Fowl-O-Ween

	Fear is a fickle thing. A natural yet strong emotion, it does not emerge on its own without good reason. There is no shortage of phobias people can have; from the most relatable, such as clowns, skeletons, lawsuits and spiders, to stranger things like peanut butter, mirrors and even grass. Even so, mild or crippling, they are nothing the average person can’t overcome sooner or later. Of course, this only rang true for the average person. Not for her.

	“Come on, Karen! You can do it!”

	Something must have gone awry in the grand scheme of things for her to turn out the way she did, or at least that's what she had come to believe. Her problem was simple, yet big enough to catch her at every turn.

	“Kaaareeen,” said the young Devil at her side, shaking the fearful trance out of her, “Earth to Karen. Are you there?”

	“H-Huh?” Karen looked away from the house for a moment. “Uuuh...y-you know what? You guys can go first, I-I'll just...wait here. Yeah.”

	“Aw, again? It's the fourth one tonight! You promised you’d try it at least once!”

	When it came to fear, there was the average person, the fearful person, the lily-livered, Scooby Doo and then there was her. Karen was a complicated case, to say the least. Hers was not any specific fear - it was all of them combined. Clowns, needles, the dark, spiders, loud noises, weird foliage; you name it, she had it. Last time her shadow moved in a way she didn’t expect, she found out she could cling to the ceiling as well as any arachne.

	“I-It's fine, Julie! I-I don't really want that much candy anyway...” Karen reasoned with a nervous smile.

	The Devil girl’s incredulous stare pierced through her façade like a baseball through a window. The trembling green tail between Karen's legs didn't help her case either.

	“Let’s just go! Everyone's already at the door!” Julie said, pulling Karen by her feathery wrist. “Just try it one last time, for me!”

	“N-No, wait! I-I'm not ready!” Karen pleaded as her friend dragged her off the sidewalk.

	Every day was an uphill battle for poor little Karen. She couldn't help but cower before the mildest of scares. Simply put, she was quite the chicken. So, what could possibly be the end result of an easily frightened Cockatrice on the last day of October?

	What a horrible night to have a curse such as this.

	“J-Julie, please! I-I can't do it...!” She begged.

	“Yes, you can! I’ll be there with you!” Said her friend, pulling her along towards the house with the effort of a tug-of-war.

	The sprawl of the modest suburbs was lively that night. The streets were brimming with fellow neighbors; friends, couples, parents and children, clad in costumes, enjoying the evening. Vivid amber lights complimented the setting Sun, beaming against the darkening Autumn sky above. It was a warm mood indeed, but there was more to Halloween than mere festivities. Beyond the innocent veil of merry children donning costumes of folklore and fairy tales was a deeper intrigue; a lingering anticipation that swirled in their minds yearlong.

	With the advent of the eve of spooks, the hunt for the fabled treats, so dearly coveted by the little ones, was akin to a gold rush. An exciting, mischievous gold rush it was. They knew time was of the essence, running right out of their homes with their little candy bags, ready to seize the night with gleeful smiles on their faces. Unbeknownst to their guardians, behind those smiling faces lay strategies and tactics of the highest intricacy; from knocking on the door and securing the high-value, colorful, sugary targets, to carrying out toilet-papering operations, to quick door-to-door movement within the smallest margin of time feasible. Their plans, clear and direct, were performed with a level of efficiency and opsec that would put modern military strategists to shame.

	The rules of the battlefield were no different for Karen and her friends. After all, none of them wanted to go home empty-handed. Not only did the pressure of time worry her, it also made her far more alert and hectic than usual. It was a haunting predicament for the young Cockatrice.

	Struggling with every step, Karen tried to reason with the Devil girl as she “persuaded” her way to the door. Unfortunately for her, the problems had already begun before she even got there. Karen’s fearful eyes darted left and right as the two girls made their way through the ominously decorated front yard. Fake skeletons, spiders and gravestones peppered the grassy lawn around her, some a bit too close for comfort. Carved pumpkins flaunted their twisted grins, with sharp teeth snarling so smugly at her that she could feel it on her skin. Whoever had sculpted them knew those passions well. Her Devil friend, unfazed by the ambience around them, marched straight to the door as her silver side-bangs bounced around her shoulders.

	“J-Julie, th-the-- waaah!” Karen yelped as she noticed the fake silhouette of a witch behind a tree.

	“It’s fine! We’re almost there!” Julie replied.

	Arriving at the front porch with the Cockatrice in tow, the Devil girl approached two other figures, who were waiting for them by the door.

	“Hey, look! Karen made it!” Said the Mimic girl dressed as a jester in a box, pulling her long bluish hair behind her ear as she turned to them.

	“Yeah, I've finally convinced her!” Julie said. Classic Devil semantics.

	“Ya can’t chicken out forever, Kay!” Teased the red-eyed Mosquito girl, who was clad in a modestly handmade vampire cloak that draped over her black dress. “People are gonna hafta throw candy all the way to the sidewalk if ya stay back there!”

	The feathery girl sighed in defeat as her friends giggled at the idea. She couldn't blame them; after all, they weren’t wrong. Karen both admired and envied the courage of her friends, especially Aedith and her “buzzy” confidence. While they weren’t fearless heroines of any sort, they could brush things off much easier than she could. Alas, poor Karen. She would have to endure.

	“Come on, Adee. At least she’s here,” said the Devil girl. “You guys ready?”

	The Mimic shoved her hand into the box encasing her torso, rummaging through what sounded like an entire warehouse’s worth of belongings. Drawing her candy bag from it, she gave Julie thumbs up. Aedith wiped a leaf off her cloak and brushed her black twin tails. Julie fixed her Groucho Glasses, hat and trench coat before turning to the Cockatrice, who was too busy nervously looking around to pay attention.

	“Don’t worry, Karen,” Julie said. “We'll do this together, okay?”

	“Huh? O-Oh...” she murmured, trying not to lose her cool as she hid her shuddering tail under her bedsheet ghost costume. “Okay...”

	“Here we go!”

	The Devil girl reached up and rang the doorbell. A smooth chime echoed out as the little band of bairns waited for the local residents to answer. The operation had begun.

	The clock was ticking, and they had to be quick if they wished to maximize their sugary profit, especially after the Cockatrice’s past troubles that same night. Keeping her from freezing solid in front of some Halloween costumes and unknowingly being left behind had cost them some time. Soon enough, they would be filling their candy bags with the best brands of sugar in town - a prize worth waiting for.

	Karen held her breath as her friends quieted down in anticipation, ready to say the magic words of Halloween as they have done before. Very soon indeed, the door would swing open and they would be rewarded for their efforts.

	They came quite a long way for this. Surely, someone would answer.

	Any second now.

	“What the heck’s takin’ them so long?” An annoyed Aedith broke the silence, shoulders slumped.

	“I dunno,” Mandy said. “I think they didn’t hear the bell.”

	“How wouldn’t they? It’s Halloween!”

	“Eeeh. Maybe they’re sleeping?”

	“But the lights are on!”

	Julie reached for the doorbell again, holding the button down a bit longer to make sure it wouldn’t go unnoticed. There was no response.

	“Hmmm,” she pouted. “I guess--”

	“Hwaaah!” The Cockatrice yelped, startling her friends.

	“What is it, Karen?” The Mimic asked.

	“Th-Th-Th-The tree! S-Something...!”

	“Tree? Where?”

	Karen raised a shaky wing under her ghost outfit, pointing up at a nearby tree in the lawn. “I-I saw something move up there!”

	Her friends turned to look, only to find an ordinary tree, weathered by the harvest season and stripped of most of its leaves.

	“I don't see anything,” Mandy said.

	“Me neither,” Julie added.

	“I-It was right there! On the branch!”

	“...Ya seein' things again, Kay.” Aedith flatly said.

	“N-No! I swear, I...!”

	“It was probably just a cat, Kay,” Julie reassured her. “Let's just try one more time, and then we can go, okay?”

	A faint whine escaped Karen's lips as she reluctantly nodded in agreement, putting some trust in the Devil girl. Preparing to ring the bell again, the girls turned back to the door…

	...only to find it open.

	Julie blinked. “Huh?”

	Beyond the door was a vacant hallway, lined with dimmed lights and closed doors, leading into a stairwell that ascended into darkness. A small candy bowl sat atop a round stool by the doorway, but no one was there to greet them. Confused glances shot back and forth among the gang as they stared into the hallway, waiting for someone to appear, but not a soul came forth to meet them.

