Learning to fly

One Shot

Rocky was very afraid of returning to the circus, it was his closest concern, he even had nightmares when he slept, being put in a canyon every day was the worst thing that had ever happened to him, he didn't want to go back there again, so when he saw the truck approaching the farm after having flown away through the circus tent, he felt true terror approaching, he longed for all that freedom that he had just achieved a few minutes ago and he promised himself not to go back there and to be as free as he had mentioned to the chickens.

So, in desperation and without thinking about it for a long time, he accepted Ginger's proposal to hide him in that farm while the circus artist left and then escape from the deal he had created. It was the best idea! Although he never imagined being locked up in such a small space, that wasn't the best, but he had been able to avoid being captured again. Ginger was the leader of the entire henhouse, he knew that, she could be trusted, she was in charge, but unfortunately she didn't let herself be carried away by him and his charm and she hated being called a doll. Uff, what a chicken!

That nickname had always attracted them all, it had driven them crazy, but unfortunately it didn't work with Ginger, no matter how hard he tried, she only looked irritated, annoyed and angry, so the next morning, after sleeping with that grandfather rooster who only talked about his younger years in the war, he set out to distract them with exercises while receiving special treatment, he thought that maybe they could fly if he implemented the right strategy, so he decided to start with basic warm-up that he had seen in his circus, and then start them in the supposed flight that he also didn't understand how it was done, although maybe he could try it with some movements, ramps or roofs while he took advantage of the fact that they pampered him in that place where all except one, went crazy for him and did what he wanted, of course Ginger didn't really like it and even though some of the hens offered to treat him like a king, it seemed that Ginger wasn't going to let it pass.

Ginger was always there to show him his mistakes, to tell him not to call her a doll, not to sleep with any other hen, not to be lazy or to be subservient to him, she was always there to stop him, and although of course she ran the henhouse and was the ringleader of the group, she didn't let herself be controlled by her charms, she was a hen that had to be dealt with, but despite everything, she could be trusted, she knew how to handle things.

After finishing that day, all the chickens looked exhausted, but it was good wasn't it? Some exercise for a change and although it was clear that he hadn't been able to raise them much off the ground, he hoped that the lie could flourish for a few more days while the circus artist didn't return and he could get protection for a while, then looking at them exhausted he thought that some words of encouragement wouldn't be bad, it would be good to have some hope to cheer up the chickens, everything would be fine until the ground began to shake again.

Then he knew something was wrong, something serious, the circus! He was scared, Ginger who was passing behind him had not noticed the change in the situation until he decided to stop her, she would know where to hide it, he thought, it would be his salvation and so he begged her to hide it, his fear was increasing as he saw the light of the truck approaching, she took him by the arm and led him towards Fowler's chicken coop, although the grandfather clearly did not like it and continued to complain about how intolerable the matter was.

After realizing that the truck did not belong to the circus and was just some meaningless boxes, he decided to go back to the chicken coop and talk to the chickens. It had been an exhausting day and some relaxation wouldn't hurt. He loved being admired by the chickens and having a good time with him. He loved those moments when he could have fun and forget about circuses, clowns and cannons. Until he took a sip, Bunty hit him on the back, the liquid from her beak flew out and Ginger ended up with her face splashed.

She didn't seem very happy after being sprayed, he tried to cheer her up with a little motivational talk but her face kept getting serious about it, no matter how hard he tried to distract her she didn't seem to want to joke at that moment, then she touched on the only subject he didn't know about, that of learning to fly, she would have to give it time and the more time it took the better, while she waited for the circus artist to give up on her search, then she could leave the coop and be free like she had always wanted, it was her plan from the beginning, what harm would a few extra exercises along the way do?

He thought that some flattery towards Ginger would not hurt her, in his attempts to call her doll, she did not really like it and she ended up complaining that her name was Ginger, but what did it matter? If that was what drove all the hens crazy, they all seemed to admire him with great interest except her, who was always serious, talking about flying and demanding results, Rocky needed space, to get some air, wash his face and talk about the subject outside of the hens that admired him, so as not to look bad.

So Ginger followed him, continuing to question him about learning to fly. All chickens were the same, and she wondered why she wasn't like the others. She would just have to take it easy, take life calmly, relax between her conversations. What desires did that chicken have? She was only concerned with flying, going out, farms, eggs and farmers.

He continued with his charms, hoping to soften her up, but this only infuriated her and while they were discussing showing results, Mac interrupted with his theory of impulse, he had to pretend that he clearly knew although Ginger could not be fooled, she excused him, she warned him that the deal would be broken if they did not see results soon, Boy was she demanding! Rocky had demanded that she come out of her shell more, relax a little, live her life calmly, be conquered and accept his charms, was it so difficult? Although unfortunately she was still immune and did not stop claiming her name Ginger.

