Today it's Halloween and Jane's locked herself in her room again. Things haven't gotten any better and she's still quite miserable on a daily basis. Harry's still been trying to be her friend in school and she wishes that he wouldn't.

He's a nice boy, but he's ruining his own friendships by trying to be friends with her and she doesn't want that to happen to him. Sometimes she hides in the classroom when everyone goes outside. Mrs. Hillary knows, but Jane thinks that she lets her do it because it causes less trouble. It doesn't always work because sometimes Mrs. Hillary wants her to be outside, but it's nice when it does.

School hasn't gotten any better, but the voices have...or, well, she thinks they have, anyway. Jane's been secluding herself from everyone lately and the voices are a little calmer and quieter now. Maybe it's because they're going away. She hopes that they're going away because she doesn't like sharing her mind with other people. Can she even call them other people? The voices don't belong to anyone, and they certainly aren't actual people, but what else can she equate them to?

Pests. Yes, pests. That's perfect because they constantly bother her like insects and rodents bother people all the time. The voices in her head are just pests and eventually they'll go away. They'll go away soon and she'll be normal again and her parents won't look at her like she's already gone somewhere where they can't reach her.

Someday, she'll be Harry's friend without having to worry about if he'll lose his other friends because of her.

Someday, she'll just be Jane and not that freak who talks to herself and screams at people who aren't there.

Someday, she'll be normal.

Outside, the sun has set and the stars have started to make their appearance. Children are dressed up in costumes and running around the streets with bags of candy as they hop from house to house happily proclaiming, "Trick or treat" when someone answers the door.

Jane wants to be out there with them, running around with a smile and filling a bag with candies, but she can't because she's far too afraid of everyone. The voices have warned her all day about people in costumes being worse than normal people because they can hide who they are and hurt her even more. They've warned her about being kidnapped while she's walking or after she's walked up to a house for candy and she's absolutely terrified to leave the house.

Her parents are happy that Jane's decided to stay in because it saves them some money and they don't have to worry about her walking around by herself. There have been instances where people have been picked up by vans while walking around town because someone called and reported them as unstable and they don't want that to happen to Jane.

She's perfectly content with staying home and reading her books. The only problem is that it's rather difficult to maintain her concentration. Every time someone comes to the door, the voices start an uproar and cause her to lose her spot on the page.

The radio is on in the background, and it helps to keep the voices away because Jane gets lost in the music and starts focusing on her humming more than the pestering voices that don't ever seem to leave her alone.

Someone's just come to the door again and this time Jane concentrates a little harder and keeps reading. She's tired of stopping in the middle of sentences or paragraphs and she doesn't care what the voices tell her, she's going to keep reading since it's the only fun she'll have tonight.

It doesn't matter at the door. She doesn't care and her parents won't let them in, no matter what the voices whisper to her as muffled chatter and the steady voice of the television sneak under her door.

They're here for you, you know. Tonight's the night they can get you. What are four walls really going to do to protect you?

Jane closes her eyes and takes a few deep breaths. She's learned that this sometimes helps her concentrate and the voices bother her less when she's not constantly anxious. It's getting harder to do as time passes, but for now she can still concentrate and clear her head a little every now and again.

"No, they're here for sweets. Four walls are more than two and my parents are home. They won't let anyone hurt me."

Katherine laughs in the other room and Jane manages to wear a small smile because it definitely means that she's right. There's nothing wrong, kids are just stopping by for sweets and her parents are there for her.

She's about to try to read again, but a rather familiar voice slips through the crack in the door and stops her just as her finger's starting to pinpoint the last sentence she read.

"Is Jane home?"

Jane freezes and holds her breath.

Told you so. I bet he's here to spy on you, get all the information he can to get close to you before he takes you away. He's going to send you to the bad place and let them poke you and make you bleed. He's going to be the first to get you, Jane. Get out now. The window isn't locked.

Harry's at the door and she's scared because he shouldn't know where she lives. School is the only place she sees him and he shouldn't be asking for her at the front door.

Despite what the voices are telling her, Jane closes her book and sets it on the bed. Out in the living room, she can hear her mother saying something, but she can't make out the words. As quietly as possible, Jane tiptoes over to the door and presses her ear against the cool surface.

"I don't know if that's a good idea. Jane's...well, she's not really good with people and she's afraid of the other children in costumes."

Harry nods to acknowledge what she's said. He knows all of this already, but he still wants to try to see if she'd like to come out and trick or treat with himself and his older sister Rosalie. Jane's always alone and he knows that she doesn't like it, so he wants to see if maybe she'll be willing to be his friend, even if only for the night.

"I know, but I thought she might like to trick or treat because she can be anyone she wants to tonight. I just want her to have fun like everyone else."

