Tuesday, Spring 2nd

A pink-and-orange sunset stretched across the sky as a golden light gleamed from the sun. It seemed to cloak everything that lay before it, as if time itself had just been captured, and everything came to a halt. The whole world seemingly began to glow with a golden aura of life. Ryder knew that this moment would only last for about half an hour, but, just like every other evening, he felt as though he could exist in this moment forever. Everything was golden, and he felt good.

Spring had just begun about two days ago, and the weather had finally shifted from bitter and cold to comfortable and warm. The Winter had been a boring one, in Ryder's opinion, and lacked the adventure he sought from life. Being a traveler, Ryder roamed from town to town in pursuit of excitement, stopping for a few days at a time to scope out his surroundings. He remained in the last town a bit longer than usual so that he could escape the icy winds of the Winter, but at the first sight of Spring, you can bet that he was back on his feet and back to the road. At midnight on New Year's, Ryder had seen a glorious display of fireworks twinkling in the sky from a distance. He immediately thought to himself, "Now that looks like an adventure!" and decided to head off in that direction. Three days later, he seemed to finally be approaching his destination.

Directly beneath the golden rays of the sun was a beautiful valley, completely engulfed with the light from the sunset. Seeing this place from a distance reassured Ryder that he had definitely made the right decision in traveling to this destination next. He could already tell that he was bound to find an adventure there.

"Well, I'd better get going," he laughed to himself as he scratched his head. "It won't be too long before it starts to get dark out." Ryder grabbed his bag and rose to his feet, giving one last long gaze at the sunset before smiling to himself and turning back to the path that lead to the valley. Something felt right about this place to Ryder. He hadn't even arrived yet, but there was something about how the light shined onto the valley that drew him to it. That light didn't last very long, however, and night quickly fell upon the land. Ryder had anticipated the arrival of night, but thought he had more time than he did. Nonetheless, he decided it would be best to continue on to the valley, rather than set up and rest until morning. The sooner he could find his next adventure, the better!

Or at least, so he thought. At this point, Ryder had just passed a small town beside a large mountain, and was continuing along a path that ran beside a thick forest. The valley appeared to be directly on the other side of the forest, and Ryder thought it might be a good idea to cut right through the forest to get to the valley more quickly. But the moment Ryder set foot into the forest, something quickly brushed past his shoulder, and sent him tumbling to the ground.

"Hey, what's the big idea!" he grunted as he rose to his feet again. He looked around apprehensively, attempting to locate the figure that had knocked him over, but the forest was far too dark to navigate, and the figure seemed to be nowhere in sight. "Maybe cutting through the forest wasn't such a good idea..."

Returning to the path that wrapped around the forest, Ryder resolved that he wouldn't wander back into the forest until the sun had risen again. Once it did, the forest would definitely be on his list of places to explore, along with that mountain and town he passed a few moments ago. He probably should have been a bit more concerned about the figure that had knocked him over in the forest, but Ryder was too excited to arrive at his new destination to even care. There were a few rustles in the bushes here and there, but Ryder dismissed them as nothing more than animals prowling about the forest on a late-night stroll. The valley he had seen earlier was only a few minutes away now; he was sure of it.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

The sun lowered itself over the mountain as its path brought it behind the beautiful rock face. Grass was tinted with orange color of the light coming from the falling sun, and birds what had come after the snow melt chirped with the ending of the day. A lightly breeze crossed the fertile field of grass and made the small stack of hay bales shudder. Spring had arrived just a day earlier and with it marked renewal. It was fresh start and warmth from the bitter cold that bit through most of the buildings on this ranch. Buildings creaked quietly as the winds pushed against them. In the fields three cows feasted their last meal of the day and a horse stood along at one end seemingly the guardian over all. The chicken coop was silent besides for the occasional squawk and spring cleaning left its mark with a fresh coat of paint from earlier in the day.

Across the fields a bell rang out and the animals turned instinctively to head back towards the barn. All except for the black horse, and its companion soon trotted out to meet it. Looking back the black horse saw its master waiting for the cows to arrive in the barn. They cows were met by this as they walked in. With the door left open Natalie, who had called them in, brought over a stool to her first cow and sat down with in. In her other hand was a clean metal bucket that she sat under the cow. Patting its side Natalie spoke. “Alright, Cookie, you know the drill.” Reaching down she expertly milked her cow. While doing so she gazed over to the mountain in the distance which could be seen out of her barn doors. “I love spring.” She stated to herself.

Soon enough the other two cows were taken care of by Natalie giving her a bucket and a half of milk in total. After putting the milk away in haste to prevent any amount of freshness from being wasted Natalie walked out to where her two horses had placed themselves. Stroking the side of Dirt lightly she whispered. “Thanks for the lift today,” which earned her a gentle snort in response. Then she walked up to Calico and put a hand on either side of his face and said. “Nice to see you. I had to help with the left over tear down from the festival. You weren’t to lonely right?” Calico shook his head as if he understood, though Natalie liked to believe he did there was no way to tell if it was just a response to her voice rather than words.

When she was done talking to her horse she said. “Alright, it’s not supposed to rain and it’s a great night for you to stay in the pastor during the night to sleep.” Trusting her horses to behave, and they usually did, she moved to the chicken coop. Saying hello to each chicken she gingerly gathered up the eggs without upsetting them too much. Most of them were too tired after the longer day they were unaccustomed to yet during this time of year. Upon leaving the coop with her basket she walked off to put the eggs into storage like the milk. A rundown shack which held an industrial fridge alongside containers needed for her items was where she set her supplies.

Finally she went on to her small house. An old log cabin is what you would call it and it wasn’t exactly roomy once you got inside. The kitchen was good for cooking meals for two people, but not much more. (How she managed doing it once before no one knew, and she never admitted to the mess it had left behind.) Then it was directly open to the living area that held a couch, coffee table, and single chair. All quite close to one another with a view out the window and into the ranch. Sighing in relaxation Natalie fell into her rocking chair and closed her eyes. “SO much work…” she said quietly to herself as spring had brought spring cleaning and purchasing of new goods. “Got to plant my garden tomorrow. Or if I am lazy the next day...” she added as she opened her eyes to gaze as her sunset tinted pastor. Watching her two horses trot about without a care in the world. Thinking to herself how silly those two horses were at times.

Tuesday spring 2

The soft smell of spring air flew gently into the room in which Kyandi called his bedroom. It almost didn't look like a room so to speak, not that it wasn't clean or anything, but it seemed to miss that bedroom quality that most bedrooms had. It looked like an office sort of. There was a desk, piles of papers covered in drawings and math statistics. as well as the room didn't seem to have a single close dresser, or a shelf with books. It was filled with work material, and then there was the fact it was the size of an office, his bed was squished in the corner, sort of back wall, of the room. In the closet, or rather a small dent in the wall with hooks on it, he had his three main outfits, and several scarves.

