Under the Magician's Spell Read online

  Kneeling down, you reach under the table. You grab the cage and pull it toward you.

  You can’t believe what you see!

  Turn to PAGE 126.

  You stifle a scream. The corpse kids keep coming toward you. You stare at them in horror. Rotting flesh falls from their bones. Their sunken eyes stare out of their skull-like heads. They shuffle to a stop right in front of you.

  “Wha-what do you want?” you stammer.

  “You,” one of the corpses answers.

  You back up a little. Your eyes dart around, searching for a quick exit.

  “Wait a minute,” someone says. It’s Sid.

  “Sid!” you shout. “Where are you? Is Joanie all right?”

  “Stop yelling,” Joanie says. “We’re right here.”

  Joanie and Sid step out from behind the three corpses.

  “They asked us to play on their baseball team,” Sid explains. “They need three more players.”

  “We joined their team,” Joanie says. “They’re even going to let me play first base!”

  You can’t believe what you are hearing. This is awful!

  “Sid,” you cry. “I trusted you! How could you let this happen?”

  Sid hangs his head, embarrassed. He knows what you are about to say.

  “I always play first base!”

  THE END

  You wonder where Larry, D. J., and Buddy are. They must have caught all the rabbits, since the furry creatures are not running around anymore.

  You hear noises behind some other boxes.

  “Let go of her!” Sid shouts.

  “Leave me alone!” That was Joanie. Larry and his pals have cornered Joanie and Sid! Time to test this Terrifying Spell.

  You rush over to the stack of boxes. Larry has his hands clenched into fists. D. J. and Buddy are sneering. Joanie and Sid cower in fear. You can’t believe Larry and his friends are too stupid to notice that Joanie’s ears and fingers are missing!

  “Hey, you jerks!” you shout. “Leave them alone.”

  Larry turns at the sound of your voice. The Terrifying Spell must have worked. You watch his face go completely white. His knees actually begin knocking together.

  D. J. faints, and Buddy covers his face with his hands and starts crying. Sid and Joanie also gaze at you in horror.

  “Let’s get out of here!” Sid exclaims. He grabs Joanie’s hand, and they race out of the factory.

  “You wimps!” you say to the three terrified bullies. “Don’t ever bother us again.”

  “W-w-we wo-won’t,” Larry stammers.

  That takes care of that, you tell yourself. You walk out of the factory smiling. But you don’t smile for very long.

  Turn to PAGE 96.

  “Aaa-choo!”

  The old woman sneezes. She pulls a handkerchief from her pocket and blows her nose loudly.

  “My allergies,” she explains. “Come in quickly or I’ll be sneezing all over the three of you.”

  You, Sid, and Joanie follow the woman into the house.

  “I’m Larry’s grandmother,” the woman tells you. “Granny Kapusta.”

  “Larry insisted we bring Pat right away,” Sid says.

  “That sounds like my Larry.” Granny Kapusta laughs. “Always in a hurry.” She pushes the three of you down a hallway. Hard!

  She’s a lot stronger than she looks, you think.

  “Come with me,” she orders. “Little Patty has been keeping me company in the kitchen. I’m making spaghetti and kidney meatballs for dinner.”

  Kidney meatballs? Gross. That must be what that weird smell is.

  Granny Kapusta gives you another hard shove. So hard you stumble to the floor.

  Trip over to PAGE 23.

  You decide to climb up the rope ladder to safety. But it is a lot harder than you thought it would be!

  Sid is waiting to help you. You can’t see his face, but his hands reach down through the hole in the ceiling.

  The climb gets harder and harder. You’re moving up the rope, but only an inch at a time. Your hands begin to ache. Your arm muscles feel like mush.

  “Try to swing your foot up here,” you hear a whisper from above. “If we can grab hold of your foot, we can pull you up.”

  You have no extra breath to answer. The rope feels like it is on fire. Your shoulder muscles burn and your fingers start to cramp.

