Jack locked the door of his apartment for the last time. He wanted to say he'd developed fond memories of the place, but the truth was, he hadn't, really. It was just a place he'd lived, and worked. He headed down a flight of stairs to his landlady's apartment to hand over his keys. He had never developed much of a relationship with her, either. Would she even notice he was gone? He thanked her for everything, and exited her apartment. Then, slinging his rucksack over his shoulder, he left the building. That was it. That was the end of his city life.

It had all started about a week ago. Jack checked his mailbox one rainy morning, as usual. He flipped through the letters monotonously, as he did every morning. Bills, bills, a coupon for a bar, bills. Then, something caught his attention. A heavy envelope, with his address scrawled on the back in heavy, untidy handwriting. He headed inside, and set the other letters down on the table. Sitting down by the window, Jack opened the envelope. The paper was thick and coarse, not like the smooth paper used by city folk. The letter itself was also written in the same thick handwriting as on the envelope. He began to read.

"To Mr. Jack,

I'm writing to tell you about the farm your father left you in his will. I've been looking after it up to now, but the farm is left to you.

If you want to talk more about it, come out and see me in Forget-Me-Not-Valley.

Takakura"

Although the letter was short and rather awkwardly composed, it stirred something in Jack. His father used to bring him on visits to the farm when he was little, but he didn't remember anything about it. He was very young, after all. He'd probably played with the animals as children do. He never remembered being particularily interested in the farm. But now, the thought of a farm interested Jack, at least somewhat. A farm meant leaving the city and his deadend job. A farm meant a new life. A wonderful life. The more Jack thought about it, the more excited he became. Within the hour, he had called up his boss to tell him he quit his job, and was making preparations for his trip out to Forget-Me-Not-Valley.

Jack had changed into clothes that he hoped seemed more "farmer-ish". Of course, this inspired some strange looks from his well-dressed fellow train passengers, but as the train left the city, more and more of them got off, until Jack was sitting alone in the carriage. He took in the scenery as it slowly changed from urban to rural. The last time he had seen the countryside was when his father was alive. That could have been any time before six months ago, but it felt like forever. When the train finally stopped at a remote platform, he saw that there was nobody there. He sat down by the elevated platform and waited. After about forty-five minutes, he realized that this Takakura probably wasn't going to show up, so he hitched a ride from a passing tractor driven by a large, imposing woman. She made casual conversation on the way.

"So, kid, where are ya headed?" she asked cheerfully over her shoulder.

"Uh, Forget-Me-Not-Valley." Jack quietly replied.

"No kidding!" shouted the woman, turning around to punch him on the shoulder and causing the tractor to momentarily veer off the mountain path. Her punch felt as though a bus had just been driven into Jack's arm. "Kid, I'm from there!" she yelled at him as she struggled to regain control of the tractor.

"Oh!" Jack said, rubbing his arm. He had no idea what to say to her. Be best to make polite conversation. "Um... What is it like there?" he asked.

"Ah, kid. It's a really, really nice place. You'll love it there. It's really clean, the folks are nice and crops grow really well." she replied, sighing happily.

"Do you grow crops?" he asked her.

"Well, yeah! I run a little farm down by the river with my brother and a great girl called Celia." She looked over at him with an eyebrow raised and a wide smile. "Maybe I should introduce ya to Celia. I get the feeling you two'd hit it off!" She then erupted into loud laughter.

Jack laughed weakly. Takakura had mentioned that the farm was by a river, and it was so long since Jack had been there that he had forgotten where the farm was or what it looked like. Maybe this lady had taken over the farm, and he was to simply help co-run it? But wouldn't Takakura have told him about that? As he thought about it, he noticed the tractor had reached the top of the mountain. A tanned, lean old man with incredible eyebrows stood by the side of the road.

"Ah, there's Takakura!" called the lady cheerfully, waving at him as the passed.

"Wait, did you say Takakura?" he asked. "Um, sorry, I have to get off here!"

"Ya sure, kid?" the lady asked Jack as he hopped off the tractor. He nodded at her.

"Thanks so much for the ride."

"Hey, no problem. Maybe I'll see you around the valley!" she laughed heartily. Jack waved at her as her tractor trundled down off the mountain. Takakura jogged over to him.

"Mr. Jack?" Takakura asked. Jack nodded, and the two men shook hands. "I just want to let ya know how grateful I am that yer takin' over the farm and all. Your father loved that farm," the old man said gruffly, "and I'm glad that one of his sons will be takin' over it. I'm very sorry for your loss."

Jack just smiled and nodded. At this point in his life, he was used to the pitying looks from people once they found out he was an orphan with no family. He didn't mind, though. He'd been dealing with them his whole life.

"Let me show ya round the valley." Takakura offered.

"Sure thing." Jack replied, and they started walking down the mountain.