Chapter 25 – A Day with Gilda

“Come on, Ford! Can’t I just stretch my wings for just a little bit?” Rainbow Dash whines out loud.

“Sorry, Dashie. I can’t let you risk that.” he says to his complaining passenger. “Just wait until we land first, then you can flap ‘til your heart’s content.”

“But I’m SO BORED!” she pouts without end. “It’s bad enough that I have to be straddled to this carriage we rented, but it’s even more unbearable that we’re going this slow!”

“Come on, Rainbow. You know the rules. I have to fly at a steady pace to ensure you and the twins’ safety.”

“Sigh... yeah yeah… I getcha.” she grumbles in defeat as she plops her head on top of her forelegs that rest on the rail of the flying cart.

It’s been a few hours since they left Ponyville early this morning, and a while ago, they passed through Equestria’s borders as they are now in a vast range of mountains. With Ford Mustang at the flying chariot’s harness, he effortlessly flies across the clear, blue sky without the need to take a break for himself. Rainbow Dash however, isn’t enjoying much of the ride herself. Despite feeling the wind in her face and mane, it’s not the same experience if she was allow to fly at such speeds and a long length of time anymore. Still, she keeps in mind to bear it for the sake of her twin foals, and if been forced to sit in the back for hours while having her husband pull the carriage is the only way to meet one of her longtime friends, then so be it.

Soon enough, Ford spots something in the far distance. It looks just like one of the mountains surrounding it, but its peak definitely doesn’t look as natural as its landscape. It consists of several, tall layers stacked on top of another, and at the center of this towering city is a fortified citadel with a grand spire that takes a shape of a large bird spreading its ginormous wings.

“Hey, Rainbow Dash. Is that it?” Mustang ask just to make sure.

With a mere glance of her sharp eyes, Rainbow breaks into a wide smile as she answers with excitement, “Yeah, there it is! The Griffon Kingdom’s capital city, Gryphus!”

“I still can’t believe that Gilda was able to respond your letter so fast in just a few short days.” He comments with a chuckle.

“Well, it’s thanks to the collaboration of Pegasi and griffons that we establish a swift mail system between our two races.” She states with a proud grin.

“Either way, it’s pretty exciting to see what their city looks like. And I’m just thankful I get to come along with you to see it for myself.”

At the large, lower ring of the mountainous city, the two Pegasus are directed by two griffon officials on where to park their chartered carriage. Once their mode of transportation is secured and they trade their bits for proper currency, the ponies call for an air taxi, and the 8-month pregnant mare gives directions to their first destination in Gryphus.

As their driver flies them through the scaling city, the visiting couple gazes at their surroundings. Everywhere they look, hundreds griffons fly in every which way, whether they are soldiers patrolling the skies or mail carriers taking care of their routine duties. Down below, the capital’s lower section consists of various shops and markets judging by their decorative canopies, tarps, and banners as they serve as the ideal location for distribution and trade goods. And each level is separated up by a very tall, thick wall with dozens of towers spread out evenly amongst the fortified divider.

Past a few levels up, the intermediate rings is mostly made up of countless homes. Like the shops in the previous rings, the houses are mostly made up of white marble. Ironically enough, through Ford’s eyes, most of them look like oversized birdhouses judging by their rectangular walls, circular openings, and sloped roofs. Some of the residences are stacked on top of another like a mishmash of apartment complexes, while others are constructed alongside the soaring walls.

At one of those elevated houses, the ponies’ air taxi lands on a very large porch which doubles as a landing platform. Once their paid taxi flyer leaves the scene, Rainbow approaches the door with her husband right beside her, and she gives a couple knocks on the its smooth, wooden surface. And shortly after that, their griffon friend swings the door open and bears a huge smile over her two expected guests.

“Dash! Mustang! You guys made it!” she beams as she hugs her Pegasus friends.

“Would expect any less from two of the fastest Pegasus alive?” Rainbow asks with a smirk.

“Hmph! Speak for yourself, Rainbow.” the stallion adds in a mocking grump. “I was the one doing all of hard work to get us here.”

Playing along with her husband’s whining, Dash playfully pats him on the head as she coos to him in an immature tone, “Aww, poor baby~!” Then, she gives him a nice peck on the cheek, which causes Ford to crack into a small smile.

“Well in that case… perhaps these might cheer you up!” Gilda suggests in a sly tone before she quickly goes back inside and immediately comes back outside to show three tickets in the grip of her right claw.

“What are these… tickets?” the stallion asks as he steps forward for a closer look.

“Oh, not just any tickets, Ford!” Gilda replies grinningly. “These are exclusive passes to this season’s Rumble-Mania!”

The mention of that local event passes over Mustang’s head, but the same can’t be said for Rainbow Dash as she breaks into a wide, gaping smile before shrieking in a shrill voice, “Gasp! Rumble-Mania?! You mean where the greatest gladiators compete in the Griffon Kingdom’s biggest tournament at the coliseum?!”

“The same!” Gilda nods with a grin.

“Sweet! How did you get these tickets anyway?”

“Just one of the few perks from being a royal guard.” she shrugs in mocking casualness. “Now come on! We’ve gotta get going before it’s jam-packed over there!”

On a nearby level is Gryphus’s illustrious coliseum, but due to its ginormous dome with its arched metallic braces interwoven with each other, it’s earned a more infamous name: The Birdcage. Within the caged arena, tens of thousands of seats begin to fill up in an instant, just as Gilda expected. Luckily enough, she and her two pony friends get to their reserved seats with ease despite the growing crowd.

“Oh, this is going to be so awesome!” Rainbow squeaks in shaky anticipation. “I haven’t been here since our days at flight school!”

“Wait, your school actually took you here?” Ford asks in surprise.

“Well no. But during some of my breaks, I would come by and hang out with Gilda at her place.”

“Yeah, that certainly brings me back, doesn’t it?” Gilda adds with a reminiscing smile.

“So, who’s competing this year?” Rainbow asks. “Anyone in particular that I know?”

As Gilda shows Rainbow the event’s brochure, the latter lists a few of them out for her, “Well here’s the star roster for today’s tournament, including some well-known celebrities like Hawk Hogan, The Rawk, Eagle Raptor, TJ Thunderbird, El Pollo Loco, Fowl Play, and my personal favorite of them all, The Scarlet Owl!”

Upon the mention of that last combatant’s name, Dash’s pupil-shrunken eyes bulge greatly before she stammers out in surprise, “S-Scarlet is here?! No way! I thought she would have retired by now!”

“Ha! Fat chance! That bird is still at her prime and kicking!” Gilda confirms with a proud grin. “One time, she came by our training grounds and became our special guest instructor for a whole month! It was so cool!”

“He-heh! I bet you were fawning over her like an obsessive fangirl, weren’t you?” Rainbow responds with a shrewd smirk and a cocked eyebrow.

“N-no I…! Shut up!” she retorts with a maddening blush. “You’re just jealous ‘cause I got to meet her before you did!”

“Pfft! Whatever!” the smirking mare dismisses that claim with a roll of her eyes and a wave of her foreleg. “I’ve got the Wonderbolts, and my lifelong hero, Spitfire, is both my drill instructor and one of my best friends over there!”

