Hal’s thoughts seemed to run around his brain. All this sounded way too real to be a dream, even a drunk one, and if he was mad, he was nevertheless... Still here. Not in the episode apparently, but somewhere in a strange halloweenian gap.
- Where are we going?
Miss Ives only smiled and pushed the two panels of a luxury door with both hands. Suddenly Halloween faced the strangest thing he had ever seen.
He was in an old cemetery, half drowned by a forest. The old gravestones were all more or less cracked, faded or collapsed, covered with ivy or even lifted by centenarian trees. Sinuous paths hid some lost gravestones and old crooked trees emerged from vaults.
This decor was already impressive by itself, but this was nothing compared to the party which stood there. On each gravestone was a thick candle. Their flames were high and created wide wax flows on the stones. A discordant music seemed to come from nowhere at all, and the people circulating here and there were all very strange.
- Each year, the party is set in a different power place, Ethan Chandler explained. All the creatures of the current demimonde and the ones of the halloweenian imagination make sure to come.
- Mr. October, Miss Ives said raising her voice, welcome to General Cemetary, Hull. Welcome in our world, which is also yours. Welcome to the Halloween of all the Halloweens. Follow me and please do not touch anything.
Hal had no other intention. He followed her, fascinated, trying to see and hear everything. He noticed some vampires, witches, Harry Potter, shadows, ghosts, Frankenstein’s monsters and indescribable creatures.
They walked near a clearing where stood a gigantic black twisted tree. A zombie orchestra played, standing on its roots, and people danced.
“Jane will never believe me,” Hal thought stupidly.
The music was lively, but he didn’t risk to look closely at the food displayed on an old wooden table next to the musicians.
- Come on, Mr. October. We have not come to party, or at least, not yet.
- Why then?
He had just noticed, among the dancers, the strange young woman who had told him to lie down next to her to watch Penny Dreadful, and she winked.
Miss Ives didn’t answer and kept going among the gravestones, her black dress sweeping the dead leaves of the floor.
Another pale-skinned black-haired woman appeared in front of them. Hal recognized she was Morticia Addams, but he didn’t know the teenager next to her. A pale-skinned creature with a black cape fell elegantly from a tree to join them, and he didn’t recognize it either.
- Is that him? Morticia asked, staring Hal.
Hal jumped; the strange woman of the party had just appeared next him.
- Well, he doesn’t seem that impressive, Morticia commented.
Miss Ives didn’t look at her. She was observing the huge creature with the black cape and the almost human face rise. Well, actually, rise was not really the good word for what it was doing. The creature was more, like, unfolding itself.
- Silas, she said when he finally got up.
- Miss Ives.
- I’m very honoured by the presence of Night Watch.
The small group started walking again.
- What do you think of our world? the strange woman of the party asked to Hal.
- I like it a lot.
He realized while saying it how much it was true. He was still trying to overcome the surprise, but he felt perfectly comfortable.
They stopped in front of a vault whose the stone was slightly opened, revealing a wide dark grave.
- Sorry, mate, but you have to go down there, the teenager said. There is an object heavily disturbing our world and you have to fetch it.
Things were getting stranger and stranger. Hal agreed to believe in this demimonde – after all, he didn’t have much of a choice. But creatures as powerful as those seemed to be, asking HIM to fetch a magic object he had nothing to do with? It felt like a trap.
- Why me? I’m only a human.
- You’re the only one able to get down. And you’re not as human as you look like.
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