Speaker 1: Golden hues from the setting sun bathed the fields. The
Speaker 1: harvested crops left behind remnants, the leftovers of a bountiful season.
Speaker 1: Who was our family tradition to take those remnants and
Speaker 1: craft a scarecrow a symbol of protection and gratitude. This
Speaker 1: one's still good for the scarecrow mom.
Speaker 2: Yes, dear, that one's too worn for anyone to wear.
Speaker 1: Now, Hey, that's my shirt.
Speaker 2: Why do you think I let you keep it so long? Dear?
Speaker 1: I think we outdid ourselves this year. This one feels
Speaker 1: more lifelike.
Speaker 3: More than just lifelike. It's like it has energy. Can
Speaker 3: you feel it?
Speaker 1: You're more than straw, aren't you? Big guy? We finished up,
Speaker 1: standing back to admire our handiwork. The scarecrows stood tall
Speaker 1: overlooking the fields, its fabric face serene amidst the autumn wind.
Speaker 1: Moonlight streamed through the gaps and the curtains, casting an
Speaker 1: ethereal glow in the room. The distant sounds of nature
Speaker 1: hummed their nightly lullaby. But something felt off. I sat up,
Speaker 1: drawn to the window by something I couldn't explain. Peering out,
Speaker 1: I saw the silhouette of our new scarecrow. The wind
Speaker 1: played tricks, rustling the Scarecrow's clothing, and a dance that
Speaker 1: seemed all too deliberate. It's just the wind, chill out.
Speaker 1: The rustling of the fields grew louder, and I could
Speaker 1: swear I heard whispers, but my logical side said it
Speaker 1: was only my imagination. First night nerves happens every year.
Speaker 1: The winds grew stronger, carrying a tuneless hum, and as
Speaker 1: I strained to listen, the whispers became clearer. Give hurry.
Speaker 1: I slammed the window shut and drew the curtains, diving
Speaker 1: back under my blanket. Bright sunlight streamed through the kitchen windows.
Speaker 1: The smell of bacon and eggs wafted through the air,
Speaker 1: and the familiar clinking of dishes greeted me as I
Speaker 1: entered the scarecrow, and last night's whispering fears felt like
Speaker 1: a dream, distant and almost laughable in the light of
Speaker 1: day morning.
Speaker 2: Sleepyhead, took you a while to come down.
Speaker 1: Ooh, didn't sleep well? Had this weird feeling.
Speaker 2: Scarecrow jitters is all It'll pass.
Speaker 1: Emily clenched her jaw as she gave me a knowing glance.
Speaker 1: Every year, one of us gets the ebgbi's it's a
Speaker 1: ride of passage.
Speaker 3: It's just your mind playing tricks, sweetie.
Speaker 1: My plate was loaded with breakfast, but my appetite had waned.
Speaker 1: The vividness of last night's events seemed silly now, but
Speaker 1: a part of me still on that eerie feeling. Do
Speaker 1: you think it looks different from yesterday? Different? Son, it's
Speaker 1: just straw and clothes. We laughed it off, but the
Speaker 1: unees lingered. As I headed out to stark my chores,
Speaker 1: I couldn't help but glance at the scarecrow one more time.
Speaker 1: I guess I'll have to keep an eye on you,
Speaker 1: won't I. The sun was high as Emily and I
Speaker 1: were doing our usual rounds checking on the livestock.
Speaker 3: Hey, Jake, have you noticed some of the chickens missing?
Speaker 1: Now that you mention it, I haven't seen missus Pott's brood.
Speaker 2: I counted them this morning or short by three.
Speaker 1: Could be foxes. They've been a problem before.
Speaker 3: Yeah, but I saw the scarecrow earlier, when the sun
Speaker 3: was just coming up.
Speaker 2: It looked I don't know.
Speaker 1: I felt a chill run down my spine. The memory
Speaker 1: if the Scarecrow's altered stance from the morning flashed in
Speaker 1: my mind. Looked what I don't.
Speaker 2: Know, It looked more filled out today.
Speaker 1: We both stared at the scarecrow from a distance, a
Speaker 1: sense of dread building. It was hard to shake off
Speaker 1: the feeling that there was something malevolent about it. We
Speaker 1: should tell Dad let's finish.
Speaker 2: Up here first, and Jake, let's stick together.
Speaker 1: Okay, I nodded, feeling a sense of gratitude for my
Speaker 1: sister's company. The sun began to dip below the horizon,
Speaker 1: casting the farm in a warm golden hue. Emily and
Speaker 1: I approached Dad about our concerns. We found him on
Speaker 1: the porch fixing a broken step. Tools spread around him. Dad,
Speaker 1: we need to talk. What's going on.
