Kikki the parrot perched on a low branch, her green feathers ruffled from curiosity, eyed the mysterious puddle with a glint in her eye.
Lolol, a brown dog, wagged his tail, sniffing the air, his nose wrinkling at the odd scent.
"Lolol, shall we go bathe? I feel like dipping in that puddle—it looks fun!"
"I know how to swim, so I won’t drown. But are you sure? That puddle smells strange, Kikki," he replied, glancing at his feathered friend.
Kikki flaps her wings, droplets flying everywhere, while Lolol kicks up waves with his strong paws.
"This tickles, Lolol! I’ve never felt water so tingly,"
"My fur feels funny. Do you smell that? It’s getting stronger!"
Suddenly, as they leap out of the puddle, an electric shiver runs through them, and they freeze in shock.
Kikki stares at her new paws and tail, flapping unfamiliar limbs.
Lolol gasps, his large dog head wobbling on delicate parrot legs.
"Lolol! What happened? My voice feels all rumbly!"
"Kikki, you sound like me! And I sound like you! This is so confusing…"
They stare at each other, both alarmed and a little amused by their swapped voices and bodies.
Pachcha, a mischievous crow[/@ch_3], descends, landing on a nearby fence post. The wind rattles the leaves as Kikki and Lolol quickly hide behind a tree, shadows stretching long and monstrous on the wet ground.]
Pachcha scans the area, searching for her friends.
"Where are Kikki and Lolol? I was hoping to tease them today,"
From the treetop comes a haunting voice—"Pa…ch…cha…!"
Pachcha’s eyes widen as she sees a terrifying shadow on the ground, and a command floats down—"Don’t turn your head! Stay still, Pachcha!"
Trembling, Pachcha edges backward, her feathers fluffed in fright.
"Oh, it’s you! What happened? You look… so strange!"
"The puddle did this to us. We bathed in it, and now look!"
"I always teased you, but now I see how scary change can be. Forgive me—I want to help,"
She leads them to the wise old crow, whose feathers are dusted with gray and whose eyes gleam with wisdom.
"The answer lies where the change happened. Seek where you were transformed,"
Hopeful, Kikki and Lolol rush back to the puddle’s location, only to find the ground dry and the puddle gone—drained away by the village council.
"Oh no… What do we do now? I’m so hungry, but with this body, I don’t even know what to eat,"
"Me too. I feel strange and lost,"
Pachcha repeats the wise crow’s words, pondering their meaning as the sun dips lower.
"I think I’ve figured it out! Will you give us a magic spell, wise one? When we say it, all three of us must go to a terrace,"
The wise crow nods knowingly, reciting a rhythmic chant—"Sigasiga singa… Bhaga bhaga banga."
With a soft flutter, the wise crow vanishes into the night, leaving a faint echo behind.
"Pachcha, to whose terrace should we go to find the answer?"
"Yes, whose terrace? What does it mean?"
"Let’s try my terrace first," Pachcha replies with a sly smile, hope and curiosity returning to her eyes as the three prepare for one last adventure—trusting that the answer, and perhaps a return to their true selves, awaits at the top of the world.
