Chapter 6: Just A Little Change

About a week went by since the unexpected trip to Valentine Town. Up at Skellington Manor, Jack was just getting ready to meet with the Mayor about the plans for St. Patrick's Day. Meanwhile, Sally was getting things together for her meeting with Will and Al to look over the designs for their bridesmaid dresses. Despite everything seeming as normal as any other day, it would not go unnoticed that something was bothering the Pumpkin King and his bride-to-be.

Their walk back to the Holiday Doors with Psyche had been in silence. Even when Psyche bid them farewell, the pause in between had been very awkward. Still, just before they had stepped through the Halloween Door, Psyche had asked if there was still some way Jack and Sally might be able to help. She told them Valentine would be able to handle Eros, but he would need help on the other end.

Apparently, the arrow used was the very rare True Love's Arrow and sadly Puck was its unlikely victim. Where a golden arrow only enhances feelings of love for one day, the True Love's Arrow forever bound that person's heart to one person and one only. All the magic required was the smallest jolt of love of a first meeting. However, as with any magic, the arrow's spell had a darker price.

If the person did not receive the love of the one they loved, then their heart would become corrupted, turning them to a life of loneliness. Not even the lead arrow of loathing could break this spell. However, if the person struck fell in love with someone who did not return their feelings, they would live a life of longing despair or violent obsession.

It was for this reason Valentine strictly forbid Eros from using them. They were too powerful.

With this in mind, both Jack and Sally did not see how they could be of help. Psyche explained that there could still be a chance. It was small, and given the circumstances, not very likely. When asked what she was referring to, Psyche told them to talk to Will. Even though she had been struck with a golden arrow, the power did not affect her. This was a rare occurrence in Valentine Town. Under regular circumstances, a person would fall in love, but there were those who chose not to by sheer will. Simply put, Will was not opening up her heart for the chance. If Jack and Sally could somehow convince her to open up her heart, there was a chance Valentine could find a suitable match and then Eros would stop his sulking.

Since then, Jack and Sally had been puzzling over the task. It was not as if they did not want to help. It just was a little out of their element. After all, Jack Skellington was the Master of Fright, hence, his talent lay only in scaring people. Though it had taken him a year to court and propose to Sally, he still asked for advice when it came to romance. He just could not think of a way to coax Will to give Puck another chance.

Likewise, Sally could not think of a way to help their friend. Courtship had been easier because Jack and her loved each other very much, but she knew it took effort to make everything work. She had no idea how to bring two other people together. In fact, the more she thought about everything, the more she worried they would only be meddling in the affairs of others. With all these thoughts fluttering about her mind, Sally could not concentrate on her sketches.

"Jack…" Sally asked. She twirled her pencil around, needing a channel for her nerves. "Do you think we're doing the right thing?"

"Have you been feeling odd about Psyche's proposal as well?" Jack looked up from his stack of papers, a concerned gaze in his sockets.

The same look was reflected back at him. "It's just… I know it's Valentine's job to match people, but is it really our place to interfere? I want to help our friends, but I feel very odd about it."

"So have I," Jack replied. He stood up from the table and began to pace the room. "I mean, we've only known Will for less than a year, and Puck is practically a stranger. We know nothing about him, though I suppose we could talk to the Vampire Brothers if we needed to. Yet at the same time, I saw how Will reacted to Puck initially, and from the memory pearl, it would appear she is only seeking friendship and nothing further."

Jack stopped and sighed, his back to the table and arms crossed behind him. "It would be wrong to turn away someone asking for help, but how can I when I barely knew how to court a lady myself."

Sally's eyes never left Jack as he paced. Now as he stood there, deep in thought, she tried to think of something to say that would help them both. "Maybe… Maybe we could talk to them?"

"And how would we do that?" Jack asked. "You heard Psyche, Love. Will doesn't even want to try."

"Well, Will and Al are coming over today," Sally said. "While we're looking over plans for the wedding, I could mention something to Will. I would ask Al for help, but she isn't as subtle with a situation like this. Maybe…"

She gave a slight pause to bite at her lip, eyes rolling up towards the ceiling as she gathered her thoughts. "Maybe… I could get Will to talk about her date and even her personal feelings about Puck."

"That's not a bad idea, Sally," Jack said, "but how would you go about it?"

