Screaming, I sent a combination of vulgar words into the world as I fell on my ass. Berries rolled, I scurried, and my legs scattered under me. I dove out of the gate, breathing and noting that Phoebe had vanished again.
Everything went downhill after that.
Swallowing whatever mixture of raw emotions remained in my throat, I fixed the skirt of my dress, wiping my hands on its brown cotton fabric, and held my tongue.Keep going, Reece.
Butters, the bear, stood on the opposite side of the pasture.Butters: ten, pimbrough bear, only eats veggies and fruit / starved in cage as cub. Pimbrough bears are known for (1) skin that cannot be pierced, and (2) producing a fluid under their fur that has been known to provide the same shield-like properties if curated correctly.
They’re often hunted and caged, which was how Butters was found. His body had grown to fit the cage. With his bad bones, he couldn’t hunt and survive in the wild on his own.
Drawing in yet another deep breath, I turned and made my way to the house for his food. Grass itched my skin, and the smell of chicken shit became ripe in the air.
Would this be it for me? Feeding, sweating, crying, dying? Out of all the possible outcomes my life had…
Carrying a massive amount of vegetables and melons into the enclosure, my arms burned like boiling noodles. Weak and flimsy. If someone threw my body against cabinets, I’d surely stick. But with Butters on the other side of the field, I should be able to slip in and—
Four gigantic paws stood under a several-hundred-pound bear, staring at me with unwelcoming black hole eyes. My feet fused with the grass.What the fuck do I say to a bear? I’m feeding him, he should be inviting me right on in.There weren’t notes in the books about this.
So I took a step forward.
So did Butters; however, his came much quicker.Nope.Not needing another moment, I scrambled over the fence,legs buckling like a broken pair of stilts, and landed directly ass-first in a nice me-shaped puddle of mud.
With a fence separating us and no growling on the other side, and no pride left inside of me anyway, I sat for a moment. Mud oozed through each crack and crevice, coating my skin like lotion. Mother nature’s lotion.
I watched the bear inside, sitting on his rear, feeding himself fruits from the ground. Maybe I’d been delusional, but he seemed less angry. His claws traced the skin carefully, peeling it at the specific angle he preferred. Little fuzzy ears wiggled as though dancing with joy for food.My type of bear.Shifting myself around in the mud, my tailbone ached, and something in me partially wished I’d stayed inside Butters’s fence and allowed him to peel my skin like fruit. Halfway done, caked with mud and sweat and a pissy attitude, I rose.
Laken’s irritatingly perfect face flashed in my mind, grinning ear to ear.“I told you I could help,”he’d say.“I always know better.”
Wait… why did I care what Laken would say? I didn’t.
Half because I couldn’t admit defeat and half because I’d drag myself through quicksand before admitting I was wrong—I moved my feet.
Four down, four to go.
Benedict: five, moki raccoon, receives breathing treatments / TROUBLESOME. Moki raccoons have the ability to actually cause things to disappear, playing into their playful lore. Also making them desirable for thieves, as they’re quite intelligent.They’re rumored to be shape-shifters. But as a good mischief maker never tells his secrets—there’s never been any proof to support that.
A couple years back, Benedict had been found after being stabbed in what was assumed to be some kind of jewel robbery. The wounds stunted his magic and ability to climb.
Benedict was Benedict. He snatched the food from my hands and ran. Somehow, pieces ended up in my hair. As the raccoon scuttled away, I followed his fixed stare to the gate. My stomach sank.No—oh my Gods, you little bastard-ass raccoon.
Never before had I seen an animal look so humanlike with the mischief blazing in his eyes. The muscles of my legs tensed, preparing to launch. He wanted to run, to escape and have a fun chase. Time stood still as he peered back at me, and I lunged. Missing Benedict, the air ripped straight from my lungs as I collapsed onto the ground. Snorting dirt up my nose, food spilled everywhere. No worries though; two little raccoon hands scooped it up.
Short-winded, I huffed and puffed and… collapsed with defeat into the dirt. What’s the point?
This would kill me. These animals would be the cause of my death.
With a straight neck and tall shoulders, I stood firmly in front of the hellblazers’ coop.Hellblazers: Chicken Soup, Chicken Noodle, Roasted Chicken, Fried Chicken, Chicken Broth, Chicken Sandwich, Spicy Chicken Sandwich, Chicken and Waffles, approximately seven to ten years old, VERY SENSITIVE AND RUDE / saved from illegal fighting pits. They were literalhell.
Seeing them again, their feathers and murderous beaks, resurfaced feelings and memories I wished I could scrub from my mind. Three years ago, I’d left Honey Brooke. Before that, Laken had vanished. But a week before that, everything had gone up in flames.
My father had left for a five-day trip to save some creature he’d told me nothing about—and he’d never leave me in charge alone unless he had to. Trust me, he’d asked old friends and even the neighbors before coming to his last resort—and he’d regretted it every day since.
Long story short, the chickens escaped me. Laken had been helping but didn’t come that morning; go figure. The hellblazers ran loose in town. After chasing them for miles, we circled the town while others watched, laughed, or whispered. Until the fire started. Until the town center building burned and smoke choked their condescending voices.
It took half an ocean of water, pounds of hay, and Laken Augustus to save the day.
I stood in front of a crowd with lethal glares aimed at me, soaked with water and sweat. Half my clothes were crisps, my hair frayed and damp. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking, and I couldn’t breathe. The barbs of their abhorrence pierced my throat and forbade me to speak. Petrified, I retreated and went to turn before Laken grabbed my arm.
And even from him, I pulled away. In conclusion, Ireallyhated these fucking chickens.
