In tonight's bedtime story for kids, Koko and Kira are trying something new- they're trying out for the Sleepy Forest Elementary Cheer Squad! All they have to do is impress the coach, Miss Bushytail, and they're on the team. Wish them luck! Relax, get sleepy, and let’s begin!
Upgrade to Koko Club Today! 🔓👑
Remove the ads, enjoy bonus episodes every Wednesday and go Yearly to get a shout out from Abbe!
Start your 7-day free trial now on Spotify, Castbox & more 🤩👉https://kokoclub.supercast.com
Join via Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/joinkokoclubonapple
Follow For More Fun 🥳🪄
Check out our YouTube: @koalamoonfm
Instagram: @koalakids.fm
Tiktok: @koalakids.fm
About Koala Moon 🐨🌕
The No1 kids bedtime stories & sleep meditations podcast that helps children sleep like a dream. Hosted by the world's biggest fan of bedtime stories, Abbe Opher! All episodes are safe for babies, children and really big kids 0 to 100, so settle down tonight and get sleepy with the world's greatest bedtime stories & sleep meditations for kids.
How are we doing with the show? Let us know ✍️
Upgrade to Koko Club 🔓👑
- Bonus episodes every Wednesday.
- 100% Ad-free listening, for quicker bedtimes.
- Go YEARLY for a shout-out from Abbe.
- Exclusive 12-Hour Compilation episodes.
- The entire back catalogue of 200+ episodes.
- The full series of favourites like Hector & Sunny & Jupiter Twins.
Start your 7-day free trial now 🤩👉 https://kokoclub.supercast.com
Narrator 🎙 Abbe Opher
Author ✍️ Luke Prendergast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
00:00:10
Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome back to Kuala Moon, a podcast of
00:00:14
Speaker 1: original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime
00:00:19
Speaker 1: a dream. I'm so excited that I'm definitely going to
00:00:23
Speaker 1: need to join you with some deep breathing and sighing
00:00:27
Speaker 1: before we get started. Firstly, I'd like to wish a
00:00:30
Speaker 1: very happy birthday to Abel, who's the best big brother
00:00:34
Speaker 1: to Roman. I hope you've had a wonderful, memorable day, Abel. Secondly,
00:00:39
Speaker 1: the story we're about to hear is based on an
00:00:42
Speaker 1: idea that came in from lovely listener Zoe. She wanted
00:00:46
Speaker 1: Cooco to learn a particular new sport. Can you guess
00:00:50
Speaker 1: which sport? Nope? Not bowling nope, nor curling no, or archery.
00:00:57
Speaker 1: Tonight we'll shortly be joining our little Koala and Panda
00:01:01
Speaker 1: palas Cocoa and Kira as they try out cheerleading. Their
00:01:06
Speaker 1: brand new coach, Miss Bushytail has a lot to teach
00:01:09
Speaker 1: them both. I think you're going to agree that our
00:01:12
Speaker 1: brilliant writer Luke has cooked up a super special story
00:01:17
Speaker 1: based entirely on Zoe's idea. So if you have an idea,
00:01:21
Speaker 1: please don't forget to share it with us and we'll
00:01:23
Speaker 1: see if we can make it happen. Okay, now hop
00:01:28
Speaker 1: into bed and try to relax your whole body and
00:01:33
Speaker 1: let it go really heavy on the mattress. If you
00:01:38
Speaker 1: can't quite relax yet, bit like me, first, wriggle and
00:01:43
Speaker 1: jiggle from a minute, and then let everything go still.
00:01:50
Speaker 1: Get yourself comfy and see if you can steady your
00:01:53
Speaker 1: breathing a bit so breathing and out. Breathe in and out.
00:02:05
Speaker 1: Relax your face, Relax your forehead, Relax your shoulders and
00:02:15
Speaker 1: hips and knees, hands and feet. Everything there, we are nice.
00:02:28
Speaker 1: I think it's time to get started. This is Cocoa
00:02:31
Speaker 1: and Kira go cheerleading by Luke Prendergast. Deep in the
00:02:43
Speaker 1: heart of a far away forest stood a cozy wooden cabin.
