Songbirds
and
Crows

Akhil V

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Hatchling

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Jameson trotted through the large halls of Merlin High School while the sea of students bumped and jostled him. As he made his way to the science building, Jameson’s excitement rose. He swung open the door to the classroom of the elective he has been waiting years to take, Zoology. Since his beloved grandfather passed away and left his precious warbler in Jameson’s care, Jameson was determined to follow in his footsteps and study ornithology. This class would provide the resources and opportunities to research birds and launch his future career as an ornithologist. Last year, when he talked to Ms. Crow about his love for birds, she informed Jameson that she was moved by his passion and would help him with his research. As the door opened, a large blast of cold air greeted Jameson, but his large hoodie kept him warm like the plumage of a baby emperor penguin. Jameson looked around the room expecting Ms. Crow to already be there, but he only found his equally confused classmates.

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While finding a seat, Jameson inspected the room. The bird taxidermies and the endless number of books about birds on the shelves around him fueled his excitement for all that he would learn in the class this year. 
Suddenly, Ms. Crow ran into the room holding her papers close to her chest, seeming out of breath. She started talking right away as if nothing had happened while shoving her disheveled hair back in place. Apologizing for being late, she began to explain that today they were going to start brainstorming ideas for their small beginning-of-the-year research projects in which they were to study a topic of their choice and present it to the class. Jameson knew immediately that this made for the perfect opportunity to showcase his expansive love of birds. As Ms. Crow approached his table to give him the planning sheet, she froze as her eyes fell on the American Three-toed Woodpecker taxidermy positioned above Jameson's desk. Breathing fast and taking huge gulps of air, she froze on the spot. Jameson, too eager to notice anything wrong, inquisitively called Ms. Crow’s name. Snapping back to reality, Ms. Crow dropped the paper on Jameson’s desk and hastily returned to her desk as her whole body quivered.

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While finding a seat, Jameson inspected the room. The bird taxidermies and the endless number of books about birds on the shelves around him fueled his excitement for all that he would learn in the class this year. 
Suddenly, Ms. Crow ran into the room holding her papers close to her chest, seeming out of breath. She started talking right away as if nothing had happened while shoving her disheveled hair back in place. Apologizing for being late, she began to explain that today they were going to start brainstorming ideas for their small beginning-of-the-year research projects in which they were to study a topic of their choice and present it to the class. Jameson knew immediately that this made for the perfect opportunity to showcase his expansive love of birds. As Ms. Crow approached his table to give him the planning sheet, she froze as her eyes fell on the American Three-toed Woodpecker taxidermy positioned above Jameson's desk. Breathing fast and taking huge gulps of air, she froze on the spot. Jameson, too eager to notice anything wrong, inquisitively called Ms. Crow’s name. Snapping back to reality, Ms. Crow dropped the paper on Jameson’s desk and hastily returned to her desk as her whole body quivered.

Nestling

 Although Jameson turned in his outline last due to the amount of detail he crammed into it, his hand shot up faster than a peregrine falcon slicing through the air, when Ms. Crow asked the students to share the topic of their research and why they chose it.
 “I chose my topic of researching songbirds-,” began Jameson. 
Ms. Crow’s eyes grew large and filled with dread, and halfway through Jameson’s sentence, Ms. Crow cut him off and commanded the next student to start sharing their topic. Jameson looked up into Ms. Crow’s wide eyes wondering why she had done that.

around the room looking for a sign of the bird. Unsuccessful, he proceeded to the bookshelves that now only contained an endless reserve of books on every class of animal except for Aves. Very confused, Jameson approached Ms. Crow who was perched on her desk scanning the room alertly.
“Ms. Crow, where did all of the bird taxidermies and books go?”
“We won’t be needing them this year,” she said candidly. “Ornithology is no longer part of the curriculum.”
The words hit Jameson like an eagle tackling its prey from out of the sky. No ornithology? How could this be possible? Studying birds gave reason to why Jameson had enrolled in this elective. He opened his mouth to ask more questions, but at that moment, the rest of the class clambered in giving Ms. Crow an excuse to end their conversation. Jameson waddled back to his seat solemnly reflecting on what this meant for him.

