I do not own Lilo and Stitch.

Hope everyone has a spookyriffic and candyriffic Halloween!

The Devil's Night Mishap

"All right, Stitch. This is it. We can't make any mistakes or else this will be completely ruined."

Lilo adjusted the safety goggles situated protectively over her brown eyes. A series of glass beakers supported in wire holders lined the tabletop. Stitch stood beside her on a wooden stool, a bottle of ketchup clutched in his blue paws.

"Each ingredient must be perfectly measured," Lilo cautioned, grabbing a beaker filled with a brownish liquid. "Too much or too little of something will result in a failed batch."

"Got it." Stitch nodded seriously.

The thirteen-year-old girl began adding the ingredients to a small porcelain bowl filled with a bit of water. She carefully measured each dose and gave the contents a stir every so often. When all the ingredients were added, she clapped her hands together. "And now for the most important ingredient. Are you ready?"

"Ih." Stitch uncapped the bottle of ketchup and hovered the opening over the bowl.

"Be gentle. Don't rush it," Lilo instructed. "It has to happen on its own, when it's ready."

Stitch concentrated, sweat dripping down the side of his face. A glob of ketchup slowly made its way out of the bottle, dangling for a brief second on the lip before splattering into the bowl. Stitch quickly yanked the bottle away before more ketchup could escape and Lilo gave the concoction one final stir.

"Yes! We've done it! We have created the perfect batch of fake blood! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Lilo cackled with wicked glee, her arms thrown up in the air with triumph.

The lights snapped on, blinding Lilo and Stitch momentarily and causing Lilo to fall silent. Jumba stood in the kitchen doorway, surveying the lab coat-clad girl and experiment, and the mess they had made of the kitchen.

"Little Girl has been working on evil laugh," said Jumba approvingly. "I am very proud."

"Thanks," chirped Lilo, snapping off her goggles.

"What evilness have you been cooking in kitchen?"

"Just finished making a batch of fake blood," Lilo said. She dipped her finger into the mixture and lifted it back out, allowing the dark red liquid to trickle down her hand. It was the perfect consistency—not too thick, not too thin. "What do you think?"

"Very realistic," Jumba said. "But I advise that Little Girl and 626 clean up mess before Bigger Girl be getting home."

Lilo wrinkled her nose in distaste. She loved making messes, not cleaning them up. "I guess you're right. If I don't, she'll probably take Halloween away from me."

"Tragedy," Stitch remarked, shrugging off his lab coat and throwing his goggles onto the table's surface with a clunk.

"It would be a tragedy," Lilo agreed. "This holiday was made for me. I can't miss it!"

She pulled a box of cling wrap out of a drawer and removed herself a sheet. She secured it over her bowl of fake blood and stuck her Halloween makeup into the fridge for preservation. "Say, Jumba, wanna help?"

"Not my mess," Jumba returned. "Have fun cleaning!"

Lilo stuck her tongue out at his retreating back. "Who else can we swindle into cleaning up our mess?"

Stitch cast her an odd look. "Duh."

"It was a rhetorical question," said Lilo with a grin. "Hey, Pleakley! We need your help with something!"

When Pleakley entered the kitchen, his face twisted up, as if he had eaten something sour. He promptly collected the mop and its bucket, which he filled with water from the kitchen sink. "I'll help, but I'm not cleaning this by myself," he said flatly, grabbing some dish soap to add to the half-full bucket.

"Fair enough," conceded Lilo.

She and Stitch each grabbed a rag, soaking it with warm water and soap. They tackled the hardening globs of brown, black and red clinging to the table, chair and beakers.

"I probably shouldn't ask but I'm going to anyway. What were you two doing in here?" Pleakley asked, dunking the mop into the soapy water and manoeuvring it over the gunk coating the floor around the table.

"Making fake blood," Lilo answered. "Stitch and I needed it for our Zombie-Mummy-Vampire costumes."

"All three of your favourite things combined into one outfit," Pleakley said with a roll of his eye. "How charming. Why can't you be something pleasant for Halloween? Like a fairy or a princess?"

Lilo gave her alien aunt a deadpan look. "Pleakley. Halloween is meant to be scary. Not happy, not glittery, not pleasant."

"Forgive me, I wasn't thinking," Pleakley drawled. "So, Queen of Halloween, what are your plans for tomorrow?"

