Early Christmas presents for the peeps who are still invested in this story, I'm sorry for the long wait, yet again. I'll be uploading three more chapters for today, see ya whenever, I guess.

P.S. Happy Holidays, and hope everyone has a happy new year.

Chapter 7: Foreign Aid

I can't believe I agreed to do this…

Owls aren't meant to wade around in murky water, yet that was exactly what I was doing. I shouldn't complain too much when the life of another in on the line, but still, this was a stupid decision. I'd be better off back at the tree while Matt jumps up and down in this dumb dirty pond. I must look like an idiot sloshing through the water.

After what seemed like hours toiling in the cesspit of things better left unknown to the public, I decided that I had enough. My feathers were soaked, my mood was soured, and when I left I crushed an ugly flower. I took a gander below me, and there was about eight or nine leeches enjoying a delicious snack of sweet blood on my lower limbs. I shudder in revulsion before taking to the air again.

I arrived at the tree, eager to be rid of these horrendous critters. Matthias stood watch from inside, the crow still sound asleep.

"Here, I got your frinking leeches from Hagsmire, just take them." I harshly commanded.

"Great, I'll get started right away." He ripped them off my legs. "You'll have a few bumps here and there but nothing too serious, I hope. How long were you in the water for?"

"Too long." I mumbled under my breath. He went over to the injured bird, and carefully placed the wriggly disgusting blood suckers on his wounds.

"I still don't get how this works." I crossed my wings, grateful that both the crow was supposedly going to be healed, and that they were no longer helping themselves to a crucial liquid in my body.

"You don't have to understand how, but if you want to know, I'm sure the Guardians have someone who's got all the details." He said, smiling at his finished work.

"When do we take them off?"

"Well, right now he started bleeding again, so when the leeches are satisfied with their meal, we can apply the bandage." We walked out of the tree to give the crow some privacy, and then I could hear Matt's stomach growling in hunger.

"Um, you don't mind volunteering for a little hunting game, do you?" He hesitantly asked, a sparkle lighting up in his eyes. Everyone apparently knew the art of begging while putting on a cute face, even in another world/dimension.

"I don't, but don't be surprised if I don't come back with anything. I'm not really good at acquiring food."

"You'll be fine, a mouse or vole should be good for me and you. If he wakes up, then I could get another one for him." He patted me on the back reassuringly.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." I deadpanned.

"You're welcome!" He gleefully replied, either ignoring the poignant sarcasm or blissfully unaware of it.

I flew up to another tree close by, scanning the environment for any potential prey to rip my talons into. I've never done this before, since food was irregularly handed out by the guards in St. Aggies, but this would be a good learning experience. How hard could it be?

"Depends on how much you suck at hunting." Daniel suddenly appeared to the right of me, scaring me for a split second.

"Jesus, would you stop doing that?!" I exasperatedly questioned the blue eyed bird, who shook his head.

"It's hilarious seeing your reaction." He smirked slyly at me.

"I hate you." I muttered, although like Soren, he picked up on what I said.

"Oh, you know that's not true, you love me, don't you?" He cooed, and I rolled my eyes in disapproval.

I turned my attention away from the owl, and tried to focus on the sounds of the forest below me. I don't know if it's a rumor or not, but some people have said that barn owls can hear the heartbeat of a mice from a mile away.

I think my ears must be clogged with wax or something, because everything seemed a bit muted.

"You don't hear anything?" Daniel asked, and I shrugged in disappointment.

"Nothing at all, all I am getting is those stupid chirping and rustling of leaves, and I don't know where they're coming from."

"Well for starters, why don't you estimate where the rustling sounds are coming from?" He suggested, and I tried focusing my hearing once more. However, I still came up with nothing. Daniel did give me a weird pointer, in an attempt to help me.

"Trust your gizzard, not your brain. Don't listen only to the ground below us, listen to it. Can't you feel it from within, telling you what to do, where to go?"

"You know I don't believe in that crap, right?" I caustically commented.

"Yeah, it was worth a shot. I forgot that you don't really have one." He sighed in defeat. I was about to give up, but then I heard a very faint, but distinct sound in the distance. A low, rhythmic thumping, accompanied by leaves crackling.

