The lake was a very fine place to grow up. It sat in the middle of a tranquil park that would only be disturbed periodically by loud children or families on picnics.
The baby duck known as Steven lived here. The duckling still had half of his original down- the feathers sticking out awkwardly. The top of his head included an adorable tuft of darker feathers which one might mistaken for a wig.
Unfortunately, Steven was the only duckling around- making the remainder of his flock extremely protective of him.
...and what a strange flock it was!
It seemed that the entire rest of his family had come together after being rejected from flocks of their own! The mass of birds consisted of various colors and breeds which (under normal circumstances) would never collaborate.
Yet, here they all were.
The day started normally enough.
Pearl attempted to wake up Steven by nudging him with her bill. Pearl was a black-bellied whistling-duck...a slightly awkward looking breed with incredibly long, skinny, legs. Her legs' color matched her bill, both a vibrant pink. The rest of her plume was mostly brown, with a bit of white and black feathers on her wings for good measure.
"Trilll...trill..." Pearl nudged Steven again.
"Peep!" The baby mallard complained. It was too early for these things! The duckling rustled deeper into the nest made of feathers, hoping to get the point across.
"TRILL!" Pearl was having none of this tomfoolery! If the little one didn't wake up early enough, he would miss the morning meal! Pearl nudged Steven out of the pile of feathers.
The baby mallard yawned and smacked his beak in annoyance.
As usual, Garnet was keeping watch over the odd flock. She was a very stoic bird...majestic and mysterious. Steven often wondered when (or if) she ever slept. Garnet was typically always roosting in the same spot: on top of a large stump border lining the lake- ever alert. She always looked so cool too! As a red crested pochard duck, she had a puffy brown plume on her head...only more noticeable by her red eyes and beak. Garnet looked down at Steven, and wished him a good morning. "Wak. Wa."
"Chirp!" Steven responded with glee, before Garnet readjusted her favorite sitting place, and continued to roost.
Amethyst had a completely different personality all together. She was probably already at the benches. Elderly humans liked to sit there early in the morning, and throw bread crumbs. Amethyst was a bit of a glutton. She would do just about anything to earn an easy meal. She was a cayuga duck, with an included purple plume that looked dark as night unless reflected in the sun.
Pearl encouraged Steven along toward the benches quickly. The nice old humans were already passing out bread, and Pearl knew Amethyst would eat everything if they dawdled.
"Peep! Peep!" Steven complained while being shoved about by Pearl.
"TRILL!" With one final push, the duo finally made it to their destination.
"DAWW! Look at the baby duckling! Here you go duckie!" An elderly woman tossed Steven a large piece of bread.
"PEEP!" The duckling thanked the human as Pearl had taught him, before nibbling on the chunk of food.
Amethyst looked at the baby mallard with a bit of jealousy. The humans NEVER gave HER such a large piece of bread...
"HERNK!" Amethyst begged for more food, but the old humans were now all distracted by the cute duckling...
Amethyst decided to act chummy. She walked as close to the baby as possible in hopes of receiving more bread...
"TRILL!" Pearl could see through her friend's rouse, and gave out a warning call! Amethyst had received enough bread! It was Steven's turn to eat!
"HERNK!" Amethyst argued back!
Steven looked toward his two friends in frustration. He had eaten his fill already. The human had given him WAY too much food in the first place. The duckling picked up a piece of crust, and presented the prize to Amethyst. "PEEP!" The baby smiled at his purple friend in approval.
As the day progressed, the sun made the land warm. It was time for a swimming lesson! Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl had already swam into the middle of the lake. The trio squawked to the young Steven in encouragement!
"PEEP! PEEP! PEEP!" The baby duckling paced back and forth on the shore with stress! He didn't WANT to go into the water right now! He was still learning, and was NOT in the mood for getting his feathers wet. "PEEP! PEEP! PEEP!"
"Trill..." Pearl swam back to the shore, and encouraged Steven to give it a try. The baby hesitated and waddled in and out of the shallow water several times, before (finally) gaining the courage to jump into the deeper part of the lake. To the mallard's surprise, his feathers were buoyant! He was floating! "PEEP!" The baby joined his family with enthusiasm!
"TRILL!" Pearl was prideful as she joined the duckling.
"Hernk! Hernk!"
"Wa!"
Both Garnet and Amethyst cheered in happiness as the group gathered together once more!
The remainder of the day was spent swimming around the lake, and catching various types of insects, fish, and frogs for nourishment!