To my readers:

You are magical.

Love,

Wanda

Chapter 1 TWO-FACED WITCH?

Okay, I have to read Lucy’s letter just ONE more time.

I’ve already read it, like, TEN times, but I can’t resist reading it again.

I’m giddy with excitement because, newsflash! This weekend is Friends and Family Weekend at Broomsfield Academy!

And do you know what?

My best friend in the whole wide, wonderful world, LUCY LANCASTER, will be here!

Woo-hoo!

I study every detail of Lulu’s cutest stationery ever.

It has a pink-and-white polka dot border. Then in the lower left-hand corner there’s an adorable purse with a pink daisy latch and a yellow loop handle. Leaning against the purse is a pair of strappy, platform sandals with a daisy on top of the front straps over the toes.

So fun!

Oh, and Lucy’s name is engraved in pink at the top.

One word: love.

As I read Lucy’s letter, I can actually hear her voice ring through the words.

Hey, Heideeeeeee!

I can’t believe I get to see you this weekend!

In PERSON!

Somebody please pinch me.

Eeee! I can’t wait!

I already picked out all my outfits, and my bag is packed.

I can’t wait to meet your friends—not to mention your old crush and your new crush. They all sound amazing!

And what about Melanie? I CAN wait to see HER.

Lol!

I know you’ve said she’s changed, so I’ll try to keep an open mind. It’s hard to forget how snooty she was in elementary school.

The WORST! And now she’s your BROOMMATE. I mean, it’s still hard to believe.

I’m literally crossing off each day on my kitten calendar. Only a few days to go!

And don’t forget, you HAVE to give me a private tour of your school. I want to be able to picture you in all the places you go when we’re apart.

See you soon.

Your bestie 4-ever and ever!

LuLu Lucy

I fold the letter and put it on top of my dresser. I’ll probably read it again before I go to sleep tonight, and then I’ll place it in the memory box with all the other letters I’ve received from Lucy so far this school year.

I can’t believe how long it’s been since we said goodbye to each other in my driveway, and then I got into the car and rode off to start living at Broomsfield Academy.

Lucy and I have never been apart this long before.

Will she look different to me?

Will I look different to her?

Eek!

Will our friendship be exactly the same? Or will it have changed?

So many questions!

And what about my family?

I’m so excited about Lucy coming, but I also can’t wait to see my parents and brother. I’m sure Henry will be the same annoying but lovable little brother he always has been. And it’ll be great to have Mom and Dad here, but having Lucy is the ultimate icing on the cake.

We’ll stay up all night talking—or at least until we get so tired that we start talking gibberish.

We’ll talk about my new—sort of—crush, Nick. I say “sort of” because I’m trying not to go too gaga over him like I did with my first crush, Hunter. That crush kind of got out of hand.

One word: understatement.

But I have a confession!

There is one topic I’m always nervous about when it comes to Lucy.

You see, she still doesn’t know I’m a witch.

Can you imagine hiding half your identity from your best friend?

This is the worst thing about being a witch.

Sometimes I feel like a lying, two-faced friend. I positively hate keeping my secret from Lucy.

When I give her a tour of the school, I can’t even show her the best parts, like the cool secret passageways to the fabulous School of Magic.

Ugh.

And I can’t tell her how I cast a spell to make my teacher’s dog talk, or how I gave myself Rapunzel hair when I goofed up a spell.

She would crack up SO hard if she knew!

Sometimes I wish Lucy had never forgotten that I’m a witch, after the whole Perfectus Malus incident back when we were in elementary school. But it’s good that she did. The rules are rules after all. Now that I’m studying magic at Broomsfield Academy, it seems harder than ever to keep this secret from her.

What if I weigh the pros and cons of telling Lucy I’m a witch?

Who knows—it might make me feel better.

Here it goes:

PROS OF SPILLING MY SECRET

CONS OF SPILLING MY SECRET

- I’ll be honest and open.

- I can never take my secret back.

- Lucy will know the real me.

- She’ll be mad at me for keeping this secret for so long.

- I can share all my witch stories.

- It might make her feel weird and left out this weekend.

This exercise reminds me of the time my mom went to traffic school for a speeding ticket. She had to relearn all the rules of the road and why we have them. She said it was really helpful.

Sometimes I need to review the rules of the witching world. As my mom and Aunt Trudy have always told me, being a witch is a privilege. And witches have to protect their identities. There really are no loopholes.

So there you have it. I have to keep my secret.

But this realization still gives me a little ember of sadness.

Right after I make the decision to continue to keep my secret, a sudden gust of wind blows through my open window.

Flutter! Flap! WHACK!

Lucy’s letter flies off my dresser, and the picture of Lucy and Bruce falls face down.

Weird, I think.

I pick up the letter and set the picture upright. I also take a long look at my friends’ faces.

I’ve kept this secret from them for as long as I’ve known them. And what they don’t know can’t hurt them.

Right?

So don’t worry, Heidi, I reassure myself. This weekend will be a total blast. I mean, what could POSSIBLY go wrong…?

Okay, please don’t answer that.

Chapter 2 QUEEN HEIDI

Clang! Clang-clang-a-lang!

That’s the dinner bell. Yup, they still use an old-fashioned dinner bell here at Broomsfield Academy, and it makes my stomach growl every time.

Before I head to the cafeteria, I first do a quick beauty check. I zip to the bathroom and help myself to Melanie’s super-red blush.

Don’t worry.

She’s totally cool with me borrowing her makeup.

She actually encourages it, because according to Melanie, I’m seriously ordinary.

As if!

Maybe I’m not as EXTRA as Melanie, but I know that I’m a seriously special person.

I dab red blush across the tops of my cheeks with my finger, like Melanie taught me.

She is, in fact, a genuine beauty queen, and her beauty tricks are amazing—even if I don’t like to admit it to her face.

And I never would’ve thought fire-engine-red blush would look good on anyone, except maybe a clown, but it DOES.

It makes you look like you’ve been out in the sun—sun-kissed, you could say.

I magically twist my hair into a bun. I’ve gotten really good at this.

My hair practically does itself!

To top everything off, I smear on some pink lip gloss, or as I like to call it, bubble-gum slime.

I dash to the Barn, where the cafeteria is, and slip in the side door.

There’s Nick, my sort-of crush.

He’s reading something on the bulletin board and doesn’t see me—yet.

Melanie’s flirting tips flick through my mind.

No hair flip since I have my hair up in a bun, and big eyes are definitely not my thing. I tried big eyes on Hunter, and he mistook me for the big, bad wolf, as in: My, what BIG EYES you have!

It was mortifying.

So, I go with a compliment instead.

“Hey, Four Square king,” I say casually.

Nick looks at me and flashes his braces, which happen to be on every single tooth.

His smile is so dreamy.

He has his dark hair swept back from his adorable widow’s peak. His hairstyle looks effortless and sooo good. His brown eyes sparkle.

One word: adorable.

“Excuse me?” Nick says dramatically. “What do you mean, Four Square queen? You totally knocked me off the Four Square throne yesterday!”

Actually this is true. I did get Nick out, which was a first for me. I’m definitely getting better at Four Square.

I put my hands up and give a smirk, like, Yeah, I know I rock.

“It feels good to be royalty,” I tell him.

Nick laughs and shoulder-bumps me as we walk toward the cafeteria.

The arrow on my inner crush-o-meter just went off the charts.

“Well, don’t get too comfortable, Heidi, because I’m coming for your crown!” he teases.

We both laugh, and I have to say, it’s pretty hard not to rush this crush.

“So will your family be here this weekend?” I ask.

Nick holds the cafeteria door open for me. “My parents and my best friend, Max, are coming. I’m really excited!”

I playfully swat Nick’s arm with the back of my hand.

“That’s great! My family and my best friend are coming too. Her name is Lucy, and she is my absolute favorite person in the whole world.”

Nick smiles. “Hey, I have an idea. Maybe we can all hang out together! Me and Max and you and Lucy.”

Whoa, did Nick just say we should all hang out together?

I’m IN!

“That would be a blast,” I say. I try not to sound too eager as my heart thumps loudly with sheer happiness.

Eeeeee!

Nick waves to some friends at his table, which unfortunately is not my table. One of these days we’ll be assigned to the same table.

Fingers crossed!

“Catch you later, Queen Heidi!” he shouts as he waves goodbye.

I pretend to adjust my crown. “Later, King Nicholas!”

And I’m pretty sure there’s a halo of hearts circling around my head right now, and my feet are floating off the ground.

But I still have to eat, so I head for the main food station. It’s Make-Your-Own-Grain-or-Noodle-Bowl night. Yum!

I load up a bowl with rice noodles, grilled chicken, shredded carrots, and sliced mini cucumbers. Then I drizzle peanut sauce and put roasted peanuts on top. I grab a water and zoom to my table.

As soon as I sit down, my two besties at Broomsfield Academy, Sunny and Annabelle, give me an intense look.

“We saw you talking to Niiiiiick,” they say, singing his name.

I blush, laugh, and cringe—all at the same time.

“You will never believe what just happened! Nick said his best friend, Max, is coming for Friends and Family Weekend, and he asked if Lucy and I want to hang out with them!”

Sunny and Annabelle look at each other excitedly.

“Wow, Heidi, you’re acting so calm about it,” Annabelle remarks, and then smiles. “Well, calm for you.”

I laugh out loud, because on the inside I feel like there are a thousand butterflies in my stomach, but I roll with it.

“It’s the new-and-improved Heidi, that’s all,” I joke.

Sunny gives me a friendly kick under the table. “Well, he must really like you!”

Annabelle puts her arm around me and Sunny. “Of course he likes her. Everyone likes Heidi!”

Well, not EVERYONE! I think. But then I realize that Annabelle is onto something. I’ve never had as many friends as I do at Broomsfield Academy.

“That makes me feel—dare I say—popular?” I venture.

Sunny and Annabelle share a glance.

“Heidi, you’re, like, one of the most popular girls in our class,” Sunny says.

I am?

A sudden surge of terror washes over me. Being popular sounds like a lot of responsibility. I mean, what if someone gets mad at me?

“If you say so,” I respond. “Because as far as I’m concerned, I’m just silly old me—now and forever!”

Chapter 3 CHARMED BRACELETS

“Today we’re going to talk about something of vital importance.” That’s how Mrs. Kettledrum starts our special spells and potions class the next afternoon. We’re having an extra class to prepare for Friends and Family Weekend. We all look around the room at each other, wondering what could possibly be so very important.

“Class, does anyone know what an aura is?” Mrs. Kettledrum asks.

We stare blankly at our teacher. Nobody knows.

“An aura is the energy that comes from a person,” Mrs. Kettledrum explains. “It’s a feeling you get from somebody—a sense of who they are. It’s the energy that makes up your personal self.”

Sunny’s hand goes straight up. “Is it the same as the vibe you get from somebody?”

Mrs. Kettledrum nods.

“Yes, it can definitely be a vibe, but a vibe can also be the mood of a situation, too, like a relaxing vibe at the beach or a fun vibe at a dance.”

Then Mrs. Kettledrum calls on me.

Eek!

“Heidi, can you tell us what kind of aura your friend Sunny has?”

Well, that’s easy! I look at Sunny, who’s sitting next to me. She tries not to laugh as I describe her aura.

“Sunny is just what her name says. She’s upbeat, positive, fun, smart, kind, and easygoing. From the moment I was lucky enough to meet her, I knew we were going to be friends.”

Mrs. Kettledrum smiles, so I know she likes my answer. “Very good, Heidi. That’s a great description of Sunny’s aura.”

Then she asks Sunny the same question about me.

Sunny studies me, and I have to try to hold a straight face too, but I can’t. We collapse into giggles.

Then Sunny pulls it together so she can answer the question. “Heidi is daring, goofy, super-fun, bold, hilarious, headstrong, smart, loyal, and reckless. When I met Heidi for the first time, I knew we’d get along. I just felt like myself around her.”

We both burst out laughing, because it’s all true—even the reckless part.

I remember the moment we met on the beach—way before we ever came to Broomsfield Academy. We hit it off instantly.

Mrs. Kettledrum’s dog, Momo, barks her approval. Momo has a very friendly aura.

Mrs. Kettledrum claps her hands in approval. “Well done, both of you! What other kind of auras have any of you felt? Have you ever noticed the energy change when somebody walks into the room?”

Hunter raises his hand. “I remember one time when I came home from school and my dad seemed super-sad. I didn’t know why, but then he told me that my grandfather had passed away. But before he said anything, I could feel his sadness.”

Mrs. Kettledrum tips her head to one side. “I’m sorry, Hunter. That must’ve been hard for both of you. And, of course, that energy you felt was certainly from the sadness your father was feeling. Thank you so much for sharing.”

Isabelle raises her hand. “I can feel my grandmother’s kindness the same way I can feel warmth coming from a radiator.”

Mrs. Kettledrum’s face lights up. “Another wonderful example of an aura, Isabelle! Each one of us is broadcasting like a radio station without even knowing it.

“Now imagine when all those different auras arrive on Friends and Family Weekend, and then imagine mixing those different auras with all the magical energy at this school. What do you think could happen?”

We give our teacher more blank stares.

We have no idea what could happen.

Mrs. Kettledrum explains. “When non-magical students and guests and all their auras—which contain emotions and energy—get mixed with the auras of magical students, faculty, and parents, sometimes, for lack of a better expression, wires can get crossed. It can create chaos. It can be too much energy and emotion, and things can even become dangerous.”

The whole class gasps. Then everyone starts talking and whispering at once.

The last thing we need on Friends and Family Weekend is chaos! I think.

I have been looking forward to this weekend so much, but all of a sudden I feel unsettled.

Eek.

Mrs. Kettledrum claps her hands, and the classroom grows quiet. She smiles at us, and I instantly feel reassured. “Rest your minds, everyone. I only wanted you to know all this so you’ll understand why this next part is so important.

“The witches and wizards at Broomsfield Academy have developed a magical way to handle this situation.”

Mrs. Kettledrum pulls the lid off a plastic tub and pulls out a sparkly bracelet.

The bracelet shimmers as if it is covered with hundreds of tiny diamonds.

A collective “Oooooooooooh” circles around the classroom.

Mrs. Kettledrum digs into the tub again and loops more bracelets onto her fingers. Then she passes them out. Everyone gets at least six.

A string of sparkly gems spells out BROOMSFIELD ACADEMY on each bracelet. The rest of the bracelet is all sparkles.

“Class, please pull out your wands.”

Wands? We get to use wands today?

I love anything that involves wands and magic.

Obviously.

I open my backpack and pull out my wand. Mine has a purple gemstone on the handle and is absolutely bewitching. Did I mention how much fun it is to be a witch?

“So, what does everyone think of the new visitor bracelets?” Mrs. Kettledrum asks.

We all hoot and holler because we love the bracelets!

“Would you say they’re irresistible?” Mrs. Kettledrum asks.

“YES!” we shout.

Mrs. Kettledrum smiles. “Good. We want them to be so attractive that our visitors and guests won’t want to take them off. These bracelets will keep the emotions and energy this weekend at a manageable level.

“And there’s one more very important requirement. One that all students at Broomsfield Academy must adhere to, whether they are students in the School of Magic or not. Everyone must make sure their guests wear their bracelets at all times.

“Without the bracelets, there could be trouble. And your guests will want to keep them on not only because they look so fun but because visitors will also need the bracelets to get into events, meals, and dormitories. And then when the weekend is over, they can keep the bracelets as a souvenir.

“Is this clear?”

We all nod vigorously.

Mrs. Kettledrum picks up her wand. “Then let’s get started! You, class, are going to put the charm in these charm bracelets.”

The class cheers, especially me!

I know that my family and Lucy are going to love wearing theirs. I only wish I could get one. The bracelets are just so much fun.

“You will perform the spell at your desks. I’ll write the spell on the board. Then you’ll hold your wand over one bracelet at a time and chant the spell. When a ring of light is released from the bracelet, that means the spell has been cast properly. Please repeat for each bracelet.”

Mrs. Kettledrum picks up a marker and writes the spell on the board. Excitement wells up inside me.

This is so cool! I think.

How lucky am I to be a student at the School of Magic?

Answer: the luckiest!

Our teacher steps away from the board, and we read over the spell.

TAKE THIS BRACELET OF SPARKLE AND SHIMMER.

FILL IT WITH MAGIC TO MAKE IT GLISTEN AND GLIMMER.

PROTECT THE WEARER FROM A CLASH OF EMOTION.

AND STILL ALL AURAS FROM ANY COMMOTION.

PEACE AND JOY WILL RULE THE DAY.

AND YOU CAN ENJOY YOUR BROOMSFIELD STAY!

SHAZOO! SHAZING! SHAZAY!

“Remember, charm one bracelet at a time. And follow the spell exactly, or you may run into problems,” Mrs. Kettledrum warns. “Is everyone clear on what to do?”

Everyone’s clear—or at least I think so.

“I’ll be right here if you need any help,” says Mrs. Kettledrum. “Okay, students. Raise your wands.”

We all raise our wands.

“Begin,” she commands.

I hold my wand over my first bracelet and chant the spell. All around the room I can hear the murmurs of my classmates as they chant too. Light glows around the bracelet.

Then a ring of light separates from the bracelet and floats away.

Eeee! I did it!

One down, many to go.

Turns out, not everyone finds this assignment as easy as I do. I hear clatters, pings, and groans. I stop what I’m doing and watch my classmates.

One of Hunter’s bracelets launches off his desk like a rocket. Zooop! It loops around a light and dangles overhead.

One word: oopsies.

Another bracelet flings across the room like a rubber band and lands on Mrs. Kettledrum’s desk.

Thwack!

Then another bracelet ricochets off the whiteboard and lands on Momo’s head.

Oof!

Or, I should say, “Woof!”

A few glowing halos float from bracelets, so some kids are getting it. But why are so many kids having trouble? I wonder.

It’s so easy. Could I really be becoming that great a witch?

Soon all my bracelets are charmed. And it looks like everyone is getting the hang of it.

