Daisie
Strangely regular (better than the usual bizarre!)
It was a beautiful afternoon at Capperton Highschool. The sun was shining and the birds were singing on this very special February day. Yes, this day was a very special one, indeed, for it was a day for love. It was none other than Valentine's day. A young girl with bright green eyes nervously stared across the way towards a young man her age. Her smiling friend came up behind her and encouraged her. After that little boost of confidence, the green-eyed teen ran after the young man, tapping on his shoulder. Blushing, she shyly, though with intense feeling, confessed to her crush. Her heart was pounding, the anticipation sinking in for his response, when finally... He gently took her by the hand and gave her a romantic kiss on the lips.
Little did they know, someone was watching them. This someone studied their behaviour before sighing longingly. This person, however, was not any normal person... No, far from it. This young and chipper fellow...
Was a lovely bird.
He stared at the two from the top of the school. He, too, was very young, and his heart yearned to find his first love. "Today is the day," he told himself. He didn't know what it was about today, but something felt different. There was simply love in the air. Today had to be the day! If those two humans could accomplish it, surely, he could too. He was quite certain that he was far smarter than them, after all. His heart singing with joy and whimsy, he took off into the air.
Our enthusiastic young bird flew high in the sky, taking in all the scenery. All the squarish structures the humans had made for some reason, covered with nasty things they called "Wyn-does". He gazed over all of the weird contraptions that the young humans would play on and all the giant metal beasts, too. The wind was blowing gently and many other birds were chirping loudly from a nearby gnarled tree. He landed on one of the unoccupied branches, looking through the entire flock. It was time for some action...!
The young yet confident bundle of feathers hovered down to a lower branch approaching another bird. This lady was a large one with beautiful feathers... He simply had to have her! He was certain they’d get along swimmingly… He inched over towards his target very slowly. "Hey," he greeted in a suave tone, hoping to get her attention, though her only response was a momentary glance over to him.
Perhaps he didn't assert himself enough... If he just kept trying, he'd have to get her eventually. He inched slightly closer, clearing his throat and raising his voice. "Hey! You got a man to look after you? I can't imagine a pretty little thing like you all alone up here."
The woman next to him suddenly whipped her head around with a ferocious glare in her eyes. "Who you callin’ little? Who do y’think you are?! Do you even got a nick o' sense in ya?! Show a lady some respect!" She chided at him in a loud and venomous tone.
While this was a shock to the young man, he reassured himself that he had to keep trying at it. Besides, he wouldn't let this girl boss him around! "I'd show you respect anytime."
This seemed to send the gal into a spiral. "You think you're a big tough guy, huh?! Trust me, bucko, you ain't got the skill! I bet the tail feathers on my backside you're all bark and no bite! Coward!" She screeched at him aggressively, ruffling her feathers in aggravation as she turned to him.
It was at this moment that the male realized just how large and intimidating the bird he was attempting to court was. He shrunk slightly as the tensions rose. Perhaps he could diffuse the situation? "Ma'am, I-"
"MA'AM?! IS THAT WHAT’CHA CALLED ME?!"
She suddenly lunged at the flirtatious bird, her beak grabbing at his head feathers and tearing around vigorously. He screeched and eventually took off into the air, the agitated avian following behind him closely. "YA GONNA LEARN NOTTA MESS WITH THE LIKES OF THESE FEATHERS!" She cawed, still taking chase. He dove through the trees and dashed back up to the very top of Capperton High where she finally gave up the chase.
"Yeah, I better never see that pigeon-ugly face of yours again!" Was the final remark she yelled after him before flying back down to where the rest of the birds dwelt.
Okay, well that hurt a little bit, he thought to himself. But that was surely just beginner's bad luck, right? Sometimes to make it in life you gotta get a few feathers pulled. He stared at that same tree for a few moments before taking a breath, regaining his confidence, and going in for another swoop. This time he'd find someone better than that old hag.
He swooped back down to that old tree again, flitting from branch to branch. After only a few moments of searching, he stopped by a lovely little bird, and this time she was obviously younger. She had a beautiful sheen to her eyes, and his heart started pounding once more as they met his. "Hey.”
Surprisingly, he got a response from the girl this time. "Oh... Hello, there." She simply replied politely, and with intrigue.
Finally, he'd at least gotten somewhere! That first bird was just a fluke, and there was no way any of the other ladies could resist a boy like him. "I hear a lot of the gals around here are looking for men to protect them." He inched closer, chest puffed. "I'll make sure nothing comes near you. They won't hurt a feather on your head."
