To 8Ball3- Yeah! In the first chapter, I think I put something like she was an inch shy of six foot? Something like that :P Mwhahaha, suffer :3 I really really REALLY want a T-shirt that says OK, Boomer. Might upset one side of the family though... is it worth it? O.o
To BethnPercy- Oh, she'll definitely be around. I'm not done with Denise yet :D Jessica so deserves it, I love a good, well-deserved in-your-face! XD
To Anonymous Person Lucky 13- Nah, this kid's like a boomerang XP
Halloween was Lizzie's first encounter with the typical weirdness, although in retrospect it was very much not typical. She had helped Louisa work on her costume- a frog to go with Mikey's princess, inspired by Louisa's cherished, goddess-given book. It wasn't anything fancy or store-brought, but Louisa didn't mind. She loved her green T-shirt and green trousers, the green gloves Lizzie had sewn webs between the fingers. Green wellies and a green hat with a frog face on it, also Lizzie-made.
"Mom, Mom, Mom!" Louisa called, charging from her bedroom. "LOOK!" She ordered, bouncing and spinning on the spot, arms spread.
"I'm looking, I'm looking." Jessica assured, laughing. "You make a very good frog, Lou."
"I do! Lizzie says I have to eat bugs though. 'Cos frogs eat bugs."
"Lizzie!"
"I didn't do it! Whatever she says, she's lying!"
"I don't want to eat bugs." Louisa pouted.
"You don't have to." Jessica straightened her cap for her. "Lizzie, you nearly ready? We've got to meet Lou's friends soon!"
"Hold on, hold on, hold ooooonnnn." The last one was drawn out in a sing-song voice.
She emerged a couple of minutes later, finally showing them her costume, arms spread. "Ta da!" She chorused. She had made her costume too, dressed in black from head-to-toe, her hair tucked into a black knit hat with large googly eyes on the front. Connected to her sleeves by fishing wire were fake limbs, six of them, made from stuffed tights, jiggling as she moved and swung her arms, showing off.
"I feel very lazy now." Jessica remarked, wearing a store-brought witch's cloak and hat. She had turned down the witch's nose. Underneath, she wore her jacket, a dark purple T-shirt and jeans. Lizzie folded her arms, all eight of them, and looked her up and down.
"Did you, by any chance, pick of a creature of a magic to impress a, uh… certain other creature of magic?" Heat rose in Jessica's face and she steered Louisa to the door for her shoes.
"I don't know what you're talking about." She declared, nose tipped up. Lizzie snickered behind her, skipping after them cheerfully.
"Bucket!" Louisa yelped. Jessica wasn't completely listening, still trying to throw Lizzie's comment out of her head, so she looked down at Louisa with a frown.
"What did we talk about?"
"What?" Louisa puzzled. "I need my bucket!"
"Oh." Jessica gave a nervous, relieved laugh. "Sorry, Lou. Thought you… thought you said something else."
"What? Fuck it?"
"No, don't say it!"
"Fuck it, fuck it, fuck it!"
"You say that again and I'll make you eat bugs."
"Ah, bucket."
Mikey, true to form, was dressed in a pink and white princess dress with tiara, curly blond wig and matching candy bucket. The wig made him itchy, but he refused to take it off. Dylan and Connor had rock-paper-scissored their choices, Connor unfortunately losing. While Dylan was a knight in shining armour- a handmade cardboard outfit smothered in tin foil- Connor was the noble steed. Jessica was quite pleased to see his and his parents' costumes were shop-brought too and she felt less lazy.
It was just her, Liam and Barry walking the kids around for the night. Rebecca and June had drawn the straws to stay home this year, in the warm and handing out sweets for trick-or-treaters.
"I'm pretty!" Mikey beamed as they approached. He ran forward two steps, then froze when he saw Lizzie. "Who are you?"
"I'm Lizzie. Who are you?"
"I am Princess Mikey." He declared, puffing his chest out proudly. Lizzie smiled.
"It's nice to meet you, Princess Mikey."
