The fire in front of them crackled and roared and warmed them despite the crisp autumn air.

It was their annual Halloween night ritual and had been since they were pizza faced and still in braces and giggling about the latest boy bands and debating who was better, N'sync or Backstreet Boys. 

Candace always said it was N'Sync and to this day if you asked her she would tell you that they were somehow more iconic than the Backstreet Boys to which Mariah would wholeheartedly disagree and Heather would try to pretend that she had long ago stopped liking boy bands and then they would laugh about her Juggalo phase in high school.

These nostalgic reflections were all part of the fun and they had plenty to last them the entire night even without rehashing the same events but part of their ritual was to each take turns telling a scary story. Originally they had just read the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark Series by Alvin Schwartz passing the well-worn copies back and forth but after a while, they realized they needed to make their own stories.

It was perhaps Mariah's favorite part of the entire night. She often planned her stories months in advance researching some local urban legend and twisting it to make it her own piece of Dark Art. She usually went first but tonight she decided to save hers for last. After all, her story was guaranteed to make their skin crawl and their skeletons try to escape the confines of their flesh prisons in terror. Or at least that was her hope.

"So who brought the weed?" Candace said looking directly at Heather who rolled her eyes before pulling a baggie out of her pocket with freshly rolled joints.

"You know it wouldn't hurt one of you to actually supply it one of these days instead of always expecting me to." 

Mariah laughed a little. "But it's tradition."

Back in high school Heather was the first of their group to smoke and introduced them to it. Mariah could still remember standing behind the movie theater and taking that first hit before going in and discovering the joys of vanilla Mountain Dew and missing the entire movie.

Heather lit the joint and took a deep hit before passing it to Candace who coughed then passed it to Mariah.

Candace looked at Mariah who was just exhaling a huge cloud of smoke. "Soo... are you wanting to tell your story?" she asked in her sing-song voice sounding wonderfully enthusiastic.

Mariah shook her head. “I was thinking one of you could go first for a change."

Heather shrugged. "Okay then. I've got one. Hand me the flashlight." 

This actually surprised Mariah to some degree because usually, Heather was never this prepared. She usually waited until last and just made hers up as she went along. Although with that said they always proved to be pretty entertaining. Mariah reached into her duffel bag and tossed a large plastic yellow flashlight towards Heather who caught it midair and switched it on and shined the light on her face and began.

"How I spent my summer vacation or Shark Poon."

"One winter Danny and his surfer friends decided to go hunt bigger waves in Australia. They saved up all year for it working fast food and skimping on dates. Danny even got his girlfriend simple water at Sonic and pretended he misunderstood when she had asked for an Ocean Water. Nothing was going to stop him from catching those rad waves. Besides he could get better pussy there he was sure of it.

"Being thrifty worked because by December he and his friends, Jake, Marco, and Paul, all were on a plane and headed down under. The first couple of days went normally. They got plenty of sun and laughed about their friends back home being stuck in the snow.

"One day Danny decided to sit on the beach for a while. While the other three surfed he wanted to check out the local sand poon and who knows maybe he'd get lucky. After all, he wasn't a bad looking dude.

"He found his eyes scanning the beach taking in countless bikini-clad babes, and felt the need to adjust his cock that was instantly reacting to the sight. Yes, he was going to hook up before heading back home even if it meant less time surfing. Sometimes sacrifices must be made.

'He was checking out a blonde with a rack the size of beach balls when he was suddenly interrupted by a volleyball bouncing off his head. He let out a loud 'Umpphhhmmfff... fuck,' and rubbed his forehead in a bit of a daze when he looked up at a gorgeous redhead with some pretty decent tits on her and legs worthy of being framed. 'Oh, my god... I'm so sorry,' she said.

"'What... ' Danny stammered.

"'About hitting you just then. Me and my friends we get careless somedays and I didn't see you over here,' she said in an apologetic tone.

"'Oh that, yeah, uh yeah, I'm okay.' He looked over at her friends. There were three of them. How perfect, he thought. Dates for all his friends, also. Yeah, he'd get them all laid and be their hero forever.

"She flashed a glimmering white smile at him. 'American, huh?'

"Danny nodded. 'Yeah, me and my friends are here to surf,' he said motioning towards them in the water. 

"They talked a while longer before Danny got around to asking her on a date, then they introduced their friends to each other. Jake instantly took to the short blonde cheerleader type named Britney and Marco picked the quiet brunette with the flashing green eyes named Kathryn and Paul got with the strawberry blonde whose legs seemed to stretch out for miles named Amber. Danny was left with what he was proud to say was the best looking one of the bunch, Aubrey.

"The first date was fun. The girls took them around and showed them all the local sights. Then dates rolled into more dates and Danny found himself dreading having to go back. What was initially just a plan to get his dick wet had become something more. There was something about Aubrey that made his heart flutter in his chest.

