A/N: I definitely finished this like a week ago, but got too lazy to edit it...Anyway,Most of it is introduction, but at the end our favorite thief pops in for a visit. Bear with me. :)

Chapter 4: Introductions

The next morning, the pair woke up around eight in the morning, and, after some breakfast, Hardy recited to Jill the final schedule he and Ruby had composed after yesterday's 'meeting.'

"Today," he started, "you'll meet a lot of the townspeople, or at least see their houses. We're going to start by heading to Vesta's farm, where you'll get together with Celia. I have a feeling you'll like her. She's going to give you a tour around Forget-Me-Not Valley, and I'll have a chat with Vesta about you working on her farm while you're here. Muffy, who works with Griffin at the Blue Bar, might join you two. We'll meet back up at Vesta's for dinner at around five, and then you can rest. Tomorrow, if all goes as planned, you'll be moving in to Vesta's house, and you'll work there for a good week, if you feel like you can manage. The work will be light at first, but when Spring hits you ought to be feeling well enough to help them plant a new round of plants. You'll be earning your keep at Vesta's as well as enough money to pay me back for my services, and some money so that you can travel back home once the season is up. If you save up, you might even be left with some profit." Hardy met eyes with Jill to see that she was smiling slightly.

She took a sip of hot chocolate, and then replied, "Thank you so much, Hardy. This is more than I could ever ask for. All this arranging you've been doing, helping me and whatnot, it's absolutely wonderful. Thank you very much."

Hardy nodded and smiled. "It's no problem, really. Just try not to get in any bear attacks, okay?"

Jill giggled a little, and after that they headed out the door, Jill taking the sweatshirt Hardy had bought for her yesterday, and Hardy taking his trademark red and black scarf.

The air outside was a little warmer than the day before, but the ground was muddy and wet from melted snow, so Jill and Hardy tried their best to stay on the brick path until they came to the bridge that went across the river. Jill vaguely remembered this part of the valley, but it was all a little fuzzy.

Hardy suddenly pointed to a path that went through some trees, and said in a quiet voice so not to disturb the nature, "If you take that path, you'll reach the Goddess Spring. It's rather beautiful there. I like spending free time just gazing into the waters, and sometimes making offerings." He glanced back, and continued, "Only if you believe in that kind of thing, of course."

Jill thought about her reply for a moment, and then said, "Yes, I do believe in the Goddess. It sounds lovely. I'll go check it out, or maybe Celia will take me up there."

Hardy simply hummed as a reply, and they continued to cross the wooden bridge. Jill felt herself tense up a bit. This must have been about where she fell in the water. Thank the Goddess Marlin had seen her, or else she had no idea what would have happened.

She let out a little sigh of relief once she was past the river, hoping that Hardy hadn't heard. Even if her goal was to become more human, she still had her guard up. No need to let anyone know her weaknesses.

Jill then realized that they were approaching a rather large farm. She had seen it before, of course, but the first time she hadn't exactly paid much attention to it. Now she was able to grasp just how large and professional it looked. Two medium-sized buildings stood side-by-side, and next to them were two big greenhouses. Through the heavy plastic material Jill could see green, blurry objects that she assumed were plants, surviving despite the winter chill. Then again, that's what greenhouses are for, she thought. The structures were contained behind a short picket fence, which, in all reality, wouldn't protect anything well at all, but it did look nice. Across from all of this was what Jill assumed was a field, but it was covered in snow, so she wasn't exactly sure. About four or five windmills spun gently in the breeze next to the farm, giving it an overall pleasant ambience.

"Vesta's very good with crops," Hardy explained. "She makes a lot of money selling her produce to gourmet restaurants. It's the finest quality."

At this point they had reached the door to the first building. Hardy raised a hand to knock, and seconds later the door opened, and there was the grouchy reincarnation of Elvis himself.

"Good morning, Marlin," Hardy greeted, his face bright and happy. "Vesta told you we were coming, I presume."

Marlin nodded curtly. Jill noted that his nose was a little red, and he sniffled a bit before he opened the door. Has he been crying? Jill wondered. Strange. Marlin doesn't seem the type to cry. Then again, I've only known him for a few days, so I can't judge.