Pretty soon the small open window, that set by Kyandi's bed, slowly slammed shut, as it was propped open with a small stick. This woke Kyandi awake abruptly. He shook his head and looked at himself, then outside. He ran his hands through his red hair as he took a moment to wake up. He left the window open so it would do that in the mornings. sort of like a cheap alarm clock for him. This gave him a moment to take a good look outside. The sun was rising, and it told him he would be late for work if he hadn't risen at that moment. He took this as a sign to get up and get into his work uniform, and so he did.

He squabbled out of his bedroom door as he tightened the tie that went with the uniform that he had, and hopped as he tied the swayed shoes, he wanted to be the chef, but at the time he had to be a waiter till he could afford his own cafe. He knew with the job he had now, and even the fact that he sold a few pastries he did sell at the inn wasn't enough to become a chef for a cafe. He would sigh as he come to realize his job wasn't getting much closer and he would stop into his small kitchen to grab a bite to eat before leaving the house. He didn't have time to cook, so he just grabbed a small section of cheese before leaving the house and taking in the spring dew air.

He sighed, and shivered a bit, as he walked a crossed the early morning wet air. It was chilly to him, and he frowned at the matter, He did however take his time to wave at anybody who had crossed his path, but had no time to visit, he needed to pick up the pace as he required to get to the inn around nine o'clock in the morning. He nodded to himself as he thought about this, and eventually picked up the pace. when he got to the forest, that was in between the two villages, he took a small break, and sat down on a rock. He wasn't far from the edge of mineral town, but he had warn himself out by then. He was up late the night before at forget-me-not-village's bar, and although he had no alcohol He was awake past midnight.

It wasn't long before he got up and continued down the road to Mineral towns in, and as he reached his destination he sighed and opened the inn doors. He took the moment to admire the oak wood floors and polished wooden tables. Everything was set up, and he was on time. His face lit up with excitement as he realized that eventually he would have the dream of opening his own doors. at this time in his life, it was what kept him going. He walked up to the counter to talk to Doug. "Morning Doug!" he smiled, hoping Doug would do the same and greet him to his job that morning.

"Good morning Candy." He replied to the smile, as he was always kind with his customers. "You should go get prepaired for work." he said as he pointed over to the cleaning materials and serving trays that were under the bar. This is when Candy nodded to himself, then to Doug, and got straight to the job. He walked around the counter and quickly got everything he would out. First thing he need to do was make sure that ever dish was clean before customers arrived, as well as making sure there was enough condiments at the tables as they were probably out from last business day, as usual. Once customers came, he knew he had to take orders.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

The air was still cold, the snow still stuck on the outside of window sparkled and melted slowly, dripping down and crashing on frosty grass. The sunlight began to shine through hitting a youngish boy in the face.
"Nyaaa... Just a few more minutes..."
Despite his wishes, his apple shaped, green alarm clock refused to let him sleep. It started to shake violently, ringing and echoing throughout the poor boys room.
"Fine fine! I'm up i'm up!" He said as he rolled outta bed. Unfortunetly for him he rolled out of the wrong side. Still fairly groggy he was unaware of how cold it was, considering he was wearing a long T-shirt that came past his knees, it was only a matter of time before a small draft would hit him.
"Aaaaah! The cold!" Jumping back into bed he wrapped himself in his warm blankets. He was finally awake. He just stared at the clock, it read '8:30'.
"Eight thirty... EIGHT THIRTY?! I HAVE TO GET READY!"
Springing to live he quickly dressed himself, he decoded to wear a plain green shirt with a happy frog on it and a pair of yellow shorts. Quickly chucking on a pair of sneakers he ran out of his room.

Dashing through the corridors of the building, he quickly said hello to Doug the manager of the Inn that he was staying at.
"Ah, hello Jassy! Off to help the doctor are you? Don't be too much of a burden on him ahaha!"
Stoping to reply Jassy said "No promises! But I'll do my best! Oh and say hey to Ann for me!" Before quickly running off. Jassy was in a quick dash to meet up with the doctor in Forget-Me-Not valley, Doctor Hardy, Jassy was just an assistant, but mainly just liked to watch him do his work.
Having a flashback as he jogged towards the valley he remembered the words the good ol' doc had told him.
"Early birds get the worm chap, if you're going to work with me then you'll have to be an earlier riser, I know about your bad sleeping habbits!"
"Awww man! Okay, only for you though Doc!"
Snapping back into reality, Jassy bumped into Wally and Chris.
"Opp! Ah sorry Wally!"
Chris chuckled as Wally rubbed his stomach.
"Ahaha, where are you off to in such a hurry?" She asked as she smiled sweetly.
Chris and Wally were very nice to Jassy, ever since he forst arrived to the area. Chris is like mum to Jassy, he sometimes accidently slips the word out too...
"Im off to my very first time working woth Doctor Hardy! I asked him the otherday at the festival if I could help him out!"
"Excellent sweetie! Well you take care of yourself! Don't work too hard!"
Wally interupted "Nah, he's a tough kid! He can handle it!" Jassy thought Wally was pretty cool, he'd tell stories to Jassy about how he was a famous athlete, before Jassys time though.
"Hehehe! I'll do my best! Not to worry guys!" He waved bye to the duo and quickly ran off to the clinic.

Once he had arrived in the valley, he noticed there wasn't as much snow, it still was pretty cold, but not freezing.
Running down the slippery pathway Jassy started to see the clinic in the distance.
"Great nearly there!" With a big smile on his face, he ran towards the clinic.
Once had had arrived, he opened the door and greeted the Doc with a big hello! Only, he wasn't there.
"Where's the doc I wonder..."
As if appearing out of no where.
"Ah! Glad you're on time!
AH! DOC! YOU SCARED ME!" Shouted Jassy. Looking at the Doctor, he couldn't stop thinking about how cool his mechanical eye was.
"So first boy, I'll need you to sort some documents out... And then you can help me with the patients once they start comming in."
Snapping back into reality, again. Jassy nodded and began doing as instructed by the Doctor.
"Oh yeah do you want me to make up some coffee? Perhaps a hot chocolate~ ? "
The doctor nodded. "Yes please, that would be lovely right about now.
Jassy responded with a "Yokay!" and began to make the coffee before returning to his work.

