Forces of Nature
Once it was dark, the Lorax, Fiora and Pipsqueak watched the round-eared intruder in his home. He wore different clothes this time: blue with some kind of yellow dots on it. The human was doing the strangest thing with the Truffula tufts: he bound the tufts together with two long shiny objects that clinked. Fiora was so fascinated. She had never seen anything like this! This had to be more magic! Who knew humans could do such things!
"What is the human doing?" asked Fiora curiously. "And what are those things?"
"It's called knitting," the Lorax said. "What he's using are called needles."
"Why do they make that strange sound?"
"They're made of metal. It's like a shiny rock."
Fiora was beyond amazed. Though she didn't like this human, she couldn't help wanting to know more about this strange creature. The Lorax explained everything earlier about the human and his things. The big home that the human lived in was called a house: the holes in it were windows and the flat wood thing was a called door. The vines were called ropes. The sharp wood sticks in the ground holding them in were stakes. The green hands he wore were called gloves. On his head was called a hat. On his feet were called shoes. And the shiny, sharp object he used to cut down the tree was called an axe. Fiora took an immediate dislike for this particular object.
Then the human yawned and lied down in a strange thing, which was called a bed. Then his house went dark! Oh! What made it do that? The Lorax said it was a lamp.
"So, what's the plan?" Fiora asked.
"Just go to the door," Lorax said. "Shake it a bit...make scary noises...then, I'll scare him off with these branches."
"Are you sure that will work?" She raised an eyebrow. It sounded a bit silly.
"Of course it will!"
The three of them tiptoed towards the window, looking in at the snoring human. It was a little dark inside the human's home, but Fiora could make out a few objects inside.
"OK. Time to release the Kracken." Lorax chuckled impishly. "Go ahead, Green Girl."
Fiora tiptoed towards the door, shaking the door and made loud sounds, then took off to hide in the bushes to watch the show. Lorax held up two giant branches in the light of the moon, which looked like scary hands.
Once-ler was startled awake by the rattling of the door and the scary noises. He saw a shadow on the wall. He pulled the covers up, curling up and whimpered frightened.
"Yooooouuuu are doooohoooommed..."said Lorax in a scary ghostly voice.
...until Once-ler saw a fuzzy, mustached shadow. His face dropped with annoyance. Really?! He seemed to recall his brothers pulling the same prank on him when he was a kid. How lame was that! Obviously, they were trying to scare him away. Nope! He wasn't fooled. He grabbed the hose and sprayed the Lorax with water, then went back inside.
The Lorax spluttered, shaking his wet fur, which made him all poofy. Fiora and Pipsqueak laughed, rolling on the grass.
"Hey! This isn't funny, Green Girl!" said the Lorax sulkily.
"I'm sorry," she giggled. He looked absolutely ridiculous.
"Alright! That's it! Now he's REALLY on my bad side! Time to bring out the big guns!"
Soon, the full forces of nature were unleashed upon the round-eared intruder...
They tried everything to get him to leave: from stuffing prickles and sticks in his pillow and mattress, mud in his shoes, stealing his clothes and throwing them up in tree tops, wetting his sheets and blankets with cold water, thorny vines on his seats. They even released insects inside his home: mosquitoes and fleas bit him in his sleep, ants, beetles, and locusts crawled everywhere and got into everything, spiders dangled from silken webs, and gnats swarmed around his head, getting into his ears and nose. There was one time, Fiora made vines grow all over, which he woke up entangled in them.
They watched as he shrieked loudly, scratching furiously at his body, flailing his arms and dancing in a funny manner...
Once-ler, covered in bites, sore, wet, cold and miserable, glared at the devious dwellers of the Truffula forest. Try as they might to get rid of him, oh no! He was not going anywhere! No matter how much they tormented him, he wouldn't budge.
This human is stubborn! Fiora thought.
In another vain attempt to drive away the human, the animals threw a wasp nest into his house. Once-ler ran outside, screaming and frantically waving his arms about, running away from the swarm of angry wasps that stung him aggressively. Welts swelled up all over him. It was funny seeing him act like that...until he collapsed on the ground, wheezing. He couldn't breathe! Fiora stared in horror. Apparently, bee stings made him sick!
Though she wanted to get rid of the human, she couldn't let him die. She commanded the wasps away, then touched his swollen face and absorbed all the venom out of his body. Blinking his eyes, he stared at his hands in amazement, watching the stinging welts disappear and the swelling recede, his throat was opened and coughed.
"Wha...what did you do to me?" he exclaimed, flexing his fingers.
"I healed you," she said simply.
"You saved me?" Once-ler said, confused. "But why? I thought you wanted me gone."
