The Wishing-Chair Again Part 6

aWhya"I've seen you before!a he said to the children. aHow are you? Quite well, I hope. And let me seea"have I seen this brownie before? Yesa"I have. Aren't you the bad fellow who turned all his grandmother's pigs blue? Isn't your name Winks?a aYes, Mr. Spells, sir,a said Winks, trying his best to hide behind Mollie and Peter.

aI hope you got spanked for that,a said Mr. Spells. aI had a terrible job turning the pigs back to their right colour again. I believe they've still got blue tails.a Winks wished the floor would open and swallow him up, but it didn't. Mr. Spells turned to Peter.

aWell, have you come visiting my dear old mother?a he said. aShe's a wonder at spells, you knowa"she taught me most of what I know.a Peter explained how it was they were in his mother's room. Then he told the enchanter about poor c.h.i.n.ky and the chair.

aGood gracious! a said Mr. Spells. aWe must certainly find out where that chair has gone. If it falls into the hands of some rogue he can use it for all kinds of wrong purposes. And c.h.i.n.ky, tooa"what a silly thing to do, to tie his foot to the chair! Why didn't he tie the chair to the door-handle, or something like that?a aWe didn't think of that,a said Peter. aCan you help us to find out where the chair is, and c.h.i.n.ky, too, Mr. Spells?a aOf course,a said Mr. Spells. aNow, let me think for a moment. This happened at night, you saya"and the chair, as usual, flew up into the sky?a aYes,a said everyone.

aWell, thena"who was about that night in the sky, who might possibly have seen the chair and c.h.i.n.ky?a said Mr. Spells thoughtfully.

aHoot, the owl,a said the old lady at once, aQuite right, Mother,a said Mr. Spells. aSplendid idea. We'll call Hoot, the owl, and see if he knows anything about this. He's a very wise and observant bird, you know,a he said, turning to the children. aNever misses anything that goes on at night,a aShall we go and ask him if he knows anything, then?a said Mollie. aWhere does he live?a aOh, we'll get him here,a said Mr. Spells. aThat's the easiest way. I'll go and call him.a He went to the window that looked out on the sunny hillside. He clapped his hands three times and muttered a word so magic that Winks trembled in his shoes. And a very curious thing happened. The sunny hillside went darka"as dark as night a"and behind the trees shone a little moon! It was all very peculiar, especially as the sun still shone out in the backyard and on the sea that could be seen from the other windows!

aI must make it dark, or the owl won't come,a explained Mr. Spells. aNow I'll call him.a He put his hands up to his mouth, placed his thumbs carefully together, and blew gentlya"and, to the children's delight and surprise, the hoot of an owl came from his closed hands. ''Ooo-ooo-oooo-oooh! Ooo-ooo-ooh!a aWhat a wonderful spell!a said Peter.

aThat's no spell!a said the enchanter. aWhy, anyone can do that. Look how I put my hands! Now you try!a So Peter trieda"and then he blew into his closed hands, between his two thumbs very gentlya"and, lo and behold, the hoot of an owl came from his hands, too. It was marvellous!

An answering hoot came from outside the window. A dark shadow pa.s.sed across the room. Then a big owl flew silently down and perched on Mr. Spells' shoulder. He caressed the big-eyed creature, whilst Cinders looked on rather jealously.

aHoot,a said Mr. Spells. aListen carefully. Two nights ago a Wishing-Chair flew off into the sky, and hanging to it by a rope tied to his foot was a pixie called c.h.i.n.ky. Did you see anything of this?a aOoooooo-ooo-ooo! Oooooo-oo! Ooooh! Ooo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-ooooooooh!a answered the owl, hooting softly into Mr. Spells' ear.

aThank you, Hoot,a said Mr. Spells, looking grave. aYou may go.a The owl flew off silently. Mr. Spells waited a moment and then muttered another magic word. The moonlit hillside grew lighter and lightera"and, hey presto, it was the sun behind the trees now and not the moona" daylight was everywhere!

