gifAll Hallows In SnipbrookKlarl grunted as he crouched down. “You kids bored?” You look up from nibbling at your empty styrofoam cup. “Huh?” Cherry shrugs. “I could take it or leave it.” “Uh…” Elby pulls her cheap shitty cloak tight around her shoulders. “I kinda hate it here.” “Alright, well…” He looks out at the rest of the dance and sighs. “I kinda have to keep chaperoning here, but I guess I could call Bev to swing by and walk one or more of you kids home.” “Thanks.” After he walks away to do so, your eyes turn toward the dance unfolding in front of you. It’s really not much. Just a bunch of kids in generic costumes awkwardly shuffling to family-friendly music that’s only sometimes Halloween-adjacent. Refreshment table that’s already almost picked clean. Some kid who looks too young to even be in highschool keeps stealing a part of some dude’s costume. The chaperones not currently making a phone call aren’t even batting an eye when that dude’s friends start beating the kid up. Really cool. Klarl steps back in and shoots you guys a thumbs up before standing around with the other adults again. A few more minutes of people-watching later, and some guy walks over and sits on the floor next to Cherry. You think his name’s Domothy or something. “Hey.” Cherry immediately stands up. “We gotta wait outside for my mom. Right now.” “Oh. Uhhh…” He blinks as he watches all three of you march out of the building. “... Okay?” “Cherry, it fuckin’ sucks out here.” Elby snuggles up in her cheap shitty cloak. “Better than inside, at least.” “Maybe quit dressing like this in the middle of fall, ” Cherry punctuates by snapping the strap of your tank top. You stick your tongue out before hopping up to sit atop the Snipbrook High sign. You hop back down hardly a minute later, thanks to the cold metal going straight through the spandex shorts. Only a few more minutes of taking in the night air to varying degrees of enjoyment later, and you spot Bevelyne approaching. She stops in her tracks as she notices your staring at her bright yellow cardigan. “... Can I help you?” “I, uh… didn’t know you owned something so… colorful. ” “It’s cold.” She takes in all three of you. “I’m surprised you didn’t just walk home yourselves. I mean, you’re all seniors. ” Cherry plucked at the edge of one of her gloves. “Dad’s idea.” “Hm. I guess your outfits aren’t really reflective. ” Bevelyne looks at the three of you for a little longer. “Let’s see. You’re…” She taps her chin. “Cherry’s costume is… putting on pants and drawing on her hair with a highlighter.” “It’s Scrunge from the Speedy comics, I told you…” “And you’re… ” She lets out a tired sigh. “Jazzercise again.” “Hey, somebody has to.” Bevelyne squints for a second before turning away from you. “And Elby…” She trails off as she stares at her even longer. She shrinks back a little before pointing at the hastily painted-over plastic taped to her ears. “Elfy.” “Elfy… ” “Elfy.” “... Not bad.” Bevelyne turns around. “Well, c’mon. It’s freezing out here.” The trick-or-treating has only just started truly picking up as the four of you head out. Still not a lot, as there's only so many kids still appropriately trick-or-treating age around here, but the streets still feel pretty alive under the orange glow of windows, festive decorations, and the occasional streetlight. Alive everywhere but Bev's immediate vicinity, at least. She's dead quiet. Only reason you can tell her head's not somewhere else entirely is the fact she's glancing around at your surroundings every few seconds. You’re not sure if it’d be more apt to compare her focus to a predator or to prey. … You don't see anything out of the ordinary, whenever you try to check the same spots. Just the same old kids in the same old costumes. Eventually, you all approach a particularly familiar corner. A frequent face in the usual walk home- you guys normally just walk straight ahead. Quicker. Straight ahead just so happens to be quite a bit darker than the rest of your walk has been. Muscle memory overrides any notion of questioning that- it's not like you actually know the people in these houses, let alone how festive they are. Bevelyne grabs you by the wrist, pulling you to a stop. “Wrong way. ” “Wha-?” You look back at her. “We go this way all the time…” She’s glaring past you entirely. “Well, we’re not going that way right now.” Cherry tries to follow where she’s looking. “Mom…?” You look as well. You, again, see nothing. “What? What’s the deal? Why’ve you–?” “You just have to trust me.” She tugs you closer, grip a little tighter, gaze not leaving the seemingly empty stretch of sidewalk. “Your lives are in my hands. ” Elby grips the edge of her cheap shitty cloak tighter. “Uh…” Bevelyne shakes herself out of… something. “Taking the scenic route won’t kill you. Come on.” Hesitant, she lets go. “Juliulie probably has some popcorn balls left, if you all want to swing by. She still makes far too many.” “Who?”Cherry elbows your side.