There are glowing rings all over the room. They eventually wink out, like soap bubbles.

Since I’m the first one done, I call Momo to my desk for a love session. Momo wags her tail and trots over to me happily. Momo and I have been close ever since I performed that spell that made her talk.

Buds for life!

Mrs. Kettledrum hands out purple velvet pouches to protect the bracelets until they are given to the guests at arrival.

I’m about to run out the door when Mrs. Kettledrum waggles a finger at me to stay after class. I hurry to her desk.

“Heidi, your skills as a witch are coming along nicely,” she tells me. “I can see you’ve been practicing your meditation.”

I smile at the praise and sling my backpack over one shoulder. “It’s getting easier each time.”

Mrs. Kettledrum looks pleased. “I also want to mention something that might happen this weekend,” she says. “Don’t worry if you find your mind-reading skills aren’t as strong as they usually are. As I mentioned in class, there will be so much more energy on campus, and it may be harder than normal to get a read on what your friends and family are thinking.”

I nod. Being able to read minds is my gift as a witch, but I’m still learning. I can’t hear everyone’s thoughts all the time. It’s spotty. Like, I’ll catch a moment of what someone is thinking, and then I won’t hear anything else. Or if I concentrate on someone very hard, I can sometimes hear their thoughts. And maybe that’s a good thing for now, because I don’t want to hear everyone’s thoughts all the time!

The person that I’m most in tune with is Sunny. We think it’s because I’ve known her a long time and we’re such close friends.

“Thanks for letting me know, Mrs. Kettledrum,” I reply. “I’m so excited to see my family and best friend, I doubt I’ll even notice.”

Mrs. Kettledrum pats me on the shoulder. “It will be a memorable weekend.”

Chapter 4 BROOMMATE BONDING!

“Heidi, I have something to tell you,” I hear a familiar voice say as I wave goodbye to Mrs. Kettledrum.

Melanie is waiting for me as I exit Mrs. Kettledrum’s class.

“What?” I ask. You never know what’s going to come out of Melanie’s mouth, so I hold my breath.

“I got to class early, and I heard Mrs. Kettledrum talking on the phone. There are going to be reporters here covering Friends and Family Weekend. I guess it’s a really big deal,” she whispers.

This should be interesting, I think as we walk back to our dorm together. As we enter our room, I notice that Melanie’s side is a complete disaster area. There are clothes, purses, and shoes everywhere. It looks like a clothes-and-accessories explosion.

“Melanie, what happened in here?” I ask.

Melanie looks around the room. “Oh, I kind of turned it into my designer lounge, and come to think of it, you’re just in time.”

I tilt my head to one side. “Just in time for what?”

Melanie runs to her pile of clothes and does a quick wardrobe change. She slips into a pink plaid skirt, a short gray sweater, and a pair of pink flats.

“It’s runway time, Heidi.

“Will you pretty-please help me pick out my outfits for Friends and Family Weekend?”

I give Melanie a major eye roll.

“It’s just Friends and Family Weekend. It’s not a Hollywood premiere.”

Melanie plants a hand firmly on one hip.

“That’s where you’re oh-so-wrong, Heidi. The Broomsfield Academy Friends and Family Weekend is the Who’s Who of the magical world. You never know what powerful witches and wizards might show up or take your picture.

“And then there are the reporters who are coming. This could be my big break!”

It’s true that families are coming from all over, and many of the students who attend the School of Magic also have magical family members, I think. Not to mention the reporters.

“Annabelle’s family is coming all the way from London,” I mention.

Melanie squeals as she picks up a pink purse and swings it in circles by the chain.

“LONDON! I would love to go to London. You see what I mean, Heidi? You never know what connections you might make.”

She prances to the full-length mirror, spins around, and looks at me in the glass.

“I want to be discovered, Heidi.

“And who knows? Maybe somebody’s mom or relative might be from Hollywood. I’ll tell you one thing—I’m going to be prepared.

“Mark my words, Heidi Heckelbeck, one day my name will be in lights!”

Melanie struts back to me, like a girl on a mission.

“Okay, back to my fashion runway show—starring me and hopefully you!

“Seriously, Heidi, you are welcome to borrow anything of mine for your weekend wardrobe. Life is like an ongoing audition. We’re always trying out for something, and you have to look sharp at all times.”

“Okay, okay, I get it, Melanie. Go ahead, show me some of your outfits,” I say as I sit down and get ready for the fashion show.

That’s just the cue Melanie needs. She switches on some music—a fast-paced pop track. She zooms to her closet and grabs a chocolate-brown leather jacket and a pair of matching slouchy boots. Then she runs out our door and into the hallway. She cracks the door back open.

“You have to announce me,” she instructs.

Is she kidding me?

Melanie is just TOO much sometimes. But I’m not gonna lie, I’m kind of into it. I grab her pink hairbrush for a microphone and hold it close to my mouth.

“And now for our next contestant—all the way from beautiful Brewster—the one and only; the star of stage, screen, and runway; the stunning Miss Melanie Maplethorpe!” I announce.

The door swings open, and Melanie strikes a pose. Then she sashays down the runway, also known as the middle of our room. She tilts her chin down and holds her shoulders back. Her sassy blond ponytail swishes from side to side. When she gets to the end of the runway, she whips off her leather jacket and swings it over her shoulder. Then she poses so I can see all sides of her outfit.

She definitely has this model thing down.

I add some hairbrush commentary. “Melanie is wearing her very own fashion line. Her pink plaid skirt is pleated, which gives it just the right amount of movement when she walks.

“On top she sports a short, fuzzy gray sweater and a leather jacket, along with matching slouchy brown boots. It’s sophisticated and casual—a total showstopper!”

Melanie does a few more poses and sashays back out the door.

Now that we’re not enemies anymore, I have to laugh when Melanie goes over the top.

Who knows? Maybe she will be a star one day.

Melanie smiles at me, and then she moves on to her fragrances.

Potions are Melanie’s gift as a witch.

She selects a gold glitter-dusted bottle from the collection on top of her dresser. She pulls off the cap and lays a finger on the nozzle.

She turns to me. “You have to try my latest fall-to-winter fragrance, Heidi. It’s called Cozy.”

I hold up my wrist and Melanie spritzes. Tiny delicate droplets shower my skin. I rub my wrists together and sniff.

“It does smell cozy, Melanie,” I tell her, and she smiles with satisfaction.

“It’s my secret blend of jasmine and vanilla and just a little magic,” she declares, spritzing herself. “It goes on like a snuggly sweater.”

Then she gets a gleam in her eye. “And now it’s time to work on your wardrobe, Heidi.”

I groan.

But at the same time, I would like to look good with Lucy visiting—not to mention when the two of us hang out with Nick and his best friend, Max. The right outfit will give me a feeling of confidence.

Okay, sign me up for Melanie’s wardrobe scheme.

“Go ahead, make me over,” I say.

Melanie wastes no time. She rummages through both our closets and drawers. As snooty as Melanie can be sometimes, she’s generous about sharing her stuff.

One word: refreshing.

Melanie lays out several outfits on her bed and hands me the first one. I run into the bathroom to try it on.

“Ready!” I shout.

Melanie cues up the music.

“Okay!” she calls. “Go out into the hall, and I’ll introduce you. And I’m not looking, I swear!”

I slip out of the bathroom and dash out the room door.

Then Melanie announces me. “Our next top model is the girl next door. She’s goofy, quirky, and has absolutely no idea just how beautiful she really is. Introducing our only redhead in the show, Ms. Heidi Heckelbeck!”

I open the door and grab the doorjamb dramatically, and then burst out laughing.

Melanie gives me a stern look.

“You have to take this seriously, Heidi,” she scolds. “Pretend to be a real fashion model.

“Stand up straight, shoulders back, relax your arms, and make your hands look delicate and graceful. Got it?”

I attempt a supermodel stance, though I feel more like a super-awkward giraffe.

“Very good,” Melanie praises. “Focus on something ahead of you and walk.”

I stare at my dresser across the room and walk. Melanie critiques my every move.

“Loosen up!

“Be more fun!

“Bat your eyelashes!

“Don’t swing your hips so much!”

I accidently kick one of Melanie’s booties that she left on the runway, and giggle.

“Keep that groove walk going!” she instructs.

I strut toward the door.

“Strike a pose!” Melanie calls to me.

I lean into one hip and hold it. I do the same on the other side. Then I do a half turn and walk back down the runway and out the door.

Melanie claps.

“Well, done,” she says. “You really pulled it together. And P.S., I love that outfit on you.”

I can’t wait to show Lucy. She won’t believe it because I’ve never been this into my look before.

You know what? I could get used to having my own personal stylist!

And confession: Melanie has really grown on me.

After these weeks as broommates, we have learned how to have fun together. And with these outfits we’re ready for a stylin’ weekend.

Three words: Bring it on!

Chapter 5 DECORATING DIVAS

Did I ever mention that I love party decorations? Well, I do.

And guess what? Jenna just asked me to help decorate the front of the school and the gym for the BIG weekend.

Jenna is the resident advisor, or RA for short, in my dorm.

I’ve enlisted Sunny, Annabelle, and Melanie to help decorate, better known as the Decorating Divas!

We follow Jenna to Crawford, the administration building. This is the first building our visitors will see when they arrive at Broomsfield Academy this weekend, so we have to make Crawford look AMAZING!

Boxes filled with fall-themed decorations—from balloons, pine cones, and colored leaves, to mini pumpkins, streamers, pinwheels, banners, hay bales, and straw-filled scarecrows—await us in front of the main entrance.

“The goal is to make the front entrance festive and welcoming,” Jenna tells us. “Then you can decorate the gym and set the tables. Have fun. If you need me, I’ll be on the soccer field setting up. Thanks so much for all your help!”

Then Jenna jogs off.

The upperclassmen always get to work on the carnival. It’s a school tradition.

I can’t wait to do that someday. But for now, I’ll settle for decorating.

Time to bedazzle!

I look around. This is a lot of work, so maybe we can use magic discreetly…?

Technically we’re not supposed to use magic outside of class or our homework, but there are four magical students who will be decorating, and there’s a lot to get done.

Surely it won’t hurt anything if we use a little magic to help hold up a decoration while we add some tape? But it wouldn’t be right for all of us to use magic out in the open without permission.

As if he read my mind, Mr. Craftwood suddenly walks out the front doors. Mr. Craftwood is one of our magical teachers.

“Hello,” he says to the four of us. “You are in charge of decorations, I see. Decorating this school is a big job.”

He pauses and looks around. Then he lowers his voice to a whisper. “If you are very discreet, I do believe a touch of magic will not hurt in this case.”

We all cheer. “Thank you, Mr. Craftwood!” Melanie squeals.

Mr. Craftwood nods. “Remember, just a touch, and don’t get caught. We don’t want non-magical students—or teachers—asking a lot of questions.”

We all nod in agreement. We’re so grateful to be able to use a little magic.

“We will be careful,” I promise.

Mr. Craftwood smiles. “I’m sure you will. Carry on,” he says, and heads on his way.

“Wow, that’s great news,” Sunny says. “What should we decorate first?”

“Let’s come up with a design,” Melanie suggests.

We all agree this is a great idea. We stand in front of the building and stare at it, like we’re trying to make sense of a painting in a museum.

“How are we supposed to make a building like Crawford look festive and welcoming?” Annabelle asks.

Annabelle’s right.

Crawford is an old stone building. It’s spooky-looking, with a sinister gargoyle on either side of the main entrance. I haven’t heard that it’s haunted, but if there was a building that could be haunted, this would be it.

“Balloons,” I answer. “Lots of balloons.”

We laugh because it would take a gazillion balloons to cheer up this building.

“I say we do a beautiful arch of balloons over the front door,” Melanie suggests. “It’ll make it look more like a fun house than a haunted house.”

Agreed.

“And the ‘Welcome, Friends and Family’ banner should go above the door,” Sunny adds.

All we have to do now is blow up some balloons.

We quickly run into the building with all the balloons. We take them into the waiting room area and plunk down on the floor.

First we stretch the necks of the balloons so they’ll inflate easily.

Then we blow until our cheeks puff out, like trumpet players.

“This is really HARD,” Melanie says after a while.

“I feel dizzy,” Annabelle adds.

“My ears hurt,” says Sunny.

How are we going to blow up enough balloons for an arch, without passing out? I wonder.

It’s hopeless!

I pinch the neck on one of my half-inflated balloons and pull. The air escapes and makes a high-pitched squeak.

PheeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEeeeeee!

Then everyone starts doing it. Our balloons hiss, howl, whistle, and meow. We let some of them fly around the room.

Fshhhhhhhh! Ffffffffffffft! Whissssssst!

We laugh until our eyes water. When we finally pull ourselves together, we only have four balloons blown up.

At this rate the weekend will be over before we finish the arch.

That’s when I make an executive decision.

“Mr. Craftwood told us we were allowed to use a touch of magic. I believe this is the time. All those in favor of using magic say ‘AYE!’ ”

“AYYYYYYYYYE!” we all shout.

We carry the box of decorations outside. Sunny and Annabelle stand guard. Melanie and I are in charge of magic. I’ll do the balloons. Melanie will do the banner.

“The coast is clear,” Sunny says—but not too loudly.

I quickly come up with an on-the-spot balloon spell.

On-the-spot and emergency spells are something I’ve been working on with Mrs. Kettledrum. I think I’m getting pretty good at them!

Inflate these balloons

for a magical archway!

Install them securely

around the front doorway!

WHOOOOSH!

The balloons inflate instantly and form themselves into a gorgeous arch—the color of fall leaves. The arch installs itself around the door. Melanie and I pretend to secure it—in case anyone’s watching.

Melanie stands over the box with the WELCOME, FRIENDS AND FAMILY banner. She tries several spells, but the banner doesn’t budge.

Melanie kicks the box.

“I can’t do magic under pressure,” she says. “You do it, Heidi.”

“Happy to help,” I say. After all, doing magic under pressure is what I’m best at, since I’m always making mistakes and having to find a way out of them. I focus on the banner and come up with another quick spell:

Hang This

Friends and Family Banner

Over The Door

in a Welcoming Manner!

The banner rises from the box. I hold on to it. If anyone is watching, they’ll think I’m just pulling the banner up and into place. It comes to rest above the front door and fastens itself to the building.

Melanie holds up her hand for a high five, and I slap it. “When it comes to spells, you’re a pro, Heidi.”

I smile. “We all have our strengths.”

Next we secure the scarecrows—without magic—next to the steps. We also arrange fake pumpkins on the hay bales, and on the ground beside the scarecrows.

Then we stand back and admire our work.

“Totally welcoming!” Sunny declares.

It really is. Eeee!

Next stop for the Decorating Divas—the gym.

Someone has already set up round tables, chairs, and serving tables. We fluff the tablecloths—and gab nonstop—as we cover each table.

“So, who’s coming from your family, Annabelle?” I ask.

Annabelle smooths a wrinkle from a tablecloth.

“My parents are coming, and my little brother, Charlie, who’s six,” she replies.

I grab another tablecloth. “Aww, I remember Henry when he was that age. I’ll bet your little brother is adorable.”

Annabelle laughs. “I’m not sure the word ‘adorable’ describes Charlie unless you think a wild beast is adorable. He’s definitely cute, but he’s also spoiled, bossy, outspoken, and moody. And… I can’t wait to see him.”

We all stop what we’re doing and giggle.

“He sounds like a lovable nightmare,” says Melanie.

Annabelle nods. “That’s fair.”

We laugh even more.

“My brother, Arjun, can’t come this weekend, but my parents will be here!” Sunny says. “Who’s coming from your family, Melanie?”

Melanie is working on pumpkin centerpieces. “My parents and my favorite living creature on the planet… my pug, Lola. I miss her SO much!”

Sunny, Annabelle, and I start on chair covers. Each chair gets a soft white slipcover with a pretty sash that ties in the back. It’s amazing how you can make a regular chair look elegant.

“Sooooo…,” I say when I finish tying the last slipcover. “Now that the tables and chairs are done, let’s decorate!”

We dig through more boxes of decorations.

“I’m going to magically cover the entire ceiling with helium balloons,” Sunny says.

Sunny pulls out pearl-white, orange, and yellow balloons, along with ribbons.

And I know what I’m going to do, I think. “I’ll decorate the walls with autumn leaves.”

Annabelle picks up a garland of pine cones and mini pumpkins. “I’ll hang these garlands.”

Melanie holds up one of her flower arrangements inside a pumpkin vase. “I’ll finish these centerpieces.”

We each get to work. I magically cover the gym walls with colorful paper leaves. It looks like peak foliage in the gym!

“Your leaves look so beauty-FALL, Heidi,” Sunny says, laughing at her own pun. Then she makes another. “I can’t be-LEAF my eyes!”

I give Sunny a smirk. “Sunny,” I say, “I didn’t know you were so punny.”

I look up at Sunny’s balloons. They cover every inch of the ceiling. Pearl and gold ribbons dangle from each balloon.

Annabelle’s garlands hang under each window. Then we sit down and help Melanie finish her centerpieces.

“Hello, girls,” sings a voice from across the room. It’s Mrs. Kettledrum. “We came to see how your decorations are coming. And they look absolutely gorgeous!”

Natalie Nguyen is with Mrs. Kettledrum. She smiles and waves to us, and then goes back to reading something on a clipboard she’s holding. Natalie’s an upperclassman, and she’s a student in the School of Magic. She’s also Jenna’s best friend. I met her a few weeks ago when there was a school-wide contest to create a new Broomsfield Academy logo. Natalie was the winner!

“Mrs. Kettledrum, may I talk with you for a sec?” Natalie asks, still looking at the clipboard. She sounds kind of stressed.

“Yes, of course, Natalie.” They step away from where we’re sitting. My ears go on high alert. I watch Natalie and Mrs. Kettledrum from the corner of my eye. Natalie points to her clipboard.

“We have way more people coming this year than we did—you know—three years ago,” she whispers. “And you remember how that weekend went.”

Mrs. Kettledrum fumbles with her beaded necklace.

