As I walk through the undergrowth, I notice some strange sounds coming from somewhere below me. SQUEAK! CHIRP! CHATTER! I flash my bright eyes at my surroundings, scanning the area, searching for a sign of life. At last, I catch some movement at the bottom of a tree.

SQUEAK! CHIRP! CHATTER! The sounds were getting louder. At last, I bent over to find a bird’s nest that had clearly fallen out of the tree. And inside the nest was a cracked eggshell… with a baby bird inside it.

When I had thought of birds, I had thought of cute little chicks with feathers and small eyes. I hadn’t expected a loud, squawking, featherless, pink monster. With big, bulging eyes. It made it ten times weirder than its parents.

But… the little baby bird was kinda cute. In a helpless, pathetic way, sure, but it was STILL extremely cute. I feel a pang of sorrow as I realise the situation that it was in. This poor little creature had been shoved off the tree by, who knows what, and had fallen to the forest floor, along with the nest. The nest had clearly saved it.

I stretch out my long, flexible arms and pick up the bird nest. I straighten out my arms and carry the bird nest in the palm of my hand away from me and to a branch above. I place it and retract my hands.

Above me, I watch the mother bird reunite with her child in a blur of wings, feathers, and love. Inside me, I feel all mushy and warm. Was this… kindness? We had had nothing like that in my previous home. But it was nice to know that I was capable of such things.

Before I trudged on, the mother bird winked at me and chirped in only a language I could understand: “Thank you so much, creature, for saving my baby’s life!”

How I understood it, I had no idea. Perhaps it was just her smile. Or the sparkles in her eyes.

I grin and say, “My pleasure!” before leaving her and her baby.