The chill in the air signified the end of another long summer. Many of the residents of Roseville enjoyed their summers, but even more reveled in the cool, fall days. Leaves turned slowly from their natural greens to warmer orange, red, and yellow colors. Their later falling was greeted by rakes from parents and a few teens who went around trying to earn some extra cash. Lucy and Mike made a game out of it, who could rake the most yards and make the most money? The sun rose later and set earlier. Jackets were donned, hot teas were boiled, and fireplaces were lit. As September turned to October, the fall was turning out to be as cozy as ever. October, as well, brought about everyone's favorite spooky holiday; Halloween.
The students of Roseville High buzzed with excitement over it. The school decorating the hallways and classrooms with skeletons and ghosts among other creepy things really set the atmosphere. This, of course, matched the rest of the town which was decorated to a tee. Everyone was swept up in the Halloween spirit. Some were planning parties, others still wanted to go trick or treating like they did every year. For the friend group of Lucy, Mike, Paulo, David, Daisy, Sue, and Amaya, it was a no brainer - trick or treating. They all had a sweet tooth, even if some of them tried to hide it, like Sue.
"I'm just in it for the experience." She said, an air of superiority about her. "Too much candy can lead to obesity, or worse." But nobody was buying that. They'd seen how big her candy bag could get in the past.
David, on the other hand, wore his love of candy on his sleeves. Well, he didn't wear any, but if he did, it would be there. He'd come up with a whole new idea to maximize his candy gain. "Y'see, I'll have multiple different costumes." He explained. "And once I get candy from a house, I'll run to a bush to change and come right back! They'll never even know!"
"Davie, you have to save candy for everyone!" Daisy huffed, secretly worried David might end hogging all the sweets. "Doing that is disingenuous!"
David didn't much know what disingenuous meant, but he did know his plan meant more candy for him. Lucy, in a rare moment, agreed somewhat with Daisy. David's plan was, as always, idiotic. "Besides, they're gonna know it's you, you're not exactly hard to recognize. You're bigger than everyone else here!"
David folded his arms. "We'll see who's disun- disen-" The brown dog scrunched his face up in concentration as he attempted to work the word out in his head. He wanted to use it against them, as though it would make him more right. Unable to figure it out, he gave up. "Whatever Daisy said, when I have five times as much candy as the rest of you!"
"Easy there, pal, but I think I'm going to be candy champ this year." Paulo said smugly, pointing a thumb to himself. "I'll just throw on one of these," He gave a big, suave grin that made Daisy and Lucy blush, even Sue had to look away, "and all those hot moms are gonna be pouring the whole bowl into my bag!"
The two went back and forth over which plan was better until Sue intervened. She stood up and slammed her fist on the table to get everyone's attention. It worked (to the annoyance of Paulo) and she cleared her throat. "Regardless of whatever nonsense you two have planned, we need something that will work for everyone. I'm talking a REAL plan, one with a map and routes, one where we can get the biggest and best candy, quality over quantity!"
"Uugghh, that sounds soooo boring!" Paulo groaned. "Leave it to you to turn trick or treating into homework!"
Mike looked at the somali unamused. "She has a point, Paulo. What are the rest of us supposed to do?"
"Pfft!" Laughed Paulo. "Figures you'd side with her, pansy."
"Point is…" The burmese ignored Paulo's input. "We need to work together. There's going to be a lot more groups of kids out there and if we aren't unified we won't get anywhere."
"What do you suggest, Susie?" Daisy asked, happy with any plan that got her more candy.
This was the validation the girl was looking for. "I'm glad you asked! The most important thing is grouping up. I figured we can start by assigning trick or treat buddies, then we all rendezvous at a predetermined location." David blinked, then fell face forward into his tray of food, snoring loudly. Sue ignored this and pulled out a sheet of paper. "Fortunately I already did this."
"I don't need you to tell me who I can and can't trick or treat with! I'm meeting up with David." Paulo grumbled.
"Actually, I have you meeting up with Daisy." Sue said calmly, and Daisy gasped excitedly.
Daisy beamed at her friend. "Ohhh yes! We get to be trick or treat buddies!" Paulo wanted to protest, but Daisy's smile and enthusiasm worked its way to his heart and prevented him from doing so, as though it had sent a message to his brain saying, 'Don't you dare!'.