aWhat did the owl tell you?a asked Peter.

aOha"I forgot you couldn't understand,a said Mr. Spells. aWell, he saw the chaira"and c.h.i.n.ky, too, dangling by his foot. He followed them out of curiositya"and he says they flew near the Wandering Castle, where Giant Twisty lives, and the giant must have seen them and captured them. He saw no more of them after that.a This was very bad news indeed. aOh, deara"whatever are we going to do, then?a said Peter at last. aPoor little c.h.i.n.ky!a aI must help you,a said Mr. Spells. aI can't let Twisty own that chair. Sit down. We must think of a plan!a

Away on Another Adventure.

aWe can't do anything this evening,a said Mr. Spells. aThat's quite certain. Anyway, the first thing to do is to find out where the Wandering Castle is.a aDon't you know?a said Mollie, in surprise.

aI know where it was last year, and the year before, and even last month,a said Mr. Spells, abut I don't know where it is now. It may have wandered anywhere.a aOha"does it move about?a asked Peter in amazement.

aGood gracious, yes! It's always wandering,a said the enchanter. aOne day it may be here, the next it's somewhere else. Giant Twisty finds that very useful because he's always getting into trouble because of his bad ways, and it's very convenient to have a castle that can slip away in the night.a aIt's going to be very difficult to find, isn't it?a said Mollie. aI mean, even if we find out where it is now, it may not be there when we get there.a aTrue. But there's a chance it may rest in the same place for some weeks,a said Mr. Spells. aWe must chance that. Winks, what are you doing?a Winks jumped. aJusta"just stirring this stuff in the pot,a he said.

aLook at your hands! a thundered Mr. Spells. aYou've been dipping them ina"and now see what you've done! Meddlesome little brownie!a Winks looked at his hands. Oh, dear, they were bright blue! He stared at them in horror.

aNow you know what your grandmother's pigs must have felt like when you turned them blue,a said the enchanter. aWell, keep your blue hands. Every time you look at them you can say to yourself, 'I must not meddle. I must not meddle.'a Winks put his hands into his pockets, looking very doleful. aBlue-hand, the Brownie,a said Peter. aOh, Winks, you're always into some mischief or other. Can't you be good even for a little while?a aWell, children,a said Mr. Spells, aI think you'd better leave things to me tonight. I'll do my best to find out where the Wandering Castle happens to be at the moment and we will make a good plan to get back the chair and c.h.i.n.ky. Can you come along early tomorrow morning?a aYes. We'll ask mother to let us go out for the day,a said Peter. aCome on, Mollie. Thank you, Mr. Spells, for your help. Goodbye, Mrs. Spells. Goodbye, Cinders.

aYou can go out of this door if you like,a said the enchanter, and the children suddenly saw a small silver door gleaming in the wall near the window that looked out on the hillside. They were sure it hadn't been there before. Cinders opened it for them.

He bowed politely to the children, but dug a claw into Winks, who yelled and shot outside in a hurry. Winks shook a bright blue fist at the cat.

aOh, dear, look at your hands,a said Mollie. aI do hope, Winks, that the blue will fade. You really do look awful.a aWhere are we?a said Peter, as they walked down the hillside, now filling with shadows as the sun sank low. aGoodnessa"why, there's our garden!a So it was, just nearby. How very extraordinary.

aIf only people knew how near their gardens are to curious and wonderful places, how surprised they would be!a said Mollie, walking in at their side-gate, and going to the playroom. aWell, we can take that short cut tomorrow. I do wonder how it is that the sea is outside that other window. I just simply can't understand that!a They said goodbye to Winks, who had tried in vain to wash the blue off his hands under the garden-tap. Then off they went to ask their mother if they could have the whole day to themselves tomorrow. She said, Yes, of course they could! It would do them good to go into the country in the lovely summer weather they were having now.

