Treat or Trick?

Chapter 1
Treat or Trick? (Final Version)

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Chapter Description: Halloween brings unexpected changes to a family. Is it a trick or treat? ....Or both?

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Treat or Trick?

Louder

Carli Jackson checked her two children one last time before deciding their costumes were ’just right’. The 30 year old mother of two had spent quite a bit of time making these costumes herself. 6 year old Mark was to be a pirate and his twin sister, Sasha, would be a scary witch for Halloween. Carli didn’t believe in the cheap, off the shelf costumes. She liked costumes that allowed the kids to use their imagination and creativity and help her make their own costumes. Of course she did most of the real work but allowed the kids to help as much as possible just as her own mother had done for her years before.

The city had set aside two nights for trick-or-treating and as soon as October 30th rolled around, the kids were ready. If they waited until October 31st they were afraid there would be less candy to choose from. The kids were almost as excited over Halloween as they were Christmas.

Their father, 30 year old Don Jackson, wasn’t nearly as involved. Halloween was just an annoying holiday that interupted his TV time. At least as far as he was concerned. It was an outdated, overhyped, waste of time and money and he wasn’t sure it was teaching kids the right message anyway. He was far from a religious fanatic, but he didn’t see much good about Halloween no matter how you wanted to look at it. But his wife didn’t share his thoughts and this was just one of the compromises a husband sometimes must make for his wife.

Carli had a much different view of Halloween. She’d always enjoyed Halloween as a child and she wanted her children to experience that same thrill and sense of fun. Of course the holiday was more work than fun for her these days, but seeing the anticipation and excitement in the children’s eyes was enough to keep her excited. She also liked to dress up as she chaperoned the children on their candy acquiring rounds. It was a way to stay connected and enjoy the experience with the kids as well as keep an eye on them. Thinking back to her own fun days as a trick-or-treater she decided that dressing up as a child would be a fitting costume for this year.

Prior to Halloween she’d shop area Goodwill stores, garage sales, craft stores, and flea markets looking for costume pieces and ideas for the kids. A pair of long out-of-style women’s boots made for a passable pair of pirate boots. That worked nearly as well as an old red jacket she’d found that looked like it came straight off a pirate boat. A reworked and black dyed Dr. Seuss hat made a convincing witch’s hat for Sasha. Carli had even found a frilly dress that she was able to make into a convincing short child’s style dress for her own costume. Some white ankle socks and a pair of Mary Janes look-alikes gave the look more authenticity.

She used some department store Halloween spray-on haircolor to give Sasha a green tinge to her hair. For her own hair, she pulled it to the sides and added a couple of oversized pink ribbons. A large lollipop used as a prop finished the look. Carli had asked Don to shorten the handle on an old broom for Sasha’s prop to finish her outfit. Then she convinced Don to loan Mark his prized Star Wars light sabre even though Don complained it was an original and worth too much to use as a toy. Carli laughed as she told him it was a toy! He relented and this made Mark a rather ’hi-tech’ pirate... which he loved! With some well-considered makeup choices the final touches were in place.

The three trick-or-treaters made their way to the family room to show Don their costumes and get a picture taken before beginning their rounds.

"Are you sure you don’t want to go? We can still throw a costume together for you too" Carli asked knowing full well the answer.

Don looked up from the television, looked his wife over and then said "I liked the cheerleader outfit better"

His wife smiled knowingly "I thought you liked the schoolgirl outfit best?"

"They were both pretty good" he replied with a wink.

"Ok then... But you never answered the question... Are you sure you don’t want to join us tonight?"

"What was the answer last year?"

"Ummm I think you said ’No’"

"And the year before?" Don asked.

"I think that was ’No’ too" Carli answered with a laugh.

"Well, thanks for asking but I think I’ll be just fine here at home for another Halloween" Don said as he snapped a few quick photos of the threesome.

They headed out the door and just before Carli closed it she poked her head back into the room "There’s plenty of candy here so don’t be pretending you’re not home when the trick-or-treaters stop by"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah... I know... Don’t worry... Have a good time....~Kids~!" he replied with a smile. He waved and then redirected his attention back to the TV.

----

Living where they did, the houses weren’t all lined up in neat little rows on orderly blocks. They were far to the outskirts of town and surrounded by housing additions and farmland. This meant a lot of walking and as the night wore on Carli began to feel her 30 years creeping up on her. Meanwhile, the kids seemed to have more energy than ever.

"Are you guys going to try and get to every house in the county or what?" a tired Carli asked.

The twins giggled. It sounded like a good idea to them. They figured they were already on a record pace for accumulated candy. Why stop now?

Carli sighed and they trudged on.

"C’mon mom... Don’t be such a slow poke!"

"Yeah.... we don’t want people to run out of candy before we get there!"

"OK... OK... but just a few more" she said, finally deciding this wasn’t much fun for her anymore.

After a few more houses Carli decided to put her tired foot down and put an end to the trick-or-treating for the year.

"Awwwwww... mom!" Mark and Sasha whined in chorus.

"No ’Awwww mom’. We’ve been out here long enough and you’ve both got plenty candy"

"I thought you liked trick-or-treating?" Sasha complained.

"Yeah!?" Mark added.

"Kids, I like watching you guys trick-or-treat but enough is enough. Let’s go home and see what you’ve got"

"One more house, Okay?"