Instead, Paulo smiled back with two finger guns and a wink. "Looking forward to it, Daze!" Daisy blushed and tried to hide it, but Paulo saw it.
The rest of the teams were assigned. David would be paired up with Mike (to Mike's surprise, he expected to be walking with Lucy), and Lucy would be meeting with Sue (to Lucy's disappointment, she was hoping to be sticking with Mike.) They would all converge on Amaya's house, and she would meet them from there. No one objected for their own personal reasons, and so the deal was done, and Operation Tricked Treat (a name which Sue was really proud of) was underway.
The 31st of October came upon them fast, and Sue went over the plan at nauseum with everyone the days leading up to it. So much so that everyone felt like they could recite it in their sleep. It didn't help that she would randomly ask about the plan individually to everyone to make sure everyone was on the up and up. When Halloween night arrived, everyone rushed home from school as fast as they could to shovel down an early dinner and suit up.
Some parents elected to stay home to hand out candy, others split duties where one would chaperone the kids while the other stayed home. The ones who were old enough to go on their own were already making rounds as the sun set around 6. It was a little after 6 when Paulo, dressed as one of the Space Cadets, found himself briskly walking down the sidewalk to Daisy's house. He wanted to take in the elaborate Halloween decorations on the way, but he was running late and he didn't want to listen to Sue moan and groan about how he ruined her plans for the rest of the night. Besides, he knew Daisy always looked forward to trick-or-treating every year and didn't want to keep her waiting.
He arrived at her house and walked between the blow up decorations and standees to Daisy's front door. He rang the doorbell, and sang out, "Trick or treat!"
At the sound of the doorbell and Paulo's voice, Daisy took off running from the kitchen where she was finishing up dinner. Her parents didn't even have time to react before she was already gone from the dining room. When Daisy reached the door, she fling it open. "Paulo! I'm glad you made it!"
The somali smiled at his fluffy friend. "Wouldn't miss you for the world, babe."
Daisy kept herself from falling to pieces at Paulo's flirting. "Aww! I'm not quite ready, just give me like three minutes!"
It was now Paulo noticed she wasn't wearing a costume. "Take your time." He smiled. "By all means."
"Thanks! Wait right here, I'll be back soon!" Daisy said quickly and closed the door to get ready.
Paulo decided to walk around the yard, looking at all the decorations and watching the other trick or treaters with envy. He didn't mind waiting for Daisy, though. He liked her quite a lot, and at the very least tonight he'd get to spend time with her outside of schoolwork. As he made his rounds in the yard, he heard the large bushes on the side of Daisy's house rustle. He stopped in his tracks and his eyes fell on the noisy plant. It stayed still, and the only sounds came from the jovial kids and teens walking around with bags and buckets full of candy. A shrug rolled off the somalis' shoulders and he kept walking. That's when he heard the rustling again.
When he turned around, he saw a couple of guys, two cats and a dog, coming toward him slowly. They were very clearly older than him, college aged by the looks of it. They also reeked of alcohol. "Well, well, well." One of the cats, a calico, said. "Lookie what we have here."
"A little kitty all out on his own for Halloween…" Said the dog. "A treat for us, I think?"
"None of the houses will give us any candy. Let's nab his!" The second cat, a tabby, chimed in.
"Oh buzz off! I don't have any candy." Paulo folded his arms. "Don't you have anything better to do?"
"Than putting dorks like you in your place? Look at that costume!" The calico jeered, and his friends laughed.
"What are you, six? Space Cadets, really?" The second cat laughed.
Paulo felt his heat rising. "Three against one? Very brave. What are you all for Halloween? Cowards?" He shot back.
The young adults circled around Paulo, who was increasingly starting to lose his cool. "Who you callin' coward, pussy?" The dog bucked at him, and the teen jerked back.
The calico shoved Paulo from behind and he fell forward onto the second cat, who pushed him back. Paulo tripped over some wires and the three brutes laughed at the pathetic sight. "Just fuck off!" Paulo growled.
"Or what?" The tabby cat said in a mocking tone.
