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Correction: Merope was in the middle of a freaking forest, yes, but he was also very far from alone in it. Not that he probably realized this, of course, nor would he just yet.

This creature had a purpose in silence, and it moved with the eerie grace of a true apex predator, skillfully placing each footfall without so much as a crunch of thud. In the misty thickness of the trees, its bulk didn't seem at all a hindrance-- and there was a fair lot of it, actually.

The boy appeared lost, sure, but looks could be deceiving and it refused to take such feigned innocence at face value. No, these were serious times in Halloween, and that, of course, called for serious measures.

Finally, it acted, and purposely took a careless step once he'd settled, just four or five meters shy from his rear. What Merope saw of it would be akin to something like a large horse, or-- ...

Was it seriously some kind of unicorn?

If one didn't know any better, it sure would seem like it. The horn looked like a dead giveaway cresting its raised head.

The beast was not fazed. In fact, it seemed downright unimpressed with its possibly-to-be-quarry, the head of it raised high and angled towards Merope in some semblance of a stare back. For a few tense seconds, it remained entirely unmoving, but then, as if possessed by something demonic, its sides heaved a great breath, visibly puffing white smoke from flared nostrils, and its horn, somehow, began to unravel like a piece of fleshy braided rope.

Suddenly, in lieu of that horn, there were three long serrated tentacles quivering threateningly, and one enormous bloodshot red eye smoldering at their base.

It took one step forward. Just one, at first.

And that was the only warning Merope got before it charged right at him.

Merope's failed sprint was probably up there among the shorter pursuits in Halloween history, but at least there were no witnesses to point and laugh at him, right? ... Then again, it probably wasn't a good thing he had no backup in the middle of the woods against a killer unicorn monster. Not one to waste an opportunity, it closed the distance between them in just one great leap and loomed menacingly above the fallen student, perhaps contemplating which part to eat first.

... Though apparently it didn't plan on eating him right there in that particular spot, because it ultimately leaned down and grabbed him (... with its teeth, which were, for the record, extremely sharp) by the back of his exposed torso, hefting him right up from where he'd fallen as if he weighed nothing at all.

Now, where was it taking him, exactly? That would be hard to say until they'd gotten there, but it was plowing through the woods with him at fairly terrifying speed (he'd be lucky if he didn't lose any parts on the way) and no amount of screaming or pleading would slow it down.

The trees were getting thicker and denser, as was the mist in the air, but then suddenly, and curiously, it was interrupted by a hilly little sprawl of open air, and in the distance of that, there appeared to be some sort of structure.

A house? Maybe?

At last, Merope was released from the creature's jaws-- albeit far from gently. It threw him to the ground with force, and wasted no time in re-pinning him between its devilishly cloven hooves. The way its whole face had split open into rows of teeth couldn't be right for a unicorn, could it? Even a mutant tentacle-horned parody of one?

"Tell me, boy," it snarled in a terrible voice as its single bulging eye remained fixed on him, glaring. "Just what is it you were planning to accomplish stumbling around my territory at this hour?"

Okay, so it was sentient, but somehow that just made it even scarier.

"And skip the pathetic lies," it added, as it inclined its just just a little closer for him to better observe its teeth. "Or don't. But know that every false word from your mouth is a bone I rip out of you."

The unicorn beast's fangs were still bared in full glory even after Merope had spilled his guts, its lips only closing briefly in a look of something like contemplation before sticking its muzzle even closer and letting loose a deep, visceral growl. "And you expect me to believe that? An undead fish this far from water, lost in the countryside? I'm far from stupid, boy--"

"What is going on out here?" And then out of nowhere there was a second voice interrupting the drama, though this one had a much more pleasant, feminine ring about it. Was there a savior in Merope's future? ... Probably not, because another horrible unicorn monster promptly came cantering out from the mists just seconds later.

"Emery, what are you doing?" it-- or she-- asked, right before its own horn promptly split open to reveal another horrible cycloptic eye, cradled in some kind of toothed pincer. "Where did that poor boy come fr--"

"I caught him in the woods," the first one answered abruptly, though the rough, horrible voice it had used on Merope before was suddenly a few shades less threatening, and maybe even female, as it turned to its... partner? Companion? Herd-mate? "He could be one of them! You know that, Lilah."

"... And he could just as easily be a lost boy, like he says he is," the lighter one replied, pinning her ears back and looking down at the boy with what was probably pity. "At the very least, we can send him off the property with a warning--"

"Ignorant sympathy has jeopardized us before--"

"--But blind assumptions are no better."

The two fell silent for a moment, clearly in some stalemate of wills.

If Merope was a fool, he probably could've tried to dislodge himself while they argued.

Just the fact that Merope hadn't soiled himself yet (if he even possessed the capacity to do so) was pretty commendable, all things considered. Any lesser creature would've been doing more than just finding their oneness with the ground. Still, the first beast-- Emery, as it were-- was not particularly impressed.

"Lost is a story I've heard before," 'she' hissed, clearly not ready yet to budge from her quarry. "You get lost in a building. You get lost in a maul. You do not get so conveniently lost in the far reaches of an empty wood. Tell me, Lilah, when was the last time we encountered a surprise visitor who wasn't some lying--"

"M-Mother? .. Mom?"

Oh, great, and now there was a third horrible unicorn monster suddenly entering the fray, though it was a fair bit smaller than the first two, a light faced dapple grey. This one was much more hesitant, however, and Emery did not seem thrilled to see it.

"Toby, go back to the house," she ordered sharply. "I don't want you involved in this."

"Honeybee, please," 'Lilah' added much more softly. "... Your mother caught a trespasser. We're just not certain where he came from."

There was another brief pause as the little one absorbed this, and Emery seethed silently, before the former-- Toby-- said something strange.

"But isn't he an Amityville student? I-- ... I think I know him from class."

For a tense few seconds, Emery just stared at the frantically offered skull pin, and her muzzle twitched with incredulity. Surely, Amityville wouldn't shelter such incredibly inept messes like this-- but then again...

"... Are you certain you're willing to vouch for him, Toby?" she asked, her attention switching back to the smaller dapple, who seemed visibly uncertain, before she ducked her head in a small nod. "Remember, then, that you are the one who permitted this. Any problems that come of it will be on your shoulders."

"Y-- ... Yes, Mother," Toby nodded a second time, and with that, finally, the great angry beast pinning Merope stepped off and away, turning from him with a displeased snort. Within just a few steps, her form had partially dissolved into the mist, and then, she seemed as good as gone, leaving only Toby and 'Lilah' to the mess of leftovers.

"So, you're one of Toby's classmates?" the latter asked in her best attempt of cheer, though she also made a point of keeping her distance so as not to... well, traumatize the poor boy any more. "And I do apologize for that little mishap. We're just not used to unexpected company! Would you like to stay for a bit? Have a drink? Some snacks? We have plenty in the house."

Talk about jarring mood whiplash; first threats of mauling, and now an invitation to lunch?

While 'Lilah' talked, Toby had taken the liberty of changing, it seemed, into a far more recognizable (or at least less horrifying) shape behind her, reverting back to the more familiar hoofed and horned student in violet gray.