Crystal (15 page)

‘Don’t worry. We will save her.’ Questrid marvelled at his own words. He was only working on the merest thread of evidence: that because Effie was a Water person, she would not drown. Beyond that, he was leaving everything to chance.

Questrid spent the rest of the evening telling Crystal about the Marble Mountains, Spindle House and all the people who lived in it and how they were related.

‘I’m Stone and Wood,’ Questrid said. ‘In the olden days the clans never intermarried, but they do now. Wood and Stone. Water and Bird. As Greenwood’s daughter you must be half Wood and half–’

‘
His
daughter? It sounds so weird when all I’ve ever been is
her
daughter … I do love the trees and wooden furniture … When I sit on one of Grint’s wooden chairs it feels like it knows me or something! So silly, isn’t it?’

‘Not at all silly, that sensation is quite normal for someone like you. Me too, though my Wood side is sort of underdeveloped somehow.’

‘And do I
look
normal to you too?’

‘Sure. Why not?’

‘I’d fit in up there in the Marble Mountains? You see, no one else in the Town has blue eyes and blonde hair. They’re all dark, or at least no one is so fair as we are. And Mum and I are different in other ways too, it’s hard to define, but – but when I talk to you I don’t feel so different. You understand …’

‘Yes. I understand because I’m from the Mountains and we both come from a mixed tribe family. Effie’s real name is Fountain. She’s a Water person and so, as I was trying to tell you earlier, your other half must be Water.’

‘Yes!’ Crystal cried. ‘Mum was trying to tell me that when I went to see her – but I was too distracted to take it all in. We’re even called Waters and I love water, even dirty Lop Lake!’

‘When you’re back on the other side,’ Questrid said, ‘you’ll feel at home – it’s all water there, though most of it’s frozen.’

Questrid woke slowly. He could hear hammering outside and men’s voices. He rolled over and tried to go back to sleep but then, remembering where he was, he jumped out of bed. He’d slept in Effie’s metal bed, but still he hadn’t slept well. There was too much to worry about, and all through the night the sound of the Town Guard had disturbed him. He shook his head, longing for a blast of clean, fresh Marble Mountain air.

Crystal was standing at the window. Questrid could see she’d been crying.

‘They’re finishing the chair. Look!’ She was trembling. ‘Poor Mum. It’s awful! We must stop them! We’ll have to go up there … how will I bear it?’

Questrid tried to pat her shoulder but it didn’t seem quite right to touch her. ‘It’s impossible for Effie to drown.’ He hoped he was right. ‘Now, could you give me something to wear that might make me look like I belong here? I’ve got to look like a Towner.’

He had already taken off his long, colourfully striped scarf. Crystal gave him an old felt cap that someone had left at the apartment and a short black scarf to go round his neck.

‘Better take some food,’ he said as Crystal headed for the door. ‘I mean, we don’t know when we’ll get a chance to eat.’

Crystal made an ‘
are you crazy
?’ face at him but helped him gather some stuff. They put all they could find – bread, sweets, apples and a bun – in their pockets.

People were gathering round the lake. The air was filled with the smell of wet leaves and decay and damp from where their feet had disturbed the earth. When Crystal and Questrid got there, the Towners moved away from them as if they were contaminated. No one noticed that Questrid was a stranger.

Grint arrived. Usually he was greeted with cheers and the children waved at him, but today there were only a few muttered whispers of ‘Grint, Bless and Praise your Name!’ They knew he was losing power.

Grint marched across to a boulder and climbed up to address everyone. ‘People! My people!’ he called out in his rumbling gravelly voice. ‘It is not too late for you to change your minds about this. Effie Waters is not a witch. Who amongst you really believes that she is? She is a kind person; many of you have used her medicines and got better as a result. Many of you have put her creams on your burns and cuts and been cured. Are we going to dump her in that dirty water just because one patient wasn’t so lucky? We don’t need these outdated customs and superstitions. We are above this!’

‘He’s trying to save her!’ Questrid whispered to Crystal.

‘No, he’s trying to save himself!’ Crystal shot back. ‘He knows he can’t use the eye-cycle without her. He’d say anything. Anything. The toad!’