As the two headstrong friends debate over who’s got the better perks in their respective jobs, Ford hears one of the vendors shouting out loud, “Sausages! Get your hot sausages right here!”

From the mention of that meaty word, the wide-eyed stallion sharply twists his head to the source of that nostalgic call. Several bleachers down on a wide strip of stone-carved flooring, one of the many sports vendors is dishing out linked sausages that are all coiled within a portable hot box strapped around his chest. One of the younger griffons flies up to the vendor and presents some coins to pay for the delicious treat. Once he received his payment, the merchant pulls out a thick sheet of paper from his side pouch to wrap it around the big, juicy sausage he is able to cut with the simple use of his talon and presents it to the delighted customer.

With the red, hot sausage in his tiny claws, the happy-go-lucky cub takes a ferocious bite out of its end and gleefully enjoys its juicy flavor. As the gaping Mustang obverses the tormenting act from afar, he softly whines in great anguish as he tries to imagine and dredge up that mouthwatering taste the little griffon is fortunate enough to experience for himself. The very smell of that plump, juicy meat is just as agonizing as its luscious sight to behold as drool involuntarily seeps out of the pony’s gaping mouth like a steady fountain.

But his hunger-driven daze is cut short when the announcer declares to its spectators, “And now, let’s get started with our first two combatants: Fowl Play versus The Scarlet Owl!”

All eyes are turned towards the sandy arena as the two gladiators meet each other at the center of the ring. On one side of the battleground is a lanky, male griffon, whose head has dark gray feathers, has a rich brown coat for its feline body, and a long, yellow, jagged beak that displays a wide, creepy smile. Leather straps around his chest holster a variety of knives, and he has two daggers strapped around his hindquarters.

And on the opposite side of the ring is a female griffon with a white head and bright red coloring for her lioness coat, wings, eyeliner, and the tips on her feathery fringes. Like her namesake, her face resembles that of an owl due to her fluffy roundness, small, black beak, and large, piercing eyes. For her armor, she wears a scale mail breastplate with metal shoulder pads. And her weapon of choice is a broad longsword.

“Holy crap! It really is her!” the smiling Rainbow Dash gasps in a squeaking voice. “And check out her sword! It still looks just as sharp as the day I first seen it in action!”

“Yep! And not a speck of rust to bloat out its shine!” the grinning griffon adds with a nod.

From realizing that this is a gladiatorial fight they are witnessing, dread begins to creep in Ford’s heart as he notices the authenticity on the fighters’ weapons. “Wait… are they actually using real weapons?”

“Uh yeah!” Gilda smirks brashly in response. “The Scarlet Owl never goes into battle without her trusty blade at her side!”

“B-but does that mean these matches are going to be… gulp… fatal?” he asks hesitantly.

With a hearty chuckle, the carefree griffon reassures her edgy friend, “Relax, Mustang. No one really dies in the coliseum anymore. Death matches have been outlawed for like centuries. Look, see the belts they’re wearing?”

As Gilda points it out with a claw, Ford follows the direction of her talon and takes a closer look at the belt around Scarlet’s waist. On its large, flexible strap are several unrecognizable symbols that emit a bright, purple glow.

With Mustang perceiving this, Gilda continues to explain the belts’ special functions, “They have magical runes, which provide a special protection spell for each of the combatants, inscribed by our own mystics. Also, the belt serves as a gauge for their stamina. Once either one is knocked out, the loser’s belt will signify the end of the match. Sure, there are still cuts and bruises here and there, but nothing too serious mind you. Still, they can suffer the full, blunt force from an opponent’s strike. But hey, that will take most of the fun out of the games, right?” she concludes with a wink and a broad smile.

“Guys! Shush! Scarlet’s match is about to start!” Rainbow interjects sharply as she hushes them up.

From that reminder, the three friends redirect their eyes on the upcoming fight before them, and soon enough, with the sound of the large gong ringing out loud, the first match begins.

At once, Fowl Play makes the first move and quickly lunges toward Scarlet while pulling out his twin jagged-edge daggers. Instantly, the seasoned veteran readies her heavy blade and promptly blocks the double-dagger attack. From stopping the first attack, the crimson warrior knocks the gangly griffon back before charging forward to deliver a mighty swing of her sword. But Fowl Play narrowly escapes the earth-shattering strike with a backflip and propels himself into the air.

From high above, the male assailant tosses a few of his throwing knives, which Scarlet briskly dodges them with an evasive roll. Then, she launches herself with a mighty flap of her wings to chase after her opponent. In the midst of their aerial skirmish, their individual blades chime nicely from each clash they make as the gaping spectators smile widely with their wondrous eyes glued on the ongoing fight.

Abruptly enough, Fowl Play breaks away from the midair conflict and plunges toward the sand pit. But instead of landing on the sandy terrain, the dark-colored flyer perform a very rapid spin as he conjures up a sandstorm. From that expanding twister of sand, the concealed combatant unleashes a flurry of knives in random directions. Thankfully, with the coliseum’s magical force field installed between the arena and seats, the audience is perfectly safe from any incoming fire. The same cannot be said for the Scarlet Owl as she remains on-guard whilst deflecting the bladed projectiles.

However, thanks to that deceptive tactic of his makeshift dust storm, Fowl Play swoops right behind the distracted Scarlet and slashes her right in the back. From that backstabbing move, a light purple aura that matches the belt’s glowing rune blocks the fatal blow, but Scarlet still suffers a severe amount of pain as she plummets toward the ground. Again, her shielding belt prevents the older griffon from suffering permanent damage from that fall.

From witnessing the surprising turn of events, a majority of the crowd boos and hisses at Fowl Play, including Scarlet Owl fans like Gilda and Rainbow Dash. But the smirking griffon relishes in the attention he is receiving as he showoffs his dastardly daggers around in a flashy manner. Once he is done showboating, he eyes his wounded opponent down below and displays his sick satisfaction by licking his long, grinning beak. Eying on his prize, Fowl Play nosedives forward to claim his first victory in the tournament with his serrated blades poised for the kill.

But to everyone’s surprise, the vigilant Scarlet Owl cunningly reaches for one of Fowl Play’s throwing knives nearby with the use of her flexible tail and swiftly hurls it at the nose-diving opponent. Following on his instincts, the alarmed Fowl Play blocks the incoming knife with one of his daggers. And thanks to that interference, Scarlet uses the opportunity to lift up her sword and delivers a mighty swing that slams Flow Play right across the back as he passes by her.

While the crowd awes exceedingly at Scarlet’s clever ploy, the greatly battered Fowl Play slams into the ground and harshly slides across the sand. And as he remains incapacitated from that recent injury, Scarlet seeks to finish this fight once and for all by leaping mightily into the air, and plunges her longsword right into her fallen opponent without the tip of the blade going through his body, thanks to his still-active, protective belt. However, the immense pain is too great for him to endure any longer, and he is rendered unconscious. As Fowl Play is down for the count, the centerpiece of his belt lights up significantly and it blares out a loud sound.

