A Startling Invitation

They celebrated with PoncoCakes, which were sticky enough to hold a spoon upright and light enough to float if no one held the plate.

When the others had gone, Ronnie became serious.

“The Poncos would like you to remain in Ponco World.”

Paul stopped chewing.

“For how long?”

“Always. You would be our Chief Questioner and Finder of Things We Have Missed.”

It sounded wonderful. There would always be a new door, a new invention and a new catastrophe. No school timetable, no wet Sunday afternoons, no one telling him to tidy his room.

Then Paul thought of his mother’s tea, his father’s bacon sandwiches, Flossie bringing every dog in the village home, and Jumpy circling the pond on his ridiculous raft.

“No,” he said.

Ronnie’s face fell.

“I want to visit again. But I don’t want to stay.”

“Why return to a world that bored you?”

Paul looked at the little Go-Go-Pole, the seed and the indigo drawing.

“Because the world was not boring. I was waiting for it to entertain me. Inventing was different because I had to look closely, ask questions and do something. I can do that at home.”

Ronnie’s sadness vanished. He laughed so loudly that crumbs flew from his mouth.

“I knew it!”

“Knew what?”

“Ponco Orange bet that you would stay. I bet that you would choose home.”

“Was everything a bet?”

“Not everything. Only the parts Ponco Orange could put odds on.”

An alarm sounded.

The white doors flashed.

“What now?” Paul asked.

Ronnie ran to a row of dials. “The Heartlight is stable, but the bridge to your world is closing. We used too much power repairing it.”

“Can we use the Go-Go-Pole?”

Paul pressed the Go-Back button. The pencil-sized pole made a noise like a disappointed chicken and went dark.

“Untested,” Ponco Yellow called from the corridor.

“Emergency exit,” Ronnie said. “Hurry!”

They raced through a tunnel full of steam. At its end was a vertical tube leading into darkness.

Ronnie thrust a crystal sphere into Paul’s arms.

It was the size of a football, with a white light pulsing inside.

“Keep it safe. It will glow if the Poncos need you – or if you need them.”

“When will I see you again?”

“When sunlight and rain agree.”

The tube pulled Paul upwards.

“Ronnie!”

“Farewell, Paul! Keep asking questions!”

Ronnie became smaller beneath him. Paul rose through red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet light.

Then he burst into open air.