Chapter Eight!
Halloween With The Ghouls
30th October 2020- The Los Angeles Ministry
The old Father clock in the third floor executive suite chimed, it had just turned eight o'clock. The hallways of the unholy church were silent, but that was about to change. It was time to welcome the coming of All Hallows' Eve.
The executive suite had been decorated with orange paperchains and purple balloons, the dining table had been draped with a black laced table cloth. Candles burnt brightly in their golden holders, the table had been laid out with delicious treats and spooky looking foods. Albany had tried her best with what she could find in the Halloween decoration box from last year, the room looked extra spooky when they turned off the lights and draped red scarves over the table lamps. Copia had arranged some music for the little gathering, he had many mix tapes of spooky songs from the past. He had brought his boom box to the executive suite and placed it on an end table nearly a plug socket, the sounds of golden oldly songs from decades ago boomed throughout the unholy church.
The ghouls arrived and the choas soon began, they had been looking forward to this night's events. Food was eaten and pesto pasta was thrown around the room, there had been a little food fight between two of the ghouls at the table. Albany watched Swiss and Sodo arguing over the last cheesy meatball, their growls had disturbed the game their Papa Emeritus had been playing with Aether. Copia immediately intervened and took the last meatball from the squabbling ghouls, he threw it over to Mountain which made the situation even worse. The tallest ghoul had caught the delicious meaty food between his fangs, he devoured it in seconds and licked his lips. Rain had laughed over the troublesome scene unfolding in front of his very eyes, his amusement had aggravated one of his ghoul kin. Sodo lept over the buffet table before he chased Rain out of the executive room, their growls and screams echoed throughout the Ministry. Twenty minutes passed by until Sodo and Rain reappeared, they had been escorted back to the gathering by their senior ghoul. Phil had managed to resolve their argument and put things right between them, the party was now back on track.
Albany immediately asked Phil to join them even if Copia wasnt too keen on her idea, he feared the senior ghoul's presence whenever he was around him. She had already invited Phil to the spooky feast, but he never told her if he planned to attend the little gathering. Phil agreed to stay for an hour or two, he had ghoul reports to complete by the morning for the Clergy. He kept Albany company while Copia socialised with his ghouls, they had spoken and memoriest about past Halloween celebrations at the Italian Ministry. His voice was only heard by Albany, his speak tone was a mere whisper. They both found amusement when Albany brought up the time Secondo got a candy corn stuck up his nose, his night of dares and tricks from his Brothers had ended badly. Papa Nihil had been furious over that incident, his second born Son had embarrassed him in front of his dark excellency. Their Father wouldn't have minded if they were mischievous children, but Secondo had been in his teens at the times. They continued to chat until the clock struck ten, it wasn't long until Phil departed from the All Hallows' Eve's feast. He had promised Albany that they would have coffee together at lunch time, he wanted to discuss a couple of things with her about his departure next month. She had been sadden to hear about the news that her Father's former favourite ghoul would be leaving the Los Angeles Ministry, but his ghoul duties were almost over.
The spooky party continued and the ghouls played their party games together, they were behaving themselves for once. Copia approached Albany and joined her for a drink at the buffet table, but he soon insisted that she should join him for a little boogie on the makeshift dance floor. She refused him more than once since she wasn't a great dancer, but he won her over when he guided her towards the makeshift dance floor by the hand. His dances moves put his lover to shame, he knew his way around the dance floor. Copia's hips swayed to the rhythm of the music, he twisted to the Monster Mash and twirled his lover beneath his arm to Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones. They laughed and showed each other their best dance moves, they were enjoying each others company. Their dance session soon ended when the mix tape came to an abrupt end, the boom box turned it's self off without any warning. Albany was still within her lover's embrace, their bodies were close. Blowing her fringe away from her eyes she smiled at him before she spoke, they had both built up a sweat on the dance floor.
" I think that's our cue to take a break." She said. " I'm getting tired, you're wearying me out! Also I'm thirsty and kind of peckish. I wonder if there's any cookies left?"
" Take a seat, I'll get you a drink." He said.
" Thank you." She said.
" But we can dance again later, yes?" He asked.
" We'll see how the rest of the night goes first." She replied.
Copia ran his hands down his lover's arms before he softly kissed her lips, he told her he would be right back. Albany ran her fingers through her hair while she approached the leather couch of the conference room, she took a seat and turned her attention towards the ghouls. They had been playing a peculiar game with a fake tail on a tack for the last thirty minutes, but instead of pinning the tail on a cardboard cutout they had been pinning it to each others backsides. She watched Swiss blind folding Rain, he spun him around seven times before he allowed him to walk towards the chosen target. Aether remained still with his backside sticking out, he was watching his fellow ghoul approaching him over his shoulder. A painful yelp filled the air when Rain found his target, the other ghouls laughed and applauded the winner.
