The Christmas Carnival: A Haunted Holiday Horror Story

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
On Christmas Eve, mysterious lights appear outside of Strickfield. Five
teens step through the gates as Carol's warp into carnival music,
but they soon realize the Midway doesn't want their tickets now,

(00:23):
it wants their souls. How did you get in here? Oh?
Ho ho? What's that You want to be scared? Come

(00:48):
with me? This is Weekly Spooky Hello, my spookies, Welcome

(01:18):
to a fearful and festive Friday. I'm your host and narrator,
Enrique Kuto, and all December long we'll have new shows
for you to enjoy, to get you in the holiday spirit,
although more like holiday ghosts. Tonight we're heading to a

(01:39):
Christmas carnival that shouldn't exist, and the price of entry
is steep. But before we get to that, I want
to thank you all for joining us, because Spooky Season
isn't a time on the calendar, it's a way of life,
one that we hear weekly. Spooky take well, not too seriously,

(02:05):
but it's pretty darn important. Make sure you're subscribed so
you don't miss a thing. We have a brand new
compilation of scary stories dropping tomorrow and on Monday, well,
we're going to be talking Christmas folklore that gets very dark,
and if you want to support us in a very

(02:26):
direct way, go to Weeklyspooky dot com slash join and
for as little as one dollar a month, get two
bonus episodes and over five years of exclusive audiobooks and
creepypasta readings. That's at Weeklyspooky dot com slash join, And
if you're looking for that perfect gift for yourself or

(02:47):
someone who gets the chills pretty easily, head to cozyearth
dot com and use promo code Spooky at checkout that'll
give you forty one percent off your first order and
support Weekly Spooky directly. They're sponsoring tonight's program and they've
been a great supporter of us at Weekly Spooky. So

(03:08):
head toczyearth dot com and get yourself ultrous soft bedding
or loungewear and use promo code spooky for forty one
percent off the perfect gift for yourself or a loved one,
and it supports the show directly. Thank you to Cozy
Earth for your support and to the Spookies for giving
them some love. But as for tonight, imagine Christmas on

(03:32):
a quiet farm, wood stove, burning snow on the fields
and nothing outside but darkness and drifting flakes. Now, imagine
you look out across those empty fields and see a
ferris wheel turning in the dark, blinking red and green,

(03:54):
on the edge of the woods, carnival music warping through
the snow. No one built it, No one knows why
it's there, But the Christmas Carnival is open. The Christmas

(04:15):
Carnival by rob fields, down past the fields where the
snow lies deep, where Christmas lights should be dark asleep,
A midway hums in the frosty air. No one remembers

(04:40):
who built it there. The ferris wheel turns slow and bright,
like a halo bent out of winter night, while carols
warp on a calliope's breath, sweet as sugar, sharp as death.
The tickets cost you nothing at all. Just follow the

(05:01):
flyers and answer the call. The gates swing open with
jingle and chime, promising fun for a very long time.
The cocoa is warm, the cotton candy is red. The
prizes are things you dreamed of in bed, And every

(05:23):
smiling face you see looks just a bit older than
it should be. So if you see lights where the
map says none, and hear faint laughter where there is
no one. Think twice before you step through the glow.

(05:44):
Some Christmas carnivals will never let go. I think I
know which of my memories I want to tell you
about next. Last time was for how right now it's
the perfect season for a Strickfield Christmas tale. At the

(06:07):
same time, I feel this one, I've got to get
out there. I still see us at the old Strickfield
Carnival many years ago on Christmas Eve. It wasn't the
fact that the old junk shop owner named Isley Tinker
weirded us out. It wasn't even the fact that he
revitalized the old Strickfield Carnival just for Christmas Eve. It

(06:33):
was the fact that our group came face to face
with pure evil herself in the form of the Dark Mother.
I don't know if any of the others still remember
her to this day, but you can bet many meals
at the Donnerly Farm that I still do. Was she

(06:54):
the Devil? We may never know for sure. What I
do know, and what I'm going to tell you is
that I feel deep in my bones that our world
as we know it now could have ended at the
start of Christmas Day. You know what, Why don't I

(07:15):
just tell you the story? I guess as good as
starting place as any would be the Donnerly Farm just
outside Strickfield Village limits. On Christmas Eve morning, Carnelian Miron
was riding her scooter out to the farm with some
items in the basket and back. As a matter of fact,

(07:37):
Carnelian had been spending more and more time out at
the farm since November one. Actually, so had I back
on Halloween night, after our group got busted by Rose
Donnerly for going into the backwoods, which is conveniently right
across the road from the farm. Carnelian stepped up and

(08:01):
took responsibility for her actions, rightfully so, since she was
the one who dared Daisy May, Rose's daughter to go
out to grim Manor, Rose made a deal with Carnelian
for coming clean. She agreed not to tell her parents
about the incident if she would agree to come out

(08:23):
to the farm the very next day and do chores
with Daisy May. Carnelian was prompt and did everything she
was told. Along the way, she and Daisy May became friends.
After a full day's work, Carnelian got to experience Rose's
country cooking. You might call Carnelian a bit of a

(08:47):
scrawny girl, but she definitely had an appetite. That girl
ate plenty that night, so much so that she got
a taste for down home country cooking. Even though Carnelian
fulfilled her end of Rose's bargain, she came back to
the farm right after school The very next day. Rose

(09:10):
had no problem letting her work on the farm again
in exchange for another delicious dinner. And from there Carnelian
would start helping Daisy May with the chores around the
farm after school and on week ends. But things took
a rather interesting turn before Christmas vacation. Carnelian's parents would

(09:35):
have to leave the gated community where she used to
live to move to Cincinnati. Carnelian made it known that
she did not want to leave Strickfield. You could say
Carnelian had gotten used to working on the Donnerly farm.
Then there was her growing friendship with Daisy May. Carnelian's

(09:57):
parents were reasonable people and made a deal with her.
It was that Carnelian's parents would talk with the donner
Lees and see if they could make arrangements for her
to stay at the farmhouse. Fortunately for Carnelian, the two
sides came to an agreement. The Mirons would pay the

(10:19):
donner Lees and agreed upon some for Carnelian to live
at the farm at least until the school year was
finished and learn more about the family business. If Carnelian
kept her grades up and continued to show she was
invested in farm life, her parents would keep paying the
donner Lees on a six month basis. You could say

(10:43):
it was a kind of work study program. Carnelian stopped
her scooter just at the driveway of the farm. Her
eyes went wide looking at the backwoods of Strickfield. Any
other time, Carnelian wasn't afraid of anyone or anything, though,

(11:03):
ever since she learned ghosts were real on Halloween night
when we spent our time at grim manor even the
mentions of hauntings could scare her. And who could blame her?
I think she expected something to just come right out
of those woods and pull her right in, never to

(11:23):
be seen again. Carnelian cried out in fright when she
heard the sudden barking. She calmed down when she realized
the sounds were right at her foot and looked down
to see Old McDonald, the family's little brown terrier, sitting there. Panting.

(11:45):
Old McDonald, you stop right there, Daisy May Donnerly squeaked
out in her southern accent. Carnelian looked up and saw
her friend coming towards her. The little dog barked happily
and turned to face Daisy May. When the little Donnerly
girl reached them, her fists were tightened. There you go again,

(12:09):
getting loose and coming out of these here woods. When
Daisy May went to pick up Old McDonald, he assumed
a playful attack dance and growled. Don't you growl at me?
Daisy May snapped, now get you, any bitty butt crack
back up to that house or no morning doggy yum yums,

(12:32):
now get But Old McDonald turned and started running to
the backwoods. Fortunately I was there to reach down and
scoop him up. No you don't, little guy, I said,

(12:52):
not today. Carnelian gasped, Where did you come from? Bill?
How long have you been here? I cradled the dog
into my arms like a little baby and gently scratched
his tummy the way I knew he liked. Then I
handed Old McDonald to Daisy May, didn't you close that window?

(13:16):
Carnelian asked, that's how he got out last time. Also,
you do know it's cold out here, right? She ain't wrong,
Daisy May, I agreed. Daisy May was wearing her usual
light blue bib overalls with a red T shirt. Her
hair was braided and in pigtails. Carnelian was referring to

(13:41):
her not wearing a jacket or shoes. Ah fu, Daisy
May replied, cold ain't never bothered me. Then she told
the dog, while cradling him, you darn mutt, always making
me chase you. Again and again. The dog yapped and

(14:01):
licked her nose In response. Carnelian turned off her scooter.
Then we walked up to the house with Daisy May. U,
why are you here, Bill, Carnelian asked again, Sorry, Carne
I replied, I ran into rose in downtown village last night.

(14:24):
She asked if i'd come out here and put the
Christmas lights and decorations out at the front of the fence.
She promised a breakfast I'd never forget if I said yes,
He'll get a good breakfast, all right, Daisy May promised.
Then She turned to Carnelian, mail came while you was gone.

(14:44):
You got another letter from your folks waiting inside. I'm
surprised they didn't send it with your new scooter. I
missed my old moped, Carnelian muttered. I can't believe I
let cousin Ariel talk me into loaning it to her.
She used it to chase down your cousin Madeline and
Carter Cross. And what does she do. She wrecks it

(15:07):
under the old railroad street bridge. Actually, Aunt Adrian got
it for me to replace my moped, And even though
I was upset with Ariel, I felt sorry for her
at the same time. Aunt Adrian's very strict on Ariel.
At least on this new scooter. I can carry things

(15:28):
your parents send me out for. When we got back
to the porch, Rose was standing out there with a
scowl on her face. Daisy May donnerly, how many times
I gotta tell you about running around here barefoot like that?
Just cause we's country folk, don't mean we got a
show we are. Yeah, yeah, Daisy May muttered. As her

(15:53):
mom opened the back door. Daisy May let go of
old McDonald and watched him run right back inside. Then
Rose turned her attention back to her daughter again. And
you're even running around out here with no jacket, Rose yelled,
What am I gonna do with you? Child? She pointed

(16:15):
to the barn. Get your butt in there and get
you some shoes and a jacket on. You want to
be sick come Christmas tomorrow. Daisy May looked at her mother,
stuck out her tongue, and then she laughed as she
turned and ran. Before long, Straight Rose's husband looked outside.