00:02:47
Speaker 1: Inside the cabin lived a family of koalas. There was
00:02:51
Speaker 1: Coco and his little sister, Kira, the panda, who had
00:02:54
Speaker 1: been adopted into the family almost a year ago. Now,
00:02:58
Speaker 1: and what a year it had been, the best Cocoa
00:03:02
Speaker 1: thought of his life so far. Then there were his
00:03:06
Speaker 1: parents and his grandparents too. They all lived very happily
00:03:11
Speaker 1: together in sleepy forests, eating eucalyptus and bamboo, a delicious
00:03:17
Speaker 1: panda snack that Kira had introduced them to, and hanging
00:03:21
Speaker 1: out in the tree tops. Up there, Kira liked to
00:03:25
Speaker 1: teach Coco what she called tree tricks, which was basically
00:03:29
Speaker 1: acrobatics which you did up in the canopy. Kira was
00:03:33
Speaker 1: so talented at it. She could hang upside down from branches,
00:03:38
Speaker 1: She could swing round and round. She could walk along
00:03:41
Speaker 1: them on her tippeetoes as though they were tight ropes.
00:03:45
Speaker 1: She could even summersault off one branch and land on another.
00:03:50
Speaker 1: Coco wasn't quite as good at tree tricks as Kira,
00:03:53
Speaker 1: but he was learning. Each morning, Coco and Kira walked
00:03:59
Speaker 1: through through Sleepy Forest between the thick, gnarly trunks of
00:04:04
Speaker 1: the tall trees to Sleepy Forest Elementary School. There they
00:04:09
Speaker 1: learned about all kinds of marvelous brain bending things. They
00:04:14
Speaker 1: studied times tables and how to spell strange words. They
00:04:19
Speaker 1: learned about the geography of Sleepy Forest and its history too.
00:04:25
Speaker 1: They read magical tales and learned all about how plants
00:04:29
Speaker 1: used the sunshine to make food for themselves. And on
00:04:33
Speaker 1: the way home, Coco and Kira often had playful arguments
00:04:37
Speaker 1: about which teacher they liked best. Coco thought the old
00:04:42
Speaker 1: goose who taught science, was the kindest and cleverest, but
00:04:47
Speaker 1: Kira's favorite was Monsieur Toad, who taught them French. But
00:04:53
Speaker 1: this was all before one special day when their head teacher,
00:04:58
Speaker 1: missus Merry Feathers, a kindly barn owl, gathered them in
00:05:02
Speaker 1: the playground to introduce them to a new teacher. I'd
00:05:09
Speaker 1: like you all to put your paws, or your feathers,
00:05:14
Speaker 1: or your hoofs, or indeed your trotters together, she said,
00:05:21
Speaker 1: and give a big welcome to Miss Bushytail, our new
00:05:29
Speaker 1: cheerleading coach. Cocoa and Kira and all the other students
00:05:35
Speaker 1: did just as Missus Merryfeathers said. They clapped and applauded
00:05:40
Speaker 1: and gave out a few whoops and hollows as the
00:05:43
Speaker 1: new teacher, Miss Bushytail, stepped up beside the head teacher. Wow,
00:05:51
Speaker 1: whispered Kira into Coco's ear. That's the coolest teacher I've
00:05:57
Speaker 1: ever seen. Ko Ko had to agree. Miss Bushytail was
00:06:03
Speaker 1: a squirrel with a thick and glossy red fur coat
00:06:06
Speaker 1: and big bright eyes. She was smiling at all of
00:06:10
Speaker 1: them and waving her white teeth sparkling like polished river
00:06:15
Speaker 1: bed stones. She wore a dark green sports cap on
00:06:20
Speaker 1: her head and a matching dark green tennis skirt, and
00:06:25
Speaker 1: in one of her paws she carried what appeared to
00:06:28
Speaker 1: be a big fluffy ball in the same dark green color.
