The four geese stared down at Drifter until Jake carefully stepped down the hill waddling down to see if he could somehow help him. Still, when he stood over him, no words were spoken by anyone.
“Are you okay?” Jake softly asked staring down at the bird splayed on his back.
Drifter looked at him for just a second before he erupted into laughter.
Liza then pushed through Ki and Ack and scurried down to join Jake saying, “Of course he is hurt! Can you get up?”
Drifter looked up at her before he answered, “I haven’t tried. My wing hurts so I was just laying here listening to everything going on. The eagle must have been something else.”
“What?” Liza leaned down to look directly into his eyes.
Jake stepped closer to her and nudged her side and whispered to her, “Back off…”
Liza rose her head until it reached its outstretched maximum height and glared at the dark colored goose beside her. Jake did not move a feather as he simply turned his head to face her and glared back at her. The two of them stood this way for what seemed like forever as if everything around them just stopped and nothing but them existed.
While they stared at each other, Ki hurried down with Ack following closely behind.
“Jake,” Ki softly spoke to his friend. “It is okay. Do not let it get to you. Ignore this. Everyone is just stressed out from the blackbirds. It isn’t worth it. Come on, Buddy, calm down.”
Jake slowly turned his head to look at Ki. The two of them exchanged a knowing glance between them and Jake nodded. He looked down at Drifter as Liza lowered her head and stepped back from the other geese. Drifter tried to roll on the side opposite his injured wing. Ack and Ki edged themselves behind him and placed their foreheads on his back and pushed until he was on his stomach. Drifter then pulled his good wing from beneath his body, pulled his feet beneath his body while pushing his forehead into the ground. He slowly rose and balanced himself upright. He stood, carefully tucking his injured wing into his side, and turned to face them and smiled at them.
“Thanks,” he looked at all of them including Liza. “I appreciate the help.”
“How do you feel?” Ki asked as he intently examined the goose with the bright white chest.”
“Sore. The wing hurts but I don’t think it is broken just twisted,” Drifter responded.
“Can you go up this hill? It would be better if we get into the clearing for the night. We can eat and rest better up there,” Ack added to the conversation.
“Now you’re talking. All this extra activity has made me hungry!” Drifter stepped forward and strode up the slope that he had flipped down earlier. The others looked at each other, shrugged and followed him. They formed a crooked line up the hill with Liza not quite following but apart. Jake was the final goose in the parade, and he was studying Liza more closely. When they reached the top of the short incline, they spread out and headed for the far side of the clearing. The large eagle was clutching the same branch he had landed on at the end of the incident. Additionally, a small brown bird had joined him and was sitting on a branch above the large white-headed brown bird.
Drifter trudged to a bush that was loaded with berries and hastily began to pluck them into his mouth. The other four settled beneath the eagle.
“He is a bit sore and he hurt a wing,” Ki spoke not looking up.
“Hmmm,” Protector acknowledged the report. “Can he fly?”
“We don’t know,” Liza answered this time.
“And if he can’t?” the eagle continued.
The answer was silence. Liza rose to her feet and began to pace back and forth around them. Ack watched her pace while Ki ignored her.
“I think we rest here tonight and decide what to do in the morning,” Ack offered.
Ki nodded in agreement. Jake remained silent but he watched Liza out of the corner of his eye anticipating the possibility of a problem with her.
“Jake, what do you think?” Ack asked him.
Jake raised his head continuing to watch Liza and answered, “Whatever Ki thinks?”
Liza turned to face Jake and challenged him, “You cannot make up your own mind! First, you protect a coward and now you cannot even answer a simple question. You can never be a Leader much less a good Leader!”
Jake rose to face her immediately stepping in front of Ki.
The eagle spread his wings and glided down between them and asked, “What is going on?”
“Stay out of this!” Liza screamed at the large bird in front of her. “Drifter tripped down that hill and laid there just waiting out the attack. He is a coward and this one chooses to defend him.
“I am defending you!” the eagle stepped closer to her lowering his head and slightly turned it to stare at her with one eye.
“Okay, okay,” Ki had gotten up and edged between the two birds. “We all need to rest. I agree with Ack, we will eat, rest, and make a decision in the morning.”
Protector turned from Liza and looked at KI closely. Eventually, he nodded in agreement, flapped his wings, and rose above them disappearing into the night sky.
The sparrow flitted back and forth on the same branch, not saying a word, and watched at the birds below him. Three geese turned from the one goose and headed toward the one who was eating berries from a bush. The remaining goose huffed and waddled in the opposite direction. He saw the larger group of birds pick at the berries and begin to settle beneath the bushes. The lone goose plucked a few berries from the far end of the clearing, occasionally staring at the others. Finally, the smaller gray goose separated from the larger group and slowly walked toward the larger white goose. A short distance from the lone white goose, the smaller one simply sat down and started whispering. He continued watching as the goose rose to its feet and returned to the other three. The remaining goose slowly stopped pacing back and forth and slowly drudged toward the other geese. The goose walked in front of the others. One laughed at her and then groaned as if in pain, another averted his eyes and simply shook his head, The goose who talked to the loner said something and the last goose sat down, slightly separated from the others and tucked its head beneath a wing. The goose sitting to the left of the speaker rose and walked to the right and sat down between the loner and the gray goose. The loner goose raised its head from beneath its wing and looked at the goose that just sat down. That goose simply raised its head a little higher in response. The lone goose nodded and re-tucked its head beneath its wing. The sparrow stopped flitting back and forth and whispered to himself, “What am I going to tell Deke?”
To be continued…
My First Stories 