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Welcome to Micro-Terrors. Scary stories for kids. Where it's always
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the spooky season. Full of chills. thrills, and spine-tingling spooks.
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Micro-terrors are family-friendly frights for those ages 8 and up.
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And while our stories are for younger ears, we are
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still talking about things that go bump in the night,
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and some children may not be able to handle what
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others can. Parental consent is recommended. Now.
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For tonight's Micro Terror. Right or Very Wrong. Written by
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Evan Boffman. Apparently, this year, Livia has competition for the
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annual Matheson Elementary School Scary Story Writing Contest. Archie Irving.
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the annoying new boy in Miss Doll's fourth grade class.
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The tow-headed little monster first slithered into Livia's life as
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her table mate a couple weeks ago, end of September.
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From day one, the kid's been a yappy nuisance, full
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of too many unnecessary words. Thirteen times he's had his
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name written on the board for talking out of turn.
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Livia loves words, too, but she puts most of them
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down on the page. not across her tongue and over
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her lips. At 10 years old, she is the three-time
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consecutive winner of Matheson Elementary's Golden Skull Trophy, as well
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as a $ 30 gift certificate to Bradbury's bookstore on Main Street.
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Which makes sense, since Livia reads a lot, on average
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six novels a month, and her parents have shown her
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hundreds of their favorite horror movies, even ones that make
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most adults shiver and squirm. The only year Livia didn't
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claim the top prize was back in kindergarten, when she
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hadn't yet learned how to properly spell or punctuate Jack-o'-lantern.
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And now, Archie's at the front of the class for show-and-tell,
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showing off a whole book he wrote, telling everyone his
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mom and dad are artists just like him. But they're magicians,
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and he's an author, and blah, blah, blah-ba-dee-blah. Livia can't
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believe this boy's already been published. That his book, Totally
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Awesome Tales from a Real Kid's Brain, is available for
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purchase online. Only $ 11. 99 for a.
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Copy, Miss Doll, Archie says. It would look great on
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that shelf over there.
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Suddenly, other kids are declaring that they're going to ask
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for copies for their birthdays, for Christmas, for Hanukkah. Livia
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wants to have a look at the totally awesome tales herself.
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But she's not giving Archie Irving a single dime, let
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alone 120 of them.
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Later, Mr.
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Craven, the school librarian and Livia's favorite human, invites Mrs.
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Dahl's students into its workspace so that their teacher may
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grade papers and catch up on emails. The library is
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Livia's happy place. Her best friends are here, tucked away
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in the stacks, ready to say hi whenever she wants
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to explore their worlds again. But today, her enemy has
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infiltrated the happy place, and he jokes with Connor J.
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and Brayden G. instead of listening to Mr. Craven's lesson
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on writing a spooky narrative.
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Mr.
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Craven is not only an expert on books. He is
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a huge horror fan, like Livia, and is one of
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the only people she willingly converses with. As the primary
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judge for the Scary Story Contest, Mr. Craven hopes that
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every student participates this year. And after saying that, he
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turns to Archie. Young man, I understand you're a first-time
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visitor to my library, but let's not pretend it's the
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first time you've ever been to a school When adults
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share their thoughts, you wait until the moment is appropriate
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to share your own. Sorry, mister, Archie replies, not looking
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sorry at all. But I already know how to write, okay?
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My ancestors were pirates, and they wrote down all their adventures.
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Storytelling's been in my family blood for centuries.
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Want to see?
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Livia doesn't like that Mr. Craven gives Archie the spotlight,
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that he lets Archie open and read from his book.
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Livia doesn't like that the story titled The Stolen Gem
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is indeed totally awesome, even though it features no pirates
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and no horror. Livia doesn't like how nervous hearing it
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aloud makes her feel either, or that Archie gets a
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long round of applause. Because Archie Irving can write. Really write.
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Really well. Livia is so caught up in her nerves
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that but she doesn't realize at first that Mr. Craven
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is calling her name. Her classmates giggle at her expense.
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Olivia's cheeks blossom red. I have your story from third grade.
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A piece of paper previously pinned to a bulletin board
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by the library entrance is in Mr. Craven's hand. Care
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to read it to your peers? Does this girl even speak?
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Archie asks, and others laugh. Livia declines the invitation to read,
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and probably stutter, through her own totally awesome tale, The
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Phantom of the Aquarium.
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So Mr.
