Hi everyone! I honestly had no idea so many weeks had gone by without updating this story! My apologies for the delay; I hope this chapter is worth the wait. If you're enjoying this story PLEASE leave a message and let me know! As a fanfic writer I am paid only by the feedback I get from you. I hope there will be a lot of it! Here we go . . . . .

Chapter Seven

"Aunt Laura!" A cry of alarm from Joey's bedroom made Laura sit straight up in her bed.

"What is it?" She fumbled, reaching for her bathrobe even as she lurched to her feet. The clock next to her bed read 4:45AM. The bedroom was dark except for early morning light beginning to seep in around the edges of the curtain covering one small window. Had the boy awakened suddenly and not known where he was? She had been afraid something like this might happen.

"Aaah!" Joey cried again.

"What's wrong?" Laura didn't wait to put her bathrobe on all the way before flinging her bedroom door open, stepping across the hall, and doing the same with Joey's. "What is it?"

"That sound outside!"

"What sound?"

"I don't know! It's loud!"

Laura flipped the overhead light on. Joey was sitting up in his bed, brown eyes wide, his blankets wrapped around him up to his chin. He looked terrified.

"I don't hear anything." She crossed to the window and pushed the curtain aside, peering out into the wakening light. The sun had not yet fully risen but she could just make out the three other houses visible from this angle, along with the grassy open area and the paths that separated them. "There's nothing out there that I can see."

"It was really loud!" Joey insisted.

Laura's heart ached for the frightened child. She sat down next to the boy and placed a comforting arm around him. "What did it sound like?"

"I don't know. Like something was hurt!"

"Was it a person? Or an animal?"

"I couldn't tell!" Joey was still nearly frantic.

"Shh, it's okay." Laura pulled him closer to her and felt his arms go around her waist. He buried his head against her chest and she took a moment to pray for peace for him. "Maybe you had a nightmare."

"No, it was real! It woke me up!"

"Nightmares do that sometimes."

"But I was having a good dream, not a bad one!"

Laura did not answer, merely continued to hold the child close. Joey had seemed to enjoy the previous evening, playing with Micah and some of the other children and exploring the farm until evening. Laura had been half afraid he would feel homesick at bedtime, but he was so tired that he fell asleep almost instantly.

Saturdays were special at Ecclesia. They tried to give the children as much play time as possible on that day, and Joey had taken full advantage of it. He had even left his electronic game in the kitchen, seeming to forget all about it in his exhaustion. Was the stress of leaving his parents finally catching up with him, coming without warning in the middle of the night?

At that moment there was a clamorous, strident sound from outside Joey's room, so close that it might have been under his window. It only lasted only a few seconds but its strength and suddenness made Laura jump. Joey clung to her even more tightly. "That's it!" he cried.

Now that she had heard it for herself Laura knew the source. She had to tamp down a burst of laughter. "I know what that is. Come with me."

"What?" Joey looked up at her with startled eyes.

"Trust me, you have nothing to worry about." She stood up and held out her hand to the boy. After a second's hesitation he followed her lead. He clung to her as they walked together to the front door of the house, finding their way easily in the light from the kitchen windows. Laura unlocked the front door.

"I don't want to go out there!" Joey pulled back, seeing her intention.

"It won't hurt you, I promise."

"But we don't have any shoes on!"

"Don't worry about that, it's only a few steps."

She held his hand as they went out the door and through the damp grass to the corner of the house, where they stopped and looked around the corner towards Joey's window. As expected, there stood the source of the noise that had disturbed Joey.

"Is that a chicken?" Joey couldn't believe his eyes.

"Kind of. That's Rocky. He's the oldest and biggest rooster on the farm."

In fact, he was the biggest rooster Laura had ever seen, a real legend at Ecclesia. She guessed he was every bit of ten pounds, maybe more. Rocky held his head up proudly, puffing himself up defiantly as he glared at the newcomers. He lifted his head towards the sky and proclaimed his challenge to the world as loudly as he could. But Rocky's beak was missing most of its upper half, so his crow started out impressively loud but then trailed off into a mild squawk and hiss. It sounded like a boiling teapot suddenly yanked off the stove.

This time Laura couldn't help laughing at the ridiculous sound. "His age is really starting to show, poor guy."

Joey was still staring. "What's a rooster?"

"It's a boy chicken." Laura reminded herself that her great-nephew had never lived on a farm. "Rocky damaged his beak a couple days ago and now that sound is the best he can do."

"He doesn't look like the chickens in my game." Joey sounded disappointed.

This time Laura gave a small chuckle. "You mean on your gaming device? He probably doesn't act like them, either. You should be careful around him. He's been known to attack people who get too close, especially if he doesn't know them."

Joey stared at the bird. "How did he break his beak?"

"We don't know. Maybe from fighting with another rooster."

"Does it hurt him?"

"We don't think so, but it's hard for him to eat. Somebody has to feed him by hand every day."

Rocky puffed up his feathers and tried to crow again, making Joey giggle. "He sounds really dumb."

"Shh!" Laura playfully put a finger in front of her lips. "You'll hurt his feelings if he hears you. He's trying so hard to be big and scary!" Joey giggled again.

