Darkness {Halloween2015}

Shadow released a timid meow.

Alison glanced over her shoulder at Garth, then turned and continued following Steven through the field. She'd never met Mahilda's three daughters and there was no telling how dangerous they were--but she wasn't about to let Steven face them alone after what they'd done to Garth. If they could hurt a vampire so severely, then what chance did a skeleton have against them?

"Don't you think we should've just told Mahilda?" Alison asked. "Maybe she'd..."

"I love my Mother, don't get me wrong. But she's been hesitant to do anything about her daughters." Steven responded. "It's understandable. They're her children, after all. Mother believes them to simply be misguided in their practices. And I may even agree with that, but it doesn't excuse their actions. They attacked my brother. I can't allow that to slide."

"But..."

"I won't fight them. I just want to talk to them."

"Yeah, but they..."

"You're very kind to worry, Alison, but everything's under control."

Alison swallowed her doubt and stayed by her friend's side, hoping dearly that he wasn't walking directly into a trap that he wouldn't be able to escape from. Steven had a certain aptitude for diplomacy, but after what the witches did to his brother, Alison doubted very much that they would simply sit and listen to whatever Steven had to say.

Still, Alison wouldn't turn away now. The best she could do was to stay with Steven and give him back up if he'd need it. The power she held wasn't something she had complete control of--honestly, she wasn't sure how the light worked at all--but if things got violent, she'd have to intervene somehow. The light in her wouldn't go to waste when it was needed. She would see to that.

Her hand opened and closed, the heat of the light tingling her skin like a small electrical current.

I don't know if I can do it, Alison thought anxiously. The reason I wanted to stay here was because I was worried that I'd hurt people with this power if I went back home. But now... now that I'm about to be in danger... I don't want to hurt anyone...

Steven stepped out of the grass and marched up to the long cement stairs which led up to the decorative doors of the mansion. The building, while incredibly old, was very elegant and oddly beautiful. Alison attempted to ignore the nervous pounding of her heart as she trailed behind Steven towards the double doors.

"Hello?" Steven thrashed his fist against the stained glass windows. "Anybody home? I need to talk to you all. Open up, please."

Alison's fingers curled shut and reopened many times. The light warmed her fingers, but she didn't look down to see if she was giving off visible energy.

"The two youngest sisters are Janet and Carla." Steven whispered. "Both brunets, both fairly gifted. They're twins. But the one who's exceptionally powerful is the oldest sister, Alinda. Alinda is the redhead. Watch out for her if you see her."

Alison nodded.

Steven knocked on the door again. "Hello? I know you're in there, ladies. My brother just came home with a lot of new injuries after trying to deliver your mail. Alinda, open the door!"

Nobody answered. The mansion remained completely silent.

"Oh, for..." Steven turned the knobs and pushed the doors open. "I'm not leaving until someone answers me. Ladies! Where are you?"

The inside of the mansion was an extensive, wide open area; the room circled around the two of them, and along the walls were a few articles of loose clutter, discarded gowns and boxes that hadn't been touched for years. On either side of the room was a rounded staircase, which both led to the balcony overlooking the enormous room from the other side. The colorful glass on the windows had turned into a dull swirl of blues and purples due to the years of dust buildup, while the endless red rug in the center of the place covered the entire floor apart from the platforms in front of the stairways, as well as the hallway beneath the balcony. Absolutely nothing stirred inside of the mansion; the building remained as silent as death.

Steven and Alison sauntered in and stopped in the center of the room. Steven peered around in search of the witches and Alison merely continued heating and reheating the energy in her palm.

Shadow pitter-pattered in and sat on the rug in between Steven's ankle bones.

"Alinda!" The skeleton hollered. "Show yourself!"

I didn't want to go home because I wanted to avoid this. Alizon realized. I've always wanted to avoid confrontation. Always wanted to avoid conflict. That's why I was so angry. But now... now, I don't have a choice. Now, things could get heated, and I have to be ready. Now, I have someone to look after other than myself. There's no room for weakness or hesitation anymore.