"Thank you. Bow down. Oh, cool! Your spider arms move too!" He laughed as Lizzie obliged, one hand behind her back and one clenched in a fist over her heart. "Lou, who is this?"
"My sister."
"You have a sister?!" Mikey squealed, grabbing her hands and jumping excitedly. He dropped his voice to an excited whisper, leaning in so only Louisa could hear him. "Is she like you?" His grin turned to a pout when she shook her head, but was back in a heartbeat. He swept over to Lizzie in a swirl of skirts and planted his hands on his hips, looking up at her with pursed lips.
"This is Mikey." Jessica explained. "You'll get used to him. This is Dylan and Connor."
"Are they-?"
"Not twins." The boys chorused.
"Thank god." Barry sighed with relief. Liam elbowed him, shaking his head. "I can only handle one child. Two is too many. Uh, no offence, Jess."
"Some taken. They're not twins, they just look alike." She told Lizzie. "This is Liam and Barry, Connor's dads." Barry was a vampire and Liam was a werewolf. Lizzie looked from one to the other.
"I thought vampires and werewolves didn't get along?"
"See, I told you." Liam huffed, rolling his eyes.
"We can't wear the same. That's boring."
"Ah, but wait!" Lizzie interjected quickly. "What about… star-crossed lovers or a forbidden love between species? What about that?" Barry and Liam exchanged looks, mulling it over. After a few seconds, they nodded at each other. Barry grinned.
"I like this kid." He told Jessica.
"Thank you." She smiled. "She's alright."
"Oy, I'm awesome."
"Trick-or-treat, trick-or-treat!" Dylan demanded, swinging his empty bucket pointedly. Connor and Mikey picked up the chant too, also swinging their buckets. Louisa looked a little perplexed, shooting Jessica a silent question. "Trick-or-treat, trick-or-treat, trick-or-treat!"
"I think they want to go trick-or-treating." Barry mused.
"What makes you say that?"
"Just a hunch."
"Sir Dylan!"
"Yes, Princess Mikey?"
"Come here!"
"Why?"
"Knights are supposed to protect princesses, come here!"
"Pfft." Louisa rolled her eyes. "Princesses can protect themselves." Mikey nodded in agreement, but he still insisted that Sir Dylan walked alongside him, his plastic sword in hand. Louisa grumbled that she had a real sword and could do a much better job. Thankfully, Barry and Liam didn't notice, bickering about what was the superior species- vampires or werewolves.
There were many families out already, all manners of costumes, shop-brought and homemade. Decorations hung in front gardens, on the fronts of houses, in trees and even on some cars. The first few doors they knocked on, Louisa hung back, hiding behind Jessica. Connor took her hand on the fifth door, gently pulling her forward. Lizzie shared her sweets with Barry, but it was quickly discovered that she was only giving him the ones she didn't like. Barry didn't care- sweets were sweets, after all.
"Trick-or-treat!" The kids chorused. "Oy!" Mikey said. "That's Mr. Becks!"
"Yes, I am Mr. Becks." Their teacher smiled at them from behind his fake warlock beard. He had the pointy, star-speckled hat to match, his identical robes flowing to the floor. He had had to fold the sleeves back a bit, his hands otherwise swamped. A bark behind him and little Bobo squeezed around him, dressed as a bat, her bat wings bouncing as she wriggled excitedly.
"You have a house?" Mikey demanded.
"Yes." Mr. Becks nodded patiently, dropping a handful of bite-size Mars bars in their buckets.
"I thought teachers lived at the school!"
"No."
"Can I pet your dog?" Louisa asked. Bobo barked eagerly, hearing 'pet' and 'dog'. The teacher nodded again and Louisa dropped into a crouch, setting her bucket aside. Bobo sniffed her hand, yapping again when she recognised her and squirming and spinning in circles, licking Louisa's fingers, jumping up to lick her face. Louisa laughed, wiping her cheek on her sleeve, and began scratching the canine behind the ears. It seemed to be a go-to scratching spot for any animal.
"How long have you had a house?" Mikey pestered, already eating a Mars bar.