"Yeah... Pleeeeease!"

"Pleeeeeeease"

"You know, I don’t think there are any houses left!" Carli told them.

"What about that one?" Carli asked pointing to a long driveway that they’d passed.

"Yeah, it’s on the way home and we didn’t go there!" Mark added, trying to make his case.

"Well, that’s Ms. Hornsapple and...." Carli answered but then caught herself. All her life people had talked about Ms. Hornsapple. There were rumors and innuendo about her. Mostly rantings of teenagers looking to scare each other with talk of buried bodies there, or her being some kind of witch. Carli couldn’t believe she’d let that stuff sink in. Ms. Hornsapple was probably a lonely old lady living far off the road and in need of company. She’d lived in this area all her life and had never spoken to, or even seen, the old woman. How rude. She decided this was a perfect opportunity to rectify that.

"OK... but this is the last one" she said.

"Yay!" the children exclaimed.

The trio turned and walked up the long driveway. It looked like it had been a while since a car had been on it. Carli saw a ’No Tresspassing’ sign hanging awkwardly on a fencepost but figured it was to keep hunters out of the fields. There were lights on inside the old farmhouse so it was a good sign the old woman was still awake.

They stepped up onto the rickety wooden porch and Carli reached for the tarnished brass door knocker. Before she could grab it the door opened and there stood Ms. Hornsapple.

"Ohhhhh trick-or-treaters! How wonderful" the old lady said in an aged but songlike voice.

Carli took in the site of the old woman. She seemed harmless enough. Certainly elderly but not looking like she had one foot in the grave either.

"Come in, children... Come in!" she said, almost pleading.

They stepped in an Carli spoke up "We’re...."

"I know... You’re the Jackson’s from down the road a ways. I’m glad we finally are getting to meet, dear. It gets so lonely up here. So lonely!"

Carli was a bit taken aback... She couldn’t ever remember seeing this old woman....ever... yet she knew who they were. Even in their costumes.

"It’s OK if you don’t have any candy" Carli explained "I doubt you get many trick-or-treaters way up here... but we wanted to stop by and say ’hi’ anyway".

"Ohhh children! I have lots of candy! It seems I always get candy but it just goes to waste"

There were two full bowls of candy by the door and Ms Hornsapple dumped it all in the kids’ bags.

"Sit down.... Sit down...." she said "Surely you can spare an old lady 10 minutes?"

Carli’s tired legs almost spoke for her "Certainly.... Thank you" she answered and took a seat on an old couch. She tugged on the short dress trying to cover her legs as much as possible. She wondered if the old woman might think it an inappropriate costume.

"There’s more candy in the kitchen" Ms Hornsapple said as she directed Mark and Sasha that direction.

"You don’t have to do that... You might need it for others..." Carli told her.

"Others? I’m afraid not. It’s getting late and I’m afraid you’re the only trick-or-treaters I’ll see. I guess I’m just too far off the road, dear. But what about about you... Don’t you have a bag for treats?"

Carli smiled "No, not me. I’m a little old for that. I just like dressing up with the twins, doing this together, and seeing them get so excited"

"You do seem happy dressed as a child. It’s a very convincing costume for you. Very pretty. I bet you were a happy child"

"Thank you" Carli answered politely "I always had fun on Halloween. Sometimes I wish I could be a child again just to experience that time again"

"How lovely.... I’m sure you do..."

The old woman’s voice trailed off and she smiled a bit, crinkling her wrinkled face even more. She put her hands in the air and spoke a few words that Carli couldn’t understand.

"Excuse me?" Carli asked.

"Nothing dear... Just an old... saying... from the old country"

Before Ms. Hornsapple could say more the children returned with the bonus sweets. Their bags were filled to the top. Carli looked at the nearly overflowing bags and suddenly wondered why she hadn’t brought her own bag afterall. She was curious where that thought had come from.

"Well, we better be on our way" Carli said as she bounced up with a newfound energy. She was glad that the short break had recharged her batteries and felt ready for the walk back home "Make sure you thank Ms Hornsapple for the candy"

"Thank you, Ms. Hornsapple" the children sang in unison.

"Thank you children.... Happy Halloween"

--

Carli, Mark and Sasha walked back down the long drive. Carli didn’t want to say anything but for some reason the walk seemed a little more frightening than it had earlier.

"Ummmm let’s pick up the pace... OK?" Carli asked.

"But mom... My candy bag is heavy" Sasha whined.

"Mine tooooooo" Mark added.

"Well, that’s your own fault" Carli answered "You shouldn’t have been so greedy!"

About that time an owl started announcing his presence.

Carli froze in her tracks which stopped Mark and Sasha as well. "What is it?" Sasha asked.

"It’s just a dumb hoot owl" Mark said.

Carli knew deep down it probably was an owl but for her mind seemed to want to fill with other possibilities too.

"Ya sure?" she asked.

"Yeah" Mark replied "It’s just an owl"

She bit her lip and looked around the darkness. "We better hurry... just in case"

"Just in case, what?" Mark asked.

"In case maybe it’s a monster or something like that!" Carli answered as she picked up the pace.

"You’re funny, mom!" Mark said sarcastically, sensing his mom was trying to scare them.

