Chapter 21- the next day
The sun peered above the eastern horizon to mark the beginning or sunrise of the next day's morning in Rio. In Tulio's Aviary, Mars, Phobos, Deimos, Alexandre, Travis, Sunset, Eustace, Milo and Rosa awoke from their uneasy sleep. Last night they had been restless, their minds churning like the white water of a turbulently flowing river with the worries about their friends still at the poachers' hideout and the possible abuse they were receiving from Nigel, especially Venus and Mercury, Blu, Jewel, Carla, Bia and Tiago. The nine had spent the night in the nearby vegetation surrounding Tulio's Aviary for it had been too risky to find a tree to settle in. As the group woke up, stretched their wings and yawned, Mars wearily gazed up at Tulio's Aviary with droopy eyes. After rubbing his eyes to get rid of any crusty gunk that had built up in his eyes during the sleep Mars had managed to obtain, the green-winged macaw turned to the others.
"I'm going to fly back into Tulio's Aviary to check on Chiquitita and Jupiter while one of you look for some fruit for our breakfast," he told Travis and Sunset as they also rubbed their eyes.
"Okay, go ahead," said Travis, "While I do the foraging."
He then nodded to Sunset who nodded back to say that she was fine looking after the six chicks while he and Mars were absent. Then with three flaps, Mars and Travis were gone, the former in the direction of Tulio's Aviary and the latter toward the forest. Back in Tulio's Aviary, the bird casualties that slept in a special recovery room were waking up and filling the air with their squawks. This part of Tulio's Aviary was designed for birds recovering from more serious injuries like broken wings. Along the walls were boxes with silvery grate-like coverings for doors. A food bowl and soft bedding were placed inside the floor of each cage and a drinking tube was attached to each of the doors. The bird doctors in charge of this room were beginning their job. These doctors were a different group of people from those last night for they were dayshift workers. As the doctors changed into their gowns, from one of the cages, a vermillion coloured form with teal and yellow wings and a teal patched tail looked up with sleepy eyes. Jupiter had been placed into one of these cages last night by one of the nightshift doctors. As Jupiter woke up and watched the first two dayshift doctors enter the room to begin their first task: checking the drinking tubes and food bowls to see if they wanted washing and refilling, Jupiter felt a strange sensation on his left talon. At this, he looked down his left leg and saw that its ankle and the top of the foot was covered in soft, white wrapping known as bandages. Jupiter winced, remembering what Nigel had done to that foot last night during his escape. Then the scarlet macaw rolled onto his stomach and tried to stand up, but he could only do so on his other, unharmed foot. The wounded one sent pain streaking up his leg every time Jupiter put pressure on it. Though it was not as painful as it was last night it still too painful for Jupiter to stand on it. As Jupiter then hopped on his other unwounded foot, the range of view through the holes in the grated metal door in front of him became clouded by an opaque pale blue screen. Then a clicking noise was heard as the door to Jupiter's case was unlocked. Jupiter, at this, looked around and saw the door open and then the face of the bird doctor as she smiled.
"Hey, there, scarlet macaw," she said, "Time to have a look at your leg."
Jupiter, at this, shot a glance down at his bandaged foot as a pair of hands slowly and gently crept towards him to scoop him out of the cage. As the hands then picked him up, Jupiter went slack. Being a formerly domesticated macaw who had spent most of his life around humans, he was used to them and because he knew that these were bird doctors who cared for birds and he knew them personally as well, he trusted them greatly and thus was calm around them. Other birds, especially those that had had a bad experience with humans or were wild required more careful and gentle handling in addition to patience. Jupiter was then taken out of his cage and carried to the medical room. It was then that another red macaw, similar to a scarlet macaw but had green replacing the area on the wings which were yellow in the scarlet species, flapped in through the window. Mars had entered the building through the open window. As soon as he was in the living room, he began to examine the room in which the dayshift doctors' jobs were starting up until his eyes landed on the familiar red-orange bundle in a bird doctor's arms. At this, Mars fluttered after the bird doctor. Jupiter was then carried toward a table top and placed there. After this, the bird doctor left to look for some fresh bandages. As the doctor left, a red, green and blue form appeared, much to Jupiter's joy and surprise.
"Mars," he said, "Good to see you."
"Have you had a nice sleep?" asked Mars.
