Chapter 1

Anna adored her garden. It was, in a word, scruffy: big enough to fit plenty of trees, bushes and areas of long, wild grasses and plants, but not quite big enough to get lost in. At the bottom was a stream (which tended to dry up in the summer), and beyond the stream were fields. On one side of the garden there was a wood, which seemed huge through Anna’s eight-year old eyes. On the other side, a hedge stretched from the house to the stream, separating the garden from next door. Once a year her father would valiantly attempt to bring the sprawling foliage under control, attacking it with shears and various electrical contraptions, but a few weeks later it would be hard to tell any difference.

The people who had owned the house before Anna's family had clearly not been keen gardeners, and the whole area had been left to do pretty much whatever it liked. As a result there were always new corners to be discovered and adventures to be had. Anna was only out of her garden when she absolutely had to be - for school, visiting relatives or when the weather really was impossibly bad. To Anna, the times she spent outside the garden were never quite as real as those in it. In winter time she would sit by the window, knees curled under chin, watching as the weather took its toll, stripping the leaves and casting frosts until finally spring fought back and gave way to the greens and bright colours of spring. No one really knew what she was thinking about, but all agreed that it was probably best not to disturb her.

Anna often found things hidden under debris or buried in the dirt, which she would carefully clean in the water butt and put on the shelf above her bed. Here collection included an old, brass key, three coins (which she had discovered all buried close to one another with their edges sticking up out of the soil) and what looked like a tiny pearl with a black dot on each side.

This particular day was a warm, breezy, late summer day. The holidays were nearly over, but looking at Anna you might be forgiven for thinking they had only just started. She was in the garden again, playing at building an adventure playground for any little creatures she might turn up. Earlier in the day she had unearthed an old metal platter, leaving a hole in the ground about a foot across and a few inches deep. In the hole she had carefully arranged a few pieces of wood to make a sort of bridge. Now she was hunting for insects to populate her newly built playground.

First Anna looked down by the stream, but it had been a wet summer and there were plenty of mosquitoes to show for it. She quickly came away, choosing instead to look next to the hedge that ran the length of the garden, separating it from next door. The previous owners had left some pieces of wooden planking along the edge of the garden, which were now mostly overgrown by the hedge. It was usually possible to dislodge a lump of wood from the undergrowth and, more often than not, there would be a scurry of tiny creatures underneath. Anna loosened a short section of planking, revealing some convoluted tunnels in the mud and more than enough insects, woodlice and little worms. Anna carried the piece of wood to the playground and carefully teased the insects into their new home. Of course, the insects and grubs either shot into hiding and refused to come out, or lay where they were, spiralling their tails. Realising that insects would be unlikely to perform how she wanted them to, Anna gave up on the playground and went to investigate the mud tunnels she had left under the hedge.

A second piece of wood lay just behind where Anna had found the first. The tunnel constructions disappeared under the wood, firing her curiosity. Anna went down on her hands and knees and crawled forward before clasping the end of the piece of wood and prising it up from the ground.

Anna blinked with surprise. There were the tunnels, now trenches open to the light. There were the expected woodlice, worms and beetles, twirling and spiralling and running for cover. There was also an earwig, which was running around in circles and looking distinctly odd. It took Anna a little while to work out what was so unusual about this earwig. She looked at it closely, unsure that her eyes were focusing properly in the shade of the undergrowth. But yes, there it was. The earwig was wearing a hat, and not just any hat. It sported a beautiful, black, top hat. As Anna stared, the earwig slowed, then stopped. Its tiny, clawed head turned towards her. Then, making Anna jump in the process, the little creature demanded, "Never seen an earwig in a hat before?"

Anna was so shocked she could barely move, but it seemed impolite not to reply.

"No, actually, I haven't," she shrugged weakly.

"Well, take a good look then, and if there's nothing else I can help you with, you'll leave me on my mission and get on with whatever you were up to." The earwig tipped its head and started back along one of the tunnels. “Oh, and I hope you mean to put our roof back on?” it questioned, looking back. “Keep the weather out, never mind the birds, if you please!”

