Speaker 1: Yo, Hello everyone, and welcome to the Animal Tales podcast,
where you suggest the animal for us to write a
story about. My name's Josephine and I've got a brand
new animal story here just for you. There are now
over one hundred extra stories on the Animal Tale's premium service.
Find out how to join in the text that accompanies
this episode, and remember, for a tiny fee, they're all
advert free. Stella is from Montreal in Canada, and she
would like a story with a hog nosed snake, a griffin,
a puffer fish, and the Lockness Monster. You can learn
more about these creatures in the Animal Facts after the story.
Now relax and I'll begin The Snakes and the bean
stalk Stella Stella jumped at the sound of banging on
her front door. She had been expecting her friend to
call round, but Maggie's urgent knocking had surprised her. Closing
her book, she opened the door to her best friend.
What's up, Maggie, Stella asked when she opened the door,
is something wrong? The two hog nosed snakes had been
inseparable ever since they hatched, spending every Saturday together watching films, baking,
or reading fairy tales. Maggie was shaking with excitement. It worked,
she said, last night the beans grew. Do you mean
the magic beans? Grinned Stella. Maggie nodded. You need to
see them, she urged. The two snakes had bonded over
their love of fairy tales. Stella liked stories about magical
animals and secret places and far away lands. Maggie liked
stories about huge monsters and magic swords and great battles.
But Maggie's favorite of all was Jack and the bean Stalk.
For fun, Stella had given Maggie some magic beans she'd
found at the market. She didn't really think they were magic.
The beans just looked the part, but Maggie had planted
them all the same, watering them every day in the
hopes that they might grow, and now it appeared they had.
Stella wasn't expecting much. They had only pretended that the
beans were magic. And yet, as they rushed to Maggie's house,
Stella could see the enormous beanstalk disappearing into the sky
almost immediately. It's humongous, Stella gulped as they gazed up
at it. The bean stalk had taken root in Maggie's
garden and was so thick that it was pushing her
fence and garden furniture to one side. It's perfect, said
Maggie excitedly. Let's go. Wait, what do you mean? Stella asked,
you're not suggesting what I think you are, are you?
Of course, I didn't just want to grow a bean stalk,
Maggie laughed. I want to climb it, just like the story.
I want to meet a giant. But giants are dangerous,
exclaimed Stella, and also really cool. Maggie said. They're huge
and they live in massive castles in the clouds. Please
come with me, Stella, I don't want to go on
my own. Stella didn't really want to meet a giant.
In stories, they were loud and liked to eat trespassers
between two pieces of bread. But even so, how often
did anyone get a chance to climb a giant bean stalk? Ok?
She smiled, Let's go. Stella tried very hard not to
look down as they slithered up amongst the tendrils. Already
Maggie's home looked like a doll's house. In truth, it
was a relief when they reached the clouds and the
white fluffiness hid the world from sight. The giant's castle
must be on top of this cloud, Maggie said with excitement.
But when the two hog nosed snakes emerged above the cloud,
there was no castle there, nor a huge giant waiting
for them. It's empty, said Maggie disappointment. At that moment,
a dark shape swept overhead, landing on the cloud top
a short distance away. It was a strange creature, with
the body of a lion and the head and wings
of an eagle. It's a griffin, Stella cried. Snakes in
the sky, said the griffin. How bizarre seeing you up here.
We're trying to find a giant, Maggie said, as the
pair of them dared to climb onto the cloud. Are
there any around here? Not this far down, said the griffin.
Giants like to live much higher. But your beanstalk looks tall,
so you might get lucky. Do you live up here,
Stella asked, No, I'm just meeting some friends, the griffin said,
a hippogriff, a pegasus, and a wig join me up
here once a week for a picnic. Would you like
to join us? A picnic with magical flying animals, grinned Stella.
That's a dream come true. But what about looking for
the giant, asked Maggie. Oh okay, you're right, agreed Stella,
before addressing the griffin, thank you for the invite, but
we're going to keep climbing. The griffin waved a wing
in goodbye. As the two hog nosed snakes returned to
the bean stalk. I can't believe we met a griffin,
Stella said. How cool was that? But a giant will
be even cooler, Maggie replied. As they slithered up between
the vines. It was hard work, and at one point
they rested on an enormous bean leaf. Stella could see
even further now, including the village and the river beyond.
They looked like tiny toy houses down there. We've reached
another cloud, Maggie called down shortly after they began climbing again.
Maybe this'll be the one. This time, the top of
the cloud was very different. They were in a cloud
top garden. Pretty trees sculpted from wisps of cloud carried
fluffy leaves overhead, while flowers that looked like snowflakes dotted
the ground in the center of it all. Was a
wide pond shimmering like starlight. They both wanted to get
a closer look, but as they peered over the pond's edge,
they were surprised to see a pair of eyes gazing
back at them. It was a yellow puffer fish. Friends,
smiled the puffer fish happily. How wonderful do puff fish
usually live up in the sky? Stella asked, Oh, that
it's a rather embarrassing story. I'm afraid, said the puffer fish.
Once I wished upon a star to be able to fly,
and I did. I grew wings and soared through the
air like a bird. But my wish ran out at midnight,
and my wings disappeared. Luckily, I fell into this pond.
But now I'm stuck here. Oh, dear, said Stella, that's
quite a conundrum. It can be lonely, the puffer fish admitted, Oh,
though the birds visit me sometimes. Oh, I wish I
could fly again, so I could return to the ocean.
But at least I got to see some amazing things,
like rainbows and cloud mountains and a castle in the sky.
