Hey readers! I know it's been a very long time since I've touched this story, and honestly, it shouldn't have taken me this long. I'm really sorry for the wait. (⋟﹏⋞)

Thank you to everyone for being patient and sticking around! ❤ I do plan on finishing this story, and hey, I managed to get it done before Halloween! (⁀ᗢ⁀)

I also feel it's important to pay respects to the late Ken Page, who brought so much life to one of the best Disney villains of all time. ❤

Alright! Hope you enjoy the long-awaited Chapter 3!

The bright jack-o'-lantern face sun lightly peeked past the cloudy sky, shining through the windows and onto the little human's face. Willow squinted her eyes before slowly opening them and yawning. "What a weird dream..." she mumbled, thinking back to what had happened last night: finding doors on trees, falling down one into a world where it was Halloween all the time, and meeting monsters and ghouls. But as she slowly stood up, she quickly realized that this was not her bed. Looking around the bizarre room, her eyes widened. "Oh right... it wasn't a dream." She was still in Halloween Town and had stayed the night at the Pumpkin King's house.

A sudden happy bark jolted her awake, followed by a cold tongue licking her cheek. Willow giggled, looking down to see the ghost dog Zero, who had slept with her last night. "Morning, Zero! Did you sleep well? Wait... do ghosts need sleep?" she wondered, but she got her answer when the ghost dog yawned.

"Ah, good, you are awake!" Willow turned to see Jack entering the room, a big skeleton smile on his bony face. "How are you feeling, Willow?"

"Better, thank you," she nodded, smiling. She then noticed that his hands were folded behind his back, as if he was hiding something. "Jack, is something behind you?"

His smile turned into a grin as he held his arms out. In his hands was a stack of green and black fabric clothes. "Sally stopped by to give this to you," he said, placing it down on the bed next to her. "We noticed last night that your pajamas were quite dirty, and she made you some new clothes."

Willow pulled the covers back and noticed her dirty pajamas. She blushed and lowered her head. "Sorry, I ruined the bedding..."

Jack gave her a sympathetic smile. "Not to worry, Willow. Now how about you get dressed? Breakfast is almost ready." Giving her some privacy, he walked out, with Zero following behind.

Willow jumped off the large bed. Picking up one of the clothes, she held it up, and her eyes sparkled; it was a gothic Victorian-style dress in dark forest green with black spiderweb patterns, black trim around the collar, sleeves, and skirt. In the front was a lace corset with a matching black ribbon. The sleeves passed her wrists, almost fully covering her hands, and the skirt was just barely above her knees, showing off the black-and-white vertical stockings, just like Jack's suit. Lastly, a black hooded cloak with a large orange jack-o'-lantern button clip.

The human girl was giddy as she quickly took off her dirty pajamas. She pulled the dress over her head and put on the stockings. Wrapping the cloak around her shoulders, she looked at herself in the mirror. She smiled and twirled around. "Thank you, Sally."

After tying her hair in a high ponytail, with her side bangs hanging just above her left eye, Willow headed downstairs. She found Jack in the kitchen, cooking something that smelled pretty bad. The skeleton turned his head and smiled down at Willow's new outfit. "Why, don't you look hideously cute."

Willow giggled, knowing he was complimenting her in his own haunting way. "Thank you." She then glanced past him at what he was cooking in the frying pan and pot. "Umm... what's for breakfast?"

"Fried caterpillar and rotten eggs," Jack grinned, turning back to his cooking. "Oh no..." Willow cringed. She had managed to drink that beetle milk last night, but she didn't think she could stomach more insects. "But I found out some humans do not like those, so how about some pumpkin and squash soup?"

Willow quickly brightened up. "That sounds good!" She hurried over to the table. Since the skeleton was taller than a basketball player, the table and chairs were like booths. The little human pulled out one of the tall chairs and climbed up as Jack dished out their breakfast. He set her bowl of soup in front of her before giving Zero his breakfast of bones.

