"I think we're lost," Lillian said to her pony as she looked up at the darkening sky. The pony whinnied in reply and tugged at the bridle which Lillian held steady as she tried to reach back into her rucksack for her map. The map seemed to dance playfully out of reach, and in frustration Lillian grabbed the reins with one hand and stretched with the other. "Come on…almost there…gotcha!" Lillian snatched the map triumphantly, accidentally tugging far too hard on her poor pony's bridle. In response, the pony reared and with another whinny took off at a gallop, pulling her along at a dangerous pace. "STORM! STORM SLOW DOWN!" Lillian braced her feet on the bottom of the cart and pulled hard at the reigns, but to no avail. Her pony only began to race faster, and nervously Lillian glanced at her old, rickety cart as they began to approach a mountain road. Suddenly, a wild boar leaped out from the bushes and ran across the road, spooking the pony even further and sending the cart and all its contents into a ditch, Lillian included. In a dizzy haze, Lillian tried to get up but her head swam and the last thing she saw before she passed out was her Storm lying pitifully on his side.
"No, we should take her to Konohana! Not only do we have a clinic over there, but we have better, more nourishing food anyways!"
"NONSENSE! Bluebell's farmers will be able to repair her cart and fix the pony which we rescued for her! Not only that but our town's food is better than yours any day, especially for the injured!"
Upon waking up, Lillian was astonished to see two tall figures towering over her and bickering loudly about the quality of food. As her vision sharpened, she beheld a rather pompous looking man with a small green bowler hat and matching green suit fiercely arguing with a stern, imposing woman who wore long red robes and large, extravagant looking brass earrings. While Lillian sat up, unbeknownst to the two, the woman gave a long, angry sigh and crossed her arms. "There's no point in arguing with someone who just doesn't understand the finer points of cooking and food, wouldn't you agree, Rutger?" she said primly, tossing the long red scarf which held her hair over her shoulder. "I pity your lack of open-mindedness, Ina. I also pity that terrible excuse your town has for food." The man laughed haughtily, causing the woman, Ina, to dive right back into the fight again. Lillian stood up and cleared her throat meaningfully, finally getting the two of them to stop quarreling and face her. "Um…I don't exactly know what the big issue is, but would you both mind telling me where I am to be exact?" Lillian asked shyly, nodding at them both sociably. Ina turned away from Rutger and offered her hand. "Hello. I apologize for the lack of concern we both have shown in your current situation. I'm Ina, mayor of Konohana. We are a town which focuses on crop farming. Your cart passed our town at such a rapid speed that I decided to follow, figuring that your horse had gotten out of control." The man cleared his throat and Ina dropped Lillian's hand. "Hello my dear, I'm Rutger, mayor of Bluebell. We too, are a farming community-however we shift our focus to animals rather than crops. I was merely on my afternoon stroll and heard a loud crash. I thought it best to investigate, and make sure no one was in trouble." Lillian smiled at both of them and exclaimed, "Well thank you both I suppose for coming to find me. I'm Lillian-I was on my way to Mount Heather because I heard that two towns at the base of each side of the mountain had farmlands open. It's lucky that you two were the first people I met!"
Introductions out of the way, the two mayors stared each other down before turning to the poor, mud-covered girl. "Well, since we've both already explained the farming focus of each town, you should choose where you want to live." Ina said, folding her arms and examining her nails. She shot a smirk at Rutger, who turned red with rage but fumed silently. "So, where would you like to go then, my dear?" Rutger asked, ignoring Ina and turning to Lillian. After a moment of thinking, Lillian piped up, "I believe I'll have to go with Bluebell." Ina looked fit to burst until Lillian turned to her and apologized. "I'm sorry, Ina. I do believe both towns are equally good in their own way, but I've already decided that animals are my favorite part of farming-taking care of crops has always been my brother's idea of fun. He'll be coming out here to farm too soon enough; in fact, he sent me ahead so that I could get accustomed to things and fix up the place before he arrived, but if I know him he'll choose to stay in Konohana. Philip won't be pleased that I'll be by myself on a farm, but I'll let him know that I'll be just fine, especially if he visits! Since he's still back in our old town selling the house, expect him sometime in the next two weeks. I'll see you around Konohana when I come to visit!" With a cheerful wave, Lillian grabbed Storm's bridle and set off following Rutger.
When they finally reached the gates at the edge of the town Rutger stopped. "Alright, then my dear. Here is the key to your new home! This little road to the left will lead you straight to it, and in your cart you'll find a satchel with some new clothing in it-Ina and I both agreed you would need some clean clothing until yours was washed of that nasty mud you fell in when you landed in that ditch. I'll let you get some rest, and tomorrow I'll come over and explain the lay of the land to you and introduce you to one of our farmers. Good night, my dear!" Lillian waved good-bye as the mayor continued to march straight on into the town, and she turned and started down the little dirt road.
The little yellow cottage stood outlined against the sun's last rays, looking cheerful and snug. To the left of the cottage was a barn and pasture, and to the right was what appeared to be a chicken coop and a small grazing pen. Lillian clapped her hands in delight and petted Storm. "It's perfect!" Happily, she led Storm up to the house and unhitched him. He ran straight to the pasture and lay down while she rustled around in her cart until she found the pack of clothes. Turning the key in the lock, she went inside.
A small bed was pushed up against the wall, and at its foot was a long shelf. Behind it was a large bookcase. The table looked fairly new, and the little kitchen in the right corner of the house looked perfect for cooking and baking. There was even a place for dog food-a long yellow pet food dish was nicely set up against the right wall. Quickly changing into her new chemise, she grabbed the wash barrel sitting on the bottom of the shelf and put her muddy clothes inside. After filling it with water and soap and leaving it in the corner to soak, Lillian covered her bed with the blue beddings the mayor had lent her and tucked herself in comfortably. "What a nice place to be," she thought sleepily, before finally drifting off into a dream.