This is the last chapter of the Halloween story, so I'd like to thank Riku's Music Lover for helping me out with this story. Harvey, Juliana, Skye, and Caity belong to her. Sonic, Manic, Sonia, Aleena, Jules, Vanilla, and Ashura are copyright to Sega and their associates. The rest belong to me.
(Sterin House, 6:01 pm)
The front door swung open and Ashura, Manic, Caity, and Skye stumbled in, panting. They dropped the Texas sized bags of candy they'd been carrying over their shoulders and fell tot he floor. Who would have thought they could have gotten so much candy in only 11 minutes? All that running helped, especially since they'd been across the neighborhood from the Sterins' house at 6:00. They arrived at the house at 6:01.
"I think I need a break," panted Skye, collapsing against the door.
Only then did they notice the house was totally dark, save for the lights in the foyer. It was also quiet, too. The hedgehogs went into the kitchen and turned the lights on. As soon as they did, Jason Vorhees, a green witch, a werewolf, and a vampiress said BOO and grabbed them, making them all jump. Ashura was so startled that he shoved the werewolf off himself and onto the floor.
"Safe!" said Harvey, as if he were at a baseball game, and got back up.
Everyone else was having a fit of giggles at Ashura's "pushiness."
"The Terminator just got terminated! XD" laughed a female Jedi in the living room.
"He always gets terminated at the end, :P" scoffed Ashura.
"So why'd you dress up as him?" asked a Sith Lord from across the room.
"Cuz a bath robe and a plastic sword didn't seem like the best idea for a costume, :)" replied Ash.
"BZZZZZZZZZZ" buzzed Sunny.
For the next ten minutes, everyone ate snacks and compared their bounty of candy, seeing who got the most. Ashura, on the other hand, had something else in mind. He got Caity, Manic, and Skye to follow him into the dining room, away from the crowd, and called the Johnsons' house (the one they wrote the fake party invitation on).
"Yes?" asked an irritated voice.
"Great party, huh?" said Ashura.
"For the last time, we aren't hosting a party. Do not come over here!" yelled Mr. Johnson on the other end.
All four hedgehogs were laughing before Ashura had a chance to hang up.
"Okay, you win, XD" said Ashura, handing the 5 dollars back to Caity.
"Yays, ^_^" cheered Caity.
"What was that all about?" asked Sonic, who had been listening from around the corner.
"Err...prank call," replied Manic.
It wasn't too far from the truth.
"o_O Ooookay," said Sonic, walking away.
"Good cover," praised Skye.
They went back into the kitchen and got some moar food. Manic helped himself to a caramel apple, some brownies that his mom made, some mummy dogs, and some of Juliana's "graveyard special" which was chocolate pudding mixed with marshmallow cream and oreo bits and topped with marshmallow headstones. Caity had some mummy dogs, brownies, pumpkin cookies, and monster mouths. Skye had some monster mouths and a caramel apple, some monster eyes, brownies and marshmallow bones. Everyone was enjoying their choice of snacks when Harvey called for everyone's attention:
"Now I'm sure you all know by now that the food isn't the only thing we're doing tonight, cuz we're not that boring," he said, getting a few chuckles out of his respective audience.
He continued: "We're going to play some games for prizes as well. By now, some of you have already found some plastic bugs."
Cosmic, Bobby, Sonic, and Cameron held up the plastic glow-in-the-dark insects they'd found.
"That's one game that everyone can play, and the prize is you getting to keep whatever bugs you find," he said, "Another game we're gonna play is something similar. But first we all have to get into teams of four."
Manic was already grouped with Caity, Skye, and Ash, so he didn't need to find a team, though they did need to pick a color. It was red, blue, green, or yellow, and they spent 10 seconds debating whether to pick green or blue, but when Sonic's team picked blue, they were left with green. Then Harvey elaborated on the details of the game: "What we'll do now is find all the bones to your team's skeleton. The bones are the same color as your team, so if you find a bone piece from the list, don't take it unless it's the same color as your own team...otherwise we'll use your bones next halloween."
Everyone laughed again.
"Copies of the list are on the table. Begin now."
Skye grabbed a copy and brought it to the green team. The first item was, of course, a skull, so they set out looking for it, but they found a hand in the living room and a leg in the kitchen before they finally managed to spot the skull on a candle stick in the dining room. They then found the rib cage in the foyer where they'd come in, but then they heard Sauna saying that her team found all the parts.
"Yup, looks like Red Team found all the bones, so they win," he said.
"What's the prize? :D" asked Cosmic.
"You all get five dollars," said Harvey, producing a treasure chest that contained four $5 bills.
Sauna, Cosmic, Cameron, and Bobby snatched the greenbacks and Harvey motioned everyon to follow him. They all went into the dining room to see a pumpkin poster that looked rather ordinary, except for the fact that it was missing a triangle nose.
