Birds of a Feather

The blackbird flies with panic,
The swallow goes with light,
The finches move like ladies,
The owl floats by at night;
But the great and flashing magpie
He flies as artists might.
“Magpies in Picardy” by TP Cameron Wilson

First edition

ISBN: 978-0-6489263-0-6

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including printing, photographing, photocopying, copy-and-pasting, blogging, vlogging, recording, or other electronic, mechanical, or so-far-futuristic methods, without the prior permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

A big, heartfelt thanks to DashaMari for their gorgeous cover design! Thanks also to Vecteezy.com for Scratch Marks and to AnnaliseArt for Birds on a Wire (via Pixabay) – both images are used in the Cockatoo Connection. The lyrics sung at The Tick and Cow are from the naval song Spanish Ladies although here I’ve taken the sense of the song from the Bushland Dreaming: Cobbers in Concert version from 1979 known as Brisbane Ladies. Thanks also to the BBC for inventing the TARDIS: there’s no doubt the birds had the science down pat first, but the name, concept, and copyright are definitely the BBC’s! And thanks to all the brave women and men who have risked everything for flight; the mudlarks honour you all.

This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Any well-known names used as character names are in honour of the many heroes, living or dead, who have helped make this world more wondrous than they found it, and the characters who bear their names were chosen for no^* particular traits, good or bad.

^*Except for CW, who changed his last name from Vantablack so Anish Kapoor couldn’t sue

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The Impossible Dream
Longwinded
Bittersweet
Newsworthy
Flying 101
Fastwinded
The Price of Chips
Still Chasing a Story
Flying Blind
Expert Advice
Blustering Winds
The Cockatoo Connection – Issue 65・375・986・364A
Migration Day
Goodbye
Look at Me
Love at First Verse
New Wings
Plan B

Back to School
Change
Paradise Gained
Deathly Accurate
The Perfect Date
Date Day
Cleaners
Date Night
The Cockatoo Connection – Issue 65・375・987・002
Captive Audience
Nesting
The Western Melody
Midday Crickets
Afternoon Crickets
What are the Odds
The Great Crab and Other Stories
Truth or Consequences
Mystery Henling
Something Nice to Say
Dreams are Made
Dreams are Dashed
Sundown