Gilda sat in the living room, the second letter in her talons. She murmured nothing in particular, and lifted one of the meat kebabs that Gabby had brought back from the market. She chuckled as the hen borrowed her red brooch before leaving. Stating:

"If any tom wants their paws intact come tomorrow morning, they better not touch me."

Gilda smiled and nibbled at the juicy morsel of food. The second letter crinkled in her paw, and she set it down, so as not to damage it. Earlier, she'd decided that asking the mystery sender for a new jewelry box wouldn't hurt. Worse case scenario it was all a hoax and she never heard back from them, but given how they had taken rather large steps to verify that they were interested, left Gilda in doubt of that theory. Rainbow Dash had been one heck of a prankster, but her level of detail never came close to what was happening here. Pinkie Pie would never mess with things like this either.

Nearby, Gabby was cleaning the apartment before they left for the duels. Whenever the hen was excited or nervous, she would clean. Gilda surmised it was a little of both right now. Gabby was happy to see one of her friends in a positive situation, and at the same time, she actively avoided the festival currently going on in town. The hen was currently crouched down next to the kitchen table, growling lightly and kneading her talons into the floor at a stubborn scuff mark that fought her cleaning.

Gilda bit off another chunk of food and looked back to the letter. Next to it was the first letter, as well as the two rose petals she'd been given. She felt conflicted and confused, but happy.

They called me their rose...sappy...but I guess I like it... She blushed and felt her tail tuck closer to her rump. Gabby was currently in a flurry of movement before her and Gilda was momentarily fascinated as her roommate attacked their house. The place was checked from top to bottom by the dark pelted female as she squashed any rebellious bits of dirt or grime. Dust was removed from shelves, knickknacks, and off flat surfaces. The kitchen floor was swept up and the debris banished to the trashcan.

Gilda was happy her roommate wasn't a slob. Gabby hated living in a disheveled apartment and told Gilda she'd take care of the cleaning when she moved in, and since then, she'd upheld that. Currently the hen was fighting her cleaning supplies in an attempt to shove them all at once into the closet next to her room. The broom fought extra hard and slipped, clattering down against Gabby's skull with a dull thunk.

"Ow." Gabby rubbed her head feathers and glared at the offending object. Gilda snorted and took the last bite of her first kebab off its stick before looking at the letters and petals again. Something didn't add up, and Gilda wasn't sure what it was.

She looked between the two objects as Gabby disappeared into the kitchen. The sound of her friend rummaging around startled her when a cake pan clattered noisily to the floor and rolled out on to the living room floor. Gabby came around the corner, her eyes beady and sharp as she scooped up the offending dish.

"That is not where you live!" She chirped, before disappearing again. Gilda rolled her eyes and went to pick up the second kebab, when Gabby's words repeated in her mind. Her eyes fell to the letters.

Not where you live...wait a second. Gilda blinked and looked up as Gabby entered the living room with her own tray of kebabs in a paw. Gilda scooted over to give Gabby room, who thanked her and hopped up onto the soft cushions. Curling twice before settling down, Gabby bit victoriously into her kebab with a a playful growl.

"Hey Gabby?" Gilda murmured, her eyes wouldn't leave the letters. That had to be what she was missing. "I need a second opinion on something."

Gabby nodded, swallowing her catch and grinning at Gilda. "Sure, what is on your mind?"

Gilda pointed to the letters. "Do you see anything off about this? The letters I mean? I feel like I'm missing a crucial part of this little puzzle." She looked to Gabby who had slowed in her chewing and was looking back and forth between the two items. For a few minutes they ate in silence, Gilda finished her second kebab and set the stick onto the tray. Gabby finished soon after.

"I mean, maybe? What kind of puzzle piece do you think you're missing?" Gabby nibbled at a vegetable on her last stick, almost preening it playfully.

Gilda shrugged. "I don't really know, I guess I'm stuck on the words you said a second ago. Maybe this griffon doesn't live here in griffonstone."

Gabby tilted her head. "How so?"

Gilda picked up the first letter. "The first thing that comes to mind is their writing style. Whoever wrote this knows how to smoothly and eloquently tell how they feel in a short but concise letter. On top of that look at their writing!" She flipped over the letter so Gabby could see it. Gilda smacked it gently. "They write in cursive for Grover's sake! When was the last time you saw a griffon do that?"

Gabby looked down at the other letter. She twiddled her talons. "I don't know? I mean...Most griffons writing abilities are pretty bad..."

