Work Text:
The past few weeks had been rough since Lucine left her old friends. It was too much to hope that they would just leave her alone. They kept finding new ways to mess with her between classes and any free time during school she had. Just some of the things they've done were stealing her spare snails, spilling drinks and food on her during lunch, scaring her with loud noises when they knew she was sensitive to that type of stuff, and more that she wanted to forget about.
It’s gotten to the point where she uses her spell for enhanced hearing almost constantly to pick up their footsteps, voices, or any of their other identifiers. Even if it gives her a headache using it in school with all the different noises, it is better than getting cornered like a hunted animal. Now she has a warning and can run as far as possible to hide. Hearing the cacophony of school kids with her normal hearing was already bad enough. At least none of them were beast-keeping witches, so most of her classes were safe.
On top of the bullying, they told everyone that Lucine was “overreacting” and “can't handle a little joke.” With the number of times she was hearing it, a part of her wondered if she was just making a big deal of it. Even when she tried to defend herself, it wasn’t like anyone believed her, so she stopped trying pretty quickly. Other witches avoided her more than usual. Honestly, good riddance. Since then, however, she had to hear everyone talking about her behind her back. Lucine was willing to bet that they knew she could hear them too. What was the point of that? To make sure she knew they didn’t like her? Just say that to her face and get done with it. Add that to the list of things she didn't understand. People are so weird.
All of that didn’t even include everything at home. After Lucine’s ‘stunt,’ as her mother called it, she had been given more work with the beasts at the zoo. If it were under different circumstances, it would be great to be around them. Titan knows the only bright side in any of this was that she got to see them. However, with all that on top of schoolwork, doing the usual amount of cleanup and care she’d typically do left her too tired to get ready for bed properly sometimes. They did at least get her a Penstagram. Now she didn't have an ‘excuse’ not to tell her parents where she was… just great.
She may have dozed off in an enclosure or two during her chore work due to the lack of sleep, work overload, and stress. Luckily, she had practiced her beast magic with them and treated them with respect for long enough that it didn't cause any issues.
The beasts were so much easier to understand. After all, they didn't lie about liking her just to find amusement in eventually tormenting her. With them, she just needed to know their body language and behaviors, show them respect, and then things would be peaceful. She'd even woken to some curled around or on top of her if they were small enough at some points. That was a pleasant sight when it happened. Knowing they were at ease enough to sleep near her was always a comforting feeling.
To top it all off, the number of times she has been missing time was getting worse. Some days, she'd be in the middle of class, blink, and then be cleaning out an enclosure, wondering what happened and how much time passed. At least it meant the day passed by faster for her. During all of this, her grades were dropping as fast as her mental state. How was she supposed to do well when she couldn't remember most of the previous day?
Right now, Lucine was walking back from school, happy for a small break from the weekend, which was some of the only time she could catch up on sleep. On her way home, she relaxed to the sound of birdsong and the noises of other creatures around her. Today, she wanted to take the scenic route and enjoy the view, even if she'd already seen it hundreds of times.
She sighed when her house was in sight and approached the front door. Behind it, she could hear some muffled voices. Two were the voices of her parents, and another felt familiar, but she couldn't quite place it yet. She braced herself and opened the door.
Inside were her parents chatting with someone Lucine hadn’t seen in ages, her uncle Altair. He usually was away on expeditions to find new beasts on the ‘new’ titan they discovered. They say new, even though that was a couple of years before she was even born. Her eyes widened, and before anything else was said, she ran and grabbed him in a tight hug. He returned after making sure he wouldn't fall on the floor.
“Hey kiddo, I'm happy to see you too.” He chuckled and ruffled her hair. “How've you been? It's been a while huh, and when did you grow so much?”
“I'm doing ok now - what happened this time on your trip? Did you see any new beasts? What kind of places did you see? When did you get here? Oh, where-” Her line of questioning was cut off by the sound of someone clearing their throat. Right, she had almost forgotten her parents were here too.
“Lucine, it's rude to interrupt when the adults are talking. Please step away until we're done here.” Runa said in a stern tone.
Her tail wrapped around her leg, and Lucine started to move away. She knew that tone and wanted to get away. It seemed like her mother was already annoyed even before she walked in. Emotions may be hard for her to pick up a lot of the time, but with her parents it was either learn them quickly or get into a lot of trouble.
