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[Story] Through Halloween's Doors (Halloween Stories 6/7)

Published: November 3rd 2024, 9:03:27 pm

Hi Hi ✨

Story 6 of our halloween week! What started as a quick halloween party story somehow turned into a 5000-word epic 😅 Last spooky story coming later today to wrap up this halloween marathon!

📦 Grab the full res images from the attachment section of this post. ⬇️

---

Through Halloween's Doors

"Come on James, stay for another drink!"

"Nah mate, I'm good," James replied, adjusting his cheap plastic vampire fangs that had been irritating him all evening. "Early meeting tomorrow. Some of us have to work for a living, you know?"

The Halloween party was still in full swing at Mike's flat, music thumping through the walls and the chatter of costumed guests spilling out onto the small balcony where James stood with his friend. The cool October air felt refreshing after hours in the stuffy apartment.

"It's only ten!" Mike protested, his zombie makeup now mostly smeared across his face. "The night's still young! Sarah was asking about you earlier..."

James rolled his eyes. "Sarah's been 'asking about me' at every party for the past year. Not interested, mate. Besides, I've had enough cheap beer and even cheaper Halloween decorations for one night."

He gestured at the plastic skeleton hanging precariously from the balcony railing, its jaw slightly askew from where drunk partygoers had been making it 'talk' earlier in the evening.

"Your loss," Mike shrugged, taking another swig from his beer. "At least let me call you a cab?"

"Nah, I'll walk. It's a nice night, and I could use the fresh air." James removed the plastic fangs and tucked them into his pocket. The remnants of his vampire costume - just a cape and white face paint - were minimal enough to not draw too much attention on the street.

"Suit yourself," Mike said. "Text me when you get home, yeah? There's been weird stuff happening around the neighborhood lately. Mrs. Jenkins swears she saw a ghost in her garden last week."

James snorted. "Mrs. Jenkins also swears her cat can speak French. I'll be fine."

After saying his goodbyes to the few party guests who were still coherent enough to notice his departure, James made his way down the dimly lit stairwell of Mike's building. His head was buzzing slightly from the beer, but not enough to impair his judgment. Just enough to make the prospect of a nighttime walk through London's autumn streets seem appealingly atmospheric.

The streets were still fairly busy with other Halloween revelers, groups of friends in costumes moving between pubs and parties. Jack-o'-lanterns grinned from windowsills, and fake cobwebs stretched across shop fronts. The regular street lights were supplemented by orange and purple Halloween displays, casting everything in an otherworldly glow.

"Nice costume!" a passing woman called out, gesturing to his cape.

"Thanks!" James replied automatically, though he knew it was probably sarcastic. His Halloween effort had been minimal at best.

As he walked, the crowds began to thin out. His route home took him through progressively quieter streets, away from the main thoroughfares where the Halloween celebrations were concentrated. The decorations became sparser, though the occasional illuminated pumpkin still watched from a window.

James checked his phone. 10:23 PM. Still plenty of time to get home and maybe catch up on some Netflix before bed. He considered taking his usual route, but the beer in his system made him bold. There was a shortcut through the old industrial area that would save him fifteen minutes. During the day, it was perfectly safe - just a bit run down. At night... well, it wasn't exactly welcoming, but it was Halloween. What better night for a spooky shortcut?

Turning down a narrow alley between two converted warehouse buildings, James immediately noticed how the ambient city noise seemed to fade away. The sounds of distant traffic and Halloween parties became muffled, as if someone had thrown a thick blanket over the world. His footsteps echoed slightly on the cobblestones.

The alley was decorated for Halloween, though not in the cheerful, commercial way of the main streets. These decorations looked older, more authentic somehow. Dried corn husks and withered vines hung from old metal fixtures. The few windows were decorated with intricate paper cutouts that cast strange shadows. A carved pumpkin sat on a windowsill, but its face seemed more sinister than the friendly grins on the high street, its candlelight flickering in a way that made the shadows dance unnaturally.

