Chapter Text
Phae shot up in her bed, her sharp gasp and the ragged breaths that followed filling the otherwise silent room. Her eyes darted frantically around the darkness, panic bubbling in her chest with every unfamiliar surface she saw. She squeezed them shut and forced herself to take deep, measured breaths until her heart stopped threatening to burst.
The farm. She was in the cottage on her grandfather’s–no, on her–farm.
She pulled her tousled hair back from her face with both hands, holding it against her head for a moment before dropping her hands to her lap. She tiredly looked over her shoulder at the light glow of her phone on the box she was using as a nightstand.
4:02am. Phae let out a frustrated breath, her cheeks puffing out with the force of it. She knew there was no point in trying to go back to sleep; not after that dream.
She stood from her hastily covered mattress on the floor and stretched the stress and worry from her stiff muscles. The floor creaked as she shifted her weight, trying to find the sweater she’d tossed aside haphazardly before bed. Her toes slid along the floorboards slowly until they felt the soft knitted fabric she was looking for. Grabbing her phone, she went into the large room that served as both kitchen and living room and flipped the switch on the wall. The only light in the entire room–centered in the kitchen side–flickered on. She sighed lightly to herself and made a mental note that she’d need to look into getting additional lighting at some point.
In the meantime, she tossed some logs that Robin left behind for her into the fireplace and grabbed the matchbook she found resting on the mantle. The snow had only just finished melting in the valley and the nights were still cool; a fire would solve both her heat and darkness problem.
She hadn’t brought much with her from Zuzu City, not that she’d had much to bring with her in the first place, and the great room was largely empty, save for her few boxes of kitchen necessities, a couch, and a small TV. She sighed, weary at the thought of trying to find her coffee pot and kettle, but desperate for the caffeine.
By the time she sat at her small kitchen table with a warm coffee in hand, she had unpacked the majority of her meager kitchen possessions. Her phone caught her eye as the numbers rolled from 5:59 to 6:00. The morning sun bled into the clear sky and she yawned, wrapping her oversized sweater tighter around herself.
Phae found the bottom of her mug far sooner than she wanted and took one last lingering look at the shrinking fire before heading back to her bedroom.
An old pair of jeans and a few layers later, she threw open the front door of her cottage and took in everything that was now hers.
The overgrowth was overwhelming. How did things get so bad? She tried to remember how the farm looked every summer when she’d visited her grandfather as a child–which fields had been cleared for which purpose, what a functioning orchard was supposed to look like, whether the bee houses actually housed bees or if he’d given up on the honey venture. Phae’s cheeks puffed out for the second time that morning with a cathartic exhale.
“I guess I better get to work,” Phae said aloud. She put her hands on her hips, determined to stubborn her way through making something of the land.
It took her an hour just to crawl through the overgrown brush to the tool shed and take stock of what was still usable, and what she’d need to replace. Despite the actual land’s state of utter disrepair, the shed and its tools had been spared much of time and neglect’s attention. She had at least one working hoe, pickaxe, axe, scythe, and watering can to get her started.
The next hour was spent trudging painfully slowly around the border of her farm, checking for gaps and structural issues in her perimeter fence. She wasn’t exactly an expert carpenter, but she could at least test the fence well enough to determine if it was about to fall down. To her surprise and delight, the fence seemed completely secure. She noticed a few sections that seemed newer and made with a different type of wood, and she wondered if someone else had made a point to maintain them. She’d have to ask around and thank them, if that was the case.
Another hour went to simply walking the land and familiarizing herself with what she could see. Years of abandonment meant an usually large build up of fallen branches and–somehow–rocks? She chose not to think about it. Debris was debris and she’d clean it up, no matter how it got there.
She made her way back to the cottage and frowned at the tools she’d laid out on the porch. She winced at the watering can, feeling her heart plummet into her stomach. At no point in her walkabout did she run across anything that could even be considered a sprinkler.
Really, Grandpa?
Phae’s stomach grumbled, drawing her attention away from her singular, manual watering can, and she checked the time, gawping at how it was already almost noon. She held back any admonishment she had for her poor stomach, agreeing that it deserved more than just coffee by this point in the day.
She stared into her very bare fridge and sighed. Half a sandwich and some leftover potato salad sat on one of the shelves–the only food she managed to bring with her when she moved in the day before. She needed to go grocery shopping, which meant she needed to go into town. Phae pinched the bridge of her nose as her mental to-do list rolled off her mental table into an endless void of tasks.
“One thing at a time,” she reminded herself. The overgrown farm could wait a few more hours. Stocking her kitchen with basic necessities couldn’t.
