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Septi His small, round room at the top of the Wizard Toas neat and orderly, a result of its occupant&039;s ten years of training in the Young Arerous as those years had been for Septi Army was disbanded and he was reunited with his fa that he had learned as a boy soldier He was no longer wildly untidy just because he could be; after a brief period when it had resembled the Municipal Rubbish Dump, his room was now neat and ordered The room bore other traces of his previous life too: its dark-blue curving walls and ceiling were covered with the constellations, accurately painted by Septiht exercises And in his cupboard he always kept an eency backpack, packed strictly in accordance with the Young Arency backpack contained:
colass (1)water bottle (1)bedroll (1)socks (3) (ulation pen knife (1)catapult (1)wire, length of (1)rope, length of (1)
To this Septis that reflected his new life as Apprentice to the ExtraOrdinary Wizard They were:
Unseen Charm (1)Seeker&039;s Charm (1)Fast Freeze Charm (1)Double Action Escape Pack (1)
Plus a few bits and pieces that he thought may come in useful:
The Little Book of Survival and Bushcraft by Ra, packet of (1)Mint Blasts, tubes of (3)
There wasn&039;t roo that Septimus wanted to take It broke all the rules because it was both unnecessary and heavy, but Septimus didn&039;t care Down the side of the backpack Septiiven him when he had first known her With some difficulty, Septimus buckled up the backpack and put it on It was heavier than he had expected
"Is that you, Septimus?" Marcia called out as he came down the stairs and headed for the front door He jumped in surprise
"Yes," he replied warily
Marcia was kneeling on the floor beside the ShadowSafe In front of her was a huge piece of paper with an extre closely For a brief, horrible ure leaning over her, also peering at the paperbut when Septimus looked more closely the Shadow faded fro behind Marcia, silently staring at the plans for its own demise Septi Marcia alone with her dark coe?" asked Marcia
"A what?"
"A flange It says here attach piece Y to the long, upright D, taking care to align holes P and Q with the corresponding holes N and O in the left-hand flange I can&039;t see a wretched flange anywhere" Marcia rifled irritably through a large box of fixings that Professor Van Klaiven her for the construction of the ShadowSafe
"It&039;s not in the box," said Septimus "It&039;s that bit that sticks out Look, there " He ran his finger down a curved projecting rialass to the touchsilky smooth and cold
"Well, why didn&039;t it say so," said Marcia gruular sectiononto the ShadowSafe, carefully aligning holes P and Q with holes N and O Marcia dusted down her tunic with an air of satisfaction "Thank you, Septiood, isn&039;t it? Only one o down the side here, then the final Stopper and"Marcia twisted around, trying to catch sight of her Shadow"you will be gone, you pathetic creature"
Septimus looked at the ShadowSafe Good was not the word he would have used to describe itweird, ly wasthe room with its shiny blackness and bizarre shape, which renarled hollow tree The odd assortment of molded panels, which Professor Van Klaether to forhly conical enclosed space, open at the top, with a long narrow gap running froh which Marcia and her Shadowfor a Shadow must Follohether it wants to or notwould eventually squeeze Then someone, probably one of the more senior Wizards (as Marcia felt it was a lot of responsibility for her young Apprentice), would place the last piece, the Stopper, in the hole in the top, and Marcia would walk out, free at last, leaving the Shadow trapped inside, like a lobster in a lobster pot After that it was a si on, Septi what she had said to hiave you the day off You should be up at the Palace with yourto find Jenna," Septi it onto his shoulders "Seeing as no one else will"
Marcia sighed "Look, Septimus," she said patiently, "Jenna will be back soon, mark my words You&039;re just a little upset after your spider bite It&039;s perfectly nornantly
"Septimus," said Marcia, "I know you think I don&039;t believe you"
"I know you don&039;t believe me," said Septimus
"but, just to put your mind at rest, I have done a Remote Search of the Farmlands across the river and there is a horse with two riders on its way to the North Gate It is bound to be Jenna and Si out And I have sent Boris"