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Serenity in the Gardens

Jackrow was idly preening at his own shoulder and forearm as he walked his way from his home to the Temple Market. The day was beautiful, with the skies clear and the temperature just right for him, albeit a little cold for the reptilians who had 'invaded' the city. Truth be told, he couldn't find himself caring about their needs, for he only really cared about the avian population. Reptiles, mammals, and others had no place in his home, yet they were here as unofficial guests and refugees after the war.

It wasn't that Jack hated non-avians, he just didn't think they had any place in his city. The north was one for corvids and raptors and other birds, the skyscrapers were built to house feathered creatures, and the climate wasn't really appropriate for anyone scaled. At the same time, he did hold a bit of resentment towards them, since his nation had recently engaged in a particularly bloody and messy conflict with the mammalian nation to the east and the reptilian nation to the south. To his ire, he'd lost a few friends and acquaintances in the years that passed.

Even though he knew he had to go to the temple market to get some food for the weekend, he dreaded having to run into one of those scummy scaled beasts. If one talked to him, he would have a hard time not scoffing at them or telling them to leave his home town or nation. However, deep down inside he also knew that it wasn't entirely their fault. His superior species had won the war, leaving both nations in a bit of a mess, so they had nowhere to go.

He was, of course, conflicted. He didn't consider himself a bad person, and he wasn't particularly deeply engaged in the war itself - he was more interested in higher aviation and interstellar exploration - but he still felt the impact of the war reverberating through his life, long after the conflict had ended. Now, he just found himself trying his best to remain on his own, introverted and secluded from the rest of the world. The only times he had any interest in leaving his roost high in one of the towers was when he was out getting food or at work at the aviation academy, trying to push forward into the skies with science.

"Hey, watch where you're walking." A particularly large reptilian scowled at Jackrow as the avian bumped into him from behind.

Jackrow was distracted by his inner monologue, arguing with himself about whether or not he was justified in being angry at the foreigners that were invading his land. On one wing, he felt right in wanting people of other skin types being in his homeland, yet he couldn't properly internalize the reason for it even though he knew they were here against their will with nowhere else to go. "S-sorry." He said with a furrowed brow, stifling a bit of a low-key screech. Despite knowing it wasn't logical, he couldn't help but get angry at this fool for daring to be in his way.

The lizard growled again and turned away, mumbling to himself. "Damn birds, all the same."

Naturally, Jackrow couldn't leave this alone. "Excuse me? What do you mean by that?" He demanded, following the reptile through the crowd. "Don't walk away from me, scales, tell me what you meant by that."

After a few long steps through the bustling market, the reptile paused, sighed, and turned to look down at the much smaller Jackrow. "I mean you're all the same. Always pushing us to the side, demanding we bow down to you just because this isn't our land. Well, I'm sick of it, featherhead."

Jackrow's plumage flared up as he got an angry look on his face, nares blushing in rage. "And who's fault is that? This is my land, not yours. I didn't mean to bump into you, but you have no right to assume that we're all arrogant jackasses. I just want to get some food, and people like you are making it very difficult to do so without feeling like a tyrant."

"People like me?" The lizard boomed as he stepped forward, standing tall over Jackrow. His thick, barrel chest was so large and muscular that the avian had a hard time looking eye to eye with the reptile he'd offended. The crowd parted a bit, knowing this was about to erupt into some sort of fight; the building tension of the refugees and locals was a fuel of hatred, waiting for something to ignite it into a fiery rage.

Though upset, Jackrow had no desire to fight this burly beast of a lizard. Rather than ignite the flames of unrest, he stepped back and shook his head. "No need to turn this into a species thing; I meant huge blokes like yourself. Big, long tails, hulking forms. Thick scales, take up a lot of room. Only so much room in an avian land, but your presence here makes it difficult to go about our lives, you see." Luckily, his clever nature helped him to avoid any further confrontation.

The reptile's eyes narrowed and he turned around, growling idly as his long tail swept out behind him to smack at Jack's knees in a form of defiance before disappearing into the crowd of other avians.

Of course, Jack nearly used his dexterous talons to grab at the tail and stomp on it, but thought better of himself and simply turned and went towards the nut and berry shack. He ruffled his feathers and reached into his satchel for his coin counter - a digital card that kept track of his banking information. He needed to get himself something to eat, and he was going to make the most delicious shrimp salad, he wouldn't let the gruff lizard throw his mood off.

After a few minutes wandering between groups both avian and mammalian, he finally made his way to the back of the line of his favorite produce store. He had a particular meal in mind when it came to his lunch, and intended to have some bread with peanut spread on the side of a multi-vegetable salad topped with grilled shrimp.

The crowd to get to the merchant was pretty thick, since this vendor was pretty large and popular, bringing in literally dozens of crates of fresh produce onto the temple's roof every day. It was run by a gryphon that Jackrow had come to tolerate, despite it being a cross breed. One thing he'd learned in his time since the end of the war was that he really couldn't afford to be too picky about what merchants he chose to do business with, since a lot of foreigners had taken over the market, and at least the gryphon was half avian, making him at least fifty percent more tolerable than others.

In front of him, Jackrow's keen eye caught something that he wasn't fully expecting. It was a smaller mammal wearing a blue head scarf and a simple yellow and green shawl that covered her upper body and dangled over her midsection to act as a sort of skirt to keep her modesty. She was trying her best to push forward so she could get some food, but the rabble of birds was constantly pushing her aside with their wings so that they came first.

As he watched, he noticed something deeply unsettling coming over him. As the avians pushed to grab and clutch at the fruit and vegetables of the produce stand, the small mammal girl just stood in place, her hands folded up tight against her chest while she allowed their wings to jerk her around from side to side and back and forth. It was like she was standing in a crowded train, only there was no reason for her to be knocked about as such.

