Part III:It took Sky a surprisingly long time to find where Cloud’s class was meeting. The blue wingtail looked everywhere around the Cordial Springs but Mr. Pridewing’s class couldn’t be found anywhere. It didn’t help that the other wingtails were unhelpful, either shunning away from him or ignoring him altogether when he asked for directions. Clearly his non-existent role in the sharptooth attack on the Feral Forest had been embellished to the point of complete fallacy by the endless rumour mongering that followed his departure.
Finally after an hour of searching a lesser flyer (at least by the standards of other wingtails) told him that the entire flight had taken off towards the crater of the Black Mountain to study the volcanic glass. Sky swiftly thanked her, and then proceeded in the direction she had pointed.
After skirting the tops of the trees and carefully avoiding toxic ash pools he came across them roosting in the trees and on the ground in a small lush clearing at the foot of the former mountain. There were thirty or more winglings that were born in the same season Cloud was, and all of them were here listening eagerly as Pridewing carried on with his presentation. Even a few wingtail parents were present as well in the upper roosts. Reliving the same education they had received when they were winglings except this time with their children. Finding an empty branch, Sky fluttered in and landed with a dull thump.
Strange that such a good viewing point was untaken.
“You’re not welcome here traitor,” blurted an older male wingtail, who was in a branch a tree over.
His mate, who was roosting next to him, whispered something to him frantically about starting a fight around all the children, and he harped back at her beyond Sky’s earshot. The blue wingtail hadn’t been expecting this kind of resentment to be greeting him as he returned home, and it shocked him.
“I wouldn’t take that perch if I were you,” inserted another wingtail on the other side of his own tree, her voice chiding, “…he won’t like it.”
Sky shifted and was about to ask who she was taking about when there was another thump next to him, and the branch started to sag under the extra weight. Turning his head slowly, the blue wingtail came face to face with the new arrival. Oh… it was him.
Glide snorted in annoyance, and glared at Sky as though he were jungle runner robbing a nest.
“Here we go again,” muttered Sky under his breath.
“He’s a good kid isn’t he?” commented the blue wingtail casually, trying to start on a positive note, “strong, intelligent and brave. I am thankful you have been watching over him for me in my absence.”
“Your shadow follows him everywhere,” answered Glide with resentment, “it’s a stain on all of us… we were happier when you were far away.”
Sky decided to level with his brother in law.
“You don’t like me Glide… it’s been that way since we were hatchlings and I accept that, but right now we have to do what we can for Cloud,” stated Sky with confidence, “…Star and I worry about him and I wish there was a way for us to work together to help him make friends.”
The blue wingtail finished the sentence looking at Cloud, who was sitting all on his own in the middle of the field, with all the other winglings at least a metre away. He had his hand up eagerly, like he wanted to ask a question.
Glide growled with apprehension.
“You can start by getting off my roost before I remove you myself.”
All of the parents, and even some of the children near the back could hear what was going on and they all turned to watch the feud evolving between the two wingtails. More then a few of them were hoping to see him beat the feathers off Sky, if for a bit of action instead of one of Pridewing’s boring lectures. The blue wingtail decided to stand up to him this time.
“Well then you are going to have to ëremove’ me then,” replied Sky with a smile, “because I’m here to watch my son whether you like it or not.”
Glide’s eyes narrowed and he growled low, clinching his fists. He had promised his sister he would not fight with Sky, and he had to honour his word… but that didn’t mean he had to be nice to his so called brother in law.
A group of three wingtails, all males, took off from the other side of the clearing and landed in a group above, and beside Sky. They all looked pretty tough, and the blue wingtail could tell they definitely meant trouble. The one behind him, a grey and rustled looking flyer, scowled at him.
“You heard what Glide said… take off and don’t let us see you near our kids again.”
Sky was about to reply when one of the wingtails behind him kicked him viciously in the back, sending him tumbling off the branch and onto the ground below. Falling quickly, he managed to bring out his arms quickly enough to parachute his descent. Sky landed face first in the grass with an aggressive swoosh of wind and hard rustling noise.
Above, the grey male looked down in satisfaction… he was totally unprepared for what happened next. Glide reached up and grabbed the foot of Sky’s attacker and yanked him downward, triggering a squawk of surprise and pain. The black wingtail viciously elbowed him in the face and sent him plummeting down the opposite side that Sky had fallen.
“What the… what are you?” was all the grey wingtail managed to utter before Glide leaped forward, grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, and rammed him into the tree trunk. He squirmed and tried to wrest himself free, but the black wingtail had him totally pinned.
“If you ever lay a wing on one my family again,” uttered Glide with pure venom, “I’ll rip it off and shove the feathers down your throat.”
Looking up, Sky was sure the unfortunate wingtail had vented his waste prematurely on the branch below.
“Are we clear?” the black wingtail demanded.
The grey male nodded his head weakly. Disgusted, Glide threw him off too right where the first one had gone. The third wingtail had smartly already flown away. Pretty much all the children present including Cloud had switched their attention from the class to watch the fight, and a few of them uttered cries of laughter and amusement. A few weren’t so happy, having just seen their fathers beaten up.
