I hope you enjoy the Halloween chapter! This one was actually pretty difficult to write, even though I've been looking forward to this section of the story since probably 2021.

Like Cary, I'm not 100% certain what comes next, but after chapter 20 I'll really work towards having a more cohesive outline. The Owl House finale has me really excited for whatever happens next.

Ro's Question Corner:

I haven't watched Amphibia yet, but it's definitely on my list and I'll try to have watched it by the time the 2022 arc of Team Pines occurs. Depending on how I feel after that it may or may not get mentioned in detail.


Cary hated their punishment, but they would've picked mopping over the critical stare Handsel was giving them right now.

"I expect you to tell me right away next time this happens," Handsel said.

Cary nodded quickly. "I will."

Upon further discussion with their dad and Uncle Ford they'd agreed that moving forward, Handsel should be one of the first people Cary told about beast incidents since she was the most equipped to help. She was always just one brisk mountain hike away.

"Tell me, young one, was it different?"

"Yeah. The first time I changed back from the beast it was like we were fighting. The second time, we were working together."

"I see. Why?"

"Because we wanted the same thing."

"I can read your palms but not your mind, child." That was what Handsel said whenever Cary was too vague, which wasn't very often, considering Cary usually said too much instead of too little.

"Wendy came after me, and to get to me she had to climb this tree, but the tree didn't really want to be climbed. She fell and the beast knew to catch her. It's like we were working together. Because we both love her."

"Love is love," Brett said. Frankly, Cary had forgotten that Brett was there, but the hiker was clearly chill.

"This is good. Next week, I want you to bring Wendy."

"Okay, I'll ask her." Maybe they could make it a date…

"Good. Because we're going to try to conjure the beast, and she may be essential."

Cary started to protest but Handsel shut her down with the snap of several fingers.

"You had to know this was coming, Cary. You cannot learn to control it if you don't first learn to summon it on purpose."

"Okay. I trust you."

Cary managed to act calm but on the inside, he was panicking. In a few days, Stan would be gone, and then Cary would have to face the future and the beast alone.

No… Not alone. With Team Pines he would never be alone. Loneliness had been sitting in the Conformatorium with no clue what the future held. Cary still wasn't sure what the future held, but they knew that whatever it was they would have friends and family on their side.

"Hey, Handsel? One more thing. If I'm going to have to summon the beast on purpose, you're going to have to finally teach me how to read the future, on purpose."

"You have prophetic dreams, correct?" Handsel asked.

"Yeah."

"First lesson. Go to sleep with a calm, clear mind. The future will come to you more easily if it does not have to fight through a sea of turbulent thoughts."

"But what about when I'm awake? Like what you do, with reading palms and tarot cards and stuff." They'd had some palm reading lessons, but Cary didn't fully get it yet.

"One thing at a time, child. You have great abilities, but you must hone what you have before you will be able to attain more."

"You are so cryptic literally all of the time."

"I'm not even being cryptic, just get some melatonin gummies or something. You expect me to solve all of your problems? I'm the hand witch. You don't even have hand-related problems."

"Sorry," Cary said sheepishly.

"Whatever. I'm doing my best, a little gratitude would be nice."

"Thank you."

"That's better. Be prepared to work next week, summoning the beast may not be easy."

Cary doubted it would be easy at all. But he wouldn't be alone, and that was enough.

Stan and Ford of course wanted to know everything about her mentoring session. Cary was a little reluctant to tell them, but finally, she admitted that they were going to try to summon the beast the following Monday. That did not go over very well with her dad and uncle.

"That witch better know what she's doing," Ford grumbled, beginning to jot down notes in his new journal. Stan was even more concerned.

"Carebear, are you sure?"

"No," Cary admitted, "but I trust Handsel and I want to trust myself, so I'm going to do it."

Stan took Cary by the shoulders.

"Update us afterward."

"I'll call you if you guys have service out there."

