“Sophie coughed, and Oliver felt his cheeks becoming warm. “Don’t be an ass, Andrew.” “That’s a little bit difficult to accomplish, y’know?” Andrew replied. “I mean, if you had been so kind as to paint me with black and white stripes, I would’ve been a zebra!”

“And we saved your life, y’know,” Andrew said, jerking his head in Oliver’s direction. “I mean, the least you could do is thank us.”“Of course!” Oliver said hastily. “Thank you very much.”“It was really dangerous back there,” Patricia said earnestly, as though wanting to make sure he understood the severity of the situation. “Yes, beheading is a serious business, I suppose,” Oliver said kindly. “I think it would have been difficult to keep on living once my head was chopped off.”

“Everytime I look at a zebra, I can't figure out whether it's black with white stripes or white with black stripes, and that frustrates me.”

“It looks like an asylum landed here,” Andrew quipped, poking his head out of Oliver’s pocket. “Ooh, I spot an ass-shaped tent.”“What? Seriously?” Sophie said, surprised. However, she was quick to look away. “Oh. You meant that kind of ass. Jeez, Andrew.”

“I asked the Zebra, are you black with white stripes? Or white with black stripes? And the zebra asked me, Are you good with bad habits?Or are you bad with good habits?Are you noisy with quiet times? Or are you quiet with noisy times? Are you happy with some sad days? Or are you sad with some happy days? Are you neat with some sloppy ways? Or are you sloppy with some neat ways? And on and on and on and on and on and on he went.I’ll never ask a zebra about stripes...again.”

“Oliver opened the door of the carriage and found his puppets huddled together on the bench. He gestured for them to come closer. “Hurry,” he hissed. “Unless you want to become as tiny as ants.” “Oliver, did you know that you have a rainbow on your head?” Andrew remarked.”