Autumn Carnival part 4 - The Clock struck 12

            The night rolled on as the family of three continued their adventure in the Autumn Carnival. Wyatt and Felix enjoyed their time so far, the grand opening of the carnival, reflecting back on their childhood, winning the cider drinking contest, getting delicious snack and then their father got them the coolest souvenir of them all, a seed from the Carnival tree. The large Autumn tree that had green, yellow, orange and red leaves evenly throughout its branches, the tree that towered over almost every ride. That tree had produced a seed and now Wyatt’s family owned that seed. Wyatt could just picture the tree in his back yard, towering over their house with every autumn color on its branches.

            Nathan yawned loudly. It was getting close to midnight had he had been walking around with his family since sundown. His kids, Wyatt and Felix still had plenty of energy. “whose excited to ride the Ferris Wheel?” Nathan said trying to sound more enthusiastic than tired. “ME!!” Both children said at once. Nathan chuckled and then yawned again. He took a small flask out of his pocket and took a swig. The flask had jack-o-lantern on it with a devilish grin. Under the grinning pumpkin symbol the words “Grinning Jack” was inscribed. Grinning Jack was a specialty liquor store that stayed in business thanks to Nathan and a few other loyal costumers. Normally the flask had maple scotch or pumpkin rum in it, but since he was out with his children, Nathan was filling the flask with the apple cider that Wyatt won.  The sugar from the cider and the maple candies was keeping him awake.

            The family slowly approached the North root. They could see the giant Ferris wheel towering over everything else in the carnival. It was not only giant but also covered in lights that twinkled like stars. As soon as Nathan, Wyatt, and Felix got the North Root entrance they noticed the Ferris wheel before anything else. As they walked more into the North root, that is when they saw all of the adult rides. Wyatt and Felix were in their late teens so they could ride any ride in the North Root. Nathan missed having little adorable children but was happy he didn’t have to go to the East Root anymore, if he had to spend another night watching small children slowly circle around a plastic tree he would need something stronger than apple cider.

            Nathan saw a ride called the cake mixer, which looked like a giant cake mixer, but instead of blades there were seats. “You kids wanna ride the cake mixer?!” Nathan said in his most excited voice. He loved the ride because it spun you around and scrambled your guts, also Nathan liked to pretend he was being mixed into cake batter.

“No thanks, We are going to keep looking around” Said Wyatt. “Alright, just don’t ride the Ferris wheel without me. Remember it’s the last thing we do before we leave” Nathan said then ran toward the cake mixer ride, child like excitement in his eyes.

            As Wyatt and Felix walked around they saw many new and exciting rides, like the screaming pumpkin. a giant pumpkin shaped ball that people would climb into, trap themselves in and then the pumpkin would spin incredibly fast. The sounds of the screaming people came from within the pumpkin shape, thus the name. Wyatt wanted to go on the battle boats ride, like Bumper cars but on water and the sides of your boat could fire water jets. That ride was sadly taken away, maybe the cool autumn air discouraged people from enjoying water rides.

           

            Wyatt and Felix decided on riding the Balloon ride. Wyatt and Felix excitedly ran toward the ride, Wyatt remembered this was a new installment from last year and it must have been popular enough to stay. The ‘balloons’ were solid plastic and shaped like hot air Balloons. The basket part had four seats. Two on either side of the basket, so if four people got into this ride they would be facing each other. The balloon part was just sculpted plastic and painted a bright color. There was a blue, purple, red, orange and yellow balloon. Wyatt and Felix chose the orange Balloon and were buckled into their seats. Each balloon was attached to a flexible metal arm, which was hidden as much as possible to give the illusion of riding in a hot air balloon. The ride started and all of the balloons were lunged into the air. The balloons shot straight up into the air one at a time, as if being thrown by an invisible giant hand.  Wyatt and Felix felt a rush as they were thrown straight up and wind rushed over them. The rush of moving quickly upward and the cool autumn air was exhilarating. When the balloons reached their highest point they stopped and began to gently drift to the ground. The sudden and exciting rush mixed with the slow and peaceful descent was a surprisingly fun combination. The Balloons did this three times in total. Quick and sharp rocketing skyward, then a nice drifting pace as they sailed toward the ground.

