Gallus folded in his wings and slowed to a halt as he descended, touching down gently on the ground. In front of him stood a place that needed no introduction: It was the School of Friendship, the very school that had changed his life back when he had been just a young orphan from Griffonstone. To think that in the span of just a few years he had gone from fending for himself on the streets of Griffonstone to being among a small group of creatures who twice helped to save Equestria from certain doom.
Yet the blue feathered griffon hadn't been back to the school since he'd graduated from it alongside the other creatures he'd come to call friends. This was his first time back, and just looking at the school from afar he could see that nothing about it had changed. Sure, it wasn't in the hooves of its founder: Twilight Sparkle anymore, but Starlight Glimmer had clearly done a fine job keeping the school running smoothly.
Well, Gallus knew he was here for a reason. Personally, he hadn't wanted to be here, he was in no hurry to go back to the school at all. But when Supreme Princess Twilight had learned of a reunion being held at the school and that Gallus had been invited, she made it quite clear that she wanted Gallus to go. And what the supreme princess wanted, the supreme princess almost always got. No amount of begging or pleading could convince her otherwise.
Deciding not to waste any more time, the blue feathered griffon steadied his nerves and walked across the stone pathway leading to the school's front door. Upon reaching it, he pushed the door open without fanfare and made his way inside. The interior was just like he remembered it being. It was as if the place had been frozen in time, a perfect time capsule of days gone by. Already, memories from years long since past came flooding back to him. It seemed like only yesterday he and his friends had started attending classes.
"Hey, Gallus!" A familiar male sounding voice called out. Its owner soon revealed itself in the form of an earth pony stallion of a medium yet slender build and with a sandy yellow coat to boot. He seemed to be very overjoyed to see his griffon friend again, as he practically kicked his back legs and ran up to the griffon! Upon reaching Gallus, he pulled out a hoof and brought the griffon in, promptly ruffling the feathers on Gallus' head with a hoof. "So good to see you again, old buddy!"
Gallus sighed and buried his feelings of frustration with Sandbar's overly friendly greeting. "It's good to see you again too, Sandbar. I see you haven't changed much since the last time I saw you."
The stallion chuckled. "Yeah, I've mostly just been living here in Ponyville. And that's fine with me. There truly isn't a better place to be if you ask me. It is the friendship capital of Equestria, after all."
Gallus just blinked. "So I've heard."
Sandbar went on teasing. "Of course you'd have heard, you're in the royal guard now. You protect Princess Twilight. You've had a front row seat to almost everything she's done. And don't say it's not a big deal, because it is. How many other griffons can say they know a princess personally? Zero, that's who!"
The blue feathered griffon shrugged his claws. "Eh, I don't know, I think Gabby's pen pals with Princess Twilight. Or at least, with the princess' royal advisor," He was quick to change the subject. "So, I take it the others are all here too?"
The earth pony stallion happily nodded. "Uh-huh. No way were we gonna miss out on a chance to catch up and see each other again. We've especially been looking forward to seeing you."
"Great, the gang's all here," Gallus remarked with a sigh and turned to Sandbar. "Might as well get it over with. Me personally, I'm not too good with these mushy, feely, reunion kind of things."
Sandbar grinned and took his griffon friend by the claw. "Aw come on, you big softy. There's no need to act all tough around me, or around our friends. We know you've missed us, because we've certainly missed you. Now let's go see the others. They're all waiting for you." And with that, he led Gallus away, past the many other former students who were mingling about in the front hallway.
It wasn't long before Sandbar had brought Gallus to a very special place: It was the very crystal catacombs underneath the school's library where the six friends had encountered the spirit of the Tree of Harmony.
And sure enough, there were Smolder, Ocellus, Yona, and Silverstream all waiting with looks of eager anticipation as they saw Sandbar and Gallus approach.
Smolder was the first one amongst the group to speak up. "It's about time you got here! What took you so long, Gallus? Don't tell me you got lost."
