In tonight's bedtime story for kids, Kira and Koko are going to visit their cousin, Kiki, at tennis camp! They're just in time to see the biggest match of the season, and of course they'll nibble on some strawberry and cream whilst they watch...
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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.
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Narrator 🎙 Abbe Opher
Author ✍️ Luke Prendergast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
00:00:10
Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome back to Koala Moon, a podcast of
00:00:14
Speaker 1: original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime
00:00:20
Speaker 1: a dream. We're starting with a mega birthday shout out
00:00:24
Speaker 1: to three siblings who are apparently obsessed with Kohala Moon
00:00:29
Speaker 1: and Koala Shine. What great taste you all have. Happy
00:00:33
Speaker 1: birthdays to Coco, Clubber's Jack who just turned six, Arden
00:00:37
Speaker 1: who's about to turn three, and Kelly who's about to
00:00:40
Speaker 1: turn nine. Thank you for your support and lovely note,
00:00:44
Speaker 1: I hope you enjoy this story too. Tonight, we're meeting
00:00:47
Speaker 1: up with our own little Koala siblings, Coco and Kira,
00:00:50
Speaker 1: and their cousin Kiki the Kangaroo. Do you remember her
00:00:53
Speaker 1: from Sleepy City. Well, in this story, they're visiting lovely
00:00:58
Speaker 1: Kiki at tennis Camp so they can watch her take
00:01:00
Speaker 1: part in the Wimblefields Tournament. Let's wish her luck and
00:01:04
Speaker 1: join them now. This is Coco and Kira go to
00:01:07
Speaker 1: Tennis Camp by Luke Prendergast. Deep in the heart of
00:01:18
Speaker 1: a far away forest, stirred a cozy wooden cabin. Inside
00:01:22
Speaker 1: the cabin lived a family of koalas. Coco the Koala
00:01:27
Speaker 1: lived with his parents, his grandparents and his little sister,
00:01:31
Speaker 1: Kira the panda, who was also his best friend. Coco
00:01:36
Speaker 1: and Kira had been on lots of fun adventures together.
00:01:40
Speaker 1: They had been to see Swifty, their favorite artist, singing
00:01:44
Speaker 1: a concert down by Sleepy River. They had trained together
00:01:48
Speaker 1: in the cheerleading squad Fierce Spirits at Sleepy Forest Elementary School,
00:01:53
Speaker 1: and they had even been taken by their mum to
00:01:56
Speaker 1: visit Papa Raarlene's chocolate factory. Day. Though they weren't in
00:02:01
Speaker 1: the midst of an adventure. They were sharing a box
00:02:04
Speaker 1: of cookies with their cousin Kiki, who had come over
00:02:07
Speaker 1: to visit. As far as Coco was concerned, Kiki was
00:02:12
Speaker 1: the coolest person in the whole world. She was a
00:02:16
Speaker 1: kangaroo who lived in Sleepy Forest, who always wore trendy
00:02:20
Speaker 1: clothes and told Coco all about the latest music. And
00:02:24
Speaker 1: whenever she visited, she always brought with her the tastiest snacks.
00:02:29
Speaker 1: These cookies, for example, were just mouth wateringly delicious. They
00:02:34
Speaker 1: were milk chocchip with little bits of dried raspberry in them,
00:02:38
Speaker 1: which burst a sweet flavor onto your tongue whenever you
00:02:41
Speaker 1: took a bite of them. It was all Coco could
00:02:44
Speaker 1: do not to eat the whole box. He had to
00:02:47
Speaker 1: keep reminding himself to leave some cookies for the others.
00:02:52
Speaker 1: Coco spoke so much about his cousin Kiki that before
00:02:56
Speaker 1: she had arrived at their little log cabin, Kira had
00:02:59
Speaker 1: been right the nervous to meet her. What if she
00:03:03
Speaker 1: doesn't like me, she had asked Coco earlier in their bedroom,
00:03:07
Speaker 1: while she was tying her favorite purple bow into her hair.
