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The dinosaurs were up early.

Anar stirred from the cosy bundle he'd made of his quilt, as the crackle of the radio started up from the tiny kitchen area, and the kettle noisily boiled. Rap was making hot drinks.

There would be no toast or crumpets for them this morning, today was Hallowe'en and that meant no studies or work. What it did mean was a free for all buffet in the student cafeteria that would be available the whole day long. Doughnuts, muffins, cupcakes, pastries, soup, sandwiches, sausage rolls, pizza, chicken nuggets, turkey twizzlers, deep fried everything…

His stomach growled just thinking about it!

“I always feel like… somebody's watching meeee!"

Anar pulled his pillow over his long ears. Rave's singing left much to be desired.

“When I'm in the shower! I'm afraid to wash my hair!"

“Shut up, Rave!" he muffled.

“People say I'm a crazy. Just a little touch… but maybe showers remind me of psycho too much!"

“Fuffing Hell! Im up! I'm up!" Slamming the pillow back down, Anar gave his curtains a yank and dashed off to the bathroom for his morning scrub.

Leaving the wailing banshee behind, he stepped into a stream of hot water and quickly soaped up. Part of him was really looking forward to today; there were games and activities set up in all the classrooms, sweets and chocolate for everyone, there was a prize for the best pumpkin carving, for Best Dressed Occultist, and merit marks would be handed out like lollipops if the staff were impressed at your lurking, scaring or trickery. In the evening the different factions had parties; except the student demons. If they were lucky, like Alexis, they got to hang out with the bigwigs at the private Underworld clubs in the city. If not, they were out on their own being Billy-No-Mates, lurking with their familiars and pretending to like it. The other groups didn't much like the student demons. The student demons didn't much like student demons, neither. Anar was once again grateful to have Rap and Rave, even if he did have to listen to the bad noises that accompanied Rave having a nice time!

He wrapped his towel around him, smelling of shower gel and CK One, his teeth gleaming. He opened the door.

“Who ya gonna call?!" Rave pointed to him.

“Social services!"

“Nawww, you ruined it! Rap, he ruined it! Tell him!"

“Do stop fussing, dear, drink your tea. Anar, your coffee's ready when you are."

“Thanks, mate. Ready for some breakfast?"

“In a minute. Just got to do my stretches, first."

“Oh yeah. 'course." He dressed in his black jumper and black jeans. His trainers were still white, but hopefully nobody would be looking at his feet today. His cloak covered most of him at least. He hung Sharon around his neck. His pockets were stuffed with essential items.

Rave carried on jumping about, singing along to the radio, while Rap twisted himself about in ways that made Anar feel nauseous. He drained his coffee mug and decided he was as ready as he would ever be for Hallowe'en at the Infernal Holy College.

Rap pulled on his tie-dye crop top and beloved Tammy Girl skirt, pulling tight the many straps. To make it more gothic, he fetched out the cultist robe that he'd kept from Miss Hinkling's ritual class and draped it over his bony shoulders. He'd sewn on bits of velvet and lace that he'd picked up on his travels; tattered remnants of the many cloths and altar coverings that usually resided in the classroom cupboards. It was a magnificent patchwork masterpiece. To finish the look, he rubbed some talc over his scales to give himself a pale complexion.

“I wish I had a witch's hat," he sighed.

Anar turned off the radio and opened the door to the corridor; “we might find you one lying around. You look great regardless."

“Yeah," Rave agreed, taking Rap's arm in his, “you look real nice, babe."

The little raptor blushed under the talc, “thanks, dear."

Beneath their feet the enchanted building creaked and rumbled as they walked down to find the buffet. Lights flickered. Wails and shrieks could be heard echoing faintly from below.

“Sounds like they're having fun already and it's barely nine a.m."

“I'm so glad I picked up some protective wards…" Rap whispered, clinging extra tight to his partner.

“Don't you worry, biggest baddest monster 'round here is me," Rave promised, setting his strong jaw, firmly.

Anar recalled Crowley's words of warning yesterday at the pumpkin patch; fiends of the wickedest kind would be wandering today. Tutors were on patrol, security were on alert with their spark shooters, even the hounds were sniffing around. Hell didn't have just demons in it, there were ancient eldritch abominations and leeching ghouls of the worst kind ready to latch onto an unsuspecting student and use them as a plaything before absorbing their lifeforce and leaving them an empty husk. It was nice to think the College staff were dedicated to protecting them, but really they didn't want to deal with the paperwork that a dead or incapacitated pupil resulted in. This was their holiday, too!

