"You guys gotta be kidding me! You really did all of this just yesterday?!" Pedro asked, his eyes widened by disbelief.
Following their little trip to Minnesota, Blu and his friends immediately returned to his nest so that Jewel could lay down and rest. According to Alex and Amelia, she only needed a little more rest before completely recovering from the Zika Virus. This filled him with relief and a little bit of worry at the idea that mosquitoes in Rio could now infect birds with their sting. But his significant other was safe and that's all that mattered to him.
Naturally, he decided to stay at her side until she would feel better, sitting beside her in the nest, bringing her food, and telling funny stories to keep her entertained. But the next day, Jewel declared that Blu deserved to have a little fun time after protecting her from monsters the night before and also for just being a good mate in general. Blu refused at first, saying that he wanted to stay with her, but Nightfly backed her up. He told his pupil that he did deserve a reward for all the progress he made. Plus, somebody had to go tell their friends at the club everything that happened. In the end, Blu conceded; it would be a good opportunity to introduce his two new owl friends to everybody.
"Yup, I still have the marks to prove it," Blu affirmed to his two little friends with designing the spot on his wing where a Ghoul clawed him during last night's battle. The spot he must've cleaned at least thirty times to avoid infection.
"This is sick!" Nico exclaimed, almost jumping off the floor. Right now, the little canary was standing with his best friend and Rafael at the bar's counter to chat with Blu, Amelia and Alex. "Do you realize, guys?! One of our friends is a swordsman who can fight off monsters! That's so COOL!"
"And let's not forget that he's also a magician!" Pedro added, exchanging a bump-fist with his best friend.
"Come on, guys," Blu modestly sighed with rubbing the back of his head with his wing, trying to hide a blush. Even after receiving Jewel and Nightfly's kind words, the young Spix's macaw still wasn't used to receive compliments like this. "You should also thank Alex; I wouldn't have won this fight without his help."
"Yeah, come here, little guy, tell us more about you," Rafael said in the direction of the snowy owl in question who had been slightly hiding behind Amelia since they arrived. He hesitated to step forward as he wasn't used to meet new people. But a little pat and a reassuring smile from his trusty best friend was all it needed for him to come out and meet them.
"Hi...," he shyly said with waving his wing at the three birds.
"So you're the little guy who can transform into a balloon? That's cool! I'm Nico!" the little canary introduced himself, grabbing Alex's wing with his own two and shaking it. In spite of the size difference, he had no trouble moving it. "Nice to meetcha!"
"N-Nice to... m-meet ya too," Alex attempted to mimic the canary's way of talking.
"So tell me, what do you like to do outside shape-shifting and fighting monsters?" Pedro asked.
"I practice medicine."
"Cool. Anything else?"
"No. Just medicine."
The canary and cardinal exchanged a gaze at this statement and blinked their eyes multiple times before looking back at the kid. "Okay... So, you guys are from the same place as Blu?"
"Not exactly," Amelia responded. "We come from a place called the Sun Country. It's located in the Owl Kingdom, a world very different from yours." She rubbed the back of her head. "Medicine was pretty much the only thing we could do for fun back there..."
"Well, it's never too late to try new experiences and stuff!" Pedro declared, grabbing Alex's wing with his smaller ones and started dragging him away. "Come on! Let's go make a turn on the dance floor!"
"D-Dancing?" Alex asked with his eyes widened in surprise. "B-But I never danced before!"
"All the more reason to begin right here right now!" Nico said with taking Alex's other wing and helping his best friend getting him to the dance floor.
"Dancing, huh? Why not," Amelia shrugged with a smile as she joined her best friend and the samba duo up to the center of the club.
Blu and Rafael chuckled in amusement as they watched their two little friends attempting to teach the owls how to dance while they sipped from their cups of fruit juice. "It's gonna be good for the two of them to do something other than medicine. Having just danced for the first time in my life very recently, I can say with certification that they're gonna enjoy it." Blu took another sip from his orange juice cup before turning to stare at Rafael who was giving him a thoughtful look. "What?"
"Oh, nothing. It's just... You've changed so much in so little time," the toucan said with a look of what looked like nostalgia on his face. "It feels like it was yesterday that you lovebirds came to my nest chained to each other, when you didn't have a clue on how to fly. And now, look at you. You not only know how to fly, but you can also use a sword and make magic - things I've never seen possible for a bird before." He reached a wing to Blu's shoulder. "I want you to know that I'm very proud of you, my boy."