00:03:11
Speaker 1: Don't be silly, Kira, Coco said, looping his arm around
00:03:16
Speaker 1: her shoulders and giving her a squeeze. She's going to
00:03:21
Speaker 1: love you. How do you know that, Kira asked, Because
00:03:27
Speaker 1: I love you and she loves me, so it only
00:03:32
Speaker 1: makes sense that you two will love each other. That's
00:03:36
Speaker 1: how love works. Coco gave his little sister a kiss
00:03:41
Speaker 1: on the cheek. Besides, he added, how could anyone not
00:03:45
Speaker 1: love you? Nevertheless, Kira was nervous. If she was honest,
00:03:52
Speaker 1: she was always a teensy bit nervous about meeting new
00:03:55
Speaker 1: members of her adopted family, even though they were always
00:03:59
Speaker 1: so welcoming and wonderful to her, and this time, as
00:04:03
Speaker 1: Cooko had predicted, was no different. From the moment Kiki
00:04:09
Speaker 1: arrived at their cabin bearing her box of cookies. It
00:04:13
Speaker 1: was clear that she and Kira would get along. They
00:04:17
Speaker 1: chatted endlessly about music, and Kira even got Kiki to
00:04:22
Speaker 1: taste a mouthful of the favorite snack of wall panda's bamboo.
00:04:28
Speaker 1: When Coko and Kira told Kiki about how much fun
00:04:32
Speaker 1: they were having cheerleading for the Fierce Spirits, Kiki asked
00:04:35
Speaker 1: them to show her some of their best moves. Soon enough,
00:04:40
Speaker 1: Kira was free wheeling and somersaulting in the clearing outside
00:04:45
Speaker 1: the wooden cabin, and Cooko was showing Kiki how he
00:04:49
Speaker 1: had been taught to provide a stable base for lifting
00:04:53
Speaker 1: Kira high into the air. Kiki brushed her flop of
00:04:58
Speaker 1: blonde hair out of her eye. Dudes, she said, I'm
00:05:03
Speaker 1: super impressed. Back inside, eating the cookies, Kiki told them
00:05:10
Speaker 1: all about the tennis camp she was currently participating in.
00:05:14
Speaker 1: She explained that many many tennis players from all over
00:05:18
Speaker 1: Sleepy Forests, Sleepy City and beyond congregated at the Wimblefields
00:05:24
Speaker 1: to practice their skills against each other. They stayed in
00:05:29
Speaker 1: tents that had been erected on the grass, and every
00:05:32
Speaker 1: day they spend mornings doing tennis drills. And the afternoons,
00:05:37
Speaker 1: after a delicious lunch of sandwiches and chopped up fruit,
00:05:41
Speaker 1: they played practice matches against each other. Then in the evenings,
00:05:46
Speaker 1: they all sat around the campfire, roasting marshmallows on sticks
00:05:51
Speaker 1: and having sing alongs while one of their tennis coaches
00:05:55
Speaker 1: played the guitar. It's absolute bliss, she concluded. Coco and
00:06:03
Speaker 1: t Kira were enraptured by Kiki's descriptions of the tennis camp.
00:06:08
Speaker 1: Their eyes had grown wide and glistening, and their jaws
00:06:13
Speaker 1: had fallen open in awe. When Kiki finished speaking, both
00:06:19
Speaker 1: of them turned to their mom and, in unison, burst out,
00:06:24
Speaker 1: can we go to the tennis camp? Mom? Please? Please? Please?
00:06:29
Speaker 1: They pressed their palms together as though they were begging her,
00:06:34
Speaker 1: and blinked their eyes in the best puppy dog fashion
00:06:37
Speaker 1: they could muster. I'm afraid you're not old enough to
00:06:42
Speaker 1: go to tennis camp, their mother told them as kindly
00:06:46
Speaker 1: as she could, wrapping her paws around a warm mug
00:06:50
Speaker 1: of tea. There's an age limit on attendance, isn't that right, Kiki?
