[A cop, a boat and a dangerous bird.]

Spring had barely graced the lands of Leonard's town.The vast azure skies was lined with white flocculent clouds and the golden rays of the rising sun kissed the evergreen forest and the peak of the ice-capped hills. The lush hillside greenery rimmed the edges of the pellucid lake that mirrored nature's unblemished glory. It was a serene Sunday dawn, where it's few residents still sojourned within their duvets deep in their rare, prolonged hours of slumber.

Leonard didn't mind beholding the breathtaking beauty of his hometown, but sometimes he wished something exciting would happen to him at least once. This place was too tranquil, it made his job dreary.

A loud yawn escaped his lips. He rubbed the tears that pooled at the corner of his eyes as he languidly strolled along the laterite grounds. Subconsciously, he began to lose focus of his surroundings and his mind wandered off to ponder on frivolous things. Waking up early on a Sunday morning to a phone call from his colleague to take over his shift because he "came down with something" was not the best way he would've wanted his day to start off.

But two hours of patrol for a free dinner? Marcel damn well better keep his promise.

He failed to stifle another loud yawn. His hand patted at his pocket, where he kept his granola bar. He itched to snack onto it now just to keep him preoccupied, but he resisted. It barely had been half an hour after he began his rounds. Maybe he would keep it for a little longer.

He was about to turn down a new path when a squawk caught his attention.

He wheeled around, and saw a moving ball of white just down by the edge of the lake. Cautiously, he crept in closer to take a peek.

A white heron was struggling, desperately flailing its wings as it stretched its folded neck to release another cry. One of its legs was ensnared by the tangled stems of long, wavy weeds, which Leonard surmised it must've happened while it was waddling into the lake. A question briefly flashed through his mind: don't herons come together in a flock? What was one doing all alone here?

Nevertheless, like anyone else, he did the next most logical thing that is to approach the bird with nothing but the mere inclination to help.

At first, the bird's panic surged upon his presence and thrashed even more when he had barely grazed its feather tips. Leonard remained unfazed, and grasped the bird to tug it free of the thick roots. It was a little difficult with the bird's initial anxiety, but it soon seemed to understand his intentions and allowed him to handle the situation.

Leonard pulled with too much force. He fell backwards onto the ground with the bird still in his grip. The heron squawked, spreading its grey-edged wings and twitched so much that he had to let it slip out of his hands. It dropped onto his stomach, before scampering to get back into the waters.

Leonard watched with a slight sense of contentment sprouting in his heart. At least his morning wasn't completely pointless. He did something good.

He got back up to his feet, brushing his pants when a sudden sense of foreboding bid him.

He patted his belt again. His hands brushed across an empty ring, where he usually hung his keys.

Oh, no, no, no...

He rapidly whirled back around and began searching through the grass where he might have dropped it, but to no avail. Baffled, he glanced up ahead- to see the heron he freed happily swimming through the clear waters.

It's head turned to one side, and the metal it held between its beak gleamed under the morning sun.

Incoherent curses slipped from Leonard's tongue. He sprang up and surveyed his surroundings, racking his brain for a way to get it back. Then, he spotted a dock not too far away, where an empty boat idly floated, as if beckoning him to jump on for that exact scenario.

And that, he did.

He made a mental apology to the owner of the boat as he sliced the boat free of its rope. With all his strength, he pushed and pulled at the oars, swiftly bringing it to meet the unperturbed bird. But just as he drop the oar and reached out to grab at his keys, the heron violently flinched, and with a few beats of its wings it launched out of the rippling waters and soared into the clear sky.

It would've been a majestic sight Leonard would've appreciated, but right now his mood had turned sour, and all he could do was yell: "Come back down, you stupid bird!"

With sudden cognizance, he understood: this bird was dangerous, dangerously smart.

He fumbled around the boat, searching under every seat until he finally yielded with a can of raw insects. He didn't question the queer choice of bait, let alone a open one, but he would kiss the owner's boots if he saw him right now.

He might not know a thing about attracting birds but he decided to take the risk. With the heron circling above, he held the can upwards and whistled.

Triumph swelled in him when the heron swooped down, and it quickly turned into fear, as he barely managed to duck as the heron dived beak first.

There was a clatter in front of him, and the boat dipped.

His eyes met the heron's beady ones, black irises gleaming with unorthodox intelligence he had never seen in a normal heron. Then, his gaze trailed to the very centre between him and the feathered predator.

His key laid on the wooden surface.

He locked stares with the heron that had perched at the other end of the bird. It regarded him with an unspoken mock challenge. Steadily, he put down the can of insects on the bench. The bird fluttered its wings at his slight movement.

Silence pervaded their intense staredown. Then, at the same time, they both pounced.

Claws met skin; shrieks and screeches broke the tranquillity of the lake. In the midst of their struggles, Leonard managed to reach under and snatched his key.

His sense of victory was short-lived, for he felt the boat tipping sideways, and before he crashed into the freezing waters a cursory thought flashed in his mind:

Be careful of what you wish for.

♧[15/5/2020]♧

I probably have gotten a few facts wrong above but oh well just take it as a super smart heron and a not-so-smart cop.

Feedbacks and criticisms are appreciated.

:)