"Proper spooky," James muttered to himself, pulling his cape a bit tighter. The temperature seemed to have dropped several degrees.

That's when he saw the door.

He stopped in his tracks, blinking a few times to clear his vision. The door definitely hadn't been there the last time he'd taken this shortcut. He would have remembered something so... distinctive.

It stood alone in the middle of the alley wall, not part of any building. The frame was made of dark wood, intricately carved with symbols he didn't recognize. The door itself was painted a deep, rich purple that seemed to absorb the surrounding light. An old-fashioned brass handle gleamed invitingly.

"Right," James said aloud, his voice sounding strangely muffled. "Someone's gone all out with their Halloween decorations this year."

He approached the door cautiously, expecting to find it was just a very convincing piece of set dressing attached to the wall. But as he drew closer, he could feel a slight breeze coming from underneath it. The door was real, and it led... somewhere.

"This is mental," he muttered, reaching out to touch the handle. It was cool to the touch and felt surprisingly solid. "Probably just opens into someone's Halloween party setup."

He knew he should just continue home. This was exactly the kind of situation that ended badly in horror movies. But the combination of beer, Halloween atmosphere, and simple curiosity proved too powerful to resist.

"Just a quick peek," he told himself, turning the handle. "What's the worst that could happen?"

The handle turned smoothly, and the door opened with a surprisingly quiet whisper of well-oiled hinges. Beyond it was... darkness? No, not quite darkness. There was a sort of purple-tinted light, like twilight filtered through stained glass.

James hesitated for just a moment, then stepped through.

The door swung shut behind him with a soft but decisive click.

James stumbled slightly as he crossed the threshold, his feet touching ground that felt... different. The cobblestones of the London alley had been replaced by smooth pavement that seemed to have a subtle purple sheen.

"Well, that's new," he muttered, steadying himself against a nearby wall. His head was spinning slightly, though whether from the beer or the transition, he couldn't tell.

As his vision adjusted to the strange twilight, he realized he was still in London - or at least, a version of it. The buildings were familiar yet subtly wrong, like seeing your reflection in a funhouse mirror. The Halloween decorations were still there, but they seemed more ethereal, with jack-o'-lanterns floating unsupported and cobwebs that sparkled with an inner light.

A group of people walked past the alley entrance, and James's jaw dropped.

"Bloody hell..."

The women in the group were statuesque, like runway models scaled up to impossible proportions. They had to be over seven feet tall, their willowy frames moving with an elegant grace that seemed almost otherworldly. One woman's long legs, clad in a witch's costume, seemed to go on forever, while another's slender neck rose like a swan's above her vampire cape. Despite their extraordinary height, they were slim and lithe, built like basketball players or supermodels rather than being proportionally larger.

James pressed himself against the wall as another group passed. Same thing - the women towered over their male companions, who looked about his height. A particularly tall woman, who must have been close to 7'4", ducked gracefully to avoid a low-hanging Halloween banner, her movements fluid and practiced. Yet nobody seemed to find this unusual. The men chatted and laughed with their willowy, amazonian companions as if this was perfectly normal.

"This has to be some kind of elaborate Halloween prank," James said to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Maybe someone spiked the punch at Mike's party..."

"Oh, I assure you this is no prank."

James spun around so quickly he nearly fell over. Standing - or rather, looming - over him was a woman who made even the passing giants look modest in stature. She had to be at least 7'2", with a tall, athletic build that maintained the same willowy elegance he'd observed in the others. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a neat bun, emphasizing her elongated neck and high cheekbones. She wore what looked like some kind of uniform - a fitted purple jacket with strange symbols similar to those on the door he'd passed through, and matching trousers that made her legs seem to stretch endlessly.

"Um... hi?" James managed, having to crane his neck to meet her gaze.

