The Bears - SCP Foundation

Gather, gather around my dears. Find a seat, for the play is about to begin! Do listen closely for the grandest story you may ever bear witness to — told with the grandeur of a bygone time.

Once upon a time, there were three bears, who lived in a small cottage deep in the woods. There was the Great Big Bear, whose grandiose presence could be felt throughout every corner of the pines — yes, what a spectacle is he! His hard and gruff exterior could give way to the warmest heart you ever did see. Then there was the Middle-Sized Bear, whose calm and tranquility could be felt all around, like a soothing whisper on the wind. You'd be hard-pressed to find someone more bubbly than her. Finally, there was the Littlest Bear, who was just right. Together they lived, in their perfectly lovely home, in their perfectly tended woods, and together they lived a perfectly polite and well-mannered existence.

Then one fateful day, along came… oh, how hasty of me, I've nearly forgotten myself! Now children, I'm going to need one volunteer from the audience! Now, now, calm down! I know it's exciting. Hmm, how about… ah! Yes, you young lady, don't be shy! Come on up, we'll take it from the top.

Then one fateful day, along came a girl from the far off reaches of the woods. Sent on a errand by her mother, she had long since strayed from her path and soon passed by the bears' cottage. Curious, she tread her way around it, not realizing the bears had just left on their midday pre-breakfast stroll, as all good-natured bears are to do. She knocked and knocked on the door to no answer. Now any child — yes, any of you — who is polite and considerate may have considered waiting until the bears returned. Perhaps they would have been invited inside for a delicious meal as well before being send on their merry way; for the bears were most hospitable, as the manner of a well-mannered bear is.

But this was not one of those children, for she was not a very well-brought-up girl.

She set to pacing around the home, peering through every nook and cranny in the woodwork. Curiosity still unsated, the girl peered through the keyhole. She gave the latch a swift pull and the door obliged with a hearty groan, unaware of what it had just set upon the residence.

From the dim light past the yawning entrance, a delicious smell wafted through the air carried on warm winds from deep within the abode. Without even wiping her feet, she stormed in, making a mud-tracked beeline directly for the bears' kitchen. Sitting on the table were three delicious meals of forest porridge. How pleased was she when she saw them, and the impolite girl set about helping herself immediately. She grabbed the first bowl, a great big dish for the Great Big Bear. Steam poured from the dish as it reached her lips; how hot it was! Much too hot for her, and she moved onto the medium-sized bowl. She took up the dish and immediately put it down. Clearly too cold for her liking, she thought, coughing and sputtering all the while. Finally she grabbed the smallest one, the bowl of the Littlest Bear. The spoon reached her lips and she couldn't believe it — the dish was just right! The girl greedily ate all of the porridge, every last bit of it!

She ate all of it.

Splendid. After that delicious meal, the girl was rather tired. After all, she had spent the past few hours frolicking through the woods and chasing butterflies instead of doing as her mother had asked. She wandered back into the home, looking f- oh. She wandered back towards the entrance, to look see if the home's occupants had returned, catching her in the act. Thankfully for the girl, the door was shut tight, so her misdoings would continue unabated. Certainly she'd be here for a while longer. She wandered back towards the inside of the house, yawning all the while, until she reached the bears' lovely den.

Before her stood three chairs, each inviting her to relax and laze away the day. First, she approached the largest chair. Scampering up the grand construction, she climbed atop the chair only to find it much too hard to properly loaf about. The girl slid back down before plopping herself onto the most medium-sized chair. In a flash she got back up. Clearly the chair was far squishier that expected, so much so it almost seemed to melt before her very eyes, growing less and less cohesive by the second. Yes, that chair was much too soft for her. After taking a moment to recuperate she tried the final chair, a chair of seemingly perfect size for her; and of perfect size it was! Yes, this chair was just right, its arms and stitching seemed to almost pulse with satisfaction — just look at that face of excitement!

She loved the chair so much, she sat in it until she felt right through to the floor! The contents of the chair went skittering across the floor, darting into the shadows of the room. Her face turned sour, certainly for she was a very ill-tempered little girl. So ill-tempered was she, the girl immediately trudged up the stairs, determined to rest.

She went up the stairs.

Now.

