Another Nightmare before Christmas song cameos here, and I hope you enjoy!
It seemed as if one big Halloween party suddenly kicked off on the streets of Bonesborough. Now that the streetlights, as well as the holiday lights that had been put up, were now lit, Luz, Eda and the others could now see the citizens of Halloween Town emerge. A ghoulish looking band appeared, playing an equally jazzy and eeire tune.
Eda chuckled as she listened to the music. "If we see Raine, remind me to tell them about these guys. Something tells me they would get along just fine."
Luz only nodded in response as she looked around the plaza, taking in the sights around her. "Wow...is it like this every year?"
"Pretty much" King replied, "Well, aside from the weird, festive looking stuff; that's all new. But the whole spooky stuff, the weird folks, the music, that's all pretty much a thing here these nights."
Hunter looked equally amazed. "I-I've never seen any of this before. Kind of happens when you're Golden Guard."
"Well, welcome to Halloween on the Boiling Isles, kiddo." Eda told him, patting his shoulder.
"Wait, does Belos even celebrate Halloween?" Luz asked.
Hunter only shrugged. "To be honest, I'm not even sure he knows this holiday exists, at least, not that he's told me."
"Yeah, sounds about right." Eda said.
Amity was the one to bring the team back to the mission at hand. "Anyways, how exactly are we going to bring Jack to us? We'll need to be somewhere that's maybe a little less crowded to get him to scare us."
Eda smirked. "Oh, that's easy. We just go to the Fright Zone."
King looked at Eda in disbelief. "You can't be serious?!"
Luz's eyes widened. "The what?!"
Eda explained that the celebration separates the town into different sections. The area they were in at the moment was the Main Square, where the more festive events, like music and dance, where held. The Fright Zone was the section where witches could go to attempt to scare others...or test their nerve against the frightful skill of Halloween Town's residents and the witches attempting to scare. It was there that Eda frightened others as a kid as well as had her beforementioned encounter with Jack himself.
"No better place to show how terrifying you really are than there." Eda said in conclusion, "something Jack is a master of, as you may recall."
"Makes sense to me." Amity said, "Though I'll admit, I myself have never been there. Mom always thought any of us scaring people would 'put a bad image on the family'."
"Yet, she's letting you come with us?" Luz asked.
Amity opened her mouth to respond, but hesitated. "Actually...I haven't seen Mom since Jack appeared earlier. Once the lights came back on, she was gone. Meanwhile my dad went to talk with some weird looking scientist guy in a wheelchair. Ed and Em...who knows where they are."
"Yeah, that's not suspicious at all." Eda said sarcastically, concerned that Odalia was planning something rather unpleasant, as she usually did.
"So wait, you've never spent a Halloween with your family?" Luz asked with a hint of concern.
Amity shook her head. "Not really. Like I said, my Mom never let us do much."
Luz put a comforting hand on the witch's shoulder. "Well, at least you got us now, right?"
Amity looked back at Luz before her saddened face was replaced with a warm smile. However, that smile turned to confusion as something else caught her eye, and she looked past Luz to see an unusual looking creature with tentacles for hair and a very round lower jaw, waving to them from nearby. Curious, Amity pointed him out to the rest of the team. "Is he waving to us?"
Hunter followed her gaze. "I think so."
"Oh, I remember that guy. I've seen him before in previous years." Eda said.
"Yeah, but he's never randomly waved at us before." King added.
"I'll admit, that is a first. Hmmm...I wonder what he wants."
She then realized that the kids had already made their way over there and attempted to weave through the crowd after them, cursing herself for not paying more attention in that moment.
Meanwhile, Luz, Amity, and Hunter finally reached the stand where the creature was.
"Were you waving at us?" Amity asked.
"Indeed, I was." The creature replied, "More specifically, though, I was waving to you." he gestured to Luz. "I've never seen a human in this realm before, and seeing you here sparked my curiosity."
