Walking through the park beside his family, the guilt Kanoa felt was beginning to subside slightly. Though a part of him was still worried about having to go behind their backs, even if it were for something they wanted for him, he reassured himself that so long as he took each pill discreetly and without taking all at once he would fly, finally making them proud…

  He clenched his fists at thought, a mixture of relief yet disgust at the idea of something so unnatural to him needing to occur, but either way he was geared towards their happiness absolutely. Everything else would eventually resolve itself.

  “Even these weirdo uncomfy feelings…” he nurtured to himself, all while looking through the gaps of light made from the roof of leaves above. Rey noticed his wandering eyes, his lower lip drooping just a nudge. He asked quickly,”Hey, Noa, what do you call an egg that can’t think straight?" He asked, Kanoa pondered the question briefly before shrugging. “Someone with a scrambled mind!!” Kanoa chuckled weakly, his sibling blank phased, not at all amused by his fathers attempt at “humor”, though Ave herself was bawling with laughter, she retorted smartly,” That was subpar! What would you call an egg that gets really scared? An egg white!” She answered excitedly, Rey pointed at her chuckling alongside her. Kanoa shook his head while chuckling alongside, now questioning the validity of their coolness.

  “Those jokes weren’t even any good, your own children don’t get it!” He exclaimed pointing to Jessy and Sammy “It was just so funny they forgot to laugh!” Rey responded cheekily,”Plus your mother loves them, told them to her all the time, you know how straight laced she is, loves her a simple clean corny joke, like me!”

  “That is like you…” He responded, part of him happy and smiling about his parents' connection, yet another part felt conflicted. Still strolling through the thick of the animal's side of the park, he watched as two beavers with wings nestled against one another under the roots of a tree, peacefully. “Aw! That’s really sweet, look at how happy they are… Soulmates…” Rey said, his voice softened the more his smile widened, as if being nestled in between the two.

  “You think so…? The one on the left doesn’t look into it. Or er, less into it…” Although having said that, Kanoa knew he hadn’t meant it, the two looked comfortable together, more than any other mate’s he’d seen, so why did he say that? He wondered guiltily. “Mm. Good observation. Animals can’t really “love” each other, at least from what science says… It’s all about procreation, those two are pretty rare in MurrowsBrow afterall. They’re all the other has, so whether they like it or not, they must learn to love each other, for the betterment of their future.” Ave said bluntly.

  Rey then chimed in passionately,"You’re both completely wrong! Scientist or not, you were an anthropologist! Not an animal scientist!” He said confidently. “A zoologist?” She asked, raising an eyebrow,” Yeah that- Whatever! Point is, I know love when I see it! Anybody can, it’s all intuition, Just look at their faces! The way the smaller one tries to spoon the bigger one, the way their beaks tap all innocently and they pull away out of shyness… It’s all there, I promise! They’re more than in love, they’re companions for life!”

  Sammy chuckled at how invested his father had become though still searched for the meaning he had found. Jessy on the other hand squinted alongside her mother, confused trying to attribute meaning to something that seemingly hadn't existed.

  “Dad, you’re making everythin’ up! Animals can’t make faces, they can't get all shy!” Jessy retorted, pointing at her father antagonistically. “They’re animals. I’ll say they like one another, but their “love” is transactional.” Desperately, he turned to Sammy and Kanoa. “Boys! You believe me, don’t you?” Whereas Sammy nodded, as passionate about the idea of love as his father, Kanoa shook his head. “Love like that… It’s kinda rare dad…” He said, rubbing the back of his neck, with one arm holding onto the case.

  “But it’s… Oh alright. If not even my eldest can see it, maybe I’ve got my wires crossed…” He said with a hint of doubt in his tone. “But believe me when I say this! Nobody loves anybody else just because they “gotta”. Not when you wanna be friends, or even like like someone!” Ave interrupted chuckling,”Like, like Rey?” “Oh quiet you! I’m softenin’ it for the kids… But that’s not how love works.... Somebody loves somebody else cuz they wanna come into their world and make it all warm and fuzzy! They wanna share a part of themselves with someone… For like… Ever. And even people different from us feel that way, and we can feel that way for them.. Love is love.”

