Sharon Thornhill and the Four Hooting Giraffes

Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl called Sharon Thornhill. She was on the way to see her Tom Clifford, when she decided to take a short cut through Hampstead Heath.

It wasn't long before Sharon got lost. She looked around, but all she could see were trees. Nervously, she felt into her bag for her favourite toy, Little Mouse, but Little Mouse was nowhere to be found! Sharon began to panic. She felt sure she had packed Little Mouse. To make matters worse, she was starting to feel hungry.

Unexpectedly, she saw a hooting giraffe dressed in a pink t-shirt disappearing into the trees.

"How odd!" thought Sharon.

For the want of anything better to do, she decided to follow the peculiarly dressed giraffe. Perhaps it could tell him the way out of the forest.

Eventually, Sharon reached a clearing. She found herself surrounded by houses made from different sorts of food. There was a house made from onions, a house made from doughnuts, a house made from jelly babies, a house made from macarons and a house made from pizzas.

Sharon could feel her tummy rumbling. Looking at the houses did nothing to ease her hunger.

"Hello!" she called. "Is anybody there?"

Nobody replied.

Sharon looked at the roof on the closest house and wondered if it would be rude to eat somebody else's chimney. Obviously it would be impolite to eat a whole house, but perhaps it would be considered acceptable to nibble the odd fixture or lick the odd fitting, in a time of need.

A cackle broke through the air, giving Sharon a fright. A witch jumped into the space in front of the houses. She was carrying a cage. In that cage was Little Mouse!

"Little Mouse!" shouted Sharon. She turned to the witch. "That's my toy!"

The witch just shrugged.

"Give Little Mouse back!" cried Sharon.

"Not on your nelly!" said the witch.

"At least let Little Mouse out of that cage!"

Before she could reply, four hooting giraffes rushed in from a footpath on the other side of the clearing. Sharon recognised the one in the pink t-shirt that she'd seen earlier. The witch seemed to recognise him too.

"Hello Big Giraffe," said the witch.

"Good morning." The giraffe noticed Little Mouse. "Who is this?"

"That's Little Mouse," explained the witch.

"Ooh! Little Mouse would look lovely in my house. Give it to me!" demanded the giraffe.

The witch shook her head. "Little Mouse is staying with me."

"Um... Excuse me..." Sharon interrupted. "Little Mouse lives with me! And not in a cage!"

Big Giraffe ignored her. "Is there nothing you'll trade?" he asked the witch.

The witch thought for a moment, then said, "I do like to be entertained. I'll release him to anybody who can eat a whole front door."

Big Giraffe looked at the house made from pizzas and said, "No problem, I could eat an entire house made from pizzas if I wanted to."

"That's nothing," said the next giraffe. "I could eat two houses."

"There's no need to show off," said the witch. Just eat one front door and I'll let you have Little Mouse."

Sharon watched, feeling very worried. She didn't want the witch to give Little Mouse to Big Giraffe. She didn't think Little Mouse would like living with a hooting giraffe, away from her house and all her other toys.

The other three giraffes watched while Big Giraffe put on his bib and withdrew a knife and fork from his pocket.

"I'll eat this whole house," said Big Giraffe. "Just you watch!"

Big Giraffe pulled off a corner of the front door of the house made from doughnuts. He gulped it down smiling, and went back for more.

   And more.

      And more.

Eventually, Big Giraffe started to get bigger - just a little bit bigger at first. But after a few more fork-fulls of doughnuts, he grew to the size of a large snowball - and he was every bit as round.

"Erm... I don't feel too good," said Big Giraffe.

Suddenly, he started to roll. He'd grown so round that he could no longer balance!

"Help!" he cried, as he rolled off down a slope into the forest.

Big Giraffe never finished eating the front door made from doughnuts and Little Mouse remained trapped in the witch's cage.

Average Giraffe stepped up, and approached the house made from jelly babies.

"I'll eat this whole house," said Average Giraffe. "Just you watch!"

Average Giraffe pulled off a corner of the front door of the house made from jelly babies. She gulped it down smiling, and went back for more.

   And more.

      And more.

After a while, Average Giraffe started to look a little queasy. She grew greener...

   ...and greener.

A woodcutter walked into the clearing. "What's this bush doing here?" he asked.

"I'm not a bush, I'm a giraffe!" said Average Giraffe.

