Galling Tendency

Galling Tendencies

By Somber

Chapter 8: The Catch

Gallus swaggered; there was no better word for the strut he employed as he walked through the school. He’d gotten away with it and beaten that stupid mirror. He had his twig and... no, his staff and orbs of powah! Sure, there was nothing different about it physically, but in his head he could have wrestled an Ursa Major with one claw.

“Hello, ladies,” he said smoothly as he spotted some fillies from class, getting weird looks and giggles rather than strange looks and frowns. Victory. Right now he’d take every victory and then some. Because he’d actually solved a problem on his own, like a griffon was supposed to. No embarrassment or humiliation... okay, nothing permanent. He’d won.

Mostly. He went back to his dorm room. Thankfully it was empty. He stuck the candies under his pillow. If he even needed them, but still, better to be safe than sorry.

He spotted Ocellus, Smolder, and Silverstream together by the courtyard fountain. “Heeey ladies,” he said with a grin. “How’s it hanging?” Very well, thank you!

“Woah. Someone’s feeling better,” Smolder called out with a wave as he walked up. “See you ditched the sailor duds. They really made you look like a dork.”

“How’s what hanging?” Silverstream mused, scanning the court yard. “That potted plant? Mmmm... looks a little crooked,” she said as she eyed some suspect geraniums dangling from an eve. She flew up and Gallus’s eyes followed her form in flight. Zecora was nice but there was nothing quite like her. She corrected the potted plant hanging in its sling. “There!” she said primmly, fluttering back down. The plant immediately tilted back over.

Ocellus and Smolder shared a look. “I’m really glad you’re feeling better. I heard you were really upset after you left Miss Glimmer’s office,” Ocellus commented, screwing up her face as she regarded him. “Though right now... hrm.”

“Yeah, what’s the deal? This morning you were wearing clothes, which are probably the second dumbest pony invention ever, and now you’re...” she trailed off and her cheeks immediately flushed. “You didn’t.” Gallus polished his knuckles on his chest fluff. Ocellus turned red as well. “You did!”

“Did what? What did he do?” Silverstream asked as she looked from one to the other.

“Who did you do?” Smolder demanded.

“No one you need to worry about,” he added, trying not to think of the fact that more people did him, but he wasn’t going to spoil the mood. The fact that he’d impressed Smolder of all people boosted his ego even higher. “It’s alllll goood.” And it had been, for Gallina. He’d claim victory in her absence.

“Who did what to whom for what and how was it good?” Silverstream demanded as she looked from one to the next. Occellus leaned over, whispering and she immediately flushed magenta. “Gallus?! You had sex?!”

A dozen eyes of ponies across the quad locked on him and finally popped his bubble of euphoria. “Can you be a little louder? I don’t think they heard in Canterlot.”

She immediately clasped her hands over her beak. “Oops. Sorry. I just... wow. Huh. It looks like everyone’s maturing. Yona and Sandbar. Now you too.” She glanced over at the other two.

“Don’t look at me. There’s no one here that I’m interested in doing that stuff with,” she said with still a hint of pink on her cheeks.

“I don’t think I’m quite ready to do things like that yet,” Ocellus admitted with a shy smile.

“And I can’t or it’ll be a political incident,” Silverstream muttered, getting two confused glances from the changeling and dragon. “Long story.”

“Well anyway, that’s where I was. Went pretty well too. Not what I expected but not bad at all,” he said, assuming a little more of his swagger. “Where is Yona and Sand-” he started to ask and then clicked his beak. “Nevermind. I just answered my own question, didn’t I?”

“I still have to wonder how that all works,” Smolder said as she mashed her cupped hands.

“I don’t have to wonder, and I’m not going to share,” he said and stretched. “I just need a long bath. And I need to give somepony an apology.”

“Well, hope I see you in it later,” she said as he turned to go, flying towards the door.

Before he re-entered the school, Ocellus called out to him. “Gallus, wait!” And she flew over to him in the doorway. “Gallus, are you sure you’re okay? You’ve been... I mean...and right now...”

He shushed her with a feather to her lips. “You’ve been worried about me. But you don’t have to be. I had a problem. I took care of it.” He still had to manage Tag and stuff, but it was handled.

