Forget-Me-Not loved the smell of petrichor. It was as foreboding as it was soothing. Following her sister, they approached a group of kelpies sitting around and taking turns telling stories.
“Dis am stowy 'bout da SCAWIEST munstah Catfish ebah seen!” The kelpie mare declared to her audience, fanning her front leggies out as she looks to each and every face in the group to add a little flair to her story telling. The effect worked, her audience was captivated with curiosity.
“It was cowd, eawwy bwight-timesie. Catfish had just wakies tu gu wawkies an’ make guud mownin’ peepees. Da biwdies was singies, da weaves in da twees was just tuwnin’ owangey-bwown an’ gween. Catfish heawd a bushy move, an’ twiggies snap, an’ dat’s when Catfish sees it-A big fouw weggie twee munstah!” She snaps her teeth with a growl to emphasize her words, causing two sisters to gasp and hold each other, their eyes wide as they stared at her.
“A Twee Munstah?” Thistle asks skeptically. “Whut the fwuff am a ‘Twee Munstah’?”
“'Ou knu! A Twee Muntsah!” Catfish huffed. “It am big an’ taww, an’ hab fouw weggies, an’ twee bwanchies on it’s thinkie pwace! Dey nu weawwy num fwuffies, but dey nu am nicie eithew… Wun fast as wind, an’ gib wowstest sowwy hoofsies if get tuu cwose!”
“…Yu mean a ‘Deew’?” Thistle asked, trying to reaffirm what Catfish was describing.
“Nu! Mean Twee Munstah! Wai caww it a ‘Deew’?! Dewe am nuffin’ deaw 'bout 'em!” Catfish argued, stomping a hoof to the gravelly ground.
“Thistwe nu knu, dat’s jus’ whut the hoomins caww dem…” Thistle retorted with a snort. “Nu can beweive the scawiest munstah yu seen am a deew…”
“Da twee munstah nu am scawiest munstah Catfish see!” The storyteller shouted, agitated by Thistle’s nonchalant interruptions and dumb naming conventions.
“Den what am it?”
“If 'ou shut uppies, Catfish teww 'ou!” Catfish answered with an aggravated puff of her cheeks. With no more interruption, she clears her throat and resumes telling her story. “Su, da twee munstah was dewe, wawkies thwu da bushies to num da big patch o’ gwassies. Was su pwetty tu see, Catfish jus’ watchied it fow a widdwe, when smewwed sumfin’…”
“What 'ou smeww?” Water Poppy asked.
“Smewwed sumfin’… weiwd. Catfish nebah smewwed anyfin’ wike it befowe! Nu eben knu how tu descwibe it!” She replied, looking a little uncomfortable upon recalling the experience. “Catfish fowwowed da smeww, had tu be vewy swow an’ quiet, su nu make da twee munstah angwy. Catfish nu see whewe smeww come fwom, buh den, Catfish feew yickies on head! Wooked up, an’ awmost nu eben see it!”
“Whut am it?!” Forget-Me-Not asks, enthralled by the story.
“Da Scawiest Munstah EBAH!!” Catfish revealed, earning a few gasps from her audience and an eye roll from Thistle.
“What did it wook wike?!” A unicorn kelpie by the name of Pickerelweed asked, holding her own foal close as it tried to hide behind her leg.
“It was taww… Taww as da twees! An’ fat wike a biggest fwuffy munstah! It’s munstah fwuff wooked just wike da bwanchies an’ bushies, awmost wooked wike it nu was even dewe!” Catfish answered. “It’s see pwaces was dawk, an’ shiny… It made biggest’ yuckiest dwoow on Catfish’ head! Catfish thinkies was caught, but da munstah nu see Catfish! Su Catfish kept vewy, vewy stiww. Da munstah was watchin’ da twee munstah, just watchin’, an’ waitin’…”
She paused for dramatic effect, everyone was hanging on to her story now. She picked up a small stick and held it, imitating what the monster did next.
“Den, da munstah picked up a weawwy big stick. Catfish thinkies it was gunna thwow da big stickies tu scawe ‘way da twee munstah, but it just pointied da big stick at da twee munstah, an’ suddenwy, da sky made da biggest, woudest BOOMIES!” She shouts, trying to imitate the sound of a loud boom. All the kelpies flinch at the intensity of the story.
“Catfish was su scawdies, hearin’ pwaces was wingin’, nu could heaw guud! Catfish wook an see, da big twee munstah faww down!” She pauses as the group gasps and murmurs amongst each other. All of them unsure of why the deer would fall down. Did the sky boomies hurt it? What happened? What did the monster holding the stick do?
“Da munstah put da big stick on it’s back, and wawkied ovew tu da twee munstah. Dat when Catfish knu, da taww, two weggie munstah gabe da big twee munstah fowevah sweepies jus’ by wookin’ at it wiff da big stick! Da two weggie munstah hab fowebah sweepies MAGIC!” She explains, much to the fear and dread of her audience. A cacophony of voices rise, asking so many questions and seeking comfort amongst each themselves.
“T-Two weggies an’ magic? D-Dat sounds wike a hoomin! How Catfish get 'way?!” Thistle asks, now thoroughly convinced by Catfish’s story.
“Catfish wait untiw da munstah was nummin’ da twee munstah, spiwwin’ it’s tummy sketties with one big, shawp cwaw, an’ sneakied 'way! Magic Munstah was tuu busy wiff nummies to chase Catfish!” She answered with a triumphant smile on her face. The rest of the kelpies ‘oohed’ and ‘ahhed’, clapping their hooves at Catfish’s thrilling story and successful escape. Pickerelweed’s foal huued, scared of the story of the Magic Monster.
“Huuhuuu… Babbeh nu wike scawy magic munstah! Nu wan fowebah sweepies!”
“Nu wowwy, babbeh, magic munstah nu am hewe~” Their mummah cooed, giving them a soft lick to their mane.
“Nu be tuu suwe, kewpies nee’ tu awways watchies out! A Magic Munstah couwd be hidies anywhewe-” Catfish warned, suddenly cut off by a flash of light and a crack of thunder. Instantly the kelpies shrieked, scrambling in every direction and nearly bowling each other over in panic.
“WUN!!!”
“MAGIC MUNSTAH!!!”
“HUUHUUHUU MUMMAAAAHHHH!!!”
“SCREEEE!!!”
Here’s another entry for The Great Gathering Event!
Felt like it’d be a cute tie in for A Kelpie Documentary 
