Chapter 8- problems for Rafael's family
Rafael and his massive family's tree
In a certain big tree, an aging toco toucan peered out of his tree hollow.
"I sure hope that Carlos and the others are alright," said he. Then breathing a sigh, the toco toucan, Rafael withdrew into the hollow and walked over to his keel-billed mate as she admired the latest clutch of four eggs.
"How are our lovely chicks-to-be doin, my hot mango," he crooned lovingly.
"The kids inside are dreamin', my handsome love hawk," replied Eva lovingly. She then lovingly leaned onto her toco mate's shoulder as the pair gazed into the nest and its precious contents. As they did this, a young female toucan who was also an adolescent but younger than Carlos and some others, came by and gazed at her parents. This daughter of Rafael and Eva was quite colourful. Her feathers were jet black and her face mask and belly were pure white like her toco father and she had his brown eyes. However, her eyes were a lighter shade. The toucan had a feather ruffle and a lithe build similar to her keel-billed mother but her most striking feature was her beak. Her beak started orange near her face but it faded to lime green towards the tip. The tip itself was black and magenta. The splash of colour on her beak was clear evidence of the toucan's hybrid heritage as though her father's orange and black beak and mother's lime green and magenta beak had been mashed together. The toucan also had natural eye-shadow on her eye lids but unlike Eva's which were purple, her eyelids were fuchsia. This toucan kid was Diantha and she was the eighteenth chick born to the toco/keel-billed couple.
When she had been still an egg, Rafael and Eva had met Blu and Jewel when they had been chained together and she had been shook by her older siblings though Rafael told them time and time again that eggs were NOT maracas. Rafael had referred to the chick in the egg as 'he' as he LOATHED calling his eggs 'its' and since the gender of the chicks in the eggs was not revealed until they hatched, Rafael always referred to his eggs as 'he's'. Diantha, unlike so many of her siblings, was sensible though she started out mischievous at first and had participated in the prank involving tying Aurora and company together in their chains and vines before the group paired up and had their chicks and pups, but she has since abandoned her siblings' 'hobbies', especially after seeing how naughty they were becoming. She ABSOLUTELY loathed her siblings' activities and the results they caused but what she loathed MORE was her siblings' constant habit of lying and directing the blame at other birds and animals for the results of their antics. The toucan kids had done just that with Sandalwood, Acerola and Hermione, the three (now oldest) pups of Orion and Ahsoka when they caused trouble for Mauro and his marmoset gang with the fruit. They directed the blame at the three poor flying fox pups and Mauro and his marmosets got revenge on the trio by throwing them into a pile of rotting fruit and getting a snapshot of them with some human cameras. The marmosets then duplicated those photos and circulated them throughout Tijuca Forest which eventually turned the flying fox family into a laughingstock. Furthermore, the toucan kids had lied to their parents that Sandalwood and his sisters had been the ones to batter the marmoset pack with the fruit and cause them trouble and they believed their story. ALL that was what shattered the friendship between Rafael and Eva and Orion and his family and Diantha was STILL furious with her siblings even now and despite it being more than a year since that incident happened. Three other toucan kids who were also sensible and loathed their siblings' rotten antics, Cleo, Nemo and Fabio, were on the same perch as Diantha. Diantha and the other three's refusal to participate in their siblings' antics had put the four at loggerheads with the rest of their siblings and that had been compounded by what had happened to Orion's family because of them, and Diantha, Cleo, Nemo and Fabio did not believe their siblings' lies that Sandalwood and his sisters were the ones to cause Mauro and his gang the trouble resulting in the marmosets getting horrible revenge on them and believe me, Mauro and his gang were INDEED vengeful, shown when Mauro managed to get a snapshot of a certain cockatoo after the plane incident. Thus the relationship damage was not only between this large toucan family and that of Orion but WITHIN the family as well as Diantha had tried to tell her parents that Sandalwood and his sisters would NEVER do that to Mauro and his gang over and over again only for the naughty siblings to cut her off and often, fights, whether physical or verbal, broke out, and Diantha even had brutal word fights with her parents over the flying fox family. To add, Rafael's banning of his chicks from ANY association with those bats under the threat of serious consequences added to the friction between Diantha and her parents. Then another thought entered Diantha's head. She had overheard the discussion between her parents and Blu and Jewel in the Amazon via the phone that Orion and Ahsoka had recently had two new additions to their family, twin sons named Ganymede and Gordie. Diantha feared for these two new pups if Orion and his family ever decided on visiting Rio and what sort of trouble they would face from the Tijuca Forest community since the flying fox family was still mocked by some of the community members even more than a year later.
