The
following morning dawned bright and cold, the fresh breeze rustling
through the branches of the campus’ many trees. It sounded like the
gentle cresting of waves on the shore.
“What
a lovely morning,”
I
whispered. “Ruth,
wake up. It’s so pretty outside.”
“Hm?”
said Ruth. “Did a sparrow get in here? I hear chirping. Oh wait, a
bird did get in here.” She laughed. Then she stopped abruptly.
“What
is the matter?”
Ruth
threw her covers off, rolled out of the bed and landed on the floor
in a three-point stance. She jumped to her feet and grabbed my hands.
“Rani. Say something.”
“Something.”
A
look of horror came over Ruth’s face. “Oh no. Oh no no no no no.”
She
dashed to the closet, yanked out her robe, threw it on, and then
dashed to the door and was out of the room before I could say another
word.
I
heard the slam of a door outside, and ran to the window. There was
Ruth running across the quad, faster than her normal clip despite her
complete lack of footwear, straight toward the Morrow lab. Fetching
the Professor, perhaps? But she could have taken me along. What was
she up to? What happened to “to the end”?
I
waited in my room for a while. Might as well stay where she was sure
to find me, now that I couldn’t exactly – wait a minute, I could
still use my phone couldn’t I? I grabbed it off the table and
frantically tapped out a text to Ruth.
What
exactly are you doing?
Well,
I just solved the problem of how
you’ll be able to
communicate with me.
Wait.
So did you, just now. Whoops.
Ha ha. Silly me. D’oh. Ain’t
I a stinker.
What
did you DO?
You’re,
uh, going to find out when I
get back to you.
RUTH
WHAT DID YOU DO
Fulfilled
my vow as I saw fit. Look
out the window.
I
looked out the window. There was Ruth down on the quad, surrounded by
birds, some of whom were alighting on her hand and arm. She giggled,
and then chirped something I couldn’t make out. All the birds flew
away.
Oh.
Shit.
I
threw open the dorm room door and ran pell-mell down the hall, down
the stairs, out the hall door with a bang. There was Ruth, looking
sheepish. I had the sinking feeling that she was going to be looking
like something else very soon.
And
then she chirped, “Hey
there, dearest. President of birds. Oddest medical case the
university has ever seen. Well, at least you’re not alone anymore.”
I
put my hands on her shoulders and shook her. “Are
you insane! Now you’re in the same boat as me! Now we’re both
sinking! You were terrified of what had just happened to me and
you decided to take a flying leap right into it? What has gotten into
you?”
Ruth
grabbed my wrists. “To
the end, I said. To the end! I promised to stay with you. I will
follow you wherever you go!”
“Even
into potential death? Even into life stuck as a little bird forever?”
Ruth
looked me dead in the eye. “Yes.”
I
slumped in defeat. “You
ARE insane, road runner.”
“I
am in love. It can make one prone to doing stupid things. In this
case, I was desperate for you to be able to communicate with me, and
I didn’t think about written forms until after I’d dropped a bit
of the bird solution on my wrist. In my defense, I was indeed
terrified. I was not thinking straight. Not that I do that very
often, ha ha ha. Ha.” She
cleared her throat. “Anyway,
you might lose the ability to grasp objects, so maybe this was a good
idea?”
“And
if I need you to be able to communicate with other people for me,
soon enough you won’t be able to do it. You’re going to be stuck
talking to me and the birds.”
Ruth
scoffed, and crossed her arms. “Who
would I want to talk to anyway?”
“Your
parents, your siblings, your relatives, your friends, the guy at the
bodega…”
“Fair
point. Fortunately I should have a few weeks before that point. I
only put a couple drops on my wrist. I’m fine for right now.”
I
glanced at her neck. There were brown-and-white-speckled feathers
growing from it already. “You
sure about that?”
“Let’s
pretend I am. We should get going on prepping for our journey.
Scraping up enough cash for gas, buying snacks for the car –”
“Or
we could just fly. I just flew in from Wyomaho and boy are my arms
tired.”
We
both laughed at that. Then I looked around. There were a dozen people
on the quad, all of them staring in various looks of shock. Well, I
had just made myself look like an even weirder furry, hadn’t I?
Along with Ruth. I cringed in sheer embarrassment.
Ruth
put an arm over my shoulder and led me toward the dorm. “Come
on, let’s get you away from prying eyes. We might as well get
dressed for the day.”
