Your Stupid Face

A Slip of the Tongue

A layer of grey clouds sent a diffuse light over the farm as Morgan worked away on the barn roof. They were grateful for the relief from the heat, but they knew this was just the calm before the storm. Bad weather was on its way, and the day before, Morgan had noticed one of the roof panels over the hay loft had started peeling up. There was no way it would survive the storm, and if the hay got wet, it could cause problems, or even burn the barn down.

They were driving in the last nail, just needing to finish this project before shutting the animals up safely. They should have enough time, as long as they worked quickly. The rhythmic pounding of their hammer was interrupted by a loud swear, and a grin spread across Morgan's face. They scrambled over to the edge of the roof, looking down to see Alex ripping apart a trap that had ensnared his entire left arm. It had been a last minute addition, since Morgan knew the other would be tempted to knock down the ladder. Alex had taken the bait, hook, line, and sinker.

"I really didn't think you were going to fall for this one." Morgan said, laughing as the monster glared up at them.

As expected, Alex reached out, pushing the ladder to fall down and stranding Morgan on the roof. "Have fun with that!" Alex hissed before teleporting away.

A thrill of victory coursed through Morgan at the childish antics as they moved to gather their tools. Getting under that asshole's skin was like a drug, and the young person couldn't get enough.

Slowly. They moved to the apex of the roof, walking to the edge, where there was a pully that had once been used to hoist hay bails into the loft from the outside. Morgan pulled out a length of rope with a small loop on one end and reached down to carefully thread it through the pully. They slipped their foot into the loop like a stirrup, before dropping over the side, letting the rope slide through their calloused hands to control their descent to the ground.

As fun as giving Alex a taste of their own medicine was, they didn't have time for any more games today. The wind was already starting to pick up and they had to make sure the livestock was safe before they could take shelter themselves.

* * * * *

It was midafternoon, but the clouds were so dark that it looked like dusk as Morgan hopped off of the small ATV they had used to traverse the fields. This was the last one, and the sheep had been herded safely into a loafing shed with their sheepdog. It hadn't been hard. The animals instinctively knew to take shelter and had gathered around the shed before the farmhand arrived, but a couple of the older lambs were more interested in playing than following instructions.

Morgan moved to pull a makeshift wall across the open side to protect the animals from the worst of the elements and counted out the flock once more to ensure everyone was present. They smiled down at the dog, leaving some food for him. "You take care of them now, ok Ramsey?" They said, choosing to take the bark they received as an affirmative before locking the shed down.

One raindrop hit Morgan's head as they turned back to the ATV. They were a good distance from the house, and needed to get going if they wanted to have any chance of staying dry. They were a few feet from the vehicle when it popped out of existence.

It only took a moment for understanding to dawn and Morgan swore, turning to start the long walk back to the guest house.

They weren't even to the edge of the field when rain started pouring down in thick sheets, plastering their hair and clothes to their body and stinging their face. They couldn't see very far, as they fought to walk against the wind that filled their ears with a dull roar, only broken up by the clapping of thunder.