Amelia Fang and the Memory Thief Read online

  Also by

  LAURA ELLEN ANDERSON

  Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball

  Amelia Fang and the Unicorns of Glitteropolis

  Amelia Fang and the Rainbow Rangers

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Text copyright © 2020 by Laura Ellen Anderson

  Cover art copyright © 2020 by Laura Ellen Anderson

  Lettering and backgrounds copyright © 2020 by Sarah Coleman

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Delacorte Press, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

  Delacorte Press is a registered trademark and the colophon is a trademark of Penguin Random House LLC.

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  Educators and librarians, for a variety of teaching tools, visit us at RHTeachersLibrarians.com

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  Trade Paperback ISBN 9780593172476

  Ebook ISBN 9780593172483

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  v5.4

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  For my marvelous, magnificent, musical sister Marie! The memories we’ve shared are unforgettable and I love you more than freshly baked cookies xxx

  Contents

  Cover

  Also by Laura Ellen Anderson

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Map of the Kingdoms

  Meet the Nocturnians

  1. Goblin-Slime Superglue

  2. My Life…In Song

  3. Sublime

  4. Pumpkin Paradise Park

  5. I Just Wanna Play Goblin Tag

  6. Bake Faster

  7. Bad Boogers

  8. The Pumpkin Patch

  9. What the Bats is Going On?

  10. Sit Your Royal Bottom Down

  11. Loose Limbs Library

  12. Unicoooooorn! The Terror!

  13. The Field of Forget-Me-Nots

  14. Pa-Doof!

  15. Just Like Me

  16. Love

  17. The Pumpkins and the Grumpkins

  18. Take Him Away!

  19. Pumpkin-Shaped Dreams

  About the Author

  On a misty Wednesday night after school, young vampire Amelia Fang sat in her bedroom with her pet pumpkin, Squashy, surrounded by a complete and utter mess.

  “Darkling,” Amelia’s mother, Countess Frivoleeta, called from downstairs. “It’s time for your organ practice with Wooo. Remember, your exam is coming up soon.”

  “Do I have to practice tonight?” Amelia replied, her heart sinking at the thought of more organ practice—despite how ghoulishly enthusiastic Wooo, their ghost butler, was. “I’m making Squashy a cute costume for my birthnight party!”

  Squashy squeaked and spun on the spot delightedly.

  “Isn’t it exciting, Squashy! Soon I’ll be eleven moon-years old!” Amelia beamed, flicking through her Positively Pumpkin magazine. “And we get to celebrate in style at the Pumpkin Patch! Golly ghouls, I do love pumpkins.”

  Amelia wanted to be a Pumpkinologist more than anything in the whole world when she grew up—she could imagine studying and caring for pumpkins like Squashy forever!

  Amelia also loved making things, and she especially loved making things for Squashy. Tonight her bedroom floor was covered in black-and-orange material, goblin-slime superglue and various cobwebbing tools.

  The bedroom door creaked open, revealing Countess Frivoleeta’s huge beehive hairdo. When she saw the mess in Amelia’s room, she gasped.

  “Amelia, my dreadful little wart-picker, I can’t see your bedroom floor!”

  “It’s creative mess.” Amelia grinned. “Look, I’m making some sunglasses for Squashy and some tiny bow ties.”

  The countess made a strange noise. “Amelia Fang! It’s like you’re living in a goblin cave. Wooo is waiting for you in the organ room, so tidy this mess up and then go downstairs for your practice.”

  Amelia felt her cheeks flush. “But, Mom, it’s nearly my birthnight, and I have so much to catch up on in Positively Pumpkin! Can’t I skip organ practice just this week?”

  “Certainly not, darkling—you already missed last week because you were at pumpkin-patch digging. Organ practice is important—pumpkin magazines are not.”

  Amelia sighed. “Okay, Mom, I’ll be down in a minute,” she said as the countess left the room. Sometimes it felt like her mom just didn’t understand.

  “Don’t worry, Squashy. We’ll have your costume ready, even if I have to stay up all day to finish it.”

  Squashy pa-doinged in excitement but landed on the tube of goblin-slime superglue, and a giant purple glob spurted all over Amelia’s dress.

  “Oh, no! Be careful, Squashy!” Amelia shrieked, looking down at the slimy patch.

  But the little pumpkin leapt forward and landed on Amelia’s lap—right slap-bang in the pile of goblin slime.

  “Uh-oh!” cried Amelia. “You just sat in the glue….”

  Squashy tried to pa-doing out of her lap, but he was stuck.

  Amelia looked around her bedroom in search of some glitter—the only thing that could dissolve goblin slime—but she couldn’t see any.

  “We have to hurry, Squashy,” Amelia urged. “Wooo is waiting for me, and you’re stuck to my lap…. Argh!”

  She tried her best to pull her dress off, but it was difficult with a pumpkin stuck to the front of it. Amelia found herself caught half in and half out of the dress. Squashy had begun to squeak in a panic and was swinging from side to side, trying to free himself.