The inside of the home reminded Jill much of Hardy's one room house, only it was a little bigger and kind of separated by a staircase in the middle. To the left of the staircase was a kitchen-dining room area. A girl in a pretty green dress with brown hair stood leaning over the sink, washing plates, pots, and pans. The kitchen area was fairly small, and Jill wondered how they managed to fit all their kitchen utensils in such tiny cabinets.

In the other half of the area was a large table with six chairs set up around it. A decorative striped rug was under the table, probably to prevent the chairs from scuffing up the floor. A vase with fresh flowers stood tall as the centerpiece, and this also made Jill curious until she remembered that they had a greenhouse, so they had access to fresh flowers in the winter.

To the right of the staircase was a sleeping area with two beds, one larger than the other, and some cabinets with drawers that probably contained clothes. Jill took a deep breath in and smelled something like warm apple cider, and something cinnamon-y. Her mouth watered despite the fact that she had finished breakfast less than ten minutes ago. The house was just as cozy feeling as the Inn, and Jill wondered if this is what all of the places in the valley were like.

Marlin took a place at the table, and a hefty woman with wiry orange hair, probably Vesta, was already seated next to him. At the sight of Jill and Hardy, however, she stood and walked over to greet the pair.

"Hardy!" she exclaimed, her voice big and somehow kind at the same time, "Thanks for coming by! We've all been really excited to see just who Marlin saved." She looked down at Jill and smiled. "It's great to see that you're doing better. Marlin said you were pretty beat up after falling in the river. Anyway, I'm Vesta." she stuck out a large, calloused hand for Jill to shake. Her grip was strong, and Jill liked this. Good people always had strong handshakes.

"You already know Marlin," she went on, "and that's my niece, Celia, over there in the kitchen. We made her do the dishes this morning."

Celia looked over her shoulder and smiled shyly. "Hi, Pony. I'll be out in a second, Vesta. I've got a few more dishes." Her voice was gentle and a little quiet, but she seemed like one of those genuinely nice girls, which can be a rare person to come across in the world.

Vesta and Hardy chatted about something going on in Mineral Town while Celia finished up the dishes. Jill stood, feeling a little awkward, but sometimes that happened when meeting new people. She listened politely, though, and smiled at certain parts of the conversation. It was then that she noticed Marlin sniffling again, and Jill couldn't help but glance at him. He was staring at her, which made her squirm a bit, so she turned away again.

"Still got that cold, Marlin?" Hardy asked. Marlin simply nodded in reply.

Oh, Jill thought, it's a cold. I probably gave it to him, too. Jumping into a river in the middle of winter isn't exactly the healthiest thing ever.

She suddenly felt a new appreciation for Marlin (he had, after all, saved her life), and wanted to catch his eye so she could smile at him, but he didn't look back in her direction. Eventually, Celia finished with the dishes, and came to join them by the entrance of the house. She was now wearing a puffy gray jacket along with her dress.

"Well," she started, "I'm ready if you are."

Jill smiled, and nodded. "Yeah. Let's go."

After some goodbyes to the older adults and Marlin, Celia and Jill stepped back out into the chilly world outside.

"So," Celia started. "Your name's Pony, right?"

Jill's first reflex was to correct her and say it was actually Jill, but then she realized she still had a cover to keep. "Yeah," she eventually responded. "Pony Ryder. And you're Celia?" Celia nodded, and Jill continued, "I like your dress. It's pretty."

Celia giggled, and replied, "It's a little inconvenient in the winter time, but I like to wear it when planting crops and stuff. It's a lot more mobile than you'd think."

They lapsed into a comfortable silence for the next thirty seconds as the pair walked back toward the bridge, and Jill tried to memorize the area for later so that she wouldn't get lost. Celia then began to explain the route they would take: she thought it would be better to show Jill the more Northern part of the valley first, and then they could tour around the southern part and the mine, which was a little out of the way compared to everything else. They would swing by the Blue Bar for lunch, where they would pick up Muffy, who was apparently one of Celia's best friends.

