Where Spiders Fear To Tread
Chapter 1
Arachne inhaled. She liked the smell of underground. It was the only place that was safe for her. The Boogie Boys said that she would be safe underground. She had a small room underground, and then above her room was the lair of the Boogie Boys. She buried her face into her blanket. She began to wonder if it was nighttime yet. She bit her lip then crawled out of bed. She sighed and crawled out from her bed. "Lock," she called up quietly.
"What do you want Ara?" he asked. They had always called her Ara, because they found that Arachne was too long for Lock, and Shock to say when they were in need of her. Barrel called her both names.
"Is it nighttime yet?" she asked. Lock groaned and popped his head out from above her.
"Jeeze, you don't waste time do you?" he asked. Ara smiled, and shook her head. "Ten more minutes and the sun will go down. Or is that too long to wait?"
Ara climbed up out of her room. "Oh please, just let me leave early. I have a lot to do tonight."
"No can do." Lock said. "Have to keep you safe." He answered then watched her sit down next to him. She did her best puppy face. "Stop. Puppy face won't work on me Ara,"
Ara groaned and went back to her room. "Fine, I'll just get dressed. Have to start the night you know. Can you make me breakfast?"
Lock looked down at her. "I am not your servant." He said then looked away and put his feet on the table.
"Idiot! Get your feet off the table! Can't you tell I just polished it?" Shock angrily said coming out of one of the rooms.
"With what? Cat brains? Stop your whining witch."
"Devil!" she shot back. He rolled his eyes and looked toward the window. The sun slowly disappeared from sight.
Arachne leaped up again, her clothes on. "Finally!" she cried. "See you guys later!" she cried running out of the twisted house. She ran through the forest, and then toward the heart of Halloween Town. She peered in one of the windows, the shop closed, the owner's gone to sleep. She bit her lip again, a drip of blood lingered on the lip. Suddenly all around her was a flock of vampires.
"Ah! Isn't it our lovely friend Arachne?" one asked sweetly.
"Get lost." She said, "It's my own blood." She said and licked it up. Disappointed, they all left. She rolled her eyes, none of them wanted to be her friend. They only wanted her blood. Barrel came from out of the shadows.
"Hey Ara." He said quietly. She smiled at him, he had always worn a skeleton suit. It was his trademark, just like Shock dressed as a witch, and Lock as a devil.
"Hey Barrel. Where were you?" she asked him.
He shrugged. "A Boogie Boy is sworn to all kind of mischief. I made an oath to cause havoc in Halloween Town," he smiled, his voice soft. Barrel, Lock, and Shock were her only friends, because they also swore to protect her.
"I wish you guys would let me join you. I've lived with you guys all my life! Why can't I join you guys. I'm sure I would be a good help to you guys if you were in trouble."
"Except we never get in trouble, we're that good," was all that his soft voice said. Disappointed Ara folded her arms.
"You guys are no fun. I'm not even allowed to buy anything because everyone closes their shops." She said angrily.
"Well…maybe I can talk to Shock. She might let you join. She's the leader now, anyway." He said thinking quietly. "C'mon. I'll test you out."
"Really? Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cried hugging him tightly.
"We'll start you out on the cemetery." He said thinking.
Arachne groaned, "Oh come one Barrel! If I had wanted to go to the cemetery I would have gone by myself. Nothing fun is there. It's full of dead people."
"Why? You don't want to talk to ghosts? Besides, they always believe the stupidest things. They can get really upset you know, and they can do their damage."
"So really I'm not doing anything? They're going to be doing all the fun?" she asked still disappointed.
"Do you want to do it or not?" he asked in his subtle voice. She looked at Barrel's face. Finally she nodded.
"If it's not fun I'm leaving you to deal with the ghosts."
"We can also throw jack-o-laterns." Barrel added. She nodded.
.
"Do you know what I heard?" asked Barrel to one of the ghosts who listened eagerly. "I heard that the Pumpkin King thinks that the cemetery should be dug up and moved so he can build his summer home here."
"How terrifying!" the ghost cried then whispered to the next ghost, whose corpse suddenly turned over in its grave. All the ghosts began to whisper. They all swooped up and talked to each other with hushed tones. Arachne walked over to Barrel.
"Is it working?" she asked.
"Of course it is. Ghost believe anything they hear." He said. She nodded then began to watch as the ghost swooped around them and towards Halloween Town. "And here it is."
They waited in silence, then screams came from the houses and stores as the ghost angrily plummeted through the village. Ara and Barrel laughed as they ducked from a ghost with a knife. "Not bad Barrel!" she cried laughing. She watched as villagers began to run around like chickens running with their heads cut off.
"Look at the human race." He said laughing. "Well, at least some of them are." He added as a tree ran past them, skeletons swinging madly.
"Rat race more like."
"Oh no." Barrel said. He pulled Ara into an alley.
"What?" Ara whispered.
"It's him."
"Who?"
"The Pumpkin King." Barrel said as he looked from the shadows. "He's the reason why your father is dead Arachne."
She watched the ghost circle around a tall skeleton with long limbs. "I've seen worse." She said. "How come my dad died because of him? He doesn't even look scary!"
Barrel shook his head, "Best not to say…he gets worse when he's mad."
Arachne watched from the shadows of the alley. "The Pumpkin King…"she repeated the name. She watched him curiously for a few moments when Barrel grabbed her and pulled her further into the shadows. The ghosts dispersed and traveled back to the cemetery. Ara frowned. "That was short-lived." She whispered.
Barrel hushed her and looked at her with his dark eyes; he never wore his mask anymore. It was lost a couple years ago in the forest. However, the dark circles he had under his eyes were just as effective. "I have a feeling he knows one of us is up to it."
The Pumpkin King stretched his long legs and began to walk very slowly for one with such a long stride. "Come on, your adventure outside is going to be cut short tonight, I'm afraid." Barrel grabbed her arm and ran back toward the forest. He pulled her into the rickety elevator and they went up. Lock looked up from sharpening some of their weapons. He for a moment looked shocked, then smirked at the face of Arachne's "What happened?" he asked them as Ara disappointedly slid down the ladder and down into her room.
"Nothing really." Barrel said in his soft voice. Lock went back to sharpening the weapons.
"Remember the good old days…"he began, a dreamy expression on his face.
"Yeah well that was then. This is now, and Jack's got us on a tighter watch. He doesn't seem to appreciate our jokes anymore." Said Shock who sat next to Lock at the table. Barrel sat next to them.
"It's not Jack who doesn't appreciate them…he used to love them." Barrel began, "It's his wife."
Shock and Lock shuddered, "Oh yeah, the Queen Sally."
Barrel smiled, "We tried to pull a prank on her once. Nearly died that day…"
"Old Oogie would have laughed when we told him." Lock said smiling his wicked smile. Shock sighed. "Those were the good days, when we didn't have to worry about anything. We were on top of everything."
"And now look at us!" Shock cried angrily. "We're the lowest of the low! I'm only seventeen! Girls my age shouldn't have to worry about things like this." There was a ring on the doorbell. No one ever used the doorbell. Nobody came by the old Boogie Boy Lair. It was too close to Oogie Boogie's home, even though he was dead. Shock looked at Lock. Barrel sighed.
"Don't get it." He said quietly. "We aren't home.
The door rang again, and then once more. "Boogie Boys." Said the demanding voice. They all shook in fear.