The morning sun glinted through the windows of the aviary as multicolored birds flitted from branch to branch, searching for delectable seeds and berries to breakfast upon. Only the most beautiful and exotic filled the room, and that is how the emperor-mage of Carthak liked it.

Ozorne sat among the rare flora and fauna as he was served the morning meal by his personal slaves. He sipped his juice as he thought over the events of the past day. "What a delicious surprise, for Veralidaine to be such a pretty girl, and even better that Arram is her teacher, though I knew that already. He seems to be horribly protective of her; perhaps it is more. Wouldn't that be laughable? The teacher and his student? How droll. Still it makes it all the more fun, I like the looks of this girl."

A small, bright green and blue bird hopped onto Ozorne's table, hoping for scraps of the sweet roll he'd been eyeing the since the slave had brought it into the aviary. Ozorne lovingly smiled at the tiny finch. "Ah, Aure, my little one, how are you this fine day?" He broke apart the roll, sprinkling pieces across the table for the bird, which quickly began gobbling the crumbs before the other birds could join it on the table. Ozorne chuckled at the antics of the birds. He called for a slave to bring some seed for him to scatter for the birds. Slaves unobtrusively came and placed fresh water for the birds, and gave seed and fresh fruit to the emperor.

Within the aviary, he was a different man. He could become lost in the little world of the birds. He no longer cared about the outside. He wasn't greedy. He loved.