A Halloween We Won't Soon Forget: Part One

"Hey, Frosty, Kyakoy, quit flying in the house!" shouted Fudge in the direction of two Shoyrus as she helped her Checkered Acara, McGonny, into a Gobbler Costume. The Neopets ignored her and continued whizzing just out of arm's reach, coming dangerously close to chandeliers and photos but never touching anything.

     "You'll never get them down like that," Morgan, a Speckled Kacheek, said in a muffled voice as she pulled herself into a Hannah Costume.

     "She's right." Misabella nodded and hollered to the Shoyrus, "Both of you, get down here or you're getting no Kass Basher for a week!"

     Mumbling something to each other, the two Shoyrus landed gracefully on the floor, one blue and one silver. The blue one was half into a Dr. Sloth Costume.

     "C'mon, Kyakoy, if you want to help host the Halloween party, then you've gotta stop fooling around," Fudge instructed, thrusting a Jazan Costume towards the Silver one.

     "Same goes for you, Frost," Misabella said, pulling the Dr. Sloth Costume correctly over her Shoyru's head. "Where are Strawb and Quislings?"

     As if on cue, a Strawberry Gelert and a Green Pteri came running in the front door.

     "Sorry we're late!" Quislings bellowed. "We left our costumes at Tyrannia where we had our omelette for lunch."

     "Yeah, erm, yeah! What he said!" Strawb agreed. "Sorry, Misabella... I didn't mean to..."

     "It's alright, guys..." Misabella comforted.

     "Why were you eating lunch at eight-thirty in the evening?" a Purple Usul by the name of KillerDawg asked curiously, and Quislings turned a faint shade of pink.

     "Um, er..."

     "Never mind," Fudge cut in. "They're here now; that's good enough, isn't it?"

     "True."

     "Okay, guys, your costumes are in the front room," Misabella replied, waving a hand in the direction of said room. "But if you want to help frost the cake, you can't put them on yet. They might get messy."

     "When is everyone coming?" asked Kyakoy eagerly.

     "Um..." Misabella squinted through the house's gloom at her watch. "In about half an hour."

     "Yipes!" shrieked McGonny, taking Morgan by the hand. "C'mon, we gotta finish the decorations!"

     Morgan, Quislings, and McGonny hurried to put streamers, balloons, and the like around the house. Strawb tried to pull down the streamers when they were done so they had to do it all over again.

     "STRAWB!!!" Morgan yelled. She was always mad at him. "Stop! That took a lot of work!"

     Strawb just stuck out his tongue and went to Frost and Kyakoy.

     "Hey, mind giving me a ride around the house?" he asked in a whisper.

     A mischievous glint came into Kyakoy's eyes. "Fudge cut holes in this for my wings--did she do that to your costume, Frost?"

     "Sure did," the Shoyru murmured evilly.

     As the two took hold of Strawb's paws and hovered into the sky, they were spotted.

     "Hey, what are you doing?" asked Fudge.

     "Just fixing some of these streamers," Frost lied.

     "They are perfectly fine!" McGonny and Quislings said at the same time.

     "No... er, one of the tapes wasn't sticking," Kyakoy replied. "So I replaced it with a sticky one."

     "Then why do you both have Strawb in your hands?" Morgan questioned them.

     "Er..." Kya was running out of ideas.

     "Um, Strawb wanted to help us put it up!" Frost said quickly.

     "Yeah, that's it!" Strawb exclaimed unhelpfully.

     McGonny sighed and rolled his eyes. "You don't have any tape up there, Kya, and furthermore if you have Strawb in your hands, you can't let go of him to put the tape on. The tape was already sticky anyway."

     The Shoyrus blinked at each other for a moment, unsure what to do, and then they both grinned and took off flying around the house.

     "Stop it, stop it, stop it!" shrieked Quislings.

     "Oh, this is ridiculous." Groaning, Fudge turned to KillerDawg. "Do you have your Sparkshooter with you?"

