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howdy-cowpoke · 4 months ago

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TIMING: Current LOCATION: Prickly Pear Acres PARTIES: Daisy (farm hand NPC), Felix (@recoveringdreamer), & Wynne (@ohwynne) SUMMARY: Daisy, Felix, and Wynne are playing a low-stakes game of horseshoes that none of them are particularly good at, chatting and having a good time when they suddenly smell smoke. CONTENT WARNINGS: none.

—

Maybe the party was something Felix needed. With everything going on lately, they felt so much heavier than they were used to. They couldn’t stop thinking about Samir, couldn’t stop hearing that brutal snap that had ended the fight between Razor and Lockjaw. It didn’t help that they’d lost their ability to escape the Pit when Leo forced them into living in the boiler room, either. These days, Felix went from the ring to the boiler room in a way that made it difficult to feel as though he was anything but property of the Grit Pit. The small rebellions he’d planned with Wyatt helped, but they only went so far.

The party would go further. Felix was sure of it, was confident that being here and relaxing would… fix something, even if they weren’t sure what. They’d feel better after a few hours spent with kind people playing party games. They were sure of it.

Even so, they stuck mostly to people they knew. They’d spent most of the day glued to Daisy’s side, taking comfort in her familiarity and trying to convince her to let them help with some of the cleanup that would surely await her at the party’s end. They figured they should probably participate in the actual party, too, though, so when they saw Wynne playing horseshoes, they headed over. “I, um… I think I’ll probably be bad at this,” they greeted Wynne with a sheepish grin. “But it could be fun, right? Do you know the rules? Are there rules?”

—

This was good. After everything that had happened at the farm, all the hands had been delighted by the idea of having a party for them and their friends. They were permitted to invite whoever they pleased, with the mutual understanding that safety and security was paramount. There were some people here that Daisy knew, friends of Monty’s, and many more she did not. But she was excellent at making new friends, and she didn’t mind one bit that Felix had decided she was going to be their chaperone for the evening. They were a sweet young thing, and Daisy adored their gentle, genuine kindness. It was such a hard thing to come by these days!

Following them to greet the person tossing horseshoes, Wynne—who Daisy was somewhat familiar with, having seen them around the farm a few times already, the woman piped up at the question about rules. “First to forty points or whoever has the most points after fifty shoes pitched wins! A ringer, so gettin’ that there shoe around the stake, is three points! Touchin’, leanin’, or within six inches is one point. I think there’s more ‘bout the pitchin’ area n’ all, but that’s far too complex for a little ol’ party game, don’t ya think?” She beamed, leaning over to pick up two horseshoes from the box they were sitting in and passing the pair to Felix. “And I think you’re gonna do great, sweetheart!” She looked at Wynne, still wearing that wide, effortless smile. “I do think we’ve got some stiff competition here, though! Why don’t you start, dear? You’re already warmed up.”

—

There was something so sweet about Prickly Pear Acres. Ever since their first visit – when they’d gotten Rhiannon – they had returned with pure glee, reveling in the familiarity that came with farmlife. Wynne liked that they could encounter these things without sacrifices and other demonic cult things and that it could be celebrated. It almost all felt like life could be alright. And so they had split from Ariadne for a while to figure out what the games were about, often anxiously checking for a blonde head in the crowd.

Throwing horseshoes was ridiculous, of course! Horseshoes had a purpose. But most of the ones they were throwing were bendy and rusted, so it was alright and not a waste of resources. Wynne had been attempting to understand how to best go about it before Felix and Daisy arrived. “Oh,” they said, giving them both a smile. “Hi! I think it is fun. I like throwing things without purpose — well, I guess there is a purpose. To win!” They weren’t very competitive, but they could try to be. Even if their opposition was Felix, who they liked a lot and didn’t want to make sad about losing. As Daisy explained the rules, Wynne went to collect the horseshoes they’d thrown, most of them scattered around the stake. (Stake – vampire – barn. Their mind traveled for a moment but they returned to the metal objects in their hands.)

“Alright!” They returned, putting the horseshoes they’d gathered down save one and threw one. It clinked against the pole but did not circle it. Wynne frowned. “Well. That’s one! I – you go now, Felix. And you, are you playing too, Daisy?” They swallowed and added coyly: “Or are you afraid to lose?”

—

Daisy explained the rules, and it turned out there were a lot of them. Felix wasn’t sure they understood the point system, and they were confident they weren’t going to be good at it. They’d always had poor aim when it came to throwing things, something that had become almost a joke among their siblings when they were young. Hand Felix the ball, and you take on responsibility for whatever vase gets broken when he throws it, their mother had warned, though she’d always done so with a warm smile. Felix took the horseshoe Daisy offered them now, the weight of it different than any baseball they’d ever held. Weird.