"I was thinking about telling her about some of my own experiences." Sally lowered her eyes, and as she did, Jack noticed a faint blush gracing her cheeks. "I was thinking I could mention how I felt before, when you didn't know I had feelings for you. They are still very precious to me, and if I shared them with Will, it might help her to be more open."

Jack spun around, his eye sockets locked on his fiancé. "Sally… That's brilliant!"

He dashed to her side, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed Sally's full red lips. "Oh, you clever creature," Jack said, his voice dropping lower as spoke. "What would I do without you?"

Sally giggled, patting Jack's arm. "I think you did fine before I came around."

Jack shook his skull before resting it just in the crook of her neck. "Oh no, I'm afraid I must disagree." He chuckled. "I have no idea how I managed to keep from falling apart without you. I may have had Zero to help me keep my skull on straight, but you, my Sally, are the only one who can talk any sense into this silly old skeleton when I'm off on another wild idea."

"Now Jack, I've told you before that you're not old," Sally mock scolded. She glanced over her shoulder. "I only wish I knew what it is I have to do so you realize that too."

A suave and somewhat mischievous smile crossed Jack's lips as he narrowed his eye sockets at his ladylove, his boney eyebrow arching slightly. "I think I may know of one way, my clever Sally." He raised one hand to bring his fingertips to her chin, tilting her head up toward him. "That is…if you still want to convince me?"

Sally smiled and fluttered her eyelashes. "Flirt."

"Minx." Jack kissed her once more, this time just on the corner of her mouth.

"I always want to help you," she replied, turning in her chair so she could face him better. "Even though I may not always agree with some of your ideas, I will try my best to help you in any way I can."

Jack chuckled. "Don't I know it. Listening to me prattle on about Christmas. Making me a Sandy Claws outfit, and another one after I let the first get ruined. Being sneaky pouring an elixir of Fog Juice into the fountain to stall my Christmas ride." He could not help smiling at her cute little blush. "Not to mention how brave you were to help rescue Sandy after I was so foolish to put him in danger. Twice!" He sighed and slowly began stroking the stitching along her mouth with his thumb.

"And don't think I've forgotten about that lovely little basket you brought me when I was locked away with my experiments. I still can't believe you snuck out of the Doctor's lab just to bring it to me."

Sally tried not to shiver as his thumb traced over her sensitive stitches. She reached up and captured his hand in hers, pressing it against her cheek. "Jack, I did all those things because I care about you. And we already talked about that, remember? You were quite cross with Will even though you didn't listen when she told you I was outside."

She nuzzled his palm. "I'm just happy I was able to help you. I'm also glad I told you about sneaking out. I was so worried you would be upset with me."

"Now, Sally, I could never be upset with you, though I am still displeased with myself for not listening," Jack said, lower another octave. He leaned in closer. "If I had, I could have been doing this much sooner."

Before Sally could ask what he meant, Jack pressed his mouth to hers in a rather passionate kiss. Slow yet deep as his skeletal lips caressed the softness of hers, Sally sighed deeply, turning more in her chair until she was fully facing him. She then reached up and wrapped her arms around Jack's neck, pulling him closer. A low moan escaped Jack then as her small yet delicate fingers kneading into the grooves of his vertebrae. His hand moved along her cheek to bury deep into her red hair while his other hand drew around her waist. His fingers wrapped around the curve of her hip, eliciting a small moan from his beloved.

"Woohoo! Should I come back later?"

Jack and Sally froze. Their eyes opened to see Will standing just inside the kitchen door. She smiled at them. To her right, Zero floated with somewhat sheepish grin on his ghostly muzzle. Embarrassment hardly described the situation as Jack and Sally separated, making Will laugh at the expression on both her friends' faces.

Jack glared back at her. He really needed to speak with the girl about barging in unannounced. "Will!"

"Hey, I did knock." Will giggled before walking toward the the table with Zero by her side. "We agreed three o'clock, so don't get mad at me if you forget to watch the time, Mr. Kissy-Face."

Bones blanching, Jack cleared his throat, hoping to change the subject. "Yes, well, now that you're here, I'll let you ladies get started." He kissed Sally's cheek before turning to grab his paperwork. Once in hand, Jack walked toward the front door. "I'll be at the Town Hall looking over some plans–"

"Hold it!" Will called. Jack stooped and turned to find her pointing at the kitchen table. "You are not going anywhere till we solve one little matter."