"Or I'll kick your butts!" Said a new voice, this one belonging to a female. In the whirlwind of the confrontation, they hadn't noticed her come out the front door. She was wearing a purple witch costume, with a small hat cutely hanging off one of her ears. Along with it she toted a broom, and on her face, an angry look.
"Ohhh!" The three bullies said together.
"So scary! The little girl is gonna turn us into frogs or something!" Said the dog as the selkirk ragamuffin stomped across the yard.
"I'll do a lot worse than that!" She challenged, standing toe to toe with the three, putting herself between them and Paulo, who was stunned at Daisy's boldness.
"Oh yeah?" The calico smirked. "Do somethin'!" He flicked her hat off her ear.
Daisy bared her teeth and raised her broom, then brought down the bristled end on the laughing cat. He stopped laughing, stunned, and blinked a few times.
His cat friend stepped in. "Why you little-" But he was cut off by a faceful of broom bristles as well. It didn't end with just that, she kept smacking them over and over. The three drunken friends tried their best to dodge the attacks, but just ended up stumbling over each other, resulting in a continued barrage of swipes across the head and body.
Finally the leader couldn't deal with it anymore. "Let's get the hell out of here!" He cried, running for the sidewalk. "This chick is crazy!"
His friends followed his lead, and Daisy chased them, waving the broom over her head. "And don't come back!" She yelled after them. Daisy took a deep breath to cool off before turning around to help her friend. Paulo was picking himself off the ground, wiping blades of grass and small twigs off his costume. Among his wiping, he noticed a small tear on the side.
"Damn." He muttered, running his fingers over it.
"Paulo! Are you okay?!" She said, rushing over to hug him. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"
Paulo gave a weak smile. "Naww, they didn't. I think you hurt them more than they hurt me." And in a small voice, he added. "Thanks, Daisy."
"You're welcome." She said, sweetly, picking her hat up and placing it on her ear. "We should get going! We don't wanna be late!" Before another word could be said, Daisy grabbed Paulo's hand and pulled him along as she sped off to Amaya's house.
Sue (who was dressed as Ruth Bader Ginsburg), on the other hand, waited impatiently on Lucy's couch. Her leg bounced up and down as she sat agitated, and her hand gripped the flashlight she brought with her, as she watched the hand on the clock on the wall move faster than she ever thought time could move. And at the same time, everything felt slow motion. There was a lot more riding than just being on time (preferably early) and committing to the plan. She had drilled it into everyone so much, how embarrassing would it be for her to show up late? It was made all the worse by Jordan actually being ready and leaving, while trick or treaters were showing up to get candy.
Lucy came down the stairs with her princess outfit, but the disinterested look on her face broke the royal facade. Sue hopped to her feet when she saw her. "Excellent! Let's go!"
As Lucy passed her mom, who was giving out candy, on the front porch, she said "I'll be back later." in a flat voice.
The mother smiled at them. "Okay dear, you two have fun. Stay safe!"
Sue and Lucy walked in silence, though Sue tried to up her gait in hopes that Lucy would follow her lead. The khao manee didn't, preferring to march to the beat of her own drum, but that drum beat was a tad too slow for Sue. She looked at her friend, frustrated by the progress, and saw Lucy still uninterested, even a little disappointed, looking off at the rows of houses all decked out in lights and decorations. If they were gonna make good time, Sue would have to lift her spirits. That, and she wanted to support her friend. "Hey Elle, I like your costume."
Lucy looked at her, a little caught off guard from the sudden interruption from her thoughts (that heavily featured a korat) and managed to produce a little smile. "Thanks. I just threw something on from a previous Halloween. I haven't grown much."
Sue smiled back at her. "It suits you. I believe khao manees were cats of royalty, correct?"
"They were." Lucy said, and she went back to gazing over the sea of skeletons, ghosts, and pumpkins.
Sue looked at her with concern. "Is everything okay?"
"I'm fine." She replied shortly. "Let's just get to Amaya's house, don't want to be late to your own plan, right?" Sue nodded and the two picked up the pace a little.
