Tender Taps had galloped away without his phonograph.

Gabby stared at the device for a few seconds, her eyes travelling along the polished walnut box to where the turntable and horn were attached. Then she turned back to the clubhouse door, which was still swinging from the impact, and sighed.

Should she go after him? It felt like the right thing to do, sure, but Tender Taps had looked pretty mad, and it wasn't even like she knew what to say once she caught up with the colt. Heck, it wasn't even as though she knew what it was she had done wrong in the first place. Gabby was an observant griffon—absolutely nothing got past her—but she had been completely feather-weathered by his outburst.

Wringing her claws, she returned her attention to the phonograph. Perhaps she could bring it home for him instead? That was a caring, friendly thing to do, right? He must get exhausted dragging it to the clubhouse and back every couple of days, and it would definitely show that there was no hard feelings for… well, for whatever it was that had gone wrong.

Dust motes danced and swirled in the pale spring light as Gabby pulled the cart across the floor, before nestling the phonograph between the pillows that had been tied to the cart's interior. She lifted up the harness, paused, then looked over her shoulder.

The horn of the phonograph regarded her in a way that brought back memories of home. But, just like she did in Griffonstone, Gabby instead pretended it was was a look of encouragement, a sign to go ahead with whatever it was she was trying to do, and to not be discouraged with setbacks.

A trill built in her throat as she lowered the harness again, and within seconds she was caressing the crank of the device. The memory of the music came alive at the contact, an electric charge that passed through her charcoal-blue feathers and nested somewhere deep inside her. It wouldn't hurt to play it again first, would it? She would still have oodles of time to get it back to Tender Taps before meeting Apple Bloom and the others at the farm later.

Decision made, Gabby gripped the crank and began to turn it, before replacing the needle on the record. A crackle broke the stillness of the room, signalling the start of its slow transformation from clubhouse to grand ballroom. As the first notes lured in the rest of the orchestra, Gabby closed her eyes and allowed the shiver that had been building to ripple across her body. It was a beautiful melody; it was a breeze that brought sharpness to the colours of her world, and yet made her feel as though she was a nothing but a ghost. She stood statuesque for a few moments, before rising up on her hind legs and waiting to be granted entry.

Then she began to move.

Oh how good it felt to dance! Gabby glided across the clubhouse, a ghost with a heartbeat, and unfurled her wings to give her stability in the absence of a partner. Her arms were extended, but all they could reach for was Tender Taps’ echo. Nevertheless, the joy of moving this way swept away her anxiety. She just couldn't understand why the griffons back home hated it so much. It was just like flying, only instead of warm, caressing currents she was guided by rich sounds that both broke her heart and mended it all at once. They were sounds that took her by the claws and led her to places that would never find their way onto maps and globes. Gabby never usually got the chance to make such discoveries, so she had been thrilled when Tender Taps had asked for her help to practice.

Her eyes flew open, the sound of the music shedding from her body like feathers during a molt. She had been so enraptured that she had forgotten about what had just happened. With a frown forming on her face, Gabby slowed her movements, before starting to retrace the routine that they had been practicing together. Her frame was rigid as she dipped and ebbed along the currents of the melody; as she reached the first whisk step, she remembered the tremble of his hooves against her skin as he tried to lead the turn.

Gabby chirped, and balled her claws. That was it, surely. He was nervous about having to lead someone in the dance. After all, hadn't Apple Bloom said that he was still new to performing with a partner?

Satisfied she had worked out the cause of his frustration—after all, feeling like you couldn't achieve what you really wanted was probably the worst thing—Gabby darted across to the phonograph and replaced the needle. She still had time to catch up with him, hopefully. Perhaps she could help him calm down a little and—

Gabby froze. In the sudden empty stillness of the clubhouse, she sensed something moving—the pitter-patter of breath that was not her own. The owner of it was trying real hard not to be heard, but Gabby was an observant griffon, and absolutely nothing got past her. Spinning round, she opened her beak to greet the visitor, and then blinked in surprise.

“Tender Taps?” Her eyes widened, and sweet relief bubbled through her skin.