     "No, why?" the Usul asked, but instantly knew.

     "Never mind, I'll go get it!" Excitedly, KillerDawg ran to his room and picked up his Sparkshooter. Then, running back into the living room, he shot close to the Shoyrus, or rather, the tornado of red, silver, and blue whizzing around the room. You couldn't tell Strawb from Frost and Frost from Kya.

     It was KillerDawg's third lucky shot that finally got them to stop. Kyakoy, Frost, and Strawb went flying down like an Eyrie cab with no driver.

     "I-I don't feel s-so go-good," the dizzy Strawb said.

     "Aww..." Morgan said sarcastically. "I guess you can't participate in the Halloween party."

     "I'm fine now!" Strawb got up quickly.

     "If I was meaner, I'd ground you right now, Kya, so you wouldn't get to help with the party," Fudge said, shaking her head disapprovingly.

     "And the same from me." Misabella nodded. "But lucky for you we aren't."

     "S-sorry," mumbled Kyakoy.

     "And thanks!" chimed in Frost, who wasn't showing the least bit of dizziness.

     "... so instead, we're limiting your candy tonight," Fudge finished, grinning mischievously.

     "What!!??" The Shoyrus protested together. "But, but, b-"

     "No buts!" Misabella said firmly. "You can't have any cake, and not so much candy. Both of you."

     "We have to! It's Halloween, not dentist day!" Kyakoy shouted, watching Strawb quietly sneak into another room to avoid punishment out of the corner of his eye.

     "Stop shouting or you won't get ANY candy," Fudge replied sternly. At a noise from Strawb she turned and snapped her fingers. "Hey, get back here. This applies to you too, Strawb!"

     Pouting, Strawb slowly walked back to the others. "Can't you do something else besides not let us have candy?"

     "Yeah, please?" Kyakoy and Frost pleaded.

     "Hm..." Fudge rubbed her chin thoughtfully and turned to Misabella. "How about this. They go up to the bedrooms--EACH IN A DIFFERENT BEDROOM," she said the last part very forcefully, "until the party begins, and then tonight, they may eat all the candy they like, but we throw the rest of it away."

     "Deal!" the three said together, and trotted upstairs.

     "Boys!" Morgan whispered to McGonny. "When will they ever lear--Oh, sorry. It's different with you..."

     "'Tis alright."

     "Three down, four to go," Misabella said to the Neopets, and Fudge chuckled.

     "Quislings, KillerDawg, you two can go finish frosting the cake, alright? And McGonny, Morgan, you two stay in the front room so you can open the door for the guests and trick-or-treaters."

     "Where's the candy for 'em?" asked McGonny.

     "In the bowl shaped like a Ghostkerchief. It's by the door. I'm going to go check and see that the boys are all in different rooms, alright?"

     "Alright," Morgan said, stretching her arms as Quislings and KillerDawg skipped into the kitchen. "C'mon, McGonny, we don't want to keep anybody waiting."

     ~*~

     Kyakoy lay on top of the sheets of his Peanut Bed, staring up at the ceiling. He knew that if he started reading or playing with toys he would get yelled at because this was supposed to be a punishment. And it was boring. Still, it was better than having no candy.

     A small Harris ambled up to him and pulled at the bedsheets, trying to climb up. Kyakoy shifted his gaze over to it and then jumped onto the floor to play with his petpet--after all, petpets needed play too, so that was a good argument if Fudge got angry at him.

     ~*~

     Frost was sitting in the air (if that is even possible), watching his own Harris climb a small fake tree in the room..

     "I wish we were allowed to fly," Frost sighed. "Then we wouldn't fly at all cause we're allowed to."

     His Buzzer made a humming noise, confused, and slid down the tree trunk.

     "Alright, alright, we can play," mumbled Frost unenthusiastically, hovering down to the ground.

