Most people who see magpies are face-blind and can't recognize who is who. At most, they can only recognize that I am a magpie.
I am a magpie. I may not have anything special about me. In fact, when it comes to it, I am just like most magpies, wearing a black suit with a white belly. Even the way I walk and fly is the same. This doesn't make me uncomfortable, at least after I have fooled people, they can't easily recognize me.
I despise many animals, including other magpies, because they are all cowards. A human cough or a gentle stomp can scare them away. Seeing them flee in panic often makes me laugh. Really, in my opinion, it's not a big deal at all.
Of course, sometimes humans deliberately make noises to try to scare me. This is not an easy task. In general, when I hear the sounds they make, I tilt my head and look at them, maybe my idiotic gaze angers them. Often, a stone comes flying after that, and I have to move.
Argen is one of the few humans I despise who didn't throw stones at me. To be honest, I was a little panicked at the time.
That afternoon, I was thinking on a tree branch, and there was a stomping sound nearby. I was busy thinking, so I ignored it. Then there was another stomping sound, and my thoughts were interrupted again. I irritably tilted my head and faced these two little kids.
The boy on the left tugged at the boy on the right who was stooping down kicking stones, "Arge, look, this magpie is tilting its head and looking at us!"
Arge looked up at me, and I tilted my head again, trying to make them angry. Arge continued to stare at me, and his gaze made me feel humiliated. Although these two humans didn't throw stones at me, I still flew away.
I encountered Arge again in the evening. I was standing on a tree branch by the roadside, thinking as usual, although this time I was thinking about the encounter with Arge in the afternoon.
Suddenly, there was a slight noise under the tree. I looked down and it turned out to be that annoying guy named Arge.
Arge adjusted his glasses and looked up, asking, "I've seen you before, are you the magpie from this afternoon?"
I was surprised and didn't know what to say because it was the first time someone spoke to me. I didn't know how to respond. Although it's impolite not to respond when someone talks to you, it's very likely that even if I said something, he wouldn't understand. It's better to say nothing, so I continued to tilt my head and look at him.
Arge seemed very happy and smiled at me, "Can you fly to faraway places?"
What a silly question. We magpies are masters of flight. With a pair of large wings, we can go anywhere we want. But I resisted the urge to boast about my flying abilities and tilted my head again.
Arge suddenly seemed thoughtful and lowered his head, thinking about something.
Arge lowered his head without speaking, and I became bored and started preening my feathers.
"Can you go to a very faraway place and help me find someone?" Arge said, biting his lip.
"Dad is a good person, but he went to a very faraway place. I miss him a lot..." Arge continued talking and biting his lip.
"I haven't seen Dad since I was little, but Mom told me that Dad did something super amazing before I was born, so he went to a faraway place to attend an award ceremony."
"Dad has been gone for so long and hasn't come back. I miss him so much. Can you help me find him in a very faraway place? Just give him this letter."
Arge held his backpack tightly and struggled to take out a neatly folded small note.
"I wrote this in the afternoon. Can you help me? I won't force you, but if you don't help me, I'll be very sad."
"Is this still a human? Moral blackmailing a little magpie like me? How shameless!" I couldn't help but shout.
Arge was obviously startled and stood there at a loss.
"Your mom's meaning is already very clear. Dad is probably no longer here. Do you know what it means when someone is not here? It means they're dead, just like going to a faraway place."
Arge suddenly looked up, his eyes red. "You're lying!"
When Arge turned and walked away, I stayed in place, he actually understood what I said!
The next day, feeling uneasy, I came back to the tree branch by the side of the road. It seemed to be a path that elementary school students pass by on their way to school. Many students pass by here every day, and most of them scare away the birds on the trees.
At noon, Arge appeared again. He saw me, then turned his head and continued walking.
I wanted to apologize to him. Although what I said was correct, I still made this little boy cry.
In the afternoon, I met Arge again. I took the initiative to shout to him, "Sorry, little brat, it was my fault yesterday. I shouldn't have said that."
"What do you want to say then?" Arge tilted his head and looked at me.
I was at a loss for words for a moment, paused, and said, "Everyone will die eventually, even though I am a magpie. But your dad's death was meaningful, didn't your mom tell you? He did something super amazing, so even though you can't see him, you should still be happy for him!"
Arge looked up and said, "Dad saved a lot of people, my mom told me. But I'm still sad because I can't see Dad."
"Okay, okay, stop crying. From now on, just treat me as your dad."
"Get lost!"
[The End]