The Special FX of Halloween

Rollie Tyler, master of special effects, stretched long and hard. He was tired, but it was a good tired. A tired that came from physical labor and a hard job done with love and care. He looked around at the resutls of his hard work and smiled to himself. The F/X man had outdone himself this time. This Halloween would be the best the kids in his neighborhood had ever seen.    

Usually, the special effects artist was busy at this time of year working on movies. This year hadn't been an exception. Tyler FX had three movies scheduled back to back and Rollie thought he would miss out again. But then something had come up with "THE" star of one of them and suddenly Rollie Tyler found his Halloween was free. The kids had always begged the Aussie to make them a haunted house for Halloween and always before he'd been forced to disappoint them. Their parents always sighed and nodded in understanding, but he had seen their disappointment as well. Every one was sure Rollie Tyler would make the best haunted house.     

Everyone was going to be very surprised by the results, he thought with satisfaction. For this was going to be a surprise to everybody, his partner and friends included. No one knew what the Aussie was up to, not even his partner and assistant, Angie Ramirez. No one knew about the haunted house, except for the owner of the old building Rollie was using. He had called the owner of a small, empty office building up for sale on the corner and gotten permission to transform it for the holiday. The owner had actually crowed with delight at the thought. His only request was that he be allowed to bring his own family to enjoy the fun. It was easy for Rollie to accept the request and they'd soon had a deal.     

Rollie hummed softly to himself as he left. He carefully locked the door behind him.    

"Excuse me, young man."    

Rollie jumped slightly at the unexpected words. It was the voice of a woman that was truly elderly, quavering and sweet. Just the type of voice, Rollie had always imagined for the perfect grandmother. He turned, startled, to face the elderly woman. She looks just like a grandmother should look, Rollie thought to himself. She was tiny and bent with age and her hair glinted silver in the deepening twilight, but there was a brightness to her eyes behind the thick, bottle bottom lenses in the glasses she wore. "Yes ma'am?" Rollie responded, suddenly very mindful of his manners, "May I help you?" The Australian found himself willing to go anywhere or do anything to help her out. He smiled warmly and waited.    

"I hope so, young man. I was wondering if you could help me. I..." The elderly woman smiled sweetly up at him. "I understand that you work in film?"    

"Yes, ma'am," Rollie answered, his warm, bright brown eyes full of curiousity. Now what?    

"You do... you do the things to make explosions and illusions and such?"    

"Yes, I do special effects." He hoped she wasn't going to ask him to blow someone up. Just his luck, finally meet someone looking like a real grandmother and they turn out to want him to murder someone.     

"Oh, is that what it's called?" She smiled sweetly at the tall, young man. "Well, I was wondering if you could make an illusion for me?"    

"An illusion?" Rollie's brow wrinkled as he considered the request. Well, it didn't seem to involve murder anyway. "What type of illusion?" He shook his head slightly, before she could respond. "Never mind, let's get out of this chill first. Join me for a cuppa?"    

"I would be delighted."     

Rollie escorted the tiny woman around to his workshop on Brewery Lane. His brain kept trying to decide what type of illusion, she could possibly want from him. He opened the door and bowed slightly, indicating she should enter first.    

The woman exclaimed at her first sight of the loft. "Oh my!" Her small hand fluttered to her breast. "Amazing!"    

Blue was barking his head off at the stranger and approached slowly from the lower living area. "Quiet, Blue," Rollie commanded his little robot pet and security system control. Blue whined a bit and stopped barking.    

"Oh my! Did you build him?" The little woman stared in astonishment at the insect-like robot.    

"Yes ma'am," Rollie answered as he went to make tea. "Is Earl Grey all right? Or would you prefer coffee?"    

"Earl Grey would be lovely!" The elderly voice answered with a quaver. "It's been so very long since I've had any." She sat down on the couch with a soft sigh of pleasure.    

Rollie smiled and swiftly fixed a pot of tea. He placed it with cups and saucers, cream, sugar, lemon and honey on a tray. He joined his guest in the living area and sat down across from her in his striped leather chair. He served a cup to his guest and indicated the offered sweeteners and flavorings. The woman expertly fixed the cup to her liking and Rollie sat back with his own cup and took a sip.    

