Yutaka perched atop the trunk of a toppled oak tree, munching happily on a freshly scavenged acorn. As she nibbled, her olive eyes scanned the surrounding scenery. The winding branches of the towering trees would gust occasionally as the sun shone through their leaves. Unbeknownst to the petite, bushy rodent, her peaceful meal was not as solitary as she perceived it to be. A pair of slanted saffron eyes leered at her through a patch of brush. The monster noticed its prey's ear's twitch, and it ducked down, hoping to remain undetected.
Yutaka turned, sure her trained ears had picked up something out of the ordinary. Maybe some sort of vigorous flapping noise, or the sound of grounded leaves being shifted unceremoniously? She scanned the area, now unsure of her current position. After a few moments of silence, she turned back and continued munching on the rapidly diminishing acorn.
The creature raised itself up to full height, revealing its long, scaly body, gleaming eyes, powerful jaw and sharp teeth. It prepared to strike, retracting its head slightly and casting a shadow over its prey. The tiny animal had no chance to escape now. Yutaka turned slowly; the form looming over her was definitely not friendly. Frozen in terror, she could only watch helplessly as the snake lunged at her, its pointed fangs ready to clamp down on another fresh kill.
With a thwack it fell to its side, hitting the ground with a loud thump as some other being crashed into it. She couldn't make out who or what the creature was, but was entirely grateful for the being that had saved her life.
As the snake shifted, it revealed the form of her savior. A tall girl with shamrock green hair and alert blue eyes which contained a gentle glimmer. What she noticed most about the girl, however, was her long, elegant wings. The girl glanced at her gloves, which were dripping with fresh blood and had razor sharp talons at the end of each finger. She was a hawk; either that, Yutaka thought, or an angel.
Minami looked at the small, timid creature she had saved. the smaller female stared up at her in awe. This was not the response she usually got. The fact that she wasn't fleeing and crying in terror was...odd. All things considered, this girl was the cutest thing Minami had ever seen. Tiny, slightly rounded ears topped her head, with a short bushy tail and bright green eyes which complimented her cherry red hair so perfectly. Awe-struck, she simply stared.
"Hi." The younger girl spoke first. "My names Yutaka." She shuffled her feet, glancing at the ground before looking back up, blushing slightly. "Thank you for saving me" she mumbled. Minami replied with a simple nod of acknowledgement. The two stood eyeing each other awkwardly, unsure of where to go from here. Neither wanted to leave the other's presence.
"Do you wanna...maybe join me for dinner? As a thank you, of course." Yutaka rushed this last part; she really wanted to be the tall girl's friend, and something about her piqued her curiosity.
"You aren't afraid of me?" Minami questioned, unused to such kind treatment.
"Of course not! You seem friendly enough" Yutaka beamed. "Oh, and I never got your name."
"Minami...Minami Iwasaki." The tall girl held out her hand to the squirrel-like creature, which Yutaka took it in her petite palm and shook with an adorable grin. Minami couldn't help but give a soft smile in return. "And I'd love to come to dinner."
The two walked and talked through the pleasant grove, with Yutaka doing most of the talking. Both girls seemed fine with this arrangement; Minami gave Yutaka her full attention as she walked slightly behind her. As they drew nearer to the house, Minami began to feel nervous, her mind running wild with pictures of cute little animals running in fear of her as soon as she entered the building.
Her worried thoughts were cut short as Yutaka tripped. Without thinking, she reached around the younger girls waist, fully expanding her wings in fright. She held Yutaka up with her arms, as the talons on her gloves would surely puncture her beautiful pale skin.
It was then a blue-haired girl lept from the brush, teeth bared as she dashed toward the girls. Minami wrapped her wings protectively around Yutaka, recognizing the girl as a fox - a predator, a threat to her new found friend. The fox lashed a claw at Minami's exposed wings, attempting to get at the crimson-haired girl beneath them. Minami would have none of that.
Minami retracted instantly, a gash clearly visible on her right wing. Adrenaline pumped through her veins now as she moved Yutaka out of the way, using her uninjured wing to make herself look as big as possible. Extending her wing fully and straightening her shoulders, Minami attempted to frighten the threatening creature.
"STOP!" Yutaka's shrill voice cut through the air effortlessly. She stepped out in front of Minami. "This is Minami. She SAVED me." The azure-haired girl's eyes grew wide with worry and guilt. She immediately began spouting apologies and pleas of forgiveness to Yutaka. Minami felt the adrenaline rush leave her body as the searing pain inflicting in her wing overcame her. She fell, letting a small groan of agony escape her lips. This went unnoticed by Yutaka and the other girl, as the newcomer was still spouting her apologies.
"I'm REAAALLYY sorry, Yu-chan" Konata pleaded.
"It's not me you should be apologizing to" Yutaka retorted. Gesturing at Minami, they both turned in time to see the tall girl collapse on a rock. "MINAMI!" Yutaka rushed over to her new friend, deeply concerned for her well-being. "Come on, onee-chan, we need to get her fixed up." Hauling her up with their combined weight, the two girls half carried, half dragged the hawk-girl to their home.
"This is NOT how I wanted this to go" Yutaka thought.
