Chapter 6- meet Quaoar

After their injurious pitfall prank on Sunspot, Titania and Vegetal and injuring the latter's shoulder, Rafael and Eva's chicks continued their mischief, causing serious bother for more animals, both wild and city alike. They trashed a small garden of beautiful flowers planted by a family of green-winged macaws that lived in a large hole and had a large pit in front of their home which they used to grow the plants to their UTMOST rage, and they tormented Sabrina, another puppy of Milo and Ellie and one of Sunspot's sisters who had been purchased from Brendan, Matthew and May's family and taken to another area of the city. Unlike Sunspot and several others of her siblings, Sabrina did not have a very happy life and was very discontented. While Sabrina did have her needs appropriately met by her owners such as food, water, love, exercise and the changing of her bed which should make her contented, Sabrina was mercilessly bullied by the local dogs, cats and birds, pets of owners who had more 'elaborate' homes and richer lives. Sabrina and her owners were the only family to live in very basic housing due to the family having low income but just enough to afford the basic necessities and the rent of their home. What Sabrina's family had in terms of housing paled in comparison to the more luxurious homes the family's neighbours lived in. Because of Sabrina's family's difference in housing, this family were outcasts, looked down on by most of their richer neighbours. The son and the daughter of the couple, both the parents having low-paid jobs, were bullied at the local school by the other kids from the wealthier families, and their parents themselves were also treated poorly by their workmates in their workplaces. Due to the poorer necessities in comparison to the other neighbours and their pets, Sabrina had grown discontented with her life and had begun to develop a sour personality boiling with jealousy at the other dogs and pets of the neighbours and wished her family was richer like them. Her sourness was exacerbated by both the bullying from the pets of the richer neighbours and also the toucan chicks who took every opportunity to play so-called 'pranks' on the poor Dalmatian whenever she and her owners visited Tijuca Forest and that made Sabrina even more bitter and soon, she began to loathe the neighbouring dogs and cats. Eventually, the Dalmatian changed from a friendly dog to a bad-tempered, miserable and sour canine and she often refused visits from avian friends such as Nico, Pedro, Rafael, Eva and Chip-I-A, much to their concern. However, Rafael and Eva were completely unaware that many of their chicks ad been causing Sabrina trouble and when Sabrina became so bitter and unwelcoming, they stopped their visits altogether at her request. Things were certainly not good for this daughter of Milo and Ellie and it was sure to eventually land her into trouble at some point, but enough on poor Sabrina for now.

In Tijuca Forest despite the bother from the troublesome toucan kids of Rafael and Eva, the community of animal inhabitants continued their usual activities. Birds flew about the branches and decorated the air with their colourful feathers as they searched for ripe fruit to pick for themselves and/or their families; simply took flights out or danced and sang songs, while more birds sat on the branches of the trees and talked with their neighbours, both avian and non-avian. Tree mammals such as marmosets swung through the trees and added a few drops of their noises into the concoction of sounds that rattled the air while in the lake, rosette spoonbills and frigatebirds continued to fish, dance and talk and frogs swam, croaked and came onto land to talk with their feathered and furred friends. While the community activities of the crowd continued, two certain macaws flew through it. One was a female green-winged macaw and she had red feathers and green and azure blue wing feathers while the other was a younger male macaw with dark blue feathers. However, this macaw was not of the Spix or glaucous species for his plumage was too dark a blue and the feathers of his face and chest sported a dark teal tint. The shape of the dark teal area on the macaw's face and chest was similar to Jewel's in that they enclosed the eyes and extended down to his chest, ending in a point there. He had orange-yellow rings bordering his eyes and an additional piece of orange-yellow skin behind his lower beak called a lappet. His crest resembled a tassel atop his crown and he had a slightly slim build and turquoise eyes. Though he was dark blue and had eye rings and a lappet as well as black feet and beak, this macaw was not a hyacinth macaw either for hyacinth macaws lacked the dark teal features on their faces and chests and tend to be completely dark blue or Blu's shade. Furthermore, hyacinth macaw chicks of this macaw's age would be much larger for hyacinth macaws were big parrots, the largest of the parrot family in fact.

