So, I've decided I want to try to do a Halloween or Halloween-ish installment of each of my verses. So it'll be this one, "Starting Over", "Don't you cry no more", "Chosen" and "My Two Dads". I want to try to keep them a little different. So far, all I got ideas for was this story and "Don't you cry no more".

If you have any prompts for the rest, please leave them on the respective stories or my tumblr, just so I can try to keep them all organized!

Damon nearly forgets what holiday is on the horizon until a knock-off Spirit Halloween store opens up in town. Little by little, the square is decorated with pumpkins and festive, cheesy scarecrows. The Grill starts offering apple and pumpkin spice flavored foods and drinks. All things Damon could do without, but there's one aspect he looks forward to.

"I don't do Halloween," Stefan points out when Damon broaches the subject as they have dinner at The Grill. "You know that."

"Big Stefan doesn't, but I think Little Stefy might."

Stefan rolls his eyes. "I doubt I do, even when I'm small."

"How do you know? This is your first Halloween since I came back into your life."

"Both sides of me tend to be on the same wavelength. I hate my birthday, even when I'm little."

"Didn't you dress up for Bonnie's party?"

"That wasn't Halloween. Plus, the whole concept of trick-or-treating is weird. All year long, you tell me not to talk to strangers. Now, you want me ringing doorbells and asking for candy?"

Damon scoffs, shaking his head. "Only you could warp a wholesome tradition into something it's not."

"We don't even know that I'll drop that night. If I do, we can just play or watch movies. Whatever we do any other night."

"Will you at least help me pass out candy?"

"Now we're giving candy away?"

Damon rolls his eyes. "You're seriously no fun."

"Never claimed to be," Stefan says, sipping his hot chocolate.

In spite of the conversation, the next day, Damon finds himself at the costume shop. He surveys the Little collection. There's a variety of options from superheroes to every single Disney princess. They have costumes of classic 80s and 90s cartoons. As much as Damon tries to limit Stefan's screen time, he knows his brother watches a fair bit of TV. It helps keep him busy in council meetings. If he's super tired, it's the one thing that will keep him from running around cranky. Damon's done feeling guilty about all that. TV won't harm him. Now, however, it means there's too many options of things Stefan would like.

His brother already has a few dress up outfits, including a Spider-Man costume and a Cinderella dress. Damon figures those could be options if Stefan changes his mind, but he wants to get him a few more. Damon selects a Belle dress along with an updated version of the Spider-Man costume.

Towards the back, just past the cliche pumpkin section, Damon finds the animals. It doesn't take long for him to find what he had in mind.

It's a gray, one piece bunny suit, complete with ears attached to the hood. It comes with a carrot accessory. Damon feels the material, nice and soft. This will keep Stefan warm as the air gets chilly. There's another black bird that's not exactly a crow, but close enough.

He plucks them off the wall and proudly heads to the checkout. Maybe Stefan won't drop. Even if he does, there's a good chance he won't want to go trick-or-treating or dress up. Still, he wants to be prepared. He never wants Stefan to feel like he missed out on something due to his own stubbornness. It's Damon's job as the big brother to think ahead.

Much to Damon's delight, Stefan does indeed drop mid-afternoon on Halloween. Over a snack of blueberries and cottage cheese, little one watches as Damon dumps the candy into a bowl.

"Whatcha doing, DayDay?"

"Getting ready for tonight," Damon replies, grabbing a second bag. "We're going to need lots of candy."

"You never let me eat a lot. You say I'll get a bellyache."

"Well this isn't for us, it's for the trick-or-treaters."

Damon frowns when Stefan's face falls. He walks over to the kitchen table.

"What's wrong?"

"People are gonna get candy?"

"Well, yes, it's Halloween. None of them will come inside. And I'll save some pieces for you."

Stefan's thumb goes near his lips, but he nibbles on his nail rather than sucking the skin. "Is it fun? Getting candy?"

"Well, I've never done it," Damon says. "But it looks like a good time in the movies. Plus, every year the kids seem to have fun." Stefan nods, continuing to nibble on his thumb. "What are you thinking about, Bunny?"

Stefan shrugs. "Dunno."

"I think you do. Can you use your words?"

Stefan twirls his spoon in the cottage cheese. Damon fiddles with his waves.

"Do you maybe want to go trick-or-treating?"

"Don't have a costume," Stefan mumbles.

