The Glass Path ~ A dark fable with Dr. Skullmoss

By: Walter G. Esselman

Hubert’s mother smacked the steering wheel, and made dark, furious, little noises.  

She was driving fast; so very fast.  

Now, Hubert had made sure that he and his sister were buckled in.  But still, he worried about the speed.  He glanced at his sister, Callie.   

She was looking down though.  She gingerly touched the bruise on her right forearm.  It was shaped like a man’s hand.

The car started to slow, and Hubert’s mother jerked the vehicle into the far right lane.  They turned off into a gas station and convenience store.  Eschewing the open parking spaces, Hubert’s mother stopped right in front of the sign that read: ‘No Parking Fire Lane’.

Angrily, Hubert’s mother shut off the car and started to get out.

“I’m hungry,” said Callie in a small voice.

Her mother spun around.

“No food,” snapped their mother.  “No food—you’re getting fat anyways—and food is for Winners.  They might kick us off the circuit for what your brother did.  Do you know that?  That means, no more competing.  No more cash prizes.  No more money.  In fact, No Christmas Now!  You know that?  We had everything in today’s competition.”

“I didn’t want to go with Mr. Jones,” said Callie in a soft voice.

“What did I tell you about Winning?” demanded Hubert’s mother.

Callie turned her eyes away.

Swearing, Hubert’s mother got out of the car and stormed into the convenience store.

Forlorn, Callie just looked down at herself.  She absently picked at her cowgirl costume.  It had been custom-made for the talent portion of the contest.  

Hubert took one look at her face, and immediately came to a decision.  He undid his seatbelt and then turned to undo his sister’s.

“What?” she said softly.

“Come on,” said Hubert.  Keeping down, he carefully opened his door and slid out.  Callie just watched in confusion.  

“Do you want to stay here?” he asked. 

Callie stiffened, but then she scrambled across the seat towards him.  Hubert carefully closed the door behind them.  They kept low, and he led Callie around the back of the car.  Once they were around the corner of the building, they straightened up and he took his sister’s hand.

“This way,” he urged.

“Where are we going?” asked Callie.

“I...I don’t know,” he admitted.  

They nearly ran towards the big fence behind the store.  It was a tall wire fence, but there was an open gate, which led into some woods.  Hubert slowed though as they reached the gate.

“Wha...?” muttered Hubert.

In the entrance of the gate was what looked like a path made of glass.  It grew, from a solitary point, to a walkway big enough for two adults to walk side by side.  Hubert looked down at the path and saw his own reflection.

“Is...is it safe?” asked Callie in a quiet voice.

“Hubert!  Where are you?” screeched his Mother from the front of the store.  And then her voice erupted into a dread roar.  “WHERE’S CALLIE?”

Both kids glanced back, but then Hubert stepped onto the glass path.  It held his weight, so he led Callie onto it.  The path was not slippery though. They shuffled tenuously at first.  But, when the path did not give like ice on a frozen pond, they moved more assuredly.  

The trees were tall with a wide canopy, which meant that only a little light came through. However, Hubert noticed that there was a soft purple light coming from within the glass itself.  And that subtle glow helped illuminate the way.  

They heard shouting from the beginning of the path, but the words were faint and indistinct.  It was as if the voices were a million miles away.  

“Where are we?” asked Callie cautiously.

“I’m...I’m not sure,” admitted Hubert.  “But away is good right now.  I don’t want…”  And his voice faltered.

However, Callie just nodded in agreement.

As they walked down the path, the day grew darker and darker.  Soon, only the path’s gentle glow lit their way.    

The glass path weaved here and there, but not in any great change of direction.  If the path deviated, it was only to veer around an old, stately tree.  

Suddenly, Callie froze, and by doing so pulled Hubert to a stop.

“What?” he asked.

“I thought I…,” started Callie.

A scream pierced through the wood.  It was high pitched and frenzied. 

The animalistic sound came out of the woods about forty feet behind them.  And then Hubert realized that it was more than one voice.