With the sound of the horn from the defeated warrior, the announcer of Rumble-Mania declares the winner of the first match to The Scarlet Owl, and she holds up her mighty sword to pose in triumph. With the first fight over and Scarlet advancing to the next round, the vast crowd breaks in thunderous cheers as Gilda, Rainbow, and Ford go wild over their favored gladiator’s stunning victory, unable to contain their excitement on how the rest of the tournament will play out.

After the conclusion of the Birdcage’s seasonal attraction, Gilda then leads her Pegasus friends through the marketplace nearby. Even this late in the afternoon, the bazaar is swarming with so many griffons as they flock around the individual shops for food and other assortments.

“Wow! That was so awesome!” Rainbow continues gush with a very big smile over what she just experienced. “I can’t believe we actually got to meet with THE Scarlet Owl, and after she won the champion belt no less! She even gave me one of her feathers and signed it for me!”

As the beaming mare admires her bright, red feather that serves as a necklace, Gilda giggles over her friend’s childlike expression as she makes a shrewd remark, “Heh, now who’s the obsessive fangirl?”

Ignoring her griffon friend’s shrewd remark, Rainbow then asks, “So anyway… I hope you’ve picked a good place for us to get something to eat, ‘cause I am starving.”

With a warm chuckle, Gilda replies with a confident smirk, “Come on, Dash. Have a little faith in me, will ya? I still know a few good places that cater to ponies like yourself. Then again, you and Ford are far from the norm, aren’t you?”

“Hey, I doubt we’ll have any objections with what they have to offer, right Ford?”

When she didn’t receive a response from her husband, she turns around, but doesn’t find him nearby. As worry begin to settle in, she rapidly turns her head in all directions to locate him.

“Wait, where did he--?”

But as she looks around the crowded marketplace, Rainbow Dash begins to realize the vast difference between the one in her hometown and a standard griffon market. Everywhere she looks there is a wide variety of meat, whether they are hanging on display, being prepared by the individual cooks, or consumed by the satisfied customers. And while this doesn’t bother Rainbow that much, she knows that her pony friends like Fluttershy will likely faint at the sight of dead, cooked animals. But knowing full well on Ford’s human origins, she can’t imagine on how this can turn out if he exposes his inner carnivorous needs in front of the public.

“…Oh no.”

For the young griffon cook named Casper, it is just another day for him to prepare his massive slab of marinated pork that’s skewered on a vertical rotisserie as it’s evenly grilled over a small pit of glowing embers. With another order in mind, the light gray griffon shaves off some of the tender meat and spreads it on a piece of flatbread before adding red tomatoes, sautéed onions, and thick, homemade fries. Once his latest order is up, he hands it to the awaiting customer, who happily chows down on it.

After the departure of another satisfied consumer, Casper smiles with gratification over his usual handiwork before getting back on track with his usual routine. But as he turns around, he is completely startled by the sudden appearance of a Pegasus Pony. For a local cook like Casper, it is certainly a rare sight to see a pony in his fair city. And it’s not that much of a surprise for ponies to express disgust and fright over the griffons’ way of eating. But from seeing this Pegasus with blue-and-yellow hair so up-close, the gray griffon begins to feel very uncomfortable as the pony continues to lean on the counter with a big, uncanny smile while he continues to longingly gaze at the thick slab of pork like a kid window-shopping at a candy store.

“Umm… can I… help you, sir?” Casper stammers in a polite tone.

Ford Mustang blinks a bit from his interrupted trance before responding in a modest smile, “Oh, sorry. Don’t mind me at all. Please, continue with your work.”

“Okay then…” he responds awkwardly as he slowly turns back to his work.

Casper does his best to ignore the strange pony hanging around his shop as he serves another gyro to the next customer. But his uneasiness around the lone stallion is starting to get to him as Ford keeps bearing that eerie smile while he continues to silently observe the griffon’s culinary arts. As the anxious cook tries to figure out the best way to dismiss the uncanny Pegasus, Ford is the first to break up this awkward silence as he has a question in mind.

“Forgive me, kind sir… but may I ask on what do you call this delicacy of yours?”

A bit surprised by Mustang’s politeness and curiosity, Casper feels compelled to answer that in mild hesitation, “Oh well… it’s a pork gyro where we serve it on flatbeard stuffed with roasted tomatoes, onions, and fries.”

“Uh-huh…” Ford responds simply as he maintains that goofy smile of his and half-lidded gaze.

Despite explaining the contents of his signature dish, Casper becomes puzzled by how undaunted the pony is from the mere mention of pork. So the gray griffon has to ask just to be sure. “You… do know what pork is, right?”

“Oh, all too well~!” He answers cryptically with an increasingly dreamy smile

Casper is stunned beyond belief by what he just heard from Ford. Usually ponies would take their leave right away from the very sight of meat, but this smiling stallion remains steadfast as he bears that unusual grin over something that’s supposed to be forbidden in Equestria.

Unable to contain his curiosity for long, Ford leans closer to the spinning slab of pork, which causes Casper to subtle shake in alarm. Without touching the delicate piece of meat, the Pegasus takes several sniffs of it. Once he gets a good whiff of its luscious smell, Ford inquires on one particular ingredient that stands out from the rest.

“Is that… honey mustard I smell?”

Surprised once again, Casper confirms with that with small yet growing smile, “Why yes, it is. It’s one of my family’s recipes that we use to marinate our pork, but with a touch of more sweetness than usual.”

“Mmm… you don’t say.”

“And along with that, we also season it with some of our traditional spices.”

“Wait, let me take a guess.”

After Casper permits him with a nod and wave of his claw, Ford resumes his examination as he takes more sniffs of the marinated pork from different sides. In between his sniffing, he answers to the best of his abilities on some of the other ingredients he picked up.

“Sniff sniff! Hmm… let’s see… onion, garlic, salt and pepper, of course… thyme, oregano, rosemary, and wait…! Sniff! I detect a hint of strong fruitiness. Could it be… cider vinegar perhaps?”

Casper blinks in utter speechlessness over the Pegasus’ sharp analysis before he commends him with a wide smile, “Yes, that’s correct! Wow, you even got the vinegar, right! You certainly got quite a nose, don’t you?”

In response, the humble Mustang smiles right back, “Well, I do take pride when it comes to cooking myself, but nowhere does it compare to your league, sir.”

“You flatter me.” Casper bows lightly with a warm chuckle over Ford’s admiration. “It’s not often I receive compliments from an outsider, let alone a pony from all things.”

“Well I can assure you, I’m far from your average pony.” he states that with a very shrewd grin.

Feeling more comfortable around the Pegasus’s presence now, the chivalrous cook wants to offer a small reward in return for Mustang’s consideration. “In that case, may I offer you a free sample?”

The simple act of kindness shocks Ford to very core as he is indecisive on whether or not to accept the griffon’s kind gesture. It’s been over two years since his abrupt departure from Earth, and he made peace with the fact that he may never touch meat ever again once he accepted his new pony form and his permanent stay in Equestria. But now, from being surrounded by all manners of cooker meat as well as with the ever-so alluring pork right in front of him, his shaky resolve is deteriorating fast. After looking back to see all of the griffons passing by him, he feels even more uncomfortable if there are others witnessing him commit such a taboo act.

“Oh, I-I-I couldn’t! I shouldn’t!” he stumbles over his refusal as modestly as possible. “I mean… I really really want to, but I… umm…!”

