Come, and listen to me,
As I am about to unfold a story.
Once upon a time,
There was a big poultry farm.
In there lived a duck,
Also a chicken who loved to cluck.
Plus a goat, horse, sheep and cow,
And a dog who went, "Bow wow wow!"
Everything was as fine as could be,
All the creatures were well and happy.
But then one dark cloudy morning,
The duck came across something sickening.
All her eggs had been smashed,
Any hopes for ducklings were now dashed.
"Who would do such a thing?" she cried,
"Now all my ducklings have died."
The duck was determined to find the culprit,
To seek the perpetrator of this cruel deed.
Quickly getting over her loss,
Our duck stopped and paused.
What should she do now?
Question the chicken, goat, horse, sheep, dog and cow?
After thinking for a long time,
She decided on this to solve the crime.
So on the very next morning,
The animals gathered round for a meeting.
The duck told them all about the incident,
They all agreed this was no accident.
"But first," barked the dog wisely,
"Tell us what you saw properly."
"Nothing special," the duck replied,
"Just egg yolks with smashed egg shells beside."
"And how were they broken?"
Next asked the concerned chicken.
"I don't know, just in big pieces,
The culprit was not at all careless."
"Anything else worth noting?"
"Hmm...no, absolutely nothing."
"But there was something unusual,
About the way the culprit performed the ritual.
You see, there is a small drain separating,
My coop from where you all are living.
I find it funny that the culprit,
Would choose to take the long way around it.
Why couldn't he just go through the drain,
Instead of going through so much pain?"
"We have no idea, of course."
Chorused the goat along with the horse.
"But wait!" cried out the chicken excitedly,
"Don't you all think it might be,
That the culprit just wanted a distraction?
To make you think it's important when it isn't.”
"That is a possibility," murmured the dog,
"But for now, we must all talk."
So one by one the duck questioned them all,
About what they did two nights before.
The chicken insisted that he was innocent.
Break the eggs he certainly didn't.
He had stayed up the whole night planning,
For his special crow the next morning.
And it was a special one too,
It went "Cock-a-doodle-doo-doo!"
The sheep was next to prove his innocence,
But what he said made no difference.
"I was sound asleep before eight.",
And nothing more he said.
The goat and horse next stated their alibi,
"What we say really is no lie."
"We spent all night chatting at the horse's stable,
Us, committing the crime? Impossible!"
As for the cow, she claimed,
That night was just the same.
Gazing at the stars so bright,
Then counting every one in sight.
"They were so lovely, I tell you,
I just love lying there in the field."
And of course, the last animal,
The dog who guarded over the cattle.
With a fatherly look this he said,
"It was late, and I was ready for bed.
But then something strange I saw,
A small figure, not very tall.
It was creeping past the field suspiciously,
But I thought it was the farmer's son only."
"So I guess that leaves us out.",
The excited horse and goat cried out.
"Not exactly," the dog barked,
"The figure seemed very far and the sky was dark."
"So what do we do now?"
Sheepishly asked the cow.
"Well, who the culprit is we still have no clue,
"Let's go home." said the duck and the rest agreed too.
But then suddenly shouted the dog in deep thought,
"Wait! I think I know how the culprit can be caught!
For it seems clear to me,
Who the guilty one appears to be."
"Who?" the others shouted in unison,
Gripping in excitement, for the truth they would soon learn.
And the dog cried, "But wait, before I reveal it to you,
I would like our readers to think for a moment or two.
Who would commit such a horrible crime?
And why? Just think, please take off some time."


"Alright, time's up, all you adults and children,
The real culprit is...the CHICKEN!!"
"What?" squawked the chicken in anger,
"Why do you accuse me of such danger?"
"Three reasons," replied the dog calmly,
"Remember what the duck said about the eggshells firstly?"
"Yes, but that proves nothing," argued the chicken.
"They were just broken into large fragments."
To this the dog answered, "My point exactly!
Any other creature here you see,
Would have stomped it to bits with their feet,
But you, a chicken, had to peck it bit by bit!
And then about your alibi,
I soon realised that it was a lie.
How could a chicken stay up all night?
You have to get up even before it’s bright!
However the clue I found most obvious of all,
Was the one regarding the drain so small.
All of us here, we can swim,
Except for one creature, that is HIM!"
Bellowed the dog, referring to the chicken,
Who by now was no longer willing to listen.
"But why, chicken?" asked the duck disbelievingly,
"How could you do this to me?"
"I'LL TELL YOU WHY!" the chicken yelled,
"If that's what you want, I shall tell!"
"I used to be the idol of the children,
Wherever I went, they ate Kentucky Fried Chicken.
But then somehow you got all the luck,
They started to enjoy tasting Teochew Duck.
Why? Why did it have to end this way?
I was meant to be the star, adored everyday!
You were the one, Duck, who stole it all from me,
You were the one who wouldn't let things be!
And as the days flew by too,
My hatred for you grew and grew.
You could never understand me now,
You stupid duck, sheep, horse, goat, dog and cow!"
By now all the animals were starting to grow scared,
Of this chicken which had turned bad.
And as he took a step towards them,
Luckily, some help finally came!
Out stepped the farmer's wife,
Carrying a humongous carving knife.
"OK, who shall I cook for the party?"
She asked out loud, eyeing them hungrily.
At once everyone flapped their 'wings' as she beckoned,
Then they all pointed to the evil chicken.
"Very well then, we shall eat the CHICKEN!"
And she carried him in for an obvious reason.
The shocked chicken struggled and screeched,
But it seemed freedom was out of reach.
Just before the chicken was brought in,
He flashed the animals a strange grin.
One that seemed as though he was happy,
Or one that craved revenge immediately.
Either way, the chicken did achieve his dream,
He had been eaten, or so it seemed.
You see, we must always be careful what we wish for,
For wishes have a way of fooling us all.
But in the end, this story did have a happy ending,
And I CAN FINALLY STOP RHYMING!!!

...as told by mOkKiEs at 8:07 AM