“I mean, yeah, sure.” Bichard looked up from the candy bowl as the four of you approach Bevelyne’s porch. He stands up and sets it on the railing. “How was the party?” Bevelyne steps right past him. “Thank you for keeping an eye on things for me.” “Yeesh, cold.” He held his arms out to the sides. “What, do I not even get anything for my time?” She took a little candybar from the bowl and offered it to him. “That’s not what I…” Sighing, he takes it and heads home. Cherry pinches her eyebrows together while she watches him get out of earshot. “What’s his problem?” Bevelyne… you almost thought she snorted. “Never mind him.” She turns to look at you and Elby. “You kids can get home safe from here, right?” “Yeah. Thanks.”Right as you start to leave, you stop and look at Elby.Frozen stiff.Staring at her house.“... Elby? ” She snaps out of it. “I, uh–” Spinning around, her cloak smacks into you. “Can I help you guys pass out candy for a bit?” Bevelyne raises an eyebrow. “... Alright. I’m getting a little worn out, anyway.” She waves over her shoulder as she opens the door and steps inside. “You kids do whatever.” The door hangs open, presumably for Cherry to follow. She just closes it and hops up to sit on the railing. Elby looks back and forth between the two of you. “... You guys don’t gotta stay with me, y’know.” You sit down in the more comfortable of the chairs. “Yeah, I know.” Cherry starts swinging her legs. “We drank room temp punch in a noisy room for half an hour. That’s not a very good Halloween, is it?” … Without another word, she smiles as she takes the candy bowl and sits in the remaining chair. Not many kids come down this street. Most of the families dotting along it have stopped moving around, but also stopped growing much longer ago… not that kids living on this street would still be walking along it at this hour. But it's the first factor that comes to mind to explain how full the candy bowl still is, enough so to justify taking some for yourselves whilst you shoot the shit. You got so caught up in it you wouldn't have even noticed the tall man creaking up the porch steps, if Elby didn't tap you on the shoulder. He kept his head tilted in such a way that the porch light wouldn't illuminate his features, shadow cast by his hood staying intact. Moved it in a way that might've been nodding in acknowledgement of you three, if he wasn't evidently really committed to obscuring his face. "Evenin'." Cherry glared at him. "What do you want?" "Any of you kids good with cars? Take shop class?" He jerked his head to one side. "Mine's actin' up. Real strange. " There are no cars parked along the sidewalk of the whole street, let alone where he indicated- just each resident's respective car(s) in each resident's respective driveway.And your school doesn't even have shop class. You double check before shaking your head. "No, sorry." "Well, that's alright. Just some extra hands would do wonders, too." "We–" Elby cleared her throat. "We gotta stay. Pass out candy." The man slowly turned to look in her direction. "Y'know… Halloween…?" He just looked at her. Cherry hopped down to stand between them. "Yeah. And you're holding up the line, jackass." "Lil lady, I don't see any trick-or-treaters anywhere 'round here." "And I don't see a car, either." He lifted his head up slightly. If that made his face any more visible, you can't tell; the side of his hood is in the way. But it made Cherry take a step back. "I'm not leavin' til I get some help, kid. I'm stranded. " You glance at the door. Bevelyne refuses to buy Cherry a cellphone, but you know there's a landline in there. Your own cellphone is charging at home, and you don't think Elby brought hers.This is… you don't want to actually call the cops, but that should scare him off, right? But you don't want to leave these two alone with him, either. Elby's not too far behind you in height when you're all standing, but you're still the only one who might tower over this guy. Even if you know you couldn't actually overpower anyone, if it came down to that. Right as you're about to think yourself in circles further down the spiral, the door opens. "Can I help you?" The man lowers his head again as he turns toward Bevelyne. "You good with cars, ma'am?"Not even skipping a beat. No hesitation to switch targets. She takes her