The Wind on the Moon by Eric Linklater Read Free Book Online Page B

fright, because a few yards away she saw a wild animal. A tall grey kangaroo!
    Her heart nearly stopped beating, for she had never expected to meet a real kangaroo, and she was just going to turn and run away as fast as she could when she remembered Dorinda. She must warn Dorinda.
    So as loud as she could she shouted, ‘Dorinda, Dorinda! Take care, there’s a kangaroo in the Forest!’
    Her voice sounded curiously unlike anything she had heard before, but that, she supposed, was due to the fright she had had.
    The kangaroo, it seemed, had also been on the point of running away. But it stopped when it heard Dinah, and then Dinah heard Dorinda’s voice. At least, she supposed it was Dorinda’s voice, though it wasn’t like her ordinary voice, because it said: ‘Dinah, Dinah! Take care, I can see a kangaroo!’
    And the voice, which was Dorinda’s, came from the kangaroo of which Dinah had been frightened. The kangaroo was Dorinda!
    And Dinah, feeling rather hot and quite embarrassed, looked down at her own great legs, and over her shoulder at her long powerful tail, and realised that she too had become a kangaroo, and that she had made Dorinda equally frightened. The medicine had worked!
    â€˜Oh, Dorinda!’ she exclaimed.
    â€˜Oh, Dinah!’ said Dorinda.
    â€˜I got such a fright when I saw you,’ said Dinah.
    â€˜So did I when I saw you,’ said Dorinda.
    â€˜We certainly look exactly like real kangaroos,’ said Dinah.
    â€˜Mrs. Grimble must be a very good sort of witch,’ said Dorinda.
    â€˜I think it will be nice when we get used to it,’ said Dinah. ‘I’ve done one or two marvellous jumps already.’
    â€˜But it does feel strange to begin with,’ said Dorinda.
    In a few minutes, however, they felt perfectly at home in their new shape, and greatly pleased with themselves. They practised long jumping and standing on their tails, and found that their arms, though quite small in comparison with their great legs, were very useful. Almost as useful, indeed, as human arms and hands.
    After practising running for about half an hour, they decided to go to the village. But first of all they returned to the place where they had drunk the magic draught, and carefully packed in their pouches the things they had brought from home.
    Dinah had taken a note-book and a pencil and a rubber; two pocket-handkerchiefs and a toothbrush; the key of the back door and a slab of chocolate. She put them all into her pouch, and also the bottle of medicine and the tablespoon.
    Dorinda had taken some milk chocolate and her new watch; a tooth-brush and a comb and a pencil-sharpener and a book called Wild Life in Borneo , which she thought might be useful, but it was too big to go into her pouch, and had to be left behind. She had forgotten to bring a handkerchief, but Dinah said she would lend her one if she needed it.
    Then they set off for the village.
    â€˜Now for revenge!’ said Dinah.
    â€˜Revenge!’ said Dorinda, and jumped across a hedge and back again.
    In the outer streets of the village they saw no one at all. The streets were deserted because everyone was waiting outside the Police Court to hear the result of the trial of Mrs. Taper. Not a soul was to be seen till they came into Elm Lane, and there, approaching them, was a great procession of people. All the people, indeed, who were escorting the Members of the Jury to Midmeddlecum Gaol. They were singing a very fine French song which the Vicar had taught them only a few weeks before. It was called Avec mes Sabots .
    Seeing so many people all at once, and hearing such a great noise of singing, Dinah and Dorinda became slightly nervous, and stopped for a moment. It needed, they felt, a lot of courage to charge the whole population of Midmeddlecum. They had not expected to see them all together like this.
    But the people of Midmeddlecum, seeing two tall grey kangaroos coming towards them, were