Suddenly a laugh came from her mouth, sounding mean against his ears. "I-I'm sorry... They won't hurt a feather on MY head? Not to be rude, but it seems like you can't even protect your own! Even against a girl."
His expression showed shock and offense at her hearty laughter. That was a bit of a jab! "H-... Hey! I can protect myself, just you see! I can be great to you! You just gotta..."
Clearly uninterested, she inched down the branch before taking off away from the now twice rejected fellow, not bothering to hear the rest of his story.
At this point, he was frustrated. Today was the day! Today had to be the day! He so badly just wanted someone to call his sweetheart. Someone to love, take care of, and provide for! He was a perfectly fine male to pick!
Angrily, he flapped his wings and landed on the half-dead grass below, where the majority of the avians were flocked to. It was bustling down there, everyone scrambling to get food. Some of the older guys would call the girls over to eat, he noticed. Stepping through the grass, he perked his head straight up, scanning over the masses.
Wandering through the excitement, he finally zeroed in on another lovely lady. The sheen on her feathers took him aback, and as he approached her confidently, she spotted him, welcoming his approach.
"Hey," seemed to be his signature greeting move, as he used it again.
"Hey," she asserted, inching towards him. This had to be the one. She was so clearly interested from the moment they set eyes on each other. She looked sly as he cooed at her.
"You're looking fine today." He smirked as he complimented with loads of unearned confidence. "Those are some nice tail feathers."
"You don't look so bad, yourself, big guy," she proclaimed in an alluring way, as she circled him before stopping in front of him.
He looked quite pleased with himself. This was going far better than any of his other encounters, after all. “Why don’t we-”
But before he could say anything else, he abruptly got a peck on the tail from behind. He squawked as he whirled around, making eye contact with the perpetrator.
His opponent was another male bird, who spoke up with a powerful and frightening tone. “Hey, buddy! You think a girl like her deserves a screw-up like you?!” he bullied in a mean-spirited manner, walking right up to the lady bird, who was now giggling lightly.
This wasn’t right… How had things fallen apart so quickly? How had he lost again by just a peck?! Why did the other guy get the girl, while he, who had just worked so hard, get abandoned? He raised his head which was brimming with fury. Within that second, he’d decided that he had to take back his prize, and show that he could handle himself.
He charged at his challenger and tackled him down, rolling roughly on the grass.
The bully bird came to his feet almost instantly, putting his head down in a challenging way. “Hey! You wanna fight, buddy?! I’ll give you a fight!”
The two angry males tussled, wings flapping wildly, legs flailing awkwardly, and beaks charging at any patch of feathers they could reach. But as it continued, it was becoming more and more apparent that our plucky hero was on the losing side of this battle, getting beat down harder and harder. He was becoming reckless and frustrated. He stood up and caught his breath, drops of blood starting to seep from the fight. No…! How could he lose? He had tried so hard…!
The challenger bird took another leap at him, and in that moment of fight or flight he chose to take flight. Alas, the other avian had finally won.
Having ran away, he glided through the air, taking himself up to the top of the school again. He landed and dismally gazed off down towards the old, twisted tree. In one of the branches sat the triumphant winner of the battle, and next to him, the gal he’d won. It wasn’t fair… He’d been humiliated in front of everybody. Now the entire flock would know of his failure, and he wouldn’t have the hope of finding a lady again. But a thought occurred to him… One that frightened him. Maybe he was just born wrong. He would always be unable to find someone he loved, and someone to protect. He’d live the rest of his life as an outcast, and he’d never truly be respected by others...
“You look like someone took a big old crap on your head,” a female voice commented, snarkily. There was an old hen sitting next to him, a few feet away, also looking out over the school.
He was shocked to hear a voice, and even more shocked to find the girl sitting beside him. “What are you doing here?” He asked genuinely. Normally he’d ask this in an attempt to court a young lady, but in this case, he was honestly curious. He’d not seen anyone else come up there all day.
“Well, to perch and get a good view of the place, of course.” She answered as if he’d asked a stupid question.
