[Flights of Fancy] Finding Home 02
May. 28th, 2018 05:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dracoqueen22Title: Finding Home
Characters: Drift, Perceptor, Original Character(s)
Universe: Flights of Fancy, Harpyformers
Rating: M
Enticements: Sexual Content, First Meetings, Friends to Lovers, Love at First Sight
Description: Perceptor’s spent so long among the humans, he’s almost forgotten how much he misses other harpies, until Drift wanders into Kaon, a pretty package of everything Perceptor never knew he wanted.
Chapter Two
Jessica Morgan was the first human to befriend Perceptor. They’d exchanged professional letters for over a year, through a complicated arrangement of a harpy and human mail system, and it was she who had invited Perceptor to come to Kaon.
Back then, Perceptor’s request with Director Compute had been denied. They wouldn’t allow him to continue his research with the humans, or allow the humans to use him as a source. Perceptor had left Tyger Pax illegally, following what he knew in his core to be something he must do.
Science could not be contained by outdated rules and assumptions.
They’d warned him he could be flying into a trap. The journey was long and treacherous enough Perceptor almost believed the naysayers.
But Dr. Morgan greeted him with open arms. She’d arranged a place for him to stay, and had even gathered all the equipment he’d need to continue his own research. She gave him an expense account. She stood by his side, even when the other humans feared Perceptor’s sharp teeth and sharper talons.
Years ago, she’d been a graduate student lobbying hard for further study into harpy culture and biology. It had been her robust thesis which spawned the Avian Studies program now available at Kaon. She spearheaded it, with Chancellor Shen’s approval, and her excitement at meeting a harpy had been palpable even from their first meeting.
She would adore Drift, Perceptor was sure of it.
Drift was allowed to stay thanks to Dr. Morgan. Meeting her was as much a courtesy as it was a requirement. Perceptor had already informed her they would be stopping by, so he wasn’t surprised when Dr. Morgan’s receptionist ushered them in the moment they arrived. Her wide-eyed stare was most amusing.
Had she not paid attention to her boss’ area of expertise?
“Maria, I’ll need several copies of this, collated and stapled, before my next class,” Dr. Morgan – or Jessica as she’d insisted Perceptor call her -- was saying as the door opened. She sat behind her desk, glasses perched on the tip of her nose, her curly hair falling over her shoulders.
“Yes, ma’am. But you have visitors,” Maria said with a loud clearing of her throat. “Feathery ones.”
“Feathery… what?” Jessica looked up, and her eyes widened with delight. She leapt up from her chair, it rolling with a thud from behind her. “Perceptor! You’re early.”
“Do you ever know me to be anything but?” he asked, terribly amused.
Maria gathered up a stack of papers from the desk – perhaps the ones that needed to be copied – and edged out of the room, closing the door behind her.
“True, true.” Jessica swept off her glasses and rested them on her desk. “I suppose I’m to blame for losing track of time.” She grabbed a handful of curls and tossed them behind her shoulder.
It was only then she noticed Drift.
“You brought him!” Jessica darted around the table, her heeled shoes going clonk-clonk-clonk on the hardwood. “Oh my gosh, Percy. He’s beautiful!”
She rushed forward before Perceptor could get a word out, her enthusiasm superseding everything. Drift made an absolutely adorable squeak of alarm, looking at once like a cornered rabbit.
He ducked behind Perceptor, huddling against his back. Jessica drew up short, her gaze darting to Perceptor in concern.
Perceptor had to hide his grin. “He’s a bit shy when it comes to humans.”
“Oh, I understand!” Jessica ducked her head, abashed. “I apologize. I was just so excited to meet another harpy.” She leaned to the side, trying to peer around Perceptor. “I’m sorry for startling you.”
“He doesn’t speak English unfortunately. I intend to teach him.”
Jessica straightened. “Then you two speak the same dialects?”
“We speak a universal dialect, but we have our own tongues as well.” Perceptor shifted to face Drift, placing a gentle arm around the smol’s shoulders and urging him forward. “Drift, this is Dr. Morgan. I assure you, she means us no harm. She’s merely enthusiastic and curious.”
Drift eased out from behind Perceptor. “Nice to meet you.” He dipped his head, crest feathers canting forward.
Jessica’s smile broadened. “Some things are universal, aren’t they? I might not have understood what he said, but I recognize the gesture.” She stuck out her hand and approached Drift much more slowly this time. “Hello, Drift. Welcome to Kaon. I’m so glad you’re here.”
Drift took her hand. He smiled.
Some things were universal indeed.
“And don’t listen to Mr. Stiffness over here,” Jessica added with a wink. “You can call me, Jessica. I don’t stand on ceremony around here.”
Drift kept shaking her hand and smiling.
Perceptor chuckled and rested a hand over theirs, gently extricating Drift’s from Jessica’s. “For now, I will translate, but I’m sure he’ll learn English quickly enough.”
“That’s great!” Jessica spun away from them, walking back behind her desk at a fast clip. “Have a seat and we can get started. Help yourself to any of the refreshments here. Let it not be said I’m not a generous host.”
“You are always quite gracious.” Perceptor urged Drift to a chair and gestured for him to sit.
Drift did so, but warily. He still eyed Jessica like she wanted to eat him, and he pressed into his chair as far back from her as he could. He also poked at the frame and cushion of it, as if fascinated by its construction.
Perceptor chuckled to himself. My, but Drift was adorable. He pulled out a chair of his own and made himself comfortable. Jessica had indeed provided a basket of fruit, no doubt locally grown, and Perceptor grabbed something for himself.
“Have whatever you want,” he told Drift as Jessica watched them with owl-like fascination. She loved the harpy language and wished heartily she could duplicate the musical sounds of it.
Unfortunately, human vocal chords had difficulty with many of the tones and cadences.
“So,” Perceptor said as he rested one hand in his lap and started nibbling on the offered peach, “where should we begin?”
