Witches, ghosts, and werewolves are all just fictional characters right? Well, not in the town of Westland. The kids returned home unscathed, each and every day. The only thing they felt the need to worry about was The Yearly Choice. This choice was made for the less fortunate, well I guess the more fortunate. If you were the governments choice for the year, your house would be raided and all you could do is sit there and watch it happen. They wander through your home and steal all your most prized possessions to… Well, we don’t know what they do with them. A trend the townspeople have noticed is that they typically go for the wealthiest homes. Last year, the Kingsley family was picked, and they ended up moving multiple states over, due to the embarrassment that followed them; no one ever heard from them again. We have yet to find out who will be inevitably chosen this year. 

“Get your hot dogs! Four for two! Hurry before the game starts!” Chanted the concession stand man happily. There seemed to be a million people in this baseball stadium. Every seat was filled for the most important game of the season, The Giants versus the Monstrosities. We have been waiting for this match up for what seems like forever.

“Come on Frankie, come sit”, my mom rushed me to our seats. The clock was ticking with only two minutes left until game time. This is my very first time at the Titan stadium and I am so glad I get to spend it with all my ghouls. The music was loud, creating a concert-like atmosphere. The team we were rooting for got a home-run in the first 15 minutes, and all was good until a shadow covered the entire field and seats. We saw something unexpected and terrifying. It was a huge drone-like figure buzzing above our heads. There was screaming and crying and running, but it was too late. In the blink of an eye, all our belongings started levitating. We saw our food, drinks, purses, and keys rise as every monster stood horrified. Everyone was confused about what was happening, until an overhead announcement went off.

“People stay calm. This will all be over soon”, a foreign voice told us.

“Mom, I’m scared” my sisters and I nervously cried.

“Frankie, girls, lets go! Now!” My mom hurried us to the crowded exit.

Before we knew it, we began levitating as well. There was no way for us to be pulled back down by gravity, we just floated. Suddenly, we found ourselves inside a massive hall. This is a place we have never seen before, it the most peculiar place I have been, all white walls, shelves and shelves filled with gadgets and random items. 

“May we have your attention” A stern robotic voice asked. All the monsters in this place were going insane and no one was able to calm down.

“May we please have your attention”, now, a couple octaves higher. Obediently, everyone began to quiet down, hoping for an explanation.

“As you all may know, The Yearly Choice has not been picked for the year of 2024 yet”, the voice said excitedly, “We decided to switch it up a bit and instead of choosing a home for the selection, we would pick a special group of individuals. Our team wanted specific monsters to claim as our own for the next few selections!” 

Silence sounded louder than any of our screams could. But, about ten seconds later, complete terror broke lose. Everyone was running, yelling, and crying. We had been abducted, with no way of escaping. There were no windows to know where we were or where we were going. All we had was one another; my sisters and mother all hugged each other, trying to keep each other sane. 

After what seemed like years, another announcement went off, “We have landed. You are all in good hands. Please line up and exit the aircraft in a single file line. Thank you for your cooperation.” At this point, there was no reason to disobey, so we did as they said. As we stepped out of the mall-like room, we came to recognize the neighborhood we entered. It was our home. Why would we travel for hours on end just to end up back home? Although I was relieved, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit off. The spots that held certain land marks like benches and bushes were empty. Everything seemed to be out of place. 

The voice warmly said, “Welcome home monsters”. But we all knew this was not our home. We were not safe here. “Mom! Mom, please, I want to go home.” There was nothing for my mom to do, this was our new normal. We entered our “home” and tried to relax and come to our senses, when all of a sudden we heard a loud bang on the window. A gigantic thing with long hair and massive eyes was poking at our house. I fell backwards and stayed laying on the ground, too scared to move my body. The creature that was ten times our size, and began to open the backdoor and poked its fingers through the door, reaching for us. We bolted away, past the kitchen, up the stairs and hid under my bed. We ended up falling asleep there, exhausted from the day of traveling. 

Hours later, my mom was by my side still, hugging me. I was the oldest out of my siblings, so she asked me to if we could have a mature conversation, “Frankie, I trust you. So, let me tell you something. I think we have been kidnapped and placed in a zoo or a dollhouse, something of the sorts. It doesn’t make any sense, but what else could have happened?”

It was all starting to click in my brain. The misplaced bushes and benches and the giant creature outside the window. My mom was right. We were taken from our homes and displayed in a dollhouse, for children to play with. We were turned into dolls. Forever.