Free (1972) The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury Page B

graveyard, voices echoed the song.
    Leaning against the graveyard walls, some with guitars in their hands or bottles, were the men of the village.
    “Cuevos de los Muertos—” sang the faraway voice.
    “Cuevos de los Muertos” sang the men in the shadows inside the gate.
    “Skulls,” translated Tom. “The skulls of the dead.”
    “Skulls, sweet sugar skulls, sweet candy skulls, the skulls of the dead ones,” sang the voice, coming close now.
    And down the hill, treading softly in shadow, came a hunch-backed Vendor of Skulls.
    “No, not hunched—” said Tom, half aloud.
    “A whole load of skulls on his back,” cried Ralph.
    “Sweet skulls, sweet white crystal sugar candy skulls,” sang the
Vendor, his face hidden under a vast sombrero. But it was Moundshroud’s
voice that sweetly piped.
    And carried from a long bamboo over his shoulder hung on black threads were dozens and scores of sugar skulls as big as their own heads. And each skull was inscribed.
    “Names! Names!” sang the old Vendor. “Tell me your name, I give you your skull!”
    “Tom,” said Tom.
    The old man plucked forth a skull. On it, in huge letters was written:
    TOM.
    Tom took and held his own name, his own sweet edible skull, in his fingers.
    “Ralph.”
    And a skull with the name RALPH written on it was tossed forth. Ralph caught it, laughing.
    In a swift game, the bony hand plucked, tossed white skull after skull, sweetly on the cool air:
    HENRY-HANK! FRED! GEORGE! HACKLES! J.J.! WALLY!
    The boys, bombarded, squealed and danced about, pelted with their own
skulls and their own proud names sugar encrusted upon each white brow
of those skulls. They caught and almost dropped this splendid
bombardment.
    They stood, mouths wide open, staring at the sugary death-sweets in their gummy hands.
    And from within the graveyard, way-high male-soprano voices sang:
     
    “Roberto … Maria … Conchita … Tomás.
    Calavera, Calavera, sweet candy bones to eat!
    Your name on the snow white sweet skull
    You hurry down the street.
    You buy from the piled high white
    Hills in the square. Buy and eat!
    Chew your name! What a treat!”
     
    The boys lifted the sweet skulls in their fingers.
     
    “Bite the T and the O and the M. Tom!
    Chew the H, Swallow A, Digest N, Choke on K.
    Hank!”
     
    Their mouths watered. But was it Poison they held?
     
    “Would you guess? Such happiness, such joy
    As each boy dines on darkness, makes a meal of the night?
    What delight! Snap a bite!
    Go ahead! Munch that fine candy head!”
     
    The boys tapped the sweet candy names to their lips and were about to bite when—
    “Olé!”
    A mob of Mexican boys ran up yelling their names, seizing at skulls.
    “Tomás!”
    And Tom saw Tomás run off with his named skull.
    “Hey” said Tom. “He sorta looked like— me!”
    “Did he?” said the Vendor of Skulls.
    “Enrique!” shouted a small Indian boy seizing Henry-Hanks skull.
    Enrique pelted down the hill.
    “He looked like me!” said Henry-Hank.
    “He did,” said Moundshroud. “Quick, boys, see what they’re up to. Hold on to your sweet craniums and get!”
    The boys jumped.
    For at that very moment an explosion hit the streets below, in the town. Then another explosion and another. Fireworks.
    The boys took a last look in at the flowers, the graves, cookies,
foods, skulls upon graves, miniature funerals with miniature bodies and
coffins, at candles, crouched women, lonely boys, girls, men, then
whirled and exploded down the hill toward the firecrackers.
    Into the plaza Tom and Ralph and all the other costumed boys raced
panting. They jolted to a halt and danced about as a thousand miniature
firecrackers banged around their shoes. The lights were on. Suddenly
the shops were open.
    And Tomás and José Juan and Enrique were lighting and tossing the firecrackers with yells.
    “Hey, Tom, from me, Tomás!”
    Tom saw his own eyes glinting from the wild boy’s face.
    “Hey, Henry, this from Enrique!