About the Author

Linda Brown is a wife, mother and grandmother who has lived in

Solihull, Birmingham for most of her life. She was educated at an
all-girls high school where she left with secretarial qualifications.
Her four grandchildren are her inspiration for writing childrens
stories.

Dedication

For Rebecca, Hannah, Sam and Katie, my inspiration.

Linda Brown

AN UNUSUAL HERO

Copyright Linda Brown (2015)

The right of Linda Brown to be identified as author of this work
has been asserted by him in accordance with section 77 and 78 of
the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the
publishers.
Any person who commits any unauthorized act in relation to this
publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims
for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British
Library.
ISBN 978 1 78455 392 0 (paperback)
ISBN 978 1 78455 394 4 (hardback)
www.austinmacauley.com
First Published (2015)
Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd.
25 Canada Square
Canary Wharf
London
E14 5LB

Printed and bound in Great Britain

8

Acknowledgments

Phil, thank you for believing in me.

And Zoe and Simon, for giving me my grandchildren.

10

Chapter One

All too soon, the day Tom had been dreading had
arrived; he and his family were moving house, number
6, Dog Kennel Lane, Ditherington, had been their
home for the last fifteen years, and even though it was
small for a family of five, it held many happy
memories. Tom was the eldest son of Sarah and Peter
West, a typical eleven year old who had reached that
stage in his short life, where everything seemed so
unfair, and was often heard exclaiming ITS NOT
FAIR at most things he was asked to do, and now
moving house seemed VERY unfair.
Tom was average height for his age, with blue
eyes, and his appearance first thing in the morning
could be quite scary as his fine wispy hair always
stood up in different directions. His mom referred to
him always looking as though he had been pulled
through a hedge backwards, which Tom thought quite
strange, and wondered how many times she had seen
someone actually pulled through a hedge backwards.
11

His hobby was collecting super hero comics, and

most of the time, his head would be buried in the latest
addition of Sci-fi Adventures or Captain Napiers
Island, or one of his favourite adventure books.
Mostly, he enjoyed doing as little as possible, unless it
was something that really interested him, or he would
be day-dreaming about doing the things his superheroes did. He had an eight year old sister, Daisy (who
according to Tom could be most annoying) and a five
year old brother, Sidney, the latter often referred to as
Mom and Dads little surprise. All three children had
been born at number 6 Dog Kennel Lane. Sidney and
Daisy were very excited about moving house, little did
they realise this would mean moving to a different
school nearer their new home. The only good thing
Tom could see was that he would finally get a
bedroom to himself.
For the last three years he had had to share with
Sidney, so when the family were able to view the new
house, Tom had been given first choice of the five
large bedrooms, and he had chosen a room with a
view over the large back garden. The exterior of the
house looked very grand; this was no ordinary red
brick building, instead it had been built from grey
stone, and Tom had to admit it made the house look
quite special, but as he walked round the interior with
his parents, apart from its size, it wasnt No. 6 and that
was all Tom had ever known. Moving away also
meant he would not be able to see his friends after
school.
The house had been bequeathed to Toms Dad by
an old family friend of whom Peter West had no
recollection, and when the letter had arrived from
12

Pervis, Pervis and Motram, Solicitors, acting on behalf

of Miss Silvia Davina Meadows, who had reached the
grand old age of ninety four, Peter thought all his
Christmass had come at once. He was a very proud
man, who worked hard, and when he was informed of
his good fortune, he could hardly believe his luck as
bringing up a family was proving at times to be quite
expensive, and sometimes being self-employed, he
had no work, and struggled to pay the house-hold
bills. It was now half way through summer, and every
piece of furniture, plant pot, anything not fastened
down was being piled into the removal van ready to be
carried to their new home. They had two dogs, Max
and Ben, and a rabbit called Henry who had hopped
into their garden one day; when no-one came forward
to claim him, number six became his new home. Sarah
West was a slim, dark-haired woman, who loved
nothing more than cooking and caring for her family.
She had already decided that the huge garden would
be large enough for her to keep chickens, something
she had always wanted to do, but there had been no
room in their previous, postage stamp-sized garden.
Toms dad liked renovating old furniture in his spare
time, and with this house came a large workshop at the
bottom of the garden.
Tom and his family arrived at the new house in the
family car just as the removal van was slowly turning
up the long drive where it finally stopped outside the
front door. There were no neighbours peeping through
their windows curious to see what the West family
might look like, or what kind of furniture they
possessed; the house stood all alone, surrounded by
fields, and the nearest neighbour was a quarter of a
13

