The Blue Blanket Tent: story transcript
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The Blue Blanket Tent
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Rain was coming, and story night needed a roof. Fern carried the blue blanket across the rug. Tansy brought cushions, one at a time, until the pile was taller than she was. "A tent!" they said together. Then they looked at the same blanket differently.
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Fern held the blanket high above her long ears. "I want to sit up when we tell the story." Tansy tucked an edge beneath her chin. "I want it close enough to hear the rain." They pulled the blanket this way, then that. Nothing stayed put.
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"I'll try first," said Fern. She balanced one corner on a chair and lifted the other with a cushion. There was plenty of room for her ears, but the roof slid sideways. Fern ducked as the blue blanket settled over her like a sleepy wave.
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"My turn," said Tansy. She made a low roof with two cushions and crawled beneath it. "Come in!" Fern tried. Her ears caught the blanket, and the whole tent followed her back out. Tansy watched it fall. "That was my best low roof," she whispered.
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Fern sat beside her. For a while they listened to the first drops tapping the window. Then Fern pushed her biggest cushion toward Tansy. "What if we put all our cushions together?" Tansy pulled hers close to Fern's. "We could try your tall bit first."
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They built a tall entrance by the chair. Fern walked through without bending her ears. Behind it, Tansy tucked the blanket around a little nook. She curled up and patted the space beside her. Fern squeezed in, but a cold gap opened above Tansy's shoulder.
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Tansy's favorite round cushion would close the gap. But it was holding up Fern's entrance. Tansy reached for it anyway. "Wait," said Fern. She brought over her own favorite cushion, the firm one she always saved for her seat. "This can hold the entrance."
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Fern's cushion stood tall. Tansy's round cushion filled the gap, snug against the nook. Fern missed her firm seat; Tansy missed having the round cushion in her lap. Then Tansy found one last scrap of blue cloth and tied it above the entrance: a flag shaped like two silly ears.
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Rain tapped all around their blue roof. Fern sat with her ears free; Tansy curled close beneath the snug side. "Once there were two rabbits who found a cloud," Fern began. "Was it raining?" asked Tansy. "Only inside," said Fern. "It had swallowed a puddle."
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"Then we'd better give it a towel," said Tansy. Fern laughed so softly the flag barely stirred. They passed the cloud back and forth, adding a window, a moon, and somewhere dry to sleep. Outside, rain kept telling its part. Inside, they had room for both voices.