Mark and Sasha struggled to keep up as they had to carry their over-stuffed trick-or-treat bags.

They finally all made it home safe and sound with their bounty of candy.

---

"Sooooo my trick-or-treaters are home" Don said as the door opened "It’s about time"

"Mom’s afraid of a dumb ol’ owl" Mark told his dad.

"Am not!" Carli shot back.

"Uh huh"

"Nuh uh"

"Uh huh"

"Nuh uh"

Don laughed "I think you might’ve worn that costume a little too long. Not only are you dressing like a little girl, you’re starting to act like one"

Sasha and Mark laughed. Carli turned to Mark and stuck her tongue out which got another laugh out of Don. "Ok enough playing around. You guys best get ready for bed. It’s getting late. You can sort through your candy tomorrow"

"And you get over here" Don said winking at his wife.

She took a seat beside him on the couch.

"So, how was it?" he asked.

"I wish I’d took a trick-or-treat bad too. Look at all the candy they got!" Carli answered.

"Yeah, it looks like a record haul this year. It took you long enough though"

"Well, we decided to stop at Ms. Hornsapple’s"

"The old vampire lady or whatever?"

"Uh huh... but she’s really nice"

"Why on earth would you go there?"

"I dunno... We just did... But she’s nice. It’s kinda creepy there though"

"How so?"

"I dunno... It just is... It just made me feel funny or something"

"Well, I can understand it. All those stories people have said about her. You wouldn’t have got me up there! No wonder you were afraid of that owl!"

"I wasn’t really afraid!" she complained.

Don leaned over to kiss his wife but instead of the passionate kiss he’d normally get, she instead just returned the kiss with a light peck and turned back to the TV.

"Too tired, huh?"

"I think I’m gonna get ready for bed" she answered.

--

Carli went upstairs and stepped into the bathroom. Her mind replayed the events of the night. Particularly meeting Ms. Hornsapple. Something still didn’t seem right to her though. For one thing, she still had regrets about not bringing her own trick-or-treat bag that night and she really couldn’t reconcile that. Why did she care so much about a bag of candy? And why had she gotten so frightened on the return home? She’d lived in this area all her life and was used to the area and it’s noises and wildlife.

And she wondered why she’d gotten into the childish little spat with Mark earlier. But then she decided he deserved it.

She took a look into the mirror to see her costume one last time before undressing. She let loose with a giggle as she had memories of dressing in a similar way, and how it made her feel, when her mother would get Carli’s nicest dress ready for church on Easter Sunday. Staring into the mirror, it really took her back. She could remember things from 25 years ago as if they were yesterday. What surprised her more was how well she could remember even the feelings from back then. She could vividly remember just what it felt like to be a kid.

Carli began to stare deeply into her reflection in the mirror. Thoughts raced through her mind. She couldn’t quit thinking about the costume that she was wearing. Even on her 30 year old body, something just seemed right about the costume. Her eyes closed. The feelings of being a kid pulsed through her body. In her mind, she could see and feel herself running and playing. On the playground. In the yard. At the park. At school. The memories were intense... and enjoyable. It was almost as if she’d been transported back in time.

Her thoughts were abrutly ended as Don knocked on the door " Are you OK?! You’ve been in there an hour... at least! Are you going to sleep in there?"

"Uh...no.... I’ll be out in a minute" she answered, shaking her head and trying to come back to earth. "Sorry, I lost track of ummm time"

She rather quickly discarded the costume and finally stepped into the shower for a few minutes. The water was relaxing and she felt rejuvenated.

After emerging from the shower, she changed into some knee length cuttoff sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt like she liked to sleep in. For some reason, even though she’d removed the ribbons, she still liked keeping her hair pulled to the sides. Again, this was also puzzling because she didn’t know why this look appealed to her so much suddenly. Even though it seemed a little juvenile, for some reason she liked it.

Don was already in the bed and Carli noticed clock beside it read 11:45PM, Oct 30.

Carli got into bed and pulled the covers tight. It was a warm night outside but she felt chilled anyway. She heard the wind pick up and rustle the leaves outside. Then she heard thunder.

"Don... Don... the thunder...." she said trying to wake her husband.

"It’s just a storm rolling in. Go to sleep"

Carli tried to sleep but the thunder quickly crept closer. The lightning was getting brighter as well.

11:55PM. The wind was blowing harder now. The thunder sounded loud and very close. Each lightning flash would light the room in a brilliant white glow.

"Don... Don... are you sure it’s OK?"

Don rolled over "Hon, it’s just a little storm. Go to sleep. If I can sleep through it then surely you can too"

"OK" she answered and hugged her pillow and started to shiver just a bit.

11:57PM. The thunder was louder now. The lightning flashed all around. Tree limbs scratched against the house. Trash cans rattled outside as they blew over and their lids flew off, spilling their contents on the ground.

11:58PM. Carli sniffed and wanted to wake her husband again but he’d already told her to go to sleep. He just didn’t understand she thought as the claps of thunder grew louder and louder. This must be a bad, bad storm!

11:59PM. The wind sounded absolutely violent now. The thunder and lightning seemed like it was right in their back yard and coming closer. The clock kept ticking toward midnight. Finally the room lit up in a bright flash, as bright as anything Carli had ever seen. There seemed to be a pink glow around the edges.The thunder that accompanied the lightning made her ears ring and the floor shake. She pulled the covers over her head just as the click ticked to midnight.