aWell, I don't know what Mother would say if she knew we were going to hunt for Giant Twisty in his Wandering Castle!a said Peter. aI suppose she just wouldn't believe it.a The next day the children had breakfast very early indeed, and then set off down the garden to collect Winks. His hands were still as blue as ever, so he had put on a pair of gloves.

aOha"you've borrowed them from my biggest doll, Winks,a said Mollie. aYou might have asked permission first. I should have said, 'No, certainly you can't have them.'a aYes. I felt sure you wouldn't let me,a said Winks. aThat's why I didn't ask you. I'll take great care of them, Mollie, I really will. Your doll doesn't mind a bit.a aOf course she doesn't. She hates wearing gloves!a said Mollie. aWell, I don't blame her. I don't like wearing them myself. Now, do take care of them, Winks, please.a They went out of the garden gate and looked round. Where was that short cut now? How queer! They couldn't find it at all! But Winks spotted it for them.

aI've better eyes for strange things than you have,a he said. aI can see a little shining path in the gra.s.s that you can't see. Follow me.a aWell, you must be right,a said Peter, as Winks led them straight over the gra.s.s to the same trees on the same sunny hillside as they had seen the day before. aAnd there's the little silver door!a Cinders opened it as they came near. Winks shot in so quickly that he hadn't time to scratch the brownie, though he did try!

Mr. Spells was there, surrounded by papers and old books of all kinds. aMy mother is still asleep in bed,a he said. aI'm glad you're early. We can start off straight away.a aOha"have you found out where the Wandering Castle is?a asked Mollie, in delight. aDid your magic books tell you?a aThey helped,a said Mr. Spells. aAnd Cinders and I did a little Find-Out Spell we know. Wandering Castle is now on the island belonging to Giant Small-One, Twisty's brother.a aGiant Small-Onea"that's a funny name,a said Mollie.

aNot really,a said Mr. Spells. aHe's small for a giant, that's all. Well, we'd better start.a aBut how can we get to an island?a said Peter. aWe haven't a Wishing-Chair to fly over the sea!a aThat doesn't matter,a said Mr. Spells. aCinders has been getting my ship ready. Haven't you noticed it out there?a He pointed to the window that so surprisingly looked out on the sea. The children stared in wonder and delight. A most beautiful ship rocked gently on the calm blue sea, a picture of loveliness with its big, white sails.

Mollie cried out in joy aOha"what a beauty! And it's called The Mollie!a aJust a little compliment to you,a said Mr. Spells, smiling. aAlso it's supposed to be lucky to sail in a ship bearing one of the pa.s.sengers' names. Wella"shall we set off? The wind is just right.a Cinders opened the window. Just outside was a stone ledge, with steps leading down to a tiny jetty. Cinders went first and helped Mollie down politely. Winks waited till last. He was afraid of Cinders' claws.

They all stepped aboard the beautiful white-sailed ship. Mr. Spells took the tiller.

aBlow, wind, blow. And on we will go over the waters blue,a he sang, and the white ship leapt forward like a bird.

aIs that a spell you sang?a said Mollie.

aOh, noa"just a little song,a said Mr. Spells. And he began to sing again, whilst the ship sailed lightly over the blue waters. The children and Winks enjoyed it very much. Mollie trailed her hand in the water. So did Winksa"but his came up as blue as ever! He sat as far away from Cinders as possible.

aDid we bring any food?a asked Mollie, suddenly.

aNo,a said Mr. Spells, and everyone at once looked rather gloomy. aEnchanters don't need to,a he went on. aI always carry a spell in my pocket that I use when I need any food. Is there anything you fancy at this particular moment, Mollie?a aWella"it would be nice to have an ice-creama"if it's possible,a said Mollie.

