Zacky could not remember the last time he ate a meal that was quite this satisfying. The cinnamon apple was very delicious, and he realized just how much he missed Grandma Baker’s cooking.

"Psst, Zacky," whispered a soft feminine voice, as Zacky felt a hand gently grabbing at his shoulder. "Can you deliver a message to a friend of mine?"

As Zacky turned around, he saw that it was April. “Well, it depend. I would not wish to… freak someone out.”

"She’s a fan, too," April explained, gently. "She’d be happy to see you. Here is the thing. Her name is Ashley. We’ve been best friends from… kindergarten. There was something that I really wanted to tell her, but then I… Well, I never had the chance to."

"Yeah, okay," Zacky replied, as he smiled gently at the young girl. "I guess that wouldn’t be a problem for me. It’s just that this is…"

"I understand," April replied, nodding. "It’s just that I think you’d be the best person to due so. She’s always dreamed about meeting you - and, in fact, I never told her about your visit to the hospital. I didn’t want her to get jealous, and then… get mad at me."

"She probably would’ve understood," Zacky commented, gently. "After all, she probably knew that you didn’t have much longer to live."

Within the next few minutes, Zacky managed to write down the information that April gave to her. He then folded a paper neatly, as he placed it in his wallet.

"Hey, Zacky," called out Zachary Charles. "Julia and I would like to show you some of our favourite spots. April, if you’d like, you can also come along."

"Hey, what about me?" called out Anna Rose. "I’d like to spend time with my old friend."

"That shouldn’t be a problem," Julia replied, gently.

"Come, you folks," Zachary Charles prodded, as he led the way.

Within moments, the group left the house. As Zacky glanced up at the sky, he saw that the moon was bright and full - although there were also come clouds in the sky. He then glanced at the trees, and noticed just how spooky they looked.

"Is it always this dark here?" Zacky asked. "I mean, uh, does the sun come out."

"We rarely ever see the sun," Julia explained. "Then again, I never was that fond of the sun. And that was from before we learned about UV rays and the like."

"Come to think of it," Zacky commented, softly, "I don’t think I’d mind living here. This place reminds me a lot of… Halloweentown from Nightmare Before Christmas."

"I’ve always liked that movie," April commented, smiling. "Some of my relatives thought that it wasn’t right for me to prefer Halloween over Christmas. They thought it was a bit… blasphemous."

"Well, Christmas is a nice holiday," Zacky replied, "but I myself have always been rather partial towards Halloween. As long as what you like doesn’t involve hurting other people, it’s never really wrong for you to like what you like."

"That’s always been my belief, too," Zachary Charles added. "I can still remember telling Mother that I thought heaven sounded boring, and then she gave me this huge lecture on how it was wrong to feel that way. That it was a very un-Christian attitude to have."

"That’s the whole problem with organized religion," Zacky commented, nodding. "I mean, I do respect other people’s beliefs - but I… One thing I never understood about the more fundamentalist branches of Christianity is this. They say that all you have to do is confess you’re a sinner and believe, and then you’re saved. That there are no other rules. Then they contradict themselves and come up with all these rules. Such as… Don’t listen to rock and roll. It’s the devil’s music."

"My parents were always cool," April explained. "I never really… identified with a particular religion. I considered myself to be spiritual, but… Some of my relatives, though, are pretty devout Christians. In fact, right now, they are probably agonizing over whether or not… I went to heaven."

"My mom was an agnostic," Anna Rose added. "I grew up a bit confused. Whenever I saw Grandma, she’d start talking to me about the Bible - and insist on taking me to church. She and Mom would fight a lot. I guess Grandma wasn’t happy with Mom abandoning the faith of her upbringing, or with Mom choosing to raise me without religion. I wonder what Grandma…"

"I did go to your funeral," Zacky explained, "and your grandma… Well, she didn’t seem to be a very pleasant person. She kept yelling at your mother that she… your mother… was lucky that you were still below the… the age of accountability. Whatever the hell that means."

"All right, folks!" Julia interjected. "Enough about religion. We’re almost at the creek."

Notes

I thinking there'll be two more chapters after this.