The Spirited Scarecrow

by Marnie Atwell

  “I didn’t want to change things too much for you, Scout, so I thought you could wear your usual pants but pair it with a black top in the same style as the one you are wearing.”

  “You mean the only style she wears; a purple strapless top.”

  “Yeah,” April chuckled, “that one. I also created a black cape for you to wear. It might get cold, later in the night. There are a pair of black boots as well if you are feeling daring.”

  “Thanks, April. I’ll see how I feel on the night.” Scout took the hat off and handed it to April. “You’d better put this away. I might wreck the pointy tip.”

  April did as asked. “Are you ready for your make-over, Briella?”

  “I’d never say no to a make-over, April. I thought you wanted me to keep my black hair with red highlights for the cat outfit.”

  “The black hair would probably be okay. It would help to keep it hidden under the hood with the cat ears I made for you. The red highlights have to go. None of the cats I’ve seen has red fur.”

  “I don’t have to look exactly like a cat.”

  “No, you don’t. I thought you might like something brighter for a few days. I can give you back this look on the day of the party, or we can skip the make-over until after the party.”

  “Are you kidding?” Briella fluttered to the stool and made herself comfortable. “Work your magic, April,” she grinned. “Are you sticking around, Scout?”

  “You bet. I wouldn’t miss this for anything.”

  “It will take a couple of hours,” Briella warned.

  “I’ve got nothing better to do,” Scout replied.

  April grabbed another stool for Scout to sit on. “You might as well have something soft to sit on.”

  Scout nestled her bottom into the cushion. “These are comfy chairs. Where did you get them from?”

  “I have a friend who makes doll’s furniture. I pay him extra to pretend he is making furniture for little people that are real. He hasn’t disappointed Briella yet.”

  April grabbed some chemicals from a cosmetic bag Scout hadn’t noticed earlier. She studied the vials that April withdrew but couldn’t read the writing on the labels. “What language is that?”

  “An ancient one,” April replied.

  “Which ancient civilisation does it hail from?” Scout rolled her eyes.

  “Don’t you roll your eyes at me! It is a secret society that is going to remain a secret.”

  “Whatever,” Scout answered. A rumbling noise outside caught her attention. “That sounds like Force’s bike,” she flew to the window to investigate. His profile came into view for a few seconds before disappearing around the side of the building. “Where do you think he is going?”

  “I don’t know,” April replied more snarly than usual. “I’m not his keeper.”

  “Is that jealousy I hear? Where do you think he is going?”

  “I wouldn’t know.” But she had an inkling he was going over to Loretta’s place.

  “Maybe he’s visiting Calamity. Checking on her recovery from the Jealousy Monsters.”

  “He did that a couple of days ago. Why would he check on her again?” Briella queried.

  Scout stared at April, a smirk wrestling with her lips. “I am sure those feelings will pass when your energy returns to normal.”

  “What’s wrong with your energy?” Briella asked April.

  “Nothing, Briella. I’m fine.”

  “April and Force healed each other,” Scout informed her. “They are not quite themselves. A little more energy than was needed was expended, and the pair appears to be experiencing a connection that didn’t exist before.”

  “What sort of connection?” Briella demanded to know.

  “A romantic one,” Scout insisted. The smirk now blatantly plastered on her face.

  “I see,” Briella frowned, thinking quietly to herself.

  Scout leaned forward and peered at Briella’s face. The smirk was replaced by a genuine smile. Briella caught the movement in her peripheral vision and turned her eyes in Scout’s direction. “What are you scheming, now?” she whispered.

  “You want April and Force to get together, don’t you?”

  “Sure, but you already knew that. I told you when we were chasing the vampire.”

  “Callum is coming here to pose as April’s husband, Wade. What if we convince him it would be better to pose as Force instead? Force and April are more closely acquainted than Callum and April. Wouldn’t it make more sense for the one who knows her best to play the husband?”

  “You are right,” Briella replied in a louder voice than intended. In her excitement, she had forgotten to block the mind-link.

  “Right about what?” April asked.

  “This make-over,” she blurted, thinking quickly. “I’ve been feeling a bit stressed lately, and this will help to soothe my nerves.”

  April took the opening Briella had given her to discuss her aversion to scarecrows. “What’s been plaguing your thoughts, Briella?”

  “Nothing worth discussing. I’ve been a bit uptight, that’s all.”

  “Now, Briella. You know what happens when you don’t get what’s on your mind out in the open. You fixate on things and make yourself sick.”

  “Nothing is going to make me sick.”

  “That’s what you said after you watched that movie with the clowns.”

  “That was different,” Briella refused to be swayed.

  “How?”

  Briella wracked her brain for an answer. She couldn’t come up with one fast enough. “You’ve been talking in your sleep,” April said, her fingers crossed behind her back for the white lie she told.

  Briella tried to swallow the lump that had suddenly appeared in her throat. “I have?”

  “Yes,” April nodded.

  “What have I been saying?” she gulped.

  “Something about a scarecrow.”

  Chapter Seven

  Briella’s eyes widened, and her knuckles turned white as her fingers tightened on the wood. Scout leaned further forward and placed her hand on Briella’s arm. “Tell her.”

