Chapter 7: A Little Secret

"Andreas...?"

His true name chimed around in Blu's dreamworld. It danced around as if it was spoken by an angel. Despite the subconscious desire to keep sleeping and keep the sensation locked away in this dream, Blu gently awoke and discovered its origin. He quickly scurried to his feet.

Standing before him was a female Spix macaw, with graying feathers around the head and neck. She looked a lot like Yasmin, yet several features were different, the most obvious one was that this macaw had hazel eyes instead of ocean blue. Peering into those eyes, Blu recalled one of his recently stirred childhood memories and immediately felt a pang inside his chest, making him realize instantly who exactly was standing before him.

"M-mom? Is that... really you?"

"Andreas? My beautiful Andreas? Oh Meu Deus, it's a miracle!" she shouted as she launched herself towards Blu, wrapping her wings around him in the process. He wrapped his own around her in response. "It's really you! I can't believe my baby boy finally came home after all these years!"

Blu was dumbstruck. All he could manage to say was "Mama" over and over, again with tears in his eyes, only this time, they were tears of joy.

It took them both several minutes to regain control over their emotions, so they could actually talk properly. They took a small step back, so they could look each other over.

"Look at you, my son. You've grown into a beautiful, healthy, strong bird, just like I knew you would once you were born... Where have you been all this time? How did you escape from them?"

Escape? From... them? Seemed like his mother had her own theory about his disappearance.

"What do you mean, mom? I didn't escape from anyone to get back here... Well, not at first, anyway... but I assure you, there was no escaping involved to get back home."

"Really? But... I was so sure that you had been stolen by... them..."

"Who, mom? Who are you talking about?" She didn't answer right away. Instead, she looked over her shoulder, towards the tree where Victor and Yasmin's home used to be.

"They used to be such nice neighbors... Spend a lot of time with them, both fun and sad times. But their true intentions showed when they disappeared... and you with them. I never thought our own kind would turn on us..."

Blu's trained mind made all the pieces fall quickly into place. "Wait, w-wait... Are you saying... that you think I was stolen by Victor and Yasmin?" She turned her head back to him.

"So you know their names then? Yes, I mean Victor and Yasmin," she said, pronouncing the names as if she had a bad taste in her beak. "One day, when you were just a few weeks old, your father and I wanted to go look for food. I wasn't very sure about leaving you alone, given your age. But since you were sleeping, he assured me you'd be fine. But when we came back, you were nowhere to be found. We went over to Victor and Yasmin, thinking you were there playing with their daughter, or at least they could help us look for you. Instead, we found out that they were gone, too. We looked as far and wide across the rainforest as we could, but there wasn't any trace of them, or you. So we concluded that... that... Victor and Yasmin snatched you, and raised you as one of their own in some faraway place. That was the only possible option we could think of back then." Blu was shocked to hear those words.

"Oh mom, you've got it all wrong! First of all, let me assure you Victor and Yasmin were never to blame for what happened to me. Yes, I was stolen, but not by them at all. In fact, the reason they disappeared was because they got stolen as well, and were even forced to leave their daughter behind. No, they and I were stolen by humans, making a living of smuggling exotic birds!"

"Humans? Really? You mean I've been going around all these years living a lie?" Blu didn't respond. He let his look speak for itself. "Oh, my Lord. All this time... Thinking the worst of two great birds... But, how do you know for sure?"

"Because they just got back to the rainforest no more than a week ago. They were sent to a country called the United Kingdom, where they lived for the past fifteen years as pe... uhm, companions, until their owner got too old and sent them back from whence they came. After they got reunited with Jewel, their daughter – which, by the way, is now my mate - they led me here to find my old nest, hoping to find you and dad. Speaking of which, where is he? I bet he's dying to find out I'm okay!"

His mother's face quickly turned to sadness. "What is it? Was it something I said?"

"No, you pretty much hit the nail on the head. Follow me, I have to show you something."

