web. There were sticky candy smears all over his face. He looked around sorrowfully Then, screwing up his eyes, he shoved a long, bony finger into his mouth and pulled out a drooly piece of plastic candy wrapper. He looked at it for a moment and then ate it.
“My heavens!” said the man with the gun. He shut his eyes for a moment, as if the goblin’s manners were so bad that he couldn’t bear to watch. “Stand aside,” he told John and Danny, and then threw the gun to his shoulder, pointed it at the goblin, and pulled the trigger.
Chapter 12: Mr. Deener
There was a sound like sand being poured through a pipe, and a “bump, bump, bump, whoosh!” that nearly knocked the man over backward. The air was filled with mist that was wet and cold and smelled like soap.
The goblin shrieked, leaping to his feet and shaking like a wet dog. When the misty air cleared, the goblin stood there with a clean face, his hair neatly slicked down along the sides of his head. He looked at his clean hands in wonder, and then, as if he were trying to eat a carrot stick, he bit himself on the finger. He yowled, shaking his hand and looking surprised. Then he turned around and slouched away down the road to the meadow.
(Chapter 12 continues after illustration)
“And don’t come back!” the man with the soap gun yelled.
Right then a woman with a lantern appeared from around the bend in the road above them. She was gray-haired, very tall and neat and elegant. She looked incredibly like Kimberly’s Aunt, Mrs. Owlswick. Danny and John looked at each other, and Danny nodded, as if to say, “I told you so.”
The man with the soap gun bowed again. The hair above his ears stuck up into the air as if a heavy wind were blowing out of his coat collar. He wore a vest and a pair of walking shorts and high socks folded down at the tons with ribbons at the folds. His coat appeared to be very comfortable and well-worn, and although he looked a little too much like an overgrown goblin, he seemed altogether pleasant and well-fed.
“I’m
Mister
Deener,” he said, putting peculiar emphasis on the Mister part. “At your service.”
“I’m John,” John said, “and this is Danny and Ahab. We’re at your service too.” He bowed, and so did Danny.
“And this,” said Mr. Deener, gesturing at the woman with the lantern, “is Aunt Flo. She’s Polly’s Aunt Flo, which is what everyone calls her. You might as well call her that too.”
John and Danny both said hello and that they were glad to meet her. She looked just like the sort of person who would be called Aunt somebody.
“Your soap gun worked exceedingly well, Artemis,” she said. Then to the boys she said, “Mr. Deener is an inventor. He fell upon the notion that a goblin would fear soap more than almost anything, and so he built this weapon, which he’s just now gotten a chance to use for the first time.
Very
successful, I’d say.”
Mr. Deener nodded happily. “I put the fear into them,” he said. “I’m working on a device to blow them up like balloons. I’m going to float them away, all of them together. Maybe to the moon.” He looked at John and Danny out of one eye, as if he was going to ask them a trick question. “I suppose you two are the Kraken brothers?”
“No,” said Danny, speaking up. “We came here through a magic window that we found by looking through a pair of spectacles, and we can’t find the window now because the spectacles are broken.”
A look came across Mr. Deener’s face. His eyes opened wide and he scratched his head. Clearly he was thinking hard about something, and for a moment John almost expected him to make the glasses sign with his fingers and thumbs.
“Spectacles,”
Mr. Deener said finally. He shook his head slowly. “I don’t care anything about these spectacles. Did someone tell you that I wanted a pair of spectacles? I make it a habit never to buy anything from door-to-door salesmen.”
“No,” Danny said. “Actually
“My heavens!” said the man with the gun. He shut his eyes for a moment, as if the goblin’s manners were so bad that he couldn’t bear to watch. “Stand aside,” he told John and Danny, and then threw the gun to his shoulder, pointed it at the goblin, and pulled the trigger.
Chapter 12: Mr. Deener
There was a sound like sand being poured through a pipe, and a “bump, bump, bump, whoosh!” that nearly knocked the man over backward. The air was filled with mist that was wet and cold and smelled like soap.
The goblin shrieked, leaping to his feet and shaking like a wet dog. When the misty air cleared, the goblin stood there with a clean face, his hair neatly slicked down along the sides of his head. He looked at his clean hands in wonder, and then, as if he were trying to eat a carrot stick, he bit himself on the finger. He yowled, shaking his hand and looking surprised. Then he turned around and slouched away down the road to the meadow.
(Chapter 12 continues after illustration)
“And don’t come back!” the man with the soap gun yelled.
Right then a woman with a lantern appeared from around the bend in the road above them. She was gray-haired, very tall and neat and elegant. She looked incredibly like Kimberly’s Aunt, Mrs. Owlswick. Danny and John looked at each other, and Danny nodded, as if to say, “I told you so.”
The man with the soap gun bowed again. The hair above his ears stuck up into the air as if a heavy wind were blowing out of his coat collar. He wore a vest and a pair of walking shorts and high socks folded down at the tons with ribbons at the folds. His coat appeared to be very comfortable and well-worn, and although he looked a little too much like an overgrown goblin, he seemed altogether pleasant and well-fed.
“I’m
Mister
Deener,” he said, putting peculiar emphasis on the Mister part. “At your service.”
“I’m John,” John said, “and this is Danny and Ahab. We’re at your service too.” He bowed, and so did Danny.
“And this,” said Mr. Deener, gesturing at the woman with the lantern, “is Aunt Flo. She’s Polly’s Aunt Flo, which is what everyone calls her. You might as well call her that too.”
John and Danny both said hello and that they were glad to meet her. She looked just like the sort of person who would be called Aunt somebody.
“Your soap gun worked exceedingly well, Artemis,” she said. Then to the boys she said, “Mr. Deener is an inventor. He fell upon the notion that a goblin would fear soap more than almost anything, and so he built this weapon, which he’s just now gotten a chance to use for the first time.
Very
successful, I’d say.”
Mr. Deener nodded happily. “I put the fear into them,” he said. “I’m working on a device to blow them up like balloons. I’m going to float them away, all of them together. Maybe to the moon.” He looked at John and Danny out of one eye, as if he was going to ask them a trick question. “I suppose you two are the Kraken brothers?”
“No,” said Danny, speaking up. “We came here through a magic window that we found by looking through a pair of spectacles, and we can’t find the window now because the spectacles are broken.”
A look came across Mr. Deener’s face. His eyes opened wide and he scratched his head. Clearly he was thinking hard about something, and for a moment John almost expected him to make the glasses sign with his fingers and thumbs.
“Spectacles,”
Mr. Deener said finally. He shook his head slowly. “I don’t care anything about these spectacles. Did someone tell you that I wanted a pair of spectacles? I make it a habit never to buy anything from door-to-door salesmen.”
“No,” Danny said. “Actually
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