Carnival at Candlelight

by Mary Pope Osborne

  “Hello!” the passenger shouted.

  The person’s voice was muffled behind the white mask. “Do you need help?”

  “Yes!” Annie shouted back. “Can you take us to the Grand Lady of the Lagoon?”

  “Yes, of course. She is back that way!” answered the masked passenger. “Come.”

  “Great!” said Annie. She grabbed Jack’s hand and pulled him over to the gondola. The gondola rocked a bit as she and Jack climbed aboard and took seats between the gondolier and the passenger.

  The gondolier pushed the gondola away from the landing. His long oar made soft splashes in the water as the boat moved up the canal.

  Jack cleared his throat. “Um, excuse me,” he said. “Why are you wearing bird masks?”

  “For Carnival, of course,” said the passenger. “That is why you are wearing clown costumes, no?”

  “Oh, yeah, sure,” said Jack.

  As the gondola slid through the canal, Jack snuck their research book out of his backpack.

  “Oh, boy, a carnival!” Annie whispered to Jack. “I hope it has a roller coaster.”

  “I don’t think they had roller coasters two hundred sixty years ago,” whispered Jack.

  Jack looked up carnival in the index. He found the page. Then he and Annie silently read together:

  For many centuries, Carnival has been the most famous yearly festival of Venice. For Carnival, people disguise themselves as anything they want to be. Rich, poor, male, female, young, and old—all are equal during Carnival.

  “Look, that’s us,” whispered Annie. She pointed to a picture of a colorful costume with a white ruffled collar and red slippers with bows.

  “Yeah, and that’s them,” whispered Jack. He pointed to a picture of a person dressed in a black cloak and a white mask with a bird’s beak.

  Jack closed the book and put it away. The gondola people didn’t seem so weird anymore. But he still wondered why a grand lady was in terrible danger at Carnival.

  As the boat glided around a bend, Jack caught his breath. He saw dozens of gondolas rocking on the choppy waters of a wide, open canal. They were all decorated with ribbons and flowers. Candlelight from their lanterns danced on the dark, rippling water.

  “Look, that must be Carnival over there,” said Annie, pointing.

  In the distance, thousands of candles twinkled along the shoreline. Sounds of laughter, clapping, and shouting floated over the water.

  “Hold on tightly!” said the masked person in the front of the gondola. “The tide is high tonight!” As their gondola joined the fleet of boats heading toward Carnival, the wind picked up. The waves grew taller.

  Jack and Annie held on to the sides of the boat. Jack heard a faint rumble of faraway thunder. He saw a zigzag flash of lightning in the distant sky. Is a storm coming? he wondered nervously. Is the storm part of the disaster that’s going to happen to the Grand Lady of the Lagoon?

  “This is going to be fun, isn’t it?” said Annie cheerfully.

  “Sure,” said Jack. He tried to shake off his worries as the wind and tide helped push the gondola toward the twinkling candles of Carnival.

  The gondola glided toward a landing at the edge of the canal. As the gondolier tied up the boat, water was sloshing from the canal onto a wide walkway filled with Carnival-goers.

  The gondolier reached a gloved hand toward Annie and helped her out of the boat. He then held out a hand to Jack. When Jack grabbed it, he was surprised that the gondolier’s hand felt small under the white glove, like a kid’s hand.

  As soon as Jack had stepped out of the boat, the gondolier untied the rope, pushed off from the landing, and began rowing away.

  “Bye! Thanks!” called Annie.

  The two strangers in the white bird masks waved.

  Jack and Annie watched the gondola disappear over the choppy waters. Then they looked back at the shore. The Carnival crowd was parading up and down the wide walkway along the canal.

  “Hey look,” said Annie. “There’s a bunch of people dressed like us! And like the two people in our gondola!”

  Jack saw lots of black cloaks, bird masks, funny hats, and ruffled collars. He also saw people dressed as chickens, pirates, and knights. None of the costumed people seemed to mind the water spilling over the edge of the canal, soaking their boots and slippers.

  As Jack and Annie stared at the crowd, a distant bell began to ring. The bell rang nine times. “I guess that means it’s nine o’clock,” said Jack.