"I didn't get lost. I was just... debating whether or not to show up is all." Gallus admitted as he started fiddling with his claws.
Ocellus smiled. "Why wouldn't you show up? Silverstream was overjoyed when she heard you were coming! And there's no need to hide it: We know the two of you are a couple. You even invited us to your wedding: Remember."
"Yeah, yeah, I haven't forgotten. It was just before we graduated," The blue feathered griffon admitted. "Silverstream wasn't sure where life was going to take us after graduation, so she insisted we get married while we still had the time. Married life has been... interesting, I guess."
Silverstream flew over and pressed a hoof up against Gallus' beak. "Oh come on, Gallus! Living with you has been incredible! We've been all over the world together: You and I!"
Gallus nodded ever so slowly. "Only because you insisted on accompanying me every time I was assigned to protect the princess. I'm glad you've settled down now and trust me to stay in Canterlot as needed."
Yona then questioned. "Gallus not go back to Griffonstone? Yona gone back to Yakyakistan several times, and Yona's friends all go back to their homes from time to time."
The griffon immediately replied. "Well... Griffonstone never felt like a home to me the way Equestria did."
But Silverstream excitedly chirped! "We still visited Griffonstone, though! We went there last year for our anniversary!" She flew around the catacombs, eagerly telling all her friends. "Griffonstone's a lot better now than it was before. It's nowhere near as run down and dreary."
Gallus could only shrug his claws. "Eh, it's a work in progress," And he proceeded to turn his attention to the others. "What about the rest of you, though? Anything interesting or exciting in your lives?"
An exceptionally bright smile seemed to form on Smolder's face as she eyed Gallus. "Oh, like you wouldn't believe! But let's not just sit around here. I say we head back up and go get some refreshments."
Yona nodded. "Yona agree. Friends talk after friends get refreshment."
And with everyone all in agreement, the friends decided to head back through the catacombs and back into the school proper.
A short time later, the six friends were gathered around a small table that had been set up in one of the empty classrooms to provide snacks and beverages for consumption. This included a large punch bowl and paper cups, and the friends drank the punch until they had their fill.
Once that was done, Yona wasted no time in excitedly prattling! "Yona and Sandbar move into Professor Rarity's business in Ponyville! Professor Rarity hire Yona and Sandbar to be her special helpers!"
Sandbar smiled. "It's true. Professor Rarity's been a very big help to the both of us. The least we could do to pay her back was help her run Carousel Boutique so she can worry about her other boutiques. She's even expanded beyond Equestria: She's opened up boutiques in Yakyakistan, Mount Aris, and even the changelings' hive. Oh, and Klugetown too, can't forget about that one."
"But Professor Rarity say Ponyville boutique her flagship shop, whatever that mean," Yona added. "And Professor Rarity's sister come to visit Yona and Sandbar all the time. She big help too."
The earth pony stallion nodded. "Yup: So when we had our wedding, Yona and I decided to make Sweetie Belle our best mare. She played the role perfectly. Afterwards, Professor Rarity paid for us to visit Klugetown with her."
"What was it like? From what Twilight used to say when she was headmare, it doesn't sound like Klugetown was a very nice place when she visited it." Ocellus nervously blinked.
Sandbar waved a hoof. "Well I don't know what Twilight said, but it's nowhere near as bad as everypony made it out to be. It still has a few shady parts, but the town as a whole was friendly, welcoming, and safe. If it wasn't, do you think Professor Rarity would bother to set up shop there?"
"All I know is, Princess Twilight's in no hurry to go back there," Gallus pointed out. "Even Griffonstone sounds like a better place than that, and that's saying something."
Smolder proceeded to clear her throat. "Not that I ever would, but if for any reason I did visit a place like that or like Griffonstone, I know I could handle myself!" She puffed out her chest. "After all, you're looking at the official friendship ambassador for the dragon lands. And you can thank Dragon Lord Ember for that. She said it herself: There's no better dragon than yours truly to help spread the magic of friendship and get more kingdoms to befriend the dragons."
