How Pumpkins Learned to Laugh — Before pumpkins laughed, the path to Briarwick House was only a quiet ribbon of stones, cold under fallen leaves. Read the full story →
Before pumpkins laughed, the path to Briarwick House was only a quiet ribbon of stones, cold under fallen leaves. Elowen carried a joy too large for her small chest after inventing a game called Pass the Moon: each player had to catch a silver patch of light, hold it for one breath, and give it away. The bats tried first, their wings making soft paper sounds. The windows tried next, flashing pale on the porch glass. Still, the moonlight felt lonely when it landed on the ground.
Elowen pressed both leafy hands to a hollow pumpkin and whispered, “Your turn.” The pumpkin’s carved mouth filled with gold, and the joy inside Elowen rushed out so brightly that the next pumpkin caught it, then the next, until every crooked face along the walk shone as if sharing the same secret. The bats circled slower. The old house warmed its tower windows. Ever since that night, pumpkins do not smile one at a time; when one jack-o’-lantern laughs, the others answer, passing the moon down the quiet ribbon of stones.
