Roar of Dragons

[Xander – 13 years]

"Hi, Xander!" Carter greets us as he and the other boys from the Autumn Realm join our group. Though the others are still in human form, Carter's in wolfkin form. "Hi, Trenton!"

I am more than glad that someone else has shown up. Being alone with Luke and his friends was… not fun. Especially since it's obvious Cyrus thinks I'm cute and is feeling really anxious over it. On top of that, he's also anxious about Seph, who I think he also thinks is cute, maybe even more so than me.

His liking me adds to my own anxiety, and having other boys here might help lessen Cyrus's since there will be more to distract him.

Or he's like me and more people make him nervous, but I'm not feeling an increase in his anxiety over the increase in people. I think that means that he's just a quiet person.

As for me, this means that Luke can stop asking me uncomfortable questions, because I'm sure the boys from the Autumn Realm will realize I'm uncomfortable and talk with me to get him to stop.

"Hi," I wave Trenton's right paw as the others greet me.

"Here, I thought we were a little early," Carter says as I switch to wolfkin. "But looks like we ain't the first to arrive!"

"Luke lives next door and I guess he decided to show up early," I say. "Um… the boy you don't know is Cyrus, he's one of Luke's classmates. He's from the Sunfang family, they own magic beast processing facilities hunters can drop their catches off at."

"We've heard of them," Carter says. "Though they don't have a location out in the Autumn Realm."

"You're all able to handle the processing on your own," Cyrus nods. "Those who can't would just go to someone who can, there. It would only lose us money rather than earn it, especially since your area is one of those 'local is preferred' areas. A big business like ours wouldn't do very well there."

"You okay?" Tate quietly asks me as Carter, Bo, and Cyrus start talking about processing methods for magic beasts.

"Um… I'm feeling really anxious right now," I tell him as we move a little bit further away at his beckoning, probably to make it easier for us to talk in quiet. "And Luke was making me uncomfortable."

"He was?" Tate asks. "How?"

"He was asking me uncomfortable questions."

"Like what?"

"Um…" I fidget a little. "How come I look like I have someone who's pure-blooded Kenzibri in the past couple of generations of me if I don't even have Earth human in my blood. He said he realized something was weird because of thinking about how Cyrus is descended from people from the original Kenzibri tribe and how he shows it really strongly, probably because his family usually gets with people who are also from Kenzibri tribe descent. So they still look really strongly Kenzibri, like Luke and other blonder folks. Unlike y'all, who look like a mix between Zrebzial and a little bit of Kenzibri. That's why y'all have brown hair rather than dark brown, and green or blue eyes."

Tate thinks for a few moments, and I can feel the realizing and confusion entering into his mind.

"Huh," he says. "Did you ask your grandfather about it?"

"Um… no."

"He might know the answer."

"Oh… I guess he would, wouldn't he?" I pull out my phone. "Lemme call him…"

"Hello, Xander," Grandpa Adrian says. "Your guests are about to start arriving now, aren't they? Is everything okay?"

"Some of them have already arrived," I tell him. "And Luke was making me uncomfortable and Tate asked me about it. And then I told him and he asked if I'd asked you, and I agree that you would definitely know."

"What is it?" Grandpa Adrian asks, and I tell him. "I've actually been wondering about that, myself…"

"You have?"

"Yes," he answers. "Magic can cause adaptations in the people and beasts who live in an environment, even when they themselves don't use magic. When I first met the tribes which later became the founders of the towns in the Autumn Realm, they were without magic beyond average capacity – and none knew how to use it. They had, however, descended from people who had undergone adaptations via magical influence. Some of them were Kenzibri, some were Zrebzial. They had combined together in an effort to survive the beasts. That led to the traits those friends of yours from there possess.

