Greetings my oft neglected journal!
I apologize for the infrequency of my entries
as of late. I shall provide a brief update.
It's hard to believe that my Sally is almost five months along.
Five months, and we still have not
shared our news with anyone in Halloweentown. Well, anyone besides
Zero that is. The days of
our secrecy are now winding down however, as Sally's appearance will
soon betray her
condition. Halloweentown is such a small place. It's home
and I can't imagine being anywhere
else, but sometimes all the attention can be tiresome. It's difficult
enough for Sally and I to
adjust to having a child without everyone else speculating and asking
questions. My precious
Sally. Truly, I could not have selected a more perfect queen.
She gives my bones such comfort.
I have no doubt that Sally will be a fantastic mother to our little
lumpling when the time comes.
I always hoped to have a family some day. It's happening a bit
sooner than anticipated but
perhaps it is about time for Halloweentown to have a new little citizen...
Sally combed her hair, lost in deep thought.
Jack hummed happily. He straightened his
suit before the hall mirror.
"Well Sally, are you ready for this?", he
asked lightly. She appeared thoughtful.
"Jack, does
everyone know where babies come from?"
Jack scratched his skull.
"Everyone? I suppose most everyone does,
yes." Sally frowned. Jack laid a lacy
crocheted shawl over his wife's shoulders. "There's a breeze
tonight babydoll.", he said softly
and kissed the seam on her neck. The couple hugged before heading
out across the town to the
hall.
"TOWN MEETING TONIGHT! TOWN MEETING TONIGHT!"
Jack had asked the Mayor to call a town meeting.
He said he a very special
announcement to make and he wanted everyone there. The Mayor
triumphantly called out to the
townsfolk on his megaphone. He loved his megaphone. It
made whatever one said into it sound
incredibly important and official.
"Do you know what is going on Mayor?", one
of the vampires asked on his way into the
hall. The Mayor had no idea what Jack wanted to announce, but
had no intention of admitting
that.
"Oh it's going to be fabulous! Everyone
will be enthralled! You must hurry in and get a
seat!" The Vampire scurried excitedly into the hall followed
by his companions.
Jack stood on the hall stage behind his podium.
He smiled at Sally who sat in the front
row, off to one side. She looked nervous, her ankles crossed
girlishly and her hands folded in
her lap. They had waited quite a while to make this monumentous
announcement. Almost five
months to be precise. The news was so overwhelming that the couple
decided it would be best
to get used to the idea themselves before presenting it to the whole
town. Aside from that, there
was the nagging fear that Doctor Frost was mistaken. After this
long however, evidence was
starting to suggest that he was indeed correct.
The fishgal took a seat beside Sally. She looked at the
ragdoll's dark green dress.
"Why, that is a nice dress. Is it new?"
Sally nodded. The fishgal spoke again.
"I thought it looked new. You must have
made it, I bet. Why, it must be so nice to be
able to make all sorts of things like that."
Sally smiled bashfully. Wait until you hear what else I made!,
she thought to herself and almost
laughed. She glanced around the rapidly filling hall. So
many people... The ragdoll
looked down at her lap. Her belly was just barely beginning to
swell. It wouldn't have been
obvious to anyone else quite yet, at least not in this new dress.
Up on the stage, Jack cleared his
throat. The hall fell silent, everyone eager to hear what their
king had to say.
"Attention! Listen Everyone! I've
called you all here for a very special announcement!"
Jack paused for a moment and collected himself. He looked at
his wife, then across the rest of
the townsfolk.
"It is my honor to announce to all of you, that Sally and I are 'expecting'."
Jack beamed. There! He had told everyone the most monumental
news of their times. His grin
faded when he realized that few, if any, of his subjects understood
what he had just told them.
They appeared to be waiting for him to finish his sentence. Sally
shifted in her seat. The Mayor
clapped his hands suddenly and boomed:
"Errr, why that is simply marvelous Jack!
You just let us know what you expect and of
course we will all be more than happy to accommodate you! Will
you be letting us know of
something specific?"
Jack rested his skull in his boney hands for a moment, then he tried
again.
"No, no, you don't understand. I meant
that Sally is going to have a baby."
The devil looked to Sally with a grin.
"Oh, you should enjoy that Sally! I
have heard that babies can be delicious!"
Sally surprised herself at how quickly her hands moved protectively
over her stomach.
"I mean she is pregnant!", Jack blurted.
