The Ghost and the McGee Twins

Howlin' Harriet

I woke up after Molly took my bed sheets to cover up her easel. "Scratch, I need your help with the most important question of my life! Who will be my best friend?!" Molly explains. "I thought Scratch was your best friend? Make up your mind already, Molly." I rolled my eyes. "I'm cursed with her. We are not friends." Scratch corrected. "But I need a human bestie. You know, for human stuff." Molly said. "Physically impossible for me to care less." Scratch groaned. "So, I narrowed it down to three amazing candidates. Libby, Sheela, and Kat." Molly explains. "And, you know, they're all so different on paper. But guess what they have in common?" "I don't care." Scratch said. "Let me guess, they're all human?" I asked sarcastically. "They're all Wilder Scouts! And we're going camping tonight!" Molly exclaimed. "Five strong female trailblazers in the wilderness. This is how you make lifelong friends, guys!" "Five? Who else is coming?" I asked. "Andrea?" "No, silly. Both of us signed up." Molly replied. "Actually, I signed you up." "Scratch? By any chance, do you remember how you died?" I begged. "No." Scratch replied as I screamed into my pillow. "We'll probably sit together at lunch, then be roommates in college, run for political office on a shared platform." Molly rambled. "I mean, we're basically choosing a future leader of our nation here!" "Camping? No! Not happening." Scratch refused. "Besides, why are you so obsessed with this friend thing anyway?" "Right? It's so annoying." I complained. "I don't have a best friend and I..." Scratch continues as he gets jumpscared by a fellow ghost. "Scratch! Oh, my best friend of friends!" The ghost exclaimed. "You were saying?" Molly and I asked. "This guy? Ah, no, no. He's not a friend." Scratch explains. "He's more like an annoying coworker." "Hi, I'm Geoff. G-E-O-F-F." He introduced himself, shaking hands with both of us. "Not to be confused with Jeff. J-E-F-F." "No one's writing this down." Scratch said. "What are you even doing here?" "Well, you promised we'd hang! Today!" Geoff replied, showing Scratch his altered calander. "The second Saturday after Never." "Okay, whatever. Listen, I gotta reschedule anyway, because I got a lot of balls in the air right now." Scratch groaned. "Scratch! That's no way to treat your best friend." Molly explains. "Geoff, come camping with us. We're gonna roast marshmallows, learn about nature, tell scary stories." "Ooh! What kind of scary are we talking about here?" Scratch asked. "Uh, so scary! Because we've got bugs, fire, wolves, bears, and..." Molly explains. "Fit toilets." "Wolves are not scary. They're adorable." I argued. "I still have a few pictures from when we lived in the U.P." "I could really pad this month's scare report." Scratch said. "Oh, wow! That sounds like fun!" Geoff exclaimed. "You're not invited." Scratch grunts. "That's not what Molly said." I chuckled. "Right." Geoff winked. "Could be a long weekend." Scratch sighed.

Once we arrived at camp, I was already miserable. "I hate this." I complained. "I wanna go home!" "Alright ladies, go get your camping badge or whatever we're doing out here." The scout leader said. "So, does, uh, anyone know anything about setting up a campsite?" Molly asked. "Or maybe, uh, lifelong friendship? Or..." "Not me. I'm, I'm only here because my mom said exposure to fresh air, and other kids my age would help me." Libby explained, accidentally swallowing a butterfly. "I'm good." "The key to a cozy campfire is location." Kat said. "I think we should set camp here." "We're losing daylight!" Sheela exclaimed. "Kat, you find the flint. Molly and Amber, you gather firewood. And Libby, stay upright." "Yawn." I mumbled.

While looking for some firewood, Scratch began snacking on some poisonous berries. "Scratch! You can't eat those berries, they're poisonous!" Molly warned. "You know I'm already dead, right?" Scratch recalled. "He is a ghost." I remembered. "Oh, right." Molly said. "So, how's the friend hunt going?" Scratch asked. "Not bad." Molly replied. "These score cards have everything I'm looking for in a best friend. Creativity, smarts, generosity, a deep passion for fuzzy socks, leadership, and most importantly, the X factor." "Now you're keeping score?" I asked. "Wow! That is pretty, oh, you know what, I don't care." Scratch added, munching on some more berries. "I totally won't be scaring you guys later, so don't expect anything, okay? Bye." "Wait! Don't you wanna know what the X factor is?" Molly asked. "I don't think he cares, and neither do I." I replied. "Well, it's indescribable anyway!" Molly shouted.