Albany raised her eyebrows at them when another ghoul was blind folded by the winner, she had no idea why they found pinning a fake tail to each others backsides entertaining. Her thoughts were disturbed by Copia sitting down next to her on the couch, he had brought her some green punch and a broken cookie. Albany thanked him when he offered them to her, she took a bite of the cookie and crossed her legs before she got comfortable on the couch. Her lover's voice soon caught her attention, he leaned closer towards while he spoke.
" The ghouls are having fun, they really liked your pesto pasta and cheesy meatballs." He said.
" I'm happy to hear that even if they threw most of the pesto pasta around the room." She smiled before she took a sip of her punch. " But it's fine, it won't take us long to clean it up if everyone pitches in with the tidying after the party ends."
" The ghouls are our guests, they expect us to clean up after them." He said, he motioned his hand towards the playful ghouls. " They said that, not me. It's a ghoul thing."
" Oh, I see..." She said.
" Would you like to pin the tail on the ghoul?" He asked.
" Excuse me?" She asked.
"The game they're playing, it's very fun." He replied.
" I don't think that's a good idea with the ghoul's rules." She replied with a nervous smile. " I'm trying to make peace with them, they may not appreciate me trying to pin a fake tail on their backsides."
" They won't mind, it's just a game." He said.
" That's easy for you to say, they respect you sometimes" She said.
" It's okay, baby." He said before he touched his lover's cheek. " We can play a different game. The ghouls have setup the barrel for bobbing for apples and bananas in the hallway, they really like that party game."
" They also like trying to drowned each other in the barrel, I know the ghoul's rules." She said.
" True that, it's safer if we stay here." He said.
" You can join them if you like, it's okay." She said while she rested her shoulder against his own. " It gives me time to tidy up the mess, there's pasta all over the place. It's going to be a nightmare trying get it out of the rug, the smell in here is kind of off putting too..."
" Right, right." He said, his gaze fell upon his ghouls. " The food fight and the tooting game, it wasn't good."
" Go and have some fun, I will join you shortly." She said.
" Are you sure?" He asked.
" I know you want to join them, it's fine." She said.
" Okay, I will do that." He said.
Albany smiled when Copia kissed her lips, he handed her his plastic cup before he followed the ghouls into the hallway. A deep sigh escaped her lips while she looked around the executive suite, there was pesto pasta spattered up the wall and a mummified hot dog hanging from a lamp tassel. The ghouls had enjoyed their feast, but she had no idea about the chaos they would cause. Albany got to her feet and approached the buffet table, she piled up the empty plates and put any leftover food into some plastic containers. She continued to tidy up the mess the ghouls had created, but footsteps entering the room caught her attention. Her gaze was met by the smallest ghoul of her lover's bandmates, he walked around the table and stopped by an overturned chair.
Sodo placed the chair upright by the buffet table, he began picking some plastic cups from the floor and putting them into a garbage bag. Albany curiously watched the smallest ghoul throwing things into the bag, but he soon stopped what he was doing when he noticed her gaze upon him. Sodo's face was hidden beneath his mask, his ghoulish features were hidden from her. She smiled at him before she sealed a lid on a plastic container, her voice soon broke the silence between them.
" Do you want to help me tidy up?" She asked.
The garbage bag in the ghoul's hand slipped from his grasp, he clicked his fingers at her before he brought his fingers to his mask's lips. Albany understood his actions and finger gesture, he wanted her to keep quiet that he was helping her clean the conference room. Albany immediately did a zip motion across her lips, she didn't want to spoil the trust she was building with the smallest ghoul of her lover's bandmates.
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1st of December 2020 - The Lost Angeles Ministry
The month of November passed by quickly, it was now the season of Krampus. The unholy church was still not receiving visitors, this meant Sister Imperator wouldn't be able to spend Krampus with her little Cardi this year like she had desired.
The hallways and main staircase of the Ministry remained undecorated, there was no point of Krampus splendor if the employees of the Ministry wouldn't be around to see the unfestive cheer. Copia had suggested to the Clergy that they should at least have one Krampus tree at the Ministry, he and his lover would be spending Krampus with the ghouls this year. The Clergy soon agreed to Copia's request, they would allow him to celebrate the unfestive season with his lockdown family.
A festive movie could be heard playing from the family lounge's television set, it echoed down the hallway. The lounge was lit by candlelight and the fireplace was roaring, the scent of cinnamon lingered in the air. Albany was busy decorating the Krampus tree with baubles and satanic symbols, she had also stung red lights on it's branches. The odd chuckle from Copia caught her attention, he was watching The Grinch while he threaded popcorn onto string. He was making popcorn tinsel for the tree, it was something he did every year for his Krampus tree at Sister's Beverly Hills mansion. They had both decided that the Ministry's Krampus tree would different this year, it would be a mix of Clergy tradition with Copia's own twist on it.
An amused smile crept across Albany's features when Copia accidentally knocked some popcorn over himself, she tried to hide her laughter when she heard him make a frustrated sound. She immediately looked away from her lover when he noticed her amusement. Albany continued to decorate the tree, but she stopped what she was doing when a piece of popcorn bounced off the top of her head. She heard Copia quietly chuckling to himself, their gaze met for brief moment before she took another bauble from a box. Her features were playful, she didn't mind his mischievous behaviour right now. Albany's voice was soon heard, she had a question for her lover while she continued to decorate the tree.
