The Old Couple

"Please Stella? We need someone to take the kids trick-or-treating while I go trick-or-treating with my brothers."

I looked at Donnie's outfit. "You're going trick-or-treating looking like that?"

"Does that even matter?!"

I folded my arms. "Yes it matters. I design things remember?"

Donnie glared for a second, then got pleaded. "Just please take the kids?"

"Why can't April watch them? And why couldn't you take them with you?"

"I tried. She told me she was busy. Also it's something for us brothers to do. Everyone needs some space once in a while. Come on now; I'm desperate! You're my only option. Plus the girls love you."

I looked down at the ground then back at Donatello, who is still staring at me with his pleading eyes. It's been a few years since the purple-clad turtle became a father. Same with the leader in blue. As much as I want to bond with the kids something always get in the way. With my dream career as a fashion designer going on track, I was always busy. At least whenever I do have free time I could go down the sewers to see the guys, but it's rarely often. Sometimes they do come by at night to say hello though, and bring the girls over as well.

Tonight's Halloween. I never celebrate it; mostly because I couldn't eat the candy when I use to have braces. Even though I treat it like any other day, I like to make costumes and sell them to people. It's pretty cool.

Anyway, while Donnie's still waiting for an answer, I heard giggling coming out of my room. It was none other than Magdalene and Miwa coming down the stairs. They look so adorable in their costumes.

"Hey dad! Miss Stella did a great job with our costumes. I'm Rapunzel!" Maggie said as she spun around showing her outfit.

"And I'm a samurai! Kee-yah!" Miwa added while showing off her blow up sword.

"You two look adorable! Hold on. I gotta send this to April," Donnie got his T-Phone out while the girls made a pose. I giggled. It wouldn't hurt to spend some time with the kids. They're just too adorable.

"Okay Donnie. I'll take them trick-or-treating-- oof!"

Donnie came with a tight hug. "Thank you Stella! I owe you one!" He turned to Maggie and Miwa. "Okay, Miss Stella's gonna take you trick-or-treating tonight, so I need you to be on your best behavior. Understood?"

"Yes daddy," Maggie and Miwa waved.

"Stella, have them back at least by 11."

I saluted. "You got it bro."

Donnie made his departure. I then felt the hands of Maggie and Miwa touched mine, who both had big grins on their faces.

"We love our costumes you made for us Miss Stella," Miwa said.

I giggled. "Glad you like them sweetie. Now let me get my costume on so we can go, alright?"

"Yeah!" The two exclaimed.

A few minutes later, the three of us started our trick-or-treating. Thank god I don't have braces anymore. Now I could eat the things I never got to eat, like candy. But I still have to take good care of my teeth, as well as the girls' teeth. For my costume I decided to dress as Dorthy from The Wizard of Oz. Her outfit is adorable and I always wanted to dress as her when I was a kid. It was fun making it. Every house we went to got us more and more candy. The smiles on the girls' faces made me smile now that I've got to bond with them. The giggles I heard from other kids around the neighborhood as well as from Maggie and Miwa. When we finished the whole neighborhood, and checking out the candy in our bags, something came across Maggie's mind.

"Hey look! A haunted house. We should totally check it out."

I looked up to it. The house was old and abandoned. I could have sworn I saw a bat fly out the window. Obviously it wasn't a good idea.

"No," I said.

Maggie grabbed my hand. "Oh come on Miss Stella. It looks so cool. I heard kids talking about it at my school. They say it's haunted but I wanna know if it's true."

"No. I'm not going in that dirty house."

"What are you, scared or something?" Maggie asked.

"I'm not scared," I said as I folded my arms.

"Then come on!" Miwa said as they were already running towards the house.

I ran after them. "Hey wait!"

We got to the broken front door and pushed it aside. Just as I suspected. Old dirty house. Lots of cobwebs, dust, rundown furniture, and dust. A butt load of dust. I felt disgusted. "Well, there's nothing haunted in here. Point proven; lets go."

"Wait! I'm assuming it's haunted. I just know it. Besides, this is just the living room."

With Maggie's remark, she ran in the kitchen.

I heard Maggie screamed from the kitchen. Miwa and I ran to her aid, only to be shocked to see a knife stabbed on the wall with blood stains on it and the wall. There was something written on the wall in blood.

Miwa grabbed me by the arm. "Maybe it is haunted!"