Tuesday Spring 2nd

Natalie watched the twilight’s color shift from day into night from yellow, to orange, red, purple, and finally black. Her ranch glowed faintly under the light of the moon and she watched her horses stand close to one another with their heads down. As they slowly fell asleep Natalie found herself trying to doze off. Eventually she did, and livid dreams came to mind. She saw her mother in her dream. Her mother was as beautiful as she was before she grew terribly ill and bed written. It was a simple dream, more so a memory, that had slightly brighter colors and a focus on her mother than a real memory. Natalie’s mom seemed to glow. All was well, but suddenly a shadow came and swallowed her, leaving the child Natalie alone in darkness. Directly afterwards the scene shifted to her grave which was next to a mass of other graves caused by the same disease. The name of her mother was inscribed followed by “A loving wife and mother.” Simple, but all to true.

Natalie woke at the same time she heard herself bawl at the funeral. Rubbing her eyes she gazed out the window. The moon was still up, and it was still in the east. Natalie understood she had likely woken up around eleven and decided to stand up from the chair she had fallen to sleep in. Gently rubbing the stiffness from her back due to the chair Natalie realized how awake she felt. Knowing she wouldn’t get to sleep again for a while due to this she made herself a small cup of cocoa in her tea pot before going out to her tiny uncovered porch and sat on the rim of the waist high wall that ended the porch. Looking up she pondered on about her mother before thinking about the universe and how tiny they truly were at times. Looking around at several constellations she moved her eyes to set her sights on her mother’s birth sigh; Virgo.

About an hour past from this before she decided to take a walk. Leaving her ranch quietly as to not disturb her horses before walking south. Crossing the river before moving west to the mine she let her curiosity control her eyes. Catching a few fireflies she followed where they flew for several minutes. Evidently they led her over to the Goddess Pond. The water sparkled under the moonlight and the only sounds to be heard were of crickets, cicadas, and the waterfall in the night. All was seemingly at peace, and Natalie found comfort in the peace. Taking her shoes off she sat down at the edge of the lake and had her feet wade in the water. It was cold, but the cold felt nice on her working feet even if her boots were nice for walking around.

The fireflies she followed danced elegantly over the waters of the lake. Under them twins followed their steps as reflections in the water. Creating a seen that would distract Natalie for a little over an hour. Natalie almost wanted to take a dip in the pond, but the coolness of the water and the idea of meeting the Goddess of all times then would be wretched. She wasn’t the most superstitious of sorts. However, the idea that other villagers may come also was holding her back from doing that. After all, if she couldn’t sleep someone else very well may be wandering around. Instead she just sat there until she found herself desiring to return to her home. When that time came she would simply walk home after finding the peace from her dream and go to bed. If all went that way.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

Tristan can hear nature noises right now, it must be morning.He continued to sleep when Jack waked him up.

"Tristan! Tristan! Wake up!" Jack shouted his named while shaking Tristan in bed

Tristan woke up and yawned.

"What is it?" Tristan asked

"*sigh* We have lots of lots of work to do today" Jack answered

"If you want to be a farmer, you have to wake up early" Jack added

"Ok then... Let's get workin" Tristan encouraged themselves

Both of them left the room and proceeded to the farm.It was a sunny day outside so it is a good weather for farming.Tristan sniffed and did a relaxing exhale.

"Hahhh.... What a good smell of fresh air" Tristan said to himself

"Ok... You'll take care on the plants and I will take care of the animals.Got it?" Jack separated their work

"Got it!" Tristan replied

"Before you go, here is some turnip and potato seeds.You should plant them" Jack added as he gives Tristan 2 packets of turnip and potato seeds then Tristan took them and said Thank you to Jqck before he proceeded to planting.

He reached the lands of the farm.Not much crops were planted for now because it's a new year for them to start.So the land is not yet weeded and plowed.Tristan first did the weeding.After minutes of pulling and throwing, he is finished.He swiped his sweat before proceeding to plowing.Time to get plowin! Tristan raised his hoe and hit it to the ground then repeats the process until he plowed four 3x2 plots.Now it is the time to get planting! Tristan pulled out his seed packet which he got from jack and started to throw seeds until he got finished planting both turnips and potatoes.Now it is time to water the planties! Plants can't live without water so Tristan filled his water can with water obviously in the pond and he started watering the plants.

After all of that, Tristan is finished.It was very tiring but it was fun for him.Tristan then checked on Jack to see how he was doing.As he reached the coops and barns, Tristan saw Jack feeding the ducks and Jack saw him then smiled at him.

"Hello Tristan! Finished already?" Jack asked

"Uhh... Yes" Tristan answered

"Really? Let me see" Jack then goes to the field where Tristan planted the turnips and potatoes.He observed it very well with one hand on his chin and doing the one-eyed jack.

"Hmmmm..... Very good! Not bad for a starter" Jack complimented Tristan's work

"Thank you" Tristan thanked Jack

"Since you are finished, I will allow you to explore the Valley and meet some new friends" Jack added

"Ok..." Tristan replied and left the farm while Jack continued on his work.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

"This is it," Ryder breathed in exasperation. Descending between a separation in the walls of a great valley was a path that lead into a small village. The pale moonlight reflected off the sides of the valley, creating a soft blue hue that painted a scene of serenity during this peaceful night. The ocean contributed to the scene with the sound of its gentle waves rolling across the smooth surface of the beach. Everything was so peaceful, yet seemingly so full of life. Even in the darkness of the night, Ryder could see the pink buds beginning to sprout on the trees of the valley, awakening from their slumber through the cold winter. It was as if the entire valley was a source of dormant energy that could spring to life at any moment.

First, Ryder thought, I've got to catch some shut-eye. He had been traveling for a few days now, and needed a good place to rest. He was used to wandering the lands and setting up to sleep outdoors, but since he had just arrived in a nice, cozy village, the idea of sinking into a slumber on a soft mattress was far too enticing to ignore. As he walked into the valley to search for an Inn of sorts, he passed a plantation with freshly sowed fields. Being the beginning of the season, most of the crops had just been planted and were still adjusting to the fluctuating temperature of the soil. It must have been a busy day for them, he thought.

Ryder stopped at an oak bridge that crossed a small stream intersecting the valley. Water rushed beneath the bridge and flowed into the ocean, providing nourishment for the plants on either side of the stream. No wonder why the valley seemed so alive. Following the stream with his eyes, Ryder found that the source came from a large waterfall at the top of the valley. It was majestic, to say the least, and immediately got Ryder thinking of all the adventures he could have in the morning. In the morning... the thought echoed in his head and reminded him to stay focused and find an Inn. With all of these prospects of possible adventures, it was far too easy for Ryder to lose focus on the current task at hand: finding a place to sleep.