“Come on, she's excited. Don't be too hard on her. Besides, we were almost done anyways.” Altair said, and she stopped, choosing to stay quiet near his side instead. At least then she would know what they were talking about. Plus, it looked like the problem was her interrupting. If she stayed quiet, then they shouldn't be upset.
“It was still important. You should have told us the exact time you'd be back. There are things we need to prepare.” Darcel, her father, said as well. Ahh, so his coming back today was a surprise to them, too.
“Didn't your oracle magic say something? Besides, it worked out fine, right? It's hard to know how long a sea voyage will take with weather and other unseen circumstances anyway.” Altair responded and looked over at him.
“You know Oracle magic doesn't work like that—sigh, nevermind. We can continue this later," her father said in an exasperated voice. Ha, her uncle was the only one she knew who could get him that annoyed. She should have recorded that to save it for later. Well, figure out how to do it discreetly at least.
“I was just about to say that. Come on, Lucie, I've got a surprise for ya.” At the sound of the nickname, her head whipped towards him. She set her bag on the couch and went to the door with him. Bouncing off her feet in excitement, she followed.
“I don't know when they became such a pain in the a-anyways.” He cut himself off, but she gave him a look with a raised brow. He can curse, it's fine; she's heard worse anyway. She'd prefer witches cursing up a storm than being stuck in a claustrophobic space again. “Forget that, I shouldn't be saying bad things about a kid's parents in front of them anyway. So, how has school been? Anything exciting happened while I was gone?”
“Oh, umm, not much, I've been busy with school stuff. It's really tough even with just classwork. And the… chores at home I need to do. I don't have much spare time with everything going on, but it's fine, I guess.” Lucine knew better than to say how much work she did at home. Her parents drilled it into her head that other witches wouldn't understand and that she would be in trouble if she told anyone.
The kids at school teased her enough already as is. If they knew she complained about being made to do a few chores then she would never hear the end of it. The whole school situation was embarrassing as well. She had tried to explain it to her parents after her mom cooled down, but it didn't end well. They were right though, if she were stronger, then it never would have happened. Not to mention that if she had never trusted them in the first place everything would be fine. Why was she so stupid?
A hand on her shoulder took her out of her thoughts, and she looked up at Altair. Who seemed worried, and she got more confused. That was until she glanced around and realized they were in front of the animal nursery and hatchery for the zoo. Wait- when did that happen?
“Are you sure everything is alright? You dissociated a bit there. It's not a good sign, especially for someone of your age.” So dissociation was what it was called. It's good to have a name for it rather than just zoning out.
“Yeah I'm OK, it happens sometimes, don't worry about it.” Lucine really wanted the topic to change. She didn't want to be thinking sad thoughts the few times her uncle was here. Just put them off a little while longer. She could do that.
He didn't look convinced but opened the door to the building anyway. “Alright, if you say so. Just remember that I’m here if you need to talk to someone." He said, and she nodded in response. Well, he'd be here until he had to leave again. He wasn’t going to be here all the time, heck or even most of the time. Adults were busy, and it's fine, Lucine didn't blame him for it. She could handle her own business just fine.
Lucine followed Altair inside and looked around. She didn’t go inside here often, considering they didn't do a lot of breeding with the beasts. The building was more of a good thing to have on the rare occasions they did or when accidents did happen. What caught her eye, though, was a clutch of three eggs inside of the main incubator. They looked to be some type of bird egg rather than a snake or other reptile egg. More solid and pointed oval looking, than oblong and leather textured like reptile eggs normally were. To the side of that was a portable incubator with a slightly smaller but same type of egg inside.
“These are what I wanted to show you. We aren’t quite sure what is inside, but we assume it's a type of carnivorous bird.” At the sound of that, Lucine got more excited. Learning about the new species they discovered was always so cool.
“It's because of the look of the eggs you think that, right? Why do you think it's carnivorous?” She asked and tilted her head.
“That’s right, also by bringing light to the egg, I saw that the embryo is in a bird-like shape. About the other thing, we found bones near the nest. It was also lined with animal fur and feathers, so I thought it used the soft remains of beasts it hunted to make it soft. We’ll know for sure once they hatch, though.” Altair said, and Lucine listened intently.
That sounded so cool, but there was one thing that bothered her. “Wait, what about the parents? Shouldn’t they have been guarding the eggs? I thought it’s better to keep young animals with their parents even in captivity.”