Sky noted with pride what had happened above. His brother had defended him even though there was so much animosity between them. Glide may not be nice by words, but actions speak much firmer then words and understanding of the black wingtail dawned on his expression. It was right then he noticed that his left wing was a little bit lighter then it should be. Absently, Sky patted it down.
The Occular! Where was it!?!
Suddenly the dark yellow wingtail Pridewing, who had been carrying on with his lecture all through the previous violence, stopped with a start. Flipping over on the ground, Sky turned towards him. The Occular had rolled free of his grip and had come to rest on the grassing ground with a slight ring. The wingtail teacher, who immediately recognised it for what it was, gasped.
“The Occular… precious relic of a past age,” Pridewing uttered with reverence, before turning on Sky accusingly, “…you vile thief.”
In a flash the blue wingtail leaped forward and pounced on the unique and one of a kind eye glass, narrowly beating the diving teacher who had done the same with slightly less swiftness. The two wingtails grappled for a while, but Sky had the clear edge and soon it was in his hands. Wildly they separated and both got to their feet.
“That belongs to the tree of our forefathers,” uttered Pridewing with noble purpose as opposed to malice, “it is your duty and obligation to return it immediately!”
Sky smiled slyly, noting how all the children were crowding over each other to watch what was going on. He had an idea.
“I would take it back,” answered Sky with confidence, “but I’m afraid I don’t have it.”
The blue wingtail opened his hands and displayed that they were completely empty.
“What?” said Pridewing with confusion, “but… how?”
“What’s this?” asked Sky with a smile, reaching behind the poor teacher’s ear and pulling out the Occular, “…shame on you.”
Many of the winglings and even some of the adults laughed. In frustration Pridewing lashed out and grabbed for Sky’s hand, but the blue wingtail was too fast and he spun around quickly to dodge the swipe. When he had come around, his mouth was bulging like he was holding something in it.
Growling, Pridewing grabbed for Sky’s mouth. The blue wingtail spat, and a small pebble knocked off the end of the teacher’s nose. Again laughter broke out amongst the audience. This was turning into a sort of silly game.
“Alright Sky… I see I can’t win,” muttered the dark yellow wingtail, “you’ve had your fun.”
Smiling, the blue wingtail plucked the Occular out from his tail feathers, rolled it from the end of one arm to the other across his back, and twirled it on the end of his finger. All around there were noises of wonder and surprise.
“Perhaps you would allow me to take over for a while,” suggested Sky intelligently, “…if you have the time.”
There were cheers from the gathered children, and the loudest was from Cloud who was trying to push his way to the front row. Pridewing looked up at the parents, and he could see there were scattered nods of approval. It appeared that most thought Sky was genuine, so he couldn’t see any harm in allowing it.
“Alright,” answered the teacher, “but I expect behaviour exemplary of a teacher… given your previous experience.”
Sky felt a sense of dignity returning to him. It was nice that the resentment might not be as widespread as the blue wingtail thought it was. He turned towards the gathered young wingtails and took a deep breath. Grinning smartly, the blue wingtail placed the volcanic eyeglass over his left eye, enlarging it to massive proportions.
“I think I’ll begin with… a story.”
As those gathered would soon find out… Mr. Sky told really good stories.
Up above, Glide gave a slight nod of approval.
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Later that night Sky returned to the family tree to rest. It had been a very long day. So much had been made better by his brief teaching session that he couldn’t believe the difference it had made. The children loved him, and the less bigoted parents approved and even enjoyed his class. The story of his Far Away Home was the best one he had, and the blue wingtail enjoyed it a lot.
Brushing through the leaves, Sky found roost in his usual place. Almost immediately he called out for his mate.
“Star… are you here?”
She was, and she jumped down a few branches to greet him. They both pressed in close and licked one another in affection.
“I heard you had quite a day,” started Star with caring.
“Yeah,” answered Sky enthusiastically, “I think things are going to be alright now for Cloud… I’ve made sure of it.”
She kissed him again.
After the two wingtails parted, Sky had time to look around. He discovered that they were all alone.
“Where is Cloud?”
“He’s out with Glide and my Uncle Sturgeon… I sent them to go for a late night flight,” replied the scarlet wingtail with a hint of cleverness.
“…why?” asked Sky softly in surprise.
She smiled at him.
“There’s something I want to talk about… just you and I.”
Star clasped his hands. She clearly had something to say.
“What is it?” asked Sky.
Star blinked slowly, and then brought her nose close to his ear.
“I want a daughter.”
Sky was shocked, but he wasn’t completely surprised. He knew her so well; he could tell what was coming. He decided to play the angle of reason.
“A daughter… but… that’s going to be a lot of responsibility. Are you sure it’s what you want?”
Star looked right at him, deep into his eyes. He could tell at her very core that it was exactly what she wanted. The blue wingtail knew the right thing to do.
“If a daughter is what you want…” he said, touching his nose to hers, “then so it shall be.”
Star cooed in approval, and they embraced once more. By the end of the night, they had mated a second time.
What a wonderful day it had been.
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Okay that is a the end of the short story. I plan to put this up for the Fanfiction Award, so be sure to read and review!
Caustizer