  Briella closed her eyes and lowered her head. April wrapped Briella’s hair in plastic and spun the stool, so they were face to face. “What’s going on, Briella?” April asked quietly.

  Briella looked into her friend’s eyes and said, “It’s happening again.”

  April nodded. “Your fear will continue to grow and manifest in ways that are detrimental to your health. With Halloween looming, it is important that we nip this in the bud, NOW. Agreed?”

  “Yes,” Briella whispered hoarsely.

  “It will be okay. We’ve beaten your fears before. This time will be easier.”

  “It will? Halloween is going to make it a hundred times worse.”

  “No, it won’t. This time we have Scout and Liam to help, and because of them, you have learned you have some control over the things that happen during the lead up to Halloween.”

  April moved to another section of Scout’s new home and collected a chair similar to those found in hairdressing salons. She also took a couple of containers that had the same appearance as porcelain. One would hold the clean water needed to rinse Briella’s hair while the other would store the contaminated water to be disposed of. April placed the chair and collection tank near the girls then moved to the sink.

  “So what’s your plan?” Briella asked, switching chairs.

  “You are going to tell me the items you need to create a scarecrow, and I am going to source them for you. Then we are going to build him to your instructions, and you are going to see there is nothing to be afraid of.”

  “You forget that one speck of fairy dust and that thing will come alive.”

  “Yes, but just like the creatures in the drawings were compelled to obey you, I think the scarecrow will be too.”

  Briella looked sceptical. Scout appeared to mull over April’s words. “I can’t find fault with that logic.” She winked at April. Thei
r plan was going to work. She just knew it. Scout dipped her finger in the water and found it to be lukewarm. “Is that hot enough?” she questioned.

  “Yes, Scout. Any hotter and it would stress the roots of the hair and make it fall out.”

  “I’ve never seen anyone become bald from having a hot shower,” Scout stated.

  “It doesn’t fall out all at once. But too many hot showers over time will thin out a person’s coverage.”

  “Is that right?” Scout raised her eyebrows. “You are a fountain of knowledge, April. It’s a shame we can’t keep you.”

  Briella laughed. “You don’t need to keep her, Scout. You will see her all the time.”

  “Of course, Briella. It’s just a manner of speech.”

  “Right.”

  “So what does that stuff you put in Briella’s hair do? Ooh, can I do that?” Scout watched April rinsing Briella’s hair.

  “Here you go,” April handed Scout a nozzle attached to a hose. “Be sure to keep it out of Briella’s eyes,” she cautioned. “The chemical removes the colours from Briella’s hair leaving it white.”

  “So it’s a bleach, then?”

  “Somebody’s been watching television.”

  “Briella might have introduced me to a show or two,” Scout admitted sheepishly.

  “Mind you don’t watch too much. I’d hate to see you become hooked on the soaps.”

  “Why would I get hooked on soap? I don’t even use the stuff when I bathe.”

  “Not the soap people wash with. Soap Operas, a type of show on television that sees the next story pick up where the last one left off. They can become addictive.”

  “If you say so. What comes next?” Scout wrapped Briella’s hair in a towel. “It feels a bit dry.”

  “It will feel better once the conditioner goes in, but first, we need to add some colour. I think a nice golden blonde will go nicely with the outfit I have in mind.”

  April grabbed another vial from the case and opened the lid. She squeezed the dropper and sucked up a bit of the liquid. She added a drop to a white ceramic bowl containing a thick white cream. As she stirred, the colour mixed with the white and the consistency of the cream thinned. April added another drop of colour and stirred. Happy with the result, she applied it to Briella’s hair.

  “How long does that need to stay on for?”

  “Fifteen minutes. While that is working, we will colour Briella’s wings.”

  “How are you going to strip out the red colour? Our wings are very delicate you know.”

  “Yes, Scout. I know. This isn’t my first time doing this.”

  “Sorry, April.” Scout lifted her shoulders and tipped her head to the side.

  “It has taken years to perfect the formulae I use on Briella. Please don’t try this on your own, Scout. If you want to make some changes, let me know. I’m more than happy to help.”

  “Don’t you like me the way I am?”

  “Of course I do, but sometimes a girl just needs a change. If that feeling should ever take hold of you, then I am available to help you do that safely.”

  “Oh, okay.” Scout remained quiet, lost in her own thoughts. April kept a concerned eye on her. She would have to have a word with Liam when he returned. Scout needed a serious boost to her self-esteem. April stripped Briella’s wings of the red and added some yellow. Then she rinsed out Briella’s hair, adding a sealant and some conditioner. Scout rinsed out the conditioner and then used a blow-dryer for the first time.

  “That air gets really hot. How does this thing work?”

  “I don’t know,” April said. “I’ve never really thought about it, just enjoyed the results.”

  Briella’s hair looked lovely. Scout gathered some fringe strands on the left-hand side and twisted them, pinning them in place. She then repeated the effect on the other side. It was a classic hairstyle for fairies, one that her natural hair was too short to accomplish.

  “You look lovely, Briella, but that outfit doesn’t go with your hair and wings.”