  Just then another bell began to chime. Jack counted again. This time, ten chimes rang out. “Ten?” said Jack, puzzled. “So what time is it? Nine o’clock or ten o’clock?”

  “Don’t worry about that now,” said Annie. “I think I see the Grand Lady of the Lagoon!”

  “Where?” said Jack.

  Annie pointed to a tall woman at the edge of the parade. She was wearing a black mask. She wore piles of jewelry, a white wig, and a wide hoop skirt.

  Jack and Annie moved toward the lady. “Excuse me,” said Annie. “Hi.”

  The lady looked at Annie. “Hello,” she said in a deep man’s voice.

  “Whoa,” said Jack, stepping back.

  Annie laughed. “You’re a man!” she said.

  “Of course,” said the man. “But for Carnival, I am a very beautiful lady, no?”

  “We’re looking for someone called the Grand Lady of—” started Annie. But before she could finish, a giant chicken grabbed the man’s hand and pulled him away into the crowd.

  “Oh, brother,” said Jack, looking around. Lots of people were dressed as grand ladies! “How are we supposed to know who to visit?”

  “Maybe it’s time to use one of Kathleen and Teddy’s rhymes,” said Annie.

  “No, we should save our rhymes,” said Jack.

  “Then let’s just skip visiting the Grand Lady of the Lagoon for now,” said Annie. “What’s the next thing Merlin tells us to do?”

  Jack looked at Merlin’s directions and read aloud:

  To find out where you need to go,

  Seek out a painter named Tiepolo.

  “Good, that’s clear,” said Jack. “Let’s see if Tiepolo is in our research book.”

  As the noisy crowd celebrated around them, Jack pulled out the book. He stood near a lantern and looked in the index. “He’s here!” said Jack. He turned to the right page and read:

  Tiepolo (say tee-EP-uh-lo) was one of the greatest painters of Venice in the 1700s. He painted bright, beautiful oil paintings for palaces and villas.

  “If the guy’s so famous, people must know where he lives,” said Annie. “Excuse me!” she called to a clown walking by. “Can you tell us where the painter Tiepolo lives?”

  “Near the Church of San Felice,” the clown said.

  “Thanks!” said Annie.

  “But you won’t find him home now,” the clown called over his shoulder. “He’s in Milan, painting.”

  “Where’s that?” shouted Jack.

  “Over a day’s ride on horseback,” said the clown. Then he disappeared into the crowd.

  “Hmmm …,” said Annie. “Do you think Merlin wants us to go to Milan?”

  “We don’t have time,” said Jack. “I think we have to skip Tiepolo, too.”

  “Yeah,” said Annie. “Hey, maybe we should just skip all this stuff and try to find the Ruler of the Seas on our own. Our letter says he’s the only one who can help us save the Grand Lady.”

  “I don’t know …,” said Jack. “In his letter, Merlin tells us to be patient—”

  But Annie was already calling to a pirate passing by. “Sir, do you know where we can find the Ruler of the Seas?”

  “What?” shouted the pirate.

  “The ruler! Do you know where he lives?” yelled Annie.

  “In the palace on Saint Mark’s Square!” said the pirate.

  “Where’s that?” Annie called. But the pirate had disappeared into the crowd.

  “I’ll look up Saint Mark’s Square,” sa
id Jack. He turned the pages of their book until he came to a map of Venice. “Oh, cool,” he said. Jack loved maps.

  “Okay, let’s see,” Jack said. “We’re here.” He pointed to the walkway along the canal on the map. “And we want to go to Saint Mark’s Square.” He pointed to another place on the map. “It’s really close.”

  “Yeah, and it looks like everyone else is headed there, too,” said Annie. “Come on.”

  “So, if we go this way …,” said Jack. He traced their route with his finger.

  “Come on, Jack!” called Annie.

  Jack looked up from the map. Annie was already walking with the crowd. Jack closed the book and hurried after her. Soon they came to a huge, open square.

  “Wow,” Jack said breathlessly. Saint Mark’s Square was filled with candlelight and musicians. Acrobats balanced on tightropes. Boxers boxed in a ring. Knights fenced with swords. Clowns walked on tall stilts, raced wheelbarrows, and tried to catch live eels in their mouths. All around the square were candlelit buildings.