Gilda laughed, almost harshly. "Are you kidding me Gabby? The term 'chicken scratch" was coined by the other races when our records were shown at the great council of leaders last year. It took another griffon and a spell from Celestia to make our writing legible to the other races present."

She flipped the note back over, frowning at it. "That means whoever this griffon is, they learned how to write from a species other than a griffon, on top of this, their vocabulary is better than most griffons. With these two things in mind, it leads me to believe they might live outside Griffonstone."

"That's...a neat theory...but its not possible, Gilda." Gabby said. Gilda blinked and looked up to see Gabby had grabbed the other letter. She was looking it up and down with a glare. "I'm not denying your claims, but there is something else we have to consider."

She took the first letter from Gilda and held them together. "The paper and the envelopes they were sent in."

Gilda tilted her head this time, clicking her beak shut. "What about it? It's just paper."

Gabby chuckled and shook her head. "Nope, you don't work around this stuff as much as I do, so it makes sense that you don't see what I see. The paper used, and the envelopes they were sent in, only come from two locations. The first, is Canterlot City, That's nearly six days travel by air ship, almost a week if you take a train, and don't get me started on the natural flight there. A griffon would either have to cross the ocean, or fly around it. Each route takes several weeks even if your a top notch flyer."

Gilda nodded slowly. "Okaaaay so whats that mean?"

Gabby held up a claw. "If the griffon sent this to you via a place outside our city, he would have to have proper signage for the postal service to accept it. We have a rule that if any letters are not properly signed and come to us from outside, we have to send it back. Likewise, if you or I wanted to send it out of Griffonstone, we have to do the same or the letter would come back."

Gabby gripped the envelopes and held them up side by side. "These letters have no starting address, no name to return to, not even a zip code. They only have your name scrawled across the front. This means they know you live here in Griffonstone, which means they are using our resources to send the letters. The only other place this kind of paper and envelope can be found, is right here in Griffonstone. It's the only place it gets shipped to, partly becuase it's one of our requested imports from Equestria. They made special preparation for it to be delivered to us specifically. This paper is enchanted to survive high altitude, heavy snow, high wind, hail, tearing, and sever water damage."

Gabby set the paper back down and let her words sink in. Gilda frowned, her brow furrowed and she growled and dragged her talons down her beak. "Okay, okay so, this paper is special, I get that. but then something immediately counteracts that knowledge."

Gabby blinked "Oh?"

Gilda picked up the rose petals. The second one was still damp, and slightly cool to the touch. "These, Gabby. Roses and most flowers don't grow up this high, they can't! I'm no botanist but when I had to formally apologize to Fluttershy --Dash made me, don't ask-- I ended up spending the whole day with her and Dash, and she taught me the basics of how flowers live. Roses are apparently pretty fragile. High altitudes kill them very quickly. they'll freeze overnight, and there isn't enough sunlight up here to sustain them due to the cloud cover."

She wiggled the petal, "But look at this, it's fresh! There is still dew on it for Grover's sake! Heck, the first one still looks fresh! If this griffon does live in Griffonstone, then how have they figured out a way to plant a rose up here? Any griffon that did that would proudly be screeching their beak off at their accomplishment. No one has done that...so...?"

Gilda fell silent and Gabby didn't reply. They looked between the flower petals and the letters, and came up short.

"I...I don't know Gilda. I mean...Ponies have magic...Maybe the rose is enchanted like the paper?"

Gilda shrugged. That didn't sound right, but...what else was there to go off of. Gilda rubbed her shoulder fur and warbled softly. Gabby warbled back gently. Gilda gently touched the petals. "I mean...I'm not saying I don't like it, it's actually really sweet, sappy, but sweet. I just wish I knew more."

Gabby smiled and shuffled over so their sides touched. Gabby nudged her with her wing. "Well, I might not understand it all, but I do know how to answer that question." Gabby hopped off the couch and collected the trays, before practically prancing into the kitchen, her cheeks flushed with a happy cherry red.

"You gotta write a replyyyyyyy."

Gilda groaned and hid her beak between her front legs. "Yeah...I guess I do." She felt her cheeks blush as Gabby came back into the living room. She'd donned her own emerald green scarf, gifted to her from Spike. pinned to it was a red brooch like Gilda's.

Together they exited the house and went downstairs. The town was still quite heavy with activity still but it had lessened some. Gilda paused and looked at the town clock, which was set into the a-frame of the library. They still had two hours before the duels started. "Hey Gabby, I was thinking of making some more bits off the festival, you wanna help?"

