Emery, now in more familiar streets, biked slower than before. Mr. Nakayama’s was just up ahead, and their legs were tired from biking uphill. Their eyes drifted over the houses, looking for a particularly large home that looked slightly more expensive than the others. It was a rich neighborhood, after all, all of these houses must be worth a small fortune. But Mr. Nakayama’s had a certain character about it, not just of wealth, but of elegance and poise.
Eventually, Emery’s eyes landed, not on a house, but a person. It was the madman from before. Emery nearly wobbled on the bicycle. What were the chances that he ended up here, eating the apple that had been thrown at him? They pushed on the pedals to go up to him, taking action before hesitation and anxiety took hold.
Up close, they could see the youth’s freckles speckling his face and his deep purple eyes. Emery pressed on the brakes when they came beside him. Swallowing down the feeling that this would be very awkward, they said, in their timid but formal voice, “Sir, I would like to speak with you. I have business at the moment, but could I have your name?”
Garnet wasn't paying any sort of attention to his surroundings, instead focusing on the very crisp apple he was eating. It was one of the best ones he'd ever had. Usually the apples he ate were a lot more squishy since they were the only ones he could ever get his hands on. No one wanted squishy apples, so they didn't mind him having them. Garnet was taking another bite of the apple and relishing in the sweetness when someone spoke beside him.
"Wah!" Garnet yelped, jumping away from the person with a startled little hop. "Oh, uh… what?" He blinked at the individual who'd just spoken to him. They were on a bike and sounded like they didn't do this very often. Why him? Why now? Had they followed him from the roundabout or were they just some random person? Either way, he should probably answer their question instead of continuing to stare at them with a comically shocked look on his face.
"I, uh, I'm Garnet. Why do you want to talk to me?" He took another bite of apple, raising his eyebrows at the person. Over their shoulder, Garnet spotted a butterfly with rich brown wings flapping towards him. It looked like it was on a mission. He tried his best to give it the 'do not come over here under any circumstances' look, since he was currently talking with someone who seemed at least mostly normal. Soil ignored his look and had the audacity to land right on the bicycle person's shoulder. "Soil, get off of them at once. I've told you, you're not allowed to land on random people. What if they turn out to be Ulric?"
"Right, Ulric." Soil heaved a sigh and fluttered onto Garnet's shoulder instead.
(Sorry, had a busy weekend ^^;)
Emery winced. “S— sorry, I had no intention of startling you,” they said. “Nice to meet you, Garnet. Is there a surname, or…?”
They saw his gaze slide over their shoulder, and they looked back to find the brown butterfly flying in their direction. When it landed on their shoulder, they let out a small breath of wonder. It was a beautiful butterfly, Emery rarely saw butterflies like it. They wondered if the butterfly the man talked to earlier was as beautiful up close. “Ulric?” They muttered under their breath as they watched it fly over to Garnet. “Soil,” they repeated, louder this time. “It suits it.”
Then they remembered themself. “Ah, right. Um, I need to talk to you, Garnet. Because you’re crazy. And I’m probably crazy too.” They blinked. “Oh, um, I’m Emery, by the way.”
(You're fine, mine was pretty slow too. :)
"I, uh, you're fine." Garnet waved his hand at the stranger, giving the butterfly a quick glare before turning his attention back on them. "No surname. Greg doesn't believe in them." A small smirk appeared on his lips as the stranger stared at Soil. At least they didn't seem to mind so much. He could cross another person off the 'could be Ulric' list. "Oh, Ulric's just a guy who's allegedly deathly afraid of moths and butterflies, so I've advised for all the butterflies to not land on anyone in case they end up being Ulric. Just in case." Garnet shrugged. His eyes narrowed at their reason for talking to him. "I'm not crazy. Everyone always calls me crazy and I'm not crazy."
"Totally not. By the way, Erenth Cavriel has been thinking about using his son to secure his power. He’s planning on arranging a marriage to the eldest child of the Luiza family."
"That's not helpful, Soil! I don't even know who those people are." Garnet waved a hand at Soil, shooing the butterfly away. "Go bother someone else for a while."
"Meanie." Soil grumbled, fluttering past the person apparently called Emrey and disappearing.
"So, Emrey. Why do you think I'm crazy, and why are you also crazy?" Garnet crossed his arms over his chest, narrowing his eyes slightly at Emrey.