"Alinda!" Steven called again, still to no avail.

"Maybe they're not home." Alison said.

"They're always home." Steven replied. "Alinda! Carla! Janet! Show yourselves at once! You hurt my brother and I won't have that! Come out here so we can talk! Certainly you're not afraid of mere words, are you? Haven't you ever talked out your problems before? Must you hide in the shadows like children? I--"

Something clasped over his jaw, cutting him off mid sentence.

A thick red fog whirled around Steven like a sentient crimson ghost; the fog solidified in some places, forming what appeared to be a very long and twisted red belt. The magic belt wrapped around the skeleton's jaw, arms, legs, wrists, and ankles, rendering him completely immobile.

"What..." Alison uttered breathlessly. "What the..."

Shadow became a bat and flew away from the fog frantically.

A large, plump figure stepped into the light from the hallway across the room. The woman cackled to herself, exhaling a wicked laugh and flashing a toothy grin at the people who had invaded her home. Her gown looked identical to Mahilda's, but her hair was much longer and it shone a fierce red. Her head carried a pointy witch's hat and her nails were so long Alison suspected that the woman could claw a person's eyes out if she had a mind to.

"Of all the little pests to come knocking on our door, it had to be the really annoying one." Alinda snickered. "Garth can at least put up a verbal fight, and Raddince is the only one out of you who can actually fight at all--but you? What're you even doing here? Wanna talk out our pwobwems wike good widdle kiddies?"

Alinda made a swift hand motion, and Steven glided across the rug towards her. The witch took hold of the skeleton's rib cage and glared into his face relentlessly.

"I could take you apart and make you into a variety of household objects." The witch sneered. "You could be... a lamp. Or perhaps a scarecrow, or maybe your bones would work better as curtain rods."

"Leave him alone." Alison demanded in a powerful voice, one that sounded strange coming out of her. "Let him go. Now."

Alinda let out a few soft giggles. "Or what, little girl? Who are you, anyway? What, you got all chummy with a useless skeleton and now you're convinced that he's something worth fighting for? Ha! He's the same as the rest of Mother's pet abominations--he's wasted energy."

Alison's teeth ground together. A steady rage began to build in her; her hand opened once more, this time very slowly, to reveal the sparkling ball of red hot energy she had manifested. She wasn't aware of it, but her eyes had started to glow the same brilliant scarlet color.

"Oooh." Alinda mumbled, an impressed grin creeping across her round face. "A sorceress. Or... no... your light is wild. Very uncontrolled. You are no sorceress. You hold the power, but with no restraint or training, you're only a ticking time bomb waiting for the opportunity to blow. That's quite staggering power, sweetheart, but you'd be very foolish to use it."

"Oh!" Another voice echoed throughout the room. "She knows how to play!"

The two brunet witches, Janet and Carla, stood on both sides of the balcony up top. Alison paid no attention to them. The twins were just as plump as their older sister, but they looked far less intimidating than Alinda. They both laughed and cracked jokes about Alison and the skeleton, though Alison barely heard them.

Alinda easefully lifted Steven from the ground and held him like a trophy. With his bones still tied and bound by magic, he couldn't resist her.

"I very much doubt a little girl has the nerve to detonate herself like a bomb." Alinda snarled. "Using that power without any idea how? That would kill every one of us, you dumb little brat."

Alison gave the witch a devilish smirk. "Try me."

I can control it enough. I won't hurt myself or Steven. I can do it.

Alinda lifted Steven a little more, making the skeleton's back face Alison.

"Go on then." Alinda urged. "Blast us away. Just be careful not to hurt your little boyfriend here."

The light sent off a few sparks in Alison's hand. She was growing very agitated very quickly.

I can do this. I can do this.

Alison reared her hand back.

I have to. I have no choice.

The raw energy in her palm began to distort and expand.

But... what if I hurt Steven by accident?

There was a pause. Alison and Alinda stared into one another from across the room.

Then, something unexpected occurred.