His mother turned around, and with Blu in her wake, she flew straight to the ground. She took a few steps forward, going beyond the edge of the clearing, and stopped in front of a patch of ground that was marked by an oval circle of pebbles, large enough to surround a mature macaw in its length. On top of it laid a single medinilla flower that started to wither.

"Hey, Leonardo, love of my life," she said towards the grave. "Looks like I'll need to replace your favorite flower soon. Anyway, I brought someone with me this time. Your son is back." She stepped out of the way for Blu, who was standing behind her, and gestured. "Andreas... say hi to your father."

Blu's throat clogged up. He figured all the while he was talking to his mother, his father would be out there, entering the hollow at any moment. Yet seeing the sight before him, he knew that would no longer be the case... ever. His eyes watered up once again.

"Uhm... Hi, dad..." he mumbled. "I had no idea you were already... uhm... gone..." He turned to his mother. "How...? When...?"

"Your father died about three years ago. We were with some of our friends messing around in a nearby creek. Your father was sitting on dry land, catching his breath from all the fun he just had. Nobody noticed a Wandering Spider coming up behind him. I don't know what he or we did to provoke it, but it bit your father in the back, just like that. Everyone hurried to chase the spider away, but it was too late. He tried to fight the poison, but there was too much of it running in his bloodstream already. He died a minute later."

As Blu started grieving over his deceased father, a voice sounded from somewhere up above.

"Yoo-hoo, Manuela, are you home? I got some new gossip for you!"

'Manuela'. So that's how Blu's mother is called. That saved him the trouble of asking himself later.

"That's Yarah, one of my best friends. I'll leave you with your father for now, come up when you feel like it," after which she flew up and went to meet her friend, a beautiful green military macaw.

"Ah, there you are, Manuela. How's things? Wait, don't answer that, probably 'same as usual'. Anyway, you'll never guess what's going on around the forest these days. Trixie said that Raquel said she saw some new arrivals in the forest, an older couple of blue macaws that looked pretty much like you. Crazy huh? So I told her "No way!" and then she was all like..."

This was the Yarah everyone knew her to be. Always gossiping, never able to shut up on her own once she got going. Manuela did her best to interrupt her, but after several fruitless efforts, she felt the need to raise her voice.

"Yarah, please be quiet and let me say something!"

She stopped mid-sentence, and said "Okay, geez, you don't need to shout, you just had to speak up. Anyway, what is it?"

"Everything you just told me is all true. Not only that, I can give you something else to spread around as well. Remember I had a son fifteen years ago, and one day, he just disappeared?" Yarah nodded. "Well, he came back. Today. He's down below right now, visiting his father."

"No way!" she exclaimed. "You must be so happy right now!"

"I am, although I'll never forgive myself for leaving him alone that day. I'm also sorry Leonardo didn't get to see his son return..." She started to sob. Yarah was a fun-loving bird that was always ready for gossiping and joking around, but she knew exactly when and when not to jest.

"Hey, hey, come on now. I know how awful that sounds, but look on the bright side. Your son is back, and from what I was told, he's got a whole family of his own. You might possibly be a grandmother now too."

Her saddening thoughts vaporized. "Really? That would be so wonderful! He already said he had a mate, but nothing about kids yet. I'd have to hear it from the source though, so we'll have to wait until he comes up here, then we can find out from him directly."

Just then, Blu stepped back into the clearing, wiping away the last of his tears. He flew back up to his old home where his mother and Yarah were waiting.

"Ah, there you are. Andreas, this is Yarah, and Yarah, this is my son."

"My, aren't you the handsome looking one," Yarah said. "So tell us, word is you've already found a mate and made a family. Is it true?"

"Wow, word spreads fast, doesn't it? Yes, it's true. You're a grandmother of three, wonderful little miracles. Want to go meet them?"

"I'd love to, but there's something I want to know first."

"Yeah?"

"What happened to you during all these years? You already said you were stolen by humans, but what then?"