            Wyatt and Felix enjoyed their ride but couldn’t wait to go up even higher when they rode the Ferris Wheel. It was a higher height but much slower and steadier pace. It was perfect for a relaxing end to a beautiful evening.

            Wyatt and Felix decided to go find their dad before it got much later. The Carnival closed at 1am but the night was considered over at midnight. That gave the workers an hour to close everything up properly. It was almost midnight and Wyatt couldn’t find his father. Felix spotted him talking to a familiar looking man. Nathan and the man were grinning and shaking hands. When Nathan spotted his kids he introduced them to the man. “Oh Wyatt, there you are. Wyatt, Felix, this is Mr. Orchard, the Carnival owner. We were just discussing the new seed and how to raise it carefully” Nathan said. Mr. Orchard was a pale, slightly plump man with a big smile and a white hair. He wore a black suit with a white shirt and an old fashioned bowtie, which was orange. He held his top hat in his hands and fiddled with the brim as he spoke. “Good evening Young Sirs. It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Mr. Stephen Orchard. It is nice to meet you. Mr. Orchard said with a kind smile. Wyatt and Felix smiled and both shook his hand. The family had a nice chat with Mr. Orchard but had to cut the conversation short as it was getting late. “Well I had lots of fun taking with you, but I should go. I believe you kids have a Ferris Wheel to ride before the night is over, right?” Mr. Orchard said knowingly. Old people often spoke in such way that was mysterious to Wyatt, as if they were always hinting at something that Wyatt couldn’t understand yet.

            It was eleven forty-five and the family stood in line for the Ferris wheel. The night was almost over, which was both exciting and sad at the same time. Wyatt, Felix climbed into a ferris wheel seat and Nathan sat in the one right behind them. Instead of letting a stranger sit with him, he stretched out to get more comfortable.

            The ride started. Soft music played but Wyatt couldn’t figure out from where. Ferris wheel slowly climbed higher and higher. Wyatt and Felix scaled upward, passed the people, over than the food stands, above the adult rides and then finally, higher than the wall.  For the first time in hours Wyatt was looking outside the Autumn Carnival and for the first time in a year he was looking at it from such a soaring height.

            The blanket of night covered the autumn forest. Cold air rushed through Wyatts hair and passed his face. Everything was dark out there in the wilderness and the small towns. Everyone was either at the autumn carnival tonight or home asleep so the only light for miles was the carnival. The carnival shone bright like a beacon, like a burning star alone in the sky. Autumn trees, which were once such vibrant red and orange, were now veiled in darkness, making each tree look the same. The view from the top was extraordinary as well as peaceful. Wyatt enjoyed the Ferris wheel but he would have loved to just stay at the top for hours, gazing out into the distance, feeling the cold air on his face, being above everything even the tallest walls of the Autumn Carnival.

            Wyatt and Felix reached the very top of the Ferris Wheel and as they started to descend Wyatt saw something in the distance. Over by the haunted woods, where light never glows, where only the dead walk and no one ever goes. Wyatt saw a light, a bright orange light burned brightly and something was being raised up passed the treetops. Something, like a spire was raised up out of the Haunted Forest near Hallows End, light glowed brilliantly around it and then something began to move on the spire. Something large and dangerous looking, spiked and moving was on the spire. Wyatt only saw this for a few seconds before the Autumn Carnival wall blocked his vision. Wyatt tried to sit up or even stand up to see better but knew he couldn’t and didn’t want to fall out of his seat. He went lower than the wall, under the adult rides, down to the food stands and eye level with the people. Everyone on the Ferris wheel was smiling and having a good time, but what Wyatt saw was so strange he was upset that he didn’t get a better look.

