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Speaker 1: Hello, friends from across the nation and around the world.

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I'm Martin, and you are listening to Dad's bedtime stories. Tonight,

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we're going to be headed back to a universe that

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I do every now and then, the Magic Costume Tree universe,

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which if you haven't listened before, is basically a world

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where when adventures needed, the Magic Costume Tree appears. Each

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costume inside gives you a special power and helps you

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solve a particular situation. And that's exactly what we're going

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to do tonight. And strangely, tonight's episode suggestion comes to

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us from the same person as one of the same

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people as last time suggestion, Ruth from Austin, Texas, who

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made a couple different Easter suggestions. Both of them kind

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of just stuck in my mind and I started creating

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stories for them. Honestly, I didn't even realize they were

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from the same person at first until I went back

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to look at the form after creating the entire story.

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So Ruth, thank you for all of your Easter related suggestions.

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This time, Ruth was hoping for a Magic Costume Tree

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episode with an Easter bunny costume, so I started to

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ask myself what powers would an Easter Bunny have, And

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I would like to point out that any similarities between

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this episode and how Easter actually works are purely coincidental,

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as this is a product of my imagination, not of reality. Necessarily,

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before we get started, I did promise that I would

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give one last check to my Google form for the

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March Social Share Contest. Since recording this on April first,

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it's released on April second. The last day to join

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the contest has passed, and I will do the draw

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on Sunday, so the beginning of next week. First of all,

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thank you to Tate Jay who shared the podcast on Facebook.

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I really appreciate that. Next up, thank you to Wendy

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Q who also shared the episode on Facebook. Thank you, Wendy.

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And last thank you to Vivian the Mom and James

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the Child for sharing it on Instagram Stories. It really

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means a lot that you guys would share the podcast

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to others who might like it. In total, here we

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had twenty six people enter the March contest, so you

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have a one in twenty six chance of winning a

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guaranteed story idea. The draw is Sunday. But now it's

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that time again, Time for a possible word from a

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possible sponsor. Uh, don't worry. I never do man's during

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or after the story, though. We just get him over

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with at the beginning. Now it's time to close your eyes,

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get as comfy as you can in that bed, and

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imagine yourself doing what the kid in the story does.

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You wake up in the morning, the radio is on

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for some reason, crackling cheerfully in the background as you

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get ready for the day. You're not really listening at first,

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until you hear we interrupt this program for a breaking update.

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The local chocolate factory is currently being robbed. That gets

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your attention. You stop and turn your head toward the radio.

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The announcer sounds kind of too delighted for someone reporting

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a chocolate related emergency. Police are on the scene, he continues,

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but the robbers are threatening to destroy all of the

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chocolate if officers move in. Experts are warning that this

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could disrupt the chocolate supply at a crucial time of year,

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and may cause the price of chocolate to rise to

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levels never before seen. There's a dramatic little burst of music,

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that kind of music they play when they think something's

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really important to human history or whatever you picture giant

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vats of chocolate, trays of chocolate bars, rivers of melted chocolate,

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shelves of chocolate eggs, and maybe even a machine somewhere

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that makes those little like foil wrapped chocolates. It sounds bad,

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very bad, But then you look down at yourself. You

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are unfortunately just you. No cape, no gadgets, no magic dragon,

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no spaceship or giant robot butler, no army. You've trained squirrels,

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or really nothing that could be useful in a chocolate

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hostage situation. You sigh, well, that's not great, you say.

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The radio keeps talking about negotiations and the possibility of

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market instability, and you decide to head outside because there's

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really nothing you can do about it. The air is

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fresh and cool, Somewhere nearby, birds are singing. Everything seems normal.

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Your yard's there, your house is behind you. The day

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feels ordinary. You start to wander, been kicking the grass

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and looking around, still thinking about the factory. You imagine

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the police gathered outside, the robbers and dark clothes waving

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their weapons around dramatically. You imagine one extremely stressed out

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chocolate factory manager trying not to faint into a that

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of chocolate or whatever. Then, for no particular reason, you

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turn around and your house is gone. You freeze. Just

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a second ago it was there. Now there's only forest,

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not a bit of forest, not like trees behind your

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house or a nice little wooded area off to the side.