"Wait! I think I heard something moving! Over there!" I gasped in excitement, pointing down to the ground near the tree we were perched on.

"What are you waiting for, get to it!" He egged me on, and we hurriedly glided to another tree. With a great amount of caution in my wing beats, I listened intently below me. I attune myself to the sounds of the forest, and after a few moments of concentration, the same beating came from the ground, closer to me than before.

I peered down at the brown leaves scattered around the forest floor, and then I finally saw it. A defenseless plump mouse, soon to be devoured by me and my compatriot. I jumped off the branch, swooping in to catch my kill, while the rodent desperately tried to halt its demise.

My talons grasped tightly to the small animal, and stabbed themselves in just the right spot to quickly end its life. Daniel landed behind me, cheering for my successful endeavor.

"Looks like your first hunt went great. Good job, Alex!"

"I couldn't have done it without my terrible Tyto teacher." I derisively said to the owl, who frowned in mock sadness.

"Aw, you don't have to be such an asshole about it."

I flew back to our temporary hollow with a huge grin on my face. Matt was going to be so amazed. I touched down from my flight, and I made sure that the mouse couldn't be seen. I hid it underneath a pile of dead leaves. He came out, wearing an unsure smile.

"So, did you get anything?" I slowly revealed the hiding spot of my catch of the day.

"Will this satisfy the great and powerful Lyze of Kiel?" I teased the small screech owl.

"Are you kidding me? This could feed the both of us, and we'd still have something leftover for our patient!" He eyed the dead rodent in childlike wonder. Honestly, I love seeing Matt smile. His entire being makes all but the coldest of hearts want to join in his fun.

"Let's go inside, we don't want anyone taking away our meal, do we?" He furiously shook his head. He bounced up and down like a toy, almost hitting his head on the tree's bark. With the three of us, the hole was a bit crowded, but it was safer than remaining out in the open for other predators to hunt us.

We sat down, digging into our meal caught by yours truly. The taste of raw meat wasn't as bad as I first thought it to be, which was good because unlike bugs, I could actually eat it without wanting to vomit. Maybe it's like if you catch your own food, it makes it taste better.

"Thanks Alex, this really hits the spot!" Matt licked the corners of his beak in satisfaction.

"I aim to please." I said, tearing off another chunk of meat off the mouse. My eyes wander to the crow, who was now bandaged and was starting to come to.

"Well, looks like our guest has woken up. We'd like to have you for dinner, if you feel like you're up for it." Matt suggested to the bleary eyed crow.

"Is that supposed to mean that you will eat me, or…?"

"No, we have a really big mouse, and we want to share it with you." I plainly said to him, who quickly agreed to partake in our sorta brunch (I don't know what they call it, tweener?).

"What is he talking about, Alex?" Matt asked me.

"His dad kept telling him that owls eat crows, and it's still sticking." I replied, a bit annoyed that he momentarily forgot that not all owls were out to get him.

"That's your name, Alex? Not what I expected, but it does sound kinda nice." The crow nibbled on another piece of mouse as he talked.

"My name's Matthias, it's a pleasure to meet you." He smiles gently and reaches his right talons over to the crow, who slowly shook it in apprehension.

"I'm Cato. I'm shocked, but also glad that you kept your promise," He looked over to me. "I guess not every owl wants to eat me, but there's still a chance of it happening, I'm sure of it."

"So, Cato, are you willing to tell us what happened to you, or is that subject too sore for you right now?" I ask the corvid.

"Not really. No offense, but I don't know you guys that well."

"I know what we can do!" Interjected Matthias, raising his wing like he was at school, sitting behind a desk.

"What?" Cato and I inquired at the same time.

"We should start out slow, like where we lived and the names of our relatives, and then we can keep going until you feel like you wanna stop."

"Sounds good to me." I shrug, and Cato was seemingly at odds with himself. It's a good way to break the ice, because even I still don't know everything about Matthias, although that's mostly because we were never given the chance to properly talk about our lives before we were captured.

"Why don't you begin, Alex?" Wow, way to put me on the spot just like that. Thankfully, I can be a little honest with them, barring the "former human" secret.