  You’ve got to try to swing your foot up. You can’t climb any longer. You’re exhausted.

  Slowly at first then harder and harder, you swing back and forth with the rope. You kick your legs up toward the hole.

  Just when you think you are about to drop off, you feel a hand grab your ankle.

  You did it! You’re safe!

  Turn to PAGE 41.

  The dog’s toothy hold has strengthened but, strangely, it doesn’t hurt. This is one weird dog, you think. You take a closer look at the German shepherd. You kick your leg again. That’s when the dog stops.

  Just stops.

  It releases your leg. You hear a whirring sound. The dog’s eyes flash twice. Then he tips over, feet in the air.

  You reach out a finger and lightly poke the dog. No reaction.

  You pat the dog. No reaction.

  You glance back at Sid and Joanie. Joanie shrugs her shoulders. Sid raises his eyebrows.

  “Woof!” you bark in the dog’s ear. No reaction.

  Then you notice something on the dog’s stomach. Something strange.

  A silver wind-up mechanism.

  It’s a mechanical dog! It’s just like a toy dog only bigger. Sid and Joanie climb through the window. Sid sets the dog back upright. The three of you roll on the floor, laughing.

  Joanie kneels in front of the dog and pats its nose.

  You stop laughing. Your mouth drops open in shock.

  You’ve just noticed — Joanie’s ears have disappeared!

  Rush to PAGE 27.

  “We’ll give you the book!” you shout. “Just stop the hourglass. And release Sid!”

  The Magician turns the hourglass on its side. He places it on the floor. You are relieved to see the grains of sand stop flowing through the narrow opening.

  “You can’t!” Joanie shrieks at you. “You can’t give him back the book. He’s evil. He’ll use it to do evil magic.”

  You ignore what she says. You pull her backpack off her shoulders. The buckles open under your fingers. You grab the book.

  “Bring it here,” the Magician commands.

  “I can’t watch you do this,” Joanie says. She sits by her bag and turns her back to you.

  You clutch the book close to your chest with both hands. You take teeny tiny baby steps across the room.

  “Quit stalling!” the Magician demands. You cross the room and stand in front of the evil man.

  The Magician snatches the book from your hands. A big smirk appears on his face. But it soon turns into a grimace.

  “Bad Hare Day,” the Magician sputters, reading the title of the book out loud.

  Go on to PAGE 119.

  Everyone and everything flees in terror as you pass by. Dogs bark, children scream, and cats hiss.

  What’s going on? You glance at your reflection in a store window. You expect to see a hideous monster.

  Instead you look as you always do. Nothing is different. So what makes you so terrifying?

  The store owner spots you and quickly bolts his door. You have to do something fast. You must find Joanie and have her reverse the spell!

  You hurry home. That’s where you think Joanie will be.

  But when you try to open the door, you discover it’s chain-locked from the inside. “Joanie,” you call through the crack in the door. “It’s me! Let me in!”

  “Go away!” Joanie shrieks. You peer through the tiny opening. Joanie is cowering under the dining-room table.

  “It’s just the spell,” you explain. “As soon as you remove the spell, you won’t be scared of me anymore.”

  “Go away!” Joanie sc
reams again. This is going to be harder than you thought. Then you get an idea.

  “Okay, Joanie, I’ll go away if you’ll give me the Magic Book.” You can take the spell off yourself, you figure. “I’ll even stand all the way by the curb. You can just slide the book through the crack in the door. Okay?” Will Joanie do it?

  Turn to PAGE 57.

  You decide to ask Mr. Knowledge the way out. But first you have to climb up the rope.

  “You want me to climb up that rope?” Sid asks. “No way! I’m the one who gets picked last in gym for every team.”

  “Come on,” you say. “At least you can try. Joanie and I will help you. I’ll give you a boost up on my shoulders.”

  “It’s easy,” Joanie assures Sid. She scrambles up the rope and disappears into the darkness. This doesn’t seem to make Sid feel any better.