"Once I realized you didn't have human from Earth at all," he continues. "I assumed it was likely because of magic adapting you as you grew. It registered you were different, and likely changed your looks a smidge so that you'd look like one of the tribes which had adapted long ago. Since you would have already borne a similarity to the Kenzibri, it picked those ones. This is especially true because your cousins have plenty of Earth human in them, including from those of strong Kenzibri heritage."

"Oh," I say. "So magic just… wanted me to blend in better?"

"That's my assumption of how it happened," Grandpa Adrian confirms. "So it's nothing to worry about."

In other words, it's nothing to worry about. I think. I probably should have asked him if that means that magic altered my genetics a little so that I'd have those traits. Asking him can wait, though. It doesn't really make me worried if it was just to make me blend in to others better.

He definitely would have told me if it was something bad. I'm sure of that. There was also probably some adjustment for my father as well, since he's sort of the same as me in this regard. That means that the adjustment for me probably wasn't even that great to begin with, if it even happened.

"Okay," I say. "Thanks. Bye."

"Bye," he chuckles.

I hang up and tell Tate what Grandpa Adrian said.

"Huh," he says. "I guess that makes sense. Magic sort of does its own thing, and that apparently even means with our looks, huh?"

"I think it's mostly for some cases," I say. "Where it might speed up adaptations, or make people better-able to handle things. That's why Luke's immune to shocks and Parker's immune to heat. Sig's here."

It's not long before everyone I've invited has arrived, which includes Owen and Chris, plus Chance. A pair of twins I met at the park and another boy I met there. All of them are friends with Sig's friend group and they were nice when I met them, which is part of why I decided to invite them. Berry also accepted the invite and he joined us a few minutes ago, so there are thirty-one of us. That means all but one bed in one dorm wing will be occupied.

With all of my guests here, I lead them all into the house so they can put their things in the dorm rooms. We have enough time for that.

"The dorms are all assigned," I say once we're in the section which used to be where we slept during sleepovers here. "We're all in this first one here."

There are three doors leading into the dorms, two for boys and one for girls. There aren't any girls coming to the party, but I still want a wing for any who might in the future. The reason for two wings for boys is because of how many of us there are.

If I keep increasing how many people get invited, then we'll need more than thirty-two beds, and I don't want bunk beds.

"There's a post on the wall beside the door in there," I say. "It lists the rules for when in the dorm wing. It's also very clear that you MUST be wearing at least shorts or pants before leaving the wing. Also, there's a visual barrier over the entrance to the wing, preventing people outside from being able to see anyone who's inside if they're not one of the people assigned to it. That was Grandpa Adrian's suggestion. He's the one who put it in, so it's okay. It's on all three of the dorm wings' entrances.

"The rooms are assigned," I say. "There's a little thing to the right of each dorm room stating who's in which room. Go ahead and put your stuff in your rooms, apart from what you're taking to the farm. There are also rules listed on the back of the door of each dorm room, they're the same as what's on the wall inside of here.

"One of the big, important ones," I say. "Is that while it was okay to let couples stay in the same room, they cannot be alone in them. Also, all couples were assigned to different rooms, so no room has two couples in it."

My room has Carter, Sig, Nash, and myself. I picked that arrangement – Dad let me pick who all got assigned to each room, as long as I followed those rules during the assignment. For the four boys who were invited after the RSVP-by date, Chris was assigned to the room which had Russell, Bo, and Nick. Owen, Chance, and Cyrus were assigned a room together. The reason for those assignments was because the room assignments were already done and I didn't want to rearrange the boys since some stuff had labels on them.

While I was preparing myself for the big group, I also made and set up the things for the four additional boys. That included making the unique things for them, like the stuff with the names on them.

"Huh," Sam says. "So the dads trust us enough to follow the rules? I would've expected it to require that there's different rooms. And a supervisor."

"The doorways are enchanted to ensure couples cannot be alone in a room," I tell him. "So if you're alone in your room and Isaac wants to go in, someone else has to go in first."

"What if the third person leaves?" Luke asks.