"Well, really," Celia explained, "there's only five or six girls our age in the valley, and we all get along quite nicely. It's not like high school, where there were groups of friends and every group had the mean girl. Of course, I spend more time with Muffy than the others, but that doesn't mean I don't love a big girl gathering now and then." They were well across the bridge at this point, and Celia pointed to the same path Hardy had earlier. "Up there is the Goddess Spring. Hardy probably told you about it, because he visits a lot, too. Most people make the trip once a week, or something. It can get kind of busy. I like to go in the evening because it's quiet and not many people are there, so if you want some time to yourself, that's when I'd suggest going."

Jill nodded, grateful for this information. Celia, so far, was proving to be extremely informed and good at explaining things.

They started walking toward, what Jill assumed was part of the Northern part of the valley, when she noticed a new path she hadn't seen before. It was tucked away in the trees and bushes.

"Where does that go?" she asked, nodding at the path.

"Oh, there used to be an old farmer that lived up there," Celia explained. "I think his name was Bill, but I was only six when he passed on, so I don't remember him too well. He was great, but most of the buildings on the farm have deteriorated and the field is overgrown. We could clean it up, of course, it's just no one has really wanted the job yet. Some people just don't realize how great living in this valley is, so they skip the ad in the newspaper." She smiled, and continued, "Anyway, Hardy said you've been to the Inn, so we'll skip going inside, but that's where Rock, Ruby, and Nami live. Nami stays as a guest, but Rock is Ruby's son. Sometimes people from Mineral Town or other places come to visit, too, and they stay in the extra rooms. My other best friend Karen, for example, comes to visit on Tuesdays, and she likes Ruby's cooking a lot, so she stays there."

They passed the Inn, and walked toward the part of town Jill had never been in before. A small building made of gray bricks was to the left, and the other brick houses that looked like Hardy's were to the right.

"That," Celia explained, pointing to gray brick building, "is the bar. Muffy lives there with Griffin, the barkeeper. She works as a waitress of sorts and sometimes helps makes drinks." Celia giggled, and continued, "But, to be perfectly honest, she's not very good at it."

Jill smiled, already knowing what type of character Muffy was going to be. "Are they...together? Muffy and the bartender, I mean."

"Oh, no," Celia sighed, "but sometimes I believe they should be. Muffy's a little older than the rest of us, but you wouldn't believe it if you saw her. She's gorgeous. And Griffin's a little older, too, so I think it would work. Not to mention they are best friends. I mentioned the possibility to her once, and she only laughed, though I don't understand why. Muffy is very...romantic. She's kind of like a princess in real life, but not the snobby kind. She just wants a happy ending with a nice husband. Griffin could be that nice husband, but she just doesn't see it, I suppose."

"Maybe someday," Jill replied.

"Yes," Celia said, a little hope in her voice. "Anyway, we'll skip the bar for now. The houses right there," she pointed to the right, "is where Chris and her family live. You'll probably meet them eventually; they're outside a lot. And the one in the middle is where Grant and Kate live. Grant works in the city, and Kate is his daughter."

Jill hummed in response. They continued their walk along the road until it opened up to a large outdoor stairway. Following the path of the stairs with her eyes, she realized that a huge mansion stood at the top. It was made of pretty brown bricks, and what looked like a big fountain spouted water in the middle of the courtyard.

"That's where Lumina lives, along with her grandmother, Romana, and their butler, Sebastian. Lumina's really nice, and pretty smart. Well, we're all pretty smart, but she's the smartest of all of us, and also the youngest." With a small smile, she continued, "She's had a crush on Rock since she was a little kid, though, so I don't doubt now that she's eighteen that they'll get together soon."

Jill smiled as well, amused with the idea. Lumina, the smart bookworm, with Rock, the hippie-dressed play-boy? Goddess, she thought, what a weird couple.

They started walking away from the mansion, further south than before.

"So," Celia started, "where are you from, Pony?"

Backstories. Goddess, she hated backstories.

"Up North," Jill responded. "I used to live with my parents. I've been looking around for a place of my own lately, though."

Celia made a humming noise as a response, and then replied, "I've been with Vesta for a while now. My parents live in the city, but...well, I get sick a lot and the air there made it worse, so they wanted me to find a job somewhere out here."

