FSE

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Little Bennie was clutching the paw that was holding his own with fierce determination. The noise surrounding him was a cacophony, to the point of being deafening to his sensitive ears. He was being jostled left and right, and if not for the comforting paw he was so intent on keeping a grip on, he might very well have been lost to the throng of which he was now an integral part.

His eyes and ears were blasted with sights and sounds unlike any he had ever seen before. They amazed him, but at the same time he wanted very much to cry out in alarm. It was scary here, and yet; as much as he wanted to go home, part of him demanded he stay. This was important and despite his tender years, he knew that he couldn't show the fear that threatened to drive him away. HE was meant to be here, and he wasn't going to budge.

There were other cubs his age here too, and some of them seemed to be nearly oblivious to the strangeness of the situation. They seemed to readily accept the groups of adults dressed in strange clothing, and while others giggled and tittered at them, he gazed with unabashed curiosity at the starkly painted faces and the odd behaviors they were showing. This was all new to him, and he fought between his emotions. Part of him loved the bizarreness of it all, and part of him wanted to run and hide his face from this mass of confusing stimuli. He was wondering if asking to come here had been a bad idea.

A voice called down to him.

"Hey! Are you hanging in there?"

"Y-y-y-yes."

"Did you see something that you wanted to try?"

"Noooo." Then he slowly reconsidered "Yes."

"Oh? What?"

Bennie pointed to the friendliest looking thing he had seen. Compared to most of the others, this one was relatively tame.

"I see. Good choice for starters. I'll be with you the whole time, so you don't have to worry."

Money was exchanged, and Bennie was taken up onto the platform and set upon one of the creatures. He wasn't afraid precisely, but they all were garishly colored specimens, and thus looked oddly out of place. Their smooth texture belied that they were not real, for they should have been warm and supple under his paws. Other cubs were getting on, and in a few minutes, all the empty places were filled. With a sharp jerk and the squawk of harsh music, the rig rumbled to life. His paw once again clung firmly to the one belonging to his companion

It was his first time visiting a carnival, and Bennie was still trying to come to grips with how odd it was when compared to normal life. He had heard of merry-go-rounds and Ferris wheels, but this was the first time his father had thought him old enough to try them out. It was an amazing place, this kaleidoscope of dizzying displays, and he was simply overwhelmed with the myriad of sights and sounds and smells that surrounded him.

Papa promised to get him whatever he wanted, and thus was going to buy him a big bag of cotton candy. He had seen the cloud-like swirled confections and just knew he had to try one. Then there were the corn dogs, the French fries, the lemonade; he was going to have a tummy ache but it was going to be worth it. But papa said to get the rides out of the way first, just to make sure his stomach didn't get upset. There was no point in ruining the day by getting sick and spoiling all of the fun.

The horsy ride he was on wasn't nearly as scary as he thought it was going to be, and hanging on was easy. The thing bumped and rocked a bit as it went around and around, but he was a big cub now. The ride went around in circles for several minutes before coming to a complete stop. They got off, and from there on out he tried nearly every ride there was. When he grew tired of that, it was time for food. His tummy was growling like a grumpy old bear's by the time papa got them both generous helpings of food. This was turning into the best day ever!

The picnic table was the perfect spot to eat, and as he shoveled his meal into his mouth, his eyes played across the crowd. It was amazing how such a thing as a carnival brought so many creatures into one place. The visitors were nearly as interesting as the silly clowns with their made-up faces and colorful, mismatched clothing. He was relaxed enough appreciate their antics, laughing as they tumbled and fell to the ground and chased each other with cream pies.

His banded tail twitched as he filled his belly while watching the fun transpire, carefully refraining from stuffing in too much and then not having room for his treat. His bright eyes, hidden behind a mask of dark black fur, watched others walk by with their own bags, gobbling up the fluffy stuff with uncontained glee. He could hardly wait.

It was nearly an hour later that he finally got his bag. Papa said they would take it home, so that mama could have a bite of it too. Bennie was happy to comply. It had been a whirlwind day, and he was never going to forget it. He was so glad papa brought him here for his birthday, and wondered if the carnival would be here next year too. Papa wasn't sure when it was going to be back, so they were both going to have to wait and see. It had been a little scary at first, but once he got used to the excitement, he hardly wished to leave.

The ride home was anticlimactic, and he fell asleep in his seat before they got home. But he was wide awake once the car hit the driveway, and he bounded out of the car and into the house before papa even turned off the engine.

"Look mama! I got some to share with you!"

"Look at my big cub! Did you have fun?"

"Yes! Papa and I went on rides and everything!"

"Did you now? Well good for you! I thought you said you were too scared to go on any."

"I was. But that was before I remembered that I was too old to be scared."

"Oh, so you're all grown up now then?"

"Yes!" he said proudly.

"Too grown up to do it again next year?"

He stopped and thought.

"No, I don't think so. Papa had fun too. So I think I'll have fun even when I'm a papa."

His father came in and ruffled his fur.

"Good answer son. You're never too old to have fun."

"Never?"

"Never!"