00:06:34
Speaker 1: What's that, whispered ko Ko. That's a pump pump, Kira explained,
00:06:42
Speaker 1: who use them when you do cheer leading? Ko Ko
00:06:46
Speaker 1: was about to ask his little sister what exactly cheer
00:06:50
Speaker 1: leading was, but before he could, Miss Bushytail's voice rang
00:06:55
Speaker 1: out over the playground, bright and clear as a bell. Hello, everybody,
00:07:02
Speaker 1: thank you for that super dearly oocious welcome. It's really
00:07:08
Speaker 1: made me feel all warm and bubbly inside. I'm miss Bushytail,
00:07:15
Speaker 1: and I've come to start a new cheerleading squad right
00:07:20
Speaker 1: here at Sleepy Forest Elementary School. The cheerleading team will
00:07:27
Speaker 1: be called the Fierce Spirits, because though our forest might
00:07:34
Speaker 1: be sleepy by name and sleepy by nature, deep inside
00:07:40
Speaker 1: all of our chests our hearts burn brightly. And with
00:07:48
Speaker 1: these words, Miss Bushytail threw her hand up and shook
00:07:53
Speaker 1: her pompum in the air. It flickered and shimmered and
00:07:58
Speaker 1: Mesmeri's coke so much that he was disappointed when she
00:08:03
Speaker 1: lowered her hand again. Fierce spirits. He whispered to Kira,
00:08:10
Speaker 1: what a cool name. Miss Bushytail meanwhile, had carried on
00:08:16
Speaker 1: speaking cheerleading is not only a way for us to
00:08:21
Speaker 1: show support for all the other teams around us, like
00:08:26
Speaker 1: Sleepy Forest soccer team, or the Chess champions or the
00:08:32
Speaker 1: River Rapid swimming team. It's also a pretty thrilling sport
00:08:37
Speaker 1: in its own right. We dance, we move, we get
00:08:43
Speaker 1: thrown through the air, we somersault, we backflip, and we
00:08:51
Speaker 1: stand on our heads. Being a cheerleader is all about
00:08:57
Speaker 1: being a part of a big team, like a part
00:09:01
Speaker 1: in a well oiled flying machine. Only by working together
00:09:08
Speaker 1: can we sow. Miss Bushytail gave a shake of her
00:09:14
Speaker 1: big fluffy squirrel tail. The playground was silent. Every single
00:09:22
Speaker 1: person was enraptured by the new teacher tryouts. Miss Bushytail said,
00:09:30
Speaker 1: by way of conclusion, will be to morrow. I hope
00:09:35
Speaker 1: anyone who has even a glimmer of interest comes and
00:09:40
Speaker 1: gives it a go. You never know, you might find
00:09:46
Speaker 1: something that takes your breath away on the way home
00:09:53
Speaker 1: from school that afternoon, Coco and Kira couldn't stop talking
00:09:58
Speaker 1: about just how cool Miss bush was. Did you see
00:10:02
Speaker 1: her sparkly teeth and her trendy skirt? Did you hear
00:10:09
Speaker 1: how she said superdadly oceious, and how she made her
00:10:16
Speaker 1: pompum shake and shiver as though it was alive, like
00:10:20
Speaker 1: she'd captured a handful of ocean waves in her hand
00:10:24
Speaker 1: and made them dance. It was practically magical. We have
00:10:31
Speaker 1: to try out for the cheerleading team, Kira said. Cocoa nodded,
00:10:37
Speaker 1: we certainly do. I hope I'm going to be good
00:10:41
Speaker 1: at it. You will, Kira said, putting her arm around
00:10:46
Speaker 1: him and giving him a squeeze. I just know it.
00:10:51
Speaker 1: But at the tryouts the next day, which took place
00:10:54
Speaker 1: in the playground, it was Kira who shone the brightest.