“Oh…” They took in all of this information, unsure what to do with it. “Interesting.”
At this point, they remembered that the word ‘crazy’ was an insult. They stuttered, fumbling with their words. Luckily though, Garnet was busy talking to the butterfly. A vague feeling of anxiousness came over them again. Looking around, Emery found Mr. Nakayama’s mansion just up ahead.
“Sorry,” they said, smiling nervously. “I cannot stay and chat just now, I have to go.” They pushed on the bike pedals and started pedaling away. “I will send you a letter! Thank you!”
They briefly raised a hand in farewell, then looked in the direction of the mansion. Approaching the gates, they got off of the bike and examined the lock, which was sealed with magic. Emery dug into their bag, revealing a stone that had been carved into the shape of a key. Placing the key in the lock, they muttered a chant, a kind of spell that acted as a password, and unlocked the gate. The guided their bicycle inside, then took the key and closed the gate behind them.
Of course the moment he got a moment of peace, the stranger apparently named Emery had to go.
"What do you mean, letter?" Garnet called after Emery. "Are we penpals now? I don't have any paper to write you back!" He watched as Emery disappeared into one of the huge houses with a confused look on his face. What in the world had just happened? Garnet sighed and went back to eating his apple. He couldn't worry about that weird encounter. It was a relaxation day. That meant it was time to wander around the city wishing very hard for a bath so one of Sarah's Safehouses would show up. They normally only showed up for people when they really, really needed their help. He'd gotten to know the god, however, and they generally opened up a room for him when he asked for it. Garnet cast one last look at the mansion Emery had disappeared into, then started off down the street in search of dark blue doors.
The house was like an old man to Emery. Old and dark, with spiraling staircases and tall pillars that you could hear ghosts whispering in between, intricate carvings in the dark wood and marble that were like wrinkles in the house’s skin. It was, of course, far older than either of the current residents and had belonged to earlier generations of the Nakayamas, and before that, the Okamotos. The house was an old, distinguished man, one that you had to act your best around. It made Emery nervous, sometimes. And now was one of those times.
They found Mr. Nakayama in his study. The large window was open, letting diffused skylight spill into the room. The man was a mere shadow at his desk, the light behind him contrasting his stiff, rectangular form. A pair of glasses flashed upwards at Emery’s arrival. He had apparently been going over some papers.
“Emery,” he greeted, the gentleness in his voice out of place with his harsh appearance.
Their eyes adjusted to the light. They could see his face now; an upturned brow, a concerned gaze behind those rectangular glasses.
“Sir,” Emery muttered awkwardly.
Just then, a pealing cry came from outside. Something flew in through the window; Emery thought it was an object that had been thrown, but no, there was a flap of wings and a cackling sound, and a smile came to their face. The bird landed on their shoulder, it’s talons digging into their clothes and skin. They winced, but the smile didn’t fade.
“Hey girl,” they greeted fondly, and the falcon clacked her beak. “Thanks for taking care of Flint for me, sir.”
“Of course,” Mr. Nakayama said. “But where have you been? Dinner will be ready quite soon.”
It was then the smile fell.
His search didn't take very long. Most of the time spent was him just trying to find a proper alley that he could access. Garnet had to leave the neighborhood first since it was way too fancy. He found a dark blue door in a brick wall almost the second he left the neighborhood.
"Thank you, Sarah," Garnet whispered, giving the door a soft tap as he opened it. The room inside was small but in a cozy way. There was a door in the wall opposite him, a bed in the far corner, and a table set with a warm meal near the center of the room. Gods, that food smelled delicious. But he was taking a bath first. It had been the reason Sarah had let him in in the first place, after all. Garnet crossed to the door and opened it, letting out a rush of steam. There was a bath already drawn, along with a fluffy towel and a change of clothes. "You're spoiling me, Sarah," Garnet laughed, closing the door with a smile.
Dinner was… awkward. Emery picked at their food, afraid to look at Mr. Nakayama in the eye. They had let Flint outside again so she could find her own food, but they wished they could be out there with her.
They heard Mr. Nakayama clear his throat. “Emery, you know I’m a busy man.”
Not this again. They weren’t thirteen anymore. Emery quietly braced themself.
“I cannot accept anything less than punctual from you. You understand, yes?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Now, please explain your lateness.”
