Fictitious Diary #003
I hadn't thought about keeping a diary before, because I didn't have anything out of the ordinary to write in my diary. Not much happens in my daily life.
Most may fall in the mistake of thinking that I have the life of a prisoner, but no, I'm living a good life. I work as a pet for my employer, keep her company and entertain her; in return, she feeds me, protects me, provides a home for me, and keeps me company. She can even entertain me occasionally.
A few times a week I'm let out of my workplace which people tend to call "a cage". My employer wants me to keep fit. I fly around the room, the hall, the kitchen... and return to the top of my cage, sit there, chat a little.
Every now and then we have guests. I detest the children trying to push their skinny fingers inside the bars of my cage. When I can't take it any more I attack them and they giggle. So my attacks are in vain, they just please the children and make them come for more.
I enjoy some adult conversation. Most adults look silly trying to teach me words of their language. I try to learn a couple, and try teaching some stuff of my own language. I insist for days, but they don't get. I'm already capable of saying seven words of their language, but, good lord, they can't move their beaks the way I do just once.
So not much really happens in my daily life, that was my statement until today.
This was one of the days I went out of my cage. I looked forward to it the whole morning. When I finally got out, the energy I had stocked inside kept me going for a good five minutes. I flew my usual route, the room, the hall, the kitchen, and back to the room, on top of my cage. While I was resting there, watching television -very occupying for a brain size of mine- and looking around, the phone rang out there somewhere. My employer ran to the direction of the ring as usual. Although I was just done exercising, I tried to fly after her, but my poor tired wings dropped me on the back of the closest armchair, so I sat there, waiting.
My employer ran to the end of the hall, and entered some place I never knew existed. All this time I had supposed there was a wall at that end, and now I saw some huge opening. I was stunned, shocked... intrigued. I was planning to go back to my cage and nibble on my favorite seeds, but this new thing took hold of all the brains I had. I sat there, almost motionless.
A few seconds later, my employer returned with the phone in her hand, opened the front door to the garden, went out, and closed the door from behind, afraid that I might fly through it. But she left that other door, gate to the unknown, open! I forgot all about my tired wings and started flying towards this new exit from my daily routine. When I was half way through the hall, my wings started to shake and I felt dizzy. I gathered all the energy left in me, closed my eyes tightly, and flapped my wings as rapidly as I could.
Peeping through my left eye I realized that I had just passed the gate. This place was another room, much brighter than the one I lived in. I couldn't believe how I didn't know this room existed. This end of the hall was out of my view from where my cage was located, and the door was never open when I was out exercising.
I landed on the first smooth surface I could make out. It felt pretty much like the armchair we had inside. There was a huge bed inside, so this was where my employer spent her nights. I was still too tired to take off and get to know my surroundings. All I could do was to hop on the spot and turn around. That is how I met him, my rival.
He stood right across from me, at the other end of the room. At first I couldn't be sure if he noticed me. He was looking at me, right in the eye, but his stare was a blank one. Perhaps he was as surprised as I was.
i couldn't understand any of this. My employer was keeping another lovebird in her bedroom and I didn't know about it. She didn't want me to know about him. He was an ugly one, too! His feathers were messy. They made him look like a chick more than a love bird. Why was he here? Was it pity that made my employer keep this... thing? In her bedroom, why in her bedroom? Perhaps he was feeling all special and proud for he got to live in the bedroom with the employer, spending all the night near her, without any interruptions.
The room was much larger than the one I lived in. It was brighter because it had bigger windows. Unlike what I thought, there were two huge beds in the room. There were too many things to look at, lots of clothes, some plants I could chew on, and pretty little things that shone like stars. If it had been some other time, I wouldn't have hesitated to go, look at them closely. But I was occupied with this sudden enemy I had to encounter.
Suddenly it struck me, there was no cage! This son of a beak was free all the time. The whole time I stayed in my cage, barely getting the chance and the space to stretch my wings, he was out, free, flying in the room. With no arrogant guests or no stupid kids coming at him, trying to touch his beak, his head, catch his fingers, he lived as he pleased. This wasn't fair, this wasn't what I deserved. Who did this ghastly creature think he was dealing with?!
I couldn't hold myself back much more. I just wanted to fly over there and peck the life out of him. He was much smaller than me. It was going to be easy to beat him up. I yelled out, "hey". He looked back, restless on his spot. At first I thought he was scared that his secret was finally out, but no, he was hopping up and down just like me. What was he thinking of? Attacking me? It was very much so.
I was too worked up to stay on my spot. My body was still worn out because of the flight from the living room, but my anger rushed all my blood to my wings, and I took off. I flew right at him. Amazingly that little nibbler took off and started flying at me. The room was large alright, but we were getting close to each other by the second. I was sure he would move away any minute. No coward living like that, hiding away, could face a real bird. This encounter was a test of courage, and he would fail it.
With each flap of my wing, I got closer to him. His face was only inches away and neither one of us was about to move, I wasn't. I had no power left in me, I was feeling dizzy again, but I couldn't get away now. "If this means dropping dead on the floor, let it be", I said to myself, and flew right into him.
That is the last thing I can recall, the crash. We crashed in the air, head to head. It was almost as bad as the time I had hit the window in the other room when the shades were open and I didn't know about the windows at all. I passed out on the spot, right after the crash, mid air. I must have fallen down, he must have fallen down with me, that beast.
A couple hours ago, I found myself back in my cage, lying on a bunch of soft stuff. I opened my eyes to meet the eyes of my employer. I was -and still am- feeling sore all over, and she was the one person responsible for what I had been through. Still, she got all excited when she saw I was coming around. Perhaps she wasn't expecting me to recover at all, and I wasn't likely to get up and hop around any time soon. When I tried to raise my head, her hand reached to pat me. Even though it hurt greatly, I was relieved by her touch. My anger slowly subsided as I heard her saying over and over, "I should've gotten rid of that damn mirror." Yes, she should've.
I wanted to say so much in return, but I kept my words for later. The worried look on her face said she would be staying by my side for a long time. As for Mirror, who knows? Perhaps the poor damn chick is still lying on the floor where he fell after the crash.
- Cloudy, The Lovebird
Feb 27, 2008