aI knew she was going to ask that,a said Peter. aI'd like an iced strawberryade, please, Mr. Spells.a Soon they were all eating and drinking, as the ship sped on and on. Cinders had a plate of fish and chips and Mr. Spells made him go right to the other end of the ship to eat them. aI wish you wouldn't always ask for fish and chips,a he complained. aReally, Cinders, you always smell of food nowadays.a For two hours the ship sailed ona"then Cinders gave a shout. aLand ahoy! It's the island, Mr. Spells, sir.a aAha!a said the enchanter. aNow we must be a bit careful.a They all looked hard at the island that was rapidly coming nearer as the ship sped over the water. It didn't look very big. It was crowded with tall buildings, some of them looking like palaces, some like castles.

aWhich is the Wandering Castle, I wonder?a said Mollie.

aCan't possibly tell,a said Mr. Spells. aNow here we go towards this little jetty. We'll land there. You'll have to watch out a bit, because several giants live here and you don't want to be trodden on like ants.a Mollie didn't like the sound of this much. She determined to keep very close to Mr. Spells. Cinders was left with the ship, much to Winks' relief. They all set off up an extremely wide street.

aWe shall be all right if we keep to the narrow pavements that run beside the walls of the building,a said Mr. Spells, guiding them to one. aThere are plenty of small folk living here, as well as giants.a So there werea"pixies and brownies and goblins and elvesa"but there were also giants, and Mollie suddenly saw a most enormous foot, followed by another one, walking down the street! She shrank close to Mr. Spells.

When the giant came by the children tried to see up to the top of him, but he was too tall. aThat's a large-sized giant,a said Mr. Spells. aI know hima"nice fellow called Too-Big. Here's a smaller one.a It was exciting and extraordinary to see giants walking about. Mr. Spells guided them to a palace not quite so tall as some of the buildings.

aThis is where Giant Small-One livesa"the giant the island belongs to,a he said. aCome alonga"we will ask him whereabouts his brother's Wandering Castle is. Don't be afraid. I am much more powerful than he is and he knows it.a They went up a long, long flight of steps. At the top was a big open door, leading into a vast hall. At the end of the hall sat a gianta"-but he was such a small one that he wasn't more than twice the size of the enchanter himself!

aAdvance, Mr. Spells, and pay your respects to Giant Small-One,a boomed an enormous voice from somewhere.

And Mr. Spells boldly went forward. Now to find out what they all wanted to know!

Wandering Castle at Last.

MR. SPELLS made a small bow. aGreetings, Giant Small-One,a he said. aI see you have not yet found a spell to make you Tall-One instead of Small-One. I come to ask you a question. We want to find your brother, Giant Twisty. Is Wandering Castle on your island?a aI believe so,a said the voice of Giant Small-One, rather a feeble voice for a giant. aGo to High Hill and you will see it there. Why does Mr. Spells, grand enchanter, want my brother?a aThat is my own business,a said Mr. Spells. The children thought he was very bold indeed to speak to a giant like that.

aPray stay to a meal,a said Small-One, and he clapped his big hands, making a noise like guns cracking. aI have few guests as important as you.a aThank you, no,a said Mr. Spells. aOur business is urgent. We will go.a He turned to go. He walked back to the children and Winks, and they made their way to the door. But it was shut! They couldn't open such a big door themselves, so they had to go all the way back to Small-One and ask for a servant to open the door.

It took a long time to find a servant, which was strange, considering how many there had been in the hall a few minutes before. aHe is delaying us,a said Mr. Spells angrily. aHe wants to get a message to his brother before we reach him, to warn him that we are on his track!a At last a servant was found, the door was opened and they all trooped down the endless steps. They made their way down the street, came into a wide lane, lined with hedges as high as trees, and then found a sign-post that said aTo High Hill.a aThere's High Hill,a said Peter, pointing across the fields to a very tall hill. aThere are quite a lot of buildings on it. I wonder which is Wandering Castle?a They came to High Hill at last and toiled up it. They met a small pixie running down, and Mr. Spells hailed her.

