The Enchanted Wood

by Enid Blyton

  XXIX

  SAFE BACK HOME AGAIN— AND GOODBYE!

  The party went on and on. The game of Musical Chairs was fun, for instead of somebody taking away a chair each time, the end chair took itself away, walked neatly off, and stood watching. I

  Silky won that game. She was so quick and light on her feet. A big box of chocolates came flying down through the air to her, when she sat down on the very last chair and pushed Moon-Face away! She was delighted.

  "Let’s all have one!" she said, and undid the box at once. Whilst they were eating they saw a most astonishing sight.

  "Look!" said Moon-Face, almost swallowing his chocolate in astonishment. "What’s this coming?"

  Everyone looked. It seemed like a lot of little brightly coloured men, running very upright. What do you suppose they were?

  "Crackers!" shouted Watzisname, jumping off his seat in delight. “Crackers—-running to us—ready to be pulled!"

  Really, those crackers were the greatest fun! They ran about on tiny legs, dodging away, trying not to be caught! Everyone ran after them, laughing and shouting. One by one the gay crackers were captured, and then they were pulled. My goodness, what glorious things there were inside!

  "I’ve got a golliwog brooch!" cried Fanny, pinning it on herself.

  "I want one too," said her doll.

  "Well, you must catch a cracker then, Peronel," said Fanny, and how she laughed to see her doll running about after a red cracker! Peronel caught one at last and brought it back to Fanny. Inside there was a teddy-bear brooch, which Peronel was simply delighted with!

  Jo found a silver whistle in his cracker. It whistled like a blackbird. Jo was very proud of it. Moon-Face found a squeaker that squeaked like a cat mewing, and made the Old Saucepan Man go hunting for cats all the time! Naughty Moon-Face! He pressed his squeaker behind the Saucepan Man and laughed till he cried to hear him calling, "Puss! Puss! Puss!" and looking under tables and chairs.

  Silky’s clock wanted a cracker too. So it ran after one, and trod on one to catch it. It held it with its foot and pulled it with Silky. What do you suppose was in it? A tiny tin of polish with a duster wrapped round it!

  "Just the thing to clean you with!" said Silky in delight. The clock was very pleased. It struck twenty-two times without stopping, much to the walking doll’s astonishment.

  They played hide-and-seek, and immediately the most exciting bushes and trees sprang up everywhere to hide behind. Really, the Birthday Land was the most exciting country to be in!

  Then they played "Here we come gathering nuts and may," and two big nut trees grew behind them full of nuts, and a long hedge white with sweet-scented may. It made the game seem very real.

  When they played "Here we go round the mulberry bush," a big mulberry tree grew up as they danced, and the children gave a shriek of delight and picked the ripe red mulberries to eat. You never knew what was going to happen next, but you might be sure it was something exciting!

  Then they thought they would have races—and, hey presto! they saw a crowd of small motor-cars running up, all ready to be raced! In got everyone, choosing the car they liked best. There was even a tiny one for Peronel the doll, and an extra one for Silky’s clock, who joined in the fun and ding-donged merrily all the time.

  The Old Saucepan Man won the race, though he dropped a few saucepans on the way. Moon-Face handed him a box of sweets that had appeared for the winner.

  "You’ve won!" he said.

  "Run?" said the Saucepan Man. "All right, I’ll run!" And he ran and ran, just to show how fast he could run when he wanted to. What a noise he made, with his kettles and saucepans clattering all round him!

  "Supper-time, supper-time!" shouted Moon-Face suddenly, and he pointed to a lovely sight. About a hundred toadstools had suddenly grown up, and appearing on them were jugs of all kinds of delicious drinks, and cakes and jellies and fruit. Smaller toadstools grew beside the big ones.

  "They are for seats!" cried Silky, sitting down on one and helping herself to some acornade. "I’m hungry! Come on, Everyone !"