“Go!” he cried, and they ran.  

A beast on all fours broke out onto the path thirty feet behind them.  It was bent over and misshapen with sharp teeth.  Its knobbly spine stuck out from its malnourished back.  And it was followed by more of its kind.

“What are they?” asked Callie.

But Hubert did not even try to answer.  The creatures were getting too close.  Hubert glanced to the darkened wood and prepared to jump off the path.  

“Pardon me!” cried a voice from in front of them.  The boy looked forward and immediately skidded to a halt.  He yanked Callie in close.

The person looked like a man at first.  Except Hubert had never seen a man without flesh on their face.  This “man” was only a grinning skull with some green on it.  Dancing neatly around the kids, the person charged right at the monsters.

“Tally Ho!” he called out with a merry cheer.  

In one hand, he gripped a cane.  With a tug, the top of the cane came loose to reveal a hidden sword.  The man swung the sword in a wide arc right before the monsters.  The creatures, for their part, suddenly skidded to a halt.

“Hah!  Bugger off then!” insisted the man, but he did not have any venom in his voice.  “No meal here for you.  Go on!  Shoo!” 

As the creatures started to scrabble away from the man, he booped one of them on the butt with the end of his cane.  But he kept the sword well away from the beasts.  Once the creatures were truly away, he slowly backed up towards the kids while keeping a wary eye out.

Hubert now saw that the man was wearing a black top hat and a burgundy coat.  However, between the elegant, but normalish, hat and the coat was a skeleton held together by a shiny, black substance.

“Well now,” said the man jovially.  He turned to them, and sheathed his sword.  “My apologies for being late.  Needed to get the tea off the fire, or else the whole cottage might have burned down while I was gone.  Can’t have that now, can we?”

“Um...no,” admitted Hubert diplomatically.  He tried to subtly to put Callie behind him.

“Whew!  Glad to have found you,” said the skeleton man, and he noticed the weary look on the children’s face.  “Um, are you okay?”  But then he looked down at himself.  “Oh that’s right!  It’s me, isn’t it.  I’ve just gotten so used to seeing a dashing skeleton in the mirror.”

The man took off his top hat revealing a big head of mossy hair.  With a click of his heels, he bowed to the children.

“Allow me to introduce myself,” he said.  “My name is Dr. Magnus Pembrookton Skullmoss.  At your service.  And I am here to help you along.”

“Along?” asked Hubert cautiously.

“The path,” said Dr. Skullmoss as he motioned to the path that they stood on.  “And…” But then he suddenly stopped and took a step towards Callie. “What happened to your arm?”  However, both of the children began to retreat.  Seeing their reaction, Dr. Skullmoss halted.

“Sorry,” he said.  “I did not mean to frighten.  I saw the bruises on the young lady’s arm.  Did the Scabs do that?”

“Scabs?” asked Hubert carefully.

“Those poor creatures who were chasing you,” explained Dr. Skullmoss.  “Did they do that?”

Callie looked down and away.

“No...someone else,” admitted Hubert, and he looked embarrassed as well.

“It’s okay,” said Dr. Skullmoss gently, and he squatted down so that he was not looming over them.  Now, Hubert could see that a bright green moss formed a mustache as well—which curled at the edges—and a little goatee as well.

  “Let us start again,” said the skeleton man kindly.  “I am here, in this forest, to guide young people along the Path.  To help get them safely to the Blue Gates.  I would like to help you two get there.”

“That’s your job?” asked Hubert wearily.

“As far as I know,” shrugged Dr. Skullmoss.  “Weeeeell, truth be told, my purpose here has never been clearly defined.  Now, will you allow me to help you?”

Callie tugged on Hubert’s sleeve, and the two siblings looked at each other in silent conversation.  Then Hubert looked back.

“How...how do we know we won’t end up like those...whatever you called them?” asked Hubert.  

“Scabs,” said Dr. Skullmoss gently.  “You won’t, because I will keep you on the path.  This is…”  And he gestured to the ground. “...the Glass Path.  I know, cunningly named.  Those poor creatures, called scabs, were children that stepped off the Path.  It is so...so very easy to get lost in this wood.”