"Will, I cannot keep the Mayor waiting."

"For this you can. Now sit." Jack huffed but did as he was told. He sat down across from Sally and waited for Will to explain.

Will smiled. "Alright folks, here's the thing. You two need to pick a date for your wedding, and nobody is moving an inch until the matter is solved."

"This is why you're keeping me," Jack asked, "to decide on a date?"

"Hey, I'm not the one who put it off for two months," Will replied. "Look, the sooner you pick a date, the sooner we can get wedding details sorted out. I know this is kind of new for you, but weddings do take a long time to plan."

"We understand, Will," Sally said, "it's just we haven't really discussed it."

"That's why I'm here." Will set down her stack, reaching for the top to pull what looked like a binder. She flipped through the pages before finding what she needed. She turned to show her friends. It was a calendar.

"Time to organize."

"Uh, Will? Where's Al?" Jack looked about, almost expecting the young redhead to jump out at some point.

Will sucked in a breath. "Yeah, about that… She got called in to cover a shift at the bowling alley. She was less than thrilled. Be happy I made it without any injuries, this time."

"It can't be that bad," Jack said.

"I'll be sure to tell her you said that when she comes home tonight," Will noted. "Now, back to business. Have you at least got an idea about when you want to have the wedding. I already thought evening since most of the folks around here are basically nocturnal. The question is, what about season. You got four choices."

"Oh, well an evening wedding would be lovely," Sally replied.

"Hmm… It does make sense, though perhaps something a little earlier," Jack suggested. "And as for the date, why not–"

"Don't say Halloween!"

Both Jack and Sally turned to look at Will. Sally was surprised by her outburst, but Jack was more surprised that she would turn down his idea. "And why not? It seems to make the most sense," he asked.

Will rolled her eyes. "Jack, while I agree that it is the most obvious choice, it's also a bad idea. So are using Christmas or Valentine's Day."

"What's wrong with them?"

"Plenty, but I'll stick to the basics. For starters–" Will held up her hand to count off her points. "–getting married on on Valentine's Day is taboo. Most romantic holiday, day for lovers, etcetera. And as for Halloween or Christmas, that's just a bad idea."

"Why would it be bad?" Sally asked, a little confused. "They both have special meaning for us."

"Yes, I know, but the problem is they're major holidays," Will explained. "Look, Santa takes all year getting ready for Christmas, right? And do you two remember how chaotic it was around here when Jack had us prepare it in two months?"

"Gives me headaches just thinking about it," Jack replied, rubbing one side of his skull. "Plus, I think Sandy would prefer if I didn't upstage him again."

"Another excellent point."

"But I still don't understand why we can't use Halloween?" Jack retaliated. "After all, I am the Pumpkin King and it's eight months away, giving us plenty of time to plan. Not to mention it is our holiday."

"And there's the problem, Jack. It's your holiday. Can you imagine trying to plan an entire holiday AND your wedding at the same time? You'd never get anything done."

"She does make a point, Jack," Sally added, looking at him with concern. "You always get overwhelmed with the details, and the Mayor does put a lot of pressure on you with checking and rechecking every detail."

"Exactly!" Will exclaimed. "Look, I can tell you still don't like it, but how about I put it to you this way. If you try this, it'll be like doing everything for Halloween. Making plans, letting everyone know the specifics, set up, rehearsals, and all that… " She waited until she knew she had Jack's full attention. "It would be doing all that, which takes you an entire year to work out, and doing it all the month before Halloween."

Things were quiet for a moment. Jack was lost in thought, putting together everything Will was telling them. Suddenly, his eyes went wide.

Pop!

Will and Sally watched in shocked as Jack's head rolled across the table. Will pressed her lips together to keep herself from laughing, while Sally stood up from her seat. It was not the first time Jack had lost his head, but she had never seen him shocked enough to cause it to happen like this. She reached over and picked up Jack's skull, placing it back on his body. When he was whole again, she could tell his was still tense by how stiffly he sat in the chair. Sally began rubbing his shoulders in a hope to calm him down.

