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Meanwhile at the Lair of Dr. Callyco

"So why is it called trick or treat anyway?" Dr. Callyco sat in a large reading chair as he examined a book.

"Well I mean I guess it's cause you're demanding treats to avoid pulling tricks." Dr Cutie Pup said as he looked up from the newspaper he was reading.

"So it's an ultimatum type deal." The kitten rubbed his muzzle with a paw. "And all the adults are good with this. Interesting. This is giving me ideas."

"I feel like the responsible thing would be to stop whatever it is you're planning right now." Dr. Cutie Pup slowly lowered his paper just enough to see the kitten and gave him a stare.

"So... You going to actually do something?" The kitten smiled.

"Not at all." The pup raised his paper back up. "I merely said it would be the responsible thing." With that he turned the page.

"Huh well... Are you sure? Cause it's probably going to cause quite a bit of trouble for us both." The kitten insisted.

"It'll be fine." Dr. Cutie Pup responded while continuing to read his paper.

"Huh well... Okay..." The kitten settled back down and looked at his book.

"Weren't you about to go do a thing?" Dr. Cutie Pup asked.

"Oh I am! Just... Later! Probably!" Dr. Callyco muttered. "Oh look what time it is! Let's introduce our next guest!"

"Very well... Our next guest is a blue and black colored rabbit named Arzure. He's roughly twelve years old if I recall correctly. I think. Honestly, I always get a bit confused there." The wolf gave the kitten a look.

"What!? I didn't do anything!" the kitten said. "Yet!" He smiled. "Anyway... Arzure is looking to be an agent of karma himself this evening. But one must always be careful when they take justice into their own hands. It seldom ends pleasantly for them. So we bring you out seventh tale. The Tale of a Little Prankster."

Thirteen Karmic Tales

Seventh Tale

The Tale of the Little Prankster

There wasn't a kid alive who hadn't heard the legend of Old Man O'Dwyer. He lived on the edge of the cul-de-sac for as long as anyone remembered. Even the parents referred to him as Old Man O'Dwyer and couldn't remember when he had first moved here. Everyone just knew he was old, he was mean, and he was trouble.

But most of all. Everyone knew he hated children. And anything that made children happy he hated even more. He advocated for longer school days and an end to summer vacation. He admonished parents for not giving their ungrateful little spawn coal for Christmas. He called the police every Halloween to try to get those little hooligans off the street who were trick or treating. He was simply a bitter old man.

And to make it worse... He did everything he could to torment children. Especially on Halloween. Nothing made his blood boil like the sight kids out in costumes being given candy just for existing. That was why he had his own Halloween tradition. Every single year he would fill an entire bucket with king sized candy bars. Then he would sit on his porch. Anytime a child passed he would eat one of the candy bars in front of them while smiling and showing off crooked rotten teeth. If a child dared approach he would start shouting death threats and curses. Very few children ever approached now. Everyone was warned about Old Man O'Dwyer. They could do nothing but watch as he ate his candy.

But that was all about to change tonight. One bunny was on a mission for children all over the world. Arzure was going to prank Old Man O'Dwyer and steal his candy. Fair was fair! Him sitting there on the porch every year was practically asking to have it taken.

Arzure dressed simply in a shirt and shorts. Then he checked his backpack to make sure he had everything he needed. A bottle of glitter, an envelope, tissue paper and plenty of glue. Everything he needed for his scheme. The plan was simple. Create a glitter bomb, trick Old Man O'Dwyer into setting it off, then grab as much candy as he could and run. While still at home he went ahead and assembled the glitter bomb, gluing the envelope closed while stuffing it with tissue paper lined with glitter. Now he was ready. He headed to his destination.

Old Man O'Dwyer was sitting on his porch as always. Arzure was careful to approach his house from the same size as a brick wall to avoid being seen. He tried to fold his ears back so they wouldn't be visible as he peaked over the wall. This was the moment of truth. He would throw the glitter bomb over the wall and try to land it on O'Dwyer's porch. Then Old Man O'Dwyer would open it up... And bam glitter explosion! He was only going to get one shot.

Arzure threw the glitter bomb! And it landed in the grass nowhere near its destination. He gave a curse of 'biscuits' under his breath. Luckily he still had plenty of supplies. A few minutes later he had assembled a second glitter bomb and then tossed that one. This time it landed on the porch.

"What's all this then?" Old Man O'Dwyer's grizzly voice could be heard as the letter landed. "No doubt one of those disgusting little beasties up to no good. Well they won't be getting this back then."

Arzure dared stick his head above the wall again to watch. He saw the old man picking up the envelope. He tried to open it, but failed when he found it glued tight. Annoyed by this he angrily ripped open the top of the envelope.

"ARRRRRRRRRGH! MY EYES!" Old Man O'Dwyer gave a shout as bright blue glitter erupted from the envelope. "Arrrgh it's everywhere!"

This was Arzure's chance and he took it. Rabbits are incredible sprinters and he was no exception. Running as fast as he could he made it up to O'Dwyer's porch in seconds. He leaped above the railing and shoved his hands into the candy bowl grabbing one of the candy bars.

"YOU!" Old Man O'Dwyer rubbed the glitter from his eyes and pointed at Arzure. "You're that spoiled bunny brat from down the lane! You nasty thing. You won't get away with this!"

"Uh oh..." Arzure had hoped O'Dwyer would be distracted long enough for him to get away without being seen. Looks like it was time to go. Clutching the candy in his hand he leaped back over the railing and took off running for safety. In just a few seconds he'd be out of the old man's property and on his way with his prize.

"Stad!" Old Man O'Dwyer shouted a strange word. His voice seemed to echo within itself. Suddenly, Arzure couldn't move. His entire body froze in place. The candy bar dropped from his land landing in the grass next to his bare paws.