00:06:58
Speaker 1: Keiki nodded towards us little cousins. There is pals, she said,
00:07:06
Speaker 1: you can go to the Wimblefields Tennis camp once you
00:07:09
Speaker 1: starred at Sleepy Forest Middle School. But then seeing Cocoa
00:07:14
Speaker 1: and Kira's crestfallen faces, Kiki was struck by a sudden idea.
00:07:20
Speaker 1: I'll tell you what, though, she said, as long as
00:07:24
Speaker 1: your mum says it's okay. On the final day of
00:07:28
Speaker 1: Wimblefield's there's a big tournament where all the participants play
00:07:32
Speaker 1: each other to try and win the trophy, and we're
00:07:36
Speaker 1: allowed to invite some friends and family. How about you
00:07:40
Speaker 1: guys come to the tournament this weekend. That way you
00:07:44
Speaker 1: can soak up the atmosphere, watch some matches, and then
00:07:48
Speaker 1: you can even have a sleep over with me at
00:07:51
Speaker 1: the tents. What do you think? Cocoa and Kira turned
00:07:56
Speaker 1: to their mother and once again batted their puppy dog
00:08:00
Speaker 1: eyes at her. Pretty please, they crooned. Their mum stared
00:08:07
Speaker 1: at them for a few moments, then smiled, then shook
00:08:11
Speaker 1: her head. She threw her hands up in the air.
00:08:15
Speaker 1: Oh all right, then we'll go to the tennis tournament.
00:08:21
Speaker 1: Thank you for inviting us, Kiki. Oh yes, cried Kira.
00:08:26
Speaker 1: Thank you for inviting us, and Coco and Kira both
00:08:31
Speaker 1: ran around the table to give their cousin a hug,
00:08:35
Speaker 1: causing lots of cookie crumbs to spill all over the floor.
00:08:40
Speaker 1: For the rest of the week, Coco and Kira could
00:08:43
Speaker 1: barely contain their excitement. They chatted incessantly to each other
00:08:49
Speaker 1: about their expectations about Wimblefield's tennis camp, and at night
00:08:55
Speaker 1: their dreams were filled with flying tennis balls and the
00:08:59
Speaker 1: crickle crackle of warm campfires. Finally, the weekend arrived, and
00:09:07
Speaker 1: Cocoa and Kira woke bleary eyed to the golden rays
00:09:11
Speaker 1: of sunshine peeking through their window and their mum knocking
00:09:16
Speaker 1: on their bedroom door. Rise and shine, kids, she said,
00:09:22
Speaker 1: I know it's an early start, but we've got to
00:09:26
Speaker 1: get going soon. Rubbing sleep from their eyes, Cocoa and
00:09:30
Speaker 1: Kira hopped out of bed. They went downstairs to the kitchen,
00:09:35
Speaker 1: where a breakfast of delicious pancakes and orange juice was
00:09:40
Speaker 1: already waiting for them on the table. Then back upstairs
00:09:45
Speaker 1: they marched to brush their teeth and put on their
00:09:48
Speaker 1: tournament clothes. Kiki had told them that everyone wore white
00:09:53
Speaker 1: to wimble Fields, so Kira had picked out a cute
00:09:57
Speaker 1: white skirt and a matching white bird that she could
00:10:01
Speaker 1: tie in her hair. Coco had white shorts and a
00:10:05
Speaker 1: button up white shirt, and on his head he placed
00:10:08
Speaker 1: a bright white tennis cap. They inspected the results in
00:10:13
Speaker 1: the mirror. Well, said Kira, I think we look very smart. Indeed,
00:10:22
Speaker 1: Coco agreed. Just dazzling, he said. They decided to stroll
00:10:28
Speaker 1: through the forest to Wimblefields, which was not so far away.
