Wild Magic Read Free Page B

winter rain.
    â€œMy sweet boy,” said the Piper. “You won’t be telling anyone anything . You won’t be going home.”

CHAPTER
FIVE
    â€œWhat do you mean—we won’t be going home?”
    It was Marianna who had spoken. Fredrik, like the other children, was too stunned to say a word. But Marianna was quite calm. She hadn’t been shocked by the Piper’s words. She felt that somewhere, deep down inside, she had known all along.
    â€œExactly that,” said the Piper. “You won’t be going home.”
    â€œNow you just listen to me ,” said an angry voice. Karl, the mayor’s son, was burrowing through the crowd like a bad-tempered mole. “You brought us in here—you’d better take us out!”
    The Piper’s eyes narrowed as he scanned Karl’s face. He knew this boy. No, he knew the boy’s father . Loud mouths ran in the family, it seemed.
    â€œTake us out!” cried Karl again.
    â€œAh, but I can’t, you see,” said the Piper. “You remember the door that opened? It cannot be reopened for another hundred years. That means nothing to me. But to you . . . Well, you will be dead by the time it opens again.”
    A thick silence flooded the cathedral cavern. Suddenly it felt even colder. The little ones hadn’t understood what the Piper had said but they could feel that something was wrong. Some started to cry.
    The older children looked at each other in horror as the truth sank in. And then came a rumble that grew louder and louder:
    â€œYou evil, scheming, devil of a man!”
    And Karl threw himself at the Piper, fists curled, eyes bulging, teeth bared.
    Voomf ! There was a blinding flash of light—a terrible thump —and Karl flew through the air backward, fast as an arrow. Doom! He smacked into the cavern wall and slid down into a pool below, a crumpled heap of a boy.
    â€œDear Lord!” cried Marianna. “You’ve killed him!” She wanted to run to Karl. Pull him out of the icy water. Save him. But she couldn’t. Her legs wouldn’t move. Like everyone else, she was frozen in fear.
    â€œI think not,” said the Piper. “I have no desire to kill him. I am simply protecting myself. Come! Our journey continues.” He turned his back on her, put his pipe to his lips, and started to play.
    Instantly the cavern was filled with a sweet, haunting tune that made everyone think of summer. Hot days, when the bees drone in the lane and the fish laze in the river. Warm nights under starry skies, with sausages on the bonfire and tales before bedtime. Marianna felt the enchantment wash over her. She covered her ears with her hands. She didn’t want to follow the Piper—not now. She wanted to help Karl and then she wanted to go home.
    But it was no use. The magical music wormed its way between her fingers. It curled into her ears and sang to her heart. Marianna could feel her eyes glazing over, like ice freezing on a pond. Her feet started to tap in time to the rhythm. She didn’t want them to, but she couldn’t fight the Piper. His will was too strong. She had to follow.
    Marianna glanced at Karl. He was still unconscious, lying in the pool half in and half out of the water. She felt her desire to help him start slipping away. The other children were passing her by, dancing in line like a wriggly caterpillar. Suddenly Marianna feared she would be left behind. She started to panic. Her hands dropped to her sides and she heard the Piper’s music ringing round the cathedral cavern. She smiled and started to dance. And when the final child passed by, she slipped onto the end of the line and Karl was forgotten, left behind like a broken toy.

CHAPTER
SIX
    An hour passed, maybe more, and still the Piper led the children on. But then Marianna noticed it was becoming brighter and warmer. Lunar blue light was playing on the tunnel walls ahead. The air was softly fragrant.
    And soon