mile away. The front door was surrounded by a brick

archway with the words Oak House carved in stone
above the arch. A Virginia creeper covered part of the
exterior wall surrounding the windows, and under the
large bay window was a flower bed full of pansies,
geraniums, and fuchsias.
Tom realised as he got out of the car and looked
up at the house, he should feel grateful for his dads
good fortune, and surprisingly felt a tingle of
excitement, as he walked through the front door.
Gradually box by box was carried very carefully into
the house, Sidney and Daisy excitedly running
backwards and forwards with Max and Ben still on
their leads watching the removal men empty the van.
Every piece of furniture was carefully carried into the
room it would now live in at their new address, Oak
House, Little Acorns Lane, Meadowville. After what
seemed like several hours, the removal men were gone
and Toms mom and dad were arranging furniture,
setting out ornaments, and hanging pictures and
curtains. Tom tried to help but quickly lost interest; he
would rather be outside investigating the area they had
moved to, and asked his mom if he could take Max
and Ben for a walk. Remembering that moving house
had been difficult for Tom, his mom said, Okay, but
dont be too long.
I wont, replied Tom. Make it a short walk,
Tom, we shall be having tea soon, shouted his dad
from the top of a ladder, as he struggled to hang the
lounge curtains. Sidney and Daisy were happily
investigating their new home, and arranging
possessions in their new bedrooms, so off Tom went
with Max and Ben trotting closely at his side. Tom
14

remembered seeing a public footpath sign pointing

across a field as they were turning into the drive, so
that is where he headed. Once he was on the footpath
he unleashed the dogs to run free, and after walking
for several minutes, saw a wooden bridge crossing a
small brook in the distance. This is nice thought
Tom its much nicer than road walking. As Tom
approached the bridge two large black crows flew low
across his path, just as if they were looking at this
stranger trespassing on their land. He looked over the
side of the bridge at the shallow water rippling over
the different coloured stones when, suddenly, a large
fish swimming close to the surface, pushed its head up
out of the water and looked straight at Tom. He could
not believe his eyes; it looked just as though it was
smiling at him. It must be my imagination, he thought,
and bent closer to look again but the fish quickly
swam away. No he thought, pushing the strange
incident from his mind, fish dont smile. The dogs
were running backwards and forwards excitedly
splashing in and out of the water waiting to see which
direction Tom would take, and as he crossed the
bridge he shouted, Come on, boys, this way, and
after several minutes he came to a wood which the
water flowed around, and out of sight. Wooden posts
with barbed wire running through the top and bottom
of them surrounded the wood, and Tom could see an
old sign which read, Trespassers Prosecuted, and
which had started to crumble and had fallen on its
side. Tom was just wondering how many people had
perhaps ignored the sign and been brave enough to
enter the wood, when suddenly a strange feeling made
him feel as though he wanted to enter the wood.
15

Maybe it was the excitement of the unknown, or

perhaps wanting to go where it was forbidden. Tom
pushed the thought from his mind and called to Max
and Ben We cant go in there, boys, this way. Tom
continued walking and could smell the trees and soft
earth permeating the air; there seemed to be something
magical about where he was, making him stop to close
his eyes and breath in the beautiful woody perfume,
but as he opened them, to his surprise, he found
himself standing in front of an old gate, which slowly
opened, tempting him to once again enter the wood.
Tom couldnt understand why, but his legs moved
towards the gate, they felt as though they had a mind
of their own, and before he knew what was happening,
he was through the gate, moving faster and faster,
Max and Ben trotting to keep up with him. He could
see blackberry bushes and wild ivy climbing up the
trunks of trees. Rabbits had burrowed holes at the base
of bushes, and all around him the air was filled with
wonder and excitement. After a while his legs stopped
and Tom could see he had travelled deep into the
wood. He was excited by the thought of adventure, but
it was excitement mixed with fear, after all, he was
alone with only the dogs for company, and he was
somewhere he had never been before, unsure of what
force had carried him there. Tom sat down to think
what he should do, and Max and Ben lay down beside
him, panting loudly in need of a refreshing drink to
cool their hot bodies. Thank goodness he had his best
friends with him, his faithful dogs would help him
find his way back home, but for the moment he rested
against the trunk of a tree, and tilted his head
backwards and looked up at the tall trees many
16