Emery suppressed a heavy sigh. “I fell asleep. At the Academy.”
“I see. This isn’t the first time?”
Defensiveness rose in them. “I’m working hard, sir. I have to stay up late. It’s not that I’m lazy, I promise.”
“I didn’t say that, now did I?”
“Yes, but…”
“Emery, listen to me. You are doing so well. I do not think you’re being lazy, I think you are getting… distracted. You can’t let yourself become distracted from what is important, yes?”
Both of them seemed to have stopped eating entirely. Emery could feel their heart pounding in their chest, their lips pulled tight.
“If this about my project…”
Mr. Nakayama was silent.
Garnet slipped into the bath with a satisfied sigh. It had been a while since he'd been able to take a nice bath like this. Usually, all he could afford the time for was a quick shower. Greg and the others always had him running around doing something or other. Garnet was fully intending to spend as much time as he could in there before the water got cold. He would have, too, if two familiar voices didn't jolt him out of his thoughts.
"Hey, you know that place you were just at? There's something growing under the road." Garnet's eyes flew open to see two butterflies doing circles in front of his face.
"The Family Luiza has three children, not two," The other butterfly said, a hint of satisfaction in its voice.
"Almost Empty Honey Pot and Velvet Skies! How'd you get in here?"
"Sarah let us in. She sensed it was important."
"Wonderful. I'm guessing I have to act on one or both of those things?"
"Just mine," Velvet Skies did a loop around my head. "Go check those cobblestones out, and fast." The water started draining out of the bathtub, which apparently means Sarah agrees with the butterfly's words.
"Alright, fine, I'm going."
"Make sure you're ready to run. I doubt those uppity-up people will like you destroying their roads." Almost Empty Honey Pot laughed, fluttering out of the bathroom.
"I swear to Jo. It's almost like you're trying to get me arrested," Garnet sighed and pulled himself out of the bathtub, drying and dressing in record time. He really didn't feel like pulling up the road back where he'd met that weird person Emery, but if it had something to do with the mold Greg had told him about, he supposed he didn't have a choice.
His silence was answer enough. Emery looked away, returning to picking at their food and eventually eating a bite. They almost wished they could eat in their old room, but they had agreed to eat with him. But eating with him would be unbearable if they left it like this.
Emery gripped the fork in their hand, then set it down. “You are not my father,” they said quietly. “I have my own priorities, alright?”
A sigh could be heard from across the table. “I thought your priority was to get into the Academy. Learn what you could there.”
“I have, sir. I have gotten into the Academy. I’m not going to ask you what I should do next because I think I can do that for myself.”
Mr. Nakayama adjusted his glasses. “Yes, certainly. But I still think you need guidance. The Academy will not tolerate any of this… falling asleep and looking into things that have been proven false.”
It was Emery’s turn to be silent. He wasn’t wrong, even if they wished he were. Professor Birdwhistle seemed to be the only easygoing one among her colleagues, and even then, the work that accumulated in a single week was a lot to keep up with. They could not afford to slack off. But of course, it was deeper than that. If they failed to keep up with the work load, of their scores started to slip, would they still be the Academy’s Golden Child?
“Emery.”
They looked up. “Sir?”
“Your ear is bleeding.”
Sure enough, when they gingerly touched their left ear, their finger came away coated in blood. Emery took the napkin to the side of their plate and pressed it to their ear.
It didn't take Garnet long to retrace his steps. He hadn't been far, after all. Once the street started to look familiar, he slowed down and started staring intently at the road. According to Velvet Skies, there was something growing under it. It didn't take long before he saw the first signs of something amiss. Growing between the cracks were sparse patches of something sickly-looking. It looked vaguely like moss or something similar, but Garnet was sure it was nothing like it. True natural things were full of magic, and this thing almost seemed like the opposite. Like it was sucking the magic from the earth and air around it. Garnet followed the trail of moss-like stuff down the road, stomach sinking as the stifling feeling got worse. How had no one noticed this? There was obviously something wrong with it.