She polished off what was left of last night’s dinner and locked her front door, not that she expected any trouble. Not here, not in this place. But she wouldn’t let old habits die, like so many other things had. Phae shook her head to clear it and hopped down the steps of her front porch, setting off toward Pelican Town.
Walking into Pelican Town was like walking into a memory; everything looked exactly like it did during her last childhood visit. At least, from what she could remember. Phae ambled into what looked like the main square of the town, the afternoon sun having chased away any trace of the early morning chill. She undid several of the buttons on the flannel shirt she’d tossed on over her tank top that morning for warmth, welcoming the slightly cool breeze that brushed against her exposed skin. The walk from her farm into town wasn’t long or laborious, but the spring sun was warm. She was thankful for her foresight of layers.
Phae did her best to keep her head down, but small towns were small, and every gaze lingered. She didn’t plan on hiding from the residents of the valley; she knew that not a single townie was unaware that Gerald Morrow’s granddaughter had finally deigned to take responsibility for her inheritance. But right now, she just wanted to get some food, make sense of her new home, and not worry that she’d overestimated her ability to handle this.
So lost in her thoughts was she, that she almost walked right into a young woman with the most vibrant purple hair. Phae stumbled in her attempt to stop abruptly and the woman placed a steadying hand on Phae’s arm to catch her. She smiled and placed her free hand over her heart.
“I am so sorry!,” the purple haired woman said, smiling.
“No, I’m sorry, I was stuck in my head a bit, I didn’t even see you there,” Phae countered, laughing stupidly at herself. The young woman removed her hand from Phae’s arm and held it out in front of her instead.
“Seeing as I’ve never met you before, and everyone in this town has met everyone, you must be Miss Morrow,” the woman said, her head tilting to the side ever so slightly, turning her statement into a question. Phae took the offered hand.
“Phae, please. It’s lovely to meet you…?” Phae trailed off, letting the unasked question hang.
“Abigail.” The young woman looked at her watch quickly before offering an apologetic smile to Phae. “I’m so sorry, I’m actually on my way to meet someone, but welcome to the valley. Maybe I’ll catch you around at the saloon later? We can grab a drink, and I can introduce you to the gang.”
Phae smiled and nodded lightly. “Sure, maybe. The farm needs a lot of work, so I’m not sure if I’ll make it, but I can try.” Abigail gave her a quick smile and wave before speeding off toward the mountains. She watched after her for a moment before continuing her slow walk to where she thought she remembered the general store being.
She noticed more subtle head turns in her direction after her encounter with Abigail and kept her eyes forward, gait purposeful. She knew that coming here would make her the center of attention for a while, and she was ready, in theory, for the looks and introductions, but in practice, she was a mild ball of anxiety. She did actually want to be friendly with the townspeople, but the initial wariness she felt projected toward her since she stepped into the square discomforted her.
Phae took a deep breath before pulling on the handle of the door to Pierre’s. She pushed the uncomfortable vibes she felt from the townspeople down, deciding then and there that it didn’t matter what they thought today. As far as the residents of Pelican Town knew, Phae was just some shitty Zuzu City slicker who ignored her inheritance for years until it was convenient for her, rather than pass it off to someone else who could at least keep it under control. Today, she would let them see her as whatever negative outside force they needed to see her as. She would change their minds, in time, but it didn’t have to be today.
One thing at a time.
It was quieter inside than she thought it would be. She remembered Pierre’s as a hub of activity when she was a child, though times had surely and inevitably changed. With a Joja Mart only a few blocks away now, she could tell Pierre’s was struggling to compete.
The few heads that were popping out of the aisles turned to her as the door’s bell chimed her arrival. She imagined they all would have returned just as quickly to the tasks at hand had it been anyone else walking through that door, but they all lingered for an extra breath or two before resettling on the shelves in front of them. She grabbed a basket from next to the door and dove into the nearest aisle, not bothering to even check what it was.
Phae quickly realized she had no idea what she was looking for. It wasn’t the first time she had started over in life, but she wanted this time to be different. A different town with different people and different expectations in what felt like a different time.
She stared blankly at the shelves in front of her; empty crates that should have housed fresh leafy greens and deep red strawberries looked back at her. She hadn’t really considered what she was going to buy, only that she needed something. She also didn’t consider that stocking an empty fridge and pantry would likely end up being more than she could possibly carry home. It was, perhaps, fate that Pierre’s stock seemed to have vanished through the morning and left her with nothing but a few paltry strawberries that no one else wanted to buy. She sighed and moved on to the next aisle, picking through more empty crates.