mobius strip necklace between her fingers, casually running her thumb across the silver band. "I help my husband with ours every now and then." He cocked his head. "You a religious woman?" "Mhm." He looks up just enough for you to catch the vague impression of a smile. "Yeah… yeah, I think you could help me." "Lead the way, then." Cherry whipped her head around. "Mom? " "I'll be fine." The three of you stayed on the porch. Sat in dead silence, besides when the odd trick-or-treater came by. The frequency grew less and less as the night went on. Until it finally stopped. But you still stayed. None of you felt the need to point out why. After who knows how long, you saw Bevelyne step into the light. She froze as she looked up. "... You're all still here." Cherry ran over to her. "Of course we're still here! What was that?!" "I told you I'd be fine." "That doesn't mean you should just-!" "Cherry. " She placed a hand on her shoulder. "I just sent him on his way. It's alright." … She huffed before opening the door and stomping inside. Bevelyne approached the doorway. "You should go home now, too. We're done passing out candy." "Uh…" Elby stood up and held out the candy bowl. "Thanks for letting me hang out!" She glanced down at the remaining candy as she took the bowl. "... You should take home some of the leftovers. As thanks from me. " Elby carefully took one. Then, when Bevelyne nodded down at the bowl, the one turned to a handful. "Okay." Once Elby left, Bevelyne held the bowl out to you. "Go ahead." "Your, uh… your cardigan?" She blinked at you. "... What about it?" "You're not wearing it anymore." Eyes suddenly wide, she dropped the bowl, candy spilling across the porch. Looking down, she lightly touched her chest, her arms, growing more frantic as she went, as though she was only just now realizing this herself. As if it’d magically come back if she just felt for it. "... I…" Meeting your gaze again, she pursed her lips and… ran inside, slamming the door behind her. After taking a moment to try (and fail) to process what just happened, you put the candy back in the bowl, took a handful for yourself, and left. When you got back to your own house, you looked out the window to see Klarl pull into the driveway across the street, stop and tilt his head when he noticed the bowl on the porch, then shrug before picking it up and heading inside.Snip Snow SnipYou woke with a start. Rubbing your eyes, you tried to pull through the haze of waking to find out why. Squinting, you realize there's snow over your window, across from the foot of your bed. It would appear somebody threw it on. ... Albeit a bit thick. Maybe multiple times? A dark green mitten pokes through the snow. You sit up and watch it, rapt. It carves out a heart-shaped hole. Through the hole, you see Cherry smiling to herself. When she makes eye contact with you, her eyes widen and her mouth falls agape. She quickly smears away the heart and runs off. You stretch your arms over your head before getting up. Quietly, you tiptoe down the hall. Which spots creak and which spots don't has already become muscle memory. You pause outside your parents' room. The deep bassy snore of your mother, and the nasally snore of your father. With an exhale, you make your way over to the door and put on your boots. Once all bundled up, you open the door to find Elby already approaching. She smiles and waves. You close the door behind you. "What's got you out of bed this early?" She shoved her hands in her pockets and grinned. "Wanted to make sure you knew it was a snow day." "This early in the morning? They don't even announce it this early." "Yeah, well, look at all this!" She sweeped her arms out at the snow, already piled a good height and only getting higher. "No way are the snow plows gonna be able to salvage this." "I mean, I guess... " You shake your head. "Whatever. Have you seen Cherry around anywhere?" "No? Why?" "Uhhhhh... secret. Secret stuff." She tilts her head. "I mean- her mom's probably gonna make her spend all day studying..." "Yeah, right. " Elby jumps with a start and spins around. "Cherry! " Cherry waves as she walks up to the both of you. "Sup."Awfully cool demeanor for somebody in such a puffy snowsuit. She's just a beak away from being a penguin. You cock your head and smile. "Didn't give Bev a chance to shove your nose in a SAT... prep... thing?" Her cheeks somehow got redder than the cold had already made them. "Are you not gonna let me live that down?" "Not any time soon, no." She huffed and crossed her arms. "Well- what_ever._ It's almost winter break, anyway. Not like there's much to make me study about." Elby