The skeleton sat at the other end of the table with his plate of fried bugs. "Thank you for the food," Willow said, blowing on her spoon and starting to eat. The sweetness of pumpkin and squash tingled in her mouth as she swallowed. "It's so good!" Jack chuckled, and the two ate in silence. Once Willow's bowl was licked clean, she smiled. "Thanks again, Jack!"

"You are most welcome," he replied, taking her bowl and putting the dishes in the sink.

While the skeleton cleaned up breakfast, Willow hopped down from the table and went over to the windowsill, gazing down at the town below. "Wow, Halloween Town looks so different in the daytime, yet still the same."

The skeleton chuckled as he cleaned the dishes. "Once I'm finished, why don't I give you a proper tour?" The little girl's smile widened.

Just then, the doorbell screamed like a banshee, startling the human. That was quite an unusual ring.

Jack wiped his bony hands dry and walked over to the front door, where the Mayor was waiting outside. His wide grin grew at the sight of the skeleton, holding rolled-up papers in his right arm. "Ah! Good morning, Jack!"

Willow came up from behind Jack, with Zero next to her side. The two-faced man looked a lot different in the sunlight. She smiled and greeted the monster. "Good morning, Mr. Mayor."

He turned his attention to the human girl, his smile never wavering. "Good morning to you too, Miss Willow!" Before looking back at Jack, he said, "I have the new prescriptions you were talking about last night. Figured we could go over them?"

Jack blinked, looking at the papers. That was certainly quite a lot. Though his eye sockets frowned slightly as he looked down at the human girl behind him, he said, "I'm terribly sorry, Willow. I know I promised you a tour."

But Willow smiled and waved her hands. "It's okay, Jack! I understand. It must be a lot of work planning for Halloween." The skeleton gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Oh, it certainly is!" the Mayor chimed in. "That is why Jack is the Pumpkin King! He has an incredible vision to bring bone-chilling fright to..." He was boosting his boss's ego.

Willow giggled. "Well, I certainly can't wait to see it all!"

That's when Jack got an idea. Crossing his arms, he tapped his chin with a long finger. Looking back at his new human friend and his dog, he grinned. "Willow, why don't you go over to Sally's with Zero for the morning? I'm sure she would be very happy to show you around town, and I will catch up with you three later?"

Her eyes lit up, already excited to see her ragdoll friend again. "Okay!" she said, jumping slightly on her heels. Zero joined in on her excitement, barking and doing backflips in the air. "Come on, Zero!" Running past the two monsters, they hurried down the rickety staircase, jumping over the last step. "See you later!" Willow turned and waved as she continued to run off.

"Joyful little creature," the Mayor smiled, watching the two friends run off. Jack chuckled, nodding in agreement.

Walking down the stone-tiled street with the ghost dog floating by her side, Willow took in everything: the buildings, Jack's house, and the fountain in the center of town that spilled green water. Everything had very little color, and even the sky was overcast, accompanied by a cool breeze of fall weather.

All the monsters that were in the parade last night were off doing their own things, talking to one another. Even though it was technically still September, everyone was looking forward to their holiday, which came only once a year.

The human girl gave a friendly wave to a group of vampires who noticed her. Holding umbrellas to block the sun's light, they waved back.

It seemed that everyone, while a little scared last night by her presence (to put it lightly), had accepted her as a guest. Being a fan of Halloween probably contributed to that.

"Oh look! It's the human!" The clown, who was in a group chat with the sea monster and the werewolf, pointed at the little girl.

Willow smiled and waved as they gathered around her, making her realize how much smaller she really was compared to the monsters. "G-Good morning to you all." She felt a little bashful being the sudden center of attention, while getting used to the fact that monsters were real. But despite their enjoyment of scaring people, they were friendly.

"It is still a shock to see a human in our town," the sea monster tilted her head, looking Willow up and down.

"Though she is now dressed like one of us," the clown smiled. Willow looked down at her new attire, feeling a blush rise to her cheeks.

