As the years went by the fights with my father only got worse. If my powers grew I got angrier…and they always grew. Another ability. Another argument. Magic. Fight. Witch. Fight. Fight! Fight!! FIGHT!! “Geez Alice! Go a little easy on me will ya? I’m still recovering from our last bout.” Jack looked up at me exasperated from the ground I had just thrown him on. I looked around and noticed some of my other classmates giving me wary looks. People always seemed to look at me like that these days. Holding out my hand to help Jack up I apologized, “I’m sorry. I was just…” “Wandering off again?” He finished my sentence with a knowing smile. I shrugged abashedly, “Sorry.” I glanced at the clock and saw we had a few more minutes, “You want to keep going?” He winked at me playfully, “You know I’m a glutton for punishment.” Soon our instructor called for the end of class, and we all bowed before leaving.
Jack and I went off for coffee after class like usual. It was hard to think that this was my life now. After moving out of my parents’ place 3 years ago I immediately distanced myself from everything strange. Magic, curses, Halloweentown, and robot grandmothers all became a part of a past that I never wanted to drudge up, but life always finds a way… “I’m still really sorry to hear about your grandmother dying. I never met her, but everyone in Halloweentown knew the story about how she and your grandpa defeated Oogie Boogie.” “Yes and people tend to forget that Oogie would never have existed if it hadn’t been for my grandfather’s experiments. The people in my family seem to have a propensity towards darkness that only seems to grow with each passing generation.” “You’re not like that, and I heard your mom is a saint.” I smirked, “Yes she is.” I wasn’t going to touch the subject of what lurked within myself. “Are you sure you still want me to go with you to the funeral?” Jack asked with eyes that were filled anxiety yet a child-like hope. I smiled fully for the first time that day, “Yes, I think it’s time you meet them.”
Coming back here was strange to say the least. I gazed around Halloweentown with a sort of detached air. This should be my home. Why do I feel like I’m looking at the town of a stranger? “Hey there stranger. I was wondering if you would come.” My brother Alec made his way over to me all good looks and boyish charm. I was happy to note that although he resembled my father, he didn’t seem to carry that same aura of gloom my father…and I always exuded. Smiling I hugged him tight, and then he and Jack shook hands, “You do realize you stayed at my place all this summer not more than a month ago.” “Yeah but how can I go three whole weeks without my favorite sister?!” He said with an exaggerated face of dejection. I punched his arm, “I’m your only sister.” “That’s why you’re my favorite. You’re irreplaceable. Family is irreplaceable and you only get one.” He added suddenly very serious. Despite his outside show of indifference to trouble, he had an ingrained sense for sound morality. Through and through my mother’s child, the true saint of our family. That’s why I loved him the most, needed to protect him the most. He was my compass. “Might we postpone our talks about my issues with father for later? People will give us seriously rude looks if we don’t make our way to our seats soon.” “Sure, but we both know your issues extend way beyond that.”
I sat next to my mother, and she wordlessly took my hand for comfort. She and Grandma Sally had always been extremely close. In some ways I envied their relationship, and wondered if mother and I could ever be like that. However, I already knew the answer. The funeral went by without a hitch. It seemed like most of the town wanted to say something or another in honor of my grandmother. My grandfather got up last to say a few words in closing, “We all knew that she’d go eventually. Most of us have to.” With that I glanced over at Sebastian who sat with a woman I didn’t know. “I admit I was in denial. I was convinced that she would live on forever. Live on in all her beauty, grace, honesty, and with all her love. She had the ability to make everyone feel loved and cared for. Most especially when that person felt that they didn’t deserve it.” There were murmurs of acknowledgement and nods from the crowd. “Goodbye my love. I know that we’ll see each other again soon.”