As Mustang looks down in shame, Casper offers a comforting chuckle as he reassures the indecisive pony, “Don’t worry. It may not happen as often, but you’re not the first pony to be enticed by our cooking, you know.”

“So… it’s okay then?” the stallion inquires very shyly.

“Please, I insist.”

With Casper’s reassurance, Ford begins to brighten up with a smile as it looks like he might have made up his mind. “Well maybe…”

“FORD!”

But just as he is about to accept the griffon’s free sample, the stallion hears his name called out, and he sharply turns around to face his approaching wife, Rainbow Dash, hovering in mid-air. Once Dash lands close to him, she lets out a sigh of relief, both from finding her husband and from taking a break with her search.

“There you are! Geez, you shouldn’t be wandering around like that!” she scolds him lightly. “Now come on! Gilda and I have been looking for you!”

Once they take off with Ford following closely behind Rainbow this time, he looks back and sees the dumbstruck cook looking back at him. As he drifts further apart from the pork gyro stand, the gaping stallion expresses very big, dejected eyes from losing the chance to relive his days as a carnivore as he stretches out a fore hoof to metaphorically reach out for the sweet, succulent taste of meat.

Soon enough, the two Pegasi finds Gilda hovering above the crowd as Dash gets her attention, “Hey Gilda! I found him!”

With the group back together, they find a small, open clearing on the street and land over there while Gilda says to the deeply dismayed stallion, “Why did you fall behind like that, Ford? We thought we lost you for good!”

With pitiful eyes, Ford takes a moment to look at her wife and friend before apologizing in a guilt-ridden tone, “Sorry, girls. I guess… I got so distracted by all the… sights and s-s-smells.”

“Yeah, I guess that was my bad, Ford.” She responds in a somewhat sheepish manner as she lightly scratches her cheek with one of her talons. “I shouldn’t have drag you through this market without realizing that you’ve never been here before. I hope you weren’t too traumatized by all of this.”

“N-no. I’m fine, Gilda. Really. I didn’t mind it at all.” he stutters in meek reassurance.

To ease up on his own shamefulness, Rainbow pats Ford on the shoulder and gives him a comforting smile over his plight. With no need for words, Mustang smiles over his wife’s sympathetic gesture as Gilda ponders more on her idea for lunch before asking for their consent.

“Well then, if you two are up to it, I think I know of a good place for us to get some grub.”

Inside of a local, cozy shack, Gilda, Rainbow, and Ford are all seated at a table as the latter gets a better glimpse of the restaurant they are currently in. He knows that Gilda mentioned it’s a good place to grab some grub, but he didn’t imagine she meant that in a literal sense. Then again, seeing griffons eating roasted insects shouldn’t be that much different compared to a bird’s standard diet. And judging by the aroma, it reminds him of seafood, but it smells a bit different than any fish or crustacean he has eaten before.

“I should have known that this is what you had in mind all along.” Rainbow Dash chuckles with a smirk.

“Well, I didn’t hear any objections from you or your hubby, now did I?” Gilda shrugs with a sharp grin.

Eventually, their waitress comes by and greets her guests, “Hello everyone! May I take your orders?”

Realizing that he hasn’t made up his mind already, Mustang looks back at his menu to decide which one is best to try first. They certainly have a wide selection to choose from: be it ants, beetles, worms, tarantulas, or scorpions.

“Hmm… I’m not too sure on what to order just yet.” he replies indecisively.

Understandably, their waitress makes a respectful suggestion to Ford, “Well, we do provide meals that cater to our pony guests in case you are interested.”

But before Ford or Rainbow can respond, Gilda interjects sharply with a wave of her claw and makes the decision for themselves. “Nah, we’re good. These ponies don’t shy away that easily. Here, we’ll take this one.”

Once their waitress sees what Gilda is pointing at on her menu, the beaming attendant nods to their selection and turns around to place their order in the kitchen. With their server gone, Ford looks at his griffon friend and inquires with knitted eyebrows.

“So, what did you decide for us, Gilda?”

With a devious chuckle, the smirking griffon answers very shrewdly, “He-hee. You’ll see~!”

“Hey, I trust you.” Rainbow adds with a slightly cynical smirk.

Then, Gilda turns back to Ford and says, “You know, I’m still surprised that you’re this eager to try insects for a change.”

With a more laid-back smile, he shrugs in response, “Hey, as they say from where I come from: if it looks good, eat it.”

“Well I’ve gotta give it to you, Mustang. You certainly show a lot more enthusiasm than Dash did when I got her to try bugs for the first time.”

Following on that sly implication, Rainbow retorts to defend her bravado, “Hey, I took your challenge head-on!”

“Really? That’s not how I remember it.” Gilda replies very shrewdly.

Back in the Days of Rainbow and Gilda’s Junior Speedster Flight Camp…

Like most camps, the teachers and camp counselors would take their classes to places outside of their campgrounds for their field trips. But for the Junior Speedster Flight Camp’s case, they decided to go for a more traditional camping trip as they set their campsite in a nearby forest right underneath the floating city of Cloudsdale. Here, fillies and colts got to engage in some of the outdoor activities like fishing and how to start a campfire. It was also the best place for young Pegasi to explore their surroundings and enjoy this unique experience that they couldn’t find in their homes above the clouds.

However, not everypony fully embraced this rare opportunity as one little, blue filly with frizzy, rainbow-colored hair stomped around the forest as she remained unimpressed by what she saw around her. No longer was she a free spirit that is one with the wind and the vast, open skies. Here, she was a prisoner, entrapped by the countless trees and trending on the earthly ground that doesn’t have the same wonderful texture as the soft, fluffy clouds.

“Ugh! Can you believe this, Gilda?!” the young and ever-so brash Rainbow Dash complained with disgust and disappointment. “I thought our field trip will take place somewhere really cool, but it’s nothing more than a nature walk!”

Meanwhile, up ahead of the grumpy filly, the lone griffon cub of the group was too preoccupied with a moss-covered log in front of her as she used her right claw to reach for something inside while replying back in a lighthearted manner, “Oh, I don’t know about that. The food’s pretty good around here.”

From the mention of food, little Dashie brightened up with a big smile, and she flew right next to Gilda. ”Really? Well let me have some!”

Right away, the griffon turned around and displayed what’s in the palm of her claws: a slimy cluster of crickets, beetles, and worms. From glancing at such an unpleasant sight, Rainbow flew back in alarm and openly expressed her shock.

“Gilda! What are doing?!”

Upon seating herself on a log, Gilda casually flicked a beetle up in the air and caught it with her beak before munching on it and replying back, “Having a snack. What does it look like?”

“By eating bugs?! Really?!” Rainbow emphasized her disgust even further.

“Hey, don’t knock it ‘til you try it.” she shrugged without a care and resumed on her tasty morsels.

Unable to understand Gilda’s fascination when it comes to eating bugs, Rainbow turned around and said to her friend with a sharp wit, “Fine, you go right ahead and enjoy your little smorgasbord. I’m going to look for some real food around here.”

“What, don’t tell me that you’re that squeamish when comes to creepy crawlers?” Gilda grinned in a teasing manner.