	“Hello?” Julie spoke up, leaning towards the doorway to see if someone would answer.

	“Did you guys see it open up?” Mandy asked in whispers.

	“Maybe they just left it open for us and went to watch TV,” Aedith said.

	“What do we do now? I can see a bowl right there...”

	“Can't we just get in there and take it? Mandy, ya go in.”

	The Mimic’s green eyes stared at the Mosquito as if she were already expecting that. “Why do I gotta do everything?”

	“’Caaause you got a lotta room?”

	“But I’m already carrying the paper rolls...”

	“We can't walk into someone's house without permission, Adee. Mom says it's rude,” Julie said, eliciting strange looks from her friends.

	“...But didn't your mom meet your dad that way?” Mandy asked.

	“What? N-No, that was different! She used the window, so it's okay!”

	“I don’t see the difference.” Aedith said.

	“But there is one!”

	Karen was far too agitated to pay attention to her friends' debate on the ethics of home invasion at that point. Her frantic eyes searched the environment around her for a clue of what she saw. The darkness played terrible tricks with her mind, feeding it the worst horrors her imagination could conjure. Was it a monster? A gust of wind? A ghost? Was she just seeing things? Or was it really just a cat? So many thoughts rushed through her mind all at once that she wasn't sure what to believe.

	And then she saw it, like twin moons in the sky. If only they were moons.

	A pair of orbs, as if spawned from the darkness itself, caught her attention the moment she saw them atop the tree. They shone an intense purple through the branches, not too different from the festive lights around the neighborhood. To her dismay, however, they did not flicker or wave in the mild wind with the branches they rested upon like mere lights would. Their still and solid glimmer left no room for misunderstanding - they were eyes, staring into her soul with the unblinking gaze of a predator. Karen felt her legs tremble as she finally realized that whatever she had seen was real, and whatever it was, she prayed for it to be just a cat.

	...It smiled at her. Razor sharp teeth from ear to ear.

	“Whatever, can we leave now? My feet are starting to hurt...” Aedith groaned. “Look, Kay wants to go too. Right, Kay?

	“HYAAAH!”

	“See? She ag-- gwah!” Aedith blurted out as the Cockatrice latched onto her at high speed.

	“I-I-It moved! It moved!” Karen said, shaking all over as she pointed at the treetop. “I-It's right there!”

	Once again, her friends turned to look, but neither saw nor heard anything strange. Nothing of note but a slight breeze among the branches.

	The Mosquito girl was visibly incredulous. “Seriously Kay, d'ya need my glasses?”

	“N-No! Guys, I-I really saw it!”

	“It's okay, Karen. Let's just go to the next one,” Julie said, patting the Cockatrice on the back.

	“B-But...”

	“We've been waiting here too long anyway. Where do we go next, Mandy?” Aedith turned to the Mimic, who's been absentmindedly running her tongue over her teeth for a while now. “Mandy? Mandy, you’re spacin’ out again!”

	“What? Oh, okay. Let me see...” Mandy said, pulling a comically intricate map of addresses from her boxy costume. “The next one is...Mr. and Mrs. Metz's house!”

	“Hmm...they've got the cotton candy pops, right? I love those!” Aedith said.

	“I hope they haven’t run out yet,” said Julie.

	The poor Cockatrice was desperate. Once again tricked by her own eyes, the agonizing fear of the unknown began to eat away at her mind as she stared back at the tree. Karen was sure she saw something, how could it have vanished so quickly? She was scared, but not insane, or at least she hoped she wasn't. Though her friends weren't as astronomically spooked as she was, Karen was very willing to follow their decision to leave. Cat or not, she just wanted to get out of there.

	She felt a bluish hand touch her shoulder, bringing her back to reality. “Karen.”

	She turned to look at Julie, who had an understanding smile on her face. “It's fine if you don't wanna try the next one with us, okay? I can share some of my candy with you later if you want.”

	The Devil's words were considerate as always. Rather mature for her age, Julie always knew when to give her feathery friend some much needed support no matter how bad things got. From sharing her ice cream when Karen's dropped on the ground, to helping her back on her feet when she fell and scratched a knee, to doing schoolwork together - Julie's confident lavender eyes were something the Cockatrice could always count on, even when they looked at her through a pair of fake Groucho glasses.

	Unfortunately, Julie's counseling was not entirely infallible. Sometimes it would only go to waste if the situation was too stressful for Karen to listen. Sometimes things weren’t just ‘fine’, especially when the cause of the problem was right next to them - like the sinister shadow looming over them at that particular moment.

	Karen's face turned pale as she looked above her oblivious Devil friend.

	“Karen? Wh-what's wrong? Is there something behind...” Julie trailed off, before turning to look at the doorway behind her, along with Mandy and Aedith.

	A dark figure blocked the light from the doorway as it towered over the little ones. Indiscernible to their eyes, it stood before them with the stillness of a statue. As they stared at it in surprise and confusion, they finally realized that Karen had indeed seen something, and felt the same dread she felt. Before they could understand what it was, the figure quickly raised its menacing claws and revealed its wretched, crazy-eyed visage.

	“BOOGAH BOOGAH BOOGAH!”

	“KYAAAH!”

	Squad broken.

	Julie recoiled, tripping and falling on her backside. Mandy quite literally packed herself up into her box. Aedith jumped back and instinctively raised her wings, a knee and two karate hands in reaction, letting out what could only be described as a panicked war cry.

	“...Pfffhahahahaha!” The figure laughed at the kids with a hand on its gut, much to their confusion. “Oh man, I should've recorded that!”

	Something about its voice rang a bell in Julie’s mind. The Devil girl narrowed her eyes as the name escaped her lips. “...R-Rebecca?”

	“Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner.”

	“Becky, you meanie!” A teary-eyed Mandy shouted, recognizing the voice. Aedith maintained her fighting pose a little longer, still hyperventilating.

	The figure put its tiki mask away, revealing a pair of feline ears and a sly smile. She was clad in a black hoodie, white lounge shorts and a pair of sneakers. “Of course it's me, shorty. Forgot I live here?”

	“You're back already...” Mandy said, not so thrilled to see her.

	“I should kick your fat butt for that, ya doodoohead!” Aedith shouted as Julie got back up and helped her calm down.

	“The resort was great, thanks for asking. Did you miss me?” Rebecca teased, tossing her short dark purple hair back as it barely brushed over her shoulders. “Too bad you kiddos were too young to come along. Maybe next time.”

	“We'll grow up soon! You'll see!” Mandy said with a pout.

	“Yeah! And then you’re gonna get it!” Aedith added, trying to hide the fact that they really wanted to go to the resort.

	“I’ll hold you to that,” Rebecca joked with a hand on her curvy hip. “Now, let’s see...a Jack-in-the-box, a disguise and the third Batman I've seen tonight. Eeehh, very so-so if you ask me.”

	“I'm not Batman!”

	“Whatever, Buzzy. So, you're here for the candy, right? Well, my parents aren't home right now, so you guys are late...”

	The girls frowned at Rebecca's words. They were used to her teasing, as anyone who’s acquainted with a Cheshire cat would be. The memories of her recent pranks involving clear tape tripwires on doorways at face-level were still fresh in their minds.

	“...But not toooo late~,” she continued, her smug turning into a tamer smile.

	“Huh?” Julie and her friends perked up with a hint of doubtful hope.

	“I wasn’t planning on it, but I just had to give you squirts a scare when I saw you coming up,” Rebecca said, turning to grab some candy. “I’ll admit, I’m surprised you didn’t just walk in to take this stuff. You brats behaved for once.”

	Turning back to the kids at the door, the teenage Cheshire cat presented them with two handfuls of treats.

	“And for that, you deserve a little something,” she said, smiling warmly at them. As if by a magic trick, the sweets vanished right before their eyes.

	The little sugar prospectors felt their bags get a bit heavier as they heard something shuffle inside them. A quick look inside was more than enough to make their eyes twinkle. It had to be a record.

	“Wow,” Mandy said. “There's a lot.”

	“Not so mean now, am I?”

	“Um...thanks,” The mimic coyly said. “Sorry I called you a meanie, Becky...”

	“Don't sweat it. It wouldn't be fun otherwise,” the Cheshire cat said, ruffling her hair.

	“Yeah, me too...” Aedith said. “...Your butt's still fat though-- ow!” She yelped as a pack of candy corn bounced off her forehead and fell into her bag.

	“This is really nice! Thanks, Becky!” Julie smiled.

