FLASHBACK
It all started one day when Mac Fraggle began running around Fraggle Rock, jumping up and down, singing, dancing, and screaming "whoopee" at the top of his lungs. Darcy Fraggle and her six-year-old daughter, Mokey, looked at him as if he were crazy.
"Mac, what in the world is going on?" Darcy asked.
"It's a girl!" Mac shouted, happily. "It's a girl! Trish and I just had a beautiful, baby girl! Whoopeeeeee!"
"Oh, a new baby Fraggle!" Mokey shouted, excitedly clapping her hands.
Several Fraggles then gathered around Mac and Trish's cave, where the Fraggle doctor, Oberon, was leaving with his wife and nurse, Reena (Oberon and Reena were also Boober's parents). The sounds of a crying baby could be heard inside the cave.
"Mac told us it was a girl," Red's mother, Cerise, said.
"Yes," Oberon said. "A fine, healthy, baby girl. They named her Tosh."
"I wanna see!" three-year-old Red shouted, jumping up and down. "I wanna see, I wanna see, I wanna see!"
"I'm afraid you can't," Reena said. "Trish needs to rest, or else she might develop deep vein thrombophlebitis, or endometritis, or mastitis, or postpartum bleeding, or postpartum depression, or . . . ."
"They get the idea, dear," Oberon said. "Anyway, you can visit with Trish and little Tosh later, everybody."
Some of the Fraggles groaned, and left the cave. The next day, Wini Fraggle was at the Fraggle Pond with Darcy, Cerise, and Reena, with their children, plus Matt Fraggle's three-year-old nephew, Gobo. Cerise was looking after him while Matt went off to explore. Gobo's parents, Nelson and Marli, were also explorers, but they had been killed in a cave in.
That day, Mokey was playing with two-year-old Boober, while Gobo and Red chased each other around the pond, generally annoying each other. It was their favorite game. While Darcy, Cerise, Reena, and Wini were watching them, three more Fraggles came by with their children: Fannie Fraggle with her son, Large Marvin, who was three, Fuchsia Fraggle with her son, Feenie, who was two, and Verlene Fraggle with her son, Marlon, who was also three. Cerise saw them coming, and rolled her eyes.
"Oh brother," she said. "Here comes the Official Fraggle Rock Gossip Society."
"Now Cerise, be nice," Darcy said.
"It's hard to be nice to a Fraggle like Verlene," Cerise said. "Every time she opens her mouth, I want to stuff a sock into it."
Darcy nudged Cerise, just as Verlene, Fannie, and Fuchsia approached them.
"Hello ladies," Verlene said. "And how are you on this fine morning?"
"Oh we're fine, Verlene," Darcy said. "What have you been up to?"
"We were just visiting Trish and her baby," Fannie said. "And she is just the most precious little thing!"
"Almost as precious as my little Marlon," Verlene said, snuggling her son. "Now go play with Red and Gobo, darling. Mumsy wants to talk with the ladies for a bit."
"Yes, Mama," Marlon said, and he practically ran over to where Gobo and Red were playing. He loved to chase Red around, but for some reason, she didn't like it when he caught her. He couldn't understand that.
Fuchsia and Fannie put their children down and let them play with Gobo and Red for awhile, and then they sat down by the pond with the other Fraggles.
"Aren't children wonderful?" Verlene gushed. "And isn't also wonderful that almost every Fraggle has a child now?"
"Oh yes," Darcy said. "I find it very rewarding to be able to nurture a little Fraggle."
"It is nice," Reena said. "Though you do have to worry about all the germs, and airborne illnesses that a baby Fraggle can get down here. I'm just so relieved that I married a doctor! Then I won't have to worry so much about my little Boober getting infected with any terrible disease like pebble pox, or influenza, or . . . ."
"Give it a rest, Reena," Cerise said, rolling her eyes.
"What about you, Wini?" Verlene asked. "When are you finally going to get married and have a baby?"
"Oh, well . . . ." Wini said, a bit hesitantly. She was the only one of her group of friends who was still single and childless, but she longed to have a baby. It was the one thing she wanted more than anything, and the entire Rock knew it.
"I'm sure there's still some single Fraggles in the Rock," Verlene went on.
"What about Matt?" Fuchsia asked.
"Oh no, the Storyteller's already got dibs on him," Fannie said.
"Yeah, and I think he's the only single male Fraggle left in the Rock," Fuchsia said.
"Oh yes, I believe you're right," Verlene said. "Oh well. Don't feel bad about it, Wini. Being an old spinster isn't so bad!"
Verlene began to laugh, as did Fannie and Fuchsia. Wini wanted the floor to open up and swallow her. This happened every time Verlene was around. She always bragged about how wonderful it was to have a child, and she always seemed to take delight in rubbing the fact that Wini was childless in her face.