“Normally that is true, we found some large birdlike creatures near it. Considering their size vs the eggs it didn’t add up. So we think they might have been predators of these guys' parents. The strange thing is that when the crew captured them to bring back, they escaped at some point. The door was still locked and no one knew what happened.”
Lucine’s eyes widened. Wow, a creature escaping from her uncle and his team really was impressive. A part of her was happy, though. She wouldn’t want them to be stuck here in the conditions the other animals were in. To be fair, it looked like Altair wasn’t that upset either. From what he’d told her, he didn't enjoy taking beasts out of their habitat, but if it was him doing it, then at least he could do it as humanly as possible.
“Huh, I wonder how that happened? Anyway, I can't wait to see these little guys' appearance. I'm sure it'll be adorable.” She said with a smile and looked back at the eggs.
“I'm sure of that too. Though back to why we're here, you know about a beast witches familiar bond right?”
“Yes! Like you and your amphithere Scarlet right? I know it's also a class for the older kids to raise a beast to be their familiar. I can't wait for that.” The idea of having a companion that she could trust was so nice. Finally, she would have someone there for her that wouldn't stab her in the back. She'd give it so much love and spoil it so hard. That was something she thought about a lot.
“I thought so, glad they still have that class. And yes that is where I got Scarlet. Remember that the best familiar bonds are built through trust. If you try and brute force it, the moment your magic runs out it'll turn on you. Though I'm sure you already know that.”
“Yeah I do, you need to treat them with respect and kindness and they'll do the same. Then it'll take only enough magic to forge the bond so other witches can't take control over them.” Again that was a topic she knew a lot about. She had so many dreams about what her first familiar might be. She had also practiced with some of the zoo animals, only those that weren't bothered by it of course. Well, that and creatures small enough that her magic would actually have some effect on them.
“Exactly. Now, let me get back on track. Can you see the egg on its own?” Altair puts his hand on top of the portable incubator and Lucine nods. “Well since we have three more I convinced them to let you have it to raise as your own familiar. It's good practice and if I remember correctly if you raise a creature before you get the class it will still count for it. So you won't have to do as much work.”
Lucine’s eyes widened as she looked at him, then at the egg, and back again a couple of times. The news was the best she'd had in ages. She started bouncing, and her tail flicked happily in response to her emotions. “Really? You're not lying? Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She grabbed him in another hug.
“I'm glad you're happy. You seemed out of it, so I'm glad I could give you some good news.” He said and ruffled her hair again. Lucine stepped back with a huff and patted her hair down. Not that she really cared that much. Her hair was messy and hard to keep down in the first place, and she didn’t really care about her appearance like that. Who was there to try and impress?
“I promise to take the best care of it. I can't wait to see it. I already love them.” She'll make sure they're loved and have everything they might need, that's for sure. If anyone at school tries anything, well then they will know fear. Things done to her can be ignored, but if they harm them, then it's a different story.
“If you want I can bring it to your room, or we can leave it here until it hatches.” He said and gently placed his hand on top of the incubator.
Lucine thought about it, if they kept the egg here then she would just grab some sheets and make a pallet in this room. She was not missing its hatching, no matter what. Except for maybe school, but if the egg started pipping before her classes started, then she was skipping that day. It may also be better for it to be near its siblings while hatching. After all, in some species, older siblings coming out into the world and making noises can help trigger other eggs to do the same.
On the other hand, taking the incubator to her room would make it easier to watch. She could put it on the stand beside her bed, which would mean she could respond quickly when it started to hatch. However, would it be best for the egg? Since it's the runt it might need the sounds of its siblings to help it out. Well if it was just her comfort that was at stake then she knew what to choose.
“I think it would be best to leave the egg here until it hatches. Being with the other eggs would be the best for it.” She'd need to make a quick trip to her room to grab some necessities. Then she would be set to sleep here. There was a side room that she could lay in so she was out of the way just in case. “I need to grab some stuff from my room to set up here, I'll be right back!”
Altair nodded before seeming to realize what she said. “Wait what do you need to set-” But before he could finish Lucine was out. It would only take a few minutes, sleeping and school stuck, some clothes, and hygiene stuff was all she needed. There were showers in the buildings in case an accident happened and workers needed to clean themselves. When she brought the stuff over her uncle would see the extent of her determination.
