[Rissyy]

username & ID number: Rissyy + 557935
kalon name: Edwina
prompt: [word limit of 500]
extra: [optional, 300 words OR 1 art piece]

[endless shelter;;]

username & ID number: endless shelter;; + 624211
kalon name: Stelian
prompt: [798/800 (500 + 300 extra)] (the edits weren't saving and when i tell you i panicked thinking i lost the writing LOL)

"What is the point of Halloween, if not to wander amongst the lowered veil, and make the most out of our haunted visitors? Welcome back, my old friends, it has been a while."

indentHalloween. Or historically, Samhain. Forefather's eve; an equivalent. Of course, the most recognised world-wide celebration was Halloween. One thing was common amongst all of these festivities; spirits. This was, undoubtedly, the most fascinating part to Stelian. Ancestors of times gone by; knowledge stored only in their souls, and creatures of the night, demons, cryptids and horrors in between, trickery was the way to make through these times; dressing up as one of these supernatural individuals to make them believe they were one of them. To appease the spirits that visited, it is customary to provide food and drink, and so, it's no surprise, mimicry followed.

indentThe sun was setting. It was nearly time.

indentHe flung open the doors to his wardrobe, choosing the finest of his clothes, alongside an overly dramatic black and red cloak; perfect for the look of a vampire, fangs went into place, and he quickly adjusted the fluff of his ears and hair. A toothy grin, and he was off, excitedly filling the pumpkin-shaped bowl full of sweets. These days, it was particularly easy to catch the mimicry, parents would often buy something last minute for little scamps brimming with sudden thrill around free treats.

indent A knock on his door. Children.

indentWith a toss of his cloak, he veered off from his casual rest and contemplation on his chaise, sweeping up the bowl in his movement and flicking off the lights, before he slowly opened the door.

indent"Trick or Treat!"

indentThe children were met with a kalon, standing tall with eyes narrowed into suspicious slits, his silhouette shaped entirely by the cloak's form. Red eyes scanned the smaller forms, and the parents in the distance. His gaze met a confident child; a ghost-pup, and he grinned widely, beaming as he flung an arm out, "A treat for you all!" The cheers of the children were replaced with a varied tone of 'Thank you's as he leaned down to allow a desired selection of treats, not minding the extra taken.

indentThe same charade would last for a couple more hours, till the bowl quickly ran empty. This. This was his mark of freedom, as much as he enjoyed the performance; he had company to meet, some he had not seen in a while. Truly, it had been too long. He rushed to his room to readjust his appearance.

indentStelian returned to the chrome mirror, and removed the false fangs, leaving... Far sharper, true enamel canines in their place. The tacky cloak thrown off, and replaced with a comfortable cotton variant. The rest? Why it was all his, old and true. He left in a haze from his comfortably rustic home, paws filled with warm goods, and practically flew for the forest. The sky heralded less light pollution, revealing the stars in the pitch blackness the deeper he wandered. The birch and oaks led to pine and firs, towering the fauna that lived amongst it, and Stelian was guided by the lanterns hanging old loafs and sweets attached. To anyone else, this would be a warning to stray from a trick, but for a creature like Stelian, he was welcomed.

indentHe inhaled the cold, dead air, with undead lungs as his pacing slowed, guided by the full-moon's light. The trees suddenly grew denser, but the kalon knew the path, he had trailed it for decades. He dipped into the foliage, taking a left, then a right, another right, and down, till finally the leaves parted, and revealed the ruins of an old castle, that this night, once a year, was full of life - rather, returned life. It was illuminated by fae and ghosts, ghouls and barghests, whilst the vampires and werewolves hesitantly gathered, though eventually treating each as their own kin. Stelian sighed softly as he head to the centre, about to place down his offering amidst song and dance.

indent"It's you!"

indentThe vampire's ears perked.

indentIt was the ghost pup from before, and it bounced excitedly towards him. Stelian smiled as he knelt to their level, "Hello, Little Cousin, did you enjoy the treat?"

indent"Uhuh-uhuh! And no-one even noticed I was a ghost under my costume! Well... Except maybe you. You always spot me."

indentStelian chuckled, and ruffled their head, "I know your voice, silly, and you have no fear."

indent"That I don't!" The pup beamed, "Now come on, put down the food! We're all waiting for you, you're late!"

indentThe vampire shook his head, finally dropping his basket of offers, "Alright, alright, I'm coming, I'm coming, I know my aunt will give me an earful if I'm a minute later-!".

