Story the Crow Part 2

Tesser was enjoying the evening sunset and heavy air when the black winged one screeched as he approached her tree breaking her peaceful surveilance of tomorrow's hunting ground and dreams of fields and meadows beyond.

"Tesser!" he screeched. "Teeeeesser!" The crow flapped around her tree making noise after noise.

Tesser grew angry, the noisome crow would not relent, she knew. She screeched back at him, "What do you want!"

This stunned him into silence, he had not expected her to receive him, so he gracefully curved around several branches and alighted on Tesser's evening roosting branch.

Tesser's head snapped around to stare at him straight on and her entire body seemed to inflate as she ruffled all of her feathers. Story held his place but leaned away as he tried to look at her straight on with both eyes down his beak as she did. He found he could not see her properly the way he saw distant objects in flight and turned his head to peer at her with one eye instead.

Tesser nearly hissed as she spoke, "Whaaat dooo you waaaaant?"

Story half flapped his wings as she spoke, but was able to contain his fear and folded them along his back again. "I've come for your wisdom Tesser."

"What would a wild bird like you have to do with wiiiiisdom?"

"I have a question about greater matters that affect my friends."

"Oh?" Tesser cocked her head in amusement, "Do you mean the dear mice of the fieeeeeeld? That's food you know."

Story answered tersely, "My friends are not food, and we are all in danger I think."

Tesser was impressed at Story's ability to focus and also that he was able to think about more than himself. No beast she knew did that. And more than their share had sought her wisdom.

"Hmmmmmmmmm, you speak of two legs?"

"I speak of the not-fish, two-legs."

Tesser spoke calmly now, her previous anger and amusement gone, replaced with the wisdom her kind were known for. "Ah, you mean the ones who come on the trees in the great sea."

Story's pride was sorely tested, she claimed a knowledge that seemed greater than what he could see. "They come on giant leaves that float on the sea."

Tesser refused to take the bait, "the same yes."

Story could not challenge that. "The two legs are coming to us, and they burn and bite and fell the trees."

Tesser only said, "let them."

Story's voice rose sharply, "they and all other kind can not abide in peace together!"

Tesser's voice chuckled as she spoke, "no one lives in peace with me."

Story retorted, "Even you are a part of all kind."

Tesser quieted and paused as she considered his words. "You are right Crow, what affects other kind affects me, and the two legs can affect us all."

Story bobbed his head once and said, "we should leave."

Tesser stayed quiet and looked into the wind springing up from the darkening sky. The sun had already sunk below the horizon. She didn't care whether they all left or not, but she knew she had to go, and this event might create an opportunity. "All kind must leave tomorrow day, you must spread the news when the sun rises again. Tell them I said it."
 
Offended, Story spread his wings in anticipation of take off and said, "that is why my name is Story, I speak the tales, all that is needed to be heard. I say it." With that, Story hopped nimbly off the branch, let the wind catch his wings as he fell and then glided away from Tesser's roosting tree and only flapped gently to stay aloft. It was getting too dark to find his mates, but he wanted to find a good roosting tree before nightfall, he had no desire to share Tesser's tree for the entire evening. She might be more alert to danger, but to have such an intense bird on the same branch unnerved him. He would have plucked out many good flying feathers by morning from fear.

He angled toward the field where his friends kept themselves and found a suitable tree. Story found he didn't sleep a deep sleep, but half dreamed and listened to noises around him and below him. He was far above the ground and felt safe, but an uneasy feeling lay in his belly. Sometime during the night, he heard coyotes padding through the field, and a few squeeks as some of the small kind died in their jaws. Those that died were the under-dwellers that lived under the earth and came out only at night. Story wondered what would become of them since they would not hear his message in the day. Perhaps they would fare when the two legs came. The two legs preferred the day as many of the kind did. With that, he drifted off to sleep until the sun warmed his sleek black feathers in the morning and he slowly straightened his neck and shook his head, blinking back the sleep.