(16:41):
When she saw him, she pointed at Daisy, May, you
see what that child of yours is doing. Straight was
always an easy going kind of person. He just simply
shrugged and told her you done put your fire into
her deer. Rose scowled at him for a moment before

(17:04):
she conceded, I suppose you're right. Straight came out and
called to Daisy May. Come on, little lady, get in
that barn and do what Ma tells you. She's right.
It's plumb cold out here. You see Bill and Carney
wearing their jackets. They know better. Daisy May stopped and

(17:26):
faced her dad. But I'm fine out here, Pau now,
Daisy May, or you can just forget about that fresh
pumpkin pie you wanted for dessert tonight. Rose bribed. It
worked because Daisy May walked straight to the barn. Then

(17:46):
Rose gently nudged Carnelian and me make sure she does it,
would you. Carnelian nodded, here's the stuff you wanted me
to pick up. Rose. She handed her the change and
the receipt straight went and took the items out of
Carnelian's scooter basket. She motioned for me to come with

(18:08):
her to the barn. As soon as we were inside,
we turned and walked upstairs to the top floor. Daisy
May was in her bedroom putting her sneakers on. What's up, guys,
Daisy May asked, Oh right, Ma told you both to
come look in on me. There's no fool in you.

(18:31):
Carnelian replied, I can't believe you have your room in
this barn instead of in the house. I know I'm
living here now too, but still, how come your bedrooms
in this barn? I asked. Guess my folks ain't told you.
Daisy May stood up after finishing with her sneakers. This

(18:54):
barn used to be the farmhouse. Granny Donnerly had a
lot of money to, So she built the farmhouse we's
living in right now. Then she turned this old place
into the new barn and leveled the old one. Everything
on this floor still works good, so the folks kind
of let me have it. Old McDonald sleeps up here

(19:17):
with me, since he don't want to be alone at night.
Speaking of which, how you like and living here with
us country folk? Carneye or is living near them woods
just a bit too scary for you now? Carnelian took

(19:37):
a deep breath. No, I'll be all right as long
as we never go in there anyway. I don't know
why farm life bit me the way it did. I'll
admit I really love your mom's cooking, but it's more
than that. There's just that atmosphere of being around the fields,

(20:02):
all the animals, the chickens, even hearing that brewster at
the crack of dawn. I just feel like I want
to be here. Daisy May, Yeah, you got the feeling.
Daisy May agreed, or you wouldn't have come back after
Ma puts you to work after Halloween. She pointed to Carnelian.

(20:24):
You're even dressing like country folk too. Carnelian went from
her dignified suits to wearing jeans, flannel shirts, a jean
jacket and sneakers. Come on, kids, let's get a move on.
Rose called chores gotta be done before breakfast. Bill, you

(20:45):
better be done with them decorations, they're finished, I called back.
You can go see for yourself and I'll help with
the chores. We better get to doing them, Daisy May said, MA,
don't like telling us twice. You know that, Carney. Carnelian
raised her finger, but first she handed Daisy May her jacket.

(21:11):
You heard what your mom said, Ah thu. After Daisy
May put her jean jacket on, the three of us
went downstairs and began the morning chores. I assumed that
Rose liked the job I did, since she didn't give
me a hard time about it. As for the chores,
we got done with those. Quicker with me helping. When

(21:34):
we were finished, Carnelian took out her phone and opened
up Facebook. Hey check this out. Jinks posted something about
some Christmas bazaar going on at Gunter Square today. Yeah,
I see it too, I said, looking at my own Facebook.
Jasper tagged all of us. Daisy May came up by Carnelian,

(21:59):
who turned her phone to let her see might as well,
Daisy May said, unless you all got other things to do,
we made plans to go to the bazaar. Then I added,
we should see if Truck wants to go. I'm texting
him right now. Carnelian said, I'll also let Jinks know

(22:21):
we're doing the bazaar. Then she gave me her evil smirk.
It's only right since we all know she's so sweet
on you, Bill, I groaned, Why are you so cruel, Carnie,
We all know that girl ain't right. Daisy May snickered

(22:41):
as she bumped Carnelian's shoulder. Just don't let her shake
your hand, Carnelian pointed right at her. Don't you even
go there, country mouse, Daisy May looked my way. Jinks
had a pack of gum at school. She let me
have a stick when she let Carney have the last one.

(23:05):
Carnelian finished by growling, it had a spring like mouse
trap thing that snapped on my thumb. You'd think i'd
remember by now that Jinx is a prankster. I sigh, fine,
invite her along, I mean the bazaar was her fine?
Just then we heard the back door open. Okay, kids, come,

(23:29):
and get it. Carnelian's mood changed fast when she smelled breakfast. Oh,
I hope that's pancakes. Smells like it to me. Daisy
May replied, come on, let's eat. You don't have to
tell me twice. I agree. Rose stepped aside to let

(23:49):
us come in to the big breakfast spread that awaited us.
There were definitely buttermilk pancakes, among other things. If you
didn't get full eating at the Donnerly's table, well that
was your own fault. That afternoon, we met up with
Jasper Jinx and Rodney truck Tucker. As usual, Jasper wore

(24:13):
her nineteen eighties style clothes. Her hair looked like Madonna's
from her first album. Carnelian and Daisy May both snickered
as soon as Jasper saw me. Sure enough, she blushed
and smiled, and before I knew it, Jasper snatched my

(24:33):
shoulders and planted one on my cheek. That's for always
going to the movies with me, she gushed. Truth was,
I just never knew how to tell her. No, believe me,
I didn't call Jasper Jinks my girlfriend, but it just
wasn't right to lie to her. My parents taught me

(24:56):
better than that. Truck got his nickname because because he
was the tallest and strongest kid at Strickfield Junior High
football season was over for both him and Daisy May
until eighth grade. Every time he and Daisy May got together,
they always did a high five. You couldn't really blame them.

(25:19):
Since the Villagers won the state championship. Truck didn't go
for basketball since he wasn't a fan. Our group walked
around Gunter Square and checked out the different vendors on site.
It took some time to walk up and down the sections,
even though the three of us had a nice breakfast

(25:41):
at the Donnerly Farm. We all ended up buying some
kettle corn from the vendor who was making it fresh
right there. Later, we left Gunter Square and walked around
downtown village. It was getting close to four thirty and
starting to get dark. We talked about heading to Roth's Rings,

(26:04):
maybe even Boble Topia or Strickfield Video. When this flyer
blew up from the street and landed right on Truck's chest.
He peeled it off his jacket and looked at it. Funny,
I thought the Strickfield Carnival was closed. He muttered this

(26:27):
flyer's saying there's a Christmas Carnival going on there tonight.
What Carnelian asked in disbelief, isn't that place supposed to
be just Strickfield legend. I mean, you can read about

(26:49):
it on the university's website and it's under the legends category.
It can't be real, can it. Well, where did this
flyer come from? Then, Truck wondered, it looks like it

(27:11):
was just printed. Let me see that, Jasper said, taking
it from him. We all looked at her when she
smelled the paper. Yeah, this is definitely not photocopied. A
few of us moved by Jasper so we could read it.
It says the old Strickfield CARNI all right, Daisy May said.

(27:35):
Then she went and looked around to see if there
were other flyers. After checking out a few street light polls,
she returned, don't see nothing except the one Truck got.
Carnelian had her phone out. I'm looking at the university's website.
It says the Old Carnival was located about a mile

(27:59):
from Denoyer's Grin Bill on Indian Hallow Road. It was
owned by Belden Carnivoche and opened during the days of
the Great Depression. It was a huge thing in Feldner County.
The carnival started to fall on hard times in their
last years. To help bring in more money, Belden Carnivoche

(28:23):
kept the carnival open during weekends in October, even adding
a Halloween theme to it. He also invested in new
funhouses to add to the scariness. Even though it brought
in more people, it lost even more money. It was
discovered that someone was embezzling from the carnival, which finally

(28:45):
closed for good on Halloween in nineteen fifty five. Carnelian
looked up from her phone. And it hasn't been open
again since unless someone prints to that flyer up as
some kind of joke, I muttered, But why go to

(29:06):
all that trouble to do that, and for a Christmas
themed event? I don't know, but I wouldn't mind seeing
it for myself, Daisy May said. We were all looking
at each other. Then Carnelian's eyes went wide as she
pointed to Daisy May, no way, I Am not going

(29:29):
to any place that has ghosts. I'll walk back to
the farm, and Jasper turned to face Carnelian, you really
think it's still the haunted Carnival from back in the day.
Carnelian got frustrated. I don't know, Jinx, I just know
I'm not going anywhere near where there could even potentially

(29:52):
be ghosts. I definitely got my fill from our little
Halloween night at grim Manor. But Jasper showed her mischievous face.
If you did come, she pointed at Truck, you'd have
your big strong man there to protect you. She was

(30:15):
referring to when Carnelian felt safe in Truck's arms at
that very night in grim Manor. Carnelian growled, seriously, why
do I put up with you? Suddenly Jasper grabbed Carnelian's
hand and shook it once again. She got her with

(30:36):
the shock buzzer. When she let go, she quickly sprang away, Yeah,
you better run, Carnelian snapped, easy there, Carnee. Truck told her,
ain't nobody gonna make you go out there if you
don't wanna. At least I ain't gonna make you. Daisy

(30:57):
May raised her finger. Oh I guarantee Carneal come out
there with us. Carnelian put her fists on her hips
and why would I do something so stupid country mouse,
because you'd have to explain to my folks why you
came home and I didn't. Daisy May said, simply, what's

(31:21):
you gonna tell him that you left little old me
to go off to what might be a haunted Carnie.
Imagine what they'd say. But why do we have to
go to this thing, Carnelian groaned, Just because we saw
some dumb flyer. You people heard what I read off
the website. Carnelian was getting hysterical. Truck came to her

(31:46):
rescue again and held her It's all right, we're here
in downtown village. Hain't no ghosts around here, at least
not while it's still daylight. I've never heard anything about
ghosts around here at night either, I add, besides Carney,
none of us is committed to going to this Christmas carnival.