“And I’m glad you feel better. Just, if you ever need to talk, please do,” she told him.

“Thanks, but I can handle anythi-”

“TAG!”

“FUUUUARRGGHHHH...” he collapsed as the yellow colt ran off cackling.

He didn’t get far. Ocellus transformed into a hummingbird, zipping after him like an arrow, before turning to face him. Then she got big... really big... transforming into an enormous winged, fanged monstrosity that bellowed, “KNOCK IT OFF!” Spittle sprayed all over the yellow colt as he blinked up at her.

“TAG!” He shouted again, smacking her on the snout before racing off down another hall laughing. She shrank back down, rubbing her muzzle before realizing he wasn’t the only one laughing. Gallus seemed to be trying to laugh and cry at the same time.

“I’m fine! I’m fine!” Gallus wheezed as he curled up there. “Everything is perfectly fine!”

“Boys are so weird,” she said as she trotted off to go find the nurse.

It was actually an icepack later that he was close to fine, but the fact he needed an ice pack at all gave Tag a pass. A small pass. The colt was going to get turned into a statue at this rate. Still, once most of the soreness worked off, he wrote a little note of apology for Councillor Glimmer and then headed to the baths for his evening soak, glad that he finally wouldn’t need to worry about anything.

“Hi Gallus,” she called, waving a fin from the steamy pool. He jumped in, splashing her. Big mistake, as the seapony used her tail to show him what a splash really looked like. By the time it ended though, he floated in the steamy water, arms and wings spread wide on the seat in the pool. “So. How was it?” He blinked and looked at her as she bobbed on a little floaty.

“It?” he blinked and then his eyes went wide. “Oh. It! Hah.” He glanced askance at her. “You really want to know?”

“Yona’s not much for girl talk. All she says is Sandbar is ‘Big as Yak’, and that’s it. I mean, I get that it’s good and all but she’s not really chatty on the subject. Smolder’s not interested at all. Ocellus... I dunno. But yeah. So... how was it?”

Gallus considered. “It was all right. Like... it was good. It wasn’t anything I really expected but when it was all done it felt pretty good.” He saw her huge blue eyes and added, “And no, I’m not telling you with who.” Last thing he needed was for the little detail of Gallina slipping out.

“Awww, meanie,” she said, her smile now smaller and softer. “I am still sorry it wasn’t me.”

He was too. “Hey, no worries. If you’re not interested, you’re not.” He paused, and arched a brow. “Or are you?”

“I wish I was,” she said with a sigh. “It’d be so much easier. I even asked Ocellus to watch my feelings and stared at a lot of colts all day. Nothing. I just... I don’t feel that way. I don’t know why I don’t! But I don’t.” Her voice was small as she looked down at the water. “Sorry,” she murmured.

“Hey. You got nothing to apologize for,” he said.

“Yes, I do. It’s going to be a problem. A problem for my parents. My fiancee, whomever they settle on. Me. If I just liked people like that, it’d be easier. Then I wouldn’t feel like I’m letting others down.”

“Can’t you just be with a girl you like?”

She rolled her eyes. “If I wasn’t the queen’s niece, absolutely. But the nobility are a lot more particular. No one wants marriages that result in kids out of wedlock. I could have a lover on the side, but that just feels... really dishonest. Like marriage is supposed to be for love, like Princess Cadence and Shining Armor.”

Gallus was pretty sure there was some politics at work there too, but didn’t want to spoil what she clearly had as an ideal marriage. “Griffons don’t even do that,” he said with a sigh. “For us, it’s like a business merger. Five years, who gets the kids, who gets the property, options for renewal. Some griffs stick it out, but you get a lot of empty nests and lost eggs. Especially when neither parent wants to pay for raising the kid. Grandpa Gruff’s weird in that he actually takes care of us, even if we’re expensive.”

“That’s got to be rough,” she said as she bobbed there. “Is that what happened to you and Gallina?”

“Gallina?” Gallus muttered, feeling icewater along his spine.

“Your sister?” she asked with a little frown.

“Oh. Yeah. Dad took her, mom left me. She didn’t even grow up in Griffonstone which is why almost no one knows about her!” he said in a rush as he leaned towards her. “How’d you hear about her?”