…
“Let
me get this straight,” said Professor Windsor, not turning around
in their chair. “You barged into the lab in broad daylight, broke
open a secure cabinet, grabbed a solution that had proved hazardous, and used
it on yourself, all so you could fulfill a promise?”
“If
I was able to break it open,” said Ruth, “It wasn’t very
secure. But yes. I did.”
The
Professor’s chair whirled around, which was quite a feat
considering it didn’t have wheels. “You have the makings of a mad
scientist about you, girl. So pleased to see a third candidate. Have
you considered transferring from the law school to the lab? I can
always use more assistants around here.”
Ruth
coughed. “I…feel it is very important to understand how the law
works. I have always wanted to be a lawyer. I could be a Mad Lawyer,
I suppose. Not that courts appreciate antics.”
“You
do seem like someone prone to courtroom antics.”
“Might
be necessary to defend your case," said Ruth, "when that comes up.”
“Don’t
jinx it, dear, I’m getting the feeling we’re messing with forces
beyond our comprehension already.”
The
Professor grabbed Ruth’s wrist, pushing up her sleeve to reveal brown and white feathers. “I really think that if you two keep talking in Bird
then you’ll both turn into birds more quickly. If that’s what you
want…”
We
both shook our heads.
“Well,”
said the Professor. “Anyway. I’ve almost got the paperwork
completed for you two, and the university will reimburse you for the
cost of gas. I told them you were going on a biological expedition to
the islands of Lake Superior but I didn’t give too many details.”
“I
have a better idea than a car,”
I
said.
“Oh
yeah?” said Ruth. “Show me.”
…
We
stood in the courtyard, where Rook was enjoying the sun and the wind.
“I
don’t know how to fly too good yet,”
they
said. “And
you want me to go all the way across the land?”
“If
you can,” I
said. “You
got the first part of flying down. Maybe I can teach you the rest
tonight?”
“You
better. Then I will carry you. I want to fly far and see the world.
Yes. I do want to see the land. I can do that if you teach me
flying.”
“Deal.”
“Hang
on,” said Ruth. “Why can’t we just take a train?”
I
gave her a Look, and made a few gestures pointing out my entire body.
Ruth
looked embarrassed. “Right. Should have thought of that. Wearing a
cloak and a plague-doctor mask on a train probably won’t fly, har
har har. Alright, what about a car?”
“You
would be properly isolated in a car,” said Professor Windsor. “I
wouldn’t have made arrangements for that otherwise. The roads these
days aren’t so good.”
I
shook my head. “Hephaestus
can spy on electronics and Hermes knows all the roads.”
“Ah,”
said Ruth. “Yes, the Olympians do have their eyes on everything.
You know, you almost sound like you’re beginning to buy into –”
“DON’T
say it.”
Ruth
put up her hands as if to show she had nothing in them.
“Before
tonight,” said Professor Windsor, “I want to do a medical exam on
Rani here. Just to make sure they’re not breaking down inside or
anything. Physically breaking down, I mean. Mental breakdowns I can’t
help with. Unless Doctor Morrow comes up with something.”
“You
sound like you’re asking me for permission,” said Ruth.
“You
have been highly defensive and supportive of Rani to the point of
obsession,” said the Professor. “If I didn’t seek your approval
you’d have come barging into the examination room anyway, telling
me something about the legality of being a medical advocate.”
“That’s
fair.”
“Not
that the tests will be too invasive,” said the Professor. “Come
on, let’s get started.”
…
As
it happened, the tests were a little more invasive than I would have
liked. Being touched by anyone other than Ruth was enough, and then
there was the eye exam, the blood draw, the ear exam, plucking a
feather, and taking a tiny clip from my talons, for by this point my
entire foot and leg structure had changed to resemble an eagle’s.
Fortunately Ruth was by my side for all of it, and I did not feel
violated.
The
hard part for the Professor was figuring out what species they could
compare my vital stats to. I certainly didn’t have the body
temperature of a human anymore, nor, when the blood analysis was
done, did I seem to have a human level of hemoglobin. In the end, as
I was not reporting any pains or nausea, the Professor decided to
take my current vital stats as the baseline.
Close
to the end of the tests, we heard a sharp knock on the door.
Professor Windsor opened it to find Guy, looking disturbed.