Facing her smirking griffon, Rainbow retorts brashly, “Hey, I can handle anything, no matter how creepy they are!”

“Anything, huh? Okay then.” With a free claw, the smirking griffon picked out a long, wiggly earthworm from the log’s breached cavity and held it up in the air as she declared her challenge to Rainbow Dash. “I dare you to eat this worm, right here… right now!”

Startled by such a dare at first, Dash slowly descended at the level of the wiggling worm as she half-heartedly agreed, “S-sure. No prob.”

As the grinning Gilda waited patiently for her friend to make a move, the reluctant Rainbow Dash braced herself from the dare she just accepted. She attempted to unhinge her jaw, but the mere sight of the still active worm caused her to lock her gaping jaws in place.

“What’s the hold up, Dash?” Gilda asked with a provoking smirk. “Don’t tell me you’re going back down already.”

“Ha! You wish!” the filly answered sharply while mustering up her courage. “I’ve never better back down from a dare before, and I’m not going to start that right now!”

“Well go on! Eat it already!” the giggling griffon goaded even further.

“I will!” she snapped at once with an immense frown. “Just… give me a minute to prepare myself!”

While Gilda still sitting on her log with a smug smile, Rainbow redirected her gaze at the dangling worm that’s still clutched between the griffon’s talons. And after some further hesitation, the trembling mare closed her eyes tightly and quickly gulped down the limbless creature from Gilda’s claws.

With the earthworm still squirming inside her mouth, the appalled filly hesitated once again before she got her jaws to start chewing. In her mind, Dash tried to imagine that the worm was nothing more than a piece of spaghetti. But her method of concentration deteriorated rapidly as she was too distracted by the worm’s constant wiggling and the awful taste of leftover dirt. Slowly but surely, the invertebrate was reduced to mush and Rainbow grudgingly swallowed it with a very difficult gulp that sent nasty shivers all over her body.

With the completion of her dare at last, Rainbow repeatedly gagged to a great extent as Gilda laughed her butt off so much, she fell back over from the log she was sitting on. After spitting out most of worm’s sliminess and specks of dirt, the frowning filly glared intensely at her snickering friend.

“There! Happy?” she asked in a grump.

After much of her laughter died down, Gilda got herself back up and replies with an amusing smirk, “Very.”

“Good! Because now it’s my turn!” she declared with an evil grin. “Gilda, I dare you too--!”

“Eww! Gross! Did you see that?!”

From the interruption of Dash’s dare, the two friends turned their heads to the source of the intrusive voice and saw two of their classmates stepping out of the shadows. Both of them were fillies at the same age as Gilda and Rainbow, but they were more feminine looking based of their elegant hairstyles and fashion sense. They’re more likely the daughters of more privileged families based off of their snooty approach and conceited smiles.

“Yeah, totally!” the other filly agreed with her friend. “I don’t know which one of them is grosser: the griffon and Rainbow Dash!”

“Either way, those two are such freaks, aren’t they?”

And of course, the two mean girls laughed at their own joke, to which the two tomboyish classmate didn’t find it amusing at all. So Gilda stepped forward and made a threat to them, “Watch it, brats, or we’ll--!”

“Hey, don’t even think about laying a claw or hoof on us!” the first bully warned with a wave of her fore hoof as she along with her friend took a few steps back.

Then, the second one backed that up with an additional warning. “Otherwise, we’ll tell on both of you!”

“But hey, don’t mind us! We’ll let you continue your disgusting habit in peace!”

Feeling pleased as punch, the two snobs walked away and snottily laughed over the tomboys’ anguish. Rainbow let out a loud snort to express her annoyance over the snot-nosed sissies. As much as she wanted to kick their flanks, Dash knew she couldn’t resort to violence since her daddy taught her better than that. Still, she wanted to get back at those two, one way or another.

Rainbow then turned toward her griffon friend, but her resentment was put on hold when she noticed Gilda’s face expressing a faint, gloomy look. She and Gilda are most hardcore flyers around, but Dash could see right through her silent friend that those subtle insults could still leave grave wounds from within.

Wanting to break the griffon out of her funk, the steadfast Rainbow Dash gave her a playful punch to the shoulder as she comforts her pal to the best of her abilities, “Hey, don’t listen to them, Gilda. Those prissy ponies don’t know how cool it is to have you as a friend, even if it came and bit them on the--!”

Suddenly, Rainbow paused from her encouragement as her wide-eyed gaze locked on the bug-infested log next to them. And from starring at it for a little while longer, a marvelous idea came to mind as a devious grin stretched across her muzzle while she rubbed her little fore hooves together.

“Hey Gilda, are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

Following up on Rainbow’s subtle proposition, Gilda was momentarily confused by what her friend was hinting at before looking back at the log that was still swarming with insects. But once that idea clicked in her head as well, Gilda’s reaction was just the same as Dash’s as she too displayed a very wicked smile on their perfect revenge for tonight.

“Way ahead of you, Dash!”

Later that Night…

“Rainbow Dash! Gilda! Will you two come out here for just a minute?” After the teacher called out to them, the two campmates unzipped their tent and approached the adult Pegasus.

“Yawn! What’s going on?” Rainbow asked wearily. “We heard somepony screaming.”

“Yeah, we were trying to sleep here.” Gilda remarked groggily as she rubs one of her eyes.

“Sorry for the disturbance, girls…” the female teacher apologized to them. “…but there is a matter we need to discuss with you two.”

Emerging from behind their instructor, the two bullies that Rainbow and Gilda encountered earlier that day stepped forward as they displayed deeply sour faces at the tomboyish pair. Of course, Rainbow and Gilda were too distracted by the snobbish fillies’ poorly dismantled manes. Most notably, their once-prettified manes are littered with several squirming bugs. From seeing the pair’s gruesome hairstyle, the blue filly and griffon cub tried their best to muffle their uncontrollable snickering.

“That’s them alright!” one of the prissy ponies accused right away with a firm fore hoof. “They’re the ones who did this to us!”

“Oh, it was you two screaming earlier, huh?” Gilda verified with a deadpan stare. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

Then, the shrewd Rainbow Dash pointed out the obvious with an irrepressible, giggling smile, “Uhh… girls? You got a little something in your mane.”

“Don’t play dumb with us!” the other brat snapped over their accusation. “You two placed those bugs in our tent on purpose!”

Gilda and Rainbow took a moment to look at each other with mild puzzlement before the latter faced the two accusers and said with the same deadpan annoyance as her griffon friend, “You’re kidding, right? We’re camping in the middle of the woods! Those critters must have snuck in there by accident!”

“Nuh-uh!” The one filly whined to their teacher. “We discovered a hole in our tent! That filthy griffon must have cut one opened before sending those nasty critters on us!”

“Yeah!” the other one agreed in a shrilly wail. “We even caught them eating those disgusting creatures this morning! Yuck! What a repulsive sight that was!” she added while gagging out her tongue to prove her point.

“Is this true, girls?” the teacher asked firmly as she looked down at the defendants with a stoic expression on her face.

The two suspects averted their eyes away from their inquisitive teacher as the prissy ponies smiled in smug satisfaction over their likely victory at hoof. And just as it looked like the supposed jailbirds are about to sing, Gilda nervously stepped forward a little with her head hanging low before she had something in mind to confess first.

