1.7

I was surprised when I first heard that Moonlight Falls celebrated Halloween. If I had to guess, it’d be a little disrespectful to everyone who lived there. Not like I cared if some kid dressed as a zombie came to the door, but I was old and jaded underneath everything.

Then Violet gleefully gave candy to a kid dressed as a ghost on our first Halloween, with a sheet over their head. She shrugged when I asked her. “I’d rather be seen as fun than something awful. They almost didn’t want a ghost working at the lab and that was so much worse.”

She listened to my request to get a job and almost cried after that job interview, but privately. It sounded like music. But Dr. Singh took pity on her, told her to wear gloves over the ectoplasm, and work hard. That much Violet could do. Her friend-turned-enemy, the ghost named Samuel, got a similar deal at the business office. I got a lot of gossip about him from Bianca. A few promotions rolled in for Violet as the year marched on, unlike Samuel, and I still hadn’t thrown her a party for it. Or for any birthday that was hurling towards us.

And to think I wanted her to love me! Yes, Olivia was still in the picture, but I heard about her a little less. Then she got her cooking prowess back and made Violet a five-course dim sum lunch. Unlike the other ghosts, she wouldn’t get a job.

I huffed. Carmella didn’t do that for me. She just made…everything else I loved. The healthy like stuffed tofu and the horrifying like chicken fried steak with gravy.

Violet and Carmella turned out to share a birthday around Halloween. For the most part, they celebrated privately. I knew what it was like to share a birthday, because Samhain and I did long ago. But this one could be mature. I spent too long trying to have fun at kids’ birthday parties. Now I didn’t know any kids. And our next Halloween as a household was coming fast.

And let’s just say, no one cared that I dressed up as a witch, and a sexy witch if I had to be honest about the style. This was my last chance to look so good in a corset. Bianca Crumplebottom told me I could be a sexy witch if she could be a sexy zombie like I was. Her words! I was flattered…and thought she looked great! If I was buried instead of burnt to ash, maybe that would be how I’d have emerged from the earth.

I refrained from telling her that you don’t emerge, not even if you’re buried. Both Violet and I simply appeared in front of our remains. I became one with mine, and all that was left of her was some gold buried in the ground.

Our guest list was wide. I told anyone living with us that family, coworkers, and friends were all fair game. It meant that I didn’t know most people there though, and for the most part, I didn’t ask.

My only reservation was about the grey guy. He hid behind a hockey mask and was invited by Violet. She shrugged. Everyone agreed that Mr. Snypes was a vampire janitor at the lab. I thought he could have loftier ambitions than that.

My favorite part of the night that didn’t involve Violet was Rainflower, the most senior and skilled musician I knew. He had gotten older as well but didn’t retire from the theatre and kept honing his skills. I didn’t even know he played violin before that night, as he dressed like a simple bard. At least I would have more time than I knew what to with, looking two or three hundred years into the future. A violin could fit in perfectly between time’s spacious curves. Or I’d hate myself and paint again.

I wasn’t much of a dancer, not professionally or at parties. It was what fascinated me so much about my grandson. Where did he get all that confidence from? Certainly not from my side of the family. So I didn’t think to dance at all until Carmella took my hand.

What I liked about living with Carmella was every strange, wild, fun, and beautiful idea she had. I would do everything to not play into it and yet I was her happy passenger.

And I wish I had a better birthday gift for her. I panicked. She got a new set of pots since she cooked us dinner a little more than the rest of us did. In my defense, they were enameled cast iron. To my fault, it did not hold a candle to what waited for Violet.

What she gave me was a beautiful dance, twirling me around like I weighed nothing at all.

And yes, she dressed up like a zombie too. I gave permission to every witch I knew.

“Say cheese, witch girl!” She had finally started to embrace modern technology. I took a lot of selfies in my past life too, it was a strange joy when there was little to celebrate about myself.

“It’s your heritage.”

“Do you think I’d stoop so low as to wear a pointed hat? My old coven was much more subtle.”

It was our first big house party, and I was alright with it involving zombies, bards, and a few fursuits too. Pappy took his literally, right down to the spots. Despite our breakup, he curled up in my heart like a tired old dog. Perhaps he missed not having to pay for a costume rental when he wanted to be a canine, so I paid for it.

I took being a wolf away from him. But I was not about to let Violet’s heritage go so quickly.