"Okay, I don't actually know who my parents are, or where I was born, but I do know that I was rescued from a burning tree by another, way bigger owl than me. She kinda hoarded a lot of different stuff in her hollow. I don't know what you would call them, but her hollow was an absolute mess. She may have saved me, but I think I'm better off without her. I didn't want to die from mold and pollution in the air."

"Really? My parents did talk about a fire sweeping in the eastern part of Ambala, but you're a Tyto. Unless you were in a different forest fire. Do you know if it was in the Tyto forest?" Matthias questioned.

"There's a forest literally called Tyto forest? Isn't that a bit egotistical or something, naming a piece of land after your species?" I remarked, and Cato was also kind of confused at this weird terminology.

"I never understood it myself, but you must have been hatched in it. I've never heard of an owl being born in a place that wasn't where most of their kind comes from."

"Well, I think that's enough about me, what about you Matthias? Where were you born?" I spun the figurative bottle back to him.

"For me, I was hatched in Ambala. I had a loving mother named Victoria, and my da, Edwin. Me and my brother Nylan would sometimes sneak out to practice our branching. That's actually what got me in Aggies, kinda like Soren and his brother, although I think he wasn't captured." He looked down at the ground, becoming quiet.

"Huh, is that why you were the best flier when we trained with Grimble?" I curiously wondered.

"Probably, I don't know what happened to the poor man, but I hope he and his family made it out alright. I hope my family is alright."

He doesn't know he's… no longer with us. I detest lying to my friend, but telling him the truth would surely crush his spirit.

"The dude's a hardy man, you saw him kick Nyra's tailfeathers when we were escaping."

"I know, but I can't help but worry about him. His family doesn't deserve to live with those sick Pure Ones." He spat with hatred at the mere mention of our former captors.

"Wait," Cato interposed. "You guys escaped from St. Aegolius?" He incredulously asked.

"Yeah, there were more of us, but I was injured and they had to leave me and Matt behind. We're going to find the Guardians of Ga'hoole." I answered, and he appeared shocked at the thought of young owls not only escaping the depths of Hell, but also braving the world in search of what very well could be a legend.

"Aren't they just a myth? Do you even know if they're real or not?"

"You don't have to see them to believe in them. There's something in my gizzard that simply tells me that they must be real, isn't it the same for you Alex?" Matthias peered back at me, looking for approval.

"Ehhhh, sorta. We won't know till we get there, I suppose." I mused to mostly myself.

"Cato, are you comfortable enough to tell us where you come from?" Matthias changed the subject, and the crow nodded.

"Yeah, I think I'm good, Me and my family come from Silverveil. My dad was always out, either defending our nest from any attackers, or hunting for food. My mother was the one who taught me how to fly, how to read, things like that. One day, I was separated from my family by a wicked storm and I blacked out, and when I woke up there was nobody around me." He pauses for a moment. "I've been on the move ever since. I… don't know where they are. I… miss them a lot." He started to become teary-eyed, but I slowly wrapped my wing around the crow in a reassuring embrace. He flinched at my touch, before eventually calming down.

"Maybe the Guardians can help you find your parents?" Matthias ebbed closer to the crow, and I released my hold on him.

"Maybe, I don't know." He said unsuredly.

"Why don't you come with us?" Matthias blatantly suggested to Cato, widening his eyes in disbelief.

"You'd really have me? My wing still hurts, but I think I could make it out of here in a couple of days. Are you sure you want me to join you?"

"Yeah!" Matthias shot back at the crow, surprised that the thought of us abandoning another kid in need crossed the avian's mind. "We'd love it if you would come with us, right Alex?"

"Of course, the more the merrier, as they say. Whoever 'they' are." I air quoted.

"Well, it's not like I have anything else to do. So, when do we leave?" He asked, and Matthias smirked at the crow, and I already knew the answer before the words left his mouth.

"Screw waiting, why don't we just go now?!" Matthias sporadically runs out of the tree, leaping off the ground and into the air. Cato looks at him like he was insane.

"Does he always do that, or…?"

"Yep, and I love him for it."

I think he forgot that Cato's wing wasn't working right now.