← Koala Moon: Kids Bedtime Stories & Sleep Stories for Kids Podcast
Koala Moon: Kids Bedtime Stories & Sleep Stories for Kids Podcast
Koko & Kira Save Sleepy City 💪🐨 The Cutest Kids Bedtime Stories
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Narrator
Foreign hello and welcome back to Koala Moon, a podcast of original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime a dream. We are throwing open the doors of the clubhouse tonight for some new recruits. We are welcoming in Ailie, who listens with her dog, Isla. Oh, I hope Isla likes it. We've got Evelyn Luna joining us, Jax and Will, who are twins from Utah, and Henry and Hannah from Washington State. Thanks for joining us, guys. Lovely to have you. And, oh, I wonder whether any of you are doing the summer camp Koko's activities. Be great to see some of your drawings and your colourings and your ideas. If you are, please send them in. If you're not sure how, just check the show notes. All the links are there. You can send us voice notes, emails, all sorts really. I've got another question for you, though. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a superpower? Imagine just being able to get dressed by spinning around really, really fast. Or blink twice and your homework gets done. Perhaps time travelling by clicking your fingers or just thinking about it and you suddenly have popping biceps and the strength of a silverback gorilla. Well, in tonight's story, we are going to see our sleepy forest besties. Yeah, that's Coco and Kira. And they've also recently been captivated by the concept of superheroes. Amazingly, when they get some unusual news from Sleepy City, they realize that this is their chance. Perhaps it's the only one they'll ever get to don a cloak and a mask and become heroes themselves, changing the world in their new alter egos, Pajamazon and Pillow Boy. Before we begin, a quick message for the grown ups. If you'd like to support our podcast, Enjoy ad free listening unlock four bonus stories per month and much, much more. You can join Koko. Subscribe in just two taps via the link in the show notes, but now here's a quick word from our sponsors. Before we get into that though, you need to rest your superhero body and get it ready for sleep. I'm sure sleep is crucial to keep those powers topped up. Let's lie back in bed and try to let your whole body go floppy and heavy on the mattress. That's it. Close your eyes and see if you can steady your breathing a bit. Just breathe in and out, in and out. And as you do so, relax your face and your forehead, your shoulders, hips, knees, hands, feet, everything. There we are. Your body's nice and heavy and you feel lovely and warm. Perfect. This is Koko and Kira. Save Sleepy City by Luke Prendergast. Deep in the heart of a faraway forest stood a cosy wooden cabin. Inside the cabin lived a family of koalas. Koko lived there with his parents and his grandparents, and with his little sister too, Kira the panda. And these days, Koko and Kira were utterly obsessed with superheroes. It all started a few months ago when their cousin Kiki, a kangaroo who lived in the far off Sleepy city, sent them a graphic novel as a gift. The comic was about a duck called Daphne who had the secret superpower of being able to control the weather. By day, she seemed like any other perfectly ordinary duck, waddling around, ruffling her feathers, paddling in the pond. But by night, she donned a special cape decorated with clouds and lightning bolts and became Thunderquack. Then she would fly around town, a white feathered vigilante, catching bad guys in storm clouds, liberating cats stuck in trees with one flap of her mighty wings, and putting out accidental barbecue fires with a sudden flurry of snow. Thunder Quack to the rescue. She always managed to put things right just in time. Coco and Kira couldn't turn the pages of the graphic novel fast enough to find out what kind of wild adventure Daphne might get up to next, or how she might put her superpowers to use. And when they'd finished the book, not once but twice, they'd go out into Sleepy Forest and take turns pretending to be Thunderquack, pointing their paws to the sky and imagining that they were in fact not paws at all, but giant feathery wings able to conjure great forks of lightning out of thin air or make the sunshine white hot. It was a whole lot of fun pretending to be Thunder Crack. And soon enough, Koko and Kira were inventing all kinds of other superheroes in their heads and sending them off on all sorts of fantastical quests and nail biting escapades. Like this afternoon, for instance. A warm and peaceful summer afternoon in Sleepy Forest. Their mum had asked them to nip down to Penny the post pigeon's delivery office to see if there was any post for them. And so Koko and Kira set off for the banks of the sleepy river. And as they went, they discussed what kind of superpower. Out of all the superpowers that could ever exist, it would be the most awesome to have. I'd like to have a superpower that let me run faster than the speed of light, Koko said. That way I could be anywhere in the whole universe in a split second. Zip. Zap. Just like that. Oh, that's a good One, Kira said, giggling. As for me, I think the best superpower would be telepathy. What's that? Coco asked. The power to read other people's thoughts, Kira explained. That way you could sneak into other people's brains and find out all kinds