A Slip in Time

A Slip in Time

No one saw the fair arrive on the village green, but on a misty morning in November, villagers rubbed their eyes in astonishment as they left their homes, at the array of striped tents, fairground attractions and caravans that greeted them.
Billy was among the many that wandered over to the entrance to read the notice proclaiming “Grand Opening at 6pm tonight”. He would have plenty of time to finish his homework and be there when the gates opened.
Supper eaten and homework completed, he checked the clock and saw it was only just 5pm, he still had an hour to wait. Ever impatient he decided he would have a look round the outer perimeter and then would be first in line to enter.
The mist had turned into an eerie fog through which small sightings of the fair emerged to then disappear. Billy fixed his eyes where he though the fair would be and crossed the village green. Not a person could be seen, not a sound heard, he felt as though he was alone in the world. Deciding to walk around the perimeter he turned left from the gate and made his way slowly, trying to peer through the makeshift railings as he went.
“You took your time,” a voice penetrated his thoughts, “That’s right, over here.”
“Where are you?” answered Billy.
“Right in front of you now if you turn your head. Look, there is a gap in the railings, give me your hand and squeeze through. Maybe you shouldn’t have eaten that last cake at supper! I have been waiting for you it seems like forever,” the voice continued a trifle petulantly.
In front of Billy stood a dwarf with a shock of bright red hair and a bulbous nose.
“We have been searching for you through the years, travelling all round the country, now we have no time to lose. This fair has passed from generation to generation through the centuries and been lauded by kings and other royalty alike, due to being in possession of a magic scroll. Many years ago there was a slip in time, and the scroll passed through the time barrier to several hundred years past. This fair has slowly been declining ever since and will have to close unless we can retrieve it immediately. You are the only one left alive with the ability to locate the scroll. You inherited a gift from your great grandmother who was a Romany princess to know when you are close to the scroll which is invisible to humans.”
“Then how will I know where it is, if it is invisible?” queried Billy.
“As you get close, a headache will start, which will increase as you draw near, and finally you will feel really sick. It is imperative to succeed, the fate of the fair depends on you.”
“So how do I get there?” asked a bemused Billy.
“Come with me, you will go now, this task has to be completed before the fair opens tonight.”
Billy followed the dwarf past some caravans and a shooting gallery until they arrived at a sign proclaiming “Hall of Mirrors.” Entering through a side door, he was greeted by the sight of himself multiplied dozens of times as fat Billy, thin Billy, tall Billy and a Billy even shorter than his companion. They stopped in front of a mirror draped with red tassels.
“Close your eyes tight and when I say ‘go’ just walk forward and don’t pause until the tingling stops.”
He screwed his eyes tightly shut and just as he started to ask how he was to return, felt himself propelled forward. All the hairs on his arms stood to attention, there was a rushing of wind followed by a raucous din of several voices. Immediately Billy snapped his eyes wide open and looked about him in sheer disbelief. He hadn’t really believed what the dwarf had been saying so it was a huge shock to find himself in what could only be described as a bustling fair with stallholders shouting their wares and grubby waifs trying to persuade passers by to pay a coin to try their hand at various fairground pursuits.
Billy realised at once he was not dressed in similar attire to those around him, but no one seemed to be taking any notice of his appearance or getting out of his way and several times he was shouldered roughly aside, once even pushing him to the ground.
There were stalls selling brightly coloured ribbons, food vendors shouting their wares, a sign proclaiming a fortune teller within and a donkey plodding up and down with a small child on it’s back. Everywhere was a hive of activity and Billy felt very small and alone. Suddenly he felt a small twinge of a head pain which he brushed aside without a second thought until a second one slightly worse than the first stopped him in his tracks.
“This is it, it really is true after all,” muttered Billy under his breath. He carried on walking in the same direction with the pains slowly but steadily increasing in strength, until he came to a halt in front of a stall set up with bottles where a small group children were throwing rings in the hope of lassoing one and getting a prize. At this stage Billy was near doubled up with pain and close to running in the opposite direction to alleviate the agony he was in. A picture of the dwarf sprang into his mind and he heard a voice saying,
“The fair depends on your succeeding, you must not fail.”
He lifted his now bloodshot eyes and bleakly saw in the very middle of all the bottles a larger one which appeared to contain some sort of paper. “That must be it,” he vaguely thought, “ Now how do I get it?”
He looked round and nearby was a barrow selling fruit, he stumbled towards it and gave a huge shove, spilling the contents in four directions. An angry shout was heard and a large florid faced man stared wildly looking round seeking the culprit.
With the distraction he needed, Billy lunged at the bottle containing the scroll, grabbing it with one hand he leaned over and was violently sick.
Gathering what little strength remained, he pushed his way through the gathering crowd and tried to remember the way he had come.
A voice spoke in his head and he valiantly followed directions arriving in front of a billboard.
“Jump through the billboard, now,” the voice commanded and Billy lunged at the huge board. Everything went black and Billy felt himself slipping into unconsciousness as he propelled forward through time.
“Wake up Billy,” his mother gently shook him. “It's time for breakfast and there is a big surprise waiting for you today, a fair has set up on the village green overnight, it’s a huge honour that it’s come here, it's the biggest and best travelling fair in the country. After you’ve done your homework tonight, I’m sure you’d like to go, and it’s a lovely clear day out. Did I ever tell you that your great grandmother used to travel with a fair telling fortunes?”