Sally looked at her bruises in the mirror with a sigh, she didn't know why she let her husband hurt her, but it was the only way to keep her in a house away from the hardships of living alone. Like a normal young woman she went out during the day with friends, but when evening fell, she was restricted to the house where she entertained the man she was told to love by her parents, she rolled her sleeves down on her dress and left the room to go down for dinner.

"There you are Sally, did you pick up my suits today?"

"Yes, darling. They're in the closet, ironed out and in suit bags."

Lord Barkis smirked, "that's my girl, won't you pour us some wine, my dear?"

"Of course," Sally got a glass out for her husband and poured the dark red liquid out without a change of expression.

"My dear, pour yourself a glass, we can't have you going parched."

Sally poured herself a glass then sat down as their butler walked in holding a tray with two plates steaming with hot food, "thank you Grasby."

"You may leave us Grasby, I want to talk to my wife alone."

"Yes sir," Grasby looked worriedly at Sally, then gave a short bow before leaving the room.

"You were with that young girl Emily today, weren't you?"

"Yes, she's my friend."

"I see, what did you do?"

"Am I not allowed any privacy to my life?"

"How dare you raise your voice with me."

"I will if I want to Barkis, I've had enough of the way you treat me."

"If you leave me, where are you going to go? You'll be alone."

"I don't care anymore, I will be happy if I'm away from you," she pushed her plate away and stood up from the table, "goodbye Barkis."

"You won't last a week without me," Lord Barkis snarled, "walk out and you'll get no support from me."

"Fine," Sally stormed out slinging a cloak around her shoulders before slamming the door shut behind her, she knew she couldn't live with Emily and her parents were gone, the only thing she was certain of, was that beyond the forest was the next village along, so that was where she was going to find help. The mist billowed around her ankles as she walked through the dark forest, owls screeched to each other and she shivered slightly pulling the cloak around herself, she quickened her pace as she heard an animal cry somewhere in the forest, she tripped over a tree root and groaned to herself with frustration, she lifted her head and looked down at a pair of feet in front of her.

"When I said a week, I actually meant a day," Lord Barkis grinned and held a long knife high into the air.

"No! Please!?"

"Rest in peace, my dear," Barkis thrust the knife down and stabbed her through the heart before slicing the rest of her body as the darkness of the night encased the forest and the air was silent.

Later that night, a door opened from a tree, a glassed figure in a wheelchair rolled out and looked around curiously, he looked down on a patch of leaves covered in blood and hummed thoughtfully. He rolled himself further and came across Sally's head detached from the body, he tutted to himself and sighed.

"Poor girl, too young to die, but just what I need," he got a medical kit from his pocket and grabbed a tool to remove her brain, he wrapped it up carefully in a blanket then went back to the tree closing the door behind him, colours twirled around him then disappeared as a town appeared out of the mist, he bowed his head to the gatekeeper then made his way to his laboratory with a grin.

"Now my dear, lets get you back on your feet," the doctor smiled as he selected a skull shape for her, then inserted her brain back in wiring it all up, "there we are, and now lets create a body," he made a face for her stitching up all sorts of materials and organs until at last, her eyelashes flickered and she looked up.

"No!"

"Easy my child, you're alright."

"Where am I?"

"You're in the town of Halloween, and my new creation."

"Creation? I'm done being a tool for a man, what's going on?" She frowned angrily then licked her lips, her tongue ran along a string and she screamed, "give me a mirror, what's happened to my face?"

The doctor gave her a mirror, "there."

Sally screamed again, "what have you done to me!? I'm a ragdoll, none of my limbs are real," she burst into tears, "this is horrible, I'd rather be dead."

"You are dead. I am Doctor Finkelstein, what's your name?"

"I was Sally Bittern in life, do you know what happened to me?"

"I found you in pieces in the woods, I don't know what happened to you. You were murdered, I am sorry."

"Where can I go?"

"You live here now, you can't return to the world you came from. I have a spare room upstairs and I've been looking for some help."

"Like a housemaid? Am I to be kept here as a prisoner?"