Luz nervously chuckled. "Yeah, that's a long story. I'm Luz, by the way."
"I am the Harlequin Demon of Halloween Town. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Luz."
The two shook hands as Hunter spoke up. "Wait, if you're from Halloween Town, shouldn't you be...I don't know, scaring people? I'm sorry, this is my first real Halloween here."
The Harlequin Demon simply chuckled. "Well, not all of us scare on Halloween. I do sometimes, but this year, I'm showing off another art of mine."
"Which is?" Luz asked.
Harlequin spread his arms in a wide gesture. "Why, hats of course! I'm quite the genius when it comes to them, something I didn't discover until many years ago."
"Wow, that's actually pretty cool." Luz admitted, "Y'know, this may be my first Halloween on the Boiling Isles, and I gotta say, it seems really fun so far!"
This seemed to please Harlequin very much. "Well, I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. Tell you what, since this is your first Halloween on the Isles. I'll let you be the first to try one of my hats. Which would you like: bat, cat, or rat?"
The options confused the kids momentarily, but after a few moments of thinking, Luz decided on bat. Harlequin then measured her head before pulling a ball of black fur out and flattening it with a mallet. Luz could see a pair of bat wings as well as Harlequin molded the lump of fur with his hands and humming to himself. After a few moments, it was done, and Luz found herself wearing a rather fine-looking black fur hat with bat wings sticking out from the back.
"Wow" Amity gasped, trying very hard not to blush, "You look great."
"That is pretty impressive." Hunter agreed.
Eda finally made it through the crowd at this time, smirking when she saw Luz's new hat. "Lookin sharp, kiddo."
"I love it!" Luz said before looking to the Harlequin Demon, "You should be proud of your work."
Harlequin simply chuckled. "Oh, you're too kind. If you want to give it some more flair, almost any trinket around here will do."
That reminded Eda of her surprise to Luz, and she pulled it out now. "Like this?"
Luz looked to see Eda holding an amulet of an owl with golden jewel eyes and with its wings outstretched. "Woah, where did you get that?"
"I got it earlier today as a surprise for you, Luz. Happy first Halloween on the Isles."
Eda handed Luz the amulet, which gleamed in the light of both the moon as well as the streetlamps.
Luz looked back up at Eda with a warm smile before hugging her. "Thank you, Eda."
The hug caught Eda off guard, and she only chuckled as she returned the embrace. "Ah, it was nothing."
After pulling back from the hug, Luz placed the amulet on the front of her hat. Surprisingly, the amulet seemed to stick to the fur well, probably by some kind of magic.
"Amazing" Luz marveled.
Suddenly, King jumped down from Eda's shoulder. "Wait, if that guy's from Halloween Town, than maybe he could help us find...you know...him!"
Hunter looked confused. "He could?"
Harlequin let out a hearty laugh. "Oh, I get it, you're looking for ol' Jack, aren't you?"
"Eda has been for years, we're just helping." Luz explained, "We thought he might be in the Fright Zone, being the scariest out there and everything."
Harlequin thought for a few moments. "I don't know where he is exactly, but you seem to be at a good start; Jack does spend most of his time there. But I will warn you, he likes to wander around occasionally and see how things are going throughout the whole town. He always was one for admiring his handiwork, after all."
"Noted. Well, thanks for the help." Amity said.
"Alright, let's move, kids! The sooner we go, the sooner we get to him before Lilith's team does, and I'm not losing to her on this one." Eda said. The group bid their farewells to the Harlequin Demon and turned to leave, when Luz, getting another idea, suddenly went back to him, this time placing a few snails on the table.
"Could you make a cat hat, please. It's for someone special."
Moments later, Luz ran back to reunite with the group, carrying a small bag under her arm.
"What's that?" Amity asked.
"A secret." Luz quickly replied, patting the fur on her bat hat, "These Halloween people all seem so nice. It's hard to believe they'd actually scare people for fun."
