Chapter Thirteen

"Good afternoon." the woman had a large fake smile as wide as the Cheshire Cat. My guess is that she's Fiona, the hotel person Alison told me about. I was still glaring at Jeremy, who tried his best to look cocky.

"Brave of you to darken my doorstep, you wazzock!" I spat. Jeremy raised an eyebrow.

"I have no idea what you are talking about, Tilly." He rolled his eyes.

"Matilda, if you please." I added, sternly. "You have no right to say my nickname."

"Excuse," Fiona pushed into the beatdown. "but I have a tight schedule and I need to discuss this property with you-"

"It's not for sale." I bluntly said. Fiona tried to keep her plastered smile on her face but I saw it waver.

"Oh darling, no! No, we at the hotel are offering a generous amount for you to progress with your life-"

"No thanks." I said firmly. "This is my home and I'm not going to be bribed in any way to move out." I attempted to shut the door, but Jeremy stuck his arm through to block it.

"Here her out." He insisted.

"Why should I?" I glared at the both of them. "Bold of you to come here. Do you want me to haunt you again?" I smiled cheekily. Jeremy jumped back.

"I know you faked it!" he claimed loudly. "You faked it with your stage props like wires and such!" I just rolled my eyes and shut the door. I didn't want to face either of them again and just wanted to focus on the music. As I turned to go, the door knocked again. I opened.

"Terribly sorry, but it seems like my car is broken. We might have to stay here." I rolled my eyes again.

"You want me to give you the number for a mechanic, or shall I ring them for you?" I said flatly. Fiona just looked at me, then flipped open her phone. I stayed with Fiona so that I knew she was actually contacting a mechanic and not faking anything. At the same time, I was having to hold back Jeremy from snooping around the house. When Fiona finished her call, she turned back to me.

"It's tragic really, but it seems like they won't come for another few hours." Great.

"Ah. Well, you want a cup of tea? Coffee? Or do you drink venom straight?" We laughed that off, but I really meant it.

"You can't have them in the house!" Alison told me as I was boiling the kettle. I couldn't talk to her, but if I could, I would admit I was freaking out! Jeremy still scarred me from the last time he was here, and it took every ounce in me not to scream in terror and run away. But I had to be the civil one here. People don't exactly accept someone who can see ghosts and what they say, so I can't have their testimonies for what happened. Doesn't help that I'm the only one that can see Alison next to me, so I gave her a quick look. I passed the mugs to Fiona and Jeremy and we all sat in silence, sipping slowly. All of us sitting around, awkwardly, knowing what the other wants to say but knowing we would only escalate the situation if we spoke. The only thing that broke the tension was Mike and Mark crashing through the door, both tangled in wires. I jumped up, surprised!

"You two ok?"

"Technical difficulties." Mike replied. Mark managed to get up and immediately scowled at Jeremy.

"What's he doing here?"

"Car difficulties." Jeremy smugly said. I wanted to crawl into a dark corner wherever Robin would hide.

"They're just waiting for a mechanic." I flatly said.

"Well, in the meantime, can you help with the speaker wiring?" Mike was trying to untangle himself. Jeremy perked up.

"Speaker? What for?" I really didn't want him to know about the party plans, but Mike being a blabbermouth…

"Halloween party. Tilly's planning it all." Ugh.

"But neither of you are invited." I replied. "Mates only."

"Oh well that's disappointing." Fiona faked sadness. "We love Halloween parties, don't we Jeremy?"

"Eh, Halloween's lame…" I could see Fiona kick her son. "But yeah, parties are cool. I wanna go."

"Don't even think about it." I saw Terry's van pull up in the drive. "And I think your mechanic is here."

I stayed wary of anyone that came through the gates to the house from that point. For the next few days as Mark and I continued rehearsing and Mike helped set up the rooms for people who wanted to crash. Cheryl really surprised me with the amount of people who RSVP'd to attend. Meanwhile, Alison was trying to get the ghosts used to 'being seen' and acting normal around those who are alive. Some of them eased into it quickly, whilst others like Mary and The Captain struggled. Suddenly, Halloween morning arrived. I quickly pushed the ghosts outside for them to act like they had just arrived when Mark came down so he wouldn't suspect a thing, I gave the signal to Pat once Mark came down for him to knock on the door.

"Mark, these are my mates I said about! They're from an acting troupe and were able to join us!" I introduced him to each of the ghosts. Seemed like everything was going smoothly, even Fanny and The Captain seemed happy.

Mary helped me lay out the buffet of spooky snacks and the other ghosts helped set up the decorations. It was nice for once to have the ghosts touch and help out setting up. It was also nice to actually interact with them without worrying about anything. Alison and Mike were able to catch up with everything, whilst Mark and The Captain didn't stop chatting to each other. It was like there was a kinetic bond between the two. As the hours went by, more people arrived, all in costume. I quickly went up and got my costume; zombie Courtney Love.

