Amelia Fang and the Unicorns of Glitteropolis Read online

  “Did you hear any singing just now?” Amelia said.

  “Singing?” Grimaldi said. “No…I only heard Tangine moan as he bumped into a tree trunk.”

  “YEAH, HE WAS HORRIBLE AT COLLECTING STICKS,” said Florence, poking Tangine in the head. “WENT ALL LAZYBONES ON US!”

  “I felt sleepy!” Tangine said.

  “McSparkle was sleepy too,” Grimaldi said. “He didn’t help us collect even one stick!”

  McSparkle shuffled on the spot. “I told you, I wasn’t asleep!”

  “YOU WERE SO, YOU BIG FIB-FACE,” Florence said.

  McSparkle picked up some sticks and started to make a fire in the clearing.

  “Did you happen to see any pink glittery mist? Or smell anything sweet?” Amelia said.

  “Pffft! No, thank goodness!” Grimaldi said.

  “Strange,” said Amelia, pulling out the jeweled stick with the feathers on the end.

  “Ooo, what’s that?” Tangine said.

  “I don’t know,” Amelia said. “I found it after I heard the singing and the mist disappeared.”

  Tangine took the jeweled object and studied it. “It’s pretty,” he said. “I want it!”

  “No, Tangine,” said Amelia, gently taking the stick back. “It doesn’t belong to you. Clearly somebody has lost it, so we’ll keep it safe until we can find its owner.”

  Tangine looked dejected but didn’t argue.

  “Well, the fire’s all set for the night,” said McSparkle, stepping back from a pinkish-yellow flame. “Anyone else have the urge to dance?”

  Amelia and her friends stood in an awkward silence.

  Three minutes later, everyone was skipping merrily around the fire.

  And even though back home in Nocturnia everyone would be awake now, Amelia and her friends had had such a long day that ten minutes later, they were fast asleep.

  At first light, McSparkle was singing.

  “Uuuuup and at ’em!”

  “I’LL UP AND AT YOU IN A MINUTE!” Florence grumbled, forgetting where she was.

  “What time is it?” groaned Grimaldi.

  “It’s sunrise, you silly sunflower!” sang McSparkle. “C’mon now, time to head to the Vivid Valley to wait for the Rainbow Rail.”

  The friends followed McSparkle through the Fairy Forest for what seemed like an eternity. Just when Amelia thought she couldn’t go any farther, the trees parted to reveal an expanse of pastel-colored hills reaching as far as their eyes could see.

  “Vivid Valley is looking extra vivid today!” McSparkle sang, stretching his arms out toward the lush scenery.

  Amelia had never seen anything like this before. The colors were overwhelming. She was so used to grays and blacks. This was going to take some getting used to.

  “I feel sick…,” said Grimaldi, clearly struggling to handle the new spectrum of colors in front of him.

  Tangine’s mouth dropped open. “It’s beauuuuutiful!”

  “No sign of the Rainbow,” McSparkle said. “Hopefully it’s not already been and gone!”

  Amelia took a deep breath. The air was a mixture of sweet, sparkly and fresh. She was starting to miss her mom’s Slug Slime-Trail perfume after all.

  As the friends followed McSparkle along Vivid Valley, Amelia noticed more and more Creatures of the Light gathering. Meanwhile, Tangine spent the whole journey trying to catch any bumblebee that flew in his path. Unfortunately, he ended up with more stings than bees.

  “No Rainbow yet?” McSparkle addressed a purple pony with a glittery tail.

  “Not yet,” the pony said. “Soon, though. I can feel it in me tootsies!”

  “Excellent!” said McSparkle, rubbing his hands together. He turned to Amelia. “Fancy a snack?” He pulled a small pouch from his pocket and poured out some tiny red beans.

  “LIKE THAT’LL FILL US UP…,” Florence commented.

  McSparkle started doing a little jig. Amelia couldn’t help but giggle. Then he stopped, clapped his hands three times and…

  POOF!

  The beans turned into huge ice cream cakes.

  “Whoa!” said Grimaldi, hiding behind Amelia.

  “Dig in!” McSparkle said. “They’re strawberry sherbet!”

  Amelia, Florence, Grimaldi and Tangine stared at the ice cream cakes. They were unlike any of the food they had at home.

  “There’s no pus,” Grimaldi whispered into Amelia’s ear.

  Tangine took a bite and then paused. His eyes widened.