"There's a one-minute grace period for one of the boyfriends to leave," I answer. "If one doesn't, then both get teleported into the main rec room under most circumstances."

This is in case both of them are doing something and gives one time to stop and leave. There's an exception for something like if they're both asleep, or if one is. What if Carter wants a midnight snack and Nash has to go to the bathroom during that time? It would be unfair to make Sig and me leave while we're asleep.

So there are some exceptions, but they're much less likely to happen if we're both awake.

"So basically," Connor says. "We're being trusted to behave, and magic was added to ensure it, just in case someone doesn't?"

"Right," I say. "Okay, y'all can put your stuff away. Please make sure you're ready to leave in ten minutes, though."

The other boys go and put their things away and explore the dorm wing for a few minutes, checking out the rooms, shower rooms, and toilet room. They also discover something I forgot to mention, which is that only the boys assigned to a room can enter it. Also that the beds are already assigned as well.

Each room has four beds, plus a cubby-shelf set on the front wall across from each. The two beds on the right when entering have a two-drawer nightstand to their left, while the two to the left have a two-drawer nightstand to their right. For space, each bed and nightstand combo has three feet of space past the nightstand before the next boy's section begins.

This way, everyone has plenty of space.

A trash can sits underneath the nightstand, and there's a box of tissues and a magic lamp block on top of the nightstands. There are also some supplies in the drawers in the nightstands, including but not limited to an extra box of tissues, a writing pad, some pencils, pens, and extra lead for the pencils, and a box of bags for the small trash cans.

The beds are all twin beds, with blue sheets and green blankets, the pillows covered in green pillowcases. A small bag with candy and a cookie sits on each bed that's assigned to someone, the assigned boy's name on the bag in golden lettering. It's also on a small plaque on the cubbies/shelves across from the bed and on the magic lamps.

"Why's there a bag of candy?" Sig asks as he looks at his.

"There's a cookie in there, too," I tell him. "Dad told me awhile back about some of his trips, and how the hotels usually left a baggie of chocolate on their pillows. Gummy bears, jelly beans, and cookies taste better, so I made baggies with those. It ain't a hotel, but I figured, it's kind of like that for this. You ain't renting the room or anything, but you're staying here for a night for an event."

Sig seems confused, Nash feels amused, and Carter feels… I think that means he already assumed that? Carter's really smart, even if he's not as smart as Sig. Or maybe he could test out of school, but chooses not to? He definitely seems to understand why I do things a lot more than Sig, I know that much.

"And the stuff in the drawers?" Nash examines a small tube of hand lotion.

"Dad and I went shopping after dinner yesterday," I tell him. "We realized that we hadn't gotten tissues while putting in the trash can bags, in case anyone needed to blow their nose. So then we made a list of things we could add to the drawers in addition to those. Dad added in some extra stuff after."

"Hand lotion?" Nash asks.

"Yeah," I nod. "That was my suggestion, so that you can use it if your hands get dry from something. The soap we have should prevent that, but I thought hand lotion would be nice. I dunno if y'all like the smell or not, I just picked one I thought smelled nice."

"Are they all vanilla sugar cookie?" Nash opens his and sniffs it.

"Yeah."

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Carter snorts a little.

"Dad decided on most of the stuff," I add.

"And he knows everything that's in the drawers?" Carter asks.

"Yeah," I answer. "He was there when I bought them, and he helped me stick the stuff in."

"Huh," he says. "So-"

"Sorry for interrupting you," I tell him. "But Grandpa Blaze is here. He's about to reach the room."

I can feel his mind.

"He is?" Sig asks. "Didn't you say we weren't being supervised?"

"We're having some guardians joining us for the farm portion," I say. "Dad and Mom, and Mr. Martins, and Mr. Riverfall. That's Jake's dad."

But in his human form, not his real form. Grandpa Blaze's mind feels small enough that he's still in his phoenix form.

"I don't know why Grandpa Blaze is here," I add. "He was told supervision wasn't necessary since it's all boys."

