THE BLOCK ESTATE
THE GUESTHOUSE
6:05 PM
October 31st
Claire watched from her bedroom window as London Dorsey and her team of loyal manservants ran around the backyard, making sure every last corpse was in place. The house was filled with the sweet smell of her mother's caramel apples, but not even that could calm her down. The party was less than an hour away and Claire was still in her school clothes. Knowing that her brother and his incredibly tiny friend Nathan were behind closed doors putting the finishing touches on their Halloween costumes stressed her out even more.
Claire went over to her closet and pulled out a box marked Holiday Clothes. She opened the cardboard flaps and stuck her arm inside to search for last year's Powerpuff Girls costume.
How am I going to explain to my mother why I'm not dressed like my charming co-host?
Her fingers brushed against a smooth satin-polyester blend and she breathed a sigh of relief.
Found it!
“Claire, can we come in?” Todd called through her bedroom door. “We want to show you something.”
“Can't it wait? I'm about to get dressed,” Claire shouted back.
“No.” Todd walked into her room.
“What are you doing?” Claire asked.
He was dressed as Bubbles and Nathan was dressed as Buttercup, the other two Powerpuff Girls. Nathan wore a mint green minidress with a thick black sash around the middle and a short black wig. Todd's dress was the same, only blue. Claire wondered how he had managed to divide his blond wig into two perfect pigtails but was too stunned to ask. Huge cardboard cutout eyes were taped to their sunglasses.
“I figured you'd probably feel like a gigantic loser going as Blossom if you had no one else to play the other Puffs,” Todd said. “So we decided to help you out.”
“That's not what you told me,” Nathan said to Todd. “You said no will know who we are in these costumes so we'll be able to mess with Massie and her hot friends.”
“What are you talking about, Nathan?” Todd said, trying his hardest to sound confused.
“Anyway, Mom wants us downstairs for pictures in ten. So hurry up, Blossom.” Todd gave Claire an energetic two-thumbs-up. “And remember, Powerpuffs save the day!”
Claire whipped a fuzzy pink slipper at him and hit a black-and-white photo of Massie's grandfather instead. It crashed to the ground but didn't break.
“Get out!”
Todd and Nathan raced out, screaming and laughing. They slammed the door shut behind them.
Claire heard the muffled sound of “Monster Mash” coming from the DJ booth, and the pre-party jitters kicked in. She suddenly felt like she had to go to the bathroom.
“Claire,” Judi shouted from the kitchen.
Claire didn't answer. She was too focused on zipping up her pink dress and adjusting her red wig.
“Claire,” Judi yelled again.
“WHAT?”
Claire was tired of the constant interruptions. All she wanted was five minutes to get ready and give herself a pep talk in front of the mirror before the party started. She needed to work on her confidence if she was going to look for a boyfriend.
“Come on,” Jay said. “It's picture time. The party's about to start.”
“COMING.”
Claire put on her mask and made her way downstairs even though she didn't feel completely ready to face her public.
“Oh, how cute!” Judi said when she saw Claire.
“You decided to dress up like your brother and Nathan,” her father said.
“What?” Claire shot her brother a look. “It was my—” But she stopped, suddenly remembering that her mother expected her to be a Dirty Devil.
Claire didn't know what to say next. If she told her mother what happened at school, Massie would get in trouble. And the thought of Massie's wrath made the insides of Claire's stomach bunch up in fear. She would hunt Claire down like a limited edition Motorola and destroy her like last year's Ugg boots. Claire's appetite for Halloween candy was completely gone.
“Yeah,” Todd said interrupting her. He widened his eyes just enough for Claire to notice. This usually meant she should shut up and follow his lead, but she couldn't imagine where he was taking her.
“Mom, I know you wanted her to dress up like Massie, but me and Nate really needed a third, so we begged her and she finally said yes. You're not mad, are you?”
Claire shrugged and gave a what-can-you-do? look.
“How could I be mad at that?” Judi smiled lovingly. “I think it's incredibly thoughtful.”
“Okay,” Jay said as he took the lens cap off his camera. “Picture time.”
Jay started snapping and Judi directed the kids, suggesting different poses so their pictures would have variety.
“How did you know about my costume with Massie?” Claire asked Todd through her fake smile.
“I happened to overhear your phone conversation with Layne,” Todd said through his teeth.
“Why did you lie for me?” Claire whispered.
“Sometimes I like to use my powers for good instead of evil. And I figured you could repay me by doing my math homework this weekend,” he said.
“Fine,” Claire said.
It was either that or admit to her parents that their dream—to have her and Massie become friends—would never be more than a fantasy.