"Why is he still here?"

"Didn't Boulder ban him yesterday?"

"Oh, he's gonna get it this time."

I walked through the crowd, they practically parted for me. I hated how their judgmental eyes staring holes on the back of my neck. I folded my wings into my back and lowered my head a bit more.

"Storm Cloud." I heard the all-to familiar voice in front of me. Boulder Sky, our clan leader, sat on his throne, his talons scraping the marble, his girls surrounding his seat. They pressed their breasts on his face, torso, and legs, their tongues flicking across their lips. I tried not to show my disgust as I bowed to him. "My apologies for not leaving yet, sir, but my mother insisted that I stay for one more night." Surprise flashed across his eyes, but it was gone in a second. 

"That's alright," He forced a smile. "But I really must authorize that you leave today, right now." A blonde opened her beak and gently bit his ear before standing and strutting over to me. Her black stilettos clacked the marble ground till she stood directly in front of me. Wrapping her arm around mine, she led me out of the the throne room. 

When we exited, she sighed and let go of me. "Ugh," she said, "I hate my job." 

I sighed, "You know that if he hears you, you're dead." 

Ivy is forced to be Boulder's little slut. A few years ago, Boulder used to be a nice guy, my best friend in fact, but leadership got the best of him. 

And mortal movies.

He came home once after seeing a movie about a...mafia? He was fascinated about how they worked, how killing people was the only way to discipline them and others. He also found out that all clan leaders should apparently be surrounded by women in lingerie. So he said that if any of the females in our clan denied their new duty, he would kill them, and proceeded to rip out the throat of a young girl was just a little too close to him with his talons.

The mother of that girl later jumped off Peregrine Cliff later that day, and the father disappeared, some say he joined the nearby Starlight Clan. That was the day our clan, the SkyFlight Clan, started its descent into hell.

Boulder started telling people I was never meant to be born because I have a different clan mark than everyone else. The SkyFlight Clan mark is three circular spirals all meeting at the end. Mine was a triangle. In the triangle was a straight line, and a circle. I have no idea what it is, but it's different than everyone else's. That's why I'm banished from returning to SkyFlight Island. I have to live in the mortal world. Ew.

"Storm, look," Ivy placed a hand on my shoulder, "I know that it's hard, now that you aren't allowed here anymore, but I envy you. You don't have to deal with Boulder or any of this." I nodded, but it didn't stop the tears from falling on my cheeks.

Ivy has been there for me since Boulder started the bullying. It was hard to deal with the sudden change, but Ivy always comforted me and stuff. Now I leave her behind, with him.

"Come with me." I told her. "Come with me and we can run away." She shook her head and also started to cry. "You know that if I do, he will track us down and kill us both."

I knew it was true, but I couldn't just leave her. "We need to go." She said, clacking her beak together in frustration. I looked up and saw that the sun was going down. "Alright." I turned into my bird form, a crow, and cawed. Ivy was now a beautiful Painted Bunting, her blue head bobbing as she looked across the sea that divided us from humans. 

I cawed at Ivy, and she took off. Following her, I fought against the strong wind to catch up with her. 

What will happen to me now? How will I survive in a world where have never even heard of what we are?