“Those are children?” asked Hubert.

“Were,” corrected Dr. Skullmoss softly.  “There does not appear to be any way to bring them back to themselves.  At least, not that I have found.  Though I’ve tried!  But they most of them predate me.”  He stood slowly, without any sudden movements.  “Now, we really should be going.”

“To the gate?” asked Hubert.

“The Glass Path ends at the Blue Gates,” explained Dr. Skullmoss, and he looked around wearily.  “It really is kind of dangerous right now.  The sooner I get you to the Blue Gates, the safer you’ll be.”

“And you want to just walk us there?” asked Hubert.

“Escort you, just to make sure you arrive safely,” said Dr. Skullmoss.

Hubert looked back at Callie who nodded vigorously.

“Excellent,” said Dr. Skullmoss with relief. 

The skeleton man led them along the path, but he gave a measure of space between him and children.  Reaching into his waistcoat, he took out his ancient brass pocket watch.  After examining the time, he made a noise, and then put it away.  

“We must hurry,” he said. 

The skeleton man moved just a little quicker.

“What’s wrong?” asked Hubert as they sped up.

“Nothing to fret about, as long as we hurry,” said Dr. Skullmoss.

Every once in a while, Hubert and Callie would start to fall behind, and the skeleton man would slow.  But Hubert noticed that Dr. Skullmoss kept looking from his pocket watch to the night sky.  Something was worrying the skeleton man.

“Blast!”

Suddenly, Dr. Skullmoss sprinted down the path.  The children stopped for a moment in surprise.  But they soon caught up with the skeleton man.  Across the Glass Path, a number of trees had been felled to form a wall.

“Those blighters!” growled Dr. Skullmoss.  He stepped up to the tree wall and gently pushed it as first.  Soon, he was testing the trees to see if the pile was steady.

Hubert looked left and right and saw that there appeared to be a path around felled trees.

“Um, why don’t we just go around,” said Hubert, and he took a step closer to the left hand side.

“No!” said Dr. Skullmoss quickly.  “It’s too dangerous.”

Hubert blinked at him.  “To go off the path for a moment?”

“First, I think that the sides are a trap, and second...well, we don’t go off the path unless we absolutely have to,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  The skeleton man leapt up onto the wall of trees and found that it did not collapse.  “No, it’s up and over for us.”

Hubert looked at the sides again, but then Callie went over to the wall of trees.  Dr. Skullmoss reached down and gave her a hand up.  Resigned, Hubert went to follow.

Once they were safely on the other side, Dr. Skullmoss picked up the pace again.  He was jogging down the Glass Path.  But his head kept turning to the night sky, which was starting to lighten.  At the top of a rise, the skeleton man stopped.

Hubert and Callie stopped as well.  The path led down into a green valley, and—at the far side—was a large gate that was indeed blue.  Across the canopy of trees were ancient buildings that stuck up out of the green.  There was even the remains of a castle, but that last building was miles away.

Then Hubert noticed that the skeleton man was staring over the valley.  His sight was fixated on the sky, which was now quite bright.  Dawn would appear soon.

“What’s really wrong?” asked Hubert finally.  “Is something about the dawn worrying you?”  

“I was hoping that we would be safely at the Gates by then,” murmured Dr. Skullmoss.  “Something comes out during the day.  Something terrible.”

“More scabs?” asked Hubert.

“Oh no,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “They are only-slightly dangerous.”  He came to a decision.  “Come on, let’s keep moving.”

The skeleton man started back down the path at a brisk pace.  Hubert and Callie followed, but a little reluctantly.

“So, what can we do?  Hide?” askled Hubert.

“That's one option, but there is nothing close right now,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “In fact, I think that is why those logs were across the path.  To slow anyone down.  I’ll have to go back tomorrow night to move them.”