A cognitive dissonance bubbled up in Jackrow's heart and mind as he watched. His first instinct was to just leave it alone, let the foreigner get her just-desserts; the other side of the coin was a bit deeper and a bit more heart wrenching. He felt like he really should step in and do something. Sure, she was a mammal and she didn't earn the right to step in front of an avian when in line, but her sad-faced resignation of that fact actually made Jackrow a little sympathetic. She wasn't causing a fuss, she wasn't fighting with anyone, she wasn't getting in anyone's way, and she wasn't causing any sort of problems.

Yet still the crowd was pushing over and around her like she wasn't even there.

He had to do something, so he grabbed his satchel close to his side and pushed through the crowd of his fellow avians to do the right thing. "H-hey there, do you need some help getting something to eat?"

She looked up from the bag she had clutched to her side for a moment, sky blue eyes glinting in the midday sun. "N-no thanks. I can wait until everyone else is done."

Jackrow squinted his eyes and clicked his beak at her, extending one hand to hers. "Naw, you're here in line, same as everyone else. And besides, I imagine your money is as good as mine, even if you are from....the east." He paused for a bit before mentioning her presumed place of origin. Even in an act of hubris and altruism, he had a hard time not squawking at the reminder of the filthy furred beasts who had once attacked this great city. Still, he had to hold his tongue, for at least this one mammal seemed to have absolutely no qualm with him and not a violent bone in her body.

She blushed and lowered her snout to rest up between the fabric on her chest and the top of her bag. "Seriously, though. It's fine, I can wait."

A pang of guilt washed over Jackrow, urging him to lean forward and push himself through the crowd to make it to the counter of the merchant stand, where he slammed his hand down on the wood with enough force to get the gryphon's attention while also making the other patrons step back. Jack wasn't the fighting type, yet twice in less than an hour he'd incited attention for potentially confrontational situations. "This mammal here wants to buy some fruit and veg. Let her through, will ya?"

One of the other avian patrons - a blue feathered male - chuckled as his plumage stood on end. "Or what? You'll peck my eyes out?"

Jackrow chuffed gently, clicking his beak back. This blue bird was notably bigger than him, but Jackrow was likely more clever. "Actually, in accordance with the decree of 02-56-7784, article twelve, sections three through seven, any currency from the three nations is to be accepted by vendors and stores regardless of their user. For that reason, this here girl's money is just as good as yours or mine." He nodded, satisfied with his social justice.

"So now you're one for the furries, Jack?" The gryphon laughed at him. "Never thought I'd see the day."

"Well, no, but the law is the law. You know my opinions on non-feathereds, I just don't think it's right that she's just letting everyone push her around when all she wants is food. Do you not remember the war, when rations were scarce even for civilians? Remember when-" He was cut off mid-speech by the gryphon's gruff voice.

"Actually, if you kept reading the decree from eight to eleven, you'll also know that I have the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason. I don't need to justify any decision to not serve a customer." He explained.

The entire crowd went silent, pulling back to focus the attention equally on Jackrow, the mammal girl, and the gryphon merchant. The awkward silence blanketed that region of the temple market for a moment before Jack turned to the mammal and looked her in the eyes.

"Tell me, miss. What foods are you looking for today?"

She just blinked and looked around, nervous. "I just...wanted some apples for a snack, as well as some potatoes and carrots for a soup I was going to make." She was blushing hard, and it was clear she just wanted to turn her cute, stubby tail and walk far away from that vendor.

"Done." Jackrow grabbed a bag of apples, a bag of potatoes, and a bunch of carrots, slamming them down on the table and tossing his coin card over the counter-top towards the gryphon. "Now tell me, do you intend to not serve me?"

Defeated, the gryphon begrudgingly grabbed Jack's card and swiped it with a beep. Though he was right and he did have the right to refuse any customer for any reason, it was also socially taboo to not serve an avian in the city. The taboos and cultural appropriation hadn't grown to include the incredibly specific scenario such as this, so people didn't know who to root for or what behaviour to encourage. Due to that confusion, the gryphon just conceded defeat and gave Jack the produce with a dismissive wave of the hand.

In an odd way this actually made Jackrow furious, because if he was going to throw down logic and rationale, he wanted it to be a bit more confrontational. If he was going to outsmart the half-mammal gryphon, then he wanted to destroy him mentally, not just get a slight upper hand and have the potential battle of wits called off before it warmed to his fury.

Plus since he forgot to get his own vegetables for his salad, now he'd have to go to another vendor or look like a fool.

With his point made, he grabbed his card and proudly walked out through the crowd to go find another merchant, where he could get the lettuce, tomatoes, nuts, onions, and other veggies for his salad. The shrimp would be the last thing he bought, fresh off the grill and still steaming when the dressing was drizzled over the leaves and slices of the salad.

As he walked away, the mammal came up behind him, the tops of the vegetable bags sticking out the top of her satchel, long flowing green carrot stems draping over. "E-excuse me, sir, can I have a moment of your time?" She asked, voice meek and nearly apologetic.

Jackrow's vocalization - a deep chirping rumble - echoed in his gullet as he rolled his eyes. "Sure, what do you want?" Again, he couldn't help but express disdain even in the wake of going out of his way to be kind to her.

Her eyes remained just poking up over the emerging bows of the potato and apple bags. "I just wanted to thank you for that. Nobody has ever stood up for me ever since coming here. It's nice to know that not everyone hates my kind, and it's refreshing to think that maybe there are avians here who don't hate us for what we are."

Nearly a dozen different potential responses came to his quick-witted mind, such as scoffing at her claim, acting nonchalant, or even dismissing her entirely. However, what came out was a bit more sympathetic than he'd intended. "You're welcome; and it's not your fault, you know."

The mammal's lips curled up in a smile as she extended a paw. "The name's Seiferen! I just wanted to say thanks for that! Really means a lot not just to me, but as a symbolic gesture to my family."