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It is full out forest, thick, deep, ancient looking trees,

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standing where your house absolutely should have been. You blink

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a few times, and uh, well, your house still isn't there.

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When you turn back the other way, your heart gives

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a sudden jump. There, not far away, stands a large

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and ancient tree. The trunk is broad and nodded. Its

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branches twist high overhead, set into its bark as a

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small round door, and warm golden lake glows around its edges.

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The magic costume tree. You grin so suddenly your face hurts. Adventure,

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of course, that is what this means. You run to

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the tree, feet thumping over the ground, excitement bubbling up

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inside you. You pull open the little door and step inside.

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The tree is bigger on the inside than it should be,

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which you accept immediately because well, you know magic. The

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inside is warm and smells a little bit like cedar

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and moonlight, if moonlight was a thing you could smell.

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A single beam of light shines down from above, and

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in that beam hangs.

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Speaker 2: A bunny costume. You stop.

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Speaker 1: A bunny, you say out loud. The costume hangs there quietly,

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being extremely bunny shaped. It has soft looking fur, long ears,

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little paws, big feet, and a tiny round tail. It's

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not at first the most thrilling costume you've ever seen.

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A dragon would have been more exciting, or like a

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wizard or a space night or a ninja or something.

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Even a pirate would be kind of cool.

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Speaker 2: But a bunny.

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Speaker 1: You narrow your eyes. It doesn't seem very adventurous. But

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uh well, the magic costume tree has never led you

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astray before. It has a way of knowing things before

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you do. Also, if a magical glowing tree offers you

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a costume, turning it down seems kind of rude, so

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you step forward and pick it up. It feels warm

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in your hands, as if it just came out of

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the dryer or something. You put it on at once.

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It begins to tighten and settle around you, fitting itself

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perfectly to your body. A strange tingling sensation rushes through

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your arms, your legs, your back. The top of your head.

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It's not unpleasant. It feels like a sort of fizzy energy,

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like a thousand tiny sparks waking up all at once.

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The costume clings closer for a moment. It feels less

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like clothing and more like something becoming part of you.

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You can feel the ears, not just the weight of them,

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You can feel them as if they're your own ears.

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You can feel the little tail, too, twitching behind you,

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as naturally as if you'd been born with it. The

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whole costume seems to melt into your movements until it

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no longer feels strange at all. Instead, it feels right.

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A powerful urge rises up inside you, not to walk,

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to bounce. You head outside and bend your knees. Then

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you jump. You shoot into the air.

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Speaker 2: Whoa.

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Speaker 1: The ground drops away beneath you so fast that you're

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stick gives a delighted little lurching feeling. You soar much

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higher than you're meant to, floating for a startling second

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before landing lightly on the grass. Then you jump again,

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and again. Each leap is fast, easy, powerful. You spring

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across the clearing as if gravity is somehow decided to

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stop doing its job. Your big bunny feet barely seem

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to touch the ground before they launch you onward again.

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You find a path winding through the forest and follow it,

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bouncing along it in enormous leaps. You pass ferns, mossy roots,

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shafts of sunlight flashing through the leaves, until after a

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while the forest thins the path leads out onto a street.

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You land beside the curb just as a yell comes

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from behind you. It startles you badly enough that your

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heart thumps. You twirl around, and suddenly the world slows

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not a little, a lot, so much that it feels

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like time itself has become thick and sort of a syrupy.

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A bicycle wheel spins through the air at a lazy crawl.

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A leaf drifts downward like it has all day to

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get there. A car rolling along the street now moves

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so slowly you could walk past it if you were

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barely trying at all. You stare, then you realize what

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startled you. A little girl in a double stroller is

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yelling angrily at her older brother, who's poking her with

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a stick for no reason except that brother, when left unsupervised,

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sometimes behave like tiny agents of chaos. The girl's mouth

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is still open mid shout, the boy's face is frozen,

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and the very slow process of pretending he's done nothing wrong.

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You move, and moving is easier, more than easy. Each

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step sends you gliding faster and further than should be possible.

