The sleepover surprise, p.1
The Sleepover Surprise, page 1
First published in Great Britain 2021 by Farshore
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers
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www.farshore.co.uk
HarperCollinsPublishers
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Text copyright © 2021 Farshore
Interior illustrations by Dynamo © 2021 Farshore
Special thanks to Rachel Delahaye
Text design by Janene Spencer
With thanks to Speckled Pen for their help in the development of the series.
Source ISBN 978 0 7555 0126 7
eISBN 978 0 7555 0193 9
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher and copyright owner.
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For Pierrette, who loves to dive into crazy and wonderful worlds!
CONTENTS
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Map
CHAPTER ONE: An Inviting Day!
CHAPTER TWO: Oh Flip!
CHAPTER THREE: Fizzy Fun
CHAPTER FOUR: It Had to be Poo
CHAPTER FIVE: Pickles Versus Prickles
CHAPTER SIX: Making Magic Moments
CHAPTER SEVEN: Dark Night, Bright Idea
CHAPTER EIGHT: The Quest for Rest
CHAPTER NINE: A Great Escape Success
Exract from Super Cute: Best Friends Forever
CHAPTER 1
An Inviting Day!
It was a dazzling day in the World of Cute. The bubblegum flowers had popped at dawn and their strawberry aroma filled the air. Swarms of glass-hoppers dipped in and out of the flower fields and their shiny little wings scattered sun rays far and wide. The spectacle woke everyone from Marshmallow Canyon to the Sandy Beaches. It even woke Sammy the sloth, who usually snoozed until much later in the day.
Tickled awake by the sparkling light and delicious breeze, Sammy stood at the entrance to Snoozy Hollow, yawned and smiled at the sky.
It’s a perfect day for … What was it, now? Sammy gave himself a very big wake-up shake … It’s a perfect day for writing my party invitations!
‘Thank goodness for the dazzling morning,’ he sighed. ‘Or I’d have slept most of the day and missed my dear friend, Louis. He should be here any minute. I must stretch!’
Sammy stepped out and began his sun salutation yoga routine. He reached high to the candyfloss clouds in the sky, then down to the daisies at his feet, which tried to tickle his toes.
Just as he was getting into a deep stretch, he heard a loud barking. It was nothing to do with his downward dog position – it was Louis. The labradoodle was running in circles round the meadow.
‘Sammy! Sammy! Where are you?’ Louis shouted.
Where am I? Sammy pondered. ‘Well, in relation to the universe, I’m on a small planet called the World of Cute, but more specifically I am in the area known as the Dipsy Daisy Meadow. If you want to narrow it down further, you could say I was –’
‘I can’t see you!’ Louis called.
Oops! Sammy had forgotten his camouflage coat was grass-green! He changed his fur to purple, one of his favourite colours. ‘Can you see me now?’ he asked.
As the labradoodle bounded towards him, Sammy quickly finished his yoga and reached behind to scratch his –
‘Fleas, Sammy?’ said Louis.
‘No, no, no.’ Sammy blushed. ‘Just an itch on the … never mind. How lovely to see you, Louis. It’s so kind of you to offer to help with the invitations. Did you bring all your pens and pencils?’
‘All right here!’ Louis said, tapping his magic nose.
Sammy had met Louis the labradoodle at the Blossom Festival, where he had been deftly doodling doodles. And not just deftly doodling doodles, but deftly doodling doodles with his nose! Louis had a very special nose, and he was a brilliant artist.
In fact, Sammy had met a lot of new friends at the Blossom Festival. That’s why he was having a party. And he wanted the invitations to be extra special.
Louis was eager to get started. He pulled a pile of papers from his pocket. ‘Shall we begin? What shall I do?’
‘First let’s decorate the paper,’ Sammy suggested. ‘Let’s make every invitation beautiful, original, different, marvellous, unique …’
‘You’ve got it!’ Louis said.
The little dog scribbled furiously with his nose. Every time he needed a new colour he simply twitched his nose. Sammy watched with delight.
There were puffs of chalk and sprays of glitter as Louis added the finishing flourishes. Then he stood back, panting as if he’d run a marathon.
