Chapter Eleven: The First Bite

The day after the Spring Thanksgiving festival, Jill decided to finally order her chicken coop from the professional carpenter in Mineral Town, Gotz. Now that Muffy had hooked up her phone line she was able to reach the shops without too much hassle.

She spent the time until the shop opened its phone line cleaning up her house from the previous night's robbery. She hadn't bothered to tell Takakura, even though he was technically her landlord. If it was someone dangerous after her, Jill didn't want to drag him into it.

It wasn't hard to move all the furniture back to their designated places, but putting her clothes back in the dressers was a bit more of a tedious job. She spent the time thinking about her life and reflecting on changes, as well as humming a bit to herself, something she hadn't done in quite some time but had missed greatly.

At eleven o'clock she finally picked up the phone to call the carpenter, ordered the chicken coop, and then tried to figure out what to do with the rest of her day. It was drizzling outside, the first time in about a week, so she figured Celia might have some free time because the fields wouldn't need as much tending.

Without much thought, Jill opened the door and left her house. Her stomach was grumbling, as all she had eaten for breakfast that morning was a piece of bread. After the chicken coop she would think about getting a house upgrade in order to obtain a kitchen. In the meantime, maybe going to Celia's and getting some grub was a good idea after all.

She walked through the rain, feeling content despite the fact that someone obviously wanted something from her. That much had been discovered after last night's incident. She had narrowed the possibilities of the thief down to three options: Skye, someone from out of town, or someone in the valley who somehow knew her secret. It was a very broad speculation, and the most likely option was Skye, but some part of her felt that he wouldn't be as obvious if he broke into someone's house. Plus, the cookies had still been warm when she arrived, and the time it took to go through all of her stuff would have caused them to cool. Thus, Skye either had super speed, or he wasn't an option anymore. Jill was hesitant to eliminate him, though, because she didn't want to believe anyone in the valley would try to steal from her.

Her head cleared when she arrived at Celia's home. Sure enough, Vesta and Marlin were out in the fields, but with a nod of her head Vesta indicated that the other brunette was inside of the house.

Jill entered the brown thatched roof building to the comforting smell of chocolate chip cookies and fresh vegetables. Celia was working at the stove, her hair draped over her face like a curtain and dawning her usual green dress and yellow apron.

"Hi, Celia," Jill greeted.

Celia threw a quick look over her shoulder and smiled. "Hi to you, too, Pony. Want some lunch?"

Jill smiled. "Not to take advantage of you or anything, but yes, please."

"It's no problem," Celia replied.

A minute later they were both sitting at Celia's kitchen table, munching on chicken salads and chocolate chip cookies.

"You're such a good cook," Jill said around the food in her mouth. "I keep telling myself I'll get a kitchen so I can take care of myself, but I'll miss this fine cuisine." When Celia blushed a bit, Jill added, "Honestly, I can't cook to save my life. I sure am glad I got some cookies to munch on at the festival last night."

Celia giggled. "That festival was a hit! Your theme was amazing. Everyone loved it. And that thing you did during capture the flag? That was incredible."

"It was nothing," Jill replied. "I just get really competitive." She glanced over her shoulder through the window to make sure Vesta and Marlin were still occupied with their fieldwork before continuing, "So, any cookies from Grumpy Pants last night?"

Celia turned red again, and replied, "I wish. He's kind of smitten with this angel he saved from drowning a while ago."

It took Jill a moment to understand what Celia was implying, and then her jaw dropped so fast it made a little popping noise. "Goddess, he likes me?"

Celia nodded, half smiling. "At least I think so. Have you really not noticed the way he looks at you sometimes? I think he developed an attachment to you when he saved your life."

Jill put her head on her hand and frowned. "Man, I'm so sorry, Celia. I'll start acting totally disgusting around him or something so he'll stop liking me and start liking you again."

"No, it's okay," Celia said. "It was just a crush, anyway."