"You all seem really excited for October," she smiled back, watching them all grin and nod.

"We have been practicing our scare tactics," the werewolf gave a demonstration howl. Willow giggled a little.

"Want to be at our best!" The clown, balancing on his unicycle, circled around her.

"Well, I look forward to seeing you all at the pumpkin festival on Halloween!"

That comment seemed to confuse the group, who all blinked and exchanged looks. "Oh, we all thought you'd be staying with us," the sea monster said.

Willow blinked. "Staying?"

"Why yes, seeing as how you ran away from home," the werewolf added. It was clear the word had gotten out.

The human girl frowned, knitting her brows together as she cast a look down at her feet. They were technically right; she had left home to live on her own. Zero frowned, gently rubbing against her leg for comfort.

"Well, if Jack welcomed you, so shall we!" The clown smiled again, to which they all nodded. Willow looked back up with a small smile; they really were kind.

Remembering the task at hand, she asked the monsters, "Oh! I'm looking for Sally. Do you know where she lives?"

"Dr. Finkelstein's creation? They live further down the road in the giant laboratory." They pointed past her head. Willow turned and saw it in the distance.

Turning back, she thanked the group of monsters, and continued Zero. But as they headed closer to the laboratory, the ghost dog noticed the human looking down; clearly deep in thought on what the others had said. Gripping bottom of her skirt, Willow frowned.

Should she really stay in Halloween Town? It was a magical place filled with friendly monsters who had welcomed her so warmly, but what about her parents? She remembered the talk she had with Jack last night, they were probably worried sick? Willow took a deep breath and tried to sort through her feelings.

Maybe... she could stay just a little while longer? Maybe help out with Halloween preparations. She could learn more about this enchanting world and make friends. It sounded like a good idea, but she knew deep down, it was not the right choice, she was just stalling.

Zero floated closer, nudging her leg with his cold nose. "I know, Zero," she said softly, scratching behind his ghostly ears. "It's so nice here, I don't want to leave so soon..."

Suddenly, she halted when she heard something crack under her boots. Blinking in surprise, she looked down and lifted her foot—was that a piece of hard candy?

"Hu?" Tilting her head up, she saw another piece, and another—no, a literal trail of candy leading toward the graveyard. "Weird…" Zero sniffed the candy trail, getting a bad feeling. Willow looked toward the laboratory, then back at the candy trail that seemed to be enticing her to follow.

Now, since she read every Grimms' Fairy Tales; logically, this could be a Hansel and Gretel trap. But so far, every monster the human girl had encountered had been very nice. And eating candy was a Halloween tradition. Maybe someone had accidentally dropped a few pieces?

Zero looked up at Willow, also unsure, and wanted to stick to their route. But a child's curiosity always managed to win.

"It wouldn't hurt to check it out, right?" Willow shrugged. However, Zero was not having it, whimpering to get her back on the sidewalk. "It will be okay, Zero. It's just candy, after all." She smiled at the worried pup and followed the trail toward the gates. Not wanting her to go alone, he quickly rejoined her side.

Willow pushed the gate door open, looking over the vast graveyard that stretched out before her and the forest where she had fallen. She didn't spot any ghosts like last night; maybe they were asleep?

The candy trail zigzagged along the ground—it was certainly a waste. The human girl kept on the trail, hopping over the candy like a jump rope. Zero, on the other hand, kept looking around at every tombstone, sensing that they were being watched.

After following the candy trail for a long time, Willow finally decided to call out to whoever had left it. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

She was met by the sounds of children giggling. Not the most pleasant thing to hear in a graveyard. A shudder went up her spine. Turning back around, she said, "W-Who's there?"

Zero narrowed his empty eye sockets, listening and sniffing around, but the smell of candy was overwhelming.