The news sounded more clinical than he had
wanted, however it would seem that clarity was the order of the day.
Murmurs spread through
the hall as the informed passed on information to those who were still
puzzled. Sally noticed the
witches buzzing like wasps, then sailing away out a window on their
brooms. They were headed
toward Doctor Finklestein's laboratory. Sally couldn't see that
from where she was sitting, but
she didn't have to see it to know.
Jack sensed his wife's discomfort with all
the attention. Particularly since most of it was
intensely focused on her midsection. He stepped off of the stage
and took a seat by Sally's side.
She leaned into him gratefully.
"When are you due dear?", the corpse mom asked.
"The end of
October.", Sally answered quietly. Jack laughed and put his arm
around his wife.
"Yes, Halloween naturally! When else
would a child of mine make an entrance?" The
townsfolk laughed and cheered, with the exception of the mayor who
suddenly spun to anxiety.
Other creatures were still trying to wrap their minds around the news.
"Wow! So it's in there now?", the little
mummy asked pointing at Sally. She nodded.
"Why can't you
take it out?", he inquired. Now it was Jack who was surprised at
how quickly his hands moved.
"It just can't! Not until it's ready
to!", he answered.
Some of the creatures looked distinctly disappointed.
"I think it went well. That is speaking relatively
of course, but even so...", Jack reflected. He
casually flipped the tassel on his nightcap behind his shoulder.
"Mmmhmm.", Sally murmured. She sat up against
a pile of pillows, her thin night gown
pulled up under her breasts. She had concocted a botanical salve
and was applying it to the
seams on her tummy. There was no telling exactly how her ragdoll
body was going to adjust to
the rigors of pregnancy. Would her stitches stretch? Multiply?
Would she have to adjust them
continually or risk tears that would endanger not only herself but
also the baby? Halloween
creatures were rarely capable of bringing forth life. Sally felt
that the odds were somewhat
against her, but of course if that were true it would hardly be the
first time. She smiled dreamily
at her stomach. Jack continued happily reviewing the meeting.
"There are no other babies in Halloweentown.
No one knows much more than we do
about this whole endeavor."
"The corpse family.",
Sally said, looking up. Jack shook his skull.
"They brought their son with them when they came here."
Sally digested this as best she could.
"I haven't ever had a mother.", she said in
a quiet voice. Jack squeezed her shoulder
gently. What could he say to that? What must it be like
to be so utterly new in the world
oneself? There were times when he looked into Sally's eyes and
could see how innocent and
young she was. Other times her eyes seemed more full of wisdom
than any he had ever known.
Mostly he found her to be an unearthly mix of the two extremes.
Jack touched the salve.
"What will this do?", he asked. He rubbed
a drop of the lotion between his long fingers,
then sneezed. Sally smiled.
"Sorry! I put rosewater in it."
Jack sniffled, but grinned. He helped Sally lay back in the bed,
then took over rubbing the salve
into her skin.
"I made it to soften my stitching a bit.",
Sally explained. "Maybe if I keep using it things
will be easier. Nothing can tell for certain I suppose...nothing
but time. Jack tenderly smoothed
the warm substance over each line of dark blue thread. Sally
closed her eyes. She recalled not
too long ago when maintenance and adjustment of her body were the sole
dominion of her
creator. It was not until she had been alive for some time that
she began performing minor
repairs herself. Even then, Dr. Finklestein never approved of
her 'interfering' with what he had
made. What would he say now that she was a creator herself?
The pair were silent for a while. In
the corner of the bedroom, 'pachelbel' played softly
from Jack's antique phonograph. A fire crackled, painting orange
over the twisted wooden
gargoyles which lined the walls. The smell of rose water wafted
in the air. Sally had almost
faded into sleep when she was surprised by a fluttery movement within
her.
"Oh!", Jack exclaimed.
"Did you feel
that?!", they asked in unison.
"Has that happened before?", Jack asked. Sally shook her head.
"No, that was the first time!", she laughed. "It scared me!"
Jack's skull split into a wide, devilish grin.
"Ah, haha! Of course it did! That's
my kid alright!"
The pumpkin king helped Sally put away her
salve. He then turned off the phonograph
and the oil lamp before sliding into bed beside her. As they
fell asleep that night, Jack had never
been more proud. As always, he was the fearsome, terrifying,
spine-chilling, High King of
Halloween. Now it truly hit him that in addition to all his previous
accomplishments, he was
also a bit of a stud.