"It had been uneasy," said Jupiter with a sigh, "My mind was flooded with the thoughts about our friends who are still trapped in that poacher's place, including Ruby and my four chicks. Not to mention the pain from my foot," Jupiter then shuddered, "But I had an awful dream last night."
"Really?" asked Mars, "What was it about?"
"It was too disturbing but it was about my mate and chicks," said Jupiter, "And of course Nigel. To put it short, Nigel was standing over the corpses of Ruby, Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, laughing maniacally, and that's when I woke up."
Jupiter then felt his stomach churn at the memories of that nightmare. Mars looked on in surprise. This was similar to the nightmare Venus had had about Zephyr, Justin, Charlotte, Matilda and Virgil and them being held in a cage and being tormented by Nigel. Mars sighed as thoughts about the others still held in the poachers' place came to mind when a familiar female voice caught his attention.
"Mars," said the voice's owner. At this, Mars looked up and saw a small green-winged macaw with a bandage around her midsection fly in toward Mars. Mars opened his wings and the two spun in a hug. Chiquitita had been allowed to fly from her cage after spending the night last night. She looked bright with gladness at seeing her mate but that soon fell when she saw Jupiter and his bandaged foot.
"Oh, no, what happened to your leg, Jupiter?" asked Chiquitita as she broke the embrace with Mars.
"Nigel bit hard on my left leg when I tried to escape," said Jupiter, gazing at his bandaged foot, "It left a very painful wound. It had been cleaned and bandaged last night but the bird doctor has just left to fetch some clean bandage material to replace this old one."
"Did any of the others manage to escape?" asked Chiquitita.
"No," said Jupiter with a shake of his head, "Venus, Mercury and their families and my mate and four chicks had been captured by the falcons and crows and re-caged. I'm the only one that had got away during the chaos."
"Travis was telling me how he, Sunset, Eustace, Milo and Rosa had managed to escape during that," said Chiquitita, "Before Mars mentioned that I should get this scratch looked at."
She gazed down at her bandaged midsection and sighed.
"At least you've listened," said Mars firmly, "Had you refused treatment, your scratch would have ended up getting worse."
"At least you've got that treated in time," said Jupiter. He then heard footsteps and looked up and saw the bird doctor return with a roll of fresh bandage in her hands covered by clean plastic gloves. "That bird doctor wants to see me. So if you don't mind, I'd like to be left alone."
At this, Mars and Chiquitita backed away and allowed the bird doctor to see to replacing Jupiter's foot.
"I think Jupiter's bite wound would have likely become infected as well had he not got that treated," said Chiquitita in a low voice. Mars shot her a confused glare but Chiquitita's was dark.
"With Nigel stuffing his beak on disgusting things," she explained, "The germs he picks up would have got into Jupiter's wound."
"Nigel certainly is one filthy cockatoo;" muttered Mars, "To hear that he doesn't wash and never has washed at all is kind of disturbing."
Chiquitita nodded in agreement.
"So how is your belly scratch?" asked Mars. Chiquitita ran a wing on the bandage on her stomach.
"It's fine, not too serious," she said, "The bird doctors last night cleaned out the wound and bandaged it. Thankfully it was not too bad."
"It was beginning to show signs of infection," said Mars, "Glad we nipped it in the bud before it got any worse."
Chiquitita let loose a sigh at having her pride slightly dented but she eventually realised that sometimes she did not know best and that you had to take the advice of others who were wiser. But then her face flashed to a confused look.
"Nipped it in the bud?" she asked.
"It's a phrase meaning to stop a threat in its earliest stages based on its initial signs," explained Mars. "What I meant was we spotted the early signs of your scratch becoming infected and stopped it before it got any worse."
"Yes, thanks," said Chiquitita slightly feistily. Then the sounds of wing flaps reached the ears of the group. At this, the green-winged macaw couple turned and saw a white cockatoo fly in through the window with some fruit in his talons.
"Here you go, Mars, a nice mango and some berries," said Travis as he touched down and set the fruit down before Mars, "Sunset and the six chicks are eating a pineapple, papaya and a few nuts."
"Thanks, Travis," said Mars as he picked up the Mango and began to dig his beak into its flesh to take the first bite. Then Travis's eyes found Chiquitita.
"Chiquitita," cried Travis jubilantly, "Brilliant, you're alright. I'm glad your scratch has been bandaged up."
