The Story Pirates encounter their very first tarot tarantula (Jessica Lowe). Featuring two new stories: “Fainting,” a story about a talking hotel room, written by Joey, a 10 year old from New York, and “Madame Louis Garbotolle,” a story about two idiosyncratic siblings who learn to love each other, written by a 13 year old from California named Emmy.
Scroll down for the original stories behind the episode!
Illustration by Camila Franklin
Original Stories
Fainting
by Joey, age 10, New York
Madame Louis Garbatolle
by Emmy, age 13, California
Madame Louis Garbatolle used to be an angelic and beautiful little girl, born into the middle class and content with her life. She was born to a man called Timothy Bakery and a woman named Johann Bachinchickenleaven, but Johann left Timothy when Louis was born because Timothy made her a sour baguette as a “Congrats! You did it!” gift. Johann left Timothy and wee little Louis. Not long after, Timothy married a woman named Dina Garbatolle. Dina doted on Louis like her own, giving her gifts like funny-shaped teething rings and baby sweets.
“Dina,” Timothy protested. “You’re going to spoil the kid!”
“Oh, nonsense, Tim,” Dina giggled, bopping Louis on the nose. “She’s an angel! She’ll never be spoiled!” But Dina had another child - a boy the same age as Louis, who was adopted from a foster child. His name was Hickory, and he loathed Louis for stealing his mother. He’d spit milk onto her face to make her cry, he’d wail around her while she was sleeping, and he did his best to make her baby life miserable.
One fateful day on Louis’s spring break, Timothy Bakery arrived at home three hours early, whooping like a bee-stung kangaroo.
“DINA!” he yelled, picking her up in a hug and twirling. “I DID IT!”
“Whoa, Tim!” Dina yelped, swatting at his smile but beaming herself. “What in the world has gotten into you? Is it your avocado allergy? I told you to stay away from the guacamole!”
“Do I look like I’m dying, Didi?” Timothy howled, putting her down and dancing around the kitchen. “No, I’ve never felt more ALIVE!” Dina put her hands on her hips and frowned, her red lips pursing and her groomed eyebrows dipping dangerously.
“I told you YEARS ago to not call me Didi,” she observed. “But what is, won't you tell me?”
“I won the Big-O-Ginormous-That’s-A-Lot-Of-Money-Come-Win-Y’all Lottery!” Timothy crowed, waving a ticket no bigger than a butter knife. He yelled upstairs, “Louis! Hickory! Come down here you five-year-old wonders!” Louis poked her head out of her door, her adorable face shining at seeing her beloved father. She scrambled to the stair rail and slid down to the ground floor as Hickory stuck his own square-shaped head out of the oak door.
Where Louis was cherub-like and soft, Hickory was blocky and thick. They were opposites in both appearance and personality.
“Daddy!” young Louis squealed, barreling into him and knocking the wind out of his bony chest. “I can’t believe it wow you’re home this is awesome!”
“You know what’s even more awesome?” Timothy said, tousling her golden-blonde pigtails. “Your daddy just won two-hundred-million billion dollars!” You could have heard a tardigrade snap its fingers. Hickory had stopped on the stairs with one pudgy hand on the railing and one foot suspended in midair. Louis froze with a confused look on her face, which looked strange with her chubby cheeks. Dina put a slender hand on her chest and promptly fainted with a pain-filled moan.
“What do you mean, two hundred million billion dollars?!” Hickory demanded as Louis squealed, “WHATWHATWHATWHAT?!”
“Timothy,” Dina mumbled, pulling herself up. “Two-hundred-million-billion dollars is too much. Our bank can’t hold that-”
“Who said anything about the filthy Harrison and Cousins Twice-Removed bank?” Timothy demanded, bounding around like a ballerina. “They can stuff their face in a camel for all I care!”
“Language, Timmy!” Dina gasped, her hand still protecting her heart like a shield against a dagger.
This is how the Bakerys and the Garbatolles made a fortune. Louis Bakery became Louis Garbatolle, noticing that her stepmother’s name sounded more like a rich person’s. The family moved to LA but bought multiple houses in many countries - like a vacation cabin in Siberia, an adobe home in Cairo, and even a casa in Buenos Aires. These were the Garbatolle-Bakery’s vacation homes, but they never went on vacation, because the kids didn’t have any schools to take a vacation from! They were tutored by the world’s greatest at home, but they could skip their meetings if they pestered Timothy enough. Tim bought the largest property in 49 states (not bigger than the White House, of course). He also hired 27 maids, 6 butlers, 7 professio
Story Spark
Joseph, who wrote “Fainting" is presenting this week's Story Spark!