  “Venice is beautiful,” said Annie.

  “Yeah,” said Jack. He looked back at their book. He found an illustration of Saint Mark’s Square. Jack read the descriptions of the buildings:

  The watchtower of Saint Mark’s Square is the tallest building in Venice. The weather vane on top once helped sailors by showing them which way the wind was blowing.

  Jack looked up. “I can barely see the weather vane up there,” he said. “But I think it’s pointing north. So the wind must be blowing from the south.”

  “What about the ruler’s palace? Where’s that?” asked Annie.

  Jack read on:

  The clock tower is one of the most beautiful towers in the world. On top of the tower, a bell is struck every hour by—

  “Jack, skip to the ruler’s palace!” interrupted Annie. “Please!”

  “Okay, okay,” said Jack. He read about the palace:

  The palace of Venice’s ruler is one of the most splendid structures ever built. It has a great hall where as many as 2,000 nobles once met to discuss city matters. It also holds the city’s grim prison cells. Above the palace door is a sculpture of Saint Mark showing a book to a winged lion—

  “There’s the palace door!” said Annie.

  Jack looked up from the map. Annie was heading toward a huge door with the sculpture of a man and a winged lion above it. Jack closed the book and hurried to catch up to her.

  A guard was standing by the palace door. The guard wore a uniform and held a rifle. “Wait,” Jack whispered. “Is he a real guard? Or is that just a costume?”

  “I’ll find out,” said Annie. She walked over to the guard. “Excuse me, sir. Is the ruler of Venice inside the palace now?”

  “Begone, clown!” the guard said gruffly.

  “But it’s important,” said Annie. “We need to talk to him about something.”

  “I said begone!” the guard growled. “I am tired of clowns wasting my time!”

  “She’s not really a clown,” said Jack, coming forward. “We’re on a mission. We—”

  “Go! Both of you! Or else!” roared the guard. He held up his rifle. He’s definitely not wearing a costume, thought Jack.

  “Okay, sorry, sorry,” said Jack. He and Annie moved away from the palace entrance.

  “What a grouchy guy,” said Annie.

  “He’ll never let us in,” said Jack.

  “Maybe it’s time to use one of Teddy and Kathleen’s rhymes,” said Annie. “Maybe we should turn into ducks. The guard wouldn’t mind if a couple of ducks—”

  “No,” said Jack. “We have to save our rhymes.”

  “Well, how will we get inside?” Annie asked.

  “Patience,” said Jack. “Remember—”

  Before he could finish, Annie broke in, “Hey, look!”

  Two clowns on stilts were dancing around the guard. One grabbed the guard’s rifle and tossed it to the other.

  “Hey!” the guard yelled. “Give that back!”

  “Now’s our chance!” said Annie. “Quick!” She ran to the entrance and slipped through the door.

  “Oh, no—oh, man!” said Jack. While the guard chased after the two clowns on stilts, Jack rushed to the doorway of the palace and slipped inside, too.

  Jack found Annie standing behind a column in a lantern-lit courtyard. The courtyard was quiet and empty. “Everyone in Venice must be at Carnival,” said Jack. “I just hope the ruler is home.”

  “Yeah, we’ll ask him if he knows the Grand Lady of the Lagoon,” said Annie. “And we’ll tell him he has to help us save her from a terrible disaster.”

  Jack looked at his map of the palace. Several rooms were labeled Ruler’s Living Chambers. “I guess that’s where he lives,” said Jack. “We have to go up some stairs called the Giants’ Stairs to get there.”

  “The Giants’ Stairs?” said Annie.

  “Yeah,” said Jack. “Listen to this.”

  These stairs are called the Giants’ Stairs because they are guarded by two large statues of gods from Roman mythology: Mars, the god of war, and Neptune, the god of the sea.

  “Cool,” said Annie. “Let’s go.”

  Jack and Annie hurried down the passageway that ran along the courtyard until they came to a wide staircase. On either side of the stairs were giant marble statues of strong-looking men.

  “Mars and Neptune,” said Jack. “This is it. Come on.”