As the door to the building opened once more Lucine entered, nearly tripping with all the stuff she was carrying. Some smaller things she levitated beside herself to make the load lighter. It really wasn't that much, but sheets took up a lot of space. The moment she was able, she dropped everything on the floor and took a breath.
When her gaze landed back on her uncle she saw his wide eyed stare. “When you said ‘stuff’ I didn't think it'd be this much. I'm surprised you could carry it.”
Lucine grinned and started to open the bags. “It's my sleeping bag and other stuff I need so I can sleep here! It was hard to bring it but I managed.” She found the sleeping bag while digging through her closet, and honestly, she had forgotten she owned one.
“You really did come prepared huh. If I didn't know any better I would say you knew this would happen. But be careful with carrying so much supplies in the future, it can fu-screw up your back.” He said and looked at the bags with her.
Well, the curse like a sailor saying came from somewhere she guessed. Plus he had been on that ship for a while. “I'll be fine, I'm not old like you.” She said with a chuckle and stuck out her tongue.
“Oh my pride, you wound me kid. And hey I'm not that old!” He huffed, though she could see the smile on his face and she just laughed more.
“Anyways I can help you set this up in one of the side rooms. We want the area with the incubators to be clear after all in case we need to check on them.” Altair said.
In response Lucine started to zip the bag she was looking through. She was just double- or triple checking at this point that she had everything. If she didn't then it was a pretty quick trip back, so no big deal. She grabbed a bag and Altair took the heavier one too.
“Be careful with that, don't wanna screw up your back.” Lucine said and chuckled, actually being able to mess with someone was fun. Plus, he was the only person she didn't have to worry about getting mad or upset with afterward. Apparently, her humor was too serious, but when other people did the same stuff, it was fine! It made no sense.
“Ouch, well I know what I'm doing. Though I'll say it again, I don't know how in Titan's name someone your size brought all this stuff here.”
“I'm not that small! You and dad are just really tall, and I'm still growing. Watch when I'm an adult I'll be taller than you!” She said and followed him to the room.
“At your age, I was already a couple of inches taller than you. I don't know where you get it from though, both your parents are tall.” He paused thinking for a moment before continuing. “Maybe it's a weird gene thing with the demon and witch genetics, but then again I'm no doctor so don't listen to me. You may just be in for a growth spurt where you become taller than all of us.”
Lucine grinned at that. “I hope so, when I get bigger I'll be able to take care of the animals better and not have to use so much energy. My parents say I came out wrong because mom was doing experiments while pregnant. That's why she was more careful with the twins, she didn't want to risk a mistake again haha.” Being bigger would mean she could be stronger physically too. The second part was stuff she heard all the time. At this point, she didn't think much of it when her parents mentioned it to her. Parents complain about their kids all the time, especially hers when it comes to, well, herself.
Altair stopped short of opening the door and looked at her with wide eyes. She tilted her head and stared back. What was that about?
“Kid, you know that… do your parents say stuff like that often?” He sounded concerned but Lucine didn't get it. All parents have favorite kids, but she wasn't one of them. At least then, it meant that they didn't care what she did as long as chores were done. Well that and whenever she did something wrong.
“I mean not that often. It's usually to each other, but I tend to overhear it since my ears are sensitive. It's really not that bad, I'm used to it by now.” However, that didn't seem to make him any less worried. She just shook her head and looked at the door. “Come on, can we go in? My arms are getting tired.”
He sighed at that but still opened the door. She was happy to stop the conversation and quickly walked in to look around. Inside there were some larger unused spare machines, some cleaning supplies, and some other stuff that she had no idea what was used for. It looks like when your parents tell you to clean your room before they get home, you forget, then quickly stuff everything in your closet or under the bed. At least there was some floor space she could work with.
Her brain flashed to the familiar feeling and sight of a small and dark room. She quickly shook her head to get those thoughts away. This was not a closet, it was far too big to be one and plus there were windows. If something like… that happened again she could get out through them. That wouldn't happen though, Altair is a good person. But you never know, maybe the lock is old, or the door gets jammed, it's always good to have other options.
Lucine shook her head and pushed away those thoughts for another day. She noticed him putting down the bag and rushed over to lay the rest down, too. At least she wasn’t lost in thought long enough for it to be noticeable.
