Chapter 2

At least it is warm at night

Kevin loved his new ability to fly. He could only manage being airborne a little bit at a time as it was very tiring. He literally got carried away with his new abilities and almost forgot about his previous life as a little boy. Night didn't seem as dark as it was normally as Kevin's eyes were different. He landed somewhere he thought looked nice for a chicken to land. It was a cold night, but Kevin was warm and snug in his new coating of feathers. He was quite pleased with himself said "It's not bad being a chicken". A voice came out of nowhere and said "SSSSHHHH". Kevin was startled and looked around but couldn't see anyone. "Keep still" said a voice beside him. "Who's there" Kevin said. "SSSHHH" went the voice again. "Be quiet". Kevin froze and didn't flicker a feather. Kevin heard a slight rustling of grass and then saw a Fox poke his head through a fence just in front of Kevin and paused. 

Kevin froze so hard he thought time had stopped. He suddenly realised that he was actually walking food, and Kevin was partial to a bit of chicken too as he liked to go to BenMuckity's Special Chicken Kitchen. He liked the food when he was eating it, but sometimes he; didn't feel well afterwards. He hoped that thought might put the fox off. What seemed like an eternity passed before the fox slowly withdrew its head and faded away. Kevin was standing in front of some fly-tipped rubbish, in particular a feather pillow that was split open. 

That was lucky. Kevin quietly turned around and gazed down on a starling. "Oh hello there" Kevin said quietly. "You're not so clever for a peacock" said the starling. Kevin quietly laughed and said "I'm flattered, but I'm not a peacock, I'm a chicken" said Kevin. "No you're not, your one of the Peacock family who live over there" said the starling as he pointed through the trees with the tip of his wing. "We better get going, come this way" said the starling and turned and hopped into the bushes. They climbed through some bushes and came to a chicken coup surrounded by a very tall chicken wire fence. "There, that's their home" said the starling. "I'm not sure how you're going to get in there though, but you better do it soon before the fox comes back" the starling said. Kevin always liked a challenge so he backed up, said "watch this!", started running and then flapped his wings with all his might, even though he was tired. Kevin almost went vertically up like a rocked he always imagined. Over the fence he went and did a little swirl as he landed. "See, I didn't even catch a feather". "Well done!" said the starling. "what's all that commotion out there?" said a voice from inside the coup. "OOhhh it's a little fella!, come and have a look girls." Kevin didn't like girls, but not in a way that his father criticized people on TV for, just that they were a little bit boring, apart from the ones who were like boys and liked climbing trees with him. But, he was in no place to be picky, and after all, he was a very friendly little chicken. "Hello I'm Kevin" he said excitedly. "Oh and were did you come from?" said one of the Peacocks. "I wished to be different and I woke up as a chicken." "You mean a peacock?" said all the chickens in unison "we're all peacocks". Kevin didn't laugh this time. Kevin knew that birds had, well, birds had bird brains, but not even knowing what they themselves were seemed very strange even for someone with limited intellect. "It's way past our bedtime, come in Kevin and we will make a nest for you." Kevin felt nice and cosy in the peacock coup and was well looked after by the peacock family.

After a breakfast of various grains, which somehow tasted great, even without lots of hidden sugar and then more sugar poured on top (as recommended by the sugar companies). After a hearty breakfast naturally fortified grain, it was play time. "So what games do you play?" asked Kevin to the Peacocks. "Oh, we don't really play games anymore, we are too busy pruning and admiring our beautiful peacock feathers." Kevin was stunned. The most amazing thing about being alive is all the fun games and play you could do, and exhilarating fun as a result. He was sure that even chickens must have fun and play games?

It wasn't long before Kevin got onto the subject of how they became known as Peacocks.  He was certain that Peacocks were male after all. "How did you come to be called the peacocks?" Kevin asked a couple of hens. They all had differing stories and then began challenging each other as to the true answer. "How very strange" Kevin thought to himself. This turned into quite a commotion, and even Kevin was blamed for starting the arguments that ensued. Then there was even more of a commotion. The fox had appeared, probably heard all the noise and was looking for an opportunity, and was poking his face into the chicken wire. All the chickens started running, Kevin behind them. "You're new" said the fox to Kevin as he was running off into the coup. Kevin paused and turned. "What beautiful feathers you have, you are a fine example of a peacock." Kevin first felt flattered and proud, but then was hit with reality - the fox was really the source of the peacock lie. Kevin realised that the fox has been coming around and telling the chickens that they are really peacocks and so beautiful. His plan must be to get either the chickens to come out of the coup and show off their beautiful feathers, or, to help the fox get in to the coup. He must have been working on that plan for a very long time. "I know your game!" said Kevin to the fox. "The game is up! You are trying to trick the chickens, and they are chickens. They are beautiful, loving, fun creatures and will not be lied to by you, you stinking fox!". "Get out of here or we will make enough noise for the owner to come and then he will get you!" The fox ran away. At this point the chickens came out of the coup. They heard what Kevin had said and they all awoke from their trance. Kevin said "you are all beautiful creatures no matter what. The fox is a manipulator because he wants to eat you he is laying down plans to get you in a state of confusion so you make the wrong decisions. You should be proud of who you are. I used to be a little boy and now I'm a chicken. I am really a little boy, but that is another illusion. I can, like you, be anything I want, just one thing at a time." "We won't listen to that horrible fox anymore!" said one of the chickens. "We will play, have fun, and love and admire each other from now on!" said another. And they would have fun and play nice games, but Kevin knew it was time to move on. He was starting to feel homesick and understood the types of pressures his parents were on. He wondered how many other type of fox there were out there in the world. At least now he knew what to look out for.