	“Yeah yeah,” Rebecca replied with a friendly smug. “...Wait a minute.”

	“What's wrong?”

	The Cheshire cat looked around, as if searching for someone. “Where's little chickenheart? Wasn’t she here with you guys just now?"

	Julie's eyes went wide in realization as the little group checked their surroundings. Sure enough, there were only three of them.

	“...Karen?”

	Karen was a mile away.

	Everyone had a breaking point, and she was no different. Sooner or later, fight or flight would kick in, and when it finally did, flight it was. Flying with her feet full force, that is. Taken over by fear, the Cockatrice rushed down the sidewalk as fast as her little avian legs could carry her. Still clad in her ghost costume, which by some miracle had not fluttered away in the wind, Karen zoomed past her neighbors with the finesse of a football player and the subtlety of a fighter jet, reaching speeds that would get her both a ticket and a gold medal. People around her turned their heads to see what the commotion was all about, but few were quick enough to see the little red crest hightailing it down the street at Mach three. Most were left confused in the dust, seeing little more than a blur go past them. Some even thought it was an actual ghost screaming down the neighborhood, followed by a vortex of fallen leaves, feathers and garden decorations.

	. . .

	“You didn’t have to come along, mom,” said a young and unamused Dark Elf, dressed in the red garments of a magical fairy.

	“What makes you say that, sweetie? I thought it would be a good opportunity for us to spend some time together,” said her mother; a mature lady with short, wavy silver hair, clad in a long-sleeved blouse and a pair of mom jeans that reached down to her rather suspicious stilettos. “Besides, I know you’re going out on a little adventure with that boy you like. I’ll just drop you off at his house.”

	“I don’t like him!” The girl quickly retorted, the red in her cheeks betraying her façade. “He wouldn’t stop begging me to go out with him tonight, s-so I agreed just to shut him up!”

	“Oooh, is that so? My, he sounds determined...” Her mother said with a sly smile, arms crossed under her chest. “But it’s rather strange. You didn’t sound the least bit bothered whenever you talked to him on the phone...”

	“I-I was just being nice!”

	“And you wouldn’t let anyone else touch the phone until he called either~.”

	“Mom, stop! I really don’t...” The young elf paused as she noticed something approaching them. “Huh? What’s that?”

	Both the girl and her mother had but a few fleeting moments to catch a glimpse of the flying bed sheet with legs as it zoomed past them. A gust of wind quickly followed, sweeping over them with a ripping sound. The elf girl shrank in reaction, holding on to her hat and closing her eyes shut with a yelp. Her mother did little more than flinch as the wind forced her eyes to close.

	“Wh-What was...” The elf girl muttered as she slowly opened her eyes again, only to be met with something even more jaw-dropping. “M-MOM!”

	The elf lady turned to her daughter, who was, to her relief, unscathed. Following her child’s gaze, she looked down and realized that her clothes were gone. Her tight full-body latex suit was laid bare for the world to see.

	“...Well, there goes your father’s surprise for tonight,” she said nonchalantly.

	“MOM, WHAT IS THAT!?”

	“Relax, dear!” Her mother said, smiling at her daughter’s overreaction. “This is a, uh...it’s a Catwoman costume, you see. I just need the mask and...”

	“LIKE HECK IT IS!” The young elf said, shoving her face into her hands. “I can't believe you're doing this again! This is so embarrassing!”

	“Oh, Aine, you’re always so dramatic. It’s fine, nobody’s even looking. Think of it as a funny family moment!”

	“It’s a TERRIBLE moment! I don’t wanna do this anymore, I wanna go home!”

	“But we're almost there, sweetie! Look, if it makes you feel better, I can get you one just like mine when you grow up!” Her mother teased, putting a finger to her chin. “I bet your boyfriend will like it, too~!”

	“H-HE’S NOT...!” The girl pepped up, her cheeks redder than tomatoes as she shook her arms in outrage. “WH-WHY WERE YOU WEARING TEAR-AWAY CLOTHING ANYWAY!?”

	Some people had bigger problems to worry about.

	. . .

	Karen’s rationality had left the building. She didn’t know which way was home anymore. She didn’t even know where she was going, but it didn’t matter, as long as it was far away from all the madness. All she knew was that she had to run. Everywhere she looked, she saw terrifying things. Every image twisted into pure horror by her panicked imagination – zombies, spiders, werewolves, vampires, witches, clowns, mummies! Some of them even looked like her neighbors! They probably were her neighbors, but they looked scary all the same. Nonetheless, blurry glimpses were more than what she needed to see. The wind blowing in her face only worsened her desperation, making her run even faster. She could barely see ahead, and she sure as hell didn’t want to look behind, either. Breathing heavily with each stride, Karen ran, and ran, and ran, and ran...until her legs could run no more. Her little heart could only work so hard for so long, and soon enough, she began to slow down.

	Exhaustion eventually brought her to a full stop. Never once did she run as fast as she did that night, but there was a first time for everything. Still panting from the exercise, she looked back, only to realize that she had left her friends behind. Not only that, but she had left her neighborhood entirely. All she could see were the fading lights in the distance. Turning to look ahead, Karen noticed that she had reached the local park; the same park her parents brought her to from time to time. It finally dawned on her just how far she ran.

	Tired and saddened, she walked up to a nearby bench and sat down to rest. Thankfully, the park was well-lit by the lampposts scattered around the area, vanquishing some of the darkness. Her relief would be short-lived when she finally realized that she was all alone.

	As her panting subsided, she turned to look at the street again. Lifting the bed sheet off her head for a breather and fixing her short white hair, she watched in silence as her neighbors continued on with their endeavors. Life seemed so easy to them, untroubled by things that would easily make her anxious. She then looked down at the pumpkin-shaped candy bag resting on her lap, which she somehow managed to hold on to during her fear-induced marathon. It was empty, to no one’s surprise. She knew it was, but looking inside and seeing nothing but air somehow hurt even more.

	Karen’s mind began to wander, reflecting on all the missing opportunities caused by her personality. Skipping physical education due to fear of falling off the climbing rope, sitting out on pool days due of fear of drowning, declining party invitations because of clowns, and so many other days of misfortune that only piled up as time went on. She was far too used to outcomes like these, and it eventually dawned on her just how many times she’s been in this situation. Her friends must be furious with her for running away yet again.

	Karen hugged her empty candy bag and closed her eyes shut, trying to hold back her tears. Were things going to be like this forever?

	“Excuse me, miss. Is this seat taken?”

	“Hwah!?” She jumped in her seat, surprised by the sudden voice.

	Looking to her side, she saw a man standing at the other end of the bench. His eyes a tired tone of gray, he seemed to be past his prime, and his posture showed a slight hint of age weighing down on his shoulders. A simple white plaid shirt was the highlight of his otherwise unremarkable attire, devoid of any strong colors.

	Karen felt a shred of worry build up within her. She was so shaken by recent events that she didn't even notice him approaching. Still recovering from the heart-wrenching horror that still lingered in her mind, she remembered her parents’ warnings about talking to strangers, but just as she was about to speak, she heard his voice once again.

	“Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he calmly said. “I suppose I can find another spot...”

	His tone was placid and undisturbed, almost conformed. He spoke in no hurry, as if trying not to spend too much energy. Karen paused, weirded out by his demeanor in a slightly curious sort of way. He seemed tired, like a person who’s been walking for a long time. She thought about leaving at first, but she couldn’t help but consider his state for a moment.

	The Cockatrice shook her head, dismissing his concern. “I-It’s okay...” she mustered a whisper, shifting towards the edge of the bench to make some room between the two of them. Suspicious as she felt, her parents did teach her good manners. Maybe too well.

	“Is it, then? Thank you,” he said, a small smile on his face.

	Without a sound, the man sat down at the other end of the bench, resting his arms on his legs and clasping his hands together. His movements were as calm as his voice, down to the way he blinked. To a young child like her, it was almost as if he was moving in slow-motion. Quietly leaning back on the bench, he looked up at the rising moon, far away in the clear night sky. He closed his eyes and let out a tired sigh, respecting the silence around him. He would remain still for a little while as Karen shot discreet glances at him from time to time. She was confused, but intrigued nonetheless.

	“M-Mister...” she said, her voice not much more than a whisper, but enough to get his attention. “Are you...tired?”

	The man chuckled, looking down at his hands. “A little bit...”