Anna jumped up like she'd been stung. Of course, she didn’t believe anything that had just happened. She wanted to reply, or run away and forget it all, or at least do something – but all she managed was to move her head slightly and put on a bemused expression.

Finally she managed to turn her back and she started to walk away. One step, two steps she counted before her temptation got the better of her. Anna just had to know whether she had imagined everything, or.. well, what else could be true? Slowly, nervously Anna turned, walked back and crouched down.

"Well, are you going to put the roof back on or WHAT?" shot the earwig.

Anna sat back on her haunches. This couldn't be real, she told herself. A talking earwig in a top hat? Impossible. Must be a dream. Might as well go along with it. Anna leaned forward and cocked her head to one side.

"What are you doing, little earwig?" she asked in a way she thought most appropriate to address talking insects.

The earwig looked at her coldly. "Don't patronise me," it said, "I am second in command, third reconnaissance troop, earwig division, army of King Solomon, kingdom of Nedrag. My mission," Anna was finding it hard to suppress a giggle, "is to locate the seed of Cyanthus, also known as the magic seed, lately re- ... are you laughing at me?"

"No, n-no," stuttered Anna. "Please, carry on."

"Ahem. Lately removed from their majesty's presence by Wart spies who were compromised in their activities by the forces of good. Following?"

"I'm awfully sorry," said Anna. "I didn't understand a word you said."

The earwig looked mildly uncomfortable. "What I mean, young missy, is that the magic seed is at large, to be discovered, in this very area and my mission is to locate and return it. Sadly," the insect went on, waving its pincers, “the seed was lost long before I was born, some say never to be found.”

"What does it look like?" asked Anna.

"'Tis a globe of the purest white," recited the earwig with all solemnity. "Its two faces are marked with a circle of black."

Anna's mind raced. "What - about this big?" she asked, holding her finger and thumb slightly apart.

"That would be about it," said the earwig, "so it would seem, according to the watchers of the clasp which used to contain it. The thing is... Where are you going?"

Anna was already racing up the garden to the house. She tore up the stairs, nearly knocking her Mum over on the way past.

"Hey! Look at where you're..." yelped her Mum, but Anna was already in her room, out of earshot. She jumped on her bed and checked her shelf of treasures. There it was, the tiny, pearl-like sphere that Anna had found only the week before. She picked it up, clasped it in her hand and shot back downstairs, narrowly missing her mother again.

"Would you please be ..." was all she heard as she cleared the back door sill with a leap and careered back down the garden, her right hand held tight to her chest.

When Anna got back to the overturned plank, the earwig was nowhere to be seen. Of course, she thought to herself. It was all in my head. Anna sat down, unclenched her fist and dropped the tiny ball into the palm of her hand, She picked it up between her forefinger and thumb and twirled it carelessly. "Oh well," she muttered to herself. "Nice idea."

Anna was just getting up and walking back to the house when she heard a familiar, tiny voice behind her.

"You looking for me?" Her heart leapt and she turned to see an earwig, wearing a top hat and hanging from a leafless branch of the bush. "So – where did you go?"

Anna slowly unclasped her hand to reveal the gleaming object. The earwig craned its neck (as best as earwigs can) and, well, gasped with excitement.

"I don't believe - yes! That's it! That's it!" exclaimed the tiny creature.

Despite her own excitement, Anna remembered that she didn’t believe one little bit of what was going on. "Of course,” she said to herself, "it's only something I found, I'm Anna, I'm in my garden, its my school holidays and, and.." her voice trailed off. She looked up at the earwig, which was still spinning with delight on his branch.

"Are you real?" she asked the earwig, at the same time not believing she was saying it.

"Come closer," the earwig replied, "closer... closer, that's it... a little closer..."

Suddenly the little creature jumped onto Anna's face and sank its back claws into the end of her nose.

