Chapter Text
“Tag! You’re it!”
“That’s not fair, Adeline, you didn’t touch me at all! Get back here!”
Mina scampered to catch up as her sister passed by, who laughed and stuck out her small tongue as she went. In her distraction, she did not notice the grandfather clock she was about to run into until she turned her head at the last second. She threw her legs out in an attempt to slow herself down. She shut her eye sockets in preparation for the collision, until two large skeleton hands snatched her upwards - causing Adelina to yelp as she was now held seven feet from the floor.
“What did I tell you about running around the Manor?” Jack Skellington scolded, his voice firm but gentle in the conviction any father would have. “You might lose your head again, and this time we may never find it.”
“Sorry, dad,” the girl stuck her lower lip out, eye sockets painted the picture of innocence. The Pumpkin King’s lips curled upwards as he gently set her down, brushing the dirt off her shoulders and nudging her in the direction of the stairs.
“You two, go get dressed properly. Your grandparents will be here any second now for dinner.”
“Grandpa’s coming!?” Desdemona’s little voice exclaimed from the doorway, rushing over to the tall skeleton and bouncing on her feet excitedly. “Why didn’t you tell me!? I need to show him my potato battery! He’s gonna love what I did with it!”
“Tonight’s not the time, mon ange . I'm sure he'll want to talk about the news with Elroy first.”
He ignored his daughter’s protests as he sent the triplets upstairs to go and change. Once they were out of his sight, he turned on his heel and entered the kitchen, where his wife was making a cottage pie. In true Halloween-Town fashion, it would be filled with delicious worms and a fond made from ground rat tails. She perked up when he walked by and smiled warmly when he grabbed some plates and collected the silverware. He set the table in the dining room properly - despite knowing such a regal setting would be in ruins the second his children sat down and started eating.
“Thank you,” Sally laid a kiss on his skeletal cheek when he reappeared. “I asked Xavier to wash up before dinner, can you go check on him?”
He could never refuse whatever she asked of him. He made the short trip to the downstairs bathroom and found his youngest son leaning against the sink, standing tip-toe on the step stool as he washed his hands. Zero was hovering by his side, ensuring the little child would not fall off as he poked his pumpkin nose on his cheek. Xavier giggled as he batted the dog away.
“There you are, doing exactly as mommy asked,” he praised his son as he helped him down the second his bony hands were dry. He chuckled. “I wish the others had been as easy to handle as you are.”
“Dinner?” he asked, clutching one of Jack’s fingers in his tiny hand.
“Of course, let’s go sit you down.”
On their way back to the dining room, he found his daughters coming down the stairs, wearing matching purple dresses. Sally sewed all the family’s clothing and had gotten particularly good at it throughout the years. They were something one could find in the sophisticated stores in the human world, except these matched the dark colors of the town and even had their own macabre-details. Fitting for Pumpkin princesses and princes, he thought.
Being skeletal triplets made it difficult to distinguish Desdemona, Mina, and Adeline from each other, except for the fact that they liked to wear their auburn-colored hair in different ways. Desdemona was a fan of wearing jewelry and necklaces. Mina was the shortest and Adeline always wore her favorite pair of black boots that added an extra inch to her height. He was pleased with their new attire and gestured for them to go ahead, leading Xavier behind and making sure they all were seated and ready.
When Sally stepped into the room, she noticed the empty seat beside them. “Where’s Elroy?”
“Hmm, he might still be in his room,” he answered as he placed a sharp digit to his lower lip, remembering his behavior just hours prior. “Something seemed to be on his mind today.”
“I’ll go get him,” she insisted, calling over her shoulder before she left. “Adeline, can you grab the pie from the oven? It needs to cool.”
“ Oui, maman .”
Sally’s ruby lips pulled to a smile as she entrusted dinner in her daughter’s hands. When they first had Elroy, Jack insisted on teaching their children his native tongue. He hadn’t spoken much French to Sally before, so she asked if he could also enlighten her on the language. It was a wonderful thing, really, to still be learning new things and getting to share them with their growing family.
She went upstairs and found the door open, but paused at the threshold and knocked on it anyway. It wasn’t long before she was invited in, and she found their eldest son sitting by the window, looking out the dark expanse of Halloween Town. She understood what Jack meant - Elroy had been uncharacteristically quiet when he came home today, and hadn’t been out of his room since. His expression didn’t seem troubled, rather, he looked lost in thought.
“Are you alright, sweetheart?” the ragdoll prompted as she stood behind him.
“I’m fine,” his light voice responded, and he lowered his skull. “Just…nervous, still. Halloween is a month away.”
“That it is. Your birthday wasn’t long ago at all,” she took a seat beside him and placed her hand over his. “Things are going by so quickly, aren’t they?”
“I just wish I had more time. I don’t know if I’ll be ready by then, and if I’m not , would it disappoint dad?”
“Elroy, honey, Halloween has been here for a long time. He’s managed plenty of years before you and I ever came into the picture,” she squeezed his phalanges reassuringly. “But if it makes you feel any better, I think you’ll do wonderful.”
