written: 10.13.23-12.03.23; 09.22.24-

Once upon a time...

Twas a long time ago, longer now than it seems, in a place that perhaps you've seen in your dreams.
For the story that you are about to be told, took place in the holiday worlds of old.
Now, you've probably wondered where holidays come from. If you haven't, I'd say it's time you begun.

SIMPLY MEANT TO BE

-

Leaves blew around the graveyard, where shadows danced on the stones.

Shadows:
Boys and girls of every age,
Wouldn't you like to see something strange?

The gates flung open.

Siamese Shadow:
Come with us and you will see
This, our town of Halloween

Ghosts danced around and pumpkins were thrown onto spokes.

Pumpkin Heads:
This is Halloween! This is Halloween!
Pumpkins scream in the dead of night

Ghosts:
This is Halloween! Everybody make a scene!
Trick-or-treat 'till the neighbors die of fright

They flew up by a house, screaming as they arrived.

Ghosts:
It's our town
Everybody scream!
In this town called Halloween

-

One Hiding Under Your Bed:
I am the one hiding under your bed
Teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing red

In the pitch black underneath the stairs, a pair of red eyes pierced through.

-

One Hiding Under Your Stairs:
I am the one hiding under your stairs

A hand came out, the fingers crawling, truly snakes, hissing.

One Hiding Under Your Stairs:
Fingers like snakes and spiders in my hair

-

Corpses:
This is Halloween! This is Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!

Vampires popped out of coffins, closets, a clock, and even from the ceiling. They formed a line and glided out.

Vampires:
In this town we call home,
Everyone hail to the hellhound song

-

The mayor robotically moved his hands, too chubby to have them go over his whole body, and turned around, a permanent jolly grin plastered onto his face.

Mayor:
In this town, don't we love it now?
Everybody's waiting for the next surprise

His head unmoving and still grinning, his body turned.

-

A black cat ran down some alleyway stairs and jumped onto a trashcan.

Corpses:
Round that corner, man hiding in the trash can
Something's waiting now to pounce and how you'll scream

A demon jumped out of the trashcan, throwing the cat up into the air. Two more jumped out by it.

Harlequin Demon:
Scream!

Through the wall, a werewolf burst through.

Werewolf:
This is Halloween

Harlequin Demon:
Red and black,

The Melting Man came up from the sewers.

Melting Man:
Slimy green

Werewolf:
Aren't you scared?

-

Witches:
Well, that's just fine
Say it once, say it twice
Take a chance and roll the dice
Ride with the moon in the dead of night

They flew out of the well on their broomsticks and up into the air. A tree with skeletons on its branches marched out in front of the witches.

Hanging Tree:
Everybody scream, everybody scream!

The skeletons began to move themselves around.

Hanged Skeletons:
In our town of Halloween

-

The Clown With the Tear-Away Face:
I am the clown with the tear-away face

He tore his face away, leaving a hole, and peddled on his unicycle at the same time, his voice turning demonic as there was only a void left where his face was supposed to be.

The Clown With the Tear-Away Face:
Here in a flash and gone without a trace

-

The Who:
I am the who when you call, "Who's there?"

The Wind Blowing Through Your Hair:
I am the wind blowing through your hair

A boy turned into the wind, his hair blowing in it as he glanced up at the moon as a shadow formed over it, looking for somebody.

Oogie Boogie:
I am the shadow on the moon at night
Filling your dreams to the brim with fright

The shadow turned into bats, flying off into the black of night while the townspeople made their way into the square to watch the show. At the guillotine, a jack-o'-lantern was chopped.

Townspeople:
This is Halloween, this is Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!

A child crawled out of a well, joined by his friends.

Child Corpse Trio:
Tender lumplings everywhere
Life's no fun without a good scare

Parent Corpses:
That's our job, but we're not mean
In our town of Halloween

Meanwhile, the mayor came through on his large official hearse.

Mayor:
In this town, don't we love it now?
Everybody is waiting for the next surprise

Townspeople:
Demon Queen might make you scream
And scream, you will, like a banshee
Make you jump out of your skin

Flying over them was a tall woman with wings. She seemingly landed on the moon, looking down on everybody.

Townspeople:
This is Halloween, everybody scream
Won't you please make way for a very special girl?
Our girl, Y/n, is Queen of the Demon World
Everyone hail to the Demon Queen

She flew down upon them from the moon, the boy still watching watching her, smiling wistfully.