The storm thankfully seemed to disappear faster than it had rolled in. Carli hugged her pillow as tightly as possible and it felt bigger than ever but very comforting as she was finally able to drift off to sleep.

----

Don awakened just before the clock rolled over to 7AM, thus ready to sound its annoying alarm. He shut off the alarm before it had a chance to ring out and then he looked at the small lump in the covers beside him.

He patted the lump "Wake up, Sasha, the storm’s all over now". Don assumed Sasha had joined he and Carli in bed last night and Carli must already be up. Probably in the kitchen preparing breakfast.

"It’s not Sasha... it’s....OH! " a tiny voice said from under the covers but never finished the words.

The covers flew back and a little blond girl in an oversized T-shirt began examining the back of her hands. Then those same hands went to her face, slowly caressing and tracing it as if reading braille. Then she brushed her smaller hands down the front of her T shirt. "What...What happened?"

Don hadn’t paid attention to any of this. He’d heard a voice but it assumed it was Sasha and he’d not paid any more attention than that. He’d simply moved on to the closet in the other room to find some clothes for the day.

The child turned in the bed and dangled her bare feet over the edge and nearly fell as she lowered herself to the floor. It was so much farther down than she remembered.

"Don... Don.... What’s going on?" she said as she worriedly padded to the bathroom to look in the mirror.

Hearing the commotion, Don returned to see what was happening. There stood a little girl, her blond hair pulled to the sides, looking every bit like a sister to Sasha but certainly it wasn’t Sasha.

Her eyes scanned the mirror.... up and down.... up and down. Every move she made, the little girl in the mirror did the same. She looked to the floor where her cutoff sweat pants pooled at her feet. She kicked at them and wiggled her toes. Carli was realizing this was not a dream... the little girl was really her.

"What the hell is going on here?" Don asked "Who are you?"

"It’s me... Carli... your wife!" the little girl answered trying to fight back tears.

Don didn’t want to believe it but all things seemed to point that direction. After some initial disbelief, if not denial, Don grudgingly accepted the impossible: His wife had been transformed into a child!

"What the hell happened... how???" he asked once he’d accepted the reality.

"I dunno..... It’s not my fault!" she answered as if she felt she was about to get scolded "I didn’t do this on purpose! How is this even possible?"

"Honey... we’ll figure this out. What happened? When?"

Carli spoke haltingly, fighting back tears "I was a grownup when I went to bed... I’m sure of it.... And then there was the storm.... and it got cold... and I hugged my pillow and it felt like it got bigger.... and...."

"The storm! The storm must’ve done this! You must’ve gotten struck by lightning or there was something in the storm... chemicals or something! That’s got to be it... a total freak thing...." Don said as he turned on the TV to hear the morning news and see if this had happened elsewhere.

Much to their surprise, there wasn’t any mention of a storm at all. In fact, the weatherman said it had been calm all night.

"Maybe they’re hiding it... Like a coverup or something!" Don wondered aloud.

"How could they hide a storm?" Little Carli asked, trying to make sense of the situation.

"I don’t know...." Don said as he sighed and tried to collect his thoughts .

"Ms. Hornsapple!" Carli lisped "I bet she has something to do with this! Maybe she really is a witch!"

"That doesn’t make sense" Don replied.

"And THIS does?" little Carli said as she waved her youthened arms into the air flapping the sleeves of her oversized T-shirt. "And ’member how I said I felt funny after I was there?"

The two looked at each other and another thought crossed both their minds at the same time: Mark and Sasha had also been to Ms. Hornsapple’s... maybe they were affected somehow too!

"The kids!" they exclaimed in unison.

They both ran down the hall and opened the doors to the children’s rooms. The kids were apparently fine but the slowly awakening Sasha was very curious about who the other little girl in the house was.

"Who are YOU?" Sasha asked as she wiped sleep from her eyes.

Little Carli turned to look at Don as if to hope he had a proper answer for Sasha. After an awkward moment of silence, Carli ran to her bedroom in tears. Don told the children there would be a family meeting in a few minutes and then he ran to console Carli.

---

"How can this be happening?" Carli sobbed "I didn’t want this"

"It’s not that bad. We’ll get to the bottom this and then I’m sure it can be reversed. Beisdes, look on the bright side, even if the worst case scenario is it can’t be reversed... in 20 years instead of being 50 years old you’ll be a hottie in your mid twenties! What’s wrong with that?"

"What?? How is that ’sposed to make me feel better?" Carli kept bawling "And you’ll be... ummmmm.... ?"

"I’ll be 50 with a 20 something wife. What’s wrong with that?"

Don might’ve been trying to console Carli but it wasn’t working very well.

"You can’t be married to a.... a.... child..... And can you wait on me to grow up again? And what about the twins? Am I gonna be a parent or playmate?"

"Why do you say that? You can still be a parent. It’ll be different but...."

"That’s just it... I feel like a kid. I’m not even sure I’m thinking straight all the time. How can I be a parent if I can’t trust my judgement? And would the kids even mind me? How can I expect them to respect me looking like this??!! And will I be able to set rules and enforce them or will the kids be able to change my mind? Will they still be our kids... or will they be my peers?"

