Subtly Spooky- An Autumn Short Story
There is something wrong with the woods on the edge of town.
Its shadows shift and twist with graceful movement, easy to dismiss as tree branches shifting and swaying in the chilly October breeze. But what if the shadows were whispering a warning that something more sinister lurked underneath the forest’s serene surface?
A group of friends stood side by side, quietly toeing the edge of the forest and silently contemplating if it was too late to back out of their weekend plans. Margot shifted her backpack further onto her shoulder as she lifted her gaze to the rest of the group. The others had clearly gotten into their heads, regaling them with decades’ worth of urban legends. All utter nonsense, the three of them had said. In fact, they had spent the entire walk here laughing it off.
Margot eyed her friends before she quietly said, “You guys, we already paid the deposit.”
To her left, Kelly laughed. “I was just waiting for one of you to lead the way, I have no idea where we’re going.”
On Kelly’s other side, Anne playfully rolled her eyes and placed one foot past the forest line. Then another. “Come on. You’re both ridiculous.” With that, she followed a heavily faded path into the woods.
The shadows had nearly swallowed her whole before Margot and Kelly decided to catch up, struggling to hide their heavy breathing under their quickened pace. Anne didn’t notice- or at least pretended not to- keeping her eyes glued to her phone. Margot glanced at the screen and saw that Anne was reading directions off the rental site.
“At least we still have service.” Margot said, a knot of tension loosening in her chest. On the off chance that something bad happened, they would be able to call for help. As if sensing her thought process, Anne shot Margot a sideways look before returning her gaze to the screen.
“We should be able to check-in right when we get there.” A faint click sounded as she took a screenshot of the entry code before sliding her phone into her back pocket.
Leaves crunched underfoot as the trio fell into comfortable silence, the ambient sounds of the woods filling in for their lack of conversation. Pale rays of autumn sunshine filtered in through the branches above, illuminating a watercolor background of muted yellows, oranges, and occasional reds. Small animals chittered and shuffled by while birds chirped distant songs heralding the impending arrival of colder weather. This stillness, this muted ambience was the exact reason the trio decided to get away in the first place. Margot slowed her pace to soak it all in a moment longer, letting Kelly and Anne take the lead on their hike.
The silence persisted until Kelly couldn’t take it anymore. She began humming until the subtle notes morphed into mumbled words, then suddenly her volume increased to a full karaoke session. Silently, Margot began counting down the seconds until Anne begged her to stop. “Kelly, hush.” Anne groaned, dramatically turning her face to the sky. Margot snorted; this might have been a new record for Anne- she lasted a full minute.
“Then talk to me!” Kelly said. “It’s so quiet, I can’t stand it.”
“Have you tried being alone with your thoughts for more than five minutes?”
“What a horrifying idea.”
Margot laughed to herself as the pair continued to bicker, the sounds of forest life resuming now that Kelly’s personal pop show had ended.
Minutes ticked by to the soundtrack around them, their footfalls keeping time. As Margot looked ahead, straining to see any sight of their cabin, she could have sworn the shadows still twisted in her periphery. Until there was one shadow that emerged from the others, morphing into a small silhouette. She gasped and whipped her head in its direction; she could have sworn it was moving closer and closer. But when she looked, there was nothing there. It looked exactly like the rest of the forest- sunshine and all.
Warnings from their conversations at the bakery swam through her head, voices she had shakily laughed off with her friends.
Beware the Pumpkinhead. She recalled the warning so vividly that she inhaled sharply, feeling as though someone had spoken directly into her ear. Then she shook her head. Pumpkinhead, what a stupid name for such a “scary” creature.
“You okay, Margot?” Kelly called. She and Anne had stopped just ahead where they now faced her with confused expressions. With a furrowed brow, Kelly glanced back and forth between Margot and the direction she had been looking in.
Margot blinked a few times before slowly replying. “Yeah, I stepped on a rock. Sorry.” As she finished her sentence, she could have sworn she felt a light breeze tickle the back of her neck, almost as if something was laughing at her. Shuddering, she shook the notion away and caught up to where Kelly and Anne waited.
“You didn’t twist your ankle, did you?” Anne asked, mild concern furrowing her brow.
“No, no. I just stepped on it and it was sharp.”
“Alright then.”
The trio turned to continue on their way as Margot caught up, trekking up a small hill that finally led the cabin into view. It was nestled comfortably in a small clearing in the woods, illuminated in a halo of light. Leaves lazily swirled around it, dancing to the autumn breeze. Inhaling deeply, Margot felt calmed by the wafting scents of cedar and oak tickling her nose. Anne continued ahead to the front door, sliding her phone out of her pocket once more to glance at the entryway code. She picked up the heavy lock, weighing it in her palm for a moment before punching the numbers in. With a “beep” that made them all jump, the lock clicked open and slid off the handle.
