A New Normal for Halloween

     The Haunted Woods.

     And of Halloween night, of all times!

     You see, today had started as a normal day. I woke up at my normal time, ate my normal breakfast (a Ham and Cheese Crepe and a Cup of Tea) and left my Neohome in Neopia Central shortly after breakfast. I work at The National Neopian Bank, you see. My role is a normal bank teller. I’m the one you see when you enter the bank usually, and I also assist the bank manager (that boisterous Green Skeith) with deposits and Neopoint withdrawals. Normally, I would have some Crispies, a Ham and Cheese Crepe, and a Happy Face Latte for lunch. A simple, uplifting, and dependable meal. Then, following the afternoon part of my shift I would travel home to have a normal evening of feeding and grooming my petpet before turning into bed at the usual time once darkness descended on Neopia.

     Nice and normal! Predictable and comforting! What perhaps might feel boring to some, was dependable to me.

     But today, when I left work, after pulling on my jacket and saying goodbye to the bank manager, I decided to take a different way home. The skies were already dark, and the moon was just barely visible through high, thick and creeping clouds. I'm not sure why I decided to change up my route. I almost never venture to the Haunted Woods! But tonight, there was something about the crawling mist and eerie moans of the distant Esophagor that called me, it seemed. I passed by grave stones, decrepit and almost buried by dried burgundy, brown, and orange leaves, dead branches of tall trees reaching out their spindly fingers for my fur and tail, the haunting music of the Deserted Fairground playing in the distance.

     Normally, this scene, this music, eerie as it was – and this land – dark, foggy, and shadow covered as it stood, would have terrified me! I preferred the day, with a bright sun illuminating my way and warming my fur. But tonight, I felt drawn to take this way home. It was almost as if my feet took me there without me realizing it. I didn’t feel as scared as I usually did, to tell the truth. Was it because tonight was… Halloween?

     Halloween hadn't always meant very much to me, in the past. I didn’t usually trick-or-treat, but I enjoyed seeing the Neopet’s costumes from the comfort of my own Neohome when they came to knock on the door. I usually gave out little candies and chocolates each year. But there was just... something, today, that drew me here. It was irresistible.

     I tightened my scarf around my neck, shivering slightly in the darkness. Although it was late by the time I made my way through the Haunted Woods, I saw a spooky Neopet pass by me every so often. A Halloween Lupe, a Shadow Usul, a Halloween Meerca, a Wraith Aisha. Korbats zoomed and cackled above me through the spindly trees with reaching, crawling branches, and the sight was actually energizing. There was just something about Halloween, this year! This wasn’t how I usually felt, but this year I felt… excited?

     I saw Neopets run by far in the distance, through the trees, laughing and whooping. They were trick-or-treating, carrying heavy-looking bags that must be filled with candies and chocolate. They were dressed in costumes; I saw a Neopet draped with a white sheet who must have been a ghost, and one with a black cape who must have been a vampire. What fun! … Wait, is this me, thinking this way? That wasn’t normal…

     As I passed by the Stone Dome, shadows from the tall structure falling across my path, a faerie materialized to my right. I jumped, startled – her bright hair and dress were such a stark contrast to the gloom and darkness surrounding me.

     I squinted. “…Naia?” It was the fountain faerie! I had never seen her in person before. Indeed, not many Neopets have! In our normal lives, a visit by Naia is a rare occurrence given only to the luckiest of Neopets to fulfill their dreams, to express their identity in any color they so desire.

     "That’s right. I would like to reward you with a brand new color!" She exclaims, smiling at me, her yellow and teal hair shimmering in the darkness, her skin somehow lighted from within, comforting me. She seemed weightless, her hair defying gravity to float around her, sparkling and glittering despite the night.

     "M-Me?" I ask, startled. I thought I must have misheard her. "Why ever chose me?"

     Naia grins mischievously. "You see, there is something magical in Halloween night, and for those who are willing to experience it. And I felt that today, that you are truly experiencing Halloween for the first time. You are ready to choose your true identity."

     I blinked and thought for a long moment, not believing my luck. Was this real life? Could this be happening? There must be meaning in Naia’s visit, on this of all nights – Halloween! It’s true that normally, I did not choose to truly experience Halloween night. Sure, I gave out candy to trick-or-treaters, but that was from the comfort of my home. I didn’t immerse myself in the magic, the feeling, the atmosphere of the holiday. Instead, I usually avoided all things spooky.

     I knew what step I must take. All my life I had been a yellow Neopet. It's a normal, simple, and predictable color. While a happy and joyful color, it blends in, I guess you could say. And I realized now that that is what I had been doing my whole life. I had been avoiding uncomfortable situations and places that were new, and that would maybe take a little bravery to experience and fully enjoy, to instead live a predictable and relatively unchanging life.

     Sure, my life was comfortable. I had a job and a petpet whom I loved. I felt peace in daily life, although a little boredom, now that I thought about it more closely. Every day was quite the same. Usually this kind of dependability had made me feel comfortable, but today, something had pushed me to move beyond those boundaries and rules I had set for myself and experience something different. A world, a concept, a feeling, that had frightened me before.

     That must mean it was time to change! I felt courage and bravery coursing through me. I felt a new strength and energy and a smile stretch across my face. I felt energized by the shadows and fog seeping through the towering trees above me. The music that had unnerved me earlier only added to the perfection of this night, this atmosphere. I could tell that this was the beginning of a new life for me. A life of taking chances, of stepping into unfamiliar or uncomfortable situations, of being brave and taking risks, and stepping up to enjoy my life in Neopia to the fullest.

     I looked up at Naia, giving her the same grin back that she had presented me with, and knowing how best to capitalize on my new outlook on life. "I know what I wish to become. I would like to be painted Halloween!"

     This will be my new normal, I told myself. A new normal for Halloween!

     The End.