Suit of Crows

Chapter 02

Kat slid down the stair banister, cut through the kitchen that nobody ever seemed to use, grabbing an apple and a handful of nuts from the pantry and stuffed them in her jacket pocket, picked up her skateboard, tucking it underneath her arm as left the brownstone residence and breathed in the fresh city air. Her eyes skipped over the common city pigeons and landed on a group of crows. She had always had a connection with crows. They liked her and she liked them, maybe they recognized a kindred spirit in her, it was hard to tell exactly why. They were beautiful, with oil slick rainbow black feathers and uncanny black eyes that belied their intelligence. Unlike other city birds, crows weren't stupid, they recognized those that were nice to them and those who were not, and they passed on the word to the other crows they met. They collected shiny things, they liked nuts and fruits, and they would do Kat favors in exchange for either one, never far in case she should need something.

"Corvus," Kat called up to one particular crow. He was a very friendly bird that stuck so close to Kat that not only could she recognize him among the group of crows, but he also responded to the name she had given him. Despite his apparent domesticity, Corvus was a wild bird, and he would follow her anywhere in the city so long as it was outside, the closest he got to being in a building was the edge of a windowsill. Probably for the best, Corvus was almost as much of a troublemaker as she was, happy to help with any mischief she might have cause to make and even a little of his own. "I've a favor to ask."

Kat held out her arm, offering it as a perch to the crow who eagerly accepted, eying the pocket she kept a handful of nuts in. "You and a few of your fellows, follow me tomorrow and send a warning to my principal when I give the signal. There are nuts in it for all of you who participate. Pass on the message, will you?" Kat offered a few cashews to the bird, who cawed in appreciation and launched off her arm, startling the others into flight in a whirling cyclone of eerie black feathers. Asking the crows for help in sending the warning was more aggressive than she'd usually start with but she wanted to make this one obvious so he wouldn't bother her during her senior year. Her goal was to make this one her most extraordinary year yet, which would be delightful good fun . . . for her, not so much anyone else.

Her mischievous smile broke through her lips as she watched the crows circle overhead a few times before flying off. They had just left her sight when she was pulled back by a vibration in her pocket. Taking out her phone, an entirely different sort of smile crossed her face, one that was anticipating and energizing at the same time. It was a text from Aaron, one of her only friends, at school or otherwise. On my way, c u soon. She had no idea why such an insignificant message made her smile, he was just a friend, but he had remembered her birthday and made plans for them to hang out together, curfew be damned. She couldn't help but picture his mixed-Asian face, handsome in a way that should be illegal, eyes so vibrantly blue they almost glowed, laugh lines around his near-permanent smile, messy hockey hair that had just a little curl to it.

To be completely honest with herself, Kat had absolutely no idea how they became friends. He was so different from her in almost every way that it was hard to believe that he had been the one to approach her the first time they met. Aaron was the captain of the hockey team, life of the party, extroverted jock type of person while Kat was a troublemaking loner with authority issues and crows following her. Not ominous at all. She had never cared about the opinion of others, and she would always tell them exactly where to shove it if they started trying to push them on her, but Aaron was different. He had never tried to change her, he hadn't cared one lick about their differences, he just . . . went with it. When she'd asked what he thought of crows, he had shrugged and said, "they're intelligent, they know who the good people are, and good people are worth knowing. So, if they're following you, then you must be one of the good people."