“Everywhere.” The phrase ‘stars dancing in one’s eyes’ must have begun with a researcher having ample opportunity to interview the subject of their thesis.
Perceptor chuckled. “Then we’ll start at the beginning.” He gave Drift a look and patted him on the knee, shifting to their native tongue. “I hope you got a lot of sleep last night.”
The look of wide-eyed wonder Drift gave him in return was priceless.
~
Afterward, they went out for something Perceptor called ‘ice cream’. It was cold and sweet and if Drift ate it too fast, it made his head ache. But he enjoyed the icy bite of it, and he liked that he had to eat it slowly, licking around and around it. Perceptor told him his flavor was called ‘cherry garcia’ and while it didn’t taste like any cherry Drift had ever eaten, it was good.
Drift even liked the munchy thing it was served in – waffle cone, Perceptor called it.
They walked as they ate, heading toward the ‘greenhouse’. Drift had wanted to see where they grew the plants on campus, and Perceptor agreed to show him.
They gathered a lot of stares, Drift noticed. It made him a little uneasy. He wasn’t used to being noticed. In Tesaurus, he’d been nigh invisible. With so many pretty smols wandering around, no one took notice of a dull one. No one except Gasket, and Carrier said Gasket didn’t count because he wasn’t a suitable mate candidate anyway.
Sometimes, Drift wondered if Carrier’s decision to take the post in Iacon had less to do with wanting to be a Fencemaster in his own right, and more to do with wanting Drift away from Gasket. If only Sire had been a bit more insistent, but then, that wasn’t the way things worked in Tesaurus.
Sire had lost. Carrier was in charge.
It had been different in Iacon. Not better, but different. Drift still was an unappealing smol, but for entirely different reasons. In Iacon, no one wanted a smol who could defend himself, who was more skilled with the blade than half the baras in the army or the defensive forces. Especially not a smol as dull and uninteresting as Drift.
It was a new rejection, same as the old.
“Drift?”
He blinked out of the memories and looked over at Perceptor, whose beautiful ocean-blue eyes squinted with concern. “Are you all right?”
“Sorry. Was lost in thought.” He ducked his head and focused on his ice cream again. It had started to melt over his fingertips. Oh dear.
“Anything you care to share?”
By Adaptus, no. Drift gave himself a moment to think as he licked his fingers clean. The last thing he wanted to do was tell Perceptor how much no one wanted him. That would be pathetic, and he wanted to keep Perceptor as a friend. Not frighten the bara away with his sob story.
“Just thinking about home,” Drift finally said, keeping it vague. “Answering Ms. Jessica’s questions reminded me, is all.”
He couldn’t fathom simply calling her ‘Jessica’. It rankled against every form of polite address he’d been taught.
“Ah. Leave someone behind?” Perceptor asked as he nibbled on his own ice cream. He’d had some kind of caramel dipped vanilla cone, and Drift loved watching him lick around the hard, candy shell.
Drift’s face heated. “Not in the way you’re thinking.” He focused hard on his ice cream. “Gasket was a friend, and we were sort of like that, but not really. We never had a chance to be.”
“Because you left?”
“Yeah.” Drift rolled his shoulders, trying to be nonchalant. “But when opportunity knocks, you have to answer, right?”
“Whether or not you have to depends on whether or not you want to,” Perceptor replied, words spoken as though carefully chosen. “You left for Iacon because of your Carrier, yes?”
“I left for me, too,” Drift insisted, not sure why he suddenly felt defensive. “The Ultra wanted someone closer to his youngling’s age to train him. So I’d be the perfect candidate, once I’d finished my own lessons. It was a great opportunity.”
“Was,” Perceptor echoed with a pointed lick of his ice cream. “But you left before you could take advantage of that. Why?”
Drift bit down on the ice cream, more than was comfortable, but it kept him from saying something he’d probably regret.
“This is a sensitive subject for you I see,” Perceptor murmured. “I apologize. I won’t push. Perhaps you’d be interested in sharing your journey here instead? The distance from Iacon to Kaon is no small trip.”
Heat flared darker in Drift’s face. His journey was no sweeter tale. He’d left Iacon without a plan, a map, and with only the barest minimum of supplies. He’d left because he couldn’t stay anymore. He hadn’t intended to go to Kaon. He’d just wanted to get away.
It had been a long, hard year between Kaon and Iacon. Not all of it pleasant.
The six months he’d spent in Helex and their gladiating pits, for example, had almost been enough to have him tuck his tail between his legs and slink back to Iacon, begging forgiveness of his Carrier for his impetuous actions. Luckily, he’d had enough sense to use a pseudonym. No one would be able to trace him by name alone. His dull appearance had served him well there.
Helex was a lot closer to Kaon than Iacon. He’d been lucky, fleeing Helex and stumbling on a place that would give him shelter. Otherwise, who knows where he would have ended up. Perhaps with the wrong humans, those more interested in the slave trade.
Or worse, the ones who killed harpies and harvested their parts for disgusting rituals and false medicines.
Drift shuttered.
“Not much to tell, I’m afraid,” Drift said after he swallowed the mouthful, desperate to change his line of thought. “I wandered all over Cybertron, avoiding human settlements as much as possible, doing small jobs to earn a place to stay while foraging in the forests for food. I knew I wanted a fresh start somewhere, but wasn’t sure where I could find it.”
“Did you ever roam by Tyger Pax?”
Drift shook his head. “No. I must have missed that one. Isn’t it up in the mountains?”
“It is.”
“Never crossed the mountains.” He’d been to Helex at the base of them, he’d climbed halfway up their massive peaks during his flight, but he’d never gone over or through them. Perhaps he should have.
But then, if he had, his flight wouldn’t have taken him to Kaon, but to whatever city-state was on the other side. He wouldn’t have met Perceptor or gotten to taste ice cream.
Drift crunched into the cone, and made a pleased sound when he discovered that the ice cream had softened it some, but it remained crunchy. “This is good stuff. Thanks for showing me.”
