by Audu Paden
“Why?”
Draculaura’s eyes filled with tears. “This is how I can help. How I can do something big. Something important. And when she’s queen, she can help everybloody. This is a turning point in vampire history, and her duty calls to help monsters everywhere!” Draculaura’s words gave her ghoulfriends chills. This meant so much to Draculaura.
A goblin opened the door of the trailer. “Ready on the set, Miss von Vamp.”
“I must go,” Veronica von Vamp said softly.
“Please, Miss von Vamp,” Draculaura begged. “If you know where Elissabat is, you have to tell her.…” Her voice trailed off into a sob.
“Elissabat disappeared a long time ago. I want to help… but…” Veronica left without finishing her sentence.
Clawdeen was frustrated. “Furrific. The Heart’s a fake, and Veronica’s not gonna help us. What are we gonna do now?”
“I’m sorry; it seemed like you were so close,” said Viperine.
“Yes,” said Robecca, distracted by something. “Elissabat is close. I can sense it.”
“Then we keep looking,” said Draculaura, determined. “Come on!”
They weren’t sure where to go next, but as they made their way out of the studio, they passed through Veronica von Vamp’s boo-vie set. Dry ice filled the air with fog. Out of the mist emerged Lord Stoker and Ygor!
Lord Stoker cackled. “I’ve got you, Your Highness.”
Ygor laughed too, only he wasn’t as frightening.
“No!” announced Draculaura.
As the smoke evaporated, Scare-antino the director found himself staring at two vampires he didn’t realize were in his boo-vie. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Is this in the script?”
A tiny gargoyle started flipping through a script in his hand and shook his head.
Lord Stoker loomed over Draculaura. “Now this is how it will be. You will return to Transylvania. You will take your place at the court. And you will obey me.”
“No!” said Draculaura again. “I am so close to finding Elissabat!”
Scare-antino was filming the whole scene. “I love the gritty realism! Keep rolling!”
“Ha!” said Lord Stoker. “She is gone, and you will be queen whether you want to or—”
“I think not!” Veronica von Vamp, wearing her long gown and crown for the movie, had made her entrance. She was fangulous!
But Lord Stoker was unmoved. “I insist.”
“And what gives you the authority?” asked Veronica von Vamp. She was wearing high heels that made her almost as tall as Lord Stoker.
“I am the prime monister of all the vampires!” said Lord Stoker.
Veronica von Vamp was unimpressed. “And I am Veronica von Vamp, boo-vie star. And you are in my studio.”
Two gargoyle bodyguards stepped toward Lord Stoker.
“I protest,” he said. “I have never been treated like this.”
Veronica von Vamp smiled. “Well then, it is long overdue.”
Lord Stoker changed tactics. “Your people need you,” he whispered to Draculaura.
“No!” said Draculaura, a new kind of power in her voice. “They need the true queen. Monsters everywhere are counting on her. I am counting on her. You won’t be able to boss her around. No way!”
“Hard to say.” Lord Stoker snickered. “She’s not here.”
“You will not use that tone on my set,” Veronica von Vamp commanded.
Draculaura pleaded with Veronica. “If you know where Elissabat is, please, please help.”
Lord Stoker narrowed his eyes. “You know where—”
Veronica silenced him. “Draculaura is right. It is time. The vampires need their real queen—Elissabat.”
A door to the sound stage burst open. It was Operetta and Ghoulia. Ghoulia started trying to explain what she had found out.
“Yeah!” said Clawdeen, listening to her. “Veronica is talking about Elissabat.”
Ghoulia shook her head furiously. She tried again. She pulled her laptop out of her backpack to show everyone what she had discovered.
Clawdeen came over to look. “Veronica is… what? Say again?”
Scare-antino was filming everything. Everything! This was going to be the greatest vampire boo-vie ever!
Veronica held up her hands for quiet. “I remember Elissabat,” she began dramatically. “More than anything, she wanted to act. Only onstage and in her imagination did she have the strength to lead. But my friend Draculaura has reminded me that you need to have courage to face your fear, to overcome it, to help others.”
Draculaura was stunned. “I did?”
“Yes,” said Veronica von Vamp. “This is a turning point in monster history. It is time to raise the curtain on a new act. Veronica von Vamp is, and always was…”
Scare-antino couldn’t even breathe—well, he couldn’t if he actually could breathe. This was so wonderful. It was Veronica’s most powerful performance ever!
“That’s right,” said Veronica von Vamp. “I am…”
Draculaura inhaled sharply. She saw it at last. She knew who the vampire queen really was!
Veronica von Vamp pulled at her hair, which was really a wig, took out a pair of glasses from her pocket, and transformed into—Elissabat.
“What?” Lord Stoker gave a high-pitched shriek like a bat in trouble.
Ghoulia held up her laptop, revealing that Elissabat and Veronica von Vamp were the same person.
“The queen of the vampires!” Draculaura bowed her head respectfully.
“I knew she was close!” said Robecca.
“Yup,” agreed Operetta. “She fooled us. Just goes to show—”
“You can’t judge a bat by its wings,” completed Honey Swamp.
