The Magic Fox

by Paula Harrison

  The large fox came closer and stared at the glittering white crystals inside the stone. “I have heard of these Speaking Stones. When I was a cub, my grandfather told me about them. He met a human who owned one and they understood each other through the stone’s enchantment. People and magical animals were more friendly toward each other in those days.”

  “As soon as I got it, I knew I had to come and see you. I wanted to speak to you properly for the very first time!” said Poppy shyly. “My name’s Poppy. I love coming here and watching you play together.”

  The biggest fox bowed his head. “I am Long-shanks and this is my wife, Bright-fur.” He turned to the smaller foxes. “And these are our children: Quick-eye, Sleepy-tail, and Little-paw.”

  The smaller foxes bowed their heads. The littlest cub bounced on her paws. “You’re Poppy! Like the flower?”

  “Yes, just like the flower.” Poppy knelt down and stroked her warm fur. “It’s lovely to talk to you, Little-paw.” She was about to ask them whether they liked living in Penlee when she heard a horn blowing loudly.

  “What’s that?” said Little-paw, trembling.

  “I don’t know.” Poppy frowned. “It might be something important. I’d better go and see.” She patted the little cub before gathering up her basket.

  The horn blast came again.

  “That could mean danger!” said Bright-fur, her five tails swishing.

  “Everyone back to the den!” barked Long-shanks. “Quickly now!”

  The fox cubs bolted into the hole, followed by their parents. Poppy watched them disappear into the darkness. She would have liked to talk to them for longer, but the noise of the horn had frightened them.

  Poppy left the park and crossed the cobbled street. People were pouring from their houses and hurrying toward the center of town.

  “Freshly made candles!” she called to them. “Pretty candles!”

  “There’s no time for that, Poppy!” Mr. Lott from the bakery dashed past. “That horn means some kind of emergency.”

  The horn blasted for a third time. Turning the corner, Poppy could see everyone gathering by the church gate. A knight was standing there in glistening silver armor. He was flanked by four guards. One of them was holding the horn.

  Natasha elbowed past her. “Mind out, Poppy! Having those candles doesn’t make you more important, you know.”

  Poppy sighed. Why did Natasha always have to be so rude? Holding her basket carefully, she slipped through the crowd to get closer to the front. She stood on tiptoes to try to see over the heads of all the people.

  “Silence! We must begin.” The knight stared down his long nose at the people gathered around him. “My name is Sir Fitzroy and I am the queen’s most important knight.”

  Poppy’s mind whirled. Sir Fitzroy! That was the name she’d read on the sign—the same knight that Talia and Lucas had talked about.

  “I’m here on behalf of Queen Viola, ruler of our kingdom,” continued Sir Fitzroy. “There are evil powers in this land. There are things that would seek to harm the queen herself!”

  Poppy’s eyes widened. This really was an emergency then. Who would want to hurt the queen?

  The crowd started talking but they fell silent again under Sir Fitzroy’s dark glare.

  “I’m talking about these wicked magical animals, of course!” the knight went on. “They have a dangerous power, and we can no longer allow them to roam freely in our land. From this moment, anyone who sees one of the creatures must report it to a guard. Then we will capture the beast and take it away.”

  Poppy’s insides filled with fluttering panic. Talia and Lucas had been right. Sir Fitzroy wanted to capture all the magical animals. She couldn’t let that happen to the scarlet foxes!

  Chapter Four

  The Horrible Machine

  Poppy stared at Sir Fitzroy as he carried on talking. She ought to go and warn the foxes about him straightaway. Then they could escape from town when night fell. Once they’d reached the countryside there would be lots of places for them to hide.

  She began edging toward the back of the crowd, trying not to bump anyone with her basket. Sir Fitzroy went on talking about all the magical animals he wanted to catch.

  Poppy crept past Mr. Lott, who was muttering, “Whoever heard of a dangerous sky unicorn or a deadly star wolf? This is ridiculous!”

  “And if anyone disagrees with these orders, my guards will march them to the castle where they can explain their disloyalty to the queen!” yelled Sir Fitzroy.

