A "Winds of Change" Story
I didn't want to be interviewed, not particularly. Truthfully, there was a time when I would have loved it. I would have jumped at the chance. But since the Change I'd felt like the center of attention too many times.
But, I had a feeling that it was going to be easier to get this done now rather than hideout until the riot became old news. "Okay, let's get it over with."
Jon's mom nodded and walked back to the front door. Jon and I took a moment and cleared away most of the junk leftover from the cabinet in the room and tossed it into a hidden corner.
We both had our backs to the entryway when the reporter and cameraman walked in. I saw Jon's head come up slightly and turn to me, like he was about to say something, when the reporter suddenly said, "Mr. Sleeper, Mr. Coe! I'm Kimberly Moss, from Channel 8 news."
I turned and suddenly knew that the interview was going to be...interesting to say the least. Not being from the area, I'd never seen her before. She was the first other bald eagle morph I'd ever met. She wasn't a high degree, and she wasn't flighted, but she had the same distinct coloration. Her arms more resembled wings than arms. I had a feeling I knew why she was assigned this story.
For the first time I realized just how much I changed. I felt my heart skip a beat.
But it was the cameraman that brought me more than a little pause. He was another buck. Not a whitetail, he was darker colored than Jon, but he was another buck nonetheless. I stole a look at Jon. He looked like he had himself under control, but I could see more than a little worry in his face.
My attention went back to the reporter. "Nice to meet you."
She shook my talon. "Very nice to meet you.", she turned to Jon, "And you as well, Mr. Sleeper"
"Jon's fine."
I could see the cameraman start to breath a little harder, like he was fighting something. "Should I set up here, Kim?"
Kim's eyes flipped from my to Jon and back to me. "Is that all right with you?"
We both nodded. Jon settled on the couch and I crouched down on the floor next to him. I found myself looking at Moss rather intently, as if I could do anything else. Mrs. Sleeper pulled a stool from the kitchen and set it up for her. Like me, she had tail feathers that were difficult to fit through a normal chair, even one designed for tails. "Thanks."
She hung a portable microphone from around her neck and hid it under her feathers. Then she walked over and did the same with me. I found my heart skipping a little and breathing increasing as she adjusted it. I knew that birds didn't have pheromones to worry about, but it was the first time that I'd ever been in close quarters with a female of my new species. I wasn't feeling any overriding urges, nothing like Jon had gone through with Grace, but more the sinking feeling that I was going to say something stupid.
I glanced over at Jon. The cameraman had started hanging a microphone around his neck. Jon wasn't having much of a problem, though his ears were moving back a little. I was more worried about the other guy. He looked more like Jon did the other night. His nostrils were flaring and his ears were beginning to lay straight back. I glanced over at Mrs. Sleeper, who seemed to be catching on that something was out of the ordinary.
But I knew that Jon hadn't told his mother about the other night. I didn't know how much she was aware of.
I wasn't sure how to make the point delicately that we were on the verge of watching Wild Kingdom in the living room. I could have come right out and said it, but I didn't know how the cameraman would react. For that matter, I wasn't sure how Jon would react. He'd become increasingly touchy. I didn't want to say something to his face. So, I started faking a coughing fit.
I stood. I noticed that Jon, his mother and the cameraman all winced as I started in. My cough had a bit of screech in it that must not have felt good to them. Moss looked at me, "Are you okay?"
Between fake coughs, I motioned for her to follow me, "Can you give me a hand?" I looked at the other three who were looking at me a little bewildered, "It's a bird thing."
Now Moss was looking at me perplexed.
We walked into the kitchen. I poured a glass of water for myself (my fake coughing had actually made my throat a little raw.) Moss put a hand on my shoulder, "Are you okay? What's wrong?"
I looked back at her. For once, a person who isn't trying to look away from my stare... "Nothing yet." I whispered, "But what on earth possessed you to bring a buck with you?"
She looked perplexed, "What are you talking about? What's wrong with Red? I've known him since before the Change."
Red must have been the cameraman's name. "Have you ever heard of the rut?"
She cocked her head to one side. Then her already intense eyes got a little wider. "Oh my God. I never even considered it. The station manager thought that it would make you more comfortable to be interviewed by..."
Great, another clueless manager. Who said life isn't a Dilbert comic strip? I cut her off, "Look, can you just get him out of here? Discreetly? Jon's had a thin temper the last few days. I think that he can handle himself, but he's told me about this. As long as Red doesn't try something, I think that everything is going to be all right. But I've seen that look on a bucks face before. He's loosing it, fast."
I didn't tell her that the look had been on Jon's face, when he was hanging by a thread a few days before.
Just then, Mrs. Sleeper came in. "I think that you both better get out here. This is getting a little weird."
Moss and I looked at each other and started back into the living room. I saw Jon sitting on the couch, his own ears hovering backward, desperately avoiding looking at Red. I saw Red, his tail straight up in the air and his ears back, staring intently at Jon. I saw Red's tongue move to his nose.
Moss took a step foreword, "Uh, Red? I left my, uh, notes out in the van. Could you..." Her voice trailed off as Red suddenly turned his attention to her and then me.
Then he looked back at Moss and back at me.
I put a hand on her shoulder and leaned to her ear, "How well did you know him Before?" I murmured.
She tilted her head back a little. "We dated for a little while..."
Uh oh. If they dated, then he might see me as a rival...more so than he saw Jon as one. Great, another lovesick buck in a rut. I should have visited Charlie in Berkeley...he's a starling. How much trouble would that have been?
I think that Moss had a similar though. She may not have thought about the rut before, but now she was acutely aware of it. For that matter, I think that everyone in the room was aware of it, just no one knew exactly what to do about it...
Copyright 1997, Brian Eirik Coe
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