more perfect. His wings spread and stretched slightly, becoming as strong as any dragon’s. She clutched his ass as it grew a little, encouraging a squeeze from her. His heavier legs assisted in pounding the cock into her.

Then he let out a howl as his cock thickened even more.

“Gaventa…” he groaned in surprise while she felt that cock grow to fill her pussy perfectly, every ridge, bump and vein now perfectly matched to her inner walls.

He even grew a knot at the base of the cock, to ensure breeding was always successful. She couldn’t wait to start bearing this griffon’s chicks. She whimpered as he grasped her and began to use her as little more than a sex toy, much to her delight. Soon, she would constantly be filled with young for the griffon people.

“I’m… I’m gonna cum…” he said, obviously overwhelmed by the new changes.

“Yes!” Gaventa cried, begging for it. “Fill me with your seed! Make me your eager breeding slut! Sire our chicks and become father to an entire new line!”

That was apparently what he needed to hear because he suddenly hilted so hard, the knot popped into her pussy and began to swell. Gaventa cried out, feeling herself stretched wonderfully as blast after blast of chick-making cum poured into her fertile womb. Her brain, overwhelmed by pleasure, reconnected with her flock, only for each of them to go into a raging heat they could not deny. Any who hadn’t already been knocked up would be, within minutes.

She kissed her Alpha and lover hard as they melded together, becoming one creature for a time as they joined for both pleasure and the need to serve the griffon people.

Then, time slipped away.

Gaventa felt every time a griffon below them became a Red or a Green as she came with them. About an hour after the Gold Alpha had been crowned, Gaventa slipped off her mate’s cock and sucked him back to being awake. Though he was a little confused, Gaventa lifting her tail as she knelt on all fours didn’t require much translation.

That’s how it went for three days. Food and drink were ordered when necessary, but they only had their attention long enough to refuel their bodies between lovemaking sessions.

While the city celebrated the new Reds and Greens, not to mention their new Gold Alpha, the two lovers were ignorant of everything save for one another.

By the end of the first night, Gaventa had proudly banished all thoughts of Griswald’s unworthiness from the griffon’s mind. And Griswald had introduced her to many new positions she had little experience in.

It was on the third evening, as Griswald had his dinner and Gaventa had sucked his cock, that the letter had slipped under their door, asking them to be present for the final ceremony of the Featherheart Championship.

That night, they went after one another with a wild, almost feral abandon. And only as the first rays of dawn did Gaventa show just how much she appreciated her new lover.

“Thank you, Griswald, my champion and my Alpha,” she whispered, cupping his face as they were again teasing one another.

“And thank you, Gaventa, my passion and my liberator,” he answered, then kissed her.

Gaventa smiled and cooed as he mounted her. Yes, she could—and had—shown herself capable of being the dominant one, but she so did enjoy being the submissive lover.

There was nothing quite like being taken by the one who had claimed one’s heart.

Home Yet Again

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“I take it back. Nothing lame about griffons at all!” Smolder said as she ran her hands along her new curves for the thousandth time. Her tight plunging v-neck t-shirt hugged against her form so tightly that Gaventa could see her thick nipples. Just like the jeans that were now painted onto her legs, hips and ass, she’d had to have them custom-ordered before they left Griffonstone.

“Told you,” Gaventa laughed. “Not so hopeless after all, huh?”

Gemma leaned against Smolder and nibbled at one of Smolder’s weak spots where her neck met her chin. Smolder shuddered in pleasure, instantly turned into a lightly panting mess.

“Nope… not at all.”

Smolder grabbed the suddenly squealing Gemma, planted her pregnant griffon ass on Smolder’s legs, then began to fiercely make out with her.

“Good thing we got a private car,” Gaventa muttered, blushing. It was a little weird. Before now, that scene would have made her want to get involved. But now, she was more than happy just to watch. Then again, that might be because of the small bowling ball she seemed to be smuggling under her shirt.

“Oh, my love?” Griswald whispered as he gently lifted her off her seat, then put her back down on his lap. She could already feel him starting to harden beneath her. “Why’s that? Don’t want anyone to see this?”

“Grizzy!” Gaventa cried, trying to bat away her mate while grinding her hips down. “You… really shouldn’t… we’re almost there…”

“Sorry, something about a pregnant griffon that tends to get me going…”

“You’re not sorry at all!”

“No, I’m not. And you don’t mind.”

She couldn’t deny that. Less than a minute later, her leggings and panties were around her knees, he was fully unzipped and she was impaled for the fifth time this morning. She cried out as his strong hands moved her up and down his massive shaft. A shaft that she’d spent two months falling in love with.