Katherine's eyes soften and a warm smile makes its way to her lips. She knows he's the one that's trying to be her friend at school and it means the world to her that he's still trying even though Jane is incredibly difficult to get to nowadays.

"Well, I don't think it would hurt to ask. She's reading in her room right now; I'll show you where it is so you can ask her yourself."

He knew that this was coming before he rang the doorbell. Jane doesn't trust people and it's easier if she can see who's asking rather than having someone else ask in their place. There's not much wrong with that and Harry doesn't mind asking because he does want to be her friend and he wants her to know that he means it when he says that he's not going to hurt her.

Katherine leads him through the living room and to Jane's door. Jane's standing behind it, biting her fingernails with wide eyes. She doesn't want her mother to open the door and she's terrified that someone's just talking like Harry to get to her.

Hide in the closet. I bet he has a knife.

She only takes two steps before her mother knocks softly and calls her name. "Jane? Harry's here and he has a question to ask you."

Jane doesn't answer, her words trapped in her throat as the voices taunt her with scenarios and people that aren't really there. She knows that Harry's nice and that he isn't like everyone else, but it's hard to cling to that when there are so many voices telling her that he's bad and that he's there to hurt her.

Katherine looks at Harry with apologetic and sad eyes. A moment of silence passes before she calls Jane's name again. There's no answer and he can see that it's tearing her mother apart, so he decides to try for himself.

Harry clears his throat nervously, "Jane? It's me, Harry. I uh...I know that you don't really like to be around people, but I thought...I thought maybe you might want to come trick or treating with me and my sister Rosalie?"

Jane tries her best to hear around the voices, and she manages to catch what he's said before they start talking over one another with threats. She's incredibly afraid of going out tonight and she doesn't know how to tell him that without getting caught in her head or saying something that would make her seem even stranger than she already is.

Harry waits patiently for about a minute before he tries again, making Katherine smile as she waits with her hand anxiously placed over her mouth.

"The costumes don't really mean anything. You know, you can be anyone you want tonight and no one will know. They can't get you if they don't know who you are. And there's lots of sweets too, everyone loves sweets."

Jane twists her fingers in front of her and bites her lip. What he said makes sense and she thinks the voices are stupid anyway. No one's hurt her yet and Harry's nice. And he's right, she does love sweets. The only problem is that she doesn't have a costume to go out in. She didn't want to go out tonight and she told her mother not to spend the money on one.

With slightly trembling fingers, Jane opens the door a crack so she can look at him when she talks. She doesn't like not being able to look at someone when she's speaking to them, it makes her nervous.

There's a noticeable pout to her lips as she looks at her mother and then at Harry. "I...I don't...I don't have a costume."

They both look up at Katherine and she smiles softly, "I bought you one just in case. Do you want to go trick or treating with them? I can help you put it on."

Jane looks between the two and does her best to ignore the voices in her head that are yelling at her to stay home and hide somewhere. She can't focus enough though so she gives her mother a small nod and a hint of a smile pulls at her lips.

Harry says that he'll wait outside with his sister while she changes and Katherine gets to work helping her into her Wednesday Addams costume. Jane's always loved the Addams Family and she's ecstatic that her mother bought her the costume.

It's been a while since she's felt this happy and, for once, she's defied the voices enough that they only murmur things every now and again as her mother puts on the finishing touches with a smile. She's so proud of Jane for stepping out of her comfort zone and for really trying to get past her condition. Katherine knows that she's got schizophrenia like her sister did and she's hoping that this is a step in the right direction and that, maybe, by some miracle, it will go away before she has to send her daughter to a psych ward.

Jane finds a bag in the cabinet and practically runs to the door. The prospect of sweets and no one knowing who she is quells her fears and she's excited to be Wednesday Addams instead of herself.

Katherine meets the three outside and hugs Jane tightly before telling her to bring home lots of sweets and to have fun. Jane tells her mother that she loves her and offers Harry a small smile. The voices haven't completely gone away, but it's a little easier to deal with them when she's in a good mood.

Rosalie lets Katherine know that they'll have Jane back by nine thirty at the latest and the three head down the block to start collecting their sweets. Harry's walking pretty close to Jane, but he leaves enough space between them to make sure that she knows he's just being friendly and not trying to hurt her or anything.

"What's your favourite candy? Mine's the lemonheads. They're fun to eat because they make your eyes water and your mouth pucker up like a fish. Have you ever eaten one?"

Jane's looking around cautiously, just like she normally does, but she's heard what he's said and she's thinking about her answer as best as she can with the voices telling her to lie so he can't trick her into eating something bad.

"I like sweet tarts. They have pretty colors that make me feel better inside. I ate one once...I didn't...I didn't like it."

