• Locking the door, Autumn and Natasha walked through the quiet lit streets of London. They both worked graveyard shift on Mondays and were usually very tired by the time they got to the local animal shelter early Tuesday morning.
    "What a day, huh?" Natasha asked, yawning.
    "Yeah, but I had fun," Autumn answered, yawning as well. "It's good for business."
    "You bet." Laughing, Natasha smiled. "Hey, I'm having a party next week, and I was wondering if you wanted to come along."
    "I'd love to."
    "Great!" Stopping at the two-way street, she looked at Autumn worriedly. "You can make it home on your own?"
    "Nat, come on! I've had to walk through the cemetary for a month now, and I'm still alive."
    "Well, yeah, but still ... what if there's a pervert or predator there?"
    "I know Tae Kwon Doe. Don't worry Natasha, I'll be fine. I'll see you tomorrow."
    "Uh ... yeah ... see you." Watching Autumn run through the cemetary gates, she sighed. "Be careful, Autumn." Turning around, she walked down her route back to her house.

    Autumn had started to hum by the time she got halfway through the cemetary. Every now-and-again she would stop to read a few gravestones, and more-than-once had to reassure herself that the noises she heard weren't anything more than the animals and cars. As she passed a gravehouse with a cross at the top, she heard a knock on the wooden door.
    "Nothing to be afraid of, Autumn," she murmured to herself. "It was probably just an owl landing on the roof searching for a mouse. Yeah! Nothing more!" Turning around, her eyes searched the roof, but ... she didn't see anything. Shrugging, as she was about to turn around, she noticed the wooden door slam shut. Shrieking, she started to jog lightly towards the exit. "You're almost out of here, Autumn. Just a few more minutes. There's nothing to be scared about." As she stopped to take a brief rest, she felt a hand lightly rest on her right shoulder. "No one's here. It's probably just a weird bird." Turning her head, she shrieked, falling hard on her behind, crawling back as fast as she could. "That's not a bird! That's a ... a ... a .... ghost!!!" Standing up, she ran as fast as she could towards the exit gates. The spirit was following her rather slowly, and as Autumn got to the gates, trying to open them, she couldn't. "Crap! It's locked!" Turning around, she pressed her whole body against the gates, watching the spirit close in on her. When it was an arms length away, it raised its arm, ready to grasp onto her. Just when she thought she was a goner, the gates suddenly burst open, and she tumbled backward. Gasping, she turned and ran back to her house as fast as she could.