  Bessie flew down from the air. She did so love flying. Fanny ran up with her doll, who followed her everywhere, talking in her little high voice. Jo galloped up on his pony. Everyone was very happy. .

  It began to get dark, but nobody minded, because big lanterns suddenly shone out everywhere in the trees and bushes. As they sat and ate, there came a loud bang-bang-bang! Peronel cuddled up to Fanny, frightened. Silky’s clock tried to get on to Silky`s knee, scared, but she pushed it off.

  "What’s that?" said Jo, patting his frightened pony.

  "Fireworks! Fireworks !" shouted the Angry Pixie in delight. "Look! Look!"

  And there, in front of them, were the fireworks, setting themselves off beautifully. Rockets flew high and sizzled down in coloured stars. Catherine-wheels whizzed round and round. Squibs jumped and banged. Golden feathers poured down like fountains. Really, it was glorious to watch!

  "This is the loveliest birthday party I’ve ever heard of," said Bessie happily, flapping her big wings, as she sat and watched the fireworks. "Lovely things to eat—wishes that come true—most exciting games—glorious crackers—and now fireworks!"

  "We have to go home at midnight," said Moon-Face, pushing away Silky’s clock, which was trying to sit on his toadstool with him.

  "How shall we know when it’s midnight?" asked Fanny, thinking that really it was quite time her doll went to bed.

  They knew all right—because when midnight came Silky’ s clock stood up straight and struck loudly, twelve times-Dong-dong-dong-dong- dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong!

  "To the ladder! To the ladder!" cried Moon-Face, hurrying Everyone there. "The Birthday Land will soon be on the move !"

  The ladder was there. Everyone climbed down it and called goodbye. The brownies took cushions and slid off down the slippery-slip. Mister Whiskers got his beard caught round the legs of Moon-Face’s sofa and nearly took that with him down the slide. Moon-Face just stopped it in time, and unwound his beard.

  "What about my pony?" asked Jo anxiously. "Do you suppose he will mind sliding down, Moon-Face?"

  "Well, he can’t climb down the tree, and he certainly wouldn’t like going down in the washing-basket," said Moon-Face. So they sat the surprised pony on a cushion and he slid down in the greatest astonishment, wondering what in the world was happening to him!

  Fanny slid down with her sleepy doll on her knee. Bessie carefully took off her wings and folded them up. She didn’t mean to have them spoilt. She wanted to use them every day. She was very proud of them.

  The pony arrived on the cushion of moss quite safely. Jo mounted him. It was dark in the wood, but the moon was just rising, and they would be able to see their way home quite well.

  "Goodbye!" called Moon-Face from the top of the tree. "We’ve had a lovely time!"

  "Goodbye!" called Silky. "Ding-dong!" said her clock sleepily.

  "Take care of yourselves!" shouted Watzisname. Moon-Face pressed his squeaker loudly, and then giggled to hear the Saucepan Man call, "Puss, Puss, Puss! Wherever is that cat!"

  Slishy-sloshy-slishy-sloshy! Good gracious, was Dame Washalot doing washing already? Jo dodged away on his pony and the girls ran from the tree. Mister Whiskers got the water all over him, for he was standing nearby, and he was most disgusted.

  "Come on, girls!" said Jo, laughing. "We, really must go home! We shall never wake up in the morning!"

  So they went home once more, through the Enchanted Wood, with the moon shining pale and cold between the trees.

  "Wisha-wisha-wisha!" whispered the leaves.

  Jo put his pony into the field outside the cottage. Fanny undressed Peronel and put her into her dolls’ bed. Bessie put her wings carefully into a drawer. They all undressed and got sleepily into bed.

  "Goodnight!" they said. "What a lovely day it’s been. We are lucky to live near the Enchanted Wood!"

  They were, weren’t they? Perhaps they will have
more adventures one day; but now we must say goodbye to them, and leave them fast asleep, dreaming of the Land of Birthdays, and all the lovely things that happened there!

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