"Now. About this illusion?"    

"Yes, Mister...?"    

"Rollie, please."    

She smiled and her cheeks dimpled slightly. "Rollie. My name is Vivian Lee. And I'm afraid I have a rather unusual request. I... I want you to make me a... a haint..." For a moment, her voice held the hint of a Southern accent, "a ghost."    

Rollie's eyes widened at that, thinking of the haunted house he had just finished. "You want me to haunt something? Or someone?"    

"No. Oh no. I want you to make me a ghost."    

The Aussie's brow puckered as he tried to understand. "You want me to turn you into a ghost?"    

She beamed at him. "Precisely! I want to be a ghost."    

"Why?" He asked, totally bewildered by the request.    

"I... I need to talk to my grandson."     

Rollie's puzzlement deepened. Why did she need to be a ghost to talk to her grandson? It didn't make sense. Not at all.     

"Let me explain, Rollie. My grandson has not visited me in over twenty years. I think he's forgotten I ever existed. What's more he doesn't believe in anything. I just want to talk to him, but I can't get his attention."    

Rollie felt an anger stir deep inside. How could her grandson ignore her like that? He had never had a grandmother... Or rather, he had never known his grandparents, but he knew he wouldn't have ignored them. He believed that with all his heart. He wasn't his father or some of his friends who, he knew, never had time for their family, especially the truly elderly members. He knew they were discarded as old and useless, but he also knew they weren't. He still possessed vivid memories of the the things the Yamatji elders had told him... The things they had taught him. He lived by those things every day of his life. Before he could think, the words came, "All right. What do you want to do, Mrs. Lee? And when?"    

"As I said, I want to talk to my grandson, William Lee... On Halloween as a haint... a ghost." She observed Rollie carefully. She saw his anger and his willingness to help her. "But first, I... I need you to promise me something."    

Rollie looked sharply at her, his eyes questioning.    

She took a deep breath. "Promise me you won't tell anyone about this - ever. Promise me, it will be our little secret. Please promise me, Rollie."    
    
 Rollie's brow puckered once more in bewilderment. "All right, I promise, Mrs. Lee."    

He was rewarded by a brilliant smile from Vivian Lee. "Thank you, Rollie. Such a good boy. I knew you could help me, if anyone could." She took a sip of her tea. "Now, it must be totally believable. Even if he tries to touch me, he mustn't be able to do so."    

Rollie nodded. This, at least, he understood. "Don't you worry a bit, Mrs. Lee. I know just how to do it. Where should I set up the illusion?"    

Mrs. Lee smiled and handed him a piece of paper. "My grandson lives on the upper East side. He walks pass this way every single night in his hustle bustle life at eleven o'clock. He will pass that way on Halloween night as well."    

Rollie blinked a bit at her positive words. How could she be so absolutely sure? Surely no one was that predictable! "Well, if you're sure?"    

"Positive, Rollie. I have no fear on that score."    

"All right. I'll need to make some images of you for projection through the holographic system."    

"I have to be able to talk to him," she reminded Rollie.    

"Don't worry, you will." Rollie smiled at this grandmotherly woman. "You'll be in the van with me. I'll project a hologram of you on to the sidewalk for him to see. You'll be able to speak to him and hear his responses through a sound system I'll set up in place ahead of time." Rollie's mind whirled with ideas on the best ways to present her ghost. "And when he tries to touch you, his hand will pass right through you. Just like you were a real ghost." He cocked his head to one side, thinking. Rollie never noticed the mysterious smile on Vivian Lee's face when he said "real ghost". "With a bit of dry ice, the illusion will seem more real and it will even give the feel of a cold spot." He nodded in satisfaction.    
    

Mrs. Lee smiled warmly.  "Such a good boy."     

Rollie's night became much longer than he had planned after that. He made some images of Mrs. Lee and fed them to the holographic system. Mrs. Lee was very impressed, especially when Rollie altered the image to make it appear she was floating along without any feet. After getting her enthuisiastic approval, Rollie offered to take Mrs. Lee home, but she declined his offer, politely, but firmly. He fretted quite a bit after she left, worrying that someone might mug her on the way this late at night. As if she was reading his mind and knew his fears, about fifteen minutes later, she called to assure Rollie she had made it home safely. He sighed in relief and went back to work on the ghost.    

