#openbird

                              「 EAGLE 」

      [AGE]  •  LEGACY •  CAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

Power to those who power deserves. Power. What is power? Power is holding in your own two hands the rope tied to your best friend hanging off a cliff, and having the strength to pull her back into safety. Power is to hold your loved one in your arms as his eyes dullen, to run as fast as you can to the nearest hospital, and trusting your body not to give up under the both of you. Power is to clutch an axe held high over your insulter's head and knowing that all you have to do, is to let it crush down. Fame and fortunes, playing with the stars, looking down upon the earth, all this is well and fine. But power? Power doesn't come in comparison to others people’s weakness, along with exceptions, conditions and suggestions. Power is absolute, inviolable, and inexhaustible. It is heavy, it is duty, it is responsibility. But it is also the only thing worth striving for.

Others might've been born with a golden spoon in their mouth, with arrogance on their tongue and wings to their feet. And so were you. But you were also raised with weights tied to your arms and from a young age on, you were trained to grow strong enough to one day hold them up. So many drown in shallow waters, but you would swim through the ocean with those weights tied to you, and you'd swim faster and better than anyone else. For that was the privilege of those who deserved power; to know how to use it properly. You know how to save the fallen, to keep good situations intact, and to harm the ones unworthy of good. And that is why you deserve power. Why power needs you to use it.

TRAITS:

PROUD • ADMIRED • GRAND • CONFIDENT • EGOISTICAL

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT HAWK: "I hate them. They can act like old-money and royalty as much as they want, we all know they're nothing but an imposter, a lie. Can't the others see that they've manipulated themselves to the top? That nothing about them deserves that position? I'll make them fall, and show them how it's really done. And if it's the last thing I'll do."

ABOUT MOCKINGBIRD: "What an irritating person, don't you think? I can't imagine who would've nominated them. They clearly don't want in, and so I clearly don't want them in either. We don't have time for cynics and disbelievers, and even less for people with such little sense of style and grandeur. To get in, they'll first have to get past me, I promise you that."

ABOUT SWALLOW: "Why people are blinded by Hawk and their elegant determination, I don't like, but I understand. However why they elected Mallard as their leader, I really can't comprehend. Not with Swallow in our ranks. They're kind and unobnoxious, skilled and know how to make the best of their time in the Volière. If I initiate new elections, they'll make it to the top with me.”

                                   「 SEAGULL 」

        [AGE]  •  LEGACY •  CAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

Loyalty always scared you. Yes, they called your parents loyal to each other, but what worth did that have if there was no love? Yes, sticking to your friends through fire and ice was a noble thing to do, but what if it ended up hurting everyone involved? Yes, never giving up on your skills and honing them with care and precision every night led you far, but what if that never led you to where you wanted to go? Loyalty was a cage, a contract of slavery, an obligation you endured simply because you had once thought it useful. It scared you, and so you made sure to never be faithful. To never belong to anyone or anything, not to your habits, not to your needs, not to what seemed comfortable. A flighty life you led, far away from anyone else, screaming and fighting whenever formless hands tried to grab you and make you theirs. No. Never would you give in to blind loyalty.

"You're loyal to disloyality," was the sentence that changed it all. Suddenly it all made sense. Yes. To be consistently inconsistent was that not loyalty to chaos? It scared you. To merely say no, because the day before you had said yes? Obsessively checking, day by day, that no ‘agains’, not ‘yets’ and no ‘alreadys’ could ever be found in descriptions about you? Was this opposite of addiction not some sort of addiction too? It had to stop. You knew you had to relax and stop living your life out of fear you might like something twice, like it too much, like it until it stopped being there, ripping a hole into your heart. So you made yourself some friends like never before, and stuck with them for almost two years, beautiful years, terrifying years. You pretended you grew accustomed to habit and routine, even if still, loyalty scares you.

TRAITS:

SCEPTICAL • IMPULSIVE • TALENTED • LOUD • SELFISH

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT SWALLOW: "People say we're kind of opposites. They're so quiet and always distancing themselves while I'm supposed to be loud and always trying to be involved. But sometimes I do envy the way they seemed to be tied to nothing and no one... Not that I’d ever let them know. It’s so much fun teasing the hell out of them, after all. Nothing’s more fun than a really riled up swallow.”