	Karen noticed that he had something in his hands. Struck by its design, she marveled at the deep, glittery violet texture lined with gold as he gently ran his thumb over the feather attached to one of its sides. She was fairly certain it was a mask of some sort, meant to cover one’s eyes. Not unfamiliar, but its name eluded her.

	“I was looking all over for this,” the man spoke up, noticing her curious gaze. “Belongs to someone I hold very dear, but it was lost some time ago.”

	“It looks pretty...” She murmured, more so to herself than to him.

	“It does, doesn’t it? I’m glad I found it.”

	What an odd man, she thought. How long has he been searching for that? He didn’t seem to be worried about anything, and yet he looked weary, if the hint of strain under his eyes were anything to go by. Now that she had a better glimpse of him, it would have been rude to deny him a place to sit down. After all, she was tired too; all the running left her in a bit of a woozy state. Maybe he was on his way back home from somewhere really far.

	Karen looked down at her empty candy bag. She, too, ran really far, but for other reasons. Reasons she wanted to forget. Her mind began to drift back to her flaws, and how much she and others suffered because of them. She frowned, trying to hide her eyes away as tears began to form again. Why did she have to be like this? Why couldn’t she be normal? Why couldn’t she just have some peace of mind?

	“You look upset,” the man said, his smile fading into a slightly concerned expression. “If I may ask, is there something wrong?”

	Karen shook her head in denial, hiding her face in the bag.

	The man studied the bed sheet draped over her shoulders and the empty bag on her lap. Looking into the distance, he noticed the many lights and faces of the nightly celebration. It all came back to him.

	“Bad day, huh?” He asked.

	The Cockatrice was silent. It’s not like she could hide it, anyway. Maybe she should’ve just stayed home.

	“Something scared you, right?” He continued.

	Karen’s pointy ears perked up as she looked back at him. She caught a brief glimpse of an understanding smile on his face before looking away again.

	“People say I’m easy to scare...” She muttered.

	“Is that so,” he said. “I suppose it has been happening for a long time?”

	Surprised yet again, Karen’s expression changed into one of slight curiosity for a moment, before returning to her self-loathing.

	“Hmm,” she nodded, her face scrunching up in frustration. “Everyone tells me I should be stronger, but...I can’t...”

	Although hesitant to speak, she at least wanted else someone to know the cause of her frustration. Day after day, people around her tried and failed to find a solution to her problems. Her teachers and relatives were often at a loss. Even her parents, ever so caring and protective, never quite understood why she was so much more sensitive than others of her kind. Even so, her dear mother, who knew her struggle better than anyone, has always reassured the little Cockatrice that she, being the late bloomer that she’s always been, hadn’t yet attained full control of her emotions, and still had plenty of time to grow. This conclusion made sense for Karen, being further evidenced by the fact that she hadn’t even developed her petrifying gaze yet – something which, at her age, was quite unusual. Unfortunately, even her mother’s consolation could only do so much in the way of helping her overcome her crisis. Dread and fear would always find her at every turn, day and night, and her faith in her own courage grew fainter as time went on.

	Karen remembered how concerned her folks looked when she asked them to let her go out during Halloween, just so she could prove to them how much she's grown up. It took a lot to convince them, but since she herself was partially convinced by her friends to do so, she went out with no actual plan in mind, and it failed badly. So much for trying to take matters into her own wings. Maybe it really was a bad idea, after all. Maybe she would never really grow out of it. It’s been like this for so long, would things ever change? Maybe not, and maybe for a reason she was too young to understand. Maybe it was her fate to be hopeless all along. To be a good-for-nothing. She should have just stayed home like the chicken she was…

	“I-I got scared…and ran away from my friends,” she sobbed. “I hate it!”

	“Hate what, exactly?”

	“I-I hate being a scaredy cat! I hate being weak!” She muttered, her frustration giving way to grief. “I wish I was normal…but nothing ever works!”

	The man watched patiently as Karen rubbed her eyes and sniffled her sorrows away. There was no rain, and yet she felt water in her eyes. It wouldn’t be the first time. She was tired of it, and she was sure others were, too. What a twisted thing, for her to be far better at holding back her tears than standing up for herself.

	“That’s funny,” he said. Complete silence befell the two for a few moments before he continued. “I used to be like that, too.”

	The feathery girl looked up at him, utter surprise all over her face. “...Huh?”

	“Indeed.”

	Karen’s golden eyes gleamed through her tears with a hint of curiosity. There was someone else like her? Was that even possible? Did she hear it right? Was he tricking her? Conflicted as she was, she still wanted to know more. At a time like this, her troubled heart would take whatever bit hope it could get.

	“A-Are you...still like that?” She asked, giving him with a shy glance.

	“No. Well, not anymore, anyway,” he said, looking at her with a knowing smile. “I suppose you’d like to know what it was like, yes?”

	Karen nodded, wiping the rain away from her eyes.

	“Of course, of course. You see, when I was around your age, I used to be quite a timid child. I tell you, scaring the socks off me was no big feat,” he said with a chuckle, “so much so that I’d be too afraid to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night unless I had a blanket over my head. It was like a shield of sorts.”

	Karen tried to hide her growing smile out of respect, but his positive expression put her at ease. His fear of the dark was a bit humorous, but also strangely relatable; she thought she was the only one who did that.

	“There’s at least a dozen things about the dark alone that put me on edge.” He continued. “And if my grandma told me one of her folk tales before bed, I would end up staying up half the night! Some of them were pretty scary.”

	She knew very well how that felt, too. Scary stories were often so haunting that she would remember them for many nights on end.

	“And my mother would always get upset whenever I slept with the lights on because of the electric bills…”

	The flow of time slowly faded to the back of her mind as the man told his stories, sharing some of his odd childhood episodes with her. He told her about how he once tried to save a cat on a tree by climbing it, only to realize how high it actually was, and ended up stranded along with the cat out of fear of falling. He told her how any sudden loud noise made him throw whatever he had in his hands at the ceiling. How his fear of bugs gave him self-slapping marks more painful than any bug bite. How his experiences somehow made him an expert at, as he himself put it, ‘the first half of hide-and-seek’, and so many other things. Though he didn’t look the part, even something as simple as a visit to the dentist or a mall Santa was a nerve-wracking experience. Before long, Karen found herself absorbed in his tales. Some were funny on their own, while others were so understandable that she felt she was being told her own past experiences, so much so that she even confessed to having lived some of them herself. Eventually, she found herself giggling at embarrassing memories that might as well have been her own.

	The man eventually ran out of memories to share, his chuckle giving way to a sigh. He allowed himself a few moments of silence before continuing. “It might sound funny when I think back to it now, but...back then it was pretty tough, living like this. I couldn’t play with my friends too long before something scared me stiff with my heart in my throat...”

	The little Cockatrice lazily kicked the air as he talked, a bit puzzled by some of the terms he used, but still attentive. It didn’t even occur to her how relaxed she felt to be in his presence.

	“It took me a long time to find out how I should face my problems. Way too long,” he exhaled. “You know, missy, the thing about fear is that you can’t let it get to you. You have to fight it. If the first thing you do is run away, you’re only letting yourself down.”

	Karen blinked at him. “I have to...fight?”

	“Indeed. You have to fight it. Scare it back, so to speak.”

	“Fight it…like, hit it really hard?”

	“Well...not quite. Let’s try this: Imagine that you’re out trick-or-treating with your friends...”

	True to her youthful nature, Karen closed her eyes, doing her best to clear her mind of stress as the wheels of her imagination began to turn.

	“Let’s say you’re walking down the street with your friends. It’s a calm and bright evening, and you had just begun your adventures together...” He continued.

	Shards of memory began to dance in her mind as she tried to conjure the scene to the best of her ability. The faint sounds of the outside world faded away into silence, pushed aside by a state of trance that only the mind of a child could harness. A familiar tune of liveliness and chatter reached her ears, luring her attention as they grew closer and clearer. Karen opened her eyes, only to find herself back in the bustling streets of her neighborhood, adorned of the many colors of Halloween. Houses and trees rose from the ground in many different shapes of cardboard cutout, lining up the green lawns that sprawled out along the street in countless zigzag lines of crayon. Costumes and smiles of cotton and velvet breathed life into the ambience, framed with decorations of the haunted holiday as the rising Moon showered the setting in its humble radiance. Her treasured friends were by her side once again, likewise transcribed into her thoughts, yet with a cartoonish flair to them. Shiny buttons dotted their colorful outfits and the simple visage of their oval eyes harked back to cartoons of old.

	“Hello!” Said an imaginary Julie with a certain biddy impression in her voice.

