A solitary figure emerged from between the trees as they climbed up the sombre and dreary mountain. They had passed by plenty of wildlife as they made their way to the peak, hiding themselves away in a cave to sit indefinitely. Not too many of the animals who called this mountain home paid much attention to that solitary figure. Rather they strayed from its path, shying away and watching as it ascended the peak at a safe distance.

Within the flurry of scattering feet, an all-white peacock emerged from under some brush. The bird watched as the lonely figure walked such a perilous path without much concern; instead, it looked around for a mate.

This peacock, with not a lot on its mind, had been wandering the mountainside for some time. Every day the bird would wake with the rising sun. Going through the motions: they would roam among the trees, upturning the underbrush for insects to eat and stones to fill their gullet. Then the sun would descend over the horizon, disappearing from view. The ever-encompassing darkness would fill the world, and the peacock would fly mid-way up one of the trees in the forest to roost for the night. Only to wake up the next day to do it all over again.

The peacock seemed to have a lonely and solitary life, not unlike the figure that had passed through the mountainside a few months prior.

When the sun rose on this day, it had started just like any other. The peacock flew down from the treetops and began its never-ending search for a mate. It pecked a few stones, overturned some brush, and ate a few insects.

However, today, this mighty and beautiful peacock wandered past the tree line. They had not been on this side of the mountain in a very long time. Upon seeing a new expanse before them, the peacock quickly looked around before spotting a brown bird some distance away.

The peacock stared at the moving brown mass for a moment before it strutted over to what it assumed was a peahen. When it got close, it fanned out its large tail feathers, opening them as wide as the appendage would allow. They shook the feathers, trying to catch the gleam of the sun's resplendent rays, causing a shimmer to run along their plumage.

Now the entire process would have been an ordeal; however, our peacock was entirely white. And the resplendent show of glittering feathers was indeed just a bleak and drab show of differing white hues in the summer sun. The peacock was unaware of its shortcomings and was instead focusing all of its energy on the bird in front of it.

The bird on the receiving end of such grandeur was indeed brown. It was similar in shade to a peahen, but this particular bird had a glossy purple head with deep green accents and a bright white ring around its neck. The peacock seemed to have not noticed these slight differences and so mustered everything they had to showcase themselves for mating.

The brown bird did not even raise its head, continuing to peck at the ground beneath it. It had moved away slightly from the peacock that kept pressing on. Eventually, the bird stopped pecking and began to walk away from the peacock, completely unperturbed by the entire ordeal.

The peacock watched the other leave.

It felt a sour feeling rising in its chest. Unaware of what to do with this emotion, the peacock fled back to the other side of the trees. Rushing, with all the might the bird had, the peacock made it through safely and spent the rest of the day pecking the ground, mumbling to itself.

It took nearly the entire day for the peacock to realize that it now had thoughts it could hear. However, it was still so wrapped up in the other's rejection that it did not even realize the changes that had occurred in its own body.

Startled by its own grumbles, the peacock froze where it was, pebbles still in its mouth. After a few moments, the peacock dismissed itself and the absurd notion that it now had thoughts.

It continued muttering for the rest of the day while pecking at the ground. It was still ruminating in the rejection from earlier, trying to figure out what exactly went wrong. It had extended its tail and shook its feathers like it was supposed to. It had even strutted over in the beginning. What else was it supposed to do?!

By the time the peacock had thought this far, the sun was starting to set. The only thing the poor peacock could do at this point was pick a tree to spend the night in and try again the next day. However, this night, thoughts in a jumble, the peacock had a hard time falling asleep.

Waking up to the blush of colour on the horizon, the peacock flew down from the canopy, utterly exhausted. Without realizing how much the rejection from the day before had affected it, the first thing the peacock chose to do was seek out the peahen. Although when he got to the edge of the tree line, his feet stopped. He looked around the green mountainside in front of him and could not bring himself to move any further.

Maybe I should practice? The peacock thought, returning to where he had just been.

The anxious peacock did not just spend one day practicing but rather an entire week. He tried out different ways of strutting, fluffing his feathers, and shaking them at different angles. Everything he could think of to make himself appear more appealing – he even tried pushing his wings out to the side to make himself appear bigger than he was.

After such a long-time practicing, the peacock thought that he was now ready to try again. This time he would succeed in wooing the peahen and finally have a mate!