Gabby clenched her talon into a fist and Gilda did the same, she bumped her paw against Gilda's and a determined grin donned her beak. "You know it! Lets make some money!"

Gilda laughed and set about making preparations behind the counter while Gabby became a whirlwind of activity once more. Wiping down the table, sweeping the floors, and unlocking the door for customers. She then helped Gilda in the kitchen by making extra treats. Before the first customer had noticed, Gabby surprised Gilda with a small item she placed in her talons. It was a small circular container made of wood. It had a weird zebrican symbol Gilda hadn't seen before.

"Here, this stuff will help with your heat. put it around your beak nares and it'll help dull the scent of any males that come in. It won't help with your urges, but don't worry about that. If I see ya leaning too far over the counter, I'll pull your tail or something kay?"

Gilda smirked and nodded. The stuff inside looked like a type of peppered balmy paste. It was clearly naturally ground, little bits of stuff poked out of it. Gilda didn't care what it was made of as long as it worked. After placing the stuff around her nostrils, she gasped as the scents in the room dulled almost immediately. The rolls she was making, seemed to suddenly smell stale, and the sweets tray she was working on suddenly lost nearly half the sugary scent she knew it was making.

"Grover's wingtips, what is this stuff, Gabby?" She hissed, wobbling on her paws. Gabby helped stabilize her with her side.

"It's a balm Zecora used to give me, back before she had the potion I buy now. It's not even nearly as effective, but it helps." She paused and rubbed her shoulder nervously, looking away. "I um, kinda felt bad for hiding the potion from you, so I looked to see if I had any of that left. Is it working?" She asked quietly.

Gilda laughed excitedly, wrapping an arm around Gabby's neck and giving her a noogie. Gabby hissed playfully and tugged out of it. "AHAHAH! Heck yes it's working, maybe a little too much! I'll need you to tell me if you smell anything burning okay?"

Gabby nodded meekly and blushed. "S-sure! My nose works!"

Gilda rolled her eyes and worked to pull the buns out of the oven. "Ha ha, mine does too, normally."

The bell chimed as a pair of hens came in, and Gilda turned to greet them, a smile ready to go.

"Welcome! Come on in and have...a...seat?"

Her words slowly died on her beak. The young hen on the left was limping, nursing an ice pack on her cheek, and a large bruise marred her shoulder. She had small cuts and scrapes across her front and her attire was shredded slightly. Gilda and Gabby leaped the counter together and came over immediately.

"Wh-what happened to you?!" Gilda hissed, Gabby passed her and crouched in front of the young hen, a first aid kit already in her paws. Gilda grit her beak, she was the owner of the place and she hadn't thought of that first. The other hen, an older one, probably the mother by their similarities in coat colors nuzzled her daughter and frowned up to Gilda.

"She messed up her courtship...and it turned ugly." She looked at her daughter and crooned, nuzzling her daughter who was barely holding herself together. Gabby went to gently pull the ice pack away and both her and Gabby hissed as a large red gash appeared beyond it. The ice pack was caked in blood.

Gabby tore into the first aid kit, pulling gauze and cleaning stuff out in a flurry. Gilda slowly looked her up and down in shock, before locking the door and flipping the sign back to closed. Not a second later she heard a snarl from the crowd nearest her shop.

"Where is she!? Where is that little cunt hiding?! I'm gonna rip her face open even more for what she tried to pull!"

Gilda girt her teeth and hopped out the windowless front into the bakery yard. Another young hen parted the crowd with two other young hens marching behind her. They were barely into their teen years. All of them wore blue brooches, and each had a cloak with ornate clothing. The front one Gilda recognized, she was an upstart hen that was cocky and brash. A brat in all meanings of the word. A bully in school, and apparently ruthless. She'd seen the little shit sauntering around town spreading gossip and rumors about anyone that got on her list. She'd thankfully avoided it so far.

Gilda stood in front of her door and watched as the hen tromped by with her group, shouting and demanding blood for what had happened. She stood there for several more minutes before the crowd went back to mingling and talking. Gilda sighed and hopped back inside her shop. Exactly what had happened? Gabby had the bright idea to hide the hen and her mother further back in the shop.

The hen was now cradled in her mother's arms, and mostly shielded from their view by her wings. She was warbling and rubbing her daughter's back gently. Gabby came over, looking like she'd seen a ghost. Here eyes were small pinpricks of fear and she shakily threw a pair of bloody gloves into the nearby trashcan.

