[Trade] Best Wing Forward

The skies over Isla Kela were clear and the air currents were buoyant as the scouting party set out on their mission. As usual, Magnolia took the lead, her two followers completing a small V formation behind her. She kept her eyes shut for a while, letting the wind rush past her, caressing her face and crest, lifting her wings and carrying her along. The weight of the mission was not lost on her, but she was committed to enjoying every second of flight the skies gifted to her. Around her neck she carried a selection of fruits from their roost, peace offerings for their new neighbours. The finest of lychee had been bartered for with the fiendish parrots that lived further into the rainforest, while the rest had been obtained with good old fashioned hard work from the flock, herself excluded of course. Magnolia was used to being a representative for the flock but she always felt a spark of pride when she was chosen to make the first impression. The honour was all hers, and Callisto and Dion's of course.

She looked back briefly to her young leader, watching the blue mottled Tapejara take in the land below them as they flew. She was so wide eyed and naive, it was sometimes troubling to know she was the leader of so many. Still, she trusted the wisdom of the stars and trusted Callisto in turn. Dion cleared his throat loudly to catch their attention. 

“My lady,” he addressed Callisto, “I can see their flock below us.” Both Tapejaras turned their heads downward to follow Dion's line of sight. Magnolia squinted and could just about make out small narrow shapes moving around on the ground. They were traveling in a single file across the grasslands, stopping every minute or so before renewing their trek with haste. 

“We should..” Callisto trailed off and looked over at her mentor.

“We should land in front of them and walk towards them, to give up our natural advantage and show we are approaching on their terms,” Magnolia explained patiently.

“That makes sense, um, I mean yes, that's what we'll do,” Callisto tried to finish her order confidently. Magnolia nodded serenely, no point in chastising her for trying her best. Now was the time to fumble, not in front of the Oviraptors while making their first impression. Dion took the lead as they landed, scanning their surroundings to check for danger. He completed a back and forth and circled a few more times for good measure before he signalled to the others to touch down. They landed softly and gathered themselves before the Oviraptors could cross their path.

“You have the fruit?” Magnolia asked.

“Of course,” Callisto responded and shook her bag. Dion raised a wing to reveal the bag hung around his neck.

“And you have your speech ready?” she asked Callisto specifically. The young Tapejara looked nervous but nodded. She opened her beak to begin reciting the simple friendly sentences but Magnolia waved her off.

“No need, we practised at home. Well then, shall we walk to meet them or stay here?” Even this seemed to be a question worth a long consideration from Callisto. She began to bring up the pros and cons of each, wondering if approaching would be too intimidating, or if staying in place would be too standoffish. By the time she finished fretting, the first few crests were emerging over the hill.

“They’re here, my lady,” Dion informed her flatly. He kept his body as relaxed as he could, fighting his instinct to stand in front of his leader to protect her. He needn’t have worried, as the second the raptors saw the three of them waiting in their path they all froze stiff. They didn’t run, yet, but their wide eyes were locked on to the trio and their claws gripped the pouches around their bodies protectively.

“Greetings!” Callisto called from their safe distance. The raptors stayed in their defensive positions but didn't flee. There was a chance they would hear them out. “We're your new neighbours, we brought you some fruit as a gift!” The flock of Oviraptors looked around at each other before it seemed they wordlessly chose a speaker. 

A grey and black Oviraptor stepped forward, his claws clasped nervously. He had an impressive crest, a fan of feathers that rose as he tried to look confident in front of the newcomers. The red paint on his neck formed a winding vine of flowers in a dense crimson pigment. He was certainly majestic, even if his nervous demeanour detracted from that slightly.

“We are the Oviraptors of the underground, we gratefully accept your gifts,” he announced. He walked forward with the rest of the flock and they gently took the bags of fruit from the Tapejaras. The Ovis peeked inside, taking out the fruit and turning it over in their claws. One of them took the first brave bite, encouraging the others to do the same. Now they were convinced they weren’t being poisoned, the atmosphere became far less tense between the groups, allowing them to mingle fully.

“It’s wonderful to meet you,” Magnolia said warmly, trying to hide the suspicion she felt towards these strange outsiders, “Underground you say? You came from the labs on the other island?” The Oviraptor looked instantly unsettled by her question, his head twitching side to side to try and silently consult with his brethren.

“We don’t know the lab,” he laughed anxiously, “We are here to sow seeds.” This was enough of a distraction for Callisto to stick her beak in.

“Seeds? For what kind of plants? Can we see them?” She asked with such sincere enthusiasm it was contagious, causing the speaking raptor to open his pouch and withdraw a handful of the seeds. 

“All kinds of seeds,” he said proudly, letting them fall through his claws and back into the pouch. “We’re planting them all across the islands.” Magnolia’s eyes narrowed at that. She wasn’t unfamiliar with agriculture but these raptors seemed to be scattering their seeds to the wind, unlike the careful rows of Dacentrurus farming. She was prevented from inquiring further by her leader’s interruption.

“How interesting! Why are you doing that?” she asked plainly. The Oviraptor withdrew again, a shadow falling over his expression.

“I cannot say,” he replied shortly. At Callisto's crestfallen expression he hurried to add, “But if you would like to join us you can help us sow seeds! We’ll be stopping at The Arch for a while.” Callisto was about to reply but Dion cut her off this time.

“Perhaps another time, we must return home before the rest of the flock get worried,” he stated, making meaningful eye contact.

“Ah, yes... of course, we must be going,” Callisto said regretfully, “I’m sure we’ll see you again soon though!” With a final friendly parting, the three Tapejaras took to the skies again. 

“Not a bad first impression,” Magnolia sighed, “I’m not sure I would call them trustworthy just yet.”

“You’re just saying that because they were actually interesting,” Callisto snapped, clearly upset at her day out being cut short. The older Tapejara didn’t rise to the aggression and took her usual position at the head of their formation. She had much to think about when they returned home, she couldn’t let Callisto’s pecking bother her.