“My pleasure,” Perceptor replied. He even sounded like he meant it. “Perhaps one day I can show you my home aerie. If by some miracle I am allowed back.”
Drift blinked. He couldn’t imagine someone as kind as Perceptor doing something so illegal as to be exiled. “Why wouldn’t you be?”
“Research alongside humans is expressly forbidden by my flock.” Perceptor delicately peeled a paper wrapper from around the bottom of his cone. “Allowing the humans to study us in return is equally abominable. It is a cardinal rule, isn’t it? That a harpy should never trust a human.”
“But you did.”
“Indeed I did.” Perceptor licked his cone, tongue curling to swipe up a stray drop of ice cream. Drift pointedly stared harder at his own treat. “I went against my Director and the assembly to do so. I am certain by now that I’ve probably been stripped of my degree, my rank, and my grant.”
Drift growled in his throat. “That’s awful. I thought Tyger Pax was supposed to be all about scientific advancement and the pursuit of the truth?”
Perceptor’s lips pursed together, his eyebrows drawing down. “Everything has two faces,” he finally said, after a moment’s quiet. “And the truth is rarely pretty or safe. Humans are dangerous, so we’ve been told. And to associate with them invites danger to the rest of my flock.”
“You sound like you agree with them.” Drift squinted at his new friend.
“In some ways, I do.” Perceptor plucked a piece of caramel from his cone and popped it into his mouth. “I took enormous risk coming here. But if I had been wrong, and the humans used me to get to my flock, I will have shared my risk with those who hadn’t consented to it.”
“Oh.” Drift supposed Perceptor had a point. “But it all turned out okay. They should let bygones be bygones then.”
Perceptor shook his head. “The point isn’t that I was right and these humans are nothing to fear. The point is that I disobeyed and broke the law. There are consequences for everything. It is a… scientific fact.” He smiled, though it was wan. “I do not regret it, however. I feel I am meant to be here in Kaon.”
“You weren’t happy in Tyger Pax?”
“I wasn’t unhappy. I simply was not fulfilled nor satisfied nor content.” Perceptor popped the last of the ice cream into his mouth, licking his lips to clean them. “Now I am getting closer to all three.”
Drift grinned. “I’m glad.”
“As am I.”
Drift ate every last bite of the ice cream, except for the small paper wrapper around the bottom. Perceptor showed him where to properly dispose of it. Then they rounded one of the building’s corners, and Drift’s eyes widened. A massive construction of glass and metal rose in front of him, glinting in the afternoon sun, so bright he had to shield his eyes from it.
“This is the greenhouse, or well, one of them at any rate. They have several around campus,” Perceptor said as he strode toward it without so much as a wince. “This particular one grows plants suited for an arid climate, so it may be a little dry and hot in there. Fair warning.”
“I can handle it,” Drift said.
Perceptor smiled at him. “I’m sure you can.”
They took a stone path that wound toward a pair of double-doors, equally glass and metal, but Perceptor pushed a button on a nearby column, and the doors swung open to grant them access. Even more incredible was that neither he nor Perceptor needed to stoop to go inside. The humans had made the doorway plenty large enough, even for a bara like Perceptor.
A hot gush of air smacked Drift in the face. His feathers stood on end, instantly lifting for better heat dispersal. It was ten times warmer inside the greenhouse than outside of it. His nose twitched as the scent of greenery flooded his senses. They had to walk through a small corridor, with a trellis made of wood and crawling with ivy overhead. When they emerged, Drift was amazed for the third time that morning.
There was so much green. It was like being in the forest, except he looked up and saw the glass surrounding them and knew they were inside a building. Water trickled somewhere, and there was the crashing noise of a waterfall, too. Narrow paths made of river rock coiled lazily across the floor, as plants grew and dripped into the walkway, both cultivated and natural.
“What do you think?” Perceptor asked.
“It’s amazing,” Drift said, absently following as Perceptor took him down the right-hand path. It was just wide enough for them to walk side by side. “I never knew such a variety of plants existed. Where do things such as these grow?”
“Some of them are native to my aerie, Tyger Pax. Others are from further west. You’d probably know them as the Salt Flats. Some have been flown in from as far as the Barrens.”
Drift couldn’t resist trailing his fingers through the vegetation. One of them, however, bit him. He jerked his fingers back, sticking the hurt one into his mouth.
“Be careful.” Perceptor sounded amused. “Some of them have spines or thorns, like a blackberry bush. There are a few who are even toxic, though the university is careful to put signs on those and make them harder to reach.”
His finger stung. Drift laved it with his tongue to soothe the ache. “An advance warning would have been nice.”
“It doesn’t hurt that much,” Perceptor teased. “But if it makes you feel better, I can kiss it.”
Drift’s face heated. His crest feathers reared back. “Why would you do that?”
Perceptor blinked. “Did your parents not kiss your aches when you were young? As a way of soothing you?”
“My Carrier didn’t believe in such methods.” Drift frowned. “Or at least, I don’t think he would have. Bandages are far more effective.” Carrier was more likely to tell him he had to prove he was strong. He couldn’t cry, couldn’t show weakness, couldn’t show that it hurt.
Real warriors bore pain.
“That they are, but there is much to be said about the healing qualities of a carrier’s touch,” Perceptor said. “But then, I’ve always had a soft spot for the fanciful things.”
Drift noisily cleared his throat. “What’s this one?” he asked, desperate to change the subject, and latching onto the nearest, brightest plant. It was very green.
And spiky.
Drift kept his hands to himself.
“That is a Schlumbergera truncata, better known as holiday cactus. They tend to be individually named by whatever holiday they bloom nearest to.” Perceptor moved closer, peering at the buds on the plant. “This is an Equinox variety.”
“Equinox?”
“It will bloom twice a year, around the spring and fall equinoxes.” Perceptor carefully placed a talon against the slightly barbed leaves. “Which is why it is in bloom now.”
