Adventure 2016

Chapter 6: The hill fort.

Jenny hadn't messaged James when she'd arrived at home. It was late and she had some homework to finish. Again her parents weren't upset that she was late; they hadn't noticed she wasn't there. She went to sleep thinking about Elf's cat and it's razor sharp claws.

Elf and James were already sitting down eating when Jenny arrived at breakfast club on Tuesday morning. The year 4 boy, Wilf was with them. James was doing the talking.

"Oh, hi Jenny," he said when she sat down. "I've been thinking about the raffle for the mega grotto. Wilf's been around the whole of year four, and only three children were willing to sell me their tickets. I managed to persuade the Blackman twins to give me theirs. But I still need more."

"I'll start on year three today," Wilf said. "They're younger and might be more willing."

He got up and left the table and wandered over to some smaller children sitting nearby.

"Did Elf tell you the news?" Jenny asked.

"What news?" James said. "Did you think of a way to get more raffle tickets?"

"Er, no," Elf said. "We spoke to Claudia yesterday. Actually, Jenny saved her from the pigeons."

James looked blank for a second, then said, "I spoke to Countess Madeira. She's the leader of the starlings. She says that they won't fight Archduke Crackwing, and that Claudia is in danger."

Jenny nodded. "Claudia said the same thing. Only, she also said that something is going to happen on Saturday -- that's when King Pigeon's bounty runs out."

Jenny explained what the cat had told them. When she mentioned the King Under the Fort, James took over.

"That's who Countess Madeira is looking for," James said. "She thinks that only the King Under the Fort can sort all of this out and get rid of Crackwing. I think we need to find out what's going to happen on Saturday. And one of us should definitely be on the pier. Preferably in the mega grotto, to keep an eye on things."

Jenny looked at Elf. Elf shook her head. James couldn't be distracted from his telescope. He told them that he'd seen Ms Gibbon with the tickets, hiding them in the PE cupboard.

"If we could just sneak into the cupboard for a few moments, we could get our hands on--"

"That's stealing!" Jenny said. "Or at least it's dishonest and cheating. Buying other kid's tickets is bad enough. But stealing more?"

"But it's the only way to get a ticket to the mega grotto. We can't afford to buy on in the auction." James sounded desperate. "I know it's not strictly by the rules, but we've got PE this afternoon and if you can keep a lookout I will--"

Again Jenny cut him short. "I'm not going to help you steal any raffle tickets." She looked at Elf for support, but Elf said nothing.

James was quiet for a few moments. Then he continued talking about ways to get more tickets, and how to fold the tickets to get them to stand out, and who he could persuade to part with theirs. Jenny was just happy he wasn't talking about stealing them any more. He went on and on until the bell rang for the first lesson.

School continued as normal. After lunch Jenny and James had PE. They were in the hall doing gymnastics on mats. They had worked out a series of interconnected moves and stretches that, to the best of their abilities, conveyed the feeling of Autumn. At the end of the lesson James volunteered to put the mats away. Into the PE cupboard. Jenny did not. She went back to class to change.

When James came into the classroom he didn't look at Jenny. He simply got changed quickly and put his PE bag away. Had he been gone a few extra minutes when putting the mats away? Was he holding something under his t-shirt when he came back to class? She didn't want to think about it. By the end of the day she didn't want to speak to James at all, and quickly left school without saying goodbye.

Rather than going straight home, she wanted to check on something. The starlings were hoping that the King Under the Fort would help them. And Claudia confirmed that too. The only fort near Balfour was an old iron age hill fort in Hollingbury golf course. Jenny hadn't been up there in years, but it was only a ten minute walk from the school.

She walked quickly up to Ditchling road, and then through Hollingbury Park to the golf course. It was a public course, and you had to be careful when walking around, in case people were playing nearby. She made her way along a path and reached the fort.

It was not much to look at. Just a slight ditch and a bank that followed a contour around the top of the hill. There was a path on top of the bank. Jenny walked the path all the way round. It was cold and windy, but the views across Brighton were stunning. In the west the sun was making its way to the horizon, and beams of light were filtering through cloud gaps onto the sea.

She didn't know what she was looking for. Any entrance to The King Under the Fort's home was hidden, or concealed at least. She looked around the trig point, a concrete pillar just where the path touched the summit of the hill. And she even looked under bushes close by. What she needed was a no-tailed squirrel to show her the way.

As the dusk neared she thought she saw something move, back toward the trig point. A movement that wasn't caused by the wind. But when she went to investigate there was nothing there. Cold, hungry, a little bored and irritable, she decided to go home.

She stayed on the path atop the bank until she reached the point closest to the path through that would take her home. Three birds flew over her head as she descended into the golf course. Starlings she thought.

Starlings! It could be the Countess Madeira looking for the king. She turned and ran back up the bank and saw the starlings flying toward the trig point. She cut across the hill, leaving the path behind her. They must be going to the trig point, she thought. She ran along a little rabbit-run that took her north and west.

The trig point was deserted. The wind had dropped and the sun was completely below the horizon. Twenty minutes of dull grey light remained until it would be totally dark. There were no starlings, and no king to be seen. She walked slowly up the bank to the concrete pillar and circled it. The three birds were sitting at the base on the far side. They launched into the air when she saw them.

"Wait!" she called. But they didn't.

On the flat concrete base where they had been sitting was a brass ring. It was attached to the trig point by a brass clasp shaped like an animal's paw. She hadn't seen it before, just a few minutes ago. It looked like a door-knocker. Next to the knocker was a pebble. She picked it up. It was smooth with three neat scratches across one side. Had the starlings left it?

She lifted the brass ring and let it drop. A tiny clack, like the sound of heavy metal on concrete, then nothing. She tried again. Nothing. She waited until the light was gone and her feet were freezing. But nothing happened. Now she was even hungrier and grumpier than before. Stupid starlings! Stupid King Under the Fort! Stupid James and his stupid grotto!

She stomped along the path in a sulk, hoping that some pigeons would try to carry her off. She'd show them! But no pigeons attacked. After a few minutes she warmed up and felt a little better. It was downhill all the way home and she ran it in five minutes, arriving breathless and ready for dinner.

She'd decided that in the morning she'd convince James and Elf to come and look for the King with her. They might be able to get the brass knocker to work, or think of a way to get under the fort. But what would they find under the fort? That question would be answered sooner than she thought.