aHey, little pixie! Where's Wandering Castle?a aLet me see, nowa"I saw it yesterday,a said the little pixie. aYes, I remember now. It's in the Silver b.u.t.tercup Field, sir.a aSilver b.u.t.tercups!a said Mollie, astonished. aI've never heard of those. I don't think I should like them. The golden ones are just right.a aI agree with you,a said Mr. Spells, guiding them round a big house. aBut some enchanters are very sillya"always trying out novelties, you know. Well, here we area"here is Silver b.u.t.tercup Field.a So it was. Silvery b.u.t.tercups nodded in a great shimmering carpet. aBeautiful, but washed-out looking,a said Mr. Spells. aThe thing isa"where's Wandering Castle? It's certainly not here!a It wasn't. The field was completely emptya"but there was a vast square s.p.a.ce in the middle of it where no b.u.t.tercups grew. aThat's where it was,a said Winks, pointing to it with a very blue hand.

aYesa"it's wandered away again,a said Mr. Spells, annoyed. aSmall-One got a message to his brother in timea"whilst we were trying to get that door open. Well, where has it wandered to now?a aPlease, sir, I know!a said a small goblin, running up. aIt's gone to Loneliness! I don't know if you know that country, sir. It's over the sea to the easta" a very, very lonely place, where n.o.body ever goes if they can help it. It is going to hide itself there till you've given up looking for Twisty and his castle.a aHow do you know all this?a demanded Mr. Spells.

aBecause I was lying resting in these b.u.t.tercups when a servant from Giant Small-One came running up to warn Twisty that you were after him,a said the goblin. aAnd I heard Twisty say where he was going.a aRight. Thank you very much,a said Mr. Spells. aCome along, childrena"back to the ship. We must sail off to Loneliness at once. Twisty could easily hide himself in that strange, desolate land without anyone finding him for years.a aOh, deara"we really must find him, because of c.h.i.n.ky,a said Mollie. They went back to the ship. Cinders was so pleased to see them back so soon that he quite forgot to try and scratch Winks as he got on board. They set off again, the wind filling the sails and making the ship fly like a bird. She rocked up and down lightly as she went, and the children began to feel very sleepy.

They fell asleep, and Winks would have done the same, but he was afraid to because of Cinders. Mr. Spells awoke them after a time. aMollie! Peter! We're here. Wake up, both of you.a They sat up in the ship. It was moored to a small pier. Mollie looked out on the land of Loneliness. It was a gloomy, desolate place, with enormous trees growing in thick ma.s.ses. aThere are forests and forests of those,a said Mr. Spells, looking as gloomy as Loneliness looked. aHow we shall ever know where the Wandering Castle is, I can't imagine!a They landed, and walked towards the nearest forest of trees. Just as they got there they heard a voice shouting furiously.

aNo peace anywhere! None at all! I come here, where n.o.body ever goesa"and what comes walking almost on top of me but a castle! A CASTLE! Just when I thought I was going to sleep alone in peace!a And out of the trees burst c.h.i.n.ky's cousin, Sleep-Alone! He was just as surprised to see the children and Winks and Mr. Spells as they were to see him.

aSleep-Alone! Oh, Sleep-Alone, you're just about the only person who would come here!a cried Peter. aWhere is that castle you've been complaining about? It's Giant Twisty's, and he's got c.h.i.n.ky a prisoner there.a aGood thing, too,a grumbled Sleep-Alone. aMischievous creature, always coming and disturbing me at night!a aListen, Sleep-Alone,a said Mr. Spells. aIf you will lead us to that castle, we plan to rescue c.h.i.n.ky and the Wishing-Chaira"and we will turn the wicked Twisty out of his castle. Then it will be empty, in the middle of the land of Loneliness. And you shall have it for your own! Think of being alone there, with no one to wake you at night, no one to bother you!a Sleep-Alone listened to all this in delight. What, have a large empty castle all to himself, with a thousand rooms to sleep ina"lost in the middle of a forest in the land of Loneliness? Wonderful!

aI'll show you where it is,a he said eagerly, aFollow me.a They followed him. He darted in and out of the trees, following no path that they could seea"and then at last they saw Wandering Castle! It stood there, rocking a little in the wind, for it had no true foundations as other buildings have. It was tall and dark and gloomya"and it hadn't a single window of any kind!

aThere you are!a said Sleep-Alone. aA very fine castle, tooa"only one doora"and no windows. Just the place for me!a Mr. Spells looked at the castle in silence. One door a"and no windows. A very difficult place to escape from if they got inside. But they must get inside. There was no doubt about that.

aStay here by the door, Sleep-Alone,a said Mr. Spells at last. aWe're going in.a He went up the broad steps to the great studded door.

