Charles the Cat was visiting Little Hexie and Budkin. He had a new car and took them out for a spin every day. One day he said: "Why don't we go for a picnic tomorrow?"
"Oh, yes let's!" cried Budkin. "I know a lovely place for a picnic. There's grass and flowers and a little stream with beautiful trees covered in ferns."
"That sounds like just the place. Why are you so quiet, Hexie?" asked Charles. "You haven't said a word."
"I was thinking of the food we must take. I'll bake some bread and dikkefrelletjies. My dikkefrelletjies are the best in Flowerland." Hexie rolled her eyes and licked her lips.
"What are dikkefrelletjies?" asked Charles.
"Typical man!" sighed Hexie. "You don't know anything about food. Anyone can tell you what a dikkefrelletjie is. You take a handful of mince and roll it into a round ball and..."
"Hexie means frikkadelletjies, Charles," Budkin laughed.
Hexie was cross. "That's what I said d--i-kk-e-f-r-e-ll-e-t-j-i-e-s!"
"Well, all right," said Charles. "Come on, Budkin, lets go and put oil and petrol in the car and Hexie can start cooking. We'll come and fetch you tomorrow morning, Hexie."
"Okay, I'll be ready. I'll wait for you on the stoep," said Hexie.
Early next morning Charles's car stopped in front of her house, but Hexie wasn't on the stoep.
"Hoot for her, Charles."
"Budkin, Gnome, you don't hoot for a lady. You knock on her door." Charles pulled his moustache and bow-tie into place and went to know on Hexie's front door.
Hexie opened the door. "Oh hallo! I'm nearly ready for the picnic, but somehow I can't manage the sandwiches because I can't cut the bread."
"Can I help, Hexie?" Budkin was feeling ashamed because he'd wanted to blow the hooter.
"Well, if you could get me a saw I would be very much obliged, Budkin. You see, I remembered the other word for pleased."
"What do you want a saw for, Hexie?" asked Charles
"I'll have to saw the bread, Charles. The top crust has come out rather hard. The oven must have been a bit too hot or a bit too cold. Look!" She held out the loaf and they began to laugh. It looked like a log of wood and was just as hard.
Hexie pulled her old black pointed hat over her eyes and they saw a tear trickle down her face to her chin. "You're laughing at my bread!" she sobbed.
"Never mind, we won't laugh any more. We can go and fetch a loaf of bread at my house. I'm sure your frikkadelletjies will be delicious," said Budkin.
"What frikkadelletjies?" asked Hexie.
"But Hexie, you were going to make some for us," said Charles.
Then Hexie really began to cry. "But I forgot all about them!"
"Don't worry, Hexie, we'll buy something at the cafe'. Don't cry, let's go on our picnic." Charles took them to the car. They bought food at the cafe' and soon they were on their way to the picnic spot.
Hexie had forgotten her sorrows and the three of them began laughing and singing.
"It looks to me as if we're driving to Baddyland," said Charles.
"No, it's close by, but we're not going into it," said Budkin. "The picnic spot is still in Flowerland."
"Oh, who's scared of an old Baddy, anyway?" said Hexie.
Charles said, "Let's forget about them. We're going to have a wonderful picnic. Gosh look how muddy the road is, it must have rained here."
Suddenly the car gave a bump and stood still. Charles pressed the starter, the engine roared, but the car didn't move.
"Press that button that makes the car roar again, Charles, I like it," laughed Hexie.
But Charles said, "This is no laughing matter, Levinia. Something's wrong. I think we're stuck in the mud." He looked out of the window and saw that they were stuck in a deep mudhole. You couldn't even see the wheels. "We'll have to push."
They took off their socks and shoes and got out. They pushed and pushed but the car was too heavy. They couldn't move it an inch.
"What are we going to do? said Charles. "If we had a spade we could dig the wheels out, but now I don't know what to do.
"We'll have to wait till the mud dries up," said Budkin. "But it could take a very long time, couldn't it, Charles?"
"And what'll we do if a Baddy comes along?" asked Hexie.
"But, I thought you weren't scared of the Baddies, Levinia," teased Charles.
"It's a pity we haven't got your loaf of bread with us, Hexie," said Budkin. "We could have hit them over the head with it!"
"Oh, you think you're being funny," said Hexie and went and sat with her hat over her eyes.
Charles saw that she was going to cry again, so he said quickly, "Why don't we have our picnic right here. Let's unpack the food and eat straightaway."
They took out the picnic and spread it on the grass and ate a delicious meal. But at last the food was all gone and there they sat, with the car stuck in the mud.
"How are we ever going to get unstuck, Charles?" asked Budkin.
"I haven't a clue, Budkin. Hexie, can't you say a spell for getting cars out of mud? Magic words, I mean."
Hexie thought. "You know, my granny Levinia told me some magic words once, but I've forgotten them. I'm not much good at magic words."
"No, perhaps not," sighed Charles.
"My Granny knew them though. I think it must have been she who sent Cinderella to the ball in a pumpkin."
"She went in a coach, Hexie," sighed Budkin. We'd better think of something before the Baddies come along and find us."
"Oh Golly, what'll we do if they come?" asked Hexie in a fright.
"Yes, who called me?" asked a deep voice at her ear.
"Oh gosh, who's that?" she shrieked.
Charles and Budkin split themselves laughing. "I am a magic horse and my name is Golly," said the voice. Behind Hexie there appeared the oddest horse you ever saw. He was huge, with matted woolly hair and a hollow back, clumsy hoofs and ears that hung down beside his head. If he hadn't been so big you'd have thought he was a donkey.
"Ooooh. I've conjured up a horse!" Hexie was delighted with herself. "Isn't he lovely?"
"Hmm, yes," said Charles. Budkin was lying on his tummy with his face in the grass so she wouldn't see that he was laughing.
"It's been ages since anyone conjured me up," said Golly. "Witches nowadays only ask for airplanes or trains and boats. They say I'm out of date. What can I do for you, Little Hexie?"
"Could you please get our old car out of the mud, d'you think?"
"Of course, that's easy. I'm glad to be of use to someone again. Today's witches conjure up tractors when they want to pull something out of the mud."
Golly went and stood behind the car and gave one push with his big ugly head and Skloosh! Sklopp! The old car bounced right out of the mud.
"Hoorah!" they yelled and clapped hands for Golly.
Then suddenly they saw a gang of Baddies come running through the trees. "Jump in the car!" yelled Charles.
"But what about Golly?" said Hexie.
"Don't worry, Little Hexie. Just say your magic word and I'll disappear again."
"Wh...which word?"
"But you know it," whined Golly. "Say: Golly, goodbye."
"Golly, goodbye," said Hexie. Nothing happened. "Hurry, Hexie, the Baddies are getting closer!"
"Oh Golly, we've had it!" cried Hexie. And - abracadabra - Golly was gone. "Golly's gone, Golly's gone!" she laughed. "I did it! I magicked him away!"
"Levinia Witch, get into the car quickly or the Baddies are going to have you for supper!" Charles was getting impatient and she jumped in, just as the first Baddy came running up, and Charles drove off in a spatter of mud.
"Wheeeee, you can't catch us!" yelled Budkin.
After a little while Hexie said, "Gosh, I really am good with magic words, aren't I?"
Story Time � 1984-1989 by Rubicon Press CC