Somewhere Under a Tree.....
Two Pigeons pitched about on the grass, under a tree. Both of them looked quietly at the ground. There was something in the grass that they were observing....
"Look, if you just taste it. Just one little taste. I promise you, you'll never go back to those, those- "The Pigeon rose one of its wings, making a perplexed expression and fanning off something he had a distaste for.
"Those measly grains and seeds and and and- them light things. Lightweight. Uhhh...what do you call those soft colorful things you love again?" The first Pigeon asked.
The second Pigeon rolled his eyes and sighed, exhausted. He decided that his friend would never confirm to his way of eating. He was a city Pigeon visiting the country after all. His diet was bound to be far different than his...
"You mean fruits?" The second one said, correcting him.
"Yes!! Those things. God, disgusting!! They have no meat you know?? It's not very filling. I know your sooo in love with your seeds and your fruit but just try something different huh? You need protein on them bones, and this here is the source a that. And its mighty delicious!!It's so sooo good" he suggested. There was something laying on the ground in front of them. Both of the Pigeons stood there, the pigeon from the city pointing to what was on the ground.
"Go on, go on! Just try it! You promised you would" he insisted, pointing to it. The pigeon sighed, turning his head away from it. The thing he wanted him to eat was so vile, so putrid, he was sure he would die after ingesting it.
The second pigeon promised his new city friend that he would try to eat meat, something he had never done before. They had a deal. He would try something fruity, and the other pigeon would in exchange try something meaty. Unfortunately, things were not working as planned. The country pigeon barely managed to get Mr. town to eat just a pinch of mango because he found the texture of it strange, but he did try it like he said he would.
Now it was his turn to eat something that his new buddy advised him to. He made an oath that he would do as told, but now, just what his buddy wanted him to eat, every once of him regretted making that promise. He could kick himself for having done such an outrageous thing. Why would he promise to eat meat, when his days were filled with sitting in fruit trees taking nice, chunky juicy bites from a scrumptious apple? Or even a sweet peach. Or those ripe, juicy plums..
Not to mention the pumpkin seeds that the old lady was always feeding him in the park. That Human sat there every day to make sure him and his friends got enough food...and it was the best food. Bread, grapes. Papayas and pears were his favorites.
He knew nothing of meat. He didn't know its taste, and he had no desire to even "try" it.
"You gonna try it? Or were you lying to me?? Breaking the promise, you made? And be a bad friend? Cause I can eat this grub all by myself" his companion interjected, bringing him out of his thoughts. The bird sighed, rubbing the temples in his head.
Just fly away. You can just get up and go, right now. Don't you see??? Just leave.. Every thought that came up in the Pigeon's mind was to depart. But he couldn't. He made a promise. And as far as he has known himself, he's never skipped out on a promise.
"Okay okay. Just..... Let me see here" he agreed, surrendering under the pressure. He was a Pigeon of his word after all. He never talked about things and not do them..
The Pigeon forced himself to turn face forward and look at the creature on the ground, his eyes still closed, and his lips folded. Then, he opened them.
There was a dead rat lying in the grass.
The corpse was flat on its stomach, its arms and legs pointed to the four corners of the earth, completely limp. Its fur was spikey and tussled all over, stiff from soggy blood and sweat. Sizeable bruises and scars covered the entirety of its body like a polka dotted dress, except it was filled with swollen, blood-filled jabs. The skin on its back was opened from the nap of the neck to its mid area, white flesh peeking out like a t shirt underneath a zipped down jacket. Three or four green flies were already pitching themselves in its flesh, the rat settled in a pool of its own blood.
The Pigeon turned his head away again, gagging at the feel of puke coming up in his throat. He looked across, seeing how ecstatic his friend was waiting for him to take a bite out of what he viewed a "fresh meal". He swallowed the bile that was rising and cleared his throat.
"Okay!! Ahem. Wh- where did you get this from?" he asked timidly, his beady eyes scanning the rats tethered body from the tip of its fingers to the edge of its tail.
"Well funny story my country friend, but this was a lucky find! I was resting on a lower branch of this tree to see if I could find any rats rummaging about in the grass, and just when I was about to turn off and give up this rat came falling out of the sky! I flew after it and caught it just before it hit the ground, and I rested it under here. I was going to take a bite out of it first but I wanted you to do the honors. It newly died! Still has a bit of warmth in its system. If you're the kinda guy that's funny about that sorta "warm meat cold meat "thing. Doesn't matter to me, cold or warm it's still meat. Have at it!"
