The shrill drumming of a woodpecker's beak against hollow wood rang out from the forest canopy above. Danielle peered up curiously at the noise through the trees as she traipsed along the winding trail.
She and her sisters had been hiking for almost an hour, in search of a suitable clearing to make camp. She was the middle child of seven, all of them female. Her mother often told them that their father didn't want to stop until he'd had a son.
He must have gotten fed up with their lack of success on that front. Dani's Dad ended up walking out on the family when she was only 6, less than a year after her youngest sister was born. After that, their mother raised them on her own, deciding never again to bring another man into their lives to disappoint them.
The girls walked single file on the narrow path. They'd come out here to camp hundreds of times before, but it had been several years since their last trip. They were grown women now, and it had been a long time since the seven of them had been in the same place at once - even longer since they'd had a few days to spend with just each other. They walked in order from oldest to youngest, just as they had when they were girls.
Danielle's eldest sister Ash led the way, as she always had. She was 27 now, and still the tallest of her sisters. Her short, dark hair was gelled to look wild and unkempt, but it only made her look even prettier. She had tan skin, and always carried herself with confidence - even now, as she was having trouble remembering exactly where to find their old campsite...
Ash was the most adventurous of Danielle's sisters. She'd spent the last year and a half abroad, backpacking across several countries by herself. She was fiercely independent, and a bit of a tomboy, but also a natural leader when it came to her sisters.
Behind Ash came Bonnie, age 26. She wore her chestnut hair in a loose ponytail. It was a shade lighter than Ash's, with blonde highlights streaking through it. Bonnie was the most boisterous of the girls, quick to laugh aloud and always with an outrageous story to share. Even now she was talking animatedly, prattling on about how much fun they were going to have once they reached camp. Her big, hazel eyes gleamed as she spoke.
Dani grinned as she listened to Bo's enthused rambling. It had been too long since she'd gotten to listen to her big sister's stories.
Bo loved being the centre of attention, and so she'd become a performer, moving to New York to follow her dream of entrancing an audience on stage. She'd had some success in it, playing some large parts in a few successful plays, but still hadn't quite "made it" yet in the big city.
After Bonnie trudged Crystal, the princess. She was 24, just a year older than Danielle. Her long, auburn hair swung behind her back, almost reaching the swell of her backside. Dani could tell by the way she walked her sister was struggling. Her breath was shallow as she tried to keep pace with the others, her ample chest swaying in the tight tank top attempting to conceal it.
Crystal had grown into a woman more familiar with being looked after and spoiled than with hiking through the muck. She lived in Los Angeles now, where she worked as a model. Her most significant gig had been a prominent role in a popular rap video, which she never let anyone forget about. She always had a long line of suitors calling on her, and seemed to go through boyfriends too fast for Dani to keep track.
Danielle was much happier to get back to nature than her pampered sister. She grinned as she took in the beauty of her surroundings. She was 23, and had just finished college. Forever a book worm, Dani loved to learn and explore. She journaled as they walked, stopping to note every time they passed a new kind of lichen or beetle.
Danielle was a scholar, but also an artist. As often as she took notes, she would also stop to sketch. Art had been her chosen field in college, in fact. Her mother had worried about the practicality of it, but Dani was pragmatic, and already had several career prospects lined up.
Those could wait, however. For now, she was happy to enjoy a week in the woods with her sisters.
Behind Dani, Elliot cursed and muttered as she made her way through the leaves and twigs. The 21 year old staggered slightly as she walked. She wore large, dark sunglasses to shield her eyes from the unforgiving glare of the sun as she nursed a hangover from the night before.
Elliot was still very much a college girl, and had partied a little too hard and long on the eve of their camping trip. Dani had warned her Ash would have them up at the crack of dawn, but Elliot wasn't the kind of girl to listen to sound advice. She tucked her unkempt hair behind her ear. It hung past her shoulders, dyed black and stinking of hairspray.
Next in line was Frankie, age 19. Frankie giggled to herself every time Elliot stumbled and swore in front of her. She was a mischievous girl, and enjoyed teasing and torturing her big sisters at every opportunity. Her light brown hair was tied in two cute braids ending with long ribbons at each of her shoulders.
Her big, dark eyes always glinted playfully, and she loved to come up with games to entertain herself with. As they walked, she would balance herself on fallen logs, or skip rocks along the lake stretching out to their right, laughing as Elliot looked back at her with a judgmental scowl.
Finally, Gilly brought up the rear. She was 18, and the youngest of the flock. Shy and quiet, she didn't bring much attention to herself, and so the back of the group suited her just fine. Her dark hair hung in a long ponytail down her back, and she walked carefully, not wanting to dirty her clean, white sneakers.