“It’s pretty,” Drift murmured. Even if something similar had nipped his fingertip, this particular plant appealed to him. He liked the idea of a flower that bloomed twice a year. “Is it easy to care for?”
“Oh, yes. They are very hardy.” Perceptor peered at him. “Would you like one?”
Drift looked up at Perceptor, startled. “What?”
Perceptor reached around him, the pads of his fingers gentle as it curled around the purple flower. “Would you like one? They sell them potted for students to take back to their dorms, since they don’t need as much care as other plants.”
“Oh. I couldn’t ask you to--”
“See, the funny thing is, you didn’t.” Perceptor had the audacity to wink at him before he swished away in a whirl of feathers. “You like the purple flowers best, right? I’ll get one of those for you.”
“But…” Drift’s protest died on his lips. His core gave a quick, warm throb, and he pressed his palm to his chest. That was weird. His core had never done that before.
Drift hurried to catch up to Perceptor, who had become a bara on a mission. He made his way through the greenhouse in several large strides, and Drift broke into a light jog so he wouldn’t lose sight of him.
Perceptor ducked through a leaf strewn doorway ahead, and Drift plunged in after him, only to skid to a stop.
The new area was completely enclosed by more glass walls, but there were shelves here, and a wood lattice. Plants dangled above them in hanging pots, their colorful flowers swaying in a breeze of unknown origin. Other potted plants sat on shelves with stakes poking out of the soil, numbers carefully painted on them.
Perceptor headed straight for the succulents.
“You really don’t have to,” Drift blurted out as he finally caught up to the bara, though his breath caught in his throat. They were all so pretty. Part of him wanted to take every last cactus home. “I’m sure I can find a way to earn one for myself.”
“Nonsense.” Perceptor selected a purple one from the bunch and eyed it carefully. “Consider it a housewarming gift.”
“But--”
Perceptor pressed an index finger to Drift’s lips. “Hush.” He tucked the cactus under his arm. “I’m doing this for you. No arguments. Yes?”
Drift nodded against the pad of his finger, resisting the odd urge to taste it with his tongue. Perceptor smelled of fresh soil and green things, and Drift wanted to roll around on him like he would a field of flowers, painting his feathers in pollen and bits of leaf.
“Good.” Perceptor smiled. Genuine and honest. He took back his hand and looked over Drift’s shoulder. He spoke something to the young lady behind the register, though Drift couldn’t pick out any of the words.
She smiled and waved as if she recognized Perceptor and spoke in her human language. She had a pleasant voice. Drift bet she was a fantastic singer.
Perceptor replied to her before his attention shifted back to Drift, and back to a language Drift could understand. “Artemis is putting together a kit that will help get you started and give you instructions on how to best care for the cactus.”
Drift chewed on his bottom lip. “Thank you.” He ducked his head, a flush spreading through his face. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had given him a gift. At least, someone who wasn’t family.
“My pleasure.” Perceptor tipped the cactus into Drift’s hands, and he cradled it carefully. “I admit, my gift comes with ulterior motives.”
“It does?” Drift inhaled the scent of the cactus – greenery and earth, not really sweet like a flower. It was perfect.
Perceptor chuckled. “Yes. I’m hoping if I ply you with enough plants, you’ll decide to stay.”
Drift clutched the pot tighter. “I wasn’t planning on leaving,” he admitted. Though he swallowed down the latter half of it, which was, he didn’t have anywhere else to go. Kaon, at least, was nice. And he was learning so much.
“Then my evil plan is working,” Perceptor replied as the cheerful cashier bounced up to them, holding a brightly colored bag.
Artemis babbled briefly at Perceptor before her gaze slid sideways, and she spied Drift. Her eyes lit up, and she leaned forward, though with a lot less energy than Ms. Jessica had.
Drift had no idea what she was saying, but the curiosity in her brown eyes was clear. He, in turn, was fascinated by her appearance. Her skin was a lush, soft brown, and her hair formed a fluffy halo around her head. It looked so soft.
Perceptor tilted his head toward Drift, but the only words Drift recognized were his own name.
Artemis smiled and offered her hand to Drift, and while he didn’t know what she was saying, she seemed friendly enough. He did recognize her name as Perceptor had said it before, so he assumed she was introducing herself.
Drift dipped his head in greeting. He shook her fingers, careful of his talons.
Perceptor said something else to the woman and she giggled. She winked at Drift and flounced away, leaving them alone.
“Artemis is a graduate student. She’s been studying the medicinal properties of succulents for her thesis,” Perceptor explained as he gestured Drift toward the door, one hand at the small of Drift’s back to guide him.
“Thesis?” Drift echoed.
“Ah.” Perceptor juggled the box in his other hand. “It’s a very long paper on a specific topic that she has to submit in order to qualify for her doctorate. It means, hmm, it means she becomes legitimate in the eyes of the human collegiate.”
There were a lot of words in there unfamiliar to Drift. But rather than focus on them, he preferred to focus on the soft warmth of Perceptor’s hand on his lower back. And the weight of the cactus – the gift – in his arms.
“By the way, I’m pleased to hear you plan on staying.” Perceptor led Drift out another door, this one plunging them back into the warmth of the afternoon. “The humans are friendly enough, but it’s nice to be among my own kind again.”
“I’m glad I met you,” Drift admitted and buried his face in his cactus, breathing in the scent of the leaves. Though he was mindful of the pointy bits. “I think I’m getting like you, too. Finding a satisfaction I didn’t know I could have.”
He wouldn’t have been allowed these in Tesaurus. It wasn’t warrior’s work. But he could have them here. Could probably have more, if Perceptor was telling the truth. His core gave another thump of delight.
He was so glad he’d ended up in Kaon.
“Good.” Perceptor patted him on the shoulder. “Let’s get your cactus home, and then I can show you around some more. Sound good?”
Drift tucked the cactus against his belly. He didn’t even mind when one of the spines gave him a gentle poke.
