Drama at Mouseford (Thea Stilton Mouseford Academy #1) Read online

  when Ruby ran up, still wearing her workout clothes.

  “Hi,” Connie said. “Where did you

  disappear to? We looked everywhere

  for you.”

  “Yeah, we almost thought that Violet had

  locked you up somewhere because she was

  scared of having to face you today,” added

  Zoe, and the other members of the Ruby Crew LAUGHED.

  Ruby just shrugged. “She might be worried

  about me, but I’m not worried about her,” she said breezily.

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  Alicia sighed. “Wow, Ruby, I

  sure wish I had your SELF-

  CONFIDENCE!”

  A little while later, the Thea

  Sisters were in Colette’s room,

  ready to go to lunch — but

  Violet hadn’t showed up.

  “Has anyone SEEN her recently?”

  Colette asked.

  “Not since early this morning,” Nicky

  replied. “She was going over her lines. But she promised she’d meet us for lunch.”

  “And her audition is at one o’clock!” Pamela

  said worriedly. “This isn’t like her at all.”

  “We should see if she’s still in the garden,”

  Paulina suggested. “She’s probably just still practicing.”

  The friends headed down to the garden,

  where they saw Ruby and her crew.

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  “Hey, Ruby, have you seen Violet?” Nicky asked.

  “Why are you asking me?” Ruby

  SNAPPED. “I haven’t done anything.”

  “What do you mean by that?” Pamela

  asked suspiciously.

  “Oh, nothing, nothing,” Ruby said,

  with a nervous laugh. “She’s

  probably just off practicing somewhere.”

  Oh, nothing . . .

  The big outdoor clock began to chime

  twelve times.

  “Time for lunch, crew,” Ruby told her

  friends, and they left without another word.

  Nicky SCANNED the garden. “I don’t see

  Violet anywhere.”

  “Lunch today is EXTRA-CHEESE

  pizza, and I’m not even hungry,” said Pam. “I’m too worried about Violet.”

  Colette nodded. “I’ve been trying to text

  her, and she’s not responding,” she said. “I

  have a strange feeling that something terrible has happened to her!”

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  THE SEARCH

  FOR VIOLET

  “We’ll do a SEARCH,” Nicky suggested. “We’ll start by asking if anyone has seen her. After we check the campus, we can move to other buildings on the island.”

  They went to the cafeteria first, in case

  Violet had gone there without them, but

  they didn’t see her. They did bump into

  Craig, though.

  “Hey,” he said when he saw them. “Did

  you try the pizza? It’s SUPER-CHEESY.”

  “No, we’re LOOKING for Violet,”

  Colette said. “We can’t find her.”

  “She’s probably hiding somewhere

  because she knows she can’t beat Ruby,” Craig said.

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  “Hey, that’s not nice!” Pam cried. “First of all, Violet is just as good as Ruby. And second

  of all, she would never hide out like that.”

  Craig shrugged. “I wouldn’t waste

  time

  looking for her. She’ll turn up.”

  “You know what’s SUPER-CHEESY?

  Him,” Pam muttered as he walked away.

  The friends left the cafeteria and headed

  into the hallway. They saw Ryder about to turn a corner up ahead.

  Pam suddenly brightened. “Hey,

  maybe he knows where Violet is,” she said. “They might have been practicing together.”

  Paulina frowned. “That doesn’t seem likely.

  He is Ruby’s brother after all. But I guess we

  could ask.”

  “Hey,

  Ryder!” Colette called out loudly.

  “Have you seen Violet?”

  Ryder shook his head. “No, sorry.”

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  Hey, Ryder!

  “It’s just weird, because we can’t find

  her anywhere, and the SECOND AUDITION is about to start soon,” Paulina explained.

  Ryder thought for a moment. “I’ll help you

  look. Maybe we could split up. Colette

  and Nicky, you can look for her in the school.

  The rest of us can look outside.”

  “Great idea!” Nicky said. “Even if I did

  think of it first.”

  Pam gave Nicky a high five. “Let’s make

  like a wheel of cheese and roll!”

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  A TIGER

  IN A CAGE!

  For two hours, Violet had been pacing the

  floor of the observatory, trying to think of a

  way out. She had lost all hope that Ryder

  was coming.

  She grew

  ANGRIER

  with each passing

  minute. “Ryder and his mysterious note!” she fumed. “If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t

  be in this mess. Grrrr! ”

  She continued to walk back and forth, like

  a tiger in a cage. Then she stopped and took a breath.

