Wild Magic (25 page)

“But it definitely wasn't him?”

“No. How could it be?”

Marianna shook her head. Of course it couldn't be Johann. He was a salmon, swimming through the rivers of Elvendale.

“Are you all right, Mari? You look a bit . . . lost.”

Marianna sighed thoughtfully. Jakob was right. She had been lost for the moment. She had been back in Elvendale, by the Standing Stone, with the Piper playing and the children shape-shifting around her.

“Do you think of them sometimes?” she said. “The others?”

Jakob shrugged. “A bit. But I wasn't like you, Mari. I didn't have many friends in Hamelin. Well, I did, but they were much older. Do you remember Lemken? The old man who used to sit by the abbey? I miss him. But I don't really miss any of the children. I'm glad some of them are gone! Do you remember stinky Albert, the tanner's apprentice? He was
horrible
to me. I hope Finn turned him into something really nasty, like a cockroach. No—a worm! Then one of the hedgehogs could eat him.”

“That's a terrible thing to say!” exclaimed Marianna, but she couldn't hide her smile. “You're right, though. It was different for me. I used to gossip with my friends and share secrets. I miss that. And the worst thing is, I don't know what happened to them. We were all changing at the same time and there were so many of us, I don't know who became what. And I
still
don't understand why the Piper did it.”

“He wasn't thinking,” said Jakob. “He did it because he could: that's what he told me. Elves are like that sometimes. And I know you think it was a terrible thing to do, Mari, but some of them will be living good lives. Can you imagine how brilliant it must be for the ones that became birds? No work, just endless flying! I would love that.”

“So would I—for a while. But for the rest of my life? I don't think so. And you're forgetting Karl. His life is over.”

Jakob shrugged again. “That was the Beast, not Finn.”

Marianna said nothing, simply looked at her brother. Was this a good time to talk about the curse? Surely he must be desperately worried. The full moon was just three days away.

But Jakob seemed to read her mind and, before she could say anything, he had escaped out of the door. Through the window, she could see him with Moller, admiring the newly hung sign as if he didn't have a worry in the world.

Marianna shook her head wonderingly and returned to her broom.

“I've finished here,” she said, looking at the clean floor. “Upstairs next. And worry about something else, Marianna!”

As she started to climb the stairs, she thought about supper. Up to the first floor . . . to the second . . . to the third she went. By the time she reached Jakob's room, her head was full of meat and vegetables. But when she saw what was in his room, she forgot supper in an instant.

In the corner of the room, propped up against the wall, was Jakob's wooden staff.

It was kept well polished, but it wasn't being used. Jakob hadn't done any magic since Elvendale and he didn't need it for support. His body had remained strong and firm and supple, just as the Piper had promised. So the staff was simply lying there in the shadows, dark and dormant.

Only it wasn't dark any longer.

It was glowing.

CHAPTER
FIFTY-NINE

The staff was glowing with a dull red light, like blood in water. Marianna fetched Jakob from the street. Dragged him upstairs. Pulled him into the room and pointed. Jakob said nothing, simply stared. The staff hadn't been like that an hour earlier when he was last in the room.

Jakob didn't know what to think. He felt perfectly well. No fever or tiredness. No sense of a shadow moving within him, as Finn had described. But the staff wouldn't glow for no reason at all. He knew that. It was a warning. It was telling him to prepare. Telling him to return to Elvendale.

Marianna wanted Jakob to leave right away. She was terrified he would transform there and then, and they wouldn't be able to restrain him. He would smash his way out of the house and rampage through the town. The townsfolk would scream in terror and call for a hunter. His poor dead body would be dragged through the streets and burned on a bonfire. She could see it all so clearly.

But Jakob wanted to wait. He said he would leave on the day itself, and he did. Marianna and his father went with him. They climbed up Hamelin Hill, back to the place they had all committed to memory in case this desperate moment came.

Jakob struck his staff against the ground and waited. Soon the blue light appeared.

“Let me come with you,” begged Marianna. The outline of a door was visible in the hillside.

Jakob shook his head.

“I don't suppose you want me either, do you?” said Moller, his voice sounding strangely hoarse.

Jakob smiled and shook his head again.

“Off you go, then,” said Moller. “We'll be thinking of you.”

Jakob nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He swallowed hard and walked through the open door. And then, just before it closed, he turned and raised his staff high in the air.

Moller and Marianna saw him silhouetted against the dazzling blue light.

“Hurrah for Sir Jakob of the New Legs!” he cried. “Off on a new quest!”

Then the door closed. He was gone.

CHAPTER
SIXTY

Jakob walked through Hamelin Hill, making a mental note of all the twists and turns in the tunnels. He wanted to able to find his way back when it was over. He reached Elvendale late in the afternoon, walked down the hillside into the vale and looked for a suitable place to change. He soon found it: a small stand of trees, away from the road, with a sizable pool and a low flat stone that could serve as a bench.