"That’s just crazy. You seem perfectly lucid to me. And however that old woman did this to you then I’m sure she can undo it. We just need to be calm and reasonable and take this one step at a time"

"We’re not even sure she really did this..." Carli replied.

Don thought for a moment and then said "I’m going to get the kids ready for a meeting. Why don’t you get dressed and get downstairs and be waiting for us"

"And what am I supposed to wear to this family meeting?" Carli asked as she kicked at the over-sized T-shirt that was almost a full length dress.

"I’m sure you can find something of Sasha’s to fit" Don offered.

Wearing children’s clothing was just another punch to the stomach that made Carli realize how much things had changed... literally overnight! But she didn’t have much choice.

--------

Don gathered the twins and told them how he wanted them to act at the meeting. He didn’t tell them exactly what was up though. He just wanted to set some ground rules so that they were careful with what they said. This only made the kids more curious. Was something wrong with their mother they asked. Don told them she was perfectly healthy but they all needed to talk. Then they wondered if their parents were getting a divorce. "Not that either" Don told them.

The kids were increasingly curious about the new child in the house and wondered if the family was adopting a child.

Meanwhile, Carli gathered some shorts, a T-shirt, and flip flops. All things that belonged to Sasha, and the she hurriedly dressed. She brushed her hair and then sulked downstairs to await the rest of the family. It really began to sink in how different everything was. The room looked bigger. So did the table and all the furniture. Nothing seemed close, everything required a reach or stretch.

After a couple of minutes, Don brought the twins in and joined little Carli at the table. Sasha noticed the other little girl was wearing her clothing but kept quiet about it for now.

"Where’s mom?" Mark asked.

Don looked at Carli, took a breath, and then started to explain "There’s been some type of.... uhhhhh let’s call it a happening. Your mother is perfectly fine so don’t worry about that. But she’s not exactly herself either"

Both kids kept stealing looks at the strange new child in the room. They did notice a familiarity about her. Maybe in the back of their minds they were starting to get an idea of what their dad was leading up to, but it was just too unbelievable for them to let the question leave their lips. They kept listening.

"This is probably a temporary thing...." Don said

"We don’t know that" Carli piped in causing all eyes to focus on her.

"It could be, hon. Think positive. Kids, I don’t know how to say this but to just spill it.... THIS -is- your mother! Something happened and she got younger. Lots younger"

"You mean like the Fountain of Youth?" Sasha asked.

"There’s no such thing!" Mark shot back.

The kids began to chatter.

"Kids! Don’t argue! We don’t need this now. In a way I guess you could say your mother has found the Fountain of Youth. But it’s not like she was looking for it. And she doesn’t exactly know how this happened. We have some ideas and hopefully things will get back to normal. But until then you need to be on your best behavior and you need to keep this quiet. We don’t want the outside world knowing about this. This is rough enough on your mother as it is"

"So, does she still know she’s, like, you know... mom?" Mark asked.

"Yeah... Does she need a babysitter?" Sasha asked.

"Will she ride the bus to school with us?"

"This is sooooo cool.... We can share clothes and stuff all the time"

"Sasha... Mark... I’m right here. You don’t have to act like I’m not in the room. I might be a kid again, but I’m still your mother!"

"Sorry, mommy.... but it’s so weird to have a mom that’s, like, our age..." Sasha told her.

"Or maybe younger!" Mark quipped.

"I’m not younger! And I will not be going to school with you. At least I hope I never need to do that!"

Sasha and Mark seemed more excited than worried. It didn’t seem like the worst thing that could happen to wake up and find one of your parents was suddenly transformed into a child. If anything, it seemed like a good thing. It was as if they suddenly had much more in common. Sasha was especially excited about the turn of events. She always wanted a sister and many times had wished Mark had been born a girl.

Don waited for the commotion to die down and then he laid out the plans for the day "Kids, you’re going to school and will not be saying a word of this to anyone. I’m going to go into work for a couple of hours to make arrangements to take some time off. It may take several days so there’s lots I need to tie up. I wish I didn’t have to go in at all but there are things that need to be done. Important things. But this is important too, so I’ll be back here and we’ll start on the path to getting things back to normal. Sound good?"

Everyone shook their heads in agreement and then Don excused himself to head to the office.

"So, mom.... do we really have to go to school today? Don’t you need our help?" Mark asked

"Yeah... Being a kid is hard" Sasha explained.

Carli shook her head "And if you stayed home what exactly would you do?"

Sasha shrugged "We could play with my dolls. Do you like stuff like that now that you’re a kid again?"

"I dunno about that...." Carli answered with some indecision.

"Dumb ol’ girl... She doesn’t want to play with dolls" Mark said.

And there it was- Those conficting thoughts racing through her head again. Of course she wanted to play with dolls. It seemed perfectly natural and a great idea even if a little voice told her that it wasn’t the right answer.

"I do too want to play with dolls but YOU need to go to school!" Carli ordered Mark.

"Huh? Why do I have to go and Sasha doesn’t?"

"Because I said so and I’m the mommy so you gotta do it!"

"And what if I don’t? Maybe you’re not the boss of me anymore..."

Carli had several answers running through her head. The one that made the most sense raced to the front. "If you don’t do it.... I’ll tell!"

"Yeah.... mommy will tell daddy on you and you’ll be in big trouble!" Sasha explained.

