PRISONING

Five days. Only five days had passed! Yet the elapsed time seemed greater because of its slow flow. Humans were cruel, or perhaps it was only a feature of their captors. Mei had confessed to him that very often they enjoyed beating them. There was no precise reason, or rather, they did nothing to provoke them and yet the beatings were not lacking. Perhaps the feeling given by raging on a poor defenseless animal gave that sense of power and self-esteem that they lacked! Or was it a way to subdue them? Shen had not yet understood this! Yet the numerous cuts and bruises procured during the numerous rounds of beatings prevented him momentarily from resting well. Eventually he surrendered to the idea of sleeping to recover from his injuries and called his new friend "Mei!" "How long has it been keeping you in a cage?" The peacock asked curiously. "Just under two months! Why? "She asked in return," What did they do to you? "Shen continued the interrogation" Apart from torturing and starving myself? Let's see ... "she said pretending to think about it" ... ah yes! They forced me to kidnap you together with two other animals, to clean this flying contraption, to blindly obey every order, absurd or not that it was ... and ... what's missing? I had it on the tip of my tongue ... right! They made me watch my beloved parents perform! "The feline screamed furiously. "My curiosity was, I didn't want to awaken painful memories. As I did it, I apologize! "Shen said, only partially understanding his anger as his parents were still alive and well. "No, you are sorry! I'm the one who growls at a trusted friend! "Mei admitted heartily. "Have we known each other for less than a week and already trust me?" Asked the skeptical peacock. "Do you think my parents always scold my good heart! But being a prisoner yourself, why shouldn't I? We have also made a pact of friendship! "The feline said, very happy.

"Excuse me, are you very young?" Shen asked hesitantly. "Of course you're weird. Sometimes you act like a gentle and respectful gentleman, others your cheek is sensational! Anyway, yes, I'm very young, I'm twenty years old! "Mei replied "I three more!" Shen said to make her feel not too embarrassed. "Vecchiaccio!" The feline said, laughing. "Who did they capture beyond me?" He asked curiously. "A bat named Bo and a white wolf named Syaoran!" Mei replied managing to remember the names well since the humans had done nothing but repeat them for days, like that of the peacock. The reason was a mystery! A wolf. His childhood friend Zhan came to mind. He knew well that those canids were never alone. Surely he had to be part of a pack that was equivalent to large numbers which in turn meant more chances of winning in a fight! A grin appeared on the peacock's face: the escape plan was already beginning to take shape in his mind! Find the village of the men, discover the weak points, find a safe escape and with the strength of the number take down the defenses of which it is provided! Simple and concise.

The problem was that not knowing at all about this village, this plan could have been completely upset!

Three more days went by and Shen's concern only increased. After the first five days the humans had started to ignore them, except for the food, at least they remembered to give it to him even though it was quite disgusting as it was spoiled most of the time! The peacock's suspicions were born when one of the wounds on his side started to burn more than the others. Now it had become a certainty: it had become infected! Even if the cut was small and not so deep, the infection could have killed him in a few days! Since it was albino the time available to intervene decreased drastically! A fortune! The sarcasm was a novelty that struck the peacock like a bolt from the blue, but he didn't pay much attention, since he had to find a way to heal the infected wound. The water seemed to come from a swamp, so it had to be excluded because it would have worsened its condition. He began to observe the humans, but they seemed to be more filthy than them and this gave him a sickness, but he didn't vomit! He already ate little ... it was better not to throw away the little they gave him. "Don't tell me you're looking for a way to escape?" Mei asked curiously when she saw this agitation in her friend's cell. "Not at all! But one of the wounds became infected! It hurts a lot and if I don't do something it could get worse! "Shen said that he was getting more and more worried as the hours passed. "I remember that island! It shouldn't be long before landing, a matter of hours! "The feline said, pointing to that piece of land that was just before the horizon.

