Tilly Toots was VERY bored. She was STUCK inside with NOTHING to do. So, she decided to go rummaging in her gran’s attic, and came across a strange box. When she opened the box, she gasped. For inside the box was… https://twitter.com/Lillustrator
… a toad! And a book. A dusty, old, red book. It was fastened with a golden lock, inscribed with the words ‘Welcome Home, Tilly Toots’. The lock sparkled as Tilly read the words aloud, then -CLINK- it opened, and… https://twitter.com/Karlwheel
…the toad cried, “No! I am the old toad whose role is to cry, no, do not look at the book!” “That’s no role,” said Tilly Toots. She took a breath … and looked inside the book. “Well, now, you’ve done it,” said the toad. https://twitter.com/GuyBassBooks
To Tilly’s surprise the book contained… nothing. No pictures. No words. Just pages & pages of blank paper. “I don’t understand,” said Tilly. “You don’t understand?” said the toad. “Something’s clearly gone horribly wrong.” https://twitter.com/jonesgarethp
“I’ll fix this,” said Tilly. “I know some magic words.” “I’m sure that won’t work,” said the toad. “Don’t be such a toad,” said Tilly, closing her eyes. She imagined a sky full of shimmering stars. She said, “Once upon a time…” https://twitter.com/csoundar
“ONCE UPON A TIME?!” said the toad. “Is that all you’ve got? How very…imaginative…” He folded his arms (such as they were) and Tilly was sure she heard a little hmmph. “All the best stories start that way,” said Tilly. https://twitter.com/RashmiWriting
“…there was a girl,” Tilly continued. “This story’s about YOU, then?” scoffed Toad. “YES, now shush!” Tilly cleared her throat. “The girl lived in a castle made of stars.” With a rush of cold air, the attic melted away and Tilly and Toad… https://twitter.com/maddashe
… felt the warm wooden floorboards of the attic slip away. Down, down, down they drifted, the shimmering stars of Tilly’s dreams flickering all around them, and ‘though Tilly knew she should be scared something in the book whispered…https://twitter.com/_lufraser
… an enchantment to keep her safe. ‘Oi! What about me?’ demanded Toad. ‘You mean old red book. You’re always looking after your readers, but never me!’ Tilly’s feet landed softly on green grass. Toad whumped onto the ground. ‘Ouch.’ https://twitter.com/Juliepike
‘Well this looks nice’ said Tilly. Toad sweated. ‘Er could you imagine us somewhere else please?’ ‘Why?’ Asked Tilly ‘It’s just that- er-’. Toad was interrupted by a thunder of hooves and an angry cry, ‘There he is! Don’t let that toad get away!’ https://twitter.com/Emmett_Cath
Cantering towards them was not one but seventeen GOATS and before she could say “Crumpets!”, Tilly’s Toot’s hands were full of quivering toad. “It was all a terrible mistake,” said Toad looking from the girl to the goats and back again. https://twitter.com/perditact
‘Has anything like this ever happened before?’ Tilly said removing the clingy Toad. The piles boxes and books offered no clue of how best to stall the stampeding goats. ‘Well, there was that one time…Only it wasn’t goats,’ Toad stuttered. ‘And?’ https://twitter.com/OliviaMHope
‘Kiss me,’ said Toad. ‘Seriously?’ said Tilly. ‘But we’ve only just met. Also, you’re a toad.’ ‘Or am I? said Toad. Tilly sighed. It seemed like a weird thing to do, but with seventeen goats getting closer by the second, what choice did she have? https://twitter.com/JonathanMeres
Tilly puckered her lips and kissed the toad on the side of his cheek. Huh? she thought. He’s not slimy at all, but dry and bumpy. For a second, it seemed like nothing was going to happen. Then the charging goats froze and Tilly’s jaw dropped. https://twitter.com/TamsinCooke1
An opening shimmered into existence in front of Tilly, carved right out of the air. Beyond, she glimpsed a castle on a hill with a burbling moat and a sweeping meadow. “Come on,” Toad called in a new voice, and hopped through the portal. https://twitter.com/MarisaNoelle77
Tilly stared at the portal. Her grandma had warned her about going into strange portals with even stranger toads. He stood waving on the other side, and he looked different somehow. Hooves thundered behind her, so Tilly… https://twitter.com/BrittonBookGeek
…stepped over the threshold. The toad’s face contorted. His bendy legs shot upwards and his body unfolded. In his place stood a man with black curling beard and eyebrows pointed like daggers. ‘Hello Tilly,’ he said as a metal spiked gate clanged down behind her. https://twitter.com/Sally_writes
‘Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to speak to toads?’ He sneered. ‘That’s strangers,’ said Tilly. ‘No,’ said the toad, licking his eyeball. ‘It’s toads. Humans are so stupid. Anyway, you’re stuck now and you’re going to stay there until…https://twitter.com/emmydee73
“…you tell me the secret.” “What secret?” Tilly said, heart racing. The toadily horrible man thrust his face so close, Tilly was almost wearing his moustache. “Perhaps this will jolt your memory,” he snarled. He reached into his pocket…https://twitter.com/RachelDelahaye
…and pulled out something as beautiful as it was grotesque: a goat horn made from the brightest gold, its gnarly spiral embedded with jewels. “Ring any bells?” spat the man. Tilly eyed the glimmering horn…https://twitter.com/DarrenSimpson44
.. It seemed so familiar. As if she’d seen it before. Her fingers met her pocket. The wordless, pictureless book was in there. She snatched for it, her hands furrowing through its blank pages until she came across a single, terrible word…https://twitter.com/samueljhalpin
“BEWARE!” it said, in writing that was filled with forebodings. “BEWARE the great goat horn of Shanazaah.” “Mwha ha ha!” laughed the toady man, toadily. “But surely not?” gasped Tilly. “I mean, it can’t be?!” https://twitter.com/Susannah_Lloyd
Just then the ground began to quake.Tilly reached out in the darkness, her hands grasping the tufts of grass as she sank deeper and deeper into what seemed like a well. Down down she went until she landed with a bump. Someone else was down there, watching her, waiting for her…https://twitter.com/larrainesharri3
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