Something most unusual is about to happen in the Young Wizards universe:
Halloween.
Ronan burst out laughing as the tatty dark shapes came lurching and staggering closer and closer to the wizards in the darkness, bits and pieces occasionally falling off them as they came. The laughter had a slightly panicky edge to it, though, and after a moment Ronan got his control back as he reached inside his costume’s tunic. “Sorry, sorry,” he said as he pulled out something hard to see, “honestly. I just keep expecting them to start dancing. By any chance, are you guys carrying?”
Nita chucked her candy tote away, ripped her wand out of its sheath, and shook the safety spell off her charm bracelet. Kit threw his bag off to one side and his plastic sword off to the other and pulled his wand out too.
“Time to make a stand,” Nita said. “We let It mess up Hallowe’en, it’ll be coming after Hanukkah or Christmas next!” She whispered a couple of words in the Speech, and the rowan wand blazed with ready power. “You hear me?” Nita yelled, not just at the shambling undead but at the amused Power responsible for them and doubtless watching this whole thing. “I am taking Hallowe’en back, and you are not getting away with this! Not on my patch!”
Help us celebrate UNICEF’s 60th birthday as we publish the first-ever Young Wizards Halloween story.
“Not On My Patch” is the first of a series of planned YW short stories scheduled to be published together in late 2012 in a one-story-per-month anthology entitled The Wizards’ Year. We’re offering “Not On My Patch” to advance readers this year as part of an effort to help UNICEF celebrate the 60th anniversary of its annual Halloween “Trick or Treat for UNICEF” campaign.
“Not On My Patch” will be posted on the Young Wizards website at one minute past midnight EST on October 29, 2011. If you want to read it, click here or on the image above for more information. (And please reblog or otherwise share this message with others so that word will get around.)