The colt was framed by the doorway, the pale light dulling his usually vivid orange coat. The ballroom suit he was wearing was now creased and hanging from his body in lazy angles, and leaves were clumped in his once smooth purple mane. Like Apple Bloom, he was only a couple of years younger than Gabby, but in that moment, with his eyes wide and mouth ajar, he looked much younger.

“Oh I'm so glad you came back!” She squawked, padding across the room. “Listen, I've been thinking about your problem, and maybe we—”

“Y—Y—You don't have to try and teach me everything!” Tender Taps’ purple eyes narrowed, and his lower lip poked out petulantly. His chest fluttered a few times before he continued. “Don't treat me like… like that.”

“Huh?” Gabby tiltled her head. “Treat you like what, TT? You wanted me to help, didn't you?” She hastily replayed the conversation with she had had with Apple Bloom a few weeks back. “You asked Apple Bloom to ask me to help you learn the waltz.”

“Yes—No! I mean—” Tender Taps tugged at the collar of his shirt “—not all of it. I know the routine. It was just the fleckerl, that was all. I thought I was losing my balance when I led you into the spin. I—I can do the other steps.” He jutted his chin out defiantly, though spots of colour darkened his cheeks. “I can… I'm good enough to lead, you know.”

Gabby wrung her tail. “But I never said you couldn't, TT.”

“You didn't with your beak, but your arms…” Tender Taps’ eyes drifted to the table and chairs which had been placed against one of the walls. “Y—You kept taking over and doing everything. It's so frustrating.”

In the silence that followed, he hung his head. Mumbled words fell from his lips, and had Gabby not been a griffon, she probably wouldn't have even heard them.

But she did.

“You're not useless!” she trilled, her wings sagging to the floor. “That's the last thing I'd want you to feel. I'm so sorry! It's just, you were shaking real bad whenever you came in close to me, so I thought you were worried about messing up the lead or something.”

She gazed out the window, watching the strong breeze pluck the leaves from the nearby trees. “I was just letting you know I was here to help… Or at least, that's what I was trying to do. I guess I got a little carried away. Dancing’s kind of a big thing for me.”

Tender Taps’ eyes grew wide, the petulant expression draining away. “It is?”

“Sure! I love to dance, but I don't get much of a chance to share it back home.”

After a moment, Tender Taps stepped into the clubhouse. “Do griffons not enjoy it or something?”

Gabby laughed. “They definitely, most certainly do not. Oh I've tried, but all I usually get it 'Gabby, why are your talons around my waist?’ or 'Stop harassing me, and definitely stop moving your body like that!’” She paused, frowning in thought. “On the list of things griffons don't like to do, dancing is tied for first.”

Tender Taps dropped down on his haunches beside her, his forehooves working on straightening out his suit. “Tied with what?”

“Oh, most things.” A giggle escaped Gabby's beak. “But that's okay, because I get to take vacations to Ponyville, and you all love to dance. Though you're the first to ever actually ask me!”

“Oh… I—I saw you about, that's all.” Tender Taps’ tail swished across the floor. “Y—You know, when you came to see Apple Bloom and the others that one time, and I was there. I saw you dance… also y—y—you seemed cool.”

“And I think you're cool too, so it all worked out well.” Gabby prodded the colt with a wing. “Unless, you don't want me to help anymore?”

Tender Taps’ body stiffened. “Of course I do,” he blurted, his whole face blushing. “B—But you have to promise—”

“You won't hear a tweet out of me,” Gabby giggled, grabbing his forehooves and shaking them. “So it's a deal, right? Right? I help you with practice and… and if there's any advice I want to give I'll wait until we've finished, okay?”

“Deal.” After a second, Tender Taps smiled. The action seemed to relax his whole body, which seemed to catch the sunlight more strongly as he rose back up onto his hooves. Gabby beamed at him as she eagerly replaced the phonograph and began to wind its crank.

“Just try to relax though, okay? I know winning this dance contest means a whole lot to you, but you should have a little fun too.”

