The Person Controller

“Is he saying … wheee! and wheheyheey!?” said Derek.

“Yes,” said Eric, dumbfounded.

“Eric,” said Janine. “We should tell him to come down …”

“Yes,” said Eric. “Fred! Come down!”

“After he’s got the cat, Eric!!” she said.

“Oh,” said Eric.

Someone who was even more confused about what was happening than the grown-ups was Margaret Scratcher. That confusion was, in fact, quite useful because it meant that Margaret just stayed stock-still, watching in amazement as Fred came closer and closer.

Finally, Fred neared the top of the tree. He reached out a hand towards the cat.

“Hello, Margaret …” he whispered. “Come on, Margaret. Come down with me. Come to me.”

Margaret Scratcher stared at him with big cat eyes. Then she turned away, in order to have a very important and absolutely-necessary-at-this-point-in-time side wash. Lick! Lick! Lick! she went. Fred reached out his other hand and Margaret Scratcher suddenly stopped her wash, hissed and jumped off the tree, towards the living room. She landed on one of Santa’s reindeer – Rudolf – and then from there, with a single leap, she moved to the Whites’ roof.

“MARGARET!” shouted Janine.

“Oh dearie me,” said Eric.

“One minute,” said Derek. “You’ve got one minute before these lights go on …”

“But it’s our son up there now!!!” said Eric.

“Rules is rules,” said Derek.

Fred looked down at Ellie. Ellie had her hand on the Controller, one finger poised over the buttons. She nodded at him and mouthed the words: Go for it – I’ll make sure you don’t fall.

So Fred – because the twins, as we know, were able to lip-read each other at some distance – nodded back. He crouched down. And Ellie’s fingers flew.