ABOUT SWAN: "I don't trust them. I tried talking to them a few times, incognito of course, they don’t know I’m in the Volière, and after just a bit of prodding, they got really abrasive? It's as though they're hiding something... I should probably not try to find out, just in case it gets me stuck in troubles. Or you know. I find out and expose them publicly. Make sure those ties are broken before they get too close to the Volière.”

ABOUT MALLARD: "Listen, I get that they're nice, I get that being in the Volière means more than having fun, I get that they're probably a good leader. But honestly, they have no sense of judgement. Appreciating everyone equally without realising that some of them could get us into serious troubles. If Hawk really ends up initiating re-elections, I'll be the first to vote Mallard out.”

                                  「 DOVE 」

       [AGE]  •  SCHOLAR  •  UNCAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

Fighting for war is like fucking for virginity. That's what you always believed in. Peace, you learnt soon, was the highest blessing to achieve on earth. It was the sun after which flowers turnt their head, the water after which all throats thirsted, air without which humans would crash and lose all hope, their lungs pestering with fear and pain and final desperation. Without peace, there was death. Your idealogies were always called cute and innocent, as you grew older they were called idealistic and naive. But they couldn't understand. They didn't see the importance of peace, equality, freedom. And so you watched them sit in their little life boats, look over those in the icy water, witness them drown. You watched them and tried to tell them that if only they saved the others too, bigger boats would eventually be able to be built, and they'd hold everyone in unity, with no discrimination, no one left behind. But they refused to understand. You told them over and over again. Until they stopped listening. And so your hands turned into fists.

Not because you enjoy the blood, not because the outcome might serve you, not because it the others started it. Not for any motivation that their war is based on. But because in a world where selfishness ruled, people got hurt, badly hurt, it eventually wasn't enough anymore to sit back and watch. One by one, you'd kick everyone out of their little life boat, to teach them what it meant to drown. Oh, they'd understand. They'd want change, fight for it, help you achieve it, if only they would feel, just once, how it felt to suffer. Don't they know that those in power must help those in lack of it? Why are they wasting their resources for games if greater goods can be achieved, reached, shared? Your vest might not be as white anymore, but at least it will be stained with the blood of those who deserve it. You merely need to climb to the top first, to gain a little more power, and instead of brushing you aside like a crumb on their shny cravats, they will have to listen. And even if they don't. You'll have enough power to change the world for the better without them. Sometimes, you have to go to war to achieve peace.

TRAITS:

HOPEFUL • PEACEFUL • HOPEFUL • RELENTLESS • IDEALISTIC

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT SEAGULL: "I ... don’t trust them. They came talking to me multiple times, often right before or right after Volière connected events, and seemed very eager to make me believe we’re going to become friends. I’m not sure they know what friends are, though. The more I fail, the more they seem to enjoy themselves. Clearly they think it’s funny how hard I’m trying to get into the Volière. It’s obvious they’re part of the Volière themselves. If that’s the case, though, why wanting to see me fail? Or why making the effort of talking to me so often?”

ABOUT OWL: "I've only met them recently, but it became easily very obvious that they’re incredibly smart. Maybe they’re not the nicest person, no, but at least they’re not at Whitebridge for the shininess. I can’t wait for the next discussion to have them help me prove some idiots wrong with cold, unwavering facts.”

ABOUT PEACOCK: "Now, you see, this is exactly the type of person I don’t ... understand. Certainly, they are very beautiful and talented, but must they focus on it so much? Other people are very beautiful and talented too! All that power in their hands and they only use it to look pretty. Ugh, I hope there's more to them than their money, because I don't want to be in a society to change the world only to be stopped by someone too comfortable in their feathers to get up their arse."

                              「 ALBATROSS 」

[AGE] • NEITHER • CAGED • [MAJOR]

BIO:

If there's too much space, how are you supposed to fill it? At first you thought the world was big, too big, the neighbourhood bearing too many secrets, the town too many dark corners, the universe too many infinite edges. And it made you feel small. You were sure, you'd forever feel too small in it. The opportunities too great to choose easily, the dangers to powerful to fight them, the dreams too grand to reach them. There were so many paths to take, so many voices to obey to, so many people to become, what were you supposed to choose? What was the right thing to do? Who could you trust, if you couldn't trust yourself? You wanted to search, to seek, to go out and find who you were supposed to be, but your limbs were so heavy, your heart so lame and jittery, that bit by bit, you remained frozen to your spot, unmoving. With your eyes shut out of fear, you didn't see that wile the world remained the same, you grew.