Something about the way that Celia said that made Jill sure it was exactly the opposite, but she didn't deny it for Celia's pride's sake. Instead, she said, "Well, you have nothing to worry about because I don't do guys, anyway." After seeing the look on Celia's face she continued, "Not that I'm like lesbian or anything. Well, not that I have anything against lesbians, it's just...okay, never mind."

Celia was giggling like crazy while Jill fumbled with her words, attempting to sound accepting of all choices but still get the point across that she didn't like guys.

"Why no guys?" Celia asked when they stopped giggling, and then swallowed a bite of salad. "If it's personal, I understand," she added quietly.

Jill chewed a bit of cookie very slowly, deciding whether or not to tell the girl about her previous love life. She had tried so hard over the past year to hide him away in the very back of her mind, to not remember anything happy or sad about their relationship that had ended so tragically, for lack of a less dramatic word.

Eventually, she decided telling Celia would probably be harmless, so she began, "Well, I had a fiancé once."

Celia gaped. "A fiancé? But aren't you my age? Isn't that a little young?"

Jill smiled. "Younger than you, actually. It was sort of an arranged type of thing. Anyway, I was working in this business, and the CEO had this son, about my age. The boss really liked me, and helped me get to the top of the organization." Jill paused, thinking over her words before continuing. "His name was Luther. It's funny, because his dad knew that he wanted us married before I even met the guy. It didn't matter though, because as soon as I met Luther, well..." She trailed off, reminiscing their meeting and how they hit it off so well. They were dating just after her first six months at the organization. "Anyway, we were young, and stupid, and I didn't know what I wanted yet. We disagreed a lot on certain subjects and eventually I just...I backed out."

She remembered that night. The images and words came swirling back in a typhoon of loss and hurt. She and Luther always disagreed about the way they would run the organization, but when Jill realized she wanted to stop killing people, to stop harming towns and places, Luther wouldn't run away with her. The rest was complicated. He tried to talk her into staying at the organization, but she couldn't. The night she exposed the files and ran away, he was the one who shot her, and Jill was left with a shoulder wound as well as a broken heart.

She did love him before. She really did. She couldn't anymore, though. It's hard to love someone that tries to kill you.

"I haven't had contact with him since then," Jill continued, "but I don't mind all that much. I've just been traveling around, looking for a place to actually settle down now that I'm older." Or to just get away from Hawk and his pigs, she thought.

Celia must have seen her wistful expression because she reached across the small table and grabbed Jill's hand. "Did you really like him?"

Jill nodded. "Yes. We were good for each other. But there was always something weird about it, maybe that our views didn't quite match. It wasn't one of those instances where it was just a physical connection, there was certainly some type of emotional connection, but because he was so in with his father's Robber Barron views, we couldn't reach the level of depth that I wanted us to. Do you know what I mean?"

Celia smiled, her eyes full of understanding. "There was a boy in Kingsly I thought I loved. We seemed to work, but he was so obsessed with the city and his work that he wouldn't pay attention to me anymore. That's why I like Marlin so much, because he can find a balance between the two. I know you don't see it like I do, but he is very kind and caring toward me and Vesta."

"I would believe it," Jill replied, glad to have the subject off of her and Luther. She had already spent a year thinking about him, she didn't need another five minutes. "After all, Marlin kind of saved my life, so it's not as though I'm going to criticize him."

They were both quiet after that, and Jill pondered the fact that Marlin apparently was infatuated with her. Now that she thought about it, there had been a few instances where she had caught him randomly staring at her.

That wasn't unsettling as her newly brought up thoughts about Luther, though. The white hot heartbreak she felt previously had been reduced to more of a dull ache, but she wasn't sure she was ready for anyone yet.

Let alone Marlin, or Skye.

She shook her head. The thought slipped out like a car wheel on ice, and she wanted to hide it away again immediately. When had Skye become a candidate for her affections?

Because somewhere inside, you know he's right about the two of you being similar, therefore meant to be together. This time the thought came out with her permission. But whether it was truthful or just an excuse for her slip up, Jill wasn't sure.

Wanting to escape from her own swimming pool of accusations, Jill nonchalantly said, "I ordered a chicken coop today."