  Violet, try to calm down and think, she

  told herself.

  She scanned the room again. She pushed a

  chair up to the nearest window and stood on

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  it. The window was sealed shut. And even if she could climb out, it was a long drop to the

  ground beneath.

  What do I do now?

  With a sigh, she climbed back down. She

  would never make it back to the academy in time for the audition.

  Then she noticed a shaft of sunlight

  coming through the window. It reflected off a TELESCOPE that had been put on display.

  An idea suddenly came to her.

  “It’s brilliant!”

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  A SHINING

  SOS!

  While Violet tried to find a way to escape,

  Colette and Nicky SEARCHED all the

  school buildings for her. Pam, Paulina, and Ryder checked all the sports fields.

  “No sign of her yet,” said Pam with a

  . “I’m starting to get really

  frown

  worried.”

  “We’ll find her soon,” Ryder said, but his

  voice was a little unsure.

  Paulina looked thoughtful. “Let’s

  think. Where are some places on the island that Violet likes to go?”

  “Well, there’s the garden, but we’ve

  already checked there,” Pam said.

  “What about Kneecap River?” Paulina

  96

  asked. “I know she likes to sit by the water and sketch sometimes.”

  Pam nodded. “You’re right! Let’s

  go!”

  Paulina, Pam, and Ryder RACED toward

  the trail that led to the river. It was 12:30,

  and the audition was just thirty

  minutes away. There was no

  TIME to lose.

  When they got on the path,

  Ryder stopped to figure out the

  quickest route. That’s when he

  saw a STRANGE

  FLASH of

  light on top of the hill.

  It was coming from the

  observatory. But Ryder had never seen the

  observatory give off a light like that . . . unless . . .

  “Pamela! Paulina!” he yelled.

  The two mice turned around.

  “What is it?” asked Paulina.

  Ryder pointed to the o
bservatory. “I think

  I may have figured out where Violet is,”

  he said, his normally calm voice rising

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  Look!

  with excitement. “See that FLASH OF

  LIGHT?”

  Paulina nodded. “Yes.”

  “It’s weird,” Pam said. “I’ve never seen a

  bright light like that coming from the

  observatory before.”

  Ryder nodded. “Exactly. I think Violet

  must be in there . . .”

  “. . . and she’s sending us a signal!”

  Paulina finished.

  “Let me get my SuV,” Pam said. “We’ll

  head right up there!”

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  FINALLY

  FREE!

  Pam tore up the road to the observatory,

  kicking up dirt behind her wheels. When

  they pulled up, they could hear Violet screaming inside.

  “Heeeeeelp!

  I’m locked in here!

  Let me out!”

  They QUICKLY got out of the SUV.

  “Calm down, Vi!” Pamela yelled, running to the door. “We’re here now! We’ll FREE

  you!”

  Pam reached for the door and noticed

  that some long sticks of wood had been

  jammed under the handle.

  101

  “This is why Violet can’t get out!” she realized.

  She removed the sticks and pulled open

  the door. Violet RUSHED OUT and

  threw her arms around Pam and Paulina.

  “I am so happy to see you guys!”

  she sighed. “Thanks! I got stuck in here some-how, and if you hadn’t found me . . .”

  Then she noticed Ryder standing behind

  them. “It’s all your fault!” she said

  furiously, stomping toward him. “What

  kind of trick was that? You invite me up here and then don’t even show up?”

  “Invited you up here?” Ryder asked in

  . “Me?”

  Violet waved the

  she had received

  under his snout. “You sent me this note asking me to practice with you here!”

  “I didn’t write this, I swear,” Ryder said.

  shock

  NOTE

  103

  “Then who did?” Violet asked.

  “Um, Vi, you might want to figure this out

  later,” Pam said. “We’ve got to get you to your audition — FAST !”

  104

  ALL’S WELL

  THAT ENDS WELL!

  “I still don’t

  UNDERSTAND,” Violet said

  as she climbed into the SUV. “Who would

  want to lock me in the observatory?”

  “Someone who didn’t want you to audition,”

  Pam guessed. “Like Ruby.”

  “Or CRAIG,” Paulina added. “He’s really

  been rooting for Ruby to get the part.”

  When they got to the main hall, they

  spilled out and rushed to the auditorium. Nicky and Colette greeted Violet with hugs.

  “The auditions are starting!” Nicky said.

  When Violet entered, Ruby turned as

  PALE as a slice of mozzarella.

  “But how did you get out . . . I mean . . .”

  she stammered.

