I was staring out at the endless brown and yellow grassy plains before me, feeling a bit chilly without my mother and only my brothers and sisters around in the nest. I was in a nice indented spot on the edge of the nest, my favorite spot when I could get it. My other four brothers and sisters were crazy though, and they didn't seem to understand personal space at all. That was fine though. They were too adorable to be mad at.

I was the oldest of the family, besides mother and father obviously. By quite a lot! Almost a week! 

I remember looking up at the sky and rolling in the nest when I broke through my shell, trying to get all the hot wet sticky fluid along with the remnants of my egg off of me while I tried to excitedly look around at everything. Everything was so bright! New! I could still see that in the world around me. I couldn't help even now but look out at the sky or over the edge of the nest and wonder what was out there. But I couldn't ever climb out, and mother would always push me back in.

I was stuck looking out at the grass and trees around the area, my head wobbling as I looked at everything, with a small hoot of happiness before I scratched at myself with my beak to get a small piece of loose fluff off and onto the ground where I let it be.

With another low hoot of satisfaction, I turned my head around behind me to look out at my siblings. They were giving me some space today it seemed, all climbing on top of each other and being wild. It was kind of cute. 

But it was weird and I couldn't understand why they were doing it. I couldn't understand a lot, but I also understood a lot. I was different from my family, I just didn’t understand why. I couldn't understand them, and them me as far as I could tell. Sometimes I wondered if they could think at all, when I looked into their eyes. Couldn't they hear the words? Look at the sun and realize that it must be big. Look at the stars and wonder what was out there. 

I tried to ask, but my beak wouldn't listen to what I told it to do. The words in my head were not something I could say, only think. It was weird, you would think that I would hear my hoots in my head like I say to the air. It was like I was trapped, almost. Strange knowledge sometimes came and went too. Things like, did you know something called snow existed? It was like water, another thing I hadn't seen besides in the red of the food mother brings back home after she hunts. But they were different things, which was interesting. I wanted to see water. And snow! It was supposed to be white, like dad or mom!

I was only dark brown, like my siblings. I couldn't wait until I was white like mom!

I could fly like they do, and I could see the world! I think of such weird things that I think are supposed to be out in the world sometimes, and I want to see them all!

I stretch out my wings as much as I can, but I can only unfold it a bit. They are very weak and not big enough to carry my weight at all, but I try anyway. I wonder how long I would have to wait…

One week later

I crouched down among the dry leaves and the tall yellow grass, careful not to shift enough to crunch them under my weight or with my talons. Me and the rest of the family had grown enough that we had all walked up the side of the nest a few days prior, and I am happy to say that I was the very first. The world didn't look that different, but I was happy anyways and I would have hooted a storm of happiness if I didn't think about the things that I had knowledge about. Foxes mainly. Sharp teeth, much bigger than me right now, as tall as and way longer than father is tall!

I hadn't seen one, but I knew better now then to shout out my location to all the scary red thingies. Stealth birb is me. I am the sneakiest of them all! 

And I proved that, because as soon as me and my weird little fluff ball family left the nest, they started racing off and hiding around all over the place and I was delighted to take part! Nobody could find me! Only mother sometimes. But that was alright! The other little owlets that were my brothers and sisters were really bad though! I could hear them hiding and hooting, and sometimes even see them! Lazy. They wouldn't let me teach them either and pecked at me sometimes! Rude. But still cute.

I looked around, peeking my head up and looked through the grass. I could see… two of my siblings already… make that three. Four. That's all of them. Two seconds

I sighed with a little sad hoot and shook my head, looking down again. They never learn… 

But I did! A lot. I learned a lot of new things. Things like… Animals. It was one of the strangest words, and it meant a lot. Animals, something less than people. I wondered what people were, and I didn't quite understand what my mind was trying to tell me. Something to do with the mind? Some connection to thoughts and understanding. But weirdly, while I saw myself as a people my mind started putting doubts in my mind that everyone else was. I knew I was different. But was I something completely different from them? Did they really not have thoughts? Were they animals?

It couldn't be. 

But on a happier note! I learned names! It was my new obsession! I named the nest the Burrow! And the land around, the Alia Plains! And my favorite rock, that I named… Rocky!! I thought that last one was very smart sounding. It has a ‘y’ at the end! I liked how I could almost hoot it if I tried for a while. My mom and dad apparently were already named Mom and Dad, which was something I didn't quite get. But I named the four fur balls! Alice, the youngest girl. Fredy, the youngest boy. Kelly, the second oldest girl if you included me. And Geo, the oldest boy. But I could barely tell the boys apart, so sometimes I mixed them up which was annoying.