Sammy looked down at the beautiful papers laid out on the grass. There were summer scenes, magic whirlwinds, melted colours and dripping rainbows. Each one was a masterpiece. The dipsy daisies began to toss them in the air to dry the ink.
‘Wait, dipsies!’ said Sammy. ‘We haven’t done the words yet. Are you ready, Louis?’
Louis twitched his nose and Sammy told him what to write.
‘Okay, dipsies, do your thing!’ Sammy said, and the daisies tossed the invitations in the air to dry them. They landed back on the grass in a neat pile.
‘Bravo!’ Sammy cried. ‘Let’s post them right now.’
‘You’ve forgotten something,’ Louis said. ‘I haven’t written where the party is.’
Sammy’s eyes shone with mischief. ‘Oh!’ he said. ‘Well, it’s a surprise.’
‘But we all need to meet somewhere,’ said Louis.
Sammy chuckled. ‘Just put: Meet at the Wish Tree. We can walk to the party location from there. No one will ever guess where we’re going!’
The extra detail was added to each invitation. Then Louis and Sammy tucked them into golden envelopes and set off to the post box. Louis ran ahead, but returned, his ears flattened with worry.
‘The humpygrump hummingbird is nesting in the post box again!’ he said. ‘I’ve just seen her pelt Kevin the kettle with poo!’
‘Humpygrump poo is the prettiest poo in the World of Cute,’ Sammy said. He knew so many facts! ‘It has more colours than a rainbow! But also more bad smells than a stinky bog competition. We’ll just have to deliver the invitations ourselves. It’s a shame I can’t walk faster.’
Skye the skateboard trundled to a stop in front of Sammy and Louis.
‘Hey, hop on!’ she said. ‘I’ll take you anywhere you want to go. I’ve got a bit of free time and four wheels that need exercising!’
As usual in the World of Cute, there was always a perfect solution!
‘Cornucopia Avenue, please, Skye!’ Sammy said.
As they scooted along, Sammy was greeted by lots of friends. Everyone was surprised to see him out of bed so early.
‘Morning, Sammy!’ called Tina the toaster. ‘Breakfast on the go?’ She popped out some ready-buttered slices. They smelled so delicious that Sammy and Louis snatched them up and gobbled them down.
‘Hi, Sammy. It’s a bit early for you!’ giggled Fleur the robot fox. She was taking her mechanical cubs for a walk. Sammy turned his fur pink to make the cubs laugh. Their giggles made a pretty tinkling sound, like wind chimes. The World of Cute seemed particularly cute today!
In Cornucopia Avenue, Sammy and Louis had no trouble finding Lucky the lunacorn’s house. It was a pretty stable made with twisting tree trunks and woven with flowers, and on the ground right outside was a pile of sparkling confetti.
‘Glittery mess is a side effect of having a magical horn,’ Sammy said. ‘When the moon comes out, Lucky’s horn just glows. But when friendship is about, there’s no knowing what it’ll do!’
Sammy rang the silvery doorbell and waited. He peered in the window.
‘What can you see?’ Louis asked.
‘There’s a display of rosettes on the back wall, strawberry hay baskets in the corners of the room and a large vase of glorious sunflowers on the table. Ah!’ Sammy turned bright yellow as he remembered the first time he and Lucky met, in the middle of a sunflower field on a glorious summer’s day. She was on her way to enter the Cuteness Competition at the Blossom Festival. Little did Sammy know at the time, but he was about to meet the best friends in the world!
‘Can you see any lunacorns?’ Louis said, leaping to look.
‘I don’t think there’s anyone home,’ said Sammy. ‘Oh dear. I don’t want to leave the invitation at the door in case it blows away. We’ll have to come back later. Next stop, Blueberry Hill.’
CHAPTER 2
Oh, Flip!
With the help of Skye the skateboard, Sammy and Louis got to Blueberry Hill in no time. Or snow time!
‘Wh-wh-what’s going on?’ Sammy stuttered.
The hill was famous for its purple grasses, but now it was dazzling white. At the top, Sammy and Louis could see a little figure, sliding down the hill very fast.
‘Is that Pip the pineapple?’ Louis asked.