"We've just seen Jupiter," said Mars with a mouthful of mango, his words grotesquely distorted by the presence of food in his mouth.
"Don't talk with your mouthful," scolded Travis, "It's not nice. Swallow whatever you've got in your mouth first and then speak."
Mars obeyed and continued eating the mango piece until he swallowed it, Chiquitita rolling her eyes in amusement. Then Mars spoke after he had swallowed the mango piece.
"We've just seen Jupiter," said Mars, "He's currently having the bandage around his leg replaced with a fresh one and should be brought back shortly."
"Oh, good," said Travis, "At least he's alright."
"Mars told me that Nigel but his lower leg," said Chiquitita. Travis shot her a dark look.
"That Nigel is a savage brute, honestly," he said, "That was the same attack he had inflicted on Broccoli's paw according to Veggie and Broccoli himself."
"I hope he's not going to become like Brutus," murmured Chiquitita nervously, "Because if he's starting to become violent whenever he loses his temper…"
"Someone else could get hurt," murmured Mars, his orange eyes swollen with worry, even more so as his friends came to mind. "But the question is who's next, and when?"
Mars then resumed eating his mango and berries Travis had brought to him. Chiquitita put her wings up when Travis gave her the 'Do you like some fruit' question.
"I've already had breakfast, thanks," she said, "One of the bird doctors kindly fed me some peach and mango pieces."
Just then footsteps sounded on the floor, drawing the two green-winged macaws and sulfur-crested cockatoo's attention to the source of the sound, the bird doctor, approaching the table. She carried the familiar vermillion bundle in her arms and as soon as she was close to the table, she placed that bundle down onto the table top.
"There you go," said the bird doctor to the bird which was Jupiter, "Your bandage has been freshly replaced and we'll replace it again in a few hours."
Jupiter chirped happily in thanks as the bird doctor then fed him a guava. Jupiter immediately took the guava and began to eat it. Then the bird doctor left to see to another bird casualty. Mars, Chiquitita and Travis walked over to him. However, the three and the scarlet macaw were unaware that they were being watched. From the shadows behind a cabinet, a pair of vivid teal eyes glowed and gazed in Travis's direction. The owner of the pair of eyes was shaped like a small amphibian and above each of her green eyes was a flap of skin resembling eyelashes. The vivid teal eyes glowed with affectionate admiration as they watched Travis then stand near Jupiter and begin to speak to him.
"Oooh, Nigel," crooned the frog in the shadows in a dreamy whisper, "You're back. I'm so glad you've returned, and it seemed that you have gotten younger and have come off your need to wear your vest to conceal the patchiness on your torso now..."
Just then, a pale pink cockatoo with a striking red and yellow banded crest flew in through the window with three green-winged macaw chicks and three hybrid cockatoo chicks, carrying their breakfast. As soon as they saw Jupiter and Chiquitita, Sunset, Phobos, Deimos, Alexandre, Eustace, Milo and Rosa made a beeline towards the two and touched down before them.
"Jupiter, Chiquitita," said Sunset with a smile as the six chicks crowded around Jupiter and Chiquitita and hugged them, the latter two returning the hug. Travis and Mars exchanged amused glances. Then after hugging the six chicks, Jupiter turned to the other three adults, a firm look on his face.
"So, Jupiter, now that it is morning, what next?" asked Sunset. Jupiter was about to reply when suddenly, a fuchsia pink and maroon blur shot in out of nowhere and landed right onto Travis's head! Travis yelped in shock while the others flinched, Chiquitita and Sunset releasing short shrieks as then the something began snuggling against Travis's face, smothering him with frenzied kisses.
"Oh, Nigey-Wigey," crooned the frog as she smooched Travis's cheeks and beak, much to his disgusted shock and revulsion, "I'm so glad you came back! When I found you missing, I've been so extremely heartbroken and now I'm whole again!"
And with that, the frog began to go mad and smother Travis's entire face with even more kisses, so fast that it looked as though she had had a dozen heads. The others looked on in shock, Mars and Chiquitita stifling the urge to giggle, Jupiter in flabbergast and Sunset in utter disbelief. Phobos, Deimos, Alexandre, Eustace, Milo and Rosa also stood there, especially the latter three, dumbfounded looks plastering their faces as they watched Travis, the father of the latter three, then sway around with his white wings clasped onto the frenzied frog's body in an attempt to pry her off his face but the frog continued showering Travis with her frenzied kisses, thinking him to be someone else. Then Sunset was about to take action when she saw what species of frog the creature was.