clapped. "That's great!" She rubbed her hands together. "I've got something for youuuu..." Cherry raised an eyebrow. "... Yeah?" Elby wrapped an arm around her shoulders from the side. "Y'know how you said you've never been sledding before?" "Oh, god." You go to Cherry's other side and pat her on the back. "Hey, yeah, I remember that. Thought your dad would've been more on the ball about that." Cherry rolls her eyes. "Yeah, well, my fucking mom... I... you know how she is." Elby winced and nodded. "Well, hey- she's not here to stop you now, is she?" "That doesn't mean I-" You wrap your arm around her middle. "C'mon, you'll be fine. Look, I'll even ride the sled with you. You can hold onto me." You could swear her eyes damn near bulged out of her head. "Well?" "You're evil and I hate you." "No idea what you're talking about. You in or not?" "Yes. " Elby clasped her hands together and took a big step back. "Well, I'm not touching whatever that was! Let's just go to the sled!" You raise an eyebrow at Elby while Cherry quietly slips out of your embrace and takes several side-steps away. "Wait. Go to? " "Well, yeah! I had to find the best hill while I waited for you two to wake up!" Cherry's eyebrows flew up. "You woke up before us? " Her smile faltered. "... Why're you guys so surprised?" Cherry glanced at you.You subtly shook your head."... Nothing." Elby turned away and took a deep breath. "Okay, never mind. C'mon, follow me." You follow along with idle chit-chat until Elby swings her arms out to her sides, blocking you and Cherry. She spins around and gestures ahead. "Well, here it is!" "Wow. It's..." Cherry plants her hands on her hips. "Piddly as shit, Elby." You laugh and shake your head. "Yeah, I thought you didn't expect Cherry to show up?" "Hey! " Elby crossed her arms. "Hey, I'd like to see you find a bigger hill within walking distance!" "Elby, I have a car." You hear cussing coming from the road behind you. "... Alright, okay..." "Besides, you don't need a newbie around to wanna sled a smaller hill sometimes." Cherry huffed. "Baby shit." "Cherry, you didn't even wanna do this 'til I said you could hold me during." She quietly picked up some snow and started approaching. "Hey, hey, hey- " Before you could run away, Cherry grabbed the back of your coat and dumped the snow down. "Aaaghhagah! " Cherry blew a raspberry at you. Elby's eyebrows raised ever so slightly. "... Oh! " She turned to look at her instead. "'Oh' what? " "... Nothing!" Cherry opened and closed her mouth several times, the rest of her face going between different levels of alarm. Finally, she settled on pursing her lips and trudging over to the sled laying nearby. She dusted the fresher snow off and stomped up the hill. You hurriedly shook out the rest of the snow you could manage before jogging over to her. "Hey, wait up!" She scoffed and smirked up at you. "What, so you get to say you-?" "Cherry." In an instant, her expression went completely soft. "I do just genuinely want to sled with you, y'know." Her breath caught in her throat. Looking at the ground, she shoved the sled into your hands before stomping the rest of the way up the hill. When you meet her at the top, she crosses her arms and gestures for you to go ahead. "... What?" "Show me how to sled, man." "It's- y'know, it's not very complicated- " "Why the fuck is it at the Olympics, then?" "You think I know fuckall about the Olympics?" You set the sled on the ground, close-ish to the edge. "Look, just... sit." She sits down right where she was standing. "The sled, Cherry." She stuck her tongue out at you as she scooted over to the sled, catching multiple snowflakes in the process. "Scooch up a bit," you muttered, poking her lower back with your boot. After she complies, you sit behind her, grabbing onto the edges. "Grab onto that string. I'll push us off when you're ready." "... Okay." She grabs it. Then she awkwardly sits there in completely silence for a couple moments. "... You can go now, you know." "Sorry I'm a good friend and wanted to wait for express permission?" "Shut your fucking- gah! " Before she could continue, you'd pushed forward. But, well, in her surprise, Cherry leaned to the side. Hard. And, despite your considerable height advantage, she's got you beat in weight; you both quickly fall in the snow with a fwumf. Elby covers her mouth. You propped yourself up on your elbow, wiping snow off the side of your face. "Jesus- " You leaned forward, trying to peer at Cherry's front. "Are you-?" Giggling, Cherry kicked the sled away and rolled onto her back. "Ohhh, man. No way am I topping that." Looking up at you, she propped herself up on her