Late on the night before Halloween, Rollie slipped up a fake utility worker sign and set up the holographic projector, the sound system and a small dry ice system, all carefully hidden from view. The ice would be just fine until he uncovered the pots and activated the tiny, but powerful fans to blow the fog. He made a rapid check to verify all systems were go, then headed home. Between the haunted house and the ghost, he would have a busy time ahead.  Halloween was going to be a very long night indeed. 
  

Rollie woke early the next day, in spite of his recent long days and nights. For a moment, he lay in bed wondering at the odd tang of excitement he felt. Then he remembered - It was finally Halloween! He sprang from his bed, too excited to think of breakfast. There was a lot of work to be done for the day! Friends would be coming later this afternoon for their costumes. Several actors, actresses, stunt men and stunt women had agreed to help Rollie haunt his haunted house/office building. They were doing it in exchange for free food. The Aussie had promised them all the pizza they could eat. He'd made arrangements to have pizza delivered almost continously for refreshments. There would also be cake, cookies, brownies, candy, caramel covered apples, regular apples, bananas, oranges and salad. For drinks, he had sodas, bottled water and coffee. Rollie had a feeling he was going to need a lot of coffee before the night was done.

Rollie was bustling around the loft, gathering the last minute items he needed to take to the office building, when Angie came strolling in. The blonde watched her partner and boss run around with amusement. He was giving a remarkable impression of a "chicken with his head cut off" at the moment. She frowned slightly when she got a good look at him. He looked awful tired for someone who had just had the week off. "Rollie? What's up, boss?" Angie would have laughed at the way the Aussie jumped, but she managed to stifle it. She wondered if he had been helping Francis and Mira with a case.

"Angie!" Rollie looked like a deer caught in the headlights of a car. "I wasn't expecting you this early." He smiled a bit sheepishly at his blonde partner.

"Obviously," Angie remarked drily. "So need some help?"

Rollie cocked his head to one side. He really wanted this to be a surprise, but... With the added task of making Mrs. Lee a ghost, he found himself running out of time. Besides, Angie could help him test the haunted house. "Well, yeah, I guess I could." And it would still be a surprise, just a bit earlier for Angie than the rest of their friends. Rollie smiled warmly and gave her a look. "Come on then!"

Angie accepted the case that Rollie handed her and followed willingly. She was a bit surprised when he led her around the corner to the empty, three story office building on the corner. She watched as he unlocked the door and gestured for her to enter.

Rollie grinned widely as Angie looked at the transformed first floor with open surprise. The first floor was, fortunately, almost entirely one huge open space. Originally it had been a store with the offices taking up the upper floors. The last people who owned it had offices down here, those awful little cubicles that Scott Adams showed so well in Dilbert. Cubicles were just one of the many reasons Rollie never, ever wanted to have an office job! Now, he had transformed it into a party area. There were tables set up, waiting for the refreshments to arrive. Chairs lined the walls and surrounded small tables at the front. There was an open area for a dance floor toward the back and another open area where the story teller he found could sit and tell her tales to the children. Everywhere were the traditional decorations that meant Halloween. Witches, ghosts, bats, a real honest to goodness scarecrow and more. Rollie had pulled out every stop he could think of to decorate the first floor for the party. The second and third floors were even more elaborate. His dragon's head guarded the door leading to the stairwell. It was impossible to see that it was just the head. It would be easy to imagine the dragon guarding the door. Only the bravest would pass his watchful eyes and smoking breath. The only way up to the haunted floors. The other stairs were set up strictly as fire exits.

Angie examined the elaborate decorations and began to realize why Rollie looked like he'd been working alone. He had been, setting up his special surprise for their neighborhood friends. She eyed the tired Aussie and started to ask a question.

"Francis is bringing Sarah and the girls for the Halloween party. Mira's been invited as well." Rollie smiled as Angie closed her mouth. "Wait until you try the second and third floor! I hope I got everything right." He fretted about that quite a bit. The second floor was meant for the eight to twelve crowd, with the far scarier third floor reserved for the teenagers and the adults. He hoped he had done it right. He didn't want to terrify his friends out of their minds, just give them a fun scare. Feeling anxious once more, he lead Angie upstairs and showed her the rest of his  effort.