"Is that little frog poisonous?" she asked.
"I don't know, but based on… how it is smothering Travis with its kisses," muttered Mars trying to resist the urge not to laugh. It was a very funny sight, watching poor Travis struggle to pry the frog from his face as she continued smearing his faces with so many kisses in rapid succession, grunting and wincing in disgust at the slops he was receiving, but it was not at all funny to Sunset.
"I believe it could be the same frog that had fallen in love with Nigel, the one Blu told us about," said Mars. Then Sunset, having had enough of seeing the frog pelt Travis's face with more kisses and smooches, finally strode into action, not caring whether the frog was poisonous or not. A look of disgust on her face on the frog smooching her mate's face and her crest raised, the Major Mitchell's cockatoo marched over to Travis as he fell down onto his back still trying to pry the kissing frog from his face, hooked her claws onto the frog and yanked her away from Travis's face. Travis then let loose a sigh of relief but winced in revulsion as his face felt wet. Rubbing a wing on his cheek, Travis pulled it away to examine the wetness's source. It was only pink-coloured water but it felt gross. Repulsed, Travis got up and turned to see Sunset grasping the female frog as she writhed in her talon. The frog's teal eyes were ablaze with lustful affection.
"Lemme go," she yelled, writhing in Sunset's talon, "I wanna shower Nigey-Wigey with my luuuuuurrrrrve…"
Chiquitita and Jupiter wrinkled their beaks in disgust while Mars shot the six chicks a glare as they began laughing. Phobos, Deimos, Alexandre, Milo, Rosa and Eustace immediately plugged their mouths to stop anymore laughs escaping them when they saw the look on Mars's face. Then Sunset shoved her face into the frog's eyes, a look of rage flaring in her pink eyes and her crest fully raised, exposing the red and yellow banding on the feathers. While this made Sunset look pretty, it also made her look terrifying when she was angry.
"Now you listen here, you pesky little FROG!" bellowed Sunset furiously, making the frog snap out of her affection-crazed state and gaze at her. "Let me get something into your head before things get out of control."
The frog gazed into Sunset's pink eyes and flinched in fright at the fires in them.
"That cockatoo is NOT Nigel of one," barked Sunset, "And two, he is my mate and I do NOT, and will NOT TOLERATE, anyone showering him with immense affection LIKE THAT! UNDERSTAND!?"
At this, the frog, as these words sent shockwaves down her body as they flew from Sunset's beak, shuddered in immense fright.
"I-I-I'm sorry, miss," she begged timidly, "I didn't know…"
Sunset, at this, threw the frog onto the table top and began to drive her away. The frog, driven by panic, then hopped like mad to avoid being attacked by the Major Mitchel's cockatoo and fled for the shadows of the cabinet corner like a mouse fleeing a cat. As soon as the frog was out of sight, Sunset calmed down.
"Well, that's enough of THAT little episode," she growled, "The last thing I want is any silly animal showering MY mate with affection like THAT!"
"It must have mistaken him for Nigel," said Mars. Travis looked on, a bewildered look on his face. He did not know what to say about this at all, but he felt a roll of disgust tear through him like fire at Mars's mentioning of the frog's mistaking him for the disgusting cockatoo. Then after the chaos caused by the distraction had subsided which had been a wonder that none of the other birds or humans had heard the commotion when the frog smothered Travis with her kisses thinking he was Nigel, all eyes turned to Jupiter as he prepared to say what he was about to say before the frog leaped out at Travis.
"So what next Jupiter?" asked Sunset. Jupiter was about to answer when another distraction caught his attention. This time, however, it was the sound of familiar human voices. At this, Jupiter's gaze snapped from Sunset and Travis and the grteen-winged macaw family to the entrance of the medical room. Mars, Chiquitita, Travis and Sunset's gazes followed and landed on the door.
"Tulio, Linda, Susan and Lucy are coming," said Travis, "Let's hide, quickly! I don't want our two former owners seeing us here."
And with that, the eleven birds shot glances this way and that and flapped off for the recovery room. Jupiter flew away first, followed by Chiquitita, Mars, Phobos, Deimos, Alexandre and Sunset, Travis, Eustace, Milo and Rosa, moments before Tulio's group poured into the main medical room. Then the eleven birds began to listen to the conversation being carried out by Susan and Lucy with Tulio and Linda.
