Running Away Read online

  In memory of the real Merlin,

  who really did run away with me

  Contents

  Title Page

  Dedication

  1. The Time Before Merlin

  2. Explorers

  3. Perfect Day

  4. At the End of the Day

  5. Attacked!

  Copyright

  CHAPTER 1

  The Time Before Merlin

  One Christmas, Meg’s uncle told a story about something silly that he’d done when he was a young man. With a laugh and wink to the other grown-ups, he’d added, “You know … BC.”

  Meg hadn’t understood why that was funny. The next day, she had asked Dad what “BC” was and he’d said that it meant Before Children. She still didn’t really get it.

  But then one summer morning she woke up with the thought in her head that her own life had split into Before and After. Not Before Children, but Before Merlin.

  Before Merlin was a fuzzy memory. Before Merlin Meg had wished and wanted and longed for a pony of her own. She had wanted it so badly that it hurt.

  Before Merlin she’d only had rides at the local stables from time to time. Those short rides had seemed to be over in the blink of an eye. And then there would be long, empty days with no ponies and no rides.

  Then everything changed. She’d woken up on her tenth birthday and seen Merlin standing in the front garden, but he wasn’t a surprise birthday present. He actually belonged to a woman called Mrs Hill and her daughter Isobel.

  Isobel was away at university and Merlin had got bored with no one to take him out. He had escaped from his field and ended up outside Meg’s house.

  When Meg took him back, Mrs Hill was so pleased that she said Meg could ride him whenever she wanted.

  “Whenever she wanted” was all the time. Meg wished she could move into Merlin’s field and stay there for ever. But living in a field with a pony wasn’t allowed. There were other things like school that got in the way.

  Even so, Meg rode Merlin nearly every day. And the more she’d ridden, the more confident she’d felt. She’d even got brave enough to compete with Merlin at a local horse show.

  Sam Houseman, who was in the year above Meg at school, was at the show too. Sam was riding a lovely pony called Alfred, and that day the two girls and the two ponies had made friends. Today they were meeting up to go for a long picnic ride.

  It had been tricky to arrange their day out. Meg’s mum wasn’t really a pony person. She always looked at Merlin as if he was a bomb that might explode at any moment. She worried every time Meg went for a ride.

  Mum didn’t like the idea of Meg being out all day and she didn’t really know Sam or her pony. Meg had heard Mum and Dad talking about it at night when they thought she was asleep.

  “Sam’s older than Meg and she’s probably been riding a lot longer,” fretted Mum. “You saw them at the show, dashing about the place, going over those jumps. Suppose she makes Meg do something silly? What if she falls off?”

  “Sam looks like a sensible girl,” Dad said. “And Meg’s got her head screwed on. They’ll be fine.”

  But Mum still fretted. In the end, they had agreed that Mum would talk to Sam’s mother after school one day.

  Meg was nervous about that idea. Sam’s mother had been at the show where Meg and Sam had met. She had yelled at Sam all the time while she was riding her pony, “Get him moving, Sammy! Legs! Legs!” she had shouted. Meg knew Sam had been really embarrassed.

  Whatever Sam’s mother had said to Meg’s mum made no difference. Meg’s mum was still worried but, even so, she didn’t stop Meg going. She even made her picnic lunch and packed it into a rucksack so it was all ready for Meg to take.

  After breakfast, Dad picked up the car keys to drive Meg over to Merlin’s field. Just before they left, Mum suddenly pressed her mobile phone into Meg’s hands.

  “Take this,” she said. “If you need anything, or anything goes wrong, just phone Dad and he’ll come and get you, OK?”

  “All right. Thanks.” Meg gave Mum a big hug and tucked the phone into her pocket.

  CHAPTER 2

  Explorers

  The very first time Meg rode Merlin had been bareback with a bit of rope tied to his head collar to use as reins. That ride had been like a dream come true, Meg remembered. It had felt like the two of them were on the most amazing journey together. It was an adventure, as if they were explorers discovering new worlds.

  It felt exactly like that again today. When Dad dropped her off at the field, Merlin knew at once that something exciting was going to happen. He called a happy greeting in Horse and trotted over the grass towards her.

  “What’s up?” he seemed to say. “Are we doing something special?”

  “We are,” Meg replied.

  “Oh! Exciting!”

  Meg brushed Merlin down while he pushed her with his head over and over again as if he was trying to hurry her up. He danced on the spot while she tacked him up. He couldn’t keep still while she got into the saddle and the moment her foot was in the stirrup, he moved off.

  Most days, Meg rode Merlin across the village green and then along a narrow country lane. After a mile or so, they’d reach an old muddy path that led to the woods. From there they cut across two fields to another lane that led back to Mrs Hill’s house. It was a nice ride, with plenty of places to trot and canter.

  But today was different. Today she and Merlin were going to Sam’s house. Meg had never been there before, but Sam had told her the way and drawn her a map. Even so, Meg was worried about getting lost.

  They turned in the opposite direction to the one they usually rode and Merlin set off in a brisk, bouncy walk as if he had springs on his hooves instead of horseshoes.

