Dancing Under the Moonlight

Chapter 5

The skies were still dark as Aesop carefully packs the last of the delicate hourglasses into the large wooden crate, before layering a plank of wood above them. Once the plank is tightly secured, he starts to place in the miniature wooden houses, ships, small wooden dolls, and other wooden toys before sealing the crate, and carefully carrying it out to the large wagon waiting in front of his cottage.

He gently places the crate next to a crate filled with pots, each of them with different shapes and sizes. Some looked like small houses, others had polished diamond shapes, and some were even carved to look like forest critters.

A larger crate sits at the back of the wagon, inside of it are neatly arranged, wooden animal figurines, all of which are different from the other, their colorful resin eyes shining from the sun's rays.

Next to the crate are three large, wooden bookshelves. One with gold painted engravings of flowers, another made out of many twigs carefully joined together and the last one a deep blue with a design that makes it look like a large upright boat.

Two elegant grandfather clocks stand in front of the bookshelf, both with shiny resin orbs for pendulums and delicate botanic engravings. Three wooden chests and cabinets are neatly stacked on top of each other, delicately carved and painted, giving them a luxurious look.

Aesop leans against the wagon and pants loudly, his back hurting from all the moving he had to do. He bends his back, the bones letting loud cracks under the pressure, and lets out a sigh of relief.

Aesop straightens his back and looks over the wagon, checking if he had everything he needed packed and ready to go. He could see the large crafts in the corner, the figurine crate next to it, the crate filled with pots in front of it and the wooden toys next to it. Aesop takes a moment to think back to what he had prepared for the event. Then realization hits him and he runs back into his cottage.

He rushes into the bedroom and pulls out a small wooden chest from beneath his bed. The chest is decorated with many precious minerals and its insides are covered with a linen cloth. Eight beautiful crafts sit within the box.

Aesop scolds himself for nearly forgetting the most important crafts he'd prepared for the event. He carries the chest before grabbing a linen bag filled with clothes to last a week and his makeup box.

Aesop carries the items to the wagon and places them at the front of the wagon. He drapes a large red sheet over the items in the wagon and secures it with some rope. He then covers the opening with the wooden plank that acts as a door and locks it with a latch. Dusting off his hands on the tunic he's wearing, he walks away to the ranches.

At the ranch, he sees Tracy tying to drag the chestnut Dale pony with her. Aesop could see a wagon filled with robots of all shapes and sizes and a tall figure in the center covered with a big white sheet. This must be the large project she's been working on since the beginning of spring. Aesop walks over to her.

"Do you need help with your horse, Tracy?"

"Oh no need, Aesop! Daisy here's just being really difficult today. C'mon girl! We need to go!" She grunts.

The brown pony merely snorts at the girl before finally following her to the awaiting wagon. Aesop shakes his head at her antics before walking over to a grey Dale Pony. The horse's ears perk at the sounds of footsteps walking towards it and stomp its hooves when it sees the young man approach.

"It's time to go, Lilac." The horse stomps its hoof and follows Aesop to the wagon.

It stands in front of the wagon and waits patiently as Aesop ties the reigns around its head and neck. Aesop smiles at her obedience and fastens a black saddle onto her back and secures it with the straps. Aesop pats her snout before climbing onto the saddle and gently tugs the reigns to lead her to the gates where everyone is waiting.