The skeleton man kept looking at the sky, which was getting lighter and lighter.  The Glass Path led down onto the floor of the valley, and they could no longer see the Blue Gates, or any of the crumbling structures.

Dr. Skullmoss began taking out his pocket watch regularly.  He had just clicked it shut when they heard the first sound.  It was a dark, vicious noise, that rumbled like thunder through the forest.

“Is that them?” asked Hubert with barely concealed panic.

Dr. Skullmoss stopped though, and looked around.  “Just getting my bearings.”

“Do we run to the gate?” asked Hubert.

“Too far away, and they are fast when they want to be,” said the skeleton man.  He stopped and pointed his sword cane off the path.  “That’s the way we go.”

“But you said Not to go off the path,” said Hubert.

“I did,” admitted Dr. Skullmoss.  “But this is the only way.”

Callie tugged on her brother’s arm, and Hubert looked at her while they silently conversed.

There was crash behind them.  Something gigantic had hit a tree.  The skeleton man whipped around with concern making the kids tense up.  He saw that, and turned part way towards them.

“I will keep you safe, my word of honor,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “But you must trust me, just a little more.”  He gathered up the edges of his coat.  “I need each of you to take a handful of my coat and hold on tight.  We’re going to walk that way.”  And he pointed off the path.  “It will be a short walk.”

The kids looked at each other, but then there was another crash behind them.  Something big was getting closer.  Callie let go of Hubert and grabbed onto the edge of the skeleton man’s coat. After a moment’s hesitation, Hubert did so as well.

“For God’s sake, Don’t Let Go,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “Now, we’re going to step off the path.”

Towing the children, Dr. Skullmoss took them off the Glass Path, and onto the spongy grass.  He walked carefully forward looking this way and that.  The Something that was following them was getting closer.

“Should we go faster?” asked Hubert with a hint of panic.

“If we run, we’ll just gain their attention faster,” said Dr. Skullmoss, but his tone showed that he was frustrated by this fact.

Stepping around the trunk of a massive tree, a stone building seemed to leap out of the green, as if it had been playing hide and seek.  Dr. Skullmoss walked a little quicker now.  There was a doorway built into the side that was partially lit by one lamp.  There had been more lamps, but the rest were all broken. 

Close behind them, the Something was almost upon them.

Once inside the doorway, Dr. Skullmoss started at a gentle run.  Outside, the Something began to charge with a howl.  

Angling towards the stairs, the skeleton man took the children up and onto the first landing where he stopped.

The walls were curved around them, and stairs kept climbing up.

“What are we…,” began Hubert when a humongous arm jammed through the doorway, past its elbow and began to grasp about.

The kids let out little cries and let go of the skeleton man’s coat.  Grabbing each other, they moved across the landing, so that now they were as far from the door as possible.  But Dr. Skullmoss stood his ground as the hand groped around blindly.  

Questing fingers swung past Dr. Skullmoss, but he easily ducked away.  Then the fingers turned back.  The sword cane flashed in the dim light, and it stabbed under the fingernail of the index finger.

A cry came up from outside, and the arm was swiftly yanked out.

“Hah!” cried Dr. Skullmoss.  “That’ll make it think twice before trying that again.”

Outside the Something’s howls turned from pain to dark and furious noises. 

“Here it comes,” warned Dr. Skullmoss.

There was a crash from outside the stone tower as the Something attacked it fiercely.  The children let out a little cry as the creature pounded its fists on the stone.

“Don’t worry,” said Skullmoss calmly.  “It can’t get in here.  This tower is older than even it.  And far sturdier.”

The skeleton man turned to the children and slowly walked over to them.  He was careful to not make any sudden movements.  Hubert and Callie watched him cautiously.  With precise movements, Dr. Skullmoss sat onto the ground.

“Well, it’s not the comfy chair at my cottage,” sighed the skeleton man.  “But it will do.”

After a moment, Hubert and Callie sat on the landing too.  

“What...what was that thing?” Asked Hubert.