After a long, miserable afternoon, all of us sat around a campfire. "Hey, quick question, is anyone interested in sharing stories that, I don't know, highlight their best qualities?" Molly asks the group. "You mean about how Libby survived out here?" I joked. "No offense." "None taken." Libby said. "But I've got a story." "Okay. Uh, let's hear it, Libby." Molly agreed. "This is the haunting tale of Howlin' Harriet." Libby began.

Many, many years ago, there was a bloodthirsty criminal named Harriet.

"What was her crime?" Sheela asked.

She sold uncured salami on a Wednesday.

"Uh, what?" I asked. "Laws were different back then." Libby explained.

Harriet was chased out of town by the angry citizens of Brighton. As she was running, she tripped on the tracks and fell in the way of an oncoming train! Blam! And all the folk of Brighton found were her mangled toes.

"And now, on nights like tonight, when the moon is full, her ghost roams these very woods, howling in pain, looking for toes of unsuspecting campers to replace the ones she lost!" Libby finished, causing Sheela and Kat to scream in fear. "Pretty good! I was kinda hoping for a happy ending where Harriet befriended lonely campers." Molly commented. "You know, flip the script on ghosts or whatever. But scary's good, too." "I'm going to bed." I groaned.

About a half hour later, I woke up to the sound of everyone being spooked. What did Scratch do this time? "Howlin' Harriet! She's real! And she's coming for our toes!" Kat screamed. The girls ran, but Harriet grabbed both me and Molly, unamused. "Scratch, I told you, you can't scare us off." Molly sighed. "Well, I might've been able to if someone hadn't stolen my scare!" Scratch complains behind Harriet. "I'm looking at you, Geoff. And what is this? What's with all the sticks? It's a bit too much, Geoff." "Oh, really, Scratch? I mean, I think my detail work really helps sell the illusion." Geoff said. "But if you're... then this is..." Scratch gasped as Harriet threw us in some bushes. "Harriet!" I shouted. "The real Harriet?!" "Scratch, how do we get rid of her?" Molly asked. "What if we give her the thing she's been looking for?" "Are you insane?!" I whispered. "I like it. Who's toes are we taking?" Scratch agreed. "The pink headed girl, right?" "You and Geoff keep her away from the campers." Molly said. "Especially the pink headed one. We'll get some toes."

Molly and I went to see the other girls at the campsite. "We need your help!" Molly exclaimed. "We need to craft some toes!" "Every woman for herself!" Sheela screams, running away with Kat, leaving us with Libby. "Did you say help? And crafting?" Libby asked. "I'm in."

Libby helped us out by creating a fake set of toes from some raw hot dogs. "Guys, check it out!" Libby exclaimed, showing us the finished product. "They look so real!" Molly gasped. "They're hot dogs." I mumbled. "I used my foot for reference." Libby explains. She put the fake toes in one of the sleeping bags just as Scratch and Geoff led Harriet to the campground. Harriet puts on the toes and becomes a normal ghost.

The next morning, we started packing up our stuff to return home. I was so relieved. "Wow, I was so scared last night." Kat said. "Yeah, I can't believe we talked ourselves into believing Howlin' Harriet was real." Sheela added. "Sure seemed real, huh?" Libby wondered. "Kinda wish it was." "You know, between you two and Geoff, I can't get a minute to myself!" Scratch complained. "So, I sincerely hope you found a human bestie, so I can have a break." "Please tell me you chose someone!" I begged. "No one can replace you, Scratch, as my number one bestie, or Amber as my super awesome sister." Molly said. "But, I think I found a winner. I just gotta hope she wants to be my best friend, too." "Molly? Amber? Wanna be my best friends?" Libby asked, holding out two bracelets. "Whaaa?" We reacted. "I understand if the answer's no." Libby said. "I'm not really for everyone. I'm kind of an acquired..." "Bestie!" Molly shouted, jumping on top of her with a hug. "C'mon, Amber." I hesitated, but eventually gave into the hug.