     ~*~

     Strawb was trying to not get off the bed and and go downstairs. BeeDog, his Wuzzer, sniffed his owner and made an impatient noise that Strawb translated as "Let's go downstairs. That's more fun than sitting upstairs, right? C'mon."

     "I can't, BD... I'm in trouble. Either this or no candy!"

     The Gelert poked his head out the door and saw Fudge coming down the hallway.

     "Just checking you are all in different rooms," she explained. "And you better be good. The trick-or-treaters are starting to come and McGonny and Morgan have their hands full already. I don't have time to watch you every second."

     She probably shouldn't have said that, for it gave Strawb a naughty idea. And as he sat there quietly, his ears perked up and he stared up at a door in the ceiling that probably led to the attic. An eerie monotone could be heard coming from it.

     ~*~

     Kyakoy heard Fudge come down the hallway and look into his room, but he pretended not to notice. He continued teasing MyaKay with a Broken Click Klacks, pulling it out of reach every time the Harris jumped up. As Fudge's footsteps became fainter and fainter, MyaKay finally gave up and leaned against the bed, bored. As Kyakoy sighed, suddenly he became aware of more footsteps.

     "What, is Misabella gonna check on us, too?" he mumbled, annoyed. Sitting up, he looked at the doorway.

     And there appeared Strawb's face.

     "What are you doing?" squeaked Kya. "Go back to your room--or rather, McGonny's room."

     "Shh." Strawb put a finger to his lips. "I have an idea... something fun we can do. C'mere."

     The two neopets and their petpets went down to Frost's room. They went in and closed the door, because although they were sure Fudge had gone downstairs, they were taking no chances.

     "What are you doing!? We are gonna get in trouble!" Frost whispered as his Harris thwacked MyaKay over the head. "Hey, IcyMya, stop it!"

     "I have an idea!" Strawb explained. "It will be fun!"

     "Well, what is it?" Kya asked him curiously as he and Frost leaned in to hear better.

     "Be quiet for a moment, alright?" Strawb replied, and the three sat in silence. At first only the sound of McGonny and Morgan giving some trick-or-treaters candy could be heard, but gradually the eerie music made itself known again.

     "What is that?" Frost asked, and Strawb shrugged.

     "Who says we can't find out? After all... you two have wings... and you already proved you can carry me while flying..."

     The Shoyrus looked at each other.

     "So... We leave our petpets here... And fly towards the sound?" Kyakoy asked.

     "I have a bad feeling about this." Frost joined in. "We could ruin the whole Halloween just by talking to each other. Then go follow some music? Maybe the party just started early or something..."

     "Frost!" Strawb yelled in a whisper (if that is even possible). "This is not like you! This is our chance to have fun! And besides, the party would NOT be in the attic. Everyone's downstairs."

     "We will have fun when the party starts... lots of it unless Fudge or Misabella finds us talking to each other!" It was like Kya had read Frost's mind.

     "Unless..." Frost stood up and grinned. "Unless they DON'T find us talking to each other. We'll work it out!"

     "Now that's more like you." Kyakoy thumped his friend's arm and grinned. "C'mon, let's go."

     Leaving their petpets on the floor to play, the Shoyrus each took hold of one of Strawb's paws and slowly flew up towards the attic door. But when they got there, Frost hesitated.

     "C'mon!" Strawb whispered. "Open it!"

     "I was just thinking..." Frost replied. "What if... What if this was some kind of trick... Like someone is trying to lure us here..."

     "Frost!" snapped Kya impatiently.

     "OK! Okay..." Slowly, he turned the knob and the door squeaked as it opened.

     The eerie music became louder, though it remained faint and distant. Nervous, Frost looked towards his friends for comfort, but Kya, exasperated, pushed him out of the way and wiggled through the small door. Being a small Shoyru, he fit through easily, but Strawb proved to be a different story.

     "One, two, three... pull!" hissed Frost as he struggled to push Strawb through the attic door while still staying up in the air.