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Craven reads it aloud instead. Every few lines he pauses
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to point out Livia's use of dialogue, figurative language, and suspense.
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Her story gets applause also, but not from Archie. He
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merely snorts. A ghost goldfish, he says. Cute, I guess.
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After school, Livia returns to the library to ask Mr.
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Craven a question. Did pirates really write about their pillaging
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like Archie said?
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Mr.
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Craven smiles. Excellent use of pillaging, Livia. That deserves a reward.
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He hands her a sticker, a black cat snoozing atop
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a pile of books. It will fit perfectly on her
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water bottle. As for pirates' writing ability, I don't know
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how many of them were literate or educated enough to
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put quill to parchment. Though I wager a number were
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gifted oral storytellers, sharing tales by candlelight. How else to
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keep each other entertained on those long oceanic journeys? So
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Archie could be lying?
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Mr.
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Craven shrugs. He got his talent from somewhere. You think
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he's talented?
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Decide for yourself. I've ordered his book. Should be here
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by Friday, ready for weekend checkout. Speaking of talent, have
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you seen the trailer for the new Insidious movie? Looks
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scarier than the last one.
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On Wednesday, Miss Doll randomly assigns each student an animal.
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Livia is assigned an opossum. Her table mates get the
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following creatures. Fernando, a squirrel. Tiffany, a great horned owl.
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Grayson Z, a skunk. Paulina, a monarch butterfly.
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Archie, a raccoon.
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Each fourth grader is then given time to research their
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animal on their Chromebook. Tomorrow, they'll have to write an
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essay about their critter's physical characteristics, habitat, diet, and unique behaviors.
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Livia isn't thrilled about the task, She can compose a
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story about a gigantic mutant opossum, no problem. But writing
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flavorless non-fiction isn't her strength. Everyone knows Tiffany is the
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best essayist, best overall student in class. Archie won't stop
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begging Tiffany for assistance, even though researching is the easy part.
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All his whispering distracts Livia. In her notebook, the only
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thing she's written down is, Opossums are marsupials, not mammals.
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Archie's Chromebook is open to an image of a raccoon's
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bandit face, but he doesn't read or look for any text.
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He just talks, talks, talks, his own notebook shut tight
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in front of him. In fact, Livia's never, ever seen
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him open that notebook before. But it's always there, closely guarded.
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Last week, Archie caught her staring at its crimson cover
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and said.
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Cool, right? That's not leather, by the way.
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It's imp skin. Imps are mischievous beasts from mythology and folklore, tiny,
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sneaky companions to witches and warlocks, miniature vessels of magic
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and chaos. Livia doesn't believe in imps, but she'd rather
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write a paper about them and their weird history than
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about opossums and their below-average body temperatures. Miss Doll eventually
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moves Archie to a corner of the room where he
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can research raccoons away from the other kids. Even though
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he takes it with him, the boy doesn't bother to
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scribble a single word inside his scarlet notebook. The next day,
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Tiffany is in terrible shape. Her skin is paled her
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eyes sunken and glazed over. She shuffles awkwardly to her
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seat beside Grayson Z, as if she has forgotten how
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to walk. In other words, the girl is sleep-deprived, ill,
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or both. Miss Dahl asks if she's feeling okay, and
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all Tiffany can emit is a zombie-like groan-growl. As the
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teacher writes Tiffany a note to the nurse's office, Archie
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mentions that he and Tiffany discussed and agreed on Switching
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research animals, Archie claims to have more interest in a
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great horned owl than he does a raccoon. I'll allow it,
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says Miss Dahl, so long as Tiffany says it's okay.
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Tiffany shrugs, then nods and groan-growls again. She takes the
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teacher's note and shambles out of class. When it's time
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to write their essays, Livia sees Archie's notebook actually open
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for once. Inside are paragraphs scrawled in Tiffany's handwriting. Miss
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Dahl doesn't notice this as Archie types his paper, copying
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down Tiffany's sentences line for line, passing off her hard
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work as his own. Livia manages to type two opossum-tastic
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pages of her own, even though she can't stop wondering
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why Tiffany would ever help Archie Irving cheat. Livia borrows
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Archie's book from the library and reads it over the weekend.
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The stolen gem is the collection's standout story. But Aliens
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Ate My Homework is an interesting sci-fi adventure. Noon at
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the Root Beer Saloon is a funny western. The Weasel
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and the Fish is an engrossing fable. Other stories are attention-grabbing, too.