"I may not like you here, human," she said with a cross look. "But it would be cruel to let you die like that."
He couldn't believe it! She saved him even though he was not wanted here. He was about to say something sarcastic to her...especially after their first meeting. But, this was a near-death experience...it paled in comparison to her injury.
"Thank you," he said half-grateful with a shrug.
"You're welcome," she said with a smile, her mossy eyes glittered.
"Now, would you and your friends please stop tormenting me?" he pleaded with exasperation.
"Not unless you stop cutting down more trees," she said with her arms crossed.
"Well, I can't promise you that."
The forest girl frowned. "Then, I can't promise you that my friends will leave you alone. All you have to do is stop cutting down trees. What is so hard about that?"
Once-ler sighed exasperated, dragging a hand down his face. There was no reasoning with this girl!
"Seriously, what is the big deal?" he asked. "It's just a tree! Why does it matter?"
"It matters because I feel the trees' pain...and really hurts. Besides, would you like it if someone put an axe through you?"
"Right," he replied unconvinced. "And why are you so eager to have me gone?"
"You don't belong here, human," she replied. "Plus, the trees are needed here. You're destroying the only home we have."
"Well, I'm not leaving," he said stubbornly. "I'm going to cut down these trees. And you and your little friends can't do anything about it!"
"You are very cruel, human!" she spat angrily. "I save your life...and yet, you insist upon murdering these trees! Is it always an inborn need for humans to kill and destroy everything?"
Once-ler rolled his eyes. "You know, not all humans are like that."
"You certainly aren't making that point very well," she countered.
"Well clearly, you've never met any humans."
"Maybe I don't like them. I certainly don't like you."
"Wha...but, you don't even know me!" he exclaimed incredulous.
"Maybe so, but I don't care either, human!"
"Well, fine!" he said. "Then, I don't like you either!"
"Fine!" She swished away, then shouted over her shoulder, "And don't count on me to save your life again either!"
"FINE!"
He stormed back to his cottage. Stupid, annoying sprite! What was her problem?! He shouldn't be surprised if the forest girl didn't like him. He was used to rejection. He shrugged and went back in his house.
Fiora returned to her friends, fuming furiously. This human was so cruel, stubborn and ungrateful!
"Well, what happened?" asked Lorax.
"The bee stings...it made the human sick," she said. "I couldn't..."
"It's fine, Green Girl," Lorax said gently, touching her shoulder.
"Are all humans so cruel?" She glared at the human.
"Mm, some. There are good ones too."
Strange. This human was cruel...yet, Fiora could see in his eyes that there was goodness in him.
"The human did seem...er...worried when I got hurt and was kind to heal my leg," she said.
The guardian looked surprised when his pupil told him this. "Really?" the Lorax said.
She showed him the bandage. He hummed deep in thought: the human refused to stop cutting down the trees, they pestered him to get him to leave...and when the forest sprite told him about the human's act of compassion. Maybe he should give the human a chance.
"I'll talk to him again," he said.
The Lorax went over to the Beanpole's house. He was sitting on a chair, sulking.
"What do you want, Mustache?" snapped Once-ler. "Come to unleash more forces of nature on me to get me to leave?"
"No," the Lorax said. "I just want to talk. That's all."
"Well, talk."
"First off, Fiora told me what you did..."
"What did the whiny green tattletale say this time? Did she run crying to you and tell you I was mean?" he said sarcastically.
"Just shut up and listen, Beanpole. She told me about what you did and I have to say...I'll reconsider letting you stay IF you would just stop cutting down the trees."
"I don't need your permission or approval. I'm sticking with my word of what I said earlier."
"It's my forest, so what I say goes. So if you don't wanna agree to my rules..."
"Just get out!" Once-ler yelled, closing the blinds in his face.
"I guess we're gonna have to play hardball then..." murmured the Lorax to himself.
Tonight...the intruder would be gone for sure...
By nightfall, they waited again for the round-eared intruder to fall asleep. The bar-ba-loots picked up the human's bed and carried it out towards the door, only for it to get stuck!
"Seriously!" Lorax hissed. "Who taught you to steal a bed?"
They finally managed by slipping the the sleeping human in his bed out the open window. Lorax chuckling evilly, leading the animals and Fiora towards the river and gently placing it down, giggling. The round-eared intruder would be out of the forest...and the plan would've worked well...if Pipsqueak hadn't been on the bed!
"Can he swim?" Lorax asked the other bar-ba-loots, who only shook their heads. "Of course he can't! Great!"
They chased the bed down the river.
"Hey, you fishies," he said to the humming-fish. "Stop that bed.
