Polish and cheesy potato bake..........

Stephanotis and Archibold were polishing the statue with Uncle Humperdinck's secret recipe for wood nurturing varnish. Hortensia had finished all of her final carving touches with a small kitchen parring knife and was now sitting exhausted watching the polishing process with amazement. Her statue of a Hero Gnome was turning a deep, glossy brown, glinting in the sunshine and seeming almost alive.

They were discussing how to move the statue to the old lady's garden without being seen. Of course all gnomes have the ability to merge and flow, but the statue was made of wood and was very obvious, gnomes have an inbuilt and extreme aversion at even the very thought of endangering their safety. 'Have to be a night mission, we can put it on a cart and pull it there, you up for it Stephanotis?' Archibold was bursting with joy at Hortensia's achievement and was eager to see it in pride of place. 'Course I am, count me in, is tonight the night?'

Soon a large party of gnomes was gathered at Aunt Mildred's, who having fortuitously foreseen the inevitable need for a strengthening supper, had made a very tasty cheesy potato bake. Sometime after midnight about twenty gnomes gathered around the statue, they had padded the cart with moss so as not to damage the statue as it traveled over the rough terrain and then tied it on securely with ivy ropes. Silently they set off at a fast lope, pulling the cart through the forest to the edge of the garden. "Aunt Mildred says the perfect place is over there in front of the laburnum', Hortensia was trying not to be bossy but was feeling rather nervous.

The gnomes carried the statue over a small lawn, past the herbaceous border and on to a perfect natural podium in front of the laburnum. Aunt Mildred had been right, once in it's rightful place, The Hero Gnome Statue looked truely magnificent. After standing and admiring Hortensia's grand achievement, the gnomes gently set off for home - satisfied at their amazing day's work and looking forward to a well deserved and very good night's sleep.