"Yeah!" Carli added for emphassis.

Mark didn’t like this turn of events but he didn’t think he wanted to push it with his father and so he dutifully left for school.

Sasha led Carli to her room and they opened the dollhouse and began arranging the dollhouse furniture. Part of Carli told her she shouldn’t be doing this but another part of her was very excited to be playing with Sasha like this. She was glad Sasha thought of it.

When Don returned home he found the two girls laughing and playing in Sasha’s bedroom.

--

"What’s going on here?!" Don demanded to know "....And why aren’t you in school, Sasha?"

"Mommy said I didn’t have to go" Sasha answered thinking that would get her out of trouble.

Don looked at Carli and the anger in his eyes began to change to concern "Are you OK, Carli?"

Carli jumped up and ran to Don, grabbing his leg. "I’m sorry!" she said as she fought back tears.

"Sasha, go to the living room and turn on the TV. I want to talk to your mother in private"

Sasha did as she was told and Don took a seat on the bed "Carli, sweetie, maybe it’s not good for you to be in charge by yourself around the kids until we get this straightened out. Maybe you were right this morning. It looks like your judgement has been affected"

Carli looked up and there was a knowing look in her eyes. For whatever reason, her brain just didn’t work the same way anymore. Even though she could still see the options, she knew she couldn’t trust making the right decision anymore. A tear started to form in the corner of her eye. Fear of what the future would hold was washing over her. She wondered if she would lose touch with her adult self entirely. This thought brought a flood of tears. Would there be school to attend again? The pain of growing up? It was too much. She already knew too much about growing up to have to do it again!

"Hon, don’t cry. We’re going to go to Ms. Hornsapple’s house and see what she knows about this. If she had anything to do with it then maybe she will reverse it. You said she was nice so maybe this is all some kind of mistake"

"But I don’t wanna go back... I’m scared"

"I’ll be there with you. There’s nothing to be afraid of. This is the first step and we have to take it"

"What if she didn’t do this to me?" Carli asked through sobs

"Well, it seems pretty likely she did. If she didn’t have anything to do with this then eventually we’ll need to turn to doctors and scientists. But you know they’re not going know what this is all about so there will be tests, and questions, and who knows what else. We don’t want them probing and prodding on you and the rest of us if we don’t have to. But we’ll get through this because we’re going to do whatever it takes. Now, dry your eyes and be a big girl....Uhhh... I’m sorry... that didn’t come out right. You just have to be tough"

Not able to leave Sasha by herself, Don gathered the two girls and loaded them into the car. "You too" Don said as he motioned for Carli to get into the child restraint seat that was normally used by Mark. Carli reluctantly agreed but it gave her a sinking feeling wondering if this was ultimately going to be a regular thing for her. Her former freedom seemed gone. She’s have to rely on others.

Don had not planned on involving Sasha in this, but thanks to her youthened mother’s lapse in judgement in allowing her to stay home from school, he didn’t think he could leave her home alone.

They were off to visit Ms. Hornsapple.

---

Don herded the two girls toward the large door of Ms. Hornsapple’s old house. Carli still wasn’t too sure she wanted to go back there. She felt equal parts scared and shy as well. Her former confidence had long since escaped her.

Don reached to knock on the door but it opened before he could make contact. Carli slid behind Don so as to hide just a bit.

"I thought I heard someone! Hello, hello! What cute little girls! Come in! Come in! Please take a seat" Ms. Hornsapple said.

Carli held Sasha’s hand and walked meekly behind her. The old woman’s presence seemed overwhelming now. Everyone found a seat and Don began to speak.

"Ummm Don’t take this the wrong way but last night my wife and children stopped by here trick-or-treating..."

"Oh yes... what special children"

Don got to the point. "Well, something happened last night. Hear me out because this might sound odd..... My wife was turned into a child last night!"

He expected some reaction from Ms. Hornsapple but she seemed totally accepting of his story. "Now, I’m sure you know how people have... welll... ummmm... talked through the years?"

"How do you mean?"

"By saying that you might be a... uhhhh... well... you might be different"

"Different?"

"Well, people would say you could cast spells..."

"Oh... you mean when people would say that I’m a witch?"

"OK... Yes... And so we... I... I just thought you might know something about what made Carli change from an adult to a child"

"I do"

"You know?"

"Yes, she looked so cute dressed as a little ragamuffin that I summoned certain forces to turn her into one. And isn’t she adorable?"

"But she didn’t want to be a child again!"

"It didn’t look that way to me. And she looks so happy now"

"I need to ask you to return her to normal. You can do that can’t you?"

"I can. It’s Halloween afterall. I can summon many forces on Halloween"

"Sooooo?"

"So, what?"

"Will you?"

"If that is what she wants"

"She does. Tell her, hon"

Little Carli looked up "Uh huh... I wanna be a grownup again"

Ms. Hornsapple nodded her head slowly "You’ll need to leave us for a while" she ordered.

"C’mon Sasha... let’s leave Ms. Hornsapple alone with your mommy"

"No, I want Sasha to stay. I want to talk to both of them before I cast a spell to restore this child to her adult state"

"I see... Ummmm When you restore her it’s probably fine if you just make her in her 20’s or something like that... If you want..."

"Don!" Carli exclaimed.