"Then one night they went surfing and afterward split up. He and Aubrey went into a tucked away cave and began making love. That's when he heard the screams of his friends. Loud agonizing screams and the sound of sand being kicked about. He tried to get out from under Aubrey to go help them but she kept him pinned. 'Don't, we can't go out there. The moon is full.' 

"'Get the fuck off me,' he yelled. He was surprised at how strong she was. It was hard for him to get her off him.

"'Don't..., ' she yelled to no avail as Danny ran out fully intent on helping his friends. But when he got out there all he saw was their mangled corpses and blood soaked sand and three humanoid looking sharks devouring them.

"'I tried to warn you. I brought you in here to keep you safe but you didn't listen. When the moon is full on a hot summer’s night we must feed on our lovers and now I can't let you go,' Aubrey said. Her voice had changed and the last thing Danny saw was the glow of her eyes before he let out the loudest scream of his life and everything went black."

Mariah and Candace let out a loud round of applause and several bravos. 

"Well done, but I don't think it'll top mine," Candace said with a bit of a smirk.

Heather handed her the flashlight. "Let’s hear it, Ms. Marples."

"A Home of Their Own or Buyer Beware," she started.

"Martin and Laura lived in an apartment for years with dreams of something better. A home of their own where they didn't have inspections and could have as many pets as they wanted and paint their walls any kind of outlandish color they felt like. One evening Martin came home with exciting news. He had gotten a raise after all these years of hard grueling factory work and it was enough of one that they could start looking for a house so long as it was within a certain price range.

"Laura excitedly began looking at every website she could find for houses in their area. She looked for months for just the right one and finally, she found it, an old Victorian-era house with a huge porch and towers and large ornate stained windows and steep gabled roofs and chipped white paint on the otherwise fancy exterior. Laura thought it was the most romantic house she had ever seen and for her, it was love at first sight.

"Quickly they made an appointment to see the house with the realtor and look it over even though Laura's mind was already made up. This was her house.

"The following day they met the realtor who introduced himself as Tim Connors and shook their hands before showing them around the grounds and then finally inside the house.

"'As you can see,' he said, 'even though it was built in 1900 it’s had a few updates and has very good plumbing and working electricity. It’s a great house. There's just one thing I should tell you though,' he said his voice taking on a more serious tone. 'It's haunted. Several former owners have fled in terror and demanded their money back. That is why it’s so cheap.'

"Laura and Martin couldn't help but laugh at this. Ghosts weren't real. He looked at them intently. 'I assure you I'm telling you the truth. It’s just precautionary so I can say I warned you before selling it to you.'

"Laura laughed again. 'Why is it haunted?' she asked playing along.

"'Well it’s got quite a history. M. Hugo Flannery had it built for his new wife who he loved very much. They weren't married long when he came home one day to find her in their bed in the arms of another man. He saw red. He couldn't handle it. He went downstairs and fetched his Winchester and blew them to pieces right there in the bed before taking his own life.'

"Martin shook his head. 'Can't say I blame the fellow... but we will take it, won't we, Laura?' he said smiling, eager to please her.

"'Absolutely!' Laura said, 'Besides for that price I can stand a couple of ghosts,' she said with a silly giggle.

"It didn't take long for them to pack all their belongings and move into their house. Laura instantly set about painting and redecorating. It became her entire world - but soon they began to notice things. First, it was small things; sinks running that they could have sworn they turned off, the microwave turning off and on, and their cat Mr. Bojangles was doing an awful lot of staring at nothing and hissing. 

"Laura began to wonder, but of course it was silly, so she went on ignoring things. Sometimes she'd get out of the shower and find a crudely drawn heart written in the steam on the mirror and smear it away with her hand. Life went on like that for a while. Things moved around. Then she began to hear a voice but she could never make out what it was saying.

"Then one night her husband climbed on top of her and began fucking her with an intense passion she had never felt from him before and just as he stopped he whispered, 'Laura, you’ve come back to me.' 

"At first, she was certain that Martin was trolling her or maybe even gaslighting but then it continued night after night. He would fuck her in a mad love-starved frenzy and the next day seem back to normal as if nothing had happened between them.

"Finally, one night after their lovemaking, he spoke and she noted his voice was very clearly different. Deeper, even more masculine. 'Laura, it can be different this time. Now that you're back we can finally live in this house and make it into what we were never able to before. We can live happily together start a family...' 

"'Stop,' she interrupted, 'Martin, I don't like this.'

"He spoke again and shook his head, 'You know very well I'm not Martin. I’m Hugo, your rightful husband and you've come back to give us another chance.'

"Laura sighed, 'I'm not your wife. I just bought this house.' 

"To which he replied, 'You were drawn to it immediately weren't you. Fate brought you here to make our wrongs right again. All you have to do is say the word and I can take Martin over. it'll be painless.' 

