"Alright, here we go! About to make a thneed, about to change the world," the Once-ler said as he pulled a thick pair of gloves on to protect his hands from blistering as he chopped down his first truffula tree. He had been searching for months now to find the perfect material for his ambitious new invention. After all, a product that can do the jobs of thousands had to be made of something durable, soft, absorbent, and easy to wash. However, he couldn't find a material that would meet all of those qualifications, until he stumbled upon the valley of the truffula trees.
The wooded paradise was until anything he'd ever seen. Everywhere colorful trees towered above lush green grass and clear, cool brooks. Small creatures such as fuzzy barb-a-loots, majestic swami swans, and melodious humming fish brought the forest to life, and added motion and sound to the colorful landscape.
The truffula trees truly held his attention, though. Not only for their natural beauty and majesty, but also because of the fact they produced the perfect material for his thneed. The entrepreneur inside of him felt like a child in an amusement park, full of wonder and excitement for the surprises that were sure to come. He would finally make his thneed, be successful, and prove all the nay-sayers wrong. His mother may even be proud of him when he succeeds!
The tree he chose to chop down was just a few feet away from the river and away from his new home in case the tree fell the wrong way. He took a moment to position himself into a sturdy stance, took careful aim, and swung at the tree. The axe hacked into the tree, splitting its wood and sending splinters everywhere. Maybe a pair of safety goggles would be a wise investment? The Once-ler continued to chop, and neglected to notice the animals fearfully running away from the scene. Right before the tree was ready to fall over, he heard an urgent voice yell to him.
"Hey! Stop!"
It was too late. The tree tipped over, and a majority of it landed in the river. The Once-ler glanced around to see who had yelled at him, but didn't see another person for miles. It certainly wasn't one of the forest critters, and it was too clear and loud to be an echo from some hidden part of the forest.
"Great, now I have to drag this tree out of the wat-" the Once-ler mumbled, then paused as his eyes fell on the tree and what had yelled at him. She was a lot easier to see now that the soft, pink tufts of the tree were saturated with water, along with the girl herself. She sat up and carefully moved her long, cherry red hair out of her face.
"Whoa! I'm so sorry!" the Once-ler apologized as he hopped into the river and went to help the girl up. The water was generally shallow, and only reached his knees, but the girl was soaked head to toe due to being plunged into the water. He extended his hand to help her up, which she gladly accepted.
"Thanks," she said as she felt a gentle, yet firm tug pull her out of the water. The girl had long, red hair, pale skin, grayish-blue eyes, and bright red lips. She wore a white sundress with a simple gray and pale red flower pattern, a thick red ribbon that wrapped around her waist and tied into a bow in the back, and gray flats to complete the look.
"Are you okay? Where did you come from?" the Once-ler asked.
"I was napping in the tree, since my home is a small walk away. Not to mention, there's nothing quite like sleeping in a truffula tree. Its tufts are so soft," she explained. Her eyes scanned the fallen truffula tree as a concerned look crossed her face. "Oh… He is not going to be happy…" she mumbled.
"What?" the Once-ler inquired. "Who? Are you okay?"
The girl nodded then answered, "You'll see."
"Um, I have a towel back at my house. We can get you dried up," he suggested. He figured she must've hit her head when she tumbled out of the tree. She probably just needed to dry off and rest for a bit before regaining her sense.
The Once-ler lead her to his cottage and instructed her to sit on the couch. "Sorry if it's messy in here, I'm just settling in," he explained as he dug through a sack for a suitable towel. When he found one, he grabbed it, and walked over to the couch. "I'm the Once-ler, by the way," he introduced as he handed her the towel and sat across from her.
"Thanks, I'm Sheryl. But please don't call me that. Call me Cherri," the red head replied.
He cracked a smile at the irony of her looks and her chosen nickname. "Nice to meet you. Let me guess, you have that nickname because of your hair."
"Sort of," Cherri answered. "At first, my nickname was just Sherry, but when my hair got red, Cherri just stuck."
"It suits you," he replied and stood up. "Dry off and make yourself at home. I have to go take care of something."
"Oh?" she asked as she wrapped her hair in the towel to soak up the water.
"Yep! I'm going to make a thneed!" he beamed and then marched out the door before Cherri was able to properly thank him.
He walked back to the site where he chopped down the tree, whistling a song he wrote during his travels. He closed her eyes and focused on his future success, and finally opened them when he arrived. The first thing he noticed was a strange circle of rocks surrounding the tree, but when he looked up he noticed and even stranger looing orange creature with a yellow mustache.