Nimble Jack? What kind of nickname is that?! Jack thought to himself as he laid down in his bed. The creek of wood whispered into his ears as his weight was on the bed. Poor thing was going to break any day now. He and his mom couldn't afford a new bed with the taxes being as they are.
"I just have to get those magic beans." He muttered to himself. He heard a cat meowing outside his window and the cows rustling in the barn. Cowbells jingling reminded Jack of a time when he didn't have to worry about taxes or paying bills. A time when he and his mother could live in peace instead of worrying if the next day would be their last days as working people.
*Crackle* The loud whip of lightning made Jack flinch. He didn't expect it to rain tonight; but he was prepared. He had build a tent to protect what remained of the roof from flooding and possible debris out of old rags and sheep's wool. The rumble of lightning shook Jack's old, cracked window. He felt a breeze into his room, whistling in his ears. He grabbed whatever blankets he had and rolled himself tightly.
"Magic beans, Magic beans." He muttered to himself. That was the only thing on his mind. Getting the magic beans would be the ticket out of this mess. Mr. Tooth wouldn't lie to him, would he? The cold wind entering his room sent shivers down his spines. He bundled himself up more and more to conserve warmth. Out of the corner of his ear, he heard his mother muttering in the other room. She was muttering something, probably praying for a miracle.
Don't worry mom, I'll get us out of this mess; He thought as he scrunched his eyebrows. Jack closed his eyes, took a breath and drifted off the sleep. In his last moment of consciousness, he thought he heard rumbling from above. Maybe he was just hearing things.
1 night later, Jack awoke slowly. He lost his train of thought, but then remembered the day.
Beans! That was all he was focused on. He sat up and looked at his room. His door was open, but the smell of breakfast wasn't in the air. His mother must have still been asleep. Outside the window, he heard the jingle of bells outside and festival music from outside.
"The Auction!" Jack jumped into action, as he put on his work clothes. A pair of blue overalls and shorts. Jack's fashion sense for work wasn't the best; but he could whip up something if he had the material. Being poor wasn't fun for him nor anyone. Jack snuck out the door without waking his mother. The sun was bright, the music was loud, it was crowded.
Just what jack needed.
He could use the music as a distraction. He was just one man among many in a festival. With the auction going on, rich and powerful people would be showing up to bid on items. The only item jack really wanted were the beans. As Jack made his way around town, he saw many women and children playing around. The children were running amuck and dancing near the bands, the women were chatting about. The men were testing their strength in various circus acts.
Jack even saw Mr. Tooth around sporting a black pinstripe suit. His smile still as creepy as ever. He was chatting with other suits. One in particular had a gray mustache and sported a brown cigar. A large yellow and red circus tent was in Jack's view. He saw a few guards walking around it, patrolling. Jack stood a watched for a bit to see how they worked. To his left; there was a guy selling masks. Being the sneaky devil that he was, Jack stole one without the vendor being the wiser. The vendor wouldn't see one missing among hundreds.
With the mask on his face; Jack swooped into action. He gently made his way towards the tent, acting as normal as possible. He danced his way into the crowd of people and shimmied into an unguarded slip in the back. Inside the tent; it was incredibly hot. Was there no air circulation in here?
Jack saw a bunch of weird animals too. A two headed snake, a turtle without a shell, a pig with 2 snouts, and a cow with four udders. He even saw a goose; thought nothing seemed special about it. Jack decided to ignore the animals and find the magic beans. He searched and searched all around, carefully avoiding any guards by hiding behind boxes and underneath table cloths.
Soon Jack looked into a back door and found the thing he was looking for. The auction room. Jack couldn't believe his eyes. He saw rubies, diamonds, pearls, a real life gingerbreadginger bread man. Jack rubbed his eyelids. Perhaps he wasn't getting enough sleep. Jack decided to ignore whatever uncanney valley filling he had at that moment and continued to search for the beans.
He searched high and he searched low; though they weren't anywhere to be found.
"How hard could it be to find some beans?" Jack muttered to himself as he removed cover after cover from the various items. Cloth soon covered the floor and eventually made a sort of red carpet. In the bottom a box, Jack felt a cold, smooth sensation. It reminded him of a can. He pulled it out and gasped.
"Magic beans!" Jack's eyes lit up with glee as he looked at the beans. His smile soon turned into a frown. They appeared to be just ordinary beans. Jack expected them to be diamond beans or gold; but sadly they were just dusty, old beans with red marker on the glass saying "Magic Beans: A way to the heavens."
Is this what Mr. Tooth really wanted? Jack thought to himself as he put the beans into his overalls. Jack was tempted to grab some rubies and diamonds. He really wanted to; but decided against it. Though, Jack did grab a sapphire though. It's blue color reminded jack of the ocean. He really wanted to go sailing one day or at least go for a swim. Making his way out of the room, Jack closed the door gently behind him but didn't notice two guards talking just a few meters away. They looked over at Jack's poor attire and scowled.
"STOP THIEF!" The guards yelled as they raised their batons and chased after him. Now Jack, faced with this dilemma, would have to prove not only to himself; but to Mr. Tooth as well that he was in fact "Nimble Jack".