He had to take a few moments to think before talking again, feeling the cold winter breeze that contrasted with the bright and sunny day. After pondering for a few moments, he realized something that made him a little bit more positive. Even if somehow there was a problem with him, that didn’t have to stop him from trying. Maybe he could keep trying! Perhaps eventually he’d strike gold and live a happy life with a love. Raising his head, he puffed his chest out again. Now was the time to try. “Do you have someone to take care of you? ‘Cause you look like a pretty little bird to me, I can’t imagine you being all alone out here.”
She chuckled, not seeming to take him too seriously. “Is that so? I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that fight down there was over a girl.” She teased, though not in a malicious voice, but rather a playful one. She gave a few seconds to thought before deciding to speak.
“So you want to court a lady, huh? You’re a young man and are new to this, aren’t you…? Hmm, well…” She smiled at him. “Let me help you a little.”
“See, you can talk to gals, trying to get them to like you. And that’s all fine and dandy… But the ones who really know what they’re doing know that any man can say he’s good, but if he doesn’t prove it, it means squat. So how about this? How about instead of tootin’ your own horn, you go and find me some food, call me over, and then I’ll think about it. You gotta earn your right.”
He was visibly paying much attention to her words. To be honest… It did make sense. He recalled as he landed down on the grass, many of the other men had found food and were calling the women over to eat… He puffed his chest out and decided to give this new approach a good try. He had to earn his right, and he was more than willing to do so. With newfound confidence he jumped off the edge and took flight, scanning the ground.
After a few minutes of circling around Capperton High, he finally noticed that some human had accidentally left their sandwich out on a nearby table. Score! Immediately, he zoomed over, perching himself on the edge of the table. Thinking a moment, his gaze went to the old tree again, studying the male’s tactics. After figuring out how the guys lured the girls over to eat some grub, he quickly learned how to mimic their calls, taking a piece of the bread in his beak and chirping with all his might.
It wasn’t long before the older bird from before swooped down from the top of Capperton high and arrived at the scene. “Nicely done.”
He found that only moments later, a few other girls started arriving. Very slowly but surely, more and more birds arrived. They seemed excited to have such a large meal in front of them! Many of them grabbed a large piece and flew off with it in their mouths, many of them stayed to dine.
The lady from the top of the school soon approached him.“And that is how you prove yourself. Of course… This ain’t just a one time thing. You’re gonna have to keep at it every day. Girls can see through fake men.” She paused to look over the birds around them.
He cocked his head over to her, proud of his accomplishment. Puffing his chest out and inching towards her, he asked “Does that mean I won your heart over?”
She smirked with a sly look. “I guess you’ll have to see.”
It was a beautiful day at Capperton Highschool. The sun was shining and thank heavens the birds were singing on this very special Valentine’s day!
Little did they know, someone was watching them. This someone studied their behaviour before sighing longingly. This person, however, was not any normal person... No, far from it. This young and chipper fellow...
Was a lovely bird.
He stared at the two from the top of the school. He, too, was very young, and his heart yearned to find his first love. "Today is the day," he told himself. He didn't know what it was about today, but something felt different. There was simply love in the air. Today had to be the day! If those two humans could accomplish it, surely, he could too. He was quite certain that he was far smarter than them, after all. His heart singing with joy and whimsy, he took off into the air.
Our enthusiastic young bird flew high in the sky, taking in all the scenery. All the squarish structures the humans had made for some reason, covered with nasty things they called "Wyn-does". He gazed over all of the weird contraptions that the young humans would play on and all the giant metal beasts, too. The wind was blowing gently and many other birds were chirping loudly from a nearby gnarled tree. He landed on one of the unoccupied branches, looking through the entire flock. It was time for some action...!
The young yet confident bundle of feathers hovered down to a lower branch approaching another bird. This lady was a large one with beautiful feathers... He simply had to have her! He was certain they’d get along swimmingly… He inched over towards his target very slowly. "Hey," he greeted in a suave tone, hoping to get her attention, though her only response was a momentary glance over to him.
Perhaps he didn't assert himself enough... If he just kept trying, he'd have to get her eventually. He inched slightly closer, clearing his throat and raising his voice. "Hey! You got a man to look after you? I can't imagine a pretty little thing like you all alone up here."
The woman next to him suddenly whipped her head around with a ferocious glare in her eyes. "Who you callin’ little? Who do y’think you are?! Do you even got a nick o' sense in ya?! Show a lady some respect!" She chided at him in a loud and venomous tone.
While this was a shock to the young man, he reassured himself that he had to keep trying at it. Besides, he wouldn't let this girl boss him around! "I'd show you respect anytime."