"Xander?" Grandpa Blaze stops outside of the door, then turns his head back and forth as he looks inside. "Huh. It's empty."

"That's from the enchantments," I say. "Only the boys who are inside the room can see and hear those who are inside of it in most cases, unless the boy inside wants to be seen and heard. Was I not clear? Sorry. We don't need supervision for the party."

The additional spell on the doors is for added privacy, in case a roommate is entering or leaving when someone is changing. The shower room has both a larger communal room which can fit multiple boys and a few private stalls, for boys who aren't comfortable with the communal setup. In addition, this ensures no one can peek in and look at people who are sleeping like creeps.

No one here seems like they would do that, but I wanted to make extra sure.

"You were clear," Grandpa Blaze says. "But I thought I'd come hang out for the pumpkin-picking part. And stay for a little while after, if you're okay with it."

"Oh," I say. "Yeah, that's okay."

"If we had proper supervisors," Carter says. "Would they be able to look in here?"

"They would have access to the security feed," I say. "So they wouldn't even need to open the door. Dad has access to it, as do any parents and guardians who want the ability to observe their kids."

"Were there a lot?" Sig asks.

"Everyone's parents and guardians can," I tell him. "But it still has the same restrictions I said before."

"Oh."

"Are y'all okay with Grandpa Blaze coming in?" I ask.

"That's a phoenix," Nash says.

"Yeah," I say. "He's my birth mom's birth dad."

Nash starts trying to say something, but he seems to be struggling with it. I sometimes get like that, and it's always easier for me if no one tries to rush me.

"Xander," Carter snorts. "There's a difference between knowing a phoenix is real, knowing that someone you're friends with is related to one, and actually meeting one. Especially when phoenixes were believed to be myths until recently, when one decided to let everyone know he's real. That's what's glitching Nash's brain right now."

"Oh."

"Nash," Carter says. "You'll want to get used to it. Grandpa Blaze – he prefers if everyone calls him that – likes hanging out with Xander and does it sometimes."

"O-okay," Nash says. "And, um… sure?"

"Okay," I look at Grandpa Blaze. "You can come in. Supervisors can do that, either with permission or if they have a good reason to enter, like someone needs medical attention or something."

Grandpa Blaze flies into the room and lands on my shoulder, then looks at my bed.

"Is that a new Mr. Leviathan?" He asks.

"Yeah," I answer. "He's Cyan Leviathan. Oh! I forgot to tell everyone, but we have body pillows in the dorm's storage closet, for any boys who are side sleepers and want the support. I guess that can be told later. Though I think I heard some figuring it out? Anyway, it's not long before we need to get ready to go, if we're going to leave on time."

"Alright," Grandpa Blaze says.

"I wanted to ask you something," I tell him. "Grandpa Adrian said earlier that he thinks the reason I look like I have a pure-blooded Kenzibri in the last generation or two of my ancestry is because of magic adapting me so I look normal. So then, does that mean that I don't have any real resemblance to what I'd look like without that? Like, I don't bear a resemblance to your human form, and Grandma Celeste's, and Grandma Aurora?"

"Oh, that's wrong," Grandpa Blaze says. "I suppose Magus Adrian wouldn't know about, since it was thousands of years before he interacted with humans and the shrubbies probably weren't aware of it."

"Aware of what?"

"Several nonhuman people took on human form and mated with humans on Kenzibri," he says. "So while there were magical adaptations adjusting peoples' appearances on other continents, that didn't happen here. The ones who did that deliberately reduced their magical factors so that they wouldn't have a higher-than-average mana levels for the area. Also specifically so that they wouldn't have the additional traits of the nonhuman people they're descended of."

So that's why I bear a strong resemblance to Kenzibri – it's because of the sun dragon and unicorn in my ancestry.

"Oh," I say. "How come they did that?"