They stood and watched Rocky glare at them, laughing at the comical site, until Laura felt the dew on the grass chilling her feet. "We should go back inside. I don't want you to get cold out here." She led the way back into the house and checked the clock. It was just after 5AM, the usual time for her to wake up. "Joey, if you want you can go back to bed until breakfast is ready. It won't take long. Or you can just stay up if you want."

Joey rubbed his eyes and slid into a chair at the kitchen table. "What's for breakfast?"

"I'm making French toast and scrambled eggs. Do you want to help?" He nodded. "You can get the dishes from that cabinet over there and set the table." She opened the refrigerator and took out eggs, milk and bread, setting them on the counter.

"Okay." He found the plates, glasses and silverware and set the table. Without being told he also found and set out the butter and syrup. When she had finished the simple meal and arranged the food in front of him he said, "Thank you, Aunt Laura."

"You're welcome," Laura answered, thankful for the manners Joey's parents had imparted to him. A child with good manners was a blessing to those around them. Of course she would have taken him in regardless, but this way was easier.

She led them in saying grace, noticing that Joey was not used to the practice and followed her motions clumsily. Then the two of them ate together in friendly quiet. Joey seemed to be a healthy eater, except that he didn't touch the pieces of fresh cut melon she had put out on his plate. One thing at a time, she decided.

The silence while they ate was becoming awkward, at least for her. "What did you think of the farm yesterday?" she finally asked.

Joey swallowed before answering. "It's big. It's bigger than our whole block in Philadelphia." He cut into another piece of French toast.

"It takes a lot of land for a farm like this. You haven't even seen the fields yet, not that there's much to look at right now. It's early in the season."

"How many fields are there?"

"We don't count them that way. We measure them by the acre. This year we have about a hundred acres under cultivation."

She could tell he was trying to sort out what that meant. "Is that a lot?"

"It sure seems like a lot when it's the middle of the summer and they all need work. We'll all be working hard when that time comes."

Joey was digging into his food with an enthusiasm she had not expected. She would have to rethink her food plan for the week. "What am I going to do today?" he asked, reaching for the bowl of scrambled eggs. She helped him spoon most of the bowl onto his plate. Then she reconsidered and emptied the entire bowl.

"After breakfast we'll wash the dishes and get dressed. Then we'll do our chores. Today starts a new assignment. You'll be feeding the chickens, collecting the eggs and cleaning out the coop every morning. I'll show you how."

That caught his attention. Joey's fork stopped in mid-air as he turned to look at his aunt. "I'm taking care of chickens? Real live chickens?"

"All two hundred of them." Laura watched his mouth drop open, enjoying his surprise. "Except Rocky, of course. After that we'll get ready for our extension. It's going to be a busy day."

"What's extension?"

"It's when we go into the community and help someone who needs it."

"Like who?" Joey liked talking as much as eating, it seemed.

"Today it's people who need food. We're going to go into the city to sort out donations at the food bank."

"I thought we were going to church. Daddy said there would be church every Sunday."

"That's how it was when he lived here, but it's different now. Every other Sunday we have an extension activity instead of a church service. On those Sundays we worship the Lord by serving the people around us."

"Oh." Joey considered this, then resumed eating. "Will that take very long?"

"It sure will. By the time we get back it will be almost time for dinner, and then we'll have chores after that."

"So I'll have to wash dishes again tonight?" He scrunched his face up, making a face. It was the closest he had yet come to complaining.

"No. Since we're in a new rotation we'll clean up after the chickens again." Joey's face brightened.

Apparently Joey found chickens more appealing than washing stacks of dishes. Of course he hadn't actually worked with them yet. Laura herself preferred the other way around. She held little affection for the noisy, messy, dumb creatures, but since that was her assignment for the next two months that was what she would do. It wouldn't be long before she could move on to another job.

Joey was a sweet kid, Laura thought, watching him finish off the last of the food she had prepared. He had been thrown into a new world without the security of anyone he knew, but he was tackling the situation head on, making the best of it. He wasn't complaining and he didn't seem to resent what his parents had done to him. He didn't even seem homesick, probably because of the novelty of his new environment. She wondered how long that would last and what would happen once the novelty wore off.

Laura was also glad to see that Joey hadn't resumed playing his game since he left it on the sofa the night before. She didn't avoid electronic devices the way some people in Ecclesia did, but she did resent the hold they always seemed to have over children. Children were better off playing in the fresh, outside air than on sterile, unfeeling screens. On the other hand she wasn't about to take away the one familiar thing Joey had brought with him from his home. Hopefully the activity on the farm and his own natural curiosity would do that job for her.

"Are you done eating?" she asked now, as he pushed back from the table with a satisfied sigh. Only half a spoonful of eggs remained on his plate. Joey nodded. "Good. Then let's get these dishes washed up and get dressed. I'll help you pick out your clothes. We have a busy day ahead of us."

What do you think of Joey's experiences so far? Will Ecclesia be a good fit for him for the summer, or will he resent being put in such a different environment? Please let me know what you think! -Elaine