  You kneel down and let Sid stand on your shoulders. Slowly, slowly, you stand up. Your knees wobble.

  “No more super sundaes for you, Sid,” you gasp. “You weigh a ton.”

  “That’s right,” Sid says. “Tease me about my weight.”

  “Aw — forget it,” you say. “Just climb.”

  Sid manages to put one hand over the other and climbs up the rope. As soon as he lifts off your shoulders, you scurry up behind him. “You can do it, Sid,” you encourage him.

  But can he?

  Turn to PAGE 43.

  Joanie opens the Magic Book to page 98. The Spell of the Genie. She reads the weird words then waits.

  Ba boom!

  You are shaken out of your box just in time to see the door to the warehouse crash inward. A giant enters the room. He is so tall — over eight feet — that he needs to bend his head to enter the doorway.

  And he is so ugly — big boils cover his face and arms. Hair grows out of his nose and ears. The only reason that you haven’t run away is because you’re too scared to move. Your feet feel glued to the floor.

  “Who called?” bellows the giant. “And it better be for a good reason.”

  Go to PAGE 109.

  You gaze at the dog. Can you go back out the window before the snarling animal has you for lunch?

  You tense your muscles, getting ready to sprint. The window is only four feet behind you, you tell yourself. You can reach it before the mean-looking dog in front of you takes a big chunk out of your backside.

  You’re about to make your move when Joanie steps up beside you.

  “I can take care of this,” she announces. In her hand is one of the torn-out pages from the Magic Book. “I’m going to cast a spell on the dog.”

  The growling dog is about to attack. You have to decide quickly!

  If you want to run for the window, turn to PAGE 116.

  If you think Joanie can cast a spell on the dog, turn to PAGE 76.

  Joanie pulls the magic wand out of the fishbowl. You wait for something terrible to happen.

  Nothing.

  “It’s neat the way the wand disappears when I stick it in the fishbowl,” Joanie declares. She stirs the water again. “I can feel the Magic Book when I stir, but I can’t see it,” she adds, pulling the wet wand out of the water.

  She puts the wand into the bowl a third time. She stirs so hard water splashes over the rim.

  “Joanie, we have to —”

  You never get a chance to finish what you were going to say. You hear a bubbling sound coming from the fishbowl. Then gurgling. Then WHOOSH! Water gushes out of the fishbowl. You glance at Sid. He stares at the rushing water.

  Joanie shrieks and drops the wand. Water pours onto the floor, rising quickly. The painted fish come to life and start swimming in the knee-deep water.

  Now you recognize what kind of fish they are.

  Man-eating piranha.

  Piranha aren’t choosy. They don’t mind being kid-eating piranha.

  This is definitely

  THE END.

  You decide the coffin is the best place to hide the book. You run over to it and try to lift the lid. It won’t budge.

  “Help me!” you yell to Joanie and Sid. “Maybe together we can pry it open.”

  Joanie and Sid rush over to the coffin. Grunting and groaning, the three of you tug on the heavy lid. It gives an inch, then two inches. Enough to slip the book inside. Then the lid snaps shut, almost taking your fingers with it.

  Just in time! A sound behind you makes you whirl around. You see a black hat topple off the shelf across the room. A black crow flies out. It circles the room, then lands on the coffin. You watch, stunned, as the crow turns into the Magician.

  “You three meddling children have taken something of mine. I am here to get it back.” The Magician’s voice echoes throughout the room. He takes a step toward you. “Which one of you has my book?” he demands.

  “We lost it,” you say quickly.

  “Don’t you dare lie to me!” The whole room seems to shake with the sound of his voice. “Lies make me very angry. You don’t want to see me when I’m angry,” the Magician warns.

  The Magician points at you. Sparks fly from his fingers. What is he doing to you?

  Hurry to PAGE 66.

  Larry takes a step toward you. You wait until he sticks his mean face right up to yours. Then you kick him in the shins. It takes him totally by surprise.

