 Welcome to Microtarrers. Scary stories for kids. It's the Halloween season. Time for chills. Thrills and spine-tingling spooks. Microtarrers are family-friendly frights for those ages 8 and up. And while our stories are for younger years, we are still talking about things that go bump in the night. And some children may not be able to handle what others can. Paredal consent, he is recommended. Now for tonight's Microtarrer. The Creeping Ghost Trick or treat was a success. Lucy and her little brother Chip had acquired quite the haul. Two pillowcases filled to the brim with candy. Chocolate, licorice, marshmallow pumpkins, lollipops and sour chews. This was our best year yet, Lucy said, so excited. She and Chip dumped their pillowcases of candy onto the floor and created one giant pile. Chip jumped in and swam around in the lake of sweet treats. I can trick or treat for three more hours, Chip joyously exclaimed. As Chip finished his backstroke, Lucy felt like something was off. Like someone or something was watching them. She looked around the living room at all the decorations that seemed a little more scary now. After all, it was Halloween night. The floor creaked behind her and she turned around and screamed when she saw a dark figure looming in the kitchen doorway. The light flipped on and Lucy and Chip were both relieved to see it was only their dad standing there still in his ghost makeup. He was scared as dad, Chip said. Sorry, kids, I've been sent by your mother with an important message. What important message? The kids asked. They awaited their dad's response as he walked slowly into the living room. He took a deep breath and said, it's bedtime. Chip screamed in horror and tried to run, but fell face first into the giant pile of candy. You can't escape the bedtime. Their dad howled. You're so lame, dad, Lucy said. Just doing my job, he said. Upstairs, Lucy was in her pajamas already and had just finished brushing her teeth. She walked back to her bedroom as Chip bounced past her in the hallway and right into the bathroom. He hummed a song to himself as he squeezed toothpaste onto his toothbrush and brushed until his mouth was foamy. He put his toothbrush down, climbed onto the sink and looked at himself closely in the mirror. I look like Santa Claus, he laughed. Ho, ho, ho! Right then something moved in the mirror. He looked and saw the reflection of a tall figure out in the hallway. It was draped in a long white sheet. It looked like a ghost. Ah! Chip screamed, jumping down from the sink. When he turned to the hallway, the ghost was gone. Lucy! Lucy came out of her room in a hurry. What is it? I saw a ghost. Lucy smiled. There's no such thing as ghosts, Chip. Yes, there is. They're here. They're haunting our house. He was probably just dad. Remember the ghost makeup he had on? This was not dad, Lucy. This was the real deal. It was floating. Have you ever seen dad float? Lucy thought. I didn't think so, Chip said. Right then their mother came up the stairs and into the hallway. What's all this noise? Aren't you ready for bed yet? I am, Lucy smiled. Chip, why do you look like Santa Claus? Their mom asked, putting her hands on her hips. There's a ghost in the house. Their mom shook her head. That's no reason to be looking like Santa. Wipe your mouth off and climb into bed. I'll be in to tuck you in soon. Chip was laying in his bed. The light in his room was off, but the hallway light was shining in and casting scary shadows on the walls. He was afraid of the ghost he had seen, but no one believed him. He could hear his mother in Lucy's room quietly singing her a song. She'd be in to sing him a song next and hopefully comfort him enough to ward off the ghost haunting his every thought. His mother stopped singing and the house fell eerily quiet. He heard the crickets chirping out in the yard and an owl hooting from a nearby tree. That's when one of the scary shadows began to crawl across the walls in his room. It must have been coming from something in the hallway. Chip looked at the open door, saw the ghost float by and disappear out of sight. Mom! Dad! Chip yelled, throwing your sheets over his bed. Their mom rushed into the room quickly followed by their dad, who would curiously come from the same direction the ghost had floated in. What is it, Chip? His mother said. As she sat down on the bed next to him, I saw the ghost again. Chip said, It wants to eat my brains. His dad laughed. Ghosts don't eat people, Chip. That's zombies. His dad was obviously just trying to be funny. Not funny, dad! Chip grumbled. You probably saw one too many Halloween costumes tonight. That's all. It's all in your imagination, his mom said. Chip knew they were probably right. Ghosts were for books, movies and campfire tales. They weren't real. They couldn't be. Chip started to relax a bit. Drew tired as his mom sang him a song and he was soon fast asleep. Todd, Chip and Lucy's dad, was in the bathroom that was attached to the master bedroom. He wiped the black and white ghost makeup off of his face with a wet rag and ate another piece of chocolate. The candy wrappers were beginning to pile up on the sink counter like a small mountain. Kathy, Chip and Lucy's mom, walked into the bedroom and closed the door. Kids are asleep, she was thrilled to announce. Great, Todd said, as he smacked cherry taffy between his teeth next. Kathy saw the pile of candy wrappers and just shook her head. You're going to get a stomach ache, she said. It's all part of the fun of Halloween, was Todd's response. And so is dressing up like a ghost and scaring your son. If he has nightmares tonight because of your costume, you're in big trouble, she teased. Still not sure how you pulled off the floating trick, though. Floating trick? What are you talking about? Todd said. That wasn't you? Kathy was confused. Surely it was just him playing a prank. Didn't you dress up like the ghost with that long white sheet? No, Todd said. They sat in spooky silence. If it wasn't Todd, then it must have been... Lucy and Chip started screaming from down the hallway. Kathy and Todd looked at each other in terror and screamed as well. Outside the house, hidden in the shadows of an old oak tree, an owl sat on a branch. It watched the house where the lights rapidly flickered on and off and the four people inside screamed in horror. The owl had seen this before. In the same house, family after family. Year after year. The owl looked to the other side of the oak tree where the rolling hills of cracked gravestones were confined by a tall, sharp iron fence. Who would even want to live next to a haunted cemetery anyway? The owl curiously thought. We're listening to Mike Rothera's. Join us each Saturday in October for another scary story. For more fun, we also have Halloween themed games that you can print out and play like a wicked word search, a mysterious maze and more. We've placed links to these free printouts in this episode's description along with a link to our Facebook page and information about our author, Scott Donnelly who has other horrors for both young and old. I hope you'll join us again soon for Mike Rothera's Scary Stories for Kids.