Tender Taps shuffled his hooves. “Er… Sure. The contest... I'll… I'll try and remember that.”

Gabby reset the needle and moved to the centre of the clubhouse. As the melody started to fill the room once again, she rose up onto her hind legs and waited. Opposite, Tender Taps took a deep breath before approaching, his forelegs reaching hesitantly out towards her.

She held her tongue, and tried to ignore the urge to pull the colt into position so they could start dancing. Her skin prickled beneath her feathers, and it felt as though her paws were one swish of a tail away from pulling free from her body and starting without her. But she took a deep breath, and instead attempted to meet Tender Taps’ restless gaze. She had made a deal, and deals were important.

Eventually, his trembling forelegs settled into place, one holding her outstretched claw, and the other resting almost too tightly on her shoulder. His muzzle brushed against the feathers on her cheek as he straightened his frame, and a jagged giggle escaped her beak.

Tender Taps’ eyes almost filled his face, and he turned his head away. “S—Sorry.”

“It’s fine, it just tickled a bit.” Gabby arched her back, so her upper body was curving slightly away from his. Then she draped her free arm across his shoulder, and waited patiently for his eyes to return to hers. When he acquiesced, she grinned. “Whenever you’re ready, Tapster. Waltz me!”

The colt’s chest pressed against hers as he inhaled deep, his ears twitching as he waited for an entry point. Then they were away, hooves and paws twisting and gliding across the floor, their bodies rising and falling through the melody as though it had become fused with the air itself. It only took a few seconds before Gabby felt a tremble across the base of her spine, and she lowered her eyes to make sure Tender Taps’ hoofwork wasn’t giving him cause to be anxious.

The moment the floor came into view, however, Tender Taps pulled her into a tight whisk step. Gabby squawked, her paws skidding across the coarse wood as she tried to regain her stability from the turn. Tender Taps’ face betrayed nothing, but Gabby was sure she had seen a spark of something in his eyes before he had spun her into a loop. After narrowing her own in mock-warning, she found herself grinning. It was so good to see him enjoying himself.

“You’re doing really great,” she chirped. Her tail swished to its own rhythm as she switched paws, as though seeking a partner of its very own. “You’ll win first prize no problem at all. Oh! That reminds me, you still haven’t said when it is. We’ve been practicing for weeks now, so it’s gotta be close, right?”

Tender Taps’ cheeks darkened, his tongue falling between his teeth as he tried to lead Gabby into another sudden whisk step. She was ready for him this time, though, and her body swung gracefully into the turn. Lowering her head, so that her beak was brushing against the hairs of his ear, she pulled the colt against her chest.

“It is close, right?”

“I—It’s soon, I think,” he replied, deftly moving his hooves so that the next rise and fall put space between them. “I can’t remember, but… uh… soon.”

Gabby beamed, and lifted her head again. “Well make sure you let me know when it is, okay? I wanna be there cheering you both on.” She blinked as a thought came to her. “But wait a second, who is your partner? I’m surprised you’re not practicing with—”

She screeched as his hoof pressed down on her paw.

“S—S—Sorry,” he mumbled, his face alight. “You made me... Anyway, I… I haven’t got a partner yet. I mean,” he added, eyes wide, “I just haven’t asked her yet. But she’s really good at dancing, so it won’t be a problem.”

Gabby’s stomach performed an excited somersault. “Ooh, it’s Apple Bloom, right? She dances neat too, doesn’t she?”

“It’s not Apple Bloom!” Tender Taps tried to lower his head, but only succeeded in burying his muzzle in Gabby’s chest-feathers. “I… I mean, she’s great but—I’m gonna try the fleckerl again now, okay?”

“Hooray, the best bit!” Gabby straightened her arm, and started to rest her weight on the back of her paws. “Ready,” she chirped.

The world began to turn. Their bodies bowed away from one another, the shadows they cast radiating around them as they spun, paws and hooves crossing and uncrossing. Tender Taps’ eyes were wide as they played out the serene chaos of the melody, his lips moving soundlessly as he counted steps and rotations. Gabby barely noticed. The world had become a faultless kaleidoscope, a realm where the objects within it had been rendered as shapeless as the emotions tumbling free from her body. Unable to contain her jubilation, she threw her head back and trilled loudly, her wings unfurling and opening wide.