“I'm gonna talk to your parents after this. No child should have to hear those things from their parents. What is Darcel thinking? I'll knock some sense into him if I have to, anything to get through to my dumbass brother.” He paused, looking worried, seeming to find the right words at that moment. “They… don't hurt you, do they?”
The statement and question caught her off guard. If he talked to them then they would know she said something. There wasn't even much Lucine talked about, she thought she was fine. Those things weren't that bad. What else would they think she told him? What would they say once he was gone on his trip again? Her breathing started to pick up, and she gripped her upper arms in a vise-like grip.
“Don't say anything to them, please. It's fine, I swear- I'll talk to them instead. Just- please, leave- let it be…” Tears fell as her voice was interrupted by sharp takes of breath. Titan, what if her parents decided to do something to her familiar after it hatches? Or choose to keep it in the zoo? It would be her fault for talking without thinking.
“You're gonna hurt yourself like that- just take a deep breath, ok. Three seconds in, hold, 3 seconds out.” Altair said and grabbed her hands to stop from hurting herself, then brought her closer for a hug. His voice and physical contact helped to calm down her thoughts. Lucine took a few deep, but shaky breaths as he said. With some difficulty her breathing went back to normal.
The hug was nice, she didn't get much physical affection, or any for that matter, from her parents. It was also the fastest she had calmed down from one of her panic attacks. She moved away once she felt better. “Thanks, I d-didn't mean to get like that… sorry.”
“You have nothing to apologize for. I shouldn't have brought up something that made you upset. However important it is, what if I make it clear I didn't hear it from you when I talk to them? Would that make it better?”
Lucine thought about it as she started to unpack her things. If her hands were doing something it made it easier to think. “I guess that's fine, just… please don't ask too many questions or else they'll get suspicious. Can we talk about something else now? I want to be happy waiting for the eggs to hatch.”
“Of course, it was a dreary topic anyway.” Altair stopped when he looked over at the windows and saw the time. “Dang, I didn't realize it was so late. Are you sure you'll be good here on your own? I'll make sure to come back early in the morning.”
“Yeah, I’m sure. Why would I bring all this stuff otherwise? I'll be fine. I washed my school uniform for tomorrow, so I'm set there. Then the weekend and I can stay here all day! So yeah, I'll be good, don't worry. Though- when you leave… can you leave the door open slightly, please?” As much as she hated it, a part of her still feared that she'd be stuck in here.
“I can do that, though I'm gonna need to lock the front door especially if you'll be staying here by yourself. That's fine right? You should be able to unlock it on the inside. Just remember to lock it behind you if you leave.” Altair said as he got up and stretched.
“That’s fine, I don't know if you'll be here before I gotta go to school but if I'm gone that's probably where.” Lucine said, laying down the sheet and sleeping bag on top of it for a better cushion. Then adding her pillow there so she was done.
“I'll keep that in mind. Well, good night. I'll see you tomorrow, Lucine.”
“Yup, see you tomorrow!” She said and waved as he left. At the sound of the front door locking she went into her sleeping bag. Lucine couldn't wait for the eggs to hatch, at least now she had something to look forward to. A yawn escaped her and she laid down on the pillow. The next few weeks were going to be great, but for now it was time to sleep.
It was about a week later, and Lucine was eating some snacks, specifically some pota-toe chips, sitting beside the incubator after finishing her work. They had decided to move the egg into the same one as its siblings. After all, it was better for them to be all together in the beginning, which was her recent favorite spot, of course. Not to mention, she'd been seeing more movement in the eggs recently. She couldn't wait to see how cute they were.
Altair said he needed to grab the right type of food for them since their hatching was really soon. It was mainly carnivore type feed since he was pretty sure on it, with some plant material just in case. It was good to be prepared in those situations after all.
At the sound of something shaking, Lucine perked up. That sound was coming from the incubators, and it only made her more excited. Please be good news! She thought and looked through the glass, seeing a crack in a larger one with a little egg tooth poking out. They're pipping! I can't wait to show Uncle Altair.
The more she watched the further it's head started to come out into the world. She could definitely tell it was a type of bird, there was already a layer of down feathers covering it. Though it did have more of a muzzle than a beak, actually when she looked at it more it seemed to be a mixture of the two. It wasn't quite pointed like a brake, but the feathers did stop instead of going all the way down the creature's face.
