Frustration. Pain. Torment. Hatred. So many things. His fur was bristling. He couldn't help it, he couldn't stand it. Mama was cruel, mama was scary. He hated Mama. He would kill her.

No, wait! No! Why would he do that? He loved Mama, she was his Mama! She cared for him and protected the family. She was good to them and she had created them. How could he hate her?

But she had taken it - the sapphire infused with his life. He couldn't touch it, he couldn't be near it. His punishment, of course, for disloyalty. But what disloyalty? He never understood why she hated him so. No, she didn't hate him, she was worried. No, disappointed. But WHAT HAD HE DONE?

His frustration and despair burst from his gem as he screamed suddenly. He had been standing still, hunched over. But now he stood tall and powerful, his head thrown to the sky as a loud booming crash echoed through the cave. All of his rage, his frustration. It was all in that sound. It pounded against his ears and he relished in it.

Huckleberry was a creature reborn. He had looked small and defeated before, but now everything pent up, all the anger he had stashed away, it was released now. As the thunder died away, he whipped around, his wings lifting him off the ground as this new form of magic, one he was making up on the fly, burst forth. He wanted to whip this place up, he wanted his wings to create wind, so much wind. He wanted the wind to hurt. He wanted it to destroy.

As his wings gave powerful thrusts, the wind suddenly picked up at his command and a tornado swept around where he had been standing before. It wasn't a very big tornado, but he felt satisfaction as he watched pebbles and dust be swept up in this tiny storm.

Without really thinking about it, Huckleberry flew around the tornado, feeling the wind whipping through his fur and without warning, his gem sparked and a bolt of bright lightning shot straight into the tornado. With a crackle, it burst through the circular torrent, static sparking up all through the storm. He felt some of the bolts hit him, but it was barely a tick. After a few seconds, the wind died down and the static dispersed into the air.

Huckleberry collapsed on the ground, unable to control himself anymore and tears came pouring down his cheeks. He had made a mistake. He had killed and then given life and then given it away. The gem, Blackberry kept it away from him. He couldn't go near it. But all he wanted was to curl up around it and cry and protect it. Be the parent that it deserved because he had killed her, the little bird. He deserved to make amends for what he had done.

His gem released sparks of magic, turning the air crackling with electricity. He felt shivers as the static caught in his fur and he trembled under the weight of everything. How could he keep living like this?

After sitting there, sobbing for what seemed like so long, Huckleberry finally forced himself to his feet. He needed to return to the cave. Mama didn't like it when he strayed too far nowadays, fearful that he might betray her again. But what he had done to deserve this mistrust, he had no idea. He sighed and began to walk towards the tunnel, his feet dragging and his head bowed.

Perhaps he would be lucky and Mama wasn't there. Then he could curl up around Cloudberry's gem, as that was what she had decided to name them, even for just a short time. If not, well, it would be all the more painful to sit and watch from afar. The blue gem shimmering with gold.

*exit