Chapter 1

Kevin the Chicken

Kevin is a boy, and his heart is full of joy. He loves to play, to run skip and jump. If there are any ways have fun, Kevin is interested in them. He likes his toys and puts them where he likes. His mother doesn't seem to understand as she moves them around or puts them away, or worse - makes Kevin put them away. Kevin's Dad is also told what to do by Kevin's mother, and that is even when Dad comes back from work, where Dad is also told what to do. Dad looks sad. When Kevin grows up he's going to be a pilot, or maybe an astronaut. He is going to swim with dolphins and climb mountains too, in his spare time. At school Kevin and his friends are told what to do by the teachers. They are also told what to do by a bell that rings. The bell means that they have to move from one place to another. His friends at school all behave differently depending on what has been on TV the night before. Kevin doesn't understand why his friends all want to be rich and famous. All that means is they have a lot of money, but what is the point of that? Kevin has all the money he needs right now. It costs him nothing to be a magician or a king (he also makes all his friends kings too) and he builds castles at the top of mountains and visits magical worlds. Kevin doesn't watch TV much and his favourite way to start a sentence is "Imagine ..."

What Kevin really likes to do is fight with dragons or fly his space ship to the moon, or ride on a magic carpet. The teacher keeps telling him to stop daydreaming and come back to "reality." Well, Kevin's imagination is very real to him so he doesn't understand what the teacher means.

Kevin's mother tells him to stop daydreaming too, but Kevin can't understand why people don't want to fight dragons and rescue a princess or fly a spaceship to the moon? Kevin sometimes likes to fly a magical unicorn through rainbows, but he likes to keep things like that to himself.

One day Kevin's teacher became very upset with him for a reason that was unknown to Kevin. The teacher wasn't very nice either because she told his mother about what Kevin did. When they got home Kevin wasn't allowed to play with his toys. This made Kevin feel sad, and thought to himself how strange people were acting, and was not sure what they were trying to accomplish. He decided adults are not very good at solving problems. Kevin was told to go to bed as a further punishment. When he put his pyjamas on and got into bed, he started to make a wish. I wish people would treat me differently and I wish I was completely different and didn't have to go to stupid school. Little did Kevin know that a magic fairy, who liked to watch Kevin play, was close by and heard what Kevin said.

In the morning the bedroom seemed a lot bigger than it usually did. It must have been very early too as the sun was just starting to rise. Kevin felt an incredible urge, he couldn't stop himself. COOOCCKKKAADDOOODDLEE DDDOOO!

kevin was very surprised. He then burst out laughing "Hahahahabahbahbak bak bak bakkeeehhh" Kevin stopped. He looked down at his feathery body and froze.

A thump thump thump noise was coming along the passage way and the door swung open. "What's all this AAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHH! Peter! There's a chicken in Kevin's room! And Kevin's gone!" "Mam! It's me, Kevin" Kevin squaked. "OH MY GOD ITS TALKING!" screamed his mother. Kevin's dad, Peter  rushed in and cried "OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD!" "DON'T JUST STAND THERE GRAB IT" Kevin's mother cried. The father bent over and started chasing Kevin. Kevin was laughing and laughing, he had never had so much fun like this with his parents before, and had no one told them it is very very difficult to catch a chicken that way? His parents were getting frantic and screaming, bumping into things and making a mess of Kevin's room. To bring some sort of order Kevin jumped into the air and flapped his wings with all his might, after all he had never flown himself, he had always using some sort of vehicle like a space ship or flying carpet.

He landed on the top of his wardrobe and span round and when "BAAKK BAAKKQQUUIIIIEEEETT AND CALM DOWN!", but they didn't. His mother fell to her knees and Peter dropped and put his arm around her. Keven felt really different, as if he didn't belong there anymore, so he flew over the top of them, down the stairs, and out through the back garden, and into a new world.