Winter mornings in the valley were usually quiet.
Soft.
Serene.
Peaceful.
Unless Borin was awake.
Which he very unfortunately was.
Operation: "Improve the Chicken Morale"
Kael and Charlisa were having a calm breakfast when a scream tore across the village:
"KAEL! COME QUICK! IT'S AN EMERGENCY OF GREAT CHICKEN IMPORTANCE!"
Charlisa inhaled her tea.
Kael closed his eyes.
"Why is it always me?" he groaned.
They ran outside to find Borin standing with arms spread like a prophet of nonsense.
Behind him, the chickens were… wearing sweaters.
Bad sweaters.
Crooked.
Ugly.
Some were too long; a few chickens tripped while running.
Charlisa covered her mouth, shaking with restrained laughter.
Kael stared, horrified.
"Borin… why?"
"It's winter!" Borin shouted. "You think chickens LIKE cold? Huh? Do you want to lay eggs while freezing?"
Kael pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Chickens don't lay in winter anyway."
"That's the EXACT problem I'm solving!"
One sweater-wearing chicken roared (as much as a chicken can roar) and charged straight at Borin.
Borin shrieked, "SEE? This one loves it! She feels FABULOUS!"
Charlisa was laughing openly now. Tears formed.
The village elders stood nearby staring, two seconds away from fainting.
Matriarch Yelara whispered, "Why do we let him live here?"
Borin wasn't done.
Not even close.
Winter silence lasted exactly until Borin woke up again.
Which was, unfortunately, very early.
Kael and Charlisa were having a peaceful breakfast when two voices exploded across the village:
"KAEL! EMERGENCY!"
"KAEL! DON'T LISTEN TO HIM, LISTEN TO ME!"
Charlisa froze.
Kael froze.
Both exchanged a long, defeated stare.
"…Rynar is with him," Charlisa whispered.
"…we're doomed," Kael replied.
They stepped outside.
There stood Borin and Rynar — the unholy combination — shouting over each other, pointing at a flock of terrified chickens.
The chickens… wore sweaters. Again.
But this time they had little capes tied to them too.
Rynar proudly announced,
"WE'RE TESTING THEIR AERODYNAMICS!"
Borin added,
"FOR SCIENCE!"
Kael stared.
"Stop putting clothes on livestock!"
Charlisa whispered under her breath, "Please, ancestors, protect us…"
Rynar had made a ranking board:
CHICKEN FLIGHT ATTEMPTS
1. "Gale Wing Fiona"
2. "Snow Hawk"
3. "Sir Clucksalot"
4. "This One Is Angry, Don't Touch"
Charlisa choked trying not to laugh.
Kael marched forward to scold them — only for an enraged sweater-and-cape chicken to launch onto Borin's face.
Rynar doubled over laughing.
"THE HAWK HAS CHOSEN HER PREY!"
Borin staggered blindly through the snow screaming,
"GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF—HELP, KAEL!"
Kael tried to help.
Charlisa tried to help.
They both failed and laughed instead.
Children gathered to watch.
Elders prayed.
The chicken flap-glided away dramatically.
Borin lay in the snow like a fallen hero.
Rynar saluted him.
---
Later that day, Borin and Rynar convinced Kael to assist them in building "The Greatest Winter Sculpture Ever."
Charlisa followed at a distance, carrying a first-aid bundle because she already predicted doom.
On the slope, Borin pointed randomly.
Rynar said, "Let's poke it."
Kael said, "We should NOT poke it."
They poked it.
A massive sheet of snow dislodged and tumbled downward, swallowing all three men in a dramatic, roaring wave.
Charlisa gasped — but quickly realized it was shallow, soft snow, not dangerous.
Still, she sprinted over as snow drifted and settled…
Borin's muffled voice:
"I THINK I CAN SEE THE SPIRITS."
Rynar's muffled voice:
"I TOLD YOU WE SHOULD HAVE DUG LEFT."
Kael's muffled voice:
"I HATE BOTH OF YOU."
Charlisa found all three heads sticking out of the snow like trapped turnips.
She doubled over laughing before rescuing them.
---
That evening, Borin and Rynar proudly presented their masterpiece:
A colossal snow-beast with:
huge twisted branch antlers
glowing amber stones for eyes
Kael's missing boots
a spear made of frozen fish tied to a stick
and a giant ice-block loincloth "for modesty"
Charlisa stared in disbelief.
Kael stared in betrayal.
"YOU stole my boots AGAIN!?" Kael shouted.
Borin shrugged.
"The beast needed feet."
Rynar added,
"And a sense of style."
A toddler screamed,
"THE MONSTER HAS COME FOR US!"
The sweater-chickens stampeded past like feathery demons, setting off chaos.
Two elders fainted.
Children squealed.
A goat fainted on purpose for drama.
Borin and Rynar high-fived.
Charlisa had to sit in snow because she was laughing too hard to stand.
---
As the saying goes 'Chaos Gives Way to Something Soft'
When the village calmed, Borin and Rynar wandered off arguing about whether chickens could be trained to deliver messages.
Charlisa and Kael walked home slowly.
Kael exhaled, rubbing his forehead.
"I apologize on behalf of my entire childhood."
"I think they're wonderful," Charlisa said.
Kael blinked at her.
"Wonderful…? Are you watching the same disasters I'm watching?"
Charlisa chuckled.
"They're ridiculous. Loud. Dangerous. But… they bring out a part of you that shines."
"What part?"
"The part that laughs without holding back."
She squeezed his hand.
"The part that feels alive. The part I fell in love with."
Kael's breath caught.
Snow fell softly around them as they stopped on the path.
"I'll try to be that more," he whispered.
"You already are," Charlisa murmured.
Behind them, from far away, Borin and Rynar yelled:
"KAEL! QUICK, WE NEED YOU! THE CHICKEN POSTAL SERVICE IS FAILING!"
Kael groaned.
Charlisa laughed so hard she had to hold his arm.
And somehow, despite the insanity, the winter night felt warm.