Hey everybird! What's up!?
Today is an important holiday if you live in the United States of America, today's the Fourth of July!
Now most people associate the holiday with such things like barbecues, apple pie, the flag, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but probably the top most thing is fireworks.
And this one shot is about how Tiago came to like the rockets that burst into colorful explosions!
Enjoy!
Today was the Fourth of July, hot as always in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the day doesn't mean anything in Brazil, but to two certain macaws, it meant a lot. Blu and Alex, two macaws, who were also like brothers to each other, were raised in Minnesota, very familiar with the holiday, and they were hoping to have their own celebration when night fell.
"This is going to be a blast Alex." Blu commented as he held onto a couple of the rockets while Alex was setting them up.
"Just like in Minnesota." Alex replied as he placed a rocket in its proper position. "I hope the kids like it just as much."
"Are you sure they wouldn't get scared, they are still very little." Blu nervously stated.
The "kids" Alex was referring to were Blu and Jewel's three chicks, Bia, Carla, and Tiago. This would be their first Fourth of July and although fireworks gave a great show, they also made a very loud bang, enough to shake a little chick's insides and frighten them.
"They'll be fine, remember when we went to our first fireworks show, we were scared at first, but we came to enjoy it by the end." Alex comforted Blu in his fears for his kids.
"You're right Alex." Blu replied as he helped his brother continue setting up the last of the rockets for the little show they would put on.
"If you boys are done, Linda says she needs your help finishing the pie." Jewel's voice came from right behind the two brothers.
"Where are the kids?" Blu asked as he turned around and noticed his three kids weren't with Jewel.
"They're sleeping, they're still babies after all." Jewel answered. "Now hurry your lazy butts."
And the three adults flew into the cottage close by and saw Linda, preparing a very decorated pie, the top shaped like an American flag with the proper colors and all. It was enough to make ones mouth or beak water with hunger.
"Oh boy, I could eat it now." Alex thought as he licked his beak.
"Come on boys, pop it in the oven for me." Linda told her two companions.
"I hope it's apple pie." Blu said as he held onto one end of the pie pan with his talons while Alex went to the opposite side and did the same.
After putting it in the oven, Linda turned it on and the pie started to bake, both brothers watching the pie's curst slowly start to brown.
"They been doing that ever since they saw the first pie my mom and I baked when we got the boys, some things never change." Linda chuckled as Jewel had to as well, watching the two males in the family just stare at the oven door.
While the pie was almost done being completely baked and ready to cool, in the living room, sleeping on the couch, on some comfortable pillows were Bia, Carla, and Tiago, their tiny bodies were ants compared to the big couch as they slept. However Tiago did wake up and rubbed his little eyes to see that his sisters were still sleeping and that night was starting to come as the sun started setting.
"What time is it?" Tiago asked, of course no one answering him as he got down from the couch and walked to the kitchen, where he last saw his mother.
Blu, Jewel, and Alex were occupied as the three adults were talking. Tiago climbed up the kitchen countertop, using the handles of drawers to make his way onto the wooden surface above the floor. Jewel saw her son and went to him.
"Already awake Tiago, where's your sisters?" Jewel asked her son as she noticed him
"Still sleeping mom, when are we going to do that show dad and Uncle Alex promised us?" Tiago in his baby voice asked.
"Soon son, when it's completely dark and your sisters are awake." Jewel answered. "Sorry, you have to wait some more."
Only Tiago was quite the impatient one, he has been waiting ever since his dad said that he was going to show him and his sisters something special. So instead of going back to sleep or continuing to pester his mom, Tiago decided to see the special thing for himself. Climbing back down the drawer handles, Tiago went to the front door and squeezed himself through the mail slot, no one noticing as Tiago landed with a "thud" down on the ground.
"Ouch." Tiago said as he picked himself up and brushed off some dirt in his feathers. "Well, lets see what dad and Uncle Alex set up."
Tiago looked around and around the house, not finding anything at first, but after much looking, he found it, the collection of fireworks ready to be lit and launched into the sky.
"What are those?" Tiago asked himself as of course he didn't know what fireworks were.
Tiago walked to them and looked at the colorful rockets, getting a bit excited as he looked up and down, seeing the fuse and the end where the match would light and ignite the rocket to go up. Speaking of matches… In his excitement to get the pie done, Blu left the matches right next to the setup rockets, even thought he should have brought them with him.
"So, is that what makes these things go?" Tiago wondered as he took one of the tiny wooden sticks with the pinkish end and remembered that he saw his dad with one of these.
One day there was a big storm and the power went out, the family lit candles around the house and Tiago remembered his dad using one of the tiny wooden sticks to light the candles. Tiago remembered how his dad did it and lit the match he was holding, Tiago jumping back a bit at the sudden flame.
"Okay, so I guess I just light the end of this rope and…" Tiago said as he took the match and lit the end of a fuse of one of the rockets. "Wow… I better step back." And Tiago took a step back, only to see that he stepped in the middle of some rope, which was attached to the rocket Tiago lit up and taking that step back made Tiago trip and fall. "Oh no…" Tiago said as he found himself tied up.
The fuse ran shorter and shorter as Tiago tried to get untied, but it was no use as the fuse came closer and closer, until…
"Ahhh!" Tiago screamed as the rocket blasted off and took Tiago with it, the rocket climbing higher and higher. "Come on!" Tiago shouted as the rocket was reaching its maximum height.
Soon enough the rocket exploded and since it was just a bunch of broken rocket parts, it was no longer going up as Tiago slowly came to a stop for a second and then fell back down to Earth.
"I hope mom and dad didn't hear that." Tiago told himself as the explosion was very loud and could be heard for miles around.
"What are that?" Alex asked.
"I don't know, we better go out and see." The brothers flying out, joined by Jewel and then Linda carrying the pie.
As they were out, they looked up to see that one of the fireworks launched early and the colorful display was just finishing and from the explosion came a blue speck.
"What is that?" Blu said as he looked really hard.
Soon enough the speck was revealed to be Tiago as he came falling from the sky at a fast pace and ended up in the worst spot imaginable… The pie that Linda was holding.
"NO!" Alex shouted as the pie crust was broken and the apple filling flew in all directions, feathers mixed in as Tiago was upright, smiling.
"Tiago!" Jewel shouted at her son. "What were you thinking!?"
"Do you have anything to say young man?" Blu asked.
"I want to do that again!" Tiago said happily as he stood up in the pie pan, yelling happily and raising his wings in the air.
Oh Tiago… You need a girlfriend to keep you calm!
And again, happy Fourth of July to all of you in America and happy 242th birthday America!
See everybird later!