"Laura wasn't sure if she actually was his wife but she thought about things for half a second before she quickly agreed. After all, Martin never fucked her the way Hugo did."

"Wow, what a Bitchasaurus rex!" Mariah said before laughing and taking a long hit off what was now their second joint of the night.

"Still doesn't beat mine. You can't beat were-sharks that easily," Heather said. 

Candace looked at Mariah "So what do you have that's so good that you thought you needed to save the best for last," she said as she tossed the flashlight to her.

"Pom Poms for Satan or Virginity can be deadly," said Mariah.

"This next one happened back in 1988 when Satanic panic filled the world full of fear and Geraldo Rivera just couldn't shut his twat mouth about it for a second, but this is a story he somehow missed.

"Abigail was a bit different. Quiet, introverted, and always in black, she lived in her headphones and always seemed to have Depeche Mode or The Cure going.

"A lot of people laughed at her but she either didn't notice or didn't care. She also had the biggest crush on one of the cheerleaders because apparently opposites really do attract. What she saw in this girl I don't know. Abigail didn't seem like she would fall for someone based on looks alone so maybe she saw something else but what she didn't see was probably more important.

"The girl's name was Veronica and in contrast to her fellow cheerleaders, she wasn't blonde. She had long black hair and deep blue eyes. Some would say they were piercing.

"Abigail watched her for years always looking away anytime she thought Veronica had noticed.

"So one Halloween after the school’s annual parade and costume contest it surprised her to find Veronica and her posse walking over to her.

"'Nice witch costume,' Veronica purred. Abigail wasn't sure if she was making fun of her or not but said thank you anyway. 'You know Morgan, Nicole, and Mindy. Right?' she said not waiting for a reply before continuing. 'So, um, Abigail...The four of us are going out to Hobbs Forest tonight to do a bit of partying and we were wondering if you wanted to go.'

"To Abigail, this was obviously too good to be true but she wasn't going to miss it even if she did feel shy, so she quickly agreed and they told her they would be by to pick her up that night.

"She had never felt so excited about anything in her seventeen years. Her crush was finally talking to her and even if nothing ever happened between them she was happy just to be given the time of day.

"That night they rolled up in a convertible and she jumped in her heart racing. She was sitting in the back of Veronica's car. Morgan turned the music in the car up on full blast. Total Eclipse of the Heart was playing and they all began to sing along before finally pulling to a halt at the end of an old dirt road next to the edge of Hobbs Forest.

"Nicole jumped out eagerly carrying a large bag before looking at Abigail and saying, 'Snacks and stuff,' in a nonchalant kind of tone.

"They all got out of the car and began walking into the forest, the light of their flashlights hopping and dancing off the trees.

"Abigail had never been in the forest this late at night before. She wondered what her mom would think had she actually told her where she was going.

"They finally got deep into the dark ravine and began building a big bonfire. 'Strip off your clothes,' the four cheerleaders began to chant at her as they took off theirs. 

"Abigail stood there fully clothed, jaw dropped, staring at them, her face turning a bright crimson red.

"'DO IT, DO IT!' they began to chant. She didn't want them to think she was a total wuss so slowly she removed her clothes and instantly felt the cold air against her skin, goosebumps forming, She brought her arms up to her breasts to cover them, embarrassed of being so exposed in front of them.

"'Aw... don't you think Abs is cute?' Veronica said to the others.

"To her surprise, they all agreed, nodding enthusiastically, 'Actually I think she's fucking hot,' Nicole said her tongue slowly running across her lips seductively.

"Which caused Abigail’s body to instantly react, little electrical shocks traveling through her entire body, and finally to her cunt. She felt herself growing wet.

"Their eyes were on her, running up and down her body, making her feel like prey on display.

"'This is all crazy,' she thought to herself, but just as she thought it couldn't begin to get any crazier Veronica took her hand and they all had joined hands as they began to dance and circle the fire as if it were a maypole.

"She wasn't sure if it was the constant circles they made around the fire or not but she had begun to feel dizzy, almost intoxicated, like she had the time she had snuck her father’s whiskey out of the decanter in his study. Or maybe it was just the intensity of something this exciting happening to her.

"Her head felt like melting hot wax by the time they had stopped their dancing. She looked over to see Nicole and Morgan deeply engrossed in an open kiss, sucking on each other’s tongues, hands pawing at each other’s breasts. It was unlike anything she had ever seen and suddenly she felt like the silly virgin that she was. 

"She didn't have to think long though because both Mindy and Veronica suddenly began pulling her into kisses. She almost completely lost it when Veronica's tongue touched hers. It felt as if her cunt was a boiling pot of hot water about to boil over and run everywhere. She could feel her juices begin to run down her legs.

"Then both of their fingers began to run and slide against her pussy lips, teasing against her entrance.

