A Zombie Apocalypse is threatening to end Minecraft as we know it.
And it also just might totally ruin Zombie's 13th Birthday Party.
But, will Zombie and his friends be able to stop the Zombie Apocalypse so that they can finally enjoy some cake and cookies at Zombie's Birthday Bash?
Jump Into the Adventure and Find Out!
Diary of a Minecraft Zombie: Zombie's Birthday Apocalypse
2.0
Quiz number: 184626
Table of Contents
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
SaturdayMyBirthday!
SaturdayMIddleEntry
SaturdayNightEntry
SaturdayLateNightEntry
Sunday
EarlyEntry
Sunday
MiddleEntry
Sunday
NightEntry
Monday
Findoutwhathappens
next!
Copyright ©2015Zack ZombiePublishing LLC
All rights reserved. No part ofthispublicationmay be reproduced, distributed,or transmitted inany formor by anymeans, electronicor mechanical,including photocopying,recording,scanning,or by anyinformationstorageor retrievalsystem, withouttheprior written permissionof the publisher,exceptinthecaseofbrief quotationsembodiedin criticalreviews and certain other non-commercialuses permittedbycopyright law.
This unofficialnovelis an original work offanfictionwhichisnotsanctioned nor approved by the makers ofMinecraft. Minecraftisaregistered trademarkof, and ownedby, Mojang Synergies AB, and its respective owners,whichdo not sponsor, authorize,or endorse thisbook. All characters,names,places,andotheraspectsof thegame describedherein aretrademarkedand ownedbytheirrespectiveowners. Minecraft®/TM& ©2009-2016 Mojang.MONDAY
Justafewmoreweeksuntil HALLOWEEN,and Ican’twait! Notjustbecause it’s myfavoriteholiday. It’salsomybirthday!
I’mgonnabe13yearsold. Now,I know that’snotabigdeal, especiallysinceZombies canliveforever. Butit’sabigdealto me. Yousee,being13meansthatI’llbea TEENAGER now. AndbeingateenmeansIcan get alittlemorerespectaround here. …AndIneedit too. Becauseyou know, being a12year oldnoob inmiddleschool canbepretty
painful. Especiallybecausethose WEDGIES arestartingtoleave someserious marks. …Notto mentionwhatgetting thrownintothedumpsterisdoingtothe shapeof myhead.
IonlywishIcould get more respect athome.
ButIthinkmyMomand Dadarealwaysgoingtotreatmelikea baby Zombie. Likethis morning,myMommademylunch for school...
Now,I know thatdoesn’tsound thatbad. Butshealwaysmakes these MOB BABY COOKIES toletmeknow shelovesme.Talkaboutembarrassing.
WhenIopenmylunchboxat schooltheothermobkids arealways teasing meaboutit. “What’sthematterwittlebabyZombie?Doyouneedawittlemilk togo
withyourcookies?” Then thewholecafeteriastartslaughing atme. Itseems likeIhaveasignthatsays “LOSER” paintedonmyforehead
everytime Iopen my LUNCHBOX.
Notto mentiontheoneonmybackthat says, “IWANT ABIG, FAT WEDGIERIGHTNOW.” NowI wouldthrowthecookies awaybeforeI gettoschool. Butthey tastereally good.
…Especiallywithmilk.
Butbeing13hasitsperks. Like,I’m supposedtogetaraiseinmyallowance. ButknowingmyMomandDad,it’snotgoing tobemuch. TheirruleisthatI’m supposedtogetadollar foreveryyearthatI’m older. Sofor my 13th BIRTHDAY,Iget…youguessedit…13dollars. There’snotmuchaZombie candowith13dollarseverymonth. SoI justspenditonwhat’sreallyimportant,likecake! NowI knowIshouldbesavingupmyallowancelike aresponsible young
Zombie. Butwith only13dollars, I can’tevenafford topay attention.
Butit’sok. Thereallycoolthingaboutbeing13is thatmyDadsaidthat I couldgetajob. SoI don’thavetosurviveona measly13dollarseverymonth. I’mgoingtogetajoband getpaid the real ‘BENJAMINS.’ Ijusthaveto figureoutwhatI’mgoing todoforwork. Right nowtheonlythingI’mreallygood atis collectingboogers. ButIhopeIgetsomemoneyformybirthday too. IfIdo,Iwantto buyanewvideogameformy SCARESTATION 465.
MyparentsgavemeaScareStation465forwinningtheSpelling Beelast month. Andit’sawesome! Andthere’sanewvideogameStevetoldmeaboutthat Ireallywantto get. He saidit’scalledHALO 3000—ZombieApocalypseEdition. Soundssocool!Ican’t wait.
Speakingofmybirthday, I need tocomeupwithareally cooltheme formy birthdayparty. Sinceits Halloween,IusuallyhaveaHalloweenpartyformybirthday. ButtheHalloween partiesmyMomandDadput togetherarekindof lame. They’renotscaryatall. Lastyear,wehada “MyLittle Zombie Pony” HALLOWEEN PARTY. Everybodyhad todressuplikea ZombiePony. Lame.
ThisyearIwantto do something REALLY SCARY.Somethingtotellthe worldthatI’m abigZombienow. Like…apool party!
Zombiesreally hatewater,sothatshouldgive them agoodscare. Butmaybe Ishouldn’t. IjustrememberedthatmybuddySlimeyis terrified ofwater. Especially after what happened tohisuncle.Thepoolof Death!
Or maybeIcould doa SKATEBOARD PARTY!
Naw… KnowingSkeleehe’llprobablyfalldownandbreak aboneor something.
MaybeI coulddo asurpriseparty? Icouldjustactsurprisedwheneverybody jumpsout. Well,maybenot. Ithinkthatwouldbereallybad for Creepy…andthat
wouldbereallybad for therestofus. Igotit! Wecandoa HarryPotterparty! Thatmoviereallygavemethecreeps. Everybodycan dress uplikethosereallyscarykidsfromHogwarts.
Wecanridearoundbrooms,wave magicwands,andtalkinEnglishaccents andstuff.
AndIcandressup like HARRY POTTER.Ijust have togeta uniform, some glasses,and carvealightningboltonmyhead.
Wow, thisisgoing tobethebest birthdaypartyever!TUESDAY
Today,Iwenttosee Stevetotell himaboutmybirthdaypartyidea. Ifoundhimintheforest,and helookedlike hewaslookingforsomething. Perfect timetotryoutmynewscaringskills,I thought. SoI SNUCK UP behind himand... ‘HYEEEEAAAAAAHHHHHUURRRGHHHZZZOOWWIIIIEEEE!!!!!’ ‘Oh,heyZombie.’ Man,I’m gettingrusty. ‘Hey, Steve. Whatchadoing?’ “I’m justlookingforavillager. Someofthefolksin my villagesaidthathe
went out totheforest tolookforpumpkinsandhenevercame back.” “That’s weird.” “Yeah, he’sbeengoneforafewdays now.” “No,Imeant thatit’sweirdhewenttolookfor PUMPKINS.Iusuallystay
awayfrom thosethings. Aren’ttheydangerous?” “Whatdoyou mean?” “Well,whenIwas ababyZombie,Iusedtoreally lovepumpkinpie. But
thenmyDadsaid thatifI eat toomuchpumpkin,thenI’llturn intoone. Kind oflike doughnuts.”Stevejustlookedatme…confused. “Thatisweird,” hesaid.
“But,hey Steve, I wanted totellyouaboutmybirthday party idea.”
“Are youdoingthe ‘MyLittleZombiePony’ party againthisyear?CauseI gotareallyniceRainbowDashstick-ontattooIwanttowear,” Stevesaid snickering.
“Haha,notfunny. Naw,thisyearIwantedto makeitreally, REALLY SCARY.It’sgoingtobe thescariestHalloweenparty ever. This yearI’m doinga HARRY POTTER PARTY!”
Stevejustlookedatme…confused.
“Yeah, we’regoingtocarrybooks,wearuniforms,wave wandsand everything.”
Stevestilllookedconfused.
“AndI’mgoingtobeHarryPotter. Bytheway,howgoodareyouat carvingZombieskulls?”
Allofasudden we heardanoise. “Hey, Ithinkthat’shim,” Stevesaid.
Whenwelookedthroughthetrees,wesawa villager, butinstead ofa big head and LONG NOSE, thisvillagerhada pumpkinonhishead.
“Whyis herunningaroundcrazy and WAVING his handsin the air like that?” Iasked Steve.
“Idon’t know, butI’vegottobringhim backtothevillage.”
“See,myDadwas right. Itold youthatifyoueattoo much pumpkin,you’ll turninto one.”
Stevehadthat confusedlookonhisface againandsaid, “I’llseeyoulater, Zombie.”
Then thevillagerwith thepumpkinheadranoff, andStevechasedafter him.
Villagersaresoweird,Ithought.
I’vealwayswonderedwhySteveisn’tweirdlike them. Come tothinkofit, it’s kindofweirdthat Stevedoesn’thavealongnoseeither. Does Steveevenhave anose? Whoa. Oh well,timetoget some stuff togetherformybirthday party. Oh man,Ican’t wait!WEDNESDAY
Todayat ScareSchool,wewentonafieldtrip totheMobScienceMuseum.
Everymonth theyhaveadifferenttheme. Usuallyit’skindalame, but sometimesthey dosome reallycool stuff.
Onetimethey talkedaboutthescience of ‘spontaneouscombustion.’ Creepy reallylikedthatone. Especiallywhenthey talkedabouthowyou canuseCreeper poop tomakecoolfireworks.
Anothertime theytalkedaboutSkeletons. IthoughtSkelee wouldreally likeit. Buthetold methattheexhibitwas lame comparedtothecrazystuff heseeswhenhevisitshisrelatives.
Butthismonth’sthemewasaboutHalloween.
They hadanexhibit aboutthehistory ofHalloweenthatI reallyliked.
Itsaid thatHalloween isthebiggestnationalholidayfor MINECRAFT MOBS everywhere. They eventakeadayoffofworkandclosethe schools tohonorthis special day.
Butitsaidthathumanvillagersdon’tappreciateHalloweenthatmuch. They stillhavetoworkandgo toschoolon Halloween.
Man,itmust REALLY STINK tobeavillager.
Butmyfavoritepartof the exhibittalkedabouttheScience ofPumpkins. Itsaid thatpumpkinswereblocks thatgrowin mostOverworldbiomes.Pumpkin!
Itried tofind outifwhatmyDadsaidabout turningintoapumpkin was true. ButwhenIaskedtheZombieladygivingthetour, shejustgavemea strange look.
Therewas onethingshesaid attheend ofthe exhibitthatseemedkinda weirdthough. Shesaid…
About500years ago, a RARE FUNGUS infectedall ofthe pumpkinsina small mobvillage. Itcausedallthosemobsexposed tothefungusto loseall controlandbehaveinanerraticandstrangemanner.
Thoseinfected attackedandbitothers, andtheinfectionspreadfromvillage tovillage. Itdidnotmatterwhetheryouweremob orhuman, all couldbe infectedwith thedisease.
Thoseinfected wouldbeidentifiedby theirstrangebehaviorandthe distinct largepumpkinthatspawned tocovertheirheads.
Ithasbeentheorizedinscientific circlesthatthispumpkin fungusoutbreak wastheultimate causeof thelast ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE…
Whoa!Sheevenshowedus anold pictureofone oftheinfected…
ThePumpkinOutbreak
Man,I’m gladIwasn’taround500years ago. That would’vebeenso scaaaarryyy!
Anyway,allIcareaboutrightnowismybirthdayparty,and howcoolitis goingtobe.
Whichreminds me, I need tostartinvitingthekids atschool to MY PARTY.
IwonderifIshouldjustinvite the coolkids…
Imean,nowthatI’mgoingtobe13,I’mgoingto needanewsetoffriends togowith mynewimage, right?THURSDAY
Istarted INVITING someof thecoolkidsat schoolto cometo my birthday party today.