I look at Sunny. She heard it too. I wonder what happened three years ago.

I glance at Mrs. Kettledrum, and she catches me looking.

Ooops! I quickly look away.

“Well, there’s absolutely nothing to be concerned about,” Mrs. Kettledrum says loudly, and I know she’s saying it for our benefit. She doesn’t want me and my friends to worry about something that happened three years ago.

But it’s too late.

I am officially worried.

And so is Sunny.

Mrs. Kettledrum and Natalie head for the door. They’re still talking, but now I can’t hear what they’re saying.

Merg.

“Carry on, girls,” Mrs. Kettledrum says over her shoulder. “Keep up the marvelous work!”

I motion for Sunny to follow me, and we meet at one of the boxes of decorations. We pretend to look for something.

“Whoa, what was that all about?” Sunny whispers.

I pick up a random pine cone.

“No clue,” I whisper. “All I know is, we have to find out what happened at Friends and Family Weekend three years ago.”

Sunny glances over at Annabelle and Melanie. They’re still working away.

“But how?” she asks.

I drop the pine cone. “Maybe we can find something in the library. There’s a whole section on school history.”

Sunny nods.

“Hey! Sunny and I just remembered something we have to do at the library,” I announce. “Meet you at dinner?”

Melanie and Annabelle don’t even look up.

“Sounds good,” Melanie says. “We got this.”

Sunny and I bolt for the library.

We’re officially on a mission to get to the bottom of what went wrong three years ago.

Why is it such a big secret?

One word: intriguing.

Chapter 6 WITCH DETECTIVES

Sunny and I run across campus like nothing’s going to stop us.

Our shoes thwap across the tile floors in the library. Everything sounds so loud in this quiet sanctuary.

A few people look up at us. I feel bad for making a ruckus in the library, but Sunny and I simply must learn the truth as quickly as possible.

We race to the circulation desk. Ms. Fernandez sees us coming. She and Ms. Egli run the library, and they’re both witches.

We lean on the counter to catch our breath. We sound like a couple of dogs panting.

I can’t help but notice that Ms. Fernandez has on the cutest library-book dress. The entire print has bookshelves with books standing, leaning, and stacked. You can even read some of the famous titles on the spines.

Ms. Fernandez tucks a lock of her shiny black hair behind her ear.

“Hi, Heidi. Hi, Sunny,” she says. “How may I help you today?”

I launch right in with my burning question. “Hi, Ms. Fernandez. How long have you worked at Broomsfield Academy?”

Ms. Fernandez takes off her glasses.

“Twenty years!” Then she looks at us suspiciously, like, why on earth would we need to know that?

Sunny counters with another question. She sounds like a real detective. “So, would you say you were here three years ago?”

“I was indeed,” Ms. Fernandez replies. “What are you two up to?”

We both lean in closer.

“Do you have any information about what happened three years ago on Friends and Family Weekend?” I ask.

Ms. Fernandez raises an eyebrow. “Why would you girls want to know about that?”

“Well, we overheard Mrs. Kettledrum and Natalie Nguyen mention something that happened at the Friends and Family Weekend three years ago,” I begin, “but then they left the room and we didn’t catch any details.

“Will you fill us in, Ms. Fernandez? We promise not to say anything.”

Ms. Fernandez is quiet for a moment, like she is thinking of what to reveal, but then she begins to speak. “Well, I’m not sure I should be the one to tell you, but I can’t stop you from looking it up. You can do a search on the history of Broomsfield Academy, Friends and Family Weekends,” she tells us.

Sunny and I hurry to a computer cubby and pull up an extra chair. I type the info into the search bar. A bunch of Friends and Family Weekend headlines pop up. We scroll until we find an article from three years ago in the Broomsfield Academy Gazette.

YES! We dive right in.

THE BROOMSFIELD ACADEMY GAZETTE

Friends and Family Weekend Disaster!

By Student Reporter Penelope Broomsweeper

A harrowing incident has left the students and faculty of Broomsfield Academy scratching their heads. The story begins on the annual Friends and Family Weekend.

Each year parents, other family members, and friends come to visit the students for a weekend of fun activities. And this year began no differently. Trucks rolled in the day before with bouncy castles, slides, and obstacle courses. Carnival tents were set up on the soccer field with games, prizes, and cotton candy machines, and a petting zoo for the little ones. The campus was decorated inside and out, and everything was going as planned until… disaster struck.

On Saturday afternoon a huge storm moved in over the Broomsfield Academy campus. Meteorologists called it a sudden supercell thunderstorm. Forked lightning sizzled across the sky, damaging winds raged, and driving rain pounded students, faculty, and guests.

But the most astounding thing was that the storm was only on campus. Everywhere else in the town of Broomsfield, it was a beautiful autumn day. Some bystanders reported seeing witches on broomsticks soaring through the dark clouds. How’s that for Broomsfield lore? While we know some townspeople are given to flights of fancy, this reporter cannot confirm that actual witches were sighted, but she can confirm that it was a chaotic scene for the entire student body and its guests. No one can explain what caused this violent storm, or why it hovered over the school and nowhere else.

Those I interviewed at the scene said that prior to the storm, tempers flared among those in attendance. What caused all this hostility? Like the storm that seemed to come out of nowhere, no one knows for sure. One can only wonder, could an angry crowd cause a massive storm to brew? Do angry emotions equal angry weather? The atmosphere was undeniably tempestuous, but meteorologists say science doesn’t support this theory. Fortunately, everyone was able to get to safety. Including me, though I can’t quite understand my sudden urge to return to my dorm.

By Saturday evening the storm had passed, and it seemed like everything was back to normal. Now it was all smiles and goodwill. The mess from the storm had been cleaned up, and it was as if there had never even been one. When questioned, students, faculty, friends, and families acted as if nothing had happened. It was almost like they didn’t remember anything out of the ordinary. Peace had been restored. Visitors were given sparkly bracelets with the school’s name as a parting gift.

One parent showed off her bracelet. “Normally jewelry isn’t my thing, but I found this bracelet irresistible, so I put it on immediately. Well, the moment I put it on, I couldn’t remember what on earth I had been so upset about the day before. It was as if all the negativity had magically disappeared!”

Other guests reported similar stories. It proves that there’s nothing like a goody bag when you leave a party. It leaves everyone feeling good. And that’s exactly the feeling visitors left with on that fateful weekend at Broomsfield Academy. The Friends and Family Weekend was a hit—with a record number of visitors at the event.

THE BROOMSFIELD ACADEMY GAZETTE

When I finish reading, I turn to Sunny. “Well, now we know why Natalie was so worried about having an even bigger turnout this year. With so many guests, something could go wrong again.”

Before Sunny can respond, Ms. Fernandez comes to the cubby. “Did you get the scoop?” she asks.

“We did,” I confirm.

Ms. Fernandez looks at us over the top of her glasses. “Good. There’s nothing for you two to worry about. Just make sure your guests wear their visitor bracelets this weekend, and all will be well. We haven’t had a problem in three years, and in that time my colleagues and I in the School of Magic have added even more protections to make sure the Friends and Family Weekend goes smoothly.”

Sunny and I thank her and head to the Barn for dinner.

“We need to tell Annabelle everything,” Sunny says as we walk across campus. “Let’s have a dinner meeting in the Loft.”

The Loft is a hidden place in the Barn that I discovered by accident. I showed it to Sunny and Annabelle, and the three of us meet there whenever we have something supersecret to discuss.

“Totally agree,” I say.

We find Annabelle and take our food to go.

When we get to the vending machine, I make extra sure the hallway is clear.

Looking good.

I pull the secret lever, and the vending machine slides to one side. We clomp up the worn stairs. I love our secret hayloft, and I want to keep it a secret.

Sunny shares details from the article we read in the old Broomsfield Academy Gazette. Weirdly Annabelle seems unfazed about this.

“What happened three years ago is no big deal,” she says. “The visitor bracelets have already solved that problem. And honestly, why would the school keep holding this event if they were that worried about it?”

I’m sort of surprised that Annabelle isn’t the least bit concerned.

“So, you’re not at all concerned?” I ask. “Even though Natalie told Mrs. Kettledrum, the crowd is going to be even bigger than it was three years ago?”

Annabelle shakes her head. “Nope! I’m not bothered at all. Why should I be? We have the best witches and wizards in the world at Broomsfield Academy. There’s zero to worry about.”

I look to Sunny for support, but she just shrugs. I guess she’s lost all concern about this weekend.

“Annabelle’s right, Heidi—the school has it covered,” Sunny says. “It’ll be the best weekend ever, you’ll see. Try not to worry!”

I huff.

I’m glad that Sunny and Annabelle aren’t stressed, but I’m not convinced. From now on I’ll just keep my concerns to myself.

I feel like a washing machine midcycle.

One word: agitated.

Chapter 7 MISS POPULAR!

But despite my concerns the day before, when I wake up the next morning, I can’t help but feel one thing: super-duper extra totally EXCITED!

The BIG day is HERE!

Friends and Family Weekend starts this afternoon. I’m so amped up!

Today I finally get to see LuLu.

Woo-hoo!

I bounce happily all the way to breakfast. I walk past Jenna and Natalie, and as I grab a tray, Jenna gives me a friendly high five.

“Nice decorating job, Heidi,” she praises.

And Natalie gives me two thumbs-up.

“Cute outfit, Heidi,” she says.

I smile and thank them both. I could get used to nothing but compliments to start my day!

Then, some good news for my rumbling tummy. The line for French toast sticks is wide open.

That never happens.

I grab the tongs and tweeze some heavenly French toast sticks onto my plate. Then I fill a bowl with maple syrup for dipping.

Yum! I grab some orange slices and a glass of water. And I’m almost to my table when, of all things, I run into Nick!

“Hey, Heidi,” he says brightly.

I’m so flustered, I unknowingly tip my tray, and my plate and water almost slide off the edge.

Oops!

I quickly tilt my tray back the other way, and my plate and water almost slide off the other side!

Finally I get everything back to center and, luckily, not on Nick’s shirt or crashing to the floor.

It reminds me of that wooden maze game—the one where you have to keep the steel marble from falling into the holes. Slant. Level. Tip. Straighten.

“Nice save, Heidi!” Nick cheers.

I laugh nervously, afraid that if I laugh too hard, my tray will shake and I’ll still manage to knock its contents to the floor. My perfect morning would turn into a perfect mess!

“What’s going on, Nick?” I ask, trying to sound unfazed and enthusiastic. I glance at the omelet on his tray.

“Not much,” he replies. “Just excited to see my family and Max. He’s really excited to meet you. I never talk about girls, so when I mentioned you, he got really curious.”

As soon as Nick says this, he realizes that he’s all but admitted he likes me, and his cheeks flush pink.

And then my cheeks flush pink because that’s when I realize, it’s true!

Nick likes me!

The awkward silence is building, so I’d better say something fast.

“Well, I can’t wait to meet Max,” I say. “And my friend Lucy will be delighted to meet both of you.”

Now we’re just standing there not saying anything again. A girl behind us coughs because we’re blocking the way.

“Um, catch you later, Nick,” I say.

We smile goofily at each other, and then I skedaddle to my table.

My table is all witches and wizards this week. I can’t wait to ask about everyone’s family!

As soon as I set down my tray, Isabelle, who’s sitting next to Hunter, leans forward. “Heidi, my parents are so excited to meet you. I told them all about you.”

Wow! Her parents want to meet me? But I’m not even royalty, like HER family is.

I take this as a huge compliment. I recently found out Isabelle is secretly a princess in an ancient line of magical royalty. She doesn’t want people to know in case they start treating her differently. So she begged me not to tell anybody.

It’s been so difficult to keep such a huge secret, but I have. Isabelle has turned out to be a really special friend.

Before I can respond, Annabelle says the same thing. “My family can’t wait to meet you either, Heidi.”

Wow, I love all the unexpected attention! It feels amazing.

“How did I suddenly get to be Miss Popularity?” I ask.

Everyone at the table laughs.

“Because, Heidi, like we told you, you are popular,” Sunny says.

Everyone nods in agreement.

But I shake my head, feeling self-conscious. “Oh pa-le-e-eaze! How on earth am I popular?”

Isabelle taps the side of her cheek with one finger.

“Hmmm, let’s see, what makes Heidi so popular?” she asks the whole table. “Well, for one thing, she is friendly to everyone at school.”

Hunter chimes in. “And she made Mrs. Kettledrum’s dog, Momo, TALK!”

The whole table nods, and the compliments keep coming. Suddenly I imagine having my picture taken with everyone this weekend, like I’m some kind of glamorous celebrity.

But then I get a reality check. Melanie stops by our table.

“Oh, get over yourself, Heidi. You’re still quirky Heidi Heckelbeck in my book.” She laughs dramatically and walks off. This has been Melanie’s signature move since elementary school.

But you know what? She’s right. I am still quirky Heidi Heckelbeck, and I’m also pretty popular!

I smile at the friends at my table. “Thank you so much for all the kind words,” I tell them. “I can’t wait to meet all your families. This is going to be such a fun weekend.”

After that, everyone starts chatting among themselves. I’m relieved the attention has moved off me. It gives me a moment to think about the weekend ahead.

As excited as I am, I wonder what Nick’s friend Max will think of me.

What if Max tells Nick I’m not as cool and as interesting as he’d imagined? And then Nick will see me differently and he won’t like me anymore.

And what if Isabelle’s parents tell Isabelle I’m not the kind of girl a princess should hang out with?

See how my thoughts spiral?

The bottom line is, I just don’t want to disappoint anyone this weekend. That’s all.

And with that last thought, I push my breakfast tray away, because as I’ve been ruminating, I have also finished all my French toast sticks. All that’s left is a pool of syrup that I swirl around with my fork.

This weekend is a WAY bigger deal than I thought it would be.

It feels like the pressure is on.

Somehow I’m going to have to step up my game.

Chapter 8 INVISIBLE

My first outfit of the weekend is ON!

Twirl! I spin in front of Melanie in my green-and-white dress, and kick one of my legs up in the air to show off the cutest cowboy boots ever.

Actually they’re Melanie’s cowboy boots, and so is the dress. I have to ask for a pair of these boots for Christmas. They have a rainbow of crocheted flowers all over them.

One word: stunning!

Melanie looks up from her phone and nods approvingly.

Yes, her PHONE.

Believe it or not, we got our phones early this Friday so family and friends can contact us if they need to.

Melanie leaps up and shows off her jumpsuit, which looks so stylish. “And how do I look?”

Honestly, Melanie always looks amazing.

“Unreal,” I affirm.

Then we do our hair, nails, and makeup with magic. I know we’re not supposed to use magic outside of class, but let’s be realistic. Who’s going to catch us in the privacy of our own room?

I magically paint my nails green to match my dress. Then I add little white stars and crescent moon decals. Melanie does a pink version of the same thing. It’s fun to twin with her on our nails.

Next I add a hint of blush and a touch of mascara—keeping it totally simple. My phone chimes and twinkles, like the wisp of a fairy’s wand.

I glance at my screen and squeal, “They’re HERE!”

Melanie squeals with me. “Same! My family and Lola are about ten minutes away.”

We quickly finish getting ready. I smear some lip gloss onto my lips and spray some glitter dust onto my hair for a super-subtle shimmer.

I’m SO READY!

I grab my visitor bracelets. “See you at dinner, Melanie.”

Melanie follows me to the door and spritzes me with her Cozy fragrance.

And I’m off.

I have to resist running all the way to Crawford, because I don’t want to look like Hurricane Heidi by the time I get there.

Did I mention that every part of me is buzzing? I can’t wait to see Lucy and my family!

Lucy spies me first and charges down the path toward me. I toss my beauty concerns to the wind and run toward her, too.

Obviously.

We grab each other by the arms and jump up and down—just like we used to do when we were seven.

“Hello, best friend in the whole world!” I scream, but not super-loud because I don’t want to scare Lucy.

Lucy stops jumping and looks me up and down.

“Heidi, what are you wearing? You look so chic.”

I strike a pose. “You like?”

Lucy folds her arms. “I do like. I just didn’t expect you to be so dressed up. It makes me feel frumpy.”

Lucy looks like herself.

She has on jeans and a light blue tee with ruffles around the edges of the sleeves and hem. Her brown curls are pushed back in a wide matching headband.

“And, Heidi, have you gotten taller?” she asks. We stand back-to-back.

I’ve always been a teeny bit taller than Lucy, but now it seems like I’m a full inch or two taller than her.

“Maybe I am a little bit taller,” I say.

Lucy sighs. “I would love to be really tall,” she says. “But both my parents are short, so I guess it’s not going to happen.”

“Don’t worry. Tall or short, you could never look less than beautiful, LuLu,” I tell her.

She smiles, and we hang our arms over each other’s shoulders and walk toward my parents and Henry. Henry’s spinning a fidget toy a mile a minute in one hand.

Speaking of growing, Henry looks a little taller. And, sadly, he doesn’t run into my arms for a hug like he used to.

Has he gotten too cool for hugs?

Well, he’s getting a hug from me whether he wants one or not.

Squoosh!

Then I run to Mom and Dad, and they embrace me at the same time.

“Heidi Kins, you look so lovely and grown-up,” Dad says. Mom totally agrees.

I pull the pouch with the bracelets from my wrist.

“Look what I have for you,” I say proudly, handing out the charmed bracelets to each member of the family and Lucy.

Lucy acts like I’ve given her a real diamond bracelet. She slips it on and holds out her wrist. The bracelet shimmers in the late-afternoon sun.

“It’s so pretty, Heidi. I love it!”

The bracelets are definitely having the irresistible effect Mrs. Kettledrum hoped for. Even my little brother likes his.

Mom and Dad head inside to register. Henry, Lucy, and I hang out on the steps. So many families are arriving now.

“So do you like the decorations around the door?” I ask, pointing at them. “My friends and I put them up.”

“They are really festive, Heidi,” Lucy says. “But what are those ugly stone creatures near the entrance? They’re so creepy!”

I guess the decorations didn’t exactly hide the monstrous faces of the gargoyles.