Mike and David did not have as much of a difficult time, though David did constantly stop to gawk at houses and talk to every trick-or-treater on the way down. Mike was dressed as a prince, and David, a mummy, though Mike wasn't sure it was necessary that he used actual toilet paper. David would hear nothing of it, convinced that actual mummies were wrapped in the same thing.
The friends all converged on Amaya's house at nearly the same time. Amaya herself was sitting on her stoop, wearing a Santa costume. David ran up to her, laughing, reveling in the irony of it. Amaya smiled brightly, happy she was able to make him laugh. Sue took a headcount, and then another, making sure everyone was there. While she counted, Lucy caught Mike staring at her with red cheeks. He quickly looked away, pretending he had been examining his candy bag the whole time, but Lucy had seen enough to bring a smile and redness to her face.
"Excellent! Great! Let's go!" Sue said to everyone. They all grouped up and started their walk. Paulo and David talked more about their candy competition. This annoyed Sue, who stepped in with a, "It's not a competition, but if it was, I would win. My costume is the best."
"Are you a pilgrim?" David asked, genuinely unaware of who Sue was meant to be. To be fair, nobody else knew, either.
Sue huffed and rolled her eyes. "I happen to be Ruth Bader Ginsburg!" David and Paulo blinked, faces neutral. Sue facepalmed. "She's one of the most important people in the country!"
"The pilgrims were pretty important to the country." Paulo said.
"They were, but… ugh!" Sue threw her hands up. She inhaled and launched into a speech about Ruth, and all the important things she did. Paulo and David groaned, not asking for a history lesson in someone they'd never heard of. This only made Sue more upset.
Amid the bickering, they all got candy, and their bags and buckets slowly filled up. David and Amaya wanted to stop and look at decorations, but Sue forbade it. "We have a strict schedule." She said. She also had no patience with Paulo's flirting with all the moms. "Really, Paulo? We don't have time for you to hit on every girl you see!"
Mike and Lucy walked next to each other, and Mike decided to talk to her to distract from the encyclopedic knowledge Sue had about the justice system. "Princess again?"
Lucy shrugged. "It was all I really had. Feels like we're getting too old to be doing this, you know?"
Mike looked at her surprised. "I thought you loved trick or treating?"
"I did." She sighed and looked at Sue who was gesturing wildly at Paulo and David. "But when you start meticulously planning everything out, it loses its' charm. Maybe we're just too old for it."
Mike followed her gaze. "Yeah… what did you want to do then?"
Lucy looked away. "I was just kinda hoping to spend time with you." She whispered.
Mike looked at her sympathetically. In all honesty, he wouldn't mind spending Halloween with her, either. He looked forward to remain casual. "We could still do it, you know."
Lucy looked at him, eyebrow raised. "Abandon the group and do our own thing?"
"Maybe not abandon. More like…" He looked at her, "accidentally got separated."
Lucy looked up at Sue, who was going red in the face at Paulo and Davids' pilgrim jokes. "I would like that…"
"Okay, and we're taking this corner into the cul de sac." Sue said, turning down the sidewalk.
A bunch of kids hurriedly walked past them. "Where are you all going so quickly?" Paulo asked.
"There's a house down the other way giving out full sized candy! We're going to go get some!" Said one as they ran out of sight.
"Ohhh! We gotta go! We gotta go!" Daisy said excitedly.
"Yeah Sue! Let's go get that house next!" Paulo said, and David nodded vigorously.
"No!" The burmese said. "We have to stick to the plan! We'll get there eventually."
"Yeah, when the candy's all gone!" Paulo grumbled, folding his arms.
"I am sure whoever it is has enough for everyone and then some." Sue said back. "Now come on, the sooner we get through this loop the sooner we get to the big candy house."
Everyone was understandably frustrated by this, but decided to go along with Sue. So far, they had acquired a good amount of candy on the route so far. Each house remained lucrative, and David and Amaya even started trading candy. Amaya was the happy, silent observer in everything. She didn't have much of an opinion on Sue's plan, she was just happy to spend time with her friends. She understood the others wanting to do their own thing, which is why she did nothing when she saw Mike and Lucy slip away together.
