The constant sound of Yuripi's hooves on the steep dirt path was hypnotic. It had been a long day, and I was more than keen to find my new home so I could finally get some rest. I hadn't slept well the past few months, and it was really taking its toll on my stamina. If I had to go on much longer I would… Suddenly I saw a flash of orange, I heard the panicked cry of Yuripi and before I could react, I found myself in the air. Time seemed to stand still for a moment, after weeks of stress I felt strangely at peace as I flew across the sky. And then everything went black.
I could see him. He was right there, sitting in his wheelchair as I pulled up weeds from the dirty soil.
"Lily, help me!" he screamed, as he clutched his stomach in agony.
I frantically ripped up another weed. "Hold on a little longer, Caleb, just a little longer."
As the stubborn green plant I was pulling finally gave out, I wiped my sweaty brow and glanced behind me. I gasped. Another weed had already grown in place of the one I had ripped up before – but it was bigger this time! I immediately got to work tearing it out, trying to drown out my brothers cries.
"Please, Lily! It hurts!" Caleb's voice became louder and more desperate.
I wiped a tear out of my eye and continued pulling, but the more I pulled, the more weeds grew. As I tore out another, I felt something prickly wrap itself around my leg. I turned and saw an enormous weed tangled around my leg. I twisted around and tried to cut it free, but the damned thing wouldn't let go. All the while, Caleb was screaming blue murder. Another weed wound itself around my waist and up around my arm. I pushed and pulled but I couldn't untangle myself. Soon I was writhing and struggling in the weeds, every inch of my body covered. Tears of frustration and pity for my brother tickled my cheeks, but I couldn't flick them away.
"It's okay Caleb, I'll finish it, I promise!" I yelled.
Caleb was no longer speaking. Only screams of pain escaped his lips. And then he was still.
I woke up and saw two people, a man and a woman, in front of me looking like they had just seen a ghost. That's when I realized I was screaming for all I was worth. I sat up, and taking a deep breath, I took a look at my surroundings. It was surprisingly pretty; I was atop a mountain covered in brightly coloured grass and a gorgeous view of a couple of quaint towns. And then I remembered where I was.
"Oh! You two must be Rutger and Ina?" I asked, flushing pink with embarrassment.
Ina was the first to recover from my unexpected screaming. "We are indeed, and you must be the young farmer who has come to live in Konohana. But your name has slipped my mind…"
"Lillian," Rutger interrupted, "Her name is Lillian, Ina. Really, how hard is it to remember a girl's name? Some mayor you are."
"Oh-ho and I suppose you think you make a better one?" Ina smirked.
"I'd say I would."
"If you were half the mayor I am, you'd have a new villager. But no, Lillian chose Konohana, didn't she?"
"Well she'll soon change her mind-"
I chose that moment to cough awkwardly, and both Rutger and Ina looked at me in surprise.
"Oh – um, I completely forgot you were sitting there Lillian, I'm dreadfully sorry," Rutger said, adjusting his hat sheepishly.
Ina held out a hand to help me up. "Come on, enough chit-chat; let's get you to your new home. You must be aching all over!"
"You're welcome in Bluebell if you ever want to visit, Lillian. Have a good evening." Rutger tipped his hat to me and I waved back.
Ina growled at his back as he walked away and then turned to me. "Welcome, Lillian. I am so glad to have you in Konohana, and I know the other villagers are going to like you. Let me show you to your farm."
Ina chatted to me as we walked down the mountain path, but I was too busy thinking to hear most of what she said. Ina had seemed a little threatening at first, but I got the feeling that she was just a little protective of her village. I liked her, even if she was a little stern.
When we reached my new home I could barely believe my eyes. My farm was tiny! There was a little field, a simple barn with room for only about six animals at the most, and a small fenced area to let the livestock out for grazing. I had been brought up on a farm, and this was less than a quarter of the size of the one I had just left. Ina must've read my mind.
"Don't worry too much about the size of your fields, Lillian. There's a carpenter over in Bluebell. I'm sure she'd be happy to cut down some trees to give you more farmland," she said, smiling reassuringly.
I smiled wearily. "I'll have to talk with her when I get around to climbing that mountain again."
Ina chuckled. "Don't be in too much of a hurry to visit that rotten village; we need you here for now." She looked down at my clothes and her smile faded. "Oh goodness, your clothes are all torn up from that fall you had!" She reached into a bag she had with her and pulled a colourful pile of clothes from it. "Here, wear this for now. It's just a basic Konohana-style outfit, nothing fancy. Maybe you can find someone to make you some new clothes later."
I thanked her and looked down at my dirty tattered work clothes.
Gosh, I thought, I must've had some fall. And then it hit me like a bolt of lightning. Yuripi!
"Ina, my horse!" I cried, "Is Yuripi okay?!"
Ina looked at me in confusion. "Horse? I assumed you had walked here, I didn't see any horse around."
Panicking, I pushed past Ina and began making my way quickly back towards the mountain path. But my footsteps began to get heavy and before long I was sinking to the ground. Ina caught up with me and helped me back to my feet.
"You're not going anywhere, missy," she scolded, "What you need is a good long sleep. Don't worry about your horse. Yuripi, is it? I'll go get the village horse trader who lives just outside the village, and WE will look for Yuripi, okay? Right now you need to focus on sleep."
With that, she helped me into my new house. When she had gone, I undressed and crawled into bed. I was awfully worried about Yuripi, but sleep came surprisingly easily that night.