“Those are just gargoyles,” I tell her. “Old-fashioned carved figures.”

Lucy stretches out her lower lip, like Ew! “Well, they look like they could come alive at any time and take flight!”

Henry’s all over this idea. “Like in a horror movie!”

Lucy frowns at the word “horror.” I try to put a positive spin on it.

“Gargoyles aren’t evil,” I explain. “They ward off evil.”

My parents reappear from the building, all checked in.

“Can I give Lucy a quick school tour?” I ask. “We can catch up with you at the meet and greet later.”

They’re A-OK with my plan, so Lucy and I take off.

“First stop, Baileywick—that’s my dorm,” I tell her.

On the way, Lucy and I gab like we haven’t seen each other in so long (because we haven’t). She loves my dorm, which is old, but doesn’t have any gargoyles.

I open the door to my room.

“Ta-da! This is my home away from home,” I announce.

Lucy takes it all in.

“Well, that’s definitely Melanie’s side,” she says, pointing to the fancy pink explosion opposite my tastefully decorated side of the room.

We both burst out laughing.

“So where will I sleep?” Lucy asks.

I point to two sleeping bags on top of my bed.

“I thought it would be fun for the two of us to sleep in sleeping bags on the floor the way we usually do when we have a sleepover,” I say.

Lucy hugs me and says, “I love it!”

Then we walk all over campus. I point out the dorms and tell Lucy which of my new friends lives in each one. She loves Isabelle’s dorm, which is a beautiful Victorian house.

I show her the lake, the fountain, the classrooms, the library—everything. Well, everything except the coolest parts of the school, which are the secret passageways to the School of Magic and the School of Magic itself.

One word: frustrating.

But there is one cool thing I can show her.

“Come on, Lucy. You’re going to love this!” I say as we approach the Barn.

Lucy follows me to the side door, and we walk down the hall to the vending machine.

“I admit it’s a well-stocked vending machine,” Lucy says, “but I’m not sure why it’s so special.”

I wiggle my eyebrows. “Watch this.”

I make sure the coast is clear. Then I lean against the wall, reach my arm behind the vending machine, and pull the secret lever. The vending machine slides to one side and reveals the secret stairwell to the Loft.

Lucy gasps as I head toward the stairs.

“Come on,” I say.

Lucy follows me up the steps to the Loft, and I show her around.

“This was a part of the original barn, from all the way back in the 1800s,” I announce. I also tell her the story of how I discovered the Loft when I was hiding from Hunter. I hop onto a prickly bale of hay.

“This is also where Sunny, Annabelle, and I have all our private convos,” I continue. “As far as I know, we’re the only students who know about it.”

Lucy sits down next to me. “This is beyond cool, Heidi. I can’t believe you never told me about this in one of your letters.”

Honestly, I can’t believe it either.

I usually tell Lucy everything.

I guess there were just so many other things to tell her that I never mentioned the Loft. Luckily, she’s not mad about it. We have a good talk instead.

“So, how’s everything back in Brewster?” I ask.

Lucy picks a piece of straw from the hay bale. “Well, I’ve made a few new friends since starting middle school, but no one like you, Heidi.

“Of course, Bruce and I are still buds, but it’s different. You left a humongous hole in our lives when you left. I miss you more than you’ll ever know. And I’ve tried to be strong, but I’m not gonna lie, it’s been really hard.”

Ouch.

Being left behind is way worse than leaving.

I’m having the adventure of my life, and she’s navigating middle school without her best friend.

Two words: That stinks.

I put my arm around Lucy to comfort her. “I miss you so much, LuLu. Maybe we can convince Melanie to move home and then you can take her place.”

We both laugh.

“Don’t worry,” Lucy says. “I’m slowly getting used to it, and besides, I’m so happy to be here at this moment. We might not be in school together anymore, but we’ll always be close, you know what I mean?”

I squeeze Lucy’s arm because I do. “I’m so happy you’re here.”

Then I let out a huge snort—yes, like a pig—to snap us back to our silly selves.

And it works. We giggle as we hop off the hay bales and hurry to the meet and greet.

The school band is playing, and the cheerleaders are getting everyone into a great mood. A surge of excitement washes over me.

I can’t wait to introduce Lucy to everyone!

Mrs. Kettledrum climbs the steps to a platform that is wrapped in tinsel and foil. It looks like a parade float. She taps the microphone, preparing to give her welcome announcements.

“Welcome to this year’s Broomsfield Academy Friends and Family Weekend! Please help yourselves to refreshments and appetizers, followed by a barbecue dinner and make-your-own s’mores. There are tables inside and outside the grand tent. The dinner bell will sound shortly.

“And one more thing. If you are a visitor and don’t have a visitor bracelet, please get one. These bracelets are your ticket to everything this weekend, and you must wear them at all times! Students wearing staff T-shirts will be happy to give you one.

“Thank you. Now enjoy getting to know one another!”

It’s time to get our mingle on!

I scan the crowd and see Annabelle waving me over.

“Come on, Lucy,” I say, grabbing her hand. “I want you to meet my friends!”

We run over to Annabelle’s family. Annabelle takes my hand and introduces us. “Mom, Dad, this is my friend Heidi and her friend Lucy, who is visiting today, just like you.”

Annabelle’s parents both look very friendly, with big smiles on their faces. Annabelle’s dad is wearing a suit and tie, and Annabelle’s mom is wearing a beautiful blue dress that matches her blue eyes. A cute little boy is hiding behind Annabelle’s mom. He must be Charlie.

“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Williams,” I say. I turn to Annabelle. “I see you got your blue eyes from your mom.”

“Hello, Heidi, we’ve heard so much about you,” Mrs. Williams says. She turns and smiles at Lucy. “And it’s nice to meet you, too, Lucy,” she says.

Lucy smiles and says hello.

Mr. Williams looks behind Mrs. Williams and laughs. “Charlie, what’s going on?” he asks. He turns back to us. “It’s not like him to be shy,” he adds.

“I also have a little brother,” I tell him. “He can be shy sometimes, especially around new people.”

After introducing us to her parents, Annabelle grabs my arm and pulls me aside to tell me something privately. “Heidi, you’re not going to believe this,” she begins.

I look back at Lucy. She’s standing there all by herself.

Eek!

“What?” I say, hoping I can get back to Lucy in a moment.

Annabelle nods toward her little brother, who just knocked over a folding chair—on purpose. “Charlie found out that I’m a witch on the way over from England.”

I wonder why Annabelle’s so upset about this.

“He was bound to find out sooner or later,” I tell her.

Annabelle wrings her hands. “Yeah, but I was hoping it would be later. You don’t know Charlie. He has a big mouth and can’t keep a secret.”

I look over at Charlie and back at Annabelle.

“Just tell him why it’s important to keep this info quiet,” I say. “And, Annabelle, even if he did say something, I doubt anyone would believe him. We know that witches are real because we are witches, but people who aren’t? They think magic is all just pretend.”

Annabelle sighs. “Maybe you’re right, but still…”

Charlie tips over another folding chair. Annabelle runs over to her little brother. I follow and signal for Lucy to come too.

“Stop it, Charlie!” Annabelle says firmly.

Charlie folds his arms. “Why should I? It’s FUN!”

Annabelle shakes her finger at her brother. “Because it’s bad manners.”

Charlie sticks his freckled nose in the air. He clearly doesn’t care what his sister says.

Then Annabelle introduces me to him. “Charlie, say hello to Heidi, one of my best friends at Broomsfield.”

Charlie turns to me.

“Hi, best friend never!” Then he squinches his face at me. “So, are you one too?” he asks.

Uh-oh, I think. I just reassured her, but I see why Annabelle is worried.

And that’s when I notice that Charlie doesn’t have on a visitor bracelet. He needs one and fast.

“Hey, Charlie, let’s get you a visitor bracelet,” I say in my cheeriest voice.

Charlie wrinkles his nose. “I don’t want some stupid bracelet!”

I put my hand to my chest and pretend to act shocked.

“But, Charlie, those bracelets are like pirate treasure.” This gets his attention. “And besides, if you don’t wear one, you won’t be able to get cotton candy or make s’mores. You won’t even be able to jump in the bouncy houses without a visitor bracelet.”

I’ve successfully convinced Charlie he needs a bracelet. But wow, Annabelle sure wasn’t kidding when she said Charlie could be a little terror.

“Come on,” I say to him, and point to Jenna, who is one of the people handing out bracelets.

Annabelle looks at me and mouths, Thank you!

“Be right back,” I tell Lucy and Annabelle.

I track down Jenna, and she gives Charlie a bracelet.

Charlie and I hurry back to Annabelle and Lucy. I feel bad having taken more time away from Lucy, but I couldn’t risk Charlie asking me more questions about being a witch in front of her either. Eeek!

I link arms with Lucy and take her to meet Sunny’s family. Sunny runs toward us. I wave to her parents, who I remember from when I first met Sunny all those years ago on the beach.

“You must be Lucy,” Sunny says enthusiastically. “I’m so glad to finally meet you! Heidi talks about you all the time. I’m so glad she’s at Broomsfield. I don’t know what I’d do without her. She’s my absolute best friend in the whole school.”

Then Sunny turns and throws her arms around me to emphasize her point.

Oh no! A look just washed over Lucy’s face.

She steps back, like she’s a little stunned. And I kind of don’t blame her.

Everyone keeps calling me their best friend, which is nice, but it must make my 100 percent bestest friend in the world feel completely weird.

“Great to meet you, Sunny,” Lucy says, trying to cover her shock. “We sure miss Heidi in Brewster.”

“I would miss Heidi too,” Sunny says, latching on to my hand and pulling me closer so she can whisper something into my ear. “Have you seen Melanie prancing around campus? She’s spritzing people with her Cozy scent. And I only know what it’s called because she’s giving everyone a detailed description.” Sunny scrunches up her nose. “She’s basically using Friends and Family Weekend to promote herself.”

I glance at Lucy. She looks so left out!

Ugh! I would never leave her out on purpose. But I can’t help it if she doesn’t know about Melanie’s magical potions.

No excuse, I tell myself. You have to keep Lucy in the scoop loop!

Sunny shakes her head, thinking about Melanie as I pull her back toward Lucy. And at that very moment I see Melanie making her way over to us. She’s waving to anyone who catches her eye, like she’s a famous movie star or something.

“That’s just Melanie being Melanie,” I say to Sunny, and then look at Lucy. “Wasn’t she always a bit showy even in Brewster?” I nudge Lucy with my elbow. I want her to know that she is a part of this conversation.

“Oh,” is all she says at first. Lucy seems a little surprised by my nudge, but she smiles when she notices that she’s being invited into the conversation. “Yeah, Melanie will always be Melanie, I guess.”

And no sooner does she say this than Melanie prances up to us. Her pug, Lola, is at her heels. Luckily, she didn’t hear us blabbing on about her. Phew!

“Well, well,” Melanie says. “If it isn’t Lucy Lancaster.” She gives poor Lucy the once-over. “I’m so glad you’re here, because Heidi and I can give you a makeover. Is that still the style in Brewster?”

I have been a victim of Melanie’s digs for years, and believe me, I know what it feels like. Horrible!

But Lucy holds her own. She gives it right back to Melanie, the way she always used to do.

“Well, well. If it isn’t Melanie Maplethorpe,” Lucy says with all the confidence in the world. “I can see you haven’t changed.”

Melanie loves Lucy’s reaction. She likes someone who can stick up for themself. Melanie opens her arms wide and offers Lucy a hug.

“You know, I’m only joking, Lucy,” she protests. “But, if you’re up for it, we would be happy to glam you up. I mean, just look at Heidi! Doesn’t she look great? She’s come a long way since our Brewster days.”

I look at Lucy for her reaction. I’m pretty sure what I see is shock. Ugh. To make matters worse, Melanie hangs on to me, like we’re the bestest friends in the universe. And let’s be clear. Melanie and I are still just friends in progress.

With Melanie it’s always three words: Proceed with caution!

“May I borrow Heidi for a moment?” Melanie asks.

Sunny and Lucy look at each other like, What is going on? Then Melanie drags me aside and Lola follows.

“Have you seen any reporters yet?” Melanie asks.

I am so annoyed! “That’s what you dragged me away to ask?” I say.

Melanie looks shocked. “Heidi, you know how much time I spent on my look. I don’t want it to go to waste.”

I sigh. “Melanie, I haven’t seen the reporters. If I do, I will let you know. Now if you will excuse me, I have to get back to my best friends.”

As we walk back to Sunny and Lucy, the dinner bell rings. And Lucy’s not smiling.

She’s annoyed, I can tell. Melanie sees it too. She tries to smooth things over.

“Sorry I had to steal Heidi from you, Lucy. I had a totally burning question.

“So, has Heidi told you how close we’ve become this year? I mean, who would’ve ever believed it? Well, I have to run. Toodles!” Then she bounds off with Lola, but not before spritzing us with her perfume.

We all wave our hands in the air to push away Melanie’s misty ambush. At first I really liked this scent, but now Melanie is just overdoing it.

I turn to my best friend, who must officially hate me. “Sorry about all these distractions, Lucy. For the rest of the weekend, I promise to stick by your side.”

Lucy seems to shake it off, but I’m pretty sure she feels like she just landed on an alien planet.

I really need to be a better friend.

“Let’s go grab some dinner and eat with my family,” I chirp as happily as I can.

Lucy perks up a little. “That sounds good. I’m pretty hungry.”

We hop into the barbecue line, and guess who gets in line behind us?

Nick and Max!

I wonder if they picked this line because we’re in it.

I hope so!

One thing Nick forgot to tell me is that his friend has red hair, like me.

“Hi, Heidi,” says Nick. “This is Max, my best friend.”

It looks like Nick dressed extra nice for the weekend, because he’s wearing a supersoft cream-colored sweater with navy blue trim that I don’t think I’ve ever seen on him before. He’s paired it with casual khaki pants and crisp white sneakers. Okay, so he’s adorable and stylish.

One word: swoon.

I can feel myself turning bright red.

“Hi, Nick. Hi, Max,” I manage to blurt out. “This is Lucy.” Lucy nudges me, which I’m pretty sure means she approves of Nick—or maybe she approves of Max.… Or both?

Then Lucy asks Nick and Max how long they’ve been best friends, and I can’t help but feel relieved. She’s finally feeling comfortable at Broomsfield, I think.

Nick starts telling us a cute story about how he and Max met. Max had just gotten a new puppy, and it had run away. He was searching his neighborhood with his dad and couldn’t stop crying. Nick saw them and offered to help them search. Together they found Max’s puppy, and they’ve been best friends ever since.

It is such an adorable story.

“It’s funny that we both have best friends who are redheads,” Lucy says to Nick, and we all laugh.

But then, for some reason, Nick starts going on and on about me, like everyone else has today.

Normally this would make me feel great, but this time it makes me feel weird, because I know it must make Lucy feel weird.

And that’s a lot of weird!

“Did you know Heidi is one of the most popular people at Broomsfield? Everybody loves her, and this week she’s become queen of the Four Square court. She’s so awesome at everything,” Nick gushes.

I laugh loudly because I want to make light of it. But instead this calls more attention to me.

Gack.

“Well, for everyone’s information, I am not awesome at everything,” I say. “I’m actually a total bust at most things. Lucy knows since she’s been with me forever.”

And just to add to all the weird going on, Lucy steps out in front of me to speak directly to Nick. “I was Heidi’s best friend way before she ever even thought about coming to Broomsfield Academy. And I’m still her bestest friend.”

Nick doesn’t have a chance to say anything more because we’re next in line.

We build our hamburgers and grab some fries and drinks. I give a big smile to Nick, hoping what Lucy said wasn’t as awkward for him as it was for me.

It sort of felt like Lucy was trying to remind everyone, including me, of the fact that we go way back.

Nick and Max return my smile, so I guess everything is fine.

Phew!

Lucy waves goodbye to them, and we say see ya to the boys until later.

When we finally get to the tent, I’m ready to relax and be ourselves.

“Wow, Lucy, it must feel so weird to be dropped into the middle of my new world. I hope it’s not too much and we can spend more time alone together,” I tell her. I’d rather just be open about things and enjoy our weekend together.

Lucy quietly nibbles one of her fries. I can tell things are off with us. But how off?

“Well, it’s definitely different,” she finally says. “Your friends are all really nice. I just kind of feel like an outsider, you know, like I’m invisible.”

I can barely swallow my drink. Invisible?

Lucy and I have been waiting for this weekend for so long. I need her to feel great, not feel invisible. I need to fix this, but how?

I wish Lucy would just tell me exactly how she wants this weekend to go. Wait… maybe she’s thinking it!

Could I read Lucy’s mind?

It’s worth a try, I think. I try to concentrate on Lucy and block out all the noise around me.

Om…

But nothing.

I try to concentrate even harder, if that’s even possible.

Nothing.

Mrs. Kettledrum did say my mind reading would be a little funky this weekend, but I thought I’d at least be able to tune into the thoughts of my bestest friend in the whole world. I guess things are a lot more off between us than I realized.

But I can fix it!

“It’ll get better, LuLu. I promise.” But there’s a little part of me that’s worried that I can’t keep this promise.

Oh merg!

I never knew it would be so hard to mix an old friend with new friends. Lucy has this look on her face like she doesn’t even know me anymore.

Have I really changed that much since the last time I saw her? I hope not.

I hear a rumble in the distance.

Thunder.

Oh no!

Mrs. Kettledrum told us the weather this weekend was going to be beautiful.

What if the visitor bracelets aren’t working?

What if everything goes bonkers like it did three years ago?

I spy Mrs. Kettledrum under the tent. She sees me, and I can hear her thoughts loud and clear.

Two words: Thank GOODNESS!

There’s nothing to worry about, Heidi. Just some thunder in the distance.

I sure hope Mrs. Kettledrum is right, because I feel so uneasy about everything right now, especially about my friendship with Lucy.

Chapter 9 A GHOSTLY GAME

As the evening goes on, it starts getting colder. My parents, Henry, Lucy, and I are clearing our table when I suddenly realize it’s freezing. The temperature dropped, and it’s still thundering in the distance.

