Wow, I'm on fire or something. I will now laugh like-you guessed it, Cat-Brook. Yohohohohohohoho! :3

Here's another update. Ahahaha. This one's so mood-switchy. I love it! xDDDD

Thanks to klara-kind for her idea regarding mushrooms! You'll see what I mean when you read the chapter. xP

"Well, that should do it," Gannon said, swinging his axe up to rest on his shoulder. "She's ready for some animals."

"Yes! Thank you so much, Gannon!" Chelsea exclaimed, pumping her fist into the air. Gannon nodded and headed down the path in the early morning light, on his way back to his shop. Chelsea turned to beam at her brand-new, glorious barn and headed inside, inspecting the small wooden area. There were spaces for two animals and a fodder dispenser, along with a fresh coat of hay scattered around on the ground.

Chelsea counted in her head—she'd ordered the barn on Friday, and then Gannon couldn't start until Monday because of a surprise storm that blew in over the weekend, and even then it took him two days to finish in all the mud. It was Wednesday—the animal shop was open! Chelsea ran off the farm, slipping only once on the ever-muddy path, and flew into the shop. She came up to the counter and leaned against it, panting.

"…Did'ya need something, or are you just here to breathe up all the good air?"

Chelsea looked up, startled at the sound of a deep drawl coming from where Mirabelle's sweet voice usually was. Her eyes met those of a frowning cowboy, leaning back behind the counter with his arms crossed across his chest.

"Oh—uh, sorry—say, where's Mirabelle? Or Julia?" Chelsea replied, pushing off the counter and smiling slightly. Vaughn was actually speaking to her—and, to her delight, she found that he had a pleasant voice. She could listen to him talk for ages, but she highly doubted she'd ever get the chance.

"Old Taro called 'em out a while ago," he muttered, still frowning at her from under his Stetson, "Was there a reason you're here?"

"As a matter of fact, there is!" Chelsea beamed at him. He rose an eyebrow down at her as she placed the remainder of her savings on the counter. She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling, "I'd like to buy a cow, please—Oh, and some fodder!"

She watched him excitedly as he counted up the money. He turned around, picked up a large bag of fodder in one arm, and silently walked out the door. Chelsea stared after him—where on earth was he going?

After a moment, the door opened again, and Vaughn scowled in at her. "You coming?"

"Oh! Of course, of course! Sorry," Chelsea laughed, hurrying out the door and following the extremely annoyed cowboy around to the barn in the back of the shop.

"Which one?" Vaughn mumbled, staring at nothing. Chelsea stepped closer to the small group of baby cows, watching them carefully. One little brown one saw her coming and twitched its ear before ambling over to the farmer. Chelsea smiled in delight and patted the calf on its head. It looked up at her with wide, brown eyes and Chelsea knew that this was going to be her cow.

"Hey, there," Chelsea cooed, scratching the animal behind its ears, "What's your name?"

The cow let out a loud moo and Chelsea laughed. Vaughn wanted to roll his eyes, but he was too fascinated with the scene in front of him to spare the extra time. Chelsea got down on her knees in the hay and looked the calf in the eye, still petting its head.

"Daisy," she said, "Your name's Daisy."

Daisy licked Chelsea's hand, causing the farmer to let out another laugh. Standing up, Chelsea looked over to Vaughn, who immediately redirected his gaze anywhere else. Chelsea walked over and smiled triumphantly, gesturing towards Daisy.

"I'll take that one, please."

Vaughn gave her a curt nod and walked over to the little calf. He tied a rope around its neck and started to lead it out of the barn and up the path towards Chelsea's ranch. Chelsea had to skip to keep up with him, and by the time they reached the new barn, she was completely out of breath. Vaughn untied Daisy and let her into the barn and, after setting the fodder down near the door, turned to leave. Chelsea frowned slightly and followed him outside.

"Wait," she called, taking off her rucksack and opening it. Vaughn stopped and turned around.

"What?" He called back, not even trying to conceal his irritation. Chelsea walked up to him and handed him a small, clean mushroom. He eyed it for a second and looked back at her smiling face in confusion. "What's this?"

"A mushroom," Chelsea said. Vaughn rolled his eyes.

"I know that. Why're you givin' it to me?"

"Why not?" Chelsea retorted, her eyes shining with mischief. "I mean, I gathered too many this weekend, and so I figured it's better to give them away than to waste them. Besides, it's my thanks to you for helping me bring home my first cow."

Vaughn stared at her. "You really are an odd one, y'know that?"

Chelsea nodded cheerfully. "Yep!"

Shaking his head in disbelief, Vaughn left, still holding the mushroom securely in his hand.

Ooo

Later on that evening, Chelsea was exploring East Town and noticed another new bridge built on the north side. She looked curiously across it, seeing a rather dark jungle on the other side. Oh well, she thought, if they built a bridge over there, it must be safe.

So she walked slowly across the bridge and onto the overgrown, thick grass floor of the jungle. She walked down the narrow path and scanned her surroundings, in awe at all the overgrowth and colorful flowers. She'd never seen anything like this before. Carefully, she climbed over a large, dampened boulder in the middle of the path. She looked up and saw no sky—only a canopy of dark green. She frowned slightly and turned around. It was getting really dark out and she was getting the creeps. Her foot came up on a tree root hidden in the grass, and she was suddenly yanked to the ground.

"Ow…" She muttered, rolling up and into a sitting position. She looked at her leg and saw that she'd scratched it up pretty good on a small rock also hidden in the grass. She sighed and pushed herself up, wobbling slightly. She glanced around her shoulder, into the nearly-black jungle that was surrounding her—she felt like she was being watched.

Quickly, she went to follow the path back to the bridge. But… hold on. Where was the path? Chelsea searched the ground frantically, trying to remember which way she'd come from before she'd tripped. She looked around her, spinning in a slow circle. It was no use. She couldn't tell where she was.

She could feel her eyes start to water—this was just her luck. Chelsea the super-klutz strikes again. She survived being thrown of a boat and into the middle of a stormy ocean, only to get lost and starve in a tiny jungle. What a great way to go.

Just as Chelsea was about to start walking in any random direction, she felt something warm push up against her back—something human. Before she could even flinch, a cold blade pressed onto her neck, making her breath catch in her throat. She gasped slightly as an arm wrapped around her arms and torso, trapping her.

"You dinner," a husky voice said from directly behind her, sending a wave of fear crashing throughout her entire body, "I now eat good."

Just as her throat went totally dry, Chelsea let out one loud, blood-curdling scream before she passed out.

Oh, how random that ending was. Cliffhanger? Yes-my first one in AGES. Let's see if I can keep up with the updating, hm? I don't want to keep you all on your toes for too long ;)

Review and tell me how you like Vaughn's new, suddenly-chatty self! xP