"Well, after they loaded me onto a plane, I ended up far to the north, in a country called the United States of America, and..."

Blu continued to tell the story of his life with Linda, who named him 'Blu', until present day. The two female macaws listened in awe hearing the things Manuela's son went through, especially about the time he first came back to Rio and all the ordeals he had to deal with. Winning Jewel over, getting caught by Nigel and his human gang, meeting new friends...

"... and that's how I came back here. Victor and Yasmin showed me where my old nest was, but since there was nobody here, I thought I'd never see either of you again. That's when I asked Jewel if she could give me some me-time. I fell asleep here, and then you showed up. You know the rest."

"Yeah, I remember that. I was out by the creek washing up, and when I came back, I saw a lot of blue macaws sitting around my nest. I dove back out of sight. Just in time, because the one that was hugging you turned to look in my direction, but she didn't see me. I presume that was Jewel?"

"She didn't say anything about that, but yeah, I assume it was. Anyway, she's probably starting to worry about me. What do you say we go to my hollow so you can meet everyone?"

"I'd love that. I can't wait to see my grandkids... And I really should apologize to Victor and Yasmin, for thinking those awful thoughts about them all this time."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. They don't know you thought that way in the first place, so I think it's best we all keep that our secret."

"Yeah, you're right. Don't fix what isn't broken. Don't worry, I'll keep it to myself."

"Yarah, you're welcome to join as well, if you want."

"Do I? This is like getting the scoop for a gossip magazine. I'm in!"

As the three birds headed towards Blu's new home, Jewel was pacing back and forth in it, eagerly awaiting his return.

"I should have never left him there. He's been gone for far too long. What if he's hurt, or got lost? Or maybe even intentionally hurt himself? I've got to go and find him!" As she got ready to head out, Victor stepped in her way.

"Honey, please relax. He told you he wasn't going to do something stupid, and if you truly love him, you'll trust his word. Besides, he's got a family to come home to, remember? There's no way he'd leave all of you behind on a whim."

"I know dad, I know, but I'm just so worried sick! This uncertainty is killing me! I should have stayed nearby, keeping an eye out, making sure he's fine."

"Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be back soon. Look, the sun is slowly starting to set. Which means it will be dark in a few hours, and he knows better to be home by then. If it makes you feel better, I'll go up and keep an eye out for him."

A voice came from outside the hollow. "That won't be necessary, because I'm home!"

Victor turned around to see Blu landing on a nearby branch. He then was pushed out of the way by Jewel, who instantly recognized her mate's voice, and hurled herself towards him.

"You're back! Oh, I was so worried! Please don't ever leave me again like that..."

"Hey, it's okay. I told you I'd be back. I've got too much to live for, and even more so right now."

"What do you mean?"

"I've got some great news!" He turned his gaze upwards, and shouted: "You can come out now!"

Two birds, a Military macaw and more notably, a Spix macaw, both female, appeared from behind some leaves higher up in the tree, swooped down and landed next to Jewel and Blu.

"Blu, is that... who I think it is?"

"It sure is. Jewel, this is Manuela... my mother!"

Meanwhile, Victor and Yasmin were looking through the hole in the tree at the events that were going down. They recognized Manuela right away, and hearing Blu confirm it, they jumped out.

"Manuela! Oh thank the stars, you're alright!"

"Victor! Yasmin! I've missed you so much!" Even though they ultimately had nothing to do with Blu's disappearance all those years ago, Manuela still experienced feelings of distrust towards Jewel's parents. "Old habits die hard," she thought, and did her best to suppress the feelings.

"You look fabulous! I see life in the jungle hasn't changed you at all. Well, maybe a little," referring to the graying feathers. "So, where's Leonardo? Didn't he want to come?" Yasmin continued, unknowing what fate had befallen Blu's father. The ones who did know put on a serious face, and Manuela explained to them why he wasn't here... physically, anyway.