"Of course not, but without the ability to walk anymore, it is hard for me to get around. Would you be willing to assist an old doctor?"

Sally sighed, he wasn't anything like Lord Barkis but he was still asking her to give her freedom away, but being in a place she was unfamiliar and dead in, she had no choice, "I suppose I could do that."

"Good, good. I suggest you go for a walk around the town and make sure you can stand on your new legs, oh and don't be alarmed by the villagers, you'll get used to them."

Sally raised a stitched eyebrow, "if you say so."

Doctor Finkelstein took out a spool of thread and a sharp needle, "you may need these too, all of you is fabric, my dear, you can't hurt yourself on anything."

Sally sat up from the bed and lowered herself to the ground but collapsed to the ground immediately, "I can't stand."

"You can Sally, you can. Have some confidence and patience, it's only a new body."

Sally got herself up again and steadied herself as she took the thread from him, "a walk will help?"

"I am positive, and I need to go through a dinner preparation with you when you get back."

"I will not be a slave for you, Doctor."

"You will do as you are told Sally, you are my creation which makes you as much a possession and a child to me. Run along."

Sally stumbled out of the house with a grimace and the door swung shut behind her, she looked towards the town and walked down the steps slowly and unsurely, her threads tightened around her knees and she pulled the stitches gently to loosen them up which helped immensely, she smiled through her sewn lips and tottered into town passing creatures of every sort, she was stared at but kept her eyes pointed straight ahead towards a gate leading into a cemetery, before she reached there however, a small man bumped into her.

"Oh, I am so sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going. Busy time of the year and all, it's Halloween next week, so much to do."

"It's not a problem, really."

The man looked up at her, "oh my, you're new! Welcome my dear, I am the Mayor of Halloween Town."

Sally shook his hand and it came off in his, "argh, sorry, I am so sorry."

The Mayor laughed, "one of Finkelstein's creations, are you? Wonderful!"

Sally picked up her hand and held it, "I'm Sally, I arrived last night."

"Pleasure to meet you, well, I must be on my way, lots to do as I said before."

Sally smiled as the man scuttled away then sat down on a bench, she unpinned the needle from behind her ear and pulled a thread out from the spool in her dress pocket, then she hit a snag, what was she going to use to cut it? She pulled it across and bit down, it snapped as easily as a small twig and she realised her teeth were now razor sharp, she grinned and began to sew her hand back on, "I think I can get used to this, it's not like I really have a choice anymore," she stood up and continued through the gate into the cemetery. She wandered through until she found herself in a pumpkin patch, "wow, these are magnificent," she looked up and her eyes laid on a curled ledge, the lip tucked under creating a spiral and she walked up onto it which gave her a view of the town, "what a strange place."

"It's not that bad," a velvety voice sounded from behind her and she looked back to see a tall skeleton dressed in a pin suit, his eyes were hollowed out and he had a stitched smile almost like her own, "and who might you be?"

Sally's voice shook in slight fear, "I"m Sally, I arrived yesterday, The Doctor made me."

The skeleton smiled, "Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, and this is the town of Halloween. Would you like me to show you around?"

"That's very kind of you, Jack, thank you."

"It's the least I can do, come this way," he tapped his foot and the curl of the cliff straightened out creating a ledge for them to step down.

"How did you do that?"

"This area belongs to me, in a way. There's always magic involved too."

"Please excuse me if I fall over, I'm still getting used to my new body."

"No worries Sally, take my arm," he smiled as she looped her arm around his, "this here is my house, the tallest in the town, you need to ask me for anything, just come and knock."

"Thank you."

"Mayor's office, have you met him?"

"Yes, I bumped into him earlier."

"Jack Skellington, where have you been?" A vampire approached them with three others, "we've had some ideas for this Halloween."

"Fire away."

"We'll go for animals as well as humans."

Sally bit her lip and Jack smiled, "yes, good, but don't hurt the humans. That's not our job."

"Yes, of course. Who's this new arrival?" The second vampire asked.

"This is Sally, I'm just showing her around town."