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The whole world is crawling. Will you remain quick and

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light and perfectly free? You circle the stroller once in awe,

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looking at everything around you in dreamy slow motion. I

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can slow time you whisper, or maybe you are moving

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super fast, or possibly both. Either way, it's excellent. You

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step closer to the brother, pluck the stick neatly from

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his head, and and hop away before either child has

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the faintest idea you were even there. Then you let

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go of the feeling, and time rushes back. The girl

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finishes or yell. The brother blinks and stares at his

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empty hand and complete confusion. You grin and look down

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at the stick you're holding. As you watch, it begins

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to change, the wood darkens, its color softens into rich brown.

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A sweet smell rises from it, chocolate. You lift it

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up to your nose and take a whiff, definitely chocolate. Carefully,

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because licking mysterious transformed objects is usually a questionable decision.

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Speaker 2: You take a small bite.

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Speaker 1: It's delicious, really good chocolate, gy rich, perfect chocolate. You

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stare at the piece in your hand. Oh, you say,

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that is very interesting. You can jump high, you can

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slow time, You might be able to go incredibly fast though,

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and now you can apparently turn things into chocolate. You

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look down at a patch of grass by your feet.

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A strange feeling tugs at you. Not just curiosity, something

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deeper and more instinctive, A sudden need to gather, to

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collect to a range. The grass seems important somehow, You

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crouch and begin pulling a few handfuls, then a few more,

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without really thinking about it. Your fingers start weaving them together, twisting, folding, looping, tucking.

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Your hands move with astonishing speed. In moments, the grass

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becomes a tidy little basket.

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Speaker 2: You blink at it.

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Speaker 1: Huh, not just bunny powers, then something more specific. Before

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you can think your way through, a new voice rings

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out nearby. Put the chocolate down and no one will

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get hurt. You turn at the end of the street.

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Beyond a row of buildings stands the chocolate factory, the

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one from the radio. Police cars surrounded officers crouch behind

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doors and barriers. A cluster of robbers dressed in black

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can be seen through the front windows, waving weapons and

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looking too pleased with themselves. One of them shouts back, galaway,

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or we'll destroy all this chocolate. Without this chocolate, the

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price of chocolate will go up dramatically. Do you really

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want that to happen, officer? There's a brief pause, Then

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from behind one of the police cars, an officer mutters,

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in a very worried voice. We can't let them destroy

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the chocolate. I still need to buy some for my family.

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Another says, my niece wants three different kinds of third whispers.

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Speaker 2: You think this is going to affect mini eggs too.

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Speaker 1: The others stare at him with deep alarm. You look

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from the police to the factory and back again, and

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suddenly the whole thing makes perfect sense. This is why

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the tree appeared, This is the adventure. You're here because

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somebody needs help, and for reasons no only to ancient

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magical trees. The solution to a chocolate crisis involves.

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Speaker 2: A bunny costume.

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Speaker 1: You set your little grass basket down and focus on

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the strange, rushing feeling again. The world slows you leap.

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One bound carries you past the police line before anyone notices.

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Another takes you straight to the factory wall. You place

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a paw like hand against it as you search for

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a doorway. The wall ripples when you touch it. You

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pull back, startled. It looks soft, somehow unsteady, like the

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surface of a pond, pretending to be solid. Very cautiously,

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you push your hand forward. It goes straight through. Your

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eyes widened. Oh, you whisper. That is extremely useful. You

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step through the wall. Inside the factory, everything is almost frozen.

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The robbers stand in various dramatic poses, one pointing towards

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a vat of melted chocolate, another shouting something that now

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sounds like a whale trying to speak through putting. The

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place smells amazing, cocoa, sugar, caramel, vanilla.

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Speaker 2: You shake that off.

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Speaker 1: This is no time to become distracted by the fact

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that the entire building smells like a dream. You move

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from robber to robber, each one holding some kind of weapon.

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You place your hand on the first. It turns to

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chocolate instantly, the second too, the third, the fourth, chocolate, chocolate,

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and chocolate again. You almost feel a little sorry for them.