“Well... I overheard Smolder talking to Ocellus about overhearing Spike talking to Twilight about meeting a beautiful blue griffoness named Gallina who was your sister in the Everfree Forest.” She blinked at him. “Funny, but you were in the Everfree Forest this afternoon too. Did you see your sister?”

“Hah.... yeah. Funny... hah... will you excuse me for just a second? It shouldn’t take long.” He said as he jumped into the air and flapped his wings, flying, and shook hard.

“What won’t?” she asked back. But Gallus was gone before he answered.

She floated in the middle of the pool. “Gallus leaves in the middle if the afternoon for the Everfree forest and Spike meets his sister there... and Gallus says he’s done it.... Won’t say who with.” Then her eyes went wide and she slowly sank down into the water till just her eyes peeked out, blurting out the unthinkable connection that these facts drew in a storm of bubbles.

“Spike! Spike!” Gallus yelled as he flew through the school. He glimpsed the purple dragon in a classroom grading papers, simple friendship worksheets from Rainbow Dash’s classes. “Spike! What did you say about Gallina?” Gallus demanded as he darted into the classroom.

Spike fell over with a wail, scattering papers all over the desk. “Wha... how... huh?”

“Yeah. Who’s Gallina?” asked a dangerously familiar voice. Gallus slowly turned to stare at Smolder, Sandbar, and Yona sitting nearby in the classroom. Suddenly his brain, which must have been left behind in the bathroom in his haste to throttle Spike, caught up.

“My twin sister,” he lied. “I was raised by Grandpa gruff. She was raised by someone else.” He coughed. “What are all of you doing here?”

“Mainly keeping Spike company,” Sandbar said lazily as he snuggled up against Yona.

“Making sure Dash actually grades things rather than just giving every creature an A has been a little challenging,” Spike said with a flush.

“Dragon didn’t mention meeting Griffon’s twin sister,” Yona rumbled. “Griffon also didn’t mention having a twin sister either.”

Gallus thought fast. “She’s... kinda embarrassing. She just flies from Yakyakistan to Mount Eris doing whatever she wants. I heard she was near Ponyville. She was going to go meet a zebra for something.” He then gave Spike the eye. “She didn’t try anything, did she?”

“Uh... she was nice. Really really nice,” Spike muttered.

Smolder let out a skeptical snort. “A nice griffon? I can count those on one claw.”

Gallus gave an exaggerated eye roll. “Oh, she’s cool enough. She just does stuff. Stuff other people probably shouldn’t talk about.”

“She’s cool, huh? I’d really like to meet her,” Sandbar said. Yona gave him a side eye with arched brow. “What? Don’t you wonder what a girl Gallus might look like?”

“She was super hot,” Spike muttered.

“Aren’t you with Gabby?” Smolder inquired, for which Gallus was glad as it deferred further speculation on Gallina’s hotness.

“Gabby’s my friend. I’m her friend. If we become more then friends, then we’ll worry about it. But Galina was just... amazing.” He sighed as Gallus sputtered.

“Amazing sis, huh? Like to meet her myself,” Sandbar chuckled.

“And aren’t you with Yona?” Smoulder asked, eyeing Sandbar.

“Course,” he replied.

“Yak not worry about Sandbar doing anything stupid with griffon sister,” Yona added.

“Yeah, since she could totally smash me if I did.”

“Yak best at smashing,” Yona stated with a wide grin.

“You bet you are,” Gallus chuckled. Smolder twisted away so the pair wouldn’t see her stick her finger in her mouth, mimicking retching.

“Well, if I know her she’s not going to come anywhere near this school, ever,” Gallus swore firmly, his mind working. “She’s more of a free spirit. She goes where she wants and does what she wants. She certainly wouldn’t stick around a lame school like this one.” Then he caught Spike’s downcast eye. “Sorry.”

Spike gave a shrug. “She made it clear she wasn’t sticking around. I kinda got the feeling she wasn’t nearly as, ah... cool, as she acted.”

Gallus patted him on the spines. “Hey, don’t worry. Some day you’ll meet a dragon... pony... whatever works for you.”

Spike sighed, leaning back in the chair. “Awww, but she’s so cute! She had this delicate beak and her rear was so soft and her–”

Gallus’s cheeks blazed. “You... you don’t have to talk about her body or cuteness. In fact, why talk about her at all? I don’t see any reason to! None at all!”

