Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Trick or Treat: The Weird Family Down the Way

Though this side of town had enough strange characters to probably sell a show on Broadway, they agreed the oddest bunch lived in the house on the hill. Had to have been to move into that old place, what with it looking like a haunted house. Like something straight from a very cheesy monster movie.

The Nashes were nice enough folk, though... hard-working and kind, if a bit somber and reclusive. Hadn't done anything yet to really irritate their neighbors and were making short work of beautifying their yard. In all honesty, once the novelty wore off, they'd be run-of-the-mill weird. They only kept odd pets, after all. Chickens and a fancy peacock or something...

And on this night of dressing up and celebrating with friends, the Nash family had gone all out. Nights like this were special and deserved a bit more effort.

Lanterns with painted faces and spooky silhouettes lined the walk up to the front door. Gauzy cloth scraps hung from the trees and strung between some of the lanterns to billow in the wind. Their birds were left to roam free across the yard. And greeting them on reaching the porch: all manner of carved pumpkins stacked around a broad basin full of candy labelled "snips, snails, and tails."

A few wicker chair sat on either side of the display, and in one sat a young woman dressed as an old vampire and in the other, her husband, dressed like a headless headsman. They chattered amicably, very friendly despite their creepy costumes, and passed out candy indiscriminately from a bowl that never seemed to empty.

Johnny wasn't quite sure what he'd gotten himself into. His current lover was a single father who desperately needed a break so here he was with his boyfriend's young daughter who was dragging him from house to house by his pantsleg.

Good thing he was wearing a belt this time.

The necromancer was carrying a plastic reaper scythe and had fake horns glued to his temples while the little one sported angel wings and a halo. Of course the necormantic werewolf didn't hide his naturally eerie yellow eyes.

The little girl walked up with Johnny in toe and said "Twick or tweat!" in her babyish voice. The poor man seemed to be a bit nervous. He was never good with kids...they were so small and fragile and that scared him more than using his necromancy.

"Well, hello, dear," the woman said in her best 'creaky old man' voice (very silly-sounding) and offered a generous handful of candy.

"Aren't you cute little angel," the man said, giving a muffled chuckle from somewhere around his costume's chest. If you looked closely, you could see eye-holes in his resin armor and a twinkle in his eyes.

And a sharp, eerie song came from one of the trees -- full of magic, if one were sensitive to such things. The family's 'fancy peacock' was perched there, focused intently on Johnny.

"Oh?" "Ha!" Came from the two passing out candy, then the woman said "Looks like he likes you! What's your name, stranger? I'm Ji-Hye, and this is my husband, Joe." Joe waved, when introduced then held out a hand to shake.

Johnny tilted his head with a suspicious look as magic made his skin tingly...his sensitive ears almost ached with the eerie sounds...but that was only because he was part wolf and his yellow eyes darted to the bird who earned a look of surprise before the hosts spoke and drew his attention away. The man gave a laugh before answering. "The names Johnny, pipsqueak here is Angel...she decided to dress up to match her name." he says shaking the man's hand as it was offered.

"Interesting song..." he says slightly under his breath, he was naturally drawn to things most considered eerie. His eyes glanced back at the beautiful bird.

Angel, happy to have gotten so much candy giggled and ran a circle around Johnny but forgot to let go of his pants which ended up yanking him around with her but the lanky man got his feet tangled up and fell. "Ack!" he yelped as he expertly twirled the toy scythe so he wouldn't fall on it and break it and made sure he'd land on his back without hitting his head.

For someone so skinny he hit pretty hard but he was used to being thrown around in mosh pits at rock concerts so he just laid there and laughed for a second before bouncing back up. Angel looked a little guilty but Johnny just smiled and told her it was ok which made her perk right back up.

"Sorry 'bout that..." the man says with a grin that advertised sharp canine teeth which was just part of him being a werewolf though most people never noticed this. Angel was happy to stand around and let Johnny talk for a moment it seemed...she was gawking at all the fun decorations here.

"Oh, that's precious!" The man chuckled. "The angel's name is Angel."

At mention of the song, the woman grinned, barely keeping her fake fangs in her mouth. "Interesting's a word. Macabre's another, but d-- Woah, there!"

When he went down, both hopped up to try and help, but he was back on his feet quickly so they relaxed. The woman quirked a brow at sight of the canines, but that and a twinkle in her eye were the only acknowledgement of what she saw. "No worries, here! You're sure you're not hurt?"

While Angel gawked, a group of the chickens puttered by, pecking and scratching in the grass. When some of them came clucking at the candy bowl, the 'headsman' gently shooed them away.

During the commotion, another pair had walked up to the Nash family home: a tall, pale woman with a shock of ginger hair and a broad scar across her nose, leading a small child with purple hair and mismatched purple-and-red eyes (surely the product of colored contacts). The woman was dressed in a classic witch costume, with a wide-brimmed pointy hat adorned with dried herbs tucked into the ribbons wrapping around the hat's cone, a flowing black dress, and a spindly broom. Her eyes were a ruddy pink, with completely red sclera (was she wearing contacts as well?). The little girl, on the other hand, was decked out in a magical girl outfit: a loose pink sleeveless dress with white frill and a fuchsia sailor-style collar, striped pink-and-white stockings, dark pink Mary Janes, white ribbons tying her purple hair into pigtails, and what might have been black face paint adorning her left cheek with arcane sigils. The girl clutched both a leather-bound tome inscribed with more of the same markings, and a large plastic pumpkin pail, already containing some candy from other houses in the neighborhood. Any in the area sensitive to magic might be able to sense some of it radiating off of the woman, but it was nothing compared to the outpouring of magical energy coming from her young charge.

