down in the Hole

"Zooba, zooba, zooba, zi... zooba, zooba, za!"

While the other children softly chanted the magic words and stared down into the well, Webster did his best to keep the crank turning at what he
hoped was a reverential tempo.

Somewhere between the droning of the chant
and the dry squeaking of the crank, he could
hear a desperate whimpering, echoing up
out of the dark hole.

"Sucks to be you, Vernon" thought Webster,
as he let the crank turn again, "sucks to be you".

*