2019-08-26 - An Aria of Canaries

Finch is outside Mallard House, crouched by the window that is outside the living room. She was watching TV, when a trio of sparrows smashed into the window closest to the couch, and fell to the earth. She has her hands over the three small birds, which are dying from their injuries. With the movement of her fingers, their tiny hollow bones knit and reset, tendons and muscles reattach, and pin feathers regrow.

They are still stunned, so she gathers them up into her arms and settles them in the branches of Gertrude, the snowbrush bush she'd animated to feed the Veil Kitty Davida had adopted. She'd gone back every day and animated it again, and walked it as far as she could in one go, until she was able to move it to the grounds of Mallard House. Gertrude looks very healthy and happy and is clearly being well tended here.

Finch must have just gotten off work, because she's in what she usually wears under her work coveralls, a longsleeved tee and the edition of a pair of yoga pants for lounging around the house. She has converse on her feet and her hair is pink today.

Ignacio borrowed August's truck from work. Sometimes they get on the same page. He parks carefully and hops out of the truck, something tallish covered with a tarp in the back. Sliding out of the truck, carefully but with that manic energy he gets when he is inspired comes speed ambling up to the porch but stops seeing the weird smudges on the window. The first two knocks carry the enthusiasm but they slow down considerably for the other two, face growing into concern.

Jeans, always, Cuban shirt, almost as always in summer. Heeeee likely was out on the boat today given how he's starting to look like he's been chillin in a rotisserie for a while. His tan's caught up with him . He tries the door knob and knocks again with some concern. "Allo?"

"Over here!" Finch calls out to Iggy, as she strokes one of the sparrows feathers with a fingertip and murmurs to it softly. "You're ok little one. Just rest for a bit. Gertrude will shelter you until you're ready. But stop flying into windows, ok? That's really bad for your health, and if I'm not around, you might not make it next time."

Ignacio peels away from the door and trots around the corner looking concerned and summing up the scene . He sees her withthe three birdies and his first instinct after the finches is Shit, it's happening again. He knows she can see right through his mask of expression and comes clean with his chief concern, ".... You're breaking up with me to move to the Magic Kingdom and be the new Snow White aren't you?" He winces and sighs, "Pajarito, you know I can't move to Florida. Florida Man and I go way back. That feud can never be settled." He looks to her for understanding and what he's really asking is Are you okay? looking for signs of fatigue and whatnot.

Any fatigue doesn't seem to be present today, possibly because she worked her Glimmer so well to heal the three sparrows, that there was no drain on her at all. It's like she did it with efficiency, and none of the usual struggles that wear her down physically. She gives Ignacio a warm smile. "I'm ok. These three little goobers, however, flew right into the damn living room window and almost killed themselves. I got to them in time. They're still a little freaked out though, so Gertrude is taking care of them until they feel better." Gertrude? Hey isn't that the bush from...it is!

Ignacio stops and leans, a thumb looping in his beltloop thumbing behind him. "Yeah. I saw they didnt' take no for an answer for their drive thru in the living room." Still he is looking. He of all people can tell someone just because everything looks fine and she's just glowing and... very very pink doesn't mean anything. But that smile says otherwise and his hackles stand down. He looks to the birds trying to unscramble their eggs. An uneven smile forms accepting the reassurance. "They're lucky they flew face first into the right house huh?" He watches them fluff about and extends a hand out to her. "Good job. I'm proud of you ya know that? Wheeeeen... you are done playing Nurse Tweet... I ... might behave a surprise for you."

"You can pet them if you'd like. As long as you're super gentle and use just one finger. They aren't babies so there is no danger of alienating a mother." She takes his hand, and pulls it over so he can do so. "A surprise for me?" Finch looks stumped at that. She doesn't usually get surprises from anyone but her Gran. "Is it a good surprise or is there someone bleeding that needs my help?" she asks.

Ignacio arches an eyebrow snorting, "I know I'm casual about emergencies, but I'm not that inefficient,, c'mon." His hand is taken and he's a little uncertain. He's not afraid of a bird he can fit in his fist. Really it's scaring it off. His fingers curl around her thumb so he doesn't scare them off and pets the sparrow witting there with his finger. God his eyes are frozen wide. Loudly he whispers, "I'm petting a bird..." So damn cool. "And it's not you." Immediately he apologizes to the sparrow, "This is terribly inappropriate. I'm seeing someone and this is cool, but I don't wanna hurt my girlfriend's feelings. I'm kinda good at it when I don't mean to so... this is gonna have to be strictly platonic." He nods to the critter so long as that's all laid out up front.

That is the G-word. Finch looks momentarily stunned by him spouting it, and she blurts out in a loud whisper, "YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND!?" like he's been hiding one from her. Then her face changes into amusement. She knows it's her. She grins at him and leans up to kiss his cheek.

The exhausted sparrow seems to not mind the gentle petting, or it's just too tired to protest. Either way, Finch draws his hand away from it. "Ok then, what's my surprise?"

Ignacio rolls his eyes with a lopsided grin, "Yeaaaah. I do. She makes me stop doin dumb shit and take better care of myself, buuuut she's smarter than I am and smokin hot sooo like whaddo I do?" LAMENT. Sweet, comical lament. He pulls her to her feet, and leans over to smooch her murmuring, "And...I'm really sorry for scarin you the other day... and things have been kinda shitty lately. Sooo... I thought, maybe?" He kisses her again eyebrow raising, "You might...might appreciate something for you. So... I... got you a present soooo you don't have to be so set back waiting for the thing to sort with Cornell."