She’d never expected that having to leave Griffonstone would be hard, but Queen Giselle had asked them to return and act as ambassadors to Equestria. They couldn’t exactly say no, even if Gemma and Gaventa were getting along in their pregnancies. Aventa had taken credit for the speed of the development. She’d gotten a little out of claw during their time in the Northern Green Chamber, throwing around a few too many blessings, it seemed. Aventa had to remain bonded to her Idol, so with the Featherheart Championship over and them so far from Griffonstone, the Gaventa and Aventa were no longer quite as bonded. Though Aventa could still feel everything, so she didn’t mind.

And with the Sky Captain now properly mated to the living Avatar of Aventa, it only made sense that he would remain by her side as she continued her studies at the School of Friendship. While most chicks born of the Featherheart Championship were given to the Conclave of Education, there were plenty of parents who decided to keep them. Gaventa and Griswald had decided to be among them. Oddly enough, Smolder and Gemma had decided to keep theirs, too.

However, Gaventa and Smolder had asked their new mates for one concession. It had been… unusual, but they had agreed.

Griswald worked three more orgasms out of Gaventa’s overly-sensitive body before they pulled into the train station, while Smolder and Gemma had given one another only two each. It was only as the brakes were screeching that they managed to get their clothes back on and collect their things. By then, Gaventa’s colors—what Smolder loved to call her Golden Sex Idol form—had returned to their normal yellow, blue and white.

They managed two steps out of the train before they were suddenly under assault.

All of their professors had come out to see the new Gaventa, her round belly and her new mate, not to mention Smolder and her new griffon mate. Spike, in particular, seemed to get a kick out of Smolder’s embarrassment over Gemma. Massives hugs were given all around and while everypony made plans for dinner, Gaventa’s eyes landed on Sandbar. The cute earth pony stood a little way off to the side, looking confused and maybe a little hurt.

Gaventa squeezed Griswald’s hand. Her mate understood immediately and let her go.

“Sandbar?” Gaventa said cautiously. “You okay, slacker?”

Sandbar folded his arms, shooting her a glare. “I don’t know how I feel about you calling me that anymore. That was Gallus’s thing.”

“I’m still Gallus,” Gaventa said. “More or less.”

“Less, for the most part,” he said. “We were close. I don’t know you.”

Gaventa took Sandbar’s hand and placed it on her belly. Just then, the two griffon chicks inside of her decided to kick. He jumped, then a dumb, goofy smile played out over his lips.

“Then I’d like to get reacquainted,” Gaventa purred. “And I’ve been talking to Griswald about you. To my surprise, he’s completely bi. Just like us. You’d like him. A lot.”

Sandbar studied Gaventa’s eyes carefully. “I guess it really is you, isn’t it?”

“More or less,” Gaventa replied. “Come on, we’re going to all have dinner together while you all pump us for information.”

“And then?”

Gaventa stepped forward, just enough to press her bump against Sandbar, stroke him softly with a claw and whisper in his ear. “Then, we all go back to the Treehouse and get to know the new us all over again. I, for one, can’t wait to feel that cock of your in my pussy instead of my ass. And who knows? Maybe Griswald’s cock might end up available to claim you…”

Sandbar went crimson, but Gaventa could tell she’d gotten him.

“That… okay, maybe!”

“Great!”

“Now, which one is Griswald again?” Sandbar asked.

Gaventa pointed him out and Sandbar swallowed audibly.

“Okay, yeah, he can bend me over a table any day.”

“I know exactly what you mean.”

As they began to walk back toward the group, Dean Starlight Glimmer jogged up to the two of them, panting a little. “Sorry I’m late!”

“Don’t worry, you didn’t miss anything!” Gaventa replied.

Her eyes focused on the griffoness’s belly. “I’m not so sure about that.”

Gaventa laughed. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay.”

“So, accepting that invitation turned out to be a good thing?” Starlight asked nervously. “When I got your first letter saying what had happened, I was more than a little nervous. After all, I did sort of push you to go…”

Gaventa glanced over at her friends and lovers, then leaned over and gave Starlight a kiss on the cheek. She slapped a hand to the spot and stared at her.

“You made sure I was exactly where I needed to be,” Gaventa replied, placing a claw on her belly as her chicks kicked again. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

She smiled and nodded. And then, the two of them joined the rest of the celebrating friends. Gaventa rubbed her life-filled belly and watched as Griswald became totally overwhelmed by pony hospitality. She giggled. The Great Alliance might be all about treaties and politics. And Griffonstone might have a long way to go to become a place where anygriff could be happy. But right now, seeing ponies, griffons, a yak, a changeling, dragons, hippogriffs all together laughing and joking…

This was the life she had. And this was the life her chicks would be born into.

Gaventa smiled and whispered it again to herself.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”