Yes, the girl was simply shaking with determination. Her steps echoed through the stairwell as she ascended, step by shuttering step. Eventually she reached the top, arriving in the bears' bedchamber. Before her stood a mountainous red structure, its form dwarfing the rest of the room in its grand swirling shadow. It must have been the largest bed the girl had ever seen. The sight of the bed sent her reeling, but then she began to climb. Up and up she went, grasping and pulling herself inch by inch. Looking down the bed seemed to tower above the floor! Her vision swam as she could climb no longer, sliding back down all the way to the floor. Clearly, this bed was much too tall for her.

She approached her second option, a round medium-sized bed. She carelessly flopped into the center, hoping this would finally be where she could while away the day. Instead, why, she sank directly into it! Like a mule in mud, she pulled and pulled at the bed's surface, each handful giving way to more and more drooping mass. Her clambering finally gave way as she breached the surface, sputtering and gasping until she finally escaped it's grasp. Yes, this bed was much too deep for her.

Finally, so exhausted from her many misdeeds, she laid upon the final bed. A tiny bed, the littlest of them all. This must be it — the perfect place to lay her head down and catch some rest. A miracle indeed, this bed was just right! It perfectly cradled her form as the bed let out a deep sigh, molding itself to carry her into the land of slumber. The gentle thrum betwixt the stitching was the last thing she hear before she drifted off into a deep sleep.

Nightfall.

The girl jolted awake. How long had she been sleeping was anyone's guess. The gentle moonlight of the open window next to her was the only illumination she had into the cottage, the cool breeze from just over the treetops sending a chill down her spine. That, and the gentle red glow of something on the far end of the room. Bleary-eyed and groggy, the girl rubbed her temple and tried to focus on the light. The soft red throb of the glow echoed through her skull as her eyes adjusted. She stared at the ebb and rise of the light for who knows how long and was only interrupted by the register of a low prolonged rumble throughout the room. Slowly, the rumble grew, ebbing and rising just as the light did, but it was nevertheless growing. As this crossed her mind, the light grew, and grew, until she could just make out the jagged teeth surrounding it.

It would seem the bears had finally returned home, and they were not very pleased to have an uninvited guest.

The Great Big Bear towered over her from the other end of the room, his body engulfing the far wall as he stared at her with hardened eyes. Beneath them an open mouth emitting the same red glow and low rumble — lined with bloody exposed gums and filled with a blistering fire. Under the glow his body seemed to stretch on forever, miles of ragged fur and exposed sinew, all rippling in time with that deep growl. In front of him, the Medium-Sized Bear. The cool night breeze that once chilled the girl's form was replaced with a putrid wind that brought tears to her eyes and a gag to her lips. The bear was slumped over, glazed eyes peered at her from sloughing skin. It was almost as if her very form was seconds away from peeling away from whatever held it still, left to flow across the wooden floor. The last form, finally coming into focus, stood at the very foot of her bed. The Littlest Bear. A creation to be remembered. Every single stitch in its form pulsed with life and vitality, every inch of flesh wriggling with a will to be known! It hung perfectly in the moonlight, a shining star in this house of the dead.

The three bears stood still in the silence of the night, the air bathed in only the Great Big Bear's growl. Surely, the girl knew her fate had been sealed — her disrespectful ways had finally led her to the end of the road. Seeing no other option, the girl prepared to once again abandon her responsibilities and flee into the night and leapt for the open window. Unfortunately for her, her movements were clumsy and slow, scrambling wildly as she tried to escape her punishment. The Littlest Bear, on the other hand, was just right, and made it there first.

Little is known what happened to the naughty little girl after that. Some say that the bears caught her and gave her a good scolding for her ill-gotten gains. Others say she managed to evade her punishment, only to become helplessly lost in the woods. All that is known is that the bears were able to live a well-mannered and peaceful life after such a dreadful event, and that the little girl would simply know peace nevermore.

That, children, is the story of the three bears. I do hope that- yes, yes, do calm down! It's but a story! I do hope that you will keep this lesson in mind and keep good in your day-to-day lives. Your worry is for naught, as you will soon see the little girl is no longer such a miscreant as she once was — I myself would even consider her to be just right indeed! Ah, no matter.

Until next time children! Be sure to tell all what you've learned today — and be sure to keep yourselves out of trouble.