The Hallowing
The Hallowing
by Dave White
Story Editor - Melody Rondeau
Music by Danny Elfman
Costume Design - Edith Cheesehead
Executive Producer - Ponsonby Britt, O.B.E.
The piercing shrieks of children’s screams were especially painful to a
bat. Foxglove’s pain was multiplied by the fact that the season made such
sounds unavoidable. Even though she had dodged past the costumed kids with yards
to spare, they still screamed. Halloween just brought it out of them. The children
must have been going to an early party since the sun had not yet fully set.
Foxglove sniffled sadly and turned quickly toward Ranger Headquarters, where
she had recently made her home.
Foxy touched down on the railing of the attic balcony that served as her private entrance. She closed the door behind her and flitted to her roost on the ceiling. Dangling, comfortably inverted, she decided it was better to go hungry this night than hunt for night-flying insects and risk more emotional scars. She wrapped her wings tightly around herself and gave in to her feelings.
“Yeee-ouch!” Gadget said, covering her ears. She looked toward the staircase with concern. “I know that feeling.”
“Too right, Gadget-luv,” Monterey Jack said, vigorously twisting a finger in his ear. “That’s Foxglove settin’ up a cry. That high-pitched wail of hers is like a straight pin through yer ‘ead, isn’t it?” Even Zipper winced and made to plug his ears.
“What could be wrong?” Chip asked. “Dale won’t be home with the last of the decorations for another hour. What could have happened?”
“I’ll go and see,” Gadget said. The other three deferred to her. “Girl talk” might be all she needed, and Foxy and Gadget were becoming fast friends.
Gadget made her way to the attic and knocked lightly on the door. Foxglove didn’t answer, but Gadget could hear her sobbing softly. Gadget would rather not deal with the minefield of other creature’s emotions, but she couldn’t turn away when a friend was in trouble. She opened the door and entered the dark room slowly.
“Foxglove? What’s wrong? Can I help?”
“No one can help,” she cried. “It’s all just awful and I can’t do anything about it and you wouldn’t understand and everybody’s the same every year and I just wanna diiiieeeeeee!” Gadget winced as Foxglove’s grieving voice reached into the ultrasonic.
“Foxy, maybe I will understand. You can always talk to me. Please come down and tell me what’s the matter.”
Foxglove let go of her roost, flipped over and, with a couple of wing beats, landed softly beside Gadget.
“Every time Halloween comes around,” Foxglove began, “all the humans and animals have parties and go trick-or-treating. But the moment they see me, they turn away and scream.” She sniffled and fought back tears. “It’s bad enough that their screaming hurts my ears, but it hurts my heart as well. I’d like to enjoy the night with everyone else. I don’t want anyone to be afraid of me!”
“Foxy, come on downstairs. There’s got to be a solution to this. We’ll get all the Rescue Rangers working on this and we’ll find a way. That’s what friends are for!”
Gadget and Foxglove descended to the front room and Gadget related Foxy’s trouble to the others.
“I know!” Chip declared. “You just need a costume. You can dress up like anyone on Halloween. Then no one will be scared of you because they won’t know it’s you!”
“I’ll give it a try. Who should I dress up as?”
“Let’s see...” Monty said thoughtfully.
“Idea!” Gadget exclaimed. She dashed for her bedroom as Chip and Monty contemplated the possibilities.
“I know!” Zipper said. He got right to work applying some of the party decorations. In a few moments he had wrapped clear cellophane in loops around Foxy’s wings. He had her hold a pair of green jellybeans over her eyes and stretched a bit of gauze over her head to hold them in place. The transformation was instant and amazing and Foxglove caught on at once.
“I’m The Fly!” she said with delight, remembering the movie as one of Dale’s favorite late night cuddling excuses. She raised her voice to a shrill, strained parody. “Helllllpp meeeee! Pleaeeeeese, helllllp meeee!” Gadget returned with her arms loaded with costume parts at that moment and Foxy spun around toward her with her wings extended.
“EEEEEYAAAAAHHHH!!!” Gadget shrieked. She fell backwards on her tush, scattering fabric and costume jewelry in all directions. She kicked away from the apparition as fast as she could. Foxglove quickly pulled the bug-eyed mask off her head.
“Gadget, it’s me!”
“Oh golly!” Gadget said, relieved. “Foxy, that’s a great costume!”
“I don’t want to scare anyone! I just want to blend in.”
“Your wings are a bit of a challenge,” Chip said as he scooped up bits of Gadget’s costume collection. “We’ll just work with them and you’ll have the perfect costume.” In a few moments Chip had gathered what he needed. He placed a bit of fabric over Foxgolve’s head and hung a small plastic medallion around her neck.
“There!” Chip said. “Perfect!”
“Batgirl?” Zipper hummed. “That’s it?”
“I’m not sure an insignia and her own fur add up to a costume, Chipper,” Monty said.
“That mask makes her a little bit frightening,” Gadget added.
Foxy glanced at her reflection in the nearby mirror. “I was hoping to not strike fear in the hearts of other creatures.”
“It’ll only strike fear in the hearts of evildoers,” Chip insisted.
