[IC] Banding Together in Halloween Town

[LePouvantail]

Shock intended to kick Carmilla down, but with the vampiress shifting at the last second, she couldn't move her legs quickly enough to land on her feet. She landed hard on her ass, particularly her tailbone, and barely bit back a noise of pain as she collapsed onto her back. She stayed down, but grabbed for Carmilla's ankle as the vampiress landed.

"Speak for yourself."

[SystemofEleven]

Carmilla yelped in surprise. She started to fall, but her vampiric grace quickly compensated for the change in equilibrium. Not quickly enough though; just as she started to regain her balance, Shock yanked her foot entirely out from under her. The vampiress couldn't prevent herself from tumbling down the second time. The best she could manage was to roll into a position that would minimize her chances of getting hurt and set her up to stand again relatively smoothly.

[LePouvantail]

Shock quickly tackled Carmilla and pinned her down. She then grabbed for her rival's wrists.

"Leaving so soon?" she asked.

[SystemofEleven]

Carmilla growled and wedged a knee between Shock's legs.

"Yes, to wash your stench out of my clothing!"

She did her best to ignore her leg's position as she attempted to use it as leverage to throw the trickster off of herself.

"Have you bothered to bathe any time in the last decade?"

[LePouvantail]

Shock took note of where Carmilla was positioned and shifted her own position so that when Carmilla tried to throw her off, it would hit her inner thigh instead. Admittedly, she didn't mind too much.

"Guess you're just not a fan of snake root," Shock said with a grin. "Who knew it'd double as a vampire repellent?"

Carmilla managed to knock her off. Mostly. Shock kept a grip on Carmilla's wrists and pulled the vampiress with her. She then curled in her knees both to prevent Carmilla from straddling her, and to give herself leverage to kick her off. Shock let go of her wrists as she kicked, then pushed herself back on her feet.

"Good to know. I'll use more the next time I take a bath."

[SystemofEleven]

Carmilla fell backward, nearly hitting her head on a shelf near the door.

"Watch it!" Agatha finally called out. "Or you'll both be stuck here cleaning up any mess you make, together."

Carmilla stood back up and sneered at Shock. "That was her fault, not mine. I was already leaving."

She suddenly grinned, crossing her arms. "I rather doubt Jack would be pleased to hear you attacked me while you were already doing punishment work. I do rather enjoy the image of you tied up in the Pumpkin King's house while the rest of us go out on Halloween..."

[LePouvantail]

Shock smirked when Agatha finally stepped in.

"Worth it," she said sweetly. "I won."

Her smirk quickly became a glower when Carmilla threatened to get Jack involved. Like hell was she going to take that threat lying down.

"No it wasn't! You knocked the ladder over because you can't wait like a proper monster!"

Shock turned to Agatha. Her expression dared the other witch to take Carmilla's side.

"You saw it!" she exclaimed. "She started it!"

[SystemofEleven]

Carmilla turned to face Agatha as well. "I did ask her to move it. It's almost Halloween; we're on a time table already, and ten seconds isn't going to make much of a difference on how long it takes to get that broom down."

Agatha looks back and forth between them, eyes wide. Even if she ignored the favors they'd both done for her recently, either one of them would be utterly terrifying on the warpath. There was absolutely no safe way to pick a side. And if she didn't pick a side, both of them might come after her later. She took a deep breath and prayed her aunts would be able to patch her up after the smoke cleared.

"It doesn't matter who started it, you both made the decision to continue. And you both have things you should be doing instead of mucking around, blocking the door to the shop."

The witch did her best not to let them see her shaking. She really, really just wanted this to be over. Her aunts were so much better at playing the responsible adults when bickering happened in the store...

[LePouvantail]

"Then ten seconds of waiting wouldn't have mattered, either!" Shock exclaimed.

She crossed her arms and glared at Carmilla.

"You heard her, Charmelia," she said. "Why don't you get back to sharpening your fangs, or whatever it is you vampires do?"

Shock then turned to retrieve the acetone from the floor. She listened for Carmilla and gave a slight smirk once her back was turned and the vampiress was unable to see it.

[SystemofEleven]

Agatha actually managed a glare at Shock. "I very clearly said both." She subtly grabbed a potion from underneath the counter, just in case she needed to use it. "I suggest you get back to your task, and let Carmilla get on with hers."

[LePouvantail]

Shock rolled her eyes and held up the acetone.

"Like I was already doing?" she asked.