He nodded along dismissively. She stood to her feet. “Dinner is ready; they’ll be here any second. Come down as soon as you can, alright?”
She left his room and headed downstairs, which was the same moment there came a rapping on the front door. She insisted on answering it, and came face-to-face with the sight of her creator and father, Doctor Finkelstein. Beside him was his lookalike wife, Jewel, who was wearing a special dress for this occasion. Sally took her coat as the Doctor wheeled himself inside.
The Skellington Manor had a few additions and touch-ups throughout the years, done by Jack himself. Finding a solution for his father-in-law to easily access the place was one of his priorities, and thus the Manor now had a small lift just outside that Finkelstein could use whenever he wished. Not that he stopped by for many visits…but since Desdemona loved experimenting with him, he did make some exceptions to come by and check in on the grandchildren.
“Horrible evening, m’girl,” the mad scientist greeted her with a dip of his head. “How is everyone?”
“They’ve been fine,” she answered politely, leading them to the dining room. “Take a seat, would you?”
Jewel helped herself into the awaiting chair as the Doctor joined her side. Mina portioned out their plates for them as Desdemona practically squirmed in her seat. She bit her lip as she undoubtedly held back all the things she wanted to spill about her personal experiments to the distinguished scientist. Jack was seated at the head of the table and eyed the only empty seat in the room. As he opened his mouth to say something, Elroy appeared in the doorway and rushed over to his designated spot.
“There’s the boy,” the Doctor slammed his gloved hand on the table excitedly. “The infamous Pumpkin Prince! The people in this town will not stop talking about you, lad!”
His skull nearly turned pink, and Sally remembered a time when she didn’t like receiving such attention, either. So she turned her family’s focus to the food on their plates, spreading her hands wide as she gestured to the meal.
“Cottage pie. One of your favorites, if I remember right.”
“Ah! Of course!” This worked splendidly, as he shoved a scoop into his mouth. “Your food’s excellent, my dear.”
The Pumpkin Queen appreciated the compliment and took this second to enjoy her cooking for herself. The silence was short-lived, as the Doctor was eager to catch up with everyone. He turned to Jack excitedly and tapped his fork on the plate to get his attention.
“You must be especially excited, Jack, to finally have your son visiting the human world with you. I haven’t been there in…oh, at least five decades. I bet you’ll scare the bejesus out of all of them!”
“That’s the plan,” he replied with a toothy smile. “I’m sure it’ll be Elroy’s favorite Halloween thus far.”
“Yeah, if he doesn’t mess it up,” Desdemona snorted derisively. She wiped the smugness off her face at the look her mother gave her.
“I won’t,” Elroy argued passively. “I’m a lot better at scaring than YOU are.”
“There’s no need to compare,” Jack reminded them, and they dropped the matter.
Jewel began conversing with Adeline, talking about clothing and such. Their conversation became muted under the Doctor’s next question directed to the eldest child:
“How old are you, now, my boy?”
“Thirteen.”
“Excellent! The time will fly by until you’re old enough to take the crown! Wouldn’t you say so?” He turned to the parents with an air of expectancy.
Elroy was withdrawing into himself, growing uncomfortable with the subject. The Doctor was simply excited for the Pumpkin Prince and what his future entailed for him. Fink was invested in the lives of his grandchildren and served as the family doctor, being the first one they came to for any illnesses or issues. For this reason, he was well-familiar with what was usually going on. But neither Jack nor Sally could yet pinpoint what mental turmoil Elroy was going through right now.
“He’s still so young, we shouldn’t put any pressure for that to happen anytime soon,” Sally dismissed. Her father was displeased.
“Ah, but we should certainly keep it in mind, right? Jack, you’ve been the Pumpkin King for at least 150 years…I’d imagine you’re about ready to pass the title on, yes?”
“It’s something to talk about when he’s old enough,” the skeleton wanted to focus on eating his food. Finkelstein opened his mouth to argue, but Desdemona’s dam had finally cracked, and she leaned forward excitedly.
“ Grandpa, grandpa ! You wouldn’t believe how high I could get the voltage this time! And I tried to replicate your instructions for the soul robber. I just can’t figure out how to get its texture right…”
Doctor Finkelstein could not pass any opportunity to openly discuss science. Therefore, Elroy was relieved of his attention when he instead became engrossed in his sister’s tales of her projects and shortcomings. The table was filled with different conversations, and the air became light once again. Sally was pleased to see her eldest finally eating, passing a smile to Mina as she asked him something, starting a conversation that didn’t involve what his future entailed.
After dinner, the dessert course was served and shortly finished. They bid goodbye to the Doctor and Jewel, who promised to check in on things again soon. Sally glanced at the clock and told the kids to get ready for bed. After she took care of Xavier and tucked him into bed, she returned to her and Jack’s bedroom, where the skeleton was sitting up in bed with a book perched open on his lap.
There was a matter that needed to be discussed between them, and there was no better opportunity than now:
“We need to talk about Elroy.”