“Today is Halloween,” Sniffy said. “Let’s go trick or treating!”
Sniffy and his two mouse friends, Nibbles and Twitch, put on their costumes, grabbed their bags for collecting treats and hurried out the front door. They knocked on the first door down the street. When Mrs. Spook answered, the three mice said, “Trick or treat!”
Mrs. Spook put a package of candy corn in each of their bags.
“Thank you!” the mice said.
Her twin ghost children, Pooky and Spooky, peeked out from behind her. “Can we go with Sniffy, too? Please, Mama?”
“Yes,” Mrs. Spook said, “but only go to houses with bright lights.”
“OK, Mama,” they promised.
Off they went to the next house and rang the doorbell. When Mrs. Graves answered, they all said, “Trick or treat!”
Mrs. Graves put a chocolate bar in each of their bags.
“Thank you!” they said.
Her son Bones peeked out from behind her. “Can I go, too? Please, Mama?”
“Yes,” Mrs. Graves said, “but be sure to say ‘thank you’ to each one who gives you treats. Don’t eat any of them until I’ve checked to see if they’re safe to eat.”
“OK, Mama,” Bones promised.
Off they went to the next house. When Mrs. Patch opened the door, they all said,
“Trick or treat!”
Mrs. Patch put some potato chips in each of their bags.
“Thank you!” they said.
Her son Jack peeked out from behind her. “Can I go, too? Please, Mama?”
“Yes,” Mrs. Patch said, “but don’t go inside anyone’s house. Stay outside on the porch.”
“OK, Mama,” Jack promised.
After a while, they came to a rickety old shack at the end of the street. They peeked in the window and saw piles of Halloween treats.
“We’ve hit the jackpot!” Sniffy said. “Look at all that stuff!”
“But the house looks a bit creepy,” Nibbles said.
“Aw, c’mon guys! What could happen?” Sniffy asked.
“But my mama said not to go near a house without lights,” Spooky said.
“There’s candles flickering in the window,” Sniffy said.
“I’m scared,” Twitch said. “My heart is pounding way too fast.”
“Be brave!” Sniffy said, as he knocked on the door. When a woman dressed like a witch answered, they all said, “Trick or treat!”
“What beautiful costumes you all have!” she said. “Come inside, so I can see you better. I have lots of great treats for you.”
Jack whispered, “But Mama said, ‘don’t go inside anyone’s house. Stay outside on the porch.’”
“It will just take a minute,” Sniffy said. “As soon as we get our treats, we’ll run like crazy.”
Sniffy and his friends peeked their heads in the door and then slowly crept inside. The witch slammed the door, locked it and tied all of them up. A large black cat named Scratch guarded the door. A creepy spider dropped down from its web and hovered over the frightened trick or treaters.
Twitch was so scared he wet his pants. Nibbles nearly fainted. Bone’s bones rattled.
The little ghosts, who were used to scaring others, now shook with fear. Jack wished he were back home with his mama.
“Hey, you shouldn’t hurt little kids!” Sniffy protested. “This is Halloween. It’s supposed to be fun.”
“Oh, it is, is it?” the witch said. “Well, I’m going to have some fun myself tonight.”
“What are you going to do?” Sniffy asked.”
“When this big pot of water boils, I’m going to put the three fat mice in it and make mouse soup!”
She started to add ingredients to the pot––eye of newt, a whisker from a bat, a wart from a toad, the tail of a rat, some fur from a dog, a gizzard from a lizard, a tooth from a troll, and a strand of her own ugly hair.
Nibbles chewed nervously on the handle of a broom leaning against the wall near her. Sniffy sweat until his fur was soaked. Twitch shook like an earthquake. The others stared in horror as steam started to rise from the pot.
“I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you,” Sniffy moaned. “Now we’re in big trouble,”
“You said, ‘Aw, c’mon guys. What could happen?’” Nibbles whispered. “This is what happens. We get made into soup!”
Then Sniffy said to the witch, “You’re missing one ingredient. Mouse soup doesn’t taste good without a feather from a vulture in it.”
“Really? Then I’ll have to fly off and get one.”
She grabbed her broom, the one Nibbles had been chewing on, and started to fly away. As she flew over the big pot, the broomstick broke in half. The witch fell headfirst in and started to melt. The frightened cat bolted outside. The spider crawled back up into its web.
The trick or treaters gnawed through the ropes tied around them and raced for home. They never told anyone about the witch. Who would ever believe Sniffy’s wild story anyway?
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