Omurtak was not sure exactly how this had happened, but it seemed as if he had somehow acquired another bird. Having Özge around had many advantages, and he was used to the shift of weight and subtle hint of talons when the eagle landed on his shoulder after scouting ahead. The first time the other eagle landed on his back had startled him, and they had both ended up with quite the scare. He hadn't bit the bird, but it was damned close. No one was hurt, luckily, except maybe Özge's feelings.
After the landing incident she'd preened his mane and made what he assumed was supposed to be soothing bird noises at him, while the other eagle kept his distance. This new bird didn't go away however. Omurtak wasn't sure what to think about it, but the strange eagle didn't try to land on him again at least. Fair enough, he supposed.
Özge, true to her name, was a very friendly bird. She liked her lion companion very much, but she was practical enough to understand that there were some things he couldn't give her. She could preen his mane all she wanted, but he couldn’t understand all her needs, or give her a proper preening in return. Or... you know...
Her new friend was a fellow bird, and she very much wanted the two males to get along. Her assessment of the situation was that her lion-mate was jealous. Perfectly understandable, given the situation. She'd just have to make him see that she wanted a bird-mate around too, and that she could divide her love and attention between the two of them. She could do this!
Raha was more than a little freaked out to stay so close to a large group of felines, but between the lovely Özge and the promise of easy food he tried to hang in there. He'd been told it was good to have a lion partner (by several birds nonetheless). They were easily impressed by the things a bird could see from the air, and they were messy eaters who left plenty for a bird to live off. That was what he was told at least... Both Özge and that vulture he had met seemed happy about the arrangement. He was pretty sure this wasn't just an elaborate prank, but he supposed they could both be a bit crazy.
Özge looked like she didn't have to starve, but the lion freaked him out. His body language was nothing like a birds, and his voice sounded so... growly... He was confused by the way Özge preened the lion and cooed at him, but she made a point in preening Raha too. Perhaps it was just too much work! He decided that he should give it a bit more time before he wrote this crazy idea off completely.
Had Omurtak been a mind reader he would probably have agreed with the grey eagle. Bonding with a second bird, or whatever the hell this was, was definitely a lot of work. He knew Özge well enough to know that she was distressed, and that she very much wanted both lion and eagle to be happy and get along. The things you'd do for your bird. Apparently.
He even endured her not very subtle hints that she wouldn't stop loving him if Raha stayed with them. Omurtak had started to depend on Özges help, but it was embarrassing to be treated like a jealous child. Or jealous lover? He wasn't sure what option was worse actually. Who knew what went on in a birds head?
Özge tried her best, but it was hard to keep both her "mates" happy. She very much wanted this to work, so she diligently divided her time between the two males, leaving little time to sleep and eat. It would pay off sooner or later, she hoped. Males could be stubborn, but she was sure she could out-stubborn them if needed. They just had to see what a great idea this was. One lion companion, and one bird companion. It would be perfect! Omurtak's shoulders were wide enough for both of them to ride on. They just needed to work on some aspects of it…
She sighed at the memory of the first failed introduction. In retrospect she should have warned Raha not to sit on Omurtak without warning. He had just mimicked her, and both fur and feathers had flown in the resulting confusion. Hmmm… What if she could give him some pointers before next time? Yes, that would be good! She might have to coax Raha into trying again, but if they'd practiced he couldn't say no.
The food part was true at least... The leftovers from lion meals could easily sustain an army of birds, and being close to one meant getting to those leftovers before the ever vigilant vultures. Özge told him she still liked to hunt, but that sharing with Omurtak meant she didn't have to fear a botched hunt as much. Lions failed too, sometimes, but if he had food to eat, so did she. Even when she was the only lucky hunter he didn't insist on sharing her kill.
Raha figured that an eagle sized prey wouldn't do much to satisfy a lion anyway, but he kept his mouth shut. Özge was nice, and he didn't want to insult her in any way. That apparently meant not insulting the lion either. He had let a less than respectful comment slip, and she'd given him the cold shoulder for the better part of that day. He took the hint, and didn't make the same mistake again.
This was getting ridiculous. Özge was spreading herself thin, trying to please both lion and eagle, and Omurtak knew her well enough to see that she was starting to suffer for it. She looked tired, and while he didn't know if he was imagining things or not he thought she felt lighter on his back. He couldn't have the silly bird starving and stressing herself to death over this, but he wasn't sure how to end her self-appointed suffering.
"Does he have a name," he asked grumpily as she preened his mane for the third time this morning, "This bird-friend of yours."
Would she stop this ridiculous behavior if he showed some interest in the other bird? One could always hope.
"He's called Raha," Özge said, obviously delighted, "He's an eagle too."
It was a silly thing to say, but she was just so happy that Omurtak finally took an interest in Raha at all. Was this the break she'd been waiting for?
"I can call him over if you want to," she dared to add, but she already motioned for Raha to get over here (before Omurtak changed his mind).
"Tell him less talons this time," Omurtak said, and braced himself for another landing. This time he would be prepared. The grey eagle made a more graceful landing this time, and while Özge was more gentle he could feel the difference. This time the small eagle was making an effort not to poke him in the back, and he appreciated it.
“Careful,” he reminded as he started walking and Raha started digging in his talons a bit more.
"Your wings Raha," Özge called, "Use your wings to balance!"
She hadn't managed to think of a way to simulate that aspect of lion-riding, but she was sure he'd get the hang of it eventually. It couldn't be harder than flying. And sure enough, she could see the smaller eagle relax a little and settle into the rythm. She gave him an encouraging smile. This was going better than she could have imagined! Not that she'd doubted the outcome of course, she knew she was much more stubborn than both her mates.
Raha was honestly surprised to be invited to come sit on the lion. He closed his eyes as he landed next to Özge, but nothing happened. No growling, no bucking, no teeth. In hindsight it might have been better to keep his eyes open to be able to see any adverse reactions coming, but luckily he didn’t have to flee. Perhaps the landing lessons Özge had orchestrated had paid off. She had secretly drilled him in the proper way to land on a lions back without hurting it, and while he thought it was daft at the time he had to admit that it came in handy now. And now the lion moved. Aaaah! Ok, he could do this. He could do this. More wings and less talons like that... After a while he started feeling how the movement made sense, and he knew better what to anticipate and when to extend his wings ever so slightly. He was moving and flailing around much more than Özge, so he hoped he'd become more graceful with some more practice.
What do you know, he mused silently when he’d regained his composure and used his wings to keep his balance. I've got myself a lion... This could be good, hopefully. If it didn't work out he could always do something else with his life.
((Word count: 1524))