Come Little Children
Dean posed in front of Charlie's camera with Sam and Bobby as they stood outside in the cool October air in front of the Impala. The three were decked out as the Ghostbusters and totally nailed the look.
"Done!" Charlie called. Dean let out a relieved sigh as Charlie moved her camera towards Benny and Kali to take a picture of them and their little parrot. The two had dressed up as pirates and Rachel was colored in bright reds, greens. A finger tapped at Dean's shoulder and the hunter turned, grinning at Kevin. The prophet was decked out in a Pikachu onesie he'd gotten from Hot Topic. In his arms were Snoopy (Gabriel) and Woodstock (Balthazar). "Where're the trick-or-treat bags?" Kevin questioned.
"Back seat," Dean told him. Kevin nodded and handed the two angels off to Dean before walking over to the Impala. He yanked the door open and a tiny body flew out of the back seat.
"BOO!"
"Christ!" Kevin yelped, falling backward in fright and falling onto his backside. His attacker broke into a fit of giggles as it flew over and landed on the prophet's knee. "Castiel, I am so getting you for that," Kevin panted. Castiel grinned from his perch and looked up at Dean.
"See, Dwean? I'm scary!" Dean grinned at his angel dressed in a fluffy bumble bee costume. It wasn't just a bumble bee costume though. It was a zombee costume. Fake blood dribbled down from Cas' lips and Charlie must have helped with his makeup because the angel's face looked like the skin had torn or fallen off.
"Now that's a Halloween costume," Dean laughed. He had made the comment earlier before they left the bunker that the angel's costume wasn't scary and Cas had been eager to prove him wrong.
"We're done!" Lila called as Charlie finished snapping pictures of Benny, Kali, and Rachel. Lila was dressed as a female Link and Charlie was dressed as Zelda. In Lila's arms were a flying monkey (Crowley) and the wicked witch of the west (Abaddon). "Ready for some trick-or-treating, kiddos!" The angels and demons cheered excitedly and Sam pulled the trick-or-treating bags from the back seat Kevin had failed in getting. He handed out the bags to the angels and demons and the group walked away from the Impala parked near an old diner. They went to house to house, ringing doorbell after doorbell until their bags were on the urge of bursting. After a few hours of walking the streets for candy the crew dumped their chocolatey treasures in the backseat of the Impala so they're hands were free. Their night didn't end with trick-or-treating. Once their bags were sealed away in the safety of the Impala the group headed over to a large field next to a cornfield and large forest. Lights pulsed along the field and the sound of laughter could be heard from several miles away. Games and rides were set up all over. There was bobbing for apples, pin the bone on the skeleton, Whack-a-Zombie, and a giant Ferris wheel.
"Look!" Rachel shouted, pointing at a sign by the woods. Everyone looked up the amusing sight of three little girls dressed as Disney princesses bob for apples to look at the sign. Free Hayride for Children Only. Next to the sign sat a small horse drawn carriage. Hay was piled up as seats in the carriage and a young black man sat in the front. He was dressed in a long red cloak and had spider webs drawn near the corners of his eyes in white curving loops. Hanging from the loops of his belt buckle was a silver flute.
On hearing Rachel call out, the man turned, teeth shining in the moonlight.
"Hello, sweet children!" he called, waving charmingly. The angels and demons each waved back and the man pulled out a small pumpkin shaped bucket filled to the brim with chocolates. He shook it a little and the angels looked to their humans. Once given the go-ahead the six ran up to the young man. He jumped quickly from his carriage and stooped to the children's level and held out the bucket of candy. Each of them took one, but the young man shook his head. "Oh, take two. I won't tell anyone else." The angels and demons grinned ear to ear and quickly grabbed another candy of their choice.
"Thank you," they each said when he pulled back the bucket.
"You're very welcome, little ones." He held out his hand, shaking their tiny hands. "My name's Elijah." He glanced back at his hayride. "Would you like to go on a fun little trip?" The demons eyes brightened and they quickly jumped up and down, raring to go. The angels glanced back at the adults.
"Children only?" Sam questioned, frowning at the sign. "What about parents?" Elijah smiled and winked at him. He stood, leaning in close.
"It's all part of the ride," he explained in a hushed voice so the children couldn't hear. "The parents go on a different, faster trail and meet me and the kids at the end. There are people down there to explain more, but you join in on the big scare at the end."
"Hey, that sounds pretty cool," Lila commented. She glanced around, eyes falling on a lit trail near the one for the hayride. She looked to Sam and Dean and the hunters both stared at one another.