He sat down on the stone and waited for night to fall.

It was a long wait, broken only by a fluttering of fire-gold wings as a hawk swept in and landed on a low bough.

It shook itself, straightened a ruffled feather, and stared at Jakob with its dark eyes. But it remained silent and Jakob had just about decided it wasn't Flyte when the bird spoke.

“Finn is close by, should you need him. Luck be with you.” With that, Flyte disappeared into the darkening sky.

Jakob smiled. The news was reassuring, though he hoped he would cope on his own. He certainly didn't want anyone watching him when he changed. That would be too embarrassing.

Night came. The moon rose and began its long, slow journey across the sky. Jakob looked at his hands. He wasn't sprouting hairs. His teeth didn't seem to be growing, and there was no smell. Marianna had told him about the Beast's foul stench. There was no sign of that, thank the Lord, but there was still time.

An hour went by. Two. The midnight moon was high now, nearing the zenith. Jakob could feel his heart thumping in his chest. He was starting to feel sick. “It's fear,” he told himself. “Not the curse.” But he couldn't be sure.

The moon slipped into its highest position. Jakob saw it happen. Actually saw it jolt into place, like a bolt on a wagon. Then he felt it begin. A moving— a quickening—deep inside him.

He stood up and pulled off his clothes, fingers fumbling with the laces. He was shaking all over and couldn't stop it. He closed his eyes and hoped the sensation would go away, but it didn't. He felt ripples moving up and down his body, as if the curse was exploring him, deciding what to do with its new host.

Jakob looked at his hands.

“Oh, dear Lord.”

There were long silver hairs shooting out of the skin. Not just on his hands—on his arms and chest. On his belly, legs, and back. Then he felt a warm, tingling sensation in his toes and, as he watched in horror, his feet changed shape. His legs stretched and remolded themselves, till they became so long and spindly at the bottom, he couldn't stand upright anymore. He was thrown forward onto all fours.

He started to quiver. The tingling was happening all over his body now, but there was no pain. No pain at all. No breaking bones, no stretching flesh, no straining muscles, no falling into darkness. No sense of the Beast taking him over, body, brain, and soul. Just the warm, caressive tingling and an unexpected feeling that something truly wondrous was happening.

And then the tingling stopped. It was done. He had changed.

Jakob stood quite still for a moment, wondering what to do next. His eyes were drawn to the pool. Could he see himself ? See what he had become?

He walked forward, surprised at how natural it felt to move on all fours. Marianna had said the same when she described being a fox. He hadn't believed her at the time but now he knew it was true.

Jakob reached the pool and looked down into the water. He saw the moon, rich and round like a great silver platter—and he saw a wolf. Not a Beast. A wolf. A glorious silver gray wolf, with amber eyes and a black-lipped muzzle. He was extraordinarily handsome. The most magical creature he had ever seen.

Then he heard something. A tiny sound—a twig snapping—but his ears caught it and he whipped around, fangs bared.

It was the Piper.

Finn stared at Jakob, completely overwhelmed by what he was seeing. “You are
magnificent
,” he said at last. “Just
wondrous.
I feared for you, Jakob. The Beast was so strong and you are so young. But this . . . This is not the Beast. This is not a curse. This is a gift. The Spirit of the Forest has given you the gift of belonging, Jakob. You are a prince of the forest. A king of the night. Enjoy your gift, Jakob. Use it! Run, my friend. Run as you have never run before!”

And Jakob did run, all through the night and on till dawn, while the moon spread her silver cloak over the land before him. Rivers and fields, forests and farms—all passed by in a flying tapestry of shade and shadow. And there was no hunting or killing for Jakob. When he awoke the next morning, there was no blood on his tongue. No fur tagged in his teeth. No dark, shameful secrets to hide.

There was sunshine and birdsong. A tiredness in his limbs from running all night. A boyish longing for breakfast. And in his heart, there was such a tumble of emotion. So much joy! Had ever a boy been given such a gift? To run as a wolf, with the wind at his heels, through a glorious night of wild magic?

There was wonder and exhilaration. A burning desire to do it all again! But there was something else too.
Relief.
Sheer, blessed relief that it was over. He had survived. Now he could go home.

CHAPTER
SIXTY-ONE

It was well past midday when Jakob reached the town. He walked through the streets and couldn't help noticing that everyone was friendly. Every smile he gave was returned, often with a nod and a greeting. One kind woman handed him a bread roll.

“You look as hungry as a wolf !” she declared. “Aren't they feeding you at home?”

Jakob grinned, thanked her, and walked on, munching happily. Through the market square he went, around the corner and on to his own street. And then a curious thing happened. As soon as he saw his father's shop, his heart gave a bump and he felt a warm, happy feeling deep inside. He quickened his pace, suddenly longing to be there.