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Livia can't quite believe they're all written by the same
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ten-year-old kid. They all seem so dissimilar from one another
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in style, vocabulary, and content. Did Archie's parents help him
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craft these tales? Or is there some other explanation? On Monday,
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Tiffany is again absent from class. Livia hopes the girl
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is all right. At one point, Miss Dahl steps outside
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to take a private phone call. She's instructed her students
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to quietly prepare for an upcoming quiz on adding fractions.
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But the moment the woman's gone, Connor J. removes a
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football from his backpack and tosses it to Brayden G.
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across the room. Students snicker, and Archie begs for the
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next pass. Brayden G. 's no quarterback, however, so his
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throw to Archie is low, off the mark. The wayward
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football sends various objects to the floor, including Archie's notebook.
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now resting open-faced at Livia's feet. Aliens Ate My Homework
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is right there, the entire story handwritten for Livia to see.
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Kneeling down, Livia flips to other pages. Noon at the
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Root Beer Saloon is in there too, but written in
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completely different handwriting. The Weasel and the Fish is inside
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the notebook as well, written in what looks like a
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girl's careful cursive. Archie snatches the notebook from Livia's hands.
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That's mine, he snarls. Yes, Livia almost says, but those
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stories you say you wrote aren't. That afternoon in the library,
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Livia assists Mr. Craven with reshelving returned novels where they belong.
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He trusts her to be respectful and responsible. which is
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why he feels comfortable enough to leave her alone while
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he runs a quick errand across campus. Only, Livia isn't
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alone for long. Archie enters the library, closing its doors
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behind him. So, you know my secret, he says, stepping
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toward her, eyes storming. He unzips his backpack as he
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walks Livia's direction, removing his not-leather notebook. Please leave, Livia
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tries to shout, but all she manages is a whisper.
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Archie ignores her, continuing his approach. You don't quite know
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how I got their stories, do you? Well, my buddy
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here pretty much does all the work. He holds up
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his notebook. My family's been using it for generations. Found
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centuries ago by an ancestor pirate inside a mystical cave.
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You mean stolen from a mystical cave? Livia says this
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so softly she can barely hear it. I wasn't lying
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when I said it's made of imp skin. That's what
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makes it so powerful, so useful. It helps my family
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get whatever we want, whenever we want it. Absorbs thoughts
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and ideas straight from a target's brain. Could be new
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magic tricks for my parents, or could be finished schoolwork
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for me. Olivia realizes, that thing hurt Tiffany. She'll be
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back to normal. Someday, Archie chuckles, and so will you eventually. Now,
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what can you give me to help me win that contest?
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Archie throws the notebook at Livia, and it flies. It
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literally flaps its front and back covers like bat wings,
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like imp's wings, and zooms straight for the girl's frightened face.
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Livia yelps, smacking the impish notebook aside with a thick
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Rick Riordan story. The dazed notebook crashes against a shelf,
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but then quickly reorients itself and flies for Livia again.
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This time she swings and misses, and the notebook latches
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onto Livia's forehead like a vampiric parasite. Livia collapses to
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the floor, and the notebook's pages begin to feed on, absorb,
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steal words, phrases, and imagery.
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From her mind.
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Archie cackles at his treachery, at Livia's suffering. Only Livia
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knows exactly what to think in that moment, knows exactly
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which words to give the greedy boy and his monstrous companion.
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As those words are drained from Livia's skull, a sharp
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headache settles in. Lightning and thunder roil together behind her eyes. Mercifully,
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the awful sensation is a brief one. A foggy feeling
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soon follows, drifting throughout and weakening her entire body. Just
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after Archie removes his notebook, after Livia's own handwriting marks
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its pages, Mr. Craven re-enters the library. Livia can't quite
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make out what the librarian is saying, but there's panic
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in his voice. Archie says he found Livia lying here,
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like this. Livia wants to scream the truth, but her
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mind is so cloudy. She's not sure that her tongue
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will even function. She's out of school for over a week,
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as her energy and wits return to her. Fortunately, in
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her absence, her plan takes effect and totally works. Archie
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submits the narrative he stole from her to the Scary
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Story Contest. Its title is The Changeling, and it's a
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creepy haunted house tale. What Archie doesn't know, until it's
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too late, is that The Changeling is actually a real
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horror film. Mr. Craven's favorite horror film. The boy attempts
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to claim the story as his own, but Mr. Craven,
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of course, immediately recognizes its stolen plot. He disqualifies Archie
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from the contest for cheating. Livia's plan works better than expected,
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because Mr. Craven also has a meeting with the principal.