Paulo was getting antsy, however. The cul de sac was taking longer than expected. "What if we just skip a few houses? We don't have all night…"
The offer was tantalizing, but Sue stayed steadfast. "No! Trust the plan!" So nobody argued, not wanting to ruin the night, and hoping that things would proceed faster than they thought. Everyone did noticeably pick up the pace after that.
Meanwhile, Mike and Lucy ran down the sidewalk, laughing that they'd gotten away. "Now what do we do?" Mike asked.
"Whatever we want!" Lucy threw her hands up. "Bet I can get more candy than you, jerkface!"
"Oh, you're ON!" Mike grinned. A chance to best Lucy and get more candy? It was an absolute win!
They raced past the end of the neighborhood, where a large, imposing wood was. The trees stretched on forever, and covered the area with a pitch blackness not even the keenest of eyes could make out. Mike shivered. "That place gives me the creeps."
"Grow up, Mike." Lucy stuck her tongue out at him. "My brother told me that some kids went missing there one year. They were never seen again."
"I don't wanna join them." Mike frowned. "I'm going back the other way."
"Baby!" Lucy called him, but she secretly agreed the woods were very off putting.
Back with the others, things continued to Sue's plan, making her very happy. House after house they went to, and finally they made it to the end. Just up ahead, Paulo could see a group of kids walking away with massive candies.
He pointed ahead. "That must be the house!" The house in question was the most elaborately decorated on the block. It had inflatables of all kinds, some even moved. There were fog machines and motion activated animatronics. A boombox played spooky ambience and all of it was lit with black light. Everyone ran to get to the front door, and Paulo knocked proudly. Daisy bounced with anticipation. David held his bag open as wide as he could. Even Sue stood with keen interest. The door opened, and a kindly old lady answered, wearing a nurse outfit.
"My my!" She said. "What lovely costumes you all have. I like your take on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, young lady." Sue felt proud of her costume now, happy someone got it. The old lady gave a sad smile. "Sadly, I just ran out of candy. I have some hard candy in the kitchen if you want something."
Paulo felt his jaw hit the floor. Everyone stared expectantly at Sue. She was the one with the plan, after all. The girl felt all the eyes of her friends burning into her, and she mumbled. "No thank you, ma'am. Have a good night."
The old lady bid them farewell with a sincere apology, and closed the door. Sue walked with her head hung back to the sidewalk, and the others followed, now more frustrated than ever. "Great going, Sue." Paulo's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Because of your stupid plan, we missed out on the motherload!"
Sue turned on the spot, tail at attention. "My STUPID plan? It's thanks to my plan that we got as much candy as we did!" She held up her bag, showing how full it was.
"Yeah, a plan literally nobody asked for!" Paulo shot back. "Did literally anybody here ask for Sue to dictate the whole night?"
Sue smiled smugly, waiting for the others to back her up, but they didn't. Daisy looked at her feet, hands behind her back, lips pursed. Amaya shrugged. David spoke. "This Halloween has been lame!" The burmese waited on the final two to make their verdict, but…
It was now Sue noticed they were missing. "Wait… where are Mike and Lucy?" Everyone looked around, Mike and Lucy were nowhere to be found. Amaya pointed in the direction she'd last seen them walk.
"They probably ditched because this plan was stupid." Paulo mused, staring directly at Sue. "And you know what? I'm ditching too!" The somali stormed off.
"Yeah, because your plan of trying to seduce MARRIED WOMEN is totally going to work!" Sue called after him.
"At least it'll be more fun than this!" He called back, not even bothering to look over his shoulder.
Daisy took off after him, wanting to stick with her trick or treat buddy. "Paulo! Wait for me!"
Paulo stopped and turned around. "No, Daisy! Go back with the others."
"But I want to go with you…" She pleaded.
"Not this time. I'm going alone! Just me, nobody else! Understand?" He said angrily.
Daisy's bottom lip trembled and she sniffled. She pushed past him, tears falling from her eyes. Paulo immediately softened. "Daisy… I'm sorry, I shouldn't-"
"No, you're r-right." She said, back. "I'll j-just slow you down… I'm just g-going alone…"
Paulo sighed and shook his head, going off in his own direction. This left Sue, David, and Amaya standing around. "Well, want to keep going, guys?" Sue asked.