It's hard to use her voice because she's used to keeping silent and only speaking when she has to, but it's a little easier now that she's talked with her mother beforehand.

He asks her all sorts of questions as they walk around town and knock on familiar doors. Sometimes she doesn't answer because the voices get too loud and she doesn't want him to think she's yelling at him when she's yelling at them, but that's alright with Harry because he understands that she's different from the other kids and that she doesn't usually interact like this.

Rosalie chimes in every now and again when Harry says something rather foolish or when she sees a nice costume or pumpkin on one of the doorsteps, but for the most part she keeps to herself.

Time flies by much faster than Jane thought it could and her arm's starting to hurt with the weight of the bag on her shoulder. She's collected more sweets than she ever thought possible and it's a little baffling to think about as they turn down another familiar street.

You've got all the bad candy. Everyone knows that you're still you. They probably gave you poison.

Jane's done a fairly good job of ignoring the voices, but this is the third time that they've said that and she can't seem to make herself ignore it. Periodically, she glances in her bag and shuffles through the sweets to see if anything seems different.

Harry notices and wears a slight frown, "What's wrong? Do you have too much?"

Jane looks up at him with slightly widened eyes and a shake of her head. "I...they know who I am. The candy...it's...it's not good."

His lips part for a second as his mind registers what it is that she's trying to say. She thinks that they've given her bad candy in hopes to hurt her or make her sick. For a moment, he's not entirely sure that he can help, but then an idea hits him like a bug hits the windshield.

"I'll trade you and you can have mine."

She's not sure what to do. Now the voices are telling her that he's got bad candy and that he's trying to hurt her. That he planned this all along and that he doesn't really want to be her friend at all.

Harry waits patiently as she closes her eyes and tugs on her sleeves. A few moments pass before she opens her eyes again and nods her head quickly.

"If you want to trade back later, you can. I don't want you to get sick."

Rosalie smiles at her brother. He's always been a kind person, but she's never seen him be this kind before. He's told her all about Jane and how the other kids make fun of her all the time and how she's different, and she's elated that he's still treating her like anyone else even though she's got some sort of mental illness.

Jane thanks him quietly as he hands her his bag and takes hers in return. They're about to continue down the street when someone dressed as a werewolf jumps out from behind the shrubs and scares them.

Rosalie jumps a little and Harry does the same, but Jane screams and drops her bag of sweets before running in the opposite direction. Tears burn her eyes as she runs and she can't seem to get enough air in her lungs.

Harry yells at the stranger before running after her as fast as his legs can carry him. Rosalie picks up their bags and follows behind at a moderate jog. She's got the wrong shoes on and Harry's almost caught up to Jane already.

"Jane!"

She ignores him and tries to run faster, but her legs are too short and it feels like someone's vacuumed all of the air out of her lungs. Her body can't handle the exertion and she slows to a stop at the end of the street.

Harry's breathing hard when he catches up to her. His hair is a mess around his head and his legs hurt, but he made it to her and that's what matters.

Tears are streaming down Jane's cheeks like rain and her lips are trembling as she looks at him, "I want to go home. P-please take me h-home."

He hates that the stupid kid that scared them ruined her fun, but there's not much he can do now except nod and agree to take her home. "Okay."

Rosalie catches up to them and Harry explains that she wants to go home now. She doesn't ask questions and leads them in the direction they originally came from. Jane's absolutely horrified that someone else is going to jump out at them and she walks closer to Harry, eventually grabbing his hand to calm herself down.

Harry doesn't mind the tight grip she has on his hand as long as she's alright. There's a lot going through her head and he really doesn't blame her because that kid scared him too.

It's eight thirty by the time they make it back to Jane's house. She's stopped crying now, but she's still holding Harry's hand like it's a Mary Jane and she's floating in the ocean.

Katherine's smile falls as soon as she opens the door and Jane lets go of Harry's hand, rushing in to hug her mother tightly. Rosalie explains what happened before she can ask and her frown deepens.

Harry really feels awful about how things turned out and he apologizes to both Jane and her mother as he hands Jane his bag of sweets. He's sure that she definitely doesn't want hers back now and maybe it will help her feel a little better.

"I hope you feel better, Jane."

Hesitantly, Jane reaches out and accepts the bag of sweets, sniffling as she does so and proceeding to wipe her eyes. The voices are scolding her and telling her that she should've known better and she can't think much through the volume.

Katherine thanks them for bringing her out and then back home and she's about to shut the door when Jane releases her grip and bolts forward to wrap her arms around Harry. She wants him to know that she likes him and that she did have fun tonight, even if someone scared her and she got overwhelmed.

"Thank you."