It really was adorable. She was buzzing in place already. A soft creak of the door made her ears flick in recognition. “Hatching- they're hatching!” She pointed at them and looked over at Altair, who was entering the room. Who was carrying some large boxes, but quickly set them down, maybe more like dropped, and promptly came over.
As he looked through the glass, a big smile appeared on his face. “We'll be seeing what these little guys look like real soon it seems. How long has it been since the first pip?”
“Not that long, at least since I realized, I guess. But I was keeping an ear out for it so it shouldn't have been too long.” While looking at the eggs she started to hear little chirps, which gave her even more of a cuteness overload. “I love them already!”
“Haha, I can see that kiddo. You'll have to wait a bit longer though, it can take up to another day for chicks to break out of their shells. Plus not all of them have made the first pip yet.”
Calming her excitement a bit, Lucine realized he was right. The smaller egg, which they had moved with the others, still didn't have one. It wasn't moving as often as the others, though it was shaking on its own at least a little from what she could tell which was a relief.
“I guess… Can you tell me more about the island? Or about beasts you've found or um anything new about beasts really?” The longer she rambled for the more the feeling that she was being annoying grew.
“Of course, hmm give me a moment to think of something though. Oh while I think I'll set this sh-stuff up. Give me a moment.”
Lucine nodded and sat back down to wait. His stories about the new island were entertaining every time. The more she learned about the new creatures that lived there and what the environment was like, the more Lucine wanted to go there herself.
She even kept a journal writing about the zoo creatures' behaviors. Of course since they're captive it wasn't accurate to how they act in nature, but it was all she could do right now. Well other than reading professional journals, but they had so many big words. At least all the artwork and pictures of beasts in those books made up for it. She could look through those multiple times for fun but not through a single textbook she was given for classes. Ugh why was she like this?
Lucine sighed and looked back at the eggs, resting her arms on the side of the table closest to her and set her chin on them. The sound of the chicks breaking their shells and chirping throughout was a calming background noise. It's better to focus on them than those stupid thoughts.
As Altair came back from putting away the boxes she picked her head back up. Kicking her feet in anticipation.
“I know what to say now, let me ask you a question first. Do you know the main reason why some avian creatures hatch with and others without feathers?”
There was a pause as she started to rack her brain for an answer. It felt like it should be obvious but she couldn't think of anything. “Sorry I don't know why.”
“Kid you don't have to apologize so much, you're still young I don't expect you to know everything about this. Hel-heck I'm still learning new stuff out there and I've been doin’ this for longer than you've been alive.” That brightened up her mood a bit, she could even feel a smile appearing on her face.
“I'll keep it simple for you then, the main reason for birds born with feathers is that they can leave the nest or walk very soon after hatching. Some hatch being fully independent from their parents and can even fly straight out of the egg. On the other hand those without feathers can't walk and are kept in one spot like nests or hollows. They need to be taken care of constantly and are completely reliant on their parents. Does all that make sense?”
Once he finished Lucine nodded in excitement. “Yeah I get it! That's so cool.” In that case she wondered what the hatchling would be. If they were more independent they should be easier to take care of.
When a cracking sound was then followed by louder chirping she immediately turned towards the chicks. One had just broken the top off on their egg and she could finally see them.
It did have a fluffy coat of down feathers from what she could see from the part of its body that was out of the egg. The coloration is a light tan with some reddish brown patterns running down its side. Some of the typical “baby patterns” she would see in books talking about newborn beasts.
On the end of its wings there were developed fingers instead of a typical wing-like limb. Lucine could think of some harpy demons having wings like that, though some just had another pair on their backs it depended on their subspecies. But those were biped demons, she was trying to come up with beasts that were similar. All she could think of though were creatures with fully feathered wings like phoenixes or griffins. Looks like she had a lot more research to do.
The little chick also had more of a muzzle than a typical beak of avian-like creatures. Well, it was more like a combo of the two, if she was being honest. Its eyes were facing forward too, so it was definitely a predator type creature. Those eyes were already open too. Altair was right, there were so many things you could learn just by looking at a creature. Even when it was just born, or hatched in this case.
One egg was close to being hatched, one was just starting to pip, meanwhile, the smallest didn't even have a crack through the shell yet. Lucine could see it wobble which eased her nerves at the sight a little. She really hoped they all hatched ok.
“Don't be too worried, sometimes they need a bit more time ya know?” Altair said and patted her on the shoulder. Lucine nodded, feeling better, if he said it would be ok than it would be.