The woman crossed her arms, fixing him with a stern look. "Care to explain what you're doing here?" Her voice was surprisingly friendly despite her intimidating stance, with a hint of an accent he couldn't quite place.

"Would you believe I just walked through a door?" James attempted a smile, which faltered under her intense scrutiny.

"Mmhmm." She produced a small device from her pocket that looked like a cross between a smartphone and a compass. It glowed with the same purple light he was starting to associate with this strange place. "And did you perhaps create this door? Or were you asked to use it by someone?"

"What? No! It was just... there. In the alley. I thought it was a Halloween decoration."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "A Halloween decoration. Of course." She tapped something on her device. "And you just decided to walk through a mysterious door you found in an alley? On Halloween night?"

Put that way, it did sound rather stupid. "Look, I've had a few beers, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Where am I? And who are you?"

The woman sighed, tucking the device away. "My name is Isabella. I'm a Reality Balancer, and you, my friend, are currently in what we call Reality Tall - one of many parallel dimensions that exist alongside your own."

James blinked. "A Reality... what now?"

"Balancer," Isabella repeated patiently. "We maintain dimensional stability and prevent unauthorized travel between realities. Which is why I'm very interested in how you got here, and who might have helped you."

"Nobody helped me! I told you, I just found the door and-"

"Yes, yes, you 'just found it.'" Isabella made air quotes with her fingers, which would have been comical given her size if she didn't look so serious. "Do you have any idea how many reality jumpers I catch who 'just found' a door? Or who 'accidentally' stumbled through a portal?"

"Reality jumpers? Look, I have no idea what you're talking about. I was walking home from a Halloween party, I took a shortcut, I found a weird door, and now I'm in some kind of... giant woman dimension?" He gestured vaguely at a passing group of towering women. "Which, don't get me wrong, is fascinating, but I'd really like to go home now."

Isabella studied him for a moment, her expression softening slightly. "You really don't know anything about this, do you?"

"Not a clue. Though I'm starting to wish I'd paid more attention in physics class. This seems like it might be relevant to parallel universe theory or something."

That actually got a small laugh from Isabella. "Not exactly. The science behind dimensional travel is a bit more complicated than that." She checked her device again. "Well, if you are telling the truth - and I'm not saying I believe you yet - we need to get you back to your reality before midnight."

"What happens at midnight?"

"The doors seal until next Halloween. Anyone in the wrong reality when that happens..." She trailed off meaningfully.

"Gets trapped here? That doesn't sound so-"

"It disrupts the dimensional balance," Isabella cut him off firmly. "Which is why we need to figure out how you got here and get you back where you belong."

Just then, the purple twilight seemed to pulse, and James felt a strange vibration in the air. Isabella's device began beeping urgently.

"That's not good," she muttered, frowning at the readings. "The dimensional boundaries are shifting. We need to move."

"Move where?"

"Through another door. And this time," she fixed him with a stern look, "you stay close to me. The last thing I need is to lose a potential reality jumper in the dimensional shift."

"I'm not a-" James began to protest, but Isabella was already striding down the alley, her long legs covering the distance effortlessly.

With a resigned sigh, James hurried to catch up with her. This was definitely not how he'd expected his Halloween night to go.

---

A strange vibration pulsed through the air, making the ethereal Halloween decorations flutter. Isabella's device let out a high-pitched whine, and her elegant features creased with concern.

"We need to move. Now." She grabbed James's arm with her long-fingered hand, pulling him along. Despite her willowy frame, her grip was surprisingly strong.

"What's happening?" James had to jog to keep up with her lengthy strides.

"Reality shift. The boundaries are..." She stopped abruptly, causing James to bump into her. "There!"

Another door had materialized at the end of the alley. This one was made of burnished copper, with different symbols than the one James had originally stepped through. As they watched, the metal seemed to ripple like water.

"Through here," Isabella commanded, reaching for the handle. "And stay close. The transition can be... intense."