	“Let’s get going!” Said an imaginary Mandy with a voice not quite like hers.

	“Come on, we’re wasting time!” Said an imaginary Aedith in a banty tone.

	“Oh…!” Karen chirped, amazed at the scenery that formed in her mind’s eye. Her eyes danced left and right, eager to take in all the things that she herself had made up. It was so shockingly clear and true to her memories that it caught her by surprise.

	“It’s a clear weather, if a bit chilly. You’re having a good time with your friends, discussing about what to do next,” the man’s voice echoed in her mind as she set off into her world of fantasy with her troupe in tow. “The moon’s just about to take the set the stage. What a wondrous sight it is…”

	The sky above seemed so much brighter, and the mood so mild. Passersby smiled and waved at her as waved back, more amused by their colorful costumes than anything else. With a bag in her wing and her bed sheet over her shoulders, she strutted along, fully immersed into the man’s narration.

	“It was quite a friendly atmosphere, and all seemed well. But what’s this? As you’re passing by a house, you suddenly notice...a scarecrow on the lawn, looking right at you! He has quite a mean grin on his face, and he seems up to no good.”

	Karen shuddered, bringing her arms close to her chest as he described the encounter. A gust of wind swooped over her imaginary self, fluttering her feathers as it converged into a whirlwind of leaves, grass and straw before her eyes. Without warning, the vortex erupted into a blast of air that nearly blew her costume away.

	A tide of fear began to creep into her mind, hiding the colors of the night away behind a curtain of dim velour. As if suffocated by the night itself, the silvery moonlight narrowed down, leaving the startled onlookers in the darkness as it converged upon the little Cockatrice in a foreboding light. Not too long after, the streams of wind and dust had ceased, finally revealing the dreadful image within.

	A creature of cloth and straw came forth, seeking to foil her journey. Creaking with age, it stood upon a wooden pole, bleeding chunks of dry stalk through its ragged clothing like the fallen leaves of a dead tree. Slowly, the monster leaned forward, its hands contorting into menacing claws, ready to lunge at her. From her perspective, it was menacingly tall - taller than any grown-up she’s ever met. Bad thoughts and memories came flooding back as it looked down upon her form with an evil grin through a stitched visage under the brim of its dusty hat. Her legs soon began their shaky protest, ready to carry her away as fast as they could.

	“Oh no!” Said make-believe Julie.

	“What is that!?” Inquired not-Mandy.

	“It’s in the way!” Complained pretend Aedith.

	“It’s seems he wants to put a stop to your adventure. Now, what will you do?” The man calmly asked.

	“Uhh...I...c-can I run away?”

	“No, no,” he said. “It wouldn’t be fitting for the heroine to just flee, now, would it?”

	“E-Eh?”

	Karen felt a little bit betrayed at first, but she knew would say something like that. She knew being quick to cower was not the answer, even if it was first thing that came to mind. He said it himself, and he said it with such confidence that it even gave her a little bit of motivation. Would it be worth trying something new? Would it be better to listen to her instincts instead? No, there had to be a better way. She had to keep going, and the old mister could help her. Though the imaginary depictions of her friends seemed more worried about the situation than she thought they’d be, Karen decided to trust the man’s words and hold her ground.

	“Does he look that scary?” He asked.

	“Y-Yes…”

	“Really? How so?”

	“H-He has big creepy hands…a-and pointy teeth…”

	“Creepy hands and teeth? That sounds too evil for something like a scarecrow, don’t you think? He doesn’t seem all that creepy in my mind.”

	Too evil? Weren’t all scarecrows like that? Thinking back to it, she’s never really seen a real one in person, and her limited knowledge of them never extended beyond a few pictures in a book. Perhaps they weren’t quite as ominous as she thought they did? But the ones used in Halloween look just like she’s imagined! What could he mean?

	“Hmmm. In any case, I wonder what mister scarecrow is thinking,” he said. “I’m sure he wants you to run away - after all, that’s what he’s there for. Maybe he thinks you’re a scaredy cat?”

	Karen frowned at the idea of being made fun of by a bundle of straws. “B-But I’m not! I don’t wanna be…”

	“We can’t let him think that, then, can we? We’ve got to show him you’re not scared.”

	Karen nodded, equal parts anxious and curious about what will happen next.

	“Now, since he’s a scarecrow, how do you imagine him standing up?”

	“W-With his feet?”

	“With his feet, you suggest…but wait. How can he stand on his own if he’s made out of straws? Wouldn’t he just crumble to the ground?”

	Karen stopped shuddering for a moment. A sliver of common sense dawned on her as she gathered the things she learned about scarecrows from her favorite cartoons and picture books. Why didn’t she think of that? Was she so worried that the idea didn’t cross her mind? Now that she thought about it, the only way for a scarecrow to be on its feet was…

	“If he wanted to stay off the ground, he would have to stand on a stick, wouldn’t he?” he continued. “What do you think?”

	“Um…I guess so?”

	“If that’s the case, what would happen if we tried just walking around him? Since he’s stuck on the ground, I doubt he can do anything about it.”

	He was…right?

	Realization brought Karen’s eyebrows low as she glanced at the scarecrow with a hint of scrutiny. Her odd reaction caught the creature off-guard, suddenly finding itself under her flat, judging gaze. Surprised, it followed her eyes down to the wooden pole that sustained its body, and gave her an angry look in return. Pushing the awkward moment aside, the scarecrow lunged at her. Karen took half a step back, struggling to stand up to the monster as it threw its hands at her, only to stop within an inch of her. She blinked at the monster as it tried time and time again to stretch a bit further and grab her, but to no avail.

	Just as the man had predicted, the scarecrow was stuck to its pole, and Cockatrice was out of its reach. Karen circled a few steps around the creature, watching its furious attempts to pry itself off the ground as it switched from trying to reach her to pulling the pole out of the dirt. It tilted, pulled and flailed about, but did not budge, stuck in place like a well-grounded fence post. The dreaded power of the straws proved to be much feebler than she had imagined, as it failed to set itself free, or even scratch at the dirt with its deceptively soft hands.

	“Look! It really is stuck!” Said fictional Mandy.

	“It can’t hurt us!” Said hypothetical Julie.

	“What a wimp!” Said abstract Aedith.

	The scarecrow looked quite mean in her eyes, and it took her a lot of willpower not to run away from it, but after seeing it in action, the raggedy monster didn’t seem all that strong. With all her imaginary might, she pictured herself pushing forward, doing her best to keep her cool as she went around the scarecrow, who was still trying to set itself free. Fortunately, her obstacle could do little more than angrily flail about as she walked right past it, her band of friends being quick to follow her.

	“We did it!” They cheered as the dark curtains pulled away, freeing the moonlight and bringing back the light atmosphere of the fantasy night.

	“Has our little heroine managed to surpass the fearsome scarecrow, I wonder?” He asked in a playful tone.

	“Y-Yes...!” She replied with a reluctant nod, the growing eagerness in her own voice surprising her a little bit. “I-I did!”

	“Indeed, she was victorious, leaving the tumbling monster behind. How silly of him to think he could catch her! Alas, the rickety old bag of straws didn’t have a leg to stand on.”

	Karen stifled a giggle, picturing the scarecrow attempting to chase her, only to slump down like a defeated wet noodle. She couldn’t help but revel in her own success as she moved on with her journey, receiving praise and clapping from the fictional bystanders she passed by. It’s been a long time since she last felt this triumphant. What a feeling! What a strange first step to take, but it was no less exciting than she thought!

	“And so, our heroine continued her adventure, marching towards the next house with her friends to earn some delicious treats,” the man resumed his narration. “But, what’s this? Just as she approached the front door, a zombie began to crawl out of the ground before her eyes! Those teeth of his were quite an ugly sight!”

	Adversity! A bony hand shot out of the dirt in front of her, soon followed by its matching pair. The ground shuddered under her feet as the hands grasped and pulled upwards, revealing the gnarly creature that slowly emerged from below. Dirt and grass slid off its head and shoulders as it grinded its greyish teeth with a deathly grin. With missing fingers, ripped clothes and an empty hole where its right eye should be, the monster lazily hauled itself from the earth up to its waist. The little Cockatrice tensed up at the sight of its cursed visage, her emotions pulling her back a few steps. Once again the curtain of darkness surrounded her, and the circle of moonlight shone down on her like a spotlight.

	“Look out!” Said dreamlike Julie.

	“What do we do?” Asked invented Mandy.

	“Not another one!” Grumbled figmental Aedith.

