Mary's grandmother, Sheila, greeted them warmly and gave them plenty of food and hot chocolate. Mary and Thomas rested well after that, and then they told Sheila about their adventures. Sheila was excited and promised to help them by standing near the door each time they entered an unknown land.
The next day, Mary went to the village market to observe the surroundings, and to her relief, there were no suspicious people around. She bought some bread from the baker who recognised her as Sheila's granddaughter and exchanged greetings. Mary did not wait long to talk about her visit in case the baker told strangers about her and Thomas. He was known to be the local gossip.
Mary returned home and talked about visiting another land. Thomas, as usual, thought hard about which book to choose. Then, Sheila showed them her collection of books. It had a lot of books for children that included adventure stories. Sheila also advised them to read the story first before stepping in, as it would give them an advantage. This seemed a good idea and both of them chose a jungle adventure story for children. They then sat down to read the story. Mary read the story aloud, and the others listened, and then Thomas read. Thus, they took turns.
They then had dinner and decided to enter. This time, they took mosquito repellents, caps, boots, sticks, and some snacks with them. Sheila stood ready with a red scarf. Thomas opened the book, and a light appeared, and he held Mary's hand. A door appeared and they stepped in. Sheila stood near the door and tied the red scarf to the door knob. Sheila was careful not to attract attention as she did not want any wild animals to enter her house through the door.
Thomas and Mary walked quietly. They had thought about mosquito repellents, but they had not thought about wild cats and other predators. Sheila's warning before they left made them anxious, and they looked at each other. They saw a hut in the distance. A light was burning inside. They felt excited. Could there be someone inside?
Thomas and Mary walked quickly to the hut and stood outside, trying to listen to sounds. They heard somebody talking. Mary listened closely. A man was talking in French to another person. He was talking about the great magician couple who he said protected his hut from wild animals by casting a spell. The couple had helped him, and he wanted to help them in return. They gave him a book and told him to give it to their son if he ever met him. Thomas and Mary then knocked on the door, and the man opened it. Mary introduced them, and then the man gave Thomas the book without saying a word. He kept looking at Thomas. Mary and Thomas asked him questions about the couple, but he did not answer and closed the door. It felt strange, but they had no choice but to return and read what was in the book.
Thomas and Mary turned to go back to the door but saw the man in the coat walking in the distance. He had not seen them. They hid behind the bushes and tried to take a detour. Some monkeys were playing nearby and rushed towards them. It took all their strength not to scream and run. Thomas thrust his hand forward, and suddenly the monkeys were pushed back. Mary and Thomas quickly walked towards the door and stepped out. Sheila took off the scarf and shut the door.
Both of them told Sheila what happened. Thomas was excited about what was written inside the book.
To be continued...
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Thanks to Sheila María's wisdom, she was helped. I enjoyed this story full of magic and navigation.
What a captivating adventure! I love how Sheila's wisdom and preparation helped Mary and Thomas navigate the unknown. The detail about the local gossip adds a nice touch of suspense. Can't wait to read the next installment!
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