"I think he gets it," Will said, still trying not to laugh. "Look, I'm not saying it couldn't be done, I just don't think you want to be planning for both events at once. That's why I'm suggesting we pick a different date."

"What would you recommend then, Will?" Sally asked, noting Jack was starting to relax under her hands.

"Again, that depends on you. If you want a big fancy wedding that requires a thick binder of detail, we'll need plenty of time to plan. Months or a year at the least. But if you want something simple, I think I can get everything done and ready in a couple months."

"A couple months?" Jack finally snapped out of his daze, and was now looking accusingly at Will. "Didn't you just say that weddings take more planning?"

"Yes but again, I said it depends on kind of wedding," Will corrected. "Big weddings equal lots of time and planning, but a smaller wedding does not need much time. Heck, I know people who just grab a white dress, go to the court house, and are married in a couple hours."

Jack could not believe what he was hearing. "How did you get so knowledgeable about weddings?"

"I watch a lot of Say Yes to the Dress." Will turned back to her calendar. "But getting back to basics, we still need a date. And not trying to rush, but I already made you ten minutes late arguing out one detail."

Jack glared back at her. "Well, my ideas were already dismissed." He looked over his shoulder. "Do you have any preferences, Sally?"

"Well…" She bit her lip in thought. "… How about June? The summer nights are nice, and there's no holidays going on during that month."

"Ooo! I could totally see you as a June bride!" Will said with a big smile. "Summer sun setting, some decor here and there, and everyone gathered around. What do you think?"

"It sounds wonderful to me," Sally replied. "Oh! Maybe we could have it on the thirteenth. I believe it's on a Friday this year."

"Hmm… A Friday the Thirteenth wedding? Unlucky for some, but it would give us that Halloween-in-summer feel." Will smiled and nodded her head. "Sally, I like the way you think. So, what do you think, Jack?"

Both Willa and Sally looked to Jack. He felt a little overwhelmed but he admired that the idea of a wedding in June would be nice. The Halloween Town residents preceded not to do much during the summer months. The days could get very warm, but the nights were cooler. Why, if the timing worked out, they might even celebrate on the summer solstice during their honeymoon. There was just one thing bothering him.

"It's not that I'm against the idea," Jack started to tell them, "but do you really think you could pull this all together in four months? We could wait a year or two if we need more time."

Will rolled her eyes. "Hey, you were the one who said he couldn't wait any longer to be with the love of his afterlife," she noted, chuckling as Sally blushed and Jack blanched. "Anyway, I know it's possible. My own parents only had a two monthlong engagement."

"Really?"

"Yep. So, if we followed the same plan my dad had, then we can have something ready in time and still be fantastic. All we're missing is for your say on all this."

XXX

"These look amazing, Sally," Will exclaimed, looking over the sketches. It had been a couple hours since they had finalized the wedding date, and now it was just the girls. So far they had decided on the location, flower arrangements, and bridal party. Now Sally just needed Will's thoughts on her designs for the bridesmaid dresses. Will had already told her she could have whatever she wanted—it was her wedding, after all—but Sally wanted the girls to like the dresses. Judging from Will's reaction, it was a definite approval.

Sally smiled. "I'm glad you like them."

"I know Al will be thrilled. When do you think you can have them ready?"

"I think I can have them made within a month," Sally replied. "Though if I push myself, I could have them done within a week or two."

"Oh no, you have enough to do. Just take your time with the dresses. Besides, Jack will have a spaz attack if you're all stressed out before the wedding. "

"You have a point. Jack has been a little on edge himself since he proposed."

"A little?" Will gave a dry smile that made Sally giggle. "Okay, I won't ask, but I will warn you. When the wedding gets closer, your man is going to be really high-strung."

"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me."

"So, to avoid having two stressed out newlyweds, what time estimate can you really give me on the dresses?"

Sally looked over her designs again. She did not have much to do, but these designs would take her time. "Alright, I can have them ready by the end of next month. Would that work?"

"That's perfect!" Will noted it in her planner. "Okay, so we got our basic schedule down. Al and I can come for the fitting the morning you finish the dresses, and then I think we can schedule our final fitting for two days before the wedding day. That way we'll be able to take you out for some shopping and your bachelorette party."

"Bachelor what?"