"They never went on a hayride before," Dean started. "Might be fun?" Sam nodded, looking back at Elijah.
"Can at least one of us, stay with them?" Elijah shook his head.
"Sorry, but rules are rules, Sir." He smirked then. "I promise that I will take good care of them." Sam bit his lip.
"Please, Sam," the angels and demons pleaded, hugging at his legs. Sam smirked.
"Fine! Fine! Just watch out for each other, okay?" The angels and demons nodded eagerly and Elijah clapped his hands together.
"Alright, everyone on board then!" he called. The angels and demons yelled in delight and everyone helped the little ones into their seats. When everyone was settled Elijah crawled into the front and slapped the reigns hard. The horses whinnied and broke into a trot, caring the angels and demons down into the dark road.
The angels and demons screamed in delight as actors jumped out from the trees to scare them. They were having a grand time. Well, they were until a cloud of fog rolled along the path ahead. Elijah set the reigns down in his lap, trusting the horses to follow the course on their own. He pulled his flute from the loops of his belt and pressed the cool metal to his lips. He started to play. It was a soft, haunting melody and the children listened, shivering as goosebumps ran up their skin. The horses carried them into the fog and suddenly everything was a wispy grey. The angels and demons huddled close, unable to see anything that wasn't right in front of them. They couldn't even see Elijah. They could only hear him.
Elijah's song grew even more haunting than it had been and suddenly the fog began to ripple. The angels and demons blinked in confusion, eyes widening as the fog disappeared and a garden replaced the forest they had been riding through. Beautiful fairies danced on the petals of the softly glowing flowers filling the garden. They sang along to Elijah's song and called out to the children, promising fun. Smiles sparked along their faces and they reached over the sides of the carriage, fingers brushing against the trail of sparkling light and dust that trailed after the fairies. A fairy flew up, perching herself in front of Rachel. It reached out, hands brushing her face gently.
"Come sweet children," the fairy whispered. "Time to play."
"How long did he say this trail was?" Dean questioned. They'd been walking for what felt like forever now, but had yet to find the exit.
"I don't like this," Sam admitted. He stopped walking and looked around. "It feels like we've been walking in circles."
"I think we have," Bobby huffed, looking at the ground. "Look at our footprints." The prints of their shoes covered the small trail, but there wasn't just one set. There were at least four or five.
"Son of a bitch," Dean whispered. He looked to Sam with wide eyes.
"The kids," they both gasped. Benny and Kali's eyes blazed as they caught on too. The vampire turned to the goddess, eyes saying all that was needed. Kali struck out with her powers, striking through the forest, but her powers bounced back, slamming her into a tree.
"Kali!" Benny cried. He raced to her aid. A small trickle of blood ran down from a cut on her head and Benny reached for it. Kali batted his aiding hands away and glared hatefully at the stretch of trees she had attempted to slice through. She tried again only to be thrown back for a second time. "Kali, stop," Benny pleaded, grabbing the goddesses hands before she could attempt to hit the tree line again.
"It's too strong," Kali admitted. Something sparkled in her eye and a chill ran down everyone's spine. "I can't break through."
"What do we do?" Lila questioned nervously in Charlie's hold. Sam turned, looking to Dean.
"You left your phone with Cas, right?" Dean nodded. He'd given it to the angel earlier just in case they got separated during the night.
Sam pulled out his own phone. He clicked onto an app that helped in finding lost phones. A red dot blinked just a few feet to the south-east.
"How do we get out of this though?" Kevin questioned. "It's like we're boxed in here. Even Kali can't break through."
"There has to be a way out," Benny stated, helping Kali to her feet. "There's always a door or something in these kinds of places. We just have to find it."
"Or find someone to show us," Charlie whispered. Everyone frowned and turned to her, finding her and Lila staring into the distance. A little ghost hovered in the center of the road. She had red hair, dimples, and bright green eyes. Freckles splashed along her nose.
"What's your name, honey?" Charlie whispered nervously to the ghost. The little girl turned her head to the side.
"Name?" she questioned. Charlie nodded.
"Um…yeah. What are…were you called? My name's Charlie." She patted Lila. "This is my girlfriend Lila."
"Charlie? Lila? Names?" The little girl's face scrunched up a little as she thought. "M…Monika." Charlie forced a smile.
"Your name's Monika? That's a pretty name. Tell us, what are you doing here all alone?" The ghost took a step.