With a snap, she lit herself on fire, her eyes rolling into the back of her head and the whites turning red as she let out a demonic scream, her skin melting off.

Townspeople:
This is Halloween, this is Halloween!
Halloween!
Ha!lloween!
Halloween!
Halloween!

With one more shriek, she dove into the tub of water, disappearing underneath. The corpse children looked in after her in amazement.

Corpse Children Trio:
In this town we call home,
Everyone hail to the hellhound song

She rose from the tub, her skin still intact and eyes back to normal. She stepped out as everyone chanted and waved their arms, giving a quick bow. She was much shorter without her wings out by at least three or four feet [about 30½ centimeters].

The boy who watched so fondly clapped politely, letting out a dreamy sigh.

"It's over!" the clown announced, balancing on his unicycle.

"We did it!"

"Wasn't it terrifying?"

"What a night!"

Mr. Hyde wrapped his chain around the Cyclops' neck. He choked, then giggled.

"Great Halloween, everybody!" the mayor announced next to her.

"Yes," the Demon Queen agreed with a small nod. "Our most terrible one yet. Thank you to everybody who helped to pull this off."

"No, thanks to you, Y/n," the mayor corrected. "Without your brilliant leadership -"

She cut him off, avoiding eye contact with about anyone. "O - of course, Mr. Mayor. Anytime." Twitching, she tried to get out of there quickly as everyone continued to complement her, crowding her by the fence, her back up against it.

The boy gazed at her, about to approach, until he felt a pull at his arm and gasped, noticing a black glove wrapped around his arm.

"The deadly nightshade you slipped me wore off, Sammy," a creepy old voice said. He sighed, knowing it was his creator, coming back to fetch him.

He pulled away, demanding, "Let go!"

But Dr. Finkelstein was insistent. "You're not ready for so much excitement!"

"Yes, I am!" he declared, still fighting against the doctor. In his glasses, he saw his reflection: a doll. Because really, that was all that he was, especially so to the doctor.

"You're coming with me!"

"No, I'm not!" Reaching over, he unsewed the stitch holding his arm in place, Dr. Finkelstein falling back. He looked at him, wondering if he should help him back up into his chair.

"Come back here, you foolish - ow!" Sammy's arm smacked him in the head, keeping him down, giving Sammy a chance to run away just as they were announcing awards, following Y/n, who had taken advantage of the announcements.

-

Y/n passed by to the graveyard gate, where an ensemble played a slow song to end off Halloween. Politely, she tossed a coin into the hole of one of their saxophones.

"Nice work, Fire Mommy."

"............please don't call me that," she said simply before passing through the gates.

-

Sammy held onto his stub, sitting by a gravestone. Hearing the gate open, he gasped and jumped behind it, peeking out to watch a short demon walk through and into the yard.

Out of a doghouse, a ghost dog flew out to be with Y/n. The house was labeled Toby.

Y/n:
There are few who would deny:
At what I do, I am the best
For my talents are renowned far and wide
When it comes to surprises in the moonlit night,
I excel without even trying

She casually walked over the graves, stepping over the bodies as to not be rude.

Y/n:
With the slightest little effort of my succubus charms,
I have seen grown men give out a shriek!
With the wave of my hand, and a well-placed moan
I have swept the very bravest off their feet

She slumped over one of the graves, looking out into the moon, her eyes unfocused.

Y/n:
Yet, year after year, it's the same routine
And I grow so weary of only their screams
And I, yes!

She jumped up, her eyes flashing red.

Y/n:
The Demon Queen...
Have grown so tired of of this lonely ting...

Sammy watched her approach Spiral Hill, overlooking the moon. Her wings came out and she flew over it, get black silhouette against it. Toby followed, just happy to be with his mistress.

Y/n:
Oh, somewhere deep inside of these bones,
An emptiness began to grow
Is someone out there, far from my home?
Someone that I would like to know...?

She placed her feet back on the hill, her wings retracting.

Y/n:
I'm the Mistress of Fright
And a demon, not Light
And I'll scare you right out of your pants

Sammy crept to a different gravestone, closer to her.

Y/n:
To a guy in Kentucky,
I'm Mam'selle Unlucky
And I'm known through England and France

AND SINCE I AM DEAD,
I can SHRIEK off my head

She shrieked, piercing the air with her scream.