"Ow!" Anna jumped backwards and sat down, the earwig still on her nose. "What was that for?"

"Let me ask you," said the earwig, "am I real?"

"I suppose you must be," she answered, stumped for a better thing to say. "Do you have a name?"

"I do," replied the earwig, "but unfortunately it is not pronounceable in your language. You'd have to become an insect if you wanted me to tell you."

"And how, exactly, might I do that?" asked Anna, knowing full well that it would be impossible.

The earwig looked at her impatiently. "You use the seed, of course! It chose you to be its guardian, now you may ask it to do your bidding!"

Anna looked incredulous. Use the seed, indeed! Whatever next. But then, she thought to herself, if she could believe that an earwig could talk, then, well, maybe she could believe anything was possible.

She glanced at the pearl-like seed in her hand. "What do I have to do?" she asked the earwig.

"Just tell the seed what you want to do!" the earwig said, exasperated. "Do you have to make everything so difficult?"

"What, you mean like this: I wish I was a ladybird. There, see! Nothing happen-"

Suddenly there was a whooshing ringing sound in Anna's ears. Everything seemed to get suddenly bigger and darker, like the world was growing up around her. She felt unsteady on her feet and sat down again, but when she tried to stand up she toppled forward onto all fours. What's going on, she wanted to say, but for some reason her mouth didn't seem to work and all she could manage was to bang her teeth together. Finally the noise subsided.

"Wow," she thought to herself. She was still in the garden, she was pretty sure, but it had never looked quite like this magical place. Everything appeared in the tiniest detail. The grass was like a huge, tangled forest stretching as far as the eye could see, and the dew-spattered greens and golds of the hedge stretched into the heavens like a jewelled mountain. Anna tried to look behind her but found she couldn’t move her head. Eventually she shuffled around on what felt like her hands and knees, until she was facing the earwig. And what a splendid earwig he was! He towered above her on his hind legs, his black shell glistening in the light and his viscious-looking pincers opening and closing behind him.

"What are you waiting for!" asked the earwig. This time however, when it spoke, it didn't seem to make any noise. Rather Anna heard the sounds inside her head. She tried to reply with her mouth but all she could manage was to crack her jaws together.

"Ungnf gnf crkkf crrk," was the best she could do.

"What are you playing at?" said, or rather projected the earwig. Ladybirds can't talk with their mouths like people can!"

"What does he mean?" she thought.

"I mean you have to think to me, not speak to me!" the earwig thought back.

"You can hear my thoughts?" thought Anna.

"Does this surprise you?" thought the earwig. Anna thought about this as well, and decided that yes, it did, but it was just one more thing she didn't understand.

"Good," said the earwig in her thoughts, "now shall we get on?"

"But you haven't told me your name!" exclaimed Anna.

"Oh, yes," said the earwig. I suppose you would call me... Ernest." Anna suppressed a chuckle.

"What's so funny about 'Ernest'?" said Ernest, a little crossly.

"Oh - nothing," grinned Anna.

"Harrumph," harrumphed Ernest. "To business. You, the guardian of the seed, must ensure its safe return to the stronghold of Ertreap. “I, Ernest,” he looked at her pointedly, "who discovered the seed and its guardian, will accompany you. Furthermore, -"

"Hang on a minute!" interrupted Anna. "You didn't discover the seed, I did! And what do you mean, ensure its safe return! I'm supposed to be having my tea in a minute! And I don't even know if I can trust you! What if you lead me into a trap! I don't even know what's going on here! What if I'm stuck being a ladybird for ever! And, and -"

“My dear, I apologise,” said Ernest in a calming voice. “Maybe I can put your mind at ease. You are the guardian of the seed! You have nothing to fear from a lowly earwig such as myself. You have powers beyond my capabilities to imagine! As long as you have the seed, you can be anything you want, do anything you want!"

"Why me?" questioned the girl, astonished. "Just because I found the silly thing?"

