@zombiearmor and @walrusface are the best cheerleaders! xD
Would never have actually finished this without y'all. Thank you for screaming about birbs with me. ♥ :3
E33 BIRB!AU IS WONDERFUL AND YOU SHOULD ALL GO READ @zombiearmor's NEST OVER ON AO3!!
Verstave, SO YOUR IN-LAWS ARE GIANT BIRDS OF PREY. :3
BIRBS? YOU WISH FOR BIRBS!? 🐦🐦🐦 Please have some birbs. :3 And for those not familiar! Verso is a pigeon, and Gustave is a brown-headed nuthatch. Aline is a gray crowned crane, p!Renoir is a Blakiston's fish owl, Maelle is a pygmy falcon, and p!Alicia is a pearl kite.
As they were both in the area for a routine check up with the humans, Verso mentioned that his parents wanted to meet Gustave now that he had finally settled down. Gustave was delighted with the idea, especially since they had a little birdhouse that they shared, and Maelle had already grown and flown the coop. They were successful parents! They loved one another!
Really, Gustave actually wished that he had met Verso's family earlier on.
He had even considered if there was something he could offer a lovely pigeon couple—a particularly nice twig or perhaps a nice seed—but Verso had assured him that that wouldn't be necessary. Gustave had gently poked fun at Verso that he deemed such gifts as unneeded when they'd put off meeting them for so long, but he trusted Verso's judgment.
Upon meeting Aline and Renoir, however, Gustave quickly came to discover why Verso thought those items unnecessary.
Gustave considered himself a sensible bird. He enjoyed meeting new birds—and people—and liked to think that he was a pleasant fellow himself. While he wouldn't consider himself a pushover, Gustave was willing to look past first appearances and look more at an individual's character.
The only problem was that Gustave was pretty sure that Verso's parents could eat him if they wanted.
See, as it turned out, Verso's parents were… not pigeons. Not by a long shot.
"Maman? Papa? This is Gustave," Verso said with a slight gesture of the wing. He had his head craned upwards, while Gustave practically felt like he was going to tip over with how far up he was having to look. "Gustave, meet my parents: Aline and Renoir."
Aline turned out to be a crane with beautiful colorings and a fancy crown, while Renoir was a giant owl. The sight of them both made Gustave's tail feathers quiver as he chirped a hello: hopefully he didn't sound as shellshocked as he felt, though he was pretty sure the way that his feathers puffed up automatically was a dead giveaway to his worries. Gustave was fairly sure that cranes didn't eat other birds, but he knew that some owls did.
Lowering her head, Aline stared at him, and Gustave found himself folding his wings tight against his body as he straightened up, pulling himself up to maximum height. She tilted her head back and forth, as if trying to take him in from every single angle. When she finally raised her head again, Gustave almost felt like collapsing from relief following the close scrutiny. "Thank you for caring for my son," she said, and Gustave could only squeak nervously in response. "Verso told us that you raised a hatching together.
"Is she still around?"
"Maelle has already flown the nest, but she does still come to visit," he replied, surprised that his voice was as steady as it was. "Perhaps you can see her the next time she comes by?"
Renoir shuffled forward then, and Gustave beat his wings in surprised as he backed away, only to run into Verso's body. The owl did pause when he noticed that he had frightened Gustave, while Verso leaned in to bump his head gently against his own before briefly preening a few feathers as a way to comfort him.
Gustave tried not to think about how rapidly his heart was beating in his chest.
"Perhaps next time when you are both here for your check-ups," Verso volunteered, looking from one bird to the other. "She's currently off toward the southeastern part of the sanctuary." He canted his head slightly. "You might see her around, Maman."
"She hunts well?" Renoir asked, and Gustave found that owlish stare back upon his person. His feathers briefly puffed up.
"Of course! We wouldn't have let her go if she didn't know how to take care of herself."
While he wanted to be indignant about the fact Renoir would think that they'd let Maelle go without teaching her everything, Gustave did also understand that neither he nor Verso were… birds of prey. It had been a learning curve for sure, and they probably wouldn't have been successful without the help of a few humans as well—the Mask Keeper in particular.
That unblinking stare fixed Gustave in place for a moment longer before Renoir straightened, his head swiveling between looking at Gustave, Aline, and then Verso. "Does she have many friends?"
Verso and Gustave shared a glance. That was the rub, wasn't it? Surrounded by other birds who were not raptors, there weren't many who wanted to play with her. Renoir looked at Aline again before fixing Verso with his stare.
This time, Gustave felt Verso shift slightly, head lifting as if he was trying to stand at attention.
"Introduce her to Alicia sometime," Renoir said, and Verso then fluffed his feathers, tucking his head down against his body. "I'm surprised you did not already."
"Mon amour…" Aline murmured, gently extending her wing in his direction. "I am sure it just slipped Verso's mind. He was no doubt busy raising her."
Verso's beak opened a few times as if to reply, but he eventually just bobbed his head. "Will she be coming by any time soon?"
"I shall tell her to come by when I am free," Renoir replied. "I am sure she would love to see you again."
Given that Gustave hadn't seen Alicia either, Gustave could only assume that she lived in another part of the sanctuary and that it had been some time since Verso had seen his sister—who sounded like she was also a bird of prey of some sort.
In the distance, he could hear the sound of human voices slowly growing closer: they had likely come to collect Aline and Renoir. Indeed, he saw both of their heads swivel toward the building to the east of them.
"We will speak more once the examinations have finished, Verso," Aline said, and Renoir made a soft sound of agreement. They disappeared in a flurry of wings, and the not-quite silence of the forest fell over them again. Verso and Gustave shared a look, with the latter letting go of an amused squeak now that they were alone.
"Verso? Were you going to tell me that your parents were not pigeons at some point?"
Little late for Valentine's and the non-birb one that was done in time is nsft lmao, but a little birb!AU comic! Birbstave performing a heartfelt courting dance for Birbso, with Birbelle and Birblicia and the mysterious immortal Walsworm as the local peanut gallery. xD