Kelly let out a small cheer as Anne opened the front door and stepped over the threshold, allowing the rest of them to file in behind her. “Oh, this is so cute!”
Grins stretched over their faces as they took in the living area, cozily furnished with plush furniture and rustic pumpkins strategically placed around the space. Worn books sat stacked on various end tables, and tall bookshelves lined the back wall from the entrance of the kitchen to the large window overlooking the woods.
“How does it even smell like fall in here?” Kelly asked. She was right- even the cabin smelled like cloves and nutmeg.
Margot paced over to the window, setting her bag on one of the chairs as she went. The forest was pure sunshine here, the birds chirping much closer than before. A worn brick fire pit sat cold with disuse, old plastic chairs filled with dead leaves scattered on the seats waiting nearby.
“Anne!” Kelly called as she strode up beside Margot. “We’re definitely having s’mores tonight!”
Anne only smirked in reply; she was already in the kitchen, storing the food they packed in the fridge and in the empty pantry. Margot began turning to help Anne when movement in the forest caught her gaze, and she locked eyes with a pair of glowing yellow ones. She froze in place, not daring to move even a fraction of an inch. Even her breath halted in her lungs for fear the movement of her chest would be too much.
“Hey,” Kelly bumped Margot’s shoulder, causing her to gasp. “What’s going on with you?”
“You don’t see that?” Margot turned to Kelly, pointing at the forest line where their new companion lurked.
“See what?” Kelly frowned, following the path of Margot’s finger.
“Now you’re just messing with me.” But when Margot faced the woods again, the eyes were gone. Her mouth popped open slightly as her mind scrambled to explain away what she had most definitely seen. “It was-” She shook her head, “I saw something with yellow eyes.”
“Huh. Maybe it was a deer?”
“Kelly!” Margot said, giggling at the ridiculous suggestion. “Have you ever seen a deer?” Although she was still a little nervous about what was lurking in the woods, her body relaxed with laughter.
“There’s a deer!?” Anne squealed, popping up beside them.
“Um, no, but we apparently had a Pumpkinhead sighting.” Kelly said, a corner of her mouth quirking upward in a poor attempt to keep herself from laughing.
“Oh for goodness’ sake.” Anne released a sigh filled with the type of exasperation that only stems from years, and years, and years of friendship. Stalking back toward the kitchen, she called, “It’s just a stupid story to keep kids from causing trouble in the woods!”
“I can help.” Margot said, itching to change the subject. Of course they would both think she’s nuts. Although, if the tables were turned, she would probably feel just as skeptical as they both do.
In many ways, Anne wasn’t wrong. The legend of Pumpkinhead has been around for nearly as long as the town. Every year, on Halloween, the townspeople flock to the edge of the forest to leave food offerings for the alleged monster of a creature who calls it home. The reasoning behind it is simple- if Pumpkinhead has something to eat, then it won’t hunt the people in town. Without a clear origin, it’s hard to be sure exactly how or why the story started. Some people claim that before the tradition started, people were disappearing without a trace and that it stopped once the offerings began. Others claim that it started as a fun holiday tradition to keep kids from wandering into the woods. And then there is a very, very small group of people who believe that leaving offerings to Pumpkinhead will bring them good luck.
The odd thing is, all the offerings disappear by the next morning. Every year. It is possible that they’re being stolen or that others are coming back to reclaim what they left. As the internet became more widespread and therefore so did tales of Pumpkinhead, teenagers, vloggers, and ghost hunters alike have attempted to catch sight of it. And yet, every year, those hoping to be the first to catch sight of Pumpkinhead always awake the next morning confused to find they had somehow fallen asleep. There is one detail that remains the same across each of these stories- the scent of pumpkin and cherries always lingers when they inspect the empty patch where the offerings lay the night before.
While there isn’t enough evidence to point to Pumpkinhead’s existence, there also isn’t enough evidence to suggest it doesn’t.
Kelly and Margot were born and raised in town, both having grown up leaving bits of their Halloween candy at the edge of the forest each year after trick or treating. Their parents had done the same growing up, and their grandparents before them. Since Anne moved here later and her parents thought the whole idea was ridiculous, so did she.
Margot stood next to Anne in the kitchen, glancing around to see where she could help. “I’ve got it Margot, why don’t you pick out a room?”
“No, really, I can help.” Margot insisted.