(32:12):
But what if the Christmas carnival is the real thing?
Jasper asked eagerly. It might be something we ain't never
seen before. Carnelian growled and held up her phone again.
Weren't you listening when I read about the Strickfield Carnival
off here? Daisy May folded her arms in front of

(32:35):
her and what if somebody bought that Carnivoche carnival and
fixed it all up? Don't you at least wanna see it? Carnee, No,
Carnelian belted out. Daisy May laughed again like I was saying,
you gotta go with me, or you're gonna be explaining

(32:57):
to my folks why I ain't wit you. Truck tried
to be the voice of reason. Ah, come on, Daisy May,
Come on nothing, Daisy May returned, I want to see
this Christmas Carnival, and I'm gonna Daisy May shrieked when
Truck easily lifted her up to face him. Do I

(33:20):
gotta take you back home? My Truck was looking Daisy
May right in the face. I don't know about the others,
but I knew Truck had a thing for her. Daisy
May was just as close to him as she was
to Carnelian. You put me down right now, Truck, Daisy

(33:41):
May fired. Truck shook his head quickly. No way, girl,
I'll put you on my shoulder and carry you all
the way back to your farmhouse. But Truck forgot just
how wiley Daisy May could be. She gave him her
evil look before she melted out a scream that nearly

(34:02):
sounded like Coach Neepher's whistle truck got startled enough to
lose his hold on Daisy May. She dropped to her
feet and looked at us. Nanna can't catch me, she squeaked,
and ran off. Unfortunately, Daisy May was right. Even though

(34:26):
she was one of the three Donnerly triplets, each of
them had different characteristics. Daisy May was easily the most mischievous,
possibly the one who wasn't scared of anything, and she
was fast on her feet. The only one I knew
who might likely catch her would be Ariel Mirn, but

(34:50):
she wasn't anywhere close by. Carnelian was easily the second
fastest of us, but even she couldn't so much put
a hand on Daisy May. We chased her through downtown
village and even back through the Christmas Bazaar. After leaving
Gunter Square, Carnelian came the closest to Daisy May again.

(35:15):
Then she went for it all and tried to tackle her.
But Daisy May showed Carnelian why she was an instant
sensation on our football team last fall. She sprang up
and watched Carnelian slide underneath her fast as fast can be.

(35:37):
Daisy May shrieked when Truck snatched her up and placed
her over his shoulder. You put me down right now,
you big snake in the grass. Then she howled and
started squirming nothing doing Daisy May. Truck replied, we already
done seeing ghosts on Halloween night, Assuming Carne's right about that, Carnival,

(36:01):
I ain't getting up in front of no ghosts, not again.
Daisy May was still squirming. You and Carnie are both yella.
Then she growled and thrashed more. Let me go, Truck,
Hugh gonna be might sorry. Let's get her back to
the farmhouse, Carnelian said, can you hold on to her

(36:24):
that long? Truck Jasper asked, uneasily. She's always fussing like this,
but I can handle her, Truck assured us. Daisy May
growled again and started pounding Truck's back with her tiny fists. Fortunately,
that was one common thing with the Donnerly triplets. None

(36:48):
of them were any stronger than the other two. Daisy
May's fists felt like feathers against Truck's strong back. But
Daisy May wasn't finished yet. She stuck her finger in
her mouth and then right in truck's ear, which was called,

(37:09):
in case you weren't aware, a wet willie. What the
truck cried out. She laughed as she twisted her finger,
making him lose his concentration. Daisy May finally got loose
and landed just in front of him. Get her bill,

(37:30):
Carnelian yelled. Daisy May took off running again. We were
in hot pursuit. I think Daisy May remembered where Carnelian
had said the old carnival was, because she turned right
down Harlow Road and started running toward Denoyer's grill. She
fully intended to get to Indian Hollow Road. Daisy May's

(37:55):
just way too fast, I groaned. Now you know firsthand
why we won the state football championship. Truck pointed out, haint,
nobody can catch Daisy May. Then she turned around to
put her thumbs in her ears. From there, she turned

(38:17):
back around and started skipping along. She was definitely taunting
us for sure. Jasper stopped and started gasping for breath.
I can't run no more. Go on, I'll catch up
to you. No you won't, I told her, you're definitely
no athlete. Jasper gave me a weird look. G Bill,

(38:43):
you think, Carnelian growled, tightened her fists and sprinted after
Daisy May with everything she could muster. Truck and I
wanted to call out to her, but Carnelian was just
as stubborn as Daisy May. Once either of those girls
got something in their heads, they were seeing it through.

(39:05):
To be honest, I felt deep down their efforts to
catch Daisy May would be for nothing. And then got you. Hey,
no fair, Daisy May cried out, Let me go, you
hicke and bottom never, Carnelian declared. Jasper waved for us

(39:26):
to forget about me. Go help Carney. Seeing Jasper would
be okay, Truck and I went to the wrestling girls.
Carnelian backed off once Truck had hold of her again.
How'd you get Daisy May, Carney, Truck asked, because she cheated.

(39:47):
Daisy May growled. Carnelian pointed at her, cheated nothing. H
got too overconfident with your skipping and dancing. That's how
I caught you, and now I I've got you again.
Daisy May. Truck told her, no way, We're going to
no ghost carnival. Daisy May pounded her little fists against

(40:11):
truck's back again. Let me go, you big bully, Hugh,
just wait till I get down from here. Carnelian stopped
Daisy May before she could give truck another wet willie. Nope,
and now we are going back. I just want to
see the Christmas carnival. Daisy yelled, You've got no right

(40:34):
holding me like this. She roared and thrashed in truck's
arms harder and harder. I'm going to that carnival. Daisy
May finally broke free and slid to the snowy grass below.
Then she got up and ran off again. With the

(40:54):
chase being on, Daisy May let us further down Harlow Road.
He knew we were getting close to Indian Hollow Road
when we saw the lighted sign of Denoyer's grill. Daisy
May was too determined to play around with us this time.
You got another burst of speed in you, Carney. Truck asked,

(41:18):
that was it? She muttered, hold it stop, Jinx is
out of breath again. As Jasper was gasping, Truck lowered
himself and let her climb up on his back. She
held on as he easily carried her. I'm sorry, you guys,
she said, I just ain't no runner, that's obvious. Carnelian replied.

(41:43):
We can follow Daisy May's tracks, I said, pointing them
out on the snowy sidewalk. We eventually reached Daisy May
as she stood at the guardrail on Indian Hollow Road.
You guys have got to take a look at this,
Daisy May gasped, pointing down the slope. We all looked,

(42:09):
but we weren't believing it. The picture on the Strickfield
University website showed the old carnival as being decrepit and
long since departed. He would never have known that if
you would have seen what we were seeing. The Strickfield

(42:30):
Carnival was brightly lit, the rides were definitely going. We
could actually see people down there moving around. The carnival
didn't look like a summer attraction, however, it was like
the bright lights of summer were taken down and replaced

(42:51):
by Christmas colors. Carnelian shook her head quickly. There's just
no way. Sure looks like it to me. Jasper disagreed.
You think that's really a ghost carnival truck asked quietly.

(43:12):
Only one way to find out, Daisy May replied, and
before any of us could stop her, she left right
over the guardrail. Then she sat down and slid down
the snowy hill with a lively w ah. Come on,
Daisy May, Truck groaned. Carnelian shook her head again. Uh

(43:39):
uh uh, there is no way you're getting me to
go to a ghost carnival. We looked to see Carnelian
holding herself. We gotta go after Daisy May, I reminded her.
She shook her head faster. No, Bill, No, don't you
understand I can't be a round ghosts ever again. Jasper

(44:04):
came down off the truck. Daisy May's our friend, Carne,
she pointed at her, And you live with her now.
I know you're doing a kind of work study program,
but you still got to be part of her family.
She raised her finger, and don't forget what her parents'll
do if you come home without her. Carnelian gave Jasper

(44:27):
her meanest look. I really hate you, jinks. Jasper grinned,
because you know I'm right, Truck spoke up. Fine, Carne,
you can stay up here. Yeah, if we don't come
back you'll have to get help, I added, I'm coming too,

(44:50):
Jasper snapped. Then she stood in front of me. I
couldn't possibly leave you to go alone. But I'm not,
I stammered. I'll be with Truck here again. I didn't
have a romantic interest in Jasper Jinx. Still, that crazy

(45:14):
girl had a way of getting to me. Probably that
part of her that was hard to read, the part
I thought made her crazy. When I realized Jasper was
taking my hand, I cried out and staggered back. Now
I was tumbling over the guard rail and down the hill.

(45:36):
Eventually I was flat on my back. You okay, buddy,
Truck asked, helping me to my feet. I gasped when
Jasper suddenly wrapped her arms around me. You'd better be
I love going to the movies with you, bill. Then
she squeezed me. I humored her and patted her on

(45:59):
the back gently. Let's find Daisy may first. Okay. Jasper
finally let me go, but not before she pecked my
cheek again. Why me, I wondered to myself. We turned
to look at the Christmas carnival. Guess we're going in,

(46:22):
Truck muttered, Yep, I agreed, reluctantly. We had only taken
a few short steps toward the carnival when we heard
wait up, you guys. We stopped and turned around to
see Carnelian had finished sliding down the hill. I'm coming

(46:44):
in there with you, she groaned. But I don't have
to like it. You could have just stayed upside, like
I said, Truck reminded. Carnelian pointed at Jasper. Can thank
this fruitcake here? Jasper brightened up. Hm, I love Grandma's

(47:07):
Christmas fruitcake. Carnelian growled, made a snowball and threw it
at her. Can you be serious for once in your life? Jinx,
Jasper laughed, This is my serious side, Carne. She raised
her finger. Laughter's good for the soul, as my mom

(47:29):
loves to say. In fact, that's the Jink's motto. You
sure you want to come, Truck asked Carnelian directly, I'll
just stay close to you, if that's If that's okay,
she stammered. Truck sighed and took her hand. Come on, then,

(47:54):
Carney was scared, no two ways about it. I could
see how much she squeeze Truck's hand. Still, she didn't complain.
Soon we were finally entering the Christmas carnival. We already
heard the music from Indian Hollow Road. It was carnival

(48:16):
versions of popular Christmas carols blaring through the midway. Right now,
jingle Bells was playing. We could see food stands selling
Christmas themed items. There were carnival games. Even the high
striker game was flashing red and green Christmas colors. As

(48:38):
for people, we weren't the only ones there, but just
looking at them, you knew something wasn't right. I couldn't
put my finger on it, but I had the feeling
we were going to find out before too long. What
I could tell you about the people was that many

(49:00):
of them were wearing different fashions, like they came here
from different times or something. You should have seen the
way they were looking at us, Okay, no, the way
they were looking at Jasper. The rest of us could
blend in. Okay. Truck Daisy May and Carnelian were wearing

(49:23):
farm clothes. I was wearing my usual white T shirt
with jeans and a leather jacket with boots. Everybody else
acted like the nineteen eighties fashions Jasper was wearing were
too weird for them I even heard a woman ask
her if Jasper had stuck her finger in a light
socket to get her Madonna esque hare. Another one commented

(49:48):
on her makeup. Jasper must have heard them herself, because
she got defensive. Yeah, well, at least I don't buy
my clothes from the local thrift store like you. When
people gave Jasper more weird looks, Carnelian even noticed. Maybe
they did, and you hurt their feelings, jinks. But Daisy

(50:12):
May wasn't deterred. Well, since we's here, we might as
well have some fun, Carnelian remembered herself. Now, on second thought,
shut up, jinks. If these people are ghosts, we might
just be asking for it. Daisy May rolled her eyes.