She watched as the first hatchling started to sit up, pushing off the ground with its little wings then flapping them not to fall back over. It wobbled trying to stand, then promptly fell over with an indignant chirp. Their antics made her laugh, it was too funny watching these little guys.
It looked up at the sound and they both stared at each other. The creature walked over to the end of the incubator while looking up at her, not noting the glass and bonked into it. They squeaked and fell over on their back, their little talons kicking in the air.
Loud laughter filled the room from both Altair and Lucine. So much personality already, she wondered what the others would be like too. Especially the one that would be her familiar.
“Do you want to pick out a name for them?” Altair asked as he stopped his laughter. She looked up at him with wide eyes.
“You want me to name them?” That was not something she was expecting. She had named her stuffed demons but never a living thing before.
“I don't see anyone else in this room, unless there's some spirits I don't know about.”
Lucine gave him a look at that then turned back to the creature. It had gotten back up to look in the direction of the glass chirping at it. As it turned away to look at the other eggs, it walked over towards the one closest to hatching and began to break through more of the shell.
The species helped each other get out of their shells? They must be really smart and caring. Normally if something couldn't hatch properly it meant death. These guys already treated each other better than some witches she knew. Add another reason to the list of why beasts were better company than witches.
“To help each other at infancy must be instinctual, it shows signs of social and intellect in a species. Only a few creatures are known to do similar things and they form close familial bonds…” As Altair trailed off she glanced at him and noticed him writing in a really thick journal. Where had he even gotten that from? Oh right, probably just summoned it. Plus he was starting to ramble too, he must be really interested. She'd heard him talk about creatures like this before but it wasn't too often that it happened. Or maybe he did do it often and just wasn't around enough for her to see it.
Lucine used to talk a lot about the creatures she would see too. Beasts are just so interesting, how could she not? But when enough people either ignored her or told her to be quiet amongst other things, she eventually just relented to thinking about them and writing it down. After all no one could control her internal monologue, there she was safe to think about whatever.
Back to the creatures, the second egg's top was off. However the chick had taken a look outside then quickly stuffed their head back into the shell. She could see a slight tint of purple on their feathers. Though it was also mainly lighter browns.
The first chick went over to the third egg. Though before it did, the chick inside burst through the top of the egg. Splaying out on the ground with a flurry of chirps. It looked very happy, and very loud too. This chick's coloration had a pinkish to light reddish tint to the browns and tans. So these creatures had a variety of coloration within the same species.
The movement caused the first chick to fall backwards. It stood back up and shook its wings, heading to the last egg. Once they reached it, the chick sat down and started to poke at the shell after a short pause. A good chunk had been taken off before it started chirping into the egg. After a couple seconds the chick inside responded with its own chirps. Which caused the first chick to continue with breaking the egg. With a hole already in the shell the last hatchling started to break through at last. It took a few minutes but the top of the shell eventually broke off and the last chick climbed out of its shell. For the tint on this one she could see blue with the colors and similar pattern the others had.
“I should wait on the names till I know if they're girls or boys, but I already have some ideas!” Watching them had given her some thoughts on names to match their personalities. The names needed to fit right, these were living things after all, she had to be serious about this.
“If that's the issue I have a spell that can help with that.”
“Hey, if you could do that why didn't you do so earlier!” She huffed looking at him with a frown.
“It didn't come up, besides how was I supposed to know what you were thinking kiddo. I ain't a mind reader.”
“Fine I guess you're right.” Lucine sighed, watching him draw an orange circle in the air as his eyes glowed. Even if the beast-keeping color looked more brown to her, she guessed not as brown as construction so there was that.
“The first and last ones that hatched are male, the other two are females.”
As curious as she was to how he was doing that, there were other things on her mind. Onto naming the little beasties.
“Umm ok then, how about the first to hatch is Briar, the second Iris, the third Gylfie and the last…” She trailed off looking at the one that would end up being her familiar. Lucine wanted to put in extra effort with his name after all. A name from an old magazine popped into her head and she grinned. “How about Saurian? That name sounds really cool.”
“I think those names are perfect, good job kiddo.”
Lucine was glad he agreed, she was happy with the names too after all. However another question floated in her mind and she tilted her head. “When should we feed them? Actually, how would I even do that?”
