Over the course of her long and…interesting life, Dr. Helen Magnus had developed a sort of sixth sense that told her when she was being watched. It had served her well, saving her from the lethal machinations of enemies on more than one occasion.

Today it simply told her that someone was staring at. Looking up, she smiled when she noted the shock of wild, brown hair and two big, green eyes peering at her from around the doorframe.

"Hello, Henry," she greeted her 12 year old ward warmly. "How was school today?"

Stepping into the room, Henry, still in the navy blazer, white shirt, red tie and grey pants that made up his school uniform, gave her a little smile. "Good," he replied, answer typically brief, though she knew something had to be on his mind, as he usually ran for his room to change the moment he got home.

Though he'd made excellent progress with all aspects of his education, Helen had enrolled him in school this year to help him socialize and acclimate to a noisier, more populated environment than the Sanctuary. His teachers were all pleased with his work, but found his verbal reticence an issue and placed him in a special speech class. More than anything, Henry seemed pleased by that development, as it got him out of the overcrowded classroom for an hour everyday and Helen decided just to let things be instead of going to the school and informing them that he did not have a speech impediment, he was simply quiet.

As he made his way towards her desk, Helen noted the small envelope held in his hands. The last time he'd brought a note home from school, it was because his teacher had noticed he was refusing to eat at lunch time. Helen had taken one look at what the school was calling lunch and found she couldn't blame the boy for his taste. Henry brought a bagged lunch from home after that and there had been no further problems. "What do you have there, dear?"

He handed the envelope to her before saying, in a rush, "Danny and Molly from school are having a Halloween party. They invited me. Molly's in speech with me too. She stutters, but she's real nice and said I could bring Ash. They have a little brother her age."

For Henry, this was quite a lengthy speech. It was also the first time he'd shown any sort of interest in spending time with his classmates. She felt it was her duty to encourage such things.

"That sounds lovely," she said, which made the boy grin. Flipping open the invitation, which looked like a black cat, she read:

Danny and Molly

Want to invite you to a Spooktacular Halloween Party!

Scary Monster Theme

Saturday, October 30th, 3pm-7pm

RSVP 555-1949.

"Can me and Ashley go?" He asked, clearly hoping she'd say yes.

"May Ashley and I," she corrected automatically, then nodded. "Of course. I think you'll have lots of fun."

He nodded, then asked, "What do you think they mean by Scary Monster Theme?"

That question made her chuckle. She supposed that, as a little werewolf who knew full well that vampires were long extinct, had childhood bed time stories read to him by Bigfoot and often played hide and seek with Steve, a large lizard man, Henry's idea of scary differed from that of other children his age. The same could be said for Ashley.

"Think of something scary," she advised the boy, who thought for a moment before nodding.

"Those big trucks with all the wheels and the loud horns." he said it so seriously that Helen actually felt terrible for not being more specific. Clearly, he was still harboring some phobia of large automobiles, something she thought he'd conquered.

She supposed it was the noise. His ears were rather sensitive and she still grimaced when she remembered a day, only a month after Henry had joined them, when Bigfoot had decided to vacuum the living areas. The moment the machine was flipped on, Henry, who had been playing with a Lego set, bolted from the room and it had taken Helen nearly an hour to find the child.

Noise still made him anxious, but it was manageable now.

Patting him on the arm, she said, "I was thinking more along the lines of horror movies…perhaps a mummy or that unhappy fellow in the hockey mask."

He nodded and said, "I'll let Ash know. Maybe Brian can help with ideas."

"That's a marvelous idea," she agreed, handing him the envelope. Brian was her current protégé and far more pop culture savvy than she. "Would you like me to RSVP for you or are you going to do it yourself?"

Henry's relationship with telephones was one of great distaste, but he simply said, "I'll do it."

Yes, Helen thought, this will be an excellent thing for the children to experience.

TBC….

Comments, pretty please? And any opinions on what costumes the kids should wear?