Once, in the far away land of Fantinova, there lived a turtle named Turtle and a bird named Bluebell. Turtle, Bluebell, and Bluebell's brother, Pine, all lived by a small pond. Bluebell and Pine lived in a tall oak tree, and Turtle lived in a little cave inside the pond.
When Pine was an adult he decided to move to Squinkieville, where he and Bluebell were from. With heavy hearts, Turtle and Bluebell bid him farewell. They hadn't heard from him since.
One fine day, when Turtle was walking around the park that encircled the pond, he decided to visit Bluebell's tree. As soon as he reached the trunk, she flew down to meet him. In her beak she held a leaf, which she put down for Turtle to see. Across it, written in red berry juice, was a letter:
Dear Bluebell,
You'll never believe where I'm living now. The Squinkie Mansion! It's been a blast. Sorry I haven't contacted you earlier. I've been great. I've made a lot of friends here. Why don't you and Turtle come visit? I've really missed you guys. It would be great to chat and catch up. What kind of hobbies have you two taken up? I learned how to fly a plane. Now I'm the head pilot of the Squinkie Mansion's private jet! Can't wait to see you!
Love,
Pine
Turtle was ecstatic. Pine was writing to them! And from the Squinkie Mansion, too! Turtle had never been to Squinkieville. He was overjoyed that Pine wanted them to visit.
Bluebell looked at him. "Do you want to go?"
Turtle turned towards her. "Of course! Don't you?"
"Totally. I haven't seen Pine in forever. And it would be nice to see Squinkieville again. Wow. I can't believe he's actually living in the Squinkie Mansion. I've seen it before, but I've never been inside."
"When do you want to leave?"
"I was planning on tomorrow morning. Is that enough time for you?"
"Yes. I'll see you then."
Turtle walked back to the pond and swam to his cave to start packing. Turtle had heard amazing things about the Squinkie Mansion. Apparently it had eighteen rooms with a pool, a mini aquarium, a golf course, indoor playground, tower, movie theater, and a telescope. The people who lived there, three girls and their baby brothers, were the richest people in Squinkieville. They co-owned a theater that was a major hit with the Squinkies. Barbie, the other owner, was the second richest Squinkie in Squinkieville. Her mansion was about half the size of the Squinkie Mansion.
Turtle picked up a lily pad and wrote a list:
shells
toothbrush
hobby stuff
Turtle dragged his lily pad basket out of a corner. He turned toward his "fun stuff" area. It was empty.
You see, Turtle didn't really have any hobbies. He had grown out of them. He no longer tried to hop from lily pad to lily pad (since he always fell in), he didn't paint anymore (since they either looked terribly wrong of he slipped and fell flat-faced in his painting), and he didn't sing anymore (since all the other turtles covered their ears and ran away).
Turtle sighed and went to pack his shells. He folded and placed them at the bottom of his basket. Then he packed his toothbrush. After that he sat down and thought of what to bring as his favorite thing.
Turtle finally decided to bring his butterfly pillow. He liked it. And on the way, he would try to think of something else that he liked.
YOU ARE READING
The Turtle and the Bird
Short StoryTurtle, Bluebell, and Pine have been friends forever. Of course, that was before Pine left. Turtle and Bluebell have never felt the same without him. But they receive a letter from Pine, asking them to come visit him at his new home. So Turtle and B...
