Willow & The Wizard Sleep Story - The Enchanted Pumpkins

Hello dreamers,

And welcome to tonight's sleep story,

Willow and the Wizard,

Part 1,

The Enchanted Pumpkins.

Now before we begin our story today,

I invite you to get as cozy as possible,

Snuggled down deep into your bed,

Turn down the lights and close your eyes.

You might even fall asleep during this sleep story.

You might even miss half of it,

Because you become so,

So tired.

But that's perfectly okay,

Because this story is going to transport you into your dream world.

So taking a big deep breath in,

And sighing out your breath.

Let's begin our story.

Once upon a time,

In a cozy little cottage,

Nestled at the edge of a magical forest,

Lived a kind wizard and his faithful companion,

Willow.

Willow was a beautiful tortoiseshell cat.

Her fur was a combination of colours,

Grey,

Brown,

Orange,

Black and white.

She was very much loved by the kind wizard,

But despite her lovely home,

And the wonderful magical life that she led,

She was quite an anxious cat.

She would often worry about the smallest things,

And jump at the smallest of sounds.

The sudden creak of a floorboard,

Or the rustling of leaves outside,

Would leave her feeling quite uneasy.

So the wizard,

Whose name was Oliver,

Did his very best to help soothe her anxieties.

He was always there to give her a cuddle when she was ready.

And if she felt that she needed to hide,

He would always open the cupboard door for her,

Where he'd stashed some cozy blankets.

So she could hide and stay safe for as long as she needed to.

Despite her anxiety,

Oliver thought she was the bravest cat he'd ever seen.

She was always ready for the next adventure,

Coming along with Oliver when he had to do his special wizard work all over the world.

Always so brave,

Even when she felt afraid.

But one crisp autumn evening,

As the sun dipped below the horizon,

Oliver and Willow set out on their usual stroll through the forest.

The air was filled with the scent of fallen leaves,

And the sound of nocturnal creatures beginning their nightly chorus.

As they wandered deeper into the woods,

They stumbled upon a clearing,

Bathed in the low evening light,

Where rows and rows of pumpkins lay scattered across the ground.

Now the wizard and Willow were very familiar with this forest.

They lived here after all,

And they spent many days playing,

Walking and foraging around the forest.

So where had these pumpkins come from?

Even though Willow was scared,

Her curiosity got the better of her,

And she padded closer to inspect the pumpkins,

Her whiskers twitching with anticipation.

She reached out a paw tentatively,

Tapping the hard surface that glowed almost in the orange evening light.

But she then noticed something very strange.

It wasn't the low evening light that was casting the pumpkins in this orange glow.

They were glowing with magic.

An otherworldly light emitted from them,

And the whispers of its magic filled the air.

Feeling more than a little bit afraid,

Willow ran back to Oliver,

Hiding underneath his soft warm wizard's cloak.

Sensing his best friend's unease,

Oliver knelt down beside her and took her into his arms.

Do not fear,

Dear Willow,

He told her.

These are no ordinary pumpkins.

They are enchanted guardians of the forest,

Tasked with protecting and looking after the land.

Feeling reassured by her friend,

Willow was intrigued,

And so when he placed her back on the ground,

And she walked over to tap the surface yet again,

The pumpkin,

To her surprise,

Began to shimmer,

And a friendly face,

Complete with a mischievous grin,

Was etched on the front of the pumpkin.

Greetings,

Travellers,

The pumpkin spoke,

Its voice as warm as the autumn sun.

I am Jack,

The guardian of the enchanted pumpkin patch.

What brings you to our humble abode?

Willow,

Who was startled but no longer afraid,

Turned to Oliver as he spoke.

Hello,

Jack.

We seek no trouble.

We're merely passing through on our nightly stroll.

Oliver's steady voice was very reassuring.

Jack smiled more broadly in answer.

Ah,

I see.

Well,

You're most welcome here,

Dear friends.

And you have come across us on the night of our annual celebration.

For we move all over the earth,

Protecting the forests and connecting to the magic of the land.

If you stay a little longer,

You're welcome to join in our celebration.

Oliver nodded in agreement,

Turning to Willow to make sure that she was comfortable.

Jack allowed one of his vines to slowly creep towards Willow playfully,

Darting the vine back and forth as she began to play and relax more into the beautiful clearing they had found their way to.

Oliver the wizard laughed and walked further into the pumpkin patch to greet Jack's other friends,

Who one by one were all coming to life.

As the sun completely descended and the moon began to rise,

The clearing was filled with glowing pumpkins.

Each and every one of them was so friendly and so playful,

Welcoming Willow and Oliver to their shared celebration of the magic of nature.

They soon found themselves dancing into the night,

As one pumpkin's vines tap-tapped on the hard surface of another's,

Creating a gentle drum beat for everyone gathered to dance to.

Before they knew it,

The other creatures of the forest had come to see what was happening.

Deer and squirrels,

Frogs and even a fox sitting on the edges of the clearing,

Smiling to themselves at the pure joy that was playing out in front of them.

But after several hours of dancing and playing with the pumpkins,

Willow began to feel so sleepy.

Seeing her yawn on more than one occasion,

Oliver picked up Willow and let Jack know it was time for them to return to their cottage.

It has been a pleasure meeting you,

Dear friends,

And you are always welcome to join us every year at our annual celebration of the forest's magic.

Oliver expressed his gratitude,

Willow purring gently in his arms,

And began a slow walk back to the cottage,

The glowing of the pumpkins receding in the distance behind them.

Oliver pulled out his very own staff,

Using his magic to charge the crystal at the top,

So that Willow and Oliver could find their way home safely.

The cottage welcomed them with open arms,

And the two found their way to bed very quickly after a busy evening.

With the fire roaring in the background,

Oliver and Willow snuggled up in bed together,

Always feeling safer when they were sleeping side by side.

I'm so proud of you,

Willow,

Said Oliver.

I could see how scared you were of making friends with the pumpkins,

But you were so brave,

And we had so much fun,

Didn't we?

Willow purred even more loudly,

Rubbing her cheek along Oliver's hand.

Oliver and Willow looked at each other,

Willow purred even more loudly,

Rubbing her cheek along Oliver's hand,

Feeling so grateful that she had such a kind and caring friend in this world,

To make sure she always felt safe.

And as Oliver gently stroked Willow's fur,

She fell into a deep sleep.

Oliver soon followed,

Drifting,

Drifting,

Falling into that beautiful dreamlike state,

Where he and Willow continued to dance into the night with the glowing pumpkins.

Now as our story comes to a close for this evening,

You yourself might have started to feel even more sleepy,

And maybe you can imagine how cosy the cottage is where the wizard and Willow live,

Where the fire glows and keeps you warm,

The bed is soft,

And the sound of a cat's purr is comforting.

So give yourself permission to slowly but surely enter that dreamlike state where all of your worries can be let go of,

Where you can relax fully and allow yourself to fall asleep.