Hello dear readers,
First of all, thank you for your welcome comments on my previous post.
I'm thrilled and relieved to be able to post again, especially on Halloween.
The Skellies are concerned about being separated from one another once they receive their diplomas. Since it's Halloween, they had a day off from the Ghost Academy and went to visit their friend Baalatova, the ancient witch. (You will remember, dear readers, that all the ancient abandoned palaces, mansions, and other ancient sites in the world are already occupied by ghosts. Only huge numbers of small abandoned houses, stables, stores, or huts remain. These are too small for more than one ghost to haunt, so only one ghost is allowed to haunt one site.)
Baalatova, together with her favorite adopted pets, Solly the flying bear, and Kitty the cat-girl, was happy to welcome the Skellies. They all sat down and enjoyed a good time.
Baalatova noticed that something was bothering the skellies and asked if they needed her help or advice. They told her about their hesitation to part.
Baalatova remembered that in one of her 17th-century ancient books, there was a story about a similar case with a solution that might interest them.
She went inside, found the book, and came back to sit with the book in her hand.
Hidden inside this book of spells was a story about two skeletons who, like Skella and Skelly, wished to be ghosts. Baalatova began reading aloud:
"In a forgotten corner of the world, nestled between the cracked stones of an overgrown graveyard, two skeletons sat beneath the cold light of the moon. Their names were Boney and Bonyetica, and they had been best friends for centuries. Rattling around the cemetery, playing bone dominoes, and occasionally scaring off raccoons - unlife was fine, but lately, they were bored.
They wanted more.
"Ghosts get all the drama," Bonyetica said one night, waving a femur for emphasis. "Moaning in the hallways, floating through walls, showing up in mirrors - style, Boney, they've got style."
Boney nodded, his jaw clattering with enthusiasm. "And mobility! We're stuck here, one graveyard for eternity. Ghosts get castles, attics, lighthouses."
That settled it. They didn't want to be skeletons anymore. They wanted to be ghosts.
The first obstacle was the Manual of the Undead, a dusty old tome that Bonyetica dug up under the caretaker's shack. According to Chapter 13: "Spiritual Advancement for Bone-based Beings," skeletons could, in theory, become ghosts. But it wasn't easy."
"You must relinquish all earthly attachments," Bonyetica read aloud.
Boney looked down at his favorite rib, polished to a shine. "Even...this?"
"I think so."
He sighed and dropped it into the offering bowl.
Next, they needed a Spectral Spark - the lingering energy of a strong emotion. So they tried to summon some drama.
Bonyetica tried to recall the grief of her unrequited love from 1683. Boney tried screaming about never finishing his cobbler apprenticeship. The air did get a little colder, but nothing happened.
They even tried haunting someone - a man running at night by the cemetery - but the guy just kept on running.
"This is hopeless," groaned Boney, his skull clinking as he slumped against a tombstone. "Maybe we're just not tragic enough."
But then, one rainy night, as they sat watching the storm roll over the hills, something strange happened. A flash of lightning, a crack of thunder - and a shiver ran through their bones, tingling.
It wasn't drama. I wasn't grief. It was Longing.
They weren't yearning to haunt or float - they were yearning to belong, to change, to mean something more than just bones rattling in the dark.
And the cemetery listened.
The ground trembled. A hush fell over the world. The gravestones glowed faintly, and from the earth rose a pale mist that coiled around them. Then, for the first time in centuries, Boney and Bonyetica felt light. Weightless.
They looked down and gasped. Their bones lay in a heap on the grass. They were translucent, floating inches above the earth, swirling outlines of who they once were.
"We're-"
"-Ghosts!"
They screamed with laughter, whirling through the trees, passing through gravestones just because they could. Bonyetica tried a dramatic hallway moan. Boney floated into a mausoleum and pretended to be a cold spot. They weren't very good at it yet - but they didn't care. They had made it. The two skeletons who had once been stuck in the dirt were now spirits of the air, the wind, the whispers in the trees.
And on clear nights, when the moon is high and the graveyard is quiet, you might still hear them". laughing - two ghosts floating free.
Skella and Skelly listened enthralled as Baalatova read the story.
Baalatova: 'Dear Skella and Skelly, I hope this story inspires you to make a final decision."
Solly: " Sorry, Kitty and I fell in the middle of the story. We dreamt about being little ghosts, booing, snatching treats, and having fun. Will you turn us all into ghosts just for this Halloween night?"
Baalatova: "Of course, my darling pets, I will. But remember, my spell is valid just for Halloween night".
And, they all went happily haunting......
I hope my friends that you didn't fall asleep reading this light-headed, silly post.
I wish those of you who celebrate Halloween an enjoyable time. Blessing and peace to all my friends, readers, and followers.
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