It's Halloween

     The one exception was the Haunted Woods. Just being near the place gave Canca the shudders. She couldn't stand the looming trees that seemed to whisper about you as you walked by. Edna's cackling seemed to penetrate far beyond the walls of her castle, and the sound of it made Canca's heart turn to ice. Even the shops were creepy—filled to the brim with eyeball-themed foods and petpets that nipped at her feet.

     Canca's friends said that the Deserted Fairground made it all worth it, but Canca disagreed. She'd never won a single game in the place and was convinced that all the stalls were rigged. Her friends insisted that they had won before, but Canca had never seen it happen, so she assumed they were all lying in some desperate attempt to look cool.

     And so, Canca was not thrilled to be standing at the edge of the Haunted Woods. She shifted from foot to foot as her friends cackled with glee. Woisan nudged his shoulder against Canca's, getting her attention.

     "You don't have to come with us if you don't want to," Woisan said, quiet enough that the Wenzhi wouldn't overhear.

     Canca knew that Woisan was trying to be kind. She knew that if she said that she absolutely refused to step foot into those Woods, he would come up with some excuse for their friends and walk her home. She also knew that Halloween was Woisan's favourite time of the year, and although he would say he didn't mind missing out, he absolutely would. She couldn't do that to him.

     "I'm fine," Canca said. She was pleased when her voice didn't crack. "But if you win anything at the Fairground, it's mine."

     "Deal."

     "The Fairground?" Wenzhi repeated, inserting himself into the conversation. He laughed, shaking his head. "We're not going there this year. We're gonna go somewhere better."

     Canca frowned. They always went to the fairgrounds for Halloween. She had spent all day mentally preparing for the Fairground. Why on earth would they go somewhere different now?

     "The Fairgrounds for kids," Wenzhi continued. "We're gonna go to the Esophager."

     "The…" Canca blanched. She didn't even pretend not to be horrified at the idea. "The Esophager!? Why?!"

     If anything, Canca's obvious fear seemed to make Wenzhi even more excited. "Because it'll be way scarier than going to the fairgrounds. And it's not like we ever win anything from the Fairground anyway."

     "Seriously." Woisan placed a comforting hand on Canca's shoulder. "We don't have to go."

     "Yeah," Wenzhi said, a wicked grin on his face. "You don't have to come if you're too chicken."

     "I'll go."

     "Canca..."

     "I'm going," Canca said.

     She straightened her back and rolled her shoulders back. And then, although every bone in her body was screaming at her not to, she took one first shaking step into the Haunted Woods. She threw her head back over her shoulder and quirked her eyebrow at the boys, as if daring them to join her. Secretly, she was devastated when they followed her with unshakeable confidence. Wenzhi soon took his natural place at the head of the trio and began leading them towards the swamp.

     Meanwhile, Canca wracked her brain for anything she knew about the Esophager. As far as she knew, the Esophager was best known for being a starving beast, willing to eat everything and anything that happened along its path. Truthfully, Canca had never heard of the Esophager chowing down on a Neopet or even a petpet before, but there was a first for everything. And it wasn't as if the Esophager had ever explicitly said that it wouldn't eat a Neopet.

     At some point, Edna's laughter and the Brain Tree's wails morphed into something that felt much more sinister—the Esophager's grumbling stomach. Or, at least, Canca assumed it was its stomach. Did the Esophager even have a stomach?! Canca didn't wish to find out.

     "Ohhh I muusstt haavee foooddd..."

     Canca leapt into the air. "Did you hear that?"

     "Hear what?"

     "I aamm staarrvvingg..."

     "That!" Canca leapt behind Woisan, peering over his shoulder. "It's here!"

     And, much to her despair, she was right. In the swampy grounds before them, the Esophager emerged from the mud, its red eyes glaring at them and its large mouth snapping. The squelch of the mud and snap of its teeth made Canca shudder with fear.

     "Feeed mmeee annndd I wwilll reeewwaardd yoouu..."

     Before Canca could suggest something sensible—like running away and not looking back—Wenzhi had stepped forward, confidently assuring the Esophager that they would find whatever food it craved. If Canca hadn't been too scared to move, she would've hit him. The three stepped back from the swamp slowly, Woisan practically dragging Canca's shaking form.

     "All right!" Wenzhi said, grinning. "Brain Ice Cream, Steamed Ectoplasm, and... uh, and Eyeball and Worm Sandwich. Let's do it."

     "Do it?" Canca asked, aghast. "We can't buy all of that!"

     "Why not?"

     Canca stared at him. "That's thousands of neopoints. I didn't bring that much out tonight. Did you?"

     "I..." Wenzhi faltered. "Uh. No. I guess not."

     "Don't look at me!" Woisan held up his hands. Then, when Wenzhi raised a disbelieving brow, he turned out his pockets. Only a few measly coins jangled. "I only brought enough for a go at Bagatelle."

     At Wenzhi's insistence, the three Neopets trudged from store to store, looking for the three items. They ended up peering at the shelves of the Spooky Foods store, where Wenzhi was sure he could strike a bargain with the Bruce behind the counter. Unfortunately, they could only find two of the three items. The Steamed Ectoplasm was nowhere in sight. And, frankly, the Brain Ice Cream alone was already way out of their budget. They left the store downtrodden and empty-handed.

     "What are we going to do?"

     "You don't think it eats the Neopets that don't bring it its food, do you?"

     Woisan shook his head firmly. "No, no. Of course not. Don't be ridiculous."

     Although they were far away, Canca was sure she could still hear the Esophager's frightening call. Canca's teeth began to chatter. She clutched at the fabric of Woisan's shirt. She glanced up at the two boys and was not comforted to realise that they were both exchanging frightened looks.

     "I think we should leave," Canca said quietly. "Like, just run away. Right now."

     "Just because you're too scared to stay..." Wenzhi trailed off.

     "Wwhheerre isss myy fooodd?"

     All three jumped at the Esophager's voice.

     "You know what?" Wenzhi's voice was trembling. "Canca, if you're too scared, I'm willing to leave. For you, that is. I'm not scared. Not at all."

     For once, Canca was more than happy to be the scapegoat. If Wenzhi wanted to blame her, it was okay. She didn't mind so long as they got far away from the Esophagar as soon as possible. Canca grabbed the boys' hands in hers and, without looking back, sprinted away from the Haunted Woods.

     The End.