2am stories: part two of two

When he got back he went straight to the leader and managed to get out 'volcano... need... go' before he fainted. The pain was too much....

The leader didn't need to ask him any questions about how or why, he knew that nobody knew that mountain better than he did, he had been going up and down it for many years. He made sure that he was still breathing okay and went straight to ring the big bell in the middle of the village which would tell everyone to come straight away.

The first person there was the runner - the leader told him quickly what was to happen and he left to tell all those who were away from the village or were sick and unable to leave what was happening so that no-one would be left behind. They were to pack their things, and leave.

They were all ready to go very quickly. A stretcher had been made for those who couldn't walk, including the boy who had warned them all, so that they could be carried. The fastest way to safety was to go to the top of the next mountain which was far enough away from theirs, but in the valley further down from them there were three more villages - the furthest was 2 days away, without rest.

They couldn't just leave them, and so that is the way the village went. They sent their runner ahead to warn the next village so they could get ready - then they would rest there until their village arrived before going on to the next village, until they got to the last one.

By the time they got to the last village there were three villages all walking together, but the last village - they didn't believe them that the volcano was really going to breathe fire again, after all it never had before that they had seen. Never the less, they sent everyone to pack up their things so that they would still have a good relationship with the other villages - they needed them.

When they were ready to go, they still did not want to leave and insisted that they all stay in their village, and then if the volcano did do anything - then they could go, after all the nearest mountain they would all go to for safety was only 2 hours away. The other villages didn't like this at all but they didn't want to leave the last village behind, so they agreed.

As they agreed, they all looked up toward the mountain, and someone noticed something looked a little different about the air surrounding it. That was enough, that was all it took, those who were still not sure were convinced by everyone else to move anyway, just in case, and so all together they made the final journey to the mountain.

They made it, it's okay, but that's not what I want to tell you now. You know the boy from the beginning of the story - he was unconscious this whole time and his village carried him all the way. As they arrived at the top of the mountain there was a big tremor making the ground shake, and the mountain breathe fire. It was at this point that he woke up, and when he looked around do you know what he saw?

He saw not only his village, but three more also. He saw a sky of semi darkness, and red flames leaping from a mountain and racing down a valley below. He saw that what he thought was pointless to begin with was actually a very important job. He didn't feel worthless anymore. And he also realised that it was okay that his leg was broken, because everyone else was safe.

My apologies to my 'dear friend' (Brown Bear) if I've remembered part of this story wrongly!

2am stories - part one of two

There once was a small village which was at the bottom of a big mountain which used to be a volcano. The people in the village, they had never seen the volcano do anything, to them it was just a mountain, but the stories had been passed down so they always watched it.
Everybody in this village had their own special job to do, that only they would do, so that everyone was important in the running of the village. One person was the builder, another the doctor, another the farmer, another the teacher, another the tailor, another the hunter, and so on.
There was one in the village though, he was not really a boy anymore but perhaps not quite a man either, and he also had a job but he often felt like his job was pointless and didn't help with anything. This made him feel worthless but still he would do his job because he had nothing else which he could do.

His job was to climb up to the top of the mountain and check that it was still just a mountain. It would take a whole day to climb to the top and then a whole day to climb back down again. Every 4 or 5 days he would make this trip, but it seemed pointless because nobody in the village had ever seen it breathe fire, and he was always so tired when he got back. 

One day when he got to the top he noticed something was different - it was something that maybe someone else might not notice, but he knew this mountain, he had been climbing up and down it for years. Near the top the ground was a little different, and perhaps a little warmer, and the air smelt different. He knew that the mountain was changing, and suddenly he remembered the stories that the village had of what had happened long ago and he got scared of what might happen. In fact, he ran down that mountain to get back faster... until he tripped and fell.
Oh no, what was he going to do now? His leg was at a strange angle, he could not use it, but he needed to tell everyone what was happening. Do you know what he did? He got some bark and but it in his mouth to bite down on, then he made his leg straight, kind of and put some sticks either side which he tied on with some of his shirt. Then he found a strong stick he could lean on, so he could keep on going. And he didn't hobble, or even walk, no, he kept on running all the way back to the village. In fact he was so fast, it only took him half a day!

When he got back he went straight to the leader and managed to get out 'volcano... need... go' before he fainted. The pain was too much....