Inside Ninebell, the mother's trapped foot kicked once.
Her claws struck stone. On the far side, her body twisted under two moons, and the silver around her ankle pulled tight enough to flatten every wet feather against the leg.
Pava stayed beyond the reach of her beak.
"I am not touching you," she said. "You can stop explaining that part."
Her beak jabbed through the feeding gap again.
Pava sat back. "Very clear."
The male tried to answer from Jiang's shoulder. Air scraped through him, thin and rough. His flank sank before the note ended, forcing Jiang to spread his good toes and take more of the weight across his breast.
Pain traveled from Jiang's bound shoulder into his neck. He held anyway.
Under the brood fold, the chick made a hungry click. That tiny sound reached the mother. She stopped fighting the stone and let her head sink until one dark eye appeared beyond the feeding gap.
Her mate called again.
This time she answered him instead of striking at Pava.