     "Ugh!" groaned Kya, pulling on the Gelert's front paws as hard as he could. "I don't think it's going to wo..."

     He went flying backwards as Frost pushed extra-hard, sending Strawb whamming into his friend. The two of them landed a few yards away, wincing and rubbing their heads.

     "Are you alright?" called Frost as loudly as he could without being in danger of being heard.

     "I think so," Kya replied, standing up and groaning a bit. "You can get through yourself, right?"

     "Just watch me," the blue Shoyru replied, taking hold of the inside of the attic and pulling himself up with virtually no effort at all.

     "Alright, so... what now?" asked Strawb.

     The music became suddenly louder and the three pets turned their heads to see a group of Ghost pets playing a big pipe organ: one a Xweetok, one an Aisha, and one a Kacheek. The Xweetok and Aisha stopped when they saw Strawb, Frost, and Kya, but the Kacheek kept playing... faster and faster.

     "W-" Strawb fainted suddenly.

     "Woooooo," the Ghosts mumbled.

     "C'mon!" Frost said. "We could take them."

     "No, we can't!" Kya argued. "They are ghosts! Lets call KillerDa-"

     "NO!!!" Frost flew quickly to the unconscious Gelert. At first Kya thought that Frost had answered his question, but then he realized that the Xweetok was staring at Strawb with a look in its eyes that made Kya tense up.

     "Leave him alone!" Frost shouted to the Xweetok. "And leave me alone too!" His voice was shaking.

     "Um, Frost?" asked Kya nervously as the Aisha, taking sudden interest in this strange silver pet, stepped forwards repetitively towards him, forcing him to step back each time.

     "Yeah?"

     "HOW THE HECK did we get into this mess?"

     ~*~

     "Frost! Kya! Strawb! The guests are here; you can come down!" shouted McGonny from the foot of the stairs for the third time.

     No reply.

     Frustrated, the Acara stomped upstairs and opened KillerDawg's bedroom door, where Fudge had said Frost was.

     "Guys, the--" McGonny stopped. Only three petpets were in the room, playing happily with each other. "Oh, they are in BIG trouble..."

     A mysterious tune broke the silence. Following the sound, McGonny walked around the room and finally figured out that the tune was loudest when he stood under the attic door. "STOP playing the pipe organ! Ugh. How do I get up there... oh right." Opening the closet, he pulled out a small ladder.

     "You three are in SUCH big trouble," he growled as he set it up under the attic door. But as he started up the ladder (with some difficulty, due to the fact that he was still in his Gobbler Costume), his anger turned to worry. By the time he was able to pull himself into the attic, he was trembling.

     "Guys?" he asked nervously, and the music ceased. Two Shoyrus and a Gelert lay unconscious on the floor, while three Ghost pets stared at McGonny with wide, red eyes.

     "Uh... hello?" he managed to squeak out nervously. "Do you... know who did this?" He motioned towards Strawb, Frost, and Kya.

     The Aisha tilted its head and studied McGonny with interest. "Whooo... what makes yooou think sooomeooone else did it?"

     "What do you mean?" the Acara asked, but did not need an answer.

     The Xweetok moved forward. "Of coooooourse we did it. Noooow we will get yooooou." All three ghosts walked up to McGonny.

     "No..." McGonny squeaked. "I-I th-." He fell down slowly.

     ~*~

     "McGonny!" yelled Morgan, slamming the door shut as the last three guests walked into the front room. Sighing an exasperated sigh, she trotted into the kitchen, where KillerDawg and Quislings had just finished frosting the cake. Fudge and Misabella looked up from a piece of paper as she entered the room.

     "Is everyone here?" Fudge asked, smiling.

     "Yeah... everyone but the boys! McGonny went up to get them five minutes ago and he hasn't come back down yet," Morgan explained quickly.

     Misabella frowned. "That isn't like them."