They offered Wynne a smile, deciding that losing to them wouldn’t be so bad, anyway. Wynne deserved a victory or two in the books, Felix thought. (They tried not to think about Wynne at Watcher’s Way, strangely stiff and terrified. This was a much better way to see them. This was how Felix wanted them to be.)

Already, Wynne threw with more accuracy than Felix thought they could manage. They laughed, taking a step forward. “Uh, do I get points for not hitting a person? That’s going to be my main goal,” they joked, tossing a horseshoe and coming… nowhere close to the pole. “Daisy, you should play!”

—

Nothing made Daisy happier than seeing people she cared for having a good time. Both Wynne and Felix had become just that over the months, and she’d mothered them both in that way she mothered most people from the moment she met them. Hands on her hips and a grin on her face, she watched the friends toss their shoes towards the stake and chuckled at Wynne’s teasing. Splaying a hand over her chest, she shook her head. “Me? Afraid to lose? Why, I don’t think I know the meanin’ of the word! ‘Afraid’, that is. Not lose. I know what losin’ is.” She laughed again, nodding at Felix’s insistence and picking up a horseshoe of her own from the box. “All right, all right, you’ve both convinced me.” Focusing in, the tall woman took a short breath and tossed the shoe through the air, slapping a hand to her forehead when it landed even further away than Felix’s. “Dang! You’d think I’d be a better shot, what with the lasso-in’ n’ all! Guess that’s not a direct translation, huh?” She scurried over to pick up the shoes they’d all thrown, passing them back out again as she joined the others near the box. Noticing a ladybug of all things on Felix’s shoulder, she reached out and coaxed it onto her finger. “Hey, now that’s good luck, love! You might win this after all!”

—

They hadn’t seen much of Felix since the incident on Watcher’s Way, even if they had very much kept in touch. It had just been such an ugly, inexplicable and harrowing moment that Wynne would prefer all thought of it. And so they tried not to think of it now, as they all stood around to try and win a very silly game. It was a good distraction, a good way to look at the world through rose-tinted glasses and pretend it was all so very simple.

They watched both Felix and Daisy miss and there was a giddiness rising in their chest. Even though they weren’t the most competitive person out there, the fact that winning was now a more near reality made them excited. “You both tried very well!” They beamed at Daisy as she returned with the horseshoes, wondering how in the world someone could not know the meaning of the word afraid — both literally and in the way she meant it. “Are you really never afraid?”

Wynne rocked back and forth on their feet for a moment as they stared at the stake before breathing in and throwing their horseshoe. It missed, falling a foot or two in front of the stake. “Oh!” It was hard not to sound disappointed.

—

It was nice, the idea of relaxing with two friends and enjoying a nice moment. The world had been… a lot lately, to say the very least. There were giant legs sticking out of the ground, there were unknown dangers lurking around every corner. Playing horseshoes with two people they cared for was a nice reprieve, even if they were pretty sure they’d be bad at it. At least they seemed able to make one throw better than Daisy’s, something that brought a small smile to the balam’s face. “I can’t be worse at this than I was at rollerblading,” they quipped, flashing Daisy a grin at the reminder.

They glanced towards their shoulder as Daisy coaxed the ladybug off it, humming thoughtfully. “She’s cute,” they said. “Maybe she’ll bring me some luck. I probably need luck.” Wynne’s question had Felix curious, too. In all the time they’d known Daisy, she’d certainly seemed fearless. He didn’t think he’d ever seen her cower, and there was something so admirable about that. Felix often wished they could be the same, even if they knew it wasn’t how they were constructed.

“Everybody’s afraid sometimes,” they mused, watching Wynne line up to take their shot. “Right? It’s… human nature.” They glanced uncertainly to Wynne. Neither Felix nor Daisy was human, but they thought Wynne probably was, and they weren’t sure that Wynne knew that they were in the minority with that in this particular trio. Still, they thought, fear wasn’t limited to humanity alone. Felix was afraid most of the time, after all. “Ah, close!” They said as Wynne’s horseshoe fell short. “I guess none of us are really professionals, are we?”

—

If Daisy was honest with herself, of course she felt fear. It might be rare for her, but she still experienced it. That night that the farm had been attacked hadn't given her enough time to be terrified, and she had jumped straight to anger. She'd been furious. Heartbroken. But the fear had come later — when she'd seen Monty withdraw, when she'd seen Kaden trying to help him out of that dark place. When she'd worried about everyone on the farm but herself, afraid that the worst was yet to come.

