Sea Change by Francis Rowan Page A

time was terrifying, because
it was something from beyond every day life.
    "Looks scary,"
he said.
    "It is," Simon
said, "I’ve done it. Brings you luck, see. Hob grants you his
favour, keeps bad luck and evil things away."
    "Si!" Sal did
not sound pleased.
    "Aw, come on
Sal," he said, going on the defensive. "Everyone’s done it, once.
Way of proving things. Can’t back down in front of the lads."
    Sal laughed,
and it was full of contempt. "The lads? What, you mean your
gormless friends? Not surprised they’re not afraid to walk around
the Hole, if they fell down all they’d need to do is make sure that
they landed on their heads and then nothing important would get
hurt."
    John didn’t
want them to argue, so he tried to lighten things up. "You never
walked round it then Sal?" he asked.
    "That’s not
important," she said, and looked away, and Simon looked at John
with a broad grin on his face, opened his mouth as if he were about
to say something, but then touched a finger to his lips and stayed
silent. He was still grinning, though.
    "Let’s get back
to the village," Sal said, still not looking at them. "See if we
can beat the rain."
    They turned to
shuffle back out of the cave, and then stopped. Standing at the
mouth of the cave was a dark shape, watching them, waiting for
them.
     
     

Chapter
Six
     
    The three of
them froze, as if they were statues made from the stone around
them. Then the shadow laughed, and spoke.
    "Think I was
the Hob eh, come to throw you down the hole? Or just scared because
you know little boys and girls shouldn't be playing in there. Never
know what might happen."
    "Greg," Simon
said, with a voice full of resignation.
    "He's right
sharp your brother," the voice said. "And here was me, thinking he
was stupid. Walking around the hole, are you? Never bothered,
meself, don't need fairy tales, I make me own luck. So who's this
other little brat then, Sal? Thought I knew all of Simple Simon's
idiot friends."
    "He's our
friend," she said, scrambling out into the daylight. "He's called
John." John and Simon followed her, Simon muttering under his
breath.
    John blinked in
the sunlight. It was the boy he'd first seen at the bus stop, the
boy who had sent Simon cycling away in such a hurry.
    "What you
looking at?"
    "No—nothing,"
John said.
    "No—nothing.
What's that? Doesn't even make sense. Not from round here, are you.
Don't stare at me. I don't like people staring at me."
    "Okay." John
looked away.
    "All right
Sal?" Greg said, and his voice softened. "What you hanging around
with these kids for?"
    Sal stared back
at Greg. "Because I want to, and I do what I want."
    He shook his
head. "Wasting your time. Should hang out with me, have some fun.
What did you say?" This to Simon, who had muttered something under
his breath.
    "Nothing."
    Greg took two
quick steps forward, and pushed Simon back against the rock.
    "What did you
say?" Greg's voice had dropped now, darkened like the sky, and John
again thought of Parker, and he thought, not again, I don't want to
be that boy again, I don't want to walk away again.
    So he stepped
forward, and said, "He didn't say anything. Leave him alone." Simon
shook his head, and Greg dropped him and grabbed John by the ear,
twisting, lifting.
    "Did I say
talk? Did I? Did I say talk? Well until I—hey!" He dropped John now
and stepped back, rubbing the back of his leg. Sal stood there.
    "Leave off
them," she said. "Or I'll kick you worse than in the leg."
    For a moment
the four stood still. Rain started to fall, big splashing wet drops
at first, and then it thickened and the air was full of moving
water. John thought that Greg was going to hit Sal, and his head
filled with plans to dive at the boy's legs in a rugby tackle, to
push him off the ledge, to do something, anything. But then Greg
shook his head, and laughed.
    "I like you,
Sal Tinnion," he said. "You've got bottle. Not like these two."
    Sal said
nothing, just stared off into space.
    "You come out
with me