  What Sam had said as she had explained the way kept ringing in Meg’s head like the words of a song.

  “Left at the far end of the village green. Go along the lane until you get to a crossroads and go left again. And then – about ten minutes further on – there’s a grassy old track on the left with a sign to Westercote. It’s really easy. Left, left, left – that’s all. Our house is at the end of the track. It’s big and pink with white shutters. I’ll be out front waiting for

  you, OK?”

  “Where are we going?” Merlin asked with every step. “Where? Where? What are we doing? What?”

  “We’re going to meet our friends,” Meg told him. “We’re going to have some fun.”

  Meg knew Merlin was excited and she knew she had to be super-careful and look out for anything that might scare him.

  Merlin saw danger everywhere. A black bin bag stuffed behind a tree was a panther getting ready to pounce. A bit of old rope on the ground was a scary snake. She steered him carefully around both.

  But then he spotted a mossy log floating in a ditch at the side of the road. Merlin stiffened, snorted and lowered his head for a better look.

  “CROCODILE!” he decided. “RUN!”

  Meg felt him tense, but she sat still and kept calm and told him in a steady voice, “It’s a log, Merlin! No need to panic.”

  “Is it?” he replied, blowing puffs of air through his nostrils. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. On we go.”

  By the time they reached the track that led to Sam’s house, Merlin had met dozens of deadly dangers, and each time, Meg had kept him calm and steady. As they went down the track, Merlin must have smelled Sam’s pony, Alfred. He stopped dead, lifted his head and whinnied such a loud greeting it made Meg’s bones rattle.

  A loud reply came back. Merlin took off again, so excited to get to the end of the track that Meg had trouble holding him in.

  The moment they reached Sam’s house, the two ponies greeted each other with squeals and snorts and snuffles.

  “There you are!”

  “Good to see you!”

  “Are we going out?”

  “Yes!”

  “On an adventure?”

  “Yes!”

  “WOW!”

  The two girls made much less noise. Sam’s mother had come out to see them off and there was something in the way she looked at Meg’s scruffy second-hand riding clothes that made Meg feel hot and embarrassed. She felt shy and only mumbled a quick hello. Sam was the same.

  “Don’t do anything silly,” Sam’s mother snapped at them. “No mad gallops and don’t push the ponies too hard. If you’re going to be out all day, you must pace yourselves. I expect you back by teatime, Sammy. Don’t be late.”

  The girls set off with Sam’s mother watching as they trotted away from the pink house and back onto the grassy track.

  CHAPTER 3

  Perfect Day

  The day was warm but not so hot that there were clouds of buzzing flies to annoy the ponies. They rode side by side along the track, the girls not saying anything but the ponies chatting to each other in Horse.

  After a while, they came to a wooded valley with a wide shallow river running through it. The path was narrow to begin with and so they went slowly, enjoying the birds singing and the sunlight slanting through the leaves. Little by little, the girls began to relax.

  When the path got wider, Alfred – who knew this part of the woods – took off at a faster pace. Merlin followed.

  They came to a place where the river flowed across the path. The water was shallow and Meg saw that it was a ford – a place where walkers and horses could cross the river easily. On the other side, the path carried on, up the hill and out of the woods. Alfred and Sam splashed quickly through, but Merlin stop
ped dead and gave a snort of alarm.

  “What’s THAT doing there?” he asked Meg.

  “It’s just water,” she said.

  Meg let him have a good long look and then tried to nudge him forward.

  Merlin wouldn’t move. “Suppose something’s in it?” he asked.

  “Like what?”

  “A shark. Or a hippopotamus.”

  “Well, Alfred didn’t get attacked, did he?” said Meg. “Honestly, you’ll be fine!”

  Meg nudged him forward again. From the other side of the river, Alfred whinnied to Merlin, but Merlin still would not move.

  “It’s all right!” said Meg again.

  She could feel Merlin trying to decide what to do. He didn’t want to splash through the river. He was going to jump across it. He got himself ready. And then, suddenly, Merlin leaped forward so quickly that Meg got left behind. She grabbed the front of his saddle to stop herself falling off backward.

  Merlin’s leap was huge but not big enough. He splashed into the middle of the river and then jumped again. Meg stayed in the saddle but only just. They reached the other side, Merlin huffing and puffing and holding his head high as if he wanted a medal for his bravery.

  Meg laughed.

  “You daft animal,” she said, giving Merlin’s neck a rub. “We weren’t supposed to do anything silly, remember?” She glanced at Sam and joked, “Don’t tell your mum, will you? She’d have a fit.”

  Sam started to giggle and soon the two girls were laughing their heads off. They stopped feeling shy and awkward, and it was a while before they could catch their breath and go on.

  On the far side of the river the path widened even more. There were fallen trees for the ponies to jump and then at last they came out of the woods into an open field. Grass stretched all the way to the top of the hill.

  “No mad gallops,” said Sam, looking over at Meg and grinning.

  “Definitely not,” agreed Meg.

  The two girls smiled at each other. The two ponies took a deep breath. And without another word all four of them agreed:

  “Let’s go!”