"She um...she needs stitches. I...i'm not a doctor, I'm going to go find one. " her voice was like a whisper. She went to leave but Gilda stopped her with a wing. Gabby stared at it for a moment. "Gilda... move...she needs help."

Gilda nodded. "I know, but it looks like you do too, what happened--hey!--Gabby!"

Gabby had brushed past her wing forcefully and jumped out the window, breaking into a run. Gilda watched her go, a crease of worry on her cheeks. She groaned, running her talons through her head crest and walking over to the pair. The mother looked up and hissed defensively, but it died on her throat as Gilda stopped with her talons palms up.

"Easy, ma'am, I'm a friend."

She glared at Gilda a few more seconds before the stress caught up and her expression fell. Hidden in her wings her daughter gasped shakily, her words muddled with regret. "I..I shouldn't have...I knew it was wrong..."

Her mother hushed her, and rocked her back and forth, nuzzling her beak into her daughter's nape. "No, no sweetie, it's not wrong, you're not wrong...it's just...well, that hen...she's not okay with it..."

The daughter hissed and Gilda spotted her talons digging into the floor boards. "I shouldn't have tried! I knew it would end badly, mom, she hates me now!" She sucked in a shaky breath and buried her beak into her mother's chest feathers.

Gilda went to speak but was interrupted by a tapping on her door. She turned to see two female guards and another griffon, the local town doctor peering in. The doctor was male. She sighed and looked to the mother, jabbing a thumb back at the door.

"I'm uh, I need to let them in okay? Your hatchling needs medical attention."

The mother looked passed her and her talons clenched protectively around her daughter harder when she saw the doctor. "I...give me a few more minutes please..."

Gilda nodded slowly, "Sure...take as much as much time as you need." She left the two and exited her shop. Unlocking it for the three and informing them of what she knew. What worried her was that she didn't see Gabby anywhere.

When she asked the doc, He pointed to the far side of Griffonstone. She nodded and took flight. Whatever Gabby had heard or seen had scared the shit out of her. That was very hard to do, Gabby was tough, and blood rarely ever bothered her. She'd seen the hen reset an open fractured leg once, and there had been a lot more blood then, so what had spooked her so much that she'd pushed Gilda away?

She flew over the town and tried to spot the hen but never located her. Their former home was empty, and after spotting Grandpa Gruff in the crowd, he'd stated he hadn't seen her. She tried the postal office next but it was closed, and the post master had stated she didn't pass by as he was near the area. From there she tried the park and that came up empty too. After nearly an hour of searching, Gilda resigned herself to the fact that if Gabby didn't want to be found, she wouldn't be.

She landed back home and found that the doctor, the daughter, her mother, and the nearby patrons had all but cleared the area. Her shop remained lit from the inside but was empty. She drooped her head low and entered it. The floor was cleaned of blood and anything left behind. A note from the mother thanked her for letting them use her store front, and that she would be in touch soon. Gilda merely tossed it in a drawer behind the counter and locked up shop.

Festival or no, she didn't want to go if Gabby didn't come along too. Their night had effectively been ruined. She went upstairs and to her surprise found the upstairs window to their living room was open. She hissed and went inside, finding Gabby's scarf and brooch on the floor just inside wasn't a good sign. She could hear sobbing in her bedroom and followed the noise. At her own doorway Gilda found Gabby curled up tightly with her head hidden in her arms and blocked by her wings. She'd made a literal nest of the bedding and had taken all of Gilda's pillows and stuffed them tightly around her body for comfort.

If not for the somber mood, Gilda might have laughed at the absurdity of Gabby's nesting habits. She didn't laugh now, she frowned, and her mood fell.

"G-Gabby..." She whispered, entering her room and crawling up on the bed. Gabby hissed at first but Gilda pressed forward and crouched down to lay next to her. She wasn't good at these sorts of things, but she knew a hug certainly wasn't in the wrong direction when helping a friend.

Gilda was halfway through wrapping her arms around Gabby's neck when the hen lunged into her, wings, tail, arms, and body wrapped around Gilda as her friend sobbed openly into her chest feathers like a hatchling afraid of the dark.

Gilda didn't pull away, but she certainly felt her internal awkward meter shoot through the roof. What the heck do I do?! Frantically she searched for something to say, anything at all, and her mind came up with the worst possible answer.

"Um...there there." She said flatly, patting Gabby's head twice.

For a moment, Gabby paused and blinked rapidly for several seconds, before a small, sliver of a smile began creeping onto the hens face. She peered up at Gilda.

