[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Crawford Ferring had never worked a day in his life. He was priviledged, born into a rich family with wealth to spare, and therefore had no need for the nine to five routine of the average layman. At the same time, his mother had always been busy with her soirees and charities, and his father had been a man of business and country clubs, and so Crawford had had very little direction in his early years from either of his parents.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He had been raised by a Governess, who was a firm believer in what she had called the five R's - Reading, wRiting, aRithmetic, Rest and Recreation, and this had meant that as a young boy he had been more or less free to pursue whatever interested him, whilst his Governess concentrated on her own fourth R.

Crawford had therefore grown up with a very eclectic view on what constituted interesting, and he would often jump from one pursuit to the next, often not finishing whatever it was that he had started.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

His chief interest (after the age of about eleven, truthfully) was birdwatching, which had been met with a variety of chuckles and titters at most of his Mother's soirees until they realised he was actually serious about it, at which point the laughter usually turned into hushed whispers and avoidance. Unfortunately, Crawford cared very little about the opinions of the other rich folk who attended these gatherings, and so the majority of the criticism and gossip went right over his head, irrespective of how blatant the behaviour was.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Presently, he was at one of these gatherings and was describing the gorgeous plumage he had seen on a Lilysite to a very bored heiress, who was winking so furiously at her friend across the room his Mother had quietly asked her Mother whether she had had a stroke in the past year.

"Of course, they're not really birds, being some sort of organic plant-bird hybrid, but they bear many of the same physical appendages and behave much like our resident bird species" he droned, oblivious to his companion's disinterest.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

His mother glided up to him, and gently murmured "Crawford, dear, I'm sure the young lady has heard quite enough of your stories for one evening - perhaps the two of you would like to dance? The string quartet have just set up for the next song."

He chuckled, and missed the miserable look of gratitude the young heiress sent his Mother from where she stood.

"Oh no, Mother, really, I never dance at these things - too tiresome. Besides, we were having such a lovely conversation."

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

The heiress flashed her a look of despair, and his Mother sighed; it was always the same with Crawford. He would pick a corner for the evening and stand in it, and bore the socks off of anyone who was good enough not to ignore his existence.

She took pity on the girl, and gently murmured "Then perhaps your bright young companion would like to powder her nose? The lavatory is on the left, dear, just past the main staircase - I'm afraid you'll have to cross the ballroom to get there."

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

The heiress stammered out her gratitude and gave her a half-curtsy, before turning and all but running across the ballroom to join her friend on the opposite side, as far away as she could get from Crawford.

His Mother watched her go, and sighed; she feared that it was far too late to make him see the error of his ways, and wondered if she should have gotten him a different Governess all those years ago; alas, it would make no difference now."

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"Troubling thoughts, Mother?" Crawford asked, a lazy smile on his face as he sipped his champagne.

She sighed, and turned to face him with her hands clasped.

"Crawford, you do realise that most people simply aren't that fascinated by birds and bird-related things, don't you? I keep setting you up with all of these lovely young ladies, and so far tonight you've driven three of them into the arms of another young man, and a fourth left the party altogether."

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Crawford raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"But Mother, we've been having such lovely conversations - surely they were as entertained as I was? They were listening with such rapt attention, I felt sure we were on the same page."

His Mother closed her eyes and pursed her lips for a moment, and then opened them to look at him fondly. That was her Crawford, indeed - oblivious to any hostility or negativity that was aimed at him, and genuinely surprised when somebody else pointed it out.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"Crawford, dear - I fear that perhaps we did not teach you quite as well as we had hoped. Perhaps if you danced a little rather than lecturing them about your interests, they would be a little more receptive to your - unique - charm. Your Father and I are worried about you; by the time we were your age, you were crawling around the Mansion. We're not getting any younger, and I want to see you settled - I'd like to think about Grandchildren, too, but at the very least I want to see you happy." His mother inhaled deeply, and tilted her head slightly.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Crawford looked shocked, and he raised his champagne to his lips in order to give himself a moment to think.

"Mother, I apologise if I have caused you any undue worry, and I will try to please you and Father, you know I always do. But I wish you could both understand - I am happy, very happy, with my life just as it is at present. I've been elected head of the local Ornithological Society, you know, and I've just received permission to host groups of fellow amateur Ornithologists."

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

His Mother blinked, face carefully blank of all expression, and Crawford sighed.

"I'm head of the local bird-watching society, and I've been given permission to take groups of people bird-watching in Terrace Park" he clarified, before sipping his champagne again. "I know you worry, Mother, but I just haven't met the right person yet - I'm sure she's out there, but would you really have me marry and be miserable, unable to talk to my wife about any of my interests?"

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

His Mother blanched, and then nodded her head graciously, a slight tinge of pink to her cheeks.

"Of course I don't want that for you, dear - but these eligible young ladies will not stay eligible or young for very long. I just don't want to see you end up alone."

He raised his hand and placed it on her shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"I'll be all right, Mother - I have you, and Father, and I still have some time. The right girl will come along at the right time, I'm sure of it."

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

His mother smiled weakly, and placed her hand on top of his to squeeze it gently before taking her leave. Unbeknownst to Crawford, these gatherings had mainly been held to try to matchmake for him, and he had now managed to alienate himself from almost every eligible girl in the province, boring them all half to death with his talk about birds and bird sightings, and goodness knew what else. As she walked away, she could feel the end of her attempts approaching, like a dark tunnel ahead of her.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

To Crawford, the sudden ceasing of his Mother's balls and galas merely afforded him more time to pursue his passions, and he spent many warm days walking through the park, studying the flocks of birds overhead and making notes on the best places to construct a hide in order to observe them without affecting their behaviour. The lack of social commitments meant he was able to bring his plan of hosting bird-watching tours forward, and he eagerly anticipated his first group.