Angie was duly impressed by Rollie's hard work. He'd obviously been busy the whole week setting up the elaborate effects. She wondered why she hadn't noticed so much was gone from the loft earlier. A lot of the props Rollie kept there were now here, being put to use. There was the werewolf hiding in one corner ready to howl, growl and pounce. There were aliens and monsters all around. The "egg" from "Martian From Moscow" was sitting in the middle, ready to start pulsing and for the baby to hatch and spring on some unsuspecting visitor. So many props and tricks, no wonder Rollie looked so tired! She looked up at the tall Australian, slightly puzzled. "How are you going to get them all to work?" A lot of these were really costumes and required someone inside to make them work. The thought of trying to work them remotely was giving her a headache.

"Oh, I've got some friends coming over to help. You know - Tony, Erin, Derrick, Megan, David, Becker, Nella, Maureen, Ellen, Deborah, Nancy, Kat, Eileen, Jen, Kay, Gabe, Luce..."

Angie reached up and put her hand over his mouth, effectively stopping the flow of names. "I get the idea. How did you get them all to agree?"

Rollie grinned, "Pizza."

The blonde snorted and nodded understanding. What better way to get to stunt people, crew workers and starving actors than their stomachs? "Gotcha." She glanced around once more. "Looking good, Rol. You put in a lot of work." She looked at Rollie out of the corner of her eye. "You should have called me. I would have helped."

Rollie nodded, "I know you would, sweetie. I wanted it to be a surprise... For everybody." He looked around and rubbed his hands together. "Well, you're here now and there's still work to be done. Everything needs to be tested out, so..."

Angie shook her head and grinned. "Let's get to it."

Rollie and Angie worked hard, checking each effect and gag - making sure everything worked perfectly. The blonde sat up from the sensor she had just tested and looked around the room. Rollie had outdone himself this time. She shook her head again as she thought of him doing all of this alone. She knew their friends were going to be surprised and really enjoy themselves. She laughed softly to herself as she stood up and went to the door. Peeling a sticker off, she slapped Rollie's trademark on to the door. After all, after his hard work he deserved it!
 

Soon their friends arrived. Rollie and Angie set to work, helping them with their costumes and make-up. The haunted building was coming to life as they scattered to their places, ready to startle and spook the guests. Luce and David chattered amiably as they headed for the third floor, disguised as vampires ready to lure young mortals into their grasps. Derrick was quickly turned into a were-wolf and went to prowl on the second floor. Erin, Ellen and Eileen became aliens, unnaturally tall and thin, ready to kidnap unsuspecting earthlings. They were to switch between the two upper floors, surprising everyone by their abrupt comings and goings. Deb, Nance, Kat and Kay were turned into spooks and sent to haunt the second floor. Maureen was turned into a banshee and headed up for the third floor. Megan was turned into a zombie queen, Tony, Becker and Nella, her zombie slaves and entourage. She regally led them to the third floor. Gabe became a warlock and Jen a witch. They were sent to work their spells on the second floor. Karen appeared later and Angie turned her into Frankenstein's bride. Jake with his height just had to be her groom, Frankenstein's monster and Rollie expertly helped him with the transformation. Both were turned lose on the second floor.

Angie glanced over at Rollie after the monsters had left for their duties and sighed. Rollie looked tired, but he was obviously excited as well. "What next?" she asked, only to be interrupted as the refreshments arrived. Some of the others came down and helped them set it up. The story teller, Laura,  arrived and was set to sit on soft cushions, her colorful, exotic costume well suited to her task.

By the time the sun was setting, everything was in place, including Blue. That will be a surprise to everyone, Rollie thought in satisfaction as he set his little robotic pet on guard, near the stairs. Not even Angie would suspect a thing.

Angie looked at her own ordinary (chambray shirt and jeans) clothes, then took in Rollie's attire - dark sweater and blue jeans. "Are we suppose to have costumes too?"

Rollie looked over at his partner and blinked. Costumes? Costumes? He blinked again. Uh oh, he hadn't thought about that!