Ever since she told me about her traveling family, I thought about the covered wagon by the river. Violet’s family was long-gone or finally settled into ordinary homes. And probably long-gone entirely, since she had been dead for a while. Whoever was left didn’t care about one obsolete wagon that didn’t even have a shower.

Things either shook her core or ran off her like she was waterproof. This was one of the latter in the end, but when the caravan went up on sale, I took it. I said I was part of a traveler’s cultural society. And to be fair, I’d help them if they asked.

“I think the kids are finally going home.” Violet dressed like a cat and was giving out candy to children. She insisted. The party was for her too, and while Violet wasn’t a classic introvert, she had deeper interests in magic and alchemy than in maintaining friendships. In fact, she was like all the good parts of Vega concentrated, right down to a big, beautiful nose.

Still a terrible thought, though.

“Well we should have cake, then, you’ve worked up an appetite for it.”

And they both looked beautiful in their new, “older” age. It did something especially good to Carmella’s jaw…not like I had a crush on her or anything. I wasn’t much of a monogamist, at least deep inside, but I also wondered if I could reform myself. I thought that I found the perfect ghost for it.

I led Violet far away from the house before she could even finish her piece of cake. Through the woods and down a dirt path to a campsite and a familiar wagon.

“Yeah, hey, it’s ruined now, I’ve come to accept it,” said Violet.

“Or not,” I said, producing the new deed to the property and the carriage parked there for years. “I figured you knew what to do with it.”

“I do! I think. It’s…it’s weird when the whole family’s moved into houses and I’m the last one who gives a damn about a stupid old wagon.”

“I registered it as the Slymer Rromani History Center, but we can change it later.”

“To get rid of the old name?” she asked.

“Yeah it was really bothering me.”

“This is so perfect, ya know?” Violet drew me in for a close hug. And how could I describe hugging a ghost? She was almost solid and warm to the touch, but in an artificial way. A feeling that was bad only if you hated curling up next to radiators. It was also unlike how I felt as a spirit. It was like they filled me with ice water for twenty years. “Imagine Olivia being that nice.”

“Well, I guess that mansion’s a trade-off.”

“Eh, I like your home better, if I gotta choose…”

She said she had an interest in astronomy, like it was in her blood. I could have asked more but she touched my hand as we sat down on the dewy grass.

“Yeah, you know, we all have horoscopes in like five different traditions,” said Violet. “So you have to keep track of the whole sky.”

“That makes sense.”

“It’s hard to see most of the stars that matter. That’s the stupid thing about space.”

“You’re tellin’ me. And we still get visited by aliens.”

“Or spawned from them,” said Violet. I laughed nervously. “Okay, there’s one I have a story about.” She pointed to the brightest one I could see.

“Yeah?”

“I have a cousin named after that star. Not a funny story, ya know, but I miss her. I figured she might still be around but I still can’t find her.”

“Why? And…which star is that?” I squinted up at the sky and the diamond shape around that star. Was that Lyra? Did anyone actually care about Lyra? It wasn’t in our zodiac.

“Vega! I mean, it’s a groovy name.”

“Yeah, for everyone else,” I muttered. It had to be a coincidence. Maybe it was popular before I was born. After all, someone had to name the Vega too. I clenched a fistful of grass, roots and all. “What color was she?”

Violet shook her head. “You can’t ask that about a daemon. Or anyone, it’s like asking ’bout my scar.”

“So she was a daemon. Grey, green eyes, two spindly hands that could strangle you.”

“Yeah, like, half my family is–”

“Your cousin hurt me! For my whole life!” I didn’t know what came over me. But Violet was weightless and easy to pin down and confront. I couldn’t even see her face when I looked into it. She was just a golden Vega. Admitted to it and all.

“How could I have known that one? She wasn’t anything like that,” She stared at me with a still face.

Violet didn’t have to breathe and her eyes were two expressionless orbs. I never thought of it in depth until then. A lifeless pawn for her master, I’m sure.

“I bet she brought you back for this.”

“No! I haven’t seen her since I died. I bet she’s gone now just like everyone else I loved.”

I left her on the ground. “Look, I know you’re bound to my house forever now, but stay out of my way. And double for Mr. Snypes,” I said. So much for the vampire cover story or wanting him to get a better job. “All I wanted was to escape this.”

“I’m sorry I can’t help you.”

It was the longest walk back home.

There was nowhere else to go in that house. Every wall was now haunted by Vega, like her blood ran through our pipes. After all, she would bleed out an ocean just to spite me! Unfortunately, Violet lived here, and there was no escape from her lest Barry send a minion down. Surely he had to know about this. She would have been one of his subjects.