A short, shadowy figure darted behind a tombstone out of the corner of Willow's eye, followed by two more. They were circling her as the giggling grew louder. The human girl narrowed her eyes. "Okay, this isn't funny. Show yourself!" She tried to act unafraid, not realizing she was backing up until her back hit a tombstone and a shadow loomed over her.

Willow froze; she dared not look back.

Slowly, she turned her head and was met with six eyes. The shadow monster towered over her, with weirdly shaped heads and grinning smiles, shaking its multiple arms in the air.

"BOO!"

"AAAAHHHH!" Willow twisted her body, screaming her lungs out. She tripped on her own feet and fell backward onto the candy pile. Zero shielded the girl, barking angrily at the monster who scared his friend.

Suddenly, the monster burst into hysterical laughter. Willow blinked, looking up to see the sun shining over the figure, and was shocked to see three little kids all piled together to make it look like they were a big monster. One was a little devil, another was a witch, and the last was a skeleton, all wearing masks of what they were.

The human girl blinked as the trio continued to point and laugh at her.

"Haha, we got you!" the devil kid laughed the hardest.

"Wow, do you look stupid!" the little witch cackled under her mask.

"That's why we're the best!" the little skeleton boy grinned while licking a lollipop.

After realizing she had been tricked, Willow's face turned beet red, her cheeks puffed out from embarrassment. Climbing back to her feet, with pieces of candy stuck to her back, she huffed, "Hmph, not nice." As she picked the candy bits off, Zero licked them from her clothes.

"It's called a trick for a reason," the devil said, crossing his arms and looking smug.

"Am I supposed to be the treat?" Willow scoffed, dusting herself off. "Seems like a waste of good candy for a dumb prank."

"Oh yeah… she's kind of right," the skeleton frowned; it was a lot of candy.

"Shut up, Barrel!" the witch barked as the trio hopped off the tombstone. "Either way, we scared you, so—ha ha!" That was until they realized she was taller than them.

"Oh yeah, I was pranked by a couple of little kindergarteners," Willow said, crossing her arms to show her age and height difference. She was a head taller than them, maybe even a year or two older as well.

The devil took offense to that, "Yeah well- you fell for the oldest trick int he book! Dummy!"

Willow rolled her eyes at his so-called burn. "Anyway, who are you guys? I didn't see you last night at the parade."

"You mean the same parade they do every single year?" The witch gagged in boredom.

The skeleton answered her question. "We're Halloween Town's number one trick-or-treaters!" As they said their names, they chimed in, "Lock." "Shock." "Barrel."

"Well, I'm—"

"We know, the human named Willow!" Barrel grinned up at her.

"The first ever human in Halloween Town," Shock added, doing a full circle around her.

"How do you guys know all this?" Willow raised an eyebrow while Zero stayed close to her side, narrowing his eye sockets at the three tricksters.

"Word travels fast. Especially when something new or interesting happens."

"Which never happens," the trio giggled.

'What am I a zoo animal?' Willow frowned, "Well this had been fun (not really) but I need to get back. bye." Without giving them a chance to react she turned and headed back to town.

The three monsters blinked in surprise, not expecting her to just walk away. They weren't finished with their fun! "Hey wait!"

Willow kept matching forward with her head held high, Zero copying her.

"Aw come on, don't be a sour loser." Lock pouted, as they blocked her escape.

"Yeah, we were just having a little fun. Don't humans know how to have fun?" Barrel asked.

The human girl halted, and crossed her arms, "Of course I know how to have fun."

Shock scoffed, "Psst, oh yeah?"

Willow narrowed her eyes, they were testing her. Now, normally she didn't like to do mean pranks, but feeling the sudden pressure to impress she thought of one that might be harmless.

Looking around the graveyard she asked, "Are there any ghost here?"

"Oh yeah, but they're sleeping in the ground right now." Barrel explained hopping on a tombstone, and pointed to the dirt.

"They're heavy sleepers, no way they'll wake up during the daytime." Lock added.

