The Harvest Festival

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Mallory gasped and sat up in bed. The nightmares were getting worse. It was still dark outside and every shadow in her small room appeared menacing. She pulled the covers up to her shoulders and shivered. Slowly, the horrifying remnants of her nightmare faded and her breathing returned to normal. Then she remembered that it was the first day of school and her pulse jumped again.

She would never forgive her parents for moving to Fallen Oaks just two weeks before her senior year of high school. She'd lived her whole life in the city when, without notice, her dad took a job as a mechanic in the small northern town. She felt stranded, hundreds of miles from any real civilization. She was certain she wouldn't fit in at school. At least in the city she had a few friends similar to her.

To make matters worse, Fallen Oaks was a wealthy town and Mallory Watson's family didn't have much money. In fact, they were poor, a detail that never bothered her until moving to the small town. If only her parents had waited another year, then she could have stayed in the city and gone to college.

She checked the clock. It was almost time to get up. She heard one of her parents rattling around downstairs in the kitchen. The shadows seemed less frightening with someone else awake in the house.

Mallory crept through the still unfamiliar house in the dark. A dim light from the bottom of the staircase guided her to the end of the hall. The stairs were steep and narrow and she had to use the railing to keep from falling.

Her mother was in the kitchen brewing a pot of coffee. She smiled when she saw Mallory shuffle into the room.

"Good morning, sunshine.” Her mom was always annoying in the morning. “I wasn’t expecting you to be up so early. You must be excited to start your first day of school."

"Don't remind me," Mallory grumbled. She slumped into a chair and put her head on the table. "I'm only awake because I had another bad dream."

"Cheer up, sweetie. I'm sure you'll make lots of new friends here." She poured a glass of orange juice and placed it on the table for Mallory. "And who knows, maybe you’ll meet some cute boys, too."

"Mom!” she snapped, raising her head. “Do you mind?"

Her mother, appearing amused, casually took a sip of coffee without responding. Mallory snatched the glass of juice from the table and wondered if all moms were as embarrassing as hers. She almost dropped the glass when the toaster unexpectedly popped. The scent of a freshly warmed bagel drifted to her nose, making her stomach rumble like angry thunder.

“Please tell me that bagel is for me.”

"It is,” her mother assured her. She buttered the bagel and set it on a plate in front of her. “I better go wake your father."

Mallory reached for the glorious bagel.

"He can drop you off at school on his way to work," she added.

Mallory froze, the bagel inches from her mouth.

"No, mom," she sputtered. "I can walk. It’s fine. The school is just down the street."

She had seen the other cars around town. Everyone owned the latest luxury model. The last thing she needed was to be spotted getting out of her dad's ancient junk-mobile. That car was nearly as old as he was.

"Are you sure?” she asked. “Perhaps you're right. A little exercise would be good for you.”

Mallory exhaled in relief as her mother left the room. Finally, a moment alone to enjoy breakfast. Just as Mallory had the bagel to her mouth again, her mom stepped back into the kitchen.

"I almost forgot,” she said with a smile. “Have a great day at school!"

Mallory rolled her eyes just before sinking her teeth into the bagel. Although the nightmare ended when she woke up, the thought of spending her senior year in Fallen Oaks felt like the beginning of another one. She devoured the rest of the bagel and returned to her room.

It didn't take long for her to get ready for school. Her philosophy on fashion was to stick to dark colors and keep it simple. When she finished, she checked herself in the mirror. With her dark hair and similarly hued wardrobe, she had somewhat of an emo look, which was fine by her. That style spoke to her personality more than any page from a fashion magazine.

She sighed. It was time to leave.

As she walked to school, the first rays of dawn crept over the horizon to cast an eerie shade of red throughout the sky.

"As if this town wasn't creepy enough," she mumbled.

The neighborhood gradually became visible under the early morning light. Giant trees with gnarled branches lined both sides of the street. The old Victorian homes reminded her of the haunted houses she’d seen in countless horror flicks. A dense fog covered the ground. Mallory half-expected zombies to materialize out of the mist. Looking around, the idea didn’t seem as farfetched as she would’ve liked.

Astonishingly, she made it to school without a single zombie encounter. The building itself was impossible to miss. Arising mightily from the center of town, it more closely resembled a castle than a high school. She wondered why a small town needed such a grand, imposing structure for its school. Did a town full of rich people think it was necessary to educate their offspring in a fortress?

She reluctantly crossed the expansive lawn to the entrance. She glanced up and saw 'Fallen Oaks High School' inscribed in stone above the doorway.

"Well, this is it," she said, sliding in behind a cluster of students.

She’d been dreading the attention she was sure to attract as the new person, but nothing could have prepared her for the reaction that awaited her. Several people gasped when they saw her. Some of them rushed to get out of her way. Others covered their mouths and pointed. Most of them just looked scared of her.

"Really?" she muttered under her breath. She felt her face getting hot as she marched down the hall, avoiding eye contact.

"It can't be her," she heard someone say.