Who: Ozpin When: Today Where: His flat, above the Emerald Cafe What: An intruder? Rating/Warnings: None! Status: Complete narrative!
”Oz? Oz! What’s-- Oz!!! Wake up! WAKE UP!”
Ozpin sat straight up in bed. His breath came in short pants as the burst of adrenaline filtered its way through his bloodstream. The sound of crumpling metal still echoed in his ears. It had been years since that particular nightmare had decided to haunt him. Unfortunately, time had not dulled the memory as it had the pain in his knee.
Passing a hand across his face, he forced himself to take deep, even breaths. Calmer, he was able to think back to what exactly had occurred. While the nightmare had indeed surprised him, that had not been what had woken him from his sleep. He slid his legs over the side of the bed, feet sliding into slippers. Ozpin stood, slipping on his night robe before heading out to investigate.
The living area was quiet, looking much as it had the night before. Ozpin brushed aside the curtain that served as his bedroom “door” and picked up the cane resting against the door frame. “Right where I left you.” He smiled, limping a bit less as he continued his investigation. The front door was still bolted and even from across the room he could tell that the walking stick pressed against the knob had not been disturbed. That had not been the culprit, then. Just as well.
He found the source of the disturbance in the kitchen. The untimely alarm had obviously come in the form of an upturned fruit bowl. The bowl in question was laying no its side, a handful of apples fanned out across the floor in front of it. “Not where I left you.” Ozpin had to smile a bit at his quote. He had long lived alone and while he was not the best of company, at least he laughed at his own jokes. The cane was hung on the countertop as Ozpin slowly kneeled down to pick up the mess. What in the world could have caused the bowl to fall off the counter in the first place?
Cricket, cricket! Cricket, cricket!
Ah. A cricket, then. A cricket? Ozpin blinked, hands halfway through setting the bowl back on the counter. A cricket wouldn’t have had the mass needed to do such a feat. Apples and bowl back in their place, he picked up his cane and set off in search of the sound’s origin. He found it in the form of a fully grown northern mockingbird, chirping down at him from the top of one of his cabinets.
“Hello, there.” Ozpin smiled up at the bird. Obviously, he was aware of how the mockingbird had gotten its name, but this was the first time he had been fortunate enough to witness the event himself. An upturned bowl and a bit of lost sleep was a small price to pay for the treat. “Those cabinets may be wood, but I doubt they would make a very good place for a nest.”
He made sure the kitchen window was wide open before pulling over a chair. Oz gave the still-chirping bird an apologetic smile. “You’ll forgive me, of course, but I’m afraid I don’t have room for you here. Let’s get you back outside and to a far more lively world.” Standing on the chair, he used his hands to carefully shoo the bird away.
The bird took the hint, taking off and flying around the room, bypassing the open window and settling itself on top of the living room fan. Sighing, Ozpin got down from the chair. This might be a bit more difficult than he had originally imagined. Still, how difficult could it be to get a bird out of one’s living quarters? Sooner or later the mockingbird would likely get tired of being chased around the room and leave of its own accord. Right?
...Several hours and several unsavory sentiments later, Ozpin had to admit defeat. He simply was not going to be able to shoo the bird out the window by himself. He sat down at the small table to consider his options. The students working for his cafe below would likely have heard his stumbling and would likely be willing to assist him. Unfortunately, today he knew was one of the busiest days of the week and pulling two or even one of the baristas from the counter would all but ensure that those left would be in the weeds until well past nightfall.
Perhaps there was another way.
With a triumphant smile, Ozpin made his way to the computer in his study. He had taken the opportunity to advertise his cafe on the strange forum earlier in the week and it had been reasonably successful. At the very least, he had a slew of new customers and a new employee to boast from it. Perhaps they would also be willing to help him with his avian problem.