[SYNOPSIS: It all started with just a leisurely day at the park...and it ended with an army of crows. Well, if you happen to look like one, they're bound to take a liking to you.]

[LOCATION: Crewville Park]

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"You see a good spot anywhere, Aiden?"

"Still looking...Oh, there's one! There are a few hangin' out by that bench."

The brown crewmate pointed over to the area in question, both he and his father spying a few sparrows scattered along the ground.

"Good eye, son," DrDoktor nodded, shaking the paper bag he had with him a bit. "One good way to make use of the stale bread and oats, isn't it?"

"I should say."

They both sat down on the bench, careful not to spook the small flock as they parked and opened up their paper bags, each tossing out a handful onto the sidewalk...The sparrows came quickly once they realized it was food, and the small group of four soon turned to five, then seven, and then a DOZEN before their very eyes.

"Wow...They really like this stuff, huh?" Aiden marveled.

"Indeed. Most birds aren't picky in the slightest," DrDoktor nodded. "They can't taste all that well, of course."

"No, huh? Well, they seem to at least like this better than seeds and bugs."

"For certain. Not as many people frequent here during winter, so a bit of extra food will help to sustain them until spring."

"Whoa, look! Here come some bigger ones!"

Aiden kept his excitement contained in a whisper as he spied some larger, more colorful birds begin to flock around them...A few house finches showed up to the feast, followed by a few pigeons, and...a cardinal! The bright flash of red among the browns and greys was quick to catch their attention.

"We must be really popular today, huh Dad?"

"I should say," the inky black crewmate nodded in agreement...As he continued to feed the flock of now mixed birds, he happened to spy another small group gathered around another empty bench not far away, waiting for a fill of their own.

"Aiden. There's another flock over there," he said to his son, pointing. "Perhaps you might like to offer them some of your feed. I'll take over for this flock."

"Good idea. Can't have these guys hogging all of it, right?" Aiden agreed, slowly standing up from the bench and making his way over to the other one. "I'll tell you if anything else interesting shows up!"

"I'm looking forward to it."

He watched as the brown-clad figure approached the other flock and sat down on the other bench...For the longest time, he thought there might never be a day like this again.

"And yet, here we are," he said, looking down at his congregation of birds as though speaking to them. "Our journey was long and harrowing, but it's all in the past. And in the past, we shall put it behind...There is no looking back now. Only-"

Before he could finish his sentence, all of the birds at DrDoktor's feet suddenly scattered into the air in an alarmed flurry of wingbeats.

"What in the...?"

The masked crewmate looked around for anything amiss, then spied something down on the sidewalk...The presence which had frightened off the birds was yet another  bird. But this large, shiny black specimen could never be mistaken for a sparrow or pigeon.

"Oh...I see. 'T was a bad omen which scared them off, it seems."

It was a crow, and a hungry one at that. One by one, it picked up what pieces of bread and oat were left in its beak until the ground was clear...And once it was, the bird looked up at DrDoktor and stared him right in the eye, expecting to be given more.

"You may have just singlehandedly ruined my reputation with the other birds," he scolded. "Hm...but I suppose you're one, too. You can't go hungry."

He shrugged, tossing out another handful of bread and oats...This time, the crow only picked up a few pieces before lifting its head and letting out a few sharp caws.

And only moments after it sounded off, a second crow came to join in and dine on the grains. And they were almost immediately joined by another, and another, and another still!

"Good heavens..."

Before DrDoktor even knew what was happening, TEN crows had been summoned to his bench. And they downed the food like it was going out of style.

And then an ELEVENTH crow came by, and it landed right next to him on the bench. DrDoktor started a bit at the bird coming so close to him, and he leaned away from it...

...Until he noticed something shiny in its beak.

A closer inspection revealed the item to be a piece of foil, perhaps from a candy wrapper. The crow placed it down on the bench beside him and then trilled as it eyed up the bag of food.

"Erm...well...Thank you for your patronage."

He placed a small handful down on the seat of the bench right in front of it, and the crow went to town on it without any hesitation...The others gathered on the ground saw this act, and one by one they flew off, only to return a minute or two later with something to "pay" the crewmate with for their own personal pile of feed.