“Professor, that solution you wanted me to keep safe – I should
have put it somewhere more secure, it’s disappeared from the
cabinet. Anyone could have it.”
The
Professor gave Ruth a Look. “Ruth, did you put that thing in a
different cabinet or something?”
“I
think I left it on a counter near the front of the building,” said
Ruth.
“Wait
a second,” said Guy. “It was you? Why?”
“I
have been extremely foolish this day,” said Ruth. She explained her
actions and their motivation.
At
the end of the explanation, Guy was looking at her with a mix of
fascination and horror. “You, uh – wow. You might want to tone
that down a bit, you know? Actually you’re probably learning the
hard way now. Anyway, you’re saying that weird solution was where
the bird thing is coming from…and you just left the thing out on a
counter?”
“As
I said. Extremely foolish.”
“Just
be more careful with stuff, alright? You don’t want to put two
things next to each other on a counter and have their fumes waft
together and react violently. Unless you do. It would be a sneaky way
to burn down a lab, wouldn’t it? Claim it was an accident. Oh jeez,
I’m turning into a Mad Scientist myself. Goodbye.” He marched out
of the room.
There
was nothing left to do but go back to the dorm and decide what was
worth packing for the skies ahead. A GPS, that would be important. A
notebook, just in case the Professor wanted me to record the speech
of birds, even though I had kept forgetting to do it and they hadn’t
ever asked for it. Bowie knife, always a good idea. Waterproof
matches – I still had those from my Scouting days, for some reason,
along with a compass and high-powered flashlight and -- and if I brought all
that stuff along with me I’d wind up overpacking like usual. Ruth
was bringing her oilskin cloak and that was heavy enough.
I
heard a little chirp on the windowsill. “Master?”
Ruth
and I looked up. There was a little chickadee on the other side of
the glass. I raised the window. “I
would not be a slave, little bird, so I would not be a master. What
news do you bring?”
“We
hear you are leaving us. Who will lead us in your absence?”
Ruth
and I exchanged glances. “Yourselves,
little bird. That is just what we have asked you to do, is it not?
Form a congress and vote on things. Surely you are familiar with
democracy, if you have ever seen a flock of starlings in flight?”
“You
would have birds of so many species be one flock. It is a new
possibility. We will consider it.”
“That
is all I ask. Ah, but as a matter of fact – there is one more thing
I will ask of you. If you could tell a robin to tell a jay to tell a
crow to tell an eagle to tell Zeus that Ruth and I will be going on a
journey to Mount Denali, in the far northwest, and wish to meet him
there?”
“Yes,
my lord.”
I
huffed, and shut the window with a thump.
“We’re
not going to Mount Denali,” said Ruth. “That is the opposite of –
oh. I see.”
I
winked. “Should buy us a little time.”
…
Evening
came, and with it, the waning moon. Ruth and I stood in the courtyard
of the Morrow lab, looking up at Rook towering over us.
“You’re
looking kind of intimidating there,” I
shouted.
Rook
looked down. “Sorry,
just seeing if I could reach the moon. But maybe with wings I can!
Can we get started?”
“Let
us begin,” I
said, and that was when I realized I hadn’t put together a lesson
plan.
“Well?”
said
Rook. “What
must I do?”
“One
moment.”
I
spread my arms – wings at this point, really, and where the hell
all that length was unfolding from I couldn’t tell because I
certainly wasn’t dragging my flight feathers on the ground when I
walked. There was definitely something suspicious going on there. But
I could corner Professor Windsor and ask them about it later. “‘Scuse
me, I gotta try something.”
I
thrust my arms downward and rose off the ground. Then I tried to
raise the wings to thrust them downward again, and wound up throwing
myself at the ground.
“You
can’t fly good?”
“Still
figuring it out for myself.”
Rook
tilted their head in puzzlement. “You
teach me something you don’t know how to do.”
“Yeah,
that’s what they say right? Those who can’t do, teach.”
“I
know how to flap my wings now. I will show you.” Rook
crouched and sprang off the ground, then spread their wings, beating
them slow and powerful.
Ah,
so that’s how it worked. Not flapping the wings upward in equal
motion to downward, but drawing them in a bit while raising them,
before extending them outward again. Like a breaststroke through the
water, only up and down. With that information in hand, I jumped up
and copied Rook’s movements, gradually rising to their level.
“You
got it,” said
Rook. “Now
what?”