“Well… sure, you're right. Maybe once or twice in my life,” she conceded with a laugh, watching as Wynne’s toss didn't quite make it to the stake. “No, we certainly are not!”

Even with lights illuminating the area very well in the darkness of night, their throws seemed to miss more often than not. That was okay, though. Daisy got the feeling they were all having a good time regardless, and felt pretty okay with Wynne still being in the lead. They were a sweet young thing, not unlike Felix, and she was happy to hand over a win. A win for Wynne!

As they crawled closer to their point goal and the party continued on around them, Daisy felt herself relaxing for what seemed like the first time in months. The boys had been right to suggest something like this, even if she'd been apprehensive at first. This was good. It was needed.

—

Even though Wynne disliked fear, they were glad to hear that both Daisy and Felix also felt it. It was such a solitary emotion to begin with, so to be alone in the mere experience too would make them feel a little desolate. “I guess it’s true then, if even you have been afraid once or twice, everyone is sometimes!”

Their thoughts were occupied for a moment as they pondered a large question. Eventually they just put it to words: “Are there professionals? I know about professional athletes. I just didn’t know this was also one of those sports.”

It seemed they were well matched in their mediocrity, which Wynne liked — if one of them surpassed the others, it would become a little boring quick. They were just about to throw their last horseshoe that would be a deciding factor in their placement when their focus was disturbed with an odd smell, and then a blazing sight.

One of the barns was on fire. Their arm fell slack, horseshoe still in their hand. “Daisy …” Their other arm pointed up at the flames.

—

There was some relief in knowing that even people Felix found infallible, like Daisy, felt fear from time to time. Some days, they worried that the fluttering in their chest and the dryness of their throat that they couldn’t quite get away from marked them as a coward. After all, hadn’t they proven themself as such? Didn’t they prove it time and time again when they flinched away from silly things like raised voices or unexpected sounds? Knowing that Daisy, too, felt fear made it feel less shameful. Even knowing Wynne — who was not quite untouchable in the sense Daisy seemed to be — felt afraid sometimes offered some relief. More than anything, Felix wanted to not be alone. Here, with this game of horseshoes, they felt like they weren’t.

“There are professionals in every sport, I think!” They replied, tossing another horseshoe. Like most of their throws so far, it was pretty far off the mark. “There’s a professional cornhole league! My sister used to say she was going to be a part of it one day.”

The game went on, all of them scoring small amounts of points in a way that made it a low-scoring nail-biter. Despite this, Felix felt energized. Competition was rarely a thing they were allowed to have fun with. In the Grit Pit, it was very life or death. Here, it was low stakes. Here, they were among friends.

It was a shame such things could never last.

They smelled the smoke seconds before Wynne pointed out the flames. Fear fluttered in their chest once more, the familiarity of it doing little to soften its blow. Someone was shouting, and then someone else joined in. And then, there was a loud bang, and Felix flinched. They glanced around the party, eyes wide. “What — Who’s that?”

—

“Yeah! I bet there is!” Daisy agreed with a laugh, enjoying the thought of people taking this game really seriously with uniforms and all. She couldn’t fathom what the proper and most advantageous technique for winning would be, but that was okay. They were just here to have some fun!

The deadened sense of smell that came with zombiehood meant that Daisy had no idea anything was wrong until they realized that Wynne wasn’t throwing their last horseshoe. Her smile fell slightly into a look of amused confusion as she cocked her head at them. “What is it?” She followed Wynne’s pointing hand with her eyes, turning around to see one of the barns on fire.

Not again she thought, flinching with the rest of them as a loud bang met their ears. She was about to shout at them both to leave, but then Monty was tearing past them toward the stable, followed closely by Kaden. Feeling fear and anger fighting for dominance, Daisy was frozen in place for a moment. “We need to leave,” she finally got out, turning to look at Felix and Wynne. “Both of y’all need to leave.”

—

The smell of fire brought back memories both happy and sad, though it was the latter that took over their mind. The barn, the rituals and now this, the farm. Fire wasn’t part of the program, Wynne was certain of it, and that certainty was affirmed when they saw Daisy’s response. Their fingers clutched around the horseshoe, a bit of strong and sturdy metal that was better than their sole knuckles.

They looked around for the blonde they’d come here with but did not find her, though they did see Kaden and Monty rushing towards the stable, which was also caught on fire. “The horses!,” they exclaimed and without giving it much thought they did as Daisy said. Wynne left, tearing after the hunter and the zombie towards the stallions. They hoped that outside superstition worked in their favor and that the horseshoe in their hand would bring some luck.

#. thread ;#. with ; wynne hughes #. with ; felix mendoza #. horse those shoes ;

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