AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It was giant, its bulging frame covered in burlap and dried leather with such detail that Neil was certain it was going to say hello. It was wearing a big wide-brimmed hat, a fancy suit jacket, and pants, and its face reminded Neil of a jack-o-lantern with the candle blown out.
The scarecrow was hanging over the fence, his middle caught on the pointed posts and nearly ripped in half. One of its arms was bent at an awkward angle, pinned between two poles of the fence. It was probably just the wind, but Neil swore it waved at him.
The eerie silence was broken by the sound of the baby wailing again.
“Shit!” Neil jumped in surprise, staring in shock as he realized it was the scarecrow who was crying. He had no idea how it was possible, but the scarecrow was alive and in obvious pain.
It twitched, crying again weakly before dropping its head.
“Hang on, big guy!” Neil wasn’t sure how to help, but he knew he had to get the scarecrow off the fence. He set the flashlight on the ground, aiming the beam over so he could see what he was doing. He went for the scarecrow’s legs first, unhooking the fabric of its pants from where it was caught on the fencing.
He went for the scarecrow’s dangling arms next, asking, “Hey! Can you hear me? I can get you off the fence, but I need your help, okay? Can you grab my neck?”
The scarecrow flopped awkwardly, and it seemed confused. It was able to lift up its head to nod, and then he curled long branch-like fingers around Neil’s neck.
Neil shivered, well aware of the danger of letting a giant scarecrow monster hug a very vital and extremely vulnerable part of his body. He was determined to help in spite of the risk, though, because he couldn’t even stand the sight of a bug being squished.
“Okay, hold on tight!” Neil heaved upward with all of his strength, but he hadn’t anticipated how heavy the scarecrow would be once he had it free of the fence. Neil promptly fell flat on his back and the scarecrow landed on top of him. He groaned, the air knocked right out of his lungs. “Well… that was a success, I think. Oof. You’re off the fence!”
The scarecrow cried softly, and he lifted his head, his burlap covered eyelids fluttering open to reveal coal black eyes that burned into Neil’s.
“I’m sorry.” Neil grimaced and he patted the scarecrow’s back soothingly. He couldn’t look away from the scarecrow’s big eyes, and his heart unexpectedly fluttered. “I’m gonna get you into the house, okay? Just, uh, hang on!”
Neil managed to wiggle out from beneath the scarecrow and went for his flashlight to get a better look at the damage. The scarecrow had nearly been ripped in half across his middle, and there were green vines hanging out with bright orange bulbous growths that looked like gourds.
It was a striking burst of color that contrasted the scarecrow’s otherwise dismal appearance, and Neil wondered if the vines and orange things were the scarecrow’s organs.
God, he really hoped not.
Neil took off his coat and laid it on the ground. He gently pulled the scarecrow on top of it, being mindful to not leave any potentially vital bits of greenery or gourds behind. He tied the sleeves around the scarecrow’s waist to hold him together and said, “So, uh, hang on real tight, okay? Sorry if this hurts.”
With a grimace, Neil grabbed the collar of the coat and the shoulder of the scarecrow’s jacket and started dragging him toward the house. He apologized profusely as the scarecrow groaned and cried, and he had to stop several times before he finally managed to get it into the house.
He groaned, shutting the door behind them. He was soaked in sweat now, and he peeled off his shirt. “Okay! Let’s, uh, get you somewhere more… comfortable.” He took a deep breath and grabbed a hold of the scarecrow again, dragging him into the living room. He couldn’t lift it onto the couch, so he pulled the cushions off to make a pallet to pull him on top of instead. “Okay! Whew! We made it!”
“Made it.” The scarecrow’s voice was rumbling and hoarse, more of a growl than anything human.
“You can talk.” Neil kneeled beside the scarecrow so he could untie the coat and get it out of the way. “Hi. I’m Neil. Do you have a name?”
“Scarecrow. Mister Scarecrow.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes.”
“I’m going to try and help you, okay?” Neil reached for the scarecrow’s hand. “But you definitely need a better name. I guess you’ve never seenHowl’sMovingCastle, huh?”
The scarecrow blinked.
“Right. Silly question.” Neil fidgeted. “Uh, well, there’s a scarecrow in the movie, but he’s really a prince.” He tugged on the lapel of the scarecrow’s jacket. “And you have this very fancy coat on, so, what about Prince?”
The scarecrow’s head tilted as he seemed to be thinking it over. “Yes. Prince is a good name.” His long fingers curled around Neil’s and his lips turned up in a rather terrifying grin. “You are very kind, Neil.”
“I, I just… I couldn’t leave you out there.” Neil shuddered, his hand growing clammy in the scarecrow’s grip. Prince was handsome in an unusual way and his long fingers felt so strong. “I’m gonna go find, uh, something to fix you with, okay?”
“Thank you.”
“Yeah. Sure.” Neil squeezed Prince’s hand before leaving him to hurry into the kitchen. He found a needle and thread in the junk drawer, and then he got an elastic bandage wrap out of the bathroom. He grabbed a box of ladybug Band-Aids and then got a small haystack from the shelf in the hallway his grandmother had used for decoration.