"Transition? What do you mean inten-"

Before he could finish, Isabella pulled open the door, revealing a swirling vortex of orange and black light. Without hesitation, she yanked him through.

The sensation was like being pulled in every direction at once. James felt his stomach lurch as reality seemed to bend around them. Through the disorienting swirl of Halloween-colored light, he heard Isabella's sharp intake of breath.

"Isabella?" He turned toward her voice and his eyes widened.

She was changing.

Her impressive height began to diminish first, her body smoothly contracting downward as if being compressed by invisible hands. Seven feet... six and a half... six... until she settled at around five-seven. But as her height decreased, something else was happening.

Isabella's willowy frame began to thicken, her slim arms suddenly swelling with muscle. The change rippled across her body like a wave. Her shoulders broadened, deltoids ballooning outward, biceps and triceps expanding dramatically. Her elegant neck thickened with cords of muscle.

"Nnngh!" she grunted, gritting her teeth. Her uniform rippled and shifted, adapting to her rapidly changing physique.

The transformation moved down her body. Her chest expanded, not with feminine curves but with solid slabs of pectoral muscle. Her slim waist tightened into ridged abs that looked like they'd been carved from stone. Her long, elegant legs contracted in length but exploded in girth, quads and calves swelling until they threatened to tear her uniform.

Throughout it all, Isabella maintained her composure, though James could see the pain in her eyes. Her face remained largely the same, but her jaw tightened slightly, becoming more defined.

The entire process took barely thirty seconds. When it was done, Isabella stood before him completely transformed. Gone was the willowy giant - in her place stood a woman who looked like she could win any bodybuilding competition on Earth. Every movement caused muscles to ripple impressively under her newly-fitted uniform.

"Well," she said, her voice slightly strained but professional. "Welcome to Buff Reality." She rolled her shoulders, muscle fibers dancing under her skin. "Sorry about that. The first transition is always the most dramatic."

James realized he was staring and quickly closed his mouth. "Does... does that happen every time?"

"The transformation? Yes." She flexed her hand experimentally, watching the tendons and muscles move. "Each reality has its own... let's call it physical template. My body adapts to maintain dimensional resonance."

"Doesn't it hurt?"

"Like hell," she admitted with a grim smile. "But you get used to it. Now come on, we need to-"

She stopped mid-sentence, her newly muscled frame tensing. James followed her gaze and felt his blood run cold.

They weren't alone in this new reality.

A group of women passed by their alley entrance, their Halloween costumes straining against physiques that made professional bodybuilders look scrawny in comparison. One of them, dressed as Wonder Woman, had arms that looked like they could bend steel, while another in a cat costume moved with a power that suggested she could probably leap tall buildings.

Isabella turned to James, her own newly muscled frame still impressively large despite being shorter now. "Well? Is this your reality?"

James watched another woman stroll past, her witch's costume barely containing muscles that would put any Mr. Olympia to shame. He grinned mischievously. "Oh yeah, definitely. This is home. Thanks for your help!"

Isabella's eyebrow shot up, her bicep flexing unconsciously as she crossed her arms. "Really? So you won't mind if I check the dimensional resonance of your quantum signature?"

"The what of my what now?"

"That's what I thought." She shook her head, but James caught a hint of amusement in her expression. "We need to wait here for a while anyway. Dimensional transition buffer time - prevents reality shock. There's a Halloween party in that building." She nodded toward a nearby warehouse, its windows pulsing with orange light and the bass of music thumping through the walls.

"More parties? I just left one."

"Better than standing in an alley for thirty minutes."

Inside, the warehouse had been transformed into a spectacular Halloween venue. Floating jack-o'-lanterns provided most of the lighting, casting spooky shadows across the walls. Cobwebs that seemed to move of their own accord draped from the ceiling, and mysterious fog rolled across the floor.