And so, he flew to the top of a tree and slept soundly that night, determined in seeking out the other bird first thing the next morning.

He woke with the rising sun; wasting no time, he went out past the tree line and started searching. After half a day, he spotted the brown bird with a white collar around its neck in the middle of a section of grass pecking the ground.

The luminous peacock, in all his glory, began his strut. He walked toward the other bird, puffing out his chest and pushing his wings out to make himself appear larger. The brown bird noticed another coming and glanced up. When the peacock noticed the other’s gaze, he extended his tail as proudly as he could, shaking the feathers to shimmer in the sunlight. The peacock believed that at this moment, he was the most handsome creature that ever existed.

Believing that he could not fail at this moment, he gave a little pose. The sunlight was gleaming off his white feathers, showcasing the various hues as it shimmered down his neck and towards his chest. The tail feathers only added to the appeal, glistening like ripples of white across a still pond. The peacock was a pure and innocent beauty.

However, just like last time, the brown bird lowered its head and continued pecking. It turned its body to the side so that it would not have to watch the peacock anymore before it lifted its head and started to wander away.

The peacock stared at the bird as it slowly moved away and was overcome with a bitter feeling. Grief washed over him as the peacock’s heart broke.

“WAAH!” The peacock yelled. He had only wanted to release the anguish he was feeling in his soul; however, what happened next surprised both birds.

The exalted peacock, eyes wide in surprise, watched as the wings by his side turned into fingers. Long arms stretched out, and legs gradually revealed themselves. The white feathers that covered his entire body soon turned into pure white hair cascading over his shoulders. 

The anguish the peacock felt in his heart from being rejected for the second time had been enough to transform him into a handsome man. His looks were clean and elegant; the colour of his skin was almost as pale as the white feathers they replaced. His dark, slightly round eyes were rimmed with lashes, and he had the most enticing red lips. His slim face held a delicate beauty that seemed to resemble how a star swept across the night sky.

This was probably the most handsome man that the brown bird had ever seen – although it was more like the only man that the brown bird had ever seen. However, the shock from the peacock’s wails and the abrupt change in the other that had occurred shortly thereafter was enough to cause a tingling sensation to happen within the chest of the brown bird.

Then, similar to the peacock, the brown bird watched as his wings began to change. They were terrified as they watched fingers form at the end of their wings, following along to an arm. Legs could be seen forming underneath, trailing toward a torso.

Now, our languid brown bird was also a beauty. His dark brown hair hung over his shoulders, framing a lean and narrow face, with deep black eyes and a tall nose. His skin was also on the darker side, although the contrast was most striking in comparison to the pale peacock.

Both were naked once they transformed, sending the peacock into another round of hysteria. He had eagerly watched as the brown bird before him transitioned. Yet, once it was complete, he had noticed something quite strange. He looked down at his own body, then looked up at the brown bird, only to furrow his brow and look back down at his body again.

“Wull, humph, bouldies soul?” The peacock said, frowning even more when he realized that he had just muttered nonsense. 

He stared with furrowed brows at the brown bird before he took a deep breath and yelled out, “WHY. OUR. BODIES. SAME.”

The brown bird just stared back at him. 

The peacock assumed that the brown bird did not understand him and so thought it would be best to show him what he meant. He dropped his hand between his thighs and grabbed himself, then pointed to the brown bird who had a similar apparatus.

The peacock fell silent for a moment as he thought, before speaking “… Does that mean we are the same?” At this, the peacock’s eyes widened, and he let out another anguished wail.

“BUT YOU WERE MY MATE!” He whined at the other. His face had fallen by this point; he was feeling completely and utterly dejected.

The brown bird had no idea what was going on; he had somehow just transformed into a human before the peacock started yelling at him. He turned around to leave; he needed a moment of silence to think through the day’s events.

The peacock, watching the other turn around, felt a panic start deep within his chest. Wanting to stop the other bird, he moved his legs to try to catch them before they left. Not realizing that a branch was across his path, the peacock only managed three steps before his foot fell on the unsuspecting twig. 

The most severe pain the peacock had ever felt in his entire life shot up through his body from his foot. He instantly went weak from the overwhelming pain, flailing his arms as he fell over like a rag doll. The wail and commotion caught the brown bird’s attention, and he looked over his shoulder in time to see the peacock, with arms above their head, fall over.

