Quit Your Waning (Over the Moon #3)

JIHAE

“Aysh…” I lamented, dropping my key fob and its new black cat charm as I attempted to shove it in my pants pocket. It hit the red, iron-rich dirt with a clack. I crouched on my heels, shuffling out of the way of the school pod’s double doors and stairs.

Setting aside my large box of white fabric, plas balls, and jack-o-lantern candles, I angled the fob into the gloomy light of mid-morning as the children and their guardians scooted past me, excitement in their voices.

Today was the day the entire colony would start to decorate for the Halloween Festival.

The kids would spend their mornings splatting black handprints on trees and tying together garlands of orange, green, and purple streamers, then the afternoons were back at school. The entire schedule was watching Halloween classics and making costumes for the tower trick-or-treat and a party on the playfield.

My classes were in the morning, so I was off the hook except the day before the festival. All of the teachers were going to tell spooky stories from their homeland, and I was beyond excited. Though a lot of people felt odd celebrating Halloween in the muggy heat of the jungle, I thought it was perfect. Nothing was spookier than when the smell of rot grew stronger; when the wind died and the air thickened and sweat trickled down your spine.

Even if it was hot as hell, it was my favorite time of year and I was going to own it.

Which is why I’d labored over my cat face charm for several nights of nostalgic heat and warm memories, reclaiming a bit of Halloween for myself. It was a chubby-faced black cat with blue eyes… that now sported a patch of ginger dirt. I pursed my lips together in thought and shrugged. I knew it would happen eventually. My tremors were worse here than on Earth.

Besides, he was still cute, and matched the white one I’d made for Soyeon perfectly.

Boots crunched down the path towards me and I shuffled to the side, blowing excess dirt away from his delicate ears.

“Oh, hey Jihae,” Mikaela said from above me. I looked up at her, squinting into the diffused glow of the sun behind the morning gloom of the spring jungle, and smiled with a little wave.

“Hey, onni!”

Every time I called her big sister in Korean, she blushed and glowed. I loved calling her the friendly honorific because of how good it made her feel. This morning was no different as she looped her long hair behind her ear with a smile.

“Do you need help with that box?” she asked, pointing next to me.

I waved both my hands with a smile and popped up to my feet. “Ah, no no. I’m good. I just dropped my key. Are you going to the playfield?”

We walked together, talking about the various tasks that Mrs Fareshi had doled out to all the volunteers. Mikaela had been a construction worker in Dmitri’s architecture firm back in Russia, and their Renata team had big plans. Scarecrows, large wooden tubs for “apple” bobbing, storage sheds, eerie lanterns…

“Wah—” I marveled, halting in front of the playfield. It had been partially transformed already with rickety fences and event areas. Mr Fareshi was testing orbs of light that hovered while all the children watched in awe, and his tall, blue colleague was passing out experimental snacks to taste-test. Out here in the open and surrounded by so many people, they didn’t bother me, so I smiled to myself with a content exhale. Then Mikaela left, giving me a thumbs up as she followed the sounds of hammers and drills, and I searched out Mrs Fareshi for my check-in.

As usual, she wasn’t hard to find.

Mrs Fareshi was standing atop one of the picnic tables, surrounded by supplies. Halloween music blared from the speakers mounted above her on a pole, and she wore a homemade mini witch’s hat on a headband. When she saw me, she waved over the crowd of volunteers with… was that a whip?

“Miss Jihae!”

“Hi, Mrs Fareshi!” I said, waving merrily. I hoisted my box of bits and baubles for her to inspect from her pulpit. She leaned down with a hum of excitement, checking things off her list. “I brought white medical gauze and this holographic white stuff. Is it okay?” I pulled the fabrics over the edge of the box and she nearly squealed.

“Oh my gosh, they’re perfect for costume making! Thanks, it’s such a big help. And you know you don’t need to call me Mrs Fareshi, right?” She ticked me off her list and I set my offering to the mighty holiday goddess next to dozens of others. She’d reminded me nearly every time we’d met, but it was habit. I didn’t want to use her given name while her kids were still in my class.