My grandfather left quickly after the funeral. No one seemed to mind. It was understandable that he didn’t want to be hounded by all the well-wishers right now. The rest of my family went back to my parent’s place to talk. I introduced Jack to Sebastian’s group first, saving my father to tackle later. “It’s very nice to meet you Jack. This is my wife Kamaria.” She was beautiful. A timeless beauty that would never be touched by the passing years. “Pleasure to meet you,” she said as she shook Jack’s hand. But when she shook mine she gave me a quizzical look of interest, and I felt something I thought I’d squashed down forever radiate where our skin met. I looked up at her in alarm, and pulled my hand away. The air around me seemed to charge with tension and electricity that wasn’t there before. A witch. An extremely old and powerful one if I wasn’t mistaken. The look on Sebastian’s face told me that I wasn’t. The whole exchange took place in a matter of seconds and no one seemed to notice except us three. Quickly I moved Jack along to meet Ravenna’s family. This one went by much more smoothly although I admit it was one of the ones I worried over the most. Ravenna was a werewolf, albeit much more in control than my father’s curse seemed to be, her husband Ayden was a vampire, and their daughter Gemma was our families’ first hybrid. She was a shy and sweet girl who despite her general lack of color blushed frequently. We then visited with some family friends, Chip, Babette, Lumiere, and Cogsworth. Mrs. Potts had passed away a few years ago after living a long and feisty life. With everyone else tackled this was it. It was time to face my parents. As we made our way over to them Jack whispered to me, “I’m nervous.” “Trust me, I am too.”
My father nodded at me, “Alice. It’s good to see you.” I merely nodded in return. My mother looked between us and sighed. She then smiled and pulled me into a hug, “It really is so good to see you honey. I miss you living all the way out in Hidden Springs.” I gave her a small smile, “Hey mom.” “And is this handsome young man Jack?” She turned to him with a big smile and pulled him in for a hug as well, “It is wonderful to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you from Alec. Although I admit I might have hounded him a bit for details.” “A bit?!” Alec added with mock surprise, “It was more like a high stakes interrogation.” She swatted him affectionately, “Stop it you.” My father was still gazing at me. I pursed my lips, “Adam this is Jack. Jack meet Adam Liddell.” I hadn’t called him father out loud in years. He and Jack shook hands briskly, “It is really nice to meet you sir.” “You seem nice…yet fake.” My father responded curtly. “Adam!” my mother began but I cut her off. “Un-freaking-believable!! You just couldn’t do it could you?! You just couldn’t act like a civil human being for two seconds!! I don’t know why I deluded myself into thinking you could be anything more than an animal!!” “Alice.” My brother never raised his voice, but I could hear the warning. I held my hands up in surrender, “Its fine. We were just leaving anyway.” My mother looked crestfallen, “I thought you might stay for a few days.” “No, we have a plane to catch.” That was a lie but she didn’t need to know that. I pulled Jack away without noticing that my father hadn’t even looked at me through my hissy fit. He and Jack had stared each other down the entire time. I did notice however that throughout the evening Sebastian and Kamaria had given me their full attention.
Jack was quiet the whole ride back to the hotel. My grandfather being the King of Halloween meant that anyone would recognize us as soon as we stepped out of the car and report back to my mother, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. I couldn’t believe how my father had treated Jack. I knew it was a mistake to bring him here. I inwardly cursed myself for not listening to my gut feeling. “Jack?” I had to find a way to explain. “Can you stop the car for a moment?” Jack asked suddenly. Uh oh, I thought, he’s bailing. “Um sure.” I said out loud. I barely put the car in park before Jack was out of the car. He walked aimlessly down an alley, and I followed him full of questions. He turned quickly and gave me a stricken look, “Alice there’s something I need to explain --” Before he finished what he was saying a man dressed in all white with bunny ears hit Jack in the back of the head. Bunny ears?! This is Halloweentown so I guess it wasn’t all that weird to be in costume, but I was still going to kick his butt. Before I got hold of him he produced a staff out of thin air, and where it touched the ground a large hole appeared. “Will you follow me lovely Alice? Will you come for them?” “Them?!” Instead of answering me he glanced down at a pocket watch, “Oh my, the time!!” With that he jumped into the hole with Jack. “Nooo!!” A scream cried out but it wasn’t from me. I spun around and my eyes went wide. It was him. Him him! He ran past me, and gave me a questioning look on the way as he jumped into the hole also. Next thing I knew my phone rang. “Yes?!” I said in a huff. My mother cried into the phone, “Oh Alice! Your brother! A man…white clothes…bunny ears--” She didn’t need to say anything else. I immediately jumped into the hole.