00:10:33
Speaker 1: It was a beautiful day. The sun shone brightly through
00:10:37
Speaker 1: the leafy canopy, and where the branches parted they could
00:10:42
Speaker 1: see patches of clear blue sky. Just the perfect day
00:10:48
Speaker 1: for some tennis, said their mum. As they walked, they
00:10:53
Speaker 1: soon found themselves in a stream of other white clothed,
00:10:57
Speaker 1: sleepy forest inhabitants who were all heading to wimble Fields.
00:11:03
Speaker 1: There were foxes in white tuxedos, peacocks in white feather boas,
00:11:09
Speaker 1: even a notoriously grumpy hippo who had put on a
00:11:13
Speaker 1: white waistcoat and was looking for once in his life,
00:11:17
Speaker 1: almost cheerful. Everyone that Coco, Kira and their mother met
00:11:23
Speaker 1: gave them a big smile and a wave, which they returned.
00:11:27
Speaker 1: It was clear that everyone was looking forward to the tournament.
00:11:33
Speaker 1: Soon they reached the wimble Fields and Coco could not
00:11:36
Speaker 1: believe his eyes. The place was more spectacular than he'd imagined.
00:11:42
Speaker 1: The fields unrolled in a broad expanse of brilliant green,
00:11:48
Speaker 1: the same color as the granny smith apples that grew
00:11:51
Speaker 1: on the trees nearby their wooden cabin. Here and there,
00:11:56
Speaker 1: daisies and buttercups poked their heads out of the grass
00:12:00
Speaker 1: and were visited by lazily buzzing bumblebees. In front of them,
00:12:07
Speaker 1: areas of grass had been snipped to make a series
00:12:10
Speaker 1: of perfect tennis courts, around each of which were a
00:12:14
Speaker 1: few rows of pearly white benches for spectators to watch from.
00:12:20
Speaker 1: And in the distance, on the other side of the fields,
00:12:23
Speaker 1: Coco could spot the multi colored patchwork peaks of tents
00:12:29
Speaker 1: you guys made. It came the sound of a familiar voice,
00:12:34
Speaker 1: and then Kiki was standing beside them, beaming brightly. She
00:12:39
Speaker 1: was wearing a white vest and white tennis shorts with
00:12:43
Speaker 1: matching trainers. In her hand, she held an electric blue
00:12:48
Speaker 1: tennis racket. She looked effortlessly cool. Kigy Coco cried and
00:12:55
Speaker 1: gave her a big hug. We're very excited to see
00:12:59
Speaker 1: you play, said Kira. Well, I'm very glad you're here,
00:13:04
Speaker 1: said Kiki. The tournament begins in just a few minutes.
00:13:09
Speaker 1: You should go and have an explore of the wimblefields
00:13:12
Speaker 1: and then take your seats. Catch your lada, and with
00:13:17
Speaker 1: that she was off, spinning her tennis racket around in
00:13:21
Speaker 1: her hand cocoa. Kira and their mum held hands and
00:13:27
Speaker 1: made their way to the crowd of white clad forest
00:13:30
Speaker 1: creatures who were collecting near the tennis courts. When they
00:13:34
Speaker 1: got there, they saw a stall had been set up,
00:13:38
Speaker 1: with a friendly squirrel standing behind it. Hey there, said
00:13:43
Speaker 1: the squirrel. Welcome to Wimblefields. Can I interest you find
00:13:49
Speaker 1: folks in some strawberries and cream? It's a Wimblefield specialty.
00:13:55
Speaker 1: Glancing around, Kira saw little clusters of creatures sitting on
00:14:00
Speaker 1: the grass tucking spoons into bowls of the dish. He
00:14:04
Speaker 1: looked delicious, Yes, please, she said, Coming right up, said
00:14:10
Speaker 1: the squirrel. He reached under the stool and fished out
00:14:14
Speaker 1: three paper bowls and filled each of them with strawberries.
00:14:19
Speaker 1: On top of the strawberries, he squirted fluffy white hills
00:14:23
Speaker 1: of whipped cream, thanking the squirrel. They took their bowls
00:14:28
Speaker 1: of whipped cream and went to sit down on the
00:14:30
Speaker 1: grass to eat their strawberries and cream. The strawberries were
00:14:35
Speaker 1: sweet and tart and melted away into the cream perfectly.