Speaker 2: It's about the scarecrow. We think we think it's taking
Speaker 2: the animals.
Speaker 1: Again with the scarecrow. Did you two have some bad milk? No, Dad,
Speaker 1: We're serious. Chickens have gone missing, and the scarecrow looks different, bigger, bulkier.
Speaker 1: I've seen plenty of scarecrows in my time. They weather,
Speaker 1: they sag, sometimes they puff up when it rains.
Speaker 2: But it hasn't rained, Dad, And what about the animals?
Speaker 1: The chickens look get your mother we'll go out there
Speaker 1: now and figure it out together. The darkness was pierced
Speaker 1: only by the beam of our flashlights. Emily, Mom, Dad
Speaker 1: and I ventured out together toward the scarecrow.
Speaker 2: Look over, there are those feathers.
Speaker 1: Following the trail of scattered feathers led us to one
Speaker 1: of our missing chickens, or at least parts of it.
Speaker 1: Damned foxes, foxes, are you sure.
Speaker 2: We need to go back? This isn't right. Wait, we
Speaker 2: need to check the scarecrow.
Speaker 1: Approaching the scarecrow, the air grew colder. The thing that
Speaker 1: once stood as a protector of our crops now felt hostile.
Speaker 1: As our flash light beams hit it, there was an
Speaker 1: audible gasp. The scarecrow was no longer just straw clothes.
Speaker 1: It had taken on a grotesque, fleshy form. Feathers peeked
Speaker 1: out from its body, and what looked like a chicken's
Speaker 1: foot dangled from its arm. It's absorbing them. We need
Speaker 1: to get rid of it. Burn it now. The grim
Speaker 1: realization hung in the air. Our creation was turning into
Speaker 1: something evil. We needed to act fast. Our farm had
Speaker 1: turned into a battlefield, and we were preparing for our confrontation.
Speaker 1: We'd never imagined. We stood in a circle around the scarecrow.
Speaker 1: It's silhouette even more distorted in the silvery glow.
Speaker 3: I never thought i'd see the day when I'd point
Speaker 3: this out a scarecrow.
Speaker 1: Neither did I. He began pouring gasoline over the scarecrow,
Speaker 1: his hands steady despite the tension. Suddenly, an unholy screech
Speaker 1: echoed through the night. The skin sarecrow began thrashing violently,
Speaker 1: its limbs flailing, feathers and straw flying in every direction.
Speaker 1: The transformation was almost complete. Its eyes, once vacant, were
Speaker 1: now full, glowing with malevolent intent. Studdy. Without hesitation, Dad
Speaker 1: brew a lit match onto the scarecrow. Flames instantly consumed it,
Speaker 1: illuminating the field with a fiery glow. The Scarecrow's movements
Speaker 1: became more desperate, its screeches louder. We retreated a few steps,
Speaker 1: watching as the creature was consumed. Then, as suddenly as
Speaker 1: it started, the thrashing stopped. The scarecrow, now a fiery effigy,
Speaker 1: collapsed in on itself, turning to ash.
Speaker 2: Is it over?
Speaker 1: I hope so it's done. As the fire continued to burn,
Speaker 1: we stood close, watching for any sign of unnatural movement.
Speaker 1: Next year, maybe we should just go with a plastic owl.
Speaker 1: Is someone there?
Speaker 2: Hello, who are you talking to?
Speaker 1: Oh it's nothing, Probably just a raccoon.
Speaker 2: I didn't know they could talk.
Speaker 1: I wasn't trying to talk to them.
Speaker 2: I just you got scared. Yeah, well don't worry. I'm here.
Speaker 3: If anybody tries to hurt you, I'll cast a spell
Speaker 3: on them.
Speaker 1: Thanks. I feel so safe.
Speaker 2: You're welcome. So do you so want to get out
Speaker 2: of here?
Speaker 1: Yeah? This party is so lame?
Speaker 2: Well, where do you want to go?
Speaker 1: Anywhere? Let's go for a walk.
Speaker 2: I guess as long as we're going there together.
Speaker 1: You know, I only came to this party because I
Speaker 1: knew you would be here.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I knew that You're the only reason I'm here too.
Speaker 1: Really, Yeah, well then let's get out of here.
Speaker 3: It's about time. So what made you decide to dress
Speaker 3: up as Jason?
Speaker 1: Eh? I don't know. I guess I wanted to lure
Speaker 1: an unsuspecting victim away from the crowd and hacker up
Speaker 1: into pieces.
Speaker 2: Hey stop it don't say that.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry. I was just kidding. I hate this dumb costume. Anyway,
Speaker 1: Masks are dumb.