“Sigh… Yes, it is true that I eat bugs on occasion. And yeah, I get where this is going. I know that I’m not like all of the other ponies around here. Believe me, it’s been tough for me to fit in when I’m the only griffon around here.” As she told more about her own hardships, her big, remorseful eyes seemed to get more watery, and she looked up at her teacher while concluding her self-pity plea, “But now, I’m being accused for something I didn’t do… all because on how… different I am.”

As the instructor was startled by this rare display of emotion coming from the miserable, little griffon, Gilda huffed in rapid breaths as she tried to hold back whatever tears may leaked out of her big, pupil-swollen eyes. Noticing on her friend’s expected sobbing, Rainbow Dash took her cue to pull the griffon in for a comforting hug as she gave Gilda a shoulder to cry on.

While the cub carried on with her soft sobbing, Rainbow looked back at her teacher as she frowns in disgust over such mistreatment that her griffon friend had to endure. “Can you believe this, teach? She has it rough with snot-nosed jerks like these two picking on her and calling her names! But to be blamed for a crime she didn’t commit in the first place? Where’s the justice in that, I ask you?”

With the accusing fillies flabbergasted over the sudden turn of events and Rainbow Dash whispering words of comfort to the weeping Gilda, their attentive teacher felt her heartstrings being pulled hard from seeing such a heartwarming sight of the integrated friends hugging in friendship and support. Feeling so emotional in all of this, the teacher kneels down and gives the little cub a reassuring hug while softly expressing her sympathies.

“Oh, Gilda. I had no idea it was so rough for you. Don’t worry. Neither you nor Rainbow Dash will be held accountable for this accident.”

After the teacher declared her judgment in this case, Gilda began to feel a whole lot better as her sniffling stopped while Dash gasped with a huge smile. The same cannot be said for the plaintiffs as they felt cheated from the justice they wanted.

“ ‘Accident?!’ But they--!”

“That’s enough!” the adult pony interjected in a snippy tone of authority as the two prudish fillies shut up immediately before she carried on with a proper scolding. “You two should be ashamed for picking on Gilda like that. I expected better from the two of you.”

With the female instructor carrying out with her lecture, which made the former accusers feel great shame for their rude actions earlier, Rainbow and Gilda rubbed their victory right in the bullies’ faces as they silently make extreme, silly faces behind the teacher’s back.

As the snobbish fillies growled immensely over the mockery of the clever tricksters, the teacher concluded her verdict in a softer tone, “Sigh… Let’s just set you up another tent, and then starting tomorrow morning, you’ll be helping out with some of the chores.”

“Chores?!” the wide-eyed bullies complained in an ear-piercing whine. “But that’s not fair!”

“Then maybe some hard work will teach you to be more tolerant towards others next time. Come on, let’s go clean up your manes and get your new tent set up. Sorry again for all of the trouble, Gilda and Rainbow.”

As the teacher escorted the two disgruntled fillies away, Gilda zipped up the opening of their tent before sharing a knowing glance and a growing smirk with her fellow prankster. And within the security of their own sleeping quarters, the duo burst into unbridled laughter as they lost their balance right away.

As they lied on their backs, the rambunctious filly declared their success of their deception while facehoofing herself. “Oh Sweet Celestia! I can’t believe the teacher actually bought that!”

“Yeah, thanks to my awesome acting, of course!” the giggling griffon states with a boastful smirk.

“I’ll say! You nearly had me fool! Either way, best prank ever!” she confirmed with chuckling pride as the friends share a well-deserved fist/hoof bump.

“You said it, Dash! This calls for a little midnight snack!”

And right away, Gilda uncovered her sleeping bag as it revealed a bucket partially full of leftover bugs. As the grinning griffon reclined back with her bowl of lively insects on her belly, Rainbow stared at her friend with a mild frown over her means of celebration.

“What? Want some?” Gilda offered with a casual smirk after she caught Dash staring.

In a slightly flustered manner, Rainbow shook her head rapidly and replied back while crawling in her own bed, “No thanks. I had enough bugs for one day as it is.”

“Well then, nighty night!”

“Night, Gilda.”

“Sleep tight!”

“I will if you keep your snacking down.”

And as Rainbow started to get cozy from her well-deserved beauty rest, Gilda leaned close to the filly’s ear and whispered in a very playful tone, “Don’t let the bedbugs bite~!”

Dash’s eyes bulged to a great extent over such a dreadful possibility as Gilda quietly laughed to herself whilst resuming what’s left of her snack before the agitated Pegasus responded in a menacing grump, “You better not get any ideas, featherbrain!”

“I’m tempted.” Gilda shrugged with a cryptic yet carefree smile before she flicked a colorful beetle up in the air and caught it once again with her ravenous beak.

“And yet, here we are… having bugs for lunch apparently.” Gilda states with a meaningful smirk.

After he finishes his soft chuckling over the girls’ story, Ford Mustang then asks his wife, “So it’s been that long since you tried bugs, huh?”

“Actually, I tried some more every now and then whenever I hanged out with Gilda.” Rainbow Dash answers with a casual smile. “That’s why I am more tolerable when it came to seafood later on.”

“You forgot to tell him on some of the other stuff you developed an acquired taste for?” the griffon implies with a very clever grin.

“Really?” he smiles in response. “What else is there besides crustaceans and insects?”

Rainbow hesitates on her answer as a growing blush creeps across her face while she shifts her cautious eyes around the room before she utters her response in a very nervous manner, “Ch-ch-chicken.”

Despite her murmuring, it did not go amiss from Ford’s sharp ears as he stares at his flustered wife with immense shock over that astonishing fact. After blinking his speechless eyes a few times, he soon enough responds in a sharp cry, “Seriously?!”

As the flushed Rainbow Dash remains silent from revealing such a strange secret, Gilda leans closer to the dumbfounded Mustang as she confirms that startling fact with an amusing grin, “Yep! And get this. I didn’t even dare her to try it in the first place. Her own curiosity got the best of her. And she loved it!” she finishes it off with a playful whisper.

Astonished ever further by this disclosure, Ford quickly twists his head to face his mare and inquires in an overly beseeching tone, “And you didn’t tell me?!”

Knowing full well on what her whimpering husband has in mind based off that greatly imploring face of his, Rainbow Dash sharply replies back, “Hey, it’s not something I want to share with the whole world nor do I want to make a habit out of it! Especially with Fluttershy around!”

Realizing that Dash makes a good point as it would cause more problems back in their hometown if they eat chicken on every occasion, Ford lets out a heavy sigh before complying in a soft pout, “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”

Gilda pauses from her observation over Mustang’s most peculiar reaction before she perplexes over this matter, “Wait a second, Ford. Have you… ever tried chicken before?”

From the griffon’s curious questioning, Ford’s eyes widen in fear as it’s his turn to be in the hot seat. Within the corners of his mind, the flustered stallion struggles on how to answer that and whether or not he should reveal his own human origins to Gilda.

“Well I… umm… oh hey, look at that! I think our food has arrived!”