"Heh...heh there there? D-did you r-r-really just say that?" Gilda groaned and slapped her forehead. Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

"I-I'm not good at this and you know it!" Gabby chuckled a little more, then a lot, and then she was crying and laughing at the same time and Gilda was even more lost. She prodded the Hen's beak.

"I think I broke you..." She mumbled.

"Heh heheheh....yeah...you uh...y-you need some p-practice that's f-for sure." Gabby gently wiped her eyes by rubbing her face into Gilda's chest feathers, drawing the biggest blush from Gilda ever. She quickly looked away and her feathers fluffed out the their fullest.

"Y-yeah...I suck at it. Glad we verified that. Are...are you good now? Or do I need to keep saying more sappy stuff?"

Gabby chuckled a little more and shifted back slowly. "Y-yeah...I'm good." She paused as Gilda stood, and her arm lifted towards her, as if reaching for her, but then she lowered it and looked away. "I...thanks...I needed that."

Gilda shrugged and shook herself, sending a couple loose feathers to the floor. "S-fine, don't mention it. Friends look out for each other."

She hopped off her bed and looked to Gabby who blinked slowly at the floor and then stood as well. Gilda smirked. They both looked at the bed with gentle smirks. Being in heat did weird things to griffons. Gabby hopped down next to her and Gilda made a square with her talons, the bed just in the empty space of her claws.

"While I love the design, you should probably make a nest in your bed, fluff butt." Gilda said, starting to pull gabby into a hug. Gabby stayed there for a few seconds, unsure of how to react. Gilda felt her shakily lift her talons up and grip Gilda's sides gently. She was shaking pretty badly.

Gilda held her firmly. "Hey, whats wrong Gabby? What happened? Talk to me girl."

Gabby was silent, and Gilda felt Gabby's talons slowly sifting through her back fur, her beak leaned up and nuzzled Gilda's shoulder, making Gilda blush for an entirely different reason, before Gabby flinched and pulled back slowly. Gilda watched Gabby's expression force a smile onto her beak as she wiped at her eyes.

that was odd...

"It's...it's nothing, The potion um, it has side effects like increased s-sporadic emotions, ya know?. I...I was supposed to stay away from extreme stimulus, but uh, that mother and her daughter messed that up.... I guess I panicked." The pair fell silent.

Gabby nodded her head towards the bed "Sorry...I ...I needed to feel safe I guess..."

Gilda shrugged, "Eh, its fine really. I haven't built a nest in a few years, it was nice actually..."

They fell silent again. Gilda rubbed at her neck, Gabby rubbed at her arm.

"S-so..." They both said at the same time. Gilda smirked, Gabby blushed and looked away. Gilda spoke up.

"You uh, still up to see the duels? It's okay if your not...I just think it'd be fun...take our minds off this...and...yeah..."

Gabby closed her eyes, slowly shaking her head. "I um, I need to rest. I flew in a panic halfway around town only to realize that the doctor wasn't home and then when I saw him at the door to your bakery with two guards I sort of lost it and dove into the house and hid. I think i'mma go to bed..."

Gabby looked so defeated in that moment. Gilda quickly shot her talons into the air defensively. "Hey don't worry about it, Gabby, I get it. Adrenaline can be a bitch. Add being in heat to it and you've got a volatile concoction for trouble. Its no biggie. Besides I've seen the duels before, missing one year isn't an issue. Not to mention...I got a letter to write, I might as well get that ready before making sure we didn't leave anything in the oven downstairs...

Gilda's eyes widened for a second and she put her talons to her beak. "...Oooh...I should probably check that first."

Gilda thumped Gabby in the shoulder and went back down stairs, shooting her a glance and a smile. "Get some rest Gabby, if ya need me...well, my door is open okay?"

Gabby nodded without looking at her, slowly rubbing the spot Gilda had tapped her. A forlorn expression danced across her face as she stared into Gilda's room at the nest she'd created, now messed up. Then it was gone in an instant, masked by something Gilda couldn't recognize. An emotion she wasn't used to seeing on her friends face...

It was the saddest smile Gabby had ever given her.

"Y-yeah! I'll be better tomorrow morning, no problem! You just make sure the house doesn't burn down, alright?"

Gilda nodded, unsure of what to say. Gabby did though, "Good night, Gilda."

Gilda watched her disappear into her room and the door quietly clicked shut. She stood there for several seconds, lost in confusion...She eventually sighed, running her talons down her beak gently, and went downstairs. Tomorrow was a new day, and hopefully it would be easier than today.

Author's Note

NEW ART IN THE CHAPTER DONE BY ELICITIE!