Chapter 4: A New Member Of The Gang

"Haha!" Ana laughed gleefully as she did a corkscrew twirl in the air. "Nice try Tiago but I dodged you that time!"

Tiago crossed his wings in a pout and frowned. "Not fair Auntie Ana! Dad got in the way; if it wasn't for him I would have tagged you for sure."

As Blu flew through the air, he looked over his shoulder to address his son. "Sorry Tiago, but you still could have gotten her if you could fly like she just did."

Tiago's beak dropped at what his father had said. 'But Dad, I'm just a little kid!" He gestured with his wing in Ana's direction. "How can you expect me to pull off a crazy spin like she just did."

Bia decided to join in the conversation as the family of Spix's macaws and their friend finally reached the buildings of Rio de Janeiro. "It's easy Tiago; you just have to make sure you're applying all the laws of physics needed to precisely execute the movement."

Tiago arched an eyebrow at his sister while skillfully avoiding a water tower that stood on the roof of an especially tall structure. "Oh yeah Einstein? It's that simple huh?"

Bia just simply nodded her head as if she hadn't just expected Tiago to have memorized college level equations. "Yup, when we get home I can show you how to tilt your wings to the right amount of degrees and then we'll work on your speed and trajectory-"

"Do you mind?!" Carla screeched, removing her earbud. "I am trying to listen to music and my brain is being assaulted with big words! You're going to put me in the nuthouse Bia!"

Bia's smile drooped slightly but she just nodded her head and kept quiet. Tiago wasn't really taking what she had to say seriously anyway. Ana noticed her dejected look and flew alongside her to cheer her up. "Hey, listen to me Bia." Her smile spoke more than she ever really had to but she continued on: "Don't you ever feel bad for being the smartest bird in the room. I'm going to let you in on a little secret." She bumped into Bia's side playfully.

Bia cocked her head interestedly. "Oh yeah, what's it about?"

Ana flew as close as possible to Bia's ear and began whispering into it: "I used to be a really big science geek too. I had this encyclopedia of all kinds of facts about animals big and small." Ana's eyes lit up as she recalled this piece of her childhood. "I drove my parents insane with all these little tidbits about giraffes and elephants, but secretly they appreciated how much I loved to learn." Ana moved away slightly and spoke at a normal volume again. "I can guarantee you that even though your siblings don't always seem to value your help, you're the first bird they turn to when there's a really tough problem to be solved."

Bia thought for a minute as they flew over the crowded streets near Copacabana Beach. The roadways were wall-to-wall traffic with cars of all different models, trucks, and even bicycles. Loud, honking horns split the air along with angry yells from passengers. Everyone wanted to get to the beach as quickly as possible. It was a hot summer day after all, and the best way to beat the heat is a dip in the gorgeous, dark blue Atlantic Ocean. Bia knew that the first bird they turned to was actually their father, but when he wasn't available her brother and sisters did seek her out the more she thought about it. One time when Tiago's game controller busted, Bia used her knowledge of mechanics to fix it up. When Alicia didn't know which colors to mix to produce pink after she ran out of pink paint, she asked Bia for assisstance. This brought the smile back to Bia's beak at last. She now realized that even though they teased her for how smart she was every now and then, they wouldn't want her any other way. Bia turned to Ana who had helped her see all this. "Thanks a lot Ana; I'm feeling so much better now."

Ana returned Bia's grateful smile with a wink. "No problem, us genius gals gotta stick together." She offered a talon to Bia to fist bump and Bia completed the motion with a laugh. The two friends had been so busy talking to one another that they didn't realize that they were now directly above their destination. Ana shifted her attention to Blu as she hovered in the air. "Is this the place?" She looked down at the less than appealing structure. It appeared as if someone had literally brushed the entire outside with a dust-colored icing. Windows on the upper floor were smashed, but Ana also took note that no one seemed to be up their anyway. She assumed then that the real action took place on the ground floor.

