Newlook Beauty Parlour

Hank hippo was passing by, when he stopped in his tracks to see two strangers walking into Rainbow forest. They were dressed in trendy outfits and had rather stylish hair styles.

“Hello! My name is Hank. What brings you to Rainbow forest?” greeted Hank and asked them.

“Hello Hank. This is Beauty fox. She is a beautician. And I am Rancho jackal, her assistant,” introduced Rancho.

“Are you here on a holiday?” asked Hank further.

“No. We are here to open a beauty parlour so that we can introduce new styles to you. But for that we will need permission and a place to set up our parlour,” answered Beauty

Hank was delighted to hear this. He told them, “There is an unoccupied cave near the old mound. But you will need to take our King Eddie elephant’s permission to open your parlour there.”

“Thank you for your suggestion Hank. We will meet you there in a while. Will you get all the other animals near the cave?” asked Beauty.

The news about the beauty parlour spread like wild fire all over the forest and everyone assembled near the old mound to meet Beauty and Rancho, who had also come there.

Beauty said, “Hello everyone! We are really delighted to come to Rainbow forest. I have checked the inside of the cave. It is quite spacious and if his highness, King Eddie agrees, then we can set up our “New Look” beauty parlour here.”

Sif Just then King Eddie reached the spot and said, “I don’t have any issues if all the animals of my forest are happy with the parlour being opened. Both of you can stay in the cave and run your beauty parlour.”

“Thank you so much King Eddie. If each one of you could come and design your look with us, then we could get the products that are required from the city. You will have to pay an advance to us to start the parlour,” said Beauty

None of the animals had a problem with this. Hank was the first one to come forward. He said, “I have a very hard, rough and dry skin. I want a smooth skin instead.”

“That can be easily done,” said Beauty. “You will have to undergo a deep cream massage treatment for a long time. You need to deposit Rs.3000 with us, and we will take the remaining amount once the treatment is over,” said Beauty. Hank immediately left to get the money.

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Then, Harry crane came in next. He said, “I am so handsome, but my long legs spoil my beauty. I want to have my legs shortened.”

“We will need to call a doctor from the city and perform a small operation on your legs to shorten them. You need to deposit Rs.5000 with us,” said Beauty

Then, Harry crane came in next. He said, “I am so handsome, but my long legs spoil my beauty. I want to have my legs shortened.”

Harry too hurried to arrange the money.

Blacky bear was waiting for his turn desperately. He rushed in and said, “I am bored with my long black hair. I want to cut my hair and have my body designed like that of a giraffe.”

“It can be done. We can remove your hair and make permanent tattoos on your body using herbal colours. You will need to deposit Rs. 10,000 for this,” answered Beauty.

Blacky agreed immediately.

Similarly, most of the birds and animals wanted to undergo a change in their looks. King Eddie spoke in the end, “I too want my outer teeth, the tusks pushed inside. Can you do this job in your parlour?”

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“Of course, your majesty! You will have to put on some springs called braces on your tusks for a few years. We will get these from the city for you,” said Beauty.

“How much will it cost?” asked King Eddie.

“Your highness, you have given us the permission and a place to setup this parlour. How can we charge anything from you?” said Beauty with a smile.

“No. I can’t use the cave for my personal needs. You must tell me the cost for the braces,” King Eddie said.

“If you insist, your majesty. You need to deposit Rs.10,000 with us,” Beauty said immediately

“Okay,” said King Eddie nodding and left from there with a smile on his face.

The next day, all the animals of Rainbow forest, came to Beauty and Rancho with the money. King Eddie was also there.

Just then, Inspector Jeetu wolf and Tony cheetah arrested Beauty and Rancho and brought them out of the cave.

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King Eddie shouted, “Throw both the goons behind bars.” Everybody was shocked. If these two were to go to jail, then who would give them their new look!

“Reveal the identity of Beauty and Rancho before everyone. They will decide for themselves whether these two are really capable of giving them a new look,” said King Eddie.

Tony immediately removed the wig and goggles from Beauty and Rancho’s faces.

