Cockfighting

(A/N: A new chapter at last! I'm so sorry about my updating, but I've been struggling along with other things during last week and I've gotten so far behind. Plus, it's my birthday next week and all of my friends are creeping around me…I know they're up to something, but they won't tell me, lol. Thank you to those who reviewed chapter 8!)

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A pair of brown eyes squinted up at the midday sun, his dark feathers shielding his sight. The rays hung down warm on his body, a pleasant breeze cooling his senses. The day had been one of the warmest that the island had ever known about. Not even Fowler could recall a day that the heat had betrayed them to its extent.

Rocky frowned up at the sky. Usually he craved for the Summer mornings, but this one was a push-and-shove. He growled a little under his breath as he swiped sweat from his brow. "Stupid heat."

Often the temperature was so intense the hens had to retire to their bunks; especially those that burned easily (the idea of roast chicken frightened some), and had departed to the safe and cooling shade of their huts. Babs claimed she grew faint, due to sunstroke, which after minutes of seeing her toddling about worse than usual, insists were immediately made.

Everything seemed to be getting towards a level today for Rocky. Not only did he have to put up with the sun, he had also had a request from Ginger, that Azul was ready to talk things through with him after all. Of course, Rocky was prepared for such a meeting, but it was the first step. He didn't seem so bad…maybe they could get along pretty easily.

"This is a great opportunity for the both of you to be friends! I knew you would come through, maybe after this there won't be so much avoidance!"

Ginger's words were still left ringing in his ears. She wanted so much for the both of them to get along – Ginger liked it if everyone got along. Ever since the darkness of Tweedy's farm, she had wanted everyone to start a new, with no arguments and no grudges…just for everyone to be friends and live a content, peaceful life.

With guilt, Rocky knew that he hadn't lived up to her hopes and standards as much as he would have liked to. He had begun a whole new string of arguments since Azul had appeared, and he had been offering a shunning proposition whenever he came within contact. He really hadn't been supportive at all. He felt as if he were letting Ginger down, which is why he felt the need to apologise.

"I guess I did go a bit overboard," he said aloud, not caring who heard.

Now he was waiting for Azul to meet him, Ginger had informed that he would be on his way soon. Though he didn't feel nervous, he still felt uncomfortable. There had been such distances between them lately…what was he to say?

He rubbed the back of his neck to hide the heat away, and kicked a little at the ground, his feet brushing the tips of the grass. Smiling down at the colour, he thought back to Ginger, remembering the first time he had looked properly into her eyes. So green…as green as the grass he stood on now. She had carried it along with her the whole time, even though she had wanted it for a lifetime.

Even though she had already found it…

A faint shadow blocked out the sunlight, softening the strictness of the warmth. He glanced up, and noticed no other than Azul making his way over to him, a sort of uneasy feel in his step. Rocky could tell that he wasn't as confident as Ginger had made out to be.

Promising himself to be friendly, Rocky pulled a suitable smile and managed a small wave. "Hey," he called out, watching Azul as he caught his attention.

"Hello," Azul countered back, but it was so quiet under his breath that Rocky wasn't even sure if he had meant to say it. The notion that he wasn't at all pleased about talking made Rocky gain the uncomfortable feeling once again. What were they possibly going to talk about if neither felt friends to do so?

Trying to seem convinced than he felt, Rocky stepped over to Azul and immediately made the first effort to speak. By the look in the other rooster's eyes, he clearly didn't feel good starting a conversation going. He appeared fidgety, and insecure, and his glances didn't always meet Rocky's own.

"So…er," Rocky began slowly, taking the time to spend as long as he could, so that he didn't end up shutting Azul out so quickly than he intended. "Did – did Ginger tell ya about…y'know, about the – the talk?"

"Oh…yes – yes, she did."

"Great. Me too."

There was another long pause. It was down obvious that this was the hardest conversation that Rocky had ever taken part in. Usually he was so alive and open with himself when meeting new people, but since that Azul was so quiet and preserved, he was finding it a bit difficult.

Clearing his throat, he decided to try again. "How's about the weather, huh?"

"W-what?" Azul sleepily asked, not understanding at first.

"The…y'know, the weather. Kinda hot, wouldn't ya say?" Rocky knew that he was playing the biggest card on the nervous deck. Whenever anyone felt uncomfortable, they always brought up the weather in their talk. He hoped that Azul didn't know this too, as he was beginning to stare at him strangely.

Instead, he nodded slowly. "Oh, yes. Quite one of the hottest days I've seen," he told him, starting to look a little lost and bored. It was clear that he wasn't enjoying himself. The expression sort of angered Rocky a bit; he was trying his best to be friends and he wasn't getting any reception.

He fought his head with everything he could remember about introducing yourself mannerly, hoping that Azul couldn't see him struggling with his thoughts. He thought back to one time, when he could still hear Ginger telling him over and over again, so clear that he could recite it himself:

"The problem with most people is that they're so preoccupied with how they are, they don't know how to make a proper introduction. It annoys me when they act so interested in themselves than others, I just wish they would ask more questions now and again."

Maybe he should try that. Ginger's words normally made enough sense.

Straightening up now that he had a new idea, he spoke in what he wished sounded polite. "So…Azul, is it? I heard ya at the meeting the other night, talking to the other guys. Um…ya said something about building, fixing. Is…is it any good?"

Oh, how Rocky wished he could laugh at this point! Azul was staring at him in such amazement, he didn't know what to say. Obviously, he was not expecting this other rooster to put more than two sentences next to each other, and make a suitable subject to talk about. Blinking at last, he found his voice somewhere.

