Halloween and the Little Robots
Halloween and the Little Robots In the world of tomorrow there is a village of the future, whose inhabitants are little robots. “It’s Halloween — let’s get ready to celebrate!” shouted the robots of the village of the future, all together. The pumpkins woke at dawn, washed their faces with the dew and, humming, put on their make-up. They took their places on the windowsills and in front of the doors of the houses, each with its own candle. With witches’ hats on their heads and baskets shaped like glowing electronic pumpkins in their hands, the little robots went from house to house, repeating: “Trick or treat?” At dusk, the candles inside the pumpkins lit up, illuminating the streets; the atmosphere was perfect as the village waited for the ghosts. As the clock struck midnight, they arrived like white shadows from the old castle tower. They leapt from one tree to another and, floating in the air, flitted about among the houses. “They’re here — we have to catch them!” shouted the robots, making their antennas flash. They sprang into action and took out their magnetic nets to block the ghosts, who, faster than light, slipped straight through them, as if they were made of air. All of a sudden, a gust of icy wind blew out every light in the village. The ghosts’ shadows stretched across the walls, growing gigantic, and burst into a mischievous laugh: “Ha, ha, ha! You’ll never catch us.” They started whirling through the air again, doing somersaults and spinning round and round above the heads of the little robots, who stood gazing up at the sky. The ghosts had formed a white cloud, and suddenly words appeared on it: See you next Halloween! Then, just as they had appeared, they vanished in a flash, leaving the robots with their mouths wide open. The littlest robot, its witch’s hat still all askew, lowered its magnetic net and said softly: “I don’t think they wanted to run away. They just wanted to play with us.” The other robots looked at one another. Their antennas stopped flashing and lit up one after another, like so many little fireflies, and the village shone once more. They had chased the ghosts all night long — and nobody had thought to invite them to the party. The following year, on Halloween evening, the little robots left their magnetic nets in the cellar. They laid a long table in the piazza, with glowing pumpkins all around it and plenty of extra baskets of treats. As the clock struck midnight, the white shadows arrived from the old cas