It was the distressed cry of a chocobo that warned him of what he was about to face.
It couldn’t necessarily prepare him for the much-larger, twice-his-size-and-probably-his-weight, unfeathered-in-some-patches chocobo that saw fit to try and burrow its way into his shirt.
The end result was, naturally, getting pinned to the ground, near-crushed, with a feathery head successfully managing its way into hiding while the oversized bird cried and chirped loudly in distress. Yesukai found himself having a difficult time fully understanding exactly what was going on, let alone who this bird was (though it was an easy guess), why it was hiding, and how he was going to move. The wailing of the bird was painful on his horns, piercing through the air to wake even the heaviest of sleepers. He hoped Sorocan, at minimum, was not one of those woken up, for her wrath could be like no other.
It was quite some time before he was able to at least get comfortable, and in that time, the stablehands had been well and truly alerted to the situation. With Ireedüi’s head still buried in his shirt, and most of his body curled right around the xaela, he was able to properly see just how much the bird had changed, not just in size. Patches of feathers were missing here and there, including his tail feathers. What feathers had started to regrow were darker in colour, more orange than their usual yellow. Molting, was the obvious conclusion, further confirmed when he’d asked Haci if his brother could help.
There was little anyone could do, to no surprise. Ireedüi was a young bird, not more than half a cycle in terms of age. That he’d grown so much in such a short amount of time meant he could even continue to grow. It was only natural that he started to develop a proper coat of feathers.
Yesukai let out a sigh as he shifted, trying to get at least comfortable if he was going to be stuck in the stables for a time. There was no leaving Ireedüi’s side. Between Akino and Haci, they had at least managed to fashion a blanket and a hat for the young chocobo, extra warmth for the cold, rainy nights. And they helped, keeping both Ireedüi and Yesukai warm for the night he was stuck. Taelan served as added comfort and warmth, soothing enough once he had arrived that Yesukai didn’t need to spend every hour with his young bird. It served as enough time to rest a little. There wasn’t much, between helping Ume and, now, Ireedüi both feel better.
His red eye narrowed slightly. Ireedüi was asleep now, snoozing away after exhausting himself. The xaela found himself leaning comfortably against Taelan, essentially sandwiched between the two birds, but he found it easy to keep his usual anxiety away. Normal circumstance would have him anywhere but in this situation. Then again, he sighed to himself, this could hardly be considered normal circumstance. Ireedüi was more fit to be called an over-attached dog, rather than a chocobo. His training was certainly improving his behaviour, but moments like this, he was still too unpredictable to take farther than a few yalms without supervision.
The bird had grown on him. For all his complaints, his troubles, and having to deal with the bad habits Ireedüi had developed in his time alone in Mor Dhona, Yesukai found himself worrying more and more about the chocobo’s well-being. He wanted to know what things his bird was being fed, what treats he was most fond of, whether or not he liked baths or not. Ireedüi certainly enjoyed flying, and it was often a chore just trying to convince Ireedüi not to fly.
Yet he was there.
A constant companion, forcing aside his own worries and teaching him, again, about the world. What to do, what to look out for. Dangers to be wary of, who to trust. How to let go and just be.
Yesukai let out a heavy sigh, gently scratching Ireedüi’s head. Not even the same species, but he knew, without a doubt, that he had one of the most loyal companions he was likely to find.
Ireedui had grown significantly in the past two months.
As a lalafell, while it had been an awkward fit, he had been able to ride the little bird for a time. It had been proven unwise fairly quickly.
Now, however, as an au ri again, the bird came up just shy of his hips. Halfway up his thighs, perhaps, but no less energetic. His wings eagerly flapped and he would still flit around, but Yesukai often had to stop him from trying to rest on his shoulders. No longer could the hatchling be hidden in his room, either, and the innkeeper in the Toll had been rather upset with the bird’s attempt to follow him inside. Ireedui had yet to adjust to his large size, and often protested loudly when refused.
The solution, at least, was relatively painless. Yesukai simply had to visit the silly creature every so often during the day to keep him from making a scene at the stables. The stablehands had been more than grateful the first few days, when Ireedui all but shrieked due to the separation. He’d been told it was likely because of the new town.
Sometimes he went to ensure the bird went to sleep for the night. Due to how close the stables were to the inn, it was hard enough trying to sleep, let alone when Ireedui cried into the night.
Sometimes it was to soothe his own nerves. He had never been in the Toll this long, let alone by himself. There was no Akino to soothe his nerves with a song, no Gesi there to fumble in his role as great protector, and no Ollund to serve as the silent rock. It was unbearably difficult to keep calm after dark. He couldn’t admit that to Uldar, Ume, or even Akino. It would just cause unnecessary worry. All of them had more than enough on their plates to handle.
Staying with Ireedui at night for a few hours helped the both of them. Ireedui could curl up around him, lay his head across his lap. The softness of the other’s feathers had long-since been adjusted to, even if they still made him jump every so often. Yesukai could gently soothe the (not so little) bird with a hand on the creature’s head. Sometimes he’d earn a few coos, sometimes he’d hum if touch wasn’t enough (though never with others around).
It was ridiculous how much Ireedui had grown on him.