These words forced the corners of Blu's beak into a smile. "Thanks, Rafael." Even though it wasn't thanks to him that he learned how to fly, Blu was still very grateful to the toco toucan for everything he did to help him. Had he not been there, Blu and Jewel wouldn't have embarked on their journey to Luiz's garage, fell in love at the samba club, got their romantic ride on the trolley, or kissed after their fall from the airplane. Blu might not have learned how to fly from him... but it was certainly thanks to him if he and Jewel were together now.
"But I told you I don't wanna dance!"
"And I heard you, but you gotta get out of your little cave and live a bit!"
The two birds turned toward the source of this commotion and saw Luiz coming through the club's entrance, using his mouth to pull on a maroon and white wing. After a few more pulls, they got to see this wing was connected to a less-than-pleased Apollo who desperately attempted to break free and get away.
"What the... Is Luiz really taking Apollo here by force?" Blu asked, blinking his eyes multiple times.
"Trust me, this isn't the first time we have to do it," Rafael deadpanned with a tired look, taking a sip from his mango juice cup.
Nightfly's eyes were closed and his legs crossed while his wings rested in his lap. He allowed what little air that entered the hollow to brush against his feathers and slip inside his nostrils with every breath. Saying that the Cerulean Macaw was a master in the art of meditation would be an understanding. He spent more time studying meditation than he did practicing swordsmanship after all.
Yet, while he looked calm and serene on the outside, a true storm of confusion was raging on inside. A wall of questions prevented his mind from reaching inner peace. First of all, why were these monsters so determined to kill Blu and Jewel? Sure, they were the last of their kind in the Human World, but there was many more like them in the Animal Kingdom. So why wanting to kill them so badly?
Then, there was the case of Jewel's current state. Alex said that the sting from where she received the illness wasn't the work of a mosquito, but apparently that of a dart instead. If so was the case... then it meant that someone attempted to assassinate Jewel with a modified version of the virus. Considering the number of attacks pulled on the two macaws, it couldn't be a mere coincidence. But it rose the question: who was trying to kill them and why? The idea of having a conspiracy against his pupil and this last one's mate made him feel very uneasy. Once he'd be done with Blu's training, he would have to go make a report on the situation to the Order of the Sacred Sword and demand to lead an investigation on all of this.
"Nightfly?"
Lost in his thoughts, the hooded macaw failed to realize the female he was charged to protect woke up from her nap. Opening his eyes to pull an official end to his meditation session, he turned his head toward her lying figure just in time to see her crouching up in a sitting position and rubbing her tired eyes. "Good morning, Jewel. Did you sleep well?"
"Outside my stomach aching and my head burning, everything was fine," Jewel replied before pushing a big yawn and rubbing her poor head.
"Good thing Alex and Amelia said you'd make a complete recovery by tomorrow. Do you want me to get you something? Some fruits, water or anything?"
"No, I'm fine, thank you." Following her response, Jewel lowered her gaze to her knees, her facial features twisted by hesitation. It seemed like she had something to say, but didn't know how to say it. "... Nightfly, can I ask you something?"
"What is it?" Nightfly asked back, turning his full body toward Jewel to listen to what she had to say.
"... I was wondering if you could... y'know, teach me magic too."
Nightfly's eyebrow rose up. "Teach you magic?"
"Yes. Before you give me your answer, let me explain... For most of my life, I was forced to take care of myself on my own. Before coming to Rio and meeting Blu alongside everybody else... I had nobody to count on except myself. Whenever I was hungry, got hurt or even fell sick as I am right now... I survived with my own skills and knowledge. Now... everything's different. Blu is always doing all the work ever since my wing got injured. He saved me from falling into the ocean, brought me to the aviary where I got healed, and now, he's putting his life on the line fighting monsters to keep me safe."
Jewel's face twisted into a strong frown, her wings clutching around her knees. "I just hate being so dependent and... useless. My own mate is taking all the risks while all I can do is sit back and watch. And I can't stand it! What if he gets into a life-threatening situation and I find myself unable to do anything. All of our friends have some sort of power: you with your magic; Dominic with his guns; Lazaro with his super-powerful kicks, and Alex with his crystal and shape-shifting candies. I don't want to be the one to get in the way." She gave the most serious, almost begging look to Nightfly. "Can you help me to become stronger, Nightfly?"