The dark blue macaw was only an adolescent, roughly the same age as Zephyr and Aurora's chicks Justin, Charlotte, Matilda, Virgil and Eustace and their contemporaries including Orion and Ahsoka's oldest pup and son Sandalwood who was born at around the same time as Justin and company's hatching. Carla, Bia and Tiago, Blu and Jewel's first brood, however, were a few months older than Justin and company and Sandalwood, having hatched even before Aurora, Sirius and Bellatrix met Zephyr, Brisa, Antares and Samara and Orion met Ahsoka. This male macaw was a Lear's macaw, another species of blue macaw that was critically endangered and only had one colony living in the sandstone cliffs of Eastern Brazil. VERY few Lear's macaws existed anywhere else such as in this area of Brazil and in the Amazon rainforest where the Sanctuary de Amazon was established. The only flock of Lear's macaws to live in that area was the Lear's macaw flock living as part of Augustus and Melissa's mixed-species tribe. However, those macaws were actually descendants of a group of migrant Lear's macaws from the Eastern Brazil colony who had left that colony to settle somewhere else, choosing this area and establishing a new flock. However, like every other group of rare animals, those Lear's macaws had been targeted by poachers and victims of loggers and once, they had lost their home and had to move on, eventually meeting Augustus and Melissa's tribe and joining them. Now, their descendants were living happily with the mixed-species tribe and in the safety of the Sanctuary de Amazon.

The male adolescent Lear's macaw was named Quaoar and he was the one and only son of Lear's macaws Luke, the macaw who grew up with his human companion Nick in Australia, and Hauyne who had been rescued from smugglers and was apparently a part of the flock of Lear's macaws living in the Sanctuary de Amazon. Quaoar was on a flight out with Iris the green-winged macaw. Iris was one of the daughters of the late green-winged macaw Henrique and his mate Ellery, both of who had been friends of Aurora's parents Erico and Clarinda and her brother Thomas, and Sirius and Bellatrix's parents Alvin and Isabella before poachers came and tore the group apart. While Aurora, Sirius and Bellatrix ended up captured with Aurora's brother Thomas fleeing and mysteriously disappearing; Erico and Clarinda getting killed by the savage cockatoo along with Henrique, and Alvin and Isabella barely managing to escape with NASTY injuries, Ellery had managed to get her chicks, Iris and her brother and sister, to safety and the widowed mother had raised her three chicks in a secluded area of the forest. Now that the forest had been set up as a sanctuary with the possibility of smugglers entering being drastically reduced, Iris had moved back into her old home while her mother, brother and sister went in another direction for they did not want to move back here due to bad memories, especially Ellery due to the loss of Henrique. Since returning here, Iris had taken up the job of babysitting the young of other community members, mostly the chicks of other birds. She did not pair up with a male green-winged macaw and have her own chicks and decided to be a babysitter for other birds instead. However, she sometimes babysat non-avian babies such as Sandalwood, Orion and Ahsoka's oldest son when he had been a pup and he was the first non-avian baby Iris had babysat to give his parents some lone time and a break. Iris still babysat the chicks of other birds and also the non-avian babies and her most recent babysat chick was Quaoar. This was a HUGE help for Quaoar's parents Luke and Hauyne for the former could not fly due to having one wing, especially when the pair wanted some lone time together back in the Enclosure for Permanently Maimed Animals, their permanent home. After all, Hauyne wanted Quaoar to learn the ways of being a wild bird and did NOT want him to become domesticated like his father. After all, macaws were NOT people and Hauyne did not want Quaoar to grow up in that kind of lifestyle. This was the same sort of attitude Jewel had for Carla, Bia and Tiago when Blu foolishly raised them around human things. However, back then, he did not know any better but now he was more sensible. This was the reason why Aurora and company wanted to live in the natural environment and not in a cottage to raise their chicks and pups since they especially Antares, Samara, Zephyr and Orion, were utterly against having their children growing up and behaving like humans. Ruby and Ferdinand were also on the same perch regarding their Catalina chicks Opal and Sheldon and would NOT allow Blu to babysit them back then in case he wanted to have them behave like people. However, now that Blu was more sensible, he can be entrusted with looking after the two Catalina chicks on the condition that he does not have them too much in a human environment. However, I digress so back with Iris and Quaoar.