"Oh, my... I'm so sorry. I had no idea..."

"Don't worry about it. You didn't know, and it's all in the past now. But I know Leonardo will always be with us in spirit."

Meanwhile, Yarah was just standing there, not daring to interrupt the reunion of the family of blue birds. Now however, she cleared her throat. Manuela introduced her to everyone. "Oh, right, I almost forgot. This in Yarah, one of my best friends, and probably the whole reason I haven't lost my mind yet over losing the two most important men in my life."

A few moments after Yarah burst into another gossiping monologue, Blu's attention turned to a commotion from inside the hollow.

"Oh, that's right!" Blu exclaimed, effectively interrupting Yarah's waterfall of words. "Want to see your grandkids, mom?" He went inside to tell his own mother was here to see them, and one by one, the tiny macaws wandered outside.

"Go on, introduce yourselves," Jewel told them.

"M-my name is Davi." "I'm Isabella!" " And I-I'm Juan."

Manuela ducked down to their height, and opened her wings towards them, inviting them to a group hug. As they did so, she looked at their parents. "They're absolutely gorgeous. I'm so proud of you, Andreas. Uh, I mean, Blu."

"Thanks, mom. But, uh, you can call me Andreas, if you like." She lowered her head down back to her grandchildren, and gave them each a quick kiss.

"Hey, mom? I got a quick question. We were invited to a party tonight, and I was wondering if you wanted to come along."

Lifting her head up, she said: "A party? Oh no, I'll pass on that. I never really was much of the party type, to be honest. But I'll be happy to keep an eye on these fuzzballs while you're out having fun."

"Actually, we agreed to leave them in the care of Rafael and Eva. I told you about them, remember? But if it's okay with them, you can join them."

"The toucans? Oh no, if they don't mind, I don't either."

"That's good, because they can barely handle their own kids. Another adult to supervise them would be a welcome addition," Jewel added.

The entire family of blue macaws and the single Military macaw continued passing the minutes talking, catching up and sharing dinner, until the time came to get ready for The Branch's anniversary party. After Blu and Jewel brought Manuela and the kids to Rafael and Eva and introduced Blu's mom to them, everyone took off towards the streets of Rio, Yarah included. She couldn't remember the last time she went to a party.

When they arrived at the club, Nico and Pedro were already eagerly awaiting them.

"He-hey, look who's here! We almost thought you got lost," Pedro shouted.

"Sorry guys, something unexpected came up. I've found my mother earlier today!"

"You did? That's so awesome? Is she coming too?" Nico wondered.

"No, sorry, she didn't want to. She's not the party type, she said, so we left her with Rafael and Eva, looking after the kids."

"Muito bem," Nico said. "Howsabout we head inside? This party is crackin', and it needs us to fix it up!"

Kipo and his friends did an excellent job rebuilding the place after the marmoset attack left it trashed. It looked even better than before now. It had more space, more stages, more lights... In short, it had more of everything. And, as such, also more birds inside. It didn't take long for them to notice Nico and Pedro had entered, and they immediately started cheering for them to perform the song everyone knew and loved. Pedro addressed the crowd first.

"Yoyoyoyo! Before we get started, we got a small announcement. All of you remember Blu and Jewel, right?" The crowd cheered once again, as a spotlight shone upon the two macaws in question. "Well, their family just got a little bigger. Everyone give a hearty Branchy welcome to Jewel's parents, Victor and Yasmin!" Once again the crowd cheered, as Nico turned another spotlight in the direction of the other pair of macaws. He then flew down towards the club's band, and whispered to them: "Alright guys, let's hit them with some 'Hot Wings'!"

When the familiar tune started to play, the whole crowd started dancing to the rhythm of what was probably the club's standard song. Nico kicked things off with his well-known opening line: "Party in Ipanema, baby!"

I wanna party, I wanna samba
I wanna party, I wanna samba
I wanna party, and live my life (my life)
I wanna party (party), and fly!

