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"Are you sure you want to camp out in the back yard, Dave? It'll be cold once the sun goes down."



"Of course, Mom. What good is a treehouse if you can't sleep in it?"



"Well it's up to you, but I'll leave the back door unlocked in case you need anything. And if you do get cold, your room will be waiting for you."



"Oh Mom, don't worry so much. I'm almost nine. I can take care of myself."



"I know, but humor your old worrywart of a mother?"



"Always." he said, giving her a hug.



Later that night Dave, along with his best friend Fred, entered their treehouse. Armed with snacks, board games, and the other odds and ends which make up such an adventure, they were ready for anything.



"Fred, let's play cards. Do you know how to play poker?"



"I wish! Can you teach me?"



"Sure, once I learn how to play it. How about some Gin Rummy?"



"Duces wild!"



After a few hands of cards, the boys ate chips and read the latest edition of the Fantastic Four. Newly released comics had always been a big part of their weekend.



"Let's play ball before it gets too dark." suggested Fred.



"Sounds good! I sure am glad we finally finished building this place. It's almost like living alone. Of course it's yours too, I just mean without any adults."



"I'm glad I live close enough to use it whenever I want. Mom and Dad would have kittens if I left the neighborhood for the night."



"Mine too." laughed Dave as he dug out his mitt.



The two boys played until dark, then climbed back into their new treehouse. It still smelled of fresh pine, and the flashlights made it bright and cheery.



"Let's turn off the lights, and tell ghost stories. The scariest one wins."



"You go first, Dave."



"I heard this one just a few days ago. Dad was warning one of the guys from work about it, during our barbecue."



"A few years ago, a couple moved into the big, rundown house a some blocks over. They were really happy with the price. Even though they didn't have any kids, it would be nice to have a big house.



But then they started to notice that the owls were really loud at night. They roosted in the big tree in the front yard. It would have been fine except that even with the windows closed the sounds went all through the house. All night long.



At first they just tried to chase them off. But after a couple of weeks of not being able to get any sleep, it became serious. The owls never went far, and the weird thing was each time they came back, there seemed to be a few more."



"Whooooooo"



"Was that you, Fred?"



"No, I thought it was you."



"Whooooooo"



"Anyway, once they noticed that, they tried to hire an exterminator. But none of them handle owls. They're not pests. Owls are good for the neighborhood, they eat pests. And they don't bother people."



"Whooooooo"



"That one is trying to be a pest." laughed Fred nervously.



"So the couple decided to get rid of the owls themselves. They couldn't use poison because their neighbors had pets. None of the animals had set foot in the yard, but they didn't want to take a chance. Instead they bought a small rifle intended for hunting birds and rabbits."



"Whooooooo Whooooooo"



"One night they killed ten of them. The rest flew away. Hopeful that it was over, they had the first night of proper sleep in a long time. And there were only about twenty left if they did come back. 



The owls were back the next night. And there were so many, they couldn't count them. They shot and shot, but not one owl moved or fell from the tree."



"Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo"



"The people decided to just leave them alone, and started to go back inside. When they turned around, they saw an owl sitting on the steps, glaring at them. They walked around it, afraid to touch it."



"Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo Whooooooo"



"When they opened the door, the house was packed with owls, hundreds of them. Maybe thousands. And they all screeched as one, and flew directly at the people who had killed their brothers and sisters. The next morning, they woke up in the hospital. They both had terrible injuries all over. And they were blind."



"SCREEEEEECH!!!!"



Accompanied by a lot of crashing noises, there was loud screeching outside of the treehouse. Both boys added their own terrified screams. They tried to hide in their sleeping bags, but the noise became even worse.



Soon they realized that the trap door had been opened. They heard flapping, but didn't feel any sharp beaks and talons. After several minutes of this, which had seemed like hours, the two boys risked a peek.



Sitting on the floor was a small cassette player. How could such a tiny thing make so much noise? Dave couldn't help but laugh at his father who was wildly whipping a couple of pillow cases around, making a lot of noise in the small room.



"Whooo!" shouted Dave, then Fred joined in with his own wild hoots. Soon the whole yard was echoing with the sound of owls. Lights began to flick on. All three of them felt a little foolish when they saw their neighbors peering out of the windows.



"Maybe we should go back to the ghost stories, before we wake up the whole neighborhood." suggested Dave.



"No more scary stories! I don't think I'll be able to sleep for a month!" laughed Fred.



"I guess I'll be going back inside..." said Dad, uncertain.



"What do you think, Fred?  Should we make an exception, just this once?"



"Do you mean the no adults rule? Never, if we let one in, we'll never have privacy again. But I don't see any adults around here! And there's plenty of room for three of us."



Cover image is from Canva, using their gallery