"A Faint Cooing"
Chapter 1
Jewel gazed at her left wing, lying daintily at her side, wrapped tightly in a stiff, white cloth. Her eyes drooped ever so slightly, and a frown emanated upon her beak. She sat down on the ledge of the river that split the artificial jungle in two, that grew shallow in a small pond nearby. As she looked at her reflection in the still water, the dull bluish hue reminded her of her "companion" Blu. [Oh Blu, please hurry…]. He had flown through the air vent Jewel had once dented quite badly, but Tulio had recently removed the cover, allowing only birds intelligent enough to traverse from the reserve to the aviary. He was getting food for the two of them, and she wished him haste not because of hunger, but because of companionship.
Jewel knew she'd never felt this way before, never having to rely on anyone, but now she was experiencing a new emotion, that had grown from the seed of Blu's arrival here in Rio. She gently swirled the water with her talon, her mirror image now whisked away in the ripples. The, faintly, she heard a thump, then a metallic clanking and scraping. She smiled in amusement as Blu stumbled back and forth in the vent. "Ooh! Gah, ah… oomph!" She could hear him from a mile away, he was still new to flying, and to be honest, wasn't the best. But he tried, and for the past three days had flew through the duct while she was sleeping, and she'd find food fresh from the jungle outside of the hollow.
He darted into the Aviary from the air vent, flapping frantically with a makeshift bundle in his grasp, a leaf with one end in each claw, with tropical berries and local nuts dropping here and there. He glanced left and right, searching for the girl he loved but didn't have the courage to confess his emotions to. His eyes met Jewel's and a foolish grin erupted upon his otherwise exhausted demeanor. He flew down to her, which really looked more like a drunken stupor by any other bird's standards, and touched down, with numerous berries and nuts spilling out of the leaf. Jewel giggled and said, "I hope there's more food in there than there is on the ground." Blu smiled weakly and stammered, "Y-yeah I h-hope so too."
Although they'd been together for five days now, he still found himself uneasy around her, and often tried to impress or please her in any way he could. The leaf flopped open, revealing three berries, a nut and some seeds. Jewel couldn't contain herself, and giggled innocently before saying, "Come here you goof," and threw her good wing around his back in a tight embrace. The warmth of her body was something foreign to Blu, and he squirmed uneasily, which only yielded to her squeezing tighter. In his attempt at being chivalrous, he allowed her to eat the fruit of his labor, which wasn't much. The clock in the aviary chimed eleven times, and as if on cue, Tulio tiredly cracked open the door to the observatory room and plopped down on the chair in front of the monitor, sipping a steamy cup of freshly brewed coffee. He flicked a switch, pressed a button, and the lights came on one by one in the artificial jungle, and a looping ambience of bird chirps and song rang throughout the aviary.
Blu watched Jewel eat, wrapped in thought as she picked up a berry with her beak, let it roll into her mouth, popped it and swallowed. [She even looks beautiful when she eats…] he thought, his eyes unintentionally drooping to a dreamlike state with a goofy grin plaguing his beak. Jewel picked up a small nut and was about to crack it open when she met eyes with Blu. [I love the way the feathers on the back of her head curl up… and the wonderful teal coat of flawless feathers… and how her eyes sparkle, resiliently in the light as she looks in my eyes…] He snapped out of his trance, wide eyed and attempting to piece together dialogue after being consumed by her angelic appearance. A giddy smile quickly developed on Jewel as she listened to him ramble on about how the scenery behind her head was magnificent before she stood up. Blu was cherry red in embarrassment, and Jewel thought, [He's so cute when he's nervous].
The metallic door slid open, and the two macaws quickly turned their heads to assess the situation. Tulio had slipped a stout paper cup through with a dark reddish liquid, Jewel's pain medication, and the door abruptly shut with a metallic clank. Jewel realized the pain throbbing throughout her left wing was almost unbearable, yet Blu found a way to make her pull through the pain unconsciously. She glided along the floor to the cup, her beautiful, elongated tail feathers shadowing her underside, making it appear as if she was floating. Blu decided he'd made enough of a fool out of himself for the time being, and as she departed, flew to the branch containing the numerous variously colored pegs in a spiral ladder form. He perched, rehearsing some lines he'd thought of while collecting the food.
As Jewel pecked at the bitter tasting contents of the cup, her previously cheery expression turned melancholy as she heard Blu flapping away. She'd never really gotten to know anyone to the extent she had with Blu, as she would push others away, fearful of losing them in the same fashion as her parents. Even during their first encounter she tried to push him away, not because she disliked him, but quite the contrary; she liked him a lot, and she feared she would grow attached to him. Blu had her on lock, in spite of herself, and now when he wasn't by her side, she yearned for his company. Jewel still found herself trying to convince herself she didn't need him, but never could bring herself to doubt it… this new emotion she was experiencing, was love; they were chained to each other birds, after all…