(A/N: I'm calling this a Lorax story because that's where it starts, and the backstory turned out longer than intended. Hopefully, I'll finish it in the next chapter, and then we can get to the numerous travels! Those can take place in any Dr. Seuss books.)

Back in the time when the Bar-ba-loots played,

And the Humming-Fish hummed, and the Truffulas swayed,

And the Swomee-Swans sang in a sweet serenade,

A little girl came for a visit.

Bella rest her pencil at the top of the page, having finally completed the first verse of her autobiographical story. She had never intended to relay her whole life in book form; children's books just didn't have room for whole life stories. But she could sense the excitement of her upcoming adventure, and while she felt the events that led to it were best left to some other writer, she had to at least mention them in this tale.

It was hard to just ignore the destruction of an entire ecosystem.

When Bella first arrived, the Truffula Valley wasn't home to many humans. Trees, Bar-ba-loots, Swomee-Swans, and Humming-Fish, yes, but no human beings. Their "habitat" was in a town a bit of a distance from the edge of the forest. Of course, it was only the slightest bit of a distance, since a six-year-old prone to wandering could traverse it with ease.

It happened the day Bella's parents took her out on a walk past the edge of town. There was really nothing to look at, save for a few patches of Grickle-grass, which was why she wasn't too enthusiastic at first.

But just when she was about to give up on finding something and complain that she wanted to go home, she found something unusual in the distance. It was hard to make out, but it looked like...a lollipop. A fuzzy lollipop. A bunch of fuzzy lollipops.

With little regard for the rule that she had to stay near Mom and Dad- it wasn't very strictly enforced, anyway- Bella ran in the direction of the lollies. Soon, she found herself in a colorful wonderland of plants and animals.

And this wonderland soon became her second childhood home.

Naturally, her parents were concerned that someone so young was going off on her own so much, so when it was time for Bella to pay the Truffula Valley a visit, one or both of them would follow. But her mother insisted that it was good for her to explore and have some time to herself, so they never followed too closely. Instead, they waited right outside the forest, about a foot from the first Truffula tree, until their daughter was finished, and once she was old enugh to be trustworthy, they stopped following her altogether.

Because of the privacy this setting allowed her, not to mention the beautiful landscape and the animal friends she was making, Bella grew very attached to this forest. And when she began to consider children's book writing as a career, her first story ideas took her right to the trees. Her first successful story was loosely based on her initial encounter with the place; it was called Goldilocks and the Three Bar-ba-loots.

It took until three years after that was published for Bella to ever see another human in the forest. Before, the only other creature she'd been able to converse with was a short, furry, mustachioed man who'd said he was the Lorax. And the few times when he spoke to her, it was usually to make sure she wasn't disclosing the location of the Truffula Valley to her readers.

Which was why she was so surprised when a new voice reached her ears. It happened one day when she was working on the draft of Sammy Swan's Lost Song, the latest installment of the Goldilocks series. Just when she was about to start drawing the tuft portion of a Truffula Tree, that voice sent her papers and pencil flying into the air. It was someone's loud singing, accompanied by...was that a guitar?

Once she gathered up her supplies, making sure the pages were in the right order, she decided to investigate. Cautiously, she stepped closer until she could spot the source of the sound. Amazingly, it was another human being, and he seemed to be getting along well with the animals. They were dancing in rhythm and singing backup, and though she couldn't bring herself to completely trust this guy, Bella couldn't help but nod along. Sure, she had no idea what this "thneed" the guy said he was going to make was, but he sure seemed happy about it. And the joy was infectious.

That is, until he whipped out an axe and sliced through a tree. It crashed through the air and landed with a thump, and he just kept on singing.

This was Bella's first impression of this man, and she really hoped it would be the last. Luckily, she didn't have to summon the courage to ask him what in the world he was doing, because the Lorax seemed to have that covered. So this was why she didn't see him much; problems like this didn't happen often.

As the Lorax ordered this newcomer to get out, Bella watched from behind a Truffula tree, just to make sure things went well. Unfortunately, they...didn't. The guy had retreated into his tent, and the Lorax had no choice but to leave him alone for now.

Oh, well. Better luck next time. Right now, Bella figured she should get back to drawing. But as she turned around and saw the sad little stump, surrounded by stones from the animals, she figured she should pay her respects as well. She found a nice round one and reached over to put it on the fallen tree's remains, but as she was leaning, she tripped on a different, rather heavy stone and dropped hers. Just like the tree, she fell to the earth. "Whoooa!"

Unlike the tree, she had arms to break her fall, so she didn't suffer too much damage. But she must have sounded like she had, because the young man from earlier was frantically running over. "What happened? Are you okay?"

He offered a hand to help her up, but she was reluctant to accept it, so she gathered her art supplies and stood up herself. "Yep," she said as she straightened out her papers. "I'm fine."

She slowly stepped away, hoping he would take it as a signal to leave her be, but he didn't. Instead, he stood there, a concerned expression still on his face. "You sure?" he asked. "You sound upset."

"No, I...I'm good. I just tripped, and oh, I scraped my knee." She held her skirt up with one hand and plunged the other into the bag draped over her shoulder. "Come on, Band-Aid, Band-Aid…" she whispered to herself. "Tissue...napkin…"

"I have some bandages back at the cottage," the guy offered. "Come on, I'll get you some."

She really didn't want to accept this guy's help, but she was bleeding, for gosh sakes. What choice did she have? Reluctantly, she nodded and followed him back to his quarters.

"So," he said, "what's your name?"

She thought back to the Lorax's introduction. "I am the Lorax, and I speak for the trees." There was something about that she liked.

So she hastily put together her own version. "I'm Bella Vanilla, the story tella. I...write more than I speak."

Her companion chuckled. "I'm the Once-ler, and I'm gonna make my dreams come true once I finish this thneed! I'll tell you all about it when we get there!"

And believe it or not, the two of them became friends.