The Squatchicorns Page 4

  “I suppose it could happen.”

  “I would hate it.”

  “So would I,” Grandpa said. “But no matter where we live, we’ll have our family and our friends with us. That’s all that counts, when you come right down to it.”

  “But what if we have to move far away from Boone?” Hugo asked.

  “Good friends have a way of finding each other again.”

  Hugo supposed so. But still, he hoped that he and Boone would always live exactly where they lived now, forever and ever.

  The kitchen door swung open and Nogg walked in, holding a very large box in his arms.

  “I just came to say goodbye,” Nogg told them.

  “You’re leaving already?!” Hugo cried. He had hoped they would stay at Widdershins Cavern for at least a few days longer.

  “We’re heading to the east end of Ripple Worm River to look for a new home,” Nogg said.

  “Then you’re not going back to Craggy Cavern?”

  “No. Even though the clan knows that the ghost was really a Tommyknocker, they think that the cave-ins make it too dangerous.”

  There was a dull thump from inside the box.

  “In a minute!” Nogg said to the box. Then to Hugo and Grandpa he explained, “Some of us went to Craggy Cavern early this morning to pack up a few things.”

  Nogg put the box on the counter, and Hugo and Grandpa peered inside to see Yama’s fairy house. Nogg lifted off the house’s roof. The Tommyknocker was standing inside, glaring up at them with a cranky look on his face. When he spotted Hugo, he hissed and grabbed onto his green cap, just in case Hugo decided to knock it off his head again.

  “You’re taking the Tommyknocker with you?” Hugo asked, surprised.

  “It seemed a shame to leave him there all by himself,” Nogg replied. “Yama plans to build him a swimming pool.” The Tommyknocker made a little whistle of satisfaction at this. Then he put his hands on his hips and stamped his feet a few times.

  “All right! We’re going!” Nogg told him. Then Nogg reached into the box and pulled out a piece of rolled-up paper.

  “This is for you and Boone,” he said, handing it to Hugo. “It’s a map of the North Woods. I used the notes in my notebook to draw it.”

  “Thank you!” Hugo said, taking the map.

  “I figured you could include it in your book,” Nogg said. “You know, The Adventures of Big Foot and Little Foot. That way, everyone could see where all your adventures happened.”

  There was another impatient stomp from inside the fairy house.

  “I’d better get going,” Nogg said, picking up the box. “I’ll write you a letter when we have a new home.”

  After he left, Hugo unrolled the map and laid it flat on the kitchen counter. It was a beautiful map, and he and Grandpa marveled at all the details.

  “There’s Boone’s house!” Hugo pointed to the little house that Nogg had labeled. He’d even included the tree house. Hugo placed his finger on the winding Ripple Worm River. “And that’s where we rowed the Voyajer all the way to”—he slid his finger along the twists and turns of the river, then stopped to tap on a drawing of a cavern—“Craggy Cavern!”

  It was all there and so much more. The map showed the Sasquatch footpaths and the raspberry and blueberry bush patches. It showed the best spots for picnics and for finding mushrooms. Nogg had marked all the steep slopes that were good for sledding in the winter and rolling downhill in the summer, and there were dozens of mysterious-looking caves and burrows and cliffs. The North Woods stretched out farther in every direction than Hugo had ever imagined.

  “There’s an awful lot of Big Wide World out there,” Grandpa murmured dreamily.

  “And anything can happen in it,” Hugo said, smiling.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Sasquatches know that we all need help if we want to do things right, and that’s why I want to thank my wonderful “Sasquatch Community.” Major thanks to my editor, Erica Finkel, for her clear-sighted wisdom. I am forever grateful to my agent, Alice Tasman, who is even better than thirty jars of acorn butter. Thanks to Felicita Sala for bringing Hugo and his friends to life with her beautiful illustrations. Big thanks to my publicist, Kimberley Moran, and the entire Abrams team for spreading the word about Hugo and Boone. And finally, as always, thanks to my practically perfect husband, Adam, and my own squidge, Ian.

  ELLEN POTTER is the award-winning author of many books for children, including the Olivia Kidney series, Slob, The Kneebone Boy, and most recently, the Piper Green and the Fairy Tree series. She lives in Maine.

  FELICITA SALA is the self-taught illustrator of many books for children. She lives with her husband and daughter in Rome, Italy.

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