He had a feeling there was something worse under the surface of the road, but he'd have to do some destruction to get to it. Garnet glanced around the road furtively. He'd have to be quick about this. It would make a lot of noise and he was 100% sure people around there wouldn't like it at all. It looked clear for the moment. Garnet took a deep breath and focused on the section of road that had the least amount of magic surrounding it. He let out a few short whistles, flicking his fingers up. With a loud crack, a section of the road rose a couple of feet into the air. Garnet quickly guided it onto the road beside the new hole and dropped down next to it. The entire hole was full of moss. It might have been his imagination, but Garnet was sure he could feel something like a breeze coming up from under it. That shouldn't be possible, unless… unless the moss was eating through the earth. Hmm, he should really go check out the sewers at this point. Garnet shook his hand a few times, letting out a lilting whistle as he did. A small ball of magic dropped from his hand towards the moss. He was intending for it to be a marker so he could find this exact spot from the underside, but the magic vanished the second it came in contact with the moss. Garnet frowned, pressing his lips together. It seemed he'd have to do this the hard way.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Garnet glanced up to see someone staring at him from the corner of the street.
"Uh, street repair!" Garnet called back, quickly guiding the section of street back into place with a few whistles. The person narrowed their eyes at him and started walking towards him. Yep, it was definitely time to leave.
They fell into awkward silence, the only sounds being the clinking of silverware scraping against plates. The longer the silence stretched, the more miserable Emery felt. They could practically see themself slumped over the desk in their dorm at the end of the week, piles of work around them and a cup of coffee going cold at their fingers. Shaking their head to get rid of the premonition, they focused on eating.
After a moment, they spoke again. “Um, the food is very good, sir.”
Some of the tension in the air seemed to dissipate. “I’m glad you like it,” Mr. Nakayama said, his voice warm. “Has your ear stopped bleeding?”
Emery took the napkin from the ear and examined it, then shrugged and pressed it to their ear again.
Once dinner was over, Emery excused themself to their old room so that they could ‘take care of some business,’ aka write and send a letter to that Garnet guy from earlier. Being in their old room was rather strange, but nostalgic. Their dorm at the Academy was smaller, so they were quite unsure of what to do with themself in the larger space. After looking around a bit, they moved over to the writing desk that sat in front of the large window and pulled out a piece of parchment and pen from their bag. This time they could just do it the old fashioned way.
Before they could even begin to start writing though, a shout from outside caught their attention. Peeking out of the window, Emery could make out a silhouette that looked very similar to the one they saw in the roundabout. The weird Garnet guy. Someone was approaching him… what was going on? Why did he come back?
"Street repair? You don't look like someone qualified to do that. You look like one of those no-good beggers always hanging around and asking for money."
"I beg your pardon?" Garnet paused, glancing down at himself. He'd just taken a bath and gotten a change of clothes and they still thought that about him? Gods, what was even the point? Well, the point was to feel good and relax and not smell terrible. But it still annoyed him. "I'm not a beggar. I don't ask for money."
"Then what are you digging around under our streets for?" The person fired back, stopping a few paces away from him with an accusatory look on their face. "Trying to disrupt the public order?"
"Trying to find the weird mold and/or moss, actually." Garnet shrugged, taking a step away from them. "It's there, alright. It's been found. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go now."
"That's a flimsy excuse if ever I heard it," the person said, hands starting to move in a very specific pattern that Garnet recognized as the start of a Modern Magic spell. "There's no mold or moss under our streets, and that," they nodded towards the admittedly very obvious square in the road, "is illegal to some degree."
"So you're going to deal with me yourself?" Garnet hoped they would. He could take them, or at least disrupt whatever spell they had going on long enough to make a run for it. Probably.
"No, I'm going to take you to the Day Guard and let them take care of you. This," the person finished the movement, producing a shimmering golden rope of magic, "is just a precaution. You look like a runner." The person was entirely correct on this account. Garnet was a runner. Mostly because he didn't have the money to pay the fines the Day Guard would surely land him with. He would run now if he wasn't sure it would end up with him wrapped in magic so tight he could barely breathe.
(Um, I have a question. Are they using the stones to make the rope or no? Can certain spells only need a gesture to activate?)
(Yeah, advanced binding spells and the like are normally created from pure magic. They also require more expertise, but they're stronger than those that use physical materials to create. And yeah, some spells just need gestures to work. :)
(Um,,, is it alright if I take a small break from this? I’m feeling a lot of writer’s block and I don’t know what to say)
(Gonna be pretty busy this week, just fyi)
Looking closer, Emery caught sight of the hole near Garnet’s feet. Again, a wave of confusion and questions came over them. It looked like the man was in trouble, but what had he been doing? For the moment, all they could do was watch until they noticed a faint golden light coming from the other person approaching him. Oh, no. Emery leaned further out of the window. Whatever Garnet had done, they still needed to talk to him. Talking to him would be very difficult if he was handed over to the Day Guard. But they were too far away.