“That’s right!” Operetta smiled.
Veronica von Vamp approached Robecca. She took her hand. The moment Robecca touched the boo-vie star, her entire body began to glow. Robecca gasped. She fumbled with a service panel at her side and opened it up to reveal, hidden within the mechanism of her body, the Vampire’s Heart. It pulsed softly and glowed.
“Whoa!” The ghouls were stunned.
“Augh!” Lord Stoker shriveled in defeat.
“I gave the Vampire’s Heart to your father, Robecca. I wanted Hexiciah Steam to keep it safe. So he put it in the safest place of all. You. It led you ghouls to me.” Gently, Veronica removed her hand and Robecca’s glow faded.
Robecca could still feel the glow inside her—the glow that had been strengthening the closer they had come to Elissabat.
“Lord Stoker,” said Veronica von Vamp, becoming very stern. “For your crimes against the vampire crown, you are banished from ever holding official office.”
The gargoyles tightened their grip on Lord Stoker and he whimpered. Veronica instructed them to remove him.
“But I’m the boss of everything!” he cried. “Ygor!”
Ygor shuffled after his master, who was hauled out of the studio like a limp rag doll.
“Tonight is my new boo-vie premiere,” Veronica said to the ghouls. “It will also be my coronation. And you are all invited.”
The ghouls cheered!
Scare-antino swung onto the set from a crane, where he had been filming everything. “And… cut! That’s a wrap. Off to the edit bay.”
CHAPTER 20
THE MIDNIGHT PREMIERE!
Spotlights danced across the red carpet at Groaning’s Theater. It was the big night, the premiere of Vampire Majesty 4: The Vampire’s Heart and Elissabat’s coronation. Cameras flashed as skelebrities emerged from their limos. Spectra Vondergeist was interviewing the vampires, the ghouls, and the monsters all decked out in their fanciest gowns and tuxes.
“This is Spectra Vondergeist blogging to you live from Hauntlywood for the premiere of Veronica von Vamp’s new boo-vie!”
Scarah Screams, a telepathic banshee, held her hand to her head and sent a message to Spectra.
“I am told via telepath,” she said into her microphone, “that the
star is arriving now!”
There was an explosion of flashes and camera clicks as a white limo pulled up to the red carpet. Out stepped Veronica von Vamp in a couture dress. She waved to the crowd—and then brought forward Draculaura.
Hoodude stumbled through the crowd. “Oh, Miss von Vamp, may I have your autograph?”
“I’m so flattered.” She smiled. “Would you honor me by being my date?”
Hoodude nearly fainted. He couldn’t believe it. “Huzzah!” he shouted, recovering, and took Veronica by the arm to escort her into the theater.
For a moment, Draculaura was at a loss. Where was her date? But Clawdeen pulled out a dog whistle and handed it to her.
Inside the theater, Clawd was getting his popcorn with Manny. He pricked up his ears. He knew that sound. “Draculaura! She’s here!” He shoved past Manny, charged outside, and bounded over the velvet rope to be at her side. It had been a whole week since they’d seen each other. He wrapped her in a sloppy hug and she gave him a scratch behind his ears.
“Oh, Clawd, I missed you so much,” said Draculaura. “Do you like that? Good boy! You missed your ear being scratched, didn’t you?”
Clawd panted contentedly.
Far back in the crowd, Lord Stoker was weaseling his way into the theater. Finally, he managed to get to the main entrance and was just about to step over the rope—when Gory Fangtel stopped him.
“I don’t think so.” She chuckled. “You’re not on the list.”
Lord Stoker tried to charm her. “I just wanted to be the first one to congratulate Her Majesty, my niece, the queen.”
“Yeah?” said Gory, unmoved. “How about when trolls fly?”
Two gargoyles appeared and Lord Stoker began backing away, tripped over a garbage can, and went sprawling.
One of the paparazzi snapped a photo of him on the ground.
“Oops!” said Ygor.
Lord Stoker growled.
“I just wanted to see the boo-vie,” Ygor said sadly.
Gory Fangtel saw what had happened and lifted the rope for him to come on in. Ygor couldn’t believe it.
“Claw-some!” he said as he headed to get some popcorn.
Inside the lobby, Scare-antino was presenting Veronica with the Academy’s highest award—the Silver Claw! “Veronica, this is in recognition of your deadication to acting!”
The crowd cheered.
“Thank you,” said Veronica graciously. “You know, I have made boo-vies about the vampire court, but I have never revealed that I actually grew up there. I would like to deadicate this award to the person who made this evening possible. This is for my friend Draculaura.”
Draculaura gasped.
“Draculaura taught me that you need to think beyond yourself,” Veronica continued. “At this turning point in vampire history, my duty calls to me, and I am here to help monsters everywhere!”
A colony of bats swooped into the lobby. At their center was a jeweled crown held aloft by their wings. They hovered above Veronica and lowered the crown onto her head.
But that wasn’t the only amazing thing that happened.
At the very moment Veronica was adjusting the crown on her head, a pink mist was wrapping itself around Draculaura.
“What’s happening?” she wondered. Before anyone could answer her, she had turned into a bat and was flying around her friends.