"Oh, just you wait, Luz" King replied, "When it comes to scaring, these guys mean business. I remember my first Halloween a lot more vividly than I want to."
He shuddered before Eda chuckled at him. "Ah yes, poor little King was pretty terrified first time around. Refused to get out of my hair within the first few minutes. He's right though, these people are pretty great, but that's only because you haven't seen their flip side."
Some ways behind the group, a familiar owl head was peeking out far above the crowd, spying on Eda's team before retracting down to a birdhouse backpack worn by Lilith, she had secretly brought him along.
"I found them, Lulu!" Hooty whispered, pointing with his head, "They went that way!"
"Good work, Hootcifer." Lilith said patting his head, "Then that's where we go too!"
"Um, why are we following them?" Willow asked, "Shouldn't we go somewhere else like we were about to?"
"That's what I wanted her to think" Lilith explained, "Edalyn has (amazingly), studied the Pumpkin King far more than I have, meaning she'll know the best places to look. If we follow her, we have a better chance at finding him ourselves."
"We should stay farther back" Gwendolyn advised, "At least enough to be hidden."
Gus cleared his throat before putting on a smug grin twirling his finger, wreathed in blue energy. "Did someone say hidden?"
"Good thinking, Gus!" Willow said, smiling at her friend. Moments later, Lilith and her team followed behind Eda, concealed by Gus's illusion magic.
...
Elsewhere, Eda's team was being watched through the scrying pool seen before. As the shadowy figure watched, the pool's image zoomed in on Luz. Yes, this person seemed most interesting indeed. Suddenly, a nearby door opened as three small figures entered: one dressed as a devil, the second as a witch, and the third as a skeleton.
"New delivery!" the witch one announced.
"These ones look pretty good." the devil added.
The figure in the shadows chuckled. "Right on time, but let's see if they hold up like I want them too. Bring 'em in!"
The three costumed kids opened the door wider, allowing multiple abomatons to walk through in unison, stopping once they were all inside. The shadow figure cackled in glee as he looked over each one.
"Now these look like some FINE specimens." he said, "I'll make sure they know what to do, but in the meantime, I have a special job for you, Lock, Shock, and Barrel. Check this out!"
The costumed trio walked over to the pool and looked into it.
"Is that a human?" Lock asked.
"In the Isles, too!" Shock added.
"But how?" Barrel asked.
"No idea" the shadow admitted, "Crazier yet, I can sense magic on her!
Shock gasped, "A human witch!"
"Very interesting" Lock chuckled.
The shadow paused, as if to think, "Hmmm, tell you what, she would make the perfect test for some of my latest...inventions. Heck, this might be one of the final pieces I need for my big show."
The trio evily giggled at that before the shadow continued. "So, how bout you three go and fetch her for me? Alive and in one piece too, please. I'm gonna need the whole thing for this to work."
Lock, Shock, and Barrel gave a small salute in unison before walking out of the room towards their part of the hideout. As the shadow continued to watch Luz and the others, he could hear singing echoing throughout the hideout as the three tricksters prepared to head out:
Kidnap the human witch!
Lock her up real tight!
Throw away the key and then, turn off all the lights!
Kidnap the human witch!
Tie her in a bag!
Throw her in our lair and then,
See if she is sad!
Because Mr. Oogie Boogie is the meanest guy around.
If I were on his boogie list, I'd get out of town!
The trio continued to sing about a rather extensive list of unpleasant things they wanted to do to the human witch as they departed in their walking tub, causing the shadowy figure to burst into devious laughter. He couldn't help it; those three were the best troublemakers around, and he loved nothing more than to cause trouble. Soon, his biggest trick yet would be unveiled, and he relished the very thought of unveiling it. Moving over to a shelf, he picked through a pile of scrolls, all of them having magic seals.
"Let's see here..." he murmured to himself, "No...no...too boring...not quite...ah ha!"