"No, milady, you found the 'silly thing,' as you put it, because you are its guardian, not the other way round."

"Do you mean to say that I knew where it was?"

"Who can say," replied Ernest. "Let's just say you found each other. And right now, you need to take it home."

"But what about my tea?" asked Anna.

"Don't worry," answered the earwig. "You'll be home way before then. Insect time runs much faster than human time. Indeed, several days could pass and you would still get home before anyone noticed."

"Okay," said Anna, still a little unsure, "let’s go."

The earwig nodded. "Follow me, and keep up!" he announced, before he shot off into the dense undergrowth. Anna, carrying the seed as best she could in her mandibles, scuttled after him but quickly fell behind.

"Hang on!" she cried, not knowing if Ernest could hear her thoughts anymore. "I can't carry this thing and keep up! Oh, what's the use." Anna scudded to a stop and caught her breath.

A few moments later, Ernest reappeared and drew up beside her. "If I might ask you to bestow a little of your trust, milady, perhaps I could carry the seed?" "Stop calling me that!" Anna replied, exasperated and still a little out of breath. "But alright, you carry it. Maybe that will slow you down a little." She passed the pearly object to Ernest, who shot of the moment he took hold of it between his pincers. "Keep up!" he shouted as he vanished once again.

This time, Anna dashed after him and caught a glimpse of the seed as he disappeared first left, then right through the tall fronds of grass. Soon she was just behind him, blurring along the ground, then up a stem, then across a fallen leaf. Anna barely had time to take in the splendour of what she passed, as all she could see were the greens, browns and other colours passing them. It seemed like they carried on for hours, but despite getting out of breath, Anna didn't feel tired or exhausted. In fact, she barely had a moment to feel anything much at all.

At last, Ernest and Anna left the grass and started uphill on a hard, brown, leathery, pocked surface. Ernest slowed and flicked his head to her. "We are approaching the stronghold of Ertreap," he remarked. "I'd best give this -" he flicked his tail, showing the seed between his pincers " - back before we reach the frontier guards, lest they arrest me for false possession."

Anna agreed without really knowing what he was talking about. The pair slowed to a stop and Ernest passed the seed to Anna, who held it uncomfortably in her mandibles once again. They started back up the leathery surface, curving around a large, protruding mound.

"Halt! Where go you!" announced no-one Anna could see.

"Who said that?" she asked loudly.

"Sssh!" hissed Ernest. "Let me deal with this, will you?"

"Okay," she replied, quieter this time.

"’Tis Ernest, second in command, third reconnaissance troop, earwig division, army of King Solomon. I accompany Anna, guardian of the seed of Cyanthus."

"Come forward and be recognised!" boomed the voice.

Ernest and Anna moved forward together, with Anna tucked slightly behind Ernest as they moved up the slope and around the mound. Anna recoiled in shock as she took in the scene. Behind the mound there gaped an opening into the leathery surface on which they stood. At each side of the entrance stood a most enormous and imposing black beetle.

"Come on, whispered Ernest. "Don't be afraid - they're here to protect us!" Anna couldn't help wondering what from, as she ran her gaze up their bulk. Best not to think too hard about that, she decided to herself.

"Good day to you, Ernest and Anna. What business do you have in the stronghold?" asked one of the beetles.

"We return the seed of Cyanthus to its rightful place!" Ernest announced. “Ring the bells and sound the horns! The seed has been found!”

The two beetles rose even higher on their massive hind legs. "How can we be expected to believe that?" they asked, a little harshly, Anna thought.

"Because - here it is!" announced Ernest, moving back from Anna and revealing the seed clenched in her mandibles.

The two beetles, despite their bulk, stepped backwards in surprise. Then they turned to each other. All Anna could hear were a few snippets of their mutterings, such as "certainly looks like it", "can't believe it" and "what do we do now?" Finally the two monstrous bugs turned back to Ernest and Anna. "We suppose you'd better come in, then!" they said in unison. "Sound the horns! The seed has returned!"