Butitwas kindofweirdthateverytimeIaskedany ofthem,they just startedlaughing.
Iguessthatmeansthattheyreallywanttobe there.
Istarted thinkingaboutCreepy,Skelee andSlimey. MaybeI shouldn’t invitetheguysthisyear, Ithought. Yousee,theguys arestill ONLY 12 yearsold. Andinschool,alotofthecoolkidsthinkthey’renoobs. Butitwould bekindofweirdnothavingthemat my birthdayparty. Imean,they’vebeencomingtomy birthdaypartyeversinceIwas ababy
Zombie. Irememberfirst meetingSkelee atmy6th birthdayparty. Iwasswingingastickat my EnderDragonpiñatawhenIaccidentally
knockedSkelee’s headoff. IthoughtIwasinbigtroubleuntil IsawthatSkeleewaslaughing. “Whatare you LAUGHING at?” I askedhim.
“Idon’t know. Iguessthisis what itmeansto ‘laugh yourheadoff,’” he said. We’vebeenbestfriendsever since. ImetSlimeyat his cousinCube’sbirthdayparty.
He was really small back then. IrememberIcouldn’tfindaplaceto sitsoIjustsatona littlegreen table nexttothebathroom.
I ACCIDENTALLY satonSlimeyby mistake.KidSlimey
We’vebeenbestbuds eversince. MeetingCreepyforthefirsttimewasreallyfunny too. Creepy wasalwaysquiet, andhegotreallynervous aroundotherkids. Oneday, infirst grade, Skelee,SlimeyandIwentuptohimand started
talking. He startedhissingand flashingandstuff. Wedidn’t knowwhat hewasdoing,butwethoughtitwasso cool.
Ithink he wassurprisedwedidn’trun away, sohecalmeddown. Wepokedhimafew timestogethimtostarthissingand FLASHING again. Yeah,weweren’t reallysmartbackthen. Butwe’vebeenbestfriends eversince.
Man,whatamIthinking?
Ineed mybestbudsat myparty NO MATTER howold theyare. AndI don’tcarehow “uncool” thekidsatschoolthinkthey are.
AllIknowisthatIcan ALWAYS COUNT onmybestfriends tocome andsupportmeonmybirthday.
Plus,ifnobodyelseshowsup,itwon’t besoembarrassing.FRIDAY
Theweirdest thing happened today. Afterdinner,myDadgotacallfrom the NUCLEAR WASTE PLANT he worksat. Hesaidtherewas anemergencyatthefactory. “HeyDad,is everythingallright?” “Noworries,son. Ijustneedtoheadover totheplant. It seemslikethey hadanotheraccidentintheDeadlyFungusContainment lab.” Man,eventhoughmyDad worksinaNuclearWastePlant, hereally makes his job soundso cool. “When willyoubeback,honey?” Momasked. “Oh,itwilljusttake afew hours,butdon’tstayup.”
AfterDadleft,I startedtalkingto Momaboutallmyplansformybirthday party. “…Andwe’regoingtohave BROOMS, AND WANDS,andbooks and
uniformsand everything…”
“It soundskindof expensive, Zombie. Areyousureyoudon’t want tocome asa ZombiePony likeyoudid lastyear?Ithinkyourcostumestillfits.” “Noway,Mom. Plus,I’mlookingfora job sothatIcanpay forit. You
won’thaveto payforathing.” “Oh,OK. Bytheway, don’tforget thatyourfatherand Iaregoingtobea littlelateforyour party thisyear. Weneedtotakeyourlittlebrother Wesley
andhisfriendsouttrick-or-treating. It’sourturnthisyearto takeWesley’s pre-schoolclass TRICK-OR-TREATING aroundtheneighborhood.”
Awesome! Iwascountingon it.
Yousee,youcan’tbecoolandhaveyourparentsat yourbirthdayparty. So thiswasmychancetokeepthemfromruining it. I’lljustmakesurethecool kidscomeearlyandleavebefore myparentsgetback.
“Don’t worry,Mom. Take aslongas youwant. Meandtheguyswill just playsome VIDEO GAMES untilyou andDad getback.”
“Yeah, Iguessyouare abigZombienow,” shesaidas shegave meher usual embarrassingMomsmile.
Ikindafelta littleweird aboutnottellingmy Mom thetruth,though.
Buttechnically Ididn’tlie;I justleftoutthepartthatI invitedthewhole schooltocometo my party.
…Butthen whydoIstillfeel SO WEIRD aboutit?SATURDAY
Iwent togoseemyghoulfriendSallytoday. Iwaskindof bummedthat shecouldn’tmake itto my birthdayparty. Butshesaid thateveryyearforHalloweensheandher parents takea tripto
the TRANSYLVANIAN BIOME. Shesaidthey’resupposedto have the
coolestHalloweenPartiesover there. TheTransylvanian Biomeis alsowheretheZombieRoyalFamilycomes from. They’re supposedtobereallyspecialZombies.
Ithink Sally saidtheywerecalled VAMPIRES.
“HeyZombie!” “HeySally. GETTING READY foryour trip?” “Yeah, Ican’twait. It’s goingtobesomuchfunrunningintosomeof the Vampires. Imight even seesomeWerewolvesand even Mummies.” “IknowwhatMummiesare. But what areWerewolves?” “Oh,myDadsaidthat Werewolvesusedtobelike aVampire’spet. But they’re highlycivilized now.” “Whoa.” “Yeah, but theyhavea lotofdrama.” “Really?”
“Yeah, onetime Iheardastoryofa WEREWOLF namedJacobthatfellin lovewiththegirlfriendof aVampire namedEdward. Andshewas human, butshewantedto bea Vampire. ButtheWerewolf didn’twanthertobea Vampirebecause hewantedher tobeaWerewolf,andthen…”
“Wow. IthinkIjust gotdizzy.”
Man,and I thought Ihada lotofdrama inmylife…
“Sowhatdidyoudecideto do for yourbirthday?” Sallyasked. “Areyou goingtodothe ‘MyZombiePony’ partyagain thisyear?Ifyouare,Ican lendyou myrealZombieponyandyoucanrideittoyour party. Youcan makeareally big entrance.”
“Noway. NomoreZombieponies for me. ThisyearI’mgoing tohavethe scariestbirthdaypartyever. I’mdoinga HarryPotterparty.”
“Whoa. I hadafriend thathadaHarryPotter birthdaypartyoneyear. Itwas reallyscary. One Zombieboyevencameasthefunnylooking WEASLEY BOY.Itgavemenightmaresforweeks. Great choice.”
“Yeah, I’mcomingas HarryPotter. ButI stillneed tofigureouthow to carvealightningboltonmy…”
“SALLYDEAR,THEZOMBIETAXIISHERE. WENEED TOSTART HEADINGOUTTOTHE SCAREPORT.”
“Oh,that’smyMom. SorryZombie,Ihavetogo. But haveagreatbirthday party. I’mgoingto missyou.”
Then sheandher familyjumpedinto acartohead outtotheScareport.
Iwasjuststandingtherewith thebutler.
“Wouldyoucareforsomelemonade,Mr. Zeke?”
“It’sZack.”SUNDAY
Iwent tosee Steve todaytoseeifhecouldhelpmeprepareformybirthday party. ThistimeIfoundSteve making some WEAPONS onhiscraftingtable. “HeySteve.” “HeyZombie, what’ssizzling?” “Nothing. The sun’s not up yet.”
“No,Imeanwhat’scooking?” “Well,myMom’s makingsomerottenMushroom stewfordinnerifyou want some.”
“No,Imeanwhat’shappening?”
“Oh,nothingmuch. Justgettingreadyforthe bestpartyever. WHOOOOAAA!!!” “Ohyeah,how’sthat coming?” “Reallygood. I invitedallthecoolkids atschoolandthey’reallcoming!I
didn’tthinktheywould,butwheneverIinvitedthemtheylaughedsohard, itlooked liketheywerereallylookingforward toit.” Stevejustlookedatme withthat CONFUSED LOOK hemakesalot.
“What’supwith you?What’swithalltheweapons?” IaskedSteve.
“Well,itseems thatalotmorevillagersaremissing. Ineedto gointothe forestandfindoutwhat’s going on.”
“Noproblem. Hey,whateverhappenedtothatcrazyvillagerwiththe PUMPKIN HEAD wesawafew daysago?Did youcatchhim?”
“Naw. Hewasrunning too fast. Actually,I’veneverseenavillagerrun that fastbefore.”
“Yeah, Ialways thought thatvillagers didn’thaveanylegs,” Isaid. “Whenever Ilookatthem,all Iever seeisa head,a big nose,somearms andarobe.”
“Yeah, wellsomethingisgoingon, andIneedtofindoutwhatit is,” Steve said, DETERMINED.
IwasgoingtoaskStevetohelp memakedecorationsformybirthday party. Buthe wasreally seriousabout findingthosemissingvillagers.
Butthat’sOK. Iguessthat’swhatMomsarefor.MONDAY
TodayIwas tryingtothinkofsomecoolHalloweengameswecanplayat mybirthdayparty.
LastyeartheHalloweengamesweplayedweresort of…well,lame.
Wedidthe USUAL stufflike:
•BobbingforShrunkenHeads•TorchTag
•PintheBoneontheSkeleton—Weranout
ofbones,butI’mgladSkelee wasthere. Hereallysaved theday.•SpiderWebClimbing
•WitchToss—Myneighbor,
thewitch, reallydidn’t appreciatethat game verymuch.•EndermanBingo
•GrabtheGhost
•AndSlime
Bowling—Reallyhard game, butitwas kindoffun.
Butthisyear, Iwanttodosomereally scarygamesthatwillgivesomemob kids NIGHTMARES.
Stevetoldmeabout some gamesthat heplayedwhenhewas akid. When hetoldmeaboutthemIgotsoscaredIcouldn’t sleep fordays.
Butthey soundedlikethekindofterrifyinggamesIwanttohaveatmy party.
Gameslike:•Duck,
Duck, Goose—Thisonecreepedmeout…•PintheTailontheDonkey—I’mstilltryingtofigureoutwhy
theywould takethetail offof adonkeyjusttoputitbackon. So strange…butcool!•Twister—Justthinking
ofhumankids TWISTED UP instrange positionsmakesmewanttohurl. Awesome!•3-LeggedRace—Thisonedoesn’tseemsoscary,especiallysince
there’sa 3-leggedkidinmyschool thatwould probablywin everytime.•Origami—I
wastooscaredtoevenask Stevewhatthiswas…
Sowith THESE GAMES,I’mallsetformyparty.
Myfavoriteoneisthe ‘Origami’ game. Idon’t knowwhatitis,butit soundsexotic…anddeadly.
Man,thesegamesaregoingtogivethe kidsthat cometomyparty ascare they’llnever forget.
Sweet!Iwasthinking aboutbringingSteve’sPlantsVsZombiesgameto my party too.
Butmaybe Ishouldn’t. Lasttimeweshowedit,one ofthekidsat the party LOST HIS HEAD. Poorguy. Haven’theard fromhiminalongtime. He wasarealtalkertoo. He doesn’tsaymuchnowadays.
Naah, I think I’lljustkeepitrealsimple. Butit’sstillgoingtobethebestbirthdaypartyever!TUESDAY
WhenIwas walkinghomefromschool todayInoticedthatpeopleinthe
neighborhoodwereputtingupHalloween decorations aroundtheirhouses. Oneofmyneighborsputupascene ofsomehumankids playing inthe park.
Itwas terrifying.
Anotheroneofmyneighborsputupasceneofagroupofhumanshaving a BARBECUE. Itwas soscarythatIfeltthemaggotson theback ofmyneckstandup. Butthemostdisturbingonewas on the lawn ofMs. Ursula, the witch. Sheactuallyhad alife-sizedhuman CLOWN onheryard! Itlookedlikeit wanted tojustjumpoutandeatyour brainsorsomething.Sowrong…
Butman,Iwonder ifIcan borrowthatclownformy birthdayparty. That thing willscarethe MAGGOTS rightoutofthekids!