Imma fly, fly just like a bird (but you are a bird!)
Oh yeah, you're right, so let me fly just like a rocket then (okay)
Fly so high, where I need to come down for oxygen (hey)
'Cause once we start it, baby, ain't no ain't no stopping then (hey)
'Cause I just wanna live my life and party (hey)
All I want is to be free and rock my body (okay)
Been around the world and I wanna live my life
In Rio, 'cause of Rio, 'cause of Rio I realize that

I wanna party (party), I wanna samba (party)
I wanna party (party), and fly!

By now did not only Blu invited Jewel to dance, this time without the hindering of a redundant chain at their paws, but also Victor and Yasmin swayed around each other as if they had danced every day of their lives. The crowd moved to the side to give room for the two pairs.

I'm that samba samba masta masta masta masta masta
Push out sound from my ghetto blasta blasta blasta blasta blasta
You dance fast but I dance fasta fasta fasta fasta fasta
You too slow, you need to catch up, you can dance and dance

I wanna party (party), I wanna samba (party)
I wanna party (party), I wanna samba (party)
I wanna party (party), and live my life (my life)
I wanna party (party), and fly!

Blu remembered exactly what happened last time when they got to this part of the song, so after he spun Jewel around, he launched her in the air, allowing her to do her solo. However, everyone's amazement reached new heights as Victor and Yasmin got so lost in the music, they did the same and turned the solo into a duet.

After Nico and Pedro finished up the song, the whole crowd went simply out of their minds. Blu turned to his parents-in-law, and said: "That was amazing! How did you know you were meant to dance and sing when you did?" They just looked at each other, and simply smiled.

"We have no idea. I guess we just let ourselves get lost in the music, and everything just came naturally." Everyone's attention turned back to Pedro, shouting at the crowd.

"Wo-o-o-o-ow! That was some crazy stuff back there, huh folks? I know ya'll want more of where that came from, so let's get right to it!" And with that, the band started playing more familiar songs, creating a wonderful time for every bird in the room. After a dozen of songs, Pedro nudged Blu.

"Hey, love hawk, remember when you and Jewel were sitting on top of that trolley, still chained up and we tried to hook you up?

"Sure I do. I don't think I've ever been so nervous in my life back then."

"And also remember where I tried to 'set the mood' at first?"

"Yup. Not exactly the right kind of mood, was it?"

"Nope. But anyway, the words I sang back then kinda stuck in the back of my head ever since, and a week before this anniversary, I finally managed to make it into an actual song. Wanna hear?"

"You bet!"

And with that, Pedro flew up to the stage again.

"Alright ya'll, listen up! As you all know, today is the 10th anniversary of The Branch, so that's why I've been working on a brand new song that missed its intended purpose, but now, it can reflect to every one of us living in Rio. Guys, hit it!"

The band started playing once again, starting off in bossa nova style.

Ah, que linda
Bossa nova, samba
Coração de Brasil
And now, it's the new style

With that, a beat was added. The next words Pedro sang were well known to the younger pair of macaws, and Nico.

Git it git it git it git it git it girl
Git-ge-git ge-gi-git git it girl
Git it git it git it git it git it girl
Git-ge-git ge-gi-git git it girl
Take her, take her to the flo'
Show her, show her how you roll
Drop it drop it drop it low
Drop it

Nobody in the club couldn't resist the feeling of at least bopping their heads along to the beat.

