Haunted Castle on Hallow's Eve - Mary Pope Osborne [17]
The shady woods were dappled with sunlight. The air smelled fresh and clean. Jack and Annie hurried past the leafy trees, until they came to the tallest oak. High in the oak branches, the magic tree house was waiting for them.
“Wow,” Jack and Annie said together. The tree house looked exactly the same as when they’d last seen it.
Annie grabbed the rope ladder and started up. Jack followed. When they climbed inside the tree house, no one was there.
“Look, our Royal Invitation is still here,” said Annie. She picked up the card that had taken them to Camelot on Christmas Eve.
“And our leaf from Merlin is still here,” said Jack. He picked up the yellow autumn leaf that had sent them on their Halloween mission.
“This is new,” said Annie. She picked up a pale blue seashell. The shell was shaped like a small fan. There was writing on it.
“Hey, this looks like Merlin’s handwriting!” said Annie. “We must be going on another mission for Merlin!” She read aloud the message from the magician:
Annie looked up. “What rhyme?” she said.
“Let me see.” Jack took the shell from her and turned it over. On the other side was a poem. Jack read the poem aloud:
Before night falls on this long summer day,
A shining sword must find its way
Into your hands and out of the gloom—
Or Camelot’s king shall meet his doom.
To begin your quest for this Sword of Light,
Call for the help of the Water Knight.
Then pass through the Cave of the Spider Queen—
“Spider Queen?” Annie interrupted. She frowned. Spiders were about the only thing she was afraid of.
“Don’t think about it now,” said Jack. “Let’s keep going.” He read on:
… pass through the Cave of the Spider Queen
And swim with a selkie clothed in green.
Enter the Cove of the Stormy Coast,
Dive ’neath the Cloak of the Old Gray Ghost—
Jack stopped reading. “Old Gray Ghost?” he said.
“Don’t think about it now,” said Annie. “Keep going.”
Jack read more:
Answer a question with love, not fear.
With rhyme and sword, your home is near.
Both Jack and Annie were silent for a moment. “That’s a lot to do before nightfall,” Jack finally said.
“Yeah,” said Annie, “and I’m a little worried about the spider part.”
“And the ghost part,” said Jack.
“Hey,” said Annie, “if we’re going on another Merlin Mission, I’ll bet Teddy will come with us! He can help us get through the scary parts.”
“Right,” said Jack. Just hearing Teddy’s name made him feel braver.
“So,” said Annie. “Onward?” Onward was Teddy’s favorite word.
“Onward!” said Jack. He pointed to the handwriting on the pale blue shell. “I wish we could go to the time before Camelot!”
The wind started to blow.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
Are you a fan of the Magic Tree House® series?
Visit our
Web site
at
MagicTreeHouse.com
Exciting sneak previews of the next book.
Games, puzzles, and other fun activities.
Contests with super prizes.
And much more!
Guess what?
Jack and Annie have a musical CD!
For more information about
MAGIC TREE HOUSE: THE MUSICAL
(including how to order the CD!),
visit www.mthmusical.com.
Discover the facts
behind the fiction with the
Magic Tree House® Books
#1: DINOSAURS BEFORE DARK
#2: THE KNIGHT AT DAWN
#3: MUMMIES IN THE MORNING
#4: PIRATES PAST NOON
#5: NIGHT OF THE NINJAS
#6: AFTERNOON ON THE AMAZON
#7: SUNSET OF THE SABERTOOTH
#8: MIDNIGHT ON THE MOON
#9: DOLPHINS AT DAYBREAK
#10: GHOST TOWN AT SUNDOWN
#11: LIONS AT LUNCHTIME
#12: POLAR BEARS PAST BEDTIME
#13: VACATION UNDER THE VOLCANO
#14: DAY OF THE DRAGON KING
#15: VIKING SHIPS AT SUNRISE
#16: HOUR OF THE OLYMPICS
#17: TONIGHT ON THE TITANIC
#18: BUFFALO BEFORE BREAKFAST
#19: TIGERS AT TWILIGHT
#20: DINGOES AT DINNERTIME
#21: CIVIL WAR ON SUNDAY
#22: REVOLUTIONARY WAR ON WEDNESDAY
#23: TWISTER ON TUESDAY
#24: EARTHQUAKE IN THE EARLY MORNING
#25: STAGE FRIGHT ON A SUMMER NIGHT
#26: GOOD MORNING, GORILLAS
#27: THANKSGIVING ON THURSDAY
#28: HIGH TIDE IN HAWAII