Hello!
Welcome to Stories Podcast.
I'm your host, Amanda Weldon.
Today's story is a throwback episode.
Tune in to hear one of our classic stories from the archive that you might have missed the first time around.
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Enjoy the episode!
With our powers combined!
Once upon a time, on the busy banks of the Amazon River, there lived a hapless hedgehog named Holly.
Now I know that word hapless sounds like she's unhappy or that maybe she's all out of haps, but that's not it at all.
Hapless basically means unlucky.
And that's what Holly the Hedgehog was more than anything.
Unlucky.
She'd snag her sheets with her spines and shred them when she slept.
She'd go to hug her buds and they'd get a nose full of needles.
Poor Holly couldn't take a walk in the woods without a dozen buzzing bugs getting stuck on her stickers.
She was good at a marshmallow roast, but otherwise poor, hapless Holly felt quite prickly about her situation.
On the other hand, her best friend Travis the turtle was always elated.
Now I know that elated sounds like he's high up on a mountain or maybe floating like a balloon, but that's not it at all.
Elated means happy and cheerful and bright.
And that's what Travis the Turtle was more than anything.
Elated.
Holly and Travis had been best friends since birth and they lived next door to each other under a log.
Together, they'd walk along the river, eating fallen fruit and the occasional bustling bug.
One early afternoon, Holly, hapless as ever, tripped and rolled down the bank of the Amazon River.
She splashed into the warm water with a wiggle and swam with a squeal back to the muddy shore.
Ugh, I hate that, she said, crawling up to dry land.
Travis was trying not to laugh, but he was failing pretty hard.
Um, are you okay?
He asked, and then he pulled back into his shell, where Holly could hear his chuckles echoing out.
Yeah, yeah, Holly said, shaking her wet spines onto Travis.
We don't all like getting wet.
Could have fooled me, the turtle said, and they started splashing each other and laughing.
Behind them, in the slippery black growth of the rainforest, a pair of baleful yellow eyes peered out at them.
Now I know that baleful sounds like they're hay yellow or maybe full of bales, but that's not it at all.
Baleful means threatening and mean and hungry, and that's what these eyes were more than anything.
Baleful.
The eyes belong to a jaguar named Davi.
Jaguars are the mightiest beasts in the entire Amazon rainforest, and even though Davi was young, he was still an impressive specimen.
He was thick and powerful with sleek gold and black fur, and his mouth was heavy with fangs.
Looks like a good meal, he said to himself.
Turtles and hedgehogs could be tricky and pricky, but his mother had taught him the secret.
You had to scoop the turtles out of their shells, and you had to dunk the hedgehogs in the water.
That way, you could eat them both up without trouble.
The jaguar leapt from the trees and landed by the riverbank, right in front of Holly and Travis.
They both shouted and tried to run, but the jaguar was much faster and cut them off.
Holly cursing her bad luck, immediately curled into a spiky ball and Travis pulled himself back into the thick protection of his shell.
Not so fast, Davi said, prowling back and forth.
You two are lunch, and lucky for me, my mom taught me how to deal with hedgehogs and turtles.
Davi looked from one to the other.
He was telling the truth.
His mother really had taught him how to deal with hedgehogs and turtles.
But...
She'd forgotten to teach him how to tell the difference.
Uh, okay, Davi said.
So, and this is a little awkward, but please bear with me.
Um, which of you is the turtle and which one is the hedgehog?
It was silent for a moment, and then Travis's voice came from deep in his shell.
Well, why do you ask?
The young jaguar wiggled his tail and licked his fangs, already hungry for lunch.
I know I need to scoop the turtle and dunk the hedgehog, but I don't know which one of you is which.
Oh, that sounds tough, said Holly, an idea striking her.
Well, I can tell you're pretty hungry, so why don't we help you out?
She shot a wink at Travis.
Oh, yes, said Travis.
It's pretty easy.
You see, I'm a hedgehog, and I'm the one you should dunk in the water.
That's right, said Holly.
And I'm a turtle, so you should definitely scoop me up.
Oh, wow.
Thanks, guys, said Davi the jaguar.
You're like the nicest lunch I've ever had.
Just like really generous.
Thank you.
All right, here we go.
He picked up Travis in his big jaws and set him into the water.
While he was waiting for the hedgehog to sink, he turned back to Holly.
Here comes the scoop.
He reached down to scoop Holly out of her shell, but instead was greeted with a paw full of spikes.
The jaguar howled and spun and roared, but when he turned back, Holly the hedgehog had hidden herself in the brush.
Not fair, moaned Davi, spinning back to check on Travis.
But the turtle had already slipped under the water and swam away.
You guys lied to me.
I'm gonna tell my mom.
He turned and ran into the rainforest, favoring his poked paw.