Shadow, who had been flying around in the air and twittering madly, soared towards the ground at once. The little shadow doubled in size, then tripled, then quadrupled. When Shadow hit his target--Steven's skull--the creature of darkness engulfed all of the skeleton's bones like a protective shell.

Yes! Good work, Shadow!

It happened.

Alison shot off the energy like a blast from a cannon; she threw it through the air towards the balcony. The structure exploded into a thousand chunks of debris; Alinda released Steven and the skeleton's body flashed a blinding red. Steven succeeded in removing the magic binds with one quick burst of his own energy, and he took several steps backwards rather hurriedly, narrowly dodging the falling debris that had pummeled Alinda into the ground.

"Oh my..." Steven raised his arm and examined it closely. "This is new."

Shadow still covered most of Steven's body. It looked as though Steven was wearing a black robe, which only left his hands, feet, and head exposed.

"You've outdone yourself, Shadow." Steven said. "Alison, are you alright?"

Steven stood in front of Alison and made a round motion with one of his hands, drawing a red shield in the air before him. Carla and Janet took stances and prepared to fight, and Steven was ready to do the same.

Alison channeled a second ball of energy and slung it towards one of the twin witches. Another magnificent explosion took place in the upper left corner of the spacious room. Alison couldn't tell if her blow had connected with the witch or not. There was far too much rubble falling from the ceiling now.

Carla, the witch furthest to the right, spun her wrist and yelled out an incantation in a language Alison didn't recognize. A streak of blue light shot towards Steven.

Steven caught the spell with his shield. The light seemed to have fused into the shield just before Steven drew his hand back, pressed his palm into the shield from behind, and fired off the very same spell that Carla had used against him. The blue light struck the woman in the shin, making her topple over and yelp in pain.

"Whoa." Alison breathed. "You can deflect spells?!"

"With a lot of practice, yes." Steven replied. "I'll teach you some time. Stay behind me now, Alison--I don't think we're quite finished yet."

Janet disappeared in the pile of rubble and Carla lost all interest in fighting after having her leg burned. But Alinda had all but given up; the redheaded witch thrusted her arms outward, making a yellowish wave of power sweep away all the debris that had fallen around or on top of her. The woman's face was scrunched up in anger, her once green eyes now flaring a familiar red, her hairs flying upwards as the energy of her soul began to radiate from every part of her body.

Shadow formed a round shape around Steven's head, which looked very much, to Alison, like a hood. Steven now resembled what Alison knew a grim reaper to look like, and the skeleton kept his shield held high, his free hand upright and carrying a very solid concentration of his light, ready and waiting to fire.

"I only came here to talk." Steven told Alinda calmly. "I don't want trouble."

Alinda released a piercing screech and shoved both of her hands forward. The witch sent a thunderclap of energy across the room, which proceeded to tear up the surface of the rug and pull many floorboards out from beneath it.

Alison almost reacted very impulsively; she placed her hands together and tried to create an unthinkably large ball of energy, but Steven grasped her by the wrist and secured her behind him before she could finish. Once the wave was only feet away from them, Steven expanded his shield into a thick force field. Both of them were blown backwards by the power. Alison's back hit the door frame harshly before she fumbled onto the floor.

Above the two doors was a large, beautiful window, and Alison hadn't noticed it until the entire thing shattered at once above her. Shards of glass sprinkled down from up top, and Steven, who sat on the floor only a foot away from Alison, looked upwards when he heard the commotion.

Somebody stood in the broken window, leaning on its frame and kicking away what little of the glass remained.

Alinda stared up at the figure angrily.

"Oh, now you've gone and hurt my plaything." Garth said in an eerily monotone voice, glimpsing down at Steven. "I've been waiting for a very long time for you wenches to give me a reason to... well... react to your petty little attacks. It seems the time has finally come. All bets are off, from the looks of your living room. Ladies... shall we dance?"

At hearing Garth's voice, Alison wasn't sure if she ought to be relieved or worried. How well was Garth able to fight against a powerful witch? The vampire was already injured--what more could he do?

"Brother..." Steven uttered to himself. "Please don't..."