But David had already changed into a new costume. "Who? Me? I've never heard of a David in my life."
Sue closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "David, I know it's you."
"Never heard of him! Off I go! Candy needs me!" He said, taking off into the night.
Sue rolled her eyes. David was a basket case anyway. "At least you're still with me, right Amaya?"
Amaya shook her head and tapped her wrist, indicating it was time for her to get home. She waved and smiled sympathetically before walking away herself. Sue stood alone on the desolate street, with only decorations to guide her way. The girl gathered herself, and looked ahead with determination. "Stick to the plan." She said to herself, and kept moving down the sidewalk to hit house after house.
Daisy sobbed into her sleeve as she walked down the now empting streets. All she wanted was for everyone to get along, and to get lots of candy to boot. But for her, her friends were sweeter than any candy. She was too upset to bother going to any more houses, so she decided to just go home instead. Along the way, a rusty old pickup truck rumbled up beside her. "Well lookie what we have here!" Said someone.
Daisy recognized the voice as one of the cats from earlier. In the back of the pickup sat the calico and the dog, in the drivers' seat was their friend. Daisy looked up, scared. "Just leave me alone!" She demanded.
"No, I don't think we will. Naughty kids up past their bedtime need to be taught a lesson!" The calico took a swig of a bottle of beer and jumped out of the back. Before Daisy could make a break for it, she was grabbed.
"Let go of me!" She cried. The broom was raised, but the cat caught it and yanked it from her grasp.
"And now I've taken your little trick, how's about you give us your treats." The calico looked at the dog. "Help me get her up there." The dog obliged, and they hoisted Daisy, kicking and shouting, into the bed of the pickup. The calico hopped in the back and smacked the roof of the truck. "You know where to go!" The truck peeled off, and all three laughed at the fun they were having.
A street away, Paulo kicked rocks in sour disappointment. His flirtatious moves hadn't garnered him the favor he was hoping for. This was mostly due to people running out of candy, and he was basically scrounging for scraps at this point. He'd even take candy corn if it was offered. As he threw himself a one man pity party, a pickup truck zoomed past him, nearly running him over. "Watch where you're going, jerkwads!" He shook his fist.
"Paulo, help!" Daisy cried as the truck turned a corner.
"Shaddup!" Barked the dog.
Paulo squinted. "Daisy?" He just barely spotted her hanging off the side of the bed, being held down by the calico and dog. "DAISY!" Paulo booked it as fast as he could, trying to follow the pickup. His feet spun like windmills, and his lungs worked overtime. The bag of candy was discarded in order for him to run faster. The truck was just too fast, and eventually Paulo could no longer take in breath to his burning lungs. He stood, hunched over and gasping, watching in horror as the truck vanished out of sight.
The next moment saw Paulo sprinting in the other direction. He had to find help. He had to get his friends. David wasn't too hard to find. Much like Paulo, he hadn't any luck with his plan. Everyone saw through his disguises, and turned him away. This, and there simply wasn't enough candy to give. They had to ration for the last few stragglers out and about.
"David! David!" Paulo yelled to his friend as he ran up to him.
"Shhhh!" The dog hush, finger to his mouth. "Are you trying to blow my cover? Where is your candy?
"Forget the candy!" Paulo panted. "We have to save Daisy!"
David stood at attention like a soldier. "Daisy needs our help? Who is trying to hurt best girl?"
"Some jerks who were messing with us earlier!" Paulo huffed. "We need to find the others!"
David nodded, and the two ran down the sidewalk. Along the way they ran into Amaya (David literally ran into her), and since they were all aware of Sue's plan, they found Sue easily. "Someone's kidnapped Daisy? We must inform the police!"
Paulo pounded his palm with a fist. "No time for that! We need to find Mike and Lucy!"
This is when they heard some bushes next to them shaking. They all jumped back, startled. Then they heard… kissing? Paulo walked around into the dark, and Sue pulled out her flashlight. She shined it forward at two figures who were hidden in the dark.
When the light came on, Mike and Lucy jumped apart quick as lightning. Their faces were on fire, and their costumes in a little bit of disarray. Sue looked at the both of them in shock. "Did you two just ditch us so you could make out the whole time?!"
