“I won’t say anything,” I promised, “if you don’t say anything.”
“What are you both talking about?” Frosting asked. “What is this big secret?”
“It’s who is this big secret,” Taffy said. “And you have to promise, Frosting.”
Frosting took his finger and made an X across his chest. “I promise,” he said.
“Gobo!” I called. “It’s safe. You can come out.”
I watched Frosting’s face as Gobo appeared from behind a rock.
“Frosting, this is our friend Gobo,” I said.
For the first time ever, Frosting was speechless.
6
Sweet Secrets
“Does your friend speak?” Gobo asked.
Frosting was just staring at Gobo.
“Usually, he can’t stop talking,” I said.
“Is that a . . . tr-tr-troll?” Frosting finally asked.
“Yup,” Gobo said. “And are you a prince?”
I pushed Frosting forward. “Gobo, this is Prince Frosting, my cousin,” I said. “He is from Cake Kingdom. You can trust him.”
“I don’t trust him,” Taffy said.
I gave Taffy a cool stare. “We have to trust him,” I whispered. “And there is no way he wants that bat secret getting around Royal Fairy Academy.”
Taffy looked over at Frosting. “This secret better be caramel sealed,” she said. “Gobo doesn’t need to worry about you blabbing around school.”
“I will not say a word,” Frosting said. “But will he really get us out of here?”
“Yes,” Gobo said, grinning. “Come this way!”
We followed Gobo down and around the small, dark path. Finally we made it to the opening of the cave.
“This is the coolest secret I have ever had,” Frosting said.
I sighed. “Gobo is a special friend,” I told him. “I think that you will think so too.”
Gobo bowed and smiled. “I have never met a prince before,” he said.
“And I have never met a troll, so I guess we’re even,” Frosting replied.
“This is going to work out,” I said, smiling.
Taffy crossed her fingers. “I hope so,” she whispered.
“You can count on me,” Frosting said.
• • •
Parent Night was super fun. It was strange to see the lemon room so crowded with grown-ups. All the parents were very happy to see the work we had done. And there was a ton of special candy!
Lady Cherry rang her bell. “Welcome to the lemon room,” she said. “Please feel free to taste all the candy and ask the students about their work.”
Across the room, I saw Frosting. His candy looked sparkly and delicious, too. I winked at him. It felt good to know that we had a sweet secret.
Cupcake was showing her mother her fancy gummy flower with sugar crystals. Swirlie made a licorice flower. Their candy was supersweet, but Frosting’s was truly sugar-tastic.
I could tell Cupcake was not prepared for Frosting’s chocolate bark with sugar cubes to be so good. She was in full sugar mode, trying to keep her mom’s attention.
Frosting waved to me. I could tell he was feeling very proud.
I showed my mom and dad to my candy.
“Where did you find these sugar cubes?” my dad asked. He held up a piece of my candy and smiled.
“Oh, you should know not to ask a Candy Fairy her secrets,” I said, grinning.
“Wow,” my dad said. “These are delicious.” He licked his fingers. “You chose caramel candy. A hard candy to make.”
“And difficult to decorate,” my mom added. She held the candy in her hand. “The sugar cubes are scrumptious and colorful.” She gave me a tight squeeze. “I am so proud of you, Mini.”
I felt my face get very red like a licorice twist.
“Thanks, Mom,” I said.
Taffy’s parents, Lady Dot and Duke of Syrup, gave her jelly beans a great review.
Taffy waved me and Frosting to the back of the room. “Did you see Cupcake’s face?” she asked. “Frosting, you really surprised her.”
“I know,” he said. He grinned widely. “My mom said the sugar cubes were icing on the cake!”
“We pulled off the assignment,” I said to Frosting and Taffy.
“Just remember your promise,” Taffy warned.
Frosting nodded. “I will. Don’t worry.”
I was glad Frosting was now part of our secret friendship. He might be sour at times, but he had proved to be a loyal friend. I knew that our secret was safe. We had many more adventures in store for us!
Word List
assignment (a·SINE·ment): A task that must be done
combination (com·bi·NAY·shun): Two or more things put together
extraordinary (ek·STROR·di·nair·y): Far beyond the ordinary
ingredient (in·GREE·dee·ent): An item used to make a recipe
lopsided (lop·SI·ded): Uneven or not perfect
maze (MAIZE): Confusing set of pathways
mission (MI·shun): Important job or task
pressure (PRE·shur): Stress
quivered (KWI·verd): Moved with a slight shaking motion
twitched (TWITCHED): Moved quickly and suddenly
Questions
1. Why does Princess Mini feel pressure about her Parent Night project?
2. Why is Taffy nervous to go to Sour Orchard?
3. Where are the sugar cubes found?
4. How do Mini and her friends get out of the cave?
5. What candy would you make for Parent Night?
About the Author
Helen Perelman, author of the Candy Fairies series, worked in a children’s bookstore, was a children’s book editor, and now writes full-time in New York, where she lives with her husband and two daughters. Visit her at helenperelman.com.
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Welcome to ALADDIN QUIX!
If you are looking for fast, fun-to-read stories with colorful characters, lots of kid-friendly humor, easy-to-follow action, entertaining story lines, and lively illustrations, then ALADDIN QUIX is for you!
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If you’re also looking for stories with tables of contents; word lists; about-the-book questions; 64, 80, or 96 pages; short chapters; short paragraphs; and large fonts, then ALADDIN QUIX is definitely for you!
ALADDIN QUIX: The next step between ready to reads and longer, more challenging chapter books, for readers five to eight years old.
Read more ALADDIN QUIX books!
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Our Principal Is a Wolf! by Stephanie Calmenson
A Miss Mallard Mystery: Dig to Disaster by Robert Quackenbush
A Miss Mallard Mystery: Texas Trail to Calamity by Robert Quackenbush
A Miss Mallard Mystery: Express Train to Trouble by Robert Quackenbush
A Miss Mallard Mystery: Stairway to Doom by Robert Quackenbush
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
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First Aladdin QUIX paperback edition September 2018
Text copyright © 2018 by Helen Perelman
Illustrations copyright © 2018 by Olivia Chin Mueller
Also available in an Aladdin QUIX hardcover edition.
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Cover designed by Jessica Handelman
Cover illustration copyright © 2018 by Olivia Chin Mueller
Interior designed by Heather Palisi and Jessica Handelman
The illustrations for this book were rendered digitally.
This book has been cataloged with the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-1-4814-9481-6 (hc)
ISBN 978-1-4814-9480-9 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-4814-9482-3 (eBook)
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