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Wow Mathilda had done it again! She had talked Old Morris into doing exactly anted just like she did with Nurse Watkins Wanda, Mathilda, and I walked back to Spookie House bynonstop: "And when he saw your ring Araet that and you said it’s none of your business and he said yes it is it islost family heirloom and it is worth a fortune and you said " "Wanda, , " Mathilda co to Wanda because what had just happened was incredible Mathilda had had a brilliant idea and it had worked She figured the ring orth about as much as Sir Horace’s old castle Wanda and I could hardly believe it, but Mathilda knows stuff about rings and she was right So when Old Morris saw his long lost faer I told him that I would swap it for his horrible Water Wonderland and he agreed at once! He rushed off and found the auctioneer as hiding in the old gatehouse and we signed all the papers

Well,actually, Mathilda signed She had to sign for Sir Horace because Sir Horace is officially dead and I a, which is stupid but that is how it is But it was ive the papers to Sir Horace and tell hi to him once more! That was the bestto fall to pieces from shock but he didn’t He just said, "Thank you, Miss Spookie, " in a husky voice and sat down very suddenly I felt really happy But now, as we turned the bend in Spookie Lane and saw dark Spookie House silhouetted against thehohosts

We didn’t even have Ned and Jed because they were staying with Sir Horace at the castle to keep the nasty FitzMaurice ghosts away forever I was also sad because I had not even had tihosts because Mathilda had sud denly becohosts had disappeared really fast And now, as alked past the gate stuck on top of the hedge and up the garden path to a dark Spookie House, I felt as gloo thata huge, squishy slug because in the end we had lost all our ghosts Spookie House was dark and quiet e pushed open the front door

As soon as we got in Mathilda lit the big candle by the door and started whispering soled and looked very excited But I felt really miserable It is not funny when your cousin and your so called best friend whisper things and do not let you in on the secret especially if it is your birthday Wanda and Mathilda an to sing "Happy Birthday to You" very loudly so that I would not say anything, while Wanda kept looking around with big excited eyes like a goldfish with toohappened Halfway through "Happy Birthday to You, " Sir Horace walked out of the cellar door under the stairs with a huge bunch of bal loons and Ed happened all the castle ghosts followed theed the gong and yelled, "Surprise, surprise! Happy Birthday, Araminta!" and she and Wanda threhole storreat! Wanda told hosts except for Ned and Jed, ere on guard at the castle to rush over to Spookie House before we got hohosts had to wait until they heard Wanda and Mathilda singing "Happy Birthday to You!" and then coht that was such a wonderful idea And there was even party food That hat Wanda and Mathilda had been hiding in the first kitchen-on the right just before the laundry rooether

We had a ton of cheese and onion chips, candies, Coke, ice cream, popcorn, Jell-O, nuts and crackers, a birthday cake with a ghost on it and Mathilda had even ht that I liked them I felt a bit sad when I saw theot when Mathilda gave me my birthday pres ent It was squashy like Uncle Drac’s present butbirthday presents I tore off the black and red wrapping paper and pulled out the most fan tastic hat I have ever seen It was just like Mathilda’s only better! It was soft and black with tiny red spots all over the bri from it like little curtains

The whole hat was drizzled with silvery spiderwebs and it was covered in weird things There were silver char, a minute lizard, and a baby bat Mathilda said they were from her special collection and that she had decorated the hat h e r s e l f t h at hat she had been doing in her rooht away and I did not take ht

It was such a great birthday party I didn’t miss Uncle Drac and Aunt Tabby one tiny bit well, maybe Ianother gahost bumps you close your eyes and run around the roohosts as possible the phone rang The phone in Spookie House has a weird, ghostly ring to it, like a bell underwater All the castle ghosts gathered around the phone and looked at it like it was soe aniiggling at soes had said

I could hear Aunt Tabby’s voice from the other side of the hall "Who’s that?" squawked the phone "Mathilda Spookie " "Oh, hello, Mathilda I would like to speak to Emilene, please, dear, " said the phone "Um, she’s not here at the moment " "Where is she?" The voice on the phone sounded suspicious Well, as soon as Aunt Tabby realized that Great aunt E after us, the squawks got so loud I reckon you could have heard them at the top of the house Eventually Mathilda put the phone down She looked flustered "Aunt Tabby’s coasped

"Well, in about an hour They are at the air port " "At the airport?" "Yes They flew back this ic to the bats and has developed a horrible rash Drac got sunburned on the way to the caves and Barry was bitten on the nose by a giant bat " I laughed, but Wanda said angrily, "That’s not funny, Araht?" I asked "Oh, she’s fine, " said Mathilda "I don’t think anything attacked her " It wouldn’t dare, I thought Mathilda looked around in a panic So did I Spookie House looked a little different from when Aunt Tabby had left

In fact, it looked very different--it was a terrible mess And the party had not helped; there were party food and streamers and burst balloons everywhere I added "House trashed by sur prise ghost party" to s that Aunt Tabby Will Not Like When She Coot to clean up, " I said "Fast!" But before we had ti, there was a loud ring on the doorbell We all ju "They’re back!" gulped Wanda "It can’t be theot a key " "What?" "They’ve got a--oh, drat!" The doorbell would not stop I thought things could not get any worse, but when I opened the door to unstick the bell I realized they could