"RAAAWUGH!"

The doors came apart in the claws of the werewolf. Raddince blundered into the mansion after having ripped the doors most of the way off their hinges, baring his fangs and snarling at the witch. The wolf man charged between Steven and Alison, his paws spread out and ready to strike.

"Oh, this is turning into a disaster..." Steven sighed.

Alison's gaze drifted over to the pile of debris.

Somebody's under there, she remembered. I probably seriously hurt someone.

"Stupid mutt." Alinda griped. "Come and get it, boy."

Raddince exhaled a long, reverberating howl, then dropped down onto all fours and dashed towards the witch at top speed.

"Idiot." Garth said. "That's not going to work."

Alinda's arm outstretched, firing off a blast of power and hitting Raddince squarely in his furry chest. The wolf man flew back several yards and flopped out of the doorway, landing on the stairs outside.

Garth descended and landed very smoothly on the floor, his mouth widening and his two long fangs now visible in his smile. He walked in a manner most casual towards Alinda.

"I can only imagine how sweet and tender your blood tastes." Garth said with a strange, dark pleasure in his tone. "Juicy, tasty, sweet, and... salty... by the looks of you. To drink the blood of one's most powerful enemies? There are few things in this world that rival such a pleasing treat."

Alinda shot another powerful blast.

Garth smacked the ball of energy out of the air, making it blow a hole in a nearby section of the floor.

"Come now." The vampire grinned. "Incantations aren't a thing that I regularly waste my time with, but it's not as if I don't know how to play with magic if I have to. What do you take me for?"

Both of Alinda's hands came forward again. She sent another golden wave of power through the room.

Garth's slender hands came together, and once the wave reached him, he parted the energy and stepped through the wave as if he'd opened a doorway for himself. Steven rapidly drew another force field in order to protect himself and Alison from the attack.

Alinda soon began tossing spells left and right. Many reds, oranges, yellows, and blues whizzed around the room, and Garth continued to dodge and deflect them in such a smooth and effortless way it almost looked like he was dancing.

"Alright--ENOUGH!" The witch bellowed.

Following her scream was a third wave of power--but this one wasn't yellow or gold. The eruption of energy was black; it burst out of the woman from every part of her, making much of the surrounding debris turn to dust and tossing Garth across the room like a rag doll.

Garth flipped midair and landed painfully on his side near Steven's feet. Alison took a step forward, but Steven shoved her back.

"That's quite enough." Steven said. "This ends now."

The reaper's robe that was Shadow seeped into the skeleton. The darkness swirled around within Steven's rib cage and consumed the area where his heart once was many years ago. Then, Steven's bones began to darken, to blacken, the cracks along his ribs, hands, skull, and everywhere else on his body shining a red so bright it might have burnt a hole in a person's eyes if they were to look directly at it. Steven's sockets glowed like two red suns. His light merged with Shadow, his body transformed, and when he held out his arm and opened his hand, an object started to appear as if from nowhere.

It was an elongated, crooked thing, and Alinda didn't recognize the forming object until the blade became visible at the end of it. Steven now held a fully sized scythe.

Alison's heart could have stopped. No way...

"I'm... witnessing the birth of a reaper." Alinda said, trying to mask her astonishment. "My, my. It's always the quiet ones, isn't it?"

"You've crossed a line with my family, and you will pay the ultimate price." Steven said, though when he spoke, it wasn't his voice anymore. Now, it sounded as though he was speaking with several different voices at once, all of them bouncing off the walls of he mansion horribly with every syllable. "I am a bringer of death, an entity of darkness, and now I harbor no hesitation to see that you meet your end. Goodbye, Alinda."

Steven's empty hand raised. It trembled furiously as the skeleton's new found power emitted from his bony fingertips.

Alinda's jaw hug open.

Alison squinted at the witch. Judging by the expression of terror on Alinda's face, Alison figured that, whatever Steven had become, it was something of astronomical power--something that was feared by even the most powerful individuals of the Halloween world.