Juliana held up a bowl full of noses in one hand and a bandana in the other.
"You all get a shot at pinning the nose on the pumpkin. Winners all get a mini pumpkin filled with CANdy, :)" she said.
For the next ten minutes, everyone put on the blindfold, spun around a few times, and attempted to place the nose in the correct spot. Most of them got pretty close, but some of the younger players made laugh bags of themselves. Cosmic pinned the nose on the wall beside the poster, Sunny pinned the nose on a chair, and Sonia went the wrong way and pinned it on the wall across the room from the target. Everyone had a laughing fit while Sonia was so embarrassed that her eyes watered, but then Caity gave her a big hug and she cheered up again. Other than that, most of the players won since it was a fairly easy game and shared their pumpkin CANdy with everyone.
They were about to play another game when the doorbell rang. Who would show up this late? Harvey answered the door and came back with ten cardboard boxes with Papa John's written on them in big, red letters.
"PIZZA! :D" cheered everyone simultaneously, their arms raised.
This was a surprise, but a pleasant one. After another ten minutes of OM-NOM-NOMs and burping contests (which Ashura and Harvey tied on), the party goers resumed the games.
"Next on the list is one you may or may not be familiar with. It's called TP Mummy," said Harvey.
Some looked confused while the rest said "Awesome!"
"For those of you who don't know what this is, you take some volunteers and you wrap them up in toilet paper. Whichever team wraps their team mate up the most wins candied apples," said Harvey.
Everyone stayed in the same teams as the treaure hunt. Manic was the wrap volunteer and stood still while Caity, Skye, and Ashura wrapped toilet paper around him. It seemed so ridiculous that he was wearing something as unenviable as toilet paper that it made him laugh, but finally, they finished wrapping him and it felt rather sturdy, unlike when it was in rolls. For a few minutes, the judges (Cameron, Bernadette, and Chuck) inspected the mummies to see who was wrapped the best. Manic's heart soared when he heard the judges declare him the winner.
"Awesome!" he shouted, blowing a hole in the toilet paper, which made several other people laugh.
"Green team wins," announced Harvey.
"Back in ancient times, the Egyptians would remove certain organs from the body before wrapping the pharoh up in bandages, including the heart. They believed that one day, the pharoh would return to collect his heart and use it again. That being said, here are your hearts, young kings," said Harvey, presenting a tray of candied apples to Manic's team.
"Awesome!" said Skye and Ashura in unison.
"Xo EEEEEEEWWWWWWWW!" squeaked Sonia and Sunny.
"And finally, we have one last game for everyone to play: Zombie Tag."
"How does that go?" asked Manic as he tore toilet paper off himself with one hand and used his other hand to hold his "heart apple" while he ate it.
"We have to go outside for this one," said Harvey.
Everyone followed him into the backyard which had a good number of bushes in it. Harvey went over to the mountain of leaves and lit a match and threw it into the pile. Nothing happened, so he lit another match and threw it into the leaves, and this time, it burned until the entire leaf pile was ablaze. Everyone ooh'd and aah'd.
"The bonfire is our source of light. This game is different from the other ones because while it is competitive, you wind up joining the other team if you're not careful enough. In most zombie stories, anyone dumb enough to get bitten by a zombie gets infected and turns into a zombie themselves. Same rules apply here, one person will be the zombie and will tag whoever he or she can get their hands on while everyone else has to keep their distance. Whoever stays in the game the longest without being tagged wins," said Harvey.
"O.O Coooooooool," said all the boys.
"I'll be the Zombie. As soon as I tag you, shout out your name so others have a chance to escape," said Harvey, "On your mark, get set...die!"
Everyone ran for their lives while Harvey took off after the nearest person, moaning and growling mindlessly, like a real zombie.
Manic, Caity, Skye, and Ashura stuck together, figuring they'd have a better chance of staying alive the longest, but they all knew that eventually they'd have to split up since the game only ended when there was only one person left. For a long time, everyone ran around the yard, avoiding hungry zombies and jumping through bushes, using the bonfire to see in the dark, but finally there were only two left: Ashura and Manic.
"Let's run around the yard in a big circle, so when they gather around in a circle and try to close us off, we can run right through them," whispered Ashura.
"Got it" whispered back Manic.
They continued running circles around the zombies and took shortcuts through bushes and slid under tables, but the zombies never seemed to tire. Manic noticed out of all the zombies, Sonic seemed to be the most persistent. He sure was getting faster each time they raced.
"Whoa!" shouted Ash.
They both stopped to see the the zombified crowd surrounding them and closing in slowly.
"Nice knowin ya," said Manic.
"It's not over yet, they still have to tag one of us," said Ashura.
