Work Text:
Grian had always been a natural at archery. He was always able to hit the mark on the target, or hit a perfect bullseye. He could have even gone pro if not for one small thing: His wings. They were truly the one thing holding him back. In the world where Grian lived hybrids were frowned upon and it didn't take a genius to see that Grian was a hybrid. His wings were akin to red macaws. Beautiful but flashy. Not to mention his ear wings that mimicked his main wings in color but had outshined them in usefulness. He was able to hear anyone coming up pretty easily but he couldn't tell if it was due to his hearing or due to him being naturally paranoid. As he hurried through a crowd he made sure that his wings were tightly pressed into his back. The binder helped keep them hidden but was so unbareningly uncomfortable that some days he thought it to be better to just not use it. His wings were itchy and his feathers were dirty from not being able to preen them for a while. He knew that he couldnt avoid preening forever but he had to get to work. With that he pushed the problem away for another day.
Ever since Grian had moved out of his parents' house and to the city, he had always been in need of money. He would pick up any odd job that he was able to get. Most normal jobs would turn him away with the excuse of not needing any workers even though it was painfully obvious that they only turned him away due to him being a hybrid. So when he was able to get an actual job he was grateful. He had seen a random job offer for an assistant at a library and he had immediately took it. He had always been a book worm, using the books to keep him distracted from his reality so he thought that this job would be perfect. When he showed up for the interview he immediately noticed that his new boss was mostly blind. He had followed her through the store as she proudly showed off her huge collection of first edition books and the randomly large amount of cats that hid throughout the library. He ducked under vines and hanging pots as she hurried him along into the main room. This room was beautiful in ways that Grian could barley describe. It was a large room with a huge ceiling and open skylights that seemed to scream “Fly here!”. But sadly Grian knew that he shoulnt give into the instinct. The library had seemed almost like a safe haven for Grian. It was a earthy tone of brown and during the afternoon the sun would shine in a perfect way that seemed to illuminate the whole place with a pleasant light. Grian had two favorite things as he began to work there. The first was all of the cats walking around. He had been told that they were all rescues in a type of animal adoption program, something about how meeting the cats in a nicer environment would make more people want to adopt them. Grian had agreed wholeheartedly to this idea and now had begun to pick favorites out of them. His second favorite thing was the fact that his boss was partially blind. Though that may seem a little rude to say Grian truly meant it. Her being blind meant that on particularly slow days he would be able to let his wings out and just stretch them out in that perfect space. The only ones who could see them were him and the cats. He wasnt scared of his boss, but some days she would brush up against him and he would immediately freeze up against her touch. He knew that there was very little to be scared of from her but it didnt stop him from feeling his stomach drop from being worried that he would be found out. Overall though he really enjoyed working at the library. It even left him enough time to continue his hobby of being a vigilante on the side.
Grian had never really thought much about becoming a hero or a vigilante for that matter. He hadnt even truly ment to become one at all, really. He never did anything big but that didnt stop him from feeling a little proud of his heroism. He was more of a friendly neighborhood hero than anything else. He would help get cats out of trees, fly up and stop robbers, and sometimes would even help out someone with a mugging. The real reason for him becoming a vigilante despite never having any real want was the freedom it gave him. He liked the feeling of accomplishment when he helped someone out sure, but none of that held a candle to the feeling of flying out into the street. It was one of the only times he could really stretch his wings, even if they were a bit heavy from the dye he used to make them unrecognizable. He knew that he couldn't just fly around with his bright colors, so before any ‘Patrol’, he would dye them an ombre color of pink into black. He was just thankful for the freedom even if he had to put in some safety precautions. But what's life without a little backing for safety? He never liked being in the spotlight and he intended to stay out of it. That was always his plan anyway.
Grian liked being out in the city, sure, but it had a few problems that he couldn't help but notice. The first was the blatant hate of hybrids. Even if people had disliked him in his old town, at least they were courteous enough to pretend not to. Here, it was a completely different story. Everyone acted like it was their full-time job to make sure that he knew that he's not welcome. Whether that be him being ignored at a job interview to being cut in line, to even being spat on the message was always the same. You don't belong here. His wings shook at the disrespect every time, and he had half the mind to just yell at them to shut up or punch them, but he didn't. He didn't need any more problems in his life, even if they completely deserved it. The other problem would definitely have to be the villains everywhere. Ever scene people began being born with powers or even hybrid traits, there has always been a rise in people who wanted to use these powers for evil rather than good. Of course, that meant that there would have to be heroes to come out and save the day. Of course, that also meant that hybrids were definitely the real problem and not the government's fault for letting the villains get away. Grian never saw a real reason to hate hybrids. Some days, he just wants to yell into the wind about the unfairness of it all. But he knows from experience that even if the wind won't tell anyone, it also won't fix the problem. How come they get to be revered as heroes, and he's just left to crumble and be hated? It just wasn't fair. But he had gotten used to the feeling of unfairness. Just like everything else in his life, it was there and it was there to stay.
He shook his head as he heard a doorbell ring from the door, indicating that someone was in the library. He double-checks in a mirror to make sure that no stray feathers are out in the open or visible and goes over to greet them.
As he walks over hes greeted by a large man with beautiful brown hair and scars running all along his body. He looks up at his face to see a smile that seems to brighten the already sunlit room. The man seems to be smiling like that because of the cat that's going in between the man's legs. Jelly, he remembers her name as he sees the familiar grey stripes along the cat's back. She's purring as she goes in and out, then in again. Grian is so distracted by the beautiful stranger and the warmth radiating off of his smile that he almost doesn't even realize when the man speaks and says “Hi”.