“Seriously, I’m just cutting up some bread to go with tonight’s soup. And all I need to do is heat that up when we’re ready to eat.”
Striding over from the window, Kelly swiped a slice of bread from the cutting board and took a bite. While still chewing, she said, “It’s a no brainer anyway, obviously Margot is sharing with me.”
“And why is that?” Anne asked, taking the bait. For a moment, only the sound of her knife slicing bread filled the air.
“She’s freaked out enough as it is, she doesn’t need to deal with you talking in your sleep. That’s creepy enough on its own.” Kelly said, taking another bite of bread. Margot scoffed indignantly while Anne scowled and threw a large bread crumb at Kelly.
“I am not freaked out!” Margot said at the same time Anne retorted, “And you snore so bad it will shake the whole cabin.”
“Excuse you, I got that fixed!” Kelly said. Margot rolled her eyes and gave Anne a look that seemed to say, “I’m sure she did.”
Strolling over to the chair to retrieve her bag, Margot slung it over her shoulder and said, “Here’s an idea, I get my own room and the two of you can share the other and keep your sleep issues to yourselves.”
“Now hang on, I already put my bag in the solo room!” Anne protested.
“Bags can be moved.” Margot smirked and continued on her way, moving down the short hallway.
“Are you sure you won’t be too scared to sleep alone?” Kelly called after her. Margot shot a glare over her shoulder, where she saw Kelly laughing.
Moving into the room Anne had previously claimed as hers, Margot did see her bag still zipped and packed on the bed…and she promptly moved it across the hall before returning to the other room and unpacking.
In the kitchen, she could still hear Anne and Kelly arguing back and forth. Anne was loudly imitating Kelly’s snoring in an attempt to drown out Kelly mocking Anne’s sleep talking. Margot laughed, picked up her book, and padded back to the living room with every intention of plopping herself down on the couch to read until dinnertime. She had just taken a seat and was about to prop her book open when Anne said, “Margot, can you pretty please get your butt in here and heat up the soup?”
“I thought you didn’t need my help!”
“Well, I didn’t, but now I’m trying to chop faster than Kelly can eat.” Margot heard a soft slap and an “ouch!” from Kelly as Anne presumably swatted her hand away from the bread again.
“You’re still not done?” Placing her book on the couch, Margot stood and made her way to the fridge. Anne was kind enough to meal prep so they could spend less time cooking and more time doing whatever else they felt like.
“Do you see what I’m dealing with over here?”
“Fair enough.”
After a delicious dinner, the trio had worked together to haul firewood from the side of the cabin to the fire pit. Many curses and matches later, the fire had finally been lit and was steadily growing from a small flame into a crackling beast that began to cast the descending twilight in a cozy orange glow.
Kelly and Margot were setting up their supplies for s’mores while Anne poked at the fire to keep it growing. Well, Margot was organizing everything while Kelly ate marshmallows straight from the bag.
“Will you-” Margot began before abruptly cutting herself short as she heard a light rustling behind her. Whipping her head around, armed with a marshmallow skewer, she found absolutely nothing. Although she could have sworn the smell of pumpkin and cherries lingered. Squinting at the quickly darkening ground, she could faintly see two small footprints imprinted in the damp earth. She put the skewer down and strode over, turning her phone flashlight on and squatting down to take a closer look.
“Ugh, Margot, you’re starting to freak me out.” Kelly said, following behind her. But before Kelly could stoop lower, a breeze slipped by. The scent carried away on the wind, and Margot looked down to notice leaves were now covering the little footprints. She quickly brushed the foliage out of the way, only to find the tracks had disappeared too.
“No, no, no.” Margot said, brushing more leaves out of the way with increasing frustration. After about a minute, she ceased her search. As she turned her phone light off and dusted her hands on her pants, she said, “That’s it, I’m losing it. I’m going insane.”
“Maybe not entirely.” Kelly said, her face pale in the firelight. “I thought I smelled cherries too. But it’s also possible we’re losing it together.” Linking her arm with Margot’s, she started to pull her back to their makeshift s’mores station. “Let’s worry about it later, preferably when we’re all inside and the doors are locked.”
Margot allowed herself to be guided back toward the fire, and as the three of them lost themselves in the excitement of making s’mores, she gradually allowed herself to relax again. Besides, she could defend herself with a marshmallow skewer, right?
Even that thought dissipated as the night wore on and the girls chatted the hours away, talking about everything from life and work to idle gossip.
“Wait.” Kelly said, her expression lighting with mischief. She stood from her chair and promptly scurried back to the cabin, leaving Anne and Margot staring at each other with a mixture of confusion and disbelief.