Blu nodded his head proudly, which confused Ana. How could he be impressed with somewhere that looked so disgusting? "This is it! Oh, you're going to love the guys. They really know how to have a good time."

Ana tried to hide her skepticism toward the situation. What she was really anxious about was how well her plans would unfold, but she masked it by pretending to be turned off by the samba club. "Well, if you're certain-"

"Come on Auntie Ana!" Alicia interrupted with adorable, worried eyes. "You're not changing your mind are you?" Her lip curled as if she was about to cry.

Ana softened her tough act so as not to further upset Blu and Jewel's children. She smiled reassuringly at the tiny chick. "Don't worry Alicia, I'm not going anywhere." She turned her gaze to Blu for a second. "Guess I shouldn't be judging a book by its cover, huh?"

"Believe me, it's a lot nicer on the inside than you think," Jewel put in. She understood Ana's apprehensions; she had the same ones when Rafael first took them to the club while they were still chained together. Once Ana got into the groove and started having fun, she wouldn't even notice where she was standing. "You'll see, let's get going." Jewel motioned for Ana and her family to follow her and started flying downward.

Ana nodded reluctantly. "Alright, I'm coming." She then turned her body so that her beak was facing the samba club's roof and began to fly at the end of the trail of Spix's macaws.

#

When the birds landed on the dirt in front of the club's entrance, they were greeted by the harpy eagle who worked as the bouncer. The eagle's stern expression changed into one of happiness as he recognized the male bird in his presence. "Well, well," he chuckled, "if it isn't Mr. Fake Bird ID." He scanned the large collection of birds that surrounded Blu. "I see you brought the whole family to have some fun this time."

Blu nodded his head with a big grin on his face. "Yes Sir! Don't worry though, we won't let them out of our sight. I swear on this wooden crate to my left that none of them will even get in the vicinity of any alcohol."

The harpy eagle smiled approvingly. "Now that's a good father." He turned to Jewel who was watching this exchange amusingly. Blu hadn't told her he knew this guy, so it was fascinating to see them talking like best buddies. "This one's a keeper. You be good to him now."

Jewel rolled her eyes. "Uh, I think you have it wrong Mr. Beefy. We are good to each other. This relationship ain't no one way street. I care for him, and he loves me back. That's just how we do it."

The eagle grinned, and not just because Jewel had complimented his muscular physique. He could tell that these two macaws were going to be together for decades to come. Not only did they have the right attitude toward the less fun aspects of companionship, he sensed that they loved each other very much. He pulled aside a thin, scratchy rope that barred unapproved entrance into the facility. "You all enjoy yourselves. I hope to see you more in the future."

Blu saluted the bouncer. "You can count on that." He winked at the eagle slyly before finishing their conversation the same way he had last time. "Have a pleasant day."

#

Ana's beak dropped in awe as she stepped inside the building. Never in her life would she have guessed it would look like this if someone had told her to describe its features. The ceiling contained colorful lights that switched some on and some off periodically, bathing the dance floor in a continuosly changing assortment of rays. Birds of all different species were moving and shaking their tailfeathers. It was just like a giant party! The bar off to the side consisted of a large wooden shelf with barrels in front of it for patrons to sit on while they drank. Bottles of all different shapes and sizes of liquors and juices stacked the shelves behind a tall roseate spoonbill who was presently cleaning a glass with an industrial-strength paper towel. When she shifted her gaze upward, she figured out where the mind-pulsingly loud music was coming from. Above the dance floor on the far wall from the entrance was a small DJ booth with some not-so-small speakers. If Ana squinted her eyes she could make out two small birds who appeared to be spinning the tracks. One was a little yellow canary with a, what was that on his head? The other was a red-crested cardinal with quite the pudgy belly. Ana's eyes narrowed with envy. Back in her days working as an actress, her human employers put her on a strict diet to ensure that she didn't look different from one commercial to the next. She wasn't allowed any special treat sticks and could only eat her three meals a day. Ana was happy that those days were behind her. She may not have seen it at first, but she had been in a toxic business that was doing no good for her already low self-esteem. The cardinal's eyes seemed to lock onto Blu and Jewel who were standing to her right and his beak curled into an excited grin. He whispered something to his tiny, yellow partner whose face changed into almost an exact replica of his friend's. The two birds then made a beeline for Ana and the rest of them. "Blu, Jewel, kids!" The cardinal shouted with his stubby, black wings spread wide in earnest welcome. "What a dope surprise!"

