"You know, as long as you're staying with me, you're going to need a name that's something other than Bird."
His feathers ruffled at that.
I have a name.
However, it was a name that he hadn't called himself since the day his parents were killed by the human's deforestation. And before he'd sentenced himself to live a life of loneliness and grief. Back then, he still maintained the appearance as a fairy. Back then, he was still Ben Solo.
He was taller - much taller - in fact, and more broad with beauty marks blemishing his pale skin. His hair was onyx, like his wings, but shaggy and lacked the azure hidden in their plumes.
Being awkward in demeanor made it hard for him to socialize with others and even more with ladies who showed any sort of interest in him. Unfortunately, his large ears and prominent features also made him an easy target then for bullies.
So instead of bothering with friends, he took to the enjoyment of practicing calligraphy at the base of their home inside a mangrove tree. It was better than being surrounded by other male fairies his age, who usually hunted for pleasure while priming the ego of whoever snagged the biggest kill that day.
Despite not having it altogether in the social aspect of life, living in the swampland actually hadn't been so bad. Being an introvert was easier when one had family close to them and held interests in other things to stay busy.
But then one day, everything he had ever known and loved suddenly vanished.
The years had come and gone since he'd last phased into a fairy. Even if he wanted to again, it was likely he could never be the same person. After being shooed away so many times by others, shouting phrases like 'devil bird' and 'cursed one', he couldn't help but now believe them.
At least they were better than Dumbo and a few other harsh names he'd been called in the past. Devil bird was a lot less personal when it was common for ravens in general though it never ceased to lessen the pain that he would always be alone.
That was until fate's arrow brought him directly to her.
"Kylo. I'll call you Kylo."
Her heavenly voice broke him from his train of thought. Raising his beak he looked at the fairy who was kind enough to have wanted to help him, meeting her gaze as she had also lowered her chin to regard him. Her eyes were a stunning shade of hazel, lips curved into a smile that could've easily brightened the gloomiest of days. Studying her so close allowed him to easily forget about the arrow lodged in his wing.
Kylo.
He mused over the sweetness of her voice, wondering what it'd be like to hear her say his real name rather than the new. But Kylo was a nice name. And it wasn't Dumbo or Devil Bird or Cursed One.
Gods, she is beautiful! What was her name again?
"I'm Rey, by the way," she added, stealing the thought from his mind. "Not that you're dying to know or anything. I guess it is kinda pointless since you're a bird and can't talk."
Rey. Like a ray of light? How fitting. Oh, please do tell me more about yourself, Rey. There's much that I wish I could tell you.
"I like to collect things," she confessed. "So I hope you don't mind my clutter. If you were a person you'd probably be a little horrified of my hoarding problem."
What do you like to collect?
"But there are so many cool things out there. It's hard choosing what to keep and what not to!" She gushed, motioning a free hand in front to prove her point. "So I keep whatever I find. But I do have a few favorite things that I've found. One of them is this silver thingy with four prongs and a handle. The other is silver too, but it's kind of rounded at the end? I can't even tell you why they're my favorite other than they're just - different."
I'm pretty sure those are called a fork and spoon.
He only knew because of having to use the so-called fork for dinner whenever they had meat by the slabs. The other was for when his mother used to make his favorite, alligator stew. Maybe - maybe he could actually summon the courage to tell her that out loud and not just babble about it in his head.
"You would be surprised at all of the crazy things that humans like to throw away. You'll see what I mean once we're inside," she nodded towards a place up ahead. "It's nothing grand, but it's home."
Turning his head from Rey, Kylo saw the willow tree she was approaching, reminding him of the mangrove that once stood among murky waters in the marsh. It was grand. It was paradise. It looked just like home.
It's perfect.
Keeping Kylo cuddled close to her, Rey rummaged through her possessions, determined to find something sharp enough to cut the arrow into halves. By doing so she hadn't realized how much she had until she was required to sift through every pile, looking for one very specific thing.
"I told you that I had a lot of junk," she chided, lips bearing a scowl.
Propping a hand on her hip she made a clicking sound with her mouth, scanning her eyes over every object that was visible to her sight. There were golden goblets, coins, buckets, pearled necklaces, and other arbitrary trinkets scattered amuck, but nothing capable of slicing a rod. With having no light available to her advantage, other than a single beam seeping through a small hole in the willow's trunk, such a small task felt impossible to finish.
Caw! Caw!
Blinking she glanced from the heap of rubbish to Kylo, eyeing her imploringly.
Caw! Caw!
"Did you find something?" She asked, raising a brow at his sudden outburst.
Caw!
"Well, I would let you fly to show me but you can't," she affirmed. "You'll need to be a bit more specific."
She watched him cock his head, his movement near robotic before he turned away. Following the direction in which he was pointing to with his beak, he steered her to a sector at the center of the willow's dusky interior.
Caw! Caw!
