Chapter 10

Chapter 10

After a tiring and eventful day, all Lyla really wanted was to go home and snuggle up on the sofa with mommy (and probably fall asleep – mommy was just very comfortable), but after entering the village and walking into the snow-covered square, she knew this would not be the case.  It seemed everyone had gathered in the square.  Lyla looked for mommy, but couldn’t see her in the crowd.

Toby was there, looking like the smaller Russian doll version of his father, who stood at his side.  Both were fat and permanently red-faced, but Toby came waddling towards Lyla at the site of her, along with all the other children.

“Tell me Lyla, who is the bravest?” Toby boasted, looking at his fingernails whilst he puffed up like a rooster.

Lyla was in no mood for dealing with idiots. “Why?  What makes you brave?  That you cheated and made me crash into rocks?  Anyway, what I did was much braver,” Lyla replied in a nonchalant manner.

“What happened?  Where have you been Lyla? We were worried,” said someone behind Toby (who she obviously couldn’t see, past Toby’s largeness).

“Well, I fell into a cave and was trapped there, but I came across a monster.  How does that sound?” offered Lyla.

“What? A monster? Where?!” Toby semi-shrieked.

Lyla was quite enjoying frightening Toby, just to make him look silly when he said he was the bravest child in the village. “Yup, a monster, he has black shiny fur and big goggles so he can watch you when you sleep, and big hands to grab you and take you away to his cave with.  He chased me all the way back to Daisyfield, I’m surprised you didn’t see him,” she replied calmly.

“Rubbish!  We would have seen a monster!  You’re telling porky pies, Lyla-Mae!” said Toby, trying to regain his composure.

Lyla was flabbergasted – no one calls her a liar! “Go and see for yourself!” she shouted with an arm pointing in the direction Volbert left.  “He can’t be far away, if you go quickly you will see Volb- err, it!”

There was a lot of gasping from the assembled children. “Show us! Show us Lyla!  Take us to the monsters cave NOW!” they all rushed to say in her face.  Again, Lyla was in no mood for idiots.

“No!  I am tired, I have had a strange day, and just want to go home and be with mommy.  If you want to see him-err, it, it is that way” – she pointed in the direction again, a bit more forcefully this time – “I am going home. Bye!” And with that Lyla stalked off, her boots banging loudly against the cobbles.  She didn’t get very far though, before she saw mommy.  She immediately felt happier, and ran to give her mommy a big hug.  They walked home hand in hand, and talked about sitting in front of a fire and eating cake and slowly falling asleep.  Lyla went home without a care in the world.

Toby watched Lyla and her mommy stroll inside their big white house, and then realised he didn’t know what to do.  Of course, he was brave - he was the mayor’s son, he was born brave! – but chasing a monster in the dark was not really his thing (and he hated himself for realising that he would be comforted if Lyla would be going with him).  Instead, what Toby did was march up to his dad and tug at his coat vigorously, told him all about the race, how Lyla vanished, and how she had found a monster on the outskirts of town in one breathless rush.  Shocked, the mayor of Daisyfield soon gathered the men together in a group, and they ran in the direction in which Lyla had pointed!