  Mr. Lott gulped and fell silent.

  Poppy reached the back of the crowd. She glanced at the empty street behind her. All she had to do was sneak away without anyone noticing. Pulling up her gray hood, she edged away from the crowd.

  “To make everything quicker, I have invented this magical-animal detector.” Sir Fitzroy held up a large wooden box. “Inside here is a machine that can detect any magical beast close by, even if they’re hiding in a hole or up a tree. It will make catching the disgusting creatures much simpler!”

  Poppy’s stomach gave a horrible lurch. If Sir Fitzroy’s machine worked, then the foxes weren’t even safe in their den till nighttime.

  Sir Fitzroy set the box down and ordered two of the guards to lift out the machine. Two metal cogwheels stood on the wooden casing. One was much larger than the other. A handle was attached to the smaller wheel. A thick metal chain ran round the larger cogwheel and was linked to a metal spike that pointed straight upward. The spike had a sharp arrow shape jutting from the side.

  Poppy stared, unable to take her eyes off the horrible machine. Sir Fitzroy grasped the handle and pushed it round and round. The smaller cogwheel turned, pushing the bigger one. The metal chain began to move, spinning the nasty-looking spike. Slowly, the arrow fixed to the spike went round. A harsh whirring began that made Poppy’s head ache. A few people clapped their hands over their ears.

  “It works like this,” Sir Fitzroy yelled over the noise. “The spike makes a vibration that matches the creatures’ magic. Then the arrow points to where the beasts are hiding.”

  Poppy watched in horror as the arrow shuddered to a stop. It pointed down the street in the direction of the park.

  “Aha!” shouted Sir Fitzroy. “So you do have a magical creature somewhere in your town. The machine has detected the beast already!”

  Everyone in the crowd started talking at once. Poppy turned and raced down the street. Her breath caught in her throat as she ran. Throwing open the park gate, she dashed straight to the willow tree and ducked underneath the dangling branches.

  “Long-shanks! Little-paw!” she panted, kneeling by the foxes’ hole. “You’re in terrible danger! You have to leave town right now.”

  Long-shanks’s face appeared at the opening to the den. “What’s going on? Is there a fire?”

  Poppy swallowed. “No, there are some bad people who don’t like magical animals. They’ll capture you if you stay here. Please—you have to go!”

  Long-shanks sprang out of the den, followed by Bright-fur and the three cubs. Little-paw was shivering with fright and her three tails drooped.

  “But we can stay here,” said Long-shanks. “They’ll never find us in our den.”

  “They will!” said Poppy urgently. “The man in charge has a special machine that hunts down magical creatures. He’ll find you even if you stay in the den. Turning invisible won’t keep you safe either.”

  “She means to help us, my love,” Bright-fur said to Long-shanks. “I think we should follow her advice. We can go to the river. There are many holes in the sandy riverbank that would make a good den.”

  “Let us go then!” Long-shanks called to the cubs. “Come, children—we’re leaving! You must be ready to camouflage as soon as I tell you to.”

  Bright-fur bowed her head to Poppy. “Thank you, Poppy—friend of magical animals!”

  “Good-bye!” Poppy watched the scarlet foxes dash out of the park in a flurry of tails. They scampered up the st
reet toward the edge of town.

  Just as they disappeared into the distance, Poppy’s heart sank. There were four foxes running in a pack. One of the cubs was missing.

  Poppy looked around. Where was the missing cub? And what if it was Little-paw?

  A snuffling noise came from deep inside the den.

  Poppy crouched down. “Little-paw?” she whispered. “Are you down there? Please come out!”

  The cub gave a tiny whimper. “I can’t come out. It’s too scary!”

  “Please, Little-paw!” She tried to think of something that would help. “If you do, I’ll find you more cake.”

  A small black nose and a pair of green eyes appeared at the opening to the den. “Really? More cake?”

  “Definitely more cake!” agreed Poppy. “Come on, Little-paw! The others have gone. We have to get you out of here.”

  Little-paw scampered out of the den and jumped into Poppy’s arms. Poppy held the cub tight. Little-paw’s fur felt warm against her cheek.

