The Magic Faraway Tree

6.What can they do now?

Joe, Moon-Face, Silky and Saucepan sat down by the hole and thought hard. Silky began to cry.

The Saucepan man looked really uncomfortable. He was very fond of Silky. "Silky, please forgive me for being so careless," he said in a small voice. "I didn't mean to do it. Don't cry, you make me feel horrible."

"It's all right," sobbed Silky, borrowing Moon-Face's handkerchief. "I know you didn't mean to. But I can't help feeling sad when I think I won't ever be able to see the Magic faraway Tree any more."

The Saucepan Man began to cry too. Tears dripping with a splash on his saucepans and kettles.

"Moon-Face, Joe can't you think of something to do? Can we possibly squeeze down if we hold our breath and make ourselves as small as we can?" asked Silky.

"Quite impossible," said Moon-face gloomily. "Listen, there's somebody coming up the ladder."

They heard voices, and soon popped up out of the hole in the cloud. It was Rick! He stared in surprise at the four enormous people sitting by the hole. He climbed up and stood beside them, looking very, very small. Then came Beth and Frannie. Their eyes nearly fell out of their heads when they saw how big Joe and his friends were.

"What's happened?!" cried Rick. "We got worried because you didn't come home, Joe so we climbed to see where you were. But why are you so enormous?

Joe told them. Silky sobbed into Moon-face's hanky. Beth put her arm around her. It was funny to feel Silky very big. Beth's arm only went halfway around Silky's waist!

"And now you see we can't get back down the hole!" said Joe.

"I know what we can do!" said Rick suddenly.

"What?" cried everyone hopefully.

"We'll rub the hole with the spell and it will get bigger of course" said Rick. "Then you'll be able to get down it."

"Why ever we didn't think of that before?!" cried Joe, jumping up. "Saucepan, where's that bottle with the spell in it?"

He picked up the can, but oh! It was completely empty. Every single drop has been split when Saucepan had fallen over.

"Well, never mind." said Moon-Face, cheering up. "We can go and buy some more from that goblin. Come on!"

Rick, Beth and Frannie looked very small next to the others. They went up to the goblin who had sold them the spell. 

"Please, can we have another bottle of the spell you sold us just now?" asked Moon-Face, holding out the empty bottle.

"I don't have a drop left," said the goblin. "And I can't make any more until the moon comes. It can only be made in moonlight."

Everyone looked so miserable that the goblin felt sorry for them. "Why do you look so unhappy?" He said. "What has happened?"

Joe told him everything. The goblin listened with interest. Then he smiled. "Well, my dear," he said, "if you can't get a spell to make the hole big, why don't you buy a spell to make yourselves small? My brother over there, sells that kind of spell. Only be careful not to put too much on yourselves, or you may go smaller than you meant to!"

They went over to the green goblin. He was yelling at the top of his voice. "Buy my wonderful and most amazing spell! It will make anything as small as you like! Do you have an enemy? Dab him with this spell and see him shrink to the size of a mouse! Is your nose too big? Dab it with this, and make it the right size! Oh, wonderful, astonishing, amazing...."

Everyone hurried up. moon-face took some money out of his money bag. "I'll buy the spell, please," he said. The green goblin gave him a bottle. The spell in it looked rather like paint, just as the other had done.

"Now, go slow," said the goblin. "you don't want to get too small. Try a little at a time."

Moon-Face dabbed a little bit on Silky. She went a bit smaller at once. He dabbed again. she went smaller still.

"Is she the right size yet?" asked Moon-face. Everyone stared at Silky.

"Not quite," said Beth. "But she is almost, Moon-Face. So be careful with your next dab."

Moon-Face was very careful. At the next dab of the spell, Silky went to exactly her right size. She was so happy.

"Now you Joe," said Moon-Face. So he dabbed Joe and got Joe back to his right size again too. Then he tried dabbing the Saucepan man, and soon got him right. His kettles and and saucepans went right too. It was funny to watch them.

"Now I'll do you, Moon-Face," said Joe.

"No, thanks, I'll do myself," said Moon-face. He dabbed the spell on to himself and shrank smaller. he dabbed again and went smaller still. Then he stopped dabbing and put the brush down.

"You're  not quite your ordinary size yet," said Joe.

"I know," said Moon-face. "But I always thought I was a bit short side. Now I'm just about right. I always wanted to be a bit taller. I shouldn't dab myself anymore."

Everyone laughed. It was funny to see Moon-face a bit taller than usual. As they stood there and laughed, a curious cold wind began to blow. Moon-Face looked all round and began to shout."Quick! Quick! The land of spells is on the move! Hurry before we get left behind!"

Everyone got a shock. They set off to the hole. The wind blew more and more strongly, and suddenly the sun went out. It was as if somebody had blown it out. Joe thought. At once darkness fell in the land of spells. "Hold hands! Hold hands!" cried Joe. "We'll lose one another if we don't!"

They all took hands and called out their names to make sure everyone was there. the stumbled on through the darkness.

"Here's the hole!" cried Joe at last, and down he went. He felt the ladder and climbed down that, too. The others followed one by one, pushing close behind in the dark, longing to get down the faraway tree they knew so well. How lovely it would be to sit in Moon-Face's room and fell safe! 

But down at the bottom of the ladder, there was no faraway tree. Instead, to Joe's surprise, there was a narrow passage, lit by a swinging lantern.

"Oh my goodness!" said Joe to the others. "What is this? Where is the faraway tree?"

"We've come down the wrong hole," groaned Moon-face. "Oh, goodness, what bad luck!"

"Well, where are we?" asked Rick in wonder. 

"I don't know," said Moon-face. "We'd better go follow this passage and see where it leads to. It's no use climbing back and trying to find the hole. We'd never find it in the dark, and anyway, I'm pretty sure the Land of Spells has moved on by now."

Everyone felt miserable. Joe led the way down the passage. It twisted and turned, went up and down steps, and was lit here and there with lanterns swinging from the roof.

At last they came to a big yellow door. On it was a blue knocker, a blue mail-box and a blue notice that said:

Mister Change-About. 

Knock once, ring twice, and

 rattle the mail box.

Joe, knocked once, very loudly. Then he rang twice, and everyone heard the bell going 'Ring! Ring! Ring!' Then he rattled the mail-Box.

The door didn't open. It completely disappeared. It was so peculiar. One minute it was there, and the next it had gone, and there was nothing in front of them. They could see right into a big underground room. At the end of it, by a roaring fire, sat a round, fat person. "That must be Mister Change-about!" whispered Rick. "Should we go in?"