Trick or Treat Read Online Free Page B

break. (The things we do for the Sleepover Club!)
    We waited until the M&Ms were safely locked in the two end toilets. Then all we had to do was pretend to be having a private little chat, so that our enemies could accidentally-on-purpose overhear us.
    “Frankie…” I began in an extra loud whisper.
    “Yes, Kenny?” hissed Frankie.
    “You know, Robin Hughes is gonna die if he hears my sister Molly fancies him!”
    Frankie stifled a laugh. “Yeah. Robin mustn’t ever find out that Molly’s mad for him!”
    “Exactly.” I gave Frankie a huge wink. “It would ruin things Big Time for the Sleepover Club, if those two got together.”
    Stage One done. Cool as cucumbers, Frankie and I sauntered out of the girls’ toilets. It didn’t take long. We knew our trick had worked when the M&Ms went into one of their major heads-together whisperings in the corner of the playground. Those two love the chance to ruin things for the Sleepover Club.
    And just to prove it, they did something only the M&Ms could do. It was in Arts & Crafts. Our class was doing Hallowe’en collages to decorate the classroom walls. We had orange and black paper, beads, fabric scraps, lots of autumn leaves, acorns and stuff and gallons of glue. Everyone was busily cutting and sticking, when suddenly Frankie burst out, “Wow! Just what I need for my spell for Pepsi’s pups!”
    “What?”
    “Pearls!” Frankie pounced on an old string of fake pearls, which were tangled up with the ribbons and yarn. “The Baby Spell calls for pearls…”
    Baby Spell!
    Emma Hughes’ eyes nearly popped out her head. Wow! Did she and her stupid partner go into a major heads-together thing this time! But it wasn’t until clean-up time that we found out what they’d been up to. We were in the middle of cleaning up when Mrs Weaver said sternly, “Francesca Thomas, come out here.”
    The Goblin shot a look of triumph at the Queen. Frankie got up slowly and went over to Mrs Weaver’s desk. “Yes, Miss?”
    “I hope you haven’t been stealing school property, Francesca,” Mrs Weaver said severely. “You know how wrong that is.”
    Frankie flushed. “Yes, Miss…I mean, no Miss. I…”
    “Have you taken something, Francesca?”
    The class went dead silent. So silent you could probably hear my heart thumping inthe stillness! But Frankie didn’t answer.
    Suddenly Mrs Weaver’s voice cut through the silence. “Francesca,” she ordered. “EMPTY YOUR POCKETS!”
    Lyndz whimpered. Rosie clasped her hands. And Frankie turned all colours of the sun. My best friend hung down her head, then started to empty her pockets. One by one, she took out her secret private stuff:
    One squirrel with a chipped tail (from miniature ornament collection)
    One silver moon earring
    One half-eaten packet of bubble gum
    One used paper hankie
    One dog biscuit with crumbs
    A bit of pocket fluff
    One 2p piece
    A scrap of pink ribbon
    Everyone craned their necks to inspect the evidence.
    “I-I just took this ribbon from the bin, Miss…” Miserably, Frankie held up the crumpled scrap of pink ribbon. “Someone had thrown it away, so I thought it was OK…”
    Mrs Weaver coughed. “Oh. Oh, I see.”
    Another long silence.
    “Miss, are these what you’re looking for, Miss?” I said finally, holding up the pearls that Frankie had put back in the collage box.
    The M&Ms gasped.
    Frankie threw me a grateful smile and Mrs Weaver turned the same colour as Frankie’s ribbon.
    “Oh! Oh, yes. Thank you, Laura.” Then smiling ever-so sweetly at Frankie, Mrs Weaver said, “All right, Francesca, you can sit down now.”
    Whew! Frankie was innocent. Nobody but the M&Ms could ever have thought different.
    Even so, it didn’t stop Frankie from feeling just awful.
    “It was as if I’d committed the major crime of the century,” she shuddered. “Standingup there, in front of the whole class…”
    “But you hadn’t done anything,” Lyndz comforted her. “And Mrs Weaver knew