(50:38):
Look you here, Carnee. Them people's eating food they just
got from that stand. Far as I know, ghosts can't
eat nothing. Yeah, well, i'd be lying if I said
I didn't think something was wrong here, I admitted, Gee,
you think, Carnelian muttered. When I went to argue with her,

(51:02):
she snuggled in closer to truck. Hey, now, girl, you
might want to ease up a little, he told her.
Don't worry, I won't let nothing hurt you. We heard
some man call us over. Looking at him, you'd have
sworn he looked kind of like Popeye, except you wore

(51:23):
a flannel shirt with jeans and smoked a cigar. One
of you boys want to step right up and hit
this thing? His voice was rugged, win something for your
sweeties there right then. I gulped at knowing what Jasper
must have been feeling at hearing that. But did I

(51:44):
really want to step up and win something for Jasper? Sure?
Truck said how much? The man sneered, tell you what
I'm gonna let you take a swing on the house.
He handed Truck the sledgehammer. Show me what you got.

(52:05):
As the rest of us watched in anticipation, Carnelian wasn't
looking so scared now, as she seemed to admire Truck.
We all gasped when Truck suddenly brought the hammer straight
up and then swung it like it was really light.
The hammer made contact, it seemed like less than a

(52:31):
second for the puck to shoot up and slam into
the bell up top. Gravity pulled it back down just
as quickly. The Popeye looking guy sneered in admiration. Yeah,
I knew you could do it, kid, go ahead, pick
something out for your girlfriend. There. Truck looked guilty when

(52:54):
he turned around and saw both Carnelian and Daisy May.
Deep down, I think he wanted to tell Daisy May
to select the prize. And again, I think he truly
was afraid to lose her if he told her how
he felt. Go ahead, Carney, Truck told her, choosing the

(53:17):
greater good. Um, are you sure, Carnelian asked. When Truck nodded,
she went and selected a Teddy Bear dressed like Santa Claus.
How much for playing the game? Truck asked? No charge,
the man replied. Just then, this other man, wearing a

(53:39):
Christmas colored suit approached us. Who owns this carnival? I
asked the man? I do? He answered, Isley Tinker at
your service. Normally I'd be running my odds and shop,

(54:00):
but I'm moonlighting, if you will. This carnival's been sitting here,
all empty and abandoned since nineteen fifty five. It seemed
like such a shame to let it remain that way,
so I decided to revitalize it. I'm so happy you
kids decided to come and visit here on Christmas Eve.

(54:24):
It's nice the Carnival is getting some fresh new faces.
Isley Tinker. Now, where had I heard that name? Then
I remembered yesterday evening we got together and hung out.
Carnelian really wanted to go to Strickfield Town Center Mall

(54:45):
so she could see the winter wonderland that her cousin
Harmony had there each and every holiday season. As soon
as we entered the mall, it was as if the
place just brightened up fast. We could hear oh Christmas
Tree playing over the speakers. Carnelian's eyes brightened up just

(55:07):
as much as the lights themselves, really loving what she
was seeing. Harmony spared no expense when it came to
decorating her mall for the holidays. The only thing that
had brought Carnelian out of her trance was the wooo
of the train that gave rides to kids smaller and

(55:30):
younger than we were. Easy there, Carney Daisy May told her,
don't need you getting run over before Christmas. Oh listen
to you, Carnelian muttered. We walked around the mall. There
were times when Carnelians stopped to admire other animatronic scenes,

(55:52):
especially the one where the elves were making toys in
Santa's workshop at the North Pole to be Hodes. Honest,
I could probably spend much of this story giving this
mall the justice it deserved, but I'll get to the
reason why we were there later on. We walked down
this one wing to see if any other seasonal stores

(56:15):
were there. See at the time, Strickfield Town Center Mall
only looked like a revitalization or a grand opening around
Halloween until just after the New year. The rest of
the year, there were several vacancies, maybe a select few
of them got filled when new stores decided to come in,

(56:39):
much like when Boble Topia had opened a second location there.
The only open store we saw was this Rarities and
Curiosities place called Tinkers. Knowing this was the last night
the mall was open late for Christmas shopping, we went
inside and looked at It was one of those places

(57:03):
where it was possible to make a rare discovery. I
went to the counter when I saw there were video
game consoles. Not too many people knew, but I actually
had an old Sega setup, the Original Genesis, the thirty
two X add on, and even the Sega CD. I

(57:25):
knew there were far more powerful platforms available, but I
just couldn't ever get over Sega. My older brother handed
that down to me when he decided to trade up
for a better, newer system. Every now and then, I
liked looking for titles to add to my collection. As

(57:47):
I was checking out the display, Jasper came up by me.
Oh wow, I can't believe there's actually a store here
in Strickfield that sells these old systems. I got the
newest Xbox myself. Do you have a console the Genesis,
I simply said. Seriously, she asked. I know it's ancient history,

(58:11):
but there's nothing wrong with having it, I explained. Ooh,
Jasper uttered when she saw it. There was this snow
globe on a stand behind the counter. It looked like

(58:32):
a Christmas carnival inside a world of water. So pretty.
Jasper couldn't help herself and went behind the counter to
look at it. Jasper, I whispered, fast too late. She
lifted the snow globe into her hands and gazed into it.

(58:55):
Thinking about it, you'd have sworn the globe had this
weird globe coming from it. Jasper turned to me, this
is so pretty. Bill. Suddenly, this man looking to be
in his late forties to early fifties came out from

(59:16):
the back. Seeing Jasper behind the counter with the snow
globe in her hands. You would wonder if he was
going to scold her for it. I'm sorry, young lady,
but you are not allowed back here, he said mildly.
And I'm afraid that snow globe is not for sale.

(59:36):
It's a keepsake that I display only. Jasper handed the
snow globe back to the man. I'm sorry, it's just
so beautiful. The rest of the gang met up with
us as Jasper was coming back to stand beside me.
What did you do now, Jinx Carnelian snapped. The man

(59:58):
raised his hand in front of him. Oh no, it's
all right now. Is there anything I can help you
kids find today? We're just looking, Daisy May told him,
not a problem, The man replied, Isley Tinker at your service.

(01:00:21):
You sure you don't want to sell that snow globe,
Jasper beckoned to the man. No, I'm sorry, but I'm
afraid it's very near and dear to me, Tinker explained
to her. Okay, Jasper said, defeated. We looked around the
store a little bit longer before we headed back out

(01:00:44):
into the mall. I didn't know what it was, but
something about Isley Tinker sat heavily on my mind now
we were seeing him here at the Christmas Carnival? Did
Tinker have the money to be able to restore and
reopen the Strickfield Carnival? Just looking at everything? How did

(01:01:07):
he get the entire place up and running, looking like
it hadn't been closed in nineteen fifty five? We would
learn that answer and many others before long. Looking at Tinker,
he appeared more like a ring master than he did
the owner of a junk shop. Eventually, Tinker stepped aside

(01:01:32):
and motioned for us to pass. Don't let me keep
you from enjoying the Christmas Carnival, he told us. We
moved away from the high striker game and walked the midway.
Every so often, I'd glance over at the others. I
was glad to know I wasn't the only one who

(01:01:52):
felt uneasy, especially when Carnelian was clutching her new toy
to her some kind of security blanket. But Carnelian showed
she wasn't altogether scared when she reached out and poked
Daisy May with her finger. Okay, country mouse, you've seen

(01:02:15):
your carnival. Now let's get out of here. Yeah, I
second that, Jasper added. Daisy May sneered, Nah, I'm liking
what I'm seeing here. And you don't think none of
this looks off to you, Truck asked her. Daisy May

(01:02:36):
waved us all off. Ah, you all are just playing, yella.
There ain't nothing wrong with this carnival. We ought to
be glad there's something like this here. I raised my
hand a little now, hold on, Daisy May, I pointed
to Carnelian. Weren't you listening when she told us the
story about this place? And don't you remember Halloween night

(01:03:00):
when we were out at grim Manor, Carnelian added, or
was there nothing wrong with that place either? When Daisy
May gave us what seemed to be a skeptical look,
Truck stopped all of us. Hold up, what are you
trying to say? You ain't believing we saw ghosts on

(01:03:21):
Halloween night? Daisy May, the five of us were all
out there trapped in grim Manor. He pointed at her,
you were there. Daisy May raised her finger. This ain't
no haunted house. We's at a carnival, not the same thing, right,

(01:03:41):
Carnelian growled, shoved her Santa Bear right into truck's arms,
and confronted Daisy May. Look, I did not read what
I did about this place from the website. Just to
prove that I can read. We live in Strickfield. I
know for a fact we saw ghosts at grim Manor

(01:04:02):
on Halloween night, and I'm willing to bet this place
didn't just get restored over time. Believe me, there would
have been something in the Strictfield Journal about it. All
we saw was just that one flyer, and only we
saw it. Have you seen how the people here are dressed?
We were at that bizarre earlier and everybody there was

(01:04:25):
dressed normally. I'm sorry, but no, I'm not buying this place,
I sighed in relief. Thanks Carney, I was thinking the
same thing. Maybe I'm out of line here, but what's
to say we're not in some ghost carnival? Or did
we forget that we just saw the shop owner from

(01:04:46):
the mall here. But Daisy May wasn't listening you seeing
any ghosts around here? She sprang away from us and
went up to some man wearing what looked like an
Amish hat. She leapt up to snatch it off his head.
Then she turned around. I'm holding this thing sure as

(01:05:06):
I'm wearing overalls, you wicked little. The man started to roar, Ah,
keep your breeches on, Daisy May fired back. After she
handed the hat back to him, she took off running again. Next,
she reached another man and stopped in front of him. Hey.

