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It was a warm, muggy summer day, the late-afternoon sun casting a warm glow over the the green-leafed rural fields, offering it's vibrant colors to the dirt roads that crossed between the fields. A rusted, outdated street sign designated the roads their names, although the letters were nearly faded away with age. The ditch that ran alongside the road held a slowly-flowing creeks, the water ebbing between the cattails and water grasses. The tall weeds swayed and rustled with the gentle summer wind, waving to passerbys unknown.

Something small and black darted out of the ditch and weeds, a dirty, muddied green scarf trailing behind it. The little shadow scuttled up the side th the ditch, tentacles digging into the sides as its tiny hands stretch out after the butterfly it was chasing. Why did the butterfly want to run away from him? He just wanted to say hi! The little tentacled thing was so focused on catching its brightly colored little friend that he didn't notice that the usually-empty road...wasn't so empty.

The screeching of tires ripped the boy out of his chase, drawing a terrified screech from the little fella as something large and wheeled came hurtling at him. Terrified, the boy scrambled back to the safety of the ditch, disappearing into a dark shape among the stalks. Two orange eyes, along with their yellow companion, stared out of the weeds at the assailing monster. The little shadow shook like a leaf, hiding the majority of his face in his scarf. Scarves kept monsters away, right? Of course!

Lexan shrank back away from the person that came from out of the monster. Oh my god, the monster already ate someone! The shadow was horrified; that someone was coming to get him too now! A small, scared "tee" came from the shadow as he shrank back, trying to dive further into the folds of his scarf. His ears fell back, twitching a little the monster-eaten person started talking. So...he didn't want to drag him off to be eated?

Slowly, cautiously, the shadows head poked out of the weeds. "Swee..." he murmured warily, looking up at the man. Wait, what if this was a trap? TRAP! The boy suddenly darted, tentacles moving as fast as they could to propel himself away from the monster and it's evil eated-man. He would not be fooled! Small clouds of dust wafted up lazily, a stark contrast to the swiftly padding tentacles that summoned them forth.

A small, terrified shriek came from the little shadow as he felt himself being tackled and grabbed. Instinctively, Lexan curled into a ball. This was it; the monster was going to eat him and he'd be all dead. This was the end; he was doomed. He'd been caught. While the top of him was curled defensively, his tentacles had other plans, beating and flailing in an attempt to get free. Sadly, the hits weren't that heave and the boy's tentacles had very little strength. But that didn't stop him from trying, dagnabbit!

The boy was shaking like a leaf, pulling the scarf up and over his head in a last-ditch effort to save himself. Shrinking away from the man as best as he could, his tiny hand shook the scarf at him in a manner that said "Back! Back I say!" Because scarves scared away monsters and monster-eated people. Everyone knew that.

The scarf. It had failed him; he was still being held. Lexan's head poked back up from the folds of mud-splattered green material, eyes looking from the scarf his little fist held to the man it was supposed to intimidate. His scarf had failed him. The boy's panicked little sounds slowly shifted into sad little whimpers; his scarf no longer worked. It had failded him!

His eyes squinted shut, sniffling a moment before looking back up his captor with a look that clearly said "Please don't eat me." He seemed to have calmed a bit, and by calmed a bit, we mean he wasn't flailing wildly.