As they flew along, Quaoar wore a sad look on his face when he observed other young and adolescent macaw and parakeet chicks as they went on their outings with both their parents, something he could not have due to his father being flightless with one wing.

"I wish both Mom and Dad could accompany me on flights out like those parents with their chicks over there," complained the adolescent Lear's macaw jealously.

"I'm afraid that's not possible, Quaoar," said Iris sadly, "You remember your father's backstory when he confronted Nigel to save your mother Hauyne? That cockatoo cost him his left wing in a brutal fight after damaging the cockatoo's pride. Just be thankful that he is still alive and is now residing in a safe place constructed by humans we can truly trust."

"And to add," put in Quaoar as he gazed at a blue-and-gold macaw family that had three chicks, "I wish I had siblings but Mom always told me that she struggled to conceive me due to um..."

"Fertility issues," said Iris, "Again, that's an unfortunate thing for some animals. They just can't have babies at all, but again, be thankful that you have loving parents despite their limitations."

Quaoar breathed a sad sigh and continued to fly on. He often struggled to accept the fact that his father Luke could not fly and that Hauyne could no longer have any more eggs and he often envied other bird families that had BOTH their parents able to fly and chicks with siblings, including Aurora, Blu, Sirius, Ferdinand and Bellatrix's families and also Orion's family despite them being flying foxes and not birds. However, the same reason still applied for flying foxes were flying animals like macaws.

"Blu and Ahsoka told me that they would have been on the same perch as Luke had they had their chicks with Jewel and first pup Sandalwood with Orion without learning to fly," said Iris, "However, they did not suffer ANY sort of injuries that made them grounded, only trauma caused by smugglers..."

"Yeah, but Dad USED to be able to fly before that VILE cockatoo took away his wing, right?" protested Quaoar.

"That is very true," said Iris, "But he chose to start a family with your mother Hauyne nonetheless, and Hauyne decided to stay by his side despite the loss of his wing and ability to fly," she then smiled as the adolescent macaw breathed a sad sigh, "Your father has a LOT to be admired, Quaoar. He sacrificed his ability to fly to save your mother from SAVAGE torture from that VILE monster of a cockatoo when he shoved her into that box to take advantage of her immense fear of boxes and closed spaces caused by her trauma from smugglers, or your mother wouldn't have been able to..." she trailed off, not wanting to say what would have happened to Hauyne when Nigel brutally tortured her if Luke had not intervened in time. Iris then put a comforting talon on the adolescent Lear's macaw's back.

"Listen, while it is hard to swallow the fact that your father is grounded for life, you still have your 'extended' family to help during their visits to Rio," said she, "And maybe one day, when you are old enough to leave your parents' side, you might accompany them to the Sanctuary de Amazon and meet that small group of Lear's macaws living in that large mixed-species flock of various birds and other creatures that Orion told me about..."

"There are other Lear's macaws out in the Amazon?" asked Quaoar in wonder.

"Yes there is," said Iris with a smile, "They live in Orion's large tribe as a small group, but you'll not be allowed to go there until you are older."

Quaoar then breathed a sad sigh and continued flying on.

The green-winged macaw babysitter and the adolescent Lear's macaw continued flying through the trees until finally, an area where humans could visit came into view. This area was a picnic area to allow both tourists and ecologists to come here to either eat out or carry out surveys. Two brown wooden constructions called picnic tables were present and sat at one of them was a familiar family of four with a familiar Dalmatian. Quaoar squinted as he identified the white dog with black spots.

"Hey, is that Sputnik and his owners, Miss Iris?" asked the Lear's macaw chick. Iris followed Quaoar's gaze and picked out the familiar dog as he ran after a ball tossed by one of the young men. The other young man was helping a woman to set up some plates and food on the picnic table while a third man, an older one, stood apart from the other three and gazing into the trees, something gripped in his hands. The older man was Francisco and the woman was his wife Dolores and the two young men were their sons Benny and Miguel and they were out on one of Francisco's survey trips combined with a picnic. The Dalmatian was recognisable based on his black front right foot.

"It is," said Iris with a smile "Looks like they have come here for a picnic or something."

"Can I meet Sputnik, Miss Iris?" asked Quaoar with excitement. Iris, at first, hesitated. She did not want Sputnik's owners seeing the young Lear's macaw outside the Maimed Animal Enclosure without his parents. Then after a minute of deciding, she gave the final answer.