(01:05:28):
Then she put her thumbs up to her ears, stuck
out her tongue, and went When the man went to
swatt at her, Daisy May swatted him right back. We
could clearly see them make contact. The man's arm moved

(01:05:50):
back as he was about to grab her. She sprinted
away and came back to us. Nope, no ghosts here, Carneye,
Daisy May told her. Carnelian just looked right at her. Okay,
maybe these people aren't ghosts, but something is definitely off

(01:06:12):
about this place. I'm not backing down from this country mouse.
Daisy May waved her off, like I said, you're just
plain yella. Carnelian was upset. Now, fine, be that way.
You can stay here if you want. I'm leaving while
we still can truck put his foot down. We ain't

(01:06:36):
leaving you here Daisy May. Now, I'm with Carnie and
Bill on this. Something's wrong with this here, Carnival. We're
getting out of here right now, so go ahead and
go then, Daisy May muttered, I'll leave when i'm good
and ready. I'm gonna have some fun first, don't make

(01:06:57):
me pick you up and carry you out of here myself.
Truck threatened, Ah, you ain't gonna have to do that,
Daisy May smiled mischievously. You gotta catch me first. She
was away from us before Truck could grab her. Carnelian
screamed and ran after her. So much for her being scared,

(01:07:20):
the rest of us went after them. Daisy May led
us through more and more of the midway. We ran
past a ferris wheel, a carousel, some bumper cars, and
even the zipper renamed the chimney for Christmas. We even
ran past several more games and food stands. Eventually, Daisy

(01:07:43):
May led us back to the bumper cars. She sprang
up over the barrier and got into an empty car.
Carnelian wasn't too far behind. She didn't get into a car, though,
In fact, she was moving to get around the other
bumper cars to get at Daisy May. Hey, The operator yelled,

(01:08:05):
what do you kids think you're doing? Can't catch me, Carnee.
Daisy May jeered, woohooo, just wait till I get my
hands on you. Carnelian yelled. I was about to go
over the barrier myself, but Jasper stopped me. When I
looked her way. She pointed to the operator, who had

(01:08:29):
come out of his booth to go after Carnelian. Then
truck told Jasper and me go to the entrances. We
can block Daisy May and catch her when she comes out.
Then I saw the operator was about to get Carnelian.
As she was about to get Daisy May, look out, Carney,

(01:08:49):
I yelled. The operator grabbed her. Get out, get out.
As Carnelian struggled with the man, Jasper nonchalantly opened the
gate and walked in to the ride. She easily avoided
the cars and approached the two of them. Soon she
was standing right next to the man. Hi, my name's

(01:09:13):
Jasper Jinx, please to meet you. When he went to
reach out for her, she grabbed his hand. The man
cried out as Jasper pulled the shock buzzer handshake again.
I laughed a little at knowing how many times Jasper
had pulled that very trick on Carnelian. This time, Jasper

(01:09:35):
did it to help Carnelian get free, kind of poetic.
At the same time, Daisy May got out of her
bumper car and leaped over the barrier on the other
side to escape. Then the girls made their own way
out and don't come back. The operator yelled behind us,
You girls all right, truck asked, yeah, I'm fine. Carnelian

(01:10:01):
muttered that little country mouse got away. She could be
anywhere in this carnival by now. Then she tightened her fists,
looked up and roared. As Carnelian breathed to calm down,
Jasper took her hand. It's okay, we're gonna find Daisy May.

(01:10:23):
Carnelian screamed, now realizing it was Jasper holding her hand.
You're not shaking my hand again, Jinks, get out of here.
I wasn't gonna, Jasper said, sounding a little hurt. Carnelian nodded, fine,
I'm sorry. She held out her hand reluctantly. Jasper pulled

(01:10:49):
Carnelian into her arms and instead gave her a comforting hug.
Carnelian's eyes bulged for a moment, at least until jas
let her go. I imagined getting a hug from Jasper
was much better than getting the shock buzzer handshake. We

(01:11:09):
can't leave here without Daisy May, Carnelian said. If I
come back to the farm without her, I'll never hear
the end of it from her parents. I really don't
want to tell them that I lost her in some
ghost carnival, she sighed. I don't think they'd even believe me. Well,

(01:11:30):
this is strickfield, I reminded her. You might be surprised.
I still don't want to take the chance. Carnelian emphasized,
I think it's safe to say Daisy May still here.
Truck suggested, long as she's having a fun time, she's
gonna stay right where she's at. I've been friends with

(01:11:52):
her long enough to know that much about her. Guess
all we do is keep searching this carnival until we
find her that Jasper added, no, duh, Carnelian muttered, the
way I see it, we can split up or stick together,
I suggested. Carnelian's eyes bulged and she pointed right at me.

(01:12:17):
You just close your trap about splitting up, Then she
got brave again and showed she still had some of
her evil left from Halloween. As she smiled devilishly. Carnelian

(01:12:39):
laughed a little. Okay, yeah, Bill, why don't we just
split up. I'll go with truck and you can spend
more time with your girlfriend here. Yeah. I walked right
into that one, and I wasn't even trying to get
on Carnelian's bad side. That was when I pulled out

(01:13:00):
my smartphone. I sighed in relief and turned to the others.
We've got a signal here. If one of the group
finds Daisy may then send a text. After we agreed
we split up, I couldn't believe how big this carnival was.
Then I noticed it had been lightly snowing since we

(01:13:22):
got here. I noticed fast when I felt Jasper right
by me. Her eyes were wide open and sparkling. Of course,
she was smiling from ear to ear. I had to
admit Jasper was cute when she smiled. I just didn't
want her to smile for me. Where are we going,

(01:13:46):
Jasper inquired, I sighed, I guess we can go this way.
We walked down a part of the midway. I didn't
recall us walking through. Seriously, how do we let Daisy
May donnerly get us into trouble? I said out loud.
She does, don't she? Jasper answered, huh, I uttered. Jasper laughed,

(01:14:13):
you're so funny, Bill, no wonder. I love hanging out
with you so much. I gulped when I felt her
taking and holding my hand. Don't worry, I won't let
nothing happen to you. I wanted to yell at Jasper
and tell her I wasn't her boyfriend and to stop
treating me like I was. No, I just couldn't do it.

(01:14:38):
Jasper didn't deserve that she was crazy, but I just
couldn't do it. Several minutes later, we came to some
more rides. Jasper squeezed my hand. Bill over there, I
looked to see her pointing at a second carousel. The

(01:14:59):
one we passed earlier had reindeer instead of horses. This
one had polar bears. Daisy May was on the back
of one of those bears, going around and around. There
weren't too many people on the ride with her, making
it easy to identify her. Jasper wouldn't let go of

(01:15:19):
my hand. Full transparency. I don't think I could get
on there. I turned to face her. It's only a
Merry Go Round. It's not like it's gonna throw you
far out somewhere. I get dizzy on those things fast,
she quickly admitted, always have. She pointed to the carousel

(01:15:43):
with her free hand. And as fast as that one's going,
I'll probably be stumbling all over the place, or maybe
even fall down and not be able to get back up.
I sighed, Okay, Jasper, you can stay here. I raised
my finger on my free hand. You know what, why

(01:16:05):
don't you stick close to the Merry go Round and
go after Daisy May when she comes out. You just
know she's gonna run once she sees me. Jasper pointed
to the continuously passing Daisy May. She's got her eyes
face front if she don't turn and see you coming
from behind. I hate to admit it, but that crazy

(01:16:28):
girl was actually on to something. When I saw where
I could get on without being seen by both Daisy
May and the ride attendant, I told Jasper to stay
out of sight until she saw Daisy May making a
run for it again. Then I remember Jasper herself didn't
really have any stamina, which meant her trying to chase

(01:16:52):
Daisy May was pointless anyway. I moved to my hiding
place and waited. As soon as Daisy May passed by.
I waited a couple more seconds before making my move.
Getting on the carousel was easy enough. I quickly got
over the barrier and was on the ride. The operator

(01:17:15):
wasn't really looking at the people riding, more like reading something.
I eased my way closer and closer to Daisy May.
Her eyes were still facing front. She'd turn her head
to the right a little bit to look out as
long as she wouldn't look to her left. I was

(01:17:37):
just a few more steps to Daisy May when she
suddenly turned and looked right at me. Gotcha, billy, she declared.
I growled and made my attempt to graver her. Unfortunately,
she was just a microsecond too fast and was off
her polar bear fast as fast can be. Daisy May cheered.

(01:18:03):
Now I was chasing that crazy farm girl around the carousel.
Eventually the operator looked up from his console. Hey, Daisy
May wasn't going to wait for him to try and
stop the ride. She sprinted enough to where she could
leap off the carousel and land beside the barrier. She

(01:18:24):
easily leapt over it before she turned around with her
wicked little smile. Don't know why you guys don't want
me having fun here, Daisy May said. Still ain't seen
no ghosts, Billy, She raised her finger, But you can
keep on trying to catch me. Ta ta. When she

(01:18:47):
saw Jasper, she quickly took off running again. I made
my move and got off the ride. Then I made
it over to the barrier myself, just before the operator
could grab me. Whew. I resumed chasing Daisy May. It
was then when I wished I was friends with Ariel Miron.

(01:19:10):
Maybe I could have called and convinced her to come
to the carnival and help me chase down Daisy May.
Since I knew back at school the debate over which
girl was fastest on her feet was still not resolved.
How on earth am I going to catch her? I

(01:19:33):
was able to keep my pace, but Daisy May could
keep enough distance between us to where I just couldn't
run any faster. But I wouldn't have to keep chasing
Daisy May around the midway for long. When she saw
what looked like a Christmas funhouse, she braked to a halt.