  “You have to try this!” he said, shoving the rest into his mouth.

  Amelia took a bite of the ice cream cake. Immediately her mouth was flooded with a taste sensation she’d never experienced before. But she would still have preferred one of her favorite Tongue Twister Sandwiches.

  “RAAAAINBOOOOW!” a pixie suddenly shouted.

  The Creatures of the Light cheered as a huge rainbow stretched across the sky.

  Amelia felt the ice cream cake fall out of her mouth as her jaw dropped at the sight before her.

  “Well, what’re we waiting for?” McSparkle yelled. “The Rainbow has arrived!”

  Creatures of the Light began charging toward the end of the rainbow. Grimaldi squeaked with fear as the creatures swept past him.

  Amelia held on to Squashy on her head and made a run for it. “Come on, guys! To Glitteropolis!”

  The friends followed McSparkle, running as fast as they could. As Amelia got closer to the Rainbow, she saw a multicolored train with an infinite number of carriages fading into the distance.

  Suddenly, her foot caught on a small rock. With Creatures of the Light stampeding toward her, Amelia found herself crashing to the ground.

  WHOOOOOOOOSH! Florence swept Amelia up with one big hairy arm as a herd of noisy gnomes came thundering past.

  Amelia breathed a sigh of relief, before realizing that something wasn’t right. She felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and not in a good way….

  “Squashy is gone!” she yelled. “He must have fallen off my head! Florence, turn back!”

  With Amelia still in her arms, Florence spun sharply on the spot and started to run against the crowd.

  “Hey! What’re you doing?” a flying pig asked. “The Rainbow is that way!”

  But Florence kept running, pushing aside any Creature of the Light that got in her way.

  “There he is!” Amelia yelled, pointing at the confused pumpkin-daisy.

  Squashy bounced up and down when he saw Amelia, and pa-doinged straight into her arms. Florence quickly turned around and started running back toward the Rainbow.

  Amelia gave a shriek. “Oh no!” she cried. The Rainbow was already fading.

  “Hurry up!” McSparkle shouted as he jumped onto the Rainbow Rail and disappeared.

  In the distance, from a carriage on the train, Grimaldi shouted, “Quiiiiiick! The Rainbow’s about to disappear!”

  “What’s taking you so loooooonnnnng?” Tangine called.

  “BRACE YOURSELVES,” said Florence, tightening her grip on Amelia. With one giant leap she hurtled through the air toward the end of the Rainbow. Amelia held on to Squashy and closed her eyes tight. “I THINK WE’RE GONNA MAKE IT!” Florence stretched forward.

  And the Rainbow was gone, like the last dregs of water being sucked down a drain.

  Florence, Amelia and Squashy went tumbling to the ground. They sat in the empty valley and looked up at the clear sky.

  “We missed it…,” Amelia said.

  “GUESS WE HAVE TO WAIT TILL TOMORROW FOR THE NEXT RAINBOW,” said Florence.

  “I’m sorry,” Amelia said sadly. “It’s all my fault. I hope Grimaldi and Tangine are okay.”

  Florence put a big hairy arm around Amelia’s shoulders. “THEY’LL BE FINE.”

  Squashy
started bouncing up and down. Pa-doing! Pa-doing! Pa-doing!

  “I’m sorry, Squashy,” Amelia said, looking at the ground.

  Pa-doing! Squeak!

  “WHAT’S UP, SQUASHMEISTER?” Florence asked.

  Pa-doing! Squeak! SQUEEEEEEEEEAK!

  “MAYBE HE NEEDS A POO,” Florence suggested.

  SQUEEEEAK! SQUEEEEAK! SQUEEEEEEE-EEEEEEEEEEAK!

  “Squashy, what’s wr—” Amelia paused as she looked up—then she gasped. “The Rainbow! It’s back!”

  The Rainbow was stretching across the sky once again.

  An echoey voice announced. “Due to a fairy stuck in the bathroom, the Rainbow Rail has been delayed by two minutes.”

  “WHAT’RE WE WAITING FOR? WE GOT TWO MINUTES,” Florence bellowed.

  The friends ran as fast as they could toward the Rainbow and flung themselves into the nearest carriage.

  DINGALING DING DONG

  “Welcome aboard the Rainbow Rail!” the voice chimed. “We sincerely apologize for the delay. The fairy has now been removed from the bathroom. Please snuggle up comfortably and enjoy the view as we make our way to our one and only destination…GLITTEROPOLIS. We do hope you enjoy your journey with us todiddlyday!”