"But you still find time to help teach here at the school with me," Ocellus chimed in as she not so subtly brushed up against the dragon. "It means a lot to me that you're willing to be so far from family, and get out of your comfort zone. But that's just what I love about you."
A faint blush formed on the orange scaled dragon's cheeks. "Y-yeah well... I mean... isn't that what couples do for each other when they're in love? Besides, teaching helps pay the bills."
The olive coated changeling happily nodded. "It certainly does. And being able to pass on my knowledge to the next generation is always a plus. I can't think of any better way to get other creatures to see just how much we changelings have changed. Thorax is many things, but salesponyship isn't quite his strong suit."
Silverstream then excitedly chirped! "Ooh, you've all lived quite the interesting lives! I wish I had more exciting news to give to you all. But aside from the occasional trip back to Mount Aris and Seaquestria, I've been living here in Ponyville. My Aunt Novo's still on the throne right now, I don't see that changing anytime soon. I mostly just do odd jobs, especially the ones where I get to learn new skills. There's so much about pony life that's fascinating. Just when I think I've seen it all, something comes along and surprises me all over again!"
Gallus chuckled. "You and your curiosity, honey," Then, all eyes (except Silverstream's) turned towards him as he slowly realized what was expected of him. "What? Me? You guys already know, don't you? I'm in the royal guard. I'm officially the princess' bodyguard."
"Well, yeah, but that's a very high rank to obtain," Sandbar pointed out. "How did you end up getting assigned to the job? What did you have to do?"
The blue feathered griffon sighed. "I can't say exactly. All I know is that Captain Tempest took me under her wing shortly after she was officially made the royal guard's new captain. And let me tell you: She was a very harsh taskmaster. I thought Grandpa Gruff was tough and stubborn, but he was nothing compared to Captain Tempest. Still, I must've done something right, because I rose through the ranks faster than any recruit before," He then shuddered. "But in order to get assigned to princess protection, there was one last test I had to pass: I had to fight the captain."
A chorus of gasps filled the air as Sandbar then nervously asked. "And did you win?"
To the surprise of everyone, Gallus laughed rather heartily. "Are you kidding? Of course I didn't win! No way could I hope to be a match for somepony as strong as Captain Tempest. She didn't hold anything back! I've even got the scar to prove it!" He pointed to a small, black spot on the tip of his left wing. "It wasn't a test of strength, it was a test of endurance. She said so afterward: She wanted to see if I'd keep getting up no matter how many times I was knocked down, to see if I would risk life and limb to protect others. And if there's one thing you should know about me: I'm never one to back down without a fight or a challenge! I guess it's just my griffonly nature."
Smolder was the first one to speak up once Gallus had finished. "Wow!" She blinked rather slowly. "That was... surprising."
"Oh, you should've seen him afterward," Silverstream teased. "He was sore for a whole week after that fight. And the whole time I was nursing his wounds, he was so fidgety."
"I can't help it," Gallus admitted. "I hate sitting still and feeling useless."
Sandbar chuckled. "Hey, it's just what makes you you. And we wouldn't have you any other way," Then he smiled as he looked around. "It's good to see that we're all doing well with our lives. At least we're not fighting some long forgotten evil monster or anything like that."
"Yeah! But I think any monster or any evil force out there would have to think twice before trying anything while we're around!" Smolder proudly boasted! "Princess Twilight said it herself: We're special!"
Silverstream then lifted up a paper cup, offering up a toast. "Then here's to us: The best of friends, wherever life may take us." And the six friends all brought their own paper cups together, joining in on the toast.
Life truly didn't seem like it could get any better for them.
Author's Note
Seeing as this is the five year anniversay of the student/young six helping to save Equestria in "The Ending of the End", it only seems fitting to have a story focused on them, on the future.
I know that aside from Gallus the time skip in "The Last Problem" revealed all the student/young six to be more or less living in Ponyville, and only Gallus' profession is known, but they never said for sure they couldn't all live the lives I have them living here.