  “You know you’re not supposed to be making friends with those creatures,” said a voice behind Poppy. “You could be in big trouble.”

  Poppy leaped to her feet, holding on to Little-paw. Natasha was standing behind them, her arms folded.

  “Natasha! You made me jump,” said Poppy.

  “You could be in really big trouble,” repeated Natasha.

  “Please don’t tell!” pleaded Poppy. “Look at her! You can see she’s not dangerous. She’s just a baby.”

  “But I’m growing quite big now,” Little-paw piped up. “I’ll grow even taller after some cake.”

  Poppy stroked the cub’s ears. She knew that Natasha couldn’t understand what Little-paw was saying. She had to make the other girl realise how important it was to help the little fox!

  “That knight has orders from the queen and he says all magical creatures are dangerous.” Natasha nodded her head as if that settled everything.

  “It’s not true!” Poppy burst out. “Please don’t tell anyone about this cub, Natasha. Her family have left town and I’m going to take her to join them. They’d never hurt anybody!”

  The park gate creaked open and Natasha peeped through the willow branches. “The guards are here,” she said shortly. “It’s too late to take her anywhere now.”

  Poppy’s heart pounded. “Little-paw, can you change color to match my cloak?”

  Little-paw closed her eyes and screwed up her little black nose. Her body turned gray and became invisible against Poppy’s cloak, but her head stayed bright red.

  Natasha’s eyes widened. “I’ve never seen them do that before!”

  Poppy bit her lip. It looked as if the cub’s head was floating beside her shoulder. It was clear that Little-paw’s magic wouldn’t keep her safe from the guards.

  Little-paw opened her eyes. “How’s that?”

  “It’s not quite right but don’t worry,” Poppy told her. “I’m going to find you somewhere to hide. You mustn’t make a sound. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, Poppy.” The cub’s body reappeared and her whiskers trembled. “Am I in trouble?”

  “I’ll look after you.” Poppy kissed the cub’s furry head and set her down on the ground. If she took the candles out of her basket maybe she could hide Little-paw in there. Then she could get past the guards without them spotting the cub. She hurriedly emptied the candles onto the grass.

  “What are you doing?” hissed Natasha. “All your candles will get dirty.”

  “But this is an emergency!” Poppy dropped the last candle onto the ground. She was just about to put Little-paw into the basket when a guard pushed aside the willow leaves.

  “What are you two doing?” he asked gruffly.

  Poppy froze. She knew at any moment he’d look down and see Little-paw sniffing at the pile of candles. She had to think of something fast!

  Chapter Five

  Natasha’s Idea

  Poppy took a step toward the guard. She had to keep his attention fixed on her so that he didn’t notice Little-paw. She waved wildly with both arms. “Hello! Isn’t it a nice day? We just wanted some shade under this tree.”

  At the exact same moment Natasha pulled off her cloak and threw it over the fox cub. Little-paw gave a tiny squeak and stopped moving.

  The guard’s eyes narrowed. “You’re up to something, aren’t you? I can spot a guilty face, you know.”

  “We were just resting.” Poppy didn’t dare look at Natasha’s cloak in case the guard noticed. She longed for him to go away so that she could pick up Little-paw.

  “There’s a magical animal here,” said Natasha shortly.

  Poppy’s shoulders drooped. How could Natasha give the cub away? And why did she bother hiding Little-paw under her cloak? It made no sense!

  “What’s that?” Sir Fitzroy burst through the willow branches, his armor clanking. “Have you found one of the beasts? I knew the detector wouldn’t let us down. Come here, Tepp! Bring the machine!”

  A second guard stumbled in carrying the magical-animal detector. The two cogwheels turned and the metal spike spun slowly. Poppy swallowed, watching the arrow go round and round.

  “Come on, Tepp! Where is the little beast?” said Sir Fitzroy impatiently.

  The arrow trembled, pointing toward Natasha’s cloak. Then it moved on to face the park gate.

  “The arrow’s leading us back to the street, sir,” said the guard.

  “First you said it was leading us into the park. Make up your mind, soldier!” snapped Sir Fitzroy. “You’re being almost as annoying as the stupid people of this town.”