00:14:42
Speaker 1: When he was finished, Coco stuck his tongue out at Kira.
00:14:47
Speaker 1: Your tongue has gone bright red. Kira exclaimed, it has.
00:14:53
Speaker 1: Coco replied, let me see yours. Kira obliged, and Coke
00:15:00
Speaker 1: let out a laugh. Yours is bright red too, mom,
00:15:04
Speaker 1: Ma'm stick out your tongue, and as it happened, their
00:15:09
Speaker 1: mom's tongue was red too. It must be the strawberries,
00:15:16
Speaker 1: she said with a laugh. All three of them were
00:15:19
Speaker 1: still giggling and sticking their tongues out at each other
00:15:23
Speaker 1: when an announcement rang out over the Wimblefields. Guests, please
00:15:30
Speaker 1: take your seats. The Wimblefield's tennis tournament is about two comments, oops,
00:15:38
Speaker 1: said Coco in Kira's mom, quickly sticking her tongue back
00:15:41
Speaker 1: in her mouth. It's time, quick, we don't want to
00:15:45
Speaker 1: miss it. Up they got, and they hurried over to
00:15:48
Speaker 1: the court where Kiki would be playing her first match.
00:15:53
Speaker 1: They took their seats on the white benches. The grass
00:15:57
Speaker 1: was a perfect crisp rectangle, the net in the middle
00:16:02
Speaker 1: rippling slightly in the soft breeze. The umpire, a pretty
00:16:07
Speaker 1: severe looking old otter, blew her whistle and climbed up
00:16:12
Speaker 1: into her seat, which stood high above the court so
00:16:15
Speaker 1: she could see everything. At the sound of her whistle,
00:16:21
Speaker 1: the contestants made their way onto the court. There's Kiki,
00:16:26
Speaker 1: whispered Kira, pointing at her cousin. Kiki was swiveling her
00:16:32
Speaker 1: racket in her hand, just as she'd been doing before,
00:16:36
Speaker 1: and she already had a look of deep concentration on
00:16:39
Speaker 1: her face. And that's her opponent, ko Ko whispered back,
00:16:45
Speaker 1: pointing to the other side of the court, where a
00:16:48
Speaker 1: young fox was limbering up for the match. He stretched
00:16:52
Speaker 1: his arms up high in the air and then crouched
00:16:56
Speaker 1: down low so that all his muscles would be ready
00:16:59
Speaker 1: to play. He looks like he's going to be very fast,
00:17:05
Speaker 1: Koko's mum whispered. They waited with bated breath while Kiki
00:17:11
Speaker 1: and the Fox took up their positions on either side
00:17:15
Speaker 1: of the court. The umpire blew her whistle once more
00:17:20
Speaker 1: to let them know that she was ready for the
00:17:22
Speaker 1: match to begin. Every eye around the cord watched Kiki
00:17:29
Speaker 1: as she bounced a tennis ball on the grass once, twice,
00:17:34
Speaker 1: three times. She threw it up high in the air,
00:17:39
Speaker 1: where it paused for the moment at the top, like
00:17:41
Speaker 1: a planet suspended in the sky. Then she thwacked it.
00:17:47
Speaker 1: The game had begun. The sun sparkled up above them,
00:17:52
Speaker 1: and white puffs of clouds moved hazily across the sky,
00:17:57
Speaker 1: while below, Kiki and the Fox bounced and darted across
00:18:02
Speaker 1: the court. Dwak dwak, dwak went their rackets, and the
00:18:09
Speaker 1: ball flew first one way and then the other. Koko
00:18:14
Speaker 1: and Kira and their mom cheered when Kiki won a point, and,
00:18:19
Speaker 1: remembering what Kiki had told them about how taking part
00:18:23
Speaker 1: is more important than winning, they cheered when her opponent
00:18:26
Speaker 1: won a point too. At first, it seemed that they
00:18:30
Speaker 1: were evenly matched, but gradually, as the game unfolded, Kiki
00:18:36
Speaker 1: began to gain the upper hand. Finally, with a perfect serve,
00:18:42
Speaker 1: Kiki won the game, and the crowd burst into applause.
