"Trick-or-Treat!"
Sarah pulled open the front door with a smile across her face. She looked down at the three kids, flanked by their parents, who were waiting there with bags held open and smiles just as big as hers. The kids were dressed up, from left to right, as a Frankenstein's monster, a rather colorful video game character that Sarah vaguely recognized, and a-
"I'm a princess!" the little girl in pink and gold shouted excitedly. Her smile was easily the biggest of them all and, in her excitement, she started jumping up and down, one hand flapping while the other held the edge of the bag in her balled fist.
"Yes, you are!" Sarah agreed, her smile only growing wider. The little shimmery sequins sparkled and gleamed as the girl hopped up and down excitedly. Sarah retrieved several pieces of candy and placed them in the kids' bags, but had to try a few times before the excited girl slowed down enough for her to catch the opening. "Here you go, honey."
"Thank you! Thank you!" the girl shouted before turning back towards a woman standing near the front of the group of adults. "Mommy! Mommy, look! Can I-"
"Not until we get home, dear." the other woman said, clearly anticipating the next question. Sarah couldn't help but laugh as the woman looked up at her with a tired but happy expression. "Thank you. Happy Halloween."
"Happy Halloween to you too."
"Come on!" the little Frankenstein's monster shouted, already running away from Sarah's patio and across the lawn. "Let's go to the next one!"
"Hey!" one of the adults shouted. "What did I tell you about not stepping on peoples' grass? Slow down!"
"Thanks again." another adult called as the rest of the group filed down her front walk.
Sarah couldn't help but laugh as she watched them go. The night thus far had been nice. Lots of kids, lots of fun. It was cool, but not cold yet. The moon was full and there was just the slightest hint of a misty fog starting to roll in through the streets. Plus, almost every house on the street had decided to give out candy, making it feel much more homey than some years prior. Closing the door behind her, the smile she had followed her back to her easy chair.
The horror movie she had been watching sat paused from when the trick-or-treaters had shown up. On-screen, a young woman ran in terror from the beast that pursued her through the woods, just out of camera shot.
Picking up her phone, Sarah checked, but there was still no response from Ameer.
"Dude, you alright out there? She texted him for the third time that night. "Starting to think the monsters got ya."
She set her phone back down next to her in the hope that Ameer would get back to her soon. Or, even better, show up. The two had made plans a couple weeks before to enjoy the holiday handing out candy and watching a few select scary movies to celebrate the night, but she hadn't heard from him since earlier in the day. It wasn't out of the ordinary, perhaps, as her friend tended to get lost in his work. He was a bit spacy and this would be far from the first time something like this happened, but she always tended to hear from him the next day.
Still, she had hoped for the company on Halloween. It was Sarah's favorite holiday and it was always better with friends.
"Better be careful." she texted him again. "Or I'm gonna eat all the candy without you."
No response.
"Ahh, Ameer," Sarah said out loud as she clicked on the movie again and snagged a fruit candy from the bowl meant for the trick-or-treaters. "You suck."
As much as she wished she had company, she had to admit that the movie was good. It was the second one of the night of four that she and Ameer had selected. This one, "The Gorge", was one she hadn't seen before but one he had recommended. It featured a group of teens that were stuck at a campground when one of the counselors, interested in spending one last night with his summer girlfriend, sabotaged their ride out. From there, it was revealed that the campground was infested with werewolves, and the inability to leave meant that they were now being hunted and either being eaten or turned into werewolves themselves.
It was campy and fun and knew what it was about. Sarah had always enjoyed the teen-thriller monster movies and this one was easily getting added to her list to watch again when she could watch it without constantly pausing.
Sarah had always loved werewolf stuff in general. She found them cool, their legends interesting, and honestly, though she'd never admit it, maybe a little exciting. Something was enticing about the ferocity and the intensity, man turned animalistic, that just touched some of her buttons. She'd never admit it, but they got her heart pumping more than your average Dracula or mummy stuff.
Well, points to Ameer for his choices.
Over the next hour, she was interrupted only a half-dozen more times. Each time Sarah looked outside, she spotted less and less people wandering around. More houses were beginning to blow out their pumpkins and turn off their porch lights. On top of that, the fog that had just been starting to creep in was becoming thicker, making the street itself harder to see through the moonlight-dyed mist.