Preoccupied by how to live life, you didn't notice how you were already living it. Then one day you opened your eyes, and they grew wide. Suddenly the world seemed too small, with walls around you, confining you, holding you captured, keeping you from imagining everything could be. There used to be a million of horizons, now there was only one, and it seemed so close. Too close to keep the perspective right. Air became thin. Resources scarce. Your life had become huge, so ready, so done, so decided, that it was as though every movement you did now, could be your last. Each step forward was definite, carrying you too far. Far, but was it the right direction? Oh, day by day it became scarier and scarier to spread your wings now. Once upon a time, there had been so much space and possibilities, but now it's time to choose who you wanted to be, and you feel claustrophobic. Who are you? Who do you want to be? No, it's not a matter of lacking space, it's a matter of not knowing how to fill it properly.

TRAITS:

ANXIOUS • DOUBTFUL • LIKEABLE • MAJESTIC IF GIVEN THE CHANCE • TALENTED

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT SWALLOW: "Wow... Aren't they beautiful? So delicate and sweet, so talented and skilled. I always feel a bit clumsy, like I'm too loud and too big for whatever room I'm in, but Swallow never seems to mind. They're one of the only ones who doesn't make snarky comments all the time. I guess that's why I like being by their side so much."

ABOUT PEACOCK: "They think themselves as elegant as Swallow, but really, they're nothing but pretty feathers and an empty brain. Sometimes I wish I could bring myself to shut them up, but something about their mean comments always makes me wonder if maybe they're right and I am not worthy to be in the Volière...”

ABOUT HUMMINGBIRD: "I proudly elected them into their leading position. The snarky members like them because they are beautiful enough for the Volière, and the lovely members like them because they're kind enough. Their working moral is great too. If it came down to new elections, I'd always vote for them again.”

                                  「 PIGEON 」

        [AGE]  •   NEITHER  •  CAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

It is in the dirt that gold can be found. Yet, to them, it would forever only be dirt. ‘You could make it so far,’ they’d say to you, over and over again, ‘if only you tried.' But you couldn't be bothered. You didn't try to get out. You didn't try to fight its pull, to become more, to get far away from the dirty ground. Yes, you saw how white and clean other people's feathers could be but what was the point to be a human made of gold and starlight shimmer, if there was no liberty? You were happy down here in the dirt, with your fingers quick, your tongue sharp and your gaze so piercing that it was as though they saw everything all the time. You were good at surviving, at using your skills to get what you wanted, to slip through the small spaced words of restricting rules, so why would you want more?

No, you never cared about this world of silver spooned mouths, sports cars and minds so privileged they considered crimes a worthy expense worth a day of pocket money. But when you suddenly you found yourself in it, and by the mighty sun you had no idea how you had gotten here, you learnt of a whole new feeling: Comfort. Comfort as soft and as gently embracing as a duvet in cold winter times, comfort like the hug of a loving mother, comfort like knowing your door is locked and no one unwated can ever enter. Comfort, the way you had never experienced. Power, privilege, yes that came too, but oh, the protection was what made you stay. And into their soft arms you let yourself fall, closing your eyes and exhaling in relief the way you had not been able to do it for years. Yet you can't help but wonder; how long until admist all this gold, you will find some dirt?

TRAITS:

OPPORTUNISTIC • ADAPTABLE • LOYAL • FRIENDLY • INCONSPICUOUS

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT CANARY: "They're sweet, aren't they? Some say they're a bit too stupid for the Volière, and maybe that's true, but I like them anyway. They make you feel appreciated, and when they talk to you, it's as though nothing else in the world matters to them in that moment. It’s nice to see people who are just content. With where they are, what they are, who they are. All this ambition is gonna get us all killed eventually. Being able to relax and enjoy the sun, is that not the highest of virtues?"

ABOUT CUCKOO: "Must you ask me about them..? I-... Part of me thinks I'll never be able to forgive them for what they did to me, the way I taught them so much about how to fit into places, about getting what you want, about being happy even in crappy situations, the way they just left me the moment something better came along, the way they've ignored me ever since... But part of me also wonders if things couldn't go back to normal. It might've been me who nominated them for the Volière..."