“Sounds perfect.”
****
Characters: Drift, Perceptor, Original Character(s)
Universe: Flights of Fancy, Harpyformers
Rating: M
Enticements: Sexual Content, First Meetings, Friends to Lovers, Love at First Sight
Description: Perceptor’s spent so long among the humans, he’s almost forgotten how much he misses other harpies, until Drift wanders into Kaon, a pretty package of everything Perceptor never knew he wanted.
Jessica Morgan was the first human to befriend Perceptor. They’d exchanged professional letters for over a year, through a complicated arrangement of a harpy and human mail system, and it was she who had invited Perceptor to come to Kaon.
Back then, Perceptor’s request with Director Compute had been denied. They wouldn’t allow him to continue his research with the humans, or allow the humans to use him as a source. Perceptor had left Tyger Pax illegally, following what he knew in his core to be something he must do.
Science could not be contained by outdated rules and assumptions.
They’d warned him he could be flying into a trap. The journey was long and treacherous enough Perceptor almost believed the naysayers.
But Dr. Morgan greeted him with open arms. She’d arranged a place for him to stay, and had even gathered all the equipment he’d need to continue his own research. She gave him an expense account. She stood by his side, even when the other humans feared Perceptor’s sharp teeth and sharper talons.
Years ago, she’d been a graduate student lobbying hard for further study into harpy culture and biology. It had been her robust thesis which spawned the Avian Studies program now available at Kaon. She spearheaded it, with Chancellor Shen’s approval, and her excitement at meeting a harpy had been palpable even from their first meeting.
She would adore Drift, Perceptor was sure of it.
Drift was allowed to stay thanks to Dr. Morgan. Meeting her was as much a courtesy as it was a requirement. Perceptor had already informed her they would be stopping by, so he wasn’t surprised when Dr. Morgan’s receptionist ushered them in the moment they arrived. Her wide-eyed stare was most amusing.
Had she not paid attention to her boss’ area of expertise?
“Maria, I’ll need several copies of this, collated and stapled, before my next class,” Dr. Morgan – or Jessica as she’d insisted Perceptor call her -- was saying as the door opened. She sat behind her desk, glasses perched on the tip of her nose, her curly hair falling over her shoulders.
“Yes, ma’am. But you have visitors,” Maria said with a loud clearing of her throat. “Feathery ones.”
“Feathery… what?” Jessica looked up, and her eyes widened with delight. She leapt up from her chair, it rolling with a thud from behind her. “Perceptor! You’re early.”
“Do you ever know me to be anything but?” he asked, terribly amused.
Maria gathered up a stack of papers from the desk – perhaps the ones that needed to be copied – and edged out of the room, closing the door behind her.
“True, true.” Jessica swept off her glasses and rested them on her desk. “I suppose I’m to blame for losing track of time.” She grabbed a handful of curls and tossed them behind her shoulder.
It was only then she noticed Drift.
“You brought him!” Jessica darted around the table, her heeled shoes going clonk-clonk-clonk on the hardwood. “Oh my gosh, Percy. He’s beautiful!”
She rushed forward before Perceptor could get a word out, her enthusiasm superseding everything. Drift made an absolutely adorable squeak of alarm, looking at once like a cornered rabbit.
He ducked behind Perceptor, huddling against his back. Jessica drew up short, her gaze darting to Perceptor in concern.
Perceptor had to hide his grin. “He’s a bit shy when it comes to humans.”
“Oh, I understand!” Jessica ducked her head, abashed. “I apologize. I was just so excited to meet another harpy.” She leaned to the side, trying to peer around Perceptor. “I’m sorry for startling you.”
“He doesn’t speak English unfortunately. I intend to teach him.”
Jessica straightened. “Then you two speak the same dialects?”
“We speak a universal dialect, but we have our own tongues as well.” Perceptor shifted to face Drift, placing a gentle arm around the smol’s shoulders and urging him forward. “Drift, this is Dr. Morgan. I assure you, she means us no harm. She’s merely enthusiastic and curious.”
Drift eased out from behind Perceptor. “Nice to meet you.” He dipped his head, crest feathers canting forward.
Jessica’s smile broadened. “Some things are universal, aren’t they? I might not have understood what he said, but I recognize the gesture.” She stuck out her hand and approached Drift much more slowly this time. “Hello, Drift. Welcome to Kaon. I’m so glad you’re here.”
Drift took her hand. He smiled.
Some things were universal indeed.
“And don’t listen to Mr. Stiffness over here,” Jessica added with a wink. “You can call me, Jessica. I don’t stand on ceremony around here.”
Drift kept shaking her hand and smiling.
Perceptor chuckled and rested a hand over theirs, gently extricating Drift’s from Jessica’s. “For now, I will translate, but I’m sure he’ll learn English quickly enough.”
“That’s great!” Jessica spun away from them, walking back behind her desk at a fast clip. “Have a seat and we can get started. Help yourself to any of the refreshments here. Let it not be said I’m not a generous host.”
“You are always quite gracious.” Perceptor urged Drift to a chair and gestured for him to sit.
Drift did so, but warily. He still eyed Jessica like she wanted to eat him, and he pressed into his chair as far back from her as he could. He also poked at the frame and cushion of it, as if fascinated by its construction.
Perceptor chuckled to himself. My, but Drift was adorable. He pulled out a chair of his own and made himself comfortable. Jessica had indeed provided a basket of fruit, no doubt locally grown, and Perceptor grabbed something for himself.
“Have whatever you want,” he told Drift as Jessica watched them with owl-like fascination. She loved the harpy language and wished heartily she could duplicate the musical sounds of it.
Unfortunately, human vocal chords had difficulty with many of the tones and cadences.
“So,” Perceptor said as he rested one hand in his lap and started nibbling on the offered peach, “where should we begin?”
“Everywhere.” The phrase ‘stars dancing in one’s eyes’ must have begun with a researcher having ample opportunity to interview the subject of their thesis.
