Ned sat cross-legged in front of an old tree stump. He held Sir Hugs in his right hand and Alfonso the Valiant in his left. Setting Sir Hugs astride his noble steed, Ned trotted them up to the foot of the stump. It was playing the role of the castle of the wicked king. Since he'd returned from his adventure Shaman's castle and its wicked king had loomed large in his games of pretend. The evil ruler had an angry dragon and had hurt Ciara's friend. Sir Hugs would make sure she received justice, and that Shaman was freed from the tyranny of king and dragon. With his right hand now free, Ned reached for the conkers he'd gathered from around the garden and placed on top of the stump. He flicked one with his fingers, sending it flying through the air to hit Sir Hugs in the shoulder. The Siege of Shaman was underway.

Alfonso the Valiant had just made his way across the moat when Ned noticed the bird watching him from a nearby tree. It was huge, and it was watching him closely with scary yellow eyes. Its large claws gripped the branch it was on firmly, its talons digging into the bark. Ned shuddered. It was scary. Game forgotten, he hugged his bear and horse to his chest and scrambled to his feet. He moved to a different part of the garden, founding a watering can large enough to make a suitable substitute for the stump. He had just managed to finish setting everything up again, when the bird reappeared with a flapping of wings. It landed on the top of the nearby gazebo.

"Hello brother," it said. Ned shook his head. No...it wasn't speaking, birds couldn't speak, the voice was inside his head. He bit his lip and stared back at the bird, his heart hammering against his ribs. Scooping his toys back up again, he moved to a different part of the gardens again and concealed himself inside a particularly large ornamental fern.

The bird found him again. It perched in the branches of the nearby olive tree, stared at him and then tipped its head curiously to one side. It was too much for Ned. Hugging his toys to his chest again he ran back over the lawn and towards the house.
"Niñera" he called, quickening his pace, and then louder, "Niñera! me está siguiendo! Its following me!"

The glass doors were pulled ajar, scraping as they were pulled back from inside. A shapely woman of middle years with an ample bosom and long black hair came running out onto the patio, her eyes wide in alarm. She crouched down on one knee and opened her arms. Ned ran into them and buried his head in her shoulder. He clutched at her jumper.

"A big bird!" he told her in Spanish, "it looked mean and scary and it kept following me!"

His niñera looked out across the garden, and he felt her stiffen. She must have seen it! He pressed his face a little harder against her, trying to be brave and not cry. A younger girl whose name he didn't know followed Niñera onto the patio.

" ¿Qué es?" she asked. Niñera shook her head, resting a gentle hand on the back of Ned's head.

"Obtener senor mallos, rápidamente!" she urged the girl.