“I’m not sure,” admitted Dr. Skullmoss.  “Giants, it seems.  Truly, I’ve only ever seen them in passing.  They are so dangerous that even I don’t toy with them.  But the good news is that we just have to wait for sunset.”

“Wouldn’t it have a better chance of getting us after dark?” asked Hubert.

“Probably, but they never go out when the sun has gone down,” said Dr. Skullmoss.

“Why not?” Asked Hubert.

“Well—as far as I can tell—they’re afraid of the dark,” said Dr. Skullmoss.

“You’re kidding!” chuckled Hubert.

“How could one make that up?”  asked Dr. Skullmoss merrily.  “I mean, big, super-powerful, and always scampers home at dusk.  I have seen that, and it is quite comical.”

Callie was touching the bruise on her arm haltingly.

“I wish I had something to take the pain away,” said Dr. Skullmoss to the girl.  She looked up in surprise.

“Oh, it doesn’t hurt that much,” admitted Callie.

“Then, the pain must be in how you got it,” nodded Dr. Skullmoss.  “I wish I had a balm for that too.” Regretfully, the skeleton man held out his empty hands.

“It’s okay,” said Callie softly.

“Well, I won’t pry,” said the skeleton man.

“It was a man,” said Callie suddenly, and her brother looked at her.  Hubert wondered whether his sister really did want to talk about this morning, or was it yesterday now? 

“A man grabbed my arm,” she continued.

Dr. Skullmoss huffed in annoyance.  “The scallywag.”

“I don’t know...maybe he is,” said Callie with a confused tone.

“Sorry,” said the skeleton man.  “Continue, but…only if you wish.”

“I was in a show.  That’s why I’m wearing this,” said Callie as she motioned to her cowgirl outfit.  “I was going back to the dressing room to put on my makeup when…”  And both the boy and the skeleton waited patiently.  “One of the judges asked me to come to a side room.  But...but there was something wrong with him.”

“Was he a lizard man?” asked Dr. Skullmoss seriously.  “I always worry with lizard men.”

Callie let out a tinkly little laugh.  “No, no, he was just a regular person.  I just...maybe I was being silly.  Maybe I should have gone.”

“No,” said Hubert quickly.

“If you were worried,” agreed Dr. Skullmoss.  “There was probably a reason.  You were right not to go with him.”

“But he tried to make me to go anyhow,” said Callie.  “He grabbed my arm, and I screamed.”

“That’s when I came,” said Hubert, who was looking down now.  “I saw him, and...well, I jumped forward, and...I kinda pushed the judge down the stairs.”

“That’s when everyone else—and our Mom—came out,” whispered Callie.  “There was shouting...a lot of shouting.”

“The judge’s arm was bent kinda funny, in two different places,” said Hubert almost painfully.  He looked like he was about to cry.

“So,” said Dr. Skullmoss to Callie.  “This judge tried to drag you where he wanted.”

Callie nodded morosely.

“And you didn’t want to go,” said the skeleton man.

“Yes,” said the sister with shame in her voice.

“And you,” said Dr. Skullmoss to the brother.  “You stopped him from taking your sister away.”

“Our family is in big trouble,” said Hubert softly.  “They might stop us from competing, Ever!  So, Mom was mad.  Like really, really mad. I guess there’s a lot of money involved.”

“But you stopped this judge-character—who I’m still not convinced isn’t a lizard man in disguise—by pushing him down the stairs,” continued the skeleton man.

“I didn’t mean to hurt him,” whined Hubert quickly.  “I just wanted him to stop hurting her.”

“Good job,” said Dr. Skullmoss.

Hubert froze, and then he looked up at the skeleton man in confusion.

“Um, what?” Asked the brother.

“Good.  Job,” repeated Dr. Skullmoss with precise words.  “You protected your sister, as any sibling should do.  Good job.”

“But…I broke him, and we’re probably going to get in big trouble for it,” said Hubert painfully.

“Pfft!” replied the skeleton man.  “Just explain what was happening, and it should be all right.”

“I did,” said Hubert.

