The Swamp Boggles (5 page)

One landed right by the doorway. It waggled
its ears and looked up through its eyelashes at the two terrified boggles still stuck there. “Me wanna… wanna… WEE-WEE!” It squealed the last word.

Suddenly there were two muffled popping sounds, like two water bombs bursting one after the other.

Sophie and Sam yelled and jumped back as swampy green water swept over the floor. Sophie stared. The boggles were no longer trapped in the doorway – they'd gone!

W
hat… what just happened?” stammered Sam, staring at the empty attic and the swampy water on the floor.

Sophie whooped, leaping up and punching the air. “Yes! We scared those two boggles to death! Just like
The Shadow Files
said we could.
They're obviously terrified of cute things.”

“But
why
?” Sam demanded. “I mean, how can a Fluffy frighten anyone to death?” He picked a Fluffy up.

It looked at him coyly. “Fluffy wanna kiss-kiss.”

“OK, maybe I get it after all!” Sam said hastily putting it back down. He looked at the water on the floor again, and shook his head. “I just can't believe the boggles have really gone.”

“
And
we've got the gem!” said Sophie, holding it up triumphantly. “Just wait until Grandpa hears about this!”

“And just wait until Mr Badgett sees this mess! He's never going to let us in the shop again,” Sam said.

Gazing around her, Sophie's high spirits faded slightly. She had to admit Sam had a
point. There were Fluffies and slimy water all over the floor, not to mention the broken picture and cricket bat. “You're right,” she said. “We'd better get tidying.”

“And fast!” agreed Sam.

 

Luckily, Grandpa and Mr Badgett took their time over their drink. By the time they got back, Sophie and Sam had just finished clearing away all the mess – including the slime trails the boggles had left downstairs.

“How's it going?” asked Mr Badgett as he and Grandpa came into the shop.

“Um… well, we haven't quite finished cleaning the attic yet,” admitted Sophie, putting away the cloths and polish.

Sam nodded. “But we'll come back again another time and do the rest then, if that's OK.”

“Oh, there is rather a lot of tidying to be done up there!” said Mr Badgett. “But any time you're passing and feel like earning a bit of extra money, just call in.”

Sophie saw Grandpa looking around. She could tell his sharp eyes were taking in the damp patches on the floor where the slime had been. “We'd better be going,” he said. “Don't want to be late for supper. Get your bags, you two.”

Sophie fetched the carrier bag with the spray cans in it.

“See you soon, Jack,” Grandpa said, ushering Sophie and Sam out of the door.

“Bye!” Sam and Sophie called over their shoulders.

“So?” Grandpa demanded in a low voice as they set off down the High Street. “What
happened in there?”

They quickly told him everything, from spraying the boggles with the starch to finally defeating them. “But that's wonderful!” Grandpa exclaimed. “So you have the gem?”

“Yes! Got it right here!” Sophie patted her purse belt proudly.

“And the Swamp Boggles have really gone?”

“Vanished, turned into water,” said Sam.

Grandpa looked stunned. “I can't believe it!”

Sophie grinned. “But, Grandpa, you know you must always expect the unexpected!” She heard Sam muffle a snort of laughter beside her.

Grandpa harrumphed, and didn't answer.

“We did OK, didn't we?” Sophie said, shooting him a look.

“Yes, you did very well.” The grudging look left him and he smiled an unusually warm smile.
“Both of you. That was excellent work. Excellent work indeed.”

Sophie couldn't hold back her grin as a rush of delight swept through her.

“So why
were
the Swamp Boggles so scared of the Fluffies?” Sam asked Grandpa.

“After what has just happened, I think that Swamp Boggles must be similar to Swamp Imps, who are all severely allergic to anything cute,” said Grandpa. “I once saw a Swamp Imp sneeze itself into pieces when it caught sight of a little ginger kitten with a bow round its neck. Fluffies would no doubt cause a very severe reaction to a creature with such an allergy. The sight of one would be terrifying to a Swamp Boggle.”

“And the sight of fifty would frighten them to death!” said Sophie.

“Exactly.”

“That must be why the Swamp Boggle ran off this morning!” realised Sam. “He was scared of Cutie-Pie, with his bow and sparkly collar!”

Sophie giggled. “Well, at least we'll know how to fight any swamp creatures from now on. We'll just set a cute little dog on them.”

Grandpa didn't look amused. “One thing I'm sure about, the Ink Cap Goblins won't give up easily,” he said. “The Swamp Boggles might have failed, but Ug will soon find some other shadow creatures to help him. We must find the other four gems as soon as we can.”

“We will,” Sophie promised. “We'll start looking through the files again tomorrow for more clues.”

Sam met her eyes. “You know, that sounds like a job for…”

“
Book Boy!
” they whooped together. They both started laughing. Grandpa looked as if he thought they were completely mad, which made them laugh even more.

Still giggling, they went into the house. Mrs B and Anthony were in the kitchen. “These are for you,” Sophie said, giving the carrier bag to Mrs B.

Mrs B looked inside. “
Three
cans of spray starch?”

“I didn't want us to run out,” said Sophie innocently. “Starch can be
very
useful. I'm really sorry I used all yours up earlier.” She gave Mrs B a hug.

Mrs B shook her head. “Oh, Sophie, sometimes I wonder what I'm going to do with you.”

“Have her adopted?” Anthony said hopefully from the kitchen table.

Sophie pulled a face at him.

“Still got your Fluffy, sis?” he asked. “You wouldn't want to lose it now, would you?”

“No way!” said Sophie. She pulled the Fluffy out of her bag. Anthony gave a disgusted squawk as she swooped it at him, pretending to kiss his cheek. “It was the best present ever –
the absolute best! Thanks, Mrs B!”

Mrs B beamed, and Sophie grinned at the astonishment on her twin's face. “Come on, Sam.” They ran upstairs to her room.

“What shadow creatures do you think Ug will send next time?” wondered Sam.

Sophie shuddered. “Nothing can be worse than Swamp Boggles!”

Sam looked at her. “Wolf Trolls?”

“No problem,” she declared.

“Snake Sprites.”

“Easy peasy.”

“Bat Goblins?”

“We'd deal with them!”

Going over to the window, Sophie saw Grandpa practising Tai Chi in the garden. The Shadow Woods loomed up behind him. She smiled. Whatever creatures were waiting out
there, she and Sam would be ready for them. “We'll get the key back and stop them finding the gems!” she vowed.

“Yeah,” said Sam, joining her at the window. “We will. Book Boy and The Guardian – ready for anything!”

“Bring it on!” agreed Sophie with a grin.

D
eep in the woods, there was a loud yell that shook the branches of the trees. “Gah! Swamp Boggles! What do they think they're doing – dying on the job!” King Ug paced around his toadstool clearing, thwacking any goblin that came within reach. He had to get his
hands on one of the shadow gems! The key was useless otherwise – just a lump of old metal.

Suddenly an idea came into Ug's head. Slowly, he began to smile. Of course! He knew just what creature he was going to ask to help him next. He chortled in triumph, rubbing his
pale hands together as the shadows in the woods darkened. Next time, that pesky girl Guardian wouldn't stand a chance!