(01:19:53):
She was about to pay for a ticket. When I
finally reached her, uh huh, you ain't taking me away
from from here, Billy, Daisy May snapped, I'm going through
this here and you ain't stopping me. Then I suddenly
knew something Daisy May did not. I smiled a little Seriously,

(01:20:14):
you're really going into I looked at the name of
the attraction, Santa's Sleigh Ride. Something tells me you're gonna
get ripped off. It's probably all the scary stuff with
Santa hats and tinsel attached to them. Then the ticket
taker interjected, shows how much you know, kid? Everything's all

(01:20:38):
new inside because this is the first year we got
this ride. Now, are you gonna quit yapping and go in?
Or are you gonna keep wasting my time? Jasper appeared
next to me. Then the man saw her and sneered,
why don't you take your little girlfriend through? Or are

(01:20:58):
you a cheapskate? Just as Daisy May was digging into
the pocket of her bib overalls, two big hands snatched
her shoulders. Like I said, I knew something, she did not.
Oh no, you don't truck, Daisy May growled and tried

(01:21:18):
to run. Oh no, you don't Daisy May. Truck returned,
I got you again. Now I'm going to keep you
cause we're getting on out of here right now. Daisy
May could have bucked and thrashed like she usually did
whenever Truck had her, but she suddenly turned around in

(01:21:41):
his hands. She raised her finger and said, okay, tell
you people what She just saw that. Carnelian was there too,
but she finished her thought, I want to go through
this thing. Just let me go through one time, and
I promise we can leave right after. Carnelian was right, Honor,

(01:22:03):
you're lying, country mouse. I saw your eyelids twitch. I've
been living with you long enough to know that about you.
Daisy May wasn't backing down. I ain't leaving here till
I go through this thing. Carnelian wasn't either. A. We're
all surrounding you. B Truck still got hold of you.

(01:22:26):
That means, see, you're definitely leaving. Daisy May yelled, ah,
come on you yell a hickinbottom. No. Carnelian returned, we
are going home before your parents start worrying about why
we're not back for dinner. Is there a problem here?

(01:22:48):
A familiar voice called out, We all looked to see
that Tinker guy standing with the ticket taker. Yeah, we're leaving,
Carnelian told him why. Tinker asked softly, aren't you enjoying
the Christmas Carnival? Where's the exit, Carnelian demanded, ignoring Tinker's question,

(01:23:16):
He pointed just over Carnelian's shoulder. There's actually one right
over there. Let's go, Daisy May, Truck demanded, aw fu.
Daisy May tried to spin and run, but Truck made
sure she wasn't going anywhere fast. In a way, I

(01:23:37):
was kind of wondering if maybe we were being a
little too hard on her. Then I remembered how the
rest of us felt about that carnival and knew we
had to get out of here, whether Daisy May wanted
to go or not. We reached the exit, but what

(01:23:57):
the jasper uttered? Oh are you serious? Carnelian growled in disbelief.
You just knew something was definitely wrong. We could all
clearly see the exit. We could look out past the
grounds and see the cars parked. We could even see

(01:24:19):
the street lights off Indian Hollow Road. The only problem
was we couldn't walk through the exit. It was as
if an invisible wall was right there. We were all
pushing on it. Truck and I were throwing our backs
into it. No matter how hard we tried, it was

(01:24:41):
evident we were not going anywhere. Suddenly Isley Tinker was
right there with us. Although I never did say any
of you could leave. In fact, the five of you
might as well have as much fun as you can.

(01:25:02):
Carnelian pointed right at Tinker, seriously, what is your problem?
Why are you doing this? Jasper added, what did we do?
Then she looked guilty. We didn't shoplift from your store? Right, No,

(01:25:24):
you didn't, Tinker assured us. But now you five are
the last souls that I need to give my offering
to the Dark Mother herself Dark Mother. Truck asked, what
do you mean, Dark Mother? Suddenly Tinker produced that beautiful

(01:25:47):
snow globe that Jasper had wanted the day before. He
uttered some strange words. Then the scenery changed. We were
suddenly in what looked like an office. Now I can
explain everything much better, Tinker said. He told us that

(01:26:10):
he was much older than he looked. In fact, he
had actually been around since the Middle Ages. He was
excellent when it came to fixing things. He was a
man ahead of his time. He was living in Europe
when the Black Death claimed his wife and children. Tinker

(01:26:32):
himself had never caught the plague, but he had been
torn up inside at the loss of his family. He
kept mostly to himself and wandered the world. Upon realizing
that he was getting up in his years, he finally
came apart and demanded to the sky an answer to

(01:26:55):
why he himself was spared from the Black Death, only
to have to go through life without his family. No
one answered him. That fateful day came when Tinker passed
a book shop and saw it on display in the window.

(01:27:16):
He went into the store and took hold of the book.
The pages were written in a language he should not
have been able to read, but somehow he could understand
every word and took it as a sign. Tinker managed
to steal the book and began to fervently study it.

(01:27:41):
Tinker read from the book and summoned the Dark Mother herself.
The Dark Mother was known by many names. Some of
you may know her as Hell Weaver. Now there she

(01:28:05):
was before Tinker. She made him the offer of giving
him back his family in exchange for his very soul.
You would think that that would be an offer Tinker
simply could not refuse. But he declined he didn't want

(01:28:25):
to have them back, only to lose them again when
they die. Naturally, Tinker knew that the Dark Mother was
a goddess and wanted even greater rewards from her. The
Dark Mother admired his eagerness and made him an offer
he would gladly accept. All that I require is for

(01:28:50):
you to capture a thousand souls for me, Isley Tinker,
She said, prove your loyalty by doing this, and you
shall know great power and riches. Once I have conquered
the multiverse, then your reward shall be even greater. How

(01:29:15):
shall I gain these souls for you, my Dark Mother,
Tinker asked. She saw into his dark soul and learned
that he had a pensiant for fixing things. So she
had the perfect idea. I shall make you immortal from

(01:29:37):
this day forward. Use the powers contained within the volume
in which you have summoned me. Use your means and
your gifts, for they shall be the tools with which
you shall obtain the thousand souls that I have demanded

(01:30:01):
of you. You have until such time in which to
deliver them. On to me. From there, a contract was
negotiated and signed. Tinker read the Dark Mother's Book. Within
its pages, he found the means with which he could

(01:30:24):
fix things that needed to be repaired. As he fixed
the items, he would curse them to make them do
something special. In some cases, they could serve whoever had
the item, or they might corrupt the soul. Among the

(01:30:45):
items he took in was that very snow globe that
Jasper wanted. Now we would understand why Tinker did not
want to sell it. Using a spell from the Dark
Mother's Bad Book, he changed the snow globe into a
soul prison. From there he started collecting the souls of

(01:31:08):
those who had been taken by the cursed items he
had sold through the years. Tinker was not in any
big hurry because the deadline wasn't immediate. Getting back to
now with the five of you, that makes exactly one

(01:31:30):
thousand souls, Tinker reminded us, the deadline is at midnight
Christmas Day. I shall personally give this very snow globe
to the Mother herself. Then she will give me a
place with her as she conquers the entire multiverse. Daisy

(01:31:55):
May was so angry that she howled and rushed at Tinker.
She leapt up on his desk and tried to jump
at him. To her surprise and maybe ours, Tinker caught
her with almost no effort. He set her down on
his desk and gently shoved her away. Truck caught her

(01:32:17):
before she could fall to the floor. When Daisy May
was back on her feet, she pointed at Tinker. You're
gonna wish you ain't never met me, you old goat.
Tinker rolled his eyes, Spare me your threat's little girl.
Then he looked at his watch before speaking to all

(01:32:38):
of us. You've only got precious little time before all
of your souls will be given to the dark Mother.
He pointed to the door. You might as well go
on out and enjoy the Christmas carnival. Carnelian scared us
half to death when she tightened her fists and belted

(01:33:02):
out a blood curdling scream that would have made her
cousin Ariel proud. Then she roared and tried to rush
Tinker as well. Unfortunately, her efforts would be useless since
Tinker disappeared before she could grab him. She hit the
side of her head and dazed herself a little but

(01:33:25):
was able to stop herself from falling by slamming her
palms on the desk. When Truck put gentle hands on
her shoulders, she spun to face him. I am not
spending the rest of my life in this this ghost Carnival,
she pointed hard at him. You got that. Then she

(01:33:49):
tightened her fists again and started heaving. For a brief moment,
I thought she was going to scream again, but Truck
took hold of her shoulders. We'll get out of here, Carneye,
but we all got to keep our heads on straight.
H don't even know the way out, Carnelian fired back.

(01:34:11):
And do you even know carnee? Daisy May asked. Knowing
the answer, Carnelian spun out of Truck's hands and walked
right up to Daisy May. You'd swear that two of
them were ready to fight again, just like on Halloween.
We wouldn't be in this mess if it wasn't for you,

(01:34:32):
country mouse, Carnelian accused. Daisy May tightened her fists. What's
you gonna do about it, you yell a hickinbottom. I
quickly got in between them. This ain't happening, Break it up,
I could tell Carnelian was itching to call me a
greaser like she did back in the fall. Since I

(01:34:54):
came from the biker community and many of them were mechanics,
people like to call us greaser. I was a bit
of a mechanic myself, so I owned it. Carnelian softened up.
She really had changed for the better since Halloween night.
She looked past me to Daisy May. This is still

(01:35:16):
your fault. Before Daisy May could lash out, I turned
to face her. Carney's right. We tried to tell you
not to come here, but you always got to have
your way. You always got to get us in trouble.
Jasper muttered, we'll be lucky to survive Christmas Eve. Daisy

(01:35:42):
May looked at truck for support. Even though he had
feelings for her, he spoke his mind. They're all right,
You're as stubborn as your ma. Daisy May looked down.
I just wanted to see this place. Didn't mean to
hurt nobody none. She looked up sadly. You think I

(01:36:05):
knew some crazy old badger was going to keep us
here and take our souls? She raised her finger. Ain't
none of you pinning that on me? Carnelian calmed down. Now,
I don't want to fight you again, country mouse. You're right,
you didn't trap us here on purpose. But if we

(01:36:26):
don't get out of here, we can plan on spending
the rest of our lives. I don't know. Then she
got scared again and growled, I don't want us to
die in here. She hugged herself. Daisy May's mom had
said we were in for a treat tomorrow at the
dinner table. She dropped her arms and declared, I want

(01:36:50):
that Christmas dinner tomorrow. Okay, So how we getting out
of here? Truck asked? How did we even get in
here in the first place, Jasper wondered. Carnelian looked like
she was going to give Jasper a hard time again.
She thought better of it and sighed, Jinx is right.