‘Don’t I, your leader, give you what you want?’ Grint went on. ‘You are safe here. You have food and shelter. We are not under attack … I am a good leader. I have always predicted rebellions and—’

‘Yes!’ someone cried from the crowd, ‘but maybe that’s because you have a WITCH visit you and tell you what’s going on!’

The crowd jeered. ‘Witch! Witch!’

‘There is no such thing as witchcraft!’ Grint yelled. ‘This ridiculous charade will get us nowhere, we—’

‘You said there was witchcraft a few days ago,’ Sam Smith said.

‘Yeah!’

‘Be quiet, Grint!’

‘Yeah, shut up!’

‘We want the ducking!’

‘Look! Here they come!’

The entire crowd, which had been growing bigger moment by moment, turned to watch Raek and the Town Guard bring Effie up to the lake.

Effie was not wearing a hood. Her white-blonde hair hung down to her shoulders in a cloud of shimmery silvery-gold. The Guards escorting her kept a few paces away as if they were scared to touch her. Raek held her firmly by the arm.

There were shouts and boos from the Towners as the little troupe drew closer. ‘Witch!’ ‘Sorceress!’ ‘Murderer!’

Effie was calm. Her eyes tracked round the circle of faces, looking for Crystal. When their eyes met she smiled and held out her arms. Crystal ran and hugged her and the guards didn’t stop her.

‘Mum, Mum! Are you all right?’ Then, burrowing her head in her mother’s shoulder, she whispered, ‘
Greenwood!
Do you remember Greenwood? He’s from the other side. He sent a boy – Questrid. He says you can’t drown. You can’t! Mum, do you hear me?’

Raek pulled them apart roughly.

‘Stop that!’ he squawked. ‘That’s enough!’

Crystal struggled to keep her arms round her mother. She had to hold her as long as she could in case Questrid was wrong and this was the last time. She tightened her grip.

Raek tried to prise them apart but the guards didn’t help.

‘Don’t just stand there!’ Raek shouted as he pulled and pushed at the mother and daughter. ‘Help me! She’s not going to harm you! She can’t put a spell on you, if that’s what you’re worried about.’

Inside Raek’s pocket, the sly-ugg was wriggling around in the velvet bag. It had worked itself free and now quickly it inched amongst the folds of Effie’s dress. Once hidden, it clung on and didn’t move.

Raek and the guards finally separated Crystal from her mother. They took Effie to the chair and strapped her in.

Crystal found Questrid at her side.

‘Don’t worry,’ he whispered. ‘Don’t cry. You’ll see the chair go under but she’ll be fine. If only she weren’t tied in, she might even get through the Gateway, like I did, because the ducking chair reaches right into the middle … But if she doesn’t, then she’ll come up a bit wet and then they’ll untie her and we can grab her—’

‘How? You’re just making this up! You don’t know anything, do you? You only hope!’

‘True … I’m hoping the Gateway isn’t icing up, too.’

Effie ignored the crowd who were calling out to her and jeering. Even Stella was there, shaking her fist. Effie was calm. She didn’t flinch as the men strapped a leather belt round her waist; she showed no fear at all. She might have been going to plunge into a pool of crystal clear liquid – not the dirty grey muck of Lop Lake.

When they’d secured her and she was sitting alone in the chair, the crowd fell quiet as if they suddenly realized what a terrible thing they were doing.

‘Oh dear, poor Effie.’

‘What a to-do.’

Four men hoisted the chair into the air where it jigged about awkwardly. Crystal groaned and cried out. All eyes swivelled round and looked at her, then swivelled back to the seat swaying above the ground.

‘Eh, I’m not sure it’s the right thing,’ Mrs Jones said quietly.

‘I never thought she was a witch,’ Mrs Brown said. ‘She was too kind and clever. Too dreamy. Nothing good will come of this! What about poor Crystal? What’ll become of her?’

The four men pulled on the rope and the long arm suspending the chair went out over the water. They stopped when it reached the very centre of the lake.

‘You have one last chance to change your minds, people of the Town!’ Grint cried suddenly. Everyone turned and looked at him again. ‘Effie Waters is innocent. She is not a witch. You know she is not! Save her from this terrible ordeal! Let’s think of another punishment we can give her. Not this here, not at this muddy hole of Lop Lake!’

