"Stop for Armor, stop for Armor!"

Molly shifted and yawned, her eyes blinking open. Five animals, an ostrich, rabbit, wolf, cat, and bear were shuffling towards the exit. The train went back into motion.

"What's going on?" Molly asked groggily.

"Sleeping Beauty wakes!" Peanut giggled. Then she paused. "Wait. Who's Sleeping Beauty again?"

"I don't think I'm that beautiful."

"You're soooo adorable. And lucky. Good thing you aren't one of those green hippos with facial hair. Yeeew!"

Molly laughed a little, when the train stopped again.

"Stop for Aurora, stop for Aurora!"

Five more animals got up.

The train resumed running.

Molly checked her slip. Judging by the way things were going now, the towns were in alphabetical order. Which meant it was going to take another nauseating hour or two before she reached her stop. Luckily, she could actually look out the window now. She got a glimpse of Aurora; it was an average-looking town. There were some scruffy peach trees here and there. The last thing she saw was a deer eating a peach, and the train whooshed away.

Molly chatted with Peanut about the smell of the train and the appearances of the animals around them.

"Look at that cub."

"The blue one?"

"No, the one with the beard. Yick."

The train halted.

"Stop for Banana, stop for Banana!"

Peanut stood up. "Well, this is my stop. See you around, Molly!"

Molly had a feeling she wouldn't see Peanut around ever again.

Four other animals got up. One of them was the gray cub Peanut had spoken about. Peanut looked stunned for a second, then exited the train. Molly waved madly, and Peanut smiled at her. Molly looked at the town of Banana. It wasn't anymore developed than Aurora; in fact, the only difference was that the trees bore apples instead of peaches. But closer inspection showed a pond or two and a long, winding river.

She caught a glimpse of Peanut observing a rock, and then the train sped away.

I~I~I~I~I~I

"Stop for Sky, stop for Sky!"

Molly struggled not to nod off. She had to stay awake. She had stopped glimpsing at the towns after a while; they were all the same. A native fruit, some ponds, a river, two buildings, and five houses.

There were much fewer animals on the train now. After about ten more minutes, Molly was about to give in to sleep when she heard the voice.

"Stop for Solaris, stop for Solaris!"

Molly jolted awake and stood up. She got a look at the other four that would be accompanying her.

There was a cat that had brown spots on her face.

There was a brown dog with an angry-looking expression.

There was a rabbit with freckles and blue ears.

There was a squirrel with a blue body and a white triangle on their forehead.

They all went towards the exit. Molly observed the town. The native fruit was cherries. There were two ponds. The river wasn't too winding or large, just average-sized. Molly stared at the train as it drove away slowly. Then she turned and faced the town. A dog ran out hurriedly out of the larger building.

"Hello! My name is Isabelle! I'm the temporary mayor of Solaris!" she chirped. Nobody asked her why her job was temporary. She looked at her clipboard.

"Purrl?"

"Present," the cat replied cooly.

"Butch?"

"Heya!" the dog barked.

"Pippy?"

"Here I am!" the rabbit cheered.

"Filbert?"

"H-huh?" the squirrel stammered.

"Molly?"

Everyone stared at her. Molly shifted her feet.

"Here," she said awkwardly.

"Great!" Isabelle clapped. "Tour around Solaris! Check out Main Street! Take some fruit, sell it to Reese! Make money! Go shopping! Buy some furniture for your houses!" Isabelle beamed at them, then guided each of them to their houses. Molly stood in front of hers. It was small, with an exterior that appeared to be made of straw. She walked in. It was dead empty, nothing in it at all except a bookshelf with a record player on top. She looked at the one and only disc inside it; a tune called K.K. Ballad. Next to the record player was a tiny, empty pot. Molly sighed. She was going to have to take the dog's advice and make some money, but first she wanted to check out her new town. Right outside her door was a patch of dandelions. Molly picked one up and walked back into her house. She placed the dandelion in the pot. She had no idea how to take care of it, but it looked somewhat nice next to the brown bookshelf. There were very few books inside it, however. She was going to have to buy a bigger bookshelf. She observed the house again, pleased to see it at least had some wallpaper and carpet.

Molly settled on the ground and yawned, not even wanting a bed, just to sleep.

Not yet.

Molly went outside again and began harvesting cherries. Most of the other villagers were already doing so, and she didn't want to be left behind. Filbert, the squirrel, didn't look like he was planning on selling his cherries; he just kept popping them in his mouth happily. She went to the small, pink building labeled Re-Tail. Molly smiled at the name, then walked inside.

"Uh, how much could I get for all this?" Molly asked, showing her cherries. Reese sighed. Clearly, she had already gotten tons of cherries before.

"Hows 1,600 bells sound?" she said.

1600 bells! Molly had never heard of such a currency, but 1600 sounded like a lot!

"Wow! That sounds great!" Molly said cheerfully, and accepted the bells. Then she raced off to Main Street, eager to buy some furniture. There was a small, scraggly shack with messy scrawl saying "Nookling Junction". Molly entered. There was only one piece of furniture.

"Cat beat you to the other piece of furniture, a corn plant! (beat you, she did!)" a small voice behind her said. Molly whirled around and was greeted by a tiny raccoon in an apron.

"Names Timmy. Nice to meet you! (nice, indeed!)"

Molly disliked the way he talked. At first, his voice was loud and clear, but usually the last parts of his sentences were mumbled and irrelevant. However, it was quite literally in her nature to be polite.

"Hello. I'm Molly. Could I buy that sofa?" Molly asked, pointing to the striped orange-and-yellow couch. It didn't look very classic, but she'd take it. Better than sleeping on the floor.

"That'll be 3,600 bells, please!" the raccoon said eagerly.

"W-what?!" Molly spluttered. "That's a lot! I only have 1600 bells…"

Timmy smiled. "For you, this time only, I'm willing to sell it for that amount! After all, I'm guessing you have no furniture other than what my uncle provided! (no furniture at all!)" Molly nodded, relieved. She took it, and to her surprise, the sofa shuddered and turned into a leaf. For a second, she was stunned, then the feeling passed and holding a leaf that was secretly a couch felt completely normal.

"Thank you!" Molly said, and offered all her savings. At that moment, Butch burst through the door and Molly yelped.

"Furniture?" Butch demanded.

Timmy giggled. "Molly got it! (got it, indeed!)"

Butch groaned and promptly exited the shop in a huff, and Pippy burst in. She took one look at the two 'Sold Out' signs, and turned to the fishing rod for sale.

"I'll buy that," she sang, handing Timmy the bells. Molly was annoyed for half a second; buying a fishing rod would've been better in the long run. Oh well, at least she had somewhere semi-comfortable to sleep that night. And the sofa matched the bookshelf she owned. She exited the store and ran all the way to her house. She placed the sofa near the window so she could sleep by the stars, and snuggled into it. Someone like Butch may have had a hard time sleeping on it, but it was perfect for her size.

Goodnight, Solaris.

Molly shut her eyes and drifted away.