branches. The suns rays were glistening between the

leaves, casting rays of light down to warm the ground,
and a lovely relaxing feeling ran through Toms body,
he felt as though he could fall fast asleep. Suddenly
Tom jumped with fright just as if he had seen a ghost.
Peering down from one of the branches was a face. At
first Tom thought he was seeing things again, but as
he looked up into the tree, sure enough there it was
staring down at him. It wasnt an ugly face, but a face
is the last thing you would think of seeing staring
down at you. Sensing Toms fright, Max and Ben
began to bark. Quiet, you two, said Tom, and they
stopped and lay back down. Tom looked back up into
the tree and could see the face had moved slightly, and
that it was attached to a small body which was a light
shade of green. Not quite sure what to do, Tom called,
Hello. He didnt want to frighten this strange
creature, so, trying to sound friendly, he said, My
name is Tom, who are you? The little creature was
silent at first, then just as Tom thought perhaps he
couldnt speak, or didnt understand English, a little
voice said, My name is Riddle, I am a Pog. Tom
immediately felt excited, this little creature could
speak. Will you climb down? asked Tom, he was
eager to see the rest of this little creature. The creature
paused for a moment and then said Alright, stand
back, and in a flash he was standing right in front of
Tom. On closer inspection Tom could see that he
looked just like a small man, and was green all over.
He stood about three feet tall, and was wearing clothes
that looked as though they had been fashioned from
leaves and petals from flowers. Tom realised this was
so that he would blend into the wood. Do you live
17

here, in the wood? asked Tom. Yes, said the little

man, I live in Goritor, a place in the wood unseen by
humans. Pogs are very rarely seen, as most of us are
happy to live in our own world and rarely venture into
the human world.
Why are you here then? asked Tom.
I dont really know, I just suddenly felt I needed
to be here, and here I am. The little man did a twirl
on tip toe ending with a little bow. Tom was
fascinated and all trace of nerves disappeared. He
wanted to know more about the Pogs, and this little
man didnt seem afraid to talk to him, and was quite
comfortable with Max and Ben sniffing at his feet.
Could I, visit your world? asked Tom. Riddle
coughed a little nervous cough, this was quite an
unexpected request, and he was unsure whether this
would be a good idea. He was just about to reply when
Tom said, Oh please, please let me see where you
live, I wont tell anyone I promise. Riddle was
unsure of what he should do, but then wondered
whether this was why he had been despatched here.
He looked at Tom and the dogs and said Very
well, but you must do as I say.
Yes, yes I will, said Tom excitedly.
This way, said Riddle, and Tom and the dogs
followed close behind. Tom realised they were
travelling even deeper into the wood and after a while
they stopped in front of a huge oak tree. Tom looked
up into the branches; he could see that the tree seemed
to carry on for ever disappearing up into the sky. The
trunk looked as if several trees had grown together,
twisting and bending, ending in one almighty Oak.
18

The grooves in the thick bark created faces which

gave the impression they were looking disapprovingly
at Tom. Riddle took a small object which looked like
a key out of his pocket and inserted it into a small hole
in the trunk, it immediately began to glow, and Riddle
mumbled several strange hobble-de gobble-de words,
pushed hard with both hands and the key disappeared.
A doorway appeared and Riddle stepped inside.
Come on, follow me, he whispered. Once inside the
tree, it grew very dark, but Tom could smell the
woodland again, it seemed to be all around him. A
bright light suddenly shone in his eyes making them
sting, he closed them fast, then as the light
disappeared he opened them again and before him was
the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. Oh what a
wonderful place this is, he thought, the heavy
fragrance of honey-suckle hung all around him. He
could see brightly coloured flowers, waterfalls spilling
out over rocks into a large lake. Birds chased each
other singing as they flew past him. Butterflies and
dragonflies fluttered over Toms head, this was a
magical wonderland. Tom turned to look at Riddle,
but to his surprise Riddle was now the same size as
Tom. Had Tom shrunk? He looked at the dogs, had
they shrunk, too? Even though he was unsure of what
had happened to him, it didnt seem to matter; all Tom
was interested in was this beautiful place he had
entered. Welcome to Goritor, said Riddle Come
along, this way. Tom and the dogs followed closely,
Toms eyes were round and wide like gob-stoppers, in
awe of the sight set out before him. Brightly coloured
cottages lined the pathway, fruit trees, and berry
bushes hung full of the largest fruit Tom had ever
19

