7 The grand four

CHAPTER SEVEN The grand tour Willow did not appreciate being told what to do, especially by grumpy foxes like Nancy. The next day, she hid among the long grass and waited for Frank to swoop down with more Crazyhorns Power Juice. 'Morning, Willow,' said Frank. 'How did you see me?' said Willow, in a huff. 'Excited by our new guests, are you?' Frank smiled. Willow pushed her nose close to Frank's beak. Her fists were clenched and she looked extremely serious. 'I AM GOING TO MAKE THAT LITTLE FOX MY BEST FRIEND,' she said through gritted teeth. Frank chuckled. 'I don't doubt it, lassie! He'd be lucky to have a pal like you, that's for sure.' Willow produced a daisy chain from behind her back and looped it over one of the glass bottles. She gave Frank a wink before lolloping over to hide among the long grass again.

'Rise and shine, wee foxes!' called Frank. This time it was Ted who popped out of the den. 'Thank you so much, Frank!' said Ted. 'Oh, it looks like another lovely day.' 'You two staying inside again, then?' asked Frank. 'Nancy won't let me go anywhere,' whispered Ted, pointing towards the den. 'She's worried I'm going to get attacked or kidnapped or something.' Just then he spotted the daisy chain. 'Oh! Oh my goodness! How pretty,' said Ted, looping it over his wrist. 'You've got an admirer,' said Frank, nodding towards the long grass. 'Thank you!' whispered Ted as loud as he dared. 'Thank you so much!' The ears waggled. Just then Nancy crawled out of the den, grabbed a bottle and chugged it down. 'Got any coffee in this place?' she grunted. Frank glanced at Ted, and then at Willow, who was still hiding. 'Coffee, you say? Aye, I know just the place for coffee,' he said. 'Why don't you follow me?'

Nancy's ears perked up immediately. 'Result,' she said. 'Come on, Ted.' Frank swivelled his head around and gave a little cough. 'Ach, no, I'm afraid the wee laddie will have to stay put,' he said. 'He's too young to be allowed where we're going.' Ted's tail drooped a little. He'd been hoping for at least some adventure. But then he noticed that the bunny ears were moving up and down in excitement. He looked at Frank, who had a mischievous twinkle in his eye. 'You'll be all right, Ted, yeah?' said Nancy. 'Just stay put– I'll be back later. If I find out you've left the den, there'll be trouble…' 'Oh yes, that's FINE, Nance!' said Ted brightly. 'You go and get your coffee. Take as long as you need.' Frank gave Ted a wink and began to glide away from the den. Nancy scampered after him. When the coast was clear, Willow bounded out of the long grass. 'Hooray!' she said. 'NOW can you play?' Ted nodded, bouncing up and down. 'Yes, oh yes!'

Hey, guys, how are you doing? I've got to say, I like this Willow character. She seems FUN! And I'm excited about the tour. Do you think there'll be snacks? And a gift shop where I can buy a giant pencil? I do hope so. Anyway, back to the story, I suppose. Ted knew he was being a bit naughty, but no one had ever wanted to play with him before. He just had to make sure he got back to the den before Nancy. 'Why don't I give you a GRAND TOUR OF GRIMWOOD?' said Willow, clasping her paws together. 'That would be amazing!' said Ted.

'We'll start straight away,' said Willow, suddenly feeling very important. 'Grimwood was discovered a gazillion and a half years ago,' began Willow. 'Everything was in black and white, humans hadn't been invented and dinosaurs roamed the earth and had cars and bank accounts.' Ted scampered behind her. Willow's voice was loud and important-sounding, and she waved her paws around as she spoke, as if conducting an orchestra. She stood on top of a mound of earth and gestured towards a small pond. 'They say that this small pond is the oldest place in Grimwood,' said Willow. 'We call it… THE SMALL

POND.' Ted looked at the small pond, which was indeed a pond, and also quite small. The water was murky, and there was a collection of upside-down shopping trolleys in the middle. Sitting on top of the shopping trolleys was a duck. She looked absolutely furious. 'That's Ingrid,' whispered Willow. 'She doesn't like to be disturbed.' 'QUAAAAAACK!' quacked Ingrid angrily. 'How did she get hold of all those shopping trolleys?' asked Ted. 'We don't ask,' whispered Willow. 'But every few months there's another one. She takes the coins out of those little slots too, even the ones that are really jammed in. People say she's a millionaire.' 'What? You can't become a millionaire from stealing the coins out of shopping trolleys,' laughed Ted, a bit too loudly.