The canary landed on the dusty ground in front of them and began to spin what was apparently a bottle cap around on his wingtip. "It is a pleasure to see you once again baby birds." He laughed playfully. "When I say baby birds, I mean that in reference to everyone, not just the youngins."

Carla removed her earbuds and ran to the front of the group to greet her friends. Due to the short stature of the cardinal and canary, Carla and Pedro were actually the same height and Nico not much shorter. "Uncle Pedro, Uncle Nico!" She quickly gave each one of them a high-five. "It is SO good to see you guys again!"

"Yo what's been happnin' lately, Lil' Carly?" Pedro rubbed his beak with a wing as if he was thinking intently. Then, he pointed to the MP3 in Carla's wings. "Looks like you're gettin' good use out of my old device. Do you have "Look at Me Now" on there yet?"

Carla nodded eagerly. "Uh huh, and I can almost rap as fast as Busta Rhymes can!"

Nico's eyes nearly bugged out of his head when he heard that. "No way girl! You must be trippin'. If you're for real, you've gotta demonstrate for us later."

Carla's eyes narrowed and she smiled smugly. "You're on Nico. I'll show you what I can do, but you better grab a bucket cuz Imma mop the floor with you!" She finished by striking a gangster pose with one of her wings.

"Woah!" the gathering of birds all shouted, causing them to earn brief, annoyed glances from birds dancing nearby. Ana whistled with a disbelieving smile on her face. "Shots fired!" she exclaimed.

At the sound of Ana's voice, Pedro came alert to the fact that there was a bird he had not yet met before with the macaws. He turned his head to face her. "And, who might you be hot wing? Damn, those are some mighty fine feathers. I ain't seen a girl with shiny ones like that since I was spinnin' records up in Colombia!"

Ana blushed at the compliment as best she could; although, remarks like that irritated her to no end. "Why thank you," she said, her voice coming out as sweetly as she could manage. "I'm Ana." She held out a wing for both Pedro and Nico to shake, a gesture they both accepted. "I live directly across from Blu and Jewel's tree in the Blu Bird Sanctuary." Ana turned to smile at her neighbors. "We've become really good friends over the past year, so thye invited me to join them here today."

"Well, any friend of Blu and Jewel's is a friend of ours," Nico declared. He placed his signature bottle cap back on top of his small, yellow head. Then, he pointed a wing in the direction of the bar. "There are still two members of our little crew you have yet to meet Ana, and you can find them just over yonder."

"Follow us," said Pedro with his usual confident smile on his face.

Ana obliged and the large group of companions made their way to the bar on the club's right hand side. She tilted her head upwards as they got closer, noticing something she hadn't when she gave the place the once-over on the way in. The enclosed space where the bartender stood was topped by a roof made out of straw and palm leaves. To Ana, this had to be her favorite part of the establishment. She liked that it reminded her of one of those cheesy outdoor drink stations one might find on a Caribbean beach. It brought the tropical feeling of Rio to the inside of a dark, dusty building. Nico waved eagerly at a toucan with black feathers, a white belly, and large orange bill who was sitting on a leather-cushioned barstool. The bird appeared to be too exhausted to notice the canary's gesture. His head laid in his wings on the shelf of the bar where drinks usually sat. Ana couldn't help but wonder why he had such a long face on. Nico didn't seem to be deterred by his original failure at getting the toucan's attention. This time, he cupped his wings over his beak and yelled: "Rafi! Wake up buddy, Blu, Jewel, and the kids are here!"

