The Boggart and the Monster Read Online Free PDF Page A

Scotland, like Ireland and Wales, is full of legends about the seal folk, the selkies, who take on the shape sometimes of a human being and sometimes of a seal, and as a result, through generations of tradition, some families have been said to have the blood of seals mixed with the human blood in their veins. The MacDevonfamily was one of these. And Emily and Jessup belonged to that family, through their father’s grandmother, the sister of the last MacDevon, who had emigrated from Scotland to Canada. Emily had never forgotten this; nor had she forgotten the day two years before when on these rocks two seals had surfaced, to gaze at her and at Jessup.
“They came up to see you,”
Tommy had said wonderingly.
“I have never known them come so fast, for anyone but Mr. MacDevon.”
    But no seals emerged today, to roll themselves up onto the kelp-swathed rock, and there was nothing to see, not even for Mr. Maconochie, who sat expectantly holding binoculars, with his long legs bent and his elbows propped on his knees.
    â€œI did see them in the spring,”
he said hopefully.
“Tommy brought me. There was one splendid great fat fellow with barnacles all over his sides.”
    Emily looked at the empty rocks and found disappointment filling her like an ache; she had felt that the seals, almost as much as the Boggart, were old friends. She said,
“Maybe it’s just the wrong time of day for —”
    Then she stopped.
“Oh!”
she said, entranced.
    Beside the boat, not a yard from where she sat, a shining dark head had emerged, and was gazing at her out of huge long-lashed eyes; a doglike, whiskered head, gleaming, dripping water. It contemplated her for a long moment, then vanished into a wave, and on the other side of the boat Jessup let out a happy yelp as another seal surfaced and stared at him. Then the first was back, and a third, and together the three creaturesplayed around the boat, rising and diving and rolling over in the water, while the children and Mr. Maconochie watched in delight.
    Mr. Maconochie said softly,
“It’s the three daughters of the King of the Sea, come to drop their skins and swim in human form.”
    â€œWhat?”
Jessup said.
    â€œNot really,”
said Mr. Maconochie.
“Just an old story.”
    The first seal surfaced again near Emily, splashing her with water, and as she wiped the spray out of her eyes, laughing, she found a double white cockle shell in her lap.
    â€œLook!”
she said to Tommy, still laughing.
“He gave me a present!”
    She showed him the shell, which was oddly heavy when she picked it up; it seemed to have rock inside it, instead of a cockle. Tommy peered at it.
    â€œThat’s a fossil shell,”
he said.
“They’re special. Did it really come from the seal?”
    â€œIt must have done,”
Emily said.
    Tommy gave her an odd, intent look.
“Put it in your pocket, and keep it safe,”
he said.
    â€œOkay,”
Emily said, and she dutifully put the shell into a pocket of her parka and zipped the pocket shut. The three seals rollicked away through the waves toward the rock, their heads rising and falling, gleaming in the sunlight.
    Tommy said,
“The Boggart comes to swim with them sometimes. He takes on the shape of a seal, and plays tricks on them.”
    Jessup squinted at the seals. One of them was hoisting himself up onto the rock, rolling sideways, suddenly bulky and clumsy when out of the sea. He said,
“D’you think one of those is the Boggart?”
    Tommy shook his head.
“You can tell when it’s him. Like a good copy, but not quite the real thing. You’ll see, soon enough, if the weather holds.”
    As unexpectedly as they had come, the seals disappeared into the sea. Emily watched them go, through Mr. Maconochie’s binoculars.
“D’you think it’s really true we’re related to them?”
she said.
    â€œYou’re a lot