"Bachelorette party," Will corrected. "It's a party the bridesmaids throw for the bride, like a celebration for your last night as a single lady."

"If you say so. Did we get everything covered?"

"I think that's about all we can do for now," Will said. She shuffled a stack of papers together together before turning to write in her planner. "Gotta say, this went a lot better than last time we tried making plans."

"I remember you were the one who got us off topic."

"Hey, I didn't tell Jack to chase you all over the backyard for a little flirting and kissing. That's all on you, Miss Sally."

Sally tried to look cross, but she could not stop from laughing, and it ended up with her nose wrinkling. It reminded Will of an angry bunny and made her laugh.

"Do you want to pick this up tomorrow?" Will asked, begging to pack up her things.

"That sounds fine. I don't think I could come up with anymore ideas today," Sally said, getting up from the table. She stretched her limbs before moving toward the stove. She began getting things together to make a pot of tea for when Jack came home, when she remembered Will was still there.

"Would you care for some tea, Will?"

"Sure…" Will was just adding some last minute notes to her planner before setting everything aside. Then she let herself relax.

"I'll make copies at home and bring them tomorrow for you and Jack to go over. Then we can schedule for when you want to get all this out together. Oh! And don't let me forget to talk to Jack about setting up an account for you guys so I can pick up wedding stuff, and for our shopping trip."

"Will, wouldn't it be better to go at night?" Sally asked.

"I thought about that. I would love to see the mall after hours, but Al wouldn't go for it. She's not a fan of the dark, remember?"

"I guess you have a point."

"Exactly. Still, I definitely want to go. I still find it hard to believe the malls become open to monsters and ghosts after hours. We need to go one of these days, just you and me."

"I still don't understand why you need me to come." Sally recalled Will mentioning wanting to take her shopping for the honeymoon. Jack was keeping the destination a secret, but apparently he confided in Will so she could help pack for the trip. Still, the idea of shopping for clothes when she could just make her own seemed a little unnecessary.

"Well, for one thing, you're the bride," Will said, "and it would be nice to have your input on things we buy for your wedding. Another thing, I need help wrangling Al when it comes that other shopping we talked about."

Sally felt her face get very warm. She started searching for the tea cups, needing a distraction. "A-Are you sure we need to do that?"

Will laughed. "Sorry Sally, but Al ain't budging when it comes to looking good for the wedding night. And believe me, you would rather go through the humiliation of picking out lingerie for yourself than have Al choosing for you. Knowing her, she either put you in anything and everything with lace, something red and tiny-tight, or something in black leather with a spiked dog collar and a bullwhip."

The cups fell from Sally's hands. Luckily, she was still at the counter so nothing broke. As she gathered the cups, Sally swore her whole face had to be a completely different color. The mental picture of her in something so, so… Risqué… It was completely out of her comfort zone. It did not even come close to it.

Seeing her distress, Will took pity on Sally. She stood up from the table and gave her rag doll friend a hug.

"Don't get too flustered, okay? No way I'd let Al go that crazy for your wedding. Or any wedding other then her own for that matter." Will laughed and walked back to her seat. "That's why when it's my turn, I'm packing an extra suitcase for my honeymoon, and sending it to the hotel ahead of time because Al would just steal it and replace all my clothes with frilly underwear."

"Oh! Well, I definitely wouldn't want that." They both laughed before Sally turned her attention back to the tea. Things were quiet for a moment. Then it was broken by the sound of the kettle whistling. While she added the herbs, Sally kept mulling over Will's words.

"So… You've thought about things like that?" she asked, pouring the tea into two cups. "About getting married?"

"Well, yeah, who hasn't?" Will retorted. "I like to think every girl dreams of finding Mr. Right, having a dream wedding, and settling down. Why?"

"It's just that you've never spoken about having a dearest friend. I… I guess I just assumed you didn't want something like that."

Will was quiet for a moment.

Sally grabbed the cups and walked back to the table. She placed on in front of her friend before taking her seat. She then waited until Will felt ready to talk.

"It's not like I don't want to," Will said, running her finger over the rim of her cup. "I mean, I have no problem talking to guys, but when Kat or Al try to fix me up on a date, I want nothing to do with it. Plus, whenever I meet a guy, I automatically friend zone him, so that's no help."