Scoffing, she slowly ambled toward the space that his caws had led her to. He fell silent when she came upon a stack of various tools lying along the floor, next to a small chest. She glanced at him again for confirmation, Kylo simply gazed back.
"In here?" She asked, pointing a finger to the stack, receiving a stare as his response.
"If you say so," she sighed, not believing she was taking guidance from a bird.
Tightening her grip so he wouldn't fall she knelt before the gizmos settled at her feet, using a hand to push aside the wooden handles furnished on some. And there, pointing upright from the clutter, was the blade of a small dagger.
Shaking her head in disbelief she looked at Kylo again, gazing back at her with eyes soft and expressive. She knew that ravens were highly intelligent, so that was nothing out of the ordinary. But to know precisely what she needed? That was something new.
Those eyes, brownish rather than black. Astonishingly smart. Larger than most. Who are you really, Kylo?
Her lips parted to speak, but the questions reserved for him never came. After spending more than enough time around animals it wasn't hard for her to recognize a fairy who'd gone into hiding. The details distinguishing the differences were vague but visible, only if one was willing to take the time to notice.
But why hadn't he phased back? Wasn't it clear to him that she was trying to help? Or perhaps she just needed to try harder and earn his trust, prove to him that she wasn't like the rest. Maybe then he would let her see his true self.
"Let's get that arrow out," she smiled, grazing her thumb along his belly. "What do you say?"
Adhering to his caw of approval, she grabbed the knife and took a seat in a spot free of rubble near the entrance. Crossing her legs she settled Kylo on her lap, trying her best not to jar his crippled wing. Using the knife she carved a deep slot into the rod near his feathers, making it easier for her to break and not injure him more.
Frowning she saw Kylo flinch at the harsh crack. She set aside the severed half and brought her index to his chest, softly stroking his tiny feathers with a knuckle. Their downy texture there felt like velvet, softer than the larger plumes that ran down his back. Reclining his head he peered at her again, chest slightly puffed.
"You're doing great, Kylo," she crooned softly. "But I'm going to need you to stay still for this next part. It may hurt a little bit though so try not to concentrate on it if you can. Think about something good, someplace nice."
He silently did as he was told. Rotating his head from her, he held his gaze toward the stream. While Rey prepared herself to remove the arrow, she couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. She wondered what he looked like as a fairy, what his real name could be and where he was from. She hoped to find out before he left: if he decided not to stay after recovering.
"Good boy," she cooed, caressing him a little more before tending to the inevitable. "I'll make this quick, I promise."
She felt his body flinch again when she pulled the arrow free, leaving a hole of relevant size in place of its absence. His wing limply hung over the bottom hem of her dress, leaving red droplets of blood to fall onto the sandy soil beneath. Anger scourged her cheeks at the sight of it, knowing that Armie and Gwen would've killed one of their own kind if she hadn't interfered.
"I'm so sorry this happened to you. I swear that they've never been a problem before," she assured, setting the piece aside with its other half.
"But I can go about fixing this in two ways. One, I can try healing you with my powers - and fail miserably because I haven't quite mastered it like Maz," she grumbled. "She's a grumpy old fairy and very superstitious about everything, even more than everyone else; otherwise, I would ask her to help you. She even hangs garlic around her Maple if that tells you anything. The next option is I can bandage you up, and you can stick around with me for a little while. Of course, that's only if you're not in a hurry to leave."
Kylo didn't respond with his usual cawsat that but instead nipped the fabric of her dress with his beak. She took that as his way of saying yes. She carefully gathered him into her arms again and carried him over to a small indentation inside the tree, a shallow ledge that served as a shelf. Small-scale mason jars lined its narrow space, each filled with a different homemade paste that was unique in purpose.
Allowing him to perch on the bobbin of a broken spinning loom, she chose the jar that contained a creamy healing balm from the shelf. Gathering a liberal amount with her fingers she dappled it over the puncture on his wing.
"This will help with the pain," she explained.
When she was finished she set the jar aside, then turned in search for a cloth that would make a suitable dressing. She found a worn-out, brightly-colored flag, attached to a rope with several more that were vivid in color. Using the blunt tips of her nails, she tore the fabric in half, wrapping the gauze once then twice around his wing before securing it with a knot.
"There," she beamed, eyeing her handiwork. "Good as new - for now."
He studied the foreign article before drawing the wing to his body, eliciting faint babbles that he approved.
"I'm glad you like it," she affirmed. "Now that I have you fixed up, I'm starving. I hope you like berries? Because that's mostly all that we eat here."
Kylo bowed his head then up, implying another yes. Smiling she tipped her shoulder to his level, offering it to him as a roost. His talons were sharp like needles but he was gentle with his movement, so much that it tickled instead of hurting. She brushed the downy feathers of his breast with her fingertip once he was settled, sitting tall with his head leveled and proud.
"My pet," she teased.
His head snapped to her at that, indicating his aversion. Snickering, she scrunched her nose.
"Or not."