HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!
All month I have worked to get here, following The Midnight Society on their fabulous creepy journey.
Thanks for joining me.
And now the final installment … *sigh* Where does the time go?
My pumpkin is carved…
My creation. Isn’t he lovely?
The spider webs are hung. The skulls displayed and bones scattered through the yard…
And today’s word to inspire the final story-a-day is Halloween.
Of course it is. The perfect word. And you know about Halloween, right. When the veil between our world and the world of ghosts, demons, and faeries thins, allowing, well… mayhem, chaos, bad things. This story knows what it wants to be.
Halloween Night
Monstrous oak trees line the cracked road. Old street lights struggle to push back the night. Will’s eyes gleam with mischief. “That party, dear Rusty, was legend.”
Leaves crunch under our feet as we wander the streets. Trees creak in a breeze.
I shove my hands in my pockets. “Pretty epic.”
A street light flickers then dies with a pop, allowing the blackness to creep farther into the street. I flinch. A chain link fence clatters in the wind. Whispers chase the breeze, sending chills up my spine.
“Scared?”
I chuckle. “It is creepy out here.”
The pitter patter of feet mix with the chatter of dead leaves. A high-pitched giggle creeps through the air. Another light goes out.
I stop, my stomach twisting with unease. “What was that?”
Two more glowing pools on the road dim then fade, plunging the world into darkness. A shriek flies through the night, freezing my heart. Will stumbles, his confident stride lost. Moonlight trickles over the edges of clouds and through the leaves to touch the confusion wrinkling his brow.
Panic descends on my mind. Footsteps slap across the road behind me. I spin. Empty darkness sits like a solid mass, as if to declare there is no escape.
Something hits the backs of my knees, which buckle, sending me sprawling to the ground. My cheek burns and I press my hand to my face. Warm blood coats my fingers when I pull them away. Will cries out in pain as he falls to the street. A low growl rumbles in my ear. Footsteps echo everywhere.
Will screams. I stare, my mind whirring in confusion, as he stands, kicking his feet and waving his arms at … at nothing. “Rusty! Help! Get them off! Off!”
With a smack, he hits the pavement. As if pulled by invisible wires, he jerks along the road, fingers clawing at the ground.
“Will!” I rush up the street. Sharp pain stabs my lower back, but I push forward. Tripping, I fall. My shoulder screams in pain as it takes the force. Tapping and hissing surround me. Fear weaves through my heart as an unknown force drags my friend into the darkness. “Will!”
His screams drive me to my feet. Stinging scratches appear on my arms. What feels like fangs sink into my leg, but I run, chasing the sounds of Will’s pain.
Then his cries for help stop, leaving the pounding of my feet and heart the only trace of life. I pause. My ragged breathing flows into the night as clouds of fear. My body trembles. Tears crawl along my cheeks.
“Rusty?” Will’s voice creeps through the night.
Relief floods my mind. “Will? You okay?”
“Come on, friend. You’ll love what I found.”
I jog along the road, wiping tears from my face. A dark form steps into view, the moonlight tracing crooked shoulders as he stays a step away.
“Will? What the hell just happened?”
He raises his arms. “Join us!”
I swallow. “Us?”
Rustling, growling, and hissing, a horde of strange beings creep out from the tree line and onto the road. Crawling. Limping. Oozing into view. Black eyes glint in the dim light. Claws tap on the road.
Will shuffles forward. His eyes now black pits of nothing, his skin the color of death. “Happy Halloween.”
End
And that’s how we Halloween! (Oh, that’s a verb now.) So, whatever you do to celebrate this October 31st, have a blast! But stay alert, you never know what might lurk around the corner or in that dark hall.
Kathleen Palm 
I used to decorate like this but time got away from me this year, and I became a Halloween grinch. Guess that’s kind of appropriate. Just paint me orange or black and it works.