“Ah, you must be Miss Morrow? Of Sable Farm?” a polite voice called over the shelf she was scouring for anything edible. She peeked over the shelf, with difficulty given her short stature, and saw a middle-aged man in glasses behind the counter smiling in her direction. She vaguely recalled a younger version of him from her childhood, maybe, though she felt fairly confident in assuming that it was probably Pierre. Rather than awkwardly teetering on the tips of her toes to see him, she rounded the end of the aisle and walked up to the counter.
“Hi, yes! Please, just call me Phae,” she said, smiling politely and extending her hand as she approached. He took it firmly and gave it one solid shake before releasing her. The corners of his eyes crinkled as he returned her smile, the beginnings of little crow’s feet that came with age etched into his skin.
“I’m so sorry, you seem to have caught me at the worst time,” he said, motioning toward his barren shelves. “I hope I’m not giving the wrong impression; we’re usually stocked full, and it’s not that we don’t have it, just that my employee was late this morning and we’re running a bit behind with the restocking,” he added. At the mention of his employee, Phae heard the loud thud of a box being put down harder than it probably deserved from what she assumed was a stock room in the back. Pierre’s smile wavered as a small look of annoyance crawled onto his face. Phae smiled sympathetically.
“Oh, it’s no bother,” she lied, though she was not without sympathy. “To be honest, I didn’t really think this shopping thing through. I’m not sure how I was planning on stocking a completely empty kitchen on foot. Maybe this is a sign.” She winked playfully at the older man. He seemed to relax at that and the annoyance bled out of his features.
“I may be able to help you in that regard. While we’re a bit out of sorts this afternoon, I could take a big order for you today and get it collected and ready to deliver to your farm tomorrow, if that would work better for you?” he offered. Phae’s eyebrows raised slightly at the offer and she was more than willing to bite. He continued, as if he needed to pitch his idea just right or she’d march immediately over to Joja Mart. “I know that you could still go to Joja Mart today, but adding an extra few blocks of walking doesn’t seem to make your situation any better.”
“That would actually be amazing,” she said, placing her still empty basket in the basket return cart next to the counter. Pierre clapped his hands together before grabbing a clipboard from behind his desk and handing it to her. Categorized boxes filled the page, waiting for her to check off the items she wanted and their quantities.
“Just fill this order form out and we’ll get everything ready for you. I’ll have it delivered to your farm in the morning as soon as we open,” Pierre explained. Phae took the clipboard and pen from him and stepped away from the counter to lean against the nearby wall while she filled it out. She still hadn’t come up with a meal plan, but she figured she couldn’t go wrong with a little bit of everything that looked good. She was always able to make use of everything in some way.
A shuffle, crash, and annoyed grunt from the back room caught her attention as she was puzzling whether she would actually be able to use as much kale as she was getting ready to order. She glanced up toward the doorway to the back, the semi-opaque plastic dangling down from the door frame waving in the breeze created by a fan she could barely glimpse behind it. Pierre’s smile faded to a frown as he turned and poked through the flaps, speaking quickly in a hushed but angry whisper to whomever was back there.
She could hear the edges of a heated discussion, but couldn’t make out what was actually being said. She glanced up again from her clipboard and looked through the swaying plastic barrier at Pierre. His back was mostly to her, but she could see an agitated finger pointing at a man in an apron, who seemed to want nothing to do with it. She noticed the man’s hand curled into a fist at his side before her eyes wandered up to his face. His eyes flicked over Pierre’s shoulder at that moment and met hers. She quickly returned her attention to the clipboard in her hands and tried to focus back on her own problems. Like eating.
I guess even small towns have their issues.
When she was confident that she had ordered what felt like enough to feast for a month, she walked back up to the counter and waited awkwardly for Pierre. She heard more shuffling coming from the back and chewed the inside of her cheek. A soft hand on her shoulder startled her and she flipped around, inhaling sharply.
“Oh dear, I didn’t mean to scare you,” a polite and ancient voice said. Phae plastered a quick smile on her face, feeling ridiculous. A little old woman stood behind her, her silver hair wound into a bun and her body hunched over a cane.
“No, please, I was just daydreaming,” Phae said, laughing nervously at herself. Idiot .
“You must be Gerald’s granddaughter,” the old woman said again, her smile widening. “I haven’t seen you since you were a small little thing.”
“That small little thing didn’t get much bigger,” Phae joked, jabs about her height a familiar safety blanket. The old woman let out a light cackle.
“Dear me, it is so good to see you again, little Phaedria,” she said.
“I’m so sorry, it’s been so long, I’ve lost your name,” Phae said. In truth, she wasn’t sure if she remembered the old woman at all, but life had taught her that small lies could create big joys.