When he said that, the Pigeon looked up, far into the heights of this huge tree. The tree extended up into the air, seeming to go on and on and on, reaching so far above he couldn't see the top of it. He began to feel empathy for the poor rat, imaging how horrible it would be to have fallen from so far up. With this many wounds on its body? What horrible things had this rodent had to have gone through to look like this? Just how far had he fallen from? The Pigeon began reasoning with himself, trying to understand the perplex situation that rat had gotten himself into.
What if I was a rat instead of a Pigeon? What if the birds of prey like me, were gunning to eat me at every corner I turned to? What if I was smaller than everyone else so everyone else picked on me for it?? Would I end up like this too? Well, I surely wouldn't want some dusty bird to pick at my body like it's nothing but piece of meat.... The Pigeon was immersed in his thoughts now, placing himself in this creature's position.
"Friend!" The city Pigeon exclaimed, snapping his friend out of his thoughts. He jumped up, startled.
"Yes!! Yes....I'm gonna try just a bit. Just...gimme a minute " The other bird exhaled and closed his eyes, deciding that he would just take one bite out of the part that wasn't covered in blood? Or fur? Or had bones? Or had meat that once encompassed a living, breathing thing that was alive and had a heartbeat. Much like himself... But he had to do it. He promised. The Pigeon inhaled deeply, propping himself up for what he was about to do.
"Here goes nothing...." he said, stretching his wings.
The country bird propped its head down steadily. Closing its eyes, I inched closer and closer to the dead carcass, gradually opening its beak.
If I can just..take one nibble to maybe shut him up?? Just one tiny piece and this whole thing is over...he thought.
As his beak got closer to the dead rat, the pigeon got nervous. He had never eaten something unalived like this before. He figured maybe if he just relaxed with a few breaths... Taking one breath into his lungs to calm his anxiety, a whiff of the dead rodent wafted up his nose. It smelt like putrid feces and a rancid, dead dog that was flattened by a car, left in three-week-old cabbage water. All the senses in his body were affected by it, a feeling of raw disgust vibrating throughout his inner being. At that moment he swore, all his feathers had fallen off.
Without a second's doubt he drew his head back, mortified that he had almost committed what he thought was cannibalism.
"I can't do this. You can have this, this isn't me. I'm gonna throw up now" The repulsed pigeon flew over the dead corpse, taking off and flying away. His city companion stood there, shocked.
"Friend! Bu- friend wait! We can take this in baby steps! You can't just leave good meat like this laying around!! Friend wait!!" he called after his partner as he flew away, jumping over the rat and flapping his wings to take off. He looked back at the food he was about to leave fussily, then looking onwards to where his friend was going.
"Dammit!" he muttered, taking off into the air, hesitantly leaving the rat behind, untouched. Just as the disappointed Pigeon took off, one of its feathers came undone off of its body, rocking back and forth in the air like a lullaby; The short, grey feather kept swaying from side to side, nestling softly on the rodents' head, sliding off and going down on its nose.
After a few minutes, the rodents body began to rise and contract. It did it again, and then it stopped. It started again, and then it stopped.
All at once the rat drew a deep breath in, sucking in all the air around him, gasping for his life. His eyes popped open and he began coughing and sneezing, trying not to do it too deeply for the pain that it was causing his wounds. He sensed that he was laying in something wet. There was something on his nose. Annoyed, he chucked the feather off of his nose and attempted to roll over on his back but couldn't. He tried lifting his arms and his legs. They stayed in the same position, stretched out in the prickly grass that was tickling his underbelly.
"Urrghhhh!! Drats..." Burrow couldn't move, not even for an inch. His entire body was aching, throbbing in palpitating convulsions from the multitude of cuts that enveloped his him. The only thing he could move were his irises, so he looked down, realizing he was resting in a pool of his own blood, sticking to his fur and clogging. The smell of it made him want to puke. He didn't have anything in him for that to come up.. It was all around him, and it was so much...
"How am i..still..alive?" he wondered aloud, straining his mind as he tried to remember the previous events. It was all still fuzzy to him.
Then it came flooding back. He remembered being on the ledge stuck in between the cat and the Eagle. He remembered both threatening each other. He remembered the Eagle flying away into the clear blue sky, and not attacking any of them, even though he was twice To-mas'size and his size combined.
"T-omas!!" Burrow huffed, remembering that despicable, merciless cat who tortured and watched him fall to his death.....the rodent was still confused about something.
