‘The Squashbuckler Diaries’ are the daily tales of Joy Shelley’s Life in the Dream. The ‘Lost in Dreams’ books will tell the story of what happens to her at ages 6, 9, 12, 15, and so on. The diaries tell us what happens before, after, and between the books.

#86: The Double-Decker Bus

“Double kedder Bus?”

“Close. Double decker bus.”

Dragon Father and Dragon Little were climbing aboard a double-decker bus on the planet of New London.

“Double kedder bus?”

“Let’s go up the stairs. Listen, say it slowly. Double…”

“Double…”

“Decker…”

“Kedder…”

“No. Deck…”

“Deck…”

“Er…”

“Er…”

“Now together: Decker.”

“Kedder.”

Dragon Father made a face. “Let’s sit here. You sit near the window.”

It was a red bus and the top part was without a roof and without any windows. They sat as the bus began to move on the road. 

Dragon Little stood up and looked up. “Why aren’t we flying?”

“It’s a bus, it doesn’t fly.”

“It’s not a spaceship?”

“It’s a bus. It goes on wheels.”

Dragon Little peered even further down, now half her body hanging out. Dragon Father did not motion to stop her or hold her. He trusted her. 

“Wheels? Why does it have wheels? How can it sail on wheels?”

“It doesn’t sail. It’s a bus. It goes on roads.”

“But… spaceships just fly. They get there faster. Our ship flies. And sails. Why does anyone need a bus?”

“It’s...well...you...it’s… You know what, I just wanted you to have an experience. A double-decker bus is an experience”

Dragon Little returned to the seat, crossed her arms and sighed loudly. “Yai, great. When are we getting there?”

—Told by The Red Dragon

Check out how I came up with the idea for this post:

#87: Cleaning the Mess

#85: The Gruffalo