Candy LaVoy
Candy served out her detention term and ran home. Although any student hates getting a detention, Candy hated much more than any ordinary person. Detentions made her late for karate. She ran through the front door of the apartment building and took the stairs to the fourth floor. As she entered the apartment she shared with her mother and younger sister, she began changing, knowing neither of the females she was related to were home yet. By the time she was at the door to her room she was down to her underwear and therefore could jump right into the uniform she�d left out that morning for this very reason. She grabbed her gym bag, her green belt, her water bottle and an elastic. As she tried to tie her hair back she hit the button on the answering machine.
"Hey love. Knew you�d get this message as you rushed out the door." She listened to Jeremy�s voice as she struggled with her disobedient pink hair. Her mother had been very upset when she�d dyed her hair, but in Candy�s opinion it wasn�t any of her mother�s business. "Just thought maybe you�d give me a hint as to what you�re going as so we can go to match."
She laughed as she ran out the door. "It was your idea to keep our costumes a secret in the first place." Candy ran down the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator again. "Besides, I have no clue yet." She lowered her head and ran down the road towards the gym and her class. "This will make my third late this week, unless I�ve gotten any faster."
Candy arrived in the gym just as the master called her name. "Here!" She practically shouted it.
Master Akkei smiled. "Congratulations Candy. You�ve beaten your previous dash to class after detention record."
Candy grinned. She hated most classes and most teachers, but Master Akkei was different. "Thank you Master." She started to jog on the spot, not giving her muscles a chance to relax and cramp. "I�ve had a lot of practice."
The Master continued down the list and most of the other kids began to warm up as well. Soon they were well into karate and Candy felt a lot better. Somehow punching things seemed to help. Everyone knew she had a natural knack for it.
"Is that you dear?" Candy�s mother called to her from the kitchen.
"Yeah mom." Candy wiped her face with the towel that was around her neck. "Am I late for dinner?"
"It�s in about ten minutes."
"Okay. I�ll be in the shower." Candy walked towards the bathroom, but was stopped by April, her seven year old sister.
"Guess what I learned today." April beamed, thoroughly enjoying school and feeling the need to tell Candy all about it when she got home.
Candy smirked and picked the girl up. "Not now squirt. I�m hot, sweat, tired and I really need a shower." April�s face sunk. "But you can tell me all about it over dinner okay?"
The seven year old brightened again. "Okay." She ran off leaving Candy to her shower.
The teenager simply sat in the hot shower until her mother pounded on the door, letting her know that dinner was ready. She wrapped herself in her housecoat and joined the rest of her family at the dinner table.
Candy�s mother was one of those parents that you�d call irresponsible. She was only 33 right now, having been 16 when Candy was born. Surprisingly though, she�d managed to stay in school and keep her daughter provided for. She�d moved away from her parents when she was 18 and her daughters never knew their grandparents. Candy and April each had separate fathers and they never saw them either. Any sisters or brothers their mother might have had were left behind with their grandparents. As Candy sat at that dinner table she was looking at all the family she had. She smiled. A lot of people felt sorry for her because of that, but Candy never had any regrets about her family. She was a lot closer to her mother than most teenage girls and she rarely fought with her sister. The knowledge that they were all the family the other person had made them a lot more forgiving towards each other and a lot less inclined to fight.
"So what did you learn in school today squirt?" Candy covered her Kraft Dinner in ketchup before beginning to eat it.
"We learned about mathematics." April beamed, proud of her ability to say the long word. "Math is fun."
Their mother laughed. "Now I know you two aren�t related. Candy wouldn�t voluntarily touch a math book to save her life."
"Hey." Candy grinned, knowing her mother was only teasing. "I�ve touched many a math book and survived. I�m even passing math this year...so far."
"So far?" Her mother wasn�t reassured.
"It tends to get harder near the end of the semester, but I should be fine. Chris knows what he�s doing and he can help me." Candy continued eating. "He�s like a math whiz. We keep forgetting that though because he�s so quiet."
"Chris?" Her mother had a hard time keeping her friends straight.
"Yeah. He�s the one with the longer brown hair...quiet guy...tends to surprise you..." Candy hoped her mother would catch on.
"Oh. The one who helped you with the history project?"
"Yeah."
"Jemey called." April added, feeling slightly left out of the conversation. She had problems saying Jeremy and often settled for Jemey.
"While I was gone, or did he just leave a message?"
"He left a message when you were gone." April munched her macaroni.
Candy smiled, realizing that was the end of the conversation from April�s point of view. "Thanks kiddo." She turned to her mother. "What did he say?"
"Just to call him back. Are you two doing something this weekend? I got that impression." Her mother never missed anything.
"Yeah..." Candy wasn�t sure exactly how to break this to her. "A group of us were thinking of going down to the river for a Halloween Party on Saturday night."
"The river?" Her mother didn�t outwardly object, but Candy could tell by her tone of voice that she wasn�t happy with the idea.
