Owl and Raven

“Raven is so beautiful!” Owl inhaled his breath sharply.

Nestled in his tree hollow, he had poked his head out and saw the most stunning sight of his life. A sudden gust of cold air had awakened Owl from his daily slumber to this astonishing bird. Raven was hopping over the lustrous snow, occasionally digging with her beak. Her black feathers glimmered blue and purple every time she moved as the filtered sun reflected off her sleek body. Raven moved around gracefully as she explored the underbrush by the trees. Her courtly feet left a soft crunch as she stepped across the surface of the snow. She lifted her head and let out a raspy mournful call, continuing to dig. Winter had left the woods dark, still and deep in snow. Raven flew to another tree, continuing to dig in the undergrowth searching for anything edible.

Sadly, Raven had no berries to eat, no eggs to scavenge and no carrion left from another animal to satisfy her hunger. The nearby ocean had no fish washed up on shore for her to feast. Owl watched this elegant bird search for food to no avail. Her loud, knocking wails tore at his heart.

“Tonight, I will get you something to eat, my enchanting Raven.” Owl retreated into his snug nest and continued his sleep until he could start his nocturnal hunting.

Night crept in early in the northern woods. Raven had retired high up in a tree, tucked into a tight knot of branches. But night was Owl’s time. His eyesight sharp and piercing through the dark; he spied any movement of squirrels, rats or even a mouse easily. With the hushed whoosh of large, brown spotted wings, Owl surveyed the woods efficiently. He had to turn his body frequently because his thick neck didn’t turn, and it limited his movement. Mice ate seeds and berries, but none were available right now for the small fellows in the dead of winter. Owl knew that they sometimes ate bugs or fungi near fallen trees, so that’s where he headed.

Above an old log, rotting and half out of the snow, Owl perched in a pine tree. His feathers were camouflaged in the gnarled branches as he surveyed the ground. Owl watched patiently. Sitting silently was his gift. Movement! He recognized the brown fur and beady black eyes of a field mouse, digging in the soft bark of the log. Diving with stealth speed and talons out, Owl easily caught the prey and killed it quickly. He flew soundlessly with the mouse to Raven’s tree and dropped it by the roots.

“Raven will be so happy to have food tomorrow morning! I hate hearing her cry all day.” Owl closed his eyes momentarily as he thought of her joy. He flew off to a nearby tree and called, “Hoo, Hoo!” He hoped Raven would hear his call in her dreams and maybe think of him.

Raven woke up as the sun was permeating through her nest. She squeaked and cawed with frosty breath to greet the new day. Owl was trying to stay awake so he could hear her excitement upon seeing the gift he left her. Raven, as was her routine, flew down to the bottom of her tree to inspect it for any animal tracks. To her surprise, she eyed the dead mouse. Dancing immediately with joyous cackles, she commenced tearing the treat apart. Owl, satisfied that she was fed, fell into a much-needed slumber.

Evening crept in quietly for Owl. Something wasn’t right. It was too still, there was no wind or animal sounds anywhere. Owl knew from his long life that a storm was approaching.

He looked around for Raven, but she was already sleeping in her nest up in the tree. There might not be food for a few days, Owl thought. He needed to feed Raven and himself if they were to survive a long and severe storm. He’d have to hunt quickly. Owl went back to the log, but there were no signs of mice tracks. Owl knew he’d have to take a risk to get food and it was somewhere he rarely ventured, the far beach with the inland river. Whale chased fish from the ocean up the river. Owl feared the massive Whale, but dead fish attracted rats and it was worth the risk. Flying swiftly and silently, he sat on a tree branch near the river. He noticed an eagle on the other side, but that white headed gentleman seemed more interested in fish than rats and did not challenge Owl for food. Eagle could catch fish easily, but it was harder for Owl, so he stuck with rats.

