Melody Piper/Diary

## Remix and Match

Back in the day, Ever After High was where kids of famous fairytales learned how to relive their family's storybook legacy. Then this year, the record scratched. For the first time ever after, some of us questioned our destinies. My legacy was *The Pied Piper*, but just like my dad, I believe that muse-ic should enchant people to come together and dance. It must be why we've got such a great father-daughter relationship. He really accepts me for who I am, and we're both Rebels at heart. When he was forced to relive his story, Dad led all the rats to safety of the Enchanted Forest. With his encouragement, I listened to my heart to become Ever After's most inspiring DJ! Every night I'd surf the mirrornet for new muse-ic and create my own mashups. Each dance needs its own new mix. No two sets should sound the same. It's wicked awesome that nobody's able to hold me back anymore from what I was born to do, but it does have its own set of challenges.

## Chapter 1

This school year has been off the charts. From traditional dances like Legacy Day and Thronecoming to unhexpected dances like the Return of Wonderland dance, I was **THE DJ** at Ever After High.

I was creating a new mashup when Briar hext messaged me. Briar Beauty isn't just the daughter of Sleeping Beauty; she's also the Social Throne of the Royal Student Council. She's making sure every party at school is legendary.

RoyalBriar: Hey M, Holly and Poppy's birthday coming up. Want u to DJ.
DJMel: Rapunzel twin birthday ball!!!! Count me in!!!!
DJMel: Happy bday twins! Soooo hexcited! Where's it happening?
PoppyStyle: Can't wait! It's @ Tower Hair Salon in BookEnd.
DJMel: Wicked awesome acoustics there! Will sound spellbinding!
Holly<3: Can you play love ballads? Really looking forward to slow-dancing like in classic fairytale stories.
PoppyStyle: I wanna rock out!!!! Something new, fast & high energy!
DJMel: Sure, no problem. Ttyl!
Holly and Poppy might look identical, but their muse-ical tastes are royally different. They couldn't have chosen more opposite styles. Remixing slow, romantic ballads with loud, banging rock was going to be wicked hard, but I was determined to create the perfect birthday mix.

## Chapter 2

Over the next couple of days, I created a ton of different remixes combining the two different types of muse-ic. But days turned into weeks, and I still couldn't get a perfect set together. The two styles were just too different. But I wasn't about to give up!

After what must have been my hundredth hextra large hocus latte, my MirrorPhone buzzed.

RoyalBriar: O'Hair Birthday Ball meeting in my dorm.

I arrived at Briar's room, disappointed that I hadn't made any progress. Briar had just started the meeting "*So we all want Holly and Poppy's party to be a page-ripper. Ginger, how's the food looking?*"

"*Spelltacular!*" Ginger Breadhouse swiped her MirrorPad. "*I'm baking Honey Hairbuns, Cinnamon Braids, and Chocolate Mousse that you can eat AND fix your hair with!*" True to her Candy Witch legacy, Ginger loves cooking treats, though she doesn't want to lure Hansel and Gretel into a trap. Plus she's the best roommate ever after!

"*You're making me hungry already.*" Briar drew a checkmark in her notepad. "*What about you, Cedar?*"

Cedar Wood is not only Pinocchio's daughter, but she's also the best artist in school. "*I'm not finished yet, but hex out these pictures of the painting.*"

"*They're going to love it!*" Briar clapped her hands together. "*And Melody, knowing you, the muse-ic was probably perfected last week!*"

"*Um, well...*" I nervously chuckled.

"*Fableous! Everyone is on track,*" Briar added a check to her notebook. Now I had to deliver. The pressure was on, and time was ticking away.

## Chapter 3

The more time I spent on the remix, the more it sounded like a carriagewreck. Usually I go with the flow, but even I was getting flustered. On top of that, I was wicked tired. My head dropped to my desk with a **THUD** and I instantly fell asleep.