"Yeah. Is that okay?" Candy tried to act like it wasn�t a big deal.
"It�s dangerous."
"I�m seventeen. Besides, all the guys are going too. I�ll be fine."
Candy�s mother turned the idea over in her head for a few minutes. "I suppose you can go, if." She said the last word loudly to penetrate Candy�s thoughts. "If you call home by midnight and tell me when you�ll be home exactly."
Candy smiled as she popped the last bit of Kraft Diner into her mouth. "Thanks a million mom." She tossed her bowl in the sink and kissed her mother on the cheek. "I gotta tell Jeremy." She headed for her bedroom and the phone therein.
Candy�s mother watched her disappear into the room with a funny feeling in her stomach. She was worried, but then again she was always worried for Candy. Besides, what could happen at the party that her daughter couldn�t handle?
"C�mon Candy!" Jeremy pleaded. "Tell me...please..."
"It was your idea for it to be a surprise." Candy loved driving him crazy.
"I know, but I only meant a surprise for them."
"That�s cheating."
"And you�ve never cheated before?"
"Candy!" Her mother interrupted the phone call well into it�s third hour. "I need the internet for work. You�ll have to get off the phone."
"I gotta go." Candy passed the message on to Jeremy. "You�ll love my surprise."
"You drive me crazy."
"That�s the point. See ya tomorrow."
"Bye." Jeremy hung up the receiver.
"See ya." Candy let her own receiver fall back into it�s cradle. She laid back on her bed, avoiding her physics homework, and tried to think of a good costume. "What on earth can I be?"
"You going out on Halloween Candy?" April crawled onto Candy�s bed beside her. "You don�t have to. Mommy said she�d take me."
"Naw. I�m going to a party squirt and I need a costume." She sat up and tickled her sister. "What do I look like to you?"
April giggled happily. "An Easter egg!"
Candy stopped tickling so April could get a breath of air. "A what?"
"An Easter egg!"
"Why?"
"Your hair is the same colour as my eggs!"
Candy stopped to think about that. Suddenly the wording of the sentance hit her. "April do you still have Easter eggs?"
The seven year old nodded happily, reaching into her pockets and pulling out some chocolate eggs wrapping in pink tin foil the same colour as Candy�s hair. "Want some?"
Candy sighed and confiscated the chocolate. "You found these when mom and you cleaned your room didn�t you?"
April pouted. "My chocolate!"
"Bad chocolate!" Candy tossed the eggs into the garbage. "They�ll make you very sick if you eat them kid."
"Chocolate makes me sick?" April�s eyes followed the Easter candy. She obviously planned to retrieve it as soon as Candy was out of the way.
"Old chocolate makes you sick. Besides, you don�t need that candy anyways. You�ll be getting a whole bunch of new candy tomorrow night."
"Really?"
"Really. Now scram. Mom said you had to be in bed ten minutes ago."
The second-grader sighed. April hadn�t thought that Candy was watching the clock. "Night Candy." She marched off to bed.
"Night April." Candy flopped back down on her bed. "An Easter egg?" She smirked. "Jeremy would love that. All dressed in purples and pinks." She smiled at the thought. "Although not only Easter eggs dress in purple and pink!" An idea came to her and she ran into the den where her mother was working. "Mom, you still have those old purply curtains?"
"Why?" Her mother didn�t turn away from her work on the computer.
"I wanna make some wings."
"Why?"
Candy smirked. "Because I�m going to be an Easter faerie."
Her mother gave her an odd look and sighed. "Of course. Why didn�t I expect that?"
"How do I look?" Candy twirled slowly, careful not to ruin her home-made wings.
"What were you supposed to be again?" Her mother�s eyes were drawn to the length of Candy�s skirt...or lack thereof.
"A faerie and if my skirt bugs you that much I �ll go change." Candy crossed her arms.
"Sorry honey...it�s just...short." Her mother struggled for words. "Won�t you get cold?"
"I have my jacket. I�ll be fine mother." Candy hinted none to subtly that she wanted to go.
"Look at me!" April bounded into the room, multi-coloured fabric floating around her. "Look!"
Candy smiled. "You�re a perfectly gorgeous flower squirt."
April beamed. "Let�s go mommy! I want to get candy!" Seven year olds are not known for their tactfulness.
"Okay April, okay." Their mother grabbed her coat and a pillow case for April. She turned back to Candy. "Are you going in the van?" Her mother couldn't remember Sammy's name, but she did know that 'the van' was Candy's most used method of transportation.
"Yeah." Candy saw her mother's doubtful look. "Don�t worry mom, I'll be fine."
Her mother grabbed April's hand and opened the door. "You look wonderful. Be careful sweet heart."
"See ya." It was an odd goodbye, and one that would last slightly longer than expected.
Off to the party... 
Background from All Hallow's Eve Backgrounds
Candy's pictures from Evil Doll Dungeon.