"Nnnngggh." Arzure tried to move. He couldn't even talk. His body wouldn't respond at all.

"Vile beast." Old Man O'Dwyer slowly walked up to Arzure and grabbed the rabbit by the ears. "Thought you'd take something of mine. Well... You've done it now. Count yourself lucky I don't cook you in a stew." The old man lifted Arzure into the air. The rabbit was still unable to move or do anything to escape. He could only watch as he was carried back to the porch of Old Man O'Dwyer and then into the house. "Now I have to find someplace to put you..." Then he gave another echoed shout. "Crion!"

At the sound of the word Arzure was able to move again. He tried to squirm out of the old man's grasp but he had him firmly by the ears. As he moved about though he became aware of the sensation of his shirt and shorts becoming looser. It wasn't just that! Everything from Old Man O'Dwyer to the house around him was growing in size! Arzure was shrinking!

He dwindled smaller and smaller. His shorts, shirt and backpack falling to the ground leaving him in just his bare fur. Soon Old Man O'Dwyer shifted his grip so that he only needed to pinch the tips of Arzure's ears between two fingers. The young bunny had been shrunken down to merely an inch tall. The tiny kid continue to try to squirm and get loose but Old Man O'Dwyer refused to loosen his grip.

"Now just have to decide what to do with you." The old man replied. As he did he dropped Arzure onto a table then placed a glass upside down over him. He tapped the side of the glass creating vibrations that knocked the bunny over. "Maybe I'll just leave you there for a few years."

Arzure felt his heart beating in his chest. Old Man O'Dwyer had always been intimidating but now he was a giant! What was he? Those words he had spoken had some kind of power... Did that make Old Man O'Dwyer a warlock or something? Well... Considering how nasty he was it wasn't that surprising. But now Arzure had to worry about escaping with his life not just the candy.

"Hmmm maybe I'll just throw you in a shoebox and figure out what to do with you in the morning." Old Man O'Dwyer growled as he turned away from Arzure. "I know I have one of those somewhere..."

Arzure looked around. He was basically in a glass prison stuck up on a high table. Old Man O'Dwyer's front door was still open but he didn't see any way out. He tried pushing against the side of the glass but it was too heavy to move. He couldn't see where Old Man O'Dwyer had gone... But he guessed whatever was coming next wouldn't be pleasant. He had to try something.

He took a deep breath and stepped back so that his back was against the glass. He then lurched forward and slammed his shoulder into the other side of the class as hard as possible. It wobbled slightly towards the edge of the table. Arzure backed up and gave it a second slam. It wobbled forward a little more. One more good shove might just take him over the edge.

Arzure took another step back, and another breath to calm himself. Then he slammed into the glass again. The glass sailed off the side of the table. Arzure was dragged with it as it slammed into the ground with a loud noise. Arzure was thankfully unharmed. Due to his small size the impact from the fall hadn't been much. He now stood on the floor surrounded by broken glass. He could see the open door from here.

"YOU NASTY CREATURE!" Old Man O'Dwyer roared. Arzure looked back to see him running down a dusty hall. Not wasting a moment Arzure burst into a sprint. The old man was forced to slow down as he pursued Arzure. Broken glass littered the floor and he did his best to avoid stepping into it. Here Arzure had the advantage. From his point of view the shards of glass were giant pieces as big as his head! He could see them easily, meaning he could run full speed through the house as he weaved around the glass shards and headed for the door.

The finished wood gave way to rugged wood as Arzure rushed outside. There were large splinters sticking out of the wood that he had to be careful not to step on as he moved. However even at this size the porch wasn't a great distance and he leaped from the porch and into the grass.

"Stad!" Old Man O'Dwyer repeated his earlier spell that had frozen Arzure. This time though it had no effect. Arzure nearly tripped over himself in surprise when he didn't stop moving. It took him a moment to realize why.

He was too small! Now that he hidden among the grass Old Man O'Dwyer couldn't see him! Whatever spell he was casting he must have needed to see his target! Arzure was safe as long as he remained unnoticed. He continued to run as quickly as he could running between blades of giant grass as he went in the direction he thought was safety.

"You won't get away! You obnoxious cretin!" Old Man O'Dwyer shouted. He stomped through the grass staring down at his feet trying to find any sign of Arzure. But by this point the bunny was putting on enough distance to get away.

The edge of the property was near. However Arzure soon came to an abrupt stop as he found something blocking his path. It was a candy bar. It was the one he had dropped earlier. And it was now more than five times his size.

Being small had its advantages! Arzure flashed a wicked grin. He grabbed the edge of the candy bar and dragged it with him as he ran for the exit. This slowed him down, but he was right at the end of the property. Just a little bit more and he would have escaped.

"Found you!" Old Man O'Dwyer shouted in triumph as he noticed a hint of blue among the grass. He fiercely snatched at it with a bony hand only to let out a gasp of surprise when he saw it wasn't the blue and black bunny. It was another envelope. Just like the glitter bomb. And he had torn the corner slightly as he grabbed it. "Oh no..." Old Man O'Dwyer had just enough time to realize what he had done before letting out a scream of rage as glitter exploded all over his face.

As for Arzure... The sound of Old Man O'Dwyer's rage was music to his ears as he dragged the candy bar out onto the sidewalk. He realized the first glitter bomb that had missed must have hit its target after all! Now he could walk home with his spoils.

"Overall I'd say this was a very successful prank." Arzure congragulated himself for having pulled it off. And he had such a fabulous prize for his efforts too! Perhaps he should have been more concerned about being tiny... But then again. Giant candy bar! Though boy would his parents be surprised when he got home looking like that. Well... Surprising parents was basically what kids did best. So it'd work out. Probably. All he wanted to think about was digging into this giant bar of chocolate and peanut butter.

The End