Little Old Ms. Crickety Schmidt

    Little old Ms. Crickety Schmidt lived on top of 111 Dingleberry Lane. Her house was just as old and crickety as she was. It sat upon a tall hill with a winding road to get to the top. This was the haunted house all the kids talked about, and they all joked about trick-or-treating at her house for Halloween, but no one would actually do it.

    Well, no one except Tom Squanion. Tom was a short, hefty kid who was tired of being bullied, so he decided to prove himself by trick-or-treating at little old Ms. Crickety Schmidt's house. That Halloween night, all the kids arrived at the front gate at the bottom of the hill.  Tom stood before it shaking but eventually stepped through and began the long journey up the winding road.

    This wasn't an easy hike. The hill was steep, and Tom wasn't a very active kid; he was out of breath by the first turn. Still he persisted, not to let a little exhaustion stop him. At each turn he stopped, hunched over wheezing, but still resumed the hike. Finally Tom arrived at the door, and once he resumed breathing normally, and after a brief hesitation, he tapped on the door, and murmured "Trick or Treat."

    The only sound Tom heard in response was the crickety creaking of the house. A gentle breeze made Tom shiver; he had perspired much on his way up the hill. Not wanting to walk away empty-handed, he tried again. "Trick or treat" he said, knocking on the door. Once again, the only noise he heard was the crickety creaking of the old house.

    Tom decided to try one more time before returning to his friends. This time he gave a good pound and nearly shouted "Trick or --" The door swung open before Tom's fist made contact with the door, and he tumbled forward into little old Ms. Crickety Schmidt. To Tom's surprise, little old Ms. Crickety Schmidt was not little, nor old, nor crickety. She was tall, not very old at all, and at first glance seemed to be quite limber. She was peculiar, though.

    When Tom managed to stand up, he courageously said again "trick or treat. . . ma'am."  And tall, not-very-old, Ms. Limber Schmidt just smiled. Tom looked around nervously. The inside of the house was far different from the outside. Everything seemed sturdy and well built. A fire burned in the giant hearth, and he noticed many scholarly items throughout the rooms on either side of the hall.

    "You aren't little, old, or crickety. All those kids are wrong." Tom said.

    The woman laughed. "No, I'm none of those. Yet, anyway. So, the eerie facade I made of this property didn't last. Well, you've certainly earned your treat, as requested. I have no candy, but I did brew apple cider earlier, if you'd like some."

    Unsure of what else to say, Tom agreed, and followed the woman to the kitchen. With mugs in hand, they sat by the fire, and she formally introduced herself. "I'm Mrs. Heverdeen.  I live here with my husband, who's in the observatory at the moment. We live here because it's away from noise and farther from light pollution."

    "Nice to meet you Mrs. Heverdeen, I'm Tom. All the kids at school say you're little old Ms. Crickety Schmidt, but I guess that's just a story."

    "Nice to meet you Tom. Well, I'd like to keep that story going if it's ok with you. We enjoy our privacy, and if it's a secret you can keep, you're welcome back at your leisure. My husband and I do get caught up in our studies, so company is nice now and then. But it can so quickly turn into noise, which we despise."

    "Wow, are you sure? That'd be great, I'm not that popular at school, that's why I came up here in the first place, to show everyone I'm not scared. I won't bother you too much."

    After they'd finished their cider, Mrs. Heverdeen walked Tom to the door and reminded him to keep everything he'd witnessed this evening a secret. With a wave, she shut the door, and Tom began his long hike back down the hill. When he reached the bottom, half of the kids had left, but the ones who stayed excitedly asked how it was. Tom just replied "It was creepy.  No one answered, but I was so tired from the hike that I had to rest for a little bit before coming back down." Disappointed, the group departed to try and catch the remaining houses for candy before Halloween was over.