"Right after school Stitch and I are going to visit Spooky at his place and see if he needs anything to make this year's haunted house even scarier. Then we're going to come home, get dressed, meet up with Victoria and do a quick run of the neighbourhood. Then we're going to go to the Halloween party at the hula school. If there's time afterwards, we'll hit up some more houses for leftover candy and come back here to pig out."

"Sounds like a packed night," said Pleakley. "What about the other three little monsters?"

"Angel, Belle and Glitch are staying home to have their own scary movie marathon," answered Lilo. "We'll join them when we get back."

After twenty minutes of scrubbing, and one crack Stitch accidentally put into the table for scrubbing too hard, the table was spotless. The floor wasn't quite the same story, but there was only one mop, and Pleakley seemed to have it under control. Folding her hands behind her back, Lilo asked hopefully, "If you don't need us to do anything else, can we double-check our costumes? Make sure they're all set for tomorrow?"

"You are excused, Your Majesty," Pleakley teased, dipping into a bow. "Take your mad scientist kit with you."

"Yes, sir." Lilo curtseyed back as Stitch grabbed the glass beakers. "Thank you very much for your help."

When she and Stitch arrived in their bedroom, it was to see Belle and Angel playing a game of cards at Lilo's desk. "Whatcha playing?" asked Lilo as she went over to her closet.

"Go Fish," Angel answered. Peering at Belle with a smirk, she asked, "Four?"

Belle gave a small shriek of frustration and slid two cards to the pink experiment.

"I think I can guess who's not winning," Lilo remarked.

Stitch placed the beakers back into their chemistry set case. Lilo dragged out a cardboard box marked Halloween Stuff. "Let's see...we got the green face paint for the zombie part of our costume, there's plenty of toilet paper in the bathroom for the mummy part, and we got the black cape and..." She trailed off and started rifling through the box in sudden panic. "Where are the vampire fangs?"

Stitch scratched his head. "Ah-rumba."

Lilo groaned. "We can't be a Zombie-Mummy-Vampire without fangs! We'll have to get some more!"

"Where?" Stitch asked.

"The superstore, of course! I'll be right back. You stay here and start getting the costumes together."

Stitch saluted her. "Smish!"

Lilo jumped off the elevator platform before it fully clicked into place on the ground floor. "I'm going to the superstore!" she hollered, dashing to the front door. "I'll be back!"

Lilo sprinted all the way to the superstore. She was flushed, sweaty and panting by the time she got there. She tilted her head back when she stepped through the automatic doors, taking a second to relish in the fresh blast of air-conditioning.

The rows of Halloween decorations and costumes were near the very front of the store. Lilo wandered down the aisles, passing by the jumbo boxes of candy and hangers of cheaply-made, overpriced outfits. She found the bins of accessories and grinned broadly at last pack of plastic vampire fangs, situated beneath the werewolf gloves. "The Halloween Fairy is on my side."

"Only you would think there's such a thing as a Halloween Fairy."

Lilo glanced over her shoulder. "Well, clearly not, since you guys are here."

Mertle, Elena, Teresa and Yuki ignored her jab. "Don't you think you're too old for trick-or-treating?" asked the redhead.

"You're never too old for trick-or-treating," Lilo said seriously.

"Teenagers don't do trick-or-treating," Elena snorted.

"Yeah, they do Devil's Night," Yuki added.

Lilo peeked at the contents of the cart Teresa was pushing. Beneath a small pile of random objects to cover up any suspicion were three cartons of eggs, a pack of toilet paper and two cans of shaving cream. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared in disapproval. "People who do Devil's Night get arrested."

"Only people who are stupid enough to get caught," Mertle returned. "People like you."

"Oooh!" Yuki, Elena and Teresa chorused.

Lilo's posture stiffened as she went on the defensive against the mocking tone of her hula peers and kinda/sorta/sometimes friends. They had mellowed when they hit their teens, but their treatment of her occasionally depended on their moods and the given day. But what hadn't changed was their ability to cause her hackles to rise.

"Wanna bet?"

Mertle's smirk widened. "Meet us in front of the hula school at midnight. If you have the guts."

"Oh, I've got the guts," Lilo growled. "I'll be there."

"We'll see."

"This is gonna be great," said Teresa with glee. "See you tonight, Lilo."