As Diantha's mind swam in the thoughts about these things and worried for the flying foxes, her mother's voice pulled her out of that thought pond and in her and Rafael's direction.
"Those winged furballs are planning on comin' to Rio with Blu and the others this summer, aren't they, possibly alongside some new friends from over there?" said the keel-billed mother, "Well, if that is the case, then those winged mammals will NOT be allowed ANYWHERE near ANY of us OR our hollow."
"No, not after what the three older pups have done to that pack of pesky marmoset looters and what that ginger bat had done to you a little more than a year ago, my lovely gem," said Rafael, dislike of the flying foxes in his voice clearly present. Rage tore through Diantha when she heard this and she began to quiver.
"They've also got two new pups," said Eva, "Do you think they're banned from meeting us too?"
"Yes, absolutely," said Rafael with a growl, "And if that family of bats is still ostracised by the community even though it had been a year now since the incident between the bats and those marmosets, I wouldn't be surprised."
"Mr Orion and his family did NOT deserve that, Mom and Dad and they STILL don't," Diantha finally spoke, pulling her parents' attention to her.
"What did you say, Diantha?" asked Rafael angrily.
"Sandalwood and his sisters did NOT pelt those marmoset thieves with the FRUIT OR nab their loot!" snapped Diantha in a harsher voice. She had spoken to her parents like this quite often since that incident last year and while it was true that children should NOT use that tone of voice when talking to adults, especially authority figures like their parents, Diantha had good reason to be angry with her parents since what happened to the flying foxes had been total injustice. However, this had been going on for too long and Rafael and Eva had been driven around the trees by her attitude. Then Eva stepped forward to rebuke her daughter like she had done so many times before.
"Don't you EVER speak to your parents like THAT, young lady," she snapped with a wing point to Diantha, "Honestly, how many times do we have to tell you that!?"
"Yes, your attitude has been going on for far too long, Diantha," put in Rafael.
"You still believe the FOUL LIES of Carlos and his prankster bunch ABOVE the truth told by Mr Orion and his family, don't ya, Mom and Dad," snapped Diantha, "Is it ANY wonder those flying foxes do NOT get along with us anymore!?"
"Diantha, go to your room," barked Rafael, anger at his daughter's attitude finally pushing him to breaking point. Diantha then glared at her father and defiantly refused to budge.
"I don't even know why you even CARE to look at the whole incident again to find out what REALLY happened and make up with Mr Orion and his family and apologise to them, Father," she retorted sourly, "Is it any wonder Mrs Ahsoka slapped Mother across the face when she called Sandalwood, Acerola and Hermione delinquent winged furballs when the REAL delinquents are Carlos and the others!"
Rafael's eyes blinked in UTMOST stun at this response and with that, his patience's walls containing his anger finally buckled.
While Rafael yelled at his daughter from within the hollow, another toucan, a male toco like Rafael but with a muscular build and blue eyes, and a green parakeet flew towards the tree. This pair had come to Rafael and Eva's hollow with a complaint and had been sent by Milo to deliver it. The pair flinched when they saw a colourful comet rocket out of the entrance/exit hole of the hollow. The comet with a colourful beak flashed a volcanic look back at a toco toucan and screamed something at him before finally rocketing off. The muscular toco toucan and the parakeet exchanged wondering looks with a raised eyebrow for a second before finally approaching the hollow as Rafael, the toucan at the hole, angrily watched his daughter Diantha rocket away from the hollow.