  105

  Violet looked at her friends. Ruby had

  just given herself away. She was the one who

  had locked Violet in the observatory!

  “I’m here now,” Violet said calmly.

  “May the best mouse win!”

  Ruby auditioned first. She was so rattled

  by seeing Violet that she messed up her lines.

  When it was Violet’s turn, she

  delivered her lines perfectly.

  “We have made a

  decision,” said Headmaster

  de Mousus. “The part of

  Juliet shall go to Violet!”

  “Hooray!” shouted the

  Thea Sisters.

  Over the next few

  weeks, all of the students

  worked together

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  to put on the play. Colette helped design

  CoSTuMES. Paulina and Nicky helped

  PAinT scenery. Pam worked with the

  lighting crew.

  Even the Ruby Crew was busy. They

  created

  PROGRAMS

  for the night

  of the performance that told a summary of

  the story of Mouseo and Juliet. It wasn’t the

  most glamorous job, but Ruby and

  her friends worked

  hard on it

  anyway.

  Mouseo and Juliet

  By William Squeakspeare

  This play is set on Mouse Island in the 1500s.

  Juliet and Mouseo are teenaged rodents who

  belong to two rival cheese-making families.

  Juliet’s family,

  the Ratulets, make a delicious

  blue cheese. Mouseo’s family, the Montagues, make a delicious mozzarella. One day at a picnic, their lunches get mixed up. Juliet eats the mozzarella and Mouseo eats the blue cheese. They both realize what they’ve been missing all their lives.

  One moonlit night, Mouseo visits Juliet, who

  talks to him from her balcony.

  He convinces

  her to run away with him so they can open their own cheese shop together. But when their plans are revealed, their families do anything they can to keep them apart.

  Mouseo and Juliet

  BRAVO!

  ENCORE!

  On opening night, spectators crowded the main hall. Colette, Nicky, Pam, and Paulina

  made sure they got FRONT-ROW seats. When

  the curtain opened, Violet spotted her friends right away.

  Pamela stood up and started cheering.

  “WAY TO GO, VIOLET!”

  YOU’RE THE BEST!”

  Violet tried not to smile.

  The support of her friends meant so much to her.

  Professor Rattcliff gave Pam a

  severe look.

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  ”

  Sssh!

  Once the crowd calmed

  down, the show began. The

  performers had rehearsed

  many times, and everything

  went smoothly. A few actors

  forgot their lines and improvised instead, but nobody noticed.

  When Violet and Ryder did their scenes

  together, something

  magical

  happened.

  The whole audience was transported to a different place and time. You could practically

  smell the CHEESE in the air. . . .

  When the final curtain fell, the audience

  burst into joyous applause. The Thea Sisters

  hugged one another. They were so happy

  for their friend!

  110

  ”

  she

  scolded.

  ”Be

  quiet!

  ”

  Even Ruby applauded. She was jealous

  of Violet, and would have loved to get the applause instead — but she had to admit that

  Violet was really great. And she was

  happy for her brother, of course.

  Afterward, everyone agreed on one thing —

  there really is something magical about the theater!

  It was truly

  a night to remember!

  111

  Hooray!

  Bravo!

  Brava!

  Bravo!

  Bravo!

  Bravooo!

  www.scholastic.com/

  geronimostilton

  $7.99 US/ $8.99 CAN

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  Don’t miss

  these exciting

  Thea Sist
ers

  adventures!

  Don’t miss

  any of my

  fabumouse

  adventures!

  Mouseford

  Athletic fields

  Teachers’ living

  quarters

  Dorms

  Garden

  South Tower

  Library

  Headmaster’s

  office

  Herb garden

  North Tower

  Cafeteria

  Great Hall

  Classrooms

  Map of

  whale island

  1. Falcon Peak

  2. Observatory

  3. Mount Landslide

  4. Solar Energy Plant

  5. Ram Plain

  6. Very Windy Point

  7. Turtle Beach

  8. Beachy Beach

  9. Mouseford Academy

  10. Kneecap River

  11. Mariner’s Inn

  12. Port

  14. Town Square

  15. Butterfly Bay

  16. Mussel Point

  17. Lighthouse Cliff

  18. Pelican Cliff

  19. Nightingale Woods

  20. Marine Biology Lab

  21. Hawk Woods

  22. Windy Grotto

  23. Seal Grotto

  24. Seagulls Bay

  25. Seashell Beach

  13. Squid House

  Thanks for reading,

  and good-​bye until our

  next adventure!