His mind shorted out for a moment, and in the heat of the moment he extended a hand back and offered a shake. "And I'm Jackrow. Pleased to meet you. Now if you don't mind, I do have to go get some food. Can't order at that merchant anymore."

"I can leave you be if you'd like, but would you like any of mine? You did buy it for me, after all. Actually, can I just transfer some coin-credits into your account? I can pay my own way, you know. I don't need you to pay for me. I'm not poor, just a little tight, is all."

He waved her off, one wing extending a bit to accentuate his talon-motions. "No, it's fine. It's not about the money, it's the morals of the situation. I just wanted to have it move along, you know? If you stayed there, letting all the birds push you around with their wings, you'd never get anything. Plus, like I said, you didn't seem to do anything wrong, you just wanted to eat."

"You sure I can't at least pay you back for the food?"

"Not needed."

She nodded quickly, her shy demeanor melting away as her more bubbly personality started to show itself. "Well that's alright, I guess. Just, if you ever see me around and want to enjoy lunch, it's on me!" With that, she shook his talon one last time and quickly walked away, disappearing into a crowd filled mostly with avians and a few mammals and reptiles.

Jackrow just shook his head, unsure of what to make of that. Instead, he focused his mind on getting those ingredients for his salad.

Another hour or so passed with Jackrow making his way from one stand to the next, patiently standing in line to get the ingredients for his salad one bit at a time. Overhead, a series of jets flew by with trails of multi-colored smoke dragging behind them indicating that it was noon, so he knew it was time to get working on his lunch. He had only one ingredient left to get: Fresh Grilled Shrimp. He wasn't a carnivore, but shrimp were too good to pass up on.

Yet he couldn't get his mind off Seiferen. That poor girl was a complete sweetheart, even in the wake of the terrible things that had happened to her.

"None of my concern." He said to himself as he waited in line, satchel clutched close to his side while bulging with various greens. But it was his concern. This was his nation, and it was his job to make sure his home was a respectable, upstanding place to be not just for local avians but the guests that had been invited in due to the effects of the war. He may not have liked the mammals in his home, but he did have national pride and knew better than to push such backdated mentalities.

Of course, pushing such deeply entrenched ideals out of the back of his mind was very hard, and every time his mind wandered back to Seiferen and the massive reptile, he had a confusing palate of both pity and hatred. This blend actually mixed into a furious level of frustration in his mind. Should he be kind, or should he be cruel? Should he be indifferent or should he be proactive? Should he puff his chest out and show national pride or humility?

Well, not humility. His nation won, after all. He could be prideful while being compassionate. Maybe not compassionate, but certainly upstanding and respectable. He had an image to uphold, and even as he struggled against the binds of his pride, he found himself slowly breaking down each anf every barrier that kept him from showing compassion to the mammals that were here - mostly against their will or desires or wishes.

"So what'll it be?" The falcon asked him. Evidently the line had dissipated while Jackrow was doing an aerial routine in his mind.

He shook off his distractions and forced a smile. "I'll take two dozen grilled shrimp, please. Divided among four skewers." He requested.

The falcon nodded and turned to his grill, tossing a few talonfuls of shrimp on the metal, followed by a burst of oil directly into the fire. Instantly, a green and blue flame burst up, charring the underside of the shrimp with a satisfying sizzle. The falcon quickly slid his metal spade under them all and flipped the batch all at once to get another hiss and sizzle. Within seconds he'd grabbed the tongs and was manually impaling them all on a series of skewers, six per. He tossed them all in a cardboard box and handed them to Jackrow. "That'll be eleven coin credits."

Jackrow was impressed; the whole ordeal from ordering to delivery had taken less than a minute, so he programmed his card to give fifteen before waving it over the magnetic strip. "Thank you very much, sir." He offered a polite bow and turned to slip out through the crowd.

While he was moving away, he grabbed the butt end of one of the skewers that was sticking out the end of the cardboard box, hungrily chomping off the shrimp nearest the point. He may have bought them for the salad, but he was happy to enjoy a little snack while he made it to the secluded area nearby that he often enjoyed his lunch.

As he chewed, he heard the clamor of a commotion nearby. Curious, he cocked his head to the side a bit and trilled gently. "Now what's going on?" Part of him wanted to ignore the hassle of whatever was going on, but his mind quickly wandered to a place where he was sure it was relevant to his personal dilemma.

Of course, it was Seiferen again, and a magpie trinket trader was giving her a hard time. "I just want to buy this beautiful necklace." She was saying to the magpie.

"No, I wouldn't dare put my wares around your furred neck. They deserve better." She chirped back and glared, eyes narrowing. "So go away before I call security on ya! Filthy wench."

Seiferen kept her hand extended with some actual physical coins in a sack rather than the digital currency converter. "I'm just going to stay here until you sell me something. I don't think it's fair that you sell everyone else your art, but not me. I'm an artist myself, you see, so I know that-"

She was cut off by the magpie, who spread her wings out wide in a threat display that knocked some of the artworks over on their sides. "Stop, just stop!" Just then, two massive gryphons stepped in to press their breasts up to Seiferen, knocking her back and pushing her around.

It was clear this was either about to get violent or just very, very unpleasant.

At that moment, Jackrow was once again facing a dilemma. On one wing, he didn't want to get involved and really, really wanted to go eat his salad. On the other wing, an oddly patriotic feeling was washing over him. In an instant, his mentality switched to that of ambassador, demanding his hospitality towards any and all foreigners. He quickly hopped up to the side of the merchant's table and wedged himself in between the two gryphons. "Heya blokes. Any chance I could get you two to back off a bit? I mean, really, there's no need to be rude to this here mammal." Though he caught only a glimpse of her when he spoke, he could see her expression wane a bit when he referred to her simply as a mammal, yet he continued. "Foreign or not, she's got money, and desire. And really, isn't it our responsibility as the superior race to extend a wing to the less fortunate land-dwellers?"

