A James Lullaby

Jimmy, Paul and Gavan were 3 best friends who lived in a little town called Manchester in England. They liked to play football, and write songs on their guitars and to walk in the park near the University. They loved to play in the park and chase after the faeiries in the woods. Once while they were frolicking in their favorite park they saw a fragile little faerie trapped under a large branch. "Rescue me," she said, "And you will receive marvellous gifts." So they lifted up the branch and she flew into the sky. She stopped and said to them, "You will meet a marvellous dancer, one who has also been kind to me, and together, with him, you will find success and happiness, if your path be true." And she disappeared.

Now, Jimmy, Paul and Gavan thought this was a bit weird, and Paul even went so far as to call her a "daft, silly creature." But sure enough, the next time they were in the park there were lots of students aroundlistening to music and dancing. They saw boy, with really curly hair, who was twirling and twirling in circles. Jimmy thought it was the most amazing thing he'd ever seen.

"I wonder how he twirls around like that," said Jimmy. "I wish he'd come do that while we write songs!"

"Well why don't you go ask him?" said Gavan. "I think it's neat too."

So Paul, who was the brave one, went up to the boy and asked him how he danced liked that.

"I don't know." said the boy. "One day I was playing in my mum's garden, and I saw a rainbow and so I ran along the rainbow trying to find the end and I came across a faerie. And she was stuck under a rock which some children had thrown at her, and she told me that if I rescued her I would be given magical powers. And so I lifted up the rock, and she waved her wand at me, and she said as long as I was as pure of heart as I was on that day then I would be able to dance like the faeries and they would protect me from harm."

"Wow." said Jimmy. "I bet if you came and danced like that when we play then millions of people would want to come see us. What's your name?"

"That's ok" said Paul, "we've never played for one. But we write songs, and they're ever so good, and they would be so much better if you helped us."

So Tim went along with Jimmy and Paul and Gavan to their house and he listened to their songs and he danced until one day he had an idea. "I wonder if I could write poems to sing with your songs?" he said.

"Wow!" said Jimmy. "That would be ever so nice!"

So Tim started writing poems and singing along and soon lots of people wanted to come see the band with the strange singer who could dance like the faeries and they named the band James.

But deep in the brooding depths of Manchester was a wicked witch named who had once been scorned by the faeries and she was jealous of James and of the singer's magical faerie dancing and she was determined to stop them. That wicked witch disguised herself as a beautiful maiden and she approached Paul after a show one night and told him that she was lost and asked if he would help her find her way home. Paul was a nice boy who always wanted to help other people so he let her into his car and drove her to her house. When they arrived, she told Paul that she was the daughter of a great magician and that she wanted to reward him. So she gave him some powder and said that if he swallowed the powder that he would have magical powers of music and that when he played the guitar he would be able to mesmerize anybody who heard him. So Paul thanked her and took the powder and swallowed it down and went home.

When Paul woke up the next morning he wasn't feeling very good at all. He got dressed and made his breakfast and left his house to go meet the band and he just couldn't stop shaking. Suddenly, from down an alley and dirty old woman appeared, laughing. She looked familiar and curious, he stopped to look at her. "Paul," she addressed him, "you should know better than to take candy from strangers. Last night you helped a girl and she gave you a powdered treat as a reward. Well it was that treat that's got you feeling so ill. The only way to feel better is to take more." And with that said, she slipped him another little bag full of powder and disappeared. Paul swallowed down her present and went on to band practice feeling much better.

By the time he'd reach practice though he was starting to feel funny again, and although he thought his playing was even more spectacular than ever, Jimmy noticed something weird about it.

"Wow!" said Jimmy. "You haven't played a correct note today Paul. Are you ok?"

"I'm playing better than ever," said Paul. "What do you mean Jimmy?"

Suddenly there was a huge noise and a cloud of smoke and there was the old witch standing in the room. "Paul," she said, "I think you should come with me. Do you remember how you felt this morning? You'll feel like that without my powder and if you don't come with me where I can supply you, then you'll die."

"What do you mean?" said Gavan.

"I can't wait." said Paul. "I want the powder so I can play perfectly, I don't want your faerie." and that said he took the witches hand and disappeared.

But Jimmy was even more upset, "What will we do without Paul?" And he started crying at the loss of his friend. Tim and Gavan tried to comfort Jimmy, saying that maybe it was possible to rescue Paul, but to no avail. So Tim decided that they should meditate and try to call his faerie and see if she could help. So the meditated for 30 days and 30 nights and suddenly there was a beautiful warm light in the room and a beautiful girl with wings twirled her way in the door.

"Can you help save our friend Paul from the evil witch? She's out to get us because she's jealous of our beautiful faerie music."

"I cannot help Paul," said Martine. "Alas, if he cannot have her powder he will die. But I can give you a special guardian to help protect you from any more of her evilness. He will come to you soon." And with that the faerie disappeared.

"I wonder what she means someone will come to us?" wondered Gavan. "No use worrying, lets go get some nice vegetable soup."

Jimmy and Tim agreed that sounded nice so they left their studio and walked towards town. On the way they saw a tall man with a beard and glasses sitting on the side of the road with a guitar. He was quietly strumming and he smiled at them as they walked by. "You must be my new assignment." He said.

"What?" asked Jimmy.