Angie hid her smile behind her hand, Rollie look completely befuddled right now. She grabbed his hand and pulled him after her. "Come on, I know just the thing." She led the unresisting Aussie back to his place and they went inside. "Wait here," Angie told him and bounded upstairs. Minutes later, the blonde was back down with a case in her hands.

Something inside of Rollie relaxed as he recognized his Christmas costume. With some slight changes, it would be fine for a Halloween costume. It certainly wouldn't be scary, but then it didn't have to be.

Angie shoved the case in his hands and went back upstairs to dress in  her own Halloween costume. She'd been wanting something like this ever since she'd seen Rollie's masterpiece. That one was so perfect for the tall, friendly Australian. Now, she would have her own costume. Maybe with Rollie's help, it would match his when it came time to visit the kids at Christmas.

Soon, the friends faced each other, Rollie dressed in his softly brown furred Christmas costume. The things that made it Christmasy had been replaced. By delving into the back of his closet and into the odds and ends of the workshop, Rollie had replaced the red and green clothes with black. The Santa patches were replaced by orange and black cat patches. His soft red boots and vest had been exchanged for tan ones.

Rollie Tyler grinned in delight when he saw Angie, for her costume was that a silky furred cat. Her fur purr-fectly matched her own hair with just a touch of darker color contrasting here and there. She wore black jeans and long sleeved shirt, sharply contrasting with her light colored fur. Her feet were covered by a pair of black sneakers. He smiled and went to dig into the workshops' odds and ends once more. Soon, Angie's eyes, while still their wonderful blue-green color, were slitted just like a cat's. The furry partners looked each other over and gently fluffed out a few flattened patches of fur. Then, hand in hand, grinning widely, they returned to the Haunted Halloween Party, ready to meet and greet their guests.

Rollie and Angie twitched their tails and ears as they greeted each new arrival. Everyone was awed by the furry special effects experts, the younger children stroking their fur gently and watching the waving tails with wide, wonder filled eyes. Francis smiled as Mira and his family took in the odd duo, he recognized Rollie's costume. It looked like Angie had one of her own now. Chritmas would be even more interesting this year.

Sounds and lights from the party spilled out into the street. Shrieks could be heard from upstairs. Angie went to check on things upstairs at one point, but came back almost immediately. Blue had covered her in slime! Her eyes spat angry fire as she stalked her boss and best friend. "Look what Blue did! Why? I know you're behind this, Rollie."

To everyone else's amusement, Rollie grinned wickedly and dodged away. Angie took off in pursuit. After chasing him around the first floor for a while, Rollie headed for the stairs. As soon as he reached the dragon, he was slimed. Angie slid to a halt, totally stunned. Blue had slimed Rollie! She watched as Rollie started to laugh. It was infectious and soon she was laughing with him. Angie wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up at the man she was now leaning against. "Why?"

Rollie struggled to control his laughter, but was still prone to giggling fits when he looked at her. He smiled happily. "I programmed Blue to slime anyone in his recognition program at random intervals and sequences. You," he gently touched her small pink cat nose, "were just the first to get surprised. I didn't expect him to get two people in a row though." Rollie looked over to where Blue was hidden, ready and waiting to slime the next unsuspecting friend.

"You didn't exclude yourself?" Angie whispered to him.

"No, that would be cheating."

"So... Anybody in his memory is fair game?" Angie grinned wickedly.

"Uh? Well yeah. Sure."

"Francis? Mira?"

Rollie nodded. Certainly their police friends were potential targets. Since both had gone upstairs earlier, he was a bit surprised they hadn't already been surprised.

Angie's grin widened, "Good. Now. How do I get this stuff out of my fur?"

Rollie shook his head in amusement. Angie was up to something now. "Wait for it to dry. It'll just brush off then. Probably five to ten minutes, depending on how much slime you were hit with."

"What about Lucinda?" Luce was in make-up, she might be able to escape Blue's little trick.

"Lucinda too," Rollie answered patiently.

"What about her disguise?"

"Didn't stop Bluey from recognizing us, Ange." Rollie pointed out.

"Good," Angie darted past Blue's post and headed up the stairs, looking for the potential victims.