  The air between them quieted, for only a moment, though to Kanoa it felt like minutes longer than it probably should’ve. Sitting with his fathers words, Kanoa found himself feeling hopeful, the word “different” playing in his mind over and over. Suddenly, the knot in his chest shed from, he could feel the grip of his nervousness fading. The case tucked under his arm felt on the verge of escaping his shirt.

  “Alright, alright. Enough with all of the soft and mushy stuff… Love or not, they’ll eventually fly away. And when they do, they’ll be free to do anything. Love on it’s own can’t guarantee freedom.” Jessy nodded along,”Fly so high the king’ll reward you with goods, and you have to work again!” She chanted, Ave chuckled patting her head, whereas Rey looked at her a bit taken off guard, but nonetheless understanding. “Y-yeah… That does have some truth to it too…”

  At his fathers admittance, there was an immediate demystification, as he remembered where he was. He sighed.

  “Yeah…” The case remained firmly under his arm as they continued down the narrowing trail home.

  The trail leading straight their house only a minute or two away once they passed the nature exhibit each of Kanoa’s animal friends resided in, it wasn’t until they exiting the a small group of eight kindergartners all of whom were monitored by a large unassuming man, Kanoa couldn’t help but notice a group of them, leering him down. Most of the others simply stood in awe, their swinging interrupted by Kanoa’s bottomless pitch black eyes, along with his red hair and tan skin. Kanoa kept himself poised, walking calmly while pretending not to pay attention as he’d always done. Though he disliked the eyes on him. Noticing this Ave stood in front

  As they walked the route straight home, now exiting the park and walking up the steep road ahead, many families dressed in red robes adorned with the gold emblem of a golden bird strung across their heart, Kanoa immediately placed his head down. His siblings, aware of the onlookers' disturbance to him, made them each grasp his hand with tender reminders such as,”Everything is going to be okay.” or “We’ll beat ‘em up for you, promise…!” Yet despite the comforting reminders, the looks of confusion, concern yet intrigue at his pitch black eyes, red hair and tan skin kept him aware of the power they held over him.

  Murmurs of his inability to fly and absence at the church they’d presumably been leaving from were at the forefront of Kanoa’s mind. Ave had been scowled at each eye that so much as glanced at Kanoa judgingly, Rey doing the same, while holding onto Kanoa alongside his siblings, his body towering over him more than usual, standing by in case of emergency.

  As they walked past the large crowd, Kanoa unscathed physically, the few words remarked before he left the crowd asking, “Why the need to feel so special?” The words surprisingly gnawed at him, though he kept himself poised, after all this was normal to him. All five turned the corner to their two story house. Kanoa walked slightly ahead, his sibling following close behind. Though before his parents could join him, Ave spotted a familiarly round cheery face, she called out to her nimble figure towards the end of the block.

  “Afternoon Claudia!” Ave called out, waving to her. Claudia paused, surprised to hear the familiar voice she did greet her. The woman's hair sat in a large coily bun, her eyes wide. Similarly to the other church goers, she wore a black robe with a golden Phoenix, though unlike them a newborn baby was strapped across her chest.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  As she processed the familiar face greeting her she couldn’t help but light up, her large poofy bun jumped along with her as she waved, immediately dashing over to the family. As she finally stumbled over, her breath heavy. “H-hey- Hey you… oh GOsh… I missed you… Missed you guys so…”

  Rey quickly offered a shoulder to lean on.”Yeah, we missed you a bunch too! And happy as we are to see you, you’re still recoverin’! Be careful will ya!? Especially with your beautiful boy!” He said, already pitching his voice affectionately, “She’s not delicate Rey, labor isn’t for the weak." She wiped the faint sweat from her brow,“Y-you’re right about that! But to do it two more times like you!? Be honest, it was for power, wasn’t it!?” All three laughed, then started to catch up. As the conversation continued leaving Kanoa and his siblings a bit confused as to who the familiar face was, Kanoa couldn’t help but wanting to retreat back inside. Afterall With everyone distracted, now would be the perfect time to- “Kanoa! Come say hi to your God mother!” Ave called out, he flinched, nervous and not even wanting his existence to be acknowledged in the moment.

