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T heodophilus Fortitude Fry threw open the locker door He was led squeak

"Got ya!" he crowed triumphantly And then, "Oh, ratbutts, where are they?"

Puzzled, the skipper stared into the oddly shifting gloom of the locker - he could have sworn those kids were in there

Peering over Wolf Boy&039;s shoulder, Lucy saw the skipper&039;s confused expression and realized that he could not see theled squawk and took care not to move a muscle She noticed now that Wolf Boy was incredibly still She could al from him, and she was sure that he was the reason that the skipper couldn&039;t see them There was ht then there was apparently nothing of Wolf Boy thatof her, either It was the oddest thing Just to ue at Theodophilus Fortitude Fry There was not a flicker of reaction, except - his left eyebrow began to twitch Lucy stifled a giggle Skipper Fry&039;s eyebrow looked like a big, furry caterpillar and the parrot on his neck twitched as though it was about to eat it Wolf Boy had not noticed the eyebrow or the parrot He was concentrating hard Just as Aunt Zelda had taught Jenna, Septie of protective Spells, she had recently done the same for Wolf Boy Wolf Boy had not found them easy, but he had listened carefully and practiced every day And now, for the very first ti his UnSeen Shield for real - and it worked And so, when Theodophilus Fortitude Fry peered into the locker, he saw nothing ht eddy in the darkness - but he knew there was Magyk in there Skipper Fry had coyk in his eventful life, and it did a strange thing - it reat believer in solving problems in a practical manner, and so now he took the practical route: he went to put his hand inside the locker and check that it was indeed as empty as it appeared As he reached in, an unaccountable terror suddenly overwhel his hand bitten off by a wolverine A rash of goose bumps ran down his neck, and Theodophilus Fortitude Fry quickly pulled back his hand Then he stopped He knew he had heard a squeak inside the locker Too scared to put his hand back inside, Skipper Fry hoped that an to push the door back and forth, back and forth The first tie realized as going on, and the door squeaked obligingly in all the right places

Theodophilus Fortitude Fry gave up He had more important business to think about than the whereabouts of a couple of scruffy kids They could stay in the wretched lighthouse and rot for all he cared Angrily he slammed the door, sto clihthouse Wolf Boy and Lucy fell out of the locker in a fit of silent giggles

"How did you do that?" gasped Lucy "It was a!"

"I couldn&039;t believe it when you started squeaking," whispered Wolf Boy "That was so good!"

"Yep, that was fun - oh, oh, oooooooh"

"Shh, you don&039;t have to show o ofin the ," hissed Lucy "Look!"

"Oh!"

Wolf Boy and Lucy shrank back A pair of delicate hands, bloodied and bruised, with once-long, curved nails now broken and bent were clutching onto the bunkhouse&039;s tiny sill As Lucy and Wolf Boy watched, the battered hands edged forward, little by little, until the fingers found the inside ledge and curled themselves around it Seconds later Miarr&039;s neat sealskin-clad head appeared frari in under the eaves, he swarh theand fell into an exhausted heap on the floor Lucy Gringe was at Miarr&039;s side in a htly furred face, the closed almond-shaped eyes and the odd little pointy ears that protruded from the sealskin cap and was not sure whether the cap was part of hilanced up at Wolf Boy "What is it?" she whispered

Wolf Boy&039;s hair bristled There was the smell of cat about the man, but the collapsed for "Dunno," he whispered "I think it&039;s probably human"

Miarr&039;s yellow eyes flicked open like a pair of shutters, and he put a finger to his lips "Shhh" he shushed them Lucy and Wolf Boy fell back in surprise

"What?" whispered Lucy

"Shhhhhhh," repeated Miarr urgently Miarr knew that sounds in the lighthouse traveled in the strangest ways You could have a conversation on the Watching platforhthouse and feel as if they were right next to you He also knew that as soon as the sound of the skipper&039;s clanging footsteps ceased, the Croould easily hear the whispers froled creatures in the bunkroom (Lucy and Wolf Boy did not look their best) did not wish to be discovered either But he had to led to sit up

"Youwith them?" He pointed upward

Lucy shook her head "No way"

Miarr s his pointy little ears and showing two long lower canine teeth, which edged up over his top lip Lucy looked at Miarr, and a horrible thought crossed her mind

"Did they throw you off the top?" she asked

Miarr nodded

"Murderers," muttered Wolf Boy

"We&039;ll help you," Lucy told Miarr "If we hurry we can get down and take their boat and leave them all up there Then they can chuck each other off and do us all a favor"

Miarr shook his head "No I will never leave ht," cao"

Lucy looked uncertain She knew that precious ht hear four pairs of boots clanging back down the steps to find them, but she was loath to leave the battered little man on his own to face - who knehat?

"If he wants to stay, then that&039;s up to hio Coretfully Lucy turned to go

A low hiss came from the little man huddled on the floor "Miarr says fare-you-well," he whispered

"Miarr?" asked Lucy

"Miarr," whispered the cat-back "Oh, you sound just like my lovely old cat"

"Co With a regretful backward glance, Lucy ran after hi from above heralded the descent of Theodophilus Fortitude and Jakey Fry Wolf Boy swore under his breath They were too late

Wolf Boy pulled Lucy back into the shadows of the bunkrooure of the cat-limpsed if - by any stroke of luck - Jakey and the skipper went straight by With their hearts pounding, Lucy and Wolf Boy waited as the footsteps clattered around and around theever nearer Theodophilus Fortitude Fry was obviously a lot better at co up - in less than a minute, Lucy and Wolf Boy heard his heavy footsteps reach the landing Everyone in the bunkroom froze Theodophilus Fortitude Fry did not even break his pace He thudded past the bunkroom door, closely followed by Jakey, and headed down the next flight of steps Lucy and Wolf Boy broke into smiles of relief, and even Miarr allowed a couple of canines to show They waited until the clang of the door far below told thehthouse

Then, far above, at the top of the lighthouse, a series of loud, rhythlanced up, his yellow eyes worried The sounds were coainst the outside wall