Since I started this story, I have to switch from Cowboys and Rancher girls to this one. For those of you who had tried to read both that one and this one, I thank you! I'll try to update more on this story for those who like it.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except for this story. All characters are of official property of Natsume productions.

Now enough of me talking! On to the story!

Chapter 2: Starting-

Akari's pov-

I must've fallen asleep after the introductions, because I slowly woke up to see that it was already morning. I sat up, and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. I looked around again, and noticed that I was still in my black mourning dress! I've gotta change right now!

I jumped off of bed and opened my drawers. I quickly took out my red tank top, and pulled my light green mini dress over it. I got on my blue knee-length jean shorts, my tan boots, and my white gloves, ready to start on my new farm. I then remembered the letter my grandmother left me. It was about a locket right? I walked to my nightstand and opened the top drawer.

Inside of the drawer was a small glass container. The container shape was like a diamond, light shining and dancing around the figure. There was a small line that parts the shape and I stuck my finger between the lines. I lifted upwards, and what it revealed was a gold and silver locket.

The locket was on a small pillow case, the velvet color very fitting to the container. The locket was a perfect heart shape, the figure just a little larger than a size of a quarter. The heart was made of beautiful silver, my reflection clearly visible in it. As I look closely, there was a pure golden outline and details of the east dragon.

I carefully pulled out the locket, thinking it was about to break and fall apart in my hands if I pulled any harder. Once it was completely out, I noticed that the chain was also made of pure silver. I unlocked the locket, and a small note folded many times fell out. With the locket still in my hands, I bent down and picked up the note. I unfolded it and read the words written inside of it.

Dear Akari,

If you found this note, you must've found the locket already too. I was planning to give this to you on your birthday, but it seems my time has run out. Inside of the locket is a picture of your parents, I know you missed them very much. From this I only wished I was a better grandmother for you, and for that, I am sorry. I'll be watching you with your parents, and may your life will be full of miracles.

I'll miss you.

Love,

Victoria

Teardrops started forming in my eyes. I looked over my parents, their smiling faces facing me. Drops fell, and splashed on their pictures, as I once again read the letter, over and over. I gave small whispers of thanks, hoping that those words will reach them.

Some knocks on my door made me froze to that spot. I quickly wiped my tears away from my face, checked the mirror if I look red or anything, and looked at my digital clock.

7:02 am

Whoa! High time to go! I folded up the letter and placed both the letter and the locket back into the diamond shaped case. I carefully placed it back inside of the drawer and closed it.

"Coming!" I yelled to whoever is on the other side of my door. I quickly opened the door in which revealed Chase; his hand was in position to of about to open the door himself. He pulled his hand back down and started speaking.

"I just wanted to tell you that breakfast is ready. And as soon as you finish, Kevin wanted me to tell you that you need to start on your farm. Here's a small tool bag so that you can start." Chase seemed to have been a bit annoyed at the last part. I nodded in understanding, and clicked the belt on. I followed Chase down the stairs to the large kitchen table. Nobody else was there, and there were only two plates with food on the table. I gave a questioning look to Chase, as to where everyone else was, Chase closed his eyes in irritation and understanding.

"Everyone else already finished, because everyone had to get up at 6 o'clock sharp. I was the one who prepared the food, so I was about to eat, until the others asked that I go up and get you." Chase had a few popped veins here and there. I bowed in apology, but Chase just waved it off. Chase made his way to his chair and started eating. I followed.

In front of me was a plate full of pancakes with blueberries and strawberries on the side. I cut out a small piece and slipped it inside of my mouth. The light cake mixed with rich thick maple syrup's aroma filled my mouth. This taste was very familiar; it somehow brought me back to the past when my parents and that boy were still there. This was the same taste of the day my parents died and that boy disappeared after their funeral. I never forgot that boy, but his name slipped my mind. I missed those days so much. There were no worries in the world, and life was easy, but now, my family is now dead, and I'm the last survivor of them. My way of living is now with these boys and the inheritance money, and the only way to earn money is to work on the farm and forage for some items to sell. I kept eating in a daze until the last bite was gone. I looked down at my now empty plate, picked it up and made my way to the sink.