“Hold
your wings straight and stiff, and glide.” I
demonstrated, which got me moving forward much more quickly than I
had expected. And I was quite wobbly in flight, frantically twitching
the flight feathers at the end of my wings to keep me stable.
I
turned my head backwards to see how Rook was handling the glide. They
seemed to be getting it better than I did. I turned back and realized
that I was about to hit the clocktower. I squawked, and banked hard
to the right, missing the tower by inches and putting myself into a
descending spiral down toward the law library. The gothic, pointy
roof of the law library. Oh dear.
As
I approached the shingles, I flapped hard to slow myself down. I am
pleased to say that my landing was only heavy enough to dislodge a
few tiles.
When
I turned to see where Rook was, I realized that I had left them far
behind. No wonder that clock tower had come up so fast. Alright,
maybe my problem with gliding was figuring out how to go slowly.
Rook
finally hove into view, then flapped their wings hard to come to a
slow landing. They shook the earth as they touched down.
“Sorry
about leaving you behind,”
I
chirped.
Rook
raised their neck up to the roof line to look me in the eye. “Did
I do good? I think I did. Things came to me pretty easily once I got
up there.”
“How
wonderful for you,”
I
hissed.
“Don’t
be so harsh, little bird. You did good. You fledged. You flew. We
have both left the nest. We can fly as far as we wish now.”
“Sure,”
I
said. “Best
get back to that nest now, though, we don’t want to raise a ruckus
on campus.”
And
thus we rose into the air once more, back towards the Morrow lab.
When
we were over the courtyard, I noticed a familiar tall fur-clad woman
standing in the moonlight, in conversation with Ruth, who was staying
in the shadows. I screeched, and banked into a tight spiral, coming
to land between Ruth and Artemis. “You,”
I
squawked. “What
do you want?”
“Oh
my,” said Artemis. “Look what this lab has done to you, little
chick. I remember when you looked quite different. As for my purpose
here…I only wanted to warn you that I got wind of your little
trick. I am advising you to fly fast and far on the first day, for
you will not fool Zeus forever.”
I
let out a long breath.
“That
wasn’t all of it,” said Ruth. “You were complaining about the
birds getting organized. I’ll have you know this is North America,
miss. We don’t take kindly to folks lordin’ it over other folks
around here.”
“That’s
just for humans!” said Artemis. “You think birds work like
humans?”
“One
of them sure does.”
“I
don’t know,”
I
said. “I
could really go for some mice right now.”
“Just
like many human beings,” said Ruth. “There, you see?”
“That’s
actually what I wanted to ask you about,”
I
said.
Artemis
looked intrigued. “Oh?”
“I
know birds aren’t human. We’re asking the birds to get organized
purely out of a sense of justice, but…I can’t say they actually
have the same morality humans do. They’re crude, they’re
violent…if I listen to the birds all day I would believe all the
animals of the world were nasty, brutish and petty. So how do you put
up with it? How do you walk and talk with the animals when their
hearts are so little like yours?”
“Ah,”
said Artemis. “How do you think I put up with mortals?”
“You’re
not so different from mortals as humans are from birds,” said Ruth.
“You look human and you act like it. The difference between you and
us is you can get a lot older and you can get away with stuff.”
Artemis
sniffed. “That is a fair point. Alright, I will put it another way.
How do you think Rani’s parents felt, when they came to North
America? When they left a land of one moral code, and came to one
that was greatly different?”
“That’s
a good point. Although it sounds like you’re equating Americans
with birds.”
“You
all fly free, do you not? And you, my fine feathered frenemy, seem to
have equated birds with Americans in your desire to see them vote on
things.” Artemis chuckled. “In my younger days, I lived in a land
where the chief sin was hubris, where equating oneself to the gods
was the worst one could do. Here, though, it seems an ideal. You are
to me what the birds are to you. And yet, you let the birds live.
Thus do I let you live.”
I
felt my feathers ruffling at the unspoken implications of that
statement.
“Honestly,”
said Artemis, “You really ought to ask your parents about this.”
“Never
ask me to make that call,”
I
said. “It
is an order I will openly refuse.”
Artemis’
eyes gleamed. “Disrespect to one’s elders,” she growled.
“Another high value in this misbegotten land. Well, I have nothing
further to say to such impudent mortals tonight.” She whirled
around and took the form of an eagle, and flew away into the night.