Happy Easter everyone

And now, here's an entirely new story

For this one, I decided to do a one shot based on one of my favorite childhood shows, Peep and the Big Wide World. Now this one has been in development for quite some time, as I intended this to be a tribute to the show's/characters' original creator Kaj Pindal, since he recently passed away in 2019. I know it's a bit late, but I was so preoccupied with continuing my other stories that I nearly forgot to finish this one. But hey, better late than never. And since it's Easter and we are heading into spring, I figured this would be a great opportunity to present this story.

With that said, please enjoy.

(Inspired by the Stanley episode Caterpillar Countdown)

Note: Peep and the Big Wide World is originally created by Kaj Pindal (May he Rest In Peace)

One fine day, the sun rose, shining bright, filling the air with warm, fresh, joyful sensations.

But of course, this was no ordinary morning. As this one had a certain effect on birds.

One bird in particular, a chicken named Peep, came out of his home, which was a tin can, to greet the day.

"Ah, the first day of spring," he sighed happily. "I'm not sure what it is, but something about it always feels so lovely."

Peep decided to go out and find something fun to do.

He made his way over to a small pond, where he found his two best friends, Chirp, a young female robin, and Quack, an elder male, blue duck.

"Hi guys!" Peep greeted. "Happy spring!"

"Morning Peep," said Chirp. "You seem pretty happy today."

"I know. It's a very nice day, isn't it?"

"I'll say it is, Peep," Quack boasted. "And you know why? Because spring makes it the perfect day for a swim."

Just then, two little fish pop their heads out of the water. But these weren't just any ordinary fish. These ones were tiny and had only heads and long, wiggly tails.

Immediately, the birds jumped with surprise.

"Oh, my apologies," one of them said. "We weren't aware this place was inhabited."

As Chirp and Peep got back up, they got really curious. Especially Peep.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"And what are you?" Asked Chirp.

"Please excuse us," said one of the fish. "We're your new neighbors."

"Funny," murmured Quack. "I wasn't expecting any new fish in my pond."

"Actually, we're not fish at all," said the other 'fish', who was a female. "We're tadpoles."

"Oh……….." but then Peep had another question. "What's a tadpole?"

"Well, a tadpole is actually a baby frog."

The birds were now even more confused.

"But you don't look anything like frogs," Chirp claims.

"Maybe not yet. But when the time comes, we will be," said Mr Tadpole. "And who might you three be?"

"Oh. I'm Peep," the little chicken introduced. "And these are my friends, Chirp and Quack. Quack's the one who lives in the pond."

"Well, we do beg your pardon," Ms Tadpole apologized. "I hope there's no hard feelings."

Quack thought about it and shrugged it off. "Oh it's no trouble. I suppose there's enough room in my pond for two more."

"Thank you very much, kind gentleman," said Mr Tadpole. "Now if you'll excuse us, we must be going. But feel free to visit us anytime."

Then the two tadpoles dived back into the water.

"Wow," Peep sighs with amazement. "I can't believe they're going to turn into frogs."

But Chirp found their story to be a little fishy (no pun intended). "Peep, I think they just made that up just to fool us. There's no way two little fish can become frogs."

Quack got out of the water. "Don't be so naive, Chirp. There's always room in my pond for fish. Especially magic ones."

"Quack, there's no such thing as magic fish."

"Well if they say they're going to turn into frogs, then I believe it."

"Well I don't believe it. If those tadpoles turn into frogs, I'll…...I'll take a bath in your pond."

Both Quack and Peep were shocked.

"But Chirp," begged Peep. "You're not a duck."

"I'm aware of that Peep."

"And you hate getting wet."

"Well that's how sure I am that those little fish will never turn into frogs."

"Then I hope you have that pool floatie handy," Quack taunted. "Because you're gonna need it once I prove you wrong."

"Well that's fine with me, because those tadpoles are not really magic!"

"Are too!"

"Are not!"

"Are too!"

"Are not!"

All this fighting was making Peep feel rather scared. "Guys! Stop! Time out! You guys are my friends. We shouldn't fight about this. Maybe we can just ask Mr and Ms Tadpole again to see if they are magic or not. Don't you think?"

But the two older birds didn't listen and kept arguing.

"I say they're magic!" Quack shouts.

"I say they're not!" Chirp argues. "And Peep knows I'm right! Don't you Peep?"

Peep wasn't sure how to respond. "I think so."

"Well Peep knows that I'm right," Quack exclaimed. "Don't you Peep?"

"Uhh…….sure."

"Hey! No fair! Peep can't be on your side and mine at the same time!"

"You're right," Quack reluctantly agrees. "We'll just have to let him decide then. So Peep, what do you think? Are they really magic or not?"

Peep tried to come up with an answer. "Well, maybe……..but what if they're……..but they could be…….." But Peep couldn't decide. "Oh, I don't know! I need to think!"

So he ran off in despair.

But Chirp and Quack were still irritated with one another.

"Nice job," Quack accused the former. "You made him upset."

"Me? You're the one who told him to choose a side!" Chirp retaliated.

