The next few days seemed to have stretched forever. Back in the forest, with her flock, days were all different. One day it would rain and they would stay huddled up on their branches, chirping and chattering to keep one another entertained. Another day the sun would be scorching, and the flock would occupy the shores of the lake, swim and occasionally fight for a gulp of water. The third day it would be relatively windy, and the flock would engage in an elaborate dance, flying around and performing sophisticated tricks.
Now it was almost the same. Wake up. Drink some water that soothes pain. Eat a fruit placed inside the container by a monster. Look out at the sky. Sleep. Repeat.
Teres would occasionally trill to tell her flockmates that she was okay, but barely got any response. She could just make out the form of Arror - curled up in his container, more asleep than awake. The stress of being taken away from their home had taken its toll on everyone.
However, as days passed and Teres began feeling lonely, she found herself an unlikely place of comfort. The maddening silence was getting on her nerves, so when she felt she was about to snap, she had to do something. And so she did, she found herself a new... Ally, so as to speak. The gentle giant. She could separate it from the rest of the group now, and it seemed to be rather interested in her.
At first she would snap at it whenever the monster approached, though never dared to bite again. Tasting the blood once had been fore than enough for her. She wasn't meant for causing pain. It felt wrong, making others cry out. Besides, the beast never tried to grab her ever again. It was only there to feed her and change the water in her tube, so pretty soon she grew rather comfortable with it.
And, as she did, she began to notice when it was talking to her. She could hear the slightest change in its voice when it spoke to her, she understood when it was kind, sad or angry. Although it almost never was angry. Especially not with her.
Teres was meant to be in the flock. So when she was left on her own, she was bound to find herself someone who at least resembled a fraction of what she'd had before.
She wasn't moving away now when the monster approached. She would remain by the bars and look it up and down, study it intently. It had dark eyes and dark hair, not a feather in sight, meaty and fat hands and an understanding smile. It would crouch down so as not to tower over her, and say something, talk in its soothing rumble.
Teres didn't understand a single word. But she could feel the emotions behind them, and as she listened, she couldn't help but grow affectionate of it - could she even call it an "it" now? It seemed intelligent and understanding. So maybe it was a "he".
He would talk to her for a long time, and she would sometimes reply with a soft chirp or a trill whenever he began to make loud glottal sounds, which she had come to realise were laughter. The giant would also daily check on her arm, which had basically healed because of the water. He didn't seem so bad.
And when the monster was confident he got Teres's trust, he took it one step further. They were sitting together once again, separated by the bars, when the creature reached his fingers through the bars. She snapped at them and scurried away, startled by the unexpected movement. He had never got so close before, not since her capture.
But the giant cooed soothingly, and Teres couldn't pinpoint any anger or hostility in his voice. What did he want? She paused for a few moments, then approached his hand, staring intently as it lowered before gently touching her wing. It twitched slightly, the almost forgotten feeling surprisingly pleasant. She had been grooming her wings, of course, but there was only so much she could do. Admittedly, the giant couldn't possibly groom her properly, it was too massive and clumsy for such a delicate task, but whatever it was doing, slightly rubbing her wing with fingers, felt good enough for her.
Teres spread her wings, cooing at the monster encouragingly. Although he was clearly a male, there was nothing flirtatious in his movements, so she allowed them to continue. His fat finger lightly ruffled her feathers, pulled out the old ones and scratched her where the new feathers were beginning to grow in tubes. It lacked the precision, care and attention of any member of her flock, but it was as good as she could get at the moment.
After a while, his fingers explored more. They would lightly rub the tiny feathers on her cheeks and arms, slide over her hands and preen the long feathers on top of her head. It seemed to be their preferred place. Teres didn't mind, just enjoying the affection and attention she was getting.
Aorra had been much better at this, far better, but she didn't know where Aorra was. Perhaps, still with the flock - she hadn't heard his voice from any of the other containers. That's where she hoped he was, anyway, soaring around free and wild, enjoying the power in his wings. Did he miss her? Probably. Did she miss him? Probably.
He'd been a good male. He would've made for a wonderful mate. He was careful and kind and very attentive. However, they hadn't even began nesting together, merely exchanged introductory affection and gifts, so forgetting him was easy enough. Perhaps, had they known each other for longer, she'd be dying from a heartbreak, which seemed to be the case with Arror. Sometimes she would see Aorra in her dreams, remember his soft voice and his gentle touch, but as days passed by and blurred together, the heartache slowly dulled to an itch.
One day Teres woke up in her tiny container and moved towards the bars. She was hungry, and it was about time her giant came to feed her. She tilted her head, and when she heard his thundering footsteps, which she could already separate from everyone else's, she grabbed the bars and let out a trill to get his attention. The others from her flock stirred, even Arror twitched his wings, but nobody else made a sound. Whatever. She was hungry, and the monster was feeding her. He never really hurt her, and he was very careful. Surely her growing attached to him wasn't that surprising, was it?
Not a minute later did he walk in with a smile on his face, and for a moment fresh breeze ruffled the feathers on Teres's head. The the giant closed the exit with a loud click and took out a big red fruit from his pocket. Teres scooted away so as to allow the monster to put the food inside, and it unlocked the barred door. However, instead of setting the fruit down, he just held it in his hand.
