Beckoning Boogeyman

“What on earth has gotten into you?” Cassandra held the reins of Fae Shine tightly as the eighteen hands tall Loshenka pulled against the restraint. He wasn’t the most docile of horses, but he was rarely so disobedient. 

The slate stallion, his coat marked by white sabino markings and the lighter fade of the husky markings stood out in the early twilight hours. His glitter markings and the black streaks on his neck seemed more distinctive than usual as he tossed his mane in annoyance at being restrained. 

“Shine, do you mind?” Cass muttered as Fae Shine pulled against her grip once again. He was clearly trying to get somewhere. Though she wasn’t sure where. 

The stallion gave an agitated snort and nipped at Cass, his golden eyes flashing in anger at still being held in place. His white colored legs stamped in frustration as he tried to get out of the stall. 

Cass tightened her grip, her voice firm but not angry. “Oh no, absolutely none of that, Sir.” 

Fae Shine tried to back away, their slate tail twitching in agitation, though they did stop trying to bite her. 

It was in that moment of quiet that Cass felt the pull of something. She couldn’t put a finger on it, but it was malevolent and insistent. “Oh, is that what has you worked up?” Cass purred as she brushed at the black streak in the stallion’s mane. 

A shadow moved in the corner, darker than the shadows already created by the flickering lights. It called to her, and to Fae Shine too as the stallion tossed their head and tried to move in that direction. If agitated sounds he was making were any indication, he was angry; not afraid. 

“Whoever or whatever you are, you’re not welcome here.” Cassandra called out, not exactly raising her voice but somehow still conveying a tone that suggested the intruder was making a significant mistake. 

Fae Shine snorted loudly, reinforcing Cassandra’s statement. 

The creature didn’t really manifest, but rather beckoned with a shadowy hand towards the outside. 

Cassandra narrowed her eyes at the motion, annoyed that any creature like that would dare. 

The hand manifested more clearly, a black and white striped sleeve showing in the shadows. The pull to follow was still strong. A cloying sensation. One interrupted by Fae Shine nipping at Cassandra’s fingers, his dark gray nose quivering. 

“Thank you,” Cassandra murmured, making sure Fae Shine’s reins were looped tightly around her hand. Enough so that it would take her a moment or two to pull away if the beckoning became too strong. 

“I’m not going with you. You can leave now.” Cassandra called out, backing closer to Fae Shine. It was clear the stallion could feel the same thing she did, but it was equally clear it was easier for him to ignore. His gray tail whipped back and forth in agitation as he stepped between her and the boogeyman. 

“Oh, but you are. I have a present for you.” The boogeyman stepped out of the shadows. Tall and lanky he didn’t seem quite a part of the world, and yet he was solid. His white and black striped suit seemed to mix and mingle with the shadows and light of the twilight and his green brimmed tophat stood out as the only color in the otherwise faded palette. He smiled, too sharp teeth flashing in what only a fool would mistake as a friendly gesture. 

“I’m no child to lure into the darkness.” Cassandra’s hand dropped to her dagger, her eyes hardening. “Be gone, boogeyman. I’ve no interest in you or your offerings.” 

“Oh, but you do. You know I can offer you power.” The boogeyman inched closer, his call becoming stronger. 

It was a good thing Cassandra had looped her hand so tightly through as even knowing what the boogeyman was, it was hard to resist his call to follow. Fae Shine, less enamored of the call, pulled her backwards and lashed out at the boogeyman as much as the confines of the stall would allow. 

The glittered markings flashed in the fading sun as he struck again, forcing the boogeyman back. The distraction offered by the sabino marked stallion eased the boogeyman’s beckoning and Cassandra took advantage of the distraction. 

She kept her hand looped through Fae Shine’s rein’s even knowing that if he ran she’d be in trouble, and joined him in driving away the boogeyman. She wouldn’t be following that monster tonight. 

The boogeyman dodged the stallion, almost vanishing into the shadows, but a quick throw of her dagger from Cassandra caught his shadowy jacket in a glimmer of sunlight. 

“No you don’t. I see you, and I’ve got you. No going anywhere now.” Cassandra smiled, and much like the boogeyman, only a fool would mistake the look for friendly. 

Fae Shine managed to land a kick, the boogeyman giving a snarl of pain and trying to pull free of the dagger that held his jacket in place. 

“I told you, no leaving.” Cassandra almost laughed, the pull finally gone. She didn’t draw her sword, the flashing hooves of Fae Shine proving more than enough a threat. “Your name, sir.” 

“I won’t give that to you!” The boogeyman practically spat

“You’re certain?” Cassandra leaned in, her tone the kind of friendly that made the hair on the back of one's neck stand up. 

The boogeyman seemed to reconsider his statement. “What is my name worth to you?” 

Cass chuckled as Fae Shine demonstrated just how strong his hooves were by smashing a pumpkin piece he’d been offered as a treat earlier. The stallion's golden eyes watched the boogeyman with annoyance. 

“That’s the wrong question, sir.” Cassandra brushed Fae Shine’s soft nose, brushing the horse’s forelock out of his face. “The question is what is your life worth to you? Fae Shine is angry and I’m annoyed. I think you can figure out who you stand a better chance with.” 

The boogeyman looked between Cassandra and Fae Shine, his eyes wide. “Very well. My name is Banzer.” 

“Good choice, Banzer.” Cassandra stood, pulling Fae Shine back just a bit. She could feel the power of the name as she said it, and saw the boogeyman shutter as she invoked his name.

The stallion resisted, almost jerking the reins from her hand, but she was too used to stubborn horses to let go so easily. “Now, now Fae Shine. There’s no point trampling our new friend. Is there?” Cassandra murmured as she stroked the stallion's husky lightened nose and tousled their mane. 

Fae Shine snorted his disagreement, but settled for turning and nearly smacking the boogeyman in the face with his long tail. 

Cassandra chuckled and turned back to the boogeyman. “Take your beckoning elsewhere. Should you trouble me, or mine, ever again, make no mistake that I’ll be the one beckoning you next time. And you won’t like the present that awaits you when you answer. And make no mistake. You will answer to your name. Do we have an understanding, Banzer?” 

“We do.” Banzer nodded, his unnaturally red eyes flicking between Cassandra and Fae Shine. 

The stallion stood just behind her now, his eighteen hands of height making him an imposing figure as he shifted his white marked legs in a motion that indicated he’d just as soon trample the boogeyman than let it go, but the stallion remained obedient for the moment. 

“Good.” Cassandra pulled her dagger from the sunlit jacket and stood. “Get out of here, and never trespass on my territory again. And do not ever dare beckon that which is mine again.”  

The boogeyman bowed, and in moments was gone into the shadows.

Cassandra reached up and brushed at the black marking on Fae Shine’s neck. “Thank you for making sure I didn’t follow that call. I’ll make sure we get an extra good run in today along the trails as I know you like this weather. And extra treats as well.” 

This seemed to put Fae Shine in a better mood. There was nothing he liked better than a good run, and the trails around Thorn Rose were some of the best. Though he still half wished he’d have gotten to trample that blasted beckoning boogeyman.