Cheryl, Mark, and all my other friends were in costume. Everyone here was complimenting on everyone's outfit, including with the ghosts. With everyone there, the party began.

"Thank you guys! We're gonna take a lil break and will be right back!" Mark and I jumped off the stage after playing half an hour of music. I clicked my Spotify playlist of Halloween music and had play overhead. Everyone seemed to enjoy our tunes, even more so when we covered songs like "Don't Fear The Reaper", but that's to be expected. I jumped into Thomas' arms.

"Truly beautiful, darling." He said. Cheryl came up behind him.

"You sure I can't request something?" she was already pretty out of it thanks to the drinks. I laughed. It was to be expected, she's a party girl. Though I saw ghosts like Pat and Kitty dancing with people and having a great time. At least. Even when performing, I was keeping an eye on everyone to make sure I knew their location in the main room. Alison informed me that as soon as the sun comes up on All Hallows Day, they would return to their ghostly selves and no one would see them again until next year. I checked the time – 12:30am. Ok, as long as I kept an eye on everyone, everything should go on without a hitch. I walked over to the food, where Mary and Robin were standing by.

"How're you guys doing here?" I asked as I grabbed a few gummy worms."

"It's nice to actually have foods and finally eat these sweets here." Mary replied. I smiled, then noticed Robin was trying to trick the lights.

"What's up?" I asked.

"No light movement! I try hard!" Robin attempted to trick the light once more, but nothing happened. Maybe on this one day/night, you lose the ghostly power when you become a ghost. I held Thomas' hand as we walked around the room, taking moments to dance and chat with people. Everyone seemed to have a good time, even people like Fanny and Julian. Until…I bumped into Jeremy.

"You!" I yelled. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to party – what else?" He tried to pull me close around my waist, but I pushed him away. Thomas, seeing what happened, slapped him across the face.

"How dare you, sir!" Jeremy was taken aback.

"And this is…?" he rudely asked.

"This is my boyfriend, Thomas." I replied, holding onto Thomas. "I would suggest you stay out of our way."

"Or better yet!" Thomas suddenly picked Jeremy up. Robin came along and helped carry him out of the house. Jeremy continued to struggle, but the two threw him out of the house. Robin sat on the staircase, acting as a guard. I saw Mary walk away from the food and sit by him. I smiled, knowing I had great company around to support me, even if they weren't alive. The song "Ghost Lights" by Reason Define came on. I took Thomas to the middle of the dancefloor and put my arms around him. With beautiful music surrounding us, we kissed as the night played on, feeling at peace with each other. I felt as if nothing could go wrong…

"Where is he?!" I looked around the room, but it was as if half the ghosts had completely disappeared. It was 5:55am. I couldn't find Mark so I let Spotify continue to play and I just stayed in Thomas' embrace whilst dancing with my friends. Cheryl had told me she approves of my choice in partner. Then, Pat tapped me on the shoulder and pointed out the time! Crap, how did I let that time slip away?! We only had 15 minutes before sunrise, and we only had Thomas, Pat, Kitty and Fanny nearby!

"What if we split up to try and find everyone?" Pat suggested.

"No, what if I lose you all again?"

"What's up?" Cheryl asked. I didn't expect her to be behind me.

"Well, we have to get back on the road you see. Got a show tomorrow!" Pat managed to explain. "But we're missing half of our team!"

"Oh, the caveman, peasant girl, WW2 guy, and weird politician dude?" We nodded as I made a mental note to use those names. "Ok, I'll help. Let's go!"

We found Robin and Mary almost immediately, as they were on the other side of the front door, looking up into the night sky. Going upstairs we found Julian attempting to put on trousers with…

"Mum?!" I yelled. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"I took Cheryl here for the party, then this man came in...delightful evening with him…reminds me of your father, Tilly…" I don't even want to think about what happened between the two, but I pulled Julian out of the room and got them near the door, acting as if they were ready to leave. One problem…

"We're missing the Captain!" Kitty squealed "And Humphrey!"

"Humphrey?" Cheryl inquired.

"Oh, err, couldn't make it tonight!" Thomas babbled quickly. "Um…neck injury?" She seemed to believe that. But it was unusual, unlike the Captain to miss out. It was 6:25am – time was running out!

I looked around and opened the closet, hoping to find a torch to look around the house with for them. When I opened the door, I did not expect to see my best friend and the Captain locking lips in an embrace! They only broke apart once everyone saw what was happening.

Silence…

"Err, I think we better go…" Pat reminded.

"Ah, yes, well…" The Captain got up, tightened his jacket up and saluting at Mark. Mark saluted weakly back, stunned at what had happened.

"I'll see you later then." I kissed Thomas and shut the door on them. I knew once they were ghosts they would come back into the house phasing through the walls. I got back upstairs, having resolved the night, and jumped into my bed. It was one of the first nights in a long time where I truly enjoyed myself, and was so happy to do so. Once my head hit the pillow, I entered the dreamworld immediately.