"Thank you for the food, it was delicious." I complemented, Chase just gave a nod in acknowledgment. I exited through the back door, the farm was located there. Kevin was standing over the farm area with a hoe in his hands. Kevin pulled the hoe over his shoulder, and turned his head my way. Kevin gave a light smile and waved to me to come over. I walked over the fertilized soil to stand by him. Kevin started speaking.

"Akari, today we're going to go over on how you'll take care of your own farm. Here's a hoe." Kevin handed the hoe to me, and once he let it go, the hoe was surprisingly heavy and I started to fall forwards from the sudden release of weight. Kevin gave a small 'oh' when I collided with him, the hoe still in my unsteady hands. Kevin gave a light laugh, his hands placed on my shoulders to steady me. My face was slightly covered by a pink blush; Kevin patted me on the head and kneeled down a few inches to meet my eyes.

"Sorry, I guess I should've warned you that these tools are really heavy, it'll take a while to get used it." Kevin assured. I gave a nod, the blush still on my face.

My arms were shaking in trying to hold on to the heavy hoe. Before I knew it, Kevin came up behind me and covered my hands with his much larger ones, helping me hold onto the hoe. Again came my blush, brighter than the last one. I looked over my shoulder to Kevin, he had a calming smile on, and I smiled back.

"Alright then, to work the hoe, you need to lift it up," Kevin helped me lift the hoe, his hands still on mine, "and swing it downwards to the ground, then you pull down again to till the land." Kevin swing down the hoe and pulled, causing a tilled area on the ground.

Everything was much easier when he helped me, and my blush was on my face the whole time. Kevin helped me with my lessons, and made everything so easy. Maybe my grandmother was right when I needed help with this stuff; it made it much easier to understand I know that.

The day ended with Kevin helping me the whole time on that farm. We tilled in one patch of turnip seeds, since they were the easiest crops to raise. After just one patch of seeds, I was exhausted. My arms were aching from lifting that heavy hoe and watering can. My legs hurt from walking around the farm so much to remove weeds, but as I reviewed over the farm, I was satisfied from the result, I lightly smiled from my succession even though Kevin helped me with most of it. I entered the mansion, and met Chase halfway up the stairs.

"Whoa! This is just your first day! Even new timers don't get that roughed up in their first day! How are you a wreck in such a short amount of time?" Chase's expression was a completely shocked one; slowly backing away back up the stairs to avoid the dirty, mud covered me.

I looked over myself. It was true, I was a mess. Almost half of my mini dress was covered in mud, and my used-to-be pure white gloves were dulled down into slightly ripped and filthy ones. My knee-length jean shorts had small rips, and my bare bottom portion of my legs had dirt all over them. My face had some dirt, and my hair was a rat-nested mess, and my exhaustion matched. I gave a laugh in embarrassment and scratched the back of my head.

"Yeah… Farming is hard work, and apparently I'm don't have a natural gift for it... I'll go take a bath." I quickly walked up the rest of the stairs and made it to my room. I closed the door and opened my bathroom door. I turned on the faucet and quickly removed my filthy garments. I entered the bathtub and felt the comforting heat cover my body. I dunked my head down for it to come in contact with the water. My now soaked hair stuck to my neck, the cow lick finally down from the weight of the water. I sat back and relaxed in the hypnotizing temperature, and became lost in my own memories.

I remembered warm heat of welcome from my parents. Me and my parents were very happy together, nothing ever broke us down. Then that day I remember him…

~Flashback~

It was a very rainy day, that's when I met him. I was still in elementary school, and it was raining heavily that day. I was walking home with my umbrella, and pasted by the alleyway on the way. There was a boy, a little older than me, I was about 6, and he seems to be around the age of 11.

He was in tattered clothes, grey and worn down. He looked lonely and without a home. My curiosity got the better of me, and I walked over to him. The boy was pelted by the rain, and he looked on the verge of catching a cold. I was in a rain coat with my hat on, so I tilted the umbrella over him, keeping him from being pelted by the rain at the meantime. The boy looked up, and his eyes widened from seeing me, I smiled in response. I reach out my hand, giving a reassuring smile, a smile saying that I'll help him. The boy was still skeptical, probably finding it odd that a 6-year-old girl is helping an 11-year-old boy.

