Chapter Text
Chuck raced through the mountains and meadows at top speed, as always exercising and breaking his own records; it was undoubtedly one of his favorite hobbies.
Of course, Matilda's poor flowers paid the price for his training.
"CHUCK! WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY FLOWERS?!" Matilda exclaimed, her face red with anger. It wasn't the first time Chuck had ruined her flowers by running over them, and it probably wouldn't be the last.
"Huh? What? Oh! That... Don't worry, Matilda! You can plant more, right?" the yellow canary exclaimed nonchalantly, and he was about to run off again if Matilda hadn't stopped him.
"Ah, no, no, no, it's time you took responsibility for your actions." Matilda dragged Chuck to the wrecked flowerbed, where a few flowers had survived.
“Help me plant them, okay? I already showed you how.” Matilda carefully began replanting the loose flowers, while Chuck reluctantly did the same. This was definitely the last thing he wanted to do that day, but he also didn't want to provoke Matilda's fury. The hen was truly frightening when she lost her temper.
“Oh, don't you find it relaxing and fascinating to just take a moment to admire the beauty of nature?” Matilda exclaimed, admiring the newly planted flowers. Chuck just shrugged.
“Uh, they're… pretty, I guess.” Chuck sighed as he planted the last flowers, but those words didn't convince Matilda.
“Hm, I'm sure there must be something that catches your eye. You can create very beautiful things with such simple materials as flowers and wooden sticks. Why don't you try making something like this?” She looked intently at Chuck, hoping the yellow bird would take her words to heart.
“You mean a craft project? I’m not very good at them, besides, it’s not my style. I’d rather spend that time perfecting my karate.” Chuck grins arrogantly, then shows off his new moves, but Matilda stops him again.
"It doesn't necessarily have to be for you. You can make it for someone else, like... a gift!"
This finally piqued Chuck's curiosity. He wasn't much of a crafter, but maybe making something for someone else would show his appreciation for that special someone, like...
"Well, I guess I could give it a try."
"Really? Excellent! I'll get the materials!"
Red stood by the tree where they slept, cautiously watching over the eggs, making sure no green pig decided to make its despicable presence known.
As always, his gaze remained fixed on the eggs, until he heard a certain canary approaching quickly.
"Hey Red!" Chuck stopped in front of Red with an enthusiastic grin, hiding something behind him.
"Hey Chuck, what's up?" Red asked, raising an eyebrow. He couldn't help but smile a little; he wouldn't admit it out loud, but he'd missed seeing the yellow bird today. His spontaneous visits were a must.
“Oh, I was just passing by, you know, but… Um, I also wanted to give you something.” Showing a strange shyness, the canary revealed what he had been hiding behind his body: a flower crown, with visible loose branches and a slightly asymmetrical shape; it was undoubtedly handmade.
Red looked surprised by the sudden gift. “Oh! You made it?”
“Yeah, well, more like Matilda made me do crafts with her, but, uh, since I was doing it, um, I wanted to make it for you…”
Chuck looked at Red with anticipation and nervousness. He really hoped Red would appreciate the gift he had made with such care (and with a bit of distraction, since he had spent the whole time thinking about Red and how he would react while he was making it).
Red took the crown and examined it closely. It wasn't the best job in the world, not by a long shot, but despite that, his heart seemed to be beating strongly.
"I think it's... very pretty," Red finally said, before placing the crown on his head. It itched a little, but at that moment, he didn't care.
Chuck couldn't help but blush slightly when Red put on his gift. He had imagined this moment many times, and yet, this was so much better. God, he could feel his tail twitching rapidly.
"Really?! Uh, I mean, of course I knew you'd like it, I mean, I made it, obviously you were going to like it." Chuck exclaimed, adopting his usual arrogance once again to try and hide how his heart was pounding with excitement. Red liked his gift!
Red just smiled slightly and shook his head, and he was back, the same old Chuck, but in truth, Red wouldn't wanted it any other way...
"You're always so humble, aren't you?"
"I'm glad you appreciate my good tributes, I mean, I'm pretty cool, right?"
They both laughed softly, a comfortable and warm atmosphere forming between the two birds, which made Chuck a little nervous again.
"Well, I guess I should be going now, ahem, bye Red!" Chuck sped off, since he was far enough away, not bothering to hide how happy he was.
Red, on the other hand, just smiled slightly as he watched Chuck disappear, then realized that the crown was bothering him a little because of the loose branches.
He carefully removed it and placed it around the egg basket; it looked better there.
Admiring the sunset, Red couldn't help but think about Chuck and his charming smile.