Sebastian Read Free Page B

States.”
    There was an awed silence.
    â€œOf course,” I went on, “my own name is Sebastian and I’m a sort of travelling bear. Today I arrived from England, and - well - I expect I shall stop for a little longer. But I’m really going all round the world.”
    I hadn’t actually thought of going all round the world, but it seemed quite a good idea now I had said it.
    â€œHow far is it round the world?” said the mouse.
    I’d never measured the world myself, but I did some rapid calculations. “About a million miles,” I said. I knew Auntie Vi lived a mile away, and a million times as far and you were sure to have gone round the world at least once.
    It was the turn of the black-spotted yellow thing then.
    â€œHello, hello!” it chortled, with its foot bent round its head and standing on one leg.
    Very funny, I thought. Of course, it was easy when you were made of rubber.
    â€œI’m Brussel,” it said. “I’m very good at tricks as you can see.”
    â€œOnce he tied himself into so many knots,” said the wooden soldier gloomily, “that Géraldine had to fetch a sailor to undo him.”
    â€œOf course, I’m knot always getting into trouble,” said Brussel. “Géraldine sometimes uses my left foot for rubbing out her homework. In fact,” he went on, “I only have two toes left now.”
    I couldn’t see that it really mattered about his toes - his feet were so big he would never miss them.
    â€œAnd this is Aristide the Ant-eater,” said the wooden soldier. “The trouble is, though, he can’t talk.”
    â€œPzwmkldylydo,” said Aristide.
    I could see what the soldier meant.
    â€œIt’s on account of his nose,” said the soldier. “He will talk down it, and being so long the letters all get jumbled up and only nonsense comes out.”
    What was the use of an Ant-eater, though, when you were four floors high above the street? He must have been very hungry.
    On the bed I noticed a curious cat - all head and no body. It had a zipped-up tummy - for eating the nighties and things, I supposed. Amanda’s cat, Muffin, would have found a zipper-tummy very useful with all the tins of food she used to get through.
    I was about to go into my lecture on the history and habits of bears - to enlarge their education of course - when I suddenly fell asleep. I knew I must have fallen asleep, because I can only remember waking up in the morning, and I suppose you can only do that if you’ve fallen asleep first.
    Géraldine had whisked me out of bed and was tripping round the room in a kind of French whizzle, or circular dance. We ended up on the floor with Géraldine out of breath and the room still going round and round.
    â€œWe’re off to do some sightseeing,” she said. “So you’ll need your telescope and compass. And I think we’d better change your jersey.”
    Zwoop! My jersey had gone in a flash, and probably my ears with it. WOOSH! A fresh jersey. It was the red one with ‘Sebastian’ embroidered in white wool across the front.
    â€œMmm ...” said Géraldine. “I think ... yes - I think a bow tie.”
    She dashed into one of the bedrooms and reappeared a minute later with a blue bow tie.
    â€œThere,” she said, after snapping the elastic rather painfully around my neck. She held me up to the dressing table mirror.
    Well, I must admit, I did look rather smart and began to get excited about sightseeing.
    â€œFirst we go to Montmartre and later to the Isle de la Cité and you can see Notre Dame,” Géraldine explained as we clattered down the stone stairs. “Oh, and I must get some bread for Maman.”
    It was early in the morning but everyone seemed to be up. There were lots of cafés with brightly coloured canopies, and the tables and chairs were outside on the pavement. What a funny idea to have a café and