00:10:58
Speaker 1: Miss Bushytail had marked out a grid in chalk on
00:11:02
Speaker 1: the floor and had set up a series of carefully
00:11:05
Speaker 1: placed tree branches at various heights. Kia executed every instruction
00:11:12
Speaker 1: Miss Bushytail gave her with precision and panache. She backflipped
00:11:18
Speaker 1: and twisted her way across the grid, somersaulting off the
00:11:22
Speaker 1: branches and landing at just the right points, never stumbling,
00:11:28
Speaker 1: and never not once losing the big grin on her face. Bravo, Bravo, Kira,
00:11:38
Speaker 1: Miss Bushytail cried. When Kira was done, Miss Bushytail wasn't
00:11:43
Speaker 1: the only one standing up and clapping. Kira, blushing a
00:11:48
Speaker 1: little and rather out of breath, gave a little shy
00:11:51
Speaker 1: bow and tottered off the playground. Cocoa gave her a
00:11:56
Speaker 1: big high five nice ones, He said, those were some
00:12:03
Speaker 1: super impressive tricks. Thanks Cocoa, Kira said to him. Now
00:12:09
Speaker 1: it's your turn, go smash it. But where Kira had
00:12:15
Speaker 1: spun and twirled through the air like a bird in flight,
00:12:19
Speaker 1: Coko's tryout was rather less graceful. Sure, he showed off
00:12:25
Speaker 1: many of the tree tricks Kira had taught him, but
00:12:28
Speaker 1: he never quite managed to land in the right spot,
00:12:32
Speaker 1: or when he did, he almost stumbled and fell. Even
00:12:35
Speaker 1: though people were clapping and cheering him on, he felt
00:12:39
Speaker 1: heavy and clunky and was a little disappointed when his
00:12:43
Speaker 1: tryout was over. Don't be down, Coco, Kira whispered, giving
00:12:48
Speaker 1: her big brother a squeeze. You did amazingly well, Coko
00:12:54
Speaker 1: gave her a smile. Kira's words definitely made him feel better,
00:12:59
Speaker 1: but by the time he got home again, he felt
00:13:02
Speaker 1: a little sad again and took himself off to bed early.
00:13:07
Speaker 1: What's the matter with Coco, their mum asked Kira. He
00:13:13
Speaker 1: doesn't think he's going to make it onto Miss Bushytail's
00:13:16
Speaker 1: cheerleading squad. Kira told her, oh dear, the mom said,
00:13:23
Speaker 1: tucking a chair under the table, poor Coco. And yet,
00:13:29
Speaker 1: the next day, much to Coco's delight and surprise, when
00:13:34
Speaker 1: Miss Bushytail stuck a piece of paper to a tree
00:13:37
Speaker 1: with the words Fierce Spirits written at the top, his
00:13:41
Speaker 1: name was on the list. His mouth fell open so
00:13:45
Speaker 1: far his jaw almost hit the floor. I made it
00:13:51
Speaker 1: onto the squad, he murmured. Kira threw her arms around him.
00:13:58
Speaker 1: I told you that you would, nice one, Coco. Coco
00:14:03
Speaker 1: could feel his body filling up with fizzy, bubbly glee.
00:14:08
Speaker 1: He had made it. He had made it on to
00:14:12
Speaker 1: the Fierce Spirits. And yet, as they made their way
00:14:16
Speaker 1: to their first cheerleading practice, the question still bounced around
00:14:20
Speaker 1: his brain. He had made it. But how as Coko
00:14:26
Speaker 1: watched Kira and some of the other creatures warm up,
00:14:29
Speaker 1: jumping and pirouetting and flapping around with extraordinary elegance. That
00:14:35
Speaker 1: question simply wouldn't go away. So he sidled up to
00:14:39
Speaker 1: where Miss Bushytail stood and asked her outright. Miss Bushytail,
00:14:47
Speaker 1: he said, I can't do all the tricks that Kira
00:14:51
Speaker 1: and the others are doing there, So how did I
00:14:54
Speaker 1: make it onto the cheerleading squad? Oh? Coca oh, she said,
00:15:01
Speaker 1: turning her bright eyes and bushytail towards him. You should
00:15:07
Speaker 1: have more confidence in yourself. You were very good at tryouts,
00:15:13
Speaker 1: and I saw something very special in you. Indeed, Kocho
00:15:21
Speaker 1: felt his heart brighten. Miss Bushytail had seen something special
00:15:27
Speaker 1: in him. What did you see, Miss bushytail, he asked.
