Petronella & the Trogot (18 page)

“Thanks be,” said the gran'ma.

“It will be a pleasure,” Petronella said again. “What's your name? Percy never did tell me.”

“My name be Charis. Charis Cottage were named after me,” said the gran'ma.

Petronella thought how the cottage was really more theirs than hers. She felt as if they belonged there. She didn't. And she didn't belong to their family either. Percy's parents and gran'ma were strangers to her.

“Well, let's go and meet all these other people,” said Petronella, with a smile.

This crowd had come up the hill and waited in the small woods to welcome everyone back to Fort Willow. In the crowd were Alfie with his wife, Gwendolen, and Constable Bellamy; Pepin, the dairyman; Miss Primrose with lots of Strincas school children and teachers; Marian with Molly and Jake, and all The Strincas peasants with their wives and children. Petronella didn't know all The Strincas she saw in front of her.

But one man stood alone in the middle of them all. Petronella had never seen him before. A tall man. Short light-brown hair. Not so good-looking. He wound his way through the crowd heading towards Petronella. Took her hand and kissed it. “Hello, Pe...tro...ne...lla. Welcome back to Fort Willow.”

Petronella stood speechless among all the merry-making. Her heart flipped. “Of course, you are my dear Hooded Horseman,” she said.

“Yes, and ye be myn very dear Pe...tro...ne...lla,” he said. “Many things hath changed here in Fort Willow since ye hath been away,” he said. “Let's getteth myn horse and goeth to Fort Willow. I shall telleth ye all.”

Petronella jumped on the back of his horse and they galloped off together towards Charis Cottage.

They arrived and tied the horse to the same old tree. Charis Cottage looked the same as ever.

“By the way,” Petronella said, “before we go any further, can you tell me what your name is? I can't call you The Hooded Horseman. If only because you are not hooded any longer. I could call you Horseman, if you like?”

“That shall nat be necessary. My name be Edmundus.”

‘
What an awful name,' Petronella thought trying not to laugh. Not that her name was much better.

“Before we go in, do you mind if we go round the back of the garden. I'd like to see if The Trogot is still there. I am even more frightened of it now, than I was before.”

“Ye hath nothing to fear, Pe...tro...ne...lla. Goeth round and seeth. I shall cometh with ye.”

Petronella had seen many wonders down in Trogot Caves. But she really was not ready for this one. She stood there open mouthed. Awesome. “How did this happen?” she asked.

“It were all because of ye, Pe...tro...ne...lla. In over a thousand years, ye was the first person to goeth down Trogot without having doneth a crime or without being catcheth. Ye goeth down there for a noble reason. Because ye be a kind person. When ye findeth out Percy's parents be down there, ye putteh ye life at risk to maketh a boy happy. Ye putteth yeself through a lot of worry. By doing that ye hath maketh a lot of folk very happy. Me too.”

“Thank you,” she said. “We need to move nearer The Trogot to take a good look. I don't believe it.”

“Well, ye should,” he said. “It be thanks to ye that The Trogot and the circle under it be now golden.”

Edmundus dropped down on one knee and said: “Pe...tro...ne...lla, shall ye marry me? Shall ye be myn wife?”

“I will. For sure,” she said with a tear in her eye.

***

Petronella and Edmundus were sitting in Petronella's armchairs talking. He had a lot to tell her. The Trollope family were probably still dancing and singing up on the hill. It would take them some time to walk to Charis Cottage.

“I hath better telleth ye what hath happened in Fort Willow before the Trollopes returneth,” said Edmundus.

“When ye leaveth,” he began, “the men of Fort Willow diggeth and diggeth in Farmer Giles's field and many more bones be foundeth. As ye can seeth, they also foundeth the rest of me. That alloweth me to getteth rid of myn cape and hood and taketh the shape of a man.”

“I quite liked you in your cape and hood,” Petronella said.

He smiled.

“Anyway, those Strincas riseth out of their burial place and goeth back to their houses. After that, most of the folk of Fort Willow leaveth. But the families with school children stayeth. We now hath one of the best schools in the land with Miss Primrose as Head Mistress. Farmer Giles leaveth too. The peasants gotteth it into their heads that he were Lord Fortesque and no one could talketh them out of it. Not even me. Farmer Giles runneth away from Fort Willow by night. When he thinketh no Strincas peasants would be about. He were terrified of them. After that, the peasants gotteth together and, along with the other Strincas, decideth that I should be the new mayor of Fort Willow.”

“Well, I never!” Petronella said with joy. “So The Blind Prophet was right.”

“He be never wrong, Pe...tro...ne...lla.”

“So that means that the people of Fort Willow now all love me, too?”

“That be right,” he said.

“Oh, I'm really terrible. Where's Maalox? In all the excitement I forgot about him,” she said.

“He moveth home. While ye be in Trogot Caves, I taketh him to our new home. The Manor House.
”
 

 

THE END

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have you worked out why Petronella thought she'd used the box seven times while Percy knew it was six?

 

If you haven't, turn over the page to see when the box was used.

 

 

 

 

 

1. To stop the earthquake.
   

2. To make the fire die down when the shadows had wrapped themselves around Percy.
   

3. To secure a safe landing for herself after toppling off the cliff edge.
   

4. To save Percy from The Harpies when he was on the cliff ledge.
   

5. To use it as a lantern
   when Petronella was inside the cliff.
    
   

6. To ward the Gergon's snake off Percy.
   

7. To save herself and Percy from freezing.
   

8. To persuade The Minotaur to let them out.
   

 

 

So how come Percy was right?

 

 

Turn over the page and find out.

 

 

 

The 4
th
time Petronella used the box didn't count. The box did not work because The Great Bear had already saved Percy before Petronella used it.
 

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