The brown bird buried his head in his hands, muttering to himself about how unlucky he was as he went over to collect the peacock.

The peacock began crying the moment he noticed the other walking towards him. “Thank you.” He whimpered as the brown bird helped him to his feet, keeping his hand under his arm as they walked through the forest towards a boulder for the peacock to sit on.

The brown bird checked the peacock over. He had a minor puncture wound on his foot and was bleeding a little. “You hurt your foot,” the other announced. The peacock was momentarily stunned by the deep and melodious voice that came from the other.

His mouth was slightly agape as he stared at the brown bird who was currently touching his foot, trailing their fingers along his leg to make sure there were no other injuries. However, the peacock had already forgotten about the life-ending pain from before. Now, he was solely concentrating on the brown bird’s fingers caressing his leg.

The peacock could not help asking, “Are you not a peahen?”

“No.” The brown bird said, placing the peacock’s foot down after he found no other injuries, “I am a pheasant.”

The peacock furrowed his brow, “but you were supposed to be my mate.”

The languid pheasant looked up at the peacock sitting on the boulder and stood. “I am no one’s mate?! There were plenty of insects to eat here, I am just passing through!”

However, the peacock insisted, “No, I have decided. You are my mate!”

The peacock looked very proud of itself as it announced to the pheasant; however, the latter only stared back at him before turning around, making to leave.

The peacock started to panic again and quickly reached out a hand to grab the other. “Where are you going?! Don’t leave me!”

“I am hungry,” was the only reply the peacock got back. He had to carefully make his way down the boulder, trying not to hurt himself more and hobbled after the pheasant.

That night they had been able to collect a few insects. However, with their new bodies, they found there was no way they would be able to gather enough to keep them full. They had looked around and found some mushrooms that they could add to their meal.

After their stomachs stopped rumbling, they made their way toward the tree line to sleep. Usually, both birds would have flown up into the treetops; however, their new bodies were proving, yet again, to be more complicated than they first thought. They could only settle for the base of the trees instead. 

Throughout the entire day, the peacock never let the pheasant out of its sight. He was not willing to let his mate run off, but more importantly, the peacock was lonely and scared after his change; he did not want to be alone.

Sitting around the same tree, both men leaned their backs against the trunk and closed their eyes. The peacock had waited until he thought the pheasant was asleep before sneaking his hand over to hook his finger around the others. Once he could feel the warmth, he felt reassured, closing his eyes and falling asleep. While on the sleeping face of the pheasant, a small smile pushed up the corners of his mouth.  

It only took half a day for the pheasant to become annoyed by the peacock. The peacock liked to talk, and he asked all sorts of questions, while the pheasant just wanted to wander around looking for food in silence. He did not know how much more of this he could handle. Whereas the peacock, having been introduced to an entirely new world, was ecstatic! Even if he tried, the peacock could not keep from talking about the wonders he was experiencing in his new body.

They stayed together for two days: wandering the mountainside looking for food, laying under the bright warmth of the sun, and sleeping together under the trees at night. For the entirety of those two days, except for when they were sleeping, the peacock was always talking. He was very curious about pheasants since he had never heard of them before and always thought it was funny to bring up how much they resembled peahens. 

During those two days, the pheasant had been accumulating spiritual essence or the tingly sensation he felt before he transformed. By that afternoon, the feeling had spread throughout his chest. After being annoyed for two days straight, the pheasant decided to see if he could change back into a bird.

“I am going to try something.” The pheasant said to the peacock on the second day. And with that, the peacock watched as feathers began to sprout from his skin. He shrunk down in size, and his body puffed out. He had turned back into a pheasant.

The peacock was stunned, and then he was heartbroken. “Why would you transform back?!”

The pheasant looked up at him from where he was on the ground, turned around and flew off. The peacock just watched as the pheasant slowly disappeared behind the tree line. It only took two seconds before the peacock, overtaken by the loss of his mate (AGAIN!), began to cry. He wailed as loud as he could, letting out all of the emotions he had been holding in these past few weeks.

It was unfair that he had transformed into a human; even if he was the most beautiful person in the world, he still missed his feathers. It was unfair that he had mistaken a male pheasant as a peahen and tried to pursue it. It was unfair that, as a very alluring bird, the pheasant had not been captivated by his beauty. It was unfair that he had been rejected three times; and, it was unfair that he was always being left behind! 