The boy slowly took my hand, giving a smile in return. My smile widened from his reaction, as he slowly stood up, took my umbrella and stood by me, our hands still connected. He positioned the umbrella to cover both of us, and we made our way home.

My parents are very loving people, and so once they saw me and the boy, they rushed over to help me and the boy who was about to faint from his fever. He was passed out for a while then, and when he woke up, my parents got food and medicine ready for him. I stayed by him the whole time, glad that he was feeling better.

Ever since then, the four of us were inseparable. The boy made amazing food, and treated me like he was my older brother and I was his younger sister. It was nice to have someone like him to take care of me sometimes, I was an only child, and so he was a kind person, who I trust as a brother. I remember the food I loved to eat, and only his cooking was my favorite. The light taste of pancakes, the thick, rich syrup, and the fruit on the side, the taste was heavenly. I always ate it, and it was his that I only ate. We were the perfect siblings, and with my parents, we were the perfect family, at least until that day.

A wind storm was up. My parents had an important meeting; we weren't rich of nothing you know. They had to be there, and so once they left, they never came back. They were driving on the side of a mountain, and the wind storm covered their way, so they drove right over the railing, crashing at the lower region of the mountain. Then on their funeral, the boy, the one I loved, the one that was like a true brother, just up and left. After that, I lived with my grandmother up till now.

~End of Flashback~

I missed those days. I walked out of my bathtub, and listened to the draining and gurgling sounds of the drain while I started to dry off. I quickly slipped on my nightgown, and made my way down the stairs to the kitchen to eat dinner. Everyone was there, already eating. Dinner was quite lively I must say. These guys weren't all business, well, most of them. Jin and Wizard were eating their dinner in complete silence, though it was easy to tell that Jin was trying his best not to yell at everyone at the table. Wizard was as dull as ever.

It was quite loud, and Luke was the main cause of it. He was yelling at the top of his lungs, and Gill was ready to bite his head off. Many popped veins appeared on Gill's head, trying his very best not to come into the riot. Chase was laughing quite a bit, while Owen joined in Luke's antics. Kevin was enjoying the show of their odd interactions, Julius lightly laughed, and Toby still carried the look of indifference. Calvin saw me just standing there, and waved his hand for me to join them. I gave a small smile and sat in the seat between Toby and Kevin.

"And so I threw the chunk of lumber I just chopped at Bo, and he fell backwards into the lake! After that…" I closed off the sound, and looked at my plate. My plate was filled with a large steak with sauce on the side. I picked up my knife and made my way trough the steak. The steak was medium rare, and as I dipped it in the sauce, a loud bang rang through my ears. I quickly looked up, but all it was, was Luke falling backwards in complete laughter, about to die from it. Luke popped upwards and sat back on his chair. That was odd…

I turned back to my plate and placed the piece of well seasoned steak into my mouth. The food was amazing. The piece of steak slowly melted in my mouth, and the smoky flavor mixed with the perfect amount of seasoning filled my mouth. The meat was tender and truly makes you feel like you were in heaven. This style of cooking reminded me of the pancakes Chase made this morning. I smiled in the mesmerizing flavor.

Dinner quickly ended with laughs coming from almost everyone. Only three people kept quiet. I'm sure you can guess who. I left the kitchen and ran up the stairs into my room. I got to my nightstand and opened the drawer with the diamond container.

I took out the heart shaped locket, and unhooked the chain to ring it around my neck. I hooked it back on and looked into my full body mirror. The locket shined with a heavenly glow, and the colors were clearly showed, even in the dull light of my room. I slid the locket under my dress to hide it from the outside. I walked out of my balcony to gaze into the late sunset. A light knock came to my door; I quickly exited my balcony to my door. I cracked it open to see who it is. There was Gill.

"Akari, tomorrow we'll work on your studies, it's best to keep your knowledge up to date." He sated with importance. I nodded, and closed the door after the short conversation was over. It was starting to get late, and slipped in bed. Ready for whatever god is going to throw at me.

I hope you like the story so far~ Get ready for he next chapter! ^w^