Most families have left for the evening, but not us. A few die-hard families have stayed outside. Lucy and I pull up chairs around one of the portable campfire stoves. I cocoon myself in a blanket because my cute outfit has left me shivering from the cold.

Lucy and Henry lean over the fire and toast marshmallows. Mom and Dad skewer more marshmallows.

“We haven’t done this in years,” Mom says.

I really want another s’more, but I want to be warm even more. I hug the blanket tighter around myself. The good news is, I’m way less stressed than I was before dinner.

It’s so fun to be out here with just Lucy and my family. It feels normal, cozy, and safe—that is, until I see something really weird.…

What IS that? I wonder as the something floats through the air and heads right for our campfire.

Oh my gosh! It’s a flying saucer?

I sit up and am about to shriek, UFO! when I realize it’s only a paper plate. But this isn’t your ordinary plate blowing around in the wind. This plate seems to be moving purposefully, like it’s remote-controlled or something.

Wait, I think there’s something on the plate. Hold up, Heidi! I think. Who ever heard of a remote-controlled paper plate? Then it hits me. This has to be MAGIC!

Duh!

I try to inconspicuously walk toward the magic floating plate and catch it. And I’m pretty impressed by how easy it was, almost like it was coming right for me. I walk back to our campfire, holding the plate.

“Wow, Heidi, where’d you get the s’more?” Lucy asks.

I look at the s’more on my plate. It has a swirly H for “Heidi” written in chocolate on top.

“Oh, just a classmate,” I say, trying to sound casual.

Meanwhile my heart is pounding. Who could have sent me this. And why?

Henry wipes marshmallow from his face with the back of his hand. Ew. “But I wanted to make you one,” he says.

I bundle back up in my blanket and sit on my chair. “I’d love that, Henry,” I say.

Lucy didn’t see the floating plate. What a relief! It would have been awkward trying to explain how the s’more magically floated over to me.

I glance at the families sitting nearby, looking for anyone who could have sent this plate my way. But it’s no use. The only magical students I see are Isabelle and Hunter. Their families are sitting together around another campfire.

But Hunter and Isabelle wouldn’t use magic in front of all these people like that. No way.

I set the magical s’more on the ground beside me, because there’s no way I’m eating that one.

While the embers glow, my family catches me up on what’s been going on in Brewster. It makes me wish Aunt Trudy had been able to come this weekend, but she had a trunk show for her perfume business. My aunt is a witch, like my mom and me, and she’s also a Broomsfield alum, also like Mom.

Then I give everyone some highlights of what my life is like at Broomsfield.

I can’t share the magical stuff with Lucy here, so I’ll have to wait until Thanksgiving to tell my family about what I’ve been learning in the School of Magic.

I hug Mom, Dad, and Henry before they head to their room. There is a building on campus with a room for every family visiting, and they’ll be staying there tonight.

But Lucy is sleeping over in my room!

Lucy and I walk back to my dorm, still wrapped in our blankets.

“Dinner was really fun,” Lucy says.

I sigh with relief. Part of me wants to apologize for all the attention on me earlier, but I don’t want to bring it up again. I just want to have fun with Lucy!

“I had fun too, Lulu,” I say. “And tonight we get to have a sleepover, just like old times!”

We bump each other as we walk along. The campus is quiet and peaceful until we hear a great flap of powerful wings.

Thwap! Thwap! Thwap!

A shadow passes over us. Lucy and I look up, but whatever it is, it’s already gone. Lucy grabs on to me, and her blanket falls to the sidewalk.

“Hei-i-i-deee! What was tha-a-a-at?” she whispers. Her voice is panicked, but it’s like she doesn’t want to talk loudly in case whatever it was hears her.

Of course, I have absolutely no idea what just flew overhead, but I take a wild guess.

“It was probably, um, an owl,” I say. I don’t actually believe this, as it sounded bigger and heavier than an owl, but I also don’t want to scare Lucy any further.

“Come on. Let’s get back to my dorm,” I say. We throw our blankets over our arms and make a run for it.

When we get to my room, Melanie is already in her pajamas. She unrolled the two sleeping bags and placed them neatly next to each other on the floor. The room is tidy.

Melanie can actually be a thoughtful human being sometimes, and it still shocks me.

“Hey, you two,” Melanie says cheerfully.

“Wow, Melanie, thanks for setting up our sleeping bags,” I say.

Melanie shrugs. “It was purely selfish. I didn’t know when you’d be back, and I didn’t want you to wake me up, giggling and setting things up after I was already in bed.”

Lucy unzips her suitcase. “Where’s Lola?” she asks Melanie.

Melanie sticks out her lower lip. “Mrs. Kettledrum says no dogs in the dorm—even though she lets Momo live here.”

Lucy fishes around in her suitcase for her pajamas. She pulls out navy-and-white plaid bottoms, and a white top with interconnecting red hearts on the front.

I have the exact same pajamas.

We bought them together last year. I want us to match tonight, so I search through my dresser to find the same pajamas.

After we get changed, Melanie has words for us.

“Matching pajamas is so dorky,” she whines. I bet she’s just jealous because she doesn’t also have a pair.

Lucy and I strike a silly pose.

“Okay, I guess they’re dorky and cute,” Melanie says. Then her eyes get wide. “Heyyy, do you two want to tell ghost stories tonight?”

I look out the window at the full moon, and I feel a chill when I think of the flapping wings we heard on the way back to the dorm. That was ghostly enough for me.

I look at Lucy. She is frowning.

“I don’t know any ghost stories,” I lie.

Of course I know some ghost stories, but I’m not in the mood to tell any, and from the look on her face, Lucy isn’t either.

“Me either,” Lucy quickly adds.

Melanie lies down on her bed on her stomach, and cups her chin in her hands.

“Okay, then let’s play a ghostly game instead. Have you ever played Ghost Book?” she asks.

We shake our heads slowly because we’re scared to find out.

“It’s really fun, but first we have to turn off the lights and flick on some candles,” Melanie says as she rolls off the bed, grabs three battery-operated tea lights, and sets them on the floor. Then she grabs a book from her desk and turns off the lights.

We gather around the flickering candles, making sure our blankets are close in case we need to hide.

Our faces glow in the candlelight. I’m not sure about this, but I guess we’ll try it.

“Ready?” Melanie asks.

We squeal with fear.

Melanie holds up the book, which is called History of Broomsfield Academy.

“My parents bought this book for me at the school bookstore today,” Melanie explains. “We can use it as the Ghost Book to play our game.

“All we have to do is ask the book questions, and it will give us answers. If the answers don’t make sense, then you have to ask again. I’ll be the one in charge since I know all the rules. Got it?”

Lucy and I nod—even though we have no idea what we’re agreeing to.

“Lucy, you can go first since you’re the guest,” Melanie instructs. “Are you ready to play?”

Lucy bites her bottom lip. “Sure…”

Melanie sets the book in her lap. “First you have to shut your eyes.”

Lucy looks to me for help.

“It’s okay, Lucy. I promise I won’t let anything bad happen to you,” I assure her.

Lucy squeezes my arm and shuts her eyes. Melanie tells her the next step. “First you have to ask the Ghost Book if you may enter the game.”

Lucy squeezes my arm even harder.

“Ghost Book, may I enter the game?” Lucy asks.

Then Melanie opens the book to a random page and places the book in Lucy’s lap.

“Touch the page with your finger, Lucy,” she says.

Lucy sticks out her pointer finger and lowers it onto the open page.

“Perfect. Open your eyes and read the words where your finger landed,” Melanie directs. “Whatever the book says will come to pass. If the words don’t make sense, then that means the book didn’t let you into the game and you have to take another turn.”

Lucy opens her eyes and looks where her finger landed. She pulls the book closer and reads the words out loud.

Lucy yelps and drops the book to the floor. “Is that about those hideous gargoyles near the main entrance?”

Melanie and I look at each other like, Holy moly! Because that’s exactly what the words are referring to.

One word: super-freaky!

“I think it might be,” I manage to say.

Lucy covers her face with her hands. “I don’t want to play this game anymore!” she cries.

Then she leaps to her feet, runs into the bathroom, and slams the door. I’m about to go after her when I hear a bloodcurdling scream come from within the bathroom.

Melanie flicks on the light, and I race to the bathroom and yank open the door.

“Lucy, are you OKAY?” I ask.

Lucy stands frozen in front of the mirror, with her hand over her mouth. I look to see what she’s staring at.

There, written in toothpaste on the mirror, are the words:

BEWARE THE GARGOYLES!

OH MY GOSH! I slap my hand over my mouth too!

“Mel-a-nieee!” I shout. “You have to come see this!”

Melanie walks in, reads the mirror, and screams. Lucy and Melanie both latch on to me like koala bears.

This has to be a practical joke, right?

“Did you write this to scare us, Melanie?” I ask her.

Melanie shakes her head, and I actually believe her because her eyes are bulging with fear.

“It’s THE BOOK,” Melanie says seriously.

We run back into the bedroom, shrieking, and then all three of us jump into my bed and bury ourselves under the covers, like somehow this will protect us from gargoyles.

“I told you I didn’t like those creepy stone creatures,” Lucy says.

We thrash around under the blankets—desperately trying to keep every inch of our bodies hidden.

No sooner do we begin to collect our wits than we hear piercing shrieks echo inside and outside the dorm.

Swoosh!

We throw off the covers and jump to our feet.

It sounds like some kind of a prehistoric bird, maybe a pterodactyl… or maybe more like GARGOYLES!

Lucy, Melanie, and I scream at the top of our lungs. But, weirdly, the shrieking echo sound continues, and I think I may know what it is.… I creep to the door and peek into the hall. Kids are filing downstairs.

I breathe a huge sigh of relief.

“It’s just a fire alarm, you two. We have to leave the building.” Okay, why did the school pick Friends and Family Weekend to have a practice fire drill?

Lucy and I wrap ourselves back up in our blankets, and Melanie puts on a white spa robe. We hurry down the hall, arm in arm, all wondering the same thing.

Is the building on fire?

And did the gargoyles start it?

We’re the last ones out of the building, except for Mrs. Kettledrum. She does a final sweep to make sure everyone’s accounted for.

We sit on the steps and wait for the fire inspector to check the building. It takes forever!

We’ve kind of forgotten about the whole gargoyle thing—that is, until we hear the sound of those heavy flapping wings again.

The same ones Lucy and I heard on the way back to the dorm!

This time two shadows fly overhead and disappear into the night. Lucy and Melanie cling to me again, like somehow I’M going to save them.

“Heidi, I don’t like this,” Lucy whispers. She looks like she’s about to cry. “I want to go home.”

Okay, those are the last five words I want to hear from Lucy this weekend, but can I blame her? Everything has been pretty weird so far today, and definitely not how I wanted things to go either.

It’s time to reassure Lucy.

“It’ll be okay, Lucy. You’ll see. We are going to have so much fun tomorrow at the carnival,” I tell her.

But do I believe myself? I’m not really sure anything will be okay right now.

“Hey, did you see that?” shouts some kid from our dorm. “Something with huge wings just flew overhead!”

Mrs. Kettledrum claps her hands.

“It’s nothing to worry about,” she says. “Just some friendly neighborhood owls. Everyone, back to your rooms.”

I try to catch Mrs. Kettledrum’s eye to find out what’s really going on, but she’s too busy trying to figure out why the fire alarm went off. We all trudge back up the stairs to our rooms.

I’m pretty sure those shadows weren’t owls. But could they really have been gargoyles?

At this late hour I can’t exactly go check to see if the stone gargoyles are still sitting on their perches outside Crawford, so the best I can do is put the thought out of my head.

When we get back to the room, I scrub the toothpaste off the bathroom mirror. I still wonder if Melanie wrote it, but Lucy and I were the last ones in the bathroom when we were putting on our pj’s.

Not to mention, Melanie would never willingly stick her fingers into toothpaste—even to scare us.

Lucy, Melanie, and I lock the window and the door. We even put a chair under the doorknob to make it extra secure.

“Heidi, is it okay if we sleep in your bed together?” Lucy asks.

I pull back the covers. “On a night like tonight, definitely.”

We hop into my bed, and then Melanie grabs her pillow and pushes her bed as close to mine as possible.

“I don’t want to sleep on the other side of the room. It’s way too far away!”

We keep the bedside lamp on and talk for a little while. The talk lightens our moods. Melanie leans on one elbow and looks up at us.

“So, Lucy, did you know Heidi snores?” she announces out of nowhere.

Lucy giggles, which is good, because maybe she’s feeling more relaxed. Well, I’m not, but whatever.

“Heidi has always snored,” Lucy teases.

Okay, that’s enough Heidi bashing for me. I pick up my pillow and bonk Lucy with it.

“Well, Melanie talks in her sleep,” I say defensively.

Melanie and Lucy laugh. “I’m okay with that,” Melanie says. “So long as I don’t say anything weird.”

She puts on her pink silk sleeping mask and flops onto her pillow. “Okay, you two, I’ve already lost way too much beauty sleep tonight.

“Night, night! And don’t let the gargoyles bite.”

Lucy and I squeal and hide under the covers.

“That’s not funny, Melanie!” Lucy scolds.

Melanie doesn’t answer, because when Melanie decides to go to sleep, she goes right to sleep.

Lucy and I talk quietly to each other a little while longer.

“Your friends are really nice, Heidi, and you’re so popular,” she tells me. “Is your friend Sunny really that happy all the time? Doesn’t she ever get mad or upset?”

I look up at my glow-in-the-dark stars, which are barely glowing, because my light is still on.

Hmmm, does Sunny ever get upset? Well, she got a little jealous when Mrs. Kettledrum asked me to do private magic lessons.

And then she got a little annoyed when I wouldn’t stop talking about my crush on Hunter.

“Sure, she gets upset once in a while just like anyone else, like if she’s worried about a bad grade or something,” I say. “But most of the time she’s really upbeat—just like her name.”

My light flickers, and Lucy instantly shrieks.

Melanie groans. “Will you two be quiet? I’m trying to sleep,” she scolds.

“The lights just flickered,” I explain to her.

Melanie rolls onto her side and puts in earplugs. I set my head back onto my pillow.

“It’s okay, LuLu. This is a really old building. Sometimes the lights flicker.”

And this is partly true. It is an old building. The lights have never flickered before, but best not to mention this to Lucy tonight.

I look over at my friend.

“LuLu…?” I ask, but she’s sound asleep.

Oh no, I’m the last one awake.

I finally muster the courage to switch off the light.

The room goes dark, and when my eyes adjust, I swear I see two gargoyles out the window flying across the moon.

I hope that was just my imagination.

Luckily, I’m so tired, I can’t even stay awake to be scared about it. The good thing is, when you’re asleep, you no longer know what lurks in the dark.

Chapter 10 CARNIVAL FUN?

The thought of haunted gargoyles disappears like dew before the morning sunshine.

How can anyone think of gargoyles on a gorgeous day like today? The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and Lucy is still here!

All I can say is, the magical bracelets must be working.

And even better, I get to put on outfit number two: a baby-doll top and jeans. And Melanie already has on an adorable crocheted top with her white jeans.

“You both look SO cute,” Lucy says longingly. “My outfit has zero pizzazz.”

Ding! Melanie leaps into action.

She runs straight to her closet and pulls out a navy-and-white striped polo sweater with a relaxed, cropped fit. Needless to say, it’s adorable.

“This is all you’ll need to jazz up your outfit, Lucy. It’ll go great with your cargo jeans,” she says.

Lucy takes the top gratefully. I can tell she’s a little surprised. She’s never seen this nicer side of Melanie.

So, of course, we all fuss in front of the mirror so that our looks are just right for what is sure to be a perfect day.

Then we head to the Barn for breakfast with our families. I have a light cereal breakfast, because my plan today is to pig out on funnel cake and snow cones at the carnival.

Clink! Clink! Clink! Mrs. Kettledrum taps the side of her juice glass to get everyone’s attention. “Parents, friends, and students—welcome to Carnival Day!” she announces. “The carnival will open after breakfast and will run all day. For those of you who would prefer to do something else, please enjoy our hiking trails or take out a paddleboat on the lake. Parents who have signed up for conferences will meet in Emma Crawford, the main building, at your set time.

“Have a wonderful day, and don’t hesitate to talk to our carnival staff. They are the same people who were helping yesterday. Let’s all have some FUN!”

Chairs scrape the floors, dishes rattle, and silverware clangs as everyone begins to clear their tables and head to the carnival.

Lucy and I race to the playing fields, where the carnival is set up. I’ve been watching the carnival come together over the last few days, and I can say with all confidence that it is paradise.

I notice a woman and a man standing in the middle of the carnival. The woman is taking notes, and the man is taking photos.

Eeeeeeee! I point them out to Lucy.

“Those two must be the reporters we heard were coming,” I tell her.

Lucy and I walk past them with big cheesy smiles on our faces, hoping we’ll be photographed.

We run through the mega balloon archway and are greeted by a tall post with lots of signs that point in different directions: GAMES THIS WAY, ATTRACTIONS THAT WAY, FOOD AND DRINKS OVER THERE, RESTROOMS ON EITHER END.

Little red-and-white striped tents are lined up everywhere—each tent houses a game, an activity, or a refreshment.

There’s so much to do.

There are even two climbing walls that reach to the sky. And then there’s a petting zoo with goats, pigs, chickens, rabbits, and pony rides. I officially declare I’m not too old to visit the petting zoo. Even the whir of the bouncy houses fills me with excitement.

But the biggest and best attraction is the massive House of Horrors. There’s nothing more fun than a good fake scare. It’s the real ones that undo me. After last night, I am all for remembering that the fun house is just that… fun.

I turn to Lucy. “I want to do everything!”

Lucy gives me a big hug, and we start running!

The first booth we come to is the Temporary Tattoo Booth. We stop because of course we have to get one.

They have tattoos of anything you could be interested in: sports, cool designs, letters to write messages, and everything in between. Trying to figure out what you want stamped on your body is a BIG decision.