 

The peacock stayed like that for two days, wailing. His voice grew hoarse, and his body slowly dehydrated. His sorrowful cries echoed over the mountainside, and for those two days, no creature was undisturbed. The peacock stopped crying only because he physically could not keep crying. Still sitting in the same spot where the pheasant had left him, he leaned back onto the ground, his eyes so swollen he struggled to keep them open. The peacock could feel a slight throbbing in his temple, and his entire body ached from the exertion of the past two days.

However, just as those wails had ended and the peacock laid back accepting his fate and waiting for death, a tiny brown head looked down at him.

“Why are you always so dramatic?” The pheasant spoke.

Two days had passed since the pheasant had left, meaning he would be able to use his accumulated spiritual essence and transform back into a human. He gathered the other in his arms and walked into the shade of the trees. The peacock was lean and almost weightless, fitting perfectly into the pheasant’s arms. He leaned his head against the pheasant’s chest and allowed the other to carry him.

Once in the shade, the pheasant looked around to find the nearest water source. Still carrying the peacock, the pheasant set out.

“You are so much trouble.” The pheasant said under his breath as he set the other down on the banks of a tiny pond. “Drink.”

The peacock scooped up some water but flinched as he swallowed it. He had cried too much. His throat had gone hoarse on the first day, and yet he kept crying through the pain for at least another day. The pheasant, watching the peacock, reached out a hand and gently stroked his throat.

“Does it hurt?” He asked. The peacock looked up at the other, and somehow his body produced more tears; the rims of his eyes turned red again.

With a raspy voice, the peacock said, “don’t leave me again.”

“Yes, yes, yes. This was all my fault. I won’t leave again.” The pheasant quickly said, urging the other to drink more water.

The peacock watched the pheasant intently for a moment. Once he was satisfied that the pheasant would not leave, he slowly lowered his hand to scoop mouthful after mouthful of water. As the liquid passed along his throat, the pain gradually subsided. After the peacock was feeling much better, he lifted his arms in the air to signify for the other to pick him up. 

The pheasant merely looked at him, resigned himself to his fate, and gathered the other up. Since the peacock had been crying for two days, he did not have a voice left and could no longer talk - giving the pheasant the calm he had always wanted. They walked on in silence as the pheasant looked around for a spot they could settle in for the rest of the day.   

That night the peacock would not let go. Insisting on their bodies being close, or at least, not wanting to let go of the pheasant’s hand. As if he were not quite convinced yet that the other would not leave during the night.

 

The next few days proceeded like before the pheasant had left. They wandered looking for food, bathed in the warm rays of the sun and splashed in the pond when it got too hot. The days passed pleasantly since the peacock was not talking much, and the pheasant got some peace. However, after four days of silence, the pheasant was starting to get a little worried about the peacock.

“Can… Can you not talk at all?” The pheasant asked one day, watching the peacock intently.

The peacock, trying his hardest to control his face so as not to give himself away, attempted to make his voice as hoarse as he could when he replied, “It’s a little better now, but still sore.”

The peacock could talk; his throat had felt much better after he drank some water that day and was completely back to normal two days later. But he enjoyed the pheasant’s company and thinking it had to be his talking that chased the other away, decided to try not to talk anymore. It was killing him, but for his mate, he would try his hardest.

The pheasant saw through the fake voice the moment he heard it. He furrowed his brows as he looked at the other, “you can talk, you know.”

Suddenly, the past four days of holding it all in came crashing out, “I want to! I want to talk so badly, but I know that you don’t like it! And I was trying so hard… You have no idea how difficult it has been for me the past few days. I want to tell you about everything. Everything that happened to me over the days that you were gone, and even now that you are back! I want to tell you the things I see! I missed you so much… You are the only person I know… How could you leave me! You are my mate; I don’t think I can do this without you…”

At that moment, the pheasant approached the peacock, placing his finger on his lips, gesturing for him to stop talking. The peacock was stunned by the touch, and his words caught in this throat.

“We have plenty of time. Tell it to me slowly.” The pheasant said, a slight smile pulling up the corners of his lips. Even though he had relished in his freedom, it had been a little too quiet for him.

“Ah…” The peacock could not focus on anything but the heat that lingered on his lips, leftover from the pheasant’s finger that he had just taken away. The heat spread, moving from his lips downward. He could feel it gradually building, his heart was beating in his chest, and other parts of his body were reacting as well.