Somewhere amongst the melody, she heard Tender Taps whicker in dismay. Then the world lurched sideways.

When practice was over, Gabby helped Tender Taps wheel his cart and phonograph out of the clubhouse.

“There we go, all ready for the walk home,” she gasped, helping him into his harness. Stepping back, she wiped cool beads of sweat from her brow. “Sorry again for, um, startling you at the end… Did I ever tell you that I really really like dancing?”

A smile crept onto Tender Taps’ lips. “You might have mentioned it once or twice.”

“Yeah, I probably did.” Gabby’s chuckle faded as she noticed how intently the colt’s eyes were focused on the treeline. “Hey, are you okay? You’re not worried or anything are you? ’Cos you were amazing in there! You didn’t put a single hoof wrong!

Tender Taps ran a hoof through his damp mane. His throat bobbed once, and then he looked up at her. “Thanks… for everything. Today really helped me s—sort some things out. S—Same time Saturday?”

Gabby winked. “You bet, TT! Maybe we can try out a couple of the more advanced moves, seeing as you’re feeling so confident now.”

A shiver rippled across Tender Taps’ body. “Y—Yeah, that sounds good. Um…”

“Great!” Gabby raised a claw. “Well, if you’re okay getting back, I’m gonna fly now. I’m supposed to be meeting Apple Bloom and the others for dinner.” She spread her wings and gave them an experimental flap. “Toodles!”

“W—Wait!” Tender Taps spat the words out of his mouth as though they had been stuck in there like a whole cob of corn. He took a breath, and then trotted up to her, that defiant look back on his face. But the moment he was within a feathers-breadth from her, the facade slipped. A indecipherable question tumbled from his mouth.

Gabby frowned and leaned forward. “Eh?”

And then he kissed her.

It was a fleeting contact, a chaste brush of lips against her feathered cheek, but it swept away the crisp spring air in a heartbeat. Gabby took a step back, eyes blinking. “H—Huh?”

Tender Taps stood rigid, his wide-eyed gaze a glittering anchor. Then his chest began to move, his legs trembling.

“Thatwastosaythankyou!” he gasped, before turning and cantering off down the woodland path, the cart and phonograph bouncing behind.

Gabby watched him go, her claw pressed absently against her cheek. No-one had ever kissed her before. It felt like liquid sunlight! What a lovely way to be thanked for helping out a friend.

As he ran between the trees, Gabby could just about make out Tender Taps as he paused to look over his shoulder. When he started bucking the air joyfully, she burst out laughing. She knew he had been worried about messing up the dance routine, just knew it! Despite his age, he was such a professional, trying to hide his relief from her.

But Gabby was an observant griffon.

Absolutely nothing got past her.

Author's Notes:

As always, thanks a bundle for reading.

I made a promise to myself that I would try to be more productive with my writing in 2018, not just here, but with my own original work too. I was attempting to make sure that I published one story a month here, but the one you've just read was not going to be the story for January. However, both of my initial choices spiralled into something larger, and I realised I wouldn't have time to finish them for my self-imposed deadline.

So I opted to try another experiment. Could I come up with an single scene idea, write it and edit it in under 24 hours? Because most of my problems with my work seem to come from me overdeveloping relatively simple ideas, and when I throw myself into a really harsh timeframe, that issue seems to reduce.

Hence the birth of this one, which originated from simply looking at two random characters and thinking of a way they would feasibly be sharing page-time. In the end, this story was written and edited in 6 hours and 52 minutes and so, even though it's likely to be a little rough around the edges, I still think it's been beneficial and educational as a piece of prose (for me, at least. I'll leave the enjoyability verdict to you readers).

That's about it, really. For those of you who regularly read my work, I'm keen to hear any merits and flaws you can see in this approach compared to my more methodical approaches in other stories. Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next time.