Gilly had just graduated high school, and was apprehensive about striking out on her own. She was happy to spend the week with her sisters, sharing a tent with them as they gossiped and argued around her, reminding her of the comfort of childhood. Dani often looked out for her youngest sister, and worried about her while she was away at college.
"Can we... stop... for a minute?" Crystal panted as she fanned herself with one hand. "I could use a... a break."
"Again?" Ash sighed, exasperated. "We stopped twenty minutes a-" The older girl stopped mid sentence when she turned, seeing the state of her well endowed sister. Crystal's tank top was stained with sweat, and she looked as if she were on the verge of collapse.
"Fine." she conceded reluctantly, her eyes rolling. "Five minutes."
Crystal flopped down onto a fallen tree, grateful to get off her aching feet. She hadn't worn proper hiking shoes, insisting on her new, cute sandals, and the soles of her feet were screaming with pain.
Bonnie sat next to her, offered her a sip of water, and immediately began to talk her ear off. "Oh, Crys! Did I tell you about my last audition yet? I walk in, and this guy hands me a bloody axe and a chicken suit and says 'Put this on...'"
Behind Danielle, Elliot dug around in her pack, pulling out a carton of cigarettes.
"Oh, come on, Elliot! Do you have to do that now?" Dani groaned. A chorus of protests from the others joined her own.
Elliot ignored them. None of her sisters approved of her smoking, but she was a defiant girl. Just as she was about to light up, though, her cigarette was unexpectedly plucked from her lips.
"Hey!" she shouted, spinning around to face her thieving little sister.
Frankie cackled impishly as she pranced away, Elliot's smoke dangling from her fingers. Elliot gave chase, and Frankie led her in circles around Gilly, who stood frozen in fear. After a few laps, Frankie bolted in the direction they had been heading, maneuvering deftly between the rest of her sisters with Elliot in hot pursuit.
"Give it back, you little shit!" Elliot called out, as they both disappeared around a bend in the trail.
Dani heard a loud squeal, then Frankie called out - "Guys! Come quick!"
She followed the girl's voice along with the rest of her sisters, down the path and out into a large clearing. It was surrounded by trees with the lake on one side. Frankie and Elliot were standing in the middle. Elliot had reclaimed her cigarette and was lighting it, and Frankie was looking around wondrously at the pristine scenery they'd stumbled into.
"Right, I think this is a fine place to make camp." Ash decided, matter of factly. She eased her pack off her shoulders and casually let it fall to the ground.
---------
By nightfall, the girls had set everything up. One large tent sat in the middle of the field, and they'd constructed a fire pit in front of it. They sat on rocks arranged around the fire and roasted hotdogs and marshmallows while Bonnie told a scary story.
"...Suddenly, they heard a twig snap from somewhere beyond the dark trees, like someone had taken a step toward them..." she recited in a ghostly voice.
Gilly was shivering, curled up in Danielle's arms. Dani stroked her younger sister's hair soothingly, attempting to keep the girl calm. Her efforts were hindered, however, each time Frankie decided to grab Gilly by the shoulders and shout "Boo!"
"Frankie, cut it out." Ash warned from her seat by the fire. "Otherwise, I'll make you stay up with her when she can't sleep."
Frankie only laughed, and wiggled her fingers teasingly at her little sis.
Crystal sat next to Bonnie, ignoring her story and focusing on how dirty her sandals had gotten during the hike. "These were my favourite..." she mumbled, though no one was listening.
Elliot stood away from the fire, leaning against one of the trees on the edge of the clearing. She took a long drag from her cigarette, snorting and shaking her head at how childish her sisters were being.
Bonnie continued with her story. "The girls shivered by the fire, until Stephanie could feel the smelly, rasping breath of the killer on the back of her neck!"
"Excuse me, Deary..."
Elliot jumped at the sound of the old woman's voice, stumbling forward and dropping her cigarette in the dew covered grass.
She had appeared from the trees behind Elliot, as silent as a ghost. She was hunched over, wearing a loose, ragged tunic and a large shall draped around her. Her long, wrinkled fingers bore a wide assortment of large, colourful rings. "Oh, goodness! I'm so sorry, Child. I didn't mean to frighten you."
"I... I wasn't scared! You just startled me... that's all."
Frankie snorted from the campfire. "As if!" By now everyone else had noticed the stranger too.
"Would you like to come sit by the fire, Miss?" Danielle asked, standing to offer the old woman her seat.