00:15:34
Speaker 1: She touched him on the top of his head and
00:15:37
Speaker 1: gave him a twinkly smile. A fierce spirit, she said.
00:15:44
Speaker 1: Then she clapped her paws together and called out for
00:15:47
Speaker 1: everyone to gather round. Kira and the others stopped their
00:15:51
Speaker 1: cart wheeling quickly and gathered in a circle. Everyone was
00:15:57
Speaker 1: looking at Miss Bushytail intently. The way she could capture
00:16:01
Speaker 1: their total attention had to be a kind of enchantment.
00:16:07
Speaker 1: Welcome every one, she said, to your first cheer squad training,
00:16:14
Speaker 1: like I was just telling co Ko here, each and
00:16:18
Speaker 1: every one of you are here because of how fiercely
00:16:22
Speaker 1: your spirit burns, just like the spirits of all the
00:16:29
Speaker 1: creatures who live here in Sleepy Forest. Now, Miss Bushytail
00:16:36
Speaker 1: turned a kindly smile on Coko. I hope ko Ko
00:16:41
Speaker 1: doesn't mind me telling you, but he was just saying
00:16:45
Speaker 1: to me that he's not sure that he's talented enough
00:16:48
Speaker 1: on the squad. Now, I want you all to do
00:16:53
Speaker 1: me a favor. Raise your hand if you've had similar warrores.
00:17:02
Speaker 1: At first, all of the new students glanced around nervously.
00:17:06
Speaker 1: Then first one and then another person raised their hands.
00:17:13
Speaker 1: Soon enough, everyone had raised their hands, even including Kira.
00:17:20
Speaker 1: Look around you, everybody, Miss Bushytail instructed them. Now you
00:17:27
Speaker 1: can see everyone, from time to time has worries that
00:17:33
Speaker 1: they're just not good enough, that other people around them
00:17:37
Speaker 1: might be better at something, whether that's cheerleading or mathematics
00:17:45
Speaker 1: or painting or climbing trees. And that's okay. Worries are
00:17:52
Speaker 1: a little part of the complex, wonderful creatures that we are.
00:17:57
Speaker 1: But here's a fact. Every single one of you is
00:18:03
Speaker 1: good enough for anything you but your heart's desire to do.
00:18:10
Speaker 1: You promise me you'll never forget that. A chorus of
00:18:16
Speaker 1: we promise rang out. Good, said Miss Bushytail, nodding her
00:18:22
Speaker 1: head once and shaking her dark green pompum in the
00:18:26
Speaker 1: air for emphasis. And what's more, she went on, different
00:18:32
Speaker 1: people are suited for different things. Kira, for example, can
00:18:38
Speaker 1: soar through the air like a bird, and Kamo's a comedian. Well,
00:18:44
Speaker 1: I've seen how flexible you are. You can wrap yourself
00:18:50
Speaker 1: up into a tiny ball, which means you're going to
00:18:54
Speaker 1: be great at tumbling. And Ko Ko Ko Ko's ears
00:18:59
Speaker 1: pricked up. He couldn't wait to hear what Miss Bushytail
00:19:02
Speaker 1: thought he'd be good at. Cocoa, you are strong and stable.
00:19:10
Speaker 1: You are going to make an excellent bass. A base,
00:19:17
Speaker 1: asked Coco. What's a bass? Oh, said Miss Bushytail in
00:19:24
Speaker 1: a hushed and secretive whisper, as though she was conspiring
00:19:29
Speaker 1: just with him. A base is one of the most
00:19:35
Speaker 1: important parts of the cheerleading team. The basse throws the
00:19:41
Speaker 1: flyers into the air and catches them safely when they land.