Pushing forward, Ryder continued across the bridge to find a tall building to his left. On the front of the building was a sign that read "Forget-Me-Not Valley's Mitemi Inn." Finally! he thought. He took one step forward and began reaching for the door before he stopped cold in his tracks. Quickly shuffling through his pockets, Ryder realized that he was out of cash, and couldn't possibly afford to stay at an Inn right now. But he had come all this way, and was so infatuated with the idea of sleeping on a comfortable bed again. In the last town he had roamed through, Ryder had slept in a creaky old bed in an abandoned log cabin, which really didn't do all that great of a job in regards to keeping the cold Winter air out. He couldn't pass up this opportunity.

Ryder looked around hastily. The night had grown thick, and there was not another human being in sight. Ryder was sure that everyone had fallen asleep at this point, and he could easily sneak into the Inn unnoticed. He slowly crept around to the back of the building, sticking close to the shadows in case the light of the moon should betray him. Placing his right foot onto the fence at the corner of the building and grasping the floor of the second-floor balcony with his right hand, Ryder bent his right knee forward and kicked off the ground with his left foot, pulling himself up with his right arm and grasping the railing with his left. He vaulted over onto the second floor balcony without so much as a creak. Having been a traveler for so long, Ryder spent a good amount of time passing through forests, and his inner child cold not resist climbing a few trees here and there. Over time, his climbing skills developed rather marvelously. Not to mention that sneaking into inns was far from a new concept to him.

((OOC: The post was getting to be a bit long, so I cut it in half to avoid making you guys read in bulk. The next part will be posted after someone else posts! :) ))

Tuesday, Spring 2

The work load wasn't too heavy that day, not too many people came and ate there that day, and this made him sigh in relief, yet at the same time, he was worried for his pay load. He had a moments break, a moment to wipe the sweat from his forehead, take a breath, set down the tray of dishes, and take a moment to remember the orders that the customer had given him. He pulled the notepad up to his face as he realized this was the last one of the night, then the inn would be closing for the bar. The notepad read Specialty. He sighed and went straight to get the food. His rest was up and he still had one last order to do. He picked up the order quietly, as everything seemed to be moving smoothly, then walked up to the table where the customers sat. "good afternoon, here's your order." He set the order on the table, paying no mind to who was sitting there, then continued on with putting everything away, and help setting up the place for the night.

After everything was said and done, he was to leave. He would take a look out the window and the sun would be just above the mountains. If he hurried, he would get some time to simply roam the streets of forget-me-not valley. He would get a chance to see the flowers rise from the ground a bit, and possibly have enough time to sketch the beautiful life. He wanted to do this, as he hadn't had a chance earlier on in his career due to later hours of work. He ran out the door waving goodbye to his boss, with a friendly smile, and ran all the way down the street. He was determined to get a chance at the scenery, the scenery that he missed so many times before.

As he ran by the forest he didn't take his time to really stop and say good afternoon as he had been doing that all day, and he didn't really stop at all when he did pass some of the great scenes of the town. He had to run, and with it. He reached his home. He nearly fell as he reached the door to the small house, and took a deep breath once he made it there. His hands were leaning against his knees. sweat would be dripping down his face. He was breathing heavily and stairing at the ground. He had time to spare, but not to much if he wanted to stop and see the flowers.

He entered the house and grabbed his other clothes, simply putting them on over his uniform, and switching his shoes to boots in case it rained. He grabbed a drawing pad and a pencil, and with that, he was off on the run again, or sort of. He would take the time to stroll a crossed Forget-Me-Not's Road to reach the flowers that he wanted to look at. He stopped in front of an open area that was behind some of the buildings and crouched down. with this he put his hand in the grass and took a good look at the flowers. He carefully sketched their image onto the paper. Nothing significant to call art, but it was a simple log of it's growth. He smiled, he loved the flowers in this village. They were hardly forgettable in the spring and summer.

He knew it would be dark soon, so he took to himself quickly and headed back to the house. He would take note of how rediculous it was to run home for a single flower, and would mumble under his breath. "now that wasn't very manly..." he did this often when he was around flowers, or things he liked that weren't exactly manly in any way. He opened the door to his house and left his shoes at the door. He had taken off his coat and changed into more confortable clothes. the only thing he seemed to leave on was a scarf that he wore when he was sketching the flowers. If it was okay to bring it to work he would have done that as well, but he made it known to himself that he would wear that scarf any time he could.

With all of that out of the way he was comfortable enough to cook himself a meal and eat at the small table that he had. He pulled out his ingredients and began too cook, he was treating himself to pasta that night, something that he usually couldn't have all the time. Usually he had to experiment with whatever was in the fridge, but he managed to fix himself an actual meal. He ate the meal quickly and washed the dishes. After that, and a bit of cleaning up he would soon go to bed. Propping up the stick in the window, for the next morning, when the moon was just above the horizon.

Tuesday Spring 2nd

Jassy enjoyed his day at work today, he even decided to do a little over time, free of charge.
Before leaving to spend a while out in the calm evening, he said a happy good bye to the Doctor.
"Seeya Doc! Have a great night!" The Doctor smiled and replied woth heart laugh.
"Ahaha! Well don't you be staying up too late then!"
Exiting the clinic he walked out to the center of the valley.

The moon glistened high in the sky. The crickets were silent for abit, but if you listened faintly perhaps you could hear the hoot of an owl. Jassy looked to see if there was anybody there... Noone. Jassy cupped his hands around his mouth and said.
"Pssst! Your majesty! You can come out now! Ahaha I got you a special gift this time!"
From out of the shadows, a hooded figure came out of the shadows.
"Kyehahaha! Yes! Excellent minion! Now what is it you have brought your queen?" Jassy revealed his gift to her, it was a small teddy bear on a chain.
The hooded figures' demeanor rapidly changed.
"AH I LOVE IT! Ah *Cough Cough* I mean! This gift pleases your queen!" The hooded figure slipped the teddy into its sleeves. Jassy smiled.
"Soooo this makes us friends, right?!"
"Uhhh, I suppose minion...
Awesome! Its soo cool to be froends with a queen! I'll be the best minion you've ever had!
Kyehaha! Thats excellent to hear minion! Now, run along! I will leave a surprise for you tomorrow morning!"
Jassy nodded, after waving bye he scampered off back to the inn to sleep.

Jassy quietly walked into the inn, it was quiet, waving to doug, jassy walked up to his room.
Unlocking his room he walked into feelbthe cold, his window was open. He quickly shut it and stripped himself of his clothes, he then, literally, jumped into his bed, wrapped himself in his fluffy warm blankets and slowly fell asleep.
"Zzzzz Today was fun... Hope, tomorrow is great too.... Zzzzz"

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

Even with the sun shining, the winter cold is still there.