"We weren't making out the WHOLE time…" Mike muttered, and Lucy, too embarrassed to even speak, punched his arm. Mike responded with an "Ouch!" and he rubbed the impact site.
"Who cares! Daisy's in trouble!" Paulo said impatiently. "Some jackholes nabbed her! I chased them down but I lost them at the end of the neighborhood."
Mike and Lucy looked at each other. "Oh no…" Mike said. "You don't think?"
"Think what?!" Paulo said, now feeling really guilty for pushing her away.
"That's the forest where some kids went missing a long time ago." Lucy shook her head. "My dumb brother told me about it. It probably isn't even true!"
Whether it was true or not, Paulo was disliking the situation more and more. "I don't want her to be the next missing kid! We have to do something! Sue, you're always planning stuff, what do we do?"
"Uhh, call the police?" She said, matter of factly, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"I told you, there's no time for that!" He said.
"But you had time to find all of us?" Lucy asked.
Paulo facepalmed. "Fine! I'll do it myself!" He stomped away, but Sue put a hand on his shoulder. Paulo stopped.
"We're all scared, Paulo. What can we do?" She asked softly.
"This is my fault." Paulo closed his eyes, and his fists. "If I hadn't pushed her away…" Amaya took his hand and smiled sympathetically. Paulo opened his eyes again.
"It could have happened to anyone." Sue assured him. "Maybe I can come up with something…" She removed her hand and put it to her chin as she thought. She paced in place, and everyone watched with bated breath. After a minute or so, she stopped. "Missing kids, you say?" She looked at David. "Can you still do that thing where you snap your head around to look backwards?"
"Like this?" David twisted his head around 180 degrees. Everyone cringed witnessing it. It was a miracle his head didn't fall off.
Sue snapped her fingers. "Great! Then I think I have an idea…"
The old truck rumbled up to the forest and sputtered to a stop. Daisy looked at the forest, terrified. There seemed to be a pitch black curtain that prevented her from seeing beyond the first line of trees. She was sure she'd never see her family or friends again. Bitter tears dripped from her eyes as she was pulled out of the truck by the dog. The driver got out and looked at the empty void that lay ahead. "This place gives me the creeps. This is where them kids went missin', innit?"
"Aahhh, that's just a bedtime story kids are told so they won't play around in there." The calico said. "Ain't nothin' in there but trees."
The dog and tabby looked at each other, not so sure they believed that it was a mere fabrication, but they weren't there to go ghost hunting. "C'mon, little girl. Time to give us your treats." The calico said, leading her in. Daisy wasn't strong enough to break away, and she just went limp. Her captor strained under her weight. "God kid, you already eat all that candy?"
They found themselves in a clearing, illuminated a little by the light of the full moon. The trees blocked out any light from the neighborhood, and the sounds of it too. Not like there was anything to hear, everyone had called it for the night. The tabby caressed Daisy's cheek. "Yer a pretty little thing, aren't ya?" Daisy shied away from his touch.
"Let's see what you've got in here." The dog snatched her bag of candy away, and Daisy gasped. "Mmmm, looks like you were busy tonight! Done all the work for us."
The calico leaned over and looked in. "Not a bad haul, girl."
"Hey, hit her with the broom!" The tabby said. "See how much she likes it!"
Egged on by his two friends, the calico raised the bistled end and brought it down to connect with Daisy's cheek. She fell to the ground and cried. The three friends laughed and the calico started sweeping her. "Look guys, I found some trash, better sweep it up!" The thugs roared with laughter. All Daisy could do is cover her head and hope that they got bored soon and left her alone.
"Trick or treat!" Said a voice, and Daisy recognized it as David's. The cats and dog stopped their tirade and looked around.
"Who's there?!" The dog demanded to know.
"Trick or treat!" The voice said again. Everyone went dead silent. The calico looked at his friends and jerked his head in a 'Go check it out' motion. In the distraction, Daisy tried to crawl away. The bigger cat pulled the girl to her feet.
"You're not going anywhere!" He growled, claws out, digging into her fur.
The tabby and dog didn't like the idea of walking into the darkness of the trees, so their search was relegated to the small clearing. They wouldn't have been able to see anyone out there anyway.
