Shadow Spell (36 page)

Jonas shrugged.

‘Ready then?' asked a cheerful voice right behind Nin, making her jump.

‘Do you have to do that? You'll give someone a heart attack!'

Dark chuckled. ‘No, but it's fun.'

He was no longer wearing his old tattered trousers, but had replaced them with a suit of dark silver. He still had his waistcoat though. It looked a lot tidier and all the bloodstains had gone.

‘You're getting used to being a sorcerer again then?'

‘It's not been easy.' Dark blew out his cheeks thoughtfully. ‘I mean, one minute there I was casting a spell to keep me safe and then all of a sudden it had rearranged my memory, changed my shape and given me a whole new identity! I spend the next few decades stealing kids for Mr Strood without a clue who I really am until suddenly I'm back as a sorcerer, battling a complete madman. Not to mention being the only one of my kind left.' He looked sad for a moment, then smiled again.

‘Sorry,' said Nin.

Dark waved a hand airily. ‘You've got nothing to be sorry about. You only saved my life! Well, are you ready? Said all your goodbyes?'

Nin got to her feet, thinking of Hen and Hilary and Taggit and Floyd. And even Stanley. The goodbyes had
been difficult, but not too difficult. She knew where the gateways were. It wasn't the last time she would see them, she was sure of that.

‘Come on then,' said Dark. ‘Can't hang about all day. I'm a very busy sorcerer, you know.'

And then they weren't standing outside the town hall in Hilfian any more. They were on a hillside in the warm morning sun looking up at the blank windows of No. 27 Dunforth Hill, Driftside.

‘It's that easy is it?' said Jonas with a laugh.

‘It's magic,' said Dark cheerfully. ‘We sorcerers can do that.'

Nin laughed. ‘Don't get too big-headed now, I remember you when you were just a bogeyman.'

‘Yik!'

Dark chuckled. ‘We had some times, eh! Not all of them good, I'll grant you. But definitely exciting. Oh, and bear in mind, I'll be offended if you don't drop by now and then for a chat. And you really shouldn't offend sorcerers.' He smiled. ‘Just give me a shout when you come Driftside. I'll hear you.'

‘You could come and see me?'

‘I know I used to go Widdernside for days at a time, but that was when I thought I was a bogeyman.' Dark looked up at the towering walls of No. 27 and sighed. ‘I think my Widdern days might be over.'

Nin nodded, and turned to Jik. ‘When you're back from travelling and that, well, you know where to find me don't you?'

‘Yik. Alwik.' He reached over and took her pink hand in his dusty, crystal-studded one for just a moment.

Jonas put a hand on her shoulder. ‘Come on, kid. Time to go.'

When they reached the gate of No. 27, Nin looked back. Jik and Dark were still there. She followed Jonas down the side of the house, trying not to hear the Quickmares scratching at them through the walls. And then they were through.

Watching them go, Dark said, ‘I suppose I could try it. Maybe if I do Skerridge shape, I won't feel it so much?'

‘Yik!'

‘Let's see, how does it go?' He flexed his fingers. ‘Red eyes and kind of horrible …'

Dunforth Hill looked exactly the way it always had. Jonas led the way up the hill until they were just across the road from Nin's house. She glanced over her shoulder and saw a bogeyman perched on a nearby wall, next to an odd-looking mud statue. The bogeyman was wearing a tattered pair of trousers and a (still clean) fancy waistcoat, so she waved. It waved back and the mud statue raised a hand in farewell. She felt pleased that they had come to see her safely home.

The house sat in the sun, the pine tree casting its cool darkness over the garden, looking peaceful and untroubled. It was going to be troubled pretty soon, but there was nothing Nin could do about that. She wondered
what on earth she was going to tell her mother. She wondered if Toby had remembered what she had told him. If he would be waiting.

‘She's going to remember me again, which is nice. But she's also going to realise that I'm the second of her kids who's been missing for ages and she hasn't even noticed. What's that going to do to her?'

‘You have to tell her the truth,' said Jonas firmly. ‘It's the only way she will ever be able to forgive herself.' He took a deep breath. ‘Thing is, Nin,' he went on nervously, ‘I know I said I wouldn't, but …'

‘You're gonna take yours too? That's great!' Nin gave him a big smile. ‘And don't worry about school. It'll be weird for a bit and they'll have to give you extra classes, but you'll catch up really fast. And I'll be right here … or at least … where does your family live?'

‘Both together, right?' said Jonas, ignoring the question.

