Valentines Day was one of those that days that just about anyone could love, particularly those that had lovers and sweethearts. It was also something that many organizations tried to reinforce with celebrations, candy, and related objects. Even the schools got into it, and for Sophie it was something rather nice as she got to share her Sophomore lunch period with Roland. The school lunch wasn't much with a serving of breaded chicken, in the shape of a heart, a serving of cheesy macaroni, and small cake that was also in the shape of a heart. It essentially screamed Valentine's Day.
"Hey," Sophie said to Roland as he came and sat down across from her. He smiled as he did so.
"Hey," Roland replied with a smile. They sat quietly for a few moments in a semi-awkward silence before a question came to mind, "Say... have you given it any thought...?"
"Given what any thought?" Sophie asked back.
"On what specific species you'd prefer," Roland answered, "I read in a book in library that there were actually several different pterosaurs that were considered part of the Pterodactylus genus..."
"Oh..." Sophie blinked, which Roland took as an indicator that Sophie hadn't given it any thought.
"As... while our folks did give the okay, provided we wait until summer starts, that isn't THAT far away now," Roland commented, "and if you're wanting to help your parrot too..."
"Why do any of it AT ALL?" came a male voice from another table nearby, making both Sophie and Roland turn to see one of the other male students.
He was human, and Sophie remembered that he had been on the Freshman football team the year before, though with so many students being allowed to join Animalia, or having been caught in accidents like Abby and Sarah, he had ended up playing with the JV and Varsity squads, simply for the fact that Lyre didn't want to run the risk of the school being disqualified for an unfair advantage given the strength and abilities of Animalians. That sort of thing continued, though with a few more also joining Animalia eventually to the point where school had considered dropping football as a sport for not enough competitors and had actually struggled against other schools because nearly all of the Lyre High Seniors and football players had joined Animalia. Now, he'd actually been fairly friendly with the classmates that joined Animalia, but the previous year he'd at least had them to hangout with and even work out with. A single dosed Great Dane Animalian commented that the guy was just as strong as he was the previous year, but once the new school in Animalia was built, many of them ended up transferring to WSA, either by requirement or because WSA was more tolerant with regard to activities of a more adult nature with regard to those that were double dosed and with mates.
While Jessica and Roger and some of the smaller Animalians did transfer back to Lyre after the whole incident with Heather's attack on Sophie and Roland, not all of them did, which was understandable. Smaller Animalians, which would include Sarah, Malice, and Travis could manage fairly well with the chairs and seats at Lyre High, but once they started getting to the larger Animalians, like Abby and Samson, many of the things for them had to be specially ordered and didn't work so well with human students. That had been one of the major infrastructure points that had been behind the establishment of WSA, even if the implementation of the plan was initially faulty in its execution. And many of the smaller Animalian students that did come back to Lyre were all either single dosers like Jessica and Roger or were small animals to begin with and didn't have the interest in sports that this guy had. Sophie guessed that that and Heather's attack was something of a sore spot for him.
"I'm all for Animalia doing its own thing in its OWN place," the male student grumbled, "but don't you think they've taken ENOUGH from us?"
"They haven't taken anything from us, or me," Sophie answered, "they're still our friends. And does it really matter if someone wants to convert or not?"
"But..." the guy commented, "Lyre had good teams a few years ago. I remember my older brother being the QB that got us the state titles in basketball and football. I told him that I'd do it to. He smiled and promised to come see me play. Then Animalia came... and while we still have a football team and a basketball team... neither is really that good. We don't have enough upperclassmen to teach the lower classmen and help carry the team. Everyone with more experience has pounded us..."
"But that's just high school sports," Roland commented, "that won't last forever... even if Animalia hadn't happened... or if Animalia didn't agree to stay out of organized school sports to prevent Lyre from having unfair size advantages..."
"And in a way... I WANT to be able to fly, to feel weightless," Sophie answered, "It'd be fun and could help people that way... use my wings to be of help."
"And I'd wish to be with her," Roland answered, thinking back to the previous Valentines Day when they'd started dating with their first "official" meeting at the school's Valentine's Dance, "So if it means changing my species... it'd be worth it to have Sophie's love."
Sophie wanted shed some tears of joy at that statement, but managed to keep herself steady. As while Valentine's Day was a day for love, the fact that it was on a Wednesday meant that school and its rules still applied.
"But all I have are those memories," he protested.
"The point of any game is to have fun," Sophie reminded him, "winning is nice, but if that's the SOLE reason you're playing... you need to find something that is fun. I'm sure your brother won't think less of you."
He only shrugged and sighed while Sophie and Roland looked back to their food. After a few moments, they heard the male student that had interrupted them get up, throw away what remained of his lunch and the leave. The two of them only resumed where they were.
"Anyway," Sophie said slowly, "to answer your earlier comment, the book may have said there were multiple species in the genus, but the book may not have been written recently... and given that the name Pterodactyl has been used to describe just about any and every Pterosaur, that'd make some sense that the listing wasn't recent. I've seen online that at present there is only one species... Pterodactylus Antiquus. So that'd be the one to go with."
