She walked along the path, her line of vision lit by the friendly half-moon - it seemed to be the only friendly thing about this situation. A breath of wind made the fallen leaves dance at her feet and sent a shiver through her bones. A lone crow sang its mournful song. 

Oh dear, she thought. One crow; that means sorrow. She recalled the first lines of a poem she had heard years ago informing her of this omen: One for sorrow, two for mirth, three for a wedding...

Then an owl hooted off to her far left, seemingly responding to the crow in a mysterious conversation understood exclusively by birds. The path was longer than it looked to her when she had first seen it. She started to regret her decision to explore it and longed to go back home- but something drew her further down the trail. She couldn't explain it, she just had a feeling that this was important.

She heard a noise; a frightened whimper, the cry of a despairing young animal coming from behind a tree. She walked toward it, curious of what it could be. The cry sounded again and she turned to where she thought it had come from. Shivering under a pile of dry, cold leaves, there was a sobbing black kitten. It seemed lost, and all alone. 

She picked it up, cooing softly. "It'll be alright, love. Don't worry now, you're okay." The kitten probably had a home nearby, she thought, so she kept walking, cuddling the kitten in her arms.

Fog grew through the air, covering the ground with a menacing demeanor. She could barely see her feet anymore, much less the path. She began to panic. What if she got lost in the woods with a tiny kitten to take care of?! 

She stayed close to where she thought the path was and resumed walking, taking a deep breath to calm herself down. After a minute she gave a start at something she saw. There was a light a few yards away! How…? No, she couldn't waste time thinking about how there could be a light(that definitely looked man-made) in the middle of the forest.

She started running, anxious to reach what could possibly be safety. Gaining on the light, she saw that it was a...pumpkin? The jack-o-lantern eerily grinned at her, inviting her to come closer. She looked up past it to see a large Victorian-style house with vines creeping up the walls. 

I’ve seen this too many times in movies, she said inwardly. This place is so haunted. She turned to walk away, hoping to make it back home the way she came. Then, a rumble of thunder caused her and the kitten to jump and it started to rain. She had no choice; the house was her only shelter, and she didn’t want the kitten to get too wet or cold. 

So, she walked up the steps to the porch and pushed open the door. It closed on its own behind her. Typical, she thought. An organ started playing a sinister tune, then changed its mind and decided on an old-fashioned waltz.

Translucent figures faded into existence around her, dancing cheerfully. A table appeared in the corner with bowls of food and candy. The girl was paralyzed at the scene unfolding but walked over to the table to get away from the middle of the room.

She peered into one of the bowls and the candy screamed at her. Literally screamed at her, causing the ghosts to stop dancing and focus on her. She turned as white as the dancers staring at her, terrified for her life.

One ghost- a lady in a huge fluffy dress- walked over to her and smiled, extending her hand. “Bonjour, mademoiselle. Je m’appelle Camelia.”

She was taken aback(reasonably) but somehow remembered her manners. Good thing I know a bit of French! she thought.

“Bonjour! C’est- c’est un plaisir de vous rencontrer. Comprenez-vous l’anglais?” she asked Camelia.

“Oui! Oh, I mean, yes, I do know English, darling. What has brought you here?”

“I was walking in the forest when it started raining. Your house was the… the only shelter nearby. I’m so sorry to intrude, madame, I didn’t realize anyone lived here. Should- um, should I show myself out?”

“No, of course not! You’re welcome to stay here, darling. I wouldn’t want you or your adorable little kitten to catch a cold or get lost out there. Speaking of your cat… Pierre! Go get a blanket, dear, and put in on that armchair!” 

Camelia turned back to face the girl. “Your kitten will warm up in the chair if you like, darling.”

“That would be wonderful, madame.” She said graciously.

“Bien sur, ma cherie.”

Pierre came back with a blanket and took the kitten from her arms, lovingly wrapping it up and placing it in the cair. She smiled and thanked him.

“Until the storm passes, darling, I would love for you to dance with us and tell me more about yourself,” said Camelia.

“Of course! I suppose it’s the least I could do to repay you for your hospitality,” she replied, starting to almost forget that she was talking to a ghost.

Camelia led her through the crowd of dancing spirits, introducing her to all of them. Finally, she was led to a quite handsome ghost. 

He charmingly introduced himself. “Enchanted, mademoiselle. My name is Samuel.” 

She blushed as he lifted her hand and kissed it. “Uh… hi.”

He put his hand on her waist and twirled her around. She laughed and danced along, having been taught to waltz by her grandfather when she was young.

The minutes turned into hours. The storm had long ceased and she was still dancing with Samuel, whose enchanting smile had not faltered once. Her jeans and purple sweater turned into an indigo dress like Camelia’s and her body gradually lost color, becoming more and more translucent. She didn’t even notice that she was dying because she couldn’t take her eyes off of Samuel; she couldn’t feel a thing.

Camelia pulled Pierre over to the buffet table. “Looks like we’ve caught another one.”

“Oui, she is one of us now. Little does she even remember the life she left behind.” He smirked. “Everyone knows what happens when you dance with the ghosts…”

They both laughed heartily and began to dance, victorious in their scheme.

-    - -    - - -    - - - -    - - - - -    - - - - - -    - - - - -
Across town, a middle-aged woman, exhausted from crying and searching, puts up a poster on the Missing Persons board.

The poster shows a girl in a purple sweater. She has soft, cautious features and an intelligent look about her. Right next to this is a picture of a handsome teenage boy. The description says his name is Samuel.