Clawdeen knew exactly what had happened. “You got your vamp powers!”
“You did it!” Cleo applauded.
Ghoulia moaned her praise.
“Ghoulia’s right,” said Robecca. “Finding Elissabat and saving the vampires was your big thing.”
Draculaura changed herself back into a ghoul. “Hey, what are we waiting for? The boo-vie is about to start with my favorite royal actress, Veronica von Vamp!”
Everyone poured into the theater. Clawd settled into a seat next to Draculaura, who was right up in the front row with Veronica.
Draculaura was still trying to take it all in. “So you’re Elissabat playing Veronica playing all of those parts. You have to be the greatest boo-vie star ever!”
Veronica giggled. “Thanks. I can’t wait to make the next sequel at Castle Dracool with my new screenwriter, cinematographer, and makeup artist.” Clawdia, Honey Swamp, and Viperine all grinned at these words. Their screams were coming true!
The lights were dimming when the vampire hottie who played Alucard and Edweird strode down the aisle. Ghouls sighed and whispered and squealed. He gestured to a seat between Howleen and Toralei. “Is this seat taken?”
Unable to speak, the ghouls shook their heads.
The actor sat himself down between them.
Howleen sighed. “Look at that chin! He’s sitting with me!”
“Dimples! Dimples! He’s sitting with me,” insisted Toralei.
The ghouls began growling and snarling at each other, but Abbey stopped all that with a freezing blast.
“Chill, ghouls,” she said. “Hunk sitting with me.” She grabbed the actor by the arm and pulled him over his seat into her aisle. He didn’t seem to mind—at all. Abbey was a knockout snowgirl.
“Hush, everyone!” said Operetta. “The boo-vie’s starting!”
Just like the last boo-vie, this one was in black and white—except for Veronica’s bloodred lips. She was giving the performance of a lifetime. “Not all of us were meant to do great things. She should be proud that she was born to do something so amazing.”
“That’s what I said to her!” Draculaura giggled in the audience.
“Shhhhh!” said the audience.
Draculaura cuddled closer to Clawd and took a handful of popcorn. She was really enjoying this movie—and it got everything right about vampire scaritage at last.
CHAPTER 21
ONE MORE SCREAM
At the studio, a goblin held up a slate for the camera. Clap! “Take one!”
It was Hoodudes’s scream test!
Hoodude entered with a mop and tap-danced around a lamppost next to a puddle. He splashed in the puddle and spun around the lamppost, singing. “I’m singin’ in a stain! Just singing and flinging. And singing!”
He spun so hard he flipped off the post and flew off the stage with a scream.
A few hours later, the goblin again held up his slate for the camera. “Take forty-seven.” He sighed.
Hoodude was holding the fake Vampire’s Heart. “There you are, my precious,” he said, trying to make his voice sound evil. “No! That’s not ours! We needs to gives it back. No! Get away! It’s all mine!” He clutched it tight… and it broke!
“Uh-oh,” said Hoodude. “I’m sorry; is it broken? Was it a real heart?”
A day later, the goblin held up the slate. “Hoodude Voodoo scream test, take seven hundred and fifty-two.”
Hoodude stormed onto the set like Godzilla. He was tossing boxes as if they were buildings. He pulled a stuffed toy from a box, became distracted, and tripped. He knocked into the set and it toppled over.
He looked out at the exhausted crew. “I wasn’t feeling that one. Can I do that take over again?”
It looked like it was going to be a long, long time before Hoodude won a Silver Claw!
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Contents
COVER
TITLE PAGE
WELCOME
CHAPTER 1: OPENING FRIGHT
CHAPTER 2: MEAN GHOULS
CHAPTER 3: LORD STOKER’S TERRORTORY
CHAPTER 4: SUDDENLY ROYAL
CHAPTER 5: NEXT STOP, TRANSYLVANIA
CHAPTER 6: DRESSED TO THRILL!
CHAPTER 7: THE TRUTH BITES
CHAPTER 8: BAD SCARE DAY
CHAPTER 9: FRIGHT FLIGHT
CHAPTER 10: WHO’S THE SCARE-EST OF THEM ALL?
CHAPTER 11: WEREWOLVES OF LONDOOM
CHAPTER 12: FANGMAN STYLE
CHAPTER 13: BOO ON THE BAYOU
CHAPTER 14: BACK BITES
CHAPTER 15: HOORAY FOR HAUNTLYWOOD!
CHAPTER 16: TEAM ALUCARD VERSUS TEAM EDWEIRD
CHAPTER 17: SCREAMS COME TRUE!
CHAPTER 18: AND THE WINNER IS...
CHAPTER 19: DIRECTOR’S CUT
CHAPTER 20: THE MIDNIGHT PREMIERE!
CHAPTER 21: ONE MORE SCREAM
PHOTOS
COPYRIGHT
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2014 Mattel, Inc. All rights reserved.
MONSTER HIGH and associated trademarks are owned by and used under license from Mattel, Inc.
Cover design by Tom Starace
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First ebook edition: September 2014
ISBN 978-0-316-29710-3
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