Patchwork Picnic (9781743583524) by Danny Parker Read Free Book Online Page A

just never heard it before!’
    Buddy was pleased. Then he tried to take a step – but fell over instead!
    Lola gasped, and reached down to help poor Buddy.
    He was chuckling, though.
    â€˜Uh-oh. This might take a while,’ Buddy said, standing up again. ‘I haven’t stood on my own two feet for ages.’
    He managed a few wobbly steps. Then he tumbled down again. His long legs and laces were all in a tangle!
    Lola flopped down next to him. She couldn’t stop staring at her favourite toy, who’d somehow come to life.
    â€˜Oh Lola, you’ll love it here,’ said Buddy, grinning back at her.
    He took Lola’s hand. She helped him stand up on his wonky legs.
    Then she got to her feet and looked about, her eyes wide with wonder.
    There were beautiful fields all around them. They reminded Lola of the patchwork quilt in her bedroom.
    The grass was soft under her feet. She could see odd-shaped trees on the other side of the hill. They looked like … they looked like toy trees!
    â€˜Tell me all about the Kingdom,’ she said, turning back to Buddy.
    â€˜Shall we walk as we talk?’ he said happily.
    â€˜If you can,’ Lola said, smiling.
    â€˜Funny girl!’ Buddy laughed. ‘I’ll be fine in no time. Trust my toggle, I will!’
    Then he fell over. And over!
    Soon they were strolling and stumbling down the soft hillside, carrying the picnic basket between them.

    â€˜The Kingdom is where toys come when they are not being played with by their children,’ Buddy explained to Lola.
    Lola couldn’t believe it. She had never thought about what happened to her toys when she wasn’t playing with them.
    â€˜There are lots of different lands in the Kingdom,’ said Buddy. He looked at his wrist, but he wasn’t wearing a watch.
    â€˜We don’t have time for all that now, though,’ he added.
    â€˜What do you mean?’ Lola asked.
    Buddy smiled his big goofy clown grin. ‘I think we’ve arrived,’ he said, ‘just in time for the picnic.’
    â€˜The picnic?’ repeated Lola.
    â€˜Oh yes,’ said Buddy cheerfully. ‘I have a feeling that today’s the day!’

They walked through a patch of toy trees, and then Lola stopped. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She could see bears .
    But these weren’t real bears. These were lots and lots of teddy bears .

    There were other toys, too. Rag dolls and monkeys. Fluffy cats and soft rabbits. But mostly teddy bears. They were all sitting on picnic blankets.
    Buddy led Lola to a spare blanket. They dropped their picnic basket and sat down.
    Buddy was excited. ‘By my buttons, I was right! As soon as we climbed out of that picnic hamper, I knew. Today’s the day!’
    â€˜What day?’ asked Lola.
    â€˜Today’s the day the teddy bears have their picnic!’ he said.
    Lola laughed. ‘They really do that? Amazing!’
    Looking around, Lola noticed that she was the only girl among all the toys. She also noticed that none of the toys were eating yet.
    Lola’s tummy rumbled. What were they waiting for?
    Suddenly, everything went silent.
    â€˜What’s going on?’ she whispered.
    But Buddy was looking over her shoulder. Lola turned and saw a line of very smart-looking bears coming through the crowd.
    This day keeps getting stranger and stranger , she thought.
    Then she noticed that one of the bears looked familiar.
    Very familiar!

‘That’s Felix!’ cried Lola as the bears marched by. ‘That’s my teddy!’
    â€˜Felix is the son of the Great High Bear himself,’ Buddy whispered importantly.

    Lola was surprised. She had left Felix at her gran’s house the last time she’d visited. She wondered if more of her toys were here in the Kingdom.
    But what had Buddy said?
    That toys only came to the Kingdom when children weren’t playing with them?
    The bears stopped in the middle of the