"I am Larry the Protector," said the man. "The faeries sent me to play guitar and protect you from the evil witch. As long as you are true to yourselves then I will stay with you."

So Larry joined them and they began to gain even more popularity, even though they missed Paul. All of Manchester would come to see Tim do his twirly faerie dance and people from places as far away as London wanted to see them play. But the evil witch was not ready to leave James alone. She set her sights on Gavan next.

One night Gavan was walking home from a show and he was so happy because 3,000 people had come out to see them and they had cheered so loudly. And he was thinking of the shouting and how happy it made him when the evil witch suddenly appeared. "Ha ha ha," she gloated. "You don't have Larry here to protect you now, you're mine!" and she cast an evil spell on Gavan, hypnotizing him, and she slipped a poisoned knife into his pocket.

The next morning Gavan got up and went to band pracitce as usual. And he arrived early because he knew that Tim would be practicing his dancing. And he snuck up on Tim and took out the poisoned knife. Suddenly Tim heard a big crash and he turned around to see Gavan lying on the floor with a knife in his hand and a sword through his belly. Larry was standing on the other side of Gavan. "He was going to kill you Tim, and I couldn't let him as I am your sworn protector."

Tim was upset and started crying and when Jimmy arrived he cried too. But they both knew that Larry had saved them from certain destruction from the witch. But they also now knew that the witch meant business and they were scared about what to do. So they decided to meditate some more to see if the good faerie Martine would come advise them again. Soon they felt her warm glow in the room. "Take a walk in Platt Fields and all will be revealed." she said. And before they could stop her she disappeared again.

So they marched down to the park, just as she had told them. And as they were strolling through the beautiful green grass out popped a little man with a funny beard and long flowing hair holding a fiddle. "Hello" he said, "I am the singing leprechaun. Can I play you a song?"

"Oh we're not much interested in songs today," said Tim, "see we have a serious problem."

"What is your problem" asked the leprechaun.

"Oh an evil witch is after us because she is jealous of our beautiful music and of Tim's magic faerie dancing," said Larry, "And I can't be there to protect everybody all of the time."

"Well maybe you should get more help. Let me come play the violin with you and I will help you ward off the evil witch."

And they thought about it, and the leprechaun seemed a pleasant creature and they knew that his power would be formidable against the old witch so they said ok.

So he told them that his name was Saul, and he packed up his violin and they walked on.

Soon they came across a very tall man sitting in the grass playing a set of bongo drums. "Hello," he said. "I am a wandering Welsh bard looking for a band. Do any of you know where I might find one?"

"Wow!" said Jimmy. "We are a band and we need a drummer! Join with us!"

So the drummer told them his name was Dave, and he went with them.

So now, armed with a guard of 3, Jimmy and Tim felt much safer so they decided to sit down and rest. But they heard an organ playing and Jimmy, thinking there might be a monkey dancing jumped up to run and see where it was coming from. Sitting by a pond was a very young boy with a very beautiful ponytail playing a mouth organ. When he saw them watching him he stood up and ran away. Saul, quick on his feet, said "Let me, I am swift!" and ran after the boy. They ran for miles and miles and the boy, unable to outrun Saul's supernatural body, finally tired, and collapsed to the ground. "Please don't hurt me." He said very quietly.

"I don't want to hurt you," replied the leprechaun, "We thought your playing was beautiful and we'd like you to join our band. The more people we have the stronger we will be when we fight the witch." And the boy smiled, and said "My name is Mark, and I'd love to be in your band." And he went with Saul back to where the rest of James waited.

When they returned, Tim and Jimmy were so excited they could hardly contain themselves, they wanted to rush right home and write some new songs. But as they were running to catch the bus, Larry bumped head on into a man taking a walk in a flowery dress. Larry felt so bad for knocking him over that he asked what he could do to apologize. The man said, "My name is Andy and I am a roving trumpet player. I only want a gig."

And so it was decided, and they went home and they thrived. And millions came to their shows, and they were so happy. But the evil witch would not let them be. She had learned her lesson though and she now plotted an action of a more devious type. "James are protected by the faeries" she said. "How can I get the faeries to remove their protection?" And then she remembered, all she had to do was make them lose their faith and their purity of heart for the temptations of materialism and the trappings of fame and the faeries would desert them for all time.

So she tempted them with the adoration of their fans and with money and with wild parties and admiring women, and Saul was the first to succumb, his leprechaun nature naturally attracted to the gold and riches. And they began to fight, over money, over headlines and over Tim's demand for attention. And Andy saw the strife and he left. And one day, after a particularly brutal argument, Larry sat them down and he said, "I was brought here by the faeries on a promise that I would protect you as long as you were pure of heart and united in spirit. But you have all been torn apart by dreams of fame and of riches in a way that not even the evil witch would have forseen. I can do no more here." And he left. And Tim called out in anguish to his faerie, but she only said "You have wronged my magic, and I take it from you," and she departed, leaving Tim helpless and unable to do his twirly dance. And Jimmy, hoping for salvation begged her departing form "Oh Martine, what can we do to regain your favour?" and she replied, "It is possible to regain your values, but I can't tell you how and I can't help you. Now you must find your own way, and I only hope it leads you back to me and all the people who depend on you." And she was gone.

And James set out on their quest for a new path. Let's all hope they find the right one too.