Epilogue

"Maggie, Grace, Mrs. Calloway, can you hear us?"

That sounded like Audrey's voice calling to them.

"I knew it; I told you they were not dead."

And Jeb, who could forget him? Still the same as he always had been.

The light that the girls were falling into had come through the barn windows, which was morning daylight, golden daylight, and the day after Halloween, proving they made it out of that realm before midnight. The sky was light bluish color and with Grace being the first to open her eyes, she saw familiar faces looking at her and the other two, being Audrey, Larry, Mollie, Ollie, the piglets, the chicks, and Jeb having stood there for who knows how long, watching them sleep. They were finally back home on Patch of Heaven. Yet by the time they would wake up, the girls would be in for another unexpected surprise.

"They're awake, someone better go get Pearl," Audrey blurted out with excitement.

"Ugh, hey where am I?" Maggie groaned, as if she had woken up from a long nap. "What just happened?"

"You were out cold after Pearl and Sheriff Brown arranged a sort of search party out for you girls three nights ago since the autumn festival," Ollie responded. "We were all so worried that something terrible happened, when we couldn't find you."

"And last night, you three appeared at the nearest riverbank out of nowhere, but rather unresponsive," Larry added. "Nobody even knows how you showed up at that spot, but we're so thankful that you're back home and unharmed. Even Pearl was happy that they found you girls."

"So where have you been all this time?" Jeb demanded.

"Oh that's simple; we were…we were…we…" Maggie was about to answer the question when suddenly, her mind about everything that happened after the festival suddenly went blank. "Funny, I don't remember anything."

"Don't remember what Maggie?" Mrs. Calloway awoke next, yawning. And when her tired eyes adjusted to the morning light, she knew that this was Patch of Heaven and not a dream. "Are we really home?"

"What are you talking about?" Audrey said with confusion. "You went missing for three days. Of course you're back home again. Did you girls hit your heads or something?"

"I can't even remember what happened or where we've been," Grace said calmly. "Honest we can't. I'm certain we knew before, but it's gone. It's like wherever we were, that memory just suddenly faded. All I remember is the autumn festival and me, Maggie, and Mrs. Calloway walking home, but everything after that…nothing."

"Boy, I think these gals really did hit their heads on the way," Jeb whispered, before being shushed by Mollie firmly.

"Well I don't know or remember where we were this whole time," Calloway confessed. "But I don't care anymore, why don't you come give us a warm hug so we don't pass out again."

The rest of the family gathered around the girls for a loving embrace, no longer caring about why they were missing as long as they were home again, and stayed that way for as long as they wanted. The girls would never know or find out that their memories of Gold Tooth Willie and all the events that happened in the deadly games were purposely erased by one of Madame Zora's memory erasing spells, allowing her to take those thoughts before the girls fell into the light that took them back home, believing that it was for the best that they never remembered any of those things, and let them live out the rest of their lives and cherish every moment of it. As for her and all the rescued souls, they were forever free of the pain and suffering and floated up into the heavens where they would finally rest in peace.

THE END

AN: And that about wraps it all up. I can't even believe it has been since 2011 since this story was made and I didn't think I would ever finish it due to me having and suffering from writer's block which really sucks to have and you're so desperate to finish what you started. And it is at this point where I'm about to say that I may as well be through with writing Halloween stories for HOTR, believing that I've done enough of them and don't need to do anymore. It has been a fun ride with this story, despite being stuck in certain places, I am just so happy to have it finished and I hope many readers enjoyed it. I had to read a few stories out there to help with the descriptions since I tend to have word trouble and want the moments to feel more exciting, rather than just use boring words that barely describe anything. Please forgive me for not finishing it a lot sooner like I should have. I hate writer's block and being stuck where I'm having trouble, and not having that many people to ask for help before. So finishing this story is my apology to those readers for leaving on one cliffhanger after another that had to be fixed right away, and not wait another decade to do it. I'm sorry for everything. And now I must see what else to do about the other unfinished stories I should have finished long ago.