"Maybe," said Mertle with a sneer.

They headed for the checkouts with their cart of Devil's Night weapons. Lilo seized the pack of vampire fangs and followed after them, her mind already concocting her midnight sneak-out plan.

...

Zzzzzt.

Lilo, who hadn't been able to drift off due to nerves, quickly rolled over and turned off the alarm on her watch. She had set it to vibrate so it wouldn't disturb Stitch and Angel. She squinted through the darkness, able to make out their sleeping forms, and she gave a quiet sigh of relief.

This was something she definitely did not want to explain to them.

She strapped on her Elvis Presley watch and slipped out of bed. As silently as possible, she pulled a pair of jean shorts and an orange T-shirt over her pale blue nightgown. She slowly pulled on a red fleece jacket and jammed her feet into a pair of flipflops.

She didn't want to risk taking the elevator. She eased open her window and wiggled her way through the slot. She slid down the drainpipe like it was a firepole and stole down the driveway. She let herself breathe normally when she was out of sight of her house.

As she made her way through town, she could see figures of kids a few years older darting amongst the shadows. Their laughter was muffled and mean-spirited, and Lilo's heart sunk as she passed by innocent homes that were splattered with yolk or covered in toilet paper.

What am I doing?

For a moment, Lilo was tempted to go back to her warm bed. But she thought about how insufferable Mertle would be if she chickened out, and she vowed to come back in the morning and clean the houses they defaced.

The familiar structure of her hula school came into sight. She wound her way around the porch, peering over the railing, but she couldn't see the other girls. "Mertle?" she whisper-called. "Yuki? Teresa? Elena? Anybody?"

Something suddenly took a rough hold of her shoulders. Lilo let out a shriek of panic and thrashed, only to stop when she heard a bout of laughter that she knew too well. Scowling, Lilo whipped around and punched Mertle in the arm. "Don't do that!"

"What's the matter?" Mertle teased. "Scared?"

"No," Lilo lied. "What's the plan?"

Yuki handed Lilo a carton of eggs. "Me and Elena will take care of TPing the place. Teresa's in charge of the shaving cream."

Teresa twirled the cans as if they were guns. "Eyyyy!"

"You and I," said Mertle, brandishing her own arsenal of eggs, "are gonna egg the joint."

Lilo's eyes went wide. "We're vandalizing the hula school?!"

"I prefer the term 'prank'," replied Mertle. "And yes."

"But Moses is going to be so upset!"

"Well, I was upset when he pulled me out of last week's performance."

"You weren't practicing like he told you!"

"I was busy!"

"Doing what?!"

"Working on my tan."

"Guys!" cut in Yuki. "Are we doing this or what?"

Mertle stared Lilo down. "Yeah, Lilo. You in or out?"

Lilo grit her teeth. "I'm in."

"Then let's go," commanded Mertle.

Yuki and Elena jumped off the porch and onto the grass, where they reared their arms back and started letting toilet paper rolls fly. They sailed in arcs over the roof, the white paper flitting in the breeze like ghosts. Teresa uncapped the shaving cream bottles and began coating the window panes.

Mertle removed an egg and chucked it at the building. The yolk ran down the siding, an ugly smear against the green, and Lilo screwed her eyes shut. She pulled out an egg and whipped it at the building. Mertle whistled at the resulting splatter.

"Nice."

The other girls were having the time of their lives, their giggles mingling together in the night air. Dread built in Lilo's gut, growing tighter and stronger with each egg she lobbed at the hula school.

Light suddenly drenched the immediate area, chasing away their cover of darkness. Mertle acted immediately, charging down the porch and diving over the railing, back into the cover of darkness. Teresa nearly bent over backwards, the beams of light just barely catching her as she huddled in her small pocket of shadows. Mertle grabbed her by the back of her shirt and yanked her to safety. Yuki and Elena were already sprinting across the grass, well out of reach of the illuminating source.

Lilo was a few seconds too late. When she came to her senses, an authoritative voice was already shouting at her. It was too late to make her escape.

"Hold it right there, young lady!"

Lilo bit back a groan. It just has to be Officer Kahiko.

Kahiko approached the vandal, his severe expression softening slightly with surprise when he recognized the mane of raven hair facing him. He knew it very well—it had sat in the back of his cruiser many times.