The door opened. A giant stood there, a cross-eyed fellow, with a twisted smile on his face.

aCome in,a he said. aSo you've found me, have you? Well, I'm not going to deny that I've got the Wishing-Chaira"yes, and c.h.i.n.ky, tooa"and now I'll have you as well.a To the children's surprise, Mr. Spells didn't run away.

He stepped inside and the children and Winks went, too, all feeling rather scared. Twisty laughed.

aThis is easier than I thought!a he said. aHow are you going to get out again, Mr. Spells, clever Mr. Spells? There is now no doora"and, as I dare say you have seen, there are no windows at all!a The children turned and looked behind them. The door had vanished. They were indeed prisoners. But Mr. Spells didn't seem at all disturbed.

aWhere is c.h.i.n.ky?a he said.

aFollow me,a said Twisty, and he went down a long, dark pa.s.sage and through a door. He crossed the room beyond the door, and came to another one. The door to this was locked and bolted. He opened it.

Inside was c.h.i.n.ky, sitting miserably in the Wishing-Chair! He leapt up in the greatest joy when he saw the others. Mollie ran to him and flung her arms round him.

ac.h.i.n.ky! You're safe! Oh, c.h.i.n.ky, we've come to rescue you!a Peter slapped c.h.i.n.ky on the back and Winks pumped his hand up and down, yelling, ac.h.i.n.ky, good old c.h.i.n.ky!a In the middle of all this there came the sound of the door being slammed and bolted. Then they heard Twisty laughing loudly.

aEasy! Too easy for words! You can't get out, Mr. Spells, however powerful you are. This door has a Keep-Shut Spell in it that I bought from an old witch years ago. And it's the only way out! You can go free if you give me some spells I've wanted for years.a aYou'll never get them from me, Twisty,a called Mr. Spells. aNever!a For a few minutes c.h.i.n.ky and the children talked eagerly, telling each other all that had happened. Then they fell silent. They suddenly realised that they were prisoners. No windows. No way of getting through the door. Mr. Spells said yes, it had a strong spell on it that not even he could undo. But he didn't seem at all upset about things.

aMr. Spells! You are going to get us out of here, aren't you?a begged Mollie.

aSh! Don't get alarmed,a said Mr. Spells. aI am going to do a spell on us all. Yes, and on the Wishing-Chair, too. Now, where's my chalk?a He found a white chalk in his pocket and a blue one, too. He drew first a white circle and then a blue one inside it. He made the children, c.h.i.n.ky and Winks sit down in the middle of it.

Then he got inside the circle himself, and sat down in the Wishing-Chair.

aI'm going to say very magic words,a he said. aShut your eyes, pleasea"and don't be surprised at whatever happens!a

A Very Exciting Time.

THE children, c.h.i.n.ky and Winks shut their eyes. Mr. Spells began to mutter some magic words under his breatha"then he spoke some aloud and then he suddenly shouted three spell-words at the top of his voice, making everyone jump violently.

There was a silence. Then Mr. Spells spoke in his ordinary voice. aYou can open your eyes now. The spell is done.a They opened their eyes and looked round them in wonder. They were in the very biggest room they had ever seen in their lives. The floor stretched endlessly away from them. The walls seemed miles away. Not far from them was a colossal wooden pillara"or what looked like one. The ceiling seemed to have disappeared or else was so far away that they couldn't see it. Certainly there was no sky above them, so probably the ceiling was still there!

aWhat's that enormous wooden post?a said Peter in wonder. aIt wasn't here just now.a aIt's the leg of the table,a said Mr. Spells surprisingly.

