Horizon Ridge with many a flirt and flutter

ehehehe

Success! With the deftness that only a bird could possess, the magpie scooped the shiny stone up in her talons and took off with it, leaving the crow to wonder at the sudden blur of black and white. She was actually quite amazed at how easily she had gotten away with the theft. It had been so perfectly coordinated and went off without a hitch. The crow didn't know what had hit him! Perhaps she could make a habit out of this. Craning her neck forward a little, the magpie admired the golden pebble with fascination, wondering where the best place would be for it.

She almost thought to perch among the cliff-face once she was a distance away from her victim and his fine pile of rocks, thinking he hadn't the gall to follow her. However, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the quickly approaching dark form of the crow flying towards her, bellowing out his claim to the stone. Shiv gave a frightened squawk back at the male, pulling her legs up tight against her chest as she felt a sudden pull on her tail feathers. Curse her fabulously long tail!

"NO, MINE!" she cried out, turning to the utterly rude crow (ignoring the fact that the crime she had committed was much worse than a simple tug of one's feathers). Though, in her mid-air spin, her talons had loosened their grip on the source of their squabble and, in a moment that seemed to move in slow motion, Shiv accidentally let it slip from her grasp and it suddenly began to spiral downwards through the air.