"I'm working on that," Ford said. "It might take a few days but if I'm right I should be able to rig up permanent internet and service for The Stan-O-War II."

"Man, if that works then you'll have better internet and service than the entire Mystery Shack," Cary complained.

"If it works I'll fix the internet and service when I come back in the summer."

Those words hung over them like a cloud of smog. Cary had spent the summer apart from Stan but this was twice as long. Still, Cary would be relatively safe here with people who loved them, and Stan and Ford would have each other's backs. And if Ford was right they'd be able to email and call. Everything would be fine.

"Everything will be fine," Cary said, half to convince themself.

"Hell yeah," Stan said, also mostly to convince himself. "This family can handle anything."

"We haven't died yet," Ford agreed, which was less encouraging but 100% accurate.

"Let's see if I can survive this date on Wednesday before we make any more bold statements like that," Cary said with a laugh. She hadn't meant to admit it but she was actually terrified about her and Wendy's first date.

"You'll be great. Ask your brother if you need any advice." Stan knew enough about romance by now to know that he didn't know anything about romance.

"We haven't had a proper first kiss yet," Cary admitted, "I'm hoping to do it at the party."

Stan grimaced supportively. Despite being happy for Cary he still felt weird about his child having their first relationship and first kiss. And in two days they'd be fifteen. That couldn't possibly be right.

"You're growing up so fast," Stan said wistfully. By May, Cary would be so different. Maybe an entirely different person. Maybe even taller.

"I'll still always be your spawn," Cary said, giving Stan a tight hug."We'll always be Team Pines."

Stan hugged back, finding genuine comfort in that promise.

"I love ya, kid."

"I love you too, old man."

The next two days were full of packing and Halloween prep. Cary had two Halloween moods, either not feeling it because it overshadowed their birthday, or all in with the decorations and costumes. This year, though, was mostly full of apprehension.

There wasn't much to do for costumes since he was just wearing Wendy's clothes. Of course, in the back of his closet, he'd stashed an elaborate pirate costume to match Miguel, the possessed pirate duck. The fabulous pirate costume had come complete with tattered and singed pants and a real hook hand that either Stan or Ford had stolen, possibly from a real pirate. That costume would have to wait until 2013, apparently.

With no costume to pour their nervous energy into, Cary settled for worrying about their first date and Stan's impending departure. They would've forgotten about turning 15 entirely if they hadn't been woken up super early on Wednesday morning.

"Happy birthday, Carebear! Go ahead and get dressed, we're going to Greasy's Diner before school."

No matter how many times Cary went to Greasy's Diner, which was a lot, she never got tired of it.

"Who's coming?"

"Just me, Ford, Soos, and Mrs. Ramirez."

Cary's face fell.

"You'll have plenty of time with your girlfriend later. I figured we could do family gifts at breakfast."

That reignited their excitement.

"I'll be dressed in a minute."

Stan left and Cary pulled on a panther shirt from the gift shop and Wendy's green flannel. Wearing Wendy's clothes always made Cary feel safer, and some of her apprehension melted away. If she'd had more time she would've finished the costume off with a red wig, but in a time crunch, Cary thought she looked good. To finish off the costume she slipped her amulet under the panther shirt. For authenticity, she should have relinquished the amulet to Wendy for the day, but she didn't want to risk the one thing that was monitoring her magic.

Stan was waiting for them when they got to the door.

"Hurry up," he said with a teasing grin, "we're hungry."

Cary slowed down, "I'm going as fast as I can."

Stan laughed and slung an arm around Cary. It was unspoken between them, but they'd both miss early morning pancake runs.

Cary got into the Stanley Mobile with Stan and Ford, looking around.

"I thought you said there were presents," he joked.

"Soos went ahead with the presents in the truck so you wouldn't peek," Stan said.

"I don't peek."

"No, you don't get caught peeking. I know you, kiddo."

Ford turned around in the car looking serious, "Don't get into too much trouble while we're gone, Cary."

