Starrynight looked up at the sky with a sigh, from the warmth and safety of the dank little bramble-woven nursery. Dense clouds still lingered in the glum gray sky, hanging low above them. Just as she was turning for the den once more, she heard distant diologue in the forest.
"Honey, we need to hide her!" whispered a voice, soft like that of a hen. "Why? What's wrong?" questioned the other, the gruff voice of a rooster. "Look!" she shouted, pointing to the patrol that was heading right in their direction. "No..." murmured the cock before his voice raised, "No! J-Jewel! Hide!" Her eyes pleadingly gazed up at him, "And leave you to fight them alone?" she asked rhetorically. "It's alright, I will come back for you, my precious gem," he said as he smiled weakly at her, a light misting of rain dribbling down his scarred, wine-colored face.
Like lightning he bolted off, his thin necklace of twine flying back. She reached out her wing, her eyes growing bleary with worry that this would be the last she would see of him. Then there was a rustle in the bushes behind her. Parting the brambles, the brutish warriors appeared one by one. A wing was deftly placed over her beak before she could scream. She jerked in his grip, kicking and flailing to no avail. They had this ambush planned long before now; her mate chasing after other warriors while these appeared from behind to handle his now vulnerable mate. She was restrained by the help of yet another warrior. Trying to escape was helpless. She could do no more than wimper as she looked solemnly back at her daughter, who hid in the brambles, soaked to the bone and shivering. Without another word, the captors were gone.
Starrynight could not hear all of what was said; she was unaware of what happened. Curiosity got the better of her and she left the border to investigate, the rain mercilessly spilling down in sheets and loudly drumming the ground.
Peering around bush after bush, she heard sad peeps quietly eminating from a small tree surrounded in a ring of ferns. Approaching gingerly, she came upon a small chick, who looked up at her with bleary black eyes, the little chick shivering from head to toe. "Shhh," Starrynight comforted, reaching out a wing to shield the pullet from the rain, looking around. Seeing no sign of the chick's parents through the shadowy labyrinth of fog and foliage, she sighed heavily and patted the black chick gently while whispering, "It's okay, sweetie, mommy's here..."