The peacock forced himself to sit down and calm himself down. Even if he was nervous, giving a fool wasn't the solution, he had to think calmly! Yet the pain grew more and more! What could he do? In the end he decided to rest in the hope that the wound healed on its own. He took a look at Mei and smiled when he saw her admiring the landscape with interest. That girl could see the good in everything: it was on the edge of a crevasse and she admired the landscape! Was he in a cage? Well he had done nothing but wonder if the humans would release them, or take them to see new places, as well as Gong Men! Of course, he hated them and wasn't happy when they chained her and ordered her to clean that flying thing, but it didn't seem to have lost hope for a better tomorrow! Two more days passed and the infection became worse and worse. Shen was awake at times, burning with fever and the cut on his side showed him the stars as he tried to move! Mei had tried, in vain, to attract the attention of humans, since they were drunk most of the time! It was only by a miracle if they hadn't crashed, since from the sharp turns that often made that flying thing it was evident that even those who drove it, loved to drink! Eventually the white peacock fell asleep profoundly without answering any more questions that Mei kept asking him in a desperate attempt to keep him awake. Fortunately they only landed after two hours. Only this time it was different! Mei had never been so scared in his life! They had always remained on board, safe! At least it was what kept repeating itself as humans unloaded the cages thanks to strong iron arms that could support the weight of the metal structures plus their occupants. The cages were positioned, one after the other, in front of a high wall and the other prisoners were forced to leave the other side of that wall. Many did not seem worried at all, and they obeyed the orders as if they were forcing them to take a cup of tea, that is to say with deference.

Some of them resisted, but not Mei. It was not unconsciousness, but only curiosity that pushed her to see what was beyond. She was appalled at what she saw once outside the cage, but inside the walls ... she was immediately distracted by poor Shen who was thrown in like a sack of potatoes. He went to his rescue, ready to protect him from any danger, but when the stranger began to speak he felt a great weight slipping down from his heart: they were safe!

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"Quiet! Here you can lead a new life! All of you ... "the bird turned to the four newcomers" ... you are safe! I know the journey was hard, but I assure you that your suffering ends here! We are friends and we want you to feel comfortable. As you can see, a detail that unites us is albinism, but not only. The greedy human who keeps us prisoners is looking for extremely rare animals such as the specifying peacock, the harlequin peacock, the green peacock, the white peacock, the opal peacock, the purple peacock, the bronze buford peacock, the cameo peacock or the golden tiger, the pink leopard, melanistic animals and many more! He is a collector and keeps us segregated here only to be able to admire us. Despite this, the place is very large! We will find you a convenient location as soon as possible. In the meantime we celebrate to know each other better! ". Mei could not help looking at the person who had entertained the conversation. It was a harlequin peacock and apart from a large white spot on the face and part of the tail, the rest was ... normal, that is a blue peacock with a green tail! There were other unique peacocks as well as numerous animals like her. He would never have believed that there could be so many! He still had to do the counting, but they were not few! Shen was taken to a cozy wooden house and placed on a large mattress. "Once the wound is disinfected and bandaged, it will heal and with adequate nutrition it will recover!" A purple peacock said. Violet? Purple!? Whatever color it was was strange. Mei rubbed her eyes several times and even thought that the vegetable spoiled as a side effect had made her become color blind! "Nice to meet you, my name is Wei! I am a purple peacock and I would like you to stop making that absurd expression ... you make me laugh! I mean in a good way! Not to take or criticize your albinism in any way! "Said the peacock in question. "And I thought I was weird! Thanks to you I can feel normal! Can I tell you that you are beautiful? I had never met anyone like you! "Mei said.

Wei immediately understood that there was neither lie nor sarcasm in what the feline had just said and smiled. "Thank you! I and most of the peacocks were raised by humans so if we tell you to do it one way, listen to us because we know them very well! "The bird said as he filled a bowl with food. "Received! But I would like to become independent ... as far as a prisoner can be ... so I'll learn all there is to know about humans! "Mei said before putting his head in a jar just for check its contents, intrigued by its strange shape, being disappointed by finding nothing but dust in it. "Is it simple curiosity or meditate revenge?" Asked a green peacock who had just entered. "No revenge! I just want to know them better so I will feel less of a prisoner! Pleasure I am Mei! "Replied the feline trying not to make a face too surprised. "My name is Zhuang! Do you know him? "He asked, pointing to the bird lying on the mattress. "His name is Shen and he is my friend! He is very scared and he does not trust those he does not know, he told me during the trip. He also knows how to fight, but his family has recently abandoned him so I don't think he will be very happy and sociable at the beginning! "He said first eat quickly and run out of an irrepressible curiosity. She was completely overwhelmed by something, or rather someone, just made a few steps out of the house. He was on the softest pillow in the world, but he had to change his mind when he saw two big yellow eyes staring at her. "Sorry, I'm learning to fly and landing is still not good for me!" Said the owl in question. "My name is Hua! Very pleased! "The bird said, nodding his head. "Do you have a stiff neck?" Asked Mei imitating the gesture. "No ... it was ... a sign of respect!" The owl replied in surprise. "Why should you bring me respect? We are both prisoners! ... and albino! "The feline insisted. Although in the last statement he could not hide a tone of bewilderment and surprise. There were many other animals like her and Shen!

