They rang the doorbell and both shouted “Trick or treat!” The door opened and a boy around 14 eyed Maggie’s …costume. “Nice,” and tossed a candy bar into the blushing witch’s bag. Kevin snickered. The boy turned to him and glanced back at Maggie. “Does he do tricks?” He holds out his hand. “For the treat.” Now it was Maggie’s turn to snicker, and Kevin humored him and shook it. “Good boy,” dropped a Milkbone in his bag and closed the door.

They both laughed as they continued on their way. “So, Ms. Magic, why are you doing this? Shouldn’t you be flying around on a stick and cackling with delight?” “Pssh, I did that for the past six Halloweens. I figure I’d change it up. It gets a little…lonely.” Kevin understood what she meant and even felt the same way, which was odd considering he had always hung out with his friends or family. Kevin frowned, then crouched and began to untie his shoes. “My feet are getting bigger…” She rolled her eyes and his shoes disappeared, revealing his padded paws. He smiled and stood up. A little wobbly. “Thanks.” “You’re welcome…” She grinned and snapped her fingers, and his shirt disappeared. Blushing, “Hey! Come on!” “No point in having that shiny black fur if you’re not going to show off what you got!” “I guess that explains you’re costume…” He smirked as she blushed and stuck out her tongue. “Down boy! Easy!” she laughed and scratched his ears, causing his leg to twitch happily. She giggled and poked his temples, where two raised bumps had grown. He blinked, “What are these?” running his paws over them. “Dogs don’t have horns.” She smiled. “Most don’t,” and skipped toward the next home. He frowned and followed.

As the night wore on, they continued to enjoy each other’s company while hitting up houses for their goodies. They teased each other often, and even the men and women handing out candy told jokes, though usually at Kevin’s expense (“Hey, I got a skeleton in here, would you like to meet him…or eat him!”) While still in high spirits, Kevin began to feel queasy. His throat began to hurt, which he blamed on all their laughing and talking, and his eyes felt dry and sore. When he asked to see the mirror he saw that his irises had changed to red, and his pupils were elongated. He felt like he had a fever across his body, but that’s probably what a full coat of fur does. The bumps on his forehead soon poked through his skin and continued to grow into horns. He was confused, thinking that he was just going to become a dog, but he knew Maggie knew what was happening and her happiness kept him from being too concerned. So they kept on reveling long into the night, filling up their bags and putting on little trick performances for the costumed children, much to their delight, and sending them running and shrieking with a playful snarl.