Chapter Text
|-Sunday afternoon, March 17th, 2024. Wilmington, North Carolina-|
After miles of backroads and farm fields... a proper city. Finally. Thank god. I've never been happier to see Wilmington. I can get over this hour-long bout of hay fever and I can put the troubles of this morning behind me. At least I hope I can. The feeling of eyes has finally gone away. That's progress if I've ever seen it. Just another fifteen minutes and I'll be there. Lights are becoming more commonplace. And a lot of them are busy. Guess it must be that church crowd, coming home to berate a minimum wage worker at the local McDonald's after partaking in the "love" of Christ. What a load of shit.
Before long, I see the apartment complex: The Cordelia on 4711 Azalea Landing Drive. Not a bad place to live, honestly: Buildings look clean and modern. You've got some services within walking distance. A pool. Should be standard for most complexes like this. Pretty nice. Maddy's car is here. Guess she does have the day off. I park, exit my vehicle, and walk up to her apartment. It's 1E, right? Or was it 2F? Fuck. I've forgotten. That's not good. As I try to figure out a way to remove myself from this situation, I hear Maddy's voice.
"Hey Cam!"
I quickly turn around and see that giant mane of red hair rushing towards me. Within a second I'm on the ground. She really needs to understand how strong she actually is. Good god.
"You made it." She says while casually smothering me.
"Yeah, yeah... I did. Can I get up now?" I say between frenzied breaths. She doesn't waste any time getting off of my, which then allows me to get onto my feet. I dust myself off and look her in the eyes.
"Really? Onto a solid slab of concrete?" My voice cracks slightly as I speak.
"Oh, you didn't fracture anything. Come on. Everyone's been waiting for you." She says, and now my interest has been piqued.
"Okay, ye- What? I thought you lived alone?" She looks very confused while I ask the question. As if I just discombobulated her.
"Why... Wouldn't I have roommates? It's a three bedroom apartment. Of course I live with other people." She tells me Right. It is three bedrooms. I am... really stupid. Wait? Where the hell am I gonna sleep then if it's only three bedrooms? Maddy's not gonna make me laze on a couch, is she? God dammit. I don't get much time to brood though as she grabs me by the wrist and drags me along with her. We reach the stairwell and we go up. To the third floor of building 4721. I was way off base. How fun. We reach her apartment and I take note of the number on the door: 3G. Remember that. Commit that shit to memory. She opens the door and leads me through.
Immediately I notice a few things: A deer skull mounted above the TV. Several screen-prints on the wall. Looks like vistas from Austria. Or is it Germany? Probably Germany. One of those castles looks Neuschwanstein Castle. Only reason I know what that looks like is because one of my old roommates was a buff on Bavarian history. Another section of the space has a bunch of diagrams of birds. Guess I know where Maddy's workspace is now. We get into what is more or less the center of the space and Maddy announces that we're here.
"Alright! He's here!" She yells as two people come out of their respective bedrooms. A tall farm-hand looking guy with a baby face and a buzz-cut and a short woman of slender build with black hair. Maddy wastes no time in introducing me to them.
"Cam, this is Bo and Reilly. They're my roommates." She says, that electric energy from earlier still present.
"Well, hey there! Glad to know ya." The guy says is a very heavy accent. I assume this is Bo.
"Same. Now Maddy can shut up about you." Her statement causes me to hold back the slight laughter tearing at my vocal cords. Just knowing how excitable she can get does make me warm and fuzzy inside.
"I bet she hasn't. She'll talk your ear off if you let her." I respond, knowing it’ll get a reaction out of Maddy.
"Hey!" She thumps my side in an attempt to stop me, but I know it's in good fun. It's nice to actually see her again. I really did need this.
|-Later that night. The Cordelia, 4721 Azalea Landing Drive, Room 3G-|
That Bo is a damn good cook. Probably learned from his little southern grandma. I may not be knowledgeable when it comes to southern cuisine, but I know good food when I taste it. And that meal... was delicious. But that came and went. Now, I am on the couch sitting next to Maddy as she look at her phone. She's not texting anyone, so... Maybe looking at pictures? Should I prod? She does look concerned. I should ask.