For her part, she didn't look at Carmilla again and simply went to fix the ladder. She also started formulating a back-up vengeance plan for after Halloween in case Carmilla followed through on her threat to report back to Jack.

~~~

In the pumpkin patch, Behemoth was hard at work upturning soil and clearing out old vines and debris where the harvested pumpkins had been to plant new ones. He patiently waited for Carver to bring the leftover pumpkin scraps to become mulch, and smiled when he saw her pumpkin head.

"Good harvest this year," he said. "Make bigger harvest next year."

[SystemofEleven]

Carver smiled back at him as she waddled toward him, carrying two buckets of pumpkin guts and scraps. She had clumped her lower vines together tightly into short stubby "legs" that had just enough structure to hold her up and keep the buckets from dragging on the ground.

"Careful, Behemoth," she giggled. "If you get a bigger harvest every year, eventually you'll stuff the patch so crowded we couldn't walk around in it."

She set the buckets down, unwove her legs, and quickly removed her arm frames. It wasn't long before she was spider-climbing up his body to perch on his shoulders. When she was smaller, she would hold onto the ax in his head for stability, but her vines were much too long for that now. She wrapped her lower vines around his torso and some of her upper vines around his neck and forehead.

"How've you been? We haven't hung out much in the last month or two." Granted, that was because she was busy helping prepare for the Prank and keeping her parents occupied, but she didn't need to bring that back up.

[LePouvantail]

Behemoth gave her a sage nod.

"Not plant as much, then," he said. "More mulch for the Big Pumpkinhead."

He pointed to the large jack o'lantern that served as the crown jewel of the pumpkin patch. He held still so she could crawl up onto his shoulders and secure herself. Jack probably wouldn't mind her having a short break.

"Been good. Tending to my pumpkins."

He dug out a particularly stubborn root as he spoke, then reached up to pat one of her vines.

"Missed you," he said. "Good company."

[SystemofEleven]

Carver rested her chin on the top of his ax. "Are you going out on Halloween? Do you want to hang out with me and the gang?"

[LePouvantail]

"Yes," Behemoth answered. "Help scare."

He chuckled when she offered to let him join her and the tricksters.

"Don't want trouble," he said softly. "Got enough here in town."

Behemoth smiled and picked up the pumpkin debris she brought to carry to the main compost heap.

"Good trick. Scared me."

He dumped out the buckets upon reaching said heap, then gave her vines another affectionate pat and gently shook his head as he said:

"Don't do again."

[SystemofEleven]

She patted him with a vinetip. "We wouldn't cause you too much trouble. Especially when we're out; the humans are more fun. Way easier to pull things over on them."

She giggled again as she rode along with him to the compost heap. "Glad someone appreciated it! Don't worry though, that's not the kind of trick we could pull off twice."

...Well, she could think of a couple ways that they might be able to, but it wouldn't be nearly as fun the second time around. She hummed quietly to herself, idly wondering how they'd ever top it.

[LePouvantail]

"Scare easier," Behemoth agreed. "Will be fun."

He turned his head with a somewhat expectant look.

"Not mean, though," he said reassuringly.

Behemoth grabbed a shovel to mix the new pumpkin scraps into the old compost so it would break down easier. Just as he finished, something caught his eye. He set the shovel down, then walked over to a decently-sized pumpkin that hadn't been harvested yet.

"New head?" he asked.

She'd had her current one for a little while now. While Carver took pains to make them last, she always had to replace them eventually. Behemoth liked to keep an eye out for suitable pumpkins for when the occasion inevitably arose.

[SystemofEleven]

"Of course not mean. Just fun!"

Carver titled her head in thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, it's probably getting to be time for a new head. Let me know if you find any that'll work particularly well for flesh-forming."

[LePouvantail]

Behemoth went over to the pumpkin he spotted and knocked on it. From the sound of it, it would be good for a traditional carving like she currently sported, but not detailed flesh work.

"Will find one," he promised. "Plenty more pumpkins."

He wandered the pumpkin patch with Carver on his shoulders, and tended to it as he searched for a good one. Occasionally, he let Carver down to assist him, as she was still serving her punishment, but so long as she was working, he could continue to enjoy her company. Finally, after an hour or two, he found a sizable pumpkin with thicker flesh.

"This one?"

[SystemofEleven]

Carver didn't want to be put down, but she did lower herself on his back so she could reach down with her vines to pull weeds or clear out old stems and leaves. When Behemoth found a pumpkin he thought would work for a full face sculpt, she peeked her head around his side to examine it. He helpfully lifted his arm to make sure it didn't block her view.

"That looks great! Plenty of room for variant depth and fully detailed features," she grinned. "Can we set it aside somewhere?"

Jack watched quietly from the edge of the pumpkin patch. He'd been informed one of the tricksters hadn't come back from an errand she'd been sent on, and still had work she had yet to finish near the carving stations. It didn't take much effort to find her. He hadn't heard her giggle so much outside of mischief in... Years, at least. It was simultaneously strange and relieving.