That got a surprising hush and murmur from the crowd as the gryphons both backed off. One of them spoke with a comically high pitched chirp. "So you're saying that you want to take her on as your pet? Go on, take her!" His tail latched around Seiferen's wrist and thrust her towards Jackrow. "She's all yours, furry fag."

Jackrow rolled his eyes and held Seiferen close enough to keep her away fromt he gryphons, but not too close. "No, that's not what I said. Maybe your mammal ass ends are doing the thinking for you if you can't decipher simple language. No, all I said that we, as avians, have a responsibility to help those in need. With the treaties and accords being signed over the past few months, the war officially at an end with the violent conflict long in the past, it's about time we show why this great nation was one worth fighting for. We won, now stop being such a pussy about it." He winked with a sly grin towards the gryphons, then grabbed Seiferen's wrist and guided her through the crowd, careful to not spill or waste any of the ingredients he'd procured.

She followed behind him, right up until the two of them were finally out and away from the hustle and bustle of everyone else. Jackrow led her through a series of narrow passageways between buildings and shacks before emerging into an open area up on the top of a pyramid with tall bushes surrounding a calm pool of water about half a meter deep in the middle. It was just a half level above most of the marketplace, but that also made it the highest altitude in the region, so thanks to the pillars, bushes, and walls set up the way they were, the only way to see them would be through a telescope looking down from one of the nearby skyscrapers.

They were completely secluded from others, and Jackrow knew so few others would dare come here, since the path was well hidden.

He set his satchel on the ground next to the pool on the marble ledge, the cardboard box of shrimp precariously balancing on top. "Sorry about that." He apologized, slowly sitting and placing his foot talons in the edge of the shallow pool.

She remained on the opposite side as him, near the entryway. Her head was hanging low and she was clearly avoiding eye contact. "Did you mean any of that?" She whispered at a volume that Jackrow barely heard.

"Mean what?"

"About mammals all being lesser than avians? Do you really look so far down on us all?"

Jackrow went to speak, but then realized what he'd come up with wasn't the most sensitive, so he paused to reconsider before saying a nicer version of what was on his mind. "Well, we did win the war, didn't we?"

Seiferen scoffed a bit. "You won because of your numbers, but I suppose that's true. I just, I don't want to be a burden on you. You know that, right?"

He paused another moment and clicked his beak; it was clear he'd upset her, and he wanted to make her feel better but wasn't prepared to lie to make her feel better. "Well, that's news from nearly a year ago. It's not relevant. I was just saying what needed to be said to get them off your back. It's easy to trigger a patriotic rage when catering to their foolish base instincts for pride and machismo. Birds are smart, but easy to manipulate; especially the gryphon types."

"That's not what I mean. Do you really consider us inferior? We lost the war, sure, but by the way you said it, it sounds more like you don't even consider mammals and reptilians to be on the same level as you. That's not fair."

Again, he took another moment to himself before stepping forward through the clear blue water towards her. "Perhaps a little, but it's not something I consciously decide or want for myself. I can't speak for all avians of this nation, but I grew up in a species-segregated world where birds are better than the mammals, reptiles, fish, and other people of the world. When I was young, it was mostly harmless, no more aggressive than sports teams or rivals. Then everything changed, when the reptilian nation attacked. All that pent up friendly competition suddenly became violent and aggressive, and it only got worse as the years went on. I tried to ignore it, by focusing on my studies at the aerospace exploration wing of the university, but when your nation is at war, it's hard to not see your enemies simply as enemies and not people. If you humanize who you fight, then it's very hard to pull the trigger, as they say."

She stood in place, arms crossed over her belly, contemplating what he was saying, even if it was clear she was harboring a bit of resentment.

However, he kept going. "You need to put yourself in my position. If it turned out your nation won the war, and I was in your marketplace trying to buy food from merchants that had spent the last decade or so being taught to hate all avians and reptilians, can you honestly say you wouldn't resent me a little?" Now that he put it in words, it was giving him an introspective reflection on his own prejudices. "And be honest."

Seiferen huffed and smiled, showing her admittedly-scary looking canine teeth. "I suppose you're right, yet here you are doing your best to extend your wing to me, help me out, get those smelly scaled bastards off me, so clearly you're doing all you can to get over your particular set of prejudices. Right? You wanna be my friend, to bridge the gap between our nations!" She hopped into the water next to him with her arms outspread, ready for a hug.

He declined her, not being fully comfortable with such a close embrace; instead he leaned in and used the edge of his beak to gently preen at her cheek back to her neck. "Here's something a bit more delicate." He insisted, plucking one feather from his wing and placing it in the ridge of her ear. "A gift from me. But for now, I'm going to go eat my dinner." With that, he turned and plopped his rump back down next to his satchel, where he could take out one ingredient after the last, plucking some leaves and slices of carrots, radishes, lettuce, kale, spinach, onions, shredded cheese, crushed peanuts, and the flavored shimp on top with a sprinkle of garlic on top.

"So whatcha munchin?" She asked, plopping her rump next to him.

The corvid raised an eye to her, a little put off. "Just a salad, and I'm not really all so sure I need your help with it."

"Oh, come on. Lemme have a bite. That smells really good with the cheese and garlic and shrimp. I'm usually more into steaks and the like, but hey, lay it on me." She leaned in close and opened her glistening maw, sharp teeth lining her gums and saliva dripping off each of her canines in a bridge to her lower lip. Her tongue rolled a bit, swallowing the excess spit to minimize the mess.

Jackrow was a little uncomfortable, but still stabbed a few leaves and shreds of cheese and shrimp to plop it in her mouth, letting her have a bit. He cringed as she pulled back, munching loudly on his salad. His salad. Not hers. He'd already bought her fruit of some sort, which she didn't seem to have on her person anymore. He didn't want to think too deeply on her history or what she was doing here, but the image of her teeth did make him ask about her. "So what is your species, exactly? Mammal, sure, but I've never seen a furry bloke such as yourself. You're not a bear, not a cat, not a wolf, nothing like that." He gathered up a bite for himself and wited for her to finish hers before answering.