Speaker 2: No, I like your costume.
Speaker 1: If it's you, the get up of a psycho killer
Speaker 1: fits me. Gee.
Speaker 3: Thanks, I didn't mean it like that, you know. Just
Speaker 3: you look good with a knife in your hand.
Speaker 1: Whoa, whoa, whoa? What kind of stuff are you into?
Speaker 2: Never mind, pretend I didn't say that.
Speaker 1: I'm pretty good at pretending. I can pretend to be
Speaker 1: anything you want.
Speaker 2: Shut up, you're bad.
Speaker 1: What. No, I'm not. This is just plastic. It's not real.
Speaker 2: Of course, I know it's not real. I'm not stupid.
Speaker 1: Well, I know you're not stupid. I was just saying
Speaker 1: that I'm not. Actually, it's okay.
Speaker 2: I just don't want to walk around with you like
Speaker 2: an old person. You see that bench over there?
Speaker 1: Yeah, what about it?
Speaker 2: Doesn't it look comfortable?
Speaker 1: It would be if you were sitting on it with
Speaker 1: me exactly.
Speaker 2: Let's go. So, are you gonna hack me up into pieces?
Speaker 1: Now? What you mean with this old thing? Not a ants?
Speaker 2: Don't litter you bad boy?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't care. I'll pick it up later later.
Speaker 2: What do you mean later after I'm.
Speaker 1: Done with you? Oh?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 1: Yeah? What was that? It's probably nothing, just a raccoon.
Speaker 3: Probably nothing, or maybe it is something like a creep
Speaker 3: watching us.
Speaker 1: A creep? What are they gonna see anyway? Two people kissing.
Speaker 1: That's some saucy stuff right there. Shut up.
Speaker 2: Will you just go check for me, please.
Speaker 1: I'm telling you it's nothing. It's just a raccoon or
Speaker 1: a possum, Like.
Speaker 3: That thing you saw out by the house was just
Speaker 3: a raccoon and didn't scare you at all.
Speaker 2: Come on, just go check.
Speaker 1: Oh, come on, I'm telling you it's just a dumb
Speaker 1: rat or something.
Speaker 4: Just a rat.
Speaker 1: Huh, Okay, fine, I'll go check it out.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 1: Hey, scram get out of here. I'm trying to have
Speaker 1: a nice time with my lady here, and I don't
Speaker 1: like all y'all scuttling and fussing around in the bushes
Speaker 1: trying to get a peek. So go on, now get see.
Speaker 1: I told you it was just some dumb animal, nothing
Speaker 1: to worry about. Now, where were we? Huh? Lisa, where'd
Speaker 1: you go? Lisa? Where are you? Lisa? What's going on?
Speaker 1: Who's there? Lisa? I'm coming.
Speaker 4: Help me?
Speaker 1: Hey? Go mmm? How about no? You're sick of what's
Speaker 1: wrong with you? What's wrong with me? I'm not a
Speaker 1: Jason without a machete. Shut up? Why are you doing this?
Speaker 1: Why am I doing this? Why aren't you stopping me?
Speaker 1: Oh that's right, because if you take one more step,
Speaker 1: I'll cut open her throat right in front of you.
Speaker 1: Don't you dare like anything you do will make a
Speaker 1: difference in the end. Don't you realize how screwed you are?
Speaker 1: What are you talking about? Sh who's there? What's going on?
Speaker 1: Show yourselves? You two were such the perfect couple, an
Speaker 1: evil witch and a psycho killer. Such a shame you
Speaker 1: were just a couple of fakes. Otherwise a bunch of
Speaker 1: creeps like us would be easy to all right, if
Speaker 1: only you had your magic want in your plastic machete.
Speaker 1: You should know better than to go wandering where you
Speaker 1: don't belong. Stop.
Speaker 5: I'm sorry, relief, I'll give you anything you want. Just
Speaker 5: let us go, you moron. Can't you tell what we want?
Speaker 1: Is you?
Speaker 4: The days in Sarah's got shorter, and the air got
Speaker 4: crisper as fall around the ones fun in welcoming streets
Speaker 4: now had a gloomy.
Speaker 1: Field in them.
Speaker 4: As the gloomy clouds hung over the air. My brain
Speaker 4: always seemed to fall when it was least expected. It
Speaker 4: became increasingly uneasy during these days and realized I was
Speaker 4: caught up in a horror story I had invented. My
Speaker 4: name is Say, and my family and I used to
Speaker 4: live outside of Sarah's, a charming house. The area seemed calm,
Speaker 4: where the strange things started to happen. A man who
Speaker 4: got into the background was the beginning but on I
Speaker 4: first dismissed him as a chance bystander when he first
Speaker 4: crossed her stream. But the next few days I started
Speaker 4: to watch him more and more as he stood in
Speaker 4: the street looking at her house. He was a tall,
Speaker 4: strange figure with a face that seemed etched with despair.
