Author's Note: Ok. I kept my promise. You have all been very patient with me as I finished my other story. Now, it's time for your well-deserved reward. The Nightmare Before Christmas has many aspects that make all of us in the fandom swoon over it. Most important of all, I think, are the characters. This story stars eight of those originals, and one narrator who sprang out of my head. Speaking of Henry, I think he has something to tell all of you. ;) (Re-edit Comment: This chapter got a nice little makeover, don't you think?)
The story of Halloween Town as you know it began in Abbot, Mississippi. I know what you're thinking, that Jack Skellington lived there. Well, he didn't. I'll get to him later. No, Abbot was the home of Glenn Ross. He was the mayor of Abbot from 1922 to 1923; October 31st, 1923 to be exact. What happened to him? Come now, I'm not going to tell you that early. If there's one thing I learned from the present Pumpkin King, it's how to keep an audience. I will say this though: Glenn was, is, a good man. He was ahead of his time by at least forty years, and the decision he made cost him his life. No wonder the poor guy can't do anything for himself in the afterlife. He's terrified of making another mistake.
— Henry Cadaver
October 27th, 1923
It was an unusually nippy afternoon in Abbot. For being in the South, it could get pretty cold when autumn came around. Mayor Ross decided to put on a coat instead of a light jacket this morning. He didn't want to catch a cold, not when he had a speech to make. In a less than an hour, he would be addressing the whole town. He had to look and sound his best. He walked to the mirror to make any final adjustments, nearly tripping on a rug on the way there.
"Not again. I have to move that thing," Mayor Ross said to himself before looking into the mirror.
Glenn Ross was a short man, five feet, four inches at the most. He was also on the portly side and his graying brown hair was all but gone, yet he more than made up for his physical shortcomings. Glenn could light up a room with his own emotions. When he was happy, his joy would jump from person to person, it was infectious. When he demanded something, it was done simply because the look on his face meant business. Some say that he was elected mayor because people could not bear to see him sad if he had lost. Right now, the famous face had a confident smile. He had work to do.
Mayor Ross strolled out of his home and tipped his hat to townspeople making their way to the town hall. They smiled politely at him as they walked ahead, some even stopped to shake his hand. Mayor Ross took advantage of this for as long as he could. The subject matter of his speech this day would most likely challenge a few ideas, but he had to tell it like it was. Frankly, as the Mayor of Abbot, it was his duty to take charge. As he walked up to the town hall, he took a deep breath before climbing the stairs, knowing full well he would probably be out of it by the time he reached the top. He was right.
"Whew. My next order of business after today is to start a diet, maybe stick to it for once," Mayor Ross said to himself before hearing raised voices.
"You can't come in here," said one man to another, "No colored people allowed."
"I'm a resident of this town. I'm as allowed to make decisions as you are," said the second man.
"You're too ignorant to make any important decisions," said the first man, a thin white man dressed in a modest blue suit.
"Then I refuse to be kept ignorant," the second man, a young African-American in denim jeans and a short-sleeved shirt, replied
"Go back to the other side of the tracks, with the rest of your kind," the first man said, raising his right fist to the other's face.
"Is there a problem, Arnold?" Mayor Ross asked as he approached the white man.
"This man wants to come to the meeting," the white man said in a tone mixed of shock and disgust.
"It's a free country. He's allowed."
"Mayor, I don't think that's a wise choice."
"It's not yours to make. Go inside, Mr. Smith."
"Don't say I didn't warn you, sir," Mr. Arnold Smith said, giving one last venomous look at the black man before entering the building.
"Maybe I should leave," the black man said, nervously eyeing the doorway into the town hall.
"And let people like him win? You'll like my speech if you stay. What's your name, boy?"
"James. James Glover. To be honest, I really live on the other side of the tracks. I shouldn't be here."
"But you are. You made the trip, might as well come inside."
"Where will I sit? When people see me, they kind of move away."
"Don't you worry. I'll take care of that."