By the time the movie came to a close, she hadn't heard a knock in fifteen minutes.
"Bro, The Gorge was awesome. Sad you missed it. Are you showing up tonight? Hit me up." Sarah texted Ameer again as she stood to walk over and check out the two remaining movies. She was just deciding between another werewolf movie that Ameer had recommended, something called "Cookie Crumbles", and a 90's cult classic with all the Universal Movie Monsters called "Creature Crew" when she heard a knock on the door.
Glancing out from behind her living room curtain, the street was dark and misty; only illuminated by the fat, full moon that rested just above the tree line across the street. Sarah couldn't see anyone walking around outside and it looked like all the other houses were dark. She was probably the only house that still had her porch light on.
With a shrug, she started for the door and concluded she'd just give the kids the last of her candy and call it for the night. She could still enjoy another movie for the night at least without interruption. Or heck, maybe it was Ameer. Though he probably would have texted first.
Though, as Sarah pulled the door open, she found neither of those.
She didn't find anyone waiting for her.
Taken aback, Sarah stuck her head out her door, looking left and right. No one on the patio. No one tucked away in a corner trying to jump out and scare her. Nada.
"Hello?" she asked in the misty dark of the night.
No answer.
"Weird."
Sarah closed the door, but before she could even set the candy bowl down, a heavy CNKCNKCNK sounded on her door, making it rattle softly on its hinges. She quickly pulled it open again, only to once again reveal no one and nothing on her front porch.
"Oh. Okay. That's how it's going to be, huh?"
She walked out onto her porch, her focus on her yard, looking for the teenagers who had decided to play a prank on the last house with a porch light on. Still, she didn't find anyone. Sarah stepped forward onto her front walk, looking from left to right, but found nothing. Empty yard, grass, and bushes. The lone little tree that she'd planted earlier in the spring. Her car. But nothing else.
Turning, she walked over to her sideyard, just to make sure that no one was trying to get back there, completely unaware of the dark shadow that disconnected itself from beneath her car. It moved with a feral grace that belied the sheer size of the thing. Just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone, disappearing up her walk through her still partially open front door.
Unaware of what now lurked just inside her home, Sarah returned to her patio, popping the lids of the three Jack-o-Lanterns there and blowing out their candles. She then stepped inside, closed the door, locked it, and turned out her porch light.
"Silly kids," she said with a shake of her head.
She couldn't judge them too harshly. She'd been a kid once. While maybe something more was planned, she wasn't going to hold a little game of Ding Dong Ditch against anyone. If they were a problem, she'd say something, but for now, she'd just settle in and enjoy her movie. With a quick round through her house, she made sure that the windows and doors were all locked, the curtains were pulled tight, and, just to be sure, there wasn't anyone skulking about in her backyard.
Never once did she see the thing that was in the house with her as it moved quickly and silently. Always working to stay just out of eyeshots.
"Alright, Ameer," Sarah said with a sigh as she sat down, satisfied with her check of the house, and popped in the one other movie her friend had recommended. "Let's see what ya left me. Let's hope it's as good as the other one."
As it turned out, it was.
The movie starts with a rather macabre pair of teenage sisters, showcasing an intense disdain for humanity and an obsession with death and suicide. The imagery was strange and intense but changed quickly from concerning to horrifying when a beast that's been ravaging the local pets in town suddenly attacked one of the many girls, Cookie. Over the thirty minutes she'd been watching, Sarah had become completely enraptured in the gruesome film.
On the screen, a creature, huge and hideous, a werewolf from what Sarah could discern, growled and bellowed. It stalked after the girls as they ran through the woods, Cookie trembling and screaming from her injuries. By some measure of luck, they managed to get away, escaping the woods and back to their home where they were talking excitedly, trying to figure out what to do.
"Huh?" she asked aloud.
Something was weird with the film though. It seemed like the girls had escaped, but there very clearly was still a low growling. She'd heard it through the majority of the scene before, a constant undertone even when the beast was roaring and howling. But now it was still ongoing without the werewolf seemingly anywhere nearby. The rumbling, throat sound seemed to be covering some of the girl's dialogue.
Why couldn't they hear it?
