There are certain times when it is impossible to recognize that one tiny thing is about to greatly alter the trajectory of your life. Perhaps it's a split-second decision you make that starts off a long chain of events, or a situation that you have absolutely no control over. Or, maybe, if you were a young, red-haired girl living in the small village of Mineral Town, it's a mysterious wanderer that you just so happen to come across one morning in the middle of spring. Whatever the circumstance, it may not be until long afterwards, when your existence has nearly reached its end and you are quietly reflecting upon your life, that you will notice it.

Here follows once such instance.

Chapter One

Entrance

"Goddess, we thank you for all that you have blessed us with in this life. We thank you for this food that we consume and the food that we serve, and we humbly ask that you continue to provide us with the blessings of your crops. Amen."

Ann opened her eyes and uncrossed her fingers. She smiled at her father from across the table. It was mid-spring and she could already see the lovely morning light streaming in through the kitchen window. She picked up her fork and knife and started cutting her blueberry pancakes into squares.

She was in high spirits and was indeed thankful for the food in front of her. Her father was easily the best chef in town, and she was grateful for the opportunity to work with him in the inn that her family owned and had run successfully since the sixties.

She continued on to her scrambled eggs, which were mixed with freshly picked green bell peppers from their small garden. Life wasn't so bad in Mineral Town. It was pleasant, really. It was a tight-knit community filled with about eight or so small families and a few bachelors. Everyone more or less got along. She had grown up with four other girls around her own age, and they had remained fairly close through childhood and their adolescent years. Each was independent and unique in their own way. Karen, who was her closest friend of the four, was fiery and full of passion, but also dedicated and practical when she needed to be. Mary was shy but exceptionally brilliant and a very talented writer. Popuri was pretty, girlish, and extremely friendly and charismatic toward everyone she met. Elli was fiercely loyal to her family, hardworking, intelligent, and protective of her closest friends and particularly her younger brother. And she, Ann, was an amalgam of things. She considered herself a good friend and listener. She knew she was nowhere near as intelligent as Mary or even Elli, nor as bubbly as Popuri or as passionate as Karen, but she felt that she at least somewhat embodied each of these qualities. Most of all, she was an appreciator of people, and she was always there to lend a hand if someone needed it. She was also a budding chef and a businesswoman in training. Her father was her main role model when it came to developing these traits.

Once she had rid her plate of the last of her breakfast, she took her and her father's dishes to the sink and quickly rinsed them. She grabbed an apron from a hook on the wall and threw it around her neck.

"Ready, pumpkin?" her father called to her.

"Yep. Just a sec," she replied, running back to grab her white signature hair bow and quickly tying it into her hair. "OK, ready."

She followed her father out of the back room and into the main dining area of the inn, where visitors were just starting to trickle in.

Ann glanced over at them, ready to greet her routine morning customers. Harris, the town officer, would be there to grab a cup of coffee and a bagel before he made his rounds. Zach always stopped in to eat a large breakfast and chat with her father about the weather, the crops, current events, or perhaps politics. Won would drop in every once in awhile to try and sell various things to her father, who generously bought them even though he had no need for most of the objects. Around nine, a sleepy-eyed Gray would find his way downstairs to grab a quick bite and then head out the door to the blacksmith's shop where he worked with his grandfather. He would give a sorrowful "mornin'" to Ann as he shuffled by. In return, she would shout some sort of encouragement, perhaps a "show 'em what you got!" or a "today's your day!" as he passed. He would raise a hand in gratitude as he walked out the door.

She was ready for the normal daily routine when she all of a sudden stopped short. There, amongst the usual customers, was someone she did not recognize. He was already sitting at a table, glancing through a menu that had sat dustily on one of the tables. Ann turned to her father in curiosity.

"Hey, Pa, who's that?" she said out of the corner of her mouth, gesturing toward the unknown visitor. He quickly glanced over to where she had indicated, and then continued walking to the counter.

"That," he said, pausing to say good morning to Harris, "is just some vagrant who wandered in late last night. He paid for a couple nights, so he'll most likely be gone in a day or two." His tone was somewhat disparaging, which she felt was unusual for her father. It seemed his impression of him had already formed.

Still, she was friendly by nature and did not wish to be so quick to judge, so she set aside any preconceived notions and went over to his table. He did not look up at her until she was standing next to him and had cheerfully welcomed him to the inn.

She felt a small leap in her chest that she could not explain when his gaze met her own. He had piercing brown eyes that nearly threw her off balance. His chestnut hair was shoulder-length and shaggy, and was casually tied behind him. He had a nice face. She found it quite attractive, even. But something about his look was unnerving her, and she turned away instinctively as he thanked her in reply.

Ann remembered her manners and asked if he would like anything to eat.

"Hmm, just some toast," he told her. He tried to hand her the menu.

"Oh. Uh," she paused, then pushed it back at him. "That's okay, just keep it on the table."

He smirked and set it down, leaning back into his chair and putting his feet up on the one across from him.

She turned back toward the bar for a moment, and then paused.

"Oh, by the way, I'm Ann," she said, plastering on a smile and sticking out her hand. He looked at her from the side but did not shake it.

"Cliff," he simply replied, and then he went back to relaxing.

She turned, embarrassed, and walked off. Halfway to the kitchen, she was fuming. It seemed her father's impression of the wanderer was correct.

