The Ties of Family (RotG Fanfic)

Chapter 32

The eve of Samhain came too slow for some of the kids of Burgess. The streets were illuminated by the light emanating from carved Jack-o-lanterns which had been lit and placed outside most of the houses.

Jamie grinned as he surveyed his handiwork. Jack's features had been etched onto the pumpkin's surface, but of course, it looked more like a horribly disfigured boy. Sophie grimaced at the sight of it and carried on carving hers, which, so far, seemed to resemble a bunny.

"What do you think?" Jamie asked, addressing his sister and the winter spirit, who was just hanging around the Bennetts. "My Jack-o-lantern is truly a JACK-o-lantern!"

"Jack Frost? Oh, is that what it's supposed to be?" Sophie asked, turning for a moment from her pumpkin. "I thought you were trying to carve the face of that boy after the bear mauled him from that horror movie we watched at Claude's place yesterday!"

Jack couldn't help but laugh. "I'm no avant-garde, Jamie, so I can't say much. Though, I have to admit, it doesn't really look like an awful lot like me."

Sophie snorted with laughter as Jamie shrugged, retaining his grin. "Oh well, it's not like I actually have much talent in carving. Unlike some people..." Jamie stared at Sophie out of the corner of his eye. "But then again, what can you do with a talent in carving?"

"Very harsh, Jamie!" Sophie snapped, plunging the knife deeper than it should go into her pumpkin, and giving the bunny a scar. Her eyebrows furrowed into a frown and stayed there.

Jamie rolled his eyes as he got to his feet and picked up his disfigured lantern. "Hey, I was just joking!" When no reply came from a fuming Sophie, he turned and walked back to the house, muttering under his breath, "Girls..."

Jack flew after him. Mrs. Bennett lit the lantern as Jamie hurried upstairs to wash and change into his costume. He had refused to go trick-or-treating at first, claiming it was for kids, but his friends had successfully persuaded him. "For kids? What happened to the guy who believed in Jack Frost and the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus and goodness-knows-what-else?"

"Hey, Jack, do you think I can borrow your staff?" Jamie asked, as he came out of the bathroom and proceeded to pull on the hoodie. "You'll be there, right? There's no harm in relinquishing it to a boy within a seven-metre radius for about a night?"

"I don't know, Jamie," the winter spirit responded. "I mean, it's not just an ordinary stick, and what if it goes out of your control or something? Or what if something else happens, something worse?"

"Well, like I said, you'll be within a seven-metre radius of me, right? Or even less. Though it's okay. I'll go with a makeshift one." Jamie gestured towards a real shepherd's crook propped up against the wall. Jack gazed at him questioningly.

"Where did you get that?"

Jamie grinned. "The gardener next door. I noticed it leaning against his shed, and asked if I could borrow it. And guess what? He said I could just have it!"

Jamie gazed at his reflection in the mirror and pulled on the white wig. "You know, I've never really dressed up like this for Halloween before. Usually it would be just some random costume thrown together in like, ten minutes, and last year, Claude and Caleb weren't in town so we were exempted from trick-or-treating. They're going to be so stunned when I turn up like this, though, they won't be surprised when they learn its Jack Frost!"

Jack leaned his staff against the wall and walked over to Jamie, hands in his pockets. "Careful, Jack, I might just take the wrong one when I leave," Jamie said, referring to Jack's staff. The winter spirit shrugged. "It's within a seven-metre radius, but you're right. He took it from its current place and held on to it.

"Jamie! Monty is here! You too, Sophie!" came Mrs. Bennett's voice. Jamie called down back before snagging the shepherd's crook leaning against the wall, and hurrying downstairs. He bumped into a bunny on the way, who rolled her eyes. "Happy Easter!" he called out to it, playfully.

Sophie marched out the front door.

"Well, well, well, don't you look like that boy in those paintings of Sophie!" Mrs. Bennett commented, as Jamie came down the stairs. As she took in her son's appearance, her eyes glazed over. "And not just in appearance and dressing," she muttered, almost to herself. "Was Sophie, by any chance, portraying that boy whose portrait is hung in Mrs. Warren's place as a winter spirit with a shepherd's crook?"

"Well, kind of," Jamie replied, smiling slightly.

"You have the same eyes."

"Well, he is a relation, right?" said the 17- year old. "So long, mom! Happy Halloween!" Jamie bounded out of the house and piled into the back of Monty's car. The latter was in a scientist's costume and looked at him through round, black-framed glasses.

"Monty, you do know that not all scientists stereotypically wear thick black-framed glasses," Sophie commented.

"Of course. I just looked to that mad scientist from yesterday's horror movie."

Upon alighting at the twins' house, Jamie turned to Jack, who hovered beside him. For a moment, they just stared at each other, taking in features.

"Yeah, yeah, so you resemble each other a tad bit, big deal!" Sophie said, as she hurried past them. "Please don't look at each other like you're lovers!"

"What on earth...?" Monty turned at Sophie's outburst as Jack and Jamie turned away from each other. "Who were you yelling at, Sophie? Jamie wasn't staring at anyone in the face, was he?"

"Nerds and brothers," Sophie muttered, as Jamie gave a shout of laughter.

Claude and Caleb never miss an opportunity to throw a party, and Halloween was one of their favourite holidays. The best thing about it was that their parents celebrated it as well, and didn't discourage them from trick-or-treating or snacking on candies on that particular day. The house was heavily-decorated with glowing jack-o-lanterns and lights, and everyone present was dressed in a costume.

"Did Caleb invite the whole neighbourhood?" Sophie remarked, surveying the crowd of guests.

"Nope. Claude did," Monty responded.

Not a big fan of parties, Jamie decided to retreat to a corner and go through his rejected manuscript, which he had stowed in the hoodie. There were many guests, so chances were Claude and Caleb wouldn't find him or would've forgotten about him. Though it seemed rather unlikely, Jamie didn't want to waste precious moments standing around, being jostled by people.

"I know him! He's Jamie Bennett!"

Jamie looked up at the sound of his name to see a group of young boys, the eldest looking no older than ten, pointing at him and whispering among themselves.

"What are you trying to do?" Jamie asked, addressing the kids.

"Attempting to guess the person with their costume on!" replied one of them, grinning widely. "Yours was pretty easy! Is it even a costume?"

Jamie rolled his eyes and returned to his work. The kids hurried off in the direction of the backyard. Jamie saw, out of the corner of his eye, them trying to figure out who the tall man in a cloak was and not being able to.

"Nice costume, mister!" they finally just called out to him.

The man turned to them and all of a sudden, their faces were contorted with fear, and they turned and ran off, as fast as their legs could carry them. Jamie wondered why, and looked up once more. At the same time, the man seemed to sense someone was watching him, and fixed an intense glare upon the boy.