"For the first Kenzibri tribe," he says. "It was because there were some issues with magical light and darkness at the time. Some of the unicorns and sun dragons felt they were good enough to help out just a smidge, so they masqueraded as humans and mated with them in such a way that it benefited them for that without affecting them otherwise."

"How did that help?" Sig asks.

"It granted them better vision in brighter light," Grandpa Blaze answers. "As well as improved vision in lower light levels. It's not as prominent anymore, but it still exists within those of more pure Kenzibri blood, just a little. And the sun dragon in them helped them with the cooler temperatures, in addition to allowing them to see better when it was bright."

"Oh," Sig says. "So later tribes which developed those adaptations had the same thing happen?"

"Correct," Grandpa Blaze says. "And to answer why they didn't allow for stronger mana levels or teach magic, well, a conference was held between most of the various nonhuman peoples of Earth and it was decided to let humanity figure it out on their own. We wanted to stay distant from them, apart from occasionally helping out with things like that. We never expected Magus Adrian to become involved. He was pretty clear to us he wanted to avoid dealing with people for the most part."

Carter looks at me.

"I ain't gonna ask Grandpa Adrian why he changed his mind."

"I wasn't going to ask!" He laughs. "I was just thinking that this makes you more Kenzibri-blooded than most, since their defining traits came from sun dragons and unicorns, and you're the grandson of some of those."

"Oh."

"What about the Zrebzial?" Carter asks.

"Nonhuman people which haven't become public yet were involved," he answers. "Though some earth-type dragons were also involved. And yes, the Volmezia had a little as well, despite their short-lived venture south."

"Speaking of history," I say. "Grandpa Blaze? Once we're all back from the farm, would you be willing to tell everyone the history of Halloween?"

They'll probably believe it better from someone who was actually around back then than from me. I'm not sure I remember it very clearly, either.

"Sure!" Grandpa Blaze answers. "When do you leave?"

"Very soon," I say, then look at my roommates. "If y'all are ready, let's go to the meeting spot."

They are, so we head to the rec room. Dad said it's okay to teleport to and from this room for tonight's events. I guess he doesn't want thirty-one boys being teleported from the street, which makes sense, though why we shouldn't be doing it from the front yard instead, I'm not sure.

Everyone joins us before it's time to go, including the four planned chaperones and Grandpa Blaze.

"Xander," Dad says. "Do you want to tell everyone the plan for the farms?"

"Yeah," I nod, then look at the big group of boys. "Um… they're all talking."

"Children," Grandpa Blaze's voice spreads throughout the room, though it's not loud. "Xander would like your attention."

Everyone is now quiet and looking at me.

"Um…"

"The plan," Dad quietly says.

"Right," I say. "Um… everyone," I make sure to do the same spell Grandpa Blaze did so that everyone can hear me without me being loud. "We'll be split into three groups at the farm, in two groups of ten and one group of eleven. This will allow us to split up better but still make sure we're together. That way, we don't crowd any one attraction. I made lanyards with IDs for everyone to show which group they're in."

Dad gives me a weird look while feeling amused, surprised, and exasperated.

"Like on a field trip?" Bo asks.

"Like on a field trip," I confirm. "The backs of the IDs have the times for the different groups to do different activities, as well as what time we're all meeting back up for. You don't have to stick to it strictly, apart from the last one. But if the groups do things in the same order as on their IDs, then we'll avoid crowding others. And this makes it easier for the rides, since those can only have up to twenty guests per wagon. Also, each of the guardians has a stasis bracelet. Once you've bought something, such as your pumpkin, you can give it to your group's assigned chaperone and they'll hold onto it."

I pull the lanyards out of my bracelet and use telekinesis to move them to the people they go to. Once everyone has pulled on their IDs, I let them know I'm about to teleport us, then I do.

Now that we've arrived, we split up into different groups. Dad and Mom are my group's chaperones, but Grandpa Blaze stays with me. He draws a lot of attention from other guests at the farm, but it doesn't seem like they want to approach.

