Chapter 85 - A special honour!
"Welcome once again! Welcome one and all to our Mopple Gathering! And a special hallo to our special guests too - not only our good friends the Searchers, who've helped us so bravely to defeat this horrible Open Port Virus but other friends too: new to us all now but not for long!"
It was the same voice they'd heard before - gentle and calm, warm and friendly. Only then, they couldn't see who was speaking. Now they could - there he was, in his boat-shaped Mopple van: Old Hieronymus, the leader of the Mopples!
Old Hieronymus smiled round at all the Mopples gathered together. He reminded Dot of Father O'Malley, the priest at the Roman Catholic church her friend Jo went to. He had the same happy smile and the same friendliness - as if he enjoyed the work he did and loved the people he met while he was doing it.
"Yes some new friends indeed! Would you please all give a real Mopple welcome to Miss Dorothy.Com - Dot Com to all her friends - and to her very special friends, also new to us: Wizard the King Charles Cavalier Spaniel and Mr Mouse!"
Once again all the Mopples barked, meowed, neighed, howled, twittered and cheered - it was even louder than before!
Dot felt herself go hot and cold all over! So EMBARRASSING! But it was too late to do anything about it now. MUCH too late!! And what came next made her forget all about being embarrassed!
As she watched, a kind of red and gold shape started forming in front of Ron and Deirdre's van. It was like those big clouds you see on a summer evening when the sun's going down - one of those clouds which means that tomorrow's going to be a lovely sunny day.
"Ooh - lucky you!" said Deirdre. "What a treat! Old H. must be in a specially good mood!"
"But what.." went Wizzie, looking out through the windscreen at the cloud. "How..."
"Just you wait!" said Ron. "You'll see soon enough!"
Now the cloud started to take more of a shape - as if it had made its mind up to do something, like you and I do. Very slowly a picture started to show in its beautiful misty red and gold patterns. At first all Dot could see was that it was like a drawing of someone quite young - nearly her age in fact. Still very slowly, the picture went on coming through... it was a girl... about her age... wearing a T-shirt... she had glasses... and freckles - and her hair was in bunches. Could it be? Yes it was - it was a picture of -
"Dot! It's YOU!" said Wizzie excitedly. But all Dot could do was stare through the window of the Mopple van with her mouth open. WHAT was happening!!
Then the picture - now DEFINITELY her - spoke. It went:
"Wherever there is friendship - so shall you have it.
Wherever there is kindness - you shall receive it.
When you are down - we shall raise you up.
Now and forever - you are Mopple Companions!"
As the figure that was Dot and not Dot finished speaking, she waved and then smiled at her.
It was her voice - and yet it wasn't. It was her face - and yet it wasn't. It was her glasses, bunches, freckles, even her T-shirt - and yet it still wasn't. It was really WEIRD, Dot thought - like looking at yourself in the mirror only you know it's not you - but it looks EXACTLY like you.
The Dot picture in the red and gold cloudy mist was still smiling. It was funny but the smile didn't "freeze", like it always does when someone's fiddling about with a camera for too long when they're taking your picture - so you always seem to have your eyes closed or be doing a cheesy grin when you see the photograph! This smile went on and on but stayed as warm and friendly as it had been when the picture 'Dot' started.
"Well DONE!" said Ron, thumping Dot on the back so that she started to cough and her glasses nearly fell of, so she had to push them back up her nose. "What an honour! 'S not everyone gets it you know! And it's for the whole lot of you - Wiz and Mr Mouse too!"
"But what do I do now?" whispered Dot. It seemed like the whole Mopple world was waiting for an answer from her. Which, in fact, they were!
"Oh, right" said Ron. "Sorry! Forgot you didn't know! Just tap my screen here!"
For the first time Dot noticed that the 'Dot' picture was on Ron's screen too. In front of it though was a little window like an old-fashioned scroll. It had a little message on it in that scribbly writing which read "Touch here - if you do us the honour of accepting your Mopple Companionship"
"Go on love!" said Deirdre. "Everyone's waiting to get started!"
Get started? What did Deirdre mean? What was going to happen now? But Dot knew she couldn't wait a moment longer... and it was an honour to become a Mopple Companion - Ron had said so. And it was for Wiz and Mr Mouse too, after all!
So - very slowly, Dot reached out her finger to the screen... and tapped it!
JOIN US EVERY MONDAY FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER!
********************************* |