He finally pulled one out, this one having an orange seal. "Perfect. Ooooo, I tremble with anticipation at the very thought of letting this bad boy loose! Have your fun while you can, witchie girl, becuase ol' Oogie's got a nasty surprise for you and all your little friends!"
Oogie's laughter echoes loudly throughout the entire lair as the camera pans to a corner of his lair...where a group of petrified witches, their faces in a state of horror, stand on full display.
...
Back in Bonesborough, Eda, Luz, King, Hunter, and Amity had finally made it to the Fright Zone. This place was not as well lit as the square had been and chilly fog had descended on the place. Hunter found himself constantly looking from side to side. He couldn't shake the feeling they were being watched by...something.
It was clear the other witches were affected by something similar. Amity shivered, rubbing her arms, which cause Luz to instinctively place her arm around Amity's shoulders.
"So where now?" Luz asked Eda.
The Owl Lady didn't seem as affected by the chilling atmosphere as the others, though King had ducked in her hair moments earlier. Eda rubbed her chin as she looked around.
"Well," she finally said, "I say we started with the haunted maze. That's where most of the scaring gets done here."
Hunter's eyes widened, "Haunted?"
Luz looked at Hunter in confusion. "You're scared by that? I thought you would've seen all kinds of crazy stuff as the Guard."
"Yeah, but nothing like this, ok?" Hunter quickly protested, "Look, let's just keep going. I don't like the feel of this place."
"For once, I agree" Amity said, still shivering, "It's giving me the creeps."
Eda chuckled. "Ah, you kids, it's just some fog, it's what's in the fog you gotta worry about. Come on, now!"
The Owl Lady hummed to herself as she led the kids to the maze entrance, though she found it harder to deny that she too was beginning to feel the chill. Luz kept a comforting hand on Amity's shoulder.
Suddenly, Amity's eyes widened, and she gasped, causing the rest of the group to stop and follow her gaze. There, a singular orange light shone in the fog, seeming to just hover there nearby, watching them.
"What is that?" Luz asked in a hushed voice.
Before anyone could answer, the light vanished. Luz wasn't sure of her ears were playing tricks on her, but she could've sworn she heard a dog's yip as the light vanished.
"Well, that was...weird." Eda remarked, "Oh well. Anyways, we're close now."
Suddenly, a man's yell could be heard, but this voice seemed more frustrated than angry.
Hunter perked up. "Wait, I recognize that voice. Is that...?"
The group finally made it to a large black gate leading into a stone labyrinth, snow covering the top of the stone walls. Right outside these gates, a man with dark skin, purple abomination hair, and purple attire appeared to yell into an empty barrel.
"Darius?" Hunter said.
The man suddenly looked up at the mention of his name. "What!?"
Seeing who had said his name, his expression turned into surprise. "Oh. Hunter? You're all the way out here."
"Pretty much, yeah, but boy, this place is eerie."
"Ugh, agreed" Darius groaned, "In fact it seemed a little too eerie for my compatriot!"
This last part was directed towards the barrel, where a scuffling noise was heard before an orange, furry face belonging to Eberwolf popped out, muttering a few sounds at Darius before ducking back in.
"And you called me the scared one when we got here!" the abomination coven leader said before turning back to Hunter and the gang, "One little spook and he made a beeline back out here. Unbelievable."
"You need any help getting him out?" Amity offered.
"I'll be fine, thank you." Darius bluntly replied, "Good luck in there though. The King seems to have gotten some new tricks this time around."
The group wished Darius luck before walking over to the entrance, staring into the dark paths of the maze. Amity, Luz, and Hunter, all gripped each other's hands tightly. Eda stood in front of them, taking some deep breaths to ready herself.
"Ready, kids?" she asked.
There were a few moments of silence before Luz answered, "As we'll ever be, I guess."
Eda simply nodded. "Alright. It's go time."
With that, the group walked through, vanishing into the fog as they entered the maze, unaware of another shadow ducking in after them only a few minutes later.
Let me know what you think so far!