In all the days they had been together, the peacock never reacted to the pheasant like this. He was curious and wanted to experience more of it. He reached out, trailing his hand along the pheasant's arm and intertwining their fingers.

“I will try to remember your words. I will share with you, but slowly.” The peacock said, staring intently into the pheasant’s eyes.

As if a spark had been ignited or embers stirred up and burning again, both men felt something. It raged deep within their chests, hearts rapid as it spread the burning blood throughout their bodies. The fire caught, gaining to a capacity that would be impossible to put out.

Both men were somewhat awkward around the other for the entirety of the next day. Both felt something, but neither had said anything. The peacock was intrigued by his bodily reactions and had used the day to think of different ways in which he could make the pheasant touch him again. He wanted to see if both of their bodies would react in the same way. Feeling reassured by the fact that the pheasant was his mate, the peacock's limited imagination ran wild.  

They fell asleep fairly quickly that night, with the peacock insisting that the nighttime had become scary all of a sudden, and he needed the other to feel safe. The pheasant, though awkward about their bodies being close, obliged. Though he tried to play it off like it was an inconvenience, deep down, the pheasant was happy by the close contact.

The next day the peacock put his plan into action. He had brought the pheasant out to explore the mountainside and look for food. The peacock had found a small rock outcrop the other day, and he had thought it would be the perfect place. Clasping the pheasant’s hand, the peacock pulled the other along and could not help but start to feel giddy.

The pheasant noticed a change in the peacock, and gently squeezing his hand, he asked, “Is something bothering you?”

The peacock turned his head around and only smiled, making sure their feet kept moving in a certain direction. Once they made it to the rocks, the peacock backed the pheasant up against the boulders.  

“I just wanted to see you, that is all.” The peacock said, eyes slightly lowered as a smudge of red appeared on his cheek.

The pheasant only stared at the peacock, not quite understanding the meaning behind his words. The peacock lifted his gaze and brought his finger up to rub against the pheasant’s bottom lip. He trailed his thumb across his lip, over his chin and down his neck. His finger lightly grazed over the pheasant’s chest as his hand moved downward.

A blush blossomed on the pheasant’s face as the peacock moved his hand lower. He had not expected the peacock to be so bold, and as much as he felt like he should stop the other, he was more curious about what they were doing.

“I wanted to know what your body would be like.” The peacock said, acting very pure and innocent as his hands travelled the length of the pheasant’s body. Once his hand was between his thighs, he wrapped his fingers around the pheasant’s half-hard cock.

The peacock watched as the pheasant’s face flushed bright red. He smiled at the other and clumsily moved his hand, not knowing what he was doing. The peacock was feeling slightly self-conscious, but he really wanted to touch the pheasant and seeing him blushing from his caress and the tiny groan that escaped him when the peacock wrapped his hand around the other, the peacock felt his desire heat up.

His cock grew hard from watching the pheasant, and without thinking, he put them both together.

“Ai! Look, you are not small either!” The peacock exclaimed, rubbing his hand along their length. He felt a flush of pleasure as his hand rounded the tip of his cock, and so focusing on that spot for the pheasant, he rubbed his thumb back and forth. He watched as the pheasant closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the rocks as a groan escaped him. A sticky fluid seeped out of the pheasant’s cock, gathering in the peacock’s palm.

“My hand made your cock leak just now…”

The pheasant reached out, grasping the peacock’s waist, his grip tight. His fingers curled into the other’s flesh as he was trying not to lose himself to the pleasure, while the peacock realized that if he focused on the pain he could delay his some.

“How does it feel?” The peacock leaned forward and whispered in the pheasant’s ear, brushing the bridge of his nose on the other’s cheek. “Does it feel good?”

“Do you want to touch the place where we are connected?” The peacock asked.

The pheasant found it even harder for him to talk when he was being stimulated. He could only grab the other in front of him and bury his flushed face into their shoulder while uttering soft groans. While the peacock whispered in his ear, “It feels so good to have your cock thrust into mine.”

The peacock had begun to whisper anything that came to his mind: “do you like this a lot too?” “It feels so good,” and “I am yours. Do you like your peacock?” And the pheasant could no longer take it, being stimulated to the point that he could not do anything in response but nod.

