There's an elephant in the oven

Callie peeked her head out around the corner of her grandmother's kitchen. It had been months since she had seen the candy creatures. In fact, she often wondered if it was all a dream. After all, it wasn't like things just disappeared into thin air.

"It must have been a dream," she whispered to herself. She rubbed her arms to rub away the goosebumps, wishing she didn't feel the curling in her belly. It was a subtle reminder that maybe, just maybe, the animals would come back some day...

A small bell buzzed, reminding Callie of her work. Tying on the pink apron her grandmother had sewn for her, she bustled to the play kitchen her grandfather had built for her. In the corner of her grandmother's dining room, he had built her a small model stove, refrigerator and cabinet with a real sink. She even had her own minuscule dining table right next to her grandmother's. After Callie had set off the smoke alarm and nearly given her grandmother a heart attack, it was the only oven she was allowed to cook in when no one was around.

Sliding potholders over her petite hands, she opened the wooden oven door and extracted an old cast iron pan.

"HELLO!" a shrill voice cried. Callie was so surprised she tripped and fell back on her rear end. Her wrist bent and spilled the contents of the pan all over her stomach. A baby blue elephant, pink hippo and carmel giraffe bounced on her belly.

"Now you've done it!" the giraffe shouted, his neck bobbing awkwardly as his four feet flailed in every direction. "You've terrified her!"

"I was just saying hello!" the elephant cried in a wounded tone. "She hasn't seen us in awhile. I thought she'd be happy to see us!" Callie heard a gentle roar and gasped as a pink bubble floated away from the elephant's trunk. It popped against her finger and she sniffed it.

"It's bubblegum!" she cried in delight.

"Now you've done it," the pink hippo scolded. "You upset his stomach again. You know he blows bubblegum bubbles when he's upset." The giraffe glared at her and tried to stand, lurching to the side as he stepped in Callie's belly button. Callie giggled and the giraffe bounced helplessly.

"I was just pointing out facts," he snarled. "Would someone help me up?" Callie helped him to his feet. She stared at the three creatures sitting on his stomach.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "Are you all made of candy?"

"Yup," the pink hippo said.

"How can you talk?" the little girl asked.

"We're not quite sure," the blue elephant hiccuped, another pink bubble popping from his trunk. "We're not quite sure how we got here either. One minute we were making snow angels in the Cool Whip Mountains, now we're here."

"I was just getting the hang of it," the giraffe grumbled.

"What are you going to do here?" Callie asked. The animals looked at her in confusion.

"What is there to do?" the elephant asked.

"Well, we could play games or watch a movie or have lunch..."

"Lunch!" the elephant cried, belching another bubble from his trunk. "I'd love some lunch!"

"What would you like?" Callie asked, her brow creased in confusion. She had never made lunch for candy animals before.

"I'd like sugarplum tarts please," the elephant said, blowing a stream of pink bubbles.

"I'd like a cotton candy sandwich please," the pink hippo said.

"Do you have any butterscotch leaves and honey?" the giraffe asked.

"I can check," Callie said, scribbling the orders down on the menu pad her grandpa had put on her fridge.

"Thank you so much," he said. Callie carefully put the animals on her dining room table and set about making their lunch. She plucked some butterscotch leaves from the bowl of fresh fruit on the counter, whipped up some sugarplum tarts and smeared cotton candy on two sugar crisp cookies. She placed each lunch on one of her pretty white and pink china plates and served fruit punch in matching cups. The animals wolfed down their lunch as if they hadn't eaten in years.

"Delicious!" the elephant cried, blowing a bubble so big it lifted him off the table.

"This is the best sandwich I've ever had!" the hippo cried.

Even the giraffe smiled and sighed in bliss. "Heavenly," he whispered, chewing his leaves slowly.

Callie beamed as the animals climbed back in her cast iron pan. "Will you come back?" she asked as she slid the pan in the oven.

"Definitely," the elephant belched.

"And we'll bring friends!" the hippo bellowed.

"But not too many," the giraffe added. "I don't want them to all know how wonderful of a cook you are. They'll eat all our food!"

"Until then, dear friends!" Callie said. She shut the oven door firmly and turned as her grandmother walked in the room.

"What are you doing dear?" her grandmother asked. Callie beamed.

"Just talking to some friends."