Instantly, Rafael came alert. He shot up from his slouched position so quick in fact, that he nearly toppled over his mango smoothie. He whirled around to see whether or not Nico was pulling his leg. When his eyes settled on the large amount of blue below his hovering friend, his beak widened into a huge grin. He leaped off the stool and ran over to give Blu a big hug. "Blu mi amigo, it is so good to see you again!" Rafael squeezed Blu so tight that Blu once again began to fear that he wasn't intaking enough oxygen. Lucky for the Spix's macaw, Rafael suddenly released him with an excited gasp. While Blu was doubled over, inhaling desperately for air Rafael bent down and swooped up the four chicks in his large wings. "Look at these little munchkins!" He playfully nuzzled each one with his huge bill, causing them to giggle before placing them back down on the ground. "My how you've all grown. You're putting your Uncle Rafael to shame here!"

Alicia looked at Rafael with big, curious eyes. "Uncle Rafael, Mommy told us you have gray feathers? Is that true?"

Rafael bent over with laughter as did many of the other birds present. Alicia was confused by what she said that was so funny. The toucan wiped a tear from his light brown eye and sighed heavily. "Oh, it's true alright. I have my eighteen kids to blame for that." Rafael turned to Jewel who was hiding a sneaky smile behind her beak. Rafael pointed at her faux-accusingly. "Don't laugh at me like that Jewel. I can't believe you're making fun of me behind my back. I don't need your children thinking I'm old!"

Jewel rolled her eyes and formed a fake apologetic look with her beak. "Hey, it's not my fault that you're a baby about it Mr. Romantic Expert." She crossed her wings defiantly. "Maybe if you and Eva could keep your wings off each other for more than five minutes your nest would be a little less crowded." This jab earned another roar of laughter from the adults present while Blu and Jewel's chicks were left gazing wonderingly up at their elders.

Rafael was the only one not laughing. He opened his bill to respond, but quickly shut it and just shrugged his shoulders instead. "Eh, what do you expect?" His eyes got a dreamy look in them and he clasped his wings together. "I just adore my juicy little mango. It kills me whenever we're apart."

Ana raised an eyebrow and decided to join into the conversation. "If that's true then why aren't you with her right now?"

Rafael looked over his shoulder and his eyes widened at seeing the unfamiliar blue and gold macaw. He cleared his throat and offered his wing to her. "Um, who might you be?"

Ana accepted the toucan's wing and shook it. "My name is Ana and as I told your friends Pedro and Nico, I am Blu and Jewel's neighbor." She lifted one shoulder as if it was so obvious that was the case. "They gave me permission to tag along today so here I am." Then, she narrowed her gray, cloudy eyes at the toucan who shrank back nervously. "Now, why don't you answer my question? Might there be trouble in paradise?"

Rafael shook his head. This girl sure was feisty, but then again so was his wife. He knew how to handle birds like the macaw. "Not at all. In fact, one might say our home is even more paradise-like presently then normal. Rafael lowered his voice as if he was telling a deep, dark secret, but really he only did it to be dramatic. "Our children are in the middle of their two hour nap right now. I have to be back home by 2:00, but until then Eva gets to relax at home and I get to have fun here." Rafael spread his wings wide gleefully. "It's a win-win for all birds involved."

Ana nodded her head, an impressed look on her beak. "Nice comeback." She tapped a talon on her beak, pretending to think hard. "But, uh, Nico told me I had two more birds to meet." Ana turned her head in every possible direction. "Where's the other one at?"