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Archie and Archie's parents about plagiarism. Instead of holding Archie
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accountable for his actions, his parents decide to unenroll him
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from Matheson Elementary School, probably so that he can lie, cheat,
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and steal again elsewhere. Which means Livia will never have
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to see Archie Irving ever again.
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Mr.
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Craven tells her this incredible news the next time she
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visits his library. Also that he's removed Archie's totally awesome
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tails from circulation. Livia cheers, then hands over a couple
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of papers that she has stapled together. Her new scary story,
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written while she recovered back at home. Dracula's Hungry Notebook,
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it's called.
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Sounds spooky, Mr.
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Craven says. Can't wait to read it. Livia doesn't tell
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him that it's spookiest bits.
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Are true.
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Thank you all for being such dedicated MicroTerrors listeners. Next week,
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we have a spooky story that is sure to set
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the mood for October.
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She Lives in the Attic.
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It premieres next Saturday. Oh, and be sure to head
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on over to MicroTerrors.com to check out the end of
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00:19:41.829 --> 00:19:46.990
summer MicroTerrors book sale. Details are on the homepage. See
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00:19:47.009 --> 00:19:47.470
you next week.
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Thank you for listening to MicroTerrors. Join us each Saturday
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00:19:55.769 --> 00:20:00.609
for another scary story. For more fun, visit our website
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00:20:00.630 --> 00:20:05.890
at microterrors.com. you can get the latest micro terrors news
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00:20:06.369 --> 00:20:09.789
read fun facts about each story sign up for our
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00:20:09.849 --> 00:20:14.160
monthly newsletter and even send in your own scary story
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00:20:14.200 --> 00:20:17.880
for us to tell Plus, you can become one of
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00:20:17.930 --> 00:20:23.380
the terrified by joining the fan club at Microterrors.com. You
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00:20:23.440 --> 00:20:28.380
enjoy exclusive perks like reading stories a week early, receiving
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complimentary books, and communicating directly with Microterrors writer and creator
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00:20:33.589 --> 00:20:37.430
Scott Donnelly. You can also follow us on Facebook and
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00:20:37.630 --> 00:20:42.049
Instagram using the handle at Microterrors. I hope you'll join
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00:20:42.089 --> 00:20:47.220
us again soon for Microterrors. Scary stories for kids.
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Welcome to Micro-Terrors. Scary stories for kids. Where it's always
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the spooky season. Full of chills. thrills, and spine-tingling spooks.
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Micro-terrors are family-friendly frights for those ages 8 and up.
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And while our stories are for younger ears, we are
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still talking about things that go bump in the night,
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and some children may not be able to handle what
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others can. Parental consent is recommended. Now.
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For tonight's Micro Terror. Right or Very Wrong. Written by
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Evan Boffman. Apparently, this year, Livia has competition for the
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annual Matheson Elementary School Scary Story Writing Contest. Archie Irving.
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the annoying new boy in Miss Doll's fourth grade class.
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The tow-headed little monster first slithered into Livia's life as
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her table mate a couple weeks ago, end of September.
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From day one, the kid's been a yappy nuisance, full
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of too many unnecessary words. Thirteen times he's had his
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name written on the board for talking out of turn.
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Livia loves words, too, but she puts most of them
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down on the page. not across her tongue and over
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her lips. At 10 years old, she is the three-time
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consecutive winner of Matheson Elementary's Golden Skull Trophy, as well
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as a $ 30 gift certificate to Bradbury's bookstore on Main Street.
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Which makes sense, since Livia reads a lot, on average
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six novels a month, and her parents have shown her
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hundreds of their favorite horror movies, even ones that make
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most adults shiver and squirm. The only year Livia didn't
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claim the top prize was back in kindergarten, when she
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hadn't yet learned how to properly spell or punctuate Jack-o'-lantern.
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And now, Archie's at the front of the class for show-and-tell,
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showing off a whole book he wrote, telling everyone his
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mom and dad are artists just like him. But they're magicians,
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and he's an author, and blah, blah, blah-ba-dee-blah. Livia can't
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believe this boy's already been published. That his book, Totally
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Awesome Tales from a Real Kid's Brain, is available for
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purchase online. Only $ 11. 99 for a.
