Halloween: Open House in Hell – Song [Wraith]
Verse 1Porch lights flick on like beacons up and down the block, plastic skeletons rattle on their strings, and jack-o-lanterns grin with candlelit rot in their eyes,Kids flood the sidewalk in cheap costumes and candy-colored masks, little monsters on sugar missions under a sky that looks tame if you don’t listen to how the wind lies,Behind the bushes, real things stretch and yawn, bored demons slipping into hoodies and thrift-store jackets, walking the same route as the kids with better teeth and better disguise,They follow the chorus of “trick or treat” like it’s a hymn, sniffing the air full of sugar, fear, and all the quiet wishes parents never say out loud but keep behind their tired smiles.
Verse 2First house on the corner has a bowl of candy on the step with a note that says “Take one,” which is an adorable joke everyone’s happy to ignore,Little hands grab with gleeful greed while something unseen leans close and whispers, “Remember how this feels, you’ll chase this hunger later through jobs and beds and stores,”Inside those wrappers are more than cheap chocolate, there’s fine print curled around the caramel and dye, tiny contracts that stain the tongue as they go down,A kid dressed like a hero chews and suddenly feels small and wrong, like he’s wearing the costume of the man he’ll never be, and that feeling will be back every time he steps into a crowd or into town.
Pre-ChorusParents wave from the sidewalk, coffee cups steaming in their hands,They don’t see the extra shadows turning doorknobs, don’t hear the demons laughing soft as the curses land.
ChorusIt’s Halloween, open house in hell on every porch tonight,Candy-coated deals in plastic bowls under strings of orange light,You call it fun, you call it safe, you film them screaming in delight,While the dark signs names in sugar on their tongues and smiles just out of sight.
Verse 3Fog machine coughs in a yard that went way too hard on props, animatronic reaper swinging a scythe that squeals when you get close,Kids shriek and grab their friends, then march right up to the door anyway, because the promise of full-size candy bars is stronger than their ghost,Inside, a demon in a dollar-store mask and a well-practiced grin leans over the bowl and tells them they’re brave,Hands out chocolate that tastes like adrenaline and one day they’ll wake up wondering why they can’t stop chasing the edge of every high, the cliff of every wave.
Pre-ChorusPlastic fangs drip fake blood, real teeth sink into cursed sweets,Under the laughter and decorations, something old and patient taps its claws in time to their heartbeat beats.
ChorusIt’s Halloween, open house in hell on every porch tonight,Candy-coated deals in plastic bowls under strings of orange light,You call it fun, you call it safe, you film them screaming in delight,While the dark signs names in sugar on their tongues and smiles just out of sight.
BridgeEvery sour candy hides a secret, every gummy bear holds a seed,One teaches you to flinch at mirrors, one teaches you to confuse attention with need,One wraps your sleep in static dreams that feel like prophecy but never quite lead,One makes you laugh when you’re hurting and hurt when you’re loved, another makes you bleed for every wanting you feed.
They don’t snatch your soul in the street, nothing so dramatic, they just leave fingerprints on your fears,So ten years from now when you stand in some doorway wondering why your chest is tight and your heart steers weird,You’ll never think to blame the night you wore a cape and took that extra handful from the grinning stranger with the perfect friendly leer,You’ll just call it growing up, call it anxiety, call it love, call it anything but what it was: the dark coming home and camping out between your ears.
Verse 4By midnight the streets thin out, candy bags heavy, capes torn, fake blood smeared into real snot and tired tears,Decorations sway in the wind like they’re relieved it’s over, but out beyond the roofs the demons lie on their backs, full, content, comparing notes from the year’s new souvenirs,Inside, kids dump their haul on the floor and dive into it like dragons with hoards, parents steal a few pieces and laugh about “tax” while their own curses settle quiet in their gears,The jack-o-lanterns burn down to black at the edges, and the last porch lights click off one by one, but the night’s work isn’t done, it just shifts from streets to dreams, sliding deeper into their fears.
ChorusIt’s Halloween, open house in hell on every porch tonight,Candy-coated deals in plastic bowls under strings of orange light,You call it fun, you call it safe, you film them screaming in delight,While the dark signs names in sugar on their tongues and smiles just out of sight.
OutroNext year you’ll do it all again, new costumes, new props, same streets, same sky,You’ll tell yourself it’s just pretend as you watch them march up to each door with their little hands raised high,And somewhere above the rooftops, something ancient and amused will count them off and quietly reply,“That’s fine, keep calling it harmless, I’ll keep calling it mine,” while the wrappers pile up in the trash and the curses sit patient behind their eyes.