  “I have the perfect ensemble for you to wear, Briella,” April stated. She collected a pink top that had one button which fastened below her breastbone, long sleeves and yellow tassels. This was complemented with a pair of full-length pants in pink that had a yellow waistband. Yellow high-heeled shoes finished the look.

  “How do you feel?” Scout asked once Briella had seen herself in the mirror.

  “Like I can take on the world,” Briella grinned.

  “How about a scarecrow?” April inquired, taking the vessels of water to the sink to dispose of their contents.

  Chapter Eight

  Scout noticed Briella’s smile fade. “Come on Briella, no need to be scared,” she said.

  “Yeah, love. Scarecrows are just a bunch of clothes stuffed with straw, designed to scare the birds away from the vegetables. They are inanimate objects that can’t hurt you,” April said returning to the bench.

  “Unless they are infected with my fairy dust.”

  “Is that what you are afraid of? That it will come to life and terrorise you?” April returned the chairs to their rightful rooms.

  “Aren’t you?”

  “No. So you are not afraid of scarecrows?”

  “Yes.”

  April’s mouth twisted to the side. “Yes, as in you aren’t afraid of scarecrows, or yes, you are afraid of scarecrows?”

  “Yes, I am afraid of scarecrows.”

  April and Scout looked at one another. “Are you afraid of a scarecrow being brought to life or any inanimate object coming to life?”

  “Both, but the thought of a scarecrow, which absolutely terrifies me, coming to life scares me above all other things.”

  “You are less afraid of your magic at Halloween this year, than you have been in previous years, right?”

  “Yes,” Briella agreed.

  “That’s a start. Let’s begin by creating a scarecrow and go from there. Just like with the clowns, we’ll take it one step at a time.”

  “Don’t expect me to be all smiles and sunshine.”

  “I won’t,” April said gravely.

  “Are you taking the Micky out of me?”

  “Of course not. I am merely being serious.”

  “Well don’t! It’s off-putting.”

  April raised her eyebrows but was able to prevent the huff that threatened to escape through her lips. “Let’s start with his clothes. What is your scarecrow going to wear?”

  “A pair of jeans and a t-shirt,” Briella blurted, not taking any time to think.

  “Okay,” April said. “Do you want him to have a hat or shoes?”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  Scout rested her arm across Briella’s shoulders and spoke gently. “For this to work you are going to have to take ownership of the decisions for creating him. If you don’t want to touch anything for fear of getting your dust on it, that’s fine. But you have to be the one who decides what he looks like or you are going to continue being afraid.”

  “So I won’t be afraid of this one, but will still be afraid of the others?” she shrieked.

  “No, you won’t be scared of any of them if we do this correctly right from the start. What is his body going to be made from?”

  Briella actually took the time to think about it. April had said that scarecrows were usually made of straw. There were plenty of ears of corn ready to be harvested on the land they were about to own. Perhaps they could stuff some Hessian bags with the stalks to create various parts of the body.

  Once they had legs, arms and a torso, April could sew them together. They could use gloves for his hands and toe socks for his feet. These could be filled with rice or sand.

  His head could also be constructed from Hessian filled with stalks, but would need to be cut to provide holes for the eyes and mouth. April could sew on some ears and a nose made from Hessian and filled with rice or sand.

  The scarecrow would be bald. Briella didn’t want any hair on his head. A hat would hav
e to suffice as a covering.

  “So what do you think?” she asked after explaining her ideas to April and Scout.

  “Sounds like a plan,” Scout answered more quickly than April could open her mouth to voice her thoughts. Once again, April nodded in reply. “When are we going shopping?”

  “We are not going shopping. I am. Did you suddenly forget you cannot be seen by humans?”

  “We can hide in your purse like every other time we’ve been out with you,” Scout scowled.

  “You weren’t moving into those areas to live. Humans can take only so many memory scrubs before their brains turn to mush. We need to save those times for when they are truly needed.”

  “I suppose so,” Scout murmured.

  “There is no supposing about it, young lady. You are going to have to be more vigilant in keeping your presence on Earth a secret. It is going to be a lot more taxing on your energy levels than you realise.” April walked to a counter beside the front door to collect her purse. “What are you going to do while I’m away?”

  Briella looked at the clock on the wall. It was too early for her favourite show, ‘How Do I Look? ’ to come on television. She glanced at Scout, admiring her new look. “We’ll find something to amuse ourselves.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of. I’m not leaving until you tell me what you have in mind.”

  “I don’t see what the big issue is,” Briella stamped her foot. “Don’t you trust us?”

  “Yes, I trust you. You don’t trust yourself. You claim you are afraid your dust is going to cause all sorts of trouble and the next minute you are all ‘She’ll be right mate’. Liam’s not here to keep an eye on things.”

  “No, he’s not. Scout is. And she has a phone to call you or Liam if danger comes a-knocking.”

  “No need to be snarky, Briella. I only have your best interests at heart.”

  “We’ll be okay, April. I’ll ensure Briella makes safe choices.”

  “Thank you, Scout. At least one of you can behave like a grown woman.”

  “Are you calling me childish?” Briella stamped the other foot.