"Well, if you say so. Just be careful!" Gypsy was touched by Apple’s concern. “I will, don’t worry! I’ll show them that us little birds can be tough and strong too!” The tiny blue avian relaxed when Apple appeared to be keen to teach rather than make fun of her flightless problem. She was starting to like this magpie, even if she had been mean initially. She watched carefully as the other bird spread her wings. "You just move them up and down, like this!" The magpie demonstrated, doing it slowly at first, but then speeding up. "It has to be fast, though, or else nothing happens." “O-Okay…” Gypsy felt uncertain. She had tried this exact technique before but it hadn’t really worked. Doubt started creeping into her mind. What if she just didn’t have the talent for flight? “L-Like this?” She tried to flap her wings as fast as possible and jumped up and down with all her might. It would be obvious to any flier that her technique was sloppy - she wasn’t flapping her wings in sync, just merely flinging her limbs out wildly and hopping about in a comical way. "Gypsy speaks" 'Gypsy thinks'

@Apple

As Gypsy tried to take flight, Apple erupted into laughter. She couldn't help it, she looked ridiculous! Flapping her wings to and fro, not in sync or together at all. She fell to the ground, unable to control herself.

"Hahahaha! You look so silly!" Her voice was high and chirping as she struggled to get to her feat, tears in her eyes. With another giggle, she copied what Gypsy had been doing with amusement, laughing all the way. "You looked like this! It was so funny!"

She gasped for breath between bursts of laughter, but after a few moments, she calmed down enough to be able to talk again. "You...you have to flap them together. And not...not so random. Like this." She hoped and gave her wings a few strong, even flaps, hovering in the air for a moment, before she touched back down.

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Gypsy
notes: notes here

Gypsy bristle in indignance and embarrassment as Apple poked fun at her. She scowled. Just when she thought the magpie was kind! ‘How mean!” She protested as Apple continued to laugh. But… looking at it from this perspective, as Apple copied what she had tried to do, it was rather comical. If she had truly looked like that, then she couldn’t blame the other avian for laughing. Apple’s joyous chirp was infectious as well. Eventually, Gypsy found herself laughing with her. "You...you have to flap them together. And not...not so random. Like this." Oh. Gypsy watched as Apple gave her a demonstration. She realised what she had been doing wrong. The wings had to be flapping at the same time in the same direction! Ahhh, maybe she could fly if she just fixed this! “I see! I’ll try again!” She said excitedly. With the look of utmost concentration on her face, she started to flap her wings together slowly. This time, they were more in sync. Gradually, she sped up the process so that they were beating faster. Could she do it? Something comical and devastating suddenly occurred. Beating her wings too energetically, one of them knocked against the ground. In her surprise, she stumbled and fell into a flat heap of feathers on the ground. “Owwwww…” She complained. Lying face-flat on the floor, she couldn’t even look at Apple. This was beyond embarrassing. "Gypsy speaks" 'Gypsy thinks'

@Apple

When Gypsy commented on her being mean, she stopped laughing, her face falling. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." But then, to her surprise, the smaller bird started laughing as well! It was such a beautiful laugh, high pitched and chirping. With a big smile, she joined in, laughing over the mistakes so they could try again.

Apple watched, hopeful, as the bird began to get down the technique. She was going to do it this time! But then, just as she started to rise, she stumbled and tumbled over in such a comical fashion that it sent Apple into another burst of laughter. She fell to the ground, thumping her wings as she screamed with laughter. "Oh...my gosh..." she gasped, "I've never...seen anything...so...funny....hahahaha!"

She was gasping for air beyond her squeals and then realized that Gypsy would be offended by her being amused. She stopped laughing immediately and stood up, straightening her ruffled feathers. "I-I mean, it's okay. Why don't you try again?" Heat flooded her face and guilt tugged at her belly. She didn't want her first friend to feel bad. Or hate her.

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Gypsy
notes: notes here

"Oh...my gosh..." Apple gasped, "I've never...seen anything...so...funny....hahahaha!" At first Gypsy was too humiliated to even glance over at the magpie. But when she finally did, seeing Apple in such a state of laughter also sent her giggling. “Heheheh… It was rather funny, wasn’t it?” She gasped in between chuckles. "Why don't you try again?" Apple kind of looked guilty, and Gypsy figured she might have thought she would be offended. She beamed at her. “I will!” She was weak in her legs from all the laughing, rolling around and trying. Still, she somehow managed to stand back up on her talons. “Okay, here I go!” Moving slowly at first, her wings flapped as hard as they could, trying with all their might to work their magic. But she was too tired to give herself any boost to get up into the air. She struggled with a final few flaps and then fell back on her backside, exhausted. Her wings were splayed by her sides. “I-I’m too burnt out!” Gypsy admitted in defeat. "Gypsy speaks" 'Gypsy thinks'

@Apple

Apple hopped with excitement when Gypsy began to slowly move from the ground, but then huffed with disappointment when she fell back to the ground. Would she ever learn to fly? No, she had to believe she could! She had learned easily, why couldn't Gypsy?

