Alfreb Hidgecob's The Birbs :: [ Day 2 // Lex + Denali ]

running wild and running free
two kids, you and me

"Uh-uh! No way! You're so full of it. I don't believe that excuse for a —" Suddenly something lands on Denali's head, interrupting her chagrined outburst with a loud SQUAWK! The Lyons girl freezes, eyes wide with... should she be panicked? "Lex..." She whispers as cautiously as she can manage, "scale of one to ten: what's the likelihood of this thing eating my face?"

living like we're
renegades

Lex's amusement is anything but funny to Denali, who is deeply vexed at not receiving a helpful answer to her Very. Serious. Question. "I'm gonna feed your corpse to..." Still trying to maintain the most soothing voice possible so as not to spook the creature on her head, her tone says peace comes from deep within, but everything else about her says: "— whatever the thing perched on my head is. Even if that means I have to shove your dismembered body parts down its throat with my own hands." A murderous smile blooms on her lips a split second before the bird hops down to dance around on the ground as if eager to show off the colorful little gift it has brought her. Slapping both hands over her mouth to muffle a bloodcurdling scream of surprise at the jump, the sound dies in her throat as she catches sight of the yellow liquid. "Is that..."

long live the pioneers
rebels and mutineers

Crouching down to examine the delivery, Denali groans. "Not again," she mutters to herself, exasperated and grimacing at the crude attempt at... well, not a joke, but something clearly mistaken for cleverness. There was a kid back in school who thought it was a riot to steal Denali and Zion's thermoses from their lunch boxes when he could manage and... well, the smell of opening the lid was warning enough to prevent catastrophe, thankfully. "Ugh... why is this my day?" Poking at the jar with a stick, the bird chirps in response. Hello, happy human! Presents! Presents for you! Reluctantly leaning in to peer at the writing on the side of the container, Denali reads aloud: "Thanks for the scar, have a sweet drink." She gags. "Hard pass."

go forth and have no fear
come close the end is near

"I don't know! I only remember yo—" Another something lands on Denali's head, pecking at her ear and then, "Leeeeeeeex —" Squeezing her eyes shut, her rattled keening wails through the clearing as a third bird promptly lands on her shoulder. "Why is this my day?" She repeats, this time with feeling. The bird on her shoulder chirps enthusiastically in response; it's kinda... cute? Grudgingly giving it a small smile, she reaches up to awkwardly pat it's little head. (Please don't be here to die. Please don't be here to die. Please don't be here to die.) Ever-so-slowly putting one foot in front of the other, she moves over to her bag like walking a tight rope and pops open the solid gold skull latch of the clutch, rummaging around for something to write with. "I know you've obviously got a lot going on right now," Denali side-eyes the other girl's overt guffawing, "but could you kindly hand me..." A terse sigh. "...my chew toy?"

it's our time to make a move
it's our time to make amends

Lex tosses the redwood cardinal to Denali and a giantass owl follows it, swooping toward her at an absolutely terrifying speed. Dropping to the ground and covering her head for safety, she squeals at the top of her lungs and the other birds flutter up... before immediately landing again on her back and legs. "You're doing this to me on purpose!" She wails at the sky, at the cameras, and — most of all — at the two-headed muse of their masthead: Glamour Kinkade and Vepar Azrael. "Did my rhinestones displease you?! Was your Team Badass battle jacket not tailored to your ideal specifications?!" Kicking her legs and screaming into the damp earth, Denali takes a deep breath and pulls a postcard toward her. "Everyone in this arena is a great big stupidhead bully. I don't like any of you!" A camera clicks and she whips her face around to glare at Lex, fanning a fresh snapshot with an unapologetic shrug. "Of course you would," Denali hisses dramatically, dabbing the beak of the cardinal carving into her chest wound as if it were an ink well.