Before his life, this life, had started his mother believed he had the blessing of An Da Shealladh. It was one of the only things he still remembered about her, Margaret Findlay O'Connell had an unshakeable faith that her youngest son had two sights.
If he closed his eyes, he could still recall her patient whispered voice explaining it to him so confidently. She had been a bit plain, his mother, though remembering her now he thought that plainness might have been in reality tiredness.
"You've got the second sight." She would whisper into his ear, whenever he stood still enough for her to hold. "Not in the way of a seer, you haven't visions of the future plague you. Not you, my sweet boy, you've been blessed with a sense about you, a mind for just knowing people just by meeting them. A sense to know the world, just by being in it. A rare gift my Kit."
Christopher O'Connell had always known about his gift, it was the only one he believed his mother had ever given him. His second sight had guided him away from her, away from every undesirable fate, and into a world of his own making. But it had often left him unable to sleep, unable to escape his sense of the world.
It was before dawn, the darkness of the middle of the winter night just dimming into a blueness that was almost gray in the city. The laundry put out to dry the night before was just the right balance between wet and dry to leave the misty air pungent with a smell of frigid cleanliness.
Critter had put on the three coats he owned before climbing out onto his fire escape to get to his rooftop. If he couldn't sleep, Critter was set to smoke a cigarette and watch the sunrise. Alone, when he pulled himself over the ledge of the building he allowed a soft groan to escape as his knee popped and his back creaked.
"Age finally catching up to you, O'Connell?" Jasper spoke through clench teeth, barely understandable. "Daisy was dead certain you were one of the old folks, ageless forever."
"Casper," Critter said the name in a measured tone. "Jericho."
Jasper clicked his tongue, in annoyance but didn't respond. The bird was hidden in plain sight, smoke rising from a crate his only tell. Critter stood still for a moment, surveying his surroundings, seeking out any other birds.
"I'm alone." Jasper reassured as he pulled his legs into the empty crate, seemingly erasing him from the rooftop. Critter dropped his gaze to peer in, taking in the way the leader of the birds was curled into the wooden shelter bundle in a wool blanket. Critter was struck with how the young man appeared as a boy, all eyes and bravado.
"How long have you been here?" Critter demanded.
"Since the last star." Jasper sighed sleepily.
"Couldn't sleep?" Critter asked even though he knew the answer. Critter O'Connell knew a great deal about the leader of the birds. He knew his real name was Casper Jericho, a fact Critter was quite sure less than five people in all of New York knew. He knew the boy was 18 and had run away from a life of farming in Virginia at the age of 10. And above everything else, Critter O'Connell knew that Jasper was the only other person he had ever me that shared his blessing of a second sight.
"You couldn't either." Jasper squirmed, in a youthful way that left Critter wondering how often the boy hadn't been able to in the presence of his flock. For four years, Jasper had been shackled with an unforgiving adulthood that relentless made a boy turn into a leader.
"It's cold out here." Critter muttered irritably.
"I brought warm stones, in my pockets for the blankets." Jasper explained, "I have stayed warm." The boy wished to ease the ire from his mentor's eyes, sought to earn a reprieve from a lecture.
It wasn't often anymore that Jasper felt as young as he once had, that he acted like the boy that Critter had found seven years ago and collected in a familiar pattern. Critter had cared for him, trained him, raised him, like he had with so many. But he had hardened Jasper, had known the task in front of the boy from the beginning. It had been only Jasper, that wasn't allowed the leniencies of youth in the same manner as the others, the boy had to be ageless. Always responsible, always aware, always planning and never surrendering his choices like children often do to the next willing person. Except, sometimes, on nights like these when they both couldn't sleep because they had been born with a second sight. In these rare moments, when Jasper had only Critter watching him, did the leader of the birds release his responsibilities and act the part of a boy with his mentor.
"You could have come into the flat." Critter sighed heavily annoyed, though he could see the pink tint of the boy's cheeks enough to know he was warm.
"I knew you'd be up before the dawn." Jasper inhaled slowly, feeling the smoke tickle the back of his throat.
"You left them safe?" Critter finally moved across the rooftop and pulled himself to sit upon the crate Jasper hid inside.
"If you mean am I sure they won't burn the building down, no. But I'm never sure of that. Am I sure that I've instilled the fear of the devil himself into the young ones and instructed the older ones to be vigilant, then yes. I am sure they shall be safe. The only ones that will notice I am out of the building are Filly, Matches, Raindrop and Daisy."
"What has Raindrop done to be put on the before dawn shift?"
"I have her taking afternoon naps, undisciplined creature sleeps all day. I haven't had time to break her of the habit of sleeping eight hours instead of one." Jasper popped a new cigarette between a wide crack in the top of crate. Critter pulled it up and lit a match from his outer coat pocket.
"You don't look as if you're sleeping much these days." Critter whispered.
"Daisy is staying at the nest next month, to help me get more rest. Matches is taking some time to train the young ones. It will help." Jasper conceded.
The men were quiet as the light began to filter through the gray and they smoke their cigarettes together.
"What woke you?" Jasper asked carefully.
"A dream about my mother." Critter didn't hesitate. There was no one else in the world he would have given the truth to, but Jasper knew what it meant. "What kept you from sleeping?"
"A persistent reminder of you." Jasper smiled. Critter O'Connell was the only one who had ever explained his second sight to him, given words to what he had always had and given him purpose. Both men felt, in inexplicable ways, the world around them and knew there was something changing. The same way Critter had always understood Audrey was a type of key, and Jasper knew Wild and West were worth their trouble.
"It might be our own tides, Audrey has been invited to the Arion Masquerade Ball."
"And it seems there might be something with the Hudson, peddling news and telling tales, the world we made." Critter closed his eyes absorbing the first light of day.
"Do you think I've over exhausted myself? Taken on too many of them? Flown to close to the sun, as Cricket might have warned." Jasper whispered in a small voice.
"Come along." Critter jumped down, throwing his cigarette to be crushed by his shoe. "You'll come down, and sleep in the bed until at least half past nine this morning. Then we shall see about getting you a real bed for the nest."
Critter O'Connell held out his hand to the leader of the birds, demanding complete obedience. Jasper resisted for only one intake of breath thinking about lying to the man peering at him.
"Don't start lying to me now, boy," Critter pulled him out of the crate, swooping to collect the cooled coals.
"I just came to talk to someone, who might understand." Jasper mumbled.
"And I understand, you've got to get some rest." Critter pulled the young man down the fire escape, as the sun peaked over the buildings of the city.