Short Note
It's not much in the beginning, I know, but don't worry.
Once I get further into the story there will be more interesting plot details.
It's Monday June 18, 2004. I sat on the train seat and watched the trees whiz by out my window. I sighed as I looked at the sky. I was making a big decision, for I was moving to a foreign land on my own.
Just then, the sliding door opened and a cat walked into the aisle. He was a small blue cat with the bottom half of his face white. He had small arms, small legs, and a tail, all with white on the tips. He wore a red, sleeveless sweater and had large, red eyes. He looked around at the seats for a while. When he noticed me, he walked over to my seat with a friendly smile.
"Excuse me, but do you happen to have the time?" he said to me.
"Um…yeah. I do," I said looking at my watch. " It's about…10:15 AM."
"Thanks," he said with a friendly smile. "You mind if I sit here?"
"Please do!" I said, gesturing towards the seat facing mine. He sat down in the seat.
"Thanks," he said, still wearing a friendly smile. "It's nice meeting friendly people on the train. By the way, the name's Rover. What's yours?"
"Pokey," I said.
"Pokey, Huh? Now THAT is an odd name!" Rover said, laughing out loud.
"What?" I said, very annoyed. "Are you laughing at my name?"
"Did I say odd? I meant…umm…awesome! Yeah! Awesome!" Rover said. "So where are you headed?"
"Anaville," I said.
"Anaville, huh? I know that place!" Rover said. "Anaville is one of my favorite vacation spots! 'Animal Crossing' they call it. Has a great restaurant. And you should try the smoothies by the beach!"
"Cool," I said.
"Why are you going?" Rover asked.
"Moving," I said.
"Moving, huh? I hate moving," Rover said. "Too much of a hassle. Where's your house? Is it by the lake? You'd get a great view from there of the fireworks on New Years Eve. Is it by the beach? Plenty of seashells to collect there."
"I…er…don't know," I said, feeling rather embarrassed. Rover's large eyes opened widely so that they were so large they looked as if they were ready to pop right out of his head. He had a stunned look on his face.
"You don't know? Are you nuts? You can't move before settling with a place to stay! It's insane!" Rover said. There was a short pause. "I know! A friend of mine works at the shop in Anaville! I bet he has some houses for sale! I'm just going to phone him really quick. This should only take a sec."
Rover got up and walked down the aisle and through the sliding door. I leaned over the side of my seat to listen.
"Hey, Nook my man. It's me," Rover said into the phone. "Really…your swimming in money?…wow…seriously?… ouch! Brutal…Listen. A friend of mine is moving into Anaville, but hasn't found a place to stay. You think you can help out?…Really? You can?…Great!…What?…Their name?…Oh, it's Pokey…Ok!…Thanks, Nook." He hung up and walked back to the seat.
"Ok, I'm back. You didn't miss me too much did you?" Rover said, sitting back down. "My old buddy says that he has some brand new houses for sale. Cheapest you'll find in at least 5 miles. You have money right?"
"Uhhh…yeah. Of course," I said, feeling guilty knowing that wasn't really true.
"Then you should be fine," Rover said. All of the sudden, he got a startled look on his face. " Oh! Looks like we're about to pull into Anaville. The Big AC! Man, I love this place! You should get ready to get off the train. Relax. No need to be nervous."
"Yeah," I said, starting to pull each of my fingers, one by one. This is a habit of mine when I start to get nervous. "Of course."
" As far as neighbors goes, get to know them. They're friendly folk! Trust me on this, and who knows? Maybe I'll stop by for a visit sometime," he said. " For now, see ya and good luck!"
When the train came to a stop, I opened the sliding door and stepped onto the platform. There was a short monkey wearing a blue suit and a tall hat standing next to me.
"Anaville! Anaville! Welcome to Anaville! Watch your step, please! Don't forget your luggage, eek eek! Hey, Kiddo! You forgot your stuff!" he said, looking at me.
"Oh. I don't have any luggage," I said.
"Oh. Okay. As you were," he said. I walked over to the gate and walked down the steps when I heard a voice.
"You there. Yes, you," the voice said. It was a short raccoon wearing what looked like a blue apron with a strange white figure on it. He was rather chubby and his ears were round like a bear's.
"Yes?" I said, feeling a little bit confused. Why would he want me?
"Are you Pokey?" he asked.
"Yes," I said.
"Good, good. I'm Tom Nook. I run the shop here," he said. "I just received a phone call about you and I heard you moved here without settling with a place to stay. You can't move without finding a house! Why it's madness!" Tom started laughing loudly and, of course, I got annoyed.
"Oh shut up!" I said.
"I beg your pardon," Tom said. "That just tickled me. Anyhow, I have a couple brand new houses. If you would just follow me I can show them to you." Tom started walking and I, knowing there was nowhere else to go, decided to follow. We walked and walked until we came to four houses. In the center of them was a bulletin board.
"Here we are. Not too shabby, hm?" Tom said. "I recommend any one of these houses. You can look inside if you wish. You'll find them rather cozy, yes?"
I started walking around a bit, looking at each house. These houses were not for me. They were too big and fancy. I prefer classic. That's when I noticed a small cottage by a small apple tree a couple yards away. It looked cozy and had smoke coming out of the chimney. A small fence surrounded it, which gave the house a welcoming environment.
"Who lives there?" I asked.
"Nobody, I'm afraid," Tom said. "I just keep the fireplace lit to keep it warm. No one wants that old place for there are far nicer houses in this town." I walked over and looked at the house. I opened the gate and walked into the yard. There were many flowers and even a well. I entered the house and found a family room with a lit fireplace and couches and chairs (rather cheap, though). There was also a bedroom with a tape player (but no bed). It was a cozy little place but rather empty. I didn't expect Tom to completely furnish the place, but he should at least put descent chairs if he's going to put any at all. However, it was perfect. I walked out and through the gate.
"I'll take it!" I said, excitedly.
"What? You want this one?" Tom said, rather shocked. "But I've just offered you any one of four beautiful, new houses. You don't really want this old dump, do you?"
"Here's fine," I said.
"Alright! Whatever!" Tom said, seeming annoyed. I looked around at the place and noticed something that looked like a fire hydrant with a face setting next to the door. What in the world is that, I wondered. "Oh… that thing. That's your personal Gyroid assistant. It certainly is a must have. When visitors come to your house when you're out, it will greet them with a message from you. Also, before you go to bed, be absolutely sure you save all your new possessions or everything you earn, everything you receive, everything you find will disappear as if you never obtained them!"
"Alright I won't forget," I promised.
"Good. I can not imagine a worse fate," Tom said. " Now, with the house and the yard, your total comes to 19,000 bells." I took out all my money, which totaled 1,000 bells. I gave it to Tom. " Yes, yes that would be…not nearly enough! You can't be serious! That's all you have? I've never seen anyone so short! You know what happens to people who don't have money. I'll tell you, they can't move to a new house. However, you still need a place to stay…a thorny situation…yes, rather thorny." There was a long pause.
"Tell you what, I'll let you stay here anyway and you can pay the rest off your dept by working at my shop!" Tom said. " I am so excited! I never even considered hiring a new employee! It might be fun! Come to my shop in the morning and if you don't know where it is, just check the map by the train station. See you then!" Tom walked away. I walked to my house. I went into the bedroom for a good night's sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.