Author's Note: Well, now that October's actually here, I've got myself a time limit! Let's see if I can finish this story before Halloween actually comes! And once again, thanks to all those of you who reviewed!

Chapter Five: Disguise the Limit

The door to the laundry room opened a crack, allowing Sam's face to peek out and look around cautiously at the empty hallway. Once certain it was safe, she ducked back into the room and began whispering. "Okay, Jenny, this is it. Let's go."

The robot girl made a whimper of protest. "I don't like this plan, Sam. It's too risky." She looked down at the floor-length robe she was now wearing. "I don't like this costume, either. It's so baggy and ugly, and black is not my color."

Sam only rolled her eyes at Jenny's complaints and tugged her through the door. She led her down the hall to the entrance of the crowded and noisy living room, stopping again to peek around the corner of the doorway. "There's Sheldon. He's still at the snack table with Brad."

Jenny peered through the eyeholes of her mask and around the corner. "He's not gonna fall for this, Sam. Sheldon might be weird and creepy, but he's not stupid."

"Don't talk like that." Sam reached up to Jenny's hood and tugged it a bit lower over her face. "You look totally horrifying! Sheldon would never suspect it's you. I know you're nervous, but this will work." She rested her hands on her friend's shoulders and smiled encouragingly. "Trust me."

The robot girl was still doubtful about the plan, but there were really no other options presenting themselves and Sam looked so sincere. With a resigned sigh she adjusted her grip on the plastic staff in her hands. "Okay, fine. I'll trust you."

The moment the Crust cousins had arrived all eyes had turned to them and their punk devil costumes. Now the popular duo was doing what it did best; showing off to the commoners. Brit and Tiff were surrounded by their usual group of admirers, chattering gaily and bragging about how expensive this or that accessory had been. They had snubbed Brad as usual, but that didn't concern him too much. What did concern him was that neither Jenny nor Sam was anywhere in sight. Without his two friends around it was up to him to manage the party.

Now he slumped sullenly at the snack table with his eyes darkened by the brim of his battered fedora. Beside him stood Sheldon Lee, his Captain Crush costume still bulging with its inflated physique. As he munched on orange cupcakes and showed off his knowledge of comic book trivia, he was blissfully unaware of how long he had been talking and even less aware that Brad wasn't paying any attention him.

Don Prima was surrounded by a group of giggly girls and flirting shamelessly with them all as they swooned over his handsome knight get-up and shiny sword. Brad didn't bother hiding his bitter scowl at the playboy. Not only did he resent Don's cool costume and gift with women, but he knew he could easily steal Sam away from him. "What a slime ball." he grumbled to himself.

"Who's a slime ball?"

Both Brad and Sheldon spun around to see Sam standing next to them, smiling beautifully and looking totally adorable in her Alice in Wonderland costume. Seeing her again made Brad ten times happier, but Jenny in her angel costume was noticeably absent. In her place there was a person dressed in a long black robe and carrying a huge plastic scythe in one hand. Inside the shadowy black hood a pair of eyes stared out at the boys through the eyeholes of a grinning skull mask. Sheldon inched a bit closer to Brad, attempting to hide himself and his quivering balloon muscles.

Brad wished there were someone for him to hide behind, but instead he cleared his throat and focused on the less frightening person in front of him. "Hi, Sam! Where's Jenny? Did you finish fixing her dress?"

Sam continued to smile sweetly, seemingly unaware of the ominous figure behind her. "Yeah, but she had to leave when her mom called about a robbery downtown."

Brad's nervous smile collapsed into a look of disappointment. "Aw, nuts! That's a bummer."

"Y-y-y-yeah, really." Sheldon replied, his voice cracking from his tightened throat. That creepy person in the Grim Reaper get-up was staring at him in total silence and making him very uncomfortable. He started to back away, sputtering as he went. "Um, if-if-if anybody needs me, I'll b-b-be checking out the m-m-m-movies in the TV room!" He dismissed himself and scurried off, but scurrying in an inflated rubber suit was quite difficult. Instead he waddled from side to side, squeaking as he went.