"That's not funny, Verlene!" Cerise shouted. "Why do you take so much delight in causing misery?"
"Because it's fun, of course!" Verlene shouted. "Besides, even if there were any other single male Fraggles around, nobody would ever want to marry Wini, anyway! She's had so many boyfriends, because she could never make up her mind who she liked the best! And any time anyone's ever asked her to marry them, she couldn't decide whether or not to say yes, and just moved on because they were tired of waiting for her to make up her mind! As a matter of fact, I believe Prell was one of Wini's suitors, and he only married you on the rebound, Cerise."
Cerise was about to slug Verlene for that, when the group suddenly heard a scream, a splash, and a loud wail. The scream had come from Red, the splash was Red pushing Marlon into the pond, and the wail was Marlon once he hit the pond.
"My baby!" Verlene yelled, as she and Red ran over. "My baby, my baby, my poor baby! What happened?!"
"Wed push me in da pond!" Marlon wailed. "An' she did it on puh-puss, too!"
"Marlon tried to kiss me!" Red shouted, scrunching her face in disgust. "Yuck!"
"Look at being childless this way, Wini," Verlene said, glaring at Cerise. "At least you won't be raising a little monster like Cerise is!"
And with that, Verlene walked off, sticking her nose in the air. Fannie and Fuchsia collected their kids, and followed her.
"Am I in twouble, Mommy?" Red asked.
"Not at all," Cerise said. "I wouldn't like to be kissed by Marlon, either. Blech!"
"Why is Verlene always so mean to Wini, Mama?" Mokey asked.
"Because, dear, some Fraggles like to take pleasure in other Fraggles' pain," Darcy said. "Don't you pay any mind to what that big blowhard says, Wini!"
"Yeah, you're better off without a baby, anyway," Reena said. "Not only do you have to deal with morning sickness and backaches, and swollen ankles, but you also have to worry about such nasty things like fetal distress, breech position, placenta previa, meconium aspiration, nuchal cord, cephalopelvic disproportion . . . ."
"REENA!" Darcy and Cerise shouted in unison.
Wini merely sighed, and decided to go to the Trash Heap for advice. She figured if anyone could help her have a baby, the Trash Heap could.
"You are in the presence of," Philo and Gunge shouted when she got there.
"The all knowing," Gunge said.
"All seeing," Philo said.
"Trash Heap! Nyeah!" they both shouted in unison, as Marjory crawled out.
"Hello, little Fraggle," she said. "What can I do for you today?"
"Madam Heap," Wini said. "I'm so miserable. Almost every single Fraggle has a child now, except for me, and I want a baby so badly! It would mean everything in the world to me. Do you know how I can get one?"
"You don't get a baby just by wanting one badly," Marjory said. "There's a lot more that goes into it."
"Right," Philo said. "You gotta make a baby."
"Yeah," Gunge said. "Go talk it over with your hubby, and go have some fun, if ya know what I mean. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge!"
Philo and Gunge began laughing then, and making whooping noises.
"Stop that, you too," Marjory scolded. "What do you think you are, eleven years old? Act your age!"
"Sorry, Marjory," Gunge and Philo said in unison.
"Besides, I don't have a husband," Wini said. "I'm not married."
"Then what you gotta do is get married!" Gunge shouted.
"Yeah, problem solved," Philo said. "Once you get married, a baby will come along eventually!"
"It's not that easy," Wini said. "Most of the male Fraggles are already spoken for. I don't think there are any left."
"Hmm, that does make it a problem, all right," Marjory said. "But don't you worry about having a baby, little Fraggle. Things happen in time. And once the time is right, you'll have your baby. You'll see."
"The Trash Heap has spoken!" Philo and Gunge shouted in unison. "Nyeah!"
Wini sighed, and returned to Fraggle Rock. On her way back to her cave, she passed the Storyteller's cave, and a bunch of the Fraggle children sitting outside. The Storyteller was telling them a story.
"The Dream Pool is a big lake," she said, "where anyone can go and make their fondest dreams come true! But no one knows where it is, or even if it exists. The legend says that there was once a king and queen who had dreamed of having children for many, many years, but they never did. So they went to the Dream Pool, where they could make any wish their heart desired."
Wini became intrigued by this story. At that moment, she decided to try and find the Dream Pool, and she ran off down the nearest tunnel. However, she should have stuck around to hear the rest of the Storyteller's story, because she missed a very important part of it.
"Even though the king and queen were permitted to make any wish their hearts desired," the Storyteller said, "it would come at a very high price."