Then she had an idea. She hadn't tried magic before, but she knew it was in there, swirling between her shoulders, blowing through her body like the wind. Maybe she could help her friend!

"No, no, you can do it! I'll help you! Watch this!" She opened her wings wide and, for a second, she realized she didn't know what to do. She focused on the crystal behind her and silently willed it to do something. And, to her utter surprise, it did. She felt her strength flow into the air and, suddenly, a small gust of wind blew from behind her and, instinctively, she directed it towards Gypsy.

"Jump! Jump into the wind and fly! It will help you into the air!" She cried with excitement, hopping up and down, excited that she had made magic that could help her friend and excited that she had done magic at all!

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Gypsy
notes: notes here

"No, no, you can do it! I'll help you! Watch this!" Apple didn’t seem to want to give up one her. A look of intense concentration flickered across the magpie’s face and to Gypsy’s great surprise, a small gust of wind blew towards her. "Jump! Jump into the wind and fly! It will help you into the air!" She didn’t need to be told twice. The small blue avian hopped to her talons and spread her wings. The gust of wind picked her up, and she was swept into the air. She flapped her wings gleefully as she shot forward. “Wheeeee! I’m flying! I’m flyyyyingggg-!” Her joy was cut short however, when the wind weakened and she found herself wobbling in the air by herself. She was tired and she didn’t think she could keep herself up for much longer. The ground got closer, and she wasn’t sure if she could land properly. “Ahhhhh!” She managed to land on her talons, but she lost her balance, skidding a little before she fell forward into a feathery heap. Her face planted onto the ground, her beak held a smile. Despite the failure of a landing, that had been fun! "Gypsy speaks" 'Gypsy thinks'

OOC: @Apple Hey, just letting you know that since this thread occurs before the olympics, and I mentioned Gypsy couldn’t fly in the olympics, she shouldn’t technically learn how to fly yet in this thread. I’m making it so that she gets “picked up” by Apple’s magic wind here, but she cannot lift herself up to fly yet, and it will stay that way for the duration of this thread to avoid the timeline making no sense XD Hope that’s okay, thanks! We could do another thread after the olympics where Apple teaches Gypsy for good!

Apple fluttered with excitement, her eyes shining as Gypsy began to rise into the air. "You're doing it! You're flying!!" She squealed with excitement, hopping around with joy before the wind died away and the little bird came crashing back down to the ground.

But Apple wasn't disappointed, no! She had at least gotten into the air, even if she was too tired to keep it up. "That was awesome! And it looked so fun! I want to try!" She opened her wings to summon another gust of wind. She felt the breeze blowing against her, picking up and she prepared to leap straight into it and flutter above Gypsy, just as she had done moments before. However, there was a sudden, erratic push as she lost control for a moment and a surge of wind slammed against her back.

With a loud caw of surprise, she was thrown forward, tumbling through the air over the other bird's head before she fell out of the current and slammed against the ground.

Stunned for a moment, she tried to process what had just happened.

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Gypsy
notes: notes here

Gypsy picked herself up as Apple summoned another gust of wind with an enthusiastic exclamation. Knowing that her friend would be flying perfectly, she did not look up until she heard a loud caw of surprise. Gypsy’s beak opened in shock as Apple was thrown forward, tumbling in the air over her head before slamming against the ground. Gypsy stood stunned for a moment before she came to her senses. The little avian hopped to her friend in great worry, tail flickering this way and that. “Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Apple! You okay?!!” She didn’t know what to do. Apple wasn’t saying anything. Was she hurt? What was she supposed to do? She hopped around her friend frantically. "Gypsy speaks" 'Gypsy thinks'

@Apple

Apple blinked, trying to comprehend how horribly she had failed. At first, she thought to be embarressed as Gypsy came running to her side, but what was the point? It suddenly struck her that it was absolutely hilarious and she burst out laughing, rolling over onto her back to show the other bird she was okay.

"Hahaha! Yeah, I'm totally fine! That was amazing! I gotta try it again!"

She jumped to her feet and stretched out her wings again and a huge gust of wind threw itself at her. With a startled cry, she was flung into the air, but this time she stabilized herself, floating on the stream of wind with her wings carefully holding herself afloat.

Eyes shining, she looked down at Gypsy. "Jump in! I'll hold the wind steady!"

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Gypsy
notes: notes here