of secret knowledge and then you could creep back out and they'd never know. Oh. Koko sighed, shivering. Imagine that. He scratched his head for a moment, thinking hard, then said, oh, I've got one. How about this? I think the best superpower would be the ability to take other people's superpowers. Then you could have as many superpowers as you like. But Kira was shaking her head. No way. She said. That's cheating. No, it's not, Koko said. It's a superpower. Well, said Kira, what if you were the only person with superpowers in the world? Then having a superpower that was stealing other people's superpowers would be useless, wouldn't it? Then you wouldn't have a superpower at all. Koko frowned. He hadn't thought of that. Kira made some good points. Oh, all right, he said with a grin. I guess it's got to be fire breathing then. Nice, said Kira. And then she sighed happily. Oh, if only we could be superheroes. Soon they reached the delivery office on the bank of the sleepy river. Penny the pigeon lay on her roost on the roof, her iridescent grey feathers shining purple and green in the sun. When she spotted them, she flew down to greet them. Hello, Coco. Hello Kira, she said. Actually, I don't have any post for your mum today, but I do have some post for the two of you. You do? Said Kira. What is it? Out of her postman's satchel, Penny withdrew an envelope with Coco and Kira's names written on the front in bright green ink and handed it over. Their eyes both lit up when they saw it. They knew exactly who wrote to them in green ink. Hiss from Kiki. Koko exclaimed, staring down at the envelope in his hand. Thanks, Penny, Kira said. See you soon. They waved goodbye and headed back the way they came through the forest. As they walked, Koko tore open the envelope, unfolded the letter it contained, which was written in the same green ink, and began to read it aloud. My dear favourite cousins, Coco and Kira, it read. I hope you're both well and that sleepy forest is as beautiful and peaceful as ever. I can't believe it's been so long since I visited you. Has it really been over a year? I find myself missing the forest a lot lately. I'll have to come and visit you soon. In fact, there might well be a reason I'm missing Sleepy Forest so much at the moment. And that's because a rather strange thing is happening in Sleepy City. As you know, this city is usually such a tranquil and cosy place with long nights of undisturbed sleep during which all its citizens can enjoy the sweetest of dreams. But lately the residents of Sleepy City have been unable to sleep. That's right. There seems to be a city wide case of insomnia. No one knows what's causing it, but it's having all of us bleary eyed, tired and sadly dream free. I don't know what's going to bring the insomnia to a close. Maybe what we need is a superhero like Thunderquack who can help us all get some much needed Z's. If there is a superhero like that out there, I only hope they come soon. Well, anyhow, let me know how it's all going down in Sleepy Forest. Your favourite cousin, Kiki the Kangaroo. By the time Koko finished reading the letter out, he and Kira had already made it back to their cosy cabin in the woods. Now they sat in the kitchen, blinking as they took it all in. Poor Kiki, Koko said. And poor people of Sleepy City too. I wouldn't have any fun at all not being able to sleep. Sleep's one of my favourite things. So cosy and restorative. Sleep's exactly how you get the energy to propel you through your days. Isn't it, Kira? Kira? Isn't it, Kira? But Kira had that look on her face that she sometimes got when an idea had struck her. A little ruffling of her forehead, a little twinkling in her eye. What is it, Kira? Koko said. Come on, tell me. I know you've thought of something. Well, Coco, Kira said slowly, as though she were having to carefully choose the right words to match her thoughts. Like placing the pieces of a puzzle together in just the correct way. I was only thinking that, well, there's nothing you and I know quite so well about the best way to get a peaceful and refreshing sleep. We are residents of Sleepy Forest, after all. And that thing Kiki said about wishing there was a Thunder quack who could help fix Sleepy City's sleep troubles. Right? Said Koko. He was nodding, but he was frowning too. So what are you trying to say, Kira? Well, she said. Why can't that be us? We were just saying that we wished we could be superheroes. Surely now's our chance. Lets Be superheroes and go save Sleepy City. Now Coco was nodding vigorously, his eyes sparkling as though a pair of candles flickered within them. What a brilliant idea, Kira. Let's do it. First they knew they'd need to have superhero Personas, and for that they needed a costume. They hurried upstairs and dove through their wardrobes, flinging clothes out over their shoulders, trying to find just the right bits and bobs, items and accoutrements for the perfect superhero costume. At last Kira stood in the middle of the room. She was ready. She was wearing her favourite lilac pyjamas decorated with hundreds of bright yellow stars, and she had a black sleep mask over her forehead, ready to be pulled down the moment sleep required it. I'm not Kira the Panda anymore, she announced in her best superhero voice. Now you can call me Pajamas on and I. Cried Koko, who had tied a white pillowcase around his neck so that it billowed behind him like a cape. I am your