They grabbed the blanket, only for it to come right off the bed! Once-ler curled up, shivering...then grabbed Pipsqueak and cuddled with him. They looked for another way to grab Pipsqueak off the bed. Seeing a bowing Truffula tree by the shore, it was enough to reach him.
"Fiora, operation vine swing!" The Lorax said, panting.
Fiora touched the tree; vines emerged from her hand and wrapped around the tree, then descended over the river, growing just enough for Lorax to climb down it and reach for Pipsqueak...it would've worked...only for Pipsqueak to walk right passed him towards a Truffula fruit.
Ugh! Bar-ba-loots! sighed the Lorax.
Soon, the human's leg dangled into the river, only for it to direct it towards a small waterfall; the two spirits went wide-eyed, knowing where that part of the river was heading.
"Oh that's bad," said the Lorax.
"Oh Nature's breath," gasped Fiora.
They heard the humming-fish sing the funeral march, bursting into a run, chasing after the floating bed.
"HEY, BEANPOLE!" shouted the Lorax. "WAKE UP!"
Pipsqueak ran to the foot of the bed, only for it to flip under the water and back up again. He awoke with a start, spluttered and coughed, soaking wet and covered in fish, who jumped back into the river immediately. He saw Pipsqueak at the foot of his bed, who giggled innocently.
"W-What's...happening?" he stammered, startled and confused. "Where am I?"
"You got trouble! It's coming up fast!" The Lorax shouted, pointing in the direction.
He turned around to see dangerous rapids that roared angrily. His bed bounced and bumped against the sharp rocks roughly. Once-ler shrieked in terror as he continued to descend, holding onto his bed. Soon as it reached the bottom of the rapids, the river was calm, which Once-ler laughed, relieved...
"HUMAN! LOOK OUT!" shouted Fiora, knowing that at the end of that calm of the river...was a giant waterfall.
"Help me!" Once-ler cried out desperately, using his pillow to row towards the shore, only to prove it was useless. "Do something!"
"Help is on the way!" Lorax called.
They looked around for something...to see a boulder on the cliff. Lorax hurriedly climbed up the hill, shoving a stick under it, jumping frantically until it fell loose and rolled down...just hitting the human's bed on target. He shrieked as he was catapulted through the air along with Pipsqueak...then landed on the ground with a sickening thump.
"Oh...no!" Lorax exclaimed, grabbing his mustache in horror.
They ran towards the human. Lorax smacked him, trying to wake him up...he lay there, limp and unresponsive. He was ice cold!
"Fiora!" Lorax said, desperately. "Please! Save him!"
Angry as she was at the human for his cruel refusal, she couldn't let him die. Plus, she only had a small opportunity before it was too late. Reluctantly, she touched the human's chest, feeling his ceased heart, concentrating on it...using every ounce of energy and magic she had...a golden light glowed from her hand. She felt her own life force being drained...her eyes rolled, her skin paled, her hair turned white...collapsing.
Once-ler bolted upright, gasping as he was revived, touching his chest...
"I was heading into the light...and then...you pulled me right back!" he laughed, overjoyed. "And here I am! You saved my life!" He hugged Lorax.
"Don't thank me," said Lorax. "Thank Fiora."
"What? She saved me? But she said she wouldn't."
"Well...yea. It's in her nature to do so."
He looked over at the limp Fiora, lying on the ground...still...completely white as a ghost...her hair spread out. Here he was being so cruel and this sprite had saved him twice. This time, she gave up her life to bring him back.
"Is she...?" he said, worried.
"No, she's just passed out. Reviving things takes a lot of magic and energy for her."
"I can't believe it! I almost went over that waterfall..." Then he thought for a minute, confused as of how he got there in the first place. "Wait...my bed? How did my bed get in the river?"
"Erm...well..." Lorax said slowly, trying to come up with an explanation. "About that...actually...we put your bed in the river."
Once-ler's face dropped in a frown.
"Look, we didn't mean you any harm," Lorax explained. "We just wanted to calmly float you away."
Once-ler scowled as he walked in the direction of the waterfall to go look for his bed.
"Look! Everyone here needs the trees!" Lorax said. "And you're chopping them down! Couldn't you just stop...for Fiora's sake? She saved you...twice already."
He sighed in resignation, looking at the ashen, unconscious Fiora. She did save him. And he was very grateful.
"Alright, then. I hereby swear I will never chop down another tree," Once-ler said, placing his hand on his heart and one up, "I promise."
"Thank you," Lorax said, relieved. "But I'm gonna keep an eye on you to make sure you uphold that promise."
"Right," he said, skeptically. "Well, I've got a big day tomorrow so I'm gonna get some sleep.." He stretched and yawned, about to head in the direction of his cottage...only to slump towards the waterfall. "Right after I find my bed," he groaned.