"Your covenant with death will be annulled; your agreement with the realm of the dead will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it." Steven announced with a raspy, petrifying echo. "It is so for all wicked souls. Prepare yourself for the end."

"Wait!" Alison said, though she doubted Steven heard her.

He's really going to kill her? He wouldn't. Would he?

"Hold it right there, Stevey."

Steven's shaking hand froze. He halted his attack.

Everyone turned to face the door.

Mahilda entered the home, her wrinkled face hardened into a furious expression.

"Put your friggin' hand down, bone head. Reaper or not, nobody disciplines my daughters but me." Mahilda ordered. "Take your brothers and your friend home. Listen to me, boy. Obey your mother."

"Mother. I have become a bringer of death. I can end our troubles once and for all here today." Steven said. His voice still shook with the intensity of many voices, but now, Steven's own voice was audible among them. "It is a reaper's job to determine who should live, and who should die."

"Really, Stevey? Since when have you ever wanted to kill anyone?" Mahilda challenged. "You won't even kill the spiders that we find around the house. Who're you kidding? Put your hand down and go home."

Garth sat partially upright and listened to the argument, as did Alison and Alinda. Mahilda continued staring expectantly at Steven and waited for him to do as he was told.

"Come on." Alison grabbed one of his skeletal hands with both of her fleshy ones. "Please? I don't want you to kill anyone. Let's get out of here."

Steven went quiet. The orbs of crimson in his eye sockets faded away, leaving only the two empty black spaces that had been there before. His bones returned to their whiteish color, and the cracks ceased glowing.

"Very well." Steven agreed, his reaper voice now having vanished completely. "Come along, Garth."

Garth staggered to his feet and followed Steven and Alison out the front door, leaving Mahilda alone inside, face-to-face with her oldest daughter.

"You really forced my hand, girl." Mahilda said. "I've told you time and time again to leave them alone--and now you've gone and ticked them off real good. And you know what? I ain't gonna punish them for destroying half of your house. You deserved it. In fact, I think it's time the family home was brought down. You three have done nothing but bring shame to the Xanaguard family. It's time for you to move out."

"You're disgusting." Alinda spat. "You bring those filthy creatures into the house and expect us to treat them as equals? They're mixbreeds and corpses! They're disgusting horrible trash! How could you put them under the same roof as us?!"

Mahilda's angry face didn't dissipate, but a sparkle of sadness shimmered in her eyes at hearing this.

"You could have been beautiful." Mahilda said gravely. "I suggest you get your sisters, and I suggest you run for the hills. You won't want to be in this house much longer. Trust me."

Alinda's eyes tore themselves open; she spun around and yelled for her sisters to follow her into the hallway. Mahilda knew that they were going to retrieve their broomsticks and make a quick escape, and that was what she wanted.

By the time Alison, Steven, Garth, and Raddince all reached the bottom of the stairs in front of the mansion, they all heard the crumbling of the building; Mahilda stood front and center, hands raised, eyes burning, and she made a series of movements, carefully guiding her energy up, down, left, and right, effectively slicing the mansion into many tiny bits. Once she made enough cuts in the structure, she stepped outside and watched the building implode from the top of the stairs while her children watched from down below. The Xanaguard mansion fell into itself, many slabs of concrete and brick hitting the ground with a lot of hard thumps.

Alison never would have imagined that she'd get to witness a war of spells, much less a building being demolished with magic. There were no words capable of describing it.

In the distance, three shapes floated into the sky and flew out of sight. Alinda and her two sisters had absconded on broomsticks. That was good; that meant that burying one of them in rubble hadn't resulted in one of them being killed. This made Alison feel very relieved.

The ruins of the Xanaguard mansion became still. The destruction of the home was complete.

"Are you guys okay?" Alison looked between Raddince, Garth, and Steven.

Garth had numerous injuries all over, but he seemed unfazed by all of them. Raddince didn't seem to be hurt at all, and Steven still wore Shadow as a robe and carried the scythe that had materialized in his hand earlier.

