Septimus Heap, Book One_ Magyk - Angie Sage [55]
Apart from the boat-dwelling chickens, which Jenna and Nicko had seen earlier that morning, they found a nanny goat tethered in the middle of some long grass. They also found a colony of rabbits living in a burrow bank that Aunt Zelda had fenced off to keep the rabbits out of the winter cabbage patch.
The well-worn path took them past the burrows, through a lot of cabbages and wound down to a low-lying patch of mud and suspiciously bright green grass.
“Do you reckon there might be some of those Brownies in there?” Jenna whispered to Nicko, hanging back a little.
Some bubbles floated to the surface of the mud, and there was a loud sucking noise as if someone was trying to pull a stuck boot from out of the mire. Jenna jumped back in alarm as the mud bubbled and heaved.
“Not if I’ve got anything ter do with it, there won’t be.” The broad brown face of the Boggart pushed its way to the surface. He blinked the Ooze away from his round black eyes and regarded them with a bleary gaze.
“Mornin’,” he said slowly.
“Good morning, Mr. Boggart,” said Jenna.
“Just Boggart’ll do, ta.”
“Is this where you live? I hope we’re not disturbing you?” Jenna said politely.
“Well you is disturbing me, as a matter of fact. I sleeps in the day, see.” The Boggart blinked again and began to sink back into the mud. “But you’s not ter know that. Just don’t mention them Brownies as it wakes me up, see. Just hearin’ the name gets me all wide awake.”
“I’m sorry,” said Jenna. “We’ll go away and leave you in peace.”
“Yeah,” agreed the Boggart, and he disappeared back into the mud.
Jenna, Nicko and Boy 412 tiptoed back up the path.
“He was cross, wasn’t he?” said Jenna.
“No,” said Nicko. “I reckon he’s always like that. He’s okay.”
“I hope so,” said Jenna.
They carried on walking around the island until they reached the blunt end of the green “egg.” This consisted of a large grassy mound covered with a scattering of small, prickly round bushes. They wandered across the mound and stopped for a while, watching the haar swirling below them.
Jenna and Nicko had been silent in case they should wake the Boggart up again, but as they stood on top of the mound Jenna said, “Don’t you think there’s a funny feeling under your feet?”
“My boots are a bit uncomfortable,” said Nicko, “now you mention it. I think they’re still wet.”
“No. I mean the ground under your feet. It feels kind of…er…”
“Hollow,” supplied Nicko.
“Yes, that’s it. Hollow.” Jenna stamped her foot down hard. The ground was firm enough, but there was something about it that felt different.
“Must be all those rabbit burrows,” said Nicko.
They wandered off down the mound and headed toward a large duck pond with a wooden duck house beside it. A few ducks noticed them and began to waddle over the grass in the hope that they might have brought some bread with them.
“Hey, where’s he gone?” Jenna suddenly said, looking around for Boy 412.
“He’s probably gone back to the cottage,” said Nicko. “I don’t think he likes being with us much.”
“No, I don’t think he does—but aren’t we meant to be looking after him? I mean, he might have fallen into the Boggart patch, or the ditch or a Brownie might have got him.”
“Shhh. You’ll wake the Boggart up again.”
“Well, a Brownie might have got him. We ought to try and find him.”
“I suppose,” said Nicko doubtfully, “that Aunt Zelda will be upset if we lose him.”
“Well, I will too,” said Jenna.
“You don’t like him, do you?” asked Nicko. “Not after the little twerp nearly got us killed?”
“He didn’t mean to,” said Jenna. “I can see that now. He was as scared as we were. And just think, he’s probably been in the Young Army all his life and never had a mum or dad. Not like us. I mean you,” Jenna corrected herself.
“You have had a mum and dad. Still have. Silly,” said Nicko. “All right, we’ll go and look for the kid if you really want to.”
Jenna looked around, wondering where to start, and realized she could no longer see the cottage. In fact she could