"Figgy, you didn't have to get me a present, really. Just being with you is a gift to me. Honest," Finch insists, though she lets him lead her back to her feet. "I didn't get you anything," she says with a frown.

Ignacio scoffs and drags her with to the back end of the truck with what might be a covered dollhouse. "Pfft. You do, literally, all the time." Shrugging he ads, "And you put up with my belligerent ass. Now... I cleared this with Gran so don't worry." Fancy! The boy can plan it seems. Whatever it is is about 30" tall and a few feet wide. "To cheer you up, Finch, I got you a canary. It's still little so I dunno if it can fly yet but she's been pretty chill." And with great flourish pulls the drape off a beautiful cage that was grown to that shape. "I know the real antique ones have lead in em and are bad for birds so Roen... he um... he helped me out. I built the base for it. But I thought it'd be pretty and go with the house." And sitting in the bottom of the cage, fluffy and yellow and round is absolutely not a canary, but a baby chicken.

So close. he got so damn close.

Finch's breath catches in her throat at the sight of the absolutely beautiful, glimmer grown, bird cage. It's a wonder in and of itself, and a true piece of art. She seems excited at the note about the canary but, as it's revealed, her held breath rushes out in a fit of giggles. "Ig! Oh my GOD Ig, that's not a canary! That's a baby chicken! Lookit the widdle fluffy thing. Hi baby chick! We need to name you once we figure out if you're a girl or a boy."

Ignacio just soaks in the feelings rolling off of her and he doesn't even know he's doing it. Hell he's been excited and nervous about it all week and almost threw up in his brother's shoe. That... might be detox going a little sideways. That might not be the present. But then she's smiling and laughing and his soul feels good right up to the part where she tells him he kinda missed the mark on his intentions.

His brain can hear the record needle skid "Wait, wait what? But.... B-b-but it's yellow. Canaries are the yellow ones! Chickens are white and covered in sauce-" He pauses realizing he's in mixed company looking at the cage, "Sorry... mixed company." He looks to her with wide eyes and back to the bird whispering loudly at it, "Why didn't you tell me!!?"

"It's fine, Ig, we can go shopping for a pet bird together, and this wee one can maybe get a few other sisters to roam. We can make her a pen, and a coop, and then we can have fresh eggs for you to cook with." Finch is beaming, and so overjoyed at his gift. She pulls him to her to kiss him soundly. "Thank you, I love it."

Ignacio wraps her in a hug and picks her those few inches off the ground. Sometimes life is good. If only he had an idea of the wave cresting on the horizon of the week he'd film this to remember the storms sometimes can stop. "You?" Yeah talking can wait a second. By the time they are done locking lips he's sat her on the the tailgate to be closer to it. He does pause frowning, "I really wanted to get you a canary. I found this one and thought I did pretty good but... yeah we can build a chicken condo and... you... you sure you're ready to go adopt a bird together?" He looks around eyebrow raised, "Washington have rules against two people adopting when they file separate IRS forms? It's a big step." Yeah, now he's funny again, but for the sole reason he knows the guys are going to give him that look like How can you be smart and so stupid at the same time deSantos.

Finch chuckles and she traces a hand over the beautifully formed Fig wood. "Roen did this with your help? Jesus I didn't realize we could make things grow to specifications," she whispers quietly, in awe. She chuckles and looks up at Iggy with a smirk. "Maybe not canaries. I was thinking a pair of parrots, maybe Eclectus. They do well in captivity and a pair would keep each other company while I'm at work or out of the house. They're really colorful and sweet. I think you'd like them."

Ignacio bites the affected side of his lip and tries to read and process everything feeling it like it's emotionally tattooing itself into his skin. "Yeah I um... he said he got the idea from me but... he figured out how to make it grow how he asked it to." Laughing that smile lights up. "It was the most... incredible thing I think I ever seen that didn't look at me like I'm a food group." He looks at the cage and the mishoused chicken and nods slowly, "Yeah... Yeah I think I'm gonna too." Taking a deep breath he offers heartfelt, "Hey, look, I'm sorry Cornell's not working out, and those assholes the other night, and you've been sleepin like shit, and you're worried about all of us. I'm ... I dunno. I'm glad you're happy. It matters to me.. You... matter to me and I'd really, really like to take you out to lunch and maybe go by the hardware store to see what we need to build a tiny chicken condo for four or... whatever." Squeezing her hand his shifts his weight from one foot to hte other and spits it out. "You're the best thing that's happened to me in a long time and I... ya know. I wanted you to know that cause I'm not good at sayin this stuff."

Finch's eyes look a bit watery at the words from Ignacio. She sniffles. "Goddammit Ig, I feel it for you too." She can't say what ''it'' is, because that might make both of them run screaming, but she means it. She squeezes his hand back. "You make my life better just by being in it. I don't need gifts and stuff, but this was a really perfect gift and I love it." She can say that at least. "Come on inside, let's tell Gran we're gonna be raising some chickens, and I can change. Then we can get lunch and shop for coop and pen stuff."

Ignacio rests his forehead to hers and lets that lop-sided girn hang easy in place feeling her words still picking up the emotional imprints off of her as were it his own. Trying to sound concerned, and failing, he adds, "When we tell your gran an she gives me the third degree about my job prospects and how I plan to afford to raise these chickens and put them through college? You gotta hold my hand a'ight?" Oh the eyebrow goes up, That's the serious face. That face makes serious words come out, watch! "Alright well for now we want to put this inside where it was gonna go at least so we don't have a fried chicken when we get back?" Looking around nodding his lip pulls in thoughtfully. "Breaking the news that there is no canary... yeah that's gonna be fun." And hilarious for everyone else no doubt.