‘Yes! I think you’re right,’ Sammy said. ‘And that’s Cami the cloud right above her.’ He touched the snow with his fingers. ‘Cami made snow so Pip can ski and keep cool!’
‘That tropi-cool fruit pineapple sure likes to chill,’ said Louis.
Sammy squinted hard at the mount
Cami and Pip looked confused.
‘Can you hear Sammy, Pip?’ said Cami.
‘Um, yes?’ said Pip. ‘But I can’t see him anywhere!’
Louis gave Sammy a nudge. ‘Your coat!’ he said.
Sammy had a serious word with himself about camouflaging at awkward times. Then he turned his fur from snow-white to orange.
‘It is you, Sammy!’ Pip called, launching into an excited downhill triple-flip. The acrobatic pineapple never missed a chance to do something gymnastic and seeing a friend was the best excuse ever. Only, Pip lost her concentration and her triple-flip turned into a single flip, followed by a flump and a roly-poly all the way down to the bottom of the hill.
‘I guess that’s the end of my alpine-apple skiing session!’ Pip laughed as she leaped up and dusted herself down. ‘What’s up, Sammy?’
‘I’ve just come to deliver these.’ Sammy handed out the invitations.
Cami and Pip read them quickly. Pip did a handstand for joy and Cami squealed with excitement.
‘A sleepover party?’ Cami cried. ‘I’m on cloud nine. Wait, I AM cloud nine!’
After giving Sammy and Louis lots of big hugs, Pip and Cami went on their way, singing Onesie World, here we come!
Next on Sammy’s list was Dee the dumpling kitty. She lived on the other side of Blueberry Hill. Skye the skateboard had things to do, but Sammy and Louis were happy to walk and watch the World of Cute embrace the day.
They laughed at the rows of fancy ants setting off for work, doing the can-can in formation. They stuck out their tongues as the flying frying-pans overhead spilled sizzling sherbet. The tangy breeze that blew in from the Fruit Salad Forests filled them with zest. It felt as if everything was excited for Sammy’s party.
When they reached Dee’s street, Sammy couldn’t see the dumpling kitty’s bamboo palace anywhere. In fact, there was nothing but a strange black tent!
‘Oh dear. Perhaps Dee has moved house?’ Sammy said.
A voice came from inside the tent. ‘No! I still live here!’
Dee emerged, polishing off some breakfast cake. Her little pink tongue flicked around her face, collecting crumbs and giving her fur a good wash at the same time.
‘Yesterday, I made a three-storey house out of origami paper,’ she said. ‘Then, in the middle of the night, the rainbow rain poured right through and I had to make something else. I didn’t plan to make a tent out of liquorice, but I was half asleep at the time.’
‘Liquorice!’ Louis crept closer and gave Dee’s house a quick lick. ‘Yum!’
Sammy shook his head at his own forgetfulness. ‘Of course!’ he said. ‘Silly me. Why would you always live in the same house when you can make a different one every day with your cute craft kit?’
‘That’s right,’ said Dee. ‘I’m always itching to make something new. Is that why you’re itching too, Sammy?’
Sammy blushed. ‘I didn’t even know I was!’ he said.
‘I’m amazed you haven’t made yourself a cake castle,’ said Louis.
Dee looked surprised. ‘I did. But I ate it.’
‘Could you make one out of crayons for me?’ asked the labradoodle.
‘Of course,’ said the dumpling kitty. ‘I’ve built knitted nooks for woolly monkeys and lollipop lairs for licky lions. I can make anything you like!’
‘Are you any good at making onesies?’ Sammy asked with a little smile.
He handed Dee the invitation. When she read it, her fur fluffed up with excitement.
‘Oh yes!’ she cried. ‘Thank you, Sammy. I’ll make one right away.’
‘Before you do … Lucky the lunacorn isn’t home.’ Sammy tapped the golden envelope containing Lucky’s invite. ‘In case we don’t catch her, could you tell her all about the party and where to be?’
‘Certainly!’ Dee grinned. ‘I’ll even make her a onesie. Sammy?’ She looked around. ‘Sammy?’
