Everyone ought to know that you do not wish to disturb the dead. If they have passed on and are contented where they have gone then they are so far beyond this earth that you truly can't contact or disturb them. But as I know well being a Medium when the dead are discontented and still interested in influencing or even rejoining this world then much trouble can ensue.

Halloween (All Hallows eve) is an auspicious time for these spirits and those such as I must ward themselves well as the spirits who do wish to return or wish to create havoc are closer than ever and the most powerful will always be able to manifest in some manner on this day. Halloween of course is not the only date when spirits may cross back over but because so many people believe and celebrate Halloween in one fashion or another there is power in their combined belief that the restless spirits can and will exploit.

So it was with great trepidation that I looked forward to my fortieth Halloween (wouldn't you know that being born on the thirty first of October makes you more apt to be sensitive to the spirits of the dead) knowing full well that some damned fool would certainly try to contact old uncle Abe or grandpa 'cause he'd hidden the family fortune too well for the greedy grandkids to find.

Well as I said, if a person who has died (and the ones who have hidden their money are good candidates for this particular habit) maintains any interest in this world they will consider that no one should disturb their possessions. What? You thought that the curse of the Pharaohs was bunk. Nonsense! Disturbing the grave of a king is dangerous at any time. Disturbing the grave of a king who was often a priest of his religion is foolhardy! Yet people do this 'cause the lure of so much lucre is greater than their fear of death.

I barred my door (though that would not keep wandering spirits out) before the sun set and set as many wards against wandering spirits as I knew of long before the last ray of sun faded from the gloomy autumn sky upon this day of my birth. I might long for companionship but even cats and dogs tended to avoid me ... and a mundane fellow? Hah! One night when an uneasy spirit walks through your bedroom and even the densest brick of a man will generally not call back.

It wasn't yet midnight when the dreaded pounding on my door came. Just as I'd had the premonition it would (not that I had had very many Halloweens since I was able to defend myself [my mother was a medium to or I suspect I'd have been put in an asylum] that were not so disturbed) someone was beating on my door projecting great dread.

I answered as quickly as I could (for I never sleep on Halloween) and was astonished to see Kyle, a recent widower at my door. I'd often hungered after his body even though I'd never have done anything about it while his wife was still alive. Before I could ask what the problem was, he blurted out, "Someone told Hilda that she could contact her mother tonight and she tried. I don't know what exactly happened after she set the ritual but I can't get in her room and it looks like it is filled with fog."

"Have you any reason to suspect that Meredith would have an interest beyond the children in staying in contact with this plane?" I asked.

"None that I know of," he answered

"Well then this will either end very well or it will be very ugly," I said as I picked up my go bag full of the accoutrements of my profession.

"What do you mean?"

"The best case scenario is that Meredith has stayed close and has been guarding Hilda."

"And what is the worst case scenario?" Kyle asked, proving that he was at least competent enough to realize that there was a great deal of danger for his child.

"That something or someone (though most spirits are neuter when they have been disconnected from this world for very long) that wishes to become active in this world through a body has possessed your daughter. If that is the case we may have to kill Hilda without making it appear that that is what we have done. For if you and I do that your other children will be orphans yet if Hilda has been possessed by an evil (and remember that most if not all spirits that will possess a young child are evil) spirit then the only recourse to remove it we may have it to destroy the house it has occupied."

Kyle stopped and grabbed my arm. "Are you serious Sandee?"

"Deadly. I know this could send me and you to prison but it must be considered."

"How will you know which it is?" Kyle asked a look of desperation on his face.

I patted my bag and said, "I've a few things in here, besides my own powers that should be able to sort this out," I paused a moment to consider and then asked, "have you called a priest or a rabbi?"

"No, do you think I should?" he asked.

I pulled out my cell phone and hit the speed dial for Father Joe. I trusted him enough that I had him bless the holy water that was among the items in my go bag. When the phone was answered I said, "Joe, Kyle Coffee's daughter Hilda tried to contact her mother tonight. She contacted something and Kyle came to me to sort it out. I don't know if I'll need your assistance but I'd appreciate it."

Joe's answer was quick and to the point, "I'll be at his house in ten minutes."

Kyle took my hand and helped me into his SUV that he had parked (illegally I noticed) on my small square of lawn. "Sandee, I want you to know," he said looking at me seriously, "that no matter how this comes out I appreciate your help. Meredith used to tease me about inviting you for a threesome or even as a permanent partner in our relationship but I never considered that you would accept any such thing."

