Hamelin

CHAPTER V

  Pfeifer and Emiline arrived at the balcony and found it full of councilors and dignitaries. There were seats but none of them were using it, preferring to stand and watch the activities going on around them. Mayor Schmitt looked in their direction and immediately turned with a big smile on his face, spreading his arms while moving toward his daughter.

  "Emiline, my sweet! I'm pleased to see you." Emiline's father knelt and wrapped his daughter in a big bear hug. "This is a first. You're usually out in the street helping tourists during the festivals. Gentlemen," Mayor Schmitt rose and waved to his companions, "this is my daughter, Emiline."

  Some of the men came over to shake hands with Emiline while some merely smiled and nodded. With that matter taken care of, Mayor Schmitt looked at Pfeifer and then to his daughter.

  "Aren't you going to introduce your friend," he asked her.

  "Yes, Father." Emiline turned to Pfeifer and lifted her hand, palm up. "This is Pfeifer, Father.  Pfeifer, this is my father, Mayor Schmitt." She turned back to her father and said, "I met him out in the street, looking lost. He told me he wanted to see you."

  Emiline was talking and acting normally but, inside, she was struggling to shout and warn her father about Pfeifer but the piper's spell was too strong. Try as she might, her body was refusing to follow her commands. Right then, she heard a voice in her mind.

  Do not fight it, you will not win. You will only exhaust yourself. I will free you in due time but I must do what I need to do.

  Emiline stopped struggling, thinking Pfeifer might relax his hold on her long enough to shout a warning. But even if I were able to warn them, Pfeifer might hurt them. What do I do?

  Nothing, just...watch. Pfeifer's thoughts came to her and she knew he could hear her thoughts. It was hopeless.

  She watched helplessly as her father greeted her captor and reached out his hand to shake Pfeifer's.

  Pfeifer took Schmitt's hand and shook it. "I'm pleased to meet you, Mayor. I was fortunate Emiline found me when she did. I might have wandered around before finding my way to town hall."

  "Yes, Emiline likes to help tourists find their way around our town." Mayor Schmitt studied Pfeifer while maintaining a smile on his face. A warning bell seemed to sound off in his head. Here's a guy who comes to town dressed up like a Pied Piper actor but doesn't know his way around town. To be sure, other tourists have come to Hamelin dressed like he was and played the part but none have asked to see the mayor. What does he want?

  "Is this your first time at Hamelin?" Mayor Schmitt wanted to find out more about this "tourist" and start off with a few innocent questions.

  "First time in a long time. I came here once before but that was a very, very long time ago." Pfeifer spoke easily. It's easier to fool people when you tell the truth...as long as you don't reveal everything.

  "Well, I believe you if you don't remember your way around." He and Pfeifer shared a laugh at the jibe.

  Mayor, you have no idea how long ago that was, Pfeifer thought. "Would you mind if I ask you a few questions, Mayor?"

  Mayor Schmitt looked at Pfeifer for a moment before breaking into a big smile. "You're a reporter!" Schmitt laughed heartily, shaking his head and turning toward his friends. "He's a reporter!" The other people on the balcony either laughed or smiled, shaking their heads.

  He turned back toward Pfeifer, still laughing, and shook his hand again. "I have to tell you, Pfeifer, I have never met a reporter who went to such lengths to get an interview." He looked at Emiline who smiled back. He took a breath and said, "Okay, you've got me, go ahead."

  Pfeifer didn't know what a reporter was but they apparently interviewed people. "Thank you, Mayor. My questions are somewhat related to this festival you're having today. The story of the Pied Piper is a very popular folk tale and it has apparently made your town famous. A lot of folktales have a basis in actual events. What do you think really happened seven centuries ago?"

  Mayor Schmitt put his hands in his pockets and sighed. He'd been asked this question before and had a prepared answer. When you're the mayor of Hamelin, you make it a point to know the story and the story behind the story.

  "Well, there are several theories about the origins of the Pied Piper story. Reliable records were not really kept in those days and the records that do exist don't give a complete picture. According to one theory, the children of Hamelin contacted a certain disease that killed them. In the story, the Pied Piper symbolized Death who took the children away." Mayor Schmitt shrugged his shoulders suggesting that it was plausible but he wasn't sure.

  "Another theory," he continued, "is that the children left to join the Children's Crusade. They never returned and the Pied Piper came to symbolize the person or people who convinced the children to leave."

  "Which theory would you say is the correct one?" Pfeifer asked. "Or do you have your own theory about the story?"

  Mayor Schmitt shrugged his shoulders again and spread his hands, palm up, a gesture signifying uncertainty. "I don't really know. Maybe some old woman made up the story to warn children about going with strangers."

  A lesson I didn't get, Emiline thought bitterly.

  Pfeifer paused for a while and took a deep breath, as if he was gathering up courage before starting something.

  "Mayor, let me ask you a 'what if' question." Mayor Schmitt nodded his head. "Let's pretend that the story about the Pied Piper is true and he came back to Hamelin. What would you say to him?"

  Emiline felt fear grip her heart. Outwardly, her body was showing an interested demeanor, a smile even breaking out on her ten-year-old face. Please don't offend him, Father.

  Mayor Schmitt stopped to think for a while. A few of the councilors had listened in on the interview and began giving their own answers. The first one said: "We'd have him arrested."

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