Let me tell you about three rather unusual friends who once lived near a warm fireplace. There was Miss Straw, Mr. Coal (who was always very warm), and a cheerful little Bean.

One day, the old woman who owned the kitchen decided to make a big fire.
"Oh dear!" cried Miss Straw. "We'll be burned!"
"Or boiled!" worried the Bean.
"Not if I can help it!" crackled Mr. Coal. "Let's run for it!"

So, the three friends quickly hopped away from the fireplace, out of the kitchen, and into the wide world. Soon, they came to a little stream. It wasn't very wide, but it was too wide for them to jump.

"What shall we do?" wondered the Bean.
Miss Straw had an idea. "I'm long and thin. I'll lay myself across the water," she said bravely. "You two can walk over me like a bridge."
"What a splendid idea!" said Mr. Coal and the Bean.

So, Miss Straw stretched herself from one side of the stream to the other. Mr. Coal, being quite fiery, started to walk across first. But oh! When he got to the middle, Miss Straw got too hot from his heat. *Fwoosh!* She caught fire and broke in two! Mr. Coal tumbled into the water with a loud *HISSSS!* and was gone.

The little Bean, who had been waiting on the bank, saw all this and couldn't help it. He started to giggle, then chuckle, then laugh so, so hard that... *BANG!* His round tummy split right open!

Oh, what a disaster! But luckily, a kind tailor was walking by with his sewing kit. He saw the poor Bean in such a state and said, "My, my! We must fix this!"
He took out a needle and some black thread and carefully sewed the Bean back together.

And that, they say, is why all beans have a little black seam running down their middles to this very day. It’s a reminder of the day they tried to cross the stream and shared quite an adventure, with its ups and its downs!

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