Earlier on this afternoon, in the forest at the back of the Bluestocking women only pub, an incongruous couple strolled along beside the stream. Let's follow, and see if anything happens.
Inky moose, a dark and pedantic moose who sometimes sports antlers and more often doesn't, lopes powerfully alongside knitted sloth, a smallish stuffed toy who thinks she's real. Their habitats are in completely different hemispheres, so they rarely meet, but occasionally have a few hours together outside the Bluestocking, perhaps speaking about cauliflowers and Queens rather than cabbages and Kings, and musing on the fascinating nature of boiled beetle's many pairs of Highland cow slippers, before enjoying some tasty green leaves (moose) or 90% dark chocolate (sloth).
Whatever their conversation entails, their friendship is real, but needs to remain hidden for the time being, as it is possible that they are twin souls. Nobody has suspected this until now, but boiled beetle is onto them. She's been suspicious for a little while, but has been busy saving the world from fools and humourless bureaucrats. She's got a window in her frenetic schedule today.
It's quite cool in the forest this afternoon, compared to yesterday when it was extremely hot. Moose doesn't care, but sloth feels inclined to sleep when it's warm, and after a while she gets on Moose's back for a ride. As they trundle between the trees, shiny sleuthing Beetle tracks their path, watching carefully to see where the path takes them. Beetle has all the necessary equipment for an afternoon's spying. Her basket contains both Tunnock's tea cakes and caramel wafers, as well as some binoculars and emergency blanket and neck pillow, in case she gets a little weary and needs to snooze a power nap.
Knitted sloth can hear rustling somewhere amongst the trees but it is pretty much drowned out by all the tweeting of the birds and the shushing of the wind.
Beetle gets a little impatient as the pair are more trundle than turbo, and seem to be entirely without any urgency. She turns around to see if anyone else is about, and by the time she turns back again the pair have disappeared.
Inside the magical Bluestocking space, sloth tells moose that it's her turn to go in the cupboard.
Like the magical wardrobe that leads to Narnia in the story of the lion, the witch and the wardrobe, the blue stocking cupboard has a cold and northern forest at the back of it, where moose can get some snow time, meandering through the stark trees for hours on end, roaring, and meeting other moose. Meanwhile, sloth heads back into the Bluestocking, and the company of all the denizens within.
Beetle counts the tea cakes and finds there is one missing. Did she eat it without thinking? She runs back around the Bluestocking to the rear entrance where there is a secret passage, and hurries out of sight.