Will’s first thought was that he needed to be careful. He had to get back inside quick, but if he made too much noise or came around the corner too quickly he could scare the bird away, or worse yet, his parents could find out. Will began to take slow and steady breaths as he tiptoed around the side of his house. Unfortunately, by the time he got around the corner and back to his own window, the bird was gone. Will walked slowly to to where he’d last seen it and leaned back against the windowsill. Then something caught his eyes.

At the edge of the woods. It was that same steak of purple he’d seen earlier when the bird flew. Will glanced into his window to check that no one was there and then turned back to focus his eyes on the edge of the woods. Sure enough, there was the bird tucked in one of the closest trees. Will held the little pill outward in his hand and began his slow walk toward the twisting branches.

The bird tipped it’s head back and forth. It saw him, Will was sure of it. He began to make a little clicking sound with his mouth. He didn’t really think about it, he just assumed that was the sort of thing that might get a bird’s attention.

He watched carefully as the black feathered creature hopped back and forth between the branches. It came lower and lower, as if it really wanted to come down but couldn’t quite convince itself that everything would be ok. Will wanted to ease its nerves. He kept at the same steady pace until he found himself under the very tree where the bird was perched.

“It’s okay,” Will said. “Here, you can have it, come on.” He held the ball high in the air and froze.

The bird glanced back and forth as if it were terrified someone would see, and then finally, it swooped down, took the ball from Will’s hand and swept itself up into the comfort of the trees. It was beautiful.

Will hadn’t been out long, but just in the last few minutes it had gotten noticeably darker outside, and now the bird’s glowing trail was much more pronounced. The purple-pink streak cut through the air and puffed away in a flash. Will watched as the bird gobbled down the pill greedily. Once it had finished it froze and for a long time pointed its head directly at Will.

Just as he began to feel the attention was a bit too strange, the bird swooped down and landed on his shoulder. Will let out a muffled yelp. It was right in his face, but instead of pecking or biting or any other bad thing it might possibly do, instead it nuzzled the side of its head softly into Will’s cheek.

“What are you doing?” Will was stunned.

The bird, of course, didn’t answer but continued to tuck itself up toward his neck and face.

“Look, you’re a sweet little guy, but I’ve gotta get back inside,” he said.

The bird fanned its wings and flashed a bit of pink glow into the air.

“You’re not any kind of normal animal are you?” Will said. “How do you survive out here? With your wings open you light everything up. How do you ever hide?”

What happens next?

An unknown voice says, “She doesn’t.”

A hissing sound causes Will to spin around

This Poll is Closed