Septimus Heap, Book One_ Magyk - Angie Sage [25]
Eventually Marcia was forced to use a Clean-Up Spell on him, followed by a Change of Dress Spell to get him into the thick fisherman’s sweater, trousers and sheepskin jacket plus a bright red beanie hat that Silas had found for him.
Marcia was cross at having to use a spell for Boy 412’s outfit. She wanted to save her energy for later, as she had an unpleasant feeling that she might need it all to get them to safety. She had of course used a little energy on her One-Second Dry Clean Spell, which, due to the disgusting state of her cloak, had turned into a One-Minute Dry Clean Spell and still hadn’t got rid of all the gravy stains. In Marcia’s opinion, the cloak of an ExtraOrdinary Wizard was more than just a cloak; it was a finely tuned instrument of Magyk and must be treated with respect.
Ten minutes later they were all down at the quay.
Sally and her sailing boat were waiting for them. Nicko looked at the little green boat approvingly. He loved boats. In fact, there was nothing Nicko loved better than being out in a boat on the open water, and this looked like a good one. She was broad and steady, sat well in the water and had a pair of new red sails. She had a nice name too: Muriel. Nicko liked that.
Marcia looked at the boat dubiously. “How does it work, then?” she asked Sally.
Nicko butted in. “Sails,” he said. “She sails.”
“Who sails?” asked Marcia, confused.
Nicko was patient. “The boat does.”
Sally was getting agitated.
“You’d better be off,” she said, glancing back at the rubbish dump. “I’ve put some paddles in, just in case you need them. And some food. Here, I’ll untie the rope and hang on to it while you all get aboard.”
Jenna scrambled in first, grabbing Boy 412 by the arm and taking him with her. He resisted for a moment but then gave in. Boy 412 was getting very tired.
Nicko jumped in next, then Silas propelled a somewhat reluctant Marcia off the quay and into the boat. She sat down uncertainly by the tiller and sniffed.
“What’s that awful smell?” she muttered.
“Fish,” said Nicko, wondering if Marcia knew how to sail.
Silas jumped in with Maxie, and Muriel settled a little lower down in the water.
“I’ll push you off now,” said Sally anxiously.
She threw the rope to Nicko, who skillfully caught it and stowed it neatly in the prow of the boat.
Marcia grabbed at the tiller, the sails flapping wildly, and Muriel took an unpleasantly sharp turn to the left.
“Shall I take the tiller?” Nicko offered.
“Take the what? Oh, this handle thing here? Very well, Nicko. I don’t want to tire myself.” Marcia wrapped her cloak around her and, with as much dignity as she could muster, shuffled awkwardly around to the side of the boat.
Marcia was not happy. She had never been in a boat before, and she had no intention of ever getting in one again if she could possibly help it. There were no seats for a start. No carpet, no cushions even and no roof. Not only was there far too much water outside the boat for her liking, but there was a little too much inside too. Did this mean it was sinking? And the smell was unbelievable.
Maxie was very excited. He managed to tread on Marcia’s precious shoes and wag his tail in her face at the same time.
“Shove over, you daft dog,” said Silas, pushing Maxie up to the prow where he could put his long wolfhound nose into the wind and sniff all the water smells. Then Silas squashed himself in beside Marcia, much to her discomfort, while Jenna and Boy 412 curled up on the other side of the boat.
Nicko stood happily in the stern, holding on to the tiller, and confidently set sail for the open reaches of the river.
“Where are we going?” he asked.
Marcia was still too preoccupied with her sudden proximity to such a large amount of water to answer.
“Aunt Zelda,” said Silas, who had discussed things with Sarah after Jenna had left that morning, “we’ll go and stay with Aunt Zelda.”
The wind caught Muriel’s sails and she picked up speed, heading toward the fast current in the middle of the river. Marcia closed her eyes and felt dizzy. She wondered