Once he was gone both Sam and the Grim Reaper burst out laughing. Brad blinked in surprise; the Reaper's laugh wasn't the terrifying cackling he had expected. Instead it was a very familiar and high-pitched girlish giggle. "Jenny??"

"Surprise!" Jenny lifted the skull mask to reveal her smiling metal face. Her pigtails were turned down against the sides of her head to fit under the black hood. Both she and Sam laughed again and slapped their hands together in a victorious high five. "You were right, Sam! The disguise worked! Even Brad didn't recognize me!"

"Disguise?" Brad echoed, arching a confused eyebrow at Jenny and prompting her to explain further.

"It's so I can hide from Sheldon. Neither of you recognized me when I had the mask on, right? And when I talk like this, I sound completely different!" She pulled the skull mask back over her face. Her voice dropped a few octaves to a deep, menacing, and very unfeminine tone as she loomed over Brad in a jokingly ominous pose. "Braaaad . . . your time is uuuup . . . give me your soooulll . . ."

Brad laughed at her dramatic performance and slid his hands into his jacket pockets. "Wow, you went to all this trouble just to avoid Sheldon? I wish I'd thought of that! I've been stuck with him for the past twenty minutes!"

Sam giggled and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry! After a while Sheldon will get bored waiting for Jenny to come back from her 'mission' and he'll go home!"

Jenny nodded her hooded head in agreement. "And then I'll change back to my angel dress. But for now I'm the Jenny, Angel of Death!" Suddenly she wrapped her arms around Sam and lifted her off the ground in a painfully tight hug. She made a noise that would have normally sounded like a joyful squeal, but instead came out like a heavy moan in her synthetically deepened voice. "Thanks, Sam! You're the best! I'm sorry I got mad at you!"

At the sight of the Grim Reaper behaving like a perky teenage girl, Brad doubled over laughing. Meanwhile Sam struggled to break out of the robot's enthusiastic embrace. "It's okay, Jenny, but put me down! The Angel of Death doesn't hug people!"

Surprised, Jenny dropped the girl from her arms and turned around, hoping no one had noticed her blow her cover. She was getting some odd stares from a few guests, but fortunately Sheldon had left the room. Then she noticed two devils and a knight coming toward her and gasped. "Don Prima! And the Crusts!"

At the mention of Don's name Brad's posture went stiff as a board. As the trio approached them, he leaned closer to Sam and whispered in her ear. "Watch out for these guys. They're trouble." Sam nodded dumbly, barely hearing him. The Crusts she already recognized and knew they were bad news, but that knight with them was a beautiful stranger to her. When he saw her looking at him, he gave her a playful wink and a dashing grin. She felt heat creeping into her cheeks and smiled back bashfully.

Brit and Tiff both came up to her, totally ignoring both Brad and Jenny. Brit's overbite was clearly visible from her cheerful grin, but she didn't seem to care. "There you are, Sam! We've been looking all over for you! Lovely house you have, and your costume is exquisite!"

Sam snapped out of her trance, surprised by the compliments. "Um, thanks, Brit! I didn't know you two were coming tonight. You're not still upset about the purse?"

Tiff gave her a hearty punch in the arm and forced a grin. "Are you kiddin', girl? That's so last Thursday! We jes' came over to tell ya there's no hard feelins!"

"Quite right, dear. We've moved far past that silly purse nonsense, and we'd like to introduce you to a close friend of ours!" Brit gestured towards Don with her pitchfork. "Sam, meet Don Prima."

Sam smiled another bashful smile and held her hand out to him. "Nice to meet you, Don!"

To her surprise, Don knelt down on one knee, took her hand and kissed the back of it lightly. "The pleasure is mine, fair lady."

Jenny looked on in shock while Brad ground his teeth together furiously. Don's performance had the desired effect; Sam was completely flattered and her face had burst into a brilliant shade of pink. "Wow! Do you always greet new girls this way?"

Don stood up and smiled, still holding her hand in his. "Only the especially gorgeous ones, babe." He saw Brad for the first time then, who was absolutely bristling with anger now. Don's expression turned frigid and aloof. "Oh, hello again, Brad."