"Must help," Monika whispered.
"Help who? Why?" Dean joined in. Monika frowned and looked at him.
"Piper," she whispered. "Piper is bad." Sam's eyes widened. Piper? The flute in Elijah's belt flashed in the back of his mind and fear rippled through the hunter.
"Why is the piper bad?" he asked.
"Promised fun, calm, no pain," she rattled. "Lied." She looked off into the distance. "They will die."
"Who?" But they all already knew the answer to that.
"Must follow. Must save…" Monika started to float away down the trail, leaving the others behind.
"Wait!" Charlie called. She dashed after the ghost and the others quickly followed. Monika led them halfway down the trail before turning and floating up to the tree line. She held up a hand and the trees rippled like disturbed water. Monika turned.
"Save," she said, vanishing only a second later.
"Let's get going," Dean called, walking over to the rippling space of air. Charlie, Benny, Kali, Kevin , and Lila followed. Sam didn't. He stared at the space Monika had vanished from with a dark look in his eye. Bobby squeezed his shoulder, snapping him from his thoughts.
"You okay, boy?" Sam shook his head.
"She looked so…familiar," he muttered. Bobby stared at the space too before shaking himself. "We'll worry about that later," he promised. "We've got bigger fish to fry right now." Sam nodded slowly and allowed Bobby to pull him through the rippling space Monika had opened for them. On the other side there was a thick fog, but it wasn't fog. It was too thick and had an odd tang to it that made his and everyone else's throats burn.
"Balls!" Bobby gagged. "This 'aint fog."
"Cover your faces," Kali warned, covering her nose and mouth with her pirate bandana. "Quickly!" The others didn't argue with her. They quickly used pieces of their costumes to cover their faces and proceeded to look around for their angels. The sound of horse shoes clanking against dirt sent a wave of relief to the group and they looked to their far right, finding the carriage slowly rolling away. They could see the angels and demons in the back. They were coughing in the back; odd, white foam dribbling past their lips. The baby angels and demons didn't seem affected by this though. They didn't even seem aware of what was happening to them. They were laughing between each hacking fit. Their tiny hands reached out into the air like they were trying to catch something.
The crew quickly raced after the carriage. As they got closer they could hear the songs of a flute. The air started to ripple around them the closer they got and they soon found themselves standing in a garden. Fairies danced above their heads and a handful played around the angels and demons.
"What's going on?" Lila questioned.
"The music," Bobby hissed. "It's acting like a hallucinogen. Keeps the kids calm while the fog…err…whatever it is kills them."
"What's the plan?" Benny growled through gritted teeth.
"We give him hell." Dean hissed in answer, eyes burning with hatred.
They charged, leaping up onto the carriage when they finally caught up to it. Elijah gasped in surprise, halting his playing for just a second. A second was all that was need though. The fairies and the garden vanished. The laughter that had once filled the air was suddenly replaced with wet coughs and frightened cries of fear. Charlie, Lila, and Kevin raced to the angels and demons. They knelt close and ripped strips off their costumes. The three quickly tied the strips over the baby angels' and demons' faces to keep out any more of the poisonous air.
"Amazing what burning a little Creeping Charlie can do isn't it?" Elijah sighed from the front seat of the carriage. "Usually I'd use my magic to kill, but…my employer asked me to do it this way for some reason." He shrugged. "Honestly, I don't understand it. He always talks about beauty. What's more beautiful than dying by magic? Surely not some hideous little plant, right?"
"Who's your employer?" Sam growled. He kept a hand held out to keep his brother, Kali, Benny, and Bobby from charging the man. They needed answers if this guy wasn't working alone.
"My employer? That's a good question. You see, he has many names, but I don't even think he remembers his real one." Elijah sighed. "How sad."
"Yeah," Dean spat. "What a tragedy." Elijah grinned.
"I'll tell him you said so." Dean growled and yanked a knife from his pocket. Elijah glanced at it and the weapon flew into the air and slammed into a tree. "Sorry, I don't like sharp things very much." Elijah lifted his arms. The fog from the burnt ivy grew thicker. It surrounded them, choking off their air and poisoning their bodies even with the covers on their faces.
"Piper."
Elijah turned, smiling as Monika appeared by his side.
"Oh, hello, dearie! What are you doing so far away from home? Excited to meet you're new playmates?" Monika held up a hand and Elijah doubled over as she choked him.
"No more hurting."