Later, during the midday lull, Ann and Karen sat up by the Goddess spring, dipping their feet in the water. It was very pleasant weather, and Ann was glad for the reprieve.

"Hey, what do you think of that new guy?" she asked, leaning back onto her hands and trying to sound casual.

"Oh, Cliff or whatever? He stopped by the store earlier. Kinda hot," Karen replied.

Ann nodded in agreement, but thought to herself for a moment. "Kinda weird, though."

Karen took a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket and stuck one in her mouth. "Yeah, I guess," she responded, pulling out a lighter.

Ann wrinkled her nose at her. "Ugh, you know I don't like it when you do that, Kare."

Karen lit the cigarette anyway.

"What? I've been under a lot of stress lately, practically running the store by myself and all."

Ann knew this was true, as Karen's father was not very assertive and would often let the villagers get away with discounts that the store could not afford.

"Anyway, back to the subject at hand," Karen said, taking a quick drag from the cigarette. "How long do you think he'll be around?" She exhaled a large cloud of smoke.

"I'm not sure exactly. My pops said he only paid for a couple nights so I assume that's how long he's staying." She paused. "At least, I hope so," she added.

Karen turned towards her and looked at her with one of those knowing looks she often gave her when she was reading her mind.

"You kinda like him, don't ya?" She smirked, continuing to stare down Ann as she turned slightly pink.

"What? No," Ann retaliated. "I mean, yeah, he's attractive and all. But he's rude. Probably thinks he is better than all of us or something."

"Ohhh, Ann… you soo wanna tap that," Karen laughed, sending smoke at her in the process.

Ann coughed and waved her hand to clear the air in front of her.

"Goddess, NO, Karen. I'm not you." Her words had a small sting to them, and Ann instantly regretted them.

Karen seemed not to notice. "Well," she said, taking another puff and breathing the smoke out above her, "I guess I'll have take a shot at him then." She winked over at Ann, who rolled her eyes.

"He's only staying for a couple of days, you know."

"Perfect," Karen replied, smiling and stamping out her cigarette.

Ann had not encountered Cliff for the rest of the day. That night, she lay in bed thinking amongst her father's snores. She did not mean to judge the new visitor so harshly, but there was something about him that she was unnerved by. He had a succinct way of conversing, maybe, but she did not really know enough about him to form any conclusions about his character. She decided that if she saw him the following day she would try to get to know him better.

She was resolute in this decision when her ears perked up to a nearby noise. At first she thought she had imagined it, but as she focused she could hear the bass thumping from some music playing upstairs. It was coming from Gray's room directly above her. She wondered at it, since he hardly ever played music, let alone loud enough that she could hear it. It grew louder still. She could hear some synthesizer, guitar, and the thin, high voice of a man singing.

After debating a moment, she got up and put on her slippers. She was a light sleeper, so she decided to go and kindly tell Gray to turn it down. As she shuffled up the stairs and toward the room, the music became louder. A slight odor that she couldn't quite place hung in the air.

She knocked twice, and got no response. She knocked again, and then opened the door a crack and poked her head inside.

"Gray?" she called out, but she did not see Gray. Instead, what she saw was Cliff relaxing on his bed, joint in hand. Instantly, her eyes widened and she slipped inside, shutting the door behind her.

"What the hell are you doing?" she exclaimed over the music. Cliff looked at her calmly and took another hit.

"Relaxing. Do people in this village often enter a room uninvited?" he asked with more of an amused expression than an angry one.

"Put that out!" she continued, ignoring his statement. "And can you turn that off?" she pointed toward the small dock and iPod he had out next to him.

"What, you don't like Radiohead?" he asked, smirking. He turned the whole thing off and put the joint out in the ashtray on the table.

"I've never heard of them," she replied defensively.

She lowered her voice, feeling anxious. "But anyway, what are you doing with the... the, you know... marijuana?" she whispered. "That stuff is illegal, you know. Even in small villages out in the middle of nowhere."

She put her hands on her hips and tried to muster up the sternest look she possibly could. No way in hell did she want her father waking up and finding her up there amidst a cloud of pot with a total stranger.

Cliff sat up and met her eyes. She felt her heart skip a little again against her better judgment. He raised an eyebrow at her. "What, are you gonna turn me in? You've never smoked pot?" He asked it as a serious question. Suddenly she felt like a naïve child.

"No," she responded curtly, turning her head to the side and avoiding his piercing gaze. "I don't have any interest in it, and I don't think any of the other villagers do either."

"You may be surprised," he replied cooly. "Anyway, if it bothers you I won't smoke it here. It's not that big of a deal."

Ann blushed slightly. She hadn't realized he would give in so simply. She stood embarrassed for a moment, then looked around the room.

"Wait, where's Gray?" she asked, suddenly aware that it was just him there.

Cliff shrugged. "I dunno. He could be out banging some chick for all I know. Or just, y'know, out. It's like ten o'clock."

Ann felt childish again. "Yeah, well, some people go to bed early around here. We have work in the morning," she replied.

Cliff nodded. She remembered that he had already been up when she first saw him that morning and suddenly felt stupid.

"Er, well, I'll leave you alone," she said, finding the doorknob behind her with her hand. "Oh, and uh, try and get that smell out of here," she added.

He smirked. "You should loosen up a little more, you know."

She felt like yelling, but she didn't respond. Instead, she nodded good night and departed angrily from his presence for the second time that day.