Brad didn't reply at first as he was struggling to keep his flaming temper under control. Jenny eyed him with concern but Sam hardly seemed to notice. "Hello again, Don." Brad hissed through his clenched teeth. "That was a little forward, don't you think?"

"He was only being a gentleman, Brad." Brit cut in, scanning his outfit distastefully. "Not that you would know anything about that."

Tiff snickered and nodded. "Yeah! What's up wit' ya costume, bro? You get it from 'Hobo's R Us'?"

The Crusts laughed as Brad's face turned an even angrier shade of red under his stubble and make up. Sam looked between him and Don awkwardly, not knowing what to say. Meanwhile, Jenny was still watching like a fly on the wall and decided it was time to intervene. Drawing herself to her full six and a half feet of height she narrowed her eyes and glared through the holes of her mask at Tiff. "Don't talk to my friend that way!" she boomed in her deep synthetic voice, surprising the cousins into silence.

Tiff's eyes grew to the size of tennis balls when she noticed the Grim Reaper for the first time, towering over her by a full head and dangerously wielding a plastic scythe. She raised her hands and took a nervous step away. "Whoa, lighten up, man! I was just jokin'! Heh heh!"

Jenny smirked behind her mask; the Crusts didn't recognize her either! It was sort of fun to see Tiff shrinking away from her for a change. But Brit didn't look quite as nervous as she narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Have we met? I don't believe we saw you when we came in."

"It's not important who I am. Just leave Brad alone." She glanced sideways at her friend, who cast her a grateful smile in return before going back to his murderous glaring at Don.

Brit regarded the masked specter once more and stuck her slender nose in the air. "Fine, whatever. We were about to leave anyway. The dance floor is opening up."

"I think I'll join you. What about you, doll?" Don cast Sam another heart-stopping smile. "I've heard talk around the school that you're quite the twinkle toes." He offered one of his well-muscled arms to her. "What do you say, m'lady?"

"I'd love to!" She was about to take Don's arm, but stopped and looked at Brad, a mixture of worry and hope on her face. "That is, if Brad doesn't mind." Brad hesitated; he was losing his chance to be with her, but he couldn't bring himself to deny her anything with that look on her face. They way her eyes gazed at him so hopefully, so full of innocence and trust, it made his knees melt. Before he knew what he was doing he was nodding weakly in reply, and her cheeks were turning a little pink as she took Don's arm.

The Crusts grinned to each other and followed Don as he led Sam away, and by then it was too late for Brad to do anything but pull on the brim of his fedora in agony. "Arrgh!! I'm such an idiot!! Why did I invite him?? Why?!?"

Jenny's hooded head spun around, eyes wide behind the skull mask's holes. "You did what?! Brad, what were you thinking?!"

"I was thinking about her!" he wailed, pulling his hat off and biting the edges ferociously. "I couldn't help it! My mouth just started talking about how amazing she was, and while I was standing there Don took the card and walked away!"

Jenny clanked one fist onto her hip. "Well, you're not gonna let him walk away with Sam, are you?"

He sighed and turned to the snack table. "Sam's not my girl." he grumbled, and grabbed a fresh cupcake from a tray. "She never was. I mean, I'm just a friend to her anyway so what's the point?"

"You're giving up? I don't believe this!" She snatched the cupcake away from him and wagged one metal finger in his face. "Do you feel well, Brad? Because this is totally not like you! The Brad I know wouldn't let another guy take off with the girl he liked!"

Brad was a bit frightened to have the Grim Reaper yelling at him, but he stood his ground. "What do you expect me to do?!"

Jenny waved at him. "Look at you! You're dressed like Ohio Jones, for Cog's sake! What would he do?"

The words seemed to spark something inside Brad. Soon his familiar confident grin was coming back. "That's right! I am Ohio Jones, aren't I?" With his determination renewed, he placed his fedora back on his head. "You stay here and watch the snacks, Jen. I'm going after my girl!"

Jenny blinked, a little surprised by his sudden change in attitude. "Um, okay, but . . . how?"

Brad tipped his fedora and smirked. "I don't know, I'm making this up as I go." With that, he strode purposefully toward the dance floor.

To be continued . . .