"'Mmm... someone’s got a hot juicy pussy,' Veronica whispered lustfully before moving to lick and bite her neck, dipping her fingers in at the same time causing Abigail to let out a small gasp as she felt Veronica's fingers begin to curl and fuck in and out of her.

"Mindy's finger teased against her clit, causing her to tingle even more than she already was. She looked over and could see that Nicole and Morgan were now in a sixty-nine position, tonguing each other’s needy cunts and moaning into them.

"Veronica's fingers were pumping in and out faster and deeper as Mindy's finger continued to torment her clit.

"Abigail wondered how much longer she was going to last, but she wanted this to last. Besides, she also didn't want to seem overly eager... even though she was!

"She could feel her pussy clench and convulse around Veronica's fingers more with each thrust.

"'I want to taste your virgin pussy,' Veronica said taking her by surprise. Was it that obvious?

"'Don't worry, Abby it’s a good thing, it just makes us all even hungrier for you,' Mindy said as Veronica's fingers slid out of her. Abigail watched as Veronica shared them with Mindy, both licking and sucking in between aroused moans. 'So good,' they both chorused before moving her down to the ground, their heads diving between her legs, both lapping and touching, hot wet tongues darting inside her and then fingers. She felt like she was going to blackout.

"Soon the entire woods were filled with the sounds of loud hungry moans as they all pleasured each other for what seemed like hours.

"Veronica's pussy was now pressing against hers as she began to grind and hump against Abigail’s now very woke cunt.

"She could now see the other three writhing together almost snake-like as their bodies twisted and turned in every position possible.

"She bucked her hips upwards pressing herself against Veronica with a hunger she had never before known.

"Soon they were fucking each other in a passionate frenzy, clits rubbing against clits. Every part of her was lost in a pleasure paradise.

"The screams of the others were growing louder and more frequent, the heavy aroma of arousal filled Abigail’s nostrils.

"'Cum with me. Fucking squirt on my cunt... you sexy fucking bitch!' Veronica practically growled as she rammed her pussy into Abigail’s again.

"They both began to shudder and shake, pussies convulsing and spasming as their juices squirted all over each other, completely baptizing each other’s cunts.

"'Oh, fuck... so good. So fucking good...,' Veronica said before lying on top of her.

"Abigail must have finally blacked out from a pleasure overdose because the next thing she knew she was blinking sleepily and staring up at the four of them as they stood over her, but most troubling was the fact that they each held a long butcher knife. 

"'Trick or Treat Abby,' Veronica said with a cackling laugh.

"'What’s g... g... going on?' Abigail stammered nervously looking at the long glimmering blades.

"'You thought that we were just your ordinary everyday cheerleaders, didn't you Abby!?' Veronica said, 'But you’re wrong, we aren't just any cheerleaders. We cheer for Satan, right, girls?'

"They laughed. 'Yeah, go, team Satan, go!' they all said at once.

"'This isn't funny guys, fuck off,' but to her surprise, they had also managed to tie her up while she was out. 

"She struggled against the ropes. 'Sorry, Abby, I didn't think you'd be a willing participant in this part of our ritual. It’s not quite as nice as getting to cum with a couple of hotties.'

"'All of you are witches?' she muttered, still confused, hoping that all this was just a Halloween prank they decided to play on the shy girl.

"But they never said just kidding. Nicole was now showing her a jack o lantern. 'While you were out I had time to do my favorite part of this yearly ritual. I think it’s my best one yet. In fact, you should be proud that you’re going to get to wear it.'

"'Oh, Jesus Christ, no,' Abigail cried out as they moved in on her.

"'Sorry, he's not here right now. I'll tell him you called though,' Veronica said.

"Abigail let out one more final scream as they sliced and diced, tossing her head on the fire and replacing it with the jack o lantern.

"'All hail Lord Satan,' they said as the jack's eyes began to glow."

Mariah clicked off the flashlight and looked around nervously. There was part of the story that she didn't tell them, but of course, it was just a superstition.

"They say that anyone who tells this story on Halloween night or even utters a word about it won't live to see the sun come up because Abigail comes to find her head. In fact, legend says that it happened in this very forest."

She looked around at their faces. Candace’s had a look of horror and Heather just looked plainly bored which disappointed her.

"So, did they ever find her head or did the flames consume it all?" Candace asked curiously.

Mariah shook her head thoughtfully. "They only found her body, which the four of them had tried to stuff down an old well. I don't know why they thought to look there. All the details are actually confusing and contradictory."

"Mine was better," Heather said again.

Soon they went to bed.

Mariah had decided that tomorrow she'd watch Pulp Fiction and start on her story for next year.

But there never was a next year and those were the last stories any of them told because some urban legends are more fact than fiction and in the middle of the night, while they all slumbered peacefully, Abigail came looking for her head and got three.