Both Cary and Stan burst out laughing.

"Don't worry Uncle Ford, I won't get caught."

"That doesn't alleviate any of my worries," Ford said.

"I'll be careful," Cary promised. There was a lot to be cautious about since they'd be continuing magic lessons without Ford's assistance.

"Good."

"But you have to be careful, too."

"We'll take care of each other," Stan promised.

Cary nodded, satisfied. Still, she couldn't help fidgeting with the amulet, wondering what the future had in store.

Their immediate future had blueberry pancakes and a small stack of presents. After they'd eaten, Soos pushed the first present, a small, neatly wrapped package, over to Cary.

Cary opened it and was surprised and delighted to find a pair of knit six-fingered gloves. They were black and orange, Halloween colors, and Cary immediately knew who they were from.

"Thank you, Abuelita. They're beautiful."

Abuelita shrugged modestly, "It's getting cold. You need gloves."

"I love them," Cary reiterated.

"My turn," Soos said, presenting Cary with a medium-sized box. The box had some weight to it, and Cary was properly intrigued.

Inside there was a beautiful crystal ball.

"For you to use when you're performing as The Oracle. I got it the same day I got you that duck, I hope you like it."

"It's incredible. Is it real?"

"Dunno, dude. You should probably ask Handsel."

Cary nodded and carefully set the crystal ball back into the box.

"I suppose it's my turn," Ford said. "My gift requires some explanation."

Cary nodded, patient as Ford retrieved a beautifully bound journal.

"Since you returned I've kept this journal. It started as a way to keep track of your curse, but as time went on I decided to add some information about my life, and your father's life, that you might find interesting. I intend to keep an identical journal while I'm at sea, and when I return you can read that one, as well."

"That's so thoughtful, Uncle Ford, thank you." Cary suddenly felt like in a way he'd have Ford there to help with the magic lessons after all.

"Of course, I hope you'll keep up with your own journal, though you don't have to show me."

Cary nodded. "I will."

Stan looked a little sheepish as he handed Cary his present, which was wrapped in a shiny foil drawstring bag. Inside was a wallet and a silver ring.

"I know you had a difficult summer, sweetheart, because of your mom, but I thought you might want the things she left behind since you were the best thing she left me."

"You guys actually got rings? You were only married for like 24 hours."

"I'm pretty sure we stole them."

Cary laughed and slipped it onto the extra finger on their right hand.

"The wallet was empty when your mom ditched it, but I thought you might want a little something more," Stan added.

Cary opened it and looked inside, seeing a fat stack of Stan Bucks.

"Each one can be redeemed for one fun activity we can do together when I'm back in the summer since the one thing I really wanted to get you was more time together."

Cary threw his arms around Stan and hugged him tightly, trying not to cry.

"Me too," Cary whispered.

"I'm sorry," Stan said.

"No, no, it's okay. We'll have plenty of time this summer." Cary pulled away and flipped through the Stan Bucks.

"Yeah, we will."

"Mom left the car behind too, do I get that?"

"Maybe when you turn sixteen."

"Fine. Thank you for all the gifts, they mean a lot to me." Cary gave everyone a hug in turn and then checked the time.

"I'll take the crystal ball home so you don't have to lug it around all day," Soos offered.

"Thanks."

"And we'll drop you off at school," Stan said. He was going to enjoy every moment they could spend together before he left.

In the car, they talked like it was a normal day, about classwork and play rehearsals and the possum who had gotten into the Shack again. For a few minutes, their futures seemed to blur and vanish, and this time in the car was theirs forever.

Then Stan pulled up to the school.

"I'll be back for dinner before the party," Cary promised, hesitating a moment before he left. "Bye, I love you!"

And then they darted off and disappeared.

Wendy was waiting for them inside, looking slightly nervous. She had no idea what you got someone you'd just started dating for their birthday. Her previous relationships had never been that serious. She was charting new territory and it was a little nerve-wracking.

