Fearsome Friends

Welcome to the second Action Project for Stories. For this AP, we were instructed to write a fable. A fable consists of a protagonist, antagonist, symbol, and lesson to teach the reader. The underlying lesson is one of the main identifying factors of a fable. Also, all of the characters in fables are animal-based. Animals help the reader to understand the traits of each character. The protagonist of this story is a mouse named Remey. He has nightmares and is afraid of anything bigger and stronger than he is. The antagonists of the story are his fears getting in the way of him making new friends. The lesson and symbols of the story are something you are going to find out yourselves - they are things with deeper meanings that I do not want to spoil for you. Do not worry! This story will be easy to understand. I really enjoyed making it, so hope you enjoy reading it. 

Illustrated by "SN"

Once upon a time, there was a mouse named Remey. Remey had a hard time making friends at school, especially with the cats and dogs. Remey’s only safe space was his room, where it was peaceful and quiet. His parents were worried about him. Every time they asked why he was so afraid, Remey replied with a frown, “Because I am so small.” After school, Remey would walk home, eat supper, and go to bed. Whenever he tried falling asleep, he would experience his greatest fear - nightmares of everyone being bigger and stronger than him. They would tease on him and pick on his size, and he couldn’t do anything about it.

One Saturday evening, Remey was playing with his toys in the corner of his room. Sunlight was shining brightly through the open window, while a cool breeze flowed in. His mom opened the door and walked into the room exclaiming, “It’s nice outside. You should go out and play!” Remey replied, “But all the other kids from school are out there...I can’t let them see me.” His mother sighed and stepped backwards out of the room while she closed the door. Remey sat at his window and asked himself, “Will they really pick on me because I am small? Why am I so afraid?” He gazed at his classmates playing amongst flowers on a bright, green day. “It would be nice to have friends,” Remey thought. Just then, a cat and dog joined in on the fun and Remey quickly stepped away from the window. As he curled up next to the bottom of his bed with the sunlight from his window beaming on him, he asked himself, “How can I become friends with a cat and dog? They scare me more than anything.”

At dinner time, Remey sat at the table with his parents and asked, “Have you ever been scared before?” His father replied, “Of course! But we were scared of different things.” Curious, Remey prodded on, “What were you afraid of?” His mother said she was afraid of imaginary monsters in her closet, while his father said he was afraid of being alone. Even though those things did not scare Remey, he asked his parents what they did to get over those feelings. “We faced our fears,” said Remey’s father. Remey thought to himself, “Alright...tonight I am going to face that nightmare and make some friends at school!”

A few hours after dinner, Remey got into his pajamas and went to bed. His room was dark and calm, and his blanket felt warm and cozy. Remey’s eyes grew heavy and he, eventually, fell asleep. He opened his eyes and found himself in front of his school. A gentle late summer breeze blew across his face. “This is just a dream,’ he told himself. He looked down and found a dagger and two flowers by his feet. He bent over the two flowers and picked them up. Just then, the dagger disappeared and the school began to collapse. The sky turned red and two humongous, shadowy beasts with glowing red eyes emerged from the ground. Remey looked up at them, shivering in fear. One of the beasts was shaped like a dog, while the other was shaped like a cat. Remey took a deep breath and swallowed his fear. “I am not afraid of you!” he yelled. The beasts leaned over him and glared. Every fiber of Remey’s being wanted to run and hide, then he remembered his father’s words, “Face your fears.” Instead of running, Remey held out the two flowers and said, “I want to be friends.” Just then, the sky flashed. Everything was so bright Remey put his hands to his face. When it seemed safe to unshield his eyes, everything about the school was back to normal. Remey squinted and noticed something different - two students students standing in front of the school. The cat and dog were there, holding the flowers he offered them. The school bell rang and the doors opened. On the other side of the door was a light. Remey, the cat, and dog walked through it...together. Remey suddenly awoke, excited to go to school.