"Right here," a friendly voice suddenly interjected. Everyone turned to face the bar once more and saw the spoonbill employed as a bartender waving to them with a huge smile on his long, odd-shaped bill. He stopped wiping the bar down with a little spray bottle filled with water and a brown and white checkered washcloth to look directly at Ana. "My name is Kipo." He nodded at her. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

Ana stepped past her friends who were all beginning to take a seat at the bar and shook wings with the tall bird. She returned his smile and brushed a stray feather out of her eye. "Nice to meet you too." She tapped her wings on the bar to fill the awkward silence that followed. "You probably heard who I am already and everything so I won't bore you. Do you work here everyday?" Kipo didn't answer and looked down at the gold watch on his left pink and white wing. The watch was decorated with a green gem on one side and a red ruby on the other. Ana, realizing she had struck out once, decided to try again. She whistled at the stunning piece of jewelry. "That is a really sick watch. Where'd you get it?"

Kipo blinked his eyes at her for a moment as if he had become lost in a trance. He shook his head, snapping back into reality and gazed at the watch once more. "Oh, uh, I inherited it from my dad." A sad look crept into his eyes. "He passed away a couple months ago."

Ana's excited expression turned uncomfortable. She had not expected such a heavy response to the question. "Damn, that sucks. I'm really sorry."

Kipo shrugged his shoulders. "It's alright, you didn't know. He was just old, nothing really serious. That kinda stuff just happens you know."

Ana nodded even though she'd never experienced a family member die before. She hadn't seen her parents in over a decade, so they might very well have been dead but she didn't know, and frankly she didn't care. Talking to birds about sensitive topics always made her nervous, so she began to play with one of her really long feathers. "At least he didn't suffer. Did he get the watch from his father like you did?"

Kipo shook his head and chuckled. "It's a really funny story, actually. My dad was out flying around the city one day and he found it in an alley next to a dumpster full of trash." Kipo threw his wings up into the air in disbelief. "It's like, why would anybody throw something so amazing out? This thing must have been worth thousands of dollars."

Ana laughed, relieved that the intensity of the conversation had melted away. "Who knows? Maybe it was a gift from someone's grandma and it clashed with their wardrobe!"

Kipo laughed loudly, his sadness now fully forgotten. He wiped a happy tear from his eye, but then tensed up all of a sudden. He smacked his face gently with a wing. "Oh, I'm sorry; I totally forgot to answer your earlier question. I do work here everyday." He nodded towards Pedro and Nico and got a wave from the cardinal in response. "I handle the morning and afternoon hours. Then, at 7:00 I get off. It's a pretty sweet deal." Kipo leaned in towards Ana's ear to tell her the next part. "Best of all, whenever I have a break I get to enjoy the music and tear up the floor!"

Ana giggled and punched him in the arm playfully. "You any good at dancing?"

Before Kipo could answer, Rafael spoke for him. "He sure is! In fact, he's auditioning for the upcoming talent show Pedro and Nico are hosting next week."

Blu shifted his attention to Nico and arched a curious eyebrow at him. "Talent show huh? That sounds like an interesting idea. I'd love to go see it." Blu turned to Jewel and asked her: "How about you?"

Jewel nodded excitedly. "Yeah, that sounds like a lot of fun." She shifted her attention to Pedro who, unable to get a seat, was now sitting on the tabletop to her right. "Where are you guys holding it?"

Pedro spread his wings wide. "Right here Miss Wild! This is the only place to be in Rio." He pointed to the dance floor and all birds present followed with their eyes. "We'll set up some chairs over there and then the contestants will perform on that little set of crates," Pedro explained, while acknowledging the three wooden objects that laid below the DJ station with no apparent purpose.

Jewel turned back to face the cardinal, an approving smile on her beak. "Okay, I'm on board with that plan but…" She leaned in menacingly towards Pedro, causing his eyes to dart side to side with fear. "Don't call me Miss Wild anymore, got it?"

Pedro nodded his head rapidly, a sheepish grin covering his face. "Ye-yes Jewel." He gave her a thumbs-up with his wing and stepped back towards the far side of the table. "Won't happen again, I promise."

"Mom, Mom!" Carla tugged urgently on her mother's wing, causing Jewel to spin around in alarm.