  “Whoa! Squashy, what are you doing?” Amelia asked, trying to wriggle out of the tangled garment. “Stop it! You’re making me lose balance!”

  But, determined to free himself, the little pumpkin kept on swinging—making Amelia stumble around the room like a frenzied zombie.

  “OUCH!” she cried as she stomped on a small box full of buttons and lost her footing.

  CRASH!

  Amelia and Squashy went tumbling into the pumpkin-themed creations, sending them flying across the room.

  A few seconds later, her mom burst through the door.

  “What the gravestones is going on?” she exclaimed, surveying the carnage.

  “Um…I can explain—” Amelia started to say.

  “And what’s happened to your dress?” her mother said sternly.

  Amelia looked down. There was a massive rip where Squashy had been swinging.

  “It was an accident, Mom, honest!” Amelia said, scrambling to her feet. “I was just about to leave, and the glue spilt out and Squashy got stuck and—”

  “I have had enough, Amelia!” the countess said, holding up a hand. She picked
up a copy of Positively Pumpkin. “You’ve always got your head stuck in this silly magazine! You’ve been neglecting your vampiress etiquette studies and organ practice for too long now.”

  “It’s not a silly magazine!” Amelia cried, snatching it away from her mom.

  “Do NOT use that tone with me,” the countess replied. “One more outburst like that and I’m canceling your Positively Pumpkin subscription!”

  “But, Mom, that’s not fair! It was an accident, and you know how important pumpkins and Squashy are to me!” Amelia said.

  Countess Frivoleeta’s left eyeball twitched. But she composed herself.

  “Wooo is waiting,” the countess said through gritted fangs. “Change your dress, and then you had better be downstairs in two minutes.” She swiftly left the room.

  Amelia sighed and slumped to the floor. “Oh, Squashy,” she said sadly. “I don’t think Mom knows me at all.”

  “So, are you excited about your birthnight party, Amelia?” said Grimaldi Reaperton the next night before school. “I heard your mom and dad rented the Pumpkin Patch for a whole night!”

  Amelia sat quietly, tickling Squashy’s tummy. “I guess so,” she sighed.

  Amelia and her best friends, Grimaldi, Florence Spudwick and Prince Tangine La Floofle the First sat under the Petrified-Tree-That-Looked-Like-a-Unicorn. Florence was a huge hairy yeti, an extremely loyal friend and a great pit-digger who did NOT like being called a beast by anybody. Tangine, on the other hand, was half vampire, half fairy and fully enjoyed a good face scrub.

  “A Pumpkin Patch birthnight party sounds super fun!” Tangine said. “I know Pumpy will love it!”

  Pumpy, Tangine’s genetically modified pet pumpkin, tried to roll over but fell asleep halfway through the roll.

  “Although I’ve recently discovered Pumpy suffers from Chronic-Upside-Down-Sleep-Syndrome…,” Tangine said, giving Pumpy a nudge so that he was upright once again.

  The huge pumpkin flexed his six-pack and PA-DOOFed into Tangine’s arms, making the prince fall backward.

  “PRINCE DOWN!” Florence yelled as Tangine groaned.

  Amelia tried to smile but couldn’t do it.

  “You seem sad, Amelia,” Grimaldi said. “What’s up?”

  “Me and Mom kind of had an argument,” Amelia sighed. “I told her I didn’t want to play the organ this week so that I could finish Squashy’s costume—and read more Positively Pumpkin. And she got really mad. I just don’t think I can be the perfect vampiress she wants me to be.”

  “THAT’S TOO BAD,” Florence said, putting a big hairy arm around Amelia’s shoulders. “YOU’LL BE HAPPY YOU STUCK WITH THE ORGAN, THOUGH. I WISH I COULD PLAY.” She yawned.

  Amelia and her friends were all feeling a little tired after the big Petrifying Palace Parade a few nights before, where everyone had celebrated the Kingdom of the Dark and the Kingdom of the Light becoming friends.

  After many years of being completely terrified of each other, Creatures of the Light and the Dark could now live side by side in peace, since the evil Alpha Unicorn had been defeated by Amelia and her friends. Along with a group of mighty unicorn lords, Alpha Unicorn had been spreading false and scary rumors about the creatures from each kingdom to keep them divided. But thanks to Amelia and the gang, everyone was now free to roam wherever they pleased. Things were better than ever, and the Creatures of the Dark now accepted the wonders of glitter; once the stuff of nightmares!

  The parade had been a LOT of fun, but after much dancing, singing and pumpkin juggling, Amelia and her friends could have used more sleep.

  From across the graveyard came the rattling sound of the Catacomb Academy welcome bones.

  “C’MON, FANG,” Florence said to Amelia. “I’M SURE A BIT OF BORING OLD SCHOOL WILL HELP CHEER YOU UP!”

  Amelia couldn’t help but chuckle. “Squashy, you can stay out here in the graveyard and play with Pumpy while we’re at school.” She gave the little pumpkin a pat on the stem.