Mrs Fareshi licked the corner of her lip in concentration, looking over her list of things to do, then tapped her clipboard. “What do you think about working on the haunted trail? It’s what you printed the fabric and plas balls for, and I don’t have any volunteers for that yet. It’s a kid and adult favorite!”

“Oh, ah…” I looked out at the treeline masked in a thick wall of fog from the morning steam. The jungle was bloody red purple during this time of year, and the fog was so thick, you could taste it. When I glanced back, Mrs Fareshi was wincing with hope, fingers crossed beneath her clipboard. How could I say no without feeling guilty? She said it was for the kids too, which twisted my arm. I knew how excited those lovable goblins were about all the fun.

So I put on my bravest smile and gave her a thumbs up. “Sounds good.”

Mrs Fareshi made a ka-ching gesture with one fist, then squatted on the table so I could see the list. “Yesss. Alright, let’s check the levicart and make sure all this stuff is loaded up. Skeletons for the trees, will-o-wisps—that’s what Hunar is testing out with the kids right now—cobwebs, reflective eyes…”

The list went on to include giant black spiders, hands and tombstones to stick in the dirt, a literal mountain of jack-o-lanterns… No wonder Mikaela had to build storage sheds. Lots of things were still being constructed and tested, but there were plenty to last a couple days. I took the list and a scribbly little map of Mrs Fareshi’s ideas, then shoved the levicart towards the treeline. My trepidation vanished, replaced with all the spooky nooks and crannies I could design along the loop trail. Maybe this would be even more fun than sticker sheets, t-shirt graphics, and cards.

“Oh, I forgot!” Mrs Fareshi called, waving me back. She leaned down close to me. “Are you okay working around the security guys? They have patrols over there, and I know not everyone is comfortable with them.”

My gut twisted. “Ah… Do you know who?”

I held my breath, expecting the worst.

“I think it’s usually Sizzle. He’s very nice,” she said with encouragement. “Just has a saucy attitude. Maybe you can sweet talk him into helping too! The overgrown mutt can at least spot you while you use the ladder.”

I nearly toppled over the toe of my boot.

Did she say… Sizzle? And a ladder?

The hairs on the back of my neck prickled. Not only was there now a ladder my shaky joints had to contend with, but I had to actually speak to the most dangerous creature in the galaxy and not just wave at him from a distance?

It was simultaneously exciting and petrifying. I’d always enjoyed creature features, and he reminded me of Shikbang in a twisted stretch of logic. They looked nothing alike, of course, but the fur, the tall ears, the four legs, and muzzle… It was familiar enough that I decided I could handle it.

I swallowed hard and took the plunge.

“No problem!”

“Great!” Mrs Fareshi jumped up with a little wiggle dance. “Thanks, Miss Jihae!”

Then she was waving to her next pair of volunteers, putting them to work. To her credit, she tried to get them both to help me with the haunted trail. They made excuses about their knees and back nervously. Had they overheard about Sizzle? Probably. Determined to do a good job for the kids, I pushed my floating cart into the misty treeline.

I took my time, mapping out my plans as I walked towards the center of the trail, noting neon green ropes with scribbled labels to block out some places for structures like a witch’s hut and a murderous campsite. I took holo-snaps of each location from the main trail so I could design each space specifically for the approaching view. It wasn’t my usual type of design work, but with my tremors, maybe it was the best use of my skills. The possibilities were more exciting by the moment, and I was ready to pour my all into it.

When I reached a sprawling glade of black grass and lingering fog that had been roped off and labeled “Cemetery,” I stopped the levicart. The bulk of my cart was tombstones, zombie parts, and the first batch of jack-o-lanterns. If I got this part done in a day, it would be so satisfying and encouraging.

And the thrill of being in the jungle was greater than I’d expected. The echoing hollers of animals, the constant splintering of branches and rustling of leaves… The lack of hustle and bustle was nerve-wracking, but I soaked it up, knowing that people were less than a ten-minute walk away.

Grinning from ear to ear, I imagined that the red jungle was autumn foliage, and I put on some music.

Time to reclaim some of my joy.