One day, I was standing by the Queen’s Throne. Cloverflower was standing by the Queen’s Throne. Flutterglow was standing by the Queen’s Throne. The Queen was not standing by her Throne. That is because she was sitting on her Throne. That is what the Queen does. I do not know why.
Then the Queen said, *Bud Mushroom, Tonight is Hello Evening. We must Wear Delightful Costumes, and then we shall all wander around Twinkle Dingle and say Hello to everyone.*
I did not know why the Queen would say, *Bud Mushroom, Tonight is Hello Evening. We must Wear Delightful Costumes, and then We shall all wander around Twinkle Dingle and say Hello to everyone.* But she did.
When she said it, I drooped. This is why: I DID NOT WANT TO WEAR A DELIGHTFUL COSTUME. A Costume is Clothing! Clothing is NOT Delightful!!
I
Hate
Clothing.
The Queen said, *Everyone must now go find a Delightful Costume, and We will Meet Back Here!*
I flew away. I hid in my house. My house is a dead log. It is where I live. My things are all in my house. The ants and slugs come to visit me! They are my friends.
I have other friends. Two of them are Flutterglow and Cloverflower. They are not slugs. They are not ants. They are fairies! I do not know why.
Flutterglow and Cloverflower came to my house. They stood outside. They pounded on my log.
Flutterglow said, *We know you’re in there, Bud. Come out and we will help you find a Delightful Costume!*
Cloverflower said, *It doesn’t even need to be an Entire Costume, Bud. Maybe you can just wear an Amusing Mask!*
I did not want to Wear a Delightful Costume. I did not want to Wear an Amusing Mask. A Mask is just a Face Costume. It is still Clothing!
Then Flutterglow said Something Scary! She said, *Bud, if you do not Come Out, we will Come In!*
Flutterglow can do an Amazing Thing. It is called *POP*. She can *POP* anyplace! She could *POP* into my house! If she *POPPED* into my house, she would make me Wear a Costume!
I drooped. But I am a Useful Fairy, and I needed to know something Useful. I needed to know how to Hide from the *POP*. I looked around. I used my Magic. And then I KNEW!
I told all of my ant friends and slug friends to get on top of me. I made myself flat on the bottom of my log. Ants crawled on me. Slugs slithered on me. I was covered! I wanted to laugh, but then Flutterglow would know I was Bud Mushroom, Useful Fairy, and not a part of a log covered in slugs! So I stayed very very still. I stayed very very quiet.
Flutterglow *POPPED* into my log! Cloverflower did too! Flutterglow said, *Where are you, Bud? We know you are hiding in here. Cloverflower, look under those Dead Leaves.*
Cloverflower said, *I am not touching those Dead Leaves, they are Moldy and Slimy. This entire house is Disgusting. How does Bud stand it?*
She meant me! I am Bud! But I did not say How I Stand It, because then she would know where I was hiding! I put my hand over my mouth so I would not laugh.
Flutterglow said, *I don’t know, Cloverflower, but remember he once hid in one of Rudy’s Stinky Plops. Maybe his nose doesn’t work.*
Once, I hid in one of Rudy’s Stinky Plops. It was a Very Good Hiding Place. But my nose DOES work. It keeps my eyes from sliding into my mouth! I wanted to tell her, but then she would know where I was hiding! So I stayed quiet.
Cloverflower said, *I don’t care of it works or not, I am not waiting for him to show up! I want to Wear a Delightful Costume and say Hello to everyone! The Queen said when we say Hello, we will get Sweets!*
My eyes got big when she said Sweets. I love Sweets! I do not like Chewy Sweets. But some Sweets are soft. Some can be licked. They are not all Chewy.
Flutterglow said, *You’re right, let’s go get my Bag, so we can carry more Sweets. We’ll find Bud later. I hope someone gives us Choklit.*
My eyes got REALLY BIG when she said Choklit. They got as big as REALLY BIG eyes! I will tell you why: I LOVE CHOKLIT! I would even Wear a Costume to get Choklit!
But I did not get to tell them. They *POPPED* away! But I did not droop. I stood up. I went outside to find them. I did not see them. But I remembered something Useful: The Queen said, *We will Meet Back Here.*
*Here* was By Her Throne. So I flew to her Throne. But I fly very slowly. When I got there, no one was there!
I did not know what to do. So I used my Magic and then I knew something Useful. I would Wait!
So I Waited. Then I sat on the ground and I Waited. Then I lay down and I Waited. And GUESS WHAT HAPPENED?
THEY CAME BACK! Flutterglow was wearing Cloverflower’s Dress. Cloverflower was wearing Flutterglow’s Dress. They were pretending to be each other! Those were their Costumes.
The Queen was wearing Human Clothing! She was pretending to be a Human! I do not know why. It was not very Delightful.
The Queen said, *It’s Too Bad that Bud didn’t want to come with us. Look at all these Sweets!*
She meant me! I am Bud! I stood up. I walked to her Throne.
Cloverflower saw me first. Her eyes got as big as mine did! She said, *Flutterglow, do you see that . . . whatever it is?*
Flutterglow looked at me. *What is that, Cloverflower? It’s covered in slugs and ants! Is it a Dead Log?*
The Queen looked at me and screamed! Then she said, *It cannot be, as it is moving towards us! Flutterglow, go find Wildwhisper, and have him Bring the Thorn, at once! Cloverflower, Warn Everyone! I will be in my Thinking Place, hid . . . I mean, thinking of a way to save us from the Slug Creature!*
Flutterglow and Cloverflower *POPPED* away and the Queen flew high up in the air to her Thinking Place. I looked around but I did not see a Slug Creature. I do not know why they were scared! There was nothing here but me, Bud Mushroom.
AND ALL OF THEIR SWEETS! I smiled! I walked over to their bags. I found Choklit! I found Honey Drops! I even found a Magic Cookie from the Garden Gnomes! I filled up Cloverflower’s Bag. I took the Bag full of Delicious Sweets back to my log.
Once I got home, the ants crawled off of me. The slugs slithered away from me. I shared the Delicious Sweets with them. It was a very nice Hello Evening, and I did not have to Wear a Costume!
Goodbye from Bud Mushroom
P.S. Wildwhisper came to my house later. He said, *Bud Mushroom, there is a Creepy Slug Creature in Twinkle Dingle. Do not leave your house, it is Not Safe.* Then he came back later and said, *I can’t find the Slug Creature anyplace, it must have Gone Home. You can come out now.* I will go out now. I have to give Cloverflower her Bag. Goodbye again from Bud Mushroom.
P.P.S. I gave Cloverflower her bag. She looked inside. It was empty. She made the noise that Flutterglow calls Exasperated. I do not know why. Goodbye again again from Bud Mushroom.
Bud's Blog 