Boost? Nothing better than getting some boost to give Ginger the results she had been wanting and under the services of what the rats offer, she hired some useful objects under a half-truth about the payment, Ginger discovered it in the morning but did not object when it came to fulfilling her wish to fly.

The initial plan didn't go as expected causing a big disaster with Bunty who was the first and last to try the technique, Ginger still kept that inquisitive look on him, waiting for the results that were not achieved and Rocky about to say something, was interrupted and saved by the sound of the bell of the next counting event, again desperate, hoping not to be found, he begged Ginger to hide him, but she didn't pay attention to him, a Hide yourself! was not enough, the nearest gadget was the only option and he hid in the shower.

Woow! Hearing Ginger talk about being killed wasn't what everyone wanted to hear, what a way to liven up the party! He felt the need to soften this chicken, to make her understand that life wasn't a world of problems or death, it was necessary for her to listen, only the motivation of what they want to hear would cheer them up, but she was difficult, Rocky complained, she did nothing but see black things, when they were just trying to have a good time, without having to worry about death, pain or anguish.

And everything would have worked if it weren't for Ginger telling him that she didn't need him anymore, that felt like a stab in his chest, he had an immediate reaction that unleashed pain, a shiver that ran through his entire body, it was enough, Rocky claimed her not to notice him, she made it clear that she agreed and Rocky realized that everything had changed since the beginning when she only looked at him with amazement, then she was in expectation and admiration to finally end in contempt, she despised him! It was hard, telling him that she didn't need him anymore, he had become nobody to her, completely hurt, decided to accept the deal, he was handsome, there was no girl who could resist him, charming and funny, he had always been valued for that but with Ginger things changed, she only asked for results and he by not giving them to her, had stopped being valuable to her.

Now he needed to get out of there, get some air again, seeing the joy of the chickens was what he expected and it was shocking to see how she had an effect on all of them, her words were the truth, the chickens had taken it very seriously and looked downcast, then he understood what life meant to them more than he understood, Ginger's honesty breathed in him, with them perhaps his life had been nothing more than performance or death, it was there when he knew he had to do something fun for them and for Ginger, if the chickens could feel that way, how would she feel? The chickens were the clear example of the feelings that Ginger did not show.

It was interesting to see how Ginger did not cancel this party when she was always reluctant to have fun, apparently today's events had improved the situation, there would be nothing to be sad about, he thought, the music livened up the party and Rocky began to dance with the chickens to entertain them, at some point Ginger ran into him and invited her to dance, he wanted to tell her that he didn't mean to hurt her, that her words had been harsh on him, he wanted to apologize for having hurt her, for not having understood them, he didn't know but now he understood, then he saw how Ginger began to have fun, she looked happy, she looked relaxed, he felt happy, he had made her happy.

Her gaze turned intense in front of him and she looked into his eyes, he could see in her the sweetness he had been looking for, the beauty of her soul, how pretty she was when she wasn't scolding him, then he wanted to tell her the truth, but he got distracted by Babs and when he applauded her everything was revealed, but beyond all odds she offered him an apology.

Looking into his eyes again he could see her feelings, Rocky was never very sure when showing his feelings, but now here she was, apologizing to him for her past actions, he accepted her with great hope, he had been waiting to see that look and those feelings in Ginger for a long time, he finally showed himself vulnerable as he would have wished to protect her, to get to know her and learn about her dreams and interests.

Then they looked into each other's eyes expressing their feelings for each other, he froze for a moment, she was beautiful, embarrassed he knew he needed to tell her about the flight issue, he thought he could clarify it without getting to major causes, at last she lowered her barriers and he could hold on to her where he had learned to trust, the only thing he wanted was to tell her what he felt and apologize in the most appropriate way, but his unspoken words were interrupted by the thunderous tremor outside.

Then Ginger asked Rocky to wait inside, he really realized that she was looking to protect him from all evil, he was worried, moments later hearing the chickens scream Rocky decided to look out to find out what was happening to which Babs informed him that Ginger had been caught and that they could kill her, he was distressed, immediately Fowler demanded that he go and rescue her by flying, but the lie was still latent, then he decided to hang from the cable to be able to access the farm.

Upon entering that enclosure he could see the enormous machine that was under his feet, it was there that he glimpsed Ginger being taken by the farmer's paw where she was placed on the enormous machine and worried he quickly climbed down the wall, stealthily so that the farmers couldn't see her, he called her, bravely trying to run on that slippery metal shelf, the friction didn't respond, distressed Rocky asked him not to despair and when he finally managed to advance between the machine, he ran as hard as he could towards her and jumped, but for a second he couldn't reach her, he promised her with hope in his heart that he would save her before dawn, but at that moment a mess of mixed vegetables threw him inside.