"I've lived here for about… eighteen years?"
"And you really don't live at the school?"
"No. Where would I stay, Mikey?"
"I don't know. Thought you… slept under the desk or something."
"No." Mr. Becks laughed. "No, I have my own bed and everything."
"Lou, do not steal the dog."
"She don't fit in my bucket anyway." Louisa sighed dejectedly. Bobo hopped around to the other kids, getting pets there too, and then to Barry, who also tried to steal her by tucking her under his cape. Mr. Becks simply held his hands out and the dog was returned to him.
"Can we get a dog?" Barry asked Liam, doing his best puppy-dog eyes, hands clasped pleadingly.
"No."
"Oh, please!" Connor tugged on his father's sleeve. Liam stared down at him in bewilderment. "Please, Dad! I can look after one!" Liam's gaze flicked to Jessica, the only other sane one of their little group.
"We've got more trick-or-treating to do!" Jessica reminded them. "What do you say to Mr. Becks?"
"Thank you, Mr. Becks." The four youngsters chimed.
"Hey, Mr. Becks?" Lizzie smirked at Jessica. "Mom's free Friday night. I can babysit Lou, you take her out to dinner. Maybe a movie too." Jessica wasn't sure whose face was redder, hers or the teacher's. It was hard to see most of his face anyway, under his hat and fake beard.
"I, um…"
"Great!" Lizzie beamed. "I'll have her ready by half-seven! Don't be late! And don't wear that either, put something nice on." She waggled her fingers and began shepherding the gobsmacked boys away. Louisa hung back, staring up at her mother with narrowed eyes. Barry was delighted, clearly already planning their wedding. Liam took him by the elbow and steered him away too.
Mr. Becks coughed, Bobo squirming in his arms. His fake beard fell over her head, so it looked like she had long white hair. Jessica straightened her witch's hat self-consciously. Louisa got bored of them, rolling her eyes and stomping away to join the others.
"Um…" Harvey rubbed the back of his neck. "W-would you… I mean, dinner and movie does sound nice, but…"
"If you're busy-"
"I'm not busy."
"I'm not either."
"So… half-seven?"
"Uh, yes. Half-seven would be great. I'm… I'm going to catch up with them." Jessica waggled a finger over her shoulder. Harvey nodded, shifting his hold on his dog. Bobo yipped at her, the only person other than Liam to not give her attention. Jessica patted her head, smiling. "See you Friday?"
"Yes." He sounded relieved, which made her feel better for some reason. "Friday. I- I can't wait."
"Mom! Lizzie's stealin' my chocolate!"
"I haven't got any!"
"That's 'cos you ate it!"
"No, that's lies! Gimme!"
"No!"
"Ow! Mom, she bit me!"
"I'll trade you two daughters for a dog."
"No, we've been over this. Bobo is my only tie to sanity."
"Mmph."
"Mom!"
"Alright, alright. Lizzie, put her down! Mind her head! Oh gods…"
Jessica had to keep herself between Lizzie and Louisa after that. One was still determined to steal and the other was still determined to bite. The boys thought it was great fun, but they dared not encourage either of them, Jessica fixing a steely glower on every single one of them, Barry included.
"See, this is why you only have one kid." He told Liam, nodding sagely. "But having a dog-"
"Oh no. Some days I already feel like I've got two kids." Liam glared pointedly at him. Barry did his best to look innocent, smiling coyly.
"Can we please get a dog, Dad?" Connor asked again. "I'll walk it and everything. Pretty please with a cherry on top?" Liam sighed.
"I'll think about it. Dogs are expensive."
"So are kids." Barry chipped in. "But dogs are cooler. Love you, Connor. And dogs don't talk back either. And you don't have to do homework with dogs. Dogs eat homework."
"Yeah, no homework!" Connor grinned. Liam side-eyed his husband, pursing his lips.
"Homework is important, Connor."