“You know, for an estranged sibling, you sure seem pretty defensive of her,” Smolder observed.

“Caaaause... she’s not here. And Professor Applejack said talking behind a person’s back was dishonest,” he said as he backed towards the door. “Speaking of teachers, I should totally make sure my homework is ready for tomorrow! See yah!” And he darted from the classroom.

In his absence the four shared glances. “Did Gallus just invoke Applejack and say he had to do homework?” Spike asked aloud.

“Changeling, gotta be.” Smolder stated bluntly.

“Maybe he, like, swapped minds with his sis?” Sandbar suggested.

“Yak suspect mind control magic. Gallus did see Glimmer pony earlier,” Yona pointed out.

Spike just glanced towards the door, saying nothing as he went back to his work, a new furrow added to his brow.

Gallus spent the next week putting the whole debacle behind him. Zecora’s cure did the trick, and while there were a few more mutters about ‘Gallina’, none of them came from anyone important. By the time his next day off rolled around, he felt like the mirror had been licked for good. Every morning he ate one of the chews and checked to make sure all his parts were his.

“I don’t know what it is about you,” Silverstream commented as she rest on the edge of the steamy pool, her forelegs folded under her head, exquisite rump poking from the water as they enjoyed their bi nightly soak. Gallus wasn’t sure Griffons were supposed to get wet so regularly, but if he got to look at her for some late night alone time material, he’d take it. Besides, in her own way, she was fun to talk to. It was hard not to be swept up in her enthusiasm. “You seem different lately.”

“More masculine?” he said, trying to force a baritone that cracked halfway through.

“Kinda. I guess you’re happier? Or you seem like you are,” Silverstream observed. Gallus just laid back in the water. Was it just him or was it particularly warm tonight?

“Eh, I had a problem and I took care of it,” he commented with a smile.

“Tag?” Silverstream guessed.

“Ugh. I swear, next time he tries to ‘tag’ me I’m going to maul him if I catch him!” Gallus swore. “No, it was something else.” She glanced over her shoulder at him. “N- nothing big,” he stammered, waving a claw.

“We would have helped,” Silverspring said as she turned to face him in the soaking pool, a small frown in her face.

“I know, I know,” he said quickly. “But it’s important a griffon solve their own problems, you know?”

She disappeared under the water and he had a strange moment of panic before she surfaced as a seapony and ‘sat’ on the bathing pool ledge beside him. “Nope. Don’t know that at all, cause I’m not a griffon.” She said as she gave her fluke a splash.

“Right,” he said and took a deep breath. “You’ve never seen Griffonstone before, and I hope you never do. It’s a really rough place. Almost every griff is out for themselves. I can count the exceptions on one claw.” He said, flexing his fingers before looking away. Why was he being so maudlin about this? Just blow it off. “It’s really important a griff can handle things on their own. Bad things happen to griffs who can’t.”

“You’re not in Griffonstone anymore though,” Silverstream pointed out.

“Sure, today. But what about tomorrow? It’s not like I can just hang out and join the royal guard some day or something.” He closed his eyes, trying to bottle things up like normal. It wasn’t usually this hard! Just pfft and you’re good. He felt all weird as he sat here next to her... like his insides her all melting wax. “One day, we’re going to graduate. You’ll go to Mount Aris and marry whomever. Smolder will do whatever she wants. Ocellus will go back to her hive, or maybe just stay here as a teacher. Yona and Sandbar will probably settle down.” He glanced at her, unable to hide his misery. “I just see myself going back to Griffonstone and winding up looking like a blue Grandpa Gruff. I have to be able to take care of myself on my own. I won’t make it otherwise. I can’t count on you guys being there for me forever. That’s not fair to you.”

“Gallus,” Silverstream said as she put her head on his shoulder. “I don’t know what’ll happen to everyone, but I do know that whatever happens, we’ll always be there for you. We’re friends.”

But he didn’t hear her because something was wrong. Silverstream was cozied up to him. Even as a seapony, her body was curvy and soft and wonderful to brush against... but something bad was happening... or something good wasn’t happening. His hands disappeared under the water as he felt his torso, the soft and yielding flesh meeting his examination. Panic erupted inside him as his claws shot betwixt his legs... normally a risky act.