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Copy, Miss Doll, Archie says. It would look great on
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that shelf over there.
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Suddenly, other kids are declaring that they're going to ask
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for copies for their birthdays, for Christmas, for Hanukkah. Livia
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wants to have a look at the totally awesome tales herself.
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But she's not giving Archie Irving a single dime, let
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alone 120 of them.
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Later, Mr.
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Craven, the school librarian and Livia's favorite human, invites Mrs.
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Dahl's students into its workspace so that their teacher may
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grade papers and catch up on emails. The library is
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Livia's happy place. Her best friends are here, tucked away
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in the stacks, ready to say hi whenever she wants
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to explore their worlds again. But today, her enemy has
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infiltrated the happy place, and he jokes with Connor J.
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and Brayden G. instead of listening to Mr. Craven's lesson
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on writing a spooky narrative.
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Mr.
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Craven is not only an expert on books. He is
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a huge horror fan, like Livia, and is one of
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the only people she willingly converses with. As the primary
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judge for the Scary Story Contest, Mr. Craven hopes that
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every student participates this year. And after saying that, he
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turns to Archie. Young man, I understand you're a first-time
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visitor to my library, but let's not pretend it's the
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first time you've ever been to a school When adults
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share their thoughts, you wait until the moment is appropriate
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to share your own. Sorry, mister, Archie replies, not looking
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sorry at all. But I already know how to write, okay?
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My ancestors were pirates, and they wrote down all their adventures.
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Storytelling's been in my family blood for centuries.
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Want to see?
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Livia doesn't like that Mr. Craven gives Archie the spotlight,
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that he lets Archie open and read from his book.
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Livia doesn't like that the story titled The Stolen Gem
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is indeed totally awesome, even though it features no pirates
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and no horror. Livia doesn't like how nervous hearing it
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aloud makes her feel either, or that Archie gets a
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long round of applause. Because Archie Irving can write. Really write.
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Really well. Livia is so caught up in her nerves
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that but she doesn't realize at first that Mr. Craven
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is calling her name. Her classmates giggle at her expense.
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Olivia's cheeks blossom red. I have your story from third grade.
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A piece of paper previously pinned to a bulletin board
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by the library entrance is in Mr. Craven's hand. Care
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to read it to your peers? Does this girl even speak?
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Archie asks, and others laugh. Livia declines the invitation to read,
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and probably stutter, through her own totally awesome tale, The
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Phantom of the Aquarium.
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So Mr.
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Craven reads it aloud instead. Every few lines he pauses
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to point out Livia's use of dialogue, figurative language, and suspense.
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Her story gets applause also, but not from Archie. He
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merely snorts. A ghost goldfish, he says. Cute, I guess.
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After school, Livia returns to the library to ask Mr.
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Craven a question. Did pirates really write about their pillaging
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like Archie said?
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Mr.
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Craven smiles. Excellent use of pillaging, Livia. That deserves a reward.
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He hands her a sticker, a black cat snoozing atop
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a pile of books. It will fit perfectly on her
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water bottle. As for pirates' writing ability, I don't know
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how many of them were literate or educated enough to
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put quill to parchment. Though I wager a number were
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gifted oral storytellers, sharing tales by candlelight. How else to
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keep each other entertained on those long oceanic journeys? So
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Archie could be lying?
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Mr.
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Craven shrugs. He got his talent from somewhere. You think
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he's talented?
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Decide for yourself. I've ordered his book. Should be here
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by Friday, ready for weekend checkout. Speaking of talent, have
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you seen the trailer for the new Insidious movie? Looks
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scarier than the last one.
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On Wednesday, Miss Doll randomly assigns each student an animal.
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Livia is assigned an opossum. Her table mates get the
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following creatures. Fernando, a squirrel. Tiffany, a great horned owl.
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Grayson Z, a skunk. Paulina, a monarch butterfly.
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Archie, a raccoon.
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Each fourth grader is then given time to research their
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animal on their Chromebook. Tomorrow, they'll have to write an
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essay about their critter's physical characteristics, habitat, diet, and unique behaviors.
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Livia isn't thrilled about the task, She can compose a
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story about a gigantic mutant opossum, no problem. But writing
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flavorless non-fiction isn't her strength. Everyone knows Tiffany is the
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best essayist, best overall student in class. Archie won't stop
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begging Tiffany for assistance, even though researching is the easy part.