Then Sauna charged straight at Ash, but then Manic tackled her and she stumbled a bit before regaining her balance. Everyone stopped.
"I guess that leaves Ashura as the sole survivor," said Juliana.
"Uhh...cool?" asked Ashura awkwardly, not used to winning.
"Congrats, Ash, you won...a brain," announced Harvey, handing Ashura a popcorn ball.
"Brain?" asked Ash.
"Actually, it's popcorn, but it looks like a brain, ;)" said Harvey.
"True dat," said Ashura.
"Does that mean we're done?" asked Cosmic.
"Naw. Unlike the other games, we can keep playing this one as many times as we want since I have plenty more brains- I mean popcorn balls to go around," replied Harvey.
"Awesome blossom!" said Bobby.
Some stayed outdoor for round 2, while others, including Ashura and Manic, went back inside to look for more glowing bugs. As they got inside, Ashura tapped Manic on the shoulder.
"Come out to the front yard, there's something I want to show you," whispered Ash.
"Kay," replied Manic.
They both went outside to the front yard which was completely void of any life forms, save for the chirping crickets of the night.
"You've been a real pal tonight and I wanted to thank you for that," said Ashura.
"Is that all? oO" asked Manic, not sure where this was going.
"Well, no it's not, actually. My dad taught me this super secret self defense move to disarm anyone trying to hit you with a dangerous object, and something inside me keeps telling me to teach you that move. I don't know why anymore than you do, but I think it might come in handy," replied Ashura.
"Okay...what's this super secrety move?" asked Manic, sarcasm in his voice.
"Well first, what hand do you use the most?" asked Ash.
"My right hand," replied Manic.
"Alright, let's say a guy tries to knife you. He goes to stab you- like this- and you first use your right hand to knock the knife away from yourself, and while he's recovering, you delay that recovery with a slap to the face. A hard slap in the face is more disorienting than a weak fist to the head, so make sure to slap the thug's face as hard as you can, and don't worry about him or her retaliating because after you slap the person, ball your hands into fists and smash them into both sides of the person's head, right in the temples, but do it quickly, and with full force," said Ashura.
"Alright. Anything else?" asked Manic.
"Yeah, block me when I come at you," said Ashura.
Before Manic had time to ask what he was talking about, Ash ran at Manic who was so surprised that he froze. Ashura stopped just before his invisible knife collided with Manic's face.
"You won't have time to think. You gotta do it as soon as the situation demands it. Now, I'll come at you again, and you remember three words: Swipe. Slap. Smash. Know it, and act on it." said Ashura.
"Swipe, slap, smash. Got it," sighed Manic, wishing they could get this over with.
Ash charged him with an imaginary knife again, and this time, Manic swiped the knife arm to his left, then swung his hand near Ash's face, acting out a slap, and then swung both fists at the sides of Ash's head simultaneously.
"Perfect. Let's try that a few more times," said Ashura.
They practiced this maneuver several more times with Ash trying different moves while Manic learned to disarm him each time until he had perfected the skill. It was only when Ashura couldn't get near Manic no matter how hard he tried that Manic began to see how much potential that secret move had in it, and was impressed with himself.
"Keep practicing that move and...no one's gonna be able to hurt you...unless they grabbed you from behind...or threw their entire body at you...but I...doubt that'll ever happen, :o" panted Ashura.
"Thanks, I'll remember that, :)" said Manic, finally understanding how important that move was.
They went back inside to roast smores on the bonfire before it went out.
(8:30 pm)
"Well thanks again for inviting us," gushed Aleena.
"Oh, thank you for stopping by," replied Juliana, hugging Aleena.
"Maybe next year we could throw an even bigger halloween party at our house," winked Jules.
"Nah-ah, we'll do an even better one!" teased Harvey.
"No you won't!" teased Jules.
"Yes we will!" shot back Harvey.
"No you won't!"
"Yes we will!"
"Wont!"
"Will!"
"Won't!"
"Will!"
"Won't!"
"Apple Sauce!"
(awkward silence)
"Well thank you for coming," thanked Juliana, not knowing what else to say.
"Anytime," said Jules.
Then Aleena called for Sonic, Manic, and Sonia, who were joking with Skye.
"Looks like it's time to leave," said Manic.
"Thanks for letting us come, those smores were awesome. Here's your gun back," said Sonic, handing Skye his plastic rifle back.
"No problem. See you guys tomorrow," called out Skye.
"Bye bye," squeaked Sonia, waving.
They followed their parents outside and got in the car and drove back home. Manic slowly got out of the car like he was tired, but quickly snuck around to the back end of the house that faced the lake, wanting to scare everyone one last time, but found the back door already open. He didn't know if they'd left it open or if someone had snuck in, so he quietly snuck up to the open door and listened for any noise, but heard only the garage door opening as his parents came into the house. He waited while they came into the kitchen but heard nothing, and decided to wait until they came to shut the door to jump out at them.