“Oh dear, you don’t have to humor me, I know it’s been a long time,” the woman joked, her eyes suddenly becoming sharp with intelligence. “My name is Evelyn. Gerald was a dear friend to our family, and now so are you. You just call me Granny, dear.” Phae smiled, a true and genuine thing that she couldn’t have held back, even if she wanted to.
“Nice to meet you again, Evelyn,” she said, pausing before leaning in slightly, “Granny.” Evelyn chuckled. “You can call me Phae. Phaedria can be a bit of a mouthful.”
“Nonsense. I’ve always thought it was a beautiful name for a beautiful girl and nothing about that has changed, dear,” Evelyn said. Phae felt like a child being scolded for not liking her name. Truthfully, she really did just think it was a mouthful for some.
“Welcome home, Phaedria,” Evelyn added, patting Phae’s arm gently before leaving a few bills on the counter and turning to leave, a small bag of groceries in hand.
Phae’s heart lurched slightly at Evelyn’s words and the warmth with which she’d said them. The slapping sound of the plastic flaps being pushed aside brought her attention back to the counter as Pierre emerged from the back, plastering a less than sincere smile on his face to cover his frustration.
“All finished, Miss Phae?” he said, holding his hand out for the clipboard. She passed it to him and he briefly ran an assessing look over her order before nodding. “This looks great. And as an apology for today and a welcome to the valley, I’ll knock 20% off your order,” he said, smiling. Phae returned his smile and thanked him for his generosity. While she wasn’t completely destitute, she had no idea when, or if, she was even going to start turning any kind of profit with the farm, and she’d gladly accept the help if Pierre felt he could offer it.
“We open at 9 tomorrow morning and we’ll need a little bit of time to load up the truck, so expecting it will be about 10am for your delivery. I won’t be able to leave the store, so it’ll be my employee, Sterling, doing the drop off,” Pierre explained. Phae nodded, her mind wandering back to the disgruntled man in the back room.
Let’s hope he’s having a better day tomorrow.
The evening sun was blinding her by the time Phae surfaced from the field closest to her cottage. She had returned to the farm after leaving Pierre’s, eager to get to work. The growing season had only just begun, but she felt weeks behind with the amount of clean up she needed to do before she could even think of planting anything.
She stood on her porch and wiped the sweat from her brow, gazing out at her brief afternoon of handiwork. For a third time that day, a rush of air puffed her cheeks out. She’d only been at it for a few hours, but the field she’d been working on looked exactly as it did when she woke up that morning, save for a growing pile of branches and a few wheelbarrow loads of rocks discarded off to the side.
Phae was no stranger to hard work, no matter the type, but she couldn't help feeling a little defeated at the lack of visual progress, despite the piles of evidence nearby.
One thing at a time.
She sighed as she quickly realized that the one thing she needed right now was a shower. And dinner.
Okay, maybe two things.
She silently thanked Robin, yet again, for all the work she put into repairing the cottage as she stepped into the hot shower. The work was hard, but it was honest and simple, and in a life where everything up until that point had been anything but, Phae was grateful.
She flopped onto her mattress after her shower, forgetting that she lacked a bed frame, and the fall was much farther than planned. A waning sunbeam burst through the window and she rolled into it. The warmth was welcome; she felt chilled from the lingering damp on her skin and her wet hair. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, welcoming the slight ache in her body as it settled into the mattress.
By the time she opened them again, the sun was gone, her room was dark, and her hair was mostly dry. She furrowed her brow and slapped around her bed blindly, searching for her phone. When she found it and checked the time, she had to rub her eyes to make sure she was seeing right.
8:38pm.
Her stomach growled in protest, as if her eyes had confirmed a suspicion it had been holding on to for the past couple of hours. Phae groaned and rolled over, the ache in her body having long since turned into stiffness. She climbed clumsily off of her bed, bracing against the wall and pulling herself into a stand. She shuffled slowly into the kitchen, yawning, and pulled the door to her fridge open.
Right.
She let the door close slowly on its own before leaning against the counter and sighing. With no food in sight until tomorrow morning, she supposed she had no choice but to make the walk into town to find something to eat.
She grabbed the flannel shirt she had thrown on her kitchen table from earlier and dug out another pair of jeans and another white tank top, too tired to dress to impress for her unexpected night out. She remembered then that Abigail had invited her to the saloon that night, and since she knew it was the only place in town to get a cooked meal, she supposed she should at least try a little bit.
She put her dirty farm boots back out on the porch and grabbed her clean black boots from inside instead.
Just a little bit.