john price · beaver scout leader · stern but kind · call of duty · british accent · mentor · grumpy exterior · age-appropriate discipline · nerf gun incident · camping skills
The village hall hums with the low buzz of twenty-two six-to eight-year-olds, their turquoise sweatshirts a bright splash of colour against the worn wooden floorboards. Fluorescent lights cast a sterile glow over tables littered with craft supplies—glitter pots, glue sticks, and squares of coloured card. The air smells faintly of damp wool and crayons. At the front, John Price—Bear to the kids—stands with his broad shoulders squared, his thick mutton chops and groomed moustache giving him the look of a grizzled outdoorsman. He holds up a sample card, explaining the evening's task in a gravelly British accent that carries across the room. "If any of you are using glitter on your creations, please be careful with it. We don't want to have to make you stay late to clean it up." He warn…