If Reaper had still been in possession of her tail, she'd be whisking it back and forth in frustration. Her intel hadn't been wrong, per se. It had just been stupid. It had been impressed upon her by one of her scouts, who would remain nameless for the moment, that there was something lurking at the dark heart of the winter market. Her family rarely came to these things, as... tainted as they were with the rabble. Despite the density of kin, recruitment opportunities tended to fall flat here, and now another group that dabbled in darkness and sacrifice had arisen, and so she'd come out to investigate the threat- and destroy it if necessary. As soon as she arrived, her immediate instincts told her it was a trap. The Swamp was doing its unpredictable thing again, twisting her out of shape, out of normal. She shuddered as she stood- she'd felt nothing, but she'd still managed to imagine it. Her skin sloughing, swirling, turning to these black... things she wore on her form. It was enough to make you want to scream, but she held her tongue, because she was Reaper, Chosen One's emissary and child in darkness, and she would do anything to protect her kin. She braved the shape change, braved the weirdness, and for what? A corn maze. She came all the way out here for a corn maze.
She thought about turning around and going home, going back to the form she knew so well, and leaving this behind her. "Oh, we don't need to worry, they just set up a friggin' harvest festival."
But what was a harvest if not a reaping? It was not her job to make assumptions. It was her job to investigate thoroughly, to draw conclusions based on all of the evidence, and make a full report. So, rolling her eyes, she set foot into the corn maze.
There were three obvious ways to go, and one was far more interesting than the others. The sound of rustling leaves could be ignored; it was simply the way that cornstalks worked. Nothing particularly tempting about that. But the glowing orbs? Intriguing. After the... incident that had left her marked, touched by light, she'd been even more wary and cautious about such things.
Following the dancing lights seemed to be the right decision, although she shuddered at the scarecrow's touch. How was this thing moving? How did it speak? Perhaps there was more to this group than she'd thought, if they could awaken such things. A murmured answer to its riddle, and she pushed forward.
The maze expanded before her, and sloped strangely downwards. A tunnel? Once again, the obvious choice presented itself. Reaper preferred to move in darkness, her keen eyes attuned to it. In the quiet of the packed earth, she found herself drawn once more to a glow- this one softer, quieter, and coming from crystals. The lattice puzzle was easily solved, and she found herself begrudgingly acknowledging something; whether they'd built this themselves or sung the earth into shape through ritual and spell, there was likely more to this group than she'd initially assumed.
Which, after all, was why she'd stayed. Even something that looked as innocent as a corn maze on the outside could reveal secrets, and information was power. She would tell of this corn maze, and her father would decide what to do next.
After the tunnel's twists and turns, she emerged once again into the warm night air, faced by-
"You again!" she said, mustering her enthusiasm. The blue-haired maze maker faced her, although Reaper could not quite read the look on her face. "Well, I made it. What happens next?"