"It's boring." He pouted, his trio of friends all nodding and mumbling agreement. "Dogs are much more fun." Liam pinched the bridge of his nose. This was a debate that wasn't going to go away any time soon. He assured them both that he would think about it, but that didn't stop him from sending help me, help me looks to Jessica. She couldn't say anything. She may not have had a dog, but she did have a pegasus with an attitude and an apple addiction. She wasn't sure what advice she could give.
Lizzie took the kids up to another house, the parents hanging back. Barry was now trying to bribe Liam into getting a dog with Connor's Halloween candy. Liam was now considering homicide. Jessica was now trying to work out a solid alibi and how to hide a body.
"Thank you!" The kids said, waving goodbyes to the woman dressed up as a mummy. She had given them bags of Haribos, probably their favourite so far. She waved back, closing the door. Mikey lifted his skirts with one hand, holding onto to Sir Dylan's arm with the other, as they came down the steps. Connor was behind them, examining the contents of his bucket, Lizzie peering over to see what he had.
Louisa remained on the top step. She had turned to follow them and frozen, staring at something across the street, ashen-faced. Jessica frowned, reaching for her pendant.
"What's wrong, Lou?" She called. Lizzie and the boys stopped, looking back.
"Lou?"
"Lou, what's going on?"
"Louisa!"
Louisa swallowed dryly. Jessica saw her hands were shaking, saw her reaching for her watch. She turned, scanning the other side of the road. There were trick-or-treaters everywhere, parents and children and pets, all laughing and screeching and playing and running up to the next house, calling out for candy. Monsters of every description, superheroes and animals and aliens and one kid in a large, round pumpkin costume, unable to eat his sweets because his arms couldn't reach past the width of his outfit. She didn't immediately see anything untoward.
Not until the shadows started flickering.
The evening was already cold, but the temperature dropped, fogging their breath before their faces. A brisk wind bustled around them, bringing the scent of mulch, of forests after a rain. No-one else seemed to notice, carrying on about their day. It was just their little group.
"What's going on?" Barry asked. "Lou, sweetie, are you OK? Do you need to go potty?"
"She's nine." Liam chastised. "You don't say potty, you say toilet."
"It does the same thing." Barry retorted, sticking his tongue out.
Lizzie looked to Jessica, eyes wide. She saw the shadows too. The shadows of people, of vehicles, of buildings, of trees, every shadow there could be, all flickering, dancing, as if caught in the light of a candleflame. Barry and Liam obviously didn't. But the boys did, huddling together. Dylan had placed himself at the front, spreading his arms protectively across the other two, still holding his plastic sword.
"How about you guys go ahead?" Jessica suggested, forcing a smile. "I think there's a café still open down the road, maybe they'll let us use their bathroom."
"Oh, we can stick together." Liam said without missing a beat. "It's OK."
"No, honest. It's so cold, best to keep them moving." She gestured to the boys. Liam made to protest, but Barry tucked an arm around him.
"She's right. I don't think Rebecca and June would much appreciate it if we brought their boys back with hypothermia."
"That's unlikely." Liam countered. On the top step, Louisa's sword flashed into her hand. The men didn't notice, moving forward to usher the boys on.
"But-" Mikey began.
"What about-?" Connor started.
"Lou?" Dylan looked to her. The other two did as well. They all saw her sword, all saw the set to her jaw, all saw her forcing herself to take steady breaths.
"It's OK." She croaked, clearing her throat. "It's OK." She repeated, voice firmer. "Catch up with ya'll in a bit." They hesitated, exchanging looks, clearly not liking this. They didn't get to argue, however, as a new voice drifted across the street, as if carried on the bitter, mulchy wind, bristling around them like birdsong.
It's been a long time, Louisa.
They saw him then. He just appeared, in the alley between two houses. It was empty one second and then, as a family walked past, he was there. Even from across the road, they could see him smiling, looking right at the demigod on the top step. The shadows seemed to revolve around him, gathering, coming to his call. Jessica's grip tightened on her necklace, ready to pull it off and prepare herself for whatever nonsense was coming this time. She opened her mouth to tell Lizzie to go with the others, but Louisa spoke first, dropping the ominous air and the man's smile into a snarl with a single word:
"Popadom."