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"He's an interesting fellow, isn't he?" Elizabeth joked. "I've known him for a few years, and he still ceases to surprise me. I don't know what you two did, but he seemed... off about it."

I didn't react to her comment. I couldn't help but feel terrible. I never got a chance to properly say goodbye to him. I would have probably broken the news about his changes if it wasn't for my speech issues. I couldn't help but worry about him being alone. I knew he wanted to keep quiet about it, but I don't know if that would have been the best choice. Watching him leave in silence was about the only thing I could do.

Alex still seemed unsure of Eli; perhaps his weird behavior wasn't helping either. Looking at her new features, I couldn't help but feel at fault for some of it. I wondered how far she would be if I had been here for her. She looked to be on the brink of completion, her body resembling more of an owl than a human. Every move she made was smooth and purposeful, much like a large bird. She seemed oddly calm for being as far into her changes as she was. I couldn't help but relate to when I got to the final stages of my changes.

Looking around the room, I found it strange how different it felt. I had only briefly been away, but it felt like a distant memory. While I was away, things were moved around, and new animals were brought into care. It wasn't my place, but it still felt like it had moved on without me. The room and everything in it continued on in my absence. Alex grabbed a rolling chair and swung it around to the table I was standing on. She turned the backrest to the side to let her tail hang unobstructed. Leaning in towards me, she placed her hands on the tabletop. She seemed excited, although I was still shocked by the depth of her new changes. Her arms could only be called that because of the hands on their ends; otherwise, they resembled a snowy owl's wings.

"I was going to go over to the house later if you want to come along. It's been a while since they've seen ya," the owl said excitedly. Elizabeth smiled and turned away, tending to the cages on the wall. I gave Alex a nod, and she chirped happily, quickly standing up from the chair. Her talons clicked on the tile floor, occasionally making a scraping sound.

Something about Alex had her excited, even if her situation seemed dire. She couldn't seem to stand still, and she began to look around the room. I tried to see what she was looking at or for, but I couldn't get a read. She walked over to a plastic crate against the wall and removed a leather falconer's glove. She held it in one hand and gazed at her other feathered hand. She sighed.

"Well, I guess that isn't going on, is it?" A forced laugh tried to hide the worry. "You can perch on my arm, right? Just be gentle."

She held her wing up to me, and I hesitated to step on after seeing what I had done to Eli's hands. Eli allowed me to stand on his hands by choice; Alex did not have that luxury. She nudged my belly with her arm to try and coax me into stepping. Carefully, I placed my left foot, then my right, onto her arm. Unsteady from my light grip, I held my wings partially unfolded for balance.

"See? It's not hard. Just like a glove!"

I tried to keep my balance, and Alex tilted her head in confusion.

"Lyall, you can grip my arm, you know?" She tried not to laugh.

I slowly tightened my grip until it was comfortable, still hesitant to grip too hard. Her feathers were much softer than the rough leather, and I could feel my talons against her skin. I turned to face Alex and gave my head a bob. She smiled and began walking towards Elizabeth.

"Hey Liz, would you mind-" But Alex was interrupted.

"You need a ride over?" Elizabeth asked happily, to which Alex shrugged nervously. "I told you I didn't mind being your chauffeur." Elizabeth placed the rag she held on the table and walked toward Alex and me.

I tried to be subtle as I looked at Alex's arms. Her hands were still similar to a human's, but her arms were much less nimble. I assumed Alex must have quit driving, her feathers growing too long to fit in the space. At least she still had some coordination with her hand.

We followed Elizabeth out to her van and Alex climbed into the back, leaving the front seat empty. She sat facing the sliding door to give her tail room. My wing rubbed against the front passenger seat, but I tried not to make it obvious. It was only for a short ride, I would be fine.

The drive was quiet. I could tell Alex wanted to say something, but wasn't able to. She kept turning to face me, but then quickly turned back to the window. I wish I could tell her to say it, but my voice left me years ago. Elizabeth kept looking back through the rearview mirror. She kept a natural smile for the entire ride. Something was definitely on her mind.

Alex wasted no time climbing out of the vehicle when we arrived at the house. Tripping on her own feet, she managed to catch herself before falling to the ground. I tried to keep a loose grip but felt my talons dig into her arm slightly. Elizabeth had begun to get out but stopped when Alex climbed out.

"Have Rylie call me, ok?" Elizabeth said.