Speaker 4: His eyes, hoween, were the most alarming thing.
Speaker 1: They were cold.
Speaker 4: And lifeless, and they never stopped keeping an eye on
Speaker 4: my house. During the rainy days of autumn, his presence
Speaker 4: grew more menacing. He would stay there in the rain,
Speaker 4: standing motionless in a movie. My family and I continue
Speaker 4: to notice him as well, and a sense of unease
Speaker 4: swept through our home. Nie as the rain beat against
Speaker 4: the window panes, I made the choice to talk to
Speaker 4: the stranger. I went over to him after stepping outside
Speaker 4: from the street. He didn't even look at me. Or
Speaker 4: make any move. My voice trumble. I said, Hey, what's
Speaker 4: up with you standing around.
Speaker 1: Here all the time.
Speaker 4: He's slowly turning a face, his eyes obsidian in the
Speaker 4: gloomy silence, he spoke in a whisper that made my
Speaker 4: skin crawl me. I was completely terrified by what he said. Oh,
Speaker 4: I watch your household.
Speaker 1: I hurried back inside, terrified and drenched.
Speaker 4: But I didn't tell my father what I'd seen, or
Speaker 4: what he meant by watching my family, or why us.
Speaker 4: I wasn't sure if he believed me, and I didn't
Speaker 4: want to overwhelm them with my fear. The man was
Speaker 4: still there the next day, as if he had never left.
Speaker 4: He stood with his face turned up for letting the
Speaker 4: rains soak into the bones that had started.
Speaker 1: To pour harder.
Speaker 4: My limit had been raged, had decided to get law
Speaker 4: enforcement involved.
Speaker 1: When the police.
Speaker 4: Arrived, they tried to speak to the man, but he
Speaker 4: was still unresponsive. He was questioned, but his only response
Speaker 4: was the menacing phrase, I watch your family. The officers
Speaker 4: advise us to keep an eye on him and report
Speaker 4: any suspicious activity. After they conclude that they had not
Speaker 4: found any evidence of a crime. Weeks passed into days,
Speaker 4: as the man maintained his eerie vigil, we felt like
Speaker 4: prisoners in our own home because we were constantly aware
Speaker 4: of his presence outside. No amount of security cameras or
Speaker 4: reinforced doors could erase the sense of dread that had
Speaker 4: crept into our hearts. One particularly gloomy night, as I
Speaker 4: glanced out the window, I caught sight of something that
Speaker 4: gave me the chills. The person who had been blocking
Speaker 4: the road had left instead. He was standing in front
Speaker 4: of her yard, inches from the glass, staring at me
Speaker 4: with his obsidian eyes. I yelled and ran to grab
Speaker 4: my phone and call my father. Had dialed my father's number,
Speaker 4: my voice trembling as I recounted the Chile encounter.
Speaker 1: After a few rings, he picked up Dad.
Speaker 4: He won't believe what's happening, I said, my words rushed
Speaker 4: and shaking. Say what's wrong, my father replied, concern evident
Speaker 4: in his voice. Someone is watching our house and our family.
Speaker 4: He's on the street every day, watching us, and carefully
Speaker 4: he was trying to understand what was going on. We
Speaker 4: need to call the police again, and this time will
Speaker 4: request a restraining order if necessary.
Speaker 1: Your safety comes first, he finally said.
Speaker 4: I called the police again and locked myself.
Speaker 1: In a room with feet.
Speaker 4: They arrived quickly, and this time they were more serious.
Speaker 4: During his capture, the man made no attempt to resist
Speaker 4: as they led him away, his eerie gaze didn't stop
Speaker 4: frightening me. The police later informed us that the man
Speaker 4: had recently been released from a psychiatric facility and had
Speaker 4: a history of mental illness. Because he thought we held
Speaker 4: the key to some elucid truth, he became fixated on
Speaker 4: our family. He hadn't done anything wrong, despite his eerie
Speaker 4: presence and disturbing words. We were relieved by the experience,
Speaker 4: but there were still wounds that would never completely close.
Speaker 4: Sarah's would once more be tranguled, but I knew that
Speaker 4: my family's nightmares would always be plagued by the memories
Speaker 4: of that traumatic fault. A man who had been lurking
Speaker 4: in the shadows and watching his while it rain was
Speaker 4: no longer there. Although the man's physical presence may have
Speaker 4: been erased by the rain, his menacing gaze would live
Speaker 4: on in her memories.