That afternoon, Red, Chuck, and Bomb were feeling victorious with the three hatchlings, Zoe, Vivi and Sam-Sam.

"Another successful day of protecting the island!" Red said, beaming with pride. "Great job, guys!"

Bomb and Chuck gave each other a high five as the hatchlings jumped into Red's wings.

"You saved us, Red!" they cheered.

"You're our hero," Zoe added.

"Well, what can I say? It's what I do," she said. "Now, why don't you just go ahead and run along and keep your big, cute eyes peeled for the next pig prank, alright?"

Zoe and Vivi ran off, but Sam-Sam turned back to the adults and scowled.

"Pigs!" she hissed. Red and the guys were surprised.

"I'm going to get you!" Zoe teased as she and Vivi, dressed as pigs, chased Sam-Sam around the beach.

Red chuckled. "Adorable. Okay, let's just finish cleaning up the rest of these crabs, and we can move on to..."

Using his super speed, Chuck zipped across the beach, grabbed every single crustacean in sight, and tossed them in the recycling bin. Unfortunately, he also managed to stuff Bomb in there. All he got out was his head, either because he was stuck or he was more focused on the tiny, green, floaty thing in the distance. Red and Chuck noticed it, too.

"Red, what is it?" Chuck asked curiously.

"What the heck?" she wondered aloud.

Turns out, it was a green balloon with a face on it. And not just any face, it was the face of a familiar, bearded pig. A rolled up piece of paper was tied to its string.

"Oh, look!" Bomb said, climbing out of the bin. "It seems like some kind of note."

Chuck gasped. "What if it's a love note? What if it's like a message in a bottle?"

"Or a genie in a bottle!" Bomb guessed excitedly.

"Guys, there's no bottle, so just, you know, stop," Red told them, and read the note.

"Dear birds, we humbly request a truce. Can we talk?

💚 Leonard XOXO"

So, it is a love note, Red thought, cringing. She was all too familiar with Leonard's... motives.

"Nice try, piggies!" she scoffed, crumpling up the note. "News flash, we're not idiots!"

Another note immediately flew over and hit Red in the face. She decided to read that one, too.

"Dear birds, you are idiots. But...

We are serious about the truce."

Red looked up and noticed hundreds of green balloons floating above Bird Island, each one of them with offers of a truce. And the rest of the birds took notice.

"Check it out, everybody!" Alex announced, holding up a note.

"Let me see that," Pinky said, reading it. "A truce! A truce!"

"A truce with the pigs?!" a white dove named Ella cheered.

"A truce?!" Chuck cried out with joy.

"The prank war is over!" Bomb declared, dancing with his small, yellow buddy.

"What?! No!" Red exclaimed, doubting the situation. "This is just another one of their pranks!"

The guys stared at her in surprise.

"This is a huge relief, right?" Chuck asked. "I mean, who else was getting tired of all the constant pranking and retaliation?"

"Me! This guy!" Bomb agreed as they both ignored Red's arguing. "Oh, imagine all the fun things we can do now!"

"I can think of one!" Chuck suggested, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"You think she'll go?"

“I think we've peaked her interest!"

Red didn't know what her friends were talking about, but she was going to talk them out of it.

"No, no, no. Guys, we're working tirelessly, day and night, to save the world!"

"Uh, the world doesn't need saving, Red," Chuck pointed out.

"Of course they need us!" she pleaded.

"Red?" Chuck cooed, sitting in a chair while holding a clipboard. He wasn't the sharpest tool, but he understood her. In fact, he even dated her for a little while, but they still remain best friends. "Come here, hun. What are you so afraid of?"

"Afraid of?" Red laughed nervously. "What do I have to be afraid of?"

Red had everything to be afraid of. Ever since she was a hatchling, she was either ignored, shunned, or ridiculed. Basically, Red was unwanted. Not even her own parents wanted her, she was abandoned as an egg. Red remembered one girl who told her she shouldn't even exist, and those words haunted her. The last thing Red wanted was to go back to being alone.

"I'm not afraid of anything," she lied.

"Okay, you know what?" Chuck decided. "I'm just gonna write you a prescription for one night of fun with your cool friends... especially Chuck."

"Come on," Bomb insisted as Chuck wrapped himself and his friends around a slingshot. "Come with us!"

"Come with you to what?" Red asked, confused.

"Uh, buddy, we can't tell you because you definitely wouldn't be into it," Chuck replied, and the trio launched themselves into the air. No matter how much they drove her crazy, Red was going wherever Chuck and Bomb were taking her.

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Meanwhile, a group of scientist pigs were investigating the damage on the beach, but they seemed to be getting nowhere with their research. Whatever this thing was froze the surrounding water, causing them to slip and slide. Leonard decided to take a look for himself, but he was just as confused.

"What is this thing that almost killed me?!" he asked angrily. "Frozen water? Who's ever heard of frozen water?! Courtney? Courtney! Bring me those images!"

"Uh, what?" Courtney muttered, pulling off one of her headphones as she looked at her phone. "Oh! Coming! I'm coming!"

Leonard rolled his eyes as his assistant handed him a file. He grabbed some of the images and examined them carefully.

"Oh, that looks cold," he said quietly. One image showed a purple wing holding what appeared to be a frozen margarita, no salt on the rim. "Three umbrellas in one drink? What kind of extravagant lunatic are we dealing with?!"

"The bigger question is, what are we gonna do about it?" Courtney said, looking back at her phone.

"We're going to go to that island and stop this nutcase," Leonard announced. "I know someone who can help, and hopefully, I can talk her into it."

Courtney perked up. "Who's 'her?'"

"Courtney, have another drone sent out and learn everything you can about the island," he ordered, ignoring her question. "Meet me at Bird Island in thirty-six hours."

"Who is she, your girlfriend? Huh?" she teased, smirking.

"What? No!" Leonard denied, quite annoyed with his intern. "No, she's noth... Well, it doesn't matter what she is. I'm going to discuss important matters with her. Something you don't understand."

"Okay," Courtney shrugged and returned to her phone. "I'm gonna order you some flowers, just in case."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WncnbHD-JXI

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Back on Bird Island, Red, Chuck, and Bomb landed right outside a restaurant. Outside were some bright pink balloons and a sign that read, "SPEED DATING."

"Are you ready, Red? Love awaits!" Chuck said enthusiastically.

"Speed dating?!" Red asked, appalled. She hated the idea of falling in love with someone instantly. "No! No way!"

"It's mating season!" Chuck whispered, waggling his eyebrows. He and Bomb led the woman inside the restaurant.

"Alright, lovebirds!" Pinky, the restaurant hostess, cooed to all the single birds inside. "You all know how this works! When you hear this sound..."

Tweet-tweet!

"... then it's time to move on to the next table, where your soul mate just might be waiting!"

"Yeah, I'm going home," Red decided, and was about to walk off until Chuck stopped her.

"Absolutely not!" he denied. "You have nothing else to do. Also, I hid your house keys on some part of my body, and I'm not telling you where unless you stay."

Red groaned as she and her friends went to different tables.

"Yeah, let's party!"

Red won't meet her soulmate, but she'll meet her new best friend.

Until next time. 🤘