Page 30 of Did It Have To Be Gnomes?!
“She doesn’t act like a wild bird.”
“I don’t think she does either. I think that maybe someone bought her as a chick and got rid of her when they realized how big she got and how much work she was.”
He nodded. “You said you found her in a house. That could be why she’s attracted to houses. That’s what she knows.”
“Exactly. I don’t know what to do with her.”
She trilled at me, doing a little wiggle on my shoulder before rubbing my cheek again.
“She sure does like you.”
I sent Winter a small smile, then gave the bird a pet. “I like her too.”
He stopped pacing and let out a long sigh. “So you have a firebird.”
“For now.”
He raised a brow at that but let it go and offered a small smile—at least he wasn’t angry with me over this. He asked. “What’s her name?”
“I haven’t given her one yet. I was… nervous to.”
“What? Why?”
“It makes it feel like I’m keeping her, and I don’t know what to do about that.”
He sent me a softened smile. “You want to keep her.”
It wasn’t a question, but I still answered. “I… do.” That was the first time I’d admitted it. Not only out loud but even to myself. “But I can’t. She might be happy in here for now, but I don’t have anywhere for her to fly. I mean… if I let her fly outside, she might not come back, and then we’re back at square one where she’s in danger of humans hunting her.”
“True.” He mulled that over for a moment, then tilted his head, staring at me, then at the firebird for a long moment. “You know… you have a large backyard.”
“Um… yeah…?”
He smiled. “You could build a little sanctuary area back there for her, put a net around the yard so she can’t fly away, then apply for sanctuary status so you can keep her. As long as you have an appropriate place for her to fly and live, you should be able to, and showing that you found her inside someone’s home will help prove that she’s safer with you than flying free. I had a friend in high school who had a jackalope, and his mom told me how she was able to keep it. Oh, you know him. Galen Walters. Remember him? I can reach out and get more information about it if you want?”
I thought about that for a long time—Galen Walters wasn’t particularly nice to me, but if he had information, it could prove useful. I stared at the bird and gave her a pet. Even though it’d only been a few days, I couldn’t imagine letting her go at this point. She’d melted my heart as soon as we touched for the firsttime, and I felt connected to her. I… wanted to keep her here with me.
I nodded and gestured to the couch so we could sit down. “That would be great, Winter. Thank you.”
“No problem.” He paused, as if thinking. “You know, it’d be easier if she was your familiar. Familiars are automatically registered with their practitioner, no matter the species. She’d be able to live here with you and go anywhere with you when you left the house.”
I cleared my throat. “I… didn’t think empaths were able to connect with familiars.”
His brow furrowed, and he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Of course they can. Didn’t your parents send you to practitioner school? My mom had a familiar—a kobold that hated anyone and everyone but my mother. He was nasty.” He shook his head with a fond smile.
“Oh, uh… no. I never went.”
His brow furrowed. “Why not?”
I tried not to grimace but I felt it form on my face without my consent. “My parents wouldn’t let me.” No, of course they hadn’t. They’d hated the fact I was an empath. Hated it so much they pretended it didn’t exist. Honestly, they pretendedIdidn’t exist for the most part, which was preferable to the times they noticed me.
But I was absolutely not getting into any of that baggage with Winter, or anyone, for that matter.
“Oh, sorry. I thought everyone had to go. Isn’t there a rule about sending kids to practitioner school?”
I nodded. “There is, but I guess my parents just… ignored it.” And forced me to hide what I was so no one would ever know, so my teachers would never know, so they could never be reported.
“That sucks, Miles.” Winter was giving me a sympathetic expression, and I really didn’t want that right now. I’d rather focus on the adorable firebird and other happier—easier—topics.
