before! They’re MINE!” And her voice turned into a roar, and the roar turned into a gout of fire that lit the whole cavern with crackling blue-white flames.
Adolphus retreated rapidly, along with Max and Olivia.
“Er… sorry… sorry… It was just… well, it was my fault, and I thought… er… um…”
Great-Aunt Wilhelmina looked down at them from the forbidding height she had raised herself to and appeared to soften slightly. She considered.
“Well, A-dog-nose. Maybe I might consider… a small cauldron. But I require payment in return. A favour.”
“Of course,” said Max, quickly. “Anything we can do. Just ask.”
The great dragon twisted her head, and looked at them with a calculating expression.
“A rockfall blocked my cave entrance a few years ago. I’m stuck here. I spent quite a few happy months rearranging my collection and composing my memoirs and suchlike… but I’ve been getting rather bored lately. I’ll give you a cauldron… if you can get me out of here.”
There was silence while Max looked at all the others, and they looked back.
“Could you… make her smaller?” said Olivia at last.
Max made a face. “Maybe. If I had the spell ingredients. And a cauldron that worked. Neither of which are in my pack.”
And then he yelled as Ferocious came up behind him, and nipped his ankle.
“Hey! What was that for?”
“For being as thick as a carrot,” replied Ferocious. “Must be being a dragon. Affected your brain. What have you got in the pack, Max? Remind me again.”
Max stared at him, and then his face brightened. “Of course! The frogspell! Well done, Ferocious!” He turned to Great-Aunt Wilhelmina.
“We can turn you into a frog. Or a rat, if you prefer – if Ferocious can transform you once you’re a frog…”
The rat looked rather alarmed at the thought of kissing Great-Aunt Wilhelmina, even in frog form, but he swallowed hard, and nodded.
“Excellent!” said Max. “Well then, er… Lady Wilhelmina… Are you ready?”
He uncorked the blue frogspell bottle and, having considered the enormous size of the dragon, threw most of the contents at her head.
BANG!!
The dragon disappeared and there, perched on the top of the huge pile of silver, gold and cauldrons, was a knobbly gold and green frog.
“Thank you,” she croaked, “but I think on the whole a rat would be easier…” She looked at Ferocious expectantly. Closing his eyes, he planted a whiskery kiss on her head and there she was, in a haze of purple stars, a rather large and elderly rat, peering around at them all.
“Good,” she said. “Well, then… I think I owe you a cauldron, Max.”
She scampered off down the huge pile and started to poke around at the edges, further down into the cavern.
“Aha! This is the one!”
She rolled a small, dull-looking pewter cauldron out of the pile and looked up at Max.
“There you are. Not too ostentatious. Perfect for a young apprentice,” she said, with an odd gleam in her eyes.
Max looked at all the wonderful silver and golden cauldrons, encrusted with jewels or decorated with fine carvings, piled on top of each other in the cavern, and then at the small, dull black one she was pointing at.
“Thank you,” he said, trying hard not to sound too disappointed. He put it carefully in his pack, along with what was left of the frogspell, and slung the bag round his scaly neck. “I suppose we’d better head off, then.”
Getting back up the steep slope was a lot harder than coming down, but eventually Max poked his dragon snout out of the hole into the open air and looked carefully around. There didn’t seem to be anyone there. He eased himself out and then helped the others, one by one, as they squeezed out and fell on the rocky ground by the pool. None of them noticed the bushes on the other side of the pool rustling, or caught a glimpse of Snotty Hogsbottom’s pale face peeping out from behind the crooked hawthorn tree, as they flopped down
Adolphus retreated rapidly, along with Max and Olivia.
“Er… sorry… sorry… It was just… well, it was my fault, and I thought… er… um…”
Great-Aunt Wilhelmina looked down at them from the forbidding height she had raised herself to and appeared to soften slightly. She considered.
“Well, A-dog-nose. Maybe I might consider… a small cauldron. But I require payment in return. A favour.”
“Of course,” said Max, quickly. “Anything we can do. Just ask.”
The great dragon twisted her head, and looked at them with a calculating expression.
“A rockfall blocked my cave entrance a few years ago. I’m stuck here. I spent quite a few happy months rearranging my collection and composing my memoirs and suchlike… but I’ve been getting rather bored lately. I’ll give you a cauldron… if you can get me out of here.”
There was silence while Max looked at all the others, and they looked back.
“Could you… make her smaller?” said Olivia at last.
Max made a face. “Maybe. If I had the spell ingredients. And a cauldron that worked. Neither of which are in my pack.”
And then he yelled as Ferocious came up behind him, and nipped his ankle.
“Hey! What was that for?”
“For being as thick as a carrot,” replied Ferocious. “Must be being a dragon. Affected your brain. What have you got in the pack, Max? Remind me again.”
Max stared at him, and then his face brightened. “Of course! The frogspell! Well done, Ferocious!” He turned to Great-Aunt Wilhelmina.
“We can turn you into a frog. Or a rat, if you prefer – if Ferocious can transform you once you’re a frog…”
The rat looked rather alarmed at the thought of kissing Great-Aunt Wilhelmina, even in frog form, but he swallowed hard, and nodded.
“Excellent!” said Max. “Well then, er… Lady Wilhelmina… Are you ready?”
He uncorked the blue frogspell bottle and, having considered the enormous size of the dragon, threw most of the contents at her head.
BANG!!
The dragon disappeared and there, perched on the top of the huge pile of silver, gold and cauldrons, was a knobbly gold and green frog.
“Thank you,” she croaked, “but I think on the whole a rat would be easier…” She looked at Ferocious expectantly. Closing his eyes, he planted a whiskery kiss on her head and there she was, in a haze of purple stars, a rather large and elderly rat, peering around at them all.
“Good,” she said. “Well, then… I think I owe you a cauldron, Max.”
She scampered off down the huge pile and started to poke around at the edges, further down into the cavern.
“Aha! This is the one!”
She rolled a small, dull-looking pewter cauldron out of the pile and looked up at Max.
“There you are. Not too ostentatious. Perfect for a young apprentice,” she said, with an odd gleam in her eyes.
Max looked at all the wonderful silver and golden cauldrons, encrusted with jewels or decorated with fine carvings, piled on top of each other in the cavern, and then at the small, dull black one she was pointing at.
“Thank you,” he said, trying hard not to sound too disappointed. He put it carefully in his pack, along with what was left of the frogspell, and slung the bag round his scaly neck. “I suppose we’d better head off, then.”
Getting back up the steep slope was a lot harder than coming down, but eventually Max poked his dragon snout out of the hole into the open air and looked carefully around. There didn’t seem to be anyone there. He eased himself out and then helped the others, one by one, as they squeezed out and fell on the rocky ground by the pool. None of them noticed the bushes on the other side of the pool rustling, or caught a glimpse of Snotty Hogsbottom’s pale face peeping out from behind the crooked hawthorn tree, as they flopped down
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