"I will not let a human change me! I will always remain the kind and carefree young man I have always been! For this reason, all those who are in here with me! "The gufa said, ruffling its feathers to get the earth off its back. "It looks like a joke! Experiences change us! It depends only on which road we decide to go! "The feline said seriously. "Are you a shaman? Do you foresee the future or anything like that? "Hua asked fearfully. "No ..." Mei replied, sitting down on the floor "... I speak like my grandmother all here!" melancholic. "So they killed your family too?" The bird asked cautiously. "How do you know?" Mei asked, bewildered by this question. "All those who are here or have remained alone in the world like the two of us, or the family has abandoned them! From what I know there is only one other like us two ... I can't tell if it's luck or bad luck! "Hua said, smoothing his white feathers. "Luck? That? I don't follow you! "Mei asked confused" We have someone to cry who loved us and of which we are guilty of having condemned to death. They don't regret anything! "The owl explained. "But they didn't know love! A mother's warm arms and a father's smile! What's worse? "Mei said bitterly" In this situation ... I think you know! "Hua replied before opening his wings. "It was nice to meet you! I'll see you! I have to go. My tree house is over there in case you want to see me again. You too must enter, there is a curfew! "He said before getting up awkwardly in flight. Mei put both paws in front of the muzzle so as not to laugh like a fool. Maybe even when she was learning to walk it was so funny! ... Embarrassing! Definitely embarrassing! Thank goodness that only his parents had been the only witnesses of that phase of his growth! For two months Mei had been their prisoner, used as a bargaining chip and nothing else! He believed that humans would keep her in a cage forever ... now instead he was in a welcoming place full of kind people ... He could say that luck was turning in his direction!

She ran into the house she had left behind and saw that the lights had been turned off. Shen seemed to sleep peacefully, they must have treated him while she was away. He had told him little and nothing about himself, concentrating on listening more to his stories about happy childhood spent in a loving family. But who was that peacock really? Above all, did it matter now? Yet he could in no way appease such a curiosity that he would not in the least have influenced the future, given that a human was set to control their lives! The brief conversation she had with Hua made her think. She had told herself the owl unable to fly decently that experiences change people! So whoever met in that new place would have known him in a different light! She too had changed. Having become a prisoner in an unknown country, without the guidance of her parents anymore ... she would have made it clear to that excrement that she called herself her master that there was no joke with her! ... but it would not be been more the same without a guide! Indeed, perhaps she could succeed in being truly her without the demoralizing and nagging influence of a parent who criticizes and controls every single day of your life! She would have missed it, but becoming independent was part of growing up, whatever happened! He sat on the bed next to Shen trying to decide whether to sleep on the floor or beside him.

It wasn't his kind, but that didn't change the fact that he was a boy! People there could have had a bad idea about her if they saw her sleeping next to a male on the first day! Peacock, but male, opposite sex! Was this more unnerving or the idea of sleeping on the floor? Not that the cage was very clean, but not having the slightest choice it had to adapt! In the end he decided to give it a high shot and sleep comfortably. He lay down beside the peacock, taking a part of his blanket. It wasn't cold, but he hated hearing it while he was fast asleep! Shen heaved a sigh, as if he had noticed her, but since he seemed to sleep soundly Mei didn't care. He thought back to those days spent in his company and smiled at the idea of having found a new friend! Of course, even that place seemed to portend future, new and lasting friendships, but something inside her told her that the bond created with Shen during those days of travel would remain forever something unique!

The story continues! Some of the animals I refer to exist in reality, while others do not! Let me know what you think,

See you soon,

Laura