Willow tapped her finger against her chin in deep thought. Clearly those kids like tricking people. She thought back to watching paranormal documentaries, on how to banish ghost from homes. The lightbulb in her head went off. Looking down at the candy pile she had fallen in, she started picking some up.

The three little monster gathered behind her, wondering what she was planning. Willow rummaged through, only picking up salt-water taffies. Once her hands were full she stood up.

Eyeing all the tombstones she took in a deep breath and shouted, "BEGONE SPIRITS!" And threw the taffies trying to hit as many graves as she could. Candy bounced off the stones and fell the ground. They didn't have to wait long; a sea of ghost shot out from under the drift like a reversed waterfall, screaming in fright. Lock, Shock and Barrel gasped as they watched them fly into the air, even Willow was taken aback, shocked that it worked. The ghost scattered into the sky, some into town, until the graveyard was completely empty.

Everything was silent. Willow turned back to the trio, who all smiled. "That was so cool!" they cheered, gathering around her.

"Why didn't we think of that?!" Shock smirked, nudging the little devil.

Willow felt her cheeks blush in a mix of bashfulness and pride. It was a smart prank! But then she heard whimpering. Blinking out of her achievement, she turned and saw the sweet little ghost dog slightly cowering next to his own tombstone.

Regret instantly hit her; now realizing she had scared her friend, Willow quickly hurried over and dropped to her knees. "Oh Zero! I'm so sorry, I—I wasn't thinking… That was dumb of me. I should have thought about you first."

Zero uncurled his body, seeing his friend was back to being herself, and rubbed against her with a smile. Willow smiled and returned the hug. "Come on, we should probably get going." Standing back up, she turned to the monsters. "W-Well, there you go. It was nice meeting you, but I need to be off," Willow said, giving her quick goodbye. However, the trio of little monsters wasn't finished with her yet.

"Aw, do you have to?" Barrel asked, looking the most disappointed.

"Yeah, you've proven that you're not a spineless scaredy pants," Lock smiled.

"You could join our group!" Barrel quickly added.

"Barrel!" Lock and Shock barked; they wouldn't go that far. They both gave him a bonk on the back of his head.

Willow turned back to them, watching their little banter.

"Why not?" the little skeleton frowned at his 'friends,' who were calling him stupid. "She knows how to have fun! Plus," he leaned in, "I bet Oogie would reward us for recruiting the first human in Halloween Town." He whispered that last sentence.

Lock and Shock quickly shut their mouths as the gears turned in their little heads. They turned to the human girl, who was eyeing them with suspicion. Their boss would probably like that. The trio turned back around and smiled at Willow. "I mean—that's a great idea, Barrel!" Shock agreed, forgetting that they had just called the little skeleton stupid.

"Your group?" Willow asked with a raised brow. Zero narrowed his eye sockets.

"Yeah, the Oogie Boogie gang!" Lock grinned with pride.

"Oogie Boogie?" She tilted her head. That name sounded slightly familiar.

Their smiles grew at her curiosity. "Oh, surely you've heard of him?" They put their masks back on, acting creepy again.

"The one who lurks in the shadows," Shock wiggled her fingers. "His reflection on the moon at night."

"Filling your dreams to the brim with fright," Barrel joined in.

"Shadow on the moon…" Willow muttered. Where had she heard that? The three little monsters circled around her.

"The most wicked and voracious!"

"The Big Man himself!"

"The Oogie Boogieman!" they screamed his name and cackled.

Willow blinked in surprise as a sudden chill ran up her spine. Now she remembered; from last night during the parade, "~I am the shadow on the moon at night, filling your dreams to the brim with fright!~"It was him…! The Boogieman! Zero let out a small growl.

"You're in a gang with the Boogieman?"

"More like henchmen," Barrel corrected.

"Henchmen?!" The human took a nervous step back.

"Oh no—!" Shock waved her hands while Lock bonked Barrel over the head, knocking his mask off. "What the idiot means is he is the king of pranks and causing mischief." She tried to reel her back in. "You showed us how good you are at pranks; why not join the fun?"