  “WELL, THIS IS NICE,” said Florence, making herself comfortable on one of the carriage beanbags.

  “Why, hello there…,” a deep voice said.

  Florence jumped and farted in fright.

  A shiny young unicorn with a dark shimmery mane was perched on a nearby beanbag.

  “YOU MADE ME JUMP,” Florence said.

  “Apologies!” said the unicorn. “I didn’t mean to startle you. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Fabio.” He swished his mane.

  “FLORENCE,” Florence said.

  “Lovely day.” Fabio smiled.

  Florence peered out the window and sniffed. “AVERAGE, I GUESS.”

  “So, where’re you from?” Fabio said.

  Florence shuffled uncomfortably in her beanbag. “I—ERRRR…,” she stammered.

  “We’re from Handsome Hill,” said Amelia stepping in. “I’m Amelia, by the way. Nice to meet you.”

  “Handsome Hill?” said Fabio, raising an eyebrow. “I’ve never heard of it….”

  Amelia felt a bead of sweat trickle down her forehead.

  “THAT’S ’CAUSE IT’S A SMALL HILL,” said Florence.

  “You’re unlike any unicorn I’ve met before,” said Fabio, turning back to Florence. “There’s something different about you….” He paused.

  Amelia felt her heart pound in her chest.

  “I know what it is,” Fabio finally said. “Your mane—it’s so full of life. How do you achieve that volume?”

  Florence blinked at him, then looked over at Amelia, who shrugged.

  “ERRM,” said Florence, stroking her chin. “IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CONDITIONER. CAN ONLY FIND IT IN HANDSOME HILL, Y’SEE. IT’S GOT EXTRACT OF…HILL.”

  “Well,” Fabio said after a few seconds of silence, “it looks beautiful.”

  Amelia put a hand to her mouth to stop herself from laughing. Florence’s eyes widened.

  “It’s delightful to meet you, Florence,” Fabio said. “Would you do me the honor of joining me for a Cuddly Custard Pie tomorrow?”

  Florence sank lower into her beanbag and looked over at Amelia, who was still trying not to laugh.

  Before Florence could respond, Grimaldi, McSparkle and a rather bedraggled Tangine burst into the carriage.

  “There you are!” Grimaldi puffed. “We thought you were going to miss it a second time!”

  “Lucky for you, your friend ’ere got stuck in the toilet!” said McSparkle. “How he managed that I’ll never know.”

  “I was helping my furmaids!” said Tangine defensively. He was wet and smelled strange.

  “You could’ve just got stuck in the train door or something,” Grimaldi said.

  Tangine gave Grimaldi a dirty look.

  “Hey there,” said Fabio, clip-clopping over to Grimaldi and Tangine.

  “THIS IS FATSO,” Florence said.

  “Oh, err, no, no…,” said the dark-haired unicorn, “I’m Fabio.”

  “Good to see you again, Fabio!” said McSparkle, giving a friendly salute. “Been anywhere nice?”

  “Oh, you know,” Fabio said, “the usual…Handing out flyers about Glitteropolis in smaller towns. Every creature will be moving to the city in no time!”

  McSparkle gave a little squee of excitement. “Oh yes! And then we can finally live in peace!”

  “Exactly,” Fabio said.

  “I want a flyer,” Tangine said.

  Fabio smiled. “It would be my pleasure. We must spread the Glitteropolis joy! Where are you from?”

  Tangine stared at Fabio blankly. “Um…I come from the lovely, errr, Misty Mountain Dew on a Summer’s Morning Sparkle…Town?”

  “That’s my name,” said McSparkle, frowning.

  Amelia interrupted. “Oh, don’t listen to him! He’s a real joker.” She poked Tangine hard in the arm. “We’re all from Handsome Hill! Aren’t we?”

  Tangine rubbed his arm, and Grimaldi nodded enthusiastically.

