Chapter 7

Trouble in Trickletown

Chapter 7 It's the Talking Teapot!

“To find the Talking Teapot you must consult the Trickletown Time Model displayed in Blue Street Town Hall.” That’s what the Orange Envelope had said.
“You must find the Talking Teapot and together visit the Knick-Knack Tree. Here Knicky-Knacky will help you and explain what must be done.”

Hidden within the innermost chambers of Blue Street Town Hall was one of Trickletown’s greatest treasures: ‘The Trickletown Time Model. The model was so much more than just a means of finding your way around Trickletown Valleys’ Crater. It was three dimensional in shape and it could demonstrate different time zones; looking with exceptional detail into the past, the present and the future. It tracked every living thing in Trickletown Valley’s Crater and would indicate to others where you were if you ever got lost in time.

When the Fuddles first arrived here, the Crater was a dangerous place. The Mists of Time were battling to take control, and when the Fuddles entered the Mists they were often never seen again. There was no map or model to help them, so after much deliberation the Trickletown Committee decided to do something about it. They ordered a large amount of Replicating Clay and set about making the Trickletown Time Model.
Work was soon under way, creating every house, tree, stream and landmark. Finally, the model was complete and became the living, beating heart of Trickletown.

‘I wish to find the Talking Teapot,’ he typed. Willey pressed the confirmation button and eagerly looked towards the model for a reply.

By this time, the innermost chambers of Blue Street Town Hall and the Trickletown Time Model had virtually been forgotten – the ‘memory-loss’ spray had done its work and as Willey approached the Time Model there were no Fuddles to be seen. Willey walked up and stood on a green, glowing platform and placed his fingers in the slot provided. The model even had its own voice, soft and reassuring: “Welcome Willey, my records tell me that this is your first official visit to the Time Model; would you like any help?”
The control panel flashed to attract his attention.
“Umm, no thank you,” replied Willey after reading the instructions in front of him, which simply said “ENTER REQUEST”.
Taking care to spell each word correctly, Willey did just that:
I wish to find the Talking Teapot, he typed.
Willey pressed the confirmation button and eagerly looked towards the model for a reply. The model was alive. Willey could see the shadowy figures of Fuddles moving in front of him. Even a line of clouds drifted over the model’s position.
A green light blinked in the centre of the Time Model, inside the ring of oak trees at the centre of The Gambit. Willey looked puzzled. He repeated his request again, just in case he had made a mistake, but the green light blinked in exactly the same position. Willey studied the information on the screen in front of him and then realised to his surprise that the location of the Talking Teapot had been requested earlier by none other than Mr Phil Dug’It!
The soft, reassuring voice spoke again: “Your request has been successfully completed. Do you have any questions?”
“No thanks,” said Willey, tapping the screen where it said ”TOUCH TO EXIT”. He was now in such a hurry to leave that he was half-way down the corridor when he heard the voice again. “Please follow the exit signs and close the door on your way out. Thank you.”

Once outside, Willey wasted no time in returning to The Gambit and arrived very quickly, thanks to the speed of his solar-powered street bike.
When Willey reached the spot of the Talking Teapot’s location, he found a large crowd gathering. To his dismay Phil Dug’It had beaten him to it and there were already several deep holes around the area – Phil Dug’It was the centre of attention, and causing quite a commotion.
Ignoring everyone, Phil continued to dig, until finally …
CLUNK!
All the bickering stopped. Something was definitely there, and it was not very long before everyone realised what it was!
“It’s the Talking Teapot!” everyone said together.
This was not a welcome discovery. The appearance of the Talking Teapot jogged the Fuddles’ memories and they began to remember the story the nasty Mr What’Nott had told them – that the Talking Teapot was to blame for the disappearance of The Million Wiggle Fish Pond.
But the Talking Teapot was innocent; it was the Mists of Time who were causing trouble. Mr What’Nott had lied about everything, and his ‘made-up story’ went something like this …

“It happened on a dark and stormy night when a mischievous comet called Climaticus was circling the Earth. The Mysterious Mists of Time were swirling around and the Talking Teapot was helping me secure the Million Wiggle Fish Pond beneath The Gambit. I was just about to secure the Key in place with the Emerald Ring when suddenly, and without warning, the Talking Teapot stole the Hour Glass Key and snatched the Emerald Ring from my fingers. He then ran away with them both into the Mists of Time. The Rainbow Fish followed, as it of course was their duty to protect the Hour Glass Key, but they never returned.”