I told myself that I would never paint again once I left Twinbrook. It was my life’s passion that Vega exploited, with every sale going through her. Every idea broken by having to do another portrait of her or Screwtape. I’d have left that room empty if Malcolm didn’t beg me to keep it.

The poor young man got ignored so much by me. Sometimes it was hard to look him in the eyes, though. He reminded me a lot of both Heath and Marco, even if it was only the blue hair. I wondered where his vampire obsession came from, though. He dressed as one for Halloween but he dressed the same for any event. Lots of black and not in the way I wore it. Yet, a lot of local vampires wanted nothing to do with him.

Violet fascinated him too, but they mostly avoided each other. It was a clash of personalities that neither of them wanted to escalate, and now I was too afraid to fix it.

“Did she thank you for the trailer?” he asked me.

“The hell do you think?”

“I think she thanked you, because that was kind of you to do for her people.”

“Her other people are the worst! Forget them, she’s the cousin of the daemon who enslaved me, I don’t owe her a thing anymore.” I wasn’t angry at Malcolm, but all my rage was in his face. “And now I can’t even make her leave.”

“Wait, so daemons are real and you never told me?” Malcolm asked, covering his mouth.

“Shut it, it’s a long and painful story,” I said.

“But I have so many questions now.”

“A lot of them are evil, they’re from space, I was held captive by one named Vega, and the Grim Reaper is one too and he’s actually a collection of alright guys and gals. I mean…I fell in love with at least three of them? I did everything to try and not relive it, is that too much to ask? Did I really fall in love with my captor again? I can’t forgive myself for this, what if she hurts you too?”

“I can take the pain, as I hope to take it on my neck,” he said.

“Just stay human, you’ll thank me later…”

I wondered if there was a way to repay him at all. I was told that everyone in my house was subject to daemonic scrutiny, even if it was from kinder ones like Cara and Barry. How could I even ask those questions? All I knew to ask were “are you in love, Malcolm? And will you die on the inside if it doesn’t work out?” Everything was so specific to me, and that’s what I feared the most.

“Uh, do you have a favorite sandwich shop here?” I asked him. “Surely someone’s gotta make a good cheesesteak out west, am I right? I’ll buy!”

“No, but I can always go for Thai food, or those big containers of hot and sour soup from–”

“Samuuueeeel!”

I thought everyone had left, but Belinda Crumplebottom went into labor in our foyer anyways. I never “authorized” guests to come in, but I started to rethink that. Her screams were ear-splitting, and yet, I think she made the magical hot and sour soup Malcolm wanted too. Her maternity leave from the kitchen would get in the way of that gift to him.

“Look man, I’ll take this and get Samuel. I’ve had a baby before,” I said.

“What, your past life was amazing!”

“I owe you that then!” It felt like I would have a lot of time to tell him more about being a perfect zombie with a rich past life. At least it felt more fitting for Halloween if I called myself a zombie.

Belinda gave birth to a perfect ghostly son, without a painkiller in sight. I had done the same with Marco, but not by choice. It was a quick labor. But I was honored to help her and squeeze her hand, since Samuel was late and slow. I had no idea what would happen to the little baby. I’d never seen questions about ghost children answered before and I never saw one grow up. Not even years later.

It was a sad thought.

I slept on the floor of the painting room that night. With a sleeping bag, it could have been worse, at least the floor was smooth and freshly waxed. I had a truce with a lot of the household. Spot couldn’t care much about my personal struggles with Violet. And Carmella was out of sight, not even in her sculpting studio or private squatter’s corner.

At most, I heard a dual whisper on that Halloween night. “Huh…I guess I need what Belinda has.”

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So uh this chapter is weird. Lots of characters I didn’t really establish. (Like I mentioned Rainflower once in 0.9 or something? He was Sheila’s boss in the music career for a bit game-wise. Oh to have once tried to think about her career…) I wrote this back in October 2020 while in the Halloween spirit and unable to think of a good “couple’s costume” for Churro and I that we couldn’t even wear in public thanks to Covid. Nothing else was written by then. Not a scrap. Tried my best to make it fit anyways. Yes ghosts can have babies who knew? (Me that’s who, TS4 dropped the ball on that one)

I am trying to handwave away this all with a character and lore blog (hopefully started before this all really goes off the rails)