seen. Riddle picked blackberries for Tom to try, and

the dogs lapped at water that spilled from a small
waterfall, and collected in puddles. Soon they were
crossing a bridge which carried them over a small
pond where Ducks swimming stopped to look at Tom
and began to quack, Tom knew they were saying hello
which made him laugh. On the other side of the bridge
stood a small cottage with walls draped in large
wisteria flowers. Riddle opened the little door and as
he stepped inside he shouted Teazil, where are you?
We have company. Tom could hear a voice in the
distance getting louder as it got nearer saying Oh yes,
and who is it this time? and before Tom knew it,
standing in front of him was what he realised must be
a female Pog. She was like Riddle in shape and size,
but her face looked much younger and she wore a
dress made from rose petals with a tiny frilly white
apron over the top. When she saw Tom and the dogs,
her mouth fell open in surprise and she exclaimed,
Oh good gracious me what have you done, this
is.isa being, beings do not belong here, what have
you done, this is terrible. She sat down mopping her
face and brow with a large brightly spotted
handkerchief, the scene had quite clearly shocked her.
You must take them back quickly before there is any
harm done.
Its quite alright, Teazil, said Riddle I feel our
meeting was meant to be, after-all they passed through
The Mighty Oak with no problem. Look, the two furcovered creatures are called dogs, and do everything
their master tells them to do. This is Tom, their
master. Riddle slid his hand along Max and Bens
backs showing Teazil that the strange creatures were
20

friendly. Well I hope you are right, Riddle Pog, I

hope your foolish action will not bring danger to
Goritor. She stuffed her handkerchief into her apron
pocket, and returned to where she had come from
saying, Be it on your head, Riddle Pog. Riddle
escorted Tom to a seat and said, Take no notice of
Teazil, she makes a fuss about everything, sit down
and I will get you a drink. As Tom sat down on a
small sofa covered in soft cushions, he noticed that all
the furniture in the cottage was made from rough
branches (or could they be twigs, as Tom was still
unsure quite how much he had shrunk?) The cushions
were covered in soft silky leaves and the curtains at
the window looked as if they had been spun from pure
silk. In front of a little fire place were two comfylooking armchairs with little foot stools in front of
them; he could see that this world he had entered was
not too dissimilar to his own. When Riddle returned
he handed Tom a cup and as he sipped from it, he
could see it was the cup an acorn grows in. Tom
suddenly realised how small he must be and
immediately started to feel very uncomfortable. All he
could think of now was how he would get back home.
Riddle suddenly grabbed Toms arm and began to
shake him. Tom was feeling faint and queasy, was it
what he was drinking? His eyes closed and he felt his
body begin to float, what was happening to him?
Suddenly his eyes opened with a start and he could see
his moms face looking down at him calling him to
wake up. Come on, Tom, wake-up youve fallen
asleep, it must be all the excitement of the move thats
tired you out. Teas ready downstairs in the kitchen,
come on now or you wont sleep to-night. Tom
21

couldnt understand what had happened, had he been

in his bedroom all the time? Had he dreamt about the
place called Goritor and Riddle Pog, or HAD he
ventured into a different world? As he sat up he
decided he MUST have been dreaming, but as he
shuffled his feet into his slippers, he felt something
hard under his foot, he bent down to pick it up and
realised it was a tiny acorn cup!

22

Chapter Two

A few days had passed and the West family had

settled into their new home quite happily. Tom hadnt
given No.6 a second thought, all he could think about
was his strange dream. It had felt so real, he wondered
whether the wood he had visited really existed, or had
he read about this wonderful place in a book, and then
dreamt about it. Then he remembered his mom waking
him, and this assured him that it most definitely had
been a dream. This decision now strongly fixed in his
mind he ventured out into the garden. Flower beds full
of beautiful flowers, ornate trees, a pergola running
down the side of the garden draped in clematis mixed
with ornate ivy, and an area of decking for lounging in
the sun; all these filled Toms eyes with happiness.
How fortunate his family were to have been given this
wonderful house and garden. He felt so happy,
especially for his father who now was in a far better
financial position, no longer struggling to find the
money to keep the roof over their heads; Silvia
Meadows had been very kind to his family. Peter had
23