  Though instinctively he was aware of which demeanor to put on. Despite the dread, effortlessly he skipped down the steps, “Sorry bout that!” He smiled, sure to approach softly as he wrapped his arms around her slender figure along with Cory’s chunkier body. Claudia sunk into the hug, reminding Kanoa to reciprocate affectionately with a pat of the back. “So good to see you Ms Claudia, congratulations on the baby! He’s lookin’ just as beautiful and handsome as you and his father already!” He said all while stroking Cory's chin. “Thank you… It’s really good to see you too. I remember when you were just a baby-!” She chuckled, looking off into the orange dyed sky in remembrance. “When I babysat you- you were always so quiet and polite… And now look at you…” She shot a genuine look of approval his way, to him, for simply being alive, he cringed a bit inside, not feeling worth it.

  “Looking at you now… I can’t help but remember the lil baby who tried to pick your nose when I was on the phone…” “Huh…?” Kanoa tilted his head. “You ended up crying for the first time in front of me! All because your nose holes were too small for your fingers! It was so precious I started crying with you!!!” Her eyes glossed up through her smiling, as if tears were about to burst through.

  “Yeah, yeah! I remember that too! Poor Noa!” Rey, Claudia and Ave laughed in remembrance, whereas Kanoa blushed, having a hard time remembering when he could have ever been so helpless.

  “You know though.” Said Ave, “I do see a bit of Vince in his demeanor, always quiet-” “Quick to fuss around strangers!” Claudia added, “Yeah, yeah… And smooth fat supple little cheeks… wait-” Ave and Claudia laughed at Rey’s slip up, Kanoa did as well,”I couldn’t think of anything! The baby was just born, what other traits are there, huh!?” He argued, waving his fist in the air, having fun in the moment. Though unlike them, Kanoa could feel the nervousness spike in his stomach as the laughter and banter continued on and on, not allowing for a time Kanoa could properly step out. Ave glanced at Kanoa with a smile across her face, her expression taunting his predicament.

  Unable to take the building tension anymore, he took his first step away from the group, then his second, then his third, to eventually turning his back to the front door altogether. He smiled a little, assured that the situation wasn’t nearly as big in his mind than he had predicted. Though before he could fully get away, Cory began bawling.

  “My goodness… Sorry about him, he's been teethin’….” Claudia said in a tender tone, stroking its smooth chin lovingly. “No, no that’s not it!” Rey declared. “Lookit, his eyes are all up on Noa, he wants to be held I bet! Cradled specifically!” Kanoa’s breath halted. “You got all of that from a single stare…?” Claudia asked in awe,”Rey is incredibly intuitive, especially when it comes to children… Come, Kanoa.” She said, her finger drawing him near. “But I… I’m not the best at holdin’ babies…” “Not the best?! Noa, you’re the five times champion of holdin’ and takin’ care of babies, as far as I’m concerned! Especially when it comes to holdin’ lil Jess and Sammy when we were out and about!” Rey affirmed, squinting his eyes slightly . “Just hold him.” Ave replied bluntly.

  As Kanoa practically dragged his feet Claudia unstrapped Cory from her baby carrier, putting him over her shoulder begrudgingly, Rey immediately interfered. “No Noa! Cradle him, trust me.” With the base of pills still on his chest, carefully he shifted it under his arm, cradling Cory uncomfortably. As if he were a spectacle all of them awed at the display, he grit his teeth as he could have sworn the pill case had made a distinctive clicking noise.

  “By the way, that bag? Did you make it yourself? The stitchin’ is real nice!” Rey complimented, “Yes I did, I’ve been saving it for awhile now, actually.” “Just wait until a year, Claudia! They’ll be so big you’ll miss stringin’ ‘I'm along your chest and chompin’ on his cheeks when you’re bored…. And… and…”A few tears dribbled down Rey’s checks.