"We have an apple to pick with you, Rafael," said the muscular toco toucan, pulling the slimmer toucan's gaze his and the parakeet's way.
"Several apples in fact," said the parakeet. Rafael's outraged glare melted to a greeting smile.
"Jean-Luc, Federico," said he with excitement, "What a nice surprise."
"Yeah, well lucky for you, that surprise is some apples to pick," replied the muscular toco toucan, Jean-Luc in a not-so-friendly tone of voice that melted Rafael's joyful gaze from his face.
"Why? What's wrong?" he asked. The parakeet named Federico then touched down on the lip of the hole, making Rafael back away to Eva's side. From one of the holes leading to one of the rooms in which some of Rafael and Eva's almost-thirty children slept, three small heads peered around the corner. The three all looked alike but two had orange and black beaks like Rafael and the other, a lime green and magenta beak like Eva. The trio stared at the two newcomers at the entrance of the hollow as they told their parents that their toucan kids had been up to a serious manner of mischief.
"Oh dear, Fabio and Nemo," whispered the lime green beaked chick, a female, to the other two orange beaked chicks who were male, "That does NOT sound good, another complaint from two more residents."
"Where's Diantha?" asked one of the males. The other male left to look for the older colourful beaked adolescent. However, the three were unaware that Diantha had flown out of the hollow and simply assumed that she was in her room, so the male went there, hoping to find her.
While Cleo, Fabio and Nemo wondered where Diantha had gone, Jean-Luc continued his complaint to Rafael and Eva with Federico.
"Milo the Dalmatian has sent us to you with a complaint about some pitfall trap your kids had apparently dug in the forest floor which resulted in a bird-friendly city cat friend of his oldest son and girlfriend suffering a broken shoulder," said the hulking toucan. Rafael and Eva and also Cleo, Fabio and Nemo (who emerged from Diantha's room after finding her not there) flinched in horror when they heard this.
"Oh no," said Eva with her wings over her lime green and magenta beak in shock.
"We have also had a report from Tiny that some of your chicks, particularly your older ones, attack an adolescent Lear's macaw outside her and her family and friends' vandalised hollow as well," put in Federico the parakeet.
"Quaoar?" asked Rafael when he identified the chick mentioned.
"How would Quaoar involve himself with our children?" asked Eva, "He-he should be with his parents in that enclosure for maimed animals or, unless he is on an outing, with a babysitter such as Iris the green-winged macaw."
"And according to Milo, those chicks had chased Quaoar for some time resulting in him flying to his family's home and garden," said Federico, "Apparently over not participating in some prank those kids of yours were planning on playing on the honeycreepers and finches..."
"Our children would NEVER go about vandalising anyone's hollow," snapped Rafael in denial.
"Yes, Carlos and the other older children of ours are MUCH too sensible to cross that line," put in Eva. Just then a small flock of hybrid toucans appeared and entered the hollow, stopping in stun when they saw two visitors talking with their parents. The oldest one at the front looked on.
"Uh, is there a problem?" asked he innocently. Then Rafael commanded the flock to enter the hollow, which they did. As they did that, Diantha flew back, having seen this group turn up. Once Carlos and his group were in the hollow, Jean-Luc retold the complaints of the pitfall prank injuring a city cat friend and also what happened with Quaoar and at the honeycreepers and finches' hollow. However, Carlos immediately lunged forward and began to do what he had ALWAYS done.
"We did NOT do the pitfall prank OR vandalise Miss Tiny and her family and friends' hollow and flowers," he protested, lying as usual to cover up the truth, his siblings nodding and throwing in their agreement protests.
"It was a group of city dogs that dug up that hole and covered its entrance with the sediment," added Darla, "Sunspot, Vegetal and Titania must have unknowingly walked over it and fell into it resulting in the cat hurting his shoulder. I don't think those dogs intended their 'victims' to be those three..."
"Seriously, you lot, that poor bird-friendly cat will now have to put off his dog-and-cat-only club duties with his Dalmatian friends for a GOOD while until his shoulder heals," said Jean-Luc angrily.