That morning is a new day for Agitha to live, even though she have been lived in mineral town for two seasons, in fall and winter, she never felt a summer in mineral town, so she wake up early at 07.00 and go outside for a morning walk around the town, "Let's see what it's like spring here" she said as she looked through the window.

Agitha walk out from her room and after that she go downstairs and exit the inn for a walk, "I should go to beach and warm myself there." she thought. The second day of spring still feels a bit cold, though not as cold as the winter but still feels cold, the flower is just start blooming, "spring here is better than i'm expected, the smell of the air is so refreshing," she talk to herself, "hmm i should go to hot spring after walking in the beach and sweat myself."

The morning in mineral town is too quiet, the townsfolk are still in their house in the morning minding their own business, after a short walk Agitha arrived up in the beach, the warmness from the morning sun is making her feel comfortable she walk for a while, in the end she feel tired and sit down to stare the ocean ahead.

"Morning Agitha" said Zack after he locked his shack door,

"morning Zack, wake up early huh?"

"not so early, i got tired up after last night drinking party, i think i'm drunk last night"

"hahaha, last night is fun for sure, i cannot wait for the next new year festival,"

"yeah me too, anyway i got to go to Gotz house for some business, see you later" he said as he leave Agitha on the beach alone.

The atmosphere is so cozy, with the cold breeze and the warmness from the sun, the wind from the beach, Agitha accidentally fell asleep on the mat where she sat, under a parasol. Agitha was so tired after the drinking party last night, that's the reason why she is slept in the beach, when she woke up, it was almost evening, the sky began to change color to orange, indicating the sun would set soon.

"Hoam... is it already afternoon? it looks like the sun is almost set, I think i will stay here a little longer to watch the sun set," she talking to herself, while she comfort herself in the mat.

After she watch the sun set, she go back to inn, as her stomach begging for food.

"Doug, do you still have fish in stock?" she said,

"Unfortunately no," he paused, "hmm Agitha, could you catch some for me? i will pay you for sure" he continue

"Sure, but you don't need to pay me, letting me live here for a while is enough for me." Agitha said with smile on her face,

"hahaha, thank you so much" he said, "oh i almost forgot, your dinner is ready,"

"okay, i will eat after i take a bath to clean myself out." she said as she walk upstairs.

"sure, just don't forget to go here after you clean yourself."

"hehe, yeah just keep my food warm for me." she said from above,

"i should get up early tomorrow" she said to herself as she enter her room.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

Ryder paused for a moment and listened to hear if anyone had stirred while he climbed the building, but not a sound was to be heard, and no one was to be seen. He smiled to himself, thinking this might be a little bit too easy, and began to creep along the windows of the building, being very careful as not to expose himself to anyone inside. He was searching for a vacant room, preferably one that was away from all the others and was least likely to be booked. The figures inside the building were vague, but he could make out which rooms were occupied and which weren't. Generally, the rooms with the curtains drawn shut were occupied, and the tidier rooms with the curtains wide open were still vacant. He settled for a room right at the corner of the building, facing away from the beach and towards the bar next door. Ryder figured that most guests would prefer a room with a view, so he chose the room that had the least pleasurable view, and was cloaked in shade. Perfect, he thought to himself as he began to maneuver the window. It took him a minute to figure out the lock (and to do so quietly), but after a few moments, Ryder was sliding the window open, and was about to slide himself in.

"Stop, thief!" a husky male voice shouted. Ryder froze.

He could hear doors opening and slamming shut, mixed with the sound of three sets of footsteps pattering the cobbled path between the buildings. I'm done for now... panicked Ryder. Just as he had began working out an escape route, he noticed that a strange boy with silver hair was fleeing quickly from the bar next door. "Stop!" the voice cried again, but this time Ryder could see where it was coming from, and was relieved to discover that it wasn't directed towards him. A middle aged man with a mustache and scruffy hair had emerged from the bar and was chasing after the vagrant. Behind him was a young blonde woman in a powder-blue nightgown, trying hard to keep up her pace. The silver-haired boy carried a few items in his arms and was sprinting effortlessly away from the duo. Even through the thick darkness of the night, Ryder could see that the boy had a coy grin on his face, as though he was teasing the duo with how easily he could escape from them. They were moving fast, and from Ryder's position, it was difficult to make everything out through the night. The duo were trailing further and further behind the thief, and in the darkness of the night, must have had a difficult time seeing where he was headed. They crossed in front of the Inn, passing Ryder's blind spot. For a moment, he couldn't see what was going on, but he heard two sets of foot steps running across the bridge he had walked over minutes ago. It looked like Forget-Me-Not Valley was already turning out to be the adventure he was hoping for!

Filled with excitement, Ryder turned back to the window, wondering where the thief had run off to. He had just gotten his foot into the window, when suddenly, someone crashed directly into him from behind, causing them both to topple over into the building.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley

While most of the valley was silent and in rest, there was a place that was filled with life and excitement. It was the Blue Bar, loud and rowdy - but not in the way that one would think - instead of shouting and fists thrown, there was singing and filled mugs clanking in cheer. Though it was a day late, the bar was celebrating the start of Spring, the farmers being far too exhausted the day before to even think about going out rather than sleep their aching bodies away.

There was no real music, but instead of a series of sounds made by anything that would make a good sound, all tied together in a beat and song - but there was no bar song without words, now was there? In the middle of the rowdy, musical patrons, standing (rather, cheerily dancing) on a table with a mug of ale in her hand was Clara O'Connel, who had only recently come of age. If a stranger were to walk in now, they wouldn't be able to tell that she actually worked there professionally by the fact she was acting as unprofessional and rowdy as the rest of those on the receiving end of the bar.

"Shooby doop, dah ba bah, dobby doop, bah dah dah doo dah!" she joined, which after a few repeats of the sounds she was making, others soon joined in. Soon the whole place was in on the song, either by beating and playing with objects for sound, or by singing along with the bar's singer. Clara couldn't remember ever standing still from the moment she had walked into work, but she didn't mind - she was having far too much fun to mind her aching feet and far too drunk to remember her shy and timid nature. Usually, she wouldn't drink, and she wouldn't even talk to the patrons. But yet, here she was, drinking and celebrating with them - though she kept to herself, the farmers' hardship of winter rubbed off on her, not only because she disliked winter herself, and she was celebrating life coming back to the valley. "Doo, bap she doo!" the whole bar called, and a series of "woo!"s followed suit.

