From the Skies Above

VIII

To Daisy and Maxwell, 

   There will be a brunch at the same place we ate yesterday with Anto around noon, where there will be plenty of food and journalists from the Sky Tree Times doing a little interview about you two. Don't worry, it won't be like those crazed humans on the ground. Although it won't happen at the course of the entire event, there will be of course, time to eat. 

I'll see you around,

Falkner. 

   "Mister Bluebird," Daisy asked, "What time is it?" 

   "Eh, I'd say around eleven thirty." the bluebird said, "Better get there immediately." Daisy and Maxwell gasped in shock on how late they slept and immediately got their act together and flew out. "Now that's energetic!" the bluebird said as he got his act together and flew out of the tree house. 

   Daisy and Maxwell hurriedly flew to Plica's to get on time and saw the sight of Moloko docked there, a very indication that Falkner was there. Tiredly, Daisy and Maxwell landed and went inside all exhausted. 

   "We've made it..." Maxwell panted,

   "Just as you said, Falkner..." Daisy yawned. 

   "My, was I really rushing you?" Falkner said in surprise as he got up. "Feather-brain! I should have mentioned to take your time."

   "It was that bluebird who woke us up." 

   "The one that sent the letter." Falkner was intrigued and never knew the little bluebird that delivered his letter was that grumpy. 

   "Well, gloominess aside, let's simply feast on. I can see you just woke up. Also, here's something you two should chew on before you eat." Falkner gave two leaves of a unique shape to the children. "It looks like ordinary leaves, doesn't it?" 

   "What's so special about leaves?" Daisy asked as she examined the leaves to see what its special properties were. 

   "There's nothing special about this!" Maxwell protested. 

   "Calm down Maxwell! You see about these leaves, they'll clean your teeth. I believe down in the land, you guys have something called a dentist, right?" 

   Maxwell and Daisy shook their heads and sadly didn't know what a dentist was. Falkner was intrigued and wanted to know more about the children. "Interesting. Now, on three, put the leaf in your mouth and chew it, alright?" Daisy and Maxwell nodded.

   "One...two...three!" 

   As Maxwell and Daisy chewed their leaves, they noticed something sweet seeping out of it that cleansed their teeth. 

   "It tastes like fruit!" Daisy boasted, 

   "That's not bad..." Maxwell said, who really wasn't a big fan of the fruit. "But what do we do after we chew it?" 

   "Well, you spit it out, you see. But where? Spitting it off the tree won't do much harm to the people of the lands." Daisy and Maxwell went out to a nearby balcony and spat the chewed-up mush off the balcony and into the seemingly endless abyss below. 

   After that, Daisy and Maxwell returned to the table Falkner sat in and the food came in all fresh. All the three ate, Falkner wished to speak with Daisy and Maxwell about their past life in the hands of Mrs. Brookshire and to get to know them better. 

   "You know, this is also a good time to get to know you better," Falkner said, 

   "I'd like to know you too!" Daisy said, 

   "Hmph. Well, there's one thing I've been meaning to ask ever since you came here..."

   "Do tell us!" Maxwell butted in as he chewed on his food. 

   Falkner took a deep breath and closed his eyes and began to think of his first question and examine his surroundings before processing his question. "So, Daisy and Maxwell..." He paused and noticed a scar on both of their arms at the same exact spot. "Oh, I do wonder what those marks are." 

   "It was Mrs. Brookshire," Daisy remembered the atrocities of that particular woman, "She whipped us nonstop and we had these scars all over us. Not just here, but on our backs as well." 

   Falkner felt rather bad about mentioning Mrs. Brookshire and simply sighed and kept eating. "Falkner, what's wrong?" Maxwell asked, 

   "You see, when you two went through something like that," Falkner began, "It's hard for people to talk about that. It brings back the most horrible memories in their life." 

   Daisy and Maxwell also felt sad by the misery that was accidentally brought up from Falkner and Daisy was rather curious on his garb. 

   "Falkner, where did you get the jacket and the things on your head?" Daisy asked as she pointed to the bomber jacket. Falkner looked down and was happily open to tell about the bomber jacket. 

   "You see, this jacket was actually my father's." Falkner began, "Just sixty something years ago, a terrible war happened at the people of the lands and it turns out that these peoples have learned to fly. Many of their flying contraptions were used in this war that happened to many countries down there. On an island if I recall, called the Philippines, there was a young man my father noticed who was fixing a plane with a feathered friend, a cockatoo. He swooped down and noticed these flying contraptions were human controlled weapons. He flew down and met this young man, coming from a far-off land called New Jersey in, oh, what's it called...feathers!" Falkner began to think this out which made the children giggle. 

   "Ah, forget about it. Anyways, my father met this young man and the man introduced himself as Private Donald Hutchings. Although when his comrades found him with my father, well, they knew that he might have been too obsessed with birds until he did bring up a rather good point; to use my father's help to win the battle, of course by flying over. He agreed with permission from the general himself and flew off into the distance over a vast, amazing ocean. Over the time of a couple of days, my father found many floating weapons on the very ocean. They all looked the same, yes, but my father examined each weapon, to identify who was Donald's allies and the enemy. But one thing was for sure; my father found out the ships that were classified as enemies were heading towards the island Donald was situated on! So my father flew back to that one island and informed Donald and his comrades immediately. But there, when my father noticed something terrifying that happened to one of Donald's comrades..."

   "What happened?" Maxwell asked,

   "Ah, it would terrify many, even I'm terrified to tell you what it is. It just sends chills down my spine thinking of it. But the thing was that only two things survived out of the incident; this bomber jacket and goggles. Donald picked up these two garments and gave them to my father and told me these exact words Donald said to him: 'In your hands is a fallen hero. But these garments on your feathers will be a reminder of us meeting together.' Truly, my father was touched and immediately put on these garments with the help of his comrades. He shook his hand as Donald shook his wing and wished my father the best and warned him of the flying contraptions that could kill him. Now, when my father was on his last legs, he passed this bomber jacket and goggles down to me and to this day, I still wear them."