00:18:48
Speaker 1: Kiki walked to the net that ran down the middle
00:18:50
Speaker 1: of the court and shook the Fox's outstretched hand. Then
00:18:55
Speaker 1: she ran over to Koko and Kira and gave them
00:18:58
Speaker 1: both a hug. Kiki Kira cried, you were amazing. Ah. Thanks, Kira,
00:19:07
Speaker 1: Kiki cried, pushing her hair out of her eyes. That's
00:19:11
Speaker 1: very kind of you to say that Fox is a
00:19:14
Speaker 1: wicked good player. But luckily I pulled through in the end,
00:19:19
Speaker 1: and in fact, Kiki carried on pulling through all afternoon.
00:19:25
Speaker 1: Next she beat a very agile otter, and then a
00:19:29
Speaker 1: young elephant who could stretch her trunk way across the
00:19:33
Speaker 1: court to rally the balls that Kiki sent pinging this
00:19:37
Speaker 1: way and that. Each time, ripples of applause went up
00:19:42
Speaker 1: through the crowd of spectators, and the competitors shared a
00:19:46
Speaker 1: friendly handshake, and finally Kiki made it to the final.
00:19:54
Speaker 1: The sun was low in the sky, turning the clouds lilac,
00:19:59
Speaker 1: and said, all the birds in the forest trees around
00:20:03
Speaker 1: Wimblefield's warbling their evening song. The crowd fell silent as
00:20:10
Speaker 1: the umpire took to her high seat for the last
00:20:14
Speaker 1: time and summoned the competitors to the court. Kira squeezed
00:20:20
Speaker 1: Koko's hand. Oh I hope Kiki wins, she said, we do. Ko,
00:20:28
Speaker 1: Ko whispered, though, don't forget it's the taking part the count.
00:20:35
Speaker 1: Kiki strode on to the court, her dark eyes twinkling
00:20:40
Speaker 1: seriously in the twilight. Her face was set in an
00:20:45
Speaker 1: expression of deep concentration, and opposite her fluttered a quite
00:20:52
Speaker 1: unexpected opponent, a little sparrow, clutching a small red racket
00:20:58
Speaker 1: in her beak. Kira tapped her mother's arm. She doesn't
00:21:05
Speaker 1: look exactly formidable, she said, her voice flecked with hope.
00:21:11
Speaker 1: You never do know, though, said her mum. She's made
00:21:15
Speaker 1: it this far. They stopped speaking as the umpire blew
00:21:21
Speaker 1: her whistle and Giki tossed the bright green ball into
00:21:25
Speaker 1: the air. The whack, the ball shot speedily through the air,
00:21:32
Speaker 1: far off from where the little sparrow was waiting. It
00:21:36
Speaker 1: seemed certain that she would never make it. But then
00:21:41
Speaker 1: and no one could say how she did it. It
00:21:44
Speaker 1: was as though in the blink of an eye the
00:21:46
Speaker 1: sparrow had vanished and reappeared on the other side of
00:21:50
Speaker 1: the court. The ball went flying back over the net
00:21:54
Speaker 1: to Kiki. Wow, whispered Koko through his teeth. She's fast,
00:22:02
Speaker 1: she certainly was. No matter where Kiki aimed the ball,
00:22:07
Speaker 1: the sparrow seemed to be able to close the distance
00:22:10
Speaker 1: between her body and the ball. In the flash of
00:22:13
Speaker 1: an eye. She was the quickest creature Koko had ever seen,
00:22:20
Speaker 1: and as the surprise wore off, he found himself enjoying
00:22:24
Speaker 1: the thrill of watching her return every ball. Kiki seemed
00:22:29
Speaker 1: to be enjoying herself too, even though she couldn't get
00:22:32
Speaker 1: a single ball past her. And as darkness began to
00:22:37
Speaker 1: fall over the wimble fields, the umpire blew her final whistle.