  Larry yelps with pain. He hops around on one foot. He looks really silly.

  Sid and Joanie start laughing. This makes you feel good.

  Until you see D. J. and Buddy closing in on you.

  You know the three of you are no match for the three of them. You glance down at the book in your hands. It gives you an idea.

  You’ll put a spell on them!

  Larry stops hopping and starts coming toward you again. You hold the book in front of you and begin to read.

  “Ibin mater dos gribben datter!” you shout.

  Everyone freezes. You continue to shout the nonsense words on the page in front of you.

  Nothing happens.

  “Ibin mater dos gribben datter,” you repeat, over and over.

  “Ibin mater!” Larry shouts. “Ibin mater. You think some dumb words are going to save you?” BOOM!!

  Turn to PAGE 69.

  You, Joanie, and Sid climb into the empty coffin. The lid clicks shut above you. The three of you are squashed together.

  “Watch your elbow!” Joanie snaps.

  “Hey, that was my eye!” Sid complains. You get a mouthful of Joanie’s hair.

  You are starting to sweat. You feel as if you’re going to suffocate. You have to get some air!

  You place your feet on one side of the coffin and push. You try to create some space between you, Joanie, and Sid. Your shoulders press against the opposite side of the coffin. You hear a loud click.

  “What was —?” SWOOSH! The bottom of the coffin pops open and you are suddenly sliding down a metal chute. Faster and faster, tumbling over and over.

  The chute comes to a sudden end. You crash-land onto the hard floor. Joanie and Sid hit the floor next to you.

  “Look for the Magic Book!” you say, jumping up.

  Joanie spots the Magic Book lying on the floor by a tall wooden cabinet. Just as she reaches for it, a man steps out from behind the cabinet. His foot lands squarely on the book.

  Turn to PAGE 112.

  This is it. You can’t stall anymore. Everyone is waiting for you to turn over your card.

  You can’t look. You flip over the card with your eyes closed.

  You hear loud gasps at the table.

  “Hooray!” you hear Joanie shout.

  “You did it!” Sid cheers.

  You did it? Your eyes open wide. You look down at the card in front of you.

  It’s an ace! You won!

  “Yes!” you cry. You jump up from your seat. Joanie and Sid throw their arms around you. The three of you jump up and down.

  “I did it! I did it!” you chant.

  No one at the table is moving.

  “Big deal,” Ms. Cardshar
p says flatly. “We’re playing Five Hundred Card Draw. You have to do it four hundred ninety-nine more times!”

  THE END

  You stare at the cover of the little gold book Joanie holds in her hand. The Magic Book of Spells is written in fancy writing across the cover.

  “Oh, wow,” you say. “Larry and his friends have been reading your diary.”

  “And they were laughing!” Joanie wails.

  “But what about the rabbits?” Sid asks. “If Larry didn’t have the Magic Book, where did all those rabbits come from?”

  “Look,” you say, pointing to the words on the cardboard box. O’CONNOR’S PET SHOP.

  “We have the Magic Book,” Sid says, “so let’s get out of here!”

  “But how? Larry and his gang of jerks will still want to jump us,” you remind him.

  Joanie opens the book. “I think we should use a spell,” she says. “It’s the only way we’ll escape.”

  You hate to admit it, but Joanie is probably right.

  “Okay,” you tell her. “But which spell?”

  Joanie reads the table of contents. “I think we should use the Spell of the Genie,” she suggests.

  “Wait a minute,” Sid says, reading over her shoulder. “How about the Terrifying Spell?”

  If you want to use the Spell of the Genie, go to PAGE 98.

  If you choose the Terrifying Spell, turn to PAGE 71.

  A look of horror comes over Joanie’s face as she stares at where your hand should be. Her eyes well up with tears.

  “Here it is,” you exclaim. You poke your hand out of your sweater. “Gotcha!” You double over, laughing.

  “You have a really sick sense of humor,” Joanie mutters. She sticks out her tongue and stomps away.