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It's YOU, Kris, and Berdly on the rooftop of the apartment building. Alone, with no one around to interrupt.
What little remained of the sunset hit Berdly from behind, painting him in a way that was both beautiful and intimidating. Meanwhile, he stares at Kris without looking away.
Kris doesn't want to talk. Kris wants to leave. But they can't do anything.
— "Kris."
You can't make out Berdly's face through the shadow cast by the setting sun, but you can feel his gaze fixed on Kris.
— "I know. I know you've been trying to deny it."
Kris tries to move, but they're completely frozen. It's as if Berdly's strange silhouette itself is keeping them from moving.
— "At first, I did too. But... eventually... we're going to have to face the truth."
YOUR vision suddenly goes blurry for no reason at all, but Berdly and Kris remain perfectly clear.
— "Yesterday, when... everything happened... every cell in my body was screaming at me to run away from there as fast as I could."
The feathers you always stole from Berdly sway gently in the wind.
— "...That if I stayed with you for one more minute... you'd drag me down with you. You'd drag me somewhere no one should ever be."
— "...And do you know what scares me the most about that?"
A long silence settles between the two "friends." The wind stops blowing, and everything begins to slow down. YOUR vision returns to normal.
— "I think... I wanted that."
Everything is quiet. They're too high up to hear anyone, or anything besides the wind.
Everything is silence.
— "You know, I've spent my WHOLE life doing... nothing. Getting good grades, winning trophies, trying to be the best for my parents. That's why I want to... do something crazy."
You can't see it, but you can feel a smile spreading across Berdly's face.
— "That's why I want to... do something that'll make me feel free."
Berdly turns around, staring out into nothing.
— "But I can't. Because I'm Berdly. A Berdly who has to do Berdly things. Just like Kris has to do Kris things."
The awkward silence returns between them.
— "But Kris... you changed."
Berdly turns back around, looking at Kris once again.
— "You really changed."
Berdly seemed calm, far too calm for a moment like this. His usual smile felt unsettling. He steps closer to Kris and carefully takes their hands, weaving them together between his feathers.
— "You're really not the Kris I used to know anymore. It's like someone else replaced you, and nobody noticed. Probably because they don't want to. They don't want to see how interesting you are now."
Kris doesn't show it, but you can feel the fear growing inside them.
— "Kris... do you remember the last time we spent time together? It's been a while, hasn't it? Back when we were just kids who didn't care about the future... But now that we've both changed... we think differently than we used to."
— "Everything you made me do, the ring, the way you've been acting... it almost made me lose my mind. But, I won't lie... I felt smart. Smarter than I'd ever felt before."
Berdly pauses, looking down at their intertwined hands.
— "Kris, did you know that, even though I'm a bird, I've never even tried to fly? Haha... yeah, it's weird, since all birds fly."
Berdly's eyes meet Kris's again.
— "Kris, I want to learn how to fly. And for that... I need your help."
Berdly takes a step backwards, pulling Kris along with him.
— "I just need... I need the command to begin... Please..."
. . .
YOU proceed.
Berdly takes another step back.
YOU follow.
. . .
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
The final step gives way.
Neither of them are touching the ground anymore.
. . .
— "...The world's spinning, isn't it funny? ¡We're finally flying!"