ABOUT PARROT: "I'm not sure I like that they were nominated. Yes, they fit perfectly, but that's just it, isn't it? They're here for the legacy, never have they worked for anything in their life, and they're not very independent and smart either, now, are they? If they get in, then because of their parents. It feels a bit unfair, doesn't it? And I know what I’m talking about, after all, is that not how I kinda made it in?"

                                  「 MALLARD 」

        [AGE]  •  LEGACY •  CAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

People are a bit like onigiris. From the outside, all rice balls look alike; it is only when you take a good, big bite out of them that their delicious inside reveals itself. At first you were confused by life, by what others sought so desperately. You were held in the arms of luck and privilege, you didn't know why excitement came up about things that just seemed normal and bland to you. But then came revelation, a taste of bliss, a grain of something different, and suddenly you understood what it meant when people said their breath could hitch out of strong emotions. It wasn't easy at first to find such a grain again, but then you did, and you knew that this was what your life had always needed: flavor. You found out where it came from, this spark of life, and dug your way to the core each moment you were presented with, to that nuclear flavor that made it all worth it. The colour to what you used to think was nothing but the white, bland dullness of life.

All your life, you've now been chasing that taste, stilling curiosity with the wildest of flavors, enjoying each moment by finding the source of its sweetness, holding onto the people you meet with both hands and a smile to your face, searching for the taste they can bring you. As sweet as love, as sour as excitement, as bitter as relief, as salty as comfort, as spicy as adventure? Emotions, you use them like ingredients in a recipe for adventures and experiences. So many people seek to look past what lies before them on their plate. But you don't. What for? If you make sure that the plate is filled with exactly the kind of food you wish to eat, why crave another person's plate? Why want more moments, if the moments you can distract taste from are already there. Right there. You share all the pleasures life blesses you with, making sure that no one gets left out, believing firmly that everyone deserves a life as rich as a feast. And who knows. Maybe it is their presence at dinner, that will make dinner even more thrilling. People are like onigiris. And even if people might think you as plain as white rice? You are one too.

TRAITS:

CLUMSY • GOOD-HEARTED • EAGER • LOYAL • COMMON-LOOKING

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT ALBATROSS: "People compare us quite a lot, don't they? I don't mind, of course, but it also shows that they can't look past what they see. Contrary to me, Albatross doesn't feel well in their own skin, they don't know who they are, and what they want to do with their life. Sometimes I think about helping them, but then I don't think they care much about me. As though they can't look past what they see either."

ABOUT HAWK: "We've been rivals ever since we first met for our first interview with the Volière. They never wanted me in, and definitely never wanted me by their side as Head of Cage. To me they're too aggressive to be a good leader, just like for them I'm too mellow. But you know, I think that's why they always saw me as a threat: Because I have the kindness they lack, and that's the reason why people prefer me over them."

ABOUT CANARY: "I nominated them. Why? They're kind. I don't see why we always put intelligence, cunningness and bravery above kindness. The world is a harsh place, some innocent smiles will all do us well one day."

                                  「 HAWK 」

        [AGE]  •  NEITHER  •  CAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

If no one hands you the things you deserve, you have to go take them yourself. No, you're life was not miserable. No, you didn't suffer. No, you were not deprived of sunshine, smiles and candy. But did that stop you from wanting more? From seeking perfection, demanding betterment and striving for jealousy-inducing execution in every single project you deemed worthy of your attention? Does one always need the bad to dream of good? Of better? Of the best? Do only the sick long for health? Is it not enough to see the comparison between what is and what could be? Can motivation not emerge from the deep-ingrained knowledge, this pond of frozen belief, that only the stratosphere can limit you? Your name might not have come with rights to rule from above by default, but it came with the skill to fight for it.

You never gave in and you never gave up. You ran from class to tutoring to midnight shifts, you fought with smarts and wits and cunningness, you raised hands and voice, debated and argued for the shiniest of all letters, this great, admirable A. You worked and worked and worked to get to where you are now, sleep came in secondary, because as long as your feet carried you, why put them up for rest? You left friends behind when they dragged you, attached yourself to those who seemed to know better, to want more, turned your back on those who might've needed your help when they didn't provide any help to you anymore. Ruthless they called you. But you didn't care. No, you didn't care. All you cared about was the peak of the mountain and the throne waiting for you there. A throne, a ceptre and an apple. Power. Yes. There was power at the end of that path, and this power belonged to you. You had worked for it. Every single step taking into its direction had been an action of determination and strength. You deserved it. And if no one handed it to you like it handed it to so many incompetent idiots with nothing but a valuable name? Well, you'd just have to go take it yourself.

