Fanny walked through the garden at Mansfield. It was a warm spring day, and suddenly everything was in bloom. She delighted in each and every familiar plant reemerging from the winter, and secretly thankful that nobody else from the house was here, nor was anyone from the family asking for her.
The sky was blue, and the breeze was gentle. Only a few wispy clouds were in the sky.
She heard a rustle from the hedges nearby and froze.
"Oh, hello, Fanny!" her cousin Tom called out. He stumbled a bit as he cut through the garden. "I wasn't here!"