He didn't climb trees often. Well, more often than he admitted, but less often than… say, a monkey. Not every day, but enough to stay in practice. Never knew when you might have to run from a non-tree-climbing Org, after all.

He was only about ten feet off the ground, with the tree between him and the wagon track, when he heard voices coming. He froze, figuring this was the perfect chance to test how much of himself he could hide behind the sturdy trunk. His costume, unfortunately, added a certain amount of bulk that had to be concealed.

"He said he'd meet me here," an anxious voice was saying as they came within earshot. "I'm not really sure where the, uh, volunteers were going to gather."

Max grinned to himself. This was perfect. He'd get to test his hiding place and his costume at almost the same time.

He risked a peek around the trunk of the tree, hoping to catch a glimpse of the person Danny was talking to. As soon as he saw Kendall, he drew back and rolled his eyes. They had stopped farther down the tracks, and he'd be lucky if they got close enough to spook. Given the chance, they two of them would probably stand there debating for days.

"Let's look over here!" A child's voice interrupted their uncertain conversation, and Max took another quick look around the tree.

Kendall had a little girl with her, probably too old to be her daughter--although for all Max knew, it could have been. Kendall and Danny were each holding one of her hands, and Danny had what looked like a trick-or-treat bag in his other hand. That explained why he was late, then… but he'd forgive the kid if she led them past his hiding place.

As though she had heard his thought the girl made a beeline for his tree, hauling Danny and Kendall behind her. He crouched down as carefully as he could, adjusting his leathers so they wouldn't catch when he swung down. Gripping a second branch, he waited until he could hear their footsteps beneath the sound of Danny and Kendall's protests.

Max jumped. Kendall screamed. Danny had his fists up before Max had even landed, and the little girl shrieked with delight. Behind his Zen-Aku mask, Max grinned triumphantly. Forget the hayride, he thought, pulling the mask off before Danny got any ideas. That had been worth the entire evening.