Nearing his climax, the pheasant wanted the whispering to stop, and so he pushed the peacock down. The pheasant's only thought was that if something were in his mouth, he would not be able to continue speaking. The peacock took the initiative and went to his knees.

Staring at the hard cock in front of him, head swelled with pleasure; he looked up at the pheasant, “what am I supposed to do, eat it?”

The pheasant still had not recovered and could only nod, placing a slight pressure on the back of the peacock’s head to encourage him. The peacock gleefully opened his mouth and swallowed the other. His warm and moist tongue enveloped the cock in his mouth, wrapping around the pheasant's length. He started licking and sucking as he moved the cock in and out of his mouth.

Much like before, the peacock had no idea what he was doing. As such, he did not have any sort of rhythm. However, none of that mattered since neither had experienced anything like this before, both were able to enjoy it. 

Despite the situation the peacock found himself in, it did not stop him from talking. Although, this time, it was to the pheasant's benefit. The peacock looked up at the pheasant the entire time and kept asking if he was enjoying himself. However, the words were stifled around the cock in his mouth. But the hum and vibrations of his throat sent ripples of pleasure throughout the pheasant as a groan escaped him.  

The peacock then took the cock out of his mouth, holding it at the base and licking along his length to the tip. He flicked the end of his tongue over the swollen head before swallowing the entire thing again, sucking. He had caught on quickly that if he angled his throat a certain way, he would be able to take the other in deeper, and the peacock could hear a groan in the process. Although the peacock would not be able to breathe for a few seconds, he had decided that the groan was worth it.

While listening to the sounds, the peacock parted both his legs; reaching a hand down, he grabbed his cock and started rubbing it up and down himself. He leaned into the pheasant, licking his swollen head before taking the entire thing into his mouth again. His hand moving along his length soon took on a similar rhythm to the motions of his mouth licking and sucking the other. 

The pheasant had started gasping as the peacock circled his warm tongue around the other’s length. The pheasant reached out a hand, touching the peacock’s head and running his hands through the other’s hair. And when the pleasure became too much, he would curl his fingers into the strands, slightly pulling.

The pheasant’s lean and prominent abdominal muscles had tightened, and his breathing had caught in his throat for a moment. His cock encircled by the peacock’s mouth had twitched, spurting a warm liquid on his tongue. The peacock, finding the entire situation erotic, was not far behind the pheasant. After a few more strokes, the peacock had found his release, a warm liquid caught on the pheasant’s knee. 

The peacock leaned his forehead against the pheasant's thighs until his breathing had evened out. He had never felt the build-up of passion only to fall over the edge into such a climax. It was, by far, the best thing he had experienced in his short-lived existence so far. The pheasant had been leaning against the boulder, trying his hardest to even out his breathing; his fingers were still running through the peacock's hair. 

The peacock stood up once he had regained his breathing and smiled at the pheasant. The other slowly opened his dark eyes and stared at the peacock. He lifted his hand and rubbed across the other’s lips with his thumb. The pheasant leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on them.

At that moment, the peacock felt cherished, and a red blush formed on his cheeks. “Did you enjoy it, too?”

The pheasant merely smiled at the other. He picked the peacock up in his arms, and they walked toward the pond. The peacock stayed in the pheasant’s arms as he walked into the cool water, washing over them and cleaning the sticky fluid.

 

Once they had discovered their bodies and the natural reactions that followed them being close to one another, they began experimenting. Their days passed in leisure, and the mountainside was filled with the sounds of their groans and gasps. 

Four days later, when both birds were washing in the pond one morning, they heard a branch break under the weight of something. Both men stopped what they were doing, unconsciously coming closer together. The peacock, wanting to protect its mate from the unknown danger, had shifted its body in front of the pheasant.

A chuckle escaped the pheasant, who had noticed the other’s actions, and a smile spread over his face. However, his joy was short-lived as another human stepped out from amongst the trees.

“Ah! So it was you two that disturbed my closed meditation!” A man wearing a long-sleeved robe said.

Both birds were startled from seeing another human being. Their bodies began to tremble before feathers had started to form, growing out from the skin on their arms. Their bodies fluffed out, and their legs shrank. They had both transformed back into birds!

“Squawk!” The peacock said, startled. He looked over at the pheasant as they both stretched their wings to fly away.

The cultivator standing in the tree line only laughed at the sight of the terrified birds fleeing him.