Celia, who, judging by her rapid blinking, had also been deep in thought, replied, "Second week of spring and you've already got a chicken coop. Not bad, Pony, not bad. Soon you'll be a rival with us!"

"Livestock, maybe, but I doubt my crops will ever compare to Vesta's," Jill smiled. "Thanks anyway though."

The rain was falling even harder by the time they finished eating, but Jill suddenly wanted to be alone. She put her fork down and thanked Celia for lunch. The other girl invited her to stay longer, but Jill made the excuse that she still had some farm work to attend to.

It was hard to guess what time of day it was because the sun was covered with clouds, but Jill guessed that it was mid afternoon. She didn't have much to do other than walk in the rain, and that was fine with her. She ended up heading toward the spring, wondering if maybe the Goddess would be able to contact her again even though she wasn't sleeping.

The water of the pond was clear, as usual, and Jill spent some time in deep thought, staring at her own reflection. She was somehow still pale even though she spent most of her time outside, and her hair was frizzy thanks to the rain.

She was a little surprised she had even managed to tell Celia about Luther without breaking down into tears. It was so hard to think about him. It always led her to wonder what exactly went wrong, and what compelled him to shoot her that night. Anger she could understand, after all, she had betrayed him, the organization, his father, and broken his heart all at the same time. But the fact that he shot her, the girl he supposedly loved for at least two years, made her wonder if the whole thing had been a lie. For her it certainly wasn't. Now that she was older and had a clearer head it was easier to see that the relationship had been very flawed, but that didn't mean she had never loved him.

It took Jill a few minutes to realize that there were tears on her cheeks, not just raindrops. She wiped them away, took a shallow breath, and let the sobs come freely. Her past was easier to bear during the day, but sometimes time spent being awake and around people took its toll.

She sat at the spring for around an hour. Her feet grew numb and fell asleep, but she didn't mind much. Thoughts of home and her family swam around in her head like little minnows. They had been a good family. It was her, her little brother, her mom, and her dad. They lived just outside the city in a small suburb, and before that they spent time in the country until Jill was eight and her brother was three, an era which Jill fondly referred to as "The Golden Years."

After that they moved to the city, and when Jill turned sixteen, she stumbled upon the Organization. The reason she joined was part blackmail, part financial reasons, and maybe a tiny part of it was also that she wanted to prove to the world she wasn't just "that smart, nice girl from school" who lived the average life. She wanted to prove to herself that she was more than that, that she wasn't a coward.

And now, about three years later, here she was, the biggest coward of them all, family dead, house burned down to ashes, friends in danger, not able to maintain a healthy life thanks to her own mistakes.

It filled her with so much guilt she could hardly bear it.

After her eyes dried and her nose cleared again, she rose slowly from the spring, feeling a little better now that her thoughts had settled down. It was normal for her to have a good cry usually once every week, but she had been so busy for the past three weeks that a check-up with the subconscious and soul was long overdue.

She ended up going to Ruby's inn to take a shower and clean up as well as get some food she could eat later at her house. The warm water felt much more soothing than the rain, and the Jill felt her head clear completely. Rational thoughts and optimistic views came back, pushing out the thoughts of her bad deeds and her trials and errors.

Sometime during the evening when she was sitting at her house enjoying the quiet, the rain cleared up, but she still didn't feel much like going outside. Finally, at ten o'clock, feeling somewhat hollow, she crawled under the covers and fell into a deep slumber.

The Harvest Goddess did not visit her, but she did have a new dream. It was not the same nightmare as those before when she ran through the forest, away from the pigs. This time, she was walking through the field at the spring, but everything was shrouded in a blue mist. She picked flowers and watched butterflies float in the sky, as if she were in some sort of movie. She stepped lightly wherever she walked, feeling completely safe but also delicate. There was something following her trail closely, but she didn't bother to turn around and check what or who it was because she felt so safe.