DrDoktor had only just wrapped his head around what they were doing, and at that point he was more impressed than he was unnerved; he knew that crows were supposed to be very smart, but THIS? This was unlike anything he'd EVER fathomed. And yet, here he was watching them bring him pebbles, glass shards, shreds of paper...

...A green  shred of paper caught his eye, held in the largest one's beak as it presented it to him. The inky black crewmate unfurled it, and to his wide-eyed wonder he beheld a crisp $10 bill!

"My God...Where did you find this!?"

The crow in question simply tilted its head, awaiting its goods. Still amazed, DrDoktor reached into his bag to give this one an ESPECIALLY large share of feed...

...Only to feel nothing but the bottom of the paper bag.

"Uh-oh..."

He looked inside, and deflated at the discovery that he had used all of his bread and oat mix. But the crows were blissfully unaware of his predicament, and they continued to stare and wait for more.

"...I suspect there'll be two kinds of murders in this park if I halt my supply," he acknowledged, humming to himself as he looked around and started to think of what to do...

As his eyes wandered, they fell upon one of the small businesses along the opposite side of the road from the park: a little grocery store, advertising store-baked bread and fresh produce.

That was when a lightbulb went off inside the doctor's head.

"Perfect!" he grinned. "Sit tight, my feathered entourage. You're in for something great."

With a few shakes, he dumped out what few little pieces of grain were left hidden in his bag's edges onto the ground to keep the crows busy, then stood up and hightailed it through the brown foliage, out of the park grounds and right to the nearest crosswalk.

The largest crow took notice of DrDoktor's disappearance, and found him again just as he was crossing the street. A disgruntled caw escaped its throat as it took wing and gave chase, following him out of the park and rising above the busy streets to try and catch him...But the crow caught up with him a moment too late; the crewmate had already gone into the market and the door had closed behind him. The crow slowed its flight and landed just in time to avoid colliding with the glass and was hapless to watch him as he wandered around inside the warm building full of food. So the bird stood outside and glared at him the entire time DrDoktor was in there.

...Unknowing of what he was actually up to.

When the masked crewmate emerged again, he was met with a harsh, unintelligible lecture from the obsidian-feathered bird.

"Oh. So you followed me here," he remarked, recognizing it as the one who'd gifted him the ten dollars. "Forgive me if it seemed as though I abandoned you...But since we're alone, why don't I show you my appreciation for your generous gift?"

He reached into his now much larger paper bag and pulled out not one, but TWO different things to give it...The crow stared down at them, as though marveling at the feast before it. For there at its feet sat a generous pile of corn and a whole piece of raisin bread broken into bite-sized pieces.

"Help yourself."

And help itself it did. It delicately picked up each piece of corn and gulped down each bit of bread, and everything was gone in under a minute.

"Your gift went to good use, that's for sure," DrDoktor told it as he went back across the street towards the park, the crow following close behind. "And I still have $3 in change. Perhaps that can go towards next week's visit."

He returned to his bench to find the rest of the crows still waiting for him. He didn't keep them waiting long, opening up his bag again and letting the REAL feast commence...The largest, who'd followed him to the store and back, only took a few more bites from off the ground before fluttering up onto the bench beside DrDoktor and watching the others eat, satisfied with its fill.

It was interesting, really; he had never been this close to any wild bird before without scaring them off, but this bunch seemed more than content to have him around.

"Perhaps it's the mask," he mused. "...Come to think of it, I don't suppose I look much different from any of you through your eyes."

The crow on the bench stared right back at him as he spoke, as though listening.

"I wonder how Aiden is holding up with his flock? It wouldn't surprise me if the songbirds from before have gone to him now."

"Well they were before! But now I've got almost the same problem as YOU!"

He heard his son's voice from across the walkway, and he looked up to see that the brown-clad crewmate was being swarmed by not sparrows, not pigeons and not crows...

...But a hungry scurry of squirrels.

And they were climbing ALL OVER him seeking more food.

"Well, nevermore shall I anticipate the songbirds to return to us after this event," DrDoktor remarked. "Nevermore..."