The crowd was... interesting. The men looked normal enough in their costumes, but the women were something else entirely. A zombie bride benched pressed what looked like 500 pounds in the corner. A sexy nurse with biceps bigger than James's thighs arm-wrestled a vampire whose deltoids threatened to rip through her cape.

They found a relatively quiet spot near a bubbling cauldron of punch that glowed an unnatural green.

"So," James ventured, watching a woman dressed as a fairy flutter past, her massive physique somewhat at odds with her delicate costume, "you do this often? The reality jumping thing?"

Isabella leaned against the wall, the concrete creaking slightly under her muscled frame. "It's my job. Though usually I'm just monitoring, making sure no one crosses over without authorization. Halloween's always busy - the boundaries get thin."

"Have you seen many different realities?"

"Hundreds." She accepted a cup of punch from a passing server, her forearm rippling as she took it. "There's one where everyone's blue. Another where humans evolved from cats instead of apes. One where the ground is up and the sky is down."

"And some where women are all... different sizes?"

Isabella nodded. "That's more common than you'd think. Variations in sexual dimorphism are actually one of the most frequent divergence points between realities." She took a sip of punch. "If we don't find your reality before midnight..."

"I get stuck here for a year?"

"Until next Halloween." She watched his reaction carefully. "It wouldn't be the worst outcome. The women here are strong, but they're generally friendly. The economy's stable, crime is low - turns out it's hard to be a successful criminal when half the population can tear bank vaults open with their bare hands."

James chuckled. "Tempting, but I should probably try to get home. My cat would never forgive me."

"Smart choice. Disrupting the dimensional balance can have..." She trailed off as a woman in a princess costume walked by, her ballgown doing little to hide muscles that made Isabella's current form look skinny in comparison. "...unexpected consequences."

"Like what?"

"Like that." She pointed to where the princess had accidentally crushed a metal punch ladle in her grip. "Reality bleeding. Powers and traits leaking between dimensions. That's why we try to keep everyone in their original reality."

The music shifted to "Monster Mash", and several couples took to the dance floor. James watched in fascination as the muscular women carefully guided their normal-sized partners, clearly mindful of their strength.

"There are worse realities coming up," Isabella said quietly. "And better ones. We should get moving soon. The buffer time's almost up."

"Worse how?"

She finished her punch, the cup crumpling slightly in her grip. "Let's just say being a different size isn't always the only change. Ready to go?"

James took one last look around the party, at the fascinating mix of Halloween festivities and superhuman physiques. "Lead the way, oh mighty Reality Balancer."

Isabella rolled her eyes, but she was smiling as she pushed off from the wall, leaving a small dent in the concrete. "Come on. And James? Try not to lie about recognizing your reality again. I can always tell."

"Even without checking my quantum whatever?"

"Especially then."

They made their way back outside, where another door was already beginning to materialize. James noticed Isabella's muscles tensing, preparing for another transformation.

The new door materialized in shimmering silver, its frame decorated with miniature Halloween motifs. Isabella braced herself, jaw set.

"This one's... different," she warned. "You'll feel it too."

As they stepped through, James understood what she meant. The transformation was instantaneous and disconcerting - like being put through a shrinking machine. Isabella's muscular form melted away, returning to a normal athletic build, but more noticeably, James felt himself compressing downward rapidly.

When the sensation stopped, he found himself staring up at a very different world. Isabella, now at a normal 5'7", towered over his new 4'5" frame.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," he muttered, his voice sounding higher than before.

The Halloween decorations in this reality seemed enormous from his new perspective. Jack-o'-lanterns the size of small cars grinned down at him, and fake spiderwebs stretched overhead like cargo nets.

"Welcome to the small men reality," Isabella said, trying and failing to hide her amusement at his predicament. "Don't worry, everything's perfectly adapted here. Look."

She pointed to a passing group of Halloween party-goers. The men, all around James's new height, wore costumes clearly designed for their stature. One particularly dapper vampire had a cape that would have tripped him at his original height but now hung perfectly.