At that point, Jill's eyes fluttered open, and she was no longer at the spring but in her house. Disoriented, she tried to find out what had woken her up until she heard a pounding at the door. Who comes this early? She thought slightly grumpily. I'm a farmer and I don't even wake up this early. She then glanced at her alarm clock, which read six fifteen, and realized that she had overslept, so she did in fact normally get this early.

Still feeling dazed, she slid out from under the covers, oblivious to the fact that she was still only wearing a tank top and shots, and walked toward the door. Behind the pounding sound there was a layer of soft drumming, and she realized it was still raining again, too.

When she opened the door, she almost jumped in surprise. A huge man, bigger than Cody, with black messy hair loomed in front of her doorway. He had an axe in one hand, and for a short second Jill wondered if she was about to be murdered on her doorstep. At least he bothered to knock, Jill thought. Better to be killed by a polite serial killer than a rude one.

That was when she saw the red tool box he carried under his other arm, and her memory returned. The carpenter. She had ordered a chicken coop yesterday. Jill let out a breath of relief.

The carpenter, Gotz, rubbed the back of his head, and said gruffly, "You ordered a chicken coop, right?" Jill nodded, still a bit too sleepy to form words. "Okay," he said. "Where do you want it? I can get started right away. If I start now it will take about two days to finish."

Jill squinted a bit, trying to remember where she wanted the chicken coop in her state of sleepiness, when a sudden thought occurred to her. "You're going to work in the rain?" She questioned.

Gotz nodded. "It's no big deal. I work the same way in any condition."

"Okay," Jill replied hesitantly. The fog was gradually clearing from her brain, and so she said, "Here, I'll show you where I think the coop should go."

Gotz stepped aside to let her pass through the entryway, and they started walking toward the field together. When the raindrops hit her bare shoulders Jill was reminded of her skimpy clothing, and she felt just a little bit awkward for being out in just her pajamas with a man much older than her. Quickly, however, she pushed those thoughts away, and focused again on the task at hand. She weeded her field everyday, so there was no need to clear any area for the coop, but she had thought about where it might go. She used the front part of the field for most of her crops, so the coop would go in the back towards a corner in case she wanted to build more coops. That way they would be orderly instead of scattered all over the place.

She quickly explained this reasoning to Gotz, who simply nodded, smiled, said something about getting it done, and then went to work after she showed him the pile of lumber she had built up for him days before.

Jill stood in the rain watching him work for about five more seconds, and then she decided to go inside and get ready of the rest of the day. She was just about to enter her house again to change when she noticed that the flag on her mailbox was up. It was such a surprising sight that she froze for a second just to stare at it.

"I never get mail," she murmured to herself. "Why do I have mail? No one even knows I live here."

She stared at the mailbox for a few more seconds as if it would suddenly talk and say, "Just kidding, you don't have any mail!" before she actually made the effort to open the door and reach for what was inside.

Her hand touched a piece of paper as well as something else. She fingered it for a few seconds, getting a picture in her head to see if it was safe or not. The object was cool and smooth, obviously metal, and she thought she felt a dial on the top, too. A padlock? She wondered.

Sure enough, when she pulled the object out of the mailbox it appeared to be a padlock. The dial was black with white numbers, and the design was fairly simple. It was nothing like locks from the organization, in fact, it was so basic it looked like it came from an average department store, probably one in Kingsly.

Jill then proceeded to pull the piece of paper from the mailbox. It was a small piece, the size of a sticky note, and the first word that popped into Jill's head when she read it was feminine. Written in ridiculously neat and pretty handwriting were the words, Thought you might need this.

She flipped the paper over and at the same time put her other hand over it like a visor to shield it from the rain, searching for any type of signature or hint as to who it was from. There was none, and so Jill stood out in the rain, looking at the tiny slip of paper and the padlock, probably looking very silly to any outsiders, but inside her head she was reasoning, deducting, figuring.

No one in the valley knew about the break-in except her. That meant that whoever gave her the padlock either had killer physic skills or was the robber themselves, which was a weird way of doing things but she had experienced stranger.