‘What are you doing?’ Louis barked at Sammy, who was climbing a nearby tree.
‘Just checking out the napping spots,’ Sammy called. ‘In case I … zzzzzzz.’
All the fast talking had exhausted the sloth, who had got out of bed way too early. He was now fast asleep in a cradle of branches.
‘What shall we do?’ Louis asked. ‘Wake him up?’
‘Sloths just don’t have the same kind of energy as cats and dogs,’ said Dee. ‘Let him sleep for a little bit.’
The dumpling kitty plucked knitting needles from her fur and quickly crocheted a blanket. Then she and Louis threw it up and over the branch where Sammy was snoofling and dreaming of fascinating facts. Louis doodled a note and left it underneath the tree: See you at the party, Sammy!
‘I need to get started on the onesies,’ Dee said. ‘What about you, Louis?’
‘I’m going home to work on my painting,’ said Louis. ‘It’s called The A-Z of Cute. I’m drawing the whole World of Cute in one picture, from the apple usherettes to the zippy zebras with detachable stripes.’
‘Sounds great, Louis,’ Dee said. ‘And it gives me a great idea for a onesie! See you at the party!’
With everyone busying – or snoozing – nobody saw the golden envelope containing Lucky’s invitation slip from sleeping Sammy’s paw. It floated down on the breeze like a sycamore seed. Then it was caught by the wind and swirled up and up, like a kite. Over the broccoli trees and the milky clouds it went, travelling across town before skittering along Ritzy Avenue, where a little dog was taking a siesta on his porch. The flutter made him open one round eye.
A golden letter … It must be an invitation! He sprang to his little legs.
‘Glamour Gang, fetch!’ he yipped.
The dog’s obedient friends – a pizza slice, a snail, a muffin and a scooter – rushed to bring him the envelope. His paws shook with excitement as he carefully opened the envelope and pulled out the paper, decorated with confetti and spiralled horns. A party! A secret sleepover! With onesies!
He clutched it to his chest, trembling from the tops of his ears to the tips of his tiny tail. His whiskers shivered and his tutu quivered as he imagined his theatrical entrance, wearing the best onesie in the world. It was going to be a party no one would ever forget.
And with Clive the chihuahua, that was probably true …
CHAPTER 3
Fizzy Fun
It was five o’clock on Saturday and Sammy was standing beneath the Wish Tree, wearing a snappy-toothed shark onesie. Worried that he might fall asleep waiting for his friends, he said all the facts he knew about the Wish Tree out loud to keep him alert. Talking also made the shark teeth on his onesie SNAP, which was fun.
‘The Wish Tree is at least five thousand years old and only grants kind wishes,’ Sammy said to himself. ‘It doesn’t make all wishes come true, so it’s a good idea to hug the tree tight and wish the wish with all your might.’
What a good idea! Sammy hugged the Wish Tree tightly and wished with all his might that everyone would have a wonderful time at his party and enjoy all of the surprises he had in store! Under his onesie, his camouflaging fur turned brown to match the Wish Tree trunk.
When Pip turned up, she jumped with shock!
‘There’s a shark hugging the Wish Tree!’ she cried, leaping into the branches for safety.
‘It’s only me!’ Sammy said. ‘It’s my onesie! See?’ He let go of the trunk and made his fur turn yellow so Pip could see his face and paws.
‘Oh Sammy, that’s brilliant!’ Pip said. ‘Although perhaps you should try not to camouflage, in case we pass anyone who’s easily spooked, like the scaredy-cat cactus or the elephantimouse.’
‘Good idea, Pip,’ Sammy said. ‘Let’s see your onesie.’
Pip jumped down from the Wish Tree branches and twirled like they did on the catwalks at Cutie Fashion Week. Her onesie had short coffee-coloured fur and a hood with a little black nose.
‘You’re a pug, Pip!’ Sammy declared. ‘A pineapple pug!’
‘A sporty pineapple pug,’ Pip corrected. She cartwheeled around the Wish Tree to make her point.
A cloud passed overhead, casting a cool shade. Pip sighed with relief. ‘That’s better,’ she said. ‘I was feeling hot after all that cartwheeling.’