Clara danced, hopping from table to table, her usually still and reserved nature replaced with a lively one filled with cheer and fun. At times, she would join in with the patrons building the beat, banging on their makeshift drums and plucking at their makeshift chords as she sang with the rest. Sometimes as she hopped from place to place, she would stumble or almost miss her landing, but in the mood the rest of the patrons were in, she wouldn't hit the ground - she was caught and flung back onto her makeshift stage of the moment without missing a beat. The song seemed to go on forever, but no-one seemed to mind, and no-one wanted it or the night itself to end.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd

Tristan was exploring the Valley just like what Jack said.He did this because he needs to know the Valley and its people more.He saw a bunch of villagers but they looked at Tristan at a strange expression like "Who is this guy?","Is he new?" thoughts like that.He ignored them and proceeded walking but he stopped when he saw someone in a scientist suit dropped his pile of research documents and it seems that no one is helping him.

"I will help you sir" Tristan said and took one of the papers but the scientist guy hits his hand

"Don't touch those!?" The scientist guy said angrily

"Ouch and why?" Tristan asked

"These papers are not just any ordinary papers.These are my research and they very precious to me as a scientist.If they are gone, I'm doomed." The scientist guy answered

"I'm very sorry sir" Tristan apologized

"Ok... I'm gonna forgive you this time but next time, no" The scientist guy accepted Tristan's apology

"By the way, Can I help you with that?" Tristan asked

"Thank you but I don't need help now LEAVE ME ALONE" The scientist guy got angry and left Tristan

Tristan watched the scientist guy to walk away but he dropped his research documents again.

"On second thought, I need help" The scientist guy said

Tristan smiled and helped him to collect his research documents.

"By the way, I'm Tristan" Tristan introduced while they are walking

"I'm Daryl" The scientist guy introduced himself as well

"Nice to meet you" Tristan smiled

"Nice to meet you too" Daryl replied but he doesn't seem to be happy.

They arrived at Daryl's House.Tristan puts the research documents on the table.

"Thank you Tristan for helping me" Daryl thanked Tristan

"Ahahhaha.. It was nothing" Tristan replied

"By the way, What are those research for?" Tristan asked

"Curious eh? Nothing stops a man's curiosity so I will tell you" Daryl said before answering the question

"This research is about the colored grasses the grows in this Valley.It is not just any ordinary grass,It seems that those grass have effects like herbs.They might be useful if you turned it into a medicine.So I was researching them to make herbal medicine that might make me into a millionaire" Daryl explained all about his research

"Interesting..." Tristan muttered with his hand on his chin trying to think.

"Why can't I help you with your research?" Tristan suggested

"Help? Bad idea! I don't need help!" Daryl declined the suggestion

"And Please get out of my house!" Daryl kicked Tristan out of his house and slammed the door

"Woah, what's his problem?" Tristan asked himself

Tristan then proceeded exploring the Valley

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley

Another day, another place. Sometimes it all seemed to meld together, the traveling and the day turning to night and the night turning back to day. But here he was, arriving in the next stop on the journey to nowhere: Forget-Me-Not Valley. It wasn't that sketch particularly had planned on this being a stop, in fact he had no idea it would be.. But that's no surprise considering he usually never knew where he was going or why. But that was Sketch, he just.. went. And so with all that, Sketch found himself wandering through town, wondering where on earth his bed would be for the next unknowable measurement of time.

Sound; singing and clapping and cheering. All these things came pouring forth from what he could only assume was a bar, and with too few coins in his pocket and a bed not yet found he could think of no finer or suitable place for him to be. With all the bustle and motion, it seemed a squeeze to get through the door. In fact it took several bumps and haphazard apologies, comments and quips to find himself a spot of wall to lean against so that he could watch the events before him unfold. The man made music consumed him, pulsing through his mind as he scanned the world around him. These people were his new neighbours, mostly farmers and small towns folk to fit this small town it seemed. He could see them, all bits and pieces of them moving around and making a cheery mess, like some story book tavern he thought.

But of course, for all the motion and all the sound there was no possible way to miss the girl dancing upon her makeshift stage. With a slight tilt of the head, Sketch watched her dance about and lead the masses into a song of nothingness, simply of the emotions of the scene. It was perfect, how on earth could he not take the opportunity. And so within a flash it was that his old tattered sketchbook lay open in his hand and the graphite set to page. The world out there and the world he saw met as his hand flew across the page, sketching out the patrons in an almost mystical way. Things were slightly different, different accents and changed proportions. A man who was for all purposes quick average became a pot bellied dwarfish looking man of great mirth and so it was for many of the characters and the bar itself was transformed, different carvings in the woodwork as physical manifestations of the music itself and the lovely girl's stage made anew. And for the leader of this merry bunch little much was changed, but for the slightest of enchanting touches for she was nothing if not some mystic creature to capture the crowd. All the while his eye danced around the bar and from his lips without a thought came a call to join the waves of sound around him, "What say you pied piper to the winters sleepy passing?".

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley

Through all the calls and cheers bubbling within the crowd, a certain new voice had caught her ear. Perhaps it was because it was calling for her, and it's frightfully heard to ignore your name being called, but the call striked her - especially since the voice was unrecognisable to her. Without stopping her movements, Clara turned her head toward the direction of the voice, not recognizing the face as a local. She supposed it was another traveller that had simply stopped for a drink or one who had overheard the ruckus inside the bar. His call seemed to fit in with the wordless song, so she had decided to incorporate her reply as to seem as if their conversation was a verse in itself. A small pout came upon Clara's lips as she thought of a reply before she suddenly called back with somewhat of a laugh, "now that the ground has stopped freezing, the crops we can start receiving. And to that I say it's Winter that we will not be missing!" She raised her mug as her last line seemed to be more of a cheer than a call, and as her mug was thrusted into the air, other mugs joined it's skyward journey, clanking together with others as their owners cheered in agreeance to her call.

The mugs were lowered, and their contents flooded into the mouths of patrons and Clara herself before she finally got a second look at the stranger who called out to her. He definitely wasn't a local, judging by his attire and cultural look about him. Clara offered him a smile - not one of those closed-lipped smiles you'd give a stranger in passing - but she gave him a full, wide, teeth-showing smile that matched the rest of her outwardly cheer that engulfed the rest of her. The moment didn't last very long, as by then she had returned to her celebrations with the local farmers, who by this point were also dancing. Clara hopped down from the table she had currently found herself using as a stage, disappearing into the crowd and joining in with the other patrons. She danced with a few, much like others were doing together - spinning and bouncing around with their partners in turn - and each time her hand slipped out of one patrons', it found itself in another's.

Though, she had found herself wondering what the stranger had been doing by himself, seemingly not joining in with the others. She even wondered if he were still around, but through the bustle of the bar's celebrations, she couldn't spy him in even the corner of her eye. Those thoughts, however, were blurred out by Clara's focus on trying to not fall down or trip over her own feet or another's, as their dancing had become less and less co-ordinated. Though no-one seemed to mind being bumped into another, instead of a call or a yell, there was laughter shared between the two parties as they both disappeared back into the crowd with their current dance partner without a single beat being missed.

