**Nikki's Flashback**
I looked out my nest. I huffed. Little birds in the nests surrounding us began flying. I looked back at Tad and Cad hanging with their friends. Mom was doing something. I looked back out thinking how it would feel to fly.
"Mom. When will I be able to fly. The other little birds are flying!" I complained.
She looked at me and rolled her eyes.
"Soon Nicolette. A few more weeks." she said smiling.
"Too bad pipsqueak. It's Carnaval! I guess you're gonna have to stay home again." Tad and Cad laughed going back to their friends.
I walked over to them plopping down onto the floor of the nest.
"Thanks for the support guys." I gave them a dirty look crossing my wings.
"Sorry little sis. Ya know you'll fly soon!" Cad said rubbing the top of my head.
"Just not today!" Tad smiled.
"3 of hearts! I win!" their friend Spike said laying down a small playing card.
The ones they copied from a human game they found. I rolled my eyes and looked out to other birds flying around. Then, an idea came into my head. I looked back and made sure no one was looking and snuck out onto the branch. I stretch out my little wings and turned my neck either side cracking it.
"Alright Nicolette. You can do this. Just got to have positive reinforcement! Just open up your wings and fly!" I told me self.
I opened up my wings and jumped. I soared through the air landing on a different branch. I laughed with glee flying unsteadily trying to get the hang of it from branch to branch. Then I saw a shadow behind me. Confused I suddenly heard my mom's voice.
"Nicolette! Watch out!" my mom's voice called.
As I turned around a huge net went over top of me. I tried to fly out, but the net was too strong and pulled me down.
"Mom! Tad! Cad!" I cried.
"Hang on little sis!" Tad called.
We're coming!" Cad followed.
The net was pulled down to a cage and they pushed me in. I cried again. Suddenly I heard the human cussing and I looked up at my mom and my brothers and other birds attacking them.
"Come on, Baby Bird!" a little canary bird opened my cage.
He pulled me out and we hid in some bushes. I saw my mom and brothers attacking the human. But they seemed to be losing. I got up to help the little canary bird held my wing.
"We've got to help." I told him.
"Help's is already on the way. Look!" he pointed behind the human.
I saw a small bird that was gray with a red crest followed by a toucan. I looked closely recognizing the toucan. IT was Rafael! My mom's friend when she was little. And I had met him a month ago. We was helping my mom and my brothers.
"Alright Rafi!" I called.
He looked and waved at me then returning his attention. The human looked mad. Then he suddenly swooped grabbing my mom and brother stuffing them into a cage.
"No!" I cried.
I tried to fly. I kept on falling.
God dang it I wish I would have learned to fly . I thought.
I finally made some ground and I hit the human in the back with my beak. He flinched swiping at me. He hit me with the back of his hand and headed off. I fell to the ground with a big thump. Rafael and the other two birds can to my side. Rafael helped me up.
"Are you okay Nicolette?" he asked me.
"No I am not! They just took my family! What am I going to do now?" I slumped.
"Come on! You are free now! No mom to tell when to be home and what to do." the red crested bird said.
"No brothers or sisters to bug you." the yellow canary said putting an wing around me.
"I have to admit that life style does sound fun, but kinda lonely." I sighed.
"I'll always be here to take care of you." Rafael told me, "I promised your mom I will always take care of you if anything happened to her. I actually consider you as my daughter." he told me. "Wow Rafi. You've never been so passionate about anything besides your girlfriend Eva." said the gray and red bird.
"Oh shut up... Oh Nicolette. I'd like to introduce you to Nico and Pedro. They lost their families to smugglers too." he told me.
"Nice to meet you Nicolette." Pedro said to me.
"How about Nikki? Nicolette seems too long." Nico suggested.
"I like it...Rafi what's wrong?" I asked looking over at him.
"What really seems to be bugging me is that you guys all lost your families around the same time." Rafi said rubbing his beak.
"Just a coincidence. Hundreds of birds are caught by smugglers." I shrugged.
"But the fact you all met up is what think is weird." he said again.
"You know Rafi just...what's that sound?" I said turning around.
"What? The music?" Pedro asked me.
"Yeah Bro. The music. It sounds...familiar. What is it?" I asked.
"What? You don't know what that it is? It's Samba!" Rafi exclaimed.
"Well I'm sorry smarty pants! I don't know everything!" I shook my head.
"Actually That Mr. Smarty Pants to you." he laughed.
"And Nikki you know you're talking to the King of Carnaval!" Nico said putting a wing around me.
"Really? Why are you the king of Carnaval?" I asked.
"Well you should . . . . .Why are you the King of Carnaval?" Pedro asked.
"Come on little birds! I'm gonna show you why." he said.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"To the city. I've got to show you something." he said soaring up.
Then, I realized where they said we were going. As they took off I sat on the ground. My mood sudden;y changed.
"Wait! I'm not going there!" I exclaimed.
"Why? Don't you wanna see the parade?" Nico asked me.
"No. Those humans can't be trusted." I told him.
"Nikki. They took my family too. You can't just be stubborn over one person." Nico exclaimed.
"But my family was everything to me! I'm not being abandoned again!" I exclaimed.
All three looked at me. Rafi looked at me with heart sunk eyes.
"What do you mean again baby Bird?" Pedro asked.
I sighed deeply. Rafael put his wing around me an smiled.
"I had found Nikki injured at a very young age. She had been abandoned. I felt I needed to help her so I took her in and nursed her back to health. At the time I knew Liza who always wanted a daughter, but had two sons. I thought Nikki would fit in. I guess I've kinda been a second dad to her." he smiled at me.
I half smiled when Nico took my wing. I looked at him.
"Nikki. I promise nothing will happen to you." he looked in my eyes.