            Then the Ferris wheel started to go back up again. Wyatt remembered that he only went around once and the Ferris wheel usually goes around a few times before stopping. Wyatt and Felix were lifted up again, higher and higher till they got to the very top. Felix had a large smile on his face and was enjoying the view just as much the second time as he did the first time. Wyatt was busy scanning the landscape for any sign of that glowing spire. He looked toward the Halloween city of Hallows End but it was dark. No lights, no orange glow, no spire. In the short time it took for the ferris wheel to go down and come back up around the spire was either taken down or vanished. Wyatt knew he wasn’t imagining things but he also knew no one would believe him. He decided to not let this bother him. He would enjoy his night and worry about Hallows End another time.

            The Ferris wheel went around a few more times and by the end Wyatt was already feeling better. The cool air, the gentle rocking of the ferris wheel cabin and the view all put his mind at ease. The ride stopped and the people slowly were let off. When Wyatt, Felix and Nathan finally met up again they was talk about how much fun they had, how cool the Ferris wheel was but no mention of spires or strange lights. Wyatt decided to forget it and figured he was the only one who saw it.

            The family began to leave the park. They slowly walked toward the center tree as the clock struck twelve. A clock tower bell rang out twelve times. Nathan looked all around for a bell and finally spotted one. A large clock tower with a bell attached to it was hiding behind the giant Ferris wheel. Nathan, Wyatt and Felix both started to laugh, they had all heard the bell and no one knew were the sound was coming from.

            After the bell stopped ringing the Carnival was silent. People had either left of were leaving. Only low murmurs could be heard as people talked quietly amongst themselves. Wyatt and Felix pretended to whisper to eachother to mimic the people around them. “Psst pssstssst” They both made these noises at each other and then began to laugh.

            The walk home was nice, quiet and peaceful. They were all tired and couldn’t wait to go to bed. Excitement still buzzed in their minds as their bodies slowly walked home. The autumn forest was dark but lit up in spot by people holding lanterns as they made their way home. Nathan held his lantern up so his kids could see the trail home. As they approached the town they smelled wood smoke. The delicate and rustic smell lingered and mixed with the cold autumn air. Nathan took a deep breath in and slowly exhaled. It was the perfect ending for a perfect night in the Autumn Carnival.

Autumn Carnival part 3 - Tricks and Treats

The family of three continued on their journey to the Western Root. The west root was home to the gift shop and food stands. The smell of cakes and pies filled the area, roasted meat was served on the bone to the more adventurous customers and hot and cold cider stalls were everywhere. Wyatt was still sick from drinking too much cider and didn’t even want to look at another glass of cider. Some of the other food looked good though and he was starting to get hungry. He hoped that eating solid food would help settle his stomach.

 The food stalls were set up on the grass all along the west root’s cobblestone path. They were all fairly small in size and only had the necessary equipment to make one or two dishes. So everything had its own food stand. Apple cider, candy and Carmel apples, fresh pie, various meat dishes and so on. At the end of the cobblestone path was the gift shop “The laughing pumpkin” the only slightly spooky thing in the whole carnival. The laughing pumpkin was a large building that looked like an old fashioned house, almost like a haunted house but with a wooden Jack-o-lantern sitting on the roof. The laughing pumpkin Jack-o-lantern was painted orange and had its mouth open like a laugh, which Wyatt thought looked cool but Felix found it unsettling. “You know sometimes that pumpkin comes down and eats kids” Wyatt told Felix. “S-shut up! I’m not a kid! So it doesn’t matter to me!” Said Felix. Nathan just laughed. The three went into the gift shop.

Inside the gift shop was not spooky at all, in fact it looked like a regular store. The store sold snow globes with miniature autumn settings and red and orange dots instead of white dots, to simulate leaves instead of snow. They were called Autumn Snow globes because leaf globes wouldn’t sound right. Wyatt found a small wooden model of the laughing pumpkin, which looked exactly like the pumpkin on the roof and Wyatt thought he might pick that as his souvenir. Not only was it cool but also Felix was scared of it, Win-win! Wyatt continued to look at the items, laughing pumpkin model in hand.

 Passed the carnival miniatures, the apple scented candles, the autumn landscape pictures and the plush toys of soft animals was a shelf that had an entirely different kind of product. In the back of the store Wyatt stood staring at a sign that said “Ready for Halloween? Come to Hallows end for a night to die for” The sign was hung above a shelf, the shelf was covered in spooky, scary and sometimes disturbing items. Wyatt had found the Halloween section in the gift shop, a section he had never seen before.

