TEA WITH THE MIDNIGHT MONSTERS

MIDNIGHT TEA

 "I'm sorry about the flood," said Millie. "And the baker who quit and the radiators."

By seven, the creatures were nowhere in sight. Millie thought they were running late, but Caroline insisted that Millie go to bed -- in Caroline's room. She tucked Millie in and kissed her nose.

"It will get sorted," Caroline said. "I'm going to pretend it's no big deal."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," said Caroline. "I can't control the ceiling or the heat. Or the baker, if he wants to quit. I can only solve the problems: problem, fix, problem, fix. Move to the next. The tearoom is cold and wet now, but soon we'll make it warm and dry. In the meantime, why gripe?"

"I'm still sorry," Millie said, "that you have to go through this."

"And I'm sorry your beasts didn't show."

The witch and the dragon hadn't stopped by, and Millie was disappointed, yes, but hopeful, too. She'd taped a note to her bedroom window:

"Welcome! Come in! Enjoy the tea!

I had to go to sleep! I have school in the morning!"

She'd managed to open the window halfway, propping it up with a game board from Life. Life, the game. She'd promised them a party, after all, and hoped they could let themselves inside.

So, of course, hours later, while Caroline slept, Millie woke up wondering...

...if, in fact, the monsters had arrived.

She decided to check.

She slipped out of bed, crept from the room, but in the hall, paused. Should she -- should she -- go to the kitchen and fetch her mum's phone, in order to use its video app? Caroline said to leave it on the charger, but surely her mother would understand once she saw the incredible creatures.

In the kitchen, she stole the phone, and then tiptoed back down the hall to her room.

There, the tea table sat untouched, and the wind had blown through the open window and turned the room frigid. Millie, shivering, climbed into bed, eyes on the window, waiting with hope.

Soon, of course, she fell asleep, but woke again, this time from the sound of the witch's voice, close to her ear: "Millie, wake up!" Someone then flicked her forehead. "Maybe she died," the witch said.

Millie had been sleeping soundly, but her eyelids opened and instead of Pim or Caroline's face, the back of the witch came into view: green ringlets, pointy black hat, black dress.

"She's dead as a doornail," the witch complained.

But Millie was awake. "You're here?" she said.

"No, she's no! Look!" cried a bat, with his mouth full of food, from across the room. A three-foot tall vampire bat -- with greyish brown fur, tiny fangs and piggy ears, and quivering umbrella-like wings -- stood over Millie's table, shoveling cookies into his mouth!

A vampire bat and the red baby dragon again! She was back!

"Oh!" The witch turned back around. "Millie, you're awake! Hi! We're here to warn you!"

"Warn me?" Millie said in a daze.

"You're next!" said the witch.

"Yes, you're next!" agreed the bat. "Cake told us!"

But Millie didn't seem to care, or understand. She was too amazed. Mystical, amazing, monstrous creatures! Gorging themselves on cookies and cake! "I'm next?" she said deliriously. "Next for what?"

"For this! For us! I'm Beatrice Silver! And that's KK Ku and Ryan O'Malley! We're three of the missing kids!"

"Missing from what?" Millie said, staring. "Oh wait, I have to get video of you! No one believes me..." She searched wildly for Caroline's phone, which slipped from her hand when she fell asleep. "Oh, where is it?" She found it tangled up in her sheet.

"Forget proof!" the witch said. "They're going to get you and turn you into us! Listen, please! We're in a hole in Central Park! A dungeon place!"

"Not a dungeon," corrected the bat. "It's a -- it's a -- oh no, Red!" He pointed out the window.

"Hold on, hold on!" Millie said, trying to get the lens to focus, when -- whoa! -- the bat rose! He levitated and flew off toward the open window.

"Guys! He found us! Red! He's here!"

"Wait!" said Millie. "Please don't go!" She switched the app to video and aimed.

"Millie, the park!" the bat squeaked. "We're under the park! Tell the police!" Then he flew out.

"Don't fly away!" Millie said, and ran after him. "Don't go yet!" She faced the witch. "Tell the police? Tell them what?" She held up the phone and tried again.

"The missing kids -- we're under the park." The witch threw one leg over her broom and flew like the bat straight toward Millie.

"What park?" Millie ducked right under the broom and dropped the phone.

"Central Park," said the dragon, sounding annoyed, stacking cupcakes into her arm.

"So you're not monsters?" Millie said. "You're children?"

"We're children," the dragon said, and leapt into the air and flew past Millie like the other. "Thanks for the tea!"

"You're welcome!" said Millie, and moved to the window, stretching her arms out into the night, holding the phone.

She pressed the shutter button -- down down down -- and yes, finally! She was capturing video! The proof she needed: the brown bat flying, the beautiful dragon, and Beatrice, aloft on her broom!

"Save us, Millie! Save us, please!" The threesome called as they flew off.

Millie was amazed. Millie was speechless.

Then, in an instant, a gust of wind and a horrible sound, a half-shriek-laugh, swept her forward onto her toes and off balance -- only an inch -- and out the window.

In that moment, she felt the phone flip -- tumble in the air -- almost as if it leapt from her hands -- then waited there -- a moment when Millie could have snatched it -- but as she reached, it slipped from her fingertips and plummeted -- down down down -- away through the dark -- through the shadow and light -- down down down -- until it landed on a seventh floor patio with a dull and flat dead thwack.

She froze for a moment, then pulled back inside, her heart racing. Gripping the sill, she gazed again at the creatures flying off, growing smaller, and something red chasing them -- was it a dragon? They were too far to tell.

Then she looked down nine stories, where a glint of streetlight bounced off the phone -- her mother's phone! Lying flat and cracked and dead.

Caroline's phone. Her precious mobile.

The one Millie promised -- absolutely promised -- to leave on the charger after seven o'clock.

What, oh what, oh what had she done?