"I – I, well…I rather enjoy it," he said, a life suddenly coming into his voice as he spoke about what he loved to do. "I never seem to tire of it, actually. I used to spend most of my time trying to see what would work, and what wouldn't. I became quite the handyman," here he paused; somewhat delighted that he had managed to carry on the talk with his own speech. "What about you?"

"Nah, I'm not really cut out for all of that stuff," Rocky admitted. "I sort a few things out now and again but I'm not good. I bet ya know what ya doing when it comes down to it, right?"

Azul actually smiled back. "Sometimes."

They shared a laugh. Neither knew where it came from, what they had said hadn't been particularly funny to hear, but it just seemed to lighten the mood a little more. Now that they had begun to open up about their hobbies, the tension was starting to cease.

Well, whaddya know? Ginger's advice works after all.

Here again, Rocky raised his wing over his eyes once more and shielded them from the blinding light. He released an exhale of breath, sounding exhausted. "Phew! Hey, this sun is murder, I'm dying in this heat," he told Azul, feeling another bead of perspiration trickle down his forehead. "What d'you say we talk in the shade?"

Azul nodded in agreement as he brushed at his own brow. "Sounds good to me."

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It all fell into place after that. Conversation between Rocky and Azul flowed together, literally like words on a page and water in a brook. They sat amongst the shade of a dampened old willow tree, fresh and moist despite the sun, and chatted like they had known one another for years.

They spoke together, Rocky mentioning the 'guy talk' every now and again. He had never quite realised how much he had missed that. Fowler often didn't apply to good company when it came to talking much about the younger generation, and Azul offered a better aspect on things.

They laughed, told jokes and shared some moments from the past. Azul opened up again to Rocky about Strega, and how it all went wrong for him. Neither one couldn't understand what had been keeping them back from connecting like this. It was almost as if they were meant to be friends.

Neither could remember why they had been avoiding one another so much.

"Y'know," Rocky spoke up in between breaths, "I'm kinda glad that Ginge decided for us to have this talk. She really knows what to do."

"Yes," Azul sighed a little, hoping to stop his chest from aching. "She's great."

There was a moment's silence as they stopped to think. A calming breeze entered the shade and refreshed the scorching air. The sound of shrill birds rang out in the clouds, and it was so peaceful just to sit there and want nothing at all, that both roosters were quiet, something that they hadn't been in a long time.

Azul was the first to break that. "Ginge…" he repeated, murmuring. "Is that a nickname, or something like that?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Something that's kinda stuck on her, I think. She's pretty used to it," Rocky replied, thinking back to her again. Where would he be right now, without her to usher him along? Not sitting under a cooling willow with friends and a steady relationship, that's for sure.

He lowered his eyes into a slight frown, turning properly back to meet Azul's own. "Did, er…did you ever have any names like that? F-for your chick?"

He was expecting silence, a moment of rare uneasiness at the mention of her, as if he weren't ready to spring back into topic again. But although Rocky could clearly see the detachment and pain in his face, he found his voice anyway.

"No, not really," he said. "I suppose I didn't know her long enough for that."

"Oh." Rocky had landed them in a pickle. He knew that he shouldn't have asked that question, but he was just being curious. Azul had hardly ever mentioned anything deep enough about Strega; he had only wanted to investigate the matter, that's all.

There was another pause, not so uncomfortable as expected but still rather stretching. Azul lowered his blue eyes to the floor, smiled to himself and ran his dark wing over the soft grass. He pried a tiny stalk from the ground and ran it through his feathers, not satisfying in the touch but just mainly in the colour of life.

Rocky watched him, in surprise. He seemed so quiet all the time…almost as if he had his own world that he visited and let nobody come along. The looks in his face that he was thinking were sometimes so unpredictable; you couldn't tell what he was saying to himself.

Azul sighed. "Rocky," he asked slowly, "What is the future?"

"Huh?" the rooster slipped out, a little stupidly. He frowned; feeling confused, and watched the face next to him. Why had he suddenly gone into matters concerning the future? If it was one thing, Rocky usually hated talking about it. He liked to wait for what would come, and plan later. It made him feel strange talking about events that hadn't even happened yet.

"The future," Azul repeated, still thoughtful. "What is it?"

"Um…" Rocky halted. What was he supposed to say? "I guess, that…we can never really know, can we? I mean…it's out there, and we can't see it. Ya have to wait, I suppose. No good planning your chicks before they hatch, huh?"

Chicks? Hatch? Rocky wondered exactly what he was leading to.

"You mean…family?" Azul whispered out dryly. There was another silence.

Rocky practically stopped breathing. Family? The word sometimes frightened him, when he put his mind to the basics. What was really waiting for him down that open road, except a new life? The future? He could only imagine. He thought about the other girls. All of the children they had, and Ginger left without a single one. He remembered back to how twitchy she had been lately.

Was it what she wanted? Was it what she had always wanted?

He gulped, remembering that he hadn't answered Azul's question. Shifting to a new position on the grass, he cleared his throat for time. "I…I…" He could feel Azul's piercing eyes watching him, oblivious to the fact that hundreds of thoughts were trampling Rocky's mind. Children? Ginger? Us?

"I…er, dunno," he finally said, darting his gaze away from the stares.

So after that, they settled and fell back into their usual conversation, the future still left open and gaping to them, and still them with their own unanswered questions. Or maybe they already had been asked, but there were no responses to them? Neither rooster could tell the difference at all.

Rocky's expression now sat in thought, his dark eyes searching the skies and his sight tracing the cloud patterns of the day. He couldn't concentrate, at least not for a while, yet. Those thoughts, however…still crossed his mind and galloped through his head for that hour still, and maybe longer.

To be continued

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(A/N: I'm sorry if I kept this chapter away from you for so long, but as you can see by my timing that it wasn't as difficult to write as the last one, so its done pretty early! I hope you like it, please tell me what you think! Please R&R!)