Rollie laughed again, softly this time and wondered over to where Laura was finishing a scary story. She looked up at the lanky Aussie and smiled. "Spell me a bit, my friend? I need to dampen my throat with something to drink." She winked at the children around her. "Twill make the stories flow more smoothly."

The furry Aussie considered the audience, then nodded softly. He plopped down on the vacated pillows. "So what will it be, mates?" His accent was now full-blown and totally outrageous. The children pulled slightly closer. One little girl pressed up against his side and Rollie was glad that the slime was brushing off now. He didn't want to mess up the little warrior princess.

"Something scary," she lisped slightly, her smile showing her front teeth were missing.

Rollie looked at the others and saw their agreements. He paused to collect his thoughts and started to tell a story he'd learned when he was young.

Once long ago, back in the beginning of the dreaming, there was a man named Biami. Biami was a very wise man, the wisest man created by the Rainbow Serpent. Once he grew old, the Mother of Life made him a spirit and gave him power to protect all of the Tribes from harm. So, as Biami the Good Spirit, he went and lived among the tribes and was beloved by the Yamatji, the people.

Now, among the Tribes there lived one who broke one of the rules laid down by the Rainbow Serpent. He ate the flesh of his totem animal. Biami the Good Spirit became angry at this violation. It was an evil thing to eat your own totem animal, very evil. No good could come of such an act!

Since the Rainbow Serpent slept deep below the earth, in the place where she originally came from, it was up to Biami to punish this wrongdoer. He did so, banishing him from the Tribes for all time. The man left, but after he left, he took on a spirit form, that of an evil spirit called the Bunyip.

Biami warned the Yamatji to avoid the Bunyip and have nothing to do with him. The Bunyip was deeply angry and vowed to use his evil influence to bring unhappiness to all of the Tribes and the People. He lived in the deep waterholes and in the rain forests, hiding in the darkened depths under the trees  by day and ranging around the land by night. He made the Tribes fearful, attempting to devour any human he met in his travels. The Yamatji begged Biami for his protection from the Bunyip.

Now, some of the young members of the Tribes disobeyed their elders, who had warned them to avoid the Bunyip and have nothing to do with him and his evil. They went out seeking the evil spirit, wanting to test his powere. The Bunyip waited for them and when they came close enough, he trapped them all within his power. Making them his slaves, he turned the girls into water spirits and the boys into bunyips. They were lost to the Yamatji, lost forever - for any who were caught in the Bunyip's evil grasp could never escape and could never be rescued.

The water spirits, under the orders of the Bunyip, lured the hunters of the Yamatji into the black waters of the gunyah, the Bunyip's home. The water spirits lured the hunters with their beauty and with songs of love, lying, deceitful songs. The hunter trapped within the spirits' power  would drown in the dark waters. No one would go venturing into the deep waters of the gunyah for fear of the Bunyip and his slaves. All of the younger ones lured to him were turned into evil spirits. Any above a certain age were drowned.

To this day, the Bunyip roams around the rain forests and the bilabongs, seeking fresh victims to pull within his grasp. Do not listen when you hear the deep thrumming, booming call! For it is the Bunyip calling!

The children breathed deeply, feeling a chill travel up their spines at Rollie's story. It was one they had never heard and deliciously scary. Laura looked upon the group and smiled softly. She settled in the back, prepared to listen to Rollie spinning another tale.

Angie smiled widely as she led a slimed Mira over to the table with food. It had taken her three tries to get Blue to slime the NYPD detective and the look on the woman's face had been priceless. She glanced over to where Rollie was telling stories to the children and her smile softened. He was having so much fun. Looking around at their friends and neighbors, she knew the party and the haunted building was a total success.
 

The clocks were striking ten as the last of their guests took their leave, telling the special effects artists one more time how much fun they had that night. Rollie smiled and nodded, tired, but happy with the results. They said good-bye to Mira, Francis, Sarah and the girls, then went to work helping their friends out of their make-up and elaborate costumes. They still had Maureen, David, Luce and Derrick to do, when Rollie glanced at the wall clock. Oh, bloody hell! If he didn't get going soon, he would miss picking up Mrs. Lee for her haunting of her grandson. He glanced over at Angie and down at his own fur covered hands. He hated doing this, but... Rollie cleared his throat. "Um, Angie, sweetie, I hate to ask, but..." Angie glanced over at him, one brow arched in a delicate question. "Could you finish up here? Getting the make-up off, I mean. I'll clean up and get everything put away tomorrow." He finished his words in a rush, hoping she would agree. He hated sticking her with this, but he had to get his own make-up off and get going if they were going to be in time to catch William Lee.

