Written for Tumblr user dramaticalpiercedpeen
All Beni had wanted to do was check on Aoba at Koujaku's request. So how was it that he'd ended up in this situation? Disgruntled, he puffed his chest out and ruffled his feathers to make himself appear larger and glared at Tori, his round eyes peering out from under his mass of red fluff. Tori cocked his head to the side, letting out an amused "Hm?"
"You're in the way!" Beni declared, raising his voice. He'd never backed down from a fight, no matter how big the opponent was. He'd learnt from Koujaku that perseverance and an iron will often lead to victory. He stood his ground, digging the heels of his small wooden sandals into the soft bark of the tree branch. Tori was perched on the windowsill, blocking Beni's entrance and if it had been possible, he would have been wearing a smug expression.
"Don't do that," Tori ordered, lazily stretching out his wings and adjusting his feathers. "You're too loud." He twisted his head at an almost unnatural angle, taking one of his flight feathers in his beak. With slow, exaggerated movements, he began preening himself, apparently ignoring Beni now, which only served to irritate the small bird even more.
"Unlike you, I'm not just loitering around!" Beni snapped, narrowing his eyes. He spread his wings and caught the breeze, flapping a few times and pushing off with his feet to lift himself into the air. He dipped the tip of his right wing slightly, flying around the tree in a tight circle, muttering to Tori, "I'm here for a reason, you useless pink bird. And you're in the way!" He judged the distance perfectly, flaring his wings and skidding to a halt on the windowsill just beside Tori.
"It doesn't seem like I'm much of an obstruction," Tori commented calmly, refusing to look at Beni. He continued grooming himself, picking through his feathers carefully. When he finished, he ruffled his feathers and let them settle, and finally turned his attention to the small sparrow. "Your feathers are a mess," he observed, raising his colourful crest and edging closer. "It's probably because of your short temper."
Beni attempted to back away, but there was nowhere else to go on the narrow sill. Before he had the chance to fly away, Tori had seized one of his feathers in his beak. "What are you doing?" Beni demanded, jerking his wing away in surprise. "I can preen myself, you know! And my feathers are my business! So you should mind yours, ass!"
"Hmph." Tori seemed unamused. He stared Beni directly in the face with sharp eyes. "Keep still, little one," he commanded, a slightly sneer in his tone. "I wouldn't want to accidentally pull one of your coverts out." He took another step closer, gently nibbling at Beni's feathers and ignoring Beni's protests which were increasing in both volume and ferocity. He carefully repositioned all of Beni's feathers so that the sparrow didn't look so dishevelled.
As Tori cocked his head to admire his work, Beni's feathers fluffed up once more with rage. "How dare you!" he demanded, his eyes glowing intensely. "You think you can just invade my space like that! You're nothing but a..."
"Enough," Tori sighed, cutting him off. "If you get worked up again, your feathers won't sit right." With that, he spread his wings and dove off the windowsill, a pocket of air billowing up beneath him and carrying him into the sky. He flapped once, twice, and disappeared over the rooftops. Beni stared after him, fury still burning inside of him.
Beni turned his attention back to the house, back to the reason he was there. He flapped his own wings and flitted around the side of the house, his keen eyes peering through the glass to search for Aoba. He happened to catch his reflection in the window and he couldn't deny that he looked much cuter when his feathers weren't unkempt. But he'd never admit that to Tori.