Holly and Travis watched him go and then came back together again on the riverbank when it was safe.
Now for a quick ad break.
We'll be back with the rest of the story after this.
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This is an ad for nanimals.
Hi, Stories fans.
Pets are great, but have you ever tried putting a parakeet in your pocket or a cat in your backpack?
Spoiler alert, it won't go well.
But Nanimals are the perfect pals to play with on the go.
Nanimals are mini animal figures with heart meters that fill up the more you pet feed and move them.
They interact with you by making over 70 sounds and silly reactions.
And if you have more than one, Nanimals will interact with each other too.
You can connect them and swap their textured outfits to create different styles.
Nanimals are tactile and tiny, making them a great toy to fidget with on the go.
And since they come with a handy backpack clip, it's easy to take them anywhere.
Nanimals, collect and connect.
That was a close one, said Holly.
For real, though, said Travis.
At least your luck is getting better.
Yeah, at least we didn't get eaten.
This time, anyway.
This time? asked Travis.
What do you mean?
Well, we tricked the jaguar for now, but he won't fall for that again.
He's so fast and strong.
How do we keep ourselves safe?
They thought for a while together.
I wish I could curl up like you, said Travis finally.
I could bundle up in my shell and then there wouldn't be any way to scoop me out.
Well, I wish I had a shell and liked water like you, said Holly.
The spikes are good and everything, but the jaguar is just gonna knock me into the river.
Holly looked at Travis up and down, examining his shell.
You know, she said, I could teach you how to curl if you didn't have quite so much shell.
Like, if it was in a few pieces, you could totally do my trick.
Oh, that could work, said Travis.
Oh, hey, if I took some of my shell off, I can give some to you and we can both roll up together.
Wow, you'd share it with me, asked Holly.
As long as you teach me how to roll up, said Travis.
The pair got to work and spent the rest of the day figuring out how to combine their strengths.
It was a good thing, too, because the jaguar came back the very next day.
Hey, you little liars, he roared, jumping down from the woods.
I'm back, and this time you won't trip me up.
Holly and Travis were ready for him, so they didn't scream or try to run.
They had come to the river to eat, and they couldn't let themselves be bullied away.
Are you sure you have it right this time?
Holly asked.
Oh, I'm sure, said Davi.
My mom taught me a song so I wouldn't forget again.
Turtles have a shell that you can't squish.
They go underwater like a school of fish for hunting.
You should know they swim pretty good but walk pretty slow.
If you want to eat them well, you gotta scoop them out of their shell.
And hedgehogs have a lot of spines.
They got big pokey backs all covered with four key tines.
When they hear your mighty call, they'll roll right up tight into a ball.
If you want to pounce with thunder, you gotta dunk them under.
So see Davi said prowling forward.
I know which is which, and you can't... Wait, what are you doing?
This is what the friends had been waiting for.
As soon as the jaguar came closer, they both slipped into their shells and rolled up like a hedgehog.
What's going on?
You both have shells, but you're all rolled up.
You're cheating again.
He pounced on Holly and then Travis.
He batted them around and pushed them into the water, but their shells kept them safe.
Their rolls kept them from being scooped, and Travis had even taught Holly the secret to holding her breath.
So even dunking them under didn't work.
That's it.
You two are liars, and now you're cheaters.
Um, you were going to eat us, so we're just keeping safe.
Well, it's not fair, the jaguar roared.
You're not hedgehogs or turtles.
The truth is, he was right.
With their rolling and shells and water and everything else.
They weren't a hedgehog or a turtle anymore.
In joining together, Holly and Travis had become something new.
They had become armadillos, the first two in the world.
You can't get us, said Holly, feeling not so hapless for the first time in a long time.
So just leave us alone.
Yeah, said Travis.
We got rolls, we got shells, and you can't eat us.
Whatever, I give up, said Davi the jaguar.
He batted them around a few more times, but they just rolled, safe in their shells.
Finally frustrated beyond belief, he stormed away in a huff.
That night, he told his mom about the new creature, and she told him to just leave it alone.
There are plenty of other things to eat and animals that could curl their shells and hold their breath just weren't worth the trouble.
Once they realized they were safe, Holly and Travis talked about switching back.
Do you want your shell back? asked Holly.
I could always go back to Spike's.
No way, said Travis.
You keep it so we can both roll around together.
Deal, said Holly.
And they stayed armadillos, happy and safe together.
Over time, they taught many of their friends and families the trick of combining their powers too.
And today, armadillos live safely and happily all over the world.
And jaguars?
They look for easier meals.
The end.
Today's story, with our powers combined, was an adaptation of one of Rudyard Kipling's Just So stories, written for you by Daniel Hines and performed for you by me, Amanda Weldon, with a song by us both.
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