Cloud Magic

things – old books, a silver bowl, a glass bottle, a grey feather and some black cord.
    ‘Look!’ said Chloe, going to an old-fashioned bureau in one corner. On top of it were ten hagstones of different shapes and sizes. Erin hurried over with her. Maybe one of them would be the hagstone they needed!
    But none of them had any hair wrapped round it.
    Chloe gingerly opened the bureau. Inside there were lots of small drawers and shelves.
    Erin’s eyes fell on a box on the bottom shelf. It reminded her of her mum’s box. It looked as if it was made from exactly the same type of dark wood. It was much smaller though. She took it out and opened the lid.
    ‘Chloe!’ she breathed. ‘Look!’
    There, nestling on a green baize lining, was a grey hagstone with a single hole. Through the centre of it three long strands of blonde hair were wound round and round.
    ‘You’ve found it!’ whispered Chloe.
    Erin took it out, her fingers trembling slightly. ‘It’s just like Tor told me.’
    ‘Let’s take it and go,’ Chloe said quickly
    ‘We can’t just leave the box empty,’ Erin pointed out. ‘If Marianne checks inside, she’ll realize that someone has taken it and she’ll know they would only have taken it if they were trying to destroy the rope.’
    ‘But what can we do?’ Chloe asked.
    Erin studied the stone. It looked very like the stone she had found on the beach the first day she had seen the cloud horses. She had that stone in her pocket, but she didn’t need it. She could use any hagstone with a single hole in to look at the cloud horses. She pulled it out of her pocket. It really did look very similar to the stone Marianne had used – apart from one thing…

    Erin quickly pulled three hairs from her head and wound them round the stone in her hand.
    ‘Brilliant!’ said Chloe. ‘Your hair’s exactly the same colour as Marianne’s!’
    ‘Now she might not realize it’s gone,’ Erin said. She slipped the stone into the box and tucked Marianne’s stone into her pocket. They had got what they needed. ‘Come on,’ she said quickly. ‘Let’s get out of here right now!’
    They flew out of the window and raced to Tor’s building.
    Erin touched the door. ‘Tor! It’s us! We’ve got the hagstone!’ she whispered.
    The sky stallion whinnied in delight. ‘Where did you find it?’
    ‘It was in the house,’ Erin told him. ‘Does this mean we can do the spell?’
    ‘When we have a rope of bindweed,’ Tor said. ‘And the keys.’
    ‘Well, we think the keys might be in the feed room,’ said Chloe. ‘And there’s loads of bindweed in my garden. I heard my dad going on about it.’
    ‘Make a rope of it and bring it tomorrow night,’ Tor instructed. ‘If you can find the keys to let me out, I will tell Erin how to perform the unbinding spell.’ He looked at her. ‘It will be difficult, but I am sure you will be able to do it.’
    ‘Tomorrow?’ Erin said nervously.
    ‘Yes,’ Tor replied. ‘You have done so well.’ He snorted. ‘Maybe tomorrow I will be able to return to the skies.’
    ‘And then Marianne won’t be able to hurt you any more,’ Chloe said.
    Tomorrow , the word echoed through Erin’s head.
    She only barely registered Tor whinnying. ‘You should leave now. The dark one has not been here tonight yet. She may come to see me at any time. Go!’
    ‘OK. Bye, Tor!’ Chloe exclaimed, flying upwards.
    Erin didn’t move.
    ‘Come on, Erin!’ Chloe said, flying back and pulling at her. ‘Let’s go!’
    Thoughts racing, Erin followed her into the sky.

C H A P T E R
    Ten
    When Erin got home, she placed Marianne’s hagstone on the window ledge, but it made her feel odd seeing the hair wound round it, so she covered it up with a book.
    She lay in bed, feeling far from sleep. She was really pleased they had got the hagstone, and relieved that Xanthe was going to be there the next night when she had to do the spell to break the rope. But she couldn’t stop thinking about the magic she would have to do.
    What if I get it all wrong? she thought worriedly. Tor had said the spell was going to be difficult. What if I can’t do it? I can’t even make it rain or hail properly yet. How can I possibly do difficult weather-weaving magic?
    Sitting up, she took a hagstone from the box beside her bed. She turned it round in her hands a few times and then looked at the sky through the hole.
    The horses looked darker at night, but she could still see them. They were all moving