Kids: write a story about a character that goes to NASA. What is their special mission at NASA? Do they get to go to space? And if so, how do they feel about that?
Roll Call Stories
Caterpillar in an Obstacle Course
by Townes, age 4, Canada
A long long time ago, there was a slight chill in the air. It was really good for making an obstacle course for a caterpillar. After the obstacle course was finished a tiny caterpillar jumped on. Then the caterpillar started walking around the obstacle course. He walked all the way over to the machine on the obstacle course and then he started to go inside the machine and then – the machine took off! The machine was about to hit the obstacle course, but then its train wheels popped out from the bottom, and it quickly sped along the tracks. It was about to go zooming into the end of the obstacle course, but first it went looping around the loopty looper, and it went really fast in a circle. The tiny caterpillar was still on the machine, and something happened, the train wheels went in and it hit the ending of the obstacle course. The caterpillar crawled up into the Virginia Creeper patch and it saw it’s friends and that is the ending of the story.
My Pen Ran Out of Ink!
by Rosaria, age 8, New Jersey
The Abstract Thunderstorm
by Jackson, age 13, Virginia
The abstract tornado and the metaphor thunderstorm-
Jerry- Ahh what a beautiful rainy day it is outside… Ahhhhh! Mom Dad come quick! Its raining cats and dogs! Cricket- chirp chirp chirp
Dad HAhahahahahahha Your very funny Jerry and omygoodness its raining cats and dogs!
Jerry- Can we keep one? Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeezz?
Mom No! Who know if they’re aliens or whatnot. Jerry Whoa!!! I’m being crowd surfed by cats and dogs!
Dad Ok. Ill call 911. Rats! No answer! All of a sudden, a cat came up to Jerry.
Cat Think very hard
Jerry Okay….. Ouch! I got hit by a brain falling from the sky!
Cat Yes it is a brain storm
Jerry Okay maybe I can kill 2 birds with one stone by finding the origin of this problem and save myself.
Bird 1 Tweeeeeet!
Bird 2 Twwweeeeet!
Jerry Oh no! bird watch out! There is a boulder falling from the sky about to hit you !
\Thud/
Rest in peace little sparrows. Omygoodness it’s a abstract tornado. Its gonna cost me an arm and a leg to do this. Ahh! There goes my arm and leg!
Cat for too long we live a sorrowful life because of this tornado
Jerry that was so heart felt. Ouch! I got hit in the face with a heart made of felt! I know how to solve this! I wish the world to be as still as a 1000000lbs boulder in a crater in the ground, And as silent as a mouse. Ahh. Every thing is back to normal. Wait I cant move! And why am I whispering. Oh well. The end.
The Marshmallow Business
by Josie and Annabelle, age 9, Oklahoma
The Marshmallow Business Once upon a time, there were 2 girls named Annie and Josie. They LOVED marshmallows. One day, they came up with a plan. “We’ll tell everybody that we’re collecting marshmallows for the candy shops,” said Annie. “And then we’ll eat them all,” said Josie. One year later. “We finally built our own marshmallow shop,” they both said. After a few hours they got a surprising customer “Oh, Harry Styles, how many marshmallows would you like to donate?” said Annie. “Oh, 5,487” said Harry. Five minutes later: “Bye Harry Styles!” said Josie. “Let’s eat all the marshmallows!!!! num num num num “Oh, I have an idea,” said Josie, “we should say we won’t take the marshmallows unless they give us $200.” “Great idea! I’ll call Harry Styles,” said Annie Five minutes later: “I got the $200!” said Annie. “Great,” said Josie. “Oh, hi Mrs Ayres, hi Mrs. Wuestenfeld, hi Mrs. Payne, hi Ms Deal! How many marshmallows would you like to donate?” said Annie. “We need $200 with each batch of marshmallows,” said Josie “Ok, here’s your marshmallows and money, bye,” said the teachers. “Let’s eat all the marshmallows!!!” they both said, num nu.. ”Sorry girls I forgot my - CREDIT CARD!” said Ms Deal. “RUN!!!!!!” they both said. They ran to the place where rockets take off and they blasted off to Mars! Once they got there they sang “marshmallows, marshmallows, marshmallows, marsh” - “uh Annie?”