The ground floor spread out before them – the games arcade with its tables and chairs outside for informal social gatherings, the large double doors that led out to the gardens, and straight ahead the student cafeteria.

It was full. Student demons in their final forms slouched and shifted, trays in claws, throwing suspicious glances at anything that moved. Ancient languages students clumped together, safety in numbers, ducking from swooping wings and dodging slender tails. The necromancers swaggered, purple robes making them easy to identify and avoid; the stench of death following them around as they helped themselves to sticky toffee pudding. Nobody would tell them not to have dessert for breakfast! Satanic priests with their unholy, sigil-embroidered cloaks and heavy inverted crosses hanging at their necks chanted in Latin at their tables, treating themselves to crimson wine from dusty bottles. They sipped, happily, and everyone cussed themselves for not going into that particular career branch.

Familiars flitted together in a glittering cloud of fey fabulousness, chittering and tinkling while little sparks of energy drifted to cause mischief; chairs wobbled, plates moved by themselves, hats were pulled over eyes. It was all in good fun. So far.

Anar slid his tray along the flat metal rails that ran the length of the serving trays and piled his plate up, hungrily. He slipped unexpectedly on the floor and grabbed onto the counter, thinking he must have skidded on a spillage. These trainers had good soles, too. He looked down. Nothing. So he looked up. A bread roll smacked him in-between the eyes.

He gritted his sharp teeth; someone's familiar was having fun at his expense. No prizes for guessing whose…

Sure enough, a red-skinned human with wings that were too big to sit comfortably with was smirking at him.

A black-laced glove was stroking his cheek.

Meredith gave him a cool, low-lidded gaze as she nuzzled up next to Crowley.

Before he could do or say anything to object, his tray flipped up in his face, and he was coated in his breakfast.

The sound of laughter hit his ears and he stood, frozen in embarrassment, dripping milk from his Lucky Charms cereal and covered in fried egg yolk.

His eyes glowed. His blood boiled.

Rap ran over, fussing with napkins, but Anar roughly pushed his friend away. He rumbled, angrily, fists clenching.

“Don't do it, mate," Rap hissed. “He wants you to get kicked out. He wins that way. You don't want a streak of piss like that to win, do you?"

A crash and a shattering of a plate stopped them in their tracks. Rave's tail swung round again, “pick on someone your own size!" he roared, pinning Alexis down with a scaly foot as he'd attempted to dash away.

The pixie familiar swooped and Rave's snapping jaws sent it spinning. “Your stupid faerie can't help you, now! Come on, get up and fight me!"

Alexis scrambled to his feet, his pointy, expensive shoes leaving marks on the tiles. “I thought you didn't like that donkey?" he pleaded.

“I don't! But my other half does, and that's good enough for me! I'm Anar's familililiyer even if he is a bit stupid. I'll deck you!" he swung a muscular green arm and Alexis reeled back, teetering on his feet, wingspan set to maximum width to keep his balance.

“That'll do! Break it up! Come on…" the authoritative voice of a senior member of staff boomed bossily and Mr. E.Ville the faun clomped into the fray.

Murmurs of upset rippled round the cafeteria as the entertainment was coming to an end.

Anar's nostrils flared widely as Meredith slipped away, hips swaying, her glossy hair shining under the flickering lights, giving him one last lingering, smouldering look.

Anar saw Rap's expression; “I know. Don't follow. Honestly, I'm wearing the buffet and I look a right clown, I wouldn't follow her even if I thought she still fancied me. Should have known she'd go running to Crowley to make me jealous. It worked, too. I feel like shit."

Rap straightened up, brandishing napkins, “nothing I can't fix! Come here, you. Don't cry over a suckie…" he soothed as he dabbed and wiped.

“I'm not!" Anar retorted, cheeks burning. “I'm sorry I shoved you. I didn't mean it."

Rap pulled the aardvark into a tight hug, “I know, mate. Even besties have their tiffs."

“Breakfast's on Anar," Rave grinned, “I'll have the fried egg." He held out his fist.