She gulped down heavy and licked her lips. "Actually, I'm what they call a northern wolverine. We're pretty rare, but fierce as can be!" She grinned at him, again showing her sharp canines while raising her paws up and exposing her sharp claws. "Rawr! Am I right?"

He shifted away from her and stabbed at his salad, shrimp first. "Sure." He offered just the gentlest wink and enjoyed a bite of his salad, beak gnashing loudly to indicate that maybe they should part ways. However, Seiferen didn't take the hint. She wasn't a fool - that much was evident - but she didn't seem to have the least bit of interest in casually going away. Jackrow had no idea what was going on in her head, but he theorized that it followed along the lines of clinging to him as the only person who hadn't been totally cruel to her since her arrival int he capitol. He kept eating, but found himself drawn to her, like he wanted to indulge her silliness despite him being the more serious type.

"Oh come on, big mean wolverine shows her fangs and you just eat there like a...whatever you are. Have some fun!" She lightly punched at his shoulder, throwing him off balance just enough that his wing splayed out for balance, striking her in the side of the head. She exasperatedly fell back with her arms wide, mouth open and eyes crossed for effect. "I'm dead! You killed me with your killer wings! Killer bird!"

He chirped at her and looked down while stifling a chuckle at her silliness. "Oh come on, get up. You're fine." He used his foot talon to get a grip on her ankle, tugging gently to encourage her to sit proper. "And tell me, what's up with you? Why are you here, exactly? I know you're a refugee, but last I checked we didn't exactly engage in a scorched earth campaign against you furred folks. Few tactical attacks to hit all the choke points. What are you doing in a nation that clearly hates you? I mean, I barely like you and you make me smile!" His voice raised into a chirp at the end, the corners of his beak turned up as he took another meaty bite.

Seiferen shook herself off and pulled herself back up into a sitting position next to him, fangs still poking out over her lower lip. Best Jackrow could figure, that was a sort of pacified smile for her kind; he wasn't very keen when it came to deciphering mammalian facial expression.

"Well, the honest truth is that my home was destroyed in one of those tactical raids. I was out, a nurse for the war effort, and when I came home I found that large swaths of my home town had been...well, you know. Bombs. Fire. Destruction. Luckily most had been evacuated including my family, but it was pretty devastating to return to that, only to be corralled into one of the post-war barracks for displaced veterans. I was there for nearly a year before the treaties were formally signed and your leaders decided it was their job to house us and give the refugees a place in the avian lands here." She shook her head slowly with a wry half-smirk, trying her best to not reflect too deeply on her past. As an act of mutual trust, she reached out with her claws to grab one of Jackrow's shrimp.

He was visibly shaken, taken aback by her tale, so he felt like his only response would be to share his salad with her. "I didn't know. I was here, working in the engineering department, aviation wing." A silence came over him as his mind connected the dots, making him realize there was a pretty good chance that a fighter jet he'd worked on might have actually been the one that laid her land to waste.

"It's fine now. Like I said, most got out and were properly evacuated. Less than a dozen casualties and property can be regained. Only problem is that now I'm here trying to fit into a world that doesn't want me, can't accept me, and in some cases outright rejects me. I'm a nurse, not a warrior. I've never done anything to harm anyone, be it avian or mammalian." She laughed a bit. "I even helped to set a few broken wings of your companions. The struggled every step of the way, but I did my part."

Jackrow stared, partially open beaked at her as he came to realize just how kind of a creature this was. His anger, prejudice, and nationalistic pride was strong, but his compassion and reason were much greater. This wasn't some impassioned enemy, it was just another person who was doing their best to make the most of the world around them. He knew that, he was no fool, but seeing someone up close, looking into their eye while they told their story of sorrow hit him very deeply. "Look, I'm sorry, my friend. I didn't know it was like that." He said, subconsciously extending the bowl with the salad in it for her to enjoy.

She laughed and pushed his hand back away. "It's fine, I promise. It sucks, it's an unfortunate blot on my past - and presumably yours as well - but all I have to do now is look forward to the future. You seem nice and sincere, so I'd be happy to start my new life here with you as a friend. Help me fit in, help me get situated. Not just for me, but my friends as well. I don't want to put you out or demand too much, but even one connection is a good one. A good start." Her eyes stared into his as she spoke, those vibrant sky blue eyes.

As she smiled at him, gazing into his soul, he found himself in an awkward position, where it was like he was seeing her for the first time not just as a filthy furred mammal, but a woman. A lady. An admittedly gorgeous woman. As his mind shed its natural aversion to fur, he was able to see that she had quite the form, with a large bust and shapely hips. Had she been avian, she'd be nearly perfect. "Yes, yes a connection would be good." He agreed, using a nod to catch a glimpse up and down her form.

An ear raised up high as Seiferen caught him staring at her. "Now excuse me, bird. Are you staring at me?" She asked, waggling a finger in disapproval despite knowing full-well that he was. She even pressed her chest out a bit while arching her back so that her cute little tail poked out a bit.

"N-no, of course not. Just trying to take you in, is all. I'm seeing you as something of an enigma and I wish to unlock your secrets." He shook his head clear of the lewd thoughts that were bubbling up in the back of his mind while he turned and grabbed another bite. "Just curious, is all. It's an avian thing, you see."

She rumbled a purr before turning to look out over the pool next to him. She crossed her legs and laid her hands on her knees. "Kind of a shame, actually. You avian types can be rather rowdy, I hear. All hear-say though, never experienced an avian that wasn't angry or violent, so I wouldn't possibly know first hand. Or paw. Or wing. Whatever your local terminology is." Then, much to Jackrow's surprise, she started to unbutton her shirt, exposing herself while shimmying her arms out of the sleeves. "I also hear you aren't much for clothes, so I imagine me wearing this short and skirt is a little odd for you to see." Before he could respond, she undid her belt and let her skirt fall off into the water of the pool as she kicked it away.