     "Easy solution," Quislings replied, picking up the cake in order to bring it into the living room where the rest of the food was. "Go up there and find out why."

     "But..." Morgan hesitated. "What if something bad happened to them?"

     Fudge rolled her eyes. "What could possibly happen?"

     "KillerDawg," Morgan begged, "will you come up with me? Please?"

     "Okay..." KillerDawg answered.

     "Bring one of your weapon things," Morgan said as the two walked up the stairs and down the hall. KillerDawg patted the Sparkshooter in his pocket reassuringly.

     "D-do you hear music?" Morgan was scared.

     "Yeah... it's coming from my room," the Usul said, puzzled.

     "G-guys? Are y-you there?" Morgan stuttered, peeking into the room.

     "Hey..." KillerDawg's eyes fell upon the ladder. "Go up there." He nodded towards it.

     "You g-go first!"

     "Fine. Don't be scared. Everything will be alright..." He pulled the Sparkshooter out and held it in front of him, ready to attack. Taking a deep breath, he started up the ladder. He knew there was probably nothing to be afraid of, but he was still scared for some reason.

     "Probably just because of the music," he mumbled under his breath as he stumbled into the attic. "That's weird, who would play..."

     He never finished his sentence, for right then he locked eyes with a Ghost Kacheek.

     And froze.

     "Whoooo are youuuu?" the ghost mumbled.

     "What's up there?" Morgan struggled through the door. Saw the gray cloud floating in the attic. And then fainted like the boys before her had done, leaving KillerDawg by himself to clutch his Sparkshooter in trembling fingers.

     "Wh-What did y-you do to my f-friends and s-siblings?" he stuttered.

     "What doooo youuuu think?" the Kacheek asked wearily as a Xweetok and Aisha walked slowly forward and chimed in, "Droooop yoooouuuur weapooon."

     "Never!" shouted the Battledomer, his voice braver than he felt. "Take that!" He balanced on one leg, holding the other at a sharp ninety-degree angle behind him as he extended his arm to be parallel with it. As he did so, sharp jolts of electricity flew out of the weapon, clipping the Kacheek's left ear but nevertheless throwing him off balance. As he fell to the floor uncoordinatedly, the Xweetok and Aisha advanced on KillerDawg, eyes glowing red with anger. Hiding his fear, the Usul waved it at them threateningly.

     "Droooop yooour weapoooon... oooor there will be coooonsequences," the Xweetok said in a spooky voice. When KillerDawg did not obey, the Ghost pet's eyes glowed orange and a burning pain shot through its opponent's arms. KillerDawg struggled to hang on, but it was no use... the Sparkshooter flew out of his hand and burst into flames in midair. The Usul clicked his teeth together as he looked down at the unconscious neopets, begging them to wake up. Strawb's ear twitched a little but despite his friend's hopes, no more movement came from him for the moment. KillerDawg winced.

     It was all over.

     ~*~

     "Where... are... those... pets?" Fudge said the sentence very slowly. Then she brought her palm down on the table with a crack so loud that Quislings jumped. "Alright, I'm going up. This is just silly." She stood up and added to the Pteri, "Go help Misabella with the party. And DON'T come upstairs. You're the only Neopet still down here, after all."

     "You're right," Quislings murmured, realizing that it was true. "Don't be long..." He trotted into the living room. With a deep sigh, Fudge started up the stairs.

     ~*~

     "Frost! Kya! Strawb! Morgan! McGonny! KillerDawg?" The more Fudge called for her and Misabella's neopets, the more worried she grew. She felt like she should've been angry, for all three bedrooms were empty, but instead she was worried sick.

     On the third check of KillerDawg's room, the girl noticed something she'd managed to overlook before. A ladder was stretching from the floor to the ceiling awkwardly.

     "Just don't be hurt," she whispered, taking hold of a rung she could comfortably reach. "Please don't be hurt. It's all I ask."

To be continued...