“And they didn’t believe you?” asked Dr. Skullmoss in shock. 

Hubert just shook his head sadly.  “Not even Mom.”

“Yes they did,” said Callie in a soft, dark voice.   

Hubert blinked at her, forehead crinkled in confusion.  “Maybe…they didn’t want to believe.”

“Idiots,” snapped Dr. Skullmoss with barely-restrained venom.  “Fools!  What kind of place is this?  You two did nothing wrong.”

“But…,” started Hubert.

“No!” interrupted Dr. Skullmoss.  “I will Not hear it.  You Did Nothing Wrong.  Your sister had the right to not go.  And you had the right to defend her.  If he were here now, I—myself—would give him a good, solid thrashing.”

“Really?” asked Callie softly and carefully.

“Absolutely,” said Dr. Skullmoss, a bedrock of assurance. 

“Mom was really mad,” said Callie.

“I do not believe that that was your mother,” sniffed the skeleton man.

Hubert and Callie looked at each other, and then at Dr. Skullmoss.  

“Um, she is our mom,” said the brother slowly.  “Unfortunately.”  And he looked up in surprise at Callie, and then at the skeleton man.  “I’m sorry.”

“It’s quite alright,” said Dr. Skullmoss as he waved away the apology.  “It seems justified.”

“But…she is our mother,” insisted Hubert.

“Oh, that she gave birth to you, and gave you your first meal, I have no doubt,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “But I argue that that does not make one a mother.  No, protecting your young...helping, guiding.  That is what makes a mother.”

“So, she wasn’t really our mother?” said Callie.

“Not in the truest sense, as I see it,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “Your mother would have jumped in to protect you, just like your valiant brother did.  Brave fellow that he is.”

Hubert straightened up a little.

“But now you are safe,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “And I will keep you safe.”

A small smile spread across Callie’s face.

Outside, there came the sound of more attackers beating upon the stone tower.  The kids looked up in concern.

“They really can not get in,” assured Dr. Skullmoss.  He stood carefully and took off his coat.  Next to the children, he laid his coat on the stone landing.  The skeleton man then sat back down where he had been and motioned to his coat.

“It’s not a mattress,” said Dr. Skullmoss apologetically.  “But it is softer than stone.”

Hubert reached out and gently touched it.  Then he and Callie moved on to it.

Since there was a stone wall behind the children, Dr. Skullmoss shifted around to face the doorway.  While the children had seemed reluctant to doze off at first, soon they were fast asleep.  

Soon, Callie let out a teeny-tiny snore, much to Dr. Skullmoss’ amusement.

***

Hubert jumped when a hand touched his shoulder.  He looked up in surprise.

The grinning face of Dr. Skullmoss retreated away, and the skeleton man glanced back at the empty doorway.

“Um, did I fall asleep?” asked the brother groggily.

“Both of you did,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “But both of you were not having pleasant dreams.” 

Hubert looked back at his sister who was still sleeping.  But her face was contorted in fear.  He touched her unbruised arm.

Callie jerked awake and she looked around wildly.

“It’s okay,” said Hubert quickly, and he held up his empty hands.  “It’s okay.”

Callie focused on her brother and swiftly shot forward to hug him.

Hubert murmured softly to her.  “He can’t hurt you.  You’re safe.”

Content, Dr. Skullmoss went to the edge of the staircase.

After a minute, Hubert pushed the skeleton man’s coat at him.

“Thank you,” said Dr. Skullmoss as he put his coat back on.  

Hubert and Callie looked from him to the darkened doorway out of the tower.

“It’s night,” said Hubert.  But it was also a question.

“I heard the Something’s scamper away over an hour ago,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “So, if we are careful, we can get back to the Glass Path.  Then to the gates.”

They stepped down the stone stairs, and looked out of the tower.  The one remaining light lit up a small patch of grass.

“Wait in here,” ordered Dr. Skullmoss.

Carefully, the skeleton man walked out a little ways, looking for danger.  He turned and saw that the children had stepped outside the tower as well.

