The Cost Of Winning

FIANNA'S POV :

"Mommy! Wookit Daddy! Him is gots scawy face!" Bren calls out, as she stands in the door of our bedroom.

I stick my head out of the bathroom, and see Ash standing in front of the dresser, using the mirror to touch up the Gene Simmons makeup he's decked himself out in. "I'm not scary!" he protests. "I'm still just me, cutie."

"That's right, Smidge, it's just paint," I add. "Just like when we went to the concert, remember? He's just making himself look like somebody else who did that when we were kids."

"Where you's paints am, Mommy?"

"I'm not wearing paint, Smidge. My costume is something different than Daddy's. That's why I'm in here trying to fix my hair, and as soon as one of us is done, we'll help you get into your costume."

"And thens us cans all go twicky tweet, wight?"

"That's right, Bren," Ash replies, as he puts the cap back on the liner pencil he was using. "Why don't we let Mommy finish her hair while I help you with your costume, okay?"

They head off toward her room, and as they're walking down the hall, I hear her ask, "What Mommy am gonna be?"

"I don't know, cutie. She wouldn't tell me, she said it's a surprise," he replies.

I giggle as I pick up his straightener again, and continue the process of un-curling my hair for the night. When I finally finish, I unzip the bag that's hanging on the back of the door and start putting on my costume. Miki and I were out shopping a couple of weeks ago, and when we went in to check out a new store that had just opened, we both had instant inspiration for Halloween.

Just as I finish getting everything in order, I hear a tap on the door, and Bren yells, "Mommy, am you is weady? Aunt 'Kaela and Unca Wy ams here, and Aunt 'Kaela ams all sparkwy! And babies ams all cute, too!"

"Yes, Smidge, I'm ready, I'll be right out." I answer, giving myself a last once-over before I open the door and turn off the light.

As I step into the bedroom, her eyes get big, and she turns to run back down the hall, shrieking at the top of her lungs, "Mommy hair curls ams all goed away! She's hair ams all fwat now, and her gots funny stuffs on she's head, too!"

When I reach the living room, I find Ash and Ryan standing at the end of the hall, and when they see me, Ryan says, "Should have figured. 'Kaela did say you bought your costumes at the same place."

"Where the heck did you find this?" Ash inquires, as he makes a circle around me, checking out my nineteen-sixties Haight-Asbury hippie costume, complete with patchwork skirt, fringed vest, and tie-dye headband.

"The new vintage-clothing place downtown," Miki chimes in, trying to straighten the skirt of her shimmering silver seventies disco dress with one hand, while holding Haylee in the other arm. "All purpose shopping there. Some of it still works anytime, and some is so far out of style it should only be a costume."

I take Haylee from her, so she can fix her dress, and promptly burst out laughing when I see what she's wearing. "How did I not see this one coming?" I ask, turning to Ryan, who is holding 'Thing One", as "Thing Two" lays in my arms looking up at me with a slightly confused expression.

He grins, and replies, "Seemed to work, and it's cute. 'Kaela wanted to dress them up as M&M's, but the costumes didn't come this small. We had enough trouble finding something decent in my size," he adds, gesturing at his "Matrix"-style outfit.

The doorbell rings, and I walk over to answer it, opening the door to find Doc McStuffins and a racecar driver looking up at me, as Luke Skywalker and Rizzo from "Grease" are still coming up the walk.

"Hello, Miss Fi !" the bell-ringers shout enthusiastically, and I open the door a bit wider to let everyone in.

"Hello, Ivy. Hello, Cody. Your costumes are very nice," I tell them. "Are you ready for trick or treats?"

"Yes!" Cody enthuses. "This is the only time that Mom doesn't complain about me having candy."

"Bwenna!" Ivy yells, running across the room. "I wikes your Hallyween cwothes, they is cute! I wants that kind of hat, Daddy!"

"Me ams a cowgirl, so me wears mines boops, and Daddy getted me a hat like him gots," Smidge yells back. "But them won'ts wet Daisy goes wif we, so me gots a toy horsie. See!" she grabs the broomstick horse that I found at a flea market, which Ash repainted, and holds it out for the other kids to see.

"But why can't Daisy go?" Cody asks.

"First of all, Daisy still isn't big enough to ride," Ash explains to him. "And also, people might get mad if she went to the bathroom on the sidewalk, and somebody stepped on it, or fell down."

"Ewwww, yucky!" Ivy exclaims.

"Exactly. Which is why Daisy can't go trick or treating," Jeff chuckles. "Does everybody have their bag, so we can go?"

The kids all look confused, until Ash reaches behind the couch and pulls out some cloth bags he put together for them when he found out what costumes they'd be wearing. He hands Ivy a doctor's bag, Cody a miniature racecar, and Bren a saddlebag, saying, "Here you go kids. Can't have a regular old shopping bag spoil your costumes, can we?"

They all thank him, and we head out to go walk around a couple of blocks, after strictly warning all three kids that if anyone tries to run ahead instead of staying with the group, they will all go back immediately, and nobody will get any more candy. We all take turns going to the doors with them, while Miki and Ryan just walk along to keep us company, since they've decided there's no point in getting candy this year for the twins, considering the fact that they have no teeth. We get several compliments on everyone's costumes from the neighbors, and the kids get a huge kick out of the fact that Ron from across the street has dressed Laverne and Shirley up like small dragons, while he answers the door in wizard's robes.

After all three kids decide that they're too tired to walk anymore, we take them back to the house, and let them sit and drink some juice and watch cartoons, while we look over their candy, to make sure it's all okay. Then, when it's all approved, they get to pick out two pieces each to eat now, and the rest gets put up until tomorrow, since it's not long until bedtime, and we don't really want them on a sugar rush.

They eat their candy, and we all hang out and chat for awhile, until Bren informs Jeff that Ivy is "seepin' ons the fwoor." Cody is yawning a bit, too, so Karla and Jeff head out to get them home to bed. Miki and Ryan hang out for a bit longer, but they eventually leave as well, and Ash and I get Bren ready for bed.

After she's asleep, we watch some TV for a couple of hours, and then I go to take a bath, while Ash answers a couple of texts. I'm out of the shower and in the bedroom brushing my hair when he comes in, gives me a quick kiss, and heads for the bathroom.

I just keep brushing for a minute or so, until I hear him call me. I go to the door and grin when I see him standing in front of the sink, looking down with a slightly puzzled expression. He turns his head toward me, and asks, "This isn't a Halloween trick, is it?"

"I kind of see it as more of a treat, myself," I tell him. "Kinda hoping you do, too."

He looks once more at the positive pregnancy test lying on a paper towel on the sink, then flings his arms around me, lifting me up off the floor, kissing me several times. "You bet your gorgeous ass I do," he informs me between kisses. "Best Halloween treat I've ever gotten."

Notes