The hooded macaw did not respond at first, his expression remaining neutral. For many seconds, there was nothing but silence in the hollow until Nightfly lowered his gaze to the floor. "It's not that simple, Jewel. Magic is an inner talent that can take years and even decades to develop. Plus, its presence in your world is very rare - most of its inhabitants don't even have any. Blu is a rare case..."
"Oh... Okay..." Jewel allowed her head to drop and her face to be tainted by disappointment. "Sorry for asking... I just-"
"However, it's not impossible for you to become stronger and be able to help Blu." Jewel's head immediately shot back up, staring at Nightfly who looked at her once again. "If you REALLY want to help, I think there might be a way for you. See, my friend Blu and I went to see for help against the Hollow Face, Isaiah, possesses a magical item designed for battle and other situations. He never uses it and I don't think either Blu nor I will need it. However, it might be of use to you. If you want, I can go to Italy and bring it back to you by the end of the day while you stay with Lazaro for protection. Would that be fine with you?"
To say that Jewel's heartbeat increased tenfold would be a correct statement. Her turquoise eyes widened as far as they could go and the corners of her beak practically reached up to her non-existent ears. "Really?! That would be amazing! Thanks a lot, Nightfly!"
The wizard just gave her a sincere and happy smile. "You're very welcome."
Blu and his friends cooled themselves down with some much-needed drinks after dancing nonstop for hours. Alex and Amelia's feathers were all ruffled from the train of fun they just went on - at first, they were feeling a bit uneasy, but once they got into the songs, they moved their bodies like there was no tomorrow. The boys were left in awe by Amelia's graceful moves and the adults also seemed to find the way Alex was having fun to be cute.
Of course, not wanting to stay out of the fun, Blu and Rafael joined in the fray, dancing to Nico and Pedro's songs. About an hour after they started, Alex and Amelia stopped dancing and left the dance floor to go rest at the bar. Without stopping to dance, Blu noticed that they approached Apollo who just sat there to drink since he didn't want to dance. They started chatting and, from what Blu saw from afar, they seemed to get along pretty well. Once tiredness settled in, the Spix's macaw and toco toucan joined them to drink a bit too.
"So? How did you guys find your first experience dancing?" Blu asked the two owls, a cup of orange juice in his wing, even though he already knew the answer.
"It was WONDERFUL!" Alex beamed with joy. "I wasn't sure I wanted to do it at first because of all those birds around me, but then, I started listening to the music and I couldn't stop moving! It was like being in trance!" Blu couldn't hold back a chuckle, understanding what the kid was talking about.
"It was very fun indeed," Amelia agreed with her best friend, nodding her head. "We should definitely do this again sometimes. But I think we should go right now; night's gonna be here soon, and we still need to find a place to stay."
"Why don't you come at my garage?" suggested Luiz who just came back from shaking his booty on the dance floor, knocking down many birds in the process. "Personally, I wouldn't mind getting a few more birds to share my little home with."
"Oh, we don't want to bother you, really," Amelia assured.
"No, no, no, I wouldn't mind, really. Plus, I'm getting kinda tired of being stuck with the same anti-social bird all the time."
"I heard that!" Apollo remarked with an annoyed frown.
"Mmh, that does sound interesting. What do you say, Alex?" the barred owl asked the little snowy owl. "Would you like us to go at his place?"
"Oh yes! Yes! It'd be cool to have somewhere to sleep without disturbing Blu and Jewel. Honestly, their nest was kinda small," the young owl beamed. "Plus, I really enjoy Apollo's company!"
This statement caused the barn owl in question to perk his head up and look toward the kid with a smile. "Really? You mean this, Alex?"
"Of course! You're very fun to be around, Apollo!" Alex replied.
"I think that's the first time someone says this about me!" Apollo mumbled with a look of pride and happiness on his face.
"That's decided then!" Amelia announced with standing up from her chair. "We'll follow you guys at your... garage thing tonight. Come on, Alex, let's go pack up our things at Blu and Jewel's hollow."
"Can I just stay here a little longer with everyone?" Alex demanded.
"Alright, you stay here, I go get our things," Amelia conceded. She didn't like the idea of leaving her best friend, but it was the first time she saw him having so much fun and didn't want to ruin it for him.
"Yay!" the kid beamed, throwing his wings in the air and making the adults chuckle.
"Here, Little Al, try this!" Pedro said, approaching the white owl with a cup containing an orangish liquid.
