Ice Magic Read online

  “That’s right!” Pie said breathlessly. “That’s really right! And it happened in the second period, too! Just like it did here!”

  Just then laughter exploded from the fans, and a whistle shrilled.

  “Hey, look!” Jody shouted, pointing.

  Pie looked, and there on the ice — running and slipping and sliding on its haunches near the Hawks’ goal — was a calico cat!

  “It’s Tipper! Terry’s cat!”

  “Tipper!” Terry shouted and skated after it. He scooped it up and carried it gingerly to a little blond-haired girl behind the boards. The girl, Pie saw, was Terry’s sister, Pam.

  The laughter changed to applause as Pam sat down with the cat on her lap, and Terry returned to the ice, shaking his head and smiling.

  The game resumed. Seconds before Line 1 left the ice Terry knocked in his third score of the game with an assist by Jim Stanton, the kid who had replaced Pie.

  “A hat trick!” Pie cried, applauding. “Nice shot, Terry! Nice pass, Jim!”

  “Thought you didn’t like him,” Jody said from behind him.

  Pie shrugged. “Oh, he’s really not as terrible as he pretends to be.”

  The game went into the third period and finally ended, 3 to 2, in the Penguins’ favor. Terry Mason had scored every goal for the Penguins.

  As Pie was leaving the rink with the twins, Terry ran up beside them, grinning broadly and proudly. At his heels was Pam, carrying Tipper.

  “Hi,” he said.

  “Hi,” they greeted him.

  “Going to play with your hockey game this afternoon?”

  The twins looked at Pie, their eyes carrying a secret message. “Shall we, Pie?”

  Pie shrugged. “Why not?”

  Terry chuckled. “I wonder if … well, mind if I come over and play, too?”

  Again the twins and Pie exchanged a look. Then Pie winked.

  “Of course, you know why he wants to come over and play, don’t you?” he said.

  “Of course,” said Jody. “He wants to see whether the game is really magic.”

  “Right. Okay, Terry. If it’s all right with the twins, it’s all right with me.”

  “Oh, it’s all right with us!” replied the twins.

  “Thanks!” said Terry, his teeth flashing white as he grinned. “See you guys later! Oh, one more thing. Sorry about your skate, Pie. I hope you’ll get a new pair.”

  “Me, too,” Pie replied.

  He really wasn’t surprised when his father saw the broken skate and said, “No doubt about it now, son. You’ve got to have a new pair. We’ll go to a store together after lunch.”

  At 1:00 they walked to a store, and Mr. Pennelli bought Pie a new pair of skates, one that fit tighter than his regular shoes. Pie was sure that he would never again make a quick turn with his feet moving before his skates did.

  At 3:00 Terry showed up at the twins’ house. They called Pie over, and all four of them went down to the basement. Terry had his cat with him, which didn’t surprise Pie. Those two were practically inseparable.

  They reached the table on which the hockey game was set and started to sit down, when suddenly the cat cried, “Meow!” and leaped off Terry’s shoulder directly onto the game.

  He sat there, gazing big-eyed at the miniature hockey figures, until Terry yelled, “Git, Tipper! Where are your manners?”

  The cat jumped off.

  At the same time something clicked in Pie’s mind as he stared at the cat. He looked at the twins, and from their expressions he knew that the same thing had clicked in their minds, too.

  Beware what happens on a real rink first

  Repeats here not, for fate

  Promises that, as true as bubbles burst,

  The magic will dissipate.

  The cat had done it. He had jumped onto the ice at the rink, and now onto the toy hockey game.

  The magic was gone, and deep within him, Pie knew he was glad.

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  Skateboard Renegade The Year Mom Won the Pennant

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  ICE MAGIC

  A strange power is at work in the rink….

  Pie Pennelli loves to play ice hockey, but he’s got some problems: his hand-me-down skates are too big for him, and one of his teammates is always giving him a hard time. But Pie’s troubles really begin when his next-door neighbors find an antique hockey game. They swear the game is magic and can predict every play Pie’s team will make! When the magic game shows Pie immobilized in midgame, what does it mean for Pie on the ice?

  Matt Christopher is the name young readers turn to when they’re looking for fast-paced, action-packed sports novels. For other exciting hockey novels, check out:

  For a complete list of all Matt Christopher titles, please turn to the last pages of this book.

  * Previously published as Crackerjack Halfback

  ** Previously published as Pressure Play

  *** Previously published as Baseball Pals