The Chicks

The Chicks were part of the middle school science curriculum at Morinomiya Academy.

Appearance
The chicks are typical in appearance, having orange beaks and feet and yellow feathers. Those feathers were damp with embryonic fluid upon hatching, and became fluffy upon drying.

History
The chicks began their life cycle as eggs, which were kept warm in an incubator found in the middle chool laboratory. When the time for them to hatch approached, Shizuka invited the children over to take a look. When they were told that the eggs wouldn't hatch until the following day, only Kotaro remained excited to watch them. He woke up Ryuuichi early the next morning so that they could go and see the eggs, and were allowed in the school building by Shizuka. The chicks were stirring, having begun to crack through their shells. Unlike the tired Ryuu and Shizuka, Kotaro did not doze off, and pressed himself up against the incubator to stare at the eggs for the moment they fully hatched. The process took over an hour, but the chicks mustered the energy to finally emerge. They imprinted themselves onto Kotaro, who was the first being they saw in life.

After school, the chicks followed Kotaro around in a line. A jealous Taka scared the chicks when he tried to claim some as his own, and they scattered. The babysitters were forced to round them up. Kotaro chased one to an open window, where a predatory cat was preparing an ambush. Kotaro shielded the chick while the cat pounced. Thanks to the timely intervention of Hayato, neither the chick nor Kotaro came to any harm. The children played with the chicks for the whole day. The Kashima brothers returned the next day to play some more, only to be disappointed by Shizuka informing them that all the chicks had been given away.

All except one, which the children were permitted to keep as a pet within the daycare.

Kashima Kotaro
Kotaro was so fascinated by the though of watching baby chicks hatching that he remained vigilant at the incubator for as long as he could. When they hatched, they saw Kotaro and imprinted on him, seeing him as their mother.

They followed Kotaro around in a line, and ran away scared from everyone else. The one chick that remained at school became accustomed to Usaida and the other children, though it is still closest with Kotaro.