Alex nodded with a smile before turning to walk toward the door. Alex didn't bother with a knock or ringing the doorbell. She opened the door and announced her arrival, "Hello! Guess who I brought with me?" She must have been getting more confident around the house.

"Alex! And... uh... oh, Lyall!" Nash exclaimed. "It's been a little while since I've seen you, mister!" He hurried over to meet us.

Behind him, I could see Rylie talking with someone else whom I did not recognize. The person turned to face us, and seeing their face from the front clued me into their identity. They were unmistakably a hummingbird; it had to be Dan, but clearly more about him had changed.

Rylie turned and tilted her head upon seeing us. She ran over and wrapped her arms around Alex. "Good to see you two together again. I assume everything went alright when it wore off?" Rylie asked.

Alex held up her mostly changed wings, "It didn't come without a few new things," She nervously laughed. "I'm feeling much better now. I can feel them again!" Alex smiled and gave her free arm a light flap, still jostling me slightly.

"Well, they are gone now, so no more surprises from any of you." Rylie glared at everyone in the room. She returned to Alex and hugged her again. "I'm glad we didn't lose you."

I was slightly confused but happy to see everyone again. I assumed it was something private and didn't want to intrude. Much like the egg situation, some things were best left between them. I couldn't help but stare at Dan. His changes were nearly complete, with iridescent feathers covering his entire body, only missing from his thin feet and long, slender beak. He stood awkwardly, avoiding eye contact with his feathers puffing before laying flat once more.

"So Lyall, how did your falconry trip go? You finally ready to head back out there?" Nash asked. Without hesitation, I nodded in agreement. "Well, I'm happy for ya. I knew there was no better place for you," the cardinal continued. "As for you, Miss Alex, are you still planning on living with Elizabeth?"

This was the first I had heard of this plan.

Alex swayed slightly, "Yeah, I think it's best for me to stay... inside. Not too many snowies around here."

"I get ya; you never know what could happen, though. We are still here for you even when it's all said and done." Nash gave her a playful punch on her left wing. Alex smiled in response.

"Ou are going?" a scratchy voice said. I turned my head to find it coming from Dan. I could see his throat move, his feathers puffing under his beak as he tried to speak. "Going outside?" he asked once more.

I nodded my head. He turned away, and a long tongue quickly shot out of his beak before receding. Dan's height was significantly reduced from the last time I had seen him. He was in the final stages of his changes and could be only steps away from finishing. He seemed to realize this. Every struggling word was filled with sadness, and his movements were slow. Dan never seemed to embrace his changes, and now that he was nearing the end of the road... he reminded me of Damien the night he finished his changes. Struggling to speak, nervous for the next steps.

Without realizing it, I had begun to tighten my grip on Alex's arm nervously. Distracted by thoughts of Dan, my talons had started to dig into her feathers and into her skin. Alex winced and lifted her arm; small amounts of red began to stain the white feathers around my feet. Rylie quickly picked up on what was happening and scooped me off of Alex's arm. She grabbed me from behind and placed her feathered arms around my chest and wings. At first, I resisted, but upon seeing the red-stained feathers, I quickly let go and gave a small screech.

"Oh my god! Sorry, Lyall!" Alex folded her wing to her side and closed her eyes, wincing at the sight.

"No, no! There is no reason to apologize. He gripped ya a little too hard." Nash reached for Alex's wing. "Let me see it, I don't need you bleedin' all over now." Alex stretched her wing out, and Nash pushed the feathers aside, looking to see how deep the punctures were. He grabbed a blanket off of the chair and pressed it tightly against her skin. "It'll stop here in a moment. Just needs a little pressure, is all."

Rylie held me like a baby in her arms. I tried to watch what was happening with Alex, but I struggled with her arms partially blocking my view. My struggle prompted Rylie to look down at me. "I'm sure it was an accident. It's not a huge deal. She'll be alright."

I couldn't help but feel disgusted. Once again, I had done something to hurt Alex. Although the amount of blood was probably small, the staining of the red on her snowy white feathers made it look much worse.

While all of this was happening, I saw Dan quietly run up the stairs. His light steps made almost no noise on the usually creaky staircase. I expected to hear a door shut, but I never heard it. Everyone else seemed oblivious to Dan's disappearance. I would have said something, but of course I couldn't.

Nash offered to help clean the staining out of Alex's feathers, and together, they walked off to the kitchen. Rylie tried to be careful as she sat me on the couch. She plopped down next to me and sighed.