"You have plenty of dress-up clothes in your trunk. Plus, I had a feeling you might want to go, so I got you a few." Stefan tilts his head. "You don't have to wear it, or any of them if you don't want. But, I think you want to try it, huh?"

Stefan drops his thumb, apprehension in his eyes. "Will there be a lot of people?"

"If we go early, probably not."

"Do I have to go by myself?"

"Bunny Boy, when have I ever let you go anywhere by yourself?" Stefan concedes with a nod. Damon smiles. "Listen, why don't we give it a try? We can go after dinner and start with a few houses. If you're not having any fun, we'll come home. Sound good?"

Stefan continues to twirl his spoon. He opens his mouth, closes it, only to open once more. "'Kay…but just for a little bit."

Damon tries to hold back his excitement. "Do you have any idea what you might like to be?"

Stefan thinks for a minute. "A superhero."

Damon nods. He's glad he selected one of those as an option. Stefan can use the rest during dress-up. "Which one? One of the ones I got you is Spider-Man. You also have Batman, Captain America, Wonder Woman…"

Stefan cuts his big brother off by a shake of the head. "It's a surprise."

Damon arches a brow. "A surprise?"

"Uh huh. You can't know."

Damon makes a face. "But how will I help you get ready?"

"I can do it myself. I'm not a baby."

Damon pauses. He isn't sure exactly what Stefan will concoct. A part of him wants to insist on being clued in. The other reminds him that Stefan was hesitant about this to begin with. If Damon pushes too much, there's a chance he'll change his mind. Besides, what's the worst he could come up with?

"Alright. But if you change your mind, I'm right here."

"'Kay, DayDay. But I won't."

Damon is relieved he chose to have Stefan get dressed after dinner. Caroline had sent him a link to some mommy blog with different Halloween recipes. Originally, he scoffed but after scrolling, found one that wasn't too corny.

Stefan's already a fan of pasta with meatballs. All this did was add mozzarella cheese to the latter, along with olives to make eyes. Luckily, Stefan isn't a picky eater and devoured all of it, having seconds too. He also polishes an entire cup of blood, ensuring he'll have lots of energy for his first Halloween. As it is, he's practically bouncing out of his seat when he sees the cool meal. Damon's already taking pictures, enjoying his messy face. He doesn't have the heart to remind his baby brother to use utensils. Getting to see Stefan so young and carefree is as good for Damon's soul as it is his brothers.

Once Stefan's face (and the kitchen) is cleared up, the little one bolts for the stairs. Damon follows close behind.

"Are you sure you don't want my help?"

Stefan expels an exasperated, dramatic sigh. "DayDayyy, I wanna do it myself! It's a surprise!"

"Okay, okay. Just let me know if I need to zipper or button anything."

"Yes, yes." Stefan holds out a hand. "Stay here." He glances over his shoulder to where Crow flies. "Make sure DayDay stays here."

The bird moves closer as Stefan vamps up the stairs. Damon glances at him.

"You know what it is, don't you?"

Caw

Damon rolls his eyes. "Of course you do. I think you're his diary when he's too little to write."

Stefan takes his sweet time. Damon hops back and forth from one foot to the other. He can't help but be a little disappointed. Damon never cared what costume Stefan chose, but he looked forward to helping him get ready. It's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Still, there's always that tiny dull knife whenever Stefan insists he's independent and doesn't need his big brother.

"Stef, c'mon," he calls out after 15 minutes. "Soon it'll be crowded."

"Comin'!" Stefan hollers.

"Do you need any help?"

"No!"

It's another 5 minutes, but Stefan does make his way down. Damon arches a brow when he sees his brother isn't in a costume. Rather, he wears a gray v-neck under a familiar black leather jacket. His pants are regular, dark wash jeans.

"You're not wearing a costume?"

"Nuh uh, I am."

"That's not Batman," Damon points out.

Stefan shakes his head. "He's not real."

"Okay, well, then which superhero are you?"

"I'm you!"

Damon tilts his head, his heart swelling. Stefan's grinning from ear to ear.

"You're a real superhero," the little brother says. "'Cause you take care of me and you saved me. You don't wear a cape, but Edna from The Incredibles said real heroes don't wear them."

Damon blinks a few times, trying to keep the tears of his eyes. "I'm not a hero, Stef."

"You're my superhero."

Damon swoops him up into his arms, burying his face in Stefan's hair so he won't see him cry. He holds his baby brother close, pressing kisses to his cheeks and forehead. Stefan giggles, swatting at him.