  CHAPTER 4

  At the End of the Day

  It wasn’t a race. It was the most amazingly wonderful, thrilling gallop, side by side, ponies and riders perfectly matched, the ponies running for joy, their riders whooping aloud.

  When they neared the clump of trees at the top of the hill, the ponies slowed down and then stopped.

  No one said anything, but they were all thinking the same thing. Wasn’t that brilliant? Wasn’t that exciting? Wasn’t that just the best feeling in the whole wide world?

  The girls slid down from their ponies’ backs. They took the saddles off the ponies and then they swapped the bridles for head collars so the animals could graze while they ate their picnic.

  In between mouthfuls of sandwiches and crisps, Sam and Meg chatted and laughed as if they’d know each other all their lives.

  “I’d like to live like this for ever,” Sam said. “Just me and Alfred. And you two.”

  “Me too,” said Meg. “Perhaps we should all run away together.”

  “We could go and live somewhere wild. Scotland, maybe. Or Wales.”

  “Find a cave in the mountains.”

  “Or on the beach maybe? We could gallop across the sand every day. Maybe even swim with the ponies.”

  “Merlin wouldn’t like that,” said Meg. “He was bad enough with the river. Imagine what he’d be like with the sea.”

  The idea made the girls giggle all over again. And then Merlin and Alfred stopped grazing and looked at them with such surprise that it made the girls giggle more and more.

  *

  Meg and Sam had the most perfect day. But at last it was time to turn for home.

  When they were close to Sam’s house, she seemed to shrink a little. And then her mother came out and happy, smiling, laughing Sam became quiet and shy and awkward once again.

  “Good day?” Sam’s mother barked at them.

  “Yes, thank you, Mummy,” Sam replied.

  “Well, look sharp. Alfred will need a good brush down before you turn him out.” Sam’s mother turned to Meg, once more looking her slowly up and down. “Are you in the Pony Club?” she asked Meg suddenly.

  Meg looked quickly at Sam. She could see her friend was feeling embarrassed. “Erm …” said Meg. “No.”

  “Well, you should be. There’s a rally coming up soon. Come along to that. Sammy will tell you all about it. It’s lots of fun. And it will improve your riding no end.”

  With that, Sam’s mother turned and went back in the house.

  “Fun, eh?” said Meg, looking at Sam and pulling a face.

  Sam smiled back. “I’ve never enjoyed them much,” she admitted. And then she added in a more cheerful tone, “But if you and Merlin were there …”

  Meg grinned. “We’ll give it a go, shall we? If we don’t like it, we can always run away to the cave.”

  CHAPTER 5

  Attacked!

  Left, Meg thought as she rode along the track away from Sam’s house. Then left and left again. Meg wasn’t really thinking about how to get home. Her mind was full of Sam and the perfect day they’d had and what a Pony Club rally might be like.

  It was a while before she knew that something was wrong. She’d gone left at the top of the track and then left again, but everything looked different. They’d said goodbye to Sam and Alfred twenty minutes ago. Shouldn’t she be able to see the village green by now?

  Meg tensed and gave Merlin’s reins a squeeze. He came to a halt and she had a good look around. She couldn’t see anything at all that she knew. What was going on?

  It was like having a bucket of icy water poured over her head. She’d got lost. How could she be so stupid? It was left, left, left again on the way there. On the way home it should be right, right, right. Shouldn’t it?

  A bubble of panic started to swell in her chest. Merlin could sense Meg was worried. He began to fidget.

  “Is there danger?” he said. “Where? What? Snake? Panther?”

  “Keep calm,” she told herself. “Keep calm. Go back the way we came. Start again. You’ll find the way back.”

  But then she’d be late and Dad would get worried. She’d better give him a ring on Mum’s phone.

  She pulled it from her pocket. And then – disaster! A sudden enormous roar. The smell of engines and petrol, and around the corner a motorbike came at full speed, heading straight for Meg and Merlin.

  Merlin’s head shot up. He snorted in alarm. The motorbike swerved to avoid them but passed so close that Merlin shot backward into the hedge. Mum’s phone flew out of Meg’s hand, landing on the tarmac with a crack.

  Perhaps even then things would have been fine. Meg could have calmed Merlin down, picked up the phone and called Dad. But Merlin had hit the hedge so hard that he’d snapped off a branch of something spiky. It had tangled up in his tail. When Merlin took a step forward, the branch came with him and smashed against his back legs.

  Suddenly all the monsters that Merlin always thought were about to attack him seemed as if they were real. Thorns were claws. Teeth. Something was hanging on to his tail, trying to jump onto his back! Trying to kill him!

  For split second Meg felt Merlin stiffen. His muscles tightened, then – BANG! – he exploded like a racehorse out of the starting gate. One moment they were standing still, the next they were galloping full speed along the lane. This gallop wasn’t for fun. This was galloping away from danger. This was raw panic.

  Meg tried to calm Merlin, but it was no good. There was nothing in his head but fright. With each step, the branch banged against his legs. He was totally out of control. Meg was used to him responding to her, but now he wasn’t listening. She had no idea what to do.