00:19:47
Speaker 1: The base provides the energy and the safety net. Without
00:19:55
Speaker 1: the base, the whole squad would fall apart, and you, Coco,
00:20:02
Speaker 1: will be one of our bases. Coco felt his cheeks
00:20:07
Speaker 1: almost hurting from smiling so much her bass. He liked
00:20:13
Speaker 1: the sound of that, so said Miss Bushytail, clapping her
00:20:19
Speaker 1: paws together. Let's get to it. Time for practice. Our
00:20:25
Speaker 1: first show is in just a couple of weeks. After that,
00:20:31
Speaker 1: cheerleading practice, which they did almost every evening after school,
00:20:36
Speaker 1: turned out to be everyone's daily highlight. They learned how
00:20:41
Speaker 1: to tumble, starting with rolypolies, but soon enough practicing somersaults
00:20:47
Speaker 1: and backflips and corkscrews and twists. It was true that
00:20:52
Speaker 1: some of the other squad members, particularly Kira, had a
00:20:55
Speaker 1: natural gift for flying through the air. They twisted and
00:21:00
Speaker 1: tumbled and flipped and flopped, and then, just when everyone
00:21:05
Speaker 1: watching had their hearts thumping in their mouths, they landed
00:21:09
Speaker 1: perfectly on their feet, smiling brightly. Camo was particularly brilliant.
00:21:17
Speaker 1: He was such a contortionist. He could wrap himself up
00:21:21
Speaker 1: into a little ball, then twist himself into a star shape,
00:21:26
Speaker 1: and then curl himself over backwards, all while he was
00:21:30
Speaker 1: floating through the air. He also changed color pink, red, green, orange,
00:21:38
Speaker 1: blue as he did it. Which always made the rest
00:21:41
Speaker 1: of the squad whoop and cheer. And as it turned out,
00:21:46
Speaker 1: Miss Bushytail was right. Coco was perfectly suited to the
00:21:51
Speaker 1: role of bass. He turned his paws into a little
00:21:54
Speaker 1: step and with a heave, poured Kira or one of
00:21:59
Speaker 1: the flyers up onto his shoulders. There he stood, balancing
00:22:05
Speaker 1: carefully while they made all kinds of shapes or shook
00:22:10
Speaker 1: their pompoms in the air above him. Immediately, Koco understood
00:22:16
Speaker 1: what Miss Bushytail had meant. One misstep from him and
00:22:21
Speaker 1: the whole pyramid of people standing above him and the
00:22:24
Speaker 1: other bases would come tumbling down. He was like the
00:22:29
Speaker 1: foundation of a complex cabin built by a master craftsman.
00:22:35
Speaker 1: His part in it might not be visible or flashy
00:22:39
Speaker 1: or instantly impressive, but it was crucial. On the night
00:22:46
Speaker 1: before their first show, Miss Bushytail unveiled a big cardboard box.
00:22:52
Speaker 1: What's in there, asked Kira, rubbing her nose curiously. Well,
00:22:59
Speaker 1: take a look, miss Bushytail, said. Kira ambled over to
00:23:04
Speaker 1: the box, lifted the flaps on top, and peered in,
00:23:09
Speaker 1: and she gave out a squeal of excitement. Hits our outfits,
00:23:15
Speaker 1: she cried, Kira started pulling pieces of clothing out of
00:23:20
Speaker 1: the box and handing them around. Everyone knew which pieces
00:23:26
Speaker 1: were theirs because they had chosen their favorite colors. Miss
00:23:31
Speaker 1: Bushytail said there was no team color because every Fierce
00:23:36
Speaker 1: Spirit was an individual, and each cheerleader should wear the
00:23:40
Speaker 1: colors that suited them best. Obviously, Kira was decked out
00:23:47
Speaker 1: all in purple, a swooshy purple skirt and purple plimp
00:23:51
Speaker 1: souls and bright purple pompoms. Coco's cheerleading kit was blue,
00:23:58
Speaker 1: with trainers that had bolts of white lightning shooting down them.
00:24:03
Speaker 1: Camo the Chameleon had a special cheerleading outfit which changed
00:24:08
Speaker 1: color as he did. Everyone thought it was super cool.