Perceptor chuckled. “Then we’ll start at the beginning.” He gave Drift a look and patted him on the knee, shifting to their native tongue. “I hope you got a lot of sleep last night.”
The look of wide-eyed wonder Drift gave him in return was priceless.
Afterward, they went out for something Perceptor called ‘ice cream’. It was cold and sweet and if Drift ate it too fast, it made his head ache. But he enjoyed the icy bite of it, and he liked that he had to eat it slowly, licking around and around it. Perceptor told him his flavor was called ‘cherry garcia’ and while it didn’t taste like any cherry Drift had ever eaten, it was good.
Drift even liked the munchy thing it was served in – waffle cone, Perceptor called it.
They walked as they ate, heading toward the ‘greenhouse’. Drift had wanted to see where they grew the plants on campus, and Perceptor agreed to show him.
They gathered a lot of stares, Drift noticed. It made him a little uneasy. He wasn’t used to being noticed. In Tesaurus, he’d been nigh invisible. With so many pretty smols wandering around, no one took notice of a dull one. No one except Gasket, and Carrier said Gasket didn’t count because he wasn’t a suitable mate candidate anyway.
Sometimes, Drift wondered if Carrier’s decision to take the post in Iacon had less to do with wanting to be a Fencemaster in his own right, and more to do with wanting Drift away from Gasket. If only Sire had been a bit more insistent, but then, that wasn’t the way things worked in Tesaurus.
Sire had lost. Carrier was in charge.
It had been different in Iacon. Not better, but different. Drift still was an unappealing smol, but for entirely different reasons. In Iacon, no one wanted a smol who could defend himself, who was more skilled with the blade than half the baras in the army or the defensive forces. Especially not a smol as dull and uninteresting as Drift.
It was a new rejection, same as the old.
“Drift?”
He blinked out of the memories and looked over at Perceptor, whose beautiful ocean-blue eyes squinted with concern. “Are you all right?”
“Sorry. Was lost in thought.” He ducked his head and focused on his ice cream again. It had started to melt over his fingertips. Oh dear.
“Anything you care to share?”
By Adaptus, no. Drift gave himself a moment to think as he licked his fingers clean. The last thing he wanted to do was tell Perceptor how much no one wanted him. That would be pathetic, and he wanted to keep Perceptor as a friend. Not frighten the bara away with his sob story.
“Just thinking about home,” Drift finally said, keeping it vague. “Answering Ms. Jessica’s questions reminded me, is all.”
He couldn’t fathom simply calling her ‘Jessica’. It rankled against every form of polite address he’d been taught.
“Ah. Leave someone behind?” Perceptor asked as he nibbled on his own ice cream. He’d had some kind of caramel dipped vanilla cone, and Drift loved watching him lick around the hard, candy shell.
Drift’s face heated. “Not in the way you’re thinking.” He focused hard on his ice cream. “Gasket was a friend, and we were sort of like that, but not really. We never had a chance to be.”
“Because you left?”
“Yeah.” Drift rolled his shoulders, trying to be nonchalant. “But when opportunity knocks, you have to answer, right?”
“Whether or not you have to depends on whether or not you want to,” Perceptor replied, words spoken as though carefully chosen. “You left for Iacon because of your Carrier, yes?”
“I left for me, too,” Drift insisted, not sure why he suddenly felt defensive. “The Ultra wanted someone closer to his youngling’s age to train him. So I’d be the perfect candidate, once I’d finished my own lessons. It was a great opportunity.”
“Was,” Perceptor echoed with a pointed lick of his ice cream. “But you left before you could take advantage of that. Why?”
Drift bit down on the ice cream, more than was comfortable, but it kept him from saying something he’d probably regret.
“This is a sensitive subject for you I see,” Perceptor murmured. “I apologize. I won’t push. Perhaps you’d be interested in sharing your journey here instead? The distance from Iacon to Kaon is no small trip.”
Heat flared darker in Drift’s face. His journey was no sweeter tale. He’d left Iacon without a plan, a map, and with only the barest minimum of supplies. He’d left because he couldn’t stay anymore. He hadn’t intended to go to Kaon. He’d just wanted to get away.
It had been a long, hard year between Kaon and Iacon. Not all of it pleasant.
The six months he’d spent in Helex and their gladiating pits, for example, had almost been enough to have him tuck his tail between his legs and slink back to Iacon, begging forgiveness of his Carrier for his impetuous actions. Luckily, he’d had enough sense to use a pseudonym. No one would be able to trace him by name alone. His dull appearance had served him well there.
Helex was a lot closer to Kaon than Iacon. He’d been lucky, fleeing Helex and stumbling on a place that would give him shelter. Otherwise, who knows where he would have ended up. Perhaps with the wrong humans, those more interested in the slave trade.
Or worse, the ones who killed harpies and harvested their parts for disgusting rituals and false medicines.
Drift shuttered.
“Not much to tell, I’m afraid,” Drift said after he swallowed the mouthful, desperate to change his line of thought. “I wandered all over Cybertron, avoiding human settlements as much as possible, doing small jobs to earn a place to stay while foraging in the forests for food. I knew I wanted a fresh start somewhere, but wasn’t sure where I could find it.”
“Did you ever roam by Tyger Pax?”
Drift shook his head. “No. I must have missed that one. Isn’t it up in the mountains?”
“It is.”
“Never crossed the mountains.” He’d been to Helex at the base of them, he’d climbed halfway up their massive peaks during his flight, but he’d never gone over or through them. Perhaps he should have.
But then, if he had, his flight wouldn’t have taken him to Kaon, but to whatever city-state was on the other side. He wouldn’t have met Perceptor or gotten to taste ice cream.
Drift crunched into the cone, and made a pleased sound when he discovered that the ice cream had softened it some, but it remained crunchy. “This is good stuff. Thanks for showing me.”
