One of the previous Halloween gimmicks in Dinosaur City that was well-received was the one where the Dinotopians were portrayed as being lab experiments that have escaped and chased after visitors who were riding shuttles and golf carts. This year's Halloween was using a similar theme of people being chased by dinosaurs. But there is a significant difference here. That previous Halloween, the Dinotopians that did the chasing were large, bellowing, and could apparently be outrun by the vehicles. This time, the trick-or-treaters will need to beware of raptors hunting them.
The streets of Dinosaur City have been decorated to allow raptors a better edge. It would be rather to see a raptor coming in a city street. But now there were streets filled with fake tall grass, obscuring sheets hung from lines, and fog machines creating a steady haze. There were also speakers playing the sounds of insects and frogs, giving this fake wilderness an eerier air. Visitors would have to navigate their way carefull through the streets to find places to trick-or-treat at. And all the while, raptor Dinotopians would be stalking unseen, ready to jump out and screech. It was certainly enough to keep the visitors on their toes, even if they were never in any danger.
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Dakota and Harper were taking a short break from their stalking. "You enjoying yourself?" asked Harper.
"This isn't how I used to imagine hunting," admitted Dakota.
"You're not upset that you never got the chance to fly, are you?" asked Harper.
Dakota hesitated for a moment before asking, "Will you promise not to laugh?"
"Why would I ever laugh?" asked Harper, "You're my mate."
"Yes, but it will still sound silly," said Dakota.
"Ok, now I have to know," said Harper.
Dakota took a deep breath before shi said, "I'm actually kinda scared of heights."
"What?" asked Harper in disbelief, "But you were a bird."
"A bird that never got to fly," said Dakota, "A bird whose first memory was falling from a great height and breaking my wing. Since then, I've never been more than a few feet off the ground. If I had been a flyer before I was uplifted, I might regret becoming a Dinotopian. But I'm much more comfortable staying on the ground, especially with you."
"Well, I never thought about it that way," said Harper, "So you have no interest in living in one of the higher apartments."
"It isn't so bad when I'm safely indoors," said Dakota, "But if I look out the windows or feel like I might fall..."
"Well, fortunately, acrophobia is quite common and there are plenty of ways to treat it," said Harper.
"Well, a little fear is a good thing," said Dakota, "It keeps people from doing stupid things. And it adds some excitement to life. Speaking of which, shall we go give some kids a few screams?"
"Sure, but after that, I think we got a call from the the PR-MD guys," said Harper.
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The raptor hunt was considered to be a rather good addition for Dinotopian Halloween. The only regret was that there weren't any cornfields nearby to make into a proper maze for the raptors to 'hunt' in. Perhaps next year they'll have something set up for that.