But not right now, for there was nothing there for his claws to endanger. “Gallus? Is something wrong?” Silverstream asked with a concerned frown.

He forced a grin. “Yeah. Just think those oat muffins might not have been good,” he said, closing his eyes and breathing deep. He wasn’t going to change. He refused. He’d worked so hard for so long that he could stop this. He could! Just long enough to get out with some dignity intact.

But he felt things moving around inside his guts. They crawled, like the organs themselves rearranged. “Really? I thought they were fine. Are you going to be okay?”

“Sure,” he lied. He couldn’t handle it. Worse, he could feel it spreading. His shoulders, skull, face. It was like tiny hands pushing his bones ever so slightly. To a griffon it would have been blatantly obvious. But then again, there wasn’t much difference between Hippogriff faces and griffon faces. Practically none at all. He splashed his face, mussing his features to obscure the changes. “I just... I just need a moment.” He said, sitting back on his haunches, he rocked to confirm that far more was lacking beneath his tail, and from the disturbing feeling of water, there was fluid pressing against an orifice he shouldn’t have.

“Gallus? What is it? Did you get your tail caught in the pool intake again?” she asked and her head disappeared underwater.

“Ohgoshgotathinggottago!” he screeched and flapped, spraying water over the others in the bathroom as he streaked like a sodden arrow straight for the exit. He returned, seeing her staring at him with wide eyed bafflement as he grabbed a towel and tied it around his hips, and a second one to cover his face.

“Please no horseshoe. Please no horseshoe!” he muttered, his voice becoming lighter and smoother with every echo of the prayer to Boreas. He rounded the corner and dove towards his dorm room, his wet feathers failing to break him properly as he fell to the ground.

He slid along the ground to break before slamming into the door of his dorm.

Horseshoe.

“GYA!” he screamed, and became aware of others in the dorm hallway. If someone got a good look... if Spike wandered by...

As if the universe had a vendetta, he spotted a purple scaly form strolling down towards him. Guy code be damned, he drummed his fists on the door in a wild staccato. He couldn’t even trust to yell.

Then the door opened to a yak. A yak who was a good friend. A yak who was kind and wonderful. However, she was a yak who had clearly been interrupted from doing something she wanted very much, and despite months amid ponies, still had ‘Smash’ as an option. Gallus didn’t care. He launched himself into the air, soaring over her and depositing two wet towels on her face. Sandbar was mostly covered by a sheet, pitched well enough for a three ring circus beneath.

Gallus launched himself into his own bed, under his sheets and dug around for the little bag. He immediately popped one of the round chews in, and almost swallowed the thing whole. He felt the warm clay sensation of his body altering, feeling organs in his pelvis shifting around. “Uh, Gallus. Everything okay?” Sandbar asked from below.

“Sec!” he croaked, feeling his throat loosen and relax from his feminine squawk. Like a sausage casing, firmness was squeezed back into his loins as the member reappeared. His hands ran over those fleshy, puffy breasts to confirm they were tightening up. He even dared to feel between his haunches, feeling the slit melting away even as he touched it. Like apples bobbing to the surface, his berries reappeared under his hands from somewhere within his body.

“Griffon,”rumbled a far more dangerous yak.

“Second!” He said, yanking the drawstring closed and tucking it under his wing. He dashed over to his saddlebags. “Almost forgot a thing! Almost done!” He shouted as he shoved the sack of chews inside. “Got to go do a thing! Have fun! Bye!” He shouted as he darted out the door, slamming it shut in his passing and sending the horseshoe bouncing down the hall as he ran.

He didn’t stop till he reached the tree house. “Oh shit. Oh no. Oh crap,” he muttered as he paced back and forth. He hadn’t solved it. He hadn’t ‘cured it’. All he’d done was delayed it! “What am I going to do? What am I going to do?” he whimpered.

“I dunno. What are you going to do?” asked a light voice from overhead. Ocellus stared down at him, a pair of pudgewugies flanking her like prickly bodyguards from a loft reading nook. Her purple scleria narrowed. “Gallus? Um... what is going on?”

Everything caught up with him in that moment and he did the only reasonable thing one could in this situation.

Gallus died. Again. For real this time.