“My pleasure,” Perceptor replied. He even sounded like he meant it. “Perhaps one day I can show you my home aerie. If by some miracle I am allowed back.”
Drift blinked. He couldn’t imagine someone as kind as Perceptor doing something so illegal as to be exiled. “Why wouldn’t you be?”
“Research alongside humans is expressly forbidden by my flock.” Perceptor delicately peeled a paper wrapper from around the bottom of his cone. “Allowing the humans to study us in return is equally abominable. It is a cardinal rule, isn’t it? That a harpy should never trust a human.”
“But you did.”
“Indeed I did.” Perceptor licked his cone, tongue curling to swipe up a stray drop of ice cream. Drift pointedly stared harder at his own treat. “I went against my Director and the assembly to do so. I am certain by now that I’ve probably been stripped of my degree, my rank, and my grant.”
Drift growled in his throat. “That’s awful. I thought Tyger Pax was supposed to be all about scientific advancement and the pursuit of the truth?”
Perceptor’s lips pursed together, his eyebrows drawing down. “Everything has two faces,” he finally said, after a moment’s quiet. “And the truth is rarely pretty or safe. Humans are dangerous, so we’ve been told. And to associate with them invites danger to the rest of my flock.”
“You sound like you agree with them.” Drift squinted at his new friend.
“In some ways, I do.” Perceptor plucked a piece of caramel from his cone and popped it into his mouth. “I took enormous risk coming here. But if I had been wrong, and the humans used me to get to my flock, I will have shared my risk with those who hadn’t consented to it.”
“Oh.” Drift supposed Perceptor had a point. “But it all turned out okay. They should let bygones be bygones then.”
Perceptor shook his head. “The point isn’t that I was right and these humans are nothing to fear. The point is that I disobeyed and broke the law. There are consequences for everything. It is a… scientific fact.” He smiled, though it was wan. “I do not regret it, however. I feel I am meant to be here in Kaon.”
“You weren’t happy in Tyger Pax?”
“I wasn’t unhappy. I simply was not fulfilled nor satisfied nor content.” Perceptor popped the last of the ice cream into his mouth, licking his lips to clean them. “Now I am getting closer to all three.”
Drift grinned. “I’m glad.”
“As am I.”
Drift ate every last bite of the ice cream, except for the small paper wrapper around the bottom. Perceptor showed him where to properly dispose of it. Then they rounded one of the building’s corners, and Drift’s eyes widened. A massive construction of glass and metal rose in front of him, glinting in the afternoon sun, so bright he had to shield his eyes from it.
“This is the greenhouse, or well, one of them at any rate. They have several around campus,” Perceptor said as he strode toward it without so much as a wince. “This particular one grows plants suited for an arid climate, so it may be a little dry and hot in there. Fair warning.”
“I can handle it,” Drift said.
Perceptor smiled at him. “I’m sure you can.”
They took a stone path that wound toward a pair of double-doors, equally glass and metal, but Perceptor pushed a button on a nearby column, and the doors swung open to grant them access. Even more incredible was that neither he nor Perceptor needed to stoop to go inside. The humans had made the doorway plenty large enough, even for a bara like Perceptor.
A hot gush of air smacked Drift in the face. His feathers stood on end, instantly lifting for better heat dispersal. It was ten times warmer inside the greenhouse than outside of it. His nose twitched as the scent of greenery flooded his senses. They had to walk through a small corridor, with a trellis made of wood and crawling with ivy overhead. When they emerged, Drift was amazed for the third time that morning.
There was so much green. It was like being in the forest, except he looked up and saw the glass surrounding them and knew they were inside a building. Water trickled somewhere, and there was the crashing noise of a waterfall, too. Narrow paths made of river rock coiled lazily across the floor, as plants grew and dripped into the walkway, both cultivated and natural.
“What do you think?” Perceptor asked.
“It’s amazing,” Drift said, absently following as Perceptor took him down the right-hand path. It was just wide enough for them to walk side by side. “I never knew such a variety of plants existed. Where do things such as these grow?”
“Some of them are native to my aerie, Tyger Pax. Others are from further west. You’d probably know them as the Salt Flats. Some have been flown in from as far as the Barrens.”
Drift couldn’t resist trailing his fingers through the vegetation. One of them, however, bit him. He jerked his fingers back, sticking the hurt one into his mouth.
“Be careful.” Perceptor sounded amused. “Some of them have spines or thorns, like a blackberry bush. There are a few who are even toxic, though the university is careful to put signs on those and make them harder to reach.”
His finger stung. Drift laved it with his tongue to soothe the ache. “An advance warning would have been nice.”
“It doesn’t hurt that much,” Perceptor teased. “But if it makes you feel better, I can kiss it.”
Drift’s face heated. His crest feathers reared back. “Why would you do that?”
Perceptor blinked. “Did your parents not kiss your aches when you were young? As a way of soothing you?”
“My Carrier didn’t believe in such methods.” Drift frowned. “Or at least, I don’t think he would have. Bandages are far more effective.” Carrier was more likely to tell him he had to prove he was strong. He couldn’t cry, couldn’t show weakness, couldn’t show that it hurt.
Real warriors bore pain.
“That they are, but there is much to be said about the healing qualities of a carrier’s touch,” Perceptor said. “But then, I’ve always had a soft spot for the fanciful things.”
Drift noisily cleared his throat. “What’s this one?” he asked, desperate to change the subject, and latching onto the nearest, brightest plant. It was very green.
And spiky.
Drift kept his hands to himself.
“That is a Schlumbergera truncata, better known as holiday cactus. They tend to be individually named by whatever holiday they bloom nearest to.” Perceptor moved closer, peering at the buds on the plant. “This is an Equinox variety.”
“Equinox?”
“It will bloom twice a year, around the spring and fall equinoxes.” Perceptor carefully placed a talon against the slightly barbed leaves. “Which is why it is in bloom now.”