"Trick or treeeaaat!" David said again, slowly.
"Just some stupid trick!" The calico said. "Show yourself!"
"There are no tricks here." David said. "Only the lost."
From all around the clearing, out of the darkness, Sue, Mike, Lucy, Amaya, and Paulo appeared, along with David who walked backwards. They all looked gaunt, covered in dirt, leaves, and sticks. "Shit man!" The dog said, scared. "Those must be them missing kids!"
"Yeah, fuck this!" The tabby said, and he booked it from the area, with the dog falling in behind him, leaving their calico friend alone.
"Get back here you cowards!" He yelled, shaking his fist.
"From now on, you best start picking fights with others your own size." Said David, still moving slowly towards the calico and Daisy. "Because if you don't, we'll find you."
"The dead can always find you…" They all (except Amaya) said in unison. The calico looked frantically around, all sides blocked off by the shambling of Daisy's friends. The bully backed up and bumped into David. He looked down, horrified.
David's head snapped all the way around, and he had a huge twisted grin on his face. "So trick. Or. Treat!"
The calico screamed and let go of the selkirk ragamuffin. He dashed past the group of kids and ran yelling out the forests after his two friends. "Run, Daisy." Paulo said. "We gotta get out of here before they come back!"
Daisy nodded and ran toward the neighborhood. She looked back at her friends. "We're right behind you, Daisy, just go! They might be back soon!" Sue told her. The girl nodded and looked forward. She could make out the streetlights in the distance, and burst through the underbrush back to civilization. She looked back. "We made it! Guys, we-" Daisy hit someone and came to a full stop.
"Daisy?" Paulo asked, surprised. "Are you okay?!"
Daisy looked up at Paulo in shock, mouth opening and closing as she had a hard time trying to find the words. "But… wha… you…"
"Daisy, thank goodness!" Sue said, and hugged her. The rest of her friends came in for a group hug as well.
Daisy smiled and melted into their affection. "But… but you guys were just in there! With me!"
Her friends looked around at each other, confused. "No… we've been on our way to rescue you." Mike said.
Daisy felt a little pale and a little sick. She rested herself on Paulo, who was still hugging her. "I think I'm ready to go home…"
"Aww, but none of us have candy!" David said. In the panic of going after Daisy, everyone had left their candy behind.
Amaya stepped up. "I think." She said in a small, sweet voice, so light that the wind could carry it. "The real treats are the friends we made along the way."
Everyone looked at her. Then they shook their heads. "Nawwww, I still want candy!" David pouted. "Let's go back to my place, my mommy usually has an extra bag just for me!"
"You're telling me you get TWO bags of candy every year?" Paulo asked, jealous.
"Mhm! I'm her sweet little cupcake!" David said. "Let's go!" He turned to run back to his house, and Paulo followed in hot pursuit.
"Not before I get there first! You always take my favorites!" He let go of Daisy to follow David, but part way down the road, he stopped. Something nagged in the back of his mind, and he looked at Daisy. He sighed. "You know? I think Amaya has a point." He walked back to Daisy and took her hand. "I'm gonna make sure you get home safe."
Daisy blushed and kissed Paulo's cheek. "Thank you, Paulo. You're the sweetest candy of all!"
Sue rolled her eyes. Sweet wasn't a word she'd use to describe Paulo, but she had to concede, Paulo was doing the right thing for once. "I need to get home now anyway." She said. "I'll see you all at school. C'mon Amaya." The burmese and tabby left Paulo and Daisy to walk home alone.
"What are we gonna do now?" Mike asked Lucy.
"We could go back to my house and place some games." Lucy suggested. Under her breath, so quiet that only Mike could hear, she added. "And… pick up where we left off…"
Mike blushed. "I like that idea. Goodnight Paulo and Daisy." He waved to his friends, and walked with Lucy down the sidewalk and out of sight.
"Let's go, Paulo. I think my mom has some cookies at home." She smiled at the somali. "Maybe we can watch some scary movies too! As long as you're there."
Paulo nodded and smiled at her. "I could go for some cookies."
They walked away, hand in hand. Daisy looked back at the forest one last time, and thought she saw a few pale shimmers among the trees.