The Blue Blood Alpha

Chapter 41 - Not Just a Chicken

Jin has a bemused look on his face, as they gather round a tiny grave in the rose garden. Even Uncle Bob has come out for the ceremony, utilizing his new wheelchair they received in the last supply run. No doubt, a rooster funeral is a first for all of them. Lily is kneeling down and arranging a beautiful bouquet of flowers to lie on top of the grave. Glancing up at Jin, Lily recalls the narrow miss they had this morning.

"Jin NO!! What are you doing?!" cried Lily as she walked into the kitchen.

"I'm making dumplings. I'll have to defrost and pluck the chicken first. Why did you freeze it this way?" says Jin, as he holds the frozen rooster carcass he has just pulled out of the deep freezer.

"That's Henry! We can't eat Henry!" says Lily as she rushes over and takes Henry's frozen body from Jin.

"It's a chicken, it's food" Jin counters.

"No, you don't understand, this is Henry. He was my pet rooster; he was special to me. I froze him, so I could give him a proper burial when the time was right".

So now they all huddled together in Blanche's rose garden, after burying a dead chicken.

"I'd like to say a few words if I may" Lily says quietly as she stands up from kneeling.

"You go ahead dear, these two knuckle heads will keep quiet, if they know what's good for them" says Uncle Bob as he glares at Jin and Atlas, making it clear that are not to make fun of Lily. Lily goes to uncle bob and holds his hand.

"We are gathered here today, to farewell Henry, who was taken from us far too soon. He was a fine rooster, always looking out for his flock. He especially loved Henrietta and his unborn chick, who were also cruelly taken from us" Lily pauses here and stifles a little sob, Uncle Bob squeezes her hand, encouraging her to go on.

"Henry was brave and crowed until the very end, trying to warn me. I know there will never be a rooster that can replace him, and I take solace in knowing the three of them are in poultry heaven together. Rest in peace Henry, Henrietta and your little chick, we will miss you, Amen".

Altas and Uncle Bob solemnly repeat "Amen" too, Lily glances at Jin who is silent. She can see he has his hand over his mouth, and he is shaking, obviously stifling a laugh. Lily narrows her eyes at him, just as she's about to blast him she hears "buk, buk, buk, ba-gawk" followed by a "cheep, cheep". Turning towards the sound, she sees Henrietta wander into the rose garden, followed by a cute fluffy yellow chick.

"Henrietta you're alive!" Lily exclaims as she rushes over and picks up the hen and nuzzles her "and look at your beautiful baby" putting the hen down, she carefully picks up the baby chick, cupping it in her hand, she brings it over to Uncle Bob.

"Look Uncle Bob Henrietta and her baby are alive! She must have hidden with her newborn chick when the rogues came. What a clever Hen she is!" Lily has tears of joy running down her cheeks.

"She is a clever one alright, always amazes me how resilient mothers are when it comes to protecting their babies. We should probably setup a temporary hutch closer to the cabin, where we can keep an eye on them" advises Uncle Bob

"I'll get to work on making one up right away" Atlas says, as he comes up to Lily and gives her side hug.

"Oh look, she's paying her respects to Henry" Lily says, as she points to Henrietta who is on top of Henry's grave, scratching around in the upturned soil.

"She's looking for worms, because she's a chicken" Jin observes.

"Henrietta is not just a chicken, she's family! And don't you even think about trying to cook her Jin!" Lily can see Jin putting a hand over his mouth again, his body shaking, as he tries to stop his laughter.