Regularly, Anna was used to waking up with a slight pain in her neck and back. After all, a seventy-year-old bed would never be the best place to sleep. So, it came as a surprise that when she woke up, she was more comfortable than she'd ever been before. The warmth emanating from… whatever it was in front of her made her try to draw it in closer. The soft woodland scent made her feel even sleepier.

The sound of knocking pulled her out of her sleep-induced haze. She jolted upright, sleep forgotten in her confusion. A voice with a heavy southern accent, Marnie, rang out throughout the cabin.

'Huh? Why am I…'

"Leah! Ah swear, if you don't get up right now I'mma come in and wake you up myself!"

Now she was just more confused, Leah? But…

She felt the pile of sheets next to her move and let out a groan. Long, beautiful red hair emerged, and the memories all came rushing back to her. After 4 long months, she'd finally gotten the wine she was making to actually taste good. Or at least, one of the batches did, and she had about a dozen. She had decided to taste them all to compare them and then… oh… oh gosh.

Her face erupted a bright crimson, and she was about to jump out of the bed when she felt slender, calloused hands snake around her waist, pulling her up against the artist like a big teddy bear. She wouldn't dare wake her up, so she just stayed there, still as a statue. What would she do when she woke up? Would she yell at Anna? Tell her to leave and never talk to her again? After all, who just barges into a person's house in the middle of the night and steals their bed?

She was so focused on her own thoughts that she had almost missed the sound of a lock turning. Almost, but not quite. She watched in horror as the door opened abruptly, and she was met with the wide-eyed face of her fellow farmer, Marnie. The woman let out a surprised gasp. Anna tried to gesture to her to keep quiet, but her efforts were too late. She could feel rather than hear the groan let out by the artist, and it sent shivers up her spine.

"Oh! I'll uh, just, you go get dressed hun, I'll come back later, just, remember to be out before the ice festival starts. Sorry for interruptin'."

With her face a deep shade of crimson, the matronly figure shut the door, leaving Anna to the mercy of the situation.

From down on the bed, she heard a soft chuckle and stiffened, face burning as she felt a pair of warm, soft lips press themselves against the small of her back. The hands around her waist retreated back, and Anna turned stiffly, not ready to deal with the onslaught of emotions such actions brought up in her heart.

"Hey there, flower girl." That mellow, honeyed tone was like music to her ears, and she had a hard time concentrating on the situation at hand. It was like the artist was trying to make her heart race.

"Oh! Uhm, Leah! I am so sorry. I don't know what came over me and I really should be going I'm sorry I just wanted to see you cause you're really pretty and I missed you and I was drunk and oh my god please ignore that and I'm so sorry!"

Anna got up, and just as she was about to bolt, the small, calloused hand of Leah reached out and snatched her wrist, stopping her from running away.

"Hey, hey, it's fine. Please… don't run…" The vulnerability in her tone, along with the shake in her voice convinced her to stay. She just, couldn't say no to her. She had been the one that had actually convinced her to take better care of herself. When she'd first arrived at the valley, Leah had been the first to visit her when she would seclude herself from the world, momentarily reverting to the mindset of an employee, where her only worth would be how much she worked and produced. Even though she knew that it was no longer the case, she couldn't help but keep going back to that mentality when she would get low on money, like she had back in the city.

Unlike most of the other villagers, Leah didn't admonish her for those feelings, probably because she too had once worked in the city. But the moment that had solidified her feelings for the artist was when, at the end of summer, she had fallen sick from overworking herself and Leah had come over, helping her get better. That week spent together had been one of the happiest times she could remember, cause even after she recovered, the red head would visit almost every day, checking up on her to make sure she was taking care of herself. Fast forwards a month and she had actually given her a sculpture Leah had made herself, and Anna knew, then and there, that she was in deep. But she kept it to herself, not willing to hope. After all, she was just, a workaholic farmer who ran away from her problems in the city, she was nowhere near good enough for someone as kind and pretty as the artist that laid on the bed behind her.

Still, if she wanted her to stay, she would stay. It was the least she could do, really. Two strong, thin arms suddenly entwined themselves around her neck, and Leah placed her head on the farmer's right shoulder, acting drunk in her sleep induced trance. Her lips could almost touch Anna's earlobe, and she felt the heat of every breath, the sensation causing her to shiver slightly.

"So, you going to actually talk to me or just keep standing there, huh?" The words snapped her out of her own head, and she blushed even deeper, letting out a little whine at the unfairness of the situation. How she was expected to be able to talk with such a pretty girl pressed up against her, she had no clue, but she knew she wouldn't be able to.

"Standing it is, then." Leah sighed, but she didn't sound annoyed, simply amused. The sound of sheets hitting the floor, as well as the feeling of the arms around her neck retreating, finally got her to finally open her eyes back up. The sight that greeted her was enough to take her breath away. She'd never seen the artist with her hair down, but it was as beautiful as ever, the novelty adding even more to the splendor of the sight. Leah was dressed in a simple worn shirt and some baggy sweatpants, but to Anna, she was absolutely breathtaking. The artist walked to the bookshelf next to her fireplace. She pulled a book back, and to Anna's shock, the bookshelf folded back to reveal a small cupboard and stove. From the cupboard, Leah pulled two cups, a pot and some coffee packs.

"Huh? But how…" Anna couldn't help but voice her confusion. Leah gave her a side eyed glance before a smirk made its way to her face.

"What, never seen a magic house before? Miss, 'my house has 4 rooms but only the space for two'. Sure, this is smaller than that, but its the same concept." She said, her hands working to make coffee as she talked. "Robin takes lessons from the wizard from time to time. She's been getting pretty good at it if your house is anything to go by." Within a few minutes, the coffee was ready, and Leah set it down on the nearby table. She turned towards Anna, giving her a look as if to say 'come here.'