Angie frowned slightly in bewilderment. She wasn't sure what her partner was up to, but it was evident from the way he was shifting from foot to foot, that it was important to him anyway. Besides Rollie had put so much work into the party already, she could handle a few extra make-up removals. "Sure thing, boss," Angie smiled, then shook her finger at him, admonishing, "but don't forget to get some sleep. You look exhausted."

"Right! I won't." Rollie brushed a quick kiss across her cheek, already heading out. "Thanks!" He called back as he hit the door running and hurried back to the loft. Once there, he swiftly, but carefully, removed his own fur. Still dressed in the same clothes with his leather jacket over them, he backed out the large FX van and headed for his date with a ghost. The streets were quiet as he drove to pick up Vivian Lee. Most of the trick or treaters were home now. He saw a few people hurrying home from a party or hurrying to a new one, he wasn't sure which. Pulling up to the place he was to get Mrs. Lee, he relaxed slightly as he saw her waiting patiently. Rollie glanced around puzzled. He'd thought this would be where the elderly woman lived, but it didn't look like it. There was a small, tree shaded cemetary on the other side of the street and a few old shops, gentile and dusty in the street lights. on the side he picked her up. Perhaps she lived over one of the shops? Shaking off the question and a sudden chill, Rollie smiled warmly at the tiny, bent figure as she sat in Angie's chair, back at the workstation. "I hope you weren't waiting too long," Rollie apologized, "I'm sorry, but it took me longer to get away than I thought."

"Not to worry, Rollie. I didn't wait long at all."

She smiled that sweet smile at him and his heart melted. Wistfully, he pulled away from the curb. If only... They made it to their appointed spot with a good ten minutes to spare. Rollie swiftly activated everything and checked that all was still functioning properly. Everything green and ready to go, they waited quietly for William Lee to arrive at the appointed place and time.  Eleven o'clock sharp, a man in his late forties or early fifties appeared, walking briskly, and Rollie heard Mrs. Lee sigh.

"That's him," she whispered as if afraid her grandson would hear her, that's William".

Rollie obediently activated the projection and the dry ice from his PDA, wondering how her grandson could be so old. Unless he was the type to show age earlier or she wasn't showing her true age? Rollie looked out at the meeting as everything seemed to go softly gray. As if from a great distance, he heard Mrs. Lee say, "Wish me luck," just as the world faded away to black.

The sound of a clock striking the hour impinged on Rollie's wakening senses. He counted the strokes carefully and sighed silently, as it struck twelve. Midnight. He felt a feather touch on  his scarred cheek and ancient lips give a gentle kiss to his brow. "Thank you," Mrs. Lee whispered in his ear, her breathe stirring his hair, tickling him slightly. "William could never see. Never hear. Would never have known if not for you, Rollie Tyler. Thank you."

Rollie blinked his eyes open and shook himself slightly. He sat up in the driver's seat, ashamed that he'd apparently fallen asleep or fainted or something. He shifted to speak to the old woman, to apologize for his lapse, then gaped in astonishment. No one was there. He looked out the windshield. William Lee was gone and there was no trace of Vivian Lee. No sign, even though she'd just touched him, just spoken. How? What? The Aussie tried to shake the cobwebs from his tired mind, tried to grasp what was going on.

Suddenly too tired to think, Rollie stumbled out of the truck and silently collected the projector, fans and dry ice. Maybe it would make more sense in the morning, his befuddled mind thought as he yawned a jaw cracking yawn. He was so tired, all he wanted to do was sleep a week. If he was lucky, he might get six hours - if he was lucky.
 

Daylight streamed into the loft as Angie opened the green doors, bouncing and happy. Yesterday had been fun and a total success, she was still glowing from the compliments for the party, the effects and her costume. She even had a date arranged for next Friday. All in all, it had been a highly successful Halloween night in her book. Now though, she was ready and willing to help Rollie clean up and put things away. It wasn't fair for him to do all the work, even though she knew he would do it and never think to complain. The blonde peered around the workshop, looking for the Aussie. Blue barked a welcome and she smiled. "Good morning, Blue. Where's Rollie?"

