Salad Tea

 The crisp, cool air of a late spring evening in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, drifted through Owen and Lisa's kitchen window. "Salad for tea!" Lisa announced with a flourish, placing two enormous bowls brimming with leafy greens, vibrant cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, and a generous sprinkling of sunflower seeds onto their small table.

Owen, usually a staunch advocate for anything involving potatoes or a good pie, eyed his bowl with a mock grimace. "Trying to turn us into herbivores, are we, Lisa? I thought we were aiming for 'robust islanders,' not 'svelte rabbits.'"

Lisa just laughed, her eyes twinkling. "Nonsense! It's fresh, it's healthy, and it's delicious. Besides," she added, wiggling her eyebrows, "you never know what kind of energy a good salad can give you."

They ate, the crunch of lettuce and the pop of tomatoes filling the quiet kitchen. Owen, to his surprise, found himself enjoying it. The dressing, a zesty lemon-herb concoction Lisa had whipped up, was surprisingly good. They chatted about their day – Owen's latest carpentry project, Lisa's busy shift at the vet clinic.

A Peculiar Transformation
As the last of the salad disappeared, a strange sensation began to creep over them. Owen felt a twitch in his nose, an odd urge to… wiggle it. He glanced at Lisa, who was looking at him with wide, slightly bewildered eyes, her own nose twitching subtly.

"Do you feel that?" Lisa asked, her voice a little higher than usual.
"Feel what?" Owen replied, though his lips felt strangely… long. He reached up, touching his upper lip, and felt a fuzzy softness. He looked down at his hands, which seemed a little more nimble, a little less… human.

Then, they both caught sight of their reflections in the darkened window.
Two pairs of large, dark eyes stared back. Their noses were twitching rapidly, their upper lips split in that characteristic way. Their ears, oh their ears! They were long, upright, and covered in soft fur, swiveling independently to catch every rustle of the evening breeze.

Owen instinctively reached for a phantom carrot, his teeth feeling surprisingly prominent. Lisa let out a small, startled squeak that sounded remarkably like a bunny's sniff.

"Rabbits!" Owen exclaimed, his voice a little muffled by his newly acquired incisors. "We look like actual rabbits!"
Lisa burst into a fit of giggles, which quickly turned into a series of adorable, high-pitched thumps as her feet, now distinctly foot-like, tapped against the floor. "You said we'd be robust islanders!" she managed between thumps. "You didn't say anything about being... cottontails!"

They spent the next few minutes in a bewildered, yet strangely amused, exploration of their new forms. They hopped around the kitchen, discovering an uncanny ability to jump surprisingly high. Every rustle of the curtains made their ears swivel. Owen found himself nibbling on a stray piece of lettuce that had fallen on the floor, finding it utterly delicious.

"This is all your fault and your 'healthy' salad!" Owen declared playfully, nudging Lisa with his nose.
Lisa twitched her whiskers. "Well, at least we're getting our greens in! And think of the carrots we can eat now." She looked out the window at their small backyard, her nose twitching excitedly. "I wonder if Mrs. Henderson's prize-winning petunias are still in bloom?"

Owen’s new ears perked up. He looked at Lisa, then at the moonlit garden, a mischievous glint in his newly rabbit-like eyes. "Race you!"

With a synchronized hop, the two 'rabbits' of Summerside, Prince Edward Island, bounded out the back door, ready to embrace the peculiar, fluffy, and surprisingly energetic evening ahead.

Do you think their transformation is permanent, or will they be back to their human selves by morning?

The race was on! Owen and Lisa, now gloriously fluffy and undeniably rabbit-shaped, bounded across their lawn. The moon, a fat pearl in the inky sky over Summerside, cast long, hopping shadows as they streaked towards Mrs. Henderson's prize-winning petunias.

Lisa, lithe and quick, pulled ahead almost immediately. Her long ears flattened against her back, her powerful hind legs propelling her over the damp grass with surprising speed. Owen, on the other hand, found his years—even if he was a 'senior rabbit' for only a few hours—catching up to him. His hops were a little less springy, his breathing a bit more labored.

"Go, Lisa, go!" he huffed, a rather un-rabbit-like cheer escaping his twitching lips. He watched, a mix of admiration and slight envy, as she reached the vibrant flowerbed first.

With a joyful, almost predatory gleam in her newly magnified eyes, Lisa dove into the petunias. There was a frantic rustling, a symphony of delicate petals being devoured. Pink, purple, and white blossoms vanished into the blur of her munching. She ate with an efficiency only a truly hungry rabbit could possess, a whirlwind of botanical destruction.

Owen arrived moments later, panting softly, just in time to see the last few petunia heads disappear into Lisa's satisfied maw. She looked up at him, a smear of purple petal on her chin, her whiskers quivering with delight.

"Mmmph," she mumbled, a contented sigh escaping her. "You were right, Owen. These are much better than salad. Far more… crunchy."

Owen, a seasoned man even in his new furry form, just shook his head. "And I thought I was a big eater," he observed wryly, noting the utter devastation of Mrs. Henderson's once-pristine display. "Well, at least someone enjoyed them. Us older chaps, you know, we appreciate a slower, more refined dining experience."

Lisa nudged him playfully with her nose. "Just admit it, you old rabbit, I'm faster!"
Owen chuckled, then stretched out his hind legs, feeling the pleasant ache of exertion. "Perhaps. But who's going to explain this to Mrs. Henderson in the morning, eh?" He eyed the now-bare flowerbed, then looked at the mischievous glint in Lisa's rabbit eyes. This was going to be an interesting day in Summerside.

What do you think Mrs.

Henderson's reaction will be when she discovers her prized petunias gone?

It was a glorious morning in Mrs. Henderson's garden, the kind that made her prized petunias glow with an almost ethereal beauty. Unbeknownst to her, nestled amongst the very stumps of those vibrant blossoms, lay Fluffy Rabbit Lisa and senior fluffy rabbit Owen, dreaming rabbit dreams. They had spent the night feasting on the tender petals, a fact that would soon ignite Mrs. Henderson's wrath.

The first rays of sunlight found Mrs. Henderson emerging from her back door, a contented smile gracing her lips as she made her way towards her beloved petunias, hosepipe in hand. She turned the spigot, a gentle spray arching through the air. Just as the water began to kiss the thirsty blooms, a sudden rustle caught her ear.

There, right at the base of her most cherished magenta petunia, sat Lisa and Owen, blinking awake with wide, startled eyes. The moment they registered the towering figure of Mrs. Henderson and the menacing glint of the hosepipe, a primal fear took hold. They bolted, a fluffy brown and white streak across the dew-kissed lawn.

"Oh, you little rascals!" Mrs. Henderson shrieked, her earlier contentment vanishing in a puff of indignation. She had seen the tell-tale nibbles on her flowers, and now the culprits were making their getaway. Revenge was swift. With a flick of her wrist, the gentle spray transformed into a powerful jet. Lisa and Owen, mid-dash, found themselves caught in a sudden, drenching downpour. They yelped, ears flattened, as the cold water soaked them to the bone.

Sputtering and shivering, they scrambled under the nearest hedge, leaving a trail of dripping water behind them. Mrs. Henderson stood triumphant, the hosepipe still pointed at the now empty patch of petunias, a satisfied, albeit slightly damp, grin spreading across her face. Justice, in her eyes, had been served.