F luffpup Appears Coby was still quite a young boy when Mum made him . a long-eared dog out of wool with It didn’t turn out exactly how Mum wanted it to be. It looked more like a fluffy ball of wool than a dog. Fluffpup was not terribly good-looking. He had a bit of an odd shape and, to top was bigger it all, than the other , but Coby didn’t mind a bit. There was no doubt that it was friendship a t first s i g h t. If Coby went with Mum to the shops, Fluffpup would go with them. When Coby slept over at Gran’s, Fluffpup spent the night
button eyes
one ear
5
there, too. Once Coby had to go to hospital for a few days, and Fluffpup was by his side there as well. When Coby started school at the age of seven, he refused to go without Fluffpup. In the end Mum gave in and allowed him to pack the dog in his school bag next to the books and the snack for the break. Fluffpup was very proud to be going to a real school. He sat through the lessons without making the slightest noise or moving at all. He was so quiet, rang and nobody noticed him. But when the the teacher, Miss Marley, went out of the classroom, he was a different dog. Fluffpup changed completely. The quiet, good, clever dog he had been until then turned into a loud, naughty, bouncy hound. All he could think about in the break was mischief. Once, for instance, he gobbled up a boy’s elevenses without asking. Another time he kept pulling a classmate’s clothes and he even scratched another child’s hand. And on one occasion someone said he tried to bite them.
bell
6
Fluffpup knew well that one day he would be caught and there would be no more larking and rough stuff, no more eating the morning snacks and no more school even. And so he kept so still and so quiet in class that no one would notice him or know that he was even there. “Someone’s torn my coat!” a girl cried. “Someone’s had a bite of my sandwich!” complained another. It wasn’t long before the stories of the many troubles in the class reached the teacher’s ears.
Coby… o t d e t in o p s All the sign In one of the breaks Miss Marley had a word with him. “You know you mustn’t eat anyone else’s elevenses, don’t you?” Coby nodded. “I’m sure you also know that you mustn’t pull the other children’s clothes.” “Yes, Miss,” Coby whispered.
7
“And I don’t think I need to tell you that scratching and biting is not allowed in school…” Of course, the teacher was right. Coby knew very well that he mustn’t eat someone else’s snack, that it wasn’t right to pull anyone’s clothes, and he shouldn’t scratch or bite the other children. Coby knew all this but Fluffpup didn’t. He was simply too playful, and sometimes did things that were not right. One day Coby told Miss Marley the truth about Fluffpup. That the dog was his best friend and went everywhere with him and sometimes he didn’t behave well, but really he was a lovely creature with a “Here he is,” Coby said, proudly showing Fluffpup to the teacher. Miss Marley adjusted her glasses and sighed deeply. little dog is a “You mean to say that this scratching, biting, horrible hound that eats snacks, tears clothes and doesn’t have the slightest idea how to behave well?”
heart of gold…
sweet
8
Coby felt ill at ease, smiled weakly and shrugged his shoulders. “Err… sometimes.” “He is very nice, but this is only a toy dog,” the teacher said at last. Of course, she didn’t believe a word Coby had said. So it was not Fluffpup but Coby she punished for scratching, biting and eating other children’s snacks. Coby, poor boy, had to stand in the corner almost every day because of some mischief Fluffpup had got up to. While Coby stood in the corner, Fluffpup had a great time. He would sit on Coby’s chair so he could hear the teacher, but in a way that nobody could see him. He really did love going to school. His favourite lesson was maths, but he also liked writing and PE. Every morning he jumped excitedly into Coby’s bag and could hardly wait for the lessons to start. It was just his behaviour… which left something to be desired. Miss Marley, who was well-known for being patient and extremely calm, had enough of all the
9
naughtiness and being told every time that “Fluffpup did it”. So she wrote a message in fancy to his parents in his report book. This made Coby very, very sad. He didn’t want to go to school ever again. He looked at the beautifully written telling off and sighed. Fluffpup moaned in his lap feeling sorry for his friend. The two of them sat there in the empty classroom after the lessons, staring at the message and
curly let-
ters
s i g h i n g.
They sighed so much over the telling off that the message could stand it no longer and caught
10
hold of a sigh, which rose up to the ceiling, and when a breeze ruffled the curtain, it flew out of the window. There a gust of wind picked it up and carried it far, far away. Coby looked for it everywhere but couldn’t find it. The message was gone. It had simply flown away and all that was left was a gaping hole in the page. Coby was worried that his marks, stars for good work and “well dones” – if he had any – might escape through the hole too… Poor Coby went home as miserable as could be. There was no choice. He had to say somethi to Mum. He had to explain that he had got a telling off but he hadn’t, that there had been a message in his book but now there wasn’t. Mum listened to what had happened and wasn’t in the least surprised. This wasn’t the first time she had heard that it was Fluffpup’s fault when there was trouble. “So it was because of Fluffpup?” she asked feeling disappointed. “Pretty much so,” nodded Coby.
ng
11
Mum picke d up Fluffpup, looked at him for a moment and then turned to Coby. “What do you think we should do? Shall we punish Fluffpup? Or do you think we should talk to him to make him see sense?” she asked. “Perhaps that would help.” “I don’t think so,” snapped Coby. “I’ve tried already.” “I don’t think Fluffpup is having a good effect on you,” Mum said drawing a deep breath. “Maybe we should put him away for a while.” “But where do you want to put him? Fluffpup is my friend. You can’t just put him somewhere!” mout s ’ by Co
h turned down at the co rne rs .
“I think the time has come for you to play with something else, something more serious which will have a good effect on you.” So Fluffpup was put on top of the cupboard, next to the large globe of the world, where the old, unused and forgotten toys lived.
12
For a long time Coby stood in front of the cupboard without saying a word and looked at Fluffpup, slumped and lonely, half leaning against the globe on top of the cupboard, staring ahead blankly. “I’m going to rescue him!” Coby said to himself. However, it seemed Mum could read his thoughts. “Fluffpup will stay there until you pull yourself together. You’re not a baby anymore. Now the most important thing is not playing but doing your schoolwork. The other children are doing their homework now. We’ll have something to eat and then you must get your books out, too,” Mum said, stroking Coby’s head to encourage him. “Come on. Fluffpup’s not the type to get bored on top of the cupboard. And when you’re doing better in school, you will get your friend back.”
Don’t be sad.
14
Contents Fluffpup Appears 5 Bunny in the Exercise Book 15 Fluffpup Is Captured
25
The Bathroom Court 32 The Dream 40 Has Anybody Got Time? 51 The Pastry Pixie 59 The Lies Blob 72 The Drawn Princess 82