"Darling, your father –"
"No hurting." She squeezed tighter and Elijah coughed hard. He glared at the ghost and waved a hand at her. Monika cried out, falling to her knees. Her hold on Elijah vanished and the man stood straight again.
"Interesting," he hummed. "Do you not want any more playmates, pet? Your father does." Elijah sighed and glance back at the shuttering angels and demons wrapped tightly in Kevin, Charlie, and Lila's arms. "They are very pretty." His eyes widened then and he looked at Monika cruelly. "Oh! Is that it? Are you jealous he'll like them more?" He knelt down, stroking Monika's cheek. Monika glanced at the children and their family briefly before nodding her head slowly. "Oh, pet," Elijah cooed gently, not seeing though the ghost's lie. "Why didn't you say so?" Elijah stood up, smiling down at her. "Father will always love you're beauty, but…I suppose just for you I will leave these six here. I've gathered enough children tonight for him anyway and I hate seeing you so upset." Elijah turned, smiling at the group coughing and shaking on the floor of the carriage. "So sorry you can't join our little family," he cooed. "Goodbye! Oh, and sorry about your memories, but I can't afford you looking for me!"
There was a flash of green and suddenly everything was okay again. The fog disappeared, leaving only the forest behind. The horse and buggy was the only evidence left of Elijah.
"What are we doing here?" Castiel moaned, sitting up from where he was slouched in Kevin's arms. The poison had drained out when Elijah left, leaving everyone perfectly fine.
"Everyone okay?" Bobby moaned as he sat up from where he too was sprawled out on the floor of some old carriage. Everyone nodded slowly as they pushed themselves onto their feet.
"Ummm…this is weird," Lila commented, looking around in confusion. "I don't remember anything after waiting in line for the bobbing for apples game."
"Same," everyone said at last.
"Hey! What are you doing in here?!" A man and several others shouted from somewhere in the distance. The group turned, watching as the gang of people ran over. Each of them were carrying flashlights and their faces were covered with masks.
"Uh, hey," Dean said dumbly. "Who are you?"
"I'm the town's sheriff," a man with red hair stated. "Are you all alright?"
"Yeah, but…uh…we don't know how we got here."
"That's to be expected," the deputy next to the sheriff stated. She shined her light around the air like she was looking for something. "This place is toxic."
"Toxic?!" they all cried.
"We were patrolling the area like we always do. You know how people get on this damn holiday," the sheriff explained. "We saw smoke billowing up from the forest and thought some idiot had lit a fire and it turns out they did, but they didn't light firewood or anything. They lit up Creeping Charlie of all the damn things."
"We should get you all to a hospital right away," the deputy stated, looking them all over worriedly like they were about to collapse.
"Hey, hey, we're fine guys," Sam reassured. He glanced at the others. "All we're suffering from is a little memory loss."
"Are you sure?" the sheriff asked skeptically. "Breathing in ivy like that is pretty damn bad. I'm talking dangerously."
"Yeah, but I think we're okay," Sam reassured. The last thing they all needed was to spend their holiday locked up in a hospital of all things. "We probably just got a light dose of it or something to knock us out." The sheriff still didn't look convinced. Sam sighed and pulled a card from his front pocket. "This is our number. If you want you can check in on us." The sheriff took it and glanced between the groups.
"Alright, if that's what you want I guess, but I want one of my guys to stay with you for at least 24 hours, alright?" Sam and the others nodded. The sheriff nodded back and he waved at them and the group with him. "Let's get out of here fellas."
They all started on their way, weaving down the path until they were finally out of the forest.
"Damn, sorry guys. This kinda killed the night," Dean sighed.
"Chocolate shakes at that diner back at the Impala would fix things though, right, baby bros?" Gabriel suggested cunningly. Castiel and Balthazar perked up at the mention of chocolate shakes and bobbed their heads eagerly. "Baby sis? Crowley? Abaddon?" The two demons and angel each gave him a thumbs up and Dean and Sam rolled their eyes.
"Unbelievable," Lila gaped. "We all lost our memories of the past hour or whatever and could possibly die from the toxins we were exposed to during that time and you want chocolate shakes?"
"Chocolate fixes everything," Charlie chuckled, patting her girlfriend's back lightly. She smirked at Gabriel. "Right?"
"Right!" the angel shouted. "Now let' go eat!"
Happy Halloween everyone! Have fun trick-or-treating and make sure to share your candy with the angels and demons!
Did any of you recognize little Monika? You have all seen her before, but it was a very long time ago ;)