Make-make-make it funky in Brazil
Through that samba don't stay still
C'mon get over, keep you dancin'
Super duper's how you feel
We gon' rock it in the street
'Til we see the morning sun
We ain't stopping in the Carnaval
We party on and on
Rock it on and on, on and on
That's just how we do
And my beats be pumpin' loud
Like samba schools to make you move
This party will never end
No baby, it's never over
All the millions of Brazilian women make me say gostoso

Git it git it git it git it git it girl
Git-ge-git ge-gi-git git it girl
Git it git it git it git it git it girl
Git-ge-git ge-gi-git git it girl
Git it git it git it git it git it girl
Git-ge-git ge-gi-git git it girl
Git it git it git it git it git it girl
Git-ge-git ge-gi-git git it girl
Take her, take her to the flo'
Show her, show her how you roll
Drop it drop it drop it low
Drop it lo-dro-drop it low
Take her, take her to the flo'
Show her, show her how you roll
Drop it drop it drop it low
Drop it lo-dro-drop it low

Que linda, que linda
I love Ipanema
It's the place to fall in love
In Copacabana
Rio, oh Rio, oh-eh-oh
Samba, let's samba-ah-ah-ah
It's the place to fall in love

In Rio (hey), In Rio (hey)
In Rio (hey), In Rio (hey)

The beat faded for a while, as the song turned mostly bossa nova again.

Ah, que linda
Bossa nova, samba
Coração de Brasil
And now, it's the new style

The beat picked up once more. The two pairs of macaws were so lost in Pedro's mesmerizing vocal cords, they just danced at their heart's content, just like every other bird around them. Everything was perfect at that moment.

Que linda, que linda
I love Ipanema
It's the place to fall in love
In Copacabana
Rio, oh Rio, oh-eh-oh
Samba, let's samba-ah-ah-ah
It's the place to fall in love

After Pedro finished the song with one last chorus, the whole club nearly exploded in cheers and applause. Pedro had once again established his reputation, and there wasn't a single available female bird in the room that didn't want to get close to him. Sadly for them, he hasn't met a bird yet that could come between him and his best buddy.

Even though the party was far from over, Yasmin started to tire out after a few more songs.

"Victor, honey, I'm getting tired. Do you think we can head back home soon?"

"Sure thing, love. I'm getting sleepy as well. Let's just tell Blu and Jewel, and we'll be off."

As it turned out, Blu and Jewel were sharing the same thought, so as they said goodbye to everyone, they headed through the exit of the club. To their surprise, Yarah was standing out there as well. Well, not exactly standing, more like swaying all over the place.

"Yarah? Are you okay?" Jewel asked.

"Oh heeeeey *hiccup* there, supershtar," she said, clearly drunk. "Ish it me, or ish the world shpinning around much fashter?" after which she fell down. "Ow, you shilly floor, shtop hitting me." Blu and Jewel helped her get back on her feet. "I guess she won't get anywhere in this state, except maybe in the gutter. Should we carry her to our hollow so she can recover there?"

Victor spoke up. "Leaving a drunk bird with your kids? No offense, but that's not a good idea at all. You can drop her off at our hollow, we'll look after her."

With that, everyone headed back to the rainforest, Blu and Jewel clutching each of Yarah's wings with their talons. In her stupor, Yarah continued to babble on about nothing in particular, which was quite amusing for everyone.

As they got to their homes, Victor and Yasmin picked up Manuela and their grandchildren from Rafael and Eva's place, while Yarah was dropped off in their hollow. They invited Manuela to stay with them as well. Because the party at The Branch consumed a lot of everyone's energy, everyone fell asleep almost instantly. Only Blu stayed awake just a minute longer, thinking about one loose end. Tomorrow, he'd introduce his mother to Linda and Tulio.

A/N: Now this is the longest chapter yet! Granted, a chunk of it is due to the songs, but meh, details. The 'Drop It Low' song really exists by the way, it was made by none other than will. himself and can be found on youtube (search for 'rio drop it low remix', although the best quality can be found on dipdive). Special thanks goes out to WolfOnFyre for helping me figuring out the lyrics, most especially the Portuguese words. As for story progression, it can go two ways now. 1: Yarah babbles too much and unwittingly tells Victor and Yasmin about Manuela's theory of them stealing Blu, or 2: Manuela gets angry with Blu because he still hangs out with Linda (or humans in general). If you have another idea of how the story should progress, fire away. As always, thanks for reading!