I’m trying to concentrate when Lucy starts tapping my arm like a woodpecker.

“Who’s that?” she whispers.

Lucy’s pointing at Hunter and Isabelle, and I remember that she was never properly introduced to them yesterday. They’re headed our way.

“Oh, that’s Hunter,” I say. “The boy I used to have a mad crush on—remember? I used to call him Hunter McCutie.”

Lucy looks back at the tattoos, so she doesn’t get caught staring. “He’s so cute,” she says. “I had no idea!”

I nod. “Yup. And if you like him, get in line. All the girls like him. And the girl by his side is Isabelle. They’re kind of a thing.”

Isabelle and Hunter catch up to us, and I introduce Lucy.

“So, are you getting tattoos?” Isabelle asks.

I slide a temporary tattoo from a hook. It says, GOOD VIBES ONLY. It’s perfect, since those are the only types of vibes I want this weekend. “I’m getting this one,” I proclaim.

Lucy unhooks a heart tattoo. It says, BE HAPPY.

“Those are so cute! I want one,” Isabelle says, flicking through the tattoos.

She picks a flaming baseball for Hunter and a flaming soccer ball for herself, which are perfect because Hunter and Isabelle are both amazing athletes.

We take turns sitting on stools to get the tattoos applied to our arms. Two upperclassmen are in charge of the applications. And P.S., our tattoos look so cool!

Hunter and Isabelle head to the Strike ’Em Out baseball game, where you have to pitch a baseball into a hole in a wooden umpire’s glove.

That game is not for me or Lucy.

Next!

Besides, I know what I’d rather do. I pitch my idea to Lucy.

“Want to do the House of Horrors?” I ask. “If we go early in the day, it won’t be as crowded.”

Lucy frowns. “Will it be super-scary?”

I shake my head. “No, it’ll be silly scary.”

Lucy’s still hesitant. And, after last night, who wouldn’t be? But she’s a good sport and agrees to go.

We jog to the House of Horrors, and I have to say that I am impressed.

It’s not some run-down tent full of jangly skeletons and ghosts made from old sheets. This is the real deal. It actually looks like a long, sprawling abandoned house with broken windows. One window has a black cat with glowing red eyes, and from another window a ghostly face peers out at us. We hop into line.

We stop talking when we realize we’re up next. The door into the house says ENTER IF YOU DARE!

Lucy tugs my shirt.

“We’ll be fine,” I whisper.

We enter a cobwebbed hallway. The floors actually creak when we walk on them—or is it a recording? A hand reaches out of a crack in the wall and grabs at us. We both scream, because duh, who wouldn’t?

Somehow we make it to the first room in the house without turning back.

A neon sign over the door sizzles like a bug zapper and glows with the words THE HAUNTED KITCHEN. A fun soundtrack—not scary at all—plays in the background. However, in other parts of the house, I can hear super-scary sound effects, like thumping, clanking, howling, moaning, and screaming.

Eek.

Outside the Haunted Kitchen stands a menu board. Lucy and I read it and giggle at the offerings.

Two skeletons wearing blue dresses, aprons, and white caps welcome us.

“Greetings,” they say. “We’re the skull-ery maids, and we’ll assist you on your tour of the Haunted Kitchen.”

The skull-ery maids have skeleton masks on, so we can’t see their real faces. I know they are faculty working at the carnival, but it’s fun to pretend they are real skeletons. Even their arms, hands, and legs look like they’re made of bones.

“Honored guests,” one of them says, “the headless chef requires you to wear blindfolds because his appearance is, well, alarming. The chef does have a head, but since its severed, he keeps it on a cake stand.”

Then the skull-ery maids tie blindfolds around our heads and guide us into the Haunted Kitchen.

“The headless chef is ready to tell you about his latest creations,” one of the maids says.

Lucy yelps, “Heidi, stay close!”

I reach out and try to find Lucy’s hand, but I can’t with this blindfold on.

“I’m right here,” I call to her.

Our guides stop walking, but they hold on to us so we don’t fall or crash into anything. It’s so weird not knowing exactly where Lucy is.

“Welcome to the Haunted Kitchen!” booms a creepy, melodramatic voice. I can’t help but think it sounds a little like Mr. Craftwood’s, but I can’t be sure. “I’m your host, the headless chef!”

The chef cackles. Even though I know it’s fake, to scare us, he still sounds creepy.

“Come in, come in,” the headless chef begs. “I want to tell you about some of the delicious ingredients I use in my dishes! Over here is one of my favorite delicacies. These tender morsels are freshly boiled pigs’ hearts. Mm-wah! Exquisite!”

Oh yuck! Get me out of here, I think. But it’s too late. My guide holds my arm by the elbow and moves my hand into a bowl of boiled pigs’ hearts.

“Eeeeew!” I cry, not even trying to disguise my displeasure.

I know it’s just pretend, but the “pigs’ hearts” feel exactly what I would imagine them to feel like—spongy, moist, and 100 percent disgusting.

I know the moment Lucy touches the pigs’ hearts, because she screams—a response I’ve heard a lot since she arrived.

We continue our blindfolded waltz around the kitchen and touch a medley of creepy delicacies, eyeballs, teeth, fingers, fingernails, toes, and, of course, brains.

Cre-e-e-e-e-eak!

An oven door just squeaked open.

“My dear guests, you’re in luck,” the headless chef announces. “A fresh batch of my world-famous witches’ fingers has just come out of the oven. Would anyone like to sample one?”

Having not eaten much breakfast, I, for one, am starving.

“Me!” I volunteer.

The headless chef laughs, and I feel like I’m going to be more like a victim of his freaky baked goods than a taste tester.

And I’m not gonna lie, I am a wee bit nervous.

“What a brave girl you are, my dear,” he says. “I beg of you, please open your mouth.”

I reluctantly open my mouth.

I pray it’s something tastier than a pig’s boiled heart.

The witch’s finger enters my mouth.

I wince and bite down. Mmmm. It actually tastes super-yummy, like a shortbread cookie.

“This witch’s finger is spook-tacular,” I declare.

The headless chef laughs hideously, yet again.

“Oh, I knew you’d like it. I use only the freshest witch fingers!”

“Gross!” Lucy says. And she totally refuses to try a witch’s finger.

After we’re done in the Haunted Kitchen, we get to take off our blindfolds, wash our hands, and see everything we’ve touched or eaten.

The first thing I notice is that the headless chef is actually headless.

I’m pretty sure his real head is hidden inside his chef’s jacket, which is very clever.

And his so-called severed head is, indeed, sitting on a cake stand with a chef’s hat on top.

We study the tray of cookies, which actually look like a stereotypical witches’ fingers. They’re green cookies drizzled with blood-red icing.

On the counters are several plastic cauldrons. Each cauldron holds one of the nasty ingredients we touched. The pigs’ hearts are boiled tomatoes. The brains are cooked macaroni. The eyeballs are peeled grapes. The toes are sausages. The teeth are popcorn kernels.

It’s amazing how the fake ingredients feel like the real things when you’re playing along.

The guides usher us into the next room and bid us farewell. We don’t have to wear blindfolds anymore. Phew!

As we make our way through the rest of the House of Horrors, Lucy clings so tightly to me, I feel like I’m wearing her. It also makes walking a challenge, but we gradually move from room to room.

Corpses pop out of coffins.

Ghouls burst through doors.

Moaning ghosts drag chains and follow us.

Eek!

It’s all fun until we get to the graveyard at the very end. To enter we have to walk through a stone arch. But what’s really freaky is that there is a gargoyle on either side of the arch.

At first I wonder if these are the gargoyles from outside Crawford, but then I realize they can’t be. These gargoyles have fangs! And their eyes glow like molten lava.

Normally this wouldn’t scare me, but after last night this feels like my worst nightmare come true. Lucy feels the same way—maybe worse, if that’s possible.

“Hei-i-i-deee, let’s get out of here,” she whispers.

The fear in her voice is real.

I want to get out of here too, but for some reason I keep walking, and Lucy is still attached to me.

A ghostly soundtrack with moans, wails, and howling wind fills us with more dread. Spirits rise, like mist, from the tombstones.

That does it for Lucy. She screams and drags me toward the exit.

And that’s when we hear that awful sound of flapping of wings, like the ones we heard last night.

“Lucy! Watch out!” I warn.

Lucy looks up. Then we both fall to our knees as two gargoyles swoop down after us.

Oh no!

We’re going to be carried away by the gruesome gargoyles!

We cover our heads to protect ourselves, but it’s pointless—we’re DOOMED.

Lucy and I scramble to our feet and then sprint through the haunted house, screaming at the top of our lungs.

I honestly don’t think I have ever run so fast in my life.…

We burst through the door and into the daylight. Then we crumple into a petrified heap on the ground.

We both look back at the haunted house to see if the gargoyles are coming. But there’s no sign of them—not yet anyway. Because I’m never sure if we’ve seen the last of them.

“Well, I don’t know why we were so scared,” I say, trying to reassure myself that everything is okay. “Because everything in there was fake—you know, just a bunch of props and phony-baloney.”

But you know what else is creepy? I think.

It was a gorgeous sunny day when we walked into the House of Horrors.

And now it’s totally overcast.

Just like THAT!

I’m feeling stormy vibes on so many levels.…

Chapter 11 WHICH WITCH?!

There’s only one way to handle fear.

Eat funnel cake!

When each of us is holding a plate of deliciousness sprinkled with sugar, Lucy and I feel better.

As we munch our treats, we scope out less hair-raising carnival games. That’s when we spy Sunny and Annabelle. I wave them down.

“Who wants to take silly pictures in the photo booth?” I ask.

Then Sunny gives me something she’s never given me before. A scowl.

She literally scowls!

I look to Annabelle for help. Annabelle just shrugs.

“I’d love to get a photo with you,” Annabelle says.

Sunny still says nothing. “What’s the matter, Sunny?” I ask.

She huffs at me.

“What isn’t the matter, Heidi?” she replies. “For openers, I sat on somebody’s caramel apple and there’s a huge stain on my pants!”

Sunny turns around so we can see the spot. There’s just a little mark on her jeans.

“You can barely see it,” I tell her. “And you definitely won’t see it in pictures.”

But Sunny isn’t listening to me. I can tell.

For some reason she’s studying our outfits, and her face has disapproval written all over it.

“Why are you two so dressed up?” she asks me and Lucy. “Are you going to Cinderella’s ball or something?”

Lucy and I look at each other like, What in the world?

“We just, um, wanted to look nice,” Lucy stammers. I know it’s because she’s so surprised by Sunny’s snarky tone. Sunny picks up on the uncertainty in Lucy’s voice.

“What are you so nervous about, Lucy?” Sunny snaps. “You don’t even go to this school!”

Okay, that does it.

Now I’m mad.

Nobody speaks to Lucy or me like that.

I’m about to set Sunny straight, when she turns her back on me and storms off.

One word: rude!

Annabelle rushes to Lucy’s side. “I’m so sorry, Lucy. I don’t know what’s gotten into Sunny. She’s been a total grump-a-saurus all morning.”

Lucy looks away. She really didn’t like getting barked at by Sunny. Then she turns back and looks at me.

“Well, Heidi, I guess you were wrong about Sunny,” she says. “You told me she rarely gets into a bad mood. Well, with the way she just acted, you should call her Stormy.”

I plant my hand on my hip because I’m really worked up.

I’m frazzled from the House of Horrors.

I’m sick about Lucy not having a good time.

I’m furious at Sunny for acting out of line.

And I’m mad at Lucy for implying that I lied about Sunny’s character.

“I was telling the truth, Lucy,” I say. “This is the first time I’ve EVER seen Sunny act like this!”

Annabelle tries to calm us down. “Come on, you two. Don’t let Sunny’s bad mood ruin our day. She’ll come around. You’ll see. Why don’t we go play a game?”

Lucy and I reluctantly follow Annabelle. None of us say a word until Annabelle spies her little brother, Charlie. He’s with my little brother, Henry, and Henry looks relieved to see us.

“Hey, would you mind if I take off, Annabelle?” Henry asks. “I want to meet some of the older boys at the House of Horrors.”

Annabelle puts an arm around her little brother, who has an empty cotton candy holder in his hand. Annabelle takes the paper cone from her brother and throws it away.

“No problem, Henry. Thanks for watching him!” she says.

Lucy and I toss the rest of our funnel cakes into the trash. After our encounter with Sunny, we’ve both lost our appetites.

“I want to play this witch game,” Charlie demands as he leads us over to one of the booths.

I feel a little better when I check out the game. It looks really fun.

It’s called Witch’s Brew. A witch hovers over a smoking cauldron. It’s not a real witch. It’s just another faculty member dressed up. And the smoke is just a fog machine.

To play, you have to throw beanbag frogs and bats into the cauldron. The witch can block the beanbags with her broom. If you get three of a kind into the cauldron, you win a prize.

It’s not as easy as it looks, because there are only three round openings in the cauldron, but there are stuffed-animal prizes, including a really cute panda.

“Sure,” Annabelle says. “Let’s play!”

We take turns throwing bats and frogs into the cauldron. Lucy really wants to win the panda. But like I said, it’s harder than it looks, and none of us win anything.

This makes Charlie mad.

“This game is awful!” he cries. “I have a better game. Let’s play Which Witch? I’ll go first.”

Then Charlie points his finger at his sister.

“You’re a WITCH!” he yells.

Then Charlie turns around and points at me. “And you’re a witch!”

And then he points at Sunny, who’s standing at the booth across from us. “And she’s a witch TOO!”

Then Charlie turns back around and points at Lucy. “But you’re NOT a witch—are you?”

The color has completely drained from Annabelle’s face.

“CHARLIE!” she shouts. “What on earth has gotten into you?”

Annabelle turns to Lucy and me. “I’m so sorry. Charlie’s very into witches and wizards lately. Don’t pay any attention to him.”

Charlie’s face turns red with rage. He balls his hands into fists and looks at Lucy.

“Don’t listen to her, because she’s LYING,” he shouts. “My sister IS a witch!

“She has a treasure chest full of gems and crystals in her room, and she uses them for spells. If you don’t believe me, go see for yourself.”

No sooner does Charlie finish his rant than thunder booms overhead.

I’m frozen with fear.

Angry Charlie runs off to find his mother.

Thank goodness!

And honestly I can’t blame him for being mad. He was telling the truth, but he also has to learn how to keep secrets.

As I’m thinking all this, suddenly the one thing I’ve always feared happens. Lucy asks me the million-dollar question.…

“Heidi? Are you a… witch?”

Her face is as serious as I’ve ever seen it.

Annabelle, who’s standing behind Lucy, shakes her head and waves her hands frantically.

And still, I hesitate.

How can I lie to my best friend’s face?

Is it time to level with Lucy?

Help! I think I’m caving!

I look at Lucy’s eyes, which are fiercely locked on mine, and then back at Annabelle, who is mouthing the words Don’t do it over and over.

“Heidi, why are you hesitating? Is it true?” Lucy asks.

Then she turns around to see what I’m looking at. “And why are you looking at Annabelle?”

I take a huge breath. No, I’m not ready for this moment. I decide, then and there, to once again keep this secret to myself.

Phew! Maybe someday I’ll tell Lucy, but today will not be the day.

“No, Lucy,” I say. “Of course I’m not a witch! That’s absolutely ridiculous! Charlie is just a little kid with a wild imagination. You know how kids like to make up stories… and we were playing a witch game after all.”

Annabelle puts her hand over her heart and sighs. Lucy looks relieved.

“Well, I didn’t think you’d keep something like that from me, Heidi, but Charlie did make me wonder,” Lucy admits.

“Remember how I used to always say you’re magical?” She laughs for thinking this might’ve actually been true. “And not to mention, the name of your school is Broomsfield Academy, you know, like a witch’s broom. I know that must sound a little far-fetched.…”

Annabelle and I double over with fake laughter. But I really hate all this lying. It makes me feel not-so-great.

“Well, I’d better go,” Annabelle says. “I have to make sure somebody’s watching Charlie.”

So, Lucy and I are alone again, though Lucy might as well be by herself, because I’m all caught up in my own thoughts.

I mean, why is Sunny acting the opposite of herself?

And how come Charlie spilled the beans on the witches he knows?

And why are the clouds getting so much darker?

Is something going really wrong?

I guess there’s only one thing to do.

Act normal.

“So, LuLu, you want to get pics of the two of us?” I ask.

Lucy likes this idea, so we head back to the photo booth. We dig around in the prop box. I put on a blond wig made of yarn. Lucy puts on giant glasses and a top hat. Then we both pile on feathered boas. I grab a little sign on a stick that says BFFS. Yup, that’s us! We fling back the curtain and squish next to each other on the bench inside.

Poof!

The flash goes off. Lucy and I giggle and pose.

When the camera stops flashing, we tumble out of the photo booth, laughing and falling all over each other.

And guess who sees us as we’re putting away our props?

Nick! Yes, my Nick, and his best friend, Max.

“What’s going on?” Max asks. We’re laughing too hard to answer, so he answers for us. “Well, Nick and I wanted to hang out with you, but clearly you should hang out with your friends, and we’ll hang out with ours.”

And just like that, they walk off.

What was that about? I wonder. It seems like everyone’s filters are off. And it’s not just my friends. The grown-ups seem to be losing it too.

While Lucy and I are waiting for our pics to develop, I overhear Isabelle’s mom blabbing to everyone how her daughter’s a princess—the very thing Isabelle and her family want to keep secret.

And if that’s not weird enough, my own mother has been telling everyone how I’m the best new student at Broomsfield. Mom, I know you’re proud of me, but what are you DOING? I think.

Well, at least she didn’t say I was the best witch, but still, it’s mortifying. And it’s also totally out of character for my mother.

“Heidi, look!” Lucy cries. “Melanie’s dog is in a fight with another dog!”

Sure enough, Lola and Momo are in a brawl. And Melanie doesn’t even seem to notice! Instead she walks up to me and hangs on my shoulder again.

“Heidi, I saw what just happened between you and Nick’s friend Max, and I want you to know, I’m here for you,” she says.