  Natasha’s eyes narrowed as she looked at Sir Fitzroy.

  “It . . . um . . . I don’t know.” The guard moved the machine this way and that. The detector whirred fiercely. The arrow swung round but kept pointing toward the gate.

  “I really think there’s nothing here to catch, sir,” said the guard at last.

  “Nonsense!” Sir Fitzroy turned to the girls. “Which of you said that there was a beast here?”

  “Me, sir! But I meant there was a magical animal,” explained Natasha. “It ran away as soon as we got here. It went that way!” She pointed toward the center of town.

  Poppy gave Natasha a grateful look. She’d protected Little-paw after all!

  Sir Fitzroy gave a deep groan. “You were too slow again!” He snapped at the guards. “Get that machine working and pick up the trail, and you girls need to get out of here. We have work to do!”

  Poppy’s hands shook as she piled the candles back into her basket. Natasha gathered up her cloak, hiding the cub among the folds. Poppy held her breath, hoping that Little-paw wouldn’t make a sound.

  Sir Fitzroy turned away to give orders to the guards. Poppy and Natasha hurried out of the park and climbed the hill together.

  “Let’s go to my house,” Poppy whispered to the other girl.

  She didn’t dare look back. Gradually her heart stopped beating so hard and she slipped Natasha a sideways glance. “Thanks for not giving Little-paw away! I really thought you meant to tell them at first. Why did you decide not to say anything?”

  Natasha stuck her nose in the air. “I think magical animals should be protected. Anyway, I don’t like that man very much!”

  This was so different to what she’d said before that Poppy couldn’t help giggling. Little-paw began to wriggle. “Where are we going, Poppy?” she called from under Natasha’s cloak.

  “We’re going to my house,” whispered Poppy. “Keep still, Little-paw! You can’t come out until we’ve got inside.”

  “Why do you call her that?” Natasha asked curiously. “And why do you act like she can understand what you’re saying?”

  “Come inside and I’ll explain. My aunt and uncle won’t be back yet.” Poppy ran to her front door and hurried inside.

  Natasha stared wide-eyed at the magnificent candle sculptures in the living room. “Those are amazing!”

  “My aunt made those butterfly ones,�
�� said Poppy. “I can give you one if you want.”

  “Yes, please!” Natasha flushed. Little-paw began wriggling under her cloak again. “I think I’d better set this cub free.”

  “Come in here!” Poppy beckoned Natasha into the kitchen. “We can’t stay here long though! The guards could follow Little-paw’s trail using that horrible detector.”

  Natasha set the cub on the ground and gently unwound her cloak from Little-paw’s legs and tails. “There you are!” She turned to Poppy. “Getting out of town without someone spotting her will be much too hard! It’s market day so lots of people are here. Someone’s bound to see her. I think we should wait till nighttime and sneak her away in the dark.” Her eyes gleamed with excitement.

  Little-paw scampered across the kitchen floor, pounced on a tea towel and ran off with it in her mouth. Poppy smiled. It was nice to see her enjoying herself.

  “What do you think?” said Natasha eagerly.

  Poppy studied the other girl. Natasha really seemed to want to help. “So you really want to help Little-paw escape?” she asked Natasha. “It’s just that . . . you never seemed to want to be friends before.”

  Natasha looked awkward. “You were always so busy selling your beautiful candles while I was stuck at the shoemaker’s shop. I do want to help! This cub is so adorable and I don’t like that nasty knight!”

  Poppy smiled. “Neither do I! Well, it’ll be easier with two of us keeping Little-paw safe.”

  “Why do you call her that?” Natasha asked again. “I’m sure there’s something you’re not telling me.”

  Poppy hesitated. Talia had advised her to keep her Speaking Stone a secret, but Natasha had helped save Little-paw. If they were going to finish this rescue together she ought to know everything. So she took out the stone and told Natasha all that had happened that morning.

  Natasha listened closely. She was a little disappointed that the magic in the stone wouldn’t work for her too, but she cheered up when Poppy got out some chocolate cake her aunt had made.