A Typical Halloween

A bit busy today, gonna write up a quick and fun short story to prep for the epic story arc I’m going to unravel this weekend, then catch up on my pro2 notifications :innocent:

Day 31: A Typical Halloween

The day we had been planning for all year had arrived. Costumes prepped, candy holders purchased, and moms successfully lied to (Yes, we are going to spend tonight at Jerry’s house to recite bible passages. What do you mean we had no interest in Jesus before today? I’d argue that YOU are the one lacking faith here!), we had our sights set on one goal: the new neighborhood that coincidentally finished construction a couple of days before the big day. The domiciles were bigger and bougier than anything we had ever see, which would usually stir conversations of imminent gentrification of the area, but we were also twelve so getting our candy fix seemed infinitely more important at the time.

Dusk settles, and as the first house on our block illuminates with light, we BOOK it. The plan was simple: we each hit a different block at the new houses, and once we each cover three houses we would regroup at the neighborhood entrance. This new neighborhood was built quite strangely in all consideration: there was only one entrance, and it was a gated community preceded by a long stretch of road from our houses. If we didn’t know any better, it would seem like we were stumbling into an forested wood, but we DID know better. I bit my compatriots goodbye at the gate, and began my journey to riches.

I approached the first house in my potato outfit (they called me the carb crusader), and I politely tapped on the door to prepare my cutest pleading face. A elderly coupled greeted me and were delighted with my costume! To reward me for my creativity, they gifted me a ziploc bag full of white cubes. Sugar???? I asked excitedly. No, potato salad! the elder couple declared proudly. As my face turned from excitement to perplexion, the door loudly slammed in my face. No matter, these two were old. Maybe it was normal to give American side dishes during their Halloweens as kids.

The next house looked eerily similar to the first, but I tossed my stereotypes aside to prepare for the next great wonder. A younger couple greeted me this time, dressed as fast food workers. They also thought my costume was delightful, and eagerly gifted me with a ziploc bag of brown cubes. Caramel??? I asked eagerly. No, salad croutons from McDonald’s! the couple exclaimed eagerly. Just as perplexing as the first house I visited, I was met with an equally rude end-of-conversation of the door once again slamming in my face. Weird. Maybe they just loved healthy living.

Hope started to waver from my heart, but there is no way every house in this neighborhood could be full of nutjobs. Walking up to the next porch, I received an eerily similar vibe from the first two. It was like everything in the front lawn was replicated and moved slightly one foot to the left. No matter, the moment of truth had finally arrived. Putting on my most adorable face, the next person who greeted me was a man dressed as a construction worker. He clapped in amazement as he realized I was actually a potato, and rapidly awarded me with a long and brown rectangular object. Chocolate?? I asked feverishly. No, a plank of wood! he replied illustriously as I stared back in absolute shock. Not at the fact that the door was slammed in my face one more, but the audacity that this neighborhood had to shove their hobbies into strangers faces. Halloween was about kids and candy, halloween was about me!!!

Defeated, I returned to the rendezvous point as agreed upon. My two allies seem to be in broken spirits as well. Bentopen the zoo keeper received a goldfish in a bag, a small kitten, and a baby turtle accompaned with an orange can of soda. Jerry the bounty hunter received an anti-Halloween pamphlet, a mini-bible shaped like a pumpkin, and a Christmas crossword puzzle. I guess he got stuck with the religious folks, which is ironic considering we lied about bible study at his house.

No, this isn’t okay. I fumed to my conned collaborators. I was gonna give a piece of my mind to these neighbors, and demand they give me some form of sweets if not a crisp $5 bill. Just as I made the resolve to turn around and stomp through the gates, surprise surprise, they slammed on me as well. Just as I was about to go feral and rip apart these rusty gates with my freakishly large (but probably imagined) strength for a 12-year-old body, my colleagues told me to pull back and look. Letting my rage subside for just a brief second, my mouth hit the floor faster then when that last guy handed me a plank of wood.

The neighborhood was gone. Well, not gone so much as torn down and fading away. All the houses I just visited looked they were fighting a losing battle against time and weathering. Yet all the “candy” we received look just as fresh as the 5 minutes ago when we received them. I decided not to question it further and just head on home. Maybe the turtle and the soda can provide some joy in an otherwise candyless night.

@homeroom11 @dragon