Anar bumped it, nodding solemnly. He wouldn't say thank you, and Rave wouldn't acknowledge any helpfulness done.

“You'd have done it, wouldn't you?" Rap poked Sharon stone.

“Yeah, I'd have brought the whole building down, if I could. There's something off with my amulet – it's much more powerful than it should be. I feel too powerful when I use it, as well. I don't know if it's faulty, or I am…"

“Oh, you're most def'nately damaged goods," Rave scoffed, chewing a chipolata sausage.

They finally sat down to eat. Anar's clothes were a bit damp and they would smell of bad milk soon, but for now they were all he had. “What's first on our entertainment plan then, Rap? Where to?"

A list was pulled from one of the skirt's many pockets and laid on the table, “bobbing for apples is in Room 15. I want to have a go at that, first. Then there's the colouring competition in the Satanic church. Spin the Wheel of Misfortune in Room 9. Lunchtime we're in the garden loading the trebuchet up with rotten fruit and flinging it over the wall into the Angel's koi pond, before having a bowl of punch – there's apparently alcohol in it, so I want to try that! Oh, and if we swing by the laboratory, there's a Ghost Hunt; hidden around the building are haunted relics. Find them all and win a prize. Smarties or something."

“Sounds like a plan," Anar agreed.

“What about after lunch?' Rave asked.

“The not-so-jolly activities start up after lunch…"

Their faces fell. “Oh."

“But there's pumpkin carving! Trick or treating! The…" he lowered his voice, “… offerings are at 3. Sacrifices at 4. Pledge to the Dark Lord at 5. After that, though, it's party time!"

“We're not invited to any parties," Rave reminded them.

Rap threw up his hands, “you don't get invited to Hallowe'en parties, you just turn up! We're friends with the werewolves, the security jackals, the toad who runs Ouija club…"

“You're friends with," Anar insisted, “not me!"

“They'll all be on the punch, dear, they won't care. You'll have to get changed at some point…"

“Obviously! Anyway, I'm dressing up as a headless horseman later. I'm going to ride Destroyer around. I know you were excited to meet him. Just a heads up; he's very old and a bit confused. He thinks I'm my ancient ancestor, yeah, so he calls me 'General' a lot."

Rap clapped his hands giddily, tap tapping his claws on the floor, “ooooh, finally! How are you going to do the whole Headless Horseman thing?"

“I'll stuff an extra jumper in the back of my cloak and have the collar up."

“But your snout will stick out…"

His face fell, “darn. I didn't think of that."

“You should get a scythe!" Rave suggested, animatedly, “we'll help you find one. Bound to be a scythe lying around in the torture chamber. You can be the grim reaper!"

“Oh yes, now that could be fun!" he was stunned. Rave had been helpful.

“I can't eat another bite…" Rap groaned, sitting back and patting his flat stomach.

“But we're gonna be bobbin' fer apples."

“Oh Rave, nobody eats the apples," Anar laughed, “they're far too healthy! If you get one you can swap it for a toffee apple. Much better!"

“Oooh, I like toffee. It gets stuck in my teeth, though."

“Hmmm, true, I don't much fancy having to take you to the dentist. You'll use him as a toothpick. I'll eat your toffee apple."

They slowly rose from the table, stretching and burping.

A cold wind blew through the wide-open space, sending ice crystals whirling like an arctic blizzard. The edges of the surfaces became white with frost. Ice spread beneath them in jagged patterns.

A shrill scream sounded out from beyond the arcade.

“Anar! Help me!"

His wings stiffened; his long, grey ears pricked; that was Meredith!

“Nawwww, not the suckie!" Rave complained as his mammalian companion immediately slid over the newly-formed ice rink, arms wide for balance, a determined look upon his face, his dirty robe swishing around him as his trusty trainers cleaved a path.

“Let Alexis save her! If she's even really in trouble! Remember Admiral Ackbar: It's a trap!" they called.

“Shit. What's Anar getting into now?"

“Dunno," Rave sighed, “but I suppose it's up to us to get him out of it."

The cafeteria occupants watched as the two big lizards slipped and slid while cursing loudly, grabbing hold of tables and chairs on their perilous journey to the source of the screeching coming from within the arcade. “We're comin'!" Rave shouted. “Eventually! Don't do anything drastic until we get there!"