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All his whispering distracts Livia. In her notebook, the only
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thing she's written down is, Opossums are marsupials, not mammals.
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Archie's Chromebook is open to an image of a raccoon's
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bandit face, but he doesn't read or look for any text.
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He just talks, talks, talks, his own notebook shut tight
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in front of him. In fact, Livia's never, ever seen
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him open that notebook before. But it's always there, closely guarded.
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Last week, Archie caught her staring at its crimson cover
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and said.
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Cool, right? That's not leather, by the way.
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It's imp skin. Imps are mischievous beasts from mythology and folklore, tiny,
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sneaky companions to witches and warlocks, miniature vessels of magic
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and chaos. Livia doesn't believe in imps, but she'd rather
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write a paper about them and their weird history than
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about opossums and their below-average body temperatures. Miss Doll eventually
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moves Archie to a corner of the room where he
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can research raccoons away from the other kids. Even though
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he takes it with him, the boy doesn't bother to
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scribble a single word inside his scarlet notebook. The next day,
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Tiffany is in terrible shape. Her skin is paled her
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eyes sunken and glazed over. She shuffles awkwardly to her
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seat beside Grayson Z, as if she has forgotten how
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to walk. In other words, the girl is sleep-deprived, ill,
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or both. Miss Dahl asks if she's feeling okay, and
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all Tiffany can emit is a zombie-like groan-growl. As the
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teacher writes Tiffany a note to the nurse's office, Archie
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mentions that he and Tiffany discussed and agreed on Switching
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research animals, Archie claims to have more interest in a
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great horned owl than he does a raccoon. I'll allow it,
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says Miss Dahl, so long as Tiffany says it's okay.
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Tiffany shrugs, then nods and groan-growls again. She takes the
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teacher's note and shambles out of class. When it's time
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to write their essays, Livia sees Archie's notebook actually open
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for once. Inside are paragraphs scrawled in Tiffany's handwriting. Miss
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Dahl doesn't notice this as Archie types his paper, copying
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down Tiffany's sentences line for line, passing off her hard
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work as his own. Livia manages to type two opossum-tastic
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pages of her own, even though she can't stop wondering
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why Tiffany would ever help Archie Irving cheat. Livia borrows
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Archie's book from the library and reads it over the weekend.
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The stolen gem is the collection's standout story. But Aliens
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Ate My Homework is an interesting sci-fi adventure. Noon at
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the Root Beer Saloon is a funny western. The Weasel
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and the Fish is an engrossing fable. Other stories are attention-grabbing, too.
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Livia can't quite believe they're all written by the same
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ten-year-old kid. They all seem so dissimilar from one another
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in style, vocabulary, and content. Did Archie's parents help him
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craft these tales? Or is there some other explanation? On Monday,
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Tiffany is again absent from class. Livia hopes the girl
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is all right. At one point, Miss Dahl steps outside
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to take a private phone call. She's instructed her students
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to quietly prepare for an upcoming quiz on adding fractions.
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But the moment the woman's gone, Connor J. removes a
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football from his backpack and tosses it to Brayden G.
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across the room. Students snicker, and Archie begs for the
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next pass. Brayden G. 's no quarterback, however, so his
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throw to Archie is low, off the mark. The wayward
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football sends various objects to the floor, including Archie's notebook.
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now resting open-faced at Livia's feet. Aliens Ate My Homework
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is right there, the entire story handwritten for Livia to see.
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Kneeling down, Livia flips to other pages. Noon at the
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Root Beer Saloon is in there too, but written in
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completely different handwriting. The Weasel and the Fish is inside
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the notebook as well, written in what looks like a
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girl's careful cursive. Archie snatches the notebook from Livia's hands.
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That's mine, he snarls. Yes, Livia almost says, but those
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stories you say you wrote aren't. That afternoon in the library,
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Livia assists Mr. Craven with reshelving returned novels where they belong.
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He trusts her to be respectful and responsible. which is
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why he feels comfortable enough to leave her alone while
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he runs a quick errand across campus. Only, Livia isn't
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alone for long. Archie enters the library, closing its doors
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behind him. So, you know my secret, he says, stepping
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toward her, eyes storming. He unzips his backpack as he
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walks Livia's direction, removing his not-leather notebook. Please leave, Livia
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tries to shout, but all she manages is a whisper.
