Meteor x Axel

The branches of a still quite young, towering tree shook violently, rustling with leaf buds. Winter was slowly fading into oblivion, and nature was beginning to revive after a long period of capricious weather. However, it still had a lot of work to do.

Among the branches covered with rough bark, other, much smoother, elongated structures were also visible - impressive blue-black claws. Contrary to expectations, these fearsome daggers did not belong to a predator. Quite the opposite - they belonged to a young female therizinosaurus. Meteor, as this herbivore craving juicy green leaves was called, leisurely enjoyed her meal, relishing the peace and quiet that reigned around her.

This unusual silence was the result of how drastically Meteor's herd had dwindled in recent weeks. Courtship season was in full swing, so practically every adult wanted to take advantage of it. Staying in a large herd was not conducive to romance (after all, who would want to lose their partner because they found a better candidate?), so the group split into many small groups and individual pairs.

Meteor remained in the same territory. She wasn't particularly determined to find a mate, so she decided not to overexert herself in her search. If a suitable candidate came to her, she might consider raising offspring with him, but she wasn't going to take the initiative herself.

~*~

Axel wandered among the trees covered with two-coloured bark, blending in quite well with the mottled surroundings – after all, most of his body was also covered with brown spots and streaks against an off-white base. He had only been in the area for less than a week, moving around practically every day without any particular purpose. He was alone.

He didn't really know what he was looking for – a new source of tasty food? A better place to live? Companionship? All his steps were more or less random. He wouldn't have disdained any of these things, but did any of them interest him particularly?

He was aware that most of his fellow creatures were currently focused on finding a mate for the courtship season. The prospect was tempting, Axel couldn't deny it, but he saw one problem with it all – his chances were rather slim. Axel was still young and completely inexperienced (he had only been considered an adult for two or three months), so few females would be interested in him.

During his recent chaotic expeditions, he repeatedly smelled other terizinosaurus. Some traces were certainly at least a few days old, while others, on the contrary, were disturbingly fresh. However, the tracks he found always had one thing in common: the intriguing scent of females was unmistakably accompanied by the scent of males, their partners. Axel, regardless of his interest in the courtship season, did not want to risk fighting a much more experienced and stronger rival, so he never risked such an encounter.

At one point, however, hope appeared for him. During his numerous walks, in an unspecified part of the forest, he sensed something he had never found before – the scent of a female that was not accompanied by the scent of her potential partner. The tracks pointed to a small, quite unusual herd, consisting of one fully grown individual (the mysterious female) and several juveniles milling around her, probably in search of safety and companionship. This was his chance.

Axel did not even know what his potential mate looked like or who she was, but he was not interested in that at the moment. First, he had to find her, and only then would it be time to make any serious decisions.

However, the task was not so simple for one reason – it was not appropriate to show up to a potential partner without a gift (especially if you were a young male who was not yet likely to make a big impression on females). So Axel had to find something that would increase his chances.

He was aware that most males chose something that could be used to build a nest as a gift. However, there were several difficult problems to overcome. Firstly, the young male was not the strongest - spending a lot of time collecting materials and then dragging them all around while searching for the mysterious female was out of the question. Axel's body simply would not have been able to handle it. There was also a second, equally embarrassing issue – there was no hiding the fact that Axel simply did not know what would be a good foundation for building a nest. In fact, he had never even seen a nest up close. He could guess what would be appropriate, but his chances were slim.

However, another idea came to his mind, one that was much easier to implement. A gift of food! Who wouldn't be tempted by a delicious, free meal? During his wanderings, Axel had found several good feeding grounds, one of which was even nearby. It was a spreading, probably quite old tree with branches densely covered with red fruit. The male had already had the opportunity to try them — they were juicy and pleasantly sweet. The perfect gift.

The path to the tree, which was going to ensure his success, was short (after all, Axel did not waste a moment and walked at a brisk pace). The male gradually picked the fruit from the branches, which were laden and bending under the weight. When a large pile had gathered at his feet, the male impaled them one by one on all his claws, creating a rather peculiar skewer out of himself.

The next step was to find the female. This was not going to be difficult either – her scent was strong in the area, so she had to be nearby. Tracking her down should not be difficult.

The male was not mistaken. His search soon led him to a part of the forest where the trees grew more densely, but at the same time, the areas of dense vegetation were separated by small clearings. It was in one of them that he found his potential mate.

The male emerged from behind the trees slowly and without sudden movements, signalling that he was not a threat. Meteor, who until then had been standing calmly almost in the middle of the clearing, flinched reflexively, surprised by the visit of this unexpected guest. However, most of the tension left her when she realised that she was standing in front of a representative of her own species. The remnants of negative emotions evaporated when the female realised that the male's claws looked like skewers. Meteor instinctively burst out laughing at this sight. However, it was not a cynical laugh, but a simple, joyful and surprised giggle.

The male, despite being clearly young (it was undoubtedly his first courtship season), looked quite respectable. He had shiny, well-maintained feathers and was well-fed – he knew how to take care of himself. He was a little embarrassed by this sudden encounter, but every time he looked directly at the female, Meteor saw a sharp gleam in his eyes.

Axel, seeing the female's slight smile, which echoed her relaxation, dared to come closer, proudly (though somewhat clumsily) displaying his claws. Only now did he notice that the feathers on his front limbs were sticky with sweet fruit juice. It didn't look very good.

Meteor, however, clearly did not pay attention to such details. She was intrigued by the male's determination - after all, he was the one who found her and brought her a tasty gift. He seemed like quite an interesting character.

This is how a new pair was formed this season.