Y/n:
And recite Shakespearean quotations
No animal, nor man, can SCREAM like I can
With the furry of my recitations

But who here would ever understand
That the Demon Queen with a sadist grin
Would tire of their frowns, if they only understood
She'd want to be their friend if she only...could

Thinking she heard something, she looked behind her. Sammy gasped, hiding away. Ignoring whatever sound it was, she turned away, stepping down. The curl in the hill unwound itself for her to walk down.

Y/n:
Oh, there's an empty place in my bones
That calls for someone that's unknown
The fame and praise come just once a year
They're reason for these empty tears...

A trail of blood ran out of her eye, staining her green skin.

She left out the other way, Toby still following her. Sammy looked after her, reaching out for her. "Y/n...I know how you feel."

Walking by a grave, he took the deadly nightshade by it that he had taken to tending to before leaving.

-

Sammy hid the nightshade away just as Dr. Finkelstein wheeled his way into the basement. "Samuel?"

He put his hands behind his back, hiding the poison.

"You've come back," he said, seeing him standing partially in front of him.

Defeated, Sammy replied, "I had to..."

"For this?" he asked, holding out his arm with a terrible grin. The hand slowly waved at him, missing its owner.

"Yes..."

He laughed at him, but a small part of him had wished he had taken on more of the obedient son role that he had wanted him to. Maybe even love him. "Shall we, then?"

He took him into his laboratory, although Sammy was hesitant to follow. He strapped him up to his leather binds and thread his needle. "That's twice this month you've slipped deadly nightshade into my tea and run off."

"Three times!" he corrected, almost proudly.

The needle thrusted to Sammy's eye, the doctor reminded him harshly, "You're mine, you know! I made you with my own hands!"

Kindly, he tried to coax, "You can make other creations." More exasperated, Sammy said, "I'm restless! I can't help it."

"It's a phase, my boy." He bit off the thread as he finished. "It'll pass. We need to be patient, that's all."

"But I don't want to be patient!" He wanted Y/n, was what he wanted.

The ceiling cracked open, letting Sammy look up at the sky, dreaming of his Y/n.

-

Toby barked up at Y/n, wagging his tail. With a small smile, she reached down and pet him. "What's up, Toby? Watcha want, boy?"

"Bark!" He sniffed her pocket for the cookie in it.

"Figures." She took it out and gave it to him, then let herself just float away.

'Let me be boiled to death with meloncholy.'

"Oh, Shakespeare..." she sighed mournfully as Toby tried to follow her, knowing not to disturb her when she was in her catatonic state, which she was quickly slipping into. "You're the only one who's ever understood me..."

-

The mayor pulled up to Y/n's cottage, stairs leading to the door as the cottage rose above a river and waterfall of blood. Her roof caught fire, but never burnt.

"Mornin', gents," he greeted cheerfully to two ghouls by her door before walking up the stairs and ringing her doorbell, keeping out a demonic scream. He hummed as he waited for an answer, then rang again. "Y/n? You home?"

His head flipped around into his white, more depressed face as he knocked, but it changed quickly again.

"Y/n? I've got plans for next Halloween! I need to go over them with you so we can get started." He took out his plans, ready to get started, but there was still no answer.

The mayor's head spun around again as he began to panic, "Y/n, please. I'm only an elected official here. I can't make decisions by myself!" He took out his megaphone, wailing into it. "Y/n! Answer me!" He fell down the stairs, landing in the pool of blood.

"She's not home," an accordion player announced as the mayor picked himself out of the pool, covered in thick red blood.

"Where is she?!"

The saxophone player shrugged. "She hadn't been home all night."

The mayor groaned, ready to send out a search party for his own sanity.

-

After a sleepless night in a depressive trance, Y/n finally snapped out of it, looking around. "Toby? Should we have taken that left turn at Albuquerque? Where are we anyway, buddy?" she asked, looking around. "Because all these trees look like the millions of trees we just passed by."

She took in a deep breath. Something smelled...minty.

Many trees just ahead of her stood with shapes in their trunks. A green plant with four leaves, a heart, a decorated egg, a turkey...

Golden light through the trees landed on a pine tree with balls and canes on it. Cookies surrounded it, smelling like cinnamon. She then noticed that one of the balls was actually a doorknob. Without hesitation, she flung the door open, not caring what happened to her.

But before she could see what was inside, the wind blew her inside as Toby backed away, then yapped for her.

The doorway slammed behind her.