I'm using the book to write this, just so you know.

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This is a story about four children – Joe, Kimiko, Raimundo and Omi – and something that happened to them during a war. They were sent away to the house of the old Master Fung who lived in the heart of the country. He had no wife but lived with his housekeeper, Mrs Katnappé, and three servants, whose names are not important in this story. He himself was a very old man, and when they first met him Omi was a bit scared and Raimundo wanted to laugh. After they had said goodnight and gone up to bed they all gathered in one room and talked it over.

"This is going to be great!" said Joe. "That guy will let us do anything we want!"

"He's very nice, isn't he?" said Kimiko.

"Oh shut up," muttered Raimundo angrily, because he was very tired which always made him angry.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" asked Kimiko.

"Go to bed yourself!" he shouted back.

"Should we all not go to bed?" said Omi quietly. "We may be in trouble if we are heard arguing."

"No there won't," replied Joe. "No-one will mind, and they probably won't hear us. It took us about five minutes just to get up here!"

"What was that noise?" said Omi suddenly, feeling quite frightened.

"Just a bird," groaned Raimundo. He paused and looked up. "An owl. There must be lots of birds here. And did you see the woods? There might be stags!"

"Foxes!"

"Rabbits!"

"Badgers!" They went to bed, excited about what they might find the next day.

But when the next day came there was a steady rainfall.

"Why does it have to rain today of all days?" grumbled Raimundo, pacing the room angrily.

"Stop grumbling, Rai," said Kimiko. "Ten to one it'll clear up within an hour. In the meantime you could watch TV, or listen to your iPod."

"Well, I'm going to explore," said Joe. They all agreed that was the best idea and set off through the house. At first they only found spare rooms and the like, but soon came to more interesting places – rooms full of pictures, rooms with a balcony, rooms lined with books and even a room hung in green. Eventually they came to a room with nothing in it but a wardrobe and a dead fly. They turned to leave – except Omi. He moved forward and tried the doorknob which, to his surprise, opened easily. He walked into the wardrobe and felt the coats.

"Oh, I do like fur coats!" he remarked as he walked further in, making sure the door was open behind him. He found another row of coats. He kept going, keeping his arms stretched out in front of him so he didn't bang his head on the back.

"Gosh, this is a very big wardrobe!" As he said this, he heard a crunch under his feet. He looked down and saw snow. Confused, he walked further in, pushed a branch out of the way and almost found himself blinded by the light. He looked back and saw the room he had come from. As he did, he banged his head on something metallic.

"Ow!" he cried, and looked at it. It was like a metal tree, with a light on the top.

"A lamppost? In the middle of the woods?"

At that moment, a creature came around the corner. He had a bald head, and a determined face. He had muscles bulging from his arms, and wore a gold sash across his chest. From the waist down, however, he had glossy black goats legs and cloven hooves. His tail was draped over one arm. He was carrying an assortment of parcels, and it looked like he had just done his Christmas shopping. He was, of course, a faun. He saw Omi and the parcels fell to the ground.

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R&R!