A castle in the sky, Maggie heated, Where was this
castle exactly higher than here? The puffer fish said, it
was so high that I could see the stars. That's
where we need to go, Maggie beamed, Are you ready, Stella.
Stella would have preferred to stay awhile. She'd read so
many stories about secret gardens and now here she was
standing in one, But Maggie still wanted to find her giant,
and that's what they had set out to do. After all.
I hope you find a way to get home soon,
Stella said to the puffer fish. Thanks for stopping by.
The fish called after them as they returned to the beanstalk.
That secret garden was beautiful, Stella puffed. Even after that
short rest, climbing was tiring work, and hearing about wishing
upon a star and it coming true was pretty amazing,
it was, agreed Maggie. But I'm still determined to find
a giant. We must be close by now. After a while,
Stella risked another looked down. She could see distant forests
and far off hills. It was so far down that
it made her stomach churn. We're at another cloud, Maggie called,
as they disappeared into fluffiness. Emerging at the top, the
two hog nosed snakes found themselves before the door step
to a large log cabin. Surely this can't be a
giant's castle, said Maggie, doubtfully, castle called a voice, No,
this is my holiday home. A large reptile like head
on a long neck was looking around the cabin's corner.
The two snakes slithered round to find the owner of
the head, sat in an impressive hot tub. So you
don't live here all the time, asked Maggie. Oh no,
laughed the creature. Just when I need a break from
lock ness. You're NeSSI, the lock Ness Monster, laughed Stella delightedly.
I would never have dreamed that we'd meet you all
the way up here. You're welcome to stay, insisted NeSSI.
There's room in this hot tub for two skinny snakes
like you. Shall we Maggie asked Stella, But what about
my giant and the castle in the sky, replied Maggie.
I think there's a castle on the next cloud up,
said NeSSI. You're almost there. Yeay, cheered Maggie, turning for
the bean stalk. Stella, though really wanted to stay. It
was the lock Ness Monster after all, But Maggie had
got them climbing this bean stalk for a reason. Thank
you for the offer, she said to NeSSI, but we'd
better get going. More climbing to do, and off she went.
The bean stalk was much thinner now, suggesting that they
were near the top. Stella could feel it swaying and
tried desperately not to look down. There's another cloud, Maggie cried, Suddenly,
it's darker than the others this time. When the hog
nosed snakes climbed out on top, they were greeted by
the sight of a ginormous stone castle looming over them.
It's just what I imagined, Maggie said, happily, wasting no time
in slithering towards the great stone steps. Stella followed nervously,
following Maggie through the gap beneath the door. The castle
truly was massive. The ceilings arched high overhead, the furniture
was as tall as trees, and some of the rooms
they saw appeared to stretch on forever. But where's the giant,
asked Maggie in frustration. They passed doorways and staircases, saw
a library and a kitchen, and a great hall, but
the giant was nowhere to be seen. There's nobody, Maggie sighed,
full of disappointment. It was beginning to look as if
they'd climbed all that way for nothing, until a thunderous
voice boomed, Fee five foe fake, I smelled a blood
of two hog nose snakes. The voice echoed through the castle,
appearing to come from the top of a mountain. A staircase.
A humongous shadow appeared on the stairs, accompanied by thudding footsteps.
I've changed my mind, squeaked Maggie. I don't want to
meet a giant. The two snakes slithered faster than they'd
ever slithered, before squeezing back under the door and racing
for the bean stalk. Down they slid, swirling through the tendrils,
and never once looking back. They passed the lock Ness
monster in her hot tub, the puffer fish in his pond,
And it was only when they reached the gryffin, now
enjoying the picnic with his friends, that they paused for breath.
Everything all right, asked the griffin. Can't stop panted, Stella,
But if you'd be so kind, there's a pufferfish stuck
on the cloud above you. Is there any chance you
could give him a lift back to the ocean, is there, really,
said the startled griffin, I'd been most happy to help. Satisfied,
Stella and Maggie set off again, and this time they
didn't stop until they reached the grass in Maggie's garden.
They lay there for a moment, breathing heavily as they
enjoyed the feel of the ground beneath them. Beside her.
Stella could hear Maggie sniffling. Are you crying? Asked Stella,
worried that their encounter with the giant had ended in disaster.
We didn't hang around long enough to even see the giant.
But Maggie wasn't crying at all. She was laughing. But
wasn't it amazing? Maggie said, We got chaste, just like
in the story. And what a gigantic castle that was.
I've never seen a place so big, Stella smiled. As
Maggie jabbered on and on about their bean stalk adventure. Well,
one thing's for sure, smiled Stella. I wasn't expecting that
i'd meet a griffin when I woke up this morning,
or a puffer fish in the sky, said Maggie, or
the lock Ness monster in a hot tub, added Stella,
do you know what we should write this all down?
Nobody's going to believe us unless we do. And so
they did, and now you're the first to hear it.
Animals fat. There are many different species of hog noose snake,
all named after their upturned snouts that somewhat resemble a pig's.
As they don't have limbs, they use their strangely shaped
noses for burrowing. Pufferfish are able to suck in sea
water to enlarge their bodies. They are also known as balloonfish, blowfish, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, toadfish,
and sea squabs, amongst many other names. There is no
evidence that griffins or the Lockness monster have ever existed
anywhere but in stories. Lockness has been studied and searched
for decades, but sadly, no monster has ever been found, unless,
of course, it was taking a break elsewhere in a
hot tub. Thank you for your suggestion, Stella. We hope
that you all enjoyed the story. Wherever you're listening in
the world, don't forget to look at our Animal Tails
books over on Amazon. Great bedtime reading, especially if you've
discovered the joy of reading for yourself, make sure you
join us next time for another great animal tail. Goodbye,