He was then pushed headlong down the tube and the vegetables took their way down another detour, continuing on to the edge of some blades from which he managed to save himself from imminent death by grabbing a lever and avoiding falling into them. As he slid, he was caught by a ball of dough and there he met Ginger, Rocky showed her his bravery with a courageous entrance worthy of a gentleman, he wanted to impress her but she just rolled her eyes, mentioning that she was trapped.

She couldn't get her legs out of the dough, he tried to help her but found that he was also trapped, they panicked when they saw the giant rolling pin that was on the belt below, desperate he kept trying to get her legs out, but he couldn't, neither could Ginger, distressed and fearing for Ginger's safety, Rocky managed to jump closer and using a chain, he discovered how to get out of the situation, he took her by the hand and they were immediately freed until they were thrown back into the dough with a new lever.

Falling face first into the crushed dough, Ginger yelled at Rocky to be careful, so they quickly got up and positioned themselves as close together as they could to avoid being cut. The two of them hugged each other, but there was no time for Rocky to think about it because they were immediately lifted up onto a platform inside a pie that took them to another belt, this one filled with sauce. After vegetables fell on top of them, Rocky found an uncut carrot that he juggled with to continue impressing Ginger. He still wanted to show his bravery, since he had been able to make progress with it moments before and he didn't want to lose the magic he had achieved, so he aimed hard and placed the carrot on the tip of the dispenser to which it got stuck.

At last they were able to celebrate a victory, they clapped hands, happy with their achievements, but at that moment they were crushed by an extra layer of dough and after managing to break the barrier they caught their breath, they realized that their greatest fears were increasing when flames began to appear around the container and the heat began to increase very quickly, it was an oven where they had gotten into.

Searching for an exit, there was the door under a tiny countdown to close, then Ginger scared, pleaded to leave the site and they began to run towards the exit, but Rocky ended up tripping on a cake and ended up covered in sauce, confused he continued moving forward but ended up fainting on another cake, he had managed to faint on all the cakes, then he felt how Ginger took him by the arms and carried him to the exit, he was close to not making it if they had not gone through the door at the last moment, managing to slip underneath.

As they left, Rocky wiped himself with a towel and Ginger detected a strange substance that began to drip from them, it was the sauce that they had blocked moments before, it was time to get out of there, the gears were about to collapse and began to come loose, looking for a route they ran through the place while avoiding the screws that crossed between them, as they ran down the hall, Rocky took Ginger by the hand and right at the edge they found a chain with which Rocky swung to the other end, avoiding the dangerous gears on the floor, they broke a grate and fell abruptly on top of a white box, which slid them until they stopped next to other boxes, as they fell there, they were able to lie down on each other and it was not until Ginger screamed when a large sealing machine crushed Rocky's chest with a stamp, it was the truth behind the machine that revealed "Mrs. Tweedy's Chicken Pies"

It was time to warn everyone, so they quietly returned to the henhouse. Rocky decided to completely clean off the sauce he had been covered with. He listened to the meeting Ginger was having inside henhouse 17, claiming that, finally with his wing healed, Rocky could teach them to fly by giving the hens a demonstration. Disappointed with himself, he returned to the henhouse with Fowler. He had returned to the unmentioned truth behind his flight.

Upon reaching the henhouse, Fowler looked at him disapprovingly but thanked him for saving Ginger, Rocky was surprised by Fowler's change of mood, since he was always against him, Rocky had not thought that saving Ginger had been something very honorable but Fowler apologized for having misjudged him and Rocky just smiled sadly, there were already two apologies in one day that Rocky could not accept, he felt more and more guilty, then Fowler awarded him the medal that he had always appreciated and gave him his bed for the night, when he mentioned the flight demonstration Rocky knew that he could not do it and that was how he decided to go up to the roof to think while he admired the flight medal that moments before, Fowler had awarded him.

Searching for a way to act, Rocky found himself on the roof of the chicken coop, feeling very guilty about the big lie he had created and considering the idea of leaving so as not to hurt anyone, at that moment he noticed Ginger's presence and apologized to her for having interrupted her place of relaxation, she did the same and sat next to him, Rocky was speechless when Ginger opened up to him by telling him her dream and apologized gratefully for having saved her.

He tried to explain to her that he was not the brave flying rooster that he had made them believe, he tried to tell her, but he did not know how since he had never had the opportunity to express to anyone his true feelings, guilt invaded him even more and he did not dare to break her heart, when looking into her eyes, he only saw the hopes placed in him.