“Oh no,” he murmured, and Dr Skullmoss started back towards them when a giant arm reached around the side of the tower.  It grabbed Hubert and lifted him up into the air.  Callie fell back onto the ground and scrambled a little ways back.

Stepping into the light was a Something with flowing brown hair and huge teeth.  It peered closely at Hubert, who pounded his fists ineffectually against the giant man’s hand.

“Let me go!” screamed Hubert.

The Something stiffened and looked down at this leg.  Using his sword cane, Dr. Skullmoss stabbed near its knee trying to fell the great creature.  But the sword was only pestering it.

Twisting Hubert around, the Something prepared to bite off his head.

Callie watched in horror and felt powerless twice in as many days.  She started to get up when her hand curled around a stone.  She stiffened.  Leaping up, she threw the stone, which hurtled right past the Something’s head.

The stone connected with the last lamp on the side of the tower.  As the lamp exploded, the area was plunged into darkness.

A frightened shriek came from the giant.  The Something let go of Hubert who plummeted to the ground.  Dr. Skullmoss leapt forward and the brother crashed down on top of the skeleton man.

“Ow,” said Hubert, but his voice was drowned out by the screams of the Something.  It bolted into the trees in a blind panic.

Callie ran over to her brother and Dr. Skullmoss.  She pulled Hubert up while she watched the tree line protectively for more Somethings.

“Hurry,” she said.

“You’re going to pull my arm outta my socket,” complained Hubert softly.

“We gotta get back to the path,” said Callie.  

Dr. Skullmoss picked up his sword cane and sheathed it.  He felt someone grab the edge of his coat.  Glancing to the side, he saw that Callie already had a handful of coat.  Curiously, he noticed that her body was already pointed towards the Glass Path, though she could not see it.

Once Hubert had also taken ahold of the skeleton man’s coat, the three retraced their steps back to the path.  Stepping back onto the Glass Path, the kids let go Dr. Skullmoss’ coat with relief and followed him.

The walk to the Blue Gates was uneventful.  The Glass Path led right up to the gates.  At the moment, the tall gates were closed.  They looked like they had been built from a bright, blue metal.

Stepping aside, Dr. Skullmoss motioned towards the gates.

“Well, there they are,” said the skeleton man, who kept the sadness from his voice.  “Sorry it took so long.”

“It’s okay,” said Hubert, and he took a step towards the gates.

There was a metallic whisper, and the gates opened by themself.  Hubert and Callie tensed, but when nothing jumped out, they moved a little forward.  Inside the gates was a white wall.

“Is that it?” asked Hubert.

“Yes,” said Dr. Skullmoss.  “Just through there.”

“What’s on the other side?” asked the brother.

“I...I don’t know,” admitted the skeleton man.  “It won’t let me through.”

“Why not?” asked Hubert.

But Dr. Skullmoss just shrugged.  “Maybe I am only supposed to be here.  Maybe I am paying a penance.  Maybe...”  But his voice trailed off. 

Going up to the white wall, Hubert reached out and his hand went in like it were smoke.  Pulling his hand back, he saw that it was unharmed.  He turned to the skeleton man.

“Thank you,” he said.

And Dr. Skullmoss clicked his heels together and gave a bow.  “It was my pleasure.” 

Hubert looked at his sister.  “Ready?” he asked.

Callie started to nod, but then she stilled.  She jumped towards Dr. Skullmoss and gave him a bone-creaking hug.

“I will miss you too little one,” said the skeleton man.

Stepping away from Dr. Skullmoss, Callie took her brother’s hand.  The children waved once more to the skeleton man, and then they stepped through the white wall.  

After a moment, Dr. Skullmoss took a step forward and touched the white wall with one skeletal finger. The tip grudgingly went in, and then burst into flame.  He pulled his hand back and shook out the flame.

“Well, worth trying again,” sighed Dr. Skullmoss to himself, and he turned.  The skeleton man went back along the Glass Path to his cup of tea, which was in need of being rewarmed.