The Secrets of Kalabar in Halloweentown:

Part I:

The great clock tower was on the final chime of midnight. The soft glow of the jack o lanterns' smiles were beginning to fade and a blanket of fog began to creep over the grassy hills. The wind whipped at the folds of his black traveling cloak as he stepped out of the portal connecting Halloweentown to the mortal world. Kalabar Crowley, warlock and heir to one of the most ancient magical families let out a blood curling howl of anguish into the silent night. A pack or werewolves in the distant picked up the call, believing that the sound had come from one of their own. An empty bottle of whiskey fell from Kalabar's loose grip; he did not even hear the sound of breaking glass. His feet of their own accord sent him forward down the cobblestone lane that would take him to the front door of his family estate. Anger, disgust, and longing boiled within his gut along with the spirits that he had consumed with relish. The crunching sound of stone underneath his boots only fueled his rage, causing him to take his anger out on an unsuspecting shrubbery. As he watched the fire ball burn away the greenery the rage inside of him began to turn to heavy stone. He had failed. Gwen was not coming back.

*********In the mortal world***********

He had tracked her down to a quaint little town with a name so mundane that he did not care to remember it. He tracked her to the street named after a bloody useless tree to the little house no bigger than a broom closet. She had sensed his presence and was opening the door just as his feet touched the doormat.

"You shouldn't of come here, Kalabar."

"Gwendolyn please..."

"Don't call me Gwendolyn! You know how much I hate that." She snapped at him. "It makes me feel like a child."

"Then stop acting like a child." Kalabar shot back. "You do not belong here! You need to come home!"

"Keep your voice down and I AM HOME." Gwen tossed her hair back angrily as she met his gaze.

His Gwen, still as beautiful as ever with her mahogany red hair curling lovingly down her back and those dark eyes so full of laughter. The magic of her Cromwell bloodline gave an intoxicating fragrance to her skin. Only a powerful warlock, like himself, could identify its meaning- an ordinary human would simply take it for a perfume. The only difference to her vision of beauty was the dull human garments she had taken to wearing….and the gold diamond ring on her finger. The finger that should have worn the blood ruby of his bloodline.

"I am going to stay here, Kalabar. I am going to marry William, and be normal, and…."

"But you are not normal!" Kalabar growled in frustration, raking his fingers roughly through his black locks. "You are a witch for god sakes! Magic is our lives, our blood, and you want to be the housewife of a simpleton human?"

"William is a good man! And I will be honored to be his wife. My god, can't you see why I left? I wanted adventure and new experiences! Humans are wonderful and unique without the use of magic. I want to be just Gwen and not just a Cromwell."

Kalabar stood a good foot taller than his petite Gwen but as she stood there with her arms folded stubbornly across her chest, she seemed larger than life. She stared him down like an annoyed mother with a petulant child. He turned his back on her in irritation and looked up at the autumn moon. It was a beautiful Halloween night. Human children dressed in masks and costumes trampled the streets seeking candy and playing tricks. It made him sick.

"I could have given you what you wanted." The words hissed out from between his lips. "I would have made you a queen among our kind. I could have made our lives an adventure."

He turned sharply to face her again, walking up to stand toe to toe with her. "But you left me for mediocrity. It's not right. You deserve so much more. Gwen, my Gwen!"

Gwen lowered her head and shook it slightly; stepping back into her house she moved to close her front door. "You can't understand. Goodbye Kalabar, I hope you have a good life."

Before the door could close Kalabar stopped the door with one arm while the other drew Gwen forward into a desperate kiss. He tried to pour all of his emotions and wants into that kiss. Hoping and praying that she would remembered their times together and all the memories they could still create together. He kissed her, silently begging her to choose him instead. She returned his kiss for only a moment, one precious moment, before pulling away. Breathing heavily, he stared down at her.

"I could make you come home."

It would be difficult against a Cromwell witch but he was powerful enough to keep that promise if he wished. But he had never used magic against Gwen, and he knew in his heart that he never could do anything to hurt her no matter how much it hurt him.

"You wouldn't- because you know that if you did that.. what love I have for you left in my heart would die."

Not even looking at him, Gwen shut the door leaving him alone in the night.

That is when he began to walk. He walked down the street and to another and another until he came upon a group of human males who were busting pumpkins and drinking from glass bottles. The leader of the group spotted him and walked up to him holding the full whiskey bottle in one hand and a knife in the other.

"Yo man! Trick or Treat! Empty em pockets and give us some treats"

"Actually, how about a trick instead?" Kalabar reached out and lifted the young man off the ground; after slamming him down on the ground he flung him against a tree where he fell into the dirt like a rag doll. His fellow comrades abandoned him as they fled in fear down the street. Kalabar reached down and picked up the bottle that the young man had dropped. Unscrewing the lid, he brought the bottle to his lips and took a large swig of the whiskey. The fire scorched his throat as the liquid kept down the screams that begged to escape his throat. With one last snarl of disgust he made his way back into the welcoming darkness.