"Now Miwa. We couldn't assume it's haunted. It could just be a coincidence. I mean just because someone put turn back on the wall doesn't make it haunted. Right?" We both exchanged looks, Miwa with a worried one.

"I wouldn't be so sure on that," Maggie replied. "I've heard that in the late 50's, on this very same day, an old married couple owned this house. The wife betrayed her husband with another guy and tried to hunt him down, then murdered him. The wife tried to leave him because she saw he was acting crazy and found out he killed her new interest. The husband however, didn't let that go. He hunted her down as well and tried to kill her, but she ended up killing him, then herself..."

----

Miwa, still hiding behind, looked up at me. "You really sure it's not haunted Miss Stella?"

I looked down at the fearful girl still holding my arm and hiding behind me. "I'm sure Miwa. It's just an old made up story to scare kids. Besides, what do you have to be scared of? You're a fearless butt-kicking samurai. Now come on and lets go find your cousin."

"You might be right Miss Stella," Miwa said as she held my hand and smiled.

My sudden thought was interrupted when I heard Maggie screamed. Miwa and I ran up to see nothing but dried blood stains in the middle of the hallway. Probably the dried blood stains from a century ago. I walked closer to the dried blood while I felt that a picture frame of the old couple, explained in Maggie's story, hanging on the wall was watching my every move. "Okay this is starting to creep me out. Come on, we go to find Maggie."

I turned to see Miwa not holding my arm anymore. Actually, she wasn't with me at all. She disappeared somehow. "Maggie? Miwa? ...Come on guys, if you're messing with me it's not funny!"

I heard a sudden scream. It sounded like Miwa. It also sounded faint. I followed the sound to the door at the end of the hallway. I felt shaky as I tried to put my hand on the handle.

I gulped and twisted the handle. When I opened the door fully, my worst nightmare came true. I found Miwa and Maggie's headless bodies laying out on the floor. I screamed at the top of my lungs and tears fell out my eyes. Their heads were sitting upward with worried expressions. I kept screaming. How could I explain this to Donnie and April?! Or Leo and Karai?! They'll never trust me again. I put my hands over my mouth as I let the tears flow out of my eyes. My legs felt like jelly and made me get on my knees and I continued crying.

"Miss Stella?"

I looked up by the sound of Maggie's voice.

"This has to be the best Halloween ever," Maggie's croaked voice said.

"Beyond awesome," Miwa said, also with a croaked voice. "But you need to get out of here, before they get you too."

"I'm not leaving without you guys," I said, choking through my tears. The two didn't respone. They're dead. It wasn't long until I hear someone whispering my name in the room. Then it started echoing. Every time someone's saying my name in that creepy tone kept giving my chills through my spine. It grew louder as I speak.

I then turned to see none other than the old couple from Maggie's story.

I got up and backed up against the wall as the old couple walked towards me. Leslie had a bloody knife in her hand. It was the same knife I saw from the kitchen. The same knife she used on Maggie and Miwa.

Her echoing voice kept giving me chills through my spine.

"No..." I whispered.

The two chanted. "Pay, pay... you're all gonna pay..."

"No," My cracked voice said. But it was too late; everything went black.

"Ahh!"

I sat up. I'm back on my work table? In my own room? Everything that just happened, was all just a dream? I turned to see Maggie and Miwa, both completely harmless, holding both of my arms.

"Miss Stella? Are you okay?" Maggie asked.

"Our dads told us you are gonna take us trick-or-treating tomorrow. I'm excited to see our costumes," Miwa added.

I sighed. "Yeah. I'm okay guys. Okay to see that you're okay and in one piece."

The two girls exchanged confused looks, nodded and went back downstairs. I chuckled.

But while the sun started setting over the horizons on New York City, a spirit of an old man looked out the window, thinking.

"Jack! Stop staring at the window and help me clean up. The least you can do is help keep this place clean," A spirit of an old woman said.

"Get off my back Leslie. I'm trying to think here. It's almost our one century anniversary."

Leslie sighed and glared at Jack. "You and your stupid revenge game. Cut it out already. The guy is dead. What could you possibly want to get revenge on someone who's not even here?!"

"Oh it's not just him. It's life as we speak," He replied.

"I knew I should have left you when I had the chance, you crazy old bean."

"Love you too sweetheart."

And with that remark, lightening flashed across the old abandoned house, with people out there still wondering if the fable of the old couple was just a fable... or not.