"Whatcha lookin' at?" I prod ever so slightly.
"Hmm? Oh it's... You probably wouldn't understand." Oh, we're doing this again. Fun.
"Bullshit I 'won't understand'. Come on. Spill it." Maddy huffs at the command before she starts to speak again. My prodding is clearly an annoyance, but one she's just as clearly missed.
"These past few weeks... Weird things have just been happening." She starts saying.
"Like what?” I can tell from the look in her eyes that I probably won't believe her. But that doesn't mean I still can't help, even if it is just lending an ear with which she can air out her problems.
"Bird feathers have just been... appearing in and around Dobo Hall. Most are by my office. They look to be either Corvus cornix or Corvus corone. But not Corvus ossifragus, and definitely not Corvus brachyrhynchos. But why? Why are crow feathers just... showing up at my office? Is this just some kind of prank? If so, what's the punchline? It's also not funny. It's annoying." She says in detail and scientific jargon I don’t understand.
"Uh... English, please." I respond, wanting terms I can get into my head.
"The feathers aren't from a New World corvid. They're coming from an Old World crow. Either hooded or carrion, but..." Maddy trails off as she speaks. She's tense. Maybe afraid, but mostly confused. Shit, I'd be confused if crow feathers started appearing in a place of importance to me. Wait, crow feathers... Crow feathers... Oh no... It comes rushing back to me. That golden "crow" I saw this morning with those little red and beady eyes it had. Just thinking about it makes me shudder. Visibly. And Maddy sees it.
"You're not cold, are you?" She asks, concern evident in her voice.
"What? No. Just... Thinking about stuff." I tell her, not wanting to make her worry any more.
"What kind of stuff?" She continues.
"Dumb stuff you don't need to worry about." That seems to take the heat off me. Maddy doesn't press the issue any further. But looking at this sofa...
"You're not gonna make me sleep on this, are you?" I say as I lay the leather couch.
"That couch? No. Bo has an air mattress. He doesn't mind sharing his room with you while you're here." Well, I guess that takes care of that problem.
|-Monday morning, March 18th, 2024. Dobo Hall, University of North Carolina at Wilmington-|
I swear, if I see another damn feather... When I decided to study ornithology, this not what I expected. Trying to figure out why the feathers of an old world crow are appearing at random throughout the biology department. It's been weeks. I'm started to get very annoyed. I round the corner and see Dr. Emslie. He looks... bemused.? I wouldn't be surprised if it's because of what I'm thinking it's about.
"Good morning, Dr. Emslie." I say to him, wanting to try and ease whatever tension is in the air.
"Oh, Maddy. Our resident 'corvid expert'." He responds, annoying me greatly. I'm not an expert on anything, least of all corvids. I wanted to study marine birds, like pelicans and albatross. Maybe even study their evolution if I can get that far. But this feather business is hampering those plans. Crows creep me out. They're too loud and too smart for their own good. I don't like it.
"For the foreseeable future, yes. There's more feathers, aren't there?" I tell him, just wanting a regular day of my graduate studies.
"Yes. Still no idea as to why they keep appearing?" He responds. Just the thing I wanted to hear. "The answer has not changed." I say as I peer over Emslie's shoulder. Sure enough, there is a pile of crow feathers outside his door. This is gonna take a while.
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...
With the feathers collected and disposed of, we go our separate ways for now. I continue on to my office, open the door, enter the space, and sit down. I take a deep breath and try to center myself. My favorite mug is still missing. Been that way since I came back from winter break. I don't think I'm gonna find it anytime soon, might as well buy a new one to fill the space. I'm also trying to not think about crows anymore today. And yet, the universe has different plans, because something catches my eye. A glint behind my computer monitor. I reach behind... and pull out another feather, and become even more confused. Why is is so large? And why is it gilded in what looks like gold?