Metal and Squeaky Birds

It was the sudden loud clatter of many creatures moving by at once that first caught the attention of the three tapejaras. Oboe had been the one to notice it first- in the dead of winter, you rarely saw other creatures, especially at night- but for some reason there was a whole herd of parasaurolophus traveling excitedly, loudly whispering to each other. The tapejara thought nothing of it- only to be awoken once again by a pack of raptors following in the exact same direction. However, it wasn't until she had been woken up thrice more by different species that she finally felt irritated enough to investigate, nudging her mate and chick awake before taking off in flight. It was a calm, winter night, easy for the three to fly through as they ignored the stinging chill on their wings. The calm weather made it easy for them to track the footprints, too, even as they moved closer and closer to human structures. Bassoon chirped to himself in curiosity as they flew- the footprints were clearly from several different species and groups, merging together onto one path. What could they be here for, in the middle of winter?

The three soon found out as they came across a building in the human city bustling with activity- dinosaurs of all species trailed in and out, chatting and celebrating- and not one sign of bloodshed anywhere. “What's that?” Clarinet chirped, hovering between his parents and gazing at the entrance curiously. “Ive never seen so many dinosaurs…” The juvenile was amazed at the sight before her, like nothing he had ever seen before.

“Not sure.” Bassoon admitted, before tilting his head. The scent of food and the sound of cheerful conversation was a draw, causing him to learn forward from the top of a nearby building they had landed on. “Seems interesting… think we should go in?”

Oboe hummed, yellow eyes scanning the festivals before her for any sign of a trick. Things had been tense lately, ever since the war- even with the agreement made, things were far from over. Far too many had been hurt for it to be simply brushed off- but from her position, she could catch a glimpse of both the newcomers and more familiar species coexisting side by side without a fight. Was this a sign of change to come?  “Why not?” The grey flyer chirped, spreading her wings and swooping towards the entrance. “At least it will be interesting.”

The three managed to swoop through the wide entrance, large in its prime and likely made even bigger by wear and tear. Things were even more packed inside, with even a few massive acrocanthosaurus inside taking up quite the bit of space. Thankfully, the ceiling was quite high, allowing the three tapejaras to keep well out of the way. A few other flying creatures swooped around, but they all seem to have their own goal in mind; the family was left unbothered.

“Which way?” Bassoon was quick to ask as they scanned the room. There seemed to be two main passageways that most creatures were going- to the left, or to the right.

“Clarinet, you pick.” Oboe suggested, nudging her son softly. The juvenile startled, before looking around with an intense expression. 

“Hmmm…. right!” The juvenile chirped, before taking off. His parents followed close behind, following their chick as they weaved through the halls. It wasn't long before they entered the larger room, the three pausing in confusion as they took in the strange sight before them. 

The room they had emerged into was huge, with a high reaching ceiling that had suffered its fair share of wear and tear. Strange metal human creations littered the room, large and still in fair condition after all this time. But that wasn’t the strangest part- that was the wings each machine had, eerily reminiscent of their own. Some of the creations were even crashed upon the ground, as if they had fallen from the air mid flight.

“C-could these fly?” Clarinet blurted out in shock, looking across the room in a mix of horror and amazement. Her parents had no answer for her, stuck in their own shock. But someone nearby did.

“Yep!” A bright, cheery voice answered as a large tropeognathus swooped nearby, landing on top the nearest metal thing. “Welcome… to the metal bird yard!” She spread her wings for dramatic effect. “I'm Daybreak, one of the managers here at the festival! Legends say, long ago, humans made these metal birds to fly through the air- of course, this is all we have left, so we’ll never know for sure.” The larger flyer shook her head, before seemingly brightening up. “Im in charge of one the games here, but the other booths are much busier.” Indeed, now that the tapejara were paying attention, they noticed what they had missed at first glance- the room had numerous strange games run by various creatures, with visitors loudly cheering and partaking in them. “Would you be interested in my booth? I promise it's fun- you can win tickets which you can trade for prizes!”

“Prizes?” Clarinet squeaked, before looking over at his parents in excitement. “Oh, can we? Please, please please?”

Oboe looked at Basson, who sighed. Damn, they couldn’t refuse him now, could they? “Alright, alright.” The purple tapejara fluttered his wings, before looking at Daybreak. “Just what is this game? Is it dangerous?”

“Oh, it's perfectly safe… come on! Follow me, my booth is this way.” The tropeognathus took into the air, and three tapejaras were quick to scramble her after a moment of hesitation. The larger flyer led them to the back of the room, where a large pool full of water had been set up. Various objects lazily floated around in the water, a mix of random trash and a single small, vaguely bird shaped yellow object floated. “The object you want to grab is the yellow one- its called a‘squeaky bird’. Humans seemed to use them as some form of entertainment in the water. In order to win, you must soar above the water and grab onto them without grabbing any trash! Who wants to go first?”

Clarinet was about to eagerly raise his wing, but Oboe cut him off with a firm “I will.” She felt some guilt for cutting off her son, but she had to make sure it was safe for him, first, before allowing him to go ahead. The grey tapejara perched on the edge of the pool, before sending a glance Daybreak's way. A nod, and she was off- darting into the air, so close to the water's surface that she left behind a trail. Eyes narrowed, she flew around patiently, waiting for a clear path. While it would have been oh so simple to simply dive in and grab the first ‘squeaky duck’ she saw, she had some desire to show off for her family. Finally, she made her move- thrusting her head forward, she snagged her beak around one of the yellow objects before raising it from the water. A cheer rang out from the side as she brought it back, dropping it at Daybreaks feet with a smug look. 

“Excellent!” Daybreak grinned, grabbing the squeaky bird and tossing it back in. “Now, who's next?”

“ME! ME! MEMEME!” Clarinet shrieked, shivering in excitement and leaping into the air as soon as Daybreak nodded, flapping above the water. Oboe took her place back by Basson's side, leaning against him as they watched their son flail around in the water. He nearly grabbed garbage various times and ended up fully dunking herself, but eventually he succeeded in grabbing the prize. “LUOK! LOU-” Clarinet screeched around the yellow object clasped in his beak, only dropping it once both of his parents had cheered their approval. “Your turn, dad!”

Basson signed good-naturedly. “Do I have to?” He yelped once Clarinet nipped at his feathers. “Alright, alright!” The purple tapejara took into the air with great, lazy flaps, eyeing the water below him. Unlike his mate and son, he wasted little time in looking good- instead, he simply dove down, grabbing the squeaky bird in his claws. It let out a pathetic little sound as he grabbed it, causing him to chuckle as he brought it back to the booth. “One squeaky bird.” He presented it to Daybreak, who took it with a smile.

“Great! You all managed to get the squeaky!” Daybreak grinned, before returning to her booth and digging out a clawful of red bits of paper. “Your tickets!” She handed them to Clarinet, who shrieked in delight. “You can spend them at the entrance, or you can play more games and earn more! Your choice.” The sudden appearance of a suchomimus nearby caught the flyers attention, leaving the small family to themselves.

“Mom! Dad! Can we play more?” Clarinet clutched the tickets close, looking at his parents excitedly. Bassoon and Oboe shared a look- one of affection, and even some excitement themselves.

“Oh, why not.” Bassoon chirped, nudging against his son with his beak. “As long as you let me pick the next one!”