He was indeed surprised by this, and couldn't help but catch a series of brisk glances over at her now-naked form. Her breasts were soft and round, with large pink nipples, while her nether region was almost fully hiding the bulge of her lady lips. He shouldn't have been bashful about it, as she was right; Avians rarely wore clothes aside from hats or jewelry, so the naked form was natural in avian culture. Still, seeing it on a mammal was odd, and stirred up all sorts of feelings and questions popping up.

Jackrow was aroused, but didn't want to admit it or show any outward expressions of it, so he just kept eating his salad until only a couple pieces of shrimp were left on a bed of veggies and lettuce. This was a mammal, not an avian. In the past, he'd never thought sexually about anyone outside his own race, yet here he was clearly turned on by a wolverine from the east. The more he thought about it, the more accepting he became of the stirring in his loins. He was an intelligent bird, he knew better than to repress feelings that may crop up, and if he was going to be an ambassador for his people, he had to start by being fully accepting of other races and cultures, even if it did mean exposed breasts and plump vulva in his face.

At least avians had the decency to have evolved with hidden cloaca and an absence of breasts. That was the thought that went through his mind at first, until he got a closer, more sensual look at the round forms on her chest; they looked so soft, so inviting. Avians had impressive chest plumage, but nothing like that. He just wanted to bury his beak between them, feel their warmth and comfort smothering him, and the thought of that coaxed his tapered member from its confines, the very tip poking out against the ceramic of the ledge. He crossed his legs to cover himself as he ate the last bites of his salad.

"So, um, What's next for you, then?" He asked, trying to distract himself from the arousal that was slowly creeping up the back of his mind. "Gonna be a nurse in our military? Or maybe just do that art thing I heard you talking about earlier? I like to illustrate as well, in my off time. What kind of art do you do?"

She leaned back, breasts pushed out and fully exposed. There was a sort of freedom in her expression, like she was happy to be rid of the clothes for reasons beyond modesty. "I don't know, actually. Only been here a month or so, still trying to find my footing and figure out what role I would best play in this society. I do nursing, but I'm not as familiar with avian anatomy and would have to probably go back to school. I can draw a bird with ease, but treating one in person is a wholly different experience. Right now, I'm thinking about taking advantage of the fact that all you burds love shiny stuff. I've seen your eyes light up at anything that sparkles in the sunlight, and I have an affinity for artistic endeavours. I'm sure we could figure something out." She swung her foot as her leg dangled over the other, splashing a bit in the water, like she had not a care in the world.

Her comment about all avians being attracted to shiny objects did incite a pang of defensiveness in Jackrow, but he got over it pretty quickly thanks to her endearing nature and clearly harmless personality. She wasn't saying it as a means to offend, but a casual and playful observation on the differences between species.

And she wasn't wrong.

Still, he had a hard time reconciling their differences, even if his body was screaming at him to make a move. She was a mammal, sure, but she was a pleasant mammal with what seemed like a kind heart and a picturesque form. It was hard for him not to let his hormones overwhelm him. "Yeah, that sounds about right. I can't think of a whole lot else to do in your position, but I'd seriously consider avian nursing school, the money is pretty substantial and I imagine it'd be pretty fulfilling." He placed the empty bowl and fork behind the ledge and casually shifted towards her. "After all, I'm sure you'll find a place here."

"I certainly hope so. It's a very nice place to be honest, and if our nations can learn to get along, I do think we have quite a bright future ahead of us all." She un-crossed her leg and let her knees part a bit, claws digging at the blue of the pool's floor. Her body language wasn't explicit, but Jackrow took this as a symbol to make that move he was thinking of taking.

As he leaned into her, a deep rumbling sound reverberated around them; when he looked up he saw it was a massive airship taking off over the horizon next to the building he worked in. Must have been the Elanic, heading out on another trip to fix as many of the one of the satellite stations just outside of the atmosphere. Jackrow had helped build and engineer that very ship, so the boost of pride was taken as a symbol, and he used it to slide his hands up her side and start gently massaging and tickling her back through the fur.

She gasped a bit and leaned into it, gaze lowering in a bashful expression as he caressed her form. It looked like she was ready to say something, but was silenced as he pulled himself in closer, one arm around her hips and the other resting on her thigh with one finger gently idling as near her nethers as they would go without actually touching them. "O-oh." She whispered as she squirmed, legs clenching together while she held her own cheek, too shy to say anything else. A blush formed on her cheeks as she noticed Jackrow's arousal in the form of his tapered member mostly exposed from the feathered mound between his legs.

"Everything alright?" He asked, sliding his hand inward over her thigh.

She slowly nodded, averting her eyes from his. "Mmmhmm. I confess this is not quite the direction I expected this to go, but that's okay." Her form shifted in place, legs slowly spreading to give him more direct access between her thighs. "Very, very okay."

He leaned in close and nipped at her cheek with the very tip of his beak, dragging both top and bottom half through the fur in an affectionate preening motion. "I am glad to hear that. I hope you enjoy where I'm going, too." As he said that, he curled his talons up to prod and explore her pelvic mound, quickly finding the moist slit of flesh popping out from the fur. He smiled at the touch, looking her in her bashful eyes. "Oh, I see you do like it! I'm glad to hear that." As he spoke, he slid his fingers up into her, parting lips and pressing against her anterior wall, curling digits up to caress her G-spot.

Jackrow was avian, but he knew a thing or two about mammal anatomy, and he did know about those magical buttons a few inches inside a lady; when caressed just right, a veritable mess would splash forth for him to clean up with his tongue. Then again, he had no idea if he'd enjoy mammal fluids as he enjoyed his feathered brethren. He would soon find out, if he hit the right sequence within her, so he started rubbing his fingertips side to side, then up and down through her canal; his keen eyes kept a steady gaze on her, scanning her for positive reactions depending on his various movements.

