"Hey! Tall guy!"

Stella waved her hands as she ran through the vibrant green field. As her target, the most towering member of the Lycan Squad, turned his head at her, a flock of bluebirds flew from the pego tree. The swarm of azure blurs took her attention for a split second. How had she not seen them before? Perhaps they didn't visit the clearing in the mornings.

Regardless, they were spooked away. Oops...

When she approached the pego tree, a hole had formed on its trunk, from which Hōkō's fluffy white head popped out.

"Child, you screwed up."

Stella narrowed her eyes. "What? Why?!"

"It's blue jay mating season, and Locci here wanted to take some pictures."

The guard was visibly irritated, carrying a black, rectangular digital camera. The Human had a gut feeling that inviting him would not be as simple as she expected.

Stella leaned closer to the elder's ear, whispering. "Why?"

"I don't know. Why don't you ask Locci yourself?"

She scoffed. "Do you care for everyone's privacy other than mine? Or do you get pleasure from being cryptic?"

A sly smirk was his only response. That son of a bitch...

"Fine." Reluctantly, Stella stepped towards the lofty Wolf. She remembered his reclusive, gentle nature from the river house. So his appearance wouldn't intimidate her this time. Nevertheless, she was unsure what her angle would be for the proposal.

Talking to people is hard. Not that I know much of it. My only company is someone I'm not even sure it's even there most of the time.

...

What am I doing with my life?

Locci stared at the Human as she confidently strode in his direction, looking less annoyed and more distressed with each step. Introverts, amirite?

The black Wolf wore a forest green wide, longsleeved shirt with yellow accents, which appeared more like the upper half of a robe. Its biggest crime, of course, was concealing his magnificent build. Stella wasn't much interested in the masculine body, but holy fuck, she had to admire that juggernaut build!

"Salutations, my dear guard!" Stella thought a tone akin to the Knight's might give her some advantage. Was it working? What do you think?

The guard only shyly wavered at her, his yellow eyes pointed at anywhere but hers. The Human had met a boy who had this same behavior a few years back. He worked at a small store a few blocks from the slums, and Stella knew how to slip away with a stolen product when someone forced him into social interaction at the cash register.

Ah, good times. Too bad he was fired, though. It was definitely her fault.

Unfortunately, her petty thieving skills were probably not helpful for whatever she needed to do.

She glanced at the camera. "Hey! That's a cool-looking camera!" She put her hands on her hips. "I assume the Knight gave it to you?"

He glimpsed at it and nodded.

That was it. Stella's opening.

"I'm looking for the Lycan Squad to help me throw a party for The Silver Knight. I have Lien and Tarb so far." She smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Say, do you want to join in? Nothing too crowded, just a few friends. Your boss is not gonna even be there!"

Finally, his eyes met hers. For a few seconds, at least, before he glanced at his camera again. Then, the pego tree. Then the flowers...

After agonizing seconds that felt like minutes, Locci's surprisingly soft and delicate voice was finally heard. His hormones must have gone all into his physique during puberty.

"I don't know. I'm not too great at parties..." His fingers fidgeted so much she was convinced the camera would be torn apart anytime soon.

The girl sighed. She should've expected this.

"Can you think about it, at least?" Stella implored. "The Knight was so generous with me, and I want to return the favor, somehow."

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

With her desperation at its peak, she bowed. "I would be deeply grateful if you attended even for a few minutes."

The introverted guard sighed. "I mean, I still have to photograph those birds, and-"

"I can help you!" Stella's mouth ran as if it had a life of its own. "You want birds? It's my specialty! I'm a massive bird nerd! They called me the Robin Orphan at school!"

She never went to school, and the nickname was a half-truth. The intention behind it and how it was spelled was a tad different...

His ears perked up. "Seriously?" He crouched, his sunflower-colored orbs widening in curiosity. "I-I mean, can you help me track a rainbow pheasant!?" His posture went completely 180°. His tail started to wag with the same childish enthusiasm as Lien's, and he clutched the girl's shoulder with his massive paw. He was beginning to act more like the rest of his species.

Taken by surprise, Stella took a few seconds to gather her words and unfounded bravado. "Blue pheasants, green pheasants, all colors you can think of! We'll catch one in no time!"

Locci jumped with the overwhelming joy of a bright-eyed puppy, shaking the girl like a rag doll. "Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!"

However, as the Human picked herself up before losing her lunch for the spinning world, she also remembered a teeny, tiny detail.