00:24:13
Speaker 1: That evening, Coco and Kia went to bed full of
00:24:17
Speaker 1: excitement about their first show. The next day. They'd invited
00:24:21
Speaker 1: the whole family, their parents and their grandparents too. I
00:24:27
Speaker 1: can't wait for them to see it, said Kira. I'm
00:24:30
Speaker 1: so excited, I can barely sleep. I know Foko agreed,
00:24:37
Speaker 1: but we've got to sleep. We need to be refreshed
00:24:40
Speaker 1: and energized for the performance tomorrow. Kia knew that Coko
00:24:46
Speaker 1: was right. He so often said very wise things, and
00:24:51
Speaker 1: so they said good night to each other and fell
00:24:54
Speaker 1: into deep sleeps which were full of soaring cheer moves
00:24:58
Speaker 1: and shimmering pomp. And the next morning, their mum waved
00:25:03
Speaker 1: them out of the door, saying, we'll be waving in
00:25:07
Speaker 1: the audience break a leg. I certainly hope no one
00:25:12
Speaker 1: actually breaks a leg, Coco whispered to Kira, which made
00:25:16
Speaker 1: her press her poor to her mouth and giggle. The
00:25:20
Speaker 1: beginning of the day went slowly. Each time Coco looked
00:25:25
Speaker 1: at the clock, it seemed to have only been a
00:25:28
Speaker 1: minute since the last time he checked. But then once
00:25:33
Speaker 1: they'd had lunch, time seemed to speed up, and suddenly
00:25:37
Speaker 1: it was time for the show. Without him even realizing it.
00:25:42
Speaker 1: The Fierce Spirit cheerleading squad met in the changing rooms
00:25:46
Speaker 1: in their multi colored cheerleading kit. They could hear the
00:25:50
Speaker 1: rustling and muttering and low toned conversation of the audience,
00:25:55
Speaker 1: who were all seated in rows of seats in front
00:25:58
Speaker 1: of the makeshift stage that been set up in the playground.
00:26:02
Speaker 1: The noise was exciting and a teensy bit nerve racking,
00:26:07
Speaker 1: which Miss Bushytail picked up on straight away. A little
00:26:12
Speaker 1: bit of nerves are a good thing, she said. They
00:26:16
Speaker 1: make sure we keep trying for our best. But you guys,
00:26:20
Speaker 1: I have to say, are the most natural bunch of
00:26:24
Speaker 1: cheerleaders I've ever come across. You're going to smash it.
00:26:30
Speaker 1: I just know it. And she gave them such a
00:26:34
Speaker 1: dazzling smile for they all felt very reassured. Come on,
00:26:39
Speaker 1: Koko said, team hug, and they all formed a circle
00:26:45
Speaker 1: with their arms around each other. Fierce spirits. Let's go,
00:26:51
Speaker 1: they chanted, and the chant made each and every one
00:26:55
Speaker 1: of them feel like a little flame had been lit
00:26:58
Speaker 1: in their chests. They were ready. It was time to perform.
00:27:05
Speaker 1: And perform they certainly did. Ko Ko couldn't believe how
00:27:11
Speaker 1: well it went. From the very moment they stood in
00:27:15
Speaker 1: formation on the stage, looking out at the sea of
00:27:19
Speaker 1: smiling faces before them, everything went exactly according to plan.
00:27:26
Speaker 1: Kira flew more gracefully than she'd ever flown before. Ko
00:27:32
Speaker 1: Ko balanced more steadfastly than in any of the practices,
00:27:38
Speaker 1: and Camo the Chameleon even threw in an extra spontaneous
00:27:42
Speaker 1: contortion as he tumbled across the stage. With each dazzling move,
00:27:49
Speaker 1: the audience broke into applause, and at the end the
00:27:53
Speaker 1: members of the Fierce Spirit cheer leading squad stood hand
00:27:58
Speaker 1: in hand on the stage, bowing once, twice, three times.