That's when Lock jumped in and said, "Nah, let her go, Shock. It's clear she's too much of a goodie two-shoes; she doesn't like our kind of fun." He was trying to pressure her again.

Now that struck a nerve in the little girl's heart. Unbeknownst to them, when Willow's family moved to a new town, she had to start school in the middle of the year. Being the new kid was always hard, especially when trying to make new friends, which she didn't really have…

And she did want friends her own age.

The trio smiled; it was working. Barrel quickly ran over to her and grasped her hands in his, looking back at the others. "Aw, come on, guys! Willow already proved herself to be an Oogie boy, and you can't be one if you don't like having fun!" He turned back to the human girl, showing his big skeleton smile. "Come on, Willow! At least see the clubhouse!" He gave her hands a little tug to entice her to follow them.

Willow gave a small frown, looking at the little skeleton, then back at the devil and witch, who smiled. Feeling put on the spot and wanting to have friends (whether they were human or monster), she caved.

"U-Uum, I guess it wouldn't hurt to check out your clubhouse?"

"Yes!" Barrel cheered, starting to pull her harder, almost making her trip. "You're gonna love it! It's so cool!" Lock and Shock joined their side, helping guide and push the human girl along.

But someone was not having it. Zero growled and barked angrily at the trio who were trying to kidnap his new friend. Flying right behind, he grabbed the end of Willow's cloak and tugged, stopping them from pulling her.

"Z-Zero?!" Willow gasped, turning her head to look back.

Shock scowled at the ghost dog. "Stupid mutt! Shoo!" She waved her hands to shoo him away.

Zero whimpered, his giant empty eye sockets pleading up at Willow, urging her not to go.

"It will only be for a few hours, Willow!" Barrel redirected her attention back to them. "Then you can go back to town!"

Willow looked back and forth between the three monsters and the nervous ghost, torn between choices. "I-I…" She squeezed her eyes shut, whispering "sorry" in her head as she made her choice. "It will only be for a few hours, Zero." She tried to give a reassuring smile back at the dog. "I'll meet you back at Sally's house, okay?"

Zero blinked and dropped his hold on her, looking hurt.

"Perfect! Let's get going!" Lock pushed on Willow's back as the trio pulled her into the woods, disappearing into the colorless forest.

Zero was left to watch as they took her. This was bad! Very bad! He didn't waste any time and quickly floated back to town as fast as he could, getting help.

Willow kept taking glances back toward the graveyard as regret quickly lingered in her heart. She didn't want to leave Zero behind, and it was clear that he didn't want her to go, but she had given in to peer pressure and was now stuck going along with the trio of little monsters.

Barrel, who was leading her, quickly redirected her attention back to them. "Just wait till you see our clubhouse, Willow! You're going to love it!"

"And our candy trove we've collected over the years on Halloween," Lock smiled with pride.

Willow still wore a frown, only half-listening. But once they made it over a hill, her eyes widened at the three house; the structures looked very unstable, hanging from a crooked tree over a large black pit.

"Woah…" was all she muttered. It was way cooler than she thought it would be—a fun place to hide in the woods.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Lock smiled, giving her a little nudge.

"Yeah… So, you guys live here?" the human girl asked, walking down the hill with them.

"Yep." Shock nodded. The group gathered at the large birdcage that hung by a rope at the end of a rickety bridge.

Barrel opened the door, letting Willow in first, who had to crouch slightly, being a foot taller than the others. Once everyone was gathered, the skeleton shut the door. "Going up!" They were hoisted up to a hatch door.

Willow kept her eyes up as the doors opened, pulling the cage inside. The room was dimly lit by candles, bugs scattered everywhere, and there was a slight odor that made her scrunch her nose.

