Free Halloween Is For Lovers by Nate Gubin

arm into the air. The ground compressed and shook as Grisly thrust into the sky, her wings outstretched, punishing the air with violent thrusts. With one wet gulp she devoured Chuck's arm whole.
    The other reapers applauded with sinister chuckles.
    Below, Crain called out to them, "Reapers! Mark this man! He crosses over seeking la ... lo ... low-vee ... lahh ..." He gave up with a wave, "You know what I mean, L-O-V-E."
    Leroy walked to the cliff edge and looked down at Hugh. He thrust his sickle back into its sheath with a hungry grin.
    Hugh swallowed hard and stuttered, "Back before sunrise, got it."

The Big Night
     
     
    Hugh stood in front of his bathroom mirror, fussing with his hair, while Patrick lounged in a corner, watching him. "It's no use, there's nothing you can do with it. Maybe if you get a chance up top you could duck into a salon for a quick cut or put some product in it, like a gel or a molding paste."
    Hugh tugged at his tattered coat, trying to bring it back to life. "I wish there was some way to look less, you know, evil dead-ish." He slapped his cheeks, trying to bring up some color.
    Patrick took a bundle of clothing out from under his arm. "I brought you something, don't ask where I got it." Hugh unfurled the bundle and revealed a shimmering white-and-green Boston Celtics warm-up suit.
    "I don't know what to say."
    "I couldn't come up with any decent shoes. You're just going to have to make do."
    Hugh started to change into it, but Patrick stopped him. "Are you crazy? They'll never let you pass over wearing that. Hide it under your coat. When you get through the gate, walk into the fog for a bit and then change. I desperately wanted to find you something nice, but then I found that and I thought, what the heck, it's the Celtics, at least you won't scare anyone. I don't even think they'll take you seriously in that."
    "Thanks, this is ... I really appreciate this."
    Hugh looked out the window in the direction of the gate. "Well, I guess I should get going."
    Patrick stood and faced him. "I know it's weird and I feel really wrong doing this ..." He reached out and hugged Hugh. "Good luck, just promise me ..." He bit his tongue and took a step back. "Actually, don't promise me anything, just go."
    Hugh nodded and walked toward the door. He stopped and looked back at Patrick. "So, regardless, I'll see you again, in forty ... fifty years."
    Patrick pushed out a painful nod. "Yeah."
    Hugh disappeared down the stairs, and Patrick sat in a chair with his arms crossed, trying to hug his soul. "I'll be right here waiting."
     
    Out on the street, Hugh walked with a pop of purpose in his step. Everyone turned to watch as he rounded a corner and chugged up the winding road out of town and toward the gate. His enthusiasm was quite a spectacle.
    In the distance, Crain paced along the parapet outside the Head Minister’s fortress with Jerry in tow. He stopped and focused on the small dot of Hugh climbing the narrow path toward the gate. "Mmmm, that one. Look at him anxiously go. Do you see that, Jerry? That's what hope looks like. By tomorrow you'll see the same man broken and bowed, returning as a welcome example of hopeless despair."
    Hugh rounded the bend and started up a section of road that got steeper with every step. The infrastructure of the Kingdom was designed to keep a soul captive, like a mouse in the bottom of a five-gallon bucket. The gate, always looming above, was a reminder of being trapped. Just before the gate, the flume from the horrible vent slowly licked the sky, reminding all who passed that there was a far worse place than the Kingdom.
    Near a dead tree, Ana sat on a rock, tracing a flower into the dirt with a charred stick. "So I take it you're going over," she said to Hugh.
    "I can almost feel my lungs breathing again, my heart is almost ... never mind."
    "It's not worth me asking, is it? I can see it in your eyes. But I have to ask, I have to beg. Please, come with me, back to the city.