"That was quite fun." Garth replied. "It's been a long time since I was in a challenging fight."

"Are you alright?" Alison asked the vampire. "You look like you should be hurting everywhere."

"Now, now. Don't go wasting your concern on a monster." Garth responded.

"And you..." Alison shifted her attention to Steven. "You really scared me. I thought you turned into a completely different person. Are you okay?"

"I..." Steven examined himself. "I never would have thought that I'd become a reaper. Me, of all people. Mother was right. I'm not a killer. And Shadow, he... he's..."

Steven tugged at the sleeve of his robe.

"I think he's become a part of me." He said. "I think Shadow has merged with me permanently."

"Wow..." Alison ran her hand over the skeleton's new cloak. "I didn't know he could do that. This world is full of surprises at every turn."

"Hey, bone head." Mahilda cut in, stomping down the stairs and approaching her children. "It takes a very passionate soul to become a reaper, and it's gotta be someone who's very disciplined with their power, but who's also pure of heart. It takes a bone head like you."

Mahilda hit Steven on the skull with her knuckles.

"But don't go loosing your sight of right and wrong, boy. Don't go killing anybody unless you absolutely have to, you hear?"

"Yes, Mother."

"Alright, you all." Mahilda glanced at the remains of the mansion, then over towards her ranch. "I left dinner on the stove, and the pies are almost done. Who's hungry?"


-----


Garth was the last one to find a seat at the dinner table. Alison spent the evening with the family, all of them conversing while they ate, all of them repeatedly complimenting Mahilda's cooking. Now, even Steven was able to enjoy the meal; fusing himself with Shadow and becoming a reaper somehow gave him the ability to consume food. Alison would never forget the priceless gasps and marveling phrases that came from Steven when he tasted his mother's pumpkin pie for the first time.

Once dinner was over, Alison slipped out the front door and walked through the yard. She traveled down the dirt road for a while, and about ten minutes later, she arrived at the mountainside, at the tunnel that would take her back to her home world.

Alison adored this world, really, she did. And not a day would pass that she didn't think about it--but now, after having watched a family literally tear themselves apart, Alison wanted very much to see her own family, to cast aside her grudges towards them, to make amends with them however she could. Once that was finished, she would return to the tunnel, and she would visit her family of Halloween misfits whenever the opportunity would arise.

"Don't go." Steven's voice came from behind.

Alison turned to him. Crap, I knew he would follow me...

Steven, despite being made of only bones, appeared healthier with the cloak draped over his body. His face had no skin or muscles, but Alison was sure that she could see an expression change whenever the skeleton's mood would rise or dampen. Right now, he looked very sad.

"I'm being selfish, I know." Steven said. "But I... when... when Mother came to the mansion earlier, she tried to stop me, and she couldn't. It was you who stopped me. You... my friend... my only friend. I... I can't be a reaper without you, Alison. I need you."

Alison heaved a thick breath.

"I'll come back." She told him confidently. "I'm not leaving forever. I just want to see my family. I don't want my family to end up like Mahilda's did."

Steven didn't speak for nearly a full minute.

"I promise." Alison grasped both of his hands. "I promise I'll come back."

"I'm so glad that I was curious." Steven told her. "I'm so glad that I decided to explore the tunnel on a whim, or I never would have met you."

"Me too. We were both curious about the tunnel." Alison replied with a smile. "That's how we met. We just happened to explore the tunnel on the same day, at the same time."

"I really hope you'll come back."

"I promise I will."

"Really?"

"Really."

Alison pulled Steven into a hug. Steven felt unusually warm for someone who had only bones for a body. When they separated, Alison pressed her lips into the skeleton's forehead before turning and marching into the darkness of the tunnel. Steven watched her until she was completely out of his sight.

Alison would be able to balance the two worlds, she was sure of it. She'd be able to visit the Halloween realm whenever she pleased, and she'd spend a lot of her time in her home world trying to repair her family. In fact, Alison couldn't remember the last time she told any of them that she loved them. That'd be a good start.

The walk was long and grueling.

