Ferbert Flembuzzle's
Most Exotic Zoo
Chapter 3 - Opening Day
(Please forgive errors in formatting. Posting on a website has its limitations.)
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The morning after the celebration in Town Square, Flembuzzle Zoo was scheduled to open. The entire town of Vedner was radiating with excitement. Hours before it opened, families started lining up on the mile-long zig-zag road leading to the gate.
When Ferbert arrived, the line already extended to the bottom of the hill. He politely pressed through the crowd with his arms wrapped around the giant key. He was nervous—so nervous that he accidently tripped over his untied shoelaces, tumbled forward, and crashed into a large man.
“Hey!” the man yelled as he turned around to face Ferbert. “Watch where you’re going, you big—” He froze midsentence when he saw the large key in Ferbert’s arms and looked to the giant gate realizing he was standing face to face with Mr. Flembuzzle.
“I’m quite sorry,” Ferbert began. “I must have tripped over my laces and I—”
“No, no, no,” the man apologized. “I am the one who’s sorry. Please forgive me. Had I known I was talking to the man who built this zoo, I wouldn’t have snapped.”
The man’s statement drew the attention of the crowd around him, and whispers spread up the line.
“Is it really him?”
“Who else would have the key to the gate?”
“Hurry, everyone, out of his way!”
The crowd parted and created a clear path.
“Now, now,” the large man said as he dusted off Ferbert’s shoulders. “Everyone’s waiting on you. Don’t let me keep you any longer.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Before Ferbert could take two steps, however, the man yelled out again, “Wait! Your shoelaces—let me tie ’em for ya.” The man started to bend down.
“No, please leave them just as they are,” Ferbert responded without pause. “I never tie them.”
The man stepped back and scratched his head, unsure how to respond, and Ferbert continued up the road followed by a small girl no one seemed to notice. When he neared the top of the hill and emerged from the crowd, he saw Mayor Monev at the front of the line surrounded by newscasters and photographers.
When the mayor saw a man with an enormous key in his arms, he whispered to Derek Dunger, “This must be the fella we’ve been waiting for.” Mayor Monev marched directly toward Ferbert, and the newscasters and photographers followed with flashing cameras. “Mr. Flembuzzle,” the mayor spoke with the tone of someone greeting an old friend, though he still wasn’t entirely sure he was greeting the right person.
“Yes, I’m Ferbert Flembuzzle,” he responded as he shook the mayor’s now outstretched hand. “Welcome to my zoo, Mr.…”
“I’m Mayor Max Monev. It is a pleasure and honor to have your zoo here in Vedner.” As he spoke, he gave Ferbert’s hand a vigorous shake, then turned toward the newscasters and photographers with a broad, well-rehearsed smile. From the corner of his mouth, he whispered, “Smile big, Mr. Flembuzzle. This is the biggest day in the history of Vedner, and you have the pleasure of being photographed with the most important man in town.”
The men stood and smiled for flash after flash of the cameras with Mayor Monev wearing a broad, flashy grin to match his extravagant suit. His arm wrapped around Ferbert, with his long, ugly, crooked fingers curling around the shoulder.
After several moments, a newsman threw a microphone in Ferbert’s face and asked, “Mr. Flembuzzle, can you tell us what exotic animals we’ll have the pleasure of seeing today? Do you have any white tigers? Panthers?”
“White tigers?” he questioned with confusion. “Anyone can see a white tiger. The animals in my zoo are nothing like that.”
The newsman, upon hearing this, turned toward the camera. “Ladies and gentlemen, you heard it straight from the mouth of Mr. Flembuzzle: the exotic white tiger is not exotic enough for Flembuzzle Zoo. This day is going to be more spectacular than Vedner could have ever imagined.”
Mayor Monev, starving to have the spotlight back on him, slapped Ferbert’s back. “Enough talk; let’s open the gate, already!”
The crowd fell silent as Ferbert approached the gate with the giant key in hand. He took a deep breath as he pressed it into the keyhole, and as he turned the key, he wondered if the people of Vedner were ready for his zoo. A crisp click sang through the air and Ferbert pushed open both sides of the enormous gate.
“Flembuzzle Zoo is now open for business,” he announced, with a slight crack in his voice, as he took a seat behind the ticket counter.
The crowd erupted in cheers and rushed in behind Mayor Monev, throwing handfuls of cash at Ferbert without waiting for change. In a matter of minutes, every citizen of Vedner was through the gate.