Iwantedtowalkupto Ms. Ursula’shouseto askhertoborrow it. ButIwas tooscaredtowalkin frontofthat clownmonster. Ijustkeptimagingit jumpingoutandeatingmybrain.
Man,Idon’t think I’ll be abletogetthatclown’sfaceoutofmyhead.
Sowrong…WEDNESDAY
They hadaspecialmobschoolassemblytodayandgathered allthe mobs from allovertheschooltogetherintheauditorium.
Then theyshowedusafilmaboutwhatto doincaseof a ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE.Ididn’tunderstandwhy theywereshowing it. It’snotlikewe’regoingto have aZombieApocalypseanytimesoon.
Plus,Ididn’t understandwhatallthefuss wasabout. Ikindof thinkthatif Zombiesweretotakeovertheworld,itwouldreally improveour SOCIAL STATUS.
“Nowyoumaybeaskingyourselfwhatall theZombieApocalypsefussis about…” the moviesaid.
Wow, Iwasjust thinkingthat…
“Youmightevenbethinking thataZombieApocalypsewouldprobably improveyoursocialstatus…”
Hey,how’d theydothat?
“ButinatrueZombieApocalypse,Zombiesgostark, RAVING MAD and revertbackto theirprimitiveinstincts. Thatmeans theendofZombie civilizationasweknowit…whichmeansnomorevideogames andno more cake!”
Whoa!That’scrazy.
“Just…BRAINS!”Abunch ofthekidsin the auditoriumgasped. Anotherbunch ofkids hurled. AlltheEndermen kidsteleported. SomeofCreeperkidsstarted hissingand flashing. EventheGhastkids startedfloating and WAILING.
Thewhole auditoriumwentcrazy!
Theprincipalhadtostoptheassemblyand sendallofthekids back totheir classrooms.
“HeySkelee,whatwas all thatabout?”
“Well,they saiditwassupposed tobesomekindofschoolMobHistory Appreciationevent,” he said.
“Guys,Ihavea BAD FEELING aboutthis,” Creepysaid.
“Doyou think thatwe’regoing tohaveanotherZombieApocalypse?” Slimeyasked.
Then weall lookedateachother…
“PPFFFFFTTT!!!Noway. Therehasn’t beenaZombieApocalypseinlike 500 YEARS,” Isaid. Then weall startedlaughingandwentbacktoclass.THURSDAY
Afterschooltoday,I wenttogoseeSteve,to seehow hewasdoing. Iwent toour usual HANGOUT SPOT,butforsomereasonhewasn’t there. Then Ilooked inalloftheplaces thatheusually hangsout,butIcouldn’t findhim there either. IranintoAlex,who wasoutpunchingtrees.
Human girlAlex
“HeyAlex. Have youseenSteveanywhere?” “Oh,heyZombie. No,Ihaven’t seenhiminafewdays.” PUNCH. PUNCH. PUNCH. “Doyou knowwherehewent?” Iasked her.
“Well,hesaidthat he wasgoingtogo findsome MISSING VILLAGERS,butI haven’tseen himsince.” PUNCH. PUNCH. PUNCH. Maybehe’sstilloutsearching,Ithought. “OhOK. IfyouseehimtellhimI saidhi,” Isaid. “Willdo,Zombie dude,” Alexsaidasshewentbackto punchingher tree. PUNCH. PUNCH. PUNCH. POP! “Yeah!” Alex said.
Istilldon’tunderstandwhy humans makesuch afussabout PUNCHING TREES.
Soweird.
FRIDAY
Thecoolestthinghappenedtoday!
WhenIwas walkinghomefromschool,I noticed thatOldManJenkinswas dustinghisold Zombie horse. As I walked by I sawMr. Jenkinsbendover topickup his brush. Allofasudden I heard, “CRRAACCK!” “OUCH!” “Mr. Jenkins, areyoualright?” “Oh,it’sjustmy OLD BONES actingup again. ButIcoulduseahand.” SoI triedtohelp himstraightenupwhensuddenlyIheard,
“CRRAACCKK,POP!THUMP!” Uh oh. OldManJenkins justbrokeinto twopieces andhistophalf felltothe floor. “Don’t juststandthere,getmeup,” Mr. Jenkinssaid. SoI helpedgetMr. Jenkin’stop halfonhislegsthatwerestillstanding. “Thisisa youngZombie’sgame,” hesaid looking atme. “HeyZombie,
howwould youlikeajob?” “A JOB? That’sawesome!” IwassohappyI jumped upforjoy,andMr. Jenkins’ tophalf felltothe floor again.
“THUMP!” “Oh,sorryMr. Jenkins,” Isaid. Ihelped Mr. Jenkinsgethistophalfbackon his legsthat were still
standing,again. “Don’t worryaboutit,Zombie. But Icouldsure useyour helpintakingcare ofmy ZOMBIE HORSE, Ed.”Ed theZombieHorse
“Whoa,thatwouldbegreat,” I yelledasIthrewmyhands up inexcitement. “THUMP!” DownwentOldManJenkinsagain. “Oh,I’mreallysorry, Mr. Jenkins.” “Err... That’sOK,Zombie.” Iwent togopickhimupagain.
“No,no…err…That’sOK,Zombie,I’llstay righthere,” Mr. Jenkinssaidas heleanedagainsthisstillstandinglegs.
“Sowhatdyasay?Canyouhelpan OLD ZOMBIE takecareofhis Zombiehorse?”
“YesIcan!” Isaid.
Wow, I’mgoingtohave ajob,whichmeansthatI’mfinallygoing tomake some REAL MONEY. Mr. JenkinssaidIcouldstartright awaytoo. Thatmeansthat I canmake enough moneytobuymyHarryPottercostume for mybirthdayparty. Sweet! MaybeI canevenbuythat life-sized clownfromMs. Ursula the witch, I thought. Oh man,lifecouldn’tgetany better.SATURDAY
“I’m sorry,son,but the answer isno.” “Waaaaahhhhh!!!” “Zombie,taking careofaZombie horse isabig responsibility. Wejust feel
likeyou’retooyoungforthatright now.” “But YOU PROMISED thatIcouldgetajob!Waaaaahhhhh!!!” “Yes,butwemeant somethingsmall, likecleaning theyard ordelivering some mobnewspapers.” “That’s notfair!” IsaidasI rantomy room.
Idon’tknowwhatmyparentsaretalkingabout. IcantakecareofaZombie horse. It’s notlikeIhaven’ttakencareofapetbefore. Imean,ifmy PET SQUID wasstillalive,Iknow I could’vetaken good
careofit. Howhardcana Zombie horsebe?
Man,whatamIgoing todo?I need ajobquicksoIcanmake enough moneytobuymyHarryPottercostume. Hmmm. MaybeIcanproveto myparentsthatIcantakecareofaZombie
horseafter all. I’lljustmakebelievethat I’mgoingtovisitsomefriends,andgoseeMr. Jenkins instead. AndaftertakingcareofEd theZombiehorsefora few
days,myparentswill seethatIcando it. They’regoingtohavetosay it’s OK. Butman,Ireally HATE LYING to myparents.
Well,I guess it’s notlying ifIjust tellthem thatI’mgoing tohangoutwith myfriendEd. Zombiehorses canbefriends too, Iguess.
Istillfeel alittle weirdaboutit though. Ithink I’mgonna takea nap.SUNDAY
“Authoritiesarepuzzledoverthesudden DISAPPEARANCE ofsomeof theresidentsofMobVillage. Somebelievethattheresidents arejust visiting theirrelativesin other biomes. Othersthinktheyare just hibernatingforthe winter. Whilesomeevenbelievethattheyhavebeen abductedbyaliens tobeprobedandexperimentedon…”
That’sallIheardasIcame down from my roomthismorning.
“Whatare theytalkingabout,Mom?”
“Well,itseems thatsomeoftheresidents ofMobVillage have disappeared.”
“That’s strange. Isitanybodyweknow?” myDadasked.
“Well,Ms. Ursulathe witchhasn’tbeenseensincesheput thathideous clownin front ofheryard,” my Mom said.Ms Ursula,theWitch
“Well,maybe the CLOWN gother,” Dad saidlaughing. Allofasudden my littlebrotherWesley burstout crying. “WAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!” “Oooohdear,” wasallDadcouldsayashetried tocalmWesleydown. “Honey,youshouldn’thavesaid that. Youknowhow scaredWesleyisof C
—L—O—W—N—S,” Momsaid. “Daclown isgungto getme!” Wesleycried. “WAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!” Itookmy bowlof BOOGER FLAKES andwentto my room.
It’sweirdthatpeoplearemissingfromour village. What’sevenweirderis that’s what washappeninginSteve’svillage. AndwhereisSteveanyway?Ihaven’tseen himforalmost aweek. Hmmm. Soweird.
Butthen I realizedthat withMs. Ursulagone,I couldborrow herclownfor myparty.
Sweet! Buthow am Igoingto get thatmonsteroutofheryardand bring itover here?Especiallywithoutgettingmyface BITTEN OFF bythatthing?
IwouldaskSteve,buthe’snotaround. IguessIcanask theguys tohelpmeout.MONDAY
Afterschooltoday,my Mom tookmeandmylittle brother togetour
HalloweenCostumes. Wedecidedtogo to “ZombiesRUs” because theyhavesomeofthe scariestcostumes ever.
Wesearchedforalongtime,and Ifinally foundtheHarryPotter costumeI waslookingfor. Butitcost 80 BUCKS!
“PleaseMom!Icando more choresaroundthehouse,I promise!” “I’m sorry,Zombie,butthatisjust too muchmoney tospendona costume thatyou’reonlygoing towearforone dayoutoftheyear.”
“ButI’ll wear iteveryday. I promise. I’lleventogotoschoolwithit.” “Zombie,that doesn’tmakesense. You’lllook RIDICULOUS going to schoolinthat. I’msorrybutthe answer isno.” Allmyhopesand dreams justwent outthewindow. Man,whatamIgoing todo? IguessI’mgoingtohaveto figureoutawayto makemyown HarryPotter costume. It’sprobably gonnaberealhardtoo. Istillhaven’tevenfigured outhowtocarvea LIGHTNING BOLT on myhead.
Sowe justspenttherestofthetimeshoppingfor acostumeformy little brother Wesley.
As we were looking around,Isawacrowdofpeoplestanding arounda displaythathada largeobjectcoveredina blackcurtain.
Itwas insideaglassboxthatwaslockedwith like20padlocks. Then,aroundtheglassbox thereweretwobigfatchainsthatwerelocked togetherwith abiglock.
Andinfront ofthe glassboxthereweretwosecurity guardsthat were dressed inriot gear. Man,Ijust hadto findoutwhatwas inthere.
Idecidedto askthesecurityguard whatwasinsidethebox.
“Inside thisboxis thescariestcostumeevercreatedinallofMinecraft,” the securityguardsaid. “HeycanIsee it?” “I’m sorry but youmustbe accompaniedbyanadultin ordertogetapeek
atthis MONSTROSITY. Itisjust toodangerousforayoungZombie’s
eyestoseealone.” Iranovertomy Mom togethertoasktheguard toletusseewhatwas insidethebox.
“Idon’t know, Zombie, itlooksdangerous.” “ButI’m ALMOST 13, Mom. Icantake it.” Iguessshefeltguilty fornotgetting metheHarryPotter costume,soshe saidyes. Ireallywantedto getapictureofittoo,so IborrowedmyMom’s camera.
So,mymomand therestofthecrowd convincedtheguards toletusseeit.
Theguardsstarted totakeoffthetwo bigchainsthatwerearound theglass box. Then, astheywereopeningthe20padlocks, abigger crowdstartedto gatheraroundthedisplay.
Then theyopenedthebig glassboxandtookoutthe LARGE OBJECT coveredin theblackcurtain.