I had thought about naming myself as well, but I couldn't think of something quite right yet. Names were important, so I was taking my time. 

I wanted something that meant something, even if only I could know it. I stretched out my wings carefully as I thought, looking up dramatically. Something that means… what I want. I want to know a lot. I want to leave things behind as I go, to show others what I am.

Another week later

I looked carefully out at the stretch of grassland in front of the edge of the nest that I had parched myself on under mothers watchful gaze. I could feel her gaze on me as I stretched my wings out, looking forwards and up as I flapped like mother always did when she started to fly off the ground. I had watched carefully a lot! 

…This isn’t working. 

Come on… I need to flap harder!

I thought as I could feel my weight sometimes start to rise under the flaps, but not enough to even leave the ground a centimeter. I started hopping hopefully too, just to get more off the ground, and I could feel my fall slow as I spread my wings and pushed on the air quickly in bursts.

Then I jumped forwards, tucking my legs in behind me as I spread my wings wide, pushing down as I flung myself forwards and up off the small ledge of the nest.

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I- I am flying! I am free! See you later, suckers!!! OW! NOOOOO! My legs caught me before I could smash headfirst into the ground a few feet from the nest. I looked back, disappointed and then at my mother. She looked the same as ever, unreactive. I sighed with a deep hoot and I waddled my way back to the nest to try again with my head down low. 

Mom makes this look way too easy.

Three days later

I paced around on top of Rocky, watched by a curious Alice that looked up at me with a tilted head. She liked to watch me for some reason, and it was cute so I let her. I was thinking though, so I didn't notice.

Practicing to fly did something unexpected to me, and I was trying to think about stuff.

I got a lot of new knowledge, all about the air and flying. Some useless numbers, but there was a lot of cool stuff. Like… metal things with wings that managed to go fast enough to fly like a bird with heavy metal wings that didn’t move! Lift, drag, air resistance, friction, how gravity works. But the most important thing was that I had done something to get it! I could learn the things I didn't know about and get more knowledge! 

But I don't even know what I don't know. I thought to myself, mildly annoyed. The only thing I can do… is try things that I didn't before? Explore? But I already knew that. I hooted in amusement, turning around and nearly stumbling when I saw Alice below me wobbling around and pacing, trying to imitate me and looking at her talons before looking up to me with those cute adorable golden eyes and her tiny beak. I laughed a hooting laugh as I watched, happy that the little fluff ball pulled me from my thoughts and rubbed her head with an outstretched wing.

Exploring was something that I wasn't quite ready for. Back to practicing trying to fly!

I started with a running start off the edge of the rock after the new knowledge about flight, aiming myself away from the little owlet looking up at me, and stretching my wings and giving an almighty flap downwards, sending me a foot off the ground. The highest I had ever gone! I kept at it, faster this time, and I slowly found myself in the air, circling a few feet off the ground over the nest. 

I love flying practice… I gave a hoot of happiness as I flew, softly as I concentrated on my breathing and the beat of my wings as they pushed the air around me down with a soft thumping sound as my feathers caught the air under them in a flurry of white lines on the tips of my wings mixed into browny black of my body. I could hear the russell of the grassland and feel the chill of the air against my beak and I closed my eyes for an instant, taking it all in for those precious seconds of flight until I got too tired to fly any more. 

When I opened my eyes, I looked over where I heard the rustling of a mouse in the dirt a little ways away and I looked at the spot I knew where it would be curiously. Dad was lissining as well, and I could see him flying down, flapping with a quiet that I could only achieve when hiding on the ground or gliding high in the sky away from the easily moved golden grass.

I watched as he came in low, in a glide before he stretched out his talons and gripped the surprised mouse with his talons as he flapped into the air once more with the meal. I tilted my head in the air, wondering when I would be able to fly like father or mother, to be able to catch prey like that.

One week later

I looked out over the Alia Plains and the nest a dozen or so feet away, looked up at by my siblings who were looking excited and energetic and getting the occasional look from mother and perched on a high branch on the barren tree that overlooked the area around the nest beside father. I was being quiet as I looked and listened for prey. Stealth birb! Stalker of mice and men! Wait, what's a men? Oh, that's the weird featherless thingy that I know is a person too… Maybe stalking person’s isn't something I want to do? That sounds mean… Actually that sounds hilarious, nevermind. Stalker of mice and men!

Then my head swivels as I hear a crunch of leaves and the russell of grass a little ways away behind me. I shuffle around to face it, and I push myself forwards into the air towards it, coming in slowly and quietly like father showed me like the swift blade in the darkness of night, gliding almost level with the ground.