"Or whatever she wants" Don added as he sheepishly excused himself to go outside. He was glad this ordeal was about to be over.

--

"Soooo, kiddies... You don’t like the way things have worked out?" Ms. Hornsapple asked.

"I’m ok with things" Sasha happily answered.

"But you want to be ~old~ again?" Ms. Hornsapple asked Carli.

"I’m ’sposed to be a grownup"

"I thought you’d appreciate the chance to relive your youth. You’re hurting my feelings. And little Sasha seems happy. In fact you seem happy yourself if you ask me. Do you really want to disappoint us this way?"

Carli looked down as if ashamed. She nodded her slowly from left to right "No, mam"

"That’s more like it. So then this silly stuff about changing you back into a tired, old, boring grownup can go away!"

"No... I better still be a grownup. I got stuff I gotta do"

Ms. Hornsapple looked around the room as if lost in thought "OK, then. I think I know what is wrong... You’re too connected to your adult world. Well, I guess I could change you back. I was hoping with such a gift that I gave you, your youth again, that you’d want to vist me to thank me. It’s awfully lonely here for an old woman by herself. Sasha, wouldn’t you like growing up with Carli? She could be like a sister. You could share the experience of all of the things life brings... playing... blossoming unto young women... boys... first love!"

"That would be cool" Sasha said "I’d like that stuff. Wouldn’t you, mommy?"

"I guess... but that stuff wouldn’t be new to me. I know what growing up is like already..." Carli answered.

"I suppose that is true. But tell me... Be honest... What if it was new to you? Wouldn’t that be exciting?" the old woman asked.

"Yeah..."

"And doesn’t it feel good being a child?"

"Yeah..."

"What if I could erase those doubts and worries and make everything new again?"

Carli tried to sort through everything the old woman was saying. Her youthened mind just wasn’t wired the same anymore and she just wasn’t sure of her own answers.

"You should trust your feelings" Ms. Hornsapple told Carli, as if she knew Carli was struggling to find the proper answer "What feels right?"

"Playing and being a kid" Carli answered "But I gotta be a grownup"

"It’s that nagging doubt! I have a way to make that go away. I’ll just make you younger. You’ll be too young to have those nagging doubts"

"Younger?" Carli asked, not sure of that idea.

"If mommy is younger we won’t be the same age to grow up together..." Sasha protested.

"Yeah..." Carli said, still confused if she was really thinking clearly.

"Well, I could make you younger too" Ms. Hornsapple said.

"I don’t want to be littler" Sasha replied.

"But it would just be a couple of years. Time flies by so quickly that you’d hardly notice it. And you’d both be the same age and too young to really have any worries. And it’s really the only way for your mommy to really enjoy this second childhood. She just has too many thoughts and concerns weighing on her now. But I could take all that away. What do you say?"

"We’d be both the same age?" Sasha asked.

"Yes... just a little younger and more innocent... That’s all. That innocence is what would erase the worries and doubts for your mom. But we need to do it now.. today... on Halloween... while my power is strongest"

"I don’t know...." Carli said.

"C’mon, mommy... Let’s do it... It would be fun and we’d only be a little younger"

Carli felt the pressure to say ’yes’ and she also felt a compulsion to do what would please others. And saying ’ok’ would be really easy...

"OK" she said "it sounds fun"

The old woman smiled and raised her hands and mumbled a series of words that neither Carli or Sasha could understand.

--

Outside:

Don paced around the yard wondering what was taking so long. But then he had no idea how long it should take for a spell to be undone. He knew the old woman was the one in control and he didn’t want to rush her and risk angering her. He just hoped there wasn’t any problems. At least she seemed reasonable and understanding.

He noticed the breeze start to pick up and saw a few clouds rolling in. They seemed to be moving quickly. Soon, he heard thunder. It had been a very nice day but that was changing now. Thunder claps grew louder and closer. The clouds rolled in the sky. The wind kicked up dust and started rattling the loose shingles on the old house. Don could see the lightning flashes in the sky and knew the storm was rolling in quickly. Very quickly. It was growing much darker and Don realized this storm wasn’t like any storm he’d seen before. It seemed to be heading straight for the house but was still clear elsewhere. This had to be the same type storm that had occurred the night before when Carli was first transformed.

He ran to the porch and tried to open the door but it was locked and he couldn’t open it. The rain was now pelting the house and he tried to take cover as best as he could on the old porch but the wind was blowing the rain like pellets now.

He tried to bang on the windows but the windows were all closed and the shades were drawn. He tried yelling but the howling wind seemed to drown out his voice. He only could hope that the same type storm that turned his wife into a child was now turning her into her old self again. That had to be it he told himself.

Inside:

Carli and Sasha hugged each other for comfort as the storm continued hammering away. The lightning seemed to come inside through every possible crack in the old house.

Ms. Hornsapple smiled "Don’t worry children. It will soon pass and then I can take care of you. I’ll never have to be lonely again."

The girls squealed with each clap of thunder, their voices growing higher and higher in pitch each time. Faster and faster the lightning flashes would come. Outside, Don covered his head with his hands and visibly recoiled with each flash and following thunder burst.

The girls had to readjust their position on the old couch. They felt each other’s bodies growing smaller and had to hug each other tighter and tighter to hang on. A slight chill in the room grew even colder.