“Beforeweremovethis curtain,weneedtowarnparentstocover theeyes oftheiryoung children. Also,if youareelderly,wearerequiredto inform youthatthe sightofthiscostume hasbeenknowntocause CONVULSIONS, memorylossand temporaryblindness,” thesecurity guardsaid.
Theguardput his handontopofthecontainerand tooka big gulp. The other guardstoodbackin acrouchingposition,holdinguphis riotshield.
Itfeltlikeittookforeverforhimtofinally takeoff thecurtain. But,I had mycamerareadytocapturethemoment.
With aquickmovement,thesecurity guardremoved thecurtain offthe container.
Everyone GASPED. Somepeople screamed. ASkeletonMom faintedright onthe spot.
Istoodtherelooking, butforsomereason Icouldn’tfeelmylegs.
Iwantedtomove,butI wasfrozeninplace.
AllIcoulddowaspressthe buttononthecamera,andtherewasa BIG FLASH.
Then everythingwentblack.TUESDAY
MyMommademestay homefromschooltoday torecoverfrom
yesterday’straumaticevents. Iwokeupkindofgroggy. Theweirdestthingwasthat Icouldn’tremember hardlyanythingthathappenedyesterday.
“Whathappened,Mom?” “Goodmorning,Zombie. Howareyoufeeling?” “Ifeela LITTLE DIZZY,butIguess I’mOK.” “Doyou rememberanything thathappenedyesterday?” Itried but everythingwas really FUZZY. “Not really. Ijustremember we were looking forWesley’s costumeand
thennextthingIknow,Iwokeupthismorning.”
“Well,itwas quite an evening. Butthegoodthingisthat we finallyfound a costumeforWesley.” “Really?What’dheget?” “Atfirsttheydidn’twant tosell ittome untilIsignedawaiverofliability.
ButWesleyreallywantedit,soIwentahead andboughtitforhim. They gave me areally GOOD PRICE forittoo.” “Whatdoesitlooklike?” “Well,youtookapicturewithmycamera. Itshouldstillbein there.”
IgrabbedmyMom’scamerafromherrotten flesh purse. I scrolledthrough thepicturesforabouta minuteuntilIsaw themost terrifying thing I had everseen.Andtheneverythingwentblack…
WEDNESDAY
Iwokeupthismorningandgotreadyforschool.
Forsomereason Iwasstillhavinga hardtimerememberingwhat happened thedaybefore.
It’sagoodthingIwriteeverything inmyjournal,or Iwouldforget everything.
Iguessthat’sthedrawbackofhavingaZombiebrainthe SIZE OF A PEA.
So,Idecided towalktoschooltoday insteadoftaking the bus. Ijustneeded toclearmyhead.
Allofasudden,whenI wasabouttocrossthestreet,somereallybig ZOMBIE ARMY TRUCKS whizzedrightbymedownthestreet.
That’sweird,Ithought. Iguess theymustbehaving some kindofZombie paradeorsomething.
WhenIgottoschool I sawaposterthatsaidthatweweregoing tohavea ScariestCostumeContestnextweekatourschool.
ButwhatreallycaughtmyeyewasthatthewinneroftheScariestCostume Contest wouldgeta$50giftcertificate for… ZombiesR Us!
Oh man,witha$50gift certificateand the moneyI makefrom takingcare ofOld ManJenkin’s horse, IshouldhaveenoughtobuymyHarry Potter Costumeformybirthdayparty!
Man,myluckisturningaround.
NowI justhaveto FIGURE OUT howI’mgoingtowintheScariest CostumeContest. ButwhatcouldIwear? C’monthink,Zombie,think…THURSDAY
TodayIranintoBigMouth Jeffintheschool cafeteria.
He wasbraggingtoabunchofmob kidsthathewasgoingto winthe ScariestCostumeContestatschool. “I’m gonnawearacostumethat’s SO SCARY thatthey’regoingtohave
toclosetheschooldownforweeks,” hesaid, “Toomanykids aregonnabe
intherapy.”
Icouldn’tlethimgetawaywith thatsoIhadtosaysomething! “Ohyeah,well my costumeis soscarythatit’llmakea Creeperpoop FIREWORKS.”
“Oooooh!” thekidsin the cafeteria said.
ButJeff hadacomeback…
“Ohyeah,well my costumeis soscaryit’ll makeaSkeletongrowits skin
back.” “Oooooh!” thekidssaid. AndIhadacomebackofmyown… “Ohyeah,well my costumeis soscaryit’ll makeaWithergrowanextra
head.” “Oooooh!” everybodysaid. Then Jeffsaid… “Ohyeah,well my costumeis soscaryit’ll makeaSlimewalkonwater.”
“Oooooh!” everybodysaid.
Then Isaid…
“Ohyeah,well my costumeis soscaryI havetogotrick-or-treatingover thephone…andit’sstillscary!” “Whoooaaahh!” thekidssaid. Then Jeffsaid… “Ohyeah,well,mycostumeissoscary,itmakes ONIONS CRY.” AndIsaid… “Well,mycostumeisso scary, my Momhasto feedmewithaslingshot.” Then Jeffsaid… “Ohyeah,well my costumeis soscarythatwhenIthrewaboomerangit
didn’twantto comeback.” Wewentonlikethisfor about 15 minutes. Then the BELL RANG for our nextclass.
Man,nowIreallyneedtogetascarycostume. OtherwiseI’mgoingtolose my$50Zombies RUsgiftcertificate toBig MouthJeff. …AndthenIwon’t beabletogetmyHarryPottercostume. Man,whatamIgoing todo? C’monthink,Zombie,think!
Man,IbetifStevewas aroundhe’dknowwhattodo…FRIDAY
AfterschoolI wenttogoseeif maybeStevehadcomebackfromsearching for themissingvillagers. ButwhenIwentto ourusualhangoutspot,hestill wasn’t there. Idecidedto gotoSteve’svillage tosee ifIcouldfindhimthere.
Iusually don’tlikegoing toSteve’svillage. EspeciallysincethelasttimeIwent,they chased me awaywith PITCHFORKS andtorches.
ButIneededto findoutwhathappenedtoSteve,soI wentanyway. WhenIgottoSteve’svillage,therewasnobodythere. Itwas likea GHOST TOWN,but without the ghosts. Ieven went uptoavillager’s doorand knocked,butnobodyanswered. Usuallyyouhearsomeone screamingandyellingandstuff. ButthistimeIdidn’t hearanything.
Then,I went toseeiftherewereanyfarmers around.
ButwhenIgottothefarm, therewasnobodythereeither.
IthoughtIsawsomebody far away. ButwhenIgotclose,it wasjusta stick manwithapumpkinhead andashirt FULL OF STRAW, coveredin birds.One unfriendlyguy...
Itried totalk tohim,buthewasn’tverysocial.
WhenIwas leaving, suddenlyIsawavillagerrunintotheforest.
Ifollowedhimintotheforest andpeekedat himfrombehind thebushes.
Whatwasweird isthathehad apumpkin onhisheadtoo. Excepthehad arms andlegs,butnostrawinhisshirt.
He wasrunningaroundallcrazylike, andhewaswailingand screaming and FOAMING at the mouth.
ItremindedmeofthefirstguythatStevechasedintotheforestafewweeks ago.
Italso kindaremindedmeof my uncleWitherwhenhedoesn’ttake his meds.
But, Iaccidentlysteppedonabranch,andheheard me.
Then he ranawayreallyfast intotheforest.
Manthatwasweird. Butvillagersare weirdmostofthe time,soguessI’mnotsurprised. ButIstilldon’t knowwhereSteve is. AndIneedtofindhimtoo… …Icouldsure USE A FRIEND rightnow.SATURDAY
As I waswalkingout ofthehouse today,myMomaskedme, “Sowhereare
yougoing?” “Oh…Err… I’mjustgoing tomyfriend’s Ed’shouse. Helivesaroundthe school.”
“Ed,huh?DoIknowhim?Iknowmostofyour friends. I’veneverheard of
Ed.” “Oh,he’s a NEW FRIEND.Ijustmethim. He’sbigandgreen and…Err… he’sareallyniceZombie.”
“OhOk. Well,havefun. Don’tstayouttooearlyoryou’llgetburned. Remember,thesuniscomingup ina fewhours.” “Thanks,Mom.”
Istillfeltkindof weirdlyingto my Mom. ButIreallyneededtomake SOME MONEY to get myHarryPotter costume.
Plus,Ireallyam going tovisitmyfriendEd. Andhe isbigand green. He justhappenstobe OldManJenkin’shorse,Ed, that’sall. Samething. Right?
Iwalkedover totheschoolwhereI foundOldManJenkinsmowingthe lawn ontheschoolsoccerfield.
“Heythere, Zombie, gladyou couldmakeit.”
OldManJenkins wasbackin onepieceagain. Buthiswholechestand stomachwerecoveredin DUCT TAPE.“Howareyou doing, Mr. Jenkins?” “Better thanever. JustneededalittleDuctTapeandI’m asgoodasnew.” “OhOk.” “Are youreadytotake careofEd?” “I’m ready,” Isaid. OldManJenkins showedmeeverythingthatIneededto dototake careof
his Zombiehorse, Ed. Itwasa lot ofhardwork. Thehardestpartwastaking offEd’s skin,dustingit,andthenputting itbackon.Skinless Ed
Butitwas cool. IwonderifregularZombiescandothat.
WhenIfinallyfinished,Mr. Jenkins paidmea whole30bucks!
Wow, thisisawesome. NowIjustneedtowintheScariest CostumeContest andI’llhaveenoughto buymyHarry Pottercostume!
Mr. JenkinssaidthatEdwas notvery friendlywith strangers. Hewouldn’t let anyoneridehimexceptMr. Jenkins. ButIkind oflikedEd. Hewas reallynice.
Youknow,Ithought,IbetyouI couldrideEdtoo. So,whenMr. Jenkinswasn’taroundIthoughtIwould seeifIcould SNEAK aride.
Iwalkedup realslownext toEd,likeIwasgoingto pethim. ThenIputmy hand onhisbackand hestayedreal still. Then Iputboth handsonhisback, andhedidn’tmove.
Then I JUMPED ON Ed, andhejuststoodthere. Wow, hedoeslike me!Wow, he does like me!
Then IwalkedEdaround thesoccerfielda littlebit. Weeeeee!Thisisfun. IwantedEdtogoalittlefaster soIkickedhim reallysoftly. ButafterIdid,somethingtoldme thatEddidn’t liketo bekicked. Allofasudden Ed jumped up,kickedhisbacklegsinto thewallbehindus,
andtook off. Ithink he accidentallyturnedonthe SPRINKLER SYSTEM becauseall ofa suddenthere waswatersprayingall overthe soccerfield. Then Irealizedthat therewassomethingthatEdhatedmorethangetting kicked… Andthatwasgetting wet. Allofasudden,Edtookoffasfastashecould. Andthe wetterhegotthe fasterheran.
Whenthesprinklersfinallystopped,Edwassoakingwet. Andhehada
reallysadlookon his face. Oh man,ohman,ohman, ohman! I need togetEddry beforeMr. Jenkins comesback. ButwhatamIgoing todo?
Icouldtellthat the sunwasabout torise too,soIhad todosomething quick. Igotanidea! ItookoffEd’sskinandIput itoutonthegrass.
Maybethe suncan DRY IT OFF, Ithought. Thesunwasjustabouttorise,so IledEdintohiscaveand waitedforthe suntodry his Zombieskin.
Next thingI knowhisZombiehorseskin burstintoflames. Oh no! Iwasthinking ofrunningouttogetit,butitwastoolate. All thatwas left
wasabig pieceofrottenZombieflesh SIZZLING in the sun. “Whatintarnation happenedtomyhorse?!!”Allofsudden,OldManJenkinsshowedup.
Everythinginside me toldmeIshouldjusttellMr. Jenkinsthetruth.