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Archie ignores her, continuing his approach. You don't quite know
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how I got their stories, do you? Well, my buddy
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here pretty much does all the work. He holds up
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his notebook. My family's been using it for generations. Found
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centuries ago by an ancestor pirate inside a mystical cave.
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You mean stolen from a mystical cave? Livia says this
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so softly she can barely hear it. I wasn't lying
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when I said it's made of imp skin. That's what
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makes it so powerful, so useful. It helps my family
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get whatever we want, whenever we want it. Absorbs thoughts
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and ideas straight from a target's brain. Could be new
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magic tricks for my parents, or could be finished schoolwork
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for me. Olivia realizes, that thing hurt Tiffany. She'll be
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back to normal. Someday, Archie chuckles, and so will you eventually. Now,
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what can you give me to help me win that contest?
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Archie throws the notebook at Livia, and it flies. It
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literally flaps its front and back covers like bat wings,
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like imp's wings, and zooms straight for the girl's frightened face.
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Livia yelps, smacking the impish notebook aside with a thick
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Rick Riordan story. The dazed notebook crashes against a shelf,
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but then quickly reorients itself and flies for Livia again.
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This time she swings and misses, and the notebook latches
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onto Livia's forehead like a vampiric parasite. Livia collapses to
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the floor, and the notebook's pages begin to feed on, absorb,
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steal words, phrases, and imagery.
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From her mind.
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Archie cackles at his treachery, at Livia's suffering. Only Livia
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knows exactly what to think in that moment, knows exactly
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which words to give the greedy boy and his monstrous companion.
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As those words are drained from Livia's skull, a sharp
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headache settles in. Lightning and thunder roil together behind her eyes. Mercifully,
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the awful sensation is a brief one. A foggy feeling
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soon follows, drifting throughout and weakening her entire body. Just
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after Archie removes his notebook, after Livia's own handwriting marks
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its pages, Mr. Craven re-enters the library. Livia can't quite
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make out what the librarian is saying, but there's panic
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in his voice. Archie says he found Livia lying here,
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like this. Livia wants to scream the truth, but her
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mind is so cloudy. She's not sure that her tongue
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will even function. She's out of school for over a week,
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as her energy and wits return to her. Fortunately, in
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her absence, her plan takes effect and totally works. Archie
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submits the narrative he stole from her to the Scary
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Story Contest. Its title is The Changeling, and it's a
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creepy haunted house tale. What Archie doesn't know, until it's
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too late, is that The Changeling is actually a real
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horror film. Mr. Craven's favorite horror film. The boy attempts
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to claim the story as his own, but Mr. Craven,
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of course, immediately recognizes its stolen plot. He disqualifies Archie
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from the contest for cheating. Livia's plan works better than expected,
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because Mr. Craven also has a meeting with the principal.
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Archie and Archie's parents about plagiarism. Instead of holding Archie
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accountable for his actions, his parents decide to unenroll him
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from Matheson Elementary School, probably so that he can lie, cheat,
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and steal again elsewhere. Which means Livia will never have
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to see Archie Irving ever again.
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Mr.
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Craven tells her this incredible news the next time she
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visits his library. Also that he's removed Archie's totally awesome
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tails from circulation. Livia cheers, then hands over a couple
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of papers that she has stapled together. Her new scary story,
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written while she recovered back at home. Dracula's Hungry Notebook,
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it's called.
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Sounds spooky, Mr.
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Craven says. Can't wait to read it. Livia doesn't tell
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him that it's spookiest bits.
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Are true.
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Thank you all for being such dedicated MicroTerrors listeners. Next week,
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we have a spooky story that is sure to set
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the mood for October.
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She Lives in the Attic.
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It premieres next Saturday. Oh, and be sure to head
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on over to MicroTerrors.com to check out the end of
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00:19:41.829 --> 00:19:46.990
summer MicroTerrors book sale. Details are on the homepage. See
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00:19:47.009 --> 00:19:47.470
you next week.
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Thank you for listening to MicroTerrors. Join us each Saturday
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for another scary story. For more fun, visit our website
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at microterrors.com. you can get the latest micro terrors news
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read fun facts about each story sign up for our
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for us to tell Plus, you can become one of
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Scott Donnelly. You can also follow us on Facebook and
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us again soon for Microterrors. Scary stories for kids.