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Planning a robbery is probably complicated enough without your weapons

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suddenly becoming chocolate. But then you pause. Now what you

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look around. You couldn't just leave them standing here. You

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need some way to wrap them up, or handcuff them

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or whatever. At once, your bunny instinks leap into action again. Basket,

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of course, You zip back through the wall, gather armfuls

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of grass, reeds, sticks, and whatever else you can find.

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Then you rush back inside. Working with impossible speed, you

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weave and twist and wrap the materials together around the robbers,

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round and round, under and over, tighter and tighter. By

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the time you're done, the entire gang is bound together

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in one enormous woven bundle that looks unmistakenly like a

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giant easter basket. You stop and admire your work for

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a second. It's excellent, very festive, and very secure. You

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toss the chocolate weapons into the middle for good measure,

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then grip the basket and drag it toward the wall.

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To your surprise, it's much lighter than expected. Perhaps the

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time dilation thing, or perhaps bunny strength or something like that.

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You pull the whole giant basket outside, then because this

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is going wonderfully and you're beginning to enjoy yourself very much.

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You leap straight up onto a nearby building and crouch

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there to watch. A second later, you release the slowed

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time feeling, and everything snaps back to normal. The police jump.

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The robbers, who were in the middle of threatening everyone,

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suddenly find themselves outside, tangled together in a giant woven basket.

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One officer stares, another slowly lowers his megaphone. The robbers

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yell and outrage and confusion. An officer peers into the

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basket and lifts up one of the weapons. He sniffs it, then,

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against all sensible police procedures, he takes a tiny nibble.

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His eyes widen. It's chocolate. The others crowd around. It's

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all chocolate. They've been wrapped in some kind of basket.

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Why is it shaped like an easter basket? After some

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confused conversation back and forth, the police begin cutting the

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robbers free, slapping handcuffs on them, loading them into cars,

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while still glancing around suspiciously, unsure how a gigantic easter

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basket came to be sitting in front of them, with

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all of the robbers inside, where their weapons always chocolate,

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or who cares. The factory was safe, the chocolate saved.

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Chocolate prices presumably will remain at survivable levels. Your mission

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was accomplished. Suddenly, the costume starts to feel strange. It

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hums with energy, and then it lifts you right off

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the roof. You squeak in surprise as your feet leave

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the building and the air rushes around you. But instead

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of falling, you rise higher and higher above the city.

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The streets stretch below, so cars become tiny. The factory

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turns into a neat little block with flashing police lights

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around it. The wind moves softly past your ear. The

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city gleams in the distance, and you are flying. The

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costume carries you over rooftops, roads, parks, houses, until at

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last the city thins and the ancient forest appears again below.

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You float gently down through the trees. The magic costume

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tree awaits in a clearing golden lake, glowing from the

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little round door. You land softly in front of it.

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The door opens as if it was expecting you. You

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step inside, and again the wooden room glows quietly. The

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suit suddenly begins to loose it all by itself. The

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ears droop the tail twitches once. Then the costume detaches

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from you with a soft, shimmery feeling, like stepping out

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of a warm bath made of moonlight or static electricity

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or something. You one zip it carefully for a second.

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You hold it in your hands, then you hang it

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back up and put it on the rack. That was

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actually kind of fun, you say. As you step outside,

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a forest path lies waiting. You follow it at an

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ordinary pace until you eventually step out and find yourself

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staring at your house. Once again, You turn behind you,

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and the forest path is gone weird. You go inside

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your home. You head immediately to your bedroom and you

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lay down in your bed, pulling the covers up to

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your chin. You close your eyes and you begin to

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focus on your breath. With each breath, you let go

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of any tension in your muscles, starting with your legs,

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then your arms, your shoulders, your neck, and at last

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your face. With each breath, you sink down a little

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bit deeper, and your mind begins to wander off to

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thoughts of new dreams, new chocolate, and new adventures to come.

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Good night, Everyone.

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Speaker 3: Name name M M.

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Speaker 4: M never more Union.

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Speaker 5: Na Acoma in New yor more Union Kicking no

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Speaker 3: Thing, no