ButifItell himthetruth,I’mgoingtohavetogivebackmy$30. ThenI’d neverbeabletogetmyHarry PotterCostume.
“Well,boy?Whathappened?” “Uh,Mr. Jenkins,sir…Err… IledEdbackto thecavewhenthesuncame up. ButI think Ed sawa RABBIT orsomethingbecauseheran out intothe grass,andthenthe sunmadehimcatch onfire.….”
“What?That’snot likeEd. Thenwhat happened?”
“Well,Iluredhim backintothecave. ThenItook his skinoffbeforeit couldburn him,andIthrew itoutonto thegrass.” Mr. Jenkinslookedat mewithhisbig beadyeyesockets. ButI couldn’t
lookathim,so IjustlookedatEd,whohadareallysadlookon his face. “Well,thankyousomuch!” Old ManJenkinsyelledas hepattedmeonthe
back. “I’msoglad youwereheretosavemybestfriendinthewholewide OVERWORLD.Ifyou weren’there,Idon’tknowwhatIwould’vedone.” Then he tookouthiswalletandpulled out10 dollars. “Youdeserve arewardfortryingtosave Ed. Hereyou go,” Mr. Jenkins
said. Mr. Jenkinshandedmethe 10dollars,andIjust lookedatit. “Thanksagain,Zombie,forbeingsobrave.” “Uh…surething,Mr. Jenkins.” Then Mr. JenkinsandEd walked away. AndEdturnedaroundandgaveme
areally SAD LOOK.
Itookthe 10dollarsand I putitin mypocket. AndIjust felt…terrible.SUNDAY
Iwent togoseeSteve totalk tohim aboutwhat happened withMr. Jenkins.
Somethingwastellingmethat I needed togobackandtell Mr. Jenkinsthe truth.
Cometo thinkofit,Ifelt likeIneededtogo back andtellmyparentsthe truthtoo.
ButwhenIgottoourusual HANGOUT SPOT,Stevestillwasn’tthere. Icheckedalloftheotherplaces wehang out, but he wasn’tthere either. Iwent by toseeAlexagain,exceptthistimeshewasn’tthereeither. Whereiseverybody?Was therea MINECON convention thatIdidn’t
knowaboutor something? IcheckedeverywhereelseIthoughttheycouldbeand…nothing.
Man,what’s goingon?MONDAY
“Zombie,wemaybe on timetoyour birthdaypartyafterall,” myMom said.
“Huh?” “Well,there’s achancethatWesley’spreschooltrick-or-treating tripwill startan HOUR LATE. So,that meansyourDad andIcan beherewhen yourfriendsstartshowingupforyourbirthdayparty.”
Oh man,thisisterrible. Ican’thavemyparentsatmypartywhenthecool kidsfromschool show up! “Uh,areyou sure,Mom?”
“Well,Ihaveto callDenise, Skelee’sMom,tonight toconfirmit.” MyMomwasbusyfeedingWesleysoIthoughtIwouldvolunteer andfind outifallmyplansweregoingtobetotallyruined.
“Mom,Ican callSkelee’shouse foryouif youwant.” “Sure, thatwould begreat,dear.” Icalledoverto Skelee’shouseand Skeleeanswered. “WASSUP,bro?” “HeyZombie, what’sup?” “Hey, canyouask yourmomifyour littlesister’spreschooltrick-or-treating
tripisgoing tobeanhour late?”
“Sure. Hold on… Hey,Mom!IsTibia’strick-or-treating tripgoingto start anhourlate?Zombie’sMomwantstoknow.”
“Yes,itis!” “Yeah, Zombie, they’re going tostartanhour late. Hey,doesthatmean that yourparentsare goingtobetherewhenyourpartystarts?”
“Uh,don’tremindme,” Isaid. ThenI HUNG UP.
“Well,whatdidDenisesay? Isthetrick-or-treating tripgoingto startlate?” myMomasked. Everythinginside me toldmeIshouldjusttellmy Mom the truth. Butifmyparentsare herewhen allofthecoolkids fromschoolshowup,
they’re all going tolaughatmeand callmea “BABY ZOMBIE NOOB” orsomething. “Uh… No,shesaidit’sstillgoingtobeon time,” Isaid. “Really?I wassure itwasgoing tostartan hourlate. Oh Ok. SoI guess we’regoingtomissthe startofyour party. Butyoucan takecareofthings untilweget back,right,Zombie?Especiallysinceyou’re abigZombie now. ” “Sure, no problem, Mom.”
Well,I got what I wanted… …But, thenwhydoIfeelsobad aboutit?TUESDAY
Today,meandtheguyswentovertoMs. Ursula’s houseto grabtheclown andtake itto my houseformybirthday party.
Sinceshewasn’taround, Ifigured shewouldn’tmiss it.
WhenwegottoMs. Ursula’shouse,allher LIGHTS wereoff. Iwasthinking ofknockingonherdoortosee ifshewasthere. ButIwas too
scaredtowalkpasttheterrifyingmonster clownthat washovering infront ofher doorway. “HeySkelee,whydon’tyou goknockandseeifshe’sthere?” “Noway. Iheardthat clownsloveeating bonesforbreakfast. “ “Howaboutyou,Slimey? Youdon’thaveanybones.” “Noway. Iheardclownslove JELLO. Andifyoudidn’tnotice, Iwould
makeareally sweet MIDNIGHT SNACK.”
Iwasthinking ofaskingCreepy, butweallagreed thatitprobablywasn’ta good idea. “Whydon’tyouthrowafewrocksat herwindowto seeifshe’sthere?”
Creepy suggested. “Goodidea.” SoI pickedupafewcobblestonerocksfromherdriveway. Tick!
AfterIthrewthefirstrock nothing happened. “Maybeshe’shard ofhearing,” Skelee said. “Throwabiggerone.” SoI threwa BIGGER ROCK atherwindow. Tack! “She mightbe asleep,youknow. Youmight need towakeher up,” Slimey
said. SoI pickedupthebiggestrockIcouldfind. KRESSSHHH!! Ms. Ursula’swindowbrokeinto likeamillionpieces. “Ohman!” Weallranbehindthebushes tohide. WewaitedtohearMs. Ursula comerunningoutofherhouse. Butnothing
happened.
“Hey, Idon’tthinkshe’sthere,” I said. “Thisis OUR CHANCE togetthe clown. Slimey,did youbringthesack?”
“Yeah, Igotitrighthere. Icouldn’tfindasackso Ijustbroughtapairof myDad’sworkpants.”
Slimey’sDad mustbea big guybecausethose pants were huge.
Sowe slowlywalkeduptothe clown. Butits beadylittleeyes were watchingus EVERY STEP oftheway.
Ihadtoclosemyeyes asI walked uptoit. Itwasjusttooterrifyingto
watch. Inoticedthatthe other guyshadtheir eyesclosedtoo. Wefinally madeittotheclownwhen suddenlyweheard, “HE,HE,HE, HE, HE…”
“RUN! THECLOWN’SALIVE!!!”
TheguysandItriedtorunawaybutweallgotcaughtinSlimey’sDad’s workpantssack. Wewereallstuckinthesackand couldn’tgetout. Allwecouldhearwas, “HE, HE, HE, HE, HE!” “AAAAAAAHHH!!!!WE’RE GONNADIE!!!THECLOWN’S GOING
TOEATUS!!!” Then all ofa suddenI feltahandgrabmebythecollarand YANK ME out ofthesack. “IT’SGOTME! I’MA GONNER!” “Whatintarnation areyouboysdoing?” WhenIstoppedscreaming,I opened my eyes andIsaw thatitwas OldMan Jenkins. “Mr. Jenkins, saveyourself!The clown’sgoingto eat usall!!!” OldManJenkins puthishand tohisforeheadandjust shookhisheadlike
heusuallydoes. ThenhepulledoutSkelee,Slimey andCreepyfromthe sack. “Whatare youboy’stalkingabout? Thisclown’s NOT REAL.It’sjust
‘electronical,’ that’sall.” “Really?”
“Yeah, watch.” ThenMr. Jenkinswavedhishand infrontoftheclownand itsaid, “HE,HE,HE,HE,HE…” MeandtheguysjumpedbehindMr. Jenkins when theclownspoke. Then weall lookedateachother.
“PFFFFFTTTTT!!!!” wasallwecouldsayandthenwe burstout laughing. Creepy washissingandflashing,butwhenwe startedlaughinghe calmed down.
“Whatwereyouboys doing hereanyway?” Mr. Jenkins asked. Everythinginside me toldmeIshouldjusttellMr. Jenkinsthetruth. ButifhetellsmyMomandDadwhatwewereup to,I’llbe GROUNDED
for likeamonth. Andthenthey won’tletmehavemybirthday party. “Uh… We werejustwalkingbyandwe heardascream,” I said. “We
thought Ms. Ursulawas beingattackedbytheclownmonster. So we broughtasacktocapture itandsaveMs. Ursula.” Alltheguys lookedatmewith asurprisedlook. Mr. Jenkinsliftedupwhatremainedofoneofhiseyebrows. He looked
aroundattheclown,the sack,thewindowandthenatus. Then he said, “Welldone,boy!It’sagoodthingwehavesuch HEROIC
BOYS likeyoutoprotecteveryoneinthis town.” Meandtheguysalllooked ateachother…surprised. “AndIthinkthatkindof braverydeserves a REWARD.”
Mr. Jenkinsdug intohissaddle bagthatwason Ed,hishorse. Thenhe pulledoutsomeHalloweencandyhehad justbought.
“Hereyou go,” he saidashe handed useachsomecandy.“Thanks,Mr. Jenkins,” weallsaid. “No,thankyou boys,forbeingsobrave,” hesaid. Then Mr. Jenkinswalkedaway withEd,hishorse. AndEdturnedandlookedatuswithareally SAD LOOK onhisface.
Then meandtheguysalllooked ateachother. Weunwrapped thecandyand putitin ourmouths. Andweallfelt…terrible.WEDNESDAY
“Did youseeJeff’s costume? It’s likesooooooscary!” That’sallIheardfroma bunchofthekidsatschool today. “What’syourcostumegoingtobe, Zombie?” IknowIshould’vejustsaidthatIhaven’tgotmycostumeyet. Butthen they’re going tothinkthat I’mjusta BIG FAKE, baby,phony,
noob,I thought.
“Ohman!My costumeisthescariest,mosthideouscostume you’ve ever
seen. I’m totallygoingtowintheScariest CostumeContest,” I said.
“REALLY? Whatisit?”
“Uh… It’ssoscarythat…err… There aren’tany wordsto describewhat
is!” Isaid. Someof the kidsjustgavemeastrangelookandwalkedaway.
Man,theScariest CostumeContestis injusta fewdays. AndIneedtocomeupwith acostumequick! Andit’sgottobean awesome costumetoo. It’stheonlywayI canbeat Jeff
andwinthat$50Zombies RUsgiftcertificate. ButwhatamIgoingtodo? C’monthink,Zombie,think!THURSDAY
Igotit!
IwasscrollingthroughmyMom’s cameraandIrememberedthatIhadthe perfect costumeallalong. SinceWesleyisnotgoing toneedhis COSTUME tillSaturday, Ithink
I’mgoingtoborrow itfortheScariest CostumeContesttomorrow. Ijusthaveto figureouthow tomake itfit. Hmmm… Apairofscissors,someDuctTapeandsomeofMom’sblack
tights shoulddothetrick.
Aftercutting andstretching,andtaping,I finallyfinished. NowI justneedtoputiton andseewhatit looks likein the mirror… JustlikeI thought, AWESOME! Man,I’m gonnawinthatScariestCostume Contest for sure!
FRIDAY
Mostofthekidscameto schoolintheir costumestoday. Itwas WEIRD.Itlookedlike ascenefromascary movieIsaw withSteve once. Ithink ithesaiditwascalled “TheWizardof Oz.”
