Based upon the ideas and written at the suggestion of story_freak, for his pleasure and yours.
Pausing for a moment to stare up at the towering double doors of the school which rose before her, Mary heaved a great sigh. Today she would endure within those walls another eight hours of rejection and ridicule as she had for nearly two months since arriving in Germany. She wished as she had many times before that she was still back in Maryland, surrounded by the friends she had known all her life. Moving to Europe had been the worst thing that could have happened to her; she knew no one and had even fewer friends. Just last week, Mary had celebrated her 18th birthday at home with her parents. Sweet and understanding as they were, the evening spent with the aging couple fell painfully short of her expectations.
Taking a deep breath, Mary began the long trek up the stone stairs to the school, where she was quickly lost amid a sea of students. No one spoke to her, and the few that glanced her way glared at her; some even called her names and teased her. For Mary was exceptionally bright, and nearly at the top of her class. Being pretty also, though not remarkably beautiful, she was both envied and scorned by the other girls.
Sitting alone at lunch as usual, Mary pushed her food idly around her plate and stared off into space. She was daydreaming about being kissed by that cute boy in her grade--Mikhail, that was his name--when she suddenly became aware that someone was calling her name.
"Maaaary," called one of the girls from the next table. Mary's head snapped up in surprise, and the others snickered. It was Julia, another student from her grade. Mary frowned in confusion; Julia was one of the most popular girls in school. She was also one of the prettiest, with long glossy blond hair, wide blue eyes and alabaster skin. As she sat beckoning, Mary noticed with a twinge of jealousy that Julia's pretty shirt was cut low to reveal her ample cleavage. Mary herself was small breasted.
"Well? Are you going to come over and sit with us or not?" Julia demanded impatiently in accented English. Startled, Mary rose obediently and carried her tray over to the next table. Several girls scooted their chairs over to made room for her. Mary sat down wordlessly.
"So, Mary," Julia said, "I always see you sitting alone at lunch. Don't you have any friends?" The other girls giggled quietly, but Julia silenced them with a glare.
Mary shook her head, staring silently at her plate as though chastised. She wished she could sink into the floor.
"Well," Julia said firmly, "I think you and I could be friends. Would you like that, Mary?"
Mary glanced up at Julia's face and found her smiling down at her warmly. Her pretty blue eyes showed no sign of guile or dishonesty. Mary nodded, saying softly, "That would be nice."
Julia's smile broadened. "Excellent! I'm sure all the other girls would be happy to welcome you into our little group. But first, there is something you must do." She paused for dramatic effect.
Oh great, here it comes, thought Mary. The part where Julia laughs at me and says she'd never be friends with a loser like me.
At Mary's silence, Julia continued. "The rest of the group needs to know that you will be a brave, loyal friend. I know you will, but there are some here who are not so sure." Here she paused again and glared round the table at a number of girls. "So, in order for you to join our group, you must prove yourself by spending a night with us in the Castle Richtstag."
Mary looked up, startled. Foreigner though she was, even she had heard of that old abandoned place--everyone knew it was haunted. Why did the girls want to spend a night there, of all places? Still, she needed friends desperately, and could hardly afford to say no. "Sure. Name the day and I'm there," Mary replied, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt.
Julia smiled slowly. "Tomorrow night at eleven o'clock. Meet us in the rear so no one sees you--we'll be waiting just inside the cemetary gate." She rose suddenly, and all the other girls followed suit. "Until then, Mary."
Mary watched her go. Her head swam with confusion and fear, but her desire for friendship won out over both of them; she resolved at that moment to go through with the dare.
---
All that day and the next, Mary's head was filled with thoughts of the strange encounter with Julia and her friends, mingled with frightful images of the ancient, abandoned castle toward which she was now headed. She had managed to convince her parents that she had become friends with a classmate and was spending the night at the girl's place. Once out of the house, she dashed out to the main drag and hailed a taxi. Now she stared out of the window at the darkened streets, wet with rain, her heart pounding. When she arrived at her destination, a block from the old castle, she paid the driver and crept cautiously out of the taxi, pillow and sleeping bag clutched tightly to her chest.
Mary sprinted the distance to the cemetary. She tossed her things over the iron fence and hauled herself over after them, landing unsteadily on her feet in the mud. Julia and several other girls waited in the shadows. Mary could smell cigarette smoke.