This seemed to send the gal into a spiral. "You think you're a big tough guy, huh?! Trust me, bucko, you ain't got the skill! I bet the tail feathers on my backside you're all bark and no bite! Coward!" She screeched at him aggressively, ruffling her feathers in aggravation as she turned to him.
It was at this moment that the male realized just how large and intimidating the bird he was attempting to court was. He shrunk slightly as the tensions rose. Perhaps he could diffuse the situation? "Ma'am, I-"
"MA'AM?! IS THAT WHAT’CHA CALLED ME?!"
She suddenly lunged at the flirtatious bird, her beak grabbing at his head feathers and tearing around vigorously. He screeched and eventually took off into the air, the agitated avian following behind him closely. "YA GONNA LEARN NOTTA MESS WITH THE LIKES OF THESE FEATHERS!" She cawed, still taking chase. He dove through the trees and dashed back up to the very top of Capperton High where she finally gave up the chase.
"Yeah, I better never see that pigeon-ugly face of yours again!" Was the final remark she yelled after him before flying back down to where the rest of the birds dwelt.
Okay, well that hurt a little bit, he thought to himself. But that was surely just beginner's bad luck, right? Sometimes to make it in life you gotta get a few feathers pulled. He stared at that same tree for a few moments before taking a breath, regaining his confidence, and going in for another swoop. This time he'd find someone better than that old hag.
He swooped back down to that old tree again, flitting from branch to branch. After only a few moments of searching, he stopped by a lovely little bird, and this time she was obviously younger. She had a beautiful sheen to her eyes, and his heart started pounding once more as they met his. "Hey.”
Surprisingly, he got a response from the girl this time. "Oh... Hello, there." She simply replied politely, and with intrigue.
Finally, he'd at least gotten somewhere! That first bird was just a fluke, and there was no way any of the other ladies could resist a boy like him. "I hear a lot of the gals around here are looking for men to protect them." He inched closer, chest puffed. "I'll make sure nothing comes near you. They won't hurt a feather on your head."
Suddenly a laugh came from her mouth, sounding mean against his ears. "I-I'm sorry... They won't hurt a feather on MY head? Not to be rude, but it seems like you can't even protect your own! Even against a girl."
His expression showed shock and offense at her hearty laughter. That was a bit of a jab! "H-... Hey! I can protect myself, just you see! I can be great to you! You just gotta..."
Clearly uninterested, she inched down the branch before taking off away from the now twice rejected fellow, not bothering to hear the rest of his story.
At this point, he was frustrated. Today was the day! Today had to be the day! He so badly just wanted someone to call his sweetheart. Someone to love, take care of, and provide for! He was a perfectly fine male to pick!
Angrily, he flapped his wings and landed on the half-dead grass below, where the majority of the avians were flocked to. It was bustling down there, everyone scrambling to get food. Some of the older guys would call the girls over to eat, he noticed. Stepping through the grass, he perked his head straight up, scanning over the masses.
Wandering through the excitement, he finally zeroed in on another lovely lady. The sheen on her feathers took him aback, and as he approached her confidently, she spotted him, welcoming his approach.
"Hey," seemed to be his signature greeting move, as he used it again.
"Hey," she asserted, inching towards him. This had to be the one. She was so clearly interested from the moment they set eyes on each other. She looked sly as he cooed at her.
"You're looking fine today." He smirked as he complimented with loads of unearned confidence. "Those are some nice tail feathers."
"You don't look so bad, yourself, big guy," she proclaimed in an alluring way, as she circled him before stopping in front of him.
He looked quite pleased with himself. This was going far better than any of his other encounters, after all. “Why don’t we-”
But before he could say anything else, he abruptly got a peck on the tail from behind. He squawked as he whirled around, making eye contact with the perpetrator.
His opponent was another male bird, who spoke up with a powerful and frightening tone. “Hey, buddy! You think a girl like her deserves a screw-up like you?!” he bullied in a mean-spirited manner, walking right up to the lady bird, who was now giggling lightly.
This wasn’t right… How had things fallen apart so quickly? How had he lost again by just a peck?! Why did the other guy get the girl, while he, who had just worked so hard, get abandoned? He raised his head which was brimming with fury. Within that second, he’d decided that he had to take back his prize, and show that he could handle himself.
He charged at his challenger and tackled him down, rolling roughly on the grass.
