Time Was Frozen.....

All Hallows Eve.... Part One...

Did you Notice, Dear Readers, that Time was Frozen..... that Nothing was Happening... well, except perhaps in our Minds where the endless Squirrelling of thoughts chase each other around, but that didn't really count... that is an Illusion, because Nothing that mattered was moving Forward.... Time had become Stuck somehow when Last the Gates were opened between the Worlds!
 The Wizard knew right away that Something had gone Terribly Wrong.... but he was Powerless... caught between the Worlds.... neither Here nor There.... Frozen in that Moment.

 So There he stood and pondered the cause of his miscalculation... Wondering what could have produced this suspension of motion? And even more Importantly, What could undo it! Not everything was equally affected... there was Water still pouring from the Spring of Dreams into the Obsidian Basin.... and he could see the slow proliferation of the lesser creatures... those Slimy crawling low forms of life that slunk about in dark places... they were becoming Bold and Dangerous without his constant vigilance in keeping them contained in the Nether Realms.... he could only watch as they Slithered out of the pool....

He was fairly Certain that Most would think nothing was wrong.... they would pursue their daily rounds and never Notice that nothing was Staying.... nothing was moving Forward..... Change could not Stay..... But he was Powerless! So he Pondered the Misbegotten Spell.... and recalculated a Thousand Times the steps he had taken.... Where had he Erred?

The Owls were the first to Notice... they came looking for him as the Time of year Approached that the Veils of Time grow Thin.....

They tried to draw his attention.....

But they only succeeded in Rousing Those that should not be waked.....

Something was Terribly wrong! They knew that they would need to go for Help!

They flew as fast as they could over Rivers and Mountains to a place that was neither There nor Here and came at last to a High and lonely Moorland. There they found a Lonely old cottage, overgrown with Vines and surrounded with Otherworldly Weeds....

Great Aunt Agatha was sitting in the Front Garden enjoying the Starlight.

She was not surprised to see the Owls, Because they always came at this time of the year...

 but what they had to Report was Very Disturbing!

"Hazel!" Called Agatha. "Hazel! Come here quickly!" She hollered again....

(She is a Tiny bit hard of hearing...)

"The Owls have some Terrible news!"

"They say the Wizard has been Stuck in Frozen Time...!"

"Well.... I never..." said Hazel... "What are we to do...?"

"We must call our Sisters...." said Agatha..... 

"Perhaps Old Meg will know what to do..."

They went to the Well that stood in the yard and peered together into it's depths....

If they looked for their Sister Witches in these Mystical Waters of Seeing... 

They would appear....

The first to appear is Madame.... Artemis to her friends....

The next to appear is Prudence......

And Together they look for Old Meg.....

She is not altogether surprised to be summoned!

She had Felt the Draft that was leaking through the open Gate in Time.....

And she had Suspected what was coming....

But she needed to Gaze upon the Waters to be Sure.....

 What she saw was what she Thought she would see.....

 Trouble had been done.... and it would not easily be Undone!

"We Must retrieve the Uneaten Enchanted Seed....!" she declared!

She looked up.... and stared at Prudence....

"You must Contact your Daughter..." she said

"She is our Link on that Realm."

"She must Find the Young Dreamer...."

"We must Find that seed and get it back to the Wizard!"

"I will go visit with the Little Creatures and see what I can find..." said Hazel....

"I know where to find them..."

And before anyone could Blink... 

she was at The Folly looking off the front porch towards the Large Tree at the side of the House.

She went right up and knocked on the Tiny door tucked between the roots.....

She was not at all surprised when Samuel Whiskers answered her knock!

"I beg your pardon," she said, 

"But I need to retrieve an enchanted seed that was not eaten when the Child was last here..."

"But we gave them ALL to the child!" said Samuel.... a trifle indignantly.

"We would not Dream of keeping them!"

"Well, the Child did not eat them ALL" replied Hazel..... 

"and it is Imperative that we find the last seed!"

"Are you certain that one wasn't left in your kitchen?"

"I will ask Anna Maria" replied Samuel and he went back inside.

"I found no stray seeds..." replied Anna Maria.....

"The Child must have taken the last one with her!"

"I know I watched her put each one in her mouth.... 

at least I thought she put them all in her mouth..."

"We will have to go question the Child" said Samuel Whiskers.....

"There is no other choice... and I know where they live..."

You may be saddened to hear, Dear Readers, that Beatrice had been unwell a lot recently. 

In fact the whole family was quite concerned for her health.

Mrs Butterworth cooked her favorite foods, but Beatrice hardly ate anything.

Charlotte was worried but the Doctor assured her Rest was all the child needed.

Snowy rarely left her bedside.

But even he had to go out Sometimes....

Samuel Whiskers waited until Snowy had been let out before he sneaked in....

"I beg your pardon, Miss" he said.... 

"but the Wizard is stuck in Time because you didn't eat all the seeds we gave you.... 

and now we have to get the seed back to the Wizard.... or else.....

That was as far as he got before Snowy came bounding back in....

Samuel Whiskers backed quickly away....

And turned tail and ran as Snowy jumped after him.....

But Samuel was too quick and made his getaway....

Snowy was Sure he had saved the day!

"Oh, Snowy" said Beatrice.... "What am I to do...?"

Just then Tommy came in to collect Snowy and take him for a walk....

well, he was really worried about Beatrice... 

but he Said it was to take Snowy for a walk....

Beatrice just looked at him and said 

"Tommy, I have done a Terrible thing and now 

the Wizard is in danger and you must help me!"

Tommy had met the Wizard several times... 

so he knew that Beatrice was not entirely mad....

She held out her hand and said 

"You have to take this seed to the Castle and give it to the Wizard!"

Tommy took the seed. 

He told Beatrice he would make sure it got back to the Wizard. 

He wanted his sister to feel better. 

He didn't want her to worry.

Somehow he would get it there!

Meanwhile... in another Time.....

Ken is preparing to host his Annual Halloween Party at the Castle.

He has been decorating.....

In preparation for all his Guests....

He even hired your Favorite Dance Band....

"The Deadly Nightshades".....

It is sure to be a Hot night of Dancing....

Even if Time is Frozen.....

This All Hallows Eve.....

(To Be Continued....)