Wini spent three days wandering around the tunnels of Fraggle Rock, venturing out farther than anyone had ever ventured before. Not even Matt Fraggle had been out this far, nor had Matt's Uncle Gobo, who was quite possibly the greatest explorer ever in Fraggle Rock. But nothing was going to stop her from finding the Dream Pool, even though she knew there was a chance that it didn't exist.
After going through a winding labyrinth of a tunnel, she came to a staircase. She climbed up, opened a door at the top, and found herself standing in front of a huge lake, with sparkling blue-violet colored water. On the other side of the lake there was what looked like a throne. Sitting in the throne was a Silly Creature with short, dark hair, wearing a red shirt and pants, and she was holding a crystal ball in one hand, and waving her other hand over it. She also did not look very friendly at all.
"Come forward!" she commanded. "Who are you, and what are you doing at my Dream Pool?"
"Ummm, I'm sorry to intrude, ma'am," Wini said. "But my name is Wini Fraggle, and I heard a story about your Dream Pool, and I was curious . . . ."
"If I have the power to make your fondest dream come true?" the Silly Creature asked.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Of course I do! I am Lilith, the Fairy Queen of Dreams. I have the power to control all dreams. I collect them here in my pool. Observe carefully. Look into the pool."
Lilith waved her hand over her crystal ball, and an image appeared in the water. There was Wini, rocking a baby Fraggle in her arms.
"I presume that's your heart's desire?" Lilith asked. "To have a baby?"
"Oh, yes, ma'am!" Wini shouted. "I'd give anything to have a baby!"
"Well, I do have the power to make it happen. Though all dreams come with a price. I don't hand out my services to mere mortals for free, you know."
"Oh, but . . . . but I don't have anything to pay you with. I'm sorry to waste your time."
"Oh, you don't have to pay me right now. We can wait awhile. I'm sure we can reach some kind of agreement. Now then, if you agree to my terms, step into the water."
Wini was a bit hesitant, but looking at the image of her and the baby Fraggle in the Dream Pool made her decide to go for it. She stepped into the Dream Pool. Lilith smiled, and snapped her fingers. A piece of paper, and an inkwell with a quill in it appeared before Wini.
"Sign that," Lilith said.
"What is it?" Wini asked.
"Just a contract. By signing it, you agree to the terms of it, and will abide by it, especially when it comes time for me to collect my payment. Take your time and think it over, my dear."
Wini felt she didn't need to think it over. She grabbed the quill, and immediately signed her name. Once she did, the paper rolled itself up, and flew into Lilith's hand. She snapped her fingers, and it disappeared. Then she waved her hand over her crystal ball a few times.
"Hold out your hands," she directed.
Wini held out her hands, and a glowing ball of light appeared above them. When the glow subsided, a seed the size of a small marble appeared in her hands.
"Swallow that on the next full moon," Lilith said. "And make sure you do it with Moon Water. You'll be able to get it from your pond when the moon comes into it."
"And then what?" Wini asked.
"And then you wait. These things take time."
"How do I know this is going to work?"
"My dear Fraggle, I give you my word, you will have your heart's desire. And I assure you, I never go back on my word!"
"Oh thank you, ma'am! Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome. Now go. And tell no one what you have seen here!"
"Yes, ma'am! I promise! I won't tell a soul about you!"
Immediately, Wini ran back to Fraggle Rock, though it took her quite a bit of time to find her way back. She didn't care. She was too happy.
"Wini Fraggle, where in the Rock have you been for the past week?!" Cerise scolded the minute she returned.
"We were afraid something might have happened to you!" Darcy shouted. "After all, you didn't tell us where you were going, and we didn't know where you were."
"We were looking all over for you!" Reena shouted.
"Well, most of us were," Cerise said. "Reena just sat around here worrying."
"Now you come along with me to see Oberon," Reena said, taking Wini's arm. "We have to make sure you're all right! You know, no sickness, no soreness, no broken bones, no gangrene, no galloping tongue fever . . . ."
"Oh, Reena, don't worry about me," Wini said, shaking her teal-colored friend off. "I'm perfectly fine! In fact, I feel better than I've ever felt! Ooohh, I can't wait until the next full moon!"
"Why not?" Cerise asked.
"I can't tell you," Wini said. "But it'll be the most exciting night of my life!"
Darcy, Cerise, and Reena looked at each other, as Wini ran off to her cave to put her seed in a safe place. Two nights after she returned was the next full moon. Darcy was the Moon Greeter this month, and she decided to perform a dance for the celebration. Everyone was so busy watching her, that nobody noticed Wini taking some Moon Water from the Fraggle Pond. Then she swallowed her seed.
"That should do it," she said. "Now all I have to do is wait."