~The Snake Charmer~

The merry group of trick-or-treaters was having the time of their lives. They hadn't yet reached their first stop, but they would soon, and they were basking in their own fearless glory. Right now, there was absolutely nothing that would be able to tear them apart.

"That way is the right way! I'm sure of it!" Alois argued.

"All you've been doing is getting us lost! We're going that way!" Ciel countered.

"That way is wrong! My way will help us reach civilization!"

"Which way is civilization, because I know it isn't that way!"

As much as Ciel and Alois were friends, they still continued to fight, and the girls were usually the ones who had to sit back and watch, and it always annoyed them. Lizzie had enough politeness in her to hide her annoyance, however, Sieglinde was quite the opposite. She would tolerate it for a little while, but one she got really tired of it, she intervened. Luckily for the boys, she wasn't at that point yet. The key word being yet. She rolled her eyes to herself and turned to Lizzie.

"What do you want to do while these idiots are arguing?"

Lizzie shifted her eyes back to the arguing boys and then shifted them to Sieglinde. "What I really want to do is make it to our first stop. The night is still young, so we really should be getting things done."

Sieglinde only sighed, realizing that they would have to stop the boys from fighting for that to happen. "Which way do you think we should go?"

Lizzie looked around at the two paths that they could chose from. One on the left and the other on the right. "Well, they both seem like equal choices. Maybe we should just take one. What do you think?"

Sieglinde examined the two paths. "We should probably take the path that will lead us to our first stop. I'll see if I can sense anything up ahead."

The young witch casually walked past the arguing boys who didn't seem to notice her, and started examining the paths in search for their first stop. The path on the right, the one Ciel was arguing for, didn't seem to have anything strange along it, but the path on the left, the one Alois was arguing for, had some sort of strange presence that Sieglinde was able to pick up immediately. "We should go that way."

Those very words were what stopped the great war of the best friends. "What?" They both asked in unison.

"That path has a spiritual presence. Of course we have to take it."

Alois gave Ciel one of his signature 'I told you so' smirks. Ciel only scoffed. Now that all the fighting was over, the group of four made their way down the path. "So Sieglinde, what exactly did you sense down this path?" Lizzie asked.

"I'm not sure. The energy was mischievous, but not at all malevolent. It was also very playful and curious."

Lizzie smiled. "Oh? Well then, I can't wait to meet them."

The moon hadn't even reached it's high point in the sky, meaning that the night was still young and the group of friends still had a lot of trick-or-treating left to do. They had heard on the news that tonight was supposed to be the night of a blood moon, which would make the night seem even scarier. The blood moon was only one of the things that had inspired Alois to bring them all there. It was supposed to be a night of fun and a night of ghouls and ghosts.

Halloween was, after all, the day of the year when spirits were supposed to leave their world and walk the Earth. It had originated centuries ago. Legend had it, that people would leave treats on their porches for the spirits, but if no treats were given, the spirits would play a trick on those who lived inside the house. They now realized that there was actually truth to that legend, except they weren't sure about that last part.

The spirits of this forest hadn't seemed like the type to play tricks. In fact, they were the ones giving out the treats. Then again, they hadn't met any of them yet, so they really couldn't know for sure. According to the news, the lunar eclipse wouldn't happen till midnight. They hadn't yet reached their destination, since it seemed to be farther away than they had first thought.

"Are you guys excited for the lunar eclipse tonight?" Alois asked, trying to start a conversation.

"What are the odds that a lunar eclipse would end up happening on the one day of the year when it looks the most appropriate?" Sieglinde wondered.

"Apparently, one hundred percent." Alois answered.

"The lunar eclipse isn't our biggest problem right now, you know."

"I know, but I really think that we should talk about something else."

Lizzie thought to herself. "Let's see, I think the last lunar eclipse we had was six months ago. It's been awhile."

Alois nodded. "Yes, and it's especially perfect for tonight."

"Hang on a second. I'm sensing a presence. We're coming closer to our first stop of the night." Sieglinde pointed out.

The other three looked around. "Where is it?" Lizzie asked.

"Right up ahead. Just keep going a little further." They really couldn't see anything, but still, they complied and went on ahead.

Once they had supposedly reached their destination, they stopped and looked around. "It's supposed to be around here somewhere." Sieglinde said.

Ciel didn't notice as a snake appeared behind him from a nearby tree. It hissed in his ear, and he let out a scream. "GYYYAAAA!"