The three monsters pushed to get out first, leaving Willow to climb out last. There were many rooms and a couch, but what she saw next made her feel uneasy; scattered around the room were various weapons, axes, and small cages, all lying around like discarded toys.

a nervous sweat dropped on the side of her forehead, "U-Uuhh…"

"Wait one moment as we gather the stuff!" Shock told the human girl, and the three monsters scurried into different rooms.

"B-But-!" Willow tried to protest but was ignored. She took another glance at the axes lodged in the walls, as if they were playing darts with them. They weren't going to… sacrifice her to the Boogieman, right…?!

Petrified and unable to figure out how to escape, all Willow could do was sit on the couch and wait. The cushion felt sticky against her skirt as she nervously tapped her boot. Just then, they came back; Lock and Barrel were carrying a large black bag full of something, and Shock was holding a box.

Willow blinked at the size of the bag, which was twice their size and looked very heavy. She wondered what the box was for.

The little witch stood in front of her. "Now then," she cleared her throat, "Willow the human! You have proven yourself as a master prankster and have earned a spot as one of Oogie Boogie's henchmen!" Shock monologued, letting out a witchy cackle.

the human girl hesitated to ask, "O-Okay. Umm, so what's in the box?"

Shock snickered wickedly. "Your prize!" She flung the lid open, and out jumped three black scorpions! Willow withheld a scream as they crawled over her face and arms while the they laughed at her scared expression.

"Congratulations, Willow, you are now a Oogie boy!" Barrel smiled happily as he and Lock dropped the bag right in front of her.

Willow held out her arms, and the scorpions crawled off her hand and rested in her palms. Shock picked them up and put them back in the box.

"U-Uh, thanks…" Willow nervously smiled, feeling a shudder go up her spine.

"Let's celebrate!" The devil and skeleton pulled the rope string from the bag, and a wave of candy spilled out. The human girl gaped at the amount; there had to be hundreds, maybe thousands, of every kind of candy! From chocolate to gummies, sours, and sweets, all for a glutton—or for four kids.

"Wow…"

"Well, what are you waiting for, Willow?" Lock asked, smiling. Barrel cannonballed into the candy like a pile of leaves.

Willow looked down at all the options, finally picking up a chocolate candy bar. Taking off the wrapper revealed that it was regular human candy and not something from Halloween Town; she couldn't take any more bugs…

Biting into the first treat, she said, "Yum! How'd you manage to collect a thousand pieces of candy?" She asked, grabbing another bar.

"We're not Halloween Town's finest trick-or-treaters for nothing!" Lock smirked with pride.

"But don't you guys eat… uh, bugs and stuff?" she asked, feeling rude.

"Oh yeah, Oogie makes the best snake and spider stew!" Shock smiled while eating black licorice.

"But humans do know how to make really good candies too!" Barrel popped his head out with a mouth full of gummies. Willow couldn't help but giggle.

As the group of kids enjoyed the hoard, the human girl took in more of the clubhouse surroundings. That's when she asked, "So, does the Boogieman live here too?"

The three monsters paused, exchanged looks, and smiled a little too wide for Willow's liking.

"Right! We need to introduce you to him!" Shock said, grabbing both of Willow's hands. She pulled the human to her feet. Lock and Barrel hurried to Willow's side and pushed her along.

Willow looked at them with worry but let them guide her to the wall where a pipe hole was wedged inside, with a scary monster face drawn on it. They pushed her to the front. She took a closer look, trying to see anything in the pitch-black tunnel.

"He's right… down… there!" Suddenly, she felt six hands shove her on her back. Willow cried out as she went forward in a barrel roll, tumbling down the pipe and screaming all the way.

The bottom of the pipe opened like a trapdoor, and she free-fell onto a platform. Willow slowly sat up, feeling dizzy. Blinking a few times, she shook her head. The room she landed in was very dark and ominous, with weird contraptions oddly scarier than the ones upstairs, and everything glowed in bright neon colors.

The human girl felt a shiver go up her spine, sensing that something—or someone—was watching her. She got her answer as large footsteps approached from behind.

"Well, well, well… What have we here?"