Suddenly there was a flash in the window, and Emery flinched away. “Ah—“ but it was only Flint, who made a whining noise and landed on their shoulder.
“Hey girl— I, um—“ they quickly looked at what was happening below them and had an idea. They moved their hand over to her, letting the falcon perch on it. Holding their hand out of the window, they aimed her so she could see what was below them.
“The one with the glowing, golden rope,” they muttered, and made two clicking noises. They released Flint back into the air.
The falcon flew down onto the person’s head, screeching and scratching at their face with her claws. Hopefully it would give Garnet enough time to get away.
(Hey btw I’m going on a trip so I will be very inactive for the next several days)
(Alright, thanks for letting me know! Have a nice trip! :)
Garnet stared at the person, waiting for them to make their move so he could make his. He was anticipating a full-on magic fight and was not looking forward to it. However, before the person could make any sort of move, a falcon descended on their face.
"Gah! Get it off!" The person yelped, swatting at the mysterious bird. Garnet stared at it for a second, completely dumbfounded. Where in the world had it come from? He glanced around, eventually finding an open window with a very familiar face. Either they'd just decided to watch him panic and the falcon had been an act of the gods, or they'd been the one to send the falcon. Either way, he should probably take this opportunity and get out of there.
"Thanks, random bird!" He called, not wanting to shift the blame onto Emery–if it really was them who sent the bird–once he vanished. Garnet waved at the falcon and by extension, his would-be attacker, then turned and started running down the street.
"Get back here!" The person yelled, still attempting to rid themself of the feathered attacker.
Flint continued to attack, dodging whenever the person tried to swat at her. Emery waited until Garnet was far enough away, then put two fingers to their lips and whistled sharply. Backing away from the window so they wouldn’t be seen, they waited. The falcon, upon hearing the call, dodged another swat and flew out of the person’s reach. She returned the whistle with her own cry, then flew into the window. Emery held out their arm for the falcon to perch on, wincing when they felt her sharp talons.
“Thanks girl,” they said, laughing a little. They couldn’t help finding the person trying to fight her off was funny to watch. “Let’s get you a treat, eh?” Flint chittered and blinked her eyes at them. Emery got the impression that she was annoyed, offended at the person for swatting at her. Smiling, they let her perch on their shoulder, quickly going back downstairs to find some of the beef jerky their benefactor sometimes had lying around. No one ate it except for the falcon. It was a general rule to not eat the falcon’s beef jerky.
(Welcome back! Sorry for the long absence, midterms happened and I didn't like it. Also, my replies will probably take longer this week, I'm with family. :)
"Not happening!" Garnet called back, taking the first turn he could and breaking into an all-out sprint. He didn't dare look back to see where the person was, though he was guessing they were probably dealing with the falcon sent by the gods/Emery. There wasn't any more shouting behind him, so he guessed they'd either dealt with the falcon and had given up, or the falcon had dealt with them. Either way worked for him. Garnet glanced behind him, saw no one, and slipped into a small alleyway between two buildings to catch his breath and regroup. If that falcon really had been sent by Emery… why'd they done it? They didn't know him at all, so there was no reason for them to help him. Maybe they were just nice. Though he'd learned that people were 'just nice' very rarely. They must want something. Garnet had no clue what that thing was, though. He should probably just take the gift and not think about the reasoning behind it, but he couldn't. He wanted to know.
(Hey! Yeah midterms suck. I’m probably gonna take a while too cuz of school fyi ^^)
As Emery fed Flint her beef jerky, they suddenly felt shivery with adrenaline. They had really done that. They had really sent the falcon down to attack someone. It had felt good at the time, Garnet had been able to get away, but now it felt bad. Really bad. The Golden Child didn’t do things like that, right? They were supposed to follow the rules. Why had they done that? They didn’t know anything about what had been going on. Well, it hadn’t looked like he was doing anything other than digging up the road, which certainly was weird and probably warranted an arrest, but then, should they have just let Garnet get taken away? That didn’t feel right either. They had seen him lurking around, heard things about him here and there, and he never seemed to do anything extremely harmful. He was just a wanderer who didn’t really mean anyone harm.