She had settled on making something, a detailed sketch of Cary dressed as Puck from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Instead of being on stage, Cary was in a dreamy sort of fairyland, like the one Wendy had infiltrated with Candy and Grenda. Wendy thought it was some of her best work.

"Happy birthday, Feathers, how do I look?"

Wendy wore her hair pinned back, a green Mystery Shack tee, Stan's leather jacket, and a pair of fake old man glasses.

"You look incredible," Cary said.

"So do you. You should wear my flannels more often."

"Gladly."

"I'll give you your present in class," Wendy said, taking Cary's hand and practically dragging him to their English class.

Once they were situated at their desks Wendy passed Cary the sketch.

If Cary could have kissed Wendy right then and there they would have. Unfortunately, Lee was literally right in front of them and turned around when Cary gasped.

"Oh yeah, happy birthday. I didn't get you anything because you almost killed me."

"Lee," Wendy snapped.

"No, it's a fair point. I hope we're able to move past it eventually."

"I forgave you, I'm just hoping you get the bird girl under control before you turn sixteen."

"Deal."

Cary would've been worried about people overhearing and wondering what they were talking about if anyone ever paid attention to them. If people took them seriously their witchy secret would've been blown a thousand times this semester. Technically Cary was still hiding the gay thing but it wasn't really hidden well, since kids had been lodging that accusation since before any of them knew what the words meant.

Lee and Nate probably would've said something about Cary and Wendy's gay-ass costumes at lunch, but they were recently reformed. Plus Duncan was sitting with them, and they were still a little afraid of Duncan.

Duncan and Thompson weren't in costume yet, in fact, most people seemed to be wearing fairly normal clothes. Of course, some people had dressed up, but Cary felt like a bit of an outlier. And then she remembered her costume was fairly normal clothes and she felt a little better. Maybe it was for the best that the pirate costume had walked the plank.

The rest of the school day barely felt like Halloween or his birthday at all. It just felt like a normal day at school with his friends. Even so, Cary was still filled with so much nervous energy, knowing that today wasn't normal. After today, everything would change. So he had to make today count.

After rehearsal, which Cary really couldn't skip, she headed home to have one last dinner with Stan and Ford before the trip.

Stan had made one of Cary's favorite meals for their birthday, broccoli cheddar soup with a fresh, warm grocery store baguette. Ford had wanted to contribute, so he had made a strawberry cake from a box mix, and he'd written Happy Birthday Cary with jellybeans stuck into the store-bought strawberry icing. It was a little wonky, but Cary loved it.

After dinner, Cary made sure her costume was still sharp and headed over to Wendy's so they could bike over to the party together. Trick-or-treaters had already started showing up at the Shack.

Cary kind of missed trick-or-treating, but he was excited about the party and the first kiss that he was sure was coming. Unless it was weird to go for a first kiss on the first date? No, he wasn't going to psych himself out about this. Everything was going to be great.

If Wendy was nervous about their first date she didn't show it, which Cary knew meant Wendy was probably nervous about their first date. Wendy's greatest trick was appearing chill when her nerves were completely shot.

"Are you ready?" Cary asked.

Wendy took Cary's hand, "Ready."

The party had already started when they got there. Cary didn't really know most of the people there, but she immediately recognized Thompson and Thompson's date. Duncan was dressed as the aptly named Red Guy from Don't Hug Me I'm Scared and Thompson was dressed as Duck Guy from the same viral video.

"Your costumes are amazing," Cary gushed.

Duncan had temporarily colored his dreadlocks red and was wearing a red turtleneck and red sweatpants. Thompson wore a green beanie, a fuzzy green sweater, and a brown blazer. They both looked really, really good.

Duncan slung an arm around Thompson, who immediately blushed.

"This guy made his whole costume in three days."

"It's really no big deal," Thompson said, looking nervous.