Jill tried to think of something appropriate to say. Eventually, she decided on the cliché, "You must miss them a lot."

Celia shrugged. "I did, at first. But I go see them around the Starry Night festival most years, and I can visit whenever I want. Plus, Vesta is a lot like a mother to me, and I like her a lot. I have friends here, and I love this valley. Life is good."

Jill nodded, waiting to be questioned more about her own life. She was surprised when Celia refrained from asking anything more; after all, the girl had just divulged her own life story to Jill.

How can she be so trusting? Jill wondered.

By this point they had arrived at a small building with weird metal things outside of it, and a wire fence surrounding the plot of land.

"This is where Daryl lives," Celia explained. "He's kind of...well...weird. He's a scientist. I don't talk to him much, but I've heard he's okay, once you get past his obsession with cow cloning." She smiled, and Jill realized she was joking, so she smiled a bit, too.

Celia then pointed to something that looked like a cross between a water tower and a house, and continued, "That's where Kasey and Patrick live. They're really great firework makers. Muffy says they're really nice, and funny to tease when they're drunk. She only knows this, of course, because she works at the bar."

Jill took a moment to observe the property. A bit like Darly's house, it was marked territory, but instead of a wire fence the area was surrounded by a wall of brick. On the other side of the wall was dirt instead of grass, and random barrels and crates labeled with unknown contents littered the ground. Weeds grew here and there, and Jill wondered why the outside wasn't better taken care of like the other houses in the valley. Then again, if they came home drunk some nights, that might explain it.

They continued walking south until they reached yet another strange looking lot. The ground had been covered by various slabs of metal, and something that looked like a mix between a toaster and a trailer was in the middle. What was it with these people and fusing things with houses?

"This is Cody's house," Celia explained quietly. "I don't really know him that well, because he likes to keep to himself, but he comes to the spring sometimes and has talked to me occasionally. From what I can pick up he really likes art, and he's nice enough, but a little intimidating in appearance."

Jill nodded in understanding. She liked quiet people as much as she liked fun, talkative people (or at least used to like them, she wasn't quite sure now). Quiet people were generally the smartest and most insightful of humans, and yet they weren't given the amount of time to show people just what they were capable of. Not to mention the fact that quiet and shy generally go hand in hand, so shyness can lead to stage fright. Overall, being quiet can be wonderful, but also a curse. Almost like a pearl locked up inside of an oyster until someone got the brilliant idea to open it up and gaze at the contents inside.

The next leg of their tour lead them past a nice-looking beach, and Celia explained that during the spring and summer the younger valley residents (and some from Mineral Town) got together and hung out after work. It was usually, enjoyable, and hopefully Jill would be able to stick around long enough to attend one or two.

Eventually they reached a very floral and colorful looking home, one that Jill was sure belonged to some girly girl she probably wouldn't like too much, but it ended up belonging to a grown man named Gustafa, or something odd like that. Celia said he really liked guitar and was something of a hippy. Jill could respect that, especially the guitar part. She used to spend a lot of time playing guitar, back before the organization got such a strong hold on her life. It was too easy to lose herself in the notes and not worry about anything while playing. Once she even busked in the city, and had earned a good hundred gold after playing for a few hours.

A fair amount of steps and five minutes later, they were back at the Nothern side of the valley, by the bar. It really didn't take that long to get anywhere, because everything was pretty close together. They had just walked slowly, but now they were eager to be inside the bar, even if it was a little early for lunch, because the outside was getting warmer with every minute they stayed out.

Celia opened the door and gestured for Jill to go inside first. She followed soon after, and Jill spent a few seconds soaking in the interior.

It was very different than what she had expected. The only bar she had ever been to was what workers called the Basement Bar back at the organization. It had been a dark, bleak place, full of men playing pool, cards, and betting money on which girl they would sleep with that night. Jill tended to stay away from such shady business, because, despite the fact that she was part of the organization, she had morals, unlike most of the other people there. She had gone to the bar once or twice with the few friends she had, but after the second time...well, she decided to never go again, for certain reasons.