"Well if that's how it's going to be, then I'm not speaking to you!"

"Fine!"

And the two got so cross that they even refused to look at each other.

That night, Peep went back to his can, but he was too busy thinking to sleep, as he was up half the night just pacing back and forth inside his home.

Then he got an unexpected visitor. A Spanish bird with red, green and yellow feathers, a pouf, and a long tail.

"Hola, Peep," she greeted. "¿Qué tal?"

Peep looked towards his neighbor. "Oh, hi Splendid Bird. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Well, see, we met these little fish by Quack's pond. They're called tadpoles and they say that they'll turn into frogs."

"Sí, go on."

"Quack thinks they're magic, but Chirp thinks they're not. And I don't know who's right."

"Oh, that's hard."

"What do I do? If I tell Quack he's wrong, he won't stop talking about it. And if I tell Chirp she's wrong, she'll just get mad at me and she won't be my friend anymore."

Splendid Bird came up with the perfect solution. "Why don't you see for yourself?"

"What do you mean?"

"You guys can all watch the tadpoles together. That way, you'll be able to see if they will turn into frogs and see who's right."

"I never thought of that. That's a great idea."

So the next morning, Peep went over to the duck pond to meet up with his friends, only to find that they were still miffed at each other.

"Hi Chirp. Hi Quack."

But both friends just gave an annoyed grunt.

"Listen, I know you're mad at me. But you both have to stop fighting. I have an idea to see who's right."

This took them both by surprise. "You do? What is it?"

"Easy. We'll just watch the tadpoles together. We can wait here until they come out and see if they really do turn into frogs."

"You mean if we wait for them to come out of the water, then we'll find out who's right?" Quack asked.

Peep nodded. "Sure. Come on, guys. Please?"

But the two friends were still glaring at each other.

"Only if she agrees to watch, too," said Quack.

Ultimately, Chirp reluctantly agreed. "Oh okay. I guess if you really want to."

And so, Quack and Chirp decide to accompany Peep and they all sit down by the pond and wait.

Time passed. The three birds waited for hours, and nothing came out of the water.

Eventually, night began to fall.

Just then, Quack spotted something in the pond. "There it is! I see something!"

"Quack, that's just the moonlight shining against the water," Chirp said with a yawn. "It's getting pretty late. I'm going to bed."

While Quack went back into the pond, Chirp started to hop back to her bush. Peep, however, didn't budge.

"Aren't you going home, Peep?"

"I can't, Chirp. If I go, I'll miss the tadpoles."

"So you're just going to stay here all night?"

"I have to. Even if it makes me………..*yawn*...sleepy."

"Oh, well…...okay. I'll keep an eye on your can for you. Goodnight Peep."

"Goodnight Chirp."

"Make yourself at home, Peep," Quack offered. "There's a nice rock over there if you need a rest."

"Thanks Quack."

And so, Peep continued to wait.

And that's how it went for quite some time. Over the next few days, Peep didn't move an inch. Didn't even go home when it started to rain.

After many days, Peep got so tired of waiting that he ended up falling asleep, even in the middle of the day.

Both Quack and Chirp watched in concern as their little yellow friend slept next to the pond.

Then Splendid Bird from Paradise flew into the scene. "Hola pájaitos. ¿Que pasa aquí?"

"Nothing," Quack answered. "Just waiting for magic frogs."

Chirp rolls her eyes.

"What's the matter with Peep?" asked Splendid Bird. "He looks tired."

"He is," Chirp replied. "He's been sitting there for days and nothing's happened."

She then hops over to Peep, who is still asleep.

"Peep. Peep! Wake up!"

After nudging him repeatedly, Peep woke with surprise. "What? What happened? Where am I?" He took a minute to calm down. "Oh, hi Chirp. Did I miss the Tadpoles?"

Chirp started growing concern for her friend. "Peep, maybe you should just go home."

But the little chicken was still determined. "I can't. I have to know for sure if those tadpoles will turn into frogs."

Fortunately, Quack took notice of this too. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but Chirp might be right. You've been waiting here forever and nothing's been happening."

Of course, Peep's drowsiness made him a little grumpy. "Well I don't know what else to do. If I leave, the Tadpoles might jump out and I might miss them."

"Well maybe there's something you can do here while you wait," Splendid Bird suggested. "Why not play hide and seek?"

Chirp liked that suggestion. "Yeah! That's a great idea."

Peep still felt determined. "I don't know."

"Come on, Peep. You love hide and seek."

"Well………..okay. I guess we can play for a little bit."

"Okay then," Quack agreed. "Peep can count first and try to find us."

"And I'll wait here in case las ranas (the frogs) come out," Splendid Bird states.

So Peep turned to face a rock and began counting.

"1……...2……...3………"

Chirp and Quack ran off to hide.

"4……….5………..6………"

And Splendid Bird hovered over the pond to watch for the frogs.

"7……….8………….9…………...10."

Finally, Peep had finished counting.

"Okay, coming! Ready or not, that's no lie! Whoever's not hidden, just say 'I'!"