Cary and Wendy knew the feeling since both duos were on their first date. The stakes were high for all of them.

"Where are the others?" Wendy asked.

"Lee and Nate are trying to impress the girls from the dance team and Robbie is getting ready to perform."

Cary unintentionally pulled a face, "Robbie and The Tombstones are going to perform?"

"Yeah, I guess it's easy to get the gig if you're dating the hostess," Duncan said.

Cary laughed half-heartedly, it was a funny comment but not one Duncan had earned, he'd only just started hanging out with their friend group and didn't get to participate in the ribbing until he'd been around for a while.

"I bet Tambry is busy hosting," Wendy started, her thought cut off by Tambry appearing from the shadows, grabbing her arm, and dragging her away from the conversation.

Tambry pulled Wendy through the kitchen into the pantry -which surprisingly wasn't being used for making out- and closed the door.

"What?" Wendy snapped, a little annoyed with her best friend.

"Have you made your move yet?"

They'd all been a little distracted about the beast, Tambry had forgotten to follow up on Wendy's little crush until now.

"Yeah," Wendy confirmed, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"You have to give me all the details," Tambry insisted.

"It happened during Fright Night."

"When Cary kissed you?" Tambry knew more than Wendy would've preferred.

"No, when she turned back into a person after the beast thing."

"Wow. The height of romance."

"It was actually really sweet. They confessed to me before I got a chance to say anything."

"They?" Tambry asked, raising an eyebrow.

"She."

"Sure. So there's nothing else I need to know?"

"Nope."

"Is this your first date?" Tambry asked. "Like Thompson and Duncan?"

"Well, it was supposed to be, and then I got kidnapped," Wendy said.

Tambry rolled her eyes and then studied Wendy's outfit.

"Some eyeliner and lipstick would help."

"But Cary doesn't wear eyeliner and lipstick."

"Well, they should."

"Nah, Feathers is perfect."

Tambry hesitated before deciding to be genuine for a moment.

"Hey, Wendy? I'm glad you found someone you love this much. I hope you have a good date."

"Thanks."

There was a crash in another room that indicated Robbie V. and The Tombstones had started playing.

"I better go support Robbie. Please put on eyeliner. I have some in my room."

"I'll think about it."

"A little lip gloss wouldn't kill you, either."

"Can I wear one of your flavored ones?" Wendy asked, genuinely considering it.

"You can use cherry or bubblegum but not watermelon." Then Tambry exited the pantry.

Wendy slipped upstairs for just a few minutes to make use of Tambry's makeup collection, but when she returned to the party, Cary was nowhere to be found.

Cary had tried to hold out and wait for Wendy, but there were people everywhere, crowding around them, and they had started feeling a little overwhelmed. Those feelings had only worsened when Robbie's cacophonous band started playing. Cary was beginning to actually like Robbie but his music was too screamy and violent for them. Cary liked trashy pop music, stuff you could actually dance to, and this just wasn't the vibe.

Tambry's back deck was mostly unoccupied, so Cary went there to decompress. Other than Thompson and Duncan she hadn't seen any of her friends all night. She didn't think anyone had noticed her leave, but apparently, Thompson had.

"You didn't miss much," Thompson said when he came to check on them. "The music was way better at Woodstick."

Cary laughed at that. Unlike his boyfriend, Thompson had more than earned the right to make fun of Robbie's band.

"I just got a little overwhelmed."

"Understandable. You want some company, or would you prefer to be alone?"

"Company would be nice. Wendy vanished and I haven't seen anyone else the whole time. Other than Robbie, obviously, but he's a little preoccupied."

"Yeah, I wouldn't count on him for company. Sorry Wendy disappeared on you, though."

Cary sighed and nodded, "Yeah. I really wanted to spend time with her."

Thompson could guess why but he didn't mention it. He hadn't gotten the chance to come out to his friends on his own terms and he wanted Cary and Wendy to have that.