“Hey, this is Chamko fox and Jagoo jackal,” all shouted in surprise.

“Yes, these two thieves ran away from the jail, a few days ago. They came back in disguise to cheat us,” explained King Eddie.

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“Ellen eagle, the forest detective keeps an eye on all the strangers coming into the forest. When she told me that these two reached the cave near the old mound without asking for directions from anyone, I grew suspicious. I asked them on purpose to bend my tusks inside though I like them being outside. Only an orthodontist can set your teeth inside your mouth,” said King Eddie.

“But, these two started talking about using a wire to tie my teeth and push them inside. Then, I understood that these two were trying to cheat me. I asked Ellen to hide inside the cave and listen to their conversations. She told me that, these were two were Chamko and Jagoo. They were planning to escape after collecting the money,” explained King Eddie.

Further, King Eddie said, “Nature has blessed us with a beautiful body based on our environment and eating habits. Why do you want to undergo a change by imitating others? Blacky, when you go to the hive to extract honey, this long black hair of yours protects you from honey bees.”

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“And you Harry, your long legs help you to stand in the pond and catch fish. Hank, your thick, hard skin protects you from enemies,” explained King Eddie to all of them.

They realised their mistake. This was an eye opener for them. And everyone thanked King Eddie for saving them from being cheated.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

All the animals in the forest were preparing to celebrate Christmas. Everyone was happy and cheerful.

Except Coco, the crow who was perched on a tree with his friend, Minnie, the squirrel. He was sad, and was thinking, “Neither do I have any gift to give anyone nor does anyone like my continuous cawing.”

“What’s the matter?” Minnie asked. “Why are you sad?”

Coco told how he felt.

Minnie said, “No, you’re wrong! Everyone likes you.”

Coco said, “No, you don’t understand. All the other birds are colourful. They sing sweetly. But both my colour and voice are bad.”

Minnie started thinking about Coco’s words. The trees in the forest were beautifully decorated for Christmas.

Coco was so lost in thought about himself that he did not see the beauty around him. Minnie wished that Coco could see the beauty around him and forget his worries.

Coco was thinking, “I wish I wasn’t so black and ugly, and I too had a sweet voice like the other birds.”

Minnie tried explaining again, “You are so young. All the elderly crows are considered to be wise. Your nests are so clean and beautiful. And you eat up all the insects in the fields and help the farmers too.”

Coco waved his wings and said, “What’s so special about that?”

“Not for you maybe, but it is very helpful for the farmers,” said Minnie as she jumped up and sat on a higher branch.

“All right,” said Coco and went and sat beside her.

Minnie said, “Don’t overthink about your colour and your voice. They are not as important as you think.”

“Even I don’t like sitting in despair during the holiday season. I can hear nice music playing all around. I really wish I could sing!” said Coco.

Minnie replied, “Why are you so afraid of your own voice? Everyone knows how your voice sounds since you were born.”

“In Brazil, they cook chicken and rice during Christmas. The songs and music make even the turkeys dance in joy. In France, they decorate the Christmas trees with balloons, ribbons and lights. All the animals celebrate and enjoy themselves in the moonlight. In Germany, the party is kick-started by piglets and then by the opening of gifts. There is happiness everywhere,” said Minnie.

“How do you know all this?” Coco asked Minnie.

Minnie continued, “Christmas is the time to dance, sing, eat, make merry and have fun. It’s not for being sad like this.”

Coco was beginning to understand Minnie’s words. It was true that Christmas was time to be happy.

He too should mingle with all and enjoy himself.

“You’re right, Minnie,” he said. “I too shall celebrate Christmas with everyone and have a lot of fun.”

“That’s the spirit!” smiled Minnie. “Ticktock, tick-tock… Soon it’ll be Christmas day. Come, let’s enjoy ourselves!”MERRY-CHRISTMAS

Coco spread his wings, looked to his left and to his right, and tried crying out in a sweet voice. But instead of his horrible cawing, he indeed cried out in a sweet voice, “Merry Christmas!”

Soon, the whole forest was celebrating the festival. They began singing, dancing and greeting each other. Merry Christmas to all!