He jumped and turned around, to find a coral snake hanging from a tree. As the group observed the scene, they could make out the shape of a figure in the shadows. It seemed to be a person with fair blonde hair and skin that seemed to be that of a snake. There were a couple of snakes around his shoulders and there were others hanging from the tree. One of the snakes, the coral snake from before, stuck her head out. The person in the shadows spoke with a high voice.

"Hello, my name is Emily, and the one translating for us is Snake. He is the only one who can speak to us. What are you children doing out in these woods on Halloween night? Asks Emily."

Three of them were speechless, except for one very curious young witch. "Oh my gosh! You can speak to snakes!? That is so cool!"

Another snake, one with a green scaled pattern, slid out into the light. The person, Snake, changed from a high octave to another accent entirely. "Why of course he can. He is half snake after all. Now, I'll bet that you kids already know that the only way outa' here is to get enough candy, ain't that right? Asks Oscar."

Ciel nodded. "Y-Yes, we are already aware of that."

Another snake, this one larger with a brown pattern, slid into the light. Snake stopped using the accent and spoke in a deeper octave. "You must be careful. This forest is can be especially dangerous. I'm sure you've already heard of the forest demon. Says Wordsworth."

Lizzie nodded and spoke. "Well, yes, we have heard of it. We were hoping that we could avoid it."

Emily was the next one to speak. "Don't worry dear children. We wouldn't even think of telling the demon of your presence. We're not very fond of him anyway. He always scares away the trick-or-treaters, so we usually don't get any. Says Emily."

Oscar sighed. "We look forward to it every year. We've got more candy than we know what to do with and it all goes to waste. Says Oscar."

"If there are more of you spirits roaming around the forest and only one demon, then why don't you all just rise up against him? He would be outnumbered." Ciel pointed out.

Another snake, a pure white one, peaked it's head out of the darkness. "He's too powerful. We would never last. We would be grounded into submission and be forced to flee. And we really like it here. Says Keats."

Another snake with a golden scale pattern was next to speak. "If I could, I would take that demon by the neck and squeeze the power out of him. Says Webster."

"It seems this demon is unwanted by you forest spirits." Alois observed.

Emily sighed. "He is a tyrant who only cares about the souls of his victims. He will only let us have trick-or-treaters if we allow him to claim their souls. Says Emily."

Upon hearing those words, Lizzie shuddered with fear. "Oh, I am sorry child, I did not mean to frighten you. We would never give you away to the demon. In fact, we will do everything we can to make sure that the demon does not get to you. Says Emily."

Lizzie had to assume that if one of the most feared species of reptile on the planet was on her side, then very little could go wrong. That must have been one of the benefits of being a snake charmer. A snake with white scales and orange spots spoke up next.

"What kind of forest spirits would we be if we couldn't protect trick-or-treaters? Says Bronte."

Lizzie sucked up her courage and nodded. "Alright then."

Lizzie was starting to feel more confident about continuing on this escapade, knowing that all of the spirits had a common enemy and that they wouldn't let anyone fall victim of said enemy.

"Y'all had better hurry before the blood moon, because that's when-" Snake, voicing Oscar, didn't finish the sentence.

"When what?" Alois asked.

"N-Never mind, y'all don't need to be worryin' about it. Says Oscar."

The entire group could tell that Snake was withholding something, but they didn't think that it was necessary to ask what it was. "Now children, what are the magic words? Asks Emily."

The four of them shouted in unison. "Trick-or-Treat!"

All of a sudden, something occurred to Ciel. "Wait a second, we don't even have bags to put the candy in."

Alois smirked. "Not to worry, I brought some just in case."

He started passing pillowcases around, and soon, everyone had something to carry candy in. They each held out their bags while the snakes started handing out candy, one piece at a time. After the passing out was finished, the snakes all gave their fond farewells.

"Goodbye dear children, and remember to have fun! Says Emily."

"See y'all later! Says Oscar."

"Be careful of the dangerous monsters! Says Webster."

"Don't stray too far from the path! Says Bronte."

"Make sure to get more candy! Says Wordsworth."

After all the goodbyes were said and done and the group of friends had walked off, Snake sighed. That was the first time that he and his snakes have had trick-or-treaters in years. It was always fun, but they always had their souls stolen by the demon in the end, and Snake was sincerily wishing that the same fate wouldn't befall them.

They had lost too many trick-or-treaters already. True, there were some who came back out, but they were never the same. Snake wanted to avoid that this time. He wondered what it would be like if the demon just left the forest and left them all at peace. It was because of him that the forest had developed such a reputation. As Snake stared in the direction the group left, lost in his thoughts, he could only sigh. "Stay safe."