Wehadthe big HalloweenPartyintheschool gym. Itwas socool. They hadcookiesand milk,andallsortsof games. Theyevenredecorated
thewholegymtolooklikeahuman village. Oooooh…SO CREEPY. Alotofthekidsweredressedlikevillagers.They lookedsoreal Ifeltlikesneakingupto themandscaringthem. Onekidevenstartedtalkinglikethem…
“Hurrr… Hurrr…” wasall he saidashe walked around. They even hadahugelife-sizedstatue ofanIron Golem.Manthatthingbroughtback SCARY MEMORIES…
Ididn’twearmy costumebecauseIwantedtowait till theScariestCostume Contest startedtobringitout. SoI wenttogetsomemilkandcookiesandwaitfor the guystoshowup. Allofasudden the scariestmonsterthatI hadeverseen jumped outfrom
behindthecurtains. “RRAAAAARRRRGGHHHH!”“AAAAAHHHH!!!!!” Allthemilk Idrankwentrightthroughme. Allofthe other kidsstartedlaughing. “Ha,ha!Iguess you’renotsobraveafterall!” BigMouthJeff said. “Wha… Is thatyou,Jeff?!!!” “ItoldyouIhad thescariestcostumeever. That $50giftcertificate isgoing
tobeallmine.” Then he walked away andstartedscaringotherkids.
Man,Jeff’s costumewas reallyscary. Hemightjustwinthe CONTEST. WhatamIgoingtodo?
Wow, Ifeelreally bummedrightnow.
Man,where’sSteve?Iknowthatifhewerehere, he wouldknowwhatto saytocheermeup. Hmmm…. MaybeIcanmakebelievelike heishere… IbetifI usemy STEVE VOICE Icouldthinkaboutwhathewouldsay… “HeyZombie, what’seatingyou?” Isaidin my bestStevevoice. “Nothing,justmaggots.”
“No,Imeanwhat’swrong?” “IthinkI’m goingtolosetheScariestCostumeContestandthenIwon’t be abletobuymyHarryPottercostume.”
“Andifyou don’tgetyourHarryPotter costume, what’sgonna happen?” “Thenthecoolkids atschool willthinkmypartyis lame.” “Whatwillyour realfriendsthink, Zombie?” “Ohthoseguysdon’tcareaboutthatstuff. They justwanttospend time
withmeandhave funwith me atmyparty.”
“Whichismorefun?Looking goodfor the coolkidsor spendingtimewith yourbestpals?” “Whoa!Steve,you’re sodeep.” “Yeah, Iknow… It’sbecauseI have abigsquare head andIpunch trees...”
Wow, Ifeela wholelotbetter. Whowould ‘athoughtthatSteve couldhelp meeven thoughhe’snotaround?
“ALLTHEKIDSWHO AREGOINGTOENTERTHESCARIEST COSTUMECONTEST,PLEASE MAKE YOURWAYTOTHESTAGE,” theannouncementsaid.
Well,here’s MY CHANCE. SoI wentbehindthebackcurtaintoputon mycostume. Theystarted
callingout namessothatthekidscouldshowofftheircostumesto the audience. Istayedbehind thecurtainuntiltheycalled my name. “LinusEnderbottom.” “RAAARRR!” “Yeah!” thecrowdcheered.
“LucyZombironi.” “Hello!” “Yeah!” thecrowdcheered.
“WilburGhastTentacles.” “Walalalah!” “Whoa!” the crowdcheered.
“MannyFestation.” “Boo!” “Yeah!”
Sofar,it doesn’tsoundlike anyof costumesare reallyscary. Iguessthat meansit’sgoingbea BATTLE betweenmeandJeff.
“RickAmortis.” “Uuuurrgghhh!” “Boooo!Lame!So unoriginal!”
“ZackZombie.” Well,heregoesnothing... “Wah,wah,wah, wah,wah!” Iyelledinmybest HUMAN BABY voice. “Gasp! Huh! Oh!Gulp!” Theaudiencegotquiet. Allof thekidsand teachersjuststaredwith their
eyesocketswideopen. Then all ofa sudden… “YEEAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!” Allthekidsandteachersstartedclapping andcheering formycostume. Oh man,IthinkI’m gonnawin! “AndourlastcontestantisRupert JefferyCarcasstheThird…” “RRRAAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!” “AAAAAHHHHH!!!!! Runfor YOUR LIVES!It’stheZombie
Apocalypse!”
Allthekidsandteachersstartedrunningand screamingallover the place. Someof the kidsknocked overthe tables, andfoodwasflying through the air.
“Attention,Attention students!It’sOK,itisonlyacostume!” the principal said.
Then all ofthekidsandteacherscameoutoftheir hidingplaces.
“Well,Jeffrey,Iguessit isobviousthat youhavethescariestcostume inthe wholeschool. SoI’m happyto announce thatyouare thewinner ofour annualHalloweenScariestCostumeContest.”
“Yeah!” Allof the kidscheered for Jeffreyas hegot his TROPHY andhis $50Zombies RUsgiftcertificate.
Iwasa littlesad thatIdidn’t winthecontestandget the giftcertificate.
Butyouknow,Ireallydidn’tfeelthatbad aboutit.
“HeyZombie, coolcostume,” Skeleesaid. “Areyou going towearthatat yourpartytomorrow?”
“IguessI am,” Isaid.
“That’s great. I wasthinkingofwearingacostumetomorrowthat mightbe scarierthanyours. Check itout.” Skeleeshowedmea picture ofhis costume.“Whoa!That’s TERRIFYING.”
“Yeah, SlimeyandCreepy have some reallyscarycostumestoo,” Skelee said. “Wecan’twaitforyour partytomorrow.” “Yeah, it’s goingtobethescariestparty ever.” Meandtheguysalllaughed. Thenwefilleduponmorecookiesandmilk.SATURDAY MY BIRTHDAY!
HappyBirthday,Me! That’sright. Today’s mybirthday. October31st, Halloween. AndnowI’m13yearsold.
It’sfunnybecauseI don’tfeelanyolder.
IthoughtIwouldcheckmyself out inthemirrorto seeifIgrewa MOLD
MUSTACHE overnightorsomething.
ButwhenIlookedin the mirrorIwaskind ofbummed.
No mustache.
Ididseealittlemoremoldonmychin, though.
And,Ilosta fewmoreofmyeyebrows.
ButIwas kindofexpectingsomethingreally coollike afewmoreholes in myface orsomething. Nothing…just MORE DIMPLES.
Ididnoticethatmyleftleggrewa fewincheslastnight. Sonowboth mylegsare almostthesamesize. Of coursethat meansthat I’mwalkingstraightagain likeahuman.
Uuurrrgghhh! Iwish mybody knewwhat itwas doing. Man, PUBERTY isso hardforayoungZombie. ButIdon’tcareaboutallthat,becausetodayI’mhavingmybirthday party. Idecidedto giveuptheHarry Pottertheme idea. Meandtheguysdecidedtodoa “ScariestPartyEver” instead. Mymomisevengoingtomakesomereally coolfoodthatlookslikescary stuff.
She’s goingtomake wormsthat looklikehuman fingers. …Andslimecupcakesthat looklikeboogers. …Andcookiesthatlooklike SPIDER EYES.
Andshe’sevengoingtomakeacakethat looks likebrains!Yeah,grossIknow. It’sgoing tobeawesome!
WhenIgotdownstairsmyMom, Dadand Wesleywereeatingbreakfast. “HappyBirthday,Zombie!” my Mom andDad said. “HabbyBurtdayZumbie!” Wesleysaid. “Howdoesitfeel tobea WHOLE 13 yearsold,Zombie?” “It feels OK, Iguess.” “Isee youlostmoreofyour eyebrows lastnight. AnyotherbigZombie
changeshappen?” “Not really,Dad.” Iwantedtotell himaboutmyextrachinmold, butmyDad would’ve
probablymadeabigdeal aboutit. “Iremember whenIturned 13,” myDadsaid. “Ireallywantedtogrowa mold mustache but Icouldn’t. SoIjustletmy NOSE HAIRS growreally
longand itlooked justas good. Eatingwasabit ofa problem,butI eventuallygotusedtoit.” Man. Myparentsare soweird. But, Igotmywholescheduleallsetupfortoday. FirstmyMomisgoingto takemetoZombies RUstobuysomemorestuff
for mybirthdayParty. Andsheneededto get anothercostumeforWesley
since Ikind ofdestroyedhis. Shewasn’ttoohappyI tookWesley’scostume. But I think sheforgot about itonceshesaw thatWesleyand I were goingtohave MATCHING COSTUMES thisHalloween.“Oh,you’re bothsocute,” shesaid.
Parents areso weird.
Afterthat,I’mcominghome andsetting upallofthe DECORATIONS for myparty.
Then Ipromised myMomandDadIwouldhelpgetWesleyready for his trick-or-treatingtrip. Ikindof feltbadbecause Ididn’ttell my Momand Dadthat Wesley’s trickortreatingtripwasgoingto startlate.
ButIreallydidn’twantmyparentsherewhenthecoolkidsshowedupto myparty.
Anyway,afterthat,I’mgoing tochangeinto mycostumeand waitforallof thekidsfromschooltocome tomyHalloweenparty.
Wow, thisisgoing tobethe BEST NIGHT ofmylife. Thingscouldn’tgetany better.SATURDAY MIDDLE ENTRY
Theweirdest thing happened on our waybackfromZombies RUs.
Isawa bunchof mobkidsrunningaroundwithPumpkinHeadcostumes likeBigMouthJeff had.
Wow, thatmustbe areallypopular costumethisyear,Ithought.
WhenwegothomeMomstartedmakingallofthecool foodformy Halloweenparty,whileDadandI startedputtingupdecorations.
“Isee yougotthenewblow up SNOW GOLEM dollforthefrontyard,” MyDadsaid.“Yeah, andwhenyou passbyit,itmovesits arms upanddownlikeit’s goingtocrush you.”
“Youknow,whenI wasaboywehada blowuphumanmailman dollthat we putup inourfrontyardonHalloween. Wheneveryoupassedby, it wouldhandyouyourmail. Andletmetellyou,thatwaspretty scary.”
Wow, myparentsareso weird.
Whenwefinishedputtingupthedecorations,myhouselooked
AWESOME!Itwas soscarythatIgotreallynervous whenmyparentswereaboutto
leavetotakeWesleytrick-or-treating. “Are yousure you’regoing tobeOKallbyyourself,Zombie?Oneofus couldstaybehinduntilyour friendsgethere.”
“No,that’sOK,Mom. I’ma bigZombienow. I cantake careofthingsuntil theguys get here,” Isaidnervously. “Allright. We’llseeyouina fewhours.” Sothere I was,allby myselfinmy SPOOKY HOUSE onHalloween. IguessI’mjust beingparanoid,Ithought. Imeanreally,whatcouldgowrong?
SATURDAY NIGHT ENTRY
“Knock, Knock,Knock!” Oh cool,theguysarehere. Let’sgetthispartystarted! “Trickortreat!” “AAAAAHHHHHH!!!” “HappyBirthdayZombie!” Skelee,SlimeyandCreepysaid. “Wow,yourcostumesareso scary!” Theguys WEREN’T KIDDING whentheysaidtheyweregoingtohave
scarycostumes. Skeleedressedupinhisflower babycostume. Slimeydresseduplike abutterfly. AndCreepydresseduplike apeainapod.Soscary.
“Is anybodyelsecomingtoyourparty?” Creepyasked.
“Yeah, atonofthekidsfromschoolaresupposedtocome. It’s going tobe thebestpartyever.” “WHOA!” the guyssaid. “Hey, wherearethe milkand cookies?” Slimey asked. Meandtheguysjumpedin andstartedeatingsomeofthecoolsnacks my
Mom made. “Yeah, we even have acakethatlookslike BRAINS.” “Gross!” theguyssaid.
Afterweate,westarted watchingsomeT.V.
Man,where iseverybody?It’salreadybeenlikean hourand nobody else hasshownupyet.