Clara no longer had to wonder if the traveller was still in the building; for during her partner change-over, she had gotten bumped by another passing woman searching for a new partner. This had caused her to be flung out of the crowd, flailing in search of something to save herself from hitting the wooden floor beneath her. Though she didn't hit the ground or find something to latch on to before doing such, her back had hit something that was far too soft to be a wall or furniture with an "oof!" escaping her lips. She quickly straightened herself up, dusting off her skirt as she slowly turned toward the person she had been launched in to. "I'm terribly sorry about th- Oh!" Clara's apology was cut short as she finally spied who she had gotten knocked in to, who was none other than the stranger with the odd way of speaking. She looked a bit shocked to see him, as she jumped a little as if he had just snuck up on her in an attempt to scaring her. After shaking herself out of her behaviour and a hint of nervous chuckling, she finally spoke again in an attempt to apologise for knocking him, "Yeah sorry about knocking you there; The dance is just a bit... Yeah..."

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley

As he and the stranger pummeled to the floor, Ryder's concern instantly flashed to the possibility of waking the Inn's residents. The two had crashed to the ground with a loud THUD, and Ryder was almost sure that someone must have heard them. He was all about excitement, but when you're trying to break into an inn without being noticed, it would be much more effective if it were done quietly.

It was only a few moments after Ryder had hit the floor that he began to hear the sound of approaching voices. Their footsteps echoed through the silent night, growing louder and louder as they seemed to approach the room. Ryder knew that he only had a few moments to act. He rose to his feet in peril, and, for the first time, met the eyes of the stranger who had knocked him into the room. In the dim moonlight that leaked in through the window into the pitch black room, Ryder was able to discern a few of the stranger's features. Most importantly, he was able to recognize the stranger's silver hair; it was the same silver hair that belonged to the thief from earlier! The thief quickly made his way back to the window to seal it shut, leaving Ryder wondering how they could possible escape this situation now. Before Ryder could ask any questions, however, the thief covered his mouth and pulled him into the closet, just as the voices in the hallway came to a stop right outside of the room. The door knob began to turn.

"I could have swore I heard a noise, TIm..." a nervous female voice announced upon entering the room. We're done for.... Ryder thought. He heard someone flick on the lights, and for a moment, there was silence. It was a brief moment, but to Ryder, it felt as though it lasted forever. He could feel his heart beating through the suspense.

"Well," began a stuffy male voice, "there's no one here, Ruby. It could have just been the wind, or one of those darn raccoons..."

Another moment passed before Ruby gave her response. Ryder assumed that she was scanning the scene for any evidence that someone had broken in. "I guess you're right," she said at last, seemingly reassured, but still not speaking without haste. "You just can't be too safe with that Phantom wandering the Valley!"

At the mention of the "Phantom," Ryder felt the silver-haired boy's breath against his neck, as though he were silently laughing. They must be talking about him, Ryder gathered. So I guess they call this dude the "Phantom..."

"Let's head back to bed, Ruby. It will be morning soon. We really should be getting some sl-" Tim's stuffy voice broke off at the sound of footsteps rapidly approaching the room.

"Tim, Ruby, come quick!" a bold female voice panted. "Muffy and Griffin have just been robbed by the Phantom! They're chasing him down near Vesta's farm right now!" Ryder could hear Tim let out a defeated sigh. He really wanted to go back to bed, Ryder laughed in his mind. The Phantom must have been laughing as well, because Ryder felt another warm breath strike the back of his neck.

Ryder imagined Ruby clapping her hands to her mouth as she said "Oh my," and in another instant, all three footsteps could be heard running out of the room. One set of the footsteps stopped to close and lock the door to the room, then turned to catch up with the other two. Ryder had been so caught up in the excitement that he hadn't even realized that the Phantom's hand was still covering his mouth. A familiar scent seemed to linger on the Phantom's hand, a scent that reminded Ryder of some sort of curry. Ryder realized that he hadn't eaten since before sundown, and couldn't stop his stomach from growling wildly. After waiting a few moments for the footstep to subside, Ryder broke free of the Phantom's grasp and emerged from the closet.

tuesday, spring 2nd

Dirk raised his hammer before striking down hard on the smashing it, leaving only silver ore. Dirk shoved the metal into his pockets and began to smash down on the rocks. Throwing the cheap ores that he found on the ground, smashing them hard. His black clothes and hair seemed to it in with the walls, it was so dark in the cave that normal people would not be able to see, Dirk had grown used to it, his life was in the darkness, supposedly that was why he was so pale. Taking a bit from an orange, as he needed more vitamin C, Dirk demolished the fruit in seconds an quickly went back to smashing the rocks, throwing the iron and silver into a large container, nearly full. Dirk went on to raise his hammer with his scronny arms and smashed the rock, only to hear a bell ring. With a smile the small man burst through the doors with a cheer, the people in the hot springs jumped a little, they always did, but he just ran past them into town, ready to go home. "ulster here I come" he said jumping over a stump of a tree, he was referring ti his dog, named after the Irish lands, much as his name did.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley

Now that the ground has stopped freezing, the crops we can start receiving. And to that I say it's Winter that we will not be missing!

I could not be more obvious that Clara had been drinking If there had been neon signs directed at Clara's mug saying that it probably wasn't the first and in fact most of said mug's contents were already coursing through her blood, and this wasn't at all lost by Sketch. A faint tug at his lips produced what could possibly be labeled as the beginnings of a smile at her verse like reply and he was near regretting not having chosen to draw them all with their mugs in the air. To the grin she offered he returned the same faint tug of his lips as earlier before she disappeared into the mass of patrons who, as most crowds have the strange ability to do, had organised themselves without communication into dance partners and proceeded to do just that; dance.

Luckily for him, sketch was leaning by the same wall he had been since entering the establishment and so was not swept up in the human tide of dancers and alcohol. On the other end of the scale, this was a rather large group of people and that had always been a bit difficult for him. Not difficult in a freak out sort of way, simply that because there is so much going on, he tends to get lost in it. And that much was happening as the dance continued around him, the single visible violet eye drifted over the masses, seeing untold things as the music washed over him. Every now and again he would catch a glance of Clara as she danced merrily with the other patrons and each time he did he took note of different aspects of her: the blonde hair, the amber eyes. As he watched, he sketched the finer details to finish the piece.