	“He's looks like quite the bad guy, doesn’t he?” Asked the man.

	“Y-Yeah…”

	“He also seems to have legs. I’m afraid we can’t just go around this one.”

	“Th-Then what do we do?”

	“That’s a good question. What could our heroine do now…” He contemplated. “Mister zombieman seems to be in a bad mood for some reason.”

	“Why is that?”

	“Hmmm…” He pondered with a hand on his chin. “Maybe he’s angry because someone woke him up.”

	“Really?”

	“That’s how it looks like in my mind. His hands are just waving around and he’s growling like he’s been having a bad day. I guess Halloween makes him grumpy like an old man. How about yours?”

	The man’s lighthearted description calmed her a little bit as the creature’s visage changed into a tamer, goofier form with a poof of magic. “Mine too...”

	“But look out; the zombieman is giving you a really sour look! He thinks you’re the one who’s disturbed!”

	Her brows scrunched up again. “Eh!? B-But I didn’t do anything!”

	“He doesn’t seem very convinced. He wants to give you and your friends a scare and make you run away!”

	“That’s not nice!”

	“Well said. He’s got it all wrong! We can’t just let him be mean to you like that. I think we should teach him some good manners.”

	“Y-Yeah!”

	“So, any idea what to do next?”

	“Er, um…” Karen stopped for a moment, before shaking her head, frustrated by her own lack of initiative yet again.

	“That’s okay, I know something we can do. Now, what could be meaner than a zombieman?”

	“Uh…cats!”

	“…Cats?”

	“I-I think they’re scary…” She fidgeted. Although not quite what she had in mind, it was her most recent self-discovery.

	“I see, that’s understandable. And what would be scarier than cats?”

	“Um…sharks? A-And bats…and spiders…”

	“My, that’s quite a few things,” he said. “But I think we can go a bit further. What would be even scarier than all scary things ever?”

	Karen fell back into her thoughts, searching for an answer. She could write down a whole short story’s worth of creepy things, but the scariest thing ever? That was a tough one. Vampires? Cockroaches? Dentists? She thought long and hard about it, but there were so many answers to choose from that she had a hard time narrowing it down. Still, the mister was counting on her! She had to think of something! Something…

	“Something that’s hard to hide from, perhaps?” The man suggested. “That was the most daunting thing I could think of when I was your age. If it could appear anywhere, nowhere was safe.”

	 “…A ghost!” She exclaimed, reminding herself of what she was wearing.

	“A ghost?”

	“Yeah! I can be a ghost!” She said, pulling her costume over her head and looking up at him through the eyeholes. “Like this!”

	“Ah, a ghost with wings, huh? That’s one way for one to fly,” he chuckled as they both went right back to their imaginary adventure. “So, what will miss ghost do?”

	“I’ll...I’ll spook him! I’ll tell him to go away!” She said, a bit more confident in her own voice as she shook her wings in determination.

	“The monster advanced towards our young heroine, ready to scare her away…” he began.

	Crawling out of its grave, the zombie clumsily climbed to its feet. Lowering its head to gaze upon the feathery girl with its single empty eye, the undead creature began its shambling march, trying to reach her with its skeletal arms. Karen recoiled with every step, keeping her distance as the zombie slowly approached her. She waited for the right moment, ready to act.

	“…but she would not be frightened so easily, for she had a secret the creature did not know of. She couldn’t run away now, but how would she respond?”

	Karen quickly picked up on her cue, and ceased her retreat. With her feet firmly planted, she donned her imaginary self in a much more intricate ghost costume, emanating a faint white glow as its hems faded into flowing streams of vapor. The zombie paused in its advance, its eye staring at her transformation as it was fashioned by her own fertile mind. It was the moment of truth.

	And with a deep breath, she raised her wings and shouted, “B-BOO!”

	“She stood up to the monster, and revealed her spooky ghost powers! Cowed by her bravery, the zombieman froze up in pure fear!”

	An unexpected turnabout! The creature growled in surprise, taken aback by the sudden energy cast upon it from the Cockatrice’s defiant eyes. Its body stiffened by her action, the undead fell on its side like a sculpture of marble, and moved no more. Karen looked down at the fallen thing, almost incredulous of what she had just done. The way the monster had turned stock-still like a statue…was that…?

	“I…did it…?”

	“And so, the evil zombieman was defeated by the ghastly heroine! An ignominious end to the long-expired monster.”

	“I…did it! I did it!” The Cockatrice jumped in her seat. “I-I won!”

	“She got him!” Said notional Julie.

	“Well done!” Praised illusory Mandy.

	“He’d better stay down!” Taunted supposititious Aedith.

	“The monster could not withstand her special powers,” the man said as the curtains reopened, setting the night lights free once again. “Just like the scarecrow before him, the zombieman’s challenge was but a mere illusion!”

	Karen never would have imagined that she could see herself being courageous, even if just in her own imagination. She never thought it would be this fun either, yet there she was, enjoying the moment. She wanted it to happen for real more than anything else, and for a moment, she felt she could do it. Her imagination seemed so convincing, and so…real; more so than she was used to. It felt incredible. Had she always been able to conjure such vivid images in her mind, and never realized? Although puzzled, she quickly put the thought aside, bringing herself back to her ongoing adventure.

	“Another stunning display of talent from our heroine! Once again triumphant, she strode across the neighborhood undaunted!” The man’s narration grew more intricate.

	“What’s ‘un-don-ted’ mean?”

	“It means you were very, very brave.”

	Karen smiled. Some of his words were new to her ears, and some sounded a bit silly, but they’ve only made her game of pretend all the more fun.

	“None dared stop miss ghost as she made her way forward. Boldly, she arrived at the door of house she had set her eyes on, and rang the bell. But just as she did so, she noticed that...” The man paused. “...she was all alone, sadly separated from her friends as they were distracted and got lost along the way…”

	“H-Huh?”

	“But not to worry; they would be surely fine on their own! They had with them a special map that would show them the way back to her, and that would be an adventure in and of itself,” he reassured her. “But hark! The door to the house began to creak open! Pulled aside, it revealed a person standing behind it...”

	Karen thought back to the incident that made her run away in the first place. The glowing eyes, the shadows, the hall and that freakish mask - it wasn’t hard for her to realize who was behind it all, but she was too late to figure it out. The encounter was still fresh in her mind, and so was the feeling of isolation and dread she went through because of it, but if she were to overcome that once and for all, she would have to face it head-on, even if meant revisiting bad memories.

	“Our heroine was matched by the unknown resident, who wore a costume just as spooky as hers! But they could not match the skill and bravery of a ghost with wings…”

	The figure stood in the darkness, contoured by a streak of light that came from inside the house. Once again the dark curtain surrounded her, and her crest was bestowed a soothing focus of light. Steeling her imaginary self, she stood her ground before the indescribable silhouette.

	“I’m…I’m not scared…”

	“She had come too far turn away and flee now. And so, she looks up at the resident...”

	Karen shook her head, fighting off her worries. She was on her own now. She couldn’t give up.

	“...and then, she says...”

	“And then I say...trick or treat!” She shouted, thrusting her candy bag forward.

	Karen put all of her will into her voice, lost in the moment. The prospect of finally going hunting for sweets on her own merit was exhilarating. She could feel it!

	And feel it she did.

	Karen heard something drop into her bag. Something light, briefly tugging at the handle as it hit the bottom. Leaving the trance of her imaginary world, she pulled her costume off her head and looked inside. Her eyes sparkled with awe as she realized what it was.

	The man gave her a warm smile, patting down the flap on his shirt’s pocket. “Treat.”

	She glanced between him and the bag a few times, before reaching inside and taking the candy in her alulae. Her little feet eagerly swung back and forth as she examined her prize. A round, gold-yellow wrapping adorned with a simple sky-blue circle. The winking faces of a Troll and a Bee smiled back at her as she read the colorful brand – Bumblegum.

	“Wow! I’ve never seen this one before! What is it?” She asked.

	“It’s honey-flavored. Very sweet, too. It’s an old brand from my younger days. Everyone loved it back then, especially because it never goes bad. It’s the last thing I have; I hope you’ll like it as much as I did.”

	Karen’s smile couldn’t be more genuine. At long last, it was the first treat she’s ever truly earned on Halloween. It might not have been quite the real deal yet, but at that moment she felt confident enough to try it, and that alone gave her more hope than she could’ve imagined.

	“And so, our little heroine achieved her goal and earned her big prize,” he said. “But was it a fun adventure, I wonder?”