“It’s pretty,” Drift murmured. Even if something similar had nipped his fingertip, this particular plant appealed to him. He liked the idea of a flower that bloomed twice a year. “Is it easy to care for?”
“Oh, yes. They are very hardy.” Perceptor peered at him. “Would you like one?”
Drift looked up at Perceptor, startled. “What?”
Perceptor reached around him, the pads of his fingers gentle as it curled around the purple flower. “Would you like one? They sell them potted for students to take back to their dorms, since they don’t need as much care as other plants.”
“Oh. I couldn’t ask you to--”
“See, the funny thing is, you didn’t.” Perceptor had the audacity to wink at him before he swished away in a whirl of feathers. “You like the purple flowers best, right? I’ll get one of those for you.”
“But…” Drift’s protest died on his lips. His core gave a quick, warm throb, and he pressed his palm to his chest. That was weird. His core had never done that before.
Drift hurried to catch up to Perceptor, who had become a bara on a mission. He made his way through the greenhouse in several large strides, and Drift broke into a light jog so he wouldn’t lose sight of him.
Perceptor ducked through a leaf strewn doorway ahead, and Drift plunged in after him, only to skid to a stop.
The new area was completely enclosed by more glass walls, but there were shelves here, and a wood lattice. Plants dangled above them in hanging pots, their colorful flowers swaying in a breeze of unknown origin. Other potted plants sat on shelves with stakes poking out of the soil, numbers carefully painted on them.
Perceptor headed straight for the succulents.
“You really don’t have to,” Drift blurted out as he finally caught up to the bara, though his breath caught in his throat. They were all so pretty. Part of him wanted to take every last cactus home. “I’m sure I can find a way to earn one for myself.”
“Nonsense.” Perceptor selected a purple one from the bunch and eyed it carefully. “Consider it a housewarming gift.”
“But--”
Perceptor pressed an index finger to Drift’s lips. “Hush.” He tucked the cactus under his arm. “I’m doing this for you. No arguments. Yes?”
Drift nodded against the pad of his finger, resisting the odd urge to taste it with his tongue. Perceptor smelled of fresh soil and green things, and Drift wanted to roll around on him like he would a field of flowers, painting his feathers in pollen and bits of leaf.
“Good.” Perceptor smiled. Genuine and honest. He took back his hand and looked over Drift’s shoulder. He spoke something to the young lady behind the register, though Drift couldn’t pick out any of the words.
She smiled and waved as if she recognized Perceptor and spoke in her human language. She had a pleasant voice. Drift bet she was a fantastic singer.
Perceptor replied to her before his attention shifted back to Drift, and back to a language Drift could understand. “Artemis is putting together a kit that will help get you started and give you instructions on how to best care for the cactus.”
Drift chewed on his bottom lip. “Thank you.” He ducked his head, a flush spreading through his face. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had given him a gift. At least, someone who wasn’t family.
“My pleasure.” Perceptor tipped the cactus into Drift’s hands, and he cradled it carefully. “I admit, my gift comes with ulterior motives.”
“It does?” Drift inhaled the scent of the cactus – greenery and earth, not really sweet like a flower. It was perfect.
Perceptor chuckled. “Yes. I’m hoping if I ply you with enough plants, you’ll decide to stay.”
Drift clutched the pot tighter. “I wasn’t planning on leaving,” he admitted. Though he swallowed down the latter half of it, which was, he didn’t have anywhere else to go. Kaon, at least, was nice. And he was learning so much.
“Then my evil plan is working,” Perceptor replied as the cheerful cashier bounced up to them, holding a brightly colored bag.
Artemis babbled briefly at Perceptor before her gaze slid sideways, and she spied Drift. Her eyes lit up, and she leaned forward, though with a lot less energy than Ms. Jessica had.
Drift had no idea what she was saying, but the curiosity in her brown eyes was clear. He, in turn, was fascinated by her appearance. Her skin was a lush, soft brown, and her hair formed a fluffy halo around her head. It looked so soft.
Perceptor tilted his head toward Drift, but the only words Drift recognized were his own name.
Artemis smiled and offered her hand to Drift, and while he didn’t know what she was saying, she seemed friendly enough. He did recognize her name as Perceptor had said it before, so he assumed she was introducing herself.
Drift dipped his head in greeting. He shook her fingers, careful of his talons.
Perceptor said something else to the woman and she giggled. She winked at Drift and flounced away, leaving them alone.
“Artemis is a graduate student. She’s been studying the medicinal properties of succulents for her thesis,” Perceptor explained as he gestured Drift toward the door, one hand at the small of Drift’s back to guide him.
“Thesis?” Drift echoed.
“Ah.” Perceptor juggled the box in his other hand. “It’s a very long paper on a specific topic that she has to submit in order to qualify for her doctorate. It means, hmm, it means she becomes legitimate in the eyes of the human collegiate.”
There were a lot of words in there unfamiliar to Drift. But rather than focus on them, he preferred to focus on the soft warmth of Perceptor’s hand on his lower back. And the weight of the cactus – the gift – in his arms.
“By the way, I’m pleased to hear you plan on staying.” Perceptor led Drift out another door, this one plunging them back into the warmth of the afternoon. “The humans are friendly enough, but it’s nice to be among my own kind again.”
“I’m glad I met you,” Drift admitted and buried his face in his cactus, breathing in the scent of the leaves. Though he was mindful of the pointy bits. “I think I’m getting like you, too. Finding a satisfaction I didn’t know I could have.”
He wouldn’t have been allowed these in Tesaurus. It wasn’t warrior’s work. But he could have them here. Could probably have more, if Perceptor was telling the truth. His core gave another thump of delight.
He was so glad he’d ended up in Kaon.
“Good.” Perceptor patted him on the shoulder. “Let’s get your cactus home, and then I can show you around some more. Sound good?”
Drift tucked the cactus against his belly. He didn’t even mind when one of the spines gave him a gentle poke.
“Sounds perfect.”
