Digory The Dragon Slayer

Digory, after giving his full title.
    The Labeller groaned as he hunted in his cart for a very long ticket.
    ‘It’s His Majesty,’ he explained, sharpening the quill pen. ‘King Widget has a very bad memory for the names of things. He can remember dates, he never forgets anyone’s birthday, but he gets a bit woolly when it comes to names.
    ‘Once he took all morning to remember that his blue-cosy-things were called ‘slippers’, and couldn’t get out of bed until the Queen had guessed what he wanted. It made things very slow, you see. So, now everything is labelled — including you!’
    And he produced a long sign that read ‘Sir Digory the Dragon Slayer’, and an old one just saying ‘Horse’ for Barley.

DIGORY MEETS KING WIDGET

    Once he was labelled, Digory could be presented to the King. This happened whenever a knight arrived at a castle. Digory wished he could be presented to the baker or the muffin man first, but no, knightly business always had to come before food.
    King Widget was in the throne room playing marbles.
    Digory introduced himself.
    ‘Do you have any good deeds that need doing, Sire?’ he asked politely.
    ‘Well, it’s very kind of you to offer, my fellow,’ said the King with a smile. ‘You arrived just at the right moment. As a matter of fact the... er... the... um...’ he scratched his head and look puzzled. ‘Oh, you know, the, the... what’s it called?’
    Digory couldn’t begin to guess what the King was trying to remember.
    ‘I’m afraid I don’t know, Your Majesty,’ he said patiently (thinking to himself in dismay that it might be some time before he saw a muffin or leg of chicken).
    ‘Oh, botherations,’ said the King, getting into a terrible fluster.
    Then, to Digory’s astonishment, the King began to walk slowly up and down the throne room, curtseying to nobody at all and holding out his hand to be kissed.
    ‘Now you know, don’t you?’ called out the King hopefully, ‘It’s the grand-giggly-wimple...’
    ‘Ah, you mean the Queen, Your Majesty?’ suggested Digory.
    ‘Yes, yes, thank you,’ said the King. ‘Queen, Queen, I must remember that word,’ he muttered to himself. ‘Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, the Queen and I made a list this morning of little jobs to be done around the castle.’ And he pulled a long scroll of parchment from a pocket inside his cloak.
    Digory looked at it in dismay.
    ‘I was going to make a start on these this afternoon,’ explained the King. ‘But if you have nothing better to do I’d be terribly grateful.’
    Digory thanked the King. At the top of the list was written:
    1. Rescue cook’s cat.
    And so he went off to find the kitchen.
    Digory didn’t take long to find the castle kitchen for a delicious smell of freshly baked bread led him there by nose. In the middle of a busy bustle of baking was the cook, up to her apron strings in puddings and piecrust. Digory stood in the doorway, gazing at the trays of golden loaves. How he wished to say, ‘Please may I have...’ But, sadly, he swallowed hard.
    ‘Is there a cat to be rescued?’ he asked.
    ‘Ooh, my little Pumpkin!’ exclaimed the cook. She waved her arms excitedly, dusting everyone with a shower of flour. ‘Follow me, Sir Knight.’
    The cook took Digory out into the kitchen garden, past fruit bushes and beehives to the orchard, where a tiny, frightened kitten was wedged in the crook of an apple tree.
    ‘There’s my little Pumpkin,’ sobbed the cook. ‘She’s been up there since Wednesday. She won’t even come down for a saucer of milk.’
    Digory, of course, could climb a tree as nimbly as a squirrel. Up he went and saw at once what was the problem.

    ‘Her label is snagged on a branch,’ he called down softly. Digory reached up and released Pumpkin. To his delight she tumbled into his arms and licked his face gratefully.
    The cook was so pleased to have her kitten safe once more she took Digory back to the kitchen, laid a cloth on the table and served him a huge dish of mutton stew and dumplings.
    When Digory had finished his third helping the rest of King Widget’s list didn’t look so bad.
    So Digory set about doing good deeds around the castle. First he polished the King’s armour, then he chopped down an old tree in the orchard that was about to fall on some damsons. When that was done he unblocked the well, fishing out two rusty pails, a pair of breeches, a frying pan and a chamber pot.

    All afternoon Digory mended this and