And then a final brilliant flash of lightning and clap of thunder rang out. And then it was over.

"Perfect, my sweets!" Ms. Hornsapple cackled as she looked at the two toddlers huddled on the couch "Two is even better than one. I’ll take care of you both!"

Little Carli and Sasha just giggled and poked at each other’s pudgy bodies. They were barely more than infants now. Maybe 2 years old at best. Certainly, too young to have any real worries for themselves. Both entirely innocent.

"What a gift I’ve given you!" the old woman said as she took the children to another room "We’ll be so happy together!"

She then walked to the large door an opened it. Don was standing there ready to knock when it opened.

"Is everything how it should be?" Don asked, his voice filled with hope.

"Everything is exactly how it should be" Ms. Hornsapple answered and motioned Don inside.

He looked around the room and saw the children’s shoes on the floor by the couch. He also noticed some other articles of clothing nearby. Something wasn’t right. Then he heard the voices of children....very young children! He cautiously followed a beaming Ms. Hornsapple into the next room.

His eyes widened and he stepped back when he saw the two toddlers, sitting on the floor, playing patty cake. It was nothing like the scene he’d expected. Not only was his wife still not an adult, but now she and Sasha were both even smaller children.

"This is what they wanted" the old woman said.

"What? You bitch! They didn’t want this. You said you’d restore her! Now look what you’ve done! They’re hardly more than babies! I can’t take care of two babies!"

"Don’t worry. I’ll take care of them. They’ll make for lots of company. Do you know how lonely it is for an old woman up here? This is just perfect"

"No wonder it’s lonely... You can’t be trusted! Nobody wants this to happen to them!"

"It’s a gift!"

"It’s a nightmare! You have to restore both of them. This is not negotiable!"

"I couldn’t bear the loneliness any longer.... and aren’t they adorable!"

"This can’t be happening. No! One of those children has a son that’s older than her now. She’s already married... to me! She can’t grow up again! And they don’t belong to you!"

"Well, I’ve made up my mind and I don’t plan on changing them back. I don’t want to be lonely again and I will not allow it to happen. I can teach them things that you’ll never be able to teach them. Besides, this is what they wanted. There’s nothing you can do about it. I’m the only one who knows how to reverse this and I have no plans to share the secret with anyone."

"With God as my witness I will make sure you restore these two to their proper ages. I will do whatever it takes!" Don proclaimed as he walked over to his extremely youthened wife and daughter.

"No! You can’t leave me alone up here! They’re mine now! We’re a family! No! No! Don’t take them. No... please... please... I beg you!"

"Why aren’t you stopping me with your witchcraft?" Don asked as he realized she should be able to stop him if she really wanted to "Hey... You have to trick people to agree to your spells don’t you? Don’t you? Don’t you?!"

"I assure you I don’t ’trick’ anyone!" she replied in a huff.

"I’m right! I know the secret to your powers don’t I? Well, you won’t ’trick’ me! I WILL take these children with me and you WILL reverse it or I’ll find someone like you that can do it"

"No! Please, no!" she pleaded. The old woman’s expression changed to sadness "I can’t be alone any longer. I know how to reverse the spell, but if I do, you and your family will have no reason to ever visit me again"

"We’ll visit.... I promise"

"You patronize me. I know what you’re thinking before you do!" she snapped.

"Do the right thing and restore these two! You know how to do it" Don ordered.

"Never!"

"I will get it out of you!" Don said as he began to grow braver and walked threatenly toward the old woman.

"Stay back... I’m the only one who knows how to reverse this and you can’t harm me!"

"Bitch! Reverse it!" he said as his eyes grew red with rage and he walked ever closer to the old woman.

"No! Stay back!" she ordered but to no avail.

"You KNOW how to do it.... now DO IT!" he ordered as he clinched his fists.

The old woman smirked and said "You mean... ’I Knew’" and then she put her arms into the air and recited a strange collection of words.

Thunder immediately roared and the concussion threw Don instantly to the floor. The new incoming storm caused the 2 year olds to bawl. Don tried to get up but the earth-shaking thunder grew even more ferocious. Sounds came from all around. The house creaked and shook while the wind sounded like a freight train. It sounded more like an unleashed war than a storm. The lightning appeared to flash right inside the house and items fell from the wall, crashing to the floor. The brightness of the lightning temporarilly blinded Don. He felt plaster falling from the ceiling. Glass was breaking everywhere. The crying seemed to only get louder and louder as Sasha and Carli grew more frightened.

And then as soon as it began, it stopped. Only the two crying children could be heard while everything around now seemed to be otherwise eerily quiet. Don stood up and brushed himself off as he accessed the now ransacked room. And then he screamed out....

"No.... No.... Nooooooooo....."

Where Ms. Hornsapple had once stood was simply a pile of clothing. A pile of clothing with an infant looking out from underneath!

She’d regressed herself past the point where she knew anything of her powers or anything else. Don knew she had won. He couldn’t leave this innocent baby behind. And he knew this baby would have no knowledge to restore his wife and daughter and maybe he had himself to blame. Not just for his rage but maybe they all, the whole neighborhood, shared in the blame for ignoring the old woman all these years.

In any case, the woman he was angry with was gone, as were her powers.

No, she wouldn’t be alone... or ignored... any longer.

-The End

 

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