Standing on the doorstep was Nurse Watkins "Girls!" she gasped "Oh no!" I said And then I remembered what I had learned from Mathilda and I said, "Oh, hello, Nurse Watkins How nice to see you " And actually, I really meant it--because suddenly I had a perfect Plan

One hour later Nurse Watkins put her mop and bucket down and said, "Finished!" And she had I don’t kno she did it, but Nurse Watkins had cleaned Spookie House from top to bottom Mathilda, Wanda, and I had helped, but Nurse Watkins was a cleaning ind cos that Aunt Tabby Will Not Like When She Cohosts didn’t want to go, so they had hidden in the cellar again along with all the balloons and the party stuff Wanda and I had got the bats back in the turret Mathilda had put away Aunt Tabby’s clothes Wanda and I had put Aunt Tabby’s best chest back on the landing, glued it together, and put the old tennis balls back inside Nurse Watkins had stuck Aunt Tabby’s best vase back together Nurse Watkins hadNurse Watkins had throay the dead spider plant Nurse Watkins had swept up the smashed plates Nurse Watkins had scrubbed the birthday cake off the rug Nurse Watkins had swept up the cheese and onion chips off the hall floor and the popcorn off the stairs and had unwound the streamers from the clock and brushed the confetti off the monster chair

Nurse Watkins had vacuumed the Jell-O off the banisters Nurse Watkins had wiped the ice cream off Sir Horace’s visor where Mathilda had tried to feed hi how I got Nurse Watkins to do all the cleaning Well, Mathilda says that if you are polite to people, they are usually happy to help you That is what Aunt Tabby says too--but the trouble is that when I am polite to Aunt Tabby, she is not happy to help , so I didn’t believe it But Mathilda was right and it worked with Nurse Watkins I shall probably try it again sometime

When I first saw Nurse Watkins at the door I thought she was very grumpy, but then I realized that actually she orried She had been cycling past Spookie House and had heard the ghost party noise co from the house She knocked on the door to see if ere okay When Nurse Watkins saw the ht that she was to blae, not Mathilda So when I was really nice and asked her to help she was so relieved, particularly when she heard that Aunt Tabby was co home at any moment In fact we had only just put all the buckets ae heard Aunt Tabby’s key in the lock We all quickly lined up by the door with big "Welcome Home" smiles Aunt Tabby ran in, then she stopped and looked really surprised "Beryl!" she said "So you are here

Thank goodnessI thought-- well, I don’t knohy, but when I spoke to Mathilda I thought she was here on her own But how silly of e " We looked at Nurse Watkins and Nurse Watkins looked at us No one said a word And then Aunt Tabby screa "What-is-that-you-have-got-on-your-head- Aras-on-it!" I s an impression, just like I kneould "It’s my birthday hat, Aunt Tabby, " I said "Isn’t it wonderful?" "Wonderful?" gulped Aunt Tabby "Wonderful?"

"I think it’s very nice, Minty, " said Uncle Drac, walking in dragging his suitcase full of bats "Thank you, Uncle Drac, " I said And then I nearly screaht red and very shiny, hite circles around his eyes where I guessed Aunt Tabby had les And he wasn’t the only one who looked weird either Barry had a big bandage right around the middle of his face But Brenda was the weird est of all--she had big pink, gloopy lumps all over the parts that you could see and she had swelled up quite a lot too She reave me for my birthday when I was little

I rushed up to Uncle Drac and I hugged hiht "Ouch!" he yelled "Oops, sorry Did you have a nice time, Uncle Drac?" I asked "No, " replied Uncle Drac "Oh dear, " I said "But I a a nice time noanted to come home for your birthday, " he said He turned to Barry, Brenda, and Aunt Tabby "Noere we going to sing? One, two, three" "No!" I said "No, don’t sing Please " "Don’t be shy, Minty " Uncle Drac s to them on their birthday " "No No, really I don’t--"

And then they all started, including Nurse Watkins "Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to--ooooooh!" Right on cue all the ghosts poured out of the cellar door along with a whole cloud of balloons and streamers! Brenda, Barry, Nurse Watkins, and Aunt Tabby all screahosts fro to stop the the best party in hundreds of years Wanda started another gaan to dance with the ladies in pointy hats Brenda found the birthday cake and made Aunt Tabby and Barry eat some, but Nurse Watkins did not h she’d never seen anything like it before in her life--which I don’t suppose she had

And then a very handsoht came over to her, bowed, and asked her to dance Nurse Watkins stopped staring, flashed hih the hall, her nurse’s cape swishing behind her as she twirled around "Well, well, " said Uncle Drac, "a ghost birthday party That’s wonderful!" "Isn’t it?" I laughed "Have a lettuce sand wich, Uncle Drac " "Thank you, Minty, " said Uncle Drac He took a big bite "No slugs tonight, " he said with a big smile that showed his lovely pointy teeth at the corners of his hed "Not even a tiny one "

THE END