"I like you guys' costumes," was what he said instead.

"Thanks, I had this whole other costume planned but this works too."

"Me too. I had the sickest Cosmic Frontier costume ready. Then at the last second, I'm a duck."

"The things we do for the people we love, huh?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sure your costume would've been amazing," Cary said.

"Maybe. But change isn't so bad."

"I hope so," Cary whispered, the future spinning out of control in front of them.

The conversation drifted to their upcoming play while Wendy continued to search inside for her partner.

She pulled Lee and Nate away from their awkward flirting attempts. The dance team, grateful for the distraction, darted away.

"Hey, have either of you seen Cary?"

"Uh, no, we've been a bit busy," Lee said.

"Yeah, thanks a lot, Wendy, we were about to get their numbers."

"No, you weren't. If they'd been interested they wouldn't have walked away just now."

"Hmph." Nate rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, if you see Cary, let me know."

"If she was smart she would've left. This party sucks. One more encore from Robbie and I'd go beast mode myself," Lee said.

"She wouldn't have left me," Wendy immediately protested, but Lee kind of had a point. This could not have been the most pleasant environment for Cary and the Beast.

"I think I'll check outside."

Wendy made her way to the deck and was relieved to see Cary talking to Thompson.

Thompson noticed Wendy and nodded toward her.

"I should get back to Duncan, see you later."

"Thanks for keeping me company," Cary said.

"Of course. Happy birthday."

With all the noise and chaos of the evening, Cary had once again forgotten it was his birthday.

"I'm sorry we got separated," Wendy said immediately when Thompson was gone.

"It's okay. You got ambushed by some eyeliner, it happens."

"Too much?"

"You're perfect with or without it," Cary promised.

There were a few stragglers out on the deck with them. They weren't paying attention now, but that could change. Wendy was quiet for a minute, formulating a plan, before speaking up.

"Wanna climb on the roof?"

Cary laughed in surprise. It wasn't uncommon for them to hang out on the Mystery Shack roof, but this was a little different.

"Sure."

They climbed up onto the roof together. The moon was out, almost but not completely full, lighting up their frames as they snuggled against each other. It was perfect, except for the fact that they could still kind of hear the band playing.

"I'm sorry," Wendy said again.

"For what?"

"I wanted our first date to go smoother."

"Well, we're here now. And it's not over yet."

Cary caught Wendy's eyes and they instinctively leaned toward each other.

Cary's hand raised to cup Wendy's face and soon they were kissing, sweet and slow.

Cary finally, reluctantly pulled away to breathe, golden eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"Mm, bubblegum." That was not what he'd meant to say after their first official kiss, but the words were already spilling out.

Wendy laughed and rested her head on Cary's shoulder.

"This is nice."

"Yeah, it's been a pretty good date after all."

"I was so worried about it," Wendy admitted. "I was scared I'd like, ruin your birthday because I'm such a shitty girlfriend."

"You're not a shitty girlfriend. You're the best girlfriend I've ever had."

"I'm the only girlfriend you've ever had."

"And the only one I want. I was really worried too. Terrified, actually, and not just about this. Even with my dreams, I don't know what's coming in the future and it scares me. But you know what?"

"What?"

"When I'm here with you, I don't feel as afraid." Whatever the future held, they would handle it, together.


I hope you liked Thompson and Duncan's costumes! I chose them for a reason. One of my older Gravity Falls fics sets up a Wendy and Thompson ship that I clearly didn't go for here, but two of the plot points I remember from that fic are Wendy adamantly telling her father she wasn't gay, and Wendy and Thompson watching the first episode of Don't Hug Me I'm Scared together. I figured I might as well honor one of those two things lol.

Speaking of Wendy, I watched a pretty good video by Keyan Carlile about how Wendy got reduced to just a cool girl love interest in the show. I'm really hoping I'm not doing that, so I'm definitely going to be working on how I write her in the future. Let me know if you have any suggestions!