3 The shadow

CHAPTER THREE The shadow Ted yelped as he was hoisted up by his tail. 'Put me down, put me DOWN!' he squealed. Whoever had grabbed Ted let go of him. He landed on the ground with a great big BONK, which made him go dizzy. He stood up cautiously while staring at the tall stranger. He could just about make out two very pointy ears, a snout and a big, bushy tail… 'You're a fox!' he gasped.

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The mysterious figure quickly stepped back further into the shadows. 'Tell me, lad,' said the voice, which was deep and smooth. 'Where are we?' Ted looked confused. 'Erm… Grimwood,' he said. 'Ah, yes, Grimwood! Just as I thought,' said the voice. 'Who are you?' asked Ted, feeling braver now that he hadn't been eaten. 'Who, me? Oh, nobody,' chuckled the voice. 'Now tell me. That large metal tower you have in… Grimwood. What is it, exactly?' 'Oh, well, that is the Magic Tower,' said Ted. 'In the Big City we would have just called it an electricity pylon. But the Magic Tower is kind of different. It's a bit broken, cos it's got loose cables hanging off it and it's always making a buzzing noise. And you definitely shouldn't chew on the electricity cables cos it's dangerous and you would totally die. Even though Pamela does. But then Pamela is also dangerous.' 'Pamela?' asked the mysterious stranger. 'Yeah, she's an eagle who lives at the top of the Magic Tower. Got a massive nest up there. She does a show on Radio Grimwood. Have you heard it?' 'I have not,' replied the voice. 'Oh, it's great,' said Ted. 'People call in and tell her their opinions about things, she tells them that they're wrong and then she plays a song. It's fun!'

'I'll tune in,' said the voice. 'So… this "Magic Tower". Gives off electricity, does it?' Ted scratched at his snout. 'I suppose so, yeah… It gives something off, all right. I think it makes the bunnies bouncier, and the squirrels treebonkier, and Grimwood smellier…' 'Hmm,' pondered the mysterious stranger. 'So, it gives off lots of electricity?' Ted nodded. 'Oh yes, I'd say so,' he replied. 'It's MEGA SUPER powerful.' 'How fascinating,' said the voice. 'I must take a look at it.' 'Oh, that'll be dead tricky!' said Ted. 'Pamela doesn't let any strangers near the Magic Tower.' 'Or what?' asked the voice. 'Er, well,' said Ted. 'Or she might bite your head off. She's done it a few times now. It's pretty brutal!' 'Goodness me.' 'Yeah! She's pretty scary if you don't know her,' said Ted. 'Actually, she's pretty scary even if you do know her.' 'I see.' Ted suddenly felt a bit nervous. Something about all this seemed a bit… odd. 'I suppose I'd better be going,' he mumbled. 'I'm not really allowed to talk to strangers. And my big sis will be wondering where I am.' 'Yes, of course. Quite right,' said the voice. 'Goodbye then, little fox.' 'Oh, but ARE you a big fox, then? Just quickly tell me, tell me, pleeeeease!' begged Ted. And he suddenly so desperately

wanted to see the stranger that he scrambled forwards, tripped over some tree roots and fell down again. When he looked up, the stranger had gone. Ted rubbed his eyes. Had he met a real-life grown-up fox? Had that really happened? 'Oh yes,' said Ginger Fiasco, the squirrel in Ted's rucksack. She had woken up and was eating a packet of Cheesy Snackos. 'That really happened, all right.' Suddenly, the sky went dark. There was a terrifyingly loud noise, like thunder, overhead. CHOP-CHOP-CHOP-CHOP! Ted and Ginger Fiasco covered their ears and scrunched their eyes shut as a great gust of wind blew over them.

Parp! Oh, not that kind of wind, sorry. The trees swayed violently, and grass and leaves flattened themselves to the earth. 'What… is… going… on?!' yelled Ted. CHOP-CHOP-CHOP-CHOP-chop-chop-ch… After a few seconds, the noise faded, the wind died down and the forest stopped shaking. Ted dusted himself down. 'Holy banana!' he said. 'I met another fox! An actual real- life fox!' And, with Ginger Fiasco safely nestled in his rucksack, Ted ran back to tell the others as fast as a greasy puma. Nancy and the rest of the Treebonk team had finished their practice session by the time Ted got back. Now they were doing squirrel yoga and drinking Crazyhorns Power Juice. 'What took you so long, bro?' barked Nancy. Ginger Fiasco crawled out of Ted's rucksack, still clutching her bag of Cheesy Snackos. 'You ain't gonna believe it,' she squeaked. And she was about to tell everyone what had happened when she fainted from eating too many Cheesy Snackos. 'I think I saw a fox!' Ted panted. 'A big one!' Nancy looked worried and grabbed him, examining his fur and checking his ears. 'Did it hurt you?' she asked. 'Cos if anything hurts you, I'm gonna dead it right up.'