The next day, Emily was arranging sugar cookies into a bowl for Darla to take to school and stopped as she saw a broken Jack-O-Lantern.
"Uh-oh, this cookie got crumbled," Emily noticed, then looked to her husband teasingly. "Should I put it in anyway?"
"Oh, ha ha ha, very funny." Patrick groaned.
Emily then let him eat it.
Patrick laughed a little, eating it and licked his lips. "Any more broken ones in there?"
"None that I can see..." Emily giggled, she then put a foil wrap around the bowl and turned down the oven for the second back for trick-or-treaters. She then nearly tripped and walked over her adoptive daughter. "Darla, must you lie down in the middle of the floor?"
"I'm practicing..." Darla said as she lay on her back with her arms together and her eyes shut.
"Practicing?" Emily asked.
"I'm Princess Aurora," Darla opened one eye. "I wanna be the best there is!"
Emily giggled. "Darla, you don't have to act like that for Halloween, you can just dress up."
"But how will everyone know I'm the best Princess Aurora?" Darla asked, sitting up now.
"Just be yourself and have fun." Emily smiled.
"Okay..." Darla smiled, she then got up off the floor and ran around, giggling, eager to get to school today.
"Ready to go?" Jessica asked, coming downstairs in her costume.
"Yeah!" Darla beamed, grabbing her backpack.
Emily walked over with the cookie bowl for Darla's class. "Remember, these are for everybody."
"Yes, ma'am." Darla gave an understanding nod.
"Well then, we better get going." Jessica smiled.
Darla smiled, she then went out with Jessica.
Atticus came down in his Hercules costume, straightening it out the best he could.
"Oh, you look so handsome..." Emily smiled to her son. "Now then, where's Patch?"
"Coming!" Patch called down before coming down the stairs.
"Now, if you're going to be late, just give us a call." Emily reminded.
"Yes, Mom..." Atticus nodded in understanding.
"And don't talk to any strangers." Patrick added.
"Yes, Dad..." Atticus nodded in understanding again.
The Dalmatian and human boy then went out to join the Halloween festivities and visit among others. Patrick and Emily smiled proudly, then went upstairs to get dressed up themselves.
Mo was walking her dogs, wearing a dress like Megara to fit with Atticus's costume idea. Even the puppies had their own costumes. Scamp was Super Dog, Angel was Brainy Barker, Colette was Mammoth Mutt, and Danielle was... a werewolf.
"Okay, tell us again, why are you wearing a werewolf costume?" Scamp asked.
"'Cuz I'm awesome!" Danielle laughed and then let out a loud howl like in werewolf movies.
Mo sighed and shook her head. "Anything can happen on Halloween..." she quoted.
"Yep, it's true, anything can happen on this most scariest night of the year." Atticus smiled.
"I hope not too scary..." Darla hiked behind Jessica.
"Don't worry, anyone who scares you will have to answer to us." Jessica promised.
"BOO!" Cherry was now in front of them, wearing ghoulish makeup with fangs and holding a flashlight to her face to look menacing.
"Hey, Cherry." Atticus waved.
"Hey, Atticus." Cherry replied blankly, knowing she wouldn't have been able to scare him, but smirked a little as she did to the others.
"Why are you wearing that make-up?" Jessica asked.
"Bored..." Cherry said, now washing it off with a moist towelette she had.
"So, what are you supposed to be?" Patch asked.
"I'm a superstar celebrity magician with an ego as big as my appetite." Cherry smirked as she twirled her wand in her fingers.
"Cool." Jessica and Darla said.
"You actually look good in a suit." Mo commented as she let her dogs roam free once they got into Anne-Marie's yard for Puppy School.
"Hm..." Cherry smirked a little.
"Have a good day, okay?" Atticus told his puppy.
"I will!" Patch smiled and yipped, running off to join his friends.
"So, shall we continue?" Atticus asked.
"Come on then." Jessica told them.
They all then went to get themselves to school. Jessica took Darla to her school, Cherry and Atticus wished her a Happy Halloween and a good day as they went to their own school.