And went off to search for his friends.

Along the way, he came across a pile of bright red apples laying in the grass.

"Hey, how did all those get here?" He wondered.

Then he noticed something rather unusual about one of them. The one at that top didn't look much like an apple, as it was more roundish and fluffy. Almost as if it was covered in feathers.

"That's strange," he thought. "I didn't know apples had feathers."

Then he realized……

"Wait a minute! Aha! I found you, Chirp!"

Indeed he did. Chirp came out from the top of the apple pile. "Aw, you're too good at this."

"Yep, now to find Quack."

The two birds looked everywhere for Quack.

Through the meadows……

Past the ravine…….

Under the crabapple tree………

Near the playground………

Even by Quack's pond. But no matter what, they just couldn't find him.

"How is Quack so good at this?" Peep wonders. "We looked everywhere and we couldn't find him."

"I have no idea," replied Chirp. "But look on the bright side, Peep. At least the game helped take your mind off—."

"BOO!"

Just then, out of nowhere, Quack popped out of a nearby bush, surprising Peep and Chirp.

"Gotcha guys," he laughed. "I thought you'd never find me."

"Well we found you," Chirp replies sarcastically.

"That was a great hiding place, Quack," Peep said.

"I know," Quack boasted. "They don't call me 'king of hiding places' for nothing.

Just then, Splendid Bird flew over. "Peep! ¡Es la hora! It's time!"

Peep seemed pretty confused. "Time? Time for what?"

"¡Ellos están aquí! They're here!"

"Who's here?"

At that moment, two frogs hopped right in front of him.

"Greetings, young Peep," one of them said.

But the little chicken was still boggled. "Who are you? And how do you know my name?"

"Peep, it's us. Remember? You met us a few days ago."

Peep then gasped with realization. "You mean……..you're Mr and Ms Tadpole?"

"That's right. Except we're not Mr and Ms Tadpole anymore. We're Mr and Mrs Frog."

Then Chirp and Quack made their way over.

"So you're the same tadpoles we met the other day?" Chirp asked. "Peep, how did you not know?"

"I guess I was so busy having fun, I forgot what I was waiting for."

"Yes, tadpole metamorphosis can sure take a long time," replies Mrs Frog.

"So I was right, wasn't I?" Quack said proudly. "The Tadpoles are magic."

"Not exactly," said Mr Frog. "It's just nature. This is just what happens as tadpoles grow up. Just like how caterpillars turn into butterflies. And how seeds turn into flowers."

"You mean like how little birds grow into bigger birds?" Peep asked.

"Exactly. Well we better be going. We've got a lot of business to take care of."

And so they both hopped back into the pond.

But there was still one thing left.

"Hey wait a minute!" Chirp intervenes. "That still doesn't answer our question. We waited all that time and we still don't know who's right."

"Well, I think we both know who can answer that," Quack said, eyeing towards a certain chicken. "So Peep, who won the bet?"

Peep gave it a little thought and came up with the perfect answer. "I think……..you're both right."

But both friends were surprised to hear that.

"That doesn't make sense," Chirp exclaims. "How can we both be right?"

"Well……." Peep explains. "Chirp was right about the tadpoles not being magic. But Quack was right about them turning into frogs. We sat here and waited, and now we know. Tadpoles aren't magic, they're just baby frogs."

"Well, what do you know? He's right!" Quack stated. "Maybe I was wrong about them being magic, but at least I was right about something."

"And I guess I was right about something too." But then Chirp started feeling a little guilty. "I guess it was kinda silly for us to fight over something like that. I'm sorry Peep. It wasn't fair to make you choose."

"It's okay. I guess we all can't be right about everything. So are you going to take that bath now?"

"What bath?"

"Don't you remember? You were so sure that those tadpoles wouldn't turn into frogs, that if they did, you'd take a bath in Quack's pond."

Quack also remembered. "Hey! That's right. You did."

The robin got nervous. "Oh, right. About that……..see, I was just kidding. What I meant was………"

But suddenly, Quack knocked her into the pond, much to her dismay.

"AAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!! Water! I'm wet! Very wet! Ew! Wet!"

And she immediately leaped out and shook her feathers dry until they fluffed up.

"Oh well. I needed to cool off anyway." Then she got a sneaky idea. "But you know who else could use a bath? Peep!"

Chirp kicked and splashed some water into Peep's face, to which he started laughing. "Hey! Quit it!"

Peep then splashed water onto Quack. "Oh, now you're gonna get it, chicken boy!"

As the sun began to set, the three birds (and even Splendid Bird from Paradise joining in) all began splashing each other, laughing all the way.

Hope you all enjoyed that story.

As I said before, I do not own the show Peep and the Big Wide World or any of the characters in the show, as they were originally created by the late Kaj Pindal. And yes, that means the character Splendid Bird from Paradise is, in fact, an official character from the series. (If you're not sure who the character is, I would suggest that you look up the two-part episode Two's a Crowd). The only characters I made up for this story are the Tadpoles.

Anyway, happy Easter everyone.