  Squashy pa-doinged once and blew a raspberry at Pumpy. Pumpy responded by puffing his six-pack chest out at Squashy.

  “You two need to learn to be friends,” Amelia said kindly. “I hope you are by the time school finishes.”

  Amelia would usually sneak Squashy into class with her, but she felt having a pumpkin buddy would be good for him. It didn’t stop her from missing Squashy every second they were apart, though. Luckily, Amelia had lots of new school subjects to focus on and keep her mind occupied.

  Since the Kingdom of the Dark and the Kingdom of the Light had become friends, Catacomb Academy had introduced a variety of new Kingdom of the Light–themed lessons to educate the Creatures of the Dark. Alongside Pumpkinology and Slime Skills, Amelia and her friends now studied Angel-Kitten Singing, Cloud Crafts, Glitterology and History of the Bug Blossoms.

  “Good evening, class,” said the teacher, Miss Inspine, as the students settled onto their plinths. “Firstly, I’d like to welcome the fairy exchange students from the Kingdom of the Light. I appreciate you may be a little sleepy while you get used to the time difference,” said Miss Inspine, addressing the fairies.

  Five fairies, who were all different sizes, waved shyly from the back of the classroom, not looking at all alarmed that their new teacher was a skeleton. One teeny-weeny fairy with a puffy dress had fallen asleep inside a test tube and was snoring loudly.

  “Now, class, you may remember I asked you all to put together a presentation on a subject of your choice, to introduce our visitors to the Kingdom of the Dark,” Miss Inspine continued. “Tangine, I believe you’re up first—what is the title of your presentation?”

  Tangine stood and strutted to the front of the classroom.

  “May I present to you, MY LIFE…IN SONG,” Tangine said, straightening his bow tie.

  Amelia, Florence and Grimaldi looked at each other wide-eyed, trying not to laugh.

  “Um…,” began Miss Inspine. But before she could continue, Tangine bellowed:

  “CLASSMATES, AND FAIRIES FROM AFAR!”

  “Oh, he’s actually doing this…,” Amelia whispered, a little surprised. She’d never heard Tangine attempt to sing before.

  “Thiiiiiis story of sadness, this tale of delight…

  Is one of the Creatures of Dark and of Liiiiiight.

  For both lived in fear of the other for years,

  Led by stories of beasts—”

  “I AM NOT A BEAST!” Florence blurted out, causing the snoring fairy in the test tube to wake with a start.

  Tangine glared.

  “UH, SORRY…NEVER MIND,” Florence said sheepishly.

  Clearing his throat, Tangine continued theatrically.

  “Led by stories of beasts and unicorn tears!

  Two Kingdoms divided by terror and lies,

  But soon they’d be in for a pleasant surpriiiiise!

  One twilight, the King of Nocturnia met

  A fairy?!

  Oh dear!

  But she was not a threat….

  She was kind, a true beauty, the love of his life,

  And this fairy became King Vladimir’s wiiiiiife!”

  “Wow,” Amelia whispered to her friends. “He’s actually really good!”

  “And soon baby Tangine was born….

  Yes, that’s MEEEEE!

  The most handsome baby you ever did see.

  With the fangs of a vampire and fairy wings too?!

  Nobody could find out–who knows what they’d do?

  Then suddenly, one dusk, my mother was gone.

  The king wondered if he’d done something wrong.

  He searched every night, every day, all year through,

  And the older I got, the more distant he grew….”

  Tangine then got down on one knee and cast his hand across his foreh
ead dramatically.

  “I was spoiled, I was lonely, and then I started school.

  But I acted a bit like a silly young fool!

  I stole a pet pumpkin and took someone’s chair,

  But a special friend showed me how that wasn’t fair.”

  Tangine looked at Amelia and blushed.

  Amelia beamed back, happy that she and Tangine were now such good friends.

  “She found out my secret, but she wasn’t scared,

  And that’s how I knew that my friend really cared.

  We went on a journey to find my lost mom,

  To the Kingdom of the Light in the dazzling sun!

  But little did we know that the unicorn lords—

  Those mighty horned horses their citizens adored—

  Had kidnapped my mother! Oh yes, you heard right!

  So we grabbed our baguettes and we put up a fight!”

  “HEH HEH.” Florence chuckled at the memory of brandishing bread baguettes and baked goods as weapons against Alpha Unicorn and his unicorn lords.

  “The truth was revealed—and my mother was freeeeeeed!

  Creatures of the Light and the Dark all agreed,

  We’ve no need to fear one another anymore.

  Together we’ve so much to learn and explore!

  So the King of Nocturnia is now full of glee!

  (Even though he was briefly turned into a bee. Yes, really.)

  And that’s the tale of how two kingdoms made amends,

  And how the Creatures of the Light and the Dark became frieeeeeeeends!”

  Tangine threw both arms in the air and sent glitter flying across the classroom. Once upon a time this would have terrified his Creature of the Dark classmates, but now everyone cheered and clapped and twirled around in the glittery rainstorm.