“Mum! I’m not a kid anymore! I don’t need you to remind me every time!”
“But you’re always forgetful. Besides, your sister refused to sleep without you.”
“Ugh, fine. Why can’t Adra sleep by herself?”
“Maybe she’s still afraid of those monsters hiding under the bed? It’s Halloween after all, Zev. Speaking of that, why didn’t the two of you go ‘trick-or-treating’ just now? Your father and I said it’s alright for you two to go.”
“Erm, we were…. Kind of busy so we don’t have time. Well, it’s ten o’clock, good night!”
Zev quickly rushes to the bedroom upstairs and saw his sister still lay down on her bed awake still. He sighed and jumped onto his bed, staring at the ceiling, “Should we put our nightlight on for tonight?”
His sister, Adra snuggled into her blanket, “Maybe, Zev? It depends on you, you’re in charge….”
Zev sighed as he sat the edge of his bed and swinging his legs, “Come on, Adra. Just because I’m popular, doesn’t mean you’re an outcast.”
“Do you really have to call yourself popular?”
“Well, I could call myself ‘everyone’s favorite’ if that’s what you want me to say,” said Zev. “Adra, don’t let this thing get to you. It’s not even real.”
“Goodnight Zev….” Muttered Adra as she pulls the cover over her head.
Zev frowned as he left the nightlight on, lied down and pulls the cover over him as well, he stares at the ceiling as the clock still ticking and his tiredness took over him.
“When Halloween draws near, children should be careful of the shadow lurking in the room. No one knows what shadows made out of.”
When the two siblings slept soundly and the clock strikes twelve, two shadows emerged from the corner of the room and towering over the beds with glowing yellows eyes, razor-sharp teeth and long claws. They let out a low growl, before the shadow on Zev’s side ‘spoke’.
“Oh, would you look at this boy! All grown-up in just a blink of the eye! I remember like it was yesterday he was running around with a baseball bat in his hand and smashing things in the house.”
“Oh please, dearest brother.” The shadow beside Adra’s bed sneered. “That boy is nothing compared to my precious princess here. Her eyes just brought me into shame of not being ladylike enough. She will be a fine lady I can predict that!”
“What’s this?” The other shadow claimed to be the ‘brother’, exclaimed. “You, the witch of 13th Friday, just challenged me? Your genius and perfectionist brother, Zev O’ Lantern, the watcher of Halloween?”
“If your boot fits, darling brother.” The shadow witch fights back.
“Wrong use of human expression. But! I accept your challenge, dearest sister!”
The shadow brother clapped his hands, and both of the shadows were soon taking form of ordinary human beings. The shadow brother has a black top hat towering tall over his head with an orange silk ribbon with black checkers on it. His messy black hair sticking out in odd angles and his glowing yellow eyes stays the same. He has a long black overcoat with orange buttons, pockets and also the inner part colored orange, black bowtie around his neck and white gloves plus a cane in his left hand, wearing long black pants and shoes.
The shadow sister has long black flowing hair with a hint of white streaks and still yellow cat-like eyes. A long dark purple dress with yellow buttons adorns her figure and unbuttoned black overcoat with its inner part colored purple. A checkered black & purple ribbon on her head, yellow-chained choker around her neck, long black gloves and a broom in her right hand, knee-length black and yellow boots.
“I must say, is it really must to look after these children? I’m sorry but this question gravely disturbs me so…”
“Dearest brother, since when the last time we had children to not ever care about ‘us’ actually?” said the witch as she gently strokesAdra’s head. “Of course, I’m no better. No one cares about bad-luck and brushed it off as a silly myth. And this cause reflects this girl’s problem. She will never be adored by other people because no one exposed her much to how the world works. If only a certain sibling would do that…”
“True and I proclaimed guilty at that.”
“And here I am, looking after a child who has no attention from others, like me. 13th Friday is just some ordinary day to people now and well, what’s the use of causing trouble to others now?”
“Darling sister, your sentence saddened me, and it makes me wonder why we even fought just now… ” The brother starts to feel remorse. “Halloween is also taken in the same way. I exist still yes but look at how much Halloween has changed now! Those costumes that adults wore are absolutely dreadful and what now, they have party and it’s not even kid-friendly?! People have taken my day to a whole new and disturbing level!”
“So the others are to be blamed?”
“If you put it that way, darling sister. And I’m afraid Zevie here doesn’t like to see the world it is now, just like me. So both of us have the same problem.”
The witch smiled as she toyed with her brother’s hat, “You’re awfully calm in taking it in.”
The brother slapped her hand away and straightened his coat, “I am a gentleman, thank you very much and my composure is the key to being one.”
“Sure it is, Zev O’ Liar.”
“It is.”
“It is not”
“It is”
“It is not. Admit it!”
“I’m telling mother about this!” The brother screeched. The witch gasped as she points accusingly at him.
“Don’t you dare bring mother into this conversation! If you tell her, then I will tell her about that one time you exploded the pumpkin you gave it to me as a prank!”
“Not if I tell her about this first!” said the brother as he quickly disappeared into the shadows.
“Stop acting like a child, foolish brother!”
“You started it first!”
The witch groaned as she quickly disappeared as well and the two of them continues to argue until their shadows were no longer to be seen. The nightlight starts to flicker and suddenly, Zev sat up straight and looked around his surroundings.
“Strange dream I had….” He muttered. “‘A weird fight between Adra and I’ kind of dream. And we took it so casually as well.”
He shrugged as he fell back onto his pillow and snores the night away.
Echo of laughter soon filled the town and the two familiar shadows were watching over them from aerial view and realize that someone is watching, someone the peeks into their conversation just now and reading their thoughts, “Oh you think we’re just shadows now, do you?”
“We’re always watching you…”
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