"Sunspot and Titania will have to run the club themselves until then," put in Federico, "Not to mention the fact that poor Vegetal's owners will have to deal with MASSIVE ramifications with a badly injured cat..."
"Our kids would NEVER, EVER do such a prank as STUPID as that," protested Rafael in defence of his children.
"Our children may be rascals but they are NOT malicious delinquents capable of such heinous tricks," added Eva in agreement. Carlos and company nodded in innocent agreement. However, this was manipulative behaviour to get their parents on their side. Jean-Luc and Federico, however, were not convinced. Then Rafael stepped in.
"We'll have a word with our children," said he and with that, he placed a wing on Jean-Luc's back and guided the muscular toco toucan who had been one of his childhood friends, and Federico to the entrance/exit hole. "You two get yourselves off and we'll deal with this. We are, after all, their parents."
"Then make sure that they GET disciplined," snapped Jean-Luc, "because otherwise, that lot will grow up to become a problem group and that is the last thing ANY of us in Tijuca Forest needs."
"If my own chicks did ANYTHING like a pitfall trap," said Federico in agreement, "I would severely ground them for a MONTH and bestow upon them other serious punishments like denial of their favourite food."
"Yes, INCREDIBLY dangerous and injurious pitfall trap pranks are," added Jean-Luc. He then stepped aside to allow Diantha who was still sour-faced, into the hollow, but he didn't speak to her, seeing that she was in a too bad a mood to talk to. Then after seeing off the pair and waving goodbye to them, Rafael and Eva turned to face Carlos and company. However, before they could prepare to have a word with them about pitfall pranks, they were greeted with a crowd of inflated eyes with shining black pupils. The toucan kids had entered puppy dog-eye mode, putting on a cuter, innocent front as a way to beg their parents to believe their lies and not punish them. Rafael hesitated at first but then he spoke.
"Kids, did you know that pitfall traps are incredibly dangerous?" he asked them sternly. None of the toucan kids answered and kept their display of innocence up.
"Seriously, children," said Eva, "If it's true that Vegetal had suffered an injured shoulder because of some pitfall prank you pulled off on him and Sunspot and Titania, then I'm afraid we're gonna have to bestow upon you some form of punishment."
"Oh, PLEASE don't punish us, Mommy and Daddy," protested Carlos, his eyes still puppy dog-like.
"We didn't do ANYTHING... HONEST!" added Sofia.
"Like we've said before," said Darla, "It was a pack of city dogs that did it, NOT us."
"We're INNOCENT!" said Manoela. The other toucan kids, their inflated eyes resembling glistening saucepans, a device humans used to fry certain food or a certain orange swashbuckling cat in the series with a green ogre as a protagonist when he puts on that cute front, Rafael and Eva began to hesitate. They were not sure whether to punish them or let them off. However, the atmosphere suddenly exploded like a crack of thunder as Diantha stepped in, OUTRAGE plastering her face and erupting once again.
"For goodness' sake, YOU LOT!" she bellowed at her siblings, "If the FRUIT SHELL regarding the pitfall trap on Sunspot and two of his friends fits, WEAR IT! I cannot BELIEVE THAT YOU would DO THAT TO THOSE THREE..."
"STAY OUT OF IT, DIANTHA!" snapped Carlos, his puppy dog front vanquished in an instant. The others with him also threw down their puppy dog eyes and glared at Diantha.
"Diantha," began Rafael but his own daughter cut him off and began to furiously vent her wrath at her siblings and their behaviour for the umpteenth time.
"THIS IS... the PROBLEM!" she screamed, tears beginning to well in her eyes which spewed volcanic ash plumes coloured pale brown, "YOU KNOW WHY MR ORION AND HIS FAMILY CANNOT GET ALONG WITH YOU!? It is because of THEM," she gestured angrily to Carlos and company as she said this, "THEY were the ones who got SANDALWOOD, ACEROLA AND HERMIONE into trouble with Mauro and his marmoset gang and THEY are the ones responsible for the SHATTERED FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN US and that FLYING FOX FAMILY, as well as the FLYING FOX FAMILY'S SHATTERED REPUTATION when they GOSSIPED ABOUT THEM to MOST OF OUR NEIGHBOURS!"
