Sonya Cockle and the Terrifying Aardvark

Once upon a time there was a gentle girl called Sonya Cockle. She was on the way to see her Lauren Bond, when she decided to take a short cut through Yuckylake Woods.

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

Unexpectedly, she saw a terrifying aardvark dressed in a purple pinafore disappearing into the trees.

"How odd!" thought Sonya.

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

Eventually, Sonya reached a clearing. In the clearing were two houses, one made from peas and one made from biscuits.

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

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

Nobody replied.

Sonya 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 Sonya a fright. A witch jumped into the space in front of the houses. She was carrying a cage. In that cage was Terrance the Moose!

"Terrance the Moose!" shouted Sonya. She turned to the witch. "That's my toy!"

The witch just shrugged.

"Give Terrance the Moose back!" cried Sonya.

"Not on your nelly!" said the witch.

"At least let Terrance the Moose out of that cage!"

Before she could reply, the terrifying aardvark in the purple pinafore rushed in from a footpath on the other side of the cleaning.

"Hello Big Aardvark," said the witch.

"Good morning." The aardvark noticed Terrance the Moose. "Who is this?"

"That's Terrance the Moose," explained the witch.

"Ooh! Terrance the Moose would look lovely in my house. Give it to me!" demanded the aardvark.

The witch shook her head. "Terrance the Moose is staying with me."

"Um... Excuse me..." Sonya interrupted. "Terrance the Moose lives with me! And not in a cage!"

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

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

Sonya watched, feeling very worried. She didn't want the witch to give Terrance the Moose to Big Aardvark. She didn't think Terrance the Moose would like living with a terrifying aardvark, away from her house and all her other toys.

Big Aardvark put on his bib and withdraw a knife and fork from his pocket.

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

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

   And more.

      And more.

Eventually, Big Aardvark started to get bigger - just a little bit bigger at first. But after a few more fork-fulls of biscuits, 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 Aardvark.

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 Aardvark never finished eating the front door made from biscuits and Terrance the Moose remained trapped in the witch's cage.

"That's it," said the witch. "I win. I get to keep Terrance the Moose."

"Not so fast," said Sonya. "There is still one front door to go. The front door of the house made from peas. 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 aardvark. She won't last long."

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

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

Sonya 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 peas 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.

Sonya sat down on a nearby log.

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

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

When Sonya's food had digested, she broke off another piece of the door made from peas. 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, Sonya was down to the final piece of the door made from peas. Carefully, she toasted it and allowed it to cool just a little. She finished her final course. Sonya had eaten the entire front door of the house made from peas.

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 Terrance the Moose 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.

Sonya hurried over and grabbed Terrance the Moose, checking that her favourite toy was all right. Fortunately, Terrance the Moose was unharmed.

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

When Sonya got to Lauren's house, her threw her arms around her.

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

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

"What's that?" asked Lauren.

Sonya unwrapped a doorknob made from biscuits. "Pudding!" she said.

Lauren almost fell off her chair.

The End