After a few short moments, Kelly emerged from the cabin carrying a large pastry box.
“Those are for tomorrow!” Anne chided, even as her hands twisted together in anticipation.
“Oh man, I live for these every year.” Margot said, pulling a donut from the box. Grains of cinnamon sugar hit her mouth in a satisfying burst, promptly accompanied by the tart taste of apple. No one knew how the bakery on Main Street managed it, but these were easily the most authentic apple cider donuts anyone could find. When they hit the shelves on September 1st each year, the line to buy them stretches all the way down the block.
“Tastes like childhood.” Kelly mumbled around a mouthful.
“Speaking of,” Anne began, “I have to ask- what is it about Pumpkinhead? And why Pumpkinhead?”
Kelly and Margot glanced at each other uneasily, taking time to chew their donuts while they mulled over what to say next. However, Anne continued on.
“I mean- has anyone ever actually gone missing? The whole town is superstitious for nothing, it’s insane.”
“I think-” Margot said slowly, “The idea is to give Pumpkinhead food to prevent anyone from going missing in the first place.”
“Yeah,” Kelly echoed, “There are versions of the story that say it used to take people from town. The food offerings became a sort of truce.”
“Even if it’s not true, it’s kind of a fun Halloween tradition anyway.” Margot said, taking another bite of her donut.
“Hm.” Anne mulled. “Why the name Pumpkinhead though?”
Kelly and Margot both laughed a bit. “Honestly? No idea.” Kelly answered. Anne snorted in response, and the conversation shifted to other topics.
Eventually, the moon rose higher overhead while the flames of the fire began to bank and settle into glowing embers. Each of the girls took turns yawning and pulling their sweaters closer to their bodies as the autumn chill crept in through the fire’s dying warmth. Although they had an entire weekend ahead of them, they were reluctant to let the evening go. It felt so rare and precious to spend this kind of time together anymore, and they all clung to this feeling with the knowledge they would reminisce about it for years.
Kelly had started dozing off when Margot gently poked at her. “Come on, let’s get you back to the cabin.” Grumbling, Kelly pushed herself from her chair and began plodding back to the cabin. Anne was moving to pick up the donut box when an idea suddenly struck Margot.
“I’ll bring these in, don’t worry about it.” Margot said, moving around Anne. She began packing up the remnants of their s’mores station as she saw Anne tilt her head in her periphery. With a light shrug, Anne said, “If you’re sure.”
Once she saw Margot smile and nod in reassurance, Anne turned and quickly caught up to Kelly. Margot finished packing the s’mores station and quickly glanced at the glowing windows of the cabin to make sure no one was watching her. Opening the donut box, she gingerly picked one up and held it in both palms of her hand.
“For letting us stay in your home.” She whispered, placing the pastry on the arm of the chair she had been sitting in. Straightening, she looked at the dark forest ahead and how still it seemed without the writhing shadows. Even in the bright moonlight, the trees appeared both dense and endless, like the woods could easily swallow a person whole. A chill snaked down Margot’s spine at the thought, so she simply nodded, collected her things, and hurriedly returned to the cabin.
Margot had fallen into a restless sleep when she suddenly bolted upright, panting. Cold sweat beaded her forehead as she frantically glanced around the room before pawing around for her phone. As her hand landed on it, she clicked the screen on to see that it read 3:01am. She fell back against the pillows, forcing herself to heave deep breaths until her heartbeat reduced to a fluttering patter against her chest.
That is, until she heard a faint, deliberate scraping against her window.
Just tree branches knocking against the cabin with the breeze. But as she finished the thought, she realized there were no trees and froze. She couldn’t tell if the scraping had actually stopped or if she simply couldn’t hear it over the renewed pounding of her heart.
Before she realized what she was doing, she was out of bed and approaching the window. Margot felt like she was watching herself from outside her body as she used two fingers to pry a slat in the blinds open, squinting to peer at the firepit and surrounding area. Looking to her chair, where she had left a food offering, she couldn’t tell if the donut remained there or not. Something in her told her she had to check. She had to know for sure.
Throwing her coat over her pajamas and hastily pulling shoes on, she quietly maneuvered her way down the hall and out of the cabin without disturbing the other two. She also didn’t want to get caught because she could practically hear their taunts if they found out she not only left a food offering for Pumpkinhead, but that she went to check if it was still there, like a child testing to see if Santa was real.
Leaves crunched under her feet as she exhaled clouds through the cold air, each step ringing in tandem with her pounding heart as she approached the chair she had left the donut on.
It was gone. In its place was the lingering scent of pumpkin and cherries- and the faint patter of small feet near the edge of the tree line.