	“Yeah! I had a lot of fun!” She chirped.

	“I’m glad you did.”

	The man watched the Cockatrice for a little a while as she marveled at her sugary award. Satisfied with the results, the man drew her attention once again.

	“Listen, I know how difficult it is, being afraid. It happens to everyone, but you can’t let it hold you back forever. If you run away, the bad guys will win, and you’ll never be able to face them again.”

	The Cockatrice fell silent as he looked down and clasped his hands, contemplating his own words. So absorbed was she in his teachings that she did not notice the mask was no longer in his hands.

	“You see, the thing about courage is that it’s not about having no fear at all. In fact, being scared is a big part of it.”

	Karen blinked. “It is?”

	“Indeed. Being brave is all about resisting what makes you scared, and not letting it stop you. You can’t get stronger without being a little bit afraid first. I would have never learned that if it weren’t for her…”

	“Who?”

	“A very special person.” The man looked above the feathery girl for a moment. Those fateful nights of innocence and fantasy had never left him. “She was the one who helped me, as I’ve helped you. I would’ve been so lost in this world, had I not met her.”

	“She sounds nice…”

	“She most certainly is. ‘Without courage to begin, your act is already over’, as she puts it. It’s…not really good for your heart, being scared and running away forever. So, don’t let it go ‘bad’ because of it. You’re stronger than you think.”

	Karen nodded, looking up at him. Once again their eyes met, and the new-found confidence in her face brought a relieved smile to his.

	“After all, nobody wants to be scared to death, right?”

	She giggled, happy to have all her troubles soothed. “Ah, but mister…”

	“Hm?”

	“What if the bad guys don’t get scared? What if they try to catch me?”

	“Oh,” he said, amused. “In that case, I think it’s perfectly fine to run away.”

	“Ehehe…”

	He couldn’t help but laugh with her for a little while; her giggling face was all the assurance he needed. She seemed to be well on her way to sorting her problems out. As their laugher slowly faded, he looked back to the neighborhood in the distance, and Karen returned to musing about triumphing over the odds. All the lights and happy faces livening up the night - moments far too precious for this little girl to miss out on. It brought back memories, however many he had left.

	His reminiscing wouldn’t last long, however. Something in the distance eventually caught his eye, and he had a pretty good idea of who they could be.

	“Say, are those your friends over there?” He asked.

	“Huh?” Karen turned to look, noticing a few familiar faces approaching. “O-Oh, they are!”

	Well-guessed once again. “They must have been looking for you. I suppose it’s time you joined them.”

	Karen quickly jumped off her seat and brushed up her ghost costume. She glanced at her friends for a second, before turning back to him.

	“Thank you so much, mister!” She chirped, relief and joyful laughter in her voice. “I won’t forget the things you said!”

	“I’ll remember you, too. Goodbye, miss ghost,” he said, waving at the little Cockatrice as she took off to meet her group.

	“Hey, look! There she is!” A distant voice said.

	“What!? Where!?” Asked the second.

	“Kaaareeen!” Shouted the third.

	Karen was ecstatic to see her friends. She couldn't wait to tell them the things she learned from the nice mister she met, and that she finally understood what it means to be brave. They would finally be able to go trick-or-treating together! But more importantly, she wanted to introduce them to him. She was positive they'd like him as much as she did!

	And then it hit her - she forgot to ask for his name.

	“Ah, mister! What is...”

	She looked back, only to find an empty bench, and an empty park.

	“...your...?”

	Her smile faded, giving way to confusion as she looked around. Wasn’t he right there just a moment ago?

	“KaaareeEEEN!”

	The Cockatrice turned to look just in time to see an agitated, teary-eyed Mosquito crash into her. Aedith tackled her with a hug so intense that it almost sent them both to the ground. Hard to believe this very same Mosquito had terrorized Karen's bullies into submission.

	“We've been lookin' all over for you, ya batty! Why'd ya run this far!?” Aedith said, shaking Karen to near-dizziness before hugging her a second time. Julie and Mandy, not too far behind, were quick to join in for a group hug.

	“We were so worried, Kay!”

	“We thought we had lost you forever! Are you alright?”

	“Y-Yeah, I'm okay! Don't worry, guys!” Karen said, still being squeezed by her friends.

	“You went so far, Kay. We've been looking for you all night!” Julie said. “But it’s fine now. I'm so glad!”

	“You were looking for me all this time?” The Cockatrice asked with an embarrassed smile. “D-Did you guys walk too much?”

	“Nah,” Mandy said, “Becky brought us!”

	“Thought you could run away from me, huh?” Said an older female voice. Looking up at the approaching figure, Karen saw a familiar, albeit tired-looking face.

	Rebecca bent over with her hands on her knees as she arrived, trying to catch her breath. “Phew. Way too much jumping for one night.”

	“No wonder we took so long to get here. Becky’s such a couch potato...” Aedith took a jab at the Cheshire, getting an annoyed look in return.

	“Lotta talk for someone who's been moping and bawling about little Chickenheart over here this whole time.”

	“Fatty.”

	“Crybaby.”

	“Becky, were you looking for me, too?” Karen asked as Julie and Mandy giggled at the teasing contest.

	“Why wouldn’t I? I did make you run all the way over here, anyway.”

	“S-Sorry I ran away...I made you guys worry so much...” Karen said with a pang of guilt.

	“It wasn’t your fault, Karen!” Julie said.

	“Yeah,” Rebecca said, “it was mine, really. I’m the one who should be apologizing.”

	Still with a hand on her knee, the cat girl reached over and caressed Karen’s head.

	“Sorry about scaring you off and all. That was a bad mistake. I’m just glad you’re alright,” she said, clear sincerity in her voice. “I promise I'll...try not to do it again.”

	Karen nodded. She found no resentment in her heart. “It's okay. I forgive you, Becky.”

	Blunt as she was, Rebecca knew when to atone for a mistake. Though she wouldn’t admit it out loud, she would always be around to help when Karen and her friends were in trouble - a life debt to the very first friends she's made when she moved into the neighborhood. A responsible Cheshire cat was a rare breed, but her sentiment was genuine nonetheless. Understanding when she had to be, she was like an older sister to them.

	“...Just don’t tell your parents I did it. Or mine. You left the whole street in a mess back there. I’ll save some candy for you back home if you keep it a secret. Promise?”

	“Hehe, promise!”

	“Alright, it’s a deal.”

	Truly an older sister in every regard.

	“Hmmm, yes. We accept your tribute,” a smug Aedith chimed in. “I’ll charge extra, though.”

	“You never stop being a little pest, do you?”

	“I wonder if I should tell miiine~” Julie joked.

	“Oh, not you too, Stitch…”

	Mandy ran her tongue over her teeth in contemplation as her friends settled their morally questionable deal, until sudden realization washed over her. “Ah! Becky, what time is it?”

	The cat girl stopped pinching Aedith’s cheek for a moment to check her phone. “It’s half past seven.”

	“Already!? I've got to be back home by eight for dinner!”

	“B-But what about the candy? We’ve missed out on so much already!” Julie said.

	“Eeeh, is it that important?” Rebecca asked. “You can just go buy some at the convenience store. They’re on sale, you know.”

	“It’s not the same!” Mandy protested.

	“And it still costs money, too!” Julie added.

	“Pfft. You’ve got a point there. I think you can make it to a few houses still,” the cat girl said, stretching her arms. “Say, I can jump you guys over there, how about it?”

	“Sounds good!”

	“Aw man, we didn’t even get to use the paper rolls yet!” Aedith said, genuinely concerned that she wouldn’t have time for her pranks.

	“Paladin Street’s not too far, I think,” Rebecca said. “How many you got?”

	“Thirty!” Mandy said.

	“...Thirty?”

	Although she was happy to be with her friends once again, Karen couldn’t help but look back at the bench where the man sat not too long ago. She could have sworn he was there when she left. Now it was just a calm, quiet little spot in the park, bathed in light from a nearby lamp. The sight tugged at her heart a little bit. At first, she wanted to ask her friends if they saw him leave, but something told her that they wouldn't know. Where did he go? Why did he say goodbye?

	Would he come back?

	“Karen...” Julie put a hand on her shoulder, bringing her back to the present. “Sorry I made you do something you didn't want to. I just wanted to help you to have fun, but I guess I did it all wrong. Do you wanna go home?”

	“Yeah, you probably want go back after all this, right?” Rebecca said. “I can take you home first if you want.”