**CLANG** "*WHAT'S THAT NOISE?*" Ginger shouted. Her pots and pans scattered all over our floor as she raced over and shut down my muse-ic app. "*Is that the birthday remix? It's, um... really...*"

"*I know, I know. It's a total fairy fail,*" I said.

Ginger patted me on the back. "*Oh, Melody, why didn't you ask for help? We're all friends.*"

I was ashamed. "*What am I going to do? I want to help make Holly and Poppy's birthday legendary, but none of my mixers are working.*"

"*Hmmm,*" Ginger pulled a green carrot and a handful of purple beans from her bookpack. "*This is Bitter Witches Root. And these are Troll Slime Beans.*"

"*Gross!*" I tightened my mouth. "*Totally,*" she reached back into her bookpack. "*But when you crumble in some honeycomb and add a dash of mint, something amazing happens.*" She handed me a cupcake. Surprisingly, it was sweet and refreshing. "*Instead of trying to mix two things that don't go together, maybe look for your secret ingredient?*" She was right, and I knew hexactly where to go.

## Chapter 4

Muse-ic class is one of the most popular classes at Ever After High. It's where people come to sing their true hearts out, or band together with magical instruments. Plus it's the class that my dad teaches.

As I walked down the hallway, I heard the most spelltacular singing voice. It was coming from the Muse-ic room. I opened the door, and there, all alone, was someone I'd never met before. She had coral-colored hair and a sea foam dress. She clammed up as soon as she saw me. "*Sorry,*" she quickly scuttled away.

"*Wait!*" I called, and she stopped in her tracks. "*I didn't mean to scare you. My name's Melody, and I'm the Pied Piper's daughter.*" I extended my hand.

She looked at it for a moment, and then shook it. "*I am Meeshell Mermaid, the next Little Mermaid.*"

I grinned. "*Well, Meeshell, your singing voice is once upon AMAZING! I'm into muse-ic, too.*" We talked about our favorite groups and influences. We shared songs from our MirrorPhones. Before long, I told her about my birthday remix problem and what I was looking for.

"*Hmmm...*" She sang as she rhythmically tapped her chin.

"*What do you suppose this missing ingredient could be?*"

Without even thinking about it, the answer popped in my head. "*Meeshell, can I ask you for a favor?*"

## Chapter 5

Immediately, the set list came together. Bursting with creativity, I crammed weeks of work into just a few days. At the last minute, I finally finished the mix. I quickly packed my DJ bag, and rushed to The Tower Hair Salon.

Instead of hairstyling salons, the salon was now empty except for tables with eye-catching treats from Ginger, Cedar's painting that covered the entire back wall, and my DJ table. Briar ran towards me. "*Thank fairy godmother! For a minute I was afraid you weren't going to show.*"

I leapt behind the DJ table. "*You know I wouldn't miss it for the world.*" I plugged in my headphones, turned on my mixing board, and one-by-one, people started showing up.

Less than an hour later, the place was packed. When Holly and Poppy arrived, they screamed with joy. "*This is happily ever awesome!*" they said in unison. Briar led the crowd in a rousing song of Fairest Birthday. "*And now,*" Briar continued, "*your favorite DJ and mine ... MELODY PIPER!*"

I took the microphone. "*Holly, Poppy, I hope you have the fairest birthday ever after! Now follow me!*" I started a song. A slow beat started, and Meeshell started singing. She was fableous enough to let me record her voice. As it turns out, that mermaid's got range, and can rock out like nobody above the sea! Her voice was the secret ingredient. It connected the two beats perfectly! Pretty soon, everyone was dancing. Poppy started headbanging, as Holly smoothly swayed back and forth.

The party raged on into the night. Everyone danced until they couldn't dance anymore. It was legendary! Holly and Poppy thanked me for playing the most memorable birthday soundtrack ever after. At the end of the night, as I packed my DJ gear, I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was Ginger and Meeshell, and I felt like the luckiest DJ in the world. Not because I threw down an epic set, but because it seemed no matter where I turned, I could count on friends both old and new to help me out of a jam.