"This is bizarre," James said, having to jog slightly to keep up with Isabella's now-longer strides. "How do you get used to this?"

"Practice. Though I usually don't shrink unless..." She checked her device and frowned. "We need to move faster. It's already 11:15."

"Isn't that plenty of time?"

"Not with the buffer periods between jumps. And something feels off about these transitions. They're too... erratic."

They passed a pub where a Halloween karaoke night was in full swing. Through the window, James could see men standing on raised platforms to reach the microphone while women sat comfortably at normal-height tables.

"You know," he ventured, "this one's not so bad either. Everything's adapted, like you said. And the women seem nice..."

Isabella shot him a stern look. "Don't even think about it. The dimensional balance-"

"Yes, yes, I know. Though you have to admit, the dimensional balance seems to favor women quite a bit in these realities."

She was about to respond when her device emitted a high-pitched whine. "That's not right," she muttered, tapping the screen. "The next door's appearing too soon. The buffer period isn't complete."

"Is that bad?"

"It's impossible. Unless..." Her eyes widened. "Unless someone's manipulating the boundaries."

A door began to materialize nearby, this one made of what looked like frosted glass. But something was different - the edges seemed jagged, unstable.

"James," Isabella said quietly, "I haven't been entirely honest with you. I'm not just monitoring the boundaries tonight. I'm tracking someone - another Balancer who's gone rogue. She's been destabilizing the reality barriers, trying to..." She checked her device again. "We don't have time. Through the door, now!"

"But you said the buffer period-"

"Now!"

She grabbed his small frame and practically lifted him through the door. The transformation hit immediately, but this time it was different. James felt himself growing back to his normal height, but something else was happening. His thoughts felt... sluggish, harder to organize.

When the change settled, he found himself in what appeared to be a high-tech version of London. The Halloween decorations here were sophisticated holograms, and the women... something was different about them beyond the physical.

"Fascinating," Isabella said, her voice now carrying complex layers of meaning he struggled to follow. "The quantum resonance patterns suggest a divergence in cognitive development along gender lines. The neurological implications alone..."

She caught his confused look and simplified: "The women here are smarter. Much smarter. The men... aren't."

"Oh," James said, finding it harder than usual to form complex thoughts. "That's... not good?"

A group of women in elaborate techno-Halloween costumes walked past, discussing what sounded like advanced quantum physics. Their male companions nodded along vacantly.

"11:30," Isabella announced, her enhanced intellect clearly processing multiple threads of thought simultaneously. "The disrupted buffer periods have cost us precious time. And if I'm right about who's behind this..."

"Can't we just... stay here?" James suggested, struggling to keep up with both her pace and her complex vocabulary. "You're really smart now. That's cool."

"James, focus. This isn't your reality. The cognitive imbalance alone would drive you mad within weeks. We need to keep moving." She checked her device again. "The pattern is clear now. Someone's deliberately leading us through specific realities, forcing us to jump before the buffer periods complete. The quantum stress on the barriers..."

"Bad?"

"Very bad. And we have less than thirty minutes to fix it."

The next door was already beginning to form, its edges even more unstable than the last.

"Here we go again," James sighed.

The door that materialized was unlike any they'd seen before - its surface rippled with multiple colors, as if several realities were trying to exist in the same space.

"This is it," Isabella said, her enhanced intellect rapidly analyzing the situation. "My original reality. The convergence point."

"The what point?" James asked, still struggling with complex thoughts in this intelligence-shifted world.

"She's forcing all the dimensional barriers to intersect here." Isabella's device was beeping frantically. "11:45. When midnight strikes..."

A figure stepped through the chaotic door - a woman as tall as Isabella had been in the first reality, with the muscle mass from the second, dressed in a Reality Balancer uniform that seemed to shift between different versions of itself.

"Hello, Isabella," the newcomer said, her voice echoing with multiple tones. "I see you brought a friend."