Alex took the cup with a hesitant expression, pulling his beak close enough to sniff the liquid and then gave a curious look. He never saw anything like this back in the Sun Country or Moose Lake. It smelled good... but would the taste be as good? He gave a look toward Nico and Pedro who urged him to drink it with their wings. Deciding it wouldn't hurt to try, the kid brought the cup to his beak, took a sip... and widened his golden eyes.
"What. Is. THIS?!" He pressed the cup against his beak and proceeded to drink so fast that some of the juice dripped off his beak and down on his white feathers. This made the adults chuckle in amusement.
"It's called apple juice, little guy. This drink is very popular around here - and you're lucky; the one you're drinking right now comes from pretty fresh apples we collected a few days ago," Nico explained.
"Can I have more, please?" Alex politely asked after finishing his cup, wiping his beak and feathers.
"Of course. Be right back, little buddy!" Pedro replied, taking Alex's empty cup and walking away.
At the same moment, Blu finished his cup and stood up from his chair. "Alright, ready to go, Amelia? We better get moving if you and Alex want to get settled in before nightfall. Plus, I wanna check up on Jewel and Nightfly at our nest."
Jewel brushed her gaze across the room's ceiling for what felt like the thousandth time. Upon arriving at his restaurant, Lazaro warmly welcomed Jewel and accepted her request of staying with him for safety measures against monsters. The little puffin led her to the room at the back of the restaurant where he, Hernandez and Rosita slept when not busy running the restaurant. It wasn't very big and had three bird-sized beds - one for each of them. Not very... avian-like for a home, but she didn't mind. Lying down in Hernandez's bed (since it was the biggest), Lazaro told Jewel to let him know if she needed anything while he worked.
Relaxing against the pillow and with the bedsheet covering her body, the young female Spix's looked outside through the window that brought some light in the room. Even though this room was nice and cozy by birds' standards, she didn't think she would ever be able to live in there. It felt too... closed and suffocating.
"I wonder where Nightfly is," Jewel mumbled to herself, not feeling tired enough for another nap. "The day is ending soon..."
As if on cue, the apparition of a blue portal caused Jewel to jump in surprise. The hooded figure of Nightfly stepped through it just before it disappeared. His heavy breath combined with the way he rested against his knees made it clear that he was tired. "I have to stop using this portal twice a day..."
"Nightfly! You're back!" Jewel exclaimed, standing up from the bed and approaching her friend. "So? Did you get your item?"
"I certainly did," Nightfly confirmed, reaching under his wing to reveal what looked like a piece of circular cloth decorated with a pink diamond (similar to Alex's, but smaller). "This little thing is called a Summoning Collar; it is one of the many tools from the Animal Kingdom that can be used to summon spirits. While very useful in battle, the Order of the Sacred Sword that I'm a part of believes it is better for its members to grow stronger as individuals rather than letting spirits fight for you. However, it can absolutely make up for the lack of magical skills... like in your case."
Picking it up in her wing, Jewel proceeded to analyze the little item from every angle. "Okay... What am I supposed to do with it?" she asked, not being very familiar with human-like things.
"We're gonna wrap it up around your neck and adjust it to its size first. Let me help you." Walking behind her, Nightfly proceeded to wrap the Summoning Collar around her neck, sticking both ends together after making sure it wasn't too tight to choke her out, but enough as to not fall. "Now, it is time for you to make your first summoning."
"And how do I do that?" Jewel asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the piece of cloth wrapped around her neck.
"Lucky for you, Isaiah happened to know the name of the only spirit connected to that gem so far. You just have to say: 'Come to me, Beauty'," Nightfly explained.
"That's all? Okay then." Jewel stretched her wings, staring down at the magical item wrapped around her neck, and took a deep breath. "Come to me, Beauty!"
The pink gem on the necklace suddenly glowed hard - even more than Alex's when he used his power. Both macaws had to briefly cover their eyes for a moment before seeing a figure coming out of the light, swishing around, and coming to a stop before Jewel. With the light gone, they could lower their wings and see who joined them right now.
Some sort of lizard creature standing on four paws with pink scales covering its entire body. The only exceptions being its underbelly's, the trail going from its forehead all the way across its back to the tip of its tail and its underwings' which were purple. This creature's appearance felt very odd to Jewel as she never met any lizard colored like this... let alone with wings. Swishing its sharp tail around and pulling its head up with dignity, it opened its amethyst eyes that glowed under what little sunlight entered the room, and pulled its lips up into a smile.
