Chapter 6: An Unwelcome Reunion

Gilda stared in shock at the griffon that stood before her. She couldn't believe that she was really seeing him. This was a griffon that she had known back when she lived in Grifforia with her parents. This was also a griffon that she hated when she had lived in Grifforia with her parents. Gio smirked and shook his black feathered head.

"Not quite." he said in a low growl. "My name's Grayback now."

"Changed your name have ya?" Gilda asked sarcastically.

"All because of the makeover you gave me." Grayback said as he gestured towards his scar. "Turned me into this so I pretty much had to change my name."

"All I did was give you a scar." Gilda said. "Anything else that happened to ya was your own fault."

"Can one of ya explain what's going on here?" Rainbow Dash asked in a frustrated tone.

"Ya see Dash." Gilda began. "Gio here was a griffon I knew before I went to Flight School. He was a jerk back then and he only got worse when I graduated."

"I was still one of the best looking griffons you've ever seen." Grayback replied with an arrogant smile.

"Oh please you're so full of yourself." Gilda told him. "Anyway when I came back to Grifforia after Flight School that's when he crossed the line."

Gilda had a flashback to the week after she graduated from Junior Speedsters Flight School. She had already had a huge argument with her parents. Gilda had vented all of her pent up rage towards the two griffons. The next day she walked out of her house and strolled through the streets of her town. She might not have had any friends in this place but any griffon had to be better than her parents.

"Hello Gilda." a cocky male voice said.

Well almost any griffon.

"What do you want Giovan?" Gilda asked in an irritated tone.

The griffon gave Gilda a look of annoyance.

"I told you." he said. "Call me Gio. All my friends do."

"Yeah and I told you that we're not friends." Gilda snapped.

The two griffons stared into each others eyes. Gilda glared at the arrogant half lion half eagle creature that stood before her. Giovan was full of himself. He walked around acting like he was the best looking thing to ever walk the earth. In truth Gilda couldn't say that Giovan was bad looking. Gilda wasn't attracted to him in the slightest due to his arrogant personality but she couldn't deny that he had a certain handsomeness to him. His tanned body looked like it had been chiseled from stone. His light brown wings were preened to perfection. His sharp claws were always neatly trimmed to give him a sophisticated look. His chocolate brown eyes surrounded by light brown feathers had made so many female griffons melt at the sight of him. If he were to be in a story he'd be the handsome hero that rescued the damsel in distress. Every female griffon in town swooned over him. All of them except for Gilda. She didn't give a rat's tail about his looks. He was an arrogant and pompous jerk and she didn't want to be anywhere near him.

"Ah that's right." Giovan said. "You're not my friend."

"Glad ya finally got that through your thick skull." Gilda said.

"Feeling feisty today are we Gilda?" Giovan asked. "What could be the trouble?"

"It's none of your business." Gilda snapped.

"Do you perhaps miss your little pony friend?" Giovan asked in a mocking tone. He paused thoughtfully before he continued. "Rainbow Dash if I'm not mistaken?"

"Don't you dare talk about her!" Gilda growled.

"I seem to have struck a nerve." Giovan said. "Well perhaps losing her is for the better. Hanging around ponies will only make you weak Gilda. You should hang around more griffons." He paused for a moment then continued. "Like me." he said with an arrogant smirk.

"I wouldn't hang out with you if the only other choice was a parasprite." Gilda said fiercely.

"Ouch." Giovan replied as he put a claw over his heart. "Cold. But that's what I like about you Gilda. You always have a witty comeback."

Gilda stayed silent as Giovan kept talking.

"But like I said hanging around ponies will make you soft." the griffon continued. "Befriending a pony is the worst thing you can do. And for more reasons than just that one."

"I'd rather hang around ponies if it meant getting away from stuck up snobs like you." Gilda said with a glare.

"Careful Gilda." Giovan warned. "Those beliefs could land you in trouble one day. Ponies are weak. Any griffon that befriends them is no better."

"Shut up." Gilda muttered.

"Being so close to a pony will turn you into a weakling." Giovan continued as if he hadn't heard Gilda. "Better that you should be rid of that weakling Rainbow Dash before her influence spreads to you. I'd hate to see a proud and strong griffon get turned into a pony lover."

"Don't you dare talk about my friend like that." Gilda snapped. "I'm warning you."

