1 - Scarecrow

Maren leaned against the fence, staring out at the pastures. Steren said she had something… new to show her, something unique. The siren wasn’t quite sure what could be more unique for their eclectic barn, but she was ready for it. 

The pasture in front of her made her smile, a beautiful rainbow of colors and types of equines. Whatever Steren found must be interesting after all.

Her phone vibrated with a text, and Maren looked down to see it was a message from Steren. With a sigh, she headed to the barn.

Tacked up and ready to go, Maren set out on Wraith, her preferred mount. The Loshenka was a feisty thing, prone to biting when you least expected it, but she liked the challenge. They hadn’t always gotten along, but Maren had slowly gained Wraith’s trust. Emphasis on slowly.

Down near the bottom of the drive, Steren was sitting with her knees up on one of the large rocks that bordered the road. There was a lot of angry snorting and banging coming from the trailer, which made Steren wince. 

“Do I even want to ask?” Maren dared ask, watching at the elf’s cheeks and ear tips tinged pink.

“It was going really well! But then I hit a pothole on the main road and well some of the scarecrows fell and well…. She isn’t happy about it,” Steren said sheepishly.

“Scarecrows?” Maren asked, looking toward one of the open slats in the trailer that had half a scarecrow head hanging out. 

“Yeah well I picked her up…. And then I saw a sign for discounted Halloween stuff…. And we needed some new scarecrows anyway…. But apparently Iltarya hates scarecrows…. So I figured maybe it would be better to unload her into one of the lower empty pastures for now before bringing her back into the barn.”

“Sheesh…” Maren shook her head, blue curls bouncing. “Well… I will get the gate,” she sighed, moving with Wraith to the side of the road. The Loshenka had her ears pinned, and Maren took a moment to give the mare a stern look as she looped the reins over a post and headed for the gate. 

With some careful maneuvering, the trailer was backed toward the opening, and Steren headed for the trailer doors. “I’m just gonna…” She grabbed the latch, swiftly opening it before skipping back out of the way.

Maren gaped at the huge black… unicorn? With glowing white eyes and an aurora on her coat? As she barreled through the opening, heavy hooves pounding on the ground as she tore across the pasture. 

Wraith tossed her head up, the Loshenka mare letting out a shrill whinny.

Once the gates were closed, Maren peeked into the back of the trailer to see the slot where a second horse would go, shoved full with scarecrows. 

“Where on earth are we putting all of those?” 

“Decorations! Fields! Anywhere!” Steren said, but she sounded less confident than before. 

“Hopefully we have room…”