Thankfully. I'd rather not get crowded by people wanting to meet a phoenix.

Picking out a pumpkin turns out to be really difficult. There are so many of them, in so many different heights and widths. The employees used magic to make sure they were ripe when picked, so I don't have to worry about that.

I do still check with my own spell, just to make sure, but all of the ones I look at are ripe.

"Is Trenton helping you pick?" Carter asks.

"Yeah," I answer. "Dad and I are making a bunch of jack-o-lanterns, in order to ensure no pixies come bother anyone staying the night on Halloween. I'm doing one tonight, and then we'll be doing more on Monday, as part of the preparations. Mom is gonna help, too. But Trenton says he wants to pick a design, too. He can't carve them, but I can do that for him."

"That's awesome," Carter says. "So you're doing more preparation on Monday?"

"Yeah," I nod. "Dad said we should decorate sooner, for the party, but the actual Day of Preparation for Halloween is the day before, so more of it will be done then. The important stuff is really going to be done then, which is why we're doing the rest of the jack-o-lanterns then. I don't understand why people decorate sooner, but I guess it's so they don't have to try and do it all in one day?"

"Decorating in advance lets you get into the vibes sooner," Austin tells me. "Most people start getting into the mood earlier."

"Oh."

I eventually find pumpkins suitable for the decoration plans, then pay for them at the stand. Dad accepts them from me and puts them into the bracelet I gave him, then I wait for the rest of my group to finish. The next thing we do is buy funnel cake and caramel apples, and some of us buy mulled cider while others buy hot chocolate. We're not allowed to take them into the corn maze because some people will dump their trash, so we finish eating and drinking before we head in as a group.

The maze is really fun to try and solve, though Sig seems to figure it out pretty easily. At least, he's able to tell when we've already been somewhere a lot more easily than the rest of us.

There are some small "rooms" in the maze, which are really just spaces more open than the paths. They have decorations like straw bales, scarecrows, ghosts, skeletons, and witches scattered throughout, and Nash seems to get a little bit scared. He feels scared for sure, and he jumps at some of the noises we can't see the sources of.

"It's okay," I whisper to him as he eyes a skeleton. "They're just decorations."

He feels both startled and confused, but also a little more relaxed.

"I-uh… yeah," he nods. "Yeah."

I nod.

We finish going through the maze, and I watch as the other members of my group play some of the games here, like trying to get rings on bottles. Once it's time for my group's turn on the hay ride… I decide not to go on it. The straw bale will be itchy even with pants and a hoodie and I can feel myself getting overstimulated already. Even my earplugs aren't helping too much just because of how many people are here.

So while they do that, I find a quiet spot to sit down and pet Grandpa Blaze as he sits on my lap. Several people who see us seem to want to come over and talk, but they don't. I can feel Grandpa Blaze talking even if I can't hear him, so he's probably telling them to give us space.

The quiet and less activity going on around me helps me out a lot and by the time the others are finished with their activities here, I'm a lot calmer. Carter brought me pizza slices and a hot dog from one of the stands as I calm down, but he doesn't try talking with me, he just drops it off and leaves.

But that was really nice of him. He didn't have to go out of his way to bring me food while everyone else is eating and playing games, but he did.

"Xander?" Dad asks once we've all grouped back up. "Are you okay?"

I stare at him. Do I look like I'm not okay? Did I do something wrong?

"Xander's about to teleport us all back to the rec center," Grandpa Blaze announces. "Xander, everyone is gathered, so let's go."

I teleport us back to the rec center, and the adults start handing out the carving pumpkins. We all go to the different tables set up with carving supplies. Sig positions himself to my left, while Carter positions himself to my right. The tables were set up so that they're all facing away from the wall with the dorms. This way, the adults can monitor us more easily and have some walking space between us and the tables behind/in front of ours. If we were able to stand on both sides, then I would've needed to space the tables out more to account for that.

