Bubble Trouble

for Fergus, Ruairidh, Katie and Charlotte

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

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Copyright

About the Publisher

Near the little village of Muddling, at the very end of Lumpy Lane, was a very strange house. Sometimes there were spots on the roof and sometimes there were stripes. Some days the walls were green and sometimes they changed to blue. For this was a wizard’s house and it was a magical place to live.

A young wizard called Freddy Frogpurse stayed there, but the house really belonged to his Great Uncle Sneezer Frogpurse. He had gone off on a World Wide Wizard Walk so Freddy was looking after the place for him. Freddy was also supposed to be learning about magic so he could become a great wizard, too.

Freddy was in Great Uncle Sneezer’s wizard room. There were shelves stretching right to the ceiling, stacked with books about magic. The cupboards were overflowing with bottles of magic potions.

Freddy stood at a table with his sleeves rolled up and an apron on. The table was covered with bottles and Freddy’s hands were covered in soap. He carefully tipped the contents of a blue bottle into a red bottle. He gave the red bottle a little shake. He added something from a green bottle. He gave it a stir with his magic wand. He held the bottle up and peered at the stuff inside.

“That looks about right,” he muttered.

Just then, there was a scratching noise at the door.

“Master Freddy?” said a voice. It was Odds–and–Ends, Great Uncle Sneezer’s house dragon who had been left to keep an eye on Freddy.

“Have you finished yet, Master Freddy?” Odds–and–Ends asked.

“Er… just a minute,” said Freddy. He pulled his apron off and threw it over the bottles. He wiped his hands on his tunic, leaving big soapy smears. He quickly opened a big book and propped it up in front of him. It was called the Wizards’ Handbook (Volume One).

“Come in, Odds!” he said.

Odds–and–Ends pushed open the door and flew down to the table. He glanced round the room.

“Have you really been reading all afternoon?” he asked.

Freddy nodded.

“Oh, Master Freddy!” said Odds–and–, tapping his foot on the table. “You’ve got the book upside down!”

Freddy’s face went red.

“Well…” he moaned. “It’s a very boring book, Odds.”

Odds–and–Ends shook his head.

“How do you hope to become a great wizard if you don’t work?”

“But I have been practising magic,” said Freddy eagerly. “Look what I’ve done!”

He whipped the apron from his bottles. He picked up a bit of wire which was bent in a loop and dipped it into the liquid in the red bottle. He put the wire to his mouth and blew on it gently. A big bubble slipped from the wire and floated towards the ceiling.

“Bubbles!” said Odds–and–Ends. “What’s so magic about that?”

Freddy blew another two. The first one was bright green and the second was blue and pink stripes.

“These are extra big bubbles,” said Freddy proudly.

Odds–and–Ends chased after the bubbles. “They’re quite impressive. Your friends in the village will love you for this. But it’s still not proper magic!”

“Don’t be such a fuss pot, Odds!” said Freddy.

He blew another bubble. It was even bigger than the first ones. It floated low over the table and bumped into a jar. It rose upwards, taking the jar with it, trapped inside.

“Wow! Look at that!” Freddy squealed with excitement.

He blew yet another bubble. This time, it was enormous. It wobbled across the room like a hippopotamus trying to dance. Odds–and–Ends flew in reverse to get out of the way but he wasn’t quick enough. A moment later, he was swallowed up by the bubble. He hammered on the inside with his little paws but it didn’t burst.

“Help! Master Freddy! Get me out of here!” he called.

But Freddy was having a fit of the giggles.

“You should see yourself, Odds!” he gasped.

Odds–and–Ends’ hot breath was steaming up the inside of the bubble. The dragon cleared a little patch in the steam with his paw and peered out.

“Master Freddy, you’ve gone too far!” he squeaked. “You must start learning to be a proper wizard. Nobody will want a wizard who just mucks around… with bubbles!”

Just then, there was a loud knock at the front door. Freddy left Odds–and–Ends floating around the wizard room and went to see who was there.

A very important–looking gentleman stood on the doorstep. The very important gentleman looked Freddy up and down. He saw soap smears on his tunic. He saw coloured stains on his fingers and smudges on his face. The important gentleman looked at the sign beside the door which said: “Doctor Sneezer Frogpurse – Grand Wizard”, then looked back at Freddy.

“Is Wizard Frogpurse at home?” he asked.

“Yes,” said Freddy.

“I’d like to speak to him, then,” said the gentleman.

“You are speaking to him,” said Freddy.

The gentleman twitched his nose.

“I was expecting someone… er… older,” said the gentleman.

“I may look young but I’m really seventy–five. It’s great what you can do with magic!” said Freddy, trying not to laugh.

The gentleman twitched his nose again.

“Then you must come with me to Gribble Castle. I am Lord Gribble’s secretary and Lord Gribble urgently needs a wizard for a very special task.”

A broad smile spread over Freddy’s face.

“Just a moment,” he said.

Freddy dashed back into the house. In the wizard room, he grabbed one or two things from a cupboard and stuffed them into his wizard’s bag. He lifted his wand from the table and stuck it into his belt. He turned to Odds–and–Ends, who was still trapped in his bubble.

“What did you say a moment ago, Odds? You said nobody wanted a wizard who just mucks around. Well, you’re wrong. Lord Gribble wants me, so there!”

“Oh no, Master Freddy, don’t go there!” said Odds–and–Ends, banging his little claws against the inside of the bubble.

Freddy stuck his tongue out at the dragon and went.

The secretary took Freddy back to Gribble Castle. They went in a little carriage which lurched from side to side as it went over the potholes in the road. As they passed through the village, people came to their doors to watch. Freddy felt very proud. It wasn’t every day that a wizard was summoned by Lord Gribble.

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