THE HALLOWEEN PARTY
by
Maggie
“Little Joe and his Halloween parties, just wait until I get my hands on him” Adam swung the wooden stick he held tightly in his grip, and prepared to do battle.
“Awwr Adam, Joe twern’t to know things would turn out this bad” Hoss said as he rubbed his tender gums, some of those so called apples were painted nutshells.
He as always tried to protect his brothers from themselves, whilst he too searched and found a large stick and held it in front of his enormous chest.
“You think not do you” Adam raised an angry eyebrow at his big little brother.
“Not only do I get soaking wet at his apple bobbing in the water trough
event, I get this, this rag to wear”
Where on earth did he find this thing, he looked disgusted at his state
of dress.
Hoss smiled, “Sort of suits you I think, makes you look like a Caveman,
and you couldn’t have stayed nekked all night” he laughed loudly.
Adam sighed, his father had told Adam to go into the barn and wait for
Joe to fetch him some dry clothes, he was not allowing him inside the house
on the newly polished floor dripping wet.
They both became quiet and Hoss stopped laughing as he looked towards the
house; and listening heard his father, Ben Cartwright’s booming voice. It
carried above the horrified cries of his friends and neighbours. “Calm down
folks, everything will be alright, my boys can handle it” He tried to sound
calm himself, although he did wonder if his boys could really handle it.
Some of the folks moved away to their horses; and buggies, some fled to the barn and the more mature ladies escaped to the house, to have Hop Sing’s 2nd cousin serve them some Brandy, just for medicinal purposes of course, to calm their shattered nerves.
As the cries calmed down and folks became quiet again; Adam and Hoss, their eyes meeting, in mutual agreement moved together as one, closer to the large wooden barrel from where the ear-piercing sounds were coming from.
Suddenly the lid of the barrel opened and a head appeared, it melted into the darkness of the night, as it was covered in black, large white fang teeth, like a wolf’s could be seen in the moonlight. Then the head snarled and hissed and made blood curdling sounds that had the rest of the women running for the safety of the house. And the men, those of them who could move at all, began to reach for their guns.
Seeing this Adam shouted, “Its okay folks, its just one of Little Joe’s jokes again.”
There was a deathly hush; apart that is from the snarling going on by the ghastly head, which turned this way and that.
Some folks began to laugh, others cussed Joe for “Scaring folks half to death”
Ben invited everyone indoors for a drink. As he passed Adam and Hoss he said “Get him out of there and assure him I shall be having a necessary talk after the guests have gone home”
Adam and Hoss looked at each other. Adam rubbed his ear as he said, “How come you always manage to get into trouble, little buddy?”
“What do you mean Adam,” asked Little Joe as he rounded the barn, arms full of boxes.
Hoss gulped; while Adam looked first at Joe, then Hoss and then to the barrel. “What you doing there Joe, how did you get out the barrel without us seeing?” asked an incredulous Hoss.
Adam tapped Hoss on the shoulder, “The head is still in the barrel Hoss”.
“Did you get someone to dress up like this, Joe?” quizzed Adam, “And tell him to cut out all that yelling and hissing and snarling will ya.”
Joe stood behind his brothers and looked at what they were looking at and
where those horrible noises were coming from. He stepped behind Hoss “Heck,
I got nothing to do with that thing, what
Is it anyway?”
“Don’t you go telling lies Joe, you are in enough trouble with Pa already, and I’m not happy with you either.”
“Why do I always get the blame for everything” Joe pouted. “I only went to get these fireworks”
“Fireworks, Hey Joe that’s great,” then remembering, addressed Adam, “Joe don’t tell lies Adam.”
Then Hoss realised, if it wasn’t Joe who had arranged this, then just what was it and what was going on around here.
The thing in the barrel started to climb out, and retreat being the better part of valour, the Cartwright’s ran and hid behind the barn door!
A few minutes later they looked out and all was quiet. They decided to stay put until the guests had gone home, so doing the barn chores, they puzzled over what had happened.
Meanwhile; at the kitchen door, Hop Sing, took off the black clothes, and
took out the fang like dentures he had over his teeth, washed his hands
and face and laughed to his-self. For once the Cartwright boys had got a
scare out of Hop Sing, a pay back for all the Halloween’s before when they
had tried to frighten him. He sang softly to himself as he put the water
on to make them their evening drinks, and he got the cookies out of the
barrel, seeing the barrel set him off laughing. Revenge is sweet!
Maggie