It's Halloween.

Gwen always enjoyed Halloween. She liked dressing up in different costumes and hanging out with friends more, but she also liked that she could get candy for free. There is a Halloween party that Gwen planned on going to with her friends. Shawn was going to go as Cory and Gwen decided on going as a cowgirl. She wore a blue and white plaid shirt that's tied in the front and a white tank top underneath. She wore blue jeans, cowgirl boots, and a cowgirl hat. Half of her brunette-colored hair was pulled back by a hair clip, her bangs were pushed to the side, and she also wore dangly earrings.

Shawn had to admit she looked really pretty. Well, she always looked really pretty, but tonight she looked extra pretty, and it was getting harder for him to deny his growing feelings for her. "Hey, Cor." Shawn greeted the curly-haired boy, opening the door to Cory's room. He let Gwen walk in first, and then he followed her.

Gwen looks at Cory with a grin and tips her cowgirl hat towards him, speaking in a country accent. "Howdy, partner." She and Shawn were dressed up and ready to go to the Halloween party, but Gwen noticed Cory wasn't.

Shawn glances at Gwen with an amused expression, and he glances at Cory, seeing he looked unamused. "You ready for the Halloween party?"

Cory shakes his head. "Please. I have no time for such things."

"Oh, come on. Come on." Shawn urges, grinning at Cory and outstretches his arms. "Guess who I'm going as. Okay, I'll give you a hint." He imitates Cory and points at Cory with both hands. "Wow, Shawn, I wish I was as cool as you."

Cory stares at him. "I'm sure I have no idea."

Shawn chuckles. "I'm going as you."

Gwen sighs and glances at Shawn with crossed arms. "If I knew you were going as Cory before I decided on a costume, I would've gone as Topanga, and not as a cowgirl."

"Nah, don't worry," Shawn assures her. He sends her a smile. "You look pretty." Gwen smiled back at him, ignoring the butterflies swarming in her stomach and how she felt her cheeks grow warm, which made her know she's blushing. Shawn's eyes widened at realizing what he just said, and his face turned a light shade of pink. He rubbed the back of his neck in a shy manner as he looked down in hopes to hide the fact that he's blushing.

"Mine's pretty cool too, right?" Shawn decided to change the subject and messed with the curly-haired wig he wore.

Gwen nods and chuckles. "Almost scary how similar you look like Cory."

"That's what I was going for." Shawn grins. He looks at Cory. "So where's your costume?"

Cory stands up from his desk. "I'm not going."

Gwen frowns. "What? Why not? Things wouldn't be the same if you didn't go."

"Yeah," Shawn looks at Cory with a sad expression. "You have to go."

"No," Cory goes over to look out the window. "I have to stay here, alone. Locked in my room where no one can see me."

"What about Topanga?" Shawn questions, taking off the wig he wore. "She's meeting us here, remember?"

Cory turns to look at him and Gwen with panic. "No. I-I told her it wasn't safe." He walks over to them. "I can't be responsible for my actions. Only evil will come from tonight."

"By evil do you mean people giving out bad candy 'cause they're too cheap to buy the good stuff?" Gwen raises her eyebrows. "If so, then yes that will happen tonight." She scoffs, shaking her head. "I swear, it seems like every year most people only give out bad candy."

"Yeah, that's true." Shawn agrees. "That's why when you go Trick or Treating you always gotta go early to get the good stuff." He then grins when he realizes something and looks at Cory. "You're gonna make a move, huh?"

"If I do, it'll be on all fours." Cory responds, causing his best friends to look at him with confusion. "Listen, I gotta tell somebody." He guides Gwen and Shawn to sit on the edge of his bed. "Gwen, Shawn, I am one of the undead creatures of the night."

Gwen raises her eyebrows at him. "You're a zombie? You don't look like one."

Cory shakes his head. "No, that's not it.

"Cory, you can't fool your best friends." Shawn shakes his head. "Something's bothering you, isn't it?"

"What I'm about to tell you guys is-is so bizarre no one in their right mind would believe it." Cory spoke.

Gwen points at Shawn with a small smile on her lips. "Well, look no further 'cause Shawn's your guy." Shawn nodded in agreement and smirked, pointing at himself.

"It all started last night." Cory started to explain how last night when he was taking out the garbage he got bitten by some kind of creature that he thought was a wolf. Gwen wasn't for sure if she believed him.

Shawn chuckles. "There's no way you were bitten by a wolf."

Gwen nods in agreement. "Cor, there are no wolves around this area. Beside the one at the zoo." She tilts her head to the side when she remembered something. "That recently got out." She nods. "Okay, yeah, so it might be possible you got bit by a wolf."

Cory nods, pointing at her. "Exactly! I mean, what else could it have been?" He pushes up the sleeve on his left arm. "Look at the bite." Gwen furrowed her eyebrows upon not seeing a bite.

Shawn looked at Cory's arm with furrowed eyebrows as well. "I don't see anything."

