Lady Amhert's What?
Ancelin stood with her butt resting against the back counter of the cashier's station. She was at work, but on her hour lunch break. She was waiting for a 'special' delivery. After much deliberation Ancelin had decided it was time to get a new pet. Only this time, she wouldn't be expanding on her massive exotic fish collection. No, Ancelin was starting to realize she was quite gifted when it came to birds, and so forth had decided to take one on as a pet to further expand her knowledge of them. Why couldn't she just get a normal bird, one might ask? Simply because she didn't like any the store had to offer. The Parakeets where too hyper and jitter and never shut the hell up, and the parrots where too stupid. Yes, they could mimic humans just great, but when it came to holding a real conversation? PAH! They where too busy talking about 'the good old days' with previous masters. No. An had to special order this bird. Something she felt she could relate too better.
'ding-ding'
Ancelin turned her head up quickly when she heard the bell of the door being open, only to have her shoulders slump in dismay when it was just a small child with it's parents. She crossed her arms and turned her head down again, getting a raised eyebrow from the working cashier behind the counter.
"You're really excited about this new pet, aren't you? What did you get? Another lion fish?" asked a small girl who's name tag read "Sarah". She had short blond hair and a very small petiet frame, she was even shorter than Ancelin, standing 4'10. Sometimes people would ask if she was a tall dwarf, but no, she was simply short. Which seemed to get her a lot of attention from guys.
Ancelin shook her head.
"No, I ordered a bird this time." She said, to which Sarah tilted her head in confusion.
"A bird? I knew you where part bird, but I didn't know you liked them as pets."
"Yeah.. It's something I'm just taking interest in." Ancelin smiled. She hadn't told anybody yet about her new found powers. Sarah turned her head and smiled to someone behind the blue haired girl. When An heard the sound of approaching footsteps she prepared to turn her head to see who it was, but quickly shot her face forward again when it spoke.
"Hey ladies!" came the sound of Steve's voice.
"Hey Steve!" Sarah answered back. Ancelin didn't respond.
"And how are you two beautiful lovelies doing today?" Steve asked as he walked into the booth, he went to put his arm around An's shoulder, but she quickly shrugged him off and took a few steps away.
"You're really peppy today. What happened, did you score with a lady?" asked Sarah as she shot Ancelin a playful wink. An's face flushed with embarrassment and she shot Steve a hateful glare. Steve frowned at Ancelin's reaction, before he turned his head to Sarah.
"Something like that. But I wouldn't put it so crudely," he answered, his attitude suddenly going mellow at An's cold response.
"Suuuuure." Sarah said, before she turned around to ring out a customer.
"Hey Anny, listen.." Steve whispered as he reached out for An, she simply jerked her shoulder away and walked out of a hinged door.
"I don't want to talk to you." She said sharply, to which Steve followed in pursuit.
"An please!" he called back.
"Just go away!" An said sharply, loudly this time.
'ding-ding'
An shot her glance to the front door again, and this time Steve's gaze followed. A man in a moss-brown uniform came in carrying a large cage with a sheet over it. Under his other arm he had a sign sheet. That was it, alright. That was An's bird. An quickly pushed Steve out of her way with one arm and sped-walk over to the man.
"Are you Ancelin Kuronaho?" asked the delivery man, his name tag said "George".
"Yes! Is this my Amherst? An replied with much excitement. The man nodded.
"Yes-sir-y. All I need is for you to sign this paper on the dotted line and he's all yours. He didn't make a peep the entire way here, I was afraid he might be sick or something." said the man as he held out his clipboard. Ancelin took it and signed her name on a couple dotted lines, before she gave it back to the man and retrieved the cage.
"Oh, I'm sure he's just shy." She said with a smile, before she lifted the sheet up and took a peep at the bird. Sure enough, it was an Amherst. A Lady Amherst's Pheasant, that is. The man tipped his hat to Ancelin and said a couple parting words, but Ancelin was too busy looking at her new 'friend' to pay attention.
The bird gave her a firm glare with it's beady yellow eyes and puffed up it's chest in a threatening manner, his head plumage spreading out. Ancelin smiled and pat the side of the cage.
"Don't be afraid. I'm going to take very good care of you, so let's be friends, yeah?"
She got no reply. An frowned softly, but then assumed maybe he was just stressed out from his trip. Yes, once she got him home and he was relaxed, things would go by much more smoothly.
"Come on, I'll take you home." she said as she put the sheet back down over the cage.
"Anny.." came Steve's voice, who had been standing behind her the entire time. An shot a glare at the young man over her shoulder.
"Don't come near me, pervert."
"An! I'm sorry if I upset you! I thought it was what you wanted!"
"Just shut up and leave me alone!!" An said loudly, before she stormed out the door
'ding-ding' the door went for a final time.
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Once Ancelin returned home she lifted the sheet off the cage to reveal the pheasant in his full glory. He was a Lady Amherst's Pheasant. And just like his name suggested, he looked like he was from the Victorian age with that 'wig' of white feathers collected around his head. The bird was awake, and still glaring daggers at the pheasant woman holding him captive. An smiled and carried him into the bedroom, where she had a large cage taking almost an entire wall. Ancelin opened the wire door to the bird cage she had set up for the pheasant, and then opened the door to the small cage the bird was held in.
"Here you go, this is your new home. I know it may be a little small considering what you're used too, but I'll let you roam the house whenever you want. This is just your private space for sleeping." An explained. The pheasant poked it's head out of the carrying cage and peered about, before it suddenly lept into the larger cage and hide in some bush plants An had transfered into the wooden floor.
The cage went from the floor to the ceiling. It had a wooden bottom full of potting soil and plants, which was roughly a foot deep. There where tree branches and the likes with twigs and leaves scattered about so he could make a nest when he choose to. The barrier was made out of gold colored wire that went all the way up to the ceiling with three large doors. One at the floor where the bird had just gone in, and two that where at An's head in height.
An left the door open and kneeled down on the floor so that her chest was hugged against her thighs. She rested her hands on her knees with her feet wide spread, smiling gently.
"Why don't you tell me your name?" An asked, while the bird glared at her from the bushes. "It's okay. I can talk to birds. I'm a pheasant, like you. I want to be friends with you." An tried to explain, but the bird still glared. An frowned softly, why wasn't the bird speaking to her?
"Well.. um.. I put some food in a bowl over there for you.. So if you get hungry it's there. There's also some water.. I have to go back to work, but I'll be back later tonight. Okay?" An said with a weak smile before she stood and walked out the door.
The pheasant slowly poked it's head out of the bush once the girl was gone and looked around. With a few bobs of it's head it walked over to the food dish and eyed what she had laid out for it. Surprisingly, at least to the bird, it was the right kind of food for him to eat. He pecked at it slowly, running his situation over in his mind.