Teres tilted her head and looked up at him. Wasn't he going to feed her? The giant smiled and said something gently, turning the fruit in his hand. It looked delicious... But...
The monster moved his hand deeper in the container, making Teres snap and hold her hand up threateningly. Another coo came from the giant, and she watched as his fingers pressed on the delicate fruit, ripping the thin skin. As soon as the scent hit her, she inched towards the hand, then glanced at her acquaintance. There was no malicious intent behind his eyes or his smile. He just wanted her to eat.
Hesitantly, she reached out and took the fruit from his palm. It was warm, where he'd been holding it, warm and smelled like him. His fingers gently stroked the side of her wings as she settled down and began munching on the fruit happily. It was delicious.
Soon the giant pulled his hand out and stepped away, and Teres let out a coo, suddenly missing his touch. With no room to spread her wings, no chance to get close to any of her flockmates, she was craving for any contact possible. So she moved towards the bars and watched the giant feed others. Most of them snapped or hissed at him, a few merely hurried to the back of their container, one of two allowed him to touch them. Arror barely even stirred when the monster opened his container.
The giant let out a worried murmur and rubbed Arror's white wings. No reaction. Teres yipped to get the attention of her flockmate, but he didn't as much as flinch.
The giant sighed and picked Arror up in his massive hands, holding him close to his chest. The male was breathing, he even curled up a little to defend his vulnerable parts. His eyes were opened widely, and he let out a whimper as the giant carried him out of the big container and outside.
Someone chirped, and Teres answered with an anxious yap. What was happening to Arror? Was he getting released? He would never be able to fly home, not when he was suffering so much. A much scarer thought crossed her mind, making her freeze. He wouldn't... He wouldn't get killed... Would he?
Breath caught in her chest as she scrambled to the back of her container. Were they going to kill him?! For mourning his mate?! It wasn't his fault! They were already attached to one another, it was only natural that he would struggle without her so much!
Teres breathed heavily, clutching the long feathers on her head and pulling some of them out - the pain helped her not lose her mind. What would happen to them?! They got taken away from their home, what would happen to them now?! Were they going to be killed for sport? Eaten? What did the giants want?!
The next time someone entered the container, she screeched and pressed against the back of her confined space, her claws held out in front of her in a protective fashion. The gentle giant approached her and cooed, but she snapped at him. No. No longer would she trust him. Not until she knew what was in store for her and her flock.
He sighed and murmured, then opened the bars and put Arror inside her container. The male had a weird, unnatural scent, but her heart swelled with relief when she saw that he was moving. The giant locked them together and then left. As soon as he walked away, Teres hurried towards Arror. She checked his body up - unhurt, thank the sky - and then cooed into his ear. He murmured something and turned away, hiding behind his wings.
Of course, she knew what he wanted. The knowledge was deep within her body.
She leaned down and began to groom his wings. He was losing a lot of feathers, almost too much. Teres knew that it could happen to them under a lot of stress, so she nuzzled him gently. It was alright. He would return to his mate. Whatever it took.
Her claws effortlessly slid along his white wings, the strange scent quickly becoming replace with his own soft, pleasanat and soothing scent. Soon after, the floor of the container was littered with bright feathers, and she was sure his wings were all taken care of. In some places, his skin could be seen, and her heart ached at the sight. At least Arror had relaxed a little bit.
Teres then moved onto his head, grooming the feathers on his cheeks and neck. They were tiny and required precision, so when he turned his head to the side to give her easier access, she purred at him gratefully. He didn't reply, but closed his eyes.
She finished grooming him, then brought him water in her hands. He drank greedily, and absent-mindedly Teres wondered whether the water could take away the heartache as well. Arror didn't look particularly relieved, but at least he had the strength to scoot to the side and fall asleep. She fell asleep right beside him, back-to-back, wing-to-wing.
For the next few days, she ignored the gentle giant. Her attention focused on Arror - grooming him for hours upon hours, trilling in his ear whenever he was trying to fall asleep, snuggling up to him, giving him food and water. He still looked miserable, but affection of one from his flock clearly helped him considerably. He was breathing stronger now, he could crawl to the bars and drink some water, he sometimes even let out soft cooes. When he began grooming her wings, Teres fully relaxed. He would be okay now, as long as he wasn't and locked up on his own again.
They weren't meant to live separately. They were a flock. They needed each other. Even if it meant sharing a tiny container, Teres felt much better now that she had someone by her side, someone like her. There was nothing flirtatious between her and Arror - they could only have one mate in their life, after all - but when he pressed to her, she felt safe. She felt home.
However, soon that illusion broke. The giants were getting increasingly loud and fast, and soon the gentle giant approached them. He smiled and said something out loud, and then the tiny container swayed.
Arror hissed, Teres screeched and they both tried to hold onto the floor once the sickening feeling of being moved made its way up their bodies. However, soon it stopped. Teres looked up at the unusually bright light, and her heart skipped a beat.
The bars of the container were pressed against fake ice that separated them from the sky. Through the ice she saw tall monuments of stone and metal, bright and reflective and so tall that their tops were drowning in clouds. Bright lights shone from the monuments, gigantic objects zoomed past, and the sky suddenly looked very far away from the ground.
Teres gulped. Wherever she was, she wasn't home. And she didn't know if she would ever be able to return.