"Lilo?!"

The thirteen-year-old reluctantly turned around. "Uh...Happy Halloween?" Lilo said weakly.

The lights of his cruiser enhanced the mess the girls had made, and Lilo felt guilt claw her throat. Shells and yolk were hardening to the exterior of the building. Teresa's shaving cream was caked onto the front window panes. Yuki and Elena had managed to attach a dozen rolls of toilet paper to the roof, the strands wafting in the air and catching in the nearby trees.

Kahiko gripped Lilo's shoulder. "I think you and I need to go back to the station and have a talk."

"I figured as much," Lilo muttered.

Devil's Night was over for her. And as far as she was concerned, so was Halloween. Her favourite holiday had ended before it had even begun.

...

The ride in the back of Kahiko's cruiser was not one Lilo was unfamiliar too, but never before had she felt so bad. Both Lilo and Kahiko were grim as they stepped inside the police station. Kahiko led Lilo to his desk and she lowered into a blue plastic chair. She clasped her hands in her lap, refusing to meet his gaze.

At least Bonnie and Clyde aren't working tonight.

It was an empty comfort.

"You wanna tell me why you were vandalizing the hula school?" asked Kahiko, leaning his hip against his desk.

"Uh...it...it's Devil's Night," mumbled Lilo. "Teens like me go crazy on Devil's Night."

"Every other teen but you go crazy on Devil's Night," Kahiko corrected. "You're a bundle of trouble, but not this kind of trouble. This isn't you. Did something happen between you and Moses?"

Lilo snapped her head up, and the concern in his eyes nearly wounded her. She didn't deserve it. "No! It's got nothing to do with Moses."

"I thought I saw someone else with you," said Kahiko with narrowed eyes. "But they took off before I could get out of the car."

"There was no one else," said Lilo firmly. "Just me."

Mertle, Yuki, Elena and Teresa were just as much at fault, but Lilo wasn't a snitch. No matter how much she was tempted.

"Really?" said Kahiko dubiously. "You did all that damage by yourself?"

"Yup."

"What compelled you to do this?"

"I don't know."

Kahiko restrained an exasperated sigh. He'd confidently bet a year's salary that Mertle was involved. The redhead was the only one on the island Lilo could not walk away from. Their long-standing rivalry was famous amongst the islanders. But if Lilo refused to give up Mertle's part in the crime, there was nothing he could do about it.

"I'm sorry," spoke Lilo, her voice heavy with regret. "I really am."

"I know you are," said Kahiko softly. "I'm still going to have to call your sister."

"No!" Lilo cried. She launched forwards and slapped both hands over his phone. "Please! I'll clean the mess up! I'll pay a fine! I'll do community service! I'll apologize to Moses! I'll do anything! But please don't call Nani! Not tonight! Not before Halloween!"

Kahiko rubbed his forehead, his expression firm but sympathetic. "You're only thirteen, Lilo. I can't let you go without calling your guardian to come pick you up and take you out of my custody."

"But I have three guardians!" said Lilo, mentally crossing her fingers. "Nani's my primary one, but Aunt Pleakley and Uncle Jumba are still guardians. You've called them before."

That was true. Nani had waded through months of paperwork and interviews to get Jumba and Pleakley instated as Lilo's official guardians. It had been a family decision, unanimously made, and it allowed Nani to not have to worry about being called out of work multiple times a week to collect her mischievous little sister.

"I don't know. That sounds like a loophole," said Kahiko with a frown.

Lilo winced, bowing her head. She removed her hands. "You're right," she said quietly. "I did a bad thing. I committed a crime. It's my responsibility to pay for it."

Kahiko rested his hand against the top of her head. "You're a good kid, Lilo. But you got to learn to walk away."

Lilo smiled sheepishly at his knowing tone. "You're not the first one to tell me that."

"I'll let you call one of your guardians," decided Kahiko. "But you'll have to do all the things you said you'd do—clean up the mess, apologize to Moses, and all the rest."

Lilo nodded hard. "I will. And I won't ever do anything like this again. I promise."

"I'm holding you to that promise. If you break it, the consequences will be severe," warned Kahiko.

"Yes, sir."

Kahiko handed her the phone and Lilo dialled Pleakley's space cell phone number. She twisted the cord around her finger nervously, hoping that the trill of the ringtone wouldn't wake her sister.