This bar, however, was extremely different. The atmosphere was light and homey. A vase of flowers sat on a table in the corner, and a small counter with some barstools was in the middle of the room. Behind the counter were shelves of colorful bottles of alcohol, each one different than the one next to it. It smelled, obviously, like beer and wine, but Jill was surprised to find there was also an underlying scent of apple pie and cinnamon.

When the door behind Celia and Jill closed, a girl clad in a scarlet red dress and blue sweater looked up. She had been scribbling something down on a notepad behind the counter, but once she saw the pair, her face lit up like a match.

"Celia!" she greeted, and bounced over to the entrance to embrace her friend. "It's been, like, a week! Way too long, honey!"

Celia smiled, and replied, "Sorry, Muffy. Spring is coming, and we've been busy. Plus, I just got back from visiting my parents in the city."

Muffy flipped her curly blond hair and smiled. "It's fine, I'm just teasing. Oh, and you must be Pony!" Thankfully, Muffy didn't hug Jill like she did Celia. Instead, she simply stuck out a dainty hand for Jill to shake. Her fingernails were red and shiny, which Jill thought gave most city women a dominant, scary air, but on Muffy it was more of a warm and girly yet professional vibe.

"I'm Muffy, if Celia didn't already tell you," Muffy continued. "I'm the bargirl. I'd introduce you to Griffin, but he's out visiting people in Mineral Town. He should be back later tonight, though, if you want to stop by."

"Maybe," Jill replied. "I might be a little tired, but I'll see what I can do."

"Great," Muffy beamed. "I'll get lunch ready. Celia, anything to drink?"

"Just water," Celia replied. Jill asked for the same. She had learned not to drink around people she didn't fully trust. It was definitely not a good idea to have a fuzzy brain when the person giving you alcohol could be out to kill you.

• • •

The rest of the day went much the same. Muffy joined Celia and Jill on the rest of their tour, during which Jill only met a few more townsfolk. After that, they had gone to Celia's house for dinner with Vesta, Marlin, and Hardy, and then Hardy escorted her back to his home again for a nap.

Later on she woke up around nine o'clock, not feeling very tired, when she remembered Muffy had suggested she go to the bar and meet Griffin. Feeling somewhat bored and not having any intentions of sleeping more, she decided she didn't really have anything better to do.

Hardy let her go without much thought, especially because she didn't bother to take her rucksack with her. She explained that she would go meet Griffin and then maybe go for a walk, and she promised to wear her coat, as well, so he just let her be.

Once she got outside, though, Jill didn't feel much like socializing. The night air and the stars were too peaceful to be interrupted by the social awkwardness that Jill still felt around others. Instead, she decided to head toward the spring Hardy and Celia had mentioned earlier to see what it was like. She wasn't but five steps away from Hardy's house, however, when she heard a far-off scream and crash break the calm ambience. It had come from the west, which was the direction of the mansion.

Her heart skipped a beat, and then it was off and thudding two times the speed it had been going before. Something had happened, someone had screamed. It wasn't just a yelp of surprise, it was a scream. That was bad.

Organization? Jill wondered. No. Someone from the organization would have known better than to make a crash. They were smarter than that. Well, at least most of them. And no one had said the valley had regular break-ins.

Had she imagined it? Was her guard simply up too high?

Her head screamed yes, but her heart screamed no. She was off and running toward the villa within three seconds.

It was a miracle everything in the valley was so close together, or else she probably would have gotten lost and not have been able to get there in time. It wasn't difficult to navigate toward the break in the pine trees where she knew the staircase was, even in the nighttime with no moon.

At the top of the villa staircase, she scanned the building for any signs of trouble. Her heart was pounding so loudly in her ears she didn't notice the footsteps until a person stood right in front of her.

His hair was somewhere between a dark gray and snow white. Silver, she decided. His eyes gleamed in the moonlight, though she couldn't figure out what color they were exactly, as he was a few feet away. He was wearing some sort of leopard-print suit, and, though she initially thought it was extremely unattractive, and, well, gay-looking, she couldn't help but notice the sleeves had been bunched up to reveal lean, muscled forearms. He couldn't be from the organization (it was protocol to wear some sort of black jacket, and this jacket was anything but black), but Jill didn't get the feeling he was very safe, either.