"Hi, boss!" the creature beamed, giving a grin that bared its pure-white fangs. Judging from its appearance and voice, Jewel could tell it was a female.
"Huh... Hi?" the female macaw uneasily waved her wing at the scaled beast. "Who are you?"
"It's me, Beauty!" the lizard named Beauty announced, stretching her paws and wings as if she was greeting an old friend. "You just summoned me, remember? So tell me, how can I be of help today?"
"Help? Huh... I..."
Amused by his friend's confusion, Nightfly came to put a wing on Beauty's shoulder. "Beauty here present is a spirit that Summoners can make a pact with in order to form an alliance beneficial for both parties. There are plenty of spirits in every world, but Beauty can be described as a cheerful dragoness."
"Dragoness?" Jewel repeated, rising an eyebrow.
"Yes. These creatures have disappeared from your world a long time ago, so I'm not really surprised you don't know about them," Nightfly explained. "Back in my world, they are pretty well-known, and, believe it or not, but they even have their own world too. Now, back onto the summoning subject, spirits like Beauty can be called at anytime if you need them - they can even come through your Summoning Collar if they sense you're in danger. Once summoned, you can give orders to your spirit. Try one right now."
Jewel stared alternately at her friend and at the dragoness. "Like what?"
"Anything, really."
"Okay... Beauty... Claw the wall?" Jewel hesitantly ordered.
"Right on it!" Beauty didn't hesitate, rising her paw and sweeping her amethyst claws across the wall of the room, leaving three marks on it. "Anything else?" she asked innocently afterwards.
"I think that will do for now, little one," Nightfly mused, looking back at Jewel. Where he expected to see an excited smile at the possibility to finally be able to help her mate, he instead saw a look of hesitation, eyes facing the ground. "What's wrong, Jewel? You're not happy with your Summoning Collar?"
"No, that's not it, Nightfly. I'm very happy that I can help Blu now, but... I don't know, it doesn't feel right," the female macaw admitted.
"Why's that?"
"You know that the thing I value more than anything else in the world is freedom. So... it kinda goes against my principles to just boss somebody around and treat her like a pet..."
"A pet? What are you talking about? I'm no pet!" Beauty defended, pumping her chest out in indignation. "I'm a strong lady who isn't afraid to stand up for those who need help and go ahead of danger. You shouldn't see me as a pet but rather as a supercool weapon that you can use against monsters. A weapon with a mouth... and wings... and cute eyes," she added, blinking her amethyst eyes like a kitty wanting something from its owner.
"So... you really don't mind helping me to fight monsters?"
"Not. At. All, girl! You just point the target, and I'll blow it up for ya!" the pink dragoness declared, rising her arms to pump her 'big' muscles.
Nightfly couldn't hold back a chuckle of amusement. He could already tell that these two were going to be a great team. "Now, remember, Jewel, I might not be an expert in the art of summoning, but I know that the best way to make your spirit grow stronger is both to bring her in battle so that she can gain experience and also to spend lots of time with her to strengthen your bond. A strong bond between a Summoner and its spirit means both parties getting stronger too."
"Alright! We're gonna be the best buddies ever!" Beauty exclaimed with wrapping a paw around Jewel, pressing her feathers against her pink scales for a tight hug. Jewel couldn't hold back a smile from appearing on her beak.
Author's note: You guys really thought I was gonna leave Blu and the OCs do all the fighting while leaving Jewel in a damsel in distress role as I did with my previous Rio stories? Heh, heh, nope! She now has her own magical skill and can take part in battles!
At first, I wasn't sure what I wanted Jewel's abilities for fighting to be in this story. Then, when playing Final Fantasy IX on my PS4, I thought about a game mechanic that I really enjoy: summoning. The idea to summon spirits for powerful attacks is so underrated and so much fun! So I decided: why not make this Jewel's specialty in here? Blu is the swordsman with magic powers; Nightfly is the wizard with vast knowledge about anything supernatural; Dominic is the gunslinger; Apollo is the crafter; Alex is the shape-shifting doctor; Tanya is the sports expert with cool gloves; Lazaro is the cook with powerful kicks, and Jewel is the Summoner who can call spirits!
Next: We get away from Blu and Nightfly to focus on a new bird who will join the party...