Viking-Dragon on DeviantArthttps://www.deviantart.com/viking-dragon/art/Leaf-421792949Viking-Dragon

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-Leaf-

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FUCKING. FINISHED. DAMMIT.
Ok sorry for that but this took longer than expected. Really.
Well there's a lot to say about this picture. First of all, the title. Leaf is the name of the hummingbird (yeah, the one there), and it's the name of a hummingbird I had the opportunity to take care of. Yes I had a hummingbird, a baby hummingbird, with me for a whole week, a whole fantastic and wonderful week. 
Let me tell you the story about Leaf.
I found it more or less a month ago, lying on my garden and with his mother feeding it. Fortunately the dogs hadn't noticed it until I did. I couldn't leave it there now that the dogs had seen, so I took it inside for a while, and started to panic cause I didn't know what to do. Ten, after a while, I climbed to my roof, and waited for the mom to come and see where it was, cause I had placed it on one of the branches of a pine-tree we have there. When she saw, I thought "Mission accomplished." I felt extremely relieved, so I went back down. Later, at night, I had told my dad about it, he told me that it was better if we took it inside, it was still on the same branch I had left him on and it was freezing outside. My dad got it down. When he handed it to me, it seemed weak and agonizing. I started to cry, literally. I was scared, worried that Leaf, as I had called it wanting a 'natural' name, wouldn't be able to make it. I asked my mom and sister for help. My mom went to buy a dropper and some fruit nectar juice, my sister gave me a toy carriage and some tiny pillows to put Leaf in, and I prepared a lamp to give it warmth. At first I didn't know how to fee it, but I discovered that if I got Leaf's beak inside the wide enough dropper hole, he would get it's tongue out and start to eat. And God he ate a lot.
I woke up early the next day, I was still worried, and I was for the rest of the day. Eventually I had more confidence, having discovered how Leaf ate, and having gotten used to it being around. I always wondered what gender it was. And how to know if I wasn't an expert. I decided Leaf was a he. So I started to call it 'he'. 
Oh, about his mom, we took him out one day and the mom came, recognized him and fed him. Rather roughly I would say. DO you know how hummingbird mamas feed their chicks? They put their beaks in their baby's open one and move their heads brusquely. 
Anyway, I was happy to see that the mom did not reject her son. 
And so the days passed. And so Leaf grew, or I thought he was. He seemed much bigger now. I got to know that he was an eager flyer, that being the  reason of him falling from the nest(or that's what I think). He would flutter his wings every time I picked him up. He would even glide a little.
And that was the cause of a tragedy.
I had spent Thursday, Friday, and the weekend with Leaf a  nothing had happened. Now it was time for Monday, that meant more school. I was eager to get to the house to check on him, but before we could go, my mom told me through WhatsApp that they couldn't find the hummingbird. And I felt my heart drop. I demanded an explanation, she said that when the girl who takes care of my grandpa (he had an accident, long long story, I promise we aren't abandoning him.) entered my room, he wasn't there. She said that she had asked the cleaning lady to look for him and nothing. I was going to look for myself. But guess what: nothing. I didn't cry, at first. I was mad, heck I was furious. 'HOW COULD THEY HAVE LOST MY HUMMINGBIRD?!' I thought. He couldn't have flown away, everything was closed, and he didn't know how to yet. The dogs, of course they could have entered and...eaten him. That was my theory. then the realization hit me, the realization of the loss I had suffered. And I cried, letting my frustration and anger, my anger out but soon stopped. I gave up, I didn't know what to do.
The next morning I was still accustoming to the fact that I had lost my bird, but I could have sworn I hear him tweet, 2 times. My sister heard it too the first time. I informed my mom about this. Later that day when school had finished I received a call from my mom and when I answered I though 'Please tell me you found Leaf.' And, guess what. Yes she did. I am copy-pasting the explanation from FaceBook here cause this is long enough and I need a break from writing: 
"LEAF IS BAAAAACK--
Ok so my mom found him today, he was hidden in my room. He always was! I heard him tweet today twice in the morning, and I thought I was going crazy, but my sister heard him too. My mom searched for him and told me he could've been easily found, he was next to a bag that I keep on the armrest of the sofa that is in my room. This hummingbird is awesome, he survived most of yesterday and today without eating! 
And looking at him today I realized that he has grown, these birds grow up fast man. His plumage is shiny now, and he resembles more an adult. His mom came to see him today to, she hasn't rejected him since we have him and that's awesome. Thumbs up for this brave little warrior??"
And so the next day, when I came back, I found my mom feeding him honey, well he surely had a sweet tooth. Well beak. And well, in the end he was a hummingbird so it was obvious.
I took him out for his mom to come, and she fed him.
The next day when I opened the door of my room and checked, Leaf wasn't there. Panic. I glanced around and guess where he was? On a bookshelf I have in my room. He tried to fly again. He had being doing that a lot lately but he still couldn't. 
Well isn't sugar sticky?? That made Leaf's fate take an unexpected turn. Copy-pasting again: "I must communicate you something.
Leaf passed away and it's all my fault.
Since we were feeding him fruit nectar (fruit juice) and honey, he always got sticky, and today his paw got glued to his stomach so I tried to get it unstuck since he couldn't stand. He tried to fly away, my sister's dog caught him. I rushed and forced open his jaws as fast as I could, it was already too late but that is not when he died. I took him in my hands, his tongue was going in an out and his neck looked broken, he was suffering. My dad tried to save him but nothing was enough. I took his corpse in my hands and started to cry. It was an accident, but it was my fault. I fucking killed him. He NEVER got the opportunity to actually fly freely and all thanks to me. I saw him, held him in his last agonizing moments of life. 
We just buried him.
R.I.P Leaf."
3 weeks have passed since then.
When he was alive, I was considering the possibility of making a character based on him, it became official after he passed away. I created Leaf in honour to him. Leaf is the hummingbird in this painting, which I happened to randomly start as a simple, practice painting and ended up finishing it.
Heck wasn't that a long description?? Well, I will be posting some pictures of him next.
I think I ruined the lighting here. Also my first time painting leaves and feathers.
My respects if you read all of this lol
Hope you enjoy this, specially you, Leaf.
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© Viking-Dragon Do not copy, trace, repost, claim it as your own or use in any other possible way.
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© 2013 - 2024 Viking-Dragon
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FeiDays's avatar
OHGAWD DIS IS BEAUTIFUL---- :iconimdeadplz: