A Strange Halloween Friendship

A Strange Halloween Friendship

         The time had come again for the strange autumn ritual of the humans.  They would dress up in cockamamie costumes and run around the town banging on doors demanding sweet treats to fill their bags.  In the house of Finn Johansson, preparations commenced as usual.  Pumpkins were carved, sweet treats were baked, and horror movies were watched all day.

         In the kitchen, Finn was preparing the snacks for the Halloween party he would be hosting that evening.  He baked tray upon tray of mouthwatering chocolate cupcakes.  The smell of roasted pumpkin seeds wafted through the house.  Pumpkin pies, apple pies, cherry pies; all were baked to golden perfection.  Sweet smelling apple cider and warm hot cocoa was prepared; enough to quench every thirst.  All that remained was the Rice Krispie treats.

         Finn walked to the cupboard to grab the marshmallows.  When he opened the package, one of the marshmallows rolled out of the bag and onto the floor.  Bending to pick it up, it rolled over, revealing a tiny face staring back at him!  He screeched and fell backwards, knocking himself unconscious.

         When he awoke, he found himself staring at the ceiling.  He slowly turned his head, and....there was the marshmallow again!  Startled once again, he skidded back until he backed himself against the cupboard.  "Don't be afraid!" he heard a tiny voice cry out.  Confused, he looked around to determine the source of the voice.  "Look down,  I'm right in front of you. Please don't be afraid," he heard the voice call again.

         He looked down, and there was that marshmallow with the face.  "Alright," he said aloud, "either I'm going insane, or I'm dreaming, or this is somehow real.  I'll just go with it.  Why is my marshmallow talking?"

         He heard what could only be interpreted as a strange, quiet giggle.  "I, sir, am your guardian marshmallow.  I am here to give you advice and make your party tonight a super special fun time!  Now, if you will, please pick me up and place me on your shoulder.  I'd like the view much better than down here."  Finn followed the marshmallow's instructions. "Much better!  Oh, how rude of me!  I haven't introduced myself yet!  My name is Mandy."

         Finn was still slightly awestruck, but eventually he choked out, "I'm Finn.  So, what should I do?"  Mandy whispered in his ear, "The first thing we are going to do is carve a jack-o-lantern.  Take that big orange one sitting in the corner, and place it on the counter.  Good!  Now, take that carving knife, and gut it.  Triangular eyes, diamond nose, and a mouth full of fangs.  Looking good!  Almost done, now all we need is a candle.  Grab that little tea light from the table over there and place it inside.  Now, while you light it, say, 'Juunga flawnta binglo shuu'.  Very good!  It is complete!"  With that, Mandy began humming a sweet little tune that calmed every nerve in Finn's body.  "What were those words?" Finn wondered aloud.  Mandy replied, "They are the words of life.  This is a very special jack-o-lantern.  I have created for you a talisman to keep you safe always."

         Finn thought nothing more of the talisman; he had too many other preparations to attend to.  His opinion of this sweet little marshmallow was ever increasingly a good one; there was no way he could have gotten all this work done without Mandy's guidance.  It was strange, talking to a marshmallow, but he was beyond caring anymore.  It was Halloween; he figured he should be a bit adventurous.  Thinking back on all of his past Halloweens, he remembered each ending in a tragedy.  When he was eight, his parents had died in the infamous Lunatic Assassin Halloween Massacre.  He was brought up after that by his uncle, who held the opinion that Halloween was a terrible holiday.  In defiance, he would have to sneak out of the house to trick or treat with his friends.  Still fresh in his mind was last year's tragedy; he had hosted a Halloween party, and it had been crashed when the cops had come around inspecting every house for an escaped prison inmate.

         This year, he swore to himself it would be a good party.  After all, he had his special jack-o-lantern talisman.  The party started without a hitch.  Food was passed around, and drinks were shared.  The music was once again fantastic, and everyone was enjoying the party greatly.  Before Finn knew it, the party was ending, and not one major incident had occurred.  Considering his record, he was quite surprised, until he remembered the jack-o-lantern.  After everyone had left, he walked over to it.

         "Well," he told it, "I suppose I have you to thank for this wonderful night.  You were truly a hero to my Halloween disaster record."  "No problem," the jack-o-lantern replied, "Oh, by the way, you can call me Pete."