[ellyenchanted]

username & ID number: ellyenchanted + 342495
kalon name: evangeline
prompt:

"Each chime of the grandfather clock marked another hour closer to Evangeline's impending doom. She had been confronted with bad omens for weeks now. Carved pumpkins lining porches, skeletons propped up in shop windows, artificial spider webs clinging to hedges, and that was just the beginning. Van couldn't turn a corner without running headfirst into a ghost, a bat, or a black cat. Even the air was charged with an eerie chill that seeped into her bones and rustled up her fur."


Evangeline is, you guessed it, a vampire terrified of halloween. The reason behind her deep-rooted fear is a mystery to all of her friends (as is her true age - though some speculate her to be centuries old, of course Van will never reveal it).

She was late in her preparations this year, and was forced to chance a trip to the market. She knew it would be impossible to avoid the townsfolk at this point, and oh god- there they were and they were in costumes. Her paws were clammy and she was getting the nervous sweats. Despite the horror of a tinkerbell and bob ross that she nearly tripped over in aisle 15, Van powered through and collected everything she needed.


Preparing for the worst day of Evangeline's year is very stressful and time-consuming, you know. There is a lot of moving parts that go into it.

Van had double checked her to do list to make sure everything was set and now could finally be at peace (only a bit- the night was only just beginning after all). She made her way down the creaky stairs into a dark and murky basement. Before her laid her true resting place- a large wooden coffin with an interior of velvety red. Van clambered on inside with her satchel of important things, a bag of homemade cookies to hold her over, and her stuffed frog friend.


At precisely 2 pm, Evangeline hides in her beloved coffin and waits out halloween. It has been her tradition for, well, a very long time. She knows that this holiday is beloved to many (she doesn't understand why) but she asks that her friends be sensitive to her wishes and not mention the name to her or tell her of their plans. Once the night is over and the morning dawns, she crawls out of her coffin and resumes life as normal..."normal."


399/500


extra:

Evangeline's Check List of Things To Do Before The Holiday that Shall Not Be Named


☐ Meal prep for the day after - broccoli and chicken? pasta
☑ Make sure emergency kit is restocked
☑ Board up all the windows
☑ Check locks on the doors
☐ Pack satchel of important things
☑ Set up alarm system
☑ Stare menacingly out the attic window in the hopes of scaring away potential trick-or-treaters
☐ Recheck the windows and doors
☐ Bake cookies for snacks
☐ Create a ring of salt around the coffin and light some candles for ambience


98/300

[Knickknacks]

username & ID number: knickknacks + 815546
kalon name: scylla
prompt: [-/500]

wip!

extra:

wip!

[quiche cat!]

username & ID number: quiche cat! + 430690
kalon name: kane
prompt: kane enjoys using his trusty canines to be a little crafty on halloween. instead of buying signs, he takes pieces of cardboard (or anything that he can chomp through) and bites holes in them until his masterpieces are finished. his pride and joy is the huge pumpkin he tooth-poked last year, which he placed outside on that fateful holiday night... and a few hours later, tugged it inside after it had gotten sopping wet from an unexpected bout of rain. unfortunately, there was no saving it. now he's learned to make smaller, easier-to-move signs that he sticks up inside his windows, juuuust in case it rains. sometimes he even strings up lights around them to add some extra pizzazz to the borderline boring signs!
extra:

[rem sleep]

Marky

[Ucanthandleme]

username & ID number: Ucanthandleme + 809102
kalon name: Asa
prompt:
Just like your mother. I looked, the face in the mirror staring back, my face, her face, our face. They stood next to me, soft brushes creating harsh lines and cold touches bringing doom into the air. Powdered white was sprinkled on my face and red gloss painted on my nose. A gentle crooning as my hair was brushed, the black inky waves falling like smoke in front of the mirror. At my gaze they smiled, a smile so mechanic and broken it made one's heart turn cold. Too bad my heart was already frozen. The dolls continued, painting my face into another's complexion, another visage they longed for in the night. Those mechanical dolls.Their strings had been broken, limbs sewed together, bits and pieces of each other's complexion but they did not care for their own appearance, instead they watched with snake-like vision at my face. I knew they saw her through me, the mother of their creation. Too bad I wasn't her.