“Ithoughtyou saidmorekidswerecomingtoyourparty?” Skeleeasked. “Yeah. They’ll behereany minute. They’re just…Err…runninglate… He, he.”
Allofasudden we heardaloudknockatthedoor. THUMP!...THUMP!...THUMP!... “See they’re here!” Iwassoglad somebodyfinallymade it. ForaminutethereIthought
NOBODY was coming ButwhenIopenedthedoor,Icouldn’t believe whoit was.
“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!”
“Jeff, what areyoudoinghere? Ineverinvited… Imean… I neverthought youwerecomingto myparty.”
Even thoughI didn’tlike BigMouthJeffmuch,Iwas just GLAD somebodycameto my party.
Andhewas wearinghispumpkinheadcostumesoitkindoffitinwithour “ScariestPartyEver” theme.
“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!”
“Whoa!That’s reallyscaryJeff. Greatcostume,” Skeleesaid.“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!”
“Sorealistic!” Slimeysaid.“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!”
“Andit’sreallyscaryhowyoukeepsaying, RAAGGHHRRandstuff,” Creepy said.“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!”
“Hey, youwantsomefood?” IaskedJeff. “Wegothuman wormfingers, boogercupcakes,spider eyecookies…”“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!”
“Andwehaveacakethatlooks like…brains!”“RAUUH?”
“Yeah, gross right?MyMommadeit. Digin.”
Jeffstartedsniffingaroundthebrain cakerealweirdlike. But Jeffwas alwaysweird, soIguess itwasOK.“BRRAINNSS?”
“Yeah, itlooksjustlike brains. Cool right?”“BBRRRAAAIIIINNNNSSSS!!!!!”
Allofasudden,pumpkinheadJeff startedscreaming andwailingand CHOMPING onthecake.
“Whoa. Calmdown there,killer. We need tosavesomefortherest ofthe guests.”“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!!!! BBBRRAAIINNSSS!!!”
“Uh,Zombie… Something tellsmethat’snotJeff,” Skeleesaidas he pointed totheT.V. set.
Ilooked attheT.V. andtheywereshowingsomekindof EMERGENCY BROADCAST.“I repeat… You can identify the infected by the large pumpkin that has spawned on their head. If you encounter one of the infected we warn you to stay as far away from them as you can. The infection is highly contagious and is spread through a bite. So protective clothing is suggested…”
“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!!!! BBBRRAAIINNSSS!!!”
“AAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!” weyelled.
As the PumpkinHeadmonster thing ate thebraincake, me andtheguys lockedourselvesinthebathroom. “Whatare we goingtodo?” Creepysaidhissing. “Idon’t know,” Isaid. Allwecouldhearon theothersideofthebathroomdoorwas,
“RAAAAGGGHHRRR!!!! BBBRRAAIINNSSS!!!” “Hey, youstillhaveSlimey’s Dad’s WORKPANTS sackfromtheother night?” Skeleeasked me. “Yeah, it’s inthecloset.” “Whydon’tweuse thatto grabPumpkinHeadand lockhim inthecloset?”
“Greatidea. Butwebetter doitfastbeforethebraincakeruns out.”
“I’m reallyscared,Zombie,” Creepysaid. “Metoo,Creepy… But let’sdothis!” Wealljumpedoutofthebathroomandrantothecloset. PumpkinHeadwasstilldevouringthecake,sowesnuckreally quietlyand
gotthesack outofthe closet. Then weall grabbedacornerofthesack andwalkedslowly behindhim. “Alrightguys,” Iwhispered, “Onthecountofthree… One… Two…
Three… NOW!!!”“RAAAAGGHRR!!!… UUMMPPHH!…”
WegotPumpkin Headinthe sackand thenwepushedhim inthecloset and lockedit.“RRAAGGHHRRR!!! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!”
ButPumpkinHead wasstilltrying togetout. “Quick,helpmemovethecouchin frontofthecloset,” Isaid. Afterweputthecouch infrontofthecloset,meand the guysjust sat down
onthe couchexhausted. “Whoa. Thatwas intense!” Skeleesaid.
“Uh…guys…Idon’tthinkit’sover…” Slimeysaid pointingto the T.V.
Wealllooked attheT.V. andsawpictures ofpumpkinheadedmobschasing folks allaroundtheneighborhood.
“Hey, turnit up!”
“…not able to contain the infected. We repeat… The Zombie police are not able to contain the infected. We therefore encourage residents to find safety at the Mob Village Middle School. I repeat, if you have not been bitten you can find safety at the Mob Village Middle School…
…This is serious folks. Sources say that this epidemic may be the beginning of the next Zombie Apocalypse…
…Huh? What’s that noise? How’d they get in here? RUN!!!”
“RRAAAAAGGHHRRR!!!”
“…BEEEEEEEEEEPPP…”
Then all thatwaslefton the T.V. wasstatic.
“Ohman. Whatarewegoingtodo?” Creepyasked. “Youheard thenews. Weneedto MAKE IT totheMiddleSchool. We’llbe safethere,” Isaid. “Yeah…butforhowlong?” Skeleeasked. Then all ofusjustlookedat eachother…worried.
Sowe plannedtomake arunfortheschool. Wegrabbedanythingwecould findto defend ourselvesagainstthePumpkinHeads. But we weren’tsureif we wereeven goingtomake it.
Butthethingthatwasreally BOTHERING me wasthat my Mom,Dad andWesleywereoutthere.
Man,if Ihadtold Mom andDad the truth,theywouldstill besafewithus righthere,Ithought. BecauseIlied, my Mom,DadandWesley couldbe reallyhurtrightnow. Man,whatamIgoing todo?
“Zombie,areyou ready?” Skeleeasked. Ilooked atalltheguyswhowerecoveredinpotsandpansfromheadto toe. IthoughtaboutmyMom,Dad andWesley. IftheywerestillOK, I hadto
gosavethem. Ithoughtaboutmy BEST PALS thatreally needed me rightnow. AndIthoughtabout Steve, whoIknewsomehow,somewhere,neededmy help. AndIknew thatiftherewaseveratimetoquit, iftherewas evera timeto giveup,iftherewasever atime tothrow inthetowel,this wasnotit! “Let’sdothis!”
SATURDAY LATE NIGHT ENTRY
Webarely madeittotheschool.
AllwesawonthewaywerePumpkinHeadschasingscreamingmobfolks upanddowntheneighborhood.Justlikeascene fromahorror film...
Butwhenwefinallymadeittotheschool…therewasnobodythere. “Whereiseverybody?” Iasked. “Idon’t know… TheysaidtocometoourMiddleSchool,right?” Slimey
asked. “Yeah, but Idon’tthink ANYBODY else madeit,” Skeleesaid.
Allofasudden we heardnoisescoming.
“RRRAAAAAGGGHHHRRRR!!!”
“Did youhear that? Quick,let’shide!” Isaid.
Werandownthe schoolhallway,checkingallof theclassroomdoorsto see whichoneswereopen. Creepy andIfoundoneatthe endof thehall,andSkeleeandSlimey
jumped intoanotheropenclassroomcloseby. “Quick,Creepy,hideinthe closet,” Isaid. Iwastrying my besttokeep Creepy calm. But he was HISSING somuch.
Even his liquidNitrogen inhalerwasn’thelping. “RRRAAAAAGGGHHHRRRR!!!” ThePumpkin Headswererightat thedoor. IlockedCreepyin thecloset,
andthen Ijumpedbehind the teacher’sdesk hopingtheywouldn’tfindme. Thedoorslowlyopened,and Iheardtwoofthemcomein. “RRRAAAAAGGGHHHRRRR!!!” wasalltheysaidastheyslowlywalked
aroundthe classroom.
Icouldfeel the maggotsstanduponthebackof my neck astheygotcloser andcloser. Oh man. Thisisit. I thought. I’mnotgoingto makeit. AllIcouldthinkaboutwas myMom, Dadand Wesley. I’mnotgoingtobe abletosavethem,I thought. AndI’llnever beableto
tellthem HOW SORRY Iam for lying tothem… Then thePumpkinHeadsfoundme.
“RRRAAAAAGGGHHHRRRR!!!”
Goodbyecruelworld…
“You’re notgoingto giveupthateasilyareyou?” “Wha...?” “IthoughtI taughtyoubetter thanthat.” “Huh?” Then themonsterstandingovermetookoffitsbigpumpkinhead andit
was…
“STEVE!!!!”
“That’s right. Intheflesh.” Then theothermonstertookoffitspumpkinheadand itwas… “ALEX!!!” “That’s me.” “But WHAT…?When…?Where…?How?!!!” “Iknowyougotalotofquestions,Zombie,butweneedtogetoutofhere
fast. Who elsedidyou bring?”
“Just Creepy. I lockedhim inthecloset. AndSkeleeandSlimeyareinthe classroomacrossthehall. “Allright,let’sget those guysand head overtothePotionsBrewingLab,
now!”
SUNDAY EARLY ENTRY
Wegotto thePotions BrewingLab,but bythenthesunalready started coming up.
“Quick,Alex,pulldown the blinds,” Steve said. SteveandAlexpulled the blindsdownsothatthesunlight wouldn’thurtme andSkelee.
Whenwewalkedintheclassroomsomebodywas alreadyintherebrewing somethingina CAULDRON. “Hello,Zombie.” “Ms. Ursula!!!” Itwas Ms. Ursula,myneighbor the witch, brewingsomething. “I’m gladyou were abletomakeitsafelytothe school. You’rea pretty toughZombie…evenagainstclowns.” “Uh…yeah. Sorryabout that,Ms. Ursula. “Ms. Ursula isbrewingacounterspell tocurethePumpkinHeads,” Steve said.
“Is itworking?” “Yes,butIamgoing toneedmoretime,” Ms. Ursula said. “Also,Ineedthe FULL MOON inorder togivethepotionitspower. Andthenextfull
mooncomesouttonight.”
IhadsomanyquestionsforSteveIdidn’tevenknowwheretobegin.
“SoSteve,what’s going on?”
“Well,forstarters,everythingthat’shappening inyourMobvillage already happened inour village. AlexandI aretheonly humans inourvillagethat didn’tget INFECTED.”
“But,howdidyougetaway?”
“Well,itwas all thankstoAlex actually.”
“Yep. Allme,” Alex said.
“Yousee,whenI wenttogofindthe missing villagersIeventually found them. But theyweren’ttoohappytoseeme. Actually,those PumpkinHeads chasedme allthe wayinto acave. Then oneofthePumpkinHeadsfound meandIthoughtIwasagoner. But,nextthingIknow,Alexisstanding overme laughing,withapumpkinonherhead.”PumpkinHeadAlex
“Yeah, Ireallyhad himgoingforawhile there,” Alexsaid.
“It seemsthatthe infectedcan’ttell whoyou areifyou put apumpkin on yourhead,” Stevesaid.
“Kinda likeanEndermen?”
“Yep. Sowe’vejust been wearingpumpkin headsandwalkingaround, hopingwecould find SURVIVORS.”
“Butwe didn’tfind anysurvivors inour village,” Alex said. “Ourwhole villageistotallyinfected.”
“SomeandAlextriedtogethelp tofind acureforthePumpkin Heads. I rememberedhow Glenda theJungleWitchhelped usbefore. Butthe problemwas thatshewasn’taround. So,Icame tofindtheonly other witch thatIknewabout,yourneighbor,Ms. Ursula.”
“AfterSteve andAlexcameto seeme,Ihadtotraveltothedifferent biomes togetallofthe INGREDIENTS thatIneeded,” Ms. Ursulasaid.
“Sothat’swhy theysaidyouweremissing!” Iexclaimed. “And that’swhy youweren’tthere when Ibrokeyourwindow.”
“Whatwindow?”
“Oh...err…nothing.”
Wow, thatwas acrazystory. ButIwasjustsohappytoseeSteveagain. Lifejust wasn’tthe same without him.