I suddenly felt something in my stomach. I felt that I could trust him. I hesitated
"Trust me." he smiled.
I hesitated again. But his eyes seemed trusting.
"I guess I could check out the city." I hesitated.
"come on Girl! You gotta shake those tail feathers!" Pedro said spinning in a circle.
I laughed. I took a step and tripped over something. Falling on top of Nico. He looked at me. Our faces centimeters apart. I started blushing for some reason. He stood up helping me up. I looked over seeing a piece of something sticking out of the ground.
"What in the Rio was that?" I asked looking to see what it was.
Rafi helped me uncover it. I picked up seeing it was a bottle cap.
"So That's where it went!" Nico said taking it out of my hands.
"What is it?" I asked curiously.
"It's from my old nest. This was something my dad gave to me." he said setting it on his head.
He wore it like a hat. I laughed because it was a little too big.
"Why do you wear it like a hat?" I asked.
"Because it looks cool!" he exclaimed.
I giggled giving him a weird look.
"Come on you guys! Let's go to the club!" Rafael said taking to the air.
"Yeah it's Carnaval! We got to get to the Branch!" Pedro exclaimed.
"come on Nikki." Nico held out his wing to me.
I took it flying with the guys to the city. Still hesitating on going.
As the lights of the city drew closer I grew more hesitant. I flew slower trying to land on a branch. But Nico stood by my side reassuring everything was going to be okay. We soon entered the city and I saw the bright colorful glowing lights lighting up the city. Sparkles and glitter were everywhere. I had forgotten not wanting to come.
"So this is what Carnaval is? A big party?" I said impressed.
"Not Just a party! The biggest Party in the world!" Pedro exclaimed.
"Well I wouldn't know. Overprotective mom here." I reminded him.
"Yeah that's right. I forgot." Nico said smiling cheesy.
"Come on you kids go any slower! Apresse-se! Hurry up before we miss all the good music!" Rafi told us.
We followed him to an abandoned fruit stand covered in blankets. I saw birds flying in through entrances. We entered hearing the music booming. I gazed around and the wonderful colors. The music booming from the human radio placed up high. The colorful birds all around dancing.
"This is beautiful!" I exclaimed.
"Welcome to Paradise!" Nico told me taking my wing toward the front of the boxes.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"I'll show you!" he told me.
Pedro followed flying up to the boxes.
"Hey everyone! We've brought a new bird into here! Her name is Nikki and it's time to show her some true Carnaval spirit!" Nico told me.
The crowd cheered. The song changed. It sounded familiar. Nico took my wing dancing with me.
Rafael smiled at me.
"What do you call this music? It's sounds familiar." I asked him.
"This is Samba! The musical backbone to Carnaval! The music of life!" he told me spinning me around.
"It sounds wonderful." I smiled.
I saw Nico looking into my eyes deeply. I couldn't tell what he was thinking. I smiled a cheesy smile and laughed. WE kept dancing. It felt like hours had passed by and I wouldn't have noticed. Suddenly the blankets came crashing down making the Radio fall. A big white bird came flying in. He looked around at the scared faces. I tried to hide in the crowd. Then his eyes met mine. Piercing into me. He flew up and grabbed me.
"Guys!" I cried.
"Nikki!" Nico and Pedro called following me.
Rafael followed them. Tears streaming my face.
He flew near an old house far away from the stand. The door opened. A man stood smiling at him. A young boy cowering behind him. He took me from the bird sticking me into a cage. I immediately clung to the side of the cage. I shook it.
"Nicolette!" A voice cried.
I turned around greeted by my mother's wings. Shocked and hugged her too.
"Where is Rafael and Pedro and Nico?" Tad and Cad asked.
"They couldn't fly fast enough. You know Nico and Pedro are still baby bird like me!" I huffed.
"Geez why are you all mad." they said angrily.
"See Marcel! That's how you do it! You're not even as smart as a bird!" the man's voice overpowered ours.
I looked over at him yelling at the boy.
"I'm sorry dad. I didn't mean-" smack! The man kit the boy across the head making him tumble back.
"Listen to me! When I tell you something! I expect it to be done! Now go hang them up in the other room." he brushed him off.
I felt sorry for him that his father just did that to him. He walked over picking up our cage walking into the other room. Leaving us there.
**end of flashback**
Images started flashing through my mind. Rushing through memories and thoughts. The fight. Nico getting hurt. Me laying bleeding in the street. Mia and Emma find me. Traveling the world. The years I spent with them flashed before my eyes.
I awoke inside my cage. I breathed heavily.
"Nikki? Are you okay?" Mia asked me.
"I'm fine. Just a bad dream." I breathed heavily.
"Is it the same one?" she asked rustling around.
She turned on her light walking over to my cage. I opened it and stepped out onto her hand.
"Yeah. It's been reoccurring since we came back from Greece and Rome." I told her.
"Well this morning we're going to Rio De Janeiro. You'll be home and you'll probably be able to figure out these dreams." she told me setting me on her desk.
She went to her closet getting dressed and packing her suit case. I stood in front of her desk mirror and put the small colorful bandana around my neck. I flew over and stood on her bed post. I helped her pick out clothes and she opened the door and I flew into Emma's room to wake her up. Emma was always the one that liked to sleep in. We actually had 2 hours before the boat took off. Their Nanny fed them breakfast and they set off for the docks. They lived in Miami, Florida.
Their parents were gonna meet them down by the docks. By the time we got there, their parents were already to ship out and go. They tied everything down and set out to sea.
Just to say Mia and Emma aren't major characters. They found Nikki when she was injured and left to die in Rio. they nursed her back to health and kinda grew fond of her so took her home with them where they later found out they can talk to animals. We don't mention too much of them but some parts they will return. SO how did you like the story so far! Please review or leave comments.