The mayor walked inside with the young man, amidst the surprised looks of the community seated inside. Of course, no one made any comments aloud to the mayor as he walked down the aisle with the stranger. They were silent. It was a tense situation for them, one the mayor hoped to ease with his words when he stepped up to the podium, using a small stool to look over it.
"Today is Saturday, October 27th of 1923. I've called you all here because I want this day to live on in Abbot history. I'm sure you all know of the community on the other side of the tracks. We have a visitor from there. Stand on up, Mr. Glover, don't be shy."
James stood up from his seat in the from row. He looked around the hall of faces staring him down in the most polite way possible. It made him uncomfortable, but at least he was there to have his voice heard. He waved to the residents of Abbot before sitting back down, nodding to the mayor as he did so.
"I have seen how they live, and it is unfair. As Mayor of Abbot, I want to fully integrate them into our town."
"But, they're... different," said Arnold Smith, the provoker from before, standing up and glaring at James.
"We're all different," the Mayor pointed out, getting a murmur from the crowd.
"That's not what I mean, sir," Mr. Smith said, trying not to bring his prejudice out in front of the mayor.
"Please explain what you mean, Mr. Smith. When I look at James here I see another human being. We're all human beings here, aren't we? Isn't it our job as good Christian folk to make sure our neighbors are living as good as we are?"
"I guess," Mr. Smith said, sitting down.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it's time Abbot moved towards the future. We need to set an example for the rest of the state, heck, the rest of the country. Look at what's happened in the past years. President Harding is dead among a wave of scandals. Prohibition, which we voted for, is being infiltrated by speakeasies and home breweries. Worst of all, other states have politicians working under a higher power that should actually be considered lower. You know what organization I speak of, the one that murders innocent people simply because they're 'different'," Mayor Ross said as he banged his right fist on the podium, not really noticing the guilty looks on the faces of the crowd. "I will not let Abbot sink into that evil. Instead, I'm going to annex the community on the other side of the tracks, with your permission of course," Mayor Ross said to James before facing the crowd again, "and Abbot will become an example for the rest of the country."
This would have been the part where the Abbot would have applauded the mayor. However, today was different. The applause was scattered, if anything. There was more murmuring among the townsfolk. For once, they didn't like their mayor's ideas. That didn't matter to Glenn, though. As far as he was concerned, he did a good job and called the meeting off. They would have to accept that idea eventually. Then again, he didn't like all of the icy stares that met him as he walked home that night.
"I did a good job," Glenn said to himself as he turned a corner, practically running from gossiping townsfolk, "They'll thank me for this," he continued before hearing a noise in a bush, "Who's there?"
The Mayor walked over to the bush and separated its branches with his hands. There was nothing there, not even a stray cat. His mind was playing tricks on him, probably due to the stress of the meeting. He sighed to himself before turning around to find he wasn't alone. On the other side of the street was a man lying in a heap. His clothes were ragged, torn in some places. He had to be a hobo of some sort, passed out from hunger. Mayor Ross ran over to the man to make sure he was alright.
Upon closer inspection, the Mayor saw that he was dead! He had to be, the bones on his left forearm were visible! His skin was starting to turn blue and half of his face didn't even have skin, only muscles. The Mayor was about to call for help when the corpse actually grabbed his right ankle.
"Let go of me!" exclaimed the Mayor.
"Calm yourself. You only have four," said the corpse.
"Four, four what?"
"Days," the corpse explained, looking around to see if they were being watched.
"Four days? What are you talking about? What are you?"
"Actually, it's who. I am Henry Cadaver. You'll get to know me very soon."
"Let me go. Leave me alone,"the Mayorsaid as he tried to shake the corpse's hand off of his ankle.
"As you wish," Henry said as Glenn blinked his eyes shut.
When Glenn blinked, the corpse was gone. He wiped his brow with a handkerchief before heading home as fast as he could. Four days? Henry Cadaver? The only thing Mayor Ross could think of was Halloween. It had to be a trick from the kids in town. What else could it be?
The Present
He can't say I didn't try to warn him. I even gave him four days to prepare, and that is something I wasn't supposed to so. I felt bad for him, especially the way he... well, I don't want to ruin it for you just yet.
— Henry Cadaver