trusty sidekick, Pillow Boy. And with that pyjamas on and Pillow Boy headed downstairs on their way to save their favourite cousin Kiki and the sleepless Sleepy City. At first, Sleepy City seemed the same as it ever had whenever they'd visited their cousin Kiki or friends there before. For every tree that stood in Sleepy Forest in Sleepy City, there was a building. Tall stone buildings and smaller ones. Houses and offices, shops and cafes. Buildings with pointed roofs and domed roofs. Old buildings with big wooden doors affixed with brass knockers, and brand new buildings of shiny metal with doors of perfectly transparent sliding glass. But it was only when Kira and Koko, or should I say Pyjamason and Pillow Boy, had been there for a few minutes that they began to notice the difference. All of the creatures they saw wandering around the city had a strange wide eyed look to them, as though they were simultaneously tired and wide awake. A young chimpanzee waved at them in delight and then walked sleepily into a glass door. A cheetah ran past them, yawning. Very peculiar, Kira said, studying them. That must be the insomnia. Everyone's tired, but something's keeping them awake. We'll have to find out just what's going on. Just then Koko pointed up ahead and said, look, it's Kiki. And so it was. Their cousin Kiki was bouncing down the street in their direction, though it didn't seem as though she'd noticed they were there. Let's go ask her, Coco said. Yes, agreed Kira, but for now we'd better stay in our disguise. We're not Coco and Kira, remember? Oh yes, Koko said, dropping his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. You're right. Lets stay incognito. And so Kira hopped onto the pavement in front of Kiki and introduced herself as Pyjamas On. Then she pointed to Koko, who gave a small flourish of his white cape and said, and here is my trusty companion, Pillow Boy. We have come to solve Sleepy City's sleepy problem. Kiki looked at them both and for a moment Koko wondered if she had recognised them, but then she just broke into a big smile and jumped up and down on her big and bouncy kangaroo feet. I'm so glad to meet you, Pyjamas on and Pillow Boy, she said. I'm Kiki. Kira cleared her throat in what she hoped was an extremely serious and important sounding way. Kiki, would you be so kind as to tell us how this all started? I can do better than that, Kiki said. I can show you. Koko and Kira followed Kiki around the city as she told them that the insomnia had been happening for over a week now, ever since Sleepy City had celebrated their Festival of Sweets. The festival, she explained, happened once a year and was an opportunity for all the citizens to eat all kinds of tasty sweet treats. Pastries and brownies, chewy sweets and marshmallows, licorice whips and fruity strings. And of course, Kiki said, pausing outside a little stone building whose windows were decorated with big fluffy pink clouds, the newest suite on the block, created only this year by our most celebrated inventor, Sleepy City's Super Cotton Candy. And I can tell you it's the sweetest thing I or anyone else in the city has ever tasted. You know, Kiki added in something of an apologetic voice, I only wish I could offer you some. But all the Super Cotton candy got cleaned out at the festival. That's just how good it was. Kiki began hopping down the road and Koko went after her, but Kira tugged on the end of his pillow cape. I think I've got it, she said. Got what? Koko asked. I think I've worked out why Sleepy City is suffering from this bout of insomnia. Koko's eyes swirled with a mixture of doubt and and surprise. You have ke. I mean Pyjamas on. Well, tell us. It's all the sugar, Kira said. At the Festival of Sweets, all the citizens of Sleepy City must have had so much of this Super Cotton candy that they're all all hyped up on all the zingy sugar in it. What they need is to calm down so they can get some sleep. Kiki and Koko blinked at her, taking the information in. I never thought of it, kiki admitted. But now you say it. Pajamas on, it sounds like you could be right. That's genius, koko said. That must be it. And we know just what to do to help people calm down from a sugar rush, don't we? Oh, yes, kira said, a big grin spreading across her face. We certainly do, Pillow boy. Kira, Koko, and Kiki lent their heads together while they put together a plan of action. Once it was formulated, they all went their separate ways. Kira went around the sleepy city, visiting all the coffee shops and cafes and handing out boxes and of mint tea and chamomile tea. Perfect, she told all of the owners, for calming the body and soul. Kiki, meanwhile, hopped her way to the local radio station, where her friend Paddy the Parrot was the dj. She whispered her plan in Paddy's ear, and with a squawk he let her know he had it under control. Within a few minutes, all the radios in the city and all the loudspeakers on the streets were playing the most soothing and gentle lullabies, and Koko had been going round the city, swishing his cape, giving out a public announcement calling all citizens of Sleepy City. He called from every street corner, roundabout, bridge, and park gate, gather in the city square at sundown for the sleepiest situation you could ever dream of. Koko decided not to give any more information than that. He knew that curiosity would only lure more of the city creatures to the square. By the time