"Friend zone?"

"You know, only being friends and not more than friends. Make sense?"

"I think so." Sally took a sip of her tea. Apparently, this was what Psyche meant when she explain Will would not open up her heart. It sounded to her that Will was not doing it on purpose. She simply had not found the right person to make her want to have a relationship. And if her friends kept pushing her, then Will might decide to give up.

"I'm probably being hypocritical," Will said. "I mean, I'm not interested in dating, yet Al usually comes to me for boy advice, despite my lack of experience. Not to mention all the pushing I did to help you and Jack."

Sally nodded. "The mistletoe was a bit obvious."

"No kidding, and it still took him till Christmas to get the hint," Will added, making both of them laugh.

"Though, seriously, how did you keep things interesting after I went home? I mean, I seem to recall a certain dolly telling me a few things while she was stitching together a red suit."

Now Sally was blushing. "You are never letting me forget that, are you?"

"To be fair, I was digging for information to help clear Jack's dense skull. Though seems Jack needs a courageous heroine taking charge to catch his eye than her friend dropping hints."

"I don't think I'm that courageous."

"As Jack would say, 'now don't be modest,'" Will quoted, lowering her voice to sound like Jack. "After all, 'who else is clever enough.' Not to mention you went into Oogie's lair all alone to save Santa Claus." She shivered. "I still get creeped out that pervert was all over your leg. Please tell me you boiled it after we left."

"Not the best idea, but at least it distracted Oogie…for a little while…"

"Sadly yes… How'd Jack handle that anyway?" Will asked. "I know you were apprehensive about telling him about the Doc and the nightshade thing, but that would seem easy compared to the Oogie distraction."

Sally cleared her throat. "Uh, let's just say Jack wasn't pleased and leave it at that."

"I would imagine so," Will noted, taking another sip of her tea. "But in any case, it's good to know your relationship is strong enough that things like that don't bother you. I think its great you can be so open with each other."

"Well, it wasn't always that way," Sally admitted.

"Come again?" Will's head perked up, one eyebrow raised. "I mean, I get you had to first meet and all, but I figured you liked him since day one."

"I did like him, but I didn't fall in love with Jack the first time we met," Sally corrected. "Remember, I told you about that."

"Yeah, I remember: It was a year before Jack's Christmas fiasco, and Oogie ordered Lock, Shock, and Barrel to kidnap Jack so he could take over Halloween Town, but for some reason they mistook you for Jack. Don't see how though. You both may be the tallest in town, but you got curves, plus you're way prettier." Will have her a wink. "But you said you had a crush on him then?"

Sally smiled and shook her head. "Yes, well, aside from that… I had heard about him from the Doctor and a few whispers in town around that time, even though I had only recently been created. Everyone just talked so highly of him. I wanted to meet him for myself."

"So you were a fan girl!" Will laughed. "Haha, that's too good."

"Anyway… After he rescued me and Halloween went as planned, Jack came by the following day. I'll admit, I was surprised."

Doctor Finklestein's Laboratory, November 1…

Knock, knock!

"Sally, get the door!" the Doctor ordered. He was bust with an experiment and could not be bothered.

"Yes, sir." Sally bustled down the ramp. She went carefully so not to slip and fall, walking with one foot in a black heeled show and the other in a ratty slippers she found. She never used the slippers before, but they were better than walking around with one shoe or in her socks. She had spent all morning trying to find her shoe, checking every place she could think of. Then she realized it must have fallen off when those three odd children kidnapped her. She thought about asking the Doctor for a new pair, but then changed her mind at the last minute. The Doctor was working on an important experiment and did not want to bothered. Besides, he would only scold her for being so careless.

"I'm coming." She finally reached the door and opened it. "Oh!"

Standing there, tall and dapper as he was the night before, Jack Skellington smiled down at her.

"Well, hello there," he greeted.

"H-Hello."

"Well, this is a surprise. You're just the person I needed to see."

"Me?!" Sally could not believe her ears. Meeting the Pumpkin King last night after he rescued her from that awful boogieman had been almost a dream. She would have thought it all one too, had it not been for her missing shoe. And now here he was, Jack Skellington, standing at the door specifically asking for her. She could hardly breath, not that she needed to.

