Pelican Town's mayor, Lewis, and the local carpenter, Robin. Both had given their introductions and small chitchats to Sheena before they left in the direction of the bus, and as she could see somewhat, in the distant there were houses and buildings, so that was probably the direction of the town she now resided in.

She could follow them into Pelican Town and meet everyone else, of course. She could do that.

But it'd definitely feel somewhat awkward if, after staying over at the farmhouse and deciding not to sleep, after waving farewell to them, she ended up following them in the same direction anyways.

Sheena sighed and glanced to her right instead, where, through the wave of stones and trees scattered around, there was yet another building a far distant away.

...well, it's not like towns are in perfectly square shapes, she thought. Maybe that's still part of town too.

A small feeling of hope surged within her, and the blue haired girl decided to walk in that direction instead, carefully avoiding all the littered stones and branches around the farm. At least it wouldn't be so awkward now, since she wouldn't immediately run into Lewis nor Robin right away.

...

Ahead of the south exit, there was a river flowing through a forest. Close to the path connecting to her new farmland, there was a silo, another house, and a barn or ranch (she hadn't educated herself on farming knowledge and the likes yet); a fair distance away, another house stood alone, right in front of the river.

Sheena stared ahead, unsure of what route to take. Should she approach the large house between the silo and a barn? Or should she approach the lone house by the river?

Actually, should she approach any house at all? The girl had only arrived in this town. Maybe the sudden appearance of a stranger would turn people away - who was this girl to suddenly try to get acquainted with the others, as if she was a part of the community? Going up to them and bothering them like that...

Perhaps it'd be better she tried to stay out of everyone's life, rather than intrude on them. They probably have their own circles and communities and everything already, after all.

Sheena sighed. No, these are way too negative. I should at least try my best to adapt. The girl clapped her cheeks a few times, before glancing straight ahead. "I... I can do this. I can do this." Determined, she began walking to the house by the river.

...then she crouched down in front of the river, looking down at her reflection.

Ah, no, not right now. The girl closed her eyes. What a coward I am. But... it's scary. What if they think I'm weird?

She shook her head. Then she got up.

And then she crouched back down.

Just... just a bit more. I'll just stay here and calm my nerves. Sheena took in a deep breath, then exhaled. Then she opened her eyes and continued staring at her reflection, and the occasional one or two fishes that swam underneath the surface.

Seconds passed, becoming minutes, then maybe hours? She couldn't tell.

At some point, the sun, or something, seemed to show up in the top left of the water in her vision. Staring at the sun is a bad idea, and she didn't really have any reason to stare at its reflection either, so the girl decided not to... wait, that's not the sun, that's...

A curious face stared back at her through the reflection.

Sheena's breath hitched. She tried not to let it show that the girl had been surprised.

Exhaling, the girl opened her mouth, still staring at the water. "Um... hello."

"...hi there," the other girl replied. She was a beauty, her hair a nice shade of brown or orange, her lips shining under the sunlight. Her green attire complimented quite well with the surrounding environment, all the trees, the shrubs, the river and the fishes within, the scattered branches and...

...huh. It's littered in the forest too? Sheena blinked, before she finally decided to turn her head to the girl standing besides her. "...um. I'm... I'm new here."

"I see." The girl chuckled to herself, then crouching down to, well, crouch alongside her. "That explains why I don't recognize you. Though I figured that already."

"...okay." Sheena turned back to the river, her inner thoughts becoming disarrayed. Oh no. I said something stupid and obvious, didn't I? Please stop talking, me.

"So, I'm guessing you... like fishing?" the girl asked.

Blinking, the blue haired newcomer slowly shook her head. "Not really."

"Oh." The girl went silent, racking up possibilities in her head. "Then... you like swimming?"

"...not really." Come on, she's asking because she wants to know. Just tell her or something. The girl sighed. "Sorry. I'm... I'm not used to, um, interacting."

"I see. Shy and nervous?" the girl asked. Sheena nodded hesitantly, feeling like she was exposing her own weakness. "That's understandable. I guess if I had to move to a new environment, I'd be pretty silent too. But that's okay, there's nothing wrong about that." Smiling, the girl extended a hand to the other. "My name's Leah. You?"

Sheena stared at the girl's hand for a while, before reluctantly taking it. "...Sheena."

"Sheena. That's a nice name," Leah commented.

"...thanks." Sheena mustered the strength to a small smile. "Sheena Hatsumi."

"Oh, a family name. You have one, huh?" Leah asked. At the blue haired girl's confused head tilt, she chuckled. "It's not a big deal. Most of us living here have kinda stopped caring about it, and eventually we forget our family names. We really just hit it off from the start with our first names, pet names, the likes." She scratched her head, staring upwards. "Although I think the only one who cares enough to remember their family name is Mr. George, but... oh, sorry, you probably wouldn't know him yet."

Sheena shook her head. "...sorry."

The green attired girl chuckled. "No need to apologize, you didn't do anything wrong." The girl pushed herself upwards and extended her hand again. "C'mon, here. Want to go around Pelican Town with me? I can show you around the place, if it helps."

She's offering to show me around town. What do I do? Sheena blinked. Actually, I don't think there's anything bad about that.

Smiling again, the girl decided she might as well as accept the offer. She took Leah's hand and stood up.

"Okay. Thanks, Ms. Leah."

Leah chuckled again. "Oh, no, please. Just call me Leah, no need for formality." She then began walking away, pulling the blue haired girl along. "Now, c'mon. I'll show you this nice bar I love going to - great place to start at when it comes to meeting people!"

Well... I suppose she's friendly. Sheena slowly nodded, following after the girl.


Far away, in two separate locations, two individuals felt a strange presence. One resided within an isolated tower, hidden away in the corners of the forest, putting down the book of unknown knowledge he had been reading. The other hid herself away, deep under the ground, occupying a space within the sewers, pausing in the middle of her stirring of the cauldron in front of her.

Despite their different locations, they glanced in the direction of Pelican Town, their eyes narrowing.

"How odd... I believe this is not an ordinary presence, not one belonging to a normal human, at the very least..." the wizard in the tower remarked.

"Fascinating... I spy myself an interesting creature up there! I must know what they are..." the witch in the sewers cackled.

Together, they clasped their hands together, one performing a clap, another rubbing their hands maliciously.

"Time to make a move..."