John Carter elbowed up to the front and faced Grint. ‘Why are you so keen to save her, Grint, Bless and Praise your Name?’ he asked. ‘You’ve always agreed before about banning witchcraft. What’s changed?’

‘Yeah, why’s she so special?’

‘Duck her!’

‘Duck her!’

‘Drown her!’

Effie didn’t hear the crowd roaring. She didn’t see anything. The name
Greenwood
was ringing and singing in her head and a vague, blurred picture of him was growing stronger all the time. She was glad and hopeful without knowing why.

Effie snapped out of her dream suddenly when the sly-ugg moved. It was slithering out from under her shawl and onto her lap. It slimed beneath the free end of the strap round her waist. Effie bit back a cry. What was it doing? She did not think it would harm her … was it trying to help her? She didn’t dare look at the sly-ugg, knowing the crowd was watching everything closely. She tried to look at the water, the sky, anything; meanwhile she felt the sly-ugg arching its rubbery body, pushing and straining against the leather.

‘On the count of three,’ Raek yelled. ‘One! Two!’

Effie was right. The sly-ugg was trying to help her. It worked faster and faster, forcing the buckle to undo and release the strap. It grew pink with effort, wheezing and whimpering with worry as it pushed and pushed …

‘THREE!’

The chair dropped into the water with a mighty splash.

The lake seemed to rip open and waves rippled up and sucked at the bank. Dark evil bubbles of stinking gas exploded. Twiggy branches, empty bottles and plastic bags swirled around and spun in crazy circles. Dirty water and sodden leaves sprayed out over the watching people who screamed and stumbled backwards, giggling nervously and shouting out.

Crystal buried her face in her hands. ‘Mum, Mum!’

‘I’m sorry,’ Questrid whispered. ‘Seeing that must be so awful for you. Horrid. But I really think she’s all right, I really do and – Oh, Crystal please, could we go?’

‘What? Are you mad?’

‘It would be the perfect moment. While everyone’s here.’

‘I don’t care! I don’t care about the stupid eye-cycle! I want my mum. We can’t go and just leave her. Is she alive? Where is she?’

Time passed very slowly. The crowd began to mutter and whisper.

‘How long is the chair to stay down?’ John Carter asked.

‘That’s enough,’ Grint called. His voice sounded broken. ‘No one could survive that!’

‘Bring her up!’ Mrs Brown cried. ‘Bring her up!’

Raek checked his watch and raised his arm. He held it poised as he stared at his watch. At last he waved to the men to lift up the chair. They pulled on the rope. Everyone surged forward again to look.

Slowly the rope emerged, dripping and slimy, then the top of the chair covered with weed. There was a murmur around the lake. Then a spit-spat of angry voices, sharp words and cries …

The chair was empty.

‘Something’s coming!’ Grampy cried, staring hard at the meltwater. ‘I’m feeling it in my skeleton-bones and it’s jolly thrilling-exciting!’

Whatever it was, it was approaching them fast, with a sound like a ski rasping on ice, or the whirr of a fish hauled in on a line. A brilliant flash of light and a
POP!
sent them both toppling over.

A figure flew out of the water. It came tumbling down on the ice beside them in a flurry of long cloak and blonde hair. The pixicles scrambled to their feet and hurried over.

‘It’s a woman!’ Grampy said, kneeling beside her.

‘And not a drop of water on her white-lovely skin, or her cloaky-clothes or her silvery-blonde hair!’ Squitcher said.

The woman lay staring up at the sky blankly. She had intensely blue eyes. The pixicles looked at each other in alarm. Was she dead?

She smiled. She wasn’t dead.

‘Greetings, pale-person from below the ice,’ Grampy said, bowing. He offered his small hand to her and she took it and sat up. ‘Welcome. Are you perhaps
Fountain?
’

Effie nodded. She breathed in deeply. ‘I am.’ She turned her head very slowly, taking in everything she saw: the sheer glassy walls, the sun glittering on the ice, the blue-white snow. She seemed to blossom before their eyes: her cheeks filled out, her skin glowed and her eyes grew rounder, clearer, and as brilliant as sapphires. ‘I remember,’ she said. ‘I’ve come home. I am Fountain and I’m home at last!’