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The rumble of Force’s bike signalled his return. Scout looked panicked as she stepped closer to the mirror. She ran her hand through her hair, nearly jumping out of her skin as Briella shrieked. “Don’t do that! You’ll mess it up if you continue to pat it.” Briella slapped her hand away.
“Do you mind?” Scout shouted back. “You scared me half to death,” she puffed the air in and out of her lungs around the words.
“What is up with you anyway?” Briella asked with narrowed eyes.
“Nothing,” her head came up as Force entered the room.
“April? Girls?”
“Over here,” Scout answered, dropping the barrier to the mind-link.
Force wandered over, his eyes widening at Scout’s new look. “Somebody’s been busy,” he smiled. “You look lovely, Scout.”
“Thanks, Force. Where have you been?”
“Out and about,” he hedged. “Where’s April?”
“Out shopping for scarecrow stuff,” Briella answered.
“You’re okay with that?” he asked.
“Briella told her what to buy,” Scout replied proudly.
“Seems like I’ve missed a lot. Want to catch me up.”
“Sure, but there may not be time,” Briella’s gaze was drawn to the window. “I believe April has returned. Are you two going to be weird?”
“Why would we be weird?” he wandered to the window, to see her car heading towards the parking area.
“You two did heal each other, right?”
“So?”
“There are ramifications for those who use more energy than is necessary.”
“Such as?”
“Romantic feelings,” the fairies’ voices blasted in stereo.
“Is that right?” Force said, pieces of the puzzle falling into place. “Has April indicated she might be feeling some after-effects of the healing?”
“Nope, you did,” Briella laughed. “When you came home and made her mad, again. The look on your face when she responded told us you wanted to smack her or kiss her. Instead, you chose to turn and walk away. Dead giveaway.”
“Do you still want to kiss April?” Scout asked, fluttering at eye level.
“No.”
“Do you want to think about that? She’s about to walk in the door.”
Force opened his mouth to speak when the door opened behind him. “I’m home,” April called happily. “Wait until you see what I’ve bought.”
The fairies glanced at her shopping bags. They attempted to appear intrigued but failed miserably. As Briella had already stated what she wanted, they already knew what would be in there. Unless, April had bought something on impulse. Scout flew to April, “Did you get something that wasn’t on the list, April?”
Her smile said it all. She raised her head and spotted Force. “Liam, I didn’t know you had returned. Did you have a good morning?”
“Hmmm, you?”
“For Heaven’s sake, you two. Are you seriously going to stand there and make pleasantries?” Scout wiggled her finger at them both. “Work out your feelings and get back to normal. If you are going to be awkward around each other, Force may as well buy out April’s share of the house and you and Briella can stay along the coastline.”
“There’s no need to go that far,” Force stated. He didn’t want April to leave and not return. He would miss her, terribly. “We are fine, aren’t we, love?”
April raised an eyebrow. He’d referred to her as ‘love’ again. For the sake of the girls she chose to let it slide. “Yes, girls. There is no need for drastic measures. Liam and I were confused by the circulation of the excess energy. Are our auras back to normal?” she asked Scout.
Scout confirmed their energies had stabilised. “Have the energies amalgamated or dissipated?” Force asked.
“Seems like they have dissipated. Your colours are as they were yesterday.”
“Great. How about we look inside those shopping bags and get started on our newest project.”
“What else did you buy, April?” Briella asked.
“Nothing important,” she said, walking behind the divider that separated the sleeping area from the living areas. Depositing a small pink bag in a drawer, she returned to see the three of them rifling through her shopping.
“Like what you see, Briella?” she queried.
“Everything is perfect. Are we going to go and get the stalks from the cornfield and bring it back here for assembly, or should we assemble it there?”
“What would make you feel more comfortable about the whole process?”
Briella thought back to her dream and felt her fear beginning to rise. The thought of having it chase her through the cornfields had sweat springing from the pores on her forehead. “Here,” she croaked. “We should put it together, here.”
“Him, Briella. Don’t think of the scarecrow as ‘it’. He will be less scary if you refer to the scarecrow as ‘him’.”
“Whatever. Can you and Force go and get the stuff to fill the bags with? Scout and I will start filling the feet and hands. Did you get sand or rice?”
“I bought some sandpit sand. Shouldn’t one of us stay with the two of you?”
“No. You two need to get your friendship back to normal. You can’t do that with us around.”
Force reached for April’s hand. He held it in his for a few seconds before letting go. “Anything?”
“Nope,” April answered. “You?”
“Nope.”
“All right then, we’ll be off,” April stated. “Oh, and Scout, I love the top you are wearing and the way you’ve done your hair.”
“Thanks, April.”
“We’ll be back soon,” Force said, leading April towards the door.
“Okay,” the girls cried, gathering some implements to transport the sand from the bag to the gloves and socks.
When the door closed behind the Gatherers, Briella said, “So, they’re really back to normal, huh?”
“Not even,” Scout replied. “The energies have amalgamated.”
“Does this mean there is a greater chance they will become a couple?”
“That is how Rochelle and Toren’s friendship started. They were friends who developed deeper feelings for one another. When an accident occurred, and they had to heal one another like April and Force did this morning, their energies mixed and their love blossomed.”
“You sound displeased by this development.”
“Why should I be? They’d make a perfect couple.”
Scout flew to the bag with the gloves. “I’ll start with these, why don’t you fill the feet.”
“Okay,” Briella flew to a different bag and pulled out a toe sock. “Wow, they are a good colour, aren’t they? He’s going to be a handsomely tanned scarecrow by the time we are finished with him.”
Scout’s mouth rose slightly at the corners. Briella was showing signs that she was warming up to the idea of assembling a scarecrow.