The next day when Jameson came to class early, a much calmer Ms. Crow greeted him. He found his seat and looked up to marvel at the American Three-toed Woodpecker’s plumage only to find an empty space on the wall. Jameson swung his head

Chick

Now the only opportunity for Jameson to study

around the room looking for a sign of the bird. Unsuccessful, he proceeded to the bookshelves that now only contained an endless reserve of books on every class of animal except for Aves. Very confused, Jameson approached Ms. Crow who was perched on her desk scanning the room alertly.
“Ms. Crow, where did all of the bird taxidermies and books go?”
“We won’t be needing them this year,” she said candidly. “Ornithology is no longer part of the curriculum.”
The words hit Jameson like an eagle tackling its prey from out of the sky. No ornithology? How could this be possible? Studying birds gave reason to why Jameson had enrolled in this elective. He opened his mouth to ask more questions, but at that moment, the rest of the class clambered in giving Ms. Crow an excuse to end their conversation. Jameson waddled back to his seat solemnly reflecting on what this meant for him.

Now the only opportunity for Jameson to study

Fledgling

birds was researching them for his project. Eagerly awaiting Ms. Crow’s feedback on his proposal, he grabbed it from Ms. Crow’s hands but was shocked to find that she did not think his topic was strong enough and suggested he find another one. Jameson could not believe this, as Ms. Crow knew he dreamed about researching birds. Why would she suggest a different topic? Jameson crumpled up the paper on the way out of class determined to prove Ms. Crow wrong no matter the cost.

Mature

The day of the presentation had arrived, and Jameson, with bags under his eyes from his late nights working on the project, strutted into school, carrying a birdcage containing his grandfather's warbler. Feeling confident that although Ms. Crow did not like his topic, he would blow her away with his commitment to his research. Not wanting the surprise of his bird to be revealed early, Jameson volunteered to present first. Making his way to the board with his slides projected upon it, Jameson set down the covered cage on a table next to him. He dove into his

presentation talking fast so he could get through all of it. Halfway through his lecture, he glanced at Ms. Crow who had her eyes locked on the far wall of the classroom and was dripping with sweat while also shivering. As Jameson flipped to the next slide about the experiments he ran to find the vocal capabilities of the musical Parulidae family, he tore off the sheet covering the cage to reveal his warbler. Ms. Crow’s head snapped towards the beautiful blue bird. A loud screech echoed through the room followed by a heavy silence. Then a blur of movement caught Jameson’s eye, as Ms. Crow lunged for the cage, grabbed it, and feverishly ran to the closest window. Opening it and the cage simultaneously, she released Jameson’s warbler through the window. He helplessly watched as his only connection to his grandfather flew away.

Adult

Ms. Crow, shocked by Jameson’s cry of anguish, turned to face him as his legs gave out beneath him and his seemingly lifeless body crumbled to the floor. The bell rang through the classroom and Jameson’s

presentation talking fast so he could get through all of it. Halfway through his lecture, he glanced at Ms. Crow who had her eyes locked on the far wall of the classroom and was dripping with sweat while also shivering. As Jameson flipped to the next slide about the experiments he ran to find the vocal capabilities of the musical Parulidae family, he tore off the sheet covering the cage to reveal his warbler. Ms. Crow’s head snapped towards the beautiful blue bird. A loud screech echoed through the room followed by a heavy silence. Then a blur of movement caught Jameson’s eye, as Ms. Crow lunged for the cage, grabbed it, and feverishly ran to the closest window. Opening it and the cage simultaneously, she released Jameson’s warbler through the window. He helplessly watched as his only connection to his grandfather flew away.

Adult

Ms. Crow, shocked by Jameson’s cry of anguish, turned to face him as his legs gave out beneath him and his seemingly lifeless body crumbled to the floor. The bell rang through the classroom and Jameson’s

classmates scrambled out of the room not sure what they had just witnessed. Ms. Crow waited for them to leave before approaching Jameson who had not moved since the incident. In a quiet voice, Ms. Crow cajoled Jameson into a chair and took a seat beside him. Confirming to Jameson that she had previously loved birds like all other animals, she explained that everything had changed over the summer after watching Alfred Hitchcock’s movie, The Birds. Shortly after, while walking to school, she was attacked by a murder of crows, she described. Since then, she had become deathly afraid of birds and this ornithophobia had strangled her love for them. The intense fear was messing with her ability to think clearly, and it was obvious she needed help. Jameson gave no reaction, as he listened to her story, and continued to stare blankly at the open window. After a nervous swallow, Ms. Crow continued, that after receiving medical care for her condition, she promised to include an ornithology unit this year and that she wanted Jameson to help teach it. At this, Jameson’s body came back to life as he looked away from the window toward Ms. Crow with a small smile. He mustered the energy to get up and slowly stumbled out of the room. 

On his walk home, watching sparrows hop from branch to branch, Jameson felt a little better but could not shake the feeling of sadness at the loss of his grandfather’s beloved bird. As Jameson creaked open the door to his house, he heard a small flutter of wings. Intrigued, he straightened up and looked toward the ceiling where he found a bright blue bird looking down at him.