(01:37:12):
I know. The rest of us followed Daisy May in here.
Getting in here was easy as devouring one of Ma's pies,
Daisy May said. Truck raised his finger. Hey, I was
the one who got that flyer for this place. You
think maybe that's how we got in here? I mean,
no one else got it, right, We don't know that

(01:37:36):
for sure, big guy, I replied, even if we could
find it. Truck dug into his pocket. I got it
right here, Daisy May snatched it. Give me that thing.
She dug into one of her pocketbooks and took out
a lighter. What do you need a lighter for, Carnelian asked,

(01:37:57):
you smoking your dad's cigars up in the bar or something.
All listen to you, you feeble minded shike poke. Daisy
May fired back, I used this thing to light up
the woodburn and stove upstairs in the barn at night.
Cornelian backed off and uttered, oh. Daisy May flicked open

(01:38:19):
the top and then flicked the wheel to get a flame.
She held it to the paper and watched it burn,
dropping it shortly after. We watched as the paper burned
to nothing. Guess we go see now, Daisy May said.
We left the office and went to another entrance just

(01:38:41):
like the one we were at. We couldn't go past it.
The same invisible barrier kept us inside. So much for that?
Truck muttered, now what? Suddenly Jasper brightened up. I got it.
Why don't we find what's keeping us all in here?
And shut it off again. Carnelian looked like she was

(01:39:05):
going to give Jasper a hard time, and again she conceded,
Jinx is right. She growled a little. I hate saying
you're right, especially when you're flipping crazy. Jasper smiled from
ear to ear and laughed. I was ready to laugh

(01:39:25):
when she turned right to me. Oh, I am crazy
about you, Bill. She was ready to peck me on
the cheek when I held up my hands, tell you
what if we get out of here, it's a date,
Jasper cried excitedly. Now part of me was kind of

(01:39:46):
hoping we wouldn't get out of the Christmas carnival. Just
seeing Jasper's toothy smile made me wonder if she really
was crazy. I realized I had to get us out
and figure Jasper Jinks was the least of two evils.
Daisy May had been thinking, again, she's definitely as smart

(01:40:09):
as her other two cousins, Like Jink said, we gotta
find the source and shut her down way I'm seeing it.
We gotta find that rotten badger because he's gotta have
the key. Right, We were all in agreement. We put
our heads together to determine where we could find Tinker.

(01:40:30):
Then Jasper brightened up and walked away from us. Jinks,
Carnelian uttered, We followed Jasper back onto the midway. Then
she pointed to the big tent. Tinker's the man in
charge here right then. That means he's the ring master.
I mean, you'd think so. We were all in agreement

(01:40:53):
and made our way to the big tent. Sure enough,
it was a Christmas circus. There were elephants dressed in
seasonal garnish, even a few lions and tigers. But we
immediately saw Tinker at the very center. When he spoke,
he must have had a microphone on. Thank you all

(01:41:16):
for being here on this fine Christmas Eve night. This
will be the final show you'll all be here to see,
because very soon you're all going to see the greatest
spectacle that will never be seen in any other attraction.
A big pause, the coming of the dark mother herself.

(01:41:41):
Jasper's eyes suddenly glowed. Such a pretty snow globe he's holding,
Carnelian snapped her fingers. Yeah, we saw him using it
in the office. That's gotta be our ticket out of here.
We ain't got much time, Daisy May reminded us. It'll
be midnight soon. Well, we sure need a plan right

(01:42:04):
about now, Truck muttered, I think I got one. Daisy
May said, I got us into this and I'm gonna
get us out. We huddled together as Daisy May explained
her plan. That's crazy, Jasper blurted out. Then she returned

(01:42:32):
to Carnelian, and you say I'm the crazy one. Nobody
objected to Daisy May's plan, not when it was the
only one we had. Also, time was not on our side.
Daisy May left the group and went underneath some nearby bleachers.

(01:42:54):
Soon she was climbing up like a ladder. When she
reached the top, she untied one of the ropes that
was there to support the tent. We weren't paying attention
to what Tinker was saying, since we were keeping our
eyes on Daisy May. When she was ready, she called out,
and away we go. All eyes went right to Daisy

(01:43:18):
May donnerly as she leapt off and swung towards Tinker.
We quickly ran her way. Tinker pointed right up at her,
you little upstart. He tried to grab Daisy May when
she was almost to him. Missed me, she jeered. When
Tinker turned around to try and catch her. On the return,

(01:43:42):
Jasper surprised everyone even Tinker himself by suddenly snatching that
snow globe right out of his hand. I said, I
want this, old man, She snapped, No, Tinker shrieked, return
that snow globe this instant. You meddling kids don't understand

(01:44:04):
the dark Mother will be here soon. Doom will come
to us all if she doesn't receive that snow globe
at exactly midnight. Give that back now. Since Jasper wasn't
a fast runner and didn't have the best endurance, Tinker
caught her. He turned her around and slapped her hard

(01:44:24):
across her face. She shrieked and dropped the snow globe.
Tinker shoved her aside and moved to pick it up.
What the no put me down immediately, Tinker cried when
he found himself hoisted up and being carried around on
truck Tucker's shoulders. You ought to be ashamed of yourself,

(01:44:48):
mister Tinker, slappin' Jasper like that, Truck admonished him. Ain't
no way to treat a lady. Don't care what she's done, No, sir,
we learned Truck like to watch professional wrestling, because he
started spinning around and around real fast with Tinker still
on his shoulders. The move was called the airplane spin.

(01:45:12):
Tinker shrieked and complained as the rest of us ran
off with the snow globe. We knew Truck would join
us when he could. When we got to a safe distance,
Jasper had the globe in her hands. I hoped she
wouldn't take it the wrong way. When I checked her face,
You okay, I asked, She smiled from ear to ear again.

(01:45:37):
You really do care, Bill, and I'd shrieked to myself
again as she pecked me on the cheek. I pointed
right ad her focus. Jasper Carnelian pointed right ad her
shatter that thing now, okay already, she groaned. Ah, but
it's so beautiful, Jasper, we all called out together. She

(01:46:03):
groaned again and screamed as she raised the snow globe
and threw it at a concrete wall with everything she had.
The Christmas item hit hard and just bounced right to
the ground back to us. I picked it up to
see it ain't even scratched. Knowing I was stronger than Jasper,

(01:46:25):
I repeated her action again. The snow globe came right
to me again. It wasn't damaged in any way seriously,
Carnelian groaned. Then she saw something, give me that. She
snatched the snow globe and went to the high striker.

(01:46:46):
We thought the attendant would fight us on this, but
when he saw the snow globe, he immediately handed over
the sledge hammer. Break it free us. He beckoned Carnelia
and put the snow globe down on the lever. She
seemed to struggle a little bit, but she was mad

(01:47:06):
enough to wear She raised the hammer over her head.
She screamed with that anger and hit the snow globe hard.
The globe just panged away. I quickly ran after it.
I almost had it in my hand when I got
swatted away. No, no, boy, that does not belong to you.

(01:47:30):
Tinker had found us. He was about to reclaim the
snow globe when Jasper suddenly appeared. She opened her hand
and blew some powder right in his face. Immediately, Tinker
started sneezing up a storm. That'll teach you to hit me,
she jeered, Never mess with a jinx. She snatched the

(01:47:55):
snow globe back and handed it to Carnelian. It's ill,
not broken, she yelled. What do we have to do
to get out of here. Let's move, I told the girls.
We ran off. I was worried about Truck and Daisy May,
since they had not joined us yet. Tinker mentioned midnight.

(01:48:17):
I looked at my phone and saw it was getting close.
In fact, the winds started to pick up. Give me
that snow globe, Tinker yelled, finally shaking off the effects
of Jasper's sneezing powder. The Dark Mother is almost here now, truck.

(01:48:39):
We heard Daisy May call out. We didn't know what
was going on until we heard Tinker utter oof. We
stopped and saw that Truck had thrown Daisy May all
the way to Tinker. She landed on him and took
him to the ground. She got back to her feet quickly.

(01:49:02):
When Tinker was back to his and ready to grab her,
she scurried away fast as fast can be. I will
have that snow globe, he growled. We turned and ran again.
But you just knew Tinker had a trump card up
his sleeve. Remember all those circus animals that were in

(01:49:26):
the big tent. Tinker was using them to try and
get us. The elephants were slow moving, but the lions
and tigers moved like Daisy May's little dog, old McDonald.
I can't run no more, Jasper groan. I'm a goner.

(01:49:50):
Jasper shrieked when Truck lifted her on to his shoulders.
Keep moving. Carnelian yelled, I ain't liking the look of
that sky, Why none, Truck said. The sky was in
shades of black and red, and the winds were getting worse.
The dark mother is nearly here. Tinker called out, give

(01:50:13):
me that globe or you'll do us all. Tinker suddenly
ripped Jasper from Truck's shoulders and threw her to the
ground to get the globe from her. Ah ah ah,
Daisy May squeaked, sliding into home plate and snatching the
snow globe. Tinker turned to chase her down, making the

(01:50:35):
mistake of taking his eyes off of Jasper. She was
back on her feet again. Hey, you old fart, Merry Christmas.
Jasper surprised him by shoving a full, unwrapped stick of
gum in his mouth. Tinker impulsively chewed on it and
quickly started fanning his mouth ghost pepper gum, Jasper revealed,

(01:51:00):
let's go. We tried to flee again, but the elephants
were blocking our attempts to get out, even Daisy May
wasn't small and thin enough to be able to slip
by them. Before we knew it, we were completely surrounded.
When the lions and tigers closed in. Tinker was still

(01:51:21):
fanning his mouth from the trick gum when he entered
the circle. No more running away and no more games.
He held out his hand, give me that snow globe.
The Dark Mother is here now, was it Vanity? Who knows?