Deciding he must already be at work on the clean up, she turned to join him when she heard a sound.  "Ange?" Rollie stood at the top of the stairs, dressed in worn sweats, rubbing his eyes, his hair sticking every which of way. "What time is it?" He asked, still slightly muddled by sleep.

Angie gaped at him, a bit surprised. Rollie still asleep this late? That was unusual. Perhaps, he was up later than she thought. "Um, ten o'clock. I'm sorry, Rol, I didn't mean to wake you."

"Ten?" Rollie asked as he walked barefoot down the stairs and headed for the coffee pot. "No. You didn't wake me, I was awake, just didn't seem to want to get out of bed yet." He yawned as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "Want some?"

Angie blinked and shook her head. "No thanks. Not now." She went over to the fridge and got a bottle of water. "So, sleep well?"

"Hmm?" Rollie's were slitted part way closed in pleasure at the scent of the fresh brewed coffee, the man obviously still sleepy. "Yeah, yeah actually. I slept great!" As the coffee warmed him, he smiled and looked at her. "So, enjoy the party?"

Angie grinned and answered happily. As the Australian FX man listened to his partner's  and assistant's enthusiatic words, he smiled. He felt warm all the way down to his toes. It seemed the party was a success with everyone. As the woman's words wound down, Rollie's brow puckered thoughtfully. The events after the party were blurry, he wasn't even sure he remembered getting home, much less going to bed. The thought of Vivian Lee brought a warmth, but no questions or worries. Last night with her grandson must have gone well... Hadn't it? He tried to remember for a moment, then shook it off. He had clean up duty. It wouldn't do itself.
 

A week later, Rollie found himself once more passing the spot he'd pick Vivian Lee up. Looking around, he wondered how things were with the elderly woman. Was she happy? Had her grandson listened to her as a ghost? Curious, because he still couldn't remember what had happened, the Aussie pulled over and parked. Deciding to try and find her, he walked into a small bakery and spoke to the woman behind the counter. "Do you know a Mrs. Vivian Lee?"

The woman looked at the stranger, then shook her head. "No, I don't know any Vivian Lee's. I know a Chin Lee, though."

"No, she's not Chinese. I think she may be from the South. She's very old. About this tall," Rollie waved his hand to indicate the height, "silvery hair. Wears glasses with thick lenses." He looked at her, hoping that his description would jar a memory.

"No, but..." The woman thought a moment. "Ask Mr. Green. He owns the tailor shop next door. He's been here forever. If anyone knows her, he will."

Rollie thanked her politely and went into the tailor shop to do just that. Mr. Green squinted up at the tall, young man. He was in his middle sixties. But didn't seem as old as Mrs. Lee had appeared. "Only Vivian Lee I know died fifteen years ago." He nodded his head thoughtfully. "Yep. Fifteen years. She's buried in Tree Crossing Cemetary." He pointed across the street. "The last person they'll ever bury there, I expect." He nodded again, unaware of Rollie's growing bewilderment. "She wore glasses. Thickest lenses I've ever seen. She was over eighty at the time. Lived a full life. Real happy. Except... Except that darn grandson of her's never came to visit. She worried about him." He nodded again and thought some more. "William. That was his name. William Lee."

Stunned, Rollie walked out of the tailor shop into the crisp air and sunshine of a perfect autumn day. Dead? Fifteen years? But... He'd talked to her! Touched her! She'd touched him. He still had the images from the projection system. Those were real! Not of someone dead! A... a ghost. If she was dead, why would she need his help to be a ghost. Still stupified by the tailor's words, Rollie walked across the street. He wondered the old cemetary, looking around. He wasn't sure what he was looking for. His Mrs. Lee wasn't here! She was alive. She... He found himself looking at a tombstone. Fresh flowers were sitting in a pot there. Mums full of the colors of autumn.

 

Vivian Lee

Type of the wise who soar but never roam,
True to the kindred points of heaven and home.

Born June 16, 1897 ~ Died October 31, 1983