"If he let me go from that tree...that tree" He repeated to himself, voice groggy and dry.
"How com- how come I'm still. I'm still...here"
"Because you had Faith, my son"
Burrow heard a sweet, enticing voice behind him. His eyes bolted open at the sound of that voice. It was familiar.
No..it couldn't be. It was impossible.
He began to regain the feeling in his fingers, flinching and moving them. Struggling to twist his neck he lifted his head, rotating it slowly behind him to see if it was who he thought it was.
Mother Mince stood there behind him, only inches away from where he laid. He inched back, frightened at her appearance.
She didn't look the same. Everything on her was..glowing. Like a white cloud or a sheet of fog. It was as if he could see through her, but strangely, he knew, It was her.
Mother Mince's round cheeks bulged up into a warm smile, her saucer eyes filled with light, and love.
"Remember what I told you about Faith my son. It moves mountains. I'm proud of you" The rodent sat there, tearing his brain apart. Her voice sounded like sweet echoes, it also sounded like a whisper, at the same time. He told himself that this had to be an hallucination. This just wasn't real!! But he didn't care if it was or wasn't. He inhaled, trying to gather all the strength in his body, using nothing but share will to talk to her.
"I did what you told me to Mother. I had faith. I did it, just like you said" he uttered softly.
Mother Mince stood there with her hands clasped, taking one last look at her son. Tears began to tether in her eyes and her heart felt heavy, it was time for her to go.
" I know, and I am so very proud of you. Keep going Burrow. Don't stop. I love you....." as she said that her body gradually dispersed into the atmosphere,
Light blue sparkles floated up into the air, ascending and going higher and higher, twinkling like stars. Burrow laid there with his mouth open, in awe of what he was seeing. He blinked his eyes a couple times and decided that he needed to pinch himself to see if this was true. Then, he felt his left arm moving through the blood-soaked soil, connecting with his other arm, and pinching it.
'My body can move again!" he cheered, a weary smile crossing over the corners of his face. He nodded, slowly moving about his feet and arms, shifting his body until he could feel everything.
He looked back at the spot where his mother had shown herself. Salty droplets sat in the ducts of his eyes, and his gut felt like it was an empty, dug out hole. He would never stop missing her, but, he felt a deep warm comfort within, knowing that she was there for him. He couldn't believe it; she was watching him the whole time. She was the reason he was still alive. He had faith and let himself go, and he was still alive. Barely alive, but just enough to get out of here. Now, he had everything he needed. The determined son turned his face to his way out of here, the wooden fence that was at least a hundred feet in front of him. Below it, was a decently sized hole that was big enough to fit three rats, it led to the sidewalk, out in the streets. He found his way out of this hellish yard.
"I'll go through that hole" he decided, closing his eyes and focusing. It took him all the strength he had in his body to get on all four of his limbs. Two meager legs wobbled as he pushed himself off of the ground, his knees buckling as he swore underneath his breath. He kept trying but they did nothing but wobble, while he tried to stand up; inevitably, he fell.
"Come on you four. I know we've been through a lot today, but we can make it through this" Burrow peered down at his legs, viewing them as his babies while he comforted them. He tried again and they failed him.
"Damn! Come on, come on" he urged.
This didn't phase him. As soon as he fell, he got up again, refusing to give up. He would make it to that hole. It was right there. He would get out of this yard.
So, determined as ever, he crawled towards the hole, slowly but surely making his way there.
A FEW MOMENTS LATER
To-mas jumped down from the last limb of the tree onto the grass, finally reaching the ground.
"Ohhhhh how wonderful it is to be on land again!! I hate prickly grass, but I hate trees even more now. Particularly because of -" before finishing the end of his sentence, To-mas saw something from the corner of his eye, something red, painted on the grass.
"Eagles..." He finished, slowly.
The cat perked his ears up, licking the end of his paw and running it over his nose. Lowering his head to the red spot he saw, he sniffed at it, curiously.
He climbed down expecting to see the rat splashed out to nothing but guts, blood and flesh. Instead, there was just a pool of blood, and no body. He wondered if some bird or a predator had scampered off with Burrow's body already.
To-mas continued smelling. He dipped his tongue in the pool, drinking a line of the blood. It was still fresh and definitely Burrows.
"Rat Blood..." he muttered. Immediately, his intuition kicked in. He whipped his head up, scouring the grassy lawn before him.
There was a streak of red going across the green field, stretching all the way to the fence.
"Hmmmm...this better not be another trick" To-mas deduced. Rising up, following the bloody trial.