The children stared at him.

aWhat do you mean?a said Peter. aIt's much too big for thata"look, that's the wooden pillar I mean a"over there. And where are the chalk circles gone?a aWe're still standing in the middle of them,a said Mr. Spells with a laugh. aDo you mean to say you don't know what has happened?a aNo,a said Peter. aI feel funny, you knowa"but except that we appear to be in quite a different place now I don't know what's happened.a aI do,a said c.h.i.n.ky. aYou've used a very powerful Go-Small spell, Mr. Spells, haven't you? Goodness, I was awfully afraid you weren't going to stop the spell soon enougha"I thought we were going to shrink to nothing. How big are we?a aSmaller than mice,a said Mr. Spells. aAbout as big as bees, I should think. I wanted to make us small enough to creep under the door, you seea"and as it fits rather closely to the floor, it wasn't any good making us as big as mice, we wouldn't be able to squeeze underneath. As it is, I think we're just about right.a aHow clever of you!a said Mollie joyfully. aI see what has happened now a"why the ceiling seems so far away, and why that table-leg looks like a great pillara"and why we can't see the chalk circlesa"we'd have to walk a long way to get to them now!a aQuite right,a said Mr. Spells. aNow I think we'd better make a move, in case the giant comes back and guesses what I've done. I'm glad the spell went so wella"sometimes a powerful spell like that makes loud noises, and I've known it to make lightning come round the circle.a aGracious!a said Peter. aI wish it had. I'd have enjoyed our own private little storm!a aNow the thing isa"where's the door gone?a said c.h.i.n.ky. aWe've gone so small that the room is simply enormous, and the wall where the door is seems miles away. We'd better begin walking right round the walls till we come to the door!a But Mr. Spells knew where the door was. Carrying the Wishing-Chair, which had gone small, too, he led them for what seemed miles over the floor, and they at last came to where the door was fitted into the wall. A draught blew steadily at them as they came near to the enormous door.

aThat's the draught blowing under the bottom of the door,a explained Mr. Spells. aNowa"I'm going to squeeze under first to see that everything is safe. Be ready to follow me when you hear me call.a He disappeared under the door, bending himself double. Soon they heard his voice. aYesa"come along a"it's all right.a One by one they squeezed under the door, and found themselves in what they supposed must be the room outsidea"but now, of course, it seemed a very vast dark place indeed. aShall I make us our right size againa" or shall I keep us small?a wondered Mr. Spells. aOn the whole, I think I'll keep us small.a He led them across the room and down a pa.s.sage, making them all keep very close to the bottom of the wall. It was a very good thing he did, too, because round the corner they heard the sound of tremendous footsteps that shook the floor and made it tremblea" the giant coming along the pa.s.sage!

In a trice Mr. Spells pulled them all into what appeared to be some kind of mouse-holea"it seemed as large as a cave to the children! They crouched there till the thundering footsteps had gone by. Then out they went as fast as they could.

aI want to find the front door if I can,a said Mr. Spells. aWe can easily slip under that. It must be at the end of this pa.s.sage. That is if it has appeared again!a But before they reached it a thunderous noise made them all jump nearly out of their skinsa"Mr. Spells, too!

BANG-BANG-THUD-RAT-TAT-TAT!.

aWhat is it?a cried Mollie, and caught hold of Mr. Spells. aWhat can it be?a Mr. Spells laughed. aI think I can guess what it is,a he said. aIt's c.h.i.n.ky's cousin, Sleep-Alone. He's got tired of waiting for the castle, and he's knocking at the door to see what's happened! Oh deara"now I don't know what will happen!a Plenty happened. When the knocker banged again on the door, an answering roar came from inside the castle, and Twisty the giant came pounding along the pa.s.sage in a fine temper.