I was rapidly gliding in, locking my eyes and ears onto the spot where I had heard the movement coming from with my talons outstretched and ready to grab. Then through the leaves and grasses, I spotted what was hidden there. SNEK! I panicked a bit as I saw its gleaming scales and bared teeth as it looked up at me from its coiled position, but it was too late! It was in my talons! ACH! I gave a hoot of horror as my body's instincts took over and I flew up into the air, the snake still coiling around my talons weakly. It was small, but I shivered with horror at the sight of it. I was scared of snakes! They terrified me as soon as I got the knowledge of their existence from spotting it from a distance when I was younger… A.K.A. a week ago.

I gave a screech as it coiled around more, its head rising up before I forced myself to let it go in the air and send it up and up in front of me, twisting in fear as it seemed to look me right in the eye with a look of murder and tiny fanged bared. Too close! Kill it! Too- GULP. 

I bit into the snake's body with my beak without a thought besides ‘Kill it!’ 

I was prepared to shiver in horror, but when the snake gave a last thrash in my beak’s grip and I tasted its blood. Oh… Snek… Tastes good?

Then what I had just done hit me and I nearly faltered in the air as I gave a hoot of challenge into the air through the body of the snake. HELL YES, YOU CAN'T SCARE ME YOU STUPID COLD BLOODED SCALED ROPE! I AM THE KILLER OF SNAKES! STALKER OF MICE AND MEN AND EATER OF FINE SNAKES! I AM THE HUNTER!

The high of my first hunt carried me right back to the barren tree as I slurped the snake down my beak energetically like spaghetti. Spaghetti? What's- Huh, I like the sound of that. Nice!

I settled down on the branch with my father, looking at him with a proud smile on my beaked and feathered face, but he didn't seem to notice besides sending a look over at me for a moment. I gave a sigh hoot. Fine, I can be proud enough for the both of us! I hooted dully and looked out over the Alia Plains for something else. The snake got me hungry… For blood. 

Five weeks later

I had spent days and days and days practicing my flying, hunting and walking until I could provide for myself in its entirety. I felt myself grow, in both skill and height and size and I could feel my mind growing sharper than ever as some pieces of information streamed into my brain from time to time. Me, my brothers and sisters had grown a lot and the white on their and my feathers grew more and more as time dragged on, overtaking the brown and black. If I compare myself to the age groups of the illusive humans that I found myself more and more interested in lately as information about the world appears in my mind, I would say I was in my late teens… and my siblings early teens.

I… was delaying my leaving if I was being honest with myself. I couldn't help but keep on snuggling with the little furballs of owlets that were my siblings. Though I know they aren't… people, I can't help it. I learned a thing, personification and I think that describes everything. Sometimes, I see people in the eyes of my family… they just look so similar to me, yet I also know that they don't think the way I do…

I was resting on Rocky when I was thinking everything over. I am going to leave. Today. No… I would lose my nerve. Right now. But… It's getting close to sunset. I wared with myself, growing frustrated and throwing myself off the large rock into the air to think. I always thought better while flying.

I rose into the air, looking down at the grassland below in the afternoon air. I watched my siblings perched on the tree of our land, looking for prey. Mother and father alongside them. God… Why is this so difficult? Sometimes… I wish I was an animal. I wouldn't have to think so hard about stupid things like this…

I flew over to my feathered family, and I settled on a branch looking at them all. I gave a hoot sigh. Mom… Dad… I know you can't hear me, or understand me if you could… But I am leaving. I want to explore the world! I am going to learn so many things, things you couldn't dream of in those bird brains of yours…

Geo, Fredy you were always little menaces of energy, always annoying me… But I am going to miss you little tykes. 

Kelly… You never did like me, but I hope that you find yourself a good life and good huntings.

And Alice… I love you, you little cutie you. I loved when you started mimicking your weird older sister, I loved your curious expressions and cute hoots of confusion when I did something you didn't understand. I love you, you little fuzz brain. 

I will remember you… All of you. Maybe I will see you again someday?

My loving family gave me blank looks, staring at me until Geo regurgitated a pellet and spat it on the ground, making everyone turn back to the fields. Except for Alice, who looked at me with that cute confused tilted head. I gave her a pat on the head, shuffling down the branch with short hops and spread out wings.

Someday… In the wild, wild world… I would look back and feel some regret, maybe, that I didn't stay longer. But… I was too excited to be sad, so I took flight, spreading my wings out wide and taking to the sky’s, heading into the unknown world for the very first time. What would I learn? What would I leave behind? 

At that moment I named myself after a word that I found suddenly connected with my mind. 

Legacy. My name is Legacy, and I will leave my legacy in the world with all that I learn and do in this wild, wild world.