That was when she remembered Skye. He brought the cookies over after the break-in, so he must have known she didn't have any sort of lock. The only thing that didn't fit was the obviously feminine handwriting.

Then again, Jill thought, he's kind of feminine himself. So maybe this could be from him.

Somewhat satisfied with her answer, she neatly folded the note, put it in her rucksack, and then opened the door back to her house and slipped inside.

The combination to the lock was written in a tiny sticker on the back of the metal, so anyone could read it if they were clever enough to check for one. Still, it was better than nothing.

A sudden thought occurred to Jill and she turned to see if her door even had a latch for the lock. It took her a few seconds to find it due to her height, but, sure enough, there was a little latch in the door and wall that connected the two. The piece of wood had a hole in the middle fit for a strip of metal. Jill was briefly reminded of the types of locks they used to have at her old high school, realized they were basically the same, and smiled.

Well, it won't keep out any serious intruders, Jill thought once she had the lock secured, but it will do for now.

After changing into some cleaner clothes and taking a few minutes to work out the tangles in her hair, Jill went back outside again to face the rest of the day. Her crops needed little to no tending, but there were a few weeds to pull and some branches to chop. Whilst doing this Jill thought about how much she really needed material sheds, too, and mentally added the upgrades to her growing list of things to put on to the farm.

When finished with her work, she looked around the area proudly. It was growing, slowly but surely. She was determined to keep the farm, no matter who or what tried to take it from her.

After work was done, Jill decided to head for the inn and see who was there that she could talk to. The rain was beginning to dwindle off again, but there was still no sun in the sky. The cobblestone street of the valley was slippery as she walked the path, and she nearly lost her footing more than once.

The inn was warm and inviting as usual, and once inside, Jill hung her coat on a nearby rack. Surprisingly, there was no one in the lobby, and then Jill remembered that it was still only eight o'clock and most people in the valley didn't even wake up until then. Realizing her fault in coming so early, she almost turned to leave again, and then she heard a voice in the kitchen. Two voices. Men.

Jill recognized one of them as Hardy, but the other one was speaking too softly for her to figure out. Curiosity kicked up inside of her, and Jill quietly creeped over to the kitchen "door," which was really only a curtain made of purple silk.

The other male voice finished mumbling, and then Hardy said quietly, "It's got to be her, Trent. I just have this feeling. I'd bet my entire set of medical tools and some solid gold flatware that it's her."

Trent. That didn't take Jill too much by surprise. Two doctors were bound to know each other. But who were they talking about? She perked her ears a little more, eager to hear Trent's reply.

"I agree," Trent said. "But how can we get her to trust her? Violence is hardly an option, considering-"

"Violence was never an option," Hardy growled in a voice that Jill found surprisingly frightening. "I will not hurt her. I've spent far too much time fixing her up for that."

There was a pause. Jill's head reeled. A girl. Violence. Trust. The words sounded all too familiar. They were planning something that she had planned herself thousands of times. Bait.

Then Trent replied, "You're getting attached to her. You know how dangerous that is. Getting attached to the subject is like voluntarily asking for heartbreak. Remember Melissa?"

"How could I forget her?" Hardy sighed. There was a groan as he presumably pulled out a chair. "She was my wife."

"And we lost her. You know what happens, Hardy."

There was more cold anger in his voice when Hardy replied, "It's not like I'm in love with her, Trent. What do you take me for, a creepy old man? No, leave that to the younger men of the valley. But even you have to admit there is a sense of admiration that comes with knowing it's her. The girl who survived. The Unconquered Angel." Hardy chuckled. "Listen to me. I sound like the new boys back at the Organization. If only Hawk could hear me now."

Jill's heart stopped. It couldn't be coincidence. The puzzle pieces fit too well together, and she wanted to deny it so badly but she couldn't. Hardy, her doctor, knew Hawk. He and Trent were on a mission together. And Jill was the subject.

• • •

A/N: Merrr. This took forever, I know. A combination of writer's block and broken computer will do that to you. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter even though it's even more muddled than usual. xP