…how an ordinary schoolgirl became an

INTERNET VOYAGER!

"Oh I know what I was going to ask ya" said Mr Mouse, taking another big slurp of his Mopple ColaFizz. "What in the name of the Net does "Zibble" mean?"

Dot smiled down at her friend. It was so nice to be back together with him and Adrienne again. It seemed like ages they'd been apart!

"Oh" she said "It's the only word that Callum knows. It just means yes!"

"Well - zat was a vairy big YES from our leader" smiled Adrienne, looking up at Dot with her little red-squirrelly ears twitching in amusement. "Eet is vairy, 'ow do you say, unusual for a squidglet to be given Permission to Remain!"

"Or even Remission to Pertain, yo!" went Mr Mouse.

Dot went pink again. That had been SO embarrassing! And just TRUST Mr Mouse to bring it up! Still -what a party this was!

Everywhere she looked, she could see Mopples laughing, talking, dancing and just having a good time - with shiny silver trays of delicious drinks and eats flying round the huge space of Mopple Towers, carried along on little white wings. The fluffy little wings fluttered on the edge of the trays, just like the ones that had come out of the side of Old Hieronymus' Moppletop when he'd created Mopple Towers.

Everything had gone right really quickly after Callum had hopped out of her hand and onto the Old Hieronymus' lap. She'd been SO scared he'd be really cross!!

But no! Straight after the Mopple Leader had said "Zibble!" - "Yes!" - he'd looked down at Dot from his throne and given her a big grin - which was SUCH a relief after all that time he'd just been staring at them all without moving. Then he'd said, in his deep warm voice: "Well - I think you're right! If our squidglet here is a Turner - which means he's not going to try to go back to being a blackdown and give everyone on the Internet a lot of trouble - he really could help us know when those horrible virus storms are coming! Just like you said - he can sense them in a way we just can't. We should give it a try - so, "Zibble's" the word!" He looked down at the furry little creature who was still sitting in his lap, gazing up at the Mopple leader with his big green eyes. "Prrrp - Zibble!" he went.

Old Hieronymus laughed and gave Dot a pat on her shoulder. "I think we should get on with the Gathering, don't you?" he said. "We've all worked hard and we deserve a party! But first - I have to ask all my good Mopple friends whether they agree with my decision about our little squidglet friend here. Got to take a vote, you know!"

He opened up his moppletop - the light from the screen on the sparkling white computer glowed on his jolly red face - and, so quickly that his hands seemed to blur, typed in a message. Then he hit 'Enter'.

"There!" said Old Hieronymus. "Now we'll see!" He waved his hand towards the Mopples and Searchers, all spread out down the steps below him in the huge space of Mopple Towers. Though everything seemed all right now with Old Hieronymus, none of the Mopples had got out yet. Dot gave a Wiz a scratch behind his ears. She didn't want to show it, but she still felt nervous. What if they voted no?

Deirdre seemed to know what she was thinking. "Don't you worry dear!" she whispered. "They're a good crowd! And they trust me 'n Ron - and of they trust us, they'll trust you too! You'll see!"

"No worries!" growled Ron. "Word's got round about you, we all know you're a straight one - and anyway you're a Mopple Companion now, aren't ya? One of us, really!"

"Now then" said Old Hieronymus. "Let us see what the Will of the Gathering will be!" He nodded at Dot. "Just watch the front of each van, my dear."

Dot peered down at the hundreds and hundreds of Mopple vans lined up in front of the wide steps that led up to the Mopple leader's throne. Nothing seemed to be happening. Then, with a little jump, she picked out Adrienne's Search Engine - the little red steam train gleaming in the gloom, its shiny wheels making it stand out from all the other crazy shapes all round it. It was quite a long way away, but though the lights in Mopple Towers were still off and the steel shutters were still in pace between the arches that rose high above them, she thought she could just see Adrienne's little squirrel face peering out at her. But it was too far away for her to see Mr Mouse.

Then her heart jumped again - because on the front of the steam train a little blue light suddenly flashed and went out.

"Ah!" said Old Hieronymus. "One Yes - or "Zibble" as our little friend would say! Now we'll see!"

Next a blue light on the front of an engine shaped like an old-fashioned aeroplane gleamed out - then three in a row from three vans very like Ron and Deirdre's - then, suddenly, blue lights were sparkling everywhere among the Mopples all gathered together in the Great Hall of Mopple Towers.

It was hard to look at, it was so bright! Dot turned to Old Hieronymus. "But how do you keep up so you know what the vote is, if you - " she began.

Without a word, Old Hieronymus waved at the towers behind him. Dot looked and gasped. It was like they were coming to life - the carvings of all the animals on them moving like real birds, dogs, deer, cats and elephants. And every time a blue light flashed, the towers became more and more brightly coloured too - not just with the colours of the fur and feathers of all the animals, bit with a strange kind of shimmering golden sparkle too.

"They're not just for decoration you know!" smiled Old Hieronymus. "They're counting the vote too. It's nearly over now!"

And it was. As Dot looked back at the search engines again, the last little blue light flashed - and then the Great Hall was dark again.

"Mmmm!" said Old Hieronymus. "A good voting indeed!"

He clicked his Moppletop open and, just like the first time Dot had seen him with it, flipped the computer up into the air. Out came the little white fluffy wings, and flew the computer upwards towards the eight towers.

"Counting please" said Old Hieronymus quietly.

The Moppletop dipped as if saying "OK!", and flew along the eight towers to the first one, away to Dot's left. It stopped by the tower and a little gleam of light came out it which slowly moved towards the colourful animal carvings still moving on the tower's surface.

As the light touched, all the movement stopped, and the animals were carvings once again - but now with all their colours back again.

"Onward!" said Old Hieronymus quietly.

The moppletop dipped again, then flew sideways to the next tower. Once against the white pencil of light came out and touched the tower. Once again the animal carvings stopped moving.

And so it went on all the way along the towers, till it came to the eighth. But then, something changed. The little pencil of light couldn't make contact with the tower. It tried and tried but it just couldn't touch it - there was always a gap - sometimes big, sometimes small, but always a gap.

"What's the matter with it?" asked Wiz.

Old Hieronymus shook his head. His face looked grim again.

"Bad news I'm afraid" he said. "SOMEONE hasn't voted - and unless everyone votes, Callum can't stay!"

It wasn't over yet then - but it soon would be! So SILLY, really, what happened!