“Trick or treat!” it says, with a false enthusiasm that never reaches its face. Its hand – only three fingers, which no one ever notices – hovers near the doorbell, ready to ring again. It struggles to pull unfamiliar muscles into an imitation smile as it holds out the tattered shopping bag. Two miniature Snickers fall in.

“That's swell, mister!”

It knows the phrase, and perhaps three others, by rote. They are as much a costume as the cowboy outfit.

It grasps the man’s wrist before he can turn away, turning its blank, back eyes upward. “Can I come in? I’m hungry.”

Image Credit: Simon Syon

The Cue

This week's inspiration for the 100 Word RPG Hook was "costume," which, along with this well-developed (but relatively recent) urban legend informed today's entry. 

More 100 Words

Need more 100 Word RPG Hooks? Illuminerdy fan Tom (@amarthis) responds with precisely 100 words of Halloween-flavored poetry in his own "Costume."