The bully bird came to his feet almost instantly, putting his head down in a challenging way. “Hey! You wanna fight, buddy?! I’ll give you a fight!”
The two angry males tussled, wings flapping wildly, legs flailing awkwardly, and beaks charging at any patch of feathers they could reach. But as it continued, it was becoming more and more apparent that our plucky hero was on the losing side of this battle, getting beat down harder and harder. He was becoming reckless and frustrated. He stood up and caught his breath, drops of blood starting to seep from the fight. No…! How could he lose? He had tried so hard…!
The challenger bird took another leap at him, and in that moment of fight or flight he chose to take flight. Alas, the other avian had finally won.
Having ran away, he glided through the air, taking himself up to the top of the school again. He landed and dismally gazed off down towards the old, twisted tree. In one of the branches sat the triumphant winner of the battle, and next to him, the gal he’d won. It wasn’t fair… He’d been humiliated in front of everybody. Now the entire flock would know of his failure, and he wouldn’t have the hope of finding a lady again. But a thought occurred to him… One that frightened him. Maybe he was just born wrong. He would always be unable to find someone he loved, and someone to protect. He’d live the rest of his life as an outcast, and he’d never truly be respected by others...
“You look like someone took a big old crap on your head,” a female voice commented, snarkily. There was an old hen sitting next to him, a few feet away, also looking out over the school.
He was shocked to hear a voice, and even more shocked to find the girl sitting beside him. “What are you doing here?” He asked genuinely. Normally he’d ask this in an attempt to court a young lady, but in this case, he was honestly curious. He’d not seen anyone else come up there all day.
“Well, to perch and get a good view of the place, of course.” She answered as if he’d asked a stupid question.
He had to take a few moments to think before talking again, feeling the cold winter breeze that contrasted with the bright and sunny day. After pondering for a few moments, he realized something that made him a little bit more positive. Even if somehow there was a problem with him, that didn’t have to stop him from trying. Maybe he could keep trying! Perhaps eventually he’d strike gold and live a happy life with a love. Raising his head, he puffed his chest out again. Now was the time to try. “Do you have someone to take care of you? ‘Cause you look like a pretty little bird to me, I can’t imagine you being all alone out here.”
She chuckled, not seeming to take him too seriously. “Is that so? I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that fight down there was over a girl.” She teased, though not in a malicious voice, but rather a playful one. She gave a few seconds to thought before deciding to speak.
“So you want to court a lady, huh? You’re a young man and are new to this, aren’t you…? Hmm, well…” She smiled at him. “Let me help you a little.”
“See, you can talk to gals, trying to get them to like you. And that’s all fine and dandy… But the ones who really know what they’re doing know that any man can say he’s good, but if he doesn’t prove it, it means squat. So how about this? How about instead of tootin’ your own horn, you go and find me some food, call me over, and then I’ll think about it. You gotta earn your right.”
He was visibly paying much attention to her words. To be honest… It did make sense. He recalled as he landed down on the grass, many of the other men had found food and were calling the women over to eat… He puffed his chest out and decided to give this new approach a good try. He had to earn his right, and he was more than willing to do so. With newfound confidence he jumped off the edge and took flight, scanning the ground.
After a few minutes of circling around Capperton High, he finally noticed that some human had accidentally left their sandwich out on a nearby table. Score! Immediately, he zoomed over, perching himself on the edge of the table. Thinking a moment, his gaze went to the old tree again, studying the male’s tactics. After figuring out how the guys lured the girls over to eat some grub, he quickly learned how to mimic their calls, taking a piece of the bread in his beak and chirping with all his might.
It wasn’t long before the older bird from before swooped down from the top of Capperton high and arrived at the scene. “Nicely done.”
He found that only moments later, a few other girls started arriving. Very slowly but surely, more and more birds arrived. They seemed excited to have such a large meal in front of them! Many of them grabbed a large piece and flew off with it in their mouths, many of them stayed to dine.
The lady from the top of the school soon approached him.“And that is how you prove yourself. Of course… This ain’t just a one time thing. You’re gonna have to keep at it every day. Girls can see through fake men.” She paused to look over the birds around them.
He cocked his head over to her, proud of his accomplishment. Puffing his chest out and inching towards her, he asked “Does that mean I won your heart over?”
She smirked with a sly look. “I guess you’ll have to see.”
It was a beautiful day at Capperton Highschool. The sun was shining and thank heavens the birds were singing on this very special Valentine’s day!