From that day onwards, the Million Wiggle Fish Pond, the Hour Glass Key, and the Talking Teapot were never seen or spoken about again.

Mr Dug’It, whether he intended to or not, disappeared head first into the hole, leaving a pair of wobbly legs for all to see …
“HELP! Get me out of here – I’ve got it!” cried a muffled voice, deep in the bottom of the hole.
Taking control of the situation, the Mayor of Trickletown, Lord William Watch’Over, shooed everyone away from the hole. Pointing to the Cubonyento Brothers, who were big and strong, he bellowed, “When I count down from THREE I want you to pull him up and out of there!”
They did as they were asked and bent over to grab what they could of Mr Dug’It.
“THREE! TWO! ONE!” shouted everyone. “PULL!”
They knew the Cubonyento Brothers were strong, but not this strong! Mr Dug’It was catapulted into the air from the hole and flew right out of his trousers! He was caught by the crowd – but the Talking Teapot soared high up to the edge of the atmosphere and then began to fall!
“Catch it!” everyone cried.
The Cubonyento Brothers held out Mr Dug’It’s trousers – on which it bounced – and when the Talking Teapot eventually landed, it fell into Lord William Watch’Over’s arms!
The Mayor stood very still, not daring to move but nothing happened, so he lifted the Teapot’s lid and looked inside … then he peered down the Teapot’s spout for signs of a blockage … and then he waited for any sign of life ... there was still nothing happening, so he tapped the Teapot’s body.
“Perhaps he’s dead!” shouted someone from the crowd.

The Mayor was just about to tap the Teapot again when … suddenly … a pair of eyes opened on the Teapot’s body, making everyone jump. The Teapot fell to the ground and bounced, but before it could bounce again, two teapot-sized arms and legs sprang out from the Teapot’s body and it started to run!
It dived between legs and it ran over shoulders. It was chased into Key Stone Cottage and out the other side, over the large Granite Key Stone and down a shallow stream. By the time it had reached the edge of Inner Street, there was nobody left standing to chase it. The last of those brave enough to try was Phil Dug’It and he ended up sitting in the stream, wearing just a pair of spotty green underpants.
The Talking Teapot was gone and Willey needed to go after it. He was getting back on his bike when his best mate Eddy Dug’It whizzed past him, riding his own metallic green street bike.
“We have to go after the Teapot, Willey!” shouted Eddy.“ I knew my dad was up to something – he never goes out in such a hurry unless he has something to dig up!”

CLUNK!
All the bickering stopped. Something was definitely there, and Willey had a pretty good idea what it was!
“It’s the Talking Teapot!” everyone said together.

Mr Dug’It was catapulted into the air from the hole and flew right out of his trousers! The Talking Teapot soared high up to the edge of the atmosphere and then it began to fall.

The Teapot fell to the ground and bounced, but before it could bounce again, two teapot-sized arms and legs sprang out from the Teapot’s body and it started to run!

The Talking Teapot’s trail led up the Emerald Pathway to the Emerald Forest; the forgotten home of the Knick-Knack Tree. The Pathway was not easy to follow – it was littered with fallen trees and rocks in an attempt to stop anyone from following it – but this made the ride even more exciting as the boys continued their race to the edge of the Mist. There was very little sign of the Teapot – only the occasional footprint to let them know they were on the right track.
The light was beginning to fade and although the boys were keen to find the Talking Teapot, the Mysterious Mists of Time were closing in and tugging at the wheels of their street bikes. Eddy skidded to a halt.
“It’s no good Willey, the Mists are getting too thick and I daren’t go on any further. Dad was desperate to ask the Teapot lots of questions but it looks like they will all have to wait.”
Willey stopped too. He had wondered why Eddy was so keen to chase after the Teapot and was now considering what questions Mr Dug’It was hoping to ask. His thoughts were interrupted by Eddy shouting, “Come on Willey, the Got-a-Lott Museum! We have to get hold of a Time-Line!”
Eddy was right. The only safe way to enter the Mists of Time was to use a Time-Line and the only place where they knew they would find one was in the halls of the Got-a-Lott Museum.

The Talking Teapot’s trail led up the Emerald Pathway towards the forgotten location of the Knick-Knack Tree. The Pathway was not easy to follow – it was littered with fallen trees and rocks.

More Chapters

Trouble in Trickletown

It's the Talking Teapot!

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