"What? But how, huh?" Now she was just lost. She hadn't ever thought of it before, but now that It was pointed out to her, it became painfully obvious. Her house was bigger inside then it should be. Still. Of all the oddities that she was learning about around this town, it did make some sense that the houses too would be magical.

"Oh, get over it, ya goof." Leah laughed, mirth dancing in her stunning blue eyes. "So, are you gonna come sit down or do I have to drag you here myself, flower girl?"

"I'm coming, just, it's a lot to take in, is all."

"I know what you mean, it shocked me too the first time I realized it."

Anna walked over and sat down at the table, now that she had gotten over all the shock, she was getting a little antsy. It was then that she realized how she was dressed.

'I must look like a mess' she thought. A light undershirt and some small shorts did little to cover her. And her hair must be awful. Still, it was too late now. So instead of mulling over it for too long, she just grabbed the cup of coffee and took a sip, sighing in delight as she drank. Leah had made it just the way she liked it, not too sweet, and with a light smidge of fruitiness to it. She blushed as she realized, they probably were the ones she had grown herself. The silence was broken by Leah, who had her arms drawn up against herself, making her seem small, cute almost.

"Hey Anna?"

"Yeah?" the farmer focused on the artist, and felt her throat go dry. She looked so… vulnerable right now. Any worries that she had were thrown aside, her full attention going to the redhead.

"There's something that I've been meaning to tell you for a little while now, and now seems to be a good time for it, so here goes." It sounded to her that Leah was talking more to herself then to Anna, almost as if she were psyching herself up.

"Anna, I-" whatever she was about to say was cut of by a rough knocking at the door. From behind the door, she heard Mayor Lewis speak up.

"Excuse me, are you two ready yet? The festival's gonna start in half an hour, so get ready."

With the mood now broken, she had no clue what to say. Leah gasped, her eyes growing wide as a large smile graced her face.

"I totally forgot that was today! Oh Anna, you'll absolutely love it! Come on, get up." The artist dragged her up, pulling her by the hand to the bookshelf where she pulled a book that she could see read clothing 101, and the compartment flipped around again, this time revealing some drawers, and she opened them to reveal piles of clothes, flannel shirts and jeans being featured predominantly. The artist unceremoniously chucked a shirt and some pants at Anna, who caught it with a confused look.

"Alright, I'm going to get dressed now, and so should you. These might be a little big on you but it's the smallest I've got. I trust you to not look at me changing, okay?" That last remark was followed by a wink, setting Anna's face ablaze.

"O-of course not! I'm not like that!" She said indignantly.

"I'm sure you aren't, flower girl." The teasing tone made Anna turn around and tackle the artist, but if she did that, she would have to deal with seeing Leah in her underwear, and she wasn't sure that her poor gay heart could handle something like that, so she kept facing away, quickly changing out of her clothes and into Leah's. They were deceivingly warm, probably warm enough to go out without a coat, even.

When she was done getting dressed, she almost turned around before she remembered that Leah was changing too, and she blushed again.

"So, uhm, are you done getting dressed?" She asked, trying to get her face to cool down, if only a little.

"Yup, you?"

"Yeah, I'm dressed." With that confirmed, Anna turned back to face Leah, and yet again she was not prepared to see her look this pretty. Dressed in a red flannel, cuffed jeans and a cute beanie, Leah looked far more amazing than she had any right to. Anna had to make sure she wasn't staring too much, but it was easier said than done. The artist was taking out a whole tool kit and was that a sort of saw? Now she was even more confused.

"Well then flower girl, you ready to take on the day?"

"Uh, sure?"

"Great! And before we go out, I was wondering… if you don't mind, would you, maybe, want to stay over tonight too?"

The request caught Anna by surprise, Leah was looking away from her, pink dusting her face.

"And on that note, there is something i was wanting to tell you later, so after everyone is gone, can we… have a talk?"

Realizing she wasn't responding, Anna sought to rectify that immediately.

"Uhh, sure! Yes, err, I mean both, yes to both. I mean, if you don't mind, that is." Oh no, she was talking too much wasn't she?

"That's great! Maybe you could even bring over some of that wine you were so eager to have me try last night." The artist chuckled at the farmer's mortified expression. She walked over to Anna's bag, took it by the handle and tried to lift it. Tried being the key word. No matter how hard she pulled, she couldn't get it to budge.

"What the- why is your bag so heavy? What are you carrying in that thing, a tone of rocks or something?" Leah turned to Anna, who had a grin starting to form on her face. She adjusted the ring she was wearing on her right hand and, without breaking eye contact, slung the bag onto her shoulders, smugness all over her face.

"Amongst other things, yeah." She said, letting that sink in. After being teased all morning, it felt good to get back at the artist.

"What, never seen a magic bag before?" She said, eyes twinkling with a teasing light.

"But how are you able to carry that?!"

"Maybe you're just not very strong, little miss wood nymph."

"Wood nymph? Really?" Leah asked, and Anna laughed, happy that the awkward tension from earlier was lifted.

"Sure! You love to work with wood, don't you?" She had a hard time stopping her smile from getting even wider when she saw the affronted look on the artist's face.

"Oh god, don't say it like that!"

"Like what, hmm?" She egged on, and laughed as Leah just glared at her and poked her tongue out at her.

"Well, we really should go outside though. Don't want the mayor getting to mad at us, right?" And with that, Anna opened the door, ready to deal with the day to come.