Why can't Anything Edible not be a Black Sludge?

I felt like I was falling within an empty void.

My head locked in place, staring straight into the never-ending abyss. I couldn’t be sure that’s all there was, but there wasn’t anything to prove otherwise. Plus, it was comfortable in a way.

I had been running around for the better part of an afternoon, trying to make sure everything was in place for the Halloween Festival. Chased by ghosts, fed gelatinous liquids, thrown into the air twice – it was exhausting. Compared to all that, letting the darkness take me for a bit was great – I finally had a moment to rest. Or maybe an hour? Hopefully at least a season. I didn’t want to deal with Ms. Demon Leader Niya anytime soon.

The sounds of voices echoed around me. I couldn’t make out what they were saying; it was all such a garbled mess. Who cared though? I had no intention of waking up anytime soon. They would all disappear as I continued downward anyway.

Ah, this is the–urk! Suddenly, something slimy and viscous wormed its way into my mouth. It immediately triggered my gag reflex, but something had clamped my nose and mouth shut. I was struggling to breathe, making the black background much darker. I had no choice but to swallow.

As soon as I did, I jolted upwards, closing my eyes from the harsh light shining upon me. What happened again… oh right. I think I got hit by a stray rock or something. However, my thoughts didn’t linger too long. With deep labored breaths, my body convulsed as though it had experienced something it never wanted to again. Ignoring the… texture, whatever it was went down rather smoothly. It’s just as bad as the healing potion.

“That’s because it is a healing potion, genius.”

“Can you not read my thoughts, Asa?” I glanced upward. Asa was, for some reason, standing above me in a familiar position. She was still dressed like a witch, but unlike before, most of her skin was covered by a… cape? Coat? One of those two. Of course, from this angle, I could still clearly see a new pair of unsuited–

“If you say anything, I’ll actually pour something nasty down your throat,” she leveled a cold glare. Not really terrifying, if you asked me, since I was comparing it to Niya’s otherworldly smile. However, I couldn’t be bothered to argue, so I let out a sigh instead.

“Um…” a girl tried to sneak in, stepping between the two of– Whoa, didn’t expect that. Sorry, the girl was wearing a caramel bodysuit, highlighting absolutely nothing, but that didn’t matter at the moment. The ‘whoa’ part was what’s covering it: a thick layer of caramel ooze. She looked just like a sludge monster in a very… problematic manner. A big no, head-turning enough to make even me sit up for five seconds – four seconds longer than usual.

“You must be starving. There’s some food on the table, courtesy of the Cooking Club,” she continued, evidently shaking from embarrassment. I agreed; that was something I wouldn’t be caught dead in.

Hmm, I guess I can take her up on the food. A nice breather is great, though I wish Asa wasn’t here. Oh well. I moved myself to the table in question and took a seat. Asa, of course, sat to my right, prepared to thoroughly interrogate me. But first, I would have a bite of…

…

Oh, screw this… On the table was all manners of black sludge. Thick sludge, oozing sludge, liquid sludge – it was too much. Where was the pumpkin pie?! Or candy corn?! Or spiced juice?! What’s with everyone’s fascination with sludge?!?!? I took a hesitant bite, and…

“Damn it…” I slammed my fist against the table. It was the best pumpkin pie I had ever tasted. And it looked like a piece of crap. What did I deserve to receive this horrible punishment?

“Are you not going to finish it?” Asa said, taking another bite herself.

“Of course I am,” I immediately shot back. She had to be crazy if she thought I would pass on free food, no matter how much I complained.

“...so, are you going to tell me why you were falling like a bullet into the classroom? I only barely managed to save you while the classroom was moving. And I assume the classroom shuffle was your fault again.” Asa rubbed her temples, clearly annoyed.

“How rude.”

“But I’m not wrong.”

“Of course not. Though, it all goes back to Niya in the end.”

Asa sighed. “I don’t care about your conspiracy theories. Just explain what happened already.”

Hmm… there was a lot. Could I really be bothered to say that aloud? I already had my rant not too long ago.

…

…yeah, no. I shrugged my shoulders instead. Asa looked up at the ceiling in annoyance, but she didn’t make any effort to convince me otherwise. She knows me so well.

Once I finished my deliciously disgusting-looking sludge, I decided to take my leave. I still had so many classrooms left to check. Niya had to know how impossible this task was, right? There was no way she expected an unlucky lazy bum to figure everything out.

Maybe if I have someone I can push off all my tasks onto… “You want to come with, Asa?”

“Do I have a choice?” she said with a clearly irritated side eye.

I thought about it for a moment. “Probably.” It will surely make my life easier if you say yes. But it’s not like she knows whether Niya suggested it. And, as expected…

“Ugh… whatever, fine.” Asa quickly shoveled the rest of the sludge into her mouth with a big gulp. Then, dusting off her clothes, she walked past and opened the door.

“Um… would you like some candy apples before you go?” The Cooking Club girl pulled two candied apples out of her ooze, slamming them onto two sticks from a different countertop. So it is actually caramel… Confused as I was at the strange spectacle, I took the apples, tossing the other over to Asa.

Okay, now we’re ready.

Trailing a full three steps behind, I strolled out the door, prepared to push everything onto Asa.