  Jack and Annie quickly climbed the Giants’ Stairs. At the top, Jack looked at the map again. “Now we turn right and head for the Golden Staircase,” he said.

  Keeping an eye out for more guards, they crept down a hall until they came to a fancy staircase under a gold ceiling.

  “There it is,” said Jack. “Let’s climb up.” He and Annie hurried up the Golden Staircase. When they got to the top, they froze. Another guard was slouched against the wall by the stairs. His eyes were closed, and he was snoring softly.

  Jack motioned to Annie, and they tiptoed past the sleeping guard to the entrance of the ruler’s living chambers. Jack glanced at the map. “This is it,” he whispered.

  The door was open. Jack and Annie peeked inside. “Knock, knock?” Annie said in a soft voice.

  No one answered.

  They stepped through the doorway. A fire blazed on the hearth. Overhead many candles burned brightly. The dancing flames cast shadows on a marble floor and a carved gold ceiling.

  “I have a feeling the ruler’s not here,” said Annie. “Maybe we should leave.”

  Jack looked at their book. “Wait, the next room is the Map Room,” he said. “Let’s just take a look.”

  “Okay, but we’d better hurry,” said Annie.

  Jack led the way into the Map Room. Colorful maps hung on the walls. In the middle of the floor were two huge globes. Jack sighed. “I love this room,” he said.

  “Look, more lions,” said Annie. She pointed to three paintings of winged lions on one of the walls. “Why are there lions with wings everywhere?”

  Jack looked up winged lions in their book. He turned to the right page and read:

  The winged lion is the symbol of Venice. Represented in paintings and sculptures all over the city, the lions stand for strength on both land and sea.

  As Jack and Annie looked back up at the lion paintings, they heard footsteps. The grouchy guard and the sleepy guard rushed into the room.

  “Hi, we’re looking—” began Annie.

  “There they are! The thieves!” the sleepy guard shouted at the grouchy guard. “I told you I heard voices!”

  “We’re not thieves,” said Annie. “We were just looking for your ruler to ask for his help.”

  “She’s right,” said Jack. “We have to tell him that—”

  “Won’t admit your crime, eh?” said the grouchy guard. “The worst cells are reserved for criminals like you! Move!”

  “But we—” started Annie.

  “Move!” shouted the grouchy guard, raising his rifle an
d pointing to the door.

  Jack knew there was no use arguing. He took Annie’s hand and led her out of the ruler’s living chambers. The two guards walked behind them, pointing guns at their backs.

  “To the end of the hall and down the steps!” growled the grouchy guard.

  Jack and Annie walked quickly down the hall, then down some steep, narrow steps. They moved through a low stone corridor, the guards close behind them.

  “Over the Bridge of Sighs!” shouted the grouchy guard. “And be sure to sigh when you cross it—because you won’t be coming back for a long time!”

  Jack gripped Annie’s hand as they crossed a covered footbridge to another building. Once inside, they started down a lantern-lit hallway filled with puddles. Jack’s shoes felt squishy and soggy as he sloshed through the water.

  “Halt!” shouted the grouchy guard.

  Jack and Annie stopped in front of a heavy wooden door. The grouchy guard opened the door and pushed them into a dark, damp cell.

  The door slammed shut. Jack heard a heavy metal bolt clank into place. Then he heard the guards splash away down the hall, arguing with each other.

  The prison was eerily quiet. It was hard to breathe in the stale cell. It was hard to see, too. Only the dim light of the hallway shone faintly through the barred window. Under the window was a wooden bench.

  “What now?” Annie asked in a small voice.

  For a moment, Jack couldn’t answer. He was stunned. Minutes ago they’d been at the bright Carnival. Now they were locked in a dingy prison cell. “I—I’ll look in the book,” he said.

  Jack felt shaky as he opened their research book. He moved close to the barred window to read by the dim light. He looked up prison in the index. He found it and read aloud:

  The prison cells at ground level in the palace were called the pozzi, meaning “wells” or “pits.” They were dank, airless, and filled with rats. Even the government eventually decided they were too cruel.

  Jack heard a squeak from a dark corner. He stopped reading and looked up. He heard the squeak again. The hair went up on his neck. Was that a rat? he wondered.