"Your friend?" Giovan asked incredulously. "It's worse than I thought. You actually care about this weakling pony." Giovan spat on the ground as if the mere thought of a griffon befriending a pony was offensive to him. "I knew that it was a bad idea for you to be sent to that pony school. Your parents wanted to toughen you up but I knew that you would turn into a soft weak pony lover."

"SHUT UP!" Gilda roared as she pounced on Giovan. She raised her claws and gave him a slash right over his left eye. Giovan fell to the ground and laid there.

"Who's weak now?" Gilda asked in a tone filled with hatred. She walked away from Giovan and went back to her house. Her parents didn't say a word to her and Gilda didn't say a word to them. She laid down on her bed and felt tears of remorse fill her eyes. She had done it again. She had let her anger get the best of her and she attacked another living creature. What was wrong with her?

The next day Gilda tried to apologize to Giovan but he wouldn't hear a word of it.

"I'm sorry." Gilda said.

"Save your breath." Giovan replied coolly. "It's clear you'd rather hang around some wimpy ponies than a griffon like me. Why don't you go and find your weak little friend if she means so much to you?"

With that Giovan took off into the sky leaving a stunned and miserable Gilda behind him.

"And that's what happened." Gilda said.

Her eight friends were in shock that she had caused harm to another living creature but they accepted that Giovan's insults were far too personal for Gilda to simply ignore. The group of eight glared at Grayback who seemed completely unaffected by the story that Gilda had just finished telling.

"You forgot to mention how you turned me into this." he spat. "You turned me into a hideous freak of a griffon. Why do you think I wear the mask?"

"Gilda did nothing of the sort!" Rarity said angrily.

"She gave you that scar but you had it coming." Lightning Dust yelled.

"You were a Meany McMeanPants!" Pinkie Pie shrieked.

"And she tried to apologize." Fluttershy said.

"But you just wouldn't listen to her." Twilight Sparkle continued.

"It ain't Gilda's fault that you look like this." Applejack snapped.

"You did this to yourself." Spike said.

"You turned yourself into a hideous freak." Rainbow Dash finished.

Gilda was shocked at how her eight friends were standing up for her. She had hated herself for attacking Grayback but all of her friends were defending her from his anger. They really did care about her. Grayback rolled his eyes at the display of friendship.

"Bah ponies." he spat. "They turn griffons into wimps."

Grayback turned away from them and before the group of nine could do anything, his razor sharp claws slashed right through the nets and he freed his villainous cohorts. The three ponies got up and took to the sky with Grayback right behind them. The nine friends stared in shock before Lightning Dust sped off after them. The eight others tried to get her to stop but the daredevil wasn't listening to them.

"I'm gonna take them down!" Lightning Dust growled. "I'm not letting some stuck up griffon insult my friends!"

She charged towards Grayback but the griffon was quicker. He gave Lightning Dust an arrogant smirk before his claw slashed at her wing. Lightning Dust screamed in pain and fell towards the ground.

"Lightning!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she flew to her friend's aid. Gilda meanwhile had taken off after Grayback. Rage had filled her. That griffon had just hurt her friend. She wasn't going to let him get away with that. She was going to make him pay. She had already given him one scar and right now she had half a mind to give him a second one.

"G! I need your help here." Rainbow Dash called out.

Gilda turned and saw her best friend struggling to support Lightning Dust. The daredevil had taken a hit and was spiraling towards the ground. Rainbow Dash was able to slow her down a bit but she'd never be able to stop her. At that rate the duo would slam into the ground and they'd be in serious trouble if that happened. Very reluctantly, Gilda allowed Grayback and his crew to escape as she flew towards her two fellow fliers. She used her natural strength to help Rainbow Dash slow Lightning Dust's momentum down to a very gentle stop. The three fliers landed softly on the ground and Lightning Dust crumpled, whimpering in pain. She wasn't bleeding but it was easy for them to tell that the injury was painful. They brought her to the hospital where the doctors gave her the best treatment that they could but said that she was not going to be able to fly for another two weeks. The reckless daredevil was really depressed by this thought. Her cannon had been destroyed and now her wing had been rendered useless for the next two weeks. What else could go wrong?

"G." she said. "Can you do me a favor?"

"What do ya need Lightning?" Gilda asked gently.

"Next time you see Grayback." the daredevil said. "Give him a good kick in the tail for me."

"My pleasure." Gilda replied.

The eight friends left Lightning Dust to the hospital's care and they headed off to their own homes.