"What, what's the matter sweetheart?" Jewel's eyes were filled with worry for her daughter.

Now that Carla had gotten her mother's attention; however, she laughed at Jewel's concerned reaction. "Nothing's wrong Mom." Carla waved her wing dismissively. She looked down at the polished dark oak of the bar and shuffled her talons nervously. "I was… well I was just wondering if I could, I don't know, audition for the show?"

Pedro's head snapped up in delight and he quickly ran over to Carla and shook her excitedly. "Yes, of course you can try out Lil' Carly! We'd love it if you gave it a shot!" Pedro punched the air in victory. "This is going to be the most hippin', hoppin', and poppin' production ever held on this side of the Amazon River."

Jewel's smile widened proudly. She pulled her daughter in for a loving hug. "Of course you can try out dear." Jewel stroked Carla's feathery crown affectionately. "Your father and I would love to hear you sing up on stage, right Blu?"

"Oh yes!" Blu nodded eagerly and came around on Carla's other side to wrap his wings around her as well. "You have a wonderful voice and I just know that everyone who comes to watch will love it just as much as we do."

Carla escaped her parents' embrace and blushed at all the praise. "Gee thanks guys." She turned to the canary and cardinal and squealed with excitement. "It's official! I'm auditioning!"

"Alright baby bird." Nico jumped up to give Carla a high-five. "We're holding tryouts in two days, so that gives you some time to practice what you're gonna try out with." He winked at her. "If you want my advice, pick something you're already comfortable singing. That way, if you ever feel nervous on stage you can imagine yourself singing that same tune in the privacy of your own home."

"Thanks Nico." Carla was so happy she surprised him by lifting him up into a huge hug.

Startled, Nico's eyes widened but then he laughed, embarrassed and patted Carla on the back. "Don't mention it kid."

"Hey!" Carla placed Nico back down on the top of the bar's table and turned to see Kipo calling to them. "Anybody thirsty?!"

The group of friends all laughed and shouted an "I am!" in response.

Kipo chuckled. He turned around and picked up a little notepad and pen that he used to write down the orders of the club's customers. Facing his friends once more he clicked the pen open, ready to write. "What'll it be?"

"I'll have a hot chocolate with six marshmallows," Blu announced. When he saw everyone staring at him strangely, he threw his wings up frustratedly. "What?!"

Everyone laughed, making Blu blush. "Nothing honey." Jewel rubbed his back to comfort him after they had wound him all up. She shifted her attention to Kipo. "I'll have a passion fruit smoothie." Then, Jewel turned left and right to look at their four chicks. "Kids what do you want?" Each ordered a different flavored smoothie. Tiago wanted strawberry, Carla wanted banana, Alicia asked for chocolate, and Bia told Kipo peach. Rafael already had a drink, so after Pedro and Nico both ordered a margarita, Jewel turned to Ana who was toying with her wings self-consciously and not looking at anyone. "Hey, you can have whatever you want." She smiled at her kindly. "Don't feel like you have to order the kids' stuff. We just do it because of the little ones."

Ana looked at Jewel and grinned gratefully, but she shook her head. "That's very nice of you, but I don't drink alcohol." She shifted her gaze to Kipo. "I'll just have a vanilla milkshake please."

Pedro arched a curious eyebrow at her. "Carrying eggs by any chance?" he teased.

Ana rolled her eyes, annoyed at how the cardinal never seemed to take anything seriously. "No," she huffed, "I've just never been a fan of the taste. Personally, I really don't see the hype over it."

Pedro just shrugged his shoulders, completely unbothered by the macaw's biting tone. "Eh, to each his own."

"One vanilla shake," Kipo repeated as he wrote it down. He finished with a dramatic click of his pen and placed it back on the shelf behind him. "Okay guys, drinks coming right up!"

The chorus of birds cheered in response, once again earning dirty looks from those dancing behind them. Unfortunately for the other club-goers, the gang of amigos was having too much fun to really care what they thought.