Marnie called from the kitchen when she and Jas pulled the front door open. “Say hi to the farmer for me, will you, Georgie?”

“Okay!” Georgie replied at the top of her lungs which sounded breathy and shrill even to her own ears.

All the while Jas was busy fixing her sun hat, “Ready?” she asked, stepping out their ranch house and into a springtime forest morning.

“Yeah.” She followed Jas. “Will you find me some stamps?”

Her nose wrinkled. “I told you, didn’t I?”

Ducking her chin, Georgie hugged her satchel close “I’m just not used to relying on anyone.”

Jas bounced on her heels in giddiness, the pink dress ruffled and bounced in the wind, light as air “I heard about that. Farmers get to be very self-reliant, don’t they?”

“Yes.” her mouth turned dry. “I am a farmer. Living in a farmhouse. Raised in a farm.” she nodded, crossing her arms.

“Do you know your way to the farm from here?” When she didn’t answer, Jas followed it up with helpful point of direction “Over there.”

“Yes. Right. The farmer must be so worried about me not coming home yesterday.”

Jas’ smiled turned dim, concern lacing her voice “Do you want me to come with you? I can explain the situation to him for you. I can be very charming.”

Shaking her head, “No. I don’t want you to be late on your way to class.”

“Okay, then. I’ll see you in a few!” She hopped and skipped down the path leading to town.

“With my stamps!”

A burst of giggles, “You got it!”

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“Are you sure you don’t want my eggs?” She yelled after Jas.

“Keep it!”

“Too too?”

Georgie’s heart jumped to her mouth, and she yelled with a cry.

Little Teacup exploded out of her bag, alien power lacing the air that was surrounding little Teacup with a smog of purple and blue, the color of poisonous galaxies.

“No Teacup look she’s a.. chicken?!”

The chicken looked far different. It wasn’t otherworldly, it didn’t seem like it had come from an earthly dimension. Where else on earth would she have seen an orange chicken with scruff as yellow as a banana? Plus its rounded eyes were completely on the front plane of its face when a chicken’s should have been on both sides, left and right. “Too too?” Ember fires bloomed under its feet, the ground glowing molten lava, snaking a path towards Georgie.

Before it could hit her, Teacup sucker punched the burning chicken using her purple arm that looked like a cup handle.

Obviously, the chicken was alien, unknown in origin. Most probably must have come from the recent comet sighting, she thought as the orange chicken in question went dizzy and fell on its back.

Marnie came running out the front door, “I heard screaming. Something wrong, Georgie? Oh no.” she ran past her and scooped up the fainted orange chicken in her arms. “What’s it doing here so close to our ranch? Lewis! LEWIS!”

The mayor stepped out wearing his purple shorts and purple socks. “What’s happened?”

“It’s Jas’ chickens, it came here. Something must have happened.”

Teacup floated back inside her opened satchel without alerting anyone to her presence. “Is it trouble?” asked Georgie.

Marnie looked stricken, as though she had just remembered she was there. “Oh. It’s fine, Georgie. Me and Lewis got this under wraps.” she turned to the half-naked mayor. “Get your hiking boots, we’re heading southeast to check back on them.”

They wasted no time getting ready complete with their packs and hiking gear as Georgie followed closely behind them, “Check back on who?”

On the foyer, Mayor Lewis fastened his brown hat for last before walking out “New species sighting, southeast on the forest. They look like chickens, but they seem to show signs of higher intelligence than the usual ones.” he nodded at Marnie when she began walking along next to him. “No danger. Well, in fact, they began taking care of the forest even better than we do. Though they don’t trust us humans.”

In Marnie’s arms lie a swaddled sleeping orange chicken, she bent down to pass it to Georgie. “Lewis and I will be gone for a few hours checking on the new species. It might take us long while. Be a dear and watch over this little one, will you?”

“We’ll be back after sundown!” Lewis called after her just about when they were about to disappear in the forest tree line.

“Okay!” called back Georgie. The orange chicken in her arms curling deeply into the blanket with a satisfied hum, rubbing its cheeks against fabric with what looked to be a smile beginning to form on its beak. “What am I going to do with you?” she whispered.

“Too too” it said softly in its sleep.

When the coast was clear, little Teacup left her satchel and asked Georgie the same question with a longing gaze. They both knew they were out of schedule. A severe punishment awaiting back at the witch’s swamp.

She sighed, then started to walk towards Pelican town and onto their library. “I’m in so much trouble, Teacup. Might as well get done what I came for, yeah? It will all be the same no matter what.”