He stared fascinated at the Jack-o-lantern models that were painted to look like they were bleeding from their eyes, a painting of witches flying past the moon and a severed hand reaching up out of a potted plant, Orange and Black Candy canes, a mysterious box that screamed when you opened it and a ceramic doll that looked very ordinary but Wyatt was too afraid to touch it and find out why it was on the Halloween shelf.

Nathan found Wyatt at the back of the store. “Come on, champy. Time to go. Don’t start getting too fascinated with this stuff, remember what happened to those two boys Nyx and Poe from Harvest town. Went to Hallows end by themselves and were never heard from again” Said Nathan. Wyatt quickly turned to his father and nodded.

Felix was waiting at the front counter for Nathan and Wyatt. “I found what I wanted to get” Said Wyatt holding up the laughing Jack-o-lantern. Felix squinted his eyes and scrunched up his face to show he was annoyed at Wyatt’s choice. “I thought of something you would like better” Nathan said. “Excuse me miss” Nathan said to the young girl behind the counter. The girl turned to greet her customers “Yes sir?” She said. Her voice was soft, her skin was milky white and her hair was black like raven’s feathers. Wyatt was in love. Wyatt was seventeen and fell in love with every pretty girl he saw, so this was normal for him. Wyatt stared and was unable to talk.

 “I would like that bag of pumpkin seeds. I plan to plant a small pumpkin patch in our back yard” Nathan said to the girl. “Very well, anything else?” Asked the girl. Nathan smiled slyly. “Yes, I also want that seed there” He pointed to a small pouch containing one single seed. The pouch was behind glass and was locked in a box. “Sorry sir, that is the only item in this store that money can’t buy. The owner Mr. Orchard won’t sell it to anyone unless they have the purple leaf.

“Why do we need a purple leaf to buy a seed?” Asked Wyatt who was more curious than nervous. “Well cutie, its because this seed is from the Autumn tree at the center of the carnival. Only someone who has a purple leaf from the tree can buy this very special and very rare seed. Also no one is allowed to climb the tree to get the purple leaf. So they have to just hope the leaf falls from the branches and lands on them. So by getting the leaf, its like the tree chose them” Explained the cute cashier lady. Wyatt was still stunned when the girl called him “cutie” and couldn’t reply.

Nathan smiled “Yes and after coming to this carnival since I was a kid and bringing my kids almost every year when I was an adult, after all of this time, I found it. I waited and the purple leaf landed in my lap. On my face actually” Nathan said and pulled a bright purple leaf from his pocket. It looked like a purple maple leaf and was brighter than any color Wyatt had seen on a tree. The girl looked in amazement. “I thought the purple leaf thing was made up to get people excited” Said the girl. “Well its not, and I think you owe me a rare seed” Nathan said as he bobbed his head side to side in excitement. The girl unlocked glass case and the box the seed was in. She handed Nathan the rare Autumn Carnival tree seed along with the pumpkin seeds he bought. “Don’t leave the carnival until you have had a chance to talk with Mr.Orchard. He will want to meet you” Said the girl. Nathan took the seeds, smiled, nodded and said “Thank you”

Wyatt could hardly believe his Fathers luck. It explained why Nathan stared at the tree for all of those hours while his kids were off playing games. With the seeds safely tucked away Nathan left the store with his kids. “Aw man, I forgot to get a souvenir!” Wyatt said. I got you a souvenir, the tree seed. I got it for you kids. I want us to plant it together and grow it as big as it will get. The tree will belong to you kids and it will remind us of the good times we had here” Nathan said. The two boys were speechless. “So whose hungry?” Nathan said as he slapped his hands together.

Wyatt’s appetite had returned and he was able to enjoy a nice roasted sweet potato with cinnamon sugar. Felix got a Carmel apple and Nathan bought a whole bucket of Maple candies for himself. This trip to the Autumn Carnival was already the best one yet, but the night was still young and the family of three still had one final destination, The Northern Root and the giant Ferris wheel.