“It’s still too scary, Chip,” Gadget said. “Let me give it a try. I’ve got just the thing.” Gadget worked with the lightning speed that so often accompanied her flashes of inspiration. Foxglove found herself quickly decked out in gleaming golden jewelry and an ornate headdress. Gadget added billowing sleeves over her wings that were painted to resemble, of all things, feathers.
“There!” Gadget said as she stepped back to view her work. “Winged Isis, Goddess of the Nile!” The elaborate costume did make her look like anything but a bat, but a slight flaw made itself known. Foxglove was slowly sagging to the floor.
“Gadget!” Foxglove cried. “This hat thing weighs a ton! What’s in it!?”
“I wanted it to be authentic,” Gadget elaborated, “so I used real gold!”
Foxy toppled forward, pinned to the floor by the sun-disk headdress. Monty decided it was time to intervene.
“Gadget-luv, you’re close but missin’ the point. What Foxy needs here is something closer to home.” Monty removed the overweight headdress and helped Foxglove to her feet. He took a variety of beads and fabrics from the costume box. “Now then, a lil’ of this, a lil’ of that, a couple of these and there you are!”
Monty’s shift in jewelry and clothing had transformed the feathery sleeves from Gadget’s effort. “Now you’re a Sioux fancy dancer,” Monty announced. “Nothin’ like a bit of America for a holiday outfit, eh?”
“Monty,” Chip said cautiously. “Isn’t that an eagle costume?”
“Well, of course it is, Chipper.”
“And don’t eagles eat mice?” Gadget asked with some reluctance.
“Ummm... most of ‘em,” Monty said. “Though there was a flock of vegetarians...”
“I’m gonna scare the little ones like this, too,” Foxglove said, beginning to cry again. “I’ll ruin your party. I just know it.”
“It’s not ruined,” Dale said as he tottered in the front door with an armload of packages. “I’ve got the rest of the decorations right here.”
Foxglove flew to his arms as only a distressed bat could. Dale’s cargo, in turn, went flying across the room. Strangely, most of the decorations landed exactly where they belonged.
“Oh, Dale!” Foxglove wailed. “I really wanted to be a part of your Halloween celebration and everyone’s tried and tried to dress me up so I can and nothing works and I’m going to scare all the little children and make a mess of your party and I just wanna diiiiiieeeeeee!”
Dale shook his head to clear it after Foxy’s tearful wail rose beyond chipmunk hearing. “Awww, Foxy. There’s no problem with you bein’ at the party. I’ve been thinkin’ about how to dress you up since Labor Day. And I’ve got just the thing!”
* * *
Dozens of neighbors from around Elysian Park crowded Ranger Headquarters for the Halloween party. Costumes ran the whole spectrum, from Monty dressed as Mouseferatu to Zipper as a surprisingly imposing Green Hornet. Chip made a dashing Captain Archer from Enterprise and Gadget appeared in remarkably little costume as the daring Lorna Kraft, the Crypt Cracker. Dale dressed in the harlequin costume of a court jester and regaled the party with fractured Shakespeare. But the happiest celebrant was to found near the front door, rarely missing a chance to greet the night’s little hobgoblins.
“TRICK OR TREEEEEET!” the little voices chorused as the door opened. “OOOoooohhhhh!” they said upon seeing the smiling vision who answered the door. “An angel!”
“Help yourselves, kids,” Foxglove said, offering a tray of dried fruits, nuts and chocolate drops. An alabaster robe and a little flour to turn the feathery wings white, coupled with Gadget’s blonde wig and a golden halo on a stick had given Foxglove her chance to finally enjoy the scariest day of the year. Her sweet, melodious voice made the transformation complete and perfect.
“Thank you!” the little imps responded picking their favorites for their goody bags before scurrying back to their escorting parents.
“Lookie!” the littlest of them said. “Angel food!”
Foxy smiled broadly and waved to them as she closed the door. She hurried to the buffet and the assembled Rescue Rangers, then hugged Dale warmly.
“I never dreamed this would be so much fun! Thank you all so much! But can you explain something for me?”
“Explain’ isn’t my best subject,” Dale answered. “But I’ll give it a try.”
“The kids all scream when Monty answers the door and does his vampire imitation, but they still ask for treats instead of running away. Aren’t they scared?”
“Not really,” Chip said. “They know these are just costumes. Most of the kids recognize us anyway.”
“That’s right,” Gadget said. “Halloween is a chance for kids to pretend to be scared when they know they’re really in no danger. That’s part of the fun.”
“Oh, darling,” she said, hugging Dale even more tightly “I never thought I’d be able to enjoy Halloween the way you do. You’ve made this a wonderful night for me. How did you ever come up with such a marvelous idea for a costume?”
“Shucks, t’werent nuttin’” Dale said, gently taking the wing of his angelic girlfriend. “I knew you didn’t want to scare anyone. All I had to do was let them see you the way I see you!”
THE END
COPYRIGHTS AND DISCLAIMERS: Gadget, Chip, Dale, Monterey Jack, Zipper, Foxglove and the Rescue Rangers are © and T.M. The Walt Disney Company, and were employed without permission. Angel design © The Almighty, and used here by special dispensation.
All other characters, locations, equipment and situations are © 2001 by David D. White. Permission to copy and redistribute without charge is granted, provided the work is not altered, edited, recostumed, overly frightened, fed too many sweets or otherwise fiddled with.