“Normally you can wait for about half to a full day before feeding a chick for the first time. Sometimes even longer. They still have leftover food from the egg to digest. But I can start showing you how to get the food ready for em.”
“Maybe you shouldn't have put the food bag up if they were hatching.” Lucine chuckled.
“It was an oversight, happens all the time. I'll be back, once again.” Before Altair left he ruffled her hair once again. She stuck her tongue out at him after doing so but he just laughed and went to get the bags.
Soft churring sounds took Lucine’s attention as she saw the hatchlings snuggling against one another. Considering the amount of energy it must have taken them to break out of their shells, it made sense for them to be sleeping.
While waiting she thought of an idea and reached into her bag. A notebook appeared in her hand before she started to flip through the pages. Some crude drawings of common beasts found around the isles with notes cramped within the margins. The best way to show you were an amazing beast-keeping witch was discovering and writing about new species. It’s why Altair was such a great witch, he'd already explored so many places and found so many cool creatures. Well every beast was cool to her, but still.
Maybe someday Lucine could be like that too. Witches say you have to start somewhere right? This notebook was her start. Even if she didn't show it to anybody or the notes weren't very good. She started to write some notes with a quick sketch of each creature to the side.
While in the middle of writing she heard Altair come back in with the heavy food bags. Dropping them on the ground as he leaned backwards in a stretch.
“I think you should be the one to worry about their back, not me.” Lucine laughed.
“Well, do as I say, not as I do. Anyways, who better to tell you about it than someone going through the consequences?”
“Ha, so you admit you are old!”
“Hey now that ain't fair-”
She stuck her tongue out with a grin and he sighed
“Outwitted by a small child, oh how did I get to this point?”
“I'm not a child! I'm basically a teenager, and I'm not small!” Lucine huffed, and now it was Altair’s turn to laugh.
“Anyways it is getting late, I saw the sun setting out the windows before I brought the bags. Want one more lesson before we hit the hay?”
Was that even a question at this point? “Yes! Tell me!”
“Let's dive in then, do you know what a crop means for avian creatures?” He asked, opening the food bags while talking. She just shook her head in response.
“Well a crop is basically a type of food storage that allows avian species to eat a lot and store it for later. It tends to be pronounced on chicks that are born without feathers but I know these guys have one too. It's in griffins, cockatrices, phoenixes, just to name a few. Since these guys are carnivores we'll give them different types of meat products till we find what sticks.”
The food bags now that she focused on them were diverse. From dried and fresh meat, insects, a type of liquid food, and pellets. “Once we make sure the stuff we give them won't make em sick. We use either tweezers or a syringe, one with no needle, if we're using liquids to feed the chicks and the food goes right into their crop. It's a little different for some species but I think for now this way should be safe. We can give them their first feed in the morning if they're ready.”
All the new information was making her even more excited, for once she was happy to see what tomorrow would bring. Taking care of these little ones was going to be so fun, she couldn’t wait to watch them grow. It was nice to have something to look forward to for a change.
“I can’t wait to feed them, I’ll be up first thing in the morning. I'm going to do my best taking care of them, I promise!” Lucine smiled, her foot tapping on the ground, happiness spilling out with the movement.
“You'll do a great job, I'm sure of it. Just don't stay up too late. Trust me you'll need the rest.” Altair ruffled her hair once more and she laughed, shoving his hand off of her. Lucine stuck out her tongue and backed away.
“Ok, I won't stay up! I'll sleep good, on Titan.” She made a movement over her chest and smiled. Considering that since he was around Lucine hadn’t had to do as many chores she could actually catch up on rest. Which she would absolutely do tonight too, being well rested was the safest way to take care of them. After all, tiredness causes mistakes which she didn't want.
“I know you will. Well I’m going to head out now, be careful here. I’ll lock the front like usual.”
Lucine nodded as he walked away and her eyes traveled to the chicks once more. They were so dang cute. If they looked this precious as hatchlings then she could only imagine what they would look like fully grown.
As the door shut she forced her eyes away. She really should get as much rest as possible, it was going to be a lot of work the next few weeks taking care of them. Though at the same time, Lucine knew she would enjoy every moment of it. It was the best thing that ever happened to her after all. After a yawn, Lucine headed towards her sleeping pallet, closing the door to a crack once more. Laying down for a restful sleep, for a change happy to see what the morning will bring.