And thankfully, Ford is able to put that matter on hold for the time being as he points out their waitress coming back with a massive tray over her shoulders. Once she arrives, the fluttering server places the tray at the center of the guests’ table, and the party gets a good look at the steamy platter that Gilda picked out for them.

On each four corners of the massive plate are tiny, crispy mealworms, glowing honeypot ants, golden brown cockroaches, and stingless scorpions. And at the center of this mishmash is a pile of plump, roasted beetle grubs.

“Mm-mmm! Just like how mom used to make them!” Gilda glees while licking her chops.

And at once, the eager griffon grabs a big, juicy grub from the center and immediately chomps it down with an ecstatic smile. Then, she looks at her stallion friend and notices his indecisiveness before she permits him with a playful grin, “Well, what are you waiting for, a signal? Dig in already!”

“Okay, but which one should I start with first?” he asks as he remains unsure over the combo entrée in front of him.

“Ooo! Tries these first! They’re a personal favorite of mine!” And she offers him a fat, scrumptious grub from the very top of their platter.

After accepting the griffon’s personal preference, Ford eyes the ugly, plump bug before he shrugs his hesitation off and slurps it up in one fell swoop. With the beetle larva in his mouth, he begins to chew this new delicacy very slowly. And in the midst of his chewing, he stops for a brief minute as his eyes widen in surprise. Not because it’s as disgusting as its appearance, but because its experimental taste bears a strong resemblance to a thick cut of greasy bacon. Truly, this is a blessing in disguise for him.

Astonished by such an extraordinary flavor, Mustang resumes his chewing, but with more gusto this time. And once he swallowed his first bug, he announces his critique with a sly, satisfied smile, “Slimy… yet satisfying.”

And immediately after his first bite, he grabs another tasty grub to savor its fatty flavor a little bit longer. Then, he moves on to sample the other insects. Like its namesake, the honeypot ants contain a sweet, syrupy nectar within their bulgy, transparent abdomens; they’re just like candy with a very light crunch and a gooey center in each of them. The fried mealworms are similar to shrimp. And despite their horrible reputation back on Earth, the roasted cockroaches possess a clean taste, and as cliché as it might sound for him, they do taste like chicken. But surprisingly enough, his most favorite out of the five entrées are the fried scorpions, for their taste resembles that of soft-shelled crabs. As Rainbow Dash gradually takes her time with her meal, her ravenous husband keeps shifting to the different courses as he greedily gobbles them down.

This doesn’t go unnoticed by Gilda’s sharp eyes as she informs him with a playful chuckle, “Whoa! Slow down, Mustang! You’ll give yourself a tummy ache if you eat like that!”

While taking a short break from his consumption, Ford stares at her with the Are-You-Serious look and retorts with a very shrewd smirk, “What’s the matter, Gilda? Afraid I’ll outmatch you?”

Her playful smile droops down for a brief moment from catching that goading remark, and in return, she humorously glares at the smirking stallion before accepting his challenge head-on, “Oh, you are so going eat those words, Ford!”

“Maybe, but not before I finish that platter before you do!” he jests with smile as bold as Gilda’s.

And in an instant, the two resume their meals at a very rapid pace while Rainbow Dash sits on the sidelines this time while observing the now-competitive eaters. Usually, she would join in on the fun with her husband and griffon friend, but long ago, she learned her lesson from trying to out-eat a griffon from a shared meal like this. Plus, she needs to watch what she eats due to her pregnancy. So for now, she will take her time with the remainder of her food as she silently enjoys the eating competition in front of her.

Minutes later, they finish their platter, leaving nothing more than tiny pieces of the devoured insects. As for the contented guests, their stomachs, namely Gilda and Ford’s, nearly swell up as much as Rainbow Dash’s pregnant belly. Between the two aggressive eaters, it is hard to say on who ate the most of their shared dish.

Impressed by Ford’s ferocity, Gilda comments to him with a sharp smirk, “I gotta say… you sure got guts, I’ll give you that. You sure you weren’t a giffon in a previous lifetime?”

“Eh, who could say?” he shrugs with a cryptic smile.

But as they wait for their check to arrive, Ford feels an unpleasant stir in his stomach as he groans from eating too much of the unaccustomed cuisine. Apparently, he overestimated himself when it comes to stuffing his face on dozens of meat-flavored insects.

“Uh-oh! Looks I spoke too soon about the whole guts thing.” Gilda states wittingly with a victorious smirk as Rainbow Dash chuckles alongside her.

Ignoring the girls’ amusement, the groaning stallion then asks for the proper directions, “Gilda, would you mind--?”

“The restroom is down that way, on your right.” she directs with a grin.

“Thanks.” And in a flash, he frantically rushes to bathroom before he literally loses his lunch.

“Here, place him on that couch over there.” Gilda instructs Rainbow Dash as they help Ford Mustang inside the griffon’s house. Gently as possible, the two friends lay the feeble stallion on the long sofa, and he gently reclines back on the furniture’s plushy cushions.

“Thanks, girls.” he says to them with weak smile.

After sitting alongside her husband, she gently strokes his mane as she asks with a comforting grin, “How are you holding up, champ?”

“Ugggh… like they are eating me from the inside out.” he shudders exaggeratedly as he curls up on the couch.

“That’s what you get for biting off more than you can chew.” Gilda remarks with a sharp chuckle as she plops right next to stallion on the other side of the couch.

As they lounge on the same couch together, Rainbow notices a framed photo on the coffee table across from her. Curious by the familiar picture, she grabs it for a closer inspection of it. Once she brings it up close for Ford see it as well, she smiles warmly on the photographic memory before her. Taken during the Junior Speedsters’ competition of a tag-team race, the young filly, Rainbow Dash, and her best friend, Gilda, are flashing their big, winning smiles over the gold medals they just won as the griffon pulls the equally grubby Pegasus in for strong, one-armed hug.

“Hey, you still kept it after all!” Rainbow says to Gilda as she passes the photo to her.

With the picture in hand, Gilda gets a good look at it and she too smiles over the fond childhood they shared together. “Of course, why wouldn’t I?”

A bit flustered by that casual remark, Rainbow replies in an uneasy tone, “Well I mean… I thought that after what happened the first time you came to Ponyville…! Y-you know…”

From that uncomfortable reminder, Gilda becomes a bit shaken up before she responds in a sheepishly manner while scratching her head lightly and averting her eyes away in shame, “Oh… right. I was mad for sure, but… I still didn’t want to forget all of the good times we had back then.”

Understanding her bashful friend’s consideration, Dash agrees with a soft, sympathetic smile, “Me neither.”

As silence fills the room, Ford and Rainbow share a knowing glance with each other as they figure it’s time to let Gilda know on why they wanted to see her in the first place. So after a short moment to compose herself, Rainbow starts the inevitable conversation with mild hesitation.

“Hey Gilda. We need to talk to you about something.”

“Oh yeah? Like what?”

“Do you want me to tell her this time?” Ford interjects his wife softly as he sits himself up straight.

She pauses over her husband’s kind offer before she gently declines it with a wave of her fore hoof, “No no. I want to do this myself.”

“Guys, what’s going on here?” Gilda with an increasingly nervous smirk. “You’re kind of freaking me out.”