When he squeezed and pushed up while dragging his fingertip towards her opening, he saw her eyes throb and pupils dilate followed by a subtle but sensual twitch of her pelvic muscles, as well as an aroused curl of her toe talons. She leaned into him and grabbed his arm tight, holding it between her breasts as she bit down on his shoulder, only to get a mouth full of feathers but no flesh.

"Is that pleasant, dear?" He asked, angling his body just right so that his two fingers could get a better vantage, the two tips walking alternately over her G-spot with increasing intensity and pressure to the point where every motion had her twitching and gasping against the nape of his neck. This pleased the avian, so he leaned in as close as he could and buried his beak against her shoulder, using the pointed tip to tickle her as he continued to invade her depths with is digits.

"Stop!" She gasped all at once, right into his ear. "S-stop, please." Her voice was ragged and hesitant, but she seemed pretty insistent so he obliged.

As he pulled back and slid his fingers out from her, he leaned back to look in her eyes, gauging them for sorrow or pain. His fingers rubbed together off to the side to test her lubrication, and he found she was quite deliciously slick. "What's the matter?" He asked, slowly bringing his fingers up to the end of his beak and seductively licking her juices from them; he was quite pleasantly surprised to find that her secretions were mostly sweet with just a hint of bitter and salty.

She smirked and bared her fangs, upper lip puffed out a bit in a show of affection. "Nothing's wrong, but I would like for you not to waste too much time with your hands. If you're going to feel the need to please me, do it right." Seiferen slowly leaned back on the ledge of the pool, one leg in the water and the other off against the base of the tall plants and hedges that lined the clearing. A hot pink stripe of flesh could be seen glistening in the early afternoon sun, the clear skies giving his diurnal eyes about as clear a vision of her beautiful form as he'd ever see.

His member was throbbing between his legs, a pulsing excretion of precum and self-made lubricants dribbling down the underside to drip in the cool blue of the pool. Naturally, his instinct was to cover her, mate with her, and fill her with seed, but a part of his brain stopped him and told him a different route was needed. The avian was still playing ambassador to this gentle and kind mammal, so it was his job to pleasure her before he took care of himself. The whole situation may have been impromptu, but it was no excuse to be selfish. No, he had to satisfy her urges as much as his own, and he knew ladies took longer to please than drakes.

Jackrow leaned down and pressed his chest to the ledge, beak extended upwards and hands cradling either of her thighs, pulling her in close as his long tongue darted out to slap at her lips. As he tasted her flesh for the first time, he let out a deep rumbling chirp of pleasure, satisfied not only in his own altruism, but also the pleasant flavors mixed with the warmth of her flesh on his. He leaned in close and craned his neck, inserting the end of his beak carefully so he didn't snag her inner folds, and he quickly found she wasn't the same as most girls past her lips. Her walls were smooth and taut, not wrinkled and folded like most he knew. Pleasant.

His tongue shot deep into her, parting her canal and pressing against her throbbing flesh. As he tasted her depths, he found he could actually sense and count her heart beat against him, as her confines were rapidly twitching and contracting in gentle spasms twice a second, and sped up the more he caressed her. Directly in front of his face, he could see a tiny little nub of mauve flesh erected from the mound of fur around her pelvic region. He knew this was her clit, and he wanted to see how pleasing it would impact her. Avians lacked this little bit of flesh, so he wasn't adept at hitting its buttons.

With beak still deep in her and tongue lapping at her walls, he brought his hand up and around her thighs, rubbing his thumb against her clit, pressing it down while forcefully shifting it above and below its engorged mass. Every time his talon tip passed over it, her entire form convulsed once, then tensed up around his beak before she let out a long, drawn out exhalation.

"B-be careful." She warned, maw open and tongue flopped out. "Your talons and beak both are pretty sharp." Though she cautioned him, she still arched her back and grinded her hips down on him so that more pressure was applied to her depths.

Jackrow took the hint, but didn't want to fully stop, so he pulled his thumb off her clit and slowly extracted his beak from her depths, leaving her open just a bit until he lapped at her folds. The touch of his tongue made her twitch and clench shut the moment he prodded at her clit.

"H-hey! Don't stop!"

"I won't, don't worry. You are my guest, dear Sei. Now please do relax, and guide me; I'm not experienced with furred ladies." He nodded slowly and shuffled forward until the tip of his member was resting lightly on her mound, the curved underside of it dangerously close to clit and lips. "I don't imagine you're used to being with avians, either."

She slowly shook her head with hands folded up on her chest. The position made it so her upper arms were squeezing her breasts in close together, their bulbous bumps forming a flat line edged by soft looking mounds of fur and flesh. "Can't say I have. You'll be my first, and I'm sure it'll be an adventure, if nothing else."

It was quite pleasant to the eyes, and Jackrow found himself wanting to slip himself up between those soft looking pillows rather than plunge into her. On the other wing, he didn't want to make her wait' she was clearly very eager to have him in her, and she was quite aroused; he didn't mean to waste such an opportunity. With his fantasy of her breasts in mind, he grabbed his cock and aimed the tip at her swollen folds, gently easing it in to feel her warmth slowly swallowing him. He let go and leaned down over her, his hands resting on the ledge on either side of her form next to her hips, his face lowered to just over top her supple breasts. With that vantage, he snuck in a gentle peck at her nipple.

Seiferen twitched and she giggled with a sheepish grin. "H-hey, be nice!" She whined, faking a whimper as she further squeezed her breasts in close, nearly trapping his beak between them. She offered but a slight wink as she lifted up her lower half into him, her lips swallowing more of his member into her, while also wrapping her legs up around his waist under the warmth of his wings.

