Page 4 of Birds of a Feather

Nervousness fizzed in Gabby’s stomach. She saw Lynn’s brown eyes roll from the poster on the wall to Gabby. She started shaking her head, not caring that she actually got the gesture correct.

“Yes. I think you should go to the party this weekend. It would be good practice.” Lynn went back to chewing on her pencil, nodding to herself.

Gabby’s stomach dropped. “I-I…” She pictured the words she wanted hopping on the train that took them from her brain to mouth. “Rather.” She screwed up her face in deep concentration. “Rest.” That was the closest Gabby had ever gotten to the full sentence. The excitement of her small triumph was quickly squashed by the anxiety that Lynn would force her to attempt interacting with others at the party.

“See! Look at how well you’re doing. Imagine how much you’ll improve after more practice. At least think about it.” Lynn put the pencil back behind her ear after inspecting it. “I knew I should have grabbed a new one today.”

Gabby swallowed hard. At least Lynn loosened up a little about the party. She’d have the rest of the week to come up with an excuse not to go. But to the problem at hand…

A pebble of dread solidified in Gabby’s chest when she thought about the visit with her dad looming before her. She hated that feeling. Felt guilty it existed. Seeing family was hard when she struggled to talk. Watching her brother’s heart break weekly was worse. Their bird-dad was a category all on its own. She felt her shoulders roll forward as she wilted like a flower at the memories of past visits.

“I think you’ll be impressed with his progress,” Lynn piped up as if reading her thoughts. She led the way down the hall to the family room. Familiar staff nodded in greeting as they passed. Gabby’s anxiety grew with each step, buzzing beneathher breastbone before coiling around her heart. “Here we are.” Lynn held the door open to the therapy room.

Many experiments came to the facility with amnesia, or at least that was what Gabby had heard. But for those who kept their memories and knew who they were, yet needed to stay on-site for treatment, the family therapy room came in handy for allowing visitations.

Gabby supposed she should be grateful that both she and her father had their memories intact. She wasn’t so sure that she was though. She wondered if it would be easier to see him in his current state if she didn’t remember who he used to be. It seemed it wouldn’t hurt so badly in that case, since she’d have nothing to compare it to.

Guilt squeezed her heart. She should feel lucky that he was alive and safe. Sadness over his current condition shouldn’t be there.Shouldn’ts get us nowhere except upset, she remembered the counselor, Paige, telling her when she first arrived at WANC.

“I’ll be back with the doctor in a bit.” Lynn smiled encouragement at her before taking her leave. Her tiny feet padded down the hallway, leaving Gabby with her family. She was afraid for a minute to turn to them. Her anxiety wanted her to leave, but she refused. She couldn’t disappoint them like that.

Gabby held her breath, gaining her courage. She turned, expecting to see her bird-dad perched on the arm of one of the sofas lining the walls.

But the anxiety changed to relief when she spotted her father sitting in human form on the couch next to Phin. “Dad!”

Her father’s human face lit up in a smile. He had wrapped a robe around his small frame—though he’d always been a small man, the time in the lab had seemed to shrink him—hiding the thin material of the hospital gown beneath that covered his body. His human body.Allhuman. No random bird parts. None that Gabby could see anyway.

“Not bird.” He shook his head. Joy blossomed inside Gabby at the words. They weren’t much, but they meant all the world to her. Just to be able to see her father’s face again, his clear blue eyes, his thin lips, the scar across his chin, his arms and legs. She never thought she’d be able to see him like this again. She feared he would be stuck as a bird forever. Joe rose from the couch and wrapped his arms around Gabby, pulling her in for a big hug. Her eyes glistened with tears of happiness. This moment felt too good to be true. Gabby thought her father would never be able to hug her again.

Kristen, their mom, sat on the opposite couch across from Joe. A smile lit up Kristen’s face. Gabby’s family was comprised of cross-species shifters. Her mother and younger brother were mice, while she and her dad were crows. Their parents had divorced just last year, but they’d kept in contact, being civil for the sake of the kids. Since Gabby and her father had come to FUCN’A, Kristen had been a regular visitor, showing her support for both her daughter and ex-husband—though the latter was for Phin’s benefit.

Kristen smiled politely at Joe, pleased by his progress and trying her best to be supportive. Gabby could tell her mom wished she wasn’t spending as much time with her ex, but at the same time, would do anything for Phin to be able to see their dad as often as possible. Gabby knew Mom wanted to leave the marriage years before she had. Spending time hanging out with her ex at a hospital was probably the last thing she wanted on her agenda. But whenever Phin had time to come, she brought him to see his sister and father. Sometimes Kristen came on her own, though, just to see Gabby. She would read to her so the pressure wasn’t on Gabby to talk. That was really nice and thoughtful. Gabby looked forward to those days.

Phin had just turned eleven, yet somehow last year he’d helped in the rescue of Gabby and their dad. He served as aninspiration to her. If Phin could be that strong emotionally for someone so small, then Gabby could be brave, too… even if most days she felt anything but.

Now Phin skipped over to their mom, and that was when Gabby noticed a bag next to her, hiding behind a throw pillow. Phin smiled from ear to ear.

“I’ve brought presents,” Phin cheered while rummaging through the crinkling paper bag. She loved having Phin around during visiting hours. He always lightened the mood and did most of the talking. Though part of Gabby felt that was so he didn’t have to watch her or Joe struggle to talk.

As Phin occupied himself with the bag, Gabby watched his long brown hair bouncing on his shoulders. “Haircut,” Gabby said, catching herself talking without realizing it.

Phin rolled his eyes—bright blue ones like their father. “You sound just like mom,” he groaned, not realizing how big a deal it was for Gabby to utter those two syllables.

“It’s not good to wear your hair in your eyes,” Mom chided, crossing her arms as she leaned back into the couch. A ghost of a smile whispered across her lips as she looked at Gabby. She’d know how impressive it was for Gabby to speak, but she also knew that Gabby would become flustered if anyone made a big deal about it.

With a puff of air, Phin blew the strands of hair out of his face. “When it grows long enough, I can tie it back like you.” Having found what he was looking for, Phin turned and held out his little hands to both Gabby and their dad. A tiny, plastic crow sat in the center of each palm. “I bought these at a school fair. I thought the size was perfect. Dad can keep it in his beak when he changes back into a crow.”

Gabby plucked the miniature version of her shifter form from her brother’s hand. A smile spread across her face. “Thank you, Phin.” His thoughtfulness warmed her heart. She’d try to thinkof this moment the next time she wanted to scream into her trusty pillow.

“You said a whole sentence!” Phin beamed back at her.

“Short. It.” Gabby sighed. Maybe she should’ve just accepted the compliment instead of being reproachful. She didn’t know how to react when people praised her for tiny accomplishments, like saying thank you. To her, it didn’t feel like progress, though she had to admit that it was.

“It still counts,” Phin countered, balling up his tiny fists to put on his hips. He always opposed her need to be perfect.

“Right.” Her dad nodded as he took one of the bird figures and turned it over in his hand. Gabby wondered if he felt bad that he wasn’t able to say more. Most of his progress had been physical. They hadn’t even started trying to figure out how to get him to speak normally again. Maybe he never would.

Suddenly her father’s eyes widened, as if in fear. “What’s wrong?” Phin asked.

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