Their hands made contact with each other when Ginger relaxed and Rocky felt nervous at her touch, he was speechless, he knew that he had started to develop feelings for her, so she said goodbye, he decided to say goodbye to her calling her by her name and that was when he made the decision to leave, without telling her what he had wanted to tell her moments before, only leaving her the piece of poster that revealed the truth, to avoid confronting her and hurting her feelings.

After the rain fell as he left, he felt in his chest the sadness that Ginger felt in her heart at that moment, he hesitated to return, but immediately discarded the idea, he tried to see the positive side of leaving the farm, but he knew that he had disappointed everyone, especially Ginger, whom he had abandoned to her fate just to not break her heart, so he continued on his way trying to forget everything.

Riding a tricycle, he was able to take the radio he had gotten from the farm and continued along the long road towards the city, when, already in the afternoon, singing his favorite song, he came across the billboard of Mrs. Tweedy's business, remembering again the chickens he had left behind, it was there that he realized what he had left them to face, he had been their best hope for a week and he had only played with them and then abandoned them, reality hit him when he learned that they would have to face death, Rocky decided to return, his lie did not compare to what they had to face.

He set off on his return journey with speed, managing to arrive at night while he saw in the distance a large winged machine trying to unfold the farm, he knew what the chickens were trying to do, fly away as he could not fulfill them, as he got closer he saw how Ginger was being attacked by Mrs. Tweedy, then he worried about saving her and quickly jumped thanks to a ramp in the path, crossing the fence and shouting for Ginger, Mrs. Tweedy got up in astonishment and Rocky was able to fall on top of her hitting her on the head, making a glorious entrance showing off for Ginger by greeting her in a handsome way.

At that moment Fowler yelled at them to unfold the track and Rocky ran to Ginger's side to raise the ramp, it was then that Rocky looked into her eyes and could see how her dreams had come true, being able to take out all of her chicken friends at the same time without leaving anyone behind, then Rocky decided to call her to get on the ship through the Christmas lights.

Rocky helped her get on the ship and could see her gratitude for helping them at the last moment to fulfill their dream, Rocky was excited to have been able to be useful especially to Ginger then when he looked into her eyes he saw the feelings that she had allowed him to see in brief moments, he felt the sensation of her touch when their hands crossed, he looked at her sweetly, he approached slowly and then was interrupted by a slap as a scolding from Ginger, Rocky believed that there would be no future for them when he was hit, he felt sorry, he understood if she did not want to have him close but he saw again Ginger's hopes placed in him when he looked at her fondly again and approached to kiss her, Ginger took him by the neck to bring him closer and was so close when a tug on the ship made them detach from each other, looking down they discovered Mrs. Tweedy hanging from the Christmas lights.

Then Ginger with the intention of knocking Mrs. Tweedy down yelled at him to put her down, Rocky went into shock and tried to dissuade her but she didn't change her mind, he didn't want to lose her but he knew it was for the best, he carefully lowered her down holding her by the legs but she asked him to lower her further, Rocky couldn't bear her weight much and tried to do it the best he could, but he ended up letting go of her abruptly when Fowler raised the ship so as not to crash into a spectacular.

After being thrown inside the ship he discovered the large arsenal of eggs that the chickens were carrying along with a catapult of his size, then he decided to use the material to his advantage, discovering Ginger about to be attacked by Mrs. Tweedy, he tried to prevent her from hurting her by throwing the entire arsenal of eggs at Mrs. Tweedy with the help of the rats, but the ammunition ran out at the least appropriate moment and desperately he yelled at Ginger to be careful because he had no way to protect her anymore.

After warning her, he saw how Mrs. Tweedy had cut Ginger's throat and Rocky couldn't take it anymore, he felt completely hurt for not having been able to save her, completely dejected he realized that leaving was the worst mistake he had made and just before the tears sprang to his eyes he discovered that she had not been hurt, but had managed to cut the Christmas lights thanks to the axe and then Ginger released the rope that held her, letting Mrs. Tweedy fall towards the farm.

Rocky celebrated with excitement along with the rats for having achieved it, helping Ginger later to get on the ship, taking her by both hands and feeling very happy to see her alive, a rumble shook the ship and together they watched as a large amount of sauce flew out of the farm where the cake machine was located.

In the joy of the celebration Rocky felt very grateful that Ginger had managed to save herself, she had been what he wanted most and he had not realized it, he hoped in his heart that she would forgive him for leaving, the happiness of having achieved it flooded him and from that moment he swore to never abandon her again, while thoughts invaded his mind, Ginger took him by the beak and Rocky without being able to react was surprised with the kiss he had waited for so long, thus opening a new relationship with Ginger whom he swore to protect at all costs, formalizing their relationship.