The Voyage to Magical North (31 page)
Read The Voyage to Magical North Online
Authors: Claire Fayers
The Western Island and the Floating Castle.
Brine gazed at it, speechless, not daring to open it. She heard Marfak West's voice in her mind all over again. Here it was at lastâhome. Suddenly she was afraid. What if she found her way home and nobody remembered or wanted her? Wouldn't it be better just to stay on the
Onion
, not ask too many questions, not try to know too much?
“Go on,” said Tom.
Cautiously, her heart thumping in her throat, Brine opened the book to the first page.
The words on the cover were the only words in the whole book. The rest was a series of picturesâforests and mountains, strange-looking plants and even stranger animals. Then she turned a page and saw a picture of what had to be a dragon. She almost dropped the book. “There are dragons on the Western Island? Is this real?”
Ursula raised her hands in a shrug. “No one thinks so. But nobody thought Magical North was real, either.” She slipped the book back into the box. “Take it all with you. You'll be needing it.”
*Â Â Â *Â Â Â *
Peter was waiting for them when they got back to the
Onion
. The baby dragon was curled up with Zen in a patch of setting sun. Peter had been sorting through the pieces of starshell he'd saved. Some of them were already beginning to glow. Brine wondered what he was going to do with them all, but she decided it would be better to let him work that out for himself.
She sat down on the deck and let the dragon crawl into her lap. “He needs a name,” she said. “We can't keep calling him âthe dragon.' We don't even know for certain that he
is
a dragon.”
“He's got wings and scales, and he breathes fire,” said Peter. “How much more dragony does he have to be?” His eyes looked bruised and tired. He swept all the starshell aside. “We should throw this lot overboard. Magic brings nothing but trouble.”
Brine put her hands over his. “Magic is part of the world, Peter. You can't go throwing away parts of the world because you don't like them. Anyway, magic is only trouble if the wrong people get hold of it. You're one of the right people.”
He nodded, but he looked away from her. “That's the problem,” he said. “I don't know what sort of person I am. I've only ever been a magician, and the only other magicians I know are Tallis Magus and Marfak West.”
“Magic didn't turn them bad,” said Tom. “I bet you they were both horrible people before they became magicians. Magic just meant they could be horrible in different ways.”
“Maybe,” said Peter. “Or maybe Boswell is right and magic corrupts people.” Slowly, he gathered up the starshell pieces and put them in the box Ewan Hughes had given him. When he was finished, he held it out to Brine. “I want you to take care of this,” he said. “Until I've worked things out.”
Brine's heart hammered. He couldn't mean itânot this much starshell. “You really trust me with this?” she asked.
“Right now I trust you more than I trust myself,” said Peter. For a second, he met her gaze. “I need to know who I am without magic, and that means no spellcasting.”
Brine couldn't think of what to say. Or rather, she could think of lots of things, and all of them seemed wrong. She nodded solemnly and took the box.
The dragon flapped inexpertly at her. Peter scooped the little creature up. “We should give him a name. Is he a he? What does Boswell's book say?”
“Not much,” said Tom. “Males are supposed to be smaller than females and breathe fire earlier, so it could be a boy, but it's hard to tell with no other dragon for comparison.”
“Let's say that he is for now,” said Peter. “If he lays an egg, we can rethink. How about calling him Boswell?”
Boswell purred like a cat, and for the first time in days, Peter smiled. Brine smiled back. Peter would be fine. He just needed a new adventureâa good adventure this time. One without freezing cold or evil magicians. She put the starshell box to one side and set her box of books down in their place. “Here, take a look at these.”
Peter opened the first book and gave a low whistle. “There really is a floating castle. And are those flying creatures dragons?” He scratched Boswell under the chin. “He's going to be lonely. How would you like to be the only dragon in the world? We're going to have to find some friends for him.”
Brine knew he was thinking about the lonely years growing up on Minutes. Tom, also, had a faraway look in his eyes as he turned his head back toward Barnard's Reach. Once again Brine found herself wishing she could remember her own childhood, but then she saw Cassie sitting cross-legged on the deck with Aldebran Boswell's map spread out in front of her, her fingers already trailing the western edge. Some people always looked to the future, Brine thought, and the promise of a new adventure surged inside her.
“We'll find more dragons,” she said confidently. “If Boswell's egg survived, there must be others. Will you come west with us, Tom? You could go back home now that the rules have changed.”
“And miss the next voyage? You've got to be kidding.” He got up and held his hands out to them. “We're friends,” he said. “That means we stay together, wherever the seas take us.”
“Wherever the seas take us,” they both agreed.
The setting sun laid a trail of amber light across the waves before them, disappearing into the west. West, where home was. And, if they were lucky, dragons.
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Just as one person cannot sail a ship alone, this book would never have set sail without the hard work of many, many people.
My gallant captains, Noa Wheeler and Rachel Kellehar, who steered me through these exciting new waters with skill and great care. Also Oriol Vidal for the amazing artwork. And special thanks to Julia Sooy and everyone at Henry Holt for their time, effort, and expertise. You are all brilliant.
My most wonderful agent, Gemma Cooper, who fell in love with the
Onion
and stormed on board to become my navigator, my chief adviser, and much, much more. This book would not be the same without you.
My motley crew of fellow writers and friends who shared the ups and downs of the journey, suffered through my early drafts, and supplied me with more tea, cake, and friendship than anyone could wish for. A big thank-you to Peter and Anna Bell, Sarah Burrow, Helen Clifford, David and Alison Williamson, Caleb and Beverley Woodbridge. Thanks also to Rob Harper and Sarah Callaghan for silly rhymes, Vee and Keith Griffiths for revels in the sky, and everyone at Team Cooper for all your advice and encouragement.
This magical voyage began when my opening chapters won a place in the final of Undiscovered Voices, run by the Society of Children's Writers and Illustrators. I am tremendously grateful to the Undiscovered Voices team for their work in discovering and developing new writers.
Finally, and most of all, I would like to thank my husband, Phillip. Ewan Hughes to my Cassie, my fellow adventurer and tireless helper. I can't imagine doing this, or anything else, without you.
Â
Claire Fayers
lives in South Wales with her husband and as many cats as she can get away with. She used to work in a science library, but now writes full-time, which is the best job ever. She likes skiing, kite-flying, playing the cello, and dinosaurs.
The Voyage to Magical North
is her first novel. You can sign up for email updates
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CONTENTS
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Text copyright © 2016 by Claire Fayers
Chapter opener art copyright © 2016 by Oriol Vidal
Henry Holt and Company, LLC
Publishers since 1866
Henry Holt® is a registered trademark of Henry Holt and Company, LLC.
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All rights reserved.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Fayers, Claire.
Title: The voyage to Magical North / Claire Fayers.
Description: First edition. | New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2016. | Summary: “Twelve-year-old Brine Seaborne and her friend Peter find themselves in an adventure with pirates, invisible bears, and a seriously evil magician”â Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN
2015022325
| ISBN 9781627794206 (hardback) | ISBN 9781627796583 (e-book)
Subjects: | CYAC: MagicâFiction. | Voyages and travelsâFiction. | Adventure and adventurersâFiction. | BISAC: JUVENILE FICTION / Fantasy & Magic. | JUVENILE FICTION / Action & Adventure / Pirates.
Classification: LCC PZ7.1.F39 Vo 2016 | DDC [Fic]âdc23
LC record available at
http://lccn.loc.gov/2015022325
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First hardcover edition 2016
eBook edition July 2016
eISBN 9781627796583