1.5 Haunted Hideaway - Anya and Razz

They were nearly done with their preparations. Last but not least was going to be the adults only area which was currently being called the “Haunted Hideaway.” It was mostly just an area off the start of their main trail that had been set up for small parties. Once the majority of the festival’s events winded down, they were going to open it up for anyone staying late to enjoy. They planned to host a small bonfire and some food and drink to go with it. The entire thing was meant to be an escape from the younger attendees and parents were welcome to come back to join.

However this too needed to be inspected before the big night and most importantly she needed to make sure there’d be plenty of room for the horses since most of them would be riding over to it. After getting Razz tacked up they trotted over, making sure the various subtle markings were left on the trees. The foliage at this time of year was still fairly dense which helped it remain as a “hideaway” as intended.

As she reached the area though she found a few branches were still getting caught in Razz’s mane so she had to dismount and carefully snap them off. The wind must have messed up the entrance and shifted some of the brush in the way. Once those were cleared she ran her fingers through his thick, soft mane and tail to clear anything else out. “Good boy.” She praised him as he stayed still for her.

On foot she led him the remainder of the way in and tied him to the hitching post along one side. She checked over the buckets of water, they were empty for now but would need filling before they hosted the event. Then she turned her attention to the bonfire pit. It wasn’t particularly large, more like something between a normal campfire pit and a normal sized one. However it had to remain small to be safe in the forest clearing and to keep the sparks from reaching the horses on the opposite side if the wind picked up.

She kicked at the cold ash in the pit, making sure there wasn’t anything left over inside it. Once she confirmed the pit looked good she checked the various seating made of old logs and the area they’d be pulling out the folding tables at. Everything looked good, it just needed to be set up. Finally Anya returned to Razz who had started to doze off as she wandered around. She patted the stallion’s neck and untied him from the post. He had been taught to ground tie by now but she didn’t want to take any chances being out here.

“Alright boy, let’s do a quick trail ride then we can check out the tunnel.” His ears flicked towards her at that and she brought him out of the hideaway. Mounting up they made their way down the rest of the trail, leaves crunching under hooves. It was a gorgeous autumn day and Anya was grateful the weather was expected to stay clear and not too chilly for the rest of the week. Temperatures would dip at night but she knew being around the bonfire would keep them warm. Not to mention Razz and the other horses with thick coats would be perfectly comfortable. It was one of her favorite things about his looks, Razz had one of the thickest winter coats she’d seen in a Loshenka and it was incredibly soft. She leaned forward to run her fingers over his neck, gently petting him. “You’re such a good boy aren’t you? I’m so proud of how well you’ve been handling this. I bet you’ll be fine for the festival, right Razz?” The stallion let out a soft snort and continued to walk along the trail.