00:22:43
Speaker 1: The game was over. Spiro the Sparrow had won. The
00:22:49
Speaker 1: whole crowd rose and brought their hands together in a
00:22:54
Speaker 1: round of applause. As Spiro and Kiki met each other
00:22:58
Speaker 1: in the middle of the court, Kiki took her wing
00:23:02
Speaker 1: in her paw and shook it firmly. Good match, they
00:23:08
Speaker 1: heard her shout over the applause. When Kiki came over
00:23:13
Speaker 1: to them after the match, Koko said he was sorry
00:23:17
Speaker 1: that she didn't win. Ah, don't worry, Kiki said happily,
00:23:23
Speaker 1: and gave Cooko a squeeze around the shoulders. Spiro is
00:23:27
Speaker 1: the slickiest tennis player in the whole forest. He was
00:23:31
Speaker 1: an honor just to get to play her. Did you
00:23:34
Speaker 1: see how quicker moves were? And then they were off
00:23:40
Speaker 1: reliving the match, discussing all of Kiki's best smashes, all
00:23:45
Speaker 1: of Spiro's quickest catches. Then Kiki told them to come
00:23:50
Speaker 1: with her for the best part of the whole Wimblefield's
00:23:54
Speaker 1: experience was about to begin. They followed her across the
00:23:59
Speaker 1: law of courts to where the city of Tents rose
00:24:03
Speaker 1: on the other side, and there they discovered what a beautiful,
00:24:08
Speaker 1: cracking bonfire had been built, with flames that swam and
00:24:13
Speaker 1: swished like a shoal of bright orange fish around the campfire.
00:24:19
Speaker 1: All of the creatures who had been there that day
00:24:23
Speaker 1: gathered around. There were the tennis camp students, their teachers,
00:24:28
Speaker 1: and huddles of spectators. Everyone's white clothes glowed and flickered
00:24:35
Speaker 1: golden in the campfire light. And every now and then
00:24:39
Speaker 1: someone would extend a long stick and put it into
00:24:43
Speaker 1: the campfire for a few moments, then take it out again.
00:24:48
Speaker 1: What are they doing with that stick, Kiki, Kira asked
00:24:52
Speaker 1: her cousin. They're toasting marshmallows. She replied, marshmallow, Kira said,
00:25:02
Speaker 1: like the sweetie. Kiki nodded, and Kira asked, but why
00:25:09
Speaker 1: would they put them in the fire and burn them? Now?
00:25:14
Speaker 1: Kiki looked down at her in gentle surprise. You mean, Kira,
00:25:20
Speaker 1: you've never had a toasted marshmallow before? She shook her head. No,
00:25:27
Speaker 1: she said, never. Well, Kira, Kiki said, leading her towards
00:25:35
Speaker 1: the campfire. You're really in for something special. Toasted marshmallows.
00:25:43
Speaker 1: They're my favorite treat in the whole world. Kira felt
00:25:49
Speaker 1: the heat of the fire warm her face and the
00:25:52
Speaker 1: flames danced in her eyes as Kiki took up a
00:25:56
Speaker 1: stick and pushed a soft, fluffy, mird marshmallow on to
00:26:01
Speaker 1: the end. She told her that you always had to
00:26:05
Speaker 1: be very careful toasting marshmallows, and cautiously she reached out
00:26:11
Speaker 1: until the marshmallow disappeared into the flickering flames. He he
00:26:18
Speaker 1: held it there for a few moments, then took it
00:26:21
Speaker 1: out again. The surface of the marshmallow was no longer
00:26:26
Speaker 1: soft and pink, but blackened and crumbly. Careful, Kiki murmured,
00:26:33
Speaker 1: blowing on the toasted marshmallow. It's going to be hot.