" Don't you think we have enough popcorn chains?" She asked before she hung red bauble on a branch. " It seems like the tree is drowning in them."
" This is the way me and Sister do it every year, the rats will eat them by the end of the week." He said.
" We never use to have popcorn tinsel on the Italian Ministry's Krampus tree." She said while she looked over her shoulder at him. " We had sharp ended candy canes and blood oranges hanging from it's branches. Papa always said blood oranges symbolised status and power, they did smell when they went rotten though."
" We have some oranges in the kitchen, it's okay if you want to add them to the tree." He said.
" It's okay." She said, she turned around to fully face him. " I think some old traditions need to stay in Italy, this year is about us and the things we want to hang on the tree."
" Can we hang Krampus cookies on the tree?" He asked.
" Only if we can hang two chocolate coins on it too." She replied with a smile. " It's something I use to do when I was a little girl, they were a starter before Krampus breakfast."
" What's Krampus breakfast?" He asked.
" Small devil shaped pancakes with raspberry sauce." She replied
" They sound very good." He said.
" I remember one year when Secondo tried to make them for me because Phil was tending to one of Papa's hangovers, they looked like lumps of bleeding coal." She said.
" That doesn't sound very good..." He said.
" They were awful, but if you want we could have a Krampus breakfast this year." She said before she approached him. " We still need to discuss the Krampus day menu even if it's twenty-four days away. I was thinking we could have cheesy chicken tortellini and panettone for dessert. Then coffee and chocolate-covered fruits, it was Papa's favourite."
" That sounds very good, I do like panettone." He said.
" Is there anything you want to add to the menu?" She asked.
" Can we have taco shells with the cheesy chicken tortellini?" He asked.
" Sure, why not." She replied.
" Then it's settled, but for now let's finishing decorating the lounge." He said while he offered her his hand. " Come and take a break from decorating the tree. You can help me with the popcorn tinsel, we can make some for the ghouls chambers."
" Okay." She smiled.
Albany's fingers curled around his hand, she stepped over his outstretched legs and sat down beside him. Leaning back against the couch she helped herself to some of the popcorn in the bowl, but she soon felt some popcorn crunching beneath her hand. There was popcorn everywhere, she hadn't realised how much of a mess Copia had made in the lounge. Sighing deeply to herself Albany threaded some string through a sowing needle, she then began to thread the popcorn onto the string. They chatted about past Krampus Days from their childhood, but it wasn't long until their conversation turned towards the ghouls. Albany was unsure if the ghouls celebrated Krampus, she was wondering if she should invite them for an evening buffet on Krampus Day. Her gaze focused on her lover, she soon caught his attention when she pulled a piece of popcorn from his hair.
" Do you think we should arrange something for Krampus evening with the ghouls?" She asked.
" Okay, sure." He said.
" What kind of games do they like playing besides pin the tail on the ghoul and the tooting game?" She asked.
" They like charades, but I do like the naughty and nice game." He said.
" The naughty and nice game isn't suitable for the ghouls." She smiled.
" How about a board game?" He asked before he motioned his hand towards the cabinet. " Sister brought me Cluedo for Krampus, it's hidden in the cabinet."
" It's been years since I've played that game, but naughty you for opening your present early from Sister." She said, their gaze soon met. " The ghouls enjoyed the All Hallows' Eve feast, it's time for them to experience Krampus too. Im thinking Cluedo, coffee and chocolate mostaccioli. Appetisers and cherry eggnog, just simple things. Do you think they would enjoy that?"
" They will like it, but can I wear my deerstalker?" He asked.
" Of course you can, Copia." She replied with a smile. " I'll even buy you a gourd calabash pipe. You'll look extremely handsome on Krampus Day, the Ministry's very own detective."
" I do like the sound of that, but no cheating from you this time." He said.
" If it makes you feel any better I'll let you search me for magnets." She said.
" A little investigation, huh? I may just do that later." He said.
Copia leaned in close and kissed his lover's lips before he turned his attention back towards his popcorn tinsel, he didn't trust Albany anymore when she chose board games for them to play. She hadn't really told him about who taught her the maget trick, her promise to her second oldest Brother still remained a secret. He had taken her to a local casino in Italy when she ten years old, the Clergy had dishonest relationship with the management. They conned wealthy men out of thousands by rigging the Roulette Wheels with magnets, he even allowed his youngest sibling to participant once by hiding her beneath the Roulette table with a magnet in her hand. Albany had been rewarded with a bag of peanuts and a bottle of cola, but when her Father found out she got grounded for three months even if it was Secondo's fault. Her thoughts were disturbed when something tugged at her popcorn tinsel, she soon noticed one of Copia's rats nibbling at the popcorn she had threaded on the string. Albany smiled at the rat before she continued to thread popcorn onto the string, she was looking forward to spending Krampus with Copia this year.