"DayDay, I wanna get my candy!"

Damon sniffles, wiping quickly at his eyes. "Then let's go!"

Damon decides to keep it local. They head to a cul-de-sac with about half a dozen houses. If Stefan does well there, he'll take him to the next one. His brother clings tightly to him with one hand, a pillow case in the other. Bunny is tucked inside the breast pocket of Damon's jacket and Crow follows close behind. There are a few people out, including children and Littles alike, but not as many as Damon suspects will be out later. He notes that most of the unclassified kids are all under the age of 12. They can avoid the jerky teens who like to cause mischief, as well as some of the scarier costumes.

They approach the first house, which is lit up in purple and orange lights. A few Disney Halloween blowups sit out on the front lawn. Stefan eyes the house nervously.

"So, do you know what to do?" Damon asks. Stefan shrugs. "You go up to the door, ring the bell and say "trick-or-treat". Then you say "thank you"."

Stefan nods. "Will you come up with me?"

"Sure, buddy."

They're the only ones approaching the house, thankfully. With a shaky hand, Stefan pulls away from his brother and rings the bell. An elderly woman answers the door with a smile on her face. Stefan's lips tremble a bit, but he eventually speaks softly.

"Trick-or-treat," he says, holding out the pillowcase.

"Well don't you look cute," the woman says, putting some peanut butter cups inside. "Are you supposed to be a spy?"

"Nuh uh. My big brother."

The woman smiles at Damon, who is dressed similarly. "Well, I think that's a very good costume."

Stefan shyly smiles. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, sweetheart. Happy Halloween."

She shuts the door. Stefan observes Damon.

"I did good?"

"You did great, Bunny Boy!" Stefan's fade lights up. "Did you have fun?"

"Uh huh! I got three candies!"

"Wow! Aren't you a lucky boy? Should we try the next house?"

Stefan nods, excited. For the next couple of houses, Damon accompanies his brother to the door. At the fourth, there's a small line forming down the steps. Stefan hesitates.

"Do you want to skip this one?" Damon asks.

Stefan shakes his head. "Um, can I go up by myself?"

Damon smiles a little. "Sure, Bunny Boy. I'll be right here. Just be careful on the steps."

"'Kay."

Stefan makes his way up the path. Damon watches closely as he gets in line behind a Little girl dressed as a ballerina. Some of the kids are running on the steps, making them shake a bit. Stefan nearly trips and Damon starts to rush over. His brother straightens himself out and keeps going. From his spot, Damon can hear him parrot the phrase the other kids are. He notes that Stefan is one of the few who actually says "thank you". Pride swells up in his heart.

Stefan comes running back over. "I did it, DayDay! I gots my Kit Kats!"

"You did so well. DayDay's very proud!" Damon praises, kissing his forehead. "You were very brave."

"It's 'cause I'm dressed like you."

Damon grins. He wraps an arm around Stefan. Together, they make it through the rest of the neighborhood. Stefan agrees to go to the next. He approaches all the houses by himself, eventually interacting with a few of the other kids. He gets very excited when they eventually reach the Lockwoods. Tyler hasn't headed out to the big party and is there when Stefan knocks on the door. He gives him a big hug and puts not one, but two candy apples in the bag.

After about an hour, Damon notices the familiar droop in Stefan's walk. He's dragging his loaded up sack against the ground, his eyes weighing heavily. They've still got an hour until bed, but it's been a long day.

"How about we head back?" Stefan pouts. "We can count all your candy."

"And eat it?"

"You can have 3 pieces tonight," Damon counters. "We can sort out the rest into piles."

That piques Stefan's interest. "'Kay. Carry me home? Please?"

Damon takes the bag and crouches down. Stefan climbs on his back. The elder brother hoists him up so he's on his shoulders and starts the walk home. Stefan holds onto Damon's hair with one hand. Soft sucking sounds can be heard after a few moments. Halfway home, Stefsn grows only slightly heavier, indicating he's fallen asleep.

I'm going to admit I borrowed Stefan's costume idea from Criminal Minds. But it was too cute not too. Besides, Jack Hotchner looks like Baby Stefan and Hotch resembles Damon in looks and certain personality traits. So, Criminal Minds don't sue me. We can consider ourselves even for all the emotional turmoil you put me through!

I know I said I may be done with this verse but feel free to leave prompts. I do love these brothers, my mind's just currently tapped out with ideas for them!