I try to shrug her off, but it’s no use. Melanie wraps her arms around me and gives me a huge bear hug.

“I really am here for you, Heidi, because that’s what best friends do!” she gushes on. “And by the way, have I ever told you, you’re the coolest, most fashionable friend a girl could ever have? You’re seriously my very best friend EVER.”

And that’s when thunder explodes across the sky.

Baboom!

BOOOM!

BOOOM!

BOOM!

I hear Lucy yell. But it’s a different kind of yell from what I’ve been hearing all day. It’s a happy kind of yell, like when you open up a birthday present and it’s exactly what you wanted.

“Heidi! Look at me!” Lucy shouts.

I turn around and Lucy is… tall.

I mean, really tall.

Like, seven feet tall!

She towers over me and all my friends.

Why is this happening? I think.

Then I remember Lucy saying, I would love to be really tall, but both my parents are short, so I guess it’s not going to happen.

Could this have anything to do with all the magical and non-magical energy mixing today?

It must!

Lucy runs away from me, happily. She wants everyone to see the new tall Lucy.

She’s laughing and waving her arms over her head like, Look at me!

As I watch her race away, I notice something sparkling on the ground.

It’s a VISITOR’S BRACELET!

I gasp and pick it up. Is it Lucy’s?

Is this the reason everything’s going haywire? Surely all this can’t have been caused by one bracelet. Or can it?

I want to run after Lucy, but for some reason I can’t. That’s because something strange is happening to ME.

I don’t know why, but I suddenly feel like doing something reckless.

I can’t seem to stop this feeling.

I fixate on Nick because I just overheard him say he was thirsty.

“Hey, Nick!” I shout. “Are you really thirsty?”

He looks puzzled, but nods, because he is thirsty.

“Okay, then watch THIS!” I take a deep breath and shout:

Roses are red, bubble gum is pink.

Give me something for Nick to drink!

Sha-zing! A juice box magically appears in my hand.

I smile and toss it to Nick.

“Wow, Heidi! How did you do that?” he asks. He looks totally bewildered.

But before I can answer, Isabelle shows up out of nowhere and grabs me by the arm.

“Not another word out of you,” she whispers. Then she turns to Nick and makes a joke of my magic.

“Just call her Heidi Houdini,” Isabelle says. “My uncle taught her that trick. He’s a magician. Would you please excuse us?”

Isabelle drags me away from the crowd.

“Heidi, are you okay?” she asks.

I rub my head.

The feeling of wanting to do something reckless has faded, and I feel more like my normal self.

“Whoa, I’m not sure what came over me. I kind of lost it back there,” I tell her.

Isabelle grabs me by the shoulders and shakes me. “We can’t keep giving in to these feelings! Something really weird has been going on. We have to hold it together, Heidi! It’s like everyone’s wires are getting crossed.”

I gasp, because those are the exact words Mrs. Kettledrum used when she was teaching us about auras.

I wonder how many enchanted bracelets are missing.

“Isabelle, I’m totally fine,” I say. “Now that I know what’s going on, I can resist the urge to do magic if it comes again.”

Isabelle gives me a hug. “Good. I have to go keep an eye on my mom. Let’s meet up later.”

Isabelle runs off. At the same time, a sudden gust of wind blows the long blond braids right out of the prop box. I watch the yarn wig swirl into the wind.

I worry that things are about to get really hairy.…

Chapter 12 TAKE THE CAKE!

Lightning zigzags across the sky.

Thunder crackles and booms.

Help! I have to get inside!

But where’s Lucy? And where’s Mrs. Kettledrum?

I turn every which way, looking for my friend and my teacher.

Rain pelts my cheeks. Then it begins to pour, and every inch of me is drenched.

Students and visitors run every which way seeking cover from the rain.

I stop and look at the sky. The clouds are so dark and low, it practically looks like night.

And then I notice, not only is it pouring but it’s also raining stuffed animals.

A tornado of prizes swirls around in the air.

Oh, and there’s the stuffed panda Lucy wanted. I have to get it for her!

It’s the least I can do.

As I chase the panda, other stuffed animals cartwheel past me like tumbleweeds. I’m coming to get you, Mr. Panda Bear! I think.

The panda flops onto the grass, and I lunge for it. I hug the panda close and run as fast as I can toward the Barn, ducking the flying debris.

Thunder rumbles. It sounds like a million bowling balls getting knocked down at the same time. And birds screech overhead.

Uh-oh! Those are not birds, I think. They’re gargoyles!

I cover my head with the panda and keep running.

When I near the Barn, I see parents and kids screaming and shouting as they run to the safety of the cafeteria.

There’s a logjam of people at the entrance. People cover their heads with anything they can find—jackets, signs, their arms—to protect themselves.

I race to the back entrance. There’s still no sign of Lucy or Mrs. Kettledrum.

And the gargoyles are right over my head!

But at this moment the gargoyles are the least of my worries. I leave them outside and blaze down the hall and into the cafeteria.

The first thing I see is Henry and Charlie laughing hysterically. I rush up to them. “Are you two okay?” I ask.

Charlie answers first. “Oui, Heidi. Je vais bien!” I do a double take. “Charlie… are you speaking FRENCH?” I ask.

Then I turn to Henry, who is still laughing. “Henry, SAY SOMETHING!” I demand.

“ ’Ello!” Henry says cheerfully. “Did you hear my mate’s funny accent?” he asks. “Listen to him. I’m gobsmacked!”

Oh no! Henry has Charlie’s British accent, and Charlie is speaking French!

Where is Mrs. Kettledrum? We need her help, and fast.

Everything is in chaos.

The next odd thing I see is Caleb Kim’s little sister standing on a chair.

“Did you know my brother can turn food into anything he wants?” she tells the crowd.

Oh no! What is she DOING? I think. Caleb once did a spell in class where he turned a lemon into a banana. Now his sister is blabbing about his wizard skills to everyone.

Oh please, someone make her STO-O-O-O-O-OP!

But this time Caleb isn’t turning one kind of food into another kind.

He’s somehow made all the food in the cafeteria come to life.

And the food is on the move.

Loaves of bread launch from their trays and sail through the air, like squishy projectiles.

Bonk! Biff! Boof! Bam!

The loaves bash people in the head, the back, the stomach—you name it.

Boxes of cereal lift off from the cereal station. In midair the packages open all by themselves! They tip like teapots and shake cereal all over the crowd. It’s showering cornflakes, raisins, and granola.

Lemon meringue pies slide from the dessert station and look for targets.

Splat! Sploof! Smack! Whap!

Whipped cream drips from the faces of students, parents—even faculty.

If this wasn’t so frightening, it might actually be funny.

SMACK!

“Oh no! I’ve been HIT!” But not by a pie. It’s a chicken nugget! It pings off the side of my head.

My hair is wet, greasy, and speckled with chicken nugget breading.

One word: gross!

Even worse, I finally spot Lucy.

She’s in a corner of the cafeteria, posing like a model.

She’s still seven feet tall and loving every minute of it.

I spot one of the reporters talking to her.

“I don’t know how it happened,” Lucy is saying.

“One minute I was short, and the next I’m super-tall.” She giggles.

“I’ve heard of growth spurts, but I never dreamed it could be like this.” She waves her hand over the reporter’s head. “How tall are you? Five foot six, five foot seven? Look how much taller I am than you!”

Suddenly a bunch of kids are by the windows.

“Hey, look, it’s SNOWING!” one yells.

Several of the students cheer. A few of them race outside to have a snowball fight.

“Henri! Regardez! Il neige!” Charlie says, pointing to the window. I don’t speak French, but I’m pretty certain Charlie said it was snowing.

Henry looks out the window. “I say! Charlie, I do believe it’s snowing,” Henry answers.

Just as I’m trying to figure out what to do next, Melanie rushes over to me and takes my hand. “Heidi, come outside and make snow angels with me,” she says.

I say the first thing that comes into my head.

“Melanie, WHY?”

Melanie laughs. “Because you’re my BFF, silly! And that’s the kind of thing best friends do together.”

“Melanie, I’m kind of in the middle of something,” I tell her. “Maybe later.”

“Okay, buddy. But hurry up. It won’t be nearly as much fun without you,” Melanie says, and gives me a quick hug.

Then I spot one of my REAL BFFs, Sunny. But Sunny is still looking stormy.

“Sunny? Are you okay?” I ask.

Sunny glares at me.

“Do I LOOK okay?” she snarls. “I was just saying something fishy was going on, and then THIS happens.”

Sunny has an entire fish stuck on her T-shirt.

I can’t help it. I giggle.

“You think this is FUNNY?” Sunny yells.

“Sunny, come ON! You’re not the only one who’s a mess.

“Look, I have chicken-nugget breading in my hair. You say something’s fishy and you get smacked with a fish.

“It’s a little funny.”

“Not to ME it isn’t,” Sunny says, and stomps off.

Then, thankfully, I spy Mrs. Kettledrum on the other side of the cafeteria.

We’re all saved!

At least I hope we’re saved.

Mrs. Kettledrum has her hands in front of her face to block the onslaught of food. Her mouth is locked in the Oh! position.

I have to get to her.

I hold Lucy’s panda in one hand and grab a food tray with the other. I hold the tray in front of me like a shield, and run toward Mrs. Kettledrum.

I deflect pink doughnuts, mashed potatoes, and a whole loaf of honey-wheat bread.

Squoosh! Pow! Splat!

“It’s a losing battle!” a cafeteria worker shouts.

And it does seem hopeless, but this is no time to give in!

This is easy to say until you’re pursued by a bottle of ketchup—under its own power.

Help!

The bottle squeezes itself and squirts ketchup all over the back of my head.

It drips down my neck.

Yuck!

But somehow I’ve made it to Mrs. Kettledrum.

She grabs me by the hand.

“I’m so glad to see you, Heidi,” she says, pulling me along.

Cornflakes fall from her hair as we rush out of the cafeteria.

We run into the kitchen, until we’re safe behind two doors.

Ahhhh, it’s so quiet and peaceful in here.

Mrs. Kettledrum wipes the dew of concern—and soda—from her brow.

“Oh, Heidi, my worst fears for the weekend have come to pass,” she says.

“We found several visitor bracelets in the House of Horrors kitchen.

“Guests lost their bracelets when they plunged their hands into the headless chef’s slimy ingredients.

“And, without the bracelets, the magical and non-magical auras have created all this hullabaloo.

“The faculty and staff are restoring bracelets to all those who’ve lost them.”

I knew this had something to do with the bracelets, I think.

I wonder just how many guests lost their bracelets.

It has to be more than several, considering what has happened.

“So how are we going to calm everyone down, Mrs. Kettledrum?” I ask. “Things are completely out of control!”

Mrs. Kettledrum pulls out her wand.

“Listen closely, Heidi. I have a plan,” she begins.

“First I’m going to go back out there and reverse Caleb’s spells.”

Mrs. Kettledrum runs into the cafeteria, and with a flick of her wrist, all the food that was flying through the air flies back to where it came from.

It’s like Mrs. Kettledrum just hit the rewind button on all the food.

Phew!

“We’ll go to the gym, and I’ll put an emergency forgetting spell on all the cakes and refreshments,” Mrs. Kettledrum continues as she returns to the kitchen.

“Once we have bracelets on all the guests again, we’ll invite everyone into the gym.

“As soon as everyone partakes in the refreshments, our guests and non-magical students and staff will forget about anything magical that has happened to them over the weekend.

“The students and teachers in the School of Magic will keep their memories so we can think of how to avoid another situation like this at the next Broomsfield Academy Friends and Family Weekend.

“And then we’ll tell everyone that due to bad weather, we’ll have to cut the weekend’s festivities short.

“If all goes well, all the guests will be out of here in just a few hours.”

As much as I hate to see my parents, Henry, and Lucy leave, Mrs. Kettledrum’s plan makes me feel better already.

Mrs. Kettledrum and I run to the gym. It looks completely untouched from the disaster that’s happening everywhere else on campus. All the decorations that Melanie, Sunny, Annabelle, and I put up the other day are still in perfect condition. I’m about to ask her what I can do to help, when she raises her wand over the refreshments and chants a spell.

Everyone, partake of this food and drink.

Memories of magical chaos will be gone in a blink!

The stress and the strain will soon fade away,

And all you’ll remember is a wonderful day!

Poof!

Sparkles shower over both tables.

Mrs. Kettledrum and I sigh with relief.

“Well, that should do it, Heidi.

“Now I’m going to run back to the Barn and usher the guests into the gym. Your job will be to offer cake and drinks to everyone.

“Just make sure they eat or drink something. Even just a sip of water will relieve them of their memories of this afternoon.”

Mrs. Kettledrum looks at my appearance.

I’m pretty sure I make the gargoyles look attractive.

“Let’s tidy you up,” she says.

Whoosh!

She waves her wand over me, and I suddenly feel showered, refreshed, and ready to go.

Even the stuffed panda looks like new.

Mrs. Kettledrum spruces herself up as well.

Did I mention how much I love magic?

Mrs. Kettledrum scurries from the gym.

I use a bit of magic to perfectly slice the cake and slide pieces onto plates.

I can’t help but think about some of the out-of-this-world things that have gone on over the last two days.

This Friends and Family Weekend seems even wackier than the one three years ago.

The Broomsfield Academy Gazette article never said anything about flying gargoyles or magical food fights.

One word: puzzling.

Soon the students and guests begin to file into the gym. Everyone is still wet and bewildered, but at least all the guests have on their bracelets.

People line up for cake, and I pass out plates to keep up with the rush.

Mrs. Kettledrum switches on a microphone.

“Attention, everyone! This afternoon’s forecast calls for more unstable weather,” she announces. “We feel it’s best to cut the weekend festivities short in order for everyone to travel home safely.

“Please help yourself to refreshments before we send you on your way. And thank you all again for coming!”

Everyone eagerly accepts the cake and refreshments.

I see my friends in line, and it’s as if nothing ever happened.

They all look wonderful.

Their clothes are spotless, and everyone is clean and neat.

I can hear Sunny laughing.

Yay! Sunny is back to being Sunny!

I see the reporter and photographer eating big slices of cake.

Phew! We don’t have to worry about anything out of the ordinary being reported about this weekend.

Even Lola and Momo are buddies again.

Then I see Nick and Max.

Uh-oh. I bite my lip and wish I could run away, because I’m pretty certain Nick doesn’t like me anymore.

“Hey, Heidi,” he says. “So bummed we didn’t get to hang out today. I was really looking forward to that.”

Max raises his water to me.

“I’m sorry too,” he says. “You seem really cool, Heidi, and so does your friend Lucy.”

Well, well! The food-and-drink spell is definitely working. Nobody seems to remember any of the chaos of today.

The photographer takes a photo of Mrs. Kettledrum and Momo. Then Mrs. Kettledrum and the reporter enjoy some cake and coffee. “Another perfect Friends and Family Weekend at Broomsfield,” I hear the reporter say.

Suddenly I realize, what about Lucy?

Where is she?

I hope she’s not mad at me.

And is she still tall? I wonder.

“Hey, have either of you seen Lucy?” I ask Nick and Max.

Both boys shake their heads. But all my worries are forgotten when I spot Lucy. She’s sipping from an enchanted bottle of water and finishing up a piece of cake.

She gets up to toss out her plate and starts walking toward me, and she’s smiling.

She’s my Lucy again!

My wonderful, beautiful, short friend!

One word: YAY!

“Oh, Heidi,” she says, sounding like herself. “I had the best time at your school. I’m so sad we have to leave early, but maybe I can come again next year?”

Wha-a-a-a-a-t?

I almost fall over. Lucy actually WANTS to come back?

Wow, this is the best news ever! I grab a slice of cake and a cup of lemonade for myself.

“Yes! Let’s go find a table to sit at—alone!” I say. This is the perfect time to give Lucy the panda I got her. “Lucy, do you mind bringing my cake with you? I have to grab something.”

She nods and walks ahead.

While Lucy searches for a quiet corner of the room, I run back to the snack table where I hid her panda. As soon as I sit down, I give Lucy the panda and spill my heart out to her.

“LuLu, I want you to know that nothing can ever come between us. We have a friendship like no other. And even though I have new friends, I want you to know how special you are to me. We have something none of my new friends will ever have, and that was our whole childhood together. Nobody can take that away from us.

“Our friendship is built on the rock of all friendships!”

Lucy’s face lights up.

“Oh, Heidi, I feel exactly the same way.

“I have to admit, when I first arrived yesterday, I was super-jealous of all your new friends—especially Melanie and Sunny, but I’m not jealous anymore.

“I know, in my heart, we’re always going to be close no matter what. We are one hundred percent and always best friends forever!”

I hold up my pinky.

“Pinky promise to stay best friends?” I ask—just like we used to say when we were little.

Lucy links her pinky with mine. “Pinky promise.”

Lucy goes over to get some lemonade. I’m sitting by myself happily eating cake when Isabelle and Hunter come walking toward me, looking embarrassed.

Hunter nudges Isabelle. “Go on,” he says. “You go first.”

Isabelle’s face turns red. “I’m the one who sent over that s’more last night,” she says.

I am stunned.

“You, Isabelle? WHY?” I ask.

“That was so risky. Anyone who isn’t magical could have seen the plate hovering. Then what would have happened?

“Why would you do that?”

“I don’t know, Heidi,” Isabelle replies. “It seemed like something awesome with magic that you would do, and I just thought it would be cool, I guess?

“I really don’t understand why I did a lot of the things I did this weekend.”

Hunter is still standing there, looking even more embarrassed as he confesses, “Also, we were the ones who magically wrote on your mirror with toothpaste.”

I can’t believe what I’m hearing.

“You two? That was so scary. So not cool. Are those the sort of pranks you two like to play on each other?”

Hunter shuffles his feet. “At the time we thought it would be funny to write something on your mirror. Just a silly prank.”

“We’re really sorry, Heidi,” Isabelle says. “I hope you can forgive us.”

Hunter has a baffled look on his face. “I honestly don’t even know why we did it,” he says. “I’m not a prankster. It’s like something just came over me.”