The Pegasus couple share a worried look with one another before Rainbow Dash takes a moment to draw in a heavy breath before she exhales it out slowly and braces herself on what she needs to say, “Gilda, when the twins are born, I… may not make it out of alive from this one.”

As expected, the griffon is completely stunned by the unexpected and disturbing news as she expresses big, frozen eyes with her mouth gaping slightly. After letting that sink in for a little while longer, Gilda eventually responds in shaky disbelief, “R-Rainbow Dash… you can’t be serious! You’re only joshing me, right?”

“No Gilda, we’re not.” she deadpans in response.

“But how could you know something like that ahead of time?!”

“A few months ago, I inherited Hindel’s gift of foresight.” Ford explains in delicate discomfort. And… well… I’m sure you can figure the rest out from there.” And as Gilda is about to say something regarding with the grim matter, he quickly adds to his previous statement, “And before you ask, we already turned to the others for help, including the Princesses.”

This additional testimony leaves the flabbergasted griffon with her beak hanging open before she sooner or later closes it back up while she remains extremely doubtful in all of this. “This is… this is so unreal! I just can’t believe this! You’re like the toughest pony I know, Rainbow Dash! You can’t just keel over and…!”

As she carries on with her fuming skepticism, her hidden emotions betray her as tears threaten to break away from her diluted eyes. From noticing on how difficult Gilda is making it for herself, Rainbow approaches her struggling friend and warmly hugs her. Within the embrace of her closest friend, Gilda finally caves in as a few soft tears seeps from her tightly closed eyes while she gently wraps her forelimbs around the comforting mare.

“I’m sorry for bring this up like that, Gilda.” Rainbow apologizes tenderheartedly. “We just thought it would be best to let you know ahead of time.”

After wiping away her few, fleeting tears, the griffon lets out a couple soft snivels before she bears a small, uplifting smile for the two Pegasi, “I know, and I really appreciate that from you two. You guys are the coolest friends I could ever ask for.”

Touched by her sincerity, Mustang joins in for a group hug as they unwind in this tender moment of theirs. Eventually, they shift back to their original sitting spots as Gilda asks with slightly troubled curiosity, “So… what will you do until then?”

“Well, I still got a few things off of my list to take care of first.” Dash answers with a casual smile. “And then… I’ll just take it easy and enjoy the amount of time I have left.”

With a gentle use of his wing around his wife, Ford pulls her in closely and reassures with a small, confident smirk, “And I’ll see to it that she makes the most of it.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” she remarks with a bold yet affection grin as she lays a tender fore hoof over his.

Enwrapped in their own schmaltziness, the married couple shares a pleasant kiss as the observant Gilda mockingly gags in front of them before she gets herself off of the couch and makes her way to the kitchen. “If you guys are done on being such saps, how about we chow down on some dessert I made recently?”

“Thanks, Gilda. What kind of desserts are they?” Ford asks with an eager smile.

Once she comes back from the kitchen, Gilda answers very slyly, “Oh, just your standard chocolate-covered crickets, that’s all.”

And from the mention of another bug dish, Ford Mustang becomes extremely wide-eyed as the grinning Gilda presents her guests a tray of chocolate treats that are vaguely shaped like crickets. Unable to bring himself to decline someone offering food without even trying it first, he rolls his eyes as he remarks sarcastically with a slightly queasy smirk.

“I had to ask.”

After sharing some of Gilda’s chocolate-flavored crickets, without Ford overeating them this time, the Pegasus couple extend their stay at the griffon’s house until it’s early in the evening. After saying their heartfelt goodbyes, Rainbow Dash and Ford Mustang decide to take a walk through the immense city, just so the latter can take it easy for a bit before he makes his long drive back home.

As they walk through the less-crowded marketplace once again, Ford suddenly hears someone calling out to him.

“Hey mister!”

Once the Pegasi turn around, Mustang is surprised to see the light gray griffon cook named Casper once again as he flies toward them from his currently unoccupied shop nearby.

“There you are!” Casper greets him with a smile as he lands in front of them. “I was wondering if you were ever going to show up again. So I saved this just for you in case you pass by again.”

In his left claw, Casper unwraps the paper-covered item slightly as he exposes a pork gyro he made recently. From seeing the savory, meaty treat once again, Ford’s startled eyes grow extensively upon its luscious sight as he shifts his gaze between the gyro and its creator.

“F-for… for me?” he stammers quietly, to which Casper responds with a welcoming nod.

In a complicated bind once again, the shaky stallion hesitates greatly as he struggles on whether or not to give in to his meat-craving desires. So the pouty Mustang turns to his wife with very big, beseeching eyes as he prays that Rainbow will give him permission on committing an act that is supposedly forbidden amongst ponykind.

Able to read Ford’s tormented expression, Rainbow shakes her head lightly before she permits him with a giggling grin, “Go ahead, Ford. Don’t let me stop you. Just hopefully you won’t lose your lunch this time.”

A bit surprised that his pleading actually worked, the overjoyed Mustang lets out an almighty gasp before he rushes in and gives his beautiful, supportive wife a massive kiss to express his overwhelming gratitude. After that is settle, Ford happily accepts the cook’s gift and takes a moment to inhale the enriching aroma of tender pork and roasted vegetables.

Wanting to literally savor this moment for as long as possible, the eager stallion takes his first bite gingerly and intends to enjoy it very slowly. As he steadily chews on it, his taste buds are blown away by the overpowering taste of sliced tomatoes, grilled onions, and greasy fries, but they pale in comparison to the welcoming flavor of barbequed pork. From experiencing this happy reunion over a long-forgotten sustenance, Ford’s exuberant eyes start to get very watery as his ecstatic grin stretches from one stuffed cheek to another before he ultimately swallows his morsel and relishes in its aftertaste.

“MMM-HM-HMM~! SO… GOOD~!”

And after he moans out his admiration in pure, euphoric bliss, Ford could hardly contain his ravenous indulgence any further and immediately wolfs down the rest of his pork gyro without restraint. As he munches loudly on his hot sandwich in absolute ecstasy, Casper stares at the ongoing consumption with amazement and disbelief while Rainbow Dash chuckles to herself on how over-the-top her husband is acting right now.

Once his sandwich is completely devoured, Mustang still bears that goofy yet extremely satisfied smile as he licks his lips to taste anything that’s left of that mouthwatering gyro just to allow its flavor to linger on his palette for little while longer. Then, he faces the griffon cook responsible for providing such a praiseworthy meal and pulls Casper in for a big, gratifying hug while the overdramatic stallion whispers his appreciation in a sniveling manner.

“Thank you! Thank you!”

As Ford sobs softly over the griffon’s shoulder, Casper remains completely still in the pony’s tight embrace. Completely baffled on why this overly affectionate stallion is reacting in such a strange way over an everyday dish, the silent Casper locks his gaze with Rainbow’s as he hopes to hear an answer from her. Of course, the mare simply shrugs her shoulders before she says to the bewildered griffon with a cheerful smirk.

“Don’t mind him. He’s always this eccentric.”

From receiving the mare’s carefree remark, the speechless griffon decides to forego his puzzlement over this strange phenomenon as the melodramatic Mustang carries on with his hugging while he wails out loud in constant joy.

“I never want to leave this place!”