By the time she finally reached the other side of the tunnel, her red eyes had returned to their original deep brown color. Her legs throbbed and her feet ached. She wanted more than anything to sit down, but she couldn't stop until she reached her home. After all, Alison had been missing from her home for over twenty four hours. Her family may have called the police or filed a missing person's report by now. And with Alison still wearing Mahilda's hand crafted gown and with all of her belongings missing from her person, there was no telling what her family would think she she'd return.

None of it mattered, though.

Because now, Alison finally had a smile on her face. Her family would be saved, and Alison would rest easy tonight knowing that she was trying her hardest to help them. Her family had issues, yes, but who's didn't? If a witch was able to adopt a skeleton, a vampire, and a werewolf and have them all living peacefully under the same roof, then what excuse did Alison have for not working things out with her family?

It was midnight before Alison strolled towards her large suburban home. The streetlights casted their usual round glares on the street, while the cars sat quietly in the driveways and their owners slept soundly in their homes. Oh, how very different this world was compared to Steven's world. Still, even though she'd only been gone for a day, Alison missed it.

The lawn in front of her home smelled sweet. It'd been freshly mowed earlier in the day.

Alison inched down the driveway, her eyes narrowing at the living room window, where she was able to see that all of the lights inside were still on. The television played from across the living room, and all of her siblings sat on the couch watching cartoons.

Maybe they don't know that I've been missing, Alison thought. Yeah, Mom and Dad probably didn't tell them. They're all just kids. That must be it.

A moment later, Alison's mother appeared from the kitchen. She held a wine glass filled to the brim with tequila. Alison squinted into the garage, where her father's car sat. Her father was home as well. But there were no police, no panicking adults. Nobody even seemed to notice that Alison wasn't there.

Everything inside her shrank, her confidence crumbling the same way the Xanaguard mansion had. Her eyes formed tears before she could think twice.

They don't even care that I'm gone.

Suddenly, Alison was reminded of why she never liked it here, never liked her home, her family, her peers, or her school--because nobody cared. How was it that a beautiful home with perfectly trimmed bushes and a flawlessly kept lawn was so very ugly beneath the exterior? How was it that a family of monsters were more loyal and loving than her human relatives? And how, how on earth, could she have ever thought that these people were fixable? They cared nothing for her, and they cared nothing for each other.

Alison's body moved by itself; she found herself sprinting away from the house, down the road, back towards the shopping center, towards the woods, towards the railroad, towards the tunnel...

Her legs pulsating painfully and her feet feeling bruised all over, Alison kept going, ignoring the tears that blurred her vision and the hammering of her heart. She never wanted to see them again, that wicked and heartless family of hers. She never wanted to see the cars again, or the streetlights, or the paved roads...

Alison ran into the blackness of the tunnel without bothering to listen for an oncoming train. Over the tracks she darted at full speed, back to the other world, the one she loved, the one composed of spooky Halloween darkness, the one that contained the light, the one where her new family resided...

Alison entered the Halloween realm once again. The purpleish-blue of the night sky was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. Steven wasn't standing near the tunnel anymore. Nobody was around to see what she would do next.

Her hands ignited with the light of her soul, her eyes shining like two red stars. Alison was unsure of how Mahilda had brought down the mansion, but she would try her best to simulate it.

With a few wide swings of her arms, Alison unleashed as much of her energy as possible. Blasts of crimson power hit the tunnel's entrance, then the mountainside, then the tunnel again. Alison continued firing and slicing at the structure with her power, quickly becoming exhausted, but she wouldn't stop until she got the result she wanted.

At long last, the mountain rumbled.

The tunnel came apart the same way the mansion had. Giant chunks of brick came down, and, in the seconds following, rocks and dirt began to fall as well. Alison observed as the mountain's boulders collapsed the tunnel completely. The earth under her feet shook. She knew what that meant; the tunnel was caving in, just like she had intended.

Never again would she make the mistake of entering that horrible world of hers.

Here, with Steven, was where she belonged.

And here, in the Halloween realm, she would remain forever.

THE END