"I'm pretty sure no one's gonna get my costume except for teachers." Cherry said as she held her magic wand in her arm.
"I agree with you there." Atticus smiled.
"Oh, well, you know how nonconformist I can be..." Cherry shrugged.
"Let's just hope we can stay in our desks long enough until the party." Mo encouraged.
They all went inside, made it to class, and luckily, since it was morning, they could hear the announcements since the other students were either falling or already asleep. There was something that woke everybody up though. There would be an early dismissal from school today for the haunting holiday.
"Well, at least everyone wakes up for when school is finally over." Mo said.
"Mm-hmm." Cherry and Atticus nodded.
"Just still can't believe none of them have gotten into any trouble for falling asleep." Mo said.
"What can ya do?" Cherry scoffed.
When the teacher started the lesson, the three friends did their best to take notes and pay attention while everyone else was either asleep, texting, or just making crude jokes with their friends.
'Stay focused and everything should be alright.' Atticus thought to himself.
Cherry looked miserable and long-suffering as always.
"I see where the gray hair comes from..." Mo mumbled about Cherry's stress levels in school due to everyone else.
The teacher did her best to ignore the misbehaving students, exhausted herself about telling them to keep it down or pay attention. The students were eager to get out and the teachers were rather relieved.
"Happy Halloween!" the principal told them all with a polite smile as they went off.
"I wonder how we got invited to the House of Mouse," Cherry said as she looked at her invite. "That place is exclusive."
"Yeah, not even my parents can get in!" Mo added.
"It must be because of everything good that we've done that and Cherry being the new artist for the cartoons." Atticus said.
"Well, I don't like to brag..." Cherry adjusted her glasses with a modest giggle.
"Probably..." Mo smirked. "You two sure made my life interesting. If it wasn't for Atticus though, Angel and I never would've gotten the home and family we'd always wanted."
"I suggest we go home and meet back in our usual place so we can get to the House of Mouse on time." Cherry proposed.
"I agree." Atticus nodded.
"Sounds good." Mo smiled.
Cherry went to her own home while Atticus and Mo went to the Bluth house to pick up their dogs.
"All right, puppies," Itchy smiled to his students. "The humans are being let out of school early today to celebrate Halloween. Now, why don't we talk about our plans, hmm?"
Patch raises up his paw.
"Patch?" Itchy looked to him.
Patch cleared his throat and made the others look to him. "Tonight, I plan on going with Cherry, Atticus, and Mo over to the House of Mouse!" he proudly announced. "We have been invited by Mickey Mouse himself to attend!"'
This really won the others over.
"Wow, I'm impressed!" Itchy was even excited.
"Thanks, Lucky is even coming with us since he was also invited." Patch smiled.
"Really now?" Copper, who was wearing a sheet over himself like a ghost, asked in mild interest.
Patch smiled and nodded. "This is going to be so exciting!"
"Sure sounds like it," Itchy smiled to him. "I hope you have a good time!"
"I'm sure that I will." Patch said.
Harold's car pulled up to the driveway and Anne-Marie left the car, dressed as Snow White.
"Looks like it's time for you pups to go home early too," Itchy smiled to the puppies. "Class Dismissed."
The puppies cheered and rushed off to get home to spend Halloween with their humans.
"Time to get back to Atticus and the others." Patch smiled.
"Happy Halloween, Patch." Colette smiled to the Dalmatian.
Patch smiled back to her. "Happy Halloween."
After a short while, Patch made his way back to Atticus. The house was more decorated now, Patrick and Emily were dressed like Prince Adam and Belle.
"Everything is perfect." Patrick said.
"Wow, Mom, these cobwebs look so real..." Atticus commented.
"They kind of are..." Emily smiled bashfully. "Someone's forgotten his dusting chores."
"And I wonder who that could be." Patrick said.
The couple shared teasing annoyed looks with each other.
Atticus slightly rolled his eyes to his parents. "Grown-ups are so weird..."