  “Well, looks like we’re arriving,” Fabio said. “Here’s the flyer.” He handed Tangine a piece of parchment covered in glittery letters. Amelia felt her heart jump as she caught sight of the familiar words:

  GLITTEROPOLIS, the city where the sun never goes down and your dreams always come true…

  The train began to slow. Outside the windows, a huge sugar-coated mountain flickered into view, and on the platform in huge glittery letters read the words:

  WELCOME TO GLITTEROPOLIS

  The train came to a stop and the doors slid open. Amelia sucked in a sharp breath, speechless at the sight before her. The whole city sat upon a huge swirly mountain, surrounded by pink clouds—a busy cluster of glittery houses, flowery market stalls and mini waterfalls. At the very tip of the mountain, a tall building that resembled a huge unicorn horn glimmered in the bright sunlight.

  Squashy bounced up and down next to Amelia, squeaking in awe.

  “That view never gets old,” said Fabio, stepping outside. “So, Florence, will you accept my invitation for a Cuddly Custard Pie?”

  “I DON’T THINK—” Florence began.

  “She’d love to!” Amelia cut in.

  Florence shot Amelia a stern look.

  “Marvelous!” Fabio beamed. “Meet me at the entrance to the FairyGround at noon tomorrow. We can get extra sprinkles!” And with that he gracefully galloped away.

  “ER, EXPLAIN?” Florence said to Amelia, folding her arms.

  “Didn’t you see?” Amelia whispered. She pulled the scrap of glittery parchment from behind her wing. “Look at the flyer Fabio gave to Tangine! It matches the piece of parchment King Vladimir found just after Fairyweather’s disappearance!”

  “BUT HOW DOES ME GOING TO GET A CUSTARD PIE CUDDLE WITH FLABIO HELP?” said Florence.

  “I’m not sure yet,” said Amelia, “but it’s the only lead we have right now.”

  Tangine wandered over, reading the flyer out loud.

  “GLITTEROPOLIS, the city where the sun never goes down, and your dreams always come true…If you believe in only light, Glitteropolis needs YOU….”

  “Most Creatures of the Light are moving here,” McSparkle said. “There’s even talk of the Rainbow Rail closing down for good!”

  “What?” Amelia said. “But how do you get in or out if it closes?”

  “You don’t,” McSparkle said. “All the Creatures of the Light will be here in Glitteropolis safe ’n’ sound! No need to ever leave!”

  As McSparkle led the friends into the heart of the city, the buildings became much taller. Amelia noticed a lot of posters stuck to the walls,
and most of them pictured a very broad unicorn with a purple mane.

  “Isn’t he amazing?” McSparkle said, catching Amelia staring at the poster.

  “WHO’S THAT?” Florence bellowed. Grimaldi elbowed her in the stomach.

  “Alpha Unicorn always looks out for us,” McSparkle continued. “He and the other unicorn lords keep this city running smoothly. He knows what’s best for us.”

  Amelia wasn’t sure what to say. Grimaldi’s tummy started to rumble.

  “Hmm, I’m mighty hungry myself.” McSparkle smiled. “I know a great place—the McPot o’ Gold. They serve the best Shimmering Shakes! And I do believe the weekly angel-kitten show is on this afternoon!”

  “Oh goody,” Grimaldi said flatly.

  * * *

  At the McPot o’ Gold, Amelia sat munching on a bowl of Fizzling Flower Fruit Pops, wishing it were Crusty Toenails. Squashy looked down disdainfully from the top of Amelia’s head. Grimaldi was slurping a Sugar-Loaded Slushy, and Florence chewed on some Twinkled Toasties. Tangine was hanging half out of the window, trying to catch bees in his empty glass.

  “YOUR BEE DAD ISN’T IN GLITTEROPOLIS, REMEMBER?” Florence said through a mouthful of toastie.

  “We don’t know that. He could have flown here.” Tangine lurched forward as another bee buzzed by, and almost fell out the window. Florence grabbed his wings just in time.

  “I KNOW YOU’RE UPSET ABOUT LOSING YOUR DAD, BUT WE’LL FIND HIM.” She patted Tangine’s shoulder. “HE’S PROBABLY HAVING A LOVELY TIME AS A BEE. NOW HERE, HAVE A TOASTIE.”

  Tangine took the half-munched Twinkled Toastie from Florence and grimaced. “Thank you?”

  While nobody was looking, Amelia fed Squashy small nibbles of food. He didn’t seem bothered by the taste, but Amelia missed the Fang Mansion butler Wooo’s homemade Armpit-Sweat Shakes and Putrid Pus-Filled Pastries. She was also missing her mom and dad. Despite the count’s crossword puzzle obsession and Countess Frivoleeta’s need for all things to be perfectly groomed, they were still her family.