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“I’m not sure how my radiance would react to this.”
Burnt Cheese pulled his hands out of the tub with a slight grimace, glancing over at Black Raisin. She didn’t say anything for a moment, pulling her bandaged hand out of the water and grabbing the nearby brush.
“Reacting to you caring for the Cheesebird’s close cousin? I’m sure she’d be impressed with your dedication,” Her voice was rough and serious, but she smiled softly before adding “And will you keep Hera still for a moment so I can brush her feathers?”
“Right.” Burnt Cheese slowly reached his hands out towards the raisin crow again, cupping the large bird in them. Surprisingly, there was little fuss from Hera as Black Raisin carefully brushed out its dark feathers, humming to herself. It was a tune that Burnt Cheese did not know, but the sound of her humming contrasted her normally sharp voice so much it was almost melodic to be a witness to the song.
“Why would you give a crow like this the name Hera?” He asked after a while, “It seems too delicate for that kind of name.” He looked down at the large crow, whose bright eyes stared back. If it had been trying to intimidate him, he was not fazed by it.
Black Raisin stopped brushing the raisin crow’s feathers and looked up at Burnt Cheese with somewhat amused eyes.
“Do we really need to have meanings behind our names? Plus, it was just a pretty name that I thought suited her.” She replied back with a quiet chuckle. Hera cawed in agreement, as if she could understand the two cookies. It was the first thing that made Burnt Cheese chuckle also.
“Caw caw to you too, Hera.” Black Raisin returned to brushing the delicate feathers with the brush, no longer humming, and a peaceful silence fell between Burnt Cheese and Black Raisin again, only disturbed by the occasional caw of Hera and the sound of splashing water in the tub. And at some point, he heard the soft humming of Black Raisin again, and the tune of that song that must have come from so long ago it could only be remembered by a low hum in her throat.
“How many more raisin crows must we clean after after this?” Burnt Cheese looked up at Black Raisin, raising an eyebrow.
“Only 20.”
Burnt Cheese sighed. Well, this still beat weighing hearts all day.