"Diane." Isabella's voice was cold. "I should have known it was you."

"Wait," James interjected, his simplified mind trying to keep up. "This is the rogue Balancer?"

"Very good, little man," Diane smirked. "Though you're not so little anymore, are you? Did you enjoy your tour of the possibilities? All those wonderful realities where women are... enhanced in various ways?"

The air around them began to pulse with dimensional energy. James watched in fascination as Diane's form flickered between different versions - tall and willowy, massively muscled, average height but radiating intelligence.

"You left that first door open on purpose," Isabella realized. "You wanted me to find him."

"I needed a catalyst," Diane shrugged, the motion rippling through multiple versions of her body. "Someone innocent stumbling through realities, forcing you to chase them. Making you see what I'm trying to achieve."

"By collapsing the dimensional barriers?" Isabella's enhanced mind was racing. "The damage would be catastrophic!"

"Or magnificent," Diane countered. "Imagine it - a reality where women can choose their form. Tall, strong, brilliant... why should we be limited to one set of advantages?"

The Halloween decorations around them began to warp and shift as reality itself became unstable. A nearby jack-o'-lantern flickered between different sizes and styles, its grin becoming increasingly distorted.

"Five minutes to midnight," Diane announced. "When the Halloween doors seal, the barriers between these specific realities will be permanently weakened. In a few years, they'll collapse entirely. Perfect integration."

"And countless people trapped in forms not meant for them," Isabella countered. "Dimensional resonance exists for a reason, Diane. You taught me that!"

James felt a strange sensation as reality flickered around them. For a moment, he was small again, then normal-sized but dull-witted, then back to normal. Each shift was more disorienting than the last.

"Three minutes," Diane said triumphantly. "Soon it will be too late to-"

She was cut off as Isabella suddenly lunged forward, her body shifting between forms as she moved - tall and graceful one moment, powerfully muscled the next, her enhanced intelligence calculating trajectories and probabilities even as she attacked.

The two Balancers clashed in a reality-bending battle, their forms constantly changing as they fought. Tall amazonians grappling with muscular titans, their uniforms rippling with dimensional energy.

"James!" Isabella called out between shifts. "The device! Throw it into the convergence point!"

He spotted her device where it had fallen during the initial clash. The display showed 11:59.

"But that's your-"

"Do it!"

James grabbed the device and, fighting against the disorienting reality shifts, hurled it toward the chaotic door. The moment it passed through, there was a deafening crack of dimensional energy.

Reality seemed to snap back into place like a rubber band. Diane screamed as she was pulled toward the door, her form unable to maintain cohesion across multiple realities. With a final flicker, she vanished through the portal.

"Quick!" Isabella, now back to her original tall, willowy form, grabbed James's hand. "Your reality - think about it, hard!"

The chaotic door stabilized for a moment, showing a familiar London alley decorated for Halloween.

"That's it!" James exclaimed.

"Go! You have twenty seconds!"

James rushed toward the door but paused at the threshold. "What about you?"

Isabella smiled, her form still occasionally flickering between versions. "I'll be fine. This is my job, remember? Now go!"

James stepped through just as the first chime of midnight began to sound. He stumbled back into his original reality, the door vanishing behind him with the final stroke of twelve.

The alley was exactly as he'd left it, though the Halloween decorations seemed almost mundane now. His phone buzzed - a text from Mike asking if he'd made it home okay.

James looked at the wall where the door had been. Had it all really happened? Then he noticed something in his pocket - a small purple crystal that pulsed faintly with dimensional energy. Attached was a note in elegant handwriting:

"Same time next Halloween? - Isabella"

James smiled, tucking the crystal away safely as he headed home. This had certainly been a Halloween to remember, and perhaps... one to look forward to repeating.

In the distance, a church bell finished its midnight toll, and somewhere, in another reality, a very tall Reality Balancer was probably filling out a very complicated report about this night's events.

THE END