the three of them had finished their jobs, the herbal teas were flowing from the cafes, and the sweet melodies of lullabies drifted down the streets. The sun was already dropping below the horizon, sending the sky dark blue and orange and and pink, as though a painter had come along and spilt the colours all across it. Koko and Kira and Kiki all met each other, as they'd agreed, in the city square beneath the big stone clock with the large statue of the friendly owl roosting on top of it, and it wasn't long before the square started filling up as all of the citizens of Sleepy City, hundreds and hundreds of them, began to arrive. They gathered in groups or sat on the stone floor, blinking around in quiet confusion, wondering why they'd all been summoned there. You know, said Kiki, I think everyone's looking sleepier than they were before. Still tired, but less hyperactive. I think the lullabies and all that chamomile and minty goodness is working its magic. Pyjamas On. It certainly is, kira replied, her chest puffed out with superhero pride. But just you wait to see what's going to happen next. Once all the citizens of Sleepy City had arrived, Kiki hopped up onto the plinth beside the stone clock tower and cleared her throat. Welcome, people of Sleepy City. First of all, let's put our hands together in gratitude for Pyjamas on and Pillow Boy. They have come to help us with our citywide sleeplessness and already they found the root of the problem and given us some much needed remedies. Our herbal teas and our lullabies. Applause rippled across the gathered people, the pitter patter of hands meeting hands, wings meeting wings, paws meeting paws. And now, Kiki continued, pajamazon is going to read us one of her best ever bedtime stories, which will be sure to help carry us off into a long awaited sleep. Settle down. Get comfy Pajamas on is about to begin. The citizens of Sleepy City got to the ground, finding their comfiest positions and cosying up with each other to keep warm and snug. Kira thanked Kiki and got herself up onto the plinth below. A sea of eyes gazed back up at her and for a moment she thought to herself that it really was just as enjoyable as she'd hoped it would be, being a superhero for the day. Then she cleared her throat and said, this is a very special story. It's called the Magic Sleeping Rug. And then Kira began to tell her story. It was about a little girl who one day went to the market with her mum where they bought an old rug. Even though the rug was so worn out and threadbare, there was something about it that drew the little girl to it. She pointed at it and begged her mum to buy it. Since no one else wanted the rug, it was going cheap and the little girl's mother got it for her back at home. The little girl put it on her bedroom floor and when it was nighttime she insisted on curling up on the new rug instead of in her soft bed. It was only when her mother shrugged and turned out the light that the rug's magical qualities became apparent. It shook itself and rose up into the air with a little girl riding on it. The magic rug flew out of the window and soared up into the sky, where the girl got to paddle her fingers in the starlight, wave at the moon, and look down at the town she lived in. All the twinkling lights in the houses going out one by one as everybody went to sleep. Each evening after that, when her mother turned out the bedroom lights, the little girl would go on a nighttime trip with her magic carpet, sailing softly over sparkling streams, over silent sand dunes, beneath gently cascading waterfalls. As Kira told the story, the most wonderful thing began to happen. All the residents of Sleepy Forest who had for so long been wishing for sleep but unable to get it because of all the sugar they'd eaten, began to yawn and rub their eyes and stretch out their limbs. Their minds began to settle down, their hearts began to still. They rested their heads on each other's shoulders or tugged cosy blankets over themselves. And then, one by one, they fell asleep. Look, Kiki whispered. Look, Coco, it's really working. It is, isn't it? Koko said delightedly before he realised what his cousin Kiki had said. Wait, you just said Coco. Does that mean you've known it was me all along? Kiki put a hand over her mouth to stifle a little giggle. Oh, yes, Coco. I knew as soon as you and Kira turned up that it was the two of you. I just went along with it. Koko shook his head, but he was smiling. We thought we'd actually had you fooled, he said. We thought you really thought we were superheroes. Oh, said Kiki. But I do. And in response to Koko's confused frown, she said, just because you're Koko and Kira doesn't mean you're not pyjamas on and pillow boy too. You can be both, you know, kids and superheroes. Now Coco was smiling from ear to ear, and he put an arm around his cousin to give her a hug. They could be both kids and superheroes. He liked that. He liked that a lot. And now Koko himself gave a big yawn and Kiki, beside him, gave one too. Kira's bedtime story, it was clear, was having an effect on them too. And so, before all of the sleeping creatures of Sleepy City, under the paint washed lilac sky, and with the sound of lullabies and Kira's lovely words drifting softly into their ears, Koko and Kiki settle down onto the ground, their heads on their paws, and after just a few moments, the two of them drifted off into a deep and peaceful sleep. Sa Ra.