Owl watched the fish near the shore when he observed motion on the riverbank. A solid, large grey rat was tugging on an old fish head, trying to haul it out of the water. Owl darted with a nimble swish of wings and clutched the rat in his deadly claws, instantly catching it. He flew silently back to the foot of Raven’s tree and butchered the rat as a meal for them both. Raven peeked out from her nest and observed Owl on the ground. He sensed Raven above but didn’t want to startle her, so he made no sound. Raven watched as Owl flew off and left her a large part of the rat. Raven jumped down, chirped a thank you song and ate the carrion before returning to her nest.

The storm rolled in from the ocean, blasting the coast with ice and wind. The powerful gale blew down branches and even felled several weak trees in the woods. It lasted for several days. Owl’s tree swayed and he found it hard to sleep. He was covered in a tree hollow, but he worried about Raven and hoped she would make it through the tempest. He missed her songs and her shiny black feathers. She was the loveliest creature in the forest.

Owl sensed the storm had subsided when he woke up before dusk. The usual Junco’s “cheep, cheep, chirrup” song drifted through the trees. Peering out, he noticed the white snow concealing most of the low bushes and falling off the thin branches. He wondered how Raven had faired through the storm. Owl looked around as much as he could with his stiff neck but didn’t see or hear her. He skipped from tree to tree, desperately listening for Raven’s silky voice.

And then, Owl heard her. Her low, gurgling croak carried through the trees as just a murmur. Raven was alive and sounded happy! Owl was thrilled the storm left her untouched. He wanted to surprise her. Owl slowly, soundlessly, flew tree to tree to sneak up on her. As he climbed a particularly tall pine tree near Raven, he heard another sound. It was a different call; it was a rapid, knocking sound. Then he heard a low croak answering her back. He looked down from his high perch and saw Raven, his beautiful treasure with a larger, male Raven. He instinctively let out a loud “Hoo” in surprise and fled the tree as fast as his large wings and his broken heart would take him.

Raven looked up as he swooshed away. She knew he was upset. Owl may have thought he was secretive, but Raven knew Owl had left her a mouse when she was starving. She knew Owl had made sure she had a rat to sustain her through the fierce storm. She looked over to her new mate. With croaks and caws, Raven nodded to her mate and flew towards the beach. She found a large shell washed up from the storm and cracked it open.

Owl was too sad to go to his nest. He had dreamed of Raven every night there and didn’t want to be reminded of his pain. He flew to the top of the highest tree and let the sun heat his face and neck. Owl hoped the sun would burn his anguish away. While he was absorbing the warmth, he heard Raven fly by towards his hollow nest. He looked down and saw her hopping out of his home. She started flying up towards him, and then she slowly flew around him, staring into his big eyes the whole time while singing a song of gratitude. Owl didn’t want to move off the tree branch because he wasn’t sure what Raven had planned, so he turned his head to keep his eyes on her. He turned it as far as he could, then the heat on his neck helped him stretch it around more. He kept turning and his neck muscles pulled further. As he turned his head all the way towards his back, he felt his neck bones gently breaking. It surprisingly didn’t hurt Owl. The clean fractures allowed him to turn his head all the way around until it was facing towards the front, again. Owl’s head snapped back around to the front as he saw Raven fly off in the distance with her mate.

Sad at losing his beguiling Raven, he flew back to his tree hollow to sit in his nest. He just wanted to close his eyes and wallow in his unhappiness. When he snuggled down in his nest, he felt a hard lump under his legs. He turned around carefully in the small space and picked up the object with his beak. It was a large, translucent, shiny pearl. Exquisite in its beauty, Owl smiled when he looked at it, knowing it was a gift from Raven. He put it on a nook in his nest so he could look at it every day. As he was turning around in his nest, he turned his head the other way over his shoulder so he could look at it again. Owl was surprised he could still turn his head completely around! His beautiful Raven didn’t just give him a pearl, she gave him the power to swivel his head 360 degrees. Owl soared up to the treetops and shouted out a joyful “Hoo, Hoo” for all the forest creatures to hear.

Thereafter, with his new ability, a gift from the lovely Raven, Owl became the best hunter in the woods.