Nin nodded. They dug in their pockets for their memory pearls. Copying Jonas, Nin threw hers quickly into her mouth and swallowed. For a moment, silvery strands spun in the air above their heads making a halo around them both.

Nin didn't feel the memory of her that spun out, back to her mother and her grandparents and all those who loved her most or knew her best. But she did feel the memories of Jonas as they glimmered in the air, some of them spiralling straight into her head.

She gasped as it all came rushing back. Jonas teaching her to do handstands in the garden. Jonas stealing her ice
cream. Jonas helping her build sandcastles and laughing when she was scared of the sea. Jonas helping her with maths when she first started school …

When her head was refilled with the memories that should have been there for years, except that some bogeyman had stolen them, she stared at her brother, speechless.

Who grinned and said, ‘In answer to your question, little sis, I live right here.'

He came and put his arms around her and she hugged him back as hard as she could.

‘I'm sorry I couldn't tell you,' he said, his breath tickling her ear. ‘It wouldn't have made you remember. I would just have been some stranger claiming to be your brother. Better that you think I was just your friend.'

There was a crash of broken china and a cry from the house as the memories of two more missing children rushed back into Lena's Redstone's head. It was a terrible cry and it made Nin feel weak.

She left Jonas and ran. There was no need to ring the doorbell. The door was already open and Lena was there, with Toby pulling her along, hurrying her towards the rest of her family.

Nin got there first, beating Jonas up the path and running straight into her mother's arms.

‘Well, that's it then,' said Skerridge, as the door closed on Nin and her family. ‘Though what their muvver's
gonna make of it, Galig knows!'

Jik sent him a look.

‘Come on,' said Skerridge with a chuckle, ‘a disguise ain't complete unless ya do the voice as well. Don't suppose it's quite right, but at least I'll ‘ave a go.'

Jik shrugged.

The bogeyman heaved a sigh. ‘Truth is, I feel kind of guilty for puttin' the kid through all that. My spell needed to break, an' as soon as it laid eyes on Nin – not that it's got eyes as such bein' a spell but ya get the idea – it saw she was lucky. So it knew that out of everyone she ‘ad the best chance to work out who I really was, see? My spell is the reason I lost ‘er when I'd never lost a kid before. It was workin' inside me, even though I didn't know it!'

Jik nodded. He'd been wondering.

Skerridge mopped his brow with a corner of waistcoat. ‘Bit hairy, this Widdern lark, even in disguise. Still, ya never know till ya try and I feel kind of OK. Feet're a bit tingly, mind.'

They started back down the side of number 27, Skerridge still looking like Skerridge.

‘Y'know I kinda like this shape. I might use it now an' again. Specially if I decide to take the odd trip Widdernside. It was fun, scarin' the socks off all them kiddies.'

Jik gave him a stern look, then went back to studying the Drift horizon, checking for new patches of Raw. It was a habit he'd got into. There were none.

‘It's slowed down already,' said Skerridge, seeing his
look. ‘We've gotta few more years yet, an' who knows, maybe that prophecy of Crow's'll come true. Then the Raw might even start to recede and the Land'll come back! Slowly, of course, but wouldn't that be somethin'!'

He glanced at Jik. ‘Ya remember the one I mean? About somethin' livin' in the Heart an' makin' everythin' all right again.'

‘Nik Crik, Akik.'

‘Oh yeah, right. Azork's prophecy then. No wonder it was so dumb.' Skerridge sniggered, then sighed. ‘Shame really.'

Jibbit still hadn't reached the top of the high thing. His gargoyle heart was pounding with happiness, because of all the cathedrals that he had ever dreamed about, this cathedral was the greatest and best. It didn't just tower against the sky, it soared, its spires rising in tier after tier of pale stone. And there was only him to enjoy it. It was a relief after all the excitement to have his own space again.

At last he scurried nimbly up to the tallest spire on the highest roof. It was so high that it reached above the Raw, piercing the mist to break into open air. Wrapping his paws around the stem, just above the words that said, ‘King Galig of Beorht Eardgeard built this,' Jibbit settled on the tip.

Here the sun was warm on his stone head and back and even if the Raw still swirled below him, Jibbit could sense the giddying drop at his feet. It made him happy.

And he knew that if there was anywhere in the Drift that a gargoyle was born to live, it was right here.

In the Heart.

Nin crept into her mother's bedroom.

They had told Lena everything and it had been enough to send her into serious shock. It had been the right thing to do though, Nin was sure, because learning about other worlds peopled with strange and terrible things was surely better than believing that you had forgotten your own children.

Now, Lena slept, worn out with all the things she had learned.