"So, how are Broccoli and Eduarda, you two?" asked Tulio as he walked towards the changing rooms.
"Oh, Eduarda's fine but Broccoli has been diagnosed with a fracture on his left paw," said Lucy. Shock and horror tore through the eleven birds, especially Jupiter, and they all flinched from the static electricity of the shock.
"It is only a small fracture, which we're glad for," said Susan, "And the vet told us that he had been bitten by a parrot after examining the bite marks on his paw."
"It is obvious that none of the other cats and dogs had been fighting him, Tulio," said Lucy, "Neither had they been the ones to turn the kitchen and living room of our house into a bombsite lookalike as we initially thought. After further examination of our overturned rooms and remembering that our pets would never cause such destruction as what we have examined at our home, we deduced that we may have had intruders in our house but we don't know what kinds…"
At this, smugness bubbled within the eleven birds.
"Looks like Susan and Lucy have finally realised that it weren't Dash, Veggie and the others' fault for the mess they had found in their house," said Travis.
"Yeah but then they'll most likely suspect us," said Sunset, "We must keep out of their sight until this mess is sorted out."
"Look, there's that spy," whispered Mars, a blue feather from a wing pointing to one of the men. At this, Jupiter, Sunset, Travis and Chiquitita followed the direction of the point until their eyes landed on the slim man with green eyes and dark brown hair. Phobos, Deimos, Alexandre, Eustace, Milo and Rosa also saw the man named Ernesto.
"He looks so real," said Chiquitita, "And he's behaving like those other real ornithologists."
"Yeah but don't be fooled," said Jupiter, "We've seen that guy among that crowd of poachers back at their base, so it's obvious that he's not genuine and that he's working for that lead poacher…"
"That is the same effect that guy's group is going to have on our tribes and clans in the Sanctuary de Amazon," said Chiquitita worriedly, "If that guy is fooling Tulio and his team…"
The other four adults glanced at Chiquitita and realised that she was right. Because the poachers were going to infiltrate the Sanctuary de Amazon disguised as ecologists, their outlook is going to fool the macaws and other birds of the sanctuary, and they could assume that these humans were harmless when they were in fact not, and that was what will be jeopardising the bird tribes and clans' trust in well-meaning humans. And the day of departure was tomorrow. Then Jupiter began to concoct a plan.
"We're going to have to find a way to expose that faker," said Travis in a low growl, his crest raised and eyes flashing with disgust at Ernesto as he disappeared into the men's changing room to get dressed.
"Well, trying to do that to Tulio and his team directly would not work," said Mars, "If Susan and Lucy find us here, they'd probably think we're trying to cause them trouble…"
"Well, Tulio and his team are going to go to the Sanctuary de Amazon tomorrow," said Jupiter, "So we're going to have to tag along with them."
This was met by shocked glares from the other four adults.
"What!?" asked Sunset in disbelief.
"You mean you want us to go with them?" asked Mars.
"We don't have a choice," said Jupiter. Then another idea entered his head. "I know, why don't you lot go with Tulio and his team while I join Catina and see if I could help her free our other friends?"
"But Jupiter," growled Mars angrily, "That is EXTREMELY unwise! What if you ended up getting caught by Nigel again?"
"You only managed to escape with a nasty bite mark on your foot from him last night," said Travis, "It's a good thing a bone wasn't broken in your foot like how Broccoli's paw had suffered that small fracture."
"The next time you get caught by Nigel," said Sunset, "You might not be so fortunate."
"That's right," said Mars. He then shot Jupiter a glare and said, "Seriously, Jupiter, you don't have much chance against that dangerous psychopathic cockatoo."
"Not to mention those falcons and cats," put in Travis.
"Look, I have risked my life before to rescue my friends when we were dealing with that Brutus," said Jupiter, a determined look on his face, "And because my mate and four chicks are still back at the poachers' base likely being tortured by Nigel with the rest of our friends, and Catina might need some help anyway, I wanna go back to the poachers' base."
"Well, in that case, I'll go along with you," said Chiquitita, "You might need backup in case you do run into trouble."
"But Chiquitita," began Mars but Chiquitita shot him a stubborn glare.
"I wanna help Ruby and the others as well, Mars," she growled, "Ruby's been my best friend since we were chicks, and Jewel's my friend as well despite the rocky start we had when we had been enemies, so I'm gonna go with Jupiter too."