Jack chuckled. "Yes, Sally. You see, with all the fuss and celebration yesterday, I never got the chance to return something of yours," he said. "I found it during my investigation of the bug invasion. Apparently, many of the citizens lost things in all the confusion. I tried to find you after the Halloween party, but you seemed to have disappeared."

"Oh, I'm sorry. The Doctor was tired and wanted to return to the lab."

"Now, now. No need to apologize. I understand the Doctor would want to retire after the festivities, and I didn't want to disturb you at such a late hour. That's why I came by this morning."

"Well, okay. umm… What is it, exactly?"

Jack smiled and reached into his inner jacket pocket. When he withdrew his hand, he held a small little black shoe. "I believe this is yours."

"Where did you find that?"

"It was in one of the back alleyways."

"Oh, thank you so much. They're my only pair. I'm not sure what I would've done without it."

"Sally! Who's at the door!"

"Oh dear, I better get going." Sally turned back to Jack with an apologetic smile. "Sorry but I better go before he gets angry."

Sally took her shoe and stepped back inside. She tried to swap her shoes while standing, but the task proved difficult as her legs wobbled. She was in too much of a hurry. Then Sally remembered an old bench near the kitchen she could use to swap her shoe for her slipper. As she sat down to remove the slipper, she startled by a tall thin shadow standing over her.

"Allow me to be of assistance."

"Oh, you don't have…" But Jack had bent down to one knee and picked up her left foot. He then slipped off her slipper before holding out his hand for her shoe. Too paralyzed to respond, Sally held out the shoe. Their fingers brushed slightly before Jack slipped the shoe onto her foot and released his hand from her ankle.

"There now," Jack said. "Much better."

"Aww! That's so cute, like when Cinderella got her glass slipper back," Will said. She had been leaning over the table as Sally told the story, the tea long forgotten.

"I was completely surprised he did that," Sally continued. "I never blushed before, though Jack said I looked adorable, making both of us laugh."

"So, is that when you fell hopelessly in love with him?"

"No, it was a little later. I wanted to walk out to the graveyard for more herbs, but I wasn't allowed then. That was the first time I had used nightshade on Dr. Finklestein." Sally bit her lip as she recalled how she had used too much nightshade that first time, and the Doctor had been so angry because he lost a full day's work.

"When I went to get the herbs I happened to come upon Jack playing fetch with Zero," she continued. "Zero came to greet me and dropped one of Jack's ribs in my hand for me to throw. I was a little embarrassed at the time, but not nearly as bad as Jack. It was the first time anyone other than he or Zero had touched one of his bones."

"Ooo! Scandalous." Will winked.

"Anyway, after that, we walked through the graveyard a bit. Jack showed me where to find some of the herbs I was looking for, and I found a few he never knew were there. I remember we talked for a long time. Jack told me some stories from his previous Halloweens, though he seemed less enthusiastic about them. There were other times after that I got to have those talks with him. I always enjoyed being with Jack whenever I could, and over time, I got to know the real him, not just the infamous Pumpkin King. I've always had feeling for Jack, but I think, in a way, it was that day with my shoe that made me begin to fall in love."

"I'd like to think so," Will said. She stood up and poured them each another cup of tea. "It would be better than when he rescued you. Not that the idea isn't romantic, but it's a little cliché."

"And yet it was the second time he saved me that I was able to tell Jack how I felt."

"Just try not to make a habit of it, okay?" Will teased.

"I think three times is enough," Sally replied, making Will laugh. She took her seat and stirred her tea quietly for a moment.

"So…"

"So what?" Sally asked, taking a sip from her cup.

"So… What was it like when you two started dating?" Will asked with a devilish grin. "I gotta know, especially if Jack was that cute before."

Sally laughed. "Not easy, I can assure you. Between planning Halloween and trying to meet with the other Holiday Leaders, Jack and I had quite a few dates. Though none of them worked out quite as Jack planned."

"Oh, do tell!"

"Let me tell you about our first Valentine's Day together. It was going well, until Jack found these Moonflowers…"

XXX

AN: Okay, sorry about the late update, but hope you enjoy this new chapter. For those of you wondering, yes, I am tying in Moonstruck into this, so be on the look out for any tie-ins to some of my other NBC stories. Until next time, have a good day, and please leave a review.