Jackrow was in an odd sort of heaven. Avians were known for notably high natural body temperature, yet she felt so warm to him; hot, even. Her legs were strong around his waist, her sides were warm to the touch against his black-fleshed wrists, and above all else she felt steamy hot around his member. The combination of sleek, velvety walls constricting around his length and the warmth of her flesh was very, very titillating. It was immeasurably hard to not let his pleasure overflow into her, so he leaned back and pressed his hips tight to hers, his feathers mingling with her fur.

"I can see you're enjoying yourself, bird." She purred at him, biting her lip in the process. "Tell me, how long do drakes usually last?" With her final words, she squeezed tight around his waist with her legs and clenched her pelvic muscles tight around him, her hips grinding up against his so their flesh rubbed tight together.

He gritted his beak tight as he arched his backs, wings flaring out behind him while he thrust and bucked into her. The heat of her depths was contrasted by the cold of the water his talon was resting in, as well as the splashes that came up every time he moved. His passion slowly rose with every bucking hip thrust, his speed intensifying as his tapered, curved member rubbed up against her G-spot. The rigidity of his member and the angle of his motions ensured that the somewhat bulbous tip of it caressed and massaged her anterior wall - the engorged mass of hypsersensitive erogenous flesh.

Which was also the only wrinkled and overlayered area of her entire vaginal canal, and the more he pushed himself into it, the more she resisted and squeezed down against him. The inner ridges slid up and down his member, hitting all his most sensitive points in unison while also clenching down to hold his bulbous tip inside her.

The avian was getting very, very close to finishing up as evidenced by his increasingly erratic motions, so Seiferen grasped at his chest feathers and pulled him up close to her warm-bodied upper body to whisper in his ear. "Finish up on my chest."

That was all the incentive he needed. Jackrow sat up straight and gave a few more aggressive thrusts into her, slamming hips to her inner thighs as she let go of his waist. His member was as firm as it could be, partially bowed down for perfect pleasing of her engorged G-spot, but it also meant it'd rest between her breasts perfectly. He pulled out in a glorious splash of combined fluids and awkwardly arranged himself to squat down over her midsection, cock resting on the twin crests of her inner breasts.

She growled and smiled, using the butt of her palms to squish her breasts together, fingers interlacing and pushing down on his shaft to force his length to disappear between her mounds with the bulbous tip resting at the base of her neck. Her neck arched slightly as her tongue extended, rough length cradling his tip and undulating beneath it.

The conic shaped member was comfortable between the warmth of her flesh and fur, so Jackrow started slowly. The mixed fluids of her sex and his cloaca mixed and kept her chest moist and slick as he slowly passed his member - most notably the tip - between her squished breasts. He chirped at her, trying to hold back, but found the fantasy and sensations were matching up just right; his pleasure was still at the plateau from being deep inside her, and the added friction of her fur was sending him into the stratosphere.

He offered a few more wild bucks with increased ferocity, his entire lower form pressing to her chest and forcing her to rock back and forth in shallow pumps until his motions became erratic and he fell forward. His hand slammed down to the ebony patio stone next to her head as his wings lowered and twitched, his pleasure hitting its peak and a glorious mess erupting from the end of his shaft. His hips convulsed and clenched up, cock tensing to squeeze spurt after spurt of his seed into her face, which she eagerly licked up.

She smacked her lips and suckled at the tip, careful to not let her teeth snag. "Mmmm, not bad. Not as sweet as I was hoping, considering your diet." She winked at him, a strand of slimy avian cum dangling over her eyebrow onto her cheek. As she grabbed it and cleaned her face off, she let her breasts relax and settle on her chest, the messy goo of Jackrow's member gumming up the fur in the middle. "But hey, that was fun!"

The avian was huffing a bit, not expecting such a sudden and intense session. He stayed in place over top of her, looking her in the eyes. "Well....I do eat....a lot of nuts and berries." He huffed in between gasps. "So I imagine ... it'd be pretty good. Never tasted it....myself." His member was slowly pulling back in from her chest to disappear into his cloaca, hiding in the mass of now-sticky feathers and down between his legs. He noticed that he'd clawed a series of furrows in the enamel of the pool's bottom as he'd climaxed, talons piercing the surface.

Her torso was still gently rumbling in appreciation as she pressed her hands to his chest, urging him to step off her. "And I have to say this has been quite enlightening! Always fun to learn about my hosts while also enjoying some mutual fun." As she slid out from under him, her twitchy motions made it clear she was still enjoying a touch bit of lingering, orgasmic bliss. Her climax hadn't been very evident upon its inception, but it was now.

Jackrow slumped down on his rump, tail out behind him and wings folded back up tight on his torso. His breaths were still heavy as he shook himself off and allowed his chest plumage to stand on end as he preened, straightening each barb and shaft of his feathers to go back into place after getting matted down in the intense mating. "And it was enlightening to get an intimate lesson in mammalian anatomy, my dear. Perhaps we should do it again sometime. I'm not sure I gathered enough data." He forced a smile, bordering on a blush.

She stood up and grabbed at her shirt from behind the ledge before leaning down and giving him a bit of a kiss on the beak. Her tone had gone from cheeky but bashful to commanding and empowered; perhaps it was just the effects of her climax. "I'd love to, but I'm not done with you yet today. What are you doing this afternoon?"

"I have no solid plans, unless you're looking for something to do. Wanna go back to my roost and conduct a few more experiments? I'm sure I could scientifically prove the benefits of interspecies relations, if you wanted to give it a shot."

Seiferen ran her claws through the plumage on his neck to scritch gently before turning to stretch, stubby little tail wagging back and forth as her few wobbly steps revealed her lingering pleasure. "You've got it. For now, can we relax here a bit? I'm not sure if I'd make it out of here without collapsing. That bowed equipment of yours...is quite the revelation. I'm not sure if I want to keep you all to myself or share you with all the others of my crew. I'm sure every mammalian female would kill to be mated by a cock like that." She winked at him, her steely blue eyes reflecting the erratic lights of the pool around her.

And that's the very second when Jackrow decided beyond all doubt that he would be enjoying many more days with this woman.