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Halloween Hoaxes |
A group of 4 brave kids decide to explore an old haunted house. Once inside they are confronted by 4 ghosts. The kids refuse to be frightened and wind up getting into a contest with the ghosts to see who can play the scariest tricks. Eventually, the ghosts and the kids become friends and turn the house into a ghostly tourist attraction. |
The rugged mountains of upstate New York are dotted with sleepy towns and villages. Most of these are quiet and peaceful with colorful histories of adventurous settlers; stories of past luminaries whose fame brought pride and recognition to the area; or some landmark or recreational attraction that attracts visitors. However, there was one town that was quite different. The town was called Willowmere and it was known as a place where there were strange ghostly happenings, especially in the Autumn as the nights get longer, the weather gets chillier, and the spooky, eerie, and supernatural renderings of the Halloween season fill the air. The source of those harrowing sensations that filled Willowmere at that time of year came from one particular house - Gravestone Manor. It was a crumbling old mansion with broken windows, a crooked chimney, and a blackened door. When the wind blew, the house groaned and creaked sounding like it was crying out for help. Most of the townsfolk won't dare to get close to the house after dark and those few brave enough to venture past it claimed to see strange lights in the windows, hear music from long ago, or even glimpses of glowing faces in the shadows.
Over the years, the townsfolk came to believe the house was inhabited by four ghostly spirits: Glimma, a glamorous woman dressed in a ball gown; Boz, a big round ghost in a tattered tuxedo; Misty, a little girl in a floating tea dress; and Captain Thaddeus Grimsby, a kooky old sea captain. How these four spirits came to haunt the house was told over and over, it became known as the "Legend of Gravestone Manor"
It was two weeks before Halloween when a group of four friends - Nico, the clever skeptic; Harper, the fearless leader; Ezra, the quiet one who noticed everything; and Lola, the local history buff - decided to finally find out the truth about Gravestone Manor. They had heard the stories all their lives. Every October, their teachers would warn them to stay away. Parents would tell the tale of "The Ball That Never Ended." And the old librarian, Mrs. Thimble, once whispered, "There's something still inside that house... something even the ghosts are afraid of."
On a cold, windy Saturday, the kids crept up the wooded hill behind the town, flashlights and backpacks in hand. The gate was rusted open. The air grew colder with each step. The moment they crossed the threshold into the overgrown yard, they felt it - a pressure, like the house knew they were coming. Inside, the manor was just as the legends described: torn curtains fluttered from broken windows, portraits watched from the walls with faded eyes, and the chandelier above the grand foyer trembled, though no wind stirred within. As they tiptoed deeper into the house, the first sign came, and the first tricks began........