	I took her all of a few moments to decide. With a confident smile on her face, Karen shook her head, much to their surprise. “No. I’ll go with you guys.”

	Everyone stopped to stare at her.

	“You...will?” Julie asked.

	“I think Becky broke Kay...” Aedith added. “It's her fault twice now!”

	“No, no, guys! I-I really want to try again! I'm serious!”

	“You sure about this?” Rebecca asked. “The first time didn't end well...”

	“Yeah, I can do it! I can't let my heart go bad!” Karen said, her poetic quotation puzzling her friends a little bit.

	The Devil girl smiled, finally seeing the grit she always knew Karen had in her. “Well...if you feel you can do it, then I’m counting on you!”

	“That's the first time I heard something like that from you, kiddo,” Rebecca said. “You still got the energy after that marathon?”

	“Yes! I’m not gonna run away anymore!”

	The little Cockatrice was more than ready to seize the night. She would make them proud.

	“Alright! Karen’s in!” Mandy said.

	“You're crazy, Kay, but I wanna see that, now!” Aedith said.

	“Me too,” Rebecca said. “Come on, let’s get going. I’ve still got a movie date later tonight.”

	“Oh! By the way, mom said you guys can come over for dinner when we're done!” Mandy said. “We're having pizza bagels!”

	“…On second thought, I might have some time for that,” The Cheshire cat joked.

	“You’re just gonna eat them all like you did last time...” The Mimic complained. She owed much to the teasing cat girl for helping her speak her mind a bit more often. It was crude, but it worked better than any form counseling, and for that, Mandy was grateful. Despite the pranks, that is.

	“Sure thing, shorty. Sure thing...”

	“We’ve gotta get the pepperonis first...” Julie whispered to the amused Cockatrice.

	“I wonder how much candy we’ll be able to get, though,” the mosquito girl joked. “Since Becky’s such a hungry hippo, we’ll take forever~!”

	Rebecca’s tail flicked in annoyance. “Alright, that’s it for you, Discount Dracula. You’re walking.”

	“Huh? Wh-What?” Aedith stammered as her friends laughed at the nickname.

	“Better start stretching those wings. Bye!” Rebecca shot her a mocking frown as she wrapped her arm around the other girls and vanished into thin air.

	“N-No, wait! I-I was just joking! Come on, Becky! Don’t leave meee!”

	Aedith took off running back to her neighborhood, pleading to the wind. As she was busy ranting by herself, a furred paw suddenly shot out of nowhere, stealing her candy bag and disappearing yet again. Just as she started threatening to tell her parents on the Cheshire, another paw appeared behind her, wrapping around her and taking her away in a blink.

	And off they went on their adventure, leaving the empty park in the quiet embrace of the nightly air.

	“…She reminds me of you, my dear…” Gentle words scattered themselves to the wind.

	“…I am sure her mind is clear…” Returned an answer from nowhere.

	“…She has much to see…as do we…”

	“…Could you show me again…our first soirée…?”

	And the wind spoke no more, flowing away under the graceful watch of the moonlight.

	With the man’s advice fresh in her mind, Karen would go on to surprise both her friends and herself, braving through the night just like she did in her imagination, and little by little, she managed to earn her own fair share of sweets. From that day forward, she wouldn't falter so easily in the face of fear. She wouldn’t have to face them all at once, but neither would she run from every single one. After all, she really was stronger than she thought, just like he said.

	Although her prizes were tasty, no candy matched the sweetness of the one Karen got from that nice old man with the calm gray eyes. Never again did the little Cockatrice ever meet him, but true to her word, she would remember him for the rest of her life. Gone were her doubts; at last, she was free as a feather.

															The End

	. . .

	“H-Hey, um…thanks for going out with me, Aine.”

	“It’s fine…”

	The little Dark Elf averted her gaze as she stood in front of the boy’s house. Her façade of disinterest was effective, as the boy at her side hesitated to look at her for too long. It was only natural that he would feel the pressure of her confidence; she’s been training and rehearsing her ‘serious’ face all week long, after all. Not that she cared what he thought of her, of course. That was totally not the case.

	It had been a fruitful night for the two of them, and their bags were full. His cheeks were red as they always were whenever Aine was around. Surely they flared up out of respect and awe at her presence. At least that was the conclusion she had arrived to from sneaking glances at him every now and then. Purely analytical observation, though.

	The two kids faced each other for a little while, waiting for something to happen. The boy scratched behind his ear, making his red devil mask wobble a little bit. The elf girl kept her arms behind her back, slightly waving her candy bag to and fro.

	“Oh!” The boy perked up. “I forgot the bell!”

	“Yeah. That was just…what I was gonna say…” Aine replied. The thought didn’t really come up in her mind either for some reason.

	After reaching up to ring the doorbell, the boy went back to standing in awkward silence with his elf friend. It wouldn’t be long until someone answered the door. He looked down, deep in thought about something. She looked at him with a bit of confusion as his eyes focused on the ground with strange intensity. He looked like he could bore a hole into it if he stared too long. She could only wonder what he was thinking about.

	“What’s wr—”

	“D-Do you wanna come in and trade candy with me?” He blurted out, raising his head.

	Aine’s eyes went wide. “Huh?”

	“I want, uh…wait, no. I-I thought you’d wanna trade some…y-you know. B-But it’s okay if you don’t want to!”

	“No!” She spoke up, almost shouting. “I mean, I do! I mean…” She cleared her throat, struggling to recover her dismissive demeanor. 	“I-If you really want it that much, I don’t mind.”

	“Really!? Cool!” The boy livened up instantly, and began to sift through his bag. “I got some Wonderland’s and Amber Runes and some Prisoner lollipops too…Uh, Aine? What are you looking at?”

	“Nothing!” She quickly turned back to him. “Nothing at all. What else do you have in there?”

	“Uh, lemme see…I also got some Demon Mint gum…hey, what’s that?”

	“What’s what?” Aine asked a bit too quickly, ears perked up.

	“I thought I saw something,” he said, trying to get a glance at something behind her.

	“Saw what? I didn’t see anything,” the elf said, tilting her head along with the boy as to block his view. “Must be a cat or something.”

	The boy hummed a reply before continuing his search through the bag. He looked up as soon as the elf turned her back to him, and peeking over her shoulder.

	“Looks like someone’s over there…” he said, pointing at the clearly inconspicuous bush sitting on the sidewalk.

	“Wha--!? Who?” Aine turned to him, looking flustered. “There’s no one there. You’re seeing things, Matt.”

	Aine looked over her shoulder and saw a pair of ears, identical to hers, sticking out of the bush, and a pair of binoculars staring right at them.

	“…Isn’t that your m—”

	“Nope. Don’t know who that is. You don’t, either.”

	“But—”

	“Just pretend nothing’s there. Please.”

	The boy raised an eyebrow. He opened his mouth as to say something, but was interrupted by the front door as it cracked open to reveal a mature woman standing behind it.

	“Oh my, look who it is!” She said, peeking under the door guard. “Hello, dearies!”

	“Hi, mom,” said Matt.

	“Hi, Mrs. Middleton,” said Aine.

	“Did you have fun on your little date, Matthew? How did it go?”

	“It wasn’t a date, mom…” The boy shyly corrected her. “Can Aine come in? We’re gonna trade candy.”

	“Ah, of course, of course. Give me a minute, I’ll open the door for you. Ugh, this thing is always getting stuck~.”

	Aine looked away, trying to hide the red on her cheeks. Her eyes went a bit too far, however, as she caught a glimpse of the suspicious bush, only to be met with the horrific sight of a professional DSLR camera sticking out of it. As if following them throughout the evening wasn’t enough, the elf girl saw it flash quicker than she could turn away. The boy was too coy to notice anything.

	“Alright!” Said the lady, finally opening the door. “Come in, come in, dearies! You must be starving from walking around the block, right? I’ll bring you some snacks!” As the children walked in, she noticed the bush sitting outside. “Oh! Good evening, Mrs. Alvadatter! Aine’s staying over!”

	“Okay!” Aine’s mother shouted from the bush, still clad in her latex suit. “Take care, sweetie! I’ll pick you up at nine!”

	The elf girl grabbed the boy’s hand and ran away, cheeks burning with embarrassment. “E-Excuse me!”

	“Don’t run too fast now!” The lady laughed as the children disappeared into the house.

	Exchanging a thumbs-up with her good friend, Mrs. Middleton moved on with her evening as the dark elf lady left with her bush in tow. All according to plan.