Mars was about to argue but when he saw the adamant look on Chiquitita's face, he decided to go along as well, especially as the thoughts about Mercury and Venus came to mind. Phobos, Deimos and Alexandre then opted to go with their parents and Jupiter.
"We wanna go with Mom, Dad, and Uncle Jupiter as well," said Phobos, "We wanna rescue our friends too."
"Especially Carla, Bia and Tiago," said Deimos. Alexandre nodded in agreement. At first Travis was about to say something but then he closed his beak having changed his mind. Then he found something else to say.
"Okay," he said, "We'll split up. You go after the poachers with Catina while we go after Tulio and his team."
Then Travis shot Phobos, Deimos and Alexandre a glare and said, "And you three, you MUST stick by your elders' sides. That group of poachers are extremely dangerous and if you end up caught or hurt…"
"Look, we'll keep an eye on them," said Jupiter, a glance at the three sons of Mars and Chiquitita, "Now you five go after Tulio and his team while the rest of us go after the poachers with Catina."
"We will try our best to free more of our friends but I can't guarantee any full success," said Mars.
"Okay, you lot go ahead," said Travis, "While we take care of Tulio and his team and keep an eye on that spy."
Sunset then turned round and saw the dark brown haired man walk out of the men's changing room, dressed in his uniform like the other workers and frowned and then gazed back at the red macaws.
"Okay, let's go," she said, "It's time to put this plan into action. I'll see you guys hopefully soon."
'No,' thought Sunset, 'we might see you soon.'
Then Jupiter, Mars and Chiquitita hugged Travis and Sunset while Phobos, Deimos and Alexandre hugged Eustace, Milo and Rosa.
"You lot be careful out there," said Travis firmly as he broke the hug with the three red macaws.
"And also watch that you don't end up caught, especially by Nigel," said Sunset, "I have a feeling that he may be as bad as Brutus, especially now that he is bent on revenge on Blu and his family and if anyone ever gets in his way…"
"I am aware of that, Sunset, thanks," said Jupiter, "We'll be as careful as we can."
"And besides, we have a former smugglers' cat with years of experience in stealth by our side," said Mars, a determined smile on his face. Then after a few more minutes of conversation, the red macaws all turned and opened their wings. Jupiter took off first, and then Mars and Chiquitita, and then finally, Phobos, Deimos and Alexandre.
"See you, you six," said Travis as the red macaws left through the window, "And take extreme care!"
"Make sure you listen to Catina for she is very wise, especially in regards to stealth," said Sunset. Eustace, Milo and Rosa also shouted goodbye. Jupiter shot the cockatoo family a smile before finally disappearing altogether through the window, Mars and his family in tow.
"Be careful, my red macaw friends," said Travis. Deep down he was worried for them, especially Jupiter after the injury he had suffered last night. However, he seemed fine now, if in some pain still. His mind then snapping to what the cockatoo had to do, Travis led his family back to watching Tulio and his group as they all prepared to have their discussion. Then as soon as Tulio's team was ready including Jack, Jill and Fernando with all the members dressed in their uniforms, Tulio led the group into the meeting room. They were going to have a preview of the trip to the Amazon and the tasks they were going to do. As the group walked into the room Fernando, Jack and Jill shot Ernesto a worried look. All three had a hunch that there was something not quite right about this person, but none of the others would believe them. Then an idea entered Jack, Jill and Fernando's heads.
Meanwhile
At the vet's mini animal hospital where various animals, mostly cats and dogs were taken to have check-ups or receiver treatment for various injuries and illnesses, a certain tabby cat was lying in a cage in the recovery room, a sombre look marking his face, ears drooping and his left front paw, the one that had been partly broken by Nigel's bite, set in a white solid cast. Around him, various cats and dogs were talking, playing and resting, and some were still eating their breakfast. Broccoli's feeding bowl was still full for Broccoli was not very hungry. He was still wracked with guilt at not putting in enough effort to protect Blu and Jewel's kids from getting captured and caged by the psychotic cockatoo, though he had put in his best efforts. Suddenly, three flashes of brown, black and chocolate rushed by as three Labrador puppies, one black, one chocolate brown and the other a lighter brown like that of mud, playfully chased each other, yipping and barking and clumsily stumbling over each other as they ran about. Broccoli watched the three puppies and sighed, sinking his face into the bedding. Just then, six shapes, one light grey and large, another light grey and smaller and the other four small, two resembling Broccoli and the other two looking like a mix of Veggie and Catina, appeared and partly filled the entrance to Broccoli's cage. When Broccoli opened his eyes, he saw two greyhounds and four cats. Dash, Eduarda who had her body in a bandage, Veggie and Broccoli's brother Thomas and sisters Daisy and Collette had come in to see him.
