Many thanks to my reviewers PurpleLightning12, Gremblin, Cooltoons4readers and PaddysGal. Hope you enjoy these two new ones!
And extra thanks to Cooltoons4readers for beta reading my chapters as well! :D
The Tree with a tongue
Chapter 2: The tale of the Ol' Once-ler
Sadly, the library was his best option. After the freaky incident with the librarian Ted didn't know where else to go that would help him, the day ended up being a total bust.
It was now evening and he and his family were at the table for dinner. Ted playfully poked a piece of his gelatin food with his fork until it all fell apart.
Ted's mom stared at him with concern, "Ted, sweetie is something on your mind?"
Ted jumped, "W...what? Oh, uh, it's nothing."
His mom wasn't convinced, "Ted, you've been playing with your food this entire time, so something's up. Come on, spill it."
Ted slowly pushed his plate to the side, he might as well give it a shot, "Mom, I was wondering...you wouldn't happen to know any place where I can find a tree."
She stared at him, "Ted we have one, you can see it from the window."
Ted let his head fall lightly on the table. He was tired of repeating the same thing, "No I mean a real tree, trees that grow out of the ground."
Ted's mom cringed, "Grow out of the ground? The dirty ground? Why? Why do they need to do that? What do real trees even do?"
Ted sighed more irritably than he intended but he was too exasperated from his stressful day, "I don't know, but I really need to find one. Where do you think would be a good place to start?"
"Why the Once-ler of course."
Ted and his Mom both glanced over at Grammy, who was innocently cutting away at her dinner.
Ted stuttered, "The...the Once-ler?"
Ted's Mom sighed, "Mom stop it, don't scare him. You know how long it took for him to stop having those nightmares?"
Ted blushed, "Mooom! That was a long time ago!"
"It was only two years ago sweetie."
"Anyways," he turned his attention to Grammy, "Grammy, if no one in town can help me, what makes me think a horrid creature lurking in the smog can?"
Grammy giggled, "Oh you're right dear, my poor ol' mind must be slipping again, don't mind me."
Ted sighed, "So neither of you know where I can find one?"
Ted's mother shrugged, "Sorry Ted but if you really want a tree, we can go buy one this weekend. I heard the latest model has its own remote and has colors for each season."
Officially giving up, he pushed himself out of his chair and dragged his feet out the kitchen, "No, that's alright."
o~~~~~~~~o
Ted left the bathroom, bathed, teeth brushed and ready for bed. He never felt so defeated before in his life, it was typical that the only way he could win the prettiest girl's heart is by getting her something that's impossible to find, he should have known it was too good to be true.
When he entered his room and closed the door behind him, he noticed Grammy was standing behind it, waiting for him. He cried out and jumped,
"Grammy! Wh...what are you doing in my room?"
Grammy smiled, "So, you want to find a real tree?"
Taking a couple nervous steps back, he replied, "Uh, y...yeah, I do."
Grammy then helped herself over and sat down on the chair at his desk, "Well as I said before, you need to find the Once-ler."
Ted sighed and plopped down on his bed, "Grammy, I'm not in the mood for this right now. I'm not going out searching for some monster and ask 'hey you've seen any real trees around here?' and then quickly become its lunch."
Grammy shook her head with a sigh, "Oh sweetheart, the Once-ler isn't at all who you think he is."
A brown eyebrow arched, "He?"
Grammy smiled, "Why yes, I remember him from so long ago. Quite a handsome man he was. It's a shame that horrible short man has told so many lies about him."
Ted stared, it was odd seeing Grammy more serious than usual, "Short man? You mean Mr. O'Hare? Why would Mr. O'Hare lie about the Once-ler?"
Grammy paused for a moment, Ted could tell on her face that she was trying to find her words, "No one knows but I can tell you the real tale of the Once-ler. He knows exactly what happened to all the trees. If you want any lead on finding one, you have to find him."
Ted cringed, he did not like that idea at all, but what choice did he have? He took a deep breath, "Okay, so...where do I find him?"
Grammy giggled, "Oh he's impossible to find."
"What? But...but then why would you tell me...?"
Grammy held a finger up to his face to quiet him, "He's impossible to find if you don't know the clues."
"Clues?"
Grammy stood up, took her cane and gently closed the curtains in his room, "Hardly anyone knows the tale anymore, but I still have it right here." She pointed to her head.
Ted wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. She cleared her throat and began,
"At the far end of town where the grickle grass grows,
Where the winds smell slow and sour when it blows,
And no birds ever sing excepting old crows,
Is the street of the lifted Lorax."
Ted wasn't sure what to think; so far none of it made sense, just a bunch of rhymes. Grammy continued,
"Past the first patch of grickle grass, you'll find a hill's highest pitch,
It is there you find the first road called North Nitch,
Find and take a left on Weehawken,
Sharply you turn right on South Stitch.
Through the thick smogulous smoke and even thicker grickle grass,
Is where you'll find the street of the lifted lorax."
Ted rubbed his temple, "Grammy, it's a nice poem but it doesn't make any sense."
"Oh believe me it'll make sense." She took his hands gently, "Trust me dear, I'm not as crazy as I make your mother believe I am." She sighed as a frown formed on her face, "I remember when trees were everywhere and I would love to see one again..."
"Grammy..." Ted never saw his Grammy sad, or even frown for that matter. Somehow he had a feeling that this was going to mean a lot for more than just Audrey. He smiled at her, "Alright Grammy, I'll do it."
Grammy giggled and pinched his cheek, "Good for you dear. Oh, and before you sneak out there, if you want the Once-ler to talk to you, you're going to need a certain form of payment."
Ted groaned, he had a feeling this whole trip is going to be difficult, "Well here hold on, let me write all this down. Uh...how did that poem go again?"
o~~~~~~~~~o
Through the thick smogulous smog and dark thunderous clouds, a figure sat on a large rock, while playing dully on severely out of tune guitar strings, giving off a rather haunting tune. A lot of the crows had gathered around him, whether they were mocking him or keep him company he wasn't sure.
He didn't care though. They were his only company now. He missed playing for others…..for them.
He slowly turned and gazed at the so called perfect paradise made of plastic as it glowed through the smog.
Perfect. What a joke.
He tugged on an old string rather hard, "There used to be a perfect paradise here…..used to be."
To Be Continued...
