Billy Wizard (4 page)

“What a weirdo,” said Joe. “What a total weirdo.”

Chapter 3

Wizards Like Chocolate Cake

AT THE END
of the day Joe joined all the other children to fetch his coat to go home. Billy was collecting his coat from his peg on the other side of the narrow cloakroom. Molly Mason and her friend Charlotte were chattering away as usual.

“Don’t forget I’m bringing Little Danny in tomorrow,” said Molly.

“He’s so cute,” said Charlotte as they both went back into the classroom to line up.

“Who’s little Danny?” asked Joe.

“Don’t know,” said Billy. “Her baby brother, I think.”

Neil squeezed along towards them. “I saw you talking to Rick Bellows,” he said above the din.

“So?” said Joe.

“He’s trouble. You should stay away from him.”

“Should I?” said Joe crossly. He was beginning to get annoyed with the way Neil kept interfering.

“Yes,” said Neil. “You should.”

“Well, he wants me to play football with him and I said I would,” said Joe.

Neil tutted and walked off shaking his head. Joe scowled and followed him back to the classroom, where everyone quietened down and lined up in a queue ready to go home.

When Joe marched out into the
playground
, he could see his mum talking to one of the other mothers. As he got closer he realized that it was Billy’s mother. Joe grinned to himself. If Mum only knew, he thought to himself, that she was talking to the hideous Agatha, the Wicked Witch of Wherever-it-was.

As Joe walked up to them, his mother gave him a kiss and said to Billy’s mother, “Here he is. This is Joe.”

“How are you, Joe?” said Billy’s mother.

“Very well, thank you,” said Joe. “How are you?”

“I’m very well, thank you,” she said with a very un-witchy smile. “What a polite young man. And here’s Billy.”

Billy shuffled up with his hands in his pockets and his shirt hanging out
of
his trousers on one side. He scowled at each of them in turn. Joe’s mother backed off slightly.

“Now then, Billy,” said Billy’s mother. “Joe’s mother here has very kindly said you can go back with them to Joe’s house and play for a while. What do you say?”

Billy mumbled something that could have been “Thank you” but could have been many things.

Joe’s mother looked as though she was already regretting making the offer and when she looked at Joe, she saw him frowning darkly at Billy.

“That’s settled then,” said Billy’s mother. “I’ll pick you up at five thirty. Behave yourself, Billy,” she added as she turned to go home, a worried look flickering across her face.

They started to walk home, both boys scowling. Joe saw Rick Bellows getting into his father’s car, a smooth silvery sports car. Joe had admired it the day before.

“Rick!” he called with a wave. “See you tomorrow!”

Rick looked baffled for a minute,
as
though he had never seen Joe before in his life. “What?” he snapped, but then he remembered. “Oh, yeah, right.” Then he spotted Billy and patted his father on the arm. “Hey, Dad, there’s that weird kid I told you about!” He chuckled loudly. “Look at him. What a dork!” Rick’s father joined in the chuckling as they got into the car. They put on matching sunglasses, the engine roared and they drove noisily away.

“What a horrid boy,” said Joe’s mum.

“Who, Rick?” said Joe. “Nah, he’s all right.” Billy snorted. “At least he doesn’t think he’s a wizard!” hissed Joe.

“What’s all this about wizards?” asked Joe’s mother.

Neither boy answered. They plodded silently along after her, scowling all the way to Joe’s house.

“I’ve got some chocolate cake, Billy,” said Joe’s mother as she unlocked the front door. “Would you like some?”

“Yes please,” said Billy.

“Take your shoes off, boys, and sit yourselves down,” she told them. “I’ll bring it through in a minute.” And she went off into the kitchen.

They took off their shoes and Billy
followed
Joe into the dining room. Joe’s mother came through with the cake and some apple juice.

“So wizards eat chocolate cake then,” said Joe as soon as she had left the room.

“Yeah,” said Billy, picking up a huge slice of cake. “Some do. A few do. I do.” He took a huge bite, smearing his nose with chocolate cream.

Joe was trying to stay annoyed with Billy but he couldn’t stop himself from laughing, and Billy joined him, almost choking on his cake.

“That’s better,” said Joe’s mum, putting her head round the door. “I thought you two would never cheer up. Why don’t you go up to
your
room, Joe, and show Billy all your toys? I don’t mind how much mess you make as long as you clear it up later.”

So Joe dragged box after box out of his cupboards and down from his shelves and the two boys played happily for the rest of the afternoon, setting up a huge game involving all Joe’s animals, his knights and his battery-powered spaceship.

Joe’s dad popped in to see him when he came back from work. “Hi, Joe – er, children,” he said, stopping cautiously in the doorway when he saw Billy.

“Hi, Dad,” said Joe, without looking up. “This is Billy. From school.”

“Oh … er … hi, Billy,” said Joe’s dad a little nervously.

“Hello,” said Billy as the spaceship
zoomed
out of control towards a group of knights.

Joe’s father stood there for a few moments looking lost, twiddling his fingers, then left them to it. Not long after, they heard the doorbell and Billy’s mother was calling him to go home.

“He wasn’t any trouble, I hope,” she said as Billy put his shoes back on.

“None at all,” said Joe’s mother. “I barely knew they were there. They got on like magic.”

Joe and his mother waved from the front door as Billy and his mother drove away. Billy wasn’t so bad after all, thought Joe, even if he was a bit crazy. Perhaps he had been too hard on him.

“Billy is sweet, isn’t he?” said his mother, closing the door.

Joe shuddered. Sweet?
Sweet?
Urggggh! It was one thing for Billy to be bonkers, but
sweet
– that was too much. This is what happened if you were not careful about choosing your friends and let your mother get involved.
Sweet!

Chapter 4

Vanishing Rick

JOE WAS IN
a much better mood when he went to school the next day. He chatted to his mum on the way and they laughed and joked just like they used to when they lived in Gaston.

“I’m glad you’ve made a friend like Billy,” said his mother as they walked past the war memorial. “He’s
so
much nicer than those awful boys you got in with when we lived in Gaston.”

“Who?” asked Joe defensively.

“Carl Denton and his gang,” said his mother.

Joe frowned. “Carl was all right.”

“Carl was not all right,” said his mother. “Carl was a menace. He was always getting in trouble. He was a nasty bully and you followed him round like a little puppy.”

“No I didn’t,” said Joe.

“Never mind.” His mum sighed. “It doesn’t matter now. Carl is in Gaston and we’re here. Hopefully there aren’t any boys like him at your new school anyway.”

“Mum,” said Joe as they arrived at the school gates, “would it be OK if I played football on the sports field on
Saturday
morning?”

“I suppose so,” she said. “Who with?”

Joe remembered his mum saying what a horrid boy Rick was. “Oh, you know, with, er, Billy and, er, this other boy – Neil.”

“Yes, why not,” said his mum.

“Great!”

“I can do my shopping in the afternoon instead, I suppose. And it will give me a chance to chat to Billy’s mum. She seems very nice.”

“But … but …” began Joe.

“You didn’t think I was going to let you go wandering round the village on your own, did you?”

“But Mum,” said Joe.

“Never mind ‘but Mum’,” she said. “I promise I won’t laugh if you fall over.”

Great, thought Joe as he said goodbye and tramped into the classroom. He had finally got in with the really cool kids in the school and now his mum was going to turn up with him like he was a baby or something. There must be something he could do. It was so unfair.

As Joe was leaving the classroom at play time, he saw that Molly Mason was talking to Miss Parker and crying. Then he heard her say, “He’s disappeared, miss. I can’t find him anywhere.”