WICKET

APRIL 2011

“Mary loves hide-and-seek! It is her all time favorite game and she is REALLY good at it! In fact, she is the best seeker ever. If you think you could survive her gaze, then give this game a try!” Will read, as he and the rest of their group walked the old train tracks.

The group consisted of 4, 20-year old. Jane is the smallest person in their group, dressed in a casual jeans and shirt, with a warm jacket over. Alex is the second tallest, wearing the same as Jane except without a jacket. Next was Will, who is slightly taller than Alex, dressed in grey sweats, a grey hoodie and wearing glasses. Last was Thomas, who was the tallest of the group and was dressed in black shorts and a generic band shirt. The small group spent most of their free time exploring places around Wicket, hiking the trails. They loved hearing urban tales and going to explore for themselves, and sometimes participating in these challenges.

“So how exactly does this game work?” Alex asked

“Apparently we go to this specific abandoned house and at 10:00 pm, we turn this box and the game starts” Will replied, both paying attention to the track and reading a small piece of paper.

“It’s a scam. There are people who are going to jump us” Thomas replied

“You never know” Jane replied, trying to sound hopeful as she was balancing on the tracks

“Where did you even find out about this?” Alex asked Will

“At a garage sale. Some creepy old dude was insistent on giving it to me.” Will replied

“Really? He just gave it to you? For how much” Thomas asked in disbelief

“Nothing. In fact, he probably would’ve paid me” Will said

“He’s a creep. I bet he’ll be there, ready to kill you and do god knows what with your body” Alex joked

“Don’t say that” Jane said, giving a stern look to Alex

“Whatever” Alex replied

“So who is this Mary?”

“According to this article about the legend, Mary was your typical little girl. Black hair, dressed in all white. While she appeared to be innocent, she was a demon. She would kill animals, ruin the crops and just make life hard for her parents” Will explained

“How generic can you get” Thomas joked

“Yeah. Anyways, one day, the parents decided to abandon her in the forest and leave her” Will continued

“Her dad gave her a small box, the one we have, that was pretty much a 60 second timer. Her dad disguised the abandonment as hide-and-seek and said after 60 seconds, she would go and find him. No matter where he took her, or how far out she would always return. Eventually the dad was desperate to get rid of her and when he took her to this house we’re going to, he killed her”

“Fuck, that took a turn” Jane said, in shock

“I saw that coming” Alex scoffed “It was obvious”

“Well not all of us are child killers” jane retorted

“I take pride in my work” Alex retorted

“Please continue” Thomas said, ignoring Alex and Jane’s bickering

“The dad stabbed her 10 times in the back and threw her into the ocean. He drove back home. Later that night, the dad heard the familiar sound of the timer ticking and after 1 minute, her heard her laugh. Before the dad could comprehend what happened, he died” Will finished

“How?” Jane asked

“No idea, no body was ever found. Not even signs of a struggle” Will said

“What about the mother? Surely she should’ve heard something at least” Thomas asked

“She heard nothing either” Will said

“I’m calling bullshit” Alex said

“On what part?” Will asked

“All of it. That is one of those generic horror stories you see on the internet” Alex replied. “Guess we got to share it with 10 people or else we die” Alex mockingly said

“Yeah, I have to agree it does sound a bit empty” Jane said, agreeing with Alex

“I didn’t write this” Will said in defense

“Well one of two things will happen. We wasted a night listening to a ticking box or we play hide-and-seek with a little girl” Thomas said

“Explain that one to the cops” Alex said

Jane and Will laughed as the group continued walking down the tracks. After about another 20 minutes of walking, they finally reached the house.

“This isn’t a house; this is a mansion!” Alex said in astonishment

The house they saw was giant in scale. It was easily 3 stories and went deeper into the woods than they could see from the front. Unfortunately, the mansion was in dire need of repair. The once fresh coat of paint was now a dirty grey, with the wood peeling and rotting. The windows were either stained or broken and the plants began slowly taking over the house, with one side of the house and the roof covered in vines. The fence surrounding the house was slowly decaying, with it rotting and falling apart. The mail box that would usually be at the front is gone, possibly due to someone destroying it.

“I’m telling you guys, we’re going to get fucking jumped” Will said, voicing his concerns

“It’s okay to be scared, would you like to cuddle?” Alex joking replied

“Fuck you” Will said angrily, but couldn’t mask his scared voice

“Look, if anyone tries anything I’ll stab them” Jane said, trying to comfort Will

“Thanks Jane” Will said, still nervous

“It is 5:30, we got some time to kill” Thomas said, checking his watch

“Well, we better get settled in and make sure the house isn’t crawling with insects” Alex replied

“Good idea, let’s go” Thomas said and lead the group inside.

The inside of the mansion was just as bad. There was not enough natural sunlight so the group had to use flashlights to illuminate the area. The house was 3 stories. On the bottom was a staircase and the surrounding areas had a kitchen, living room and dining room, as well as a library. The couch and chairs were dirty and stained, the walls were peeling and they group could see spectacles of dust flowing through as they shone their lights.

“Let’s split up” Will joking said and the rest of the group chuckled.

“Let’s take it one room at a time” Thomas said and lead the way.

Right now the house wasn’t that scary. It was unsettling, but not scary. On the first floor there was nothing really to note, it was just ruined furniture. The only items in the house were basic household items, such as furniture and kitchen items. Any picture frames, trinkets, items and the works were removed and the house was very bare bones. As the group continued upstairs, they walked past multiple bedrooms that were also empty except for stripped beds and empty closets. Finally the group went to the very top of the house where the attic was. The attic was, unsurprisingly empty except for odd pieces of items, like a dismantled bookcase, a rocking chair and empty clothing racks.

“This house is just bursting with life” Alex said out loud

“I think it’s fascinating” Will replied

“Fascinating? How” Jane asked

“Like, I don’t know. It’s hard to explain” Will said

“So, what now?” Jane asked

“I guess we should just bunker down and wait” Thomas said, not entirely sure what else to do.

As the group sat down in the living and lit some candles, they each began doing their own thing. Will and Jane were reading books and Thomas and Alex were outside, smoking. Soon it was 9:55 and the group prepared to begin the game.