(01:51:41):
Once again, Jasper took the snow globe. I said, I
want it. That was when I noticed it glowed brighter
when she held it. Carnelian and I must have been
thinking alike, because she told Jasper, you who was the
snow globe? Jinx, get us out of here. Jasper was

(01:52:04):
so entranced by the globe that Daisy May had to
slap her hard on the arm. Come on, Jinks, get
your head back in the game. We're in big trouble here.
But none of us had any further time for speculation
when we saw her entering the circle. This was undoubtedly

(01:52:26):
the Dark Mother. She had metallic razor like wings, horns
on her head, claw like hands. You just knew she
was a powerful demon of some kind, but at the
same time she was a very beautiful woman. I don't
know if this demon was some kind of gargoyle or something.

(01:52:50):
I didn't know about the others, but I had a
feeling deep down we really were goners. I knew. I
remembered Tinker saying some thing about the Dark Mother wanting
to conquer the multiverse, and that she was a goddess.
The Dark Mother looked over all of us now. Then

(01:53:11):
she saw the snow globe with her thousand souls inside
Clutched in Jasper's hands. She turned to face Tinker. You
have failed me, she told him. Our bargain was for
you to personally deliver one thousand souls to me on

(01:53:33):
this very night, at this very moment. But but I
have your soul's Dark Mother, Tinker protested, You just have
to take the snow globe. Dark Mother raised her nose. Ah.
The terms of our contract were quite specific. It is

(01:53:58):
the appointed hour, and this mortal girl has taken possession
of both your vessel and the thousand souls. It contains,
the souls are no use to me any longer. You
have failed your end of the bargain. Isley Tinker and

(01:54:21):
I am most displeased. Tinker tightened his fists. No, the
souls are right there for you to claim. Just just
take them. The Dark Mother grabbed him with one hand
and raised him off the ground. Rules are in place

(01:54:42):
for a reason. The contract that we agreed upon had
explicit terms. Did you not bother to read our contract
before you signed it? You were to give the snow
globe contain the thousand souls to me yourself. This mortal

(01:55:06):
girl is not a part of our arrangement. The souls
are of no use to me now. You see. You
were to use the power I had given you to
give them to me at your midnight hour on the
dawn of Christmas. You have failed me, and I shall

(01:55:32):
not tolerate this failure. You and I shall have a
most serious talk. Await me in my domain of perdition,
Tinker cried out as the Dark Mother opened a portal
and shoved him through it. Once it was closed, turned

(01:56:00):
to us. I think this was the first time all
of us were too scared to run. Well, maybe not Jasper,
since she still coveted that snow globe and wouldn't hand
it over. She shook her head. No, these souls are lives.

(01:56:22):
You can't just take them. It ain't fair. The Dark
Mother looked down on her. Now you intrigued me, Jasper jinks,
even though you understand your end would be well at hand,
you would still defend those thousand souls. Do you know

(01:56:45):
that five of them belong to you and your friends?
Jasper shook her head. I won't give them to you.
You'll have to take em from me. The Dark Mother smiled.
Were you not paying attention? Those souls are of no

(01:57:06):
use to me now. Tinker failed to give them to
me himself. He allowed a group of children to take
those souls he worked so hard to claim. The terms
of our contract were quite explicit. Tinker failed to honor

(01:57:27):
his end. Even though he did not intend for you
to have his conduit for housing the thousand souls, he
still failed me. But the fact that a child would
selfishly stand between me and those thousand souls is worthy
of both my respect and admiration. As it is now Christmas,

(01:57:55):
I shall grant upon you a gift. The Dark Mother
suddenly snatched the snow globe from Jasper's hands. We all
looked scared as this evil goddess now held it. She

(01:58:18):
took one of her long finger nails and easily cut
through the glass. Bright energies emitted from the cracks. Soon
the glass itself shattered. More bright energies shot up into
the demonic sky. In minutes, the remains of the snow

(01:58:41):
globe were normal again. Because those souls were of no
use to me, it is only right that I release them.
They may resume their lives for now. In the mean time,
the five of you shall be allowed to resume your own.

(01:59:06):
And with the wave of her hand, she restored the
snow globe to the way it was. Then she returned
it to Jasper. Since you covet this so greatly, I
see no reason why you should not be allowed to

(01:59:28):
keep it. Do what you will with it. It is
no longer enchanted. I shall take my leave of you
now to deal with Isley Tinker. As for this pathetic event,
it is now closed. When the Dark Mother waved her

(01:59:52):
hand over us, this bright light was the end of
our Christmas Eve adventure. Christmas morning, I found myself sitting
at the Donnerly table. Actually all five of us were there.

(02:00:15):
We were about to enjoy the most wonderful Christmas dinner.
Courtesy of Rose donnerly looking at the spread. If you
were there and didn't get full from it, that was
your fault Entirely. During the dinner, we talked and enjoyed
each other's company. At times we five looked at each

(02:00:38):
other and knew we'd be talking about other things later on.
But one thing that was funny was Old McDonald kept
barking and scratching at my jeans leg. You get away
from Billie, you darn mutt. Daisy May told him you

(02:00:58):
got your own food. Get Old McDonald barked at Daisy
May and walked away, but he kept coming back and
wanting me to feed him. I suppose I did slip
him a few scraps. I always had a soft spot
for little dogs like him. It wouldn't be until the

(02:01:21):
late afternoon when we'd finally be able to talk about
what had happened. What do we all remember, Daisy May asked,
when we were all upstairs in her room. Carnelian gulped,
I remember that that monster coming here at the end
of Christmas Eve? I mean, I know we were all

(02:01:45):
at that ghost carnival too. We really did go there, right.
I still can't stop thinking about the dark Mother be kind.
She let us live, Jasper said, sure did. Truck agreed.
If I didn't know any better, I would think we

(02:02:06):
repeated Christmas Eve again. I remember us going to that
bizarre at Gunter Square together, same as before. Then he
had a thought, you don't suppose we're still in the
snow globe in some way, do you? I shook my head.

(02:02:28):
Not if we're all here together like this, and definitely
not after that wonderful meal we just had at Daisy
May's table. Daisy May looked sad. I'm thinking I owe
all of you an apology for what happened to us.
I know the rest of you had concerns about that carnival,

(02:02:49):
but I couldn't help it. I just wanted to see it.
Strickfield's got all these stories and legends. I can't help
being curious and want to see if they're all true.
She sighed. I never imagined we'd meet someone like the
Dark Mother. There ain't even nothing honor on the university's website.

(02:03:13):
Carnelian sighed herself and put a gentle hand on her shoulder.
You're right, we should be mad at you, all of us.
I know. I keep thinking that if we didn't go
to that carnival, Tinker still would have gotten his last
five souls. Anyways, I can only imagine what would happen

(02:03:36):
if Tinker did fulfill his contract. She nodded. Jasper's way,
we interfered with his plans. But Jinx there saved all
of our souls and Christmas, and you're still keeping that
snow globe, I asked Jasper. I can't help it, she

(02:03:58):
replied shyly. I know it's a bad thing, but it's
still so pretty. She shook it and let the snow
inside fall. I love it. I just hope the Dark
Mother really disenchanted it, Carnelian said. Anyway, country mouse, there's

(02:04:22):
nothing to forgive here, not when a thousand souls got
to return to this mortal plane and have Christmas. At least,
I'd like to hope they all got to have Christmas.
We're good, and we all know you're gonna get us
in trouble again. Anyways, Truck added, Daisy may got that

(02:04:44):
wicked gleam again. We're still kids, right, Ain't we supposed
to get in trouble? Not like last night, Carnelian snapped,
then looked scared, and not like what happened during our
second go at Christmas Eve. When it comes to that

(02:05:07):
story that took place between Daisy May and Carnelian, I'll
have to tell you that one at a later time.
Let's just say they found out what happens when you
break certain traditions that should never be broken. The five
of us eventually parted ways so we could spend the

(02:05:30):
rest of Christmas with our families. Carnelian would remain at
the Donnerly house. One thing I can promise you, though
we did indeed save a lot of souls on that
Christmas Eve, I was glad to be able to tell
the tale to all of you. As a matter of fact,

(02:05:52):
I'll be back in the future to tell you more
stories about my second family that I grew up with.
That means Daisy May Donnerly would get us into a
lot more trouble, and there were many, many more adventures
until my next memoir. Take it easy and have a

(02:06:16):
very merry Christmas, well, my Spookyes, what a lovely little
ride that was. Next time you see a Christmas carnival
pop up where there shouldn't be one, maybe don't grab

(02:06:37):
the cotton candy quite so fast. But the holiday horrors
are not clocking out yet. Tomorrow we crack open another
Christmas horror compilation from the Weekly Spooky Vault Hours of
Yule Tide Chills dug up just for you like a
big blood red bow on your December binge. And on Monday,

(02:07:00):
Verifying and True is heading into the Frozen Alps as
we learn all about Frau Perchta and the perch Tin.
She's the Christmas witch who inspects your home, judges your chores,
and is very particular about what's in your belly on
the twelfth night of Christmas. So make sure you're subscribed

(02:07:21):
my spookies, and if you love what we're doing here,
you can support us very directly by heading to Weeklyspooky
dot com slash join and teaming up with ninety other
spookies for as little as one dollar a month. You'll
get two bonus episodes every single month. And speaking of
I want to say an extra special thank you to
our Patreon podcast boosters, folks who pay a little bit

(02:07:44):
more to hear their names at the end of the show,
and they are Johnny Nicks, Kate and Lulu, Jessica Fuller,
Mike Ish, Skewey, Jenny Green, Amber Hansford, Karen We met,
Jack Kerr and Craig Cohen. If you head to Weeklyspooky
dot com slash join right now and sign up at
the fish teen dollars a month or higher tier. You'll
hear your name at the end of every episode of

(02:08:05):
Weekly Spooky from then on, and I'll consider it a
personal Christmas present. But now it's time for me to
get back to work. There's so much to do and
so many scary stories and strange happenings to share with
all of you. So for myself, for my executive producers
Rob Fields and Bobbletopia dot Com, my producer Dan Wilder,

(02:08:26):
and of course my creepy composer Ray Mattis, I'll be
talking at you tomorrow. Thank you for listening. Make sure
to find your way back next week. But for now
you are safe, trust me,

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