"Me neither." Gwen said.

Cory nods. "Of course you don't. Everybody knows werewolf bites heal overnight."

"Wow!" Shawn stands up, deciding on playing along. "Then you're covered with them." He raises his eyebrows. "So you're really turning into a werewolf?"

"Well, I didn't think so until I woke up this morning." Cory replies. He explains that this morning he found hair on his body that wasn't there before. "You guys, it's more than just hair. I've got strange new urges. Like last night I'm watching the movie 'The Untouchables'. You know the scene where Capone's about to smash heads with his baseball bat?"

Nodding, Shawn grins. "Awesome scene."

Cory points at himself. "Except I'm not into it. The whole time I'm thinking 'I wonder how cold the water is on Baywatch.'" He shrugged, shaking his head.

Shawn raises his eyebrows, looking at him with surprise. "Jeez, whatever you got, you got it bad."

"Yeah," Cory nods. "I didn't know how bad until lunchtime when I had this strange craving for a snack." He explains how he had decided on going to the restaurant Frank's House of Ogurt and ended up talking to a woman named Ouspankaya. "Everything Madame Ouspankaya predicted has come true, and now only one part of the prophecy remains unfulfilled. I gotta kill Topanga."

"What a drag." Shawn remarks and sits back on the edge of Cory's bed where Gwen still sat. "Girl finally likes you, and you've gotta off her. You know, this could really hurt you socially."

"What can I do?" Cory shrugs. "My paws are tied."

"Cor, have you told anyone else but us?" Gwen asked him.

"No." Cory shakes his head. "You two are the only ones who know." He points at Gwen and Shawn. "The only ones."

"Hey, Cory," Eric greets as he walks into his shared bedroom with his younger brother, holding a dog food tray. "Here's your supper." He places the bowl on the floor and howled. Cory howled along with him and then Eric left.

Cory looks at his two best friends, who looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Cor," Gwen crosses her arms. "I thought we were the only ones."

Cory gestures with a nod of his head towards Eric. "He's family."

"Listen," Shawn stands up, walking to the other side of the room. Gwen watched Cory with amusement when he got on his knees and started eating out of the dog food tray. "Since you're going through this change," Gwen glances at Shawn, noticing he picked up a baseball off Cory's desk. "Um, can I have your autographed Lenny Dykstra ball?"

Cory stands up, looking at him with wide eyes, and takes the baseball from Shawn. "Not my ball!"

"Cory, you don't need it anymore." Shawn said. "You're a wolf."

Gwen rolls her eyes. "I'm not saying I believe he's a wolf, but the least you could do is be sympathetic."

"Yeah," Cory agrees. "I can still fetch." He sat the baseball back on his desk.

"Listen, on the off chance you are turning into this werewolf, why don't we head down to the drug store?" Shawn suggests. "They got that aisle-beauty aids. If they got stuff that can take the 'stache off my mother, they've gotta have something for you."

"Don't you think I've already thought about that." Cory sighs. "Listen, after school, I went back to Madame Ouspenskaya's..."

****

Cory signed his note once he was finished with telling Gwen and Shawn what happened. "So I hope you will all forgive me as I cannot escape my destiny. Fondly, Cory A.O. Matthews."

"What's the A.O. stand for?" Shawn inquired.

"Ah-ooh." Cory said. He furrows his eyebrows upon noticing Shawn takes some of his stuff and puts it in a bag. "What are you doing?"

"I'm taking your running shoes." Shawn picks up Cory's running shoes that rested by his bed. "If you don't have four of a kind, there's really no point."

"Cory," Mrs. Matthews calls out. "Topanga's here."

Cory looks at Gwen and Shawn with a panicked expression. "Oh, no. She's here!" He stands up, walking over to Shawn. "Shawn, I need you to do something for me. Promise me you'll keep Topanga away from me. Swear by everything holy that you'll do everything in your power to keep that poor, innocent girl from a terrible-"

He stops himself in the middle of his sentence when he looked behind him and saw Topanga standing there. "Hi, Topanga." As if he just realized that Topanga is there he screamed.

"Well, this is our cue to leave." Gwen stands up, and she glances at Topanga with a smile after noticing her costume. "I like your costume, 'Panga. Are you supposed to be a damsel?" 'Panga was what Gwen had called the blonde-haired girl when they were little kids since Gwen had trouble saying Topanga back then, but she just kept on using the nickname ever since then.

Topanga smiles at her. "Thanks, G. And yes, I'm a damsel, but not the distressed kind. One's who's very together and in complete control of her destiny." She looks at Gwen's costume and nods. "I like your costume as well."

"Thanks." Gwen smiles. She looks at Cory and then back at Topanga. "We'll leave you two alone."

"Have a good time." Shawn added.

He howls as he starts walking towards the door. Gwen rolled her eyes even though she had a smile on her lips. She follows him out the door, hitting the back of his head. "Stop it, you dork."