At some point during the festivities, as he was losing himself in the moment, he was suddenly brought back to reality when something or someone fell into him. Fortunately he had the wall there to support him, unfortunately that's not the direction he was pushed. Instead he almost fell into a table, just managing to balance himself at a near perfect horizontal angle on the one leg and pull himself back up into a standing position. Funny how the world looks different from that way, the thought played through his mind as he checked his art book. A small frown starting moving across his features as he noticed that some whisky has been spilt across the drawing of the bar and it's occupants before it changed into something near thoughtful as he traced his finger through the amber liquid and used it to blur and swirl the charcoal drawing. The whisky changed the scene so the music was tangible and blurred most of the features of the occupants, leaving their faces to echo the happiness of the place without form. He decided to leave the pied piper girl. All this he did in a few swirls before popping the whisky soaked finger in his mouth to clean before looking up to see who had bumped him. From the look on her face she hadn't at all realised it was him that she bumped into and he'd obviously just missed something she said.

Yeah sorry about knocking you there; The dance is just a bit... Yeah...

Sketch blinked a few times like a deer stuck between headlights before removing the finger from his mouth. "..Yes, people but not people, all as one big thing not thinking.. Bound to bustle some into some others", he offered her a crooked smile this time rather than the tiny version from before, it even lit up his violet eye as he looked down at her. After a moments pause and thought he spoke again, "Peaches or Pears?".

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley

---

He sure has an odd way of speaking, Clara mentally noted in silent reply to his long winded response. Externally, however, she just remained silent, her expression mimicking a confused puppy, complete with the slightest tilt of the head. She assumed that what he said wasn't a bad thing, for his crooked smile had assured her so. If she were an animal, Clara's ears would be flat against her head as she felt her anxiety begin to dry from it's alcohol-soaked state. She returned with a small, almost nervous smile as her head straightened back, though she seemed to shrink ever so slightly as she looked back up at the slightly taller stranger.

Clara hadn't noticed it before, but being so close to the stranger, she noticed that the stranger's eyes weren't the colour of anyone she has met or even seen before - from a distance, she assumed that his eyes were a deep blue, but up close she realized that they were instead violet. Never had she been so intrigued over a part of someone, but she couldn't help but wonder what had resulted in the man's eye being such a beautiful colour. Was he born that way? Did something happen to make it happen? Did he mind being so different?

Clara was torn out from her mental questioning by a sudden question from the stranger in question: Peaches or Pears? Clara was dumbfounded for it was such an odd question to ask out of the blue, but of course she was inclined to answer. She didn't have to think about the answer, for due to her allergy to peaches, she answered in a heartbeat, "Pears." She gave a slight nod with her answer, almost as if she were proud of her it. Well, she did like pears, but it wasn't up there with her favourite fruit - melons and strawberries were her favourite.

Clara wanted to ask him on what his decision between the two were, but she was cut off by her boss, Griffin who seemed to appear out of nowhere. "Miss Clara, I hate to interrupt, but I believe your shift is over. It's late; You should probably go home and rest." And with that and a scruff of her hair later, Griffin was gone again. Clara pouted as she straightened and pat her hair down with her hands, grumbling, "I hate when he does that..." But she supposed he was right, working so late into the night, even though tonight's shift was a bludge and celebratory, did take it's toll on her at times. She wanted to stay and talk to the stranger more, but when Griffin says something, it'd be in your best interest to listen.

After a silent huff, she looked back up to the purple-eyed stranger with a smile. "Well, I hope to see you again," she said before turning on her heel and heading for the exit. She was speaking true, for the stranger did indeed intrigue her, but she couldn't help but wonder when, if she was even going to, see him again.

Tuesday, Spring 2nd
Forget-Me-Not Valley - Mitemi Inn

"Way to almost get us both caught!" Ryder turned on the Phantom. "What was that all about?"

"You should be thanking me," he chuckled as he flicked his hair. "They already checked this room once, so they won't be coming back here again. I'd say that this room is officially a safe place to spend the night." He crossed the room and reached underneath the bed to retrieve a package of bread he had stolen from the bar. With all of the commotion, Ryder hadn't even realized that the Phantom hid the stolen goods under the bed before Tim and Ruby had entered the room. "Care for a bite?" he teased Ryder, obviously having heard his stomach growling in the closet. A bit embarrassed, Ryder accepted the offer, and the Phantom tossed him the package.

"So," the Phantom continued, "I noticed that you were trying to break in to the Inn. I suppose I don't mind that there's another thief in Forget-Me-Not Valley, but don't get in my way," he threatened. "Besides, your tactics are rather... sloppy. If I could have noticed you breaking into the building, anyone could have."

Ryder choked on his bread. "Excuse me?" he scoffed, completely ignoring the fact that the Phantom mistook him as another thief. "If my 'tactics' are so sloppy, how come you're the one who can't even break into a building without causing a commotion? They wouldn't have even noticed that I had came in if it weren't for you. But you, on the other hand, alerted both the residents of the Inn and the owners of the bar of your presence! All in one night!"

The Phantom smiled. "What can I say? I like to put on a show. There's a certain grandeur to the element of crime, and that grandeur is lost if there is no one around to witness it." He pulled some booze from the bar out from beneath the bed. "Besides, I did manage to get away from those folks down at the bar, didn't I? As soon as I crossed in front of the Inn, I used the darkness of the night to my advantage and tucked into the shadows where they couldn't see me. I waited until they had passed me, and then slipped to the back of the building where I saw you awkwardly standing with one foot in the window." Ryder realize how foolish and vulnerable he must have looked just standing there watching the scene. If any one else had stirred during the commotion caused by the robbery, he could have easily been spotted from behind. Perhaps his tactics were a bit sloppy.

Ryder scratched his head and took a bite of the bread the Phantom had given him. "Well, I guess that's why they call you the Phantom then. That was you they were talking about, wasn't it?"

The Phantom laughed and pulled another package of bread out from beneath the bed. "That's right," he said self-confidently as he broke off a piece of the bread. "The name's Skye, known to the Valley as the 'Phantom Thief.' And you are?"

Ryder stiffened up a bit and puffed out his chest as he said, "They call me 'Ryder!' Known to everyone as... 'Ryder."

"Well how about this, Ryder," Skye wagered as he took a swig of the booze. "If you think that you're such a good thief, what say you to a little challenge? Tomorrow night at 10pm, meet me behind the cluster of trees leading up to the Mansion." He pointed out the window to an area down the road, so that Ryder had an idea of where Skye wanted to meet. "Each one of us will sneak in to one building in the Valley and retrieve one item. We'll rendezvous back behind the cluster of trees. Whoever can do it more quickly without being caught wins. What do you say?"

Ryder never really considered himself a thief before, but his blood was pumping at the thought of a challenge. He couldn't refuse. "You're on!"