The girl walked right up to the pair handing out candy and announced herself with a "Trick or treat!" She didn't notice Johnny or Angel until her witchy chaperone admonished her: "Mia! Don't be rude, there are other people here!" Without a scrap of remorse, Mia chirped, "Sorry!" and held out her candy pail.

The woman seemed very interested in the song emanating from the trees, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Her eyes darted from the peacock to Johnny and back as she spoke in a husky voice. "My apologies, all. Mia is, well, very young, and I'm afraid the promise of candy has made her forget her manners." She placed her hands on Mia's shoulders and pulled her back a few steps, allowing Johnny and Angel a bit of breathing room.

Johnny offered a peace sign and laughed again before speaking up to reply. "Totally fine, I'm used to being tossed around at rock concerts so I'm used to worse..." he says playfully.

His attention turns to a new pair of visitors and Angel follows suit but as the other child reached out basically demanding candy the little girl backed up until she stepped on Johnny's boot and almost fell on her butt...good thing he actually had practice with the real version of his toy weapon and quickly spun it around and instead of falling and hurting herself Angel basically sat on the toys blade which held her weight without breaking since she was so small.

"Careful Ang..." he says calmly before putting her back on her feet. The little girl was completely human but more sensitive to magic than even him and he was a magic user. She was also very shy and seemed scared of new people and unfamiliar magic...she had gotten used to him and his magic but these were strangers. The man bent down to whisper something to her but kept it quiet enough so nobody else could hear which made her smile again. Pushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear he stood back up. "No harm done, I like your eyes by the way." he says as Angel waves shyly using his leg as a shield.

"Anyways, I gotta get her home or else her daddy will never let me hear the end of it...she's got guitar practice in the morning." he says earning a squeak of joy from the little girl who started to drag him off again and he let her. "Happy all hallows eve everyone." he adds over his shoulder as he lets the little girl drag him away.

"That's good, then."

When Mia and her chaperone started up the path, the bird's song quieted a moment then layered in questioning warbles and the occasional trumpet of alarm. So by the time they reached the group, the duo manning the bowl were a bit on edge. But they remained polite and greeted the newcomers. "Trick or Treat? Good chance of both on a night like this," Joe teased, placing a handful of candy in Mia's bucket. To her chaperone, he said, "Kids." And his tone was a healthy mix of exasperated and amused.

As the newcomers weren't hostile, and the rude behavior from Mia was addressed, Ji-Hye and Joe relaxed. "No harm done," Ji-Hye reassured the chaperone, though she turned a somewhat quizzical look to Mia. It wasn't often someone so young showed such deep reserves.

As Johnny and Angel left, the duo waved after them, with Ji-Hye saying goodbye and Joe saying, "Have fun! Happy Halloween!"

At one point in time, Lucie remembered what Halloween was like, though these days, it seemed that the feeling and joy of the holiday was merely a story in a book than an actual enjoyable memory. Not that anything particularly bad happened to her on Halloween, it was just that it had been so long since the last time she could even recall going out, dressed up with her older brother, going door to door, and gathering candy. The only thing that she could remember was how Asher pulled her in a wagon one year when she got tired.

Tonight, however, Lucie was holding a friend's kid by the hand and helping them trick-or-treat for the evening while their parents were off having to tend to the family business and making sure that was all good and running for the festivities. Especially since Asher and his band, Tenfold to Victory, were the opening act for Fright Night.

"Lucie, look!" the little girl at Lucie's side tugged at her hand and was pointing in the direction of a rather decorative house.

Smiling, Lucie looked down and asked, "you wanna see if they have candy over there, Mitsuki?"

"Yeah!" Mitsuki was dressed up in a little orange and white fox onsie, and she looked no more than about three or four. She giggled as Lucie obliged her wishes and they walked up to the house. Once Lucie felt like she was still a safe distance close to the house and Mitsuki, she let go of the toddler's hand and watched as she ran up, giggling and holding her hands out. The candy in her bucket rattled as she quickly approached the hosts of the house.

"Trick or treat!" Mitsuki giggled, holding up her bucket.

Once again, the arrival of newcomers changed the bird's song: now it was quiet, but a bit more upbeat. Almost like small songbirds chattering in the distance.

"Ah! Welcome, little fox~" Ji-Hye began and Joe finished with a muffled, "No tricks to teach, but plenty of treats!" Scooping out some candy for Mitsuki's bucket.

Before they sat back in their spooky chairs, the duo waved to Lucie and wished her a Happy Halloween.

Looking into her bucket eagerly to see all the new candies she had just received, Mitsuki grinned up to Ji-Hye and said, "thank youuu~" before carefully turning around and then running back to Lucie to take her hand.

Smiling to Mitsuki, and then up to Ji-Hye herself, Lucie waved and said her own thanks before leading Mitsuki down the trail and going on to get her to another house to trick-or-treat at.

Mia grinned and happily accepted her candy before her guardian pulled her back a couple steps. At her insistence, Mia looked up at Joe and said, “Thank you for the candy, mister!”

For her part, the woman just chuckled and shook her head. “I’ve tried time and again to teach her manners, but she conveniently forgets every time sweets are involved. Ah well. Happy Halloween to the both of you.” She turned to leave. “Say goodbye, little one. And don’t be rude at the next house, all right?”

“Happy Halloween. Bye!” Mia said with a wave to Joe and Ji-Hye before the pair made their way down the street towards their next trick-or-treating destination.