"Jules! The door's open!" hissed Aleena.
This would be good. He only had to wait until someone came to close the door, and then it would be boos all around. XD
"Is someone in here?" called out Jules.
"STAY BACK OR I'LL SHOOT!" came a reply.
D: Oh crap, thought Manic.
There really was an intruder in the house.
"Now hold on. It doesn't have to be like this. Just put the jewelry box down and you can go," offered Jules.
"I'm taking it! I didn't come here just to leave empty handed," hissed the burglar.
"No, you're not. Put the jewelry box down and you can go. You don't have to give the cops a reason to put you away tonight. Just drop it and leave," said Jules firmly.
Manic decided to peak around the corner and saw a grizzly bear that was surprisingly short in size, enough to be considered a midget, and dressed in a leather jacket and cargo pants standing right in front of the doorway, but he was facing Jules, Aleena, and the rest of Manic's family, which meant his back was turned toward Manic, though judging from the way his arms were positioned, he looked like he was holding a weapon of some kind. Jules looked like he was ready to pounce, while Aleena nervously stood in front of Sonic and Sonia to protect them.
"I'm not goin to the joint, but neither am I leaving empty handed," argued the midget burglar.
Aleena, who was already terrified, became absolutely petrified when she saw Manic right behind the criminal. Seeing her own boy this close to a dangerous man wiped out all rational thought, leaving only her motherly instinct intact. She wanted to tell Manic to run away, to get as far away from this man as he could, but still had enough sense not to alert the armed thug to her son's whereabouts. If he discovered there was someone in a police outfit behind him, he would most certainly use the shotgun he was carrying, and the last thing she needed to do was let him know where her own boy was.
"And obviously you'll squawk to the pigs like birdies after I'm gone, and I can't have that happening," continued the burglar.
Manic felt a cold sweat going down his forehead. This burglar just stated he was going to kill his family. He wished Ashura were here to kick this monster's butt. But then he remembered what Ashura had said almost an hour earlier.
My dad taught me this super secret self defense move to disarm anyone trying to hit you with a dangerous object, and something inside me keeps telling me to teach you that move. I don't know why anymore than you do, but I think it might come in handy.
Now he understood why Ashura taught him that move so hastily. A higher power knew this would happen and told Ash to teach him that move so he could use to save his family. The man may have had a gun, but he had the element of surprise.
"HEY!" he called out.
No! Why, God? Why? thought Aleena, thinking her son had caused his own death.
The bear whirled around, intending to shoot whoever was behind him and then direct his wrath at the people who had ruined his attempt at a getting some money, but then something unexpected happened.
Seeing the barrel of the shotgun, Manic knew it was now or never and lunged at the bear, using his right hand to knock the gun away from himself.
SWIPE!
Using the distraction, he slapped the bear on the nose as hard as he could.
SLAP!
The bear grabbed his nose with one hand while seeming to forget about the shotgun in his other hand. Manic then brought back both his arms and slammed his fists into the sides of the bear's head, but his arms came up short of their target since the bear was just slightly taller than he was, and he wound up hitting the burglar in both of his eyes.
SMASH!
Blinded, the bear dropped the shotgun and placed his paws over his eyes, trying to comfort them. Jules dashed forward and tackled the burglar, knocking him to the ground while Aleena broke out of her trance and picked up the bear's shotgun and handed it to Jules who aimed it at the bear's head while Sonic rushed over to the house phone and dialed 911.
"Burlgar in our house! Come quickly!" Sonic yelled into the phone.
Ten minutes later, the police arrived and stuffed the now cuffed bear into the back of the car. Uncle Chuck, who had been carrying his radio with him just in case, had been contacted and turned his car around and came back to help put the burglar away. The cops were all surprised to find out it was young Manic who had single handedly saved his whole family from the would-be murderer.
"You sure are a brave young lad, and a hero," said the Police Chief, "Your Uncle was right to let you borrow his badge. I know you'll make a fine officer someday."
It was rather fitting that Manic had been dressed as a cop when he took the thug down, but if he'd been a split second slower in acting, he wouldn't be breathing right now. No one knew this better than Aleena who wouldn't let go of Manic afterward. She hugged him so tightly that he could barely breathe even now.
"I was so afraid I was going to lose you," she sobbed, "don't ever do that again."
Manic watched Uncle Chuck and another officer put the bear in the back of a squad car and drive off. As soon as that particular car vanished, he breathed a sigh of relief and was more than thankful that Ashura had taught him that self defense move. It saved him and his family, and it made him a hero, further inspiring him to become a protector of innocents one day, but deep down he couldn't help wondering if that was the last time he would need it...
Now that that's out of the way, I shall resume Counterfeit Manic. ;)