
Tilly & Toby knew they should have told their mum and dad about the magic portal – they probably should have told the mayor too. But Tilly and Toby were the smallest tappy town residents and they knew that the adults would choose somebody bigger and stronger to visit the new places. So very naughtily, they kept the portal a secret.
Everyday, they would ask their mum if they could play in the woods – to which she would reply “of course, but don’t go past the Split Oak Tree and make sure you’re back before the sun retreats behind the mountain”. Tilly and Toby’s mum knew they would be safe – not only is all of tappy town filled with wonderful people who will always help – but the wizard that built the cinema left a magic force field around the town to protect his friends – some say he was the one that split the old oak tree in two!
With this, Tilly and Toby would each pack their lunch into back packs and journey off into the woods. They would follow the main trail down to the green clearing, turning right at the rickety gate. Walking along the old stream, they would cross over at the bridge rather than jumping the stones – tilly had once fallen in and couldn’t get dry all day! Just after the bridge, the twins would search for the portal behind the line of Trees that the diary described. After the first time they found it, Clever Toby had carved markers into the trees with his emotion jewellery, knowing that the marks would glow when his stone came close again. Sure enough, after only 2 steps toward the trees, his marks illuminated the entrance to the magic portal.
Luckily for the twins, the magic portal would freeze time back in tappy town – so they could spend as long as they needed with the person the portal took them too. They would listen to the persons problems, help them find the colour they were feeling with their emotion stones and help heal their issue with the Tappy Town Secret Technique. A technique that’s only taught in the Tappy Town School!
To get back home, all the twins had to do was hold hands and imagine giving their parents a hug. In a heartbeat, they would feel a rush of air and feel the ground meet their feet back at the entrance to the portal. Finding their way back to the cottage and their mum was easy – their emotion jewellery would slightly pull them in the direction of home…