  “Ahhhh!!! Why couldn't you be little babies longer?!” He said, pinching Kanoa’s firm cheeks. “So overdramatic, as usual…” Ave teased, pinching Rey’s cheek in return. Soon he wiped his tears, with all eyes on him Kanoa Shifted in an attempt to close the case, instead shifting it from under his arm slightly, Cory whimpered in response, sensing Kanoa’s anxiety, he grimaced slightly at the group, who were luckily enough still focused on each other.

  “Yeah… It’s the hardest part so far, I only have a couple months when he’s so snuggable..” “And even less time as kids, with flying and all.” Ave added. “But y’know, it’s funny, my fears were the opposite of yours lookin’ back Claudia!” He said, turning to Kanoa. “My dear son, lemme tell you! It took’ a minute for you to grow up!” “Huh..?” he asked, a bit surprised the conversation shifted to him.“Two years to learn how to talk, four to walk, and you hardly grew much beyond sixty five centimeters.” Ave said offhandly, Kanoa rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. “Heh… What can I say? You probably made me feel too at home.” “I’ll say.” Ave agreed quickly. As she did Kanoa frowned slightly, and as he did that, Cory began to sob once while staring at Kanoa, Claudia intervened. “Ah! Wait Kanoa, you need to support his head more, here, lend him to me!”

  Relieved he at first was willing to hand Cory over, that is until a distinctive group of oblong shapes spilled out into his armpit, he clenched his mouth, lowering his arms to halt anything else from spilling out.

  “Uh… Kanoa? May I have my son back?” She asked politely, Kanoa began to sweat, utterly terrified, they stood for a few moments as his eyes darted between Caludia, then Cory, then his parents. “Kanoa, what are you doing? Give Cory back to Claudia!” He flinched as his mothers harsher tone, the reminiscent banter of before was starting to fade, surely this would escalate if he didn’t act now! He thought, staring at even his fathers confused gaze. Thinking on his feet he replied,”I- I can’t! I just… I just know I can do this right! Y-y’know? Like holding him– Talkin’ about how he’s never gonna be this way again? I can’t just not appreciate him, y-y’know?” Cory’s cries intensified, as if offended by Kanoa’s faulty argument. Desperately, with sweat starting to run down his face from the tension, he drew Corey in cradling him as stiffly as before, the only change would be the subtle swings coupled with a manic smile to the point of slightly grimacing. “See?! Next year he’ll probably be bigger than me, and I can’t even do this!” He gave a forced laugh, Claudia laughed alongside him, though his parents, particularly Ave, didn’t seem as pleased.

  “Alright Noa, enough baby time for you…” Carefully he picked up the bawling Cory placing him in his mothers arms, relieved, and with his arms stuck in place he immediately backed away,”S-sorry uh- I gotta go pee- I- I mean use the restroom, thank you for coming Ms Claudia, thank you!” He turned and ran, only to face his siblings inside locking him out, he yelled, “Knock it off and let me in!” Ave groaned as she spotted a few other robed church goers staring on at the display. “Embarrasment…” She muttered, whereas Claudia could only laugh. “That son of yours, how do you get ‘em like that?” She asked, staring down at Cory’s tear soaked face. “You remind them of the difference between you and him and are sure to… Love, them..” She deliberated, turning away from Kanoa and the church goers in favor of Claudia. “But anyway… We have to work in only an hour or two, so we can’t stay long… I’m sorry.” She said with a frown. “Right, I understand. Y’know… I really miss you all at Church. I don’t care what the others say about Kanoa not flying, his name, or his appearance… For as long as I’ve known him, I can say he’s a good boy. You’ve done a great job with him, both of you.” She said, smiling. Rey smiled too, looking away bashfully with a smile. “I’m sure if they only got to know him and the rest of you, they would stop assuming. You should really stop by sometime. I’m sure the Phoenix would appreciate it too.” She said subtly, placing her arched hand across her heart and pendant.

  “Yeah… I think so too, but… First Noa has gotta be helped with the flyin’ though but we’d love seein’ more of you, right Ave?” As he asked for her input Ave stared at Kanoa one more time, his back turned to her while walking into the house. She sighed, then replied calmly, “Of course… Some day soon, we promise.”