"Oh, for the last time, Diantha, we did NOT PELT THOSE MARMOSETS with the FRUIT," retorted Carlos.
"THOSE THREE BAT PUPS DID!" added Darla.
"NEITHER did we gossip about those flying foxes to ANYONE," put in Manoela.
The others with this pair screeched in agreement. In one corner of the hollow, Fabio, Cleo and Nemo cowered and shivered at the thunderstorm occurring in the main room. Then that thunderstorm finally exploded its lightning when Carlos approached Diantha and did the unthinkable.
"You seriously HAVE A PROBLEM distinguishing truth from lies, don't ya, you DUMB, CATERPILLAR-MINDED SISTER..." bellowed the oldest son of Eva and Rafael and with that, he pounced onto Diantha and within moments, a fight exploded. The other chicks on Carlos' side joined in the fray and they began to subject Diantha to an avalanche of feather pulling, throttling, kicking and punching with Carlos having his wings around Diantha's neck. Angry screeches of the fight erupted into the air in the hollow as well. Then Rafael's temper exploded.
"RIGHT, THAT DOES IT YOU LOT!" the toco father bellowed at the top of his lungs, halting the tempestuous pond of fighting toucan kids, "TO YOUR ROOMS, ALL O' YA!"
Then like a large pack of mice escaping a cat, all twenty-plus chicks stopped their brawl and scurried to their rooms. Some collided into each other on the go. The last to leave apart from Diantha was Miguel and he collided with Sofia as she fled. Miguel landed on his backside in front of Rafael before trembling before the enraged father and scurrying off to his room after the others. Fabio, Cleo and Nemo also left for their rooms to avoid the stampede. Only Rafael, Eva and Diantha were left and Diantha began to vent at her parents once again.
"I'm gonna sit on those four eggs I think," said Eva and with that, she left for the nest to do just that.
"And I'm gonna see Mr Orion and his family when they DO decide to come here," snapped Diantha.
"I told you, Diantha, ANY association with those BATS is STRICTLY FORBIDDEN!" bellowed Rafael, "Now GO TO YOUR ROOM like EVERYONE ELSE!"
"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT that OUR FRIENDSHIP with MR ORION AND HIS FAMILY IS BROKEN, DAD," screamed Diantha, louder than she had EVER screamed before, her eyes spewing a river of tears once again.
"DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK TO YOUR FATHER LIKE THAT, YOUNG LADY," Rafael and with that, he cuffed her, "IF YOU EVER ASSOCIATE WITH THOSE BATS..."
"I HATE YOU!" Diantha screamed back and with that, she stormed into her room. Then a MASSIVE explosion of sobbing burst from her room as she broke down hysterically. Rafael then looked on, guilt at cuffing Diantha like that welling within him. Then he made his decision.
"Eva, my love," he said in a calmer voice tone to his keel-billed mate, "I'm gonna go and see Nico, Pedro and Chip-I-Am to cool off a bit. I will talk with our kids later. Also reinforce the strict rule of no contact with Orion and his family with them, okay?"
"Okay," muttered Eva as she sat in the nest to incubate the four eggs and with that, Rafael went to the entrance/exit hollow, opened his wings and took off. Diantha then peered out of her room, her eyes weeping a MASSIVE torrent of tears and sob-gasps entering her beak. She had secretly decided to make the decision to see Orion and his family if they decide to come to Rio and apologise to them for her siblings' behaviour and parents' refusal to believe her lying siblings, something she NEVER got the chance to do due to her parents banning her and the other kids from meeting them after the incident where Ahsoka insulted and slapped her mother. As Diantha wept, she was joined by Fabio, Cleo and Nemo who reached an agreement with her to go and meet Orion and his family to apologise to them.
Things were indeed an ABSOLUTE mess for this large toucan family but it was not just from their broken friendship with Orion and his family.