I wished I could strangle Kyle for disturbing my concentration with such a trivial thing as telling me his dead wife (my best friend Meredith) had been trying to convince him to invite me to join them. I also wondered for a second why Meredith had not invited me in to ambush Kyle...

By the time I got my mind around the idea that Meredith had probably felt that Kyle would not have appreciated her ambushing him with the fact that we had been occasional lovers before they were married we had arrived at their house. As I entered the dwelling I was more than a little pleased to notice that there was no outward aura of menace within the place. Not that I expected one as Meredith had had me consecrate the house and ward it against malevolent spirits.

"Where is Hilda's room?" I asked.

Kyle took my hand (which gave me more of a thrill than I would have expected just a short while ago) and lead me toward the back of the house. When we approached the door to what was obviously Hilda's room I was more than a little surprised to discover a crude ward upon the child's door. Neither I, nor so far as I was aware Meredith had set such a ward. As the room was still full of a dense fog and although I sensed nothing malignant about it, the fact of its existence argued for something out of the ordinary having occurred.

"Hilda?" I called from the doorway rather than enter the room just yet, "are you ok dear?"

"Aunt Sandee! This is scary!" Hilda's voice came from inside the room.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"I read a book that said if you drew a circle and did a ritual that you could talk to people who had died. I miss mommy so much that I just had to know if she really went to heaven like daddy says."

"Did you do anything else besides draw a circle?"

"I thought hard about how I wanted to stay safe inside the circle like the book said I should..."

There were times (like this) when I hated that some people felt the necessity to disseminate any and all information. Magic, like sex is exciting and can be a very pleasurable experience (especially if you can combine them... ) but both are dangerous and should not be practiced purely for pleasure. That is the short version of sex education and to a certain degree the most any child who has not entered puberty needs to know about sex. Ok you can tell them that touching themselves is not bad nor is it terribly dangerous but leave it at that with an open door to answer any and all questions they may pose.

I had to stop thinking about both the future and the past though if I was going to deal with the present and whatever had been attracted to Hilda's call in the spirit realm to her mother. Since it seemed (so far as I knew) that Hilda was safe inside her circle I would need to find out what exactly was trapped in her room by the wards (which meant that Hilda would be seeing much more of me) she had apparently set.

The first question I had to ask myself was whether I thought that I could safely dispel whatever was causing Hilda's room to be fogged in in an unnatural manner. I could try to cast my own circle here in another room of the house and see if I could communicate with the being that seemed to be occupying Hilda's room or I could ward myself strongly and try to pass Hilda's wards. After a moment more of consideration I decided that the wards on Hilda's door should be my starting point.

Carefully so as not to break them I began to investigate them. They were strong if crude and seemed to be neutral toward the being on the other side as well as toward me. This in itself was interesting because there are few intelligences in all of the world that are entirely neutral. It has been my experience that any creature that has even a modicum of self-will will always seek its own advantage. While neutrality did not necessarily mean there was no self interest being sought by whatever was in Hilda's room it did bring to my mind that there was a small possibility that Hilda had tapped a ley line or other power source.

I investigated the ones that I knew of and felt no changes in them, so unless Hilda had vented a small pocket of power that was not the cause of the manifestation in her room, though I did not think that was what had occurred. I was just considering whether or not to attempt to link to Hilda's wards when Father Joe arrived. "What have you found?" his deep voice that seemed to call to some primitive part of me that had me wanting to act like a bitch in heat and to pull his hands right down onto my pussy which gave an intense spasm every time I heard him speak.

"I'm not sure," I answered, "Hilda evidently summoned something when she tried to contact Meredith. What, I have yet to determine."

"Aunt Sandee, who's out there with you?" Hilda's voice trembled from within the fog filled room.

"Father Joe," I answered.

"Is he gonna make you my new mommy?"

"I think that is up to your daddy not me," Father Joe answered.

"Oh ... Well could you tell him that mommy said that he should make sure to marry Aunt Sandee if she wants to marry him?"

My embarrassment had me looking away from Joe which I suppose was good as I saw the fog in Hilda's room shift as Hilda talked to Joe. It was as if the fog was attempting to manifest a human female shape. Perhaps it was this and perhaps it was that I decided that some action was necessary but at that point I linked with the ward that Hilda had placed on her door. I was immediately aware of an ancient power; it was definitely feminine and maternal. For a moment my mind scrambled like a hamster in a wheel and then my fears eased as the power did not consume me, indeed I felt like I was once more cradled like an infant by my own mother.