"Okay, but as long as Sputnik's owners don't see us," said she. A squeak of excitement escaped Quaoar's beak and he and Iris descended from the canopy and into a bush on the border of the picnic area to meet Sputnik without his owners seeing them.

As Sputnik dashed past with the ball in his mouth towards Miguel, the young man who was playing with him, Iris got prepared to call his name. Then after Sputnik handed the ball back to Miguel who was then called by Dolores to help with the picnic setup, Iris seized the opportunity.

"Hey, Sputnik," the green-winged macaw called. Sputnik, confused at first, looked around until his eyes found a red parrot with colourful wings and a smaller, dark blue parrot. Instantly, he recognised them.

"Oh, hi, Iris, Quaoar," said the Dalmatian with surprise. Then with a glance at his owners, he walked over to them. "What are you two doing here?"

"We're on a flight out," said Quaoar, "Miss Iris here is taking me out on the trip to give Mom and Dad back in the enclosure a break."

"Yes, and also to have some lone time together," said Iris.

"I see," said Sputnik. He then gazed at his owners with a smile. "Well, I'm on an outing with my family as well. It is a hybrid of a picnic trip and a survey. Francisco over there is checking on a family of jungle quails nesting a short distance into the forest," Iris and Quaoar followed Sputnik's gaze and saw the older man knelt down in the brush, presumably where the quail's nest was. Spuntik's face then fell somewhat. "I wanted to start my own family as well but sadly, my owners had me sterilised so that I cannot have puppies..."

"Sterilised?" asked Quaoar confused. Sputnik turned back to him.

"Rendered infertile artificially," he explained briefly. Because Quaoar was an adolescent, he was old enough to know the appropriate basics of how babies were born. Sputnik continued, "I had been saddened and disappointed by their decision but over time, I have come to learn to accept it. After all, humans are the ones in charge over us animals..."

"Indeed and that includes those who treat us like objects such as poachers," said Iris with spite against that group of humans, "But that's another topic for another discussion."

"So how are Luke and Hauyne doing?" asked Sputnik with a smile.

"They're doing fine," said Iris, "Nick, Luke's companion and former owner is taking excellent care of them."

"I heard he got abusive with Nigel for what he had done to Luke," said Sputnik, before a malicious scowl formed on his face, "I would have torn out that cockatoo's feathers if I EVER met that crested slime worm again..."

"You've met that vulture once before?" asked Quaoar.

"Yes, it was when Francisco was going to Tulio's Aviary to do his shift while one of his sons Benny was about to take me for a walk," said Sputnik, "Nigel and that little frog were being bathed outdoors by three of Tulio's assistants. Another assistant was coming in with a hyacinth macaw that had injured its wing and of course, she walked past the cockatoo in his bathtub with the macaw in the large cage when she stopped to talk with the assistants washing the cockatoo. That was when Nigel seized the opportunity to lash at the hyacinth macaw without provocation whatsoever, especially as the assistant had the macaw's cage held within range of the cockatoo. That was when Nigel struck and he bit the poor hyacinth macaw's leg HARD and inflicted a bloody injury," Sputnik's scowl then hardened, "And believe me, I had NEVER felt SUCH rage explode within me in MY LIFE!"

"What did you do?" asked Iris. Quaoar listened with a smirk, hoping that Sputnik had done what he had thought he had done. After all, he shared his parents' low-pH and corrosive rancour for the cockatoo. Sputnik, his scowl now an angry glare, continued.

"I darted from Benny's side against his orders, made a speedy beeline for that slime ball as he was laughing his head off at the hyacinth macaw's leg injury and gave him a MASSIVE paw swipe to the face," the Dalmatian growled, "in fact, I hit him SO hard that I actually sent him and his little froggy friend flying out of the bathtub and landing a good ten feet from it. I then prepared to pounce onto Nigel to attack him but Francisco and Benny came in and restrained me while an assistant went to get Nigel. I was grounded from treats for a few days for my behaviour but I never regretted one BIT giving that slime ball a PIECE of my mind..." a prideful smile then formed on Sputnik's muzzle as he relished avenging the hyacinth macaw that Nigel injured. However, it was really a stupid thing to do and Milo and Ellie would certainly disapprove of Sputnik doing that to Nigel. After all, the now-adult dog should know better, but still.