TRAITS:

PERCEIVING • SHARP-TONGUED • SKILLED • RELENTLESS • UNFORGIVING

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT MALLARD: "Don’t tell them but... I always knew they'd make it in, and when the others voted for them to make them Head of Cage, it didn't surprise me. It frustrates me though. Here I am, fighting for a spot at the top, and all they have to do is smile at someone to win them over. And you know what frustrates me even more? The fact that I fall for that smile every time too..."

ABOUT EAGLE: "They have no sense of direction, of hard work, of determination. They only want my seat because they think they deserve it, but being born into privilege doesn't make you more worthy of it. Who cares if they'd be a grand leader, they'd do it only to prove a point. I'll make very sure they stay out of my way."

ABOUT SHRIKE: "I haven't figured out yet who nominated them, but it worries me. Their interview made me question their intentions a lot. Of course, they're as reckless, ruthless and relentless as I am, but they're also like Eagle, a child of six generations of alumnis. So what if all this is just a facade because they know what it takes to get in? Or worse. What if they truly do have a goal to reach, and this goal won't benefit the Volière at all? Either way, I have to keep an eye on them. Test their loyalty.”

                                   「 PEACOCK 」

        [AGE] •  LEGACY •  CAGED •  [MAJOR]

BIO:

Life's glamour is easily crushed by life's gloom. Such ugliness, such drowse, such boredom, such unappreciative, uninteresting, incapable grouse. So many ways to darken a day, to ruin a night, to kill a beautiful laugh. And still people seemed not to care enough to avoid reinforcing the misery. Why does mud exist but to feed worms? Who invented scratchy wool but those too practical to care for comfort? Is frowning truly necessary if it brings wrinkles upon an otherwise charming face? It is a shame, an insult, a ridiculous attempt on aesthetic to allow necessity rule over the marvel of life. To you it was always as though people didn't even try to live up to their dreams. They took what was expected and reached the bare minimum, gave themselves content with the mediocre, the lame, the only somewhat acceptable nice. And all that because they only worried about making sense! Being useful and pracitcal! But who cares about sense if there is no meaning to life but life itself? So you decided to leave their narrow mind behind.

Making sure to never fall into the dreary puddle of muddy reality, you became as colourfully extravagant as your dreams had always been. Diamonds, silk, feathered hats, fur coats, those were your new friends. Who cared about the risk of losing the diamonds, the silk possibly getting dirty, the feathers breaking in narrow doorways, or the fur coats being too warm? Necessity was for the poor, for those who didn't know any better. You weren't one of them, and you had to show it. Beauty was the peak of all goals, the inspiration and aspiration, the motivation guiding you along the path of dazzling feathers. And soon enough, you learnt two things: First, beauty attracts beauty. Those who didn't understand you, left you to be ugly alone. And those who did, they flocked. Naturally, you welcomed them with open arms and a bottle of golden champagne. And secondly, life's gloom is easily solved by a little bit of glamour.

TRAITS:

EXTRAORDINARY • SWANKY • SELFISH • ARROGANT • DRAMATIC

CONNECTIONS:

ABOUT PIGEON: "Ugh, people always complain about Mallard, but they don't see that the real problem is Pigeon. At least Mallard has some sort of glamorous background and is nice enough. But Pigeon? They don't even try. They're so dull-looking and ... shabby. It embarrasses me to stand next to them. I know, the members of the Volière aren’t supposed to turn against each other, but maybe there is a way to get someone kicked out? A little intrigue might do the trick..?"

ABOUT SEAGULL: "Yeah, I guess they're somewhat more talented than I am, but I still like them. They're not trying to steal my spotlight but also don't annoy me with a fake moral backbone. They mean what they say, and they say what they mean. What more do you want in a friend? If there's someone you want to go on a gem-stone heist with, it will be Seagull, I tell you."

ABOUT MAGPIE: “I nominated them to be invited into the Volière. The others say there's not much behind their beautiful facade, but I don't care if it's true. They know how to dress, they know how to act, they know their place in this world. I'll make sure they'll get in, even if just so that the picture of us on the wall will look a little less ugly.”