"How in the hell will I track a pheasant?"

That was when Hōkō's chuckle echoed in her mind again. She was about to complain until...

"I can give you a little nudge."

Oh. That was unexpected.

"Really?! You'll do this for me?" She turned to the pego tree.

Rather than mischief, his smile brought a reassuring wave of truthfulness to his telepathic words. "What can I say? I'm taking a liking to you, that's all! Besides, Asra needs more in his life than solely work. You realize that and are willing to go far to retribute the kindness he gave you."

The words that came next sent goosebumps down her spine.

"I'm proud of you."

It was still an alien feeling. In Namadi, meeting the expectations of adults was only possible if they expected nothing more from her than a lost cause, a petty thief in the best of cases.

Now, Asra and Hōkō were actively encouraging her growth. This renewed her drive to throw this celebration. And hey, she now thought about making something similar for the elder.

Huh. No confirmation or protest from Hōkō yet. Wasn't he gonna barge in on her thoughts again? Perhaps he was playing the sneaky game.

Regardless, Stella smiled back at the elder Wolf and flashed a thumbs-up. "I appreciate that. Thank you so much."

A black paw touched her shoulder, breaking her attention. "Shall we begin?"

----------------------------------------

One tedious search later...

Stella and Locci were venturing through the Pantsti woods. Hōkō telepathically guided the girl, who pretended to be tracking the bird without aid.

However, she noticed the elder was taking her through a lesson about tracking animals. He urged her to be aware of the subtle footprints of multiple animals, including their target. Feathers, droppings, subtle chirps that sounded like a valve being turned - all supplementary hints that were substantial to someone who didn't have a freakishly powerful nose and ears to carry them.

Speaking of, Locci took the lead the moment the smell of pheasant popped on his nasal radar. Stella's enhanced speed was enough to keep up with the eager photographer towards his objective.

After braving between fir trees, they entered a peculiar part of Pantsti. Unlike the open fields the Human was accustomed to, this region was taken over by a towering collective of blades of brownish-yellow grass. The vegetation swerved smoothly with the breeze as if it were the hair of a buried giant, peacefully hibernating as nature claimed it as part of its beauty, complemented by the orange glory of the setting sun.

They had little time left, and the girl would not spend another night surrounded by darkness.

"I assume the birds are hidden there. What now?" Stella asked impatiently.

Locci closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and emitted an ear-splitting howl! Stella clenched her teeth, blocking her ears with her hands as fast as possible.

"GEE, THANKS FOR THE ADVICE!!!"

Finally, soaring from the grassy wall, the rare, magnificent rainbow pheasants appeared before her eyes! And... they were all brownish with black spots?! What a fucking ripoff!!!

To top it all off, Locci wasn't even taking the damn pictures!

"Dude, they're running away!" Stella pulled him by the arm. "What're you doing?!"

His eyes did not diverge from the towering plants. "He's not out yet."

"Who?!"

"The male!" Locci explained. "He's the one with the colorful plumage!" He cocked his eyebrows, slowly turning into a frown as he turned his attention to Stella. "How do you not know this simple fact about pheasants? You said you knew birds?"

Uh oh! Caught red-handed right at the finish line!

Cold sweat formed on her forehead as she frantically shook her hands. "W-Wait! Of course, I knew that! I-It's just-"

The sound of someone cleaning a pipe echoed from the obstructive vegetation, louder than the girl expected.

"He's coming," Locci warned. "Stay back. I have one chance before he attacks."

Stella stared at him with confusion. "It's not like this bird can hurt you or anything, right?"

He side-eyed her. "About that..."

The goofy chirps became louder and louder. As much as the girl loathed to admit, her heart beat faster with anticipation. What the hell was that answer?!

Her eyes threatened to pop from her skull as a red pheasant head poked out of the grass. Judging by that alone, his size was comparable to Jólakötturinn's. A hunch that was terrifyingly confirmed when the bird's body was fully out from his grassy shelter.

His plumage was undoubtedly worthy of the name. He had a blue neck, green torso, purple and blue feathers on his wings, yellow feet with talons the size of the girl's head, and magnificent orange tail feathers.

The guard's camera flash was the final push to prompt the monstrous bird to defend his territory. When he flapped his colorful wings, the tones bled into a disorientating kaleidoscope, making Stella's sense of balance falter.

She walked away from the animal, closing her eyelids to mitigate the dizzying effects.

That fucking picture was better be worth it.