"Hello?" Pleakley answered groggily.

"It's me. I need someone to come get me. Um, preferably Uncle Jumba?"

"Lilo?" Pleakley's voice was alert now. "Where exactly are you calling from?"

"Er…the police station."

"What?"

"Please keep it down!" pleaded Lilo. "Can you get Uncle Jumba to come get me?"

"Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine. I just…got into some trouble."

"What in the name of—"

"Aunt Pleakley, please. Uncle Jumba?"

Please don't get Nani please don't get Nani.

"One second," said Pleakley shortly. "And you better believe you are grounded, young missy."

There was the sound of rustling and indistinguishable words. "What has Little Girl done?" demanded Jumba. "Jumba approves of little evil, not evil evil."

"I, uh, took part in Devil's Night," said Lilo, careful to avoid mentioning her hula peers, due to the presence of Kahiko.

"The Earth tradition of throwing unfertilized fowl eggs at structures and the wasting of toilet tissue to deface personal property?" Jumba asked sharply.

"That's the one," said Lilo miserably. "I messed up, Uncle Jumba. I vandalized the hula school with eggs, toilet paper and shaving cream, and I got caught. I'm really sorry. I need you to come and pick me up."

"Of course. Will wake up Bigger Girl to do so."

Lilo could have sworn her heart stopped. "Uncle Jumba, that's evil evil," she whispered in panic. "Please don't."

"Give me one good reason why not," countered Jumba.

"I'm really sorry. I know what I did was wrong. I won't ever do it again. I promised Officer Kahiko I'll clean everything up, and pay a fine, and apologize to Moses, and I'll do community service. I know Nani shouldn't be left out of the loop. I know she'd be right to take away Halloween. I just…I was really looking forward to it."

Her voice trailed off into a whimper. Jumba could hear her tears, hear her remorse, and after a pause, he said, "I will be there in few minutes."

"Thank you," said Lilo with immense relief.

She hung up and Kahiko went to prepare the paperwork for her uncle. Jumba arrived five minutes later, hastily dressed in his Hawaiian shirt and his glasses askew on his face. His four eyes zeroed in on the girl and his bulk squeezed through the closely-arranged row of desks to get to them.

"Jumba," greeted Kahiko, handing over the sheaf of papers and a pen. "You'll have to fill these out before I can release her. She already filled you in on her punishment. I'll contact you later with the precise number of hours she'll need to complete for community service. It's her first offense, so we'll say a fine of one hundred dollars, and I'll work it out so this doesn't appear on her record."

Lilo's chin snapped up, for that was not something she had even considered. "Thank you," she said softly, her tone thick with emotion and gratitude.

"Is very kind, given Little Girl's foolishness," said Jumba, and Lilo quailed under his angry gaze.

"You can hand in the papers at the front desk. Then you're good to go. I better return to patrol." Kahiko winked at Lilo. "Lot of troublemakers out there tonight. Have a safe Halloween, Lilo."

Lilo sprang up to hug him tightly, which he returned with equal force. "You too, Officer Kahiko."

"Try to keep out of trouble, eh?"

"Yes, sir. I'll try."

He left the station and Lilo settled back in her chair, watching as Jumba filled out the forms. "So…do you think we could keep this from Nani? Just until Halloween is over?" she ventured.

"Little Girl is pushing her luck," Jumba warned. Lilo clamped her lips shut.

When the papers were complete, he gave them to the woman working at the front desk and tipped his hat. A firm hand against Lilo's back guided her out of the station and into the night. "Sometimes I be wondering what goes through little human mind."

"A lot of weird stuff," Lilo admitted. "I really appreciate this."

"You better," Jumba snorted. "You may pay Jumba back with fifty percent of candy profits."

Lilo looked at him earnestly. "You mean—?"

Jumba aimed a finger at her. "Jumba will fight in Little Girl's corner, but I am making no promises. You will have to plead case with aunt and sister."

There was still a chance. If she just showed how sorry she was, and she really was, maybe Nani would stall the grounding until after October thirty-first. If all it cost her was half her candy lot, it was more than worth it.

Her spark of hope was dampened when Jumba added, "But be making no mistake. You will be facing extreme, gruelling, extra long grounding, Halloween or no Halloween."