00:26:39
Speaker 1: You have to wait for it to cool down. Okay,
00:26:43
Speaker 1: here we go, take it. Kiki slipped the toasted marshmallow
00:26:50
Speaker 1: into Kira's outstretched palm, and then she popped it into
00:26:54
Speaker 1: her mouth. She sunk her teeth into it and then
00:26:59
Speaker 1: looked up her in delighted surprise. Oh, she said, oh yum.
00:27:08
Speaker 1: The toasted marshmallow was such a surprise. Firm on the outside,
00:27:14
Speaker 1: but once you cracked it open it was warm and
00:27:18
Speaker 1: soft and gooey and oh so sweet. Can I have another?
00:27:27
Speaker 1: Kira asked? Of course, said Kiki, let's find a spot
00:27:32
Speaker 1: to settle down. I'll make one for everyone. So Ko Ko, Kira,
00:27:39
Speaker 1: and their mum found a comfy spot in the heat
00:27:42
Speaker 1: of the fire, and they all enjoyed a tasty little
00:27:46
Speaker 1: treat of toasted marshmallows. Spiro as a sparrow, came to
00:27:51
Speaker 1: sit with them, and she and Kiki chatted happily about
00:27:55
Speaker 1: the match. It was clear they were very good friends.
00:28:01
Speaker 1: Soon the sound of music floated over from the other
00:28:06
Speaker 1: side of the campfire, and peering up, Ko Ko saw
00:28:10
Speaker 1: that one of the tennis teachers, a big brown bear,
00:28:14
Speaker 1: had started playing the guitar. He picked the strings delicately
00:28:19
Speaker 1: with the tender claws of his big paws, and the
00:28:23
Speaker 1: music reminded Cooko of the sound of rain drops falling
00:28:28
Speaker 1: lightly on the roof of the log cabin he lived in.
00:28:33
Speaker 1: Images of his bedroom. The warm covers, the sound of
00:28:39
Speaker 1: Kira's gentle breathing floated over on the sound of the
00:28:44
Speaker 1: tinkling guitar strings, and Cooko let out a yawn he
00:28:49
Speaker 1: couldn't stifle. Beside him, Kira let out one too. Hawka,
00:28:57
Speaker 1: you two, Kiki whispered, I think it's time for bed,
00:29:05
Speaker 1: but Coco and Kira were already drifting off. They had
00:29:10
Speaker 1: been a long and exciting day at wimble Fields, and
00:29:15
Speaker 1: they were sleepy. Kiki woke Coco and led him away
00:29:21
Speaker 1: from the campfire, and their mother picked up Kira, who
00:29:25
Speaker 1: was still sleeping. Together, they went over to the tent
00:29:30
Speaker 1: where they would be sleeping. Coco and Kira slipped into
00:29:35
Speaker 1: their sleeping bags, and then they zipped up the tent.
00:29:40
Speaker 1: In the sound of the distant music, Kiki and the
00:29:45
Speaker 1: koalamm both looked up into the sky above wimble Fields,
00:29:50
Speaker 1: where dozens of stars were flashing like fireflies stuck to
00:29:55
Speaker 1: a dark blue sheet. Coco oh and Kira's mother thanked
00:30:02
Speaker 1: Kiki for inviting them to Wimblefields and said that it
00:30:06
Speaker 1: was time for her to head home now, but she
00:30:10
Speaker 1: would be back in the morning to collect them. She
00:30:14
Speaker 1: gave her niece a hug goodbye, and then peacefully she
00:30:19
Speaker 1: made her way back through the sleepy forest, listening to
00:30:24
Speaker 1: the rustle of the trees, the snores of the forest creatures,
00:30:29
Speaker 1: and the twinkling of the stars in the sky, which,
00:30:33
Speaker 1: to her ears, sounded just like the strings of a
00:30:37
Speaker 1: plucked guitar. It wasn't long till Kiki was snuggled up
00:30:44
Speaker 1: in the tent, with her cousins also drifting off to sleep.
00:31:07
Speaker 1: D