The night was long, the echoing halls held my footsteps and my velvet robes dripped across the floor. An inky temptress in the night, the hollow wails from outside the castle walls danced with the ever looming orchestra of the incoming ballroom. Creaking doors and twisting ball gowns, the audience watched with intense gazes at my looming figure. Those stares, greedy for my visage, I loathed their looks yet could do nothing but continue on with a blank face, escorted by soldier dolls at each of my sides to the crowning seat overlooking the room. I sat down on the crimson red cushion, a glass of dripping red placed into my palm as I looked up. I made no sound, merely raising my glass to the room before partaking in a sip. Cheers sprung out and the party divided into full swing. The weaving of black, white and red all throughout the room seemed like a joyous sight by the crooked smile and shining teeth told of a different story.

The dance of the vampire. Their queen on her throne made them dance with vigor. Little did they know an imposter lay in her place. The midnight son. The hidden child. He could normally hide away in his deserted castle but every year on halloween eve he must attend the moonlit ball, taking the place of his mother, the queen. As a symbol of the people that couldn’t be broken. He had to for one day act as her, it couldn't be known she had long since passed. They would be vulnerable then, no, he would be vulnerable then. Those bloodthirsty creatures would wait a breath to rip him to pieces while he had yet to undergo his awakening and gaining of his full powers. So for now, he would play a part, this ballroom show. Once a year, the celebration of halloween.

(478/500)

extra: [optional, 300 words OR 1 art piece] WIP

[elf_of_the_hollow]

received a request for an extension, so I'm extending this comp until nov. 6th @ cs rollover!

[Zombie.Queen]

Mark!

[squeegi]

username & ID number: squeegi + 929095
kalon name: aquila
prompt:
blood, aquila thought, sinking deeper into the bristly pile of straw and hay surrounding him, is overrated.
candy was where it's really at.
(to be clear, aquila didn't actually drink blood, despite all appearances.
the only perk of having too-sharp teeth and blood-red eyes was never having to buy a halloween costume.)
strewn about in a haphazard heap was what remained of his halloween candy. admittedly, it wasn't exactly much; there were more wrappers than actual candy at this point. his eyes, squinting against the pull of exhaustion and sugar-crash-induced fatigue, peered out at the shiny, unopened caramels nestled in the hay. he thought very briefly about eating them, but the immediate protest from his aching stomach quickly reminded him exactly why he hadn't done so already.
aquila burrowed his head into the hay, taking a slightly muffled breath around the straw tickling his nose.
his halloween had been fruitful; he hardly made it a habit of knocking on strangers' doors, but for free candy? he had been out all night, collecting candy in a pillow case until it was dragging along the ground, stuffed-full with wrapped sweets. once it was absolutely certain he could not fit a single more piece in the pillow case, he did what anyone would do if they were in possession of more candy than they knew what to do with.

he ate it.

obviously.

the sun, peeking through the red-orange canopy of leaves overhead, cast warm, golden rays of light over his back. he stretched, once, syrupy-slow and content. he grew pleasantly warm, soaking in the early morning sunlight like a starved plant, practically purring with tired glee. in a few hours, when the mass of sugar and glucose in his stomach was digested and the consequences of eating an entire pillow case of candy caught up to him, he would probably feel a bit ill.
but now, surrounded by the earthy smell of hay, curled in a warm sunbeam with a full belly and a feeling of contentedness nestled deep in his chest?
he let his heavy lids slip shut, and tucked his nose into his paws with a soft sigh.
halloween, aquila thought, as he let himself be pulled into blissful unconsciousness, really is the best.

372 / 5OO