Verse 1Porch lights flick on like beacons up and down the block, plastic skeletons rattle on their strings, and jack-o-lanterns grin with candlelit rot in their eyes,Kids flood the sidewalk in cheap costumes and candy-colored masks, little monsters on sugar missions under a sky that looks tame if you don’t listen to how the wind lies,Behind the bushes, real things stretch and yawn, bored demons slipping into hoodies and thrift-store jackets, walking the same route as the kids with better teeth and better disguise,They follow the chorus of “trick or treat” like it’s a hymn, sniffing the air full of sugar, fear, and all the quiet wishes parents never say out loud but keep behind their tired smiles.
Verse 2First house on the corner has a bowl of candy on the step with a note that says “Take one,” which is an adorable joke everyone’s happy to ignore,Little hands grab with gleeful greed while something unseen leans close and whispers, “Remember how this feels, you’ll chase this hunger later through jobs and beds and stores,”Inside those wrappers are more than cheap chocolate, there’s fine print curled around the caramel and dye, tiny contracts that stain the tongue as they go down,A kid dressed like a hero chews and suddenly feels small and wrong, like he’s wearing the costume of the man he’ll never be, and that feeling will be back every time he steps into a crowd or into town.
Pre-ChorusParents wave from the sidewalk, coffee cups steaming in their hands,They don’t see the extra shadows turning doorknobs, don’t hear the demons laughing soft as the curses land.
ChorusIt’s Halloween, open house in hell on every porch tonight,Candy-coated deals in plastic bowls under strings of orange light,You call it fun, you call it safe, you film them screaming in delight,While the dark signs names in sugar on their tongues and smiles just out of sight.
Verse 3Fog machine coughs in a yard that went way too hard on props, animatronic reaper swinging a scythe that squeals when you get close,Kids shriek and grab their friends, then march right up to the door anyway, because the promise of full-size candy bars is stronger than their ghost,Inside, a demon in a dollar-store mask and a well-practiced grin leans over the bowl and tells them they’re brave,Hands out chocolate that tastes like adrenaline and one day they’ll wake up wondering why they can’t stop chasing the edge of every high, the cliff of every wave.
Pre-ChorusPlastic fangs drip fake blood, real teeth sink into cursed sweets,Under the laughter and decorations, something old and patient taps its claws in time to their heartbeat beats.
ChorusIt’s Halloween, open house in hell on every porch tonight,Candy-coated deals in plastic bowls under strings of orange light,You call it fun, you call it safe, you film them screaming in delight,While the dark signs names in sugar on their tongues and smiles just out of sight.
BridgeEvery sour candy hides a secret, every gummy bear holds a seed,One teaches you to flinch at mirrors, one teaches you to confuse attention with need,One wraps your sleep in static dreams that feel like prophecy but never quite lead,One makes you laugh when you’re hurting and hurt when you’re loved, another makes you bleed for every wanting you feed.
They don’t snatch your soul in the street, nothing so dramatic, they just leave fingerprints on your fears,So ten years from now when you stand in some doorway wondering why your chest is tight and your heart steers weird,You’ll never think to blame the night you wore a cape and took that extra handful from the grinning stranger with the perfect friendly leer,You’ll just call it growing up, call it anxiety, call it love, call it anything but what it was: the dark coming home and camping out between your ears.
Verse 4By midnight the streets thin out, candy bags heavy, capes torn, fake blood smeared into real snot and tired tears,Decorations sway in the wind like they’re relieved it’s over, but out beyond the roofs the demons lie on their backs, full, content, comparing notes from the year’s new souvenirs,Inside, kids dump their haul on the floor and dive into it like dragons with hoards, parents steal a few pieces and laugh about “tax” while their own curses settle quiet in their gears,The jack-o-lanterns burn down to black at the edges, and the last porch lights click off one by one, but the night’s work isn’t done, it just shifts from streets to dreams, sliding deeper into their fears.
ChorusIt’s Halloween, open house in hell on every porch tonight,Candy-coated deals in plastic bowls under strings of orange light,You call it fun, you call it safe, you film them screaming in delight,While the dark signs names in sugar on their tongues and smiles just out of sight.
OutroNext year you’ll do it all again, new costumes, new props, same streets, same sky,You’ll tell yourself it’s just pretend as you watch them march up to each door with their little hands raised high,And somewhere above the rooftops, something ancient and amused will count them off and quietly reply,“That’s fine, keep calling it harmless, I’ll keep calling it mine,” while the wrappers pile up in the trash and the curses sit patient behind their eyes.