“HeyZombie, youreadytoseeyourparents?They’vebeenreallyworried aboutyou,” Steve said.
“Myparents?!!!They’rehere?!!!”
“Yeah, alotof THE PARENTS arein the gymnasium. I’m surethey’re
goingtobereally happyto seeallofyouguys.” Then Steve, theguys andIrandownstairs tothegymnasiuminthe BASEMENT.
Whenweopenedthedoors,therewerea bunchofmobsfrom the
neighborhoodthere. WefoundSkelee’s parents,Slimey’sparents, andCreepy’s familywasall there too.
IsawmyMomandDadfromfaraway andIrantothem. “Mom! Dad!” “Zombie!You’resafe!We were soworried aboutyou!” Igave myparentsthe BIGGEST HUG ever. “HabbyBurtdayZumbie!” “Wesley!” Igave Wesleythebiggesthugever,too. “Mom…Dad… IamsosorryforlyingtoyouaboutWesley’strick-or
treatingtrip. Inevermeantforyoutogethurt. Ijust wanted tolookgoodin front ofmyfriends. NowIknow HOW DUMB thatwas. AndIpromiseI willnever,everlietoyouagain!” “Zombie,wealreadyforgaveyouwhenwefound outthatyou liedto us,” Mom said. “What?Howdidyouknow?”
“Well,Denisecalledmelaterthis week tomakearrangementsforthetrip. Shetoldme about thetime change,” Momsaid.
“Yes,son. We’veknownsomething waswrong eversinceMr. Jenkinstold usthat youweresneakingover toworkwithhimontheweekends,” my Dadsaid. “Healso toldusaboutthelieyoutoldhimaboutburningthe skin offof his ZOMBIE HORSE.And,heeventoldusthat youliedabout Ms. Ursula’sclown,andher brokenwindow.”
“Really?Youknew aboutall that? But, howcomeyoudidn’tsay anything?”
“Well,Zombie. Wetalkeditoverwith Mr. Jenkinsand we figured thatyou needed tosort out thosesituations for yourself,” myMomsaid. “Andwe believedinyou.”
“Yes,son,” my Dadsaid. “Weknew thatyouwouldeventuallychoosethe rightcourse. Andeventually,youdid.”
Wow… Myparentsare SO COOL.
Man,evenin themiddle ofa ZombieApocalypse,I justrealizedthatIam theluckiestZombiein thewholeworld.
Oh no!Mr. Jenkins!!!
“Mom,Dad… DidMr. Jenkins makeit?”
“Sort of…” Dad said. “He’soverthere.”
WhenIlookedoverIsawOld ManJenkinsnapping nexttoEd, his Zombie horse…
…Well,histop halfanyway. Iguessthe DUCT TAPE wasn’tstrong enough tosurviveaZombie Apocalypse.
Iwasjustsohappy thateveryonewasOKthatIjumpedonmyparentsone more timeandgave them areallybighug.
Then,becauseIwassotired,Ijustfellasleep.SUNDAY MIDDLE ENTRY
“Wake up,Zombie,it’salmostsundown,” Stevesaid.
WhenIwokeup,Iwas hopingthateverythingthat hadhappenedwas justa really BAD DREAM. But, itwasn’t. Iwasstill intheschoolgymnasium withalloftheotherparentsandkids
from the neighborhood. “Are thePumpkinHeadsstilloutthere?” I askedSteve. “Yep. And nowthereare more thanever.” “Butshouldn’tthe sunhave burned themtoacrispbynow?” “Ithoughtsotoo. Butitlooks likethe PUMPKINS protect them from
gettingburnedsomehow,” Stevesaid.
Weallranupto the Potions BrewingLab toseeifMs. Ursulawasfinished withthecure.
“Assoonas the sungoes down, andthefullmooncomesout,thepotion willbeready,” Ms. Ursulasaid.“Butisthatgoingtobeenoughtohelpthewhole town?” Iasked. “And what aboutSteve’s village?”
“You’llhaveto DILUTE itinwater andthensprinkleitonallofthe infected,” she said.
“Howarewegoing todothat?” Alexasked.
Wewereallthinkingofdifferentwaysthatwecould get thepotiononthe PumpkinHeads. Bestideawecameupwith wasto useafew supersoakers thatwefoundintheschool’slost andfound.
“Igotit!” Isaid. “How aboutusingthesprinkler system?Wecan putthe potionin theschool’swatersupplyandthen SPRINKLE thewhole soccer field.”
“That’s great, Genius. Buthowarewesupposedto get all ofthePumpkin Headstoall cometothe soccerfield?” Alexasked.
“Somebodyisgoingto have togothroughouttown,gettheirattention and lurethembackhere,” Stevesaid.
IthoughtaboutOldManJenkinsandhisZombie Horse, Ed. But sinceMr. Jenkins wasonly halftheZombie heusedto be,Irealizedthatit wasgoing tobeuptome.
“I’lldoit,” Isaid. “I’lljust RIDE ED, the Zombiehorse,throughouttown andgetthePumpkinHeadstochasemebackhere.”
“Wayto go,Zombie!” Steve said. “Thatsettles it. Alex,youandMs. Ursula getthepotiontotheschool’swater supplythat’sconnected tothesprinkler system. The guysandIwillkeeptherestofthe PumpkinHeads busyonthe soccerfield. Right,guys?”
“Gulp!Uh,yeahsure…” the guyssaid.
“Exceptyou,Creepy,youcansit thisoneout,” Stevesaid.
ItoldmyMomand DadwhatIhadtodo. Theydidn’t likeit,buttheyknew itwasthe ONLY WAY to helpsaveeverybody.
Istoopeddownandasked OldManJenkinsifIcould borrow Edfor one LAST RIDE.
“You’re areallyweird Zombie, youknowthat?ButIreckonthat you’re ready.” ThenMr. Jenkinsputhishandonmyshoulder andhiseyesockets startedtearingup. “I’vealwaysbelievedinyou,Zombie… Justbringback Ed inone piece, OK?”
“Youcan counton it,Mr. Jenkins.”
Ijumpedon Ed androdeoutof the gymnasiumandover tothe MAIN DOORS of theschool.
“Allrightguys. Thisis it!” Stevesaid. “Everybody iscounting onus. And notjustmobs,buthumanstoo. Wecan’t fail, becausethereis too muchat stake. So,ifthere waseveratimetoquit, iftherewas evera timetogive up,if therewaseveratimeto throwinthe towel, thisisnotit!”
IknewIheardthat SPEECH before.
“Are youguysready?!!!”
“YEAH!!!” “Let’sdothis!!!”SUNDAY NIGHT ENTRY
Idon’tknowwhatIwasthinking.
ButthereIwas,riding Ed,the Zombie horse, andkickinghimashardas I couldtoget himto gofaster.
Andbehindus were acouple hundred SCREAMING PUMPKIN HEADS chasingusas fastas theycould.
And,itseemedlikeno matterhowfastwewent,thePumpkinHeadswere gettingcloserandcloser.
But, IfinallysawaglimpseoftheMiddleSchoolfrom faraway. AndthenI sawthesoccerfield.
Therewerealreadya fewhundredmorePumpkinHeads onthe SOCCER FIELD runningaround. Andit lookedliketheywerechasing something.
WhenIgotcloser, InoticedthattheywerechasingSteve,Skelee and Slimey,whowererunningroundand round, all overthefield.
Then,I guesstheguys musthaveseenmebecause nextthingIknow they tookoff intotheschoolasfastas theycould.
As soonasIreached the soccerfield,thePumpkin Headsforgotabout Steveandtheguysandturnedtheirattentiontomeand Ed.
“Get ready,Alex!” Steveyelled.
Alex wasperchednextto thesprinklersystem,readyto TURN IT ON. SorightwhenI reachedtheedgeof thesoccer field,and the bigcrowdof
unfriendlyPumpkinHeadswerewaitingto jump onme andEd, Steve yelled, “NOW!!!” Allofsuddenthesprinklersystemwent off,andaburstofpurplishliquid
startedsprayingon everyPumpkin Head inthesoccerfield. ThesprinklersgotEdwet too, whichmadehim runfasterand faster. Itwas agoodthing too. He wasrunningsofastthat thebigcrowdof
PumpkinHeads couldn’tcatch us. Man,Ihopethisworks, Ithought. As the sprinklersystemsoakedthecrowd,allofthePumpkin Headsstarted
wailing and SCREAMING.
“RAAAGGGHHHRRR!!!!RRAAAAGGHHRR!!!! RRAAAAGGHHRR!!!!” wasalltheysaid. Then littlebylittle,thescreamsbegantodiedown. Next thingyouknow,thePumpkinHeadsbegandoing weirdthingswith
theirarmsand legs. Andthensuddenly theirPumpkinHeadsstartedshrinking! Firsttheywentfromhavinglargepumpkinheads,tosmallpumpkin heads,
tojust SMALL TRACES ofpumpkinontheirheads,untilfinallythe pumpkins were gone. Itworked!
Irode Ed inthroughthemaindoorsoftheMiddleSchoolanddowntothe basement,whereSteve,Alex, Ms. Ursulaandthe guyswerewaiting. “Well,diditwork?” Steve asked.
“It suredid. It looks likeeverybodyisgoingbackto normal,” Isaid. “YEAHHHH!!!!” All ofthemobsandtheir familiescheeredasthey celebratedand hugged eachother.
“Whew!Foraminute there Ithoughtwewouldhavetogo back tolivingin
caves,” Skeleesaid. “Wellif we did, atleastwewouldhavehadplentyofpumpkinpie toeat,” Stevesaid.Then all ofusjustburstoutlaughing.
MONDAY
Aftermost ofthetownwascuredonthesoccerfield,Ms. Ursulabrewed some moreofher potionto useontheremainingMobsresidents.
Ms. Ursulaalso madeaspecialbatchforSteve’svillage. Then, armedwith awholetruckloadof SUPER SOAKERS,Steve,Alextheguys andI, alongwithabunchoftheresidents from Mobvillage,wentover toSteve’s villageandhelped curealloftheinfectedvillagers.
ThehumansfromSteve’svillagewereso gratefulthattheymadepeace withallthemobsfromMobVillage. TheyevenmadeHalloweentheir nationalholiday,toremindthemofthedaythathumansandmobsworked togetherto savethe Overworld.
Now,Halloweenbecametheonenight ofthe yearthat humansandmobs couldhangouttogetherwithoutscaringeachother. So,onHalloween, humansandmobsputasidetheirdifferences,andtheydressuplikeone anothertoshowtheirappreciation. Theyevenvisiteach other’shomesand eattogether.
Socool…
As for me, itwasthe BEST BIRTHDAY thatI’veever had.
Itwas alsothecraziestexperienceofmylife,and I’mgoingto neverforget it.
I’malso nevergoingto forgetthat no matterhowtoughlifegets, lying doesn’tfixanything. Because even thoughlyingis really,reallyeasy,itsure makeslifereally,reallyhard.
Instead,I learned that TRUSTING thepeoplethatloveyouandbelievein you,iswhatwillreallyhelp savetheday. SoeventhoughIjustbarelymadeit throughaZombieApocalypse… WhenIthinkaboutmyMom,myDad,andmylittlebrotherWesley…
AndIthinkabout my bestbudsSkelee,Slimeyand Creepy… AndIthinkabout my ghoulfriend Sally,and mycrazy,toughasnails friend Alex…
AndwhenI especiallythinkaboutmybest friendSteve… Irealize thatnomatter howcrazy my youngZombielife gets… With familyand friendslikethese… I’mthe LUCKIEST ZOMBIE in
thewholewideOverworld.FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!
There’sa NEW MOB KID IN TOWN! But themoreZombie hangs out withhim,the more trouble he getsinto!
Isthis newMobkidas cool aseveryonethinksheis?Orishereally hiding a secret?
JUMP INTO THIS ZANY MINECRAFT ADVENTURE AND FIND OUT!