Salem, Massachusetts 1993

"Poor Thackeray Binx... neither his father, his mother, nor anyone else ever knew what became of him..." an old troll with grayish-green hair said, as she stood in front of a classroom filled with teenagers, the audience watching her intently, intrigued by the story she was telling. "And so the Sanderson sisters were hanged by the Salem town folk."

     She walked through the classroom, looking over all the students, as she continued her story in a dramatic voice.

     "Now, there are those who say that on Halloween night... a black cat still guards the old Sanderson house, warning off any who might make the witches... come back to life!"

     The class gasped softly, slightly startled by the story.

     "Gimme a break..." a young blue troll suddenly scoffed, rolling his eyes, as he wrote in his notebook, not buying the story one bit.

     "Aha..." the old troll said, looking over at the boy. "We seem to have a sceptic in our midst. Mr. Astinlake... would you care to share... your California, laid-back, tie-dyed point of view?"
"Okay," the troll shrugged with the slightest tinge a sarcasm, looking up at her from where he sat. "Granted that you guys here in Salem are all into these black cats and witches and junk."
"Junk?" the old troll gasped, seeming somewhat offended.

     The blue troll rolled his eyes before continuing.

     "Fine. Not 'junk'. But... everyone here knows that Halloween was invented by the candy companies. It's a conspiracy."

     "It just so happens... that Halloween is based on the ancient feast called All Hallows Eve," a young pink troll said, glancing back at him, rather annoyed by his attitude. "It's the one night of the year where the spirits of the dead can return to Earth."

     "Well said, Poppy," the old troll praised, smiling down at the young pink troll.

     "Okay..." the blue troll chuckled, writing something down on a piece of paper. "Well, in case Jimi Hendrix shows up tonight..." He stood, handing Poppy the piece of paper with a smirk. "Here's my number."

     The final bell rang, everyone immediately getting out of their seats to head home.

—————

     "Come on, let's go," a big blue troll said to Poppy, as they walked with a group of other kids, heading to the mall.

     "Hey! Hey, Poppy!" the blue troll called out, running towards the group of friends. "Is he talking to you?" a red troll with orange hair scoffed.
"He's sure got some nerve," a little yellow troll said, cracking her knuckles. "Want me to... 'take care of him' for you?"
"Hey! Wait up!" the blue troll yelled, trying to catch up to the group, who stood a few yards away from him.

     "I'll catch up with you guys in a minute," Poppy told her friends. "Go on without me."

     The group of trolls shrugged, turning to walk away as they chatted amongst each other, leaving Poppy behind.

     "Hey, Poppy..." the blue troll greeted once he finally reached her, panting slightly from all the running he had just done. "Hi..." Poppy greeted back, rolling her eyes slightly, though she couldn't help but smile slightly at the sight of him.

     "Look... um... I'm sorry," the blue troll said nervously, rubbing the back of his head, as he looked away from her. "I didn't mean to embarrass you in class..."
"You didn't," Poppy told him, another small smirk coming to her face.

     "My name is Branch Astinlake," the blue troll introduced, holding out his hand for Poppy to shake. "Yeah, I know," Poppy chuckled, shaking his hand. "You just moved here, right?"
"Yeah, last week..." Branch said, seeming kind of sad, as he looked away from her again.

     "Must be a big change for you," Poppy said, her smile fading, as she noticed his expression had changed. "Yeah... that's for sure," Branch sighed, his ears drooping a bit. "You don't like it here?"

     He looked up at her, his eyes wide, worried he might have offended her with his comment.

     "No! I mean... yes? I... I mean..." He sighed, lowering his head in shame. "I... I don't know... it's just... all this Halloween stuff. You know?"
"You don't believe in it?" Poppy asked, tilting her head a bit, as she looked at him.
"What do you mean? Like... the Sanderson Sisters?" Branch scoffed. "Psh... no way."

     "Not even on Halloween?" Poppy teased with a slight smirk.
"Especially not on Halloween," Branch laughed.

     Poppy shrugged, reaching into her hair to pull out a piece of paper.

     "Trick or treat..." she said flirtingly, handing the folded up paper to Branch.

     Branch smiled, taking the piece of paper from her, as she turned to walk away.

     He watched her leave, his heart fluttering, and then slowly looked down at the paper she had handed him.

     His smile faded instantly, as he read what was written on the note. It was his own phone number...