And then it hits me why Isabelle and Hunter acted so differently last night. It was because of the magical energy in the air.

Disaster was already brewing yesterday evening.

I let out a deep breath.

As I now know, when magic goes haywire, very strange things can happen. I smile at Hunter and Isabelle. “Let’s put this behind us,” I say. “You are forgiven.”

Hunter lets out an even deeper breath.

“Thank you so much, Heidi.”

“And it’ll never happen again,” adds Isabelle. “Since there has never been and never will be as weird a weekend as this one.”

As Hunter and Isabelle walk away, Lucy returns. And right behind her are Charlie and Henry.

Henry snatches a piece of my cake with his fingers. “Henry, that’s disgusting!” I say. I push the cake toward him. “You can have the rest of it.”

“Gee, thanks! There are no more pieces up front,” Henry says, and grabs my plate.

“Hey, Heidi, guess what? Charlie and I are good buddies now. I’m going to ask Mom and Dad if the next time they visit America, Charlie can stay at our house.”

“I’m delighted,” Charlie says. “And maybe Henry can come visit us in London sometime.”

“That sounds great,” I tell them. I’m just relieved that Charlie has stopped speaking French and Henry has lost his British accent.

I look up and spot Sunny and Annabelle waving at us from across the room. I motion for them to come over.

The minute they sit down, I can tell all is well with Sunny. Her aura is back to normal. She is her usual sunny self, smiling her beautiful smile at us.

“Hi, Heidi. Hi, Lucy,” she says. “I’m so sorry I was so grumpy all day. I don’t know why I was cranky. But I feel much better.”

And of course Sunny does know why she was uncharacteristically cranky, but she keeps it hush in front of Lucy and throws me a wink.

She gives Lucy a hug. “I hope you come for another visit soon,” she says. “I would love to hang out with you and get to know you better.”

Lucy seems thrilled. “Same here,” she says, beaming at Sunny.

I run through a quick checklist in my brain.

Is everything really back to normal? I think.

Charlie and Henry? Check.

Lucy? Check.

Sunny? Check.

The only one I’m not certain of is Melanie.

I quickly scan the room, but Melanie is nowhere to be found.

My dad pulls the car around, and I help Lucy get her stuff from my room.

I say goodbye to my family.

Then Lucy and I have a huge hugfest.

“I had a great time, Heidi,” she says. “But I still don’t like those gargoyles. I don’t know why, but I just don’t.”

I turn around and look at those statues. They seem to be staying put again.

Good, gargoyles!

“Me either,” I say as Lucy climbs into the back seat with Henry. “See you at Thanksgiving!”

I watch them drive away, waving until I can’t see the car anymore. Then I head back to my room.

I change into something comfy and sprawl across my bed. I think about all the out-of-this-world things that happened over the weekend.

As wacky as everything was, I’m sad it’s over.

I miss Lucy already.

I wish I could tell her that for a little while she was seven feet tall!

I sigh.

Oh well.

Maybe someday, I think.

Just then Melanie flounces into the room.

I hold my breath for a minute.

Is she going to call me “buddy” again and hug me?

I shouldn’t have worried.

She looks me up and down. “Well, Heidi, I guess now that everyone’s gone, you’re just going back to your old messy ways.”

She shakes her head at me. “Look at that wrinkled shirt. And did you even comb your hair today? It looks like a mop on your head!”

I touch the top of my head and smile.

Melanie? Check, I think.

Everything and everyone are back to normal again.

I can only wonder what my next adventure at Broomsfield Academy will be!

More from this Series

Worst Wish Ever!

Book 5

Worst Broommate Ever!

Book 1

Worst Love Spell Ever!

Book 2

Biggest Secret Ever!

Book 3

More from the Author

Henry Heckelbeck Takes a…

Henry Heckelbeck Camping…

Keep reading for a preview of

Worst Wish Ever!

by

Wanda Coven

THAT’S SHOW BIZ

Consider me old school when it comes to sending greeting cards.

I mean, seriously, does anyone other than me still send cards in the mail?

Well, I love to do it! And I found a cute one at the bookstore today. It has a bunch of turkeys driving in an old-fashioned station wagon. It’s totally ridiculous and I think Lucy will love it.

I grab a pen with brown ink and fill the blank space inside.

Hey, Lulu!

How are YOU?! MISS you fiercely!

Guess what? I’ll be home a week from TOMORROW for Thanksgiving! Eeeee!

Can you believe it? I’m SO excited to see you! And we have to have at least one sleepover while I’m home. We also have to do all the things we haven’t gotten to do lately, like paint pottery, make new friendship bracelets, go shopping, and bake chocolate chip cookies!

Can you tell I’m a little excited? Well, I AM! And I’m begging you to reserve all your spare time for me!

No other friends allowed, except maybe Bruce… oh, and Melanie really wants to hang with us too. But WE come first.

Okay, gotta go!

Gobble, gobble and all that jazz!

Heidi Kins

P.S. Love ya!

Hearts everywhere!

I seal my envelope and send it magically, of course, because it positively has to get there before I do!

Then I whiz out the door and down the steps of my dorm. The sun warms my back and the leaves crunch underfoot as I walk down the path to the Barn.

Even though I’m excited to go home for Thanksgiving, I’m a little sad to leave too. Every day at Broomsfield Academy has been really amazing so far, minus a few little missteps.

Okay, maybe some major flub-ups.

But, hey, I’ve gone a whole week without a single magical disaster. That’s a record for me!

And I’m not mad about my mistakes either, because according to my aunt Trudy, You should never fear failure, for that’s how you learn.

And I’ve learned a ton!

And hopefully, one day, all these lessons will pay off. But for now, I am happy learning magic right where I am.

I’m even a pro at staying calm through my magic mishaps—that’s because I’ve been practicing my daily meditation. I even meditated before I wrote to Lucy today. I know that quiet thoughts equal better magic, and better magic means becoming a better witch—and possibly even a phenomenal witch!

Abracadabra to that!

As I walk along, I hear another person’s voice inside my head.

I’m serious!

Hearing voices is a totally normal occurrence for me. Being able to read minds is my gift as a witch. And what’s more, I know who this voice belongs to.

I stop and turn around to see if I’m right, and there she is, my favorite teacher, Mrs. Kettledrum! And she’s walking my favorite dog, Momo, and just asked me to slow down for a chat. I happily oblige!

“Hi, Mrs. Kettledrum!” I sing. Then I drop to my knees and smoosh my face against Momo’s. Momo wags her plump little Corgi body and licks my cheeks. One word: slobberrific!

We’re total buds.

“I must say, Heidi, your mind-reading skills have really improved,” Mrs. Kettledrum says. “You heard me without seeing me—that’s a first.”

I hop back to my feet. Wow, she’s right! I did read her mind without seeing her first. I really must be getting better at this!

That said, I’m still pretty much a beginner at mind reading, but I’ll take the compliment.

“Thank you, Mrs. K! I’m getting better at my meditation too. I’ve been practicing every day and I feel more focused and peaceful in everything I do.”

Mrs. Kettledrum smiles that warm, approving smile that feels as good as the sun on my face. This lovely feeling passes as my teacher’s eyebrows suddenly jump, like she just remembered something.

“Heidi,” she says in a more serious tone, “have you been studying for my potions quiz and your magical wishes exam yet? Potions is tomorrow and your magical wishes exam is at the end of this week.”

Her question puts me on the spot and I fiddle with one of the straps on my backpack. I know she wants me to do well in all my studies—not just in her spells and potions class. And even though Mrs. Kettledrum gives me private advanced magic lessons, she still questions my study habits.

“Um, not y-yet,” I stammer. “But don’t worry, I’m on it!” I say, sticking two thumbs up to reassure her.

Mrs. Kettledrum lifts her foot out of the dog leash, which Momo had looped around one of her legs. “I’m sure you’ll do well, Heidi,” she says. “Just use your time wisely! There are only so many minutes in a day!”

No offense to teachers, including beloved ones like Mrs. Kettledrum, but why do they always state the obvious? Of course I’m going to study.

Duh, duh, and double duh!

Oh well. I give Mrs. Kettledrum a courteous “Thank you” and an “Of course, I will.” Then I bend down and pet Momo between the ears one more time and wave goodbye.

Yippy! It’s lunchtime! I think to myself as I skip down the path. And this week, lunchtime means one wonderful, fantabulous thing.

I get to see my crush, Nick! Woo!

Nick Lee and I have been in a “flirtationship” for a few weeks. He’s smart, funny, cuter-than-cute, and oh-so-sweet!

And to top it off, we’re actually at the SAME cafeteria table this week. This is the first time we’ve ever been assigned to the same table.

One word: YES!!!

My stomach growls the moment I step into the cafeteria and breathe in that saucy, spicy smell, with a hint of baking bread.

My tray clatters as I set it on the counter. Today’s choices are grilled chicken sandwiches with macaroni salad, and veggie burgers with sweet potato mash. I go for the veggie burger. The server nestles the veggie burger on a bun and slides it onto my plate. Another server slops sweet potato mash on the side. I pour myself some ice water and head to my table.

Sunny and Annabelle wave madly, like I’m some long-lost friend. This week they’re at the table next to mine.

Oh geez, they’re wiggling their eyebrows and making super-silly faces at me.

Aagh!

Why do they have to act SO goofy when Nick is around?

I guess since I’m crushing, they want to get in on the fun. I throw them a stern glance, like, Act normal, you two! Nick doesn’t need to see all this excessive silliness!

Note to self: Educate besties on how to behave around my crush.

I finally dare to glance Nick’s way, and clearly he’s been looking at me on my entire trip to the table.

“Heyyyy, Heidi!” he croons, scooching over to make room for me at the table. He very quickly sizes up my lunch choice. “Are you a vegetarian?”

I laugh loudly. Me? A vegetarian? I think.

My family would love that one. I only ate buttered noodles, chicken nuggets, and absolutely nothing that resembled a veggie for my entire childhood. But for some reason—most likely nervousness—the word yes flies right out of my mouth. Oops, I’d better correct this!

“I mean NO!” I say a little too emphatically. “I’m not a vegetarian.” Then I giggle awkwardly.

I have to pause to ponder something: Will I ever be able to act like a NORMAL person around Nick?

And then I think of another big oops! I forgot to say hello to him!

So much for being calmer in everything I do.

MERG!

I take a deep breath and start over. “Hey, Nick! Um, I’m not a vegetarian. I just like to try new things, so I thought I’d give this veggie burger a whirl.”

Ugh! Did I just say give this veggie burger A WHIRL?! Who says that? That sounded like something Dad would say when he tries something new.

Two words: Stone Age!

“You’re cool,” Nick says, and blushes. “I mean, that’s cool that you like to try new things.”

I look at my plate for a sec. Well, at least he sounds as uncool as I do—and he also thinks I’m COOL.

That’s a relief!

Then my thoughts are interrupted. I look up because I can tell someone is thinking about me. I’m getting more sensitive to other people’s thoughts all the time.

And sure enough, my eyes lock on Melanie, who’s sitting across the table from me. She’s grins and points two fingers at her eyes and then back at me like, I’m watching you and your

BOYYYYfriend!

She probably thinks Nick and I are awkward and pathetic, or maybe I’m the only one who thinks that, but either way, who cares?!

I shrug at Melanie, like it’s no big deal—even though I’m a swarming mix of emotions, including angst, self-doubt, and worry. The usual suspects that come knocking when I have a crush.

I pick up my veggie burger, and I’m about to take a bite when my mind-reading gift kicks in again. This time, I can actually hear what Melanie is thinking, and her thoughts are coming in loud and clear.

You’re totally blushing, Heidi! she says in my head.

I drop my veggie burger. Splat!

It lands on my plate and bursts apart. The patty looks suspiciously like the sole of an old shoe.

Ew.

At the same time, my hands fly to my cheeks because of what Melanie just said, I mean, what she just thought. And what’s worse, Melanie is looking at me with wide suspicious eyes, like she’s reading into my reaction.

That’s when I suddenly realize that I’ve never told Melanie I can read minds—not to mention—that I’m getting better at it.

Oh no! I should probably clue her in, because now she thinks something’s up.

There is so much happening.

Moment of meditation, Heidi! I take another deep breath and decide that I’ll tell her later.

But my moment of peace only lasts a second, because Nick just gently elbowed me in the ribs and it made me jump. I bang the table with my knees.

Bam!

“Ow!” I yell before I can stop myself.

“Oh, sorry, Heidi! I didn’t mean to startle you!” Nick says.

I smile, like, No problem—even though I’m mortified for sounding like such a baby. Nick wrinkles his brow and points at my plate. “Don’t you like your veggie burger?”

I pick up the patty with my fork and lay it back on the bun. Then I pop the top back on. Nick is watching my every move.

“Actually, I haven’t tried it yet,” I tell him. “It was too hot.” And even though the burger looks less than appetizing, I take a big bite, because 1. I’m a good sport, and 2. I have an audience who knows that I like to try new things.

I squeeze my eyes shut and force myself to swallow. Then I gulp down half my water, which leaves me out of breath.

“It doesn’t taste like a hamburger, that’s for sure! It kind of tastes like… smushed peas and mushrooms!”

Nick—and everyone at the table—cracks up, even Melanie. She seems to have lost that something-fishy’s-going-on look. Phew! And thankfully, the conversation goes back just to Nick and me.

“Well, this cafeteria usually has pretty decent food, but I admit the veggie burgers here aren’t the best I’ve ever had,” Nick says. “Not by a long shot. I’ve had some that were really good.”

I nod. “I’ll try them again sometime,” I say. “Just not here!” Nick grins.

“So, what’s your favorite food, Heidi?” Nick asks.

Oooh, that’s a great question with such an easy answer, I think.

“Doughnuts!” I declare with conviction. Doughnuts are my best friend Lucy’s favorite food too.

“Mmmmm!” Nick says, leaning back in his chair.

Two of the chair legs leave the floor. “Doughnuts are my favorite food too!” He holds up a hand and I slap it.

Wow. Another thing we have in common! It feels like we just cleared another hurdle in this relationship.

Eeee!

“And you know what, Heidi?” Nick asks. “My dad has a doughnut machine, and he makes fresh doughnuts all the time—any kind you can think of! Glazed, powdered sugar, blueberry, s’mores, cream-filled, maple, birthday cake…”

My eyes grow larger with every flavor Nick names. “Wow, Nick, you are SO LUCKY!”

Clunk! Nick’s chair legs come back to earth.

“I’ll bring you some after Thanksgiving break,” he promises. “You’ll LOVE them!”

The only thing I’m loving more than doughnuts right now is Nick. I am so crushing on him!

Melanie sees it too, and out of the corner of my eye I see her wink at me, but I keep my focus on Nick.

“I’d love a box of doughnuts, Nick, but only one condition—we have to share them,” I say.

“Deal,” Nick agrees, tossing his napkin onto his plate and pushing back his chair.

Nick stands and picks up his tray. I do too. Time to get to class. “So, what do you have next, Heidi? Maybe we can walk together?”

I almost drop my tray because Nick just asked to walk me to class! Another FIRST!!!

I’m about blurt out an overeager YES when I realize I have history of magic next.

Bzzzzzt! That game show buzzer sound goes off in my head, and suddenly I’m the unlucky contestant.

I’m sorry, Heidi! YES is the WRONG answer!

I scramble for how to respond. Nick isn’t a student at the School of Magic, so I can’t exactly tell him I have a magic class next, but I don’t want him to think I don’t want to walk with him either.

In the midst of my jumbled thoughts, the bell rings. And at the same time, Melanie pops in between Nick and me, like some kind of photobomber. She grins at Nick.

“She can’t,” Melanie says bluntly. “Heidi promised she’d walk back to our room with me first.” Then my broommate gives me a hard stare. “REMEMBER, Heidi?”

What’s Melanie up to NOW? I wonder, but I go along with her act and nod.

“Um, y-yeah,” I stutter. “Sorry, Nick. I’d love to walk with you next time. But friend duty calls!”

Nick’s face looks like what any guy’s face would look like when he gets caught up in some mysterious girl thing. Confused.

Melanie grabs me by the elbow and drags me away. “Talk to you later, Nick!” I call over my shoulder.

Melanie steers me to the dish-drop window and I set down my tray. She’s still has a firm grip on my arm, so I can’t even scrape my plate or separate the silverware.

Once we’re outside, she finally lets go of my arm.

“Why do you look so shocked, Heidi?” Melanie asks. “I just saved you!”

Continue Reading…

Worst Wish Ever!

Wanda Coven

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Wanda Coven has always loved magic. When she was little, she used to make secret potions from smooshed shells and acorns. Then she would pretend to transport herself and her friends to enchanted places. Now she visits other worlds through writing. Wanda lives with her husband and son in Colorado Springs, Colorado. They have three cats: Hilda, Agnes, and Claw-dia.

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Anna Abramskaya was born in Sevastopol, Ukraine. She graduated from Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts in 2006. Then she moved to the United States, where she’s currently living in the beautiful city of Jacksonville, Florida. Anna has loved art since she was little and has tried different materials and techniques. The process of creation and seeing beauty in the simple things around her always brings her joy and the wish to share that feeling with everyone. Anna wants to believe that art can help bring more love into people’s hearts. Find out more at AnnaAbramskaya.com.

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www.SimonandSchuster.com/Authors/Wanda-Coven

www.SimonandSchuster.com/Authors/Anna-Abramskaya

Simon Spotlight

Simon & Schuster, New York

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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First Simon Spotlight edition August 2024

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Text by Alison Inches

Series designed by Chani Yammer, based on the Heidi Heckelbeck series designed by Aviva Shur

Cover designed by Laura Roode

Illustrated by Anna Abramskaya, inspired by the original character designs of Priscilla Burris from the Heidi Heckelbeck chapter book series

The illustrations for this book were rendered with digital ink and a bunch of love.

This book has been cataloged by the Library of Congress.

ISBN 978-1-6659-4924-8

ISBN 978-1-6659-4925-5 (ebook)