"You shouldn't have disobeyed your owners like that, Sputnik, even to give that vulture a good hiding," said Iris with a disapproving frown, "And secondly, Tulio's Aviary is strictly off limits to dogs."

Sputnik's smug smile, however, remained.

"Didn't I tell you I gave him a cat-scratch to the face during my first visit to the Aviary for insultin' my parents, Mr Sputnik?" asked Quaoar in a spiteful voice tone, his rancour for the cockatoo showing. As he said this, a small group of big colourful beaked birds with black feathers and white undersides came by. When they saw the two macaws and Sputnik conversing, they came over to them.

"Really?" asked Sputnik.

"Yes, you inflicted a NASTY set of claw marks on Nigel's forehead," said Iris, the disapproval still present, "But enough on this cockatoo. He's not worth our bother now."

Just then, a collective "Hi," alerted the trio, pulling their gazes in the direction of the callers. To their surprise, it was the toucan kids with some of them being around Quaoar's age and thus adolescents as well. Sputnik frowned at the little flock of toucan youngsters.

"Shouldn't you lot be back at your parents' nest rather than wandering around getting up to mischief, Sofia, Miguel, the rest of you?" asked the Dalmatian.

"I hope you are not causing the other birds and animals trouble, are you?" put in Iris, "Because you know your parents have been getting constant complaints from countless members of the forest community about your behaviour."

The flock of toucan chicks, twenty-plus in total, just put on innocent gazes.

"No," squeaked one of them, a female.

"We were just havin' an outing," said another, an adolescent male.

"Mom and Pops have given us permission to take our younger siblings out while they take care of our four siblings-to-be," said another female. The others nodded in agreement. Frowns then formed on the faces of the green-winged macaw and Dalmatian.

"Don't tell me Rafael and Eva have had another clutch of..." grumbled the latter sourly.

"Don't ask, Sputnik," said Iris. Then one of the toucan chicks noticed Quaoar.

"Hey, isn't that the son of the poor Lear's macaw who had lost his wing Pops told us about?" asked he.

"I wonder if he could join us on our outing," said another toucan kid, another female. The other toucan chicks, agreeing chirps rolling through them, nodded. Excitement bubbled within Quaoar.

"Can I join the toucan kids, Miss Iris and Mr Sputnik please?" asked the Lear's macaw. Uncertainty showed itself on the faces of the two.

"Uh... I'm not sure, Quaoar..." murmured Iris, "What are your parents gonna say if..."

"Oh, he'll be fine," said a toucan chick named Miguel who was one of the oldest sons of Rafael and Eva and thus an adolescent, "We'll look after him."

"Indeed," said Sofia, an adolescent female. The other toucan kids nodded in agreement again. At first, Iris and Sputnik stood there, wondering whether to risk getting into trouble by having Quaoar join this bunch of rambunctious toucans in their fun and games. However, they were quite unaware that their antics were now veering into the territory of over-the-top pranks with the risk of injury now occurring. Finally, Iris relented but reluctantly.

"Okay," the green-winged macaw said. A cheer exploded from Quaoar's beak and he happily joined the toucan chicks. However, Iris' uncertainty remained.

"We promise we will take good care of him, Miss Iris," said another older toucan kid named Manoela.

"After all, we older toucans are old enough to look after our younger siblings at Pops' permission," said another older toucan named Rita.

"Then make sure that you do," said Iris firmly, "The last thing I want is him getting into trouble, especially with his parents. He's their only chick you know."

Quaoar then excitedly followed the group of toucan kids into the canopy.

"Be careful, Quaoar," called Sputnik in warning, "That lot can be VERY mischievous and destructive. They once got Aurora and company entangled in their chains and vines when they were younger and when Rafael and company first met them and over time, their mischief has just got worse such that they may accidentally injure those they are pranking. So if they insist on destructive behaviour like vandalism, turn tail and flee back to the Maimed Animal Enclosure near Tulio's Aviary, okay?"

"You know where that is?" asked Iris. Quaoar nodded and followed the flock of toucan kids into the trees. Then Sputnik and Iris resumed their conversation, this time discussing about the two golden fruithawks and Luna owls kept in Tulio's Aviary.