Emery let Flint go back outside, then went back upstairs. Sitting at their desk, they stared at the blank piece of paper. Then they picked up their pen.
Dear Garnet the Madman,
I apologize for the name, but since you do not have a last name, I suppose this is the next best thing. Anyway, I suppose I will start with answering the questions you asked me last time. Why do I thing you are crazy? Because I was simply told that you are. I’m certainly not the first person to think so. Why am I also crazy? Because I was told that am. I have been trying to research something that I am having a lot of trouble with finding answers for. No body else I know cares about the things I do, so they sometimes call me crazy. You seem like you would have something interesting to say, even though you may be less than credible. I would just think it would be worthwhile to have a conversation with you to see what I can find out.
Since you told me that you don’t have paper, you can write on the back of this.
Sincerely,
Emery Takahashi, the Golden Child.
They folded up the the paper, then stood up and inserted their fingers in their mouth, and blew a whistling call. When Flint came, Emery quickly attached the letter to her leg.
“Thanks again, girl,” they murmured. “You know what to do?”
Flint chirped and chattered. After a moment, she flew off.
Garnet continued down the alleyway, not wanting to go anywhere near a place where that person might be. He didn't have a mysterious falcon to save him this time. After a lot of weaving through roads, he ended up in a small park he often went to when he didn't have anything else to do. It wasn't like he didn't have anything to do at the moment–he had an awful lot to do, actually–but he needed to pause and figure out his next steps before jumping headfirst into them. Garnet slumped onto a picnic table, resting his forehead against the rough wood surface. He should probably go talk to Greg first. And then go check out the sewers. And maybe see if he could figure out what was going on with Emery at some point, too. Gods, that was a list.
Garnet was interrupted from his schedule-making by the sound of something flying near him. He quickly lifted his head to see a very familiar falcon flying towards him.
"Hey. You're that bird," Garnet blurted out, pointing at it. A second later, he noticed what looked like a piece of paper attached to said bird's leg. "You've got something stuck to your leg." The falcon probably knew that, but he just wanted to make sure it knew.
The falcon circled over Garnet’s head, then dove down onto the picnic table. She clicked her beak, then turned so he would have access to the paper, rolled up and tied to her orange-red leg. The bird appeared to be a bit nervous around him; her head bobbed in different directions, and she ruffled her wings every once and a while. They were dark and brackish, compared to her breast, which was light but speckled. Her eyes were dark as well, but there were orange eye-rings underneath.
Garnet watched the bird cautiously, half-sure it would start attacking him next. It didn't, however. Thank the gods. He stared at the thing on the bird's leg, which looked like a roll of paper.
"Um… you want me to take the paper?" He asked, though obviously, the bird wouldn't be able to respond. "Okay." Garnet slowly reached out and untied the paper. The bird looked like it was nervous, just like him. "Thanks, I guess?" Garnet gave the bird a smile, then turned his attention to the note.
"Garnet the Madman?" He let out a surprised snort. "You've got to be kidding me." Garnet read the rest of the note slowly, not wanting to accidentally skim over an important part. "Research, huh? I wonder what about." He had no idea what kind of research the all-important Golden Child Emery Takahashi could possibly be doing that involved him. He hoped they weren't just playing with him.
Since Garnet didn't have a pen, he had to write with magic, which was much harder than it should have been. The note read, "I'll be in front of the Mercy Church on Baten Avenue today until sunset and every day after today at noon." It would have been much easier to arrange a meeting if he had a house, but alas. The Mercy Church would work. The people who worked there didn't mind him loitering outside, and he knew that from experience. Garnet nervously tied the rolled-up note, this time with his writing inside, to the bird's leg. Hopefully, Gerry's Food and Drink would be nearby. She liked to frequent the area around the Mercy Church.
(djdjdkjsd I feel like me stalking yours and Ice's rp is getting me spoilers XD also sorry it's short)
The falcon started preening her feathers as Garnet read the letter, then raised her head and shook it. Though she still appeared to be somewhat nervous, she allowed him to tie the letter back onto her leg. Flint clicked her beak, then took off to return back to her owner.
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