Once upon a bad story...

Once upon a bad story...

Once upon a bad story, in a strange yet wonderfully alluring village, filled with eccentric and blossoming characters, was a reasonably sensible boy named Samuru.
Samuru enjoyed the usual activities a young, free and happiness seeking boy enjoys; beautiful scenery, embracing the community, the wonders of technology and the ever increasing, but somehow limited universe that surrounds us all.
Living in a small village with a handful of randomly selected species certainly has it's advantages; everyone gets on, they laugh and joke, enjoy coffees and play games together, yet somehow manage to work alongside each other, everyday, in harmony.

Samuru's daily routine consists of some fascinating tasks, most of which, many people would consider a tedious exercise to have to endure every day...
However, being a strong believer of appreciating the smaller things in life, is maybe the one reason why he loves the village he lives in and the folk that resides around him so much.
The village follows a somewhat formal calendar; weekdays are for working and keeping the village tidy where as the weekends are for the residents to really come together, as a community and have fun. Although creating a welcoming and warm atmosphere for passer-bys is their priority, no one can be criticised for letting their hair down once in a while... especially during the winter season when the nights draw early, snow flakes begin to fall in a calm, graceful manor and the excitement for the famous Bell Tree Forums Fair coming to town, dawns closer...

Having been a long week, Saturday morning finally arrives and the residents are awoken at a little past 9o'clock; it's at this point, the soothing sound of the Bell Trees Fair having just finished setting up in the local plaza, brings the sound of faint jingles, soft music and a fuzzy sense of happiness to all homes.
The faint breeze, gliding through the snowy pine trees and along the slowly paced river allows the music to echo pleasantly with the mimicking of a tiny yellow bird, as he sits, poised and perched on the nearby notice board. It's a beautiful day.

Samuru grabs his woolly hat and races downstairs. He picks up his jacket and jumps into his snow boots and leaves his house with the biggest smile on his face. He walks his usual route, around the side of his house, past the perfect orange tree, along the river and crosses the red bricked bridge.
As he walks over the arched bridge, Cube, a fellow resident, one of Samuru's best friends, walks over the horizon across a field of lightly cushioned snow; crunch, crunch, as Cube squashed the grassy knoll with a strange but admirable penguin waddle... “Hey! Samura”, shouted Cube, eagerly awaiting to see what's in store, “Let's go, we don't want to miss the start!” Samuru replied “You read my mind Cu, lets go”... They ran towards each other and met at their favourite meeting point, the villages biggest rock, which marked the turning point of the path, which passes a small wood and leads down to the plaza with wonderful scenery, either side.

They greet each other as they approach the rock, with a traditional but completely secret handshake. “I hope they have candy floss” shouted Cube with a cheesy grin on his face, “I don't mind what colour, as long as it's delicious” he added. Samuru smiled, knowing of Cubes bizarre love of candy floss and chuckled “I'm sure they'll have a rainbow of candy floss, more candy floss than you or I could ever eat.”... They both laughed and with excitement began running through the trees knowing the Fair was minutes away. The music was getting louder.

As they neared, they began recognising laughs and the excited voices of the village workers and residents. “I think I just heard Isabelle” whispers Samuru. “I think you're right, I hear Crazy Redd too... sneaky little fox, I wonder what he has in store for us today?” said Cube. Samuru quickly acknowledged him, “Lots of mini games I hope.” Cube replied “As long as it's not candy floss, I don't trust HIS candy floss...” They both laughed again, as they continued walking down the hill mocking Crazy Redd.

“Scoot”... “Scoot”... “Up here”, Cube began frantically waving his penguin fin, “Wait for me and Samuru”... Scoot turned around to see Cube and Samuru running, almost rolling, down the hill towards him. “Hey guys” replied Scoot. “You excited?” he added... “Hi Scoot, yes, it's going to be great, a whole day of games, food, fun and laughter.”... “And candy floss.” Cube giggled. Scoot smiled, “As long as they don't have hook the duck, I'm happy”, they all burst out laughing.

The three, dusted themselves off, pulled their clothes straight and walked up to the gates of the plaza... “Wowwwww”, “So pretty”, “So many lights”....
The Bell Tree Forums created something special. A Fair full of flashing lights, the game stalls filled with prizes, stands bursting with delicious food and of course, a giant candy floss machine.
This event is something that brings communities together, something to enjoy. Samuru, Cube and Scoot entered knowing their day had only just begun...

To be continued...