Grandpa Blaze conjures a stand for him to stand on in front of all of us, then chirps a few times. The chirping draws everyone's attention to him.

"Xander asked me if I'd be willing to share the origins of Halloween," Grandpa Blaze says. "So before you all begin carving, I'll do that now. That way, when you carve your pumpkins, you can do so with knowledge of the origins.

"For reasons unknown to even us Elder Ones," Grandpa Blaze. "Pixies began to arrive in this world from a realm unknown. They appear one night a year, once the sun has fully set, and they leave once it has begun its rise. Once that night fully ends across the globe, they are gone again, until the next year.

"Apart from noble dragons and few others," Grandpa Blaze continues. "None knew of this. All they knew was that people would begin to have minor strokes of bad luck. Nothing too serious, but enough to be an inconvenience.

"The dragons looked for a way to chase away the pixies," he tells us. "And they discovered that some homes were unaffected. A sacrifice of a harvest, with a light within. Done originally as an activity some children did with certain fruit when an excess was had, yet held a benefit known to none. The noble dragons shared this with the other nonhuman peoples, so they could ward off the pixies.

"Humans were excluded at the time," Blaze says. "But around the same time across the world, for reasons still unknown to most, many human societies learned of a way to ward off bad luck. One night a year, set out a pumpkin carved with a face, a light placed within, at the entrance to the home. Adding to their beliefs of its protective powers, the adults began to display other decorations in an effort to scare away the bad luck. They would dress in terrifying outfits. To get children to participate, they began to hand out treats.

"And that," Blaze says. "Is the true origin of Halloween. The Day of Preparation is used to prepare for the Day of Warding, when the pixies arrive. Then the Day of Checking is when they look to see if the candles still burn, a sign that they successfully warded away the pixies. Then there's the Day of Celebration, to celebrate warding off the pixies and preventing the curses of bad luck. Even today, the pixies still arrive, but they leave alone those in houses guarded by jack-o-lanterns."

Grandpa Blaze was vague on how humans learned about the pixies and how to ward them off. Was it him?

"So keep this in mind as you carve your pumpkins," he tells us. "Do know that faces work best of all designs to ward off the pixies, but there's quite a bit of leeway on that. If you want some advice on designs which work well, let me know and I'll be more than happy to share."

Yeah, it was definitely him who taught humanity about the pixies and how to ward them off.

Now that it's time for us to carve the pumpkins, I begin working on mine. Cut out a lid and empty out the pumpkin's guts (I use magic for that part so that I don't have to feel the gunk). Then, put the lid back on and draw the design I want to carve. It's just a simple face. A pair of eyes, a nose, and a smile with teeth.

I make sure the face is outlined right, then I begin carving it out with the tools. Poke holes to perforate, then start cutting. Once the pieces are out, clean up the edges and make sure the inside is clean. Put on some enchantments to ensure it lasts through the holiday and doesn't decay or get eaten by animals or something by then. A candle goes inside and lit, the lid goes back on, and I make sure it looks fine.

"That looks really spooky," Sig tells me. "I think any pixie who sees it would do their best to avoid it."

"That's the goal."

I put out the candle, then walk over to the dining area. Not everyone is done carving yet, but it's time to put out the food for dinner. I'm actually a little bit late on this, but nobody complained. They were all buying pizza and hot dogs and other dinner foods at the farm, too, so I guess they were full.

Pizza, wings, bread sticks, and more go out. I then set up additional tables for dessert, so that those who aren't feeling like dessert rather than dinner can eat.

There we go. Oh, right. Dad and I bought trays yesterday, too. They're all a medium-dark green, and they'll make it easier for people to carry food without needing to use telekinesis. I made sure to wash them all earlier but I apparently put them away.

Once those are set out, I grab one for myself and start grabbing food. I'm really hungry and the food smells good. I can do other activities later. The rest of the night after the carving is meant to be whatever we decide to do, anyway.

And right now, eating is what I'm deciding to do.