00:28:05
Speaker 1: The audience got to their feet, and the sound of
00:28:09
Speaker 1: their clapping was like hundreds of rain droplets falling heavily
00:28:14
Speaker 1: on the forest leaves. Kira squeezed Cocoa's hand and he
00:28:20
Speaker 1: squeezed hers back. Out among the clapping, elated audience, they
00:28:27
Speaker 1: could see the proud and happy faces of their parents
00:28:31
Speaker 1: and their grandparents too. How wonderful that feeling was. It
00:28:37
Speaker 1: was a mixture of satisfaction that they'd managed to pour
00:28:40
Speaker 1: the whole routine off, and a deep gratitude that they
00:28:45
Speaker 1: had such a wonderful family to support them. How full
00:28:50
Speaker 1: their hearts felt as if they might burst. We did it,
00:28:56
Speaker 1: We did it, they whispered to each other as they
00:28:59
Speaker 1: were tough stage, and Miss Bushytail was there to meet them,
00:29:05
Speaker 1: spreading her arms wide for a big team hug that
00:29:11
Speaker 1: was super fudly oocious, she told them. Cocoa and Kira
00:29:19
Speaker 1: found their parents and grandparents, who gave them big, warm,
00:29:23
Speaker 1: fuzzy hugs all round. Then they walked back home, ambling
00:29:29
Speaker 1: their way between the tall trees with the purple light
00:29:34
Speaker 1: of twilight falling in through the rustling leaves, and gradually
00:29:39
Speaker 1: as their footsteps measured the passing of time, fading to darkness.
00:29:47
Speaker 1: All the way home, Cocoa and Kira's parents and grandparents
00:29:51
Speaker 1: couldn't stop talking about the show. And when you tossed
00:29:56
Speaker 1: her up in the air, they'd say, and when you
00:29:59
Speaker 1: did that bad, and then when you threw your pomp
00:30:03
Speaker 1: poms up and made them spin and twel It truly
00:30:08
Speaker 1: was a magnificent show, their mom said, touching them both
00:30:13
Speaker 1: gently on the head. By the time they got back
00:30:17
Speaker 1: home to their little log cabin, Cocoa and Kira were
00:30:22
Speaker 1: very tired. Indeed, what a long day it had been,
00:30:27
Speaker 1: what a long month. In fact, with all of the
00:30:31
Speaker 1: cheer practice they'd been doing. They could feel it in
00:30:35
Speaker 1: all their limbs. Their bodies were tired, but their hearts
00:30:40
Speaker 1: and souls felt satisfied. Kira let out a huge jawn.
00:30:48
Speaker 1: Bedtime for you, too, their mom said, And so they
00:30:53
Speaker 1: went upstairs, changed into their pajamas, brushed their teeth, and
00:30:58
Speaker 1: crawled into bed. They were so cozy in bed, they
00:31:04
Speaker 1: stretched their weary limbs and poured the blankets up to
00:31:09
Speaker 1: their chins. Ko Ko could already tell he was going
00:31:12
Speaker 1: to have a wonderful sleep. He could feel it in
00:31:16
Speaker 1: the relaxation of his bones, in the way he could
00:31:20
Speaker 1: feel his eyes closing heavily. He could feel every muscle
00:31:26
Speaker 1: in his body giving way to sleep. Then, through the
00:31:31
Speaker 1: darkness and silence of their shared bedroom, he heard Kira saying,
00:31:38
Speaker 1: wasn't that an amazing day, ko Ko? One of the
00:31:43
Speaker 1: best ever? And even though he was falling asleep, ko
00:31:49
Speaker 1: Ko smiled, Oh yes, he said, it was super deadly oceous.
00:32:00
Speaker 1: And with that, Coco and his little sister Kira closed
00:32:05
Speaker 1: their eyes and took a deep breath. They could hear
00:32:10
Speaker 1: the quiet whispering of the wind through the leaves outside,
00:32:16
Speaker 1: and the pale silver moonlight passed through the cabin windows
00:32:21
Speaker 1: and fell gently upon the wooden floors. Everything was utterly peaceful,
00:32:29
Speaker 1: so peaceful that they barely noticed when they fell asleep
00:32:34
Speaker 1: and spent the night dreaming deeply about sleepy forest creatures
00:32:41
Speaker 1: flying as if by magic, through the air. U