Of A Feather

The leaves were coming back to the deciduous forests of Kela, making Dart heave a sigh of relief. Soon it would be easier to move across the island, no longer needing to stick to the pine trees like sap stuck to the bark. And the way her feathers stuck to the sap too, she thought, looking back at the small bald patch on her thigh where she had leaned against a trunk to rest. As she emerged from the barren trees and their struggling green buds, she kept her head on a swivel to watch for signs of anyone nearby. On high alert, she easily spotted the Utahraptor sitting alone in the small clearing and shrank back into the trees. Where there was one raptor, there was usually more and Dart’s breathing began to quicken. The raptor was facing in her general direction, there was no way she hadn't been spotted. Still, the raptor didn’t move, and didn't react to her presence.

She looked up at the sky, seeing dark grey clouds, swollen with the threat of rain. It wasn't the cornflower blue of a clear spring sky that was disguising her at least. Still she tilted her head, her feathers cocked to the side. Why hadn't this raptor seen her yet? She watched for a while, allowing her head to emerge more and more from the dense brush. Her thick feathers, not yet shed from their denser winter plumage, muffled the sound of her body moving as she rose to her full height, entirely exposed above the knee. And still the raptor made no noise, no movement towards her, didn't even turn her head in her direction. Dart was about to back away into the woods when something snapped underfoot, a branch or something similar. It was a short, quiet snap but it was enough to make the raptor jolt upwards and look towards the woods.

“I know you're out there. I can h- I can see you so you'd better turn tail and head back where you came from,” the raptor said loudly. It had to be, Dart thought to herself, this raptor was blind. She certainly wasn't inconspicuous herself, her eyes glowed and scattered across her flank, flecks glowed as well, barely visible in the daylight. Dart imagined her glowing under the moonlight alone and suddenly her stomach flipped. Was this raptor maybe hunted as well? The way she had been for the saturated blue of her feathers? She was being so defensive telling Dart to back off despite not knowing exactly where she was, who she was, what her plans were, maybe this raptor had encountered just as much hardship as Dart had in her life. She decided for once, she was going to be the one to make the first move. She stepped out onto the grass. Making her step loud, conspicuous, almost shaking the earth beneath her with the intent of her step. The raptor froze and turned her head towards where Dart was standing at last. 

“I can hear you. I know where you are, are you looking for a fight?” she hissed, her blank eyes facing dead ahead and her head tilting to the side as she assessed the larger theropod's approach.

“I know, I’m not here to fight,” Dart reassured her, “I uh- I’m peaceful, I don’t want to cause you any trouble I’m just passing through.” The raptor’s face twisted with suspicion and readjusted her stance, still ready to fight or flee at a moment’s notice.

“Just passing through?” she asked cautiously.

“Exactly, I was more worried about you coming after me than anything else,” Dart admitted nervously.

“Why would I?” the raptor asked, her head tilted to the side. Definitely blind, Dart thought to herself, she had never had a conversation this long without the other person bringing up the colour of her feathers. The closer she got the more accurately the raptor’s face turned to ‘look’ at her, taking a step back when she realised the larger carnivore was coming to stand next to her.

“I think... maybe for the same reason you thought I was coming after you?” the Alberto guessed. The raptor didn’t respond to that, just made a huffing noise through her nose and turned her face away.

“Get out of here before my pack comes back then, they won’t take kindly to some stranger looming over me,” she said sharply. Dart felt conflicted, normally she’d jump at the chance to escape interacting with anyone but this encounter was so unusual, she felt like she was being treated like any normal Alberto instead of some periwinkle freak. No creepy comments about how her kids would look, no random proposals, no attempt at plucking her plumage or taking her entirely captive. She craved more, selfishly she wanted to keep this feeling going for longer.

“Could I get your name?” she asked softly, too nervous to raise her voice any louder. The raptor frowned again before she shook her head and her expression softened. 

“Godiva,” she replied simply.

“Dart,” she responded eagerly, “I hope we cross paths again one day Godiva, it was nice to talk to someone like this, even just for a little while.” She turned tail and left before Godiva could reply again, already feeling flushed and embarrassed at how frank she had been.