"And you trust an online source?" Roland raised a teasing eyebrow.
"It wasn't a bad source," Sophie playfully swatted at him and he laughed, "anyway... with only one thing to go with... and with today being the fourteenth, I was thinking more about Valentines... And I do have one for you... and, well... I appreciate what you said... about being willing to go through all of the conversion to be with me, when the time comes."
Roland gave a small smile, "Hey... flying could be fun. And we could fly together."
Sophie only smiled back. She might still have school, and she'd have to wait a few months for her conversion, based on what her parents agreed to, but then, to a certain extent that didn't matter. She had Roland who was smart and kind and had to love her, given all that he was willing to do for her.
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For Jill, though, Valentines Day had gone quietly and with a little bit of sadness. Mostly because of where she was and where her "Valentine" was. She had fond memories of being with Beauregard over Christmas and enjoyed that his family was accepting of her being an Animalian. And while there were some "cold shoulders" in Louisiana, mostly with those that had wanted to make sure she was vaccinated during her Christmas visit to Beauregard's home, things there hadn't been too bad. And with Beauregard's politeness and everything he'd done to make her feel welcome over Christmas, she'd come to really miss him after returning to Lyre. She talked to him on the phone and exchanged letters and emails, but it wasn't quite the same as being with him all the time.
She liked having him there and in many ways was feeling more and more comfortable with the idea of moving to Louisiana. She wasn't a scientist, but she could appreciate his desire to protect a lot of the wild lands from development to protect the American Alligator and he had promised he'd even help her find work if need be. It was a level of commitment that she really liked and wanted more of, and as she went through her work day in a small bookstore in Lyre she had to control herself from giving a low bellow as she thought of him. Spring was coming, which heralded the American Alligator's breeding season, which could and did involve males and females calling to each other, and that floated in the back of Jill's mind and she had to catch herself, as Beauregard wasn't there, and even if he was, he was still human.
The store she worked in was pretty much a small time used bookstore. While online sellers like Amazon and electronic readers like the Kindle cut into the store's profitability, the store in Lyre had done fairly well and the owner and employees made enough to get by. Jill often liked it as it would mean she could talk with the occasional customer that would come in when they were looking for something. However, with the present date, the only thing that fluttered through her mind as she checked to make sure the shelves were in order after a morning "rush," usually some of the seniors who came in to pick up something to read with their coffee. Things were in order, or at least nothing was in need for major renovation for the moment.
As she reached the end of one aisle, she heard the door open with a "ding," and that made her stop. Jill turned back to see no one near the counter, though there was something red that caught her eye. She approached it with curiosity.
"Hello?" Jill called, but got no answer.
As she approached the counter, she found that the flash of red was actually an envelope. It was addressed to her from Beauregard Shucks, which made her happy. The postman often brought things that were addressed to the shop and she guessed that was it, that the postman had come in tossed the card on the counter and then left. The fact that the address was her home address and not the store's address wasn't noticed. She happily picked up the card and tore into it. Her claws as an Alligator might not be the sharpest, but they were more than good enough to handle paper. She pulled out a small red card that and writing in white ink on it.
It read: "Miss Jill... I'm sure you remember the fun we had over Christmas, and I must tell you that I enjoyed it greatly. Since then, I've managed muddle through my daily routine but I've found that you've oven been on my mind."
"As you've been in mine," Jill breathed as she kept reading.
"In this, I've found there is only one thing I can do..."
"Huh?" Jill said aloud as she read the last line. It ran off at the end. It wasn't grammatically correct in the slightest and she had the wonder as to what Beauregard meant by that... "there was only one thing" he could do. "What does he mean?"
The next thing she heard made her jump in surprise when she heard Beauregard's voice. She turned to see him come out from behind another aisle with a small felt box in his hand. He eyes soon widened at the sight of it as he approached her and got down on one knee.
"I mean, Miss Jill," Beauregard spoke as approached and kneeled before her as Jill raised her arms up before her muzzle, "that you're important to me... and the time we've had, however brief has been enough for me to know that you are the one for me."
One of Jill's co-workers came out from a backroom to find the two standing there with Beauregard opening the box.
"And you'd make me the happiest man in the world," Beauregard continued, "if you'd agree to marry me. If it means I be an Alligator too... I don't mind. Please... say yes..."
Jill's only response was to move forward and lift Beauregard into her arms as she said, "YES! YES! YES!"
Jill then twirled with Beauregard in her embrace. It might mean she'd have to get things ready for a move, but she didn't care about that. That was unimportant in the fact that she'd finally found someone who'd shared her interest in the American Alligator and had come to like her as a person. He'd come all across the country to propose to her on Valentine's Day. That made her so happy and all the world seemed to just shrink away until there was just her and him. And while it'd mean there'd be somethings to handle, namely Beauregard's conversion, the wedding ceremony, and then the move, they'd surely all be things handled easily.