And yet they stood there, staring at each other, for a good ten seconds. Jill couldn't tell herself to do something, even though she could see the necklace he had presumably stolen dangling from his hand. They might've stood there forever, just staring, had a young girl not burst out of the mansion and broken the trance.

The silver-haired guy whirled around to face the smaller girl through the blur of the fountain. She had short, carrot-colored hair, and was wearing white and lavender pajamas that Jill knew were expensive just by lookingat them. This girl had to be Lumina, she realized.

"Wait, you!" Lumina shouted, breathless. "Aren't you that thief that warns his victims ahead of time?"

The thief smirked, and replied, "Pleased to meet you as well, beautiful." He glanced at Jill when he said the word 'beautiful,' and Jill felt something in her stomach flop. Was it anger? Embarrassment? "Call me Phantom Skye, or just Skye."

Lumina frowned, and said, "Oh, just give me that necklace back, you rotten thief!"

He's crazy, Jill thought. Why isn't he running? Is he an amateur? Or is he just smart?

Skye smirked, and replied, "Don't let such raw anger steal away your beauty, maiden. Though I fear I'm a bit pressed for time tonight." He looked again at Jill, and then continued, "We'll meet again, though. It's written in the stars."

And then, just like that, he slipped past the girls, into the shadows. His feet barely made a sound. For not being from the organization, he was professional, and tidy. Not an amateur. Smart. He was fast, too, that was for certain. But she was faster, and she could catch him. Probably.

She was just about to run when Lumina's voice stopped her. "Wait," the girl said again. She walked toward Jill. "I've never seen you before. Are you Pony?"

Jill nodded, not wanting to converse much. Did Lumina not realize that she had just been robbed? "I could catch him, if you want," Jill explained quickly. "Get the necklace back."

Lumina waved her hand, as if nothing was wrong. "Don't worry about that. It's not the most expensive one in the mansion, I promise. The police will catch him eventually, and then we'll get it back."

Jill wasn't so sure, and almost surprised by Lumina's casualness, but she opted not to say anything on the matter. Instead, she settled with, "Well, okay, if you say so."

The girl nodded, and then smiled. "I'm Lumina," she said, sticking a hand out for Jill to shake. "Welcome to the valley. That thief sure is a smooth-talker. Kind of cute, too, once you get past the leopard jacket." She giggled, and continued, "That whole written in the stars thing is a little cheesy, but I could get used to hanging around a guy like him."

Jill smiled. "Even after he stole your necklace?"

"Well, probably not. But still, a girl can dream, right?"

"Yeah," Jill replied. "Yeah, a girl can dream."

After a sort of awkward silence, Lumina yawned, and then said, "Well, it's getting late, and I'm tired. I'll see you around, Pony. You can come and meet my Grandma and our Butler sometime. We have cats, too, if you like animals."

Jill was in fact a cat person, but she felt it was strange to mention this personal detail, so she settled with waving a goodnight and then politely waiting until Lumina closed the mansion door to start walking back toward Hardy's house.

She was a little too spooked to go on any longer of a walk, but she did some thinking while on the way back. That Skye man sure was strange. He couldn't have been much older than Jill, but he couldn't be much younger, either. He couldn't be from the organization, yet that didn't mean he had no ties to it, either. She'd keep her guard up and try to stay away from him, but she figured that as long as he didn't directly jeopardize the exposure of her location, it was safe for her to remain in the valley.

Lumina's words resounded in her mind once again, at that thought. A girl can dream, right? Jill couldn't help but feel she was dreaming. At any other moment in her life, she would've immediately left the valley for her own, and others', safety. But she wanted, so badly, to find a home in this valley. Part of her knew it was impossible, that the Pigs would find her eventually. Hawk never gave up. But another part of her wanted nothing more than to settle down, get a job, fall in love, have a good, normal life, like she always wanted. She was dreaming, she knew it, but...a girl can dream, right?

She went to sleep that night trying to ignore the idea that the Pigs could be staking out anywhere, putting everyone she had met and liked so far in danger.

A/N: Things kick up next chapter. I promise. :P