SCARECROW SHOW OFF

Much like the summer affairs, fall brought about new festivities to take a part of. And while this was not exactly in the most interesting of places, Piero and Hanabi always enjoyed a trip out to Wind Valley. It seemed to be the hot spot for all things festive, and with the turn over into the new season, this was shaping up to be no different. This year, there had been a massive corn maze set up in the center of the valley.

This time of year also brought about blustery gusts and wintery tastes on the back of the tongue. It was the time of the in between. The time where families would begin to clump together and make memories. Piero absolutely loved this time of year, and frequently made preparations for festivities even if he couldn’t always partake. In situations like that, he would send someone along to enjoy them on his behalf, even if he wasn’t going to necessarily tell them that he was hoping for them to enjoy things on his behalf.

That would take the fun right out of the whole ordeal.

This time, however, he had been able to go with Hanabi, a beautiful navy fox that had lanterns hanging from her ornate arms. They strode through the Wind Valley together, arm in arm as Piero pointed out every little thing that caught his interest. It was mostly corn. In fact, it was exclusively corn in all shapes and sizes. And a variety of colors, though the corn still on the stalks were yellow, sheathed in green leaves and hairy husks.

“Did you know that they have a whole event dedicated to this stuff, Hanabi?” Piero said with honking laughter. Though he looked like a sad clown, his laugh was like a scared deer, and it rang through the air, scaring some of the locals and even causing some clearly younger Scarfoxes to flee into the maize.

The maize maze.

“It’s true!” Piero continued while Hanabi simply nodded along. She enjoyed listening to her fiance talk about the things that amused him. It just so happened that everything amused him to some degree. This was something that she had come to accept about him. He found joy in the mundane and the absurd. He found joy in both the big and the small. And while she was not much of a talk when they were out and about, Hanabi hung onto every single word.

Piero went on to explain that the main problem facing foxes during this season was the over abundance of feather beasts - more specifically, the crows. The crows would come and peck at all the corn in the corn maze, and if they pecked for too long, or too many came to peck across a wider area, then the maze would be ruined and so would all the corn.

Hanabi could not tell if the operators would have been more upset at the maze being ruined or the corn and even though she had prompted Piero to tell her, he very carefully answered her questions without answering her questions. Which meant that something was up.

“You’re not about to rope us into another harebrained scheme, are you?”

Hanabi was met with total silence followed by light snickering.

“Piero! Don’t you remember what happened over the summer?”

Piero shrugged. “Of course I do, nyehehe. But I figured I would lend my services for something else this time! No jokes this time. Just dressing up.”

“It was supposed to be a relaxing evening, Piero,” Hanabi replied, somewhat jokingly. “And what are you going to do? Dress like a scarecrow? Chase the birds away?”

“Exactly!”

Hanabi sighed. “I was joking. Piero, who are you doing this for?”

“The Mini God mostly. But we will get to that later! It would also be good to check in on the new recruit, even though things are going to be slightly out of line.”

“You mean that Pepper girl?”

“Right you are! Ding ding!” Piero honked his gaudy baubles and grinned from ear to ear.

No sooner had he honked that they were at the entrance of the maze. The real entrance. It was dressed up to the nines. Corn, patterns, wheat, and plenty of other foxes who had come to do the same thing. Some of them were already on the poles holding up the scarecrows. Some were wrestling with the birds. And others still were applying their makeup in preparation. It was a festive time, and it was cozy, with hot chocolate being served by the gallon by a portly fox with grey arms.

“Sounds like you aren’t the only one who had the same idea,” Hanabi said.

“Nope! And that’s just the way that I like it. The more the merrier, I always say.”

“Do you always say that? Really?”

Piero honked sheepishly. “Yes, when the situation calls for it. Hurry, we should get ready. And by we, I mean I. All I need you to do is take a good picture, okay?”

Hanabi giggled. “Yes of course. I’ll do my best.”

Piero’s outfit was made mostly of straw with patchwork clothes and a big hat that covered his whole head. He looked ridiculous, but it he wasn’t any more ridiculous looking than his normal self. It was simply how he was, and he loved every second of it.

When the two of them got out to the fields, Piero swayed in the breeze while perched on a pole, and he waved his arms at every crow that came near. He would tell bad jokes and sing songs and flap his arms and make noise. The crows, already tired of these shenanigans, took to cawing and flying away, looking for corn in a part of the maze that wasn’t being guarded by a big scarecrow clown.

Hanabi took plenty of pictures, and even attempted to scare some of the feather beasts away herself, but she wasn’t as scary as a clown and scarecrow combination.

Perhaps for the better, because Hanabi rather liked the crows.