Good Intentions

Ocellus stared with glazed over eyes as the words on the page blurred into an abstract mess. Her ears had folded to the side of her head, and still the noise of the increasingly tense debate around her invaded her mind. She felt a surge of annoyance before realizing it had not come from within, only to be startled out of her stupor by a loud screech. "Gallus, just stop!" Ocellus flinched as the outburst echoed through the room, and out into the halls beyond. Glacially she turned her head upwards, her eyes refocusing as they lingered on the events she had been doing her best to block out.

Across the table two of her closest friends were currently locked in a silent staring match, until which they had spend the last half hour getting into an increasingly heated argument. The outburst had utterly stunned the flamboyantly colored gryphon, and left him in a rather expressive posture. His broad blue wings were tattered and stretched out in a subconscious attempt to look powerful, but his limply hanging open beak and claw that had been unable to complete its motion undercut any impression he could have made.

Ocellus's eyes trailed over to the pink hippogryph who had disturbed the peace. She was quite surprised to register just how tense her friend's emotions had become, contrary to the steadfast carefreeness she usually portrayed. As the silence continued to linger two things became clear, Gallus was unwilling to disobey her, and Silverstream had no idea how to follow up on her own outburst.

Finally Silverstream found her voice, and brought forth a sobbing chirp that rang with emotion even to a creature who had never heard it before. The cold wave of sadness that ebbed from Silverstream and into Ocellus shook the young changeling even as the hippogryph finally found action. She raised her slumped body posture and stood tall, meeting Gallus's gaze even as her eyes began to form thick tears, leaned close and nearly let their beaks touch, then spoke with uncharacteristic severity.

"This was a dumb idea. Sorry to have placed unfair expectations on you." Silvertream swallowed something that seemed to have gotten stuck in her throat "I guess you were right when you said gryphons do 'romance' differently." There was another short pause, the whole world waiting on her, "Gallus, we are done.".

This finally broke the gryphon's frozen state, concern visibly draining the anger from his posture. He instantly reached out an unsteady claw to embrace his other half, words forming at the back of his throat that were cut off when Silverstream deftly ducked under his claw and backed away from him. She shook her head and spoke firmly.

"No, I said we are done! I should have listened to Novo..." She turned away from him and muttered a "I am sorry.". Her head drooping towards the floor. The heartbroken filly voiced an choked sob and then sprinted out of the room, leaving Gallus behind with his claw still grasping thin air. A single quiet "Silverstream" was all he could muster before the world descended back into silence.

Ocellus shuddered as Gallus's pain began to bury itself into her empathetic mind. Even as she tried to overcome the powerful sensation and focus her thoughts the changeling could feel his emotions changing form. Beneath the thick ice that encased his heart sparks began to form, and then burst into a blazing flame. When the final clacking sounds of Silverstream's hooves reached their ears the ice had turned to boiling water and suddenly the gryphon slammed his claw onto the marble ground. The impact caused the tile to crack and echoing cacophony assaulted Ocellus's ears with such force that she instinctively withdrew, forfeiting her seat on the bench in favour for the safer position a few hoof-lengths away. By the time her ears had stooped ringing she could make out the gryphon's hoarse voice yelling into the room.

"Are you serious?! We are done? After everything we have had she blows up like that? What is wrong with her! I..." Just as suddenly as he had began he ended, the flame turning into steam with a puff as the fury inside him was extinguished, and the space slowly filled with something worse than freezing cold and burning magma, a void of pure nothingness. His crest slumped to his neck and for the first time since they started arguing the gryphon took note of the unfortunate Changeling who had to witness the whole ordeal, and turned his gaze upon her.

His words were surprisingly calm and if he took note of her frightened reaction he did not show it. "Cell, I think I really messed up.." Their eyes met, and Ocellus could see the desperate need for an epiphany, or time machine. Sadly she could offer neither, and so she resolved to help with her meagre means by forcing a smile onto her muzzle and stepping closer despite her bodies lingering warnings.

"I... wasn't trying to overhear your discussion. It sounded very personal." She said, the hint of a blush creeping onto her blue face. "But it sounds like she is mad because you and Smolder did something that betrayed her trust?" There was a ping of guilt in Ocellus's mind when she recalled finding their argument strangely alluring at first, and now she wished she had realized how serious it had been from the start. Still, she was determined to set things right.

"I have never seen Silverstream be put down by anything for long, this won't be different." The changelings big eyes stayed locked with the gryphon and as she continued she braced herself for whatever his reaction may be, "She wasn't serious when she said she was done. She really loves you, still loves you, I can feel it. Give her some time and then I am sure you can think of a way to apologize."

Ocellus held her hopeful smile with pride, despite the fact that Gallus seemed equally intent on staying as sour and heartbroken as ever. Finally he simply blinked, turned his gaze from her in a casual but sluggish movement and spoke.

"I don't know, I have never seen her like this before. Mad? Sure. Playfully disappointed? yea... but I didn't think I could ever make her so... hurt." His words were laced with a growing guilt as the severity of his mistake sank into his mind. Finally, he shook himself and turned toward the only door out of the room.

"I am calling it an early night, no point learning any of these stupid friendship lessons when I just hurt my friends. Goodnight Ocellus."

He half heartily began dragging himself out of the room before Ocellus had even voiced a reply and all she could think of was a quick and simple "Goodnight, sleep well.". It was meant sincerely, but felt hollow nonetheless. As the gryphon created distance between them his emotions finally stopped washing into her, her body could focus on itself once more. Which left only an overwhelming sensation of exhaustion.