aWho's that knocking at my door? How dare you make this noise? I'll turn you into a cream bun and eat you!a The door was swung open and a wind blew down the pa.s.sage at once, almost blowing the five tiny people over. Sleep-Alone stood outside, a small figure compared with the giant, but seeming like a giant now to the tiny children!

aQuick!a said Mr. Spells, athey are going to have a quarrel. Now's our chance to escape out of the door a"but keep away from their feet for goodness sake. We're so small that neither of them will notice us.a Feeling very much afraid of the stamping feet and shouting voices, the children ran with c.h.i.n.ky and Winks out of the door, keeping well to the side. But they couldn't possibly go any further than the top step because the drop down to the second step seemed like a cliff to them!

aI'll have to take a chance now and change us back to our right size,a said Mr. Spells. aOtherwise we'll have to stand on this top step and sooner or later be trampled on. Shut your eyes, please, take hands, and keep together. I haven't got time to draw chalk circles, so this spell will happen very quickly. As soon as you're the right size, run down the steps as quickly as ever you can, and go to that tree over there. I'll bring the Wishing-Chair, and we'll soon be off and away!a aWhat about Sleep-Alone?a said c.h.i.n.ky. aWe promised he could have the castle.a aHe'll look after that all right,a said Mr. Spells, with a laugh. aSleep-Alone is bolder than I thought he was! Nowa"eyes shut, please, and hold hands hard.a They all obeyed. Mr. Spells said the words that undid the Go-Small spell, and allowed them to shoot up to their right size againa"but, as he had said, it happened very suddenly indeed, and all five of them gasped, felt giddy and fell over. It was just like going up in a lift very, very quickly!

aQuicka"get upa"he's seen us!a shouted Mr. Spells. He picked up the Wishing-Chair which had also gone back to its right size, and ran down the steps with it. Everyone followed.

Sleep-Alone and the giant had been having a real rough and tumble. The giant was stronger and bigger than Sleep-Alonea"but c.h.i.n.ky's cousin was very wily, and got in so many sly jabs and punches that the giant had completely lost his temper.

He lashed out at Sleep-Alone, who duckeda"but the blow just caught him on the top of his head. He stumbled a"and that would have been the end of him if the giant hadn't, at that very moment, caught sight of the five prisoners tearing down his steps! He was so tremendously astonished that he forgot all about Sleep-Alone and simply stood there, staring out of his saucer-like eyes!

Then, with a bellow, he was after them. aHow did you escape?a he roared. aCome backa"or I'll throw you all up to the moon!a Mr. Spells put down the Wishing-Chair. He sat in it quickly and pulled Peter and Mollie on his knee. Winks and c.h.i.n.ky sat on the back. aHome, Chair,a ordered Mr. Spells, and at once the obedient Wishing-Chair rose into the air, a little slowly because it had such a heavy weight to carry. The giant made a grab at it, but the chair dodged, and Mr. Spells. .h.i.t the giant smartly on his outstretched hand. The giant yelped.

aGoodbye!a called c.h.i.n.ky, waving his hand. aGive my love to Sleep-Alone.a Meanwhile what had happened to Sleep-Alone? Plenty! When he saw the giant rushing after the others, he stood and stared for a moment. Then he grinned. Then he hopped into Wandering Castle and shut the door very quietly.

And when Twisty turned round to go back and finish his quarrel with Sleep-Alone, there was no castle there! It had gone on its wanderings again!

aOh deara"I wish we could stay and see the giant looking for his castle,a said Mollie. aWhat a shock he's having! His prisoners all escaping, the Wishing-Chair gonea"and his castle wandering away in the forest with Sleep-Alone in charge. Won't your cousin be thrilled to have such a fine place to sleep in, c.h.i.n.ky?a The Wishing-Chair didn't go back to the playrooma" it went to Mrs. Spells' room.

They went in to see Mrs. Spells, and told her their extraordinary adventures. To their surprise, Cinders was there and produced some excellent fruit buns that Mrs. Spells said he had just made. He really was a most remarkable cat.