Trick or treat!"
"Claymore, a. it's still daylight. B. You aren't a child, and C - I haven't thought of but I can always ask the captain what C is," Martha said, not really in the mood for Claymore at the moment. Now that she lived with a ghost, Halloween seemed rather redundant.
"Oh no don't do that, except he's the reason I'm here," Claymore replied, peering over her shoulder. "Where is old spooky?"
"Right here you numb minded nitwit!"
Appearing over Matha's shoulder, the ghost almost scared Claymore into his seventh life.
"eee" Claymore squeaked, then brushed his lapels. "I come bearing gifts, and I've a good mind to not give you yours, if you keep acting like- like"
"Like a ghost?" Martha suggested, leaning on her broom to watch the show.
"Exactly, except that's why I'm bearing gifts."
Through narrowed eyes, Daniel Gregg looked at his backdoor relation. "What are you blathering about?"
Gathering his nerve, Claymore stuck a box in the ghosts face, almost clipping Martha in the head with it.
"Here. A treat- for Halloween, so you'll be nice to me for the year, it's tradition. I read it in the library- My Big Little book of Halloween traditions."
Martha and the ghost examined the pink box together. "It looks like an Easter bunny, a chocolate one."
"Well, the Valentine's candy was freezer burned."
Martha opened the box, consigned her diet to another day, and broke off an ear. "So's this."
Claymore's face fell. "Well, it's the thought that counts, I always say, and anyway, he can't eat candy, and it's his."
"I'll remember to wrap up a nice thought for you at Christmas, " Martha muttered, stepping back to let him come in, as it appeared he wasn't leaving.
"Is there anything else?" the Captain asked, menacingly.
"Ah- ah- ah"
"Go ahead and sneeze already," Martha told him, handing him an unused dustcloth from her pocket.
"I wanted to ask C-c Mrs. Muir to the Halloween Masked Ball in town," he finally got out.
"YOU WHAT?" Daniel roared loud enough to bring Mrs. Muir downstairs to see why it was thundering this time.
"What's going on?" she called out. "Oh and Martha, do you have a pink scarf Candy can borrow, she wants to be Jeanie this year."
"This jiggling jellyfish was just leaving after trying to poison me," Captain Gregg declared.
"Poison you? You're a ghost," Carolyn blinked.
Claymore stood up straight as he could. "I wanted to ask you to the Masked Ball tonight."
"I already told him that was out of the question, Madame," the captain said testily.
Carolyn mulishly wanted to defy him, even though the idea of a date with Claymore held about as much appeal as kissing Scruffy. But facts were facts and, "I volunteered to help the PTA moms supervise a Halloween trick or treating caravan. I'm sorry, Claymore."
The captain's smug grin forced her to add, against her better judgement, "But if we get done in time, maybe I can show up there towards the end."
Claymore brightened. "Oh ho! Well, thank you. I 'll see you there. I'll be the Pirate Captain, like in Gilbert and Sullivan you know."
As he left, Martha and the Captain both turned on Mrs. Muir. "What are you thinking- going to a dance with Claymore?" Martha scoffed.
"Exactly," the captain agreed.
"It's not the first time," Carolyn defended herself. "And I likely won't make it in time for any dancing at all."
"I forbid it," The captain thundered, literally.
"Oh? Well in that case," Carolyn smiled, "I'll try and get done in time to catch at least half a dozen dances."
With a pert salute, she returned to costume duty.
Martha sighed. "Captain, will you ever learn?"
"I admit," he said, pulling his earlobe, "there are times I wonder about that."
As sunset neared, Carolyn kept expecting a second round, but none was forthcoming. As she posed the kids, Jonathan as Gilligan and Candy as Jeanie, navel carefully covered, thank you, for pictures, Jonathan asked, "Where's the captain. I wanted him to see my costume. "
"He's off doing - Halloween is a big night for ghosts, he has duties," Carolyn extemporized. "But I'm sure by the time we get home, he'll be here to see you with all your treats. Now then, you know to stay with Mrs. Shoemaker afterwards - Mommy has an event to attend." In honor of it, she was dressed as a fairy princess, sans wings, thanks to one of the trunks in the wheelhouse.
"With the barnacle," Jonathan agreed.
They had been talking to the captain. "No, with Mr. Gregg. We don't call people barnacles, or jellyfish or -"
"Blasted bilgewater rats?" Candy suggested.
"Spineless squid?" Jonathan chimed in.
"T-"
"No, none of those - or any others. Now come along. We have farther to go than anyone else and we don't want to keep the others waiting.
"Have fun," Martha called after them. "Ed is supposed to be picking me up for the double feature, Frankenstein vs. Dracula and The Wolfman vs. the Mummy. Popcorn is halfprice."
"Well, you too, don't turn into a pumpkin,'' Carolyn smiled.
"Go on now, Carolyn," Mrs. Turner said as the caravan wound down. "The kids will be fine, and you look too pretty to miss a dance."
"Are you sure, I really don't mind missing it," Carolyn smiled weakly, not looking forward so much now that indignation had fizzled.
"Nonsense. Go on. I'm positive you can find someone other than Claymore to dance with."
With another weak smile Carolyn gave in, driving to the brightly lit VA hall. Right before entering the room, she hesitated, glancing towards the stars. "The things you get me into."
Stepping from the darkness to light, she glanced around the "ballroom", looking for her "date". Couples eddied and swirled to a fast beat, making her feel like she was in the wrong century. Gingerly, she made her way through the masked revelers, looking for a familiar something. Elbow, ear, face...It all seemed to be another world...
The lights shifted, became softer, the music slowed and the way before her was clear. Across the room strode a powerful figure, one she didn't even believe was there until she felt very firm arms around her.
"Captain?"
He smiled down at her. "The walls between our worlds are very thin tonight, dear lady, and I would be remiss in my ghost duties were I to allow such beauty as yours to be wasted. "
She looked around. Things didn't look like they had a moment ago.
"Where are we?"
"Somewhere between the mists and stars, far from day, far from night, out of time and sight. A place where spirts and believers can meet for one brief moment."
Carolyn blushed. "How poetic."
"Actually, I must confess, I watched some musicals with Martha on the tv set one night when she had insomina."
"You put the words together well," Mrs. Muir insisted, then her words stopped as they only existed in the dance.
When Carolyn came down to breakfast, she was smiling.
"I never heard you come in last night, Mrs. Muir," Martha said. "Don't tell me Claymore - no I can't even think that."
Carolyn took her coffee, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. "My plans changed," she smiled. "But I had a most charming escort." Over the rim, she looked where she knew her escort was standing, invisibly.
"Mmhphmf. Well, as I hear it from the milkman, Claymore got over imbibed and got scared when Count Norrie snuck up behind him. Thought a real vampire had shown up." She turned back to the griddle. By now the captain was visible. "What about you, you old scoundrel, what did the spectral fraternity do for the big night?"
Looking innocent as possible, the captain replied, "Oh, just the usual. Rattled a chain or two. Time just flew by, you know."
STILL DON'T OWN IT.