"She's trying to pretend her changes aren't getting in the way. She saw what had happened to Dan. I don't get why she thought it was fine." Rylie kicked her scaled feet up onto the table. "You just got back today, right?"

I nodded.

"Figured she couldn't wait to bring you here. Whatever happened to you, I hope she gets a little of it. For her and Elizabeth's sake." Rylie shook her head.

I stared at her, head tilted in confusion.

"But the pills are gone now; I thought Dan was a fluke, but never expected Alex to pull the same crap." Rylie looked at me. "If what they say about it is true, I don't know if that's a good or bad thing for either of them."

It made sense now why both seemed to surge. After I quit taking the inhibitor, I had a similar surge to my changes. Why would Alex take it? What did she expect to gain from it? After seeing Dan's reaction to the instincts being ripped away, I could only imagine how terrible it would have been for Alex. That alien feeling when you cannot control the avian parts of your body, that feeling I will never forget. Either way, now both she and Dan were getting close to the end of their changes. Dan could entirely shift at any moment. His mood certainly was not going to be of any help.

Not much later, we were joined on the couch by Alex and Nash. Alex's feather no longer showed any staining from my accident. Both took seats on the other couch, and Shelby and Matti walked in through the door. Although I never got to know either of them that well, they were still friendly and seemed excited to see me again. Matti even attempted to say a kind hello through his coarse voice. Neither appeared to have had any notable changes since I last saw them.

We turned on the TV and watched a movie together. I didn't pay much attention to the movie itself but rather enjoyed being with my friends for what could be my last time. I was surprised to feel a rubbing on my back, and glancing over, I saw Rylie trying her best to pet me. I attempted to smile, but the locked expression on my face gave the same hawk glare. I'm sure she knew what I was trying to do. It was nice not to think about what was coming ahead, just spending time with everyone and forgetting the circumstances. For the first time in awhile, I felt at ease.

Once the movie's credits began to roll, Nash stood up and stretched, Shelby and Matti began to converse amongst themselves, and Rylie began talking about the film with Alex. Although I wasn't in on any of the conversations, it still felt nice to be around the fellowship. Over all of the talking, I didn't notice Dan coming down the stairs until he was standing before the group. His dark eyes locked with mine, and he gestured with his head for me to follow. Looking around, everyone else was busy, so I hopped down from the couch, earning only a quick look from Alex. I took a few steps on the floor before she turned back to Rylie again.

I followed Dan behind the living area and near the bar top. Although I was significantly shorter than him on the ground, it was still clear how much height he had lost since I last saw him. When we both stopped, he knelt before falling onto his rear, trying to be careful not to crush his tail under his weight. His feet no longer resembled human feet but the thin feet of a bird, ready to stand on the thinnest of branches. When he went to speak, I saw his neck feathers moving.

"Did ou feel like this after ou took it?" Dan asked with a scratchy voice.

I tilted my head in confusion.

"he pill, did ou feel broken?" The hummingbird asked. "Ere ou scared of the changes?"

I hesitated before slowly nodding.

"I feel it. It talks with me." Dan struggled. "I 'ants me to change."

I slowly nodded my head, stepping closer to the birdman. He placed a wing on my head.

"Are ou happy now? Ould ou do it again?"

I thought about the question. Looking back at my last few years of life, I wouldn't say I had many regrets. My changes were inevitable and out of my control. My choices of how I felt with them were wholly mine, and I can't think of how it could have gone any better, given the circumstances.

I gave Dan a confident nod. He turned away once again before looking back at me.

"Ou said ou would help me, ight?"

I nodded again.

"I think ou helped me know what to do." Dan closed his eyes and let out a happy chirp. "I'm ready oo be myself. My 'ew self."

I quickly looked back at the group, and everyone was still oblivious to what was beginning to happen. My heart began to pound, and time seemed to slow. Looking back at Dan, his head began to reshape, giving him a flatter top and slowly his height started to shrink. I couldn't believe what was happening, and I squawked loudly at the group, pressing my diaphragm as hard as I could at the group. Nash was the first to say something.

"Oi, we are all right here, Lyall." He cocked his head before his eyes went wide. "Oh shit! Daniel!"

Nash scampered over to us, nearly knocking over the end table. Rylie followed closely after. I couldn't move, frozen with fear. Not even the hawk's instincts could guide me now. I felt something reach around me, and the hummingbird's wings wrapped around my body. Dan's long, slender beak came up to the side of my head and whispered his final words.

"thanks, Lyall."