"It talks!" exclaimed the woodcutter. "Those talking bushes are the worst kind. I'd better take it away before somebody gets hurt."

"No! Wait!" cried Average Giraffe, as the woodcutter picked her up. But the woodcutter ignored her cries and carried the giraffe away under his arm.

Average Giraffe never finished eating the front door made from jelly babies and Little Mouse remained trapped in the witch's cage.

Little Giraffe stepped up, and approached the house made from macarons.

"I'll eat this whole house," said Little Giraffe. "Just you watch!"

Little Giraffe pulled off a corner of the front door of the house made from macarons. He gulped it down smiling, and went back for more.

   And more.

      And more.

After five or six platefuls, Little Giraffe started to fidget uncomfortably on the spot.

He stopped eating macarons for a moment, then grabbed another forkful.

But before he could eat it, there came an almighty roar. A bottom burp louder than a rocket taking off, propelled Little Giraffe into the sky.

"Aggghhhhhh!" cried Little Giraffe. "I'm scared of heigh..."

Little Giraffe was never seen again.

Little Giraffe never finished eating the front door made from macarons and Little Mouse remained trapped in the witch's cage.

Tiny Giraffe stepped up, and approached the house made from pizzas.

"I'll eat this whole house," said Tiny Giraffe. "Just you watch!"

Tiny Giraffe pulled off a corner of the front door of the house made from pizzas. She gulped it down smiling, and went back for more.

   And more.

      And more.

However, on the next mouthful, the food fell straight out of Tiny Giraffe's mouth. She tried to stuff in another forkful of pizzas, but once again, the food fell out. There just wasn't enough room left in her belly.

"This is just not fair!" declared Tiny Giraffe, and stomped off into the forest.

Tiny Giraffe never finished eating the front door made from pizzas and Little Mouse remained trapped in the witch's cage.

"That's it," said the witch. "I win. I get to keep Little Mouse."

"Not so fast," said Sharon. "There is still one front door to go. The front door of the house made from onions. And I haven't had a turn yet.

"I don't have to give you a turn!" laughed the witch. "My game. My rules."

The woodcutter's voice carried through the forest. "I think you should give her a chance. It's only fair."

"Fine," said the witch. "But you saw what happened to the giraffes. She won't last long."

"I'll be right back," said Sharon.

"What?" said the witch. "Where's your sense of impatience? I thought you wanted Little Mouse back."

Sharon ignored the witch and gathered a hefty pile of sticks. She came back to the clearing and started a small camp fire. Carefully, she broke off a piece of the door of the house made from onions and toasted it over the fire. Once it had cooked and cooled just a little, she took a bite. She quickly devoured the whole piece.

Sharon sat down on a nearby log.

"You fail!" cackled the witch. "You were supposed to eat the whole door."

"I haven't finished," explained Sharon. "I am just waiting for my food to go down."

When Sharon's food had digested, she broke off another piece of the door made from onions. Once more, she toasted her food over the fire and waited for it to cool just a little. She ate it at a leisurely pace then waited for it to digest.

Eventually, after several sittings, Sharon was down to the final piece of the door made from onions. Carefully, she toasted it and allowed it to cool just a little. She finished her final course. Sharon had eaten the entire front door of the house made from onions.

The witch stamped her foot angrily. "You must have tricked me!" she said. "I don't reward cheating!"

"I don't think so!" said a voice. It was the woodcutter. He walked back into the clearing, carrying his axe. "This little girl won fair and square. Now hand over Little Mouse or I will chop your broomstick in half."

The witch looked horrified. She grabbed her broomstick and placed it behind her. Then, huffing, she opened the door of the cage.

Sharon hurried over and grabbed Little Mouse, checking that her favourite toy was all right. Fortunately, Little Mouse was unharmed.

Sharon thanked the woodcutter, grabbed a quick souvenir, and hurried on to meet Tom. It was starting to get dark.

When Sharon got to Tom's house, her threw his arms around her.

"I was so worried!" cried Tom. "You are very late."

As Sharon described her day, she could tell that Tom didn't believe her. So she grabbed a napkin from her pocket.

"What's that?" asked Tom.

Sharon unwrapped a doorknob made from doughnuts. "Pudding!" she said.

Tom almost fell off his chair.

The End