own elbows as well. "Look at you. You're gonna get brain freeze." "... Aren't you gonna be a doctor?" "Not if I have anything to say about it." She sat up and called downhill, "Hey, Elby!" Elby did not respond. "Elllllbyyyyyy. " "Wha?" She looked up and shook her head. "What's up?" "You wanna go get hot chocolate? My dad should be up by now." Her eyes gleamed. Just short of her driveway, Cherry stopped. "Hey, guys?" You turned to face her as you and Elby stopped as well. "What's up?" Cherry fiddled with the drawstrings on the hood of her snowsuit. "... You wanna see something cool?" "Of course! " Giddy, she loosened her hood and pulled it down, finally letting her hair loose. It was the usual short bob of the time, with the bangs tied up as she had often preferred- save for one difference. Sticking out like a sore thumb from her natural red hair, her bangs were now a perfectly radioactive green. Elby clapped her hands with glee, hopping up and down. "Ohhh, Cherry, you are a cherry! " You blinked. "That is... that fuckin' rules. " You glanced around, as if there was even anything you could be looking for. "Are you, uh... not worried about...?" She grinned. "My dad brought me to do this." She tapped a finger over her mouth. "This is an argument I can win." She shrugged. "I mean, hell, I don't even have to participate. " Both you and Elby release held breaths of varying sizes. Cherry creases her eyebrows together and smiles. Glancing away, she turns to wave at the front window of her house. Following her gaze, you see Klarl waving back at her.He looks proud. She scampers over to the front door. "You two can go ahead and sit on the porch while we deal with the hot choco!" Elby immediately bolted to the more comfortable of the chairs under the awning. "Sounds gooood~!" You smile and shake your head. "Aw, c'mon. Which one of us just ate shit in the snow?" She curled up in the chair. "Which one of us let the other borrow her sled to eat shit on?" "Damn- alright." You accept the marginally less comfortable chair adjacent to her. After a moment, the front door creaks open. A little too soon to be the promised hot chocolate. Bevelyne steps out- frankly, looking like shit. Not at all how she looked the rare occasions Cherry brought you along to church a long, long time ago, not significantly less early in the day than this. Elby nervously glances over to her. "What, uh... what-" "Don't-- " Bevelyne holds up a finger. She inhales deeply, running her other hand through her bangs. Slouching slightly, she exhales. "I didn't come out here to talk. I just... need some fresh air." "Oh! Okay, that- that's fine! I get needing a, uhm- a fresh of air!" Elby clamps her mouth shut. "I'll... leave you alone." She squints before turning away. Hands on the railing, Bevelyne looked out at the snowy street. She takes another moment to breathe in silence. "... You kids don't have school today." She scoffed. "I mean, it looks like you three went ahead and assumed that before the school board could even wake up. " "Yeah, uh, I... sorry." "Don't be." She glanced over her shoulder. "All this weather's good for is play, anyway." Elby glances over to you. All you can offer her is a shrug. Bevelyne takes another deep breath, billowing through the cold air like smoke. She straightened out her posture and turned back towards the door. Before she left, she glanced the both of you over. Her eyes drifted towards both your pairs of hands, both bare against the cold. She huffed. "You two are alike in the strangest ways." "Uhm- oh. Oh, she's just leaving. ... Okay." You shook your head as she closed the door. Not long after, Cherry comes back out with two mugs- one piled high with whipped cream. "Hi! Sorry about that. Did-?" Cherry glanced behind her and lowered her voice. "Did she, uh... say anything mean?" You take the cream-free mug and set it down next to you. "Weirdly enough, no. " "... Huh!" Elby took the other mug and licked at the whipped cream. "Yeah, just... cryptic. Really cryptic." Cherry hummed. "She's... been doing that more." Klarl nudged the door open a little wider. "I think she's been reading the ingredient lists on those lil snack cakes." She snorted as she took a third mug from him. "C'mon, they're not that bad." "Ohhh, you'll stop thinking that once your metabolism starts slowin' down." He grabbed the door handle and waved to you and Elby. "You lil punks enjoy your choco, alright?" Elby waved as he closed the door. "We will!" She sighed contently as she rubbed her hands on the warm ceramic. "God, Cherry, your dad's hot. " "If this choco weren't so good, I would be dumping it into your lap right now."