"Hi, brother," said Collette.
"We have come to check on you," said Daisy.
"To make sure you are alright," added Thomas. Broccoli just sighed and murmured, "Thanks."
"You've been in that miserable state since Susan and Lucy took us to the vet's," said Eduarda, "Is that incident involving that foul cockatoo still bothering you?"
Dash and Veggie also had asked the same question through their facial expressions but Broccoli tried to deny it.
"No," he said but Veggie could tell that this was not true.
"I can tell whenever something is bothering you son based on your facial expression," said Veggie firmly.
"It has to be when Nigel attacked you when you tried defending Carla, Bia and Tiago," said Dash. Broccoli, seeing the confirmatory looks on his father and the greyhound's faces, then began to honestly let it out.
"Yes, it is," he murmured in defeat, tears welling in his eyes again, "It's my fault that Blu and Jewel's chicks ended up caught…"
"What have I told you, son?" asked Veggie firmly, "It is not your fault. Nigel was just too smart and violent…"
"Yes, and despite your best effort," put in Collette, "He would have broken through your attempts to protect those three Spix macaw chicks anyway."
"According to Blu, Nigel is an extremely intelligent cockatoo and especially cunning as is violent," said Dash, "But you certainly were brave to stand your ground against that violent cockatoo, even if it meant getting hurt."
He then glanced at Eduarda and said, "In fact, both of you were, especially you Eduarda. Veggie told me how well you applied your skills in self-defence including the defence pose, the growling and the baring of our teeth."
"I wouldn't have done that at all," said Thomas, "I would have bolted at the sight of that cockatoo coming towards me with his eyes ablaze with wrath."
"Neither would I," said Collette. Daisy nodded in agreement. Then Broccoli moved on.
"So, how are things back home?" he asked.
"Oh, we have some fantastically good news," said Veggie with a firm but relieved look on his face, "Susan and Lucy have finally come to the conclusion that the mess in the living room and kitchen wasn't our doing at all."
"Neither have we been fighting," said Veggie. He then looked down his body and saw that his minor cuts and bruises were healing. The cuts and bruises marking the other cats and dogs apart from Ginger were also healing and the group was still lively.
"Susan and Lucy, in fact, have suspected that they have had intruders," said Dash, "Based on the claw marks on the sofa, the chairs and the walls and the shape of your injury according to the vet's."
"Well, what other animal could make a v-shaped mark?" asked Broccoli with a frown, "Cat or dog teeth cannot make wounds like that."
"The vet said that you had been attacked by a parrot," said Dash, "And since we have never ever had any fights with our feathered friends, it is obvious that another parrot had attacked you. They don't know that it was Nigel's doing but at least they know that it is not Jupiter or his group's doing."
"They believe them to still be in the Amazon, anyway," said Broccoli.
"True," said Dash. Then he shot a few of the animal carers a glance before turning back to Broccoli.
"Anyway, we'd better be off," he said, "Eduarda's free to go home for her injury is not too serious but you still need some more time here until your paw gets better and secondly, our presence is not welcome by the animal doctors here."
"Will you be able to rescue our friends and try to stop the poachers?" asked Broccoli with pleading eyes, "I don't want our feathered friends to be abused by that sickly cockatoo and smuggled out of Brazil against their will."
"We're planning on it, son," said Veggie, "But we have no time to explain it. You get some rest and we'll see you next time."
Broccoli was about to protest but knew that Veggie and Dash were right. Their presence was not allowed and Veggie and Dash wanted to be out of here as soon as possible before any of the doctors spotted them and complained. Then after saying goodbye to Broccoli, the group left, leaving Broccoli to rest, his spirits lifted slightly by the gust of assurance that it was not his fault that Carla, Bia and Tiago had been captured, and that Susan and Lucy had finally realised that it had not been Dash, Veggie and company's fault for the mess of the living room and kitchen back at their home.