"Pleased to meet you, we're the vampire quartet. Scaring is our priority, but you won't see us during the day."

"Pleased to meet you too," Sally shook their hands and was very happy that her hands stayed on this time.

"You'll meet other people as we go around, everyone is very friendly, all apart from one man, but he lives out of town and is under my control. He's the stuff of nightmares."

"Who is that?"

"His name is Oogie Boogie, he makes my bones shake. Stay away from his lair and his minions who do his bidding, if they cause you problems, come and see me."

"Ok."

"And don't worry about the Doc, he's a kind man just a bit strange, you're not his minion, and don't let him make you into one," Jack took her hand from his arm, "I have a meeting with the mayor, it was lovely to meet you, Sally, I'll see you around town," he smiled once more then walked off to the Mayor's office leaving her slightly breathless, she sighed happily and turned to go back to the doctor's house.

"I'm back," she called as she opened the door, if this was to be her home she may as well start addressing it as one, "you wanted to discuss dinner then?"

"Ah Sally, you returned. Good. I have set up a room for you, this house is yours, but you must let me know when you're going out in case I need you."

"What do you get up to doctor?"

"Anything which scratches my brain," he paused to demonstrate, "and I invent it, and like everyone in this town, I am always thinking about Halloween."

"So I've noticed. Umm, do you like soup?"

The doctor hummed, "absolutely, any flavour but I especially like Worms Wort."

"What's in that? I have just come from the human world."

"All the ingredients are in the kitchen child, just experiment."

Sally nodded, "I'll start right away," she stumbled down the ramp as carefully as she could and opened up cupboards looking for ingredients, she read them allowed, "frog's breath, worm's wort, eye of newt…gosh, half of these would just make your stomach turn, oh well Sally, you're dead now and that means your food choice will have to alter slightly. Let's begin with the frog."

An hour later, and after much of suppressing the gag reflex, Sally's first soup was ready, she took it up to the doctor and placed it in front of him with a smile, he grinned and thanked her before taking the spoon between his grimy fingers, Sally stood by anxiously awaiting the words of disgust, but they never came.

"Delicious Sally, my what a soup. Keep making it like this please."

"Glad you enjoyed it. Do you mind if I turn in, I'm very tired?"

"Go ahead my dear, I'll see you in the morning."

Sally walked up to her new room and pushed the heavy metal door open, in front of her was a large barred window overlooking the town, she sat down on the ledge and looked out at the ghouls walking around and stopping for chats, sounds filled the air of howling and clanging instruments and she smiled, Jack was right, this place was fine, but it was also her new home. As she thought about him, her eyes strayed up to his tower where she could see a light shining through the window, the instruments faded out and a solo rang out across the town, an organ, but who was playing? Sally shrugged and she lay down on the bed she had been given just listening to the piano music drifting out putting her to sleep, it wasn't angry playing, it was like listening to a lullaby.

Halloween finally arrived and Sally had settled in happily, now she was about to get a taste of what the town celebrated all throughout the year, the villagers gathered in the centre of town around a fountain and Sally decided to stand outside the crowd to just watch. The crowd announced that a very special guy was arriving and a horse was pulled in, sitting atop the saddle was a scarecrow wearing a pumpkin over its head, suddenly it lit his head on fire and dived into the fountain, everyone cheered and the figure emerged, it was Jack Skellington, he perched upon the statue and waved to everyone.

"Halloween is here, and it's going to be bigger than ever! Is everyone ready to leave?"

The mayor smiled, "yes we are, as mayor of the town I declare trick or treat the go ahead! Start your scaring!"

Sally watched everyone run out of the town followed by Jack and she smiled, "what a night, what time are they all back?"

Doctor Finkelstein smiled, "they'll be back in about three hours, they go to the land of the living and all sorts of places. Come with me," he grabbed her arm and she yelped, "don't fuss."

"You've never grabbed me before, I want to go with the others."

"No, not this time. Just you wait in your room and start preparing the meal for later," Doctor Finkelstein led her back to the house, "every year it's like this, the real work starts tomorrow."