THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WELL

Chapter 17 – page 5

G & J went to get Mober & Pepper and began leading them through the beaver wall aisle and up to the gangplank. When they set foot on the gang plank, they balked; Mober being the leader of course. She snorted and sniffed, pawed some, and then stepped on, being led by the grain. The trailer contraption was wide enough for them not to feel cramped. The front of it had a hole in the board to tie their ropes through. There was a divider in the middle just like an Earthworld horse trailer, so they couldn’t fight about food. Mober was a pig, when it came to food. They were munching away while Frizzle & Frazzle were telling the wolves what to do. Soon the back gate was in place and tied with ropes. There, woof, pant, puff ... they were safely on the ferry.

Now for the heavy part. The oxen were brought over in full harness, and somehow with ropes they managed to pull the gangplank away. They decided it was impossible however to take it with them. There must be a gangplank already at the place where we will dock. We can use that one. "Good idea," said Frizzle. "Do you think we need to take the oxen with us then?" he asked. "No creo," (I don't think so) said Simeon. So he paid the taxi driver for bringing them anyway, and sent them on their way back home. Better prepared than not.

There was another gangplank at the other end of the ferry where Simeon, Granma, Julio and entourage boarded. The center of the ferry had almost like a living room set up on deck with three foot wooden walls built around it. There were couches and comfortable chairs to sit or lay on. Simeon took off his little backpack and hung it on the wall. "All aboard!" yelled the fat rat. "Muff, Muff! where’s da Muff?" cried J. As usual, she was right behind you when you least expected it. She jumped aboard and J tied her to the wall of the open air living room. "I wonder if they sent a bone for Muff?" said J out loud. The gangplank was raised, as gangplanks are suppose to be, on giant hinges. The reason they couldn’t raise the other one was because of the trailer contraption in the way.

Rat workers used long poles jabbed into the mud, to push the ferry away from the shore of FFOI. It was about eleven o'clock in the morning, G guessed. And they were off like a herd of turtles! Everyone began to relax in their outdoor living room. G would have strung up the hammock, but it was nicely packed away in a basket.